Why do some MS-DOS applications print incomplete pages in Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows NT?

John Savill

September 26, 2001

1 Min Read
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A. MS-DOS applications use the NT spooler to print. The spooler waits for a timeout period (15 seconds, by default) to expire before sending data to the printer. If the print job takes longer to generate than the timeout period, the spooler sends the generated data to the printer, causing the print job to split over multiple pages.

To work around this problem, perform the following steps to increase the timeout value:

  1. Start the registry editor (regedit.exe).

  2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlWOW.

  3. Double-click LPT_timeout.

  4. Set the LPT_timeout value to a longer time (e.g., 30 seconds).

  5. Click OK.

  6. Close the registry editor.

About the Author

John Savill

John Savill

https://savilltech.net

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