Need some advice on learning networking

[n25an]

concering wifi and cloud printing

you will find that the built-in wifi on most commercial copiers is weak on purpose...
this is so that the customer has to buy the handy dandy wifi card from the dealer...
its just how it is...

the cloud printing is simply an app that logs into the wifi network and finds the printer and lets the customer print...
if you practice getting this to work... on an android phone... you should be good... any issues... walk a customer through by demonstrating on your phone the steps... or doing it on your phone while doing it on theirs...

the iphone can be a doozy... some of them have different ways of doing things... but if you know how to do airprint... it makes things a lot easier...
airprint is apples cloud printing protocol... (thats my understanding... they may have a different name for it by now... but thats what they called it in my time)
AirPrint - Wikipedia

special note: if the customer is doing any printing from their phone... they have to be on the wifi the copier is on... and the copier has to have all the apropriate options checked and enabled if not you could be there a long time trying to get cloud printing to work only to find out that the guys that prepped the copier had airprint and supporting settings on the copier turned off...

note: if you see bonjour on your copier... its an airprint related setting so turn it on...

now that you got that feather in your cap your next step is to connect to your smart phone to it...
most people dont walk around with laptops anymore its all smart phones... and their apps... so thats going to be the game for guest printing / cloud printing...
for android... if you can print from your android phone... you are good...
for iphone... I recommend getting a 1st or or second gen phone for at most $50... you are only using the iphone on the wifi network and getting airprint to work...
you might have other apps on the iphone side but its probably going to be airprint thats your friend...

so with all your getting make sure your to learn your copiers airprint settings... if it has none... then its going to be app time... and its best to consult your systems engineer as to which he/she recommends well before you get to customer site... remember if it can go wrong with an iphone it typically will but if it goes perfect its as smooth as silk... and it typically is... but you need to practice... remember iphones may have many ways to get to the same function but if you know the function you want the customer can guide you to it... if you can show it to them from your iphone... they won't get upset...

they know the iphone can be eccentric at times... so iphone users tend to be a forgiving lot... wink wink

note: test all this stuff in office before you get customer... lot less headaches... and if you have a nonairprint printer verify that your strategy of printing to it via iphone and smart phone works before you get to customer and explain to customer how it works... if not you are in for a world of butt hurt...

[BillyCarpenter]

concering wifi and cloud printing

you will find that the built-in wifi on most commercial copiers is weak on purpose...
this is so that the customer has to buy the handy dandy wifi card from the dealer...
its just how it is...

the cloud printing is simply an app that logs into the wifi network and finds the printer and lets the customer print...
if you practice getting this to work... on an android phone... you should be good... any issues... walk a customer through by demonstrating on your phone the steps... or doing it on your phone while doing it on theirs...

the iphone can be a doozy... some of them have different ways of doing things... but if you know how to do airprint... it makes things a lot easier...
airprint is apples cloud printing protocol... (thats my understanding... they may have a different name for it by now... but thats what they called it in my time)
AirPrint - Wikipedia

special note: if the customer is doing any printing from their phone... they have to be on the wifi the copier is on... and the copier has to have all the apropriate options checked and enabled if not you could be there a long time trying to get cloud printing to work only to find out that the guys that prepped the copier had airprint and supporting settings on the copier turned off...

note: if you see bonjour on your copier... its an airprint related setting so turn it on...

now that you got that feather in your cap your next step is to connect to your smart phone to it...
most people dont walk around with laptops anymore its all smart phones... and their apps... so thats going to be the game for guest printing / cloud printing...
for android... if you can print from your android phone... you are good...
for iphone... I recommend getting a 1st or or second gen phone for at most $50... you are only using the iphone on the wifi network and getting airprint to work...
you might have other apps on the iphone side but its probably going to be airprint thats your friend...

so with all your getting make sure your to learn your copiers airprint settings... if it has none... then its going to be app time... and its best to consult your systems engineer as to which he/she recommends well before you get to customer site... remember if it can go wrong with an iphone it typically will but if it goes perfect its as smooth as silk... and it typically is... but you need to practice... remember iphones may have many ways to get to the same function but if you know the function you want the customer can guide you to it... if you can show it to them from your iphone... they won't get upset...

they know the iphone can be eccentric at times... so iphone users tend to be a forgiving lot... wink wink

note: test all this stuff in office before you get customer... lot less headaches... and if you have a nonairprint printer verify that your strategy of printing to it via iphone and smart phone works before you get to customer and explain to customer how it works... if not you are in for a world of butt hurt...

I think that's some really good advice. Also, I'm taking your advice on setting up a home lab. I'm in the process of ordering some stuff. Some things I already have. I don't know how much it will end up costing but whatever it costs will be a small price to pay because I need practice...and not in the customer's office. Thanks again.

PS - I'm about to order an Iphone off ebay....like in a few minutes.

[bsm2]

I think that's some really good advice. Also, I'm taking your advice on setting up a home lab. I'm in the process of ordering some stuff. Some things I already have. I don't know how much it will end up costing but whatever it costs will be a small price to pay because I need practice...and not in the customer's office. Thanks again.

PS - I'm about to order an Iphone off ebay....like in a few minutes.

Real world is always the test

Most installs are textbook IE normal but there's ALWAYS a GOAT or Two

But that's how you learn

[BillyCarpenter]

Real world is always the test

Most installs are textbook IE normal but there's ALWAYS a GOAT or Two

But that's how you learn

When I went on that little networking job the other day, it was a real wake up call for me. As simple as it may have been for some, I thought to myself: You don't know shit. You have no business trying to install this copier on their network. And if the customer knew how little I knew, they'd probably kick me out of their office. Fortunately, they knew less than me.


I have a guy that I subcontract networking jobs that I can't handle so I called him in and he took care of it. For whatever reason he doesn't like to explain how this stuff works. He stays super busy so that's probably why.

[bsm2]

When I went on that little networking job the other day, it was a real wake up call for me. As simple as it may have been for some, I thought to myself: You don't know shit. You have no business trying to install this copier on their network. And if the customer knew how little I knew, they'd probably kick me out of their office. Fortunately, they knew less than me.


I have a guy that I subcontract networking jobs that I can't handle so I called him in and he took care of it. For whatever reason he doesn't like to explain how this stuff works. He stays super busy so that's probably why.

That's what I do for now. Same thing most customers how no idea how it works but that's ok we always explain why we need a email account for machine and why need to install OEM drivers and configure for machine to print correctly

[anothertech]

I thought to myself: You don't know shit. You have no business trying to install this copier on their network. And if the customer knew how little I knew, they'd probably kick me out of their office. Fortunately, they knew less than me.

This is how I felt when I started working on copiers, fake it till you make it. The more you do it, the more confident you will get. You will get there, keep studying and practicing.

[BillyCarpenter]

This is how I felt when I started working on copiers, fake it till you make it. The more you do it, the more confident you will get. You will get there, keep studying and practicing.

You reminded me of this copier tech that I once trained. When he couldn't fix a copier he would start apologizing to the customer. Even though he was sincere, the customer really didn't want to hear an apology. It made them lose confidence in him and that's never good. Instead, I told him to just incomplete the call for parts....even if it didn't need parts and make the service manager aware of the situation. Never let them see you sweat. He needed to sound confident in front of the customer. When a person acts confident (fake it til you make it) the customer doesn't know any better.

[BillyCarpenter]

After my little experience the other day when I ran across a network with 2 routers and being thoroughly confused, I realized that I had skipped over some basic stuff so I decided to double back and get my priorities straight. Here's that I learned....

You can use multiple routers. It could be 2, 3, 4 or whatever. But what's the purpose? The purpose, from my understanding, is that each router physically separates each individual network. If you have 4 routers, you're gonna have 4 separate networks.

But you can also logically create separate networks within each one of those networks via subnet masking.

I think I have that right.

[bsm2]

Don't sweat multiple routers or subnets
as long you can print and scan your done.
Ive had enterprise installs that I couldn't ping but the copier printed and scanned.

Normally it You can't ping it it's not Your Problem get with there IT because there is know way to know how there network is setup.

[BillyCarpenter]

Don't sweat multiple routers or subnets
as long you can print and scan your done.
Ive had enterprise installs that I couldn't ping but the copier printed and scanned.

Normally it You can't ping it it's not Your Problem get with there IT because there is know way to know how there network is setup.

It's not the enterprise environments that I'm worried about. I worry about the small companies that don't have an IT person. Who knows who set up their network. No one there could tell me anything about it. They had two different networks but the computer could communicate with both networks. How is that even possible? Ken explained to me that a computer NIC can have 2 IP addresses making it possible to communicate with both networks.

IMHO, it's kinda important to have an understanding of how the network is configured.