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New laptop + old printer = there is no desktop icon????

dmwaslg80
Contributor

Hi all,

 

Any help would be very appreciated as I am beyond confused.

 

I've got myself a new(er) lapttop and I am trying to connect my printer (Canon Pixma MX430). I didn't have the disc it came with so I followed the set up instructions from Canon's website. All went well except the Canon menu icon is not on my desktop and I don't know how to get it there. As you can tell I am not tech savy but I have tried to Google this issue and can't seem to find an answer. I've set it up correctly as I can print (if I go from the Menu, File, Print way) but I want the icon on my desktop as I don't know any other way to use the scanner.

 

TIA

 

Danielle

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

No, it's a different icon but I can scan straight from there so that'll do. I came across My Image Garden when I was looking this stuff up so I'll have a read when I have a bit more time to see if that's any good for me. Basically I have thousands of photos that I need to scan as we are emigrating and can't bring hundreds of photo albums with us.

 

Thanks again for all your help, I couldn't have sorted this without you! I will mark as solved now.

View solution in original post

15 REPLIES 15

HalLeonard
Contributor

OK try this.

You didn't say, but I'm assuming you got a new Windows 10 laptop. If you have a different operating system, you may still be able to figure out how to do this from the following.

 

Click the Windows Start Menu button, on the lower left corner of your laptop screen. The Start Menu opens. If you see "Devices and Printers" over on the right, click that. (If you don't see it, type "Devices and Printers" in the Search window at the bottom of the Start Menu, and click "Devices and Printers" when it appears on the top.)

 

You should see an icon for your printer there on the "Devices and Printers" screen. Right-click the icon showing the Canon Pixma MX430. ("Right-clicking" means use the right mouse button or right touchpad button to click the printer icon. if you can; using the main left button won't work to do this.) A menu pops open; click "Create shortcut" in that menu. It will say it can't create a shortcut here and ask if you want it placed on the desktop. You click, of course, Yes.

 

Did that get you what you want?

 

You can also use this approach to create clickable desktop icons of any programs like Word listed under Programs in your Start menu. You find the name of the program, right-click it, and choose Create shortcut, sending it to the desktop. But you probably can't do that with the printer; you probably have to go to Devices and Printers to do it.

Thank you so much HalLeonard but I am using Windows Vista. I tried the below and there is no "Devices and Printers" option and when I type it in the search box no results are found. I tried via the "Programs" way and again I couldn't see that as an option.

No, Danielle, you won't find those printer icons in Programs. There is a way to do this somewhere in Vista. But I don't have a Vista PC to test this with, so all I can do is try and point you in the right direction after searching on the web to get a general idea of where it might be. I think the place you need to find is the Printers area of Control Panel. I found this webpage:

http://www.computerhope.com/issues/control-panel.htm

 

So again you're going to click that Windows Start button in the lower left of your screen only this time you're looking for Control Panel on the right. Then Printers. You might find Printers in a Hardware and Sound group, or it may be listed separately. Open Printers when you find it and see if you see an icon for your printer. If you find one, same deal, right-click the icon and look for Create Shortcut that you will agree should go on the desktop.

Thanks again HalLeonard but that hasn't worked either. It does create a shortcut but when I click on that it's a shortcut to the printer queue (as in the one that lists all the documents your waiting to print. On my last laptop there was an icon for Canon that let you select the different functions (print, scan, copy, or fax) and that's the icon I can't get??????

Let's try a different tack.
1. Go back to the Programs area of Start. I know the printer icon doesn't appear there, but is there any software listed there for your printer, under Canon [something]. There may be several Canon programs there. Try clicking each one and see if it opens the window you're looking for. If so, you may be able to right-click the program in the Start menu and create a desktop shortcut for it like you had on the old PC.

2. If not, maybe reinstalling the Canon software for your printer will create a desktop icon or at least create the program in the Start menu that you need to create a desktop icon. Your printer may be correctly installed in Vista, but there may have been other optional software that didn't get installed, and one of those programs may be what you need. I can help you find that software online, if you don't have an installation CD to do it, but we need the exact model number. Can you check your model number carefully. I think there may be a digit off there. There are similar model numbers, but I'm not seeing that Canon made an MX430 in the US. Or are you in a different country?

You've been so helpful HalLeonard thank you. Your right, I mistyped, it's MX435 and I am in the UK; just noticed this was a US forum.

 

I don't have the cd so I redownloaded the software from the Canon UK site and still no icon on the desktop. I can print without the icon but what I really need it for is the scanning facility and I don't know how to do that any other way aside from the icon.

 Thank you, Danielle. If we both keep trying, I do think we're going to find a way to get your scan icon on the Vista desktop as it was on your old PC. I just don't know what that way is yet. I'll work on this some more tomorrow.

I tried last night to see if there was a way to scan from the actual machine but couldn't figure out a way. This is the screenshot of what the icon should look like. The keyboard (bottom icon) or whatever it is expands when you hover over it to show the functions; although I think mine looked slightly different. All the other shortcuts just show the printing queue. I am completely baffled.

 

Thanks again HalLeonard.

 

Image result for canon pixma desktop icon

Danielle, does that L-shaped bar actually appear on your laptop's screen? Canon calls that program Quick Menu. I'm not clear from your last post whether you have Quick Menu but it won't open scanning software, or you don't have Quick Menu at all and want it. Let me know and I'll advise you how to proceed.

 

Also think back how you got the printer going on your new laptop. Since you don't have a disk, did you download and install software from Canon? Or did Windows load the driver for the printer without you getting anything from Canon directly? It's possible you got the wrong program, but I can help you find the right one.

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