Elbow wrote:
> hello there,
> 
> I recently acquired an Epson printer from a friend, model number PM
> 900C, and unfortunately I snapped the driver disk. Now I am finding it
> increasingly difficult to locate a driver on the Internet.  Perhaps
> this is because of my lack of Japanese language ability or I am just
> searching in the wrong place.

Friends don't let friends use Epson.  It's a fact of life.  Hopefully, 
the donor of the printer isn't a person with whom you are planning to 
spend the rest or a reasonably large portion of your remaining life 
with.  If so, it is A Sign.  Hide the knives and sharpeners.

> I've been to Epson Japan but the only driver that I can locate seems
> to be a DOS driver here is a link.

> http://www.epson.jp/dl_soft/list/1078.htm

> When I tried to install this driver I got a command prompt pop-up
> saying that this system wasn't compatible.

It says that even when it is the same version Epson tested it on before 
release.  Epsons are incompatible with everything.  It's a wonder how 
they manage to stay in business.

> Does anybody have any idea where I can get a driver for this printer
> or even the European/American equivalent of this driver.
> I'm using Windows professional XP service Pack 2.
> I hope you can help me out,

Epson Japan specifically WILL NOT guarantee that it's printers made for 
the Japan market will work with anything other than a PC running 
Japanese Windows.  A lot of the big box stores will suggest that you buy 
another brand.  PC Depot, for example, will not even offer to sell a 
foreigner an Epson printer and will try to talk you out of it even if 
you have J-WIN ... and especially if you use English WIN regionalized 
for Japanese and can use most Japanese software and visit most Japanese 
language web sites.

If you don't take suggestion one, which is "Buy an H-P or a Canon 
printer ASAP."  then I agree with Marvel that you need to find something 
that is roughly equivalent.  Personally, I rate "finding an equivalent 
Epson driver" on the line just ahead of "cabin boy on a Greek freighter."

I don't think the link he provided goes to the machine that is most like 
yours, though.  How to find the right one:

You will have to go by a combination of case style and the lists of 
features (which will not be 100% the same as the Japanese models have an 
incredible number of toy features and crap programs that do things you'd 
never think of trying in one million years of use).  Epson uses hardware 
(EPROMs) to differentiate feature capabilities and to cripple any number 
of Japan-market capabilities among their overseas markets.  Most other 
makers just do it in software and you can jimmy it to add or subtract a 
lot more features that way.

Epson builds it's printer series around print head design.  In the old 
days ... and maybe still now ... the print head part number was 
identified in the specs and you had to find the English market machine 
with the same print head number as the Japan one.  Usually, they have 
three or four print head designs and about three or four related numbers 
in the design series in use at any given time -- but not all print head 
numbers are in use in all markets.  Focus on print head number and print 
head capabilities to get to the machine that is closest for a driver 
that is in the same language as your OS.

Installing Japanese IME and using the WIN XP driver may also work and 
save the most time and sanity ... and hair.  Or not.  It may also ask 
why you're not running on an NEC 9801 as all Epson printers are 
compatible with those.

If it were me, I'd dig deep and come up with the jack to buy an H-P ...

-- 
CL