I have an older Canon MG6320 ink jet printer with a touch interface.
Lately, my cats have decided sitting on the printer (one at a time) is a good idea. I’m fine with this – it keeps them off the desk, and they’re not going to break the printer. Even if they do, well, then I get to justify getting a new printer to my partner.
Anyway, when they get on the printer, invariably they step on the power “button”, which means I have to hit the power button to undo what they did:
- Turning on the printer takes rougly 1-2 seconds, and results in a short beep.
- Turning it off, even right after it was turned on, takes roughly 60 seconds, with the printer clicking and clacking and whirring and making all sorts of noises that attract cats.
I’ve taken to unplugging it when I don’t need it.
I hate printers.
Start to print once they’re up and they don’t like it anymore.
Btw, my sis’ cat has a favorite place on the sofa and sis just places a towel there, no hairs on the sofa anymore.
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/molly-guard
molly-guard
Etymology: From Molly (female given name) + guard.
Originally a Plexiglas cover improvised for the Big Red Switch on an IBM 4341 mainframe after a programmer’s toddler daughter (named Molly) tripped it twice in one day. Later generalised to covers over stop/reset switches on disk drives and networking equipment.
If you don’t want to make one, can buy premade ones of the appropriate size; for a printer, I assume that you’d just superglue it in place.
I appreciate the info, but I wasn’t looking for a solution - I just wanted to vent a little…
Pretty sure leaving your inkjet unplugged can get the nozzles clogged, be careful
W. T. F.
I will repeat my earlier statement: I hate printers.
The real problem then, is having an inkjet instead of laser.
Which is why I don’t mind if they break it - it would let me justify getting a decent laser jet printer.
I last owned an inkjet about 2000. Since then, the worst I’ve owned is a infrared thermal printer that was, well, a bit slow (infrared in 2005!). I’d still take that printer over any inkjet.
Tape a piece of craft paper/cardboard over the power button.
You can also only tape one side as a flap to turn on/off.
Perfect, my cat loves his new flappy paper cat toy with a fun clacky whirly noise button under it
I just spit out my coffee reading that, and I wasn’t drinking coffee at the time…
If the cat is actively trying to push the power button, then that’s probably an issue – he can probably figure out how to flip up a cover and push the button beneath it. But OP says that he’s just accidentally stepping on it. Even if he wants to play with the cover, most-likely not going to actually flip the thing on.
Yes, it’s an accident - the power button is just a touch sensitive spot on the printer - but they do like to play witn paper, so this would invariably lead to more shenanigans.
LPT: Don’t let cats sit on your printer.
I’ve literally had to fix a cat pissed corroded printer before. Not good.
Meh, if that happens I’ll just replace the cheap commodity printer… I’m not fixing anything, except the cats.
