According to a report from the latest update of Windows, the owners have encountered problems for some printer owners Windows latest (via Gizmodo). Users report that they get a blue screen when they try to open the print dialog from Notepad, Office, or other applications. (You know the annoying ambiguous error message like ‘Your computer has had a problem and needs to restart’? This is the one.)
Microsoft is aware that attempting to print in certain circumstances may cause your computer to turn blue, and has listed the error on the Windows 10 support page. It looks like the company has not issued a correction at this time. “We are currently investigating and will provide an update when more information becomes available,” the website said.
It is not clear how widespread the problem is, but Windows latest says it has ‘seen numerous reports of errors appearing here and there’. The bug appears to include several printer brands, including Kyocera, Ricoh, and Zebra. “There have been at least 20 confirmed cases from 4 different clients, and it’s just an hour a day,” one reader told the publication.
Windows users also complain about Reddit. “This issue has been confirmed on four computers,” said one Reddit user. “We have only received three calls from customers who are all experiencing the same problem,” said another commenter.
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If you are experiencing this issue, the easiest solution is to reinstall the latest Windows update. To do this, open Settings> Update and security> Windows Update> View update history> Uninstall updates> Uninstall or remove the patch manually at the command prompt. Some Reddit users have confirmed that this fixes their issue.
A user claiming to be a Microsoft employee also posted two workarounds on Reddit, confirming comments that he was working. You can enable direct printing in the command prompt, or you can use the Compatibility Administrator tool to apply a solution, depending on the application you are using. Both processes are complicated, so this is the best way to go read that Reddit comments if you want to try it.