What's wrong with this microfilm reader ?

Question

I've been making printouts on the microfilm reader at my local public library . This microfilm reader has a little thumbnail sized window . When the number "1" appears in this window, the printer works perfectly . When the number "L2" appears in this window, it will NOT print anything ! When I asked the library staff what was wrong, all they could do was scratch their heads in confusion . NOW -- what does the number "L2" mean when it appears in the little window ? How do I get it printing again ? If nobody knows the answer, how do I find out ? Thank you for your answers .

Answer 1

Out of film.
It's probably not catching on the teeth when it's loading a new roll. There's so many different kinds of readers out but it's probably the end of the roll is worn so it won't catch. On the ones that read L2 inspect the ends of the roll and if they look bigger around than normal it's just the film that's bad--if the ends look great and it still won't catch it might be the teeth are worn so it won't catch all the time. If the film looks bad if you can pull out some more and cut off the bad end.
It depends also on what type of microfilm it is--35mm or 9mm. I just assumed it was 35mm since a place like a library tends to use that size for it's durability.
It could be the smaller 9mm and if it is then the same things apply--check the roll ends for wear, creases and folds and just cut off the bad stuff,