AN MD83 PIC RPT ON A HDG TRACK DEV OCCURRING WHILE THE FLYING FO WAS ATTEMPTING TO CORRECT A JAMMED ACARS PRINTER WHILE CLBING OUT ON THE CHANNEL 1 DEP PROC FROM SNA; CA.

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THE FO WAS FLYING THE SNA CHANNEL 1; SHAFTER TRANSITION DEP PROC. DURING TAXI; THE FO INFORMED ME THAT THE ACARS PRINTER HAD JAMMED AFTER PRINTING THE LOAD CLOSEOUT. BECAUSE OF THE SHORT TAXI TIME AT SNA AND BECAUSE THE PRINTER WAS NOT NECESSARY FOR FLT; I ELECTED TO DELAY ANY ATTEMPT TO UN-JAM THE PRINTER UNTIL WE WERE INFLT. ATC HAD CLRED US TO FL230. JUST AFTER REACHING FL180; I COMPLETED THE AFTER TKOF/CLB CHKLIST. SINCE THE R80'S DO NOT AUTOMATICALLY XMIT THE XPONDER CODE FOR THE SNA NOISE ABATEMENT PROC TO SNA OPS; IT WAS NECESSARY FOR ME TO CALL OPS BY RADIO AND GIVE THEM THE CODE. I ADVISED THE FO THAT I WAS LEAVING THE ATC FREQ TO CALL SNA OPS. DURING THE TIME THAT I WAS LOOKING UP THE OPS FREQ IN FLT MANUAL PART II AND CONTACTING OPS; I WAS UNAWARE THAT THE FO WAS ATTEMPTING TO UN-JAM THE PRINTER AND FLY THE ACFT. AS I WAS COMPLETING THE XMISSION; I REALIZED THAT HE WAS WORKING ON THE ACARS PRINTER. I CAME BACK UP ON THE ATC FREQ AND JUST AS I WAS GOING TO MENTION THAT HE SHOULD NOT BE WORKING ON THE PRINTER THE TURN NBOUND TOWARD LAX AT SXC AND WERE HEADED TOWARD WARNING AREA 290. ATC GAVE US AN IMMEDIATE TURN TO 360 DEGS DIRECT TO LAX. WE WERE CLBING THROUGH FL193 JUST W OF SXC. I TOOK CTL OF THE ACFT AND MADE AN IMMEDIATE TURN TO THE ASSIGNED HDG. ONCE ESTABLISHED DIRECT TO LAX; I RETURNED CTL OF THE ACFT TO THE FO. ATC GAVE NO FURTHER INDICATION OF ANY PROB; AND WE PROCEEDED ON NORMALLY. ONCE LEVEL AT CRUISE ALT; I DISCUSSED WITH THE FO THE PRIMARY DUTIES OF THE PF. I POINTED OUT THE PARAGRAPH IN THE OPS MANUAL VOLUME 1 THAT STATES THAT THE PLT RESPONSIBLE FOR FLYING THE ACFT 'WILL NOT PERFORM ANY DUTIES WHICH COULD OR WOULD DETRACT FROM THIS PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY.' THE FO SAID THAT HE UNDERSTOOD THIS RESPONSIBILITY AND APOLOGIZED FOR HIS ERROR. LATER IN THE FLT; WE UN-JAMMED THE ACARS PRINTER.