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CanoScan 9900f


réjean

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Hi everyone!

Before I start a thread in the hardware section I want to ask you first.

Someone gave us a Canon CanoScan 9900f scanner. http://www.canon.pl/Support/Consumer_Products/products/scanners/CanoScan_series/CanoScan_9900F.aspx?faqtcmuri=tcm:125-520075&type=faq

I don't think it has been used a lot, looks quite new. Do you think there is a chance I might get it working with Linux?

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Guest LilBambi

You are very welcome, and sorry for the bad news.

 

Apparently there is a $39.95 Standard/$79.95 Professional VueScan software that makes the scanner work in Windows, Mac and supposedly Linux:

 

VueScan is an application for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux that is compatible with over 2300 scanners from 35 scanner manufacturers. If your scanner is no longer supported by your Operating System, or you want more advanced features, download VueScan today.

 

That VueScan has been around for Mac users for a long time for scanners that didn't work on the Mac.

 

It says Linux, but who knows...

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I saw that VueScan but I don't think I'll buy it. The scanner was given to us so it's not that we are loosing. Had I purchased a scanner I would have done some research first. We do have a 3-1 HP 1350 printer-scanner-copier that my wife uses. We were also given a 19 in. Samsung SyncMaster 191t plus monitor which works with Linux ( I tried it). I haven't decided yet if I'll replace my LG 19in. Flatron w1942TQ with it or not.

In the meantime I'll keep looking for a driver for the CanScan scanner.

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I had sane already installed;

[rejean@localhost ~]$ scanimage -L

No scanners were identified. If you were expecting something different,
check that the scanner is plugged in, turned on and detected by the
sane-find-scanner tool (if appropriate). Please read the documentation
which came with this software (README, FAQ, manpages).
[rejean@localhost ~]$ su
Password:
[root@localhost rejean]# sane-find-scanner

 # sane-find-scanner will now attempt to detect your scanner. If the
 # result is different from what you expected, first make sure your
 # scanner is powered up and properly connected to your computer.

 # No SCSI scanners found. If you expected something different, make sure that
 # you have loaded a kernel SCSI driver for your SCSI adapter.

found USB scanner (vendor=0x04a9 [Canon], product=0x2210 [scanner]) at libusb:001:004
 # Your USB scanner was (probably) detected. It may or may not be supported by
 # SANE. Try scanimage -L and read the backend's manpage.

 # Not checking for parallel port scanners.

 # Most Scanners connected to the parallel port or other proprietary ports
 # can't be detected by this program.

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Hedon James

FWIW, I purchased a VueScan license back in 2009 to get my Xerox DocuMate 510 working with Ubuntu when I made the switch to Linux. VueScan did indeed make that scanner work in Ubuntu, although my doc feeder would only scan 1 page at a time, which defeats the purpose of a doc feeder. I e-mailed the developer Ed Hamrick and informed him of the bug and he promptly responded he'd look into it, although he didn't say WHEN (I guess I should've thought to ask?). After 2-3 e-mails over a 2-3 week period, he finally responded back that he was a 1 man operation, my bug was "in the queue" behind other items, and he would let me know when it had been addressed.

 

My business routinely requires 25-50 page doc scans that get converted to PDF and appended to a larger PDF. Manual scans are too time consuming! That doc feeder was the WHOLE reason for purchasing the DocuMate (not Hamrick's problem), but his representation that he had a driver for that hardware was the WHOLE reason for purchasing VueScan (that WAS his problem, IMO!). I felt his representation was a little misleading, so I explained my reasoning for purchasing his software and asked him to either A) Fix the bug within 30 days, or B) Refund my purchase price. At the time, he offered a 30-day money back guarantee, but we had passed that window while waiting for him to RESPOND to my request. He never responded to my A) or B) option, so I ended up purchasing a Linux-friendly AIO scanner. A few months later, I did receive an e-mail notification from Mr. Hamrick that the bug had been fixed. So I'll give him props for following through, but a big fat "F" for his customer service skills.

 

I wish I had been given the choice. I wish he would've said "you did notify me within the 30-day period, but I won't be able to address this in a predictable manner, so I'm refunding your money. I'll notify you when the bug is fixed, and I hope you'll reconsider purchasing a VueScan license at that time." The software is actually quite nice and I liked it alot, it was certainly worth the $40 in my mind, if it worked. I can almost GUARANTEE I would've done exactly that. So we ended up in the same place that we are at now, but I would've chosen a different path to get here. The fact that I felt somewhat ignored (acknowledged, but ignored); that he took my money for a feature that was implied, but not actually there yet; that he used up my 30-day window with a non-response; and that he neither refunded my money, nor fixed the bug in the requested time frame, all left a HORRIBLE taste in my mouth. While I don't know what was REALLY going on, it just seemed like Mr. Hamrick was way too busy to deal with me, or he just really needed that $40 I had already sent.

 

Although I still have VueScan on my system, I now use gscan2pdf on my Epson Workforce AIO scanner (Brother and HP also have good Linux support), as Mr. Hamrick destroyed my confidence in his software and I can't let that happen again on my production box. However, that is MY problem; I will readily admit that VueScan is a wonderful piece of software with an awesome feature set and wide range of flexibility. If it was FOSS, it would be THE BEST available, IMO, and I'd be using it now. It sounds like VueScan would be perfect for that CanoScanner and the software would certainly be cheaper than new Linux-friendly hardware. But the caveat is to test ALL FEATURES within the money-back period! In retrospect, I should've filed a bug (I did) AND requested a refund (I didn't) within the refund period. Upon notification of the bug being fixed, we would've tried again with the clock having been reset.

 

I put this out there so YOU could make an informed decision, like I would've appreciated. VueScan might be the solution you're looking for?! In a nutshell, GREAT software, POOR customer service, FYI...

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Thanks Hedon!

I may or may not purchase VueScan (probably not). As I said the scanner (a very nice piece of hardware) was given to us and we do have a working one (HP all-in-three 1350) already.

I should inquire why our friend gave it to my wife (I didn't ask for details at the time). It seems they got a new computer but they don't have a driver for it. He may not be too too computer literate. I'll see if I can help him.

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Hedon James

If VueScan still offers a 30-day money back period, I would certainly recommend that it be considered! Where else can you obtain a "non-existent" driver? And the software itself is top-notch! But if ANY issues are encountered, I would react IMMEDIATELY, and request the refund IMMEDIATELY, and try again at such point in time as Mr. Hamrick represents he has solved the problem.

 

He did what he said he would do, but he put me in a box where I was FORCED to rely on his solution, or buy new hardware, which his software was supposed to alleviate the need for. Instead of paying for 1 or the other, I ended up paying for both. Like I said before, I probably would've ended up doing that anyway, but it would've been MY choice, not his. The software is excellent. That 30-day window is key, though!

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I'll eventually have to look into VueScan because I've got an old Minolata DImage Scan Dual III slide scanner that worked with XP but I'm sure won't work with Windows 7.

Edited by raymac46
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