LINUX-INCOMPATIBLE HARDWARE

[bob466]

I'm surprised no one mentioned Printers and Scanners...how many times do people come on Linux Forums complaining that they can't install them.

Even when you find and download the drivers for both...finally get them to work...they don't work as well as they do in windwoes because they are designed to run in windwoes.

I have my Printer and Scanner installed in Linux Mint and my win 7 VM and it's much easier to download the windwoes drivers and install them and I get the ink levels too.

 

[Brickwizard]

The biggest problem is with the manufacturers, most do not want to spend the development cost of having driver's and apps written for anything other than the 2 big commercial distributions, So it's down to the boys and girls of the various Linux teams to back engineer compatible ones, [Like the active members of this and other support sites, they are all giving their time and efforts for free to the Linux community,] and it takes a lot of time to develop and test their work, so its understandable that with things like printers, they only produce basic driver sets, and why it can take months for drivers to be developed for other new components,

 

[Condobloke]

Linux Mint - Community

Linux Mint - Community

community.linuxmint.com

 

[wizwanabe]

Wow, interesting post. I find it interesting that @sp331yi mentions Toshiba! I have two toshiba laptops that run Linux Mint 19 Cinnamon and Linux Mint 19.3 Cinnamon. No problems from day 1. I also run several Dell desktop computers with Linux Ubuntu18.04.01 LTS, 20.04.1 LTS, 20.04.4 LTS, openSUSE Leap 15.2. I have not had any problems yet and hope too continue with problems. For some reason Linux seems to work with the older desktops pretty good. Looking forward to seeing how this thread goes.

 

[Brickwizard]

I have two toshiba laptops that run Linux

don't forget this post is now just over 2 yrs old, and some of the drivers have now caught up with older models

 

[Raul_McCai]

So it's down to the boys and girls of the various Linux teams to back engineer compatible ones,

It doesn't have to be.
If we were a little more aggressive that would change.
You can see examples of this in the world of politics. People organize letter-writing campaigns to makers of everything from potato chips to car makers and they respond.
I wrote a short terse letter to Audi because I thought their support of a particular opinion show was unwarranted and told them that I bought a BMW (instead of the Audi that I was going to buy) because of it. They called me to see if I was real. I never saw an Audi ad on that program again.
That's how sensitive Marketing is to negative information.

If we routinely communicate with the manufacturers of components and peripherals. Ask if they are Linux compliant and demand that they become so. Their Marketing departments would get wind of it and it would stir them to act. But so long as we just passively accept it as "our problem" nothing will change. Why should it?
Especially when Microsoft is greasing their palms to ignore us.
We don't have the $$ to throw around like Gates does but we have the numbers. there are more linux systems on the planet than there are windows. Our problem is that we don't make enough noise, so the manufacturers can just blow us off as " those people who are looking for something for nothing."
We need to be communicating to the best manufacturers about their latest and greatest hardware about things like Inte's Alder Lake, Asus, AsRock. all the big names demanding their attention.

 

[forester]

I'm surprised no one mentioned Printers and Scanners...it's much easier to download the windwoes drivers and install them and I get the ink levels too.

I stay away from anything other than Canon or Epson, and research the models before purchasing. In fact, I bought a Pixma inkjet for 40 USD that lasted me years and met my needs more than adequately.

Had a Workforce multi- that was 160 USD when bought. Everything worked well, including scanner. Liked it. (My now-deceased sister liked it better. Never saw it again.)

Everything else I have had trouble installing, including some HP products.

 

[osprey]

On the matter of printers, one can navigate to the directory: /usr/share/gutenprint/5.3/xml/printers/ to discover what the gutenprint package of printer drivers support. For example:

[tom@tip /usr/share/gutenprint/5.3/xml/printers]$ grep -i toshiba *
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Toshiba e-Studio 220cp" driver="toshiba-e-studio_220cp" manufacturer="Toshiba" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Toshiba e-Studio 2830c" driver="toshiba-e-studio_2830c" manufacturer="Toshiba" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Toshiba e-Studio 3530c" driver="toshiba-e-studio_3530c" manufacturer="Toshiba" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Toshiba e-Studio 4500c" driver="toshiba-e-studio_4500c" manufacturer="Toshiba" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Toshiba e-Studio 4520c" driver="toshiba-e-studio_4520c" manufacturer="Toshiba" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Toshiba e-Studio 5500c" driver="toshiba-e-studio_5500c" manufacturer="Toshiba" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>

[tom@tip /usr/share/gutenprint/5.3/xml/printers]$ grep -i samsung *
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung CLP-620" driver="samsung-clp-620" manufacturer="Samsung" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung CLP-660N" driver="samsung-clp-660n" manufacturer="Samsung" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung CLP-660ND" driver="samsung-clp-660nd" manufacturer="Samsung" model="50001" parameters="pcl_laser_params">UNTESTED Automatically Generated</printer>
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-85" driver="samsung-ml-85" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-1250" driver="samsung-ml-1250" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-1450" deviceid="MFG:Samsung;MDL:ML-1450;" driver="samsung-ml-1450" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-1450PS" driver="samsung-ml-1450ps" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-1650" deviceid="MFG:Samsung;MDL:ML-1650;CMD:PCL5E,PCL6;" driver="samsung-ml-1650" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-1651N" driver="samsung-ml-1651n" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-1750" driver="samsung-ml-1750" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2150" driver="samsung-ml-2150" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2150PS" driver="samsung-ml-2150ps" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2151N" driver="samsung-ml-2151n" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2151NPS" driver="samsung-ml-2151nps" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2152W" driver="samsung-ml-2152w" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2152WPS" driver="samsung-ml-2152wps" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2250" driver="samsung-ml-2250" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2550" driver="samsung-ml-2550" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2551N" driver="samsung-ml-2551n" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-2552W" driver="samsung-ml-2552w" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-4600" driver="samsung-ml-4600" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-5000a" driver="samsung-ml-5000a" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-6000" driver="samsung-ml-6000" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-6100" driver="samsung-ml-6100" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-7000" driver="samsung-ml-7000" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-7000N" driver="samsung-ml-7000n" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-7000P" driver="samsung-ml-7000p" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-7050" driver="samsung-ml-7050" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-7300" driver="samsung-ml-7300" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ML-7300N" driver="samsung-ml-7300n" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung QL-5100A" driver="samsung-ql-5100a" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung QL-6050" deviceid="MFG:Samsung;MDL:6050;CMD:PCL6;" driver="samsung-ql-6050" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />
pcl.xml:      <printer translate="name" name="Samsung ProXpress SL-M3820ND" driver="samsung-sl-m3820nd" manufacturer="Samsung" model="6" parameters="pcl_laser_params" />

Although some printer drivers are marked "UNTESTED", it usually means that the driver mightn't cover all functions of the printer, but in my experience, it will get the printer to print.

The models are inevitably a bit older than the latest models, but that's the consequence of engineering the drivers for linux. There are other printer driver packages which can be installed and inspected for what works with linux. In my own case, gutenprint provides the driver for an HP LaserJet 4 which has served for over a decade which has meant virtually automatic printer detection through cups and problem-free printing.

 

[forester]

@osprey -- I've run across that list, before, yes. Thanks for the reminder!

To be more certain the printer to be purchased will work with most GNU/Linux distributions, one can, if so desired, peruse the list of printers, drivers, et cetera, at openprinting.org.

For example, see link, above.