Please run the HPLIP 'hp' backend manually like this
It may need to be run as root with
Is your printer enumerated as expected?

You may need to check that all is well the HPLIP using
You can share the output by uploading to http://pastebin.com/ and posting the link to it here for us to review.

Result: error: This distro (i.e linuxmint 17.2) is either deprecated or not yet supported.
The diagnosis is limited on unsupported platforms. Do you want to continue? !!!???

Were you able to continue?

I did continue, got a list of missing items, installed all of them. I opted to delete printer and updated to 17.3. Started all over again and this is the message I got, running hp-setup from terminal:

HP Linux Imaging and Printing System (ver. 3.15.2)
Printer/Fax Setup Utility ver. 9.0

Copyright (c) 2001-15 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, LP
This software comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY.
This is free software, and you are welcome to distribute it
under certain conditions. See COPYING file for more details.


(python3:3756): Gtk-CRITICAL **: IA__gtk_widget_get_direction: assertion 'GTK_IS_WIDGET (widget)' failed

(python3:3756): Gtk-CRITICAL **: IA__gtk_widget_get_direction: assertion 'GTK_IS_WIDGET (widget)' failed

(python3:3756): Gtk-CRITICAL **: IA__gtk_widget_get_direction: assertion 'GTK_IS_WIDGET (widget)' failed

(python3:3756): Gtk-CRITICAL **: IA__gtk_widget_get_direction: assertion 'GTK_IS_WIDGET (widget)' failed

You might be more comfortable using a GUI. Install hplip-gui and things might be easier, or maybe not.

Already tried HP Device Manager, HPLIP Toolbox, terminal hp-setup--Nothing. I can send a test page from the CUPS web interface and it shows up in the print queue, what's the story there?

It's hard to see where you got to with your verbal description. The fact that you mention trying to print a test page indicates that you got the printer configured somehow? The configured printer URL will confirm that the HPLIP (hp) backend is in use
Any print-related processing errors should be found in /var/log/cups/error_log, and CUPS logging verbosity can be increased first using
Review this troubleshooting guide for more info.

I decided to give up on the HP. Traded it for a Canon Pixma. Doing that I did make some progress, I sent a print job to the printer (from my laptop) and it showed up in the print queue. Still doesn't recognize the scanner.

lpstat:
MG2500-series accepting requests since Sun 27 Mar 2016 05:18:02 PM MDT

LogLevel did nothing

What do you mean 'Loglevel did nothing'? Do you mean that you issues the cupsctl command given and that when you tried to print you were not able to observe any useful output in /var/log/cups/error_log? Vague statements about things that don't work only leaves others who could help to guess the details. Concrete commands and output are preferred, otherwise things become impossible to diagnose (let alone to resolve).

Now you are using a MG52xx-series multifunction printer. Canon has proprietary printer and scanner driver packages for this and related models. Did you install those? The proprietary scanner driver and Canon scanner utility (scangearm2) is needed for scanning with this device. The available scanning package comes as a .tar file, and needs to be extracted first. It provides DEB and RPM archives (scangearmp-mg5200series-1.60-1-deb.tar.gz and scangearmp-mg5200series-1.60-1-rpm.tar.gz). Extract the deb archive and you'll see that it contains the required .deb packages and an install script (install.sh). You can execute install.sh, or use your package manager to install 'scangearmp-common_1.60-1_amd64.deb' and 'scangearmp-mg5200series_1.60-1_amd64.deb' manually. The package manager will install any dependencies at this time. (Even though I don't own such a printer, I successfully managed to install the equivalent RPM packages on my openSUSE system without issue.)

This Canon device DOES require scngearmp as the front-end. It can be accessed via Gimp as well. You cannot use the normal scanning utilities because of the way the proprietary Canon scanner backend and libraries work.

This Mint 'how to' may also be of help to you with getting the scanner packages installed.

LogLevel returned no result,no data and no info. So I don't think it did anything.

My Canon is an mg2520, not 5200 which is wireless I think. I have already installed a gimp plugin and downloaded an installation called Scangear, which is supposedly the Canon software, haven't installed it yet. That's on the agenda for tomorrow. I traded in the HP for the Canon because I have worked with Canon printers and scanners in the past, so I'm more familiar with them. That's not true of the HP.

The cupsctl command was used to set the logging level. One still needs to methodically examine the CUPS logs to diagnose where the problem is. I would really recommend taking the time to read the CUPS troubleshooting guide I linked to.

Sorry, I misread the Canon model you have. The same principles apply though.

http://www.canon-europe.com/support/...20%2864-bit%29

Good luck with this.