Hello.

I'm running Ubuntu 6.06 (Dapper) with an HP 1310 3-in-1 printer/scanner.

Scanning seems to work (XSane), but I can't get print output (from XSane, Gthumb, or Eye of Gnome) to come out normally. All printed results come out smaller than the original document (some much smaller).

On Windows this is no problem because HP installs its own scanning software - if the software is the issue.

Does anyone know how I can scan a document and print out something that looks close to the original?

Any help appreciated.

Thanks

I thought your 3-in-1 printer-scanner (I've tested some other model, 1510 or something) should be able to do a copy job (scan & print) without a pc, by itself. But anyway if this problem is with printing system on Linux, open Ubuntu's printer settings (somewhere in the settings menu), check which system you are using (probably CUPS, 'Common Unix Printing System') and then the settings of it; I think there are some values you can change, and perhaps one of those helps. Another thing is that when you print you should check the printer preferences, there the paper size and margins so they match the image. And when you scan, make sure the resolution and other measures are all right; you can scan for web use, and you can scan for print use, and those two -- just like digital photos -- have a bit different dimensions, depending on where you'd like to use the image. It needs to be somewhat big-looking on your screen to fit on a regular paper.

Hello.

Thanks for the reply.

I looked around at some of the stuff you mentioned. Unfortunately, most of the configuration options mean nothing to me. So I haven't tried to change them. The documentation is only for those who know printer technology ... which I don't.

Anyway, I think the problem is more basic. I hadn't discovered this before because I'm in the process of migrating to Linux completely ... IF I can. This includes business functions. So, I've still been doing mission critical work on Windows, while exploring the possibilities on Linux.

Therefore, I only checked that the printer worked ... I didn't look into the subject more deeply. Now I have.

It seems the problem is not the printing of scanned documents alone. There's something wrong with the way Ubuntu is using the printer. I had noticed that printed text documents were coming out smaller than on Windows, but thought that could be fixed by using a larger font. Never tried.

No, it can't. Doubling the font size has no effect on the printer output! I don't really understand printers, but I know they have their own internal settings. I have no idea how one accesses those and I don't want to. I want Ubuntu to control the printer, like Windows does, i.e. send commands consistent with the formatting, etc., that I'm using ... NOT just tell the printer to do its
default thing.

Any idea how to make that happen?

All help appreciated.

Thanks.

PS - The HP printer can function like a copy machine without a PC. Scanning, however, requires software.

i noticed the drivers for my printer dont print well in linux, xp drivers work better, i just print from there

Wow! That doesn't sound good. Do you mean Linux just can't handle printing with a common type of printer like HP?

I just checked printing from Open Office using different font sizes. That seemed to work fine. I had been printing a document from gedit. Font size there means nothing in the printout ... just changes the display.

So, maybe this isn't a general printing problem after all. That brings me back to the original question of how to scan a document and print it out the same size as the original.

Any ideas how to make that work? Is it the scanning program (xsane)? Are there others available?

I have found that linux prints just fine. Something is probably not set up right.
Things to check:
If your printer is set for, say 300dpi, then if you scan at 300dpi and print, the image should be the same size. If you scan at 75dpi, and print at 300, the image will be smaller than the original.

What paper-size to you have your printer set for? You are using ubuntu, so the "configure your printer" options are not accessed through the usual cups interface on http://localhost:631, but somewhere off your "System Settings" menu (For kubuntu it's K-> System Settings -> Printers). Have a look there and check what paper-size your printer defaults to.

Thanks for the reply.

The scan was set at 75 and the printer at 300. I changed the scan setting to 300. This increased the file size, but the printout is still small. It looks like about 80%-90% of the original if I print from Eye of Gnome. Printing from gThumb comes out much smaller, so maybe it has something to do with the image viewing program. Neither seems to have any configurations I can adjust.

Paper is set for A4.

There are a difference between printers and scanners when you want a 1 to 1 ratio. Though you can let the unit do this with out any computer by pressing the copy command.

Go to http://www.scantips.com/ to understand scanners, printers, and video resolution.

However, I am not sure if the Linux community is up to par on this type of information even though Linux is used in Hollywood and broadcasting.

I'm not sure what you mean by letting the unit do it with the copy command. Are you talking about the printer itself? It CAN copy without the PC, but not scan.

A copy machine contains a scanner and a printer. You are trying to do a 1:1 copy of the document. I am I right. If so, you can copy the document by hitting the copy button the unit. This will scan the document and print the copy of the document. If you are scanning the document and storing it in digital form for future copies, then you will have to read information on the site that I gave you.

Thanks.

This is getting kind of strange. I don't know why Linux programs tend to be so weird.

Yes, you're right about copying. What I need is, for example, to receive a document (via FAX or e-mail) to by signed and dated . Then print it out, sign, etc. and rescan to be returned by FAX or e-mail.

I read some of the stuff on the site. However, scaling in these programs seem to be a % and is set at maximum (100%) by default. I tried his other option ... using a larger image size ... by opening the scanned image in GIMP (which I don't know very well) and enlarging it. The print output came out smaller!

The configuration options he shows on the site seem to be for Windows programs. The Linux ones I have don't have anything that corresponds very well.

On Windows, you just scan and get an image which prints out like the original. But then, its using proprietory HP software which comes with the unit.

However, since I managed to change the printout size by manipulating the image size (albeit in the wrong direction), maybe the solution lies there. This seems to be some sort of direct proportional arrangement.

I'll just have to experiment and, if I get anything close to the right setup, write it all down so I won't forget how I did it.

Thanks very much for your help. Wish me luck.