Oh no! I'm sure I won't be able to solve the problem in a post since you've clearly been trying for a while, but I'm really curious what distro and what printer? I've had nothing but smooth sailing with printers.
It’s a Canon LBP 6200d, so an old, USB-only laser printer. I currently run Linux Mint, and have tried EVERYTHING I could find in any corner of the internet on it, as well as Zorin and Ubuntu previously. Never worked on any of them. Says the printer is installed and ready to go, but nothing prints.
Ugh. That's really frustrating. It's all made for wifi enabled printers these. I'm sorry to hear it's stymied you like that.
It reminds me of trying to get Linux to recognize the camera on a MacBook. Loads of instructions online and people saying it's possible, but nobody's actually *done* it.
Canon are notoriously bad (though they used to be good). Lexmark too? Cheap cos its all done in software, not the printer. They don't bother with Linux.
Yeah, I only still have it because it works perfectly and I can’t afford a new one. It’s a hand-me-down from a friend. When it finally dies, I will definitely not be getting another Canon.
I figured it was something like that,and the problem these days is printers are fake-cheap because toner is such a grift.It's like how TVs are fake-cheap because they're counting on harvesting and selling your data.We need a good word for stuff that's inexpensive to buy but expensive in other ways.
Most of my GNU/Linux machines needed no configuration to use my network printer. They simply found it and offer it as an option when printing. Windows, meanwhile, made me install branded bloatware
This is it exactly. I think there are competing definitions of "easy," here. To me, having made the switch, "easy" includes typing "sudo apt-get install..." It does not include wrestling for AN HOUR with with a website that requires a credit card before I can use the hardware I just bought.
I'm using a Debian variant on an old laptop, and I have my printer set up and have put together a digital audio workstation with an audio interface on the little beastie.
I don't agree based on personal experience but the good news is that Windows is getting so bad that wrestling with Linux will become preferable in a few years by default
Fair. That's why I said "probably." Linux does have issues,no question,but it is looking like MS is pushing the edge of enshittification,making Windows just a LITTLE too shitty for people to stay with it. But if MS pulls back,they could rescue their monopoly. We'll see if they're capable of that.
GNU/Linux remains completely usable and has for years. Yes, it may take some time getting familiar with it if you’ve been a Windows person forever, but is’s pretty damn simple.
I've found the transition no more frustrating than when I transitioned to Mac from Windows. It's mostly the same stuff in different places on the screen.
I installed Linux Mint a few weeks ago, and it detected and installed my wireless printer during installation without a hitch. LM is the best desktop OS I've ever used, hands-down.
I know, right? In most distros printer set up pretty much automatically. No downloading drivers, just a notification saying your printer is ready to use.
Been a Linux user since Slackware distro '91-'92? Still run CentOS on my dev box but only in run level 3.
I hate the UIs. Big fat fuzzy fonts and icons, slow UI graphics. I always end up going back to Windows and shelling into my dev server.
I think 10. My experience was that I really gave Ubuntu a shot about 12 years ago, and it didn't recognize the trackpad on my laptop, and I was stumped. There was no clear way forwards. I wanted to switch, but I couldn't. I can see that being a discouraging experience.
Yeah, "doesn't recognize my trackpad" would be a Hard Nope from me. I *do* carry a USB mouse with me everywhere I go, but I don't always have a place to use it (e.g., the subway).
Sure, and they recognize *almost* everything on my MacBook these days... except the camera! If not for that, I'd still be on that laptop because an eight-year-old MacBook's camera (and screen) are still as good if not better than the average PC laptop.
at this point it’s more stable than windows honestly, plus there’s no ads unlike windows (even though you’re meant to pay for it) so linux is better all around really
Exactly. The only issue, which has come up in this thread, is when people thinking advocacy = force. Like no man, I'm just saying "I think this is better for X, Y, Z reasons." You can do whatever you want with that, including *nothing*.
Depends on your needs and preferences. If you're new to it and you're coming from Windows, then Linux Mint with Cinnamon (the desktop) is a *great* onboarding version, and loads of people stay there. Personally, I came from Apple, so I gravitated towards Gnome, which is really built for Debian.
But if you want flexibility in your desktop, then try KDE + Neon. If you want to be on the bleeding edge then you might try Fedora.
All *that* being said, I also choose based on the actions of the organization. I love that Debian is a non-profit. I don't love Fedora and Ubuntu bc they're not.
Ultimately, what I actually recommend is to use Virtual Box to load a few different distros/desktops, and then try them out. See what you like. The distro is ultimately less important than the desktop, IMO and FWIW.
Sure, I did that too, but what I found as that live previews didn't give me the time I needed to fiddle with desktop settings and make it comfortable, to install programs and see how they'd run, etc. Virtual machines let me do all that.
It's a matter of preference. There's a YouTuber I like who said (paraphrasing), "I don't want everyone to use Linux. I want everyone to have the option of using Windows, Apple, or Linux, and to have the choice be *hard*." I like that. It's all about actual choice rather than MS's monopoly.
But you’re right, Linux has come a long way! I switched to Linux Mint about six months ago and haven’t had a single issue. Actually I find it more useable than Windows.
I haven't been on Windows in decades, but yes, Mint is entirely usable. It "just works" about as well as I recall Windows "just working." A good friend of mine was very concerned when I made the switch because he thought it would be nothing but a pain in my ass, but it's been thoroughly *fine*.
I built my desktop for gaming, mostly just use it for FF14 and SW:TOR and once I was in a game I was like "I love this thing" but as soon as I actually had to interact with Windows, hated it. Now I even like the computer part of my computer lol
I am using Ubuntu for web applications and web sites. I use Apples for my local host. But I would rather use linux instead. I wonder which linux variant would work best for me?
[shrug] I can tell you which ones I like and why, and I could tell you what I've learned about the ones I haven't used, but the whole point is that it's a matter of preference.
I will say this, though. I was an Apple user for nearly 20 years, and I ultimately decided to use the Gnome desktop because it feels a little like OSX.
Ha! No. That's a joke anyway. It's a thing people say because they know it's not true and said every year. It's the inverse of when Leafs fans say, no really, *this* year they're going to win the Stanley Cup.
Probably an issue with an older version of Raspbian not having an app store, as they were originally marketed for education where you would have to learn how to do that anyway so you may as well.
Even without an app store...package managers have been a thing since before Ubuntu even existed. They're not as new user friendly as app stores but most will automatically ask to install dependencies & involve either mouse clicks or a single terminal command & hitting "Y" a couple times.
I bet that was it. I know it was possible but it involved prompt commands that were over my head as a new user. That and when I did try to install stuff it literally took hours to download and compile (I think) and I lost patience with trouble shooting.
I tried it once for desktop and all 3 DEs I tried had settings for per monitor scaling factor but not one of them worked correctly. So multi monitor was basically unusable
Yeah, that's a real limitation. I was quite shocked to encounter it at first since Mac handles all that invisibly. Wayland is better at it, but it's still an issue. I don't think it's "unusable." I think it's inconvenient. But YMMV.
Yeah unusable was somewhat of an exaggeration and my setup surely isn't the ordinary but it made atleast one of my screens be way less useful or convenient to use
Also there was no HDR support yet on Linux which might have changed aswell. I do still use Linux for servers or on my steam deck though. I just think the desktop experience has some really rough edges
I used thr Mint XFCE distribution about 10 years ago and found it fun to play with. Are these just very technically challenged folks? Sudo commands were a joy to use.
Well, my point honestly was that ten-ish years ago, Linux was still pretty clunky. Ubuntu, the approachable one, wouldn't recognize the trackpad on my MacBook back then, and I gave up bc I didn't know what to do.
But yeah, some are "technically challenged" in the same way that I'm "challenged" at other things. (It's finances. I hate them.) I know someone who's legit way smarter than me but would 100% give up on a problem that involved the Terminal.
I have a couple of Linux boxes, but I will never forget trying to get a video capture card working in Linux, somebody in a forum saying, "Linux can do everything Windows can," finding out there was no driver for my card, and seeing, "You bought the wrong hardware." Bitch, it WORKED FINE IN WINDOWS.
Yeah, this is a bummer. You do have to make sure you have a computer that's compatible. It won't go on just anything, and I think because 80-something percent of computers are designed for Windows, it's easy to conclude all OS's should work with all hardware.
I never want to sound like the person you're describing, but I think the fundamental problem here is "who to blame". You can blame linux alone for sucking, but why can't the hardware manufacturer make a driver?
Oh, for sure. But more than I find closed-source hardware vendors annoying, I *loathe* the fanboys who trumpet how great Linux is, and move the goalposts when their stated-with-certainty claims turn out to be WRONG.
This is fair! It's not magic. It's got its problems. I would just like people to be aware that if their attitude is, "Linux sucks" (end of thought), chances are they're misinformed or lacking in relevant information.
These are not incorrect statements. If there were drivers from the manufacturer for all operating systems, the hardware would work well in both Linux and Windows. This is the fault of the manufacturers and those who buy the hardware have to check if there are drivers for Linux before complaining.
There you are! The Linux fanboy trope I loathe! I had the hardware first, and wanted to try it in Linux! Some jackass like you said, "Linux can do everything that Windows can!" It turns out that said jackass was WRONG, so, just like you, he moved the goalposts to, "you bought the wrong hardware!"
Comments
It reminds me of trying to get Linux to recognize the camera on a MacBook. Loads of instructions online and people saying it's possible, but nobody's actually *done* it.
Personally I vote with my feet.
No Linux support, no buy.
/Ends.
sudo apt install libusb-1.0-0
https://tinyurl.com/sensys-lbp6200d https://tinyurl.com/lasershotlbp6200d
Printers never work no matter the OS
(And the last time I used Linux was when I was a literal child before school forced us to get a Windows license for homework CDs)
1.)
That's it.
I hate the UIs. Big fat fuzzy fonts and icons, slow UI graphics. I always end up going back to Windows and shelling into my dev server.
If there's a printer I can't browbeat Windows into using I know I can slap it onto a Linux machine and 100% have it work.
But as you say, that was ~12 years ago.
But if it ticks all your requirements boxes, then the best thing going
All *that* being said, I also choose based on the actions of the organization. I love that Debian is a non-profit. I don't love Fedora and Ubuntu bc they're not.
But I mostly code on my Mac I just never really used Linux all that much
Except I have kids, and they like to print their computer art. :)
Feelsbadman
I've had frequent issues with HiDPI monitors as well, even when I set the scaling factor equally
No excitement, no extra coffee or donuts needed...