I use hp-setup to add my HP LaserJet 1020 printer to Debian Squeeze
It always amazes me when things don't work out of the box in Linux — even in Debian, where it seems like more stuff works with less effort than ever.
However, I had to go outside of the Debian repositories to get our new Epson Perfection V330 scanner to work. But get it to work, I did.
In the past, I've had trouble getting our el-cheapo HP LaserJet 1020 printer to work not just with Linux but also with Mac OS X. Yep, it's not just Linux that has trouble.
But I figured those days were over, especially now that most Linux systems auto-detect and then auto-install the proper drivers to get printers working.
I needed to print from Debian Squeeze on the Lenovo G555 to the HP Laserjet 1020 in a hurry. If I had more time, I would have done more futzing and maybe come to a slightly different solution.
But time was short (school project for the second-grader; I rarely print at home). I plugged the USB cable into the laptop. The system auto-detected the printer and, with my root password, added it.
But it wouldn't print. Eventually I got a dialog in the GNOME desktop that told me to run hp-setup. I knew it meant to run it in a terminal, but for the newbie it would have been nice to spell that out.
The dialog didn't tell me how to run it (again not helpful to the newbie). But eventually, a few semi-helpful error messages later, I ran it with sudo and in interactive mode:
$ sudo hp-setup -i
I was prompted/asked to install the driver from HP's site. I wasn't super happy about that, preferring to get what I need from within Debian. But I agreed, the script installed the driver, and the printer worked.
I'm never happy going outside the friendly confines of the Debian and Debian Multimedia repositories, but since I was able to get the printer working, I'm OK with it. I just wonder why I didn't have to do this to add a couple of networked HP printers in the previous week and month(s).
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I think it's amazing that it went to HP's website for a driver.
That is such a HUGE improvement over "sorry, we only support Windows".
Did you only have to do that once, or do you have to do it every time you turn off and turn back on your printer? I'm on Ubuntu 11.04 and have to run hp-setup (actually, hp-firmware, which is run inside hp-setup) each time I turn back on my laserjet 1020 to get it to actually print. I didn't have to do that with 10.10, but did for 10.04. Very strange.
I only had to do this the one time. Now the printer works whenever I happen to be connected to it.