(old)Puppy Linux Discussion Forum

An alley find. Made in 1999, according to the name plate. Seems to be in perfect condition, but without a power supply. I have a power supply that makes it light up and make noises when I plug it in, and a parallel port-to-USB adapter cable with a PL-2305 chip in it (according to Puppy's System Information.)

Puppy sees the parallel port-to-USB adapter, but not the scanner it's attached to. XSane image scanning program, that comes with Plinej's BionicPup64 8.0, seems to think it sees a scanner, but when I click the "Scan" button it says, "Failed to start scanner: Invalid argument."

I guess I need to find a driver for the scanner and install it, but I could be wrong. I found this printer driver code that may also work for a scanner, but I have no idea how to use it. Any suggestions?

Since you don't know if the AcerScan Prisa 620P, model 6696-APA
scanner actually works it might be easier to test it on a windows install if available. Windows drivers will be easier to find.

No linux drivers released by Acer (or BenQ that took over Acer scanners)
There was a WinXP driver bundle named mirascanv3424p.zip that seems to still be floating around.

Found that info at these two links
https://web.archive.org/web/20060208200 ... ndsupport/#

https://web.archive.org/web/20060311031 ... ductline=9

.

Well, I don't know what to try next. Bionicpup64 recognizes the bidirectional converter chip in the USB-to-parallel port adapter cable, but not the scanner the parallel port adapter cable is plugged into. The adaper cable was designed with printers in mind, but I think all that's required is to send the right commands through the USB port and the converter chip will automatically convert them to the parallel port format and pass them through the parallel port to the scanner, but how? I'm not sure plinej's Bionicpup64 has the right stuff to do that. I found this about using a USB-to-serial port adapter, but it's not much help.

I still have a computer with Windows XP in it, but I couldn't find any software to run the scanner with it.

Flash wrote:
I still have a computer with Windows XP in it, but I couldn't find any software to run the scanner with it.

These two started a download when tried.
FTP search engine located them.

ftp://ftp.r61.net/hardware/scanner/Scan ... v3424p.zip

ftp://ftp.cstula.ru/oldftp/DRV%26BIOS/S ... v3424p.zip

Good luck!

Thanks, perdido. I downloaded the first one, which seems to be identical to the second one. I assume they're for Windows XP?

Flash wrote:Thanks, perdido. I downloaded the first one, which seems to be identical to the second one. I assume they're for Windows XP?

According to this page yes.
https://web.archive.org/web/20060420064 ... roduct=157

Edited - no ndiswrapper support for printers

This is only the Out house sink approach and is probably useless

A linux possibility though this does not explicitly support the 620p but does support the 620S 620ST 620U 620UT but who knows about compatibility?
They have a trial download but they want to sell you the drivers for too much $$

Interesting site looks like you would need to click the "try vuescan for free" button
https://www.hamrick.com/linux-scanner-software.html
supported acer/benq scanners https://www.hamrick.com/vuescan/vuescan.htm#acer_benq
These I assume are for registered versions/upgrades https://www.hamrick.com/alternate-versions.html
I am not affiliated with these guys in any way shape or form, just looks interesting.
good luck!

I tried vuescan even though it doesn't list my scanner. It started, but couldn't see any scanner. I suspect that's because my Puppy is missing something important. Probably the USB stuff relating to the kernel.

Hi Flash!

Guess you'll have no luck with your scanner.

http://www.sane-project.org/sane-mfgs.h ... ENQ--ACER-

Technical data:

36-bit
600dpi x 1200dpi
It uses a 600dpi ccd system

With win-98 it was Twain-driver compatible.

Well that's very discouraging. A perfectly good and capable scanner, but it can't be used because... well, I'm not sure why.

It's too bad that scanner/printer manufacturers didn't all agree on a common command set like the MMC commands that disk drive makers agreed on.

I have no idea how to even start reverse engineering the damn thing or I might try it. I saw some stuff online about sending commands over a USB cable using the C language, but I don't know a thing about it. I suppose that using C I could send random commands to the scanner in hopes that the USB-to-parallel port adapter cable would do its job automatically and maybe one of the commands would make the scanner do something. That would be a small victory.