[sane-devel] sane + ubuntu 14.04 + Epson perfection 3170

[Olaf Meeuwissen]

Pierre LINDENBAUM writes:

>> The Perfection 3170 needs a non-free plugin.  You can get it via
>
>   [1] http://download.ebz.epson.net/dsc/search/01/search/?OSC=LX
>
> thank you for your answer Olaf,
>
> I installed both iscan and iscan-plugin-gt-9400, they both used to work under ubuntu-12
>
> $ apt-cache show iscan | grep -E '(Status|Package|Version)'
> Package: iscan
> Status: install ok installed
> Version: 2.10.0-2
>
> $ apt-cache show iscan-plugin-gt-9400 | grep -E '(Status|Package|Version)'
> Package: iscan-plugin-gt-9400
> Status: install ok installed
> Version: 1.0.0-2
>
>> The iscan frontend only works with the epkowa and net backends.
>
> iscan used to work with my previous ubuntu but I don't know if 'epkowa' was uncommented in my previous dll.con
> Furthermore, there is no 'epkowa' in dll.conf if that's what you mean.
>
> $ grep epkow /usr/local/etc/sane.d/dll.conf$ 

This is not the location of the regularly installed libsane package.
You have installed something compiled from source as well.  This is
often a source of problems.  Is there any particular reason you need
to use this self-built version?

The iscan package automatically enables the epkowa backend in one of
/etc/sane.d/dll.conf or a file below /etc/sane.d/dll.d/.  For Ubuntu
14.04 it would be the latter with a file name of `iscan`.
The backend's configuration should be in /etc/sane.d/epkowa.conf.

If you end up using the dll backend from /usr/local/lib/sane/ it will
in all likelihood *not* read the configuration in /etc/sane.d/.  You
can copy the files installed by iscan to /usr/local/etc/sane.d.  That
ought to make things work but if you don't really need the self-built
version I would get rid of it.

>> Did you install the non-free plugin that is needed for the Perfection 3170?
>
> Yes see above, I'm not sure what you meant by non-free: the plugin is available for download from epson.com

It is non-free in the sense that the source is not made available.
That takes away freedom 1: the right to study and change the program in
source code form.

For why this matters, have a look over at https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/

>>  Is it found by the backend?
>
> how can I check this ?

You can check by make the dll backend show which backends it is looking
for where.  Like so

  SANE_DEBUG_DLL=10 iscan

> Thank you for your help,

Hope this helps,
-- 
Olaf Meeuwissen, LPIC-2           FLOSS Engineer -- AVASYS CORPORATION
FSF Associate Member #1962               Help support software freedom
                 http://www.fsf.org/jf?referrer=1962