[sane-devel] SANE backend epson2 and Epson Perfection V700 Photo

[Adolf Winterer]

Hello Olaf,

Am Montag, 17. März 2008 01:19 schrieb Olaf Meeuwissen:
> Alessandro Zummo <azummo-lists at towertech.it> writes:
> > On Sat, 15 Mar 2008 13:42:18 +0100
> >
> > Adolf Winterer <adolf.j.winterer at inn-salzach.de> wrote:
> >> > > 2. What function is currently NOT supported in the epson2 backend
> >> > > for the V700 Photo?
> >> >
> >> >  dunno, maybe Olaf knows..
> >>
> >> Is Olaf reading the sane-devel list? Can I contact him?
> >
> >  He is reading and it usually answers quickly, I believe he is just
> >  busy.
>
> Yes, I am reading.  It's just that I only read the list when at work.

It is good to hear from you, thank you for chiming in.

> I don't have the product spec handy (and seeing that I added support
> to iscan 

This is one of my real problems: iscan is 32-Bit software (right?), it will be 
no real good for my 64-Bit environment. And there are less and less 32-Bit 
Linux installations nowadays, adding to this problem.

> for this model about two years ago) so I'm not too sure about 
> the device's functionality.  At a minimum the high resolution support
> will be lacking a bit.

Hm, it would be a real help if I knew what is missing or the other way around, 
what is working properly.

> The upcoming iscan release (2.11.0) should 
> address that, though.  Then in the TPU area, you will most likely be
> missing support for IR, 

IR for the TPU is not on the top of my list, I could live without it.

> if it supports that (I think it does), but I'm 
> not sure what Alessandro has added to the epson2 backend.  The only
> other thing that springs to mind at the moment is support for the push
> buttons.

OK, the buttons are a feature I won't need, definitely.   :-)

> Hope this helps,

It helps a little bit. The question I have to answer is: If I purchase a V700 
Photo, do I get a working device with the epson2 backend or do I get an 
expensive, useless brick on my desk? I no longer accept proprietary software, 
there had been to many really bad experiences in the past and the situation 
did NOT improve.

Is there a scanner product from Epson that is similar to the V700 Photo with 
full support in SANE? If yes, what would you recommend?

From your mail address I see that you are working for Avasys. In the hope that 
you have any influence inside Avasys or at least can relay this, please let 
me state:
"Outside of Windows and MacOS, please move your support more to the open 
source side, for scanners this would be the SANE project. A binary driver is 
always cumbersome in an open source environment, be it Linux, *BSD, 
OpenSolaris or others. A source file can be compiled on many platforms, i386, 
amd64, ppc or other. But with a binary file you are stuck very fast as it 
cannot be adapted or corrected. If Avasys lacks manpower, then at least be 
generous with openly available documentation and / or participate in the 
Linux Driver Project. Thank you."

Best regards,
   Adolf Winterer