I have a Samsung CLP300 colour laser printer.
When I connected it to my laptop, in each of both Ubuntu 8.04 and
Debian 5, which was installed as a clean install, the printer was
automatically installed and set up (I didn't have to do anything - it
just appeared as an installed printer, ready to use).
When I connected the printer to this desktop computer, the same
happened with the Ubuntu 8.04 installation.
When the printer was connected to this desktop and the desktop was
running Debian 4, the printer (apparently) could not be installed.
So (and, for other reasons), I yesterday upgraded the Debian
installation on this computer, to Debian 5, following the Release
Notes instructions. The only problem of which I was aware, in the
upgrade, that was encountered, was the loss of the graphics adaptor
driver, and thence XWindows, which was subsequently, easily (after I
was advised of the solution), ovbercome.
But, I cannot install the printer driver on this Debian 5
installation.
The printer was not automatically installed and set up, ready to go,
as it was with the clean installation of Debian 5 on the laptop.
In trying to manually install the printer, using the foomatic-gui
application, that application detects the printer, and, goes through
the (apparent) process of installing the printer, but, at the end of
that process, when it should have successfully completed, the printer
is not added as an installed printer. I have tried adding the
printer, via the foomatic-gui application, using both the splix and
the foo2qpdl driver options, and, until the final screen appears,
that lists the installed printers, shows that the printer is not
installed, it all seems to be going okay.
I have also tried to add the printer to the installed printers, using
the System -> Administration -> Printing -> Add Printer facility,
but, whilst that detects the printer, the printer driver is not
listed as an available printer driver, to select.
Why is it, that a clean install of Debian 5, automatically installs
and sets up the printer, ready for use, like Ubuntu 8.04, but, a
Debian 5 installation that is done as an upgrade from Debian 4,
still disallows the printer from being installed.
Can this be overcome?
At present, I have to revert to doing what I was doing before
upgrading the Debian installtion on the desktop, to Debian 5; if I
want to print, using the CLP-300, I have to reboot into Ubuntu 8.04,
as the Debian installation again does not allow the use of the
printer.
It is frustrationg, that a Debian 5 installation, that is done by
upgrading from Debian 4, is so different to a Debian 5 installation
that is done as a clean install, meaning that a Debian 5
installation that is done as an upgrade from Debian 4, is more of a
combination of Debian 4 and 5 (like a system that is a combination
of stable, testing and unstable), than a Debian 5 system, and is
thus, not truly Debian 5.
I had intended to add other new printers, including a Samsung
multi-funtion thingy, to my desktop computer, but it appears that a
Debian 5 installation that is an upgrade from Debian 4, does not work
for adding printers, anywhere as well as a Debian 5 installation that
is done as a clean install, so making it apparently, too much
trouble.