From: "Richard Steinfeld" <(E-Mail Removed)>
>
> David, I'm having a real hard time following this procedure in my head.
> In all of this, what does "Windows Update" really mean?
>
> I want to stress one problem that I experienced with my son's Canon printer: Windows
> would not even see the printer at all! There was no "Found new hardware." No nothing. To
> Win 7, the printer did not exist. The printer has existed to XP throughout.
>
> Canon said, on their site, to get everything straight with "Windows Update." But didn't
> expound any further.
>
> Perhaps the problem is that Lenovo supplied the new computer already configured as 64
> bit.
>
> Sorry to be such a downer. I'm really disgusted with Microsoft, and Canon's not feeling
> too good to me, either. I just can't get it up for planned obsolescence. It's Linux for
> me.
>
> Richard
>
OK Richard. It is like this...
When hardware connects to a Windows system it passes a string or strings containing unique
identifiers which provide information about the make and model of the hardware. This is
used for the process called "Plug 'n Play". These strings are used by the Windows OS to
find suitable drivers. Some come stock to the OS and others will require a manufacturer's
set of software, When you go to Windows update there are several relative categories of
software that is pushed through the update process.
1. OS hotfixes/patches
2. MS application hotfixes/patches
3. MS utilities
4. Windows Defender signatures
5. Hardware drivers
In reference to hardware drivers pushe via Windows Update...
They can be available for hardware that is undefined and hardware where there may be an
update. In this case we are talking about hardware that is undefined because the user
connected a hardware device via USB and the OS has no drivers and the user has no disk
with the drivers. Thus when the user connects to Windows Update Microsoft can push the
drivers down to the Windows 7 computer.
As for your Canon issue...
For the Windows OS to perform Plug 'n Play it must first "see" the hardware to obtain the
unique string identifiers for the make and model of the hardware. For that to happen, one
must connect the Cannon physically to the computer such ports as via; USB, parallel port
and FireWire. If the Cannon is connected to the Ethernet network it will not Plug 'n Play
(aka; PnP) (I won't go into Universal Plug 'n Play protocol uPnP here). If your Cannon
was connected to a port such as USB, parallel port or FireWire and it did not go though
the PnP process then there are a few possibilities..
1. The PnP NT Service was not running { aka; plugplay }
2. There is a physical problem with the connection port
3. There is a physical or logical problem with the external device connected to the port
--
Dave
Multi-AV Scanning Tool -
http://multi-av.thespykiller.co.uk
http://www.pctipp.ch/downloads/dl/35905.asp