Best scanning software for a Dell 942 printer/scanner?

[fan]

My recently-purchased Dell Dimension 8400 computer (WinXP) came with a
Dell 942 printer/scanner. The only scanning software that seems to
have come with it is a "Scanner and Camera Wizard" that offers less
control over the scanning process than PaperPort did with my old HP
ScanJet 4c scanner.

What is the best scanning software that I should get for my Dell 942?
I've heard of Vuescan and SilverFast AI, but know nothing about them.
Are they overkill for this little Dell 942? And for that matter, is
the 942 a piece of junk as a scanner? If so, what would be a better
choice in that same price range (inexpensive)?

But my main concern is to get the best scanning sofware that'll make
the most of this little 942.

Thanks in advance for all suggestions.

 

[CSM1]

My recently-purchased Dell Dimension 8400 computer (WinXP) came with a
Dell 942 printer/scanner. The only scanning software that seems to
have come with it is a "Scanner and Camera Wizard" that offers less
control over the scanning process than PaperPort did with my old HP
ScanJet 4c scanner.

What is the best scanning software that I should get for my Dell 942?
I've heard of Vuescan and SilverFast AI, but know nothing about them.
Are they overkill for this little Dell 942? And for that matter, is
the 942 a piece of junk as a scanner? If so, what would be a better
choice in that same price range (inexpensive)?

But my main concern is to get the best scanning sofware that'll make
the most of this little 942.

Thanks in advance for all suggestions.

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/pro...42?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~tab=specstab#tabtop

Did you see the Installation Software CD (software and drivers) for the 942?

If you have that CD did you try installing the software on the CD.

The reviews I read, say this is a cheap printer with a scanner thrown in.

 

[Cari]

The reviews I read, say this is a cheap printer with a scanner thrown in.

Well of course it is, it's a Lexmark with a Dell badge on it!

 

[fan]

http://www1.us.dell.com/content/pro...42?c=us&cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&~tab=specstab#tabtop

Did you see the Installation Software CD (software and drivers) for the 942?

If you have that CD did you try installing the software on the CD.

The reviews I read, say this is a cheap printer with a scanner thrown in.

The 942 printer is installed and works fine. I just would like to know
if there is a better scanning program for it than the program that
comes with it. I called Dell tech suppport and they said that the
scanning software is "Paintshop Pro Studio", but it seems to me that
is photo manipulation software, not scanning software.

Would PaperPort 10, Vuescan or Silverfast AI be a better choice than
the "Scanner and Camera Wizard" that came with my WinXP system? If so,
which would be best for the Dell 942?

Thanks.

 

[CSM1]

The 942 printer is installed and works fine. I just would like to know
if there is a better scanning program for it than the program that
comes with it. I called Dell tech suppport and they said that the
scanning software is "Paintshop Pro Studio", but it seems to me that
is photo manipulation software, not scanning software.

It is, but I bet that "Paintshop Pro Studio" has a TWAIN interface for the
Scanner.

That is how most Photo editors get images from a scanner. Look for
File>Import or File>Select TWAIN source or File>Acquire.

You could try Irfanview. Get the plug-ins also.
http://www.irfanview.com

 

[fan]

It is, but I bet that "Paintshop Pro Studio" has a TWAIN interface for the
Scanner.

That is how most Photo editors get images from a scanner. Look for
File>Import or File>Select TWAIN source or File>Acquire.

The problem is not acquiring a basic image from the 942. The problem
is that the scanning software provided offers too little control over
the scanning process, e.g., there is no contrast control when scanning
b&w docs. Paperport 3.0 allowed one to even select during b&w scanning
whether or not to use 16 shades of gray or 256 shades. I'd like to
find scanning software that allows me at least as much control over
the scanning process that Paperport 3.0 did.

You could try Irfanview. Get the plug-ins also.
http://www.irfanview.com

Irfanview seems to be a graphics viewer, not scanning software.

 

[lostinspace]

"The problem is not acquiring a basic image from the 942. The problem
is that the scanning software provided offers too little control over
the scanning process, e.g., there is no contrast control when scanning
b&w docs. Paperport 3.0 allowed one to even select during b&w scanning
whether or not to use 16 shades of gray or 256 shades. I'd like to
find scanning software that allows me at least as much control over
the scanning process that Paperport 3.0 did."

I'd almost kill for the DOS stiching software that the first scanner (a
handheld from Logitech) had in 1993.
I've looked at plenty of stiching programs and nothing simialr exists today.

In some ways, many of these older software's better and their features were
lost with the advent of faster processing and improved software's. It's a
shame.

 

[Stewart DIBBS]

The problem is not acquiring a basic image from the 942. The problem

is that the scanning software provided offers too little control over
the scanning process

The scanner control (or lack of it) is entirely related to the TWAIN (or/and
WIA) functions that the scanner driver (more correctly called the Data
Source (DS), see twain32\*.ds) implements, regardless of the graphics app
that is used to process the scanned image. All TWAIN DS implement a basic
set of commands, so your Dell / Lexmark likely does support brightness and
contrast setting, but the DS user interface may assume defaults, leaving
your graphics app to do the work.

So what you need is
a) a way to identify what TWAIN commands ARE supported in the Dell TWAIN DS;
and
b) a way to send these commands to the scanner, ie a custom application that
will send the commands, acquire the image, and if you want, do the post
processing, or alternatively, copy the scanned image to the clipboard where
another app can grab it.

All the above is available in PiXCL. Some easy to learn programming is
required if you want to extend the sample applications provided.

regards,
Stewart DIBBS
========================================
Developer of the PiXCL Image Processing and
Analysis Language for Windows 2000/XP

PiXCL 6.0 is available now !

www.vysor.com Gatineau, Quebec, CANADA

========================================

 

[CSM1]

That is the description of a WIA driver.

The problem is not acquiring a basic image from the 942. The problem
is that the scanning software provided offers too little control over
the scanning process, e.g., there is no contrast control when scanning
b&w docs. Paperport 3.0 allowed one to even select during b&w scanning
whether or not to use 16 shades of gray or 256 shades. I'd like to
find scanning software that allows me at least as much control over
the scanning process that Paperport 3.0 did.


Irfanview seems to be a graphics viewer, not scanning software.

Irfanview has a TWAIN interface for the scanner, TWAIN is the scanning
software.

In Irfanview, you go to File>Select TWAIN source, If there is nothing in the
box, then there is no TWAIN installed on your computer.

If you want to know what TWAIN is, read the About TWAIN on this page.
http://www.twain.org/

PaperPort 10 is not "scanning software" by your adversion to Irfanview and
Paintshop Pro Studio.

You are complaining about "Scanner and Camera Wizard" in Windows XP. Maybe
you are not using the correct software, Maybe you plugged in the Dell 942
before installing the software from the CD and XP installed the WIA driver
for the Dell 942.

If that is what happened, you will have to go into Device Manager and delete
the WIA driver for the Scanner. Disconnect the Dell 942. Install the correct
software from the CD and reboot the computer. After the computer comes back
up, plug in the Dell 942 and Windows XP will find new hardware and install
the TWAIN driver.

 

[fan]

That is the description of a WIA driver.


Irfanview has a TWAIN interface for the scanner, TWAIN is the scanning
software.

In Irfanview, you go to File>Select TWAIN source, If there is nothing in the
box, then there is no TWAIN installed on your computer.

If you want to know what TWAIN is, read the About TWAIN on this page.
http://www.twain.org/


PaperPort 10 is not "scanning software" by your adversion to Irfanview and
Paintshop Pro Studio.

You are complaining about "Scanner and Camera Wizard" in Windows XP. Maybe
you are not using the correct software, Maybe you plugged in the Dell 942
before installing the software from the CD and XP installed the WIA driver
for the Dell 942.

If that is what happened, you will have to go into Device Manager and delete
the WIA driver for the Scanner. Disconnect the Dell 942. Install the correct
software from the CD and reboot the computer. After the computer comes back
up, plug in the Dell 942 and Windows XP will find new hardware and install
the TWAIN driver.

"Paintshop Pro Studio" does indeed have a TWAIN interface, but the
options offered are not adequate. There is a brightness adjustment
available, but no Contrast controls.

By contrast, there are far more features available in PaperPort 3.0:

Brightness (scale of 1 to 250)
Contrast (scale of 1 to 250)

Scaling from 16% to 3200%
Width & Height in inches (to the hundredth of an inch)

Image Type:
B&W - either 256 grays or 16 grays
Sharpening - 5 degrees, from none to extra-heavy

dpi resolution

adjustable size for the Preview Image

Export File options include:
..BMP
..JPG
..GIF
TIFF - Uncompressed
TIFF - LZW
TIFF - Group 4
Multi-Page TIFF - Uncompressed
Multi-Page TIFF - LZW
Multi-Page TIFF - Group 4


So, what scanning software offers at least those features?

BTW, the most important of those features, to me, are:

Contrast (scale of 1 to 250)

Scaling from 16% to 3200%
Width & Height in inches (to the hundredth of an inch)

Image Type:
B&W - either 256 grays or 16 grays

Export File options include:
.JPG
TIFF - LZW

They are important to me because they allow the creation of small
(byte-wise) files, from which to create relatively small PDF files.

Thanks.

 

[fan]

I've been using PaperPort 3.0 on an old Win98 system. I've recently
upgraded to a new, powerful WinXP system, and would like to find the
best replacement for PaperPort 3.0.

What scanning software offers these features (PaperPort 3.0 Features):

Brightness (scale of 1 to 250)
Contrast (scale of 1 to 250)

Scaling from 16% to 3200%
Width & Height in inches (to the hundredth of an inch)

Image Type:
B&W - either 256 grays or 16 grays
Sharpening - 5 degrees, from none to extra-heavy

dpi resolution

adjustable size for the Preview Image

Export File options include:
..BMP
..JPG
..GIF
TIFF - Uncompressed
TIFF - LZW
TIFF - Group 4
Multi-Page TIFF - Uncompressed
Multi-Page TIFF - LZW
Multi-Page TIFF - Group 4


Thanks very much for all suggestions.

 

[CSM1]

I've been using PaperPort 3.0 on an old Win98 system. I've recently
upgraded to a new, powerful WinXP system, and would like to find the
best replacement for PaperPort 3.0.

What scanning software offers these features (PaperPort 3.0 Features):

Brightness (scale of 1 to 250)
Contrast (scale of 1 to 250)

Scaling from 16% to 3200%
Width & Height in inches (to the hundredth of an inch)

Image Type:
B&W - either 256 grays or 16 grays
Sharpening - 5 degrees, from none to extra-heavy

dpi resolution

adjustable size for the Preview Image

Export File options include:
.BMP
.JPG
.GIF
TIFF - Uncompressed
TIFF - LZW
TIFF - Group 4
Multi-Page TIFF - Uncompressed
Multi-Page TIFF - LZW
Multi-Page TIFF - Group 4


Thanks very much for all suggestions.

A newer (current) version of PaperPort.
The current version is 10.
http://www.scantips.com/scansoft.html

The above link is to the lowest cost for Paperport.