which printer?

[oldbiddie]

My HP printer has to be replaced because it just stopped working.
I am looking for a simple printer-no scan etc. easy to install and that works without hassle
Thank you

[isadora]

Whatever the choice, i would always check for compatibility at:
http://www.linuxfoundation.org/collabor ... abaseintro

[oldbiddie]

Thanks. I had forgotten about this list

[doktor5000]

I am looking for a simple printer-no scan etc. easy to install and that works without hassle

Could you please be a bit more specific? Approx. what price range, laser or inkjet, any features you need/want?

[oldbiddie]

inkjet will do I seldom use it. no photos,no scanner, just a plain printer for plain letters.

[martinw]

How seldom? I have an inkjet that I use once in a blue moon (when I need to print something in colour) - and usually have to spend half an hour cleaning the print heads before it will print properly. But this probably only applies if you leave it idle for weeks at a time.

The main thing to watch for is that you don't buy a printer that only works with Microsoft Windows. If it claims to be both Windows and Apple Mac compatible, there's a good chance it will also work with Linux.

HP printers are usually Linux friendly. Judging from the posts in the Printers sub-section of this forum, Brother printers are not. You might do well to look there to get an idea of what not to buy!

[doktor5000]

Well, my parents have a brother printer, and setup is also quite easy, install three packages, edit an udev rule, and then it just works.
The downside for the smaller multi-function devices is because they only have small ink cartridges, and because the printers cleanses
itself so that the ink doesn't dry up, the effective costs per page are somewhere in the region of 0,20 € per page (with genuine brother ink).
But otherwise the small DCPs are OK, and they even have a scanner.
It's a good option if you print really rarely, say once or twice a month or maybe less.

On the other hand, some of the HP OfficeJets have a cost per page in the region of 0,05€ and they spit out >30 pages in draft mode.

[alf]

I'd also prefer any HP-Printer(they normally work really good with linux), but if you use it really seldom remove the ink-cartridges and put them in the shelter that they won't dry.

[David_Batson]

I suggest a Brother laser printer. Inkjet printers shouldn't sit too long without printing. The ink can dry out, possibly damaging the print head. This is especially true in a dry climate. Laser printers can go a long time without printing and still work good.

I have both a Canon color injet multifunction printer and a Brother B/W laser printer. I am well pleased with both. Both have manufacturer supplied linux drivers (available by download) that work well. Not all Canon printers have linux drivers, so you need to do your homework first with Canon. Brother is pretty well supported in linux.

[doktor5000]

Problem with laser printers is that most home users often want to print a photo or some graphics, that should be taken into consideration.

[oldbiddie]

I don´t print photos, just a letter or so occasionally and black/white is sufficient. After working quite well my HP 1600 has started to ´eat´ all the paper and then tells me it has no paper. I cannot correct it and it just drives me mad.