Do scanners 'just work' on Leopard?

Hi

I need to buy a scanner. If I plug it in to my MBP (On Leopard) will it need drivers or any special software? I don't need anything fancy like OCR, just to scan to .gif, .jpg or .png. All the software that come with the scanners seems to be for Windows only.

Thanks.

It depends, Macs do need some scanning software for it to scan with. SO I would choose a scanner that has Mac software like the Canon LiDE Scanner series which I use (Mac + Windows compatible).

My scanner

does not work with my Mac and they are not going to develop any drivers for it. So, you should check and make sure when you purchase.

Always make sure when you buy something for a Mac or PC that it supports the OS you are using. This applies to software as well. Always check the box and make sure that your computer has the requirements to run the software/hardware.

Other wise you are just going to give yourself major headaches and waste time and money.

pjhutch said:

It depends, Macs do need some scanning software for it to scan with. SO I would choose a scanner that has Mac software like the Canon LiDE Scanner series which I use (Mac + Windows compatible).

Click to expand...

I also use the Canon LiDE scanner and it works well. It was $45 US on clearance on Amazon a few months ago. Not sure if it's still there. Don't know if that helps you in the UK either.

I bought it because my ancient HP 3300 scanner from the mid-90s didn't work with Leopard. Not a big loss since it was 10 years old and the new one was less than $50. Incidentally, this is the ONLY piece of hardware I had to replace with I switched over from Windows.

My HP Photosmart MFD (C3100) included a Windows and OS X CD - the OS X CD installed a load of stuff I probably won't use but did include something under the name HP Scan which as you might expect - works very well with my scanner. It does all that I want it to do anyway.

As the other posters said; try to look for items that list OS X as a supported OS.

Sometimes you may find that a shop that is selling to the masses and perhaps limits their product information to a 2" label next to the price may assume that people are only interested in versions of Windows and in these types of stores; the sales people are often just as useless - if you have to buy from this type of store then check the web for reviews or for a more detailed product spec.

My CancoScan D660U did not work with OSX but works a treat since I got VueScan software from VueScan Scanning Software, but if you're buying new best get one that is compatible to start with.

Ditto what everyone else said. My HP 5300C worked fine as a printer with just the Mac drivers pnp-wise. The scanner did not. I needed to load the OS X HP Software Suite that came with it. Interestingly, when I installed the HP Drivers update from Apple, it blew away the HP drivers and the scanner didn't work again. I had to remove the Apple HP update and reinstall the HP OEM software. Lesson learned - HP wrote drivers for a good reason so go with the HW manufacturer's drivers. I wouldn't use HP software for my Mac's firmware. Not slamming HP or Apple, just suggesting that Apple can't really cover all the drivers for all the printers/scanners/fax machines out there.

Thanks for the information everyone, it's really useful.