Scanner --- HP Envy 7640

[thecavern]

I recently bought an HP Envy 7640. 

Everything works fine except the scanner.

There seems to be something I need to do other than the initial set up.

Can anyone provide any guidance ?

[jaclaz]

Usually scanners use a "TWAIN" or "WIA" source, but the HP drivers[1] should provide/set that properly.

Have you tried the "HP Print and Scan Doctor for Windows" ((under Utility Diagnostic tools)?:

http://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/HP-ENVY-7640-e-All-in-One-Printer-series/6617267/model/6617268

Typically you open a graphical program, enabled to scan, and try to scan, if the scanner is not present as source there is an install problem of some kind, if it is available, it will either just work or provide an error that may help to troubleshoot the issue.

Usually HP provides also a few programs that can acquire an image, something like "Printer Assistant".

Basically the issues can be related to:

1) drivers (not properly installed)
2) WIA subsystem not started or corrupted

It could be also a connection problem, how do you have it connected?

jaclaz

 

[1] Generally speaking the HP drivers are a mass of bloat squeezed by a decerebrated IT guy into an automagical install package (which still is a huge mass of bloat) that almost never works properly on real world machine and that needs every kind of tweak/unusual sequences/partial reinstall/what not to (sometimes) install properly.
 

[HarryTri]

9 hours ago, jaclaz said:

[1] Generally speaking the HP drivers are a mass of bloat squeezed by a decerebrated IT guy into an automagical install package (which still is a huge mass of bloat) that almost never works properly on real world machine and that needs every kind of tweak/unusual sequences/partial reinstall/what not to (sometimes) install properly.

jaclaz, I don't know how much right you are but you really gave me a good laugh.

[jaclaz]

And mind you I have been for years a big fan of HP hardware, I used to say  "there are just two brands for printers (and hand calculators), Hewlett and Packard", the Laserjet's starting from the II and all the way through the 4, 5 and 6 were exceptionally sturdy, very economical and in practice never broke, or even in the rare case they did, fixing/repairing them was easy and economical, higher level printers, such as the HP 2200, were almost unbreakable.

When it came to inkjet (but this is common with any other inkjet printer) things started to go downhill, maybe it is some sort of voodoo, but I seem to never have an inkjet printer working for what it is supposed to do (which should be to print a document on paper) at first try, and don't let me start with (inkjet) plotters .

I tend to say that an inkjet printer has a value corresponding to its price , you buy an inexpensive printer (but don't worry, you'll pay for ink cartridges  alright) and you start being able to print nice, coloured documents and WHEN ALL the following is true:

a. print head is not too hot
b. printer has been recently used (no later than one week)
c. there is ink in ALL 4 cartridges and ALL 4 of them work correctly
d. the paper is not too smooth, not too coarse
e. the paper has been freshly, neatly, inserted in the tray, PERFECTLY aligned
f. the calibration has been carried on recently

you manage, at the second or third attempt, to have an almost decent printout (and normally you are so excited by the result that you manage to put your big fat fingers on it smearing the still fresh ink and need another attempt).

But the software, ahh the software, particularly for all-in-ones or however combined printer/scanners, I still remember the nightmare it was to have the HP 1100 properly installed on 2K !

You needed the original CD (fair enough), two updates (almost impossible to find on the HP site, those were the years when they seemingly moved contents all the time), had to run part of the install program with the printer/scanner disconnected, and part once it was connected, then it would not work, you had to reboot, and start again, and ended up with two devices, one working and one not working, (usually you deleted by mistake the working one and had to restart again).

To be fair in recent years things were made easier, you download several hundreds of megabytes of bloat (containing any kind of unneeded "side" software) and you run it, in - say 60% - of cases everything goes well and it takes you only half an hour or an hour to remove all the software that has been installed and that took possession of your file associations, in another - still say 30% of cases - you will be in the situation the OP is, with something working and something not, particularly with network printers or Wi-Fi enabled ones.

The remaining 10% of cases will require you to either install or upgrade (or downgrade, it depends) things, like Flash, IE, .Net, and/or some other windows subsystem (and this is likely to break some other software you have already installed .

jaclaz

 

 

[HarryTri]

I see. Well, I have had two HP inkjet printers until now, the Deskjet D3550 until it broke (a model-specific defective component as I have been told by a guy who sells these things) and the Deskjet 4360 that I still have. No problem with installation, I even managed to find in the HP site drivers for Windows 8/8.1 and install the second on Windows 8 when my Pentium III old Windows XP desktop bit the dust recently. Printing quality, speed etc. - no problem. Yet I had a weird problem with the D4360 one. I may still have it, I don't know, I surely had it on my old system (with USB 1 ports only - maybe it played some role?). It would - almost - always cut the photos! A large blank - white in fact - area and then the part of the photo or photos that fitted in the rest of the paper. I had to print four photos on an A4 size photo paper in order to have the two of them printed complete. I made some tests and it was the photo paper - any photo paper. If I printed the photos on common paper or on the wrong side of the photo paper it was alright, if I printed them on the glossy side of the photo paper it did it! It has the option to provide info about the paper you use before you print but this made no difference. Have you ever seen anything like that?

Edited September 7, 2016 by HarryTri

[jaclaz]

And now ...

http://inkjet411.com/?page_id=5769

http://www.myce.com/news/hp-pre-programmed-failure-date-unofficial-non-hp-ink-cartridges-printers-80457/
 

... we have printer software updates that "brick" the printer if it is using non-original cartridges. 

Quote

This problem is not unique. Printer manufacturers regularly release firmware updates which are said to enhance the printer’s performance or address security issues. The (un) intended result, however, is that the use of cheaper private label cartridges is made difficult and / or that error messages are caused. This time the problem was not the result of an update to improve the operation of the printer, but HP apparently programmed a date in its firmware on which the issues should start, the September 13, 2016.

 

jaclaz