HOWTO: Install Canon PIXMA ip1500

[rockett15]

Do this at your own risk!

First you will need to update libc6 to one from the Debian site (why I say at your own risk)

http://packages.debian.org/testing/base/libc6

sudo dpkg -i libc6_2.3.2.ds1-22_i386.deb

then goto: http://linux.cergynux.net/canon/

get: bjfilter-pixmaip1500_2.50-3_i386.deb & bjfilter-common_2.50-3_i386.deb

sudo dpkg -i bjfilter-common_2.50-3_i386.deb bjfilter-pixmaip1500_2.50-3_i386.deb

You will then be required to restart cups:

sudo killall cupsd
sudo cupsd

After we're all done - all we have to do now is set-up the printer!

System >> Administration >> Printing >> New Printer

Select: Use another printer by specifying port drop down to: USB Printer #1 (Canon ip1500)

Then select the PIXMA iP1500 ver.2.50 from the list

I have figured a way past the dependancy hell with the above. Install the debian locales package also,

[+Flip]

At my Ubuntu Machine, your howto doesn't seem to work, i've connected my ip1500 to the usb port, and installed it properly, it does get reconized, but doesn't prints a thing!

What's the problem?

Thanks, anyway

Flip
The Netherlands

[andremarcel]

It works good for me, but the dependencies are so much that i was not able
to install a new programm without removing the whole system. Why is this driver not available for ubuntu?

Is it better to change do Debian if they have better support for my printer?

[veelivar]

Right I'm gonna try this later. My printer not working was the big killer for not using linux 99% of the time.

hopefully this will sort it out.

Has anyone else got any observations from trying this?

Also does anyone know if ubuntu is likly to support this in the near future with ou having to get the debian libc6 (what with ubuntu being based on debian an everything)

thanks for posting this I'll let you know how I get on.

best regards,
Dan.

[veelivar]

I tried the above steps and at first it seemed to work.

however...

when I tried to print from openoffice it seemed stuck on A5 paper no matter what setting i set it to and printed halfway down the page. I fiddled with the settings in openoffice a bit and now it won't print at all (dosen't even go to the print queue) I don't know why this is.

Current status:
print preview on the printer is fine no probes here
gimp goes to print queue then nothing
everything else (firefox, openoffice) nothing not even to print queue

I also noticed that it only did up to 600dpi (which if it worked I could probably live with but it would be nice to have higher)

Is there anyhting obvious I could have missed? (I don't know linux very well). As teh printer seems to be installed ok as the test page is fine.

I hope some one can help,
best regards,
Dan.

[new2hoary]

Have a look at turbo print;

http://www.turboprint.de/english.html

There is a free version but to get the best from your printer you have to pay for the full version.

It does most new Canon printers as well as hp and some others.

I use it on my Pixma IP5000 and get great results very easy to install. It lets me print to the full capabilites of my printer - including CD printing, paper source selection, and duplex.

I'm in no way connected to the producers of this - just a very happy long term user.

EDIT: I should also say it allows;

Head alignment
Cleaning
Ink levels viewing

[rockett15]

Yeah,

There appears to be a bit of dependancy hell with this method. You can work through it though.

It would be nice to see these re-packaged for Ubuntu.

[alb]

Yes

I also would like to see the ubuntu packages...

I'm not confident in installing a different libc6.

alb

[Svictor]

Well, actually, you don't need to reinstall libc6. Ubuntu's version works quite well for the driver. It's just not recognized as appropriate by dpkg. So what you can do is download the rpms instead of the debs, and convert them to debs with alien :
sudo alien <name of the rpm>
The resulting *.deb package doesn't complain anymore about libc6. This worked for me so far and now, I can print. Then, there is this thread : http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=38995, for fine-tuning (make sure to edit your ppd file !).
What I can't figure though is how to get gimp working. I tried the default :
lpr -s -d PIXMA-iP1500-Ver.2.50 -oraw
and also :
lpr -P PIXMA-iP1500-Ver.2.50 -oraw
Something happens, the printing job is created and the light on the printer starts blinking, but it never grabs the sheet to write on it.
What printing system does Gimp use ? Why do I get perfect test page, perfect text from openoffice but nothing from gimp ?
Any suggestion would be appreciated.

Edit :

I found out for gimp : one should not use the -oraw option, even if gimp itself says you should.

By the way, there was another problem in openoffice, which would only print to a5. The solution is to configure the printer through oopadmin (from command line). I'm not quite sure if one has to do that every time a setting needs to be changed. Anyway, it seems to override the printer settings from openoffice itself (the writer for ex.).

Good luck to you all !

[rockett15]

Just to try the above - how would one downgrade libc6 back to the Ubuntu version? Without all the dependancies getting removed?