Printing issue - no Linux driver

If, when I use Mint, and when I must print something, I have to send it to Windows. Boot Windows. Print. Boot Mint and try to remember what I was doing.

Why? Because there is no driver for my Canon printer MP970 which is a network printer/scanner. There is a driver for MAC computers, but, googling reveals, that for several or most Canon printers Linux people have to compile something. I don't want to, nor am I able to, compile anything.

I did try to connect to the printer which is hooked to the router and has an IP address and needs a TCP connection out, UDP in and out over to any of ports 8611-8614, and LAN broadcast. All my attempts failed. Probably because of the lack of drivers. Also this printer talks back when it's done or when tells me the paper is all gone.

 

Not good advice because it costa mucho dinero but there is the turboprint driver. http://www.zedonet.com/en_p_turboprint_driver.phtml?printer=Canon_PIXMA_MP970
It will only be good for the printer, not the scanner. However xsane in the repos. will fully support Canon PIXMA MP970.

 

Hate to say it, but there's probably not much you can do. Best recommendation I can give you is to compile the driver, but use GNU Stow to install it, so it doesn't mess up your filesystem... That's it really.

(I used to have a printer with similar issues, a Canon i250 - great printer, hardly any Linux support. It was unsupported in 2007 and it is still unsupported now.)

 

Thank you both. At this point I haven't yet gone through xsane, but will.
There seem to be something built in. When I selected LPD/LPR whatever it means, there WAS a selection of Canon BJ printers and mine was in the list saying something about CUPS+Guttenprint. So I imagine this was about a driver. When I told it to print, the Canon MP970 clearly showed up.

But, while I can ping it, it won't print. Not a blink on the router. And no outbound TCP at all in ksysLog or some other such. Mint only shows inbound UDP from printer's MAC as well as IP all the time as printer broadcasts. If I fail to resolve this, I'll look into xsane. It's just that all this is baffling 'cause I never know what might break and what else I must install. Linux is not easy for me.

 

Certainly not nice having all those problems. Please note that xsane is only for scanning (eg. scanning to pdf, jpg etc.). Your Canon is fully supported in that regard, but of course printing remains the main problem.

 

As a possible alternative to Turboprint you might try to add this ppa. (Michael Cruz' other ppa is only applicable to older versions up to Oneiric.)

 

Gullible Jones, I have a feeling that'll be my fate as well especially that I don't have the code to compile, I don't have a compiler, nor the skills to use an unknown one.
Ocky, thanks for emphasis that xsane is for the scanner section, I understood that.
And tlu, thanks for the ppa link.
I'm still wading through all their (incomprehensible to me) writeups, but just wanted to respond that I haven't ignored your advices.