Category Archives: printing and scanning

fixed : Two-sided printing in MS Word for Mac

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Question :

I usually work in Apple’s Pages.app to do my text editing, but now someone sent me a school document that was made in MS Word. It opens just fine in Word for Mac, but when I want to print, I can’t find the “Two-sided printing” option…

How can I do Two-sided printing in Word for Mac ?

Answer :

As always, the solution is simple, you just have to know where to look and what to look for…

…anyway, here’s how-to do this in Word 16 (2021) :

Note : in older versions it is similar, but sometimes slightly different (just one of those things to know is that “Two-sided printing” is called “Duplex printing” on Windows and therefore also in older versions of MS Office for Mac…)

  • open the document in Word for Mac
  • press the [CMD] + [P] key combo on your keyboard to open the Print window ( or goto Word > File > Print )
  • click on “Copies & Pages” and choose “Layout” from the pulldown menu
  • in the Layout settings view, see that “Two-Sided” is listed, with the option to choose “Long Edge Binding” (for portrait mode documents) and “Short Edge Binding” (for landscape mode documents)
  • > note that if “Two-Sided” is not listed here, your printer doesn’t have the option to print two-sided automatically, and you will have to do the two-sided printing manually [see below]

That’s it !

If your printer can’t do two-sided printing automatically, you can do this to get two-sided printing manually :

  • open the document in Word for Mac
  • press the [CMD] + [P] key combo on your keyboard to open the Print window ( or goto Word > File > Print )
  • click on “Copies & Pages” and choose “Microsoft Word” from the pulldown menu
  • in the Microsoft Word settings view, set “Print:” to “Even pages only”
  • then go back to “Copies & Pages” and at “Pages:” set both “From:” and “To:” to 1 and click the Print button
  • when your print is ready, draw a huge arrow on the back of the printed page pointing upward like the text on the front side
  • then put the page in the printer’s feeder drawer and make sure the arrow you have drawn on it is on the upside and pointing into the printer drawer and close the printer drawer
  • then click on “Copies & Pages” and choose “Microsoft Word” from the pulldown menu
  • in the Microsoft Word settings view, set “Print:” to “Even pages only”
  • then go back to “Copies & Pages” and at “Pages:” set both “From:” and “To:” to 1 and click the Print button
  • now look at the printed page that comes out and figure out how to put the pages in after having them printed on one side (make sure you have this correct before proceeding ; if you can’t get your head around this, just redo the above steps and print a new testpage)
  • now, get ready to print the entire document :
  • press the [CMD] + [P] key combo on your keyboard to open the Print window ( or goto Word > File > Print )
  • click on “Copies & Pages” and choose “Microsoft Word” from the pulldown menu
  • in the Microsoft Word settings view, set “Print:” to “Even pages only”
  • then go back to “Copies & Pages” and at “Pages:” select “All”
  • then wait for all even pages to print
  • when done, flip over the bulk of printed paper the way you figured out to be right (using your test page as a reference) and put it back in the printing drawer
  • make sure that not only the orientation is correct, but that the first page is on top and the last page is at the bottom also
  • click on “Copies & Pages” and choose “Microsoft Word” from the pulldown menu
  • in the Microsoft Word settings view, set “Print:” to “Odd pages only”
  • then go back to “Copies & Pages” and at “Pages:” select “All”
  • then wait for all odd pages to print
  • …now check if your document is printed correctly on both sides !
  • if not… you have gotten your page flipping incorrect… too bad… you’ll have to redo from start…

That’s it !

enjoy 😉

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fixed : put printing & scanning shortcuts in the Dock

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Question :

Whenever I need to scan (or sometimes even to print) anything, I need to go into System Preferences, then Printers & Scanners, then click Open Scanner…

Isn’t there a one-click solution to do this ?

Answer :

Yes there is.

Back in the days of MacOSX there used to be an option for this called “Desktop Printer” : that would put a shortcut-link of your printer on the Desktop. And you could do the same for your scanner.

Nowadays, for some reason, this option is gone, and no easy alternative is given by macOS… so you will have to create some thing yourself… the easiest way is to put both your Printer’s and your Scanner’s icon in the Dock. To do so, do this :

  • go to Apple menu (Apple-icon top-left in the top menu bar)
  • when the pulldown menu appears, select “System Preferences”
  • in the window that opens, click “Printers & Scanners”
    • if there is no such option, click on the raster-icon (top-center) first and it will appear
  • in the window that opens, click on your scanner (in the list on the left)
    • if your scanner is not yet in the list, add it first by clicking the Plus-icon at the bottom and following the on-screen instructions
  • now your scanner opens in the main part of the screen (on the right)
  • click the “Open scanner” button
  • now, the Scanner-window will open, and the scanner’s icon will appear in the Dock
  • CTRL-click (right mouse button) on the Scanner’s icon in the Dock
  • from the popup-menu, select “Options”, then “Keep in Dock”
  • now, the scanner’s icon will be moved to the left and it will stay in the Dock even after you close the scanner software
  • so, next time you want to scan anything, just click on the scanner’s icon in the Dock to open the scanner software

    That’s it !

Note : creating a direct link icon in the Dock for your printer can be done in the same way

enjoy 😉

fixed : “Scanner reported an error” when starting scanner

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Question :

My Canon CanoScan 5600F is scanning great, even after all those years. The only problem I’m encountering with my new Mac is that I get a “Scanner reported an error” message when I try to start it from the shortlink (alias) I have in my Dock.

The exact error message is : “Scanner reported an error Cannot communicate with scanner for these reasons: – Scanner is turned off. – USB cable is disconnected. Please check and try again.” But the USB cable is connected properly and the scanner is turned on, so that can’t be the problem.

What can I do to fix this ?

Answer :

This problem was introduced some years ago, possibly somewhere within the shift from OSX to macOS. It seems to have to to with the start-up sequence of macOS’s build-in scanning software or the scanner going into some sleep mode. The solution is simple, even though it is more of a workaround than an actual fix. So if you run into this problem, do this :

  • turn the scanner off using the ON/OFF-switch on the outside of the scanner (the physical hardware button)
  • then, click the blue OK-button in the “Scanner reported an error” window
  • then, close the “Scanner” window by clicking the red dot button top-left
  • then, open the Scanner software again…
  • now, turn the scanner back on using the ON/OFF-switch on the outside of the scanner (the physical hardware button)
  • now the scanner should load the scan preview automatically (as if you had clicked the Overview-button)
  • just make sure the scan area hasn’t been reset, so…
    • …either uncheck “Use Custom Size” and make sure “size” is “A4” (or anything suitable)
    • …or manually line out the scan area in the preview

That’s it !

enjoy 😉

fixed : CanoScan 5600F driver for macOS Big_Sur

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Question :

I have a Canon CanoScan 5600F scanner that worked great with my previous Mac, but now I have upgraded to a new Mac running macOS 11.0 Big_Sur.

I’ve looked on the Canon website and searched the internet, but there is no macOS 11.0 Big_Sur compatible driver available for this scanner.

Is there any way to use this CanoScan 5600F scanner in macOS 11.0 Big_Sur ?

 

Answer :

Yes, there is :

  • goto Canon’s US website : https://www.usa.canon.com
  • choose Support > Scanners > Film & Negative Scanner > CanoScan 5600F
  • or use this link : https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/support/details/scanners/film-negative-scanner/canoscan-5600f/canoscan-5600f?subtab=downloads-drivers
  • there, choose the “Drivers & Downloads” tab
  • then, choose “macOS Mojave v10.14” as your operating system and “English” as your language
  • then, choose the “Drivers” tab
  • now, you will see 2 drivers listed :
    • > 5600F Scanner Driver Ver.14.11.5h (Mac) : msd_-mac_cs5600f-14_11_5h-ea8_2.dmg
      • > ICA Driver Ver.4.1.4a (Mac) : misd-mac-ijscanner2-4_1_4-ea21_3.dmg
  • download both of them
    • note that despite the fact that both are versions from 2018, these will still work with macOS 11.0 Big_Sur
  • goto your downloads folder
  • first, double-click on the file named msd_-mac_cs5600f-14_11_5h-ea8_2.dmg
  • this will mount the ScanGear_CanoScan 5600F_141105.pkg
  • again, click on that and version 14.11 of the ScanGear driver installer will open
  • now, follow the on-screen directions and the latest ScanGear driver will be installed
  • then, double-click on the file named misd-mac-ijscanner2-4_1_4-ea21_3.dmg
  • this will mount the Canon IJScanner2_040104.pkg
  • again, click on that and version 4.1.4 the IJScanner2 driver installer will open
  • now, follow the on-screen directions and the latest IJScanner2 driver will be installed
  • when done, goto System Preferences > Printers & Scanners
  • if the CanoScan 5600F is already listed on the left, click it
  • if not, click the +sign (plus-sign) to add the scanner first
  • when done, click the CanoScan 5600F in the list on the left
  • when the scanner details open on the right, click on the “Open Scanner”-button
  • now, the built-in macOS scanner-app will open and it will immediately do a preview scan of whatever is in the scanner

NOTE : you might run into a small problem every once in a while ; when the automatic scanning preview starts, you might get an error saying “Scanner reported an error – Cannot communicate with scanner for these reasons: – Scanner is turned off. – USB cable is disconnected. Please check and try again.” If so, just flip the scanner’s ON/OFF-switch in OFF-position manually and then back into ON-posistie. That should help in making the scanner preview work again.

enjoy 😉

 

fixed : Canon scanner error -21345 on M1 Mac

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Question :

I have have just upgraded to a new MacBook Air M1 2020 (with an Apple M1 processor) running macOS 11.0 Big_Sur. Now, I am trying to get my Canon PIXMA MG3250 All-in-one printer-scanner to work with it… but even though I can get the printer function to work, when I want it to scan I get an error…

Installing the Canon MG3250 through System Preferecens > Printers & Scanners > Add Printer was really simple as it was immediately seen through Bonjour. After installing, the MG3250’s icon is listed on the left, and when I click it, the window opens where I can choose either the “Print” or the “Scan” tab. After choosing the later, I get the “Open scanner”-button, and when I click that, the built-in macOS scanner-app opens the “Scanner” window… which gives this error : “Failed to open a connection to the device (-121345)” each time I try. I just can’t get it to work.

What is wrong ?

Answer :

When you get this error in this setup, you will probably have gotten an error saying “IJScanner3” also. Do this to fix it :

  • goto the Canon UK website : https://www.canon.co.uk
  • there, browse to the PIXMA MG3250’s Driver Support-page or go there directly using this link : https://www.canon.co.uk/support/consumer_products/products/fax__multifunctionals/inkjet/pixma_mg_series/pixma_mg3250.html?type=drivers&language=en&os=macos%2010.15%20(catalina)
    • Yes, that’s right, even though you are running macOS 11.0 Big_Sur and Canon tells you there is no driver for such an advanced OS, the macOS 10.15 Catalina driver still works
  • when you see the ICA Driver Ver. 4.0.0a (Mac) version listed, click the blue download button to download
  • in your downloads folder, you will now find a file called miss-mac-ijscanner3-4_0_0-ea19_2.dmg
  • click that file and it will mount an installer called Canon IJScanner3_040000.pkg
  • click that file and the 2020-version of the scanner driver will be installed
  • when done, make sure the System Preferences are closed
  • then open System Preferences > Printers & Scanners > MG3250 again and click the “Open Scanner”-button
  • now, the built-in scanner-app will open the Scanner-window again, but hits time without the error… so you are good to go !

That’s it !

enjoy 😉

fixed : Canon scanner “Cannot communicate with scanner” error in macOS 10.15 Catalina

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Question :

I have been using my Canon CanoScan 5600F scanner for many years with my Mac, and it has always been working great. However : now, in macOS 10.15 Catalina I keep getting error messages that the scanner cannot be found…

The exact error message is this : “Scanner reported an error Cannot communicate with scanner for these reasons: – Scanner is turned off. – USB cable is disconnected. Please check and try again.”

Sometimes I manage to get things working by replugging the USB-cable and switching the scanner OFF and back ON, but that solution doesn’t last…

What can I do to solve this ?

 

Answer :

even though Canon does not list support for your the CanoScan 5600F for macOS 10.15 Catalina, the Canon driver that used to work in MacOSX 10.7 Lion through macOS 10.14 Mojave still works in macOS 10.15 Catalina, so if you do not have this driver already, download it here

NOTE : this solution is tested to work for the Canon CanoScan 5600F scanner, but will probably work as well for other CanoScan and LiDE scanners that run into the same problem and error message

To solve your problem, do this :

  • go to Apple-icon (top left in the menu bar) and click on “System Preferences” from the pulldown menu
  • in the “System Preferences” window, click on “Printers & Scanners”
  • in the list on the left, at “Scanners”, select your CanoScan scanner
  • then, click on the Minus-button at the bottom of the list on the left, to delete the scanner from the list
  • now, switch OFF your scanner and unplug the USB-cable from the scanner and from your Mac
  • then, go to Apple-icon (top left in the menu bar) and click on “Restart…” from the pulldown menu
  • when prompted, UNcheck the option to reopen all open windows and restart your Mac
  • then, plug the USB-cable back into your scanner and your Mac and switch your scanner back ON
  • when your Mac has restarted, open System Preferences
  • in the “System Preferences” window, click on “Printers & Scanners”
  • in the list on the left, at the bottom, click on the Plus-button
  • in the window that opens, select your CanoScan scanner from the list and click the “Add”-button
  • you can now select your CanoScan scanner from the list on the left and click on the “Open Scanner” button on the right to open it
  • now, the “Scanner” window will open and you will be able to scan

You could be okay now, but you still might encounter this ‘Cannot communicate with scanner’ error again… in that case, do this :

  • click the OK button in the pulldown window that reports the error
  • then, option-click (right-click) on the scanner icon in the Dock
  • if your Scanner icon is not always visible in the Dock, do this first :
    • in the popup-list, select “Options”
    • in the next popup-list, make sure that there is a checkmark at “Keep in Dock”
  • now, close the Scanner window by clicking on the red button top left
  • then, reopen the Scanner window (by clicking on the scanner icon in the Dock)
  • now, the Overview Scan (preview scan) will start automatically as expected
  • if not, just repeat this process a little slower than you did before 😉

Note 1 : it seems like this problem is caused by macOS 10.15 Catalina cutting off all USB-connected devices when it puts your Mac in sleep mode (at the moment of writing there seems to be no simple way to adjust this in macOS…)

Note 2 : if you cannot live with getting this error once in a while, and you cannot wait for Apple and/or Canon to come up with a definite solution… have a look at the VueScan scanner-app

That’s it !

enjoy 😉

fixed : cannot print PDF form from macOS Preview.app

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Question :

I have received an eMail from a vendor that includes a dispatchnote PDF that I need to print.

The PDF opens fine in Preview.app, but when I try to print it, everything seems to work fine, only the print doesn’t come out of the printer…

I can’t find the problem : the PDF appears in the printer’s Job List, the status bar fills up completely, the printer makes some noise to indicate that it is receiving data, the print job is deleted from the Job List, and nothing comes out of the printer… there are no error messages, no indication what so ever that something went wrong… the pint just won’t come out of the printer…

I checked to see if there is something special about the PDF-file that might be causing this, but I can’t find anything special about it… the PDF is not locked or anything…

What can I do ?

 

Answer :

Even though it is not clear where this problem comes from, the solution is simple : use Adobe Reader (a.k.a. Adobe Acrobat Reader DC) or Adobe Acrobat Pro if you have it.

To do so, do this :

  • go to https://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/otherversions/
  • at Step 1, 2 and 3 set the right OS, language and version, then click the Download Now button to download Adobe Reader
  • when the download is done, install Adobe Reader on your Mac
  • then, open Adobe Reader
  • and open the hard-to-print PDF from Adobe Reader
  • as soon as it starts appearing on-screen, you can press [CMD] + [P] to get to the printing screen
  • from there, just try to print again…
    • note that this is not your regular macOS printing screen, so you might want to check if all settings are to your liking before you give the actual print-commando (you might have to set things like double sided printing again)

The fact that the file is not printing from Preview.app, but it is from Adobe Reader, might indicate that the PDF was created by Adobe Acrobat Pro on Windows and that there is a problem in the version of Acrobar Reader that was used that causes this problem to arise…

That’s it !

enjoy 😉