Linux wins in ease of use

I've got this really cheap HP Deskjet F2180 (around 25-30 GBP) which have caused me all sorts of problems.

On windows, it installs with a ton of extra software and was the cause of a series of blue-screens (which I find rare on most XP systems). Those blue-screens might have been part of the reason my work laptop ended up in a fubar-state after trying the in-build "system restore" to get rid of crappy drivers (hp printer, bluetooth dongle(s) and 3G modem). Anyway, it was a hassle to get to work on windows, involving installing loads of software and drivers...I mainly wanted to print, so I could have lived with a "printer only" install with less drivers and fluff.

On OS X i had to use the software on the CD, which meant the same thing as on windows; loads of unnecessary software and drivers. At least it didn't crash the system, but having un-installed and later re-installed, I couldn't get the printer to work the last time round. To be fair, this was on the way out the door to the airport, with a hope of being able to print my own boarding pass...never got it to print, but got to the airport in time :)

On Linux, I expected a lot of hassle (the printer most likely being a "windows only" printer etc.) but wanted to give it a shot before i tried installing it on the iBook again. To my big surprise a pop-up appeared shortly after having plug in the printer, with a message that the HP 2100 series printer was ready for printing!. Imagine my joy when it actually printed too! It simply just worked out of the box...amazing stuff.

So in my small experiment getting my cheap HP printer to work, Linux had the easiest, fastest and most enjoyable way of getting it working. Now I know the printer does much more than just print, and I'm not sure the scanner will be equally simple to setup, but that wasn't the point of this exercise. It was just getting access to print. I don't mind the extra features requiring extra software etc., but it should by now by possible to simply plug in a printer and start printing no matter which printer and/or operating system.