[CS-FSLUG] Printers on Linux

[l4c]

Ed Hurst wrote:
> I wasn't quite sure, but I confirmed today running your HP printer with
> HPLIP on Linux essentially voids the warranty. They don't say it like
> that, but the results are the same. They refused to discuss warranty
> because I used it with Linux.
> 
> Is there a printer manufacturer who doesn't do that?
> 
> Assuming there are, do they make anything us mere humans can afford?
> 

Actully, HP is one of the few printer manufacturers that provide driver 
specs for Linux.  Just to clarify, though, in the USA, the 
Magnusson-Moss Warranty Act ensures that post-purchase modifications 
cannot be used as an excuse by manufacturers to deny you access to 
repairs under warranty.

Excerpt taken from j2mac.com because I just cannot seem to find the 
correct article this morning but:
Weird warranties: In March of this year, Linux.com and others reported 
that a Compaq rep had told a woman that the problem she was having with 
her notebook’s keys sticking and being unresponsive was not covered by 
the one-year warranty because she had replaced the Windows operating 
system with a version of Linux. A similar story, this time about a 
laptop purchased at PC World, appeared in early September; a broken 
hinge and dead screen pixels were the problem.
In both cases, the inconvenienced consumers eventually received 
satisfaction. They had been initially misinformed, and PC World and HP 
(Compaq’s parent company) have clarified their warranties: Hardware 
defects will be covered by warranty regardless of the OS installed on 
the computer.

In other words, go ahead and run your HP printer Ed, and if they give 
you any guff, remind them about that (federal) Magnusson-Moss law. 
Chances are you just happened to talk to an "associate" who is not 
really familiar with HP's support policy.  You can be sure there is 
someone there who actually knows better.

-- 
-Linc Fessenden

In the Beginning there was nothing, which exploded - Yeah right...