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    #1

    photo scanning?

    One of those questions that's sounds so dumb, I'm not sure how to phrase it.

    Scanning photos. I know almost nothing about scanning except a few tips form How-to-Geek.

    I have an HP 2050 J510 printer (very basic: $39 at Wal-Mart a few years ago).
    Using Kubuntu 14.04 LTS.


    Let's say I place a 3 x 4-inch photo face-down on the glass scan window, close the lid, and scan using HP Device Manager with the xsane settings (shown in a window that pops up). When I do this, I get a nice scan of the photo EXCEPT for this problem:

    The photo is shown against the full-sized window background. Like an 8x11.5-inch sheet with a 3x4-inch photo positioned in the top-right corner.

    Question:
    How do I scan a small photo (of possibly varying sizes) so that the scan result consists of just the photo itself, the surface area of the photo itself, without any background included as part of the scan?

    On the xsane pop-up settings window, I'm not seeing any choice that says "photo" or anything. And there is no setting panel on the HP printer itself.


    Any ideas or tips?
    An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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    #2
    I think I got it. There are settings in the xsane window to adjust; and the borders are movable.
    I think. Will experiment some more. Suggestions, comments are still welcome.
    Last edited by Qqmike; Jan 18, 2016, 11:25 AM.
    An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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      #3
      Alternative KDE sane frontend - Kooka

      KDE Userbase: https://userbase.kde.org/Kooka

      KDE Techbase: https://techbase.kde.org/Projects/Kooka


      At here:

      1) Preview scan:



      2) Selecting what to scan



      3) Scanning the selected area with the wanted mode/resolution




      Ubuntu PPA search: https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+ppas?name_filter=kooka
      Google - Dogfood (?): https://dogfood.paddev.net/~samrog13...series_filter=
      Try Me !
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        #4
        @LinkBot: Ok, thanks. I didn't have to access Kooka. Instead, I followed your example and tried the same using my HPLIP Toolbox with xsane Preview, and it worked there. In fact, I now see that I can move those dotted crop lines anywhere, and pre-crop the photo before scanning. Perfect for what I need! Thanks.
        An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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          #5
          When I use Skanlite (the default scanning tool in Kubuntu), I find that if I do a preview scan first, to will automatically find the image borders and only scan the photo. Not sure if xsane does something like this.
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            #6
            When I use Skanlite (the default scanning tool in Kubuntu), I find that if I do a preview scan first, to will automatically find the image borders and only scan the photo. Not sure if xsane does something like this.
            xsane does not.
            Just now, I tried Skanlite, and it does what you say BUT, on my device, with one issue: the final saved image may have a narrow white boundary added to one or more of the 4 existing photo boundaries. Also, when I see the Preview, I see the dotted lines outlining the area to be scanned, but I don't see how to move the dotted boundaries. My cursor only turns into an "x," I don't see "arrowed handles" to grab to pull the dotted boundary line one way or the other way.
            An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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              #7
              Ignore the red box, and simply click and drag to make a new one. The red one won't be used. In the settings, you can turn off the automatic selection if you want.
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                #8
                Got it. Thanks. I'm becoming a scannin' fool!
                An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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                  #9
                  Originally posted by Teunis
                  By the time you get a high-end scanner and expect similar of the software I can recommend buying a licence for Hamrick.com's Vuescan.
                  They give excellent Linux support.
                  +1 I have the Pro version.

                  I will say that (having done a TON of scanning - paper, photos, slides, negatives) I use Vuescan for "serious" photographic work but I use xsane for regular stuff. Xsane has it's drawbacks, but once you get used to its quirks, it's fine. Vuescan is a bit complicate for the beginner but if you put in some time learning it's features, you can get amazing results.

                  Xsane:
                  The dashed-line border to control image size is not visible if you select an image size from the scanner preview window, but it's there. Just slide your mouse over there and drag the edges.
                  Scan preview is great for odd-sized items - to reduce file size by trimming the image prior to scan.
                  Supports document feeder and can save to various file formats - great for quickly scanning a multi-page document right to PDF without wading through the previews, and automatically increments the scanned output.
                  Supports double-sided scanning.
                  One negative - no real way to set useful defaults. For example, DPI reverts to a low setting every time you open Xsane.

                  Vuescan:
                  Fantastic mote removal for transparent (slides/negatives) scanning.
                  Hundreds of colorization presets for film scanning.
                  Remembers previous settings when re-opened.
                  Both negative and positive: Hundreds if not thousands of variable settings. A complicated, but complete scanning tool. Read the tips and the user manual!

                  I only use Vuescan with my Canon photo/slide/film scanner and Xsane with my HP All-in-one scanner. They both have their place.

                  Please Read Me
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                    #10
                    Thanks for your input oshunluvr. So far, xsane (and my $39 HP printer!*) is doing fine, more than I really need for this project. Thanks.


                    * Nice to be retired, out of the fast lane of
                    business consulting and whatever, where
                    at times I didn't feel that even my $1500
                    HP LaserJet IIP was enough! Of course, it
                    WAS enough. And I had enough.
                    An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way. Charles Bukowski
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