Win98SE programs can't find scanner

My scanner programs do not recognize my USB scanner (both a Canon and HP scanner have this problem). The scanners seem to be in the system: when I look at the Device Manager (from SYSTEM in the control panel), the scanner is there, and its "properties" claim it is "working properly." However, all programs report that they "can not communicate with scanner." Also, when I try to use the "Scanners and Camera" icon from the control panel, it reports that there aren't any scanners or cameras attached, and I can not "add" anything because the "add" button is grayed out. (Thus MicroSoft's Win98 help offerings for this problem are totally useless: " Go to the 'Scanners and Camera' icon and click "ADD" "!)

THIS IS NOT A SCANNER HARDWARE PROBLEM. My system (a Micron PIII, 667 MHz) is multi-boot (under system commander), with two Win98 and a DOS partition. The scanners and programs all work fine in the OTHER Win98 partition - so the scanner is OK, the USB cable is OK, the BIOS interrupts are OK, the drivers are OK, the USB controller is OK, power is correct, etc. I have tried dozens of times to reload the drivers, reboot, etc. So, PLEASE none of the usual "did you try this" simple answers. I have tried everything I can think of. (And I've been using computers for more than 40 years, and PCs since the day of the original IBM PC.)

I suspect that the non-scanner-functional version of Win98 (which is SE for sure, and I am 99% sure that the scanner-functional version is SE, too) has been screwed up somewhere. The question is where?!?!?!

Thanks in advance for your help.

Dave (radiometrics)

It looks as if that installation of Windows has become
corrupt.

Maybe clearing the duplicate devices in Safe mode will fix
the problem. Just make sure to remove all of the instances
not just the extra ones, otherwise Windows just adds
another instance of the device on top of the one that was
left there.

Maybe running the Repair options in Microsoft's TweakUI
utility for Windows 98 might rectify the system.

Otherwise, I think that you'll probably have to format the
drive and do a clean installation of Windows.

Eric,
http://www.pcbuyerbeware.co.uk/
http://www.sharedbirthday.co.uk/


-----Original Message-----
My scanner programs do not recognize my USB scanner (both
a Canon and HP scanner have this problem). The scanners
seem to be in the system: when I look at the Device
Manager (from SYSTEM in the control panel), the scanner is
there, and its "properties" claim it is "working
properly." However, all programs report that they "can
not communicate with scanner." Also, when I try to use
the "Scanners and Camera" icon from the control panel, it
reports that there aren't any scanners or cameras
attached, and I can not "add" anything because the "add"
button is grayed out. (Thus MicroSoft's Win98 help
offerings for this problem are totally useless: " Go to
the 'Scanners and Camera' icon and click "ADD" "!)

THIS IS NOT A SCANNER HARDWARE PROBLEM. My system (a
Micron PIII, 667 MHz) is multi-boot (under system
commander), with two Win98 and a DOS partition. The
scanners and programs all work fine in the OTHER Win98
partition - so the scanner is OK, the USB cable is OK, the
BIOS interrupts are OK, the drivers are OK, the USB
controller is OK, power is correct, etc. I have tried
dozens of times to reload the drivers, reboot, etc. So,
PLEASE none of the usual "did you try this" simple
answers. I have tried everything I can think of. (And
I've been using computers for more than 40 years, and PCs
since the day of the original IBM PC.)

I suspect that the non-scanner-functional version of
Win98 (which is SE for sure, and I am 99% sure that the
scanner-functional version is SE, too) has been screwed up
somewhere. The question is where?!?!?!

Thanks in advance for your help.

Dave (radiometrics)
.