SANE vs. CUPS

Friday March 31, 2006

Every so often, I have to print things, sign them, and then scan them.


Average time to print something using CUPS: 2.5 hours. I have to know where my printer is plugged in, edit some configuration files, and then fiddle with a GUI control panel, then a web UI. All these steps are necessary, because all of the functionality is not exposed through one of them. Sometimes, I also have to download a "PPD" file.


Average time to scan something using XSANE: 3 seconds. I plug in my scanner. I click on the picture of the scanner in my menu. I click "scan". It scans.


Congratulations, SANE team. You know how to write software.


Better luck next time, CUPS guys.