Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

Andrej · Oct 3, 2009, 02:45 PM

I have not needed to scan anything to my scanner (model: Canon LiDE 70) for the summer, and now I plug in and I can't use it. I am connecting directly to the computer. Pressing any of the buttons on the front of the scanner do nothing.

Usually I resort to Image Capture, but Image Capture tells me that my scanner is in use. Instead of the usual image-previewing window, I get a fully blank window. I have no way of forcing Image Capture to browse the scanner. When I try clicking the Twain UI option, and then scan, I am told that my scanner is in use. When I then go to click on the Options tab, Image Capture locks up, and I have to force quit.

Removing Image Capture's preferences did not fix the problem.

I then decided to download and install Canon's CanoScan toolbox, which also used to work fine for me. When I go to Scan, however, I am given the following error message: "Failed to open a driver."

I tried reinstalling the correct drivers for my scanner and restarting my computer. That didn't work.

Instead, I now have TWO SCANNERS appearing in my devices for Image Capture, one titled CanoScan LiDE 70, and another titled CanoScan LiDE 70.

What's going on???? I just wanna scan a few pages already.

Andrej · 04:05 PM

[2 days later]

Guys, this is a time-sensitive issue. I need to know what's going on.

After plugging in my scanner again, as usual it makes its start-up gear noise, and at least this time, I don't get the In Use message again. But I still can't make the scanner do anything. Even when I use the Twain UI button, I just get ScanGear: "Searching for scanners," and the scanner gear barely budges. I've left the scanner unused for a few months, and I've done this store/use policy before with no issues like this.

Edit: Alright, I have no idea what I did, but after multiple plugging-in, and unplugging episodes with the scanner, and pressing just random buttons in both programs, I got it to at least start calibrating again.

Edit 2: I just got a 252.0.0 error, cannot read or write to file in CanoScan. Image Capture still behaves the same.

Edit 3: Alright, now it's trying to calibrate again. Luckily, CanoScan now recognizes the 4 buttons on the front of the scanner.

reader50 · Oct 5, 2009, 04:15 PM

Do you have a spare drive or partition around? I'm thinking the scanner has a hardware problem. You could test it with a clean OS install on another partition - that would rule out all the software causes.

rjenkinson · Oct 5, 2009, 06:41 PM

Try removing the Canon software and re-installing it. Make sure you have downloaded the latest version for the version of OS X that you are running (ie. make sure you're using the version for 10.6 if you're running Snow Leopard).

Andrej · Oct 6, 2009, 04:04 PM

How do I uninstall the drivers? Which folder would I need to go to?

I am using Mac OS X 10.5 on a PPC.

Both my iMac and MacBook have essentially matched partitions.

olePigeon · Oct 6, 2009, 04:11 PM

Run the Scanner Software Installer and see if there is an option to Uninstall (usually the installer has a button labeled "Options" or "Custom Install.") Or look in the Applications folder for the Scanner software and see if there's an uninstaller program in there.

Andrej · Oct 6, 2009, 06:51 PM

Well I have just updated my driver to
CanoScan LiDE 70

Unfortunately, I get the same error. I do not see any place for me to uninstall any of their drivers.

I still get the same calibration + "read error" problems. Even more interestingly, after I get this error message, the scanner gears continues to move in the following manner: Every 5 seconds, I will hear a whisper of a grind, click, or tap from inside the scanner, and this activity persists for as long as the USB cable is connected.

My scanner has been in its own drawer for 3 months unused, so I have no idea how the hardware could just malfunction like that.

Andrej · Oct 22, 2009, 07:36 PM

Update on October 22:

After going through Canon technical support over email for a week, and now over the phone, and even after having them tell me to go buy a new scanner (which I did), the new scanner is an LiDE 100 model.

That still gives me the same problems!

Canon has now told me to call Apple, and I just got off the phone with Apple, and they said that they cannot provide phone support for third-party drivers.

Apparently my options now are to either figure it out to get it to work (with magic), or reinstall the whole operating system.

(RANT: STUFF LIKE THIS is why I always say: If I can't figure out a troublesome issue like this in a day, rewipe the OS. It's much faster that way, and you get a faster computer. This time, I chose to drill and kill, but lost.)

With that being said, before I go refresh the operating system, is there ANYTHING ELSE I can do to get this to work? The issue is that when I go to Preview anything, from any software, I get a 252.0.0 "Cannot write or read file" etc. error message, what else can I do before I have to go do a full refresh?

Simon · Oct 22, 2009, 11:02 PM

Install the latest driver again.

Set up a brand new user account. Log into that. Is the problem still there?

If yes, install OS X on an extra drive or partition. Install the latest driver.

(in that order)

reader50 · Oct 22, 2009, 11:14 PM

After how much time has been spent fighting this, I'm going to side with the clean install option. The only side trip I'd suggest is to beg/borrow/steal an external hard drive. Do a clean install to it first, boot into it, confirm both scanners work. If the clean install didn't solve the problem, you'd pull a lot less hair if you find that out beforehand. Before messing around with your working drive.