WIA scanning drivers

[LonelyPixel]

Has anybody seen a scanner that comes with a WIA driver for scanning? I have yet to find that product. Until then, it seems I cannot use Paint.NET for scanning and need another programme for that, like IrfanView (which has its issues, too). I'm asking me why on earth somebody would not want to support TWAIN but only some other obscure interface that's pretty unusable. Is TWAIN so very complicated that an ingenious developer like the one of Paint.NET can't handle it (but others can, for a long time already)? Or is .NET just so very incompatible to whatever TWAIN requires (I've seen that, too).

[jim100361]

Have a browse through the thread at the link below and see if anything mentioned there might help you:

http://forums.getpaint.net/index.php?/topic/23336-printig-problem-with-wia/

[Ego Eram Reputo]

TWAIN is old technology and WIA is new. If you haven't spotted WIA then you must be using some old technology.

There is a plugin that adds TWAIN support - you can find it here: Twainable

[LonelyPixel]

@jim100361, it's about scanning, not printing.

My scanner/printer is 2 years old (Samsung), and another such device is brand new (Epson). They're not old.

Of course you could require IE10 for any website right now, but you may be locking out 98% of all users with that unrealistic requirement. Is that by design with Paint.NET?

I had noticed that Twain plugin, but it doesn't even integrate in the existing menu... Looks like a hackish thing.

[LonelyPixel]

-deleted-

Edited April 30, 2012 by LonelyPixel

[Ego Eram Reputo]

The Twain plugin adds the support you need. No it doesn't have access to the Paint.NET menu, but you'll find it under the effects menu (Tools submenu).

Hackish? Use it or don't, the choice is yours. That's how plugins integrate with Paint.NET.

Reading material:

(wiki - WIA) "It is said to be more flexible than TWAIN because it is a standardized interface that doesn't require a tight bundling of scanner software and driver (TWAIN-only scanners are often limited to functions that are enabled in its driver software bundle). Most recent scanners support WIA.

(wiki - TWAIN) "The latest version of the TWAIN standard is TWAIN 2.1, released on July 8, 2009"

[LonelyPixel]

"Most recent scanners support WIA." I cannot support that statement. 2 may be a small sample, but 2 out of 2 that do not support WIA gives a very different impression to me.

TWAIN was last updated in 2009, that doesn't exactly sound outdated. It was started in 1991. So when did Linux start? Or Windows NT? Or the x86 CPU architecture? Or trains and electricity? What does that even mean? Anyway, all seems to be said.

[Ego Eram Reputo]

I'm not going to discuss the relative merits of WIA vs TWAIN on this forum.

You have your solution.

[earthsound]

First, apologies for replying to a thread from 2012. However, I noticed that TWAIN support isn't listed on the Popular Feature Requests post, so I've been looking around the forum for threads that discuss this missing feature. 

 

[snipped by earthsound]

Reading material:

(wiki - WIA) "It is said to be more flexible than TWAIN because it is a standardized interface that doesn't require a tight bundling of scanner software and driver (TWAIN-only scanners are often limited to functions that are enabled in its driver software bundle). Most recent scanners support WIA.

(wiki - TWAIN) "The latest version of the TWAIN standard is TWAIN 2.1, released on July 8, 2009"

 

There are a couple of things I'd like to address/correct with regard to your statements that are copied from a wiki.

 

Regarding the flexibility and merits of TWAIN over WIA, here is what a LEADTOOLS tech support person answered in their forums on the differences between TWAIN and WIA:

 

1. WIA uses a common dialog for all devices while Twain uses a dialog created by the device manufacturer.  Practically speaking, this almost always means that the TWAIN dialog will provide more options and advanced control over the device. 
2. TWAIN allows you to use custom capabilities that the device manufacturer has created even though they don't exist in the TWAIN specifications. 
3. In general, when a device supports both Twain and WIA, TWAIN is better for scanners and WIA is better for acquiring images from cameras and video devices. 
4. TWAIN has three transfer modes (Native, Memory, File) and WIA only has two (Memory, File). 
5. Most TWAIN sources save the settings of the previous scan while WIA does not. 
6. TWAIN supports options for each page when scanning in duplex mode but WIA uses the same settings for both sides. 

 

Also, when you wrote this, TWAIN version 2.2 had come out in February 2012.

 

Rick: it seems this has been asked more than a handful of times going back many years, even though it's clearly spelled out in the FAQ that WIA is what paint.net supports. The Twainable plugin only works on 32-bit paint.net, so that isn't an option for everyone. Is WIA the only device driver interface that paint.net will support in the foreseeable future? Either way, could you add it to the Popular Feature Requests post and clarify your current thoughts on the matter?

 

Thanks!

[Ego Eram Reputo]

TWAIN support is not a 'missing feature'. Rick made a design decision to use WIA (see here ).

[david.atwell]

Also, this is necroposting and thus prohibited by the rules.

 

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