scanning always produces invalid PDF files

[John6600]

I have the same problem.  I brought the OfficeJet 6600  so that I could scan from a Chromebook via the WEB server and it works fine with the flat bed but not the ADF, usually.  Occaisionally the ADF does work with a PDF multipage scan, or single page, but then it doesn't again.  In an idle moment this evening I attacked the problem again and could not get the embedded WEB server to work so I tried my desktop Win 7 computer instead.   

Results of Using Different Browsers with ADF Scan for PDF in embedded WEB Server on Win 7 ws:

Chrome:  No visible PDF output in image preview window.

Firefox: Does not show the PDF file in the image in the preview window but complains that the PDF is missing XREF chunks.  If I click the read it anyway button the document can then be opened by PDF XTracker software

IE: Runs my PDF software in the preview window... ( Active X ? )  and the PDF reader complains about the missing XREF chunks but opens it anyway.

Chrome: Won't scan multipage documents.

So then I googled the error message and I am grateful to know the cause of the problem from this page.  So I can get multipage docs scanned using a browser on the windows machine.  I can also stop looking for a solution for the Chromebook issue, there isn't one.  I suspect that the XTracker PDF software is the business that is doing the real work on the Win platform and that is not available to a chromebook.  

However, I can link the chrome book to a Canon Lide 110 (SANE Scanner) via USB port and scan directly from the Chrome browser using an extension which implements the document.scan  javascript function.  This is developed by google developer Francois Beaufort although currently document.scan is a function which only works in the ChromeOS.

I like to think you can scan directly from a web page using only javascript on a Chromebook because Chrome is a proper browser 🙂

[John6600]

This was really bugging me I thought I could leave it alone, it doesn't work, forget it, but I just can't.  There has to be a way and this morning I found a work around.  It is not pretty but it works and enables reliable multisheet scans from the HPOfficeJet 6600, and no doubt its siblings, using the embedded WEB app from a ChromeOS computer.  The work around is as follows.

The app on the embedded WEB server loads the PDF into the image viewer so disable Chrome PDF viewer, it can't handle the output so why not: [ Go to chrome://plugins and disable Chrome PDF Viewer. ]

Scan a multipage document from HPOJ 6600 and when it finishes the viewer, iframe, whatever it is, remains blank BUT then the WEB app downloads  "1.pdf" to downloads...  I did say it wasn't pretty did I ?

Go to downloads where you will find "1.pdf".  Copy and rename from Downloads to the required folder in your file system.  

Re-enable Chrome PDF viewer:  chrome://plugins -- enable

Go to your folder where you stored the multipage pdf, double click it and Chrome PDF viewer, or preferred PDF software, opens it up, nice and easy.

General Comments

• Dont forget to rename "1.pdf" as soon as you have scanned it.

• Don't forget to turn PDF Viewer back on after a scanning session.

• I use scanning for very simple documents for audit trail - 365 KB page - don't expect too much - but I find it very useful even so.

• If you have a third party PDF viewer in ChromeOS you may be able to open the file directly from the Chrome File Manager.  

• If you are using Win X +  Firefox, Edge or even IE you can probably ignore the messages about PDF errors on the preview pane and don't need to do any of the above.  For me Win 7 with Adobe or PC XTracker worked fine with Firefox and IE but not Chrome.  In Chrome I need to turn the Chrome PDF Viewer off, even in Win 7, and retrieve the output from Downloads. 

• If you are using Linux you could try using Chrome browser and turning Chrome PDF Viewer off, I see no reason why this should not work, ChromeOS is a Linux Distro after all. 

• The above enables ChromeOS to use ADF in HPOJ 6600 but I am not saying that this is a better way of scanning documents, merely that it extends the capability of ChromeOS in the above situation.  I am thoroughly comfortable with ChromeOS and totally agree there are elements missing.  I have no doubt that these elements will be supplied in due course, in the meantime workarounds are necessary.  I make allowances for the short falls because in many areas, particularly security,  ChromeOS is very serviceable.

Chromebooks are cool because ChromeOS has a proper browser    

[John6600]

Message to Selinger:

Just a quick note - ChromeOS is also browser based and scanning is problematical, I like you thought HPOJ would work in the browser and to an extent it does.  

I think the problem may arise from exposing perfectly formed PDF files, from the scanning hardware, to the WEB app where they get corrupted.  If you disable the PDF Viewer in ChromeOS the WEB app can no longer run its cruddy code in the Preview Panel and downloads the PDF directly instead.  These PDF's appear to work OK.

I have described my observations in a post on the end of this thread.  

I like Chromebooks because ChromeOS has a proper browser   🙂

[Selinger]

In my experience, the PDF files you get from the WebScan feature are always corrupted; however, some PDF viewers will silently "repair" the file whereas others don't. I think that your different outcomes may have more to do with different viewing methods than with actually getting a correct PDF from the scanner. The problem is, if you send such a file to another person, they may not be able to view it even if you could.

[monkeyblair]

I'm trying to figure out if this applies to my HP 860 printer/scanner and the corrupted files it produces.  Are you saying that you scan your files directly to the internet and in the process of transfering them or in viewing them afterward you have corruption?  Does your Chromebook not have any file storage capacity and that's why they go to the net?  Can you scan them to a desktop and does that create the same problem.

My problem is when I scan to my desktop I get a .pdf that looks perfectly fine, but if you try to merge it with another .pdf the 1st page of the scans is always unusable and you get an incomplete document.  Would scanning to the web possibly fix this problem.

I'm sorry if I sound confused, but I'm not sure if I have the same corruption that you do.

Bob

[Selinger]

To clarify: the corruption that I have reported occurs with the "WebScan" feature of the printer. This feature works by accessing the web server that is built into the printer, from any computer with a web browser. This method works from any web browser, and does not depend on which operating system you have, or whether you have installed any printer driver software from HP. It's a great way to scan without installing anything. But it has nothing to do with scanning "to the internet"; rather, it is about scanning "from a web browser".

The corrupted files are produced by the webserver that is built into the printer; it does not depend on your computer at all, because the files are already corrupted when they are sent by the printer. However, if you scan via a driver that you installed, then it uses a different method to generate the PDF files, which may not be corrupted.

[TzPrinter]

Seriously? Diagnostic purpose? If that is the case then the page should say “This if for diagnostic purposes only”. I have used the web interface for years, while HP drivers have improved tremendously, those of us who remember spending hours removing and reinstalling bloated and broken drivers and software I am pretty sure will move on from HP if the web UI is is removed as a supported function.

[AL74_]

I also have a problem witb Web Scan on my HP 6830. When I scan documents with multiple pages using WebScan, it produces invalid PDF documents - when I open them in Adobe Acrobat, it gives error "There was an error while reading a stream". I cannot even print these PDFs. 

[kevin-t]

Hello,

Thank you for posting in this thread. Unfortunately based on when the last response was made, I have closed this thread to help keep comments current and up to date. We recommend starting a new thread for your issue. 
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