My scanner will scan right away but my computer just keeps saying prepparing to scan.

[GOLFERGIRL26]

My HP Officejet 3830 All-In-One Series scans right away but it will not register on  computer.  It did when I first got it.  I don't use it but maybe once or twice a month.  My computer just says preparing to scan even though it was already scanned.  I then in turn can not see or name my file.

[IronBadger]

If you are using HP Easy Scan you will need to temporarily switch to using Image Capture for scanning.

There is currently an incompatibility between HP Easy Scan and macOS Catalina that HP is still working to remedy.

Apple Image Capture comes with macOS and OS X and provides a quick and simple way to scan.

To use Image Capture:

1. Place the document or photo print side down on the scanner glass, and then close the scanner lid.
   If your printer has an automatic document feeder (ADF), use it to scan multiple page documents at one time.

      CAUTION: 

   Do not load photos in the ADF.

2. Open Finder 

   and then click Go in the top menu bar

3. Select Applications, and then open Image Capture.
4. Click your printer name in the Devices or Shared list.

   NOTE: 

   If a Software for this device is not installed message displays after you select your printer, click Install, and then follow the instructions to complete the installation.

5. Click Show Details at the bottom of the screen.
   A preview of the scan displays, and then change any of the following settings:
   • Scan Mode: Select the scanning bed or automatic document feeder.
   • Kind: Set scan as color, black and white, or optimized for text only documents.
   • Resolution: Higher resolution produces better quality images by using more dots (pixels) per inch. Higher resolution increases the file size of the scan. Use a higher resolution for scans with graphics or items that require the best detail. If you are scanning black and white text, higher resolution is not necessary.
   • Size: Use a standard paper size or select the Use Custom Size option.
   • Scan to: Select the folder you want scans to save to or use the Mail option to attach the scan to an Apple Mail email message.
   • Name: Type a name for the saved scan file.
   • Format: Select the file type for the scan.

     NOTE: 

     To save multiple page documents or multiple images into a single file, select the PDF or TIFF format, and then select the box next to Combine into single document. This feature is only available with these formats.

   • Image Correction: Click the pop-up menu, and then select Manual to display color change options such as brightness and saturation.
6. Click Scan.