Solved That Software Won't Work on a Surface Pro!??

[Telstar1948]

When I got my SP3, I had an Epson GT-1500 scanner with my old desktop. I hooked it up to my SP3, downloaded the latest software for it, and it's been working just fine ever since.

The other day I decided to move all my stuff out of a basement office into a nicer office on the main floor of our home - new desk etc. Hooked up the scanner, but the software froze up when I tried to actually scan something. Went through various steps: checked the USB cable, this, that and the other thing. Downloaded latest software/drivers. Same thing. Called Epson today went through it with tech support. I was going over everything with the tech after downloading new software (again) and I was getting the scan window to open but it would freeze - just like it did when I moved the scanner to the new office. I mentioned to the tech that nothing had changed - same scanner, same cables, same software, same SP3 --- what?? He said, "You have a Surface Pro? Our software won't run properly on the Surface Pro."Really? I pointed out it had been working without issue for months until I physically moved the scanner to another office. He said that the software might work but not reliably.

Weird stuff that Epson would know their scanner software doesn't run reliably with a SP, and they apparently haven't attempted to make it run reliably with an SP.

So, I need a scanner in my work -- there sets a good scanner, auto document feeder and everything. According to the manufacturer, if the software works with the SP, it's a fluke.

 

[leeshor]

There is no LOGICAL reason for it not to work on a Surface Pro unless they are having issues with the same processor and/or operating system on other devices. Being a Surface Pro should have zero correlation.

 

[malberttoo]

When I got my SP3, I had an Epson GT-1500 scanner with my old desktop. I hooked it up to my SP3, downloaded the latest software for it, and it's been working just fine ever since.

The other day I decided to move all my stuff out of a basement office into a nicer office on the main floor of our home - new desk etc. Hooked up the scanner, but the software froze up when I tried to actually scan something. Went through various steps: checked the USB cable, this, that and the other thing. Downloaded latest software/drivers. Same thing. Called Epson today went through it with tech support. I was going over everything with the tech after downloading new software (again) and I was getting the scan window to open but it would freeze - just like it did when I moved the scanner to the new office. I mentioned to the tech that nothing had changed - same scanner, same cables, same software, same SP3 --- what?? He said, "You have a Surface Pro? Our software won't run properly on the Surface Pro."Really? I pointed out it had been working without issue for months until I physically moved the scanner to another office. He said that the software might work but not reliably.

Weird stuff that Epson would know their scanner software doesn't run reliably with a SP, and they apparently haven't attempted to make it run reliably with an SP.

So, I need a scanner in my work -- there sets a good scanner, auto document feeder and everything. According to the manufacturer, if the software works with the SP, it's a fluke.

Surface Pro, or Pro 3? Win 8, or Win 10?

The issue (as Leeshor said) really should have nothing to do with the fact that it's a Surface, but rather what OS is on it...

 

[Telstar1948]

Mine is an SP3 running 8.1. I agree, should not make a difference, but Epson says differently according to their tech people. However, I can attest to the software acting up for no discernible reason. Beyond my pay grade...

 

[jnjroach]

Do you have the latest utility which is dated Feb 2015?


http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/...ie=yes&infoType=Downloads&platform=OSF_W_8-64

 

[agt499]

There is no LOGICAL reason for it not to work on a Surface Pro unless they are having issues with the same processor and/or operating system on other devices. Being a Surface Pro should have zero correlation.

Surface Pro, or Pro 3? Win 8, or Win 10?

The issue (as Leeshor said) really should have nothing to do with the fact that it's a Surface, but rather what OS is on it...

Yep, 'should not', 'not LOGICAL'.
I've got a USB Analogue to Digital convertor that:

• Works perfectly with Windows 8.1 on an Asus Ultrabook
• Works perfectly in openSuse linux on my SP3
• Will not work with any software running Windows 8.1 on the SP3.

I've concluded that device hardware is fine, the SP3 hardware is fine, and it works fine with windows. Just not all three together.
Leads me to think it's some low level driver-type thing (though the Native Audio Class Driver stuff is meant to be native).
I'm quietly crossing my fingers for it to fix itself with Windows 10.

Telstar's scanner may have similar weirdness specific to the SP3/Win8.1 - despite the fact that it's not logical and should not...

 

[Kris]

If you mentioned that you had a SP3, before he said that, I am betting that he just said it to get you off the phone. Did you google your scanner brand and model and put SP3 after it. If it doesn't work there should be tons of results about it, maybe even a work around. Otherwise he was lying to you.

 

[vxm]

I agree with @Kris here, one or two times, sales person, whom I asked about some accessories showed complete ignorance stating that it won't work, because it doesn't work on Windows tablets- I presume they might have been referring to Windows RT (and it being mobile system which should be restricted the same way iOS is, but even worse, because less common, right?). Of course I no longer shop in such places.

 

[GreyFox7]

My dad has an HP all in one and it occasionally stops working for no reason. You can delete it reinstall it, reboot, etc, etc, any order or combination doesn't matter. HP has a troubleshooter though that will fix the problem, until the next time. Just like most other things with Windows, settings get hosed and it stops working and deleting the device does not clean up the registry settings so adding it back just reuses the old settings with the same results.

There's a clue, how you fix yours is the question. whacking registry settings can be risky but that's probably where the issue is. Of course you could do a Reset/Refresh but there's always a risk of something else going wrong in the process. The better solution would be more Control Panel tools to reset each Windows subsystem or device. Although actually fixing the corruption problems is the ultimate we wont hold our breath on that.

 

[BillJ]

I am by no means a computer expert, but dealing with all varieties of Surface over the past few years has taught me a great deal about Reset/Refresh, Uninstall/Reinstall, etc. Corrupted registry settings remains the bane of the Windows world, and I would never try to "whack the registry settings" without having expert assistance. If an average user like me had the tools to fix corrupted settings, I would bet that much of the public dissatisfaction with Windows could be assuaged; certainly there would be fewer frustrating calls to various customer service centers and less wasted effort in maintaining fully operational devices.

 

[Telstar1948]

Thanks for all the comments and replies. Yes, I have the latest software for the scanner. In fact, I had that before I moved the scanner to my new office - it worked without a hiccup until I moved it. I'm going to see if any others are having this issue with Windows/SP3/Epson scanner just to satisfy my curiosity. After that I believe I'll look into alternate scanner software that may take care of this issue. We'll see...!

BTW, a Registry repair utility would be wonderful...and that's probably why we'll never see one

 

[JoshB]

The only thing I could think of trying is uninstalling it completely and manual install the driver only, not the software. Then just try using the windows default scanner software. You will most likely not have a lot of options, but it might allow it to work at least.

There should be no reason for it to just stop because of a location change. Something else must have updated, been installed, or is running that is stopping it from functioning now.