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Multifunction Laser Printer and Linux
(lemmy.ml)
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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I would normally agree but then I saw how cool Paperless-NGX is and had a mighty need to self host and get organized. Or at least that's how I'm justifying it to myself....
No idea about paperless ngx but printer mfgrs generally don't think about Linux. Instead Linux users buy some specific printers and after years of effort manage to get them working mostly usably. With a multifunction device you want the software to implement 3x the functions at the same time, which sort of cubes the difficulty. It may be even worse since the MFC is an economy product with more flakiness swept under its windows software.
I guess try web searches about the machine you are considering, but I'd be pessimistic. Consider a separate printer and scanner. Those do work if you choose good models. Basically you want commercial and industrial gear, not home office stuff.
I also think document imaging software is good enough now that for light duty use, you can get away with phone camera snaps instead of using a scanner.