True for me, but not for my mom. Today, she can print from her phone or computer on her very first attempt with a brand new printer. Holy hell, printing was such a PITA in the past. Do you remember those finicky cables with the screws? And installing drivers which then crashed or hung your computer? It’s amazing how much better most experiences are today.
> Do you remember those finicky cables with the screws?
I remember cables with screws (which didn't actually need to be screwed, really.) They were quite easy to use; not any harder than configuring WiFi is, and much more reliable. Less convenient as far as choosing locations, though.
> And installing drivers which then crashed or hung your computer?
I've been using PCs since before OS-level printer drivers were a thing and through the whole era where they were, and I've never had problems with printer drivers on PC (well, outside of mismanagement by IT on work computers.) I've had problems with drivers on Linux, and with printer support apps (effectively drivers) on Android on personal devices, though.
Amusingly, last few times I have tried to print from my phone have not been successful. I recall one printer wanting me to have a particular app. Or, now, one expected to have internet access, which I don't have at home other than my phone connection right now.
That said, I would still count this as having nice things. When we got rid of our ancient printer and bought a current one, it does work more often. Ironically, better from Linux, as I don't have to install drivers; because of course it came with a windows disk that has installed some crap on that computer.
So, try this with what you could find at Goodwill some day. Or work with a budget where you stay trying to get refills to work.
