I think you'll find that Ubuntu/Kubuntu have good support for HP
printers but others hmmm...not quite so good.
I started to put a Dell printer on my dual boot Ubuntu/XP AMD computer
and found that no driver exists for Linux or Win 7,
Dell only supplied a driver for XP. The printer is a Dell Photo Printer
720 (2004 mfg) with guaranteed obsolescence built in!!!

I believe the better support for HP printers dates back many years ago
when HP hired Bruce Perens to work on Linux issues.
Bruce was a significant contributer to the early Debian Linux
distributions so it is easy to understand how his contributions have
carried forward through the years. I believe Bruce was once quoted
(approximately) to say: "When the first line completes
printing on your Linux hosted HP printer, you will have violated 26 HP
patents." HP chose to look the other way and enjoyed
the revenue derived from printers easily being hosted on Linux
computers.

I have tried using two different HP printers on my Ubuntu 10.4 release
and getting them going was as simple as plugging them
in, powering them on and beginning to use them. Hallelujah, no driver
issues got in the way.