Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!ames!sgi!silvlis.com!jimb
From: jimb@silvlis.com (Jim Budler)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware
Subject: Re: LaserWriter with PC
Keywords: PC,LaserWriter
Message-ID: <1990Sep22.042225.21033@silvlis.com>
Date: 22 Sep 90 04:22:25 GMT
References: <2330@gmuvax2.gmu.edu> <142732@sun.Eng.Sun.COM> <2087@hsi86.hsi.UUCP>
Sender: usenet@silvlis.com (USENET news maint)
Reply-To: jimb@silvlis.com (Jim Budler)
Organization: Silvar-Lisco,Inc. Sunnyvale Ca.
Lines: 52

In article <2087@hsi86.hsi.UUCP> kenney@hsi.com (Brian Kenney) writes:
>In article <142732@sun.Eng.Sun.COM> fiddler@concertina.Eng.Sun.COM (Steve Hix) writes:
> 
>>You *could* connect the LW+ to your PC over a serial line.  RS232.
>>Whether or not your software would support the printer properly`
>>may be another question altogether.
>
>When I worked at an insurance company, I supported the DOS machines in
>a department.  I found that most programs that were used (Lotus, Excel,
>Pagemaker, and some more that I thankfully can't remember) supported
>many different printers, and the Laserwriter was invariably among 
>them.

I R)eplied to the original article so I'll repeat myself some.

The original poster was talking about intruding a serial PC
connection to a LaserWriter already on a LocalTalk Mac network.

Yes you can connect the PC to the serial port, but every time the
PC user wants to print he must disconnect the LocalTalk network
to do so.

We had such a situation for a year. In addition to the Macs trying to
print when the LaserWriter is connected to the PC, there were times when
print streams from one or the other got terminated improperly.

We often had to power cycle the printer to get it back to a stable
condition.

The question is not whether the PC can support the LaserWriter,
if the PC has PostScript software it can. If it doesn't, and just
sends pure ASCII to the LaserWriter it gets printed in a default
font. You can even connect it to a PC with software for a
daisy wheel printer, and send codes as a preamble, and get text
enhancements of a sort. (Something??630 emulation).

The only truely viable answer in this situation is a LocalTalk
interface for the PC.
'nuff said.

jim


>
>
>-- 
>       Brian Kenney                                      kenney@hsi.com 


--
Jim Budler          jimb@silvlis.com       +1.408.991.6115
Silvar-Lisco, Inc. 703 E. Evelyn Ave. Sunnyvale, Ca. 94086