access@iuvax.UUCP (06/27/86)
Does anyone have a printer interface for a Decwriter III to be used as a serial line printer on an AT running Xenix. The Xenix is SCO Sys V and so far I haven't had any luck getting it running using the dumb printer interface that is included. I'm trying to set the baud rate to 1200 but I only get garbage. Any ideas as to what I might be doing wrong? I've tried every combo of parity and data bits possible. Thanks for any help. Robert Cole access@iuvax uucp access@iubacs bitnet
sewilco@mecc.UUCP (Scot E. Wilcoxon) (06/30/86)
In article <1100019@iuvax.UUCP> access@iuvax.UUCP writes: > Does anyone have a printer interface for a Decwriter III to be >used as a serial line printer on an AT running Xenix. The Xenix is >... >baud rate to 1200 but I only get garbage. Any ideas as to what I >... I'll post this for the benefit of other XENIXers.. My XENIX 3.0 lpr doesn't know anything about serial printers either. To use one, you have to link the desired device to /dev/slp. When the system comes up and /etc/rc finds a /dev/slp, a shell script in /etc/lpopen will be executed with "</dev/slp". This shell script must do an "stty [options] </dev/slp" and then go to sleep forever. When no process has a serial port open, the baud rate and all options revert to defaults which probably don't work with your printer. So you have to leave a process live on it. Smarter print spoolers can be told what baud rate a serial port needs, and will take care of such details. (Ask around, a net neighbor might have a public domain spooler) Mandatory XENIX joke: The slp process uses up process and file table entries, and on my system those can't be expanded. (Oh, I tried to buy a Link Kit but SCO doesn't have them for my system.) -- Scot E. Wilcoxon Minn. Ed. Comp. Corp. quest!mecc!sewilco 45 03 N / 93 08 W (612)481-3507 {ihnp4,philabs}!mecc!sewilco NASA:"Earth uninhabitable in 500 years." Welcome to tropical Minnesota.