cam2@ur-univax.UUCP (07/16/85)
In a recent note I described our ideas for using mainframes as print servers
for the LaserWriter. Well apparently we weren't the only ones thinking along
these lines. Here is a summary of responses:
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From: Bill Havens <rochester!havens%ubc.csnet@csnet-relay.arpa>
Yes, we are implementing a teaching lab using 16 fat macs and 5 suns
with a laserwriter. We have the seagate built but not yet debugged.
We will use the new distributed file system for the suns, and
the external file system for the macs. Sun is supposed to support
the laserwriter under unix although we are looking at doing it
ourselves. What progress have you made?
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From: rochester!allegra!ihnp4!trigraph!bruce (Bruce Freeman)
We are investigating doing exactly the same thing to facilitate sharing
LaserWriters between our VAXen and our Macintoshs. However we have not got
much further than saying "yes it would be nice if both groups could use the
LaserWriters". I would be interested in hearing about your experiences and
especially in hearing about your costs since that is the primary concern at
the moment. Good Luck!
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From: Seymour <rochester!JOSEPH@RU-BLUE.ARPA>
We, at Rutgers University in New Jersey, are doing the exact same
thing. We have ordered hardware to build Seagate, and we have just
begun poking around with the software. We have no Immediate plans
for large scale use, but if possible we would like to do file serving
and Print spooling through one of our UNIX based machines via SEAGATE.
Seymour Joseph
Systems Programmer/
Microcomputers
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From: Gary L. Crum <rochester!oper.crum@UTAH-20.ARPA>
The University of Utah Computer Science Department has also decided to bring
up SEAGate. I'm about to fabricate the Applebus board, and we have ordered
the CPU and Ethernet boards.
I don't know how far along you are, but do you know if the right PROM montior
for the SUN CPU board comes with the FT68-X from Forward Technology?
I'm the person here that's fabricating the SEAGate Applebus card. I don't
quite understand what section 2.7 of the SEAGate.hard document means. Do you?
We also have LaserWriters attached to large host machines (a DEC 2060 and a
VAX 750- soon to be replaced by a VAX 8600 when we receive UNIX for it). This
allows us to use tools like Scribe and Transcript to prepare PostScript code.
It makes it difficult to get LaserWriter output from Macintoshes, however; the
^F PostScript file generation is a kludge, but the SEAGate will help.
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From: Stuart Marks <rochester!marks@Cascade.arpa>
Here at Stanford we have two Laserwriters connected to Unix systems,
and we plan to have several Macs connected via Appletalk, with a
Seagate connecting the Appletalk net to the campus ethernet.
One approach to using the Laserwriters from the Macs is to have a
"laserwriter server" on Unix that will look like a LW to the Macs.
This server will take whatever it gets from the Macs and then ship it
to the printer using the standard Unix lpr.
I don't know exactly what's involved with this approach. Does this
sound reasonable to you? Are you planning something similar? Let's
keep in touch about this. If I get some info or inspiration I'll let
you know about it.
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From: DAVE THOMAS <rochester!DAVE_THOMAS%CARLETON.BITNET@WISCVM.ARPA>
We too are planing to implement a SEAGATE to connect with our MicroVax II.
Sounds like we are a couple of months behind you however. Please keep
us informed of your progress.
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Dartmouth College is about to embark on a project to develop a
protocol server for AppleTalk/Ethernet. This project is quite similar
to the SEAGate project, and a few other commercially available
projects. Before we reinvent the wheel, we would be interested in
knowing about any on-going or planned projects that are concerned
with connecting AppleTalk to Ethernet in any shape or form.
Please *mail* responses to:
USENET: {linus|decvax|cornell|astrovax)!dartvax!networks
ARPA: networks%dartmouth@csnet-relay
CSNET: networks@dartmouth
David Kovar
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From: David Waitzman <rochester!djw@cmu-ee-maxwell.ARPA>
I'm working for Carnegie Mellon University's Electrical & Computer Eng.
Department. I have heavily modified the Seagate code to work with our
network routers. Our routers don't just depend on ethernet (though most are
used between ethernets), but will run on whatever kind of network they are on:
for example, boot a router that is attached to Pronet and AppleBus, and
you have Apple<-->Pronet. Neat stuff. Anyway, we plan on providing
laserwriter access from unix. We have ruled out 9.6k baud serial line
connections to the laserwriters because of speed. This means that our
Vaxen will have to speak appletalk, or a separate translator box must be used.
We may put a number of laserwriters on their own applebus that is attached to
ethernet.
How do you plan on accessing the laserwriters? What kind of software and
hardware support do you have? In the ECE department here we have
two 785's, three 780's, and two 750's all on a 10 meg ethernet. Our CS
department, which is also interested in AppleTalk, has many (20+) vaxen
on 10meg and 3 meg ethernet. We also have a network of Sun workstations.
I imagine that they would want to access the laserwriters also. We don't
use the Sumacc C compiler since we have the Green Hills 68000 C cross
compiler and it produces MUCH better code than Sumacc.
david waitzman