vg55611@ihuxy.ATT.COM (gopal) (08/11/87)
|| From: Neal Holtz <holtz%cascade.carleton.cdn%ubc.csnet@RELAY.CS.NET> || || We have a LaserWriter attached to a PC-clone via RS232C (soon to be || networked, in some manner, but will remain serially attached). We || are using Wordstar 4.0, Wordperfect, TeX and other stuff that emits || straight PostScript. Problem is that Wordstar only uses Diablo || emulation mode, while everything else sends more or less well-behaved || PostScript (less, in the case of WordPerfect). All this seems to require || continually changing that silly little rotary switch in the back, to switch || from Diablo emulation mode and back again. || || I can't beleive that there isn't a hook into that emulation mode from || LaserWriter PostScript, except I can't find it in my (rather old) || documentation. Anybody know what it is: i.e., how can I get at the || Diablo emulator without touching the rotary switch? The alternative || seems to be writing a Diablo emulator in PostScript; if my first || question can't be answered, does anyone have such a beast that they || would be willing to share? Even if you could go into the diablo emulation mode from postscript, how would you get back ? Once you are in the emulation mode, all characters are treated just like the diablo would interpret them - one would have to invent a new diablo control code that does not exist in the real diablo. I guess this could have been done, but doen't look like it. When you have postscript and software that supports it, why even run software that does only diablo emulation ? I have a utility called "text2ps" that can be used to translate text files to postscript. Perhaps this can be used to convert the diablo mode output to postscript before it is sent to the printer. However, you will need to store the text output in a file. Also, it probably will not deal well with diablo control codes. Let me know if you want it. || In a related question, it doesn't seem like it would be too difficult || to write a replacement RS232 driver for PC's that would honour || XON/XOFF and DTR protocols, and would pop up little window on the || screen to display messages from the LaserWriter. Anyone know of || such a thing? || || Neal Holtz I have a program that will transmit a file (note: a file) over com1 or com2 using xon/xoff protocol - again, this is not quite what you are looking for but let me know if you want it. It can display messages received at com1/com2. Venu P. Gopal ihnp4!ihuxy!vg55611