cn@forty2.physik.unizh.ch (cn) (06/13/91)
Hi,
two weeks ago I asked, if it is possible to send text from a VAX/VMS system
directly to a fax, and possibly as easy, as you can now print the text on a
local printer.
Several people sent me some information, for which I thank them very much:
darren alex griffiths dag@well.sf.ca
guy@etg.cad.mcc.com
Jeremy Begg JEREMY@vsm.com.au
Brian Shimkin shimkin@pgflt.enet.dec.com
John Wisniewski wisniewski@dpdmai.enet.dec.com
Muhammad Basit mab@ulysses.att.com
Jeff Johnson JOHNSON%DPD.COM%CEARN.cern.ch@YMIR.BITNET
Nicolas Kessler KESSLER@uni2a.unige.ch
You find below all messages I received (Message header shortened, inclusion
of original message often removed).
claudio (claudio@forty2.physik.unizh.ch)
Also: PSI%022847931125::TRZCL1::C_NIEDER, K538912@CZHRZU1A.BITNET
Claudio Nieder AST 3.944 (DW 6) | Tel: +41 1 465-2249
Alcatel STR AG, Friesenbergstrasse 75, CH-8055 Zuerich | Fax: +41 1 465-3525
From well!dag@apple.com Mon Jun 3 18:08:17 1991
Date: Mon, 3 Jun 91 08:41:30 pdt
From: well!dag@apple.com (Darren Alex Griffiths)
Message-Id: <9106031541.AA16177@well.sf.ca.us>
A buddy at Adobe recently mentioned that they have being pushing for printers
that had fax capability and I believe that they have already made changes in
Postscript to help this along. The changes basically allow you to specify a
phone number in the Postscript program the fax/printer would then call, up
the number, if there is a fa machine at the other end it would send the fax,
if there is another fax/printer it would send the Postscript program allowing
better picture quality. Hopefully there would be some security involved, I
don't think I'd like anyone under the sun sending Postscript programs to my
printers.
You may want to call Adobe to see if this is a reality yet, otherwise it's time
to look at fax modems, most trade mags (particularly Byte and other PC
publications) have a number of adds for them.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
darren alex griffiths (415)708-3294 dag@well.sf.ca
From guy@etg.cad.mcc.com Tue Jun 4 21:21:32 1991
Message-Id: <9106041923.AA25136@dec2.cad.mcc.com>
Date: Tue, 04 Jun 91 14:23:38 CDT
From: guy@etg.cad.mcc.com
This was published on the net earlier this year. I haven't used it.
/ed
------- Forwarded Message
Path: cadillac!milano.sw.mcc.com!uudell!bigtex!texsun!vector!egsner!montagar!fa
llout!system
>From: system@fallout.uucp (John Wisniewski DEC)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.fax
Subject: Digital FAXgateway Postscript<-->FAX
Message-ID: <621@fallout.uucp>
Date: 20 Jan 91 20:22:44 GMT
Organization: DECUS DFWLug BBS - Dallas, TX
Lines: 101
Netlanders,
Excuse my brevity in answering the POSTSCRIPT TO FAX <--> FAX TO POSTSCRIPT
Connection but it seemed like a trivial (AKA "THEN MAGIC OCCURS HERE" TA-DA!)
thing to me at the time but from the mail I've recieved, it's obvious
that there is a need for some basic information.
Digital Equipment had several integrated FAX Gateway projects under
development. For brevity, the currently listed product number is
the only one that is currently being sold (oh yes, it even works;-]).
Here are the specifics:
ADDITIONAL FAX HARDWARE MUST BE CONNECTED TO AN ETHERNET.
This is an MS-DOS PC dedicated to acting as a FAX Gateway.
It is available from Digital with the following order number.
Model No. Description
QSM41-SZ* FNG Two-Line Base
System Kit includes
DECstation 316+, Monitor,
Keyboard, VGA board, IDE
40MB Disk, 2MB Memory,
MS-DOS 3.3, DEC PATHworks
for PC, 3COM Etherline
II board, GammaLink Display
Panel, 2 GammaFax boards,
FAX Network Gateway
Software/Documentation.
QSM47-SZ FAX/VAX Pre-Assembly Service
QSM46-SZ Calera Truescan OCR
QSM44-SZ GammaFAX Board
"Prerequisite System Hardware/Software
. Any VAX configuration on a DECnet/Highbred network
. VMS operating system, V5.3
. Message Router VMS Mail Gateway, V3.1
(For ALL-IN-1 IOS electronic messaging only!)
. DEC PATHworks for VMS
. CDA Converter Library, V1.0 (note this only has
converters to move DDIF->Postscript, it's one way.
for a two way converter see UTOX described, farther
down.)
"For Viewing FAX Messages
. Image-capable workstation or terminal, i.e., a Digital
workstation using DECwindows mail
. Any terminal capable of displaying sixel formated data, i.e., a
VT200 or 300 series terminal used in conjunction iwth DECimage
Application Services (DAS)
OPTIONAL SOFTWARE FOR IMAGE CONTROL/CONVERSION ALSO NEEDS TO BE EMPLOYED.
"For Printing FAX Messages in Sixel Format (For Example, on LN03)
* DECimage Application Services
"For Printing/Distributed Printing FAX Messages to a Remote Printer
* Digital's Distributed Queue Service"
"For forwarding Postscript to the FAX Gateway"
* UTOX (note this is a DESKtop Publishing translator ASSET
that provides bidirectional conversions between DDIF,
UIS, Postscript, and many other formats.
It's available from the local DEC sales / support office
under the software assets program.)
If you have not worked with the software products mentioned here, I strongly
recommend utilizing Digital Software Services to help install, configure
and make the entire system work, but the software pieces are standard
and require no hard code modifications, only management set up...
Again, Sorry about the brevity, but it seemed like such a trivial
matter with the software(s) I'm currently using, that I pointed
folks in a direction moved on. I hope this clairifies the matter
and the Fact that Digital Equipment Does have a Postscript/Networked
FAXgateway that supports DECwindow graphics.
Best of Luck,
+-----------------+--------------------------------------------------------+
| John Wisniewski | Consultant/DFW DECUS LUG Counterpart |
| +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | Voice: 214-404-6412 |
| |d|i|g|i|t|a|l| | UUCP: ...utacfd!montagar!fallout!wisniewski |
| +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | At Work: wisniewski@dpdmai.enet.dec.com |
| Dallas, TX USA | |
+-----------------+--------------------------------------------------------+
------- End of Forwarded Message
From JEREMY@vsm.com.au Wed Jun 5 13:32:35 1991
Date: Wed, 5 Jun 1991 18:10 +0930
From: Jeremy Begg <JEREMY@vsm.com.au>
Message-Id: <E91E62674000051A@vsm.com.au>
Hello Claudio,
I believe Innosoft International's PMDF-FAX product might be of use. It
allows you to MAIL a file to a fax machine. Not quite the same as sending it to
a print queue, but the change to your program should be fairly minor.
One problem: PMDF-FAX may not work in Switzerland. I know that it's not yet
available here in Australia.
You can contact them via ned@ymir.bitnet I think.
Also, Digital have a VAX <-> Fax product called VicFAX. It may only be
available under their ASSETS program; if your Digital salesman doesn't know of
it, ask him to contact ADO75A::BAIRD.
Regards,
Jeremy Begg
+----------------------------------------------------------+
| VSM Software Services, | E-Mail: jeremy@vsm.com.au |
| P.O.Box 801, Unley, | Phone: +61 8 2388074 (pager)|
| South Australia 5061 | |
+----------------------------------------------------------+
P.S. I tried to respond via PSI Mail but was unable to. I think your DTE
wouldn't let me in.
From shimkin@pgflt.enet.dec.com Wed Jun 5 21:29:47 1991
Message-Id: <9106051843.AA10973@easynet.crl.dec.com>
Date: Wed, 5 Jun 91 14:44:39 EDT
From: Brian Shimkin <shimkin@pgflt.enet.dec.com>
Claudio,
Digital has a product called the Fax Network Gateway that sounds like what
you're looking for. Contact your friendly neighborhood DEC sales rep for more
information.
Brian Shimkin
From fallout!system@relay.EU.net Thu Jun 6 10:59:16 1991
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 01:15:08 CDT
Message-Id: <00949B2460169E00.0000008F@montagar.lonestar.org>
From: User unknown (No From In Original Message) <uucp_daemon@montagar.lonestar.org>
Digital Equipment sells something called a FAXgateway product.
The product is a FAX/modem chassie that sits on the network. You can
forward any text or E-Mail file to it and it will be sent to either
a specific number list or dial a given number (your choice)
Accounting, inbound and outbound via E-Mail, much more -- contact
your DEC sales man.
It takes about 10 mins to install.
Be seeing you,
+-----------------+--------------------------------------------------------+
| John Wisniewski | Consultant/DFW DECUS LUG Counterpart |
| +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | Voice: 214-404-6412 |
| |d|i|g|i|t|a|l| | UUCP: ...utacfd!montagar!fallout!wisniewski |
| +-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ | At Work: wisniewski@dpdmai.enet.dec.com |
| Dallas, TX USA | |
+-----------------+--------------------------------------------------------+
From mab@ulysses.att.com Thu Jun 6 21:28:55 1991
Message-Id: <9106061928.AA28293@forty2.physik.unizh.ch>
From: mab@ulysses.att.com
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 91 15:28:55 EDT
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill
AT&T Global Messaging (ATT MailFax) lets you send mail (text files)
to any fax telephone number. I am not sure if you are looking for
something like this? I have not used it much myself, but I think one
does not need any change in hardware/software to print text files
on fax using ATT MailFax. Here are the telephone numbers to get
further information (they might have kind of i/f you're looking for):
800-MAIL672 (if you can connect to an 800 number)
otherwise (908)668-6548
Regards,
Muhammad Basit
From JOHNSON%DPD.COM@YMIR.bitnet Fri Jun 7 19:57:20 1991
Date: Fri, 7 Jun 1991 10:49:00 +0000
From: Jeff Johnson <JOHNSON%DPD.COM%CEARN.cern.ch@YMIR.BITNET>
Message-Id: <3DCB7BBF808005C1@dpd.com>
Hi,
Our company produces just such a product called Gold-Fax. We have written
two VMS print symbionts and a user interface to communicate with a Fujitsu
fax modem. We implemented a letter and draft mode fax send. Letter quality
queue is really a HPLJII printer emulator that converts any HPLJII PCL4 print
image to Group 3 encoding. Draft queue uses the fax modem's built-in
character set to generate the fax and communicate with the modem. The user
interface allows for phonebook creation and status reporting. We also
support printing directly from an application our print queues.
For more sales type information, send mail to: sales@dpd.com
You can send me mail for more technical information if you need it.
---
Jeff Johnson Voice: (714)970-1515
Data Processing Design
Anaheim, CA. 92807 USA Internet: johnson@dpd.com
From KESSLER@uni2a.unige.ch Thu Jun 13 09:44:40 1991
Date: Thu, 13 Jun 1991 07:37:20 +0000
From: Nicolas Kessler <KESSLER@uni2a.unige.ch>
Message-Id: <5F14A3BD5E610006AE@uni2a.unige.ch>
Hi Claudio,
A few weeks ago I sent this request to the net:
>I want to send plain text documents as faxes directly from my Vax, preferably
>the same way I send them to printers (with the recipients fax number encoded
>somehow in the message body).
>1. Do you know about (preferably programmable) external fax devices that I can
> attach to a serial port? I only need send capability.
>
>2. Instead of an external device I could try to set up a PC with an internal
> fax board as a server for the Vax. I heard about PC fax boards and
> with software that intercepts what is sent to LPTx:,
> and PCSA 4.0 lets you set up a LPTx:
> port as Vax print queue. Is that going to work?
>
>3. Other ideas?
>
I got various suggestions, ranging from MAIL-based (sometimes requiring
ALL-in-1 or PMDF) to PC-based FAX-servers. I have not received a
satisfactory solution from the net, but all the information I got convinced me
to stick to the simple solution: Queue some ASCII text to a print queue and
forget about it.
I got three offers for external fax boxes that perform the ASCII-Fax conversion
internally:
1. "FaxBox" from DCE, England (Phone: 0296 432971; Fax: 0296 20305)
The most expensive offer (resold in Switzerland at about Fr. 10000.-)
but (according to the specs) fast: up to 19.2K baud transmission speed.
2. "CompuFax 016" from Compinfo S.A., Switzerland (Phone: 038 514353;
Fax: 038 515369). Half in price and speed when compared to the "FaxBox".
Emulates a DEC LA-75 printer.
3. "WorldPort 2400plus ASCII Fax/Data Modem" from Touchbase Systems (I don't
have their phone numbers, but you should not have any trouble finding
a reseller; this box is just one more in their line of pocket modems that
get advertised regularly in PC Mags.)
It sends only - at 4800 maximum speed: but it is sold at less than 900
Swiss Francs. It's so small that it fits in a shirt pocket; this may be
a useful feature once a VAX fits in there as well :-).
I will probably go for that third offer, just because I have the feeling that I
(that is, my employer...) only pay for the bare minimum needed in this project.
Thanks to all of you who have responded.
Nicolas Kessler
Internet: kessler@uni2a.unige.ch