mustang@spock.UUCP (Neil McNeight) (01/30/90)
(I think my first posting got bounced, so I'll try it again.) Yes, this is a fairly large newsgroup list, but this article is related in one way or another to all of them. I belong to our school's Press Club, and we have recently been thinking of getting computers to put in the press club room instead of using the school computer center. This, combined with our own photo lab, would centralize everything and make life a lot easier. First, let me list what we have: Software: PageMaker 3.02 Microsoft Word 4.0 Hardware: (1) Mac 512 w/400K disk drive and ImageWriter 1 printer NOTE: We use the Mac +'s and LaserWriter II NT in the school computer room for layout. The Fat Mac is just a paperweight. (1) CompuGraphics MCS 10 Typesetter controller "on loan" from the recently Mac'ed communications department. (1) 8212 Typesetter (1) 8100 Developer (2) Terminals & keyboards (3) disk drives (1) dot matrix printer (Apple DMP/NEC 8510 look alike) (1) A. B. Dick printing press (1) A. B. Dick plate maker and various other pieces of obsolete machinery (check misc.forsale in the near future). The faculty advisor for the club guesstimated we had $2-3,000 to spend on this adventure (not much, but maybe we could be for more :-). I would like to save $400 for the photo lab, but it is negotiable. Now for what we want: (1) Mac SE or SE/30 (yes, I know they're probably out of our price range) (1-2) Mac +'s (1) Laser printer or similar device (ink jet, HIGH density dot matrix, etc.) And finally, the questions: (1) UPGRADING THE MAC 512: How much will it/should it cost to completely upgrade the 512 to a +, with little or no difference in computers (ideally)? Who/what/where should I talk to about upgrading? Do I really need to upgrade the internal drive, or should I buy a SCSI adaptor for ~$100 and a cheap 20 meg hard drive? Would it just be best to scrap/sell the 512 and use the money for a new + ? (2) TYPESETTER<->MAC CONNECTION: Is there any way to connect the actual typesetter to a Mac (AppleTalk (I mean LocalTalk), direct connection, etc.)? The typesetter itself is nice (1250 dpi vs. 300 dpi on a LaserWriter), but the controller is a dinosaur. (3) PRINTERS/PRINTER DRIVERS/PRINTER CONTROLLERS: What kind of printer should/can I get for the money? It must be Mac compatable, but it can also be adapted from another computer (i.e. HP LaserJet). What would I need to connect a non-compatible to a Mac? Do I really need a PostScript-compatible printer (no offense Adobe, but ATM is out right now and System 7.0 may yet get past the vaporware stage). Is there any good introductory reading to PostScript (I would like to know it, nevertheless)? (4) PICTURE LAYOUT: We have access to an Apple Scanner in the computer center. Is it worth the time/money/disk space to use this instead of conventional cut-and-paste for laying out pictures? The head of the communications dept. says no, and I trust her opinion, but I wanted some more opinions just to be sure. (5) SUGGESTED EQUIPMENT?: Anyone else have suggestions for other equipment which would make life nice? I remember once hearing about a machine (by Xerox?) that incorporated a Mac, a flatbed scanner, and a printing press. Though the price tag was $75,000, maybe there is something similarly nice, but a little less expensive. If you didn't like this article, I'm sorry for wasting your time. However, there is no newsgroup 'rec.publishing'. Any input, either posted or mailed, would be appreciated. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Neil McNeight |"Does anyone know where the love of God goes," Class of 1991 |"When the waves turn the minutes to hours" Choate Rosemary Hall | -Gordon Lightfoot Wallingford, CT | 'The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------