[comp.text.desktop] Configuration advice sought

jon@jonlab.UUCP (Jon H. LaBadie) (02/10/89)

Sorry if this is a reposting.  I originally posted this about a
week ago, and neither have I seen it on other systems, nor have
I received any responses.

BTW: is anyone getting ANY comp.laser-printer postings?


We're an education unit within CBIS specializing in, but not limited to,
UNIX related topics.  We're looking to upgrade our course production
facilities and I'm soliciting opinion and experience from you netlanders
as to the software and hardware we should consider.

First, let me describe our current system:

	About 25 Mbytes of course material on line.
	CPU is an AT&T 3B2/400
	Formatting software is Image Network's DBW 1.0
	Output device is a DEC LN03
	Preview facility is our output device :-(
	Text input devices are ASCII terminals
	Graphic input is manual PIC commands :-((

While we are not wedded to any of these, I suspect our next system
will be also be based on troff and that the output device will be
Postscript based.

What I would like to hear about includes:

1) If you do not feel troff is the answer, what do you prefer?  Why?

2) If it is to be troff, whose have you had good/bad experiences with?

3) To unload the main cpu, we would consider a separate formatting
   machine.  Anyone had good success with this approach? **

4) Got a Postscript printer you like?  Tell me about it.  Why is it
   good for you?  How is it optioned?  True vs. emulated PS matter?

5) Know of a high-speed postscript printer?  This is for someone else.

6) What hardware and software packages do you use for inputing figures?
   Any special software for merging the figures with the troff text?

7) Perhaps separate from #6 above, any good hardware/software for pre-
   viewing your formatted documents?  How closely does it match the
   final output?

8) What have I omitted?

As some of my questions have the potential for starting religious wars
(troff vs. TeX, SoftQuad vs. Elan, print white vs. print black, etc.)
email responses would be preferable to posted responses.  I will
summarize your comments.

Thanks muchly,

Jon LaBadie, Ph.D.
Staff Manager, Education Division
Cincinnati Bell Information Systems
377 Hoes Lane
Piscataway, NJ 08854
(201) 981-8900

{att, bcr, princeton}!jonlab!jon
{att, bcr, attmail}!auxnj!jon

** To eliminate the cpu burden of multiple troff jobs, we developed
   a simple spooling system to queue jobs and execute them one at a
   time.  If anyone is interested in this, contact me about xspool.
-- 
Jon LaBadie
{att, ulysses, princeton, bcr}!jonlab!jon