[comp.protocols.appletalk] Macintosh FAX on a network

bj@ohsu470.ohsu.edu (Bill Jackson) (02/19/91)

Forgive me if this is an old or well known subject:
I have a growing network of machines including many Macintoshes, and have been
asked to provide centralised FAX services to these machines.  I have come up
with a couple of scenarios to accomplish this and wonder if I am heading in the
right direction.  If anyone has experiences in this area I would appreciate a
mailing or posting as appropriate.

Orchid FAX modem on Mac - just withdrawn!

FAX/Data modem such as Prometheus Ultima on a Shiva Telebridge - have questions
on this one like how would the modem be arbitrated correctly between FAX and
DATA, send and receive.  Is there some smart HW/SW combination that will work
here?

This seems like a highly desirable thing to do, so either somebody has done it
or it is impossible!

tnixon@hayes.uucp (02/19/91)

In article <1991Feb19.015202.2758@ohsu.edu>, bj@ohsu470.ohsu.edu
(Bill Jackson) writes: 

> I have a growing network of machines including many Macintoshes, and have been
> asked to provide centralised FAX services to these machines.  

I haven't used it myself, but one solution to this problem is to use 
"FaxGate" from Solutions, Inc.  I allows anyone on the network to 
send faxes.  You must be using either Microsoft Mail 2.0 or 
QuickMail 2.2 to send the messages on the network.  FaxGate runs in 
the background on the mail server.  You have to have a 
BackFax-compatible fax modem (several different modems from various 
manufacturers will work).  It costs $395 per server for the 
software.  For information, call Solutions, Inc., P.O. Box 783, 
Williston VT 05495, voice 802-865-9220, fax 802-865-9220.

-- 
Toby Nixon, Principal Engineer    | Voice   +1-404-449-8791  Telex 151243420
Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. | Fax     +1-404-447-0178  CIS   70271,404
P.O. Box 105203                   | UUCP uunet!hayes!tnixon  AT&T    !tnixon
Atlanta, Georgia  30348  USA      | Internet       hayes!tnixon@uunet.uu.net

perl@PacBell.COM (Richard Perlman) (02/20/91)

In article <1991Feb19.015202.2758@ohsu.edu> bj@ohsu470.ohsu.edu (Bill Jackson) writes:
>FAX/Data modem such as Prometheus Ultima on a Shiva Telebridge...
>Is there some smart HW/SW combination that will work here?
>
>This seems like a highly desirable thing to do, so either somebody has done it
>or it is impossible!

Assuming you mean to use the Telebridge as a NetSerial to connect the
serial Fax modem to the AppleTalk LAN... It is "highly desirable" and
also won't work.  FAX transmission is synchronous (and continous) there
is no handshaking for flow control.  If the fax transmission is
interupted, as can happen on a network, the connection breaks.

Early versions of the LightFax Netmodem (Computer Friends - (503)
626-2291) software spooled the "fax" from the user to an AppleShare or
TOPS file server and then sent the fax from a separate "Fax Server"
Mac.  During transmission the "Fax" server read the fax from the file
server.  The scheme worked well for short one page faxes.  But
inevitably died before page two of longer faxes.  Their new software
copies the fax document in total to the "fax server" from the "file
server" before transmission.

--
   "I will fight no more never again", Chief Joseph (of the Nez Pierce Indians)
   "In war there is no right side and no winning side", me
--
Richard Perlman   |*|  perl@pbseps.pacbell.com  |*|  (415) 545-0233

wnn@ornl.gov (02/20/91)

In article <1991Feb19.015202.2758@ohsu.edu> bj@ohsu470.ohsu.edu (Bill Jackson)
writes:
>Forgive me if this is an old or well known subject:
>I have a growing network of machines including many Macintoshes, and have been
>asked to provide centralised FAX services to these machines.

We use an Orchid MacFax with FaxGate software from Solutions, QuickMail from CE
Software, and for conveninece, QM Concierge from Information Electronics, and
Adobe Type Manager on the server to improve the resulta of rasterizing
PostScript fonts on outgoing messages.

It generally works very well, except that the MacFax modem is not compatible
with a couple of older fax machine models from Ricoh, and perhaps some other
manufacturers? However I expect to get a replacement modem that should fix that
problem in the next few days.

Sending documents from QuickMail is very easy and the recipients are always
astonished about the quality they get for graphics and type (unless someone
uses a font for which we don't have the ATM outline or a copy three times its
size of the bitmap font installed on the server).

Receiving is more of a problem, because the computer can't read the cover page
and automatically direct the incoming document to the recipient. The Custodian
of the FaxGate Mail Center receives the message and needs to screen it to
determine to whom to forward it. We use QM Concierge to allow us to easily
change who actually does the screening, by sending a forwarding request to
Concierge rather than having to log into the Mail Center as the administrator
and setting someone else to be Custodian every time the person who usually does
the job is out of the office.

Incoming faxes create huge files. A 10 to 12 page fax easily translates into a
2 MB file. Thus you need to have a lot of disk space on the server and need to
make sure that recipients promptly retrieve and delete their faxes from the
mail center. The Viewer applicationa and the MailViewer DA, which come with
FaxGate, and even SuperViewerDA which I already had purchased separately, only
display the fax at 72 dpi. That may be insufficient to read small type. Neither
viewer lets you zoom in for more detail. You can copy and paste a page at a
time into Canvas or some other graphics package that lets you read at two or
three times magnification to display all the detail contained in the document,
but if you have a ten-page document, that's tedious.

Printing on an old LaserWriter Plus can take as much as 20 minutes per page
because you are actually printing a 216 dpi bitmap. And even newer LaserWriter
models are not very much faster at that. Perhaps the forthcoming 68030-based
models will help.

Wolfgang N. Naegeli
University of Tennessee & Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Internet: wnn@ornl.gov    Bitnet: wnn@ornlstc
Phone: 615-574-6143       Fax: 615-574-6141 (MacFax)
QuickMail (QM-QM): Wolfgang Naegeli @ 615-574-4510

jjwcmp@isc.rit.edu (Jeff Wasilko) (02/20/91)

We have a Cypress FaxPro on our network, and we've been pretty happy
with it. It takes a differeent approach to network fax: The Fax server
Mac has the modem directly attatched to it. The Fax clients generate a
Fax bitmap file, and save it on a 'Fax Out' folder on a Tops or
AppleShare volume with routing/transmission info. The Fax Server mac
notices the fax file on the server, copies it to it's local disk, and
sends it out. Multiple fax servers can watch the same folder if you have
a large volume of fax traffic.

I'm attaching a summary from a while ago...

>From: barry@wolman.prime.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.comm
Subject: Sharable FAX Modem Summary
Message-ID: <108500003@wolman>
Date: 11 Dec 90 03:02:00 GMT
Lines: 202
Nf-ID: #N:wolman:108500003:000:9061
Nf-From: wolman.prime.com!barry    Dec 10 22:02:00 1990


Several weeks ago I posted the following query regarding FAX modems:

>We have an Appletalk network where a number of the users frequently send
>FAXes.  So far, the procedure has been to laser print the document to be
>sent and then use a conventional FAX machine.  I'd like to use a FAX
>modem that can be shared by all users on the net; basically, I'd like to
>"print" to the FAX modem.  Receiving incoming FAXes is not a
>requirement.
>
>I'm looking for feedback on FAX modems that come with a Chooser
>selectable driver and don't require an email interface.  Please send me
>your experiences (good and bad);  I'll post a summary.
>

This posting summarizes the responses I received.  Due to Yet Another
Reduction in Force at Prime Computer, I'm now looking for another job,
so the answer to this question is now of academic interest only as far
I'm personally concerned.  I hope the rest of you still find the
information useful. 

I received several responses that cited positive experiences with
FaxGate Plus from Solutions, Inc.  However, this requires that the
outgoing FAX originate from an email package such as CE Software
QuickMail or Microsoft Mail, which isn't the "chooser device" type of
configuration I asked about.  I also got a positive response regarding
the Abaton Interface 24/96 FAX modem, but this isn't directly Appletalk
sharable. 

Several responses cited positive experiences with the FaxPro modem from
Cypress Research, which costs about $1000.  For a net with > 4 users who
often send FAXes, this would appear to be the most economical way to go
since a non-sharable FAX modem costs about $250.  If you already had an
appropriate file sharing mechanism in place, e.g.  Appleshare, TOPS,
Public Folder, ...., and didn't mind the hassle of sending all FAXes
from a single node, you probably could get by with a single FAX
non-sharable FAX modem.  My secretary wouldn't mind sending an
occasional FAX, but would quickly get upset with having to send all
department FAXes from her Mac, which is why a sharable modem or
individual modems seems desirable. 

The 11/20 issue of MacWeek contained an ad from MacCorporate (part of
MacWarehouse) for the Prometheus Products Network Maxfax.  This $1069
unit appears similar to the FaxxPro described above.  The FaxPro comes
with software to manage cover sheets, distribution lists, delayed
transmission, etc.; I wasn't able to ascertain what type of software
comes with the Maxfax. 

Individual replies follow:

------------------------------
>From: bmug@garnet.berkeley.edu (BMUG)
Organization: University of California, Berkeley

I briefly tried out the FaxPro by Cypress Research (it has previously
been well-reviewed in either PCWeek or PC Magazine -- can't remember
which).  It seems to work just fine.  It's a 9600 baud networked faxmodem
with a Chooser driver, networking software which runs either on top of
AppleShare or by itself, address books, and a lot of other bells and
whistles.  It's main drawback (currently) seems to be that you can't
make a default custom cover sheet, but I understand that's being worked
on.  Cypress has a 30 Net purchasing policy, so you can try one out
and return it if you're not completely satisfied.  It's also a little
pricey at about $1000, but if you amortize the cost among several users,
it's not too much.

If you purchase one and use it a lot, I'd be interested in your
evaluation.

John Heckendorn

------------------------------
>From: rjb1@gte.com (Richard J. Brandau)
In case you don't otherwise hear about this configuration, I'll tell
you what we've recently done.  Unfortunately, we're still getting the
bugs out of it, so I don't have much experience with it.

The FAX machine is a Canon 705 with an RS232 interface, AppleTalked
via a Shiva NetSerial, and controlled by MacFacsimile S/W on the Macs.
It's a nice setup, because the FAX remains usable as a regular FAX
when no Macs are using it.  MacFacsimile is not quite
Chooser-selectable: A special Chooser device can be selected for
printing, but it just generates a FAX-able document that can be sent
from the MacFax application.  Received (or scanned-in) documents can
be transfered from the 705's memory to Mac files in PICT, Paint, TIFF
(for OCR), or FAX-storage formats.  Scheduled-send and
multiple-recipient FAXs can be controlled from the S/W.

(The bug I mentioned, by the way, is apparently due to our having
somehow gotten a very old version of the Canon ROMs, which Canon will
be replacing shortly.)

Although this solution offers a number of advantages over the simple
Dove NetFAX approach: a regular, walk-up-to-and-use FAX machine that
can be used without a Mac, and the ability to use it as a 300dpi
scanner, this is a relatively $pricey$ configuration.

-- Rich Brandau
------------------------------
------------------------------
>From: jjwcmp@ultb.isc.rit.edu (Jeff Wasilko)
Organization: RIT Communications

There is a fax modem called teh FaxPro that will do what you need. It
has a fax modem that attaches to a machine that will be a server. Each
user gets a chooser driver that deposits the fax image in a 'Fax Out'
folder on the server with fax info. The server notices the Fax image,
and sends it on its way.

The modem doesn't place much load on the server machine since all
rasterizing is done at the user's machine. There is some delay on the
client during the end of each page due to some strict timing
requirements).

If you don't have a TOPS or AppleShare server, they also sell some
server software tah will just serve faxes.

The modem costs around $1000, and includes a site license for the
user's software.

If I can get you more info, let me know. I don't have anything to
do with them other owning one.

If you get me your fax number, I'll fax you a sample page.

Jeff
------------------------------
>From: Jeff Wasilko <jjwcmp@ULTB.ISC.RIT.EDU>

I haven't had any problems. We use ATM to generate the correct size
bitmaps. The modem doesn't have any large bitmaps--they suggest getting the
LQ fonts from your dealer.

The only other real annoyance (and it's common to all fax modems) is that
EPS art prints as a scaled bitmap, but what can you do unless you run a
PS interpreter?

I'll fax you a sampling of pages from a couple of documents--XPress with
EPS art, MS Word, and maybe something from FileMaker.

I'll try to send it out tomorrow, but I'm only working a 1/2 day (-;

Jeff
------------------------------
>From: khaw@parcplace.com (Mike Khaw)

The only one that exists now that I know of is Cypress Research's
FaxPro modem and software. The modem is a 9600 bps FAX/ 2400 bps data
modem. The software works over Localtalk (and is also supposed to work
with TOPS and Novell), makes the modem look like a Chooser level
printer on your network, and does not require email software.

We're currently using one here. We have our Macs hooked up via a Cayman
Gatorbox to our Sun ethernet. There is an Appleshare server on the net.
The faxmodem hangs off a Mac II (not the Appleshare server).  Most
people send FAXes by printing from MS-Word. When you do that, your
local copy of the FaxPro software copies a TIFF version of your Word
doc. to a public folder on the Appleshare server. The FaxPro software
on the modem-server periodically polls the folder on the file server
and when it notices new faxes queued up, it copies them to a local
folder on the fax-server and attempts to send them. FaxPro is designed
to run in the background on the modem-server, but we noticed that it
seemed to have hiccups if someone were actively using the modem-server
Mac.

We have not attempted to use FaxPro for incoming FAXes for a variety of
reasons, including (a) we already have hardcopy FAX machines, (b) we've
heard from a number of sources that incoming FAXes don't easily convert
to machine-manipulable files (i.e., they are TIFF format bitmaps) and
take a lot of disk space, and (c) FaxPro's facilities for routing
received FAXes to the proper recipient appears to require quite a bit
of manual intervention.

The FaxPro software includes an application that lets you monitor the
status of the FAX queues and send a FAX to multiple recipients, a DA to
keep a directory of FAX numbers (like a simple Rolodex) and an
INIT/CDEV and a Chooser document.

List price is about $1000. FaxPro was reviewed in PC Week 5/28/90.

	Cypress Research Corp.
	766 San Aleso Drive
	Sunnyvale, CA 94086
	408/752-2700
	fax: 408/745-7017

Disclaimer: I'm just a customer who uses FaxPro (still on a
probationary basis. We haven't quite decided whether we're keeping it,
but I think we're leaning in the "keep" direction).
--
Mike Khaw
------------------------------

End of responses

Barry
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Barry Wolman                      | barry@s66.prime.com
ex-Principal Technical Consultant | 500 Old Connecticut Path
Prime Computer                    | Framingham, MA 01701
                                  | 508/620-2800, ext. 1100
------------------------------------------------------------------------


Article 4200 of comp.protocols.appletalk:
Path: ulta!rit!rochester!udel!wuarchive!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!hoptoad!tim
>From: tim@hoptoad.uucp (Tim Maroney)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.appletalk
Subject: Re: FAX modems on AppleTalk
Message-ID: <12359@hoptoad.uucp>
Date: 14 Sep 90 08:04:11 GMT
References: <3D34F79BCEBF200C36@mbcl.rutgers.edu>
Reply-To: tim@hoptoad.UUCP (Tim Maroney)
Organization: Electronics for Imaging, San Bruno CA
Lines: 17

There is the Cypress networked fax modem.  Since it works over
AppleShare or TOPS, requiring the client to mount a remote volume, the
ordinary password protection mechanisms in those products can be used
to restrict mounting.  At present, all faxes go into a common reception
area, which can either be public or restricted.  Future versions will
allow personal routing of incoming faxes.

Cypress is in Sunnyvale, California, at (408) 745-7150.

Disclaimer:  I wrote a lot of the software for this modem and retain a
commercial interest in it.  (That doesn't change the fact that it
really is quite good.)
-- 
Tim Maroney, Mac Software Consultant, sun!hoptoad!tim, tim@toad.com

"There are no Famous People on the net.  Only some of us with bigger mouths
 than others."  -- Dan'l Danehy-Oakes, The Roach


-- 
| RIT VAX/VMS Systems: |     Jeff Wasilko     |     RIT Ultrix Systems:     |
|BITNET: jjwcmp@ritvax +----------------------+ INET:jjwcmp@ultb.isc.rit.edu|
|INTERNET: jjwcmp@ritvax.rit.edu              |____UUCP:jjwcmp@ultb.UUCP____|
|'claimer: I speak only for myself. Opinions expressed are NOT those of RIT.|

tnixon@hayes.uucp (02/20/91)

In article <1991Feb19.184801.27124@PacBell.COM>, perl@PacBell.COM
(Richard Perlman) writes: 

> In article <1991Feb19.015202.2758@ohsu.edu> bj@ohsu470.ohsu.edu
> (Bill Jackson) writes: 
>>FAX/Data modem such as Prometheus Ultima on a Shiva Telebridge...
>>Is there some smart HW/SW combination that will work here?
>>
>>This seems like a highly desirable thing to do, so either somebody has done it
>>or it is impossible!
> 
> Assuming you mean to use the Telebridge as a NetSerial to connect the
> serial Fax modem to the AppleTalk LAN... It is "highly desirable" and
> also won't work.  FAX transmission is synchronous (and continous) there
> is no handshaking for flow control.  If the fax transmission is
> interupted, as can happen on a network, the connection breaks.

Your are correct that FAX transmission is synchronous -- ON THE 
PHONE LINE.  All existing fax modems, however, connect to the PC or 
Mac _asynchronously_, _with flow control_.  The data rate is run at 
higher than the line rate, usually 19200bps async, to allow for the 
stripping of start and stop bits.  Flow control is used to prevent 
the PC from overrunning the modem's transmit buffer.  If the 
delivery of data from the PC to the modem is delayed (either because 
of slow software on the PC, interrupt latency or multitasking 
delays, or even network loading), the modem can insert fill bits 
(zeros) before any end-of-line sequence in the fax transmission to 
allow time for the PC to catch up again (all fax modems I'm familiar 
with do this); you can send up to five seconds of fill bits without 
disturbing the transmission or violating Group 3 specs.  Reception 
is a bit more problematical -- if the PC flows off the modem for too 
long, you WILL lose data since no fax modem has an infinite receive 
buffer, but they do general have sufficient buffer to handle an 
interruption of many seconds (since the data is only coming in at a 
rate of about 1K per second), and since the interface is running at 
usually at least twice the speed of the phone line, the PC can catch 
up quickly.

I think it is quite possible to use a fax modem through an async
server across a network.  Async-to-sync conversion, buffering, flow 
control, running at higher than the line speed, and the ability to 
use fill bits make it much easier than it might appear at first 
glance.

-- 
Toby Nixon, Principal Engineer    | Voice   +1-404-840-9200  Telex 151243420
Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. | Fax     +1-404-447-0178  CIS   70271,404
P.O. Box 105203                   | UUCP uunet!hayes!tnixon  AT&T    !tnixon
Atlanta, Georgia  30348  USA      | Internet       hayes!tnixon@uunet.uu.net

USERGIF@MTSG.UBC.CA (03/01/91)

At the MacWorld Expo in January, I saw a product called FaxPro which
is a "networkable fax system for macintosh". The feature list is:
compatible with group 3 fax machines, auto fax queuing, auto cover
sheet, includes network site license, auto fax file compression,
dealyed transmission, exportable auto-archiving log, fax status
reported across network, background operation
 
FaxPro $1099  For networks using file sharing (ie. Appleshare, Tops,
              3Com, Novell)
 
FaxPro w/FaxProShare $1199  For networks without file sharing software
 
Cypress Research
766 San Aleso Ave.
Sunnyvale, CA 94086
(408) 752-2700
No Fax number listed on brochure. ;-)
 
I have no affiliation with this company and do not have the product.
I have merely regurgitated the product literature.