[comp.protocols.appletalk] IBM PC and the Apple LocalTalk interface card

prf@cit5.cit.oz (Paul Freeman) (03/22/89)

I have an Apple LocalTalk interface card in a IBM PC/XT compatible. 
This is connected into a network of Macintoshes and a Laserwriter II NT.
What I want to do is print directly to the Laserwriter from an application
running on the IBM (the application can produce Postscript) using Localtalk. 
At present, the only way to do this is for the application to print to a disc
file.  Then you quit the application and using the Apple utility program that
comes with the card, print to the Laserwriter.

I would like to hear from anyone who has any ideas to solve this problem.  It
must be relatively simple(maybe)??

Please email to me or to the network (aus.computers.ibm-pc or
comp.protocols.appletalk).

Thanks in advance.

P. Freeman 
Centre for Stream Ecology
Chisholm Institute of Technology
P.O.Box 197 
Caulfield East Victoria, Australia 3145

Email to (I think I have the correct syntax):
munnari!cit5.cit.oz.au!prf@uunet.uu.net

mithomas@bsu-cs.UUCP (Michael Thomas Niehaus) (03/24/89)

In article <609@gara.une.oz>, dheap@gara.une.oz ( PSYS) writes:
> In article <2295@cit5.cit.oz> prf@cit5.cit.oz (Paul Freeman) writes:
> >I have an Apple LocalTalk interface card in a IBM PC/XT compatible. 
> >This is connected into a network of Macintoshes and a Laserwriter II NT.
> >What I want to do is print directly to the Laserwriter from an application
> >running on the IBM (the application can produce Postscript) using Localtalk. 
> 
> 	We do this with TOPS NetPrint. It can intercept a port (e.g. LPT1:)
> and redirect output to the network. It will accept postscript, or it will
> emulate an IBM or EPSON printer (complete with dip switches!) & will even
> support <shift>PRINTSCREEN. Automatically performs spooling too. University
> price ~$250 from NETCOMM.
> 
> Dave Heap              	         ACSNET: dheap@gara.une.oz                  
Don't rule out AppleShare PC from, of course, Apple.  It too can intercept
a port (actually several ports, LPT1,LPT2,LPT3,etc.).  It emulates the
Epson LQ-2500 printer, or it will also let you send just Postscript.
It allows you to connect to AppleTalk ImageWriters, as well as LaserWriters.
And to top it off, it lets you connect any number of AppleShare file server
volumes to your machine (IBM PC or compatible) as well, enabling file
sharing between similar applications and dissimilar machines.

Sorry, it does not support any print spooling (besides what an application
might provide itself), but I wouldn't hold that against it.  For the most
part, it was meant to communicate with AppleShare file servers and Print
Servers (which provide the spooling function), as well as other network
printers.

I set up several machines here at Ball State that use AppleShare PC.  Here
is what it looked like: LPT1 was an attached IBM Proprinter XL24 (don't get
one of these), LPT2 was the ImageWriter (with Epson LQ2500 emulation),
LPT3 was the LaserWriter (with LQ2500 emulation) and LPT4 was the same 
LaserWriter accepting Postscript.  Drive D pointed the the shared applications
on the file server, and drive E pointed to a common storage folder on the
file server.

If memory is a concern, this one is configurable.  You tell it how much it
can have (within limits -- it needs so much for each connection, and a
certain base value that I don't remember).  The software no longer uses
any interrupts to communicate with the AppleTalk PC board, so no COM devices
will interfere.

University price for such an item?  $89 a copy.  I am biased, though, since
I do work for Apple, so keep that in mind...

-Michael Niehaus

p.s.  Sorry for the posting.  I tried to send a reply directly, but it was
      returned to me.  The original posting appeared in two 'aus' newsgroups
      that I do not have access to as well as this one.  The reply will only
      go here (of course).


-- 
Michael Niehaus        UUCP: <backbones>!{iuvax,pur-ee}!bsu-cs!mithomas
Apple Student Rep      ARPA:  mithomas@bsu-cs.bsu.edu
Ball State University  AppleLink: ST0374 (from UUCP: st0374@applelink.apple.com)

naftoli@aecom.YU.EDU (Robert N. Berlinger) (03/27/89)

In article <2295@cit5.cit.oz>, prf@cit5.cit.oz (Paul Freeman) writes:
> I have an Apple LocalTalk interface card in a IBM PC/XT compatible. 
> This is connected into a network of Macintoshes and a Laserwriter II NT.
> What I want to do is print directly to the Laserwriter from an application
> running on the IBM (the application can produce Postscript) using Localtalk. 
> At present, the only way to do this is for the application to print to a disc
> file.  Then you quit the application and using the Apple utility program that
> comes with the card, print to the Laserwriter.

Get AppleShare PC.  Even if you don't have an AppleShare server, the software
allows you to print directly from an application to a LaserWriter or
ImageWriter.  It does this by redirecting the LPT? port and spooling
the job over LocalTalk to the printer.  Any application that can print
on a PostScript compatible or Epson LQ2500 printer is able to print.
I've used WordPerfect 5.0, MS Word 4.0, and WordStar 5.0 and others
without problems.
-- 
Robert N. Berlinger		    |Domain: naftoli@aecom.yu.edu        
Supervisor of Systems Support	    |UUCP: {uunet,philabs,phri}!aecom!naftoli
Scientific Computing Center	    |CompuServe: 73047,741 GEnie: R.Berlinger
Albert Einstein College of Medicine |Pan: berlinger

naftoli@aecom.YU.EDU (Robert N. Berlinger) (03/30/89)

In article <2980@copper.MDP.TEK.COM>, mikem@copper.MDP.TEK.COM (Mike Mihalik) writes:
> In article <2223@aecom.YU.EDU>, naftoli@aecom.YU.EDU (Robert N. Berlinger) writes:
> > Get AppleShare PC.  Even if you don't have an AppleShare server, the software
> 
> How much memory is left on the PC after AppleShare PC is loaded? What
> does chkdsk show?
> 
> I understand that TOPS will provide similar print capabilities, but at
> the expense of using more than 200K of RAM.

Unfortunately I don't have a system in front of me that I can 
check, but I remember it using about 100-150K.  AppleShare has 
few things going for it as far as memory--you can control the 
amount of memory the AppleTalk driver reserves for buffering, the 
AppleShare PC accessory program doesn't have to be memory 
resident if you don't want it to be, and when it is memory 
resident, it will take advantage of expanded memory.  
-- 
Robert N. Berlinger		    |Domain: naftoli@aecom.yu.edu        
Supervisor of Systems Support	    |UUCP: {uunet,philabs,phri}!aecom!naftoli
Scientific Computing Center	    |CompuServe: 73047,741 GEnie: R.Berlinger
Albert Einstein College of Medicine |Pan: berlinger