daveb@comspec.uucp (dave berman) (08/24/90)
Hi, Net Land! Has anyone out there had experience using Synergetic's Postscript Service? They offer a help line, and plenty of things to buy. Anyone had good - medium - bad experiences ? Post, Email, or Both! I will be watching this channel... -dave -- Dave Berman 436 Perth Av #U-907 daveb@comspec.UUCP Computer at work Toronto Ontario uunet!mnetor!becker!comspec!daveb Canada M6P 3Y7 416-785-3668 Fax at work
ee5391aa@hydra.unm.edu (Duke McMullan n5gax) (08/27/90)
In article <1990Aug24.060852.11635@comspec.uucp> daveb@comspec.uucp (dave berman) writes: >Has anyone out there had experience using Synergetic's Postscript Service? >Anyone had good - medium - bad experiences ? Howdy, dave. I've had little experience with Don's PS service, although I did call him for advice a week or so ago, and got quick, concise, free (;^), and to-the-point advice. I've known Don for some years (we're both cavers, and live in the same general area), and I'd be flatly amazed to find that he's a ripoff artist. That would be against the grain of everything I know about the man. On the other hand, I'm SURE he must have a few dissatisfied customers. Everyone does. The folks I know who deal with him are all happy. So, let someone else take it from there. (tip of the hat), d -- "Today's urine is tomorrow's Tang." -- attributed to one of the Apollo astronauts Duke McMullan n5gax nss13429r phon505-255-4642 ee5391aa@hydra.unm.edu
sdm7g@dale.acc.Virginia.EDU (Steve D. Majewski) (08/29/90)
In article <1990Aug24.060852.11635@comspec.uucp> daveb@comspec.uucp (dave berman) writes: >Has anyone out there had experience using Synergetic's Postscript Service? I haven't yet ordered any of the books or used the help line, but Don Lancaster writes a column "Hardware Hacker" in Radio Electronics Magazine: occasionally the topic is PostScript, and he has also had 2 articles on PostScript in the last couple issues of BYTE. From what I have seen, I would highly recommend it. BTW: The latest issue (Sept) of R-E has nothing on PostScript, but has an interesting misc. column about perpetual motion, magneto-caloric cooling devices, and "HOW to do research" ! If there is any-one who remembers the days before Apples, PC's, etc.: DL was the author of an early book on how to build a "TV-Typewriter" ( Now OUT OF PRINT, even by the author, I'm sure ) and TTL-Cookbook, CMOS-Cookbook ( In print by the author, who runs an "instant publishing" operation - sort of like the Japaneese "Just in time" mfgr. - He prints the book when he gets your order for it ! ) - sdm ======================================================================== Steven D. Majewski University of Virginia Physiology Dept. sdm7g@Virginia.EDU Box 449 Health Sciences Center (804)-982-0831 Charlottesville, VA 22908
clewis@ecicrl.UUCP (Chris Lewis) (08/29/90)
In article <1990Aug28.185843.23493@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU> sdm7g@dale.acc.Virginia.EDU (Steve D. Majewski) writes: > If there is any-one who > remembers the days before Apples, PC's, etc.: DL was the author of an > early book on how to build a "TV-Typewriter" ( Now OUT OF PRINT, even > by the author, I'm sure ) I remember it, I may even still have a copy of the schematics or the R-E article. It's just as well it's out of print ;-) (I'm not denigrating DL, the TVT was one of the pioneering efforts in the "do it in software, not hardware DUMMY!" school of controller design. But, no, you wouldn't want to do it that way any more....) -- Chris Lewis, Phone: (416)-294-9253 UUCP: uunet!utai!lsuc!ecicrl!clewis Moderator of the Ferret Mailing List (ferret-request@eci386) Psroff mailing list (psroff-request@eci386)
dspeed@sactoh0.SAC.CA.US (Dave Speed) (08/31/90)
I've talked to Don Lancaster several times; he was most helpful. He *is* highly opinionated. I also have one of his books which are reprints of his old computer shopper columns. I found them great for Postscript ideas and DIY items such as recharging laserjet toner carts and mini-publishing. Dave
woody@chinacat.Unicom.COM (Woody Baker @ Eagle Signal) (09/02/90)
I have had a fruitful correspondence with the poster of the original request for information. I now know the story behind it. Since Don and I are pretty good friends, I called him and discussed it with him. Since he hasno access to usenet, I'd like to take a moment to explain that Don has analyzed his business, and his life, and determined that certain things were no longer productive for him to do. One of these things, is foriegn sales. They wind up costing him more money than they are worth. His particular problems have stemmed mostly from Canada. It seems that shipments don't arrive, he has troubles with banks, checks, and money transfers etc. etc. He has come to the conclusion that foreign sales are just not worth it. So he has adopted a policy of "we don't support or sell to foriegn customers" The poster of this question, unfortunatly got caught flatfooted in this decision. He got the material, but no support. Don has offered to cheerfuly refund the money for the material if it is sent back. I can see both sides of the issue, and while I don't necessarily agree with Don's handling of the situation, I respect his right to make those sorts of decisions. So for the record, I guess that Synergetics has become an "All American" :^) company. Don is very helpful, and does supply good material. He has just started a POSTSCRIPT ROUNDTABLE over on GENIE. There are LOTS of goodies, but it is a subscription thing via GENIE. Cheers Woody
dennisg@felix.UUCP (Dennis Griesser) (09/07/90)
In article <1990Aug28.185843.23493@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU> sdm7g@dale.acc.Virginia.EDU (Steve D. Majewski) writes: > If there is any-one who > remembers the days before Apples, PC's, etc.: DL was the author of an > early book on how to build a "TV-Typewriter" ( Now OUT OF PRINT, even > by the author, I'm sure ) In article <841@ecicrl.UUCP> clewis@ecicrl.UUCP (Chris Lewis) replies: >I remember it, I may even still have a copy of the schematics or the R-E >article. It's just as well it's out of print ;-) > >(I'm not denigrating DL, the TVT was one of the pioneering efforts in the >"do it in software, not hardware DUMMY!" school of controller design. >But, no, you wouldn't want to do it that way any more....) Sorry, WRONG! The original, accept no substitutes TV Typewriter was entirely done in HARDWARE. It used shift registers for data storage. Didn't scroll. Low resolution (I think 32x16 characters). But it was fairly cheap to build, and it was the first terminal that you could put together yourself. I still have mine, gathering dust somewhere. I haven't powered it up for 15 years at least. YOU are thinking of a much later gizmo, such as the TVT-6. I think that there was one called TVT-6L. I got a kick out of that series because Don managed to sell basically the same design to three different publications, within a few months of each other. It was heavily driven by software. If I remember correctly, at one point the CPU executed a long string of NOPs, just to get a nice ascending address on the bus. Somebody who actually built one of these can give you more info. The generation between the original TVT and the TVT-6 was what Don called "Cheap Video" and "Son of Cheap Video". Books to match. Included some interesting techniques. Like the "Snuffler Coil", which you placed next to your TV set to pick up stray pulses from the sync circuitry, so you didn't have to generate it yourself.
dall@plains.NoDak.edu (Brian Dall) (09/09/90)
In article <3848@sactoh0.SAC.CA.US> dspeed@sactoh0.SAC.CA.US (Dave Speed) writes: >I've talked to Don Lancaster several times; he was >most helpful. He *is* highly opinionated. >Dave Hey, opinion is what sparks discussions, so has anyone asked him if he would get on the net and join us in this newsgroup? I enjoy his columns in Computer Shopper, and though I don't always agree with his opinions or understand why he chooses to do certain things in the way he does, I appreciate the creative fire and the way he seems to be looking out for the "small guy" by publishing the results of his comparitive price shopping. Brian Dall dall@plains.NoDak.edu
woody@chinacat.Unicom.COM (Woody Baker @ Eagle Signal) (09/09/90)
In article <5795@plains.NoDak.edu>, dall@plains.NoDak.edu (Brian Dall) writes: > > > Hey, opinion is what sparks discussions, so has anyone asked him if > he would get on the net and join us in this newsgroup? I enjoy his > columns in Computer Shopper, and though I don't always agree with his > opinions or understand why he chooses to do certain things in the > way he does, I appreciate the creative fire and the way he seems to > be looking out for the "small guy" by publishing the results of his > comparitive price shopping. I have known Don for a number of years. I'm the guy responsible for turnig him onto the OMNICHROM toner coloring process. Don lives in the middle of nowhere, literally on a sand dune. The Town of Stafford Arizona, is a hundred miles from nowhere. Don does not spent money on phonecalls with much enthusiasm. As long as you are calling him he'll talk, but it is a real event when he calls me. Anyway, there is not a usenet node within a hundred miles or so. I think Pheonix is the closest large city. If Don had a local call to a usenet node, you can bet he would be here. He is now running a RoundTable over on Genie. He gets paid as the sysop, about .60 per hour of users connect time (connect time costs 6.00 per hour). He of course, gets a toll free 800 number to access Genie over, so he is rapidly becoming adicted to telecommunications. Unfortunatly, there is no link between USENET and GENIE. Genie is looking into doing it sometime down the road, but currently there is no way to do it. I've come close a couple of times to sending Don the complete set of usenet archives that I have been keeping since Jan, 1990, but It is my understanding that certain folks on usenet have some fairly religious feelings about that sort of thing, i.e. posting stuff essentially for "free" and then having someone else charge for it. It also works the other way. Genie is definitly going to change it's pricing structure, and problably will eventually get a usenet link. Until then, Don probably won't be able to get on usenet, unless someone makes a way for him to do it with a local or VERY lowcost call. It would be nice if there were a way. If anyone knows of one, email me, and I'll pass it on and help make arrangements. Cheers Woody > > Brian Dall > dall@plains.NoDak.edu