VAX: How To Print to a LaserWriter Connected to a Terminal


Many applications for VAX systems, such as All-in-1, let the host program
print to a printer that is connected to the terminal. This is called
pass-through printing and was a feature of the old VT102 terminals; it is
still a part of the newest DEC terminals.

Is there a Macintosh terminal emulation product that allows a VAX program to
access a networked LaserWriter in this fashion? There are several options for
setting up a LaserWriter as a system printer, but is it also possible to
emulate a printer that is connected to the user's terminal?

There are some Macintosh terminal emulation products that echo the output being
sent to the terminal to a printer. The printer support for this is limited to
printers connected directly to the Macintosh acting as the terminal. This
prohibits the use of the LaserWriter over AppleTalk for this purpose.

The type of printer for which this pass-through printing is intended is a
printer that prints one character at a time as opposed to one page at a time.
The LaserWriter prints one page at a time.

MicroPhone II from Software Ventures and Red Ryder 10.0 from The FreeSoft
Company come close to providing this functionality. They have
the ability to turn printing on and off. When printing is on, they buffer
the output until you turn printing off. At that point, they send the output
one page at a time to the LaserWriter.


Published Date: Feb 18, 2012