[vox-tech] computer pretending to be a printer

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Ken Bloom (kabloom at ucdavis.edu):

> I meant that the machine probably wasn't programmed to speak PLIP over
> it's parallel port, as most printers don't seem to need it (?). 

Er...

I was responding specifically to your suggestion of "connecting two
computers"[1] over serial:  You weren't talking about connecting a
computer to a printer at all.  Therefore, neither was I.

One _wouldn't_ be trying to speak PLIP to a _printer_.  One might be
trying to speak it to a physically nearby Linux box. e.g., to mount its
NFS share.

> I hope I've clarified my original statement sufficiently, because I
> think this subthread might be in danger of breaking Khendon's Law.

Unfortunately, I think our posts crossed paths in the night but somehow
failed to connect.  My apologies for any lack of clarity on my part.

PLIP cannot be used for the original poster's _particular_ situation[2], as
that would require that the "expensive analytical machine" boot Linux or
some other OS able to forward IP packets over Centronics parallel.  
(It would be a _very_ useful technique in some other circumstances, e.g.,
installing Linux onto palmtops like the tiny ones IBM and Toshiba used
to make.  I mentioned it mostly because I've used PLIP to good effect
during installfests, and LUGOD conducts those.)

[1] http://www.lugod.org/mailinglists/archives/vox-tech/2004-11/msg00157.html
[2] http://www.lugod.org/mailinglists/archives/vox-tech/2004-11/msg00152.html