With release 1.65 of FirstClass you can now make connections using Apple's Communications Toolbox (CTB). We do not recommend using the CTB to make modem connections if you are currently accessing FirstClass with your modem without difficulty. Note that 1.65 also supports more serial port hardware directly including Creative Solution's Hurdler card, Applied Engineering's QuadraLink serial port card, and Global Village's Teleport ADB modem. The CTB does allow the following however:
• Access to hardware such as Apple's Serial NB or ISDN cards
• Ability to make network command line or GUI connections using the ADSP tool
FirstClass uses only the connection manager tools of the CTB to make the connection, since the file transfer and graphical display is handled by the FirstClass software. There are two methods to use the CTB connections tools:
1) Comm Toolbox
Using this method the CTB fully handles the connection (e.g. ADSP tool, MacTCP tool, Apple Modem Tool), and there is no modem handling by the server. Note: If you are going to use a modem connection tool remember that FirstClass modem handling is preferred to CTB modem handling.
2) Comm Toolbox Serial
In this method FirstClass handles the modem while the CTB provides access to the serial ports (e.g. Serial Tool, Serial NB Tool). This is the recommended technique for modem access to FirstClass if your serial port is not supported directly by FirstClass.
Using the FirstClass User Interface with the Communications Toolbox
You may configure the user interface to use the CTB or CTB Serial connections. After pressing the Setup... button followed by the Change... button, select either "Comm Toolbox" or "Comm Toolbox Serial" from the Connect Via popup. To access the settings for the CTB connection tool, press the Configure Tool... button. For information on configuring the tools, see the tool's documentation (see below for notes on using the ADSP tool).
Using the FirstClass Server with the Communications Toolbox
The server can be configured to support CTB sessions using the FirstClass Install Utility. Pull down the Configure menu and choose Sessions to show the list of existing configured sessions. When you press the New button (or choose New from the file) menu, or open an existing session, you will see the same configure dialog as is used in the user interface. Select either "Comm Toolbox" or "Comm Toolbox Serial" from the Connect Via popup. A dialog will appear which allows you to set the number of sessions and configure the tool. For information on configuring the tools, see the tool's documentation (see below for notes on using the ADSP tool).
The CTB is useful for accessing multi-port serial cards that are not supported directly. In this case the Comm Toolbox Serial connection method is used and the server continues to configure and communicate with the modem.
The CTB can also be used to make network connections (ADSP tool, MacTCP Tool) or to use special purpose hardware (ISDN Tool). In this case the Comm Toolbox connection method is used (there is no modem handling) and you can connect to any CTB supported device or protocol. For more information on using the ADSP tool, see the note below.
Making network connections with the ADSP Tool
The ADSP tool from Apple provides an alternative to the native network access provided by FirstClass. Access via ADSP is slower than FirstClass network access, but it does allow you to have more concurrent network sessions. Setting up a system to work properly can be tricky, so we suggest the following technique:
The ADSP type name should be changed from the default "ADSP" to "FirstClass". In the server the local name should be changed to "FC Session %d". The server substitutes the "%d" with ascending numbers in order to allow multiple sessions to defined easily. In the user interface the remote name should be changed from "Remote User" to "=", which matches any session. This will allow the ADSP tool to automatically find a free session and access it. After setting the ADSP information and pressing OK, set the number of sessions in the server to the desired number of sessions.
When the server starts it will initialize the ADSP sessions. The ADSP tool takes about 5 seconds to initialize each session, so be prepared for a startup delay in the server. The ADSP tool hogs the CPU for this period, so it is likely that the modem sessions will complain that the modem is not responding. When the tools are all initialized the modem sessions will come online.
Note that if you have the command line interface option, you will also be able to access it via ADSP with the help of a CTB compatible terminal emulator package (e.g. MacTerminal® 3.0).
You may configure a mix of AppleTalk sessions (network handling by FirstClass) and CTB ADSP sessions (network handling by CTB) if you wish. A single ADSP session is useful if you wish to access or check out the command line interface from a networked computer. Multiple ADSP sessions are useful to go beyond the AppleTalk session limit imposed by the current FirstClass server.
