NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #16/NN_1992_16.iso/spool/comp/protocol/appletal/2953

Internet Message Format | 1992-07-30 | 3.2 KB

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From: [e-mail] (Brian Bulkowski)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.appletalk
Subject: Re: Abusing laserwriters, help!
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Date: 30 Jul 92 21:02:24 GMT
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Hi Mark, direct mail wouldn't send (some problem on my end...), and
I think this discourse might help someone out there anyway, so
here's a few thoughts on Printer Accounting...

Netware for Macintosh, v3.01 and up, has print accounting and security.
The security method is that we require an AFP session be opened to the
print server with the queues, and we use Netware accounting methods
to keep track of charges.

So, you buy one copy of netware, and advertise all your print queues from
it. Assuming you run phase II, you can have queues advertised from different
zones from the same server. Students must print through the queues due to
printer hiding (not very secure, but pretty darn good). You have to create
usernames, passwords, administration for all those students on that netware
server :-(!

Since the single netware server can accept up to 25 connections for a single
queue at a time, this might also decrease waiting, but the students would
have to be aware of the queue, and you have problems with error notification -
(queue gets jammed due to lack of paper, nothing comes out, student with job
that errored gets notification on their mac, but they ignore it, everyone
else starts howling....)

Anyway, maybe it's a solution you should look into. It ain't cheap, but neither
is your current situation.

BrianB

I

In article <[e-mail]>, Mark Andrew Hacker <[e-mail]> writes:
>
> I have had this problem for some years now, and everywhere I look there
> is no real answers to the problem. In a University (or any institution)
> where there are Laserwriters, students tend to abuse the right to print.
>
> I need a workable solution to this problem. I am using Access Managed
> Environment (AME) security software to discourage "outsiders" from using
> our facilities. But, it's our own students who constantly print (we
> printed in the last semester about 60,000 pages!).
>
> The only product that had any hope was one called Printguard. This was
> the best solution so far. It was a system of key-disk protection. You
> gave (sold) the students key disks with say 50 prints on it. Each time
> the Mac printed Printguard would ask for a key disk, and then deduct one
> credit from it. This way we could give our students a set amount of
> prints, and when used up they would have to purchase more credits
> (disks). Problem, the company has "shelved" the project so far, and no
> news on it ever getting finished.
>
> Any ideas anyone? If someone has a product, I know they would make some
> real money out it.
>
> Thanks for thinking about this one.
>
> .
> Mark A. Hacker
> Design Computing Unit
> School of Design
> University of Technology,Sydney.
> Australia
> Phone [phone] Fax [phone]
> Alink: AUST0475     Internet: [e-mail]
>
>