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EXAC.TXT
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1991-10-03
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LANtastic Network Operating System v4.00 Compatibility Testing Report
Product Reviewed: EXAC v1.42 by ACM! Multipurpose Software
Classification: LAN Remote Control
Date: September 30, 1991
Engineer: J Gerring
_______________________________________________________________________________
Compatibility Statement:
EXAC version 1.42 is compatible with LANtastic NOS version 4.00.
Product Overview:
EXAC (for EXternal ACcess) provides remote control and screen broadcasting
capabilities within a NetBIOS or NetWare network environment. Viewing,
controlling, and broadcasting functions are supported for video types up to and
including VGA. EXAC's RAM overhead is low, 8 to 12K on a slave workstation
(the controlled PC) and 18K on a master (the controlling PC). EXAC includes a
unique feature which allows a master station to control and broadcast any slave
screen to all other slaves or a selective group of slaves on the LAN.
Additional RAM overhead is required when a slave is operating in broadcast mode
for storage of its current screen, but this buffer may be located on disk or in
conventional, extended/XMS or expanded memory. VGA Graphics transfers are
extremely fast. Remote keyboard or mouse control of Microsoft Windows 3.0 in
386 Enhanced or Standard modes is not currently supported, although a slave
running Windows in either of these modes may still be viewed by the "master"
program. Keyboard control of a slave running Windows in Real mode is
possible. In addition, a master may run Windows in any mode and broadcast its
own screen across the LAN for teaching/demonstration purposes. Overall,
EXAC is a full-featured, high performance LAN remote control utility.
Test Equipment Configuration:
The following machines were used for EXAC testing. All machines have VGA
adapters installed and use Artisoft AE-2 NICs. Testing was completed using
LANtastic NOS v4.0 with AILANBIO.EXE and AE2.EXE v2.03. Machines running
as LANtastic peer servers are designated by (S).
- CompuAdd 333: 386DX/33, DOS 5.0 (S)
- Altima 2: 286/16 portable, LCD VGA, DOS 4.01
- CompuAdd 316s: 386SX/16, DOS 5.0 (S)
- Northgate 386: 386DX/20, DOS 5.0 (S)
- CompuAdd 316: 386DX/16, DOS 5.0
- CompuAdd 220: 286/20, DOS 5.0
Product Installation Notes:
EXAC does not include an installation program, but all that is required is to
copy a few files from the diskette to the computer's hard disk. During these
tests, the software was installed on the CompuAdd 333 and all other stations
loaded EXAC from this server. One obstacle is that the user must contact the
distributor, 3rd Planet Software, for an "unlock code" which will allow the
software to run correctly. Without this code, the software runs for only a
five minute demonstration period. Users will need to plan this extra time into
their installation process, and international customers may find it very
inconvenient.
Product Execution Notes:
Configuration of EXAC is accomplished when the program is invoked, via either
a simple menu system or by command line switches. The command line
configuration was the preferred method used during these tests, as it offers
more flexibility in specifying options when the program files are stored on a
main server. On the master station, EXAC was brought up with the following
command line:
EXAC Main333 /M+ /S+ /B+ /R+
which configures this station as both a slave and a master with broadcast
capability and installs the master program as a TSR (a requirement for the self-
broadcasting feature) using the name Main333. On the workstations, a batch file
similar to the following was used:
net login 333 user
net use d: \\333\c-drive
set path %path%;d:\EXAC
EXAC ws1 /S+ /B+
installing EXAC as a slave with broadcast reception capability. Once all
workstations are configured this way, the master may control any one of them
individually, control a slave and broadcast its screen to any or all other
workstations, or broadcast its own screen to any or all slaves. Selection of
each mode is accomplished by popping up the EXAC master program via a
configurable hot key (default is ctrl-alt-M), choosing the slave's name from a
list, and taking control of it by pressing the enter key. To broadcast that
slave's screen to all other workstations, the user follows the same process, but
presses ctrl-enter once the desired slave is selected.
Compatibility Notes:
Broadcasting of a monochrome based slave to VGA stations (from either a
monochrome or VGA based master) is not supported. Remote control and
broadcasting of a VGA slave's screen in text mode from a monochrome based
master works, but a VGA master cannot view a monochrome slave. The
manufacturer is aware of these problems and will be addressing them in a future
release.
Vendor Information:
3rd Planet Software, 9819 National Blvd, Suite #2, Los Angeles, CA 90034
213/841-2260 (voice), 213/841-2265 (fax), 213/841-0176 (BBS)
ARTISOFT, Inc. makes no warranties as to the completeness or accuracy of this
document. LANtastic is a trademark of ARTISOFT, Inc. Brand names and product
names are trademarks of their respective companies.