| For those of you who helped, AND those who can be helped by this, here is the
final outcome of this effort:
. Date: 8-Aug-1989 16:59 EDT
.
Subject: a big success, with thanks to...
The following is a report on the Merck-Frosst "We build
the best and we integrate the rest" presentation and
demonstration. It is a bit lengthy, but it shows the teamwork
required to bring this together.
It'll describe:
0) A bit of background.
1) What we achieved.
2) How we achieved it and the contributors.
3) The client's perception of the day.
4) What we could do better in the future.
Merck-Frosst in Montreal is increasing their staff by 80
researchers over the next two years. During a Networking
chalk-talk by Guy Bond and our introduction to CDA in May, their
representative on the corporate committee on computing challenged
us to demonstrate our statement (we integrate....) In a June
letter, they invited us to show them MAC/VAX/PC integration. This
letter was circulated to Merck corporate (Rahway, N.J.) and
generated significant interest, resulting in an escalation of the
importance of the challenge and in the addition of several
corporate Computing Committee members to the guest list. A total
of 13 clients attended, including Nancy Woo, John Gillard,
Michael Bernstein, Hugh Woodruff's substitute and local MIS rep.
Rick Stanton.
1) What We Achieved:
The client requested the following nine technical points be
demonstrated using Macintosh and PC desktop devices:
SPECIFICATIONS FOR MERCK FROSST RESEARCH'S PROPOSED PC LAN
[their words]
1) Use the VAX-based server (hereafter simply referred to
as "server") as a remote disk to store data files generated on
the PCompatible/Macintosh (hereafter referred to as "PC"). The
executable file for the program will reside on the PC.
2) Perform the same test as (1) but have the executable
program file also reside on the server's virtual disk.
3) Demonstrate the sharing of files between like PC
volumes on the server) PC Compatible to/from PC Compatible and
Macintosh to/from Macintosh), and disparate ones (PC Compatible
to/from Macintosh). In each case the sharing of ASCII and program
specific files should be considered.
4) Demonstrate the execution of PC terminal emulation to
run a program operating under VMS. This VAX computer should not
be the same machine as the server, but reside on the network.
5) Install a modem on the server and demonstrate that it
can be shared by the networked PCs.
6) Demonstrate printer utilities: server print spooling,
network printer services and the potential for one PC to use the
printer connected to another PC on the network.
7) Demonstrate basic server administrative tools such as
backup facilities, adding users, setting up shared
directories/volumes, setting access privileges between users,
etc.
8) Demonstrate network mail facilities and how these
integrate with VMS Mail or ALL-IN-ONE Mail.
9) Show any preservation of the individual PC's "look and
feel", e.g. icons, folder metaphor, for the Macintosh.
[end of quote]
All 9 points were covered to the satisfaction (and surprise!) of
everyone in attendance.
In addition, we were able to demonstrate additional
benefits inherent in Allin1, such as the store and forward
capability of the mail facility. An important part of the
demonstration was the ability of DECWrite to function as an
integrator for all their information. We therefore presented
document translation ability (from Wordperfect on the PC's and
MAC's) as well as the ability to use graphics files (TIFF (Tagged
Image Format Files) and EPSF (Encapsulated PostScript Files))
generated by the applications that are common to their
environment (Chemdraw and other).
2) How we achieved it and the contributors:
The Hardware and Software Environment was set up through
a cooperation by several third parties and Digital people from
all geographies. The Digital Hardware was the demonstration
equipment available in Montreal: a Microvax 3900 acting as a
server. Supplementing this was a VS3100, a DS3100, a DS210 (PC)
all on loan from our workstation inventory. Marc Tremblay loaded
and configured all the layered software on the VAX side: VMS
5.1b, Allin1, WordPerfect (the licenses, supplied by Thaw
Technology, expired several times), Keypak (WordPerfect to DX
conversion supplied by Keyword of Calgary) Alisashare,
AlisaPrint, AlisaTerminal, DECWrite, CDA Converters... Andr�
Courchesne patiently explained the features of the new version of
PCSA, while helping to configure the new PC into the environment.
Beno�t Sauvageau debugged a faulty thin-wire cable in the PC
environment, installed the PC WP on the server and installed a
"Modem Service" on the LAT accessible from one of the VT
terminals to show public access across the Ethernet.
In order to demonstrate the integration of the Macintosh,
we obtained a MAC SE from Ansco Information Services with
Wordperfect and MAC240 software on it. Ken Finney, in our Toronto
Office helped define what choices existed for MAC-VAX
connectivity. DecWrite integration was important in our
strategy. Charlene Keltz in TRO put us on the right track to the
CDA/Converter which was still in field test at the time (as was
DecWrite!) As DEC is not currently supporting Display Postscript
(we are currently negotiating with Adobe), it was necessary to
not only bring in EPSF (to demonstrate high quality printing and
assure the client we would be able to do it soon), but also TIFF
which is display-able (ugly, but we have it now). Ansco's David
Haiun provided invaluable (and voluntary!) Mac graphics expertise
and also suggested the Curator software which was used to
translate Mac EPSF format to a more generic EPSF format and to
translate PICT format images to TIFF format which the CDA
Converter & DECWrite could understand. Ansco's Bob Domachevsky
found and "de-virused" the MAC on the Saturday afternoon before
the demo. Alisa software and technical assistance was supplied
by Eric Petersen of MacKenzie Brown in Toronto and excellent
in-depth technical support came from Mala Arthur in Alisa's
Pasedena office.
Though there was still a week to demo day, graphic files
still would not move freely from the MAC to the VAX. We probably
would have given up not for a couple of clues. Jo Ann Snover of
our Spitbrook office assured me that it was possible to
incorporate MAC sourced EPSF files into the DECWrite environment.
In fact, she provided me with the network location of hundreds of
pictures of DEC hardware(VT's, WS's HSC's...) done by a DEC
illustrator (Erik Goetze) in Postscript format, ready for use in
RFP'S! with DECWrite and Draw/Paint. Esther Sanchez, the author
of our TIFF converter for the CDA library, explained some of the
details of the TIFF format which helped solve that transfer.
Most everybody within DEC that had transferred files successfully
to CDA had used either Kermit, Laplink or TSS. [Our internal
development seems to be based on the Alisa core according to
Larry Bonnette in our Littleton Office]. Jay Koutavas (Mac/VAX
Engineer) assured me that our configuration should work.
When Mala could offer no more suggestions, Luc
Pr�fontaine wrote a C language program to read Alisa generated
block mode files into PostScript (ASCII text). Michel Morin
proposed using FDL (file definition language). After Ansco
suggested Curator conversion software for the Mac (which saves
files as Text Type), Roy Lomicka one of DEC's PostScript experts
from our Westford Office looked at the resulting non-printable,
non-DECWrite compatible files and suggested two fixes in a timely
manner. Luc Pr�fontaine was able to write a TPU sequence (this
replaced the C code!) to replace a missing "end" statement and a
"showpage" in the PS file in a manner that would be acceptable
(invisible) to a client.
[that missing statement is a
/bind {} def
and it should be placed on line 5 of the curator output file]
The final element that brought all this together was an
obscure comment in VAX Notes on using the CDA Converter Library.
When installed, this library should become a part of DecWrite
menus, however it doesn't seem to work as if called directly from
VMS's $. In fact, even the VMS command is a bit unusual in that
it requires that input files end with a specific extension, even
though a parameter specifies the file type (e.g. if
picture.img/format=tiff is used it fails, however it the filename
p.ttif is used, all is fine, not very VMS-like!)
3) The client's perception of the day.
The clients listened to our strategies and directions,
given by the district Workstation salesman, Carmine Pollice, then
district Networking Salesman, Guy Bond, but they had told us they
were really here to see it all work as we said. They were
impressed with the ease of integration within the environment.
Though several of these people had never seen a VAX before, the
benefits of Network transparence (don't know, don't care about
the location of information) became obvious. They were also
interested in the truly multitasking graphical user environment
offered by DECWindows, and the live links offered by CDA and
DecWrite. The security and robustness (c.f. to Mac's cute little
time bomb and virus-prone nature) of the VAX/VMS environment will
make them think seriously about a DEC solution.
4) What we could do better in the future.
A short note here: It is very likely that an ACT in our region
or perhaps the pharmaceutical ACT in Philadelphia could have
staged such a demonstration with less effort than was required in
Montreal. Had we known at commit time that a large U.S. audience
would be in attendance, we may have gone this way. Keeping the
meeting local added substantially to the "easy to do" message
implicit in our demonstration.
DecWrite should be demonstrated by a habitual user. This
would greatly increase the credibility of our proposed solution.
In this particular case, I believe we will be given the
opportunity to directly challenge Wordperfect on PC's before a
final choice is made for the secretaries' desktops.
Our networking capability is what differentiates us from
a great majority of other solutions. We should have MRGate
installed and have the demonstration include a link to a remote
site, perhaps one of their own nodes. Within DEC, we all know
how this is as simple as connecting to a VAX at the end of the
hall, but to clients who are used to emulating terminals on a PC,
then connecting to their telephone datacards, then connecting to
the Gandalf switches, then finally to a modem pool, we are asking
them to stretch their imaginations just a bit too far!
Conclusion:
As is very clear from the above, a project like this
would have gone nowhere without the excellent teamwork within
Digital!
My sincere thanks to every single person who contributed!
Alex Kallos, software services,
Montr�al
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