Hey guys. Tomorrow I'll be coming into possession of a LaserWriter Select 360. This is one of them ancient guys, circa '93, and uses LocalTalk. I figured this would be the best place to post because I'm sure one of you ancient Apple lovers would know: What's the cheapest way to get this on my network?
Got a tip for us?
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Bridging LocalTalk to Ethernet on the cheap
- Thread starter wjlafrance
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Firstly, the cheapest way (if you have an old Mac with ethernet & localtalk/serial ports) is to use Apple's "LocalTalk Bridge" or "LaserWriter Bridge".
There is an overview here.
Essentially, your old Mac hosts the printer to the rest of your Ethernet network via AppleTalk protocol.
Don't get confused. AppleTalk is software. A network protocol just like TCP/IP is a protocol.
When Appletalk is run over a serial port they refer to this as "LocalTalk". When AppleTalk is run over an Ethernet port they refer to this as "EtherTalk"
You can find the software for LocalTalk Bridge here.
This would still require you to locate the printer as an AppleTalk printer on the network.
Oh yeah.... I guess you can call me an ancient "Apple lover".
EDIT: Historical Info:
"LaserWriter Bridge" only bridges Laser Printers and was always free from Apple.
"LocalTalk Bridge" was originally a paid product but was made free sometime around OS X's introduction (IIRC), and bridges file sharing and other AppleTalk services including Laser Printers.
You might be lucky to find purpose built hardware bridges on eBay but they still seem to fetch up to AU$50
There is an overview here.
Essentially, your old Mac hosts the printer to the rest of your Ethernet network via AppleTalk protocol.
Don't get confused. AppleTalk is software. A network protocol just like TCP/IP is a protocol.
When Appletalk is run over a serial port they refer to this as "LocalTalk". When AppleTalk is run over an Ethernet port they refer to this as "EtherTalk"
You can find the software for LocalTalk Bridge here.
This would still require you to locate the printer as an AppleTalk printer on the network.
Oh yeah.... I guess you can call me an ancient "Apple lover".
EDIT: Historical Info:
"LaserWriter Bridge" only bridges Laser Printers and was always free from Apple.
"LocalTalk Bridge" was originally a paid product but was made free sometime around OS X's introduction (IIRC), and bridges file sharing and other AppleTalk services including Laser Printers.
You might be lucky to find purpose built hardware bridges on eBay but they still seem to fetch up to AU$50
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I saw some "AsanteTalk" devices on ebay but they fetch a pretty penny, and they're $100 or so new. More than I want to pay for a 10 ppm laser printer.
I was thinking of trying to get my hands on an old PowerBook and bridge using that. That way, when the printer gives up the ghost, I'll still have a PowerBook.
I was thinking of trying to get my hands on an old PowerBook and bridge using that. That way, when the printer gives up the ghost, I'll still have a PowerBook.
I had my LaserWriter 360 connected through LocalTalk Bridge on my network using a Perfoma 6115 running 9.1 and it was basically flawless. Once I got it setup, I disconnected the display, and just let the Performa run 24/7 so I could print whenever. I was actually going to make an instructional video on how to do it, but never got around to it.
I've got a bid on a AsanteTalk for $10 + $4.95 shipping right now. Hopefully nobody else is interested in this ancient technology, but if I don't win, I think I'll try something similar. Performa's seem to be going for around $50 shipped.
I decided to just connect it via parallel to my old Dell desktop. Then when I print, the out of paper light blinks, but it has paper.
AGHHHHHHH.
AGHHHHHHH.
Try placing paper in the bottom paper tray AND the manual feed tray, and see which (if any) it picks up.
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It's blinking, which I figured out apparently means something completely different. Blinking paper out and jam lights means the fuser is broken, but the jam light isn't blinking, and I know it works cause it lights up in the startup sequence.
Yes, indeed. It could be the fuser roller shorting on the thermal sensor (IIRC, that's common for the Select series). If you look into the fuser assembly, you might see a silver score mark on the red coated roller.
It could be the laser scanner motor not getting up to speed, or the sensor is obstructed.
It could be the paper size buttons in the bottom tray reporting a paper size that doesn't exist.
It could be sluggish paper feed due to a sticking registration solenoid.
It could be a bad capacitor in the PSU, DC Control or HT board.
It could be a broken flange on the toner cartridge such that the printer believes the toner cart isn't installed (intermittently).
Sorry to do that, but I can't remember the exact error condition. I hated the Select 300 series. That and the fact that getting Fuji Xerox parts was a real pain, and Apple's discontinuation of support by System 8.5 made them a bit of a horror.
And don't mention faded print. You had to near dis-assemble the whole machine to get at the laser window which (for some reason) would collect toner particles BEHIND the window causing faded and blurred print.
Hope that helps.
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