Productivity Tools (Hardware and Software)

Table of Contents

• SAF PCs
• SAF CD/DVD recorder
• Saving power on idle computers
• SAF Genicom CL160 color printer
• SAF Genicom mL260 laser printer
• Biology Division Stockroom forms
• Printer test pages
• Calibrate your monitor
• Postscript or HTML Calendars (for sign up sheets or scheduling)
• Biology Division Slidemaker
• SAF Scanner

There are 7 Windows PCs available for general use. During the one quarter that Bi/Ch 170 is offered, students in that course have first priority, and may request other users to vacate a machine if all 7 are in use. Console time on these machines is currently not charged. These machines all use the same account names and passwords as does the SAF server. Most Biology Division members already have accounts set up on these machines - just come by and ask for your password. (Yes, the assigned passwords are horrible, no you may not change them.) User directories are stored on a central server, so you may move freely from one machine to another. The server directory appears as drive Z. Users may also store temporary files in C:\TEMP, but such files should be deleted at the end of each session.

All seven machines have the following software installed:


Windows XP Pro

MS Office 2003
Swiss PDB Viewer, O, coot, PyMOL (protein modelling programs)
POVray for Windows
Seamonkey, Firefox, IE (browsers)
Acrobat Reader
GS Tools (a postscript viewer)
Norton Antivirus
GIMPshop (GIMP variant that looks like photoshop)
Inkscape (drawing program)
putty (serial communications, ssh)
Filezilla (file transfer)
Nero

Linux

O, coot, PyMOL (protein modelling programs)
molscript
Seamonkey, Firefox (browsers)
Acrobat Reader
ghostscript, gv (a postscript viewer)



General users may not (and cannot) install their own software. Additional software will be loaded if the requesting user physically supplies it or pays for it. Note that if a commercial software package is to installed, the SAF requires the end user provide a valid paper license, or if need be, the shrink wrapped software distribution, so that we can prove at any time that all installed software is legal.

All of the SAF PCs contain CD/DVD recorders and may be accessed either from Windows XP or Linux.

The Genicom CL160 is a full color laserprinter, capable of printing everything from a few color highlights in a text document all the way up to 1200 dpi photorealistic color images. It can also print documents in duplex at resolutions up to 600 dpi (1200 once we add more memory). It can also be used to prepare color overheads. You may send color print jobs to the SAF Genicom CL160 printer from your Macintosh or Windows computer. Use of this printer is free for students taking a class hosted by the SAF but is charged otherwise. There is a sign up sheet next to the printer. Cost varies from 0.10 to 0.50 dollars per page, plus an additional 0.35 dollars for each sheet of transparency film you may use, and must be charged to a Caltech PTA or alias. For best results, install the appropriate drivers on your computer:
Adobe univeral printer driver 5 for Windows
PPD file, for Macintosh or Linux
Macintosh OS X: install the PPD file in System-Extensions-Printer Descriptions. Open the chooser and select SAFcolor_BIN in zone NET12. Create the printer and associate the ppd file with it. Set the resolution to 1200 and under imaging turn "color matching" OFF.
Macintosh OS X: faster method. Open a terminal window as a user with administrative privileges. Paste the following into the window:
curl http://saf.bio.caltech.edu/caltech/gncl1601.ppd >/tmp/gncl1601.ppd
lpadmin -p SAFcolor \
  -v pap://net12/SAFcolor_BIN/LaserWriter \
  -E -P /tmp/gncl1601.ppd \
  -D 'SAFcolor' \
  -L '31 Braun'
rm /tmp/gncl1601.ppd
Then open the printer center and set the resolution and imaging options as indicated above.
Windows NT and XP: copy the adobe postscript driver from the link above to your system if it isn't already present (look for "winsteng.exe"). A good place to put it and the PPD files you will use is: C:\Program Files\Adobe. Use the Windows add printer method to create a jetdirect (TCP/IP) printer port which prints directly to 131.215.12.13 port 9100. Do not complete adding the printer, cancel after adding the port. Use the Adobe postscript driver (winsteng.exe) to add the printer that uses that port, giving it the above PPD file. Set the resolution to 1200, turn "color matching" off, set DUPLEX installed. (NOTE: you may use this same driver to print to any other postscript printer and it tends to work better than the drivers that Windows itself uses.)
Windows Vista: uninstall Vista and install XP. Can't do that? Well the following seems to work on 32 bit versions of Vista (64 bit has not been tested). Download winsteng.exe as before. Right click on it, properties, set Compatibility mode to "Windows XP SP2". After doing this you should be able to install printers as on NT and XP. In theory Adobe has released a version of this driver that is Vista compatible, but I have not yet found a copy on the web.
Linux and other OS's that use CUPS: Issue the command:
curl http://saf.bio.caltech.edu/caltech/gncl1601.ppd >/tmp/gncl1601.ppd
lpadmin -p color -v socket://safcolor.bio.caltech.edu:9100 -E -P /tmp/gncl1601.ppd
rm -f /tmp/gncl1601.ppd
Use xpp (X11) or web (http://localhost:631/) to further configure the printer.

The printer has 128 Mb of memory, so it can print at resolutions set as high as 1200 dpi. However, it can only print duplex up to 600 dpi. Change the print resolution in the driver as needed.

Instructions for printing transparencies are posted above the printer, and the transparency film you must use is available in a box nearby. It is essential that you not use any other media, as it may melt inside the printer, severely damaging it. Disregard this notice only if you like to pay for printer repairs!

The Macintosh and Windows drivers have a media type setting which must be adjusted before printing transparencies, and then back again afterwards. If the wrong media is in the printer, it will not print the job, but instead ask incessantly for the other media type.

Sorry, there is no way to keep another job from sneaking in ahead of yours, so you might want to print it from one of the PCs in the SAF area, and be quick about getting your transparencies in and out of the machine.

The Genicom mL260 is a 26 ppm B/W laserprinter, capable of printing at 600 or 1200 dpi, duplex. Use of this printer is free for students taking a class hosted by the SAF but is charged otherwise. There is a sign up sheet next to the printer. Cost is .03 single sided, .05 double sided, plus an additional 0.35 dollars for each sheet of transparency film you may use, and must be charged to a Caltech PTA or alias. For best results, install the appropriate drivers on your computer:
Adobe univeral printer driver 5 for Windows
PPD file, for Macintosh or Linux
Macintosh: install the PPD file in System-Extensions-Printer Descriptions. Open the chooser and select "SAF mL260" in zone NET12. Create the printer and associate the ppd file with it. Set the resolution to 1200.
Macintosh OS X: faster method. Open a terminal window as a user with administrative privileges. Paste the following into the window:
curl http://saf.bio.caltech.edu/caltech/gnml2601.ppd >/tmp/gnml2601.ppd
lpadmin -p SAFbw \
  -v pap://net12/SAF%20ml260/LaserWriter \
  -E -P /tmp/gnml2601.ppd \
  -D 'SAFbw' \
  -L '31 Braun'
rm /tmp/gnml2601.ppd
Then open the printer center and set the resolution and imaging options as indicated above.
Windows NT and XP: copy the adobe postscript driver from the link above to your system if it isn't already present (look for "winsteng.exe"). A good place to put it and the PPD files you will use is: C:\Program Files\Adobe. Use the Windows add printer method to create a jetdirect (TCP/IP) printer port which prints directly to 131.215.12.53 port 9100. Do not complete adding the printer, cancel after adding the port. Use the Adobe postscript driver (winsteng.exe) to add the printer that uses that port, giving it the above PPD file. Set the resolution to 1200, set DUPLEX installed. (NOTE: you may use this same driver to print to any other postscript printer and it tends to work better than the drivers that Windows itself uses.)
Windows Vista: uninstall Vista and install XP. Can't do that? Well the following seems to work on 32 bit versions of Vista (64 bit has not been tested). Download winsteng.exe as before. Right click on it, properties, set Compatibility mode to "Windows XP SP2". After doing this you should be able to install printers as on NT and XP. In theory Adobe has released a version of this driver that is Vista compatible, but I have not yet found a copy on the web.
Linux and other OS's that use CUPS: copy the ppd file to /tmp. Issue the command:
curl http://saf.bio.caltech.edu/caltech/gncl1601.ppd >/tmp/gnml2601.ppd
lpadmin -p bw -v socket://safln32.bio.caltech.edu:9100 -E -P /tmp/gnml2601.ppd
rm -f /tmp/gnml2601.ppd
Use xpp (X11) or web (http://localhost:631/) to further configure the printer.

Instructions for printing transparencies are posted above the printer, and the transparency film you must use is available in a box nearby. It is essential that you not use any other media, as it may melt inside the printer, severely damaging it. Disregard this notice only if you like to pay for printer repairs!

The Macintosh and Windows drivers have a media type setting which must be adjusted before printing transparencies, and then back again afterwards. If the wrong media is in the printer, it will not print the job, but instead ask incessantly for the other media type.

Sorry, there is no way to keep another job from sneaking in ahead of yours, so you might want to print it from one of the PCs in the SAF area, and be quick about getting your transparencies in and out of the machine.

Purchase Requisition

• color 1 (from www.naa.org)
• color 2
• B/W resolution (from www.bealecorner.com/trv900/respat)
• Color alignment (by David Mathog) Works with any postscript printer

When preparing any type of graphical presentation it is a good idea to calibrate the brightness of your monitor. Otherwise you may find that the images you produced are either much brighter or dimmer than you intended when viewed elsewhere.

Calibrate your monitor

• by month
• by year

The Biology Division slidemaker has been decommissioned. If you need slides consult with graphic arts.

The SAF scanner has been retired. If you need to scan slides ask the Fraser lab for help.