RE: flexfax: Design for a portable Java hylafax clients:iwantyouropinions, please!

["Bernd Proissl" <news@proissl.de>]

> Hi Bernd,
Hi Iain,


> > Do you have access to a phonebook from within your modified printer
> > dialog? I think no, isn't this a problem for you?
> >
>
> You're right, I don't.  In general, much as it pains me to say
> it, the level
> of address book integration on the Mac is behind that on Windows.  On
> Windows, Outlook provides scheduling, contact management etc.  On the Mac,
> Outlook Express only includes contact management and a LDAP client (which
> works with OpenLDAP under Linux).  I have a Pilot so I tend to use the
> contact management and scheduling features of this.
>
> So, what I would like to do is:
>
> - use a Laserwriter based interface for fax (since I use a laser printer)
> - extract fax details from the Pilot desktop or LDAP.
>
> I don't need all the features of the MacFlex client.  It may be
> possible to
> build some components of the directory integration using Applescript -
> creating the fax file and transferring it to Hylafax seems to me to be the
> "showstopper".

In a next step I could provide a java program just like (or similar to
sendfax
from hylafax) This is reasonably simple to start with. no UI here yet.

You can run it from command line. BTW: How do you do this on the Mac? AFAIK
their is
no command interpreter.

This would be starting point for the next part of my client.

You could/should provide the UI part:
1. ask user for faxnumber and/or company name
   (use a phonebook for this or not)
   (later you/we might add things like "time to send", fax resolution, etc.)
2. create the PS file from the document the user wants to fax
   can you do this with Applescript?
3. Start my sendfax client with the user data given as parameters.
   client will give the job to the hylafax

Bernd