I have had some requests to further elaborate on the Toronto BOF - what is it,
why are we calling it etc. My apologies if the acronyms have resulted in
confusion.
The PWG is the Printer Working Group - an industry consortium of printer, print
software and major desktop and network operating systems (Microsoft, IBM,
Novell, Apple) vendors. We typically meet about 1 per month at some US
location. We develop (hopefully, market driven) standards for our industry.
A BOF (Birds-of-a-Feather) is a term used in the industry when one group
decides to propose a standards project which is intended to be derived from,
similar to or otherwise based on another standards project. In this case, the
PWG is already working on (and nearly completed) a "Finisher MIB". A MIB
(Management Information Base) is a data structure and group of attributes for
use with the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP). There is already a
Printer MIB which is quite broadly adopted in the industry (IBM, HP, Lexmark,
Tektronics, Xerox, Dataproducts, Kyocera and more). The Printer MIB is a
standard which allows people to write software that can MANAGE more than one
companies product... something customers demand.
The Finisher MIB is a follow-on to the Printer MIB. It extends management
capability out to the Finisher (configuration, status, supplies level etc.).
The Finisher MIB could be implemented in a stand-alone network attached
finisher (but I don't think there are too many of these today). More likely,
the finisher is inline with a network attached printer and is somehow feeding
information back to a controller on the Printer which will handle the response
to SNMP queries over the network.
This interface, between the Printer and Finisher, is what the BOF in Toronto is
about. The BOF is the place where you can bring ideas regarding such an
interface. You can suggest, rebut, or otherwise participate. The BOF will be
most effective if you come prepared with ideas, examples, an overview or white
paper of some kind which communicates your point.
While SNMP and MIBs are limited mainly to MANAGEMENT of devices (configuration,
status and events), I suspect a standard printer/finisher communications link
will also address CONTROL. There may be existing or developing standards which
we would need to understand and desire to "harmonize" with. If you are informed
about these, this will be helpful.
I hope this explanation will help you decide regarding your attendance and
assist you in your preparation. I look forward to meeting all interested
parties at the BOF, in Toronto.
Harry Lewis - PWG Finisher MIB Chairman