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Enabling On Demand business output
To respond to the challenges of an On Demand business world, enterprises need reliable, "anytime, anywhere" output solutions that can accept print submissions from anywhere in the network or over the internet, deliver output in a variety of forms depending upon users' needs, and simplify the management of complex, distributed print networks. Networked computing and the internet have become an integral part of today's computing environments. Output that was once printed and delivered, or delivered only within internal networks, must now be delivered to mobile employees, partners, suppliers and clients over the internet or as documents published on Web sites and portals. This requires an output solution that can provide flexible connectivity for TCP/IP and the internet, and dynamic conversion of data formats for delivery and presentation in many different forms.
Infoprint Server for z/OS and its companion Infoprint Transform products provide an end-to-end output solution designed specifically for the demands of business communication.
Providing comprehensive, flexible options for business output
Businesses need to deliver information to employees, suppliers, partners and customers in a variety of formats including via Web browsers, e-mail and many forms of hard copy. Infoprint Server and the Infoprint Transform products provide a comprehensive array of output options, including:
- Print over TCP/IP networks
- Print over the Web using Internet Printing Protocol (IPP)
- Print to coaxially attached SNA printers from the same system that supports your TCP/IP print
- Print online transaction application output, such as that from CICS, over TCP/IP on distributed printers that support PCL, PostScript or even AFP (with PSF)
- Send output as e-mail instead of print to save paper and printer supplies costs
- Use Infoprint Transforms to convert output in PCL, PostScript or Portable Document Format (PDF) into AFP for printing on reliable, high-speed AFP printers
- Use Infoprint Transforms to convert AFP applications into PCL or PostScript for printing on non-AFP distributed printers
- Convert AFP into PDF for delivery as e-mail, or publication on Web sites and portals
- Convert SAP R3 output into AFP for printing on production printers with PSF
- Encrypt AFP while converting into PDF for document security and privacy
- Exploit AFP document architecture while converting to PDF to create links within documents, and to external sources, such as an internet site
- Define printers, including those driven by PSF, in one place using the same set of easy-to-use tools
- Manage the entire print environment from a Web-based graphical user interface
Improving operator productivity for print management
One of the biggest costs of an enterprise output infrastructure is the human cost of managing print jobs, printers and print output. Infoprint Central is Infoprint Server's Web-based tool for managing jobs and printers throughout the enterprise from anywhere with access to the internet and a Web browser. Intended primarily for help desk operators, it lets users query the status of jobs and printers, see job or printer messages, stop and start printers, move jobs from one printer queue to another, cancel or hold jobs, and many other functions. Infoprint Central uses integrated z/OS security services so that users can be authorized to perform only certain tasks, or to perform tasks only on designated devices.
Reducing the cost of enterprise output
Enterprises cannot afford the cost that comes with maintaining complex environments of incompatible and inconsistent print servers and printers. IBM's zSeries servers are among the most cost-effective computing platforms in the industry because of their scalability, high-availability, and integration. By consolidating your enterprise output onto z/OS using Infoprint Server and the Infoprint Transforms for z/OS, you can eliminate expensive hardware, software, maintenance and administrative costs associated with managing dozens or hundreds of distributed print servers. The result can be a significantly lower overall cost of information delivery.
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