MLG FLC UNABLE TO RECEIVE CLRNC AND WT AND BAL INFO FROM MALFUNCTIONING ACARS. DEPART WITHOUT CLRNC.

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CREW PASSING THROUGH PITTSBURGH; PA; WITH AN ACFT CHANGE AND CONTINUING FLT TO GSO AND THEN RETURN TO PIT. PITTSBURGH IS ONE OF THE STATIONS WHERE WE GET OUR ATC CLRNC VIA THE ACARS SYS (AUTOMATIC NO VOICE CONTACT). WE HAD COMPLETED OUR PREFLT; DONE THE CHKLISTS; ETC; STARTED ENGS AND TAXIED OUT FOR TKOF. WE ALSO GET OUR WT AND BAL DATA PLUS COMPANY MESSAGES; ETC; VIA ACARS. AS WE APCHED #1 FOR TKOF; WE STILL DID NOT HAVE OUR WT AND BAL DATA. VOICE TRANSMISSIONS TO COMPANY TO GET THE WTS MADE US AWARE THAT THE ACARS WAS NOT FUNCTIONING NORMALLY. I TRIED TO COORDINATE WITH TWR WHILE THE FO WORKED WITH THE COMPANY TO OBTAIN THE WTS. TWR DID NOT WANT ME TO HOLD SHORT BUT TAXI INTO POS AND HOLD WHILE WE GOT THE NUMBERS. I ALSO ASKED ABOUT PULLING ACROSS RWY TO CLR WHILE WE GOT OUR INFO. TWR SAID 'NO; LET US KNOW WHEN YOU ARE READY.' ABOUT THEN WE GOT THE WTS AND FO SAID WE DON'T HAVE A SQUAWK. I ASK TWR TO VERIFY SQUAWK. THEY CLRED US FOR TKOF. AS WE WERE ROLLING; THE FO MADE IT CLR TO ME THAT HE HAD NEGLECTED TO GET THE ATC CLRNC. THE ONLY THING TO DO THEN WAS CONTINUE THE TKOF; WHICH WE DID. AFTER WE WERE AIRBORNE WE VERIFIED OUR RTE WITH DEP AND CONTINUED TO OUR DEST. SEVERAL THINGS WERE FACTORS HERE. FIRST WITH THE ACARS SYS; THERE IS NO VOICE BACKUP AS THERE USED TO BE SO GND AND TWR LET US TAXI AND TKOF WHERE THEY WOULDN'T HAVE ON THE OLD VOICE SYS. SECOND; WE WERE TRYING TO MAKE SCHEDULE AND WITH THE ACARS SYS MALFUNCTIONING WERE DISTRACTED GETTING THE WT AND BAL VIA THE RADIO. THIRD; THERE WAS A LACK OF CLR COMS IN THE COCKPIT; LEADING ME TO START THE TKOF ROLL BEFORE I REALIZED THE EXACT NATURE OF THE PROBLEM. MY FO WAS EXTREMELY CONSCIENTIOUS SO I AM STILL NOT SURE THAT HE DIDN'T ENTER THE ATC CLRNC IN THE ACARS SYS AND THE SYS MALFUNCTIONED. HOWEVER; WE ASSUMED HE NEGLECTED TO REQUEST THE CLRNC.