According to MacWEEK, Macintosh users will now have to wait 
until mid-1997 for the release of Apple's upcoming Operating 
System (code named Copland).

Developers did NOT (despite previous plans) get the first developer 
release of the new OS at Apple's World Wide Developers Conference in May.

The MacWEEK article by Clifford Colby and Stephen Howard quoted senior Apple officials as saying that Copland has not passed minimal standards for reliability and memory usage, and that a mid-year release is much better for the marketing cycle than a December 1996 release as was most recently planned.

Apple has a Copland information page at: http://www.macos.apple.com/macos/releases/coplandqa.html  
— Alex Narvey

  
Apple has introduced two new Power Macintosh 
computers designed for the education market.

Both the Power Mac 5260 and 5400 are all-in-one 
designs that present a neat multimedia/Internet package 
to educators. 

The Power Macintosh 5260/100 has been designed as Apple's 
mainstream all-in-one product for schools. A 100 MHz 603e PowerPC CPU is coupled with an internal quad-speed CD-ROM drive and 16-bit CD-quality stereo speakers as well as a 3.5" 800MB IDE hard disk drive and 16MB of DRAM. DRAM is expandable to 64MB and the chassis will allow the adding of a video input card, a video-out connector or a TV tuner.

The built-in 14" color monitor is capable of displaying 32,000 colors. The 5260 also comes with a built-in microphone, AppleDesign Keyboard and a mouse. 

It is available immediately for education customers only at US $1699. 

Through June 1996, education customers who buy a Power Macintosh 5260/100 will also receive a preselected set of seven software titles, including a grammar and spelling checker and a multimedia encyclopedia of science and technology. 

The 5400/120 will become available later in June. It goes a cut above all of Apple's previous all-in-one offerings: For one thing, it has a PCI slot.

The 5400 also gets double most of the 5200's basic features. e.g. its hard drive is 1.6GB. It comes standard with 16MB RAM and this is expandable to 136MB.

As the name implies, the 5400 will get a 120 MHz PowerPC 603e processor. It will also have an Ethernet connection and a video input card and video-out connector, as well as an expansion bay for an optional TV tuner. 

The Power Macintosh 5400/120 includes a built-in 15"  color monitor capable of displaying more than 32,000 colors, an AppleDesign keyboard and a mouse. 

At the time of this printing, it was priced at US $2,299, for education customers. It made its debut in May. 

While supplies last, education customers who buy a Power Macintosh 5400/120 will also receive an Apple Presentation System, which will enable them to connect to a TV for viewing, or to a VCR for recording.

— Alex Narvey

  
Speech Recognition—once the exclusive preserve of desktop 
Power Macs—may be coming to your PowerBook/Performa. 

Apple developers now have a beta release of Apple's Speech 
Recognition extension (version 1.5) which allows ANY 
PowerPC Mac with 16-bit sound input capability to utilize 
PlainTalk speech recognition. This means that certain Performa 5000 and 6000 series models (that have 16-bit sound) and the PowerBook 5300 series will allow speech recognition.

As an added bonus, this will apply to PowerBook 500 series owners who have upgraded their daughter cards to the PowerPC model. To test out this theory, we loaded up the new Speech Recognition extension on our PowerBook 540c (with PowerPC upgrade) and sure enough, just by speaking into the PowerBook's built-in microphone we were getting recognized. Our first command was: "Computer, what time is it?" to which the Mac's Victoria voice replied "It is 9:16."

Cool. Not particularly fast, but cool nevertheless.

To use the extension you should first install Apple's Text-to-Speech and Speech Recognition 1.4.1, and then replace the Speech Recognition extension 1.4.1 with the 1.5 beta

You can pick up a copy of the beta Speech Recognition extension and check it out for yourself at: ftp://ftpdev.info.apple.com/Developer_Services/Development_Kits/
Speech_Recognition_Mgr/  
— Alex Narvey

  
The customers spoke; Apple listened. Now almost any Macintosh 
computer can talk—in English or Mexican Spanish.

Apple has begun selling the PlainTalk Text-to-Speech (TTS) and 
Speech Recognition software which previously had been available only as part of select Power Macintosh systems and Mac OS upgrades. The new software is distributed by Claris Corp. 

PlainTalk TTS enables Macintosh computers to speak written text and respond to spoken commands. There are three components to the latest release version of PlainTalk (1.4.1): English Speech Recognition, English Text-to-Speech, and Mexican Spanish Text-to-Speech. 

The 22 different voices used  are synthesized, meaning there is no need to store prerecorded sound files on the hard drive. 

The  English Speech Recognition includes speakable items. When installed on a Power Macintosh running system software version 7.5 or later, the user's computer has the ability to respond to spoken commands. Spoken commands can be used to execute common desktop tasks such as opening files and folders, starting applications, switching applications, and closing windows. 

The English Text-to-Speech software provides the user with the ability to hear the computer read text.  PlainTalk text-to-speech includes its own speech control panel that allows the user to select a system-wide default voice and speech rate. 

PlainTalk also allows the bilingual user to key in Spanish text, and with many Macintosh programs, hear the text read aloud with a Mexican accent. The Mexican Spanish Text-to-Speech component also comes with its own installer and runs on system software version 7.0 or later. 

Speech Recognition requires a Power Macintosh computer with 16-bit sound, system software version 7.5 or later; 1.5MB RAM beyond what the rest of the system software needs; and a microphone (a special PlainTalk microphone is included with PlainTalk 1.4.1). 

TTS will work on any Macintosh computer with system software  version 6.0.7 or later and 300K RAM beyond what the rest of the system  software needs (You will also need 5MB  of hard disk space for the software and voice files). 

The estimated retail price for Apple PlainTalk 1.4.1 is $49 US.

TTS and Speech Recognition can also be integrated into the World Wide Web—see our special MacSense Web Plug-in Series at: http://www.macsense.com/macsense/HOT/ 96/9603/PlugInSeries.html. 

— Elizabeth Martin

  
Apple has licensed Sun's Java programming environment and plans 
to incorporate it into key Apple technologies, including the Mac OS, 
Newton PDA  and Pippin. Apple also plans to include it in its media 
authoring technologies, Internet servers and CyberDog, its 
OpenDoc-based Internet suite.

"This is an important step in Apple's plan to launch cutting-edge Internet products and services," said Larry Tesler, vice president of Internet platforms, Apple Computer.  "Licensing Java from Sun will enable Apple to make this key Internet standard widely available in its products." 

According to a 1995 study by Mirai, a Chicago-based consulting company, 40.9 percent of respondents create the graphics for their World-Wide Web site on a Macintosh computer. The combination of Java and Apple Macintosh computers makes for a powerful Internet development solution. 

A number of third-party Macintosh Internet solutions are  available for developers and end-users alike.  Macintosh Java development environments are shipping from Symantec  Inc., Metrowerks  Inc.  and Natural Intelligence  Inc.  For end-users, Apple recently enhanced its Internet Connection Kit, which allows Macintosh customers to easily access the Internet and World Wide Web.

— Elizabeth Martin

  
Apple has released a new AppleShare Workstation extension that 
supersedes the version that shipped with the System 7.5 Update 2.0.

The new AppleShare Workstation 3.6.2 carries the  ZM  designation, 
which signifies it is an international updater.

Version 3.6.2:

   Changes the behavior of the Alias Manager, included with System 7.5.3 and System 
     7.5 Update 2.0, to use the workstation user interface for Alias resolution. Set 
     Password Button now available.

  Fixes several hangs due to VBL (vertical blanking interrupt) problems.

  Fixes a crash on launch of certain applications from the server.

  Follows a Bad Password error by asking  you to check if the the Caps Lock key 
     were active when you entered the password.

The new software is available in Apple's online software areas on CompuServe, AOL and AppleLink and on the net in the Communications and Networking folder. Here is one working URL: http://www.support.apple.com/pub/apple_sw_updates/ US/Macintosh/n_c/AppleShare/ZM-AppleShare_WS_3.6.2.hqx  
— Alex Narvey

 
Apple has updated the components of the Apple Internet Connection Kit (AICK).  Version 1.1 of AICK is now available at http://www.online.apple.com/kit1/  
Version 1.0 AICK owners are eligible for an upgrade. The update offers improved performance, greater reliability and interoperability  and product updates. Each item is available by download link from the page listed above. Customers can also find out how to get the upgrades on CD or floppy disk from the above-listed page.

The upgrade provides new versions of the Apple Internet Dialer (1.1.2), Apple Internet Status (1.1.2), MacPPP (2.5), ConfigPPP (2.5) and a new Apple Guide. Additionally, there are updated versions of Netscape Navigator (2.01), ClarisEmailer Lite (1.0v3), Fetch (3.0.1) and NewsWatcher (2.1.2) available. 

There are also special offers and demos for Adobe Acrobat Reader, QuickTime VR Player, RealAudio Player, and StuffIt. 

The critical PPP connection component gets many important changes including fixes for Virtual Memory, PowerBook, faceless background app and After Dark compatibility, along with miscellaneous fixes for various third party Internet utilities and improved error handling.

— Alex Narvey

  
Apple has come up with a fix for the AppleVision Display and 
problems that occurred when installing the software alongside 
System 7.5.3.

The software fixes such problems as:

  When you press the buttons on the front of the display, you see a message that says 
     No AppleVision Display is connected. 

  You have a Power Macintosh 7200 and can't find the Monitors & Sound control 
     panel in the Control Panels folder.

  The Monitors & Sound control panel does not have Geometry, Color, and Monitor 
     Sound buttons. (Note: The Monitor Sound button appears only if you have an AV 
     monitor.)

  You can't change the resolution of the AppleVision Display or you can't open the 
     AppleVision Setup control panel.

  Macintosh Guide does not contain information on the AppleVision Software or 
     Display.

The software is now posted in the same location as the System 7.5 Update 2.0 folder. Here is a working URL: http://www.support.apple.com/pub/apple_sw_updates/ US/Macintosh/system_sw/System_7.5_Update_2.0/AppleVision_Fix_1.0.hqx  
— Alex Narvey

  
Apple is enhancing its QuickTime architecture for professional 
video production.

QuickTime 2.5—which Apple says will ship later this Spring—
will offer Interchangeable M-JPEG File Format, Multiprocessor 
Support and Support for 3D Objects. 

Interchangeable M-JPEG File Format Motion JPEG (M-JPEG) is a compression standard for video professionals that is implemented differently in various video capture products. Now, Apple and leading digital video solution vendors, including Adobe Systems, Inc., AvidTechnology, Inc., Data Translation, Inc., Radius, Inc., Truevision and others have agreed to a fully interchangeable M-JPEG file format. QuickTime 2.5 will include a software interchangeable M-JPEG codec, allowing editors, and others involved in the creative process, to view M-JPEG compressed files on any Power Macintosh with no additional hardware required. 

Multiprocessor Support QuickTime 2.5 will support multiprocessing hardware such as the Genesis MP from DayStar Digital.

"With the release of this version of QuickTime and the multiprocessing power from DayStar's Genesis MP, video professionals have a powerful new video editing platform," said Andrew Lewis, president and CEO of DayStar Digital. "Now they can blast through frames with the speed and results normally associated with proprietary systems costing tens of thousands of dollars more." 

QuickTime to Support 3D Objects: QuickTime 2.5 now uses Apple's QuickDraw 3D engine for rendering 3D objects in real time within a QuickTime movie. 3D objects can be synchronized, composited, and animated with other media types such as video, audio and music right on the PowerMac.

Developer seeding for the new QuickTime is already in progress. Developers can license QuickTime 2.5 and is expected to be free of charge to customers through Apple's home page on the World Wide Web and various online services.

— Alex Narvey