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Silicon Times Report The Original Independent OnLine Magazine" (Since 1987) August 30, 1996 No.1235 Silicon Times Report International OnLine Magazine Post Office Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32221-6155 STR Electronic Publishing Inc. A subsidiary of STR Worldwide CompNews Inc. R.F. Mariano, Editor Voice: 1-904-292-9222 10am-5pm EST STReport WebSite http://www.streport.com STR Publishing Support BBS THE BOUNTY INTERNATIONAL BBS Featuring: * 5.0GB * of File Libraries Mustang Software's WILDCAT! Client/Server BBS Version 5 95/NT Featuring a Full Service Web Site http://www.streport.com Voted TOP TEN Ultimate WebSite Join STReport's Subscriber List receive STR through Internet MULTI-NODE Operation 24hrs-7 days Analog & ISDN BRI Access 904-268-4116 2400-128000 bps V. 120-32-34 v.42 bis ISDN V.34 USRobotics Courier Internal I-MODEM FAX: 904-268-2237 24hrs BCS - Toad Hall BBS 1-617-567-8642 08/30/96 STR 1235 The Original Independent OnLine Magazine! - CPU Industry Report - Corel News - Bell South an ISP? - HP NEW Workstation - Modem Chips UP - Sony NET Terminal - Sony WEB TV - Karpov Dominates - Thumbs Plus 3.0d - NBA SUES AOL!! - People Talking - Jagwire Mega Telecom Merger Announced Reno Says Justice Site Safe CIS Spin-Off Delayed STReport International OnLine Magazine Featuring Weekly "Accurate UP-TO-DATE News and Information" Current Events, Original Articles, Tips, Rumors, and Information Hardware - Software - Corporate - R & D - Imports STReport's BBS - The Bounty International BBS, invites all BBS systems, worldwide, to participate in the provision and distribution of STReport for their members. You may call The STReport Home BBS, The Bounty @ 1- 904-268-4116. Or obtain the latest issue from our WebSite. Enjoy the wonder and excitement of exchanging all types of useful information relative to all computer types, worldwide, through the use of the Internet. All computer enthusiasts, hobbyist or commercial, on all platforms and BBS systems are invited to participate. ** WEB SITE: http//www.streport.com ** CIS ~ PRODIGY ~ DELPHI ~ GENIE ~ BIX ~ AOL IMPORTANT NOTICE STReport, with its policy of not accepting any input relative to content from paid advertisers, has over the years developed the reputation of "saying it like it really is". When it comes to our editorials, product evaluations, reviews and over-views, we shall always keep our readers interests first and foremost. With the user in mind, STReport further pledges to maintain the reader confidence that has been developed over the years and to continue "living up to such". All we ask is that our readers make certain the manufacturers, publishers etc., know exactly where the information about their products appeared. In closing, we shall arduously endeavor to meet and further develop the high standards of straight forwardness our readers have come to expect in each and every issue. The Publisher, Staff & Editors Florida Lotto - LottoMan v1.35 Results: 8/17/96: 4 of 6 numbers, one 3 number match From the Editor's Desk... What a Week! The Hare virus hits a friend of ours and possibly us. One of our Western Digital 2.5 gb Eide hard disks went out to lunch... strangely enough it seems it occurred on the 22nd of August... As did our friend's machine. Oh well, such is life. In any case, after a rather distressed call to Western Digital, they shipped a brand spanking new drive Fed-Ex overnight... no questions asked. The next morning a drive was at my door. That's what I call solid customer support. This week, a number of new software packages arrived for review. I expect that I'll be quite busy for the next few weeks getting those reviews out. Stay tuned.... Ralph.. Of Special Note: http//www.streport.com STReport is now ready to offer much more in the way of serving the Networks, Online Services and Internet's vast, fast growing site list and userbase. We now have our very own WEB/NewsGroup/FTP Site and although its in its early stages of construction, do stop by and have a look see. Since We've received numerous requests to receive STReport from a wide variety of Internet addressees, we were compelled to put together an Internet distribution/mailing list for those who wished to receive STReport on a regular basis, the file is ZIPPED, then UUENCODED. Unfortunately, we've also received a number of opinions that the UUENCODING was a real pain to deal with. So, as of October 01,1995, you'll be able to download STReport directly from our very own SERVER & WEB Site. While there, be sure to join our STR list. STReport's managing editors DEDICATED TO SERVING YOU! Ralph F. Mariano, Publisher - Editor Dana P. Jacobson, Editor, Current Affairs Section Editors PC Section Mac Section Atari Section R.F. Mariano J. Deegan D. P. Jacobson Portables & Gaming Kid's Computing Corner Marty Mankins Frank Sereno STReport Staff Editors Michael Arthur John Deegan Brad Martin John Szczepanik Paul Guillot Joseph Mirando Doyle Helms John Duckworth Jeff Coe Steve Keipe Victor Mariano Melanie Bell Jay Levy Jeff Kovach Marty Mankins Carl Prehn Paul Charchian Vincent P. O'Hara Contributing Correspondents Dominick J. Fontana Norman Boucher Daniel Stidham David H. Mann Angelo Marasco Donna Lines Ed Westhusing Glenwood Drake Vernon W.Smith Bruno Puglia Paul Haris Kevin Miller Craig Harris Allen Chang Tim Holt Ron Satchwill Leonard Worzala Tom Sherwin Please submit ALL letters, rebuttals, articles, reviews, etc... via E-Mail to: CompuServe 70007,4454 Prodigy CZGJ44A Delphi RMARIANO GEnie ST.REPORT BIX RMARIANO AOL STReport Internet rmariano@streport.com Internet CZGJ44A@prodigy.com Internet RMARIANO@delphi.com Internet 70007.4454.compuserve.com Internet STReport@AOL.Com WebSite http://www.streport.com STReport Headline News LATE BREAKING INDUSTRY-WIDE NEWS Weekly Happenings in the Computer World Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson Microsoft Denies Netscape Charge Microsoft Corp. labels "without merit" recent antitrust allegations made by rival Netscape Communications Corp. in letters to the U.S. Justice Department. The Redmond, Washington, software giant said it "adheres strictly to all legal requirements" including those contained in a 1994 consent decree settling federal antitrust charges. It was revealed earlier this week (GO OLT-161) that Netscape has broadened its antitrust charges, alleging Microsoft offered improper payments and other inducements to persuade PC makers and Net service providers to use Microsoft's World Wide Web software. From Seattle, the Reuter News Service says Microsoft has denied offering a $3 discount on its Windows 95 operating system to computer makers who promise to hamper access to Netscape's Navigator browser. In an unsigned statement, Microsoft said, "There is not and has never been any $3 discount for making competing browsers 'less accessible.'" Reuters says the firm also denied that any of its agreements with Internet service providers obligate them to provide Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser exclusively and noted that customers are free to switch between browsers. Also the company defended its practice of limiting the number of users allowed on a single copy of its Windows NT Workstation as "standard practice in the software industry." Microsoft said Netscape, which has criticized the new licensing arrangement, uses similar licensing agreements to limit the number of users allowed to connect to some of its software products. In its statement, Microsoft also denied that its strategy of giving away the Internet was "predatory," as Netscape had charged. "Microsoft noted that Netscape initially obtained its dominant share of the browser market largely by giving away the product," Reuters added. Microsoft Pressures Alleged Microsoft Corp. is being accused by several PC makers of wielding its operating system dominance in an attempt to push Internet Explorer to the top of the browser market. The allegations come just as Microsoft is denying charges filed with the U.S. Justice Department by rival Netscape Communications Corp. that cited at least five areas where it believes Microsoft is violating anticompetitive and antitrust laws. Now PC Week reports that seven original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) it contacted said Microsoft used various pressure tactics to emphasize Internet Explorer over Netscape Navigator. "Two said Microsoft has threatened to re-evaluate Windows 95 licensing fees if competing products, namely Navigator, are bundled on their systems," Lisa DiCarlo and Michael Moeller and of PC Week Online report. "In addition, one OEM alleged Microsoft is also flexing its muscle by withholding participation in marketing programs with vendors that bundle both Navigator and Internet Explorer, instead of IE exclusively." Still, another OEM told the publication Microsoft tried to raise its Windows 95 licensing fee when the vendor requested that Microsoft remove IE 3.0 from the operating system. "These are central issues in Netscape's claims that Microsoft, through decreased Windows 95 royalty payments and stepped-up support of IE, hurts Netscape's ability to compete in the browser market," PC Week Online commented. Microsoft Vice President William Neukom, in charge of law and corporate affairs at the software publisher, vehemently denied Microsoft offered any financial incentives to PC makers and denied all charges made by Netscape in the letter to the Justice Department. To this, Vice President Brad Chase of Microsoft's Internet Platform and Tools Division added, "This is not right. We busted our butt to get a great product out to market and in the end, customers are winning. We have not done anything wrong. The allegations are just not true." But, says PC Week Online, PC makers it talked to "told a different story, although all requested anonymity due to fear of reprisal from Microsoft." The publication quoted an executive at one OEM as saying, "They said there could be a review of licensing fees if we bundle a competitive product." Added an executive at another OEM, "We thought our licensing fees would decrease if they removed IE, but they said they would increase, so we kept it on." PCO quotes antitrust attorneys as saying these charges are likely to force the Justice Department to step up its investigation of Microsoft, but they question whether the investigation would result in a formal lawsuit. Says John Briggs, past chairman of the American Bar Association's section on antitrust, "Even if you put all of Netscape's charges together and take them as being true, it is not clear if Microsoft violates any antitrust legislation." Net Authority Licenses New Names The fierce competition to register desirable Internet addresses may soon cool as word comes the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority has decided to give out several new licenses to firms that will register new "domain" names starting in 1997. Currently, the Herndon, Virginia, Network Solutions Inc. has the sole license from the authority to register address names in the most common top-level categories, most of which end with one of a few three letter designations, including ".com" for private sites, ".gov" for government sites and ".edu" for sites run by schools. "The availability of new names and competing registration services should help quell disputes over popular or trademarked names," writes reporter Aaron Pressman of the Reuter News Service. Pressman notes Network Solutions registers names for sites in those three so-called top-level domains along with ".org" and ".net," charging $100 for a two-year registration. "That greatly limits the number of available names," he says, "creating competition and even bidding wars for prestige monikers like 'television.com' or 'cybercafe.com.'" Pressman says the numbers authority is in the process of appointing a committee that will review applications from companies interested in registering names under the new top level domains, according to authority head Jon Postel, who added that ultimately "a few" companies will be given authority over three new top level domains each. Postel said the committee will begin accepting applications in October and new names could be in service by the end of January. The registration companies will be able to set their own prices with a small percentage of the fees going into a fund to improve the Internet's central infrastructure, Postel said. Reno Says Justice Site Safe Intruders who vandalized the U.S. Justice Department's site on the Internet's World Wide Web did not get access to criminal files, says U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno. "My understanding is that there is a clear wall between the two systems," Reno said a her weekly news briefing yesterday. "The system designed for public information is separate from that that tracks criminal investigations." As reported earlier, last Friday night, intruders altered the Justice Department's online page (reached at Web address http://www.usdoj.gov), adding swastikas, obscenities and a picture of Adolf Hitler in an apparent protest against the controversial Communications Decency Act that prohibits transmission of "indecent" material on the Net. The page was shut down for about 48 hours until it could be restored. Reno says the department's web page was separate from its other computer files. "In this situation, it is a system that is available for the public because it is the Web site, designed to provide information to the public. And thus, it is more difficult to prevent hacking." Reno adds, "What we had done and what this nation needs to do with respect to all its computer systems is continue to refine our knowledge and develop greater knowledge of what can be done to prevent hacking." Reuters notes, "Reno and other officials have warned that the U.S. computer network is vulnerable to theft and sabotage and have called for stronger computer security measures." Frankenberg Said Leaving Novell Word is Robert Frankenberg is resigning as chief Novell Corp. after two years at the helm of the networking company. A highly regarded, longtime Hewlett-Packard Co. manager, Frankenberg was recruited to succeed Ray Noorda, the company patriarch who built Novell into the dominant company in the field of computer networking software. "But," notes reporter Lee Gomes in this morning's The Wall Street Journal, "because of what many industry observers describe as an obsession with Microsoft Corp.'s Bill Gates, Mr. Noorda began a series of acquisitions meant to attack Microsoft that were ultimately disastrous for Novell. The most notable was the 1994 purchase of WordPerfect Corp., for which Novell paid $1.4 billion in a stock swap. It ended up selling WordPerfect to Corel Corp. in Janary for stock valued at $132 million." The Journal remembers that when Frankenberg took over at Novell, there was much industry discussion about whether he would be able to turn the company into a rival to Microsoft, "but quickly, Novell's core networking business began having trouble." The paper says that as Noorda's "ill-fated acquisitions drained resources," Novell's core networking segment lost ground to Microsoft's Windows NT operating system, resulting in a string of weak quarters." Now, comments Gomes, "It isn't clear whether any successor can pull Novell out of its dive. Microsoft recently released a new, more flexible version of Windows NT, which is expected to be a blockbuster product that further erodes Novell's position." NBA Sues America Online, Stats Inc. America Online Inc. and Stats Inc. have been sued by the National Basketball Association, which allege the online services used game scores and data without permission. The Associated Press notes the NBA seeks unspecified damages and wants to block AOL from using real-time information on its games supplied by Stats Inc. Adds AP, "The suit is almost identical to one against Motorola Inc. that the NBA won last month. In that ruling, a federal judge said Motorola could not put out scores on a hand-held pager that simulates action during NBA games because the league owned the scores. Stats Inc. was also named in the Motorola suit." Three weeks ago, Vienna, Va., -based AOL asked a Virginia court for a judgment that it is within its rights to use the NBA scores. AOL chairman Steve Case said in an statement, "We believe the new online medium should have the same right to report on real-time events and news as television and radio." H&R Block Retains CompuServe Tax preparation company H&R Block has decided not to complete the spin-off of the rest of its Compuserve Inc. subsidiary, at least for now. H&R Block interim president Frank Salizzoni told the Reuter News Service the Kansas City, Mo., company, which owns 80 percent of Compuserve after spinning off part earlier this year, has decided not to present the proposed spin-off of the rest to shareholders at its annual meeting scheduled for Sept. 11. Said Salizzoni, "The board continues to believe that a separation of Compuserve is in the best interests of H&R Block shareholders and will continue to consider the matter." H&R Block spun off 20 percent of Compuserve in April and had planned to distribute the rest to its shareholders. Companies Meet on New Net Standard Representatives of more than 40 companies, including AT&T Corp., Apple Computer Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co., IBM Corp., Novell Inc. and Sun Microsystems Inc., are meeting with Microsoft Corp. this week for the first technical conference on the common Internet file system (CIFS) protocol, a propsed standard for remote file-sharing over the Internet and corporate intranets. A plug-and-play infrastructure for business networking, CIFS will let computer users collaborate over the Internet without having to install new networking software, buy new hardware or change the way they work, notes Microsoft. Because CIFS is based on protocol standards already widely used in corporate networks, tens of thousands of existing business applications will be able to operate over the Internet and share data easily with applications for the World Wide Web, adds the software giant. "In much the same way that French became the universal language of diplomacy, and English the common language of business, CIFS is poised to become the common 'language' for business networking," says Gary Voth, Microsoft's group product manager responsible for strategic technologies and standards. "CIFS helps create a world in which companies can mix and match network clients and servers, regardless of operating system, so users can collaborate easily across different business projects." According to Microsoft, CIFS defines a common access protocol for sharing files and business information of all types over the Internet and corporate intranets, not just Web pages. CIFS is an enhanced version of Microsoft's open, cross-platform server message block (SMB) protocol, the native file-sharing protocol in the Windows 95, Windows NT and OS/2 operating systems, and also widely available for Unix, VMS and other platforms. With support from other industry leaders, Microsoft submitted the CIFS specification to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as a draft document in June 1996. For more details about CIFS, visit http://www.microsoft.com/intdev/cifs/. Groves Sees Net Eliminating Jobs Jobs that thousands of people now perform are threatened as use of the Internet grows, says Intel Corp. President/CEO Andrew Groves, adding, "The Internet is eliminating the person in the middle of many common transactions." Speaking recently with Newsweek Magazine, the leader of the world's largest semiconductor supplier said, "Instead of using an 800 (toll-free) number, the consumer is going to tap into a database, get information, place orders, do various things -- whether we are talking banks or travel reservations, or ordering books, cars, TVs, health care, whatever." Said Groves, "If I were in one of those industries, or I were an individual earning my living that way, I would view the Internet as a tidal wave that's going to wipe me out. I would be running as far as my feet go, redoing all my reservations systems, order systems, customer databases, so that masses of people would be able to reach them from their computer." Groves also told Newsweek "strategic inflection points" -- periods of dramatic change that hit an industry -- also hit individuals and that people should prepare for that change. "There are lots of people who have spent decades honing a skill, " said the Intel chief. "Major change in the world is creeping up on them, and they're not taking advantage. Your career is your business, and you have to manage it like a businessman." Phone Industry Feeling Net Strain Phone industry experts say phenomenal growth in use of the Internet is becoming such a strain on today's phone networks that more and more people dialing plain old phone calls won't get through. Writing in The Chicago Tribune, reporter Jon Van says Internet popularity is challenging "the engineering assumptions that underpin the public phone network." This comes, experts say, "just at a time when most phone executives have focused their attention on deregulation and competition rather than maintaining their networks' nearly flawless performance." In a nutshell, the problem is: · Computers can tie up phone lines for hours or days at a time, which can overwhelm a network designed on the assumption that most phone calls last only three to five minutes. · Phone networks are designed with the notion that only 10 percent of residential and 20 percent of business customers are talking at any given time, so the lines and switches can be shared by lots of people because · most aren't using them. Phone networks can crash when hordes of customers dial up at the same time, as sometimes happens during radio-station promotions and call-ins for popular concert tickets, Van notes, and, according to a new study by Bellcore, a telecommunications consulting and engineering company based in Morristown, New Jersey, thousands of computer modems dialing into the Internet are having a similar effect. The Bellcore study estimates that at the very least, each of the nation's seven phone regions would have to spend an average of $35 million a year for several years to adress the Internet problem, or perhaps $1 billion or more altogether. "While voice calls tie up a line for three minutes or so, Bellcore found the average time for an Internet call is 20 minutes," Van writes. "These increases multiply through the system so that up to 10 times the expected load can be seen at switches serving Internet providers. A Bellcore model suggested that if just 4 percent of a network's lines are tied up with Internet calls, it could increase blockage of calls by sixtyfold." Sex Offender Database Backed Pledging support of a law that would follow every move of every child molester, President Clinton says a temporary computer system to track sex offenders throughout the country will be in place within six months. Speaking in his weekly radio address yesterday, Clinton said the national database will be compiled from information supplied by each state, while a new computer network will allow police to determine quickly and efficiently whether an individual was a registered sex offender anywhere in the United States. The Reuter News Service says Clinton's announcement is an interim step in the establishment of a permanent National Sex Offender Registry due to be completed by mid-1999 that is to include state-of-the-art identification techniques such as DNA, fingerprint matching and mugshots. Explaining how the system would work, Clinton said every time a sex offender was released, his state would force them to register. The FBI then would compile these state lists into a national database. "Within six months, a new computer network will give states information from every other state for the very first time ... Then they will share that information with the families and communities that have a right to know," he said. The wire service notes groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union have voiced fears that the national registry would infringe on Constitutional protections. Java Development Fund Set Up A $100 million fund to invest in start-up firms developing businesses bsed on the hot new Java technology for the Internet's World Wide Web has been created. Investors in the new fund, set up by high-tech venture capital powerhouse Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, include 10 major technology companies, among them IBM, Compaq Computer Corp. and Netscape Communications Corp. The Java Fund now is closed to any new investment, says Samuel Perry of the Reuter News Service. In Menlo Park, California, fund manager Kevin Compton told the wire service the fund aims to improve small firms' access to corporate investors at a time when new product development has been shortened considerably by the frenzy over the Web, adding, "These companies have to live in Web weeks now, and instead of spending a year, or who knows how long, it takes to get corporate partners, they've got them on day one." In Java developer Sun Microsystems Inc. -- itself launched with support from Kleiner Perkins and now the largest investor in the fund after Kleiner Perkins' institutional investors as a group -- chief technology officer Eric Schmidt, at Sun Microsystems said, "We could have just let the market take care of this because there's a lot of money in the market right now." However, he noted, the fund aims to build on the broad enthusiasm over Java, which has been licensed by a wide range of software developers ranging from Redmond, Washington-based software giant Microsoft Corp. to the Taiwanese government. In addition to IBM, Compaq and Netscape, other corporate investors in the fund include Cisco Systems Inc., the cable TV companies Comcast Corp. and Tele-Communications Inc., Japan's Itochu Corp., Oracle Corp. and US West Media Group. Iomega Upgrades Customer Support Iomega Corp. has announced a new customer support service that it promises will decrease customer service wait times across its product lines and improve the overall quality of its technical support. Under the new structure, customers have the option of utilizing free upgraded automated support tools or a new fee-based technical hotline. "As a result of our growth, we recognize the immediate need to improve our technical support service, and we have implemented innovative programs to address those needs," says Scott Thomas, director of customer support at Roy, Utah-based Iomega. "Iomega is committed to providing the best technical support in the industry at an affordable cost, and thus we've chosen programs that will ultimately save our customers time, frustration and money." The fee-based hotline will be available at $14.99 per incident for Iomega's Zip and Ditto drives and $19.99 per incident for its Jaz drives. The new no-cost support services include a Web site; (http://www.iomega.com), featuring expanded search and retrieval capabilities, a faxback service, a compute bulletin board system and an interactive voice response system. CA Creates Internet Division A new Internet division promising to save businesses from the headaches of seeking numerous vendors now needed to set up and manage a Web site is being set up by Computer Associates International Inc. CA, which manages Web sites for large corporate customers, also plans to sign up hundreds of thousands of small businesses to use the service whether they own computers or not, writer Eric Auchard of the Reuter News Service reports. Adds Auchard, "In this 'community' Internet service, neighborhood businesses such as pizza parlors would contract with Computer Associates to establish an Internet presence, allowing customers to call up a shop's Web site to place an order. Currently, a company wishing to establish itself on the Internet is confronted with a maze of separate vendors from which they must buy the necessary hardware, software and (consulting) services to put together the disparate elements." The wire service says the aim of CA's one-stop Internet service is to shoulder "all the messy technical responsibilities for customers," allowing them to focus on their own business. While not so well known as Microsoft Corp. and other brand name PC software makers, Computer Associates is the world's top mainframe software supplier and the second largest independent software firm overall after Microsoft. CA itself isn't discussing its new unit, but sources familiar with the plans confirmed for Reuters that the new Internet unit has been formed to help customers create dynamic Web sites tied to internal corporate database systems. "A special focus would be to make customer information stored on legacy mainframe systems available via the Web," Reuters says. "Web-based electronic commerce tools would tie the system directly to a company's back-office accounting department." HP to Offer New Workstation Word is Hewlett-Packard Co. is set to introduce workstations that use chips from Intel Corp. and an operating system from Microsoft Corp. and three new models of personal computers for the home market. Last spring, HP brought out an ambitious new product family of relatively low-cost "Wintel" based servers, or high-end computers. "The products showed the extent to which HP was embracing Windows and Intel technology for its entire product line, as opposed to just PCs," says reporter Lee Gomes of The Wall Street Journal. "Until then, most H-P servers were higher-priced systems using all in-house H-P technology, and as a result, were a major profit source for the company." With the HP Vectra XW workstations being unveiled today, HP is extending its Wintel line from servers down to lower-cost desktop workstations. The Journal says the new machines run between $8,200 and $10,800 for bare-bones models, far below the price for in-house Unix systems sold by HP and others. The paper notes analysts are saying that in moving toward Wintel systems, "companies like HP are experiencing considerable internal tension, since they are now selling popular, low-cost Wintel machines to technical and business customers while also marketing traditional higher-profit Unix computers." HP, on the Unix front, is up against its own Unix division, as well as such all-Unix companies as Sun Microsystems Inc. and Silicon Graphics Inc. On the Wintel side, HP will be battling such PC-industry giants as Compaq Computer Corp., which earlier this month announced its own line of Intel-based workstations. The company's three new "Pavilion" PCs run between $2,599 for a system using Intel's 166MHz Pentium processor to $3,199 for one with a 200MHz Pentium. Diery Leaves AST After 9 Months After only nine months on the job, Ian Diery has resigned as AST Research Inc.'s high-profile CEO. Young-Soo Kim, a Samsung Electronics Co. executive and AST director, was named to succeed him. In The Wall Street Journal this morning, reporter Dean Takahashi characterized the 46- year-old Diery's departure as "another blow to the struggling personal-computer maker," adding it is likely to lead to more control of the company by Samsung, the South Korean giant that already owns 46 percent of the firm and has so far poured $678 million into the company. Kim told the paper AST likely will need more money from Samsung to continue its turnaround effort. "In effect," adds the Journal, "Samsung seems likely to eventually take over AST." Once one of the world's biggest PC makers, AST has been losing ground to Compaq Computer Corp. and Hewlett-Packard Co., as well as low-cost mail-order vendors such as Dell Computer Corp., dropping off the list of the top 10 U.S. PC makers in terms of revenue and units. The Journal says Diery, a hard-charging Australian rugby player and former op Apple Computer Inc. executive, was brought in to staunch the slide, and "though he got good marks from some analysts for improving AST's poor service operations and cutting costs, AST's financial condition hasn't improved markedly." Meanwhile, the 62-year-old Kim said Diery's leaving was amicable, "mutually agreed upon by all parties." Modem Chip Market to Soar International Data Corp. is forecasting that revenues from modem semiconductors will grow 31.5 percent per year, compounded annually, through the year 2000. The Framingham, Massachusetts, market researcher notes that the trend toward telecommuting, an increased need for remote access by mobile workers and the swelling ranks of consumers using online services and surfing the Internet are all drivers behind the tremendous growth projected for the modem market and, in turn, semiconductors within them. IDC says the share of modem semiconductor revenues from high-speed V.34 modems will increase to 57 percent, while revenues from more basic V.22 and the slower V.32 modems will shrink to 19.3 percent of total revenues in 2000. "The increasingly graphical content of World Wide Web pages as well as high bandwidth applications like videoconferencing are propelling the demand for modems with faster transmission speeds," says Kelly Henry, an IDC analyst. "Because telephone lines are technologically limited, modems have to assume more functionality." Mega Telecom Merger Announced In a deal worth approximately $14 billion, WorldCom Inc. and MFS Communications Co. Inc. have announced plans to merge. The combined company, to be known as MFS WorldCom, will be one of the world's largest business communications companies, providing a single source for a full range of local, long distance, Internet and international service over an advanced fiber optic network. The merger is the fifth largest in U.S. history. The new company will have annualized revenue of approximately $5.4 billion, with over 500,000 business customers throughout North America, Europe and Asia. At the heart of the venture will be an end-to-end fiber network with 25,000 miles of fiber in service or under construction connecting all major metropolitan areas in the U.S. The deal includes Internet access provider UUNet Technologies, which MFS recently purchased for $2 billion. "Rarely in business do you have the opportunity to bring together the premier growth companies from key segments of an industry," says Bernard J. Ebbers, president and CEO of WorldCom Inc. "We are creating the first company since the breakup of AT&T to bundle together local and long distance services carried over an international end-to-end fiber network owned or controlled by a single company." The parties hope to complete the merger within four to eight months. Dataquest: Users to Embrace xDSL Internet users are demanding more speed to access their data, and xDSL (Digital Subscriber Line) will become one of the key high-bandwidth solutions, according to Dataquest. The San Jose, California, market research firm notes that xDSL "is a promising new technology" that allows the existing twisted-pair telephone infrastructure to support multimegabit data rates. Dataquest analysts believe that xDSL will be primarily targeted at the residential and SOHO (small office, home office) markets. Dataquest forecasts that xDSL worldwide equipment revenue will reach $2.5 billion by 2000. "xDSL will provide the high-speed 'last-mile' pipe to the home that will be used for Internet access, online services, telecommuting, videoconferencing, video phones, interactive gaming, and distance learning applications," says Lisa Pelgrim, industry analyst in Dataquest's telecommunications group. "Homes and many small businesses are currently limited to slower technologies at analog and ISDN speeds. Users are craving more speed as their data demands increase, making them more than ready for low-cost, high-speed services." Sony Readies to Ship Net Terminal Sony is set to offer its low-cost WebTV Internet terminal next month at consumer electronics stores nationwide. The $349 plug-and-play unit, which connects to a TV and phone line, is designed to bring the World Wide Web and other Net resources to non-PC users. Sony claims that prospective Web surfers can be "seeing the sites" within 15 minutes of opening the box. Net access for WebTV is provided by WebTV Networks Inc. of Palo Alto, California. The subscription provides access to the Internet, as well as personalized e-mail addresses and profiles for up to five users per household. Subscription prices haven't yet been announced. WebTV will ship with remote control that works with all major television brands, as well as a 25-foot phone line cord and phone line splitter. Other bundled accessories include an A/V connection cable and an S-Video cable. "Our WebTV terminal provides a great opportunity for millions of families without a PC at home to get in on the action of Web browsing, e-mailing friends and relatives, planning vacations together, checking out movie reviews -- all on the Net, in front of their TV sets," says John Briesch, president of Sony's consumer audio-video group. Sony to Launch Web TV Unit Watch for Sony Electronics next month to join the hunt in the emerging market for television connections to the Internet's World Wide Web. Reporting from Park Ridge, New Jersey, Bob Woods of the Newsbytes computer news service says Sony's efforts to combine Web browsing capability with a TV signal will be a bit different from those of competitors such as Philips Consumer Electronics Co., Zenith Electronics and Gateway 2000, because Sony's set-top box will work with any TV. Sony spokesman Rick Clancy told Woods the new unit, called the Sony WebTV Internet Terminal model INT-W100, is a low-profile device that is designed to be unobtrusive on the TV, and to co-exist with cable TV boxes and even satellite systems. "The unit's 33.6 kilobits-per-second (Kbps) modem lets TV-Web surfers connect at the highest speed possible with an analog modem," Newsbytes writes. It also is especially designed to work with TVs that have Picture-In-Picture capability, "so that if a Web address pops up during a program or commercial, a viewer can access the site at about the same time as the Web site is mentioned," the wire service adds. WebTV's monthly charges have not yet been determined, because the company is waiting to see how other companies will determine their pricing. However, Clancy said charges are expected to be under $20 a month with no additional hourly charges. Apple Gets Netscape Support Apple Computer Inc.'s efforts to make the Internet part of its turnaround strategy has been boosted by Netscape Communications Corp., which has agreed to develop a new version of its Navigator browser that supports Apple's Cyberdog Internet search software. The new Netscape version also will support OpenDoc, software backed by Apple for manipulating documents, reports Samuel Perry of the Reuter News Service. Reporting from Mountain View, California, Perry says Apple will distribute Netscape Navigator for Cyberdog with its Mac operating system and plans to incorporate the browser in future versions of its Mac system for Apple computers. "Cyberdog allows Internet surfers to navigate by clicking on icons, for example, while Opendoc allows people to mix and match software combining text, graphics and video from different systems," Perry observes. Analysts told the wire service the move underscores Apple's commitment to developing Internet technologies and extends the relationship between the two companies at a time when they are both facing extreme competitive pressure. As reported, Apple has been sinking from weak sales and a major restructuring that forced it to take substantial charges and post a record $740 million loss in its second fiscal quarter. Reuters quotes Larry Tesler, an Apple veteran who was named to head the AppleNet division earlier this year, as saying the company now is focused on the Internet and his group was working to cut development times dramatically. Netscape Promises OS/2 Version A version of Netscape Communications Corp.'s popular Navigator Web browser for IBM's new OS/2 Warp 4 operating system software is to be developed. In Mountain View, Calif., the Reuter News Service quotes officials with Netscape and IBM as saying the version of Navigator, which will recognize speech, should be available for testing next month and for end users in 1996's fourth quarter. Reuters says IBM plans to launch OS/2 Warp 4, the latest version of its personal computer operating system, in September. "IBM and Netscape are natural partners, given both of our commitments to open standards like Java and HTML," said Bob Lisbonne, vice president of client product marketing at Netscape. IBM officials told the wire service the deal confirms the company's commitment to OS/2, which has long been an underdog of operating systems with a small share of the PC market, versus Microsoft's. Agents Simplify Net Searches Autonomy Inc. says it has developed a new technology that has th potential to change the way people use the World Wide Web and other online resources. The Palo Alto, California-based company says its intelligent agents can learn about a user's interest in a particular topic and then scour the Internet unattended, looking for relevant documents to bring back to the user. The Autonomy Web Researcher and the Autonomy Press Agent are available now as a free beta download from www.agentware.com. The final software is scheduled for an October release. Both applications run under Microsoft Windows or Windows 95 and can use direct or dial-up Internet access. Autonomy says its intelligent agents are made up of components: "legs" to move through resources such as Web sites, e-mail or corporate intranets, and a "brain" that can make intelligent decisions on the user's behalf. The company notes that the "brain," based on neural network research from Cambridge University, can figure out whether a document is relevant by looking at its key concepts and overall context and comparing them to the user's interests. "Finding answers on the Web is like trying to pinpoint a life raft on the Pacific," says Drew Harman, Autonomy's CEO. "A typical search engine uncovers thousands of Web sites, leaving users with the frustrating chore of sifting through pages of extraneous material in hopes of uncovering what they're looking for. Autonomy's intelligent agents eliminate this time-consuming task by doing all of this work for you." Autonomy, Inc., is the U.S. subsidiary of Autonomy Corporation PLC of Cambridge, England. FTC Ends Camelot Probe Camelot Corp. says the Federal Trade Commission has closed its investigation of the company and the marketing of DigiPhone, its Internet long-distance telephone software. According to the Dallas-based firm, the FTC has determined that no further action is warranted. In May, Camelot received a letter from the FTC saying that the agency wanted to confirm that the DigiPhone software could communicate over the Internet in full duplex. "We are pleased to have this investigation brought to closure with no action taken on behalf of the FTC," says Danny Wettreich, chairman and CEO of Camelot. Camelot also notes that Camelot Music Inc., which recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is not related to it in any way. School Hires Computer Intruder In New Jersey, Palisades Park's high school recently hired a 16-year-old computer whiz to intentionally break into the school's computers. Officials with the school system said students needed their transcripts to send off to colleges, but they were in the computer and no one who knew the password could be reached. So the school hired Matthew Fielder to break in. He charged them $25 an hour for the service. "They found this student who apparently was a whiz and apparently was able to go in and unlock the password, and then they got the transcripts out," School Board attorney Joseph R. Mariniello told The Associated Press. AP says a red-faced superintendent George Fasciano earlier this week was forced to explain to the school board the $875 bill for Fielder's services. The wire service says Fielder was recommended by Palisades Park's computer coordinator but does not attend the district's schools. School officials declined to release any further information about him. "The trouble started last month when some students needed transcripts," AP says. "The principal was on vacation and unreachable. The former vice principal also couldn't be reached. Another school employee with the codes had been incapacitated by a stroke, and members of the guidance department were either on vacation or not working over the summer because of a financial crunch." Karpov Trounces Chess World Russian world champion Anatoly Karpov has demonstrated that chess is not exactly a team sport, easily defeating hundreds of online chess players in his first open chess game on the Internet. Yesterday's online match went 65 moves and took 4 1/2 hours, with Karpov playing black and the online consensus playing white. As Associated Press writer Matti Huuhtanen notes, White moves came from suggestions sent in over the Internet, with the most frequently proposed move chosen by a computer. Says AP, "Internet users, who had seven minutes to propose an opening, chose the king's pawn (e2-e4). Karpov countered in two seconds with the Caro-Kann (c7-c6). As many as 300 players submitted suggestions to the worldwide computer network for the moves. The game ended when white would have had to sacrifice its queen to avoid an immediate checkmate threat." Following the digital meet, Karpov commented, "It was a good game. They are serious players." Huuhtanen report from Helsinki, Finland, where Karpov played his side of the game in a dimly lit hall at the Hotel Intercontinental. The game was reproduced on a large white screen, computer monitors and boards arranged on tables for chess buffs who paid $6.60 to sit in the same room as Karpov. The Internet address for the Karpov game is http://www.tele.fi/karpov on World Wide Web. For Immediate Release Corel Announces OEM Bundling Agreement with Compaq OTTAWA, Canada - August 28, 1996 - Corel Corporation, an award-winning developer and marketer of productivity applications, graphics and multimedia software, has announced a bundling agreement with Compaq Computer that will see the computer giant ship CorelDRAWT 5 on new Compaq Presario Home PCs worldwide. "We are extremely pleased to join Compaq in offering this value-packed bundle to the consumer," said Dr. Michael Cowpland, president and chief executive officer of Corel Corporation. "The inclusion of CorelDRAW 5 in Compaq's popular Presario Home PCs will provide increased power and productivity to the end user, while increasing mindshare for our graphics and productivity packages." Compaq launched its newest Presario family - which combines the latest technological advances with intuitive designs, arcade quality graphics, high- fidelity stereo sound, and the fastest Pentium processors - in mid-July. Shipping immediately, the special build includes the CorelDRAW 5 program in nine languages - US English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Japanese and Chinese - 100 clipart images and 10 fonts all on one CD. Corel To Bundle Netscape NavigatorT In Upcoming Products Popular Software To Ship With Corel's Office Solutions OTTAWA, Canada - August 27, 1996 - Corel Corporation today announced an agreement that will see Netscape NavigatorT Internet client software bundled into upcoming Corel products. Netscape Navigator will ship with English, German, Spanish and French versions of Corelr Office Professional 7, as well as future versions of CorelVIDEOT Remote. Other products and localizations will be determined at a later date. "Our goal at Corel is to provide customers with the best graphics and productivity applications on the market and we think the inclusion of the world's top-rated client software will help to do just that," said Dr. Michael Cowpland, president and chief executive officer of Corel Corporation. "With Netscape's leading-edge technology included in some of our major software packages, we will continue to offer our customers the superior tools with which to enhance their overall efficiency." "Netscape Navigator software offers excellent performance over a modem and offers complete Internet access including Web browsing, email, news groups and file transfer capabilities," said David Rothschild, director of marketing client applications at Netscape. "We are pleased to continue our commitment to provide the best of breed Internet solutions with inclusion in Corel's product offerings." Netscape Communications Corporation Netscape Communications Corporation is a leading provider of open software for linking people and information over enterprise networks and the Internet. The company offers a full line of clients, servers, development tools and commercial applications to create a complete platform for next-generation, live online applications. Traded on NASDAQ under the symbol "NSCP," Netscape Communications Corporation is based in Mountain View, California. Additional information on Netscape Communications Corporation is available on the Internet at http://home.netscape.com, by sending email to info@netscape.com or by calling 415-937-2555 (corporate customers) or 415-937-3777 (individuals). Corel Corporation Incorporated in 1985, Corel Corporation is recognized internationally as an award-winning developer and marketer of productivity applications, graphics and multimedia software. Corel's product line includes CorelDRAWT, the Corelr WordPerfectr Suite, Corelr Office Professional, CorelVIDEOT and over 30 multimedia software titles. Corel's products run on most operating systems, including: Windows, Macintosh, UNIX, MS-DOS and OS/2 and are consistently rated among the strongest in the industry. The company ships its products in over 17 languages through a network of more than 160 distributors in 70 countries worldwide. Corel is traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange (symbol: COS) and the NASDAQ - National Market System (symbol: COSFF). For more information visit Corel's home page on the Internet at http://www.corel.com. For more information on Corel's Corporate Licensing Programs, please contact Corel Customer Service at 1-800-772-6735 or 613-728-3733. Corel and WordPerfect are registered trademarks and CorelDRAW and CorelVIDEO are trademarks of Corel Corporation or Corel Corporation Limited. Netscape, Netscape Communications, the Netscape Communications Corporate logo, Netscape Navigator and Netscape Navigator Personal Edition are trademarks of Netscape Communications Corporation. All product and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Thumbs Plus 3.0d STR Infofile Announcing.... Thumbs+Plus(tm) version 3.0d! Cerious Software, Inc. is pleased to announce the availability of ThumbsPlus version 3.0d. Already in use by professionals worldwide, ThumbsPlus is fast becoming the preferred product for organizing, viewing and editing graphic files. Supporting over 35 (and counting) file formats internally, with many more formats that can be configured or accessed via OLE, ThumbsPlus is the product of choice in its class by people who need quick, intuitive access to their graphics. Demanding people, like those at Intel, Microsoft, HP, Rockwell International, ATI Technologies, the Army, Air Force and Navy, sing high praises for Thumbs+Plus. You can even find it at NASA, where ThumbsPlus accompanies the astronauts on every Space Shuttle flight! This new, improved ThumbsPlus is a full 32-bit application for Windows 95, Windows NT and Windows 3.1. Microsoft Win32s version 1.3 is required for operation on Windows/WfWg 3.1/3.11. Here is a partial list of the new features added in version 3: · ThumbsPlus version 3.0 is a 32-bit application for Windows 95, NT and 3.1/3.11 (using Win32s). · Several new file types are supported: · PNG: CompuServe PiNG format (read) · UUE: uuencoded files (read and decode) · FIF: Fractal images (Iterated Systems) · KIZ: Kodak Postcard · STX, ST5, ST6, ST7, ST8: Santa Barbara Instruments Group (SBIG) · Improvements handling several file types: · GIF: transparency is supported (read and write) · GIF: animated GIFs can be displayed · JPEG: progressive mode is supported (read and write). · PSD: Photoshop version 3 files are supported. · TIFF: JPEG and ZIP compression are supported · TIFF: Multi-page TIFF file support · RAS: Bi-level SUN Raster files may now be read. · AVI: Now supported in the shareware version. · MOV: Now supported in the shareware version. · This version incorporates a new database format, with: · Keyword assignment and searching. · Automatic keyword assignment based on file type, file name, and file color characteristics. · Long file name support (except on Windows 3.1/3.11). · Selection of thumbnail size and color depth (32 gray levels, 236-color palette, or 15-bit high color). · Improved disk volume recognition (especially for network and CDROM drives), and assignment of volume aliases. · File annotations (comments in the database). · ThumbsPlus can now read image files larger than 16Mb (except on Windows 3.1/3.11). · Improved display speed and memory usage for large files. For some file types, ThumbsPlus will also view while loading a file. · Contact sheets (showing parts or all of a thumbnail catalog in a graphic file) with many configuration options. · Color selection for directory list folders and various other user interface elements. · Toolbar improvements: · Customizable main window toolbar · View window toolbar (also customizable) · Tool tips for buttons on toolbars · View window status line. · Addition of right-button menus (context menus). · Use of property sheets (tabbed dialog boxes) to simplify adaptation of the program to your needs. · Improved algorithms and 32-bit code result in faster image manipulation and conversion. · You may now delete directories and entire directory trees. · ThumbsPlus can use the Windows 95 Recycle Bin. When you register, you'll receive version 3.0-R, which also has: · PFB: Adobe Type 1 fonts · DXF: AutoCAD Exchange format · MPG: MPEG-1 video (if you have appropriate MCI drivers) · 32-bit TWAIN scanner support. · Shows ZIP files as directories, which can be browsed, and the files in the archive may be treated as regular files. Also, network licensees get: · Network user program defaults can be set up in a THUMBS.DEF file in the network directory with ThumbsPlus. · ThumbsPlus may be installed on and run from a network drive, and the database may be shared on a network. (Single-user licenses will not operate on a network). · Network database defaults can be set up in a THUMBS.TDD file in the directory with the database. For more information, please contact: Cerious Software, Inc. http://www.cerious.com 1515 Mockingbird Ln. Suite 910 ftp://ftp.cerious.com Charlotte, NC 28209 USA CompuServe: 76352,142 Voice: 704-529-0200 sales@cerious.com Fax: 704-529-0497 support@cerious.com AOL: Cerious2 To download ThumbsPlus version 3.0d-S: World wide web: http://www.cerious.com Internet ftp: ftp://ftp.cerious.com/pub/cerious CompuServe: GO GRAPHSUP, Library 3/Graphic Viewers GO WINSHARE, Windows Shareware GO WINUSER, Windows User Group AOL: PC Graphic Arts forum (keyword PCG) STReport's "Partners in Progress" Advertising Program The facts are in... STReport International Online Magazine reaches more users per week than any other weekly resource available today. Take full advantage of this spectacular reach. Explore the superb possibilities of advertising in STReport! Its very economical and smart business. In addition, STReport offers a strong window of opportunity to your company of reaching potential users on major online services and networks, the Internet, the WEB and more than 200,000 private BBS's worldwide. This is truly an exceptional opportunity to maximize your company's recognition factor globally. (STReport is pronounced: "ES TEE Report") STR Publishing's Economical "Partners in Progress" Plans! Take Action! "Discover the REAL Advantage" of STR's EXCEPTIONAL AND HIGHLY ECONOMICAL "Partners in Progress" Program.. Call Today! STR Publishing, Inc. (STR, STReport, CPU Report); · maintains a commitment to utilizing the power of the Internet and Web to keep computer users, worldwide, both private and commercial, informed of new trends in equipment, upgrade reports and future planning. · offers highly informative Hardware and Software Reviews, Press Releases, hands-on stories, user experiences and show reports. · presents the NEWS about new hardware, new software and how-to publications within HOURS of its being made public. · is dedicated to keeping the users informed of what your company has to offer at incredibly, almost the moment its offered! 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And, at the same time, helping to keep the very best Independent Online Magazine available each and every week for many years to come. Special Notice!! STR Infofile File format Requirements for Articles File Format for STReport All articles submitted to STReport for publication must be sent in the following format. Please use the format requested. Any files received that do not conform will not be used. The article must be in an importable word processor format for Word 7.0.. The margins are .05" left and 1.0" Monospaced fonts are not to be used. Please use proportional fonting only and at eleven points. · No Indenting on any paragraphs!! · No Indenting of any lines or "special gimmickery" · No underlining! · Columns shall be achieved through the use of tabs only. 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However, if the ASCII readership remains as high, rest assured. ASCII will stay. Right now, since STReport is offered on a number of closed major corporate networks as "required" Monday Morning reading.. Our ascii readers have nothing to worry themselves about. Many grateful thanks in advance for your enthusiastic co-operation and input. Ralph F. Mariano, Editor STReport International Online Magazine EDUPAGE STR Focus Keeping the users informed Edupage Contents NSF Cuts Funding For Private Sector Internetworking Silicon Alley Gets Attention From Investors Netscape Targets Consumer Devices News Flash - You've Got E-Mail Waiting See You In September, Merlin Flaw Detected In Explorer 3.0 The Ayes Have It On Net Balloting Gov't Tab For Century Date Change Could Reach $30 Billion Computer Interface Contributes To Plane Crash Intel Targets New Technology Development New Plan Proposed For Global Domain Registries Educators Want More Learning, Less Fun From Ed Software HP Adopts Wintel Standard For Workstations Browser Battles, Cont. MCI And Nextwave To Provide Wireless Services At&T Wants To Reach Out And Touch You On The Web Moonlighting On The Net WorldCom Buys MFS Blind Affected By Software Flaws Scientists Told To Avoid Tech-Talk NC Vs. PC Karpov Wins Online Chess March CompuServe Spinoff Delayed Apple Bundles Microsoft Suite For Europe, Considers Be Buyout Navigator Sets Sail On OS/2 NBA Sues AOL Computer System Boosts Ford Productivity IBM To Sell Its Network Chips Sony Delays DVD Rollout The One Search BellSouth To Offer Internet Access NSF CUTS FUNDING FOR PRIVATE SECTOR INTERNETWORKING The National Science Foundation, which has been managing the NSFNET Internet backbone since 1985, says it will no longer support the Internet networking and routing services that the private sector provides for the nation's research and education community. The move will allow NSF to concentrate on building the next generation of the Internet: "The NSF-funded operations of NAPs (network access points) and RAs (routing arbiters) can now shift to the commercial marketplace as their researchers focus on connections and routing for advanced networking," says Mark Luker, NSFNET program director. "Both actions help NSF to move to the next stage, a stronger focus on the high- performance Internet of the future needed to support today's advanced research." (BNA Daily Report for Executives 20 Aug 96 A7) SILICON ALLEY GETS ATTENTION FROM INVESTORS "Silicon Alley" -- the New York-area companies focused on the Internet and new media -- has the attention of a new investment fund called Flatiron Partners, in which the Softbank Corporation of Japan and the venture capital arm of Chase Manhattan Bank each will invest $25 million. Silicon Alley is centered around the Manhattan's Soho and Flatiron districts. (New York Times 23 Aug 96 C1) NETSCAPE TARGETS CONSUMER DEVICES Netscape Communications will announce on Monday its plans to incorporate its Navigator technology into a wide range of consumer products, including pagers, video games, cell phones and cable TV set-top boxes. "The strategy is to have Navigator running everywhere," says co-founder Marc Andreessen. The company has already formed a top-secret subsidiary, staffed with 30 to 50 people, to develop operating systems for those devices. (Interactive Age Digital 23 Aug 96) NEWS FLASH - YOU'VE GOT E-MAIL WAITING Office workers using local area networks usually hear a tone or see a little moving icon, signaling they've received new e-mail in their in-box, but people who work out of their home aren't so lucky. They generally have to go through the process of logging onto their Internet service to check if any new mail has arrived. Ex Machina has a better idea -- next month it will debut its AirMedia Live service, which will broadcast news alerts to small receivers plugged into your PC, causing an icon to pop up on your screen. The company plans to give away basic services, and will charge about $150 per receiver plus an extra $5 a month for a second tier of features. (Business Week 26 Aug 96 p53) SEE YOU IN SEPTEMBER, MERLIN IBM is moving aggressively to shorten future product development cycles to three months or less, and is planning to release OS/2 Version 4.0, code- named Merlin, by the end of September, says the general manager of IBM's personal software products unit. In addition to Merlin, the company has set the same deadline for shipping the symmetric multiprocessing extensions for OS/2 Warp Server. IBM will then update the system incrementally, adding features such as Internet firewall support and development tools for Java, and configuring OS/2 to work with Lotus's upcoming Internet release of Notes, code-named Domino. (Information Week 12 Aug 96 p30) FLAW DETECTED IN EXPLORER 3.0 Computer scientists at Princeton University identified a flaw in Microsoft's Internet Explorer 3.0 that could allow someone to send a destructive command to a Windows-based computer connected to a Web page. A Microsoft vice president describes the flaw as "not a big deal" but says a software patch is being developed quickly to rectify the problem. (New York Times 23 Aug 96 C16) Editor Note: As of this printing, the patch is available on a widespread basis. THE AYES HAVE IT ON NET BALLOTING A recent AT&T poll of 1,000 people found more than 65% of respondents were interested in using the Internet to research where candidates stand on certain issues. Also, nearly half indicated they'd rather vote electronically than in person. About 25% of those polled said they have access to the Internet and of those, 20% plan to follow the 1996 presidential election on the Net. (Investor's Business Daily 26 Aug 96 A6) GOV'T TAB FOR CENTURY DATE CHANGE COULD REACH $30 BILLION The Year 2000 Interagency Committee is developing a database to help federal agencies locate hardware and software to fix the "year 2000 problem," spread throughout many different government computer systems. Each agency will be responsible for identifying, documenting and prioritizing the lines of computer code that will need to be changed, with estimates of such changes running anywhere from $1 to $8 per line of code. The Year 2000 Home Page <http://www.itpolicy.gsa.gov > includes information on best practices with regard to code inventory and pilot projects. A best practices conference is planned for next March. (BNA Daily Report for Executives 22 Aug 96 A8) COMPUTER INTERFACE CONTRIBUTES TO PLANE CRASH The crash of a Cali-bound American Airlines jet last December in Colombia, S.A., occurred because the plane's captain entered an incomplete command into the onboard computer -- and the default action taken by the software pointed the plane in the wrong direction. The beacons at the Cali and Bogota airports both begin with the letter R, which is the only character the pilot typed; instead of proceeding toward Cali, the plane turned in the opposite direction (toward Bogata) and crashed into a mountain. (New York Times 24 Aug 96 p7) INTEL TARGETS NEW TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT Intel Corp., which has spent years improving on its basic chip design, has decided that approach just won't cut it anymore. "Now we're at the head of the class, and there's nothing left to copy," says the company's chief operating officer. In response, Intel is shifting its focus, assembling a team of top-notch scientists and engineers to do long-term, original research on computer chip design. The group, called Microcomputer Labs, will delve into projects ranging from 3-D graphics to advanced software applications, working with researchers at top universities, including Stanford, MIT, the University of California at Berkeley and the University of North Carolina. "Our mission is to keep the technology treadmill going," says the engineer heading up the new effort, whose specialty is compiler technology. "We'll have to look at the future applications for computers and how to create computer architectures that can run them." (Wall Street Journal 26 Aug 96 B4) NEW PLAN PROPOSED FOR GLOBAL DOMAIN REGISTRIES The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), the organization charged with assigning and coordinating Internet protocol parameters, is calling for the creation of new registries located around the world to administer up to 150 new international top-level domains. Currently, Network Solutions Inc., under contract to the National Science Foundation, administers domain names in the .com, .org, .edu, .net and .gov top-level domains. The IANA's new plan will open the domain registry business up to competition, says the plan's author. Up to 50 new registries could be in service by the end of January 1997. (BNA Daily Report for Executives 26 Aug 96 A9) EDUCATORS WANT MORE LEARNING, LESS FUN FROM ED SOFTWARE Educational software is useful in the classroom, but "the business of education is not entertainment, and teachers are keenly aware of this," says a research analyst at Simba Information Inc. "In schools - where educators take their job descriptions extremely seriously - the novelty of bells-and- whistles multimedia is wearing off rapidly." Educational software sales, much of it purchased by parents for their children's use at home, are booming, with numbers up 56% from last year, says the Software Publishers Association. And much of the rise is attributable to already established products such as Davidson & Associate's Math Blaster, which has enjoyed 12 years of popularity. "You would never be able to find an entertainment title like that," says a Davidson VP, noting that educational products enjoy a longevity unheard of in the video game industry. Entertainment software sales grew by only 6% last year, according to the SPA. (Investor's Business Daily 27 August 96 A8) HP ADOPTS WINTEL STANDARD FOR WORKSTATIONS Hewlett-Packard's new line of workstation computers will support the Wintel standard made popular by PCs running Microsoft Windows software on Intel chips. This latest move means that HP will be marketing two separate lines of workstations - one based on Wintel, and one supporting the traditional Unix standard. Last May, HP introduced a family of relatively low-cost servers based on the Wintel standard, a move away from its earlier higher- priced systems that used in-house HP technology. (Wall Street Journal 26 Aug 96 B6) BROWSER BATTLES, CONT. Microsoft has responded to Netscape's allegations that it engages in unfair, anticompetitive business practices in promoting use of its Internet Explorer browser software. In a statement issued Aug. 22, Microsoft refuted Netscape's contentions, point by point, summing up its arguments by saying that Netscape's "suggestion that Microsoft is somehow violating the antitrust laws" by incorporating "new features and functionality (such as Internet Explorer and Internet Information Server) ... is preposterous." Instead, it maintains that "Microsoft's progress is the result of hard work, product improvement, mutually beneficial partnerships and creative marketing." (BNA Daily Report for Executives 26 Aug 96 A9) MCI AND NEXTWAVE TO PROVIDE WIRELESS SERVICES MCI Communications and Nextwave Telecom have joined forces to provide wireless services in most of the nation's largest cities by mid-1997. MCI might also resell Nextwave's personal communications services (PCS) as an alternative to regular telephone services. (New York Times 27 Aug 96 C3) AT&T WANTS TO REACH OUT AND TOUCH YOU ON THE WEB AT&T's "instant Answers" technology enables World Wide Web users to request that the company sponsoring the Web site they're browsing give them a call, by clicking on an icon labeled "Call me now." The move, which is tied to an AT&T effort to boost its 800-number business, will allow a sales agent on the Web to "push" any additional information requested directly over the Web to the customer. Meanwhile, AT&T WorldNet subscribers now can link up to America Online at a 20% discount off regular AOL rates. (Wall Street Journal 27 Aug 96 A6) MOONLIGHTING ON THE NET Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have concluded that idle PCs could be leased out by their owners to remote users who might have occasional need for a computer, but not want to buy one. "It seems silly to invest lots of money to buy more computing power when all you have to do is utilize what's already out there," says one researcher, who cites the example of an accountant who has a one-time need to use some graphics design capability. Technology already can support remote control of PCs over the Internet, and the researchers say all that's needed is some sort of system for leasing the machines and their software, while keeping the computer owner's files private and secure. (Investor's Business Daily 26 Aug 96 A6) WORLDCOM BUYS MFS WorldCom, the nation's fourth-largest long distance phone service provider, is buying MFS Communications, the leading provider of alternative local phone services to business customers; the move will create the country's first fully integrated local and long-distance telephone company since the Bell System was broken up in 1984. (New York Times 27 Aug 96 C1) BLIND AFFECTED BY SOFTWARE FLAWS At the World Blind Union international assembly, lawyer and activist David Lepofsky charged that developers fail to make software accessible to those with vision impairments and said that point-and-click technology is useless to those with vision impairments. (Toronto Globe & Mail 27 Aug 96 A6) SCIENTISTS TOLD TO AVOID TECH-TALK A directive from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, Canada's largest funding agency, tells scientists to explain their projects in everyday language rather than technical jargon. The directive responds to a member of Parliament's attacks on "frivolous research," including the paternity of squirrels, the energetics of hummingbirds, "information processing among pigeons," and "cubitus interruptus locus in Drosophilia." (Toronto Globe & Mail 27 Aug 96 A1) NC VS. PC Farzad Dibachi, whose company, Diba Inc. specializes in developing inexpensive information appliances, says that network computers will provide everything you need to access information, making PCs unnecessary for many day-to-day tasks: "PCs won't go away. There will be a differentiation between devices for creating and massaging data, and ones for accessing information. If you don't need to create or massage information, you don't need a PC." (Information Week 19 Aug 96 p12) KARPOV WINS ONLINE CHESS MARCH In an open chess game on the Internet, Russian grandmaster Anatoly Karpov defeated several hundred opponents in a game that lasted 65 moves and four and a half hours. For each move, contestants had seven minutes to indicate their response, and a computer calculated the most frequently suggested response. < http://www.tele.fi/karpov/gameworl.htm > (New York Times 27 Aug 96 B9) COMPUSERVE SPINOFF DELAYED H&R Block is delaying the spinoff of its remaining 80% stake in CompuServe after reviewing the commercial access provider's weakened state following recent quarterly losses and an accelerating defection of subscribers to America Online or the Internet. Analysts say CompuServe would be more attractive to investors if it were restructured to separate its online services business from its other business, which is focused on providing data networking services to corporate and other larger customers. (New York Times 29 Aug 96 C2) APPLE BUNDLES MICROSOFT SUITE FOR EUROPE, CONSIDERS BE BUYOUT Apple Computer and Microsoft Corp. have formed a partnership to market Apple's Power Macintosh 7600 and 8200 machines equipped with Microsoft's Office suite software. "We have to grow together in an industry which is maturing," says Apple Europe's VP of sales. (Investor's Business Daily 29 Aug 96 A5) Meanwhile, Apple is negotiating the possible purchase of Be Inc., an innovative desktop computer manufacturer headed by former Apple research director Jean-Louis Gassee. The Be system is considered by experts to be a "boutique" item -- a cutting-edge but robust and reliable system built to handle advanced multimedia and graphics functions. (Wall Street Journal 29 Aug 96 B3) NAVIGATOR SETS SAIL ON OS/2 A new version of Netscape's Navigator software for browsing the World Wide Web will run on IBM's OS/2 operating system, which now has built-in speech- recognition capabilities that will allow users to call up sites on the Internet with voice commands. (New York Times 29 Aug 96 C6) NBA SUES AOL The National Basketball Association has sued America Online over its use of game scores and statistics from NBA games in progress. The lawsuit, which also names Stats Inc. as a co-defendant, contends that AOL supplied real- time, play-by-play information without the league's permission. The legal issue at stake is whether game information constitutes intellectual property owned by the sports league involved. Broadcast rights to that information are sold for hundreds of millions of dollars, but online providers maintain such information constitutes news, which is free to disseminate. (Wall Street Journal 29 Aug 96 B3) COMPUTER SYSTEM BOOSTS FORD PRODUCTIVITY Ford Motor Co. says it's got enough computer processing power that if it combined all its systems, it could calculate the tax returns of every U.S. citizen within 30 minutes. "That's something no other commercial company in the world can say," says Ford's manager for advanced computer-aided engineering. The company's computer systems have enabled it to cut the cost of its steering columns by $7 per vehicle, and has reduced the time it takes to design and build them from 14 months to two months. Microprocessing power is cutting down on the overall design time, and has lowered crash tests costs by lowering the time it takes to calculate results. (Investor's Business Daily 29 Aug 96 A6) IBM TO SELL ITS NETWORK CHIPS IBM has begun marketing to outside customers the chips it developed for distributing sound, data, and video over networks and for supporting both asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) and token ring technologies. (New York Times 29 Aug 96 C16) SONY DELAYS DVD ROLLOUT Sony Corp. will not introduce its digital video disc players until next spring, citing a lack of software for the new machines. DVDs, which eventually will replace CDs and videotape, are capable of storing seven to 14 times as much information as those media. Disputes over copyright protection have been blamed for the software delays. "I always doubted whether bringing it out before Christmas was that crucial," says an analyst at Goldman Sachs. "It's going to take five years for it to grow into a major product." (Investor's Business Daily 29 Aug 96 A5) THE ONE SEARCH Inference Find's parallel search engine simultaneously searches all the major search engines, including Yahoo!, Lycos and InfoSeek, and eliminates the duplicate findings, clustering the information into content type and organizing it according to user preferences. Check out <http://www.inference.com/ > and click on InFind." (Information Week 19 Aug 96 p12) BELLSOUTH TO OFFER INTERNET ACCESS BellSouth will join several of its RBOC siblings in offering Internet access to business and residential customers in its service region. The new BellSouth.net service is immediately available in Atlanta and New Orleans, and will be expanded to eight other regions in October. The company will charge $19.95 a month for unlimited usage, or $9.95 for 10 hours with each additional hour costing $1. (Wall Street Journal 28 Aug 96 B3) Edupage is written by John Gehl (gehl@educom.edu) & Suzanne Douglas (douglas@educom.edu). Voice: 404-371-1853, Fax: 404-371-8057. Technical support is provided by the Office of Information Technology, University of North Carolina. EDUPAGE is what you've just finished reading. To subscribe to Edupage: send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu and in the body of the message type: subscribe edupage Marvin Minsky (assuming that your name is Marvin Minsky; if it's not, substitute your own name). ... To cancel, send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu and in the body of the message type: unsubscribe edupage... Subscription problems: educom@educom.unc.edu. EDUCOM REVIEW is our bimonthly print magazine on learning, communications, and information technology. Subscriptions are $18 a year in the U.S.; send mail to offer@educom.edu. When you do, we'll ring a little bell, because we'll be so happy! Choice of bell is yours: a small dome with a button, like the one on the counter at the dry cleaners with the sign "Ring bell for service"; or a small hand bell; or a cathedral bell; or a door bell; or a chime; or a glockenspiel. Your choice. But ring it! EDUCOM UPDATE is our twice-a-month electronic summary of organizational news and events. To subscribe to the Update: send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu and in the body of the message type: subscribe update John McCarthy (assuming that your name is John McCarthy; if it's not, substitute your own name). INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE The CAUSE organization's annual conference on information technology in higher education is scheduled for the end of this month in New Orleans. The conference will bring together administrators, academicians and other managers of information resources. For full conference information check out <http://cause-www.colorado.edu > or send e-mail to conf@cause.colorado.edu. ARCHIVES & TRANSLATIONS. For archive copies of Edupage or Update, ftp or gopher to educom.edu or see URL: < http://www.educom.edu/>. For the French edition of Edupage, send mail to edupage-fr@ijs.com with the subject "subscribe"; or see < http://www.ijs.com >. For the Hebrew edition, send mail to listserv@kinetica.co.il containing : SUBSCRIBE Leketnet-Word6 <name> or see < http://www.kinetica.co.il/ newsletters/leketnet/ >. For the Hungarian edition, send mail to: send mail to subs.edupage@hungary.com. An Italian edition is available on Agora' Telematica; connection and/or free subscription via BT-Tymnet and Sprint (login: <agora) or via telnet <agora.stm.it; mail: <b.parrella@agora.stm.it for info. For the Portuguese edition, contact edunews@nc-rj.rnp.br with the message SUB EDUPAGE-P Seu Primeiro Nome Seu Sobrenome. For the Spanish edition, send mail edunews@nc- rj.rnp.br with the message SUB EDUPAGE-E Su Primer Nombre, Su Apellido. Educom -- Transforming Education Through Information Technology Memory Lane Last Week's picture was of John Townsend of Taligent. He worked on the old Atari TOS for the Motorola 68000 CPU; 16 bit Atari Platform and now is with Taligent working on the OS for the Power PC. He was correctly identified by Elizabeth Wilder of Virginia. · Each week, we'll present a different new photo for our readers to identify. · Tell us who or what is in the photo.. then send us your answer to; photo@streport.com · The first correct entry will be published in the following week's issue along with the new photo to be identified. Computer Gaming Section STReport Feature EDITOR'S NOTES - August 29, 1996 IT'S FINALLY OVER.... Well, I've been talking about this for some time now and it's finally over. My life as a network IS consultant is now done. My main focus now is my writing (like this column for STReport) and my internet publishing. My final thoughts of my consulting work is in an article that appears next week. It goes into a lot of detail, some of which will sound like a scene from a Dilbert cartoon only in real life. Trust me on this one, because it's very interesting what I saw in different work places. NINTENDO 64 PRE-ORDERS For the last 3 weeks, our local Toys R Us and Babbage's have been allocated pre-paid order forms for the new Nintendo 64 game system. The system will go on sale September 30th to those who are on the waiting list. A pre-paid form requires some money down to "hold your place in line." Then when the units go on sale, you'll need to come up with the rest of the money to pay for the system in full. Will it work? Who knows, but I think the demand vs. the available number of shipping units this year (I've heard it's around 600,000 for the entire US) is going to leave a lot of people "Nintendo-less" this year. I think the coverage that all of the major game magazines have given to the Nintendo 64 will hurt Nintendo's reputation at the beginning. While there will be a good amount of people that will get Nintendo 64 game systems before the holiday season, the demand will simply be more than what's available. Nintendo has hinted they were caught off guard on this one. They claim that sometime during the first half of 1997, they will make sure supply and demand are equal. Only time will tell this story. Sony had some small distribution problems, and there was a lot of hype. And retailers made people put their names on a waiting list to get the first PlayStations. You can be sure that I'll do what I can to cover this story. In fact, I am hoping to interview some people that bought Nintendo 64s to get their reaction just a day or two after they've brought the system home and had just a small bit of time with the system, compared to how much time they read, lost sleep and waiting for the system to become available. GAME REVIEWS I've got at least 5 game reviews that I am putting the final bits and pieces on as I write this. I wanted to get them all in this issue, but that was not possible. All of the game reviews are PlayStation games that I've received over the last 3 months. I can tell you that Assault Rigs and Wipeout are included. Stay tuned. As always, if there are any questions or comments or suggestions, feel free to e-mail me at 75300.1770@compuserve.com. Marty [Personal Info on Marty: owner of Perfection Applied, offering publishing and freelancing services. Our web site is currently under development, as is our new World Wide Web publication, Megafone Expressus. Stay tuned for web site updates. Also co-owner of InfoStream, publishers of printed and on-line periodicals. Check us out at http://www.info-stream.com ] Atari User Support Jaguar/Computer Section Dana Jacobson, Editor From the Atari Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!" I hate the first week back to work after an enjoyable and restful vacation! I've said it before and I'll likely say it again: There ought to be a law...! What a hectic week trying to get back into the swing of things. And to make it worse, Labor Day is just around the corner! Well, we must try to move ahead anyway. Articles are starting to come in from various people who have offered to relate their knowledge and experiences; I expect more to follow in the weeks to come. The response has been heartening, but not unexpected from an Atari userbase made up of a very unique group of people. The first article that appears is a hands-on experience with the Syquest EZ135 removable drive, from Mike Harvey. In the meantime, we're starting to get back into the swing of things with fewer distractions (like nice summer weather!). The ongoing plans that we've been working on, but have been delayed for various reasons, have been resumed. We're looking forward to the weeks to come. Until next time... CURRENT NOTES MAGAZINE Volume 16 #4 is out and about! Subscribers; check your mailboxes!! In This Issue: MiNT/MultiTOS series HARD DISK SENTRY review - Steve Burris Art/Drawing program series Photoline review - David Barkin PIMs series (InTouch) FTP, TELECOMM - Eric March FREEDOM review alt.info.everything - Dan D. PAGESTREAM review - Dave Lee RAINBOW II review - Lianne Reitter iPRN review - Jeff Wisniewski RAM & S.N.O.T. - Lorant (MIDI) Oswald CRAWLY CRYPT ARCHIVE CD review Dan's Best Essential Web Sites Hints, Tips, and Great Support Howard Carson, Managing Editor Robert Boardman, Publisher VISIT OUR WEB PAGES AT: E-mail: hcarson@io.org http://www.io.org/~hcarson/cnpage.htm GREAT INFO, GREAT LINKS! or; redfrog@io.org CURRENT NOTES is in its 16th great year. It's available by subscription or from your dealer! Europe and the UK e-mail Danny Bhabuta at: dbhabuta@cix.compulink.co.uk Syquest 135 STR Review Syquest EZ-135 Review by Mike Harvey This is a review of my recently purchased Syquest EZ-135 removable hard drive which recently had a price reduction from about $200 to about $120-$130 depending upon the distributer. This small and extremely quiet drive is one which I choose to purchase to replace one of my previously purchased but destroyed 44 Meg Syquest drives. The 44 meg drive was destroyed by a defective cartridge that I had purchased used from a Macintosh user. Rather than spend the additional bucks to purchase a replacement drive, which at about $25.00 for just the drive mech isn't that bad. Putting that money toward the Syquest EZ-135 drive was a much better choice, I felt. The media cost is much less than that of the 44 meg cartridges and gets 3 times the storage space on a single cartridge. Drive Model Syquest 44 Syquest EZ135 Drive Capacity 44 Megs 135 Megs Cartridge Cost $39 to $44.00 $19 to $22.95 Cost per Meg .88 to $1.00 .14 to .17 Cents While the EZ-135 drive has much competition from the IO-Mega ZIP drives, I prefer the much faster EZ-135 even if it does get discontinued later this year. Cartridges will continue to be made as long as a demand for them remains in the market; just like they still make the 44 meg cartridges even though the drive itself has long since been replaced by newer, faster and high capacity ones. The drive I purchased was from a special offer I received on the Internet from Toad Computers. A company which over the years I've placed many orders with. I've always had good dealings with David and Jennifer Troy, and the growing gang at Toad. I got the EZ-135 SCSI drive, a SCSI cable, power supply, SCSI terminator Block, One 135 meg cartridge, a coupon for a second cartridge (the coupon for a second cartridge expires 31Jul96 but required being sent in with $5.00 S&H and the warranty card and proof of purchase) shipped for only $129.95 on m credit card. While this may sound expensive to some, I've been using Atari computers since back in the days of the Atari 800XL and at that time, a single sided floppy drive cost substantially more than this drive and had about 1/100th of the storage capacity and much slower speed of course. The drive is small, and so extremely quiet, I can vouch for it and actually say it's quieter than any of my other hard drives in any of my Systems. 1) I have a Don Thomas Internet Special TT-030 machine, 245 meg drive 2) Mega4 ST I've owned for many years now with a 540 meg drive 3) 486DX4/100 machine currently equipped with just a Future Domain 8 bit SCSI card for SCSI drives and internal 420 meg IDE drive. I purchased this drive as a good backup media and extra storage capacity for my PC clone, and which can also be used for the same thing easily on either the TT or Mega ST. This drive works so easily on any of the above machines. I did have to purchase ICD Pro Utilities when I replaced the internal 50 meg drive on the TT anyhow, but it works great for the Syquest also. Data Transfer rate on the Atari's ran around 1500 @ 22 ms access. While advertised access time is at 13.5 MS, Rate HD rates it slower. But, believe me, it's plenty fast enough. If it wasn't for the vast amount of PD/Shareware that I've collected for the ST in addition to a number of years of on-line magazines like STReport, Genie On-Line and others, I would even recommend this drive to a new Atari user as their single HD. Simply make up a cartridge for your various needs and then you don't have to move from this partition to that partition, just swap out cartridges. I.E Place your clip art and DTP stuff (Pagestream or Calamus) on one cartridge. Another for modem stuff, I still enjoy using the original Flash even though I've purchased many other packages over the years. The Original Flash with it's DO file capabilities and XYZ.TTP utility works great still on my Mega ST4. If you keep other programs like LDW Power and GDOS based prgs. Place them all on the same cartridge and then when it boots, you get GDOS or Speedo GDOS whichever you use. Overall, for less than $200.00, I now have extra storage space which is usable on a number of different computers, and to add more, simply purchase another $19-22 cartridge, so it's cheap enough media. Safer than having a single large hard drive just in case your FAT tables get corrupted or you simply have a drive die. (I once lost 215 megs when a previous hard drive failed to ever boot again.) While there are companies that would for a large sum of $, recoverthe data, I just accepted the lost and got reminded about the importance of backing up. With a 540 meg drive, it's just too many 720 K floppies to really mess with. So, as you can see, a EZ-135 fits right in perfectly. Since much of the lost data was from BBS's that have long since been taken down, I can't just download it again either. In addition to the idea that much of it was downloaded back in the 2400 baud days calling long distance to these BBS's. Eventually, I continue to hope to getting around to getting a CD-ROM made of all my valuable programs for super safe file storage and setting up BBS Express or Ratsoft BBS program and running a Atari Specific DTP and other files BBS. I already have about 4 Atari specific CD-ROM's now, which has helped me reduce the number of files I must maintain on the Mega hard drive. Seems I keep getting about to the point of about to get an extra phone line and then, get a new set of orders where I serve with the U.S. Navy. This last weekend, I ran into a officer whom I worked for some year ago and we discussed a future job, just he had a immediate opening and asked me to take it. It's for setting up a new joint service command to do all scheduling of all the services airlift service to better utilize the available aircraft & crews and save tax dollars. Sure will miss this great San Diego, CA weather where I'm currently stationed, but the new job would look great for advancement possibilities in the future in addition to allowing both wife and myself to live closer to our families. Till Later. Keep on Using your Atari and remember it's only obsolete when it can no longer work and meet your needs. Sure, the clone is nice for my INTERNET access, but even the 12 megs of memory it has runs out all to quick under Windows 3.11 I still enjoy my Atari Mega and all it can do it in ONLY 4 Megs and the TT I just got this spring for it's speed at doing things. If you have any questions. My current INTERNET E-mail address is: m.harvey@ix.netcom.com Mike Harvey Nostalgia Time STR Feature Newsbytes NewsReel - 12 Years Ago This Week MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1996 AUG 28 (Newsbytes) -- By Nick Gorski. Twelve years ago this week these Newsbytes stories were filed: Atari Assaults Amiga; Home Sweet Home; Coleco On Campus; along with This & That. These stories were taken from the extensive archives at the Newsbytes Website at http://www.newsbytes.com Atari Assaults Amiga "He's going to have a fit." That's what one Commodore source said last week regarding Jack Tramiel's expected reaction to Commodore's purchase of Amiga. That fit took the form of a $100 million lawsuit last week, not against Commodore, but against Amiga Corp. Tramiel's Atari charges that Amiga broke a contract with Atari to develop three new semiconductors, chips which "represent a significant technological advance for use in computers," according to court papers filed in Santa Clara, California. Atari supposedly paid half a million to Amiga in March to develop the chips. Amiga refunded the money to Atari just days before Amiga was sold to Commodore. The three chips in question are believed to be the heart of the new Amiga computer, a machine with excellent graphics capabilities. The suit will probably throw a monkeywrench into Commodore's plan to market the Amiga. Tramiel's reaction to that may very well be, "How about that!" Home Sweet Home InfoCorp, the market research firm, says two-thirds of the computers purchased during the first quarter of 1984 went not to businesses, but to homes. As of April, nearly 12 percent of American homes had computers in them, or a household member using a computer at work. The fourth quarter is considered the goldmine stretch. That's when more than 60 percent of all computers are sold (Christmas, of course.) InfoCorp says the most frequently purchased home computer is a Commodore. The best-selling business computer is still IBM's PC. Overall, Commodore racked up 23% of all computer sales, followed by IBM's 18 percent, and Apple's 16 percent. Coleco On Campus A unique sales pitch is designed to get a few more reluctant souls to buy an Adam computer. Coleco is offering a $500 scholarship with three conditions. You have to buy an Adam to begin with, you have to be younger than 18 on September 1, 1985, and be enrolled in a college or university four-year degree program by the age of 19. The scholarship idea comes in light of a major advertising campaign for Adam's rebirth. The complete Adam package: a computer, disk drive, and printer, sells for $700. This and That Obit: George Tate, co-founder of Ashton-Tate is dead at the age of 40. His apparent heart attack on August 10 has left industry folks in shock. He had no prior history of heart ailments. Tate was found slumped over his desk at his Culver City office. Shopping Spree: Has McGraw-Hill maxed out its credit cards yet? In just one week, two more acquisitions were recorded. CYMA Corp. of Mesa, Arizona, maker of vertical application software for health, construction, and financial companies, was purchased. Monchik-Weber, which supplies information-management services for financial service companies, was also purchased. Selling price was $55.3 million. A spokesman for McGraw-Hill says look for another imminent purchase of a computer hardware company. Virtual Knuckle Sandwich: Mr.T of "A-Team" television fame has been slapped with a $500,000 lawsuit by Data Age Inc. of Campbell, Ca. The software company says the TV star reneged on an agreement to pose in a TV ad for a new video game. Data Age says it paid Mr.T $25,000 as an advance. Jaguar Section Sinister Development? FuncoLand! Nolan Bushnell's New Project! Computer West! And more... From the Editor's Controller - Playin' it like it is! There are all kinds of rumors flying around these days. What _is_ going on in the Atari division of JTS Corporation thee days? What's Jack Tramiel up to these days? And what's Peter Curry at Computer West up to these days? He's looking for e-mail addresses of Jaguar dealers and plans some big announcement soon. Could C-West be contemplating publishing some of the Jaguar software that's been completed but held up at Atari? We hope we'll learn some of those answers shortly. Last week we mentioned that Sinister Developments was working on a game that seemed likely to appear. Further checking with Sinister Developments as to the progress of that game finds that the game is not close to completion. After ten months of work, there are still problems with the game. It's also become a financial burden and development is currently on hold. What will become of the game is not known, but it doesn't appear hopeful. It'll be interesting to learn more of what will develop with publishers such as C-West and Telegames. Will they take the plunge and try to put out a number of titles that Atari and some of the third party developers have held up? We hope to have those answers soon. Until next time... Industry News STR Game Console NewsFile - The Latest Gaming News! Nolan Bushnell Has Net Plans Nolan Bushnell, the 52-year-old Silicon Valley entrepreneur who founded Atari Corp., now thinks he has the formula to sell billions of dollars of coin-operated video games and music using the Internet. Reporting from Woodside, California, writer Samuel Perry of the Reuter News Service quotes Bushnell as saying he and Aristo International have invested more than $10 million to develop a line of products that can deliver the Internet, fast-action team games and a jukebox with thousands of titles by accessing the Internet. "At a drop of a coin, or the slide of a credit card for big spenders," says Perry, "individuals will be able to call up the latest electronic games, order a hot new compact disk or access their electronic mail using the systems." Reuters reports Aristo International will roll out three machines - MusicNet Plus, TouchNet and TeamNet -- to the worldwide market early next month. The firm has gathered some 75 of the 100 or so distributors of pay-per-play vendor machines this week to unveil the machines and generate orders. The company expects its devices to be used in sports bars as well as in hotels, restaurants, airports and other public places. For instance, the TeamNet machine is the size of a small billiard table and lets two teams of up to eight players each compete against each other or against teams in other venues through an Internet connection. TouchNet lets individuals use a compact, coin-operated, countertop, touchscreen computer to play games, send messages or even chat by telephone via the Internet. The third product, MusicNet Plus, provides high quality digital music and enables customers to purchase recordings and merchandise from bans, or to buy tickets to events. Aristo CEO Mouli Cohen told Reuters the company has so far invested $15million in cash and stock worth $10 million. Sega Reduces Violence, Sex Word from Tokyo is that Japanese video game giant Sega Enterprises has decided to remove sex and violence from its computer games. Starting in October, says Martyn Williams of the Newsbytes computer news service, "the company will discontinue its adult-category games and impose stricter restrictions on games aimed at those above and under 18 years of age." Adds Williams, "The new rules stipulate that photographs and animated images of naked women will not appear in any games. Women in swimsuits or underwear will be permitted, but only in games labelled for those over 18 years of age." Meanwhile, Sony Corp.'s Sony Computer Entertainment and Nintendo Co. already have banned nudity from games for their new systems and some games carry warning labels advising of graphically violent scenes. New Netscape Company To Create Internet Devices MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1996 AUG 27 (Newsbytes) -- By Patrick McKenna. Netscape Communications Corp. 1/8NASDAQ:NSCP3/8 plans to extend its Internet software empire into games, phones, and pagers through a new company called Navio Communications Inc. Netscape holds a majority interest in Navio while another unnamed seven investors remain in the background. The Internet explosion continues as cellular phones, plug-in phones, arcade games, hand-held game devices and pagers all begin to deliver some form of Internet access and content. Last week, Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari's Pong game, and Aristo International announced a plan to deliver arcade-like games and communications Internet machines to airports, malls, hotels, sports bars, and other public gathering places. Earlier, a number of major phone companies announced Internet access and display through cellular phones. Plug-in phones with computer notebook screens and keyboards are now being touted as Internet devices. Netscape says these devices, with far less storage capacit than a standard desktop computer, require special browser software. An independent Navio Communications already has 50 employees and is reportedly working with Sony, IBM, Sega, Nintendo, NEC and Oracle. Dr. Wei Yen, previously a senior vice president at SGI, is heading the company as president, chief executive officer and a member of the board. Netscape's co-founder, Jim Clark, serves as Navio's chairman. Along with developing customized browsers for various portable communications devices, Navio will work to "enhance existing Internet content by making it readily viewable" for a wide collection of devices. In a press statement, Clark said the new company addresses a market which has a potential base of 500 million devices over the next five years. Navio software or firmware will be based on Netscape's Internet technologies and standards. The announcement comes when Netscape and Microsoft are using the media, the marketplace, and the US Department of Justice to establish browser dominance. Currently, Netscape holds more than an 83 percent market share, while Microsoft holds less than 3 percent of the browser market. Navio is seen by a number of observers as one more step in the battle to establish browser and standards dominance. Netscape spokesperson Donna Sokolsky told Newsbytes, "Navio is just one more way of opening the Internet to everyone. Third world countries may not be able to afford a broad use of computers, but these smaller devices open the Internet in an affordable way to many people." Newsbytes was also told Navio's seven other investors and the size of their investments would remain anonymous at this time. More information regarding Navio Communications is available at http://www.navio.com . Press Contact: Donna Sokolsky, Netscape, 415-254-1900) FUNCOLAND TO GIVE COLLEGE HOPEFULS THE CHANCE OF A ... Culminating in the Sunday, August 25th championship, 13 participants from across the U.S. qualified for this final round of competition by winning a series of regional tournaments. Each of the finalists has already won a PlayStation game console, a $100 FuncoLand gift certificate, a mail-in-certificate for a copy of the soon-to-be-released PlayStation exclusive title, Crash Bandicoot(TM), and a trip for two (city champion and one parent or legal guardian) to Minneapolis for a weekend of festivities climaxing with the tournament. FINALISTS: The 13 finalists that will compete against each other include: Kevin Baskerville, Jr. (14), Washington D.C.; William Billich (14), Calumet City, IL; Jonathan Boado (14), Daly City, CA; Dominic Carvajal (16), Dallas, TX; Mike Flaherty (18), Riverside, NJ; Mylon Jennings (15), Kansas City, MO; Sovichet Ly (15), East Windsor, CT; Jimmy Nguyen (17), Houston, TX; Winer Raymond (16), Brockton, MA; Ben Rothwell (18), Union Grove, WI; Alvin Singh (16), Spring Lake Park, MN; Tom Strickland (18), Grosse Ile, MI; Mike Tang (14), Sunnyvale, CA. WHEN: Sunday, August 25, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. WHERE: Mall of America, Rotunda East Mall Area, East Parking Lot 60 E. Broadway Bloomington, MN 55425 ONLINE WEEKLY STReport OnLine The wires are a hummin'! PEOPLE... ARE TALKING On CompuServe compiled by Joe Mirando CIS ID: 73637,2262 Hidi ho friends and neighbors. I'm sorry for having missed you last week but I was 'unavoidably detained'. This week's column is going to be a fairly short one again. While I know that one or two of you will no doubt applaud that little announcement, there are others who will feel a bit cheated. I'm sorry about that, but I'm simply exhausted. I'm still working those damnable 65 hour weeks. It gets really tough to concentrate on putting a column together when you've been sweating like a pig for sixty five hours. One thing I'm not too tired for however is to tell you about is the first time a ever spoke to Don Thomas, the up-'till-a-few-weeks-ago Atari employee who is _still_ receiving wide acclaim, gratitude, and good wishes from the entire Atari community. It was several years ago that I had picked up an Atari Portfolio and had quite a few comments and questions about it. That was kind of the beginning of the end for Atari computing. It was becoming quite clear that the Atari computer line would not survive forever. But, in a cruel twist of fate, magazines were just starting to take my articles for publication. I had just had one published in Atari Interface Magazine called 'The Fuji Zone'. It was a Twilight Zone rip-off in which we looked at an 'alternate reality'. While a particular Atari employee had had a good deal to do with Atari's demise in our reality, he never got the job in that other reality and Atari had therefore become the predominant force in the computer world. So, anyway, I called Atari and was directed to Don because he was, as the woman who answered the phone put it, "the Portfolio guy". As soon as Don answered the phone, I was struck by his manner. He was actually a nice guy. This, I decided, was not your average Atari employee. Once I had asked my questions, which he had answered to my satisfaction, and listened to my comments, which he had agreed with, he told me that he was keeping a list of people to inform of announcements and upgrades pertaining to the Portfolio. "All I need," he said, "is your name and address". So I gave him my name and, while I was reciting my address, he stopped me and said "Your name sounds familiar. In an editorial sense, I think. Are you somebody?" We both laughed at his turn of phrase and when I told him about 'The Fuji Zone' he simply said "Oh, yeah. I read that one a couple of times". He never said whether he liked or appreciated it or not, and I respected him for that. When I asked for his name so that I would have an 'in' at Atari, I got a pencil and paper ready because I wanted to keep in contact with this guy. When he told me who he was, I put the pencil down and chuckled. I knew the name "Don Thomas" from his software company, Artisan Software, and from "The Revolution". I wouldn't need a note to remind me who this guy was, he was _already_ someone I respected. Good luck at Sony, Don. Thanks for the friendship. Okay, let's get on with all the news, hints, tips, and info on CompuServe. From the Atari Computing Forums Alan Hodes asks for help: "I'm living in the London Docklands area & have recently tried to d/load the program called "S3_ST_V2.ZIP" from the lib 5. I mistakingly tried to do this with a Psion 3a - the only computer I have that has a modem! Is there anyone that can d/load this for me & send me a copy on a floppy? I assume that this program is meant for the ATARI side of the link. I'd be more than happy to pay postage etc." Mark Kelling tells Alan: "I'm not familiar at all with the Psion computer, but, if it will read/write standard IBM PC type 3.5inch 720K diskettes, you should be able to download using that machine. The ST will read any 720K diskette which has been formatted and had files copied to it by an IBM PC compatible machine. If not, hopefully someone living near you in London will be able to help. I would be happy to, but the last time I tried to send a computer disk to Europe, the postal fees were extreemely high -- much more than the disk was worth!" Alan tells Mark: "Someone has. Thanks for the concern." Alan adds: "I just wanted to say that I've recently started to use this forum as I am an Atari user, too. I have only recently heard about it through the palmtop forum as I use my Psion 3a to connect to CIS. I'd also like to know if anybody here is actually using their Atari to access CIS & the WWW, what they are using to do this with (hardware & software) & what differences there are to say, using a PC or Mac for this. With each day, new horizons present themselves and I'm loving every minute of it." Sysop Bob Retelle greets Alan: "... Welcome to the Atari Forums..! Accessing CompuServe with your Atari is easy... although there's no fancy graphical interface software available, most of the Atari telecom programs are fast and easy to use here. (Unfortunately there ARE some areas of CompuServe that can't be accessed any more with a regular ASCII terminal program, and since we don't have any equivalent graphical programs, we can't use those areas with our Atari systems for now. CompuServe is going to be switching to a more "WWW-like" interface in the future though, so it's possible we'll be able to use more of CIS in the future.) As for the WWW, the software is still fairly crude by comparison to what you may have seen on IBM or Mac platforms, but development is still going on independently, so that may change. Glad to have you join us..!" Alex Bond asks for help for an inlaw: "My wife had an ST that she resently gave to her dad. She used to be able to boot it into an IBM mode that allowed her to run a word processor that her dad can use. She doesn't remember how she got it into the IBM mode. We've tried booting with a dos formatted disk, but it's not working. (also I don't have access to DOS 3, which is my guess of what is on the ST). Does anyone have any ideas on what to do? I appreciate any guidance you can give me." David James tells Alex: "The only way to run IBM PC programs on the ST is by using either a hardware or software emulator. I occasionally use the software emulator PCDITTO but it is very slow, this emulator seems to prefer DOS 3 rather than DOS 4." Sysop Bob Retelle adds: "...there's no "built-in" IBM mode in the Atari ST. The CPU is completely different (it uses the Motorola 68000 chip like the Apple Macintosh uses). You need an "emulator", either software or a hardware addon to run IBM software on an ST. It's possible that your wife's ST has had a hardware emulator installed since she used to be able to run an IBM word processor. What you'd have to find is the disk that came with the emulator (or the disk with the software emulator on it, if it turns out she used the software emulator called "pc- ditto"). The disk would have the Atari program on it that runs the emulator, allowing the ST to run the IBM software." On the subject of how to transfer Atari word processor files to DOS/Windows, Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Online Magazine posts: "Download Marcel from the library. It will read 1st Word Plus files and you can export them to RTF files which will keep the word processor formatting information close to perfect. Then you can format a 720K disk on the PC and use it to move files between your PC and your Atari. [Assuming that] your 520ST has a double sided drive." Tom Harker of ICD posts: "We just received a new EZ 135s drive in from Syquest today. It is one of the current batch that is selling for about $120 with a cartridge. I put it in the DMA port of our TT with a Link 2 and compared it with RateHD to our Quantum LPS 105s internal. The Quantum used to be the standard for speed and quality. I ran RateHD twice. Both times the LPS 105s was 1129K/s and 21ms. The EZ 135s read 1333K/s and 21ms the first pass. 1360K/s and 21ms the second pass. These drives are FAST! I'll hook the ZIP back up for a speed comparison if anyone is interested." Albert Dayes, ever the curious one, tells Tom: "I would be interested in speed tests between the EZ-135 and ZIP drives." Tom tells Albert: "OK, today I connected my EZ 135s and ZIP 100s to the same Link 2 in the ACSI (DMA) port of the same TT. The Quantum LPS 105s was internal on the SCSI port. I ran RATEHD three times. Here are the results. Quantum LP105s 1129K/s 21ms 1111K/s 22ms 1129K/s 22ms SyQuest EZ135s 1333K/s 21ms 1360K/s 21ms 1333K/s 21ms Iomega ZIP 100s 854K/s 31ms 840K/s 31ms 840K/s 31ms Hope this helps." Richard Jackson asks for help: "I have a 1040 STF which I want to expand to 2 or 4 Meg, does any one know how to perform this upgrade using PC 30 pin 1 meg SIMM's." Albert Dayes of Atari Explorer Online Magazine tells Richard: "I would assume you would need a 3rd party ram upgrade board. If it was an STe model it has simm slots to make it upgrading ram very simple." On a related subject, James Spielman asks: "Has anyone installed the Xtra RAM upgrade in their ST? I installed said upgrade in my 1040STFM, and the thing won't boot; all I get is a bunch of multi-color, vertical lines on my monitor. Actually, something is going on. The pattern goes through a few little random "pixel- blinkings" but then settles down to a comatose state. According to the upgrade manual, I have a "type II" system, fwiw. My MB is a "rev.B", if that helps. It's a relatively early ST, having TOS 1.0 (as far as I know). Supposedly, one cuts a couple resistors per bank, then connects those (4) cut ends to 5v. That is to disable the resident memory banks. In my case, I first took 5v from one end of "a large capacitor" as the manual stated, then hooked that source to the four resistors. No joy. I then tapped 5v directly from one of the 5v pins feeding the MB, again, no joy. Of course, I checked the pins on the adapters, and they are all good and straight, poking into their appointed places. I wiggled them. I pushed them. I checked the SIMMs (four SIMMS, one meg each). Still, nothing." Brian Scott tells James: "About your upgrade, I have a stfm520 upgraded to 4Meg with the Marpet upgrade which is the same . You say you have tied to four resistors to +5v but you must also cut this from the main board by lifting the resistor legs, the one you have tied to +5v which should also be nearest the MMU. I hope this helps." James posts: "Well, I was going to reply that I "been there, done that", but after shuffling SIMMs, it works!!! Actually. I first got 2meg working, then did the shuffle. For some mysterious reason, it decided to function. I am now runnning the Marpet XtraRAM memory test (where did you leave your car keys? who was the sixth to the last person you talked to on the phone? are you sure you put _all_ your socks in the laundry? etc. <g>) Now to install the Link II, the EZ-135, and MagiC4! BTW, I tested the two 5v leads to the MB, and my tester read 1.88v on both. Hmmm. Is that within spec?" John Frick posts: "I recently dusted off my old 520st and after doing some minor repair, was able to boot up tos. However, none of my disks can be read. I just getbad disk or data messages. I swapped out the disk controller, but nothing changed. The system reconizes both my drives and I can hear the motors turning and the heads seeking, but have not been able to read any data.Anyone have any suggestions to try. P.s. I don't have any loose chips." You know what they say about that... Loose chips steal MIPS! <grin> Anyway, Sysop Bob Retelle asks John: "Can you format and use a new floppy disk..? If you can successfully format a disk and write to it, it means your hardware is working.. but if it can't read your older disks, it may mean the disk drive mechanism is out of alignment. Have you tried cleaning the heads with a disk drive cleaner disk? It's possible that they may have accumulated dirt or oxide during storage. When you checked for loose chips did you also check to see that the cables to the drive mechanism are well seated..? Loosening and reseating them might help if any corrosion has developed... same for the socketed chips on the motherboard. Lifting the chips very slightly with a fine screwdriver and pressing them back into the sockets can "wipe" the contacts of any oxidation. If both drives exhibit the same symptoms, it may be the disks themselves have developed problems. Is there anyone in your area with a similar system who could check some of the disks and see if they can be read on their ST..?" John tells Bob: "Both drives are exhibiting the exact same problem. I haven't tried to clean the heads, but I guess it couldn't hurt. I also changed out the mmu and the 'other' chip that comes lose before I tried to boot up my 520st. Do you know if they could cause my problem? I hate to pry them up again but I can if necessary. I also switched drive cables, but still had the same problems. I am not sure of the data path from the disc after it goes thru the disc controller. thanks for any advice...." Sysop Bob tells John: "I wouldn't try to pry up those two square chips (the ones in the "PLCC" sockets.. those sockets are awfully fragile and can be a real pain if they crack and have to be replaced..!) The other chips in sockets though are candidates for "reseating", especially the set of TOS ROMs (on your motherboard they're probably a set of six large chips on the lefthand side of the motherboard). Flaky connections on those ROMs can cause all kinds of problems, and the fact that both of your disk drives have the same problem kind of points to something other than the drives themselves. It's a bit of a long shot, but reseating those ROMs (gently, gently..!) might help." Well folks, that's about it for this week. I'm still following any developments with web browsers for the ST/TT/Falcon. While there is nothing concrete yet, there are encouraging signs here and there. As soon as I know of any solid developments, I'll let you know. So be sure to tune in again next week, same time, same station, and be ready to listen to what they are saying when... PEOPLE ARE TALKING EDITORIAL QUICKIES "Kemp Scrambles with the Ball!! Who is really carrying WHO?" STReport International OnLine Magazine [S]ilicon [T]imes [R]eport HTTP://WWW.STREPORT.COM AVAILABLE through OVER 200,000 PRIVATE BBS SYSTEMS WORLDWIDE All Items quoted, in whole or in part, are done so under the provisions of The Fair Use Law of The Copyright Laws of the U.S.A. Views, Opinions and Editorial Articles presented herein are not necessarily those of the editors/staff of STReport International OnLine Magazine. Permission to reprint articles is hereby granted, unless otherwise noted. Reprints must, without exception, include the name of the publication, date, issue number and the author's name. STR, CPU, STReport and/or portions therein may not be edited, used, duplicated or transmitted in any way without prior written permission. STR, CPU, STReport, at the time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate. STR, CPU, STReport, are trademarks of STReport and STR Publishing Inc. STR, CPU, STReport, its staff and contributors are not and cannot be held responsible in any way for the use or misuse of information contained herein or the results obtained therefrom. STR OnLine! "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE" August 30, 1996 Since 1987 Copyrightc1996 All Rights Reserved Issue No. 1235