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The 640 MEG Shareware Studio 2
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The 640 Meg Shareware Studio CD-ROM Volume II (Data Express)(1993).ISO
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winben25.zip
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ANNOUNCE.TXT
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1992-03-03
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4KB
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96 lines
---
For more information contact:
MICROSOFT CORPORATION
Liz Sidnam/Marty Taucher
206/882-8080
ZIFF-DAVIS PUBLISHING PUBLIC RELATIONS
Greg Jarboe
617/393-3313
WAGGENER EDSTROM
Catherine Richardson/Claire Lematta
503/245-0905
Microsoft and PC Magazine Develop Winstone Hardware Benchmark
San Francisco, Calif., March 2, 1992. Microsoft
Corporation and Ziff-Davis Publishing Company today
announced plans to create the Winstone benchmark, a software
test designed to measure the performance of Microsoft
Windows-compatible personal computers. The benchmark will be jointly
developed by Microsoft and Ziff-Davis, publisher of PC Magazine, with input
from industry sources. The test will be distributed widely to
personal computer manufacturers and others conducting
independent tests.
The Winstone announcement was made at the Microsoft Windows
Hardware Engineering Conference being held here March 1-3,
attended by over 400 engineers representing nearly two
hundred PC and accessory board manufacturers from around the
world. The conference focuses on techniques and components
for optimizing personal computer designs for better
performance running the Windows operating system.
Strong customer demand for the Windows operating system has
created a need for a test offering a single, reliable
indicator of overall PC performance under Windows. "End
users will get a more accurate measure of total system
performance, allowing an objective comparison of various
systems before making a purchase decision," said Jonathan
Lazarus, general manager of systems software marketing at
Microsoft. "Winstone gives consumers a big advantage
because it's a real-world benchmark."
The Winstone benchmark will test the overall performance of
PCs running the Microsoft Windows 3.X operating system and
related applications by precisely reproducing the demands
that the software environment places on hardware by
emulating typical application usage scenarios. The
Winstone benchmark will be based on a range of spreadsheets,
word processors and other software manipulating data files
of different sizes and types that reflects the mix of tasks
undertaken by the typical PC user.
Ziff-Davis, as publisher of several widely-read computer
industry periodicals, will help select applications
scenarios reflective of the broadest segment of the Windows
computing market and develop models of user activity.
"Ziff-Davis and PC Magazine Labs will work to define a
benchmark that responds to the needs of users as accurately
as possible," said Michael Miller, Editor-in-Chief of PC
Magazine. Microsoft and Ziff-Davis will also consult with
others in the PC industry, including Intel Corporation of
Santa Clara, CA, to ensure the accuracy of the benchmark.
The Winstone benchmark will complement other measures of
computer performance, including PC Magazine Labs Winbench and other tests, and
suites developed by the Business Application Performance
Company (BAPCo). Intel, Microsoft and Ziff-Davis are active
members of BAPCo, a consortium of hardware and software
vendors that is focused on developing application-based
benchmarks that accurately reflect the performance of
computing systems.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ MSFT) develops,
markets and supports a wide range of microcomputer software
for business and professional use, including operating
systems, network products, languages and applications, as
well as books, hardware and CD-ROM products for the
microcomputer marketplace.
In addition to PC Magazine, Ziff-Davis Publishing
Company publishes PC Week, PC/Computing, Computer Shopper,
PC Sources, MacUser and MacWeek in the U.S. and a variety of
sister publications in Europe. Ziff-Davis Publishing, a
division of Ziff Communications Company, also produces trade
shows, conferences and newsletters though its Interop and
Seybold operations.
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