Nebula/nebula.bin/Newsletters/NeXTNuggetNewsDigest/vol.04.11.txt

Text File | 1993-01-27 | 20KB | 498 lines

NeXT Nugget News Digest (vol. 4, issue 11, September 15, 1992)

TABLE OF CONTENTS


      I. NeXT Ships NeXTSTEP Release 3.0
     II. Paget Seeks NeXT User Success Stories
    III. Fall, 1992 Electronic (CD-ROM) AppWrapper
     IV. NeXTSTEP Programming Book Update
      V. Modem Toll free access for ANDI members
     VI. NeXT Consultants Wanted (Seattle, Washington)
    VII. Summary of Chemistry Apps For NeXTSTEP

____________________________________________________________________

This is vol. 4, issue 11 of the 1992 NeXT NUGGET NEWS DIGEST - a
collection of items of interest for the NeXT User Group members.
There are more than 379 NeXT User Groups in 38 countries on all
continents around the world.


Conrad Geiger
Manager, International NeXT User Groups

P.S.  All previous Nugget Digest issues are archived at the
Purdue ftp archive site: sonata.cc.purdue.edu under the following
files and directories:

    /pub/next/Newletters/Nugget
    /pub/next/submissions/Nugget_News_Digest_Q2_1992.tar.Z
____________________________________________________________________

I.   NeXT Ships NeXTSTEP Release 3.0

News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:     Emily Brower
             Allison Thomas Associates
             [phone]

NeXT Ships NeXTSTEP Release 3.0, Third Generation of the Complete
Object-Oriented Environment

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., September 8, 1992 -  NeXT Computer, Inc. today
announced the shipment of NeXTSTEP Release 3.0, the third generation
of the only object-oriented environment available today.  Release
3.0, which adds to the power and ease of use of earlier NeXTSTEP
releases, features important new capabilities for both developers and
users.

"NeXT is now shipping our third refinement of the industry's leading
object-oriented environment NeXTSTEP 3.0 while our competitors
are still years away from even sampling their first versions," said
Steven P. Jobs, chairman and CEO of NeXT.  "The maturity and richness
of NeXTSTEP is really evident in Release 3.0, especially in some of
the new objects such as the Database Kit."

NeXTSTEP Release 3.0 Increases NeXT's Object-Oriented Lead
NeXTSTEP Release 3.0 preserves all the features of the previous
version, while adding improved mission-critical custom application
development tools; greater interoperability; sharing of information
across documents and applications; enhanced graphics; global
computing; and general usability features.

"The general environment of NeXTSTEP 3.0 is extraordinarily stable
for pre-release software and we are quite intrigued with what we
see," said Hadar Pedhazur, vice president of UBS Securities, Inc. and
a Release 3.0 beta user.  "The two added features in 3.0 that offer
the most potential for us are DBKit, because it will allow us to
standardize our database work, and Distributed Objects, because it
will give us even more flexibility with the object-oriented custom
work we do."


Custom Application Development

NeXTSTEP Release 3.0 adds four new object kits to its application
development environment.  These new kits include the following:

   - Database Kit (DBKit).  DBKit can dramatically shorten the time
needed to create client/server database-driven applications.  It also
provides a single, consistent interface to SQL databases from
multiple vendors, including Sybase and Oracle.

   - 3D Graphics Kit (3DKit).  Based on Pixar's RenderMan standard
(both Interactive and PhotoRealistic RenderMan), it allows developers
to easily add three-dimensional graphics to new or existing NeXTSTEP
applications.

   - PhoneKit.  This kit includes support for ISDN (Integrated
Services Digital Network) and POTS (plain old telephone service) and
enables a whole new generation of telephony applications, such as
smart answering machines and conferencing.

   - Indexing Kit.  It provides tools for efficiently storing,
indexing and retrieving textual or record-based information in any
application.


Interoperability

NeXTSTEP Release 3.0 adds bundled Novell Client and AppleShare Client
software, for accessing file servers and PostScript printers on
NetWare and AppleTalk networks, respectively.  The new version of
NeXTSTEP also includes additional Macintosh and DOS file support and
expanded ability to share files, printers (from various vendors), fax
modems and CD-ROM drives among networked users.  Built-in ISDN
capabilities provide WAN (wide-area network) connections.

In addition, Hayes Microcomputer Products, Inc. provides Hayes ISDN
Extender, a telecommunication network interface module that provides
ISDN Basic Rate Access as well as analog telephone connectivity to
NeXTSTEP computers.  Hayes ISDN Extender, when used in conjunction
with the PhoneKit, can be used for point-to-point communications and
remote LAN access.  Third-party software is expected to support
high-speed, digitized voice, data and multimedia applications.


Sharing Information Across Documents and Applications

Release 3.0 introduces Distributed Objects:  While previous versions
of NeXTSTEP provided messaging between objects within a single
NeXTSTEP application, Distributed Objects extends this simple yet
powerful messaging model to include messaging between objects in
different applications and across different computers on a network.
Distributed Objects makes possible Object Links, which is a
multimedia hyperlinking system that enables documents of different
applications to share dynamic information.


Enhanced Graphics

Among the new standards supported in Release 3.0 are PostScript Level
2 integration, which adds support for calibrated color output,
imaging filters for faster printing and pattern support; and the
Pantone Matching System, the premier standard for specifying colors
in printed output.


Global Computing

Users can localize their NeXTSTEP Release 3.0 interface, setting
system text and sounds in any of seven languages:  English, Spanish,
French, German, Italian, Swedish and Japanese.  Also, as
communications standards such as ISDN become implemented globally,
NeXTSTEP will be able to easily take advantage of the expanded
communication capabilities.


General Usability

Release 3.0 introduces an integrated, multimedia on-line hypertext
Help system.  The Help system is used by all documentation that NeXT
bundles with NeXTSTEP, and also consists of Help objects that all
third-party developers can use to create consistent Help systems for
their NeXTSTEP applications.  In response to customer requests, the
new version of NeXTSTEP also includes more color in the user
interface.

Importantly, any application written under NeXTSTEP Release 2 will
run in Release 3.0, and will automatically take advantage of many
Release 3.0 features, such as access to Pantone Colors, improved fax
capabilities and color text (provided via the addition of color to
the NeXTSTEP text object).


Object Orientation:  The Stakes are High

The fact that NeXTSTEP is an object-oriented environment is crucial
for a number of reasons.  Object-oriented technologies are being
hailed as the answer for corporate and government organizations
seeking to create more competitive computing environments.  These
organizations want faster means of developing mission-critical custom
applications traditionally the domain of mainframe computers and
to move to distributed client/server computers.  They have also
discovered that shrink-wrapped software alone cannot provide tools
that closely match companies' own, unique work processes.

The object-oriented NeXTSTEP provides not only the best and fastest
environment for creating mission-critical custom applications, but
also the "glue" to integrate the custom functionality with
shrink-wrapped applications and with standard networking and
connectivity tools.  Significantly, while most major computer and
software companies talk at great length about their plans to offer
object-oriented solutions, NeXTSTEP is the only fully object-oriented
environment available today.  By virtue of its three years as a
commercially marketed product, it has already achieved the status of
de facto industry leader in object-oriented computing.


System Requirements and Pricing

NeXTSTEP Release 3.0 will be included automatically with all NeXT
computers shipped after today, and will also be provided on a CD-ROM
for back-up.  Release 3.0 runs on any NeXT workstation with a minimum
of a 100 MB hard disk and 8 MB of RAM.  For optimum performance,
however, NeXT recommends that Release 3.0 not be run on 68030-based
NeXTcube systems.  Further, due to the added functionality of Release
3.0, NeXT recommends at least 12 MB of RAM on monochrome systems and
at least 16 MB of RAM on color systems.

Registered owners of NeXTSTEP Release 2 can upgrade to Release 3.0
for $XXX; upgrades will be shipped on a CD-ROM disk and as a
right-to-use license.


About NeXT

NeXT Computer, Inc. designs and markets the industry-acclaimed
NeXTSTEP object-oriented software environment, and designs,
manufactures and markets UNIX-based workstations that run NeXTSTEP.
NeXTSTEP and NeXT workstations are used by medium and large
organizations to develop and deploy mission-critical applications,
using both custom and shrink-wrapped software.  NeXT is headquartered
at 900 Chesapeake Drive, Redwood City, California, 94063.

-30-

NeXT, the NeXT logo, NeXTSTEP and NeXTcube are trademarks of NeXT
Computer, Inc.  All other trademarks mentioned belong to their
respective owners.


____________________________________________________________________


II.  Paget Seeks NeXT User Success Stories

This fall, Paget Press, Inc. will publish the premiere edition of the
Electronic AppWrapper,  a CD-ROM full of information and software. We
would like to include information about how companies have solved
specific problems with NeXT computers. If your company, or you as a
consultant or user group mentor have helped somebody put NeXTs to
work, let us know! Topics might be

 - Manufacturer cuts production time in half with new technology
 - Attorneys use Internet to strengthen cases
 - Graphic design shop doubles imagesetter output with NeXT Server

You get the idea. Just send your paragraph or article to us at
[e-mail]. And thanks for helping the NeXT community grow!


Peggy Thompson
[e-mail]

P.S.  The deadline for submissions for the first 1993 issue of EAW is
December 10, 1992.



____________________________________________________________________

III. Fall, 1992 Electronic (CD-ROM) AppWrapper

As you may have heard, Paget will publish the first Electronic
AppWrapper this fall.  Using the CD-ROM, this electronic magazine
will be a forum for product demos and applications as well as a forum
for User issues, concerns and questions.

Through a variety of product demos, you will be able to perform
hands-on testing of software applications -- at your own computer!
If you like a product, you can acquire it simply by transmitting an
Easy Order Email with your credit card number.  We will send you an
unlocking key, and you can load the software directly from the CD-ROM
disk!

Through our topical articles and our "Email to the Editor" section,
you will be connected to the growing community of NeXT users.  You're
not alone out there!

You will have up to date information about the latest products in the
NeXT world.  As the NeXT technology evolves, the Electronic
AppWrapper will strive to give you a clearer sense of the
technological impact and its relevance to you.

So you see, the EAW is not just another trade magazine.  Paget has
brought a sense of professionalism and a sense of humor to the
electronic pages of this new medium.  It is our intention to create a
forum where users and developers can exchange ideas and information,
a forum for creative and intelligent dialog.

Catch the NeXT train to the future by ordering your EAW subscription
today!

The Electronic AppWrapper will be published quarterly.  The annual
subscription rate is $24.00 per year for U.S. subscribers (residents
of Washington state add 8.2% sales tax) and $36.00 per year for all
international addresses.

Subscriptions are payable in advance by VISA/MC, check or money
order.  With VISA/MC you can order by email to [e-mail] or phone
206-448-0845.  Checks should be made out to Paget EAW and mailed to:


                    Paget EAW
                    2125 Western Avenue
                    Suite 300
                    Seattle, WA   98121


Please order soon so that we can be sure you receive the premiere
edition of the Electronic AppWrapper!

Sincerely,
Paget Press
Email: [e-mail]
Phone: [phone]

____________________________________________________________________

IV.  NeXTSTEP Programming Book Update

        NeXTSTEP Programming
        Step 1: Object-oriented applications

                by

        Simson L. Garfinkel
                and
        Michael K. Mahoney


Will be on the bookshelves in mid-November.

The Garfinkel/Mahoney book has been reviewed and is currently being
copy edited.  Simson and I are hoping that it will be on the shelves
in September. It's upgraded to work with NeXTSTEP 3.0 (e.g., Project
Builder, new development environment), but doesn't discuss 3DKit or
DBKit.  We're very happy with the book, but bringing a book to print
is a long process.  If you'd like to learn  more about the book,
please call the following number for Springer-Verlag, the publisher:
(800)SPRINGE  or [phone].

- Mike Mahoney
  SCaN President and SCaNeWS co-editor
  Southern California NeXT Users' Group

  also ...
  Professor and Chair
  Computer Engineering and Computer Science Dept.
  California State University, Long Beach
  Long Beach, CA  90840-8302

  Email: [e-mail]  (NeXTmail capable)


_____________________________________________________________________

V.  Modem Toll free access for ANDI members

ANDI (Association of NeXTSTEP Developers International)

From: Bill Strehl ([e-mail])

Press Release
For immediate Release


Washington, DC - ANDI selected MCI to provide telephone service
for the Association.  As part of the three year agreement which was
signed today, the Association will offer 800 number modem access to
its network as well as dialup switched digital 56K service.  ANDI's
modem pool contains ZyXEL modems running at 14.4K (V.32.bis) and
16.8K (a ZyXEL proprietary speed) and Motorola CODEX modems running
at 14.4K (V.32.bis) and  24K (Motorola CODEX's implementation of
V.fast).  This provides analog dialup connectivity to ANDI and the
Internet at higher speeds than an other service provider on the
planet at rates competive with vendors limited to 2400 and 9600 baud
service.

ANDI announced support of the popular ZyXEL modems after successfully
testing B & W Software's $135 NXFax fax software which includes the
ability to automatically reset the modem to either fax or modem
depending on the call.  Craig Goss, President of B & W, said owners
of the Neuron 14.4 modems can also run his software with a change to
ZyXEL ROMs.  Neuron owners electing this option will no longer be
able to use the Neuron specific software. Further details are
available from B & W at 802-496-8500.

ANDI also is the first provider of dialup ISDN Basic Rate Service
anywhere in the world.  ISDN terminal adapters that conform to the
national ISDN1 standard, such as the Hayes ISDN Systems Adapter, as
well as the NeXT specific ISDN Systems extender will be supported at
speeds up to 144K. This service is meant to complement the Switched
Digital services of MCI.  Initial ISDN service will be limited to the
Washington, DC area until MCI receives approval from the Regional
Bell Operating companies and has filed tariffs with  the FCC.

By selecting MCI, any present or future member of ANDI will receive
special discounts on their long distance service of up to eleven
percent. Existing MCI customers who join ANDI will receive the same
discount.  MCI and ANDI announced a special promotion which provides
members with one month of free long distance service subject to the
limitations of the particular calling plan selected.  Members whose
long distance bill is $500 per month or more can receive $30,000 in
free long distance for one month as part of the special promotion,
and members whose long distance bill is $50 to $500 per month can
receive one months free long distance service equal to an amount
approximating their monthly usage.  This means that members who
select or are already using MCI can offset the cost of ANDI
membership which ranges between $100 and $1500 by enrolling in the
special Association program which is schedule to expire before the
end of the year.  More details are available directly from the
Association or Alan Miller at MCI World Headquarters.  Alan can be
reached at 800-283-0200.  ANDI can be reached at 301-681-3932.

In a related issue, ANDI also announced that it will be installing an
Intel based 486 computer running NeXTSTEP on its network in order to
provide developers with a place to compile and debug their code
written on the 680x0 family of processors.  This will allow ANDI
members, including dealers, VARS, VADS, and Integrators to see/offer
NeXTSTEP 486 Apps soon after the release of the 680x0 version.  The
Association feels this will help speed up the availability of
software on the 486 platform, and plans to install other machines
whenever NeXT ports NeXTSTEP to other platforms.

ANDI is a trademark of the Association of NeXTSTEP Developers
International, Inc.     NeXT, and NeXTSTEP are trademarks of NeXT
Computer Inc.

-30-



_____________________________________________________________________

VI.  NeXT Consultants Wanted (Seattle, Washington)

Background preferred:

    ObjC and NeXTSTEP programming experience
    1+ years commercial software experience

Salaried or hourly positions available.
Contracts for one year with possibility for permanent employment.

Contact:

    Julia Schroder
    Computer People, Inc.
    1601 5th Avenue, Suite 1810
    Seattle, WA 98101
    Fax: [phone]
    Phone: [phone]

_____________________________________________________________________

VII.  SUMMARY OF CHEMISTRY APPS FOR NeXTSTEP

MidasPlus -- This was written up in the Spring '91 NeXT on Campus. It
is a fairly hefty molecular modeling program.
Contact: Tom Ferrin, [e-mail]

pVisor Beta -- Molecular visualization software from Talus
Corporation. Contact Mr. Sarich if you wish to be added to the beta
list.
Contact: Steve Sarich III, [e-mail]

Elements1.0 -- A database of periodic table data with a NeXTSTEP
interface.
Contact: Shawn Murphy, atlantis!exthro!smurp


The following are all available from Allegheny College via anonymous
ftp access to the pellns.alleg.edu archive site (look in
/pub/Chemistry and in /pub/Source/Chemistry directories):

Contact: Charles Fleming, [e-mail]

Titrate.app -- Titrate allows students to simulate acid/base
titrations.

Hess.app -- Students in introductory chemistry lab run Hess before an
experiment that involves measuring the energy produced in several
chemical reactions and combining the results (using Hess's Law) to
find the heat of formation of magnesium oxide.

IR.app -- IR illustrates the low-resolution, gas-phase spectra of six
small molecules.

NameThatCompound.app -- Students can learn the nomenclature of
inorganic compounds using NameThatCompound.

RealGasses -- RealGases illustrates the pressure-volume-temperature
relationships of real gases.

VSEPR -- Students can learn how to determine the molecular structures
and electron pair geometries of  compounds using VSEPR (Valence Shell
Electron Pair Repulsion theory).

____________________________________________________________________
end