Newsbytes - Internationa…ews 1983 May to 1992 June/Newsbytes - International Computing Industry News May 1983-June 1992 (Wayzata Technology)(5042)(1992).bin/pc/_data/newsbyte.txt

Text File | 1992-08-20 | 1MB | 24,243 lines

#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AGRESSO WINS SWEDISH GOVT ACCOUNTING ORDER 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(OSL)(00001)

AGRESSO WINS SWEDISH GOVT ACCOUNTING ORDER 08/29/91
OSLO, NORWAY, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- "I didn't sleep much after
they called me at 11 PM to tell me we had won," says Thorolf
Kildal. The Norwegian company he heads, Agresso AS, had been
chosen by Sweden's Riksrevitionsverket (RRV) to supply the
Swedish government and its institutions with decentralized
accounting systems.

Although not a monopoly, the contract effectively makes it all
but impossible for other suppliers to get orders from the
government sector. If an institution wants to buy a different
system, the system must go through a lengthy approval process to
show that it meets the requirements. And the purchase decision
must be approved almost at the ministerial level.

Riksrevitionsverket will act as an "in-house" dealer to the
institutions, providing support and training. Before selecting a
supplier, RRV is known to set high standards and requirements
that they have to meet. In this case Agresso had to compete with
23 other suppliers, many of them Swedish based or owned
companies.

The contract, valued at about NOK 20 million (US$ 2.9 million),
gives a big boost to the Norwegian company with sales of NOK
11.9 million last year. Over a period of two to five years the
contract calls for a minimum of 150 installations. The total
order potential is about three times that amount - and that
translates into about 800 installations. The institutions that
may buy Agresso range from the smaller government agencies
through Sweden's state-owned telephone company and the postal
service.

Agresso is a complete administrative system encompassing general
ledger, order entry, payroll, project accounting, and time
accounting subsystems, among others. Based on Ingres, the system
is highly portable and translatable. The company estimates that
a port to different hardware will take it 1-2 days, and a
language translation of the software about a week. Manuals take
a bit longer.

The Swedish order marks Agresso's first success in an
internationalization drive. The company has targeted Sweden, UK,
and USA as the markets it wants to penetrate by signing
strategic alliances. Currently it has installations in
Holland and England in addition to Norway and Sweden. But it
does not end there.

"When we travelled to Sweden to sign the contract we felt
jinxed," tells Mr. Kildal. "Last year Kuwait Petroleum evaluated
our system, and we got to the point where only the signing of
the contract remained. Their people were returning to Kuwait
with the final draft on the first of August. On the second of
August Saddam struck - and the contract went up in smoke. This
time around we left for Sweden on the morning of the coup in
Moscow..."

All is not lost, though, and they still hope that they'll get
the contract in Kuwait when things get back to normal. Their
contact in Kuwait has told them that "all the equipment has to
be replaced first. Iraqi soldiers took all the PCs and
terminals with them in the belief that it was TV sets...."

Agresso believes they have an unique product that is highly
suitable for multinational corporations. One of the system's more
prominent features is a multi-currency facility that allows a
company to do its accounts in two different currencies at the
same time.

For an American company with a subsidiary in France, that
translates into having the subsidiary keep their accounts in
French francs (as required by regulations) and US dollars at the
same time. This can ease consolidation, and provide
top-management in the USA with an up-to-the-minute correct
picture of the situation, if the networking facilities are used.

Agresso A/S can be reached in Oslo, Norway; telephone:
International [phone].

(Jan-Frode Nordli/19910828/Agresso AS, Thorolf Kildal,
managing director, tel: International + 47 - 2 - 230420; Norway
is GMT + 1)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 SWEDISH GOVT ORDER BOOST FOR INGRES 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(OSL)(00002)

SWEDISH GOVT ORDER BOOST FOR INGRES 08/29/91
OSLO, NORWAY, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Ingres, a division of Ask
Computer Systems, has gained a foothold in Swedish government
institutions. Over the next two to five years it will get at least 150,
maybe as many as 800 installations. This follows the success of Agresso
AS, a Norwegian company, which has been selected as the supplier of
the accounting system that Swedish government institutions are
going to use.

Agresso has based its system on Ingres, so the 4GL language is
piggy-backed into the state organizations. Although not a
contract for a development tool, the Ingres/Agresso order gives
Ingres an advantage in the competition.

With Ingres databases already installed in the organizations,
integration of the accounting systems and applications developed
by the organizations should be easier to do if both are based on
Ingres. That translates into savings for the state in a country that
currently is in a slump.

(Jan-Frode Nordli/19910828)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AUSTRALIA: MELBOURNE'S FIRST LASER LIGHT ADVERTISING 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SYD)(00003)

AUSTRALIA: MELBOURNE'S FIRST LASER LIGHT ADVERTISING 08/29/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Melbourne has entered the
"new-age" of advertising, with its first computer-controlled laser
light advertising. The lasers were used to promote the forthcoming
tour of rock band Dire Straits.

Such advertising has already been used in Sydney, where banks, Coca
Cola, and 3M have promoted their wares and services. The laser light
was projected onto the side of the ANA (All Nippon Airlines)
building in Melbourne, as well as above a car dealership and on a
blank billboard. Although the promoter, Garry Van Egmond, said the
use of Laservision was costly, it was a medium of advertising which
attracted attention.

The Laservision system allows pre-entered text or graphics to be
projected via computer software control, as well as freehand
graphics created on the spot. The images can be projected onto
almost any surface, and the Sydney Opera House, boat hulls and
football fields have all been used successfully.

(Sean McNamara/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AUSTRALIA: TEACHERS HONORED 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00004)

AUSTRALIA: TEACHERS HONORED 08/29/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Two teachers from
Melbourne's Dandenong Ranges have been recognized for their work in
computer-based literacy and math lessons. Wendy Neal and
Michael Dene, who head a team of teacher-developers at Cockatoo
Public School, won first and fourth places at national Author
Computer-Based Training Conference.

The Conference was held in Brisbane, and the competition drew
entries from such corporate giants as BHP and National Australia
Bank, as well as the University of Queensland.

The teachers' lessons cover math, language development, reading, and
spelling, and utilize multimedia for maximum effectiveness. Over the
last two years, the team has developed more than 300 lessons, and these
can be adapted across the primary school curriculum.

The team's school will receive an AUS$2,500 Microcraft distribution
authoring package as a result of the awards. The team currently
consists of five teachers, and is constantly expanding. One of the
team's projects is to develop lessons which can be contained on
diskettes, allowing students to take them home to complete the
lesson. All of the lessons have been developed on Author, a
computer-based training development tool designed and manufactured
by Australian firm Microcraft.

(Sean McNamara/19910829)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AUSTRALIA: MIDEN & KAMBROOK JOIN TO EXPLOIT GAMING 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00005)

AUSTRALIA: MIDEN & KAMBROOK JOIN TO EXPLOIT GAMING 08/29/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Miden Pacific and
Kambrook have formed a consortium to take advantage of a
potentially large market in electronic gaming machines.

Although legislation still needs to be passed in Victoria to
approve such machines, the two companies are sure this is only a
formality. The consortium, Victorian Gaming Machines, will
manufacture state-of-the-art gaming machines for the Victorian
market initially, and if all goes well, will target other
Australian states and New Zealand.

All game transactions, breakdowns, and security breaches would be
reported immediately to a central control facility through a
statewide communications network, delivering to Victoria one of the
most sophisticated gaming machine networks in Australia.
Legislation approving the machines is expected to be introduced and
passed next month.

(Sean McNamara/19910829)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER-ASSISTED SPRINTING 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SYD)(00006)

AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER-ASSISTED SPRINTING 08/29/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Derek Meredith, one of
Australia's best professional sprinters, has developed a database
similar to punters' form guides which he hopes will help him beat
his opposition. The database records Meredith's performances, as
well as that of his opponents, allowing him to better prepare for
racing meets.

Meredith is an experienced systems designer, and he developed the
system to work on a 386SX-based notebook computer with a 60
megabyte hard disk drive. The system stores data on around 100
runners, and gives Meredith instant access to his sprinters form
guide. For competitive reasons, Meredith is not giving access to
his opponents, and maintains it is a valid training tool he
developed for his own use.

The local professional sprint circuit begins in November, and
consists of over 30 events. Meredith has been participating in the
circuits on a selective basis over the last five years, and has run
second in the prestigious Stawell Easter Gift, one of the world's
richest handicapped sprint races. An added incentive to sprinters
is on-track betting, which allows them to back themselves or other
competitors to double their share of the winnings. This is where
Meredith finds the most use for his database, as he can plan to
have his performance peak for those races where he has the best
chance of winning, and therefore the best chance of doubling his
prizes.

(Sean McNamara/19910829)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AUSTRALIA: EXPERT SYSTEM TO PLAN ROADS 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00007)

AUSTRALIA: EXPERT SYSTEM TO PLAN ROADS 08/29/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- The New South Wales (NSW)
Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) has developed an expert system
which will be used to help it plan major roadworks.

PROFISY (Project Fitting System) will be installed in every office
of the RTA, and is expected to help engineers develop plans much faster than
previously possible. PROFISY was developed by the RTA, according
to Shaun Gray, an expert systems officer with the RTA, because
there were no such systems available. One of the features which
will see Profisy improve roadworks planning is the capability to do
"What-if" analysis in 20 minutes - a task which previously took
engineers two weeks to complete.

The system uses both subjective and objective data to arrive at its
findings, which are based on the knowledge of engineers and traffic
planners with years of experience. The system also takes into
account the differing needs of both city and country areas, as well
as particular areas within the State. Gray says the engineers are
very enthusiastic with the system, and that the system's
performance has exceeded all expectations. Interest has already
been shown in PROFISY by other authorities with high capital works
expenditure.

(Sean McNamara/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 WORLDWIDE PATENT DATABASE ON CD-ROM PLANNED 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00008)

WORLDWIDE PATENT DATABASE ON CD-ROM PLANNED 08/29/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Patent authorities in the
U.S., Europe, and Japan have basically agreed to jointly develop a
CD-ROM-based computer software system for their patent data,
reports the Kyodo news. With this new computer software system,
patent information from these countries would be quickly accessed.

According to the report, the patent offices of these regions have
already agreed in principle, and it is expected that they will
officially agree at a joint meeting scheduled for October. They are also
thinking of inviting patent offices from other countries to
join the project.

The CD-ROM will contain the first pages of each patent record. The
page includes bibliographic data and a patent abstract in the English
language.

The usage of the database is expected to be free for governmental
organizations, but a "reasonable usage fee" will be charged for
private organizations. More details are due after the meeting in October.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910829)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 AT&T SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH NIPPON DENSO ON IC CARD 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00009)

AT&T SIGNS AGREEMENT WITH NIPPON DENSO ON IC CARD 08/29/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- AT&T has signed a business
agreement with Nippon Denso concerning production and
sales of IC (integrated circuit) cards. AT&T's Chairman Robert Allen
predicted earlier this week that his firm will be signing more business
agreements with Japanese firms in the near future.

The agreement with Nippon Denso calls for the firms to jointly
develop products which work with AT&T's contactless IC card
systems. These units use IC cards with no external ports or
connectors. Nippon Denso will market the products, including the
card reader/writer, in Japan and other Asian regions when they are
developed. It is expected that the first commercial samples of
new products will be released by October.

The IC card reader/writer is expected to be used in cars, for
factory automation products, and office automation equipment.
Nippon Denso is the manufacturer of car equipment, including
air-conditioners and stereo sets. Nippon Denso expects that
it will make around 10 billion yen ($75 million) from sales of
the IC card reader/writer within 5 years.

AT&T is currently licensing the manufacturing and marketing of
its card reader/writer to Olivetti in Italy. AT&T has reportedly
given an exclusive license to Nippon Denso in the Asian region.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910829)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 NEW FOR PCS: Macromind Action! Multimedia For Windows 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00010)

NEW FOR PCS: Macromind Action! Multimedia For Windows 08/29/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- At
Boston's World Trade Center during the recent Windows &
OS/2 Conference, Macromind finally brought its considerable Macintosh
expertise to Windows with the introduction of Action!, a program described
by company President Bruce Cummings as "Instant multimedia for
people who don't make a living making presentations."

Action! is designed to let users easily create presentations
incorporating sound, motion, and animation with text and graphics.
It includes dozens of ready-to-use templates which users can
customize by adding their own text, sound or graphics. Also
included is a Clip Media Library of special sounds, as well as
still and animated graphics.

Cummings said he has been talking to some notebook PC manufacturers
about incorporating sound capability that products such as
Action! would be able to exploit. The $495 Action! package
is compatible with SoundBlaster, a popular PC add-in card. Action!
is scheduled to ship late September and is available from Macromind,
410 Townsend Suite 408, S.F., CA 94107, 415/442-0200.

(David Needle & Computer Currents/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 NEW FOR PCS: PowerLeads! Contact Manager 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00011)

NEW FOR PCS: PowerLeads! Contact Manager 08/29/91
CARSON CITY, NEVADA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Pyramid Data, Inc.
showed off its $295 PowerLeads! package, a Windows contact
management and sales lead tracking system, at the recent Windows
and OS/2 Conference in Boston. Due to ship in October, the product
is a relational database developed in SuperBase and is designed
to keep track of clients, calls, schedules, priorities, and expenses.

A notes field can be of unlimited size (depending on memory) and
are keyword searchable. Other features include auto-dialing, mail
merge to Ami Pro and Microsoft Word for Windows word
processors, and a mailing label generator that includes eight
different Avery label formats.

PowerLeads! is the first module in PowerOffice!, a family of
groupware and organizational productivity tools the
company is developing.

Contact Pyramid Data at 1000 E. William Street Suite 100,
Carson City, NV 89701 or call toll-free 800/972-7972.

(David Needle & Computer Currents/19910829)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 NEW FOR PCS: Help Learning Windows with WindEase 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00012)

NEW FOR PCS: Help Learning Windows with WindEase 08/29/91
CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Bloc Publishing
showed off its WindEase ($59) Windows tutorial package at the
recent Windows and OS/2 Conference in Boston. After
Windows is installed, WindEase is designed to give the user
hands-on or interactive instruction in all the major aspects
of how to use Windows including the File Manager, DOS Executive,
etc.

WindEase is "unspectacular, but straightforward and essential for
anyone wanting to learn Windows," said Tim McGuiness of Bloc.
For more information, write Bloc Publishing Corp., 800 Douglas
Entrance, Executive Tower, Suite 765, Coral Gables, FL 33134 or
call 305/445-0903.

(David Needle & Computer Currents/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 NEW FOR PCS: Aristosoft Adds Sound to Windows 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00013)

NEW FOR PCS: Aristosoft Adds Sound to Windows 08/29/91
PLEASANTON, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Aristosoft,
Inc., has announced Wired For Sound, a utility that adds sound
capability to Windows software using the internal PC speaker.
No add-on cards are required.

Wired For Sound lets the user personalize the Windows desktop
with more than 50 sound effects, musical cues and voices, including
a barking dog, a cartoon bonk, a cat's meow, a doorbell and a
foghorn. These can be assigned to dialog boxes, various types of
alert boxes, application messages, system startup and exit.
A talking clock lets users set alarms (one-time, daily or weekly)
to alert a user to appointments, meetings, or weekly reports due,
using a Big Ben sound, for example. It can also speak the time
in 15-minute or hourly intervals, or sound a chime.

All sounds still work while the user is in another application,
when the alert message is buried, or in DOS. A Wired For Sound
Dynamic Link Library is included for use with macros in such
programs as Word, Excel, and Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows.
Besides being fun, the company says, Wired For Sound "also
increases productivity and responsiveness because you no longer
have to watch the screen constantly," said Aristosoft President
Ernest Priestly. "You can use sounds to immediately alert
you to problems or various operating conditions."

Customized sounds are available from the company. Aristosoft plans
to offer the capability for user-created sounds in the future.

Wired For Sound costs $49 and is available now from Aristosoft
at 6920 Koll Center Pkwy, Suite 211, Pleasanton, CA 94566.
Telephone [phone] or (outside Calif.) 800/338-2629.

(Marguerite Zientara & Computer Currents/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29  ****GATES INTROS C FOR WINDOWS, SAYS DATABASE COMING 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00014)

 ****GATES INTROS C FOR WINDOWS, SAYS DATABASE COMING 08/29/91
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- In another
apparent step to back up its recent promise for better support
for developers, Microsoft has announced Microsoft QuickC, a
graphical development environment for Windows. Microsoft says
it is the industry's first completely integrated Windows-hosted
C development system. The product announcement was made at the
Developers Tools Forum.

During the introduction of QuickC, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates
also told the assembled developers that Microsoft expects to
unveil a database product for Windows during 1992. Gates said
the front end database had been "long under development." Said
Gates, "We have been doing some front-end or stand-alone database
work for a long period of time. It's not a product that will
be shipping this year, but it is a product we hope to have out
some time next year."

Designed for programmers who may be new to the Windows
environment, tools included in the QuickC package are designed
to make Windows applications development easier, according to
Microsoft.

Programmers can also convert DOS C code quickly into
applications for the Windows environment using the Microsoft
QuickWin library. Microsoft also provides QuickCASE:W which is
designed to make building user interfaces easier.

"Our driving goal is to provide tools for PC developers that
make the most of their time and provide the best results; we
feel that QuickC for Windows meets this goal," said Fred Gray, GM
of Microsoft's languages business unit.

Other programs announced this year by Microsoft to support
developers are Visual Basic for Windows, Fortran 5.1 and COBOL
4.5. QuickC includes an interface drawing and code generator, a
C compiler, an integrated debugger and an editor. Also includes
are an image editor, a dialog editor and a resource compiler.

All the tools in QuickC including the debugger run from within
the Windows environment. Quickc for Windows also has a Toolbar
similar to the one in Word for Windows and Excel. The Toolbar
simplifies the selection of development tasks most frequently
used.

Microsoft maintains a toll free number (800-426-9400) for
product information.

(Jim Mallory/910828/Press contact: Liz Sidnam, Microsoft,
206-882-8080)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29  ****RECORD SEIZURE OF COUNTERFEIT SOFTWARE BY MS, FEDS 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00015)

 ****RECORD SEIZURE OF COUNTERFEIT SOFTWARE BY MS, FEDS 08/29/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Microsoft says
that in conjunction with US marshals, it had made the
largest seizure of counterfeit software in its history, swooping
down on Los Angeles businesses to grab $1 million worth of
allegedly counterfeit software.

The raids were made against 10 businesses and six individuals,
some of whom were owners of the businesses, in the greater Los
Angeles area, culminating four months of investigations.
According to Microsoft, the group may have been distributing
illegal software throughout the United States for more than a
year.

The company says almost 20,000 illegal packages of Microsoft
products, as well as separate look-alike copies of disks,
packaging, manuals, warranty cards, and equipment used to
manufacture them have been seized.

Illegal copies included three versions of MS-DOS, including
Version 5, which was just released, and Windows 3.0, Microsoft claimed,
adding that the seized software represented more than $1 million at
street prices.

In a suit filed in the United States District Court for the
Central District of California, Microsoft is seeking treble
damages, a permanent injunction against further counterfeiting,
attorneys fees, and possible criminal charges.

The company says it is involved in numerous ongoing
investigations to identify and take legal action against counterfeiters.
The company says collaborators such as printing companies,
binderies, graphics shops, and distributors are also being
targeted.

Bill Neukom, Microsoft's VP of law and corporate affairs, said
counterfeiting of MS-DOS is on the rise, but this was the first
time the company had found counterfeit Windows 3.0 and MS-DOS
5.0. "Software counterfeiting is illegal and results in
inferior products being sold to the public. In order to
protect our original equipment manufacturer's licensees and end
users, Microsoft will be relentless in pursuing counterfeiters
and their collaborators," said Neukom.

Defendants in this particular case include Xymox, Inc., Micro
Griffin International, Micro Aid Distributing and Micro Aid
International, owned by Soheyl and Abbas Moshtael; Williams
Lithograph and Meap Communications and Graphics, Inc., owned by
Amnon Peery; Ross Bindery; L.A. Perfect Binder; GIM Graphics,
owned by George Chacon; and Payam Golestani and Frahad Zanich.

In October of last year Microsoft and law enforcement agencies
in Taiwan smashed a counterfeit ring in Taiwan which was accused
of distributing $4.5 million worth of MS-DOS. In February of
this year, Microsoft was granted a summary judgement against
five companies and individuals who admitted they manufactured
and sold 25,000 copies of DOS. Later this year the company was
awarded what it described as "a substantial judgment" against
those same five and an additional three defendants.

Microsoft says users of its products who believe they may have a
counterfeit copy of a Microsoft copy can call Microsoft toll
free at 800-NO-COPYN (800-663-6796).

(Jim Mallory/910829/Press contact: Cathy Licht, Microsoft,
206-882-8080)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 GNP DROPS 0.1 PERCENT - U.S. STILL IN RECESSION 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00016)

GNP DROPS 0.1 PERCENT - U.S. STILL IN RECESSION 08/29/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- While President
Bush's spokespeople have spent the last month crowing over the
first "up" quarter that supposedly marked the end of the
recession here in the U.S., the Commerce Department was working
to revise and correct its preliminary GNP or gross national
product numbers as reported by Newsbytes on July 26. The
revised figures are anything but good, going from a possible
fairly strong increase to an actual noticeable decline.

A recession is by definition a drop in the GNP for two
consecutive business quarters and, as Newsbytes reported in July,
while the 0.4 percent increase reported in the preliminary
estimate would not have been a major sign of growth, it would
technically have taken the U.S. economy out of a recession and
would have been a strong indication of a turnaround.

While some analysts were talking about a very weak recovery
possibly followed by a "double-dip" recession, that is, an
economy that just barely came out of recession followed by
another recession a quarter or two later, the administration was
busily saying that the economy was strong and the President even
refused to declare an unemployment "emergency" which would have
activated extended unemployment benefits for the jobless.

At the time President Bush signed the recent extended
unemployment bill and refused to activate its provisions, he said
that unemployment had turned around with the rest of the economy.

This third consecutive quarter of falling GNP confirms the recent
analysis of trade balance figures which showed that, although
the trade deficit was falling, all indications were that this
was due to a weak economy.

The best news in the figures just released by the U.S.
Commerce Department was that the second quarter 1991 revised
figures showed a relatively tiny $1.1 billion drop in the GNP.
This one-tenth of one percent drop follows a 1.6 percent drop in
the fourth-quarter of 1990 and a large 2.8 percent drop in the
first quarter of this year, possibly showing that the economy is
leveling out, if not actually reversing direction.

One Washington insider pointed out that, while it is common
knowledge that Commerce Department preliminary figures often
suffer major revisions in the final figures which usually follow
about a month later, most insiders know that the errors are
almost always in the direction that would make the Executive
Branch's policies appear to be working better than they actually
are.

The same analyst pointed out that the stock market had just
rallied to hit historical highs because the business community
knows that a combination of rapidly approaching Presidential
election and massive foreign aid requirements of the fast-
dissolving Soviet empire will almost certainly force the hand of
the Federal Reserve Chairman, causing Mr. Greenspan to reduce
interest rates in an attempt to get the economy moving.

Added to the unemployment problem and need to help our former
enemies to prevent their reversion to a possibly hostile military
or other dictatorship, is the looming problem posed by the fact
that so many banks are in danger of collapse that the Federal
Deposit Insurance Commission fund which guarantees U.S. bank
depositors' funds in the event of bank failure is reportedly
approaching bankruptcy itself.

Most observers outside the administration see little hope to
solve these and other major problems without some sort of jump
start to get the U.S. economy moving again.

(John McCormick/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 EGGHEAD SOFTWARE HAS BEST QUARTER EVER 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00017)

EGGHEAD SOFTWARE HAS BEST QUARTER EVER 08/29/91
ISSAQUAH, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Egghead
Discount Software has reported its best quarter ever, with sales
of $185.9 million, a 29 percent increase over the same period
last year.

Egghead said the first quarter was its seventh consecutive
profitable quarter, with earnings of $2.5 million, or $.15 per
share. The first quarter last year showed earnings of $2.1
million.

DOS 5.0, released in June, was a big contributor. "We launched
our largest product promotion ever for DOS 5 from Microsoft and
IBM which substantially contributed to increased sales during
the quarter," said Egghead President Matthew Griffin.

Egghead's gross margin as a percentage of net sales was 17.8
percent in the first quarter of this year, compared to 16.8
percent last year. According to CFO Carolyn Tobias, "The
increase in gross margin resulted mainly from fixed costs, such
as retail occupancy and distribution costs remaining relatively
constant while sales increased." Tobias said improvement was
partially offset by a decline in initial margins due to
competition and the company's efforts to increase market share.
The company's selling, general, and administrative expenses
increased .5 percent for the quarter. During the reporting
period Egghead had 11 fewer stores than last year.

(Jim Mallory/910829/Press contact: Megan Mckenzie, Egghead
Discount Software, 206-391-6266)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 CADAM ENHANCES MICRO CADAM PRODUCTS 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00018)

CADAM ENHANCES MICRO CADAM PRODUCTS 08/29/91
BURBANK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Cadam, an IBM
company, announced it has upgraded its entire product line of
Micro Cadam computer-aided design (CAD) software, with a focus
on compatibility.

The enhanced software includes Micro Cadam Plus Version 1,
Release 3 (V1R3), Micro Cadam Cornerstone V1R3, Micro Cadam 3D
V1R3, Micro Cadam Data Transfer V1R3, Micro Cadam Geometry
Interface V1R3, and Micro Cadam Data Exchange V1R1, the company
said.

A enhanced Data Manager utility allows CAD users to organize
and manage thousands of designs or drawings, Cadam said. The
Data Manager product also allows exchanges between the
mainframe and Professional Cadam products, the company said.

The Geometry Interface now allows programming access to the
database product, the company said.

The Plus product and the Cornerstone products, both 32-bit
drafting tools for 386 or 486-based computers, now allow the
user the ability to create operation macros, a production tool
for the creation of similar or parametric parts, the company
said. The goal is to compress repetitive operations and shorten
the drawing time, Cadam said.

Cadam says it has added features from its mainframe and
workstation products to the Plus and Cornerstone products. New
dimensioning capability has been added for compliance with
national and international dimension standards, as well as
variable text symbol ability for the creation of special
symbols.

Hardcopy plotting now can be done in batch mode, so users can
schedule unattended plotting, Cadam said. The capability also
adds the benefit of plot spooling or plotting on a network.

Cadam says its 3D product is the first integrated desktop 3D
package. The company points out the Micro Cadam 3D product now
has new surface interaction features and the ability to
generate solid objects from 3D wireframe data. The 3D product
can also intersect 3D surfaces with cutting planes and other
surfaces and the resulting curves can be used in parts
manufacture and interference analysis.

David Grazier, director of strategic marketing said, "These new
functions for the Micro Cadam product family underscore Cadam's
goal to provide productive, efficient design tools for real-
world environments." Grazier said the Micro Cadam software
enhancements "...raise the level of integration compatibility
for those who use Cadam on other platforms."

The enhanced products are priced as follows: Cornerstone $2995,
Plus $3995, 3D $1200, Data Transfer $1500, Geometry Interface
$500, and Data Exchange $1500, Cadam said.

Cadam's corporate headquarters is at 1935 N. Buena Vista,
Burbank, CA 91504, telephone [phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/199108029/Press Contact: Lisa Kelaita, Miller
Communications, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 FUJITSU PARTNERS WITH HAL TO COMPETE WITH IBM 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00019)

FUJITSU PARTNERS WITH HAL TO COMPETE WITH IBM 08/29/91
CAMPBELL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Hal, a
company founded in 1990 by Andrew R. Heller who was an employee
of IBM, has received a $40.2 million shot-in-the-arm from
Fujitsu which hopes with Hal to move in on the IBM mainframe
market.

Heller, who started the company with an associate whose last
name begins with "L" -- hence the name Hal -- was an IBM fellow
and general manager of the unit that produced IBM workstations
until a disagreement with IBM over the management structure
reportedly caused him to leave the company.

Now Hal says it produces a family of high performance open
systems based on the Sun SPARC architecture and the Unix
operating system.

In a press conference, Hal and Fujitsu outlined plans to
jointly attempt to build "transaction processing" systems, the
type used by airlines, banks, and insurance companies.
Transaction processing systems are designed for the heavy load
of thousands of queries from users and are dominated by
mainframe computers made provided mostly by IBM.

Hal officials said the company plans to build a system based on
the Sun Microsystems microprocessor design, but altering it to
get the performance necessary for transaction processing.

The company admits breaking into the transaction processing
market could be difficult, but plans to deliver more power at
lower prices. Heller said, "We expect to build things that are
fast - and faster." The company also plans to attract customers
by allowing users to use software written for other computers,
especially the Unix operating system.

Fujitsu said it plans to donate its resources in semiconductor
processing, its patent portfolio, systems engineering and
distribution channels to the effort, but to allow Hal's current
management group to continue to run the company.

Fujitsu plans to manufacture the designs Hal produces, and will
have full distribution rights in Japan as well as limited
rights to the designs produced by Hal, the company said.

With the merger, Fujitsu now owns 44 percent of Hal's stock,
with Hal employees controlling the rest. Hal employs 140 people
in California and Texas.

Hal Computer Systems headquarters is at 1315 Dell Ave.,
Campbell, CA 95008; and its software engineering is at 8920
Business Park Drive, Suite 300, Austin, Texas 78759.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108029/Press Contact: Pam Sloane, Hal
Computer Systems, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 CORPORATE SOFTWARE FIRST MULTI-NATIONAL NOTES RESELLER 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00020)

CORPORATE SOFTWARE FIRST MULTI-NATIONAL NOTES RESELLER 08/29/91
CANTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Lotus
Development has authorized Corporate Software to resell its Notes
work-group software in the United States, Canada, and the United
Kingdom. Corporate Software is the first company to receive such
authorization in more than one country.

Corporate Software also announced new systems integration services
meant to help customers implement Notes and develop Notes
applications.

Integration Services for Notes are available to new and existing
Notes customers, Corporate Software announced. While Corporate
Software offers Notes in any quantity, the company has created
"Notes Starter Kits" that bundle smaller quantities of Notes with
evaluation support.

"Starter kits, bundled with expert evaluation support, enable new
Notes customers to pilot-test the product in their business
environment," said Kevin Brown, corporate software director of
services marketing, in a prepared statement.

Lotus Notes lets users create and access shared information using
networked PCs. It is meant for creating document-oriented
applications such as customer tracking group discussions, project
management, document libraries, and news wire services.

Notes can handle compound documents made up of text, numbers,
keywords, graphs, images and "rich text" (font support, color,
mixed data types). Lotus Notes runs on IBM and compatible personal
computers attached to local-area networks.

Corporate Software took part in the beta testing of Notes and
developed several applications, including a product evaluation
application and tracking systems for service and sales management.

Corporate Software sells personal computer products and related
services in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, and the
United Kingdom.

(Grant Buckler/19910829/Press Contact: Chris Ward, Corporate
Software, 617-828-7727 ext. 1027)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 SPINNAKER SOFTWARE'S ANNUAL LOSS REDUCED 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00021)

SPINNAKER SOFTWARE'S ANNUAL LOSS REDUCED 08/29/91
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- With an
increase in revenues to US$15.9 million from US$13.7 million,
Spinnaker Software has reported a reduced net loss in the fiscal
year ended June 30. The company lost US$759,200, compared to a net
loss of US$2.1 million in the previous fiscal year.

The company said it has completed a two-year corporate
repositioning strategy and a year-long series of major product
introductions, strategic partnerships, buy-outs, and joint
technology agreements.

Spinnaker reported a record 109-percent increase in revenue for its
fourth quarter. Quarterly revenue was US$6.4 million, up from
US$3.1 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1990. Net income was
US$315,263, versus a net loss of US$694,120 for the same period in
1990.

The fourth quarter was Spinnaker's second consecutive profitable
quarter. The company lost money in five quarters running, ending
with the second quarter of fiscal 1991, company spokesman Ron
Goldfuss said.

C. David Seuss, chairman and chief executive officer of Spinnaker
Software, said in a press release that the results "support the
strategy we adopted two years ago of repositioning Spinnaker away
from the consumer categories of education and entertainment
software; further expanding our already strong position in the
high-growth home office and small business software market; and
entering the emerging end-user data access and applications
development software market."

In January, as part of its repositioning strategy, Spinnaker
acquired the PFS: line of simple applications programs from
Software Publishing and organized into two major divisions. The
PFS: division sells those applications, mainly to home office and
small-business customers, while the Plus division sells Spinnaker's
Plus hypermedia software in versions for the Apple Macintosh and
IBM and compatible PCs.

In May, Spinnaker set up an international business division to
develop new markets and distribution networks in Europe and to form
partnerships with prominent European software firms to develop and
sell localized versions of Spinnaker Plus and PFS: software.

Goldfuss said Spinnaker expects continued profits in the coming
quarters, though he cautioned that the first quarter of the fiscal
year is always a difficult one for the company because retail
software sales tend to slow in the summer months.

(Grant Buckler/19910829/Press Contact: Ron Goldfuss, Spinnaker,
617-494-1200 ext. 270; Douglas Campbell, Spinnaker Software,
617-494-1200 ext. 357)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29  ****STRATFORD SOFTWARE -- SUZY -- FUTURE IN DOUBT 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00022)

 ****STRATFORD SOFTWARE -- SUZY -- FUTURE IN DOUBT 08/29/91
BURNABY, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Officials of
Stratford Software, operator of the national online network Suzy,
say they will consider closing the company if alternate financing
cannot be found. The Becker Group of Companies, of Edmonton,
Alberta, has withdrawn its offer to provide C$500,000 in financing
to the company in exchange for voting control.

Discussions are under way with under investors, the company said in
a terse press release, but "the Board recognizes the necessity for
additional financing in order to continue operations."

When the Becker Group deal was announced in May, Stratford
President Thompson McKie told Newsbytes the company had been "on
virtually cruise control shall we say since last year because we
saw the bottom of the barrel coming up." Stratford cut back its
staff late last year as its capital began to run out.

McKie could not be reached for further comment by Newsbytes'
deadline today.

Formerly Bedford Software, the company sold its line of accounting
software and its old name to Computer Associates in the summer of
1989, in order to raise capital to launch the Suzy service in
April, 1990.

(Grant Buckler/19910829/Press Contact: Thompson J. McKie, Stratford
Software, 604-439-1311, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 UNIX INDIAN VERSION FROM AT&T USL 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(DEL)(00023)

UNIX INDIAN VERSION FROM AT&T USL 08/29/91
BANGALORE, INDIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- In its drive to make Unix a
truly open system, AT&T Unix System Laboratories has divulged its plan
to introduce an Indian version of Unix System V Release 4.0, in
partnership with the Bangalore-based Wipro Information Technology
Ltd.

Indian System Messages in Devanagari script (Hindi) have been
implemented under Unix SVR 4.0 and Multi-National Language Supplement
(MNLS). The project is being carried out in close cooperation with
other Indian government bodies like the Commission for Scientific
and Technical Terminology (CSTT) and the Department for Electronics.

This is the first multiuser operating system capable of working fully
in Indian scripts. It uses the eight-bit ISCII code set in GIST
technology, developed by C-DAC, Pune, and displays all Unix messages
in Indian scripts. The system also does all data processing in 8-bit
ISCII scripts. Many foreign languages like German, French, Italian,
Japanese, Chinese, and now Devangari, are implemented under Unix SVR 4.0.
The phonetic nature of the Indian scripts makes it easy for all Devangari
messages to be automatically translated into any other Indian script
on the computer terminal. There is no limitation on the number of
languages this system can support simultaneously.

Under Unix SVR 4.0 MNLS and the Indian System Messages environment,
Indian users can now develop a single program that is message-
independent and does input/output in the native language of the user of
his terminal. Various Indian users can work simultaneously on the
computer system and interact in their desired languages as the Unix
system now supports all Indian scripts. According to AT&Tm this new
software product is due out by September 1.

(J. Srihari Raju/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 ROSS ACQUIRES PIONEER GROUP OF U.K. 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00024)

ROSS ACQUIRES PIONEER GROUP OF U.K. 08/29/91
REDWOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Ross Systems,
Inc., makers of DEC VAX application software, has acquired Pioneer
Computer Group Ltd. of the UK. for approximately $9.3 million.

Pioneer makes manufacturing systems and 4th generation languages for
DEC machines, including Promix for processing manufacturers,
Command for discrete manufacturing operations, and Gembase 4GL
for relational database environments.

"This acquisition provides Ross with a particularly powerful solution for
the expanding process manufacturing market," said Dennis V. Vohs, Ross
Systems chairman and chief executive officer. "Pioneer's powerful
Promix series for process manufacturers meets market needs because
it was developed by process experts."

Ross Systems, Inc., was among the first companies to offer commercial
accounting software for the Digital VAX computer. It's a
$60 million company that develops and markets a broad range of
application software and is located at 555 Twin Dolphin Drive, Redwood
City, CA 94065; telephone [phone].

(Wendy Woods/19910829/Press Contact: Denise O'Connor,
404-851-1872, or Barbara Kline of BKMPR, 408-356-4264, for Ross
Systems)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 BULL RAISES SHARE IN INDIAN AFFILIATE 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEL)(00025)

BULL RAISES SHARE IN INDIAN AFFILIATE 08/29/91
BANGALORE, INDIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Group Bull of France has raised
its stock share in its Indian affiliate, PSI Data Systems, from 36 percent
to 40 percent, while Tate Electric Co. (TEC) of the Tata group of companies
 -- the largest industrial group in India -- is picking up 10.47 percent.
"A purely financial arrangement," is how the partners describe the
deal.

The alliance marks the end of a long search for a reliable partner,
ever since the Indian promoters of PSI-Bull decided to liquidate their
holdings in the company over a year ago.

Bagalore-based PSI is one of the first strong R&D Indian computer
companies. It came into the fold of Bull two years ago when the latter
was looking for an Indian partner. PSI had, by then, losses mounting
and was found wanting in marketing skills. Taking over the management,
Bull decided to pull out of its PC business and concentrate on making
and marketing its DRS range of mainframes. The move proved fruitful
and the company was successful in making a dent in the mainframe
market dominated by, apart from imports from IBM and Unisys, the
other two Indian mainframe makers -- ICIM and ECIL. It soon
introduced the DRX range of Unix-based superminicomputers too.

For Tata heavyweights, it enables further inroads into the Indian computer
industry that it already dominates in many segments. Tate Consultancy
Services is the largest Indian software company with international
operations in 22 countries. Tata Unisys Ltd. is a joint venture
with Unisys and the second largest Indian software exporter, next only
to TCS. Tata Elxsi is yet another mainframe venture based in the US and
Singapore; it recently moved to Bangalore with reported plans to make
IRIS workstations in collaboration with Silicon Graphics. Then
there is Tata's Nelco which makes PCs and a Unix range of systems.
Tata Honeywell, finally, makes process control equipment and Tata
Telecom spans into office automation.

(J. Srihari Raju/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 ORACLE STEPS UP INDIAN OPERATIONS 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEL)(00026)

ORACLE STEPS UP INDIAN OPERATIONS 08/29/91
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Oracle Corporation has opened
its India liaison office in New Delhi. This office will act as "a
gateway between the Indian user community and Oracle's worldwide
capabilities," said Peter Liljegren, vice president, Oracle Corp.,
"The objective is to facilitate two-way transfer of technology between
Indian users, Indian hardware and software suppliers, and the rest
of Oracle's world," he added.

Oracle's principal product, the relational database management system,
was until now being distributed in India by Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS). While TCS will continue its distributorship, the liaison office will
mainly concentrate on promotion of Oracle products in India.

As several user groups expressed their dissatisfaction with the level
of existing support facilities, Oracle decided to increase its direct
presence. Hirendra Gupta, the newly appointed country manager for India
of Oracle, promises faster customer support, as the office would
soon have an electronic mail facility, among other assets.

In line with the value added reseller agreements, the Indian office will
identify Indian software houses that could be potential VARs of Oracle.
Oracle is also considering several product localization projects for the
Indian market, including Hindi language support. This will greatly facilitate
usage of Oracle RDBMS in government and local bodies in India. In addition,
Oracle is considering several training and promotion programs for Indian
software developers.

Oracle is not alone to have a free sweep in the RDBMS market that is
heating up here. Sybase is represented by NIIT (National Institute of
Information Technology), India's top computer training institute with
strong wings for consultancy and software development services.
NIIT has recently released, at CeBIT 91, an Oracle-to-Sybase
converter package called Migrator. Ingres, Unify, and Informix have
all been entrenched through their own representations in the Indian
market.

(J. Sirhari Raju/19910829)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 SUN IN OEM TELECOM DEAL WITH COMPUTER CONSOLES 08/29/91

08/29/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00027)

SUN IN OEM TELECOM DEAL WITH COMPUTER CONSOLES 08/29/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- In an
effort to expand its stake in the telecommunications market, Sun
Microsystems has signed a multi-year, OEM (original equipment
manufacturing) agreement with Computer Consoles (CCI). Under
the agreement, CCI will resell Sun SPARC computers as a platform
for its telecommunications products.

Sid Arora, market segment manager for Sun, told Newsbytes that
the agreement was a "significant" one for the company in that,
apart from being a "good business deal," it also "gets Sun
into the area of advanced intelligent networks."

According to CCI, the Sun systems will support the company's
integration of database, call processing, and audio subsystems for
applications such as directory assistance, toll, intercept and various
voice processing services.

Arora told Newsbytes that the agreement represents "the direction
that the industry is taking" with regards telecommunications. Both
CCI and Sun also see it as indicative of the market's move
towards open systems architecture.

"We see Sun a strong business partner and the SPARC/Unix
platform as the right strategic choice to meet our customers'
long-term needs," said David Jankowski CCI's manager of
platform products.

CCI believes that the Sun platform will meet both current and
future needs of the telephone companies that it serves,
including directory assistance, toll and assist, and intercept
services.

Arora told Newsbytes that "the importance for Sun....is that it
shows the industry what Sun offers in terms of platforms and
technology....and that these are what the industry needs."

CCI maintains that future applications will allow callers to access
a wide range of information databases as well as conduct voice,
data and image transactions through automated attendants,
direct access, and operators performing multiple tasks from a
single workstation.

Bruce Golden, director of commercial market development at
Sun, said, "(CCI's) selection of the Sun platform clearly
demonstrates how Sun's products are shaping
telecommunications technology, particularly the consolidation
of operator services onto the desktop."

Arora told Newsbytes that Sun's strategic partnership agreements
in May with AT&T Computer Systems and Anixter Brothers for
networking services and components were going well. At that time,
Sun also renewed a contract with Cabletron for similar products
and services.

Sun maintains that those agreements were part of a series based on
its "open service" concept of leveraging the products and expertise
of its partners to offer customers "one-stop shopping" for their
service needs. The company maintains it has more than 90 service
partnership agreements with companies worldwide.

(Ian Stokell/19910829/Press Contact: Whitney Greer, Sun
Microsystems Inc., 415-336-0598)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 SILICON VALLEY GROUP RESTRUCTURES 08/29/91

08/29/91



(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00028)

SILICON VALLEY GROUP RESTRUCTURES 08/29/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- In an effort it
claims will concentrate resources and better serve customers,
Silicon Valley Group has consolidated its sales and service
operations into a single corporate entity.

Carol Durrant, spokesperson for SVG, told Newsbytes that the
company was "finding that account management works better
under a unified structure.....where a customer could call their
sales representative and talk about any of our products."

The company's Track Systems, Thermco Systems and SVG
Lithography Systems had previously operated sales and
service functions independently.

Apart from pooling resources, Durrant also said that the company
intends to expand its cross training and cross utilization programs
to meet customer requirements.

Charles R. Joseph will head the new organization, and has
been promoted to corporate vice president of worldwide field
operations. He will also guide all corporate communication
activities.

According to the company, the field operations organization will
also serve as a link between the customer and SVG's three
business units, conveying new process and product mandates to
ensure that development efforts are in sync with the customers
emerging requirements.

(Ian Stokell/19910829/Press Contact: Carol Durrant, Silicon Valley
Group Inc., 408-432-9300)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 CORRECTION: WORKSTATIONS SALES UP 40%, SAYS DATAQUEST 08/29/91

08/29/91


(CORRECTION)(UNIX)(LAX)(00029)

CORRECTION: WORKSTATIONS SALES UP 40%, SAYS DATAQUEST 08/29/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Newsbytes wishes
to correct a reference, in a story of this title which ran August 28,
to the leading workstation makers as compiled by Dataquest.

Digital Equipment Corporation, not Digital Research, showed significant
gains, according to Dataquest. Digital Research is a maker of software,
including DR-DOS, not workstations, as is Digital Equipment Corporation.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: Mary Hand, Dataquest,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 MITSUBISHI'S LESS EXPENSIVE, SMALLER INFRARED CAMERA 08/29/91

08/29/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00030)

MITSUBISHI'S LESS EXPENSIVE, SMALLER INFRARED CAMERA 08/29/91
CYPRESS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Mitsubishi
Electronics America announced a new, more compact and less
expensive thermal imager, the IR-M500, also known in more
popular terms as an "infrared camera."

The new camera weighs 17.6 pounds without the lens and is about
the size of a small video camera at 5.4 inches wide and six
inches high, the company said.

The thermal imager's capacity to convert heat patterns, not
available visually, to visible images allows for detection of
objects regardless of illumination or the presence of smoke or
mist, Mitsubishi said.

Applications for thermal imaging used to be exclusively
military and defense related, but have now branched into
security, surveillance, tracking, non-destructive evaluation,
research and development, said Lori Rosenblatt, product manager
for Mitsubishi's IR-M500. Rosenblatt gave a couple of
examples of non-military uses of the camera like finding the
center of a forest fire from the air or finding a bubble or a
tear in a piece of aluminum, called non-destructive evaluation.

Rosenblatt pointed out the major difference in this camera is
the resolution of the images it produces. 260,000 pixels
translates to about 512 by 512 dots per inch and is the
difference between seeing a blob on another thermal imager, or
seeing a person's face with the IR-M500.

Also, a cryogenic Sterling cycle cooler eliminates the former
need for a cooling gas cylinder or liquid nitrogen and insures
continuous operation of the system, the company said.

Since the camera is capable of both RS-170 analog and RS-422
digital output, its signals can be transmitted and it can be
used for communication as well, Rosenblatt said.

The camera comes with the camera head, a 50 millimeter lens, an
AC adapter, cabling and a palm-sized wired remote controller,
the company said.

The price is lower too, at $75,000 as opposed to $90,000 to
$130,000 for other thermal imaging cameras, Rosenblatt said.
The new camera is even less expensive than its predecessor, the
IR-5120C which was priced originally at $95,000 and recently
lowered to $83,000, said Rosenblatt.

The new camera is expected to be available in December of this
year through Mitsubishi.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108029/Press Contact: Lori Rosenblatt,
Mitsubishi, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD



#CARD::1991 AUG 28 PACIFIC BELL TO TEST FIBER-TO-THE-CURB 08/28/91

08/28/91



(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00001)

PACIFIC BELL TO TEST FIBER-TO-THE-CURB 08/28/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) --
Pacific Bell will launch small-scale trials of "fiber-to-the-curb"
running phone services through fiber cables which extend all the
way to neighborhood converters located on telephone poles or
along streets.

Telecommunication equipment suppliers have been pushing such
systems this year, claiming they are now cost-competitive with
copper wires. Besides, the suppliers claim, the fiber systems can
be set-up to provide TV services once regulatory approval for
that is granted.

The seven regional Bell companies have been moving slowly
toward embracing the technology, however, and Pacific Bell's
approach is typical. The first test has just begun in La Crescenta
and a second is scheduled for Hawthorne in the fall of 1992.
PacBell emphasized that the tests are only testing regular voice
service, hoping to get better signal quality without extra expense.

Raynet, which has been among the most forthright in making cost
comparisons with copper, will provide equipment for the La
Crescenta test, running fiber along aerial wires in an existing
subdivision to about 300 homes.

At the Supercomm trade show early this year, Raynet officials
demonstrated to Newsbytes how their Loop Optical Carrier-2
system and RIDES operations support system can be quickly
converted - with the addition of a circuit card - from "plain old
telephone service" to enhanced video services.

The Hawthrone test will take place in a new high-density
development, and an equipment supplier for it has not yet been
chosen.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910828/Press Contact: Pacific Bell, Scott E.
Smith, 415/542-0597)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 SW BELL MEXICO BET PAYING OFF 08/28/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00002)

SW BELL MEXICO BET PAYING OFF 08/28/91
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO, 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) -- Southwestern
Bell's decision to buy into, and take operational responsibility for,
Mexico's TelMex phone monopoly, is paying off.

Mexican stocks have been climbing to a succession of record highs,
with the Bolsa Price Index closing August 27 at 1,249.67. The rise is
being led by Telmex, whose price rose 4.67 percent on that day
alone, based on reports of great third quarter results. The
company's stock has also been active, and its price rising, on
the New York Stock Exchange.

Mexico's government has taken advantage by re-privitizing the
nation's banks, which were privitized a decade ago. Optimism over
a possible Free Trade Agreement with the U.S. and Canada, along
with continuing investment in high-labor industries from the
north, have fueled the rise. One Mexican business magazine,
Expansion, reported recently the top 500 companies there
recorded a sales increase of over 25 percent in the last year.

TelMex still has big problems though, and billions will be needed
to bring service anywhere near U.S. standards. SW Bell has tried
new technologies like the Ultraphone, which uses cellular radio
techniques to deliver landline phone service in rural areas, but
it can still take months to get a new phone put into service, and
TelMex's cellular competitors are doing big business.

Many companies will not wait for TelMex. Banca Serfin, which is
still owned by the government, announced it is buying a satellite
data system from Scientific-Atlanta to link its Mexico City
headquarters with 172 branch banks throughout the country, one
of the largest such networks in Latin America. Scientific-Atlanta
estimates the contract is worth $4 million. The branches will
each get very small satellite dishes, while the main office will
be served by a giant dish linked to the main office by wires. The
system will be completed by the end of the year.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910828)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 NEW FOR PC:  Electronic Coloring Books For Kids 08/28/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00003)

NEW FOR PC:  Electronic Coloring Books For Kids 08/28/91
TOLEDO, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- If your children like
to paint by the numbers, they should like two new programs just
introduced by Craft House Corporation, who made
"Paint-By-Numbers" a popular hobby with adults and children
alike.

Barbie PC Fashion Design & Color, which Craft House says is the
first design and color software program developed exclusively
for girls, allows the user to create a Barbie "scene" by selecting
from a variety of outfits and changing the backgrounds.

"She can send Barbie to a fashion show, on a vacation, or out on
a shopping spree" says Dan Johns, Craft House VP of marketing.
Johns says children want to become part of the activity they are
playing, and Barbie PC Fashion Design & Color gives girls the
opportunity to make decisions, experiment with colors and make
changes quickly.

Craft's second offering is Columbus Discovers America PC
Coloring Program.  Johns describes program as an
"Edu-tainment" product, combining an educational introduction to
Columbus' journey to the New World with the fun of coloring.

The program displays ten authentic and detailed scenes depicting
Columbus' adventures.  Each scene also contains educational
captions that tell the story of the historical voyage.  The user
can select from any one of the story panels and color it to create
a personalized scene.

Bill Giacci, software product manager for Craft, says Columbus
has 16 colors to choose from, and you can mix them to create
your own colors by using the "Paint-Mix" feature.  According to
Giacci: "Today's kids are very visually oriented.  They like to
create bold-colored graphics, experiment with different color
combinations and change images."  Giacci says the program will
help a child become comfortable with a personal computer.

Both programs require an IBM or compatible, 640 kilobytes of
RAM, and an EGA or VGA color monitor.

Johns told Newsbytes that there are no plans for a "Ken" program,
nor for a Macintosh edition at present.  Johns said both programs
would probably find their market with the K-8 grades.

Barbie has a suggested list price of 29.95, while Columbus sells
for 14.95.  Either program can be ordered on 5.25-inch or 3.5-inch
disks, and Johns said a special dual edition is available (with
both size disks) for slightly more. For more information Craft
House can be reached at 800-537-0295.

(Jim Mallory/19910828/Press contact: Dan Johns, Craft House,
419-536-8351)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 CODAR INTROS 28.5 MIPS RUGGEDIZED SPARCSTATION 8/28/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(UNIX)(DEN)(00004)

CODAR INTROS 28.5 MIPS RUGGEDIZED SPARCSTATION 8/28/91
LONGMONT, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Codar
Technology has introduced another entry in its line of ruggedized
SPARC  workstations, the 305M-S2.

The new model, which is rated at 28.5 million-instructions-per-second
(MIPS), is based on Sun Microsystems SPARCstation 2, and
includes a ruggedized keyboard and trackball, and a ruggedized
TEMPEST system chassis.  TEMPEST is a program which specifies
standards for computer hardware used to store classified material.

The 305M-S2 was designed and tested for a variety of
mission-critical military applications including ground-mobile,
shipboard and airborne environments.  The unit provides shock
and vibration isolation for the CPU (central processor unit) and up
to two full-height or four half-height 5.25-inch removable SCSI (Small
Computer System Interface) peripherals, which allow a total of two
gigibytes (GB) of disk storage.  The system suypports up to 10
GBs of total on-line storage through the external SCSI port.

Codar says the 305M-S2 is designed for a mean-time between
failures of 21,500 hours.  It uses hermetically-packaged integrated
circuits, coated printed circuit assemblies, military grade
components, and MIL-SPEC connectors.  The company says the
systems have been formally verified using accelerated vibration
and environmental testing procedures designed to simulate a
lifetime of field use.

Built-in test capabilities include status of temperature, AC and
DC voltages, power supply load, date, time and fault conditions
on a 16-character front panel.  An option allows fault reporting
to the CPU or to the console through two RS-232 serial ports.

Like other members of the 305M family, some components of the
system can be replaced while the workstation is operational.
Available options include a storage subsystem that supports up
to four 5.25-inch SCSI disk or tape drives, a fiberoptic LAN (local
area network), optical disk drives, a mouse and a 28 volt DV
power supply.

(Jim Mallory/19910828/Press contact: Barbara Evans, Codar,
303-776-0472, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 AT&T ENHANCES MERLIN PHONE LINE, EXPANDS IN JAPAN 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00005)

AT&T ENHANCES MERLIN PHONE LINE, EXPANDS IN JAPAN 08/28/91
PARSIPPANY, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) --
AT&T is improving its Merlin cordless phone and PBX (private
branch exchange) systems for small businesses, with a new unit
called the Legend which delivers advanced applications to
companies with as few as 10 phones.

The products, due in October, will list for about $595 per worker,
including installation. The older Partner II system will list for $490
per worker.

Both systems provide the same features as corded phones, and
the Legend is said to be easy to upgrade, handling up to 80
telephone lines and 144 extensions. It is also with compatible with
digital services under ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network)
standards, which can handle voice, data or video images.
The Legend also has large screen displays to guide users
through features -- the displays are the latest move in merging
phone features with computer functions.

The Partner II can handle up to 16 telephone lines and 48
extensions, and can share extensions with fax machines,
answering machines, modems, credit card readers and
single-line phones -- eliminating the need for adapters and
dedicated telephone lines.

Chairman Robert E. Allen also said the company will expand its
Japanese workforce by 1,200 people by 1995, bringing the total to
6,000. AT&T currently employs about 600 people in Japan, and
plans to increase that to 1,600 by 1995, while NCR employs 4,200.
Allen said the company is considering adding production
facilities in the country, but nothing has been decided yet.

Allen also took the opportunity of his trip to Tokyo to lecture
the Japanese on the beauty of competition. Japan, like the U.S.,
has been trying to break up its "Bell System," in this case the
NTT domestic and KDD international phone monopolies. KDD
now has some competitors, while NTT has been privitized and
had been due to be split-up until a sharp drop in its stock price
forced a reevaluation.

Allen claimed in a speech before the Federation of Economic
Organizations that U.S. long distance competition has dropped
prices over 40 percent since 1984, when the AT&T break-up into
long distance and regional units was made final. More than 320
companies currently offer long distance services to American
customers, but only three -- AT&T, MCI and Sprint -- have much
market share and AT&T still holds an estimated 70 percent of the
market.

Allen does not want AT&T's step-children, the seven regional Bell
companies, to make equipment, as proposed in a bill now making
its way through Congress. That bill contains a stiff domestic-
content provision and President Bush has threatened a veto. Allen
claims that if the manufacturing ban were lifted, the regionals
would buy only from themselves and re-create the monopolies of
eight years ago.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910828/Press Contact: Walter Murphy, AT&T,
908-221-6900, Sue Fleming, 201/581-5619)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 MCI TO HANDLE NEW EQUIFAX CALL CENTER 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00006)

MCI TO HANDLE NEW EQUIFAX CALL CENTER 08/28/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) -- MCI will
handle the toll-free line to Equifax' new Information Service Center,
which will open in December.

The new center will advertise a single number through which
consumers can receive credit reporting information from Equifax.
MCI will also provide call routing and emergency routing features
for the center, which will be the national hub for Equifax consumer
credit reporting.

Specifically, Equifax will get Dialed Number Identification
Service, or DNIC, allowing calls to be routed automatically to
operators serving different parts of the country. The coutract is
worth about $10 million. Equifax' revenues for 1990 were over $1
billion.

Also, MCI extended its Call Pacific Plan to the Philippines. That
means that for $3 per month, consumers can call the country for
77 cents per minute. The plan also extends to calls made to
Australia, Guam, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New
Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand, between 10 P.M.
and 2 P.M. on weekdays and all weekend until 2 P.M Monday.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910828/Press Contact: Debra Shriver, MCI,
703-415-6904, Steve Fox, MCI, 404-668-6056)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 ALTOS ENCOURAGES X WINDOWS DEVELOPERS  08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00007)

ALTOS ENCOURAGES X WINDOWS DEVELOPERS  08/28/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Altos has
announced it is attempting to draw developers into the workstation
market with an eye to increasing the number of commercial
software programs for the X Window system developed by Altos,
a division of Acer.

X Windows is a graphical user interface (GUI) and the base
system to the Open System Foundation (OSF)/Motif GUI used in
the Unix operating system on workstations.

A study just released by Dataquest, a market research firm,
showed a 40 percent increase in workstation sales in the last
year. Tom Moore, senior consultant at International Data
Corporation predicts GUI Unix applications could triple by the
end of 1993 from 15,000 to 50,000 sites.

Altos wants to take advantage of this predicted upswing. The
company presented its AXAP program to over 500 software
developers at the Santa Cruz Operation (SCO) Forum '91, a Unix
developers conference, the company said.

Altos said it is offering incentives to developers such as
co-marketing programs including participation on nationwide
seminars for end users, value-added resellers and systems
integrators, and demonstration tapes of the developer's software
shipped with every Open Desktop system Altos sells.

In addition, an AXAP software catalog is planned, and
developers are being promised highlights at tradeshows with
Altos. Altos is also offering X tool kits and training in X
development.

Altos, recently acquired by the Acer Group, says it designs,
manufactures and markets networked multiuser software in 60
countries. The company reported it was ranked the number one
computer manufacturer in VARBUSINESS magazine's 1990 Report
Card Issue.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: Debra Moses, Hi-Tech,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 INDIA EXPANDS ACCESS TO COMMERCIAL SATELLITE IMAGES 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00008)

INDIA EXPANDS ACCESS TO COMMERCIAL SATELLITE IMAGES 08/28/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) -- China's
Xinhua news agency reports that India's Space Research
Organization will soon go into the business of selling images of
the Earth, following the August 29 launch of its second remote-
sensing satellite.

The new satellite, which will eventually be part of a network of four
satellites, will be placed in polar orbit aboard a Soviet Vostok
rocket leaving the Baikonur Cosmodrome.

Once the new satellite goes up, ISRO proposes to offer ground
stations presently able to take data from the French Spot or U.S.
Landsat systems direct access to the Indian satellite imagery.

India's space agency will supply the technology to upgrade the
ground station. For the last three years, Indian ground stations
have been acting as a clearinghouse for the images. The other
two satellites in this series are scheduled for launch in 1993
and 1996.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910828)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 KEY TRONIC LOSES $7.7 MILLION FOR 1991 FY 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00009)

KEY TRONIC LOSES $7.7 MILLION FOR 1991 FY 08/28/91
SPOKANE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) --
Key Tronic Corporation, manufacturer of various computer input
devices including keyboards, says it had a net loss of $7.7 million
on net sales of $141 million for the year ending June 30, 1991.

The loss means a $1 per share loss for stockholders, compared to
the $0.18 gain last year when Key Tronic reported a net income of
$1.5 million on sales of $140.2 million.

In the fourth quarter the company says it lost $7.6 million, or
$0.98 per share on sales of $28.7 million.  Last year the fourth
quarter produced net income of $1.8 million, or $0.23 per share.

Key Tronic maintains that the loss for the quarter was largely a
result of continued weak demand for the company's products, as
well as increased development costs.

Included in the results for the fourth quarter were  provisions of $4.2
million and another $545,000 for restructuring the company's
notebook computer operations and a write-down in the realizable
value of an equity investee.  The company also recorded a gain of
$597,000 on the sale during the quarter of an idle manufacturing
facility.

(Jim Mallory/910828/Press contact: Steven Benner, Key Tronic,
509-928-8000)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 PC RENTAL FIRMS CAN NOW BUY IBM PCS 08/28/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00010)

PC RENTAL FIRMS CAN NOW BUY IBM PCS 08/28/91
MIAMI, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Reversing their
long-standing policy, IBM now says it will sell personal computers
to approved computer rental firms.

The first company to benefit from the change in policy is Miami-
based Keystone Business Systems, a Florida franchisee of PCR
Computer Rentals, as it announced IBM had agreed for it to
become an authorized dealer.

Paul Ewing, Keystone president with two PCR franchise stores in
Miami and Orlando, expressed pleasure that the stores can now
advertise themselves as IBM-authorized rental dealers.

"This is brand new, and we think it's exciting and revolutionary,"
said Ewing. "The computer rental industry is fairly young.  The fact
that IBM has taken this step tells the world that we do indeed exist,
and provide a valuable service."

PCR Personal Computer Rentals says it is the nation's largest
computer rental network, with 65 locations natioinwide. Keystone,
maintains that it is the largest owner/operator of PCR franchises.

Ewing said that IBM first approached him in June of this year,
and after a review of the strength and stability of his operation,
approved the renting of IBM PCs at two of his locations.

Keystone says it can either buy IBM PCs directly from the
manufacturer or from an IBM distributor.  He said he chose to
buy his systems from IBM distributor Caber Systems.

Ewing also said that IBM representatives atttended a PCR
meeting to let the franchisees know of its change in attitude about
rentals.  Approval for other PCR locations may be forthcoming.

Ewing said that between IBM's change of heart about rentals, and
Apple's recent announcement that they too would authorize rental
dealers for the Macintosh line, it is a tremendous vote of
confidence in the computer rental industry.

Anthony Meduri, president of PCR told Newsbytes that he felt the
association with the IBM brand name would be a tremendous boost
for his organization.  Meduri says his network of franchisees
handle about 6,000 rental orders each month.  Depending on the
configuration of the system (such as RAM, display, hard drive size)
rentals range from $63 to over $700 for a one week rental.  PCR
rents IBM and compatibles, laptops and Macintosh machines.

Meduri said: "With the IBM authorization, just having that name
as a business partner, makes PCR stronger and gives us a better
identity."

(Jim Mallory/910828/Press contact: Stephanie Perlmutter, S&S
Public Relations, 708-291-1616)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 NYNEX TO AUTOMATE SOVINTEL 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00011)

NYNEX TO AUTOMATE SOVINTEL 08/28/91
SUGAR LAND, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) -- With the
collapse of the Soviet coup, U.S. communications companies are
doubly anxious to enter the market.

Until now U.S. West has been the big winner, with its plan to run
a communications line across the country. Reduced tensions could
allow it to run the fiber lines that were vetoed by U.S. agencies
last year.

Now, as the late Jimmy Durante said: "Everybody wants to get
into the act." NYNEX, the regional Bell covering the northeastern
U.S. is the latest, announcing its DPI subsidiary will help
automate Sovintel, a joint venture between the Soviet Ministry of
Communications and GTE.

NYNEX DPI will provide Sovintel with daily operations support
software necessary to track long distance calls for billing and
collections, computerize customer service order and billing
correspondence, and maintain central office equipment information,
inventory and accounting records.

The system, to be installed in September, will receive technical
support from the U.K. It is NYNEX DPI's first venture into Eastern
Europe.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910828/Press Contact: Jan Cherry, NYNEX DPI,
713-240-9200)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 3M ANNOUNCES NEW LASER TECHNOLOGY 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00012)

3M ANNOUNCES NEW LASER TECHNOLOGY 08/28/91
ST PAUL, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- 3M has
announced that it has achieved a major breakthrough in laser
technology that could have great significance in such applications
as optical recording, imaging, printing and communications.

What 3M describes as the world's first "blue-green laser" could
potentially increase the amount of data stored on optical discs
and compact discs, as well as enhancing laser imaging in medical
diagnostics.  "Blue-green" laser technology may also speed the
use of plastic, instead of glass, in fiber optics, said the company.

3M says it has spent more than five years of concerted research
on lasers and the materials required to generate them.  The
"blue-green" laser initially operated at a temperature of about
320 degrees Farenheit, but has since been operated in pulsed
mode at room temperature.

Previous laser diodes were crated from III-V materials, so named
for their position in the periodic table.  The 3M research team
says it used II-VI materials (zinc selenide) successfully for the first
time to create the shortest wavelength ever generated by a
semiconductor laser diode.

The company described the prototype device as looking like a
"small, dark blue crystal set on a microchip."  The crystal has
been patterned into six sections, each of which is capable of
emitting a bright blue-green beam of pulsed laser light.  The
beam appears constant to the naked eye, but the diode is
actually on less than one percent of the time.

(Jim Mallory/19910828/Press contact: Mark Fenner, 3M,
612-733-9242)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 WORKSTATIONS SALES UP 40%, SAYS DATAQUEST  08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00013)

WORKSTATIONS SALES UP 40%, SAYS DATAQUEST  08/28/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Dataquest,
a market research and consulting firm, reports a 40 percent
increase in shipments of workstations based on its findings in
its first "Workstation Quarterly Shipments Report." The report
is a survey of the shipments and revenue of workstations from
the top six vendors.

The research firm says Sun, Hewlett-Packard and IBM are
the leading vendors. Digital Research showed significant gains,
though it was not one of the top three, and so did Intergraph
and IBM, Dataquest said.

Lisa Thorell, associate director for Dataquest's Computer
Systems Service said: "The workstation market is highly
competitive and poised for significant growth in the future."

The top five workstation models shipped in the second quarter of
1991 were in order the Sun SPARCstation 2, the Sun SPARCstation
IPC, the HP 9000-425, the Sun SPARCstation SLC and the IBM
RS6000 model 320 H.

The Dataquest report says Sun has the largest share with 97,000
units shipped in the first quarter of this year. However, the HP 9000
model 42 moved into the number three position, displacing the
Sun SLC.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: Mary Hand, Dataquest,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 JAPAN: NEW PAGER PLUS VOICE MAIL SERVICE DEBUTS  08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00014)

JAPAN: NEW PAGER PLUS VOICE MAIL SERVICE DEBUTS  08/28/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Orbit System Laboratory
plans to begin a unique electronic mail service dubbed "Bell Point"
in October, The new service will combine a paging system with
voice mail.

With this system, users will be able to communicate with each
other through public pay phones via Orbit's host switching device.

Under the Bell Point system, a user will dial the Bell Point's host
switcher's number "7010" followed by the pager number. The
dialer then holds the line for the call to go through. The paged
party calls the host switching device of Orbit. Then, the switching
device connects the both parties through its system.

Orbit System Laboratory will also provide a voice-mailbox for the
user who is too busy to respond immediately. The usage fee of this
system will be 120 yen (90 cents) per three minute call, in addition
to the regular phone charge to NTT. The voice-mailbox costs 210
yen ($1.5) per message. Orbit System Laboratory expects to gain
30 million yen ($222,000) per month.

With around 1.5 million people currently using pocket pagers in
the vicinity of Tokyo, Orbit System thinks that there is considerable
potential in this system.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910828/Press Contact: Orbit System
Laboratory, tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 IBM JAPAN PLANS TO CREATE 20 SOFTWARE VENTURES 08/28/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00015)

IBM JAPAN PLANS TO CREATE 20 SOFTWARE VENTURES 08/28/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- IBM Japan is planning to
create 20 software ventues by the end of 1992. According to the
Nikkei newspaper, IBM Japan wants to enter into joint ventures
with Japanese software firms in Japan in order to develop more
software for its computing products.

Currently, IBM Japan has five joint venture software firms, and
intends to set up five more in the vicinity of Tokyo by the end of
the year. Then, IBM Japan wants to create another 10 firms in the
Western and Northern parts of Japan.

Each software venture will have a capitalization of around 500
million yen ($3.7 million). IBM Japan will pay about 35 percent of
such capitalization, and will dispatch board directors, executive
officers and engineers.

This is part of IBM Japan's strategy to emphasize the sales of
personal computers and office computers in order to address the
downsizing of computers.

Meanwhile, IBM Japan also wants to increase its hardware dealers.
Currently, there are 233 hardware dealers including its affiliate
firms. In cooperation with current affiliate firms, IBM Japan will
increase the number of hardware dealers by 30 each year.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910828/Press Contact: IBM Japan, +81-3-3586-
1111)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 LTX SHIPS $2M MICROMASTER DIGITAL VLSI TEST SYSTEM 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00016)

LTX SHIPS $2M MICROMASTER DIGITAL VLSI TEST SYSTEM 08/28/91
WESTWOOD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 28 (NB) --
LTX has announced that the company has begun shipping a new
192-pin Micromaster digital VLSI test system to Taiwan-based
Macronix International.

Macronix is a designer and manufacturer of semi-custom ASIC
(application specific integrated circuit) and CMOS (complimentary
metal oxide semiconductor) VLSI (very large scale integration)
chips. VLSI chips are microchips with approximately 100,000 or
more components on a single chip.

LTX Corporation is a major designer and manufacturer of
computer-controlled equipment for testing linear, digital, and
mixed-signal devices which it markets worldwide from its
Westwood, Massachusetts, headquarters.

Electronic Engineering Times has reported that the outlook
for companies building automatic chip testing devices was
in general poor, but that LTX was actively hiring new staff.
LTX and Boston-based Teradyne Inc. are the leaders in this
field, both having market shares in the 30-40 percent range.

Macronix also has a U.S. center located on Ridder Park Drive
in San Jose, California, which employs 18 people.

(John McCormick/19910828/Press Contact: R. Scott Higgins, LTX
Corporation, 617-461-1000)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28  ****NEC TO RELEASE CD-ROM GAME MACHINE 08/28/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00017)

 ****NEC TO RELEASE CD-ROM GAME MACHINE 08/28/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- NEC Home Electronics
says it will release a CD-ROM-based game machine on
September 21, called the "PC Engine Due."

The product  is an upgraded version of the firm's PC Engine family,
and will cost 59,800 yen ($440). With its proprietary 4.3-inch color LCD
(liquid crystal display), it will cost 79,800 yen ($590).  About the size
of an A4 notebook, it can be also be connected to a regular TV set.
The system comes with two megabytes RAM.

NEC is encouraging development of game software for the new
machine. Currently, 24 software makers are developing 45 kinds of
games. According to the company, software developers can
practically develop more complicated programs exploiting the
machine's enhanced memory and CD-ROM.

NEC hopes to sell one million units by the end of 1992. Although,
that number is much less than Nintendo's Super Famicom or
Sega's Mega Drive, NEC is eager to ride on the bandwagon
created by those systems.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910828/Press Contact: NEC, [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 NAT'L SEMI TO SPEND $149.3 MILLION RESTRUCTURING  08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00018)

NAT'L SEMI TO SPEND $149.3 MILLION RESTRUCTURING  08/28/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) --
National Semiconductor has announced plans to restructure
its manufacturing operations worldwide to the tune of $149.3
million.

The company said the charges would be against its first
quarter earnings. It has also announed that the first quarter
earnings are likely to be lower than previously predicted.

Gilbert F. Amelio, president of National Semiconductor said the
actions are designed to bring back profitability. "This activity is
designed to allow National Semiconductor to reshape its
manufacturing structure, consolidating underutilized fabrication
plant capacity, while upgrading its continuing operations, and
improving their utilization," Amelio said.

The changes are expected to occur over several years and the
company expects the restructuring to lower costs and improve
gross margins.

Amelio evidently is taking the advice that he gave to over 700
engineers and managers at an address at the Surface
Mount International Conference. In the address which was entitled
"No Smoke, No Mirrors: Global Competitiveness in the 90's,"
Amelio said: "We must learn to deal with continual change ... to
get comfortable with it ... not just in the way we do ordinary things
each day, but maybe even in the context in which we do
those things."

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: Mary Coady, National
Semiconductor, Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 RADIO SHACK CANADA DROPS CARBON BATTERIES 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00019)

RADIO SHACK CANADA DROPS CARBON BATTERIES 08/28/91
BARRIE, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Radio Shack
outlets in Canada will stop selling standard carbon batteries, and
is discontinuing the Radio Shack Battery Club Card.

The company cited the danger of environmental damage from
used batteries as the reason for the decision.

"We're trying to address an issue before it becomes an issue," said
Bruce Mackenzie, a Radio Shack Canada spokesman. Radio Shack
wants to encourage customers to buy long-life alkaline batteries and
rechargeables, he said. To that end, the company will introduce a
new battery program that will give customers 50 percent off the
purchase of one battery of any type once a month. The old Battery
Club Cards entitled holders to one free carbon battery per month.

So far, Mackenzie said, the new program is limited to Canada. Radio
Shack Canada is a unit of Intertan, also based in Barrie, Ontario,
which controls Radio Shack outlets in Canada, Australia, and
Europe. Texas-based Tandy Corp. licenses the right to the Radio
Shack name to Intertan, but does not own the Canadian operation.
Mackenzie said that if the new program is successful in Canada, it
might be expanded to other countries where Intertan operates.

Radio Shack Canada has also earmarked C$10,000 for research
into battery recycling, Mackenzie said.

(Grant Buckler/19910828/Press Contact: Bruce Mackenzie, Radio
Shack Canada, 705-728-6242)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28  ****IBM SUSPENDS 50-MHZ 486 UPGRADE CARD SHIPMENTS 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00020)

 ****IBM SUSPENDS 50-MHZ 486 UPGRADE CARD SHIPMENTS 08/28/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- IBM has
suspended shipments of its 50-megahertz Intel 486 processor
upgrade card for the PS/2 Model 90 and Model 95. The move
followed the announcement that Intel has discovered a problem
with the new chip.

IBM has been shipping the upgrade card since August 12,
company spokeswoman Tara Sexton told Newsbytes, and "a
limited number" have reached customers.

IBM has had no reports of problems with the new chips from its
customers, but has stopped shipments as a "precautionary
measure until Intel can determine the exact problem," a
statement from IBM said.

IBM also said it is working with Intel to help resolve the problem.

Intel announced earlier that it is temporarily stopping production
of the new chip because of what it said were minor bugs. The
company expects production to resume shortly.

(Grant Buckler/19910828/Press Contact: Tara Sexton, IBM,
914-642-4662, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28  ****OKIDATA INTROS FAST POSTSCRIPT PRINTER UNDER $2,000 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00021)

 ****OKIDATA INTROS FAST POSTSCRIPT PRINTER UNDER $2,000 08/28/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) --
Adobe, the company who developed the PostScript printer
language, announced Okidata is offering an eight
page-per-minute PostScript printer priced under $2,000.

The Okidata OL830 liquid crystal display (LED) Page Printer
automatically detects whether a document sent to it is described
by the PostScript language or another language, and switches
to handle the printing, Adobe said.

According to Adobe, the technology behind this ability is from
LaserTools Corporation and is provided via a Printer Control
Panel.

Dr. Charles Geschke, Adobe's president and chief operating
officer placed emphasis on the printer's price and speed,
saying: "The Okidata OL830 continues the trend toward
ever-more-affordable PostScript language printing. This new
printer allows users to access the highest quality output for
all their office printing and business communication needs."

The printer is intended for either single-user or network use,
and comes with two megabytes (MB) of RAM, which is expandable
to 4 MB. A Centronics parallel interface and an Appletalk or
RS232 option is available for Macintosh connections.

The PostScript software built into the printer incorporates
Adobe Type Manager (ATM) 2.0, a font rasterizing technology
that Adobe claims improves speed and quality in the generation
of the type. Seventeen fonts come standard, with the ability to
add more by adding PostScript font cards from Okidata, Adobe
said.

The font cards, available from Okidata, include the PostScript
Essentials card which adds 18 more fonts, and the Futura & More,
Garamond & More,  and Optima & More cards, each adding 12
fonts.

Adobe is attempting to make its ATM and PostScript the standard
in the industry. Lotus, Aldus and Ventura Software in conjunction with
Adobe, have bundled ATM with their Windows products: Lotus 1-2-3
for Windows, Pagemaker for Windows and Ventura Windows.

One of the major complaints about PostScript is that although it
produces visually appealing type, the printing performance
can be very slow. Adobe is addressing that problem in this
announcement of the printer, saying that 8-ppm is about as fast as
Hewlett-Packard's LaserJet products.

In fact, Adobe is touting the Okidata printer as being Hewlett-
Packard LaserJet- and Diablo 630-compatible.

Okidata, a division of Oki America is a supplier of peripheral
equipment, including dot-matrix, LED printers and facsimile
equipment. The new OL830 printers are shipping now.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: Patricia Pane, Adobe,
Tel: [phone], Vickie Glazar, Okidata, Tel: [phone],
ext. 7313, Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28  ****ADOBE ACQUIRES SUPERMAC'S REELTIME FOR QUICKTIME  08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00022)

 ****ADOBE ACQUIRES SUPERMAC'S REELTIME FOR QUICKTIME  08/28/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) --
Adobe has announced that it has acquired ReelTime, a digital
video-editing software product developed to take advantage of
Apple's System 7's Quicktime for the Macintosh.

Adobe has not released the specifics of the new deal with
ReelTime's developers SuperMac Technology. It is known that
SuperMac will continue, with Adobe, the development of the
product and that the product will be renamed, the company said.

The ReelTime software, which allows users to produce videos,
was developed to make use of the VideoSpigot, SuperMac's
digital-video capture hardware system.

Dave Pratt, vice president and general manager of Adobe's
Application Products Division, said Adobe expects the acquisition
to complement its graphics product line. "ReelTime brings the power
of Apple's QuickTime strategy to reality. This product validates one
of the fastest growing markets -- digital video...," he said.

Adobe expects the move to strengthen its relationship with Apple.
"We will continue to work closely with Apple to take full advantage
of future enhancements to QuickTime," Pratt said.

SuperMac demonstrated ReelTime at the Sybold Show in May when
Apple announced QuickTime. Representatives of SuperMac were
using the VideoSpigot hardware on the Macintosh and a video
camera to record passers-by on the Macintosh's hard disk, then
replay the recorded video on the Macintosh screen.

SuperMac representatives were suggesting the ReelTime and the
VideoSpigot could be applied in recording video for training
documents. For example, a document could be displayed on
screen with an explanation of an operation, then the user could click
on what appears as a photo in the document and the photo would
turn into an action/sound demonstration of the operation explained
in the document.

Michael McConnell, president of SuperMac Technology said
regarding the new agreement with Adobe: "Adobe is a tremendous
partner to fulfill the promise this technology has to offer the
desktop market. This agreement allows SuperMac to focus on our
core business -- graphics and desktop video hardware, while
partnering with a company that has a history of evangelizing
new markets on the desktop."

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: LaVon Collins, Adobe,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Lisa MacKenzie, SuperMac,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 ACM TO PROVIDE TECHNICAL DATA TO EASTERN EUROPE 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00023)

ACM TO PROVIDE TECHNICAL DATA TO EASTERN EUROPE 08/28/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- In an effort to
ensure that economic pressures in the formerly communist countries
of Eastern and Central Europe do not cause the region to be left
behind in computing research, the Association for Computing
Machinery (ACM) is making technical programs and publications
available to the region.

The ACM is setting up chapters in each of the Eastern and Central
European countries. Each of these new chapters will maintain a
library of the ACM's many publications, making them available to
the local computing community.

Jim Adams, director of membership and strategic services for the
ACM, told Newsbytes the organization puts out 12 major periodicals.
Additionally, its 34 special interest groups each publish a newsletters,
the ACM Press publishes 12 to 20 books a year, and the
proceedings of 50 ACM conferences are published each year.

The ACM also plans a series of conferences on computing topics in
Central and Eastern Europe. The first was a conference on computer
graphics, held in Moscow last February. Adams said no other plans
are ready to announce yet. "They're in the wings," Adams said.

Adams said computer societies in the formerly communist countries
are just getting organized. They were not necessarily forbidden
under previous regimes, he said, but "there just wasn't money for
them to do much." The ACM will work with other computing
organizations in the region where they exist, Adams said.

The Association for Computing Machinery is an 80,000-member
scientific society, with 91 local chapters worldwide.

(Grant Buckler/19910828/Press Contact: Fred Aronson, Association
for Computing Machinery, 212-869-7440, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 NEW FOR NETWORKS: Chipcom Has Low-Cost 10Base-T Hub 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00024)

NEW FOR NETWORKS: Chipcom Has Low-Cost 10Base-T Hub 08/28/91
SOUTHBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) --
Chipcom has announced a low-cost 10Base-T intelligent workgroup
hub aimed at the entry-level market. The 12-port 10Base-T
Workgroup Hub is intended for small Ethernet local area networks
using unshielded twisted pair (UTP) wiring, Chipcom said.

The hub is a low-cost unit, without all the features of Chipcom's
line of fault-tolerant hubs, and is aimed at a large market of
small work groups and entry-level buyers, company spokesman
John Ricciardone said. Chipcom expects the new hub to be a
"high-volume" item.

The new 12-user hub joins the six-slot and 17-slot Online System
Concentrator products announced in late July. All the products are
fully interoperable and manageable, Chipcom said.

The 10Base-T Workgroup Hub has built-in network management
capabilities using the Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP)
standard. Chipcom said it can be managed locally through a
management port on the hub, or remotely via an SNMP management
system.

The hub is small enough to fit on a desktop, according to the
company, and has a data rate of 10 megabits-per-second. It is fully
compatible with the IEEE 802.3 10Base-T standard for running
Ethernet over unshielded twisted-pair wiring. The unit will sell
for US$2,295, Ricciardone said, and is due to be available late in
October.

(Grant Buckler/19910828/Press Contact: John Ricciardone, Chipcom,
508-460-8900 ext. 4455)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 NEW PREPRESS COLOR PRODUCTS FOR VENTURA WINDOWS  08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00025)

NEW PREPRESS COLOR PRODUCTS FOR VENTURA WINDOWS  08/27/91
CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Ventura
Software has announced four new color prepress products to be
offered as additions to Ventura 4.0 for Windows and licensed in
an agreement from Pre-Press Technologies of Carlsbad, Calif.

The four products are Ventura Scan, Ventura Color, Ventura
PhotoTouch, and Ventura ColorPro. Ventura is offering these
products because the company says color publishing is fast
becoming a requirement for business.

Joe Mintz, president of Pre-Press Technologies said: " Ventura
Publisher now offers a migration path from the end user directly
to trade shops and service bureaus. The four products
designed for Ventura Publisher take the functionality of high-
end, traditionally costly, color scanning, correction, separation
and retouching systems and implement these functions on a PC
platform under Windows."

Ventura Scan is a Windows Dynamic Link Library (DLL) whose
function is to permit scanning from within Ventura Publisher,
the company said. It comes with drivers for popular scanners,
allows color correction in a preview mode before the actual
scanning takes place and permits scanning directly into a
Ventura Publisher picture frame while maintaining aspect ratios.
Scheduled to ship in the fourth quarter of 1991, it will carry a retail
price of $395.

Ventura Separator is also a DLL, but color separates complete
pages with color, text and graphics in place, Ventura said. Color
correction is available with brightness, contrast, color saturation
and sharpening controls. It also defines custom screen angles
for PostScript Imagesetters. Expected to also ship in the fourth
quarter of this year, the product is priced at $495.

Ventura PhotoTouch is a retouching application for color and
black-and-white images. According to the company, tools are
available for outlining, air brushing, sharpening, blurring, blending,
smearing, lightening or darkening, shift hues, shift saturation, as
well as adding or subtracting color and adjusting gradation. This
product can be operated as a stand-alone product or integrated
with Ventura Publisher, Windows Edition. It is set for release in
early 1992, and is retail priced at $795.

According to the company, Ventura ColorPro provides the
functionality and control of a drum scanner in a Windows
environment. The product lets the user  work independently with
the four process colors and has tone curve correction, color
correction for deficiencies in scanning and ink impurities,
compensation for press gain, motor calibration, soft plate
proofing, unsharp masking, undercolor removal and addition
and gray component replacement, the company said. The
product can also be operated as a stand-alone program or
integrated into Ventura Publisher. Scheduled to ship in the
fourth quarter of 1991, it will retail for $3,995.

Jerry Fry, director of engineering at Pre-Press Technologies
said, "These products create a whole new PC environment - they
fulfill a need that was desperately in need of filling."

Pre-Press Technologies describes itself as specializing in
trade-quality color reproduction for desktop computing on
Macintosh, PC and Unix hardware platforms. Ventura Software
describes itself as a supplier of publishing and database
software and is headquartered in San Diego, California.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108027/Press Contact: Jan Hacket, Pre-Press
Technologies, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Katie
Nosbisch, Hill and Knowlton, Tel: [phone], Fax: 408/496-
0504)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 28 APPLE OFFERS UP TO $800 INSTANT REBATES ON MACS  08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00026)

APPLE OFFERS UP TO $800 INSTANT REBATES ON MACS  08/28/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) -- Apple
is attempting to take advantage of the peak consumer buying
season by announcing a "Right Now Rebate" program which is
an instant rebate program offered to consumers at the time of
purchase.

Apple says it will run the program from September 1 of this
year through January 5 of 1992. The rebates vary depending on
the type and amount of Macintosh hardware purchased, said
Apple. The rebates are offered after tax.

Some of the rebates announced by Apple include: a Macintosh
Classic with 2 megabytes (MB) of RAM and a 40 MB hard disk
(2/40) with a StyleWriter or Personal LaserWriter LS printer carries
a  $125 rebate; a Macintosh LC (2/40 or 4/80) computer with a 12-
or 13-inch Apple color monitor and a StyleWriter or Personal
LaserWriter LS printer carries a $350 rebate; a Macintosh IIse
(3/40) with a Personal LaserWriter LS or a Personal LaserWriter
NT printer has a $600 rebate; and a Macintosh IIsi (5/80) computer
with a Personal LaserWriter LS or a Personal LaserWriter NT
printer carries an $800 rebate.

The purchase of three or more Macintosh IIsi (3/40) computers
comes with a $600 rebate, and three or more Macintosh
IIsi (5/80) or Macintosh IIci computers, in all configurations,
come with an $800 rebate, the company said. Apple stipulates the
three or more computers must be purchased at the same location
on the same day.

The rebate program is only offered within the U.S. from Apple
resellers.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108028/Press Contact: Lisa Byrne, Apple,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 TEST DRIVE A CHEVY, GET AN APPLE 08/29/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00027)

TEST DRIVE A CHEVY, GET AN APPLE 08/29/91
DETROIT,MICHIGAN,U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Chevrolet Motor
Division and Apple Computer have entered into a partnership
program called Driving For Education which allows participating
schools to earn various computers and software from Apple
Computer.

Under the program, Chevrolet/Geo automobile dealers will be
contacting schools in their areas to explain the details.  Students
from participating schools get their parents, friends and neighbors
to go to the dealership and test drive a Chevrolet or Geo.

Chevrolet spokesperson Arlene Reindel told Newsbytes that test
drivers are in no way obligated, and there will be no sales
pressure exerted.

Test drivers will complete a simple form, and once a school has
recorded 50 test drives, the school starts earning awards.

Awards include Macintosh LC HD 40 color computer systems with
monitor and MacWrite II, MacPaint software, Macintosh Classic
2/40 systems with MacWrite II and MacPaint, and Apple IIe 128K
color systems with Appleworks software.  Other awards include
VHS camcorders, TV/VCR combinations and encyclopedias.

Chevrolet says a pilot program in Atlanta recently resulted in a
90 percent participation rate among schools.  Accordiing to
Chevrolet General Manager Jim Perkins, Chevrolet expects to
award at least one computer or audiovisiaul system to each
participating school.

Dealers and others interested in additional information can
contact Chevrolet's Driving For Education hotline at
800-374-8464)

(Jim Mallory/910828/Press contact:Arlene Reindel, Chevrolet,
313-492-8847)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29  ****COMPAQ SIGNS TECH SUPPORT ALLIANCE WITH 15 FIRMS 08/29/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00028)

 ****COMPAQ SIGNS TECH SUPPORT ALLIANCE WITH 15 FIRMS 08/29/91
HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Compaq Computer
Corporation says it has signed technical support alliances (TSAs)
with 15 hardware, software and operating systems companies.  The
TSA pledges Compaq to provide technical support to its shared
customers in multivendor environments based on Compaq systems.

The companies included are 3COM, Banyan Systems, Digiboard,
Digital Communications Associates, Emerald Systems, Interactive
Systems, Liberty Electronics, Microsoft, Novell, Oracle Corporation,
Proteon, Racal Interlan, The Santa Cruz Operation (SCO), Standard
Microsystems Corporation (SMC), and Western Digital.

Compaq says they have been building relationships with each of
these companies for several years, and the TSAs were signed to
formalize the relationships.

Compaq says TSAs are part of its strategy to provide multivendor
support, develop new products and progams, and address market
opportunities in the growing networking environment.  The company
already has joint integration agreements with Banyan, Microsoft,
Novell and SCO, which were signed last fall to address multivendor
integration problems.

According to Compaq, networks are becoming more complex with
the emergence of multivendor platforms.  A typical networked
system might consist of a file server from one vendor, a network
operating system from another, and interface cards, multiport
options, PCs and terminals from still others.

(Jim Mallory/910828/Press contact: John Sweney, Compaq,
713-374-0484)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 29 VOLKSWAGEN INSTALLS CRAY SUPERCOMPUTER 08/29/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00029)

VOLKSWAGEN INSTALLS CRAY SUPERCOMPUTER 08/29/91
EAGAN, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 29 (NB) -- Cray Research
has announced that it has installed a supercomputer in Volkswagen's
Research and Development Center in Wolfsburg, Germany.

The Y-MP8, Cray's largest supercomputer, will replace a Cray
X-MP, and has more than twice the processing capacity of its
predecessor.

Volkswagen is the fourth largest automotive producer worldwide,
and the largest in Europe, producing more than three million
vehicles in 1990.  The company employes 270,000 people
worldwide, with 174,000 of those in Germany.  1990 revenues
totaled $41 billion.

VW says it wants to shorten the development cycles for new car
concepts and component designs, according to R&D board
member Ulrich Seiffert.  The new system will be applied to
simultaneous engineering activities for product development,
including structural analysis, crash simulation, engine design and
aerodynamic computation.

According to Hagen Hultzsch, WV's executive director for
organization and information systems, the Cray system was
selected for its high throughput and single-processor
performance, as well as the broad range of application software
available.  Other deciding factors according to Hultzsch were
the Cray's upward compatibility with future Cray products and
its connectivity to existing equipment at Volkswagen.

Cray Research says it has 23 systems installed at automotive
supplier and motor vehicle companies worldwide. Five of those
are installed at German automotive companies.

(Jim Mallory/910828/Press contact; Kate Neessen, Cray Research,
612-683-7132, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR MAC: 16/4MB Token Ring Cards 08/28/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00030)

NEW FOR MAC: 16/4MB Token Ring Cards 08/28/91
HOPKINTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 28 (NB) --
Avatar Corporation has announced two new 16/4MB switchable
Token Ring adaptor boards that allow Apple Macintosh SE/30 and
II computers to use either 4MB or 16MB Token Ring networks to
communicate with IBM mainframes.

By providing the option of 4- or 16MB Token Network speeds,
MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring  Workstation or Gateway
products are said to allow users to easily upgrade if the network
is upgraded from 4- to 16MB communication speeds.

MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring Workstation and Gateway
products are software or hardware switchable from 4- to 16MB
(via the control pad) for network configuration and management.
For extra security, network administrators may opt to force a 4- or
16MB Token Ring hardware setting by changing a jumper on the
board that overrides any settings done in software.

The new MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring cards are available
for both MacMainFrame Token Ring Workstation and MacMainFrame
Token Ring Gateway products.

Both MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring Workstation and
MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring Gateway products support IBM
3278/3279 terminal emulation 3287 printer emulation and file transfer
capabilities over a 4 MB or 16 MB Token Ring network.

MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring Workstation provides individual
Macintosh users with the ability to access up to eight IBM 3279 host
sessions at one time.  The Gateway product allows Macintosh users
in an AppleTalk environment (LocalTalk, TokenTalk, EtherTalk) to run
host applications on an IBM mainframe that is resident on the Token
Ring network. Up to eight simultaneous host sessions per user and 64
sessions per Macintosh server are available.

MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring Workstation (bundled) is priced at
$1,395 and includes the MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring card and
MacMainframe 3270 software. MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring
Gateway (bundled) is priced according to the number of host sessions
supported: eight host sessions: $2,495; 32 sessions: $4,495; 64 sessions:
$6,495. MacMainFrame 16/4MB Token Ring Workstation is also
available unbundled.

For more information, call 800/AVA-3270.

(Computer Currents/19910828)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 TEXAS INSTRUMENTS SHIPS DEVELOPER STARTER KIT 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00001)

TEXAS INSTRUMENTS SHIPS DEVELOPER STARTER KIT 08/27/91
PLANO, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Texas Instruments says
it has started shipping its Rapid Developer Starter Kit (RD/SK).
According to TI, users of RD/SK can learn how to develop
software applications in TI's integrated computer-aided software
engineering (CASE) environment quickly and easily.

RD/SK reportedly includes the newest version of the Information
Engineering Facility's analysis, design and construction
toolsets as well as a field-tested tutorial. Suggested list
price for TD/SK is $10,000.

In a prepared statement TI quoted one user, Gary Idle, a senior
computer scientist at Computer Sciences Corporation, as saying,
"The tutorial gave me the information I need to use the
analysis, design and construction portions of the IEF. An
excellent tool."

According to Mike Watters, VP and GM of TI's advanced
information management division, TI wanted to introduce a wider
spectrum of the business community to the advantages offered by
TI's integrated CASE (I-CASE) technology. Watters said that with
RD/SK, users get a sophisticated approach to full life cycle
application development, field-tested tutorials and affordable
price.

RD/SK reportedly provides a full function workstation for
multiple type projects, including business requirements
analysis, design prototyping and rapid application development.
TI says users can develop C or Cobol applications for IBM's OS/2
operating system, and by using additional toolsets, port those
systems to MVS, Tandem, VMTM, VMSTM or Unix.

"We are committed to providing easy-to-learn, lower-cost entry
points to I-CASE and the IEF," said Watters. The company says it
will offer a cross generation starter kit later this year which
will enable an application developed on an OS/2 workstation to
be ported to a different environment, such as MVS or VMS.

RD/SK comes with 90 days of toll-free telephone support.
Upgrade kits including a planning toolset, additional
methodology guides and full documentation for the planning,
design, analysis and construction toolsets are available.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Bob Bledsoe, TI,
214-997-3857)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 CERNER IN ELECTRONIC MED RECORDS PARTNERSHIP 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00002)

CERNER IN ELECTRONIC MED RECORDS PARTNERSHIP 08/27/91
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Cerner
Corporation, a provider of clinical information systems for the
health care industry, says it has entered into an agreement with
the Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center and The Emory
Clinic of Atlanta to create an electronic medical record system.

The system will be established at the Emory Clinic, and Cerner
says Digital Equipment Corporation, also a partner, will provide
the hardware for the system. Cerner will provide the clinical
software applications, and Emory will become the working
laboratory for testing and refining the system. According to
Cerner, the project represents a $15 million commitment, and
will take five years to complete.

The company says its system will go beyond the simple
computerization of patient charts. Using Cerner's Healthcare
Network Architecture HNA) healthcare professionals at different
locations can simultaneously view patient charts, speeding up
consultations. Electronic access to a patient's charts would
also speed up emergency care and make it easier for a patient to
receive consultation and treatment from different doctors.

Eventually the Cerner system will add advanced capabilities,
such as simultaneous viewing from different locations of graphic
images, such as x-ray, magnetic resonance images, and cardiac
catheterization images.

Clifford W. Illig, Cerner president, said, "We believe this
product will revolutionize patient care by automating the
patient's medical record and integrating the record within a
full suite of clinical information."

According to Garland Perdue, a doctor and director of the Emory
Clinic, "This showcase system... will give us the capability to
broaden and speed the services we offer our patients. For
doctor and patient alike, such automation significantly
expedites and streamlines patient care."

(Jim Mallory/010827/Press contact: Clifford Illig, Cerner Corp,
816-221-1024)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 ALDUS SAYS "TRADE YOUR GRAPHICS PACKAGE FOR PERSUASION" 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00003)

ALDUS SAYS "TRADE YOUR GRAPHICS PACKAGE FOR PERSUASION" 08/27/91
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Owners of
certain graphics presentation programs can trade up to Aldus
Persuasion 2.0 for Windows, under a program announced by Aldus.

The company says owners of DOS-based programs such as Harvard
Graphics, Lotus Freelance, Microsoft PowerPoint, Hollywood and
Draw Applause or Applause II are eligible for the trade-up, which
costs $99. Pam Miller of Aldus told Newsbytes that there are
about 15 programs which qualify for the trade-up. If you take
advantage of the offer, you will get the complete Persuasion for
Windows package include Adobe Type Manager. The offer runs
through the end of February 1992, and is valid in the US,
Canada, and Australia.

Larry Spelhaug, Aldus VP of marketing says, "From experience we
believe that customers will switch to Persuasion 2.0 for Windows
once they try it."

To participate in the trade-up offer, you must provide proof of
ownership of an eligible program. The original title page from
the product reference manual or an original program disk will
provide the necessary proof. Organizations with orders of 10 or
more units can provide a single letter confirming ownership
rather than submit multiple proofs of purchase. A 90-day
money back guarantee accompanies the offer.

The trade-up can be done by contacting a participating Aldus
upgrade reseller or by contacting the Aldus "Fulfillment" Center
at 800-638-7058 from US or Canadian locations. The Center can
also provide a list of participating upgrade resellers as well
as a complete list of eligible products.

Aldus says it is taking orders now, with shipment to begin in
mid-September.

Aldus is also expected to announce a new support program for
service bureaus this week.

Aldus also markets PageMaker, Digital Darkroom, FreeHand,
PrePrint, SuperCard, SuperPaint, Super 3D.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Pam Miller, Aldus Corp,
206-628-6594)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MOTOROLA DEVELOPER ENV'T FOR NEW BOARDS 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(DEN)(00004)

MOTOROLA DEVELOPER ENV'T FOR NEW BOARDS 08/27/91
TEMPE, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Hard on the heels of
its new RISC (reduced instruction set) and CISC (complex instruction
set) single board computers, Motorola has announced
a Unix-based real-time development environment for the boards.

The company says VMEexec 2.0 includes a comprehensive set of
multiprocessor support packages and provides developers a wide
latitude in selecting the right real-time target for their
application.

According to Motorola, developers using VMEexec 2.0 can design
real-time application code for a broad range of RISC and CISC
single board computers from any single vendor. "VMEexec is the
most complete package available in the market for supporting
applications software development on an RT kernel," said
Motorola's Thomas Beaver.

VMEexec integrates third-party software products, including
Software Components Group's pSOS+, the Interactive Systems
Corporation Streams environment and Microtec Research Inc.'s
XRAY Debugger. The VMEexec kernel is based on a "Real-Time
Executive Interface Definition" kernel, which defines a core set
of operating system services. Application source code that
conforms to those interfaces will execute as defined in all
compliant real-time executive environments.

Motorola says software engineers, system integrators, original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and value-added resellers (VARs)
developing embedded real-time systems will benefit from VMEexec.

Motorola will offer VMEexec training courses to help developers
enhance their productivity, including support for the single
board computers also announced this week.

The company says VMEexec 2.0 will be available in November of
this year, and carries a suggested price of $4500 for either the
Mc68000 family based system or the M88000 family based system.
A combined version is available for $5800. Customers with
maintenance contracts will receive the update at no charge.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Barbara Patterson, Motorola,
602-438-3576, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MICROSOFT HOSTS DEVELOPERS TOOLS CONFERENCE 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00005)

MICROSOFT HOSTS DEVELOPERS TOOLS CONFERENCE 08/27/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation is hosting a Developers Tools conference this week
at the Washington State Convention Center which will focus on
developers writing add-in products for Excel for Windows 3.0,
Microsoft's spreadsheet program for Windows.

Add-in programs are designed to start up automatically when
Excel is loaded. These specially developed programs cover a
variety of tasks, including forecasting, modeling, reporting,
data connectivity, application development, and numerical
analysis.

Microsoft says Excel has about 30 percent of the spreadsheet
market for the second quarter of calendar 1991, based on
information collected by the Software Publishers Association as
well as other trade sources. The company says it has shipped
1.5 million units worldwide. About one-third of those were
shipped since Version 3.0 came out in January of this year.

In other Microsoft news, the company is reportedly setting up a
basic research center to study what might be the software of
the future. A company spokesperson says Microsoft believes it
is the only software publisher to set up a group dedicated to
research that is not directly tied to developing products.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Sarah Charf, Microsoft,
206-882-8080)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MICROGRAFX SUED FOR ALLEGED SECURITIES LAWS VIOLATIONS 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00006)

MICROGRAFX SUED FOR ALLEGED SECURITIES LAWS VIOLATIONS 08/27/91
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Micrografx, a
developer of business graphics applications, has revealed that
a suit has been filed against the company in the federal
district court for the Southern District of New York.  The suit
reportedly alleges securities law and other violations against
the company and certain senior officers and directors.

Contacted by Newsbytes for comment, David Henkel, Micrografx
chief financial officer, said, "This is the mosst frivilous suit
I have ever seen."  Henkel said no specific damages had been
requested.

Reportedly the suit asserts liability based on alleged
misleading press releases, communications with analysts, and
interviews based on sals of Micrografx stock by certain senior
officers and directors while, it is charged, they knew of the alleged
misleading statements.  The suit seeks class action status.

Micrografx says it will vigorously defend the action.

(Jim Mallory/Press contact: David Henkel, Micrografx,
214-497-6284)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR IBM: Unicorn MIDI Mixer Software For PCs 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00007)

NEW FOR IBM: Unicorn MIDI Mixer Software For PCs 08/27/91
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Mark of
the Unicorn has introduced new MS-DOS software for the MIDI Mixer
7 which adds IBM-compatible software to the existing Macintosh
and Atari control software for the MIDI hardware.

On screen the software created an image of a standard mixer which
helps traditional users make the transition from hardware
controls to computer MIDI control systems. Automated mixdowns are
possible by locking scene changes to standard SMPTE time codes.

MIDI Mixer 7s has seven stereo inputs with bass, treble, pan, and
two stereo effects for each channel, along with a stereo
auxiliary input and eight stereo noise gates.

Any MS-DOS system with VGA or EGA video, a Microsoft or Logitech
compatible mouse, and an installed MIDI interface can run the
software. MIDI Mixer 7 has a list price of $595 and is available
now.

MIDI or musical instrument digital interface is the world
standard for connecting digital recording and control systems to
instruments.

For further information contact Mark of the Unicorn, Inc., 222
Third St., Cambridge, MA 01242, phone [phone].

Current owners of MIDI Mixer 7 software for Macintosh or Atari
systems should contact the company for a free upgrade.

(John McCormick/19910826/Press Contact: Susan Patalano, 617-576-
2760 or fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 BOSTON MUSEUM EXHIBIT TRACES HISTORY OF COMPUTERS 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00008)

BOSTON MUSEUM EXHIBIT TRACES HISTORY OF COMPUTERS 08/27/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- The Computer
Museum is celebrating a year of anniversaries in the computer
industry with the opening of a permanent exhibition that traces the
history of computers. "People and Computers: Milestones of
Revolution" opened at the museum June 29, and more than 30,000
people have visited it since then, museum spokeswoman Gail Jennes
said.

The US$1-million, 5,000-square-foot exhibition is made up of nine
milestones linked by "time tunnels." Each of the nine displays
features a life-size replica of the computer equipment typical of
a major era. They also include video presentations showing how
computers were used and the attitudes of the day toward them,
including the way they were portrayed in movies and other media.
Interactive displays let visitors do some of the things that people
did with computers at various times, Jennes said.

The first display shows a government office in the 1930s, where
hundreds of clerks used punched-card machines. The second shows the
Whirlwind computer, developed for the American military by the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The third shows UNIVAC I,
the first commercially available computer.

The fourth display deals with the development of programming
languages, while the fifth shows an IBM System/360 mainframe used
at a large insurance company in the 1960s. The sixth deals with the
first minicomputers, introduced early in the 1970s.

The Cray 1 supercomputer appears in the seventh display, which
deals with the use of high-powered computers for scientific work.
In the eighth display the personal computer comes on the scene, and
some of its popular applications are shown. The final display deals
with the widespread use of microprocessors in machines other than
computers -- toys, video cassette recorders, thermostats, and the
like.

"People are loving this exhibit, and that's not hype," Jennes said.

The permanent exhibit was created with the help of the National
Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Digital Equipment, IBM, Apple
Computer, Lotus Development, Matsushita Electric, The Mitre
Corporation, The Travelers Companies, Unisys, and many individuals.
The Computer Museum opened as an independent, non-profit museum in
1982.

(Grant Buckler/19910826/Press Contact: Gail Jennes, The Computer
Museum, 617-426-2800 ext. 341)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR IBM: Watcom Shipping 32-Bit C, FORTRAN 08/27/91

08/28/91



(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00009)

NEW FOR IBM: Watcom Shipping 32-Bit C, FORTRAN 08/27/91
WATERLOO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Language developer
Watcom is now shipping its 32-bit C and FORTRAN language optimizing
compilers and tools. Sixteen-bit versions of both products are also
now available.

Both C and FORTRAN compilers provide a 32-bit DOS operating system
extender and a true 32-bit Microsoft Windows graphical user
interface (GUI) and dynamic link library (DLL) development kit,
Watcom said. The compilers support Windows and 32-bit DOS extenders
from Rational, Phar Lap, and Ergo. The DOS extender, DOS/4GW from
Rational Systems, may be distributed with applications developed
using either compiler without paying royalties to Watcom.

Watcom said the new compilers' ability to develop true 32-bit
Windows applications avoids the need to create separate 16-bit
programs for user interface code.

The compilers can be used on machines running DOS, extended DOS,
OS/2 1.1 or later, or Windows. Programs can be developed for DOS,
extended DOS, Windows, AutoCAD ADS, and embedded systems.

Watcom announced recently that it is working with IBM to make both
compilers support OS/2 2.0. That support is due by the end of 1991,
said Dave Boswell, Watcom's vice-president of sales and marketing.
The OS/2 2.0 compilers will offer two to three times the
performance of existing compilers, he said, and the FORTRAN version
will be the first 32-bit FORTRAN compiler for OS/2 2.0.

Both C8.5/386 and FORTRAN 77/386 have a suggested retail price of
US$995, with an introductory price of US$795.

(Grant Buckler/19910826/Press Contact: Dave Boswell, Watcom,
519-886-3700, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 IBM VP TO KEYNOTE CD-ROM CONFERENCE 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00010)

IBM VP TO KEYNOTE CD-ROM CONFERENCE 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- James E. Dezell,
Jr., IBM vice president for educational systems, will deliver the
keynote speech, titled, "IBM's New Multimedia Knowledge Systems,"
at next month's CD-ROM Exposition and Conference '91 in
Washington, DC.

Mr. Dezell will reportedly take the opportunity to discuss IBM's
major educational incentives such as the interactive courseware
now being shown in television ads.

The CD-ROM Expo will be held again this year at the Washington
Hilton and Towers in Washington, DC, in mid-October. CD-ROM Expo
features talks about CD-ROM developments and is attended by most
of the major CD-ROM hardware and software development companies.

(John McCormick/19910826/Press Contact: Rachel Winett, World Expo
Corp., 508-879-6700)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 CORRECTION: MOSCOW: PARAGRAPH'S FURTHER PEN PLANS 08/27/91

08/28/91


(CORRECTION)(TRENDS)(MOW)(00011)

CORRECTION: MOSCOW: PARAGRAPH'S FURTHER PEN PLANS 08/27/91
MOSCOW, U.S.S.R., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Newsbytes wishes to correct
a statement in a report with this title which was first published July
19.

The story quoted Stepan Pachikov, chief of Moscow-based office
Paragraph, a leading pen-based software house, as saying in a speech to
a trade show in Moscow that his company's recognition kernel of its
new cursive software technology had been licensed to Grid Systems
for use in Grid's computer due to be commercially in late summer. This
is incorrect, according to Paragraph's US representatives.

Michael Riemer, director of product marketing, tells Newsbytes
that no official announcement was made, but acknowledged that
Paragraph is speaking with several of the large computer companies.
Of these, "they have yet to announce any licensing of our recognition
technology."

A Grid spokesman had no comment on the situation, nor would he say
whether Grid and Paragraph were in official talks about licensing
the technology.

(Wendy Woods/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR MAC: Publish It Easy 2.1 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00012)

NEW FOR MAC: Publish It Easy 2.1 08/27/91
NORTHBROOK, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Timeworks has
announced what it calls the "desktop publisher for the rest of
us," Publish-It Easy version 2.1 for the Macintosh. The program is
being reviewed by Newsbytes.

Timeworks says Publish-It Easy is an all-in-one desktop
publisher with the added capabilities of word processing, the
ability to create graphics from scratch, a slide show for
handouts or on-screen presentations, and spot color separation
ability.

The package has many features found in much more costly
packages, Timeworks said. These features include multiple
windows, thumbnail editing with the ability to move elements
from one page to another, rulers and customized alignment grids
are available for layout aids, a service bureau checklist such
as a font list, document size and file statistics, multiple
undo levels allowing the user to go back as many as five steps,
and find and replace.

The company claims the package is so easy to use, a new user
can create their first document in less than an hour. However,
Newsbytes has been unable to get its review copy to load and run
on an SE and an SE/30, although version 2.1 works fine on Newsbytes'
Macintosh II. Technical support has been unable to explain this.

The package includes a 112,000-word spell checker, a 240,000-
word thesaurus, a quick start manual and 72 professionally
designed sample page layouts.

Publish-It Easy is said to operate on all Macintosh computers except the
Macintosh 128. It needs System version 4.2, Finder 5.0
(System 6.0 or higher is recommended), and any Chooser-
selectable printer including the ImageWriter, DeskWriter,
LaserWriter, Linotronic 300 or and QuickDraw, Color QuickDraw
or PostScript compatible printer, Timeworks said. The company
strongly recommends a hard disk drive, but the software can be
operated without one.

Free technical support (you pay for the long-distance call, however)
is provided from during business hours (except lunch hour from 12:30
to 1:30) Monday through Friday Central Standard Time. However, callers
must be prepared for a wait. It took Newsbytes three attempts to reach
a technical support person, each time we were on "hold" for 6 to 15
minutes. Unlimited technical support is said to be offered via a 900
number at the rate of $120.00 per hour or $2.00 per minute, the company
said.

Suggested retail price for Publish-It Easy is $249.95. IBM
versions of Publish-It Easy are also available. More
information is available from Timeworks toll-free at telephone
[phone], or by writing Timeworks, 625 Academy Drive,
Northbrook, Illinois, 60062.

(Linda Rohrbough & Wendy Woods/199108023/Press Contact: Sean Essex,
Timeworks, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW PCS: Wyse Lightweight Decision Notebook/Desktop 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00013)

NEW PCS: Wyse Lightweight Decision Notebook/Desktop 08/27/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Wyse
Technology has expanded its Decision line of personal computers
with a 4.5-pound 20MHz Intel 80386SX-based notebook and a 33MHz
486-based desktop PC. Additionally, the company also announced
a reduction in price of its line of personal computer and monitor
products by about 20 percent, with some models reduced by 35
percent.

The new lightweight DecisionMate notebook measures
8.6-inches by 11-inches by 1.5-inches. The product offers a
quality paper-white display and a full-sized keyboard. In addition,
three snap-in modules are offered as options, each weighing a few
ounces, including a fax/modem and a second serial port.

The company maintains that the internal battery provides for 1.5
hours of computing, with an optional snap-on battery available to
expand computing time to four hours, which brings the total
system weight to 6.2 pounds.

The notebook comes with one, 2 or 4 megabytes (MB) of RAM,
a 30MB, 40MB or 60MB hard disk drive, and MS-DOS 5.

The base model comes with 1 MB of RAM, a 30MB hard disk
drive. It carries a suggested list price of $2,999 and is available
immediately.

The ISA (Industry Standard Architecture)-based Wyse Decision
486/33 has 128 kilobytes of external memory cache, seven
available expansion slots, four half-height mass storage bays
and a Weitek coprocessor socket. Additionally, Wyse MS-DOS 5
is also included.

(Ian Stokell/19910827/Press Contact: Kathryn Watson, Wyse
Technology, 408-473-2066)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 PACIFIC TELESIS EXPLAINS POSITION ON PCN 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00014)

PACIFIC TELESIS EXPLAINS POSITION ON PCN 08/27/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) --
Pacific Telesis holds to the view that microwave cellular phone
services known as PCN can't share the broad microwave frequency
band without harming licensed users of the spectrum. But,
System Vice President for Technology Stagg Newman explained to
Newsbytes, the company believes PCN service could emerge, either
in a narrow frequency band or with limited service areas.

"One way to use it is to have the spectrum dedicated to you.
We're proceeding along those lines," he said. "Motorola said
you'd need significant exclusion zones -- on the order of miles.
Our tests confirmed Motorola's simulations. The potential for
interference is there."

Newman also criticized the methods used by Millicom's PCN America
subsidiary in concluding that a technology from SCS Mobilecom
will work. "There were many filings, including our own, which
criticized PCN America's methodology. Their tests weren't
extensive or exhaustive enough," he said. Millicom has said that
notched filters, intelligent base stations which are aware of
nearby microwave towers, and phones which only emit waves when
someone is talking would allow PCN service to share the microwave
frequencies with existing towers. Most microwave towers are used
in private voice and data networks. They had once been used
heavily by long distance companies, but that is being phased out
in favor of fiber cables.

Newman added, "Are there ways to avoid interference? Yes. How
technically difficult are they, and will accomplishing that be
economically feasible -- that's the critical question. What
you'll see over the next year or two is continued testing to see
what does and does not work. Millicom made many claims that were
not justified. They did some testing, and leaped to a
conclusion."

Newman also downplayed the impact of Millicom's filing for a
"pioneer preference," which the New York company claims would
give it a leg-up in getting PCN licenses. "The FCC has signaled
that, for PCN, as long as you have an experimental license you
don't need to file for a pioneer preference," he said. "We met
with FCC officials last week. Our understanding is if we've been
active in this area we don't need a pioneer preference, and we've
funded work in this area since 1984."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827/Press Contact: Pacific Telesis, Lou
Saviano, 415-394-3643)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR NETWORKS: ICC/Remote LAN Node 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(ATL)(00015)

NEW FOR NETWORKS: ICC/Remote LAN Node 08/27/91
CINCINNATI, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Intercomputer
Communications Corporation announced ICC/Remote LAN Node, which
offers remote PC users actual LAN "node" status while maintaining
performance and protocol independence from the LAN networking
environment.

A PC outside the office dials into the system through a modem,
and becomes an extension of the LAN environment, operating as
nodes on the network, with the same functions as any
computer which is hard-wired to the network. Each remote user is
configured with a unique Ethernet address, for instance.

ICC said several aspects of its new system are unique. For one
thing, the system is totally transparent to the network operating
system, whether that's IPX, TCP/IP, OSI, or the Microsoft LAN Manager.
The new product also offers three levels of security, while support
for V.42 modem compression improves data throughput, the company
said.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827/Press Contact: ICC, Ian Pennell, 513-
745-0500)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 EDS/STRATUS TO DEVELOP PERSONAL TELEPHONE NUMBER TECH 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00016)

EDS/STRATUS TO DEVELOP PERSONAL TELEPHONE NUMBER TECH 08/27/91
MARLBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Stratus
Computer and EDS' Personal Communications division announced an
agreement to jointly develop a Home Location Register system for
the cellular industry.

This is a database which can control cellular phone switches for
the purpose of delivering services. Services could include things
like call waiting and three-way calling, now available from wired
networks, the ability to identify a caller's location anywhere
in the country, and a personal telephone number, which would
follow a user wherever he or she goes. Cellular operators
already use HLRs to perform validation and authentication of
subscribers to control fraud.

EDS says that by putting the new services into a computer, new
services could be put online in a short period of time, and
cellular service providers would be able to differentiate
themselves from competitors. Stratus announced early this year
that it is targeting the telecommunications industry for much of
its future growth, and created a division specifically targeting
phone service customers.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827/Press Contact: EDS PCC, Kimberly
Obremski, 617/890-1000)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MOTOROLA EXPECTED TO ENTER CORDLESS PHONE MARKET 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00017)

MOTOROLA EXPECTED TO ENTER CORDLESS PHONE MARKET 08/27/91
SCHAUMBERG, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Motorola
will reportedly enter the cordless telephone market with a U.S.
made offering, perhaps within a month. James Caile, vice
president of marketing at Motorola's Pan American Cellular
Subscribers Group, told "The Wall Street Journal" his company has
yet to make a final decision, but analysts feel it would be a
good move, even though consumer phones are a low-margin, mass-
market business.

The move could also be a prelude to getting into the emerging CT-
2 cellular phone market, analysts speculate. The company has
already requested licenses from the FCC for a cordless phone,
which according to documents would look a lot like its Micro-Tac
cellular phone. Such a stripped-down Micro-Tac would provide
significant competition to AT&T, which holds nearly half the
cordless phone market with a line of Far East imports. The
Motorola cordless phone would likely be made in Arizona, where
the firm has a plant making the Micro-Tac. The "Made in USA"
label could have appeal, as could the unit's small size and a
domestic plant's ability to turn-around orders quickly.

Motorola also may be aiming at the CT-2 market. CT-2, originally
envisioned as a competitor to cellular phones, are now seen as a
second generation cordless technology, using small base stations
which can place but not receive calls. Singapore has a CT-2
system, and Motorola is in that market there, and the UK also has
a CT-2 market, which is going slowly because of a range of
competitors.

Motorola declined to comment on the press reports or analysts'
comments.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 SECRET GROUP SAYS VA SOFTWARE PROBE WAS A SHAM 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00018)

SECRET GROUP SAYS VA SOFTWARE PROBE WAS A SHAM 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- This week's
Federal Computer Week continues to follow the story it broke some
time ago about allegedly dangerously faulty Veterans' Administration
hospital software. After its charges were dismissed
by a VA inspector, the secret Froelich Trust Group has now
threatened to disclose the names of two veterans who they claim
died as a result of faulty data on the VA's Decentralized
Hospital Computer Program record system.

After initial charges of dangerously inaccurate hospital records
made in a 30-page, anonymous letter sent in late April or early
May of this year, the VA started an investigation which recently
concluded that there were no data errors in the hospital system's
computer records.

Newsbytes' May 24 story on the Froelich Trust Group reported that
the original charges were that out of 20 records scrutinized by
the Group all contained errors -- some major -- such as failing to
note that a particular patient was a diabetic or had cancer.

A second anonymous letter has recently arrived at the VA and
several news organizations which accuses the VA of a cover-up.
FCW is reporting that a source close to the VA acknowledged that
hospital administrators were warned that the investigators were
coming.

FCW again reports that its source of information is the secret
group of current and former VA employees calling itself the
Froelich Trust Group and is reporting that this response to the
negative report findings came very quickly on the heels of the
internal completion of the report, before it was widely
distributed.

The VA is saying only that it stopped the investigation after
checking the hospitals closest to Washington because it found
no problems there.

Newsbytes could not obtain any further comment from the VA before
deadline.

(John McCormick/19910827)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 ZILOG SINGLE CHIP 16-BIT DSP WITH 8-BIT MICROCONTROLLER 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00019)

ZILOG SINGLE CHIP 16-BIT DSP WITH 8-BIT MICROCONTROLLER 08/27/91
CAMPBELL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Zilog has
announced the newest member of its disk controller chip family,
the Z86C94, which combines the single chip 8-bit controller with
a 16-bit digital signal processor or DSP. Zilog says that the
chip will provide minimum cost but high performance for combined
digital servo control and embedded control systems.

Optimal suggested uses include controllers for 2.5-inch and 1.8-
inch disk drives, tape drives, voice/data processing
applications, and automotive or consumer electronics.

The heart of the unit is the familiar Z8 (Zilog Z86C93) which is
combined with a DSP capable of performing 16-by-16 bit
multiplication and accumulation on a single clock cycle for
systems using a 24-megahertz clock speed.

Zilog is a major developer of microprocessors.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Deborah Chalmers, Zilog,
408-370-8092)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 COMARCO AND MANTECH GET $100 MILLION DOD CONTRACT 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00020)

COMARCO AND MANTECH GET $100 MILLION DOD CONTRACT 08/27/91
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Comarco and
Mantech International have received a 50/50 contract award to
provide testing and system verification support to the Joint
Interoperability Test Center at Fort Huachuca, Arizona.

According to Comarco, the contract will be worth about $35
million to that company over the full five-year potential life of
the initial three-year contract.

Headquartered at Ft. Huachuca but with test facilities around the
world, JITC is responsible for overall testing of system
interoperability for both the Department of Defense and NATO.

The contract was actually given to an Alexandria, Virginia-based
Comarco/Mantech joint venture which will provide test,
instrumentation, and test tool design services along with
development support, implementation of designs, and data
reduction services.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Don M. Bailey, Comarco,
714-282-3813)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27  ****CASOLARO SOURCE CHARGES GOV'T PROCUREMENT SCANDAL 08/27/91

08/28/91

(EXCLUSIVE)(GOVT)(NYC)(00021)

 ****CASOLARO SOURCE CHARGES GOV'T PROCUREMENT SCANDAL 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- "Bill," the mysterious
Newsbytes source who met with investigative journalist James D. "Danny"
Casolaro on the night before Casolaro's death in a Martinsburg, W. VA
motel, has come forward on the August 26th "Inside Edition" television
show and discussed his meeting with Casolaro.

By coming forward, "Bill" identified himself as William Turner, a
former quality assurance manager for Hughes Aircraft. In Turner's
previous interviews with Newsbytes, he had requested anonymity because
of both a commitment to Inside Edition and what he said was the advice
of counsel. Turner has alleged that Hughes Aircraft, with the
assistance of U.S. government personnel, has covered up the deliverance
of systems for military use that were below the procurement
specifications.

While Turner's participation on the television broadcast dealt almost
exclusively with his meeting with Casolaro, he told Newsbytes that he
had over three hours of discussion with the show's interviewers on all
aspects of his charges. Casolaro has told Newsbytes that his attempts
to call public attention to what he calls a "procurement scandal" have
resulted in his harassment by the government. He claims that "all of a
sudden the Veteran's Administration found that it had been overpaying
my pension. Even after I agreed with them on a schedule for me to make
installment repayment of the overage, I was sued for the entire
amount."

Turner also told Newsbytes that threats have been made against him
personally, resulting in his obtaining of police protection. He said
that, prior to the police protection, his house had been under obvious
surveillance from autos parked near his home. He said that his phone
frequently rings and, when he picks it up, there is an audible
"hang-up" from the other end. He also alleges that his telephone is
"tapped" and that his conversations are often interrupted by clicks and
that conversations are terminated.

During his conversation with Newsbytes, at a point when he was
discussing the details of the alleged procurement scandal, a click
similar to that of an extension being picked up was clearly heard
and our conversation was cut off. When Newsbytes called back,
Turner said that the interruption had become an "on-going thing"
and that he was "sure that it related to his phone being
tapped."

Turner said that he has had contact with ex-U.S. Attorney General
Elliott Richardson's law firm, which is also representing Inslaw Inc.,
the firm whose charges against the Justice Dept. has been a major
subject of Casolaro's investigation. According to Turner, the law firm
has advised him to refuse to discuss the Casolaro death with the
Martinsburg, W. VA police who have been trying to contact him. Turner,
who criticized the police investigation of the death, said that he will
discuss his meeting with Casolaro with the police when his attorneys
are present.

Turner told Newsbytes that on the day before Casolaro was found dead of
an apparent suicide, he had met with him and turned over papers
documenting his charges about the Hughes cover-up. He said that he was
shown other material that Casolaro had received -- material that
Casolaro felt would substantiate "Octopus" theory. (According to friends
of Casolaro, "octopus" referred to his belief that there was a
connection between the various cases, or "tentacles," that he was
investigating: Inslaw, government procurement, IranContra, "October
Surprise.")

Reports from the Martinsburg death scene did not report the finding of
papers mentioned by Turner and their absence has led to charges
that Casolaro met with foul play. Richardson has called for a federal
investigation of the death, as has Casolaro's brother, a Virginia
physician.

Turner also told Newsbytes that he has additional copies of the
documentation supporting his charges secure in a safe place and that
the "truth will come out even if something happens to me."

The so-called "Inslaw Case" involves charges by Inslaw, Inc. that the
Justice Department purposely drove it into bankruptcy so that it could
steal Inslaw's Promis software. While bankruptcy counts on two
decisions found the allegations to be factual and fined the Justice
Dept., saying that the government agency had practiced "trickery, fraud
and deceit," the U.S. Court of Appeals on May 7, 1991 overturned the
award, saying that the courts had overstepped their jurisdiction. The
appeals court said, at the time, that Inslaw CEO William Hamilton was
free to pursue his claims in the proper federal court and that the
Justice Department's "conduct, if it occurred, is inexcusable."

During the appeal process, Inslaw broadened its charges to claim that
Iran Contra figures Robert McFarlane and Richard Secord had played a
role is disseminating the software to intelligence agencies of Israel,
Libya, Iraq, South Korea, and Canada. These charges, substantiated by
Ari Ben-Menashe, who claims to be a former Israeli intelligence
officer, Iranian arms dealer Richard Babayan, and Michael
Riconosciuto, who said that he was hired to modify the software for
use in law enforcement and intelligence agencies worldwide, led to a
investigation of the case by the House Judiciary Committee and a
confrontation between committee chairman Jack Brooks and Attorney
General Richard Thornburgh over the release to the committee of
material relating to the case. The investigation continues at this
time.

Turner told Newsbytes that he has confidence in Casolaro's theory of a
connection between Inslaw and his charges concerning Hughes.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910827)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 EVEREX SIGNS THREE REGIONAL DISTRIBUTORS 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00022)

EVEREX SIGNS THREE REGIONAL DISTRIBUTORS 08/27/91
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- In an attempt
to expand its distribution base, Everex Systems has signed
agreements with three value-added regional distributors.

The three companies involved are: Berlin, NJ-based GBC;
Mt. Prospect, Illinois-based PC Distributing Inc; and Vitek Systems
Distribution headquartered in Carlsbad, California. Each will
distribute Everex products in their respective territories throughout
the United States.

Under the terms of the agreements, the companies will distribute
Everex's STEP and Tempo computer product lines, and the
company's full line of peripheral products. Everex products
will be immediately available.

Jerry Graham, national sales manager of distribution for Everex
said: "Combining STEP high-performance computers as the file
servers, affordable Tempo systems as the mid-range
workstations, and a variety of high-end PC peripherals, Everex
offers the perfect networking business solution for the VAR
market."

All three distributors specialize in selling and supporting
Novell network and multi-user systems to value-added resellers.

"The agreements with GBC, PC Distributing, and Vitek allow us
to partner with strategic, regional distributors that cover all
major metropolitan areas," said Howard Crystal, vice president
of domestic sales, Everex.

Only this week Everex was in the news as having paid Hayes
Microcomputer Products $2.5 million to settle a lawsuit in which
Hayes charged Everex with willful infringement on its modem patent.

In another case in June, Newsbytes reported that Everex and
Microsoft Corp had won a substantial jury award in a lawsuit that had
been filed against eight defendants responsible for counterfeiting
the Microsoft MS-DOS operating system. The suit alleged that the
defendants had counterfeited the version of MS-DOS marketed
by Everex under Everex's trademark "ParCorp."

(Ian Stokell/19910827/Press Contact: Jerry Graham, Everex
Systems Inc., 415-683-2489)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 HYUNDAI SHIPS FAST NEW DRAM AND SRAM 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00023)

HYUNDAI SHIPS FAST NEW DRAM AND SRAM 08/27/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- The
Semiconductor Division of Hyundai Electronics America is now
shipping five new CMOS or complimentary metal oxide semiconductor
memory chips, a 60, 70, or 80 nanosecond, 1 megabyte (MB) DRAM
(dynamic random access memory), a 4 MB DRAM, and a 70 nanosecond
256-kilobit CMOS SRAM or static RAM. SRAM chips do not require
the regular refresh signal that DRAM chips need to maintain their
data contents.

CMOS or complimentary metal oxide semiconductor microchips are
more expensive than the usual variety but require less power and
are thus often in demand for battery-operated systems.

The HY531000 is a 1 M by 1-bit CMOS DRAM available in 60, 70 and
80ns speeds and the HY534256 is a 256 K by 4-bit chip in the same
speeds.

The HY514100 is a very low-power 4 M by 1-bit CMOS DRAM.

The 60ns HY531000 is one of the first high-speed 1MB DRAMs to hit
the market.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Debra Bowman, Hyundai
Electronics America, 408-473-9318)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR PCS: Sony Multimedia Ent't/Learning CD-ROM 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00024)

NEW FOR PCS: Sony Multimedia Ent't/Learning CD-ROM 08/27/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- At a suggested
retail price of only $699, the new "back-to-school" special
package will include a Sony CD-ROM player and six CD-ROM based
interactive programs for IBM-compatible computers.

This software is included: Compton's Family Encyclopedia, Microsoft
Bookshelf Reference Library 1991 Edition, National Geographic's
Mammals - A Multimedia Encyclopedia, Mixed-Up Mother Goose -
Languages of the World, and The Software Toolworks World Atlas.

CD-ROMs are very inexpensive-to-manufacture data storage discs
that come with information already encoded on them. A single CD-
ROM (essentially the same product as the CD-Audio disc) can
contain hundreds of books full of text or a combination of sound,
text, and images; the latter is what is referred to as multimedia
because you can not only read about something but also see an
image of it and listen to appropriate sounds such as speech or
music.

Audio jacks to connect to an amplifier and Sony headphones are
included with the package, as are a multimedia tutorial and step-
by-step installation instructions.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Deborah Brown, Technology
Solutions, 212-505-9900)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 POURNELLE COMMENTS ON NEWSBYTES BUREAU CHIEF'S BOOK 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00025)

POURNELLE COMMENTS ON NEWSBYTES BUREAU CHIEF'S BOOK 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- This bureau has
recently noticed that famous science fiction writer and well-
known BYTE columnist Jerry Pournelle took note of a Newsbytes
writer when he wrote in a recent BYTE column about the Washington
bureau chief's book on optical storage.

In a June Chaos Manor column where he was discussing WORM or
write once, read many optical drives, Dr. Pournelle wrote:
"Incidentally, if you want an introduction and exposition on the
whole optical storage field, John A. McCormick, 'A Guide To
Optical Storage Technology,' Dow Jones Irwin 1990, ISBN 1-55623-
320-5 is about as good as I've seen, a good balance of
readability and technical information; reading this won't make
you an expert, but you'll know as much as anyone who isn't an
expert."

Dow Jones-Irwin has recently changed its name to BusinessONE
Irwin but it is still the same company.

(Beth Goldie/19910827/Press Contact: Melanie Chionis, BusinessONE
Irwin, 708-206-2773)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 ACE INITIATIVE GAINS 24 NEW MEMBERS 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00026)

ACE INITIATIVE GAINS 24 NEW MEMBERS 08/27/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- An additional 24
companies have joined the Advanced Computing Environment (ACE)
initiative, bringing total membership in the industry group to 85.
The group was formed in April to promote a set of standards
covering Intel-based personal computers and workstations using
processors from MIPS Computer Systems Inc.

The ACE group also backs two operating systems. One is Microsoft's
New Technology (NT), which was seen as the next generation of OS/2
when ACE was announced but is now being billed as Windows NT. The
other is The Santa Cruz Operation's Open Desktop version of Unix.

Hardware vendors who have just joined ACE include American
Megatrends, Inc., Cache Computers, Inc., Dansk Data Elektronik A/S,
Emerald Computers, Inc., Everex Systems, Inc. HCL America, Inc.,
Interphase Corp., IRTV mbH, Micronics Computers, Myriad Solutions
Ltd., Nokia Data Systems, Oakleigh Systems, Inc., Photon Machines,
Inc., Seiko Epson Corp., Sigma Designs, Inc., and UltraStor Corp.

Software vendors just added to the membership rolls include:
Alcatel TITN Inc. Edinburgh Portable Compilers Ltd.,Insight
Development Corp., Momentum Software, Prolific, Inc., Samsung
Software America, Software Research Associates, and Translation
Systems.

Microsoft and The Santa Cruz Operation are scheduled to release
developers' kits to independent software vendors by year-end, ACE
officials said.

ACE membership is open to all vendors who plan to build or design
hardware or software that fits the group's standards. Interested
vendors can contact James A. Billmaier of MIPS Computer Systems
at 408-524-7028.

(Grant Buckler/19910827)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR PCS: Digital Vision Unveils Frame Grabber 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00027)

NEW FOR PCS: Digital Vision Unveils Frame Grabber 08/27/91
DEDHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Digital Vision
has announced ComputerEyes/RT, a real-time video frame grabber for
the IBM PC and compatibles. Digital Vision said the frame grabber
will complement its line of slow-scan video digitizers.

The frame grabber can capture images from the real world in one
thirtieth of a second, the company said. Images are captured in
one-bit, eight-bit (256 colors), or 24-bit (16.7 million colors)
color.

Digital Vision is promoting the use of the new product, and of its
existing products, in new commercial and multimedia applications.
While the company has previously concentrated on selling to
computer enthusiasts and desktop publishers, it now plans to work
with third-party developers on a variety of other applications.

Paul Terrio, national sales manager, told Newsbytes his company is
already working with ACS Telecom, a developer that is incorporating
the Digital Vision products into a system for capturing and
transmitting images. The company is also working with a security
systems developer, which Terrio would not name, that plans to use
the technology in a criminal tracking system.

Other possibilities include automated assembly line inspection,
medical systems image capture, sports motion analysis, real estate
database applications, and custom T-shirt manufacturing, the
company said.

Product Manager Steve Sarsfield said Digital Vision has sold some
products through third parties before. For example, Canon sells
some of Digital Vision's older products as part of a still video
kit, he said. "This type of arrangement has always worked out
pretty well for us."

Digital Vision is offering a developer's tool kit for US$100.00.
The tool kit includes an executable program that allows users to
capture an image by issuing a DOS command. Microsoft C and
assembler code are also included.

ComputerEyes/RT sells for US$599, and works with an IBM PC, XT, AT,
286, 386, 486, PS/2 Models 25 or 30, or compatible computer with at
least 512K bytes of memory, DOS 2.1 or higher, and VGA, Super-VGA,
or MCGA graphics capabilities. A hard drive is recommended.

(Grant Buckler/19910827/Press Contact: Steve Sarsfield, Digital
Vision, 617-329-5400)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR IBM: Funk's Formula Editor is 1-2-3 Add-In 08/27/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00028)

NEW FOR IBM: Funk's Formula Editor is 1-2-3 Add-In 08/27/91
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Funk Software
has introduced Formula Editor, an add-in for Lotus 1-2-3 Release
2.x that it said will make it easier to create, edit, and debug
formulas.

Originally part of Funk's The Worksheet Utilities package of
add-ins, Formula Editor is being offered for the first time as a
stand-alone product.

Formula Editor lets the user see all of a long formula in a window
on the screen, rather than just the 80 characters visible in the
one line allocated to displaying the contents of a cell in 1-2-3.
It also provides a menu of all the available @ functions in 1-2-3,
said Michael Blaber, a spokesman for the company.

The add-in also prompts the user to fill in all of the parts of a
formula, Blaber said, making it easier to write formulas correctly
the first time. Its "continuous parsing" technology highlights
syntax errors and unmatched parentheses as the user types in a
formula.

To aid in debugging formulas, Formula Editor can calculate a
formula step by step and show the results at each stage, making it
easier to spot errors, the company said.

The software can also convert cell addresses to range names and
vice versa, and lets the user create new range names while editing
a formula.

Formula Editor works with 1-2-3 Release 2, 2.01, 2.2, or 2.3. It
requires an IBM or compatible computer running DOS Version 2.0 or
later. The software uses 50K bytes of memory, Funk Software said.
Suggested retail price is US$99.95, and the software is available
now in the United States and Canada, Blaber said.

(Grant Buckler/19910827/Press Contact: Nancy Fisher or Joe Ryan,
Funk Software, 617-497-6339; Michael Blaber, The Marketing
Partnership for Funk Software, 617-876-9511, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27  ****CANADIAN, SOVIET FIRMS WORKING TOGETHER 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00029)

 ****CANADIAN, SOVIET FIRMS WORKING TOGETHER 08/27/91
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- When tanks rolled in
the streets of Moscow recently, there were some anxious moments at
FirstMark Technologies. But the coup attempt ended, and now the
Ottawa software firm and its partners at OKB, a Moscow space
research group, are celebrating.

FirstMark, a software developer and management services firm, is
helping OKB commercialize its space products and services. A
special research bureau of the Moscow Power Engineering Institute,
OKB has been involved with the Soviet Union's space program for
more than 40 years. Political change in that country has freed it
to operate as a commercial venture.

Mike Faulkner, vice-president of management services at FirstMark,
told Newsbytes his company got involved with the Soviet Union first
through a program called Peace Train, which involved student
exchanges and other joint activities between Canada and the Soviet
Union.

FirstMark's management services division helped manage cooperation
between the Soviet and Canadian space efforts, and came into
contact with OKB in the process. The companies started working
together as a result. OKB has a strong software engineering group,
Faulkner added, so it is working with FirstMark's software
division, maker of a PC decision-making package called
KnowledgeSeeker.

The two companies have an agreement to cooperate in international
sales and marketing of their respective products. Their objective,
according to FirstMark, is to form a joint venture in the Soviet
Union.

(Grant Buckler/19910827/Press Contact: Mike Faulkner, FirstMark
Technologies, 613-723-8020)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 A VIRTUAL THEATER FOR VIRTUAL REALITY 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00030)

A VIRTUAL THEATER FOR VIRTUAL REALITY 08/27/91
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- The computer
industry's favorite exotic technology is getting ready for a more
mainstream showing. According to a report in Video Technology News
(Phillips Publishing, Potomac, Md.), MCA/Universal is developing
a "virtual theater" that will open at the Universal Studios Tour
in Los Angeles next year.

Virtual reality uses computing, imaging and sensory feedback to
create interactive lifelike experiences.

The theater project is a joint effort with Redwood City-based
VPL Research, the leading supplier of virtual reality products,
notably a computerized glove and headset get-up that gives the user the
experience of seeing and touching "virtual" objects.

(Dave Needle and Computer Currents/19910827)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 KNOWLEDGEWARE AND INTELLICORP TO MERGE 08/27/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00031)

KNOWLEDGEWARE AND INTELLICORP TO MERGE 08/27/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- KnowledgeWare
is set to acquire Mountain View, California-based IntelliCorp Inc.,
following the approval of both companies boards of directors to
approve a definitive merger agreement.

Under the terms of the agreement, KnowledgeWare will issue .13402
share of its common stock in a tax-free exchange for each outstanding
share and option of IntelliCorp common stock, or approximately 1.3
million shares of KnowledgeWare common stock.

The merger, which is subject to the approval of IntelliCorp's
shareholders and other conditions, will be accounted for by
KnowledgeWare as a pooling of interests, the accounting method
that gained so much attention during AT&T's acquisition of NCR
Corp recently.

According to the companies, the merger is expected to be
completed in late October or early November.

KnowledgeWare recently acquired Language Technology  Inc. ,
a developer of maintenance and re-engineering tools for existing
COBOL systems.

KnowledgeWare has posted fiscal 1991 revenues of more than
$124 million,  and is a vendor of computer-aided software
engineering (CASE) tools. Its two main product lines are the
OS/2-based Application Development Workbench and the DOS-
based Information Engineering Workbench.

IntelliCorp develops and markets advanced application development
and delivery software products that bring the benefits of object- and
rule-based systems to business applications. Revenues for the
totaled nearly $14 million in fiscal 1991.

Both companies are members of the Object Management Group,
an international organization that aims to promote the use of object
management technology in software design.

(Ian Stokell/19910827/Press Contact: Liz Simpson, KnowledgeWare,
404-231-8575)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SW BELL ADDS NEW SYSTEMS IN MISSOURI, ILLINOIS 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00001)

SW BELL ADDS NEW SYSTEMS IN MISSOURI, ILLINOIS 08/26/91
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Southwestern Bell
is expanding its rural cellular phone service in Missouri and
Illinois. The 4 rural service areas have a total of 718,864
potential customers, and the deals are pending regulatory
approvals.

In Missouri, Southwestern Bell's Mobile Systems unit formed a
limited partnership with Alltel Mobile Communications of Little
Rock which will include both St. Louis and 3 surrounding rural
regions. In Illinois, it signed contracts which will let it
deploy cellular service along Interstates 55, 57, and 70. The
company's Cellular One operations already serve Springfield;
Decatur; Champaign-Urbana; Bloomington-Normal; Chicago/Gary,
Ind.; and four small central Illinois markets.

Finally, a partnership it holds with Comcast signed to acquire a
non-wireline service area in Dover, Delaware, which Comcast will
operate.

In other news involving Southwestern Bell, the company began an
internal trial of switched multimegabit data service, which can
send millions of bits of data per second using cell relay
technology. The service is designed to link local area networks (LANs)
over the public telephone network, and the test will link the
company's own LANs.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/ Press Contact: Southwestern Bell
Mobile Systems, Walter F. Patterson, 214/733-2132; Scott
Hilgeman, Southwestern Bell, 314-247-4613)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 TANZANIA INSTALLS AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE EXCHANGE 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00002)

TANZANIA INSTALLS AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE EXCHANGE 08/26/91
DAR ES SALAAM, TANZANIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- The Chinese
Xinhua news agency reports that Tanzania installed its first
international automatic telephone exchange system in the capital
of Dar Es Salaam.

The new system has the ability to handle 2,000 lines, and will
link Dar Es Salaam, with Arush, Zanzibar and other major cities
of the country. IT was purchased with a $5.2 million loan from
the government of Belgium. Most of the country's
telecommunications system dates from to 1940s or 1950s.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 STUDY SHOWS PHONE IMPORTANT SALES TOOL 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00003)

STUDY SHOWS PHONE IMPORTANT SALES TOOL 08/26/91
SAN FERNANDO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Inquiry
Handling Service released results from a tracking study
involving more than 300,000 sales leads from 200 companies. The
on-going IHS Inquiry Performance Survey shows that phone-based
leads continue to gain over paper-based systems.

Results showed that the ratio of leads obtained from advertising
and public relations reader service telephone numbers increased,
while those from trade shows, post card decks and direct mail
declined, compared to the same period last year. At the same
time, the ratio of inquiries obtained from 800-number calls and
toll calls continued to increase.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Jim Obermayer, Inquiry
Handling Service, 818-365-8131; John Dillon, 213-487-2363)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SOFTWARE FOR KIDS - FOCUS OF NEW NEWSLETTER 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00004)

SOFTWARE FOR KIDS - FOCUS OF NEW NEWSLETTER 08/26/91
ENCINITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Out of
frustration caused by his inability to find software for his
kids, Stewart Walton is introducing "Educational Software
Review, The Parent's Guide to Computers," beginning in
September of this year.

The eight-page newsletter will contain no advertising, but
instead focuses on reviews and articles geared toward parents
of children of all ages, but especially school-age children
using computers at home. Walton told Newsbytes, "I couldn't
find good software for my kids, and I soon discovered
that other parents were in the same boat. We didn't like
taking advice on educational programs from a harried clerk at a
retail store who only knows what people are buying that week."

Walton, a computer engineer and consultant said he searched and
could find very little on children's software and nothing on
things like, "how to protect your hard disk from your seven-
year-old." That's when "Educational Software Review" was born.

Initial response has been tremendous. "Parents know exactly
what I'm talking about when I describe it in one sentence,"
said Walton.

The newsletter is designed for fast consumption, so parents can
look it over to see what is of interest to them or their kids
in less than 5 minutes, and read that material in less than
half an hour. Each month it will rotate the focus on one of
four academic subject areas in this order, Language Arts, Math,
Social Studies and Science. The first issue's focus on Language
Arts will concentrate on creative writing, the second issue
plans to zoom in on counting, arithmetic, and algebra, and so
on.

Walton says software for every grade level will be reviewed so
parents will always find something appropriate for their
children. The articles are planned to focus on specific issues
of a child using a computer, such as what a minimum system
should be, why kids like certain programs and not others, how
to set up a hard disk, and where to buy software.

The newsletter will be distributed by subscription only at a
price of $42.50 for one year (12 issues). Charter subscriptions
are being offered at the reduced rate of $33.75. Walton said he
has a simple guarantee -- just cancel and get a full refund.
Subscriptions can be secured toll-free at 800/972-3535, or by
writing Educational Software Review, P.O. Box 1004, Encinitas,
California 92023.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108022/Press Contact: Stewart Walton,
Growth Systems, Tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AGU 26 NEW PCS IN UK: AST Premium 11 386/33 & 486/33 Systems 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00005)

NEW PCS IN UK: AST Premium 11 386/33 & 486/33 Systems 08/26/91
BRENTFORD, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- AST has souped
up its family of high-performance PCs with the addition of the
Premium II 386/33 and 486/33 machines to its range.

The two new systems join the Premium II 386SX/20 486SX/20 series,
which was launched earlier this year. According to AST, the new
machines mean that the company has a complete range of PCs for
all users in the marketplace.

As the name implies, the Premium II 386/33 is driven by a 33MHz
80386 microprocessor. Supplied with 4MB of RAM, the PC comes with
16K of RAM cache, as well as the cache driving technology seen on
the Premium II 486 series.

The more powerful Premium II 486/33 desktop, meanwhile, is
designed for computing-intensive applications, as well as more
complex operating environments. Like the 386/33, the machine
comes with 4MB of RAM and a 16K RAM caching system.

Unusually for an Intel-based PC, the Premium II 486/33 is based
on an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) design which
AST claims requires less power, produces less heat and offers
greater reliability.

Both new machines can be expanded to 16MB on the motherboard,
and up to 80MB total RAM. Super VGA graphics is integrated into
the PC's motherboard, along with a PS/2 compatible
mouse, single parallel, and dual serial ports. An IDE drive interface is
included as standard.

Three models of the Premium II 386/33 are offered. The basic
Model 3V with a single floppy drive costs UKP 2,295, while the
Model 83V with an 80MB hard drive costs UKP 2,695. The Model 213V
with a 210MB hard drive costs UKP 3,295.

Likewise with the Premium II 486/33. The basic Model 3V costs UKP
3,595, while the 80MB hard drive-equipped Model 83V costs UKP
3,995. The flagship Model 213V with 210MB hard drive costs UKP
4,595.

According to Graham Hopper, director of AST's U.K. operations,
all the new machines are available immediately.

"Because they feature AST's Cupid-32 architecture, the Premium II
family systems provide cost-effective processing power now, and
deliver security of investment to users who need higher
performance in future," he said.

Hopper added that both systems complete the Premium II range in
the U.K. "Together, they meet the new office standard for
computing applications," he said.

(Steve Gold/19910822/Press & Public Contact: AST Research - Tel:
081-568-4350)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW PCS IN UK: Bondwell "Secure" Portables 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00006)

NEW PCS IN UK: Bondwell "Secure" Portables 08/26/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Bondwell Europe claims to
have introduced the industry's most secure range of portables
with the release of its new range of machines equipped with the
company's portable alarm system.

According to Bondwell, the PC alarm system provides a unique
solution to what is seen as one of the biggest potential
limitations of portable PCs -- security.

Bondwell claims that its high security PCs are the first to offer
protection on two levels. First, a motion detector alarm is
incorporated to prevent anyone running off with the machine.
Second, an optional security program prevents unauthorized
access to the hard disk and confidential data.

This combination ensures that access to sensitive data is
prevented, while the alarm system acts as a powerful deterrent to
theft. Once set, the 90 decibel alarm system is triggered if the
laptop is moved or lifted. It can only be disarmed if a unique
password code -- programmed by the user -- is entered.

Richard Percy, Bondwell's European marketing manager, explained
that recent Ministry of Defence case, in which a portable PC
containing Gulf conflict war plans was stolen, brought the issue
of portable security to national attention.

"But, in fact, all sectors, not just the military, are looking
for a solution to the continual problem of portable PC security.
While portability is the very reason people choose these compact
systems, it means that the data stored on these machines is far
more vulnerable to loss and theft," he said.

"While no system can provide a 100 percent guarantee against the
theft of confidential data, the Bondwell PC alarm system,
together with Stoplock, provide the highest level of laptop
security the industry currently offers," he added.

Available as an optional software-based access control system,
Stoplock IS for PC Security, prevents access to the portable PC
by unauthorized users. If the PC is stolen, access to data is
prevented unless a password is entered.

The PC alarm system is a standard feature of the Bondwell new
B310V and B310SX laptop PCs. The 80286-based B310V and 80386SX-
based B310SX systems offer up to 80MB of hard disk capacity, with
prices starting from UKP 1,449.

Based in London, Bondwell Europe markets portable and desktop
PCs, video game joysticks and consumer electronics products. The
company has been in the UK for more than ten years.

(Steve Gold/19910822/Press & Public Contact: Bondwell Europe -
Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW FOR PCS: Eicon Offers Access For OS/2 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00007)

NEW FOR PCS: Eicon Offers Access For OS/2 08/26/91
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Eicon Technology has
announces Access for OS/2, which joins its Access for Windows and
Access for DOS terminal and printer emulation packages. The
software allows a personal computer running OS/2 to appear to an
IBM mainframe as if it were an IBM 3270 terminal or an IBM 3287
printer.

A workstation running Access for OS/2 can connect to an IBM
mainframe and establish as many as 32 display or printer sessions
at the same time. The software works with Eicon's SNA Gateway
connection, or through IBM's direct Token Ring connection, the
company said.

Access for OS/2 offers exactly the same functions as the Windows
version, company spokeswoman Cynthia Yacowar said, except that it
supports the OS/2 Presentation Manager graphical user interface
instead of that of Windows. Both the OS/2 and Windows versions of
Access support 32 simultaneous host sessions, versus nine with the
DOS version.

The software supports host-based graphics, and lets users program
their own soft keys as well as record macros, Eicon said. It also
provides cut and paste functions, file transfer, translation
tables and keyboard layouts for 17 different countries.

Mark Denny, SNA product manager at Eicon, told Newsbytes he does
not expect sales of Access for OS/2 to match those of the Windows
version initially. He admitted that the success of Microsoft
Windows and Microsoft's recent turn away from OS/2 have hurt the
demand for OS/2 products somewhat. However, he said, there is a
real demand for OS/2 software, particularly in large companies that
have already made a substantial investment in OS/2. For custom
development of key applications, he said, OS/2 is widely believed
to be better than Windows.

(Grant Buckler/19910823/Press Contact: Cynthia Yacowar, Eicon
Technology, 514-631-2592, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 ROBERTS FINDS PROBLEMS IN TELECOM FRONTIER 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00008)

ROBERTS FINDS PROBLEMS IN TELECOM FRONTIER 08/26/91
ON THE ROAD, WISCONSIN, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Steve
Roberts and his Behemoth, a 350-pound test-bed for portable
computer and communications gear, are back on the road again. And
they're learning that, while some things are possible, they're
also expensive.

Cellular roaming, for instance, turns out to be a little like
X.400, he writes from the road in Wisconsin. It's easy to call
from outside your "home" service area to anywhere in the country,
just as it's possible to write a letter from one electronic mail
to another. It's just expensive. Roberts says a program called
"Roam America" might make the financial burden less onerous, and
sought information on it from Newsbytes.

Roberts also wound up in trouble with an automatic break on the
computer system used by US Sprint for its billings. Roberts
seldom uses his Sprint card when he's stationary, but when he's
mobile he uses it a lot. "For a couple of years, I used it very
little, then hit the road last month and used about $350 up 'til
now. With no warning, they shut down my account, thinking that
the change in pattern was evidence of stolen-card fraud. It took
about 12 hours to get it straightened out and switched back on --
this is the second time they've done this -- and it has nothing to
do with credit . I think this is pretty tacky... yesterday it
caused a real communication crisis since I was trying to
synchronize with a film crew that flew in to meet me," he writes.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910826/Press Contact: Steve Roberts: GEnie:
Wordy)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 LATIN PHONE FIRMS BEING PRIVATIZED IN HOT MARKET 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00009)

LATIN PHONE FIRMS BEING PRIVATIZED IN HOT MARKET 08/26/91
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Argentina is
selling its remaining stake in the EnTel phone monopoly to the
public on the Buenos Aires stock market. That market has nearly
doubled in value in just the last few weeks, as investors --
especially Japanese -- rush for bargains. A total of 60 percent
of EnTel -- it stands for Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones
-- was sold to two consortia of foreign telecommunications firms, both
headed by European telephone companies, for $1.6 billion early
this year.

The government wants to give another 10 percent of the
stock to employees and sell much of the rest in small chunks so
Argentines will have a chance to buy it. Revenues from the
Buenos Aires sale are expected to be $300-$500 million, and the
government has also talked to U.S. investment bankers about
making a private placement of shares on overseas stock markets,
thereby increasing their liquidity. Mexico's Telmex phone company
has become one of the most heavily-traded issues in New York.

Meanwhile, on the booming Brazilian stock market, shares in that
country's Telebras phone monopoly rose 6.4 percent in one day
after the government said it would seek to amend the country's
constitution and make it a totally private company. The country's
constitution went into effect in 1988. Brazilian business
executives have complained that foreign investors care only for
Telebras and not for other issues on the exchange.

Elsewhere, Peru and Venezuela have announced plans to privitize
their phone companies, following the lead of Mexico and
Argentina.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SPRINT OPENS KOREAN SUBSIDIARY 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00010)

SPRINT OPENS KOREAN SUBSIDIARY 08/26/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- U S Sprint,
which got into the Soviet market early this year, has now
launched a Korean subsidiary called Sprint Korea to offer its
voice and data services to businesses there.

Among the deals already finished are packet networks for Korea
Telecom and PosData, the latter a subsidiary of the Pohang Iron
and Steel Company, and an expansion of 9 nodes for the Dacom
network. The Korean market was recently deregulated and overseas
firms are rushing into it.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910826)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 AUSTRALIA: SIGMA DATA INITIATES OWN RECEIVERSHIP 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00011)

AUSTRALIA: SIGMA DATA INITIATES OWN RECEIVERSHIP 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Australian mid-range computer
distributor Sigma Data has taken voluntary receivership, believing
that at least some part of the business can be salvaged. About 60
percent of staff were dismissed on Friday, and the receiver says this
may be the only cut needed.

Many vendors are owed money - Unisys around $2M and Sequent around
$500,000 - but most have said they will help the company trade out.
Sigma recently signed a $15 deal to distribute AT&T product, and this
may go ahead.

A subsidiary, Distech, is installing warehousing control systems in
Australia and the US, and is not expected to be affected by the
parent's troubles. Sigma Data is 17 years old, and has weathered a
number of downturns in the industry. It has recently moved out of the
support sector, selling its engineering and maintenance division to
Unisys in 1990.

Founder Michael Faktor is expected to stay in an influential position
in the company. He said his company had suffered both from market
downturns and vendor problems. "Things have been changing. The move to
open systems has hurt vendor-specific business. We have the right
product mix and relationships so that will help us work through this.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SILICON GRAPHICS OPENS OFFICE IN AUSTRALIA 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00012)

SILICON GRAPHICS OPENS OFFICE IN AUSTRALIA 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Graphics workstation
manufacturer Silicon Graphics is to establish a manufacturing base and
regional headquarters in Sydney. Business is expected to reach $50M in
two years.

While it isn't clear how much componentry will be sourced locally, the
company believes it will be able to generate sufficient manufacturing
offsets to satisfy the government obligations for what it plans to
sell in Australia. It also plans to establish a software manufacturing
centre, using Australian programmers to develop packages for the local
and international market. This is seen as easier to achieve than
finding a large local hardware content.

Graham Frost, Silicon Graphics Australian manager, said the region
contained a vast untapped market for its products. Target countries
include India, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. Singapore
is another country in the region used by mid-range systems
manufacturers such as Hewlett-Packard and Compaq. IBM, however,
manufactures for the region at its Australian factory.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER OPERATOR CONVICTED ON VIDEO EVIDENCE 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00013)

AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER OPERATOR CONVICTED ON VIDEO EVIDENCE 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- An Australian computer operator
has been convicted of sabotaging his employer's computer following
the use of videotape evidence allegedly showing him causing a system
failure.

Computing Australia newspaper reports that George Henein was a shift
leader at motor assembler JRA in November last year when the event
occurred. He was found guilty of unlawfully interrupting the operation
of JRA's AS/400 computer. Videotaped evidence, taken from a concealed
camera, is said to show Henein pressing the "attention" button on the
computer's disk drive, causing the system to fail.

In his defence, he said he thought he was correcting the system as it
had already failed, but this was dismissed by the court. He was fined
$1500 and put on a two year good behaviour bond. He is unlikely to
appeal since, if unsuccessful, the outcome may be a jail sentence.

The surveillance cameras were installed with cooperation by the state
fraud squad. This was due to abnormal problem levels in the
installation since 1988. IBM testified that no other AS/400
installation had experienced the level of failures the JRA machine
had.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 AUSTRALIA: EX-COMPUTERLAND MD OPENS PC "BOUTIQUE" 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00014)

AUSTRALIA: EX-COMPUTERLAND MD OPENS PC "BOUTIQUE" 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Mike Boulos, former managing
director of Computerland in Australia, says he has found the way to make
money in even a quiet market. His new store is doing over a million
dollars a month in sales, he claims.

Boulos says he is so successful in his new business, he is opening a
second, "megastore" in inner suburban Sydney. Recently he has started
advertising Compaq computers at what he claims is less than half price
-- a move which has upset more than a few Compaq dealers wanting to
know why they weren't offered such a good buy from Compaq.

He says he is capitalizing on corporate customers who are installing
their own support structures, and simply want to buy off the shelf at
bottom prices. "They certainly don't want to pay for dealer support
when they know they won't use it," he said.

Boulos has had some brushes with computer publications during the past
few months. He settled out of court on two defamation actions against
two weekly papers. With one he was reportedly seeking a quarter of a
million dollars damages, but settled for somewhat less, including
editorial space. His new business name, Computer World Solutions,
has annoyed IDG Australia, which says the name is too close to the
Computerworld newspaper name.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 MOTOROLA JAPAN JOINT VENTURE ON DIGITAL PHONES 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00015)

MOTOROLA JAPAN JOINT VENTURE ON DIGITAL PHONES 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Motorola Japan has tied up with
Tokyo-based Daimyo Telephone Industry in a joint venture to create
connections for digital mobile phones, the Nikkei newspaper says.
The official agreement is expected in October.

The total capitalization of the new firm will be around 50 million yen
($370,000), which will be owned 60 percent by Motorola and 40
percent by Daimyo. The president will come from among Motorola
Japan's executives, and the chairman will be chosen from a pool of Daimyo
executives. The new firm will construct ground telecommunication bases
that will serve as nodes for digital mobile phones. It will also supply
telecommunications equipment and provide maintenance services for
digital mobile phones. Digital mobile phone service is expected in Japan
in 1992. There is also a possibility that Motorola will use this joint
venture to aid its Iridium project in the future.

The relation between Motorola and Daimyo goes back to 1988. Both
firms signed a joint business agreement to build telecommunications
systems ordered by NTT's rival telephone firm DDI.

Digital mobile phone service is a fledgling business now, but is
envisioned as a major force in the future in Japan. Two firms are vying
for the largest share of the pie: Tokyo Digital Phone, which was created
by NTT, IDO, and Telecom Japan, and Two Car Cellular Tokyo, which
was set up by DDI and Nissan Motor.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Motorola Japan, +81-3-
3440-3311)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 JAPANESE LOTUS 1-2-3 ON SUN WORKSTATION 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00016)

JAPANESE LOTUS 1-2-3 ON SUN WORKSTATION 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- The Tokyo office of Lotus says it
will ship the Japanese version of Lotus 1-2-3 for Sun Microsystems'
workstation this October. It will the first Japanese spreadsheet
program for the workstation and is expected to make it attractive not
only to engineers but to businesses.

The Japanese version of Lotus 1-2-3 will be called "1-2-3/SPARC
Ver 1.1J" and is based on the latest version of the Lotus 1-2-3
program. The list price will be 198,000 yen ($1,470).

Lotus expects to sell 6,000 units of the program for the initial year.
Shipment will start at the end of October.

Sun Microsystems is attempting to make the workstations more
attractive to users in Japan with this, and the recent additions of
Japanese fonts to its software offerings.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Lotus, Tokyo, +81-3-
3436-4105)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 TI CREATES MAJOR R & D CENTER IN JAPAN 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00017)

TI CREATES MAJOR R & D CENTER IN JAPAN 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Texas Instruments Japan will
open its first overseas research and development center in Japan
in October. It is located in the Tsukuba academic town in Japan's Ibaraki
Prefecture.

The research and development center is expected to play an
important role not only in Japan but throughout TI's Asian operations.
TI plans primarily to study customized ICs (integrated circuits),
especially application specific ICs, for which there is a strong demand in
Japan
and other Asian regions. This represents a big shift in TI's policy, which
was to place most of its energies into general purpose products such as
dynamic random access memory.

Currently, TI has three semiconductor chip manufacturing plants,
ten sales offices, and five design centers in Japan. The new
R & D center is expected to round out complete placement of a
semiconductor business in Japan. TI Japan's President Yukiaki
Nagae told the Nikkei newspaper that TI Japan may sign
partnerships with other firms if necessary in the future.

TI Japan has been selling ICs for high definition TVs,
telecommunications, and cars. The firm is also selling more ICs
for liquid crystal displays. TI Japan aims to gain 50 percent of
the LCD IC share in Japan. Also, the firm will start emphasizing
sales of ASIC, DSPs (digital signal processors) and ASMs
(application specific memory).

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Texas Instruments
Japan, [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 HITACHI BUILDS 16M DRAM CHIP PLANT IN GERMANY 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00018)

HITACHI BUILDS 16M DRAM CHIP PLANT IN GERMANY 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Hitachi will install a 16-megabit
dynamic random access memory plant at its semiconductor
manufacturing plant, which is currently being under construction
in Germany.

Hitachi says it will spend 25 billion yen ($185 million) for this
facility, which will be in operation in the spring of 1992. The
plant will be equipped with facilities designed to produce semiconductor
chips from scratch.

Hitachi was initially planning to manufacture 1-megabit static RAM and
4-megabit DRAM at this new plant, but has apparently seen that the
16-megabit DRAM era will arrive earlier than expected. So, it has decided
to install the 16-megabit DRAM facility now.

Many Japanese electronics firms are currently shipping samples of
their 16-megabit DRAM. Most of the major Japanese electronics firms
will ship sample products within a couple of months, with the 16-megabit
DRAM due in quantity shortly thereafter. The 16-megabit DRAM will
mainly be sold for workstations.

Hitachi is currently creating the 16-megabit DRAM production lines
at its plants in Kofu and Naka in Japan.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Hitachi, +81-3-3258-
2057)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26  ****DRIVE MAKER PRAIRIETEK CALLS IT QUITS 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00019)

 ****DRIVE MAKER PRAIRIETEK CALLS IT QUITS 08/26/91
LONGMONT, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- PrairieTek
Corporation, the company that pioneered the 2.5-inch disk drive,
has closed its doors. With the exception of a skeleton staff
who will work with creditors, the firm's 300 employees are out of
work.

The venture-capital-funded Colorado firm was expecting to
finalize a $40 million funding deal this week, but changing
product requirements, a volatile marketplace, and the loss of the
funding was the death knell of the company.

A Longmont investment firm, Innovation Group, had said last
month that it would come to the financial rescue of PrairieTek,
claiming that it would obtain funding in return for a 65 percent
equity interest. Innovation Group's leader, Kelly Hickel,
also led an unsuccessful effort to revive another Colorado firm,
Miniscribe.

PrairieTek's director of North American sales told a Colorado
newspaper that "the market for venture capital is very soft
right now, and is particularly tough for high-tech companies."
Roger Leisy said it took Hickel's group longer than expected to
come up with the funding needed, and, "We just didn't have as
much time as needed."

PrairieTek was founded in 1986, and a year later introduced the
first 2.5-inch disk drive, designed for use in laptop and
portable computers. The small drive was seen as revolutionary,
providing more power in less space and with less weight.

Last November the company's founders, perhaps seeing the
handwriting on the wall, left to start another company.
Unable to convince investors to commit more money, the
company laid off 210 employees in May of this year, and in
July, six of the company's directors resigned.

Of the 300 employees now without jobs, about 100 were located in
Longmont, with the remainder employed at the company's four
month old Singapore facility. Although PrairieTek has closed
its doors, no decision has been announced yet as to whether the
company will file bankruptcy proceedings.

(Jim Mallory/910823)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 RANDOM ACCESS TO ACQUIRE CW ELECTRONICS 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00020)

RANDOM ACCESS TO ACQUIRE CW ELECTRONICS 08/26/91
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Random Access, Inc.,
has announced that it has signed a letter of intent to acquire
Denver-based computer retailer CW Electronics.

Random Access, believed to be the Rocky Mountain area's largest
microcomputer reseller, said the acquisition coincides with an
agreement it signed Friday to acquire four Denver area BizMart
"supercenter" franchises. Terms of the CW acquisition were not
disclosed.

Bruce Milliken, CEO of Random Access, said the two acquisitions
will give Random Access instant entry into the computer
retailing sector, and allow the company to diversify its account
base. Random Access is also interested in reducing its reliance
on large corporate customers, which until now has been the sales
area in which it has specialized. The company projects $58 million in
sales for fiscal year 1991.

According to a statement released by Random Access, the CW
Electronics management team will be responsible for operating
the BizMart franchise stores as well as expanding Random Access'
retail base.

The four BizMart stores are part of the national 62-store
BizMart chain acquired in June by Intelligent Electronics. That
company says it intends to expand BizMart's traditional
selection of office products to include major manufacturers
computer such as IBM, Apple and Compaq.

Random Access now becomes Intelligent Electronic's first BizMart
"supercenter" franchisee. Intelligent Electronics is offering as
new franchise opportunities to its more than 1,000 existing
franchisees the enhanced, or "megacenter" store format.

The four BizMart stores to be acquired by Random Access are
located in Denver, Lakewood, Aurora and Westminster, Colorado.
They will initially be operated as "Enhanced" stores, meaning
the existing computer sections of the stores will be expanded.
Random Access says the Denver location will become a
"MegaCenter" by year end, meaning up to 10,000 square feet will
be added.

(Jim Mallory/910824/Press contact: Bruce Milliken, Random
Access, 303-745-9600)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26  ****MENTOR GRAPHICS TO CUT 435 JOBS 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00021)

 ****MENTOR GRAPHICS TO CUT 435 JOBS 08/26/91
WILSONVILLE, OREGON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) --- Employees of
Mentor Graphics will report to work today wondering if they will
have a job next Monday.

The company says it will cut 435 jobs, or about 15 percent of its
2900 member workforce as part of a restructuring effort.
Employees being laid off will be notified today, and Friday will
be their last day of work.

Mentor spokesperson Sharon VanSickle say the layoffs will take
place across the board. The company says the cuts, which it
says are the first in its 10-year history, will produce a
significant one-time write-off against results for its third
quarter. The company had previously announced a hiring freeze.

Mentor Graphics specializes in electronic design automation by
providing engineers with software and workstation hardware to
design such items as computer chips.

"While we have always considered our employees our most valuable
asset, we believe a lean, focused Mentor Graphics ensures the
company's market leadership and prosperity through the 1990s,"
said Mentor chairman and CEO, Thomas Bruggere.

According to Bruggere the reshaping, augmented by a
strengthening economy, should lead the company to stronger
revenues and earnings for 1992.

The company says it will also reduce internal development of
computer-aided software engineering (CASE), mechanical design
and documentation products. The company reported a loss of
$14.5 million on sales of $198.4 million during the first six
months of 1991, and blamed the losses on costs of product
transition and on a weak economy.

(Jim Mallory/910824/Press contact: Sharon VanSickle, Mentor
Graphics, 503-685-7000)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 MOTOROLA SHIPS SINGLE BOARD COMPUTERS 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00022)

MOTOROLA SHIPS SINGLE BOARD COMPUTERS 08/26/91
TEMPE, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Motorola has
announced shipment of two single board computers which the
company says provide significant technical breakthroughs for the
VME industry by incorporating the components of an entire
high-performance computer on a single VME module.

The new units are based on Motorola's M88000 reduced
instruction set computer (RISC) and MC68040 complex instruction
set computer (CISC) microprocessors. Potential markets include
original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), systems integrators, and
end users of VMEbus architecture.

According to Thomas Beaver, GM of the Motorola Computer Group,
the new units are already outselling previous VME module single
board computers. Says Beaver, "This example of even greater
market acceptance is a result of optimized product design, which
translates into improved price-performance, higher
functionality, higher quality and increased capacity for
real-time and Unix-based applications."

The new units, like those they replace, utilize application
specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and very large scale
integration (VLSI) technology. Developers can port software
from the CISC-based board to the higher performance RISC-based
unit and recompile the software.

Both units are processor engines with integrated processor
memory, Ethernet, and SCSI support, plus serial and parallel
ports. A power supply and any desired peripherals are added to
support the embedded applications. Both modules have a
suggested retail price of $3995.

Both units can be configured with from 4 to 32 megabytes (MB) of
DRAM, 4-way interleaved; a 32-bit SCSI coprocessor with DMA; a
32-bit Ethernet controller; quad serial ports I/O controller;
a single 8-bit bidirectional parallel port; 128 kilobytes (K) of
SRAM; 4 sockets for up to 4 MB of ROM/EPROM; four timers for
periodic interrupts; a watch-dog timer; a 7-level local VMEbus
interrupt handler; debug monitor; and diagnostic software.

(Jim Mallory/910824/Press contact: Barbara Patterson, Motorola,
602-438-3576, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW PCS: AST's Advantage For Small Business/Home Market 08/26/91

08/28/91



(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00023)

NEW PCS: AST's Advantage For Small Business/Home Market 08/26/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Hot on the heels
of its introduction of the Medallion workstation based on the Intel
i486 33 MHz chipset, and the reduction in price of its Bravo and
Premium product lines, AST Research has released details of its
new Advantage! desktop and notebook computers.

According to the company, the computers will be sold as complete
systems and will feature new software packages developed by
Microsoft for the home user and small business markets.

The Advantage! product line is set to be introduced on Aug. 29 at
the opening of five Circuit City superstores in the Houston area.
AST says that the systems will be available in Circuit City's
nationwide chain of 166 retail locations by the end of the year.

The Advantage! computers will include Intel 80386SX, 486SX and
486-based desktop models as well as 386SX notebooks.
Pricing for the new products will be established by Circuit City.

The Advantage! desktop line will come pre-installed with MS-DOS
5.0 and Windows 3.0 as well as several new Microsoft software
applications designed to run in the graphical user interface
environment. The systems also include the Prodigy on-line
information service. Some models will also feature WinFax, a
Windows communications software package for facsimile
transmission and reception.

The Advantage! 386SX/20 features an 80 megabyte (MB) IDE
hard disk drive, a 1.44 MB 3.5-inch diskette drive and 1.2 MB
5.25-inch disk drive. Other features include a 2,400 bits-per-second
modem, an AST mouse, 2MB of RAM, an integrated Super VGA adapter,
one internal drive bay, one serial port, one parallel port, one
mouse port, and password security.

The newly released Medallion workstation, designed for the
computer-aided design (CAD) market, carries a retail price of $8,995
and is compatible with MS-DOS-based applications software,
specifically AutoCAD. Included with the system is an AutoCAD
drawing file preview and management utility designed to work with
the graphics controller unique to the Medallion workstation.
Operating speed is 23.5 million-instructions-per-second (MIPS),
according to the Dhrystone version 1.1 Unix benchmarks.

Last week, AST, having expanded its Bravo line in June with the
addition of the Bravo 286/16, cut prices on its Bravo and Premium
lines in an attempt to improve its market share.

(Ian Stokell/19910826/Press Contact: Joel C. Don, AST Research,
714-727-7957)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26  ****RADIUS ENTERS PC MARKET 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00024)

 ****RADIUS ENTERS PC MARKET 08/26/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- In an attempt
to capture market share in the IBM PC and compatible market,
Radius has introduced the new Full Page Pivot display along with
the SVGA MultiView graphics card.

According to the company, the Radius Full Page Pivot is the PC
market's first full page color display featuring both portrait and
landscape capabilities. It also features a .28mm dot pitch, 256
colors, high non-interlaced refresh rates, and magnetic shielding.
The product will be available in two weeks for a suggested retail
price of $1,249.

The new Radius SVGA MultiView is a graphics card designed to
drive multi-frequency displays like the NEC-4D and the Radius
Full Page Pivot. It will also be available in two weeks priced at
$449.

Radius has long been a provider of Macintosh products. In an
attempt to win market share in the PC environment, Radius has
established separate PC and Macintosh Business Units. Frank
Vaughn, formerly Radius director of engineering, is the general
manager of the PC Business Unit, and Ed Colligan heads the
Macintosh Business Unit. Radius has also named Tom Wilson
director of engineering for PC products.

Newsbytes recently reported that Radius had added a new filter to
its line of display filters that buffer the user from electric field
emissions. Additionally, the company also added System 7-compatibility to
its
Radius Rocket Motorola 68040-based CPU (central processor unit)
accelerator for the Macintosh II, and announced that its RadiusTV
and ImpressIt products were being updated to support the new
features in QuickTime, the multimedia software extension to Apple's
new operating system.

(Ian Stokell/19910826/Press Contact: Maria Gagliardi, Angus
and Rudin Inc., 415-363-0982)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 GEPHARDT TO PROPOSE NEW TRADE INITIATIVE 08/26/91

08/28/91

(EXCLUSIVE)(GOVT)(WAS)(00025)

GEPHARDT TO PROPOSE NEW TRADE INITIATIVE 08/26/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Richard Gephardt,
the Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, is now
expected to propose sweeping changes to U.S. trade policy at a
September 10 luncheon meeting of the Institute for International
Economics here in Washington.

The Majority Leader's new proposals were previously scheduled to
be released on September 3 but now won't be made public until the
10th.

Neither the Congressman's office nor the Institute is releasing
any details of the new initiative, but Mr. Gephardt is in the
forefront of politicians striving to keep U.S. companies
competitive in the international arena and he is expected to make
important proposals at the luncheon meeting.

(John McCormick/19910826/Press Contact: C. Fred Bergsten,
Director, Inst. for International Economics, 202-328-9000 or fax
202-328-5432)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NO IMMEDIATE ICL SALE, NORTHERN SAYS 08/26/91

08/28/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00026)

NO IMMEDIATE ICL SALE, NORTHERN SAYS 08/26/91
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Northern Telecom
is in no hurry to sell its 20-percent stake in ICL, the British
computer maker, the company's vice-president of investor relations
has told Newsbytes. Guy Gill said a report on the Reuter news wire
that Northern is planning to sell the stake is misleading in that
it implies an immediate sale.

Under an agreement with Fujitsu, the Japanese computer maker that
owns the other 80 percent of ICL, Northern is obliged to make a
public offering of at least part of its stake in the company within
three years. However, Gill said, the company is not planning to do
so right away. "We'll probably hold it for a while," he said.

Northern Telecom got the stake in ICL when it bought STC plc, a
British electronics firm, late in 1990. Since then Northern has
sold three pieces of STC, using the money to help pay for the
UKP1.3-billion (US$2.6 billion) acquisition. It sold STC
Distributors to CDME, a French electrical distributor, in April. In
May STC's cable products division went to Pirelli, an Italian firm.
In early June, Farnell Electronics of the United Kingdom paid UKP61
million for the electronics distribution division of STC.

(Grant Buckler/19910826/Press Contact: Guy Gill, Northern Telecom,
703-712-8516)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 CORRECT GRAMMER HEALTH CARE EDITION SLATED FOR FALL 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00027)

CORRECT GRAMMER HEALTH CARE EDITION SLATED FOR FALL 08/26/91
SAUSALITO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- The Writing
Tools Group, producers of the English grammar correction
software "Correct Grammar" announced it has formed a
partnership with the producers of the Stedman's Medical
Dictionary with the hopes of producing a "Correct Grammar"
aimed at the medical profession.

Williams & Wilkins, producers of Stedman's Medical Dictionary,
have granted exclusive retail rights to Stedman's/25, the
electronic version for DOS-based computers of Stedman's Medical
Dictionary, 25th Edition meaning the Writing Tools Group will
now market and support the product, the Writing Tools Group
said.

In addition, the Writing Tools Group plans to combine its
Correct Grammar product and the Stedman's/25 into the Correct
Grammar Health Care Edition, the company said. The new product
will include the style guides from Stedman's/25, specifically
the American Medical Association (AMA) Manual of Style,
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
(APA) and Dr. Edward J. Huth's Medical Style & Format manual.

Camilo Wilson, vice president of the Writing Tools Group said,
"The health care field is one of the most vocabulary intensive
industries, where incorrect wording can have serious negative
consequences. The Health Care Edition of Correct Grammar will
give professionals and businesses providing services for the
health care field a tool that makes it easier to write
clearly."

Fred Fusting, vice president and publisher of Williams &
Wilkins Electronic Media Division remarked, "By combining
electronic forms of these classic reference works with the
market's best grammar checker, we can provide the health care
industry with exactly what they need to communicate
effectively."

The Correct Grammar Health Care Edition will be released this
fall, the company said. Retail price for the new product has
been set at $249.

The Writing Tools Group, formerly Lifetree Software, was
acquired by WordStar International in March of this year, and
is now a subsidiary of WordStar.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108026/Press Contact: Kristin Keyes,
WordStar, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 TEKTRONIX INTROS $9,995 POSTSCRIPT COLOR PRINTER 08/26/91

08/28/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00028)

TEKTRONIX INTROS $9,995 POSTSCRIPT COLOR PRINTER 08/26/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Less
than a month after Tektronix introduced a thermal wax color printer
with Adobe System's new PostScript Level 2 interpreter called the
Phaser II PXi, the company is now shipping the Phaser III PXi, a
PostScript Level 2 color printer that can print tabloid-size output
and, according to the company, is the first color printer capable of
producing brilliant color on virtually any paper.

David Downing, spokesman for Adobe Systems, told Newsbytes
that the Phaser III PXi "will create a new price/performance point
for color printing." The different between the two Tektronix products,
said Downing, is that while the Phaser II PXi is a thermal wax printer,
the Phaser II PXi "uses solid ink technology."

The Phaser III PXi, which will carry a manufacturer's suggested
retail price of $9,995, will utilize the enhanced color-imaging features
of PostScript Level 2, the next generation of Adobe's PostScript
language.

Downing told Newsbytes that the product will "make color printing
in the office more viable and cost-effective." The main barriers
to effective color printing in an office environment before "have
been cost and quality," he said. Both areas have been
addressed by the new Phaser III PXi.

According to Adobe's Dr. Charles Geschke, president and chief
operating officer, the new Phaser "should participate in and
contribute to significant growth in the market for desktop color
printing because it offers users such important benefits as
device-independent color and the capability to print very
accurate, brilliant color on a variety of media."

The 300 dots-per-inch Phaser III PXi color printer uses Advanced
Micro Device's Am29000 RISC (reduced instruction-set computing)
processor running at 24MHz. The company claims that, full-color
pages are printed in as little as two minutes, while monochrome
pages print in 40 to 60 seconds, depending on text density.

The company is marketing the product as a multi-user, multiplatform
product, because its multitasking interface automatically switches
among parallel, serial and AppleTalk ports.

The Phaser III PXi comes standard with 10 megabytes (MB) of
memory, which is expandable up to 18MB with two 4MB upgrades
priced at $995 each. According to the company, the first 4MB
upgrade gives the user sufficient memory to print a full 11-inch by
17-inch bleed on 12-inch by 18-inch paper. The second 4MB
upgrade provides additional memory for input buffers, fonts and
pipelined imaged processing while printing, thus allowing for
faster throughput in shared environments.

Tektronix is a manufacturer of electronic products and systems in
the areas of computer graphics, test and measurement and
communications.

(Ian Stokell/19910826/Press Contact: Patricia J. Paine, Adobe
Systems Inc., 415-962-3967; Kathy Melcher, Tektronics,
503-685-3150; Charles Humble, Hastings, Humble, Giardini &
Freeman Inc., 503-221-1063)


#ENDCARD


#CARD::1991 AUG 27 TEXAS INSTRUMENTS SHIPS DEVELOPER STARTER KIT 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00001)

TEXAS INSTRUMENTS SHIPS DEVELOPER STARTER KIT 08/27/91
PLANO, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Texas Instruments says
it has started shipping its Rapid Developer Starter Kit (RD/SK).
According to TI, users of RD/SK can learn how to develop
software applications in TI's integrated computer-aided software
engineering (CASE) environment quickly and easily.

RD/SK reportedly includes the newest version of the Information
Engineering Facility's analysis, design and construction
toolsets as well as a field-tested tutorial. Suggested list
price for TD/SK is $10,000.

In a prepared statement TI quoted one user, Gary Idle, a senior
computer scientist at Computer Sciences Corporation, as saying,
"The tutorial gave me the information I need to use the
analysis, design and construction portions of the IEF. An
excellent tool."

According to Mike Watters, VP and GM of TI's advanced
information management division, TI wanted to introduce a wider
spectrum of the business community to the advantages offered by
TI's integrated CASE (I-CASE) technology. Watters said that with
RD/SK, users get a sophisticated approach to full life cycle
application development, field-tested tutorials and affordable
price.

RD/SK reportedly provides a full function workstation for
multiple type projects, including business requirements
analysis, design prototyping and rapid application development.
TI says users can develop C or Cobol applications for IBM's OS/2
operating system, and by using additional toolsets, port those
systems to MVS, Tandem, VMTM, VMSTM or Unix.

"We are committed to providing easy-to-learn, lower-cost entry
points to I-CASE and the IEF," said Watters. The company says it
will offer a cross generation starter kit later this year which
will enable an application developed on an OS/2 workstation to
be ported to a different environment, such as MVS or VMS.

RD/SK comes with 90 days of toll-free telephone support.
Upgrade kits including a planning toolset, additional
methodology guides and full documentation for the planning,
design, analysis and construction toolsets are available.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Bob Bledsoe, TI,
214-997-3857)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 CERNER IN ELECTRONIC MED RECORDS PARTNERSHIP 08/27/91

08/27/91



(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00002)

CERNER IN ELECTRONIC MED RECORDS PARTNERSHIP 08/27/91
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Cerner
Corporation, a provider of clinical information systems for the
health care industry, says it has entered into an agreement with
the Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center and The Emory
Clinic of Atlanta to create an electronic medical record system.

The system will be established at the Emory Clinic, and Cerner
says Digital Equipment Corporation, also a partner, will provide
the hardware for the system. Cerner will provide the clinical
software applications, and Emory will become the working
laboratory for testing and refining the system. According to
Cerner, the project represents a $15 million commitment, and
will take five years to complete.

The company says its system will go beyond the simple
computerization of patient charts. Using Cerner's Healthcare
Network Architecture HNA) healthcare professionals at different
locations can simultaneously view patient charts, speeding up
consultations. Electronic access to a patient's charts would
also speed up emergency care and make it easier for a patient to
receive consultation and treatment from different doctors.

Eventually the Cerner system will add advanced capabilities,
such as simultaneous viewing from different locations of graphic
images, such as x-ray, magnetic resonance images, and cardiac
catheterization images.

Clifford W. Illig, Cerner president, said, "We believe this
product will revolutionize patient care by automating the
patient's medical record and integrating the record within a
full suite of clinical information."

According to Garland Perdue, a doctor and director of the Emory
Clinic, "This showcase system... will give us the capability to
broaden and speed the services we offer our patients. For
doctor and patient alike, such automation significantly
expedites and streamlines patient care."

(Jim Mallory/010827/Press contact: Clifford Illig, Cerner Corp,
816-221-1024)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 ALDUS SAYS "TRADE YOUR GRAPHICS PACKAGE FOR PERSUASION" 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00003)

ALDUS SAYS "TRADE YOUR GRAPHICS PACKAGE FOR PERSUASION" 08/27/91
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Owners of
certain graphics presentation programs can trade up to Aldus
Persuasion 2.0 for Windows, under a program announced by Aldus.

The company says owners of DOS-based programs such as Harvard
Graphics, Lotus Freelance, Microsoft PowerPoint, Hollywood and
Draw Applause or Applause II are eligible for the trade-up, which
costs $99. Pam Miller of Aldus told Newsbytes that there are
about 15 programs which qualify for the trade-up. If you take
advantage of the offer, you will get the complete Persuasion for
Windows package include Adobe Type Manager. The offer runs
through the end of February 1992, and is valid in the US,
Canada, and Australia.

Larry Spelhaug, Aldus VP of marketing says, "From experience we
believe that customers will switch to Persuasion 2.0 for Windows
once they try it."

To participate in the trade-up offer, you must provide proof of
ownership of an eligible program. The original title page from
the product reference manual or an original program disk will
provide the necessary proof. Organizations with orders of 10 or
more units can provide a single letter confirming ownership
rather than submit multiple proofs of purchase. A 90-day
money back guarantee accompanies the offer.

The trade-up can be done by contacting a participating Aldus
upgrade reseller or by contacting the Aldus "Fulfillment" Center
at 800-638-7058 from US or Canadian locations. The Center can
also provide a list of participating upgrade resellers as well
as a complete list of eligible products.

Aldus says it is taking orders now, with shipment to begin in
mid-September.

Aldus is also expected to announce a new support program for
service bureaus this week.

Aldus also markets PageMaker, Digital Darkroom, FreeHand,
PrePrint, SuperCard, SuperPaint, Super 3D.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Pam Miller, Aldus Corp,
206-628-6594)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MOTOROLA DEVELOPER ENV'T FOR NEW BOARDS 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(DEN)(00004)

MOTOROLA DEVELOPER ENV'T FOR NEW BOARDS 08/27/91
TEMPE, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Hard on the heels of
its new RISC (reduced instruction set) and CISC (complex instruction
set) single board computers, Motorola has announced
a Unix-based real-time development environment for the boards.

The company says VMEexec 2.0 includes a comprehensive set of
multiprocessor support packages and provides developers a wide
latitude in selecting the right real-time target for their
application.

According to Motorola, developers using VMEexec 2.0 can design
real-time application code for a broad range of RISC and CISC
single board computers from any single vendor. "VMEexec is the
most complete package available in the market for supporting
applications software development on an RT kernel," said
Motorola's Thomas Beaver.

VMEexec integrates third-party software products, including
Software Components Group's pSOS+, the Interactive Systems
Corporation Streams environment and Microtec Research Inc.'s
XRAY Debugger. The VMEexec kernel is based on a "Real-Time
Executive Interface Definition" kernel, which defines a core set
of operating system services. Application source code that
conforms to those interfaces will execute as defined in all
compliant real-time executive environments.

Motorola says software engineers, system integrators, original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and value-added resellers (VARs)
developing embedded real-time systems will benefit from VMEexec.

Motorola will offer VMEexec training courses to help developers
enhance their productivity, including support for the single
board computers also announced this week.

The company says VMEexec 2.0 will be available in November of
this year, and carries a suggested price of $4500 for either the
Mc68000 family based system or the M88000 family based system.
A combined version is available for $5800. Customers with
maintenance contracts will receive the update at no charge.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Barbara Patterson, Motorola,
602-438-3576, FAX [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MICROSOFT HOSTS DEVELOPERS TOOLS CONFERENCE 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00005)

MICROSOFT HOSTS DEVELOPERS TOOLS CONFERENCE 08/27/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation is hosting a Developers Tools conference this week
at the Washington State Convention Center which will focus on
developers writing add-in products for Excel for Windows 3.0,
Microsoft's spreadsheet program for Windows.

Add-in programs are designed to start up automatically when
Excel is loaded. These specially developed programs cover a
variety of tasks, including forecasting, modeling, reporting,
data connectivity, application development, and numerical
analysis.

Microsoft says Excel has about 30 percent of the spreadsheet
market for the second quarter of calendar 1991, based on
information collected by the Software Publishers Association as
well as other trade sources. The company says it has shipped
1.5 million units worldwide. About one-third of those were
shipped since Version 3.0 came out in January of this year.

In other Microsoft news, the company is reportedly setting up a
basic research center to study what might be the software of
the future. A company spokesperson says Microsoft believes it
is the only software publisher to set up a group dedicated to
research that is not directly tied to developing products.

(Jim Mallory/910826/Press contact: Sarah Charf, Microsoft,
206-882-8080)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MICROGRAFX SUED FOR ALLEGED SECURITIES LAWS VIOLATIONS 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00006)

MICROGRAFX SUED FOR ALLEGED SECURITIES LAWS VIOLATIONS 08/27/91
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Micrografx, a
developer of business graphics applications, has revealed that
a suit has been filed against the company in the federal
district court for the Southern District of New York.  The suit
reportedly alleges securities law and other violations against
the company and certain senior officers and directors.

Contacted by Newsbytes for comment, David Henkel, Micrografx
chief financial officer, said, "This is the mosst frivilous suit
I have ever seen."  Henkel said no specific damages had been
requested.

Reportedly the suit asserts liability based on alleged
misleading press releases, communications with analysts, and
interviews based on sals of Micrografx stock by certain senior
officers and directors while, it is charged, they knew of the alleged
misleading statements.  The suit seeks class action status.

Micrografx says it will vigorously defend the action.

(Jim Mallory/Press contact: David Henkel, Micrografx,
214-497-6284)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR IBM: Unicorn MIDI Mixer Software For PCs 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00007)

NEW FOR IBM: Unicorn MIDI Mixer Software For PCs 08/27/91
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Mark of
the Unicorn has introduced new MS-DOS software for the MIDI Mixer
7 which adds IBM-compatible software to the existing Macintosh
and Atari control software for the MIDI hardware.

On screen the software created an image of a standard mixer which
helps traditional users make the transition from hardware
controls to computer MIDI control systems. Automated mixdowns are
possible by locking scene changes to standard SMPTE time codes.

MIDI Mixer 7s has seven stereo inputs with bass, treble, pan, and
two stereo effects for each channel, along with a stereo
auxiliary input and eight stereo noise gates.

Any MS-DOS system with VGA or EGA video, a Microsoft or Logitech
compatible mouse, and an installed MIDI interface can run the
software. MIDI Mixer 7 has a list price of $595 and is available
now.

MIDI or musical instrument digital interface is the world
standard for connecting digital recording and control systems to
instruments.

For further information contact Mark of the Unicorn, Inc., 222
Third St., Cambridge, MA 01242, phone [phone].

Current owners of MIDI Mixer 7 software for Macintosh or Atari
systems should contact the company for a free upgrade.

(John McCormick/19910826/Press Contact: Susan Patalano, 617-576-
2760 or fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 BOSTON MUSEUM EXHIBIT TRACES HISTORY OF COMPUTERS 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00008)

BOSTON MUSEUM EXHIBIT TRACES HISTORY OF COMPUTERS 08/27/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- The Computer
Museum is celebrating a year of anniversaries in the computer
industry with the opening of a permanent exhibition that traces the
history of computers. "People and Computers: Milestones of
Revolution" opened at the museum June 29, and more than 30,000
people have visited it since then, museum spokeswoman Gail Jennes
said.

The US$1-million, 5,000-square-foot exhibition is made up of nine
milestones linked by "time tunnels." Each of the nine displays
features a life-size replica of the computer equipment typical of
a major era. They also include video presentations showing how
computers were used and the attitudes of the day toward them,
including the way they were portrayed in movies and other media.
Interactive displays let visitors do some of the things that people
did with computers at various times, Jennes said.

The first display shows a government office in the 1930s, where
hundreds of clerks used punched-card machines. The second shows the
Whirlwind computer, developed for the American military by the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The third shows UNIVAC I,
the first commercially available computer.

The fourth display deals with the development of programming
languages, while the fifth shows an IBM System/360 mainframe used
at a large insurance company in the 1960s. The sixth deals with the
first minicomputers, introduced early in the 1970s.

The Cray 1 supercomputer appears in the seventh display, which
deals with the use of high-powered computers for scientific work.
In the eighth display the personal computer comes on the scene, and
some of its popular applications are shown. The final display deals
with the widespread use of microprocessors in machines other than
computers -- toys, video cassette recorders, thermostats, and the
like.

"People are loving this exhibit, and that's not hype," Jennes said.

The permanent exhibit was created with the help of the National
Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Digital Equipment, IBM, Apple
Computer, Lotus Development, Matsushita Electric, The Mitre
Corporation, The Travelers Companies, Unisys, and many individuals.
The Computer Museum opened as an independent, non-profit museum in
1982.

(Grant Buckler/19910826/Press Contact: Gail Jennes, The Computer
Museum, 617-426-2800 ext. 341)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR IBM: Watcom Shipping 32-Bit C, FORTRAN 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00009)

NEW FOR IBM: Watcom Shipping 32-Bit C, FORTRAN 08/27/91
WATERLOO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Language developer
Watcom is now shipping its 32-bit C and FORTRAN language optimizing
compilers and tools. Sixteen-bit versions of both products are also
now available.

Both C and FORTRAN compilers provide a 32-bit DOS operating system
extender and a true 32-bit Microsoft Windows graphical user
interface (GUI) and dynamic link library (DLL) development kit,
Watcom said. The compilers support Windows and 32-bit DOS extenders
from Rational, Phar Lap, and Ergo. The DOS extender, DOS/4GW from
Rational Systems, may be distributed with applications developed
using either compiler without paying royalties to Watcom.

Watcom said the new compilers' ability to develop true 32-bit
Windows applications avoids the need to create separate 16-bit
programs for user interface code.

The compilers can be used on machines running DOS, extended DOS,
OS/2 1.1 or later, or Windows. Programs can be developed for DOS,
extended DOS, Windows, AutoCAD ADS, and embedded systems.

Watcom announced recently that it is working with IBM to make both
compilers support OS/2 2.0. That support is due by the end of 1991,
said Dave Boswell, Watcom's vice-president of sales and marketing.
The OS/2 2.0 compilers will offer two to three times the
performance of existing compilers, he said, and the FORTRAN version
will be the first 32-bit FORTRAN compiler for OS/2 2.0.

Both C8.5/386 and FORTRAN 77/386 have a suggested retail price of
US$995, with an introductory price of US$795.

(Grant Buckler/19910826/Press Contact: Dave Boswell, Watcom,
519-886-3700, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 IBM VP TO KEYNOTE CD-ROM CONFERENCE 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00010)

IBM VP TO KEYNOTE CD-ROM CONFERENCE 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- James E. Dezell,
Jr., IBM vice president for educational systems, will deliver the
keynote speech, titled, "IBM's New Multimedia Knowledge Systems,"
at next month's CD-ROM Exposition and Conference '91 in
Washington, DC.

Mr. Dezell will reportedly take the opportunity to discuss IBM's
major educational incentives such as the interactive courseware
now being shown in television ads.

The CD-ROM Expo will be held again this year at the Washington
Hilton and Towers in Washington, DC, in mid-October. CD-ROM Expo
features talks about CD-ROM developments and is attended by most
of the major CD-ROM hardware and software development companies.

(John McCormick/19910826/Press Contact: Rachel Winett, World Expo
Corp., 508-879-6700)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 CORRECTION: MOSCOW: PARAGRAPH'S FURTHER PEN PLANS 08/27/91

08/27/91

(CORRECTION)(TRENDS)(MOW)(00011)

CORRECTION: MOSCOW: PARAGRAPH'S FURTHER PEN PLANS 08/27/91
MOSCOW, U.S.S.R., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Newsbytes wishes to correct
a statement in a report with this title which was first published July
19.

The story quoted Stepan Pachikov, chief of Moscow-based office
Paragraph, a leading pen-based software house, as saying in a speech to
a trade show in Moscow that his company's recognition kernel of its
new cursive software technology had been licensed to Grid Systems
for use in Grid's computer due to be commercially in late summer. This
is incorrect, according to Paragraph's US representatives.

Michael Riemer, director of product marketing, tells Newsbytes
that no official announcement was made, but acknowledged that
Paragraph is speaking with several of the large computer companies.
Of these, "they have yet to announce any licensing of our recognition
technology."

A Grid spokesman had no comment on the situation, nor would he say
whether Grid and Paragraph were in official talks about licensing
the technology.

(Wendy Woods/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR MAC: Publish It Easy 2.1 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00012)

NEW FOR MAC: Publish It Easy 2.1 08/27/91
NORTHBROOK, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Timeworks has
announced what it calls the "desktop publisher for the rest of
us," Publish-It Easy version 2.1 for the Macintosh. The program is
being reviewed by Newsbytes.

Timeworks says Publish-It Easy is an all-in-one desktop
publisher with the added capabilities of word processing, the
ability to create graphics from scratch, a slide show for
handouts or on-screen presentations, and spot color separation
ability.

The package has many features found in much more costly
packages, Timeworks said. These features include multiple
windows, thumbnail editing with the ability to move elements
from one page to another, rulers and customized alignment grids
are available for layout aids, a service bureau checklist such
as a font list, document size and file statistics, multiple
undo levels allowing the user to go back as many as five steps,
and find and replace.

The company claims the package is so easy to use, a new user
can create their first document in less than an hour. However,
Newsbytes has been unable to get its review copy to load and run
on an SE and an SE/30, although version 2.1 works fine on Newsbytes'
Macintosh II. Technical support has been unable to explain this.

The package includes a 112,000-word spell checker, a 240,000-
word thesaurus, a quick start manual and 72 professionally
designed sample page layouts.

Publish-It Easy is said to operate on all Macintosh computers except the
Macintosh 128. It needs System version 4.2, Finder 5.0
(System 6.0 or higher is recommended), and any Chooser-
selectable printer including the ImageWriter, DeskWriter,
LaserWriter, Linotronic 300 or and QuickDraw, Color QuickDraw
or PostScript compatible printer, Timeworks said. The company
strongly recommends a hard disk drive, but the software can be
operated without one.

Free technical support (you pay for the long-distance call, however)
is provided from during business hours (except lunch hour from 12:30
to 1:30) Monday through Friday Central Standard Time. However, callers
must be prepared for a wait. It took Newsbytes three attempts to reach
a technical support person, each time we were on "hold" for 6 to 15
minutes. Unlimited technical support is said to be offered via a 900
number at the rate of $120.00 per hour or $2.00 per minute, the company
said.

Suggested retail price for Publish-It Easy is $249.95. IBM
versions of Publish-It Easy are also available. More
information is available from Timeworks toll-free at telephone
[phone], or by writing Timeworks, 625 Academy Drive,
Northbrook, Illinois, 60062.

(Linda Rohrbough & Wendy Woods/199108023/Press Contact: Sean Essex,
Timeworks, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW PCS: Wyse Lightweight Decision Notebook/Desktop 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00013)

NEW PCS: Wyse Lightweight Decision Notebook/Desktop 08/27/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Wyse
Technology has expanded its Decision line of personal computers
with a 4.5-pound 20MHz Intel 80386SX-based notebook and a 33MHz
486-based desktop PC. Additionally, the company also announced
a reduction in price of its line of personal computer and monitor
products by about 20 percent, with some models reduced by 35
percent.

The new lightweight DecisionMate notebook measures
8.6-inches by 11-inches by 1.5-inches. The product offers a
quality paper-white display and a full-sized keyboard. In addition,
three snap-in modules are offered as options, each weighing a few
ounces, including a fax/modem and a second serial port.

The company maintains that the internal battery provides for 1.5
hours of computing, with an optional snap-on battery available to
expand computing time to four hours, which brings the total
system weight to 6.2 pounds.

The notebook comes with one, 2 or 4 megabytes (MB) of RAM,
a 30MB, 40MB or 60MB hard disk drive, and MS-DOS 5.

The base model comes with 1 MB of RAM, a 30MB hard disk
drive. It carries a suggested list price of $2,999 and is available
immediately.

The ISA (Industry Standard Architecture)-based Wyse Decision
486/33 has 128 kilobytes of external memory cache, seven
available expansion slots, four half-height mass storage bays
and a Weitek coprocessor socket. Additionally, Wyse MS-DOS 5
is also included.

(Ian Stokell/19910827/Press Contact: Kathryn Watson, Wyse
Technology, 408-473-2066)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 PACIFIC TELESIS EXPLAINS POSITION ON PCN 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00014)

PACIFIC TELESIS EXPLAINS POSITION ON PCN 08/27/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) --
Pacific Telesis holds to the view that microwave cellular phone
services known as PCN can't share the broad microwave frequency
band without harming licensed users of the spectrum. But,
System Vice President for Technology Stagg Newman explained to
Newsbytes, the company believes PCN service could emerge, either
in a narrow frequency band or with limited service areas.

"One way to use it is to have the spectrum dedicated to you.
We're proceeding along those lines," he said. "Motorola said
you'd need significant exclusion zones -- on the order of miles.
Our tests confirmed Motorola's simulations. The potential for
interference is there."

Newman also criticized the methods used by Millicom's PCN America
subsidiary in concluding that a technology from SCS Mobilecom
will work. "There were many filings, including our own, which
criticized PCN America's methodology. Their tests weren't
extensive or exhaustive enough," he said. Millicom has said that
notched filters, intelligent base stations which are aware of
nearby microwave towers, and phones which only emit waves when
someone is talking would allow PCN service to share the microwave
frequencies with existing towers. Most microwave towers are used
in private voice and data networks. They had once been used
heavily by long distance companies, but that is being phased out
in favor of fiber cables.

Newman added, "Are there ways to avoid interference? Yes. How
technically difficult are they, and will accomplishing that be
economically feasible -- that's the critical question. What
you'll see over the next year or two is continued testing to see
what does and does not work. Millicom made many claims that were
not justified. They did some testing, and leaped to a
conclusion."

Newman also downplayed the impact of Millicom's filing for a
"pioneer preference," which the New York company claims would
give it a leg-up in getting PCN licenses. "The FCC has signaled
that, for PCN, as long as you have an experimental license you
don't need to file for a pioneer preference," he said. "We met
with FCC officials last week. Our understanding is if we've been
active in this area we don't need a pioneer preference, and we've
funded work in this area since 1984."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827/Press Contact: Pacific Telesis, Lou
Saviano, 415-394-3643)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR NETWORKS: ICC/Remote LAN Node 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(ATL)(00015)

NEW FOR NETWORKS: ICC/Remote LAN Node 08/27/91
CINCINNATI, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Intercomputer
Communications Corporation announced ICC/Remote LAN Node, which
offers remote PC users actual LAN "node" status while maintaining
performance and protocol independence from the LAN networking
environment.

A PC outside the office dials into the system through a modem,
and becomes an extension of the LAN environment, operating as
nodes on the network, with the same functions as any
computer which is hard-wired to the network. Each remote user is
configured with a unique Ethernet address, for instance.

ICC said several aspects of its new system are unique. For one
thing, the system is totally transparent to the network operating
system, whether that's IPX, TCP/IP, OSI, or the Microsoft LAN Manager.
The new product also offers three levels of security, while support
for V.42 modem compression improves data throughput, the company
said.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827/Press Contact: ICC, Ian Pennell, 513-
745-0500)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 EDS/STRATUS TO DEVELOP PERSONAL TELEPHONE NUMBER TECH 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00016)

EDS/STRATUS TO DEVELOP PERSONAL TELEPHONE NUMBER TECH 08/27/91
MARLBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Stratus
Computer and EDS' Personal Communications division announced an
agreement to jointly develop a Home Location Register system for
the cellular industry.

This is a database which can control cellular phone switches for
the purpose of delivering services. Services could include things
like call waiting and three-way calling, now available from wired
networks, the ability to identify a caller's location anywhere
in the country, and a personal telephone number, which would
follow a user wherever he or she goes. Cellular operators
already use HLRs to perform validation and authentication of
subscribers to control fraud.

EDS says that by putting the new services into a computer, new
services could be put online in a short period of time, and
cellular service providers would be able to differentiate
themselves from competitors. Stratus announced early this year
that it is targeting the telecommunications industry for much of
its future growth, and created a division specifically targeting
phone service customers.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827/Press Contact: EDS PCC, Kimberly
Obremski, 617/890-1000)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 MOTOROLA EXPECTED TO ENTER CORDLESS PHONE MARKET 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00017)

MOTOROLA EXPECTED TO ENTER CORDLESS PHONE MARKET 08/27/91
SCHAUMBERG, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Motorola
will reportedly enter the cordless telephone market with a U.S.
made offering, perhaps within a month. James Caile, vice
president of marketing at Motorola's Pan American Cellular
Subscribers Group, told "The Wall Street Journal" his company has
yet to make a final decision, but analysts feel it would be a
good move, even though consumer phones are a low-margin, mass-
market business.

The move could also be a prelude to getting into the emerging CT-
2 cellular phone market, analysts speculate. The company has
already requested licenses from the FCC for a cordless phone,
which according to documents would look a lot like its Micro-Tac
cellular phone. Such a stripped-down Micro-Tac would provide
significant competition to AT&T, which holds nearly half the
cordless phone market with a line of Far East imports. The
Motorola cordless phone would likely be made in Arizona, where
the firm has a plant making the Micro-Tac. The "Made in USA"
label could have appeal, as could the unit's small size and a
domestic plant's ability to turn-around orders quickly.

Motorola also may be aiming at the CT-2 market. CT-2, originally
envisioned as a competitor to cellular phones, are now seen as a
second generation cordless technology, using small base stations
which can place but not receive calls. Singapore has a CT-2
system, and Motorola is in that market there, and the UK also has
a CT-2 market, which is going slowly because of a range of
competitors.

Motorola declined to comment on the press reports or analysts'
comments.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910827)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 SECRET GROUP SAYS VA SOFTWARE PROBE WAS A SHAM 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00018)

SECRET GROUP SAYS VA SOFTWARE PROBE WAS A SHAM 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- This week's
Federal Computer Week continues to follow the story it broke some
time ago about allegedly dangerously faulty Veterans' Administration
hospital software. After its charges were dismissed
by a VA inspector, the secret Froelich Trust Group has now
threatened to disclose the names of two veterans who they claim
died as a result of faulty data on the VA's Decentralized
Hospital Computer Program record system.

After initial charges of dangerously inaccurate hospital records
made in a 30-page, anonymous letter sent in late April or early
May of this year, the VA started an investigation which recently
concluded that there were no data errors in the hospital system's
computer records.

Newsbytes' May 24 story on the Froelich Trust Group reported that
the original charges were that out of 20 records scrutinized by
the Group all contained errors -- some major -- such as failing to
note that a particular patient was a diabetic or had cancer.

A second anonymous letter has recently arrived at the VA and
several news organizations which accuses the VA of a cover-up.
FCW is reporting that a source close to the VA acknowledged that
hospital administrators were warned that the investigators were
coming.

FCW again reports that its source of information is the secret
group of current and former VA employees calling itself the
Froelich Trust Group and is reporting that this response to the
negative report findings came very quickly on the heels of the
internal completion of the report, before it was widely
distributed.

The VA is saying only that it stopped the investigation after
checking the hospitals closest to Washington because it found
no problems there.

Newsbytes could not obtain any further comment from the VA before
deadline.

(John McCormick/19910827)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 ZILOG SINGLE CHIP 16-BIT DSP WITH 8-BIT MICROCONTROLLER 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00019)

ZILOG SINGLE CHIP 16-BIT DSP WITH 8-BIT MICROCONTROLLER 08/27/91
CAMPBELL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Zilog has
announced the newest member of its disk controller chip family,
the Z86C94, which combines the single chip 8-bit controller with
a 16-bit digital signal processor or DSP. Zilog says that the
chip will provide minimum cost but high performance for combined
digital servo control and embedded control systems.

Optimal suggested uses include controllers for 2.5-inch and 1.8-
inch disk drives, tape drives, voice/data processing
applications, and automotive or consumer electronics.

The heart of the unit is the familiar Z8 (Zilog Z86C93) which is
combined with a DSP capable of performing 16-by-16 bit
multiplication and accumulation on a single clock cycle for
systems using a 24-megahertz clock speed.

Zilog is a major developer of microprocessors.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Deborah Chalmers, Zilog,
408-370-8092)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 COMARCO AND MANTECH GET $100 MILLION DOD CONTRACT 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00020)

COMARCO AND MANTECH GET $100 MILLION DOD CONTRACT 08/27/91
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Comarco and
Mantech International have received a 50/50 contract award to
provide testing and system verification support to the Joint
Interoperability Test Center at Fort Huachuca, Arizona.

According to Comarco, the contract will be worth about $35
million to that company over the full five-year potential life of
the initial three-year contract.

Headquartered at Ft. Huachuca but with test facilities around the
world, JITC is responsible for overall testing of system
interoperability for both the Department of Defense and NATO.

The contract was actually given to an Alexandria, Virginia-based
Comarco/Mantech joint venture which will provide test,
instrumentation, and test tool design services along with
development support, implementation of designs, and data
reduction services.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Don M. Bailey, Comarco,
714-282-3813)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27  ****CASOLARO SOURCE CHARGES GOV'T PROCUREMENT SCANDAL 08/27/91

08/27/91


(EXCLUSIVE)(GOVT)(NYC)(00021)

 ****CASOLARO SOURCE CHARGES GOV'T PROCUREMENT SCANDAL 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- "Bill," the mysterious
Newsbytes source who met with investigative journalist James D. "Danny"
Casolaro on the night before Casolaro's death in a Martinsburg, W. VA
motel, has come forward on the August 26th "Inside Edition" television
show and discussed his meeting with Casolaro.

By coming forward, "Bill" identified himself as William Turner, a
former quality assurance manager for Hughes Aircraft. In Turner's
previous interviews with Newsbytes, he had requested anonymity because
of both a commitment to Inside Edition and what he said was the advice
of counsel. Turner has alleged that Hughes Aircraft, with the
assistance of U.S. government personnel, has covered up the deliverance
of systems for military use that were below the procurement
specifications.

While Turner's participation on the television broadcast dealt almost
exclusively with his meeting with Casolaro, he told Newsbytes that he
had over three hours of discussion with the show's interviewers on all
aspects of his charges. Casolaro has told Newsbytes that his attempts
to call public attention to what he calls a "procurement scandal" have
resulted in his harassment by the government. He claims that "all of a
sudden the Veteran's Administration found that it had been overpaying
my pension. Even after I agreed with them on a schedule for me to make
installment repayment of the overage, I was sued for the entire
amount."

Turner also told Newsbytes that threats have been made against him
personally, resulting in his obtaining of police protection. He said
that, prior to the police protection, his house had been under obvious
surveillance from autos parked near his home. He said that his phone
frequently rings and, when he picks it up, there is an audible
"hang-up" from the other end. He also alleges that his telephone is
"tapped" and that his conversations are often interrupted by clicks and
that conversations are terminated.

During his conversation with Newsbytes, at a point when he was
discussing the details of the alleged procurement scandal, a click
similar to that of an extension being picked up was clearly heard
and our conversation was cut off. When Newsbytes called back,
Turner said that the interruption had become an "on-going thing"
and that he was "sure that it related to his phone being
tapped."

Turner said that he has had contact with ex-U.S. Attorney General
Elliott Richardson's law firm, which is also representing Inslaw Inc.,
the firm whose charges against the Justice Dept. has been a major
subject of Casolaro's investigation. According to Turner, the law firm
has advised him to refuse to discuss the Casolaro death with the
Martinsburg, W. VA police who have been trying to contact him. Turner,
who criticized the police investigation of the death, said that he will
discuss his meeting with Casolaro with the police when his attorneys
are present.

Turner told Newsbytes that on the day before Casolaro was found dead of
an apparent suicide, he had met with him and turned over papers
documenting his charges about the Hughes cover-up. He said that he was
shown other material that Casolaro had received -- material that
Casolaro felt would substantiate "Octopus" theory. (According to friends
of Casolaro, "octopus" referred to his belief that there was a
connection between the various cases, or "tentacles," that he was
investigating: Inslaw, government procurement, IranContra, "October
Surprise.")

Reports from the Martinsburg death scene did not report the finding of
papers mentioned by Turner and their absence has led to charges
that Casolaro met with foul play. Richardson has called for a federal
investigation of the death, as has Casolaro's brother, a Virginia
physician.

Turner also told Newsbytes that he has additional copies of the
documentation supporting his charges secure in a safe place and that
the "truth will come out even if something happens to me."

The so-called "Inslaw Case" involves charges by Inslaw, Inc. that the
Justice Department purposely drove it into bankruptcy so that it could
steal Inslaw's Promis software. While bankruptcy counts on two
decisions found the allegations to be factual and fined the Justice
Dept., saying that the government agency had practiced "trickery, fraud
and deceit," the U.S. Court of Appeals on May 7, 1991 overturned the
award, saying that the courts had overstepped their jurisdiction. The
appeals court said, at the time, that Inslaw CEO William Hamilton was
free to pursue his claims in the proper federal court and that the
Justice Department's "conduct, if it occurred, is inexcusable."

During the appeal process, Inslaw broadened its charges to claim that
Iran Contra figures Robert McFarlane and Richard Secord had played a
role is disseminating the software to intelligence agencies of Israel,
Libya, Iraq, South Korea, and Canada. These charges, substantiated by
Ari Ben-Menashe, who claims to be a former Israeli intelligence
officer, Iranian arms dealer Richard Babayan, and Michael
Riconosciuto, who said that he was hired to modify the software for
use in law enforcement and intelligence agencies worldwide, led to a
investigation of the case by the House Judiciary Committee and a
confrontation between committee chairman Jack Brooks and Attorney
General Richard Thornburgh over the release to the committee of
material relating to the case. The investigation continues at this
time.

Turner told Newsbytes that he has confidence in Casolaro's theory of a
connection between Inslaw and his charges concerning Hughes.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910827)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 EVEREX SIGNS THREE REGIONAL DISTRIBUTORS 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00022)

EVEREX SIGNS THREE REGIONAL DISTRIBUTORS 08/27/91
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- In an attempt
to expand its distribution base, Everex Systems has signed
agreements with three value-added regional distributors.

The three companies involved are: Berlin, NJ-based GBC;
Mt. Prospect, Illinois-based PC Distributing Inc; and Vitek Systems
Distribution headquartered in Carlsbad, California. Each will
distribute Everex products in their respective territories throughout
the United States.

Under the terms of the agreements, the companies will distribute
Everex's STEP and Tempo computer product lines, and the
company's full line of peripheral products. Everex products
will be immediately available.

Jerry Graham, national sales manager of distribution for Everex
said: "Combining STEP high-performance computers as the file
servers, affordable Tempo systems as the mid-range
workstations, and a variety of high-end PC peripherals, Everex
offers the perfect networking business solution for the VAR
market."

All three distributors specialize in selling and supporting
Novell network and multi-user systems to value-added resellers.

"The agreements with GBC, PC Distributing, and Vitek allow us
to partner with strategic, regional distributors that cover all
major metropolitan areas," said Howard Crystal, vice president
of domestic sales, Everex.

Only this week Everex was in the news as having paid Hayes
Microcomputer Products $2.5 million to settle a lawsuit in which
Hayes charged Everex with willful infringement on its modem patent.

In another case in June, Newsbytes reported that Everex and
Microsoft Corp had won a substantial jury award in a lawsuit that had
been filed against eight defendants responsible for counterfeiting
the Microsoft MS-DOS operating system. The suit alleged that the
defendants had counterfeited the version of MS-DOS marketed
by Everex under Everex's trademark "ParCorp."

(Ian Stokell/19910827/Press Contact: Jerry Graham, Everex
Systems Inc., 415-683-2489)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 HYUNDAI SHIPS FAST NEW DRAM AND SRAM 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00023)

HYUNDAI SHIPS FAST NEW DRAM AND SRAM 08/27/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- The
Semiconductor Division of Hyundai Electronics America is now
shipping five new CMOS or complimentary metal oxide semiconductor
memory chips, a 60, 70, or 80 nanosecond, 1 megabyte (MB) DRAM
(dynamic random access memory), a 4 MB DRAM, and a 70 nanosecond
256-kilobit CMOS SRAM or static RAM. SRAM chips do not require
the regular refresh signal that DRAM chips need to maintain their
data contents.

CMOS or complimentary metal oxide semiconductor microchips are
more expensive than the usual variety but require less power and
are thus often in demand for battery-operated systems.

The HY531000 is a 1 M by 1-bit CMOS DRAM available in 60, 70 and
80ns speeds and the HY534256 is a 256 K by 4-bit chip in the same
speeds.

The HY514100 is a very low-power 4 M by 1-bit CMOS DRAM.

The 60ns HY531000 is one of the first high-speed 1MB DRAMs to hit
the market.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Debra Bowman, Hyundai
Electronics America, 408-473-9318)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR PCS: Sony Multimedia Ent't/Learning CD-ROM 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00024)

NEW FOR PCS: Sony Multimedia Ent't/Learning CD-ROM 08/27/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- At a suggested
retail price of only $699, the new "back-to-school" special
package will include a Sony CD-ROM player and six CD-ROM based
interactive programs for IBM-compatible computers.

This software is included: Compton's Family Encyclopedia, Microsoft
Bookshelf Reference Library 1991 Edition, National Geographic's
Mammals - A Multimedia Encyclopedia, Mixed-Up Mother Goose -
Languages of the World, and The Software Toolworks World Atlas.

CD-ROMs are very inexpensive-to-manufacture data storage discs
that come with information already encoded on them. A single CD-
ROM (essentially the same product as the CD-Audio disc) can
contain hundreds of books full of text or a combination of sound,
text, and images; the latter is what is referred to as multimedia
because you can not only read about something but also see an
image of it and listen to appropriate sounds such as speech or
music.

Audio jacks to connect to an amplifier and Sony headphones are
included with the package, as are a multimedia tutorial and step-
by-step installation instructions.

(John McCormick/19910827/Press Contact: Deborah Brown, Technology
Solutions, 212-505-9900)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 POURNELLE COMMENTS ON NEWSBYTES BUREAU CHIEF'S BOOK 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00025)

POURNELLE COMMENTS ON NEWSBYTES BUREAU CHIEF'S BOOK 08/27/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- This bureau has
recently noticed that famous science fiction writer and well-
known BYTE columnist Jerry Pournelle took note of a Newsbytes
writer when he wrote in a recent BYTE column about the Washington
bureau chief's book on optical storage.

In a June Chaos Manor column where he was discussing WORM or
write once, read many optical drives, Dr. Pournelle wrote:
"Incidentally, if you want an introduction and exposition on the
whole optical storage field, John A. McCormick, 'A Guide To
Optical Storage Technology,' Dow Jones Irwin 1990, ISBN 1-55623-
320-5 is about as good as I've seen, a good balance of
readability and technical information; reading this won't make
you an expert, but you'll know as much as anyone who isn't an
expert."

Dow Jones-Irwin has recently changed its name to BusinessONE
Irwin but it is still the same company.

(Beth Goldie/19910827/Press Contact: Melanie Chionis, BusinessONE
Irwin, 708-206-2773)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 ACE INITIATIVE GAINS 24 NEW MEMBERS 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00026)

ACE INITIATIVE GAINS 24 NEW MEMBERS 08/27/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- An additional 24
companies have joined the Advanced Computing Environment (ACE)
initiative, bringing total membership in the industry group to 85.
The group was formed in April to promote a set of standards
covering Intel-based personal computers and workstations using
processors from MIPS Computer Systems Inc.

The ACE group also backs two operating systems. One is Microsoft's
New Technology (NT), which was seen as the next generation of OS/2
when ACE was announced but is now being billed as Windows NT. The
other is The Santa Cruz Operation's Open Desktop version of Unix.

Hardware vendors who have just joined ACE include American
Megatrends, Inc., Cache Computers, Inc., Dansk Data Elektronik A/S,
Emerald Computers, Inc., Everex Systems, Inc. HCL America, Inc.,
Interphase Corp., IRTV mbH, Micronics Computers, Myriad Solutions
Ltd., Nokia Data Systems, Oakleigh Systems, Inc., Photon Machines,
Inc., Seiko Epson Corp., Sigma Designs, Inc., and UltraStor Corp.

Software vendors just added to the membership rolls include:
Alcatel TITN Inc. Edinburgh Portable Compilers Ltd.,Insight
Development Corp., Momentum Software, Prolific, Inc., Samsung
Software America, Software Research Associates, and Translation
Systems.

Microsoft and The Santa Cruz Operation are scheduled to release
developers' kits to independent software vendors by year-end, ACE
officials said.

ACE membership is open to all vendors who plan to build or design
hardware or software that fits the group's standards. Interested
vendors can contact James A. Billmaier of MIPS Computer Systems
at 408-524-7028.

(Grant Buckler/19910827)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR PCS: Digital Vision Unveils Frame Grabber 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00027)

NEW FOR PCS: Digital Vision Unveils Frame Grabber 08/27/91
DEDHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Digital Vision
has announced ComputerEyes/RT, a real-time video frame grabber for
the IBM PC and compatibles. Digital Vision said the frame grabber
will complement its line of slow-scan video digitizers.

The frame grabber can capture images from the real world in one
thirtieth of a second, the company said. Images are captured in
one-bit, eight-bit (256 colors), or 24-bit (16.7 million colors)
color.

Digital Vision is promoting the use of the new product, and of its
existing products, in new commercial and multimedia applications.
While the company has previously concentrated on selling to
computer enthusiasts and desktop publishers, it now plans to work
with third-party developers on a variety of other applications.

Paul Terrio, national sales manager, told Newsbytes his company is
already working with ACS Telecom, a developer that is incorporating
the Digital Vision products into a system for capturing and
transmitting images. The company is also working with a security
systems developer, which Terrio would not name, that plans to use
the technology in a criminal tracking system.

Other possibilities include automated assembly line inspection,
medical systems image capture, sports motion analysis, real estate
database applications, and custom T-shirt manufacturing, the
company said.

Product Manager Steve Sarsfield said Digital Vision has sold some
products through third parties before. For example, Canon sells
some of Digital Vision's older products as part of a still video
kit, he said. "This type of arrangement has always worked out
pretty well for us."

Digital Vision is offering a developer's tool kit for US$100.00.
The tool kit includes an executable program that allows users to
capture an image by issuing a DOS command. Microsoft C and
assembler code are also included.

ComputerEyes/RT sells for US$599, and works with an IBM PC, XT, AT,
286, 386, 486, PS/2 Models 25 or 30, or compatible computer with at
least 512K bytes of memory, DOS 2.1 or higher, and VGA, Super-VGA,
or MCGA graphics capabilities. A hard drive is recommended.

(Grant Buckler/19910827/Press Contact: Steve Sarsfield, Digital
Vision, 617-329-5400)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 NEW FOR IBM: Funk's Formula Editor is 1-2-3 Add-In 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00028)

NEW FOR IBM: Funk's Formula Editor is 1-2-3 Add-In 08/27/91
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- Funk Software
has introduced Formula Editor, an add-in for Lotus 1-2-3 Release
2.x that it said will make it easier to create, edit, and debug
formulas.

Originally part of Funk's The Worksheet Utilities package of
add-ins, Formula Editor is being offered for the first time as a
stand-alone product.

Formula Editor lets the user see all of a long formula in a window
on the screen, rather than just the 80 characters visible in the
one line allocated to displaying the contents of a cell in 1-2-3.
It also provides a menu of all the available @ functions in 1-2-3,
said Michael Blaber, a spokesman for the company.

The add-in also prompts the user to fill in all of the parts of a
formula, Blaber said, making it easier to write formulas correctly
the first time. Its "continuous parsing" technology highlights
syntax errors and unmatched parentheses as the user types in a
formula.

To aid in debugging formulas, Formula Editor can calculate a
formula step by step and show the results at each stage, making it
easier to spot errors, the company said.

The software can also convert cell addresses to range names and
vice versa, and lets the user create new range names while editing
a formula.

Formula Editor works with 1-2-3 Release 2, 2.01, 2.2, or 2.3. It
requires an IBM or compatible computer running DOS Version 2.0 or
later. The software uses 50K bytes of memory, Funk Software said.
Suggested retail price is US$99.95, and the software is available
now in the United States and Canada, Blaber said.

(Grant Buckler/19910827/Press Contact: Nancy Fisher or Joe Ryan,
Funk Software, 617-497-6339; Michael Blaber, The Marketing
Partnership for Funk Software, 617-876-9511, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27  ****CANADIAN, SOVIET FIRMS WORKING TOGETHER 08/27/91

08/27/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00029)

 ****CANADIAN, SOVIET FIRMS WORKING TOGETHER 08/27/91
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- When tanks rolled in
the streets of Moscow recently, there were some anxious moments at
FirstMark Technologies. But the coup attempt ended, and now the
Ottawa software firm and its partners at OKB, a Moscow space
research group, are celebrating.

FirstMark, a software developer and management services firm, is
helping OKB commercialize its space products and services. A
special research bureau of the Moscow Power Engineering Institute,
OKB has been involved with the Soviet Union's space program for
more than 40 years. Political change in that country has freed it
to operate as a commercial venture.

Mike Faulkner, vice-president of management services at FirstMark,
told Newsbytes his company got involved with the Soviet Union first
through a program called Peace Train, which involved student
exchanges and other joint activities between Canada and the Soviet
Union.

FirstMark's management services division helped manage cooperation
between the Soviet and Canadian space efforts, and came into
contact with OKB in the process. The companies started working
together as a result. OKB has a strong software engineering group,
Faulkner added, so it is working with FirstMark's software
division, maker of a PC decision-making package called
KnowledgeSeeker.

The two companies have an agreement to cooperate in international
sales and marketing of their respective products. Their objective,
according to FirstMark, is to form a joint venture in the Soviet
Union.

(Grant Buckler/19910827/Press Contact: Mike Faulkner, FirstMark
Technologies, 613-723-8020)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 A VIRTUAL THEATER FOR VIRTUAL REALITY 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00030)

A VIRTUAL THEATER FOR VIRTUAL REALITY 08/27/91
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- The computer
industry's favorite exotic technology is getting ready for a more
mainstream showing. According to a report in Video Technology News
(Phillips Publishing, Potomac, Md.), MCA/Universal is developing
a "virtual theater" that will open at the Universal Studios Tour
in Los Angeles next year.

Virtual reality uses computing, imaging and sensory feedback to
create interactive lifelike experiences.

The theater project is a joint effort with Redwood City-based
VPL Research, the leading supplier of virtual reality products,
notably a computerized glove and headset get-up that gives the user the
experience of seeing and touching "virtual" objects.

(Dave Needle and Computer Currents/19910827)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 27 KNOWLEDGEWARE AND INTELLICORP TO MERGE 08/27/91

08/27/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00031)

KNOWLEDGEWARE AND INTELLICORP TO MERGE 08/27/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 27 (NB) -- KnowledgeWare
is set to acquire Mountain View, California-based IntelliCorp Inc.,
following the approval of both companies boards of directors to
approve a definitive merger agreement.

Under the terms of the agreement, KnowledgeWare will issue .13402
share of its common stock in a tax-free exchange for each outstanding
share and option of IntelliCorp common stock, or approximately 1.3
million shares of KnowledgeWare common stock.

The merger, which is subject to the approval of IntelliCorp's
shareholders and other conditions, will be accounted for by
KnowledgeWare as a pooling of interests, the accounting method
that gained so much attention during AT&T's acquisition of NCR
Corp recently.

According to the companies, the merger is expected to be
completed in late October or early November.

KnowledgeWare recently acquired Language Technology  Inc. ,
a developer of maintenance and re-engineering tools for existing
COBOL systems.

KnowledgeWare has posted fiscal 1991 revenues of more than
$124 million,  and is a vendor of computer-aided software
engineering (CASE) tools. Its two main product lines are the
OS/2-based Application Development Workbench and the DOS-
based Information Engineering Workbench.

IntelliCorp develops and markets advanced application development
and delivery software products that bring the benefits of object- and
rule-based systems to business applications. Revenues for the
totaled nearly $14 million in fiscal 1991.

Both companies are members of the Object Management Group,
an international organization that aims to promote the use of object
management technology in software design.

(Ian Stokell/19910827/Press Contact: Liz Simpson, KnowledgeWare,
404-231-8575)

#ENDCARD



#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SW BELL ADDS NEW SYSTEMS IN MISSOURI, ILLINOIS 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00001)

SW BELL ADDS NEW SYSTEMS IN MISSOURI, ILLINOIS 08/26/91
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Southwestern Bell
is expanding its rural cellular phone service in Missouri and
Illinois. The 4 rural service areas have a total of 718,864
potential customers, and the deals are pending regulatory
approvals.

In Missouri, Southwestern Bell's Mobile Systems unit formed a
limited partnership with Alltel Mobile Communications of Little
Rock which will include both St. Louis and 3 surrounding rural
regions. In Illinois, it signed contracts which will let it
deploy cellular service along Interstates 55, 57, and 70. The
company's Cellular One operations already serve Springfield;
Decatur; Champaign-Urbana; Bloomington-Normal; Chicago/Gary,
Ind.; and four small central Illinois markets.

Finally, a partnership it holds with Comcast signed to acquire a
non-wireline service area in Dover, Delaware, which Comcast will
operate.

In other news involving Southwestern Bell, the company began an
internal trial of switched multimegabit data service, which can
send millions of bits of data per second using cell relay
technology. The service is designed to link local area networks (LANs)
over the public telephone network, and the test will link the
company's own LANs.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/ Press Contact: Southwestern Bell
Mobile Systems, Walter F. Patterson, 214/733-2132; Scott
Hilgeman, Southwestern Bell, 314-247-4613)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 TANZANIA INSTALLS AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE EXCHANGE 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00002)

TANZANIA INSTALLS AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE EXCHANGE 08/26/91
DAR ES SALAAM, TANZANIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- The Chinese
Xinhua news agency reports that Tanzania installed its first
international automatic telephone exchange system in the capital
of Dar Es Salaam.

The new system has the ability to handle 2,000 lines, and will
link Dar Es Salaam, with Arush, Zanzibar and other major cities
of the country. IT was purchased with a $5.2 million loan from
the government of Belgium. Most of the country's
telecommunications system dates from to 1940s or 1950s.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 STUDY SHOWS PHONE IMPORTANT SALES TOOL 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00003)

STUDY SHOWS PHONE IMPORTANT SALES TOOL 08/26/91
SAN FERNANDO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Inquiry
Handling Service released results from a tracking study
involving more than 300,000 sales leads from 200 companies. The
on-going IHS Inquiry Performance Survey shows that phone-based
leads continue to gain over paper-based systems.

Results showed that the ratio of leads obtained from advertising
and public relations reader service telephone numbers increased,
while those from trade shows, post card decks and direct mail
declined, compared to the same period last year. At the same
time, the ratio of inquiries obtained from 800-number calls and
toll calls continued to increase.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Jim Obermayer, Inquiry
Handling Service, 818-365-8131; John Dillon, 213-487-2363)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SOFTWARE FOR KIDS - FOCUS OF NEW NEWSLETTER 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00004)

SOFTWARE FOR KIDS - FOCUS OF NEW NEWSLETTER 08/26/91
ENCINITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Out of
frustration caused by his inability to find software for his
kids, Stewart Walton is introducing "Educational Software
Review, The Parent's Guide to Computers," beginning in
September of this year.

The eight-page newsletter will contain no advertising, but
instead focuses on reviews and articles geared toward parents
of children of all ages, but especially school-age children
using computers at home. Walton told Newsbytes, "I couldn't
find good software for my kids, and I soon discovered
that other parents were in the same boat. We didn't like
taking advice on educational programs from a harried clerk at a
retail store who only knows what people are buying that week."

Walton, a computer engineer and consultant said he searched and
could find very little on children's software and nothing on
things like, "how to protect your hard disk from your seven-
year-old." That's when "Educational Software Review" was born.

Initial response has been tremendous. "Parents know exactly
what I'm talking about when I describe it in one sentence,"
said Walton.

The newsletter is designed for fast consumption, so parents can
look it over to see what is of interest to them or their kids
in less than 5 minutes, and read that material in less than
half an hour. Each month it will rotate the focus on one of
four academic subject areas in this order, Language Arts, Math,
Social Studies and Science. The first issue's focus on Language
Arts will concentrate on creative writing, the second issue
plans to zoom in on counting, arithmetic, and algebra, and so
on.

Walton says software for every grade level will be reviewed so
parents will always find something appropriate for their
children. The articles are planned to focus on specific issues
of a child using a computer, such as what a minimum system
should be, why kids like certain programs and not others, how
to set up a hard disk, and where to buy software.

The newsletter will be distributed by subscription only at a
price of $42.50 for one year (12 issues). Charter subscriptions
are being offered at the reduced rate of $33.75. Walton said he
has a simple guarantee -- just cancel and get a full refund.
Subscriptions can be secured toll-free at 800/972-3535, or by
writing Educational Software Review, P.O. Box 1004, Encinitas,
California 92023.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108022/Press Contact: Stewart Walton,
Growth Systems, Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW PCS IN UK: AST Premium 11 386/33 & 486/33 Systems 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00005)

NEW PCS IN UK: AST Premium 11 386/33 & 486/33 Systems 08/26/91
BRENTFORD, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- AST has souped
up its family of high-performance PCs with the addition of the
Premium II 386/33 and 486/33 machines to its range.

The two new systems join the Premium II 386SX/20 486SX/20 series,
which was launched earlier this year. According to AST, the new
machines mean that the company has a complete range of PCs for
all users in the marketplace.

As the name implies, the Premium II 386/33 is driven by a 33MHz
80386 microprocessor. Supplied with 4MB of RAM, the PC comes with
16K of RAM cache, as well as the cache driving technology seen on
the Premium II 486 series.

The more powerful Premium II 486/33 desktop, meanwhile, is
designed for computing-intensive applications, as well as more
complex operating environments. Like the 386/33, the machine
comes with 4MB of RAM and a 16K RAM caching system.

Unusually for an Intel-based PC, the Premium II 486/33 is based
on an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) design which
AST claims requires less power, produces less heat and offers
greater reliability.

Both new machines can be expanded to 16MB on the motherboard,
and up to 80MB total RAM. Super VGA graphics is integrated into
the PC's motherboard, along with a PS/2 compatible
mouse, single parallel, and dual serial ports. An IDE drive interface is
included as standard.

Three models of the Premium II 386/33 are offered. The basic
Model 3V with a single floppy drive costs UKP 2,295, while the
Model 83V with an 80MB hard drive costs UKP 2,695. The Model 213V
with a 210MB hard drive costs UKP 3,295.

Likewise with the Premium II 486/33. The basic Model 3V costs UKP
3,595, while the 80MB hard drive-equipped Model 83V costs UKP
3,995. The flagship Model 213V with 210MB hard drive costs UKP
4,595.

According to Graham Hopper, director of AST's U.K. operations,
all the new machines are available immediately.

"Because they feature AST's Cupid-32 architecture, the Premium II
family systems provide cost-effective processing power now, and
deliver security of investment to users who need higher
performance in future," he said.

Hopper added that both systems complete the Premium II range in
the U.K. "Together, they meet the new office standard for
computing applications," he said.

(Steve Gold/19910822/Press & Public Contact: AST Research - Tel:
081-568-4350)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW PCS IN UK: Bondwell "Secure" Portables 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00006)

NEW PCS IN UK: Bondwell "Secure" Portables 08/26/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Bondwell Europe claims to
have introduced the industry's most secure range of portables
with the release of its new range of machines equipped with the
company's portable alarm system.

According to Bondwell, the PC alarm system provides a unique
solution to what is seen as one of the biggest potential
limitations of portable PCs -- security.

Bondwell claims that its high security PCs are the first to offer
protection on two levels. First, a motion detector alarm is
incorporated to prevent anyone running off with the machine.
Second, an optional security program prevents unauthorized
access to the hard disk and confidential data.

This combination ensures that access to sensitive data is
prevented, while the alarm system acts as a powerful deterrent to
theft. Once set, the 90 decibel alarm system is triggered if the
laptop is moved or lifted. It can only be disarmed if a unique
password code -- programmed by the user -- is entered.

Richard Percy, Bondwell's European marketing manager, explained
that recent Ministry of Defence case, in which a portable PC
containing Gulf conflict war plans was stolen, brought the issue
of portable security to national attention.

"But, in fact, all sectors, not just the military, are looking
for a solution to the continual problem of portable PC security.
While portability is the very reason people choose these compact
systems, it means that the data stored on these machines is far
more vulnerable to loss and theft," he said.

"While no system can provide a 100 percent guarantee against the
theft of confidential data, the Bondwell PC alarm system,
together with Stoplock, provide the highest level of laptop
security the industry currently offers," he added.

Available as an optional software-based access control system,
Stoplock IS for PC Security, prevents access to the portable PC
by unauthorized users. If the PC is stolen, access to data is
prevented unless a password is entered.

The PC alarm system is a standard feature of the Bondwell new
B310V and B310SX laptop PCs. The 80286-based B310V and 80386SX-
based B310SX systems offer up to 80MB of hard disk capacity, with
prices starting from UKP 1,449.

Based in London, Bondwell Europe markets portable and desktop
PCs, video game joysticks and consumer electronics products. The
company has been in the UK for more than ten years.

(Steve Gold/19910822/Press & Public Contact: Bondwell Europe -
Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW FOR PCS: Eicon Offers Access For OS/2 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00007)

NEW FOR PCS: Eicon Offers Access For OS/2 08/26/91
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Eicon Technology has
announces Access for OS/2, which joins its Access for Windows and
Access for DOS terminal and printer emulation packages. The
software allows a personal computer running OS/2 to appear to an
IBM mainframe as if it were an IBM 3270 terminal or an IBM 3287
printer.

A workstation running Access for OS/2 can connect to an IBM
mainframe and establish as many as 32 display or printer sessions
at the same time. The software works with Eicon's SNA Gateway
connection, or through IBM's direct Token Ring connection, the
company said.

Access for OS/2 offers exactly the same functions as the Windows
version, company spokeswoman Cynthia Yacowar said, except that it
supports the OS/2 Presentation Manager graphical user interface
instead of that of Windows. Both the OS/2 and Windows versions of
Access support 32 simultaneous host sessions, versus nine with the
DOS version.

The software supports host-based graphics, and lets users program
their own soft keys as well as record macros, Eicon said. It also
provides cut and paste functions, file transfer, translation
tables and keyboard layouts for 17 different countries.

Mark Denny, SNA product manager at Eicon, told Newsbytes he does
not expect sales of Access for OS/2 to match those of the Windows
version initially. He admitted that the success of Microsoft
Windows and Microsoft's recent turn away from OS/2 have hurt the
demand for OS/2 products somewhat. However, he said, there is a
real demand for OS/2 software, particularly in large companies that
have already made a substantial investment in OS/2. For custom
development of key applications, he said, OS/2 is widely believed
to be better than Windows.

(Grant Buckler/19910823/Press Contact: Cynthia Yacowar, Eicon
Technology, 514-631-2592, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 ROBERTS FINDS PROBLEMS IN TELECOM FRONTIER 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00008)

ROBERTS FINDS PROBLEMS IN TELECOM FRONTIER 08/26/91
ON THE ROAD, WISCONSIN, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Steve
Roberts and his Behemoth, a 350-pound test-bed for portable
computer and communications gear, are back on the road again. And
they're learning that, while some things are possible, they're
also expensive.

Cellular roaming, for instance, turns out to be a little like
X.400, he writes from the road in Wisconsin. It's easy to call
from outside your "home" service area to anywhere in the country,
just as it's possible to write a letter from one electronic mail
to another. It's just expensive. Roberts says a program called
"Roam America" might make the financial burden less onerous, and
sought information on it from Newsbytes.

Roberts also wound up in trouble with an automatic break on the
computer system used by US Sprint for its billings. Roberts
seldom uses his Sprint card when he's stationary, but when he's
mobile he uses it a lot. "For a couple of years, I used it very
little, then hit the road last month and used about $350 up 'til
now. With no warning, they shut down my account, thinking that
the change in pattern was evidence of stolen-card fraud. It took
about 12 hours to get it straightened out and switched back on --
this is the second time they've done this -- and it has nothing to
do with credit . I think this is pretty tacky... yesterday it
caused a real communication crisis since I was trying to
synchronize with a film crew that flew in to meet me," he writes.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910826/Press Contact: Steve Roberts: GEnie:
Wordy)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 LATIN PHONE FIRMS BEING PRIVATIZED IN HOT MARKET 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00009)

LATIN PHONE FIRMS BEING PRIVATIZED IN HOT MARKET 08/26/91
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Argentina is
selling its remaining stake in the EnTel phone monopoly to the
public on the Buenos Aires stock market. That market has nearly
doubled in value in just the last few weeks, as investors --
especially Japanese -- rush for bargains. A total of 60 percent
of EnTel -- it stands for Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones
-- was sold to two consortia of foreign telecommunications firms, both
headed by European telephone companies, for $1.6 billion early
this year.

The government wants to give another 10 percent of the
stock to employees and sell much of the rest in small chunks so
Argentines will have a chance to buy it. Revenues from the
Buenos Aires sale are expected to be $300-$500 million, and the
government has also talked to U.S. investment bankers about
making a private placement of shares on overseas stock markets,
thereby increasing their liquidity. Mexico's Telmex phone company
has become one of the most heavily-traded issues in New York.

Meanwhile, on the booming Brazilian stock market, shares in that
country's Telebras phone monopoly rose 6.4 percent in one day
after the government said it would seek to amend the country's
constitution and make it a totally private company. The country's
constitution went into effect in 1988. Brazilian business
executives have complained that foreign investors care only for
Telebras and not for other issues on the exchange.

Elsewhere, Peru and Venezuela have announced plans to privitize
their phone companies, following the lead of Mexico and
Argentina.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SPRINT OPENS KOREAN SUBSIDIARY 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00010)

SPRINT OPENS KOREAN SUBSIDIARY 08/26/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- U S Sprint,
which got into the Soviet market early this year, has now
launched a Korean subsidiary called Sprint Korea to offer its
voice and data services to businesses there.

Among the deals already finished are packet networks for Korea
Telecom and PosData, the latter a subsidiary of the Pohang Iron
and Steel Company, and an expansion of 9 nodes for the Dacom
network. The Korean market was recently deregulated and overseas
firms are rushing into it.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910826)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 AUSTRALIA: SIGMA DATA INITIATES OWN RECEIVERSHIP 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00011)

AUSTRALIA: SIGMA DATA INITIATES OWN RECEIVERSHIP 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Australian mid-range computer
distributor Sigma Data has taken voluntary receivership, believing
that at least some part of the business can be salvaged. About 60
percent of staff were dismissed on Friday, and the receiver says this
may be the only cut needed.

Many vendors are owed money - Unisys around $2M and Sequent around
$500,000 - but most have said they will help the company trade out.
Sigma recently signed a $15 deal to distribute AT&T product, and this
may go ahead.

A subsidiary, Distech, is installing warehousing control systems in
Australia and the US, and is not expected to be affected by the
parent's troubles. Sigma Data is 17 years old, and has weathered a
number of downturns in the industry. It has recently moved out of the
support sector, selling its engineering and maintenance division to
Unisys in 1990.

Founder Michael Faktor is expected to stay in an influential position
in the company. He said his company had suffered both from market
downturns and vendor problems. "Things have been changing. The move to
open systems has hurt vendor-specific business. We have the right
product mix and relationships so that will help us work through this.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 SILICON GRAPHICS OPENS OFFICE IN AUSTRALIA 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00012)

SILICON GRAPHICS OPENS OFFICE IN AUSTRALIA 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Graphics workstation
manufacturer Silicon Graphics is to establish a manufacturing base and
regional headquarters in Sydney. Business is expected to reach $50M in
two years.

While it isn't clear how much componentry will be sourced locally, the
company believes it will be able to generate sufficient manufacturing
offsets to satisfy the government obligations for what it plans to
sell in Australia. It also plans to establish a software manufacturing
centre, using Australian programmers to develop packages for the local
and international market. This is seen as easier to achieve than
finding a large local hardware content.

Graham Frost, Silicon Graphics Australian manager, said the region
contained a vast untapped market for its products. Target countries
include India, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. Singapore
is another country in the region used by mid-range systems
manufacturers such as Hewlett-Packard and Compaq. IBM, however,
manufactures for the region at its Australian factory.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER OPERATOR CONVICTED ON VIDEO EVIDENCE 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00013)

AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER OPERATOR CONVICTED ON VIDEO EVIDENCE 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- An Australian computer operator
has been convicted of sabotaging his employer's computer following
the use of videotape evidence allegedly showing him causing a system
failure.

Computing Australia newspaper reports that George Henein was a shift
leader at motor assembler JRA in November last year when the event
occurred. He was found guilty of unlawfully interrupting the operation
of JRA's AS/400 computer. Videotaped evidence, taken from a concealed
camera, is said to show Henein pressing the "attention" button on the
computer's disk drive, causing the system to fail.

In his defence, he said he thought he was correcting the system as it
had already failed, but this was dismissed by the court. He was fined
$1500 and put on a two year good behaviour bond. He is unlikely to
appeal since, if unsuccessful, the outcome may be a jail sentence.

The surveillance cameras were installed with cooperation by the state
fraud squad. This was due to abnormal problem levels in the
installation since 1988. IBM testified that no other AS/400
installation had experienced the level of failures the JRA machine
had.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 AUSTRALIA: EX-COMPUTERLAND MD OPENS PC "BOUTIQUE" 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00014)

AUSTRALIA: EX-COMPUTERLAND MD OPENS PC "BOUTIQUE" 08/26/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Mike Boulos, former managing
director of Computerland in Australia, says he has found the way to make
money in even a quiet market. His new store is doing over a million dollars
a month in sales, he claims.

Boulos says he is so successful in his new business, he is opening a
second, "megastore" in inner suburban Sydney. Recently he has started
advertising Compaq computers at what he claims is less than half price
-- a move which has upset more than a few Compaq dealers wanting to
know why they weren't offered such a good buy from Compaq.

He says he is capitalizing on corporate customers who are installing
their own support structures, and simply want to buy off the shelf at
bottom prices. "They certainly don't want to pay for dealer support
when they know they won't use it," he said.

Boulos has had some brushes with computer publications during the past
few months. He settled out of court on two defamation actions against
two weekly papers. With one he was reportedly seeking a quarter of a
million dollars damages, but settled for somewhat less, including
editorial space. His new business name, Computer World Solutions,
has annoyed IDG Australia, which says the name is too close to the
Computerworld newspaper name.

(Paul Zucker/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 MOTOROLA JAPAN JOINT VENTURE ON DIGITAL PHONES 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00015)

MOTOROLA JAPAN JOINT VENTURE ON DIGITAL PHONES 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Motorola Japan has tied up with
Tokyo-based Daimyo Telephone Industry in a joint venture to create
connections for digital mobile phones, the Nikkei newspaper says.
The official agreement is expected in October.

The total capitalization of the new firm will be around 50 million yen
($370,000), which will be owned 60 percent by Motorola and 40
percent by Daimyo. The president will come from among Motorola
Japan's executives, and the chairman will be chosen from a pool of Daimyo
executives. The new firm will construct ground telecommunication bases
that will serve as nodes for digital mobile phones. It will also supply
telecommunications equipment and provide maintenance services for
digital mobile phones. Digital mobile phone service is expected in Japan
in 1992. There is also a possibility that Motorola will use this joint
venture to aid its Iridium project in the future.

The relation between Motorola and Daimyo goes back to 1988. Both
firms signed a joint business agreement to build telecommunications
systems ordered by NTT's rival telephone firm DDI.

Digital mobile phone service is a fledgling business now, but is
envisioned as a major force in the future in Japan. Two firms are vying
for the largest share of the pie: Tokyo Digital Phone, which was created
by NTT, IDO, and Telecom Japan, and Two Car Cellular Tokyo, which
was set up by DDI and Nissan Motor.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Motorola Japan, +81-3-
3440-3311)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 JAPANESE LOTUS 1-2-3 ON SUN WORKSTATION 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00016)

JAPANESE LOTUS 1-2-3 ON SUN WORKSTATION 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- The Tokyo office of Lotus says it
will ship the Japanese version of Lotus 1-2-3 for Sun Microsystems'
workstation this October. It will the first Japanese spreadsheet
program for the workstation and is expected to make it attractive not
only to engineers but to businesses.

The Japanese version of Lotus 1-2-3 will be called "1-2-3/SPARC
Ver 1.1J" and is based on the latest version of the Lotus 1-2-3
program. The list price will be 198,000 yen ($1,470).

Lotus expects to sell 6,000 units of the program for the initial year.
Shipment will start at the end of October.

Sun Microsystems is attempting to make the workstations more
attractive to users in Japan with this, and the recent additions of
Japanese fonts to its software offerings.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Lotus, Tokyo, +81-3-
3436-4105)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 TI CREATES MAJOR R & D CENTER IN JAPAN 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00017)

TI CREATES MAJOR R & D CENTER IN JAPAN 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Texas Instruments Japan will
open its first overseas research and development center in Japan
in October. It is located in the Tsukuba academic town in Japan's Ibaraki
Prefecture.

The research and development center is expected to play an
important role not only in Japan but throughout TI's Asian operations.
TI plans primarily to study customized ICs (integrated circuits), especially
application specific ICs, for which there is a strong demand in Japan
and other Asian regions. This represents a big shift in TI's policy, which
was to place most of its energies into general purpose products such as
dynamic random access memory.

Currently, TI has three semiconductor chip manufacturing plants,
ten sales offices, and five design centers in Japan. The new
R & D center is expected to round out complete placement of a
semiconductor business in Japan. TI Japan's President Yukiaki
Nagae told the Nikkei newspaper that TI Japan may sign
partnerships with other firms if necessary in the future.

TI Japan has been selling ICs for high definition TVs,
telecommunications, and cars. The firm is also selling more ICs
for liquid crystal displays. TI Japan aims to gain 50 percent of
the LCD IC share in Japan. Also, the firm will start emphasizing
sales of ASIC, DSPs (digital signal processors) and ASMs
(application specific memory).

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Texas Instruments
Japan, [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 HITACHI BUILDS 16M DRAM CHIP PLANT IN GERMANY 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00018)

HITACHI BUILDS 16M DRAM CHIP PLANT IN GERMANY 08/26/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Hitachi will install a 16-megabit
dynamic random access memory plant at its semiconductor
manufacturing plant, which is currently being under construction
in Germany.

Hitachi says it will spend 25 billion yen ($185 million) for this
facility, which will be in operation in the spring of 1992. The
plant will be equipped with facilities designed to produce semiconductor
chips from scratch.

Hitachi was initially planning to manufacture 1-megabit static RAM and
4-megabit DRAM at this new plant, but has apparently seen that the
16-megabit DRAM era will arrive earlier than expected. So, it has decided
to install the 16-megabit DRAM facility now.

Many Japanese electronics firms are currently shipping samples of
their 16-megabit DRAM. Most of the major Japanese electronics firms
will ship sample products within a couple of months, with the 16-megabit
DRAM due in quantity shortly thereafter. The 16-megabit DRAM will
mainly be sold for workstations.

Hitachi is currently creating the 16-megabit DRAM production lines
at its plants in Kofu and Naka in Japan.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910826/Press Contact: Hitachi, +81-3-3258-
2057)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26  ****DRIVE MAKER PRAIRIETEK CALLS IT QUITS 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00019)

 ****DRIVE MAKER PRAIRIETEK CALLS IT QUITS 08/26/91
LONGMONT, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- PrairieTek
Corporation, the company that pioneered the 2.5-inch disk drive,
has closed its doors. With the exception of a skeleton staff
who will work with creditors, the firm's 300 employees are out of
work.

The venture-capital-funded Colorado firm was expecting to
finalize a $40 million funding deal this week, but changing
product requirements, a volatile marketplace, and the loss of the
funding was the death knell of the company.

A Longmont investment firm, Innovation Group, had said last
month that it would come to the financial rescue of PrairieTek,
claiming that it would obtain funding in return for a 65 percent
equity interest. Innovation Group's leader, Kelly Hickel,
also led an unsuccessful effort to revive another Colorado firm,
Miniscribe.

PrairieTek's director of North American sales told a Colorado
newspaper that "the market for venture capital is very soft
right now, and is particularly tough for high-tech companies."
Roger Leisy said it took Hickel's group longer than expected to
come up with the funding needed, and, "We just didn't have as
much time as needed."

PrairieTek was founded in 1986, and a year later introduced the
first 2.5-inch disk drive, designed for use in laptop and
portable computers. The small drive was seen as revolutionary,
providing more power in less space and with less weight.

Last November the company's founders, perhaps seeing the
handwriting on the wall, left to start another company.
Unable to convince investors to commit more money, the
company laid off 210 employees in May of this year, and in
July, six of the company's directors resigned.

Of the 300 employees now without jobs, about 100 were located in
Longmont, with the remainder employed at the company's four
month old Singapore facility. Although PrairieTek has closed
its doors, no decision has been announced yet as to whether the
company will file bankruptcy proceedings.

(Jim Mallory/910823)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 RANDOM ACCESS TO ACQUIRE CW ELECTRONICS 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00020)

RANDOM ACCESS TO ACQUIRE CW ELECTRONICS 08/26/91
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Random Access, Inc.,
has announced that it has signed a letter of intent to acquire
Denver-based computer retailer CW Electronics.

Random Access, believed to be the Rocky Mountain area's largest
microcomputer reseller, said the acquisition coincides with an
agreement it signed Friday to acquire four Denver area BizMart
"supercenter" franchises. Terms of the CW acquisition were not
disclosed.

Bruce Milliken, CEO of Random Access, said the two acquisitions
will give Random Access instant entry into the computer
retailing sector, and allow the company to diversify its account
base. Random Access is also interested in reducing its reliance
on large corporate customers, which until now has been the sales
area in which it has specialized. The company projects $58 million in
sales for fiscal year 1991.

According to a statement released by Random Access, the CW
Electronics management team will be responsible for operating
the BizMart franchise stores as well as expanding Random Access'
retail base.

The four BizMart stores are part of the national 62-store
BizMart chain acquired in June by Intelligent Electronics. That
company says it intends to expand BizMart's traditional
selection of office products to include major manufacturers
computer such as IBM, Apple and Compaq.

Random Access now becomes Intelligent Electronic's first BizMart
"supercenter" franchisee. Intelligent Electronics is offering as
new franchise opportunities to its more than 1,000 existing
franchisees the enhanced, or "megacenter" store format.

The four BizMart stores to be acquired by Random Access are
located in Denver, Lakewood, Aurora and Westminster, Colorado.
They will initially be operated as "Enhanced" stores, meaning
the existing computer sections of the stores will be expanded.
Random Access says the Denver location will become a
"MegaCenter" by year end, meaning up to 10,000 square feet will
be added.

(Jim Mallory/910824/Press contact: Bruce Milliken, Random
Access, 303-745-9600)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26  ****MENTOR GRAPHICS TO CUT 435 JOBS 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00021)

 ****MENTOR GRAPHICS TO CUT 435 JOBS 08/26/91
WILSONVILLE, OREGON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) --- Employees of
Mentor Graphics will report to work today wondering if they will
have a job next Monday.

The company says it will cut 435 jobs, or about 15 percent of its
2900 member workforce as part of a restructuring effort.
Employees being laid off will be notified today, and Friday will
be their last day of work.

Mentor spokesperson Sharon VanSickle say the layoffs will take
place across the board. The company says the cuts, which it
says are the first in its 10-year history, will produce a
significant one-time write-off against results for its third
quarter. The company had previously announced a hiring freeze.

Mentor Graphics specializes in electronic design automation by
providing engineers with software and workstation hardware to
design such items as computer chips.

"While we have always considered our employees our most valuable
asset, we believe a lean, focused Mentor Graphics ensures the
company's market leadership and prosperity through the 1990s,"
said Mentor chairman and CEO, Thomas Bruggere.

According to Bruggere the reshaping, augmented by a
strengthening economy, should lead the company to stronger
revenues and earnings for 1992.

The company says it will also reduce internal development of
computer-aided software engineering (CASE), mechanical design
and documentation products. The company reported a loss of
$14.5 million on sales of $198.4 million during the first six
months of 1991, and blamed the losses on costs of product
transition and on a weak economy.

(Jim Mallory/910824/Press contact: Sharon VanSickle, Mentor
Graphics, 503-685-7000)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 MOTOROLA SHIPS SINGLE BOARD COMPUTERS 08/26/91

08/26/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00022)

MOTOROLA SHIPS SINGLE BOARD COMPUTERS 08/26/91
TEMPE, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Motorola has
announced shipment of two single board computers which the
company says provide significant technical breakthroughs for the
VME industry by incorporating the components of an entire
high-performance computer on a single VME module.

The new units are based on Motorola's M88000 reduced
instruction set computer (RISC) and MC68040 complex instruction
set computer (CISC) microprocessors. Potential markets include
original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), systems integrators, and
end users of VMEbus architecture.

According to Thomas Beaver, GM of the Motorola Computer Group,
the new units are already outselling previous VME module single
board computers. Says Beaver, "This example of even greater
market acceptance is a result of optimized product design, which
translates into improved price-performance, higher
functionality, higher quality and increased capacity for
real-time and Unix-based applications."

The new units, like those they replace, utilize application
specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and very large scale
integration (VLSI) technology. Developers can port software
from the CISC-based board to the higher performance RISC-based
unit and recompile the software.

Both units are processor engines with integrated processor
memory, Ethernet, and SCSI support, plus serial and parallel
ports. A power supply and any desired peripherals are added to
support the embedded applications. Both modules have a
suggested retail price of $3995.

Both units can be configured with from 4 to 32 megabytes (MB) of
DRAM, 4-way interleaved; a 32-bit SCSI coprocessor with DMA; a
32-bit Ethernet controller; quad serial ports I/O controller;
a single 8-bit bidirectional parallel port; 128 kilobytes (K) of
SRAM; 4 sockets for up to 4 MB of ROM/EPROM; four timers for
periodic interrupts; a watch-dog timer; a 7-level local VMEbus
interrupt handler; debug monitor; and diagnostic software.

(Jim Mallory/910824/Press contact: Barbara Patterson, Motorola,
602-438-3576, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NEW PCS: AST's Advantage For Small Business/Home Market 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00023)

NEW PCS: AST's Advantage For Small Business/Home Market 08/26/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Hot on the heels
of its introduction of the Medallion workstation based on the Intel
i486 33 MHz chipset, and the reduction in price of its Bravo and
Premium product lines, AST Research has released details of its
new Advantage! desktop and notebook computers.

According to the company, the computers will be sold as complete
systems and will feature new software packages developed by
Microsoft for the home user and small business markets.

The Advantage! product line is set to be introduced on Aug. 29 at
the opening of five Circuit City superstores in the Houston area.
AST says that the systems will be available in Circuit City's
nationwide chain of 166 retail locations by the end of the year.

The Advantage! computers will include Intel 80386SX, 486SX and
486-based desktop models as well as 386SX notebooks.
Pricing for the new products will be established by Circuit City.

The Advantage! desktop line will come pre-installed with MS-DOS
5.0 and Windows 3.0 as well as several new Microsoft software
applications designed to run in the graphical user interface
environment. The systems also include the Prodigy on-line
information service. Some models will also feature WinFax, a
Windows communications software package for facsimile
transmission and reception.

The Advantage! 386SX/20 features an 80 megabyte (MB) IDE
hard disk drive, a 1.44 MB 3.5-inch diskette drive and 1.2 MB
5.25-inch disk drive. Other features include a 2,400 bits-per-second
modem, an AST mouse, 2MB of RAM, an integrated Super VGA adapter,
one internal drive bay, one serial port, one parallel port, one
mouse port, and password security.

The newly released Medallion workstation, designed for the
computer-aided design (CAD) market, carries a retail price of $8,995
and is compatible with MS-DOS-based applications software,
specifically AutoCAD. Included with the system is an AutoCAD
drawing file preview and management utility designed to work with
the graphics controller unique to the Medallion workstation.
Operating speed is 23.5 million-instructions-per-second (MIPS),
according to the Dhrystone version 1.1 Unix benchmarks.

Last week, AST, having expanded its Bravo line in June with the
addition of the Bravo 286/16, cut prices on its Bravo and Premium
lines in an attempt to improve its market share.

(Ian Stokell/19910826/Press Contact: Joel C. Don, AST Research,
714-727-7957)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26  ****RADIUS ENTERS PC MARKET 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00024)

 ****RADIUS ENTERS PC MARKET 08/26/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- In an attempt
to capture market share in the IBM PC and compatible market,
Radius has introduced the new Full Page Pivot display along with
the SVGA MultiView graphics card.

According to the company, the Radius Full Page Pivot is the PC
market's first full page color display featuring both portrait and
landscape capabilities. It also features a .28mm dot pitch, 256
colors, high non-interlaced refresh rates, and magnetic shielding.
The product will be available in two weeks for a suggested retail
price of $1,249.

The new Radius SVGA MultiView is a graphics card designed to
drive multi-frequency displays like the NEC-4D and the Radius
Full Page Pivot. It will also be available in two weeks priced at
$449.

Radius has long been a provider of Macintosh products. In an
attempt to win market share in the PC environment, Radius has
established separate PC and Macintosh Business Units. Frank
Vaughn, formerly Radius director of engineering, is the general
manager of the PC Business Unit, and Ed Colligan heads the
Macintosh Business Unit. Radius has also named Tom Wilson
director of engineering for PC products.

Newsbytes recently reported that Radius had added a new filter to
its line of display filters that buffer the user from electric field emissions.
Additionally, the company also added System 7-compatibility to its
Radius Rocket Motorola 68040-based CPU (central processor unit)
accelerator for the Macintosh II, and announced that its RadiusTV
and ImpressIt products were being updated to support the new
features in QuickTime, the multimedia software extension to Apple's
new operating system.

(Ian Stokell/19910826/Press Contact: Maria Gagliardi, Angus
and Rudin Inc., 415-363-0982)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 GEPHARDT TO PROPOSE NEW TRADE INITIATIVE 08/26/91

08/26/91

(EXCLUSIVE)(GOVT)(WAS)(00025)

GEPHARDT TO PROPOSE NEW TRADE INITIATIVE 08/26/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Richard Gephardt,
the Majority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, is now
expected to propose sweeping changes to U.S. trade policy at a
September 10 luncheon meeting of the Institute for International
Economics here in Washington.

The Majority Leader's new proposals were previously scheduled to
be released on September 3 but now won't be made public until the
10th.

Neither the Congressman's office nor the Institute is releasing
any details of the new initiative, but Mr. Gephardt is in the
forefront of politicians striving to keep U.S. companies
competitive in the international arena and he is expected to make
important proposals at the luncheon meeting.

(John McCormick/19910826/Press Contact: C. Fred Bergsten,
Director, Inst. for International Economics, 202-328-9000 or fax
202-328-5432)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 NO IMMEDIATE ICL SALE, NORTHERN SAYS 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00026)

NO IMMEDIATE ICL SALE, NORTHERN SAYS 08/26/91
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Northern Telecom
is in no hurry to sell its 20-percent stake in ICL, the British
computer maker, the company's vice-president of investor relations
has told Newsbytes. Guy Gill said a report on the Reuter news wire
that Northern is planning to sell the stake is misleading in that
it implies an immediate sale.

Under an agreement with Fujitsu, the Japanese computer maker that
owns the other 80 percent of ICL, Northern is obliged to make a
public offering of at least part of its stake in the company within
three years. However, Gill said, the company is not planning to do
so right away. "We'll probably hold it for a while," he said.

Northern Telecom got the stake in ICL when it bought STC plc, a
British electronics firm, late in 1990. Since then Northern has
sold three pieces of STC, using the money to help pay for the
UKP1.3-billion (US$2.6 billion) acquisition. It sold STC
Distributors to CDME, a French electrical distributor, in April. In
May STC's cable products division went to Pirelli, an Italian firm.
In early June, Farnell Electronics of the United Kingdom paid UKP61
million for the electronics distribution division of STC.

(Grant Buckler/19910826/Press Contact: Guy Gill, Northern Telecom,
703-712-8516)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 CORRECT GRAMMER HEALTH CARE EDITION SLATED FOR FALL 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00027)

CORRECT GRAMMER HEALTH CARE EDITION SLATED FOR FALL 08/26/91
SAUSALITO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- The Writing
Tools Group, producers of the English grammar correction
software "Correct Grammar" announced it has formed a
partnership with the producers of the Stedman's Medical
Dictionary with the hopes of producing a "Correct Grammar"
aimed at the medical profession.

Williams & Wilkins, producers of Stedman's Medical Dictionary,
have granted exclusive retail rights to Stedman's/25, the
electronic version for DOS-based computers of Stedman's Medical
Dictionary, 25th Edition meaning the Writing Tools Group will
now market and support the product, the Writing Tools Group
said.

In addition, the Writing Tools Group plans to combine its
Correct Grammar product and the Stedman's/25 into the Correct
Grammar Health Care Edition, the company said. The new product
will include the style guides from Stedman's/25, specifically
the American Medical Association (AMA) Manual of Style,
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
(APA) and Dr. Edward J. Huth's Medical Style & Format manual.

Camilo Wilson, vice president of the Writing Tools Group said,
"The health care field is one of the most vocabulary intensive
industries, where incorrect wording can have serious negative
consequences. The Health Care Edition of Correct Grammar will
give professionals and businesses providing services for the
health care field a tool that makes it easier to write
clearly."

Fred Fusting, vice president and publisher of Williams &
Wilkins Electronic Media Division remarked, "By combining
electronic forms of these classic reference works with the
market's best grammar checker, we can provide the health care
industry with exactly what they need to communicate
effectively."

The Correct Grammar Health Care Edition will be released this
fall, the company said. Retail price for the new product has
been set at $249.

The Writing Tools Group, formerly Lifetree Software, was
acquired by WordStar International in March of this year, and
is now a subsidiary of WordStar.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108026/Press Contact: Kristin Keyes,
WordStar, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 TEKTRONIX INTROS $9,995 POSTSCRIPT COLOR PRINTER 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00028)

TEKTRONIX INTROS $9,995 POSTSCRIPT COLOR PRINTER 08/26/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Less
than a month after Tektronix introduced a thermal wax color printer
with Adobe System's new PostScript Level 2 interpreter called the
Phaser II PXi, the company is now shipping the Phaser III PXi, a
PostScript Level 2 color printer that can print tabloid-size output
and, according to the company, is the first color printer capable of
producing brilliant color on virtually any paper.

David Downing, spokesman for Adobe Systems, told Newsbytes
that the Phaser III PXi "will create a new price/performance point
for color printing." The different between the two Tektronix products,
said Downing, is that while the Phaser II PXi is a thermal wax printer,
the Phaser II PXi "uses solid ink technology."

The Phaser III PXi, which will carry a manufacturer's suggested
retail price of $9,995, will utilize the enhanced color-imaging features
of PostScript Level 2, the next generation of Adobe's PostScript
language.

Downing told Newsbytes that the product will "make color printing
in the office more viable and cost-effective." The main barriers
to effective color printing in an office environment before "have
been cost and quality," he said. Both areas have been
addressed by the new Phaser III PXi.

According to Adobe's Dr. Charles Geschke, president and chief
operating officer, the new Phaser "should participate in and
contribute to significant growth in the market for desktop color
printing because it offers users such important benefits as
device-independent color and the capability to print very
accurate, brilliant color on a variety of media."

The 300 dots-per-inch Phaser III PXi color printer uses Advanced
Micro Device's Am29000 RISC (reduced instruction-set computing)
processor running at 24MHz. The company claims that, full-color
pages are printed in as little as two minutes, while monochrome
pages print in 40 to 60 seconds, depending on text density.

The company is marketing the product as a multi-user, multiplatform
product, because its multitasking interface automatically switches
among parallel, serial and AppleTalk ports.

The Phaser III PXi comes standard with 10 megabytes (MB) of
memory, which is expandable up to 18MB with two 4MB upgrades
priced at $995 each. According to the company, the first 4MB
upgrade gives the user sufficient memory to print a full 11-inch by
17-inch bleed on 12-inch by 18-inch paper. The second 4MB
upgrade provides additional memory for input buffers, fonts and
pipelined imaged processing while printing, thus allowing for
faster throughput in shared environments.

Tektronix is a manufacturer of electronic products and systems in
the areas of computer graphics, test and measurement and
communications.

(Ian Stokell/19910826/Press Contact: Patricia J. Paine, Adobe
Systems Inc., 415-962-3967; Kathy Melcher, Tektronics,
503-685-3150; Charles Humble, Hastings, Humble, Giardini &
Freeman Inc., 503-221-1063)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 JOBS AND GATES TOGETHER AGAIN 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00029)

JOBS AND GATES TOGETHER AGAIN 08/26/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- Well, it
wasn't exactly the start of a new relationship, but Fortune
magazine Associate Editor Brent Schlender was able to get
Steve Jobs and Bill Gates to sit down at Jobs' Palo Alto house
for a three-hour interview. Here are some highlights from the
August 26 cover story:

Gates: "I contend technology breakthroughs can happen by extending
what we already have. Let's take handwriting computers. The
hardware is coming from PC-compatible makers like Dell and NCR
and some Japanese companies. The software will come either from
Microsoft or from a U.S. competitor named Go Corp.
[Foster City, CA]. That's going to be a major breakthrough, and
who do you give credit to?"

Jobs: "I think everybody gives credit to Go, but Go will be
crushed."

Gates: "That's one of the nastiest comments I've ever heard.
I've been working on handwriting since before there ever was a
Go Corp."

Jobs: "Really? I didn't know that. Most would say Go is the
company that first tried to commercialize the technology."

Gates: "Well, Go hasn't shipped anything yet, and I'll ship my
stuff before they ship theirs ...."

Gates: "Smart people like Steve [Jobs] ought to try to build
things from scratch. That's a worthy thing. But every time it
should be a test ... I'm the one who has to prove the validity
of the evolutionary approach."

Jobs: "It's true, your evolutionary approach with Windows is
bringing to PCs great new technologies that Apple and others
pioneered. But in the meantime -- and it's been seven years since
the Macintosh was introduced -- I still think that tens of
millions of PC owners needlessly use a computer that is far less
good than it should be."

(Dave Needle & Computer Currents/19910826)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 26 LIFE IMITATES COMPUTER GAME "CRISIS IN THE KREMLIN" 08/26/91

08/26/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00030)

LIFE IMITATES COMPUTER GAME "CRISIS IN THE KREMLIN" 08/26/91
ALAMEDA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 26 (NB) -- It sounds like a
headline from Newsweek, but it's really a computer game. Crisis
in the Kremlin is a PC game announced last June that Alameda-based
Spectrum Holobyte plans to ship this October, and it's a case
of life imitating art -- the game has an uncanny similarity to
real-life events that have transpired.

In the game, you play the role of President of the Soviet Union,
with the ultimate goal of staying in power for 25 years, but you
have to overcome threats from your own intelligence agency,
the notorious KGB.

At one point in the game, the KGB says to the president, "Your
health is of great concern." "Isn't it weird?" says Gilman Louie,
CEO of Spectrum Holobyte, of the game's similarity to recent
events.

The two programmers (one Russian, one American) who designed the game
jokingly complain the real KGB stole the line from them. With
Gorbachev's apparent resurrection, Spectrum Holobyte is trying
to make one last minute change to Crisis in the Kremlin: the
ability of the President to return to power after being deposed.
Such a scenario would've seemed too far out were it not for
Gorbachev's return.

(Dave Needle & Computer Currents/19910826)
#ENDCARD





#CARD::19981 AUG 23 Review of: The System 7 Book 08/23/91

08/23/91


(REVIEW)(APPLE)(SFO)(00030)

Review of: The System 7 Book 08/23/91

From: Ventana Press, P.O.Box 2468, Chapel Hill,
NC 27515 [phone]

Price: $22.95

PUMA Rating: 3.5

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: Naor Wallach 08/23/91

Summary: A book that purports to teach you the ins and outs of
Apple's new operating system. Well done and with plenty of
examples and illustrations. Most people would benefit from
it with the exception of the Macintosh "power users."

======

REVIEW

======

With all of the hype surrounding Apple Computer's release of its
latest System Software, it was inevitable that many book and software
publishers would rush into the market touting a myriad of products
that are either System 7 compatible or that attempt to explain all
of the wonders of the new Apple operating system.

In the book publishing race, the apparent speed winner is Ventana
Press with Craig Danuloff's, "The System 7 Book." Some of you
may be scratching your heads now and mumbling "Danuloff, Danuloff,
where do I know that name from?" Well, Mr. Danuloff writes a column
for MacWorld magazine in which he explains various features of the
Macintosh.

This 390+ page book is an attempt to explain to both current users
of Macintosh and to new users what you can do with the Apple
application known as Finder, and other aspects of the Apple Macintosh
operating system. Since understanding of the new operating system is
bound to grow over time, Ventana Press is offering two free issues
of its System 7 magazine to purchasers of this book.

The book is divided into 11 chapters and an appendix that covers
installation of System 7 in the case that you get a Macintosh that
is not already configured for it. There are also a foreword, glossary,
and index.

The list of chapter headings should give you a clearer idea of the
breadth of this book. They are, in order: System Software Basics,
Finder 7, Managing your Hard Drive, The System Folder, System 7 and
your Software, Working with Multiple Applications, The Edition
Manager and IAC, Fonts in System 7, Introduction to File Sharing,
Working on a Network, and Memory Management. As you can see, most
subjects of interest to a user are covered in one or more chapters
of this book.

The book is written in what has become common practice in the computer
book publishing trade. There are wide margins on all sides of the
page, plenty of figures illustrating the text, and a bright, breezy
writing style that makes the book easy to absorb. If you are an
experienced Macintosh user and have read the articles on what System
7 is bringing, then this book will provide a few hours of somewhat
entertaining reading. If you're a brand new Macintosh user, or have
managed to avoid all of the hoopla in the press recently, then this
book will help you tremendously in quickly coming up to speed on your
new system.

Considering the fact that this book's publication coincided with the
official release of System 7 and that it is not an officially
sanctioned Apple Computer product, the publishers have managed to
keep the typos and other editing errors to a minimum. This is not
to say that there are no errors however. In some cases, text has
been copied and not changed so that a discussion of Files refers
to Folders. In other areas, the figures do not match the text that
is directly below them. There are also a few typos strewn throughout
the book. All in all though, this book is pretty clean.

As to the content, the book is an attempt to explain things that are
only briefly alluded to in the reference documentation that comes
with System 7 or to show some practical usages for those features.
In these goals, the book succeeds. I have seen Apple's documentation
which I received with my copy of System 7 and there are many areas
where Mr. Danuloff explains things more clearly and directly.

Sprinkled through the text are neat tips for things that Apple has
chosen to hide from its users. Apple products have traditionally
has some hidden files that humanized the corporation. Things like
the original Macintosh's case which had all of the engineer's signatures
embedded in the plastic on the inside is a good example. In System 7,
Apple's engineers nostalgically recreated the original Finder's
icon which was a lunar-like mountain landscape. Of course, this
tidbit is not immediately obvious but Mr. Danuloff publishes how
to get at it.

Macintosh enthusiasts are known for their almost religious devotion
to the machine. At times this makes any conversation about the
relative merits and usefulness of different machines in different
tasks a very difficult chore. One would have hoped that Mr. Danuloff
could have toned down the zeal with which he promotes the new
software. And, indeed, he mostly succeeds. There are only a few
instances where Mr. Danuloff's exuberance overcomes the reality
that he is describing.

Being a software engineer myself, I found only one area where I
disagreed with Mr. Danuloff on a technical point. He describes
Apple's implementation as a true multitasking system, though
cooperative in nature. I totally disagree. Cooperative multitasking
is just another way of saying that programs should be nice to
others -- a fact which sadly does not really occur. There are many
more benefits to a truly multitasking operating system and it is
to be hoped that Apple will make the move toward that someday
soon.

===========

PUMA RATING

===========

PERFORMANCE: 3 This book lives up to its premise. It does explain
most of the features of Apple's new system. There are some minor
technical points with which I disagree, and some other areas where
the author's gung-ho approach is a bit overbearing.

USEFULNESS: 4 If you are new to the Macintosh, or have managed to
never hear of System 7 and all of its features, then this book will
do a better job for you of understanding it. If you are aware of it
and am an experienced user, you may be able to get along without it.

MANUAL: 3 This book is professionally done. There are several technical
problems that are probably due to the book's having been rushed into
print.

AVAILABILITY: 4 Book stores carry it. I even saw an ad for a mail order
house that was giving this book away for free when you purchased the
System software upgrade from them. Having a newsletter come out with
two free issues is another feature that I really liked.

(Naor Wallach/910802/Press Contact: Lee Weisbecker)

#ENDCARD


#CARD::1991 AUG 23 BORLAND SHIPS TURBO C++ WITH TURBO VISION 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00001)

BORLAND SHIPS TURBO C++ WITH TURBO VISION 08/23/91
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Borland
announced it is shipping a product it calls "Turbo C++ & Turbo
Vision" for development of applications in the IBM personal
computer (PC) disk operating system (DOS) environment.

Turbo C++ & Turbo Vision is not to be confused with Borland C++
or ObjectVision, two other products from Borland. Borland C++
and ObjectVision are also for applications software
development, but under the Microsoft Windows 3.0 platform,
although Borland C++ can be used to build applications under
either DOS or Windows, the company said.

The new part of the Turbo C++ & Turbo Vision product is Turbo
Vision. Turbo Vision is a "framework" or generic application
developers can spring board from to get a head start on
creating windows, pull-down menus, dialog boxes, and scroll
bars with mouse support already built-in, the company said.

Gene Wang, vice president and general manager of Borland's
Languages Business Unit said, "Turbo C++ with Turbo Vision
gives DOS programmers a productivity boost in writing
professional-looking programs. We expect that this product will
encourage programmers using the C language to start using the
more advanced object-oriented C++."

The product includes two compilers in one -- an ANSI C compiler
conforming to the standards of the American National Standards
Institute and a C++ compiler conforming to the AT&T C++ 2.0
specifications, Borland said.

Borland says the Turbo C++ & Turbo Vision provide a solid,
robust architecture on which DOS applications can be built, as
well as accelerate the development of applications with a
professional appearance. Streamable objects, or objects that
can be made "persistent" by reading them from and writing them
to files, is also supported, Borland said.

An integrated development environment called the Programmer's
Platform, is also provided so programmers can compile, debug,
and run C and C++ applications, Borland said. The Programmer's
Platform is capable of overlapping windows, mouse support,
help, an editor, and a debugger, the company said.

The help is context-sensitive with hypertext and copy-and-paste
examples for every runtime library function, Borland said.

Further, a visual MAKE utility, called the "smart project
manager" helps reduce the complexity and gives the programmer
access to an application's code.

VROOM, Borland's overlay manager is included, the company said.
VROOM allows developers to build applications that are larger
than what would normally run in 640 kilobytes of memory with
the use of overlays, Borland said.

Borland develops software for developers and applications
software. Other software titles from the company include Turbo
Pascal and Paradox. Borland is in the process of purchasing
Ashton-Tate, also a software development company best known for
its dBASE business software. The transaction is projected for
completion before the end of this year.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108023/Press Contact: Dick O'Donnell,
Borland, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 NEW FOR PCS: Tool To Create/Customize Windows Apps 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00002)

NEW FOR PCS: Tool To Create/Customize Windows Apps 08/23/91
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Borland
International has announced a new developer's tool, the
Resource Workshop, for creating user interfaces in Microsoft
Windows, or customizing existing applications.

Borland describes the product as a design tool for visually
creating or customizing Windows resources such as icons,
dialogs, fonts and bitmap graphics without writing code.

The Resource Workshop was designed for the rapid creation of
user interfaces so the programmer can concentrate more on the
functionality of the software, Borland said.

The product retails for $49.95 and comes with a set of 64
icons, the company said.

Borland develops tools for software application development
including Borland C++, Turbo C++, Turbo Pascal for Windows, and
Object Vision. Although the Resource Workshop could conceivably
be used to develop a stand alone application, the focus of the
product is to develop a front-end, a user interface in Windows
for an existing or new application, the company said.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108023/Press Contact: Dick O'Donnell,
Borland, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 ORACLE TO SUPPLY DALLAS/FORT WORTH AIRPORT 08/23/91

08/23/91

(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00003)

ORACLE TO SUPPLY DALLAS/FORT WORTH AIRPORT 08/23/91
REDWOOD SHORES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Oracle
announced it was awarded a $3 million contract for the software
to run operations at the Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW)
Airport.

Oracle says it is to provide DFW with a financial management
system based on Oracle's Relational Database Management System
(RDBMS). The financial management system will also involve use
of the company's computer-aided systems engineering (CASE)
products, application development tools, office automation, and
financial application software, Oracle said.

Two MIServer Unix-based computers are the hardware on which
the Oracle software will run and are being supplied by Pyramid
Technology Corporation, Oracle said.

Oracle says the significance of its gaining the contract is the
flexibility and interoperability required in more than 2,000
specifications elaborated in the contract. A spokesperson for
Oracle said DFW had a heterogeneous computing environment and
was looking for software that fit what was already there, was
flexible, and could be expanded.

Mike Fields, president of Oracle said, "This contract is
further evidence of Oracle's leadership in the open systems
movement. ...Oracle's real benefit is what open systems is all
about - investment protection."

Oracle has a line of software products that are available on
PCs, minicomputers and mainframes. The company says it is the
first and only relational database to run on massively
parallel supercomputers.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108022/Press Contact: Steve Lai, Oracle,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 NEW FOR PCS: Micron UltraVRAM Super CGA Card 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00004)

NEW FOR PCS: Micron UltraVRAM Super CGA Card 08/23/91
BOISE, IDAHO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Micron Technology, Inc has
introduced its UltraVRAM Super VGA 8-bit graphics card for IBM
PC/AT and compatibles.

The new card uses 1 megabyte (MB) of high speed 80 nanosecond
(ns) VRAM and a Chips and Technologies 82C453 VGA controller.

The UltraVRAM SuperVGA supports 256 colors in resolutions
including 640 by 480, 800 by 600 and 1024 by 768. It also supports
interlaced and non-interlaced modes at 1024 by 768 pixels (picture
elements). Micron says the card is VESA compliant and FCC Class
B and VDE Class B approved, as well as feature ergonomic
vertical refresh rates to eliminate screen flicker.

Micron says this card is the first in a new family of PC
enhancement products, which it calls Micron Media. The new
product family will include hardware targeted toward multimedia
in the graphics, video, audio, and acceleration areas, according
to a statement by the company.

Included with each card is a variety of application specific
device drivers, including Windows 3.0, OS/2 PM (Presentation
Manager) and AutoCAD. Also included is utility software for
installation, mode-switching, and diagnostics.

UltraVRAM comes with a five-year warranty for registered owners.
Support is provided by Micron, which provides technical support in the
US through its toll-free hot line 800-642-7661.

UltraVRAM has a suggested list price of $499 and is available
from a Micron dealer or various mail order houses. Micron will
provide the name of the nearest dealer if you call 208-368-3900.

This week Micron got some more good news when the US District
Court in Boise granted its motion to set aside a jury-awarded
$3.2 million. In June of this year a jury awarded that amount
to STB Inc., of Dallas. STB had claimed a breach of contract by
Micron for failure to deliver certain semiconductor products for
STB to use in its printed circuit boards.

(Jim Mallory/910822/Press contact: Julie Nash, Micron,
208-368-4400, FAX [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 NEW FOR MACINTOSH: Micron Tech SE/30 Color Card 08/23/91

08/23/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00005)

NEW FOR MACINTOSH: Micron Tech SE/30 Color Card 08/23/91
BOISE, IDAHO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Micron Technology has
announced the Xceed Color 30 video card with an optional Xceed
Gray-Scale 30 8-bit internal gray-scale adapter.

The Color 30 is an external color or gray-scale video card for
the Macintosh SE/30. The optional adapter provides 1-, 2-, 4-, or
8-bits per pixel (picture element) gray-scale on the SE/30's
internal monitor when an external monitor is not attached.

Color 30 is compatible with several 13 and 14-inch monitors,
including the Apple RGB, and the Apple 15-inch portrait monitor
at a resolution of 640 by 480 or 640 by 870. The card installs in the
Mac SE/30-type Processor Direct slot.

Micron says the Color 30 allows up to 256 simultaneous colors
from a palette of more than 16 million colors. Micron provides
a gamma color correction utility and MacroPaint 8/24-bit color
paint program with each card.

Also included is the Virtual Video utility software which
provides desktop expansion beyond the standard 640 by 480
pixels. Micron says this feature will be especially valuable
for CAD applications, as well as programs with large graphic
files. The utility allows access to and use of a larger display
area than the monitor is physically capable of providing by
itself.

Like other Micron products, Xceed cards come with a five-year
warranty, and are supported by Micron's customer support
department, which maintains a toll free hot line for support
(800-642-7661).

The suggested list price for the Xceed Color 30 is $399, and the
gray-scale adapter is $89.

(Jim Mallory/910823/Press contact: Julie Nash, Micron,
208-368-4400, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 MS WORD FOREIGN LANGUAGE VERSIONS DOING WELL 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00006)

MS WORD FOREIGN LANGUAGE VERSIONS DOING WELL 08/23/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation has announced that several international
organizations have standardized on Microsoft Word, a popular
word processing program available in both Windows and
non-Windows (DOS) versions.

Companies selecting Word as their standard include the Dutch
Ministry of Education, accounting firm Deloitte & Touche, French
auto manufacturer Renault, the French Ministry of Education,
auto maker Peugot, the Belgian Army, and Mercedes Benz, according
to Microsoft.

The company says Word is the top-selling word processing program
in France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, Australia and
Brazil. Microsoft estimates that Word and Word for Windows
represent 65 percent of the word processing sales revenues for
the PC, as well as 80 percent of sales revenues for Macintosh
word processing programs.

Chris Peters, GM of the Word Business Unit at Microsoft says
Word's success is a result of three factors. Says Peters,
"First, the international demand for the Windows environment is
phenomenal - it is far and away the fastest growing platform.
Second, we had a top quality Windows word processor in these
markets early on. Third, Microsoft was one of the first
companies to provide localized products internationally."

The first DOS version of Word was released in 1984, with a
Macintosh edition following in 1985. In all, Microsoft offers
more than 50 localized versions of Word products, and says it
distributes Word in over 120 countries worldwide. It expects to
be distributing Word for DOS in 14 languages, Word for Windows
in 13 languages, Word for the Macintosh in 14 languages and Word
for OS/2 in 11 languages in the next few months.

The National Software Testing Laboratories recently announced
that Word for Windows got the highest scores when compared with
five other word processing programs. NTSL is a subsidiary of
McGraw-Hill, Inc., and was founded in 1984.

(Jim Mallory/910822/Press contact: Sarah Charf, Microsoft,
206-882-8080, Fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 SDRC GETS $1 MILLION LOCKHEED CONTRACT 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00007)

SDRC GETS $1 MILLION LOCKHEED CONTRACT 08/23/91
MILFORD OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Structural Dynamics
Research Corporation (SDRC) has announced that it has received
several orders for SDRC's I-DEAS software, totalling $1 million,
from Lockheed Corporation. SDRC says the software will be
used by Lockheed's Space Systems, Missile Systems, and R&D
division for the design and analysis of satellite and missile
systems.

SDRC says Lockheed Aeronautical Systems Company will also use
the software, in the development of the F-22 Advanced Tactical
Fighter, a major defense weapons system contract awarded to
Lockheed by the Air Force. According to the Air Force the F-22
will be the next generation air superiority fighter.

According to SDRC, I-DEAS addresses the product development
activities of the design engineering organization by providing
integrated systems for solid modeling, finite element modeling
and analysis, computer-aided testing, drafting, and
manufacturing. SDRC says it has over 37,500 I-DEAS licenses
installed at more than 5,400 sites worldwide.

SDRC Chairman Ronald Friedsam said Lockheed's Computer
Integrated Engineering and Manufacturing group within the
Missiles and Space Company selected I-DEAS software as its
standard in 1990. Friedsam is pleased that other divisions of
the company will also use the company's programs.

SDRC employs more than 1,000 people in 45 offices located in 15
countries including the US.

(Jim Mallory/910822/Press contact: Jere Brooks Hunter, SDRC,
513-576-2469)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23  ****TANDY INCOME DROPS DRASTICALLY 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00008)

 ****TANDY INCOME DROPS DRASTICALLY 08/23/91
FORT WORTH, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Tandy Corporation
reported its financial status for the 1991 fiscal year, which ended June 30,
1991, and it wasn't good.

The company says net income was only $206 million, or $2.58 per
share. The previous year showed net income of $290.3 million,
or $3.54 per share.

The company said the per share figure was before a reduction of
14 cents per share for the cumulative effect of a changing in
accounting principle. Earnings also included a charge for
restructuring programs of $9.8 million, or 12 cents per share.

Tandy showed sales and operating revenues for fiscal 1991 as
$4.562 billion, compared to $4.499 billion for the previous
year.

John Roach, Tandy chairman and CEO, said the Persian Gulf war and
ensuing economic recession slowed retail spending in the PC
market. According to Roach, "In response, the company has taken
decisive actions to strengthen its retailing and manufacturing
operations while lowering our operating cost structure."

In June, presumably in anticipation of the financial reports,
Tandy took steps to reduce costs by $50 million. The company
said it would open a new chain of computer superstores, called
Computer City, in at least six markets before the end of 1991.
It also said the Radio Shack Computer Center stores would be
restructured to non-retail sales offices or Radio Shack stores,
with the possibility of closing some computer stores.

 The company said Computer City outlets would sell IBM, Apple,
Compaq and Tandy systems. The first Computer City was scheduled
to open in Los Angeles, but declined to disclose other possible
locations.

(Jim Mallory/910822/Press contact: Ron Trumbla, Tandy,
817-878-4969)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 MOBILE PHONE FEE LOWERED IN JAPAN 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00009)

MOBILE PHONE FEE LOWERED IN JAPAN 08/23/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Japan's domestic telephone
firms IDO and Cellular have applied to lower their mobile phone
charges from the Japanese Posts and Telecommunication Ministry. Both
firms want to reduce their usage fees as much as 17 percent starting
in September. This is to compete with NTT, which also lowered its
phone charges in July. The request is expected to be approved by the
Ministry.

The mobile phone rate cut applies mainly to long distance calls.
The average rate cut for IDO customers amounts to 8 percent. A three
minute IDO call to a location more than 160 kilometers distant
is expected to cost 300 yen ($2.20) -- a 60 yen cut which is also
30 yen cheaper than that of NTT. Also, within a 160km range, the call
duration has been increased for the same amount of money -- the time
will go from the current 7.5 seconds to 8 seconds per 10 yen.

Meanwhile, the average rate cut for Cellular is 10 percent, which is
slightly more expensive than that of IDO. However, it is cheaper
than NTT.

This will be the second rate cut for IDO and the first rate cut
for Cellular since March 1990.

Meanwhile, IDO will start marketing Motorola's latest mobile
phones in October in Japan. These are the models T61, T62, and T63.
The T62 is 140cc and weighs only 200g, which is lighter than
NTT's "Mova." The T series will be manufactured by Motorola,
Mitsubishi, and NEC.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910823)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 IBM JAPAN ACQUIRES COMPUTER LEASE FIRM 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00010)

IBM JAPAN ACQUIRES COMPUTER LEASE FIRM 08/23/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- IBM Japan has purchased a
Tokyo-based computer lease firm -- Computer System
Lease (CSL) -- from Orix, a financial firm. CSL was jointly created by
IBM Japan and Orix.

CSL was capitalized with 3 billion yen ($2.2 million), which was
owned 50.7 percent by IBM Japan and 49.3 percent by Orix. The firm
had sales of 223 billion yen ($1.65 million) as of the April-June
term. A member of the Orix board of directors, Kimura, remains president
of the firm. There are 314 employees, only 8 of whom were originally from
dispatched by Orix. Those 8 people will return to Orix soon.

So far, CSL was dealing only with computer hardware, but IBM
Japan is planning to have it deal with software too.

Orix says it has gained know-how in the computer leasing
business from IBM Japan. However, the sale of CSL means Orix
is backing away from the computer leasing business, says an industry
watcher.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910823/Press Contact: IBM Japan, +81-3-3586-
1111)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 DOS SOFTWARE NOW AVAILABLE UNDER SCO UNIX 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00011)

DOS SOFTWARE NOW AVAILABLE UNDER SCO UNIX 08/23/91
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Locus
Computing Corporation and the Santa Cruz Operation (SCO)
announced the SCO plans to offer Locus' Merge so SCO Unix
System V users can run IBM personal computer (PC) disk
operating system (DOS) software.

Merge from Locus allows users of Unix systems based on the
Intel 80x86 processor family to run standard DOS applications
in the Unix environment, said Locus. Several other Unix
platform vendors have incorporated Merge as well including IBM
AIX on the PS/2, Unisys, Bull and Prime, Locus said. Merge is
already part of the SCO's Open Desktop systems and is known
there as ODT-DOS.

Bernard Hulme, general manager of SCO's Complementary Products
Business Unit said, "In following SCO's Open Systems software
strategy, we're pleased to offer Merge for SCO Unix. Merge
offers an excellent facility in providing DOS under Unix
solution."

Locus says it is the largest independent developer of Unix-
based connectivity and distributed computing software. SCO is a
privately held company and it says it develops software for
industry-standard hardware platforms, including a range of Unix
System software and software development products.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108022/Press Contact: Jim Novy, Locus, Tel:
213/337-5043, Fax: [phone], Zee Zaballos, Santa Cruz
Operation, Tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 FCC MOVES TO CUT INTERNATIONAL TOLL CHARGES 08/23/91

08/23/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00012)

FCC MOVES TO CUT INTERNATIONAL TOLL CHARGES 08/23/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- The Federal
Communications Commission will reject telephone tolls by foreign
agencies if it can't negotiate lower fees by 1993. Chairman
Alfred Sikes also said in a meeting with U.S. long distance
executives the issue could trigger bilateral trade negotiations.

International phone tolls has been one of chairman Sikes' chief
bugaboos since he took office. The agency formally opened its
campaign against them in July, 1990, and charges that U.S. firms
still pay $1 billion per year in excessive fees. Many phone
services in Europe and elsewhere are government-owned monopolies,
and many of them use profits from their phone operations to
subsidize things like mail service, or simply to line government
coffers. Sikes' threat could, if put into practice, cut off phone
service to some countries, in effect rejecting domestic phone
companies' tariffs for placing the calls. But he thinks the
pressure will force renegotiations and lower rates, claiming
credit for lower rates already in place in some countries. But
critics charge the lower rates were not the result of his
pressure, but of domestic politics which either privatized the
phone systems, split them from the mail services, or at least saw
a cut in rates as a way to stimulate business calling.

In other action, the FCC gave conditional approval to an
application by Alpha Lyracom, doing business as Pan American
Satellite, to put up the PAS-4 satellite over the Pacific Basin.
The new satellite, to go up in June, 1994, would serve the U.S.
West Coast and locations as far west as Thailand and Singapore.
The approval is conditional on Pan American Satellite getting
financing and of getting approval from the Intelsat, the western
satellite consortium with 119 member nations. Intelsat, in turn,
says approval is based on the new satellite "not inflicting
economic harm on current satellites and not interfering
technically with their operations." Pan American currently
operates one satellite over the Atlantic, specializing in service
to Latin America, and has conditional approval to launch a
second.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: FCC Press Office, 202-
632-5050)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 MILLICOM TO SELL INTEREST IN HK CELLULAR COMPANY 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00013)

MILLICOM TO SELL INTEREST IN HK CELLULAR COMPANY 08/23/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Millicom
continued its bold gambit of selling profitable overseas
operations to gain cash for investment in U.S. PCN operations.

This time, its Millicom International Cellular division signed a
letter of intent to sell its 50 percent interest in Pacific Link
Communications Limited, the holder of a cellular telephone
license in Hong Kong. The sale will raise $150 million. It will
close in October, and Chairman Shelby Bryan calls the price "fair
market value." Earlier, the company sold its interest in a UK PCN
license to Hutchinson Whampoa of Hong Kong.

The UK license offered microwave cellular phone service on a set
frequency, cleared of other traffic. Millicom has applied to the
FCC for a "pioneer preference" which would let it offer so-called
microwave cellular, or PCN, service using a spread-spectrum
technique perfected by John Stroebele and his SCS Mobilecom
company. FCC Chairman Alfred Sikes has expressed approval for
awarding such preferences to companies which take big risks in
the pursuit of new technologies.

Millicom still holds cellular licenses in Pakistan, the
Philippines, and Sri Lanka; North, Central and South America:
Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Guatemala Mexico and Paraguay;
Africa: Ghana and Mauritius; and Europe: Lithuania, Moscow and
Sweden. The last is a GSM digital cellular license.

Separately, the company named John Egidio president of Metagram
America, its U.S. paging division. Egidio was formerly president
of Metromedia Paging Services, the largest paging company in the
U.S. with over 800,000 subscribers. Metagram's claim to fame is
that it combines a regular alphanumeric pager with an answering
service.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Millicom, J. Shelby
Bryan, 212/355-3440)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 TELESPHERE TO RESTRUCTURE, OR BE BROKEN UP 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00014)

TELESPHERE TO RESTRUCTURE, OR BE BROKEN UP 08/23/91
ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Telesphere,
which is fighting for its life after serious losses, announced a
restructuring plan and named director Alan Rossi its new
president. Soon after, a group of creditors sought to have it
broken up under Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Law.

The calls for talks with International Telecharge to acquire its
alternative operator business, in which it becomes the default
long distance and operator service outfit on pay phones or other
business-owned public phones in exchange for a split of the
profits. International Telecharge said on July 24 that it has
broken off merger talks with Telesphere. Telesphere also wants to
keep its 1-plus direct long distance business, killing a proposed
deal to sell that off to MCI. And it says it's negotiating with
its information providers unit to settle outstanding obligations
and carry out a new 900 services program.

In a press release, chairman of the executive committee, Jones
Yorke, was realistic. "This plan involves several parts, and there
is no assurance that all parts of the plan, as contemplated, can
be successfully concluded." Additional capital is needed, he
admitted, to keep the company in business.

A group of information providers whose 900 programs are carried
on the company's network filed the Chapter 7 petition in the
Northern District of Illinois. Telesphere immediately moved to
dismiss it. President Alan Rossi said in a press release that the
company is trying to negotiate its obligations with the group,
but added, "In our view the current circumstances with the
information providers reflect an overall industry problem with
the collection of 900 charges from end users."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/ Press Contact: Katherine Clifford,
Telesphere, 301-468-0307)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 SIEMENS SETS UP IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00015)

SIEMENS SETS UP IN CZECHOSLOVAKIA 08/23/91
MUNICH, GERMANY, 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- In the middle of the
Soviet coup, Siemens showed confidence in the future of Eastern
Europe by announcing a joint venture with Tesla Karlin,
Czechoslovakia's largest telecommunications firm.

The two companies will invest M50 million in a new venture, Tescom,
which will manufacture and sell telecommunication products starting
this autumn, Reuters reported. The new firm will employ 250
people and expects sales of M30 million in its first year --
about $20 million. It will make connection units for digital
switching systems.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 AT&T ADJUSTS PRICES TO BENEFIT REGULAR CUSTOMERS 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00016)

AT&T ADJUSTS PRICES TO BENEFIT REGULAR CUSTOMERS 08/23/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Partly to meet
competition from MCI's popular "Friends and Family" calling
circle, AT&T raised its prices for directory assistance and
operator-assisted calls in order to lower prices on its Reach Out
America plans.

The evening discount on AT&T Reach Out America Evening Plan was
increased from 15 to 20 percent, and the Reach Out Half-
Hour Plan evening discount was increased from 10 to 20 percent.
The discounts are available between 5 and 10 PM Sunday through
Friday. Also, AT&T proposed the Reach Out America Card Discount
Option apply exclusively to calls made with the new AT&T Calling
Card. That means people could get the discounts while using their
calling cards away from home.

Meanwhile, directory assistance charges go up to 65 cents from
60, and charges for operator-assisted calls go up from $1.75 to
$1.88.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: AT&T, Ray Child,
908/221-3571)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 MCI EXTENDS FRIENDS AND FAMILY TOLL-FREE DISCOUNTS 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00017)

MCI EXTENDS FRIENDS AND FAMILY TOLL-FREE DISCOUNTS 08/23/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- MCI launched a
new toll-free service called Friends & Family 800. This
provides a toll-free line on which people can receive calls from
their calling circles at 20 cents per-minute, regardless of
distance.

Consumers call 800-395-4665 to get a toll-free number
and a 4-digit security code. Customers in their calling circle
can call the same number to get the number, which can be used
from pay phones as well as regular telephones. As a special
introductory offer, MCI will waive the $5 monthly fee and provide
30 minutes of free long distance usage for each of the first
three months to those who sign up by Nov. 30, 1991. Despite
criticism from some consumer groups, Friends and Family has
proven enormously popular, and has been extended, after a
fashion, to MCI Mail.

Separately, MCI said it will offer 38 percent discounts off its
regular rates on Labor Day, September 2.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Debra Shriver, MCI,
703-415-6904)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 SPRINT EXPANDS INTERNATIONAL SERVICES 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00018)

SPRINT EXPANDS INTERNATIONAL SERVICES 08/23/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Sprint made a
number of announcements designed to extend the reach of its
international services.

First, the company announced eight new nodes for its SprintNet data
network, formerly known as Telenet, extending it to a total of
108 countries. The new centers are in Australia, Belgium, Guam,
Hong Kong, Italy and Norway. In addition, the company signed
direct SprintNet X.75 contracts with local packet networks in
Kenya and China, enabling SprintNet users to exchange data
communications with those countries. In Kenya, the link is with
KENPAC, operated by the Kenya Post & Telecommunications
Corporation.

In Australia, SprintNet will link with the data network of OTC,
Australia's international telecom monopoly, which is in the
process of merging with Telecomm, the nation's local phone
network. A new Sydney-based subsidiary, Sprint International Pty
Ltd., will provide Australian business customers with local
service and support for SprintNet services. It will link via OTC
to centers in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Adelaide, Perth and
Brisbane, and New Zealand access centers in Auckland and
Wellington.

Finally, Sprint said it will offer automated Japanese-language
direct dial assistance for over 20 million holders of JCB
International credit cards in Japan. This lets Japanese travelers
to the United States use their JCB credit cards to directly dial
long distance numbers in the United States, at a 50 percent
discount over operator-assisted rates. The service uses a special
toll-free number linked to a Japanese-language automated system
or, through it, to a Japanese-speaking operator.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Sprint, Janis Langley,
202-828-7427 )
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 PACIFIC TELESIS BACKS MOTOROLA PCN RESULTS 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00019)

PACIFIC TELESIS BACKS MOTOROLA PCN RESULTS 08/23/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Pacific
Telesis reported to the FCC on its current trial of microwave
cellular phone service, known as PCN, and asked for permission
to conduct more tests.

Most significantly, the company agreed with Motorola that spread-
spectrum service would "likely cause significant interference with
existing microwave users in the band." The company said the
interference increases as a user ascends a high-rise building.
The company did say, however, that sharing might be possible in a
narrowband service, using just 5 megahertz of bandwidth, perhaps
located in the underused "private" microwave band at 1,850-1,990
megahertz.

The findings are significant, because Millicom of New York claims
it has a technology which will allow for spread-spectrum PCN
service across a wide frequency spectrum, without interference.
It has asked for a "pioneer preference" to implement the
technology, but existing telephony players are threatened by
this.

Separately, the company announced a new discount plan for
big customers, in an attempt to keep them from using so-called
"bypass" companies. The new plan offers a 35 percent discount to
customers with bills of over $3,000 per month, lower discounts
for smaller bills, at a monthly fee of $250 per month.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Pacific Telesis, Lou
Saviano, 415-394-3643)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 SABRE TRAVEL AGENTS TO GET "PC WORKFLOW" APP 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00020)

SABRE TRAVEL AGENTS TO GET "PC WORKFLOW" APP 08/23/91
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Filenet
Corporation has announced American Airline's Sabre Travel
Information Network (STIN) division purchased its Microsoft
Windows IBM personal computer (PC) application, PC WorkFlo, to
automate contract processing with travel agents using
American's Sabre reservation system.

Filenet said this is the second application it has installed in
the Fort Worth, Texas-based airline. The first application is a
document imaging system that supports American's AAdvantage
frequent flyer program, Filenet said. The document imaging
system won was named the top application of 1990 by BIS
Strategic Decisions, a market research firm, Filenet said.

PC WorkFlo has been installed in the financial division of
STIN, and is known there as VISION (Visually Integrated Optical
Network), Filenet said. The imaging application is to reduce
operating costs by controlling paperwork and to help American
manage anticipated expansion in customer contracts and
personnel, said Calvin Evanoff, managing director of STIN
finance.

Evanoff said, "The system will enable us to conserve precious
space now dedicated to document storage, automate the flow of
work and give our customers immediate feedback. This kind of
responsiveness is crucial to our ability to grow our business
and serve our travel agent partners."

Robert Castle, Filenet senior vice president, said, "As a
service business, the travel industry depends on intangibles
like quick response times and having absolutely accurate
information at their fingertips. American is a leader in using
WorkFlo to orchestrate document flow and better manage its
business, making imaging a strategic tool to gain and retain
customer loyalty."

(Linda Rohrbough/199108022/Press Contact: Don Schnitter,
FileNet, Tel: [phone], Karen Cook, American Airlines,
Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 AUTODESK ADDS 3D RASTER SOFTWARE FROM SCORPION 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00021)

AUTODESK ADDS 3D RASTER SOFTWARE FROM SCORPION 08/23/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Scorpion
Technologies announced it has signed an agreement so Autodesk
can become a registered developer of Scorpion's computer
software making Scorpion's raster-to-vector (SRV) conversion
software is available to the Autodesk computer aided design
(CAD) environment.

Scorpion's president Terry Marsh said the raster-to-vector
software automates the task of converting scanned images to
compressed, object-oriented vector images. Marsh said
conversion is desirable in many public as well as private
situations. Fire fighting was one example. Marsh said currently
fire fighters go to the fire, then wait for the fire chief to
show up with the building's blueprints. However, if the
blueprints could be scanned, then converted to a vector format,
the blueprint could be displayed on a portable terminal in the
firetruck, like the terminals police have in their vehicles.

Scorpion also makes the conversion between a two dimensional
vector image to a three dimensional image. Marsh placed
emphasis on the raster-to-vector software as the meat of the
operation and pointed to Intergraph, which also has a conversion
package but decided to go with Scorpion's software instead.

In reference to the Autodesk agreement Marsh said, "This
development is in addition to our recently announced agreements
with Sun Microsystems, Intergraph Corporation and Image Systems
Technology Inc., that will add the leading raster/CAD
environments to our SRV product line."

"Scorpion's goal has been to provide SRV as a tool in the user
environment and we have now succeeded in creating an interface
to be used between the Scorpion SRV system and the AutoCAD,
MicroSystem and Sun Unix operating system environments."

The Scorpion software starts on the retail level on the IBM
personal computer at $2000, jumps to $15,000 386 PC version,
and moves to $25,000 for the workstation version. Marsh said a
map from the military's Cheyenne Mountain facility took 5 to 6
weeks to hand convert to vector format, 8.5 hours on an IBM PC
XT, 1 hour and 20 minutes on a 386, and 12 minutes on a Sun
SPARC workstation.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108023/Press Contact: Paul Brickman, Martin
E. Janis & Co., Tel: [phone],)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 XEROX FORMS NEW SOFTWARE UNIT IN SILICON VALLEY 08/23/91

08/23/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00022)

XEROX FORMS NEW SOFTWARE UNIT IN SILICON VALLEY 08/23/91
STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Xerox
Corp. has combined its Xerox Systems Software and Xerox
Integrated Systems Marketing units into a single organization
called XSoft. The new business unit will have its headquarters in
Sunnyvale, California.

According to Xerox, the new unit was formed to expedite
development of software products designed to create and manage
documents, thereby making workgroup processes more effective.

Dennis Andrews, 44, former head of Xerox Systems Software,
has been named XSoft's president. Prior to joining Xerox in 1989,
he was vice president of International Business Machines Corp.'s
advanced workshop division.

Andrews notes that in the last few years Xerox brought proprietary
Xerox software onto industry-standard platforms by delivering its
document management products on Unix and PCs.

"Now, we are organizing to enable us to quickly respond to
today's open systems market requirements and the crucial
time-to-market factor," said Andrews.

Direct sales of XSoft products and services will be handled by
Xerox field operating units in the United States, Canada, Europe
and the Pacific Rim.

"In addition,'' Andrews said, ''we will expand alternative
distribution channels and strategic partnership opportunities.
As a software vendor, we will develop specific marketing and
distribution strategies for each of our products.''

Central to XSoft product offerings are the Xerox GlobalView-based
office applications that run on PCs, Unix workstations from Sun
Microsystems, marketed by Xerox as the Xerox 6500 series, and
Xerox 6085 workstations.

Xerox maintains that the new XSoft unit will work closely with the
Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) to continue the
development of products that improve the way information is
structured, communicated, and distributed among office workers.

It is intended for XSoft's primary location in Sunnyvale to move this
fall into new facilities in Palo Alto, Calif., on a common "campus" with
PARC.

Newsbytes reported in June of this year that, in a move designed to
safeguard Xerox's installed base of VMX equipment users, VMX Inc.,
of San Jose, Calif., another Silicon Valley location, had agreed
acquire the voice processing business of Xerox. At that time, a
source close to the company said that Xerox had stopped selling
VMX systems, which left VMX with no choice but to pick up the slack
and support its installed base.

(Ian Stokell/19910823/Press Contact: Barbara Burke, Xerox Corp.,
213-333-3613)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 RACAL-MILGO RELEASES FIRST V.32BIS MODEM IN U.K. 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00023)

RACAL-MILGO RELEASES FIRST V.32BIS MODEM IN U.K. 08/23/91
HOOK, HAMPSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Racal-Milgo has
unveiled the Maxam VII+, the company's first V.32Bis modem. The
UKP 999 modem is available immediately in both PC card and
desktop stand-alone versions.

V.32Bis is the latest CCITT (the international telecommunications
regulatory body) standard for dial-up modems. An extension of the
V.32 standard, the system allows 14,400 data bits to be encoded
onto a modem carrier that normally carries 9,600 bits per second
(bps). The V.32Bis standard, therefore, can support data
transmissions of up to 14,400 bps.

The Maxam VII+ also features the V.42bis error-correction and
data compression. Allied with the V.32Bis standard, the modem is
capable of data transmission speeds of up to 35,000 bps, Racal
claims.

Standard features on the modem include dial-back and data
encryption facilities for security. The modems are produced at
Racal-Milgo's plant in Warrington, Cheshire, England.

(Steve Gold/19910822/Press & Public Contact: Racal-Milgo - Tel:
0256-763911)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 NCR CREATES NEW BUSINESS UNITS, APPOINTS EXECUTIVES 08/23/91

08/23/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00024)

NCR CREATES NEW BUSINESS UNITS, APPOINTS EXECUTIVES 08/23/91
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- As the reorganization
resulting from its sale to AT&T goes on, NCR has created two new
business units and named three former AT&T executives as assistant
vice-presidents.

NCR created a new high performance and fault tolerant systems unit
as part of its midrange computer products division. It also set up
a multimedia business unit within the workstation products division
of its general purpose products group. Both will be based in
Naperville, Illinois.

NCR appointed James E. Clark assistant vice-president and general
manager of the high performance and fault tolerant systems unit.
Clark was formerly vice-president, high performance and fault
tolerant systems at AT&T Computer Systems.

In this case a piece of the former AT&T Computer Systems is being
brought more or less intact into NCR, said NCR spokesman Mark
Feighery. Clark will continue to be responsible for the 3B2, System
7000, StarServer, and StarServer FT (fault tolerant) products.
These are former AT&T products which NCR has said it will continue
to produce.

Howard Mitchell has been appointed assistant vice-president, high
performance servers, reporting to Clark. He was director of product
management and R&D for the High Performance and System 7000 product
lines and the StarServer FT at AT&T Computer Systems.

Neil Whittington has been named assistant vice-president of the new
multimedia business unit. Whittington was director of server
systems at AT&T Computer Systems. He will report to Alok Mohan,
vice-president of NCR's workstation products division.

The new business unit is to design workstations meant for desktop
video and high performance graphics work. NCR said it will
complement the existing workstation products division development
organizations. The products it designs will be built at the
division's Clemson, South Carolina, and Augsburg, Germany, plants.

"AT&T had some capability in that area and it's being folded into
an existing NCR organization," Feighery said.

(Grant Buckler/19910823/Press Contact: Mark Feighery, NCR,
513-445-2033)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23  ****INTEL TO PAY $500,000 FINE 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00025)

 ****INTEL TO PAY $500,000 FINE 08/23/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- In a settlement
with the Justice Department over what has been characterized as a
minor infraction of the rules governing how companies do business
with the federal government, Intel has paid about $530,000 to
settle charges that the microprocessor giant misled government
purchasers over a several-year period.

Intel itself made the problems known to the government when it
reported back in 1988 that it believed one of its divisions had
been supplying false sales data in claims for exemptions from
certain military contract regulations.

Intel's Howard High told Newsbytes that "during an internal audit
Intel discovered possibly inconsistent procedures" and contacted
the government under the voluntary disclosure program.

"We told the department that 'We think we may not be following
the regulations correctly,' submitted our report, and the
government prepared its own report."

Together Intel and the government auditors determined that there
were a few instances in which Intel was not following the complex
procedures precisely and a payment was negotiated to settle the
problem. Out of the 43 claims Intel submitted, 11 contained
false certifications, the government said.

Mr. High emphasized that Intel itself first located the problem
and, "consistent with our internal rules of conduct," immediately
reported the possible trouble to the government.

Under the settlement, payment is accepted as complete
compensation and the finding is closed. Intel is under no bidding
or other restrictions and is continuing to do business with the
government on a completely normal basis.

The news is now coming out because the Justice Department
publicizes settlements after payments are made.

Intel describes itself as an international manufacturer of
components, modules and systems for computers. The company as a
member of the Supercomputer Consortium helped design, supplied
components for and helped build the world's fastest computer,
the Touchstone Delta supercomputer housed at Cal Tech in
Pasadena. The company also supplies the central processing unit
(CPU) for most IBM compatible computers.

(John McCormick & Linda Rohrbough/19910823/Press Contact:
Howard High, Intel, 408-765-8080; Doug Black, Miller
Communications, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Mike
Bernhardt, Intel, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00026)

ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/23/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Roundup is a brief
look at some computer stories carried in other publications
received here this past week.

The August 19 InformationWeek says Credit Bureau Technology is a
"Bad Risk."

Communications Week dated August 19 looks at 3Com's new FDDI or
Fiber Distributed Data Interface Standard product line plans.

September's Workstation News headlines "Designing in Cyberspace,"
a look at 3D design techniques.

Computer Language for September looks at "Building Usable
Interfaces" and Turbo Vision for C++.

Computer Reseller News for August 19 features a look at Apple's
promotional plans for the fourth quarter and how Microsoft is
trying to capture OS/2 developers.

(John McCormick/19910823/)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 INTEL OFFERS OFF-THE-SHELF PARALLEL SUPERCOMPUTERS 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00027)

INTEL OFFERS OFF-THE-SHELF PARALLEL SUPERCOMPUTERS 08/23/91
BEAVORTON, OREGON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- Intel
Supercomputers has announced it has begun commercial shipments
of the iWarp supercomputers, parallel computers for advanced
real-time supercomputing, as opposed to scientific research.

Les Furnanz, iWarp program manager for Intel, said until now,
those needing real-time supercomputing have had to special
order custom-built, specially-designed computers. "With
shrinking defense budgets and increase emphasis on NDI (non-
development items), iWarp systems are unique as "off-the-shelf"
solutions for these real-time supercomputing requirements,"
Furnanz said.

Intel said these early customers for the iWarp systems seem to
agree with Furnanz and are already using the systems for real-
time applications.

One such customer, GTE, has announced it is doing advanced
sonar and radar applications on an iWarp parallel computer. GTE
said the sonar and radar detection methods, known as adaptive
beamforming and adaptive beam interpolations, carried huge
computational loads - billions of floating operations per
second - that stood as obstacles to the next generation radar
and sonar systems.

GTE said Dr. James Wheeler, a scientist at GTE, has been able
to demonstrate the iWarp system can handle the complexity
involved in real-time applications, like processing sound
sources hidden in conventional processing methods. One example
given was a submarine, whose sound energy might have been
hidden by the sound energy of the more noisy ships on the
surface of the water. It could be detected using the iWarp
computer to process the signals.

Other companies have announced software products aimed at the
iWarp supercomputer market. Parasoft announced it is moving its
software package, Express, a programming environment, to the
iWarp supercomputer. Network Systems says it has started
development on a high performance parallel interface (HIPPI) to
the Intel iWarp parallel computer with the goal of connecting
the iWarp to IBM, Cray, and all other computing resources that
follow standard data encapsulation protocols.

Ken Drewlo, HIPPI program manager for Network Systems said,
"The HIPPI link to iWarp moves us one step closer to our goal
of allowing all major supercomputers in the world to talk
together."

Intel said it has already received orders for 30 iWarp systems
to date. These systems retail for $39,950 at the low end to
$494,950 at the high end, Intel said. Intel said the systems
support Fortran, C and Unix programming tools.

Intel said a one-day iWarp forum is planned for September 11 of
this year at the Hyatt Crystal City in Arlington, Virginia and
the focus is on real-time supercomputing. Those wishing more
information may contact Mark Urrutia at Intel at telephone
[phone] or write to the Intel iWarp Program, MS
CO4-O5, 5200 N.E. Elam Young Parkway, Hillsboro, Oregon 97124.
A $30 registration fee is required, Intel said.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108023/Press Contact: Mike Bernhardt,
Intel, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Doug Black, Miller
Communications, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 DETAILS OF X/OPEN'S WORLD CONGRESS XTRA '91 FOR NOV 08/23/91

08/23/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(SFO)(00028)

DETAILS OF X/OPEN'S WORLD CONGRESS XTRA '91 FOR NOV 08/23/91
MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- X/Open's
three-day World Congress, Xtra '91will be held November 13-15 in
Reston, Va.

The congress is set to begin with a keynote speech by United
States Department of Defense Director of Information Paul
Strassmann who will discuss the economic forces driving open
standards.

The event will also feature a presentation of a detailed analysis
of a four-continent user study into open systems requirements
conducted earlier this year by Toronto-based consulting firm
DMR Group Inc.

X/Open maintains that the congress has been structured to provide
a forum for in-depth discussions of user priorities in open systems.

A second keynote will be given by A. Frederick Fath, director
of Integration Technologies for Boeing Computer Services.

According to X/Open, the planned workshops are designed to
brief users on progress in terms of open systems technology,
standardization and products, and at the same time discuss and
detail the nature and extent of user demands. Topics planned
include "Mainframe Data Access in a Hybrid Environment," and
"The User Interface Issue."

The registration fee for the event is set at $695 and includes the
results of the World Survey on Open Systems, the Congress
Briefing Pack and attendance at all sessions.

More details are available from any X/Open office or by calling the
Xtra Congress hotline, 416-594-2035.

Only this month, Newsbytes reported that X/Open's board of directors
had formally approved a realignment of the company's structure, in
an attempt to more closely involve computer users and software
developers. At the same time the board also elected ICL's Andy
Roberts to replace outgoing chairman Jim Bell of Hewlett-Packard,
and elected Jerry Petersen of Unisys vice-chairman.

Newsbytes reported in June that Philips, the Dutch electronics
company, had used X/Open's Fast Track procedure to adapt
Philips' CD-ROM technology to open systems.

Fast Track is a program established by X/Open that lets outside
companies or organizations develop specifications for submission
to X/Open for possible adoption into X/Open's CAE.

X/Open, which was founded in 1984, is a worldwide, independent,
open systems, non-profit organization dedicated to developing an
open, multi-vendor CAE based on de facto and international
standards.

X/Open currently has 21 member companies including Amdahl,
AT&T, Bull, Digital Equipment Corp., Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard,
Hitachi, IBM, ICL, NEC, NCR Corp., Nokia Data, Oki Electric, Olivetti,
Open Software Foundation, Philips, Prime Computer Inc., Siemens
Nixdorf (SNI), Sun Microsystems, Unisys, and Unix International.

(Ian Stokell/19910823/Press Contact: Jeff Hansen, X/Open,
415-323-7992)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 BILL GATES FOR PRESIDENT? - Editorial by Dana Blankenhorn 08/23/91

08/23/91


(EDITORIAL)(GENERAL)(ATL)(00029)

BILL GATES FOR PRESIDENT? - Editorial by Dana Blankenhorn 08/23/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 23 (NB) -- If he quit right now,
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates has already made his mark on history.

Just 15 years after starting Microsoft as a nerdy teenager, he literally
controls the direction of the multi-billion dollar PC industry. Gates
worries today about a running feud with IBM over OS/2, about Apple's
lawsuit over Microsoft Windows and the Apple Macintosh, and about an
FTC inquiry accusing him of monopolizing PC software through his
control of operating systems.

That's the way he's always been. Bill Gates is always running
scared. That gives his executives strategic direction, and
motivates all his employees. But he also takes the long view,
giving the industry real goals to shoot for -- "Windows
Computing," "Information at your Fingertips." Today, when
Microsoft is under attack, many people who wouldn't know Bill
Gates from swiss chard rush to his defense. They know this
industry has a good thing going. Who'd you rather see holding the
whip hand, anyway -- Bill Gates or IBM's John Akers? 'Nuff said.

Microsoft is already an institution, however. As much as he loves
the hurly-burly of it, you wonder if Bill Gates has anything left
to prove in computing. And you wonder if, at 36, he shouldn't
consider doing something higher.

To his credit, Bill Gates has kept his own counsel on the great
issues of the day. We don't know whether he's a Democrat or
Republican, a liberal or conservative. His business record
indicates his beliefs are a mish-mash. He treats his workers very
well, he's one of the few U.S. executives with a trade surplus --
even against Japan -- and he seems environmentally conscious. On
the other hand, no one knows what he thought about the war with
Iraq, what he thinks about the Civil Rights Act, or how he stands
on tax and spending issues.

Still, it might be fun to speculate. The Democrats are as bad off
today as the Republicans were in 1951. Only a wildly popular,
heroic figure offers them any chance at all in the next election.
The year 1952, of course, produced Dwight D. Eisenhower. He could
have had either party's nod for the asking. He, too, kept his own
counsel -- few knew where he stood on issues until he announced a
stand. His decision to run as a Republican rescued that party
from 20 years of Presidential oblivion, brought the party
professional managers who (on balance) didn't do half-bad, and
changed the U.S. forevermore.

If Bill Gates is a Democrat, he's in a similar position. The
Presidential Democratic party is in deep, deep doo-doo. All its
leaders are, in one way or another, discredited. Cuomo has budget
troubles, Wilder and Robb are feuding, Paul Tsongas (the only
announced candidate) is a Greek from Massachusetts, Jesse Jackson
has never run anything bigger than he is. On the bench are a
bunch of not-ready-for-prime-time players -- Robert Kerrey, Tom
Harkin, Dick Gephardt. Someone recently even suggested (in all
seriousness) Jimmy Carter. Gates could have that nomination with
a few phone calls.

But could he win? The record of businessmen in U.S. presidential
politics is not good. Only two have won nominations in this
century. Both were lawyers. Both were compromise choices. Both --
John W. Davis for the Democrats in 1924, Wendell Wilkie for the
Republicans in 1940 -- lost badly. The businessmen we usually
think of as Presidential timber -- like Lee Iacocca -- are
usually salesmen with no interest in the job. No true business
executive, however, has ever made the effort to become President.
J.P. Morgan preferred to own President Cleveland, Robert Woodruff
of Coca-Cola was happy to be Eisenhower's golf buddy.

Besides, being President is a headache. The pay is pathetic,
compared to running a firm like Microsoft. You can't fire people
the way you can in private life. You have to work with your
enemies in the Congress -- you can't bury them in the market. And
your life becomes an open book.

Still, Bill Gates offers a lot of things America is yearning for.
For one thing, he knows how to meet a payroll. Contrast that with
the 67-year old career politician we have in there now, and
you've got to figure a 37-year old Bill Gates has a fighting
chance. Which is more than we can say about anyone else.

The issues are there for him. The long-term economic balance
sheet of America against the short-term value of quick wars and
quick fixes. The ability of our technology, properly directed, to
make an impact on our problems in education and the environment.
The youth and energy of a mid-30s businessman against the age and
experiences of a World War II veteran. (Gates was too young to
even volunteer for Vietnam.) A computer industry pioneer against
a President who can't even run Windows.

I've run it up the flag pole. Think anyone will salute it?

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910821)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 23 Review of: The System 7 Book 08/23/91

08/23/91

(REVIEW)(APPLE)(SFO)(00030)

Review of: The System 7 Book 08/23/91

From: Ventana Press, P.O.Box 2468, Chapel Hill,
NC 27515 [phone]

Price: $22.95

PUMA Rating: 3.5

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: Naor Wallach 08/23/91

Summary: A book that purports to teach you the ins and outs of
Apple's new operating system. Well done and with plenty of
examples and illustrations. Most people would benefit from
it with the exception of the Macintosh "power users."

======

REVIEW

======

With all of the hype surrounding Apple Computer's release of its
latest System Software, it was inevitable that many book and software
publishers would rush into the market touting a myriad of products
that are either System 7 compatible or that attempt to explain all
of the wonders of the new Apple operating system.

In the book publishing race, the apparent speed winner is Ventana
Press with Craig Danuloff's, "The System 7 Book." Some of you
may be scratching your heads now and mumbling "Danuloff, Danuloff,
where do I know that name from?" Well, Mr. Danuloff writes a column
for MacWorld magazine in which he explains various features of the
Macintosh.

This 390+ page book is an attempt to explain to both current users
of Macintosh and to new users what you can do with the Apple
application known as Finder, and other aspects of the Apple Macintosh
operating system. Since understanding of the new operating system is
bound to grow over time, Ventana Press is offering two free issues
of its System 7 magazine to purchasers of this book.

The book is divided into 11 chapters and an appendix that covers
installation of System 7 in the case that you get a Macintosh that
is not already configured for it. There are also a foreword, glossary,
and index.

The list of chapter headings should give you a clearer idea of the
breadth of this book. They are, in order: System Software Basics,
Finder 7, Managing your Hard Drive, The System Folder, System 7 and
your Software, Working with Multiple Applications, The Edition
Manager and IAC, Fonts in System 7, Introduction to File Sharing,
Working on a Network, and Memory Management. As you can see, most
subjects of interest to a user are covered in one or more chapters
of this book.

The book is written in what has become common practice in the computer
book publishing trade. There are wide margins on all sides of the
page, plenty of figures illustrating the text, and a bright, breezy
writing style that makes the book easy to absorb. If you are an
experienced Macintosh user and have read the articles on what System
7 is bringing, then this book will provide a few hours of somewhat
entertaining reading. If you're a brand new Macintosh user, or have
managed to avoid all of the hoopla in the press recently, then this
book will help you tremendously in quickly coming up to speed on your
new system.

Considering the fact that this book's publication coincided with the
official release of System 7 and that it is not an officially
sanctioned Apple Computer product, the publishers have managed to
keep the typos and other editing errors to a minimum. This is not
to say that there are no errors however. In some cases, text has
been copied and not changed so that a discussion of Files refers
to Folders. In other areas, the figures do not match the text that
is directly below them. There are also a few typos strewn throughout
the book. All in all though, this book is pretty clean.

As to the content, the book is an attempt to explain things that are
only briefly alluded to in the reference documentation that comes
with System 7 or to show some practical usages for those features.
In these goals, the book succeeds. I have seen Apple's documentation
which I received with my copy of System 7 and there are many areas
where Mr. Danuloff explains things more clearly and directly.

Sprinkled through the text are neat tips for things that Apple has
chosen to hide from its users. Apple products have traditionally
has some hidden files that humanized the corporation. Things like
the original Macintosh's case which had all of the engineer's signatures
embedded in the plastic on the inside is a good example. In System 7,
Apple's engineers nostalgically recreated the original Finder's
icon which was a lunar-like mountain landscape. Of course, this
tidbit is not immediately obvious but Mr. Danuloff publishes how
to get at it.

Macintosh enthusiasts are known for their almost religious devotion
to the machine. At times this makes any conversation about the
relative merits and usefulness of different machines in different
tasks a very difficult chore. One would have hoped that Mr. Danuloff
could have toned down the zeal with which he promotes the new
software. And, indeed, he mostly succeeds. There are only a few
instances where Mr. Danuloff's exuberance overcomes the reality
that he is describing.

Being a software engineer myself, I found only one area where I
disagreed with Mr. Danuloff on a technical point. He describes
Apple's implementation as a true multitasking system, though
cooperative in nature. I totally disagree. Cooperative multitasking
is just another way of saying that programs should be nice to
others -- a fact which sadly does not really occur. There are many
more benefits to a truly multitasking operating system and it is
to be hoped that Apple will make the move toward that someday
soon.

===========

PUMA RATING

===========

PERFORMANCE: 3 This book lives up to its premise. It does explain
most of the features of Apple's new system. There are some minor
technical points with which I disagree, and some other areas where
the author's gung-ho approach is a bit overbearing.

USEFULNESS: 4 If you are new to the Macintosh, or have managed to
never hear of System 7 and all of its features, then this book will
do a better job for you of understanding it. If you are aware of it
and am an experienced user, you may be able to get along without it.

MANUAL: 3 This book is professionally done. There are several technical
problems that are probably due to the book's having been rushed into
print.

AVAILABILITY: 4 Book stores carry it. I even saw an ad for a mail order
house that was giving this book away for free when you purchased the
System software upgrade from them. Having a newsletter come out with
two free issues is another feature that I really liked.

(Naor Wallach/910802/Press Contact: Lee Weisbecker)
#ENDCARD




#CARD::1991 AUG 22 NEW SPA MEMBERS 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00001)

NEW SPA MEMBERS 08/22/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- SPA, the Software
Publishers Association, has announced that 16 new members have joined
the international trade association based in Washington, DC.

New full U.S. members:

Economic Profiles, Torrance, California, a Western states database
publisher. Contact Phil Sarazen, Owner, 213-377-2488.

Educational Activities, Inc., Baldwin, New York, an educational
software publisher. Contact Carol H. Stern, vice president, 516-223-
4666.

MasterSoft, Inc., Scottsdale, Arizona, a publisher of conversion
technology software. Contact Lise M. Lambert, VP, marketing & sales,
203-264-9490.

MicroBiz Corporation, Spring Valley, New York, a developer of retail
point-of-sale hardware and software. Contact Craig Aberle, president,
800-637-8268.

Pinpoint Publishing, Glen Ellen, California, a developer of recipe
management software for the IBM PC. Contact Lorena Peer, marketing
manager, 707-935-3217.

South-Western Publishing Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a publisher of
textbooks and educational software. Contact Dennis Kokoruda, director
of electronic publishing, Education Division, 513-271-8811.

New international full members:

Computermate (Australia) Pty. Ltd., Sydney, Australia, a distributor
of Amiga software, presently increasing its line of MS-DOS titles.
Contact Ray Firth, managing director, 61-2-457-8388.

New associate U.S. members:

The Corum Group Limited, Bellevue, Washington, a supplier of software
firms with operational, strategic, and transaction assistance. Contact
Bruce Milne, president, 206-455-8281.

Fuji Photo Film USA, Inc., Elmsford, New York, a manufacturer and
seller of computer disks, data cartridges, and computer accessories.
Contact Steven Solomon, VP & GM, Computer Media Division, 914-789-
8350.

Graham Marketing, Fremont, California, a professional marketing
consulting team. Contact Maxine Graham, president, 415-226-0591.

Infopak International, Belmont, California, a specialist translation
firm developing international software versions. Contact George
Ritter, president, 415-570-5214.

International Documentation, Los Angeles, California, a localization
and translation firm. Contact Tom Landstreet, marketing director, 213-
556-5666.

Mayfield Fund, Menlo Park, California, a private venture capital
partnership. Contact Michael J. Levinthal, general partner, 415-854-
5560.

ZBR Publications, Inc., Wilmington, Massachusetts, a printing firm.
Contact James J. Sullivan, vice president, national sales, 617-935-
9580.

New international associate members:

Entertainment Express Limited, Livingston, Scotland, an electronic
distributor. Contact David Crosweller, European marketing director,
44-506-418-419.

MacByte GmbH, Aachen, Germany, part of the MacByte Group, a provider
of full manufacturing services to the computer industry. Contact Mike
McMahon, 49-241-87-0055.

(John McCormick/19910821/Press Contact: Jodi Pollock, SPA, 202-452-
1600)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 CACI INTERNATIONAL GETS JUSTICE CONTRACT 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00002)

CACI INTERNATIONAL GETS JUSTICE CONTRACT 08/22/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- The Washington Post has
reported that CACI International has received its largest contract
award ever, a $130 million award to provide document imaging
capabilities and litigation support services to the U.S. Justice
Department.

CACI, with its new five-year contract to supply software and hardware
to the Civil Division's Office of Litigation Support, expects to add
employees to support this major contract.

CACI had recently suffered from cutbacks in a major contract with the
U.S. Navy and has also reported sharply lower earnings.

(John McCormick/19910821)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 ALR ANNOUNCES TWO CPUS - DUAL PROCESSING - FOR SPEED 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00003)

ALR ANNOUNCES TWO CPUS - DUAL PROCESSING - FOR SPEED 08/22/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Advanced Logic
Research announced it is building the ALR Powerpro Array Dual
processor file-server that is capable of utilizing two 50
megahertz (MHz) Intel i486 central processing units (CPUs). The
new system has been clocked at 40.7 to 81.4 million
instructions per second (MIPS), ALR said.

The new Powerpro Array motherboard comes with one 50 MHz i486
CPU, 512 kilobytes of read/write back cache random access
memory (RAM), and a bit block transfer (BITBLT) video graphics
array (VGA) controller, said ALR. The company claims with the
optional addition of a second 50 MHz i486 CPU the extended
industry standard architecture (EISA) system delivers the
fastest personal computer (PC) performance on the market today.

Adding CPUs to share the workload is not a brand new concept,
but it is one that is being used to build the fastest computers
in the world. The Touchstone Delta system built by the Super
Computing Consortium and housed at Cal Tech in Pasadena, is the
world's fastest computer and is designed with over 500 Intel
CPUs that divide the processing work, called "parallel
processing." Intel told Newsbytes multiple CPUs was the only
way to get more speed.

ALR says its focus for the Powerpro Array is as a platform for
network serving and data intensive multitasking environments.
The system is Compaq Systempro compatible, and can take
advantage of off-the-shelf versions of DOS or OS/2, ALR said.
The system is also to be certified for use with Novell Netware
and other multiprocessing environments such as Santa Cruz
Operation (SCO) Unix System V/386, SCO MPX and Banyan VINES
SMP.

The system supports disk mirroring, disk stripping, and disk
spanning for data security, ALR said. A disk array of more than
1.3 gigabytes (GB) can be supported using 340 megabyte (MB) IDE
hard disk drives. The controller for the disk drives is said to
provide significant performance increases over Compaq's IDA due
to the ALR write disk caching technique.

Further, the BITBLT VGA graphics card provides faster screen
displays, especially in Microsoft Windows, with the block of
image transfers built into the graphics card itself, the
company said. ALR says the block of image transfer provides a
35 percent again over the bit-by-bit transfers used by IBM XGA
adapters.

ALR is forecasting shipments of the Powerpro Array systems for
the fourth quarter of 1991. The company says twelve-month
optional on-site extended warranty options are available. The
systems are to be displayed at the SCO Forum, August 19-23 at
the University of California in Santa Cruz, California and at
Comdex, the computer industry's biggest annual trade show
October 21-25 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108021/Press Contact: Dave Kirkey, Advanced
Logic Research, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 AST CUTS UP TO 32% ON BRAVO, PREMIUM PRICES 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00004)

AST CUTS UP TO 32% ON BRAVO, PREMIUM PRICES 08/22/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- AST Research
says it is cutting prices on its Bravo and Premium computer
lines to gain a larger market share.

AST just expanded its Bravo line in June by adding the Bravo
286/16. However, the 386SX/20 is the most popular, according to
AST. Tom Yuen, co-chairman and chief operating officer at AST,
cited a recent survey by Storeboard/Computer Intelligence, an
industry research firm. According to this survey, based on more
than 1200 computer dealers asked in April and May 1991, AST's
U.S. desktop market share for 386SX systems was 6.8 percent.

Yuen said, "The SX/20 system has become today's business
computing platform of choice. We have continually delivered
significant value to end users in this area and set the
standard for the industry in both value and performance. Our
success is evidenced by the company's strong financial
performance and significant increases in market share. We will
continue to build on this success to capture even greater
market share."

In the June announcement AST said the 386SX/20 was priced at
$1,895 and the computer was stripped down, meaning at that
price the computer has no monitor or graphics card, no hard
disk and only one 3.5-inch 1.44 megabyte (MB) floppy disk
drive. At that time AST called the Bravo line its more
"affordable" line of computers.

Now the basic Bravo 386SX/20 3V is $1,295, a reduction of 32
percent over its former price. The system is still stripped
down, includes 2 megabytes (MB) of random access memory and a
super video graphics adapter (VGA) card. For another $400, or
$1,695, the user can upgrade to the 386SX/20 43V whose only
difference is the inclusion of a 40 MB hard disk drive, AST
said.

For $1,100 over the base price of the 3V, or $2,395, the
user can go from the base system to the 43B which adds a 40 MB
hard disk, Windows 3.0, Lotus 1-2-3 version 3.1, a Microsoft
mouse and a super VGA monitor.

The Premium II line of personal computers has been reduced from
13 to 20 percent, AST said. For example, the Premium II
386SX/20 Model 3V has been reduced in price from $1,995 to
$1,595, a reduction of 20 percent over its former price.

AST says it is able to cut prices because it is using surface-
mount technology for more of the components of the computer,
meaning the components are mounted into the motherboard. While
this technology cuts prices, it makes repair more costly and
difficult should one of the surface-mounted components fail.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108022/Press Contact: Gerry Baker, AST
Research, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 NEW PRODUCT: Legacy Offers High-Capacity DAT Subsystems 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00005)

NEW PRODUCT: Legacy Offers High-Capacity DAT Subsystems 08/22/91
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Hoping to capitalize
on a need for backup systems for growing local-area networks,
Legacy Storage Systems has announced an external digital audio tape
(DAT) subsystem for IBM-compatible and Macintosh computers. The
system stores data on DAT cartridges that hold up to two gigabytes.

Irving Frydman, marketing manager at Legacy, told Newsbytes the
major market for DAT systems will be local-area network backup. A
trend toward downsizing applications that have traditionally run on
mainframes and minicomputers, running them instead on LANs, is
increasing the demand for such storage, he added.

The Legacy 2200D DAT subsystem is compatible with Novell's Netware
LAN operating system, with Unix and its variants, and with OS/2,
the company said. It connects to a computer via a small computer
systems interface (SCSI), and Legacy said the subsystem transfers
data at 11 megabytes per minute. Access to any file takes an
average of 45 seconds, the company said.

Error correction and detection features include a third level of
error correction code, read-after-write checking, and data
randomizing.

Scheduled to be available on September 1, the Legacy 2200D carries a
suggested retail price of C$4,595. It will be sold through various
dealers and resellers, Frydman said.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: Irving Frydman, Legacy
Storage Systems, 416-475-1077, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 NEW PRODUCT: Aquiline Unveils 33-MHz 386 Notebook 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00006)

NEW PRODUCT: Aquiline Unveils 33-MHz 386 Notebook 08/22/91
BENNINGTON, VERMONT, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Not everybody
needs a notebook computer with an Intel 80386 processor that runs
at 33 megahertz. But Aquiline Inc., believes some people do --
software developers, engineers, software demonstrators, and
possibly desktop publishers among them -- and is offering them one.

Aquiline has announced the Aquiline 33, a 7.9-pound notebook
computer with a 33-MHz 386 chip, four megabytes of random access
memory, a 60- or 120-megabyte hard disk, serial port, parallel
port, mouse port, and connection for an external VGA monitor.

The Aquiline 33 is definitely not for the "mass-market SX notebook
market," Tony DeMario, vice-president of marketing, told Newsbytes.
But it will appeal to those who need plenty of computer power and
speed in a light, portable package.

For example, DeMario said, software developers "have to spend hours
at the computer, so they end up at the office really late." A fast
notebook computer will make it easier for them to take work home
instead.

Like Aquiline's earlier 386SX-based laptop, the Aquiline 33 will
come bundled with Fastlynx software utilities, which include a file
transfer program, a cursor control program, battery management,
electronic address file, and hard disk locking software for
security, DeMario said.

The machine's nickel cadmium battery is good for up to three hours
of use, Aquiline said, and an auto-resume feature will let users
change batteries without exiting their applications.

The 60-megabyte version is available now at US$3,695, while the
120-megabyte version is due for shipment in November at US$3,995.
The machine will be available through dealers and mail-order houses
and direct from Aquiline, DeMario said.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: Tony DeMario, Aquiline,
802-442-1526, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 WINDOWS 3.1 HAS FEATURES FOR THE USER TOO 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00007)

WINDOWS 3.1 HAS FEATURES FOR THE USER TOO 08/22/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- A recent
Newsbytes story reported on some of the features of Windows
3.1 that were designed to make the task of applications
developer easier. Windows 3.1 also has features for the user.

The new Windows release includes Install, a program that detects
the hardware and software configuration and configures Windows
optimally for that machine. Install can detect a wide variety
of terminate-and-stay-resident (TSRs) programs, as well as any
hardware devices known to cause problems when running Windows.
The program in some cases can correct the problem automatically,
or in other instances will tell the user what needs to be done.

Express Install is designed to make Windows installation easier
for the novice computer user, according to Microsoft. For
advanced users groups of programs can be selected to install.
The company says PC coordinators will find installation easier
with the batch install option, as well as better network setup
features.

Microsoft says it has completely redesigned the file manager
feature, which now supports multiple panes. Users can display
the directory tree and a list of files side by side in a window.
File Manager can also display more file attributes than before,
and can even display file and folder names in a choice of fonts.

Another new feature is a quick format capability, which allows
the user to format floppy disks more quickly. And what Microsoft
calls "drop-and-drag" has been added to manipulate files. For
example, to print a file, the user drags the file icon with the
mouse and drops it on the Print Manager. You can also drop a
file icon on a running application and the application will
automatically open that file.

If you've had icon titles that were so long that they overlapped
with an adjacent icon, you'll be happy to know that each icon
title will now display in multiple lines.

Users who have had long printing jobs stall because the printer
runs out of paper will find that the print job will now resume
at the place where it quit when the paper tray has been
refilled.

Microsoft says it has also improved printing with the addition
of a universal printer driver (UNIDRV), from which specific
printer drivers can quickly be built. The company says nearly
250 printers will be supported with 3.1, with most being
supported with UNIDRV. The company also reports that printing
is faster, with control returning to the application more
quickly. Faster paging in the 386 enhanced mode is also
provided.

Error reporting and diagnostics should be better, with users
receiving an error dialog box with more specific information
about the type fault that occurred and which application
generated the error, instead of the cryptic "Unrecoverable
Application Error" message. A diagnostics tool called "Dr
Watson" is now included with each Windows 3.1 version. Dr
Watson records and stores application error information,
allowing quicker diagnostics and repair by a support technician.

Windows 3.1 now includes TrueType scalable font technology,
providing outline fonts. Users can select fonts in any point
size, and four font families are included: Arial, a Helvetica
alternative, Times New Roman, Courier, and Symbol.

Microsoft says it has improved support for DOS applications,
with more program information files (PIF files), which tell DOS
how to handle specific DOS applications.

Microsoft Corporation maintains a toll free line (800-426-9400)
for product information.

(Jim Mallory/910821/Press contact: Liz Sidnam, Microsoft,
206-882-8080, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 LASERMASTER IN LABOR WAGE/HOURS REVIEW 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00008)

LASERMASTER IN LABOR WAGE/HOURS REVIEW 08/22/91
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- LaserMaster
Technologies has announced that the company is cooperating with
the United States Department Labor in a wage and hours
compliance review.

LaserMaster spokesperson Karen Neset told Newsbytes that the
company has not been informed of the reason for the review, but
believes it is compliance with all applicable wage and hour
regulations. Neset said that the company is providing all
required information for the review, which is covering the past
two years. LaserMaster was formed in 1985.

Gerald Hill of the Department of Labor told Newsbytes that DOL
audits companies based either on specific complaints or on a
randomly selected basis. Hill said DOL is required to
investigate as many firms and industries and geographic areas as
possible. "Every year when we go up for our appropriations,
Congress wants to know how many industries, how many different
geographic areas we have gotten into," said Hill.

Hill said that normally DOL wants to look at payroll and time
records. In addition to reviewing time and pay records,
Hill said DOL may interview employees. The purpose of the audit
is to determine if the company is paying their employees in
accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act. Hill said once
the investigation is completed, DOL will inform the employer of
the results of the investigation. "We will work with them to
see if there are any changes that they need to make to come into
compliance," said Hill.

In a worst case scenario, not only would the back wages have to
be paid, but a company could be subject to civil penalties,
especially in the case of child labor law violations or
violation of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker
Protection Act.

Neset said the company had not been told whether the review was
a random audit or whether DOL was working from a specific
complaint. DOL notifies the company by telephone of their
requirements, after the initial visit. The majority of
Lasermaster's employees are salaried.

Neset said the company expects the audit should be completed in
the next couple of months.

(Jim Mallory/910821/Press contact: Karen Neset, LaserMaster,
612-941-8687)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 MICROSOFT SHIPS WINDOWS WITH MULTIMEDIA EXTENSIONS 1.0 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00009)

MICROSOFT SHIPS WINDOWS WITH MULTIMEDIA EXTENSIONS 1.0 08/22/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation says it is now shipping Windows 3.0 with Multimedia
Extensions 1.0 to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

Newsbytes reported in early July of this year that IBM would
bundle several Microsoft applications, including Multimedia
Extensions, with its personal computers sold into the higher
education market.

Multimedia Extensions add support for a wide range of multimedia
devices and data types, including sound, animation, and motion
video to Windows, and enable multimedia applications to run on
multimedia PCs.

Microsoft says it sees the shipment of Extensions as an
important prelude to the rollout of the first commercially
available multimedia PCs and multimedia upgrade kits. Several
companies, including Tandy, CompuAdd, MediaVision, and Creative
Labs are expected to roll out multimedia-specific PCs this fall.
In all more than a dozen companies are promising multimedia
hardware between now and early 1992.

Features Microsoft is reporting for Extensions 1.0 include a
media control interface, which provides a mechanism for
supporting a range of time-based media and devices, including
videodisc and videotape, audio, animation and digital motion
video.

The interface is designed to allow third parties to support
other multimedia devices. Both Microsoft and IBM participated
in specifying the interface core.

Some new end-user accessories are also included. Users will
have access to Sound Recorder, Music Box, and Media player,
which let the user create and control multimedia elements.

Hyperguide is a graphically based, online help facility which
has more than 20,000 links and 3,000 topics, says Microsoft.

Audio services provide a device-independent interface that
developers can use to bring sound to PC applications. Joystick
and Timer provide support for joysticks and high-res event
timing. The company says a total of 144 new application program
interfaces (APIs) are provided.

(Jim Mallory/19910821/Press contact: Marty Taucher, Microsoft,
206-882-8080, fax [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22  ****MOST VOICE, DATA SERVICES NORMAL DURING COUP 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00010)

 ****MOST VOICE, DATA SERVICES NORMAL DURING COUP 08/22/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Perhaps the most
amazing fact during the attempted Soviet coup, and the first hint
it would fail, is that voice and data services remained normal
throughout the 60-hour event.

One exception was in the Baltics, where Soviet troops took over
telephone switching centers in Estonia. That's the home of the
Eesti #1 BBS, the largest bulletin board in the country, and the
online home of the breakaway republic's lawbooks. No report was
available at press time concerning what may have happened to the
board itself, and its equipment.

Bob Clough reported on Compuserve's Journalism forum August 20, mid-
afternoon Moscow time, that despite the tanks on the streets,
life really was pretty normal there. "As you can imagine, sales
are a little slow right now, but all of our employees are at
work, carrying on as usual. No panic, lots of concern of course,
but all seems well so far," he wrote. "Our general impression is
that the guys who started this coup don't have the stomach to
really make it stick."

Meanwhile, phone traffic jumped during the crucial days. AT&T and
IDB Communications, the latter an international calling
specialist based in Rockville, Maryland, both got 24 extra
satellite phone circuits each through the Federal Communications
Commission, starting August 21. Those circuits used a Soviet
satellite system, Intersputnik. AT&T also uses the western
Intelsat consortium, but had an agreement with Soviet officials
to use Intersputnik in hand when the coup hit, pending FCC
approval. The company had been seeking permission to expand
service to the Soviet Union since December, 1989. Still,
spokesman Herb Linnen said, "Since Monday, it's been an absolute
nightmare trying to complete calls." Even before the coup, 91 percent
of calls failed to go through. In its filing, the company
said its call volume to the USSR was 100 times normal. AT&T
now has 67 circuits to the USSR, but John Berndt, president of
AT&T International Communications Services, said 2,300 are
needed.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: AT&T: Herb Linnen,
202/457-3933; CompuServe Debra Young, 614/457-8600; Mead Data
Central, Judi Schultz, 513-865-7466)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 INSLAW "SOURCE" SPEAKS TO NEWSBYTES 08/22/91

08/22/91


(EXCLUSIVE)(IBM)(NYC)(00011)

INSLAW "SOURCE" SPEAKS TO NEWSBYTES 08/22/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- "Bill," the person who
reportedly met with journalist James D. "Danny" Casolaro on the night
before Casolaro's death in a Martinsburg, W. VA motel, has confirmed
to Newsbytes that he provided Casolaro with evidence of U.S.
government malfeasance in the procurement of technology.

Bill, speaking to Newsbytes under the promise of anonymity, said
that Casolaro found this information to be related to Casolaro's year-
long investigation of accusations made by the Inslaw, Inc. against the
United States Department of Justice. Casolaro had told friends shortly
before his death that he had taken to calling the investigation the
"Octopus" because of connections that he had allegedly found
between the Inslaw case and such things as "IranContra," the
"October Surprise," investigation and Bill's charges.

Bill, who is now scheduled to "go public" with his charges in an
appearance on the television show "Inside Edition" on Monday,
August 26th, told Newsbytes that he had promised the producers of
the show that he would make no statements to the media on these
matters until Tuesday, August 27th. He additionally said that he had
discussed this commitment with Inslaw, Inc. attorney Elliot
Richardson who also advised him to make no public statements until
that date.

Bill further told Newsbytes that the Martinsburg police investigators
are aware of his identity and have attempted to interrogate him
concerning his conversations with Casolaro. He, to this date, has
refused to meet with them and stated that this decision was also
made in consultation with Richardson's firm. He also told Newsbytes
that he has reason to believe that he is under surveillance, saying,
"There are many more cars on my street than usual and I am sure
that my phone is tapped. I'm getting calls at all hours of the night
and, when I pick up the phone, the caller hangs up. They are not only
watching me but are trying to scare me off. They won't succeed,
however; I will get the truth out. I have copies of the documentation
in a safe place and it will come out even if something happens to
me."

Another Inslaw-related allegation came to light when a Newsbytes
source said that Casolaro had told her/him that a person that was
about to furnish him with important documentation had been
murdered last January 31st. According to the source, Casolaro had
identified ex-National Security Agency (NSA) employee Alan David
Standoff, found at Washington National Airport in a car, as a contact
tied to the case. According to investigators, Standoff had been
murdered by beating with a blunt instrument at some other location
and then transported to the airport. He, according to the Newsbytes
source, had resigned from the NSA on December 19th (effective
01/14/91) because of his call-up by his National Guard unit.

Casolaro's death, initially ruled a suicide, has been referred to as
possibly a murder by friends and relatives as well as by Richardson
who has called for a federal inquiry. The so-called "Inslaw Case"
involves charges by Inslaw, Inc., that the Justice Department
purposely drove it into bankruptcy so that it could steal Inslaw's
Promis software. While bankruptcy counts on two decisions found
the allegations to be factual and fined the Justice Dept., saying that
the government agency had practiced "trickery, fraud and deceit."
The U.S. Court of Appeals on May 7, 1991 overturned the award,
saying that the courts had overstepped their jurisdiction. The appeals
court said, at the time, that Inslaw CEO William Hamilton was free to
pursue his claims in the proper federal court and that the Justice
Department's "conduct, if it occurred, is inexcusable."

During the appeal process, Inslaw broadened its charges to claim
that Iran Contra figures Robert McFarlane and Richard Secord had
played a role is disseminating the software to intelligence agencies
of Israel, Libya, Iraq, South Korea, and Canada. These charges,
substantiated by Ari Ben-Menashe, who claims to be a former
Israeli intelligence officer, Iranian arms dealer Richard Babayan, and
Michael Riconosciuto, who said that he was hired to modify the
software for use in law enforcement and intelligence agencies
worldwide, led to a investigation of the case by the House Judiciary
Committee and a confrontation between committee chairman Jack
Brooks and Attorney General Richard Thornburgh over the release to
the committee of material relating to the case. The investigation
continues at this time.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/1991082)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 AUSTRALIA: APPLE GIVE-AWAY SUPERMARKET CHIDED BY SCHOOL 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00012)

AUSTRALIA: APPLE GIVE-AWAY SUPERMARKET CHIDED BY SCHOOL 08/22/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- The Resurrection School,
in Melbourne's suburbs, has returned an Apple Macintosh earned in
the Coles Myer Supermarket chain's current computer give-away
scheme. The school handed back the computer because the Coles Myer
chain had traded illegally on a Sunday.

The school principal, Tony Breen, sent a letter to Coles Myer
detailing why the Sunday trading led to the computer's return.
Breen stated that by continuing to be involved with the give-away
scheme, the school would be implying to students that "society's
laws were there to be broken." Breen went on to say in the letter,
"If there is no respect for a specific ruling a judge of the
Supreme Court, how can it be hoped that there will be respect for
the law in general?" The unopened computer was returned, the school
has no plans to redeem coupons for a second computer, and it
has actively sought to have all references to its involvement
erased.

The move came about after a case before the Victorian Supreme
Court, in which the judge found that a State Government direction
to allow Sunday trading on July 21 was invalid, as the law stated
such trading was illegal. Legislation is currently being debated by
the Government which, if passed, will see Sunday trading allowed.
However, once the chain indicated it would open its 80 stores
statewide, Breen decided to pull out of the give-away scheme, in
which special dockets from the chain can be redeemed towards Apple
computers for schools.

(Sean McNamara/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 AUST'N-NZ DESIGNED CD-ROM HELPS STUDENTS & TEACHERS 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00013)

AUST'N-NZ DESIGNED CD-ROM HELPS STUDENTS & TEACHERS 08/22/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Australian and New Zealand
educators and software developers have developed a CD-ROM (compact
disk-read only memory) tool which should see students and teachers
learn more about CD-ROMS, while also providing a useful database of
available disks and applications.

Avalanche is a CD-ROM navigation tool, showing users 70 Hypercard
products in the education market, and was developed with the aid of
Apple Australia. The database not only includes samples of the CD
ROM titles, but also availability and copyright information for
each package. Also provided is information on the implementation of
CD-ROM technology in the education market.

Avalanche was fully developed in Australia and New Zealand after
last year's World Computers in Education Conference held in Sydney.
The project only succeeded, said Leon Guss, Apple Computer
Australia's education support specialist for K-12, because of
"enthusiastic support from developers, teachers, education
specialists and university lecturers." Guss hopes the database will
be widely distributed throughout the education community to help
stimulate other educators into the field.

(Sean McNamara/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 AUSTRALIA: MINING DATABASE TO "REVOLUTIONIZE" INDUSTRY 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00014)

AUSTRALIA: MINING DATABASE TO "REVOLUTIONIZE" INDUSTRY 08/22/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- A database of mining
industry information is expected to make players in the industry
breath a sigh of relief. The Mining Monthly Database allows users
to access the "three databases in one" (prospect, mine and
company), which includes up-to-date information difficult to find
through traditional means.

The database has been under development for the last two years by
Australian Mining Economics (AME), and will be updated monthly by a
team of geologists and financial experts. Also incorporated in the
database is future expected production rates, cash operating costs
and exploration property categories. These fields are used to
calculate other fields, such as mine life, estimated annual mill
throughputs, net present values and market capitalization. The data
then presented allows users to "look into the future" of the
industry, or to analyze trends in different commodities.

The information in the database will be collated every three months
into the Australasian Minerals Quarterly. AME is one of the world's
largest publishers of mineral commodity analysis. Although coal and
oil are not included in the database as yet, they will be added
soon. The main resources included are gold, silver, lead, copper,
zinc, chromium, platinum, bauxite, uranium, tin, iron ore, and
mineral sands.

(Sean McNamara/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 AUSTRALIA: CAMPS AIM TO ATTRACT GIRLS TO COMPUTERS 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SYD)(00015)

AUSTRALIA: CAMPS AIM TO ATTRACT GIRLS TO COMPUTERS 08/22/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Two week-long camps held
by the Phillip Institute of Technology have aimed at attracting
female students to the world of computing. The camps have been held
successfully for the past three years, and this year's camps used
the pop music industry as a way to demonstrate computer usage.

More than one hundred year-12ers (the final year of school in
Australia) were involved in the camps this year, with many coming
from Victorian country areas. Using the pop music theme, students
had to use synthesizers to develop a backing track, as well as
sampling of sounds. A record jacket was designed on computer, a
word processor was used for the lyrics, correspondence, and
promotional material, while databases and spreadsheets took care of
the mailing lists and financial forecasts and necessities.

The pop music theme was chosen to help the students relate to the
work they were doing. Also included in the camps were tours of
local telecommunications and Kodak sites in order to show computers
being used in real workplaces. Talks were given by local representatives
of Ericsson and Hewlett-Packard, as well as by Kate Behan of the
Australian Computer Society, on career opportunities in the
computer industry.

(Sean McNamara/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 EVEREX SETTLES MULTIMILLION SUIT WITH HAYES 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00016)

EVEREX SETTLES MULTIMILLION SUIT WITH HAYES 08/22/91
NORCROSS, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Everex Systems
will pay Hayes Microcomputer Products $2.5 million to settle a
lawsuit in which Hayes charged Everex with willful infringement
on its modem patent.

A San Francisco jury had ruled in January that willful
infringement on the patent, for a modem escape sequence with
guard time, had occurred. Damages of $3.5 million, $1.6 million
against Everex, were later doubled by Judge Samuel Conti, who
also tacked on Hayes' attorney fees. The patent covers the way in
which a PC modem will go from online mode to a command mode, and
is at the heart of the Hayes "AT" command set.

Everex had appealed Conti's ruling, but decided to drop it in
part because Conti had required bonds equal to the total value of
the settlement as part of the appeal process. Everex had been the
key member of a four-company group which also included MultiTech
Systems, Omni-Tel and VenTel, who had challenged the validity of
the Hayes patent. The case against MultiTech, and the appellate
action against Omni-Tel and VenTel, are continuing.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822/Press Contact: Hayes, Peggy Ballard,
404-840-9200)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 DEC'S NEW PARALLEL PROCESSING COMPUTERS 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(NYC)(00017)

DEC'S NEW PARALLEL PROCESSING COMPUTERS 08/22/91
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Digital
Equipment Corporation has announced the introduction of a family
of computers based on massively parallel processing (MPP), a
platform Digital describes as "an emerging, high performance
technology targeted at very complex problems of technical, scientific
and commercial users." Shipments of the new systems are expected
to begin in Fall 1991.

The new DECmpp 12000 system series features configurations
ranging from 1,024 to 16,384 processors with performance up to 1.2
billions of floating point operations per second (GigaFLOPS), and
26,000 millions of instructions per second (MIPS). The new systems
are supplied under a previously announced agreement with MasPar
Computer Corporation of Sunnyvale, California and are priced from
$240,500 to $1,502,500.

The Digital statement concentrated on the MMP technology, saying,
"Massively parallel processor architectures are considered by many
industry experts to have the greatest potential for solving highly
complex problems in technical, scientific and commercial computer
applications such as scientific visualization, geographic database
management, econometric modeling, and financial analysis. MPP
computers are able to break down problems into smaller parts, then
process these parts simultaneously, at very high speed. As a result,
performance can be extremely fast for applications that lend
themselves to this type of processing. Key to market acceptance,
however, is software, ranging from application development and
network integration tools to the applications themselves that can
take advantage of this technique."

The new DECmpp systems include Digital DECstation 5000 full color
front-end workstations as well as ULTRIX and DECnet system
software. Additionally, Digital also announced what it describes as a
comprehensive line of software, a family of high speed disk storage
arrays, and full service and support programs.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/Joseph D. Codispoti, Digital
Equipment Corporation, 508-493-6767/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 PC SOFTWARE SALES JUMP 15.2 PERCENT 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00018)

PC SOFTWARE SALES JUMP 15.2 PERCENT 08/22/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- SPA, the Software
Publishers Association, has just released sales figures for the
second quarter of 1991 which show that total North American
software sales reached an estimated $1.2 billion retail, a 15.2
percent increase over the second quarter of 1990. Further,
international sales for U.S. companies jumped a strong 38.8
percent in the same period.

Combined software sales growth for the first two quarters of 1991
was 15.9 percent.

Broken down into specific categories, the results were as
follows:

Education software sales increased by 40.7 percent and
spreadsheets increased by 33.9 percent, while Windows
applications sales leaped 208.8 percent, but MS-DOS applications
software sales were down 2.1 percent. (It should be noted that,
because Windows runs under MS-DOS, those Windows applications run
under MS-DOS also, so the drop in DOS sales could be misleading.)

Despite the first-ever decline, MS-DOS software sales still
account for nearly 65 percent of the applications market, with
Windows only reaching 15.3 percent, only a few tenths of a
percent below Macintosh software sales.

SPA Executive Director Ken Wasch said of the results, "The
software industry continues to register healthy year-to-year
gains, despite weakness in the economy. The second quarter marked
a significant transition in the relative strength of the three
major PC platforms."

SPA sales data is based on an analysis of monthly sales
information submitted to the accounting firm of Arthur Andersen &
Co. by 150 of the nation's leading PC software publishers.

The SPA is the personal computer software industry's major trade
association.

(John McCormick/19910822/Press Contact: Jodi Pollock, SPA, 202-
452-1600)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22  ****RODIME FILES FOR CHAPTER 11 PROTECTION 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(WAS)(00019)

 ****RODIME FILES FOR CHAPTER 11 PROTECTION 08/22/91
BOCA RATON, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Rodime Inc.,
a subsidiary of Scotland-based Rodime PLC, and not connected with
disk drive sub-system manufacturer Rodime Systems Inc. which is
also based in Boca Raton, has filed for bankruptcy protection
under Chapter 11 of U.S. Bankruptcy Laws.

According to the company, this action will result in the
immediate layoffs of 300 employees around the world, with the
staff in Florida being reduced from 72 to 42, and those remaining
in Boca Raton just, according to company spokesperson Loretta
Gasper, staying for four to six months to ensure an orderly
shutdown of operations.

The Boca Raton facilities, which haven't actually manufactured
disk drives for about two years, have recently been on the market
and the company says it will increase efforts to sell the
property. Rodime's president, Peter G. Bailey, said Rodime PLC
hopes to pay off all its secured and most of its unsecured
creditors.

The company had recently been holding discussions with Taiwanese
and Korean companies in an effort to form a joint venture.

Ms. Gasper, who, as she put it, is, "for the time being, the
manager of marketing communications," declined to provide the
names of the Far East companies which were holding discussions
with Rodime PLC, telling Newsbytes that the company was not
giving out that information.

There are two Rodime companies in Boca Raton, and both are
involved with hard disk drives, so it is important to note that
the one which just declared bankruptcy is the one located at 901
Broken Sound Pkwy., NW, Boca Raton, FL.

Rodime Systems, Inc. a subsidiary of Profit Technology, Inc., and
located at 7700 W. Camino Real, 2nd Fl., Boca Raton, FL, was
split off from Rodime Inc. in May of 1990 and is no longer
connected in any way with the company which just filed for
bankruptcy.

"We aren't connected with that company and are doing very well,
thank you," said a spokesperson for Profit Technology's Rodime
System, a company which is a sub-system drive manufacturer that
sells drives to resellers.

(John McCormick/19910822/Press Contact: Loretta Gasper, Rodime
Inc., 407-994-6200, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 TEXAS LAW ENFORCEMENT APPROVES FINGERMATRIX 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00020)

TEXAS LAW ENFORCEMENT APPROVES FINGERMATRIX 08/22/91
NORTH WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) --
Fingermatrix, whose live scan electronic fingerprinting systems
have recently been approved by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation to replace the old ink-and-roll-on-paper method of
taking suspects' fingerprints, has announced that the Texas
Department of Public Safety has just approved its system.

Fingermatrix is also reporting that Los Angeles County,
California has completed its testing of its product and is
expected to begin procurement of 110 systems, a multi-million
dollar contract.

The Fingermatrix system prints out the scanned fingerprint on
standard identification cards and also stores a digitized image
in a computer. Latent prints (fingerprints taken from objects)
can also be scanned and digitized, then matched with previously
stored "live" fingerprints to speed comparison and
identification.

(John McCormick/19910822/Press Contact: Scott G. Schiller,
Fingermatrix Inc., 914-428-5441)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 POST REPORTS UNISYS TO SELL DEFENSE DIVISION 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(WAS)(00021)

POST REPORTS UNISYS TO SELL DEFENSE DIVISION 08/22/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- The Washington
Post is reporting that troubled Unisys is negotiating to sell its
McLean, Virginia-based defense division in a move to take the
unit public, raising up to $1 billion.

The Carlyle Group, a Washington, DC investment banking firm, is
said by the Post to be the agent for the sale, but neither Unisys
nor anyone from the Carlyle Group would comment to Newsbytes on
the report.

Hit by record fines, cost overruns, and other problems, Unisys
had losses over $1 billion in the second quarter of this fiscal
year.

Washington insiders with contacts at Unisys declined to comment
specifically on their knowledge of any pending sale but did tell
Newsbytes that they "wouldn't be surprised" to see the defense
division sold off.

(John McCormick/19910822)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 IDENTIX TO BUY IMAGEERING 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(WAS)(00022)

IDENTIX TO BUY IMAGEERING 08/22/91
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Sunnyvale,
California-based Identix has announced the signing of a letter of
intent to purchase Imageering Optical Disk Systems, a Memphis,
Tennessee-based company that builds electronic mug shot systems
which are used in criminal identification.

Identix builds electronic fingerprint scanning systems and with
the acquisition the company could integrate the two systems into
an Integrated Identification Information system for use by police
departments.

Founded in 1982, Identix Inc., 510 N. Pastoria Ave., Sunnyvale,
CA, phone [phone], fax [phone], employs about 22 people
and has annual sales of $2 million.

(John McCormick/19910822/Press Contact: Jim Scullion, Identix,
408-739-2000)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 COMPUTER ASSOCIATES WINS SUIT, TENDERS ON-LINE 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00023)

COMPUTER ASSOCIATES WINS SUIT, TENDERS ON-LINE 08/22/91
GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Computer
Associates International Inc. (CA) and On-Line Software
International Inc. (On-Line) have jointly announced that they have
entered into an agreement whereby CA's wholly owned subsidiary,
LWB Merge Inc., will make a tender offer today for all of the
approximately 5.7 million outstanding shares of On-Line common
stock at a price of $15.75 per share in cash.

The firms further said that the board of directors of On-Line
Software International Inc. has unanimously approved the offer and
the merger agreement and recommends that shareholders accept the
offer.

The offer is conditioned upon a minimum of 2,451,285 shares being
tendered and not withdrawn. The 2,451,285 figure does not include
additional On-Line shares CA already has the right to purchase from
On-Line's chairman of the board, Jack M. Berdy. The information
agent for the offer will be D.F. King & Co. Inc.

On-Line Software International Inc., with headquarters in Ft. Lee,
N.J., develops and acquires, markets and supports a broad range of
standardized systems software products and services principally for
users of intermediate and large-scale IBM and IBM plug-compatible
mainframe computers. On-Line's common stock is listed on the New
York Stock Exchange under the symbol ''OSI.''

In another Computer Associates matter, the firm announced that a
federal district court has awarded judgment in favor of Computer
Associates International Inc. against Altai Inc. The judgment is in the
amount of approximately $500,000 which includes interest. The
court determined that Computer Associates' copyright in its
CA-Scheduler program is valid and found that Altai was guilty of
infringing CA's copyright by copying significant portions of CA's
product. The court awarded a judgement to CA of approximately $500,000
including interest. The court, however, also ruled that, based on
what the CA press release calls a "legal technicality," CA could not
also maintain a claim for trade secret misappropriation. Computer
Associates stated that it plans to appeal the court's ruling.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/Bob Gordon, Computer
Associates International Inc., 516/227-3300/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 NEW ATARI LYNX SHIPS 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00024)

NEW ATARI LYNX SHIPS 08/22/91
LOMBARD, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Atari is now
shipping a new compact version of the Lynx color portable video
game system.

According to Atari, the new version weighs less than the original,
tipping the scales at under one pound, but still offers the same
3.5-inch screen. The product measures 9.5-inches by 4.25-inches
by 2-inches deep and has separate on and off buttons to prevent
game interruptions.

Dana Plotkin, vice president of marketing, told Newsbytes that
the original version "stopped shipping in the first week of July."

The new Lynx retails for $99.99, the same as the original. A $149.99
package including an AC adapter, a California Games game
cartridge, and a ComLynx cable for multi-player gaming.

New features include a recessed screen cover for added protection
and a wider viewing angle, rubber hand grips built into the back
of the unit, and a back-light shut-off button that the company claims
conserves battery power when the game is paused.

Plotkin also told Newsbytes that everything else about the new
version is the same as the original.

The company claims the Lynx is the only portable game system
with a "flip-screen" to accommodate left- and right-handed play.

Lawrence Siegel, president of Atari's Entertainment Division, said:
"This won't force anyone to upgrade, but will instead expand the
appeal of the Lynx. The games we've produced are all compatible.
We expect to sell everything we can manufacture."

Plotkin declined to give any sales figures for the original Lynx
game, which was introduced in December of 1989, claiming that
giving out sales statistics was "against management policy."

He did say however, that he sees "this segment of the market
to continue to improve and increase over the years."

Atari maintains there are currently 20 games available for the
Lynx, with that number expected to rise to 45 by the end of 1991.

The new Lynx is available at many electronics and retail outlets,
including Toys 'R' Us, Electronics Boutique, Babbages, Sears,
KayBee Toys, Software Etc, and Montgomery Ward.

(Ian Stokell/19910822/Press Contact: Lawrence Siegel, Atari
Entertainment Division, 708-629-6500)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 APPLE/PARAGON DESIGNING ARABIC WORD PROCESSOR 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00025)

APPLE/PARAGON DESIGNING ARABIC WORD PROCESSOR 08/22/91
SOLANA BEACH, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Nisus
word processor-developer Paragon Concepts has signed a
contract with Apple Computer BV, a subsidiary of Apple Computer, to
produce a high-end Macintosh word processing package for the
Middle Eastern market.

The Arabic version of Nisus is expected to ship by October 1 and
is being localized for both the Arabic and Farsi languages.

According to the company, distribution in Bahrain, Egypt, Iran,
Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Oman, People's Republic of Yemen,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates (Dubai, Abou Dabi)
and Yemen will be managed by Apple Computer AMME (Africa,
Mediterranean and Middle East) from its headquarters in Paris.

Distribution in other locations will be managed by Paragon
Concepts through its established distributors worldwide.

According to Howard Sloan, Apple AMME product manager and
Apple's coordinator for the project, the market for Apple Computer in
the Middle East has grown steadily over the last five years.

The company says that Nisus (Arabic) will handle Roman, Arabic
and Farsi scripts in which the characters are context sensitive and
stretch in width depending on justification. It allows menus in
English, Arabic or Farsi, at the user's choice.

The localized Nisus will be modeled on the current 3.06 United
States version. The U.S. retail price of the intended product is
set at $495.

Nisus runs on the Macintosh Plus, SE, SE 30, Macintosh Portable,
Classic, LC and all Macintosh IIs. Memory requirement depends
on the system size although two megabytes is recommended.

On the worldwide front, Apple Computer intends to introduce ten
international language versions of System 7 in the early part of
September 1991. International sales accounted for more than half
of Apple's revenues in the January-March quarter of the 1991
financial year.

Paragon Concepts Inc. is an independently held developer and
publisher of computer software and is based in Solana Beach,
California. The company was founded in 1984 by Jerzy Lewak, Ph.D., who
continues as president.

(Ian Stokell/19910822/Press Contact: Edwina Riblet, Paragon
Concepts Inc., 619-481-1477)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 SIGMA DESIGNS LOSES $962,000 IN 2Q 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00026)

SIGMA DESIGNS LOSES $962,000 IN 2Q 08/22/91
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Blaming
the current recession in the computer industry, Sigma Designs has
reported a loss of $962,000 for its second quarter ended July 31, 1991.

The results compare to a gain of $531,000 for the like period last
year. Net sales for the quarter were $6,276,000, significantly below
the $9,143,000 reported a year ago. Earnings per share was a loss
of $0.18, compared with a gain of $0.09 in the prior year.

Net sales for the six months ended July 31, 1991 were $14,868,000,
a 23 percent reduction from $19,316,000 a year ago. Net income
was a loss of $954,000 compared with a gain of $1,252,000 last
year. Earnings per share were a loss of $0.17 compared with a
$0.21gain in the prior year.

Sigma claims that, during the quarter, the company continued to fine
tune its sales organization and devoted increased resources toward
new product development efforts.

The most significant new product being developed is identified
by the company as a document imaging storage and retrieval
system by Docupoint which accounted for $693,000 of the $954,000
total year-to-date loss. The company believes that these activities
were important to rebuilding its revenue base in the long term.

However, Thinh Tran, president, said: "There are signs that the
economy is slowly turning around and the fact that Sigma is a
participant in the Navy's Desktop Companion contract as a
supplier of CPU boards and VGA cards, it is reasonable to
expect that we will soon see some improvement in the demand
for Sigma's product."

Sigma also noted that, to date, it has repurchased 808,762 shares
of its common stock pursuant to its stock-buy-back program
announced in February and May 1990 and that it plans to continue
this program in the near future.

Newsbytes reported just this week that the company had introduced
the Bullet 030, a 50 MHz 68030 microprocessor-based accelerator
add-in board with lossless data and image compression for the
Macintosh IIci and IIsi.

In June the company introduced a tabloid-page gray scale display
system for Macintosh NuBus computers, called the SilverView Portrait,
and at the same time expanded its retail sales operation with several
new programs designed to increase dealer profitability.

Sigma Designs is a manufacturer and marketer of graphics
products including boards, high-resolution display systems, and
system enhancements products for IBM compatibles and Apple
personal computers.

(Ian Stokell/19910822/Press Contact: Binh Trinh, Sigma Design Inc.,
415-770-0100)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22  ****FIRST APPEAL FILED TO BLOCK BELLS 08/22/91

08/22/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00027)

 ****FIRST APPEAL FILED TO BLOCK BELLS 08/22/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Responding to a
request from Judge Harold Greene, the American Newspaper
Publishers Association has appealed his decision lifting the
information services restriction from the regional Bell
companies. Greene had ruled July 25 he had no choice but to lift
the restrictions, due to orders from the U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals precipitated by the U.S. Justice Department requests.

Consumer groups and MCI are also expected to join the appeal, but
the courts aren't their only avenue. Legislation to free the
Bells is presently working its way through Congress, and language
restricting their entry into information services could be made a
part of it. But President Bush has threatened to veto that bill,
and no Bush veto has yet been overridden. The Bush Administration
argues that letting the Bells sell things like "electronic
yellow pages" and other information services will lead to
increased competition. Opponents counter that the Bells have a
stranglehold on the U.S. telephone industry, and letting them
into the online business would give them a stranglehold on that,
too.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910822)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 UNIVERSITY OF OREGON SETTLES SOFTWARE SUIT 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00028)

UNIVERSITY OF OREGON SETTLES SOFTWARE SUIT 08/22/91
EUGENE, OREGON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- The University of
Oregon has announced that it will pay $130,000 to settle a
lawsuit in which several computer software companies alleged
that university employees violated software copyrights.

Specifically the suit alleged that employees at a university
microcomputer training laboratory made unauthorized copies of
programs and training manuals. The companies involved are
Aldus, Ashton-Tate, Lotus, Microsoft, Claris and WordPerfect.

The suit was filed on behalf of the software publishers by the
Software Publishers Association, and is reportedly the first
such suit against a public university. Several major software
companies, as well as the association itself, have taken a
strong public stand on the issue of piracy and copyright
violation, and have vowed to pursue violators in the courts.

Apparently many users think it is O.K. to make copies of
copyrighted software and manuals, however most copyright notices
allow copies only for backup purposes. Each user is expected to
have an original edition of single user software. The software
industry estimates that it loses millions of dollars each year
because of piracy.

In addition to the monetary payment, the University of Oregon
also agreed to organize and host a national conference on
copyright law and software use. The state also agreed to
conduct an education campaign on those topics for faculty, staff
and computer students.

"We are happy with the negotiated terms. Software producers
have a right to be assured that every user is accessing a
licensed version of the software," said Peter Swan, assistant for
legal affairs to the university president.

Ken Wasch, executive director of the software association, said
his group is also pleased with the settlement. "We hope that
our action will send a clear message to all public and private
colleges and universities that our members intend to pursue
improper use of their software products vigorously," said Wasch.

The University of Oregon's microcomputer lab, located in
Portland, has the largest computer program training center in
Oregon, and says it trains between 300 and 500 people each
month, many for local businesses.

(Jim Mallory/910822/Press contact: Peter Swan, Univ of Oregon,
503-346-3111)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 DELL COMPUTER INCOME UP 94% 08/22/91

08/22/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00029)

DELL COMPUTER INCOME UP 94% 08/22/91
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- The recession may
still be on, but you can't prove it by looking at the financial
statement for Dell Computer Corporation. Dell has reported that
its net income for the second quarter, which ended August 4th,
is up a whopping 94 percent.

Dell says it had net income of $12.4 million for the quarter, up
from $6.4 million for the same period last year.

The income was realized on sales of $200 million for the
quarter, which is up a respectable 64 percent over 1991's figure
of $121.8 million.

Shareholders will receive $.50 per share for the quarter,
compared to the $.32 they got for the second quarter last year.
The company says sales were up both domestically and
internationally, and the increases spread across every customer
segment.

Dell has made several moves recently to continue its success.
As reported this month by Newsbytes, the company is now selling
its computers through Stapes, a office superstore. It
introduced a low profile 386SX desktop unit in May of this year,
and in June introduced their 486-based line using Intel's 486DX
50 megahertz chip.

Dell is still in the midst of a legal battle with Compaq
regarding advertisements that Dell ran comparing Dell systems to
those of fellow Texan and competitor Compaq Corporation.

Dell maintains a toll free number (800-289-3355) for company and
product information.

(Jim Mallory/910822/Press contact: Michael Moore, Dell,
512-343-3535)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 22 CORRECTION: ATM BUNDLED W/VENTURA 4.0 FOR WINDOWS 08/22/91

08/22/91


(CORRECTION)(IBM)(LAX)(00030)

CORRECTION: ATM BUNDLED W/VENTURA 4.0 FOR WINDOWS 08/22/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 22 (NB) -- Newsbytes
wishes to correct this story, dated August 15. We stated that
Adobe's deal with Ventura Software to bundle Adobe Type
Manager with Ventura Publisher for Windows 4.0 marked the
second time that Adobe had struck such a deal, the first being
with Lotus for its Windows products. In fact, Adobe has now
struck three such deals. A previous bundling deal was with
Aldus.

Adobe Type Manager was bundled with Aldus Pagemaker 4.0 and
Persuasion 2.0, but only with the Windows versions. Aldus tells
Newsbytes that Pagemaker 4.0 for Windows was shipped in February
and Persuasion 2.0 shipped in March.

Aldus customer relations can be contacted at 206/628-6594.

(Wendy Woods & Linda Rohrbough/19910822)
#ENDCARD


#CARD::1991 AUG 21 ASHTON-TATE OFFERS UNLICENSED SOFTWARE AMNESTY 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00001)

ASHTON-TATE OFFERS UNLICENSED SOFTWARE AMNESTY 08/21/91
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Ashton-Tate
has announced it is allowing users of unlicensed versions of
Applause II, Multimate and dBASE IV to register their software at
reduced prices.

At the same time, AT officials said they are offering a free
conversion from Harvard Graphics and Lotus Freelance to Applause
II 1.5 presentation graphics format with a utility that is free to
Applause users.

In use, the utility package imports images and underlying data to
Applause II, Ashton-Tate said. This adds to the files Applause can
already import.

Currently, Applause imports .CGM, .TIF, .GX2, .GIF, Diagram-Master
and Sign-Master files, the company said. Applause can also import
dBASE, Framework, Lotus 1-2-3, Excel, Chart-Master, Sylk, DIF data
files, and ASCII files.

For unlicensed users the company said it is allowing corporations to
schedule an amnesty day per location between now and September
30, 1991. On the day scheduled, any number of users can register
unauthorized copies of dBASE IV, Multimate 4.0 and Applause II at
amnesty prices of around 70 percent less than suggested retail prices.

Registration entitles users to software license agreements, with
manuals available but at an extra charge. Amnesty prices have been
announced as $339 for dBASE IV, $110 for Multimate and Applause.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910821/Press Contact: Linda Duttenhaver, Ashton-
Tate, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NEW FOR PC: Mailing List Software Cuts Costs By Barcoding 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00002)

NEW FOR PC: Mailing List Software Cuts Costs By Barcoding 08/21/91
MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Mysoftware
has announced that version 3.0 of its software package
Myadvancedmaillist now makes it affordable for small businesses
to get postage rates reduced by as much as 5.2 cents a piece, by
barcoding the "zip plus four" data on the envelope.

The company claims that, until now, small businesses have
never taken advantage of the capability because the necessary
software was too expensive.

In version 3.0 of Myadvancedmaillist, the software can be instructed
to send to the printer "zip + four" and/or the barcode along with the
regular mailing information for labels, envelopes or postcards. Also
included as standard with the new version of software is a word
pricessor.

Announcing the package, Dave Mans, president of Mysoftware said:
"Small businesses can effectively compete in the exploding direct-
mail arena with the new Myadvancedmaillist. We'll continue to
provide quick, and easy-to-learn, software tools for small businesses
that are priced to fit their budgets. Our new Myadvancedaillist is our
latest step in that direction."

Retail price on Myadvancedmaillist version 3.0 is $59.95. The
package is available at Egghead Discount Software, Software Etc.,
Waldensoft, Babbages, and Electronics Boutique, CompUSA, Office
Depot, Wal Mart, K Mart, Target and Sears

(Linda Rohrbough/19910821/Press Contact: Kimberly Norris,
MySoftware, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NOVELL RECORDS $43 MILLION PROFIT IN THIRD QUARTER 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00003)

NOVELL RECORDS $43 MILLION PROFIT IN THIRD QUARTER 08/21/91
PROVO, UTAH, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Novell Corporation
has reported that it had a net revenue of $168 million for its third
quarter, which ended on July 27, 1991.

The company added that it showed a net income increase for the
period of 65 percent, up to $43 million from $26.1 million last year.
Income per share was $0.58, up from $0.38 for the same period last
year.

Novell says that its international sales increased from $56.2 million
to $77 million over the second quarter this year. During the period,
it reported rapid sales growth in Europe, the Pacific Rim and Latin
America.

In July of this year Novell Japan, a subsidiary company, began
shipping the first Japanese language version of Netware.

Novell recently announced a two-for-one stock split payable in
the form of a stock dividend to shareholders of record on August 12,
1991. Distribution for the additional shares will be made on August
30 of this year.

In July Novell and Digital Research announced the signing of a
merger agreement which would make DRI a wholly-owned
subsidiary of Novell. Earlier this year IBM and Novell entered into a
marketing agreement which allowed IBM to market, service and
support Novell's Netware products.

Some users and system integrators are reporting that the upgrade
from Netware version 2.15 to version 3.11 has been having problems,
according to an article in Infoworld this week. The article states
that the problem occurs because the two versions are essentially
different operating systems with incompatible bindery structures.

The bindery is the network operating system's database for storing
detailed information such as users, file servers and print queues. One
system integrator reported that it took him 18 hours to upgrade a 600
megabyte file server, and other installers have reported having to do
a lot of hand-checking after running the upgrade utility provided with
version 3.11. Novell says it is working on a solution for customers
with particularly complex upgrades.

(Jim Mallory/19910821/Press contact: Peter Troop, Novell, 408-473-
8361)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 CONVEX COMPUTER GETS ORDER FOR SUPERCOMPUTERS 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00004)

CONVEX COMPUTER GETS ORDER FOR SUPERCOMPUTERS 08/21/91
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Convex
Computer Corporation has announced the receipt of an order from
the Finnish government for two supercomputers.

Convex says the Ministry of Education will receive a C3840, while the
Ministry of Finance will get a C220. Both systems will be installed at
the Center for Scientific Computing (SCS) in Otaniemi, Espoo, just
outside Helsinki.

CSC is a part of the Finnish National Supercomputer Center, which
provides supercomputer and general computer services to Finland's
technical, scientific and industrial communities. Reportedly, about
1,500 users from Finland's 17 universities, the national research
labs, and various commercial companies use CSC's systems.
Applications include work in physics, chemistry, molecular biology,
compuatational fluid dynamics, mechanical computer-aided
engineering (CAE), astrophysics, and visualization.

According to Risto Nieminen, scientific director at CSC, the Convex
system will be installed in early 1992 and will be used for academic
research projects. He said that CSC looks forward to working with
Convex.

Olli Serimaa, system software manager at CSC, said that some of the
factors in making the choice for Convex were power, large memory,
extensive networking capabilities, high I/O capacity, advanced
compilers, and the availability of software. Convex is a Unix-based
system, and is compatible with VAX/VMS through COVUE, Convex
to Vax User Environment software.

The C3840 system to be installed in the Ministry of Education has
eight processors, two gigaflops of peak performance, and four
gigabytes of physical memory. It uses gallium arsenide
semiconductor technology, and is air-cooled.

(Jim Mallory/19910821/Press contact: Donna Burke, Convex, 214-497-
4230)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NEW PRODUCT: Lexmark Intros New 24-Wire Printers 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00005)

NEW PRODUCT: Lexmark Intros New 24-Wire Printers 08/21/91
LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Lexmark
International has announced two new 24-wire models in its IMB
Personal Printer Series II.

Lexmark manufactures and markets printers which utilize a nearly
straight line paper path, minimizing the possibility of paper jams,
the company claims.

Suggested list prices range from $499 for a narrow carriage to $699
for a wide carriage model. All models come with a two-year limited
warranty. Lexmark printers can be used with IBM PCs and close
compatibles.

The 24-pin models allow higher quality graphics and print
enhancements, including shadow and outlines, and come with
eight built-in fonts. Both nine and 24 wire models will accept
multi-part forms. Lexmark introduced its nine wire models in both
80- and 132-column models last month.

Lexmark was founded in March of this year when Clayton and
Dubilier, a New York-based private investment firm purchased IBM's
information products subsidiary. The company also manufactures
and markets typewriters, keyboards and related supplies.

(Jim Mallory/19910821/Press contact: Joe Frazer, Lexmark, 606-232-
6906)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 PENTAX TO SUPPLY SCANNERS FOR TOUCHFAX 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00006)

PENTAX TO SUPPLY SCANNERS FOR TOUCHFAX 08/21/91
BROOMFIELD, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Pentax
Technologies has announced the signing of an agreement to supply
Pentax flatbed scanners to TouchFax Information Systems of Lenexa,
Kansas.

TouchFax manufactures touchscreen facsimile and public
communications terminals.

Pentax says that its Model SB-L301 IQ Scan Desktop Scanner will
be incorporated into the newly introduced TouchFax TF700
terminal.

The TouchFax agreement is a significant opportunity for Pentax,
according to Pentax vice president Robert Bender. "TouchFax has
conservatively estimated that they will require 1,000 scanners within
the next 12 months, and double that amount by the end of 1992." he
said.

TouchFax terminals include a 14-inch touchscreen color monitor,
credit card reader to accept payment, a full sized keyboard, a 300
dots-per-inch (dpi) flatbed scanner, an Intel 80386 based CPU
(central processor unit) with a 40 megabyte hard drive, proprietary
software, an integrated fax and modem, as well as a 300 dpi laser
printer. The entire unit is housed in a 24-inch by 28-inch by 50-inch
steel kiosk providing fax service to the general public.

Pentax Technologies is a wholly owned subsidiary of Asahi Optical
Co of Japan which was founded in 1985 to develop, sell and service
computer peripherals. Ashai Optical is best known for its line of
Pentax cameras, but also makes lenses, mirrors, scanner and fax
sub-assemblies and laser scanning units.

(Jim Mallory/19910821/Press contact: Courtney DeWinter, Wells
Communications, 303-292-1011)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NEW PRODUCT: Envelope Printing for Macs and PCs 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00007)

NEW PRODUCT: Envelope Printing for Macs and PCs 08/21/91
NEWARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Tidemark has
announced the Address Express, a complete system for addressing
envelopes, designed to work with the IBM PC and close compatibles,
as well as the Apple Macintosh range of computers.

Tidemark claims that the system is smart enough to pick an address
out of a letter or other correspondence, place it on an envelope and
send it to the printer that comes with the system, without disturbing any
of the normal workflow, especially in a networking environment.

The software is available to the user from a "hot key" combination
on the PC and as a INIT on the Macintosh, company officials said.

Mara Stefan, of public relations for Tidemark, said the system
eliminates all the hassle of digging up the envelope, changing the
printer from portrait to landscape, moving the address from the letter
to the envelope document and then printing the envelope.

The system includes a printer made by Texas Instruments
specifically for Tidemark, address management and layout software,
network support software for both PC and Macintosh users, cabling
and documentation, he said.

Larry Plummer, chief executive officer of Tidemark said: "We've
solved a major work place frustration.  We've totally eliminated the
time and hassle involved in using a typewriter, handwriting or
manually feeding a printer to address an envelope. No additional
steps are involved to recreate the address."

According to Tidemark, the Address Express system can be
configured to print bar coded zip codes on to the envelope.
Envelopes with bar codes on them qualify for postal rate savings
of between seven and 20 percent. As well as bar codes, the
software can be set to print graphic images on the envelope
alongside the address. A clip art library is included as standard
with the package for this purpose.

Joe Miller, vice-president of Tidemark said: "The heart of the
addressing unit is an enhanced inkjet printing system that works
with a wide range of paper types, textures and sizes."

"With capacity for more than 100 envelopes or labels, the address
printer features professional-quality resolution, quiet operation and
low power consumption," he added.

Enhanced networking services include background print spooling,
and printer status reporting so a user can "look" at a particular printer
and see if it is busy and the type of envelope it has loaded, Stefan
said.

The retail price on Address Express is $1,195. The system is
expected to be available during the third quarter of this year. A
toll-free 800 area code number for technical support is provided,
and the system carries a one year parts and labor warranty.

The minimum configuration on the IBM PC platform for Address
Express DOS 2.11 or higher, 512 kilobytes of RAM, a hard disk, and
a graphics display. On a networked PC the required is 640K and
DOS 3.1 or higher.

Apple Mac users need System 6.0.4 or higher, 1MB of RAM and a
hard disk. The company said that Address Express is fully
System 7.0-compatible.

Further information is available from Tidewater, One Duffel Centre,
39899 Balentine Drive, Suite 320, Newark, CA 94560-5363, telephone
[phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/19910821/Press Contact: Mara Stefan, Tidemark,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 SECOND-HAND SOFTWARE COMPANY FOR ATARI DEBUTS 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00008)

SECOND-HAND SOFTWARE COMPANY FOR ATARI DEBUTS 08/21/91
LANSING, MICHIGAN, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Second-hand
software used to be quite a money-spinner in the days before software
piracy gave the industry a bad name. Now a new company, called The
Computer Dungeon, aims to service the second-hand software market
for Atari computer users, while at the same time staying legal on the
copyright front.

The Computer Dungeon is insisting that all software that passes
through its hands is original, and comes complete with all
documentation. Apart from these criteria, Atari computer users of all
types are being encouraged to sell, exchange and buy their
second-hand software through the company.

The company, which is looking to handle software for the Atari ST,
XL/XE and Lynx range of computers, claims to have several
thousand titles always in stock, and will send out its catalogue of
available software free on request.

The primary aim of the company is to sell second-hand software, but
trades are also allowed. The general rule of thumb is that a $5 fee is
enough to exchange one package for another, especially on the
Lynx games console. As always, negotiation is the art of the deal.

Because company officials have such a tight rein on what software
passes through their hands, The Computer Dungeon is
guaranteeing that all software bought by mail order are the originals.

(Steve Gold/19910821/Press & Public Contact: The Computer Dungeon,
P.O. Box 25011, Lansing, MI 48909 - Tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NEW FOR MAC: "On-The-Fly" Data Compression Package 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(LON)(00009)

NEW FOR MAC: "On-The-Fly" Data Compression Package 08/21/91
WATSONVILLE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- While
"on-the-fly" program and data compression programs for the PC are
nothing new, the packages are still something to write home about
on the Apple Mac. Aladdin Systems' Spacemaker, is one such
package for the Mac.

Pricing in at $60, the package carries out "on-the-fly" file
compression and decompression without requiring the user to carry
out any special operations. In use, the package sits in RAM and
intercepts drive-relevant commands from the Mac's operating
system, compressing and decompressing the files as required.

Aladdin claims that its software has a similar performance to
hardware-based compression boards, averaging a 50 percent
compression rate on most files. This is roughly comparable to the
Stuffit and LHARC programs currently being used by the Mac
community to squeeze file sizes down -- the advantage with
Spacemaker is that the package works transparently, as far as the
user is concerned.

According to the company. Spacemaker is currently undergoing
beta testing, prior to shipment this October.

(Steve Gold/19910821/Press & Public Contact: Aladdin Systems, 165
Westridge Drive, Watsonville, CA 95076 - Tel: [phone]; Fax:
408/761-6206)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 BI-MONTHLY ATARI LYNX NEWSLETTER TO DEBUT 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00010)

BI-MONTHLY ATARI LYNX NEWSLETTER TO DEBUT 08/21/91
CUMBERLAND, RHODE ISLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- E&M
Publishing has announced a new magazine called "On Target" that is
aimed exclusively at Atari Lynx games console owners.

According to the publishers, the new bi-monthly magazine will cover
the world of the Lynx from software to accessories right down to
secret playing hints. The first issue is available by mail order now
at a special offer price of $1.

Subscriptions to On Target cost $4 in the U.S., which gets you six
issues of the magazine. Unusually for a magazine of this type, E&M
says it is pitching the publication at the international marketplace.
As part of this idea, readers are encouraged to advertise for other
Lynx users around the world, so that they can "Lynx up" for games
playing.

In the U.K., sales of the Lynx continue to power ahead. Initial
shipments of the Lynx Mk II are now reaching the stores. The Lynx
Mk II has a slightly smaller case and screen, and retails for around
UKP 129.

(Steve Gold/19910821/Press & Public Contact: On Target, 18C Boyle
Avenue, Cumberland, RI 02864-2306 - Tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NEW FOR PC: Infra-red PC Keypad Allows Remote Data Entry 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00011)

NEW FOR PC: Infra-red PC Keypad Allows Remote Data Entry 08/21/91
RUISLIP, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Infrared
keyboards for the PC are still quite popular, although a little bulky,
having first been seen in the U.K. on the Apricot portable PC in the
mid-1980s. Enter Electrone with its keyboard master, a keyboard
substitute that the company claims allows remote data entry up to
50 feet away from the PC.

Keyboard master is a UKP 295 unit that plugs into the keyboard
socket on the PC. Alternatively, the unit can be plugged into the PC's
serial port and suitable driver software loaded into memory.

In return for their money, users get an an unusual 27-key keyboard
which can be software mapped to emulate almost any key on the PC
keypad, as well as special ASCII code keys.

Up to three keybad configurations can be held in the PC's memory
at any given time. Using all three configurations, plus a number of
macro keys can, the company claims, allow data to be entered as
if from a real PC keyboard.

In the main, however, the keyboard master is designed to run simple
applications remotely, with numeric-only data entry. This accounts
for its low price as far as remote keyboards go.

(Steve Gold/19910821/Press & Public Contact: Electrone UK - Tel: 081-
864-5559)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 U.K.: PC AUTO-DIALER NOW AVAILABLE 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00012)

U.K.: PC AUTO-DIALER NOW AVAILABLE 08/21/91
HUDDERSFIELD, WEST YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) --
Most auto-dialing software available for the PC relies upon a modem to
carry out the necessary auto-dialing. Now a small U.K. company has
come up with the logical successor -- a modemless autodialer.

According to DSK, the suppliers, the Genie autodialer supports tone or
pulse dialing from a TSR (terminate-and-stay-resident) package that
loads into RAM each time the PC is booted up. To use the dialer, the
TSR package is popped up and the number entered. This is more
efficient, DSK claims, than a modem autodialer, which normally
requires fairly complex communications software.

The package is not cheap at UKP 59-95. Newsbytes notes that a copy
of Borland's Sidekick can be purchased for around half this price,
although the autodialing facility on Sidekick relies on a modem being
present. The DSK Genie, meanwhile, is a complete "plug-in and go"
package.

The DSK Genie requires a PC equipped with at least 256 kilobytes
of RAM and DOS 3.0. The package can be configured to run in
extended memory.

(Steve Gold/19910821/Press & PUblic Contact: Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 WIRELESS TELECOMS BEST CHOICE FOR UNDERGROUND USE 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00013)

WIRELESS TELECOMS BEST CHOICE FOR UNDERGROUND USE 08/21/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Pocket pagers and portable
phones may be convenient but they do not function well underground
or on subways. The best choice for underground telecommunications
work is a series of "leaky" cables that transmit fairly low-power, but
highly penetrating signals for a short area around the cable itself.

As a result of this, the Japanese Ministry of Posts and
Telecommunications has started a project to lay out a number of
wireless transmission cables in the subway systems of large cities
here in Japan. The first to receive the benefits of the cabling
projects are the Tokyo and Osaka subway systems.

The Ministry has already begun a 50 day experiment with wireless
radio communications using leaky cables in Osaka. The extra projects
will involve the use of larger cables, which will carry a variety of radio
signals.

This poses something of a technical problem for the ministry -- how
to ensure that the cable is able to carry different radio signals
without one signal impairing another. Conventional radio theory
suggests that different wavelengths should not be used on the
same transmission element due to this transmission cancelling
effect.

The Japanese electrical engineers have said, however, that the
difference between the various radio wavelengths used for
transmission is so great that signal cancellation effects should be
negligible. The transmissions used are 900MHz for radiopagers,
82.9 MHz for FM radio, and 666 KHz for AM radio.

Another headache for the telecommunication administration is the
sheer cost of the project. Best estimates suggest that the average
cost of laying cables in the subway works out at around 100 million
yen ($7,500) per kilometer. With several hundred miles of subway in
the Tokyo area alone, the costs involved are astronomical.

The ministry's solution is to ensure that the network goes live and
attracts paying customers from as earlier a date as possible.
For this reason, the pilot test period will end at the end of this
month and the ministry plans to issue its report and
recommendations before the end of the year.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910821)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 SEAGATE TO BUILD HARD DRIVE PLANT IN JAPAN 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00014)

SEAGATE TO BUILD HARD DRIVE PLANT IN JAPAN 08/21/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- California-based Seagate
Technologies has announced plans to build a hard disk drive plant in
Japan. The firm is reported to have already purchased a suitable site
for the facility in the Nagano Prefecture, according to the Nikkei
newspaper.

This is the first time that Seagate, until now a predominantly U.S.
company, has built its drives in Japan. The move is thought to be
part of a program to cut costs, something that all drive manufacturers
are having to think about, now that sales of hard drives are maturing.

Seagate plans to start construction of the plant on the new 32,000
square feet site from next month. The production lines are
expected to start rolling by the early part of next year.

At the new plant, Seagate plans to produce 2.5-inch hard disks for
notebook-type computers, which are rapidly gaining in popularity in
Japan. Seagate also plans to produce even smaller 1.8-inch hard
disks at the plant, which has an estimated total production capacity
of 3.6 million hard drives a year.

Seagate is a major hard disk drive manufacturer. The company has
a 40 percent share of the hard disk marketplace and is currently
producing 8.4 million units a year. Seagate is already supplying its
hard disk drives to Japanese PC and workstation firms on an OEM
(original equipment manufacturer) basis.

Seagate is currently producing smaller-sized hard disk drives at its
Thailand and Singapore plants, but the firm is expected to move the
production of the 2.5-inch hard disk drives to its new plant in Japan
early next year.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910821)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 JAPAN: PC SALES DECLINE ACCORDING TO JEIDA SURVEY 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00015)

JAPAN: PC SALES DECLINE ACCORDING TO JEIDA SURVEY 08/21/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Sales of personal computers
went down for the first time in Japan over the last year, according to
a survey taken by the Japan Electronics Industry Development
Association (JEIDA).

The survey's findings show that sales of laptops are slowing up,
and sales of other PCs have also slowed. The major reason for
the decline in sales is not due to a shortfall in demand in Japan,
however, it is due to a dramatic fall in the number of PCs exported
from Japan for sale overseas.

JEIDA's survey shows that sales of personal computers for the April-
June period were 294.7 billion yen ($2.2 billion), and the total
output was 613,000 units. Both the sales amount, and the output units,
were two percent lower than at the same time last year. Domestic
sales in Japan, meanwhile, were 229.1 billion yen ($1.7 billion),
which is a rise of seven percent over last year.

Sales of 32-bit machines were 108.7 billion yen ($0.8 billion), around
twice the sales figure this time last year. Thirty-two-bit machines, in
fact, accounted for a healthy 74 percent of total PC sales. At the other
end of the scale, sales of laptop PCs were down 14 percent.

All is not doom and gloom on the PC sales front, however. Sales of
notebook PCs are reported to be two percent up on this time last year.

The export situation does not look good. Export sales are 23 percent
down in unit terms, and 35 percent in overall shipment terms. One of
the reasons for this sales decline is that PCs are being produced in
volume at overseas plants in a bid to beat anticipated local import
barriers.

The good news is that, while exports are down, overall income for
the Japanese PC industry is staying level, a sure sign that
overseas production of PCs is a good choice for the companies.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910821)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 UNISYS JAPAN LAUNCHES NETWORK INTEGRATION BUSINESS 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00016)

UNISYS JAPAN LAUNCHES NETWORK INTEGRATION BUSINESS 08/21/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Unisys Japan has announced
that, as of September, it intends to begin marketing network-based
Unix computer systems.

With this strategy, the firm aims to triple its sales in Japan alone.
Plans also call for Unisys Japan to market FDDI (Fiber optic Data
Distribution Interface)-compliant standard optical local area networks.

Unisys Japan's network integrated system supports a remote online
controlling service called Com Watch, a network management service
provided by Timeplex. Com Watch monitors and controls the network
24 hours a day. According to Unisys, this feature ensures minimum
down time for the network.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910821/Press Contact: Unisys Japan, +81-3-3585-
4111)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 CYRIX PROVIDES MATH CHIPS FOR GSA SUPPLIERS 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00017)

CYRIX PROVIDES MATH CHIPS FOR GSA SUPPLIERS 08/21/91
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Cyrix
has announced it is now supplying its FasMath coprocessors to
several US government GSA schedule holders.

GSA schedules are a means for the U.S. government to purchase a
multitude of products from suppliers quickly, without having to go
through a bid process, since prices have already been established.

Companies such as Compucom, CompUSA, ELEK-TEK, Government
Micro Resources and Softmart have requested the FasMath line of
math processors to meet customer demand.

Cyrix says that some of the US government agencies using their
chips in computers include the US Postal Service, Social Security
Administration, Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the
Department of Defense (DOD).

"The government is one of the largest users of CAD (computer-aided
design) products, a market we specifically target with our AutoMATH
coprocessor" said Bob Derby, vice president of sales for Cyrix.

Cyrix provides a family of math coprocessors designed to increase
the speed of computers performing numerical calculations. Math chips
are frequently used in systems running spreadsheets, such as Lotus
1-2-3, Quattro and Excel, as well as CAD packages.

Cyrix claims that its products use an original design that executes
floating-point operations as much as three times faster than
systems not so equipped. The company reports that its chips have
been verified as compatible by a number of vendors, including Lotus
Development Corp, Borland International, and Microsoft.  The
company maintains its products also comply with the IEEE 754
standards established in 1985 by the Floating-Point Work Group.

(Jim Mallory/19910821/Kathy Truesdell, Cyrix Corp, 214-234-8387)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 CHRYSLER SECURES LARGE CONTRACT WITH MOTOROLA 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00018)

CHRYSLER SECURES LARGE CONTRACT WITH MOTOROLA 08/21/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Motorola has
announced that it has completed negotiations on a multi-million dollar
contract with the American automobile manufacturer Chrysler
Corporation.

Terms of the contract call for Motorola to supply reduced-instruction
set computing (RISC) systems to control materials handling and
inventory systems for 19 automobile parts manufacturing plants.
Plans call for the proprietary Chrysler systems to be replaced with
Motorola's Unix-based Delta Series 8000 systems, Motorola officials
said.

The new systems will run time-sensitive applications including
inventory control, material handling, bar code recognition and
printing, receiving and shipping, weighing and measuring, and
production counts for the construction of transmission axles,
engines and glass which will then be shipped to final assembly
plants, the company said.

In addition, plans call for the new systems to support Chrysler's
Just-In-Time (JIT) inventory control system, which ensures that parts
are ordered so they are available when needed without delays or
overstocking. The inventory control system is so precise that parts
are often used within six hours of being shipped to the assembly
plant, Chrysler claims.

Harry Lewis, chief information officer for Chrysler said: "We've had
a long-standing relationship with Motorola as a vendor of other
technologies, and the company will continue to work closely with
us to integrate the new computers into our existing systems."

The Motorola systems are expected to be installed by the
Commercial Systems Division (CSD) in December 1991 at the
19 plants. The Motorola CSD is expected to move the Chrysler
customized manufacturing software to the new systems and
provide additional software including standard network
architecture communications, a Cobol compiler and word
processing, the company said.

Motorola said it will provide training on the over 900 terminals
and 300 printers to be installed. Completion of transition is
expected to be in May of 1992.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910821/Press Contact: Linda Hayes, Motorola,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Kelly Lasecki, Chrysler, Tel:
313/956-5771)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 QUARTERDECK SIGNS WITH ADOBE/RATIONAL SYSTEMS 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00019)

QUARTERDECK SIGNS WITH ADOBE/RATIONAL SYSTEMS 08/21/91
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) --
Quarterdeck Office Systems has signed a licensing agreement with
Adobe Systems, and at the same time signed a joint development
deal with Rational Systems of Natick, Mass.

The licensing agreement with Adobe will make available to
DESQview/X users and developers PostScript scalable fonts and
extensive printer support, at the operating environment level, through
Adobe Type Manager technology.

The joint development deal with Rational will result in the addition
of system-level 286 and 386 shared dynamic link libraries (DLLs),
embedded 16- and 32-bit DOS extenders, and virtual memory
capabilities to future Quarterdeck products.

"The Adobe Type Manager software technology will be supplied
with all DESQview/X systems," said Therese Myers, president and
co-founder of Quarterdeck.

"We have embedded this technology at the system level of
DESQview/X so that all applications being displayed in DESQview/X
windows, including remote X applications, will be able to take
advantage of high-quality fonts -- regardless of size," she added.

The company maintains that DESQview/X, is a graphical,
multitasking and windowing operating environment that is a full
client/server implementation of the X Window System under DOS.

According to Quarterdeck, the agreement with Rational to will allow
programs to share 16- and 32-bit DOS Extenders -- enabling users
to run X Window clients and 16- and 32- bit DOS programs in any
combination. For developers, the DESQview/X system provides a
32-bit environment with a large address space for porting from Unix
and mainframe operating systems.

It is intended for DESQview/X to use a derivative of Rational
System's DOS 16/M, 16-bit DOS extender; and DOS/4G, the
company's recently announced 32-bit DOS extender, to deliver
these capabilities.

Dynamic Link Libraries are shared libraries of routines, designed to
manage an array of common, generalized tasks, stored separately
from an application program's regular code. In the DESQview/X
system, shared DLL services will be performed by the Rational
Systems' technology embedded in the system.

DESQview/X is expected to ship in the fall, and, according to the
company, will allow users and developers a choice of window
managers; the ability to run DOS extended applications up to four
gigabytes in size; the ability to multitask DOS applications and X
Clients either locally or remotely on DOS or non-DOS machines; and
will provide a logical growth path from character-based DOS to
industry standard graphical user interfaces.

(Ian Stokell/19910821/Press Contact: Charles Henry, McHenry &
Associates, 503-772-2382)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 SCO ANNOUNCES DISTRIBUTION AND DEVELOPER PROGRAMS 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00020)

SCO ANNOUNCES DISTRIBUTION AND DEVELOPER PROGRAMS 08/21/91
SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- The Santa
Cruz Operation will distribute its packaged products through leading
North American distributors, and at the same time expand its
developer program, called the SCO Developer Alliance program.

The company says that the North American distributors will also
offer training, services, support and complete SCO Open Desktop
configurations,

SCO maintains it has trained and authorized seven major distributors
in the United States and Canada to sell and support SCO Open
Desktop, its networked graphical operating system. These distributors
are Infinite Solutions, Ingram Micro, Merisel, MicroSource, Tech Data,
and Vitek in the United States, and Merisel in Canada.

SCO now claims to have established an international and domestic
distribution network for SCO Open Desktop that includes these seven
distributors, 12 major OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), 80
specialized SCO Advanced Product Centers (APCs), a wide range of
value-added resellers, and federal systems integrators.

SCO Open Desktop integrates five open system services into a
single package: Unix System V, a graphical user interface,
networking, a SQL (structured query language) database, and
MS-DOS.

According to SCO, the multi-tiered SCO Developer Alliance program
now includes new services designed to address the specific needs
of consultants, independent hardware vendors (IHVs), independent
software developers (ISVs), and research organizations.

The Alliance Partners level is a full-service marketing and technical
information program, while the Alliance Associates level is an
information-only service targeted at non-commercial developers
and major end-user accounts.

The new services include expanded technical support for IHVs,
including increased custom support at the system and device-driver
levels, an expanded online information service and bulletin board,
additional joint marketing programs, ongoing developer seminars,
and software utilities that assist developers in providing
shrink-wrapped products.

The company maintains that the SCO Developer Alliance Program will
also expand to include a special program for the Advanced Computing
Environment (ACE) initiative. Developer Forums are being planned
for October at NetWorld and Unix Expo. An ACE Developer's Kit is
expected to be available in January 1992.

(Ian Stokell/19910821/Press Contact: Zee Zaballos, Santa Cruz
Operation Inc., 408-425-7222)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 AT SAYS DBASE, RAPIDFILE, APPLAUSE NOW PEN DOS COMPATIBLE 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00021)

AT SAYS DBASE, RAPIDFILE, APPLAUSE NOW PEN DOS COMPATIBLE 08/21/91
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Ashton-Tate has
announced that its dBASE IV, Rapidfile 1.2, Applause II, and Framework
IV packages are all compatible with the PenDOS operating system from
Communication Intelligence Corporation.

PenDOS is an operating system designed for handwriting recognition, so
input is with a special `pen' on a hand-held computer the size of a
notebook with a flat screen, that reflects the pen's movements on the
screen. The operating system is not only capable of handwriting
recognition, but of recognizing gestures as commands, so for example,
the user can cross-out words and the computer would delete those
words.

Making the announcement, Dave Proctor, Ashton-Tate's president and
chief operating officer said: "Ashton-Tate's strategy is to provide
compatible software for a variety of computers and operating
environments, giving customers access to new and emerging
technologies."

"PenDOS supports this strategy and immediately allows people to
combine the power and functionality of our products with the
advantages of pen-based computers," he added.

Right now, dBASE IV and Rapidfile require a mouse driver (software for
interpreting mouse movements to the computer) from Mostly Mice,
Ashton-Tate said. The company said that its long-term plans are to
make the software fully compatible without the mouse drivers.

Ashton-Tate says that PenDOS takes maximum advantage of the pen by
employing a graphical or character-based user interface, gesture
commands and a writing window which allows handwritten entries on top
of dBASE IV, RapidFile, APPLAUSE II and the Framework products.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910821/Press Contact: Linda Duttenhaver, Ashton-
Tate, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 APPLE AND ADOBE SYSTEMS SIGN CO-OPERATIVE FONT DEAL 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00022)

APPLE AND ADOBE SYSTEMS SIGN CO-OPERATIVE FONT DEAL 08/21/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Apple Computer and
Adobe Systems have signed a letter of intent that could lead to the
inclusion of Adobe's Type 1 font technology in a future version of
Apple's System 7.0 operating system.

The agreement calls for the development of the software necessary to
support the Type 1 rasterizer and Type 1 fonts within the Mac system
software. It forms part of an interim strategy to deliver the
capability to handle Type 1 fonts prior to the system software
release.

Plans call for Apple to continue to support the TrueType font format
within system software as well as peripheral devices.

Charles Geschke, president and chief operating officer, Adobe Systems
said: "We are delighted to be working with Apple to provide Macintosh
users the ability to use the font format that best suits their needs
by having equal access to both Type 1 and True Type font formats in
the future."

Under the terms of the letter of intent, Apple will make the ATM
rasterizer and some Type 1 fonts available to purchasers of Mac
systems and printers through an interim offer. The offer will be
available in the fall of 1991 and the companies said specific details
will be available at that time.

Roger Heinen, Apple's vice president and general manager of the
Macintosh Software division said: "Our goal with Macintosh system
software is twofold: first, to build in unique functionality that
capitalizes on the close integration between hardware and software,
and secondly, to provide a more open architecture in areas where other
vendors can provide valuable tools and technologies for our
customers."

One of the new Macintosh System 7.0 operating system features is
TrueType, Apple's outline font technology, that the company claims
provides users with high quality-text on the screen and the printed
page. The agreement with Adobe will eventually allow users to access
both TrueType and Type 1 fonts.

Currently Macintosh users can use Type 1 fonts in Adobe's Type Manager
2.0 program running under System 7, although Apple maintains that the
inclusion of the Type 1 format into the Macintosh system software will
greatly simplify the process for the user. Implementation of the
letter of intent is contingent on the execution of a definitive
contract.

(Ian Stokell/19910821/Press Contact: Linda Prosser, Adobe Systems,
415-962-3840; Patty Tulloch, Apple Computer Inc., 408-974-5449)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 SYMANTEC ACQUIRES DYNAMIC MICROPROCESSOR ASSOCIATION 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00023)

SYMANTEC ACQUIRES DYNAMIC MICROPROCESSOR ASSOCIATION 08/21/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Less than a week
after Symantec Corporation acquired Woburn, Mass-based Zortech Inc, in
an effort to increase its role as a provider of programming software,
the company is now trying to move into the remote control
communications software market with the acquisition of Dynamic
Microprocessor Associates of Huntington, New York.

DMA is the developer and marketer of the pcANYWHERE remote control
software, which was introduced in 1985, and allows users to connect a
remote computer to a host PC and create an interactive display of the
host machine.

The acquisition is to be accomplished as a `pooling of interest,' the
accounting method that has gained so much attention in AT&T's
acquisition of NCR Corp. Symantec will exchange 400,000 shares of its
common outstanding stock for the current outstanding shares of DMA.

The DMA staff will report to Rod Turner, executive vice president of
Symantec's utilities group, located in Santa Monica, California.

Newsbytes previously reported that the acquisition of Zortech Inc., a
developer of cross-platform C++ compilers, was an attempt by Symantec
to enter that market niche, and at the same time encompass the
company's compiler technology into its own internal tools.

Symantec develops, markets and supports a line of application and
system software products for IBM personal computers and compatibles,
and Apple Macintosh computers. Founded in 1982, the company has
offices in the United States, Canada, Australia and Europe.

(Ian Stokell/19910821/Press Contact: Terri Sammonds, Symantec Corp.,
408-725-2752)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 IBM CANADA RECRUITS MERISEL FOR TOKEN-RING DISTRIBUTION 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00024)

IBM CANADA RECRUITS MERISEL FOR TOKEN-RING DISTRIBUTION 08/21/91
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Seeking to broaden
distribution channels for its Token Ring network products, IBM Canada
has signed a distribution deal with Merisel Canada. Merisel is to
select new value-added resellers (VARs), who will obtain Token Ring
products through the national distributor.

Current IBM Canada authorized remarketers will keep on selling Token
Ring products, said June Ziola, account manager for Merisel at IBM
Canada. They will not be required to work through Merisel, she told
Newsbytes, though in some cases they may want to do so. Ziola said the
main purpose of the Merisel deal is to broaden distribution of the
network products.

Existing dealers for the Token Ring products "look a lot like IBM,"
Ziola said. They are good at reaching large accounts. IBM hopes
Merisel will help it do better at reaching small to medium-sized
buyers. The company is looking for new dealers with different
expertise, who are aiming at different markets, she added.

Ziola said that IBM chose Merisel because it had expertise in
networking. Those skills came largely from Compuserve, one of the two
Toronto-area distributors that merged to form Merisel Canada.
Compuserve began to focus on LANs before being bought by Microamerica,
the U.S. distributor which later merged with Softsel to form Merisel,
Ziola noted, so the Canadian Merisel is stronger in networking than
its U.S. parent.

In the United States, IBM has signed four distributors to handle Token
Ring products, for reasons similar to IBM Canada's. However, Ziola
said, Merisel was not among those chosen.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: Anne Hay, IBM Canada, 416-474-
3900; Ian Fraser, Merisel Canada, 416-660-2701)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 HYUNDAI SIGNS NEW CANADIAN DISTRIBUTOR 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00025)

HYUNDAI SIGNS NEW CANADIAN DISTRIBUTOR 08/21/91
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Hyundai Electronics
Canada, a subsidiary of the Korean manufacturer, has signed Computer
Access Systems of Toronto as its third Canadian PC distributor. CAS
will carry Hyundai's full line of desktop and portable computers,
monitors, plus modems.

O.H. Kim, Hyundai Canada's general manager, said that Hyundai chose
CAS "because they know the market, they know the product, and they
know the people."

Because CAS carries only a few product lines, Kim added, Hyundai hopes
it will be better able to focus on Hyundai's products than larger
distributors.

Sean Budnik, national sales manager for CAS, said that his company has
not had a line of PCs since Mitsubishi stopped making systems last
year. CAS will handle Hyundai products along with Mitsubishi monitors,
Brother printers and a handful of other products.

"With their new generation of products," Budnik said, "we thought it
would be a good marriage."

Hyundai, a diversified firm which also makes cars, has been selling
its computer products in Canada since 1987. CAS is a 10-year-old
national distributor.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: O.H. Kim, Hyundai, 416-882-
5255; Sean Budnik, CAS, 416-477-8667, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 NEW FOR PC: Accelerator Kits For Windows, LaserJets 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00026)

NEW FOR PC: Accelerator Kits For Windows, LaserJets 08/21/91
RIDGELAND, MISSISSIPPI, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- The XLR8-IT (say
`accelerate it') card will speed up Microsoft Windows, according to
manufacturer Ergon Systems.

When combined with the company's printer adapter it will also boost
the speed of Hewlett-Packard LaserJet and compatible laser printers,
the company claims.

Ergon is now shipping the XLR8-IT card, which fits in a 16-bit, AT-bus
slot in an IBM or compatible personal computer. The card uses Chips &
Technologies' Programmable Universal Micro Accelerator (PUMA) chip set
to speed up the redrawing of screens in Microsoft Windows by
offloading much of the work from the PC's central processor.

An additional circuit card, which fits an adapter slot in the HP
LaserJet and many compatible laser printers, bypasses the printer's
own electronics and provides faster printing of Windows documents, the
company said.

Barrie McArthur, vice-president of marketing at Ergon, told Newsbytes
that the printer accelerator will work with any printer that uses the
same Canon print engine as the HP LaserJet line and has a printer
adapter slot.

The XLR8-IT Windows accelerator card costs US$499. The printer adapter
is an additional US$129. Both are available now. The company is also
planning special accelerator software for Autodesk's AutoCAD computer-
aided design software, to be released early in 1992.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: Barrie McArthur, Ergon
Technologies, 601-856-4968, fax [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21  ****CA ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH TANDEM 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00027)

 ****CA ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH TANDEM 08/21/91
GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Computer Associates
will adapt its integrated systems management software to hardware from
Cupertino, California-based Tandem Computers. The two companies have
announced a joint development agreement.

Terms of the agreement call for CA to develop software to run on
Tandem NonStop systems. The software is part of the firm's CA90s, or
Computing Architecture for the 90s, strategy.

It will handle automated production control, storage and resource
management, performance management and accounting, data center
administration, and security control and auditing, CA said. The
software will also let users manage Tandem systems along with those
from other hardware makers.

As part of the CA90s strategy, Computer Associates is setting up
development deals of this sort with a number of hardware vendors. The
company announced a deal with Hewlett-Packard in January, and one with
Digital Equipment more than a year ago. There will be more, Kurt
Siebert, CA's vice-president of strategic alliances, told Newsbytes,
though he would not name companies with which CA is talking.

"Where a hardware company has a viable solution that our clients are
looking at and need our software tools," Siebert said, CA is
interested in making its products available on that platform.

But he added that CA has to be "rather particular," as it has limited
development resources and cannot adapt its software to every available
piece of hardware.

Tandem's Non-stop systems are fault-tolerant computers meant mainly
for online transaction processing systems and enterprise networks. The
two firms said the new products will extend and complement existing
operations management products from Tandem and its other strategic
software partners.

While Training America will cease to exist as a separate company,
Goal plans to keep all of its employees and offices. Training
America's consulting group in Boston will become part of Goal's
development group, based in nearby Cambridge, Massachusetts,
Goal spokesman Brent Greer told Newsbytes.

Siebert said that products resulting from the deal will be on the
market in a year to 18 months. Financial terms of the agreement were
not disclosed.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: Bob Gordon, Computer
Associates, 516-227-3300 ext. 3515; Tom Waldrop, Tandem, 408-285-7277)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 GOAL SYSTEMS TO TAKE OVER TRAINING AMERICA 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00028)

GOAL SYSTEMS TO TAKE OVER TRAINING AMERICA 08/21/91
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- Goal Systems International
has bought most of the assets of Training America Inc., of White
Plains, New York, for about US$650,000.

The deal gives Goal Training America's Explain line of online
reference and help software.

Explain runs on IBM and compatible mainframes, on PCs and local-area
networks, and on Unix systems. A version for OS/2 Presentation Manager
is being developed, Goal said.

TAI had sales of about $2 million in the year ended June 30. It has
four regional sales offices and a product development group in
Minneapolis, which will become part of Goal.

Goal also signed employment agreements with TAI's two principals.
George Langan, TAI founder and president, has been named vice-
president of marketing for Goal's information technology division.
TAI's executive vice-president, Patricia Lapointe, will become a
director in Goal's professional services group.

In July, Goal bought Teaching By Computer Inc., maker of the Syllabus
computer-based training system. Goal said the acquisitions give it PC
tools to complement its Phoenix and Preference employee performance
support systems for mainframes.

"Our motivation in acquiring Training America is three-fold," said
Robert A. Nero, president of Goal's information technology division.
"We broaden our technical capability for online documentation and help
on PCs, LANs, and workstations; we gain the advantage of a specialized
mid-priced product; and we join forces with the excellent technical
and sales team at TAI," he added.

Goal also announced unaudited results for its second quarter and six
months ended July 31, 1991. Revenue for the quarter was US$30.6
million, up 16 percent from $26.4 million in the same quarter last
year.

Net income for the quarter was US$2.6 million, up 21 percent from
US$2.1 million in the second quarter last year. For the six months,
revenue rose 16 percent to US$57.3 million from US$49.3 million one
year ago. Net income was US$4.1 million, versus a US$100,000 loss a
year ago.

(Grant Buckler/19910821/Press Contact: Brent Greer, Goal Systems
International, 614-785-2229)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 SPA ANNOUNCES THREE NEW PUBLICATIONS 08/21/91

08/21/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(WAS)(00029)

SPA ANNOUNCES THREE NEW PUBLICATIONS 08/21/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 21 (NB) -- The Software Publishers
Association has announced three new publications for its members and
others involved in publishing and selling software: Salary surveys, a
human resources guide, and a U.S. Software Channel Marketing guide
make up the troika of industry publications.

Most interesting of the new publications is Book I of the `US Software
Channel Marketing Guide,' a definitive guide that helps both U.S. and
international software dealers to understand how software is marketed
and distributed in the U.S.

Priced at $495 for SPA members and $995 for non-members, the new guide
will ship this fall, with the second volume due out early next year.

Free to SPA members who participated in gathering the data, $200 to
non-participating SPA members, and $450 to non-participating, non-SPA
members, `The SPA 1991 Software Industry Salary Survey' includes
industry salary information for 38 key positions, including PR,
customer support, and all levels of programmers, gathered from more
than 200 SPA member companies.

`The SPA Human Resources Audit Guide' is a $100 self-administered
employer manual to help solve employer-employee relations. Non-SPA
members will pay $180 for the Guide.

To order, contact APA, Attn.: Membership Department, 1730 M Street,
NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036, or fax [phone]. For further
information, call 202-452-1600.

(John McCormick/19910821/Press Contact: Jodi Pollock, SPA, 202-452-
1600)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 21 CYRIX GETS COPROCESSORS ON GSA SCHEDULE 08/21/91

08/21/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00030)

CYRIX GETS COPROCESSORS ON GSA SCHEDULE 08/21/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- U.S.-built FasMath
coprocessors from Richardson, Texas-based Cyrix are now available
through several GSA contractors (GSA is the major U.S. government
contracting agency).

The Cyrix coprocessors are direct plug-compatible alternatives for
Intel's family of math coprocessors. Compucom, CompUSA, ELEK-TEK,
Government Micro Resources and Softmart are all adding the Cyrix
microchips due to customer requests.

In addition to the IEEE standard math coprocessors, which many
observers feel are faster than true Intel coprocessors -especially for
80286-based systems, Cyrix has also introduced AutoMATH, a chip
designed especially to speed the computations required by the popular
AutoCAD computer aided design program.

(John McCormick/19910821/Press Contact: Michelle Moody, Cyrix, 214-
234-8387)
#ENDCARD

#CARD::1991 AUG 20 MOBILE CREDIT CARD VERIFIER AVAILABLE IN 4Q 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00001)

MOBILE CREDIT CARD VERIFIER AVAILABLE IN 4Q 08/20/91
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) --
If you take a cab, have a pizza delivered, or use some other mobile
service, you will soon be able to get electronic approval of your
credit card within seconds.

US Wireless says it will introduce a mobile credit card verifier in
the 4th quarter of 1991 which will allow merchants on the go to
receive authorizations for credit card transactions using the
POS 50 device.

The POS 50 is a 12-inch by 8-inch by 4-inch device connected to
a cellular phone. The operator slides the credit card through the
scan device, and in less than 30 seconds the authorization number
is returned.

POS 50 also has the ability to verify checks, if the merchant has a
service agreement with a local check verification service. The
POS 50 incorporates two RJ11 telephone-type jacks in order that
a portable fax machine and laptop computer can be connected.

US Wireless told Newsbytes that it is negotiating with a national
cellular carrier to provide preferred (lower) airtime rates for the
data transmission device. Field tests are presently being
conducted in both mobile and stationary situations.

US Wireless says that simultaneously with shipping, it will launch
an aggressive campaign to market the product to merchants,
banks, taxi companies and the pizza delivery industry.

(Jim Mallory/19910820/Press contact: Brent Phillips, US Wireless,
719-633-1318)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 ZEOS TO BUNDLE LOTUS FOR WINDOWS AND AMI PRO 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)()00002)

ZEOS TO BUNDLE LOTUS FOR WINDOWS AND AMI PRO 08/20/91
ST PAUL, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Zeos International
has announced plans to include the just-announced Lotus 1-2-3 for
Windows, as well as Lotus word processing program Ami Pro 2.0 for
Windows, with all of its Windows-configured systems.

There will be no extra cost added to the price of the computer for the
software, in effect lowering the price of the hardware.

As reported by Newsbytes, Zeos has recently introduced a Intel
80386-based notebook computer as well as 386-, 486- and
486SX-based desktop machines.

Commenting on the back-to-back announcements, Zeos president
Greg Herrick said: "These new offers from Zeos were designed to
provide our customers high performance, high value solutions to their
computing needs."

Herrick added that, by combining the hardware and software they are
offering their customers an excellent value.

Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows is the Windows version of the company's
popular spreadsheet, and includes SmartIcons, a customizable set of
icons that provide single-click access to both basic and advanced
spreadsheet functions, and 1-2-3 Classic commands, which gives the
user the option of accessing the familiar 1-2-3 menu by pressing the
"/" (slash) key.

Point-and-click file linking, a select-by-example graph gallery, and
Adobe Type Manager scalable font technology are also included
with 1-2-3 for Windows.

Commenting on why Lotus was selected as Zeos' software partner,
Herrick said: "Lotus is well known for its software expertise. We
pride ourselves in offering customers the very best in hardware, so
the selection made tremendous sense."

The financial details of the agreement was not revealed. Herrick
said that Lotus felt that this bundling agreement was one way to get
Lotus for Windows into as many users' hands as possible quickly.

The two software packages will be bundled with any Zeos system
that has at least two megabytes of RAM, a 42 MB hard drive and
Windows.

Although Zeos said that the bundling was effective immediately, it
acknowledged that Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows is not expected to ship
until early September, nor has AMI Pro shipped. Therefore,
customers ordering Zeos systems now will receive the software as
soon as both packages become available.

Additional information is available from Zeos by calling 800-423-5891.

(Jim Mallory/19910820/Press contact: Justin Morris, ZEOS, 612-633-5877
or Lisa Landa, Lotus, 617-693-1263)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 EDS TO BUY MCDONNELL DOUGLAS SYSTEMS INTEGRATION 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00003)

EDS TO BUY MCDONNELL DOUGLAS SYSTEMS INTEGRATION 08/20/91
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Electronic Data Systems
Corporation (EDS) has announced that it has signed a letter of intent
to acquire McDonnell Douglas Systems Integration Company (MDSI).

The purchase is subject to various conditions, as well as the
negotiation of agreements.

The proposed purchase would include the domestic operations of
MDSI and certain computer-aided design (CAD), computer-aided
manufacturing (CAM), and computer-aided engineering (CAE)
international research and distribution activities.

If the sale is completed, the two companies say it would create one
of the largest concentrations of specialists in the world working on
the development of mechanical CAD/CAM technologies serving
the aerospace, automotive and other commercial markets.

Last year, McDonnell Douglas selected MDSI's Unigraphics system
as its standard mechanical CAD/CAM/CAE system for
implementation throughout its aerospace operations.

Herbert Lanese, senior VP of finance at McDonnel Douglas, said: "In
addition to proceeding with this implementation, McDonnell Douglas
intends to remain actively involved in promoting Unigraphics
throughout the aerospace industry."

Many customers names reside on both EDS and MDSI's customer
lists,  and the two companies believe this will furnish opportunities to
leverage resources and relationships with the customers in vertical
markets such as manufacturing, state and local government, energy
and chemicals, communications and insurance.

MDSI provides system integration and information technology, and
reported 1990 worldwide revenue of $398 million, up from the previous
year. EDS says it operates in 28 countries, employs 64,000 people
worldwide, and had revenues of $6.1 billion in 1990.

(Jim Mallory/19910820/Press contact: Ken Smalling, EDS, 214-661-6188,
Ellen Ferrara, MDSI, 314-344-2654)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20  ****AN EARLY LOOK THROUGH WINDOWS 3.1 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00004)

 ****AN EARLY LOOK THROUGH WINDOWS 3.1 08/20/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Microsoft
has given its Windows developers an early look at Windows 3.1, and
they liked it. The developers also believe Microsoft listened to them
when it crafted the new release.

As reported by Newsbytes, Windows 3.1 was previewed for more
than 2,000 software developers in Seattle last week. Attendees at the
conference, which some analysts believe to be the largest gathering
of developers ever, heard company officials talk about the new
features of Windows and future plans for Microsoft products.

The company used such terms as: "easy to use," "more powerful,"
and "versatile" when talking about Windows 3.1. From what they saw,
many developers seem to agree.

Stan Graham, a senior systems architect at Intel Corporation,
reportedly said about Windows 3.1: "There is now much more
momentum behind Windows. People who are not computer literate
need to be educated about the computer and new types of
applications need to be written for them. Windows 3.1 will help make
that possible."

Software designer Dan Baer of Canon Business Machines was quoted
as saying: "For the everyday DOS user, the move to Windows is the
right choice -- one I think many people will make. With the
enhancements for MS-DOS 5.0 and now Windows 3.1 Microsoft is
clearly concentrating on getting feedback and using it to improve
their product."

While Newsbytes has not yet had the opportunity to test Windows 3.1,
most of the reported new features seem to be aimed at making the
developers task easier.

Some of the new features include: a parameter validation system, to
help eliminate Unreasonable Application Errors (UAE); a system that
will demand-page DOS applications which are running in the
background on and off the hard drive in four kilobyte pages, allowing
background applications to execute even while part of the application
is stored on disk; the ability for developers to write programs which
save printer settings with individual documents or programs; and
Dynamic Link Libraries (DLL) that support version 1.0 of the Object
Linking and Embedding (OLE) protocol, allowing developers to write
less code.

Other new features include a DLL that will provide code that supports
common user dialogs such as file saves and font choices. Also
expected in 3.1 is the introduction of a new version of the Windows
help system, and source code for a graphical installation which
developers can include with the applications they develop, making
user installation easier.

The next (second) beta test version is expected to be available to
beta testers in early September, with the final version ready by the
end of 1991. However a Microsoft spokesperson said the product will
not be released "until it's ready."

Microsoft claims to have shipped more than four million copies of
Windows 3.0, along with more than 70,000 developer kits. The
company says it plans further upgrades in the future, including
Windows NT (new technology), which is reportedly a Windows
version for high-powered personal computers and computer
workstations. Microsoft says it expects to release Windows NT
early in 1992.

(Jim Mallory/19910820)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20  ****AUSTRALIA: SOFTWARE PIRACY CRACKDOWN CONTINUES 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00005)

 ****AUSTRALIA: SOFTWARE PIRACY CRACKDOWN CONTINUES 08/20/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- The Business
Software Association of Australia (BSAA) has struck again, this time
uncovering a dealer in the state of Victoria who was selling machines
loaded with pirated software.

After allegedly receiving complaints from nearby dealers who could
not compete, BSAA set a trap for Rod Marks Computer Systems, and
bought a system which was found to contain 18 megabytes of illegal
software including Lotus 1-2-3, AutoSketch, dBase III plus, Microsoft
Works, WordPerfect, DOS 5.0 and various games. These vendors
have all instituted actions against the dealer, for injunctions, and
recovery of damages.

BSAA also claims recent raids in Malaysia and Singapore will
reduce the flow of pirate copies of popular software ranging from
DOD to AutoCad.

"In many cases the pirate copies can unwittingly be bought as the
real thing, so good is the reproduction of manuals and packaging"
said Jim McNamara of BSAA. "That's a far cry from the blatant
diskette copies with handwritten labels -- no-one could claim they
didn't know they were illegally copied."

McNamara added that when surveys were carried out two years ago,
there were fewer business software packages being sold than PCs -
this has now changed to the point where there are more than two
packages being sold for every machine.

(Paul Zucker/19910820/Contact: BSAA Jim McNamara ph. 61-2-4393655
[phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW PRODUCT: Advanced Logic's Duel 50 MHz i486DX Server 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00006)

NEW PRODUCT: Advanced Logic's Duel 50 MHz i486DX Server 08/20/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Hoping to stake a
claim on the high-end file server market, Advanced Logic Research
(ALR) has introduced the Powerpro Array dual processor file-server
utilizing Intel's new 50-MHz i486DX processor.

According to ALR, each processor board in the new machine contains
512 kilobytes of high speed read/write back cache RAM.

The company also claims that, combined with the ALR Advanced Disk
Array (ADA) and BITBLT (bit block transfer) Super VGA controllers, the
server's 50-MHz EISA (Extended Industry Standard Architecture)-based
dual processor systems deliver the fastest PC performance in the
computer industry today.

The system is configured with one 50-MHz i486 processor and is
upgradeable to dual 50-MHz i486 processing. The company says the
product is compatible with Compaq's Systempro and can deliver
processing performance from 40.7 to 81.4 VAX MIPS.

ALR maintains that the system will be able to utilize off-the-shelf
versions of DOS, OS/2 and will be certified for use with Novell
Netware, along with SCO Unix System V/386 with SCO MPX, and
Banyan Vines SMP.

Data security is provided by the ALR 32-bit advanced disk array
controller which supports disk mirroring, striping and spanning. Disk
array capacity of more than 1.3 gigabytes can be supported using
340 MB IDE drives.

Also standard with the system is the BITBLT Super VGA video
adapter capable of supporting up to 1024 by 768 resolution in 256
colors. The Powerpro Array 50-MHz systems are scheduled to be
shipped sometime in the fourth quarter of 1991.

At the other end of the scale, Newsbytes recently reported that the
company had released the Venture/20 notebook computer.
Weighing-in at 7.5-pound, the 20 MHz Intel 80386SX-based system
comes with 4MB of RAM and a built-in 3.5-inch floppy disk drive as
standard, along with a choice of 40, 60 or 80MB IDE hard disk drive.

(Ian Stokell/19910820/Press Contact: Dave Kirkey, Advanced Logic
Research, 714-581-6770)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEC INTROS 4M DRAMS AND NEW CMOS-6 GATE ARRAYS 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00007)

NEC INTROS 4M DRAMS AND NEW CMOS-6 GATE ARRAYS 08/20/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUGUST 19 (NB) --
NEC Electronics has announced that it is now shipping four megabyte
versions of its DRAMs (dynamic random access memories), which are
partially manufactured in the U.S. from Japanese designs.

NEC claims this is a major milestone in the company's move toward
building these and other memory chips entirely in the U.S. NEC's four
megabyte DRAMs are packaged in Outline J-Lead (SOJ) package
and are available this month.

NEC recently announced the addition of a new one-micron, high-
density gate array microchip to its CMOS (complimentary metal oxide
semiconductor) 6 family of gate arrays. The new CMOS-6V,
designed specifically for use in U.S. microcomputers, meets the
need for increased input/output (I/O) capabilities.

Useful in bus interface units, graphics controllers, local area
network adapters, as well as I/O controllers, the new CMSO-6V
family of gate arrays is priced from 6 to 9 cents per usable gate.

(John McCormick/19910820/Press Contact: Nikki Tanis, NEC, 415-965-
6620)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW PRODUCT: Logitech FotoMan Digital Camera For PCs 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00008)

NEW PRODUCT: Logitech FotoMan Digital Camera For PCs 08/20/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Logitech,
best known for computer pointing and input devices, has announced
FotoMan, a portable digital camera for use with IBM PCs and
compatibles. FotoMan allows users to take photographs and
download them directly into Logitech's FotoTouch, a Windows-based
image editing software program.

Using FotoTouch, images can be stored in a standard image file
format and used for applications such as desktop publishing, image
databases or presentation graphics. FotoMan can store up to 32
images on an internal RAM chip, and does not use any type of
removable media, as do some other digital camera products.

Once the images are stored, they can be transferred to a desktop,
laptop, portable or notebook computer through the computer's serial
port. No intermediate hardware is required. Since FotoMan is a digital
camera, no special boards or frame grabbers are required, the
company claims.

The average image requires 90-100 kilobytes of disk storage space,
once it has been transferred to the computer. FotoTouch stores
images in PCX or TIFF format. The TIFF files can be compressed or
uncompressed. Fotoman uses a camcorder screw-mount lens.

Some typical examples of FotoMan's use are real estate agents
capturing the image of properties for sale; law enforcement
identification photos; pictures of catalog items, which could then be
included in a desktop publishing-produced catalog; and photos for
personnel records.

Logitech says that FotoMan will be available in late October or early
November of this year, and will carry a suggested list price of $799
including the FotoTouch image editing software. The user must
provide a copy of Windows 3.0.

The FotoTouch software is an improved version of a program
originally called Ansel, which is included with Logitech's ScanMan
256 hand-held gray scale scanner. For use with FotoMan, an
additional module has been added to support the specific features
of the camera.

FotoMan comes standard with a camera docking unit, built in flash,
base unit with power supply, a six-foot serial cable to transfer
images to a computer, a NiCad battery, and a neutral density filter
and adaptor for use outdoors.

When the user sends in the registration card, Logitech will send out
a carrying case for the camera. Optional accessories such as
additional lenses are available through local camera stores.

(Jim Mallory/19910820/Press contact: Serge Timacheff, Logitech,
415-795-8500)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 PHOENIX ADDS TYPEFACES TO EMULATION SOFTWARE 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00009)

PHOENIX ADDS TYPEFACES TO EMULATION SOFTWARE 08/20/91
NORWOOD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) --
Phoenix Technologies has integrated new compact intellifont
scalable typefaces from the Compugraphic division of Agfa into
PhoenixPage Five/PLI, its PCL 5 emulation software.

PCL 5 is the page description language Hewlett-Packard introduced
along with the LaserJet III laser printer.

Phoenix said that the compact typefaces require 40 to 50 percent less
read-only memory (ROM) than previous PCL 5 printer and cartridge
fonts. The company said it is the first PCL 5 supplier to support the
compact intellifont scalable typefaces.

Phoenix sells its emulation software to printer manufacturers who
build it into their products. The company said that the production
version of PhoenixPage Five/PLI has been shipped to more than
15 manufacturers and several printers using it will appear this fall.

Phoenix-Page Five/PLI is a complete emulation of the PCL 5 language
as implemented in the HP LaserJet III printer, Phoenix said. It is a
hardware-independent software module dedicated to processing
PCL 5 page description commands from applications running on a
host system. It supports all of the advanced imaging capabilities of
the PCL 5 language and can be implemented in printer products that
use any resolution supported by the print engine, including 300 by 300,
400 by 400, and 300 by 1,200 dots-per-inch.

(Grant Buckler/19910820/Press Contact: Richard Levandov, Phoenix
Technologies, 617-551-4005)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 ACCESS SEEKS NOVELL RESELLERS FOR GROUPWARE 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00010)

ACCESS SEEKS NOVELL RESELLERS FOR GROUPWARE 08/20/91
NATICK, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Access
Technology is looking for a few good Novell resellers. The company
said it has launched a campaign to sign up new dealers for the
software,  which is designed to help groups of workers review and
revise documents, and is particularly interested in resellers who
already have Gold or Platinum designations from local area network
software leader Novell.

ForComment lets users circulate a document on a local area network,
attaching comments and suggesting revisions. It keeps a record of all
changes to the document. ForComment works on several types of
local area networks. The Novell version began shipping last
December.

Access Technology said it has already signed up several resellers
to market ForComment, and has received many inquiries about the
product. Access is calling its campaign to attract new resellers the
"ForComment solutions program," arguing that ForComment is well
suited to being sold as part of a complete package including the
network and possibly other applications.

(Grant Buckler/19910820/Press Contact: Jessica Solodar, Rogers
Communications for Access Technology, 617-849-6010; Access Technology,
508-655-9191, fax [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 UNITERRUPTIBLE POWER FOR FAX MACHINES 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00011)

UNITERRUPTIBLE POWER FOR FAX MACHINES 08/20/91
TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Upsonic is now
offering the Magician, which it claims is the first power back-up
system for facsimile machines.

The company claims the Magician actually has three functions:
power-line surge protection, phone-line surge protection, and a
battery back-up for the ability to transmit even during a power
failure.

Paul Brugmann, marketing manager for Upsonic said: "Power
disturbances disrupt the transmission of documents and usually
garble or only send half of the transmission. Storms and power
utility maintenance are the prime culprits to non-continuous power
to fax machines."

"Companies are now conducting millions of dollars of business
through their fax machines. A majority of business is international
with transmissions sent at night when power quality is at its worst.
Our Magician is the solution to continuous operation and complete
transmissions," he added.

The Magician weighs six pounds, and is slightly longer and wider
than a roll of fax paper. It supports all manufacturer's fax machines
and can maintain power for up to 45 minutes during a power failure.
Installation is simply a question of plugging the fax into the Magician,
then plugging the Magician into the wall.

Retail pricing on the Magician is $179 with the product expected to
ship at the end of August, the company said. More information is
available from Upsonic directly by calling 800-Upsonic;
[phone].

Upsonic describes itself as a supplier of power protection and
uninterruptible power supplies for mini- and microcomputer,
telecommunications and sensitive electronic instrumentation.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910820/Press Contact: Paul Brugmann, Upsonic,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 PRIVACY VICTORIES RESULT FROM PRIVATE ACTION 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00012)

PRIVACY VICTORIES RESULT FROM PRIVATE ACTION 08/20/91
PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) --
Electronic privacy has won some big victories in 1991, but only where
individual businesses responded to private pressure. That is the
view of Robert Ellis Smith, editor of the Privacy Journal, who
discussed the issue with Newsbytes recently.

Many people have become highly skeptical, even cynical, about
business attacks on their privacy, and some businesses are trying to
respond in the face of the recession. Smith talked in the wake of a
decision by Equifax to drop a mailing list business which would cut
20 jobs, according to the company.

But he notes a recent article in "American Demographics" magazine
claims that the company is already building another product, called
"Buyer's Market," which will also use confidential credit data to
create mailing lists.

Smith had praised Equifax's original decision at a meeting of the
National Conference of State Legislators, calling it "a progressive
and bold step" he hoped competitors TRW and Trans Union would
emulate.

"There's more public awareness of electronic privacy, and more
pressure on large information firms, which had been isolated from
consumer pressure" in the past, he said. While the rhetoric of Equifax
in particular has changed, he noted that the company still plays
hardball when it is taken to court.

Of the three major credit data collectors, he said: "TRW is a more
accurate collector of information, and has been more technologically
advanced. They're also more leaky -- hackers get in their system
more than Equifax. And they've disregarded the Fair Credit Reporting
Act in business-related ways." As a result, some states are interested
in legislation, but nothing has been passed yet.

On the federal level, recent action by Equifax is co-opting proposed
actions by Congress, to its credit, Smith says.

"The industry is powerful in Congress, but I'm not sure it has the
clout, nor whether a bill would cramp their style enough to get a
veto," he said.

"I think since Jan. 1991 there have been significant victories" in the
arena of electronic privacy, "and Equifax's actions fall into that," he
added.

"There was a turnaround on Fidelity Investments -- they started a
service without privacy codes on their phone numbers," then backed
off it. "Blockbuster backed down" from creating mailing lists based on
what videos customers were renting, " and New England Telephone
decided not to sell their mailing lists after complaints."

But there have been no legislative or regulatory victories. Companies
which choose to ignore complaints about a loss of privacy, in other
words, can still get away with it.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910820/Press Contact: Privacy Journal, Robert
Ellis Smith, 401-274-7861)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 BELL ATLANTIC JOINS VENEZUELAN PHONE CONSORTIUM 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00013)

BELL ATLANTIC JOINS VENEZUELAN PHONE CONSORTIUM 08/20/91
ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Bell Atlantic,
which lost a bid to operate half of Argentina's privatized phone
monopoly when its partners failed to come up with the capital, is
now part of a consortium which wants to take on Venezuela's
phone company.

Other members of the group are the Canadian and Italian phone
companies, Bell Canada and Italcable. Local interests are held by
three Venezuelan industrial groups -- Organizacion Cisneros, Banco
Provincial and Finalven.

The group met and agreed they will make a joint bid for the
privatization of Compania Anonima Nacional Telefonos de
Venezuela, Venezuela's national telephone system, then work
together on modernizing the system if they are successful.

Organizacion Cisneros owns a variety of companies, distributing
many popular consumer brand names and running Venevision, the
country's leading television network. Banco Provincial is nation's
largest commercial bank. Finalven's subsidiaries include the
country's largest financing company.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910820/Press Contact: Mike Houghton, Bell
Atlantic, 703-974-1677; Margaret Lemay, BCE, 514-499-7278)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 PACTEL WINS SECOND PORTUGUESE CELLULAR LICENSE 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00014)

PACTEL WINS SECOND PORTUGUESE CELLULAR LICENSE 08/20/91
WALNUT CREEK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- A
consortium, of which PacTel owns 23 percent, has won the second
national cellular license for Portugal.

Plans call for the Telecel consortium will build a nationwide digital
cellular system based on pan-European standards known as
groupe speciale mobile (GSM)

Other partners in the Telecel project include the Espirito Santo
Group, the Amorim Group, CENTREL, EFACEC, and LCC, all of
which come from Portugal.

The group will compete with Telecom Portugal, a joint venture
between two state-owned telephone companies, which operates
an analog cellular system.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910820/Press Contact: PacTel, Kay Yarnevic,
415/210-3790)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 MCI CARRYING CALLS FROM IRAQ 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00015)

MCI CARRYING CALLS FROM IRAQ 08/20/91
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 21 (NB) -- MCI is
handling the U.S. leg of long-distance calls from Iraq, via its MCI
International division, Newsbytes has learned.

The Iraqi news agency INA recently announced that telephone
service between Baghdad and the West were resumed with 48
telephone channels, and that tests are underway to increase that
figure by a further 60 channels.

Eventually, the country will have enough satellite calling capacity
through the International Telecommunications Satellite
Organization, Intelsat, to handle 132 telephone calls and a single
television channel.

"It's MCI that has the Iraq business," MCI International spokesman
Jane Levene said. AT&T and US Sprint spokesman had earlier
denied that they were taking the calls. "We never had direct service
to Iraq before the war," said Sprint's Vince Hovanec.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910820)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 MICROSOFT UPS DEVELOPER SUPPORT WITH COMMS PKG 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00015)

MICROSOFT UPS DEVELOPER SUPPORT WITH COMMS PKG 08/20/91
READING, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Microsoft
has announced Online for Windows, a graphics-based
communications package that the company claims allows
developers to communicate electronically with Microsoft's support
operations.

Based on Windows 3.0, Online for Windows allows access to the
Microsoft Knowledge Base, an online database of technical product
information that can be used by customers to resolve problems,
claims Microsoft. The package can also be used to submit special
queries direct to Microsoft to obtain specific answers to related
questions.

The package is not just engineered for use with Microsoft's online
services. Unlike many specialized communications packages,
Online for Windows allows normal access to most online services, as
well as bulletin board systems (BBSs). The package supports
background file transfers and parallel information processing.

"User support is an issue high on Microsoft's agenda," commented
Tony Ettlinger, Microsoft U.K.'s technical manager. "We are committed
to improving the support offered to our customers and Online for
Windows is a major element in that objective. To date, Online has
been a great success, improving the productivity of MIS groups,
development teams and support staff by providing direct access to
technical information 24 hours a day."

The Microsoft Knowledge Base consists of up-to-the-minute
development and technical information relating to all Microsoft
products. The service includes data from more than 20,000 articles
relating to Microsoft products. In addition, it includes lists of known
bugs and documentation error lists, all retrievable by product and
version.

Customers currently supported by the Microsoft Online service can
obtain a free upgrade to Online for Windows. The package is
available in a number of different versions, ranging from UKP 250 to
UKP 3,000 a year. To access the service, subscribers must use a
PC with Windows 3.0 and a Hayes-compatible modem.

(Steve Gold/19910820/Press & Public Contact: Microsoft UK - Tel: 0734-
391123)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 UK: OPUS SIGNS ROYALTY DEAL WITH IBM 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00016)

UK: OPUS SIGNS ROYALTY DEAL WITH IBM 08/20/91
REDHILL, SURREY, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- The Industrial
Marketing Group, the parent company to Opus Technology, has
signed a five-year royalty-bearing patent licensing agreement
with IBM.

Terms of the agreement allows Opus to use all of IBM's patents in
building and shipping information handling systems, including those
that are compatible with IBM PC AT and Micro Channel Architecture
(MCA) machines.

According to the company, the deal is important, since it allows Opus
to use virtually all of IBM's existing and future PC technology in
Opus PCs. More immediately, the MCA license allows Opus to
develop and quickly bring to market a range of MCA-compatible
computers.

Announcing the deal, Adam Harris, managing director of Opus,
said: "Opus looks forward to continued growth at the forefront
of technology."

Founded in 1981, Opus is a U.K. computer manufacturer offering a
wide range of Intel 8086- to 80486-based systems. The company
claims that it has more than 160,000 installed machines in the U.K.

(Steve Gold/19910820)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW PRODUCT: AST Intros Medallion CAD Workstation 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00017)

NEW PRODUCT: AST Intros Medallion CAD Workstation 08/20/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- AST has
announced the Medallion workstation, which is based on the Intel
i486 33 MHz chipset, and designed specifically for the
computer-aided design (CAD) market.

The Medallion workstation carries a retail price of $8,995 and is
compatible with MS-DOS-based applications software, specifically
AutoCAD, the company said. In fact, included with the system is an
AutoCAD drawing file preview and management utility designed to
work with the graphics controller unique to the Medallion workstation.

Operating speed is 23.5 million-instructions-per-second (MIPS)
according to the Dhrystone version 1.1 Unix benchmarks.

The system was developed in cooperation with CalComp, the
company that makes the DrawingCard 20-inch monitor and high
resolution (1,280 by 1,224 pixels) DrawingCard graphics controller
card capable of displays in 256 colors.

CalComp also produced a special set of software drivers to speed up
screen-draw performance, specifically for the graphical icon interface
and icon editors. The drivers developed by CalComp include special
zooming and panning, high-speed regeneration, color palette editing
and "anti-aliasing" to eliminate the "jaggies" or jagged line
appearance.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108020/Press Contact: Joel Don, AST,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 AUTODESK SHIPS ONE MILLIONTH SOFTWARE UNIT 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00018)

AUTODESK SHIPS ONE MILLIONTH SOFTWARE UNIT 08/20/91
SAN RAFAEL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Autodesk
has announced that it has reached the milestone of shipping its
millionth software package.

Of the million packages shipped, over 500,000 are AutoCAD, the
company's CAD (Computer-aided design) package, 300,000
are generic CAD packages, and 200,000 are the AutoSketch.

The totals were announced at CAD Camp, Autodesk's annual three
day conference for authorized dealers and registered developers.

Autodesk says it has a market evaluation of about $1.3 billion and
the company posted revenues of $238 million for its most recently
completed fiscal year.

The company claims it was founded in 1982 with $59,000 in private
capital.  Autodesk now estimates the value of the economic activity
directly linked to sale of Autodesk products as over $2 billion
annually.

Autodesk claims its software productsare used for a variety of
applications including architecture, interior design, graphics, greeting
cards, aerospace engineering, theatrical lighting design for
Broadway shows, science experiments, yacht design, topographic
maps, animations, interactive displays and video publishing.

Autodesk describes itself as developing, marketing and supporting
a family of computer-aided design, engineering and multimedia
software products for desktop computers and workstations. More
information on Autodesk products is available from the company at
telephone [phone] or type GO ADESK on CompuServe.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910820/Press Contact: Andrew Zarrillo, Autodesk,
Tel: [phone] Ext. 8704, Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW FOR PC: SPI Unveils Windowbase 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00019)

NEW FOR PC: SPI Unveils Windowbase 08/20/91
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Software
Products International has introduced Windowbase, a stand-alone
relational database management system for Microsoft Windows
that supports structured query language (SQL).

The company claims that a novice with little or no knowledge of
SQL can execute simple or complex queries to get the information
they want from the database via button selections, edit controls,
scroll bars and check boxes and then perform operations on the
results.

The company claims WindowBase has an easy-to-use graphical
user interface, customizable menus, uses Windows Dynamic Data
Exchange (DDE), has full support of SQl, and has a C Developers Kit.

The DDE is pointed out by SPI as one of the most important features
of the WindowBase product because it allows users data
management tools like exchanging data with Windows spreadsheets,
word processors and communications packages. Users have
security over their data as well, SPI said, as they can remove access
by simply opening a window and turning a check box on or off.

WindowBase retails for $495, but SPI has announced it is making the
product available for $149 until the end of the month. The C
Developer's Kit is optional and priced at another $695 retail.

WindowBase requires an IBM AT personal computer or compatible,
 PS/2, and two megabytes of RAM is recommended.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910820/Press Contact: Connie J. Roloff, Software
Products International, Tel: [phone], Fax: area/number)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 AUTODESK NETS $5 MILLION IN ANTI-PIRACY ACTIONS 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00020)

AUTODESK NETS $5 MILLION IN ANTI-PIRACY ACTIONS 08/20/91
SAUSALITO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Autodesk
claims it has been aggressive in protecting its software from theft
since starting an anti-piracy program in 1988 that has netted the
company more than $5 million from parties who illegally copy its
products.

Autodesk says that the success of the program is due to the
public's increased awareness of the issues of intellectual property
and copyrights, better legislation and increased assistance of law
enforcement agencies.

Sandra Boulton, director of Autodesk's Anti-Piracy department said:
"Five million dollars is a milestone for our campaign. Copyright
education is a cornerstone of the program but, as the recoveries
from copyright violators indicate, we have aggressively pursued
legal action as well," she said.

Newbytes reported in May on a joint effort between Autodesk and
Microsoft in getting Brazilian authorities to raid Westinghouse
Brazil. The effort uncovered stolen software that could have cost
the company as more than $2 million in fines under Brazilian law.

In April, Newsbytes reported on a similar incident in India where
New Delhi authorities raided SWK Enterprises and found nearly
6,000 illegal copies of software for retail sale. Eight companies were
involved under the auspices of the Business Software Alliance:
Aldus, Ashton-Tate, Autodesk, Lotus, Microsoft, Digital Research,
and Xtree.

Autodesk says that the illegal copying of software is a global problem
and lost revenue to the software industry are estimated at $10 to $12
billion annually. In the U.S. the penalties are up to a $25,000 fine
and up to a year in prison. Civil actions allow the recovery of actual
damages based on the number of copies produced or liquidates
damages of up to $100,000 for willful copyright infringement.

"A number of companies have established employee guidelines for
legal software use and have initiated periodic software audits to
ensure compliance. These are not companies that are likely to be
targets for legal action," said Catherine Valentine, associate counsel
for Autodesk.

To help companies understand the issues and take the necessary
steps for legalizing their installations, Autodesk distributes sample
corporate statements, audit materials and anti-piracy information at
no charge to interested parties, the company said.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910820/Press Contact: Andrew Zarrillo, Autodesk,
Tel: [phone], ext. 8704, Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20  ****DYSON COMMENTS ON SOVIET COUP 08/20/91

08/20/91

(EXCLUSIVE)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00021)

 ****DYSON COMMENTS ON SOVIET COUP 08/20/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Esther Dyson,
editor and publisher of the influential Release 1.0 newsletter,
commenting that she has spent "more time in Moscow than any city
but New York in the last two years", told Newsbytes that she hopes
that the United States' reaction to the Soviet presidential coup will
not be directed toward on-going telecommunications projects.

Dyson said: "I think that our government would be ill-advised to stop
the involvement by U.S. companies in telecommunications projects.
Such projects show the benefit of free market enterprise and aid the
general public rather than the government. The ability of an
individual to get a dial tone is a threat to the KGB rather than to
United States security."

Dyson, also publishes RelEAST, a publication concentrating on
technological developments in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union.

She described her activities in the Soviet Union during the last two
years as: "spending time helping to kick-start computer-related
businesses and preaching about the free market. I haven't been
consulting really; rather it's just been trying to spread wisdom about
the free market development of technology."

Dyson commented further on the coup, telling Newsbytes: "Anyone
who thinks he knows what's going on over there probably doesn't.
It will take some time to sort everything out there. I don't know what
we should do to 'punish' the Soviet government for its actions but I
think that it would be rash and ill-conceived to halt US participation
in telecommunications and personal computer projects. The Soviet
people need computers. We probably should not aid the
government by sending things like grain but improved
communications can only aid the development of democracy."

Dyson continued: "While it's the big projects like Cincinnati Bell's
trans-Soviet telephone cabling that attracts attention here, computer
development in the Soviet Union has been most important at the
small entrepreneur level and this has been a great source of injection
of the free market system into the Soviet economy."

Dyson told Newsbytes that she hopes that the coup will not affect her
plans to go to the Soviet Union on September 1st. She said: "I am
scheduled to tour Siberia with a number of executives of
telecommunications companies."

"I received a fax this morning from our Soviet hosts that yesterday's
developments should not impact our plans but I don't know if the
telecommunications companies will still want their people to go. If
not, I don't intend to go tramping around Siberia by myself," she
said.

"If the trip is called off, I will still probably go to Moscow. I'm
concerned about a number of friends who are in Moscow now and
hope that these developments have not threatened their
safety," she added.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910820/Esther Dyson, Press
Contact: RelEAST, 212-758-3434)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 PRIVACY CONFERENCE DEEMED A SUCCESS 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00022)

PRIVACY CONFERENCE DEEMED A SUCCESS 08/20/91
NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- The first
National Conference on Computing and Values concluded last week
on the campus of Southern Connecticut State University and was
proclaimed a big success by its organizers.

The NCCV attracted a multi-disciplinary audience, with attendees
and luminaries from the fields of philosophy, computer security,
privacy, law, academia and general computing.

Mitch Kapor and John Perry Barlow, founders of the Electronic
Frontier Foundation, described the EFF and updated the audience
on their recent efforts to educate lawmakers on how to apply the law
to the new world of electronic networking. The EFF has been
instrumental in curbing what its members see as serious civil rights
violations perpetrated by law enforcement officials who over-react to
the danger of alleged computer criminals.

Gary Chapman, founding executive Director of Computer Professionals
for Social Responsibility spoke on "The 21st Century Project," CPSR's
new venture to deal with the technology related social problems they
expect us to encounter as we enter the next century.

Joseph Wizenbaum received the first award for Leadership and
Excellence in Human Values and Computing at the conference and
addressed it regarding the necessity that technical professionals
consider the consequences of their efforts.

Richard Stallman, ideological leader of the Free Software Foundation
(GNU Project) and League for Programming freedom spoke and
contributed to a lively panel of the nature of intellectual property.
Stallman believes that all software should be free of copying and
use restrictions. Another panelist, Helen Nissenbaum of Princeton,
suggested the less drastic step of changing copyright law to permit
"casual copying" (the non-commercial copying of originals for family
and friends).

Discussions on privacy issues ranged over the spectrum. Those
examining the impact of computers on privacy had to grapple with
fundamental issues such as the very nature of privacy before coming
to conclusions about it. Richard Wright of the U. of Omaha proposed
that individuals be granted ownership and control over the data about
them, allowing them to charge royalties on its use, or block undesired
use. Others feared such complex legislative changes, decrying what
they viewed as a growing trend to say "there ought to be a law" when
there is no need for one.

Speculation is that there will be a division between the two main
"computers and values" societies, with CPSR pushing for privacy
protection legislation and EFF objecting to excessive government
regulation of how computers may be used.

Other addresses and panels covered Computer Security and Crime,
Academia, and equal access to computers for the handicapped and
the disadvantaged. "Equity" advocates warned that software designers
are unaware that they are designing software and computer systems
to be of interest primarily to "young, white, able-bodied men."

Computers need to be made more accessible not just through funding
and special tools to aid the handicapped, but through changes in their
fundamental design, panellists argued. Providing more computers for a
school often does little more than provide those already keen on
computers with more toys, according to one panellist.

The conference consisted both of panels and papers and six special
working groups. Each morning conference attendees gathered in their
six groups to debate particular issues of interest. Each group
prepared a report delivered at the close of the conference with
recommendations for the center for research into computing and
values at SCSU and for the National Science Foundation, which
helped fund the conference.

Other speakers and Panellists included former ACM President and
CACM editor Peter Denning, and his wife, computer security expert
Dorothy Denning, who spoke on the Hacker Ethic. Gene Spafford of
Perdue University chaired the security panel and Peter Neumann,
editor of the ACM RISKS forum gave the security address.

Conference organizer Walter Maner of Bowling Green State University
expressed great pleasure at the success of the conference and the
large variety of material it addressed. Attendance was low, at around
200 participants, however this met Maner's expectations for an August
conference. Plans are already under consideration for another
conference in the future, though no date has been set. Maner can be
contacted as [e-mail] or at 419-372-2337.

(Brad Templeton/19910820)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 UNITRONIX, EFFECTIVE MG'T SYSTEMS PLAN MERGER 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00023)

UNITRONIX, EFFECTIVE MG'T SYSTEMS PLAN MERGER 08/20/91
PISCATAWAY, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Two resellers of
Digital Equipment hardware, both with a focus on manufacturing and
distribution systems, have announced plans to merge. A definitive
agreement between Unitronix and Effective Management Systems of
Milwaukee would create the United States' largest software and service
provider focusing on manufacturing and distribution systems on DEC
hardware, the firms said.

The two companies' boards of directors have approved a definitive
agreement that would give present EMS shareholders 75.9 percent and
present Unitronix shareholders 19.8 percent of the merged company to
merge Unitronix with EMS. Digital Equipment is to buy the remaining
4.3 percent. Digital said it does not plan to increase its equity
interest in the company.

Spokesman James Solakian of Unitronix told Newsbytes the two firms
have complementary product lines. Unitronix sells its system to large
companies, and has about 350 systems installed. EMS has about 1,000
systems installed in smaller firms.

Solakian added that EMS has done better at generating after-sales
revenue from areas such as service and support, and is strong in the
Midwestern U.S. The deal will help Unitronix improve a "diminished"
balance sheet, he said.

The transaction would be a reverse merger of privately held EMS into
Unitronix, which is publicly traded on the National Association of
Securities Dealers Automated Quotation (NASDAQ) system. The merger is
still subject to shareholder approval and certain other requirements.
Closing is expected by the end of November. Complete terms of the
agreement were not disclosed.

In a prepared statement, Mike Dunham, president and chief executive
officer of EMS, said EMS would eliminate several administrative
positions and close the Unitronix headquarters in Piscataway.

(Grant Buckler/19910820/Press Contact: James Solakian, Unitronix, 908-
981-1600, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW FOR UNIX: SPF/UX Will Be Familiar To Mainframers 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TOR)(00024)

NEW FOR UNIX: SPF/UX Will Be Familiar To Mainframers 08/20/91
SURREY, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Seeing a
promising market among programmers whose employers are downsizing from
IBM mainframes to Unix systems, Uneclipse Software Systems is offering
a Unix version of the ISPF editor familiar in the mainframe world.

"The vast majority of mainframe programmers use ISPF," said Michael
Chard, vice-president of Uneclipse. Uneclipse's SPF/UX is "95 percent
the same as the mainframe product," he told Newsbytes. He also argued
that SPF/UX is easier to use than the most common Unix editor, Vi,
which Chard described as "just absolutely awful."

SPF/UX is available for IBM RISC System/600 machines running AIX, for
Sun Microsystems SPARC workstations, and for Santa Cruz Operation's
SCO Unix/386. The user interface and editing tools are similar to
those in the mainframe ISPF editor, according to Uneclipse.

Other features include hex mode editing, full-line command support,
cutting and pasting between edit sessions, full find and change
commands, split screen, edit lines as long as 4,096 characters, and
the ability to assign commands to function keys.

Single copies of SPF/UX sell for US$395, with quantity discounts
available when six or more copies are purchased.

(Grant Buckler/19910820/Press Contact: Michael Chard, Uneclipse, 604-
290-7005, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 JETPRESS SPEEDS LASER PRINTING ON A NETWORK 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00025)

JETPRESS SPEEDS LASER PRINTING ON A NETWORK 08/20/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- One of the most
complained about problems on a local area network (LAN) is printing
speed. Castelle Corporations says it has sped up the printing on a
network up to 300 times with JetPress, a card for Hewlett-Packard (HP)
LaserJet printers that connects them to 10Base-T or the Ethernet of
Novell NetWare LANs.

JetPress is a card, or a board-level product, as Castelle calls it,
that plugs into the optional I/O slot in the back of a supported
printer. The unit is claimed to be compatible with HP LaserJet II,
IID, III, and IIID printers, well as Canon LPB-811 model laser
printers and requires no external power supply, the company said.

Castelle claims that its unit has been benchmark tested, the tests for
which show the JetPress card running up to 365 percent faster than the
competition.

JetPress allows the location of LAN printers at any node, anywhere the
network can reach, free of ties from server or workstation locations,
Castelle said. This eliminates the constraint of that has mandated a
printer had to be within parallel or serial port "cable range" of a
server or workstation.

It also offers more NetWare printing support than competitors with
peer-to-peer printer status monitoring and control, the company said.

Castelle said it also includes both a basic network connector (BNC)
thin Ethernet connection and a RJ-45 10Base-T so a printer can be
freely reassigned or its segment rewired.

The JetPress is consistent with NetWare queue and printer management
standards, utilities and conventions, including full support for
NetWare 386 encrypted passwords. It can also duplicate modern NetWare
functions through a suite of Lanpress utilities on pre-2.15 NetWare
versions of LANs, the company said.

The utilities are included with JetPress and are PSHelp, PSConfig,
PSQueues, PSNotify, PSFserv and LPConsol. JetPress is expected to be
available in September for $595 retail through Castelle dealers. More
information is available toll-free from Castelle at telephone
[phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/199108020/Press Contact: Robert Spivack, Castelle,
Tel: [phone], ext.24, Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW FOR PCS: Gupta Database For Windows 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00026)

NEW FOR PCS: Gupta Database For Windows 08/20/91
MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- With the emphasis
on users knowing nothing to be able to access data, create queries and
build what-you-see-is-what-you-get (WYSIWYG) reports from structured
query language (SQL) databases, Gupta Technologies announced Quest for
local area networks (LANs).

Quest is Gupta's workgroup database management system for personal
computer networks and Microsoft Windows desktops, the company said.

Users point and click on the desired icon, push button or menu item
representing corporate data, Gupta said. Users can then access, browse
and update SQL tables, create reports from SQL tables and move data to
other popular applications via Windows Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE).

Quest for LANs has a five-user SQLBase Server to enable users to use
Quest on a network in a graphical client-server and cooperative
processing environment. The SQLBase Server can handle multi-user
access to the data while maintaining data and user security, the
company claims.

Quest's data loading tools allow users move from other personal
computer database management systems, such as dBASE IV into Quest,
Gupta said. Each copy of Quest has a single-user SQLBase engine, so
users can store and manipulate corporate data on their stand-alone
personal computer also.

Gupta said that access to other corporate SQL databases from Quest,
like DB2, Oracle, SQL Server and OS/2 Extended Edition Database
Manager, is available, but only with the purchase of the appropriate
host, gateway or router software from Gupta.

Gupta also said that it is pitching hard for the network database
business with an eye to graphical end-user and application development
tools. The company says that Novell, a leader in the networking
industry, holds a 19 percent sales stake in Gupta.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108020/Press Contact: Dan Berkowitz, Gupta
Technologies, Tel: [phone], ext. 262, Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 ATARI RELEASES NEW CONTROL PANEL FOR ST/TT 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00027)

ATARI RELEASES NEW CONTROL PANEL FOR ST/TT 08/20/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- After several months
of rumours in the user community, Atari U.S. has released the new
control panel, a graphics front end, for the ST and TT machines.

When the online rumours about the new control panel began late last
year, many Atari users presumed that it would only work with the TT's
and Mega STe's, but according to an Atari representative, "it will
work on all ST, Mega, Stacy, STe, Mega STe and TT systems."

Basically, the principle seems to be, if it's TOS (Tramiel Operating
System) driven, the computer will run the new control panel.
So what is the new control panel? Depending on where you first heard
about it, the new control panel comes under several names - the "new"
control panel, X-control, and the extended control panel.

Despite these working names, its official title -- in Atari circles at
least -- is the "extensible control panel" or ECP for short.
The ECP is a replacement for the old control panel seen on the ST.

Like the first control panel, the ECP allows users to configure the
ST's systems: double-click rate, key repeat rate, colours, modems,
and printers.

What makes the ECP different, says Atari, is that it loads in
individual CPX program modules as it needs them. This cuts down on the
amount of memory required for each different function.

This procedure is similar to that supported by Borland with its latest
versions of Sidekick on the PC. While the program overlay technique
cuts down on the amount of memory required for the program, it does
mean a lot of disk reading and writing.

According to Atari, the new ECP can easily be customized. Several
versions of the ECP can be placed on disk, for use in different
situations. For instance, where memory is tight, a bare bones ECP can
be loaded. When running a simple program, the full ECP suite of
software can be loaded.

The new ECP is available for download on most U.S. online systems and
BBSs. On Genie, type M512 for access to the Atari area. On Compuserve
type GO ST for the Atari forums.

(Steve Gold/19910820)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW FOR ATARI: Z-Keys Lets Atari ST Use PC Keyboards 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00028)

NEW FOR ATARI: Z-Keys Lets Atari ST Use PC Keyboards 08/20/91
LAKEWOOD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Zubair Interfaces
has announced a keyboard adapter for the Atari ST called Z-keys. The
"plug in and go" unit allows almost any PC keyboard to be used with
almost any Atari ST.

The $99.95 adapter is claimed to be easy to fit, and plugs in under
the 520 or 1040 ST's existing keyboard, leaving a trailing keyboard
adapter port. The PC keyboard can then be plugged in as normal. On the
Mega ST and STe series, a further extender cable is needed -- this
adds $20 to the kit price.

According to the company, this is first keyboard adapter for the Atari
ST that allows the user to select which PC keyboard s/he uses with the
ST. The 520 and 1040 ST series have been criticized by some users as
having too "spongy" a keyboard.

(Steve Gold/19910820/Press & Public Contact: Zubair - Tel: 213/408-
6715)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEWTEK SHOWS NEW DRIVER S/W FOR AMIGA VIDEO TOASTER 08/20/91

08/20/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00029)

NEWTEK SHOWS NEW DRIVER S/W FOR AMIGA VIDEO TOASTER 08/20/91
TOPEKA, KANSAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Newtek, the developers of
the Video Toaster for the Amiga, has begun previewing version 2.0 of
the driver software for the add-on graphics unit. First reports
suggest that the software greatly enhances the capabilities of the
unit.

Newtek's Video Toaster is actually a video controller board for the
Amiga that allows the computer to simulate professional quality video
effects. With version 2.0 of its software, Newtek has added several
new transitional effects to its switcher, including animated effects
such as turning gears and disco effects such as smoke and clouds.

Newtek is shipping the Video Toaster workstation in two versions --
version one, at $3,995, comes with an Amiga 2000 equipped with 5MB of
RAM and a 50MB hard drive. Version two, meanwhile, costs $8,995, and
comes with an Amiga fitted with a 50-MHz 68030 microprocessor and
math coprocessor, along with 9MB of RAM and a 105MB hard drive.

(Steve Gold/19910820/Press & Public Contact: Newtek - Tel: 913/354-
1146)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 20 NEW ATARI MAGAZINE READY TO PRINT 08/20/91

08/20/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00030)

NEW ATARI MAGAZINE READY TO PRINT 08/20/91
ARVADA, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 20 (NB) -- Computer Publications
has announced that its ST Connection magazine is now close to launch.

The magazine is free with 16 pages of editorial, and is distributed via Atari
dealers throughout the US and Canada. According to Computer Publications,
however, the magazine is financed by advertisers.

Computer Publications has some ambitious plans for the monthly
magazine. By the end of the year, editorial should have been boosted
to 24 pages, with distribution being complete to virtually all Atari
ST dealers in the U.S.

While the magazine is free of charge at dealers, Computer Publications
is also offering it by mail order. Precise costs have yet to be
decided, but will, say the publishers, be offered on an "at cost"
basis.

(Steve Gold/19910820/Press & Public Contact: Computer Publications
Unlimited- Tel: [phone])
#ENDCARD



#CARD::1991 AUG 19 RASTEROPS AND TRUEVISION TERMINATE MERGER 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00001)

RASTEROPS AND TRUEVISION TERMINATE MERGER 08/19/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Citing
an inability to reach an agreement on the transaction, RasterOps
and Truevision Inc., have mutually agreed to terminate the planned
merger of the two companies.

At the time of the original announcement in May, Keith Sorenson,
told Newsbytes that he saw the merger as a benefit to both
companies. He considered RasterOps as the market leader in
Macintosh video products, while Truevision was the market leader
in IBM products, "but the underlying technologies are basically the
same," he said.

"Both companies share the same vision for the future," Sorenson
told Newsbytes. Additionally, of added benefit to RasterOps is
that Truevision has a "loyal reseller network on the IBM side,"
of which the company hopes to take advantage.

RasterOps, headquartered in Santa Clara, designs, manufactures
and markets photorealistic color-imaging products for Apple
Macintosh, IBM Micro Channel and Sun SPARCstation platforms.
RasterOps' products are designed primarily for the graphic
arts, printing, and publishing industries.

Truevision Inc., a private company headquartered in
Indianapolis, designs, manufactures and markets broadcast
quality video products for PC AT, Apple Macintosh II and IBM
Micro Channel platforms. Its primary focus is on desktop video
production and high color resolution applications.

Commenting about the failed merger, Keith Sorenson, president of
RasterOps, said: "We continue to have the greatest respect for
Truevision, but it unfortunately does not appear that we will be able
to reach agreement on a transaction that would be satisfactory for
both sides."

Cathleen Asch, Truevision's president, agreed with Sorenson's
assessment. "We have two fine companies," she said, "but I
think it is better that they remain independent of each other."

(Ian Stokell/19910816/Press Contact: Keith Sorenson, RasterOps,
408-562-4200)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 INTEGRATED SYSTEMS/ SOFTWARE COMPONENTS MERGE 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00002)

INTEGRATED SYSTEMS/ SOFTWARE COMPONENTS MERGE 08/19/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Following
an agreement in principle that was announced on July 12, 1991,
Integrated Systems Inc. (ISI), and Software Components Group Inc.,
(SCG) have now signed a definitive agreement to merge.

The companies anticipate the merger to be completed within the
next month, with the merged company providing integrated tools to
automate and accelerate real-time software development and
related system design for a broad range of industries.

Under the terms of the agreement, ISI says it will issue
approximately 850,000 shares of its common stock in exchange
for all shares of SCG stock currently outstanding, with the conversion
ratio subject to adjustment based on changes in the market price of
ISI's stock.

Additionally, ISI will reserve approximately 400,000 shares of its
common stock, subject to adjustment, for issuance upon exercise
of options previously granted by SCG. A total of approximately
8.2 million shares of ISI stock currently is outstanding.

A one-time write-off of between $10 million and $12 million is
expected as a result of the transaction, which will be accounted for
as a purchase. The write-off will occur during the current quarter
from the allocation of a major portion of the purchase price to
research and development in progress.

Integrated Systems Inc. is a supplier of CAE (computer-aided
engineering) and CASE (computer-aided software engineering)
software that automates engineering system design. The company
maintains that its products are used in the aerospace, automotive,
manufacturing and computer peripherals industries for real-time
control system and software development.

Software Components Group Inc. is a supplier of real-time
operating systems and integrated development environments
for embedded applications. The company says that its pSOS+
collection of system software modules are used by the
telecommunications, medical instrumentation, office and factory
automation, and defense electronics industries.

(Ian Stokell/19910814/Press Contact: Scott C. McDonald,
Integrated Systems Inc., 408-980-1500)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19  ****INSLAW DEATH INVESTIGATION CONTINUES 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(NYC)(00003)

 ****INSLAW DEATH INVESTIGATION CONTINUES 08/19/91
MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA, U.S.A., AUG 19 (NB) -- The Sheraton Inn in
Martinsburg, West Virginia, the scene of the death of Washington,
D.C. journalist Joseph D. "Danny" Casolaro, has received more press
attention than ever before in its history as reporters from ABC-TV,
Newsbytes News Network, and the Washington Post roamed the halls
interrogating bell-hops, waitresses, and desk clerks for
information regarding the death of Casolaro.

Employees, supposedly under the cloak of Sheraton-forced silence,
told Newsbytes that, while some prospective guests have
specifically requested the room in which Casolaro died, their
instructions have been to leave the room vacant for an unspecified
time.

Casolaro, 44, had been investigating the "Inslaw" case, a rather
tangled web of allegations relating to the charges brought by
Inslaw Inc., that the Justice Department had first stolen its
software product, "Promis," and then driven the firm into
bankruptcy. Casolaro had told friends and family that he was about
to receive material that would provide him with documentation
linking Inslaw to other alleged incidents of Reagan-Bush
administration wrong-doing. Casolaro was said to have referred to
the alleged conspiracy as the "Octopus" and stated that there were
links between the Inslaw theft, the "October Surprise," and Iran-
Contra allegations.

The "October surprise" refers to allegations that representatives of
the Reagan-Bush campaign team, through meetings with Iranian
representatives, delayed the release of the hostages in Iran until
after the 1980 elections. These charges are currently being
investigated by Congressional committee.

Casolaro was found dead, an apparent suicide, in Room 517 of the
Sheraton on Saturday, August 10th, two days after his arrival in
Martinsburg. He was found in the bathtub at approximately
1:00 pm with both wrists slashed. His body was released within
three hours to a local funeral parlor for embalming, an action
that Berkeley County Medical Examiner Sandra Brining was quoted as
saying was normal in the case of a suicide. "Everything was
consistent with a self-inflicted wound."

When Casolaro's family became aware of his death on Monday, August
14th, it immediately called for an expanded investigation and his
brother, Dr. Anthony Casolaro, an Arlington, Virginia physician, was
quoted as saying, "In my heart I remember Danny telling us that in
case of an accident, don't believe it." Dr. Casolaro also
discounted statements made by his brother in a letter to a
publisher in which he seemed financially strapped and despondent.
Dr. Casolaro attributed Casolaro's remarks to a desire to convince
the would-be publisher of the importance of extending a book
contract to him. Casolaro had been immersed in the Inslaw case for
over a year and had been unsuccessful in two proposals to the
publishing firm of Little, Brown & Co.

The clamor for a fuller investigation caused an autopsy to be
subsequently performed on Casolaro, an action that Assistant
Berkeley County prosecutor Cynthia Gaither said was not hindered
by the previous embalming.

Casolaro was buried on Friday, October 16th after a funeral
service at St. Ann's Catholic Church in Arlington, Virginia attended by
over 100 people.

At a press conference held on Thursday, August 15th, Dr. James
Frost, assistant West Virginia medical examiner, said that, while
the results of the examination bore out the preliminary findings
of suicide, the investigation would be continued. Brining and
Gaither also participated in the hour-long press conference held
in the meeting room of the Martinsburg City Council.

Newsbytes has obtained conflicting reports on the state of
Casolaro's mental condition. A California free-lance journalist,
Virginia McCullough, with whom Casolaro had allegedly shared
information, told Newsbytes, "It is ludicrous to think that Danny
took his life. He was excited about his new contact and said that
'For the first time I really believe that the government was
involved.'" McCullough, herself, claims to be the victim of a
government action that drove her electronics firm into bankruptcy
and she is presently writing a book on her case and other similar
cases, including Inslaw.

McCullough's comments on the unlikelihood of a Casolaro suicide
were echoed in quotes from Pat Clawson, president of Washington-
based Metrowest Broadcasting Co., and Richard O'Connell, editor of
the Washington Crime News, a newsletter published in Arlington,
VA. Nancy Hamilton, vice president of Inslaw, also took issue with
the suicide finding telling the Martinsburg Morning Journal, "We
don't accept that. They are saying that here is a man, totally
sober, mutilating himself."

Martinsburg residents interviewed by Newsbytes paint a slightly
different picture and depict Casolaro as seemingly depressed and
drinking pitchers of beer by himself in a local Pizza Hut on the
Thursday evening before his death (although a wine bottle was
found in his room, there was no evidence of alcohol found in the
body by the autopsy). Additionally, a Washington Post piece of
Saturday, August 17th by Gary Lee and Robert O'Harrow, Jr., shows
Casolaro to be debt-ridden and despondent. According to the Post
report, "Casolaro had no independent means of income and had
invested heavily in the book project for at least eight months,
financing several trips to the West Coast and long-distance
telephone calls."

The Post article also revealed that Casolaro's sister had
committed suicide in California 20 years ago. While confirming the
sister's suicide and his brother's financial difficulties, Dr.
Casolaro said that these facts still did not support a conclusion
of suicide for his brother. He told the Post, "Danny was the sort
of guy who was always broke but he knew that he had a lot of
resources for money in the family if he needed it."

Dr. Casolaro also told the Post that he had received a call from a
man who purported to have met with Casolaro in Martinsburg on the
day before the death and turned over documents relating to
computer hardware thefts. Dr. Casolaro said that the man was
willing to meet with investigators under the cloak of anonymity.
Newsbytes has confirmed, from multiple sources, the existence of the
contact, a man called "Bill," but has not yet obtained information
concerning the content or the validity of the purported documentation.

The so-called "Inslaw Case" began in 1982 when Inslaw signed a $10
million contract to provide an enhanced version of its case
tracking software to the U.S. Department of Justice. According to
Inslaw, shortly after it rebuffed attempts by a company owned by
Earl Brian, a close friend of former US. Attorney General Edwin
Meese, to buy Inslaw, the government stopped its contract payments
and eventually forced the firm into bankruptcy. In January 1988, a
federal bankruptcy judge upheld the claims of Inslaw President
William Hamilton and awarded Inslaw damages of $6.8 million, saying
that the Justice Department has stolen the Promis software by
"trickery, fraud and deceit." A second federal judge later upheld
the ruling.

The Justice Dept. continued to appeal the verdicts and, on May 7,
1991, was successful when the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the
bankruptcy court had claimed extraordinary and improper
jurisdiction in the case. The court said that Hamilton was free to
pursue his claims in the proper federal court and that the Justice
Department's "conduct, if it occurred, is inexcusable."

During the appeal process, Inslaw broadened its charges to claim
that Iran Contra figures Robert McFarlane and Richard Secord had
played a role is disseminating the software to intelligence
agencies of Israel, Libya, Iraq, South Korea, and Canada. These
charges were substantiated by Ari Ben-Menashe, who claims to be a
former Israeli intelligence officer, Iranian arms dealer Richard
Babayan, and Michael Riconosciuto, who said that he was hired to
modify the software for use in law enforcement and intelligence
agencies worldwide.

Riconosciuto, who was arrested in March of this year and is being
held in the state of Washington, also claimed to be involved in a
now-defunct joint venture between the Wachenhut Corp. of Coral
Gables, FL and the Southern California Cabazon Indian tribe.
According to Riconosciuto's affidavit, the joint venture developed
sophisticated weapons for the Contras. McFarlane and Brian have
denied all charges.

There have also been reports that the software, allegedly used by
the foreign intelligence services for maintaining dissidents,
contained a "Trojan horse" that would allow U.S. security agencies
to have undetected access to the computer system of the foreign
agency. It was also revealed during this time that Inslaw
President Hamilton is a former employee of the National Security
Agency (NSA).

As the long appeal process continued, the House Judiciary
Committee under Chairman Jack Brooks (D-Tex.) began its own
investigation of the case and became embroiled in a year-long
battle with then Attorney General Richard Thornburgh who refused
to turn over Justice Department documents to the committee. Shortly
before Thornburgh's departure to run for the Senate from
Pennsylvania, an agreement was reached between the committee and
the Justice Department on the release of certain documents and the
investigation is now continuing. During the controversy, another
former U.S. Attorney General, Elliot Richardson, now serving as
counsel for Inslaw, said, "Evidence of the widespread ramifications
of the Inslaw case comes from many sources and keeps accumulating.
It remains inexplicable why the Justice Department refuses to
pursue this evidence and resists cooperation with the Judiciary
Committee of the House of Representatives."

On Wednesday, August 14th, Richardson called for a federal
investigation of Casolaro's death and was quoted as suspecting
murder in the case.

In an interview with Newsbytes, an investigative reporter who has
been tracking Inslaw and related cases for a few years said that
he had met with Casolaro within the last six months and that
Casolaro had no material at that time that the investigative
reporter deemed as new. The reporter, speaking to Newsbytes under
the promise of non-attribution, also said, "I believe that the
Justice Department stole Inslaw's software. I have not seen,
however, compelling evidence to support the charges that it was
linked to the so-called 'October Surprise.'"

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910819)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 JAPAN: 5TH GENERATION COMPUTER PROJECT EXTENDED 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(TYO)(00004)

JAPAN: 5TH GENERATION COMPUTER PROJECT EXTENDED 08/19/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- The Japanese Ministry of
International Trade and Industry (MITI) says it will extend the
so-called fifth generation computer project. The newest phase of this
quest to design the world's most advanced computer system starts
in March, 1992, and is expected to go on for an additional 5 to 6 years.
The fifth generation team will study applications for a prototype
parallel processor.

MITI's fifth generation computer project, started in 1982, has so far
cost the Japanese government only about 5 million yen ($37,000). Led by
an association called ICOT, the project will next study advanced expert
systems including ones that analyze human genes and legal decisions.
The parallel processor "PMI" will be equipped with 500 to 1,000
processors, and is expected to be developed by early 1992. This
new project will be led by a new organization which MITI has begun to
create.

MITI wants to invite overseas firms and organizations to participate in the
new project. Research institutions from the U.S., Sweden,
Britain, and Australia have already expressed an interest in joining
the project, says the Nikkei newspaper. MITI is planning to
accept foreign participation in the project in the fall of 1992.
Actual research and study using the PIM will be early 1993.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910819)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 JAPAN: ASCII LINKS WITH G-SEARCH ON PC NETWORK DATABASE 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00005)

JAPAN: ASCII LINKS WITH G-SEARCH ON PC NETWORK DATABASE 08/19/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- ASCII has signed an agreement
with G-Search Corporation concerning database services for its personal
computer-based telecommunication network ASCII. The agreement calls
for ASCII to provide some 25 new kinds of databases on the ASCII
network.

The new databases includes corporate information of Teikoku
Databank and Tokyo Commerce Research, book lists with 130,000 titles,
various music databases, and newspaper and magazine articles.
Additional usage fees will be charged for access to these
databases.

Meanwhile, ASCII network has signed an agreement with General
Videotex on its DELPHI network. ASCII has the gateway to DELPHI
network. The firm has also been providing INFOLINK in its network.

It is said ASCII network has recently been gaining business users.
So, the firm has decided to link with many databases.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910819/Press Contact: ASCII, [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 BUGS FOUND ON NEC VERSION OF WINDOWS 3.0 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00006)

BUGS FOUND ON NEC VERSION OF WINDOWS 3.0 08/19/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- NEC says that a "bug" has
been found in its version of Windows 3.0. The defect occurs
when the user assigns printing functions.

Under a license agreement with Microsoft, NEC modified Windows
3.0 for its best-selling personal computer the PC9801, and has been selling
the modified version since spring. The bug occurs when a user instructs
the machine to print. The printing will stop abruptly. Also, the bug
causes reduction and magnification of spreadsheets in Excel 2.12 to not
function properly, especially on NEC's PC PR201 printer.

NEC has issued a revised version of Windows 3.0 and is mailing it to all
registered users. The revision deals specifically with print managers,
according to NEC.

Windows 3.0 has been selling extremely well in Japan and as a result
many personal computer makers have released their own versions.
However, a dearth of application programs that will run with Windows 3.0
has frustrated users. The program's popularity is generally attributed to
curiosity -- users want to get the feel of the program.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910819/Press Contact: NEC, [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 EX-IBM MAN JOINS SEGA TO PUSH GAME MACHINES 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00007)

EX-IBM MAN JOINS SEGA TO PUSH GAME MACHINES 08/19/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Japan's number-two game machine
maker, Sega Enterprises, has welcomed a former IBM executive to its
personal computer division. Former IBM employee Yuzo Narutomi has
been given the general manager's post.

Yuzo Narutomi used to play an important role at IBM Japan. He was
involved in the development of Japanese versions of IBM computers
including the best-selling IBM5550 in 1982.

Sega has recently established closer ties with IBM Japan. The two just
signed an agreement regarding Sega's IBM-compatible personal computer,
released this past May. It is called the Tera Drive and it's equipped with
both an 80286 processor and a 68000 processor. The PC supports IBM
Japan's latest disk operating system "DOS/V."

It is expected that Narutomi will work hand in hand with IBM Japan
concerning the distribution of the Tera Drive. A new PC might also
be developed by Sega under the leadership of Narutomi.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910819/Press Contact: Sega Enterprises,
 [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 SECURITY CHIEF CALLS HACKER-HUNTING "FUN" 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00008)

SECURITY CHIEF CALLS HACKER-HUNTING "FUN" 08/19/91
NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- "Computer crime is
fun," notes Kenneth Citarella, assistant district attorney in charge of
computer crime for Westchester County in New York State. Citarella,
however, is not referring to the practice of computer crime but rather
the investigation of it.

"Computer criminals are smart," and that makes them more challenging
to track down, catch, and prosecute, says Citarella, with an attraction
reminiscent of Holmes' thrill at chasing professor Moriarty.

Citarella spoke on a panel on computer security at the National
Conference on Computing and Values held last week at Southern
Connecticut State University in New Haven. While other panelists
covered other whys and wherefores of computer crime and the need for
computer security, the prosecutor talked about what happens after
the crime has taken place.

The amount of prosecution done is small, and being a computer crime
specialist is far from a full-time job. Many prosecutors shy away
from it because they don't understand it, but for those who do, it
can be more challenging than a typical assault case. However, many
victims of computer crime simply never press charges,
and so Citarella's caseload has numbered only about 20 with only
six prosecutions (with convictions in all those cases) during
his tenure.

Citarella denies there is a "hacker hysteria" among local prosecutors.
Most local prosecutors have more than enough work to keep them busy
dealing with more serious crimes, and there is no requirement that they
seek out those among the "hackers" who break into computers. Others
have recently been highly critical of the Secret Service, which has
engaged in nationwide seizures of computers and bulletin board systems
allegedly involved in computer crime. Citarella declined to comment
on what hysteria there might be at the national level.

Citarella likes New York's computer crime statutes and contributed to
the drafting of some. However, even when the statutes are broad,
he prosecutes only in cases where damage was done and the intent was
malicious. Kids who play around and do no damage are likely in the
current system to receive primarily a stern warning.

NCCV sessions dealt extensively with computer crime. A prime consensus
was a desire for better education for youngsters regarding computer
ethics. The conference concluded Friday.

(Brad Templeton/19910819)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 AUSTRALIAN CUSTOMS SERVICE SELECTS UNISYS OVER IBM 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00009)

AUSTRALIAN CUSTOMS SERVICE SELECTS UNISYS OVER IBM 08/19/91
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- For its $40M central
computing upgrade, the Australian Customs Service has chosen Unisys as
the systems integrator. Short listed companies missing out were
BHP/Amdahl, CSA/Hitachi, and IBM.

Computerworld newspaper reports the upgrade as giving the Customs a
paperless trading system through Electronic Data Interchange (EDI).
The system will consist of a number of technologies and vendors,
including Unisys U6000 Unix machines, running off-the-shelf
applications, and new ones written in Linc Case/4GL software.

An Australian package, QCOM or Corporate Retriever, will be used for
file management and text retrieval.

Customs spokespeople said the race was close and didn't indicate
shortcomings with any of the tenders, but rather a one or two point
difference in the final calculation.

Unisys is naturally pleased with the win, and has hinted that it
might have been made with no profit factor, but was more important
because of its internal morale value.

The Australian Customs has recently made changes to the way it
selects incoming air passengers for "complete checking." While this
has no bearing on the Unisys win, it sure raises a sweat on incoming
computer journalists with a bag full of hard disk drives.

(Paul Zucker/19910819)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 AUSTRALIA: AMERICAN AIRLINES BUYS OTC CALL PLAN 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00010)

AUSTRALIA: AMERICAN AIRLINES BUYS OTC CALL PLAN 08/19/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- American Airlines is the first
user of OTC Call Plan, an International Virtual Private Network (IVPN)
offered by Australia's international carrier. It connects MCI Vnet in
the US and BT Featurenet in the UK.

The service is aimed at users with a minimum of 100 hours per month of
international phone traffic, and offers lower rates, networking, a
tailored dialling plan and fast-connect calling. A feature is detailed
monthly logs and reports on diskette for customer analysis.

Other Call Plan customers include DEC and Unisys. The technology was
developed in Australia and is designed to be constantly upgradeable,
protecting users against obsolescence.

"We saw Call Plan as an ideal opportunity to bring ourselves closer to
other offices and associated companies in the US and Europe," said Siva
Subramanian, South Pacific reservations manager for American Airlines.

(Paul Zucker/19910819/Contact: Paul Rea, OTC ph. [phone] fax
[phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 AUSTRALIA: ESSO MOVES INFO CENTER, SEEKS NEW STAFF 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00011)

AUSTRALIA: ESSO MOVES INFO CENTER, SEEKS NEW STAFF 08/19/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- ESSO Australia has
consolidated its information systems (IS) centres, and moved the
resulting group to Melbourne. Despite 20 staff deciding not to make
the move, the company says it needs to hire an additional 80 staff,
with salary packages ranging from AUS$35-$90,000 per year.

The proximity of Bass Strait oil fields was given as one reason for
the choice of Melbourne, though officially, the city hosts many of
Esso's strategic partners. The system will consist of a number of IBM
host computers and 1100 PCs as well as many scientific and graphics
workstations. The budget is said to be in excess of $30M annually.
Software ranges from Wizard business system to an in-house application
to control off-shore helicopter flights servicing the oil platforms.

An interesting aspect to the move is the way it was reported this week
in the computer press. Computerworld and Computing emphasized the extra
jobs in their headlines, while Pacific Computer Weekly says, "Esso move
cuts 20 IS staff."

(Paul Zucker/19910819)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 TWO GUYS USE PCS TO START NEW GREETING CARD FAD 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00012)

TWO GUYS USE PCS TO START NEW GREETING CARD FAD 08/19/91
BURBANK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Matt Russell
and Len Davidson are successfully bucking the $7 billion
conservative greeting card industry using existing personal
computer (PC) technology they first put together in a garage in
Glendale. They call their new business venture the
"CreateaCard" system.

The CreateaCard system allows the consumer to use a 386 IBM
compatible PC, a touch screen and a Hewlett-Packard 8-pen
plotter to create and personalize their own greeting cards.

The only parts the consumer sees are the plotter and the touch
screen. The unit is entirely self-sufficient, and controls
everything, including placing the card stock into the plotter
once the card is selected and personalized, and delivering it
to the consumer after it is printed, Len Davidson, director of
marketing for Custom Expressions said.

Russell and Davidson were told in the beginning that this
wouldn't work, but since placing the first unit in the field a
year ago, they've installed just over 150 CreateaCard units in
10 states and have moved out of the garage into their own
warehouse/offices in Burbank.

Davidson said the most surprising event since CreateaCard was
started was when they went to Comdex Fall '90, invited to
display the CreateaCard by Ellographics, maker of the touch
screens, and crowds lined up to make cards. "Here were these
technical people ooohing and ahhhing our simple project,"
Davidson said.

"The most fascinating part is watching the card being drawn,
even for us at Custom Expressions," Davidson said. "Matt
Richardson and I will be standing there, watching the plotter
draw another card, even though we've seen literally thousands
of cards drawn, and catch each other's eyes and laugh."

Over 900 cards are available to the user through a system of
menus at the CreateaCard booth, and the cards for selection are
constantly being updated and are even regionalized, Davidson
said. The company is talking to international distributors
about CreateaCard booths in other countries, and in other
languages as well, Davidson said.

Davidson says the CreateaCard system is attractive to the
retailer because it is self-sufficient and reliable, it draws
foot traffic into the store, it only takes 3 to 5 minutes total
for a consumer to create a card, and another card can be
started while the first card is printing. Davidson said the
company plans to have 250 CreateaCard systems out on the market
by the end of the year, and a thousand systems placed by the
end of 1992.

Other customized products, using the same CreateaCard systems
are being planned such as invitations, announcements, party
kits, award certificates, bumper stickers, banners and
horoscopes, Davidson said.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108019/Press Contact: Len Davidson, Custom
Expressions, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 DATAPRODUCTS SHIPS 1ST POSTSCRIPT LEVEL 2 PRINTER 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00013)

DATAPRODUCTS SHIPS 1ST POSTSCRIPT LEVEL 2 PRINTER 08/19/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Dataproducts
Corp. is now shipping the LZR 960 desktop printer, which the company
claims is the first monochrome laser printer to incorporate PostScript
Level 2 software from Adobe Systems Inc.

The LZR 960 is a nine-page-per-minute, 300 dots-per-inch (dpi),
black-and-white laser printer with a Weitek 8200 RISC (reduced
instruction-set computer)-based controller and Sharp printer engine.

The company maintains that the printer comes equipped with
AppleTalk/LocalTalk/RS-422, IBM-PC and conventional RS-232-C
interface ports to enable it to work in mixed PC/Macintosh
environments.

The LZR 960 comes standard with two megabytes of memory,
expandable to 10 megabytes, and 35 Type 1 fonts from the Adobe
Type Library. Shipping now in the United States and internationally,
it is priced at $2,995.

Dr. Charles Geschke, Adobe's president and chief operating officer,
said: "It is the first monochrome laser printer to incorporate
PostScript Level 2 software, which is a significant advancement
in imaging technology; it offers users the enhanced performance
of a RISC-based controller; and its price of less than $3,000
makes it affordable to a wide range of users looking for a
versatile, powerful, fast desktop printer."

According to Adobe, the PostScript Level 2 software in the LZR
960 represents a major revision of the PostScript language and
PostScript software, although it is compatible with existing
application software and with other PostScript output devices.

PostScript Level 2 incorporates previous extensions to the
language and adds new language features. Adobe says it is
easier for PostScript language programmers to use, can improve
the performance of PostScript output devices for end-users, and
offers better support for printer-specific features, such as multiple
paper trays and duplex printing.

The new LZR 960 offers such PostScript Level 2 features as form
and pattern caching, which allow users to more quickly print pages
containing text, graphics or patterns used multiple times.

According to the company, new data compression and
decompression features can reduce the time required to transmit
files to the printer, and the PostScript Level 2 software in the LZR
960 enables it to handle the large character sets of such
non-Roman languages as Japanese.

(Ian Stokell/19910819/Press Contact: Patricia J. Pane, Adobe
Systems Inc., 415-962-3967; or Chris Richter, Dataproducts Corp.,
818-887-8344)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 NEW FOR PCS: French Version Of Grammatik 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00014)

NEW FOR PCS: French Version Of Grammatik 08/19/91
BENTLEY, FARNHAM, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Riva, the U.K.
distributors of the Grammatik grammar checker for IBM PCs and
close compatibles, has unveiled a special French edition.

According to the company, Grammatik French is ideal for U.K.-
based translation agencies and anyone who regularly needs to check
French documents. In use, the package searches for, highlights,
and corrects errors of grammar, style, usage, punctuation, and
spelling.

The French version of the program is a more than a simple variant
of the original English edition. The completely different grammar
and phraseology of the French language meant that a complete
rewrite of Grammatik was required, Riva officials said. As a
result, Grammatik French contains a dictionary capable of checking
more than 400,000 words.

The rewrite of Grammatik in French does not come cheaply. Riva is
charging UKP 150 for the package, which requires a PC equipped
with a hard disk and at least 512K of RAM.

(Steve Gold/19910819/Press & Public Contact: Riva - Tel: 0420-
22666; Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 SCHNEIDER UK CLOSES OFFICES 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00015)

SCHNEIDER UK CLOSES OFFICES 08/19/91
NORTHAMPTON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- In a surprise move,
Schneider U.K. has closed its U.K. computer operations, switching
customer and reseller support to Greyhound Marketing,
its U.K. distributor.

The move, according to Monica Worlfe, head of sales for
Schneider's Turkheim offices in Western Germany, has been in
progress since April of this year, when company operations began
winding down.

Existing machines sold to U.K. users will be supported via
Schneider U.K. offices in Northampton, which will continue to
sell and support the company's electrical products.

Phil Arlott, a director with Greyhound Marketing, told Newsbytes
that his company is now sourcing its Schneider kit direct from
West Germany rather than through the U.K. offices. This, he said,
has enabled the distributor to shave prices by as much as 20 percent.

"This is because we're passing on our savings to the U.K.
reseller channel and end users by ordering direct from West
Germany," he said.

The price changes have a dramatic effect on some of Schneider's
PC prices. The Euro PC 2, a 9.54 MHz PC-XT compatible with 768K of
RAM, bundled with an MM12 monochrome monitor and a copy of
Microsoft Works, now costs UKP 357.58 plus tax -- a highly
competitive price.

This price also includes one years' free on-site maintenance.
Arlott suggested that the deal was virtually unbeatable.

(Steve Gold/19910819/Press v& Public Contact: Greyhound Marketing
- Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 MORE U.S./ENGLAND ATM LINKS 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00016)

MORE U.S./ENGLAND ATM LINKS 08/19/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- It's taken a long while to
get the networks in place, but the U.K. and U.S. automated teller
machine (ATM) networks are now almost completely interlinked.

In the U.K. Midland, Natwest, and Lloyds banks have linked their
ATMs into the Cirrus ATM network. Midland bank ATMs, along with
all U.K. building societies, National Girobank, and The Co-operative
Plus HFC banks' ATMs are now linked to the Plus network.

The linkups are on top of the Visa and Mastercard ATM networks in
the U.K. By the end of the year, almost any bank ATM, along with
the majority of building society ATMs, will accept either a Visa
or a Mastercard. In many cases, both credit cards are accepted by
a single ATM.

The link-up means that, if you have a Plus ATM card with Visa or
Mastercard activities, you can use any ATM in the U.K. The
exchange rates used are, almost invariably, several percentage
points ahead of foreign exchange rates.

So why the rush to link all the ATM networks together? According
to one bank manager, the network infrastructure is already in place
for EFTPOS (electronic funds transfer) transactions, so ATM
withdrawals are an additional source of income.

This contrasts with bureau de change offices, who have to shuffle
a lot of paper to switch between currencies. Cashing foreign
cheques is an expensive and time-consuming business.

ATM withdrawals are fast and effective. The transaction is
switched electronically and debited to the customer's account in
their country of origin almost immediately.

ATM and EFTPOS transactions are, in fact, the mainstay of the
packet data networks (PDNs) around the world. Almost two thirds
of all PDN traffic on the North Atlantic route is now due to
financial transactions of one sort or another. Banks make a
living, trading on the margins between the buy and sell rates for
currency.

All this is irrelevant if you need cash in a foreign currency. ATMs
represent the fastest and cheapest method of obtaining cash, even
if you have to pay a small amount of interest to your issuing
financial institution for the cash borrowing facility.

It's worth noting that many financial institutions are unaware of
which ATMs accept their cards in foreign countries, such is the
pace of change. Newsbytes has discovered that many ATMs will
cheerfully accept plastic cards issued by foreign institutions
when the ATM is not officially on that card's international
network.

(Steve Gold/19910819)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 CORRECTION: MAG LISTS EQUAL ACCESS PREFIXES 08/19/91

08/19/91


(CORRECTION)(TELECOM)(WAS)(00017)

CORRECTION: MAG LISTS EQUAL ACCESS PREFIXES 08/19/91
LITTLETON, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Newsbytes wishes
to correct a typo in this article, which first appeared August
16. The article was about Jack Rickard's Boardwatch magazine
which has lists about 250 long distance carrier equal access
prefix numbers.

The article states that dialing 10022 before your number will
place the call through MCI. This is in error.

10222 is the correct number one must dial to reach MCI. Newsbytes
apologizes for the error.

(Wendy Woods/19910819)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 NEW FOR PCS: Chinese Version Of Windows 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00018)

NEW FOR PCS: Chinese Version Of Windows 08/19/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Microsoft has
announced the release of a Chinese version of Windows 3.0,
bringing to 13 the total number of foreign language versions of Windows
now on the market.

Windows 3.0 is currently available in Dutch, Finnish, French,
German, Italian, Kanji (Japanese), Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish
and Swedish.  The company says it will also release Windows in
Arabic, Czech, Hebrew, Hungarian and Turkish.

"Seeing so many localized versions of the Microsoft Windows
environment in every corner of the globe is thrilling," said
Joachim Kempin, Microsoft's VP of the international products
group.

Kempin says that Windows is becoming the international
standard for graphical computing.  The company says it has
shipped four million copies worldwide, and over 1,500
Windows-based applications have been developed internationally.
Microsoft has recently taken several steps to provide more
support for independent software developers.  The company says
it has shipped more than 70,000 developer kits, which are used
to write Windows-specific applications.

The Chinese version of Windows was developed in cooperation
with local contractors in the Far East, and will be introduced
through a series of seminars sponsored by the Microsoft Taiwan
subsidiary beginning this month.

According to Shaw-Gang Yang, GM of Microsoft's Far East
development, more people in Taiwan will use personal computers
than ever before.  Yang says Windows 3.0 should bring major
growth to the PC market in Taiwan, which he says has an
installed base of one million PCs.

Windows has also done well in Europe, with more than one million
copies shipped during the past 12 months.  This year's United
Kingdom Windows Show was reported to be the most well-attended
PC show in UK history, with 110 exhibits and 22,000 visitors.
In Italy, Windows received Italy's SMAU Industrial design Award.

In Japan, Microsoft says it has delivered 100,000 copies in the
first three months that the Kanji version was available.

(Jim Mallory/910819/Press contact: Liz Sidnam, Microsoft,
206-882-8080)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 COMPUADD OPENS 100TH RETAIL STORE 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00019)

COMPUADD OPENS 100TH RETAIL STORE 08/19/91
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) --  CompuAdd Corporation
opened its 100th retail computer outlet this past weekend in
Corpus Christi, Texas.

CompuAdd markets a line of personal computers under the CompuAdd
name, as well as distributing other brands of software, printers
and other peripherals, such as modems.  The company launched an
aggressive retail expansion program in June of this year,
opening stores in several markets at the rate of about two per
week.  CompuAdd says it plans to have a total of about 120
stores by the end of this year, and 200 by the end of 1992.

The Corpus Christi store occupies about 2500 square feet of
floor space.  CompuAdd stores range from under 2000 square feet
to over 17,000.  The company says it selects markets for its
retail stores based on a variety of market research data,
including the installed base of PCs and the number of the
company's mail order customers in the area.

CompuAdd was founded in 1982 as a mail order company, and opened
its first retail store in 1983 in Austin.  The company reported
$515.6 million in sales in 1990, and says about 60 percent of
that was generated by the retail outlets.

(Jim Mallory/910819/Press contact: Wendell Watson, CompuAdd,
512-250-2530)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 IRAQ REPORTEDLY RESUMES DIRECT TELEPHONE LINKS 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00020)

IRAQ REPORTEDLY RESUMES DIRECT TELEPHONE LINKS 08/19/91
BAGHDAD, IRAQ, 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Iraq resumed direct
telephone communications with the world, according to the Iraqi
news agency INA. Service started with 48 telephone channels, but
tests are underway to increase that by another 60. Eventually,
the country has enough satellite calling capacity through the
International Telecommunications Satellite Organization,
Intelsat, to handle 132 telephone calls and one television
channel.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910819)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 NEW PRODUCT: Trimble GPS Land Survey/Map System 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00021)

NEW PRODUCT: Trimble GPS Land Survey/Map System 08/19/91
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Following
the company's recent release of its Pathfinder Professional
geographic coordinate system, Trimble Navigation has now
introduced the 4000SE Land Surveyor mapping and surveying
system designed for a sole user to gather detailed and precise
position data about a site.

According to the company, the collected data is then used to create
a three-dimensional computerized map of the information.

The new Trimble Land Surveyor is the latest product in the
company's line of satellite-based GPS (global positioning system)
surveying and mapping systems. The company claims that the line
of products make the planning of large-scale construction, civil
engineering, government and research projects much more
cost-effective and timely.

Trimble claims that, using the new product, a single user can
accomplish in several days what traditional survey and mapping
methods took several people working weeks or months to
complete.

A static version of the product is used for gathering the geographic
points needed in control and boundary surveys, and a kinematic
version is used for mobile surveying to gather volumes of contouring
data needed to create topographic maps.

The company maintains that, each complete system includes three
rugged and waterproof nine-channel 4000SE GPS
receiver/dataloggers, which begin taking positions with centimeter
accuracy. Both configurations feature the company's TRIMVEC Plus
software package. In addition, with the optional TRIMMAP, the Land
Surveyor system's new mapping software, users can automatically
generate detailed contour maps.

When used in conjunction with the its GPS Pathfinder data collection
systems, the new Land Surveyor serves to create and maintain
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) databases.

The company's recently released Pathfinder Professional is a
commercial hand-held version of the "Slugger" unit used by U.S.
troops in Operation Desert Storm.

Newsbytes previously reported that 5,000 of the units were used by
troop commanders to navigate the Allied forces through a desert
to the north of Kuwait.

The Trimble GPS Land Surveyors carry a U.S. suggested price of
$44,850 for the static unit and $61,850 for the kinematic unit.
Shipments are due to begin this fall.

(Ian Stokell/19910819/Press Contact: Douglas Sherk, Trimble
Navigation Ltd., 415-296-7383)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 BILL GATES DONATES $1 MILLION TO CANCER CENTER 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00022)

BILL GATES DONATES $1 MILLION TO CANCER CENTER 08/19/91
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- The Fred
Hutchinson Cancer Research Center has announced that it has
received a $1 million gift from Bill Gates, Jr., chairman of
Microsoft Corporation.  The center said the donation will be
used to help finance the construction of the center's new
campus.

Speaking about the donation, Gates said "My strong interest in
the Hutch is based on its rigorous and creative use of science
and medicine, and the leading roles that its scientists play in
producing new knowledge and insight into the causes, treatment
and prevention of cancer."

The Hutchinson Center is building a new campus on a 10.2 acre
site at Southeast Lake Union. The first phase of the project is
now under construction and includes two laboratory buildings
that will house the Basic Sciences division, as well as other
laboratory programs.

"As one of the most highly respected members of the local
business community, Gates' gift is especially significant, not
only in terms of its generosity, but also in terms of providing
an important endorsement for the Center's expansion project"
said Dr. Robert Day, president of the center.

Gates is also active in other charitable causes, including the
United Way of King County, Washington.  Gates was named
'Businessperson of the Year' in 1990 by Seattle Business
magazine.

(Jim Mallory/910818/Press contact: Susan Edmonds, Hutchinson
Center, 206-667-2896)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 ON-LINE SOFTWARE, COMPUTER ASSOCIATES TALKING MERGER  08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00023)

ON-LINE SOFTWARE, COMPUTER ASSOCIATES TALKING MERGER  08/19/91
FORT LEE, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- On-Line Software
International has announced an agreement with Computer Associates,
of Garden City, New York, that could lead to CA buying On-Line. In
discussions on a CA buy-out the two firms have agreed on a purchase
price of US$15.75 per share of On-Line Software.

The deal still needs approval by both companies' boards of
directors, and depends on negotiation of a definitive merger
agreement and other agreements. Ilona Mohasci, a spokeswoman for
On-Line Software, said she could not say yet when the companies
might reach a final deal.

Computer Associates, one of the world's largest software companies,
has grown largely by acquiring other software firms, among them the
mainframe software companies Applied Data Research (ADR) and
Cullinet. On-Line Software, like ADR and Cullinet, sells database
and applications development software for IBM mainframe computers.
On-Line Software has about 700 employees worldwide, Mohasci told
Newsbytes.

Both companies are traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Grant Buckler/19910819/Press Contact: Ilona Mohasci, On-Line
Software International, 201-585-6582, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 IBM DEMONSTRATES SINGLE-ATOM SWITCH 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00024)

IBM DEMONSTRATES SINGLE-ATOM SWITCH 08/19/91
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Applications
are at least a decade away, but IBM has apparently set a record
for miniaturization which will be difficult to break,
demonstrating an electrical switch which relies on the motion of
a single atom. Switches are the fundamental logic elements of
computers or data storage.

The news was broken by the British science journal "Nature,"
which featured an article by 3 IBM scientists working at the
company's Almaden Research Center who said they repeatedly moved
a single xenon atom back and forth across a gap between two
electrodes just several atomic diameters apart. They found that
"tunneling" current flowing between the electrodes changed
according to the position of the atom -- the conceptual
equivalent of turning a light on and off with a wall switch. A
low-temperature Scanning Tunneling Microscope was used to build
and operate the atom switch, with one of its electrodes being the
microscope's tungsten tip. The STM is an IBM invention, and its
creation won two IBM scientists a 1987 Nobel Prize.

The STM was originally created to view atoms, but it's now being
used to manipulate them. In July two scientists at IBM's T.J.
Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, NY used an STM at
room temperature to pick up and replace single silicon atoms from
a silicon surface, suggesting that room-temperature atom switches
may be possible.

"It's not yet clear if one could ever build commercially
practical atom switches or devices that use them," Donald Eigler
wrote for the group. "But my hope is that our fundamental
research will lay the scientific foundation for future generations
of very small electronic devices, including those that may
someday be mass-produced on an atomic scale."

The circuitry in today's high performance computer chips is at
least 1,000 times coarser than that achieved by IBM.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910819/Press Contact: Kathleen Keeshen, IBM,
408-927-1282)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 IBM WINS OUTSOURCING DEAL WITH TENNESSEE BANK 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(ATL)(00025)

IBM WINS OUTSOURCING DEAL WITH TENNESSEE BANK 08/19/91
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Integrated
Systems Solutions, a subsidiary of IBM, says it has an agreement
to run the computer systems of the First American National Bank
of Tennessee. The bank is not related to the First American Bank
group of Washington, D.C., which is embroiled in the BCCI
scandal. First American of Tennessee has about 151 branches
around Tennessee, and also owns a trust and community development
operation. Its stock is traded on the NASDAQ over the counter
market under the symbol FATN.

Approximately 150 people will be transferred to the ISS payroll
by the move. First American says it will save $40 million over
the 10-year period covered by the agreement. The impact to 1991
earnings is expected to be minimal. Through the implementation of
branch automation and other core banking applications, First
American will realize other costs savings and service delivery
outside the data processing area.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910819/Press Contact: First American, Marta
Goodall, 615-748-2038)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 TELESPHERE POSTS SECOND-QUARTER LOSS OF $9.5 MILLION 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00026)

TELESPHERE POSTS SECOND-QUARTER LOSS OF $9.5 MILLION 08/19/91
ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Telesphere
Communications does not have sufficient cash flow to meet its
operating obligations on a timely basis after announcing a loss
in the second quarter of $9.5 million on revenues of $89.5
million.  Losses resulted from continued declines in the 900
revenues base, significant recourse adjustment and holdbacks from
the local exchange carriers on the 900 traffic. The loss was
wider than expected.

Telesphere is the 4th largest provider of phone services and
billing services for so-called caller-paid 900 lines. Its
problems appeared to start when it acquired National Telephone
Systems of Rockville, Maryland. NTS managers recently took
control of Telesphere, and moved its offices from Illinois to
Maryland. But the company's financial woes have continued, and
earlier this month it attempted to get 900 number operators to
take stock instead of cash for money it owes them. One operator
responded to that with a press release saying it might have to
cease operations as a result.

Telesphere has retained an investment banker to assist it in the
search for additional equity and alternative financing
arrangements. The company is also discussing rescheduling of its
loan payments with lenders. Along with its 900 lines, Telesphere
provides so-called alternative operator services and it has a
long-distance market.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910819/Press Contact: Katherine Clifford,
Telesphere, 301-230-8370)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 NEW FOR PCS: Lotus Promises 1-2-3 For Windows Sept. 3 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00027)

NEW FOR PCS: Lotus Promises 1-2-3 For Windows Sept. 3 08/19/91
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Lotus plans to
1-2-3 for Windows on September 3. The company also said that French and
German versions of the product will begin shipping on September 6.

Zeos, meanwhile, is the first to announce that it will bundle
1-2-3 for Windows with all of its Windows-configured systems. Zeos
will also bundle Lotus' word processing software AMI Pro 2.0 with
its hardware, free of charge.

Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows includes SmartIcons, a customizable set
of icons that provide single-click access to basic and advanced
spreadsheet functions; and 1-2-3 Classic commands, which give users
the option of accessing the familiar 1-2-3 menu by pressing the "/" key.
It also features point-and-click file linking, a select-by-example graph
gallery, and Adobe Type Manager scalable font technology.

Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows will be priced at $595. Network Server and Node
Editions will be $895 and $595, respectively. All customers who purchased
a version of 1-2-3 since January 8 of this year are eligible to upgrade
to 1-2-3 for Windows for  $49. Every other owner of a version of 1-2-3
can upgrade for $150.

In order to entice other spreadsheet users and match the competition's
ploy for defectors from 1-2-3, Lotus is offering the $150 upgrade to
users of Microsoft Excel and Quattro Pro.

Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows  requires an IBM PC AT or compatible
(286 and higher) including most IBM PS/2 and Compaq models; Windows compatible
displays; a mouse (recommended); 2 MB system RAM; 5 MB hard disk space;
Microsoft Windows 3.0 or higher installed; and DOS 3.0 or higher.

(Wendy Woods/19910819/Press Contact: Lisa Landa, Lotus, 617/693-1263;
Justin Morris of ZEOS, 612-633-5877)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19  ****SOVIET COUP MAY ACTUALLY HELP FOREIGN INVESTORS 08/19/91

08/19/91


(EXCLUSIVE)(GOVT)(WAS)(00028)

 ****SOVIET COUP MAY ACTUALLY HELP FOREIGN INVESTORS 08/19/91
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- While
everyone is already reporting today's events in the Soviet Union
as a hard-line military coup, anti-capitalist move, that
characterization is not necessarily true -- this according to Dr.
Kent Moors, chairman of the political science department of
Duquesne University, a director of the American-Soviet Exchange
Center at the school, and president of American-Soviet Investment
and Development Associates.

In an exclusive interview, Dr. Moors told Newsbytes that he has
already received many strong high-level Soviet government
assurances that all commercial agreements would be honored and
that the political moves are being portrayed as a way to
stabilize the economic and political situation and actually give
foreign investors more confidence in the safety of their
investments.

Supporting this report, a former U.S. intelligence
community employee told Newsbytes that although one would expect
that the first thing in a coup would be an instant
shutdown of all telecommunications networks, there has apparently
been no interruption in regular phone service between Moscow and
the U.S., other than that to be expected from a large increase in
call volume. Dr. Moors reports no special problem in contacting
his Moscow office.

The Soviet military, according to Dr. Moors, is not oriented
toward governing the country and his group has already received
high-level communications from Moscow officials saying that all
ongoing projects with foreign companies and negotiations for
other projects are still in force, with no changes.

Despite fears that the strong military presence in Moscow was an
indication that the military intended to use force to implement
the new political situation, Dr. Moors pointed out that the
highly trained tank units which were brought in from Minsk and
Byelorussia were used because they are among the most disciplined
troops in the Red Army and could be relied upon to exercise the
greatest restraint when facing possible civilian unrest.

As for what is really happening, Dr. Moors told Newsbytes, "I
think it is still far too early to tell, but it was very
interesting to see comments from the hard liners who were at
pains to point out that all economic concessions and joint
ventures were still in force and that the entire move was
directed internally."

As for the timing of the coup, Dr. Moors pointed out that the New
Union agreement which would have been signed tomorrow, would have
ended any chance for the central government to control economic
reforms in an emergency.

Four factions are involved in this coup, according to Dr. Moors:
the military high command, the KGB (Soviet Secret Police), the
Moscow Police (MVD or Black Berets), and the "heir apparent,"
Boris Gromov, Deputy Interior Minister under the head of the MVD,
a very charismatic leader popular with the military.

Dr. Moors' group is currently involved in important recycling
projects which gain the Soviet Union desperately needed foreign
currency and help clean up the environment at the same time by
recovering nickel metal from slag piles using the latest U.S.
technology.

Newsbytes' Moscow Bureau is not reporting on these events, but
this has nothing to do with the present situation. The Bureau had
long ago scheduled a vacation for this period and expected to be
out of communication.

Washington insiders point out that although Dr. Moors' comments
certainly lend strong credence to the possibility that this
presumed coup is almost benign in many aspects, intended mostly
to impose necessary emergency economic reforms, and although
nothing has yet occurred which would contradict his assertions,
the situation is still very fluid and nothing can be taken for
granted on either side.

As this report was being written, an announcement out of Moscow
further strengthened the appearance of a non-violent, almost
routine change of government, by announcing that as of 5 p.m.
Moscow time, no curfew had been imposed in Moscow, something
which is almost automatic for all governments facing civil strife
or strong domestic unrest.

(John McCormick/19910819/Press Contact: Dr. Kent Moors, Duquesne
University, 412-434-6050)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19  ****RICOH CREATES FASTEST OPTICAL DRIVE 08/19/91

08/19/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00029)

 ****RICOH CREATES FASTEST OPTICAL DRIVE 08/19/91
LOS ALTOS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 19 (NB) -- Ricoh File
Products Division has announced that by using the fastest
rotation speed in the industry, 3600 rpm, its HyperSpace Drive
magneto-optical erasable optical drive has achieved the highest
sustained data transfer rate in the industry.

With an average seek time of only 28 milliseconds, an average
access time of 37 milliseconds, and a steady data transfer rate
approaching one megabyte per second, the latest MO drive is
faster than the early IBM-XT 10 MB hard disk drives.

By way of comparison, the faster CD-ROM read-only data discs have
average access times on the order of 300 milliseconds.

The drive, which will be available in production quantities
starting in September, will be sold at single-quantity prices
just under $4,000 to computer manufacturers, value-added
resellers, systems integrators, and distributors.

(John McCormick/19910819/Press Contact: John Dean, Ricoh Corp.,
415-962-0443)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 19 BoCoEx Index 08/19/91

08/19/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00030)

BoCoEx Index 08/19/91

Closing Prices Report for the week ending August 16, 1991

 Machine                           Closing Price    Ask    Bid

 --------------------------------------------------------------

 IBM XT 089               20 MgB      300 -          500    275

 IBM AT 099               20 MgB      600 -          675    500

 IBM AT 239               20 MgB      550 -          650    500

 IBM AT 339               30 MgB      775 -         1000    700

 IBM PS/2 Model 25        30 MgB      400 -          600    400

 IBM PS/2 Model 30        20 MgB      700 -          850    700

 IBM PS/2 Model 30-286    20 MgB     1000 -         1200    900

 IBM PS/2 Model L40SX     60 MgB     3400 -         3500   3400

 IBM PS/2 Model 50        20 MgB     1000 -         1250   1000

 IBM PS/2 Model 50Z       30 MgB     1100 -         1200   1000

 IBM PS/2 Model 55SX      60 MgB     1600 -         2200   1400

 IBM PS/2 Model 60        40 MgB     1150 -         1500   1000

 IBM PS/2 Model 70        60 MgB     2300 -         2800   2300

 IBM PS/2 Model 70P      120 MgB     3200 down 200  3600   3100

 IBM PS/2 Model 80        70 MgB     2450 -         2700   2300

 --------------------------------------------------------------

 Compaq Portable          Floppy      200 -          400    200

 Compaq Portable Plus     10 MgB      400 -          500    300

 Compaq Portable II       20 MgB      700 -         1050    700

 Compaq Portable III      20 MgB     1060 -         1250   1000

 Compaq Portable 286      20 MgB     1100 -         1350   1000

 Compaq Portable 386      40 MgB     1900 -         2100   1500

 Compaq SLT-286           40 MgB     1700 -         1900   1550

 Compaq LTE               20 MgB      950 -         1100    900

 Compaq LTE-286           20 MgB     1300 -         1600   1300

 Compaq LTE-286           40 MgB     1800 -         1900   1600

 Compaq LTE-386           40 MgB     2800 -         2800   2600

 Compaq Deskpro           20 MgB      450 up 50      450    350

 Compaq Deskpro 286       40 MgB      800 -         1000    700

 Compaq Deskpro 386/16    60 MgB     1900 -         2100   1800

 Compaq Deskpro 386SX/16  60 MgB     2000 -         2200   1900

 Compaq Deskpro 386/20    60 MgB     2150 -         3000   2000

 Compaq Deskpro 385/25e  120 MgB     3050 -         3100   3000

 Compaq Deskpro 386/33   320 MgB     5000 -         5500   5000

 Compaq SystemPro 386/33 240 MgB     6000 -         7000   4320

 --------------------------------------------------------------

 NEC PowerMate SX +       40 MgB     1200 -         1350   1100

 NEC PowerMate SX +       80 MgB     1400 -         1400   1250

 NEC ProSpeed 286         40 MgB     1800 -         2000   1600

 NEC ProSpeed 386        100 MgB     1700 -         1900   1700

 Zenith SupersPort-286    20 MgB      900 -         1000    800

 Zenith TurbosPort-386    40 MgB     1600 -         1900   1600

 --------------------------------------------------------------

 Macintosh Plus           Floppy      500 -          750    500

 Macintosh Plus           20 MgB      750 -          975    700

 Macintosh Classic        40 MgB     1025 -         1200   1000

 Macintosh SE             Floppy      700 -         1025    650

 Macintosh SE             20 MgB      925 -         1050    900

 Macintosh SE             40 MgB     1100 -         1250   1050

 Macintosh SE-30          40 MgB     2000 up 25     2200   1900

 Macintosh SE-30          80 MgB     2200 down 25   2500   2100

 Macintosh IIX            80 MgB     3550 -         3600   3500

 Macintosh IICX           80 MgB     3300 -         3600   3200

 Macintosh IICI           80 MgB     3750 -         4300   3750

 Macintosh IIFX           80 MgB     5300 -         5800   5200

 Macintosh IISI           40 MgB     2950 -         3400   2700

 Macintosh Portable       40 MgB     2500 -         2800   2300

 Apple 2c                 Floppy      300 -          300    200

 Apple 2e                 Floppy      325 -          400    300

 Apple 2gs                Floppy      800 -          950    750

 --------------------------------------------------------------

 Apple Imagewriter II                 250 -          350    200

 Apple Laserwriter 2NT               1900 -         2500   1800

 HP Laserjet                          425 -          500    400

 HP Laserjet II                      1000 -         1000    800

 --------------------------------------------------------------

 TI Travelmate 2000       20 MgB     1200 -         1700   1000

 Toshiba T-1000           Floppy      300 -          575    300

 Toshiba T-1200HB         20 MgB      750 -          900    690

 Toshiba T-1200XE         20 MgB     1250 -         1350   1200

 Toshiba T-1600           40 MgB     1500 -         1600   1400

 Toshiba T-2000 SX        40 MgB     2400 -         2500   2200

 Toshiba T-3100           10 MgB      800 -         1000    700

 Toshiba T-3100           20 MgB     1000 -         1200    900

 Toshiba T-3100 SX        40 MgB     2000 -         2600   1900

 Toshiba T-3200           40 MgB     1500 -         1800   1300

 Toshiba T-3200 SX        40 MgB     2400 -         2600   2300

 Toshiba T-5100           40 MgB     1800 -         2000   1700

 Toshiba T-5200          100 MgB     3100 up 200    3800   3100

BoCoEx Index
News and Closing Prices
from the Boston Computer Exchange

Ah August!  Long Sunny Days and Stable Markets

Boston August 16, 1991 -- It was a pretty pokey market in the
middle of August when the high flying clouds were the most active
players in the market.  Not that the brokers were bored but that
there were few major movements in the market.  With few new
products introduced into the market this month and no shocking
new developments that displace technology there is not much price
activity.  Volume is strong in the mid-summer market without the
volatility that was overwhelming in the latter part of the
spring.

The IBM PS/2 Model 70P dropped $200 to $3200 and left buyers
eager for more. The machine is not much of a laptop but as a
desktop it is slight and sleek.  The 386 is nearly fast enough
for a power user, and buyers are snapping up units that are being
displaced by real portable machines.

This weeks declaration that the IBM PC would no longer be traded
on the Big Board of the BCE didn't stop the last seller from
sneaking through with a pile of fully loaded PC's.  The machines
had enough extras to make them worth trading but the base box was
still handled at a price that was sub-threshold for cash deals.
From now on the original PC is a donation item --- call the East
West Foundation if you havn't sold your dust collector yet.  It
was a good machine.....

Compaq 486/25: Piles up - Ready to Go

At the other end of the technology spectrum, there are piles of
Compaq 486 based 25 megaHertz machines up for grabs.  Maybe it is
the rumor that Compaq is going to repair its damaged image with a
clone-beating price-bashing deal maker...maybe its the
replacement of this "slow" 25 megaHertz  model with zippier 33
and 50 Meg. boxes, but there are a lot of slower 486 Compaq's
looking for homes.  Sellers are willing to do low ball deals but
realistic closing prices are $4800. "Watch Out" Compaq you're
going through the same rude awakening that you put IBM
through....

Apple's MacMarket

No, MacWorld did not do anything to the MacMarket.  The only
thing that was newsworthy was the modest decline of the 80 MgB
SE-30 down $25 to end the week trading at $2200 while the 40 MgB
model was up $25 to $2000, showing the indecision of August
traders. There were large volumes of MacPlus' changing hands at
last week's price of $500 for the floppy model and $750 for the
20 Mg. drive model. Mac 2's and 2cx's traded at last week's
prices in healthy volumes.

Sigh, Maybe next week will be more exciting.  Enjoy the sunshine.

BoCoEx Index prices are based on complete systems with keyboard,
monochrome monitor and adapter, less the value of any software or
peripherals.   BoCoEx Index appears in PC Week, ComputerWorld,
UPI and IDG Wire Service, PC Satellite Network, Computer
Currents, NewsBytes, Canadian ComputerWeek, CompuServe, Delphi,
Boston Globe, and is heard weekly on Business Radio Network.
Call BCE: 617-542-4414, Buyer's Hot Line: 1-800-262-6399, In
Alaska and Canada 1-800-437-2470, FAX: [phone].
BCE's Fax Yourself Information is 617-542-2345 Ask for extension
300 for BoCoEx Index.

(Bocoex/1991816)

#ENDCARD


#CARD::1991 AUG 16 CRAY JOINS CARNEGIE MELLON RESEARCH CENTER 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00001)

CRAY JOINS CARNEGIE MELLON RESEARCH CENTER 08/16/91
EAGAN, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Cray Research
has announced that it has joined the engineering Design Research
Center (EDRC) of Carnegie Mellon University as an industrial
affiliate.

The EDRC is a multi-disciplinary National Science Foundation
(NSF) engineering research center that develops and integrates
computer-based methodologies to support faster, more efficient,
more cost effective design in US industry.

The EDRC claims to cover all engineering disciplines, as well as
architecture and computer science. The center operates on the
premise that design practice can be dramatically improved at an
early stage by applying formal methodology.

Some of the goals are to anticipate life cycle concerns, convey
thought processes that motivate design decisions, generate and
select design alternatives automatically, and develop design
systems that are easy to learn and use.

So far, the EDRC's vision of improved design practices has
attracted collaboration from 39 companies in the aerospace,
electronics, computer, chemical, petroleum, automotive, medical
equipment, construction and materials industries.

According to Cray Research's chief executive officer John
Rollwagen, collaborative projects with industry and academia are
rapidly becoming the norm in the computer industry as a way of
increasing the transfer of technologies.

"Our involvement with the EDRC not only provides the
participating researchers with the resources to readily step into
the world of high performance computing, but also enables Cray
Research to contribute to the advancement of engineering design,"
he said.

The EDRC program is organized around three laboratories: design
for manufacturing, synthesis, and design systems. Cray's
involvement is in the synthesis lab and the design systems lab.

The synthesis lab attempts to develop and integrate qualitative
and quantitative methods for design optimization in layout
design, separation system synthesis, preliminary design of
engineering systems, and automated learning.

In the design laboratory, architecture, chemical, civil and
electrical engineering combine in attempting to create generic
design tools and domain-independent systems to support the
large-scale integration of dissimilar design tools.

Mardi Schmeider of Cray Research told Newsbytes that part of
Cray's participation will include CPU (central processor unit) time
on a Cray Y-MP system at its company computer network center.

EDRC spokesperson Georgette Demis told Newsbytes that the
center also receives funding from some government agencies, such
as DARPA and NASA.

(Jim Mallory/19910816/Press contact: Mardi Schmeider, Cray
Research, 612-683-3538; Georgette Demis, EDRC, 412-268-3372)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 UTMC GETS NSA APPROVAL FOR CMOS FOUNDRY PROCESS 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00002)

UTMC GETS NSA APPROVAL FOR CMOS FOUNDRY PROCESS 08/16/91
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- The
United Technologies Microelectronics Center (UTMC) has announced
that the National Security Agency (NSA) has approved its facility
to process classified and unclassified material to NSA's design
rules.

According to UTMC, the approval will allow the company to deliver
level B or S, rad-hard and non-rad-hard integrated circuits to
government security agencies and system manufacturers. NSA
approval for such technology is required before supply can take
place.

Chips such as those manufactured by UMTC are used in secure
communications devices and computer systems in order to
scramble data or voice to avoid interception by unfriendly parties.
They are frequently found in government agencies and facilities,
including the military services. Data is also encrypted for storage
using the special circuits.

UMTC's Foundry Marketing Manager Joe Tirado told Newsbytes
that the requirements for NSA approval are extremely stringent,
including high level security precautions for the foundry itself.
UMTC claims that it has successfully delivered devices to NSA's
MOSIS/RMOSIS (MOS Implementation Service) and to the
INFOSEC (Information Security) community.

The company says that it accepts both classified and unclassified
designs in a standard GDS II tape format, and offers secure
device fabrication, assembly and test methods. The company
says it can deliver final product in the form of wafers to a
wafer attribute specification, tested die, or finished, packaged
devices.

UTMC's devices are fabricated on the company's 3.0-, 1,5- and
1.2-micron single-poly, double metal twin-well CMOS processes.
According to the company these processes are optimized for
rad-hard, high-density logic devices operating in military and
aerospace environments.

UTMC is a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation, and is
a manufacturer of semi-custom and military-standard VLSI (very
large scale integration) circuits for the aerospace and defense
market. The company maintains a toll free number to answer
inquiries on 1-800-645-8862.

(Jim Mallory/19910816/Press contact: Twila Gamble, UTMC, 719-594-
8362)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 HOTEL CHAIN PICKS SULCUS FOR PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00003)

HOTEL CHAIN PICKS SULCUS FOR PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 08/16/91
WICHITA, KANSAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Before long, if you
check into a Harrah's Casino, or an Embassy Suites, Hampton Inn
or Homewood Suites hotel, the check-in procedure will be handled
by a new computer system.

The Promus Companies has announced that it has selected a Sulcus
Computer Corporation subsidiary, Lodgistix Hospitality Management
Systems, to develop a special application for use in Promus'
hotels, which include about 400 properties.

Sulcus says it will create a special application of its LANmark
property management system for use in the owned, managed and
franchised hotels. The systems will run under both Unix and DOS.

Promus says its properties employ 17,500 people, and generated
gross revenues in excess of $1,000 million in 1990. Promus was
formed as a spin-off from Holiday Corporation when Bass, PLC
acquired the Holiday Inn hotel system.

The new system will provide Promus with property management
system and central reservation system integration. Development
will be jointly owned by both parties under the terms of a
development and license agreement.

The two companies, citing proprietary rights, declined to reveal
any other details of the agreement.

According to Jeff Edwards, COO of the group, the project should
be completed over the next nine months, and will generate
substantial seven-figure revenues through the provision of first
and second tier software support service for the properties
worldwide.

Edwards says that as a result of the alliance, the Lodgistix/HMS
support charge of $5,000 per year for each property will be
reduced. According to Edwards, during the interim development
period, Lodgistix/HMS will install its current version of their
property management system in selected sites.

(Jim Mallory/19910816/Press contact: Paul Hammar, Lodgistix, 316-
685-2216)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 COURT WILL RECONSIDER EARLIER MS/APPLE DECISION 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00004)

COURT WILL RECONSIDER EARLIER MS/APPLE DECISION 08/16/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation has announced that the Ninth US Circuit Court has
granted Microsoft's motion for reconsideration of an earlier
decision in the long-running law suit between Apple and
Microsoft.

At issue in the case, which Apple initiated about three years
ago, is whether Microsoft Windows Release 2 is too much like the
Macintosh user interface. Microsoft has argued that the features
that remain in Apple's case are not original to Apple, and
therefore cannot be protected under Apple's copyrights.

In an unusual move, Judge Vaughn Walker has asked both parties
to make available to the court the pertinent computer hardware and
software in order for him to make his decision.

"We are pleased with the order and that the judge is willing to
take the time to become familiar with these interactive products"
said William Neukom, Microsoft's VP of law and corporate affairs.

Microsoft spokesperson Pam Edstrom of Waggener Edstrom told
Newsbytes that the company thinks the judge is making every
effort to render a fair decision, and said she believes the case
will be a landmark for the computer industry.

The three year long law suit, which most industry observers have
watched with interest, has been characterized by some observers
as a long running soap opera. After Apple accused Microsoft of
fraud in obtaining a licensing agreement with Apple in 1985,
Judge Walker called the fraud issue "a sideshow."

Hewlett-Packard, who was also included in the suit because of the
alleged similarity between the Macintosh interface and HP's New
Wave software, charged Apple with fraud in obtaining the original
copyright for the Mac interface technology.

The original law suit included only Windows 2.03, but was later
amended by Apple to include Windows 3.0, which has been one of
the best software sellers of all time. Thousands of application
programs have been written for Windows, and Microsoft says it has
shipped more than 70,000 developer kits, which are used to write
specific Windows applications.

Despite the law suit, investors seemed to show confidence in
Microsoft, as the company's stock hit an all time high this week,
closing at $83 on Monday, up $2.25 per share. Microsoft earned
$462.7 million for the fiscal year which ended June 30th of this
year, up from $279.2 million the previous year.

(Jim Mallory/19910816/Press contact: Pam Edstrom, Waggener
Edstrom, 503-245-0905)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16  ****SUIT AGAINST BORLAND COULD AFFECT A-T PURCHASE 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00005)

 ****SUIT AGAINST BORLAND COULD AFFECT A-T PURCHASE 08/16/91
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Borland
has announced that a class-action complaint against the company
has been filed in the United States District Court for the Central
District of California.

Industry analysts suggest that the class action suit, described
as routine by many press sources, could cause problems in
connection with Borland's purchase of Ashton-Tate.

The complaint, naming Borland, its directors and certain officers,
has three parts. It alleges that false and misleading statements
were made in the company's April 1991 prospectus for public
offering of common shares.

The complaint also alleges that those named have committed
violations of the federal securities and exchange commission laws
in the sale of stock. The defendants are also alleged to have
breached fiduciary duties by offering too much for Ashton-Tate
stock.

The complaint claims also to be, in part, a derivative action and
asks for an order preventing the proposed purchase of Ashton-Tate
by Borland, damages and attorney's fees.

Borland has said the allegations are false and plans to
vigorously defend against them.

If the sale goes through, Ashton-Tate shareholders will receive
Borland shares for their Ashton-Tate shares. The Borland shares
have a market value of around $50.00, but no more than 0.398 or
less than 0.346 Borland shares per Ashton-Tate share will be
given.

Generally speaking, Ashton-Tate shareholders will receive one
Borland share for three of their Ashton-Tate shares, or about
$17.50 in value for their shares valued somewhere in the
neighborhood of $10 to $11 each at the time of the announcement
of the sale.

Until 20 days before the close of the purchase, no one really
knows what the actual amount the Ashton-Tate shareholders will
receive. It is at that time the determination will be made, based on
the market value of the shares on that day.

As previously announced on July 7, Ashton-Tate shareholder
Edward Michael filed a class action suit against Ashton-Tate and
Borland in Delaware Chancery court alleging the merger is a breach
of fiduciary duties and the consideration provided for in the merger
was inadequate. The suit also asks for an order inhibiting the
merger.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108016/Press Contact: Dick O'Donnell,
Borland, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 SOVIET FIRM SAYS CANADIAN DEALER DID NOT DELIVER 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00006)

SOVIET FIRM SAYS CANADIAN DEALER DID NOT DELIVER 08/16/91
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Business
Western-style has its risks, as one Soviet company learned when it
ordered computers from a Toronto dealer.

Interbyte, of Moscow, recently filed a complaint with the Toronto
Better Business Bureau, claiming it received less than half of
the goods for which it paid Toronto-based Quadram Systems
Centre US$148,500 early last year.

Paul Tuz, president of the Toronto BBB, said that a letter from
Interbyte to his office included a long list of items that were paid for
but not delivered, including 42 printers as well as math
coprocessors and Cyrillic keyboards for IBM PC AT machines.

Some parts of the order were also filled incorrectly -- power
cords for the PCs were of a type that fit North American rather
than European outlets, for instance.

Tuz said the Better Business Bureau has investigated and found
that Quadram's telephone was disconnected. An investigator
discovered the company had never moved into the address printed
on its letterhead, but did occupy another office for a short time
two years ago before moving out without paying rent.

The principal of the company, Eugene Foo, was found to be a
26 year old, Singapore-born Canadian citizen.

Tuz said his office is turning the case over to the commercial
crimes division of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. In the
meantime, he urged foreign companies to check with local Better
Business Bureau offices in Canada before signing contracts.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Paul Tuz, Toronto Better
Business Bureau, 416-766-5744)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 OBJECTSOFT TO EXPLOIT SOFT LINKS FOR WINDOWS 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00007)

OBJECTSOFT TO EXPLOIT SOFT LINKS FOR WINDOWS 08/16/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- A
new  firm called ObjectSoft has said it will bring object-oriented
applications to Microsoft Windows users using a concept its
founders call "soft links."

The company's first product, a "three-dimensional electronic
rolodex" called Relate, is scheduled for release this fall.

ObjectSoft's founders are David E.Y. Sarna and George J. Febish,
who previously co-founded Image Business Systems.

The company said that its linking technology augments the Object
Linking and Embedding (OLE) technology which Microsoft recently
added to Windows.

Sarna told Newsbytes that soft links differ from OLE in much the
same way as a dial-up telephone call differs from a permanent
leased line.

"It's not a hard, permanent link," he said. Also, soft links can
be created to any file, not just to files created by application
programs that support OLE.

Relate forms multiple, dynamic soft links between cards in an
electronic phone number and address file and other documents.
Users can search the file, find documents that have been
"electronically stapled" to an entry and bring up any document --
and its application -- with one keystroke.

A document also can be stapled to any DOS or Windows program.
For example, using a suitable terminal emulator, a user can staple
correspondence stored on a PC to data in a mainframe application.

According to ObjectSoft, Relate is the only program able to form
a soft link that does not change the original document. And since
the soft link itself is an object, multiple users can reference the
same link, and links can be made by one or more users with
the same original document.

Now in the late stages of beta testing, Relate is scheduled to
ship in November. Relate Professional, which includes support for
developers who want to build hyper-object support into their
applications, is available now to qualified programmers.

Suggested retail prices will be US$249 for Relate, US$595 for
Relate Professional, and US$795 for a network version, said
company spokesman Mayer Resnick. Special introductory
prices -- US$100 lower in each case -- will be in effect for the first
90 days after the product ships.

Sarna said ObjectSoft plans other products based on the soft
links technology, including software for work-flow management,
but he would not comment on when such products might be
announced.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Mayer Resnick, ObjectSoft,
201-836-2968)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 CA EXTENDS SUPERPROJECT LINE ACROSS PLATFORMS 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00008)

CA EXTENDS SUPERPROJECT LINE ACROSS PLATFORMS 08/16/91
GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- In line with
its CA90s strategy of extending applications to multiple hardware
types, Computer Associates has begun shipping the Digital
Equipment VAX version of its SuperProject project management
software.

The company has also announced plans for a Microsoft Windows
version of the software, which currently runs on MS-DOS PCs.

SuperProject will be available for Windows 3.0 by September or
October of this year, Christopher Frew, vice-president of
development at CA, told Newsbytes.

For the future, Frew said, CA is actively planning a Unix version
of SuperProject and one for IBM mainframe computers running the
MVS operating system. Asked about a version for the Apple
Macintosh computer, he said CA is: "looking into it, but it's not
close enough to even talk about."

CA-SuperProject for VAX offers essentially the same functions as
the DOS version, and project files are fully compatible between
the versions, according to CA, making it easy to translate files
between the different versions.

Company spokeswoman Mary Keating said that the software is a
reworked version of an earlier CA project management package
for the VAX, Teleplan.

Now available, CA-SuperProject for VAX will run on Digital VAX
minicomputers running the VAX/VMS operating system, version 4.7
or later. Prices range from C$7,500 on a VAXstation to C$165,000
on the VAX 9000 mainframe.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: John Schoutsen or Mary
Keating, Computer Associates Canada, 416-676-6700, fax 416-676-
6734)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16  ****INGRAM MICRO SIGNS CLARIS IN CANADA, LAUNCHES BBS 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00009)

 ****INGRAM MICRO SIGNS CLARIS IN CANADA, LAUNCHES BBS 08/16/91
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Ingram Micro
(Canada) has announced a distribution agreement with the Canadian
arm of Claris, Apple's software arm.

The deal adds Canada to a list of countries and regions,
including the United States, the Benelux countries, Central
America, South America, and the Caribbean, where Ingram is a
Claris distributor.

The Canadian agreement is not exclusive as a spokesman for
Claris said that Merisel Canada will also continue to distribute the
company's software. However, Ingram Micro will carry the full
line of Claris software.

The Claris products will be handled through Ingram's Macintosh
Products Division, which also distributes Macintosh products from
Adobe, Aldus, Farallon, Microsoft, Symantec, WordPerfect, and a
number of other vendors.

Ingram Micro also announced the creation of an electronic
bulletin board system (BBS) and an interactive fax system to
provide information to dealers. Dealers will be able to dial into the
BBS to receive demonstration software, drivers, and patches.

The fax system, called Factsline, will let dealers request
brochures and technical notes from a touch-tone phone. Both will
operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, company officials
said.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Joan Fremes re Claris or
Kevin Baggs re BBS, Ingram Micro, 416-850-8580)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 NEW PRODUCT: LSE Touts Disk Space In New Notebook 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00010)

NEW PRODUCT: LSE Touts Disk Space In New Notebook 08/16/91
HICKSVILLE, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- LSE
Worldwide has announced an Intel 80386SX-based notebook
computer called Future. The company said the machine is the first
notebook to offer 120 megabytes (MB) of hard disk storage.

The Future notebook contains a 60MB hard disk drive, but it uses
data compression to cram more data into the same amount of
physical disk space. According to LSE, this approach provides the
equivalent of 120 megabytes of storage space.

Experts on file compression note that the degree of compression
possible varies with the type of file, ranging from as much as
three or four to one in a few cases to almost no compression in
others.

Other features of the Future notebook include a 1.44 MB diskette
drive, a backlit liquid-crystal display, a battery rated at three hours
of use, DOS 4.01, and a carrying case.

The processor is a 20 MB Intel 80386SX. LSE has signed an
agreement with TRW to provide service at 150 locations across the
United States.

LSE, founded in 1975, builds monitors, power supplies, and sub-
assembles for other computer manufacturers as well as selling its
own line of desktop and notebook personal computers.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Jim Dipelesi, LSE
Electronics, 516-931-1670, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 DEALER'S ASSOC INTROS LAN CERTIFICATION PROGRAM 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00011)

DEALER'S ASSOC INTROS LAN CERTIFICATION PROGRAM 08/16/91
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- The Local
Area Network Dealers' Association (LANDA) has announced a
cross-platform certification program for LAN dealers, backed by
major vendors.

The program, to be run by LANDA, was announced at LAN Expo, a
trade show sponsored by the Toronto chapter of LANDA.

John van der Zalm, president of LANDA Toronto, told Newsbytes
that rather than product-specific training and certification for
dealers, the new program -- called Network Engineer Reliability
Certification (NETWERC) -- will train dealers to handle products
from a number of major vendors.

Plans call for LANDA to provide both training programs and five
examinations for certification, he said. There will be three levels
of certification, indicating different levels of training and
specialization.

Novell is a founding member of the NETWERC program, LANDA
said, and a number of other vendors, including 3Com, Compaq,
IBM, and Intel, have expressed interest.

LANDA Toronto also announced an agreement with trade show
producer The Interface Group, which will produce future
LAN Expo shows.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Emily Sawolak, LANDA
Toronto, 416-440-1167, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 SEGA LINKS WITH FALCOM FOR SOFTWARE PROJECT 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00012)

SEGA LINKS WITH FALCOM FOR SOFTWARE PROJECT 08/16/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Sega Enterprises has teamed
up with Falcom, a Japanese games software house, to form a new
joint venture company. The aim of the new company -- to be known
as Sega Falcom -- will be to develop CD-ROM-based games
software for Sega's existing games machines.

Sega Falcom's capitalization has been set at 30 million yen
($220,000), with 55 percent of the company being owned by Sega,
the remainder by Falcom.

Plans call for Falcom to develop new software, as well as
enhanced versions of existing games software, for the Sega
games console with a CD-ROM drive attached.

Falcom is a major software developer in Japan. The company
has developed several major hits, recording sales of more than
1,000 million yen ($7.5 million) during 1990 in the process.

Sega, meanwhile, is hoping that putting Falcom's name on its new
games will boost the popularity of its software, sales of which have
been hit by the proliferation of alternative games systems in recent
years.

Sega's President Nakayama has assumed the role of chairman of
the new company with Falcom's president Katoh taking on the role
of president.

Sega is facing increasing pressure from competing games console
companies in Japan. Already on the horizon is a next-generation
16-bit games machine from Nintendo called the Super Famicom.
Sega is reported to have fallen behind in sales of 8-bit games
software, but is meeting the competition head-on in the 16-bit
games arena.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910816/Press Contact: Sega Enterprises, +81-
3-3743-7438)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 APPLE TO MOVE CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER TO COLORADO? 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00013)

APPLE TO MOVE CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER TO COLORADO? 08/16/91
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) --
Economic Development Council officials in Colorado Springs have
reported that Apple officials visited the city recently to consider the
area as a new site for Apple's 500-person customer support
center.

Moving the customer support center is one of several cost
reduction moves Apple is said to be considering. Other cities
reportedly under consideration are Phoenix, Arizona and Austin,
Texas.

As reported by Newsbytes in March of this year, Apple has already
purchased the 322,000 square foot former Data General plant in
nearby Fountain, Colorado. Apple says it plans to manufacture
laptops at that facility.

The Arizona Republic newspaper reported earlier this month that
Apple will need 100,000 to 150,000 square feet for the customer
service center. An Apple spokesperson said the center would
probably move in the next 18 months, and about 150 California
workers would move with it. EDC officials estimate that another
350 local residents would be hired to complete the center's
staffing.

Economic Development officials were unwilling to comment on
whether Apple would lease, purchase or build a facility, nor
would they comment on any incentives which the city might offer.

Apple received various concessions from the city and the state
when selecting Colorado for their manufacturing facility,
including training funds for the local workforce and property and
sales tax rebates. Final selection of the new site for the new
customer service center is expected within 60-90 days.

(Jim Mallory/19910816)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 NEW SOFTWARE BUILDS CALIFORNIA STATE SAFETY MANUAL 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00014)

NEW SOFTWARE BUILDS CALIFORNIA STATE SAFETY MANUAL 08/16/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- The
new California safety legislation, the California Injury and Illness
Prevention Act (SB 198), is confusing and frustrating some
businesses, but a California law firm has developed a software
package to help employers comply with the state requirements
and avoid stiff penalties.

Jane Middleton, marketing director at the law firm which developed
the new software said: "Our clients are angry about the added
administrative burden imposed by the law, the lack of notice from
the state, and because they can't get straight answers how to
comply."

As of July 1, SB 198 requires every employer to begin safety
awareness by having a written safety manual for employees. The
law firm of Thierman, Cook, Brown & Prager has developed a
software package called: "Build Your Own California
Employment Manual on Disk."

The firm claims that the software is completely menu driven. The
user has industry templates for safety available by indicating
the appropriate industry from twelve choices, including
Agriculture, Office Worker, Mining, and Transportation.

More than 270 pages on safe work practices are available and a
packet of SB 198 forms are included, the firm said. The user
chooses paragraphs appropriate to the company's business,
builds the manual and prints it customized to that particular
operation.

Announcing the package, Mark Thierman, a partner in the firm,
said: "Our program differs from most products on the market
because we give the user a complete, ready to use product
rather than a process for self-evaluation. Business people need
to have a final product, not just something else to think about,"
he added.

The safety manual is a requirement and will be asked for upon an
inspection of a company's facilities by the state's safety board.

The software is for IBM and compatible personal computers and
uses about 3.5 megabytes of disk space. The product retails for
$400.

The firm has said it is inviting inquiries from trade associations for
member discounts and dealer inquiries. More information is
available from Jane Middleton at [phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/199108016/Press Contact: Jane Middleton,
Thierman, Cook, Brown & Prager, Tel: [phone], Fax: 415/434-
2867)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 HEWLETT-PACKARD POSTS $192 MILLION EARNINGS IN 3Q 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00015)

HEWLETT-PACKARD POSTS $192 MILLION EARNINGS IN 3Q 08/16/91
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Times are
good for Hewlett-Packard, as the Palo Alto, California-based
hardware manufacturer posted a nine percent increase in net
revenue and eight percent growth in net earnings for its fiscal 1991
third quarter, which ended July 31.

Net revenue totaled $3.5 billion, compared with $3.2 billion in
the year-ago quarter. Net revenue from U.S. sales and service was
$1.6 billion, up seven percent from the $1.5 billion reported in
fiscal 1990's third quarter. Net revenue from outside the United
States totaled $1.9 billion, an increase of 10 percent from a
year ago.

Net earnings for the quarter were $192 million, or $0.76 per
share on approximately 252 million shares of common stock
outstanding. This compares with net earnings of $178 million, or
$0.73 per share on 242 million shares during 1990's third
quarter.

Additionally, earnings from operations grew 10 percent, and
orders rose eight percent over the comparable 1990 period.

Operating expenses increased four percent in the third quarter and
totaled 37.2 percent of net revenue, compared with 38.8 percent
of net revenue during the year-ago quarter.

The company maintains that several factors contributed to the
increase in revenue including competitive pricing pressures, the
production ramp-up of new products, the start-up of the company's
wafer-fabrication facility in Corvallis, Ore., and heavy
shipments of higher-discount products during the quarter.

(Ian Stokell/19910816/Press Contact: Steve Beitler, Hewlett-
Packard Co., 415-857-2387)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 TI TEAMS UP WITH JAPANESE TRIO OVER HDTV DEV'T 08/12/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00016)

TI TEAMS UP WITH JAPANESE TRIO OVER HDTV DEV'T 08/12/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Texas Instruments (U.S.) has
agreed with three Japanese electronics manufacturers regarding
the development of chips for a high definition television (HDTV).

Terms of the agreement call for Texas Instruments to develop the
HDTV pictorial data processing chips jointly with Fujitsu, Hitachi
and Sony.

Plans call for the technology to be used in the HDTV MUSE
chipset that decompresses the pictorial data from an off-air
signal and turns it into a normal TV picture in the set.

First generation versions of these chips have already been
developed. Already, the companies concerned are working on the
second generation technology required. The second generation
chipsets will run a lot cooler and be much more compact that the
first generation offerings.

It is expected that the four firms will sign the joint development
agreement at the end of the this month. This will place in a head
to head situation against Japanese firms including NHK (the
Japanese national broadcasting corporation), Toshiba, NEC,
Sharp and Matsushita.

Interestingly, Fujitsu and TI are currently taking legal action
against each other concerning the chip's licensing arrangements.
Both companies want to be a senior party to the agreement and
take a slice of the license fee.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910816)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 COMPAQ TO RELEASE DOS V-COMPATIBLE PCS IN JAPAN 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00017)

COMPAQ TO RELEASE DOS V-COMPATIBLE PCS IN JAPAN 08/16/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Compaq Computer Japan has
announced it will release a new range of PCs, based the company's
DOS V operating system product, early next year.

According to the Nikkei Personal Computing magazine, the new PCs
will be modified versions of Compaq's SystemPro family. Currently,
the systems available include the SystemPro 386, the 486 and a
notebook-type 386LTE.

Plans call for software to be developed by both the U.S. and the
Japanese offices of Compaq. Compaq is already reported to be
signing up extra staff to cope with the anticipated extra workload.
Katsu Murai, an ex-senior executive with IBM Japan, has reportedly
been invited to become Compaq Japan's new president.

Many PC manufacturers, meanwhile, including Hitachi, Matsushita,
Japan Digital Equipment and Intel Japan, are also planning to
release DOS/V-based PCs in the near

These manufacturers are getting technical information on the DOS
V system from IBM Japan through the OADG (Open Architecture
Developers' Group), which is advocated by IBM Japan. There are
about 20 OADG members at present, with the number expected to
to rise to more than 30 by the end of this year.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910816/Press Contact: Catena Group, +81-3-
3615-3211)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 TOSHIBA TO CREATES NEW MANUFACTURING BASE IN CHINA 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00018)

TOSHIBA TO CREATES NEW MANUFACTURING BASE IN CHINA 08/16/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Toshiba has announced
plans to set up a new manufacturing plant in Daireng, China, this
coming September.

This is the first time that Toshiba has opened a manufacturing
facility in China. According to the Japanese computer giant, the
Chinese move forms part of the company's worldwide strategy to
expand its non-Japanese manufacturing base. The Chinese facility
will cost the company just under 10 billion yen.

Plans call for the new company to be called Toshiba-Daireng
Corporation. The capitalization of the firm has been set at
billion yen, which will be paid by Toshiba, Mitsuibussan Trading
and Showa Densen.

To start with, plans call for Toshiba-Daireng to manufacture
color television parts, motors, circuit boards for VCRs and TVs.
About 40 percent of the products will be shipped to Japan, with the
rest being shipped to Singapore and Thailand.

The plant will be built on a 128,000 square meter piece of land. The
actual production is expected to start in April 1993. By the year
1994, the new firm wants to hire 1,000 employees and it is expected
to grow larger in the future. The plant is expected to play an
important role for the Toshiba group.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910816/Press Contact: Toshiba, +81-3-3457-
2100)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 NEW BORLAND C++ TRAINING VIDEOS FOR DEVELOPERS 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00019)

NEW BORLAND C++ TRAINING VIDEOS FOR DEVELOPERS 08/16/91
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Borland
has announced the immediate availability of a training video on
object-oriented programming aimed at C++ users. The video is
entitled: `The World of C++.'

The video consists of a set of two tapes containing 22 lessons
and hosted by David Intersimone, Borland's director of developer
relations. Also included is a 150-page workbook and a tutorial
diskette with solutions to all the workbook exercises. The
diskette requires C++.

"'The World of C++' enables C programmers or beginning C++
programmers to master the fundamentals of object-oriented
programming," Intersimone said.

This is the second videotape the company has released in a series
it calls the `Visions' series. The first was `The World of
Objects,' an $19-95 introduction to the concepts behind object-
oriented programming and hosted by Philippe Kahn, Borland's
chairman and chief executive officer.

`The World of C++' training video has a retail price of $199.95.
Information is available on the `Visions' series tapes toll-free
at 1-800-331-0877.

Borland is a software development company located in Scotts
Valley, California and offers other products such as Quattro Pro,
Turbo C++, Turbo Pascal for Windows and Sidekick.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108016/Press Contact: Judy Roberts, Borland,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 BORLAND AIMS NEW PRODUCTS AT HOME & SMALL BUSINESS USERS 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00020)

BORLAND AIMS NEW PRODUCTS AT HOME & SMALL BUSINESS USERS 08/16/91
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Borland
has announced it is offering reduced price and functionality
versions of its Quattro Pro and Paradox products aimed at home
and small business users of the IBM PC. The new versions are
called Quattro Pro SE and Paradox SE.

Quattro Pro SE is a fast, fully compatible low-end version of the
Quattro Pro spreadsheet product. According to the company, the
package competes functionally with Lotus 1-2-3 release 2.3.

Borland is claiming that the SE version offers greater
spreadsheet capacity on the varied range of hardware
configurations than Lotus 1-2-3 release 2.3 offers. The new
Quattro Pro SE carries a $69.95 price tag in comparison to
Quattro Pro's retail price of $495.

Paradox SE, meanwhile, is a low-end version of the Paradox
database package from Borland. The product is aimed at first time
database users and can be used to track customers and clients,
print mailing labels and generate form letters, Borland officials
said.

The retail price on Paradox SE is $99.95 compared to the $795
price tag of Paradox 3.5 or the $349 price of Q&A, another
relational database.

Rob Dickerson, vice president and general manager of Borland's
Database Business Unit said: "Many flat file database users find
that they need a relational database to meet all their needs."

"Paradox SE is a cost effective product that is both easy to
learn and use, yet provides users with the power they need to
manage important information," he added.

Referring to Borland's new low-end versions, Stephen Kahn, vice
president and general manager of Borland's spreadsheet business
unit, said: "Borland has a heritage of providing software value
to all its customers."

Borland is a software development company of end-user and
programming software products. Some of its offerings are C++,
Sidekick, ObjectVision, Turbo Pascal for Windows, as well as
Paradox and Quattro Pro.

The company is in the process of purchasing Ashton-Tate, best
known for its dBASE line of products, and has already announced a
dBASE for Windows product.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108016/Press Contact: James Strohecker,
Borland, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 COURT UPHOLDS WANG PATENTS - TELLS NEC & TOSHIBA TO PAY 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00021)

COURT UPHOLDS WANG PATENTS - TELLS NEC & TOSHIBA TO PAY 08/16/91
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- A United
States Federal District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, has upheld
two Wang Laboratories patents on single in-line memory modules
(SIMMs).

In parallel with the patent decision, the court has ordered two
Japanese firms to pay royalties on 18 months' sales of single
inline memory modules (SIMMs) deemed to infringe the patents, and
granted an injunction against further sales.

NEC and Toshiba were ordered to pay royalties of 2.75 to four
percent on all sales of infringing products in the United States
between the beginning of 1990 and the end of June this year.

Edmund Pignone, a Wang spokesman, said that the jury in the
patent case set the 2.75-to-four-percent range, and the judge
will determine the exact amount. Wang estimates the two
companies' infringing sales at US$120 million, he said, meaning
the payment should be in the range of US$4 million.

In the case of NEC, Pignone added, the trial judge has the option
of tripling the award because NEC was found to have infringed the
Wang patents wilfully.

The court also granted a permanent injunction barring further
sales of the infringing products. The injunction was stayed,
however, pending post-trial proceedings. An appeal of the case is
legally possible, Pignone said.

The Wang patents cover the structure of a SIMM, a modular device
containing several memory chips. SIMMs are widely used in
personal computers and peripherals. The Wang patents are
effective until the year 2004.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Edmund Pignone, Wang, 508-
967-4912)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 NEW FOR PCS: VGA Bundle For AutoCAD, Windows Users 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00022)

NEW FOR PCS: VGA Bundle For AutoCAD, Windows Users 08/16/91
WINOOSKI, VERMONT, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Vermont
Microsystems has launched a bundle that combines its software
tools for AutoCAD and Windows users with a new high-resolution
VGA display adapter board.

Vermont Microsystems will show the Design Master VGA at CAD Camp
'91 in San Rafael, California, August 17 to 20. The package
features VMI's AutoMate/Pro Display List software for AutoCAD
386, Release 11, AutoShade 2.0 and Autodesk 3D Studio, as well as
VMI True View, an image-viewing application for Microsoft Windows
3.0.

The 16-bit Design Master VGA supports 256 on-screen colors at
1,024 x 768 pixel resolution, or 32,768 colors at 800 x 600 and
640 x 480 pixel resolutions. The Design Master has a 72-hertz
refresh rate, the company said.

Previously only available with Vermont Microsystems' family of
co-processor controllers. AutoMate/Pro for AutoCAD provides an
icon-based command menu, real-time anti-aliasing and pan and zoom
features. VMI 2x for AutoShade 2.0 and 3D Studio can display
rendered images at twice the normal resolution, which Vermont
Microsystems said can cut rendering times by 75 percent.

VMI True View allows the display of photo-realistic bit-mapped or
Targa images under Windows 3.0, Vermont Microsystems said.

Available immediately, the Design Master VGA with one megabyte of
memory is priced at US$495. AutoMate/Pro and True View are
included with every VGA board.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Dotti Starkey, Vermont
Microsystems, 802-655-2860)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 STARDENT SPIN-OFF TO SELL VISUALIZATION PACKAGE 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00023)

STARDENT SPIN-OFF TO SELL VISUALIZATION PACKAGE 08/16/91
CONCORD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Stardent
Computer has announced plans to set up a new corporation to
develop, market, and support its Application Visualization System
(AVS), the company claims.

Stardent's directors have approved the creation of AVS Inc., and
the company will begin operating as a separate entity right away,
pending shareholder approval.

Patricia LaVigne, vice-president of marketing communications for
Stardent, said there were three reasons for the move. First, the
AVS software is currently licensed to 11 hardware vendors other
than Stardent, and the company felt those licensees would be more
comfortable dealing with a separate company than with a hardware
vendor and potential rival.

Second, LaVigne said, Stardent sees potential new markets for AVS
in personal computers and other areas, which are outside
Stardent's focus on the workstation market. Separating the firms
will also remove the costs of developing those new markets from
Stardent's balance sheet, she said.

Finally, AVS is expected to attract new investors who are
interested in the software but not in Stardent's hardware
business.

Stardent said that it will continue to develop visualization
products, which will optimized to AVS. A contractual arrangement
will exist between AVS Inc. and Stardent, to ensure that new AVS
developments and releases are made available at the earliest
possible date to Stardent, as well as to Kubota Computer,
Stardent's technology manufacturing and distribution partner.

The new company will start with about 25 employees, all of whom
will transfer from their current positions with Stardent. A
search is under way for a president and CEO. The private company
will be owned by the current investors in Stardent initially,
LaVigne said, though new investors are likely to be added.

Plans call for AVS to be based at Stardent's corporate
headquarters here, and will initially draw upon Stardent for
certain support services.

AVS is an interactive visualization environment that allows users
to apply advanced visualization, graphics, and imaging techniques
without graphics programming.

(Grant Buckler/19910816/Press Contact: Patricia A. LaVigne,
Stardent Computer, 508-287-0100 ext. 510)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 U.S. TRADE DEFICIT DROPS BUT ECONOMY WEAKENS 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00024)

U.S. TRADE DEFICIT DROPS BUT ECONOMY WEAKENS 08/16/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- The U.S. Commerce
Department has reported a decrease in the U.S. balance of trade
deficit with the rest of the world, but one Washington insider
has pointed out that, because of the details which show just how
the change in the trade balance occurred, the lowered trade
deficit was actually bad news for the economy.

The preliminary trade deficit numbers for June are down
significantly, the lowest since 1983, with imports down more than
exports, showing a weak U.S. consumer demand, even in the face of
a climbing value of the U.S. dollar which tends to reduce exports
because it increases the overseas price of US-produced goods
while it also increases US buying power.

The national trade deficit, the difference between the amount
imported versus what the U.S. exports, dropped to only slightly
more than $4 billion for June, leading to the projection of an
annual trade deficit of only $60 billion, about one-third less
than the figure for 1990.

A drop in the deficit can be a very good thing if it is due to
strong sales and strong imports, with the exports being larger
than the imports.

The June drop in the trade deficit is disturbing because the U.S.
imported nearly $1.2 billion less from other countries, while
American companies sold just over $400 million less to customers
in other countries, showing not only weak domestic demand but a
shrinking export base for U.S. manufacturers.

The U.S. has a $1.7 billion trade surplus with Western Europe,
while U.S.-Japan trade accounted for more than $3 billion of the
deficit, up over $800 million from the May numbers.

The biggest boosts to the trade numbers came from aircraft sales
overseas and a small decrease in the cost of oil.

These are only preliminary numbers which may go up or down,
something emphasized by new numbers on the May deficit, which
Commerce had pegged at a preliminary $4.6 billion but which were
today revised upward to $4.8 billion.

Other recent numbers show that industrial production was up by a
more-than-expected 0.5 percent, the fourth consecutive advance,
but the University of Michigan's Consumer Confidence Survey was,
according to early figures obtained by Knight-Ridder, down about
three points from July's 82.9 to 79.6 for August, showing a lack
of confidence in the strength of the U.S. economy.

The confidence number is very important because when consumers
lack confidence they tend to save money rather than spend it on
new goods and services.

In other economic news, the Congressional Budget Office has
reported that the U.S. budget deficit will continue to grow,
consuming money that could be invested to increase productivity.

(John McCormick/19910816)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16  ****ITC IMPOSES LCD TARIFF 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00025)

 ****ITC IMPOSES LCD TARIFF 08/16/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- In a widely
anticipated move, the International Trade Commission (ITC) has
voted to impose anti-dumping tariffs on active matrix liquid
crystal displays (LCDs) produced by Japanese companies and
imported into the U.S. The tariffs will increase the price of
some screens by as much as 64 percent.

Newport, Virginia-based nVIEW, a manufacturer of portable
keyboards and overhead projection LCD screens, told Newsbytes
that, because of the ruling they would move production of their
color projection screens -- just announced at this month's
Macworld -- offshore.

Carol Butler-Suis, a spokesperson for nVIEW, said that the
screens they use now are produced by Sharp in Japan and cost the
U.S. company about $2,100.

The 62.7-percent tariff would, she said, raise the cost by more
than $1,300. Asked about whether nVIEW would now buy screens from
an American company, she pointed out that the equivalent U.S.-
built screen costs more than $20,000, a prohibitive price.

Because there is no acceptable U.S.-made screen that nVIEW can
use, the company will move manufacturing of its color LCD
products offshore because the completed products can then be
imported without paying the high tariffs which only apply to the
individual screens when imported as components, not when they are
part of completed products.

Butler-Suis told Newsbytes that she thinks this move can be made
without cost to American jobs by moving those people to other
production areas in the growing company, but she emphasized that
as sales and production increase there would be an inevitable
loss of jobs in this country.

nVIEW's black and white LCD projection screens will continue to
be built in this country because those LCD components are not
affected by any increased tariffs.

The nVIEW spokeswoman said that she didn't know why the ITC
imposed this tariff because, while the Japanese had been involved
in the LCD market for 25 years, the small American companies had
only recently entered the field.

nVIEW had worked closely with IBM in efforts aimed at blocking
the imposition of the tariff.

As Newsbytes reported earlier, the Federal Trade Commission
determined after one year of investigation that the Japanese had
been dumping their flat screen computer displays below market
value in the U.S., leaving the question of sanctions to the ITC.

The flat panel displays covered by the determination include
large area, matrix-addressed displays having more than 120,000
pixel resolution. These less-than-four-inches-thick displays are
active-matrix liquid crystal, passive-matrix liquid crystal, gas
plasma, and electro-luminescent technology-based computer
displays.

Dumping margins, which determine the duties which will be imposed
by U.S. Customs Service on imported screens, are minimal for gas
plasma screens but reach nearly 63 percent for the active-matrix
liquid crystal screens built by Hosiden, Toshiba, Sharp, and
other companies.

Toshiba and Matsushita gas plasma screens were both given a
dumping margin rating under 0.32 percent and thus are not
required to pay any dumping duties.

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce's International
Trade Administration: "There is no U.S. maker of passive-matrix
liquid crystal flat panel displays among those who petitioned for
the ITA to investigate possible dumping activities."

The ITC began its investigation on July 18 of 1990 when it
received a petition from the Advanced Display Manufacturers of
America and its members, Planar System, Plasmaco, OIS Optical
Imaging Systems, The Cherry Corp., Electro-Plasma, Photonics
Technology, and Magnascreen.

Compaq Computer uses passive-matrix screens on its notebook and
laptop computers; thus that company and others who use the same
screens will be unaffected, no matter what actions are taken by
the ITC, but Apple Computer could face cost increases of nearly
63 percent for the monochrome active-matrix screens it purchases
from Hosiden Electronics.

The electro-luminescent screens, which might be subject to import
fees of about 7 percent, are mostly used in ruggedized military
portable computers.

Big Blue faces a major problem if the new tariffs are approved
because it too uses active-matrix LCD screens, jointly built by
IBM and Toshiba in Japan, and thus faces the whopping 63 percent
penalty on imported screens.

The problem is much worse for IBM because it is selling directly
into the same notebook and laptop market where Compaq's and
especially dozens of major clone builders' much lower prices
already have Big Blue singing the blues.

Apple has the advantage of having no competition for its
Macintosh portable as well as a rock-solid reputation for high
prices that makes IBM look like a discounter.

(John McCormick/19910816/Press Contact: Carol Butler-Suis, nVIEW
Corporation, 804-873-1354)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 DEADLINE ON `DISABLED TECHNOLOGY AID' SEARCH EXTENDED 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00026)

DEADLINE ON `DISABLED TECHNOLOGY AID' SEARCH EXTENDED 08/16/91
LAUREL, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Because of the
strong response, The John Hopkins `National Search for Computing
to Assist Persons With Disabilities' has made plans to extend the
deadline for entries from August 23 to September 16. The dates
for preliminary and final judging are unchanged.

Paul Hazan told Newsbytes that the change was made because: "We
feel that we will gain an additional 300 entries by extending the
deadline three weeks. We will have to work harder and add more
judges, but we think it is worth the extra effort."

The extension was made not because of a lack of entries but
because the whole point of the search is to locate and encourage
the latest in adaptive technology and with such a strong response
it was decided that the extension would permit a significantly
larger number of contestants to enter.

Just last week The National Search announced that major corporate
sponsor MCI Communications had donated a toll-free 800 number to
speed response to requests for applications.

Those interested in entering the contest can now call 800-593-
2000 to have the information packet and all paperwork mailed or
faxed.

The National Search is seeking the latest technology to aid the
disabled and is offering cash and other prizes for the best
ideas.

Entries can be proposals, ongoing projects, or completed devices,
and can range from very simple to highly complex. A number of
categories of entries make certain that individuals are not
competing directly with large companies or government agencies in
the preliminary judging.

There will be preliminary judging and awards given for each
region as well as national finals to be held at the Smithsonian
Institution in Washington the first week in February 1992, with
the top prize winner receiving $10,000.

You can still write for an application to: CAPD, P.O. Box 1200,
Laurel, MD 20723, but the deadline for entries is September 16,
1991.

(John McCormick/19910816)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 MAGAZINE LISTS HUNDREDS OF EQUAL ACCESS PREFIXS 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(WAS)(00027)

MAGAZINE LISTS HUNDREDS OF EQUAL ACCESS PREFIXS 08/16/91
LITTLETON, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Jack Rickard's
information-packed Boardwatch magazine, which is well-known for
carrying the latest bulletin board news and system number
listings, has performed a great service by listing about 250 long
distance carrier equal access prefix numbers.

As to why a BBS magazine would carry this information, the
accompanying article explains that the only way to check whether
line noise -- an increasing problem for BBS operators and users -
- is causing problems rather than one of the modems involved, is
to try a different routing by calling through an alternative
carrier.

What most people have been doing to check for line noise
problems, according to Boardwatch, is phone a different BBS in
another city.

This does not, however, tell anything about line noise problems
with a BBS in another area because the noise problems are
specific to certain routes and carriers.

The same applies to all carriers and each different route, so
temporary noise problems can be overcome by attempting
connections using different carriers.

Because of all the advertising, everyone in the U.S. already
knows that he or she has a choice of MCI, AT&T, and Sprint for
his or her standard long distance carrier, but few people realize
that, no matter which carrier they use, they can temporarily
access the other two or, in some locations, dozens of others just
by dialing a special access code.

For instance, dialing 10022 before your number will place the
call through MCI, while 10288 will route your call through AT&T,
and Sprint uses the three-number code 777 (dial 10777).

Hundreds of other options exist, although often only in limited
geographic areas. Note that these aren't hacker-type no-pay
numbers; the carriers are happy to have you use them - the
billing just comes from a different company.

Boardwatch Magazine subscriptions are $36 per year in the U.S.,
$69 in Canada and Mexico, and $99 overseas, but the non-U.S.
rates include BBS access, which costs an additional $24 for the
$36 U.S. subscriber.

Boardwatch, 5970 South Vivian St., Littleton, CO 80127, phone
(orders only) 800-933-6038. BBS (8N1) 303-973-4222 fax 303-973-
3731.

(John McCormick/19910816/Press Contact: Jack Rickard, Boardwatch,
GEnie Jack.Rickard, CS 7177,2310, MCI 418-7112.)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 NEW BOOKS: TAB Announces Four New Windcrest Titles 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00028)

NEW BOOKS: TAB Announces Four New Windcrest Titles 08/16/91
BLUE RIDGE SUMMIT, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) --TAB
Books has just announced several new books available to PC users
starting this month.

`Microsoft Word for Windows Revealed,' $24.95, by Herbert L.
Tyson, covers the WordBASIC macro language and other features.

`DOS 5 Demystified,' $24.95, by James S. Forney, explores the
strengths, weaknesses, and quirks of the new version of the
world's most popular operating system.

`QuickBASIC 4.5,' $22.95, by Gary Cornell, Ph.D. is a hands-on
tutorial for the latest version of Microsoft's BASIC.

`From FORTRAN to C,' $24.95, by James F. Kerrigan, shows how each
Fortran compares to its counterpart in the C language and looks at
the special features found only in C.

(John McCormick/19910816/Press Contact: Kimberly Martin, TAB
Books, 717-794-2191)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00029)

ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/16/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Roundup is a brief
look at some computer stories carried in other publications
received here this past week.

The cover story on the September 10 PC Magazine is a first look
at the new, lower-priced AT bus PS/2s from IBM.

Byte's September cover headlines Silicon Graphics' new IRIS
Indigo, a hybrid 3-D graphics and business computer.

InformationWeek for August 12 explores Transamerica's information
technology advances.

Network World dated August 12 has a front-page story on how
Domino's Pizza is using a new AT&T system to automatically route
order calls to the nearest store.

`Compaq Hustles to Regain Lost Ground,' reads a front-page
headline story in the August 12 Computer Reseller News.

ComputerWorld for August 12 looks at the diversity available in
special interest bulletin board systems.

August 12's Federal Computer Week analyzes the FTS 2000 60/40
AT&T/Sprint split.

Communications Week for August 12 says that, while others are
downsizing, Johns Hopkins Medical Center is moving from a Unix
application running on a local area network to a proprietary
mini- and mainframe-based system.

In the August Boardwatch Magazine, the editor trades some shots
with readers who don't believe in advertising special interest
BBS systems they don't like. As usual, Boardwatch also carries a
lot of bulletin board news and listings of many systems, but this
issue also has a massive listing of alternative long distance
carrier access codes.

The ACKnowledge Window Letter explores IBM's strategic options in
trying to position OS/2 to sell despite the popularity of
Microsoft's Windows 3.

August's IEEE Spectrum has a good article explaining B-ISDN,
Broadband - Integrated Services Digital Network. Also in this
issue is a look at bridges, routers, and gateways used to link
local area networks.

The Office dated August looks at uses of e-mail and PC-based fax
systems.

September's PC World looks at 77 2400 baud modems and IBM's
latest desktop system.

Networking Management for August takes a rather lighthearted
approach to a look at the problem of people using networks
without authorization - `Tracking and Nailing Network Violators.'

The August 10 Science News looks at `buckyball' ceramic
superconductors which have now reached operating temperatures of
at least 42 degrees kelvin.

(John McCormick/19910816)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16  ****APPLE PREPARING NEW MAC PORTABLE RANGE 08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(LON)(00030)

 ****APPLE PREPARING NEW MAC PORTABLE RANGE 08/16/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- After several
months of snippets of information leaking to the press, The San
Jose Mercury newspaper has told the Apple world what it
wants to her -- Apple is readying a new range of portables for
launch this October.

Scheduled to be unveiled at Comdex Fall in Las Vegas, Apple is
expected to unveil a blistering array of new products.
These include a small Japanese-manufactured
notebook, thought to be made by Sony, as well as a five pound
portable plus two heavier laptops.

Also being readied are two additions to the high end of the Mac
range plus a new version of the budget Mac Classic. Both the new
high-end machines are based around the Motorola 68040
microprocessor.

The three lightweight portables are bound to capture the Mac
market's attention. The Sony-produced notebook is the Powerbook
100, a 2MB RAM-equipped machine with a 20MB hard disk. Based
around a 68000 CPU, the machine is said to be as powerful as the
existing Mac Portable, which tips the scales at 16 pounds.

The two lightweight portables are the Powerbook 140 and 170. The
68030-based Powerbook 140 comes with 2MB of RAM, a 20MB hard disk
and tips the scales at 8.8 pounds. This is said to be a Mac IIcx
in a portable case.

The Powerbook 170 comes equipped with 4Mb of RAM, a 40MB hard
disk and, like the 140, is based around a MOtorola 68030 CPU.

So what about pricing? According to the Mercury, prices have not
yet been fixed. Sources suggest that the Powerbook 100 will sell
for under the magic $2,000 mark, while the 140 and 170 will
price, respectively, for under the $3,000 and $4,000 price
points.

Apple is making no comment on the leaks, which have reported
widely in the U.S. press.

(Steve Gold/19910816)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16 HELP WITH ACRONYMS - A PC GLOSSARY  08/16/91

08/16/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00031)

HELP WITH ACRONYMS - A PC GLOSSARY  08/16/91
ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- Do you
know what a CRC check is, or what the differences are between
SIMMs, SIPs and DIPs? Doug Fickle owner of Disston Ridge
Software said he had trouble with the ever-expanding number of
acronyms in the IBM personal computer (PC) industry too, and in
doing something about it, a new software product, the PC Glossary
was born.

PC Glossary is a friendly, fast way to look up that acronym
using an IBM or compatible PC, according to Fickle. The software
will search for the term, then provide a complete explanation of
the term, its use and its implications offered, he said.

The sources for the definitions come from many sources
including the `The McGraw-Hill Computer Handbook,' `Inside the
IBM PC' from Peter Norton, `Que's Computer User's Dictionary,"
and the `Dictionary of Computing' by IBM.'

The software also offers reference tables. These tables include
the with ASCII control codes, bytes to terabytes conversion,
computer organizations, data bus facts, the extended ASCII
character set, floppy disk specifications, hard disk
specifications, IBM PS/2 models, disk data transfer rates,
interrupt request lines, network transmission rates, a review
of local area network cabling, microprocessor clock rates, a
review of DOS versions, a list of the common meanings of DOS
filename extensions, and video display standards.

PC Glossary is offered on a subscription basis and is updated
quarterly. Rates are $29 per year for up to two computers and go
up from there. More information is available from Disston
Ridge, 4915 22nd Avenue N., St. Petersburg, Florida, 33710,
telephone [phone].

By the way, a CRC is an abbreviation for a Cyclic Redundancy
Check and is used to determine whether an error had occurred
during the reading, writing or transmission of data. It is done
by calculating the CRC character and comparing its value to the
CRC character already present in the block of data transmitted.
If they are equal, the data is assumed to be correct.

SIMMs, SIPs and DIPs are memory chips and are available in a
variety of styles. The Single In-Line Package (SIP) is a single
package array of computer chip logic assembled so that all the
connecting legs are in a straight line, like the teeth of a
comb.

The Dual In-Line Package (DIP) is the traditional computer chip
with 8, 14, 24, or even 40 or more metal legs or prongs, evenly
distributed on the left and right sides.

The Single In-Line Memory Module (SIMM) is a type of memory
chip design whereby individual logic devices are installed on
a printed circuit board, creating a component module that can
be plugged into a larger device. A SIMM holds nine DRAM,
(dynamic random access memory) chips, eight for data and one
for parity or error checking.

These explanations are courtesy of PC Glossary.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108016/Press Contact: Doug Fickle, PC
Glossary, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 16  ****SYMANTEC ACQUIRES ZORTECH 08/16/91

08/16/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00032)

 ****SYMANTEC ACQUIRES ZORTECH 08/16/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 16 (NB) -- In an effort
to increase its role as a provider of programming software,
Symantec has acquired Woburn, Mass-based Zortech Inc., a
developer of cross-platform C++ compilers.

Symantec is an independent developer of Macintosh languages
with such products as `Think C' and `Think Pascal.'

According to the company, Zortech has `industrial-strength' C++
compilers for DOS, Windows, OS/2, Unix and the Macintosh
platforms.

Brian Fawkes, spokesman for Symantec, told Newsbytes that the
acquisition of Zortech has two main objectives.

In the first place, he said, Symantec had spent: "the past two
years  developing its own internal tools" and that the company
would now "use the Zortech technology in those tools."

The second objective, said Fawkes, is that the acquisition "sits
well" with Symantec's current products, and that it will expedite
the company's entrance into the emerging market for cross-
platform C++ development environments for the corporate
developer.

The acquisition is to be accomplished as a "pooling of interest,"
the accounting technique that has received so much interest due
to its attempted use by AT&T in its acquisition of NCR Corp.

Symantec will exchange 238,095 shares of its common outstanding
stock for the current outstanding shares of Zortech stock.

Zortech has offices in Massachusetts and London.

Symantec develops, markets and supports a line of application
and system software products for IBM personal computers and
compatibles, and Apple Macintosh computers. Founded in 1982,
the company has offices in the United States, Canada, Australia
and Europe.

(Ian Stokell/19910816/Press Contact: Brian Fawkes, Symantec
Corp., 408-725-2752)
#ENDCARD


#CARD::1991 AUG 15 IBM & SAPIENS IN SOFTWARE AGREEMENT 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00001)

IBM & SAPIENS IN SOFTWARE AGREEMENT 08/15/91
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- IBM and
Sapiens International have announced a joint marketing agreement
under which the companies will jointly market Sapiens.

Sapiens is an application development and maintenance product
that uses rule-based, object-oriented technology to build and
execute data processing applications for business on IBM
mainframe computers.

Additionally, Sapiens has announced the relocation of its
headquarters from London to the Cary, North Carolina in the
United States. In the statement, it referred to the move as: "the
launch of its North American operation."

Sapiens is used to produce Systems Application Architecture
(SAA)-compliant applications in the IBM AD/Cycle application
development framework.

According to the company, Sapiens business rules are attached to
data definitions and stored as an object in a knowledge base.
Enhancements to the object are easy to make and can be quickly
implemented, increasing productivity while ensuring program
quality.

Sapiens runs in IBM mainframe environments, including Multiple
Virtual Storage (MVS), Virtual Machine (VM), and Virtual Storage
Extended (VSE), using the Customer Information Control System
(CICS), Information Management System (IMS), Time Sharing Option
(TSO) and Conversational Monitor System (CMS) transaction
managers.

The package supports IBM database technologies, including
DATABASE2 (DB2), Information Management System (IMS), Virtual
Storage Access Method (VSAM), Structured Query
Language/Decision Support (SQL/DS) and Data Language/1 (DL/1).
Pricing ranges from $61,200 to $712,000 depending on the
processing environment under which it is to run. It is available
immediately.

Commenting on the announcements, Dick Johnston, the newly
named vice president, sales and marketing for Sapiens USA,
said: "We are excited to be a part of the AD/Cycle (TM) Strategy
as an IBM Business Partner."

"The Sapiens product offers major reduction in the 'time to
market' for new business applications and organizations using the
package are able to maintain these applications... to keep them
in sync with fast changing business needs, at dramatically
reduced costs."

Saul Shani, chairman of Sapiens International, added: "This
partnership, both on customer relationship and development
levels, confirms the commitment of IBM and Sapiens to the long
term success of the Sapiens technology within SAA and AD/Cycle."

"Customers in the U.S. can now take advantage of the high
development productivity and ease of maintenance that more than
130 organizations around the world have found so beneficial," he
added.

To support Shanni's comments on productivity, Sapiens released
the results of a recent benchmark run by Computing Futures Ltd
in which the company's package delivered a complex application
between 37.5 percent and 265 percent faster than the other major
application development tools and showed significant maintenance
productivity gains.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910815/Press Contacts:
Steven Malkiewicz, IBM, 914-642-5449; Peter Barber, Sapiens USA,
919-677-8711)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 WANG INTRODUCES NEW LOW-END VS/6000 SERVER 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00002)

WANG INTRODUCES NEW LOW-END VS/6000 SERVER 08/15/91
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Wang
Laboratories Incorporated has announced the introduction of the
VS 6000/Server, a new series of VS systems targeted towards small
businesses and departments in large organizations. Pricing for
the line line ranges from $11,500 to more than $125,000.

Wang said that the VS 6000/Server is designed for use as a
traditional mid-range computer system and/or as an application
server in a client/server environment.

Announcing the new products, Joseph Tucci, Wang executive vice
president and general manager of Wang Information Systems, said:
"The enhancement of VS hardware and system software continues to
be a major priority for Wang."

"Wang will continue to strengthen the VS product line to protect
our customers' investments and serve as a strategic platform for
our vertical applications. As an example, we are currently
developing a new high-end VS system for our customers' future
growth."

Tucci continued: "As client/server applications and environments
continue to grow in importance customers with an investment in
applications based on the traditional mid-range system
environment will find the VS 6000/Server to be particularly
attractive from a business perspective. In other words, the VS
6000/Server helps users bridge the gap between the computing
world of the 80s and the 90s."

Wang has also announced new VS 8000 SCSI (Small Computer
Systems Interface) packages and two productivity enhancement
products for VS systems.

In its announcement, Wang stated: "Today's VS announcements are
part of Wang's OFFICE 2000 business and product strategy to offer
one-stop shopping for work organizations in need of a technology
partner for re-engineering the work process."

"The Office 2000 strategy includes services, products, and
applications that help customers improve productivity, quality,
and customer service. Wang's new VS 6000/Server allows
customers to build an 'a la carte' VS system that suits their specific
needs. More than 120 unique configurations are available.
Customers can install one of two processor models in a choice of
four standard cabinet models. Customers can also select one of 10
VS operating system licenses."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910815/Press Contact:
Albie Jarvis, Wang Laboratories Inc., 508-967-1523)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 DIGITAL SUES EMULEX FOR PATENT INFRINGEMENT 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00003)

DIGITAL SUES EMULEX FOR PATENT INFRINGEMENT 08/15/91
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Digital
Equipment Corporation has announced that it has filed a lawsuit
in the United States District Court for the Central District of
California for patent infringement against Emulex Corporation
Incorporated of Costa Mesa, California.

In the law suit, Digital claims that Emulex is wilfully infringing four
United States patents relating to Digital's proprietary Standard
Disk Interconnect (SDI) and Standard Tape Interconnect (STI)
technologies. This is the fifth legal action brought by Digital relating
to the SDI/STI patents and the fourth such action in the last
eight weeks.

In the prior actions, one firm, Systems Industries, Inc. of
Milpitas, California, has reached settlement with Digital and
three suits (against Micro Technology, Inc. (MTI) of Anaheim,
California, Micro Technology GmbH, and Lago Systems, Inc.)
remain open in various jurisdiction.

Digital has also instituted an industry-wide phase-out program
for companies that it says are infringing the SDI/STI technologies.
The program allows agreeing companies until December 31, 1992
to phase out of products using the SDI/STI technologies and move
to non-infringing product lines. To date, 11 companies have signed
phase-out agreements.

In its action against Emulex, Digital seeks monetary damages and
lost profits as well an injunction to stop Emulex from making, using,
or selling products that infringe Digital's patents. In addition, Digital
is seeking treble damages in view of what it says is: "Emulex's
intentional and wilful violation of Digital's patent rights."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910815/Press Contact:
Nikki Richardson, Digital Equipment Corp., 508-493-6369)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 STRUGGLING SOFTWARE TOOLWORKS REPORTS LOSSES 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00004)

STRUGGLING SOFTWARE TOOLWORKS REPORTS LOSSES 08/15/91
NOVATO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- The Software
Toolworks, developers and publishers of software for personal
computers and the Nintendo Entertainment System, has reported
nearly $1 million in losses ($0.04 per share) on revenue of $16.4
million for its first fiscal quarter ending June 30, 1991.

Overall, the company said, revenue has increased eight percent
from a year ago, and is up 62 percent from the levels reported in
March. Gains are accounted for by 113 percent increase in
software shipments and a 71 percent increase in Nintendo
business.

The company also points to gains in international sales, which
have increased as much as 67 percent over the same quarter the
previous year.

The gains were offset by lower revenue and lower gross margins in
the company's original equipment manufacture (OEM) business and
by new product start-up costs, company officials said.

The Software Toolworks has been reporting losses since October of
last year. In April, the company reduced its total workforce by 22
percent, with more than half the cuts taking place at the Chatsworth,
California, disk duplicating company, Priority Software. In July, $38.9
million in losses were reported for the fiscal year ending
March 31, 1991.

With the holiday season coming, the company is optimistic about
prospective sales.

Robert Lloyd, president and chief operating officer said: "New
product development is on schedule and we will be introducing two
16-bit Super NES Nintendo cartridges and new releases of two key
products, Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing and The Chessmaster,
before Christmas."

"In addition, the company will launch several Windows and multi-
media products later in the year. We feel we're on course to
returning the company to a profitable level," he added.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910815/Press Contact: Vincent Turzo, Software
Toolworks, Tel: [phone] ext. 568, Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15  ****NEW QEMM-386 6.0, QRAM 2.0, DESQVIEW BOOSTS MEMORY 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00005)

 ****NEW QEMM-386 6.0, QRAM 2.0, DESQVIEW BOOSTS MEMORY 08/15/91
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) --
Quarterdeck has announced that the new version of QEMM-386
(Quarterdeck Expanded Memory Manager - 386) could give users as
much as 211 kilobytes of extra RAM above what was previously
possible.

QEMM came with Optimize, a program to automatically configure
memory for the user, so users could load drivers for mice,
screens and other peripherals into memory above the 640 KB of RAM
the DOS can use for running applications software. QEMM-386 has
enhanced Optimize by adding new read-only memory (ROM)
detection and utilization previously unavailable to users, which could
add as much as 115 KB to the users available RAM, Quarterdeck said.

"Stealth" is Quarterdeck's name for the technology methods that
allow users to utilize ROM memory as high RAM. The Stealth
technology hides the ROM code, but makes it available when needed,
then allows the ROM memory addresses to be mapped as high RAM,
or RAM above the 640 KB used addressable by DOS, the
company said.

The ROM, up to an extra 115 KB, is now available to the user as
RAM for other purposes, Quarterdeck said. The design of the ROM
could prohibit some or all of its use, but Quarterdeck said
Optimize is programmed to look at the ROM and recommend to the
user which Stealth methods will work, and only attempts to use
Stealth if it cannot load all TSR (terminate-and-stay-resident) or
drivers into high memory.

Gary Pope, Quarterdeck's co-founder and executive vice-president
of development said about Stealth: "This important new
technology, unique to QEMM-386 version 6.0, is compatible with
Microsoft's Windows environment."

Other new features include support for the "suspend-resume"
facility found on many battery-operated computers, that allows
users to power up a system in an application right where they
left off.

Also, additional support for using Shadow RAM as extended memory
is available in version 6.0, the company said.

Quarterdeck said it is also releasing QEMM 50/60 version 6.0 for
Intel 80286-based IBM PS/2s.

The company claims, though QEMM works well with DOS 5.0, it is
better and easier to use than DOS 5.0's Expanded Memory
Manager (EMM). Quarterdeck said that DOS 5.0's EMM is very
similar in functionality to its QEMM 4.1 released in 1988 in the way it
functions -- in other words, EMM is based on old technology.

Quarterdeck claims that running QEMM-386 and DOS 5.0 together
will deliver more memory for DOS applications in less time and
effort. The strength of Quarterdeck's argument here is in the
Optimize part of QEMM.

QEMM-386 version 6.0 is expected to ship in early September.
Register users of any QEMM-386 or QEMM 50/60 version can
upgrade for $30 until December 31, 1991. Retail price for the new
product is $99.95.

The company is also releasing Desqview and Desqview-386
versions 2.4. Desqview allows users to run multiple programs at the
same in different windows on screen in the DOS environment.
Desqview users can upgrade to Desqview version 2.4 for $25,
Desqview-386 users can upgrade to Desqview-386 version 2.4 for
$50.

Qram version 2.0, the company's product for allocating memory
resources on IBM PCs, XTs and ATs is also being released. The
product has the Optimize feature and allows use of Chips and
Technologies' Shadow RAM. Registered users will be able to
upgrade for $25.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108015/Press Contact: Charles McHenry,
McHenry & Associates, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 NEW FOR PC: Multisoft Releases PC Kwik Packages 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00006)

NEW FOR PC: Multisoft Releases PC Kwik Packages 08/15/91
BEAVERTON, OREGON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Multisoft
Corporation has announced the release of new versions of Super
PC-Kwik and PC-Kwik Power Pak.

Super PC-Kwik Version 4.1 is a disk cache program which the
company says now writes to a disk faster than before, which in
turn speeds up the user's application. Multisoft claims that the
program includes a new graphical display which shows
measurements of cache activity while Windows 3.0 is running.

"We recognize that disk writing is an integral and important
function for many disk cache users, and Power Write is an
exciting new feature that addresses the disk-write function using
an efficient new approach," said Bruce Schafer, president of
Multisoft Corp.

PC-Kwik Power Pak is an integrated utility package designed to
enhance the performance of a PC. Multisoft says it has added
additional Windows documentation to Power Pak, and the program
now supports removable disk drives such as SyQuest and Plus
Passport drives with automatic sensing of disk changes.

Registered owners will be contacted with update information.
Users of Multisoft OEM versions can call Multisoft (800-759-5945)
to find out about obtaining an upgrade.

(Jim Mallory/19910815/Press contact: John Davis, Multisoft, 503-
644-5644, FAX [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 AUTOMATION BEYOND MAINFRAME FROM GOAL SYSTEMS 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00007)

AUTOMATION BEYOND MAINFRAME FROM GOAL SYSTEMS 08/15/91
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Goal Systems Inc
(GSI) has introduced OPS/Relay, a new component of Goal's
OPS/MVS automated systems operation product for IBM and
compatible mainframes.

Relay extends the automation benefits of OPS/MVS beyond the
MVS operating system into DEC, Tandem and AS/400
environments, according to the company.

GSI said that OPS/Relay works by providing bi-directional
communications between MVS and non-MVS hosts. The package
receives messages and commands, then either relays them to
OPS/MVS, responds directly to the commands, or discards them.
Two components of Relay, the Policy Editor and the Message
Manager, make this possible.

The Policy Editor allows users to define policy using a fill-in-the-
blanks approach through an online screen. Relay, like OPOS/MVS,
supports the use of REXX for unique applications.

Relay's Message Manager receives messages and commands
from the non-MVS hosts and executes the policies defined through the
Policy Editor. The Message Manager uses multi-tasking to handle
messages from multiple hosts at the same time. In its first release,
the product will process single-line messages using TTY, VT100
or IBM 3101 protocols.

Pricing on OPS/Relay ranges from $7,500 to $25,000, and GSI
expects to begin delivering in the fourth quarter of this year.

GSI is an IBM Business Partner and a System View development
partner. The company develops, markets and supports high-quality
systems software and services. GSI says it has about 7,000
customers worldwide, and reported revenues of $117 million for
the fiscal year ending January 31, 1991.

(Jim Mallory/19910815/Press contact: Carrie Reber, GSI, 614-785-
2407)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 NORTECH SYSTEMS PURCHASES CPT SUBSIDIARY 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00008)

NORTECH SYSTEMS PURCHASES CPT SUBSIDIARY 08/15/91
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Nortech
Systems Incorporated (NSI) has announced the purchase of SMR
Computer Services Incorporated from CPT Office Systems. Plans
call for SMR to become a wholly owned subsidiary of Nortech
Systems.

Specific terms of the sale were not disclosed. SMR Computer
Services, based in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, is a provider of
information management and maintenance for the health care
industry.

Speaking about the acquisition, Nortech president Quent Finkelson
said: "We are very pleased about acquiring SMR. It is an
established company and a good fit with our mission to increase
our participation in the medical industry."

Finkelson went on to praise SMR's reputation for service,
comparing it to Nortech's commitment to quality. He said that the
company did not anticipate laying off any of the SMR employees.

SMR services include processing patient records, statements and
insurance claims, as well as providing financial management for
medical practices and clinics.

Nortech is a contract manufacturer of wire harnesses, cable
assemblies and electromechanical assemblies, and is
headquartered in Wayzata, Minnesota, with manufacturing facilities
in Bemidji.

(Jim Mallory/19910815/Press contact: Quent Finkelson, Nortech
Systems, 612-473-4102)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 STORAGETEK HOSTS ANSI MEETING THIS MONTH 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00009)

STORAGETEK HOSTS ANSI MEETING THIS MONTH 08/15/91
LOUISVILLE,COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Storage
Technology has announced that it will host the next bi-monthly
two-day plenary meeting of the X379 committee of the American
National Standards Institute (ANSI) beginning August 19, at the
Clarion Harvest House in Boulder.

Attendance is expected to include representatives of more than
300 computer industry leaders. According to Storagetek, the list
will read like a "Who's Who" of the electronic data technology
industry, from all over the US, Japan and the European Economic
Community.

Attendees will come from major computer vendors, peripherals
suppliers, workstation manufacturers, PC manufacturers and
software suppliers. Representatives from several semiconductor
companies including Intel, Motorola and AMD are also expected to
be present. Storagetek says credit card companies, large banks,
and the US government laboratories at Livermore and Los Alamos
will also attend.

The agenda for the meeting will include interfaces with disk,
tape and other computer peripherals, as well as high speed
networking. Specifically addressed in the area of networking will
be the interconnection of all sizes of computers from PCs to
mainframes with performance levels exceeding that of Ethernet.

The meeting will break into work groups which will discuss the
detailed technicalities necessary for the creation and
maintenance of computer standards. One area of discussion
will center on the definition of the new Fiber Channel standards.

ANSI has hundreds of committees whose overall function is to
codify many thousands of specifications for everything from wire
gauge to software programs. Once ANSI has adopted a standard,
it usually becomes a national or international standard.

The work done by the ANSI committees precludes a single, powerful
company from forcing their standard upon the industry. According to
ANSI, the clamor from users for open systems and solutions which
allow them to choose the most desirable hardware and software has
reached such a level that it can no longer be ignored.

The organization says that the majority of computer systems to be
installed in the future will not necessarily be procured from a
single vendor, but will consist of an integration of items from
multiple sources.

For additional information about the meeting, contact the meeting
host, Storagetek's Roger Cummings at 303-673-6357.

(Jim Mallory/19910815/Press contact: Barbara Jameson, Storagetek,
303-673-4879)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 "SUICIDE" OF INSLAW REPORTER QUESTIONED 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(NYC)(00010)

"SUICIDE" OF INSLAW REPORTER QUESTIONED 08/15/91
SUNOL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- The verdict of
suicide in the death of reporter Joseph D. "Danny" Casolaro on
Saturday, August 10th has been challenged by friends and
relatives.

Casolaro, 44, of Fairfax, Va., had been, according to reports,
involved in an investigation of the allegations surrounding
government activities in the Inslaw software case.

Casolaro was, according to reports, found dead in the bathtub of
his Martinsburg, West Virginia hotel room Saturday with his
wrists cut. Dr. James Frost, an assistant state medical examiner
was quoted as saying: "The wounds are consistent with being self-
inflicted, but that doesn't mean that someone else couldn't have
done this if he were not able to defend himself."

Virginia McCullough, a freelance journalist and friend of
Casolaro, told Newsbytes that Casolaro was working for over a
year on a book concerning the allegations by Inslaw president
William Hamilton that the Justice Department first broke a $10
million contract with his firm, then stole the firm's software and
subsequently sold and donated it to foreign intelligence agencies.

McCullough said: "It is ludicrous to think that Danny would kill
himself. He had recently told me that he was looking forward to a
trip that would give him the documentation to prove the Justice
Department's involvement. He said: 'For the first time, I've become
a real believer that the government was involved in these things.'"

McCullough went on to say that Casolaro was never depressed in
his conversations with her and that they often spoke, sharing
information in relation to the case. McCullough, herself involved
with a company that she says had very similar experiences to
Inslaw, is currently writing a book detailing what she says have
been questionable acts by government agencies in the use of
bankruptcy proceedings to stifle the development of technology.

Casolaro's brother, Dr. M. Anthony Casolaro, was quoted by news
services as also doubting the suicide reports. He said that police
told him a handwritten note saying: "I'm sorry, especially to my son,"
was found at the scene.

The House Judiciary Committee is presently investigating the
Inslaw charges and had announced in April of this year that the
Justice Department, after long delays, has agreed to turn over
documentation relating to the case.

The case began in 1985 when Inslaw filed for bankruptcy claiming
that the Justice Dept. had stopped payment on a 1982 contract for
the installation of Inslaw's legal case management software,
"Promis" into 97 U.S. Attorney's offices. Inslaw claimed that the
government contract represented 70 percent of Inslaw's income and
that the government action forced it into bankruptcy.

Inslaw was successful and a bankruptcy judge found that the
department "took, converted and stole" the company's property "by
trickery, fraud and deceit" and further said that the government's
conduct demonstrated "bad faith, vexatiousness, wantonness and
oppressiveness."

The Justice Department appealed the ruling and, in 1989, U.S.
District Court Judge William Bryant upheld the decision and
ordered the government to pay Inslaw $8 million plus attorney's
fees.

The Justice Department continued to appeal the case and, on May
7, 1991, was successful when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia reversed the bankruptcy rulings saying that
the bankruptcy court's rulings were too broad and inappropriate
for a bankruptcy ruling.

The court said that, while Inslaw is entitled to go to another
court to press its claim,. the U.S. Bankruptcy Court lacked
jurisdiction. Commenting on Inslaw's allegations of misbehavior,
the court said: "Such conduct, if it occurred, is inexcusable."

During the appeals, stories of illegal sales of the allegedly
stolen software to foreign governments including Iraq, Libya,
South Korea, Israel and Canada, and involvement of Reagan
Washington and California appointees Earl Brian, Robert
McFarlane and Richard Secord in the transactions have caused the
House Judiciary Committee to seek involvement -- an involvement
that the Justice Department has resisted.

Elliot Richardson, former United States Attorney General who now
represents Hamilton, was quoted during the appeal process as
saying: "Evidence of the widespread ramifications of the Inslaw
case comes from many sources and keeps accumulating."

"It remains inexplicable why the Justice Department consistently
refuses to pursue this evidence and resists co-operation with the
Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives," he added.

The case took still another turn when witness Ari Ben-Menashe
reportedly testified that the owner of Inslaw, William Hamilton,
is a former employee of the National Security Agency (NSA) and
that the software was modified into a "Trojan Horse" in order to
allow the NSA and the Mossad to listen in on the transactions of
other intelligence services.

The attraction of the case management software to these
intelligence agencies was, according to witnesses, that, rather
than its intended use of tracking case witnesses and legal
opinions, it lent itself to the tracking of dissidents and foreign
agents.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910815)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 Review of: Intertek, 08/15/91

08/15/91


(REVIEW)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00011)

Review of: Intertek, 08/15/91

From: Intertek; 325 Ellwood Beach #3, Goleta, CA 93117;
Telephone: [phone]; e-mail - [e-mail]

Price: $3.00 per issue; $8.00 annual subscription (3 issues)

PUMA Rating: 3.7 on a scale 1=lowest to 4=highest

Reviewed by Newsbytes by Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen

Summary: Intertek, though skimpy at 28 pages, is well worth the
price. The issue we reviewed (#3) was well written and informative.

======

REVIEW

======

Intertek is a "fanzine" -- a term that science fiction devotees will be
well familiar with -- concentrating on the culture of computers. Volume
3.2, the Summer 1991 issue on which this review is based, is hot off
the presses and is centered on issues of morality and ethics in
relating to computer activities.

Editor Steve Steinberg sets the tone for the issue in his short
editorial: "The cyberpunk genre, a genre Intertek fits into, is
often accused of ignoring ethics. Of being too excited with new
technology to see the potential dangers. This issue of Intertek
shows that many of us are in fact concerned with the morality of
high technology."

"This is demonstrated not just in John Gilmore's article on how
technology can help give us guaranteed privacy but in what Bruce
Sterling says about sampling and what Brenda Laurel says about
battle game simulators. The consensus seems to be that ethics are
crucial but they must not simply serve as an excuse to stop
progress." (Quoted in its entirety with permission)

One of the words that comes to mind in describing the magazine is
"literate." It is uniformly well-written and its writers do justice to the
subjects they address -- there is not the type of simplistic treatment
of technological issues often found in the popular press.

Writers and interviewees such as science fiction author Bruce
Sterling, Electronic Frontier Foundation director John Gilmore,
computer scientist Dorothy Denning, Arizona prosecutor Gail
Thackeray, computer theoretician Brenda Laurel and cryonics
advocate Kevin Brown, discuss issues on which they have strong
expertise and strongly held opinions. Their knowledge and
interest properly comes through in their writings or interviews.

Editor Steinberg makes use, in two instances, of the
"point/counterpoint" method to explore an issue, and in both cases
it works well. Gail Thackeray and Clifford Stoll of "Cuckoo's
Egg" fame comment on John Gilmore's talk at the first Conference
on Computers, Freedom & Privacy (CFP-1) on: "Preserving Privacy
in America" and the result, in our judgement, raises more issues
for reader thought than a simple article on the subject would
have done.

Similarly, the response by Dorothy Denning, chair of computer
science at Georgetown University, to Stacy Steinberg's -- Stacy
is a graduate student in plant biology at UC Berkeley and is the
editor's sister -- piece on "Scientific Ethics: Rights and
Responsibilities" provides a thoughtful, well-documented opposing
view of the issue -- and the reader is the better for the presentation
of both views.

Intertek also contains three pages of "news" that will not be outdated
by the time the issue reaches the reader. It is the type of news that will
not have appeared in the mainstream or even trade press -- news of
telecommunications, new technology, semi-conductor advances,
developments in the space program and happenings in the computer
underground.

============
PUMA RATINGS
============

PERFORMANCE/PRICE: 4. Intertek presents issues in a manner
intended to stimulate the reader toward in-depth consideration of
all sides. In our judgement, it fulfills this mission well. At $8, we feel
that it is a bargain.

USEFULNESS: 4. We think that Intertek is extremely useful because
it presents issues of importance that have not been widely
covered elsewhere. For example, we felt that John Gilmore's talk
was one of the most important at CFP-1 yet it received little
coverage or media discussion because it was delivered at the
very end of the conference when the majority of press and many
participants had gone home. Intertek has provided a forum to
bring Gilmore's points to a greater audience and thus has
provided a useful service.

MANUAL: N/A

AVAILABILITY: 3. Subscription is the only way to go for most of
the country. In our judgement, it's well worth the bother.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910815)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 NEW FOR PC: Low-Cost Japanese Language Translator 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00012)

NEW FOR PC: Low-Cost Japanese Language Translator 08/15/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Sanyo Electric has developed
a PC-based language translation system which it claims provides
high quality translation at a low cost.

The system was developed and runs on Sanyo's 32-bit PC. It can
translate from English to Japanese and vice versa. Top speed for
the software is 5,000 words an hour from English to Japanese, and
4,000 words an hour in the opposite direction.

The system has a Japanese-English dictionary of 57,000 words, and
an English-Japanese dictionary of 50,000 words.

Called the "Heaven JE/EJ," the system runs on most Intel
80386-based PCs, but requires a minimum configuration of eight
megabytes of RAM and a 40MB hard drive, running OS/2, to
operate effectively.

The price of the whole system including the PC is expected to
cost less than 1 million yen ($7,400), a price that is extremely
cheap for this type of language translation system. Currently,
most of the practical translation systems run on workstations and
cost 5 to 6 million yen ($40,000).

One of the major problems for language translation systems is the
actual quality of the resultant translation. There has been a lot
of wrangling in the computer industry in the past few years, which
was not helped when Bravice International of Tokyo, one of the
industry's main suppliers of language translation software, went
bankrupt last year.

The Heaven JE/EJ is set to be released at the end of 1991.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910815/Press Contact: Sanyo, +81-3-3835-
1111)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 AUSTRALIA: THIRD PCB MANUFACTURER IN 2 WEEKS CLOSES 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00013)

AUSTRALIA: THIRD PCB MANUFACTURER IN 2 WEEKS CLOSES 08/15/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- One week after the
surprise closure of two of the leading PCB (printed circuit board)
manufacturers in Australia, a third has announced the voluntary
appointment of a liquidator.

East Coast Printed Circuits appointed the liquidator as a "safeguard,"
because the market has slumped dramatically over the last
twelve months.

Changes in government policy, as well as a general down-turn in
the industry has seen demand for locally produced printed
circuits decline. The Australian PCB industry previously
accounted for AUS$70-80 million of the AUS$120-130 million
market.

With the dropping of government tariffs, and increased
international competition, imports of PCBs has remained
relatively steady, while demand for the local product has
suffered the bulk of the decline.

Other factors in the downturn include government initiatives to
promote the PCB industry which never succeeded to any great
degree. Despite increased investment by PCB manufacturers,
demand fell, and the recession and high interest rates also took
their toll.

There remains a flame of resistance, however. PCB manufacturer
Technology Circuit Industry has placed several ads over the last
two weeks proclaiming: "We are still in business".

(Sean McNamara/19910815)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 AUSTRALIAN DATABASE PACKAGE SEEN AS EXPORT EARNER 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00014)

AUSTRALIAN DATABASE PACKAGE SEEN AS EXPORT EARNER 08/15/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- A database of
Australia's new building code incorporating an expert system, is
seen by its developers as a potential export dollar earner for
Australia.

The CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research
Organization) developed the software to tie in with the introduction of
the national building code last April, which replaced the State codes.

The software, BCAider, has already been sold to 118 sites in
Australia, bringing the CSIRO AUS$100,000. Representatives from
Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Africa had already expressed an
interest in the package, and it would be adapted to the needs of
each purchaser.

The flexibility of the system is the "engine" which drives it. All that is
needed for each site is the development of the appropriate
knowledge base required, and the expert system will provide the
interface to access the information.

The software runs under Knowledge Pro for Microsoft Windows. The
system was developed for Windows due to the ease of use of the
graphical user interface. The expert system allows users to check
building to see if they conform to the national building code. The
printed code is 400 pages long, and BCAider replaces this and
also provides interactive accesses to the code.

(Sean McNamara/19910815)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 AUSTRALIA: CENSUS ENTERS COMPUTER AGE 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00015)

AUSTRALIA: CENSUS ENTERS COMPUTER AGE 08/15/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- This year's Australian
census, held on Tuesday, August 6, will be the first Australian
census to be read directly into computers using optical mark
readers (OMRs).

Due to a large part of the Australian population being unfamiliar
with computer-read forms, the Australian Bureau of Statistics
(ABS) modelled the forms on the local Lotto forms, which most
Australians are comfortable with. At the beginning of September,
the forms will begin being processed through the 22 OMRs based in
Sydney.

The system has three main advantages over manual entry. Firstly,
with the new system the ABS expects to save AUS$5 million --
enough to throw away the equipment after use and still be in front.

Secondly, manual entry opens the way to repetitive strain injury
(RSI), and lastly, early results are expected to be ready in six
months, half the time it would take with manual entry.

Once the data is read in by the OMRs, it is stored on Targon
Unix computers, then transferred to the ABS' Fujitsu mainframes
in Canberra.

(Sean McNamara/19910815)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 AUSTRALIA: UNISYS AWARDED CUSTOMS CONTRACT 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00016)

AUSTRALIA: UNISYS AWARDED CUSTOMS CONTRACT 08/15/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- The Australian Customs
Service (ACS) has announced that Unisys has been awarded an
AUS$40 million contract to upgrade ACS' central computing
environment.

Part of the upgrade will see the further implementation of EDI
(electronic data interchange) in ACS' work.

Funds for the upgrade were approved in the 1990-91 budget, and
the upgrade is the major component of the Customs Electronic
Initiatives Project.

Unisys will install 2200-series mainframes running proprietary
software, which will handle ACS' main operational systems.
Additional software will be developed with the Unisys
LINC CASE/4GL product. Unisys U6000-series Unix systems will be
used to support EDI interfaces and some administrative systems.

Unisys won the contract ahead of such bidders as BHP Information
Technology (in conjunction with Amdahl), IBM, Computer Sciences
of Australia, and Hitachi Data Systems. Part of the contract
involves Unisys porting IBM-compatible applications to the 2200-
Series platform.

The software port is expected to take two years by Unisys
subsidiary Cynercom, until which time a Hitachi Data Systems
EX100 mainframe will be provided to allow existing
IBM-compatible applications to run.

(Sean McNamara/19910815)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 AUSTRALIA: QUEENSLAND GOVT EXAMINES IT STRATEGY 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00017)

AUSTRALIA: QUEENSLAND GOVT EXAMINES IT STRATEGY 08/15/91
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- The State
Government of Queensland has announced it is working on a new
information technology (IT) strategy which will see IT raised to a
central position in the state's future planning.

The formal plan is expected to be released in October, and will
detail the state's needs into the 21st Century. The strategy will
detail the development of the Queensland IT sector, which will
include greater cooperation and collaboration between private
industry and government.

The four main areas the strategy will focus on are: computer
and communications hardware; services; software; and
telecommunications. Each of the four areas has a special
task-force assigned to it.

The State IT strategy formulation follows the Queensland
government's IT review, which examined government use of IT,
and last year's study of the Queensland information industries.

(Sean McNamara/19910815)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15  ****FUJITSU TO UNVEIL ADVANCED ISDN SYSTEM 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00018)

 ****FUJITSU TO UNVEIL ADVANCED ISDN SYSTEM 08/15/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Fujitsu has announced
plans to unveil its state-of-the-art ISDN (Integrated Services Digital
Network) technology at Telecom '91 this coming October.

Telecom '91 is a leading edge telecommunications showcase
exhibition that is held every four years. Held in Geneva, Switzerland,
this year's show is expected to be the largest ever.

Fujitsu's ISDN technology will form part of the Japanese giant's
telecommunications stand at the show, the theme for which is:
"a world beyond borders." The idea behind the theme is that
technology can easily negate various barriers to free
communication such as languages, human beings and
computers.

Products scheduled to be on show include Fujitsu's multi-media
workstation terminal known as "The Monster" and the HVCT data
terminal, which is based on a PC and can handle pictorial data on
a high definition TV.

Fujitsu also plans to show its international standard ISDN-based
corporate local area network known as COINS at the show. Other
displays will include a neurocomputer and a multi-language
translation system.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910815/Press Contact: Fujitsu, +81-3-3215-
5236)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 NEW FOR MAC: Sigma Intros IIci/IIsi Accelerator 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00019)

NEW FOR MAC: Sigma Intros IIci/IIsi Accelerator 08/15/91
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Sigma
Designs has introduced the Bullet 030, a 50 MHz 68030
microprocessor-based accelerator add-in board with, what the
company describes as, lossless data and image compression
for  the Macintosh IIci and IIsi.

According to the company, the board also features a high speed
32K static RAM cache, a 40 MHz compression coprocessor from
Stac Electronics, and comes bundled with the lossless
compression software interface, DiskDoubler 3.0 from
Salient Software Inc.

For the Mac IIsi, an optional 20 MHz Motorola 68882 floating
point coprocessor can be added for an additional $195. The
company maintains that, on the Mac IIci and IIsi, the Bullet 030
provides acceleration and compression capability without
taking up a standard expansion slot.

For use in the Mac IIsi, the Bullet 030 includes the SlotDoubler,
an installation kit which features an additional expansion slot
that accepts any add-in card that meets Apple's 68030 Processor
Direct Slot (PDS) standard for the Macintosh SE/30 and IIsi.

Used with the Macintosh IIci, the Bullet 030 plugs directly into
the system's single cache slot, leaving the system's three
standard NuBus slots available.

The Sigma Bullet 030 carries a suggested retail price of $1,995
and is available through most computer retail and distribution
channels.

In June, Newsbytes reported that Sigma Designs had introduced
a tabloid-page grayscale display system for Macintosh NuBus
computers, called the SilverView Portrait.

At the same time the company announced the expansion of its
retail sales operation with several new programs focused on
increasing dealer profitability.

In addition, Sigma also signed up Radius' former manufacturer
representative organizations in major markets throughout the
United States including New York, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles,
Washington D.C., and Northern California, to market and sell its
line of monochrome, grayscale and color display systems and
system enhancement products to dealers distributors and
value-added resellers.

(Ian Stokell/19910815/Press Contact: Laura Olson, Sigma Designs
Inc., 415-770-0100)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 IBM JAPAN CREATES CORPORATE EMPLOYEE DATABASE 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00020)

IBM JAPAN CREATES CORPORATE EMPLOYEE DATABASE 08/15/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- IBM Japan has announced
it is in the process of creating a major database on the skills of
employees.

According to representatives of "Big Blue", the idea behind the
database is that, with it, IBM can better serve the needs of its
customers. IBM is spending 150 million yen ($1 million) on the
project.

Plans call for the database to hold information on all 7,000 of
its staff in Japan, ranging from the company's sales people
through to system engineers. The database will detail the staff
according to the category of their employment and list
information on their skills, abilities, products and services
manufactured or supplied, and leadership qualities.

IBM Japan plans to use the database to provide services to its
customers. For example, if IBM were to offer a particular service
to a customer, then company officials can be sure of their
resources.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910815/Press Contact: IBM Japan, +81-3-3586-
1111)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 Review of: Bicycle Solitaire 08/15/91

08/15/91

(REVIEW)(IBM)(ATL)(00021)

Review of: Bicycle Solitaire 08/15/91

Runs on: PC-XT, AT, PS-2, and 100 percent compatibles with 512K
RAM using PC/MS-DOS, and a VGA, EGA, or CGA monitor. A mouse and
hard drive are suggested but not required.

By: SWFTE International Ltd.,

Price: $39.95

PUMA Rating: 3.625 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest )

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: tbass HNDYPRSN, MCI:379-5378
Summary: Bicycle Solitaire by SWFTE International, Ltd. is
beautiful in VGA and captivating to play.

======

REVIEW

======

SWFTE has gone to the trouble to obtain the permission of the
U.S. Playing Card Company to use their original glass plates as
templates for their VGA graphics. This gives a classic
representation to their playing cards.

They are quite beautiful in VGA. While they are less attractive
in EGA and CGA the games are still captivating. Actually if you
don't want to spend lots of time playing solitaire best leave it
alone.

Bicycle Solitaire comes with complete with 7 solitaire games. The
games included are Klondike, Calculation, Auld Lang Syne, Golf,
Little Spider, Canfield, and Four Seasons. The directions for
each game are in the accompanying manual. There is no on screen
HELP, where we have grown accustomed to looking for directions
and rules.

Once the games were installed on my computer's hard drive it was
time to start playing. I only played Klondike, the classic
solitaire game, and Golf. I found both to hold my attention for
far longer than I want to admit to my editor.

The only thing hard about these games is quitting. Winning isn't
that easy either.

The scoring system for Bicycle Solitaire saves on going
information for each player in individual files based on the
players name. The information includes the present games score,
number of games played, number of games won, and average point
per hand.

Each type of solitaire games score is held separately in the file
so that the progress different games can be followed. There is a
choice to clear the score card if desired.

For me there was one short coming in the scoring system. In order
to change player the program has to be exited and re-entered
giving a new score file name upon entry.

Problems I found in the games I played mostly were centered
around the UNDO feature. When a King based tabular of cards are
moved from a playing stack to an empty stack then UNDOne all
cards are returned to the original stack except the King. When a
King is placed from the dealt cards to an empty stack and UNDOne
the system crashes.

Under some non-standard systems the cursor may leave tracks
through the graphics which can be a nuisance, especially
considering that fine graphics is a selling point.

In Klondike solitaire you can cheat. You can shift between going
through the deck as many times as needed 3-cards dealt at time
and going through the deck once one card at a time. This shift
can be made at any time during the game. Of course, we all know
that cheating at solitaire is almost as traditional as solitaire
itself.

Bicycle Solitaire provides not only 7 solitaire games, but, also,
a book with the directions for 150 solitaire games and a deck of
Bicycle '808' cards.

SWFTE International, Ltd. plans to release more card games in '91
including Cribbage and Poker. A MS-Windows version of Bicycle
Solitaire is in the making; of course, it's 7 games and authentic
graphics will be the strong suit. The above features along with
scoring system will encourage us to change from our present
windows solitaire game.

============

PUMA RATING

============

PERFORMANCE: (2.5) Bicycle Solitaire was easily installed on a
hard disk and easily accessed. There are few problem when it is
interacting with non-standard systems. There are a few problems
around the UNDO feature. The shuffle, deal, and layout are speedy
enough to never allow your interest to drift. Quit is a choice so
rarely used.

USEFULNESS: (4.0) Seven card games with great graphics and quick
movements for less than $40.00 is hard to beat.

MANUAL: (4.0) Bicycle Solitaire's manual is to the point and
clearly written. The manual includes a brief history of U.S.
Playing Card Company and its famous cards. If you know the rules,
the actual playing is intuitive.

AVAILABILITY: (4.0) SWFTE International, Ltd. stated that the
game is marketed via major distribution channels internationally.
CompUSA has it for $ and EggHead Software has it offered for $ .
It can be found in the Selective Software catalogue.

(tbass HNDYPRSN/19910815/Press Contact: Rebecca Knapp, 800\237-
9383 ext-214, FAX 302\234-1760 )
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 WILL U.S. TELECOMS CATCH THE NEW BRITISH DISEASE? 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00022)

WILL U.S. TELECOMS CATCH THE NEW BRITISH DISEASE? 08/15/91
 -- editorial by Dana Blankenhorn

Newsbytes' UK bureau chief, Steve Gold, has often described
unintended consequences of the UK's rush to telecoms
deregulation. Millions of pounds were wasted giving phones to
customers who couldn't afford to use them.

Now millions more are being wasted on new, incompatible wireless
technologies before investments in the old stuff are paid off.
The UK has even deregulated the wired telephone business,
allowing cable companies and others in on an equal-access basis.
All they need do is spend millions duplicating the existing BT
phone net.

Today money to fund GSM digital cellular is scarce -- much has
been lost on analog cellular and CT-2. GSM, for those who don't
know, is a Europe-wide digital cellular standard now being
implemented in, among other places, Germany and Scandinavia. GSM
phones will be pocket-sized, and users will be able to roam
throughout the continent with them.

Analog cellular services are just like present cellular services
in the U.S., while CT-2 would offer low-weight phones which are
limited in their application. Another scheme, called PCN, would
run cellular calls on microwave frequencies, with more closely-
spaced base stations and lighter, low-powered phones. It too is
coming on-stream in the UK.

Money there is so tight that two of the PCN consortia will share
wires to cut costs -- they promise to compete fiercely, but you
have to wonder. The result, Steve feels, is that Britons may
never reach the GSM `promised land' where they can roam across
Europe with cheap, digital cellular phones.

Under FCC chairman Al Sikes, this policy is coming to America.
Sikes doesn't want cable re-regulation -- he wants to let phone
companies into the cable business. He wants the cable companies
into the phone business, through PCN microwave cellular, and he
wants both to compete with cellular companies. The result, he
says, will be competition, lower prices, and better service.

All this is done in the name of high principle. Adam Smith's
`invisible hand' is invoked the way Lenin invoked Marx. But, just
as Marxist ideologies learned in the 1980s, so I feel Capitalist
ideologies will learn in this decade. Ideology and the real world
are two different things.

In the U.S., deregulation has already given us scandals in the
S&L industry now due to cost taxpayers $500 billion, and an
airline industry consolidating around a few major carriers who
dominate major airports and keep prices high. Unregulated cable
TV monopolies rip-off the public, while cellular companies charge
the equivalent of 35 cents per minute, split between caller and
callee.

Instead of ideology, practicality is called for. Regulation is a
firm middle ground between anarchy on the one hand and state
ownership on the other. Government can decide which technologies
to be pursued -- MITI does a good job of it in Japan. Where it's
most efficient for one company to build one infrastructure, as on
the wired phone network, government bureaucrats can provide
competition for phone company bureaucrats and add something the
market lacks -- a concept called the Public Interest. Even where
the market is allowed to work, anti-trust laws remain necessary
to make sure competition is never-ending.

Competition is an ideal, and will remain so. But free, fair, and
even competition must exist not only among companies and
technologies, but between business and government. That's the
lesson the UK is now learning. It's a lesson the U.S. will also
learn, in time.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910815)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 EX-IBMER MAKES GOOD IN CREDIT REPORTING BUSINESS 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00023)

EX-IBMER MAKES GOOD IN CREDIT REPORTING BUSINESS 08/15/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- New Equifax
president Jack Rogers, a former executive with IBM, has vowed to
make his new company: "the IBM of the credit reporting industry."
Recent moves to enhance consumer privacy by his company show he
means it, but could help arch-rival TRW by heading-off regulation
of the industry.

Equifax has made a number of pro-privacy announcements in recent
months, capped in August by a decision to get out of the mailing-
list business. The company had annual revenues of $11.6 million,
spokesman John Ford told Newsbytes, selling lists of credit
seekers or credit users at a nickel a name, often broken down by
age, gender, marital status, and the type of goods they most-
often bought.

All these lists were compiled from Equifax credit reports, and 20
employees could now lose their jobs because Rogers decided the
whole thing was unseemly and smacked of an invasion of privacy.
"Part of being socially responsible is making tough decisions,"
said Ford.

It's not the first surprise from Equifax. In recent months the
company has appointed a top officer to oversee privacy issues,
cancelled a CD-ROM database called Marketplace which was to have
been sold by Lotus Development, and built a $9 million center to
answer consumer questions about credit reports. It has also said
it's going to try to make its credit reports easier for consumers
to understand.

But what impact will that have on Equifax' bottom line,
especially since arch-rival TRW is defending its right to compile
and such lists in a number of state courts?

Dr. Allen Westin, a Columbia University scholar who has audited
Equifax' practices for the company, admits the short-run bottom-
line won't be helped. But it could help the bottom line "in the
long run," Westin told Newsbytes, if bulk buyers of credit
reports see Equifax as having more credibility than TRW or Trans-
Union, the other major player in this heavily-computerized
business.

"I think it was the right thing for Equifax to do, given its
major business and its need to protect the integrity of its
reporting. Its bottom line in credit reports will be enhanced by
public confidence. If you're a smart company you don't do things
for just next Tuesday."

Another audience is the U.S. Congress, which held hearings in
July on a host of new laws to stiffen regulation of credit
bureaus.

"This will probably help shape the legislation, suggesting there
are some areas the industry should pioneer in," said Westin.

But tough laws may still come down if TRW sticks to its guns, as
it now appears they intend to do. "This action will be taken
seriously by policy makers if they see change from leading
companies. Equifax took the lead, while TRW defended its
practices in state lawsuits."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910815/Press Contact: Equifax, John Ford,
404-885-8000)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 NEW FOR NETWORKS: VISINET 2.0, A NETWORK MANAGEMENT TOOL 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00024)

NEW FOR NETWORKS: VISINET 2.0, A NETWORK MANAGEMENT TOOL 08/15/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Technology Dynamics
has begun shipping VisiNet 2.0, a network management tool based
on Microsoft Windows 3.0.

The product supports the Microsoft LAN MAnager, NetBIOS and IBM
LAN Servers, Novell NetWare, Banyan Vines, and the Simple Network
Management Protocol. The company said support for the OS/2
Presentation Manager is being added.

The idea of the program is to give people who run Local Area
Networks and Wide Area Networks a graphic view of their system
which they can change with the click of a mouse button. The
program has an automatic configuration and discovery capability,
which updates its database on command, showing what new
workstations have been added, and retrieving data on each node of
the network linked in user-definable fields.

The program has a script-writing capability, so managers can
define alarm and state conditions easily.

Past network events and trouble ticketing can be examined at any
time through a log review function, and the program has extensive
search and reporting functions. The price of the program is
$1,995. Upgrades will cost $1,500, the difference in price
between Version 1.0 under MS-DOS and the new version.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910815/Press Contact: Technology Dynamics,
John Balsam, 404-874-0428)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 NEW FOR APPLE: STUFFIT SPACEMAKER COMPRESSION 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(ATL)(00025)

NEW FOR APPLE: STUFFIT SPACEMAKER COMPRESSION 08/15/91
WATSONVILLE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Aladdin
Systems has announced StuffIt SpaceMaker, a compression program
designed to save space on hard drives in a high speed,
transparent fashion. The program, retailing at $59.95, will be
bundled with its StuffIt Deluxe 3.0 package.

The compression speeds of SpaceMaker are comparable to those of
hardware-based compression boards, the company said. Most files
can be cut in size by 50 percent, but some picture files may be
cut in size by 98 percent.

Each time a user attaches a preset keyword to a file or folder,
SpaceMaker will quickly compress it. It works with all Macintosh
applications, so the keyword can be set in the Finder or any
program as a document is saved. Document and application icons
never change.

SpaceMaker also introduces Idle-Time Compression, a compression
system which works in the background while the Mac is idle. This
means any file not modified in a specified period of time will be
automatically compressed.

The company compares this to a `screen saver' function on a
computer screen. Users may also define specific disks, files or
folders that will never be compressed in this manner. The program
also works with disk utilities like On Technology's OnLocation,
virus programs like SAM or Virex, and backup software packages.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910815/Press Contact: Aladdin Systems, David
Schargel, 408-761-6200)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 VYVX WINS CONTRACT WITH PRIME NETWORK 08/15/91

08/15/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00026)

VYVX WINS CONTRACT WITH PRIME NETWORK 08/15/91
TULSA, OKLAHOMA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Just a week after
Bellcore announced that the regional Bell company networks could
get into the business of handling TV transmissions, Vyvx NTN has
announced a major backhaul deal with Prime Network.

Prime will distribute NBA basketball games using Vyvx backhauls
starting this fall, so that owners of satellite dishes will not
be able to see them. When satellites are used to transmit events
from a Stadium to a network, anyone with a satellite dish and a
descrambler can pick them up without commercials.

Prime's affiliates will be the first regional sports networks to
replace satellite transmission with fiber for the backhaul of
sports events.

Prime provides sports programming to more than 24 million cable
subscribers through 7 affiliates -- Home Sports Entertainment in
Texas, the Sunshine Network in Florida, Prime Sports Network-
Rocky Mountain, PSN-Intermountain West, PSN-Midwest, PSN-Upper
Midwest and SportsSouth. Vyvx has also been used by all the major
networks. It's a division of Williams Telecommunications of
Tulsa.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910815/Press Contact: Kevin Inda, Vyvx, 713-
547-1000)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15  ****SOVIETS GETTING PCN PHONE SERVICE 08/15/91

08/15/91

(EXCLUSIVE)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00027)

 ****SOVIETS GETTING PCN PHONE SERVICE 08/15/91
ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Cellular Inc., a
small U.S. cellular phone operator, has made a deal with a Soviet
agency which could bring the USSR a so-called PCN microwave
cellular service by the end of this year.

The deal with the Central Scientific and Industrial Corporation
Vympel in the Ministry of Radio Industry of the USSR is only a
preliminary agreement. But the result could be that Vympel works
within the Soviet bureaucracy to win operating licenses in the
1.7-2.1 gigahertz frequency bands, while in exchange Cellular
brings Vympel technology it needs to convert its plants from
military to civilian use.

So far, only a few licenses for cellular phone service have been
signed in the USSR. In Moscow and Leningrad, US West is leading a
group which hopes to launch cellular phone services in the 450
Mhz frequency band. That low-capacity frequency -- considered
obsolete by most U.S. equipment makers -- was chosen because the
military controls the more desirable 900 Mhz band.

Arnold Pohs of Cellular told Newsbytes that the military is not
expected to leave the 900 Mhz frequency, which is the standard
for most analog services in the U.S.

"We'll modify the higher band to offer the service," he said. "We
feel that, all things being nominal, we'll have the first system
in that band by the end of calendar 1991."

While the deal talks about building analog and digital cellular
phone equipment in the USSR, the United States, Eastern Europe
and Third World countries, Vympel's plants in the USSR are at the
heart of the deal from their side.

Vympel is a conglomerate of 20 scientific institutes and
manufacturing plants specializing in radio electronics with
annual turnover of of 2.2. billion roubles -- about $300 million
by the unofficial rate of 8 rouble to the dollar. It employs more
than 80,000 people, of whom 40,000 are professionals. Cellular
called the deal a major step forward toward developing the Soviet
industrial infrastructure.

What comes next? Early in September, a 5-man technical team from
Cellular will go to the Soviet Union, and later in the month a
team from Vympel will come to Englewood.

"These are the finest radio communication minds in the Soviet
Union, so all we have to do is bring them information on
equipment used in the U.S." said Pohs. Vympel can take over
design and manufacturing from there.

"Their team will see how cellular is deployed in the U.S., and
we're sending a team there to see their factories and meet their
people," he added.

Pohs said he doesn't anticipate any problem with the U.S.
military, especially since cellular services can be easily
intercepted.

"We believe it's not a problem," he said. After the September
meetings "we'll be in a position to verify what we believe is an
unbelievable opportunity."

Cellular currently runs 44 rural and 5 urban cellular phone
operations in the U.S.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910815/Press Contact: Cellular, Arnold C.
Pohs, 303-694-3234)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 INFONET EXTENDS NETWORK TO BRAZIL 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00028)

INFONET EXTENDS NETWORK TO BRAZIL 08/15/91
EL SEGUNDO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- With Brazil
prepared to finally scrap an informatics `domestic content' law,
which since 1987 has killed-off that nation's high technology
industries, the rush is on by U.S. companies to get into the
market.

Infonet, owned by MCI and a collection of European and Asian
phone authorities, is part of the bandwagon, announcing it is
extending its packet network to Brazil, with a new facility in
San Paulo already in operation.

The Sao Paulo center will link to Brazil's RENPAC public data
network, giving people in 50 cities local access to Infonet's
global network for worldwide data, E-mail, store fax and telex
transmissions. Brazil's EMBRATEL long-distance phone monopoly
will maintain the Infonet facility on its premises in Sao Paulo.

With support from INTERPAC, a private Brazilian partner, Infonet
Brazil will then connect local businesses to Infonet's network
and NOTICE 400 global messaging service and install NOTICE 400 PC
E-mail software. Infonet Brazil will also make the necessary
arrangements for users to access the Infonet network via RENPAC.
Infonet Brazil will also hold on-site education and training
classes introducing users to the technology and provide ongoing
service and support, complete with a telephone hotline.

Infonet's Brazilian office also plans to hold on-site training
and education classes to introduce users to the technology and to
provide service and support, Infonet said. Telephone hotlines
will also be available for Brazilian users and will be staffed by
senior technicians, Infonet said.

(Dana Blankenhorn & Linda Rohrbough/199108015/Press Contact: Pat
Gale, Infonet, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 15 ATM BUNDLED WITH VENTURA PUBLISHER 4.0 FOR WINDOWS 08/15/91

08/15/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00030)

ATM BUNDLED WITH VENTURA PUBLISHER 4.0 FOR WINDOWS 08/15/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 15 (NB) -- Adobe
Systems has announced Ventura Software is bundling the Adobe Type
Manager (ATM) with the newly announced 4.0 version release of
Ventura Publisher for Windows.

This marks the second major software company that has bundled ATM
with it's applications. Lotus announced with Adobe in May at
Spring Comdex that it would bundle ATM with all its Microsoft
Windows products.

Software companies are attempting to give users `What You See Is
What You Get' (WYSIWYG) and Adobe says ATM delivers WYSIWYG to
users transparently in Windows applications. ATM displays on
screen are smooth representations of what prints, not jagged
approximations, Adobe claims.

Adobe says that, despite the fact ATM is PostScript, a printer
control language, the fonts will print to a PostScript or non-
PostScript printer. The only drawback is PostScript can be very
slow to print.

Ventura Publisher, Windows Edition 4.0 is slated for shipment in
the fourth quarter of 1991, Ventura said. Retail on the product
is $795, but previous users under IBM personal computer (PC) DOS
can upgrade for $129, and the upgrade is $195 to owners of the
Macintosh or OS/2 Ventura Publisher editions.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108015/Press Contact: Patricia Pane, Mountain
View, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD

#CARD::1991 AUG 14 COMPUTER INDUSTRY VOLATILE FOR WESTERN DIGITAL 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00001)

COMPUTER INDUSTRY VOLATILE FOR WESTERN DIGITAL 08/14/91
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Western Digital
believes that the computer industry is in a volatile period, and for the
company at least, that seems to be true.

The company has announced that it has reached an agreement in
principle with its banks, but has had a class action lawsuit filed
against it and its chief executive officer, Roger W. Johnson, in a
Santa Ana federal district court.

The agreement in principle concerns a restructuring of $206
million in debt and is planned for completion within the next
sixty days, according to Johnson.

"Reaching this agreement in principle with our banks is a
significant step forward for Western Digital. We appreciate the
continuing support by our financial institutions during this
period of volatility in the personal computer industry," he said.

The refinancing is to renew the company's working capital and
accounts receivable financing facilities. Western Digital said it
expects to record a pre-tax restructuring charge of about $16
million for its fourth fiscal quarter ending June 30, 1991.

The company added that it will enter into a two-year,
collateralized credit agreement to consolidate approximately $164
million of outstanding bank loans. The agreement also calls for a
two-year extension of the company's existing accounts receivable
facility.

Under the accounts receivable facility, plans call for the
company to continue to sell interests in accounts receivable on
an ongoing basis to a financial institution as a revolving source
of $42.5 million in available capital.

Terms of the deal call for participating banks will receive five
year warrants priced at market to purchase about 1.7 million
Western Digital common shares when the debt restructuring closes.

The lawsuit, on the other hand, alleges that the company and
Johnson made false and misleading statements about Western
Digital in violation of the federal securities law.

Western Digital has said the lawsuit is without merit and it
intends to defend against it "vigorously."

(Linda Rohrbough/199108014/Press Contact: Robert Blair, Western
Digital, Tel: [phone], Fax: area/number)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 GILLETTE COMMITS TO PEN-BASED COMPUTING 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00002)

GILLETTE COMMITS TO PEN-BASED COMPUTING 08/14/91
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Grid Systems
has announced The Gillette Company is making a commitment to
pen-based computing with the purchase of 300 of its pen-based
computers.

Pen-based computing centers on a computer operating system
programmed to read a user's handwriting. The computer is usually
almost all screen and flat like a notebook. Input to the computer
is carried out on the screen with a special pen, and the computer
picks up, displays, then translates a user's writing. The Grid
computers are handheld and weigh about  four pounds.

Plans call for Gillette field representatives around the country
to use the Grid computers to spot sales and market trends quickly
in an attempt to boost sales of shaving and personal care products.

Gillette said that it hopes the computers will speed the process
of getting field sales data to decision makers in the company
and avoid long delays processing paper forms.

The Gridpad has 20 megabytes of storage and is adequate to meet
the needs of field representatives who handle as many as 300
accounts and need to track large volumes of information.

The Gillette company is a $4,000 million a year business
marketing shaving blades and razors in North America, Western
Europe and other areas of the world. The company is also known
for its line of personal care products such as Right Guard
deodorants, Dri Idea and Soft & Dry products.

Grid is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tandy Corporation and
designs, markets, manufacturers and supports pen-based and
desktop computers and pen-based software tools. The company is
located at 47211 Lakeview Blvd., Fremont, California 94538. Grid
also has offices in the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Spain,
Sweden, France, Belgium and Denmark.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108014/Press Contact: Mike McGuire, Grid,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14  ****NCR SETS DATE FOR STOCKHOLDER VOTE ON MERGER 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00003)

 ****NCR SETS DATE FOR STOCKHOLDER VOTE ON MERGER 08/14/91
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- NCR has announced
that its board of directors has set September 13, 1991, as the date
for a special meeting of NCR shareholders to vote on the proposed
NCR-AT&T merger. The special meeting will be held in Dayton,
Ohio, at 11:30 a.m. in the auditorium of NCR World Headquarters.

NCR will begin mailing proxy materials for its shareholders to
vote on the merger proposal which calls for each share of NCR
stock to be converted into AT&T common stock according to an
exchange ratio.

The choosing of September 13 means that the closing price of
AT&T stock from August 9 to September 6 will be used to determine
the average share price. NCR stated that it and AT&T "expect that
the merger will be completed by the end of September."

Both firms recently announced the appointment of the investment
banking firms of Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, Dillon, Read
& Co. Inc., and Goldman Sachs & Co. as co-managers of the United
States and Canadian portion of the offering.

The US and Canadian portion of the offering will consist of 5.4
million NCR shares. The international portion of the offering,
which will consist of the remaining 900,000 shares, will be
handled by Morgan Stanley International, Dillon, Read Securities
Limited, and Goldman Sachs International Limited.

Concurrent with the announcement of the investment banking
selection, both companies announced that they had filed
registration statements for the issue of AT&T common stock in
connection with the proposed merger and for a public offering of
6.3 million shares of NCR common stock.

The joint statement issued by the firms at that time explained
the transaction and said: "The NCR shares sold under the stock
offering will be converted automatically into shares of AT&T
common stock as a consequence of the merger, so that investors
will receive AT&T shares in the public offering."

"Based on an assumed exchange ratio of 2.986 AT&T shares for
each NCR share, the NCR shares would be converted into 18,811,800
shares of AT&T common stock. The actual exchange ratio for the
NCR shares in the offering will be fixed prior to the special meeting
of NCR shareholders to vote on the merger proposal," the
company statement.

AT&T spokesperson Jane Biba told Newsbytes that the setting of
the NCR meeting date and the establishment of the pricing period
"shows that everything is moving on schedule and proceeding very
smoothly."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910814/Press Contact:
Robert Farkas, NCR Corporation, 513-445-2078)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 AT&T FINES USED TO SUPPORT NY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(NYC)(00004)

AT&T FINES USED TO SUPPORT NY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS 08/14/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- New York City
Mayor David Dinkins is reported to have ear-marked $14.5 million
owed by AT&T in fines as funds to continue degree programs at
John Jay and New York City Technical colleges.

Until the allocation of these funds, the programs faced the chip
due to a $19 million reduction in state funding for projects of
this nature. In announcing the use of the AT&T funds, Dinkins
said that the City University system will have to find the necessary
funds to make up the difference between the budget requirements
and the AT&T money.

The programs that faced the axe were the associate degree
programs at the two colleges for electrical technology, nursing,
police science, hotel management, radiology, dental hygiene,
architectural and automotive technology, computer-aided drafting
and design, pre-pharmacy training and dental and medical lab
technology.

CUNY Chancellor Ann Reynolds is quoted as complimenting
Dinkins' action, saying: "Mayor David Dinkins has proved truly to
be an 'education mayor' by pulling CUNY back from an
educational abyss."

AT&T spokesperson Paula Horii explained the fines to
Newsbytes, saying: "It's really not a fine. It is rather a refund of
a tax abatement."

"We signed an agreement with the city in May 1987 under which we
received a tax abatement on our New York City building subject to
the stipulation that we maintain a staff of at least 1,000 people
in the building through June 30, 1994," she said

"When we entered into the agreement with Sony to lease the entire
building on next January 1st, we lost the right to the abatement and,
therefore, refunded it to the city. The $14.5 million represents the
abatement that we received from the tax years 1986-87 through
1991-92," she added.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910814/Press Contacts:
Robert Farkas, NCR Corporation, 513-445-2078; Jane Biba, AT&T,
908-221-4011)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NEW FOR UNIX: Chips Boot DOS Stations On Unix Networks 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(UNIX)(TOR)(00005)

NEW FOR UNIX: Chips Boot DOS Stations On Unix Networks 08/14/91
ANCASTER, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Beame &
Whiteside Software has begun shipping BW-BOOTP and BW-BOOTR,
read-only memory (ROM) chips that can boot any network workstation
across a Unix TCP/IP network.

The chips load DOS and the network operating system into
workstation memory across the network. Company President Carl
Beame told Newsbytes that the chips are intended primarily for
use on diskless workstations, as well as for situations where
network administrators want to maintain control of what users do
with the machines.

BW-BOOTP and BW-BOOTR have been tested with a variety of
network operating systems, including Sun Microsystems' PC-NFS,
Novell's NetWare, and Beame & Whiteside's BW-NFS, the
company claims.

Beame & Whiteside is initially offering BW-BOOT in four
configurations to support Western Digital WD80x3 Ethernet
interface cards and 3Com's 3C501 cards for both BOOTP and
RARP. All versions retail for US$50 and are available now.

(Grant Buckler/19910814/Press Contact: Carl Beame, Beame &
Whiteside Software, phone or fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14  ****COMMODORE EARNINGS SOAR 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00006)

 ****COMMODORE EARNINGS SOAR 08/14/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Bucking the
recent computer industry trend to gloomy financial results,
Commodore International has reported a more than 30-fold increase
in net income for fiscal 1991. Commodore earned net income before
extraordinary items of US$57.4 million in the year ended June 30,
up from US$1.5 million last year.

An extraordinary charge of US$9.2 million having to do with
settlement of a court case brought the final 1991 net income figure
down to US$48.2 million. Commodore's annual sales rose 18
percent, from US$887.3 million to US$1.047.2 million.

For the fourth quarter, Commodore reported net income of US$3.3
million on sales of US$216.5 million. The quarterly figure included a
reduction in income tax accruals no longer required. Before that
reduction, Commodore had a pre-tax quarterly loss of US$4.3 million --
less than the previous year's pre-tax fourth-quarter loss of
US$14 million.

Announcing the results, Irving Gould, Commodore's chairman and
chief executive, said the results reflect the company's strength in
Europe, which accounted for more than 85 percent of the
company's total sales.

Commodore said sales of all its products grew in the fourth
quarter of fiscal 1991. Sales of the IBM-compatible line of PCs
rose 35 percent, sales of the venerable Commodore 64 increased
30 percent and those of the Amiga line grew by 20 percent, the
company said.

(Grant Buckler/19910814/Press Contact: Tom Shepherd, Commodore
Canada, 416-499-4292, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 WATCOM COMPILERS FOR OS/2 2.0 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00007)

WATCOM COMPILERS FOR OS/2 2.0 08/14/91
WATERLOO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- With
development assistance from IBM, language developer Watcom
is working on 32-bit optimizing C and FORTRAN 77 compilers for
version 2.0 of the OS/2 operating system.

Dave Boswell, vice-president of sales and marketing at Watcom,
told Newsbytes his company's Fortran compiler is the first for
OS/2 2.0.

Boswell said that while existing Watcom C and Fortran compilers
work with early versions of OS/2, they cannot match the
performance of the new compilers running under the 32-bit OS/2
2.0. The new compilers will offer two to three times the performance,
he said, allowing "creation of high-performance software."

Boswell said the Fortran compiler is also significant because it
will allow Fortran programs written for larger systems, such as
Digital Equipment VAX minicomputers, to be moved to personal
computers running OS/2 2.0 without reprogramming.

The two companies said they are working together to integrate the
new compilers with IBM's OS/2 2.0 Programmer's Workbench. All
system functions of OS/2 2.0 will be accessible from both
compilers, officials said.

Both compilers are due to be available before the end of 1991,
and pricing and upgrade policies will be announced then.

(Grant Buckler/19910814/Press Contact: Dave Boswell, Watcom, 519-
886-3700, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 VANCOUVER EXCHANGE SELLS SYSTEM TO MEXICO 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00008)

VANCOUVER EXCHANGE SELLS SYSTEM TO MEXICO 08/14/91
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1991 AUG 14 (NB) --
The Vancouver Stock Exchange (VSE) has announced the sale of its
computerized stock trading system to the Mexican Stock Exchange.
The deal follows closely in the wake of the VSE's first sale to the
Venezuelan exchange in April.

The Vancouver Stock Exchange, Canada's third-largest, expects to
make about C$750,000 on the sale. The exchange will be involved
in follow-up consulting on implementation and training.

The system, developed by the Vancouver exchange and New York
software developer TCAM Systems to run on IBM hardware, has
been running in Vancouver since May of last year. Spokesman
David Laundy said that the exchange has bid for sales to other
exchanges as well.

Like the Venezuelan sale, the Mexican deal involves the VSE,
TCAM, and IBM. These parties and the Mexican Stock Exchange
were scheduled to sign agreements August 13 covering hardware
and software sales as well as telecommunications and consulting
contracts.

(Grant Buckler/19910814/Press Contact: David Laundy, Vancouver
Stock Exchange, 604-689-3334, fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 ERICSSON INSTALLS CELLULAR SS7 NETWORK 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00009)

ERICSSON INSTALLS CELLULAR SS7 NETWORK 08/14/91
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Ericsson has
put into service its first Signaling System 7 (SS7) network
application between two cellular systems in the United States.

SS7 is the national standard for inter-system hand-off and call
delivery between cellular systems, approved by the cellular
Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA). It is also the
signaling system that will be the interface between wired
telephone systems and the cellular network.

SS7 technology, however, has become controversial in recent
months, since exchanges using the technology depend on software
which can break down. Failures of millions of phones in Maryland,
Pennsylvania, and California early this summer were tied to the
break-down of a key link in an SS7 network called a Signal
Transfer Point.

Critics charge that, in order to be dependable, such networks
need more redundancy to ensure reliability. Creating extra,
redundant networks however is very costly, and both wired and
non-wired phone companies have been reluctant to make the move.

The Ericsson SS7 link was made between cellular systems owned
by McCaw Cellular Communications and operated under the name
Cellular One in Tampa and Orlando, Florida. It will transport the
calls of subscribers roaming between Tampa and Orlando,
providing for inter-system hand-off and automatic call delivery
of calls.

The SS7 network is also the platform on which McCaw will create
its grand scheme, the national seamless network. McCaw is
depending on SS7 to make its multi-billion dollar purchase of Lin
Broadcasting pay off. Lin was bought after a long proxy fight
with BellSouth. SS7 will allow McCaw cellular subscribers to roam
about the entire U.S. at will, talking all the time.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910814/Press Contact: Ericsson, Angel Sims,
214/238-3222)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 MOTOROLA TO MAKE CELLULAR EQUIPMENT IN CHINA 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00010)

MOTOROLA TO MAKE CELLULAR EQUIPMENT IN CHINA 08/14/91
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- In a
move to cut costs and fight growing Japanese competition,
Motorola's Radio-Telephone Systems Group has signed a
manufacturing license agreement with the Posts and
Telecommunications Industry Corporation of China, a government
entity.

China's factory in Hangzhou, in the Zhejiang region, will make
Total Access Communication System (TACS) network equipment
from material and modules supplied by Motorola. TACS is an
enhanced version of the American Mobile Phone System (AMPS)
cellular technology found in cellular phones in the U.S. TACS
phone systems are very popular in Europe and the Far East.

Motorola has been awarded cellular systems supply contracts
for the cities of Beijing, Fuzhou, Harbin, Shandong, Shanghai,
Taiyuan, Wuhan, Xiamen and Zhengzhou.

Motorola's current flagship portable cellular phone is called the
MicroTAC. Enhanced versions of the unit have just been
announced in the U.S. and Europe.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910814/Press Contact: Mario Salvadori,
Motorola 708-632-2844)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 PACTEL TO MERGE MID-WESTERN CELLULAR OPERATIONS 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00011)

PACTEL TO MERGE MID-WESTERN CELLULAR OPERATIONS 08/14/91
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- In an attempt to
create critical mass for call roaming, PacTel has announced plans
to merge its Ohio and Michigan cellular operations with those of
Cellular Communications through a joint venture. Among the 15
million potential customers of the new system are citizens of
Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Toledo, and Detroit,
Michigan.

Under the agreement, PacTel purchased roughly five percent of
CCI's stock for $87 million. PacTel also has an option to buy 22.5
percent more of the company by October 1995. It could also buy
all of CCI over five years, and if it does not, it could be liable to
a "make-whole" payment to CCI.

Both companies have used the name Cellular One in their markets.
The trademark emerged from the beginning of the industry, and
represented the "non-wireline" competition to the Bell companies.
The name is owned by many different companies in different
cities, and has become nearly meaningless as Bell companies
have been allowed to buy "non-wireline" cellular operations
outside their regions.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910814)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 CUMULUS INTROS $999 386SX PC WITH 40MB DRIVE 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00012)

CUMULUS INTROS $999 386SX PC WITH 40MB DRIVE 08/14/91
CLEVELAND, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Cumulus Corporation
has announced the introduction of its WorkBox family of computers.
WorkBox systems are plug-and-play systems with a suggested retail
price of $999.

The WorkBox SX/40 is a 16MHz Intel 80386SX-based machine which
comes equipped with a 40 megabyte hard drive, and can serve as a
network workstation. The WorkBox is distributed through authorized
dealers ComputerLand, MicroAge, Entre, TCBC and Connecting
Point stores.

Besides the hard drive, Jim Baxter of Cumulus told Newsbytes that
the WorkBox has one 3.5-inch 1.44MB floppy drive, 1MB of RAM, a
16-bit VGA color video card capable of an 800 by 600 pixel display
resolution with 256 kilobytes of RAM,  six available expansion slots,
two serial and one parallel port, clock/calendar with battery backup,
a 150 watt power supply, a keyboard and a two-button mouse.

A monitor is not included, but Baxter said a color monitor made
for Cumulus by Samsung, with a 0.41 pitch, is available at $350.

The RAM is expandable to 16MB. Cumulus says the WorkBox
SX/40 comes with a one year limited warranty, and support is
provided by the selling dealer.

The WorkBox measures a little under 14-inches wide by just over
15-inches deep by six-inches high, and comes in off-white.

Bundled with the machine, and already loaded on the hard drive, is
Windows 3.0 and DOS 4.01. Baxter said the company will begin
installing MS-DOS 5.0 in the near future.

"The WorkBox represents a tremendous value for the end-user" said
Marty Alpert, Cumulus' chairman .

"We wanted to produce a 386SX system that sells for about the
same price as a typical 286-based system, and yet offers high
performance and a full range of standard features. The WorkBox
does all of this, setting industry standards for features and
pricing," he added.

Asked what Cumulus saw as its market niche for the WorkBox SX/40,
Baxter told Newsbytes that the unit should appeal both to home
users and small businesses. He added that the WorkBox is an
economical alternative to diskless workstations on a network.

Cumulus is headquartered in Cleveland, and designs and markets
PC systems, custom memory products, and mass storage devices.
The company maintains R&D facilities in San Jose and San Diego,
California, and in Cincinnati, Ohio.

(Jim Mallory/19910814/Press contact: Jim Baxter, Cumulus Corp,
216-464-2211)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NOVADYNE SIGNS $5 MILLION MAINTENANCE CONTRACTS 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00013)

NOVADYNE SIGNS $5 MILLION MAINTENANCE CONTRACTS 08/14/91
SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Novadyne,
the fourth largest independent vendor of third- and fourth-party
hardware maintenance services in the U.S., has signed contracts
with Artecon and Advanced Computer Communications (ACC) valued
at $5 million over the next three years, Novadyne officials said.

Artecon is also a systems integrator to U.S. government agencies
and contractors such as the U.S. Department of Labor, General
Dynamics and the Naval Weapons Center. Plans call for the
company to provide installation, on-site service and warranty repair
for all Artecon U.S. customer sites.

Plans call for Novadyne to install and service ACC products at
all U.S. customer locations, and ACC reseller and system
integrators will be able to offer Novadyne maintenance and
support to ACC customers with ACC and non-ACC equipment.

Novadyne says it has 1,000 professionals in more than 125
locations. The company says it reported revenue of over $104
million in 1990. Novadyne's standing as the U.S.'s fourth largest
independent vendor of third- and fourth-party hardware
maintenance services was determined by the market research
firm of Frost & Sullivan.

Artecon, based in San Diego, manufactures and markets integrated
systems, add-on peripherals and accessories to Sun Microsystems
workstation installations.

ACC designs, manufacturers and markets internetworking products
for local area network (LAN) to LAN communications as well as
wide area network (WAN) to WAN communications and
management.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Pat Dwight, Novadyne,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 MICOM INTROS ANALOGUE/DIGITAL NETWORK PRODUCT 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LAX)(00014)

MICOM INTROS ANALOGUE/DIGITAL NETWORK PRODUCT 08/14/91
SIMI VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Micom
communications has announced the release of Marathon 1K, a
networking product that it claims does more than just reduce
communications costs, but could actually do away with the data-
only network.

Micom claims the Marathon 1K is the first product to send data,
voice, Group 3 fax and local-area network (LAN) traffic to remote
sites at a lower price than other products that only transmit
data. The product was released earlier this year by Tricom
Communications in the U.K.

Because the Micom can add voice and fax traffic to leased data
lines, it can eliminate toll or long distance charges on interoffice
phone calls and faxes, the company claims.

Ken Guy, vice president of corporate strategy and business
development for Micom said: "The Marathon 1K has every data
handling capability a statistical multiplexor has and more."

"By incorporating voice and fax handling into the product, it
pays for itself with toll call savings. There's really no reason
to buy ordinary data communications equipment for wide-area
connections any more," he added.

The company also said that the base price of $1,750 for the
Marathon 1K compares favorably with other data-only equipment.
Data expansion modules, also available, provide 40 asynchronous
data channels and voice/fax modules allow the 1K to handle up to
four channels of voice or fax traffic

LAN bridges, Systems Network Architecture (SNA) cluster
controllers from IBM and X.25 equipment are also supported
by the Marathon 1K.

"This signals the beginning of the end of the data-only network
as we know it," said Guy.

The first public unveiling of the Marathon 1K in the U.S. is
planned by Micom for the TCA '91, a telecommunications trade
show in September in San Diego.

More information is available from Micom at 4100 Los Angeles Ave.,
Simi Valley, CA 93063. Telephone [phone]; fax [phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Kathleen O'Donnell,
Micom, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 INGRAM MICRO FORMS NEW DIV AIMED AT SUPERSTORES 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00015)

INGRAM MICRO FORMS NEW DIV AIMED AT SUPERSTORES 08/14/91
SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Ingram Micro
has formed a new Consumer Markets Division (CMD) to consolidate
service to the growing needs of mass-market merchants in the area
of microcomputer sales.

"After so many years of false starts," said Chip Lacy, Ingram
Micro chairman and chief executive officer, "we are finally seeing
the emergence of a strong consumer marketplace for
microcomputer products."

Lacy said that he expects there to be between 50 and 70 computer
superstores by the end of the year, up from 35 of the same type
of stores last year. Sales estimates exceed $3,500 million, he
added.

"We view the consumer and small business sales channel as
one of the most important growth areas in the 1990s," he added.

"The creation of the Consumer Markets Division signals our
commitment to continue working with these merchants in ways that
accommodate the specific needs of their businesses and stays in
step with the level of service necessary for them to sustain
their growth," said David Dukes, Ingram Micro's president.

The new division will serve mass merchants, consumer electronics
stores, warehouse clubs, office superstores, and computer
superstores.

Chuck Bagwell, former head of the Ingram's Macintosh Products
Division, takes up a new position of head the new Consumer
Markets Division on September 1. His new office will be based in
Santa Ana, the company's headquarters.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Wayne Stewart, Ingram
Micro, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 3COM PC COMPATIBILITY TESTING OFFERED TO OEMS 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00016)

3COM PC COMPATIBILITY TESTING OFFERED TO OEMS 08/14/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- 3Com
and Lanquest Labs have announced a program to test the
compatibility of personal computer (PC) manufacturer's hardware
with 3Com's network adapters for local area networks (LANs).

The program, called the 3-compatible adapter certification
program, is the only certification program currently testing in a
LAN Manager 2.0 environment. The three major LAN operating
systems used in the program are Novell Netware 286, Novell
Netware 386 and Microsoft LAN Manager, company officials said.

Computers passing the tests are awarded the 3-compatible logo
and the manufacturer of the PC may use the logo in advertising,
promotions and product packaging. The idea behind the scheme,
according to 3Com, is that potential customers who see the new
seal can be assured that the PC will be compatible when mixing it
with the hardware of other manufacturers on a network.

The tests, however, do not come without a price. Lanquest said
it charges $7,000 for server/workstation testing and $4,500 for
workstation only testing.

Epson has already submitted its PCs for testing, 3Com said. Larry
Holsopple, product assurance group manager for Epson confirmed
this, saying: "The 3Compatible network certification program
helps us ensure that Epson computers are fully compatible with
3Com's leading network products. We consider this program a
valuable element in our sales and marketing strategy."

Bob Buchanan, general manager of Lanquest Labs said: "We feel
this is a valuable program for personal computer manufacturers to
help ensure quality products and to gain a marketing edge in an
increasingly competitive global market where networking has
become more and more important."

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Kerry Langstaff, 3Com,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 BYTEL INTROS GENIFER 3.0 SOFTWARE TEMPLATE 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00017)

BYTEL INTROS GENIFER 3.0 SOFTWARE TEMPLATE 08/14/91
BERKLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Bytel has
announced the availability of version 3.0 of Genifer, its
template-driven application generator for software developers.

The company said that Genifer 3.0 now supports Clipper 5.01,
Foxpro 2.0 as well as Arago. It also works with dBASE III and IV,
Foxbase+, Foxpro 1.02, Clipper Summer '87, dBXL and Quicksilver.
It has a new user interface with windowing and pull-down menus
and a built-in screen editor, Bytel said.

"For the developer, version 3.0 opens the door to the whole
spectrum of dBASE dialects," said Dan Pines, president of Bytel.

Genifer, a tool for developers who write database applications,
provides pull-down menus, pop-up windows for data screens,
browse lists and dialog boxes. Data screens may have many
windows corresponding to different databases, or corresponding
to additional information from a single database.

A new screen and report generator allows design of menu text
layout, light bars and program selection, all in a single step,
Bytel said. One-step creation of reports including printlines,
control breaks and database or field assignment are available.

Genifer is available through dealers world-wide and retails for
$395. Optional templates are available from Bytel for $69 per
set.

Registered Genifer users may upgrade for a limited time to
Version 3.0 for $89. More information is available from Bytel
Corporation, 1029 Solano Avenue, Berkley, California, 94706.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Dan Pines, Bytel, Tel:
800-777-0126, Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NEW FOR TELECOM: Microdyne Intros Ethernet Concentrator 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00018)

NEW FOR TELECOM: Microdyne Intros Ethernet Concentrator 08/14/91
ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Microdyne
has introduced the Exos 5318, an Ethernet concentrator that connects
up to 18 10-Base-T Ethernet ports at a cost of less than $50 per
port.

The product has a list price of $895, and comes with 16 RJ45
twisted-paid connections on its front panel, along with AUI and
BNC connectors on its rear panel.

The 5318 is designed for use linking local area networks in small
offices and independent work groups. It requires no special tools
to install and is self-configuring. It can monitor its ports continuously
to ensure optimum signal quality, and can disconnect any device
which is inducing line noise and causing excessive transmission
collisions.

According to Microdyne, the system is fully compliant with the
IEEE 802.3 standards for 10-Base-T concentrators, and can
automatically detect and correct incorrect polarity of incoming
signals, simplifying the use of existing telephone wiring in
computer networks.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910814/Press Contact: C.F. Rockwell,
Microdyne, 703-739-0500)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NEW FOR PC: Bicycle Solitaire Game Pack Debuts 8/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(ATL)(00019)

NEW FOR PC: Bicycle Solitaire Game Pack Debuts 8/14/91
HOCKESSIN, DELAWARE, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- SWFTE
International has released Bicycle Solitaire, a collection of seven
solitaire card games. The games featured are Klondike, Calculation,
Auld Lang Syne, Golf, Little Spider, Canfield, and Four Seasons.

The games come with the endorsement of the U.S. Playing Card Co.,
whose Bicycle brand is among the best-known card labels in the
industry and which has been in business since 1881.

Bicycle Solitaire operates intuitively with a graphical format.
Cards are played with either a keyboard or mouse, and snap into
place as they're moved towards a pile. EGA and VGA graphics rival
the look of real cards, and the computer handles the shuffling and
laying-out of hands -- the company notes that some Klondike hands
can take as long to layout as to play.

The system also keeps score and tracks a player's improvement,
something no deck of cards can do. The pack costs $39.95., and
requires 512 kilobytes of RAM.

The company adds that the product is already available at
CompUSA stores and in the Selective Software catalogue. A
Windows version is under development, and future releases
under the same label for later in the year include Cribbage
and Poker.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910814/Press Contact: Rebecca Knapp, SWFTE,
302-234-1740)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 LAW STUDENTS GET WINDOWS AND WORD FOR WINDOWS 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00020)

LAW STUDENTS GET WINDOWS AND WORD FOR WINDOWS 08/14/91
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Law students all over
the country will soon be using Microsoft Windows and Word for
Windows.

Mead Data Central (MDC) has announced that it has entered into a
deal with Microsoft to put Microsoft Windows and Word for Windows
word processing software in every law school accredited by the
American Bar Association.

MDC is the provider of LEXIS, the computer-assisted legal
research service. MDC has been installing LEXIS 2000 personal
computer workstations at law schools for the past year.

"The need for a highly productive, integrated research environment
prompted our development of LEXIS 2000 research software for
Windows" said David Berger, general manager of legal information
services at Mead.

The agreement also calls for the companies to provide joint
training, demonstrations and promotion of the LEXIS service and
the two Microsoft products within the educational and legal
communities.

Using LEXIS an attorney or law student can do computer-assisted
legal research to find pertinent case law and statutes much more
rapidly than by using a legal library and searching through law
books. MDC also provides a sister service, NEXIS, a full-text
article retrieval service from most of the world's top news and
business sources.

(Jim Mallory/19910814/Press Contact: Sarah Charf, Microsoft, 206-
882-8080, FAX [phone] or James Joseph, MDC, 512-865-6958)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 MAJOR COMPANIES COLLABORATE ON PAYROLL PROCESSING 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00021)

MAJOR COMPANIES COLLABORATE ON PAYROLL PROCESSING 08/14/91
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- In an
unusual collaboration, line managers from three major companies
have joined forces to automate laser payroll check and W-2
finishing processes.

First line managers from Control Data Corporation's business
management services division got together with front line
supervisors at Xerox Corporation, Standard Register and GBR
Systems Corporation to streamline CDC's Signature computerized
payroll processing service.

Mike Ritonia, CDC product manager said: "By eliminating most of
the manual steps involved, we have reduced potential errors, and
cut printing and distribution time by an estimated 52 percent."

Managers at the participating companies hailed the collaboration
as an example of employee empowerment. According to Douglas
Daniel, national account manager for Xerox Corporation, other
companies that empower employees with greater authority to take
such initiatives will be the most likely to develop such mutually
beneficial cross industry agreements in the future.

"Front-line managers and employees are more likely than senior
management to recognize the synergies other industries can lend
for addressing specific customer issues," he said.

Supervisors from the four companies said they have worked closely
with customers and suppliers during the design phases of the
system, capitalizing on cross-industry expertise. Ritonia estimated
that the partnership cut development time from concept to
production by 50 percent.

According to Daniel, the federal government and Japanese
companies have long used suppliers to achieve advantages in
quality, cost and development time, but similar relationships in
the US private sector are relatively new.

Xerox Corporation provides the laser printers and custom software
that controls paper output for the Signature system. GBR, a
Chester, Connecticut-based firm, supplies the check finishing
equipment, and Standard Register, a Dayton, Ohio-based company
provides check stock as well as helping define the features of the
final product.

CDCs business management services division provides payroll
processing, tax filing services and human resources management
systems, employee assistance programs, and medical, dental and
vision health claims processing, as well as benefits cost
containment services.

(Jim Mallory/19910814/Press contact: Maureen McDonough, CDC, 612-
853-4303)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NOVELL MHS, 3COM 3+MAIL BRIDGE NOW AVAILABLE 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEN)(00022)

NOVELL MHS, 3COM 3+MAIL BRIDGE NOW AVAILABLE 08/14/91
SOUTHFIELD, MICHIGAN, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- If you want
your Novell MHS and your 3Com 3+Mail to talk with each other,
help is here.

Computer Mail Services (CMS) has announced new gateway
software which removes the barriers between the two mail
environments, providing a transparent bridge between users on both
systems. The new software, dubbed M3-Bridge, will be shown at
NetWorld in mid-October and will then be available for immediate
shipment.

A M3-Bridge primary license covers one MHS host and one 3+Mail
domain/org, and has a suggested retail price of $995. Additional
fees cover MHS hosts or 3+Mail domain/orgs for $100 each, or $395
for any combination of five additional hosts or domain/orgs. A
license for 10 in any combination costs $695, and an unlimited
site license costs $4,995.

CMS says that M3-Bridge comes complete with MHS version 1.5M,
which installs and runs on the 3+Mail network. M3-Bridge operates
as a gateway on the MHS host, making the 3+Mail system a mail
peer to MHS mail systems on-site and worldwide.

The package automatically translates between MHS and 3+Mail
address headers, automates return receipts, and adds full
nickname and alias support at the gateway level.

M3-Bridge is said to provide full support for attached files,
automatically spawning additional messages if an incoming MHS
message has more files attached to it than a 3+Mail message can
support. Each MHS message normally can support up to 64
attached files, while the limit for a 3+Mail message is 26.

Additional information about M3-Bridge is available from CMS at
313-352-6700 or FAX [phone].

(Jim Mallory/19910814/Press contact: Lih-Tah Wong, CMS, 313-352-
6700)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 CD-ROM DISK LISTS MAC BUSINESS PROGRAMS 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00023)

CD-ROM DISK LISTS MAC BUSINESS PROGRAMS 08/14/91
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- If you want to
find out what business programs are available for your Mac, and
be able to sample some of them from your home or office, talk to
International Computer Programs (ICP).

ICP publishes a $29.95 compact digital disk that lists about
1,700 business programs for the Macintosh, from 700 suppliers.
The disk even includes samples of 200 programs that you can
test-drive to see how they work. Some listings include animated
slide shows.

ICP says they will publish an updated disk at least three times
each year. The company says the next release will add
educational, scientific and engineering programs, with later
editions including home-entertainment software. The company
estimates that its on-disk catalog will eventually include as
many as 10,000 programs from about 3,000 suppliers.

Listed information includes the name of the product, description,
hardware and memory requirements, the name and contact
information of the vendor, and the suggested retail price.

ICP vice president Richard Teller told Newsbytes that the press
run for its CD-ROM is believed to be one of the largest non-audio
ever done.

ICP said that Apple Computer worked on the disk with them, and
will distribute 12,000 copies internally and to its dealers. The
company says that if it has success with the Mac disk, they will
create a similar version for the IBM and compatible market.

Interested software publishers can get their Macintosh products
listed at no charge for the basic listing. Space for additional
information or demos of their programs is available for $1 per
kilobyte of data.

According to ICP it has published information about computer
software products for 25 years. Teller told Newsbytes that the
company publishes software directories in print format and on
CD-ROM, as well as a series of magazines for software buyers.

(Jim Mallory/19910814/Press contact: Richard Teller, ICP, 317-
844-7461)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 FRAME, SUN APPROACH SMALL PUBLISHERS 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00024)

FRAME, SUN APPROACH SMALL PUBLISHERS 08/14/91
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Small
publishers are receiving an offer from Frame and Sun Microsytems
for a Unix-based Sun SPARC station desktop publishing system that
costs the same or less than a comparable IBM personal computer
(PC) or Macintosh computer system.

The companies claim that several publications are switching from
their current equipment and moving to the Sun/Frame combination
for everything from in-house newsletters to magazines. Frame points
to Bear Stearns, a Wall Street firm who purchased its desktop
publishing product FrameMaker and is now using it for all the
company's manuals, as an example.

Programmer Raj Punderika of Bear Stearns estimates that his
manuals now take less than one-third the time to prepare -- a
single man-week as opposed to three man-weeks.

Frame said that its customer profile is starting to include
administrative assistants, secretaries and word processing
operators, because the Unix operating environment has pull-down
menus and self-help, so even unfamiliar users get up to speed
quickly.

Sun claims that sales of Unix-based workstations and servers for
electronic publishing are 13.4 percent of the present total
market representing $762 million in revenue. The company estimates
that the Sun workstation accounts for nearly half of all the workstations
used for electronic publishing.

Sun also touts the variety among software vendors and commercial
publishing vendors who support the Sun SPARC station. Lotus
Development, WordPerfect, Xerox, Kodak, Ashton-Tate, Frame,
Agfa/Compugraphic, Dupont, Pre-Press Technologies, Linotype,
and Raster Ops are just a few of the vendors Sun mentions.

Sun is claiming that standard PCs and Apple Macintoshes are
underpowered for editing large color images, and points out the
Sun workstation can be interconnected to the PC or Mac.

Sun if offering a free video tape -- "Meeting Today's Document
Publishing Challenges" - that explains the benefits of the
technology to potential customers. The tape is being issued free
of charge until August 31, 1991.

Information on how to obtain the tape is available by writing in care
of the Publishing Manager,  Sun Microsystems, Inc., PO Box 5164,
Denver, Colorado 80217-9343, or by calling [phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Whitney Greer, Sun,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Kristin Vais, Frame, Tel:
408/954-3921, Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14  ****X/OPEN RESTRUCTURES; ELECTS NEW CHAIRMAN 08/14/91

08/14/91

(NEWS)(UNIX)(SFO)(00025)

 ****X/OPEN RESTRUCTURES; ELECTS NEW CHAIRMAN 08/14/91
MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- In an attempt
to more closely involve computer users and software developers,
X/Open's board of directors have formally approved a realignment
of the company's structure, and at the same time elected a new
chairman.

"The increased emphasis on software coupled with the growth of
non- vendor aligned user organizations within the information
technology industry requires X/Open to look to a new structure
that will give these groups more influence than they currently
have," said Geoff Morris, X/Open president and chief executive
officer, announcing the changes.

"As the market expands, so does the need to integrate the
interests of all sectors of the market," he added.

According to X/Open, the restructuring is an attempt to align
those with an interest in specific open systems issues closer to
the point where they can influence and more directly control the
decisions that are made.

In order to accomplish this, the company plans to expand its role
as an integrator to enable much broader input to the company's
Common Applications Environment (CAE).

The development of a full implementation plan will be done in
parallel with an advisory group which will involve representation
beyond the X/Open membership. X/Open said that the development of
the plan will begin immediately.

Additionally, at the meeting of the board in the United Kingdom,
a new chairman was elected to replace Hewlett-Packard's Jim Bell,
who has reached the end end of his term of office. ICL's Andy
Roberts assumes the role of chairman of the board, with Jerry
Petersen of Unisys becoming vice-chairman.

X/Open, which was founded in 1984, is a worldwide, independent,
open systems, non-profit organization dedicated to developing an
open, multi-vendor CAE based on de facto and international
standards.

X/Open currently has 21 member companies including Amdahl, AT&T,
Bull, Digital Equipment Corp., Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi,
IBM, ICL, NEC, NCR Corp., Nokia Data, Oki Electric, Olivetti,
Open Software Foundation, Philips, Prime Computer Inc., Siemens
Nixdorf (SNI), Sun Microsystems, Unisys, and Unix International.

Newsbytes reported in June that Philips, the Dutch electronics
company, had used X/Open's Fast Track procedure to adapt Philips'
CD-ROM technology to open systems.

Fast Track is a program established by X/Open that lets outside
companies or organizations develop specifications for submission
to X/Open for possible adoption into X/Open's CAE.

(Ian Stokell/19910814/Press Contact: Jeff Hansen, X/Open Co.
Ltd., 415-323-7992)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NEW FOR UNIX: dBASE IV For OpenWindows Debuts 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00026)

NEW FOR UNIX: dBASE IV For OpenWindows Debuts 08/14/91
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Ashton-Tate has
announced a new release of dBASE IV for the Sun SPARC station
that now includes support for OpenWindows, a graphical user
interface (GUI) designed by Sun Microsystems.

Announcing the package, David Proctor, Ashton-Tate's president
and chief operating officer said: "Since the January 1991 release
of dBASE IV for Sun, which supported Sun View the Sun user
community has rapidly embraced OpenWindows. We have responded
today by updating dBASE IV for Sun to run in OpenWindows."

Users can now run dBASE IV in the OpenWindows multitasking
environment, which means users can run dBASE and other
applications at the same time. The new release also supports the
eight-bit international character set.

In another related move, Ashton-Tate has announced the company's
first dBASE IV for Sun original equipment manufacturer (OEM)
agreement in which GNP Computers will bundle dBASE IV for Sun
with Sun SPARC stations and DEL-1, a multiport serial hardware
peripheral to connect personal computers (PCs) to SPARC stations.

Runtime versions of dBASE IV for Sun are available, which means
developers can build stand-alone dBASE IV applications for the
Sun, the company claims.

Ashton-Tate is a software development company best known for its
dBASE product line. The company is currently in the process of
being purchased by Borland International, and the merger is
expected to be competed by the end of the year.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108014/Press Contact: Linda Duttenhaver,
Ashton-Tate, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14  ****BORLAND BEGINS TRADING ON PACIFIC STOCK EXCHANGE 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00027)

 ****BORLAND BEGINS TRADING ON PACIFIC STOCK EXCHANGE 08/14/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Borland
International's common stock is set to begin trading on the
Pacific Stock Exchange today (Wednesday).

Although it will continue to trade over-the-counter, the exchange
says that Borland is exclusively exchange-listed at the PSE, and
is not listed on any other U.S. exchange.

Borland raised eyebrows recently when it announced its intended
acquisition of Aston-Tate Corporation, a major publisher of
database software for the microcomputer market.

Although the deal has been approved by both boards of directors,
it still needs approval from each company's shareholders and the
receipt of all required governmental approvals.

Scotts Valley, California-based Borland International is a
leading developer of object-oriented business software and
programming languages. Borland products include Paradox, Quattro
Pro, ObjectVision, Borland C++, Turbo C++, Turbo Pascal for
Windows, and Sidekick.

(Ian Stokell/19910814/Press Contact: Dale A. Carlson, Pacific
Stock Exchange, 415-393-4198)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NEW FOR IBM: Windows-Based Optical Storage Software 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00028)

NEW FOR IBM: Windows-Based Optical Storage Software 08/14/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Microbank
Software is promoting optical storage as an alternative to
microfiche and to mainframe disk space with new optical storage
software that runs on a personal computer operating under
Microsoft Windows.

Microbank is currently offering two versions of its optical
storage management software. StoreTrans is designed for storing
structured transaction records. The software can search for the
contents of a specific field, explained Ernie Fiore, product
manager. StoreFiche is an alternative to microfiche for storing
unstructured data.

The software makes stored data accessible to multiple users on
Novell, OS/2 or Digital Equipment Pathworks local-area networks.

Microbank sells the software bundled with personal computer
hardware and optical disks in a turnkey system. Peter Roberts, a
Microbank developer, told Newsbytes that configurations could
range from a PC with a single optical disk installed to a system
controlling several dozen platters in optical jukeboxes. The
system can handle as much as 75GB of storage, the company claims.

The cost of the software starts at US$16,900 for a stand-alone
version. For a system supported in the range of 100 users, Fiore
said, the cost would reach about US$85,000.

A third software module, designed for image processing
applications, is due for release in the first quarter of next
year. StoreFiche currently runs under Microsoft Windows, while
StoreTrans will be modified to do so by early next year, company
spokeswoman Laura Auerbach said.

(Grant Buckler/19910814/Press Contact: Laura Auerbach, Microbank
Software, 212-363-5600)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 NEW RESTAURANT INVENTORY TERMINAL REDUCES LABOR 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00029)

NEW RESTAURANT INVENTORY TERMINAL REDUCES LABOR 08/14/91
REDWOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- Remacs has
introduced the `Handy' inventory microcomputer terminal, a hand-
held computer to reduce labor by recording inventory transactions
and then transferring (uploading) the information to Remacs'
Inventory Manager system.

The company said that the Handy terminal will accommodate
universal product code (UPC) bar codes, prompt the user for items
in a storage location or perform an item search to help with a
transaction entry.

Announcing the availability of the terminal, Remacs president,
David Douglas said: "The Handy inventory terminal will allow our
users to eliminate the practice of printing worksheets, writing
down counts, and then manually inputting them into the Inventory
Manager."

"We estimate the use of the Handy will reduce the time required
for handling physical inventories by a minimum of 50 percent," he
added.

The Handy terminal is designed by Telxon, is IBM personal
computer (PC) DOS based and uses less than 20K of RAM. It has a
4-line by 16-character backlit liquid crystal display (LCD), a 35
key keyboard, and a detachable bar code scanner.

The Handy terminal compliments the new version 5.0 release of
Remacs Inventory and Menu Manager. Remacs states that the new
version features pull-down menus, function level security,
special data import and export utilities, more reports and a new
function for analyzing banquet and/or buffet style serving.
Upgrades to version 5.0 for current Inventory and Menu Manager
users are available, the company said.

Remacs said that its name is an acronym for Restaurant Management
and Control Systems. The company was founded in 1983 and has more
than 4,000 installations and specializes in automated office
systems for the food and beverage industry.

While its headquarters are in Redwood City, California, the
company also has 10 regional offices across the United States and
Canada.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910814/Press Contact: Janet Freeman, Remacs,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14  ****IBM ANNOUNCES PCRADIO 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00030)

 ****IBM ANNOUNCES PCRADIO 08/14/91
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- IBM has
announced the introduction of the 9075 PCradio, a notebook-size,
ruggedized, battery-operated computer containing the necessary
components to connect to remote computers via radio or cellular-
based communications, or through conventional telephone lines by
using integrated modems. The PCradio is scheduled for 4th quarter
1991 availability.

The system is presently awaiting FCC approval and its actual
shipping date will be contingent on the FCC review process. IBM
Product Manager Gary Cannva told Newsbytes that the system has
passed all of the FCC Class B tests and is now awaiting
certification.

The system will be offered in three models with the choice
dependent on communications requirements -- radio, cellular or
telephone. The model for radio communications operates with the
ARDIS data radio network, a partnership of IBM and Motorola.

The system is based on a 80C186 microprocessor and operates at
either five or 10 MegaHertz (MHz). IBM spokesperson Colleen
Brathwaite told Newsbytes that the 80C186 was chosen because of
its low power consumption.

The system includes a 79-key keyboard, an adjustable liquid
crystal display and a `drive' to read and write data and programs
to and from removable, compact integrated circuit memory cards.

Cannva told Newsbytes that the memory cards used conform to the
Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA)
"PC Card Standard" adapted in 1990 and utilized by other
manufacturers such as Poqet and Hewlett Packard.

Serial, parallel, telephone and battery-charger ports are built
in and an integrated thermal printer that uses a 3-1/8-inch wide
paper roll is optional. According to the IBM, the PC radio sends
and receives facsimile copies via cellular communications
networks and can receive facsimiles via telephone lines. On
cellular communication networks it can be used as a telephone
with an optional handset.

IBM's Cannva expanded on the system design for Newsbytes, saying:
"The 9075 is totally integrated. Nothing is external to the box.
The optional printer even becomes part of the unit when
installed. We have ruggedized the unit and proved that it could
withstand all sorts of 'drop tests."

"We expect the 9075 to be used by construction workers, police in
car chases and systems engineers as well as business executives
and we had to make it rugged to withstand the conditions of such
varied environments. It weighs around 6.4 pounds and has a very
high quality display and a full Qwerty keyboard. It is a well-
designed product," he said.

"I see the 9075 as being extremely useful to a wide range of
persons. For instance, IBM itself has 20,000 customer engineers
and this system is made to order for them. I know that I use it
every day to interact with our PROFS mail system and it is
invaluable," he added.

Announcing the product, Ralph W. Clark, IBM vice president and
president of IBM's General and Public Sector Division said:
"PCradio gives mobile workers the electronic link they need to be
efficient and responsive to their customers. It's designed for
use by a broad range of industries, from transportation to public
safety to utility companies."

Glen Brownlee, general manager of the Motorola Mobile Data
Division, which developed the wireless modem, also commented on
the introduction and speaking specifically of the units with
Motorola radio packet modems installed

"This is the first time a radio packed modem will be integrated
into a portable computer specially designed for mobile
environment," he said.

"The combination of wireless computing and shared data networks
is going to have a profound impact on the way we work and the way
companies conduct business in the future. Wireless data
communications for the mobile workforce will be to the 90's what
cellular phone was to the 80's," he added.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910814/Press Contacts:
Colleen Brathwaite, IBM, 914-642-5464; John Mitchell, Motorola,,
604-241-6126)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 14 CORRECTION: NEW CD ROM DISKS STORY CLARIFICATION 08/14/91

08/14/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00031)

CORRECTION: NEW CD ROM DISKS STORY CLARIFICATION 08/14/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 14 (NB) -- In an item issued on August 13,
entitled `New CD ROM Disks Make The Top Ten,' Newsbytes reported
Magazine Rack and Reference Library as reaching the CD ROM charts.

While the story was correct, Newsbytes incorrectly attributed Magazine
Rack and Reference Library to, respectively, Software Toolworks and
Information Access Co (IAC).

The product attributions should, in fact, have been the other way
around Magazine Rack is produced by IAC, while Reference Library is
produced by Software Toolworks.

Our apologies for any confusion caused by the error.

(Steve Gold/19910814)
#ENDCARD

#CARD::1991 AUG 13 WHITE HOUSE BUYS FAULT-TOLERANT PARALLAN COMPUTERS 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00001)

WHITE HOUSE BUYS FAULT-TOLERANT PARALLAN COMPUTERS 08/13/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- The White House
has purchased four multiprocessing Server 290 hypersaver computers
from Mountain View, California-based Parallan Computer for use
with text retrieval and other tasks.

Just introduced this year, the 33 megahertz, Intel 80486-based 290
fault tolerant series of computers is based on the Micro Channel
Architecture (MCA) found originally in the IBM PS/2 series, and
runs OS/2 or MS-DOS.

While the actual price and configuration of the systems sold to
the White House have not been disclosed, Newsbytes notes that
the Server 290 series starts from just under $50,000 for an 8MB
system with 128 kilobytes of cache memory, rising to $250,000 for a
top of the line Model 290 system.

Although the Server 290 is optimized to run the OS/2 operating
system, it also runs MS-DOS and Windows. A maximum of two
RISC (reduced instruction-set computing)-based SCSI (Small
Computer Systems Interface) drive controllers can be installed in
the Model 290, giving a maximum of 19 gigabytes of data storage.

(John McCormick/19910813/Press Contact: Dana Sutherland, Parallan
Computer, 415-960-0288)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 NEW CD-ROM DISCS MAKE THE TOP TEN 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00002)

NEW CD-ROM DISCS MAKE THE TOP TEN 08/13/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Many old favorites
are on the second quarter's list of best selling CD-ROM titles
compiled by the Bureau of Electronic Publishing, a leading
marketer and publisher of CD-ROM hardware and software, but
there are also three new titles that have reached the top ten.

"Reference Library" from Information Access, "Magazine Rack" from
The Software Toolworks, and "Multimedia World Fact Book" from
Bureau Development have also hit the top ten, with placings of
respectively, seventh, ninth, and tenth position.

Other top ten titles for the second quarter of 1991 were -- in
order from number one down: "Grolier's Electronic Encyclopaedia,"
"Microsoft Bookshelf,""U.S. History on CD-ROM,""World Atlas,"
"Compton's Encyclopaedia, Mammals" (sixth), and "McGraw-Hill
Science and Technical Reference" (eighth).

For further information about any of these titles or to receive a
catalog, contact: Bureau of Electronic Publishing, 141 New Road,
Parsippany, NJ 07054 or phone toll-free on 1-800-828-4766.

(John McCormick/19910813/Press Contact: Larry Shiller, Bureau of
Electronic Publishing, 201-808-2700 or fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 MONARCH NOTES NOW ON CD-ROM 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00003)

MONARCH NOTES NOW ON CD-ROM 08/13/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- The Bureau of
Electronic Publishing and Simon & Schuster have gotten together
to put more than 200 Monarch Notes (summaries of great works of
literature) on a single $99 CD-ROM. Single copies of Monarch
Notes usually sell for about $5 on floppy disk.

Every word of every Monarch Note published is reportedly
included in this new CD-ROM, which will be available soon for
both Apple Mac and MS-DOS systems.

In addition to the standard program data, the CD-ROM disk
contains information about the authors, including biographies,
notes on his or her literary style, and useful additions to the
print versions, such as illustrations.

According to the company, since the notes are fully indexed, this
makes it easy to search for specific information as well as to
read individual books as in the print version.

For further information on the CD-ROM disk, contact: The Bureau
of Electronic Publishing, 141 New Road, Parsippany, NJ 07054, or
phone toll-free on 1-800-828-4766.

(John McCormick/19910813/Press Contact: Larry Shiller, Bureau of
Electronic Publishing, 201-808-2700 or fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 BROOKTROUT'S OS-INDEPENDENT API PROGRAMMING TOOL 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00004)

BROOKTROUT'S OS-INDEPENDENT API PROGRAMMING TOOL 08/13/91
NEEDHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) --
Brooktrout Technology has announced a new application
programming interface (API) package. According to the company,
the C language toolkit is intended to allow developers to create fax
and voice processing applications programs for MS-DOS, Unix,
OS/2, Xenix, or QNX.

The major advantage of this set of programming tools, the company
claims, is that they are operating system-independent, allowing for
the API applications can be created on an MS-DOS machine but
easily converted to run under the other operating systems.

An API is a programming tool that lets one program communicate
with another.

The Brooktrout API has a list price of $300 and includes the library
of fax and voice functions in C, utility programs, as well as the source
code for several example fax and voice programs.

For further information, contact: Brooktrout Technology, Inc.,
144 Gould St., Needham, MA 02192. Phone [phone] or fax 617-
449-9009.

(John McCormick/19910813/Press Contact: Anne Marie Clark, Rourke
& Company, 508-777-6006)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 ELECTRONIC MRI MANUAL PUBLISHED ON CD-ROM 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(WAS)(00005)

ELECTRONIC MRI MANUAL PUBLISHED ON CD-ROM 08/13/91
ANDOVER, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Aries
Systems has released "The Electronic MRI Manual," on a Macintosh-
compatible CD-ROM disc. Previously, and despite its name, the
book was available only in hard copy format.

The book, a major reference work for those involved in medical
applications of MRI or magnetic resonance imaging, a non-invasive
imaging technique that provides soft tissue images of such areas
as the brain without the danger of X-rays, includes text, tables,
and all graphs, charts, and images from the print version.

Since this is a CD-ROM using the "Knowledge Finder" search
software, users gain a powerful "fuzzy logic" search engine that
makes it much easier to locate all the information pertaining to
a particular topic, the company claims.

According to Aries, unlike other search software, Knowledge
Finder supports the use of entire sentences describing the
information desired, not just a key word or two.

For further information or to obtain a copy of the $195 disc,
contact: Aries Systems Corp., One Dundee Park, Andover, MA 01810.
Phone [phone].

(John McCormick/19910813/Press Contact: Lyndon Holmes, 508-475-
7200 or fax [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 CANADIAN JV TACKLES SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT IN B.C. 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00006)

CANADIAN JV TACKLES SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT IN B.C. 08/13/91
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1991 AUG 13 (NB) --
The B.C. Tel Group, parent of British Columbia Telephone, has
announced plans to form a joint venture with Canada's largest
computer service bureau to provide systems management services
in British Columbia.

The deal is an agreement in principle so far, as B.C. Tel is still
negotiating details of the deal with Regina, Saskatchewan-based
Westbridge Computer Corporation. Plans call for IBM Canada to
provide marketing services to the new company.

Built around B.C. Tel's existing computer operations organization,
the new company is aimed at grabbing a share of the growing
market for outsourcing, in which companies turn over the operation
of their computer centers to a third party.

Maureen Kirkbride, a spokeswoman for B.C. Tel, said the still-
unnamed new company will operate only in the province of British
Columbia and will not overlap with Westbridge's operations in the
rest of Canada.

IBM Canada has a 27 percent stake in Westbridge, acquired in
March in a deal that saw Westbridge take over STM Systems
Corporation, the service-bureau subsidiary of Markham, Ontario-
based International Semi-Tech Microelectronics, to become
Canada's largest service bureau. International Semi-Tech and
Westbridge's former parent company, Saskatchewan Telephone,
also hold 27 percent each.

Commenting on IBM's role in Westbridge previously, IBM Canada
spokesman Stan Didzbalis told Newsbytes that the Canadian
operation is using a joint-venture approach to go after the same
outsourcing market its U.S. parent chose to pursue by forming
Integrated Systems Solutions Corporation in May.

The new company will begin operations in the fourth quarter of
this year, B.C. Tel officials said. Further details are to be
released once formal agreements are signed, which Kirkbride
said is likely to happen by the end of August.

(Grant Buckler/19910813/Press Contact: Maureen Kirkbride, B.C.
Tel, 604-432-2661, fax [phone]; Peter Ross, Westbridge, 416-
542-5240; Stan Didzbalis, IBM Canada, 416-474-3036)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 FRIENDS AND FAMILY SCHEME ANNOUNCED FOR MCI MAIL 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00007)

FRIENDS AND FAMILY SCHEME ANNOUNCED FOR MCI MAIL 08/13/91
RYE BROOK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- MCI has
announced a version of its successful "Friends and Family"
calling circle plan for its MCI Mail product.

The "Friends and Family" scheme works by encouraging
subscribers to create circles of other callers, all of whom switch
their calls to MCI in order to enjoy 20 percent savings while calling
each other. The plan has proven successful in getting some people
to switch over from AT&T.

Now a version of the plan is available for MCI Mail, the company's
flagship electronic mail product. Subscribers provide MCI with
up to 12 businesses or friends with whom they communicate
regularly. MCI then solicits the business of these 12 contacts,
and when they join the person who starts the chain gets a $10
usage bonus which can be used until December 31.

All people who join MCI Mail as part of a Personal Network will
also get a $20 discount off their registration fee if they sign on by
September 30.

While MCI's plan has proven a market success, it has come under
criticism from at least one consumer magazine. "Consumer
Reports" called the whole thing an "electronic chain letter" in a
back-of-the-book column called "selling it."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910813/Press Contact: MCI Mail, Jane Levene,
914-934-6480)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 XTREE ENTERS THE SECURITY BUSINESS 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(ATL)(00008)

XTREE ENTERS THE SECURITY BUSINESS 08/13/91
SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- XTree,
makers of the XTree line of file management utilities, is getting into the
security software game in a big way by acquiring the publication and
distribution rights in the Western Hemisphere, Australia and New
Zealand to ViruSafe and ViruSafe/LAN, anti-viral products from
EliaShim Microcomputers of Israel.

The company has also secured the worldwide rights to EliaShim's
AllSafe, which will be released in October and adds a number of
security features to the anti-viral features of the other products.

Just as important, XTree wants to be seen as taking the lead in
"cleaning up" the anti-viral software industry, which has been
rife with hype, counter-claims, and misinformation.

The company is a founder member of the Anti-Virus Product
Developers Consortium, which hopes to create industry
standards for classifying standards, a code of ethics for the
industry, and to act as an industry association.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910813/Press Contact: Tracy Immel, XTree,
805-541-0604)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 FIRST PACIFIC TO DEVELOP ELECTRIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00009)

FIRST PACIFIC TO DEVELOP ELECTRIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 08/13/91
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- First Pacific
Networks has signed a $14 million agreement with Entergy, an
electric utility company, to use its Personal Xchange System in the
development of PowerView, a customer-controlled utility
management system.

Entergy, which runs electrical systems for 1.7 million people in
Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana, will take a 10 percent
equity stake in FPN and have rights to market the resulting
applications to utilities. The first field trial for the system will begin
in September.

With electricity demand getting increasingly close to available
supplies in many areas, brown-outs -- reductions in voltage
and/or available current -- are threatened without some way to
control the load. Load management techniques attempt to
encourage conservation of generating resources by charging
customers more at peak load periods, and less at other times.

The Personal Xchange system, developed for transmission of
telephone, cable television, and computer services through fiber
cables, will be adapted to let customers link with utilities and
control their costs directly. The companies noted the resulting
system will cost much less than building new power plants to
meet peak demands.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910813/Press Contact: First Pacific Networks,
Michael Fineman, 415-391-4744)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 NEW FOR PC: Macromind's Action! Multimedia Windows Package 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(ATL)(00010)

NEW FOR PC: Macromind's Action! Multimedia Windows Package 08/13/91
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) --
Macromind, which is merging with Paracomp, another multimedia
software house, has announced a Microsoft Windows multimedia
application called Action!

According to the company, the package lets users quickly
incorporate sound, motion and animation with text and graphics
for presentations. The program comes with dozens of templates and
features a Clip Media Library with special sounds, stills, and
animated graphics. The product is scheduled to ship in September
and carries a suggested retail price of $495.

Macromind has made its reputation in the Apple Macintosh market,
with products like Macromind Director. Its growth has been slow
because the Mac represents a small overall part of the computer
market. Microsoft Windows is seen by Macintosh software
developers as a potentially larger market, where their expertise
in graphics gives them a leg-up over MS-DOS-based competition.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910813/Press Contact: Bruce Cummings,
Macromind, 415-442-0200)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 MINITEL SERVICES ANNOUNCES PC CONNECT 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00011)

MINITEL SERVICES ANNOUNCES PC CONNECT 08/13/91
PURCHASE, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Minitel
Services has announced PC Connect, a networking service which
will compete most closely with NVN.

Unlike NVN, a U.S. service on AT&T Accunet's system which
covers NAPLPS, Minitel, and ASCII text applications, PC
Connect offers local phone connections in 23 countries, credit-
card billing in local currency, and connections via the Infonet
system.

Minitel Services is a joint venture between France Telecom, which
runs the Minitel network in France, and Infonet Services, which
runs a worldwide packet network and is owned by a number of
phone companies headed by MCI.

"PC Connect companies can charge distributors, franchisees,
customers or departments for connecting with in-house systems,"
said Minitel Services president Joe Mazzeo. "By adding royalties
to the PC users' price, companies can generate revenues and even
earn profits from corporate information, online transactions, and
24-hour customer support."

Perhaps most important, the new venture will support async
communications as well as the Teletel protocol, which is popular
in Europe but has had a great deal of difficulty finding a
foothold in the U.S. market, where ASCII text is used on
mainframe services like GEnie and CompuServe, and 8-bit PC
ANSI is used to add rudimentary graphics to bulletin board systems.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910813/Press Contact: Terry Ribb, Minitel
Services, 914-694-6266)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 AUSTRALIA: PRIME TELECOM CARRIER TO MOVE TO SYDNEY 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00012)

AUSTRALIA: PRIME TELECOM CARRIER TO MOVE TO SYDNEY 08/13/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- When Australia's
telecommunications carrier Telecom absorbs the overseas carrier
OTC, the resulting AOTC (Australian and Overseas
Telecommunications Corporation) will move to Sydney, according to
industry insiders.

The resultant downsizing will result in a leaner organization,
better able to compete in the deregulated Australian marketplace,
say staffers.

There will be five divisions: International; Corporate; Commercial;
Product; and Services. "Corporate" will concentrate on value-added
services such as data handling for large customers (like banking,
electronic funds transfer and Electronic Data Interchange).
Plans call for "International" to continue to control Australian
telecommunications links with the rest of the World. "Commercial" -
the largest division - will handle all general consumer services
such as local and toll circuits. "Product" will control the
existing and planned infrastructure which will also be used by
Australia's second carrier when it is appointed. "Services"
consists of accounting, maintenance, buildings and all services
that are not part of the telephone "wires."

OTC, meanwhile, has launched a two-way satellite communications
system for the stock exchange in Thailand (SET). Samart Stocklink
connects SET with brokers throughout Thailand to accept and
confirm buying and selling orders.

According to OTC. it uses the Indonesian Palapa B2P satellite in
the first Asia-Pacific use of interactive satellite communications for
a nationwide financial system. Unlike many Western countries, most
of Asia does not have an extensive ground communications network.

(Paul Zucker/19910813/Contact: Paul Rea [phone] fax: +61-2-
2874324)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 NEW FOR MAC: Hot Keys Turns F-keys Into Macros For System 7 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00013)

NEW FOR MAC: Hot Keys Turns F-keys Into Macros For System 7 08/13/91
INCLINE VILLAGE, NEVADA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Hot Keys,
a new package that turns the function keys on the Apple Mac's
keyboard into macros is now available to make System 7.0 easier,
according to Go Technology.

"System 7.0 is much more complex than its predecessors," said Go
Technology's president Doug Hall. "Hot Keys makes System 7.0
much easier to learn and operate -- whether or not you're an
experienced Mac user or a beginner."

Hot Keys has a set up pre-defined macros designed to allow the
user simple access to the System 7.0 Finder. The product comes
with a keyboard overlay so that users can find the proper F-key
to get the macro they are looking for, the company claims.

Pre-defined macros include Open Files or Folders, Print the
Directory, Make Aliases, Publish, Subscribe, Change Folder Views,
Find Files, said Go.

Eighteen "global" macros, developed by a group of experienced
Mac users and developers, are also included to form a standard
set of F-key definitions that can be applied to virtually any Mac
application. Users can also come up with their own macros with
MacroMaker and write them in on space provided on the keyboard
overlay included with the product.

Super 7 is an on-line help/tutorial designed for System 7.0 that
comes with Hot Keys. It is a desk accessory with 23 screens
explaining balloon help, installing and using DAs and fonts and
using "publish & subscribe."

Go emphasizes that Hot Keys is not intended to replace the mouse,
but is designed to help users who are accustomed to working more
with the keyboard.

Retail price for the product is $59.95, but for a limited time Go
Technology is offering the System 7.0 Finder version for $29.95.

For more information about the product or for dealer information
contact Doug Hall at Go Technology, P.O. Box 7667, Incline
Village, Nevada 89450, telephone [phone] or (702) 831-
3100.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108013/Press Contact: Doug Hall, Go
Technology, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 COMPUSERVE MAGAZINE VICTIM OF AUTHOR SCAM 08/13/91

08/13/91



(NEWS)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00014)

COMPUSERVE MAGAZINE VICTIM OF AUTHOR SCAM 08/13/91
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- CompuServe
Magazine Editor Douglas G. Branstetter, in an interview with
Newsbytes, has confirmed that the article "Adrift in the Amazon" by
Pat Pugh, which appears in the August 1991 issue of the magazine,
is a hoax.

Bransletter stated that he had no reason to doubt Ms. Pugh's
veracity and was not aware of the duplicity until it was called
to his attention by a Compuserve Information Service (CIS)
subscriber who posted a message on the CIS Travel Forum bulletin
board.

Bransletter said that he will publish a comment on the hoax in
the next issue of the magazine and that Ms. Pugh will never write
for the magazine again.

"She's written for us for the last two years on travel and we
have never had a reason to doubt her veracity. This, however, was
an obvious attempt to deceive and we cannot accept such actions,"
he said.

In the article, Ms. Pugh writes: "We were cruising the Caribbean
and the coast of South America, visiting nine exotic destinations
in 16 days. No endless moving from hotel to hotel, no need to
unpack or repack. The newly commissioned expeditionary ship M/S
Society Adventurer was our hotel, and the advantage it afforded
was a chance to turn our drams into reality: Natural history - up
close - via a series of memorable shore explorations."

In actuality, according to a story by Nick Ravo in the New York
Times of Saturday, August 10th, the completion of the M/S Society
Adventurer was delayed by construction delays and contractual
delays and the ship has not yet left dock. The Ravo piece further
stated that Pugh has never sailed on any vessel in the Society
Expeditions fleet.

Bransletter confirmed the facts in the Ravo piece, telling Newsbytes:
"I think it was a fair presentation of the facts although I was surprised
that the New York Times took an interest in the matter."

"We are looking at setting up procedures to insure that things like this
don't happen again. We can normally catch errors in pieces related
to communications or technology but we have generally accepted
travel pieces without critical review," he added.

Responding to the statement in the Times story that "Ms. Pugh
defended the article as 'a composite of cruises that are available',"
Bransletter told Newsbytes: "It was unmistakenly written as though
she was on the cruise."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910813)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13  ****TOP AUSTRALIAN MODEM MANUFACTURER HITS EUROPE 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00015)

 ****TOP AUSTRALIAN MODEM MANUFACTURER HITS EUROPE 08/13/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Netcomm, Australia's
leading manufacturer of modems and other telecommunications
products, has announced an exclusive distribution agreement which
will give it local product status in Europe.

Through Commlink of Reading, UK, Netcomm will supply its state-
of-the-art range of modems first to the UK, then throughout Europe.
Despite successful export experience with New Zealand, Japan and
the US, Netcomm has had bad luck in the European market, with a
number of failed UK distributors.

The Netcomm products will be sold as CommLink, though fully
manufactured in Australia.

"Their market parallels what has happened here in Australia - it is
rapidly growing towards the V32 end of the market where we have
high quality, responsive support and competitive price levels" said
Netcomm marketing director Bruce Reid.

Reid told Newsbytes that his company had reached the point where
it had to expand into new markets or be swamped by the other
international modem manufacturers. Money for the new distributor,
CommLink had come from UK and US sources.

(Paul Zucker/19910813/Contact: Bruce Reid [phone] fax +61-
2-8872839)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 AUSTRALIAN DIAL-UP SERVICE OFFERS "FRIEND FINDER" 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00016)

AUSTRALIAN DIAL-UP SERVICE OFFERS "FRIEND FINDER" 08/13/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Discovery, the largest
dial-up information service in Australia, has introduced a service
called TeleMate for those less interested in the money markets or
corporate affairs searches.

TeleMate is described by the company as a "powerful matching
and searching computer system designed to introduce people
with similar interests and pastimes."

Pam Testa, leisure business manager for Discovery said that
TeleMate is an ideal way for people to find friends from the comfort
of their own home -- whether a new flatmate, or just someone to
spend Saturday afternoon with. A real-time data processing system
makes each new person's profile available for immediate searches.

In addition to searches and matching, TeleMate offers "chat"
areas for people of like-mind who have found each other through
the search system. True identities and phone numbers are
mandatory, but are suppressed during searches, only being
revealed when contact between parties is made.

Communication with "matches" can be via electronic mail
messages or faxes sent by the Discovery system. Personal
details can include a photo, available to be electronically sent or
faxed to likely contacts.

(Paul Zucker/19910813/Contact: Pam Testa [phone] fax +61-
2-9569999)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 AUSTRALIA: WINDOWS WORLD PLEASES EXHIBITORS/VISITORS 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(SYD)(00017)

AUSTRALIA: WINDOWS WORLD PLEASES EXHIBITORS/VISITORS 08/13/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Last week's Windows
World exhibition and conference in Sydney was well received by
exhibitors, delegates and press, according to organizer Alan Tayt
of IDG.

The three day show was sponsored by computer publisher IDG
and Microsoft. The 50 companies showing off their products and
services at the exhibition ranged from a giant Microsoft stand, down
to local product providers with two-man displays.

"And over half next year's show is already booked - how's that
for satisfied customers?" said Tayt. He said that the 6,600
attendees were "quality rather than quantity" and this had been
reinforced by vendor reaction.

A feature of the show was the second annual Windows World Class
awards. Readers of Australian Windows World magazine voted for
what they considered the best products in six categories.

The winners were:  Word processing or Publishing software -
Microsoft Word for Windows; Graphics or Visual presentation - Corel
Draw; Business Productivity - Microsoft Excel; Utility, programming or
technical software - Borland ObjectVision; Best Windows
implementation of a DOS product - Word for Windows. The Grand
Prize for the Best Windows product  went to Microsoft Excel.

(Paul Zucker/19910813/Contact: Alan Tayt [phone] fax +61-2-
4395512)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER COMPANY PLANS TO "BOND" STAFF 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00018)

AUSTRALIA: COMPUTER COMPANY PLANS TO "BOND" STAFF 08/13/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Australian computer
company Datamatic is considering a drastic step to protect its
investment in training technical staff. The company may bond
company-trained staff so they have to compensate the company if
they leave before a designated period.

Managing director Brian Killen said that the flow of trained staff is
hurting the company. He is still discussing the plan with all staff, but
initial reaction is favorable and the system will probably be introduced
within three months.

"We expect a bonded period of 12 months after training, with a pro-
rata pay-back of training expenses if staff leave during that period,"
he said.

Most staff who leave are being poached by competitors, according
to Killen, and as training programs often include an overseas visit, the
expense-per-employee (around US$11,000 each) has a detrimental
effect on the company's profits.

"They add a bit to the salary they offer our people, but it's nowhere
near the cost to us," he said.

(Paul Zucker/19910813)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 MICROSOFT UNIVERSITY ADDS NEW COURSE TO CURRICULUM 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00019)

MICROSOFT UNIVERSITY ADDS NEW COURSE TO CURRICULUM 08/13/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation says that it has added the first management education
course to Microsoft University's curriculum of training and education.

Microsoft University offers courses designed to help corporate
managers understand and implement changes in technology to gain
a competitive edge, said a Microsoft spokesperson.

The two day course, titled "New Architectures for Enterprise
Computing," will start August 19 in Los Angeles, and is designed
to provide managers of business and information systems a
comprehensive overview of client-server systems, graphical
environment, PC networks and industry hardware and software
standards.

"Microsoft recognises the complexities customer face when trying
to develop a systems architecture for their organizations" said
Bob McDowell, Microsoft vice president of education and
consulting services.

McDowell added that Microsoft has developed the courses to help
corporate decision makers understand the rapid evolution of
todays technology.

The new course has four major components: evolving business
computer architectures; operating systems and environments; local
area networks (LANs) and wide area networks (WANs); and client-
server applications.

After its debut in Los Angeles, the course will move on to other
cities in the US and Canada, ending up in March of 1992 in Chicago.
Corporations with sufficient attendees can host the course in their
own facility.

For more information about Microsoft University courses, contact
Microsoft at 206-828-1507 Code 1003.

(Jim Mallory/19910813/Press Contact: Tanya van Dam, Microsoft,
206-882-8080, FAX [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 ATRIX INTERNATIONAL TO BUY AMES SUPPLY COMPANY 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00020)

ATRIX INTERNATIONAL TO BUY AMES SUPPLY COMPANY 08/13/91
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Atrix
International and Ames Supply Company of Chicago have executed
a purchase agreement under which the business and assets of Ames
Supply Company will be acquired by Atrix.

Ames will get about $4.4 million through a combination of cash and
convertible debentures in exchange for nearly all of Ames assets.
The transaction is still subject to the approval of the Atrix
shareholders. Closing is expected to take place in October.

Speaking about the acquisition, Atrix president Clifford Meachan
said: "This combination enhances the ability of both companies to
better serve their customers as well as expand into new areas of
the field service market, both domestically and internationally."

Meachan added that the company expects to increase sales
through broader product coverage and competitive pricing on
OEM  (original equipment manufacturing) products. It also predicts
increased profits due to greater purchasing power and a
reduction in combined operating expenses.

Ames Supply is a distributor of office machine supplies and
replacement parts, related tools and testing equipment, and a
remanufacturer of office machine rollers and platens. The company
has distribution centers and sales offices in Chicago, Dallas,
Atlanta and Kansas City. It reported sales of $15 million for the
year ending last December 31st.

Atrix International is a supplier of printed circuit board
transport cases, vacuums for copier and laser printer service,
static protection products, and copier monitoring systems. It
also distributes electronic hand tools, customized tool kits,
instrumentation and diagnostic products.

In December of 1990 Newsbytes reported that Atrix had signed an
agreement in principle with Versa-Link to acquire its assets,
including the rights to patented technology which reads, records
and transmits information via telephone lines. The technology is
used to monitor and collect metering information from devices such
as copiers. The purchase price was reported to be about $1
million in cash, liabilities, common stock and warrants.

(Jim Mallory/19910813/Press contact: Tim Hanson, Atrix Int'l,
612-894-6154, FAX [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 BERLIN FIRM ORDERS SECOND CRAY SUPERCOMPUTER 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00021)

BERLIN FIRM ORDERS SECOND CRAY SUPERCOMPUTER 08/13/91
EAGAN, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Cray Research
has announced the sale of a Cray Y-MP2E to the Konrad-Zuse Center
for Information Technology Berlin (ZIB).

The new system will be networked with the Cray X-MP ZIB purchased
in 1987, and is scheduled for installation this quarter.

ZIB researches numerical algorithms and mixed symbolic/numerical
problems, as well as providing supercomputer services to various
German research institutes and universities.

Prior to the unification of Germany, ZIB serviced only institutions in
West Germany. However, once the new system is installed,
researchers at the East Berlin Humboldt University will be able to
access the system. Theoretical chemistry and structural analysis are
some of the intended uses, as well as general academic research.

According to Juergen Gottschewski, ZIB's computer center
director: "With the power and performance of the Cray Y-MP2E we
take a first step in addressing the growing needs of the researchers
and scientists of united Germany."

Gottschewski added that the new system will allow ZIB to offer
new services, including high-speed graphics and visualization.

ZIB said it chose the Y-MP2E because of its application software,
connectivity, input/output processing capacity, space efficiency,
low power consumption and quick installation time. The unit will
operate using Cray''s UNICOS software.

Cray said it has received 26 orders for the Y-MP2E since it was
introduced last fall.

(Jim Mallory/19910813/Press contact: Mardi Schmieder, Cray
Research, 612-683-3538)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 MOTOROLA DELIVERS DYNAMIC DATAFLOW COMPUTER 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00022)

MOTOROLA DELIVERS DYNAMIC DATAFLOW COMPUTER 08/13/91
PHOENIX, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Motorola has
delivered what it claims is the first US-made general-purpose,
dynamic dataflow computer system. The customer is the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Dubbed "Monsoon," the prototype was constructed to demonstrate
that a program should be able to run on one to hundreds, or even
thousands, of processors without any modification and with
improved performance. Monsoon is a joint research effort between
MIT and Motorola's Cambridge Research Center.

Motorola claims that a major feature of the Monsoon programming
environment is an implicitly parallel programming language they
call Id.

According to Professor Arvind, project leader at MITs Laboratory
for Computer Science: "Difficulty of programming is the only
thing holding back the widespread use of parallel computers."
Arvind added that Id on a Monsoon will show that that barrier can
be overcome.

James Richey, director of the Monsoon project, said: "We believe
that architectures that combine the best attributes of traditional
parallel architectures and dataflow are required to achieve a high
performance scalable system."

Richey added that the Monsoon system is the first made-in-the-USA
general purpose, dynamic dataflow computer system with support
for high-level languages. According to Richey, while other
researchers can deliver an array of processors, the Monsoon
project is researching methods to achieve scalability and
programmability simultaneously.

Funding, which comes to $10 million, is shared by Motorola, MIT
and DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agencies).
The project is expected to continue through 1994.

Monsoon consists of eight 64-bit processing elements and eight 32
million-byte memory elements interconnected by a high speed
packet network. Each processing element is capable of processing
up to ten million dataflow tokens-per-second. The memory elements
can process 4.17 million split-phase transactions-per-second. The
system has four Unix-based Delta Series computers as front-end
computers.

Jim Mallory/19910813/Press contact: Barbara Patterson, Motorola,
602-438-3576)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13  ****MICROWORLD TO INTRO 386SL NOTEBOOK AT FALL COMDEX 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00023)

 ****MICROWORLD TO INTRO 386SL NOTEBOOK AT FALL COMDEX 08/13/91
PHOENIX, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Microworld
Corporation says it will introduce a notebook computer based on
Intel's low power-demand 80386 SL chip at Comdex in Las Vegas
this October.

Best known as a reseller of hard drives and floppy disks, Microworld
expects its 386SL notebook will come to market ahead of its
competitors, especially Zenith. Code named the Eclipse-SL, the unit
will be manufactured in the US, and is the first complete unit offered
by Microworld under its own name.

Eclipse-SL measures 8.5-inches by 11-inches by 2.1-inches, and Don
Biogoni of MicroWorld told Newsbytes that users can reasonably
expect a battery life of four hours under constant use. The unit
comes standard with two megabytes (MB) of RAM, a 20 MB Connor
or Western Digital hard drive, an 84-key keyboard and a keymouse.

RAM is expandable to 8 MB, and users can upgrade the hard drive to
either 40 MB or 60 MB. Eclipse-SL will have one 3.5-inch 1.44 MB
floppy drive, and an 8.5-inch (diagonal) video display. The
suggested list price is under $2,800, which the company describes
as "quite aggressive" pricing.

Bundled with the Eclipse-SL will be Digital Research's DR-DOS
5.0. MicroWorld's Paul Daniels said the company was actively
solicited by both Digital Research and Microsoft for DOS to be
bundled with the machine.

Daniels said that when the company saw that DR-DOS had a
cleaner implementation, contained less bugs and runs Windows
cleaner "there was no mistaking we were making a wrong decision
if we went with Microsoft."

"The pricing is right, the features are there, and it is just an
outstanding and clean implementation of DOS," he added.

Also included is an integrated software package developed jointly
by Benchmark and Panasonic which includes a spreadsheet,
calendar, calculator, Rolodex, notepad, and alarm/reminder.

An interesting feature included on the Eclipse-SL is the keymouse.
Developed by Keytronics, the keymouse is a rocker key located to
the right of the space bar which can be rocked in any direction and
moves the cursor just as a mouse does.

Daniels said that the keymouse is intended primarily for users in
confined spaces such as airplanes, but could be used on the
desktop as well. The Eclipse-SL also has a mouse port at the rear
of the machine for desktop mouse use.

MicroWorld said it will be displaying the Eclipse-SL in the Digital
Research and Keytronics booths at Comdex in Las Vegas.
Comdex starts its five day run October 21st. Although not finalized
yet, Daniels said they may also be in the Phoenix Technologies
booth.

The Eclipse-SL will also come with a user interface which Daniels
described as "Mac-like but not mouse driven." The interface lists
the available programs in the left hand column, and the
applications that are suspended in the center column.

The filing system is done in the cabinet, folder, file metaphor.
Asked about the ability to suspend a program and return to it
without having to reload, Daniels said in addition to working
with the integrated software included with Eclipse-SL, MicroWorld
had tested the feature with MS Word and WordPerfect without any
problems. He believes other programs that are well behaved under
DOS should also work well.

Daniels said that MicroWorld wanted to get away from the typical
grey or tan case look, consequently Eclipse-SL will have a jet-
black case with gold trim.

MicroWorld currently employs eight people in their Phoenix
corporate offices and has a 15,000 square foot assembly,
distribution and service center in Tucson, Arizona. The privately-
held company reports sales of almost $12 million to date in 1991.

(Jim Mallory/19910813/Press contact: Paul Daniels, MicroWorld,
602-381-8433)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 MICROSOFT ACQUIRES X86 SOFTWARE EMULATION RIGHTS 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00024)

MICROSOFT ACQUIRES X86 SOFTWARE EMULATION RIGHTS 08/13/91
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Microsoft has
announced that it is has acquired a non-exclusive license to
Insignia Solutions Inc's software emulation of Intel x86 based
PCs. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Insignia Solutions markets SoftPC which allows DOS-based
applications software to run on non-DOS based machines.
Macintosh, Unix, and SPARCstation versions are available.
Insignia also markets AccessPC, which reads DOS disks and
displays the files as icons on a Macintosh.

Insignia's technology recreates the IBM AT environment using
proprietary software, and the license gives Microsoft the right
to incorporate that technology in future product offerings.

Asked about the specific intent of Microsoft's acquisition of the
emulation technology, a spokesperson for Microsoft told Newsbytes
that the company had acquired the rights for future use, not for
a specific purpose at the present time.

Announcing the deal, Ivor Share, Insignia Solutions VP of sales,
said: "We believe Microsoft's implementation of software
emulation will be the most innovative in the marketplace."

Steve Ballmer, Microsoft senior VP of systems software said:
"With the help of Insignia's technology we can preserve customer
investment in MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows environment
applications in our future system software products, on both
advanced Intel-based systems and on other platforms."

Insignia, headquartered in High Wycombe, England, employs 110
staff and has US marketing, sales and support offices in Sunnyvale,
California, and Andover, Massachusetts. The company, which was
founded in 1986, was initially funded by a consortium of British and
Dutch venture capital firms. In 1990 Insignia Solutions reported
revenues of $8 million.

(Jim Mallory/19910813/Press contact: Liz Sidnam, Microsoft, 206-
882-8080 or Doug Reid, Insignia Solutions, 415-694-7600)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13  ****ASHTON-TATE CUTS PRICES, DOUBLES AVAILABILITY 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00025)

 ****ASHTON-TATE CUTS PRICES, DOUBLES AVAILABILITY 08/13/91
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Ashton-Tate has
announced it has signed a distribution contract with Merisel
Incorporated Consumer Products Group. According to AT's
officials, the deal should double the number of retail
distribution outlets for the company's products over the coming
months.

Max Toy, Ashton-Tate's vice president, U.S. sales and marketing
said: "Before today's announcement, Ashton-Tate consumer products
were available in more than 600 storefronts nation-wide."

"Our collaboration with Merisel doubles that number, making it
easier and more convenient for our customers to purchase Ashton-
Tate software," he added.

Ashton-Tate said that Merisel is aggressive and good at reading
the "pulse of the retail market."

Casey Hughes, vice president of Merisel's Consumer Products
Division said: "Ashton-Tate is one of the first major software
developers to recognize the unique requirements of mass merchant
retailers. We are pleased to work with them in meeting the needs
of this emerging market."

Merisel said that nationwide promotions with in-store displays
and advertisements are already planned for August and September
of this year.

After seeing some of the new retail prices on Ashton-Tate
products, questions arise as to whether or not the new
distributors are feeling a slow pulse on the retail market and
are telling the company to drop prices. Several Ashton-Tate
products have dropped considerably in price.

Newsbytes found Ashton-Tate's MasterGraphics reduced from $495 to
$49.98 and Control Room slashed from $129 to $49.95 in a
Northridge, California Software Etc. store. The store's manager
told Newsbytes that these were the new retail prices, not price
cuts Software Etc., had made on the products. Ashton-Tate
representatives were not available for comment.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108013/Press Contact: Linda Duttenhaver,
Ashton-Tate, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 NEW GRAPHICS BOARD MAKES WINDOWS TWICE AS FAST 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00026)

NEW GRAPHICS BOARD MAKES WINDOWS TWICE AS FAST 08/13/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Actix has
announced its new Tiger 10 video graphics adapter (VGA) boards
for corporate users of DOS and Windows.

The company claims that the new boards double the speed of
running Microsoft Windows while increasing the quality of the
video image displayed.

The Tiger 10 displays up to 256 colors simultaneously creating
photo realistic images, company officials said. The speed comes
from a graphics co-processor that makes screen displays twice as
fast. Reduction of flicker also occurs with a screen refresh rate
of up to 90 megahertz (MHZ), the company claims.

Actix officials added that the 100 percent acceleration is
carried out using a proprietary Windows driver in combination
with technology from Texas Instruments.

The new card offers resolutions from 640 x 480 dots per inch
(DPI) to 1,280 x 1,024 DPI. For higher quality images Actix said
that the Tiger 10 can generate resolution of 1,280 x 96 non-
interlaced images. Interlacing is simultaneously projecting two
screen images over one another to get an effect. Non-interlaced
images are sharper and have truer color, producing a crisper,
more realistic image.

Actix said that the Tiger 10 card is available immediately and
comes with the board, a software diskette, terminator plug,
ribbon cable and manual. The Tiger 10V is shipped without the
terminator plug and ribbon cable. Retail pricing ranges from $599
to $830 depending on the capabilities of the card.

More information is available from an Actix distributor or from
Actix at 408-986-1625.

(Linda Rohrbough/199108013/Press Contact: Phil Grasso, Actix,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 IBM SUBSIDIARY TO OUTSOURCE FOR CAPITAL BANK 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00027)

IBM SUBSIDIARY TO OUTSOURCE FOR CAPITAL BANK 08/13/91
MIAMI, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- Capital Bank, a
wholly owned subsidiary of Capital Bancorp, has announced that it
has signed a contract with the Integrated Systems Solutions
Corporation (ISSC), a subsidiary of IBM Corporation, under which
ISSC will take over the bank's day-to-day data processing
operations, and software development and modification.

Announcing the decision to move from in-house processing to what
has become known as `outsourcing,' Abel Holtz, chairman and
president of Capital Bank, said: "There were several factors in
our decision to convert to outsourcing."

"This new state-of-the-art branch automation system will allow us
to reduce operating costs significantly, while securing the
latest technology available in banking computer systems. It also
allows management to concentrate on the banking business so we
can provide more products and superior service to our customers,"
he added.

Holtz said that all customer accounts and transactions will be
converted to the new ISSC system, except for those of Capital
Factors and the International Letters of Credit Department, which
have their own customized data processing systems.

He added that the conversion is expected to be completed in
November and will be preceded by five weeks of on-site staff
training and support by an ISSC team.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910813/Press Contact:
Joann Makris, Capital Bank, 305-536-1560)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13  ****IBM INTRODUCES 50MHZ UPGRADE OPTION FOR PS/2 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00028)

 ****IBM INTRODUCES 50MHZ UPGRADE OPTION FOR PS/2 08/13/91
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- IBM has
announced the availability of a 50 MHz PS/2 processor upgrade
option for its Personal System/2 Model 90 and 95 XP 486
computers.

The price of the Option, which includes an Intel 50 MHz
microprocessor, which includes an internal memory cache
controller, an 8K memory cache and an integrated floating-point
processor, varies based on the processor which is to be upgraded.
Its suggested price is $3,695 where a 33MHz system is to be
upgraded, $5,345 for 25 MHz systems and $7,245 for 486 SX 20 MHz
systems.

In its announcement of the upgrade option, IBM related the new
system to the fact that it is the 10th anniversary of its
introduction of its original PC. The statement said: "With the 50
MHz upgrade option, the new systems perform at more than 50 times
the speed of the original IBM PC."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910813/Press Contact:
W. Dean Kline, IBM, 914-642-5408)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13 NYC ATTACKS DIAL-A-PORN FIRMS AS LITTER BUGS 08/13/91

08/13/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(NYC)(00029)

NYC ATTACKS DIAL-A-PORN FIRMS AS LITTER BUGS 08/13/91
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- New York City
Mayor David Dinkins has announced the filing of law suit in the
State Supreme Court against two firms allegedly littering the
streets with hundreds of thousands of promotional leaflets that
look like U.S. currency to promote `dial-a-porn' telephone
numbers.

The law suit, filed against Peak Communications. Inc., and Espic
Communications Inc., both of Rockaway Township, N.J, charges the
firms with violation of city litter laws and seeks a minimum of
$10,000 in fines and an injunction to stop them from continuing
the practice known as `trashvertising.'

Dinkins called the bogus bills, sometimes offered in $69
denominations "an offensive form of littering."

Sanitation Commissioner Steven Polan was quoted as stressing that
the suit was not over their content, which could be protected by
the Constitutional right to free speech, but over the way they
were distributed. "We don't believe that this is a First
Amendment issue, but a littering issue," he said.

The bills in question reportedly say `Hot Phone Fantasies' on one
side and `The United Sex Academy' on the other and urge urge
readers to `Call Now!!.'

The bills list a `970' telephone number for calling  -- 970
numbers are numbers which have a higher charge than ordinary
numbers in the US -- $2.00 per minute -- and may have a minimum
charge for each call.

Providers of the `service,' in this case The United Sex Academy,
share in the revenue from the calls made to the number. In
smaller print they state that the charge is a minimum of $20 per
call and is for adults only.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910813)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 13  ****IBM CELEBRATES PC'S 10TH BIRTHDAY 08/13/91

08/13/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00030)

 ****IBM CELEBRATES PC'S 10TH BIRTHDAY 08/13/91
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 13 (NB) -- IBM has
celebrated the 10th anniversary of its introduction of the IBM
Personal Computer by issuing a statement containing a
retrospective look at the development of the original product.

The statement said: `IBM began development of the PC in August
1980 in a small building at its Boca Raton, Fla. site. The
original team of a dozen developers, led by Philip D. (Don)
Estridge, was given 12 months to complete the project.'

`The development team needed to break the rules, to go outside
the traditional boundaries of product development within IBM, and
they did. They went to outside vendors for most of the parts,
went to outside software developers for the operating system and
application software, and acted as an independent business unit.'

`These changes enabled them to develop and announce the IBM PC in
12 months -- at that time faster than any other hardware product
in IBM's history.'

`The IBM PC was introduced to the world at a press conference in
New York City at the Waldorf Astoria ballroom, as well as several
other locations around the country. The IBM PC used the Intel (A)
4.77 megahertz (MHz) 8088 microprocessor -- advanced for the
time, but slow by today's standards.'

`The diskette drives offered 160 kilobytes (KB) of storage, the
equivalent of about 50 single-spaced, typewritten pages. Users
could plug the PC into their home television set or choose from
an optional monochrome or color display. A typical configuration
of 64 KB of memory, a single diskette drive, a color display
adapter and IBM Disk Operating System (DOS) was priced at $2,665
(about $3,950 in 1991 dollars.)'

The statement concluded by describing the decision to market the
new systems not only through the establishment of IBM Product
Centers but also through Computerland and Sears, Roebuck and Co.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910813/Press Contact:
W. Dean Kline, IBM, 914-642-5408)
#ENDCARD

#CARD::1991 AUG 12  ****MACWORLD: WRAPPING UP THE SHOW 08/12/91

08/12/91



(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00001)

 ****MACWORLD: WRAPPING UP THE SHOW 08/12/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The
Boston version of the MacWorld Expo has always been noted as one
of the highlights of the year for Macintosh fans. This year was no
exception with hundreds of companies using this week as their
preferred time to announce new products or upgrades.

In addition to the product introductions published over the past
week in Newsbytes, several other products were seen for the
first time or technologies demonstrated for the first time to the
avid Apple Mac users who came to the show. This article is a
distillation of some of the more prominent of these.

SOFTWARE THAT BEGAN SHIPPING:

Claris has announced that it has begun to ship Resolve, its
new spreadsheet program. Resolve is based on the Wingz kernel
that Claris purchased several years ago that has been enhanced
and improved and had the familiar Claris "look and feel" put on
it. The package is completely System 7.0 compatible and takes
advantage of all of System 7.0's features. Resolve will retail for
$399 and Claris is offering current users of Excel, Wingz, Full Impact,
and MacCalc the option of switching to Resolve for a fee of $99.

Stingray Entertainment has begun shipments of its new arcade
game for the Mac called "Frankie's Dungeon." This is a graphical
action game that takes place in a big dungeon with lots of killer
monsters and a single hero who must conquer all or die trying.
Available immediately, Frankie's Dungeon will retail for $35.

SOFTWARE UPGRADES:

Insignia Solutions has announced a sweeping upgrade program
and realignment of their line of MS-DOS software emulators. All
three of the company's products -- Entry Level SoftPC, Universal
SoftPC, and SoftAT -- have now been upgraded to Version 2.5.
The new versions feature support for the Microsoft CD-ROM
(compact disk, read only memory) extensions, Novell networking
capability, more printer emulations, new user interface, System
7.0 compatibility, and a quicker installation procedure.

Apple Computer announced upgrades to two of its printer drivers.
The Personal LaserWriter LS and the StyleWriter will now
be shipped with a new version of the printer driver. These new
drivers enhance the printer's speeds, allows for background
printing, supports larger paper tray capacities, and include four
more TrueType fonts. Current users wishing to upgrade should be
able to get the new versions from their dealers or user groups. Apple
is not charging the dealers or user groups for the new software.

SuperMac will begin shipping Version 2.7 of its backup software
DiskFit in late August. DiskFit 2.7 incorporates all of the features of
Network DiskFit which in turn is being discontinued by the company.
Version 2.7 also brings an additional new benefit in complete
support of Apple's System 7. Upgrades to current owners will be
available for $24.95 while Network DiskFit owners will be offered
a kit containing 32 copies of DiskFit for $15 per unit.

InLine Design has released 3 in Three, a non-violent logic
game that is intended to be educational but still retail an
element of fun. This game has been released previously under the
CinemaWare label. Unfortunately, CinemaWare filed for bankruptcy
prior to being able to distribute a large number of copies
leading Inline Design to pick up the distribution rights.

MapInfo demonstrated MapInfo for Macintosh 1.1. This new
version which is shipping now, incorporates increased performance
for drawing and redrawing maps on the screen, Dynamic statistics
functions, dot density maps, and the ability to locate an
intersection by entering the names of the streets involved. The
price of the package has been set at $995 and an international
version is due out soon.

Reference Software has announced that Grammatik Mac is
compatible with Apple's System 7.0 and takes advantage of
certain features of the new operating system. Features like Balloon
help are being utilized to make it easier for users to make use of
the capabilities of Grammatik Mac according to the company.

NEW SOFTWARE DEMONSTRATIONS:

Insignia Solutions was demonstrating their upcoming product
SoftNode. SoftNode will allow Macintosh users running SoftPC
access to Novell networks. SoftNode will be compatible with
Novell ELS II Netware Version 2.15, Advanced Netware Version
2.15, 2.2 and Netware 386 in the Ethernet environment.
All other software products that work within those environments
will work with SoftNode. SoftNode is supposed to begin shipping
in September and will retail for $175 for a single user and
$1,150 for a ten machine license.

Broderbund was demonstrating a new line of animated stories on
CD-ROM. Called the "living books" series, Broderbund announced
plans to have at least four books released soon. These books
contain an interactive environments with animations, sound
tracks, special effects, and a hyper text like search facility to
encourage children to explore the story and all of its
ramifications.

Titles will include "Just Grandma and Me," "Arthur Teacher
Troubles," "New Kid on the Block," and the Aesop fables starting
with "The Tortoise and the Hare." The first in the series -- "Just
Grandma and Me" -- is slated for shipment in January.

Lotus was demonstrating its upcoming spreadsheet, Lotus 1-2-3
for the Macintosh. This new spreadsheet is now in beta testing
and is expected to begin shipments in the fall. Lotus 1-2-3 for
Macintosh is a System 7.0 compatible product that has been
designed from the ground up to be a Macintosh application while
maintaining compatibility with Lotus 1-2-3 on other platforms.
Included in the package will be Adobe's Type Manager with 13
TrueType fonts, and BackSolver which is a single-variable
mathematical equation solver.

Davidson was demonstrating its upcoming release of Earthquest
Explores Ecology. This is a new software package that uses
Earthquest's encyclopaedia as a base for sixteen different
interactive games. Six of the games are biosphere simulations
that concentrate on demonstrating the inter-relationships between
all of the biospheres on this earth. Particular attention is placed on
the Amazonian rain forest. The program will begin shipping in
September.

SOFTWARE UPGRADE DEMONSTRATIONS:

Broderbund was showing an upgrade to TypeStyler. TypeStyler
2.0 is System 7.0 savvy and offers complete support for TrueType.
Additional enhancements include support for 24 bit color and
better screen rendering time. TypeStyler 2.0 also features Letter
Fusion which allows a user to select a range of letter on which
to apply the effects. In addition, TypeStyler will come have Adobe
Type Manager bundled in its package and a package of 13
typefaces will be included as well. TypeStyler 2.0 will begin
shipping this fall.

Aldus introduced version 3 of Aldus SuperPaint. New features
of the product include support for up to 32 bit color; new image
enhancement capabilities; texture fills; and HotKeys. Upgrades
will cost $65 while new copies can be purchased for $199.
Availability is expected to be mid-September.

SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATIONS:

Frame Technology and Acius were showing a method in which
database data stored in 4th Dimension can be extracted and
translated into a form that can be used by FrameMaker for
publication.

The method, which ACIUS used to publish several of their
directories, has always been present within 4th Dimension but has
not really been used to date. Frame Technology and Acius chose
to advertise its existence more broadly to encourage its use and to
show its usefulness as a result of several customer requests.
Both companies would be happy to show this method to all current
users who have a need to understand it.

NEW HARDWARE:

QMS will begin shipping a pair of printers at the end of this
month. The QMS 815 and 825 MR printers are the first desktop
sized printers that feature a resolution of 600 by 600 DPI. The
two models differ in the amount of paper trays that they support.
The 815MR has a single paper tray while the 825MR supports two
paper trays. Both printers are based on the print engines,
support Postscript, and come with 45 built-in fonts. The MR in
the model name stands for multi-res which is a feature that
allows the user to tailor the printing resolution from 600 by 600
down to 300 by 300 dots-per-inch (DPI).

Caere will begin shipping in September a new hand-held scanner
that is capable of working with both character and graphics data.
Called "Typist Plus Graphics," the new scanner can perform
optical character recognition (OCR) on the text parts of a
scanned document while Caere's The Graphic Editor allows the
user to manipulate any associated graphics that were also
scanned in. Typist Plus Graphics is billed as the first hand-held
scanner that can do both functions. Shipments to dealers are
expected to begin in September.

Radius has begun shipments of its new line of filters designed
to reduce the quantity of low frequency field emissions emanating
from their monitors. The new Ergo:Shield line has been
specifically designed to be custom fit to the Radius line of
monitors of all sizes that are currently being shipped. All of
the filters in the line can be installed on the monitor by the
owner, there is no need for a technically trained person.

Mitsubishi has begun shipping its new high-res 37-inch color
monitor that is compatible with the Macintosh and most PC's and
compatibles. Intended primarily for demonstration purposes, the
new monitor can display in resolutions of 640 by 480, 1152 by 882,
and 1,280 by 1,024 dpi. One notable feature is its built-in video
converter that takes care of NTSC, PAL, SECAM, Composite
Video, and S-VHS signals very easily.

Xante announced the release of its new Accel-a-Writer IV. This
is a printer controller that upgrades the performance of your
Hewlett-Packard LaserJet Series II laser printers. The upgrade
allows the printer to increase its resolution to 600 by 600 dpi while
allowing for simultaneous printing from more than one source (serial
Appletalk, and centronics). There is also an advanced memory
management feature that allows one page to be composed while
the previous page is being printed. The board comes with six
megabytes of memory and includes 35 PostScript fonts.

BOOKS:

Peachpit Press announced a broad line of books to be published
over the remainder of this year. There are fourteen book in the
line in all. Some of the books are new, others are revised
editions. The titles are: "Database 101: A Database Primer for the
Rest of Us" by Guy Kawasaki; "Real World FreeHand 3" by Olav Kvern;
"Canvas 3.0: The Book" by Deke McClelland; "PageMaker 4: Visual
Quickstart Guide" by Webster & Associates; 2nd edition of "Canned
Art: Clip Art for the Macintosh"; "The QuarkXPress Book" by David
Blatner and Keith Stimely; "The Little Mac Book" by Robin Williams;
"The Publish Book of Tips" by Robert Eckhardt, Bob Weibel, and Ted
Nace; "The Little QuicKeys Book" by Steve Roth and Don Sellers; "The
Desktop Publisher's Survival Kit" by David Blatner; "Zen and the
Art of Resource Editing" by Derrick Schneider; "The Macintosh Font
Book" by Erfert Fenton; "The Little System 7 Book" by Kay Nelson;
and "PageMaker 4: An Easy Desk" reference by Robin Williams.

Addison-Wesley announced the immediate availability of seven
new books that cover the Macintosh. Starting with Sharon Aker's
"Macintosh Companion: The Basics and Beyond"; Addison-Welsey'
new line-up digs into the technical guts of the Macintosh with "Son
of Stupid Mac Tricks" by Bob LeVitus; "Planning and Managing
AppleTalk Networks" by Apple Computer; "Learn C On the Macintosh"
by Dave Mark; "A/UX 2.0 Handbook" by Jan Harrington; "Extending the
Macintosh Toolbox" by John May and Judy Whittle; and "Inside
Macintosh Volume VI" by Apple Computer.

(Naor Wallach/19910812)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 UK: MERCURY WELCOMES NEW TELECOM LICENSE CONDITIONS 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00002)

UK: MERCURY WELCOMES NEW TELECOM LICENSE CONDITIONS 08/12/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Mercury Communications
has announced that it welcomes the announcement by the British
government of new license conditions for telecommunications
operators in the United Kingdom.

The new license conditions, announced last month by Oftel, the
U.K. telecommunications regulatory authority, have been made in the
light of changes in the marketplace for telecommunications services
in the past few years. Many in the industry now recognize that the
liberalization of the telecommunications marketplace, which occurred
five years ago in the U.K., was flawed and that some minor changes
have become necessary.

Peter van Cuylenburg, Mercury's chief executive, commenting on
the new license conditions, said that the Oftel announcement is
an excellent outcome of the duopoly review for Mercury and all
telecommunications customers.

"It encourages Mercury and our partners in cable television and
PCN to continue and expand the major capital investment
programs needed to reach millions of new customers," he said.

"This puts into place the last of a number of pieces which together
will assure continued rapid growth and success for Mercury and the
continued development of the UK telecoms industry," he added.

A key feature of the Oftel announcement frees Mercury -- and
other newcomers to the U.K. telecommunications industry -- from
having to contribute towards the local network costs of British
Telecom. The fees -- known as access deficit contributions -- have
meant that Mercury has been unable to compete on a local call
basis with BT, Mercury officials have claimed.

(Steve Gold/19910812/Press & Public Contact: Mercury
Communications - Tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 VALIDATED PROCESSORS LIST NOW AVAILABLE THROUGH NTIS 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00003)

VALIDATED PROCESSORS LIST NOW AVAILABLE THROUGH NTIS 08/12/91
GAITHERSBURG, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) --
Available from the National Technical Information Service, the VPL
or Validated Processor List identifies COBOL, ADA, Pascal, and
FORTRAN compilers which have been validated to conform with the
FIPS or Federal Information Processing Standard.

For the first time, the list will include GOSIP (government open
systems interconnection profile) conformance testing registers
and a list of conformance testing laboratories that perform
validation for POSIX, the Portable Operating System Interface for
Unix standard set by the IEEE, as well as a list of validated
POSIX products.

The VPL is available as a standing order item at an annual price
of $68 from U.S. Department of Commerce, 5285 Port Royal Road,
Springfield, VA 22161. Phone [phone]. Specify PB
#91-937301/AS

(John McCormick/19910812/Press Contact: John Makulowich, NIST,
301-975-2762)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 U.S. SECURITY CONFERENCE CONVENES OCTOBER 1 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00004)

U.S. SECURITY CONFERENCE CONVENES OCTOBER 1 08/12/91
GAITHERSBURG, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The
14th annual national computer security conference will be held from
October 1 through 4 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC.
The theme of this year's conference will be "Information Systems
Security: Requirements and Practices."

The conference highlights new approaches and future trends in
information security and will include tutorials on security practices
and instruction on how to build an effective computer security
education program.

The conference is sponsored by NIST (National Institute of
Standards and Technology) and the National Security Agency. To
register, contact Tammie Grice at NIST, 301-975-2775.

(John McCormick/19910812/Press Contact: John Makulowich, NIST,
301-975-2762)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 GATES PROFILE IN SEPTEMBER PLAYBOY 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00005)

GATES PROFILE IN SEPTEMBER PLAYBOY 08/12/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- David Rensin
writes in his September Playboy Magazine profile of Bill Gates,
"Soft Icon," that on a recent vacation to the beaches of Brazil, Bill
Gates -- the founder of Microsoft -- was found reading James D.
Satson's book "Molecular Biology of the Gene" rather than ogling
the bathing beauties Brazil is famous for.

Although not one of the famous Playboy interviews, the profile
does include quotes from a former girlfriend and Gates himself as
well as other acquaintances.

The article describes Gates as an "eccentric" although, in one
example seemingly cited as showing how eccentric he is, his
propensity for watching Oscar Winning Movies in preference to
regular TV fare, seems to be less eccentric than just a sign of
intelligence.

(John McCormick/19910812)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 UNIFI GETS CALL ROUTING PATENT 08/12/91

08/12/91
(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00006)

UNIFI GETS CALL ROUTING PATENT 08/12/91
BILLERICA, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) --
Patent number 5,036,535 has gone to Unifi Communications for its
PhoneServer software technology.

The patent covers both a concept and its implementation in
software. PhoneServer lets telecommunications managers use Unix
or Windows 3.0 based computers on their own premises to program
and control call routing in the public network.

Before PhoneServer, all call routing was handled within the
public network and was not programmable from a customer site.
Products embracing the patented technology are due out in
October, but it will be shown first at two trade shows -- the Call
Center Technologies show in Toronto this month and the TCA
show in San Diego in September.

"The patent covers both the concept of what we have done as well
as the implementation, and the concept is a big part of the patent,"
Bob Pokress of the company told Newsbytes.

Pokress added that Unifi is willing to license the patent, in
conjunction with its software technology, and said that the
company knows of no firms infringing on its technology at this
time.

Unifi's initial implementation of PhoneServer technology enables
users to create software-based call processing programs for
automatic call distribution, Centrex key systems and PBX systems.
PhoneServer software captures a call while it comes in, queries
databases for information on the call, and directs the public
phone network to switch it to the best-suited destination as
programmed by the user.

All that is required is PhoneServer and a standard ISDN (Integrated
Services Digital Network) interface to the phone network, the
company claims. Companies can place people and equipment
anywhere on the public network and still maintain control and
management.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: Unifi, Bob Pokress,
508/663-7570)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 EZ-INSTALL FOR DEVELOPERS TO CREATE WINDOWS INSTALLS 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00007)

EZ-INSTALL FOR DEVELOPERS TO CREATE WINDOWS INSTALLS 08/12/91
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The Software Factory
says that Ez-install, its product for creating a "bullet-proof"
installation program for software developers, is now available
for creating software installation routines for Microsoft Windows
3.0.

The Software Factory says that Ez-install version 4.0 has several
advantages over a software developer writing an installation. The
product gives a friendly introduction to the software to users who
install with an installation created by the package, the installation
routines are comprehensive, thorough and can be created in less
time, the company claims.

Although Ez-install has always been able to control the modification
of a user's AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files, version 4.0
now has the ability to automate the modification and updating of
Windows initialization (.INI) files, the company added.

Brad Whitlock, president of the Software Factory said the program
can control the computer's environment settings, the number of
files that can be open, and the number of buffers that can be used,
loading drives for screens or peripheral devices into computer
memory.

Whitlock added that the difference lies in the fact that the .INI
files are divided into subgroups for each program and allow the
developer to control things like keyboard speed, cursor blink
rate, desktop patterns, printer settings, ports, fonts, colors
and other settings for each individual program.

Rather than the developer trying to write a program to handle the
modification of the .INI files, or facing the prospect of attempting to tell
the user how to do the modification with a word processor or text
editor, the developer can tell Ez-install what to look for and what
changes are needed, he added.

Ez-install also handles all the regular installation procedures, like
checking for the necessary amount of disk space, creates batch
start-up files if necessary, checks to see if directories or
sub-directories exist, checks for duplicate filenames, and has
automatic network detection, the company said. Developers also
have the option of changing the appearance of the install program,
if they wish, Whitlock said.

The program also includes a file compression utility to save
distribution disk space that automatically decompresses upon
installation, and can even split large data files between disks,
the company said.

Ez-install 4.0 is being offered until September 30, 1991 for a retail
price of $199. An OS/2 version is available for $349 and a Combo
Pak with DOS and OS/2 versions is $449.

More information is available from the Software Factory at 17610
Midway Road, Suite 134-222, Dallas, Texas, 75287. Telephone:
214-490-0835; fax: [phone].

(Linda Rohrbough/19910812/Press Contact: Brad Whitlock, The
Software Company, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 FIRST OBJECT-ORIENTED LIBRARY FOR WINDOWS RELEASED 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00008)

FIRST OBJECT-ORIENTED LIBRARY FOR WINDOWS RELEASED 08/12/91
SAVANNAH, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Data
Techniques Incorporated (DTI) says it is marketing Imageman, which
it claims is the first and only object-oriented library for developers to
add display of images and print capabilities to Microsoft Windows
3.0 applications.

John Davis, vice president of DTI, said that companies have used
ImageMan for applications such as associating graphic images with
text, displaying employee pictures with the employee's record in
a database, processing/archiving documents and displaying the
source document a database entry came from.

A developer has several advantages using ImageMan to display
and print graphics images beside the fact that the library works
under Windows, Davis added. DTI is constantly supporting new
graphic image file formats, he said, but a developer who gets an
upgrade from DTI with new file formats does not have to rewrite
his code to update the application.

All that has to be done is to copy the new file with the new formats
over the old description file, and the application now can talk to
those new graphics images formats. No writing of code or
compilation is necessary, he added. Users of the applications
can be upgraded in the same manner as well, said Davis.

ImageMan currently supports TIFF, PCX, Encapsulated Postscript,
Windows Metafile and Bitmap image formats. The package is
supplied as a Windows Dynamic Link Library (DLL), meaning it can
be used with any language that supports DLL calls, including C, C++,
Turbo Pascal for Windows, Visual Basic, Smalltalk/V, and Actor.

According to DTI, the package supports any Windows display or
any Windows printer, and is coded in C so that executes quickly.
The source code of the program is available and the product is
royalty free.

ImageMan retails for $395 and $995 with the source code. More
information is available toll free from DTI at 800-868-8003 or by
fax at 912-651-8021. DTI is located at 1000 Business Center Drive,
Suite 120, Savannah, Georgia, 31405.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910812/Press Contact: John Davis, Data
Techniques, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 NEW FOR MAC: Mobius Display Boosts Classic To IIci Speed 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00009)

NEW FOR MAC: Mobius Display Boosts Classic To IIci Speed 08/12/91
EMERYVILLE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The new
"030" display system from Mobius Technologies increases the
performance of the Apple Macintosh Classic by up to six times, and
gives it the operating speed of a Mac IIci, claims the company.

The display gives the Mac Classic a large screen and 25 MHz
speed for the suggested price of $1,145. A two page system is set
 to list for $1,345. Both will be available by September 1991.

"Classic owners will have the speed and display area that are
necessary to run System 7.0's features productively," said Kamran
Mohsenin, president of Mobius.

The company said that it will also offer virtual memory for
either the SE or the Classic. System 7.0 does not support virtual
memory on the low-end Macs. But if Connectix Corporation's
Virtual 3.0 software is used the Mobius accelerated Mac can
access up to 16 megabytes of application memory, four times the
memory normally associated with the SE and Classic, said the
company.

Mobius is including Connectix's Virtual 3.0 through December 1,
1991, with its $295 PMMU option (as an upgrade for the basic
68030 Display System, which does not include that processor) and
its complete "PV" 030 display systems (which include the PMMU).

A one page 030 Display for the Classic with virtual memory is
available for $1,295 direct from Mobius. The $199 Connectix
software is available at no extra cost to the customer. Previous
customers who purchased the PMMU option can upgrade to Virtual
3.0 for $50.

Both the Mobius large external display and the Mac's built-in
monitor can be used at the same time using the company's dual
screen software. Mobius' monochrome displays meet Swedish
standards for low emissions.

Both monitors offer a 75 Hz refresh rate, and the one page display
has a 78 dots-per-inch (dpi) resolution, while the two page display
offers 75 dpi.

(Ian Stokell/19910812/Press Contact: Paul Worthington, Mobius
Technologies Inc., 415-654-0556)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 THE EARTH WILL TALK TO YOU FOR $2 PER MINUTE 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00010)

THE EARTH WILL TALK TO YOU FOR $2 PER MINUTE 08/12/91
FORT COLLINS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- It sounds
at first a return to the old days of the caller-paid 900 industry,
where sexy female voices spilled their fears and fantasies for
high fees. But this voice is that of Mother Earth, and for $2 per
minute she'll tell you all about what you can do for her.

Environmation Group has created the service, which mixes humor
and simple hints to help the Earth recover from man's predation
of her.

The number is 1-900-988-0023, ext. 409, and a portion of the
charges go to un-named national non-profit organizations involved
in conservation. Sample topics from the line include motor oil
recycling, diaper selection, cleaning products, water conservation
and efficient lighting.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: Environmation Group,
Karen E. Fritz, 303/484-6725)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 NEW FOR MAC: Great Plains Intros Accounting Series Version 6 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00011)

NEW FOR MAC: Great Plains Intros Accounting Series Version 6 08/12/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Great
Plains Software (GPS) has introduced version 6 of its Great Plains
Accounting series at MacWorld, and says it will release a Apple
Macintosh standalone report writer.

The Great Plains accounting programs, as well as a client/server
module released earlier this summer, are claimed to be fully
compatible with Apple System 7.0.

There are 12 separate modules in the series. A new module is
System Manager with Executive Advisor, which includes graphics
reporting and analysis functions, enhanced printing capabilities, a
macro keystroke recorder, and the ability to customize menus.

The company said that the client/server module provides more
powerful Macintosh networks "by improving performance speed by
as much as 150 percent and reducing network traffic up to 75
percent."

According to GPS, the general ledger with financial report generator
now has expanded capabilities including unlimited budgeting and
history, financial report generation, and automatic transaction
allocation. All modules are said to have more extensive reporting
capabilities now.

Great Plains said that it has given the packaging a new look and
has enhanced the documentation to include more detailed and
intuitive information, as well as adding graphics and more
examples.

The suggested retail price for version 6 has not changed, with
most modules priced at $795. System Manager with Executive
Advisor is required, and is priced at $295 for a single user, and
$1,295 for multi-user systems up to four workstations.

(Jim Mallory/19910812/Press contact: Jody Braatan, Great Plains,
701-281-3333)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 UK: FRONTIER SOFTWARE ENDS 2-DAY DISPATCH GUARANTEE 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00012)

UK: FRONTIER SOFTWARE ENDS 2-DAY DISPATCH GUARANTEE 08/12/91
HARROGATE, YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Frontier
Software, the manufacturer of peripherals for PCs, has ended its
"two days or 25 percent discount" offer after a three month period.
The company claims that it has not had to offer a 25 percent discount
to anyone during the offer period.

Martin Walsh, Frontier's marketing manager, said that the two-day
dispatch guarantee was introduced to assure customers that they
would receive products shortly after they were ordered.

"We started to offer the two-day dispatch after we realized that
many of our competitors which don't manufacture their own ST
products were not giving a good dispatch service. They were often
cashing or processing credit cards and then dispatching products
after days, weeks or even months," he said.

"We felt that, by offering a 25 percent discount we would attract
ST users to the fact that our dispatch times and service are some
of the best in the industry. If we had failed to dispatch an order within
two working days, we would have given the customer an extra 25
percent discount," he added.

Walsh went on to say that the offer appears to have been a great
success. "Not only have we not had to give anyone a 25 percent
discount, but we have almost always been able to dispatch orders
on the same day," he said.

"Even though the offer has now ended, we have streamlined our
dispatch and production departments. We believe that we will be
able to maintain the same speed of dispatch and quality of
customer service," he added.

Frontier is throwing down the gauntlet on the subject of dispatch
delivery guarantees. Walsh said he doubts that any of the
competition would or could offer such a guarantee.

(Steve Gold/19910812/Press & Public Contact: Frontier Software -
Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone]; email on Cix/Usenet:
[e-mail])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLBOY SECOND IN INT'L COMPUTER COMP 08/08/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00013)

AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLBOY SECOND IN INT'L COMPUTER COMP 08/08/91
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- A sixteen year old
schoolboy from Melbourne's suburbs has been awarded second
place in the 1991 International Computer Problem Solving Competition
senior division.

Entries can consist of groups of up to five students, but Peter
Yandell, a year 12 (the final school year in Australia) student
entered by himself and beat teams from the US, Canada, Ireland,
and South Africa. Yandell said he plans to attend either Melbourne
or Monash University to study computer science or digital technology.

A total of 2,000 teams participated this year in one of three
categories - elementary, junior and senior. The Australian
division of the competition is held at Melbourne High School, and
is sponsored by the Australian Computer Society.

(Sean McNamara/19910812)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 AUSTRALIAN COLLEGE OPENS CAD AND MODELLING FACILITY 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00014)

AUSTRALIAN COLLEGE OPENS CAD AND MODELLING FACILITY 08/12/91
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The Mount Gravatt
College of Technical and Further Education (TAFE) has opened a
computer design and modelling facility.

According to the college, the AUS$1.4 million facility will be a
boon to the Queensland plastics industry, as it features the
laser technology which is used to model objects designed in CAD
(computer-aided design) software.

An AUS$650,000 grant from the Queensland State Government
was the main impetus behind the facility, along with significant
discounts or waived fees from the commercial sector. The
companies involved in supplying the equipment were Silicon
Graphics and Melbourne-based VIPAC Engineers and Scientists.
Silicon Graphics has also devoted an engineer to the project for
12 months.

The main advantage for local industry will not only come from
students trained at the facility, but also directly through the use of
the facilities to hasten the development and testing of products.
These products are expected to include medical prosthetic
devices, jewelry and automotive components.

(Sean McNamara/19910812)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 AUSTRALIA: ACADEMICS USE OF E-MAIL AT UNIV. TOO HIGH 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00015)

AUSTRALIA: ACADEMICS USE OF E-MAIL AT UNIV. TOO HIGH 08/12/91
WOLLONGONG, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Computer support
staff at Wollongong University have warned academics to temper their
enthusiasm for a newly installed electronic mail system, believing
that high usage levels may be in danger of affecting performance.

One area of caution centers on the use of e-mail in an internal debate
about the management of the University -- where support staff see
possible action over defamatory and abusive messages. Another
area of concern for the staff relates to over usage and abuse of the
system. Despite a previous request, staff are still circulating trivial
messages detailing social events and raffle sales.

As a response to the main problem of overloading the system with
unimportant messages, support staff are considering disallowing
messages to be sent to all users, as well as rescinding the
accounts of users who frequently flout the "no trivia" rules. Support
staff consider warnings about the possible legal implications of
abusive messages to be sufficient for the time being.

(Sean McNamara/19910812)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 OCTEL SIGNS AGREEMENT TO MOVE IVR SOFTWARE TO UNIX 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00016)

OCTEL SIGNS AGREEMENT TO MOVE IVR SOFTWARE TO UNIX 08/12/91
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Octel
Communications has signed the company's first co-marketing
agreement with Wesson, Taylor, Wells and Associates, for custom
software development services to move its Transact  interactive
voice response (IVR) software to Unix-based Hewlett-Packard
computers.

The software allows a computer to become a voice information
processing system. With the system a user can call in using a
telephone keypad and get information from a database, check
their voice mail, or have a fax sent to them or someone else, said a
spokesperson for Octel.

According to Octel, one of the advantages to having information
retrievable using a telephone is that users already know how to use
a telephone keypad, thus eliminating a major training hurdle.

Octel identifies multi-vendor and multi-platform areas, open systems,
and connectivity as issues that previously were not considered a
high priority in telecommunications, but are now receiving attention
as telecommunications and management information systems,
begin to merge, a spokesperson for Octel said.

The company's intention is to address those issues, and the
beginning of that is to move Transact to other hardware platforms,
he added.

Wesson, Taylor, Wells & Associates is a software consulting firm
which provides project management, system integration,
customized application development, software conversion and
software migrations, the company said.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910812/Press Contact: Barbara Burdick, Octel,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 ENVIRONMATION GROUP ANNOUNCES DONATION PLANS 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00017)

ENVIRONMATION GROUP ANNOUNCES DONATION PLANS 08/12/91
FORT COLLINS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The
Environmation Group, which is sponsoring a $2 per minute 900-number
devoted to environmental tips using a voice of Mother Earth, told
Newsbytes of its plans for the money.

Karen Fritz said: "The Nature Conservancy and the Sierra Club are
getting the donations. They asked me to prove myself before I put
them in my press materials."

"I'm starting at 10 percent of profits, and hope to get it up to 25 percent,"
after her own costs are fully satisfied, she added.

Environmation Group's service says it mixes humor and simple hints
to help the Earth recover from man's predation of her. The number is
1-900-988-0023, ext. 409. Sample topics from the line include motor oil
recycling, diaper selection, cleaning products, water conservation
and efficient lighting.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: Environmation Group,
Karen E. Fritz, 303/484-6725)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 BELLSOUTH TO RESELL NCR ISDN TECHNOLOGY 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00018)

BELLSOUTH TO RESELL NCR ISDN TECHNOLOGY 08/12/91
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- NCR, which only
recently formed a new telecommunications group to sell computers to
AT&T and the regional Bell companies, is already getting its first
orders.

The 100 year old company, which is in the process of being
acquired by AT&T, and taking over its computer business, said that
BellSouth Information Systems will use its ISDN (Integrated Services
Digital Network) terminal adapters with its ORIGIN software. The
software and adapters will let customers in the South East
conduct voice and data communications over a single ISDN line.

BellSouth will also re-sell the company's NCR Voice/Data Manager
software application in conjunction with the ISDN terminal
adapter card and voice response chip. VDM can record incoming
messages from callers, leave pre-recorded messages, transfer or
receive files and screens or process multiple telephone calls
over a single line.

BellSouth will also use the system in its own customer response
centers to track and transfer calls to service agents. The system
runs under Unix, and versions are also available under MS-DOS
and OS/2.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: NCR, Patricia Dan,
513/445-5236; BellSouth, Atlanta Judy Shaw, 404/621-5464)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 GENERAL DATACOMM BUYS BELL ATLANTIC FRENCH UNIT 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00019)

GENERAL DATACOMM BUYS BELL ATLANTIC FRENCH UNIT 08/12/91
MIDDLEBURY, CONNECTICUT, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- General
DataComm (GD) has completed the purchase of Eurotech France, a
Paris-based systems integrator which was previously owned by Bell
Atlantic.

Purchase terms were not disclosed. Eurotech had been GD's
distributor in France, and its products comprised about 60 percent of
the French company's sales.

Under the agreement, service, installation, maintenance and
customer support on all products and for all Eurotech customers
will be continue to be provided by SORBUS, the computer service
unit of Bell Atlantic.

GD said it bought the company because the French
telecommunications market has been "virtually deregulated," and
because it helped it bring in three large contracts.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: Theresa A. Carpentieri,
General DataComm, 203-574-1118x6122)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 ACG TO ACQUIRE CANADIAN FIBER OPTIC FIRM 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00020)

ACG TO ACQUIRE CANADIAN FIBER OPTIC FIRM 08/12/91
ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- With the
conversion of most major trunk lines to fiber cable complete, a
shake-out is continuing in the industry.

The shake-up continued when American Consolidated Growth said
its fiber subsidiary, Advance Display Technologies, agreed to buy
Strahl Technologies, a small Canadian fiber optic development,
manufacturing and marketing company based in Vancouver.

Strahl has a patented piezo-electric "light gate" currently used
for billboards scoreboards, public information and other visual
display panels. It also sells its products to the medical and
military markets.

The Vancouver-based fiber optic company has developed various
display products for industrial, consumer, educational, medical
and military applications. Its president, J. Rodney Gage, will
become president of ADTI.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: Robert Wetzel, ACGC,
303-793-0500)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 STP BUG HAS GIVEN DSC FINANCIAL PNEUMONIA 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00021)

STP BUG HAS GIVEN DSC FINANCIAL PNEUMONIA 08/12/91
PLANO, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- The notorious bug in
its Signal Transfer Points (STPs), which caused a series of phone
service outages on both coasts earlier in the summer, has
apparently given DSC Communications financial pneumonia.

The telecommunications equipment company confirmed it cut 500
workers, 12 percent of its total staff, to cut costs, and reported a $25.7
million loss for its most recent quarter. Sales for the quarter were down
4.6 percent, that DSC admitted was partly due to the mishaps in its
Signal Transfer Points, which pass call records in digital
telecommunications systems.

A bug in the STPs caused them to overload during power surges in
Baltimore, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles after a spring software
upgrade, and the failure cascaded to take down the service of
several million customers. A weak economy was also cited by DSC
in its financial statement. DSC also makes switches and other
equipment used by telephone companies.

Separately, Moody's lowered its rating on DSC's subordinated debt
to Caa from B-2. DSC has said it cannot meet interest payments on
$71.5 million of debentures because it does not have the approval
of its senior lenders.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: DSC, Terry Adams, 214-
519-4358)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 NEW FOR TELECOM: Galacticomm Intros Major BBS Version 5.3 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00022)

NEW FOR TELECOM: Galacticomm Intros Major BBS Version 5.3 08/12/91
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) --
Galacticomm has released Version 5.3 of its Major BBS bulletin
board system software.

The new release includes electronic mail distribution lists and local
area network (LAN)  access, allowing it to support log-ons to the BBS
through a Novell NetWare system. The Standard Edition of the
project will also support connections through direct hardwired
connections to a network.

"If a company has a 32 line Major BBS, and 20 employees are
connected to a LAN, all 20 can log-on to the BBS at the same time
and the system will still have 12 channels remaining for incoming,
modem-based calls," explained president Bob Stein.

The LAN support is important, and is part of a growing trend in
the BBS industry. Many large commercial boards have found they
need LANs in order to have the power to run dozens of modems.
Many business BBS customers have found they need LAN support
so they can integrate the boards into their regular computer
systems.

The Galacticomm release is the second of three major BBS software
upgrades due during the summer. Mustang Software had previously
announced completion of version 3.0 of its Wildcat program and
eSoft plans a late-summer release of version 3.0 of its TBBS
program. All three companies are adding LAN support and support
for more nodes in order to catch up with market-leader Clark
Development, which makes PC Board.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910812/Press Contact: Galacticomm, Bob Stein,
305-583-5990)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12  ****1,800 TO ATTEND MICROSOFT DEVELOPER'S CONFERENCE 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00023)

 ****1,800 TO ATTEND MICROSOFT DEVELOPER'S CONFERENCE 08/12/91
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation says that more than 1,800 software developers from
all over the world will attend a software developers conference
which starts today. Attendees are expecting to get an early look
at the next version of Windows.

Microsoft says that extraordinary interest on the part of
developers has jumped the attendance to three times what the
company originally estimated, and hotels and motels in the
downtown Seattle area are filled. City officials say that because
of the large number of attendees moving between the various
conference locations, Microsoft was required to obtain a parade
permit.

Getting into the spirit of the conference, Seattle Mayor Norman
Rice will proclaim the week of August 11th "Software Developers
Week" in recognition of the contribution software development
makes to the Seattle area economy. In addition to Microsoft,
other software companies also make their home in the area.

Microsoft says that conference attendees, who come from the
corporate as well as the commercial software development
community, will learn technical details and software tools that
they will later use to develop applications for the next version
of Microsoft Windows release 3.1.

As part of the festivities, conference attendees will parade from
the Fifth Avenue Theater to the Westin Hotel along a balloon
decorated Fifth Avenue. The marchers will step off to the beat of
a Dixieland marching band.

Some of the additional interest may be due to Windows Discovery
Days, a 24-city tour that Microsoft launched in June. Discovery
Days toured the country introducing general business users to the
use of Windows in a corporate environment.

Attendees at Discovery Days had the opportunity to win a PC and
Windows-based software. Discovery Days began in Los Angeles
and will wind up in November of this year.

(Jim Mallory/19910812/Press contact: Liz Sidnam, Microsoft, 206-
882-8080)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12  ****HEWLETT-PACKARD TO CUT DEEPLY IN COLORADO 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00024)

 ****HEWLETT-PACKARD TO CUT DEEPLY IN COLORADO 08/12/91
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) --
Hewlett-Packard, which like many other computer companies has
been looking for ways to reduce expenses, has ordered most of its
1,900 employees in Colorado Springs and the 1,500 in Loveland to
stay at home for three days without pay before October 31st.

The other 7,600 employees in HP's Test and Measurement
organization, consisting of 21 divisions in four states and
Europe got the same message.

Apparently none of the more than 80,000 employees in HP's two
other major groups is required to take the enforced vacation,
however, most of the company will take paid vacation from
December 23 through December 27.

HP was quick to note that the unpaid vacation does not mean the
test and measurement group is weak. In an interview with a local
newspaper, HP spokesperson Mike Gospe said that the unpaid
vacation is: "a response both to economic conditions as well as
the overall corporate strategy to try to restructure itself to
meet increased competition."

In July HP initiated its "voluntary severance incentive," a
program which paid bonuses to employees who quit, and is trying
to entice older workers to retire. However, the company was not
optimistic about the number that would accept the early
retirement offer. Employees opting to quit and receive a bonus
will receive from six to 12 months salary, depending on tenure.

HP operates two facilities in Colorado Springs. One makes
oscilloscopes and logic analyzers used for designing electronic
circuits. The Telecommunications Division makes tools that
troubleshoot problems in computer networks.

(Jim Mallory/19910812)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12  ****PC 10TH ANNVERSARY - BORLAND'S KAHN EXPOUNDS 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00025)

 ****PC 10TH ANNVERSARY - BORLAND'S KAHN EXPOUNDS 08/12/91
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Philippe
Kahn, chief executive officer of Borland International, one of
the largest computer software companies in the world, said on
this 10th anniversary of the introduction of the IBM personal
computer (PC) that the technological changes in the next 10 years
will make the decade look like slow motion.

Kahn, whose company is a leader in object-oriented software
technology said: "In particular, object-orientation will
revolutionize computer software just like microprocessors changed
the face of the hardware industry in the '70s."

"The software business is going to undergo a revolution akin to
the one that has happened in hardware. The move from transistors
to integrated circuits introduced multi-application, compact
components that were proven and extremely high performance.
Object-oriented technology offers these advantages to the
software industry," he added.

Kahn said he sees his company's focus on esstentials -- substance
over form -- as Borland's greatest strength: "Impatience is a
rare virtue. ...Usability is key. With software, we figure that
we have about five minutes. If the user can't operate the program
without a manual in this amount of time he gets frustrated."

"In the decade ahead, customers will demand software products
that interoperate and share information. The success of
client/server architecture is dependent upon interoperable
software applications," he added.

Kahn also thinks that this tendency in the software industry to
think being the first to market with a product is what counts is
fiction. He cites Quattro Pro as an example. "...We entered the
spreadsheet market years after our top competitor [Lotus 1-2-3],
and doubled our market share last year on the technical strength
of our product."

"The same has been true for database management software and
development tools. Being first buys you a short term advantage.
Being best establishes a very special relationship with your
customers," he said.

Kahn termed Borland's approach as developing `Best of Breed'
products. That strategy seems to have worked. Borland reported
profits for the first quarter of fiscal year 1992 as $77 million,
an increase of over 87.6 percent on the same period of 1991. Last
quarter of 1991, the company showed profits of $70 million and a
net income of just under $8.5 million.

Borland's product line currently includes Paradox, Quattro Pro,
ObjectVision, Borland C++, Turbo C++, Turbo Pascal for Windows
and Sidekick.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910812/Press Contact: Sandra Hawker, Borland,
Tel: [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 ARCHIVE LOSES $50.3 MILLION IN THIRD QUARTER 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00026)

ARCHIVE LOSES $50.3 MILLION IN THIRD QUARTER 08/12/91
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Archive
Corporation has reported losses of more than of $50.3 million or
$3.83 per share, for its third quarter of fiscal year 1991.

The company said that it anticipated the losses in a June 1991
press release. Reported net revenue of $84.3 million was down 15
percent from the $99.2 million from a year earlier.

Archive itemizes the loss as $5.3 million in losses including
$4.3 million in interest expense prior to restructuring costs,
and restructuring charges of $45 million. Of the $45 million in
restructuring charges, $30.5 million was goodwill write-downs
related to the acquisition of Cipher Data Products and $14.5
million was to close down or relocate facilities and severance
for terminated employees. The $30.5 million is a one-time
accounting adjustment with no case flow impact.

Archive says that the restructuring charges were 90 percent of
the reported losses, and were predicted in a press release on
June 24, 1991.

Due to the decreases in revenue, the company says it is taking
steps to restore profitability including reduction of the
workforce, spending cutbacks, and "strong asset management."

Blame falls on the recession, the company said, but it has been
able to decrease outstanding sales from 60 days to 52 days on the
average, and increase inventory turns from four to five times in
comparison to the same period a year ago.

Archive has also sought revisions to its credit agreement with
its senior lender, so reductions in principal payments have been
arranged for fiscal year 1992 and 1993 from $37 million and $25
million to $15 million and $19 million respectively.

The senior lender will receive warrants for 700,000 shares of
Archive common stock, but the warrants are not exercisable for
three years and the company can buy the warrants back under
certain circumstances.

Archive makes removable data storage products for original
equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and resellers. Archive products
are available for minicomputers, workstations, multi-user systems
and personal computers (PCs).

(Linda Rohrbough/19910812/Press Contact: Terri Douglas, Archive,
Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12  ****IBM SELLS HELICOPTER TO ROYAL NAVY 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00027)

 ****IBM SELLS HELICOPTER TO ROYAL NAVY 08/12/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- London papers have reported
that the British Ministry of Defence has decided to award the
contract for the Royal Navy's new Merlin helicopter to a
consortium composed of IBM and the British company Westland Group
Plc.

This award, if made, comes in the face of criticism of awarding
the contract to a United States firm.

The Sunday Times, quoting unnamed industry sources, said THAT
Defence Secretary Tom King had overruled a recommendation from
his own officials that rival bidders British Aerospace Plc and
General Electric Co Plc should be chosen.

The report also said that the government will say the IBM-
Westland bid was lower, although the sources were quoted as
saying BAe-GEC subsequently lowered their price almost to their
rivals' level.

The Sunday Telegraph newspaper said the chief executive of
British Aerospace made a personal appeal to Prime Minister John
Major to stop the contract for the EH101 Merlin going to the U.S.
Attempts by the Reuters News Service to obtain comments from from
IBM or the British Ministry of Defence were unsuccessful.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910812)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 AT&T & NCR FILE MERGER PAPERS WITH SEC 08/12/91

08/12/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00028)

AT&T & NCR FILE MERGER PAPERS WITH SEC 08/12/91
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- AT&T and NCR have
announced that they have jointly filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) registration statements for the
issuance of AT&T common stock in connection with the proposed
merger and for a public offering of 6.3 million shares of NCR
common stock

Also filed with the SEC was NCR's proxy statement relating to
shareholder approval of the $7,400 million merger announced in
May of this year. NCR said that it "expects to mail the proxy
statement to its shareholders by the end of next week".

According to the joint statement from both companies, the NCR
shares sold under the stock offering will be converted
automatically into shares of AT&T common stock as a consequence
of the merger, so that investors will receive AT&T shares in the
public offering.

Based on an assumed exchange ratio of 2.986 AT&T shares for each
NCR share, plans call for the NCR shares to be converted into
18,811,800 shares of AT&T common stock.

The actual exchange ratio for the NCR shares in the offering will
be fixed prior to the special meeting of NCR shareholders to vote
on the merger proposal. The exchange ratio will be based on the
average closing price of AT&T stock during the 20 consecutive
trading days ending on the fifth trading day prior to the special
meeting of NCR shareholders. NCR expects to announce the date of
the special meeting early next week.

Both firms also announced the appointment of the investment
banking firms of Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, Dillon, Read
& Co. Inc., and Goldman Sachs & Co. as co-managers of the United
States and Canadian portion of the offering.

The US and Canadian portion of the offering will consist of 5.4
million NCR shares and international portion of the offering,
which will consist of the remaining 900,000 shares, will be
managed by Morgan Stanley International, Dillon, Read Securities
Limited, and Goldman Sachs International Limited.

NCR spokesperson Robert Farkas told Newsbytes that: "Although we
don't know exactly how long SEC review will take, we are working
toward the completion of the merger by September month end."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19910812/Press Contacts:
Robert Farkas, NCR Corporation, 513-445-2078; Jane Biba, AT&T,
908-221-4011)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12 TORONTO FIRM PUTS CHILDREN'S BOOKS IN MULTIMEDIA FORM 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00029)

TORONTO FIRM PUTS CHILDREN'S BOOKS IN MULTIMEDIA FORM 08/12/91
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Discis Knowledge
Research is offering a series of children's books in the form of
multi-media software for the Apple Macintosh. The three-year-old
company uses multimedia to add features such as speech, music,
and sound effects.

The metaphor of a book is preserved on the computer screen, said
Richard Wah Kan, vice-president of market development. Each
screen looks like a page.

To turn the page, the user clicks with the mouse on the corner.
The Mac's built-in audio capabilities provide a reading of the
text while it is displayed on the screen, with music and sound
effects added.

Another feature is the ability to click on a word and hear it
pronounced, and see a definition. Similar explanations are
available for pictures. Discis currently has 11 of the multimedia
books available, at prices from US$75 to US$90. But future
possibilities go beyond children's books.

"What we have developed here is a technology for putting a
printed book on a screen," Wah Kan said. "It just so happens we
started out with kids' books."

Rana Mainee, a consultant with Waltham, Massachusetts-based
research firm Inteco Corporation, said training and education are
currently the most active areas of multimedia applications
development, though the business market will ultimately be
larger.

(Grant Buckler/19910812/Press Contact: Fiona Ferguson or Richard
Wah Kan, Discis Knowledge Research, 416-250-6537, fax 416-250-
6540)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 12  ****MANZI TO KEYNOTE CANADA'S NETCON CONFERENCE 08/12/91

08/12/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00030)

 ****MANZI TO KEYNOTE CANADA'S NETCON CONFERENCE 08/12/91
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1991 AUG 12 (NB) -- Jim Manzi,
president and chief executive officer of Lotus Development, will
be the keynote speaker at NetCon, a networking and connectivity
conference scheduled for September 26 and 27.

Ed McMahon, marketing manager for show organizers Plesman
Publications, told Newsbytes that this will be Manzi's first
major address in Canada.

NetCon will be held in the Automotive Building at the Canadian
National Exhibition Grounds. About 100 exhibitors, including
Apple Computer and networking heavyweights Novell and Banyan,
have signed up, McMahon said.

(Grant Buckler/19910812/Press Contact: Ed McMahon, Plesman
Publications, 416-497-9562, fax [phone])

#ENDCARD


#CARD::1991 AUG 9 HOUSE BILL WOULD LIMIT WORKER MONITORING 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00001)

HOUSE BILL WOULD LIMIT WORKER MONITORING 08/09/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Responding to the
many complaints of workers who report increased strain because
they feel that their bosses are using computer networks to
monitor their work, the U.S. House of Representatives is
considering a bill, "The Privacy for Consumers and Workers Act,"
H.R. 1218, that would strictly limit employers' right to monitor
employee production and also require that workers be warned when
they are being watched.

The advent of computer software that can easily monitor the
efficiency of word processor, key input, and other computer
workers has had a major impact on the workplace, with some unions
and employees charging that the days of the sweatshop and
constant supervision have returned.

Bills introduced in the House by Representative Pat Williams,
Democrat from Montana, and in the Senate by Senator Paul Simon,
Democrat from Illinois, require that data collection be limited
to that which is specifically relevant to work performance, and
further that those being monitored be notified by some sort of
electronic or other indication.

Not surprisingly, representatives from Pacific Bell and the
National Association of Manufacturers have testified against the
bill before the House Subcommittee on Labor-Management Relations.

Individual employees from companies that perform routine work-
performance monitoring testified in favor of the bill, which has
garnered more than 100 cosponsors in the House.

(John McCormick/19910809)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00002)

ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/09/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Roundup is a brief
look at some computer stories carried in other publications
received here this past week.

September's UnixWorld looks at the growth of commercial interest
in Internet and how this will affect the mostly academic network.

The August 5 Communications Week investigates whether MS-DOS 5.0
delivers on its promises to network users.

This week's issue of InformationWeek focuses on the growth of the
PC on the 10th anniversary of its introduction by IBM.

Computer Reseller News Dated August 5 publishes a Gallup
Organization poll showing that small businesses are not
increasing their spending on microcomputers.

Network World for August 5 says that "The Biggest Little City in
the World," Reno, Nevada, plans to lay fiber optic networks to
improve city and county services through the use of a high-speed
local area network.

August 5th's ComputerWorld starts a two-part series on recent
advances in computer security.

The August 5 issue of Government Computer News contains a profile
of how the U.S. Air Force uses computers and the lessons learned
during Operation Desert Storm.

MacWorld for September reviews nine word processors for the Mac,
tests 73 external hard drives, and takes a long look at Apple
Computer.

The August Communications of the ACM focuses on real-time
knowledge-based control systems.

(John McCormick/19910809)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 AUSTRALIA: MORE FIRMS CONSCIOUS OF SOFTWARE PIRACY 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SYD)(00003)

AUSTRALIA: MORE FIRMS CONSCIOUS OF SOFTWARE PIRACY 08/09/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Despite wide publicity about
software piracy within corporations, many companies are only just
thinking about their own responsibility. Some have recently issued
press releases showing their anti-piracy actions.

Nissan (the car manufacturer) says it has around 600 PCs in Australia
and these have all been audited to determine the legitimacy of loaded
software. Nissan wouldn't say how much of the software found on its
machines couldn't be reconciled with purchase documentation, but
admitted it was a worrying amount. "Department managers removed all
illegal copies, replacing some with legitimate product," said Nissan.

The company now has a software register, and will install most
software on networked machines, better enabling it to log software as
it is installed and removed from machines. It is approaching software
vendors to purchase multi-copy licences wherever possible - some
companies like Ashton-Tate have only just introduced the "license pak"
concept of buying the right to make multiple copies of software.

The Business Software Association of Australia has launched another
campaign to catch pirates, this time targeting guilty dealers. 1500
dealers have been contacted and asked to report other dealers they
believe to be installing pirated software on PCs to "add to their [PC's]
value."

(Paul Zucker/19910809)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 COMPUSERVE IN AUSTRALIA - THANKS TO FUJITSU 08/09/91

08/09/91
(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00004)

COMPUSERVE IN AUSTRALIA - THANKS TO FUJITSU 08/09/91
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Although there have been
some 700 Compuserve users in Australia, high costs imposed by the
international data connections have precluded the service from
attracting more subscribers. Now, Fujitsu Australia has brought the
service into Australia and although still much more expensive than in
the US, it has already attracted more than 1000 new members.

Compuserve, with its estimate of 750,000 users worldwide, is
the largest dial-up information service in the world, and provides
over 1500 databases and more than 500 electronic magazines, as well as
electronic shopping, entertainment and much more. Most Australian users
have been corporates, paying around US$65 per hour for electronic mail
and to access vendor support areas.

Now, the service is available in Australian and New Zealand capital
cities, with a local call. The basic option (for private users) is
around US$28 per hour, with a US$3 monthly minimum. Business users are
obliged to use a minimum number of hours per month, depending on their
level. To encourage tire-kickers, Fujitsu is distributing free kits
which give all information necessary to log onto the system, plus
about US$15 in access credit. Since you need to join the system to get
this freebie (giving credit card details, or alternative) industry
observers feel most lookers will want to spend longer online than
they can for nothing, thus incurring their first bill.

(Paul Zucker/19910809)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 FREE VIRUS CHECKS FOR FED MICRO GOERS 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00005)

FREE VIRUS CHECKS FOR FED MICRO GOERS 08/09/91
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Ray Glath,
founder of RG Software and creator of VI-Spy anti virus software,
has recognized that company demo disks could be carrying
virus infections and is offering free virus checks to those Fed
Micro attendees who stop by his booth (#970) during the August
20-21 exhibition and conference held in Washington, DC.

Ray points out that as recently as last month over 500 Oracle
Corporation demo diskettes were mailed out with an unintended
copy of the Stoned Virus on the disks.

An Oracle representative told Newsbytes this week that all
recipients had been reached and new, clean copies of the demo had
been sent to replace the infected disks, but there is no report
of how many users' computers might have been infected before
they were notified of the problem.

(John McCormick/199189/Press Contact: Beverly Ann Glath, RG
Software, 602-423-8000)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 PRODIGY "NO PEEKING" PRIVACY DISK OFFERED TO MEMBERS 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LAX)(00006)

PRODIGY "NO PEEKING" PRIVACY DISK OFFERED TO MEMBERS 08/09/91
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- The Prodigy
Interactive Personal Service, an electronic, interactive
computer service, is offering a free software disk to fix member
concerns more than anything else.

Prodigy is offering the disk to "...alay concerns that it was
invading the privacy of people who use its electronic
information and shopping service," reported the Wall Street
Journal.

Prodigy users had discovered files created and accessed by Prodigy,
specifically STAGE.DAT and CACHE.DAT on their hard disks contained
information they had never offered Prodigy. Though the
information was in pieces, users became alarmed.

The Wall Street Journal reported these "snippets" of information
could theoretically be peered at by Prodigy.

Prodigy says the problem is an unintentional one, and occurred because of
a fluke in the operating system IBM and compatible computers
use, and was not anything Prodigy had caused. The company
vehemently denies it did or ever had any intention of invading
the privacy of users.

The free software disk is a program to erase any old personal
information that might be in Prodigy files and to prevent new
information from accumulating there, the company said.

The Wall Street Journal reported Prodigy as saying the
accounting firm of Coopers and Lybrand had audited the service,
confirmed its privacy safeguards and has provided a letter to
that effect.

Prodigy said members can get information by calling Prodigy
Membership Services at [phone], or while on Prodigy, jump
to TECHTALK.

Prodigy is a joint partnership between Sears and International
Business Machines (IBM), and reportedly has over 1 million
members.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910809/Press Contact: Prodigy Customer
Service, Tel: [phone])


#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 WORDPERFECT TOUTS UNFINISHED WP WINDOWS, TRADE-UP OFFER 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00007)

WORDPERFECT TOUTS UNFINISHED WP WINDOWS, TRADE-UP OFFER 08/09/91
OREM, UTAH, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- WordPerfect Corporation
says although WordPerfect for Windows has not yet entered the
beta II test stage, the product is in the "final stretch."

Although the product is behind schedule, the company is making
some ambitious predictions. WordPerfect says it expects to have
the product available in four languages after a few weeks of
shipping the English version, and another six languages a few
weeks after that.

WordPerfect emphasized the optimization of the product for
speed and maintenance of the complete feature set and file
format of the DOS version is part of the hold-up on the Windows
version.

Users waiting to purchase WordPerfect for Windows are being
encouraged to go ahead and buy WordPerfect 5.1. As incentive
the company is offering to give WordPerfect 5.1 owners a copy of
the Windows product for just $5. The $5 upgrade applies for
WordPerfect 5.1 purchased from April 1, 1991 to within 30 days of the
release of the Windows version, WordPerfect said.

WordPerfect says it is also encouraging users of certain other word
processing software to purchase WordPerfect 5.1 Trade Up.
Owners who can provide to a Wordperfect dealer their
proof of ownership of another word processing program
-- such as a receipt, master diskettes, title page of a manual --
get the opportunity to purchase the Trade Up for $150.

The Trade Up package then has a coupon good for the new Windows
version for $59, the company says. Only users of IBM
Displaywrite, Manuscript, Microsoft Word, Multimate,
Officewriter, Samna Word, Wordstar or Xywrite are eligible,
said WordPerfect.

As added incentive WordPerfect says it will license the
WordPerfect 5.1 Trade Up and WordPerfect for Windows so the
user retains both licenses, meaning users can legally keep and
use both products on the same computers at the same time.

No release dates were announced, but the company did say it
expected the final release of the Windows version approximately
one month after the beta II release takes place.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910809/Press Contact: Paul Skousen,
WordPerfect, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 INTERNATIONAL VERSIONS OF SYSTEM 7 TO BE RELEASED 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00008)

INTERNATIONAL VERSIONS OF SYSTEM 7 TO BE RELEASED 08/09/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- System
7.0 in September is going to become worldwide. Apple Computer intends
to introduce ten international language versions of System 7 in the
early part of September 1991.

The company maintains that the local language versions, several of
which are already shipping, include: Italian; Dutch; Swedish; Finnish;
German, including a version for German-speaking Switzerland; Danish,
Norwegian, Spanish and British English. French speakers
get a French version, a French-Canadian version,
and versions for the French-speaking markets in Belgium and
Switzerland. Chinese, Japanese, and Korean localized versions are
also under development.

International sales accounted for more than half of Apple's revenues
in the January-March quarter of the 1991 financial year.

Apple says that, in addition to translating the system software,
localized versions include a translation of all accompanying
documentation and in-box information.

Soren Olsson, president, Apple Computer Europe, said: "Based on
the fact that most systems sold in Europe since 1989 have been
2 megabyte systems (which is the minimum configuration necessary
to run System 7), Apple Computer Europe is confident that it will be
experiencing heavy demand from its installed base of over 1.2
million Macintosh users."

The company says that there are currently over 38 language
versions of the Macintosh operating system available.

Although Apple resellers worldwide will offer local language
versions for their markets as they become available, and the
product price will vary from country by country, the European
guideline price for the personal upgrade kit is $75.

Meanwhile, Roger Heinen, Apple's vice president and general manager
for Macintosh software architecture, told Reuters that about 20
percent of the installed base of Macintoshes have been upgraded to
System 7, and that Apple was "well on track" to meet its goal of
three million System 7 users within 12 months of the new operating
system's release.

 "This month will probably go by one million users of System 7," he
said.

(Ian Stokell/19910809/Press Contact: Jennifer O'Mahoney, Apple
Computer Europe, 408-974-0643)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 RASTEROPS WINS $2.5M FALCON ORDER, SIGNS WITH COMPUSA 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00009)

RASTEROPS WINS $2.5M FALCON ORDER, SIGNS WITH COMPUSA 08/09/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- RasterOps
has had successes on both the federal and commercial fronts with
the receipt of a $2.5 million order from Falcon Microsystems, the
exclusive Apple Computer reseller to the federal government, and an
agreement with national superstore chain CompUSA to provide the
24-bit color display systems for the Macintosh platforms.

According to the company, the deal with Falcon encompasses
RasterOps' entire line of 24-bit color, full-motion video, gray-scale
and monochrome graphics products for Macintosh systems.

"This partnership with CompUSA adds a new dimension to our
channel strategy, and provides us significant opportunities to
put our color-imaging capabilities on the desktops of a broad
base of new customers," said Frank Leonardi, senior vice
president of sales at RasterOps.

 RasterOps has been busy in past year, signing distribution
agreements with ComputerLand, Connecting Point of America,
JWP Information Services and MicroAge Computer Centers.

RasterOps reported record earnings of $6.4 million on record
revenues of $72.4 million for the fiscal year ended June 30,
1991. The company says that the agreement with Falcon
has capped a fiscal year of marketing, distribution and OEM
(original equipment manufacturer) successes by RasterOps with
such industry heavyweights as IBM, Sony, DEC, Kodak, and
MicroAge and JWP Information Services.

(Ian Stokell/19910809/Press Contact: Pattie Walters, RasterOps
Corp., 408-562-4200)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 APPLE UPGRADES STYLE/LASERWRITER PRINTERS 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00010)

APPLE UPGRADES STYLE/LASERWRITER PRINTERS 08/09/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Apple has
offered enhancements to two of its printers in the form of new software
that provides background printing capabilities for the StyleWriter, and
new printer software that reportedly doubles the performance of the
LaserWriter LS.

According to the company, the software for the StyleWriter allows
users to continue working while a document is being printed. Four
new TrueType fonts have also been added to the printer: Chicago,
Geneva, Monaco, and New York. These join the current set of
TrueType fonts which are automatically installed in the user's
system during the normal printer installation procedure, and include
Times, Courier, Helvetica and Symbol.

The new LaserWriter LS, in addition to getting its performance
doubled, also lucks out by getting approximately 30 percent more
paper capacity, up to 70 sheets from 50.

For paper-hungry users and memo-fanatics, an optional 250 sheet
paper tray continues to be available. The LaserWriter LS also
gets the four additional TrueType fonts.

Apple says that enhanced models of the Personal LaserWriter LS
will be available in late August through all authorized Apple resellers at
the unchanged suggested price of $1,299. The new software will be
available with the StyleWriter in late August, with pricing for the
printer remaining unchanged at $599.

Existing users of both printers can obtain the new printer software and
TrueType fonts (new installation disks) at the same time through
authorized Apple resellers, Apple user groups and online services.
Apple says that, although it does not make a charge to these
organizations, they "may charge customers a nominal handling fee."

 (Ian Stokell/19910809/Press Contact: Kate Paisley, Apple Computer,
408-974-5453)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 UNIV TO OFFER 1ST DORM LAN TO ATTRACT STUDENTS  08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00011)

UNIV TO OFFER 1ST DORM LAN TO ATTRACT STUDENTS  08/09/91
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Indiana
University will be the first university in America to implement
a local area network (LAN) using 10BASE-T connectivity to
provide electronic mail (e-mail), among other services, to
dormitory residents, announced David Systems, Incorporated
(DSI), the company from which the LAN equipment is being
purchased.

"DSI believes Indiana University's approach to campus
networking is both leading edge and pragmatic," said Henry R.
Nothhalf, president of DSI. "Our relationship with them
continues to provide us with an important perspective on the
needs of the higher education market."

The implication is that the dormitory LAN is designed to attract
students. "The University sees this as an opportunity to
provide service to the student residents in terms of a
computing environment and to more closely integrate them into
the academic community," said Rhonda Winfrey, assistant
director of finance and technology for the Halls of Residence.
"We believe they will find the service attractive."

Indiana University has an enrollment of 85,000 students. It has
a computing environment stretching across eight campuses with
23 general access mainframes in computer centers, 49 mainframes
in various departments, and microcomputers numbering more than
6,000.

In an initial phase, the University installed DSI equipment and
ExpressView from DSI, a network management system.

(Linda Rohrbough/19910809/Press Contact: Steve Hester, David
Systems, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone], Rhonda Winfrey,
Indiana University, Tel: [phone], Fax: [phone])
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 SEQUOIA'S MULTIPROCESSOR SYSTEM USES MOTOROLA 68040 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(UNIX)(DEN)(00012)

SEQUOIA'S MULTIPROCESSOR SYSTEM USES MOTOROLA 68040 08/09/91
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Motorola has announced
that its 68040 microprocessor will be used for the Series 400
fault-tolerant multiprocessor system introduced this week by
Sequoia Systems.  The Series 400 is a Unix-based, fault-tolerant
multiprocessor system.  Motorola says it is the first system to
use the 68040.

Sequoia says the Series 400 can be expanded to deliver up to 640
million instructions per second (MIPS) of computing power.  The
system supports up to 32 processor elements, and is designed as
a continuously available system for on-line transaction
processing applications.

Jim Reinhart of Motrola says the 68040 brings 68000 family
compatibility and RISC-level performance to the multiprocessing
environment.  Reinhart says that by using the chip, Sequoia will
more than double system throughput.

Sequoia says that its testing shows that the Series 400
delivers two and one-half to three times the performance of the
Series 300, which is powered by Motorola's 68030.  The
transaction per second ratings on the Series 400 approach 400 to
500, depending on the application.  Sequoia says this is the
first time such high performance has been possible on a
continuously available platform in a Unix environment.  Sequoia
says it will release audited TPC-A benchmark test results by the
end of the year.

Two of Sequoia's Model 300s have been sold to firms in the USSR
in the last five months. The two sales were worth about $1
million. The shipments required approval from the US Department
of Commerce.

Sequoia reported a record year for the fiscal year
ending June 30th, with net income of $7 million on sales of
$63.1 million.  Sequoia has several strategic partners,
including Hewlett-Packard, Samsung, The Ultimate Corporation,
Sumitomo Electrio, and Computer Consoles, Inc.  Sequoia says it
has shipped over 245 systems.

(Jim Mallory/910808/Press contact: Dean Mosley, Motorola,
512-891-2839; John Murzycki, Sequoia, 508-480-0800, X1522)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 PORTABLES ONLY, IN OFFICE OR IN THE FIELD, SAYS STUDY 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00013)

PORTABLES ONLY, IN OFFICE OR IN THE FIELD, SAYS STUDY 08/09/91
LAKE PARK, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Tusk, Inc., hopes
that a study that says major corporations want portable computers
to serve as both desktop and traveling systems is right.  Tusk is
expected to release what it describes as a "super-rugged three-in-one"
computer this fall.

Tusk says it commissioned a study by consumer preference
research firm ROI to find out what major corporations considered
the ideal computer.  Among other things, the ROI study found
that major corporations will spend up to $7,000 for their ideal
multi-purpose computer.  The study surveyed 800 portable
computer users and purchasers at Fortune 1000 companies.

ROI says that corporate users want a one computer "solution" in an
attractively styled package that weighs less than 10 pounds and
has the power of a 386.  Other desirable features included
complete compatibility with existing hardware and software, 20
megahertz speed, black on paper-white displays that are bigger
and brighter than those available today, 9600 baud modems, fax,
full size keyboards with sculpted keys, and a battery that will
last all day.

Other desirable features were rugged housing, shock protection,
a high capacity hard drive, plug and play network compatibility,
Unix-based systems, and shielding to keep competitors from
stealing sensitive information out of the airwaves.

Tusk thinks the ideal computer may be here sooner than we
think. It will soon release their All Terrain Supertablet.  The
unit will have both pen and keyboard operating capabilities.
Newsbytes was unable to obtain any more specific information
about the Supertablet, but Tusk CEO and founder Chuck Krallman
says that the first beta unit delivery will coincide with the
10th anniversary of IBM's first shipment of the personal computer
on August 12th.  "We fully expect that multi-modal personal
computers will become the newest standard in the next decade,"
said Krallman.

(Jim Mallory/910808/Press contact: Dawn Bliss, Tusk,
415-328-5555, FAX [phone])

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 MACWORLD: ALDUS TECH SUPPORT BULLETIN BOARD 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00014)

MACWORLD: ALDUS TECH SUPPORT BULLETIN BOARD 08/09/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Aldus
Corporation, developer of PageMaker and other graphics
programs, announced at MacWorld in Boston that it will offer
registered users of several of its programs 24-hour technical
support via an interactive bulletin board system.

Dubbed CustomerFirst Online (CFO), the service will offer
support from product specialists, downloadable
trouble-shooting tips, quick-reference guides, layout templates,
macros, desk accessories, clip art, and other productivity and
design aids.  CFO is available to registered owners of Aldus
FreeHand, PageMaker, Persuasion and PrePrint.

CFO is a subscriber service, and allows subscribers access to
the Aldus Online Database, Online conferencing forums and public
forums on CompuServe. Online Database is the resource used by
Aldus technical support experts, and supports keywork searches.
Subscribers can also request product information, register Aldus
products, subscribe to "Aldus Magazine," and find out how to
become an Aldus Trainer.

John Archdeacon, Aldus director of customer service, said, "Aldus
is breaking new ground in the software industry by offering an
electronic bulletin board designed for all users of Aldus
products."  Archdeacon said Online will be continually
supplemented in order to give subscribers access to the most
current information.

Subscribers will access Online through the CompuServe network
using the Aldus Information Manager, a derivative of
CompuServe's Information Manager.  AIM uses pull-down menus,
dialog boxes, movable windows, buttons, and a mouse.  Aldus says
AIM is available for both Apple Macintosh and DOS-based systems.

Subscriptions to Online can be purchased individually or
acquired automatically as a part of the purchase of a
CustomereFirstPremierOnline or Corporate Library service plan.
With each plan, users get access to CompuServe public forums,
and are credited with 12 hours of connect time for 1200 or 2400
baud use.  Computers equipped with 9600 baud modems have a
proportionally reduced number of hours.  Use beyond the 12 hours
will be charged by CompuServe at its regular connect rates.

Premier Online is another subscriber service offered by Aldus; it
costs $179 per year for each copy of the Aldus software, and
gets the customer a discount on the price of any major new
releases, automatic delivery of updates, free filter/driver
packs sent automatically and other benefits.

The Corporate Library subscription offers more than $6,000 worth of
free software, toll free access to your own account executive,
the Discovery training series, a free enrollment in an Aldus
Technical Seminar and other services.  The cost of the Corporate
Library service was not available.

Brad Stevens of Aldus told Newsbytes that the Aldus forum
presently on CompuServe will continue.  However Stevens
described the forum as reactive, and said the Online service
will be more proactive.  Stevens also indicated that there
would be information on Online that would not be available on
the CompuServe forum, which he  said is an informal service.
"Online will be a vehicle for us to go out and actively put
information on that bulletin board that we know people are going
to want to use."

The subscription rate for Online is $249 annually.  To subscribe
to Online, call Aldus customer relations at 206-628-2320.

(Jim Mallory/910808/Press contact:Brad Stevens, Aldus,
206-233-7315)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 MACWORLD: ALDUS DEBUTS SUPERPAINT 3.0 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00015)

MACWORLD: ALDUS DEBUTS SUPERPAINT 3.0 08/09/91
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) --Aldus
Corporation introduced what it describes as a major new release
of Aldus SuperPaint at MacWorld in Boston this week.

SuperPaint 3.0 is an integrated painting, drawing, and image
enhancement program for the Macintosh computer. New features
include support for 1, 8, 16, and 32-bit documents, and
includes both monochrome and color support.  "Customers working
with 8-bit systems, for example, will be able to have quick
access to nearly 16.8 million colors without requiring a 24-bit
board," said Cindy Taylor, SuperPaint product manager.

The image enhancement feature of SuperPaint is a new addition.
Features include brightness, contract, color balance, masking,
smudge diffuse, lighten, darken, and invert.

Another new feature is texture fills.  Several fill patterns are
provided, and others can be created  by the user and then
applied in paint or draw.  EPS textures can be used from
another program, such as Aldus FreeHand, and used within
SuperPaint.

Gradients have also been added.  Gradients are gradual
transitions from one color to another.  They can be created in
paint or draw, and up to 256 colors can be used in a single
gradient. PostScript language gradients can be created in the
draw mode.

Also new is hot keys, allowing the user to more easily access
tools and palettes.  Taylor said the simplified interface makes
the program easier to learn  and use.

SuperPaint will be available in the third quarter of this year
at a suggested retail price of $199.  Registered owners will
receive upgrade information in the mail.  Upgrades cost $65 plus
shipping and tax.  More information about upgrades can be had by
calling 619-695-6956.

A Macintosh plus, Classic, SE, Portable, SE/30, LC or II
series, with 2MB of RAM, System 6.0.5 or later, a hard disk and
one 800K drive is required for black-and-white use.  For color,
you'll need a Macintosh SE/30, LC or II series, 2MB of RAM,
32-bit QuickDraw, System 6.0.5 or later, a hard drive and one
800K floppy drive.

(Jim Mallory/910808/press contact: Joanne Rush, Silicon Beach
Software, 619-695-6956)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 DELL PCS TO BE SOLD BY STAPLES CHAIN 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00016)

DELL PCS TO BE SOLD BY STAPLES CHAIN 08/09/91
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Dell Computer
Corporation has announced that it will soon begin shipping a
line of low-profile desktop and notebook computers to 100 of
the Staples, Inc., office superstores nationwide.

The company says the Staples deal will be Dell's first attempt
to market through office supply superstores.  Dell also has a
sales agreement with computer superstore operator Comp USA.  By
selling through these superstores Dell says it hopes to expand
its market among home users and smaller businesses.

Under the agreement Dell provides customer support directly to
the customers who buy through the superstores.  Support includes
toll-free technical support and next-day, on-site service
provided through a service vendor.

Staples sales personnel will receive sales training from Dell,
and must pass a sales certification program being implemented
nationwide by Staples.

Says Dell CEO Michael Dell, "Office superstores are quickly
emerging as a high-growth segment of the market for office
equipment."  Dell says Staples has a customer base of more than
two million, and says it is a highly efficient organization with
a very low-cost distribution strategy.

According to Joel Kocher, Dell VP of sales, the Staples
agreement is the latest in a series of actions Dell has
undertaken over the past two years to tailor its marketing
methods to reflect increasing customer segmentation in the PC
market.

Dell reported a 64 percent increase in earnings for the quarter
ending May 5, 1991, reporting earnings per share of 46 cents on
sales of $175 million.  Staples, founded in May 1986, operates
104 stores and says it will open an additional 20 by February of
1992.

Dell Computer maintains a toll free number for product
information at 800-289-3355.

(Jim Mallory/910808/Press contact:Michele Moore, Dell Computer,
512-343-3535)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 MACWORLD: LASERMASTER DEMOS HI-RES KANJI 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00017)

MACWORLD: LASERMASTER DEMOS HI-RES KANJI 08/09/91
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Printer
manufacturer Lasermaster Technologies demonstrated its new
Kanji products at Macworld in Boston this week.  Kanji are
characters used in the Japanese written language.

Lasermaster says its new TrueImage-based Kanji printers will
deliver resolution up to 1200 dots-per-inch (dpi), at speeds up
to 20 pages-per-minute.  The first two models will be Kanji
versions of the Lasermaster 1000 and 1200 for the Macintosh.

Two Kanji fonts are standard on each printer, Minch and Gothic,
as well as the standard 135 Lasermaster Typeface Classics with
Roman characters.  The Kanji products also include additional
printer controller RAM to speed font caching and to improve
output performance.

Lasermaster says the fonts can enhance the Kanji quality needed for
plain-paper typesetting and still maintain full compatibility
with applications software utilizing the PostScript page
description language from Adobe.  They say this is done by
adapting specialized hardware designs and modifying TrueImage
source code licensed from Microsoft.

"The complexities and subtleties of many Kanji characters
require a much more precise image than traditional 300 dpi
printers are able to produce," said Larry Lukis of Lasermaster.
Lukis says Lasermasters technology, combined with TrueImage page
description language software, allows the Lasermaster units to
reproduce Kanji outlines with the brush stroke integrity
intended by the artist.  According to Lukis, because Kanji can
be printed on plain paper, it's a very cost effective process.

The company says it will target the Asian market as well as US-
based Japanese companies.  It predicts that it will be shipping
both PC and Macintosh products not later than December of this
year, as soon as distributors are signed.

(Jim Mallory/910808/Press contact:Karen Neset, Lasermaster,
612-941-8687)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 BIRTHPLACE OF IC BECOMES PROTECTED SITE 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00018)

BIRTHPLACE OF IC BECOMES PROTECTED SITE 08/09/91
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Who says
California has no history? It just so happens that the birthplace of the
first commercial integrated circuit has been designated a
"registered historical landmark," by the Office of Historical
Preservation for the State of California.

The site now joins the garage in which Bill Hewlett and David Packard
began their famous company as the second such landmark. The
registered landmark designation is the 1000th for the state and
the second for Silicon Valley.

The designation recognizes the significance of the integrated
circuit developed in 1959 by the late Dr. Robert N. Noyce at
Fairchild Semiconductor.

 In developing the integrated circuit, Noyce used a method of linking
the different components of an electronic circuit together by
evaporating a conductive aluminum layer over "windows" in the
silicon oxide, instead of interconnecting the elements with wires.
The "metal-over-oxide" process allowed the integrated circuit to
be built efficiently in large volume which in turn made ICs and their
descendants affordable to the throngs.

The placement of the plaque honoring Noyce's integrated circuit
will be at 844 East Charleston Road in Palo Alto, where Fairchild
Semiconductor began its operations in 1957.

(Ian Stokell/19910809/Press Contact: Howard High, Intel Corp.,
408-765-1488)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 CONYERS SHOCKS FEDERAL ADP COMMUNITY 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00019)

CONYERS SHOCKS FEDERAL ADP COMMUNITY 08/09/91
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- In what has been
describes as a complete surprise, Representative John Conyers
Jr., Democrat from Michigan, has introduced three major
procurement reform bills in Congress.

H.R. 3161 (Congressional bills are identified by H.R. or S. for
House of Representatives or Senate, along with a sequential
number based on when the bill is submitted), co-sponsored by Rep.
Frank Horton (R-NY), "The Federal Property and Administrative
Services Authorization Act," would replace the General Service
Administration's permanent authorization and cost charge-back
procedures with a yearly appropriation cycle that would give
Congress better control over the massive agency's purse strings.

Another of the bills, H.R. 3163, "The Commercial Activities
Contracting Procedures Act," would set clear standards for which
programs would be completed by federal employees and which would
be outsourced to the private sector under the OMB's Circular A-76
(Office of Management and Budget).

Probably the most shocking change would be caused by the adoption
by the third bill, H.R. 3162, "The Multiple Award Schedule
Procurement Improvement Act of 1991." This bill would if enacted
into law, according to the August 5 issue of Federal Computer
Week, revise the GSA multiple award contract award procedures by
requiring that all purchases over $1,000 be negotiated by
contracting officers between appropriate schedule vendors.

Newsbytes was unable to obtain comments on the bills' potential
effect on the industry from the IIA (Information Industries
Association) or CBEMA, the Computer and Business Equipment
Manufacturing Association, and the Software Publisher's
Association's Karen Casser, director of public policies and legal
affairs, told Newsbytes that she could not comment yet because she
had only seen portions of the bills. But she emphasized that this
"no comment" was not to be interpreted as a negative comment, it
was just that she had not had any opportunity to study the bills
in their entirety.

(John McCormick/19910809)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 APPLE WAIVES ANNUAL APDA FEE, INTROS CATALOG 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00020)

APPLE WAIVES ANNUAL APDA FEE, INTROS CATALOG 08/09/91
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- To make it
easier to access development tools from Apple and third parties,
Apple Computer is no longer requiring an annual subscription fee to
purchase development products through APDA. Additionally, the
company also announced a new product catalog, called the APDA
Tools Catalog.

According to Apple, APDA serves more than 25,000 customers, and
 offers worldwide access to over 300 development tools
and resources, including prerelease versions of software and
documentation, for anyone interested in development on Apple
platforms.

Kirk Loevner, director of the Apple Developer Group, said: "By
eliminating the subscription fee, developers can now gain access to
those tools at no additional cost. In addition, the new APDA Tools
Catalog helps developers find the products best suited to their needs."

The annual subscription fee was $20 to $35 depending on location.
To purchase prerelease products through APDA, the company
says that customers are required to sign an APDA Terms and
Conditions form found in the APDA Tools Catalog, which is then
kept on file and covers all future prerelease product purchases.

APDA products can also be licensed through Apple Software
Licensing.

The APDA Tools Catalog replaces the APDAlog. Apple says it
was responding to customer feedback by redesigning the catalog's
format to make it easier to use. It features over 300 Apple and
third-party development products including technical resources,
training products, languages and environments, debuggers,
programming libraries, networking and communications tools, and
reference books.

The 144-page APDA Tools Catalog contains four-color product
photographs, screen shots, and detailed product descriptions
including system requirements, and licensing notes where
applicable. Customers receive a complete catalog sourcebook
twice a year, and quarterly updates between sourcebooks will
highlight both new and key products.

(Ian Stokell/19910809/Press Contact: Jackie Promes, Apple
Computer Inc., 408-974-3609)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 US WEST TO TRY OUT INTELLIGENT NET IN OCTOBER 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00021)

US WEST TO TRY OUT INTELLIGENT NET IN OCTOBER 08/09/91
BOULDER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- US West will
begin a technical trial of new software designed to reduce the
time it takes to deploy new services in Boulder starting this
October. The trials will take place on 4 AT&T 5ESS digital
switches, and run through 1992. The switches were modified by
AT&T for the test.

It's the first trial by a regional Bell company of the Advanced
Intelligent Network specifications issued by Bellcore, the Bells'
research arm, last May. The trial will include use of an outside
computer to deliver new services, instead of relying only on the
switch.

Services to be set up and tested include Cancel Call Waiting;
Transfer to Voice Messaging; Automatic Call Back; Improved 3-Way
Calling; and Customer Usage Information.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910809/Press Contact: AT&T, Jeanne Snell,
303/290-5652; U S West, Stephen Holder, 303/541-4066)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 ALLNET COMPLAINS FCC CAN'T HANDLE PHONE COMPLAINTS 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00022)

ALLNET COMPLAINS FCC CAN'T HANDLE PHONE COMPLAINTS 08/09/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Allnet, a small
U.S. long distance company based in Michigan, says the Federal
Communications Commission is so far behind in handling complaints
against local telephone companies that cases begun now will
likely still be pending in 1995.

Severe understaffing and an alleged bias favoring AT&T resulted in
72% of cases failing to meet the congressionally required 15-month
time limit for resolving complaints, the study said. The study was based
on FCC data on 1,419 complaints filed between 1984 and 1991. The
complaints, mainly against local Bell telephone companies, range
from unreasonable rates to an array of anti-competitive
activities.

In 1988, Congress required a 15-month time limit for FCC to
complete deliberations on formal complaints against telephone
carriers. The complaint about AT&T bias is based on the fact that
while the phone giant has filed the most complaints since 1985,
it has the highest percentage of resolved complaints, with only seven
percent unresolved.

Allnet's study is sure to get a hearing from the U.S. Congress,
where Rep. Bill Richardson of New Mexico has called the FCC on
the carpet over similar data. Chairman Alfred Sikes blamed
understaffing in his testimony on the subject in July, adding
most AT&T complaints are resolved only because it is willing to
accept settlements. But the study may also get a hearing from FCC
Commissioners Ervin Duggan, Sherrie Marshall and Andrew Barrett,
who overruled Sikes' recent attempts to lift most regulation from
AT&T, citing concerns it might abuse its dominant position in the
long-distance market. The commissioners, however, only get a
chance to vote on specific subjects, while the chairman is in
charge of day-to-day operations of the agency.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910809/Press Contact: Roy Morris, Allnet,
202-293-0593)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 PACTEL ACQUIRES TWO RURAL GEORGIA CELLULAR SYSTEMS 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00023)

PACTEL ACQUIRES TWO RURAL GEORGIA CELLULAR SYSTEMS 08/09/91
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- PacTel, which is
BellSouth's competitor in the Atlanta cellular market, acquired two
Georgia Rural Service Areas so it can expand its coverage area
north of the city. The Chattooga and Jasper areas cover over
300,000 potential customers in 14 counties north of the city, but
they're also key tourist sites for many of PacTel's Atlanta-area
customers. Terms of the acquisitions were not disclosed.

Specifically, the Chattooga RSA borders the northwest side of
Atlanta, connecting Atlanta to Chattanooga via Interstate 75.
The Jasper RSA borders the eastern side of Atlanta and Athens and
is contiguous to the Atlanta, Athens, Macon, Augusta and
Anderson, South Carolina. It includes Interstate 20, which
connects Atlanta to Augusta.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19910809/Press Contact: PacTel Cellular, Carol
Kilgore, 404/368-7227)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 NINTENDO LAUNCHES MASSIVE EUROPEAN MARKET STRATEGY 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00024)

NINTENDO LAUNCHES MASSIVE EUROPEAN MARKET STRATEGY 08/09/91
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Nintendo, the creator of the
blockbuster Family Computer, has launched a campaign to sell its
overseas version of Family Computer called NES in the European
market. The move is part of Nintendo's strategy to shake out rival
Sega Enterprises.

Nintendo has created its 100-percent owned subsidiary in Germany.
The German subsidiary has already signed an agreement with a
local department store and has opened a special sales area for NES
at the department store. The area is called "World of Nintendo."
Nintendo is planning to create this kind of special sales display at
other department stores and major toy shops in Italy, France,
England, and Spain. Nintendo wants to sell 10 million units of the
game machine in Europe by the end of 1992.

Nintendo will also push the sales of a pocket version of NES --
"Game Boy" -- in the European market. Eight million units are expected
to be sold in Europe by the end of 1992.

The 16-bit version, Super Famicom, will be introduced in Europe
in early 1993. It is already a big seller in Japan.

Nintendo is well ahead of Sega's sales in Japan, but not in Europe
where the two rivals are neck-in-neck. Sega Enterprises has been
selling a similar game machine in Europe. Both firms have sold 2.5
million game machines there, respectively. Sega has purchased the
game machine division of Virgin group and is trying to beef up
sales in Europe. So, the game machine sales is expected to come to
a climax this Christmas season in Europe.

(Masayuki Miyazawa/19910809/Press Contact: Nintendo, +81-75-541-
6111)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 CRYSTAL DEFECTS = HIGH-POWER SUPERCONDUCTORS 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00025)

CRYSTAL DEFECTS = HIGH-POWER SUPERCONDUCTORS 08/09/91
YORKTOWN HEIGHTS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) --
Researchers at IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center, Oak Ridge
National Laboratory in Tennessee, The Argonne National Lab, and
the Iowa State University's Ames Laboratory, have jointly
developed a method that allows the creation of a high-temperature
superconductor made of yttrium, barium, and copper oxide (YBCO)
to carry higher currents than ever before.

By bombarding the superconductor crystals with a high-energy beam
(580 million electron volts) of tin ions (atoms of the metal tin
with some of the electrons stripped away), scientists have
created deliberate defects in the crystal structure. The defects
consist of tiny columns of non-superconducting materials within
the crystals which constrict the motion of external magnetic
fields that would otherwise increase electrical resistance.

The 1 Tesla (a standard measure of magnetic fields) magnetic
fields imposed on crystals in the tests are about 20,000 times
the strength of the Earth's field and are typical of those found
in permanent magnets, thus similar to those found in electric
motors.

A maximum current density of 450,000 amps per square centimeter
was achieved before the superconducting properties broke down.
This is comparable to the current carrying capacity of crystals
modified by the earlier proton (hydrogen ion) bombardment
technique, but for the larger magnetic fields encountered in many
critical applications the tin-bombarded crystals were able to
carry high currents where the proton-bombarded crystals failed.

Although the YBCO superconducting crystals are referred to as
"high-temperature," that is only a relative term since they
operate at minus-190 degrees C and must be cooled with liquid
nitrogen which boils at 77 Kelvin (-196 degrees C, or -320
degrees F) when held at sea-level pressure. Earlier low-
temperature superconductors lost their superconducting properties
(the ability to carry current without resistance and resulting
power loss) at about 1 to 3 degrees Kelvin, just above absolute
zero where all molecular motion stops.

Temperatures near 0 degrees K are very difficult to achieve, but
liquid nitrogen is readily available and inexpensive.

Superconductive materials are important in closely packed
components of supercomputers as well as high-energy research
particle accelerators which must use massive amounts of
electricity to power large magnets.

Many other applications, including the creation of extremely
sensitive instruments such as magnetometers to measure tiny
changes in magnetic fields (useful in locating oil and mineral
deposits), require the low-noise features of superconductivity,
as do such commercial applications as Mag-Lev or magnetic
levitation trains.

These are only laboratory experiments but confirm present
superconductor theory and could lead to significant advances.

But superconducting computers may not be all that far in the
future. The October 22, 1990, Electronic Engineering Times
reported that TRW's Redondo Beach, California-based Space &
Technology Group had created the first YBCO integrated circuit.

Details of the research results are carried in a paper published
in the July 29 issue of Physical Review Letters.

Authors of the paper are Leonardo Civale, Alan D. Marwick, Thomas
K. Worthington, Lia Krusin-Elbaum, and Frederic H. Holtzberg
(IBM); James R. Thompson and Yangren Sun (ORNL); Mark Kirk (ANL);
and John R. Clem (Ames).

The first high-temperature semiconductors were developed at an
IBM research facility in Zurich, Switzerland.

(John McCormick/19910809/Press Contact: Dr. Gerald Present, IBM,
914-945-3884)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 UNISYS WINS FAA CONTRACT 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00026)

UNISYS WINS FAA CONTRACT 08/09/91
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- The Federal Aviation
Administration has awarded financially troubled Unisys a $274
million contract to upgrade air traffic control systems in the U.S. Unisys
reported a debt of $3.3 billion at the end of the first quarter of 1991
with a $1.3 billion second quarter loss.

Last month Unisys said that it intended to lay off 12 percent, or
10,000 of its 80,000 staff. The company cut its workforce by
about 5,000 last year.

$185 million of this much-needed federal windfall is an extension
of the 1989 automated radar terminal system contract which Unisys
is completing for the FAA, but there was also a separate $87.7
million deal to upgrade control systems at 130 smaller airports.

Unisys recently agreed to plead guilty to fraud and bribery in a
case involving Pentagon contracts and is expected to pay a $190
million fine.

On September 15, Unisys is obligated to repay $300 million in
public debt.

Unisys is the company formed when Burroughs Corp. bought Sperry
Corp. back in 1986.

(John McCormick/19910809/Press Contact: Mark Lipscomb, Unisys,
215-986-6948)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 SUN MICROSYSTEMS EARNINGS GO THROUGH THE ROOF 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00027)

SUN MICROSYSTEMS EARNINGS GO THROUGH THE ROOF 08/09/91
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- The latest
results from Sun Microsystems suggest one reason why Apple and IBM have
become strange bedfellows and a few dozen manufacturers formed the ACE
(Advanced Computing Environment) consortium. Sun Microsystems'
workstation market share continues to increase as does its revenue --
a massive 31 percent increase in revenue for the fiscal year 1991
over 1990.

For fiscal year 1991, revenues were $3.221 billion, up 31 percent
from the $2.466 billion reported in fiscal year 1990. Net income for
fiscal year 1991 increased more than 70 percent to $190.3 million, or
$1.85 per share, from the $111.2 million, or $1.21 per share, of
fiscal year 1990.

Revenues for the fourth quarter were $942.5 million, a 35 percent
increase over the $700.1 million reported in the like period a year
ago. Net income for the quarter also increased 35 percent to $66.4
million, or 63 cents per share, from the $49.1 million, or 51 cents
per share, for the corresponding period a year ago.

Kevin C. Melia, Sun's chief financial officer, said, not surprisingly:
"It was an excellent quarter for us in all material respects. We
reported record revenues, bookings and earnings, and we ended
the year with $834 million in our cash portfolio and a balance sheet
that has never been stronger."

The company says that it shipped 49,000 units in the quarter, with
the SPARCstation 2 accounting for the most sales.

"We enjoyed considerable success in all three major geographies --
the United States, Europe and the Pacific Rim," said Melia.

(Ian Stokell/19910809/Press Contact: Thomas J. Meredith, Sun
Microsystems Inc., 415-336-0245)
#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 JUDGE UPHOLDS IBM'S PIRACY VICTORY OVER AMI 08/09/91

08/09/91


(NEWS)(GOVT)(NYC)(00028)

JUDGE UPHOLDS IBM'S PIRACY VICTORY OVER AMI 08/09/91
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- IBM has
announced that U.S. District Judge Thomas N. O'Neill, Jr. has reaffirmed
an earlier ruling that Allen-Myland, Inc. (AMI), a computer servicing
company, copied and distributed IBM software in violation of U.S.
copyright laws.

Judge O'Neill also found that AMI owes IBM several million dollars in
contractual fees, and he asked a special master to recommend both
injunctive relief and the amount of additional monetary damages for
copyright infringement and breach of contract. The ruling, made on
August second in Philadelphia, upholds the judge's ruling in September
1990 that AMI had pirated IBM software known as "3090
microcode."

At the time, Judge O'Neill also found that AMI distributed modified
versions of 3090 microcode with labels that misled customers into
believing the software was created and distributed by IBM.

IBM spokesperson Brian Doyle, in a conversation with Newsbytes,
reviewed the chronology of the case, saying, "The case began in 1985
when AMI, a suburban Philadelphia firm, sued IBM charging various
anti-trust violations. In 1988 Judge O'Neill found in favor of IBM on
most of the allegations and reserved decision on the remaining
charges. In 1990, IBM entered counterclaims against AMI and, in
September 1990, the judge both dismissed the remaining anti-trust
charges and found for IBM on the piracy issue. AMI subsequently
contested the ruling which the judge reaffirmed on August second."

Doyle continued, "We now must wait for the special master's
recommendation on the injunctive and damages issues and the
judge's subsequent ruling on these matters."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/Press Contact: Brian D. Doyle,
IBM, 914-765-6432/19910809)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 MICROSOFT READIES NEW WINDOWS SOFTWARE 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00029)

MICROSOFT READIES NEW WINDOWS SOFTWARE 08/09/91
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1991 AUG 9 (NB) -- Although Microsoft officials aren't
talking openly about it, sources in the industry are talking about plans
the company has to launch a swathe of new products, all of which have been
specifically designed for the Microsoft Windows graphical user interface
(GUI) environment.

The first product on the near horizon is a new version of Word for Windows.
Called Word 2.0, the package will retail for $495 and ship before the end
of the year in the U.S. According to Microsoft, the package integrates the
ruler and ribbon features of earlier versions, as well as introducing a new
internal icon facility.

The icon facility allows small programs and macros to be run from within
the Word environment. Another feature is a new drag and drop facility for
text blocks within the package. This avoids the need to cut and paste data
as is required with current packages.

The second product on the Windows horizon is a new accounting package -- as
yet untitled -- that is being developed by Great Plains Software.
The new MS-Windows 3.0 accountancy package will feature much of the
modularity of Accounting version 6.0  software.

Shipment of the Accountancy for Windows package has been scheduled for
early next year, say sources close to Microsoft. Officially, the company is
making no comment.

(Steve Gold/19910809)

#ENDCARD
#CARD::1991 AUG 9 UK: RPL TELECOM ACQUIRES SELTEK 08/09/91

08/09/91

(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00030)

UK: RPL T