Newsbytes - Internationa…ews 1983 May to 1994 June/Newsbytes - International Computing Industry News 1994 Edition - May 1983 - June 1994 - Wayzata Technologies (5045) (1994).iso/mac/Text/Mac Text/1986/V154

Text File | 1991-08-09 | 50KB | 1,077 lines

[***][5/6/86][***]
FORMER PARTI MANAGER GETS 10 YEARS IN PRISON:
Diane Worthington Stepak, arrested last August and accused of
operating one of the largest LSD manufacturing and sales rings
in the U.S., has been convicted and sentenced to 10 years in
prison.  Her husband, Paul Stepak, a former resident physician
at San Francisco General Hospital, received a 7-year term.
The SF judge imposed the harsh sentence on Mrs. Stepak, both
because, said, the pair were key figures in a vast and
sophisticated operation and supplied the fuel for millions
of acid trips for almost 20 years, and because Mrs. Stepak
had three prior drug-related convictions.

The couple and their supporters wept openly when the judge
announced their sentence.  Their attorneys still contend
they were not the ringleaders of the operation, but they were
forced into sales of LSD by Bernard Neil Hassal, who was
convicted on LSD distribution charges earlier last month and
sentenced to five years in prison.

Mr. and Mrs. Stepak, who have three teenage daughters, will
serve their time in a nearby Pleasanton correctional facility.
Diane Stepak, until her arrest, had been a popular figure among
Parti users on The Source.  Her arrest sparked the most active
Parti conference in Source history (type PARTI R "DIANE").

[***][5/6/86][***]
SCULLEY TALKS TO ANALYSTS:
Apple president John Sculley held a closed-door session with
selected financial analysts last week in SF, promising them that Apple
will deliver good earnings for the rest of 1986 while increasing
investment in sales, marketing, and product development to
generate revenue growth in 1987.  He added that all product
development plans are on schedule, but decline to name which
products they may be.  He did say, however, that at some
point in the future, Apple will offer Unix and MS-DOS options
for its Macintosh workstations.

Meanwhile, Apple is celebrating its latest court victory (for more
see NEWSBYTES-CANADA's lead story) in which, during a full-blown
trial, Apple won a copyright suit against firms selling clones
of the Apple II.

[***][5/6/86][***]
COMMODORE TELLS ALL:
In a rare kind of press release, Commodore has offered a "sneak
preview" of products it will display at the Summer Consumer
Electronics Show.

 -The first personal computer priced under $200 offering "the
graphics style user interface found on the most powerful and
advanced PCs."

 -Two IBM compatible computers "with a wide range of enhancements
including color graphics boards as standard equipment."

 -A "new entertainment feature from Lucasfilms to be offered on
the rapidly-growing Quantumlink entertainment computer network."

 -New compact 3.5" disk drives to "enhance the performance and
convenience of the C64 and C128 series."

 -New color monitor and dot matrix printer "cosmetically matched
for the C64/128 series."

Now that's what I call a press release!

Meanwhile, Commodore's Gail Wellington confirmed to me at Comdex that
yes, indeed, the world premier of the Amiga was in Budapest,
Hungary last year to correspond with a European trade show.  The
machine was just a prototype, she says.

CONTACT:  Marie Mason, GELTZER & COMPANY, 1180 Avenue of the
          Americas, New York, NY  10036  212/575-1976

[***][5/6/86][***]
PICTUREPHONE DEBUTS:
It looks like a little Sony Watchman sitting atop a combination
phone/answering machine.  But the little face peering at you is
not Dan Rather, it's the person to whom you're speaking.  Luma
Telecom, a division of Mitsubishi, unveiled the Luma picturephone
last week, billed as the "first visual telephone for everyday
use."  The 8-pound Luma sends and receives black and white
"freeze-frame" snapshots of the callers every one to five
seconds across standard telephone lines while an ordinary
conversation is in progress.  At $1,450/unit, it consists of
a screen, camera and phone.  Luma Telecom spokesmen expect
a lower-priced consumer version will be on the market by
next year; this model is primarily aimed at businesses.  Also
available is a $1,000 accessory video printer.  Luma
expects to begin shipments of the videophone within 90 days.

CONTACT:  Roy Elkins, LUMA TELECOM, 3350 Scott Boulevard,
          Santa Clara, Ca. 95054  408/970-9555

[***][5/6/86][***]
CUTTING THE CORDS:
Motorola, based in Schaumburg, Illinois, has asked the FCC
for permission to use government-controlled frequencies for
the cordless networking of computer terminals.  Motorola
says its wireless terminals would eliminate the clutter of
cables, and be able to pick up data from a distance of up
to 500 feet within office buildings.  Under the proposal,
Motorola customers would also have to agree to return to
cables if the broadcasts interfere with government
transmissions such as weather satellites.

[***][5/6/86][***]
SOFTWARE PUBLISHING DROPS COPY PROTECTION:
Bowing to demands of users, Software Publishing has decided
to remove copy protection from all its programs and all future
programs.  "Our top priority is customer satisfaction," says
Jenelle Bedke, VP and GM.  All owners of copy-protected
software from the firm, who have registered, will receive free
non-copy-protected versions.  At this reading, that leaves
just a handful of top-selling software which remains copy-
protected.

Fred Gibbons, S. Pub's president, showed up at Comdex, bearing only
a stiff arm to remind of his accident on the slopes last year.
News also broke that he has joined Electronic Arts' Board of
Directors.  He says, "We can both learn a lot by comparing notes."

CONTACT:  Kim Domino, SOFTWARE PUBLISHING, 1901 Landings Dr.,
          Mountain View, Ca.  415/962-8910

[***][5/6/86][***]
FIRST IN LINE FOR FIRST SOFTWARE:
First Software's bankruptcy this week (See NEWSBYTES-NORTHEAST)
has debtors lining up for their due.  Among them is MicroPro
International, a member of First Software's creditor's committee,
to which the firm owes $1.4 million.  Meanwhile, Mary Fallon of
THE SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS reports that the white knight for First
Software may be none other than John Martin-Musemeci, who last
made news by successfully suing Computerland for breach of an
initial investment contract.

[***][5/6/86][***]
IN BRIEF--

 ....PORTIA ISAACSON and EGIL JULIUSSEN are featured on "Lifestyles
of the Rich and Famous" this month.  They'll be showing off their
new high-tech home.

 ....ADAM OSBORNE, who cancelled out of a key Comdex panel on
software pricing, did so the day after the last of the old Osborne
Computer was sold to the highest bidder in a Fremont auction....
Was he in mourning?

 ...Meanwhile, John Dvorak says Osborne may have nailed down a huge
government site license agreement for his VP PLANNER.

 ...Steve Jobs just got IBM contractor Paul Rand to do a corporate
logo for his firm NEXT, INC.  How did he swing it?  Reportedly he
called IBM chairman John Akers personally on the phone.  Akers
said ok.

 ...MEMOREX CORPORATION of Santa Clara has just given walking
papers to 300 (7%) of its staff.  The Burroughs unit which makes
disk drives for IBM compatible mainframes blames the layoffs
on losses and stiff competition.

 ...ASSIMILATION PROCESS of Los Gatos, maker of software and
peripherals for Apple's Macintosh, has been hit with a writ of
attachment which freezes its assets while a lawsuit against it
is in effect.  Several companies charge the firm with not paying
its bills.

 ...BORLAND has started shipping "Turbo Prolog", its "5th
generation language development system".  The $99.95 entry into
AI for Borland was announced in March.

 ...THE ASSOCIATION FOR INFORMATION AND IMAGE MANAGEMENT sponsors
four in-depth seminars on optical disk technology in conjunction
with the AIIM Expo, being held at San Francisco's Moscone Center
May 13-15.  Over 20 companies will display optical disk equipment.
CONTACT:  Don Dowd, DOWD COMMUNICATIONS, 415/593-9899


[***][5/6/86][***]
ATLANTA'S BIG SHOW
Atlanta companies went all-out to make Spring Comdex as memorable
as they could. Hayes put out a half-card 1200-baud modem and
hosted a food frenzy at the Omni International Hotel. DCA showed
off its new Smart Alec product line (the ads imply that IRMA now
has a bratty kid) for the first time and gave Temptation fans the
best show seen here in years. Quadram brought out its newest
Datavue, new boards, (including a Datavue PC-compatible computer
board), and enhancements to the Quadlaser printer. They
also drew 4,800 to hear Barbara Mandrell at the Fox.

Immediately after the show, all roads in the vicinity were being
renamed after Coca-Cola products (it's their 100th birthday this
week) and the Omni complex itself announced it's changing its
name to CNN Plaza.

[***][5/6/86][***]
SHOWING THE FLAG
It's what most Texas Comdexers, such as Tandy and Compaq, did.
Both companies made their major spring announcements well in
advance. Tandy's booth looked like the Dallas Infomart, complete
with skylight, while Compaq went for music videos. Smug, right?
Going to get their comeuppance, right? Just the opposite. Compaq
reported net income for the quarter ending March 31 reached $8.3
million, 27 cents per share fully diluted, up 80% from the $4.6
million of a year ago, on sales of $144 million ($97 million for
the first quarter last year). The 1985 numbers were good enough
to make Compaq #463 in the Fortune 500.

CONTACT: Jeff Stives, COMPAQ, 20555 FM 149, Houston, TX 77070
         [phone]

[***][5/6/86][***]
TECH DATA GOES PUBLIC
Who says a mom-and-pop outfit can't make it big in the micro
business anymore? Don't try to tell Edward Raymund that. His
company, Tech Data Inc. of Clearwater, FL, went public April 23
in a $9.75 million deal managed by Robinson-Humphrey, Atlanta.

Tech Data started out in the late 1970s, distributing tape and
floppy disks. They moved into wholesaling boards and other
peripherals in the early 1980s. In the last two years they've
added Altos and Sharp computers to the line. Trailing earnings
for the year ended January 31 were $904,000 on sales of about
$37.7 million. At the recent selling price of  $9.75 per share,
the price/earnings multiple for this small distributor is about
30, higher than IBM. What a country.

CONTACT: TECH DATA, 5777 Meyerlake Circle, Clearwater, FL 33520
         [phone]

[***][5/6/86][***]
TRANSEC SYSTEMS' UNLOCK REMOVES COPY PROTECTION
TranSec Systems of Plantation FL doesn't just want to help you
get around copy protection schemes. Their UnLock system removes
it completely from the target disk. "The copy you create will not
have the copy protection on it. It's used on dBase III,
Framework, Lotus, Microsoft Word, and works against major copy
protection schemes such as Safeguard, ProLok and others," said a
spokesman.

Pricing is rather unusual, too. For $15 they'll sell you a copy
of UnLock with only a scheme for defeating Lotus 1-2-3
protection. For $75 you'll get the "best of UnLock", 7 programs
to remove copy protection from a whole bunch of stuff.

CONTACT: John Griffith, TRANSEC SYSTEMS, 1802-200 North
         University Drive, Plantation, FL 33322

[***][5/6/86][***]
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
PC World publisher David Bunnell had Air Atlanta chairman Michael
Hollis speak to his dinner at the High Museum during Comdex last
week. Reports are the crowd loved the speech, in particular the
quote that follows.

A word, though, on Hollis. He built his Air Atlanta Corp. with
venture capital, has had to change managers and route structures,
has usually lost money and just recently had to ask for yet-more
city of Atlanta help, based on the fact that the company is local
and Mr. Hollis is black. Nothing against playing the hand life's
dealt you as well as you can...just that the speaker is no Rod
Canion on growth, and his return on equity is not setting any
records. Still, Mr. Hollis does come from the great Atlanta
rhetorical tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King (Jr. and Sr.): he
can speechify, and here's part of what he said.

"Freedom isn't black. Freedom isn't white. Freedom isn't red,
white or blue. Freedom is green."

Rev. Ike couldn't have said it better.



[***][5/6/86][***]
BAD NEWS FOR EAGLE INVESTORS
"We have not been able to find appropriate financing and we are
not certain we will be able to do so."  That's the way Eagle
Computer president Gary Kappenman decided to tell investors that
the Garden Grove-based firm lost $2 million in its third fiscal
quarter.  Kappenman also stated in the letter accompanying the
firm's financial results that Eagle's ability to continue as a
going concern "is dependent upon receiving additional financing"
and "the forbearance" of its creditors.  The computer maker,
after posting sales of $2.5 million in last year's third
quarter, only showed $816,000 on the deposit slips this time.
Continuing his gloomy assessment, Kappenman closed his report to
stockholders by saying, "The company has spoken to a number of
potential investors; however, no negotiations are substantial
enough to ensure that an investment will be made and there can
be no assurances that additional investors can be located."
Eagle designs and markets the Eagle Concorde, an advanced
minicomputer.

CONTACT:  Eagle Computer, 7100 Chapman Ave., Garden Grove, CA
          [phone]

[***][5/6/86][***]
TANDON CONTINUES PROFIT STREAK
For the second quarter in a row, Tandon Corporation has posted a
profit.  The company reported earnings of $1.9 million for the
three months ended March 28, compared with a loss of nearly $20
million last year.  One component of the black ink was certainly
a $440,000 tax credit from loss carryforwards.  Also, the
Chatsworth company received an unspecified amount from Sony and
Teac as a result of out-of-court copyright infringement
settlements.  Tandon watchers estimate that the firm has
received about $10 million since last summer when the payments
started.

CONTACT:  Tandon Corp., 20320 Prairie, Chatsworth, CA 91311
          [phone]

[***][5/6/86][***]
FIRE CLAIMS L.A. LIBRARY COMPUTER BOOKS
In a multiple-alarm fire that nearly destroyed the historic Los
Angeles Central Library last week, the institution's entire
computer and technical book section was consumed by flames.
Firemen, hindered by narrow rows of book stacks and the lack of
a sprinkler system, couldn't save the hundreds of technical
programming volumes.  "Once the first stack got going, it was
good-bye Charlie," said Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman
Capt. Tony DiDomenico.  Also destroyed were thousands of
irreplaceable technical trade journals and computer business
periodicals.  The few remaining computer books and magazines are
being stored at the L.A. Convention Center while restorers
attempt to repair water and mildew damage to the volumes.
NEWSBYTES-LOS ANGELES recommends that any donations of computer
books and periodicals by either corporations or individuals be
coordinated using the contact information below.

CONTACT:  Office of the Mayor, Room 305, City Hall, Los Angeles,
          CA 90012   (213) 486-BOOK

[***][5/6/86][***]
UC LIBRARIES COMBINE ONLINE ACCESS
The University of California MELVYL online library catalog has
been joined by the National Library of Medicine's MEDLINE
service, giving UC students access to a single computer system
that can index medical book and journal articles simultaneously.
The project, completed with a $521,000 grant, "allows faster and
better access to resources for researchers by overcoming a
century-old separation between bibliographies and catalogs,"
said UC assistant vice president for library planning Michael
Buckland.  The service will be "beta tested" at the UC system's
five biomedical libraries, located at UCLA, UC Davis, UC Irvine,
UC San Diego and UC San Francisco.  After the trial, the system
will be expanded to include the more than 100 libraries within
the nine UC campuses.

[***][5/6/86][***]
PROFITS RETURN, ARRAYS FOR THEM
Software publisher Arrays of Los Angeles has posted a $10,031
profit in its first fiscal quarter, despite a 41.6-percent
decline in sales.  Income for the maker of Tax Advantage and
Home Accountant was posted at $1.1 million for the three months,
down from $1.9 million a year ago.  The profit, the first in
several quarters, is due to cost-saving measures, a company
spokesman said.  "We've significantly lowered our break-even
point," said president James Buddle.  Most of the cost savings
came at the expense of the firm's workforce, which was halved
from 90 to 45 last year.

[***][5/6/86][***]
BEACHBITS

>>>  Computer Sciences Corp. of El Segundo says it received a
     $55-million contract from the U.S. Army for technical
     support services.  The agreement is with the Army's
     Information Systems Engineering Command.

>>>  Dataproducts Corp. of Woodland Hills reports that Jack
     Davis, a former Harris Corp. senior v.p., will replace
     Graham Tyson as Chairman and CEO.  Dataproducts is
     reportedly the nation's largest independent manufacturer of
     computer printers.

>>>  Wyle Laboratories of El Segundo has won a $5.5 million
     extension to a contract with NASA's Jet Propulsion
     Laboratory to manage environmental and space-simulation
     labs.



[***][5/6/86][***]
THINKING MACHINES UNVEILS CONNECTION MACHINE:
It looks like something out of science fiction--a five-foot
square computer made up of eight interlocking cubes. On four of
the cube surfaces are 512 flashing LEDs that show system status.
The Connection Machine was introduced by Cambridge, MA-based
Thinking Machines Corporation (TMC) this past Thursday. Nearly
four years in development, the Connection Machine performs ONE
BILLION calculations per second, using (depending on the model)
between 16,000 and 64,000 interconnected custom processors. TMC,
founded in 1982 with nearly $18 million dollars in venture
capital, has attracted some big names. William Paley and Frank
Stanton (of CBS) are on the board of directors; and Marvin Minsky
-- the father of artificial intelligence -- is a founding
scientist. The Connection Machine is the first in a series of
promised products from TMC. If you have need for something faster
than your 8 MHz PC AT clone, a Connection Machines will set you
back between $1 million and $3 million. So far, the company has
sold six of the machines, mainly to major universities.

CONTACT:  Thinking Machines Corp., Cambridge, MA 617-876-1111

[***][5/6/86][***]
FIRST SOFTWARE FILES FOR CHAPTER 11.
Lawrence, MA-based software distributor First Software filed for
Chapter 11 last week, and spent this week struggling to develop a
plan to reimburse creditors for some $18 million in debts. Top
among the creditors are Lotus Development (owed $1.4 million);
Micropro International (owed $1.2 million) and Satellite Software
(owed $761,000). Exactly who owns a majority stake in First
Software is muddying the company's attempt to reorganize. Last
month, Solitaire, Inc. of Hayward, CA (parent company of the west
coast Softwaire Centers International), purchased 50% of First
Software. From there, the situation gets even more confusing.
According to one source, Solitaire actually has 51% of voting
rights in First Software because the distributor failed to meet
an estimated sales figure. And another source says Solitaire
offered First Software a financing package to avoid Chapter 11 in
exchange for a 51% share. In any case, Solitaire is now claiming
majority control of First Software and wants to bring in former
Bendix chairman William Agee to run the company. At press time,
the situation remained up in the air.

CONTACT:  First Software, 17-21 Ballard Way, Lawrence, MA 01845,
          617-689-0077

[***][5/6/86][***]
IBM CONCERNED ABOUT MERGERS:
The hard times in computer retailing, and the numerous mergers of
stores and chains, has IBM concerned about its dealer channels.
This past week, IBM sent a memo to all its authorized dealers
telling them they must officially notify IBM if they merge or
sell their dealership, close a location, or close one or more
stores. The kicker is that IBM is giving dealers no assurance
that they'll remain as authorized dealers after they notify IBM.
Big Blue said a decision whether dealers will remain authorized
depends on a wide range of criteria including past performance,
compliance with existing IBM requirements, and "IBM's current
plans." Failure to notify IBM about any of the changes results in
-- you guessed it!

In other IBM news, Big Blue introduced a wide-carriage (132-
column) version of their popular Proprinter dot-matrix printer.
The Proprinter XL model 4202 retails for $799; as opposed to $549
for the standard-width model 4201. The XL is being manufactured
in Charlotte, NC. Like the PC Portable, it's completely
manufactured by custom IBM robotic systems.

CONTACT:  IBM, Old Orchard Road, Armonk, NY 10504, 914-765-9600

[***][5/6/86][***]
DEC PRESIDENT WOWS THE ANALYSTS:
Digital Equipment Corporation president Ken Olsen, who heads
what's suddenly become the hottest computer company around, was
the center of attention this past Monday when he addressed the
New York Society of Securities Analysts. A spokesperson for the
group said Olsen's appearance brought the largest attendance in
five years. The optimistic Olsen attributed DEC's success to its
wide range of products, and said that there's "no-way" a single-
product company will succeed in today's computer industry. Olsen
underlined his belief that the computer slump can be directly
attributed to a decline of American manufacturing, and he blamed
companies for "overmarketing and overselling."

In other DEC news this week:

-- The National Football League's college football draft, which
was held Tuesday in New York City, was helped along by a network
of MicroVAX II supermicrocomputers linking all 28 teams involved
in the draft to headquarters at NYC's Marquis Marriott Hotel. The
system, used for the first time this year, allowed the teams to
receive instant information as each round was concluded. In the
past, nervous potential draft picks had to pace around telephones
waiting for the news. Teams also had to wait up to two days for
complete reports on the draft picks. All 28 teams recently signed
a four-year agreement with DEC to use MicroVAX II-based All-In-1
office information systems. After the draft, all teams will
remain linked to the NFL's headquarters in NYC.

-- DEC introduced an updated version of their LN03 laser printer.
The LN03 Plus has one megabyte of internal memory, prints eight
pages a minute, and has 18 built-in fonts. In keeping with DEC's
engineering/scientific orientation, the new printer can also
directly print Tektronix vector graphics. The LN03 Plus retails
for $4995, and LN03 owners can upgrade for $1595. The plain
vanilla LN03 remains available, with its price reduced to $3495.

CONTACT:  Digital Equipment Corporation, The Mill, Maynard, MA
          01754, 617-897-5111

[***][5/6/86][***]
MASSACHUSETTS BUYS NEC FINGERPRINT COMPUTER:
Though they seldom get much press about it, NEC has had a great
deal of success developing rather esoteric vertical applications
for their minicomputers. Last year, when the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts asked for bids on a computerized fingerprint-
identification systems, NEC was the only company to bid and
received the contract. Now, the system is about to be set up. The
system, running on a NEC Astra computer, will use NEC-developed
custom software that will map spatial relationships between the
individual whorls on fingerprints. In the past, fingerprint
specialists broke down fingerprints by distinctive features and
attempted the often-frustrating job of making a match.
Installation of the system will create 100 new jobs at a center
which will digitize the half-million fingerprints that
Massachusetts has on file. Police departments have high hopes for
the system, and say that dusting for fingerprints will become
much more common for even minor crimes.

CONTACT:  NEC Information Systems, Inc., 1414 Massachusetts Ave.,
          Boxborough, MA 01719, 617-264-8000

[***][5/6/86][***]
LEADING EDGE INTRODUCES LOW-COST MODEM:
In an attempt to cash in on the popularity of its $1495 Model D
PC compatible, Leading Edge this week introduced a 1200 baud
modem. The 1200B, which plugs directly into an expansion slot,
retails for $149.95, a new low in 1200-baud modems. The 1200B was
introduced in a series of unique full-page newspaper ads
throughout the country. The ads, with a telephone-cord graphic
and a headline that reads "Access Information," requires careful
reading to see that it's a modem ad. The copy goes to great
length to explain the advantages of getting information over the
telephone lines and only mentions the modem in passing at the
very end.

CONTACT:  Leading Edge Hardware Products, 225 Turnpike Road,
          Canton, MA 02021, 800-343-6833

[***][5/6/86][***]
WANG DROPS PC PRICES AGAIN:
Expecting IBM's price cuts on PCs, Wang Laboratories last March
cut the prices of its PC and AT compatibles. Evidently, IBM cut
their prices more than Wang expected; because Wang has cut the
prices again. Price reductions this time range between 14 and 30
percent as follows:

               MODEL                    NEW PRICE OLD PRICE
     Wang PC with dual 360K drives      $2090     $2520
     (five slots)
     Wang PC with dual 360K drives      $2395     $2795
     (eight slots)
     Wang PC with 10-meg hard drive     $2440     $3615
     (five slots)
     Wang PC with 10-meg hard drive     $2740     $3890
     (eight slots)
     Wang APC with with 1.2-meg floppy  $4990     $5495
     and 20-meg hard disk

Wang also cut prices on all their PC and APC peripherals.

CONTACT:  Wang Laboratories, One Industrial Ave., Lowell, MA
          01851, 617-459-5000

[***][5/6/86][***]
COMPUTERVISION BANKS ON CADDSTATION:
Bedford, MA-based CAD/CAM-maker Computervision, which lost $80.5
million dollars last year, introduced a new computer-aided-design
system Thursday. The company is banking on the CADDsystem, which
retails for between $60,000 and $80,000, to help turn things
around. A company spokesperson says Computervision now has $53
million in cash -- even though revenues were down $7 million this
quarter -- and expects by the end of the year to hire back
between 500 and 600 of the 1000 employees they laid off last
year. A unique feature of the CADDstation is that it's the first
non-proprietary hardware that Computervision has sold; the
computer system and terminals are made by Sun Microsystems of
Mountain View, CA. In addition, it runs Computervision's software
under UNIX, instead of the company's prior proprietary operating
systems.

CONTACT:  Computervision Corp., 201 Burlington Road, Bedford, MA
          01730, 617-275-1800


[***][5/6/86][***]
KDD'S E-MAIL SERVICE:
Japan's international telecom giant "KDD" and Mitsubishi Trading
Corp. officially established an international E-mail service
company "KDM" in Tokyo on May 1.  The new company KDM plans to
tie up with DialCom (WA, U.S.A.) and its affiliated firms to
form a worldwide network linking 13 countries.  KDM may cause
intense competition for existing E-mail service companies when the
company starts the service in October.  KDM's capital US$4.4
million has been shared by 45% for KDD, 35% for Mitsubishi
Trading, and the rest for banks, etc.

CONTACT: KDD, Tokyo, 03-347-6934 (PR. Dept.)

[***][5/6/86][***]
FUJITSU TO SUBSTITUTE AT&T'S NET1000:
Ailing conglomerate Japan ENS(JENS) is likely to gain a new
leader-- "Fujitsu"-- for its project concerning an international VAN
system.  JENS was created by AT&T and Mitsui Bussan Trading Co.
etc. in Tokyo in 1984, and Fujitsu, Hitachi and KD joined
later.  JENS has been in jeopardy since AT&T dropped its NET1000
project this past January.  According to a published report,
Fujitsu's president Yamamoto will visit AT&T in the U.S. early
this month to propose his plan to set up an international VAN,
based on Fujitsu's VAN system.  The details have not been
disclosed at the moment.  Yet, this VAN project will definitely
vie with IBM-NTT VAN in the future.  Toshiba and Intec are also
said to join JENS soon.
(KDD: Japan's International Telegraph and Telephone Corp./
NTT: Japan's Telegraph and Telephone Corp.)

CONTACT: Fujitsu, Tokyo, 03-216-3211 (PR. Dept.)

[***][5/6/86][***]
JPL TO SEEK SOFTWARE standardization:
The Japan Personal Computer Software Technical Laboratory (JPL)
was established (5/1) in Tokyo in order to standardize
and jointly developing various application software. JPL
has been created by 38 Japanese software house including Japan
SE, CSK and Konami.  Furthermore, 12 manufacturers such as NEC
and Fujitsu have been planning to join this new venture.  This
is just a first step, but a big one, towards standardization.

CONTACT: Japan Personal Computer Software Technical Laboratory,
         Tokyo, 03-404-6545

[***][5/6/86][***]
POWERFUL CAI SYSTEMS FOR MAC:
Apple Japan announced (4/30) that it will develop Japanese CAI
systems for Macintosh, in cooperation with Shimazu-Rika Instru-
ments Corp. in Tokyo.  One of the systems is a CAI development
supporting system dubbed "Authoring", which requires
no programming experience to produce CAI software.  The other is
a CAI system package "Keisoku" for chemical and scientific
experiments, intended for junior-high and up to college students.
The Authoring system and Keisoku will be released at US$1,111
and $8,333 respectively in November.

CONTACT: Apple Computer Japan, Tokyo, 03-582-9181
         Shimazu-Rika Instruments Corp., Tokyo, 03-295-0215

[***][5/6/86][***]
CSO BUYS OUT FOOTHILL RESEARCH:
The Tokyo-based package software dealer "Computer Software (CSO)"
announced (4/28) that it has purchased over 50% of the stock of
Foothill Research Inc.(FRI) in California.  With this purchase,
CSO is said to have gained an authorized dealership for FRI's
4th-generation RDB language "STYLE" in the Asian and Oceanian
market.  CSO plans to develop and release a Japanese version of
STYLE by the end of the year, a report says.

CONTACT: Computer Software, Tokyo, 03-980-0381

[***][5/6/86][***]
40-INCH FLAT-PANEL DISPLAY:
Hitachi has developed a prototype of an ultra-large plasma
display with a screen size of 40 inches.  It is only 8-mm thick.
The power consumption rate is very low, while the screen gives
an extremely clear image.  According to a published report,
Hitachi has applied for 50 - 60 patents on this plasma
display.  Wow!  Hitachi plans to release a "wall-hung" color TV
with this large display in two to three years.

CONTACT: hitachi, Tokyo, 03-258-2057 (PR. Dept.)

[***][5/6/86][***]
<<< SUKIYAKI BYTES >>>

TELECOM PROTOCOL GUIDELINE FOR OSI -- The Ministry of Inter-
national Trade and Industry (MITI) issued (5/1) a basic
guideline for telecommunication protocol, based on the OSI
standard.  This guideline has been formed in cooperation with
NTT, IBM Japan, UNIVAC Japan and six major Japanese computer
manufacturers.  MITI expects lots of manufacturers to follow
this guideline and produce so-called "standard" telecom equip-
ment in a couple of years.

TOSHIBA IN FULL-SWING -- Toshiba's spokesman has declared
"the semiconductor depression is over."  Toshiba's overall
output of semiconductors, including diode and 256K DRAM, is
expected to reach over one billion sets as of this past April.

Currently, Toshiba has been getting lots of purchase orders
for its semiconductors from manufacturers in the Southeast
Asian countries.

TI JAPAN TO PRODUCE NS32-BIT MPU -- Texas Instruments Japan will
start manufacturing a 32-bit NS32032 MPU at its Hatogaya factory
in Japan this summer.  The company is also said to be producing the
samples of a CMOS version of 32032 by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, NEC is expected to release its 32-bit V70 MPU around
December.

V20 AND V30 FROM SHARP -- Having signed a second source agreement
with NEC, Sharp will ship NEC's original V20 and V30 MPUs in
June.  The prices are between US$17 and US$21.

FUJITSU LEADS SUPERCOMPUTER RACE -- The Aerospace Technology
Institute of Japan's Scientific Technology Agency has decided to
purchase Fujitsu's supercomputer "VP-400" and large-scale general
computer "M-780".  VP-400 has a processing speed of 1G FLOPS.

[***][5/6/86][***]
NEW PACKET SWITCHING SYSTEM FOR THE UK:
Unlike the US, with its three main dial-up data networks -
Telenet, Tymnet and Uninet - British Telecom has had the
monopoly on data networking in the UK.  As mentioned in
previous NEWSBYTES UK edition, Mercury Communications looks
like changing that when their network comes gradually
onstream during '86.  Now the market for dial-up
communications looks set to take another turn as the Midland
Bank get in on the act!  Starting this August, Midland Bank
plan on expanding their data network to include public
access.  The new network will be called Fastrak and offer
3,000 access ports at more than 70 locations dotted around
the UK, thus catering for 99 per cent of the UK with local
call access, something with which BT's Packet Switch Stream
currently cannot compete.  Intending Fastrak MD, Mike Cogan is
quoted in the current edition of "Computer Weekly", a UK trade
magazine as saying Midland intend to compete on "price,
service, speed and responsiveness."

Contact: Midland Bank PLC, National Headquarters,
         Sheffield 1, Tel [phone].

[***][5/6/86][***]
COMDEX EUROPE LINES UP
Whilst the doors clanged shut on Comdex/Spring in Atlanta,
Georgia last Thursday, final preparations were under way for
Comdex Europe which is due to be held in Nice, France on
June 10th to 12th this year.  As well as the obligatory
acres of floorspace, the organisers, The Interface Group,
are planning several conferences, and a new concept -
Softheatre - billed as "a unique opportunity which allows
developers and authors of new software to demo their
products to leading publishers."  Sounds like a cattle
market to us here at NEWSBYTES UK HQ!

Contact: The Interface Group:
         France: (33)-14-788-5048
         Japan: (81)-03-271-0246
         Netherlands: (31)-206-21322
         UK: (44)-1-734-7282
         US: (1)-617-449-6600
         West Germany: (49)-89-230-35298

[***][5/6/86][***]
QL TO BE REBORN; ADVANCED VERSION DUE:
Whilst everyone was predicting the imminent demise of the
68000-based QL computer now that Amstrad have bought out
Sinclair, no one figured on the genius of the original QL's
designer, Tony Tebby. Tony headed and controlled the design
team behind the QL, but, sadly, walked out on the machine
the day before its original launch, saying (quite rightly,
as we now know), that the machine wasn't ready for the
market.  The new QL, called the QLT (well, why not?), will
be compatible with the old QL, but aside from this, the new
QL will be a quantum leap (sorry, couldn't resist that)
ahead of the old QL.  The new machine will have a full
implementation of the 68000 cpu, unlike the hybrid
architecture of the existing, original machine, sport 0.5Mb
RAM, single 3.5 inch drive (expandable to 4Mb internally)
and feature a new, much improved superbasic (with windows!).

Software comes in the form of Psion's Xchange suite,
(unlike the crippled and cutdown versions on the existing
QL).  Taking a leaf out of IBM's book, the keyboard for the
QLT will be separate from the cpu/drive unit and, again
unlike the existing QL, be a full-travel *real* keyboard.
That's the good news.  The bad news is that Tony Tebby plans
to sell the machine at a less than inspiring 500 pounds
($750) and is currently setting up a company to produce and
market the new machines, hence the anticipated 6 month delay
before the QLT hits the shops.  The machine, in prototype
form, will be on show at this coming weekend's ZX Microfair
to be held in London (which clashes somewhat with the
Commodore show - see next story).  Needless to say,
NEWSBYTES UK will be at both shows (talk about stretching
things a bit!).

[***][5/6/86][***]
COMMODORE AMIGA TO DEBUT - MAYBE?
This coming weekend sees the Commodore User show being held
at the Novatel Hotel in Hammersmith, London, (10th to 12th
May) and, needless to say, all eyes will be waiting on the
Amiga's scheduled launch at the show.  Whilst CMB UK gird
their loins for a make or break UK sorte with the Amiga,
rumours are beginning to fly that, such is the level of
demand outstripping the limited supply of Amiga's in the US,
that UK demand will be far from satisfied.  Micronet 800, an
information provider on the UK's Prestel database quotes
Chris Kayday, CBM UK's acting MD as denying rumours that
there is a shortage: "By the time of the show, there will be
thousands of Amigas in the UK and many more winding their
way through customs into distributorship."  Kayday also says
that the machine will be formally launched in the UK high
street on May 9th.  Well Chris, I'd like to believe you,
but...

Contact: Michelle Williams, Database Exhibitions,
         Europa House, 68 Chester Road,
         Stockport, SK7 5NY.
         Tel: [phone].

[***][5/6/86][***]
 ...WHILST ATARI RUN AT FULL STRETCH:
Atari's 520 and 1040 STs continue to sell like hot cakes on
both sides of the Atlantic, where most shops are doing
little more than shifting boxes.  Mind you, at these prices,
who cares?  Some people it seems.  Word from disgruntled UK
dealers is that Atari are being ultra-selective over who
they appoint as a 1040 retailer/dealer.  Reason is that they
don't offer company repairs on the 1040, instead offering a
2 per cent discount to dealers willing to shoulder the
responsibility of 1040 repairs themselves.  Frankly, whilst
the customer doesn't notice too much, there aren't that many
dealers who can undertake Atari ST repairs, and so they
often have to farm them out to third party sweatshops.

This takes time, so NEWSBYTES readers contemplating purchasing a
1040 would do well to consider this factor when selecting
the dealer from which to buy.  Meanwhile, Atari UK have announced
their intention to continue marketing First Word (the w/p
package) with the ST.  This announcement comes on top of the
company's announcement a few weeks ago that they didn't
intend to.  Make your mind up guys!  Originally, when the
520 ST was launched in the UK, it came with promises of GEM,
which were hastily replaced with special applications
software, such as First Word, as a fill-in.  The 1040, of
course, doesn't come with such applications software, and
buyers haven't been too pleased, to say the least!  Now that
Atari UK are bowing to pressure (good lads), disgruntled
users without First Word would be well advised to write to
Atari asking for a copy - it's free to bona fide ST buyers.

Contact: Customer Relations Unit, Atari UK Ltd.,
         Railway Terrace, Slough,
         Berkshire, SL2 5BZ.

 ==

[***][5/6/86][***]
OMB LOOKS AT SOFTWARE RIGHTS
The Office of Management and Budget is asking who owns the
software developed for the Pentagon by defense contractors. Is
it the contractor? Or Uncle Sam? OMB has just begun its study of
this thorny issue, a variant of a long-running dispute over
government ownership of intellectual property. One option the
government is considering, according to OMB spokesman Edwin Dale,
is for the government to license the software and technical data
from the developer. That would give Uncle Sam a limited right to
the material, without depriving the private developers of their
rights.

CONTACT: Office of Management and Budget, Washington D.C., 20500,
         202-395-3080.

[***][5/6/86][***]
FCC TO CONSIDER COMPUTER-RADIO LINKS
The Federal Communications Commission last week put a proposal out
for comment to reserve a portion of the radio spectrum for
computer-to-computer communications. The proposal came from
Motorola, Inc., a maker of both computer chips and radio gear.
The proposal would allow wireless terminals to use part of the
spectrum now reserved for signals from weather satellites and
some government radios. Because the computer signals would be
transmitted a one-tenth of a watt, agency engineers figure that
the radio signal could carry a transmission only about 500 feet.
Applicants to use the radio links near weather satellite
receiving stations would have to submit detailed information to
the FCC.

CONTACT: Federal Communications Commission, 1919 M Street NW,
         Washington D.C., 20554, 632-6600.

[***][5/6/86][***]
A PLETHORA OF HOUSE TRADE BILLS
The House Ways and Means Committee last week approved a trade
bill aimed at Japan, West Germany and Taiwan. The bill would put
import quotas on goods from those countries unless they end trade
restrictions. The bill includes a provision authored by Rep.
Robert Matsui (D-Calif.) that calls for retaliation against
countries that limit sales of U.S. telecommunications gear. The
Matsui provision is aimed directly at Japan.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee last week also approved a
bill that would increase U.S. export promotion and financing. The
bill would also reduce U.S. restrictions on sales of high tech
goods overseas. The week before, the House Banking Committee
passed a trade measure. All the bills are expected to end up in a
legislative casserole concocted by Democratic Leader Jim Wright
(D-Texas), who will then take the measure to the Rules Committee
before final floor action this summer.

The Reagan Administration has threatened to veto the House
measure. Rep. William Frenzel (R-Minn.) labels the Ways and Means
bill "a legislative joke."

[***][5/6/86][***]
MANAGING STRESS ONLINE
Bruce Walker, a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at
Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va., runs a bulletin board on a
microcomputer that is geared toward helping people manage stress.
Clients log onto the bulletin board and are asked to answer a
questionnaire about their life and lifestyles. Then Walker will
talk to them over the wires, and prescribe a regimen for the
client. It might include time management, exercise, relaxation
techniques, or the like, according to a Virginia Tech press
spokesman. Walker tested out the idea for the bulletin board by
surveying users on other bulletin boards to see if his stress
clinic would be used.

CONTACT: Bruce Walker, Blacksburg, Va., 703-382-2653 (home) or
         703-961-6914 (office).

[***][5/6/86][***]
NEW IMAGE FOR HIGH TECH CENTER?
The new head of Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology says
the institution suffers from "a bad P.R. problem from the very
beginning." Ronald Carrier, who took a leave of absence as
president of James Madison University to assume the top job at
the troubled center, says, "You can't sell a mission if you don't
have the public on your side."

The Virginia legislature, under the urging of then-governor
Charles Robb, created the center in 1984 with a $30.2 million
state grant. The purpose of the center is to coordinate private
and university research in the Old Dominion.

[***][5/6/86][***]
VIRGINIA FIRM DRIVES CANON LASERS
Sharing the Canon booth at Comdex was Rogers Marketing Co.,
a tiny Woodbridge, Va., software firm. Rogers is marketing
PrintR, a desktop publishing program that uses dot commands with
WordStar to make a Canon laser printer do a lot of fancy tricks.
It works in either MS-DOS or CP/M, and has a price tag of $250.
It appears to be a snap to learn for anyone who can handle
WordStar at anything beyond the novice level. Rogers also sells
FontR, a font editing program for the Canon machine. Both
programs were written in Turbo Pascal. Neither will work with
other laser printers that use the Canon print engine. To use
PrintR or FontR, you must have a Canon LBP-8 or A2 printer, the
Canon Garland proportional font cartridge, and WordStar, or
a WordStar-like word processor.

CONTACT: Rogers Marketing Co., 12046 Willowood Dr., Woodbridge,
         Va., 22192. 703-494-2633.

[***][5/6/86][***]
BUSINESS INDEX SLIDES DOWNWARD
The Washington Computer Business Index dropped to 202 last week,
versus 248 the week before. The index is based on retail computer
ads in "Washington Business" each week. The April 28 issue
totaled 10.5 pages of computer ads, down from nearly 13 pages the
week before. Non-computer ads were also down, to 15.3 pages from
19 pages the prior week.


[***][5/6/86][***]
PIRATES KEELHAULED IN LANDMARK APPLE judgment:
The Federal Court Of Canada has made a ruling which sets an
international precedent for copyright laws to apply to
computer programs as well as other artistic work such as
music or literature.  In awarding a judgment to Apple
Canada Inc. (Markham, Ontario), Madame Justice Barbara Reed
ruled that programs encoded electronically on silicon chips
in fact represent intellectual property, and should be
viewed as "literary works."  Apple lawyer Alfred Schorr
said that the verdict "gave us everything we had asked
for."

The suit had centered on two microcomputers marketed
as the Microcom and Mackintosh (nice try, guys), considered
obsolete as hardware by prevailing standards, but still
using programs which remain "important software" in current
Apple //e and //c models.  The defendants are prohibited
from assembling or offering for sale any computers or
component parts which infringe on Apple-copyrighted basic
operating programs.  Mr. Schorr said the ruling is the
"first trial decision anywhere in the world that deals with
software copyright protection on computer chips or in any
other form," effectively protecting computer programs as
literary works "whether they are in the form of an electric
medium or written down on a piece of paper."

CONTACT: Apple Canada Inc., 875 Don Mills Road, Don Mills,
         Ontario, M3C 1V9, 416/366-2232

[***][5/6/86][***]
NAVIGATION TRAINING UPGRADED:
A new computerised air navigation system has been developed
by L.V. Ursel And Associates (Ottawa, Ontario) for the
Canadian Forces; it replaces a console display system in
use since the 1960's.  The contract is worth $8-million
(CDN), for four systems placed aboard specially-purchased De
Havilland Dash 8 aircraft.  Ursel's system has computer
display of navigation data to any of four students on a
plane, and two instructors. The performance of each student
can be recorded for later review.

[***][5/6/86][***]
MOVE TO RESELLERS INCREASING:
A recent study by International Data Corp. (Canada) Ltd.
(IDC), of Toronto, Ontario shows Canadian computer vendors
turning to value-added resellers (VARs) at a "dramatically
increasing rate."  VARs assist vendors in selling to small
and medium-sized customers, and IDC predicts that by 1990,
one-third of small and medium-scale systems will be sold by
VARs aimed at specific niches in the marketplace.

[***][5/6/86][***]
GLOBAL ACCOUNTING MODULAR IN APPROACH:
Global Computer Systems Inc. (Markham, Ontario) offers "MIS
-II," a multi-terminal program integrating standard
accounting functions with specialised options for sales
analysis, job costing, and a Canadian payroll program for
microcomputers.  It is a scaled-down version of the
company's previous minicomputer software.  Modules share
data files, and all information entered is reflected
throughout the system; the system can scan for customers or
products on partial keys; and sales statistics are
automatically accumulated for analysis.  Software
Matchmakers Inc., of Toronto cites limitations of the
program as reliance on preprinted forms with fixed layouts,
and the necessity of directing all reports to a printer.
Each MIS-II module costs $1,000, and supports Xenix, Unix V
or Oasis operating systems.  A 132-column printer is
required.

CONTACT: Global Computer Systems, Inc., 321 Don Park Road,
         Markham, Ontario, L3R 1C2

[***][5/6/86][***]
NBI CANADA INC. APPOINTMENT:
John D. Cameron is the new President of NBI Canada Inc., as
announced recently by Ernie Pope, Vice-President of
International Operations, NBI, Inc. (Boulder, CO).  Mr.
Cameron had previously been Canadian General Manager.  NBI
Canada Inc. is a supplier of office automation systems,
utilising a "four pillar" approach--document management;
departmental computing; PC clustering; and advanced data
communications.  NBI Canada Inc. is a wholly-owned
subsidiary of NBI, Inc.

[***][5/6/86][***]
FERGUS TO JOIN POLICE NETWORK:
Fergus, Ontario, 17km north of Guelph, will soon be
connected to a provincial network of police communications.
Councilman John Alliston recently told council that $30-
40,000 would be needed for a computer system enabling
Fergus to join the network, facilitating inter-force
communications as well as day-to-day local operations.  A
reserve of $12,000 is in the town budget now, and an
additional $20,000 will be requested in 1986, Alliston
said.  Fergus council suggested a tour of similar computer
installations in the Guelph police force before a
commitment.

[***][5/6/86][***]
TALKING BY TOUCH FOR DISABLED:
A new touch-screen and voice synthesis system for
microcomputers may allow severely-disabled people to
"talk."  Developed by Computer Lab For The Disabled, in
Toronto, Ontario, "Touch Talker" was designed by company
director Andrew Rekert, a speech pathologist, and is the
first such system to allow "direct access to vocabulary and
words without having literacy or a knowledge of how to
read."  Touch Talker utilises symbol boards with a number
of pictures on them which are stored by the program to
create unique vocabularies for each user.  Grammatical
speech is created by a link with the symbol board and a
speech synthesizer.  Hard copy of the screen's picture
board can also be produced, for use elsewhere without the
hardware.  Touch Talker currently is available for the
Apple //e, and a version for the IBM PC is planned soon.