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/V162

Text File | 1991-09-23 | 61KB | 1,284 lines

[***][7/08/86][***]
IBM CREATES DESKTOP PUBLISHING DIVISION
As is Big Blue's tendency to jump into a market only after others
have paved its way, IBM has established a desktop publishing
division expected to compete directly with Apple.  While no
products were announced, IBM said its new Publishing Systems
Business Units, in Boulder, Colorado and White Plains, NY, will
develop and market integrated systems that generate typeset-
quality text, line graphics and pictures suitable for printing.
Said IBM's Paul Winn, a vice president, "The new unit is
designed to bring together standard IBM products with specialized
publishing components so that we can provide our customers with
the tools they need to improve the quality and economy of their
published materials."

"We have expected IBM to get involved," said Marianne Lettieri,
Apple's spokeswoman.  Said Paul Brainerd, president of Aldus,
a leading publisher of desktop publishing software, "When IBM
gets involved it endorses the market.  The Macintosh was designed
with publishing in mind, and now it's critical that Apple
improve its products."

[***][7/08/86][***]
OTHER IBM NOTES

 -Get ready for price reductions on most of IBM's PCs.  The price
cuts of 10-12% are expected this week.

 -People ordering IBM's Convertible portable computer face waits of
up to 7 months, according to IBM spokesman Cary Ziter.  Retailers
are just beginning to receive the portables in volume.  But the
modems for the machines have been indefinitely delayed due to a
design change.

[***][7/08/86][***]
TEENS VS. ATARI GAMES
Two Redwood City, Ca. teenagers are suing Warner-owned Atari Games
Corp. for $1 million dollars over a game called "Paperboy."  14-
yera-old Mark Caesar and Robin Hallingstad, 16, say the game was
their idea, submitted to Atari in 1983, and for which they have
a written rejection letter.  To their surprise, two years later,
"Paperboy" was a coin-op arcade game from Atari, which they
stumbled upon at a local shopping mall.  The game features a paper-
boy whose quest to deliver newspapers is hampered by dogs,
cars, and other obstacles.  Atari's general counsel, Dennis Wood,
says he's yet to receive a copy of the suit and can't comment.

CONTACT:  Lauren Madrid, Atty for the boys, 408/364-7030

          Dennis Wood, ATARI GAMES, Milpitas, Ca. 408/434-3700

[***][7/08/86][***]
HP HAS NEW PRINTER, CUTS PRICES, RESTRUCTURES
It was a busy week for announcements from Hewlett Packard.

 -HP has restructured its largest business sector into two new
groups to cut costs and consolidate production.  The Information
Systems and Networks sector has become the Business Systems and
Personal Computation Sector and the Systems Technology sector.

 -The price of the HP Portable PLUS, with 512K of RAM, has been
reduced in price by 11% from $3,395 to $2,995.  The extended
memory drawer is down from $495 to $395; the 128K RAM memory
card, previously priced at $350 is now $250.

 -HP announced the HP QuietJet Plus second-generation inkjet
printer.  The near-letter-quality printer has a wide carriage
and low noise.  It is being shipped now, and costs $799.
For ordering info call 800-538-8787.  In California, call
408-738-4133.

[***][7/08/86][***]
APPLE MAIL ORDER BAN OK'D
A federal appeals court has ruled that Apple is perfectly justified
in its decision to ban mail order sales of its products.  Apple
was sued by six retailers who'd claimed Apple's ban amounted to
price-fixing and a violation of antitrust laws.  But the judge
found neither to be true.  Apple has banned mail order sales
since 1981, contending that in doing so, it has guaranteed full
support services for customers, including training and repairs.

[***][7/08/86][***]
SOFTWARE WARRANTIES REVISED
Lotus, Ashton-Tate, MicroPro are among a handful of software
companies which have voluntarily revised their customer warranties.
The revisions, which spell out the functions and specific tasks
a product can perform, are partially in respose to California
Assemblywoman Gloria Molina's legislation, which called for
dealers of computer products to comply with tough truth-in-
advertising regulations.  While the bill has never been passed,
fallout rained down on ADAPSO, the industry's trade group,
which has since issued a set of guidelines for restructuring the
ambigious software "licenses" which disclaim any responsibility
for flaws in the packages.  How many other companies will adopt
the new guidelines?

[***][7/08/86][***]
MICROSOFT--DARLING OF INVESTORS
A crowbar couldn't part Microsoft stock from most of its owners
these days.  The value of the stuff doesn't stop climbing and
took another 1-point ascension last week when the firm's CFO
announced 1986 fiscal revenues will top $190 million.  That's
36% more than last year.  Meanwhile Microsoft has granted IBM
a license to distribute Microsoft Word 3.0 through its direct
sales force.

[***][7/08/86][***]
BRIEFS --

LUMA TELECOM of Santa Clara, maker of the Luma picturephone,
says Bell Canada's Business Communications Group will be putting
the device to various tests to evaluate its usefulness in
linking branch offices, factories, clients, and suppliers.

CHRONICLE VIDEOTEX has shelved plans to continue its 11-month-
old San Diego Teleguide.  The San Francisco company says it
wants to concentrate on improving the Bay Area Teleguide, which
has more than 800,000 users each month.

ADOBE SYSTEMS of Palo Alto, maker of desktop publishing software,
has plans for a public stock offering.  Hambrecht & Quist of SF
will handle the offering.  The stock's expected to cost $10 per
share initially.

VICTOR TECHNOLOGIES, keeping its nose barely above water as it
changes from a manufacturing to a marketing company, will post
a loss of some $2 million in its last fiscal quarter, according
to the company president Al Duncan.  Duncan blames the loss
on high advertising and promotion costs.

[***][7/08/86][***]
NEW BOOK NOOK:
For those who like high-tech fiction, "The Trapdoor" is a fun
new book by Hal Glatzer (Paperjacks, $3.50).  The story of a
nerd who drinks copious quantities of Pepsi, hacks small
change from corporate computer systems for a living, and is
inadvertently lured into the world of high living, the Mob,
and hit men, is an amusing thriller that I couldn't put down.
Hal's first work of fiction, "The Trapdoor" is expected to have
a sequel--I hope to get first shots at the draft!  Highly
recommended!

[***][7/08/86][***]
QUOTE OF THE WEEK

        "I use (the cellular phone) to order sushi.  On my
        way home, when I'm stuck in traffic or something, I'll
        call ahead, pick it up and be on my way.  I do that
        about once a week."

                --Nolan Bushnell, founder Atari Corp. quoted
                  in USA TODAY


[***][7/08/86][***]
CW COMMUNICATIONS NEGOTIATING TO BUY COMPU-GRAM  *EXCLUSIVE*
Negotiations have been going on for weeks now between CW
Communications, Framingham, MA, and Compu-Gram, which runs free
monthly computer newspapers in the Southeast. Compu-Gram
employees were told a few weeks ago that an "agreement in
principle" for the sale of Compu-Gram to CW, which publishes 67
computer magazines including "Computerworld" and "Infoworld", had
been completed. Negotiators on both sides deny that any deal
has been finalized.

If the deal gets done, CW is expected to expand the Compu-Gram
concept nationwide, in competition with papers like "Computer
Currents," which publishes NEWSBYTES. No word is available on
whether the Compu-Gram format, including the selling of editorial
space as advertising, will continue.

CONTACT: COMPU-GRAM, 1 Dunwoody Pl., Atlanta, GA 30329 (404)
         395-6789; CW COMMUNICATIONS, [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
DCA BUYING ITS WAY INTO T-1 MARKET THROUGH COHESIVE NETWORK CORP.
Digital Communications Associates Inc. announced July 1 an
agreement in principle to buy Cohesive Network Corp., Los Gatos,
CA for 1.65 million shares of DCA stock, worth $28.1 million
based on the company's June 30 closing price of $17/share.

Cohesive, which is privately held, makes equipment to pass data,
voice or video signals along leased lines at "T-1" speeds of
about 1.544 megabaud. Engineering and manufacturing operations in
Los Gatos will be retained, DCA said, but marketing and
distribution will be handled out of DCA headquarters in
Alpharetta.

Cohesive is DCA's second acquisition of a California company in
less than a year. Earlier DCA purchased Forte Communications,
which makes "Smart Alec," a product linking IBM PCs to System 36
systems.

CONTACT: Mindy Littman, DCA, 1000 Alderman Dr., Alpharetta, GA
         30201 [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS FINDS SOME NEW PRODUCTS HOT, SOME NOT
Intelligent Systems Corp. rolled out a host of new products this
year, some through its Quadram subsidiary, some under the Datavue
name. The Quadram products aren't unusual: new memory and
graphics boards. The Datavue products were revolutionary--a
12-pound portable made by Sortec of Japan called the Datavue 25,
and a 3-pound take-away keyboard with its own memory and LCD
screen called the KeyStyle 80.

So far, evolution is winning. Quadram announced June 30 that
first month orders on the QuadEMS+, its new memory card offering
both EMS and EEMS compatibility, were double those of the
QuadEGA+, a new graphics card which drew invoices for over 10,000
units in just two months. QuadEGA+ had previously held the
company record for fast ramp-up. Quadram credited the bundling of
Concurrent PC DOS Expanded Memory (XM), a multi-tasking operating
system from Digital Research Inc., creators of CP/M, for the fast
start of QuadEMS+.

The Datavue 25, meanwhile, is still searching for its market.
Datavue announced it will slash prices on the machines for the PC
Expo this week in New York. During the show, backlit Datavues
with 256K of RAM, normally $1,995, will go for $1,099, and $1,299
will buy a unit with two 3.5 inch floppy drives, 768K of RAM and
a fluorescent screen. In addition, copies of Migent Software's
"Ability" package will be given away with each Datavue sold. You
can also get this special deal (one per customer, please) by
calling the number below.

CONTACT: Jane Bator, QUADRAM, 4357 Shackleford Road, Norcross, GA
         30093; [phone] Peter Baron, DATAVUE, One Meca
         Way, Norcross, GA 30093 [phone].

[***][7/08/86][***]
IBM CHARTS NEW STRATEGY IN K-12 EDUCATION MARKET
The "Atlanta Journal-Constitution" reports that IBM's Educational
Systems office in Atlanta has chosen a new strategy to lure the
K-12 education market, where it trails Apple and others badly.
Vice president and general manager James E. Dezell told Robert
Snowden Jones says he'll focus on selling complete systems
including software, such as IBM's "Writing to Read" software. He
also has education specialists in every IBM branch office, plus
50 state advisers, beating the bushes for business.

A study by Link Resources, New York, NY, indicates Apple
currently enjoys over half the educational market, with Tandy and
Commodore holding most of the rest, and IBM holding just 4%.

CONTACT: Doug Monroe, IBM PRESS RELATIONS, [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
FIRST ATLANTA ENTERS ANOTHER ELECTRONIC BANKING NICHE
The First National Bank of Atlanta, the leading issuer of credit
cards in the Southeast, has signed an agreement to offer
electronic funds transfer through merchants' terminals connected
by Atlanta-based BuyPass the System Inc. The bank will market
BuyPass terminals, which let merchants check credit card account
balances before ringing up a sale, and use BuyPass clearing
services alongside those of Sears, Visa, MasterCard, and Atlanta-
based National Data Corp.

BuyPass also announced agreements with Texaco, Diamond Shamrock,
and Florafax International Inc., a florist organization. BuyPass
is mostly owned by two Canadian firms, National Business Systems
Inc., Mississauga, Ontario, and Heritage Investments Co. Ltd. of
Winnipeg. BankSouth Corp. of Atlanta, which formerly owned nearly
all of the company, still holds a small stake in BuyPass.

A few weeks ago, First Atlanta announced it would market InTouch,
a small business banking system made by Harbinger Corp., Atlanta.

CONTACT: John Festa, BUYPASS, 6666 Powers Ferry Rd., Suite 100,
         Atlanta, GA 30339 [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
AMERICAN SOFTWARE FORMS DIVISION FOR S/38 SOFTWARE
American Software, which has made both profits and software for
IBM mainframes, formed a new sales division last week to market
to the IBM System 38 market. The products, in COBOL, include a
complete line of manufacturing, distribution, and financial
packages.

CONTACT: John Bloodworth, AMERICAN SOFTWARE, 443 E. Paces Ferry
         Rd., Atlanta, GA 30305 [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
COMPUTER MEMORIES LOOKING TO GET OUT
"It looks like Irwin (Rubin) is finally pulling the plug."
That's the way newsletter editor Jim Porter of DISK/TREND
REPORTS saw the announcement by Computer Memories' chairman that
the Chatsworth-based firm will be either looking for a "White
Knight" or a way out of the hard-disk drive business.  The
statement from Rubin came as CMI reported an $18.1-million loss
for its fiscal year which ended March 31.  The beleagured
company's patriarch says CMI has retained the investment firm of
Alex Brown & Sons of Baltimore to find a buyer.  Failing that,
Rubin said, the disk drive maker would look for an acquisition
outside of the electronics industry.

Once the main supplier of 20Mb hard-disk drives for the IBM PC-
AT, CMI has been only a shadow of its former self recently.  The
firm has never recovered from the loss of 80 percent of its
business when IBM pulled out last August.  Big Blue was
alledgedly dissatisfied with the company's drive design and
quality control, and announced that it would not renew CMI's
vendor contract.  In recent months, CMI has been selling-off its
remaining inventory and spending a lot of time repairing faulty
drives returned by customers.

[***][7/08/86][***]
HAS EAGLE FOUND A DEEP POCKET?
Reports are circulating that Eagle Computer has found a group of
investors willing to sink $500,000 into the bankrupt firm in
exchange for a 40 percent ownership interest.  Eagle's
president, Garry Kappenman, was not available for comment about
the rumor.  However, NEWSBYTES-L.A. calculates that more than
$500,000 will have to be thrown into the pot just to bring the
Garden Grove-based company out of its Chapter 11 status, let
alone fund the firm's proposed advanced-design Concord
minicomputer.

[***][7/08/86][***]
7-ELEVEN READY TO REACTIVATE ATM MACHINES, ADD EVEN MORE
At least 105 of the Southland Corporation's 7-Eleven convenience
stores in the Los Angeles area have automated teller machines
(ATMs).  After the firm which operated them, National
Transaction Systems, stopped maintaining the machines in
December, none have worked.  Now, a joint venture agreement will
not only activate the existing ATMs, but 400 more may be
installed in Los Angeles alone.  7-Eleven has announced that it
will sign a contract with Bank of America and several other
financial institutions to reactivate its ATM system, making the
revamped network of cash machines one of the largest in the
country.  Nationwide, more than 3,900 of 7-Eleven's 7,762 stores
already have ATMs installed, but many do not permit bank cards
from certain smaller regional "systems" to be accepted.  The new
agreement would permit customers from at least 155 savings
institutions and 112 credit unions to access their accounts from
across the country.  According to a 7-Eleven spokesman, more
than 7 million ATM card holders would be able to use the
machines.

[***][7/08/86][***]
UCLA COMPUVER SCIENTIST AWARDED MARCONI FELLOWSHIP
Leonard Kleinrock, a professor of computer science at UCLA, was
awarded the annual Marconi International Fellowship in Brussels
last week.  Kleinrock was honored for his pioneering work in
computer network design, including the creation of the first
data transmission network linking computers at remote sites.
The prestigious $35,000 award was presented by Crown Prince
Albert, the brother of King Baudouin of Belgium.

[***][7/08/86][***]
IBM, APPLE AND OTHERS TO ADDRESS DISABLED CONFERENCE
Last year's Computers and Disabled Conference at Cal. State
Northridge boasted a speech by Dr. Alan Brightman, Apple's newly
hired Director of Special Education.  This year, Brightman is
returning...but will be joined by IBM's counterpart, I. Keith
Austin, Big Blue's Director of Office Products for the Disabled,
according to conference organizers.  Also on the star-studded
speaker's list is Dr. Jerrold Pertofsky of Wright State
University, the subject of recent news coverage (and a TV movie
titled "First Steps") for his work using Apple II computers to
allow patients with spinal-chord injuries to walk.

Last year's CSUN conference was dominated by developers of
applications for Apple computers.  This year, says organizer Dr.
Harry Murphy, "IBM is on the move in this field."  Mark your
calendars for October 16-18, if you plan to attend the
conference.  Again this year, NEWSBYTES-L.A. will provide
extended coverage of the events.

CONTACT:  CSUN OFFICE OF DISABLED STUDENT SERVICES, Att'n: Dr.
          Harry Murphy, 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge, CA 91330
          [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
BEACHBITS

>>>  General Automation of Anaheim reports it has lost $3.3
     million in its third fiscal quarter ended May 3.  The
     computer supplier is in a "debt reduction" mode, and
     expects to post a $9.5 million gain in the fourth quarter.

>>>  Ashton-Tate of Torrance has announced that dBase III Plus
     is now "certified" to run on 3Com's 3+ version 1.0.1. LAN
     system.  "Certified" means that Ashton-Tate will support
     (ie: try-to-answer-questions-about-installing-their-
     software-on) 3Com networks.

>>>  Computer Accessories of San Diego has released the Power
     Director Model P25.  It's an electrical-surge protector and
     power-control device.  It conforms to IEEE class A and B
     performance standards, and retails for $99.95.

>>>  The Technology Corridor Association (TCA) of the San
     Fernando Valley has accepted membership from each of the
     six communities included under its umbrella.  "We want to
     work with the chambers of commerce to reach our common goal
     of promoting the quality of life in each of the six TCA
     communities," said TCA's director, William Lancaster.  The
     half-dozen technophilic cities are Woodland Hills,
     Calabasas, Agoura Hills, Agoura/Las Virgenes, Westlake
     Village and Conejo Valley.

>>>  ABM Computer of Westlake Village says it will merge with
     Franklin Telecommunications Corp.  Both firms manufacture
     disk subsystems, communications equipment and expansion
     boards.  Terms of the merger were not disclosed.

>>>  The Monogram Software division of Inglewood-based Softsel
     Computer Products has been sold to Nieman Porter & Co. of
     Los Angeles.  Monogram makes and markets financial
     management software.  No details of the sale were released.



[***][7/08/86][***]
WANG GETS SERIOUS ABOUT WP
Using a variety of promotional vehicles, including direct mail
and print advertisements, Wang Laboratories has begun
aggressively promoting its word processing package for the IBM PC
and compatibles. The menu-driven package retails for $695 and is
based on the Wang word processing "standard" that's been used on
their minicomputer systems for a number of years. (The Multimate
word processing software, now owned by Ashton-Tate, was based on
the Wang software, and won a wide corporate following because of
it.) Wang Word Processing includes a custom keyboard with extra
function keys for the software. The keyboard is also compatible
with other PC software. The package is available direct from
Wang.

CONTACT:  WangDirect, PO Box 3500, Lowell, MA 01853, 800-TEL-WANG

[***][7/08/86][***]
DR. WANG GETS AWARD
Among the 12 naturalized American citizens who received the Medal
of Liberty Thursday evening from president Reagan during the
Statue of Liberty festivities was Wang Laboratories founder and
president Dr. An Wang. "Wang Laboratories and its dedicated
employees" purchased a 3/4-page advertisement in the BOSTON GLOBE
Thursday to commemorate the event. Mostly white space, the ad
featured a portrait of Dr. Wang and his patented bow tie, leaning
forward in his chair. The copy thanked the Dr. and the 11 others
who received the award for "honoring America."

[***][7/08/86][***]
DATA GENERAL CANS 500
500 employees of Data General were laid off this past week,
bringing to 2300 the number of workers the Westboro, MA-based
computer maker has let go in the past year. The layoff mainly
affected white collar workers in engineering, manufacturing,
administration, and public relations. About half worked at
company headquarters, with the rest employed at other plants in
New England and North Carolina. Those laid off will receive from
one to five months severance pay, and paid-up health insurance
for four months. Industry analysts predict that DG may need to
perform more employee surgery in the future to survive the ups
and downs of the market.

CONTACT:  Data General Corporation, 4400 Computer Drive,
          Westboro, MA 01581, 617-366-8911

[***][7/08/86][***]
OLSEN'S HEIRS-APPARENT
The long list of promotions, resignations, and other personnel
changes at high-tech companies that happen every week aren't
normally very newsworthy. However, the naming of three new senior
vice presidents at Digital Equipment Corporation this past week
is leading to speculation that one of the three will eventually
succeed DEC president and founder Ken Olsen. The 60-year-old
Olsen says he has absolutely no plans to retire, but there has
been no heir-apparent until now. All three were part of the
contingent of 43 DEC vp's; and this is the first time that DEC
has used the "senior vp" title. The three are:

-- 51-year-old John F. Smith, who joined DEC in 1958 as its 12th
employee (it now has 92,000 employees). He'll be responsible for
engineering, manufacturing, and production.

-- 47-year-old John J. Shields joined DEC in 1961 when it had 100
employees. He'll be in charge of planning and purchasing. (He
also sports a moustache and beard, making him ineligible for
employment at Tandy Corporation.)

-- 55-year-old Winston R. Hindle joined DEC in 1962 as assistant
to the president. He'll be in charge of sales and services, and
is considered the front-runner for an eventual step-up to Olsen's
position.

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

[***][7/08/86][***]
LORAL CONTINUES SANDERS TAKEOVER ATTEMPT
Sanders Associates, the mega defense contractor that's New
Hampshire's largest employer, continued to attempt to resist the
takeover attempt by arch-rival Loral Corporation this week. In
large newspaper ads, Loral went into hostile-takeover mode during
the week, offering $50 a share for Sander's 10 million
outstanding shares. Sanders stock has shot up nearly 20 points
since the original offer was announced last week, closing at 54
late in the week. Sanders has asked its stockholders to wait for
an official recommendation from the company, which it says will
come within the next week or so.

Meanwhile, stock analysts are speculating that Sanders is
actively looking for a "white knight" -- a friendly company
that's willing to acquire Sanders for a price higher than Loral's
offer. Though Sanders officials wouldn't comment, speculation
points to companies like Boeing, Lockheed, McDonnel-Douglas, or
Chrysler.

Some Sanders employees contacted by NEWSBYTES said there's an
"anybody but Loral" feeling prevalent in the company. The two
companies have been arch-rivals for government contracts over the
years. According to one employee "we do business very differently
from Loral. I can't imagine us getting together."

[***][7/08/86][***]
BOOK ON "UNUSUAL" ONLINE ACTIVITIES
Claiming that "adult-only" online services have received little
attention from the computer press, NY-based Saunders and Pierce
Publishing has released "The Comprehensive Guide to Unusual
Online Services." Although NEWSBYTES hasn't seen the book (which
retails for $24.95) author Frank Pierce says "it's a serious
approach to the online services that are the 80s' equivalent to
the singles bar and a heck of a lot safer than many other
activities people get themselves into." Pierce added, "It's a
clean text; there's not a dirty word or picture in it."

CONTACT:  Saunders and Pierce Publishing, PO Box 243, Middle
          Village, NY 11379

[***][7/08/86][***]
CRACKERS BEWARE
At the PC Expo this coming week in New York, a New Rochelle, NY-
based company will be challenging computer crackers to crack its
newly-released encryption system. Software Synergy's
Respond/Secure is a hardware/software system designed to make
data transmissions secure by using a random encryption scheme. A
company spokesperson claims the odds against cracking it are "700
billion to 1." Time will tell.

[***][7/08/86][***]
AST/PLUS DEVELOPMENT DEALS
Although dealers, distributors, and manufacturers hate for us to
tell you things like this, it may be a great time to negotiate a
deal for AST and Plus Development add-on products for your PC or
compatible. A major Northeast distributor (who shall remain un-
named) is offering a special price to dealers when they buy
combinations of AST and Plus cards. Here's what the packages cost
the dealers. You take from there. (But remember that not all
dealers purchase from the distributor.)

-- AST Six Pack Plus and Plus Development Hardcard 10-meg:
   Dealer cost $540.

-- AST Six Pack Premium and Hardcard 10-meg:
   Dealer cost $693.

-- AST Six Pack Premium and Hardcard 20-meg:
   Dealer cost $814

[***][7/08/86][***]
NORTHEAST BITS

-- NYNEX, the NY-based Bell operating company that recently
purchased all 102 IBM Product Centers, has reopened and renamed
them. The company also scrapped the "Datago Business Center" name
from its original 21 Northeast stores. All 123 stores will now be
called "NYNEX Business Centers."

-- Wakefield, MA-based electronic publishing system maker
Xyvision this week officially announced its initial offering of
public stock. 1.5 million shares will be offered at a starting
price of $13.50.

-- Prime Computer has acknowledged the success of the popular
AutoCAD program for PCs by coming out with two new software
packages that swap files with AutoCAD. The Medusa CAD packages
run on prime minicomputers and cost $7000 and $9000. (AutoCAD of
Sausalito, CA recently announced they've sold over 50,000 AutoCAD
packages.)

-- Centronics Data Computer Corporation of Hudson, NH is moving
into the Australian computer/printer market. The company has
purchased the Australian subsidiary of BDS Corporation (Mountain
View, CA). BDS manufactures printer interfaces for mainframe
computer systems. The terms of the agreement weren't announced.

-- Engineering workstation maker Apollo Computer of Chelmsford,
MA is making a concerted attempt to attract third-party
developers and OEM's to their equipment. They've just announced a
program that gives developers discounts of from 35% to 50% off
their products.

-- Telex Computer Products, best known for its terminal products,
is phasing out its Massachusetts engineering facility. The Tulsa,
OK-based company has dismissed 35 of 150 employees at its
Norwood, MA plant. The plant will be completely shut down by the
end of the year.

-- The defense electronics business continues to boom. Raytheon
has started building a $20 million chip-fabrication plant in
Andover, MA. The plant, which will open in 1989, will eventually
employ 250 workers and will fabricate chips for defense-related
projects.

[***][7/08/86][***]
TOP ELECTRONICS VENTURE CAPITAL FIRMS
Looking for some startup money? "Electronic Business" Magazine
has compiled a list of the top venture-capital firms in the
electronics industry, and three of the top five are based in the
Northeast. The statistics break down as follows:

  Hambrecht & Quist - San Francisco - 84 deals - $77 million
  Bessemer Venture Partners - New York - 18 deals - $75 million
  Brentwood Associates - Los Angeles - 35 deals - $48 million
  TA Associates - Boston - 28 deals - $41 million
  General Instrument - New York - 3 deals - $30 million



[***][7/08/86][***]
TI JAPAN'S R&D CENTER
TI's new large-scale Research and Development Center will soon
go under construction at former Expo site in Tsukuba, Japan.
According to a published report, TI Japan plans to develop
next generation LSIs including 16M-bit DRAMs, digital-signal
processors and the memory ICs for graphic processors, at this
center.  Over 100 engineers and researchers will be transferred
from TI's offices in the U.S. and France. And surprisingly, the total
number of the staffers is expected to reach 1,000.  In this
respect, analysts are expecting that this new center will function
as TI's main R&D center.  The facility will be completed in 1989.

CONTACT: TI Japan, 5-6 Tohkodai, Toyosato-cho, Tsukuba-gun,
         Ibaragi-ken 300-26               (0297-47-8511)

[***][7/08/86][***]
JAPAN-U.S. SEMICONDUCTOR AGREEMENT
Japan and the U.S. signed a tentative agreement in the semi-
conductor talks this past week.  The official of Japanese
Ministry of International Trade and Industry says "the agreement
is beneficial to the industries of the both countries since it
stipulates the stable trade rules."  The price supervising system
of semiconductors, however, may put strong pressure on the
industries by the governments of the both countries.  Thus it may
hinder the free competition of the capitalistic economies,
laments the analysts.  Also, it's a big burden for the Japanese
industries who seek high-quality and low-cost products.  Under
this circumstance, the Japanese industry sources are pessimistic
about the future development of high-technology.  Meanwhile, some
analysts say the real victims of this agreement would be the
numbers of U.S. dealers who've been purchasing the products from
the Japanese manufacturers.  Humm... It may tak some time to get
rid of the trade problems between Japan and the U.S.

[***][7/08/86][***]
NEC'S PC-8401 RUMOR                           ** EXCLUSIVE **
NEC has just released a MYSTERIOUS portable Japanese word
processor "Bungo Mini5E".  The term MYSTERIOUS applies to this
machine's hidden feature -- it supports CP/M.  The feature has
been found by the handful of curious users when they switched
on the machine by pressing the shift and the control keys.
Bungo Mini5E has a built-in 3.5" disk drive, small LCD, and
printer to form an all-in-one system.  The keyboard is identical
to PC-8401 which is known as "Starlet" in the overseas market.
(Currently, PC-8401 has been sold outside Japan only.)

Moreover, the manual of Mini5E briefly mentions that the machine
has a telecommunication feature, which is unusual for an ordinary
Japanese word processor.  Also, a NEWSBYTES-JAPAN source says
the machine has the escape sequences of VT-100 and Soroc.  NEC
has not yet announced these features out loud.  With all these
features, the machine costs only US$870. It seems the machine was
just released in time for the bonus-payment season here in Japan.
NEC may later enhance this machine's features, and advertise it
as Japanese Starlet for the company's PC-VAN network.  We'll see.

CONTACT: NEC, 1-4-28 Mita, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108
         (03-451-2974, PR. Dept.)

[***][7/08/86][***]
FUJITSU TO RAISE SOFTWARE PRODUCTIVITY
FACOM Software (FSA) and FACOM Center (FCA), both affiliated
firms of Fujitsu, will set up a support center for increasing
software productivity early 1987.  Software development
supporting tools and technical data will be stored in the
center computer.  Approximately 150 corporates are expected to
participate in this project.  Using Fujitsu's SIGMA-standard
workstation, those corporate users are allowed to access the
center computer through Fujitsu's VAN "FENICS."

Meanwhile, Fujitsu announced a massive restructuring of the
company's personnel positions this past week.  The company may be
trying to revitalize the computer divisions, especially personal
computers.

CONTACT: Fujitsu, 1-6-1 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100
         (03-216-3211, PR. Dept.)

[***][7/08/86][***]
SEVEN-LANGUAGE TRANSLATION SYSTEM FOR MICROS
A published report says Dai-Nippon Printing and Sansyu-sha
Publishing (both in Tokyo) will jointly develop a language
translation system, which covers seven languages including
English, German, French, and Japanese.  The system will be
developed using the language dictionary database of publishers
from six European countries.  According to their plan, the
translation-system program based on a Laser-Disk ROM for IBM PC
and NEC PC-9801 will be available by the end of the year.  The
estimated price of the program is said to be US$1,000.

CONTACT: Dai-Nippon Printing, 1-12 Kaga-cho, Ichigaya,
         Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162        (03-266-2111)

[***][7/08/86][***]
AI SHOW '86
AI Show '86 was held at Tokyo's Ryutsu Center from July 1 to 4.
The main attractions of the show included SmallTalk machines and
language translation systems.  Among others, Mitsubishi displayed
a Prolog machine called PSI, which is a byproduct of Japan's
fifth generation computer project (ICOT).  In an unique exhibit,
NEC demonstrated its popular and powerful system for finger
print identification.  Fifty-one companies have participated
in the show, and the total number of visitors is expected to reach
75,000.

[***][7/08/86][***]
<<< SUKIYAKI BYTES >>>

VENIX FOR JAPANESE MICROS -- VentureCom Japan (Tokyo) has
completed rewriting VENIX System V for NEC PC-9801 and IBM
5540/50, and started shipping the products on July 1.  These
new versions support various Japanese features for screen
editing, shell, etc.

JAPANESE GEM DEBUTS -- Digital Research Japan released a Japanese
version of GEM series on July 1.  Those programs include GEM-
Desktop and GEM-Draw.  GEM-Paint and GEM-Graph will be shipped
on August 1.

JAPANESE SMALLTALK-80 -- Fuji Xerox, a subsidiary of the U.S.
firm, has added a Japanese feature to SmallTalk-80.  This new
version will be released by the end of the year.

NEC AND HONEYWELL -- NEC and Honeywell (U.S.A.) will jointly
establish a sales firm for marketing NEC's supercomputers in
the U.S.  The new firm "Honeywell-NEC-Supercomputers, Inc." hopes
to start its business in September.  Both companies have
currently been hammering out the new firm's location and the
capital, says a report.

OKI AND CATALYST AGREE -- Oki Electronics (Tokyo) and Catalyst
Semiconductor (CA, U.S.A.) have signed a business agreement.
Both companies will jointly develop various ICs, including
EEPROMs (Electrically Eraseable and Programmable ROMs).

SCI AND RICOH -- Silicon Compilers, Inc. (SCI/CA, U.S.A.) has
linked with Ricoh (Tokyo) for the VAD sales of "Genesil," SCI's
automatic designing system for custom ICs.  Genesil will be
equipped with Ricoh's technical data for designing CMOS and NMOS
ICs for the sales in Japan.  The beefed-up Genesil will be
released from Soliton Systems in Tokyo.

JAPANESE MAC WORLD DEBUTS -- Japanese edition of "MacWorld"
magazine made its debut on July 1, from PC World Japan (Tokyo,
03-239-4161).  The articles include the Japanese translation
from the original magazine, and some writings which are compiled
by Japanese writers.  It is published quarterly at US$11.



[***][7/08/86][***]
CLONE WARS 1
Informed sources have revealed to NEWSBYTES UK details of
the Amstrad IBM PC clone.  Four machines will feature in the
machine's lineup.  Top of the line will be a full-feature
IBM PC clone costing 995 pounds ($1,495), complete with hard
disc drive (probably 10Mb), 640K RAM, twin 5.25 inch
IBM-style floppies and a colour monitor.  The machines
further down the range will be varying combinations of fewer
discs and less memory, along with a standard green screen
monitor.  The entry level machine to the Amstrad PC clone
range will almost certainly be very competitively priced,
possibly as low as 295 pounds ($450), with a single floppy
and 256K RAM, but it's not clear whether this price will
include a monochrome monitor.  This week's "PC Business
World" says that the entry level machine will cost 499
pounds ($750), but will feature 512K RAM.  NEWSBYTES UK's
source stands by the 299 pounds price tag, which seems
feasible judging from "Practical Computing Weekly" who
comment that the trade price of a basic PC clone is now down
to 250 pounds ($375), "something that should anger Alan
Sugar," the magazine says.

One things for sure on the Amstrad front - Alan Sugar, the
guy who started Amstrad by selling car aerials just a few
years ago and turned the company in a multi-million pound
giant in just a few years, is a very shrewd businessman.
All his electrical products (videos, TVs, HiFi equipment,
computers, etc.) have been a success at combining good
performance with very low prices, and boy, have they *sold*.

Press sources indicate to NEWSBYTES UK that a date has
provisionally been fixed in late August for a champagne
press launch for the PC clone, with the public's first
sighting of the new machine coming at the Personal Computer
World show, scheduled for September of this year in London.
Amstrad may not be selling the cheapest , nor might it be
the most technically advanced clone, but with the Amstrad
name being synonymous with good household value, the machine
will sell to staid people who previously have stuck with Big
Blue's expensive offerings.

Contact: Amstrad Consumer Electronics, PO Box 462,
         Brentwood, Essex, CM14 4EE.
         Tel: Brentwood [phone].

[***][7/08/86][***]
CLONE WARS 2
Perhaps in anticipation of a sudden downturn in its UK sales
of low-end PCs (see lead story this week), IBM is stepping
up its war on the clone makers.  Roger Harvey, managing
director of Qubie, a competitive clone retailer, is quoted
in this week's "PC Business World" as expecting to be in
court within the next few weeks.  Harvey says that he knows
IBM UK has applied to the British High Court to get a
summary legal judgement, which means the case can be heard
without Qubie being required to attend.  Despite this,
Harvey is confident of his firm's case.  "According to our
legal advice, I don't think they will get a summary hearing,
so we should be able to prevent our defence."

Qubie's weaponry against the Big Blue pitch for world
domination is envious.  The latest machine in their range of
IBM-busting machines is the BTurbo, a PC clone with 20Mb
hard disc, 640K RAM, and a switchable (4.77 & 8Mhz) NEC V20
cpu, which is fully compatible with the familiar IBM cpu.
Harvey sums up the whole affair - "It's in the lap of the
gods really."

Contact: Qubie, 7 Ferrier Street, London SW18 1SN.
         Tel: [phone].

[***][7/08/86][***]
AMSTRAD NIX THE QL
Despite reports in recent NEWSBYTES UK editions, Amstrad
doesn't appear to be too keen on letting the QL stage a
comeback.  The QL, the budget 68000-based machine selling
for an amazing 199 pounds (still available in many outlets -
hurry, hurry, hurry), was Sir Clive Sinclair's machine upon
which he based his company's future.  Alas for Sir Clive,
the machine turned into a millstone round his neck, being
released too early with a lousy and incomplete basic and
QDOS operating system.  By the time the machine was
perfected, his company's fortunes were failing, culminating
in his sellout to Amstrad earlier this year.  Now that
Amstrad has the rights to the machine, people there have publicly
stated they don't intend to continue its manufacture, but
this is but a sop to Tony Tebby, who nurtured the QL through
its early days, who had hoped to bring out a superQL at 500
pounds or so, thus making the QL the British Atari ST.
Viewfax, an information provider on Prestel, the UK's public
viewdata service, quotes Tebby as being "disappointed" at
Amstrad's comment that they own the intellectual property
rights to the QL, thus putting the lid on what could have
been an interesting project.

Contact: Viewfax 258, 205-219 Corporation Street,
         Birmingham B4 6SE,
         Tel: [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
MICRONET MOVING INTO THE MODERN ERA
Micronet 800, the computer-oriented information provider
on Prestel, the UK's viewdata system, took two major steps
this week.  First on up was the official unveiling of "The
CUG," a closed area of the database available only on
request to subscribers paying a once-only fee of 10 pounds
($15).  Like certain US databases such as American
Peoplelink, The CUG is an area run by, and for, the gay
community.  The coming out of Prestel into the such a
contentious area is one that has to be applauded, despite
certain sections of the community whose attitudes are biased
against so-called minority interests.  As with several other
sections of the Micronet database, The CUG is administered
and run by home-working sysops, who maintain and update the
database via a computer and modem.  Having had sight of
these pages for several weeks now, NEWSBYTES UK can report
that, even though the pages are shielded from public view
except on the request of a subscriber, they are very
tasteful.  NEWSBYTES UK wishes Micronet 800 every success in
its pioneering venture.

The second area in which Micronet is pioneering is in its
planned installation of an online computer on its own
premises in central London.  For the past three years
Micronet has been an information provider to Prestel, just
as NEWSBYTES is an IP to The Source (hence the IP mailboxes
we all have), with the whole editorial, etc. being stored and
maintained on the Prestel database.  The future plans for
Micronet include the use of Commodore Amigas as intelligent
terminals of the VAX computer, which will store the Micronet
database, which will be linked to the Prestel computers for
immediate updates as required.  Those old pages on Prestel
network, which are not frequently accessed, will be moved
over to the Micronet VAX, and taken off the Prestel system.
Subscribers will then be able to dial direct to the Micronet
computer to access these pages, which would otherwise be
unavailable on economic grounds.  In announcing the plan,
Micronet becomes the first information provider on Prestel to
adopt this pioneering system.

Contact: Micronet 800, Durrant House,
         8 Herbal Hill, London EC1.
         Tel: [phone].

[***][7/08/86][***]
SIR CLIVE SINCLAIR REBORN?
Whilst Amstrad crushingly bought out Sinclair earlier this
year, it seems that genius inventor and entrepreneur Sir
Clive Sinclair has not given up yet.  Reports in the UK
computing press hint that Sir Clive has hinted (are you
following this?) at a Sinclair-owned computer comeback
sometime next year.  Informed sources close to Sir Clive
reveal that the machine which may be launched at the Which
Computer? Show next year will be the Pandora, a Z80-based
portable whose design owes a lot to the best-selling
Sinclair Spectrum, which has sold millions and is still
doing so under the ownership of Amstrad.  Before Sinclair
went under earlier this year, the Pandora was a Z80-based
CP/M machine, with plug-in Astron memory cards, and a
128/256K RAM option.  In common with other small laptop
portables, the Pandora stores data and programs in RAM,
which is of the battery-backed CMOS variety.

Unfortunately for Sir Clive, under the terms of the Amstrad
buy-out, any new machine launched and sold by Sinclair
Research Limited (Sir Clive's remaining section of the
company) cannot be released with the Sinclair brand name.
Sir Clive is quoted in this week's "Microscope" magazine as
saying, "I'm giving some thought to a new name for my
product, but no decision has yet been taken."

Contact: Microscope, 14 Rathbone Place, London, W1P 1DE.
         Tel: [phone].
         Sourcemail BDF843.
 ==

[***][7/08/86][***]
JAPAN AND U.S. CLOSE TO AGREEMENT
At press time, it appeared that the U.S. and Japan were near a
deal on opening the Japanese semiconductor market to greater
penetration by U.S. chips. Citing "significant progress" in the
talks, the U.S. last week agreed to drop one anti-dumping case
now pending against Japanese manufacturers at the Commerce
Department. The Japanese in turn are said to have agreed to sell
their products at fair market prices. According to several
sources, the agreement last week pertains only to dumping of
EPROMs, or erasable, programmable read-only memories. Still
pending are cases related to dumping of 256K RAM chips and 64K
RAM chips. Details of the agreement, if it does not fall apart
during the delicate final sessions, should become available by
next week. Japan exported $169.3 million in semiconductors to the
United States in 1985, but imported $63 million worth of U.S.
chips.

[***][7/08/86][***]
OTA WARNS THAT BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING
Because of the rapid spread of computer technology, the 1974
Privacy Act is not working to protect individuals from the
probing arts of the government, the congressional Office of
Technology Assessment said last week. OTA, a non-partisan agency
that studies technology issues for Congress, said that the
federal government is building a national data base on most
Americans, with the ubiquitous Social Security number as a national
identifier. Computer matching has become a routine way-of-life in
the federal bureaucracy that at least has the potential to evade
individual privacy, OTA said. According to the study, the number
of federal computers has soared from a few thousand in 1980 to
more than 100,000 today. More than half of the government's 3.5
billion records are open to electronic access, says the report.
Within the past 18 months, the "Federal Register" has contained
notices of computers matches of recipients of black lung
payments, railroad retirement benefits, civil service pensions,
veterans disability benefits, and subsidized housing. While these
matches often turn up cases of fraud, they can also invade
privacy.

CONTACT: Office of Technology Assessment, U.S. Congress,
         Washington D.C., 20510, 202-224-8713.

[***][7/08/86][***]
VIRGINIA ADOPTS NEW TRADE SECRETS LAW
A new law designed to protect the growing high-tech industry went
into effect last week in the Old Dominion. Under the new trade
secrets law, companies can take action against those who obtain
trade secrets by theft, bribery, espionage or misrepresentation.
Courts will be able to stop the use of the information or force
payment of damages and royalties. If a company believes that a
former employee might disclose trade secrets in a new job, the
company can ask the court for an injunction to forbid disclosure
of the secrets.

The new Virginia law is a version of the Uniform Trade Secrets
Act, which 15 other states have adopted since 1979. The others
are Minnesota, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Idaho, Washington,
Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, North Dakota, California,
Montana, Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. According to a
lobbyist who worked on the Virginia statute, the common law of
trade secrets isn't very well developed. As a result, winning a
trade secrets case in a state without the uniform code is a
chancy endeavor.

[***][7/08/86][***]
MCI MAIL CHIEF TO STEP DOWN
J. Robert Harcharik, president of MCI's electronic mail division,
plans to resign this month, as the division is merged into the
mainstream of MCI operations. Harcharik, 46, told the "Wall
Street Journal" that he is leaving MCI because "I don't know what
else I could do at MCI. I'm not a corporate kind of guy."
Harcharik, 46, came to MCI four years ago to look into
opportunities for data communications. MCI Mail was the result.
So far, MCI Mail has not been profitable. Harcharik told the
Journal that he expects to see black ink by the end of the year or
early next year -- eight months behind schedule. Analyst Glenn
Pafumi at Dean Witter Reynolds figures MCI took a $20 million
loss on e-mail last year, and will show a $10 million loss on
electronic mail this year.

Harcharik's departure also will mark a change in marketing
strategy for MCI Mail. Under Harcharik, MCI Mail had its own
sales force. But under the reorganization, MCI Mail will be
peddled by the national accounts staff, along with other MCI
services. The idea is to sell the electronic mail service as part
of a package of services available to large corporate customers.

CONTACT: MCI Mail, Washington, D.C., 20036, 202-833-8484.

[***][7/08/86][***]
SOURCE OFFERS TISIG
The Source has brought a special interest group for Texas
Instruments computer users online. TISIG replaces the former
TEXNET, and includes the popular feature, Randy's Rumor Rag,
which is option 6 from the TISIG menu. TISIG will also offer
software for the 99/4A including Putil, the Pascal utility; a
Pascal terminal emulator with Xmodem; assembly language
subroutines; fast terminal emulator with Xmodem; games;
music and graphics. Blaine Crandell, President of Softmail
Incorporated, is the SIGOP for the new group.

CONTACT: Source Telecomputing Corp., 1616 Anderson Road, McLean,
         Va., 22102, 703-734-7500.

[***][7/08/86][***]
NEWSNET ADDS THREE INVESTMENT TIP SHEETS
NewsNet of Bryn Mawr, Pa., has added three investment newsletters
to its list of newsletters available online to computer users.
"Insider Trading News Daily" covers all major insider filings
made at the Securities and Exchange Commission, and weekly
commentary on breaking news stories. "Profit Report" covers
stocks, bonds, options, and commodity futures and contains buy
and sell recommendations. According to NewsNet, the report's
stock picks outperformed the market by 4 to 1 in 1985. "Wall
Street S.O.S. Options Alert" provides daily recommendations on
index options. It includes precise trading instructions to keep
both experience and novice options traders abreast of the index
options market.

CONTACT: NewsNet, 945 Haverford Road, Bryn Mawr, Pa., 19010, 800-
         345-1301.

[***][7/08/86][***]
BUSINESS INDEX HANGS ON SUMMER BREEZE
The Washington Computer Business Index continues to float in the
200s. The index, based on computer display ads in the weekly
"Washington Business" section of "The Washington Post," was at
211 for the week, up an insignificant amount from the 207 of the
prior week. Similarly, non-computer adds hung in at 14.6 pages,
about the same as the prior week. Neither figure is impressive,
as the index seems stuck for the summer, when most sane
Washingtonians (but not your NEWSBYTES bureau chief) flee the
pestilential heat of the Nation's Capital.


[***][7/08/86][***]
MICROS TO HELP SEEK MISSING KIDS
IBM Canada Ltd. and the Metropolitan Toronto Police Department
will use personal computers to modify and enhance pictures of
missing children and crime suspects in a one-year pilot project.
Toronto police commission chairman Clare Westcott and Larry
Achtemichuk, manager of engineering and application development
for IBM Canada, signed the agreement at a news conference July 4.
IBM is donating two Personal Computer ATs to the project, while
the Metro Police will provide facilities and have hired a
freelance artist to work with the system.  IBM also developed the
software called the Computer-Assisted Recovery Enhancement
System (CARES) in its Toronto laboratory.

The primary purpose of the computers and IBM-developed software
is to make changes in photos of missing children.  When children
are missing for long periods, this is necessary to allow for
changes in their appearance as they age.  In the past the job has
been done by artists, and because it was so time-consuming, it
could be done only in selected cases.  The same technology might
also be used to enhance blurred photographs of robbery suspects,
such as those taken by surveillance cameras in banks, said deputy
police chief Peter Scott.  Pictures generated by the system can
be printed out quickly and given to officers on patrol.  Scott
said Toronto is the first police force anywhere to try such a
project, and the force plans to show the system to police from
around the world at the International Conference of Police Forces
in Toronto next year.

Contact: Public Affairs, METROPOLITAN TORONTO POLICE, 590 Jarvis
         St., Toronto, Ont. M4Y 2J5, [phone]
         or Steve Deschamps, IBM CANADA LTD., 3500 Steeles Ave.
         E., Markham, Ont. L3R 2Z1, [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
ANOTHER MERGER TO CONCENTRATE CANADIAN COMPUTER DEALERS
It's happening again.  Only weeks after Computer Innovations
Distribution Inc. of Mississauga, Ont., bought the Canadian
stores and distribution operations of Computerland Corp., an
almost identical transaction has been announced between Montreal-
based Hartco Enterprises Inc. and MicroAge Computer Stores Inc.
Hartco, which operates 54 stores under the name Compucentre, will
become the Canadian franchisor of MicroAge stores.  Fifteen
Compucentre Professional Business Centres will change their name
to MicroAge, while Compucentre's other 39 stores, which cater to
hobbyists, will keep the Compucentre Home Computer Store name.
MicroAge has 15 existing franchises in Canada.

The deal will make Compucentre into Canada's number two computer
retail chain with 69 stores, second only to Computer Innovations'
102 ComputerLand outlets.  The new organization is expected to go
after more franchisees, particularly in Western Canada where both
Compucentre and MicroAge are currently weak.  Before the deal,
the two companies were competing to sign up new dealers.

CONTACT: Jon Turner, MICROAGE CANADA, 1480 Dundas St. E.,
         Mississauga, Ont., [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
MPROLOG VENDOR SOLD
Logicware Inc. of Toronto, which sells the artificial
intelligence language compiler MPROLOG, has been sold.  Its
former parent, G&B Automated Equipment Ltd., also of Toronto, has
decided to concentrate on its traditional business, technology
for the manufacture of bonded abrasives.  G&B lost C$660,000 in
the first quarter.  The new owner of Logicware is Nexa Corp., a
privately held technology investment firm in Ottawa that is also
the parent of Canadian Artificial Intelligence Products Corp.,
which develops AI software.  Logicware's MPROLOG is a variant of
the PROLOG language and one of the top-selling pieces of AI
software in North America.

CONTACT: Ian MacLachlan, LOGICWARE INC., 1000 Finch Ave. W.,
         Toronto, Ont. M3J 2V5, [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
WEST-COAST SOFTWARE FIRM TURNING AROUND
Sydney Development Corp. had some good news to report at the end
of its 1986 fiscal year, which closed March 31.  After a C$11-
million loss in 1985, the software developer showed earnings of
C$1.7 million in 1986.  There is still a working capital
deficiency of $9.3 million, but at last the company's future
looks promising.  Sydney introduced factory monitoring and
control software in co-operation with IBM at the Canadian CAD/CAM
and Robotics Conference in late June, and earlier unveiled
telecommunications software based on the X.400 protocol.  Radio-
Suisse, principal subcontractor for the Swiss telephone network,
will be using that software, as will Information Technology Ltd.,
which is providing a pilot E-mail service for the British
government.  Sydney's revenues for fiscal 1986 were C$13.3
million, up 47 percent over the previous year's C$9 million.

CONTACT: Walter F. Steel, SYDNEY DEVELOPMENT CORP., 1385 West 8th
         Ave., Vancouver, B.C. V6H 3V9, [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
NELMA SETTLES LAWSUITS AS FOUNDER/CHAIRMAN PREPARES TO LEAVE POST
Nelma Information Inc. has won its legal battle to reverse a 1985
share exchange that gave it control of Codessa Computer Corp. of
Mississauga, Ont.  The dispute was over a portable, voice-
activated computer that Codessa allegedly misrepresented to Nelma
at the time of the takeover.  After buying the company, Nelma
discovered the computer was much farther from completion than it
had been told.  The deal has now been annulled, although some
legal wrangles continue.

Nelma will shortly name a new chairman to succeed Edward Newell,
the company's founder and former president.  As NEWSBYTES went to
press the new chairman's name had not been released, nor had
Newell's future plans been revealed.  The computer equipment
manufacturer and distributor has seen interesting times since
1983, when it made the news by being unable to account for
research and development money granted it by the provincial
government of Ontario.  For some of the time since then, the
company was operating under a Holding Proposal under Canadian
bankruptcy law, similar to a Chapter 11 filing in the U.S.

CONTACT: NELMA INFORMATION INC., 5170A Timberlea Blvd.,
         Mississauga, Ont.  L4W 2S5, [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
PHONE COMPANIES TOLD TO ALLOW RESALE OF SERVICES
Some Canadian telephone companies have been given 15 days to file
new rates that will allow their customers to resell voice and
data services.  The order from the Canadian Radio-television and
Telecommunications Commission is one step in a move toward more
competition in Canadian telecommunications, which the CRTC
promised last year at the same time as it turned down an
application to set up competing long-distance service in Canada's
two largest provinces.  Not all telephone companies are affected:
under Canada's peculiar telecommunications regulatory structure
the federal government regulates Bell Canada, which serves
Ontario and Quebec; the British Columbia Telephone Company;
Telesat Canada, the national satellite carrier; and two small
firms serving parts of Newfoundland and the Northwest
Territories.  Other companies, which are provincially regulated,
are not affected by the CRTC order.

[***][7/08/86][***]
COMPUTER COURSES NO LONGER SEEN AS JOB GUARANTEE
Canadian students aren't flocking to university computer science
departments and business data processing courses any more, a
Toronto research firm reports.  International Data Corp. Canada
says students now see data processing professionals being
threatened by unemployment.  In one of the largest Canadian
provinces, Ontario, for example, enrollment in data processing
courses has declined 15 percent in the past two years.  The
result, the researchers say, is that salaries for Canadian data
processing professionals can be expected to start rising six to
eight percent annually in the next few years.  IDC expects
increased demand for business computing services.  Students,
apparently, aren't so sure.

CONTACT: John Morris, Research Analyst, IDC CANADA LTD.,
         15 Toronto St., Suite 601, Toronto, Ont. M5C 2E3
         [phone]

[***][7/08/86][***]
BITS, EH?

 _Commodore Business Machines of Toronto wound up a six-week
promotion June 30 in which it was giving away its Amiga
Transformer software and a 5.25-inch disk drive with every Amiga
computer sold.  The hardware-software combination, worth about
C$750, gives the Amiga limited IBM PC compatibility.  Commodore's
Canadian operation chose the giveaway instead of price cuts
offered by the company in the U.S.

 _ITT Corp. seems to have left Northern Telecom Ltd. at the altar.
The Canadian telecommunications firm was reportedly interested in
buying ITT's telecommunications operations, but ITT announced
July 1 that the operations will become a joint venture between
itself and the French Compagnie Generale d'Electricite.

 _Cableshare Inc. of London, Ont., is still knocking 'em dead on
the stock market thanks to heightened interest in electronic
shopping.  Cableshare's stock closed last Thursday at C$45.  At
the end of April it was trading at C$15.87, and since then it's
been as high as C$61.  Cableshare develops technology for
electronic shop-at-home services.

 _Meridian Technologies Inc. of Toronto has reported revenues of
C$31.4 million for the fiscal year ended March 31, up from C$27.8
million the year before.  Although it had net income of C$2.8
million from continuing operations, a loss on discontinued
operations turned that into a C$2.8-million net loss overall.
Meridian is the parent of Canadian Educational Microprocessor
Corp., which makes the Icon micro, used widely in schools in the
province of Ontario and marketed elsewhere by Burroughs Corp.

 _Canada Systems Group of Mississauga, Ont., the country's largest
computer service bureau, topped the ratings recently.  The Bureau
of Broadcast Measurement, which compiles survey data on Canadian
radio and TV audiences, chose CSG to process and print its survey
data.