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/1988/nb880726.266

Text File | 1991-08-18 | 60KB | 1,251 lines

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NEXT, IBM, ADOBE, IN HOT TALKS ABOUT TECHNOLOGY EXCHANGE
PALO ALTO, Ca. (NB) -- Rumors are rampant that IBM, Steve Jobs' NeXT,
and Adobe Systems are talking turkey regarding an exchange of
technology.  Industry sources say IBM wants to license Display
PostScript from Adobe for use in its own computers, but more
importantly, has signed with NeXT to license elements of NeXT's Unix
operating system.  Neither IBM, Adobe, nor NeXT are talking, but
industry observers say we should look for an announcement on this
possible menage a trois in September or October.

[***][7/26/88][***]
NEW DOS 4.0 FINALLY RELEASED
REDMOND, Wa. (NB) -- Microsoft has released an update of the world's
most popular operating system, MS-DOS Version 4.0.  The new operating
system boasts several improvements over its predecessors.  First, it
includes support for hard disk files greater than 32 megabytes, so
the user is not required to divide large hard disk drives into smaller
partitions.  Also new is support for the expanded memory specification
which allows the computer to access more than 640K at one time.

There's also a DOS Shell, a file directory management system for low-
end personal computers that allows users to visually organize their
hard disk files with pull-down menus.  This feature may have been
the reason for Microsoft's delay in introducing the product on the
market.  Sources told NEWSBYTES-EUROPE that the Apple/Microsoft
"look and feel" lawsuit required the Washington-based firm to take
a hard, second look at its visual copyright.

Analysts say IBM did most of the work on the new DOS and licensed it
back to Microsoft, both out of respect for the software company's
previous work on DOS, and out of concern that the public not perceive
IBM as abandoning its newer operating system, OS/2.

MS-DOS Version 4.0 is being released to hardware manufacturers first
but is expected to be available to end-users for $95 no later than
October.

[***][7/26/88][***]
SYMANTEC'S FIVE NEW MACINTOSH PRODUCTS
BELMONT, Ca. (NB) -- Confirming its commitment to the Macintosh market,
Symantec has released five new software products, including an upgraded
desktop presentation product.  MORE II, InBox 3.0, THINK's LightspeedC
3.0, THINK's Lightspeed Pascal 2.0, and Just Enough Pascal were
announced.

MORE II, considered the centerpiece of Symantec's Macintosh offerings,
is a complete planning, writing, and presentation software system
featuring advanced outlining, a word processor, full drawing capability,
and the ability to create customized color overheads and 35mm slides.
At the news conference, Symantec announced that slide designs created
with MORE II can be sent via modem to MAGICorp of Elmsford, New York,
which will deliver slides via Airborne Express, within 24 hours of a
call, at $15 each.  Available in the fall MORE II is expected to cost
$395 or $89 for current MORE owners.  It is also available to PowerPoint,
Criticket Presents, and ReadySetShow owners for $89 in a limited time
offer.

[***][7/26/88][***]
IT'S OFFICIAL - MACINTOSH TODAY A TABLOID OF YESTERDAY
SAN FRANCISCO (NB) -- As expected, PCW Communications has pulled the
plug on its fledgling Macintosh weekly trade publication MACINTOSH
TODAY.  President David Bunnell, in the final July 18 issue, tells
readers the end as come "at least as you've come to know it."  He
praises the hard-working and dedicated staff, then explains the
bottom line.  "We just didn't get the response from advertisers
we needed. Our parent company, IDG Communications, decided suddenly --
and very recently -- not to continue investing in the newspaper."
He says he hopes for a relaunch of the publication, possibly
online.  In the meantime, most of the staffers are expected to be
switched to the other PCW publications PUBLISH, MACWORLD, and
PC WORLD.

[***][7/26/88][***]
APPLE SHINES IN LATEST QUARTER
CUPERTINO, Ca. (NB) -- Continuing its stellar performance, Apple
Computer has announced that its latest quarter produced a 71 percent increase
in earnings to $91.3 million, compared to $53.5 million one year
ago.  Sales were up 56 percent to $993.1 million. The firm attributes the
great figures to "good progress in the business markets," according
to a statement from Del Yocam, Apple's chief operating officer.

Especially encouraging were strong sales of Apple's high-end machine,
the Macintosh II.  Bruce Lupatkin of Hambrecht & Quist, a market
research firm, says some 50,000 Macintosh IIs were sold in the last
quarter compared to 35,000 in the previous quarter.  He further
remarked that the most surprising aspect of Apple's most recent
report is strong sales in Europe with international sales accounting
for 38 percent of total sales.

[***][7/26/88][***]
FINANCIAL REPORTS ROUNDUP
SAN FRANCISCO (NB) -- As the tide of red and black ink spills out of
Silicon Valley this week, a few reports have bobbed to the surface.
Among the surprises that have crossed the NEWSBYTES CENTRAL desk...

 - CYPRESS SEMICONDUCTOR, San Jose, Ca. is doing so well that it will
distribute the largest profit sharing checks ever to each employee.
Each of the workers gets $896, bringing their total profit sharing
bonuses to $2,974 for the year.

 - MAXTOR, San Jose, Ca., reports that a disk drive price war caused
profits and revenues to be lower this quarter than last.  "Customers are
demanding lower prices," explained Maxtor spokeswoman Deborah Stapleton.
But the firm projects a brighter future, saying there are a record
number of orders for the next quarter.  Maxtor recently promised to
beat Tandy to the market with the first erasable optical disk drive,
the $2,500 Tahiti, in September.

 - PETER NORTON COMPUTING, Santa Monica, Ca., has grown from earning
$500,000 a year in 1983 to making $11.2 million in 1987.  It ranks
among the 15 fastest-growing software companies, according to SOFTLETTER,
and is now the 32nd largest independent U.S. software company.
Journalists got a packet of tomato seeds in the mail with this
announcement, and it was explained this way, "A good gardener always
plans for the future and next year's crop.  While you're waiting
for the sprouts to break ground, be on the lookout for an
exciting new venture that we will announce shortly..."  Hummm....

 - SOFTWARE PUBLISHING CORPORATION, Mountain View, Ca., is doing quite
well, thank you, with earnings of $3.86 million, a 338 percent increase
over 1987 figures.  SP's Chief Financial Officer claims the increase
comes from corporate accounts, which make up 60 percent of the firm's
revenues now.  "This is a significant departure from our past focus
on smaller customers," says Jim Heffernan.

[***][7/26/88][***]
LOTUS $6 MILLION AGENDA CAMPAIGN BOOSTS FIRST PIM MAKER
SAN JOSE, Ca. (NB) -- To say the least, it hasn't been easy for a tiny
software start-up to get the world to look at its new kind of software,
but Lotus' Agenda, which is now shipping, may help matters.  Valor
Software, after researching the new software category for two years,
was the first on the market with a "personal information manager" or
PIM, called Info-XL, back in February.  It's got five windows:
outline processor, a file manager, word processing area, scheduler,
and calendar.  They all work together to presumably sort through and
organize one's life.  Info-XL sells for only $295 compared to the higher
price tag for competing Grandview from Symantec, and Agenda from Lotus.

But regardless of the program's uniqueness and price tag, Valor had
a "tremendous educational burden," Gary Jose, VP of marketing told
NEWSBYTES, in bringing news of this tool "that can dramatically
increase productivity" to the public.  A white paper was published
by Valor's President Steve Sando, explaining the new category to
software resellers and editors, which is now in its second printing.

But Valor's efforts at publicity are now dwarfed by Lotus' planned
$6 million advertising and educational campaign to promote its own PIM,
Agenda, says Jose.  The mood was upbeat when Lotus announced shipment
of Agenda, because "Lotus' market presence will significantly help in
educating PC users about this new category."

Info-XL runs on any MS-DOS machine with at least 384k and MS-DOS 2.0 or
higher.  The package is sold at Egghead software stores.

CONTACT:  Gary Jose, VALOR SOFTWARE, 408/559-1100

[***][7/26/88][***]
CLARIS MAKES MOVES ON SECOND SOFTWARE FIRM - NASHOBA
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Ca. (NB) -- In its second acquisition in as many months,
Claris, the Apple Computer software spin-off, has purchased Nashoba
Systems of Foster City, Ca., maker of FileMaker, the largest-selling
database package for the Macintosh.  The acquisition follows Claris'
purchase of StyleWare of Houston, and provides Claris with a more complete
line of Macintosh software products.

Under terms of the deal, which reportedly cost Apple $7 million,
Nashoba's programmers will remain in Massachusetts while its Foster
City operation will be folded into Claris' Mountain View headquarters.

[***][7/26/88][***]
WHAT DRAM SHORTAGE, SAYS PIICEON
SAN JOSE, Ca. (NB) -- The current shortage of memory chips may be
affecting the entire world, but it is not affecting Piiceon, maker
of a 4-megabyte SUPERAM memory board for the Compaq 386 Deskpro
system.  In a bold press release the company states that it's got
more than enough suppliers of DRAM chips that have signed on the
dotted line, enough to meet the "post-summer boom that we expect
from mid-August to December." And how do they do it?  "Piiceon's more
than 10 years of experience in the multiuser, supermicro memory
business has positioned it well to respond to the current DRAM
crisis," says Piiceon founder and President Harry Masuda.  That means
that years of purchasing power as a Dynatech company have guaranteed
the firm adequate supplies of memory chips.

In case you want to get in on this abundance of riches, a SUPERAM memory
board  has a suggested retail price of $3199 and is sold at Businessland,
Computerland, Nynex, and The Computer Factory stores.

[***][7/26/88][***]
COMPUTERLAND FILES TO GO PUBLIC
HAYWARD, Ca. (NB) -- Computerland, seeking to raise $109.3 million,
has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to offer
31.4 percent of the company for public stock sale.  The prospectus
asks that the initial public offering of 3.4 million shares be
priced at between $16 and $19 a share -- a fairly high price
according to most analysts, who point to the fact that such a
price is higher than Businessland's, which is growing at a faster
rate than Computerland.

The prospectus notes that Computerland sold $1.7 billion in goods
during its last fiscal year and posted sales of $71 billion for
the first eight months of this year.  Profit reached $5.6 million
last year.

The public offering is being managed by Salomon Brothers, Merrill
Lynch Capital Markets and San Francisco-based Volpe & Covington.

[***][7/26/88][***]
IN BRIEF --

APPLE COMPUTER, Cupertino, Ca., began shipping its AppleFax
Modem, $699.  Operation of the modem with a Macintosh actually
requires use of a conventional modem.  The fax machine comes
with software which allows fax calls to be time-delayed and
permits printing to a LaserWriter printer.

BROWN BAG SOFTWARE, Campbell, Ca., has acquired the rights to
Stella Business Graphics and SBG II, and is renaming them as one
product,  EASY BUSINESS GRAPHICS, priced at $195.  Brown Bag is
the first commercial software house to go  "all shareware."  Disks
containing a partially functional version of the product are
available for $10.  The purchase price also entitles the buyer to
get one year of unlimited, toll-free support.  Brown Bag is also
offering a $50 rebate to users of other business
graphics products that purchase the Easy Business Graphics program.

THE EXPLORATORIUM, San Francisco, a hands-on science museum, has
received $170,000 worth of Apple computers -- 36 computers in all
including 5 Macintosh IIs, a fax machine, and 31 SEs -- in a donation
from APPLE COMPUTER.  The machines will be used to produce exhibits,
graphics, and the Exploratorium's magazines, Ron Hipschman of The
Exploratorium, told NEWSBYTES.

LEFT-HANDED SOFTWARE, San Jose, Ca., has introduced HOT-BOOT, a
program which allows you to put customized messages, such as
birthday greetings, even put "fake" viruses on any disk.  John
"Lefty" Stillman, vice president, promises that the product,
available from PC-SIG or directly from Left-Handed for $24,
has never caused a serious incident, lawsuit, or data loss.

MICROSOFT, Redmond, Wa., has announced the availability of the
Delux Forms Pak for PC or Macintosh versions of Microsoft Works.
The Pak provides computerized templates for checks, statements,
purchase orders, and templates.  It is available for a limited
time at $29.95 from Deluxe Computer Forms and Supplies (800-356-
7552).

PETER NORTON COMPUTING, Santa Monica, Ca., has released PC-DOS 4.0
versions of its best-selling programs, Norton Utilities and Norton
Utilities Advanced Edition.


[***][7/26/88][***]
THE PRESS COVERS THE DEMOCRATS' SHOW WITH COMPUTERS APLENTY
ATLANTA (NB) -- Computers were ubiquitous at this year's
Democratic National Convention in Atlanta. Newspaper bureaus ran
IBM PCs, minicomputer terminals, and even some Macintoshes. The
itinerant press used Tandy Model 100s and 200s. The least-
computerized journalists NEWSBYTES saw all week were a South
African on a Teleram terminal, circa 1980, and a Japanese man who
faxed kanji to his home office from the AT&T-sponsored press
room. (AT&T did some very smart things, including having pull-out
plugs (called J-11  plugs) on each of their 60 phones, so modem
users had no problems. The two fax machines were also a stroke of
genius -- next time there will be more.)

Where technology went wrong this year was in putting desktop computers
inside state delegations to count votes -- 4,000 buttons into which
delegates would insert credentials before voting could have cut
voting times -- the system used didn't.

How did the computerized press get its news?  From C-SPAN, with
its gavel-to-gavel coverage, from hand-outs printed on
LaserWriter printers, and from news wires -- modems with
ruggedized dot matrix printers. The "Presidential Campaign
Hotline," an online service for political junkies which costs
$350/month, had its own press room with over a dozen reporters
on a dozen computers offering reports which were updated hourly.

The press' efforts were made possible by Southern Bell. They laid
down new fiber optic trunk lines and switches all over downtown
Atlanta in the months before the show. Although the system may
have overloaded briefly on Monday, NEWSBYTES sources report, the
bugs finally worked out. Plus, the new system had the capacity to
run High Definition TV pictures, with digital sound, on a live
feed from the podium to the World Congress Center.

What can we expect in 1992? Still fewer "network" news people, and
less floor coverage from them. More journalists from local TV,
computerized news services like the hotline, and a lot more
foreign reporters. Finally, handheld devices which can tape
interviews and spit out transcripts, even translated into
Japanese, can be expected, among other wonders.

[***][7/26/88][***]
TI ANNOUNCES LOW-PRICED KIDS' COMPUTER, CHEAP COLOR
DALLAS (NB) -- Texas Instruments will offer kids a miniature PC
designed for children under 8 years old this Christmas. Called
Computer Fun, it is the first U.S. computer to be marketed
specifically to pre-schoolers. At $90, it includes a voice
recognition system, cursor control, a keyboard, a scrolling
display and programmability. It's also a laptop, with an LCD
flip-top screen which will support animation for games. Software
will come in ROM packs, as with games machines. Both educational
and games programs will be offered.

For adults, TI also introduced ColorTouch, a $295 device which
can add a little color -- for report covers, graphs, charts, and
signs -- to documents after they have gone through a laser
printer. Using it requires that you place the document under a
sheet of film insert the two into a slot, then are exposed to
heat and pressure, binding black toner to color film.

[***][7/26/88][***]
SOMEONE IS STEALING COMPUTERS FROM THE BLIND IN OKLAHOMA
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (NB) -- "The Associated Press" reports that
thieves have about cleaned out the Oklahoma Library for the
Blind, which had $20,000 in computer equipment stolen in the last
10 months. In the last robbery, July 14, thieves reportedly
kicked down a plate glass window to get at 2 PCs and two
electric typewriters. The library, which serves about 55,000
people throughout the state, needs computers to keep track of its
mailing lists and search for reading materials. New computers are
on order, and so are some burglar bars for the center's windows.

[***][7/26/88][***]
PEROT-EDS WAR HEATS UP AS PEROT BIDS ON TEXAS MEDICAID CONTRACT
DALLAS (NB) -- H. Ross Perot is battling terrible odds. Most men
who sell the companies they love and try to compete with them
fail. The best example -- Jim Ryder, who sold his Ryder rental
truck company and lost out with his Jartran challenge.

But H. Ross Perot is no ordinary entrepreneur, and when he gets
mad he generally gets even. Following the loss of an innovative
U.S. Postal Service contract, which EDS protested and under which
Perot was to share cost savings directly with the government
agency, Perot is taking dead-aim at the Texas Medicaid re-
imbursement contract, long a cash cow for EDS. The state's
Department of Human Services, which handles the contract, says
it's being opened up for bids, and that negotiations on a post-
1989 renewal of the contract with EDS have broken off. Perot has
hired away two dozen EDS managers since starting Perot Systems a
few months ago, but other former Perot colleagues are upset that
he seeks to destroy what he first built.

NEWSBYTES will continue to follow this story. EDS did not comment
on the Texas action putting the contract up for bid, except to
promise it would bid on it.

[***][7/26/88][***]
PECAN GOLDEN CHIPS

ABC NEWS, New York, drew a lot of publicity to itself with a
HyperCard database on the Apple Macintosh used by anchor Peter
Jennings (but not by co-anchor David Brinkley).

COMDISCO, Rosemont, IL, opened its 9th computer disaster recovery
center, in North Bergen, NJ. Comdisco sells insurance in the form
of computer rooms for companies which depend on big computer
systems.

COMPAQ, Houston, is retiring $150 million in long-term debt next
month. The paper, paying 5.25%, was bought back at $1072.19 per
$1,000 in bonds. Compaq still has $200 million in long debt.

GOULD, Rolling Meadows, IL, and CRAY RESEARCH, Minneapolis, are
releasing a high-speed supercomputer Front-End processor they co-
developed. (Korea's Gold Star has released a 256-port
communications processor for supercomputers this week.)

GREAT PLAINS SOFTWARE, Fargo, ND, announced deals with quick-
print franchisers INSTY-PRINTS and SIR SPEEDY, to automate front-
office tasks like pricing, work order creation, invoicing and
tracking work in progress on Apple Macintosh computers.

HAYES, Norcross, says it is unaffected by a recent decision by
Australia to prohibit the sale imported modems. The company told
NEWSBYTES it hasn't sold modems there in the past and had no
plans to do so in the future.

MEAD DATA CENTRAL, Dayton, OH, and WEST PUBILSHING, St. Paul, MN,
settled their dispute over rights to publish legal opinions. Mead
will license fees for West's "National Reporter System" while
West will license Mead's pagination system, first used in Lexis.
Both companies will stay in business.

[***][7/26/88][***]
REMOTE PC CONTROLLER USING TELEPHONE LINES
TOKYO (NB) -- The Fukuoka-based microcomputer systems manufacturing
company Nichibei Denshi has developed a system which controls
personal computers in remote locations through telephone
lines.   The Personal Remote Maintenance System consists of two
Perm units, developed by Nichibei, serving as a data sender,
receiver, and modem.  If a receiver loads the system diskette into a PC,
a sender can switch on and off the receiver's PC, and display
and change the receiver's data by operation of a remote keyboard.

The system is capable of diagnosing damaged software and hardware,
and re-inputting or repairing data over the phone.   The system
will also  be used for remote file transfer, data input help for
customers, and operating instructions.  Using this system, software
companies will be capable of prompt and inexpensive servicing.

The Perm unit is scheduled to be priced about 200,000 yen or
$1,500.  The unit can be used for NEC PC9801, the Hitachi B16-EX
series, and Fujitsu FMR.  In the future, the remote PC controller
promises to be exported to overseas countries.

CONTACT:  Nichibei Denshi, 1-13-10 Shirogane, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka

[***][7/26/88][***]
DIFFERENT PERSONAL COMPUTERS CONNECT TO A HOST COMPUTER
TOKYO (NB) -- Chori Joho System (CJS) has developed a
communications controller which connects different personal
computers to a host computer.  The COMNET STAR adopts the RS232 C
interface between personal computers and a terminal of a host
computer.  The controller can be connected with five machines
including NEC PC9801 and Toshiba J3100, and also, the controller
can connect as many as eight personal computers.

The shipping date for the machine is this September.  The basic
price for the machine and its software promises to be one million
yen or $7,500.

CONTACT: Chori Joho System, 2-45 KawawaCho, Higashi-ku, Osaka
         541

[***][7/26/88][***]
SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT COMPANIES ENTERING OVERSEAS MARKETS
TOKYO (NB) -- Japanese software development companies have been
establishing bases in Europe and U.S.A. at an unprecedented rate.

TSD, Tokyo, will establish a corporate office in the U.S. and the
Philippines.  Los Angeles-based TSD America will develop
application software for Japanese companies entering the U.S.market.
Philippine TSD will support software development for the
companies with which TSD has contracted.  Manila-based TSD will be
set up in August, with joint investment by Paul Akino, step brother
of Philippine President Aquino and director of Philippine Software
Associates.  TSD will entrust 20 percent of the software development
orders received in Japan, to Philippine TSD within five years.

Meanwhile, Iness will establish corporate offices in
the U.S. by the end of this year.  Software Research Associates
(SRA) will set up SRA Europe in London this October.  Toyo
Information System (TIS) sets up TISUSA in Los Angeles at the
beginning of this month.

CONTACT: TSD, 1-31-4 Takadanobaba, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo


[***][7/26/88][***]
<< SUSHI BYTES >>

ULTRA-PARALLEL PROCESSING COMPUTER FOR AI -- Electrotechnical
Laboratory of Agency of Industrial Science and Technology has
completed the basic design of an ultra-parallel and non-von Neumann
computer which simultaneously uses 1,000 arithmetic units.
The laboratory will spend six years completing the EM4 for
artificial intelligence, which can make over one billion computations
per second.

CHIP MAKERS RUSH INTO RECRUITMENT -- Major foreign electronics firms
such as IBM, Digital Equipment, and Motorola, have announced plans
to hire more employees, and now it is Texas Instruments' turn.  TI has
announced a drive to recruit 500 new employees within this year.  The
company plans to increase production of 1M DRAM and establish a design
center in Osaka.

NEC TO EXPORT MORE LARGE COMPUTERS -- NEC will export 151 units
of large computers and ultra-large computers to Honeywell Bull of the
U.S.A. and Bull of France.  NEC promises to export five or six
units of its latest ultra-large computer, the ACOS System 2000, to
Honeywell Bull.

TI JAPAN TO RECEIVE CHIPS FROM KOREA -- Texas Instruments (TI)
Japan will receive an OEM supply of 256K DRAM from Hyundai of Korea
starting this fall.   TI Japan promises to deliver one million
units per month.

MITSUBISHI LEADS SECOND GROUP -- Mitsubishi has announced that
its production of 1M DRAM reached 2.2 million units in June.  Toshiba
has been producing 5 million chips per month since May,
and Mitsubishi, NEC, Fujitsu and Hitachi follow with 2 million.
But Mitsubishi is at the top of the production heap. The company is
considering a plan to ramp up production from 400 million to 500
million chips within a year.

INTEL TO SATISFY DEMAND FOR 386 -- Intel Japan has announced it will
supply its 32-bit MPU, the 80386, in sufficient quantities to
meet demand in the Japanese market this fall.  Right now, Intel is
meeting only 70% of market demand.  But more of the fast ICs will
be coming off Intel's assembly lines in Israel, and Albuquerque,
New Mexico, USA.


FUJITSU ANNOUNCES ITS SALES OPERATION IN S.E.A. -- Fujitsu has
announced plans to open a sales office in Taiwan.  This is  part
of an operation to strengthen its semiconductor sales organization
in Southeast Asia.  Fujitsu had sold semiconductors through an
agent in Hong Kong but the market growth triggered it to establish
a subsidiary, Fujitsu Microelectronics Pacific (FMP), in Hong Kong
in August 1986.  Following  this, Fujitsu has established a
subsidiary in Singapore and will set up sales in Taiwan this summer.

ANOTHER ACCESS TO JAPAN -- National Semiconductor Japan (NSJ) has
announced plans to establish a semiconductor production technical center
in the suburb of Tokyo.  With this establishment, the company aims
to refine its design and test ability to meet the needs of the
Japanese market.  NSJ took over Fairchild Japan's business and
employees when U.S.-based National Semiconductor purchased Fairchild.
NSJ hopes to achieve a sales profit of 5,000 billion yen or $37
billion within two years.


[***][7/26/88][***]
YOU READ IT HERE FIRST/WEEK OF JULY 26, 1988
Copyright 1988/Written by W. A. Yacco, Exclusive to NEWSBYTES

 In this week's installment...

 - NOT-SO-BONA VENTURE...Wyse terminals fail to run Windows at DOS 4.0 demo

 - RATS!... personal information manager competes with Agenda

 - AND MICE...ATI's VGA wonder

 - SYSTEM SLEUTH unique software that goes inside a PC & tells all

 - QUOTE OF THE WEEK...computer puns on t-shirts

 - LOTUS 1-2-3 3.0 MAINTAINS 4TH QUARTER SCHEDULE...Cal Tech preview

 - THREE-AND-A-HALF INCHES--IN COLOR...floppies take on rainbow hues

 - DR. JECKLE AND MR. DRIVE...Central Point's drive reads Mac and PC files

[***][7/26/88][***]
NOT-SO-BONA VENTURE
LOS ANGELES, CA (NB) -- DOS 4.0 started to ship last week as
predicted and Microsoft rolled out its version in Los Angeles at a
conference in the Westin Bonaventure.  Two days of conference
sessions accompanied twenty or so exhibitors displaying products
developed for the Windows operating environment.

Microsoft has often used Compaq 386 machines to run their Windows
demonstrations but this time the exhibition contract went to
BusinessLand.  There was just one hitch.  According to several
vendors, the WYSE 386 machines didn't work quite right with the new
Windows 2.10.  A crew supposedly installed new BIOS in some of the
systems early on the first morning but several exhibitors claimed
that their systems were overlooked and still ran a little "flaky."

Anyway, it's doubtful that many of those in attendance noticed.
There was too much interest in conferences presented by folks like
Esther Dyson.

[***][7/26/88][***]
RATS!
 . . . One of the applications that was apparently running fine in
the exhibition was the new *PackRat* from Polaris.  It's billed as a
Personal Information Manager and provides features that include a
telephone directory and log, a task list, agenda, expense log, and
index cards.  It's intended to perform the same scheduling and
organization tasks as Lotus *Agenda*.  The program doesn't have the
AI features of the Lotus entry but *PackRat*'s interface uses
familiar metaphors that make learning its use relatively easy.  It's
got a look that's definitely worth a second glance.

[***][7/26/88][***]
AND MICE
MARKHAM, Ontario -- ATI's new VGA Wonder is just starting to ship
with a surprise bonus.  The new high-resolution VGA board
incorporates a Microsoft Inport mouse port.  Users will save a slot
and a COM port while adding the board's extended resolutions and
colors.

[***][7/26/88][***]
WHO DUNNIT?
SEAL BEACH, Ca -- What do Michael Cain and Albert Finney have in
common with CSSL?  Sleuth.  *System Sleuth* is the name of CSSL's
new system-information package for the PC.  Anyone who must
configure or service computers will find this software virtually
irresistible.  *Sleuth* goes inside a system and unearths all of its
secrets: TSR mapping, device driver chain list, ROM areas, disk
usage, and file and memory contents.  That's not to say that
*Sleuth* is too sophisticated for the merely curious.  In fact, it's
fool-proof design won't allow the user to corrupt the system by
making changes.  Due out soon, the beta version is nearly ready
enough for release.  Once it's finished, *System Sleuth* will be a
boon to those plagued by the type of hardware and software conflict
that causes mysterious incompatibilities.

[***][7/26/88][***]
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
LOS ANGELES, Ca -- "Computer Women Are Software It Counts."  Very
few of the computer novelties I see appeal to me but the foregoing
slogan and another caught my eye at a recent computer show.  I guess
I'm a sucker for puns on t-shirts.  A Hardware version was available
for the male gender.

Those shirts and several others were being sold by Richard Stock,
who heads a company named WITWORKS.  That's the outfit that makes
the "I'm user friendly" cups you may have seen around the coffee
urn.  Richard and his partner, Roberta Borer, write their own lines
and will even build you a custom cup by adding your logo.  Contact:
213-559-3344.  OK, maybe I bent last week's promise just a bit on
the quote.

[***][7/26/88][***]
LOTUS 1-2-3 3.0 MAINTAINS 4TH QUARTER SCHEDULE
PASADENA, Ca (NB) -- Lotus lovers were out in full force at Cal Tech
last week for a preview of 3.0.  After making a presentation of the
next version of 1-2-3, product manager Chris Randall assured those
assembled that the product would be delivered, as promised, in the
fourth quarter.  Randall dismissed rumors that the latest
implementation presently requires over 640KB to run under DOS and
that developers in Cambridge are having fits getting it to fit.
Instead, he maintained that the new version would not only offer
spiffy new features like multiple levels but would perform faster
and in less memory than previous versions.

[***][7/26/88][***]
THREE-AND-A-HALF INCHES--IN COLOR
WEST JORDAN, Ut (NB) -- If you've been wishing you could get 1.44MB
diskettes in color, Cenna Technology is about to begin making them
for their CenTech brand.  Many installations have used colored
diskettes for coded media filing but the higher capacity variety
have been unavailable.  According to one of the company's
distributors, the product will be the first of its kind made here in
the states.

[***][7/26/88][***]
DR. JECKLE AND MR. DRIVE
 . . . If those CenTech diskettes were already shipping, I might
have been able to try one on my tricky new high-density drive.  It's
just a plain Sony that I installed in a '386 clone but it's reading
and writing both DOS- and Mac-formatted diskettes.  The secret is
Central Point Software's amazing new Deluxe Option Board.  It's just
a little hard to believe but the MCOPY command automatically
translates between Mac and DOS formats in either direction.
Otherwise, the software that comes with the board works just like
DOS.  And, the list price of $159 should make it just about the most
cost-effective solution of its kind.

[***][7/26/88][***]
COMPUTERS ABROAD: SOVIET STYLE SOFTWARE RESEARCH
NEW DELHI, INDIA (NB) -- NEWSBYTES-EUROPE has learned an interesting
perspective on Soviet software research.  We were told by a consultant
who deals computers in India that most software research in the
Soviet Union is done by programmers subcontracted by India's computer
industry. It is through India that most IBM systems find their way
into the Soviet Union even though IBM pulled out of the subcontinent
years ago.  Indian programmers are said to work, by and large, in
dimly-lit software labs earning very little money.

In a related story, NEWSBYTES-EUROPE heard that Gorbachev's
"Peristroika" or restructuring is designed to allow the use of more
and more computers in Soviet life and business. Currently
there are rumoured to be IBM ATs, PCs and compatible systems,
but no Macs.

[***][7/26/88][***]
INTEL INTRODUCES NEW AT-BUS PLATFORM
ROTTERDAM, HOLLAND (NB) -- Intel has introduced the newest
member of its AT-bus platform facility called the system
301Z. The 301Z, which uses a 386 microprocessor, is designed
for OEMs and end users. It fixes one of the problems of
the original 386 board, namely the 512K memory capacity.
The 301Z can hold up to 2MB of dynamic RAM through Surface
In Line Memory Modules (SIMMs).

In addition, the company also unveiled a new ADA compiler
for 386-based systems. The ADA 386, as the compiler is
called, offers US Department of Defense validation and a
cross-compiler running on a VAX/VMS-based system. Modules
produced with the ADA compiler can be linked with modules
produced with the PL/M compiler and assemblers. A starter
pack includes all the desired products ready to run on a
Multibus II-based product.

[***][7/26/88][***]
SMS ANNOUNCES NEW SUPER CHIP PROGRAMMER
MUNICH, WEST GERMANY (NB) -- There are many programmers on
the market, but none as complete as the SMS SPINT+ which
can program EPROMs, PROMS, EPROM-micros, PALs, LCAs, PGAs,
PLDs and others. The system, which includes support for
more than 200 devices, plugs into the bus of an XT or an AT
and through an external box accommodates the appropriate
device. In addition, it can edit, test and assemble
PAL statements into the specific codes that will be used
to program the PAL device. The unit includes LOGIC, a pal
compiler free of charge. Costing DM3000, the SMS SPRINT+
covers the high end of the range.

At the lower end, there is CCA's EPROM and PAL programmer
minus the goodies (such as the assembler) which costs just
DM 700.

[***][7/26/88][***]
RISC ROAD BECOMES RISKIER
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (NB) -- There are currently many players
in the RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computer) market.
Currently there are AMD with the 29000, Motorola with the
8000, Fairchild's CLIPPER, IBM with the proprietary RT/PC
processor, SUN with the SPARC, Intel with the 486 (not
officially announced yet), National with the 532 (not
really RISC), MIPS, and now Cypress Semiconductor with
the SPARC.

SPARC, which stands for Scalable Processor Architecture
Reduced Computer, is a novel idea which offers a basic CPU
cell, designed with .8 micron lines, and offers 20 MIPS
from the 33MHz part. Designed to sell for $700 in
quantity, it is unique because the chip offers "windows
registers" similar to the Z80 chip alternate register
sets. At any point, the user can switch to another window
and no saving of registers is necessary because registers
are designed to overlap. Just this point is seen to be so
important that everyone NEWSBYTES-EUROPE consulted was anxious
to talk about it.  That's because modern language compilers
which are designed to have many modules, operate faster on
the SPARC. Murray Freeman, Cypress marketing manager in
Europe, explained further, "This chip is so well designed
that we know of 286 emulators which run faster on the
SPARC that they do on the real 286 chip."

Although Cypress feels that the SPARC chip is the future,
AMD also feels that its 29K chip is the future, and
undoubtedly Motorola also feels that the 88000 is the
future. We will just have to wait and see.

[***][7/26/88][***]
DIGITIZER DESIGNED IN DENMARK NOW AVAILABLE
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK (NB) -- If you want to combine video images
in computerized image databases and wonder how this can be done
without spending an arm and a leg, a company in Denmark may have
the answer. Circuit Design, which designs in Denmark and manufactures
in the Far East, has developed the PCFRAME, a PC card that holds a
complete frame grabber, including memory. The card can
store a picture in 3 seconds and captures images in a 512
x 278 resolution, each one with 128 levels of gray. The
images can be displayed on EGA and VGA screens. In
addition, a free PCFRAME software package is offered which
runs under EGA and can perform basic image operations. The
card also has 256K of 100ns static RAM on board and an HP
Laserjet driver which offers images that can then be used
under Ventura or other packages. How much? Only $300 for
the card.

[***][7/26/88][***]
EUROBITS...

    OSF (The OPEN SOFTWARE FOUNDATION) announced the
appointment of Henning Oldenburg as its European
operations manager. Henning Oldenburg will be based at
OSF's European headquarters in Brussels and comes from
Nixdorf where he was Munich-based manager for computer
integrated manufacturing...

    ...SANYO FRANCE announces that Diminique Faguet and
Jakob Skopicki joined the company as general manager and
head of minicomputer division respectively. In a related
story, Sanyo also announced the Sanyo ICON 4000, a system
based on a Motorola 68020 running at 25MHz and a Motorola
68020 as an I/O processor tightly coupled together.
Peripherals are controlled with another 68020 while a
fourth 68000 executes the hard disk system. The system
supports up to 128 terminals...

    ...As reported previously by NEWSBYTES EUROPE, a new
386-compatible chip, the VM86000S, has been unveiled by VM
technology, a joint venture of Mitsui and ASCII
Corporation. The chip closely resembles the 386SX chip in that it
uses a 16-bit bus and runs at either 16MHz or 20Mhz. The chip is
set to sell for the same price as the Intel 386SX chip...

    ...COMPAQ plans to set up a second European manufacturing
plant reportedly to build European 386S machines. Although
the site has not been decided yet, it may join Compaq's first
facility in Silicon Glen (as that part of Scotland is
called due to the abundance of computer manufacturing) or may
be based in France or West Germany...

    ...The Schneider TARGET plasma-based laptop running a
286 chip at 8MHz has become available. Together with a 3.5
inch drive, 640x400 display compatible with Hercules and
CGA, 640KB of RAM, serial and parallel ports, it costs DM
5998 or about $3000...

    ...Forget batteries, here comes electricity from RADIO
WAVES. NEWSBYTES-EUROPE thought of it years ago, but someone else is
making money from it. A new type of battery has been
developed which converts radio waves into electricity and
which extends laptop life. Produced by Sonic energy
Corporation, it will cost about $200 when finished.

    ...and finally DEFINICON SYSTEMS based in Munich, Germany is
reportedly going to release a board with the SPARC RISC
processor before the end of the year. Reportedly the board
is designed to make it easier to develop software for the
chip...

====
[***][7/26/88][***]
OS/2 EXTENDED ADDITION ARRIVES, WHILE SALES SLOW ON PS/2
RYE BROOK, N.Y. (NB) -- OS/2 Extended Edition 1.0 will be
available July 29, according to International Business Machines
Corp. The new operating system for the PS/2 line of personal
computers is OS/2 Standard Edition with the addition of a
database manager and a communications package that includes
terminal emulation. Extended Edition 1.0 is $795, and the upgrade
for Standard Edition users is $645. IBM says it will start
shipping Extended Edition 1.1, which features the Presentation
Manager graphical interface, in November. Upgrades from Extended
Edition 1.0 to 1.1 will be (is this really IBM talking?) free.

According to IMS America Computer Markets Division, only the top-
of-the-line IBM PS/2 Model 80 saw sales grow during the first
quarter of 1988. The rest of the PS/2 line of personal computers
from International Business Machines Corp. saw sales declines in
dollars and units. According to IMS, the Model 80 gained 41
percent in dollars and 47 percent in units sold over the October-
December 1987 quarter. The IMS retail audit found total PS/2
sales down 24 percent in dollars and 32 percent in units sold for
the quarter. The low-end Model 25 was down 58 percent in units
and dollars, the Model 30 down 38 percent in both, the Model 50
down 15 percent in dollars and 14 percent in units sold, and the
Model 60 down 22 percent in dollars, 18 percent in units. Now we
can stop wondering why IBM decided to take trade-ins on PS/2s.

[***][7/26/88][***]
IBM UPGRADES RISC WORKSTATION
RYE BROOK, N.Y. (NB) -- IBM has rolled out three new models of
its RISC (reduced instruction set) computers, and a new 310-
megabyte disk drive. The larger RT machines can handle three of
the new drives, giving users access to 930 megabytes of internal
data storage. Also, IBM has announced several programs, including
AIX/RT VS COBOL, for commercial customers in Unix environments.
The new RT model 130 is a desktop unit, while the models 135 and
B35 are floor-standing machines. All three have 16 megabytes of
complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) memory, a floating
point accelerator, and 114 megabytes of hard drive. Prices are
$23,220 for the Model 130, $30,595 for the 135, and $32,165 for
the B35.

[***][7/26/88][***]
UNISYS ACTS ON DEFENSE PROBE, FIRES CONSULTANTS
WASHINGTON (NB) -- Unisys Corp. has put five to 10 employees on
leave with pay and fired more than a dozen consultants in the
wake of a federal investigation of Pentagon contract fraud and
its own internal ethics review conducted by two former Watergate
prosecutors. According to Unisys Chairman W. Michael Blumenthal,
Secretary of the the Treasury during the Carter Administration,
the internal review began before the current FBI investigation
became known. The probe involves irregularities in computer
contracts with Sperry, which merged with Burroughs to become
Unisys. In a letter to employees, Blumenthal said that "employees
and consultants appear to have had a history of engaging at Sperry
in activities which are contrary to the policies and procedures
put in place by Unisys. These practices appear to have continued
in the new company."

Blumenthal said an internal investigation began last fall and
revealed widespread "improprieties" at the surveillance and fire
control division in Great Neck, N.Y. The division was headed by
Charles Gardner, now the focus of an FBI fraud and bribery
inquiry. Gardner was forced to retire last March. Blumenthal also
said the company has killed all contracts with private
consultants who lobby for the company before the federal
government. A company spokesman said that "more than a dozen"
contracts were terminated, including one with former Assistant
Secretary of the Navy Melvyn Paisley, a key figure in the
scandal. Unisys hired former deputy Watergate prosecutor Henry
Ruth and former special Watergate prosecutor Charles Ruff to
handle the inquiry.

In other Unisys news, the company has won a $20 million new Navy
contract for tactical communications support services to the San
Diego fleet combat direction system support activity. Unisys says
it plans to involve inexpensive personal computers widely in the
work, at great savings to the Navy.

[***][7/26/88][***]
SYMPHONY PUSHES LOTUS EARNINGS
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (NB) -- Strong sales of Symphony, its integrated
software package, led Lotus Development Corp. to $17.3 million
(38 cents per share) in earnings for the second quarter on sales
of $122 million. That compares to profits of $16.3 million (36
cents per share) on sales of $94 million for the second quarter
of 1987. "Business was boosted by an outstanding quarter for
Symphony, another solid performance by 1-2-3, and a strong
quarter of international sales," said Jim Manzi, Lotus president.

Goldman Sachs & Co. analyst Richard Sherlund estimates that Lotus
sold 285,000 units of 1-2-3 in the quarter, down a bit from the
record first quarter, but still a solid performance. The good
sales for 1-2-3 indicate that Borland's Quattro and Microsoft's
Excell aren't taking market share from the venerable 1-2-3.

[***][7/26/88][***]
COMPANIES SUE SUFFOLK COUNTY OVER VDT LAW
HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. (NB) -- Four high-tech companies with offices on
Long Island have challenged Suffolk County's new law regulating
use of computer terminals in the office. The suit claims that new
law is superseded by state and federal labor and occupational
health laws, and constitutes an illegal search and seizure,
because it authorizes county officials to make warrantless
inspections of offices. The new law, which became effective July
18, requires companies with more than 20 video display terminals
to provide work breaks, eye care and eyeglass benefits, and
special furniture and lighting.

Filing the lawsuit in state court were ILC Data Device Corp. of
Bohemia, N.Y.; Lumex Inc. of Bay Shore, N.Y., and Micro Corp. and
Digital Data Systems Inc., both of Hauppauge. An occupational law
specialist in Washington told NEWSBYTES, "This lawsuit is a real
long shot. They might get lucky and find a judge who agrees on
the charges, but I wouldn't put any money on it."  The law was
passed over the veto of Suffolk County Executive Patrick Halpin,
who had strongly backed the measure when he was a county
legislator.

[***][7/26/88][***]
BANK OF VERMONT STUNG BY WIRE FRAUD
BURLINGTON, Vt. (NB) -- The Bank of Vermont has been swindled out
of some $400,000 in a wire fraud involving electronic fund
transfers. The sting was part of a nationwide fraud that may have
netted the perpetrator $1 million. Police suspect that the wire
fraud was the work of Tanya Marie Smith, 28, who they say is working the
scam from somewhere in the Los Angeles area. Smith escaped from
federal prison in Alderson, W.Va., last January, where she was
serving a 13-year sentence for bank wire fraud. Whoever is
performing the fraud has obtained numbers to large accounts, and
had the move transferred electronically to California over a
computer network.

According to the National Center for Computer Crime Data in Los
Angeles, the best states to commit a computer crime in are
Vermont and West Virginia. Only these two states have not passed
computer crime laws. Wire fraud across state lines is a federal
offense.

[***][7/26/88][***]
NEW MAG FOR MAC DEALERS
MANHASSET, N.Y. (NB) -- No sooner has one Macintosh trade publication
bit the dust, MACINTOSH TODAY, than another has taken its place.
CMP Publications is launching a biweekly tabloid aimed at dealers
of Apple Macintosh computers and Macintosh developers. But unlike
the deceased MACINTOSH TODAY, which boasted a circulation of 200,000,
this four-color magazine will have a controlled circulation of
24,000. CMP has been on an aggressive binge of new launches of late,
unveiling "Communications Week International," "Unix Today," and
"Long Island Monthly" in the last quarter.  Altogether, the company
publishes 15 magazines. The new Macmagazine, called "MACINTOSH NEWS,"
will appear on September 26.

[***][7/26/88][***]
DIGITAL PONDERING MIPS MICROPROCESSOR
MAYNARD, Mass. (NB) -- Digital Equipment Corp. has acknowledged
that it is talking with MIPS Computer Systems Inc. about using
MIPS's RISC chip in a Digital workstation. The rumor that Digital
was talking to MIPS has been percolating for weeks. Digital has
customarily developed its processors internally and moving to
MIPS could boost the prospects of that closely-held firm. A move
to MIPS by Digital would also be a setback to Sun Microsystems
and Motorola Inc., which are trying to woo customers to their
reduced instruction set processors. Watch for more fireworks in
the workstation wars.

[***][7/26/88][***]
ELECTRONIC SALES HIT $125 BILLION FOR THE FIRST HALF OF '88
WASHINGTON (NB) -- According to the Electronics Industries
Association, U.S. factory shipments of electronic equipment,
components, and products totaled almost $125 billion for the
first six months of 1988. That figure excludes imports. EIA says
this is a gain of about 16 percent over the first half of last
year. The computers and industrial electronics sector registered
$41.3 billion of the total, up more than 20 percent over last
year's $34.3 billion, EIA says. Total employment in the
electronic industries in June 1988 was about two million, up five
percent over June of 1987.

[***][7/26/88][***]
TOO MANY BUREAUCRATS, TOO FEW COMPUTERS, SAYS SOVIET SCIENTIST
WASHINGTON (NB) -- A leading Soviet scientist says the state of
science in the USSR is "stultifying," and plagued by bureaucracy
and outmoded technology. Writing in Issues in Science and
Technology, published by the US National Academy of Sciences,
Roald Sagdeev wrote that "Soviet research workers and engineers
resemble soldiers attempting to fight a modern war with
crossbows." While researchers need modern computers and the kinds
of tools available in the West, they get "bureaucratic dinosaurs"
and absurd quotas for "new discoveries" instead. Sagdeev is the
director of the Soviet Space Research Institute and a key adviser
to Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

[***][7/26/88][***]
NEWS NIBBLES

DIGITAL EQUIPMENT CORP., Maynard, Mass., has unveiled a computer
system aimed at the transaction processing market, where Digital
has been weak. Digital says the new system, DECtp, allows users
to access information at speeds previously available only on
mainframes.

DATA GENERAL CO., Westboro, Mass., earned $1.9 million (six
center per share) on revenue of $330.7 million for the third
quarter. The company had a $65.1 million loss in the third
quarter of 1987. "While we remain profitable, we are disappointed
with the level of revenues generated in the current quarter,"
said DG President Edson de Castro.

AT&T, of New York, has announced a virtual hiring freeze and will
begin reassigning employees to strengthen its computer and long-
distance businesses. The reassignments will move 3,000 people to
sales and marketing. AT&T continues to lose money in computers
and has been pressed hard by competitors for its long distance
business. The hiring freeze is on indefinitely.

THE OPEN SOFTWARE FOUNDATION, Lawrence, Mass., has hired Henning
Oldenburg from Munich-based Nixdorf Computer as director of
European operations. He will set up a European office in
Brussels.

PRIME COMPUTER, Natick, Mass., has introduced two new machines.
The 4450, with a base price of $290,700, handles up to 5.8
million instructions per second. The 6150, at $443,400, is an 8.5
MIPS machine.

ATLANTIC RESEARCH CORP. of Alexandria, Va., has won a $27 million
contract from the U.S. General Services Administration for data
processing services in the Midwest. Atlantic Research is a
subsidiary of Sequa Corp.

THORN EMI NORTH AMERICA of New York has bought Financial Trading
Systems Inc. (FTS) from Drexel Burnam Lambert for $35 million in
cash. FTS is a software development company specializing in
securities trading support systems. FTS had $23 million in
revenues in 1987.


=
[***][7/26/88][***]
AMSTRAD READIES FOR THE 80386 REVOLUTION
BRENTWOOD, MIDDLESEX (NB) -- The world woke up last week to
discover Amstrad and IBM sharing their secrets. Effective
immediately, both companies have signed a patent cross-licensing
deal which grants Amstrad worldwide non-exclusive licenses for
all of IBM's computer patents. In return IBM gets the right to
use Amstrad PC technology in its products.

Such deals don't come cheap. Several industry sources have
suggested that Amstrad has paid IBM for the cross-patent deal.
Amstrad founder Alan Sugar has denied this rumour. Whether
Amstrad has or hasn't paid for the privilege of being able to use
IBM's PS/2 and MicroChannel Architecture (MCA) is irrelevant. The
company can now apply its phenomenal sales and pricing expertise
to 80386, PS/2 and MCA technology.

For the consumer, NEWSBYTES UK predicts that Amstrad will unveil
an 80386-based PC series (priced #1,500 and up) with PS/2
overtones in September, probably at the forthcoming PC Show
(London - 14/18 September). MCA technology will not, however,
feature in the 80386-based series. The reason? Even Amstrad can't
squeeze MCA technology down to a #1,500 price tag.

As ever, NEWSBYTES UK sticks its head on the block and predicts
the launch of an MCA-compatible PC from Amstrad (starting at
#2,000) at next January's Which Computer? show in Birmingham, UK.
It's *just* possible that Amstrad may announce its MCA-based
80386 series at this November's Comdex Fall in the US. Watch this
space...

CONTACT: AMSTRAD PLC, Brentwood House, 169 Kings Road, Brentwood,
         Essex, CM14 4EF. Tel: [phone].

[***][7/26/88][***]
APPLE/ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART LAUNCH PROFESSIONAL DTP COURSES
LONDON, UK (NB) -- Apple and the Royal College of Art have joined
forces to launch a range of professional desktop publishing (DTP)
courses. The courses start in September and will last three days.

"The courses have evolved as a result of the tremendous growth in
DTP," said Robin Baker, head of computing at the Royal College of
Art. "Most organizations need to produce information and, whilst
this has traditionally been produced using expensive external
services, the last couple of years have seen more and more
organizations realizing the benefits of developing in-house
resources," he added.

CONTACT: ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART, Kensington Gore, London SW7 2EU.
         Tel: [phone] ext 290/324/325.

[***][7/26/88][***]
ALL ABOARD WITH MS-DOS 4.0 FROM MICROSOFT
LONDON, UK (NB) -- As expected, Microsoft finally got around to
announcing MS-DOS 4.0 last week. The new DOS, which is downwards-
compatible with DOS 3.3 and most others, pushes addressable hard
disk capacities to 512Mb from DOS 3.3's existing 32Mb limit.

Also included is a DOS shell which offers an easy-to-use graphics
interface for novice users. There is also a file directory
management system for low-end PC's which allows users to visually
organize their hard disks. In all, more than 20 new enhancements
and utilities have been incorporated in the new DOS.

"MS-DOS v4.0 represents Microsoft's and IBM's commitment to
improving and adding value to to the world's largest-selling
operating system," said David Svendsen, Microsoft UK MD. "There
has been considerable unfounded speculation that the launch of
OS/2 spelled the end of MS-DOS. We expect MS-DOS, Windows and OS/2
to co-exist, however, for a very long time to come," he added.

CONTACT: MICROSOFT LIMITED, Excel House, 49 De Montfort Road,
         Reading, Berkshire RG1 8LP.        Tel: [phone].

[***][7/26/88][***]
MIRACOM POWERS IN WITH BT-APPROVED COURIER HST MODEM
IPSWICH, UK (NB) -- Miracom (formerly Miracle Technology) has
obtained BABT approval for its Courier HST modem. The #995 modem
is actually a badged version of US Robotics' modem of the same
name, with a number of software modifications for the UK phone
system.

The modem is unusual in using a proprietary 9600bps system
coupled with a modified high-speed version of MNP level 5 error-
correction and data compression. The end result is a point-to-
point data throughput of 17,200bps. As a bonus, the modem does
the usual modem speeds (300 through 2400bps) using MNP level 5.

"Obtaining approval for the modem will enable us to start
shipment of the Courier HST immediately," said Neil Mellors,
Miracom's modem marketing executive. "It's a good modem and
enables high-speed communications for under the psychological
#1,000 barrier," he added.

CONTACT: MIRACOM LTD., Miracom Centre,
         Hadleigh Road Industrial Estate, Ipswich IP2 0HB.
         Tel: [phone].       Email: Dialcom 79:KEY001.

[***][7/26/88][***]
SAGESOFT BOUNCES IN WITH NEW LAN CHIP
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE (NB) -- Sagesoft has announced the
development of LANCIA (Local Area Network Communications
Interface Adapter), its new single-chip networking system. When
plugged into a PC, LANCIA provides a Net-Bios compatible
networking system capable of moving data at 4Mb/second - not bad
for a single 68-pin gate array chip.

Sagesoft is wasting no time with its innovative new product.
Already, the company is in discussions with several computer
firms, both in Europe and the US. Coupled with its supplied
networking operating system, the product is open for OEM
licensing deals. With an OEM unit cost as low as #10, Sagesoft's
new chip will attract a lot of attention.

"We're seeking worldwide OEM markets for this all-new, British
product," said David Goldman, Sagesoft's MD. "We began talking to
US prospects only three or four months ago and the response has
been very positive," he added.

CONTACT: SAGESOFT, NEI House, Regent Centre, Gosforth,
         Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE3 3DS.  Tel: [phone].

[***][7/26/88][***]
WEST GERMAN HELD ON ESPIONAGE CHARGES
KARLSRUHE, WEST GERMANY (NB) -- A Hamburg exporter has been
charged with espionage and supplying high-tech equipment to the
Communist Bloc. He has been on bail after his arrest in September
of last year.

The 57-year-old merchant, whose identity has not been released to
the press, stands accused of trading regularly (and illegally)
with the Soviets since the 1970's, as well as working for the
Russian secret service, the KGB, since September 1977.

The total value of the transmission equipment supplied to
Czechoslovakia is reported to be in excess of Dm3 million ($1.6
million). Sources suggest that Czechoslovakia was a stop-off
point for the transmission equipment, which eventually found its
way into the USSR.

[***][7/26/88][***]
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
+ BRITBYTES - Bytes of news from around the UK... +
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

ADOBE SYSTEMS EUROPE (Amsterdam 575-3193) has appointed
Appropriate Technology (01-627-1000) as its second UK
distributor. Adobe products are currently distributed by
Letraset. The deal could make for some price competition on
Adobe's Illustrator '88 and other products...

ATARI (0753-33344) is said to be working on a 68030-based version
of its popular ST series. The as-yet unnamed machines will be
announced in September. Also on the cards is a stripped down ST
posing as a games cartridge machine. Expect the 68000-based
cartridge system in January next year at a target price of
$199...

The BECHTEL software group (San Francisco 415-768-1234) in the US
has announced the establishment of a software centre in Dublin,
Ireland. The new centre will employ 40 people...

BRITISH OLIVETTI (01-785-6666) will launch its smart card
technology system at the EPOS/EFTPOS '88 show later this year
(London - 13/16 September). The cards will enable users to
dispense with cash and credit cards...

DATAFLEX DESIGN (01-543-6417) is now shipping its #199 battery-
powered pocket modem. The Stradcom Hayes-compatible pocket modem
is BABT approved and capable of 300 and 1200bps CCITT full
duplex...

DIALCOM (01-493-3847) has announced the affiliation of Alpha
Communications in Malta and Compania Telefonica Nacional de
Espana in Spain to the Dialcom E-mail network. This brings to a
total of 20 international E-mail systems which can freely
exchange E-mail using simple addressing. The UK Dialcom affiliate
is Telecom Gold...

MERCURY COMMUNICATIONS (01-528-2000) opens its first batch of
public pay phones this week at London's Waterloo Station. The
phones, in Mercury's distinctive blue livery, will take cash,
credit and debit cards in payment for calls. Mercury plans to
extend its cheaper-than-BT pay phone coverage on a national basis
very soon...

SOFTWARE PUBLISHING CORPORATION (0895-442658) has released five
accessory programs for use with its Harvard Graphics presentation
graphics software. The accessory packages are priced from #99 to
#149 and cover business, designer, quick-chart, screenshow and
mapmaker graphics...

TANDATA HOLDINGS (0684-892421) has been recognized by the UK's
Ministry of Defence as an accredited supplier of communications
equipment. The deal will allow Tandata to supply modems and other
communications-related products to NATO and other government
organizations...

YAMAHA launched its first MS-Dos PC in the UK last week. The PC-
C1 is a #2,000 PC-AT compatible laptop with twin serial ports and
(wait for it) ELEVEN Midi ports. Don't go looking for the laptop
in the shops however, as the machine is aimed specifically at the
music industry...