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/1989/nb890822

Text File | 1991-10-02 | 121KB | 2,968 lines

(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00001)

INVITES OUT FOR APPLE'S BIG SHOW
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Thousands of
invitations are going out to press and invited guests for Apple's
expected unveiling of a portable computer September 20.

The invitations to the Universal Amphitheatre, 100 Universal City
Plaza, Universal City, California, do not mention a portable by
name, but cleverly invite the recipient to "Experience the
Macintosh....anywhere!"

The event is slated to begin at 10:30 am and will last until 2 pm.

(Wendy Woods/19890818)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00002)

TINIEST MAC SET FOR FEBRUARY
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Colby Systems is
will market a laptop Macintosh that's less than half the weight, has eight
times more memory and is two microprocessor generations ahead of Apple's
anticipated portable computer. The Colby Mini WalkMac, slated to ship
in February, will weigh seven pounds, have eight megabytes of memory,
and will be based on the Motorola 68030 microprocessor.

While the price has not been set for the machine, and it is expected to
be more expensive than Apple's portable, it will be unique in one other
way: no keyboard. The computer's face will be a built-in touchscreen,
backlit liquid crystal display, on which one can access a desk accessory
mock-up keyboard, and on which the user can type, according to designer
Chuck Colby. He told Newsbytes, "It can truly be used in the lap like
a book. The Knowledge Navigator comes to life!" referring to Apple's
vision of a book-sized talking computer. He adds the exact name of
such a configuration -- in which the display is the keyboard itself --
has yet to be determined. "It's a new way of doing things."

He acknowledges, however, that the Mini WalkMac will not be practical
for extensive word processing, but will be useful for entry of only 2 to
20 keys at a time, the amount of keyboard interaction necessary for many
database and other products.

In addition, the Mini WalkMac will have a 100 megabyte hard drive, a
built-in 2400 baud fax modem, and a built-in trackball.

Colby Systems has been shipping its WalkMac/SE and SE/30, 12-pound
portables designed around an SE or SE/30 motherboard, and which
have a built-in 800K floppy, optional hard drives, built-in modem,
built-in keyboard, and cost $5,499 for the SE or $6,699 for the SE/30
version. The price is comparable to what Apple is expected to charge
for its 68000-based portable to be unveiled September 20.

(Wendy Woods/19890818/Press Contact: C. Colby, 415-941-9090,
fax [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00003)

DAVID RAMSEY GOES TO MACWEEK
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 20 (NB) -- David
Ramsey, the programmer fired for Apple recently for allegedly spilling
trade secrets in public, has resurfaced in MacWeek magazine with a
weekly column. Also a programmer at Nolan Bushnell's Aaps where
he is involved in the design of MicroTV (a program which allows a
broadcast television picture to play in a window on a Macintosh),
Ramsey starts his first column with a sense of humor:

"Welcome to my first column. What I'll be doing here is revealing
Apple's complete product plans and strategies for the next three years.
Just kidding! I wanted to see if I could induce any heart attacks back at
Apple."

Ramsey uses a question-and-answer format similar to "Ask Dr. John"
by John Heilborn which originated in Newsbytes two years ago. He talks
about why it's better to upgrade a Macintosh II rather than buy a
IIcx. But his first question from a hypothetical reader: "What exactly
did you say on Compuserve that got you fired from Apple?"

He responds: "Hey, I'll never tell. You think I want to take on the Apple
corporate lawyers? I'd sooner sniff prussic acid. Next question."

Newsbytes wishes the best to an old friend.

(Wendy Woods/19890820)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00004)

APPLE INCREASES IIGS MEMORY
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- The memory of
Apple's IIGS computer has been increased to a standard one megabyte
and read-only memory has been increased to 256 kilobytes -- a
doubling of capacity -- according to Apple.

With one megabyte of memory the computer can handle larger documents
and consequently becomes a more viable member of an Appletalk network.

There are several other changes. Specific slots are no longer
dedicated to specific uses, allowing users to attach peripherals of
choice to various slots. There is also a new "sticky keys" feature that
is designed to allow disabled users to activate several keys at once
with a single keystroke. And minor changes have been made to the logic
board to improve sound.

Apple is not raising the $1149 price of the new IIGS despite the memory boost.
Current IIGS owners can upgrade to one megabyte through add-on memory
modules and installation of System Software 5.0. Apple is not making
logic board upgrades since it's not "cost effective" for current owners.

(Wendy Woods/19890818)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00005)

APPLE BUYS BACK SHARES
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Apple Computer has
announced plans to buy back up to five million of its common shares in
order to revitalize the price of the stock. Joseph Graziano, senior
vice president and chief financial officer, explains that the buy-back
would be principally used to offset the dilution caused by various
employee stock ownership programs.

Apple repurchased some 15 million shares twice in the past, July 1986
and November 1987.

(Wendy Woods/198908219)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00006)

SEIKO'S COLOR MAC PRINTER
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Seiko Instruments has
unveiled a thermal color printer for the Macintosh which offers 300
dots-per-inch resolution. The QD-5500 series is said to be $2,000
less than similar offerings, and is priced at $7,000 up to $14,000.

The printer creates images based on Quickdraw routines on a Macintosh,
and is based on the CH-5500 color printers from Seiko as well as
the new QD-56 Macintosh interface kit. The QD-5500 printers come
in single-user and network versions.

(Wendy Woods/19890818/Press Contact: Cheryl Landman, 408-922-5800)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00007)

APPLE PUTS LABEL ON THIRD-PARTY TRAINING
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 20 (NB) -- Apple Computer
has put its own label on training products created by Personal
Training Systems which it will sell in Canada, Australia, and the
United Kingdom.

To be marketed under the name "Macintosh Learning Series," the
audio cassette-based packages will teach users in the basics of
Word, Aldus Persuasion, Adobe Illustrator, Claris' FileMaker,
and other products. Company officers say this is the first time
Apple has put its own label on a third-party product overseas.

Next month, Apple UK will release Anglicized versions of the
company's tutorials for Word, Excel, Hypercard, and the
Macintosh computer. They will feature British narrators and reflect
British colloquial inflections and money. When learning to use Excel,
for instance, users will be prompted to enter "pounds and shillings"
rather than dollars and cents. When entering addresses, users include
the "postal code" rather than zip code.

(Wendy Woods/19890819/Press Contact: Susan Barton, Personal
Training Systems, 408-559-8635)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00008)

RICOH'S PORTABLE SCANNER FOR MAC
FAIRFIELD, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Ricoh Consumer
Products Group has introduced a low-cost Macintosh compatible image
controller and scanner module to use with its MC50 portable copier/
digitizer. The IM-A module, which comes with its own PDSCAN
software, allows the Ricoh MC50 portable flatbed copier to
scan and store data in a Macintosh.

The controller allows the copier to enlarge up to 200 percent, reduce
down to 50 percent, create halftones in up to 16 grades of black
and white, produce mirror images, reverse copies, and then
upload those images to a Macintosh via a cable to the Mac's
RS-232 port.

The Macintosh-compatible IM-A measures 5 by 5 inches and weighs
about a pound. Its suggested price is $510.

(Wendy Woods/19890818)


(ADVANCE)(APPLE)(SFO)(00009)

$895 2-PAGE MAC MONITOR
EVANSTON, WYOMING, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 21 (NB) -- Ehman is offering a
two-page 19-inch monochrome monitor with controller card and
tilt swivel base for $895, making it the lowest priced monitor
package of its kind in the Macintosh peripherals market.

Ehman's monitor features an 1152 by 870-pixel resolution, a
vertical refresh rate of 70 Hertz and 72 dots per inch. The product,
which works with both the SE and the II models, includes a 30-day
money-back guarantee and a $25 coupon if dealer installation of
the video controller card is desired. All other servicing and repair
is handled by the company and a $20 fee enables the buyer to get
24-hour replacement or repair during the first year of ownership.

Ehman's president, Mike Ehman, says the price is half that of similar
offerings from Apple, Radius, or SuperMac.

Ehman also makes hard and floppy drives for the Macintosh, as well
as an extended keyboard. Established in 1985, Ehman is expected
to sell over $35 million dollars worth of Macintosh peripherals in
this fiscal year.

Distribution information can be obtained from the company by calling
307-789-3830 or writing Ehman Inc. at 97 South Red Willow Road,
Evanston, Wyoming 82930.

(Wendy Woods/19890818)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00010)

USING HYPERCARD WITHOUT HYPERCARD
MESA, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- HyperDA 1.2 from
Symmetry will allow users to search and retrieve HyperCard
stacks, modify the text and save it to disk without HyperCard.

The program does not support X or global commands. It can easily
be used to look at and modify a name and address stack. It can
also be used to put HyperCard stacks on a Mac with as little as
512K because HyperDA 1.2 only requires about 67K. This latest
version of HyperDA also has an auto-open function and an enhanced
find function.

HyperDA 1.2 carries a price tag of $89 and will ship by August
31.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Randall Kincaid,
Symmetry Corp., 800-624-2485, 602-844-2199)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00011)

APPLES GO TO NASA VIA EDS
HERNDON, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- EDS has signed
five-year contract to install Apple Macintosh II secretarial workstations
at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, through the Mission
Control Support Contract (MOSC).

Houston will be the third EDS NASA installation. The company has
already established a presence at the Kennedy Space Center and
the Lewis Research Center.

Under this contract, EDS will provide up to 2,500 Macintosh II
workstations including peripherals, printers and support
services. EDS will install the workstations and integrate them
with existing networks as well as other computer systems. The
company will also upgrade portions of the system as needed and
will provide training at all levels of the MOSC contractor and
NASA end-users.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Jack Pridgen, EDS, 703-
742-1291)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00012)

APPLE AUSTRALIA DROPS MAC PRICES
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Apple Australia has cut
prices on a number of products. The one megabyte Mac Plus drops AUS$343
to AUS$2646. The two megabyte-memory, 20 megabyte hard disk SE
version, which now gets the Superdrive as standard, retails for AUS$5649.
The Australian dollar is currently running at around US$0.75.

(Paul Zucker/19890818)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TYO)(00013)

C.ITOH'S COLOR MAC DATABASE
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Software house C.Itoh Data
Systems has released Color Image Database Soft, software capable of
creating a database which can display color images and play back
sounds on an Apple Macintosh. The database creation software is
based on a relational database program called 4th Dimension from
Acius. A scanner can be used to import images to the database and
a sound processor can be used to input sounds.

The price is 75,000 yen ($540) per package. A 450,000 yen ($3,200)
license fee is charged for those wishing to create value-added
applications for redistribution.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TYO)(00014)

NEW APPLE JAPAN RESELLER
TOKYO, JAPAN 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Apple Computer Japan has appointed
its 18th authorized dealer in Japan. The new dealer, Nissho
Electronics, is an electronics division of one of the largest
Japanese general traders, Nissho Iwai Corporation.

Its business relationship with Apple Computer Japan will be
represented by general purpose CAD (computer-aided design)
software, VersaCAD for Macintosh, which has been sold through Canon
Sales. Also, it has been importing an interface to connect
Macintoshes with Ethernet networks, called Nodem, from U.S.-based
Adaptec.

A large portion of its current business is engineering
workstations. Nissho Electronics receives a supply from Sun
Microsystems and Sony.

Nissho Electronics will sell complete Macintosh, Sun and Sony
workstations with CAD software and Nodem for use in corporate
networks.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890817)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00001)

ATARI PROFITS & SALES PLUNGE}
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Experiencing one of the
worst quarters in company history, Atari Corporation has announced its
second quarter results.

The books show Atari sales down 20-percent to $82.7 million compared to
$102.5 million for this quarter last year. Operating income was $5.4
million, less than a third of the $17.1 million this time in 1988, and
net income was little more than $300,000 compared to $5.6 million one
year ago.

The news was tempered by Atari President Sam Tramiel, "The decline in
revenue and profits can be attributed to two factors: exchange rate
fluctuation and depressed video game sales in the U.S." He says
computer sales in Europe continued to grow during the quarter despite
a 10-percent price erosion due to the currency fluctuations, but
video game sales in the U.S. remained depressed "as a result of the
alleged unfair monopolistic practices of an international
competitor which are now the subject of litigation." He's clearly
referring to Nintendo, which has dramatically conquered most of the
U.S. video game market. Atari launched a lawsuit against Nintendo in
February, charging the firm with antitrust violations in the video
game market.

On the up-side, Tramiel says several thousand units of the hand-held
Atari Portfolio computer have been shipped and target levels of
production should be achieved by the fourth quarter. The company
also recently announced "Lynx," a hand-held color LCD game system
which should ship in volume in the fourth quarter, according to Tramiel.

Unannounced but still in the final stages of production planning is
the Stacy laptop, for which Atari Corporation has recently purchased
a supply of low-profile 20 and 40 megabyte 3.5-inch disk drives from ]
Conner Peripherals.

Atari's Stacy laptop is essential an ST-type computer in a smaller
box with one megabyte of memory, an optional 20 megabyte hard disk, an
eight megahertz 68000 microprocessor, a single 3.5-inch floppy drive,
a standard LCD, a built-in track ball, and a price of $1500 for the
base model, $2000 for the 20 megabyte hard drive unit. The machine
will run the TOS operating system.

(Wendy Woods/19890803/Press Contact: Kevin Burr, Conner,
408-954-3134, Jim Fischer, Atari, 408-745-2000)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(WAS)(00002)

WANG'S TROUBLES DEEPEN}
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Amid rumors
of further bad financial news and loan defaults, Wang
Laboratories Chairman An Wang announced Wednesday that bank
negotiations are continuing but, pending a resolution of the
negotiations, Wang will cease to make payments of principal and
interest on its institutional (bank loan) debt obligations.

Lenders Wednesday cancelled a $300 million credit line causing
Wang to default on all short-term notes, and Standard & Poors, a
corporate bond rating firm is widely expected to lower its rating
for Wang's Bonds which are already rated as a risky investment.

On Thursday, Ian W. Diery stepped down as executive vice
president for worldwide operations, with regional sales groups
now reporting directly to Acting President Harry Chou.

(John McCormick/19890818/)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00003)

ASHTON-TATE'S 15% STAFF CUT}
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Ashton-
Tate has announced that 15 percent of the company's 1,700
employees will be laid off as one of a number of cost cutting
measures.

The company cutback is a result of recent losses and reduced
revenues. Ashton-Tate has indicated that reduced revenues
coupled with severance pay and other costs may result in an
operating loss for the quarter ending September 30. This loss is
expected to be greater than the loss reported for the previous
quarter ended June 30.

Ashton-Tate plans to release the new version of dBASE IV in two
steps. First, the company will release the a simplified version
called dBASE IV Version 1.1 for single users on low power PCs.
This will be followed by dBASE Version 1.1 Server Edition for use
in local area networks with Microsoft's SQL Server product. No
release dates have been set for either product but the company
has indicated that it will not be during the third quarter.

The decision to go to two versions follows the lead of Lotus.
Lotus shipped its latest 1-2-3 release in two versions. It is
thought that this is an indication that many people want to be
able to use more powerful software without having to buy more
powerful computers.

Chairman, president and CEO, Edward M. Esber says the goal is to
have Ashton-Tate profitable in the fourth quarter. Since the
departure of company President Luther Nussbaum, Esber has been in
direct charge of everyday operations.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Linda Duttenhaver,
Ashton-Tate, 213-538-7011)


(EXCLUSIVE)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00004)

WESTERN DIGITAL/IBM AGREEMENT ON DISK DRIVES}
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 17 (NB) -- In an
interview with Newsbytes, Lynda Orban of Western Digital's
corporate communications department clarified some points that
had not been made in the company's announcement last week that it
would be marketing IBM's new 320 megabyte 3.5-inch Small Computer
Systems Interface (SCSI) disk drive.

The original announcement indicated that IBM would supply the
drives to Western Digital which would in turn market them under the
Western Digital name as a stand-alone drive, in machine-specific
kits and storage subsystems to manufacturers, value-added
resellers and value-added dealers. The announcement also
indicated that Western Digital would handle worldwide support for
these drives.

Last week's announcement failed to mention that the 320 megabyte 3.5-
inch drive from IBM contains a Western Digital chip set. The
announcement also did not mention that the Western Digital/IBM
agreement was nonexclusive. Other companies will have the
opportunity to work out agreements with IBM to sell the same disk
drive under their own product and brand names.

Newsbytes could not confirm that the IBM 320 megabyte drives to be
sold by companies other than Western Digital will also carry the
Western Digital chip set. While the information available would
seem to indicate that the Western Digital chip set is designed
into the drive, IBM Communications spokesperson Dick Ulland at
IBM's Rochester, Minnesota Low-End Storage Products facility
where the chip is made told Newsbytes that IBM does not discuss
vendors by name but added "the 320 megabyte disk drive does use a
vendor chip set."

Orban also told Newsbytes that Western Digital has announced a
price for the 320 megabyte drive of $2995 and that the product will
be available through Western Digital for volume delivery in two
weeks.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contacts: Lynda Orban, Western
Digital, 714-757-4234, Dick Ulland, IBM, 507-253-4340)


(EXCLUSIVE)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00005)

CMS NEWS OF IBM DEAL PREMATURE}
TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 17 (NB) -- In an
interview with Newsbytes, Dick Ulland, a spokesman for IBM's
Low-End Storage Products facility in Rochester, Minnesota,
described last week's announcement of an agreement between IBM
and CMS Enhancements regarding marketing of IBM's 320 megabyte 3.5-
inch disk drive "premature."

Ulland confirmed to Newsbytes that such an agreement is under
discussion but refused to comment any further on the matter.

Jim Farooquee, president of CMS, spoke with Newsbytes about the
matter saying that the only premature part of the CMS agreement
was the part specifically concerning the 320 megabyte drive. "The
320 megabyte drive was being added to a contract we have had with
IBM for over a year under which we sell a complete family of
products."

Farooquee also explained to Newsbytes: "We have several portions
of the agreement concluded but the part covering the 320 megabyte
drive was not signed on the dotted line due to the temporary
unavailability of individuals at IBM who must sign."

"The whole press release situation arose from simple
miscommunication," Farooquee added. "While in the past our
agreements with IBM have been handled quietly, we were under the
impression that in this instance, IBM wanted greater visibility.
We sent out our press release in the belief that IBM was sending
out a concurrent release because as far as we knew, the agreement
was all in place and the only things missing were routine
signatures."

Farooquee told Newsbytes that there was no malice intended and
whatever was done by CMS was done with the best intentions for
both CMA and IBM interests. He added that he is certain this
miscommunication will have no material effect on the agreement
and CMS has no reason to believe there will be any problem
concluding the agreement.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Jim Farooquee, CMS
Enhancements, 714-259-5801)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00006)

DATA PRODUCTS SELLS PROPERTY}
WOODLAND HILLS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 7 (NB) -- Dataproducts
has sold its real estate holdings in Woodland Hills, California, to Trizec
Properties for $63,000,000.

The sale is expected to close rapidly. According to Jack C.
Davis, chairman and CEO, Dataproducts will lease back the
properties for two years and will continue operations in its
current facilities until a new plant site is chosen. The
property sale is in keeping with the company's previously
announced decision to sell the property and distribute the
proceeds to shareholders.

The Dataproducts board of directors is continuing to evaluate
various alternative strategies including the sale of all or parts
of the company and other restructuring and recapitalization
ideas. Decisions on these alternatives are expected in the near
future.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Jack C. Davis,
Dataproducts/818-887-8355)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00007)

DATAPOINT ELECTS NEW CEO}
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- The board of
directors of Datapoint has elected Michael Michigami as
president and chief executive officer.

Before joining DataPoint, Michigami served as president of the
Control Systems Division at United Technologies. He has held
other senior level positions at United Technologies as well as GE
Capital, Booz Allen Hamilton, Texas Instruments and Data General.

Michigami currently serves as a director on the boards of the
Planning Forum, the Ohio-based International Society for Planning
and Strategic Management, the Hartford (CT) Symphony Orchestra
and the American Red Cross.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Don Pothier, Datapoint,
512/699-7477)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00008)

NEW PETER NORTON MANAGEMENT TEAM}
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 7 (NB) -- Utilities
development and publishing company Peter Norton Computing (PNCI)
has announced completion of its management team with three
appointments.

According to CEO Ron Posner, Fred Gerson has been appointed vice
president and CFO, Lisa Byers has been named director of sales
and Jacqueline Sasserath assumes the position of sales and
marketing director for the company's office in the United
Kingdom.

Gerson has 15 years financial and management experience in the
high-tech industry. His most recent position was as vice
president of finance and administration and cfo at Inference
Corporation. He has also been affiliated with The Learning
Company, Atari, and Arthur Young & Company.

Byers has more than 10 years sales and marketing experience for
PC and PC-related companies including Iomega where she served as
western regional account manager. She has also been associated
with Marketing Concepts and Xerox Corporation's Century Division.

Sasserath is responsible for managing PNCI's increased business
in the UK. Her experience includes a stint as marketing director
for Migent International as well as associations with Ashton-Tate
and United Information Services.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Belinda Young, Miller
Communications/ 213-822-4669)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00009)

A $5 MILLION ORDER FROM JAPAN}
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Recognition
Equipment has announced the signing of a $5 million order from
Sagawa Express Company of Kyoto, Japan for three System 1000
Image Processing Systems.

This is the largest order in the 20-year history of Recognition's
Japanese subsidiary located in Tokyo.

Sagawa is Japan's largest courier and transportation company.
The three image processing systems will be installed in the company's
operational headquarters in Kyoto. They will be used to image
capture Sagawa's airbills at high speeds and automatically
capture through optical character recognition, critical shipper
information for in-process shipment tracking. Sagawa has plans
to install similar image processing equipment at three additional
revenue processing sites elsewhere in Japan.

Installation is expected to begin in early 1990.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Melinda Swift,
Recognition Equipment, 214-579-5971)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00010)

MAI SUFFERS AFTER PRIME BATTLE}
TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- In view of the
$18 million loss expected in the third quarter, MAI plans to lay
off 10 percent of its 4,100 worldwide work force as a cost
cutting measure.

MAI plans to take a one-time charge of $13-$15 million in the
quarter ended June 30. The company expects to report an
operating loss for third quarter of between $5 and $6 million. A
declining market for midrange business computers, MAI's main
product, has also contributed to the loss.

The cost cutting program is expected to trim between $25 and $30
million from annual expenses. In addition to the personnel cuts,
MAI is selling seven of its 15 foreign subsidiaries and
consolidating field and service offices.

Losses are expected to continue into the fourth quarter but black
ink is expected to return in the first quarter of 1990.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(ATL)(00011)

PICTURETEL LOSES $1.3 MILLION
PEABODY, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- PictureTel, which
is trying to put across a video-phone system using regular telephone
lines, lost $1.3 million sales of about $4 million for the quarter ended
July 1. Sales were down about $300,000 from the previous quarter, during
which time it introduced the V-3100 Video conferencing system and M-
7000 Multipoint Bridge and Control System.

The company is hanging on with help from lenders. During the
quarter it arranged a $3 million line of credit with Bank of
Boston, and a fixed asset lease agreement with Equitec Leasing
for manufacturing equipment, computers and demonstration
equipment.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Ron Baker, PictureTel
508-977-9500)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00012)

SAS OPENS IN CANADA}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- SAS Institute of
Cary, North Carolina, has opened a wholly owned Canadian
subsidiary, SAS Institute (Canada), in Toronto. The new company
incorporates NeoVisuals, a Toronto graphics software developer
which SAS acquired a year ago. It will carry on development of
NeoVisuals' three-dimensional modelling and animation software,
as well as marketing SAS Institute's flagship statistical
software in Canada.

Brenda Erickson, vice-president of sales and marketing for SAS
Canada, said the subsidiary currently has about 40 employees,
half of whom are former NeoVisuals staff working on the graphics
software. Most employees are at the firm's Toronto headquarters,
she said, while one sales representative is based in Ottawa. The
company will probably establish additional offices in the
province of Quebec and on the West Coast in the next two years,
Erickson said.

(Grant Buckler/19890818/Press Contact: Brenda Erickson, SAS
Institute Canada, 416-443-9811)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00013)

NORTEL EXTENDS BUYBACK}
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 9 (NB) -- Northern Telecom
said it will extend a program of repurchasing its own common
shares until Sept. 6, 1990, if regulators approve. Northern has
repurchased 1,109,500 shares since beginning the buyback Sept. 7,
1988. The extension would permit it to gather a maximum of 10
million, or 4.2 percent of outstanding common stock. The shares
will be bought on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges at
prevailing prices, Northern said.

(Grant Buckler/19890816/Press Contact: Dan Mothersill or Ken
Mulders, Northern Telecom, 416-566-3100)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00014)

AUSTRALIAN GROWTH FOR WYSE}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Wyse technology's
Australian arm has joined the list of local subsidiaries
reporting good financial results despite poor results from their
parent companies.

Wyse technology's Australian general manager, Robert Stirling,
said the subsidiary reported 35 percent revenue growth since
last year, but he was unable to give profit details. The company
now plans to launch an extensive advertising campaign in
Australia and invest more money in its dealer network.

(Gavin Atkins & Computing Australia/19890816)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00015)

COMPUTERLAND BUYS BACK IN AUS.}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Computerland US has bought
back the 50 percent share of Australian Computerland Solutions held by
MD Mike Boulos. Under the contract (reportedly worth $15M),
Boulos will stay as MD for the next four years. He told Newsbytes
that the unlimited credit this gives the company will enable it
to "put the competitors out of business for good. We're not going
for certain market segments - we're going for everything."

(Paul Zucker/19890818)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00016)

INTEL SELLS MITSUBISHI CHIPS}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Intel and Mitsubishi Electric have
agreed to enlarge their OEM (original equipment manufacturing)
contract, first forged in 1987. Under the contract, Intel has been
receiving n-channel MOS (metal oxide semiconductor) type chips from
Mitsubishi. Now Intel will sell a Mitsubishi 512 kilobit CMOS
(complimentary metal oxide semiconductor) chip under the Intel
brand name. The CMOS chips are currently in demand because they
consume less power.

Besides announcing the contract to receive the EPROM (erasable
programmable read-only-memory) type CMOS chips, Intel says
it will beef up its ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit)
business. Currently some 50 engineers are employed in this project
as part of Intel Japan.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890817)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00017)

200 BILLION FOR TOSHIBA}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Toshiba expects that its net
income for fiscal 1990 ending March will reach an unexpected 200
billion yen ($1.43 billion), which is a 34 percent increase over
last year. Toshiba earned its largest profit ever in fiscal 1989,
and it is highly expected that the firm will be the most profitable
electronics company worldwide for the year.

Toshiba owes much of its success to the vibrant market for its one-
megabit DRAM (dynamic random access memory) chips, of which it produces
some ten million per month. Sales of its office equipment and computers,
such as the notebook-sized DynaBook, have also been increasing due
to fatter budgets for information processing equipment among corporations.
Toshiba claims that financial organizations and distributers
have been among the biggest buyers.

Toshiba expects that mid-term sales, as of September 1989, will be
1,470 billion yen ($10.5 billion), 9 percent higher than the same term
last year. Also, the firm expects that its semiconductor and computer
units will rake in a 19 percent sales increase.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00018)

NEC BUYS MORE AMERICAN}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- NEC's seven factories in the U.S.
will raise the local content of their manufacturing supplies some 50
percent by March 1990, a ten percent increase over last year.

Worldwide, NEC plans to raise the local content ratio of its products
to 35 percent by the end of this fiscal year, ending in March, from 30
percent today.

NEC's overseas sales last year totaled 740 billion yen ($5.3
billion), and its overall sales went to 3.08 trillion yen ($22
billion). For the current year, the company expects sales of 790
billion yen ($5.6 billion) overseas and 3.3 trillion yen ($23.6)
overall.

Meanwhile, NEC has started building a 50 billion yen ($357 million)
computer chip factory in Roseville, California to produce
four-megabit DRAM (dynamic random access memory) chips. The plant is
scheduled to start operation in the spring of 1991.

(Ken Takahashi/19890818)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00019)

NORSK DATA LOSES ITS FOUNDER}
OSLO, NORWAY, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Norsk Data, one of the most
popular Norwegian computer companies, has announced the
resignation of founder Rolf Skaar. Skaar's departure comes in the
wake of major losses.

According to Erik Engebretsen, Norsk Data's new managing
director, Skaar has been blamed for failing to move with the
times. As a result of failing to recognize the shift in market
emphasis away from terminal-based to PC-based systems, Norsk Data
is expected to announce a six monthly trading loss of NC
(Norwegian Crowns) 240,000. A major company reorganization is
currently in progress.

(Steve Gold/19890818)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(BRU)(00020)

PHILIPS TO GENERATE SPARCS}
AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Sun Microsystems
has licensed Philips to manufacture versions of its Sparc RISC-
like microprocessor. In a joint statement issued last week, Sun
and Philips announced that European-built versions of the RISC-
microprocessor are intended for use in consumer and automotive
electronics, as well as industrial applications.

Philips is the fourth major chip manufacturer to reach an accord
with Sun. Earlier this year, Sun made similar agreements with
Matsushita Electric Industrial, Texas Instruments and Fujitsu.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00001)

CANADA: DISK CRASH PARALYZES TRADING}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Canada's largest
stock exchange was virtually paralyzed for three hours by a
multiple disk drive failure today. Trading on the Toronto Stock
Exchange ground to a halt at 9:41 a.m., just eleven minutes after
the exchange opened for the day, when both a primary and a backup
disk failed at the same time. Many brokers turned to the Montreal
Exchange to carry on business until Toronto's systems were back
in operation at 12:31 p.m.

A spokeswoman for the exchange said the drives that failed were
part of a Tandem VLX system. She added that as of Friday morning
there had been no further problems, and that the entire disk
subsystem would be replaced during the weekend.

(Grant Buckler/19890818/Press Contact: Mary Revell, Toronto Stock
Exchange, 416-947-4675)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00002)

OKIDATA INTRODUCES FAX, NEW PRINTER}
MOUNT LAUREL, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Okidata,
the well-known dot matrix printer manufacturer, has recently
announced its entry into the fax market with three machines
ranging from $1,899 to $2,799.

The new fax line offers full 9,600 baud transmission (Group 3
fax), auto-dial with number storage, and delayed transmission.
The top-priced Okifax 800 has enough memory to capture up to 15
pages even after it runs out of paper.

Also announced was the Microline 380, an under-$600 24-pin
printer aimed at the small/home business user, which will print
at a maximum (rough draft) speed of 180 characters per second and
produce letter-quality results at a rate of 60 characters per
second.

Okidata also makes color printers, a laser printer, and a range
of modems.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Cliff Rockwell, Okidata,
609-235-2600, X 7313)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00003)

EPSON UNVEILS $1900 LASER PRINTER}
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Epson
America has announced the EPL-6000 laser printer as an affordable
alternative to the HP LaserJet Series II.

The new Epson entry into the laser printer market produces 6
pages per minute, has expandable memory up to 4.5 megabytes and an
innovative modular design that allows easy paper and toner
replacement and reliability. Suggested retail price is $1,899.
The EPL-6000 is available for immediate delivery.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Jan Marciano, Epson
America, 213-539-9140)


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

PCPI HAS NEW LASER LINE}
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Personal
Computer Products Inc. (PCPI) has introduced the LaserImage 1030
series of laser printers.

The new printers feature advanced controllers that are enable
smaller businesses to replace plotters or combinations of
daisywheel and dot-matrix printers. This line of printers
combines into a single chip a variety of printer operations that
previously required several circuits.

The printers are available immediately. The LaserImage 1030
itself carries a price tag of $2,295. Seven additional models in
the series with different options range as high as $4,495.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00005)

TI NAMED EDI USER OF THE YEAR}
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 1 (NB) -- Texas Instruments
has been named Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) User of the Year
for its integrated methods of electronically transmitting data to
worldwide trading partners and for its leadership in establishing
standards.

The award was presented by The Yankee Group, a market research
firm at the 3rd Generation EDI Conference. The award, given to
TI for the first time, will be given yearly by The Yankee Group to
the corporation that demonstrates the greatest vision and
implementation of EDI.

TI's global usage of EDI has resulted in significant cost savings
to the company and has made it easier for trading partners to do
business with TI. TI now trades about 30 different types of
documents with more than 1,000 customers, suppliers, banks and
carriers.

TI has used EDI since 1969, several years before the advent of
public standards. The award was accepted for TI by John W.
White, senior vice president in charge of Information Systems and
Services, the TI division that handles EDI.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Bob Bledsoe, Texas
Instruments, 214-997-3857)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00006)

CHINON/OCR SYSTEMS EXTEND AGREEMENT}
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Chinon
America and OCR Systems have extended their current agreement to
include OCR's ReadRight 2.0

Chinon has been bundling the original ReadRight program with its
Model DS-3000 overhead desktop image scanner since its
introduction lst year. Effective immediately, the newer version
will be bundled with the scanner.

ReadRight 2.0 recognizes several font styles and sizes from
typewritten, typeset and laser printed documents. It detects
bold, underlined, monospaced and proportionally spaced
characters. It also reproduces document layouts such as multiple
columns, tables, lists, centering and indentation. The software
imports TIFF, PCX and image files and supports most word
processing applications.

Chinon's Model DS-3000 desktop image scanner with ReadRight
software is priced at $995.00.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Jeffrey Swartz, Daly-
Swartz Public Relations, 714-361-6888)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00007)

BLUEBIRD'S SHOP FLOOR CONTROL MODULE}
CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Bluebird
Systems has announced the release of Plant Manager Revision 3.3,
the latest version of the company's software application for job
shop and discrete manufacturing businesses.

Plant Manager 3.3 contains a new Shop Floor Control module and
several other major enhancements to the high-performance turnkey
system. The Shop Floor Module supersedes Plant Manager's
Production Control and has the capability to schedule operations
for each job and to produce capacity loading reports. Other new
labor saving features include automatic release processing and
backflushing of component material for both job orders and
repetitive work centers.

Plant Manager was originally written for minicomputers but now
runs on multiuser IBM-compatible microcomputers. It is capable
of supporting over 60 people simultaneously using a single
system. The program is available immediately through authorized
Bluebird dealers.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Rebecca Gribbs,
Bluebird Systems, 619-438-2220 ext. 417)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00008)

DEC DISK STORAGE FROM EMULEX}
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 17 (NB) -- Emulex has
announced the release of Standard Disk Arrays, a new family of
disk storage products for Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)
computers.

These are the only products ever introduced by a third party
vendor that achieve integration to DEC computers using an
embedded controller that implements DEC's Standard Disk
Interface. There is no need for a protocol converter external to
the disk drives.

The Standard Disk Arrays come in three configurations, a pedestal
unit with one to four disk drives, a 42-inch unit for up to 12 drives
and a 60-inch unit containing up to 18 drives. Drives may be
mixed within a unit enclosure allowing for custom configurations.

Prices for the Standard Disk Arrays range from 411,644 to
$226,396. Individual stand-alone Emulex drives are available for
from $9,450 to $12,100 depending upon capacity. The Standard
Disk Arrays are scheduled to being shipping this month and come
with one year of maintenance.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact:JoAnne F. Martz, Emulex,
714-662-5600)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00009)

MCDONNELL D TO SERVICE SANYO/ICON}
OREM, UTAH, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- McDonnell Douglas
Field Service Company has signed an exclusive three-year contract to
provide Sanyo/Icon customers with prompt on-site maintenance and
repair services dispatched from the company's 150+ centers across
the US.

The contract covers both value-added resellers (VARs) and end-
users. Sanyo/Icon expects this maintenance agreement to provide
it with greater credibility in the Pick and Unix marketplaces.
In addition to maintenance, McDonnell Douglas will handle all
future installations of Sanyo/Icon products.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Emory Epperson,
Hakuhodo, 213-388-5200)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00010)

RED FACE FOR FORMER LEADER}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- The former Prime Minister of
Australia (famed for losing his pants in a U.S. hotel) must be
again embarrassed by another slip. A letter from the Rt. Hon
gentleman was received by Toshiba in Australia recently. "I am
chairman of CARE, an overseas aid organization. ... Our one
mail-campaign printer is now inadequate. ... If your company
would consider donating a printer ... we would put on all our
mail-outs that the printer was donated by NEC Australia..."

Oops!

(Paul Zucker/19890818)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00011)

MOUSE WITH NUMERICAL KEYPAD}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Peripheral unit maker Versatile
has released Power Mouse 100 which is a combination of a mouse
and a numerical keyboard. The unique device developed by U.S.-based
Prohance allows a user to operate the mouse and perform numeric
data input at the same time with one hand.

The new unit, priced at 57,000 yen or $410, can be used for IBM
PC/AT, XT, and PS/2 personal computers. Versatile expects to ship
1,000 units in the initial year. Versions for NEC and Toshiba
personal computers are slated to be released within this year.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LON)(00001)

WEST GERMAN HACKERS CHARGED}
FRANKFURT, WEST GERMANY, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Three West German
hackers in their late twenties have been charged with espionage
and selling secrets to the Russians. The case, the first of its
kind, centres around the allegation that a group of West Germans
sold hacking secrets to the Russians in return for cash.

The three hackers, identified as Peter C., Dirk B., and Markus
H., are charged with handing over several dozen IDs and
passwords to a variety of military, national and business
networks in Europe and the US. Over a three year period, the
hackers gave a KGB agent -- code-named Serge -- details of the
networks, in return for cash payments totalling $48,000.

Great emphasis is being made of the fact that the Russians only
paid out money after the IDs and passwords were 'validated' by
KGB headquarters in Moscow. Sources suggest that the KGB were
aware of the possibility of bogus and/or 'hyped' network IDs, and
took precautions against paying for false or useless information.

All three of the men plus a fourth hacker, who has recently
committed suicide, were arrested in March of this year
following an expose on West German TV of their (and the KGB's)
activities. There has been no indication of when the trial of the
accused will begin, nor of any possible sentences. Newsbytes
understands that penalties for espionage in West Germany are
technically unlimited, ranging from fines to life imprisonment.

(Steve Gold/19890818)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00002)

MITAC/GE MILITARY ELECTRONICS VENTURE IN TAIWAN}
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Mitac International
of Taipei, Taiwan, and General Electric's Aerospace division have formed
a new company to manufacture military electronics goods in Taiwan,
Republic of China.

The jointly owned firm Getac will develop defense electronics for sale
worldwide, but also to serve the aerospace component needs of the
Taiwan government. Taiwan currently spends a large amount of money
buying military supplies overseas.

Mitac spokesman Shawn Leuthold tells Newsbytes research and development
will take place first, then manufacturing will begin at the end of the
year. He says 82 people will be employed at the facility, located in
the Hsinchu Science and Industry Park near Taiwan.

Asked if the establishment of such a venture may be ill-timed given
the tensions between Washington and Taiwan's giant neighbor China,
Leuthold responded, "GE is a major corporation. They're responding
more to corporate than political need."

(Wendy Woods/19890820)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00003)

JAPAN DEAL-MAKING SEMINAR}
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 9 (NB) -- Alliance
Japan, a conference to instruct American executives in the fine art
of succeeded in high-tech business in Japan, will be held at Hotel Nikko,
downtown San Francisco, October 6.

Among the keynote speakers will be some heavy-hitters in the computer
industry: Mitch Kapor, founder of Lotus Development and chairman of
ON Technology; Vinod Khosla, co-founder of Sun Microsystems; and George
Hara, president and CEO of Data Control, Ltd. The sponsors of the
invent include Creative Strategies, a Santa Clara, California-based
market research firm, an Data Control, a Japanese Palo Alto, Ca.-based
U.S.-Japanese trade consulting firm. The Advisory Board is also
star-studded, featuring, among others, Philippe Kahn of Borland, and
Heidi Roizen of T/Maker.

The conference will cover such areas as current opportunities in
Japan, Japanese distribution systems, Japanese business culture,
marketing and advertising in Japan, current and future trends in
strategic partnering and management styles, and product localization
and manufacturing. Case studies will be offered regarding how
various computer companies actually fared in Japan.

A follow-up will be in Tokyo, called Alliance '90, January 1 through
February 2, 1990.

The cost of the one-day event is $395. Conference information can
be obtained by calling 415-863-5074.

(Wendy Woods/19890818/Press Contact: Wendy Germain, Alliance
Japan, 617-577-9544)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00004)

COMMERCE NIXES HAND SIGNALS}
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1989 AUG 12 (NB) -- Future futures
wrong-doing will be curbed by computers; at least that is the plan
put forward this week by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Clayton
Yeutter, when he proposed replacing the yelling -- gesticulating
antics of the commodities "pit" traders -- with more easy-to-track
computerized trading.

The test this fall of electronic trading was brought about by
recent disclosures about alleged cheating among some of the
Chicago Mercantile Exchange's futures traders.

Secretary Yeutter is no stranger to the problem. He was the head of the
CME between 1978 and 1985.

(John McCormick/19890818)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00005)

UNISYS WINS $6.4 M NAVY CONTRACT}
MCLEAN, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Unisys
Corporation has announced that it has been awarded a $6.4 million
contract to overhaul and upgrade the AN/SPG-55B fire control
radars aboard the USS Halsey and USS Fox, two of the United
States Navy's guided missile cruisers.

The contract also allows for an additional $1.1 million in
possible further modifications under the contract. The radars,
which provide guidance control for Terrier missles were
originally designed in the 1950s by Sperry Corp, one of the two
companies that merged to form Unisys.

(John McCormick/19890818)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LON)(00006)

UNISYS IN TROUBLE WITH THE COURTS}
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Unisys has
been ordered to pay $8.9 million to Advent Systems, a UK software
house. The payment, ordered by a US federal grand jury, has been
ordered after Advent took civil against Unisys for lost earnings.

Advent contended that Unisys officials persuaded its company
staff to halt development of new products until a marketing
agreement was signed, allowing Unisys to market Advent's
products. In the event, Unisys later decided to market its own
products.

Half of the $8.9 million is in respect of damages due to breach
of contract, whilst the remainder was to satisfy Advent's claims
that Unisys interfered in subsequent business dealings between
Advent and a Unisys division in England.

In its original court filing, dating from last year, Advent
claimed $71 million in lost profits, and double that amount in
damages. The company alleged that its had lost millions of pounds
in sales after Unisys abandoned the joint venture.

(Steve Gold/19890818)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00007)

SIX PATENT SUITS FILED}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- A New York firm has
filed six lawsuits on behalf of two Canadian developers who claim
patent rights over substantial parts of spreadsheet technology.
Refac International Inc. of New York has filed suits against
Lotus Development Corp., Microsoft Corp., Computer Associates
International Inc., Borland International Inc., Ashton-Tate Inc.
and Informix Software Inc., claiming infringement of a United
States patent granted in 1983.

The patent was granted to Forward Reference Systems Ltd. of
Toronto, which filed its original application in 1970. Phil
Sperber, president of Refac, said his company bought the patent
from Forward Reference. He said Refac's business is patent
enforcement, and its standard policy is to split any revenue
half-and-half with the original patent holder.

To date, Refac has received responses from three of the firms
named in the suits, and one has asked for a copy of the company's
royalty schedule, said David Fink, group patent counsel. He added
that letters were sent to all six firms when the suits were
filed, inviting them to discuss royalty payments. Refac is
seeking five percent royalties on the defendants' spreadsheet
sales, Fink said.

The principals of Forward Reference Systems are Remy Landau and
Rene Pardo, both of Toronto. In 1970, they founded a company
somewhat better known than Forward Reference Systems -- Lanpar
Technologies of Markham, Ontario, which was a major Canadian
terminal manufacturer, distributor and third-party service
organization until going into receivership earlier this year.

(Grant Buckler/19890816/Press Contact: Phil Sperber or David
Fink, Refac International, 212-687-4741)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00008)

AUS: LANDMARK COPYRIGHT CASE}
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- A Federal Court
decision has made Australia a pioneer in the protection of
intellectual property from illegal copying. The case was the
first to interpret the 1984 amendments to the Copyright Act which
provide computer manufacturers and distributors with intellectual
property protection.

Autodesk Australia, the local subsidiary of the US-based
computer-aided-design firm, won a three-week court battle when a
permanent injunction was granted against employees of Autokey.
The case involved the AutoCAD computer-aided design and
manufacturing (CAD/CAM) program and the marketing of a device that
avoided Autodesk's measures to limit the unauthorised reproduction
of the software.

The AutoCAD package, which sells in Australia for AUS$5222,
includes a security device known as the AutoCAD lock or "dongle."
The pirated Autodesk locks enabled users of AutoCAD to run
further copies of AutoCAD without having to purchase the AutoCAD
program from Autodesk. Autokey had sold the dongles since
December 1988 for AUS$499.

(Gavin Atkins & Computing Australia/19890816)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00009)

COMMODORE FINED IN AUSTRALIA}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- The Australian arm of
Commodore Business Machines has been ordered to pay AUS$250,000
after it was found guilty on 19 counts of having engaged in
resale price maintenance activities in 1986, a breach of the
Trade Practices Act.

Commodore, which now faces possible litigation from individual
distributors, said last week that it would appeal against the
decision, but declined to give details. A Sydney dealer, ComputerFair,
said it would sue Commodore in regard to its price maintenance
policies for "loss of profits and damages." Commodore told Newsbytes
that many of the dealers making trouble owed "six figure sums to
Commodore."

(Gavin Atkins & Computing Australia/19890816)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00010)

AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE "STONED" BY VIRUS}
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Computer experts are
investigating a "marijuana" virus attack at one of the Australian
Defence Department's Canberra offices.

At least eight high-security computer terminals were attacked by
the "marijuana virus," which is characterized by the message, "Your
computer is now stoned: legalize marijuana." The department
will not say what the attacked machines were used for. The virus is
similar to one which disabled hundreds of PCs in several
Victorian tertiary institutions earlier this year.

A Defence Department spokeswoman said the virus was detected and
eradicated within three days. "Fortunately the virus was detected
before any data was lost, and none of the hard disk systems being
used at the time were damaged. Anti-virus software has since been
installed to repel any more attacks," she said.

(Gavin Atkins & Computing Australia/19890816)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00011)

AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH CENTER OPENS}
ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- The intentions of
Australian industry to challenge overseas technology were
signalled last week when a research center opened at the
University of Adelaide.

The new research center will include a Center for Computer
Systems and Software Engineering. One of the center's key
objectives is to promote cooperation between government,
industry, and tertiary institutions. It will provide consultancy
services and short courses for staff in the government and
private sectors.

(Gavin Atkins & Computing Australia/19890816)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(BRU)(00012)

EC TO DOUBLE HI-TECH R&D BUDGET}
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- The European Commission
(EC) has announced plans to double the its R&D (research and
development) budget for information technology, telecommunication,
industrial research and new materials.

European sponsored projects such as Esprit, JESSI (for
semiconductors), RACE (for telecommunications) could see their
budgets doubled in five years if the Commission speeds ahead.

Between 1990 and 1994 the EC plans to spend $9,000 million in
European R&D, the Commission said. Dutch, British and West German
officials have already voiced their concern over the amount the
Commission wishes to spend and have said they will need substantial
evidence of the need of the expenses.

If the idea -- heavily favoured by France -- is accepted, then
political haggling over different parts of the package will
continue as each part has to be accepted, or defeated, by a
qualified majority.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(ADVANCE)(IBM)(LAX)(00001)

AST ENHANCES SIXPAK 286}
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 21 (NB) -- AST Research
is introducing SixPak 286, a 16-bit enhancement board to provide
a mid-range, lower cost alternative memory board for the 286
user.

The SixPak 286 is expandable to 4 megabytes with 256K or one
megabyte SIMM options in increments of 512K or two megabytes
respectively. The board supports expanded memory applications and has
extended memory support for protected mode operating environments such
as OS/2 and Unix/Xenix. It features a menu-driven, switchless
installation and AST SuperPak utility software. The 512K model
sells for $495 while the two megabyte version is priced at $1,145.
SixPak 286 is available immediately and carries a two-year limited
warranty.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Deborah Paquin, AST
Research, 714-756-4984)


(NEWS)(IBM)(ATL)(00002)

BOCA CUTS RAM BOARD PRICES}
BOCA ROTAN, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Reflecting
the continuing easing of memory chip prices and availability,
Boca Research has cut the prices of its memory boards up to 35 percent.
The biggest cuts come on boards holding the most memory, such as the
Bocaram/AT Plus board with eight megabits of RAM, previously $3,395,
now $2,195.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Silvia Fagiani, Boca
Research, 407-997-6227)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00003)

ADD-IN COLORS 1-2-3}
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Toast
Development has announced Color Your Spreadsheet, a Lotus 1-2-3
add-in that adds color to a worksheet in various user-definable
formats.

The software can assign a different color to each cell format,
such as scientific, general and currency. It can show all cells
within a range in a particular color. It can assign different
colors to numbers, labels and formulas, or it can display
positive and negative numbers in different colors. Color Your
Spreadsheet can also show unprotected cells in a different color,
and customize worksheet border colors. A normal mode returns 1-2-
3 to its normal colors without detaching the add-in or leaving 1-
2-3.

Color Your Spreadsheet works with releases 2.0, 2.01 and 2.2 of
Lotus 1-2-3. It is available directly from Toast Development at
1221 - 4th Ave., New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada V3M
1T8, telephone [phone], for C$39.95.

(Grant Buckler/19890816/Press Contact: Thanh Nguyen, Toast
Development, 604-879-4074)


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00004)

UPGRADED IBM LASER PRINTER}
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- IBM has
announced a new version of its small laser printer, the Personal
Page Printer II Model 031, which, selling for less than $5,000,
adds the ability to switch between PostScript and non-PostScript
output and emulate the Xerox Diablo 630 printer, IBM's own XL,
and the HP LaserJet Plus laser printer without manual intervention.

The ability to switch between printer languages, says Adobe President
Dr. Charles Geschke, "is particularly attractive for networked
environments where the printer is shared between multiple users
with different printers."

The upgrade of the Model 030 retains the 300 by 300 dot per inch
or dpi resolution and has an optional 200 sheet capacity sheet
feeder that will sell for $1,395. The Model 031 has serial,
parallel, and AppleTalk connectors. The Model 030 can be
upgraded for $750, and everything is scheduled to be available on
the 25th of August.

(Wendy Woods & John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Brenda
Hansen, Adobe, 415-961-4400; Scott Brooks, IBM, 914-642-5408)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00005)

ASHTON-TATE SHIPS FRAMEWORK III TOOLKIT}
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Ashton-Tate
has begun shipping the Framework III Developer's Toolkit, a set
of utilities and documentation designed to help software
developers extend the capabilities of Framework III.

The Framework III Toolkit carries a suggested price of $250 and
can be ordered directly from Ashton-Tate Customer Service.
Upgrades from the toolkit for Framework II are available for $100
to customers who send in the table of contents page from the
Framework II Developer's Toolkit.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Linda Duttenhaver,
Ashton-Tate, 213-538-7348)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00006)

NSA/WESTERN NOW TOKEN-RING COMPATIBLE}
LAGUNA HILLS, CALIFORNIA U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) --Network
Software Associates (NSA) has announced that its AdaptSNA LAN-to-
host connectivity software for Token-Ring LANs is now fully
compatible with TokenCard, Western Digital's Token-Ring network boards.

NSA has conducted a series of communications software tests and
determined mutual compatibility. At the same time, Western
Digital has announced that is has conducted similar certification
tests on the AdaptSNA software and found it to be 100 percent
compatible with their board.

NSA offers a number of ways in which Token-Ring users can
implement LAN-to-host connectivity solutions. The AdaptSNA
Gateway supports 128 Logical Units (LUs). The company also
offers a LAN solution that does not require a PC gateway as well
as a third solution that is a combination of these two.

Network Software Associates LAN connectivity software packages
start at $245 and are available for immediate delivery.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Alice Topping, Network
Software Associates, 714-768-4013)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00007)

PCI ENHANCES SMARTNET X.25}
CALABASAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 10 (NB) -- Protocol
Computers Inc. (PCI) has enhanced its Smartnet X.25 Series to
allow users to build networks combining the X.25 standard
communications protocol with IBM's System Network Architecture
(SNA) communications protocol.

SmartNet Release 7.0 includes asynchronous packet
assemblers/disassemblers (PADs), asynchronous PADs,
switches/concentrators, SNA switching PADs and multiprotocol
switching PADs. Each of these products is available in a variety
of configurations so users can choose the model that best matches
their requirements.

The entire family of products can be managed from a single or
multiple network location using PCI's IBM PC-based SmartView
network management software.

(Janet Endrijonas/19890818/Press Contact: Samir Stavro, Protocol
Computers, Inc., 818-880-5704)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00008)

IBM MARKETS HUBVIEW/PC}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 17 (NB) -- IBM gets worldwide
marketing rights to network management software developed by
Toronto-based TSB International under a new agreement between the
two companies. The software, HubView/PC, is an alarm and traffic
monitoring system for private branch telephone exchanges. It
works with IBM's NetView/PC network management software, passing
information gathered from the PBX to NetView.

HubView/PC results from an 18-month joint development project by
IBM Canada and TSB. TSB said the deal with IBM could result in
more than C$15 million in additional revenues over two years.

(Grant Buckler/19890818/Press Contact: David Morris, TSB
International, 416-622-7010)


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00009)

IBM MAKES AIX/370 AVAILABLE}
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- IBM says its
Advanced Interactive Executive (AIX)/370 operating system will be
available for its largest and most powerful computers in the
first quarter of 1990.

AIX, a Unix-like operating system, was promised by IBM in
March of 1988, meaning that the product will ship in two years,
meeting its promise at that time.

An entire line of AIX operating systems for the PS/2, RT (RISC),
and 370 mainframe computer families is intended to provide a very
broad base of computers which will run the same or similar
software.

AIX/370, according to IBM sources, is already being used in 13
test sites, and the multiuser, multitasking virtual memory
operating environment will be installed at more sites before the
general shipping date next year.

Also announced that the AIX/370 Network File System of NFS, will
also be available in the first quarter of 1990 to provide for
those wanting to use the NFS 3.2 protocols developed and
licensed to IBM by Sun Microsystems. The NFS 3.5 system
lets the hardware on an AIX/370-based system work with Ethernet
or IBM Token-Ring local area networked equipment from third party
vendors.

IBM has also announced that AIX/370's final shipping version will
comply with the IEEE 1003.1 standard for Portable Operating
System for Computer Environments or POSIX standard.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: G.R. Carpenter of IBM,
203-352-7610)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00010)

SANYO MBC-19 IN CANADA}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Sanyo Canada has
announced the MBC-19 Plus personal computer. The 80386-based
system, with 20-megahertz clock speed, is available immediately.
The Canadian price is C$7,995 with one megabyte of random-access
memory and a single 5.25-inch, 1.2-megabyte diskette drive. The
system carries a two-year warranty.

(Grant Buckler/19890818/Press Contact: Wendy Burgess, Access
Advertising, 416-968-2285)


(NEWS)(IBM)(SYD)(00011)

IBM SUPPORTS AUSTRALIAN GAMES}
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- IBM has made a
AUS$500,000 commitment to help Melbourne's bid to hold the 1996
Olympic Games. IBM is supplying an AS/400 mid-range computer and
peripherals to the bidding committee, while Melbourne-based IBM
marketing contractor Aspect will donate software.

The committee is now working with Aspect staff to develop
software systems for the AS/400 in preparation for the
AUS$20million bid. The International Olympic Committee's 92
members will cast their votes in September 1990 to decide which
of the six bidding cities will become the venue for the 1996
Games.

(Gavin Atkins & Computing Australia/19890816)


(NEWS)(IBM)(SYD)(00012)

AUSSIE BANK BULK USER OF OS/2?}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- A report in Australian PC
Week says that OS/2 may soon receive a needed boost when the
Commonwealth bank updates its network with the purchase of up to
40,000 PCs connected to OS/2 file servers. The report also
speculates that the equipment might be true-blue IBM. A press
release from the bank is expected any day.

(Paul Zucker/19890818)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00013)

CITIZEN NOTEBOOK-SIZED PCS TO U.S.}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Japanese precision machinery
maker Citizen Watch will export notebook-sized IBM-compatible personal
computers on an original equipment manufacturing basis to U.S. computer
makers by the end of this year. Citizen started exporting laptop PCs
compatible with IBM computers to U.S. companies three years ago.

Citizen has also announced that it is developing pocket-sized PCs for sale
in the Japanese market under its brand name.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00014)

WIZARD-TO-PC FILE XFER}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Broderbund Japan has released
an interface kit for transfer of files between Japanese personal
computers and Sharp's hand-held organizer.

Called Denshi Techo Kun, the package consists of software and an
RS-232C cable set. The software also allows the Sharp data to be imported
to popular database programs such as dBASE or The Card (Japan).
Conversely, it is also possible to transmit entered data from a
personal computer to a hand-held organizer.

The price is 12,800 yen ($91) for NEC's PC-9800 series and
14,800 yen ($106) for Toshiba's J-3100 personal computers.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00015)

AMSTRAD READYING LOW-END PC?}
BRENTWOOD, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- As the UK computer
industry gets ready for the Personal Computer Show next month,
Amstrad is rumoured to be readying a low-end PC, possibly to
replace its PC-200 series. The new machine -- pricing in at around
UKP 399 -- comes in a PCW-style housing, complete with a
low-cost dot-matrix printer, Newsbytes has learned.

Unlike the Z80-based PCW series, however, the Intel-based PCW is
expected to use industry-standard 720K 3.5 inch disks, rather
than the PCW's quirky three-inch disks. The machine is thought to
have CGA graphics and 640K of random access memory included within
its UKP 399 price.

Would such a machine be a success? "IT could be, especially as a
low-cost terminal to a network," commented one computer dealer
to Newsbytes. "There is a need for a low-cost terminal with
printing capabilities, not to mention a plug in and go PC for the
entry-level market," he added.

Computer Trade Weekly, a UK trade newspaper, hints at an Intel-
based PCW machine in its latest edition. The paper notes that
Locomotive Software, the originators of the Locoscript word
processor on the PCW, is expected to announced a PC version of
the package at next month's PC Show.

Amstrad, meanwhile, would only confirm to Newsbytes that Amstrad
will be showing its range of PCs at the show. The firm maintained
its usual 'no comment' attitude when asked about new machines.

(Steve Gold/19890818/Press Contact: Michael Joyce - Tel: 01-836-
76801)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00016)

WORDSTAR OFFERS DISCOUNTS}
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Wordstar International,
formerly known as Micropro, has announced a scheme to offer its
major customers rebates on purchases of Wordstar 5.5. The scheme
allows customers to purchase the word processing package as
normal from dealers, and then apply direct to Wordstar
International for rebates in the form of cash, free training or
additional products.

John Speller, senior vice president of Wordstar International's
European sales and operations, said that the volume purchasing
scheme has far-reaching benefits.

"The beauty of the system is that, while we can make a very
competitive offer to our corporate customers, the dealers and
distributors involvement in the sale is maintained. The scheme is
already proving to be highly-efficient for all parties
concerned," he said.

(Steve Gold/19890818/Press Contact: John Speller, Wordstar
International - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00017)

HM SYSTEMS RELEASES 486 MACHINES}
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- HM Systems, the miniature PC
systems specialist, has released an Intel 80486-based version of
its Minstrel Workstation PC. The full-specification 486
Workstations, pricing in at UKP 8,500, undercuts both IBM's PS/2
Model 70 486/25 power platform at UKP 9,112 and the AST Research
486 PC at #9,500.

The 486 MInstrel Workstation is based around the same modular
design as the existing 286 and 386SX models in the Workstation
series. The machine with a 240MB hard drive, floppy SCSI
controllers, 4MB of main memory and 1MB of video memory.

According to Tony Harris, managing director of HM Systems, the
486 Workstations is available immediately to users wanting the
machine. "Intel won't ship the full-specification 486 chip until
the end of the year, at which stage we'll offer users a plug-in
upgrade for their machines," he told Newsbytes.

As with all the Workstation series, HM Systems is offering a
board upgrade to its 80286 and 80386SX Minstrel Workstations.

(Steve Gold/19890818/Press & Public Contact: Tony Harris,
managing director, HM Systems - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SFO)(00001)

QUANTUM INTROS MUSICAL CHAT}
VIENNA, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 20 (NB) -- One of the online
industry's most innovative companies has created another first -- for
the first time computer owners can hear music and sound
effects while competing in online games, during chat sessions, and
participating in music forums.

The new service, called The Music Connection, is on Quantum's Q-Link
service for Commodore 64 or 128 owners. Computer owners need
a special Music Connection disk which can be downloaded from the
online service or purchased directly from The Mall's Q-Link store.
The disk will enable them to play music and sound effects for others
in real-time, or listen to others' music and sound effects while
online.

The Music Room Support Group is especially excited about the new
capability, according to Quantum Executive Vice President Steve Case.
"The computer becomes a personal jukebox and Music Connection
creates a unique sound track to go with every online session. Prior
to Music Connection, users would have to download the files before
they could hear any of the music."

(Wendy Woods/19890818/Press Contact: Nancy Beckman, 703-
742-3640)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(WAS)(00002)

ROLM RATIFIED BY IBM AND SIEMENS}
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 17 (NB) --IBM and Siemens
announced that they have signed the contracts needed to put into
effect the global telecommunications agreement made between the
two giant companies last December which resulted in the Norwalk,
Connecticut, U.S.A.- based ROLM Company, which is jointly owned
by Siemens and IBM.

The ROLM Company will form a marketing company for IBM's
networking capabilities and Siemens' telecommunications
expertise. Among the systems that ROLM Corp will market is IBM
speech technology.

Another new company, ROLM Systems, is based in Santa Clara
California and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Siemens which will
develop and build PBX (Private Branch Exchange), telephone, and
other telecommunications products.

This strategic alliance isn't new, although the final agreement
implementing the plan has just been signed between the parties.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Tom Keller, Siemens 212-
303-9207)


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

TELENET TO LINK BELLS}
RESTON, VIRGINIA, U.S.A, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Telenet announced
it will provide data transport for customers with host computers
connected to local packet networks (LPNs) operated by Bell operating
companies and other exchange carriers.

Presently there are more than 80 local packet networks in major
metropolitan areas throughout the United States, but the Bell networks
especially are handicapped because U.S. District Judge Harold Greene
won't let them handle their own packet network travel between cities.

Now, an Atlanta business connected to Southern Bell's Pulselink
system, for instance, can connect to Miami easily, using Telenet. The
company compared it to the way businesses select their long distance
voice communications carriers -- in this case it's the Bells and other
local packet net providers making Telenet the default choice.

"We are now able to provide worldwide access for all host
computers connected to local packet networks," said Floyd
Trogdon, vice president and general manager of network services
at Telenet. "Our goal is to be the preferred interexchange data
service provider for these customers."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Jim Crawford, Telenet,
703-689-5971)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00004)

WRITER BLASTS HDTV COMPRESSION SCHEME}
PORTLAND, OREGON, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Those who are
looking for a compression ratio to bring us to the age of High
Definition TV had better look somewhere else, according to Dale Cripps
of the HDTV Newsletter.

Savvy entrepreneurs with compression technology aren't betting their
business plans on HDTV either, he told Newsbytes. "All compression
schemes require reconstruction at the set, and it's been historically the
rule to put as much cost on the transmitter as possible, reducing the
cost of the set to the minimum so more people can buy it faster. In HDTV
that's especially important."

Still, he thinks, boosters of the HDTV technology are taking the
right course. Non cost-sensitive areas such as medicine are using
HDTV to perform remote diagnoses or even remote-controlled
operations. As to the rest of the world, Cripps says, "There's no
financial incentive for the broadcaster to go into HDTV. There's
a modest incentive for cable, as against the possible loss from
movement to a higher-grade VCR."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Dale Cripps, HDTV
Newsletter, FAX: [phone],Ph;" 503-239-7232)


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

MOST U.S. BBS'S ARE PRIVATE}
DAVIE, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Four out of five
bulletin board systems in the U.S. are private, not public, yet
the public boards alone carry four to five times more traffic than is
carried by public systems such as Compuserve and GEnie. These are
the experienced observations of Tim Stryker, whose Gallacticom
makes Major BBS, a multiline bulletin board package
which has been winning stunning reviews lately.

Because most BBS systems are private, Stryker says, security is
an issue for people who buy his software. Small boards succeed
with the mass market for the same reason small business does, he
adds. "There are so many BBSs, and being individually run they
can specialize more easily than Compuserve or GEnie. We've found
the quickest way to get something out is just post it on a few
boards. The average user finds five boards of interest, and posts
between them." Stryker has even found out about third-party add-
ons to his own product second-hand, through BBS systems. "We get
calls regularly where I find out from customers about new
products," he told Newsbytes.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Tim Stryker,
Gallacticomm, 305-583-7846


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

SYSTEM ONE SIGNS ON TOUR NETWORK}
HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 16 (NB) -- Texas Air's System One
system will gain complete access to World ComNet Inc.'s Tourinc
tour display and reservation system. Over 80 major tour operators
have already contracted to feature their tours on the Tourinc
system, which automatically calculates rates, costs on options,
discounts, surcharges and other variables. The Tourinc system
will be used to lure travel agents away from market leaders Sabre
and Covia.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Ronald L. Baldwin, WCN
Investment, 604-669-6083)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00007)

HAYES PUTS V.42 IN SILICON}
TUSTIN, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Silicon
Systems and Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. announced the first
complete V.42 error-control integrated circuit set for 2400 bits per
second modems. It's the first time the new error-correcting standard
has been set into silicon. V.42 was approved by the International
Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee (CCITT) a few
months ago.

The Hayes-Silicon System chip set has three chips, and will be
available in the fourth quarter. It also supports the Hayes
Standard AT Command Set in addition to Hayes AutoSync, Hayes
Adaptive Data Compression and Hayes Automatic Feature
Negotiation, which are featured in all Hayes V-Series Products.
It's also the product of a technology partnership arrangement
Hayes and Silicon Systems announced in September, 1988.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Mark Jorgensen of
Silicon Systems, 714-731-7110)


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

TYMNET SIGNS UP COORS}
GOLDEN, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Tymnet signed a
contract with Coors Brewing to build a private packet-switched network
for the beer company's headquarters.

It's the first such private network deal to be signed since Tymnet
announced it would be acquired by British Telecom. The network
will link dissimilar computers and local area networks, offering
protocol conversion, data security, and error-protection.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818)


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

MOTOROLA OFFERS FOUR MODEM PACKAGES}
HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 7 (NB) -- Motorola's
Universal Data Systems subsidiary has begun reselling four
different PC communications packages with its Sync-Up modems. UDS
modems which will be dialing into IBM minicomputers will get
Emerald 5251 from Emerald Technologies. PCs connecting with
mainframes will get SNA software from Network Software
Associates. PCs connecting to non-IBM hosts will get Blast, from
Communications Research Group.

PCs which are calling directly to the IRS' computers will get Sync-Tax
from D3 Softdesign, designed for online tax filing.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: Bill Schlosser, UDS,
205-721-8000)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(WAS)(00010)

MCI DELIVERS NEW MAIL GATEWAY}
RYE BROOK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 9 (NB) -- MCI Communications
Corporation has announced MCI Gateway for Microsoft Mail, new
software from Microsoft Corporation that will extend the electronic mail
reach of Microsoft Mail users by adding MCI Mail's delivery options to
their AppleTalk LAN system. The software is scheduled for October
release and will be priced at $595.

(John McCormick/19890813/Press Contact: Jane Levene, MCI, 914-
934-6480)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(WAS)(00011)

NEW SOFT-SWITCH MAIL GATEWAY}
WAYNE, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 9 (NB) -- Microsoft and
Soft-Switch have announced the SNADS Gateway/MSMail, which
will allow Macintosh users to exchange electronic mail with other
interconnected E-mail networks. The product, developed by Soft-
Switch in conjunction with Microsoft, will be distributed
by Soft-Switch in the fourth quarter of 1989 at a price of
$4,995.

Soft-Switch, the leading provider of enterprise mail network
products for seamless integration of e-mail systems, is
headquartered at 640 Lee Road, Wayne, PA 19087-5698.

(John McCormick/19890813/Press Contacts: Sarah Charf, Microsoft,
206-882-8080)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00012)

PHONE REFORM IN CANADA?}
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- The Canadian federal
government has the constitutional right to regulate all the
country's telephone companies, the Supreme Court of Canada has
decided. In a much-awaited decision concerning the jurisdiction
of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications
Commission (CRTC) over Alberta Government Telephones, the court
paved the way for federal regulators to extend their territory to
privately and provincially owned carriers in the seven provinces
now regulated by provincial governments.

The Supreme Court said the CRTC does not actually have
jurisdiction over Alberta Government Telephones, which is both
owned and regulated by the provincial government of Alberta. But
it said the federal government could obtain such jurisdiction
merely by a change in the legislation empowering the CRTC -- an
ancient statute anachronistically known as the Railway Act. The
same would apply to Saskatchewan Telephones and Manitoba
Telephone, the provincially owned and regulated utilities in the
other two Prairie provinces.

The decision appears to give Ottawa immediate authority over
privately owned utilities in the four Atlantic provinces, which
are also provincially regulated at present. The CRTC already
regulates Bell Canada, which covers Ontario and Quebec, British
Columbia Telephone, and carriers in the Yukon and Northwest
territories.

It seems probable Ottawa will grab this opportunity. In June,
federal Minister of Communications Marcel Masse complained to a
conference in Ottawa that provincial regulators have been slower
than the federal regulatory body, the Canadian Radio-television
and Telecommunications Commission, to allow competition,
connection of customer-owned equipment and other loosening of the
rules. "This refusal has considerably limited the choice of
services and equipment available in the Prairies and the
Maritimes," Masse said.

(Grant Buckler/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00013)

GANDALF NET SHARES PRINTERS}
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- A new software
package from Gandalf Data lets IBM and compatible PCs share
printers using a Gandalf network. StarSpooler PC provides printer
sharing through Gandalf Starmaster, PACX, XMUX and SMUX networks
without requiring users to leave their applications. StarSpooler
accepts output from application programs immediately, whether or
not the printer is busy, so the application can get on with other
things. The software also warns when most printers are out of
paper or off line, Gandalf said.

Site licenses cost C$2,200 per Starmaster network processor or
PACX 2000 system; C$1,000 per PACX 200; C$500 per SMUX or XMUX.

Gandalf also announced a US$1-million contract to install a
Gandalf Cabmate dispatching system for Checker Cab of Detroit.

(Grant Buckler/19890817/Press Contact: Janice Drummond, Gandalf,
613-564-0183)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00014)

SYDNEY CABBIES HATE COMPUTERS}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Sydney taxi drivers have
gone on strike -- because of computers. A number of cab companies
have introduced an automated booking system where passengers use
touch-phone keypads to book a cab. Unfortunately for the drivers,
it was decided only to pass the pick-up address to the drivers
bidding for the job. This means that they may end up taking a job
with an unpopular destination. By law they are required to take a
passenger anywhere, but before they could refrain from bidding if
they didn't like the destination.

(Paul Zucker/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00015)

FOREIGNERS CAN BUY INTO KDD}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 17 -- The Japanese government is planning
to allow foreigners buy up to 20 percent of the shares in Japan's
telecom giant KDD, according to the Ministry of Finance sources.

In order to do this, however, Japanese law must be changed. It now
prevents overseas people from buying shares in KDD, a firm which has
recently come to dominate Japan's international telecommunications
service sector.

KDD's biggest shareholders currently include the Postal Ministry
Cooperation Association with 10.9 percent and Japan's telecom giant
NTT with 9.9 percent. Several leading insurance companies hold
smaller stakes.

KDD's net profit promises to grow only 1.5 percent to 20 billion yen
($143 million) in the year ending March 1990. Net earnings per
share are expected to fall from 337 to 311 yen in the same period.

(Ken Takahashi/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00016)

BT LEAP-FROGS AHEAD IN CORDLESS PHONE RACE}
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- British Telecom announced
this week it is installing 16,000 cordless phone public base
stations across the UK, ready for a roll-out later this year.
Customers with CT-2 handsets will be able to place outgoing calls
only provided they are within a 100 metre ring of the public CT-2
base stations.

Within a similar range of the 'home' base station, calls can be
made on a two-way basis, as with most other cordless phones. The
public roaming facility is a highly useful addition to the CT-2
phone's features.

BT's success is due to the company securing a deal with 13,000
public houses, and some 3,000 financial institutions, all of whom
have agreed to site a CT-2 base station on their premises.
Customers around these base stations will thus be able to make
outgoing calls using personal pocket handsets costing UKP 150
($240).

Until BT's announcement last week, considerable scepticism had
been voiced by the UK telecommunications trade as to whether CT-2 was
viable. Some onlookers even doubted that the system would ever
see the light of day. BT's announcement, whilst not firming up a
launch date other than within the next few months, has gone a
long way to stifle such criticism.

(Steve Gold/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00017)

BRITISH TELECOM'S RECORD TURNOVER}
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- British Telecom has reported
record sales and profits for its first quarter ended 30 June,
1989. The telecommunications company's earnings per share
increase 4.3 percent on the same period last year.

Turnover rose from UKP 2,632 million to UKP 2,928 million -- an
increase of 11.2 percent -- almost entirely due to call volume
growth. Telephone call revenue rose by 11 percent for domestic
calls, whilst international call revenue rose 13 percent.

Profits, meanwhile, rose only slightly, from UKP 390 million to
UKP 408 million, which BT blames on increased operating costs,
and the cost of network modernization.

(Steve Gold/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00018)

TRICOM MODEMS TO FRANCE}
HIGH WYCOMBE, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Tricom Communications
has signed a distribution deal with Kortex International in
France. Terms of the UKP 1 million deal call for Kortex to
distribute Tricom's range of high-speed modems throughout France.

Products available through Kortex include Tricom's Quin and Quad
standard modems for PCs and PS/2 machines. French prices on the
modems have yet to be announced by Kortex.

(Steve Gold/19890818/Press Contact: Mandie Kelly, Tricom
Communications - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(BRU)(00019)

ARABS AIRLINE RESERVATION NETWORK}
AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Eight Arab
airlines have announced their intention to develop a computerized
reservations system. The decision to go it alone was taken by the
airlines, after looking at the Amadeus and Galileo online
networks developed recently by European and US airlines.

No name for the Arabian airline reservations system has been
decided yet, but the airlines of the United Arab Emirates, Iraq,
Kuwait, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Royal Jordanian and Egyptair
decided it was time to get their act together.

It's worth noting that several of the members of the new
consortium are the national airlines of countries which have
differing political opinions. Iraq and Syria, for example, are
currently fighting in Lebanon.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(BRU)(00020)

SONY TELECOM SETS HQ IN NETHERLANDS}
AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Sony Telecom, a
new telecommunications concern set up by Sony of Japan, has set
up its headquarters in The Netherlands in order to aim for the European
telecommunications market, which is expected to boom after the
1992 heralds the so-called free European market.

The head of Sony Telecom company is former EC Telecommunications
Director Tjakko Schuringa. On his appointment to Sony, Schuringa
said there was no incompatibility with his previous position,
which involved keeping Japanese product dumping out of Europe.

"What makes Sony Telecom so special is that product development,
production and distribution will take place in Europe. There will
be no imports of parts or devices from Japan," he said.

Sony Telecom will market high-tech devices for the consumer
electronics market as well as the professional user. Schuringa is
a liberal and his ideas of opening up of the telecom market have
met with considerable resistance at the European Commission
Telecommunications division -- so much so, that the Dutchman
resigned earlier this year. The Dutch-based concern is part of
Sony's campaign to set up a worldwide network for electronic
goods and services with a toehold in Europe, Japan and the United
States.

Sony plans to set up research labs and distribution channels
throughout Europe for its telecommunications products. Plans call
for the company to build a major European semiconductor facility
within the next two years, as well as a new European plant for
coating magnetic tapes.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00021)

PRESTEL UPGRADES E-MAIL}
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Prestel, British Telecom's
public viewdata service, will upgrade its electronic mail service
this week. Prestel's 100,000 subscribers will, from the 22nd of
August, enjoy an enhanced service that allows up to five 'frames'
of 600-700 characters to be tagged together as a single message
for delivery to up to 1200 recipients in one transaction.

Previously, only single frame messages of 600-700 characters
could be addressed to single subscribers on a per-transaction
basis. Sending multi-address messages was possible, but involved
extensive rekeying for each recipient required.

In parallel with the e-mail messaging (mailbox, as Prestel calls
the service) enhancements, subscribers will also be able to
review a summary of their stored and unread messages, as well as
having the facility of forwarding incoming or stored messages to
other subscribers.

The changes are not without cost, however. Single frame messages
to individual subscribers are still free of all charges except
normal Prestel connect time charges, but other messages will
attract a one pence charge per item per recipient. Steve Wood,
head of messaging for Dialcom UK, said that the charges for new
e-mail service will be outweighed by its advantages.

"As you can seem our new Mailbox service is considerably more
versatile than its predecessor. We're confident that our
customers will be delighted with this new product," he said.

(Steve Gold/19890818/Press Contact: Jenny Bailey Associates -
Tel: [phone]; Email on Dialcom 84:BTD5000)


(EXCLUSIVE)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00001)

THE VOICE EXPLORER READY TO SHIP}
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- A small box that
listens to your voice and translates what you say back in other
languages will be featured on a new show this fall called "Space Age,"
hosted by Star Trek's William Shatner, talk show host Larry King, and
actor Peter Graves. The Voice Explorer, a hand-held voice recognition and
synthesis device, will also be featured September 16 on "Beyond
Tomorrow," a program on the Fox Network, according to the device's
marketing manager, Jack Russell.

The Voice is being hailed as a breakthrough and is getting airplay
because many see it as the earliest manifestation of "conversational
computing," characterized by Hal 9000 in the movie "2001" or more
recently by the Knowledge Navigator in Apple's visionary videotape.
Russell tells Newsbytes the Voice Explorer has finally received approval from
the FCC and the three-pound device will ship within the next month.

Based on proprietary technology with multiple processors, The Voice
is said to run four times faster than a PC. The applications being
designed by its maker, Advanced Products and Technologies, include
Nativeguide, translation software which will recognize over 35,000
travel-related sentences. The first module that will be ready to
ship will be the English/Spanish unit, but an English/French module
is expected shortly thereafter. There is also Voice Assistant, shipping
in October, which will be a voice-activated calendar, scheduler, name
and address file.

The Voice has a standard four megabytes of memory, supertwist LCD
that displays your words as you speak them, as well as the words it
speaks back to you, a three hour battery life with a six hour recharger,
multiple microphones and speakers, and it measures 8 1/4 by 7 inches in
length and 2.75 inches deep.

The cost is expected to be $2,000 and the software cartridges will
cost $300 each.

(Wendy Woods/19890818/Press Contact: Jack Russell, AP&T, 206-883-
8297)


(EXCLUSIVE)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00002)

IBM: 64-BIT ARCHITECTURE FOR 90S}
LOS ALTOS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 21 (NB) -- IBM is planning
to replace its 3090, 4381, AS/400, 9370 and yes, even its current
PS/2 line of microcomputers with a radical new 64-bit distributed
architecture as early as 1991, according to the latest report from
IBM-watchers at International Technology Group (ITG).

The report, which ventures where no market research has publicly
gone before, says the new systems will address up to 128,000 terabytes
(terabytes is a trillion bytes) of enterprise-wide single level storage.
If that isn't enough to impress, ITG says that is 8,000 times more
powerful than IBM's current high-end version of Enterprise Systems
Architecture (ESA).

The report says the new architecture incorporates DBMS infrastructure,
supports complex multimedia objects, and has a transparent user
interface for all systems within an Enterprise network. The report,
being prepared as the latest addition to The IBM Directions series,
adds the key to the new architecture is its ability to combine new
30XX multiprocessors, mid-range systems and workstations as
modules of a unified Enterprise operating environment.

"MVS, VM, VSE, OS/400, DPPX and OS/2, says the report, will progressively
merge into this environment. IBM'S Systems Application Architecture
(SAA) "prepares for this merger by creating standardized
applications software that will later run on the new system."

"Major changes will start to occur in 1991 to 1992 as ESA is
implemented for all IBM mid-range systems," says the report. "A
further shift will occur in 1995 to 1996 to coincide with the
introduction of IBM's first microprocessor-based mainframe system,
the "A" Series.

Further information on the series can be obtained from ITG by
calling Robert Simko, executive director, or Brian Jeffery, managing
director, at 415-964-2565.

(Wendy Woods/19890818)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00003)

NCR'S NEW SCSI CHIP}
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Faster, cheaper, and
more flexible SCSI (Small Computer Systems Interface) ports are
promised by NCR's new 53C700 integrated circuit chip.

The new chip features intelligent control of input and output of
data between the computer and the external device, freeing the
main processor chip from the need to monitor and control this
process, essentially providing much higher performance for the
complete system.

With a projected market of nearly 65 million chips to be sold in
1990 (the SCSI interface is used in 25 percent of today's PCs),
the development of a more powerful, intelligent controller chip
is very important to the acceptance of the SCSI port standard
which is intended to become the standard way to connect all
peripherals to small computers, eliminating the need for special
CD-ROM or hard disk controllers.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Carolyn Fromm, NCR,
714-837-0850)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00004)

FORD TESTS 500MIPS CHIP}
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Ford Aerospace's
Aeroneutronic Division has announced the recent successful test
of a chip running at nearly 100 times the speed of the fastest
PCs on the market today. At 500 million instructions per second,
or MIPS, the new chip, called the CPP, or Configurable Pipeline
Processor, was designed specifically for the U.S. Army Missile
Command.

The CPP chip itself is a gate array logic chip, built by the LSI
Logic Corp. and customized by Ford Aerospace by adding external
links between the IC or Integrated Circuit's transistors. The
present design uses 54 thousand gates on an LSI Logic chip
running at 20 megahertz and using a 16-bit data path.

The new chip was developed over a period of three years in
conjunction with the Pentagon's Very High Speed Integrated
Circuit (VHSIC) Technology Insertion program and is expected to
shrink the size and cost of guidance units used in missiles.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Norman Black, Ford
Aerospace, 703-685-5586)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00005)

TOSHIBA'S FAST TEXT READER}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Toshiba has developed an English
text reading system with which printed English sentences can be read
on average at 120 characters per second. That's twice as fast as
anything else on the market.

The reading system is controlled by a personal computer connected
to a text recognition board, and allows a scanner to read printed
English documents. The fast reading speed was achieved by the system's
ability to distinguish between words, photographs, and graphics on
the same page. It also analyzes sentence structure, and codes
graphics images into a compressed data format.

The system is said to have an accuracy rate of 99.7 percent on
average. Toshiba claims that the new system is the world's fastest
alphabetical text reading product for a personal computer. The
text reader also can read Gothic and Italic characters.

Toshiba is to market the text reader in the United States,
with the price expected to be $2,500. The firm also is planning
to distribute it in Japan next year.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00006)

JAPANESE TO GERMAN TRANSLATION SYSTEM}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Fujitsu and West Germany-based
software house Aris Software-Entwicklung have jointly developed the
world's first Japanese-to-German translation software system. The
new prototype system is based on Fujitsu's Atlas-II software which
is now used for translating Japanese into English. Aris programmed
a 50,000-word German dictionary, some 12,000 rules of grammar, and
development tools in this version of the Atlas software. The software
will run on Fujitsu's S Family and Sun Microsystems' Sun-3 and
Sun-4 workstations.

Running on the Sun 4/110 workstation with RISC-type (reduced instruction
set computer) SPARC chips, the new software system translates
about 6,000 Japanese words to German per hour.

The software is still in the testing stage; Fujitsu hopes to begin
selling the software next year.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00007)

PEOPLE MORE HONEST WITH COMPUTERS}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Job seekers
interviewed by computers are more honest than when they're
interviewed by people, according to Dr. Dennis Nagao of the
Georgia Institute of Technology school of management. "We got a
lot of exaggeration, but the exaggeration was much stronger in
face-to-face situations than in the computerized or the paper-
and-pencil situations," he explained. "The non-social interview
conditions resulted in more honest responding."

The computer may induce other reactions, including one Nagao
calls the "big brother effect," which he put this way. "Most
people do not want to be in a situation of being caught in a
lie."

But there's a downside, he added. People resent computerized
interviews, especially for management positions. The results of
Nagao's research are to be found in the Journal of Applied
Psychology.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890818/Press Contact: John Toon, Georgia
Tech, 404-894-3444)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TOR)(00008)

CANADA: PCS GROW FASTEST}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 17 (NB) -- Personal computers
are practical substitutes for minis and mainframes in more and
more applications. That's one likely reason why that sector of
the Canadian computer industry is growing faster than any other,
according to a recent study by International Data Corporation, Canada.

IDC said the Canadian PC market grew 19.1 percent to C$1,990
million in 1988, far outrunning what it defines as small-scale
systems -- those supporting two to 16 users -- grew 6.2 percent
to C$595 million. The medium-scale systems market -- defined as
17- to 128-user machines -- grew 5.9 percent to C$1,184 million,
while the mainframe market actually shrank by 1.6 percent to
C$1,199 million. This was not the first drop in the mainframe
market, said IDC Canada analyst Debbie Currey. It shrank 1.2
percent in 1986, then recovered with 1.9-percent growth in 1987.

All this added up to overall growth of 8.7 percent in the
computer hardware business. IDC also reported nine percent growth
in the packaged software and services business.

The strength of the PC was evident in IDC's listing of leading
companies. The top growth performer was SHL Systemhouse, a system
integrator which also owns ComputerLand Canada, with 93-percent
growth to C$119 million in revenues. Next were Compaq Canada
Ltd., whose revenues grew 60.6 percent to C$123 million, and
Apple Canada, whose revenues grew 53.9 percent to C$274 million.

IBM Canada, though it placed several spots down the list in
percentage growth with 19 percent, headed the list by revenue, as
always, with C$3.508 billion. Northern Telecom placed second (the
IDC survey includes communications equipment as well as
computers) with C$2.978 billion in revenues and a 4.9-percent
growth rate. Next came Digital Equipment with 24.9-percent growth
to C$964 million in revenues, followed by Unisys Canada and Apple
Canada. All figures are IDC estimates.

(Grant Buckler/19890817/Press Contact: Debbie Currey, IDC Canada,
416-369-0033)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SYD)(00009)

A MILLION PCs DOWN UNDER}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Almost one million
Australian households -- 16 percent of all homes -- have a
personal computer, according to a prominent Australian market
research organization.

The Roy Morgan Research Center surveyed 4574 households
nationwide and found that households with school-aged children
are three times more likely to have a PC than households without
children.

They found that the leading brand in personal computers for the
home is Commodore which was owned by 42 percent of
computer-owning respondents, nine percent had an Apple
Macintosh, and eight percent had an Amstrad. No other brands had
a share of more than five percent.

Commodore's market lead is largely in the lower-priced home
computer market (less than AUS$1000) where it has a clear
majority. At the higher end of the market (AUS$2000 plus) Apple
Macintosh and IBM or IBM clones are just ahead of Commodore.
The survey also found that households are increasingly buying
more expensive PCs, despite generally decreasing prices.

(Gavin Atkins/19890816/Press Contact: David Jones, Roy Morgan
Research, 61-2-2618512)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00010)

TI MAKES 1-MEG CHIPS IN JAPAN}
TOKYO, JAPAN 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- One of the leading semiconductor
makers, U.S.-based Texas Instruments, will start manufacturing its
latest product, the newly developed next-generation one-megabit static
RAM (random access memory) chip, in Japan.

The SRAM chip is based on bipolar-CMOS (complementary metal-oxide
semiconductor) technology and has an access time of ten nanoseconds.
Since 80 or 50 nanosecond SRAM chips are popular for the 32-bit
computer and workstation market, TI's SRAM are far faster and clearly
designed for the future.

But due to the high cost of producing the chip, it will be produced
in limited quantities and aimed at limited markets, such as supercomputer
or military sectors. The sample chips will be produced in Texas
Instruments' Oita plant which is currently rushing to introduce a
256 kilobit SRAM line.

TI's success in the Japanese market is partially due to its
sponsorship of commercial products made by such Japanese firms as
Hitachi, as well as its alliances with Japanese DRAM producers to
create application-specific integrated circuits, which are part of a
fast growing market.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890817)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00011)

IC MEMORY CARD STANDARD}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 10 (NB) -- Fujitsu, Toshiba, Hitachi Maxell,
Matsushita Denchi Kogyo, and Seiko-Epson have reached on an agreement
regarding the standardization of the IC (integrated circuit) memory
card. Based on the IC Memory Card Guideline Version 3, a standard
determined by the Japan Electronic Industry Development Association,
the basic configuration will be 85.6 by 54 by 3.3 millimeters
(3.4 by 2.1 by 1/10-inches), will have a memory capacity of up to
16 megabytes, and will adopt two lines and 68 pins for an interface
connection.

The five firms will exchange technological information with each other
and will promote and produce IC cards which are compatible. The first
release of product born of the pact is expected in early 1990.

IC memory cards have been being applied for use in various fields,
such as personal computers, facsimiles, phones, CATV terminals, and
video device. The widely accepted unit is expected to be an 85 billion
yen ($600 million) market in 1990.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(BRU)(00012)

DUTCH SUPERCONDUCTOR BREAKTHROUGH}
AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Technische
Universiteit Twente, one of the leading Dutch universities,
claims to have generated superconductivity at 77 degrees Kelvin
(minus 196 degrees Centigrade). If validated, the results
represent a major breakthrough, since superconductivity has never
been seen at this temperature, the boiling point of liquid
nitrogen.

Directed by Professor Horst Rogalla, the university research
group generated superconductivity using a mixture of thin layers of
ceramic material made of tritium, barium, copper and oxygen,
alternating with extremely thin layers of an aluminum oxide
isolation material.

Despite the breakthrough, Professor Rogalla said that it will
take between five and ten years before practical applications of the
technology will appear.

Professor Rogalla's research is generating a lot of interest in
the scientific communities, owing to the short time taken to
achieve results, and the fact that the research team's budget was
limited compared to previous research projects into
superconductivity.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(BRU)(00013)

INT'L LABOR GROUP SLAMS ROBOTS}
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Robots are considered
perfect employees from an employer's point of view. They do not
strike, never eat, yet they work 24 hours a day and take on
unsafe and unhealthy work from their human colleagues.

Despite these advantages, the International Labour Organisation
(ILO) has issued a report which concludes that robots are too
simple to be used safely. The ILO report goes as far as saying
that robots can cause the death of humans.

The ILO report states that, whilst robots undoubtedly help to
improve the working conditions for humans, they add new risks to
the list of working accidents. The report cites the case of a
Japanese worker who became entangled in the arms of an industrial
robot, which killed him by crushing his head, despite the fact he
was wearing a safety helmet at the time.

Out of ten fatal accidents involving robots in Japan, four were
found to have been the fault of a wrong command of the employee,
whilst the remaining six were caused by the robot going berserk.
Japan has the highest number of robots (141,000) and has an
average of five serious accidents a year involving them.

In comparison, the US Administration counted 17 cases of
accidents with industrial robots out a total robot workforce of
29,000 last year. In Europe, Sweden suffered 36 accidents between
1979 and 1983, the report said.

The ILO concludes that the primary reasons for robot malfunction
are electrical breakdowns, programming faults and the use of
inflammable oil in the system hydraulics. Accidents can also
happen when unauthorized persons stray into a prohibited area,
the report said. To counter these problems the ILO advises
nations to implement a range of safety measures. In order to give
a helping hand in that direction, it listed the measures taken by
Japan, the United States, Britain, East and West Germany, France
and the Soviet Union.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(IBM)(00014)

IBM/EC STUDY PARALLEL PROCESSING}
BOEBLINGEN, WEST GERMANY, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- IBM and the
European Research Institute for research into particle technology
(CERN) are to undertake a joint R&D program in parallel processing.

The research will be done at the IBM research and development centre at
Boeblingen, near Munich, West Germany. CERN is interested in
parallel processing, because it is installing the large Electron
Positron collider in the near future at its experimental site
near Geneva.

The basic requirements for the parallel processor system are IBM
S/370 compatibility, the capability of offering a powerful
junction processor and a flexible communications concept. The
team opted for CMOS technology to link the different
microprocessors and reckons that by the early 1990's it will be
possible to process several billions of instructions per
second.

(Eric Dauchy/19890818)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(SFO)(00001)

SUN'S VALID DEAL WORTH $120 MIL}
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Valid Logic
will purchase $120 million worth of Sun equipment, including its
new SPARCstation workstations, in one of the largest deals with
an individual company Sun Microsystems has ever made.

Valid Logic, maker of electronic design automation tools, will use
the Sun equipment for internal product development as well as
resale to customers in the U.S., Europe, and the Far East.

(Wendy Woods/19890818)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(WAS)(00002)

NEW PRIME COMPUTER ANNOUNCED}
NATICK, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Prime
Computer has announced the Prime EXL 1200 Series, a new group of
mid-high range Unix-based computers capable of supporting up to
1,000 users simultaneously.

This new series of computers is aimed at database management,
office automation, transaction processing, and software
development jobs in the Fortune 500 market.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Paula Levis, Prime
Computer, 508-655-8000, ext. 7891)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(WAS)(00003)

NEW NIXDORF IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM}
WALTHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 15 (NB) -- Nixdorf
Computer Corp. has introduced DCPA, a document image processing
system designed for the integration of image processing with
traditional data processing, which uses Nixdorf's family of
Targon 35, 31, or 386 - based Unix systems and special monitors.

The 386-based workstation lists for $20,000, while complete
networks start at $500,000.

(John McCormick/19890818/Press Contact: Dora Friedman of Nixdorf
Computer Corporation, 617-890-3600)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(WAS)(00004)

NEW CAYMAN TCP/IP MAIL GATEWAY}
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 AUG 9 (NB) -- Cayman
Systems has announced GatorMail-M, a software gateway between
Microsoft Mail and SMTP [Simple Mail Transfer Protocol] used on UNIX
computers.

The software is intended for Microsoft Mail users of Macintoshes and
PCs and will provide connectivity to TCP/IP [Transmission Control
Protocol/Internet Protocol] mail environments, allowing mail exchange
with Sun/VAX users via the GatorBox [a LocalTalk-to-Ethernet gateway
for protocol translation] built-in AppleTalk-to-TCP/IP routing.

Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Cayman Systems, founded in 1987,
develops and markets intelligent networks gateways.

(John McCormick/19890813/Press Contact: Carol McGarry, Cayman,
617-494-1999)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TOR)(00005)

SUN SHINES ON MAPLE MATH PROGRAM}
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- Sun Microsystems of
Canada, of Markham, and Waterloo Maple Software of Waterloo,
Ontario, have announced that Maple Version 4.3 is now available
for Sun-3 and Sun-4 workstations. Maple is an interactive
computer algebra system that can do both symbolic and numeric
computations.

The previous version of Maple is running on some 1,500 Sun
workstations in North America and Europe, Sun Canada said.
Version 4.3 takes advantage of SunView technology and has an
improved user interface.

Maple Version 4.3 costs C$2,995. Educational discounts and site
licenses are available.

(Grant Buckler/19890816/Press Contact: Janice Murray, Sun Canada,
416-477-6745; Janet Cater, Waterloo Maple Software, 519-747-2373)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00006)

NEC TO ADOPT MIPS PROCESSOR}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- NEC will release a workstation
with the RISC-type (reduced instruction set computer) processor from
U.S-based chipmaker MIPS Computer Systems as early as April next
year. The new workstation will have the MIPS R-3000 microprocessor,
will run Unix System V. R4, and will attain an operating speed
of a whopping 25 million instructions per second, according to NEC.

NEC has opted for the MIPS processor, snubbing Sun Microsystems'
competing SPARC chip, and new offerings from other firms including
Hewlett-Packard, saying MIPS' offers higher performance than the
competition.

Most importantly, however, NEC has a five-year license to manufacture
chips based on MIPS technology and is planning to ship samples of the
first product born of the alliance in October. Called the VR-3000, the
samples will be based on the MIPS R-3000 chip and will consist of
submemory devices, and high-speed memory capable of operating at 20
million instructions per second.

NEC plans to produce a few thousand units per month in October and hopes
to boost output to 20,000 or 30,000 by the year's end. NEC will sell
VR-3000 chips to workstation makers, including Digital Equipment, Silicon
Graphics and Sony.

(Ken Takahashi/19890817)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00007)

YOKOGAWA JOINS OSF}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 14 (NB) -- The Open Software Foundation (OSF)
has announced that one of Japan's largest industrial instruments
makers, Yokogawa Electric, has sided with OSF in the battle for a
Unix standard. This makes Yokogawa and Hitachi as the only two
Japanese members of the organization.

The announcement seems reasonable since Yokogawa has a strong
business relationship with OSF founders HP (Yokogawa-Hewlett-Packard
is the joint venture) and IBM.

However the industry is abuzz with rumors about Yokogawa possibly
setting to compete with HP with its own separate computer business. The
cards are already in place. Yokogawa bought U.S.-based Digital
Computer in October 1987 and Supertek Japan in June, with which it is
expected to enlarge its supercomputer and workstation market share.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890817)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00008)

PORT VX LANDS IN JAPAN}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 10 (NB) -- Yokogawa Hewlett-Packard has
started marketing the Port VX for its HP9000 series, model 800
superminicomputer.

With the Port VX, application software written in Fortran for
Digital Equipment's VMS operating system will be ported to the Unix
systems of Hewlett-Packard. The price of the toolkit package is
1,441,000 yen or $1,290, and includes five days of consulting.

With the software, YHP can now go to VAX installations to try to sell
its own Unix machine, the HP9000/800, which is armed with faster
floating-point operations.

YHP expects to sell 800 HP9000/800 systems and 50 sets of the software
packages in the initial year.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890817)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00009)

SONY NEWS NEWS}
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 AUG 11 (NB) -- Sony is creating a new business
strategy aimed at beefing up its already respectable share of
the world workstation market. In addition to its News line of
workstations, Sony is offering popNews, which was announced in
September last year, and QuarterL, a personal computer which was
announced this March.

Sony's News is one of the strongest competitors for Sun Microsystems
in the Japanese engineering workstation market. To further
expand its share in the market, Sony has launched a system to
network its personal computer and workstation products for
more effective document management.

Production of popNews and QuarterL at Sony Data Products in Nagano
prefecture is expected to start in October while the sales push
starts in September. Sony hopes to sell 10,000 workstations and 30,000
to 40,000 personal computers in the initial year.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890817)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LON)(00010)

SOLBOURNE COMPUTER LAUNCHES IN EUROPE}
SWINDON, ENGLAND, 1989 AUG 18 (NB) -- Solbourne Computer, the
Colorado-based developer of the world's first SPARC-compatible
workstations, has established its first overseas subsidiary in
Swindon, England. The office will provide sales, marketing and
support functions for the UK, Benelux and Scandinavia.

In parallel with the opening of the company in Europe, Solbourne
has launched a range of multiprocessing SPARC workstations which
are binary compatible with Sun Microsystems' Sun 4 workstations.
Pricing on the Solbourne series undercuts Sun by around 20 percent
with entry-level configurations starting at around UKP 20,000.

Despite the relatively low workstation pricing, Solbourne Series
4 workstations have a processing power of between 9.5 and 30 MIPS
(million instructions per second). According to Barrie Murray-
Upton, Solbourne's Northern European general manager, the arrival
of the company in Europe heralds a real choice for workstation
users.

"Solbourne is giving Sun users an alternative for the first time.
The Series 4 brings multi-processing scalability to the Sun
market-place or the first time. Now Sun users can take advantage
of the enhanced processing power and low-cost upgradeability
offered by using multiple microprocessors," he said.

(Steve Gold/19890816/Press Contact: Barrie Murray-Upton,
Solbourne Computer - Tel: [phone])