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/1992/NB920514

Text File | 1992-05-15 | 71KB | 1,540 lines

(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00001)

New For Mac: Radius 24-bit Color Graphics Accelerator 05/14/92
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Radius
maintains it is dropping the price on 24-bit color graphics for the
Macintosh II and Quadra by introducing a $599 color graphics
interface called the Precisioncolor 24Xp.

Radius claims the new 24-bit color graphics board is capable of
displaying up to 16.7 million colors and is geared toward the
16-inch Macintosh color displays.

With a Nubus interface, the Precisioncolor 24Xp offers Quickdraw
acceleration, support for third-party displays, peak resolution of
832 by 624, and on-the-fly resolution switching, Radius maintains.
The Quickdraw acceleration is accomplished with custom
application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) which boost the
normal performance of the display up to 600 percent, Radius
claims.

Radius says the purpose of the Precisioncolor 24Xp is to offer
photorealistic images on screen. The product is geared toward
graphics, desktop publishing, and presentation graphics work with
scanned photographs, computer generated art, or images with fine
gradations of color.

Radius says Macintosh users can save as much as $500 by using
the Precisioncolor 24Xp with its $1,199 15-inch Color Pivot/LE
monitor as opposed to the $1,699 16-inch 24-bit color display
offered by Apple. However, Radius added that while the Color
Pivot/LE does allow the user to physically rotate the monitor from
a landscape to a portrait orientation and back, the landscape
mode is the only one that will work with the Precisioncolor 24Xp.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920514/Press Contact: Larry Herman,
Radius, tel [phone], fax [phone])


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

X Press Studying Cable Delivery Of NTN Game Software 05/14/92
CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- X Press
Information Services of Denver has signed a deal which could put
NTN Communications' interactive games, including its QB1
football game, on-line through cable television as early as July.

QB1 has an exclusive license from the NFL, and is played in
conjunction with live televised football games. NTN also
produces Showdown, a 90-minute trivia show played live once a
week, Sports Trivia Challenge, another weekly trivia game, and
other competitive interactive game shows played daily.

X Press delivers information and software via cable television
and is best known for its X Change product, which is used by
schools. The company also re-distributes a number of other
information products, including the AP wire, again via cable.

A spokesman for the company told Newsbytes the agreement
with NTN does not impact that company's existing agreement
to put its games on-line via Prodigy.

"This is something that's in development," Rosetta Rogers said.
"It doesn't exist at the present time. We deliver data. That's
not interactive. This is an agreement to test-market interactive
games," and as such would be a new departure for X Press.
X Press is owned by Liberty Media, a public company which
owns cable companies and programming services.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514/Press Contact: NTN
Communications, Scott Phillips, 619-438-7400; X Press
Information Services, Rosetta Rogers, 303-721-5417)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00003)

Wordstar Writing Tools In Mac Education Bundle 05/14/92
NOVATO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Wordstar,
known for its word processor software for IBM and compatible
computers has made a deal with Apple to bundle two of its writing
tools with Macintosh computers in a special deal geared toward
the educational market.

Wordstar purchased several writing tools products from other
developers recently including the Correct Grammar and The
American Heritage Dictionary, which will be bundled in Macintosh
versions sold through Apple's Higher Education Back-to-School
Promotion, Wordstar said.

Bundling its software with computer hardware is something
Wordstar has been doing for a very long time, clear back to the
original Wordstar word processor that was bundled with the
Kaypro computer before DOS was introduced.

In this case, Apple is bundling the Wordstar products in another
round if educational promotion of Macintosh products, something it
too has been doing for a long time. Apple says the deal is called
the Higher Education Back-to-School Promotion, is aimed toward
college and university students. The company claims the
promotion offers the purchase of Macintosh computers and
software at significant savings.

Previous programs have offered Apple hardware and software at
discounts as high as 40 percent to both students and educators.
Apple says the new deal will be available to students at over 900
colleges and universities nationwide.

Wordstar says Correct Grammar, available for the Macintosh, DOS,
and Microsoft Windows environments, checks for grammar, spelling,
punctuation, syntax, and style errors. The Macintosh version is
System 7-savvy and offers context-sensitive, on-line balloon help.
The product can check any Macintosh text-based application and
not just word processing documents, Wordstar added.

The American Heritage Dictionary for the Macintosh is the
electronic version of Houghton Mifflin's print dictionary. Wordstar
says the application is always available on the Macintosh from
the Apple menu as a desk accessory no matter what other
applications are running.

The Higher Education Back-to-School Promotion will run from
August 1 through October 15, 1992. Wordstar says this is the
second bundling arrangement with Apple as it offered a similar
software deal with Apple's Educator Advantage Program.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920512/Press Contact: Kathleen Raycraft,
McLean Public Relations, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00004)

Radius Rocket Users Can Upgrade To Rocket 33 05/14/92
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Radius
said it is encouraging users who have previous versions of its
Rocket accelerator hardware boards to trade up to what it calls
the fastest accelerator board on the market -- the new Rocket 33.

A Rocket Trade-Up Program allows any user with a Radius Rocket
or Rocket 25i to upgrade to a Rocket 33 for $899. However, Rocket
25i users who don't have the floating-point process will have to pay
an extra $500 or $1,399 for the upgrade to the Rocket 33.

Other restrictions apply to a limited number of previous Rocket
boards with certain serial numbers, Radius representatives told
Newsbytes. Users are advised to contact their dealer or the Radius
upgrade information numbers for specific information on their
upgrade.

The Rocket 33 is powered by a 33 megahertz (MHz) 68040
Motorola microprocessor, Radius said. At 29 million instructions-
per-second (MIPS) Radius says the Rocket 33 can match or
outperform complex instruction-set computer (CISC) and reduced
instruction-set computer (RISC) chips operating at similar clock
speeds. The company claims the accelerator board is 32 percent
faster than the new Quadra from Apple.

Radius says the Rocket 33 works with the Macintosh II, IIx, IIci,
and IIcx, and includes Radiusware, Quickcad display-list
acceleration software, Quickcolor graphics acceleration software,
and Rocketware -- Radius system software for hardware and
software compatibility.

Regular retail price on the Rocket 33 is $2,499 and the board is
warranted for one year, Radius said.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920514/Press Contact: Heather Hood, A&R
Partners for Radius, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Public
Contact: Radius Sales Support, 408-434-1011; Radius'
Automated Fax Information System, 800-966-7360)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00005)

New For PC:Bible Concordance Software For Windows 05/14/92
HIAWATHA, IOWA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Parsons
Technology has announced it will introduce a Windows version
of its QuickVerse Bible concordance software this summer.

The company said QuickVerse for Windows will ship in July.
Parsons spokesperson Anne Rawland said the price for
QuickVerse had not been set, but most of Parsons' biblical
software programs sell for $69, and the company said users
could expect QuickVerse to be priced "consistent with Parson's
history of providing high-performance software at affordable prices."

QuickVerse is a concordance, or a listing of the words in the Bible
which, according to Rawland, is ideal for such purposes as sermon
or Sunday school lesson preparation, as well as for Bible scholars.

The user types the desired word, and QuickVerse returns the
verses where that word can be found in the Bible. Like its older
sibling QuickVerse 2.0 for DOS, the program can scan for partial
words, combinations of words, or phrases. QuickVerse can use
Boolean logic for "and" or "or" searches, and supports wildcard
scans.

A wildcard is a character, such as an asterisk or a question
mark, that represents a character or a string of characters. DOS
uses the asterisk for a string of characters, and the question mark
for a single character. For example, "Qui(asterix)" would search
for all words that started with the letters "Qui." "Sm?th" would
search for all five letter words that started with SM and ended with
TH. Any character, such as "i" or "y" in the middle position would
result in a successful search. Rawland said QuickVerse supports
asterisk wildcards, but not the question mark.

Parsons said it plans to demonstrate a pre-release version of
QuickVerse for Windows at the Christian Booksellers Association
beginning June 28 in Dallas, Texas.

(Jim Mallory/19920514/Press Contact: Anne Rawland, Parsons
Technology, 319-395-9626)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00006)

Dell Opens Czech And Polish Subsidiaries 05/14/92
BRACKNELL, BERKSHIRE, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Dell Computer
is opening new international subsidiaries in Czechoslovakia and
Poland. The operations are the 13th and 14th in Dell's growing
list of international companies.

Dell Czechoslovakia will operate out of Prague, while Dell is
based in Warsaw. Both subsidiaries, which open for business
this week, will offer a full range of personal computers and
computer systems, as well as a complete array of customer
service and support features. The machines will be supplied
from Dell's Limerick, Ireland-based manufacturing facility.

Andrew Harris, senior vice president of Dell International and
former managing director of the company's UK operations, said
that he believes that "the newly emerging democracies in
Czechoslovakia and Poland represent excellent long-term
growth opportunities for Dell."

Dell's international sales are increasing rapidly, while the
company's domestic US operations -- in common with the rest
of the US computer industry -- face a stagnant market at home.

Accordingly, Dell is pulling out all the stops with its Czech and
Polish launch. Company Chairman Michael Dell will meet with
Czech President Vaclav Havel, before going on to formally open
the new Prague offices. Heading up the Czech operation is Karel
Stasney who previously handled the company's products in the
country.

Dell Poland, meanwhile, will be managed by Mirek Wierzbowski,
who joins Dell from Sun Microsystems where he was responsible
for international operations in the area.

(Steve Gold/19920514/Press & Public Contact: Dell, 0344-860456)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00007)

 ****US Slaps 2-Year Ban On Indian/Russian Space Agencies 05/14/92
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Ignited by the ongoing
rocket technology transfer deal between India and Russia, and the
successful testing of surface-to-surface medium range missile
called Prithvi on May 5, the US government has constantly been
reaffirming its decision to blacklist the concerned organizations in
the two countries, reported Washington-datelined columnists in
newspapers here.

The Bush administration finally blacklisted both the Indian Space
Research Organization (ISRO) and Glavkosmos, the Russian space
organization, from importing or exporting components from the
US, including any US government contracts with them. The ban
will be valid for two years and would bar the two agencies from
importing, among other items, telescopes and computers.

In the US view, which it says is shared by other western partners,
the Indo-Russian rocket technology deal violated the Missile
Technology Control Regime (MTCR). The MTCR is a totally western
sponsored instrument to curb proliferation of missile technology.
Though it is not admitted, the MTCR also impedes space research
programs such as the one followed by India.

The step was prompted due to the proposed sale by Glavkosmos
to the Indian organization of $250 million worth of cryogenic rocket
engines and related equipment, to be used for Indian's space
satellite program. The crux of the matter which brought it in the
ambit of the MCTR is that the technology required for missiles and
space launch systems is identical, and capable of carrying a
500-pound payload for a distance of more than 300 miles. The
American viewpoint states that ISRO's rocket program could help
the development of intermediate range missile weaponry by India.
These doubts were not allayed in spite of Indian defense minister's
repeated assurance that India will use the technology for boosting
its peaceful space program which includes the launching of
weather satellites.

The US announcement has amply been made clear that the
sanctions are exclusively for the two organizations and not for
India and Russia. The ban will be lifted if ISRO and Glavkosmos
decide to obliterate the pact. Otherwise, fresh deliberations will be
conducted at the end of the stipulated period to determine if the
ban should continue or not.

The US had imposed a similar ban on China for supplying missile
delivery platforms and for supply of missiles to Iran, but this was
rescinded recently after the Chinese agreed to abide by the MTCR.
China also made clear to the US that unless the ban was revoked
it would continue to trade in missiles. The countries now under a
ban under MTCR are Pakistan, South Africa, and Iran. An Israeli
concern which reportedly sold space technology to South Africa
was however not proceeded against.

The Hindu news daily reported from New Delhi that Moscow saw
the US stand as directed more against it than against India.
Recently, the chairman of Glavcosmos, taking exception to
Washington's threat of sanctions, said: "We are being made to
feel like criminals today." What pained Moscow was the
background of the deal - especially the fact that General Dynamics
of the US and Ariane of France offered bids when the project was
announced in 1989, without the US government raising an eyebrow,
said The Hindu.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19920514)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(MOW)(00008)

Apple Launched In Romania 05/14/92
MOSCOW, RUSSIA, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- A private Romanian-
American company has started a US$10 million campaign to
promote Apple computers in the land which has never seen
them -- Romania.

Romanian Computer Systems (RCS) was established in 1990
by the local entrepreneur Julian Rosengren and his two
companies -- Romanian-registered Delta Design S.A., and Delta
Design (USA) Inc. RCS now employs over 150 people.

Apple computers will be offered with a built-in support of the
local language, including Romanian-language keyboards,
software, and manuals.

RCS will reportedly use counter-trade (barter) deals to overcome the
hard currency shortages which hit the country's economy, according
to the Reuters report. Newsbytes notes that Romania is the only
country of the former Eastern block which has virtually no long term
foreign debt, which was paid out by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu.
This fact might be of some help in business development financing
in the country, local analysts say.

Apple already has its distributors in other Eastern block countries --
Poland, Hungary, and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Industry analysts in Moscow have pointed out that both Bulgaria
and Russia have had some Apple II clones locally mass-produced
long before Apple decided to penetrate those markets. Hungary and
Romania had no previous experience with Apple computers.

Therefore, any marketing efforts are considered "very difficult in
those countries," Peter Broszko of Makroinform, Budapest
consultancy told Newsbytes.

Despite the Reuters report that: "Romania was starved of high
technology under Stalinist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, who
restricted most imports" the country actually had its own computer
industry and participated in the Eastern block cooperation in
computer equipment manufacturing.

"The country had printer and hard drive manufacturing factories,
has manufactured DEC's PDP computers by the screwdriver
technology, and had a manufacturing division of Control Data,"
said Alexander Giglavy, an industry analyst from Moscow.
According to Giglavy, the most efficient part of Romanian
high-tech export was the sale of the results of espionage carried
out by the national security service.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19920514)

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00009)

 ****Intel Attacks 386 Clone Makers, Cuts 486SX Price 50% 05/14/92
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Giant
microprocessor maker Intel has fired a major shot in the company's
ongoing war against those firms which have been threatening to cut
into the company's 80386 market share, by dropping the wholesale
price of the 25 megahertz (MHz) 80486SX chip from $282 to $119.

The 486SX, Intel's least expensive 80486 chip, provides
performance about equal to that provided by more expensive 25
MHz and 33 MHz 386 chips, as well as offering a better upgrade
path to full 486 microprocessors which operate at much higher
speeds.

Other Intel chips offer instant, one-chip upgrades for owners of
486SX computers, making it very easy (although not inexpensive)
to upgrade to a faster system by just replacing the CPU, or
central processor unit, (a hold-over term from days of mainframes
where the CPU was a stand-alone box).

Intel's 80486SX is a crippled version of the popular 80486,
lacking the built-in math coprocessor feature. In earlier
versions of the 486SX the coprocessor was actually still there --
it was just disabled during manufacture -- now Intel has removed it
entirely, making manufacturing less expensive.

The math coprocessor is only used extensively by a few programs,
mostly those involving graphics such as computer-aided drafting.
The entire 486 family is faster than equal clock speed 386 chips
because they include a built-in cache and can perform some
operations more quickly due to internal efficiencies.

With 486SX-based desktop computers, complete with monitor,
memory, and hard drives, already selling as low as $1,500 or
less, they were squeezing out the base 386-based systems
which were only slightly cheaper and not even as fast.

This price cut, based on orders of 1,000 chips, will cause the
386-486SX battle to heat up even further, putting extreme
pressure on clone chip makers such as Advanced Micro Devices.
While many observers feel that the 486SX is a poor buy compared
to a low-end 486DX-based system with an activated math
coprocessor, the 386 also lacks a built-in math coprocessor and
both chip families run exactly the same software so the entire
386DX and 386SX family of chips is competing on a very equal
basis with the 486SX.

Both families of microprocessors are 32-bit -- that is, they will
run the latest applications programs and operating systems, but
the 486 is inherently more efficient.

Some confusion has arisen among buyers who see the 386SX
and 386DX designations and think they differ in the same way
as the 486SX and 486DX line.

Actually, all 386 chips lack a math coprocessor, requiring those
who need one to make a separate purchase of an 80387 math chip.
The SX designation of the 386SX means that, although it uses 32-
bit commands, it only requires the slightly cheaper 16-bit RAM
memory. The memory difference was significant when the chip was
introduced, but no longer.

In contrast, all 486 chips use both 32-bit memory and commands
and all except the SX have a built-in math coprocessor.

AMD has already announced plans to introduce its own version of
the 80486 this autumn, but until then it will be hard-pressed to
compete with the now dramatically less expensive Intel 486SX.

Storeboard/Infocorp sales percentages by CPU, as published in the
May 11 Computer Reseller News, shows that during the first
quarter of 1992, the 386SX had gone from a 41 percent market share
to 45 percent while 486DX systems' share grew from four to six
percent and 486SX-based microcomputer sales held steady with
about three percent of the market.

(John McCormick/19920514/Press Contact: Nancy Pressel, Intel,
408-765-4483)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00010)

Noise Cancellation Wins Important New Patent 05/14/92
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Noise
Cancellation Technologies, Stamford, Connecticut, in the news
last week for acquiring the rights to an innovative multi-transducer
noise reduction system, is again making news with the award of
US Patent Number 5,105,377 which eliminates some of the
hardware needed in previous sound cancellation systems sold
by the company.

Noise Cancellation Technology's system uses a feedback method
to deaden unwanted sounds. The previous system involved the use
of a sound pickup, a real-time processor to create interfering
sounds, and a transducer to inject the new sounds. The system
works because noise (and sound) is a pattern of weak compression
waves in air or other materials, and by countering those waves with
a near identical, but out-of-phase opposing set of waves the
overall noise/sound level is reduced electronically.

Digital Virtual Earth technology, covered by the newly awarded
patent, makes the entire system less expensive and complex by
eliminating the need for a sample of the noise which was
previously required to key the interfering sound.

The company says that field tests have shown noise level
reductions of 80 percent using the new system, accompanied by
a 20 percent increase in efficiency of the machine being used (a
bulk vacuum loading system for railcars). This is possible
because noise isn't just annoying, it is a sign of inefficiency,
and eliminating noise results in reduced wear and tear on
equipment plus, in some cases, actual increased efficiency.
Noise cancellation technology (the idea, not the company) is just
one more way that people are benefiting from computers they
never see or know about.

(John McCormick/19920514/Press Contact: Dennis A. Miller,
NCT, 203-961-0500)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00011)

Cray Research '92 Earnings Will Be Lower Than Expected 05/14/92
EAGAN, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Cray Research
has announced that 1992 earnings will be lower than expected due
to lower  anticipated gross profit levels. The company said earnings
could be as much as 20 percent lower than last year.

Trading on Cray Research stock was halted temporarily when the
company notified the stock exchanges about its intended
announcement.  The exchanges routinely halt active trading on a
stock when an announcement which will affect the price of the
stock is about to be made.

At the same time, Cray said it expects 1992 revenues to be
about 10 percent higher and anticipates what it described as "a
substantially  improved year-end order backlog."  A backlog
indicates orders are higher than manufacturing capacity, and is
considered a good sign.

According to Cray Chairman John Rollwagen, the company
anticipates a four to five percent deterioration of its gross profit
margin below what was planned.  Rollwagen said the falloff was
caused principally by higher component costs on lower volumes for
mid-range products. Other factors cited were: lower yields on new
technologies still in early production; a product mix moving toward
more low end, low margin systems; and continuing competitive
pressures and lower estimates for upgrade business in 1992.

Rollwagen said Cray was instituting several cost reduction
measures to help offset the impact of the lower margins.  He said
the company would maintain its current staffing level and would limit
operating expense levels.  Those expenses increased about four
percent in 1991, and Cray Research spokesperson Frank Parisi
told Newsbytes the company intends to maintain that same level
as the company moves into 1993.

Regarding staffing, Parisi told Newsbytes that the company does
not plan to increase its staffing, but will replace essential personnel
as needed. "Hiring freezes never work," he said.  Parisi said some
shuffling of jobs might occur, which could include some staff
workers being reassigned to sales positions.

Cray recently announced a new series of supercomputers with, what
the company claims, are the largest central memories ever offered
in the computer industry.  The new systems come in three frame
sizes: the Y-MP M92 will have two processors; the Y-MP M94 will
have four processors; and the Y-MP M98 will have eight processors.
The M92 can be configured with as much as 32 gigabytes, or four
gigawords (four billion words) of central memory capacity. Pricing
for the M98 begins at under $10 million for US sales.  Rollwagen
said three years ago eight-processor Cray Research supercomputer
systems started at more than $23 million.  International pricing will
vary by country, he said.

Cray said AT&T Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey, has
already ordered an M92 system for installation later in the year.
AT&T said the new system would be used for research related to
integrated circuit design, physics, chemistry, numerical methods,
and speech processing.

According to N.L. Schryer, head of the labs computing
mathematics research department: "the M92 can cost effectively
solve problems we couldn't tackle before, such as complex three
dimensional models of ultra-small semiconductor devices and the
human vocal tract."

Rollwagen said the new systems are compatible with the current
Y-MP Model E and the C90 supercomputers, but are designed to
address different type problems.  He cited an example of new car
design.  In the past the fenders and other body panels have been
modeled separately, then tied together. "The large central memories
of the Cray Y-MP M90 systems allow the entire automobile body
to be modeled at one time," he said.

(Jim Mallory/19920514/Press contact: Frank Parisi, Cray
Research, 612-683-7130)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00012)

Zeos Loses $1.9 Million In First Quarter 05/14/92
ST PAUL, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- PC maker
Zeos International has announced that it lost $1.9 million, or $0.22
per fully diluted share for the quarter ending March 31.

Zeos reported net sales of $59.1 million, compared to $59.2 million
for the same period last year. The difference in overall results was
in net earnings, with the company reporting earnings of $2.4
million, or $0.35 cents per share for the same period last year.

Zeos said the decline in sales and earnings was primarily due to
intense competition in the PC business, and the resultant
downward pressure on prices and profit margins.

"It's no secret that the personal computer business is currently
going through a period of intense competition that is unavoidably
impacting our financial performance as well as others in the
industry," said Zeos Chairman and CEO Gregory Herrick.

Herrick pointed out that the company had predicted these facts
and their probable result when Zeos announced its 1991 year-end
financials.

According to Herrick, the company experienced some increases
in sales and marketing expenses as well as research and
development costs during the first quarter.  However, he said, the
company has reduced operating expenses by $1.2 million
compared to the 1991 fourth quarter.  Zeos says it is continuing
to review product costs and other expenses, trying to find other
ways to cut costs.

Zeos said it derives about 69 percent of its sales from the desktop
market, while 21 percent comes from notebook products.  The
remainder is from non-systems revenue.  In 1991, the product mix
was 55 percent for desktop and 42 percent for notebook systems.

Zeos also said the shortage of its most popular notebook product
during the first half of the first quarter of 1992 was a factor in
the quarter's results.

Zeos has also announced a vendor agreement which will allow
Sam's  Wholesale Club, a nationwide 215-store membership
warehouse chain to sell a new line of Zeos Performance Systems.
Zeos said the new line was developed specifically for small
business and home office customers.

(Jim Mallory/19920514/Press Contact: John Bakewell, Zeos,
612-635-1419)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00013)

Traveling Software Opens French Subsidiary 05/14/92
BOTHELL, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Traveling
Software (TS), best known for its products that link notebook or
laptop computers to desktop systems and transfer files between
those systems, has announced the opening of a French subsidiary.

TS says the French office, located in Paris, will distribute its
entire product line, including the French version of LapLink Pro,
directly to key distributors and major portable original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs).

Chris Arden, formerly commercial director with French republisher AB
Soft has been appointed director of sales and marketing for Traveling
Software S.A.R.L, the new subsidiary.  Jonathan Scott, chief
operating officer for TS, said the company opened the Paris office
to handle the growth of its user base in France and other European
markets.  European sales account for about 22 percent of total
revenues, and showed a 60 percent growth rate this year,
Newsbytes learned.

In addition to the new office, TS has corporate headquarters in
Bothell, Washington; a sales office in Washington, D.C.; a United
Kingdom subsidiary in Windsor, England; and an office in Tokyo.
TS products are produced in seven languages.

TS products include LapLink Pro; Battery Watch, a product to let
the user know about how much time remains on a laptop battery;
DeskLink; LapLink Mac; and WinConnect. It has licensing
agreements with  CompuAdd, Epson, Grid, NC, AST, Samsung,
Sharp Electronics, Texas Instruments, and Toshiba to bundle its
products with their laptops.

TS is planning to announce a major OEM deal later this month,
according to a TS spokesperson Newsbytes spoke with. While
declining to specify the company, Elaina Holland told Newsbytes
the deal, "will be a significant boost for TS."

(Jim Mallory/19920514/Press Contact: Elaina Holland, Traveling
Software, 206-483-8088)



(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00014)

Lotus Pres Predicts Network/Mobile Computing Apps Growth 05/14/92
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., MAY 14, 1992 (NB) --
Applications specifically aimed at portable computers and
distributed networks are the hottest new opportunities for software
vendors, said Jim Manzi, president and CEO of Lotus Development,
in a keynote speech at Electro '92, an electronics trade show.

Right now, the growth rate for PC network connections is about 30
to 40 percent a year, and the figure for laptops, notebooks and pen
computers will probably meet the same level soon, stated Manzi.
To take advantage of these trends, developers must move from a
"datacentric" to a "commcentric" model of computing, he
emphasized.

A view that rests on vertical and hierarchical data processing must
now be replaced with a vision focused on horizontal and
collaborative information sharing, explained Manzi, whose own
company has sold more than 10 million copies of Lotus 1-2-3, and
millions of copies of other software packages, as well.

New applications should also be geared to organizing, as opposed
to simply generating, information, said Manzi. "The fixation of the
eighties was 'I need information.' But information has no particular
value in and of itself," he said. "You have to (use the information
to) produce goods and services."

Over the past decade, about a trillion dollars has been spent on
hardware, software, systems integration, and computer training.
Meanwhile, he added, the volume of information has been doubling
every eight years.  But users are finding it tough to keep up with
the data, and organizations are hard pressed to show solid returns
on investments.

Groupware programs are one way of getting past these problems,
he advised.  By enabling farflung employees to pool their ideas and
knowledge, groupware capitalizes on the intellectual resources of
the organization, boosting productivity in the process, he
contended.

Another new type of application employs the network server to go
out and gather information for users, he pointed out.  "We and
others," said Manzi, "are building networks where the server has
the opportunity to browse and synthesize data from a variety of
sources."

Upcoming applications should address the increasing mobile
orientation of networks, he stressed.  The latest high-speed
modems are already providing dialup communications of almost
40 Kbps, nearly as fast as a 50 to 60 Kbps leased line, he
indicated. "Certainly, in our business, mobile computing will
define the leading edge for the next five years or so," he said.

The spread of computing to portables will extend PC software
beyond administrative functions, such as word processing and
spread sheets, added Manzi.  "We're talking here about a whole
new group of users - marketers, sellers, financial people, and other
professionals.  The application opportunities are revolutionary."

For mobile computing to meet its full potential, though, laptops
and pen computers will have to be connected to the legacy
hardware of the seventies and eighties, he observed.  In addition,
standardization will need to occur.  "Otherwise, we'll get into
vendor-to-vendor proprietary battles that will shut things down
from the customer's perspective," he remarked.

In developing portable computing and network software, said Manzi,
companies should guard against fallacies held by two groups in the
industry, he said.  The "desktop community" believes in "upsizing"
information, or trying to make a single-user applications relevant
to the network, he maintained.

In contrast, the "enterprise community" adheres to "downsizing,"
or moving applications written for mainframes and dumb terminals
on to networks, he noted. But neither upsizing or downsizing makes
adequate use of the specific technologies of the client/server
architecture.

Additionally, the desktop community fails to see the essential
differences between desktop and mobile hardware, he reported.
"I really think the desktop camp sees laptops and pen computers
merely as smaller PCs - for running smaller word processors and
smaller spreadsheets," he said.

The enterprise group, on the other hand, considers laptops and pen
computers to be "distractions," stated Manzi. "This is because
portable computers don't fit into the business model of the early
eighties, in which offices were connected by SNA-type networks.
The notion of a network that connects, let's say, with a traveling
salesman, does not fit neatly into the way they think," he said.

In closing, Manzi illustrated how groupware can bring productivity
with a tale about his own use of one groupware program, Lotus
Notes.  On a recent worldwide business tour, he said, he received
several requests from users to integrate Lotus Notes with some
sort of project management application.

When he returned from the trip, he decided to drop a brief
message into his company's Lotus Notes database, asking
employees for ideas on how these requests might be met.

An hour or two after leaving his note, the company president heard
back from a Lotus employee in the United Kingdom, whose name
was unfamiliar to him at the time. "Nigel Thomas sent me a
message telling me that a VAR (value-added reseller) in Germany
had developed a project management system, and suggesting we
might license the system," Manzi recalled.

The very next day, Manzi got a message from the VAR, who was
already connected to the Lotus network by virtue of being a Lotus
partner. "The VAR described his product for me, and offered to
send me a business proposal within a day," he said.

The same results might have taken weeks to achieve, or might
never have happened at all, if he had followed the traditional
method of meeting with an R&D director and waiting for the
matter to filter down through channels, he asserted.

"As it was, we had an answer within two and a half days.  And to
tell you the truth, we are now in the process of acquiring that
VAR, because their products are so terrific," he stated.
"Organizations today need to seize market opportunities, share
expertise internally, and reduce time to market. This is a great
example of a 'win' in all these areas."

Electro '92 goes on through today at the John B. Hynes
Auditorium in Boston.  The show is being sponsored by the New
England and New York chapters of the IEEE (Institute of Electical
& Electronics Engineers) and ERA (Electronics Representatives
Association).

(Jacqueline Emigh/19920514)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00015)

Bell Update: Ameritech Wins One, But Still Worries 05/14/92
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Illinois Bell
won  a major victory before its state legislature, but its chairman
remains worried.

Ameritech Cchairman William L. Weiss, who a year ago urged his
brethren to stop fighting the entrance of competition into their
local phone business, told a conference sponsored by "Telephony"
magazine that local phone companies will not exist as they do
today in another decade. Instead, he predicted, wired and wireless
networks of all kinds will become an integrated mass, from which
service suppliers will simply buy capacity. He said regulators,
Congress and the courts need to develop a coherent policy to
manage such a hybrid network, and companies like his which
descend from the Bell system need to listen better to customers
instead of their own technological "pipe dreams."

The Illinois legislature, meanwhile, passed a bill favored by
Illinois Bell giving it rate caps and other favorable treatment.
More than half the states have approved similar bills, based on
Bell promises to improve the technological infrastructure if
profit limits are lifted. Governor Jim Edgar, a Republican
elected in 1990, is expected to sign the bill, which also forces
Illinois Bell to put its data, news and cable operations into a
separate subsidiary, a policy already followed by some Bell
companies, including BellSouth.

Elsewhere, the beat of foreign investment by the Bells continues.
Nynex, which serves the northeast US, said it will build a
fiber cable network between the UK and Japan, running through
India. The $1 billion project, dubbed the Fiberoptic Link Around
the Globe, would not be finished until 1996. Its capacity and
equity would be sold to other telecom companies, as with
similar trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific cables, but Nynex would
take a lead equity stake. The cable would be able to handle up to
600,000 simultaneous conversations and run 24,000 kilometers.

All the Bells remain poised for a Federal Communications
Commission decision regarding access charges, which are
payments made by long distance companies for access to local
networks. Currently, these amount to about 50 cents per call, but
in a recent decision involving pay phones, the FCC ruled that a
charge of 40 cents per call would be appropriate. The new formula
would likely benefit AT&T, and hurt smaller competitors since
it would be based on services provided by the Bells, rather than
mere call volumes.

The Bells, meanwhile, are all gung-ho to provide new digital
services within their service regions. US West signed a contract
wiht AT&T for switches which will let it offer frame relay and
multi-megabit services throughout its network. And BellSouth
announced plans to offer such services in its major markets,
including Atlanta, Miami, Nashville, and Charlotte, with plans to
expand throughout the region.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514/Press Contact: Ameritech, Steve
Ford, Ameritech, 312-750-5205; AT&T, Ray Zardetto, 201-606-2454;
US West, Terri Howell, 402-422-3587; BellSouth, David. W. Rogers,
404-529-8053)


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

 ****AT&T Launches New Anti-Fraud Campaign 05/14/92
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- AT&T,
which has run into legal trouble over telecom fraud, since it sells
both switches and long distance services, has launched a new
program to combat the problem.

Calling fraud costs about $1 billion annually, according to an
industry group, and it cost AT&T a nasty lawsuit from valued
customer last year. Mitsubishi charged that the company should
have taken more responsibility when phone freaks broke into its
AT&T PBX (private branch exchange) to steal AT&T long distance
services.

AT&T NetProtect includes products, services and education aimed
at both residential and commercial customers.

First, AT&T said it has begun monitoring toll-free 800 service to
prevent thieves from using its network to commit fraud.  Second,
it said that starting in August it will start monitoring international
links to countries experiencing large amounts of fraud, like
Columbia, and add other security measures to its domestic
toll-free service. Once fraud is detected, customers will be
notified, the company said.

Services to be sold under the NetProtect label include a type of
insurance against paying for international and toll-free fraud over
$25,000 per month, an offering Sprint began making in March,
and a more expensive insurance program with no deductible at all.
Also, for $1,995 its large customers can buy software called
"Hacker Tracker" to tell them about unusual calling patterns, or
for $150 per hour they can buy AT&T services which attempt to
stop fraud while it is in progress.

Previously the company installed software in its network to
detect unusual calling activity with its calling cards and
remove them from service. This is aimed at thieves who, either
with spy glasses or sharp ears, learn the calling card numbers
of valid customers, then sell international services off those
numbers from pay phones. Drug dealers are frequent purchasers
of such services, since it not only lets them call at a discount,
but hides their identity and location.

"Long distance fraud is a serious criminal problem, and we
believe AT&T should stand squarely with our customers against
the criminals who steal their service," said Joseph P. Nacchio,
president of AT&T's Business Communications Services unit, in a
press statement. "We are taking the necessary steps to help our
customers prevent fraud and limit their liability when it does
occur."

The offerings are subject to FCC approval, which is expected, and
would become official August 1.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514/Press Contact: AT&T, Bob
Nersesian, 908-221-2305)


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

Chicago Online Service Launched 05/14/92
VIENNA, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- America
Online launched its joint venture with the Chicago Tribune -- a
service called Chicago Online.

It is the first "local edition" of the America Online on-line
service, and will feature Chicago-area news, sports, and
information about local entertainment and activities as well as
classified advertising from the Chicago Tribune. As with the
America Online service, the system also offers electronic mail
and conferences. Subscribers will also have access to the
complete America Online service which features software
libraries and computing support, as well as on-line classes.

The Tribune Company said its area businesses, including the
Chicago Tribune, WGN Radio, WGN TV and the Chicago Cubs
baseball team, all participated in developing and supplying the
information for Chicago Online.  Local schools, businesses,
community and cultural institutions were also tapped for content
contributions. Software will be free, and will include five free hours
of on-line time in the first month. After that, access costs $7.95
per month with two hours free, and additional usage at 10 cents
per minute.

Chicago Online enters a crowded market which includes hundreds
of free bulletin board systems, but the company hopes its
copyrighted content, as well as the America Online icon-based
software, will make it successful. Chicago Online is the first
product of a strategic alliance announced last October. The two
companies hope to launch other branches of the service in other
markets where the Tribune publishes newspapers, including
Florida.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514/Press Contact: Liz Sara, America
Online, Inc., 703-883-1503; Jeffrey Bierig, Tribune Company, 312-
222-3920)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00018)

BT Forms EDI Alliance With Legent 05/14/92
VIENNA, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- British Telecom,
which a day earlier extended its worldwide EDI (electronic data
interchange) network to more countries around the world, has signed
an alliance with Legent to provide EDI systems for mainframes
using 2780/3780 bisync transfers. The new system is said to be
five times faster than current systems.

The interface will transmit EDI documents using Legent's STX
product for non-SNA access and BT North America's premier EDI
Net global network services. As part of an introductory promotion,
a free trial period is being offered to new customers wishing to
use the service.

Earlier, BT had announced the availability of its EDI Net service
in new locations like Korea and Taiwan, so companies can do
business using electronic invoices there without having to go
through the complex process of making separate agreements
with each national PTT and creating expensive audit trails to
track invoices.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514/Press Contact: Legent, Pam
McGraw, 703-734-9494)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00019)

US Phone Services Expand Into Canada 05/14/92
MONTREAL, CANADA, 1991 MAY 14 (NB) -- In-Flight Phone,
started by Airfone founder John Goeken after, he said, GTE did
him wrong after buying his company, won a license to provide
service in Canada. The license was granted to In-Flight Phone
Canada, a unit of In-Flight Phone International.

The company has built its new system in the US and Canada
using digital technology instead of the analog system used by
Airfone, which the company said offers better service. The
company will offer both voice and data services, and has a
number of information providers providing stock quotes, electronic
games, and other on-line offerings. IFP Canada has signed
agreements with a number of Canadian companies that will
supply key communications equipment and network services.
Negotiations with air carriers are currently underway.

Cue Network, which uses radio stations to offer a nationwide
paging service in competition with satellite-delivered offerings
like SkyTel and MobileComm, also moved its service into Canada.

Cue's US network uses 300 radio stations, each covering  8,000
square miles, to offer paging service to over 90 percent of the
US population and more than 35,000 miles of interstate
highways. Starting June 1, the company will also provide cover
through radio stations in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Windsor,
Toronto, Montreal, Kingston, and Guelph. Later during the
summer, service will be extended to Ottawa, Quebec City, Trois
Rivieres, Sherbrooke, and London. The North American coverage
pattern will also include Alaska, with stations being installed
in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau in July.

Cue will compete directly with MobileComm, a BellSouth company
with a satellite-based system, which also expanded into Canada.
The new company will be a partnership with Mobile Canada, which
is a consortium of Canadian paging operations. The new service
wil be launched in the third quarter, and will be marketed by
both partners.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514/Press Contact: In-Flight Phone
International, Darren S. Leno, 708/573-2660; Kristin Donaldson,
CUE Network, 714-752-9200; MobileComm, Johnny Hales,
601-977-1656)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00020)

 ****IntelSat 6 Satellite Rescued 05/14/92
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- In front of a
worldwide television audience over CNN and the C-Span cable
networks, three astronauts from the Space Shuttle Endeavour
successfully rescued the $157 million Intelsat 6 satellite from a
bad orbit.

Two previous tries at retrieving the satellite, which was
originally boosted into space by an unmanned Titan rocket,
failed. The single astronaut sent into space could not get a
grappling hook around the massive satellite, which was the last
in a new series of satellites designed by the international
satellite consortium to provide TV and telephone service
worldwide. When it was first launched, in 1990, the satellite's
auxiliary rockets failed to fire, leaving it orbiting the Earth
230 miles up rather than in a fixed position over the Earth
22,300 miles up.

Pierre Thuot, Richard Hieb, and Thomas Akers, however, worked
together the wrestle the satellite into the shuttle's cargo bay,
where a new rocket was bolted on. It was the first time three
men had ever worked together outside a spacecraft, giving the
lie to the idea that machines, not men, belong alone in space.
Intelsat paid $93 million for the job, $46 million for the new
booster and about $10 million to set up a ground station in
Africa to help control the satellite. A new satellite would have
cost $120 million more than the attempted repair, the
consortium  said.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920514)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00021)

Cap Gemini Sogeti Seeking Financial Partners 05/14/92
PARIS, FRANCE, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Cap Gemini has
announced it is actively courting financial partners to join
Daimler-Benz as investor in its parent company, Sogeti.
According to Serge Kampf, Cap Gemini's chairman, a number
of potential suitors have emerged in recent weeks, but he is
declining to name names.

Daimler-Benz took a one third stake in Sogeti a year ago, when
officials said they were looking for partners. That search has
now intensified, resulting in a number of possible suitors,
officials said.

Ironically, if a suitor does not materialize, then both Cap Gemini
and Daimler-Benz could end up having to renegotiate, as
the original agreement stipulates that Daimler will not seek to
exert any control over Cap Gemini for three years after the
agreement is signed, hence the one third capped limit on its
stake in the company.

Although officials have declined to say who Cap Gemini or
Daimler are talking to, press sources suggest that a link-up with
France Telecom may be possible. Both Cap Gemini and France
Telecom were "discussing matters" last August when Mercedes
stepped in to take a stake in the company. France Telecom
already has a 17 percent stake in Sogeti.

(Steve Gold/19920514)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00022)

Lotus Claims Freelance Graphics Best Presentation Pkg 05/14/92
STAINES, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Lotus
Development has announced the results of a three month
independent survey into the usability of its presentation
graphics software for the PC.

The survey, undertaken by Usability Sciences of Texas, shows
that Lotus' Freelance outscored Harvard Graphics, its closest
competitor, on all of the 27 criteria measured. From the results,
it appears that 92 percent of those questioned preferred
Freelance Graphics to other software.

Interestingly, users claimed they finished their work 27 percent
faster with Freelance Graphics than average. The package also
boosts productivity, the survey shows, with users completing 96
percent of a test presentation with Freelance Graphics as against
84 percent with Harvard Graphics.

Commenting on the survey results, Steve Jack, Lotus UK's product
marketing manager, said that, "every software developer believes
that its product is a better buy than its competitors, but at the
end of the day its the independent verdicts that people listen to."
These results should really end the argument over which product
is both the easiest to use and the most productive. If you think
of what people are using presentation graphics for -- to create
their own instant presentations -- this will show there's only
one choice at the moment."

Usability Sciences was contracted by Lotus for a study to
compare the productivity, effectiveness and satisfaction or PC
users while using Freelance Graphics for Windows and Harvard
Graphics for Windows for the first time. Lotus claims that, while it
commissioned the study, users were never told of the study's
sponsor, so as to ensure the independence of the research.

In addition to making a product comparison, users were asked
for their most important criteria when choosing a presentation
package. The results were surprising, with the ability to
complete a presentation topping the list, followed by print
quality and ease of use in the top three.

(Steve Gold/19920514/Press & Public Contact: Lotus
Development Corporation, tel(UK) 0784-455445)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00023)

UK: Wordperfect Intros Print Gateway Package 05/14/92
ADDLESTONE, SURREY, ENGLAND, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) --
Wordperfect has announced the availability of the Wordperfect Print
Gateway for System 370 VMTM operating system-based computers.
The package enables PC users of Wordperfect to gain access to
mainframe-linked high-speed printers on a shared basis.

The technology does not come cheaply, however. Wordperfect is
charging UKP 2,025 for a site license, although company officials
were at pains to point out that the license covers a whole company
rather than just one computer, although only on a per-connection
basis.

In use, the package includes both PC and mainframe components
which provide what Wordperfect claims is a transparent mechanism
for transporting printer data streams generated on workstations
to the mainframe. Once the data is on the mainframe, it can be
spooled to the relevant printer as required.

"Now PC users can take advantage of high-speed printers on the
mainframe. We have had a number of requests and are trying to
fill a need in the industry, and as far as we are aware. we are
unique in this particular area," said David Godwin, general
manager for sales and marketing with Wordperfect UK.

(Steve Gold/19920514/Press & Public Contact: Wordperfect UK,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00024)

UK: Andest Drops Fax Software, Signs New Distributor 05/14/92
MILTON KEYNES, ENGLAND, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Andest
Communications has rebelled against a price rise for Iconographics
Faxnow! software which Andest bundles with its fax modems. As
a result, Andest has suspended supplying the package and is
looking for an alternative.

In parallel with the fax software problems, Andest has signed up
P&P Distribution and Northamber to handle its products.

"Iconographics price hike made the product a non-viable
proposition for distribution," explained Andest Managing Director
Tony Sellers. "We are currently deep in negotiation with another
supplier of fax software and expect to make an announcement
on a new product offering very soon," he added.

On the distribution front, Sellers said that both P&P and
Northamber were keen to stock the company's modems. "This
brings our distribution network back to full strength following the
refocusing of our company on our own Roadrunner range rather
than the Worldport products and highlights the impact that the
Roadrunner range is having on the market," he said.

Andest recently dropped the Worldport modem range after the
US producers Touchbase, were taken over by US Robotics. USR is
the parent company of Miracom, one of Andest's rivals. When the
take-over occurred a year ago, an uneasy agreement between
Andest and Miracom was out in place, but this was severed earlier
this month.

"The Worldport range has a good reputation in this country
largely due to Andest's efforts n the past, but demand is now
declining rapidly as the Roadrunner converges on Worldport's
position as we have a wider and technically superior range of
products and are marketing them more effectively," Sellers said.

(Steve Gold/19920514/Press & Public Contact: Andest
Communications, 0908-263300)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00025)

UK: Elonex Triples PC Production Capacity 05/14/92
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Elonex has announced
that it has opened an automated production line at its London
headquarters. The new production line has enabled the direct
supply PC company to triple its PC output to more than 1,000
machines a day.

According to Israel Wetrin, Elonex's founder and managing
director, the automation of the production line should enable the
company to meet anticipated demand for PCs over the coming
year.

The project has cost UKP 1 million to implement and will
eventually employ around 200 staff. It will cut the cost of
production significantly.

"We brought in top production expertise and experience in order
to enhance efficiency and, by so doing, keep our costs and prices
down," said Wetrin.

"We had to modify conventional production technology because
our need to build machines to individual customer order. The
new line gives us the best of both worlds; that is we (and our
customers) enjoy the benefits of more cost-effective production
methods while retaining the bespoke service we have always
prided ourselves on," he added.

(Steve Gold/19920514/Press & Public Contact: Elonex, tel 081-
452-4444, fax [phone])
(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00026)

Sale Of IBM Canada's ROLM Business Completed 05/14/92
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Norstan
Canada, a subsidiary of the communications services company
Norstan Inc, of Maple Grove, Minnesota, has completed the
acquisition of IBM Canada's ROLM marketing and service business.

The business sells and services telecommunications products from
ROLM, in which IBM recently sold its half interest to the German
firm Siemens, its partner in ROLM for several years.

The sale was announced in January and was originally due to be
completed by March. Terms have not been released. IBM Canada
spokesman Stan Didzbalis told Newsbytes the sale is "consistent
with the restructuring we're going through." About 140 IBM Canada
employees -- virtually all who worked with the ROLM products --
have moved to Norstan Canada.

Norstan said the purchase adds an additional 350 customers, with
1,000 installation sites and 250,000 ports, to its North American
customer base.

Norstan Canada, which officially began operations April 1,
currently has 160 employees and offices in 11 cities across
Canada.

Under a separate agreement, Norstan and IBM Canada have agreed
to cooperate in the marketing of ROLM products throughout Canada.
Norstan is working with IBM Canada to become an IBM business
partner for the marketing of certain IBM voice/data products.

(Grant Buckler/19920514/Press Contact: Patrick Brink, Norstan,
612-420-1146; or Stan Didzbalis, IBM Canada, 416-474-3900 or
800-563-2139)


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

 ****Lotus Unveils 1-2-3 For DOS Release 2.4 05/14/92
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) --
Lotus  Development has updated its two-dimensional spreadsheet
package for DOS. 1-2-3 for DOS release 2.4 adds a handful of
features previously found only in Lotus' higher-powered spreadsheet
packages.

Lotus also said an update to its three-dimensional DOS
spreadsheet, Lotus 1-2-3 for DOS Release 3.4, will be available
this fall.

Among the new features in Release 2.4 are SmartIcons, which
provide one-click access to frequently used commands. These first
appeared in 1-2-3 for Windows. Backsolver, a single-or multi-variable
goal-seeking tool, has also been added to Release 2.4 -- it was
already available in some other versions of 1-2-3. Finally, the new
version sports expanded support for popular printers.

While the new release adds some features found in the Windows
version of 1-2-3, Larry Roshfeld, the product manager, said it
remains a subset of the Windows version and of Release 3.3 for
DOS. Features found in those versions that are not in 2.4 include
three-dimensional spreadsheet capability, the ability to query and
update external database files, and improved memory management,
he said.

Roshfeld said Release 2.4 is: "the small one, the fast one, it's
graphical, and it runs on all PCs."

Lotus said the software is now shipping and will be widely
available during the week of May 25. International English, French,
and German versions have also begun shipping. Spanish, Swedish,
Italian, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, and Portuguese versions will be
available in 30 to 60 days, Lotus officials said.

The suite of more than 70 SmartIcons that ship with the product
provides quick access to worksheet and graphing commands,
Lotus said. Examples are: the ability to put text into bold face or
italics, or underline it; the ability to sum a row, column, or
range of numbers; and one-step printing and graphing. Users can
also create their own SmartIcons to run macros, or set up their own
SmartIcon palettes of frequently used spreadsheet commands.

1-2-3 for DOS Release 2.4 runs on any DOS-based personal
computer and does not require extended or expanded memory. It
requires an IBM PC or compatible with an 8088 or higher
microprocessor, at least 384 kilobytes (KB) of memory, a hard
disk and DOS 2.1 or higher. WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-
you-get, meaning the ability to see documents exactly as they
will be printed) demands 512 KB of memory.

The suggested retail prices for 1-2-3 Release 2.4 Standard,
Network Server and Network Node Editions are $495, $795, and
$495, respectively. Customers who bought a version of 1-2-3 on
or between November 1, 1991, and May 31, 1992, can upgrade
for a suggested retail price of $49.  The upgrade is available to
all other licensed 1-2-3, Microsoft Excel and Quattro Pro users
for a suggested retail price of $150.

Lotus said it will also offer a combined "Double Up for DOS"
upgrade to 1-2-3 for DOS Release 2.4 with Freelance Graphics for
DOS 4.0 in June for a suggested retail price of $229.

Lotus 1-2-3 for DOS Release 3.4, to ship this fall, will have
SmartIcons, additional memory management capabilities,
performance enhancements, and new and improved printer drivers,
including landscape printing on dot-matrix printers.

(Grant Buckler/19920513/Press Contact: Alexandra Trevelyan,
Lotus, 617-693-1580)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00027)

Mass Storage Battle: Micro Drives Vs Flash Memory Cards 05/14/92
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) --
The lower cost and increased storage capacity of flash memory
cards is expected to give microdisk drive mass storage technology
a run for its money. But a new study says the microdisk drives
are expected to still dominate mass storage technology by a
ratio of 2:3 by 1998.

Until recently, flash memory, or memory that can maintain the
information stored in it even when the power source is off, was too
small in storage capacity to be considered. However the new moves
in increased storage for flash memory and miniaturization have
brought credit-card sized flash memory cards into serious
contention with microdisk drives.

Market Intelligence, in its recently released study, predicts both
technologies will grow substantially from the $1 billion market in
1991 to more than $12 million by 1998.

Both Intel and AT&T have introduced flash memory devices for
personal computers. While the Intel cards are less expensive
they require a special interface and special software. The AT&T
cards, however, boast the advantage of an standard IDE
(Integrated Drive Electronics) hard disk interface, so they look
to the computer just like a hard disk drive.

Flash memory currently has the advantage of being removeable,
more rugged, more reliable, lighter, faster, and saves on power
consumption, MI said. But the fact that it is more expensive and
was only recently introduced will hold it back from dominance
in the future as a standard technology, MI added.

MI says the price gap between flash memory and microdisk drives
should narrow dramatically, which would make flash memory more
attractive. But rumblings of advances in microdisk or spin-drives
that are cheaper, more rugged, easy on power consumption, and as
light- weight as flash memory cards will hurt flash memory in the
race for dominance, MI added.

MI is predicting that flash memory cards will hold 40 percent of the
combined total mass storage market by 1995. Even though the cards
are more expensive now, specialized applications such as hardware
for harsh industrial environments, supermarket point-of-sale terminals,
medical monitoring, avionics, and digital camera are expected to be
dominated by flash memory cards, MI said.

Microdisk drives 2.5-inches and smaller are now dominant in data
collection devices like hand-held terminals and portable medical
diagnostic equipment, according to MI. The smaller "form-facter" 1.8-
inch and smaller drives are used for the smallest hand-held computers
including palm-top, pen-based, and sub-notebook sizes, MI added.
Even smaller 1.3 and 1-inch drives are expected by the mid 1990's,
MI maintains.

Profit margins might be higher in flash memory, MI hinted. In the
microdisk market the product life cycle is only 2 to 3 years as
smaller drives are replaced by consumer demand by larger capacity
drives. Further, profit margins are low due to the heavy competition,
the company said.

Not a surprise, MI said the Japanese are likely to move into the
US market share in the 90's. Price competition is expected to
increasingly move US companies "offshore" to the Far East to cut
labor costs, MI added.

Mountain View, California based MI describes itself as specializing
in research in high-technology markets. The company says it gets
its information from interviews with marketing and technical experts
in each market segment.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920514/Press Contact: Amy Arnell, Market
Intelligence, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LAX)(00029)

 ****Sega Pays Inventor $43M Patent Infringement Settlement 05/14/92
REDWOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) --
Sega has announced it will pay inventor Jan Coyle $43 million in
settlement of a patent lawsuit Coyle brought against the video game
maker giant. Coyle's attorney Fredrick Lorig told Newsbytes Coyle
also sued video game makers Nintendo and Atari, but those suits
were settled earlier out-of-court.

Coyle won the suit in April when a jury handed down a verdict that
Sega had deliberately infringed on his invention which involves the
display of color images on a video-screen via low-frequency audio
signals. The audio signals control the "sprites," the figures that
move in the foreground against the still background, like the Mario
characters or Sonic the Hedgehog.

Lorig said because the jury found Sega's infringement to be
deliberate the award could be tripled. With the addition of
attorney's fees, the award could have cost Sega as much as
$100 million.

At the time Sega representative Brian Webster told Newsbytes
Sega planned to appeal the verdict. Coyle's patent, originally filed in
1975, is scheduled to run out in August of this year. Lorig told
Newsbytes at the time of the verdict his client planned to request an
injunction to halt the sale of Sega products until the case was
settled.

Sega says the $43 million settlement ends the legal battle and it is
free from any future liabilities. Tom Kalinske, president and chief
executive officer of Sega of America said in a prepared statement:
"We decided to settle this case so we could eliminate any confusion
in the marketplace about our healthy position and our ability to
compete aggressively."

Sega may be cleaning up its act to present a better image in the see-
saw suit it is currently engaged in against Accolade. The company
has charged Accolade with copyright infringement. Michael Crick,
president of third-party software development company for Nintendo
machines, Mica, says Sega is simply trying to use the copyright law
to prevent Accolade from marketing compatible cartridges for its
hardware.

Accolade claims Sega changed its hardware last year so any
cartridge inserted in the Sega system must display the message,
"Produced By or Under License From Sega Enterprises Ltd." in
order to run. Accolade is not Sega licensed distributor.

Nintendo is also attempting to stop unlicensed third-party
developers, but it is doing so by other tactics. Paul Liu, chairman
of American Video Entertainment (AVE), told Newsbytes Nintendo
changed the internal design of its hardware so the machines will no
longer play his company's game cartridges. Liu is in the process of
suing Nintendo for $105 million. Atari Tengen is pursing a similar
suit against Nintendo.

These suits between video game makers are being watched carefully
by the entire computer industry as precedent setting events. The
American Committee for Interoperable Systems (ACIS) has
condemned Sega's actions as an attempt to kill the production of
compatible software for computer systems. ACIS spokesman Peter
Choy said the "life blood" of the computer industry is in the right of
any competitor to produce compatible software for any system.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920514/Press Contact: Brian Webster, Manning,
Selvage & Lee for Sega, tel [phone]; Fredrick Lorig, Bright and
Lorig, tel [phone]; Michael Crick, Mica, tel [phone], fax
206-869-0155)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00030)

Texas Instruments And Cyrix Complete Cross-License Deal 05/14/92
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1992 MAY 14 (NB) -- Following much
speculation in the press, Texas Instruments and Cyrix have
finally signed a long-term product cross-license agreement
that gives TI the right to make and market Cyrix's microprocessors,
including the recently announced Cx486SLC. The deal also covers
future products not yet announced.

Newsbytes, and the press generally, first reported on the possibility
of an impending deal more than a month ago. Under the product
cross-license agreement, TI also will manufacture products for
Cyrix using its advanced submicron CMOS (complimentary metal
oxide semiconductor) processing and wafer-fabrication facilities.

TI claims that, with the ability to provide a general-purpose
microprocessor, it can now "offer a complete line of standard,
differentiated and customized semiconductor products to meet
the needs of customers in the personal computer industry."

(Ian Stokell/19920514/Press Contact: Melody Wolfe, Texas
Instruments, 214-997-5470)