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/nb920116

Text File | 1992-01-16 | 66KB | 1,463 lines

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00001)

Array Microsystems Intros High-speed ASIC 01/16/92
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) --
Array Microsystems has announced the RaS (reconfigurable array
store), an application-specific memory integrated circuit (ASIC)
designed for specialized functions. The company claims that the
chip will round-out its high performance chipset designed to
execute very specialized functions.

According to the Colorado Springs-based company, the RaS ASIC
is intended for use in applications where high speed digital signal
processing is essential, such as communications, radar, sonar,
electronic warfare/electronic counter measures, digital radio,
test instruments, medical instruments, image processing, and
image compression based computer systems.

Array Microsystems says that completion of the RaS chipset will
assist board product engineers in simplifying the plans for
numerous government and military computer systems. The ASIC
provides all of the needed memory and logic in an integrated
chip, reducing chip count and circuit board space needs, the
company claims.

The complete chipset, which includes the DaSF, FaC, and RaS,
can also act as a coprocessor for general purpose
microprocessors. The chipset combines large collections of
adders, multipliers, and arithmetic logic units into a compact
environment that operates on entire groups of data instead of
single values. Using as few as 10 to 20 instructions, the chipset
can perform high-speed computations as fast as 400 million
operations-per-second.

(Jim Mallory/19920116/Press Contact: Kim Bayne, Array
Microsystems, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00002)

Colorado City Installs $1.3M Sequoia Systems Computer 01/16/92
MARLBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 116 (NB) --
Sequoia Systems has announced plans to install a $1.3 million
Series 300 computer in the city of Lakewood, Colorado.

Plans call for the computer system to provide on-line computer
services for all city systems, including public safety emergency
dispatch. Sequoia says that the system will allow easier access
to city records, provide more efficient city operations and
provide the city with what the company describes as "fault-
tolerant computer operations."

The Series 300 is a Unix-based multiprocessing computer. The
company says the fault-tolerant architecture assures that the system
is always available to users, even if any single component should
fail. Also available on the system is an implementation of the
Pick open architecture system, a database application. Lakewood
runs its applications under the Pick operating system.

One of the primary uses for the new system will be in the emergency
dispatch center. Dispatchers will use the system to track the
status of every police officer and emergency vehicle in the field.
These systems, called computer-aided dispatch, tell the
dispatchers which emergency units are available and
which are occupied on calls.

Information stored in the computer can also be used in future
police investigations. The system includes security features which
control who has access to the information in the database.
Lakewood says that only police officials can access police
records.

Lakewood, Colorado, located in central Colorado on Interstate 70 at
the western edge of Denver, has a population of 130,000, With about
650 city employees and over 200 police officers, the city occupies
a 37 square mile area. It is the fourth largest city in the state.

(Jim Mallory/19920116/Press Contact: John Murzycki, Sequoia
Systems, 508-480-0800; Tony Mineo, City of Lakewood,
303-987-7621)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00003)

Motorola Reports Strong Fourth Quarter 01/16/92
SCHAUMBURG, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Motorola
has reported a strong fourth quarter, with quarterly per-share
earnings up to 96 cents over last year's 82 cents. Wall Street
analysts had predicted earnings of about 89 cents per share.

The company said that it attributed the results to strong
performance in its semiconductor, paging, and cellular
subscriber businesses.

Announcing the results, Motorola President Gary Tooker said that
Asian markets continued to grow, despite sluggish economic
conditions in the US and Europe. He added that the company also
saw some gains in its two-way land mobile radio business.
Motorola reported major orders for trunked and secure voice
systems in the Asian market.

Motorola introduced CT2 digital cordless telephone systems
during the fourth quarter. Tooker said that growth in the cellular
subscriber group was offset by weakness in the cellular
infrastructure group.

Business was also up in the pager market, which the company
attributed to retail demand for pagers. Once a status symbol
carried by doctors and service technicians, one pager company
representative told Newsbytes that pagers are now carried by
students, sales personnel, military personnel, and expectant
fathers. Law enforcement officials say drug dealers use pagers
so they can be contacted by their customers.

In a prepared statement, Motorola said that sales in its
semiconductor products sector grew seven percent for the
quarter, orders were up eight percent, and operating profits were
even higher. In the general systems sector, sales advanced
eight percent and orders were up four percent, but operating
profits were down.

Like many companies with government contracts, Motorola has felt
the effects of government belt tightening. Motorola said its
government electronics group sales fell eight percent, orders fell
five percent, and operating profits were lower.

Motorola Chairman George Fisher predicted that the impact of the
sluggish economy will continue through the first half of 1992, with
the second half having the potential for modest growth.

According to Fisher, the increases in semiconductor and pager
orders are positive signs for long-term recovery. Noting the
increasing computerization of ignition, diagnostic, and fuel
metering of cars, Fisher said: "The electronic content of
automobiles should continue to help our businesses."

Motorola recently reorganized reducing its direct sales force,
and establishing a network of more than 1,000 dealers to handle
sales.

(Jim Mallory/19920116/Press Contact: George Grimsrud, Motorola,
708-576-2346)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00004)

Intelligent Financial To Operate 7 Computer Retail Franchises 01/16/92
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) --
Intelligent Financial Corporation has announced that it has signed
franchise agreements with BizMart to operate computer retail
departments in seven BizMart stores.

Under terms of the franchise agreements, Intelligent Financial,
which has already paid the initial franchise fees, still has to
obtain floor plan financing. Floor plan financing involves a
retailer buying the equipment, such as automobiles, from the
manufacturer, with the deal being financed by a third party. The
retailer then makes monthly payments to the financier, paying off
the balance when the item is purchased by a consumer.

Three of the new franchises will be located in St Louis,
Missouri, three will be in stores in Kansas City, Missouri, and
one will be in Tempe, Arizona. Intelligent Financial will be the
first franchise operator in these stores. The departments will
operate under a management contract until floor plan financing
is arranged.

Craig Rogers, president and CEO at Intelligent Financial
characterized computer sales at the seven locations as
"impressive" during the fourth quarter of 1991.

Intelligent Financial is not a new company to the computer
industry. The firm was incorporated in 1988 as a leasing firm
specializing in personal computers, with their major customer
base being selected Intelligent Electronics dealers in Colorado
and New Mexico. The company completed an intrastate public
stock offering at $5.60 per share on December 31, 1991.

(Jim Mallory/19920116/Press Contact: Craig Rogers, Intelligent
Financial Corp, 719-475-2488)


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

 ****Microworld Ready To Ship US Manufactured Notebook 01/16/92
PHOENIX, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Microworld claims
it is now ready to start production of its new 386SL notebook computer,
the Eclipse-SL.

Prototypes of the Eclipse-SL were displayed at Comdex in Las
Vegas last October, but production was delayed from the originally
announced November date due to numerous changes to the unit's
original specifications.

Microworld claims that it is proud of the fact that the Eclipse-SL was
designed, engineered and is being manufactured in the United
States, while maintaining competitive pricing.

"Over 96 percent of the components which make up our notebook's
motherboard have been purchased from American companies," said
Microworld VP of Sales and Marketing, Paul Daniels. The company
reports that the Epson liquid crystal display (LCD) is the only major
component not American-made.

The Eclipse is powered by an Intel 20 megahertz (MHz) 80386SL
microprocessor. Standard equipment on the machine includes a 60
megabyte (MB) glass disk hard drive. Glass disk hard drives use
shock resistant glass platters to store data instead of the more
conventional metal, dual-sided disks contained in the sealed hard
drive case.

Other features include 64 kilobytes (KB) of cache memory, 2 MB of
RAM, and options for 80 MB and 120 MB hard drives. Memory can be
expanded to 10MB. The Eclipse-SL is packaged in a black case
with gold trim and logo, and weighs-in at six pounds, including
the rechargeable battery pack. Dimensions are 8.25-inches by
11.7-inches by 2-inches. The monochrome VGA (video graphics
array) display supports 32 shades of gray. DOS 5.0 and a personal
office manager software package, called EMS, are furnished with
the system.

Microworld's Don Bigioni told Newsbytes that the RAM-resident EMS
software includes an appointment calendar capable of displaying
appointments for a day, week or month, with carry-over of tasks
not completed. EMS also includes Quick Notes, a notepad utility,
a calculator, and a phone book. The appointment calendar can be
set to flash an on-screen message of pending appointments,
Bigioni said. EMS occupies 384 KB of RAM.

In October, Microworld told Newsbytes that the Eclipse would carry a
suggested retail price of $2,995, but the most recent information
reaching Newsbytes says the price will be $3,395. However, the
company says it is offering the Eclipse at the introductory price of
$2,895.

The Eclipse includes Keytronic's KeyMouse, a separate rocker-
type key on the bottom row of the keyboard to the right of the space
bar. KeyMouse takes the place of a separate mouse or other
pointing device. By rocking the key through 360 degrees, KeyMouse
moves the cursor. Newsbytes reported on the KeyMouse in October
from Comdex.

Bigioni told Newsbytes that Microworld expects to have a 386SL-
based passive-matrix color notebook system available in the
second quarter. Bigioni said the VGA color unit will only increase
in vertical size by 0.1-inch, while the weight of the color system
will approach seven pounds.

Microworld is now accepting orders on its toll-free order number
(800-325-0594) for February delivery of Eclipse units.

(Jim Mallory/19920116/Press Contact: Don Bigioni, Microworld,
602-381-8433)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00006)

New For Unix: Software Converts Maps, Engineering Drawings 01/16/92
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Audre
Recognition Systems has announced version 1.5 of its latest
software for converting maps and engineering drawings into
vector images.

The conversion of maps and engineering drawing into data the
computer can understand is a challenging proposition. Older
maps and drawings that are only available in paper form are not
as useful as computerized versions, especially in emergency
situations such as a fire.

Computerized versions can be called up by the fire chief on a
screen inside a vehicle, and updated to be current easier, rather
than using blue prints.

The process works by using an optical scanner to scan the
drawing. Once a drawing is scanned, the software examines the
scanned image or raster image to convert from a picture,
made from dots, into a format that can be manipulated by a
computer-aided drafting program -- vector format. Vector format
has the advantages of taking much less computer hard disk
space, being faster to display, and easier to make changes to
and manipulate.

The difficulty comes in attempting to convert lines that
intersect. How do you tell the computer to distinguish between
lines and shapes that intersect and get it right on its own? Or
how do does a computer recognize a dotted line is one line and
not so many individual lines?

Audre maintains that it has solved some of those complex
conversion questions in its new version 1.5 of the Audre Intelligent
Imaging System. According to the company, the automated
Vector Post Processing package is now able to handle dash line
concatenation and interactive alpha/numeric string concatenation
in both horizontal and vertical directions.

The Audre Coordinate Editor (ACE) can now support raster edit
functions providing a raster/vector hybrid environment. The
functions the software can support include box erase, polygon
erase, and raster insertion of lines, rectangles, circles, and
arcs, the company said.

The new release is designed to run on the Hewlett-Packard (HP)
Apollo SR 10.3 operating system and supports HPGL/2 and RTL
file formats for plotting both raster and vector files on
numerous HP plotters, Audre said.

The San Diego-based company was started nine years ago and
is focused on the task of developing artificial intelligence-based
software systems for converting engineering drawings, technical
publications and maps into computer-intelligent formats.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920116/Press Contact: Thomas Casey,
Audre Recognition Systems, tel [phone], fax [phone])


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

Win $10,000 In After Dark Screen Display Contest 01/16/92
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) --
Budding computer artists have a chance to win a $10,000 cash in
the Berkeley Systems 1992 After Dark Display Contest.

After Dark is a screen blanker for both the Microsoft Windows
interface for IBM and compatible personal computers and the
Apple Macintosh. The product's function is to prevent the "burn-in"
of an image on a computer screen by automatically displaying
moving images if the display has not changed in a predetermined
amount of time. New and innovative versions of those images is
what Berkeley Systems claims it is after, in sponsoring this contest.

This is the first year the computer artist category has been
available, the company said. Previous categories were
Macintosh Programmer and Windows Programmer.

Announcing the competition, William Chase, contest coordinator
said: "This year we've included an artist's category because
some of the best ideas come from non-programmers."

The judges are a notable group and include: Jerry Borrell,
Editor-in-Chief of Macworld; Jon Zilber, Editor of Macuser;
John C. Dvorak; Henry Norr, Editor of Macweek; Mike Edelhart,
Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of PC Computing; Philip Lemmons,
Editor-in-Chief of PC World; David Needle, Editor of Computer
Currents; Fred Davis of PC Week; Christoper Barr, West Coast
Editor of PC Magazine; Paul Schindler, Editor-at-large for
Windows Magazine; Sandra Rosenweig, Editor of MPC Magazine;
Margaret Swart, Art director of Publish Magazine; Cathy Abes,
Associate Editor of Macworld; Allan Lundell of Mondo 2000, and
Becky Waring, Executive Editor of new Media Age Magazine.

The $10,000 prize is for the Best Entry Overall. A $2,500
shopping spree from Macconnection or PC Connection will be
awarded to the best entry in the three categories, with winners
receiving the Flying Toaster trophy. The winning displays
will be included in future versions of After Dark.

Prizes for second and third place finishers include: the new NEC
5FG 17-inch monitor; an ATI Graphics Ultea Windows accelerator
card; an Infinity 88 Turbo removable cartridge drive from PLI;
a Prometheus Promodem Ultima 14,400 bits-per-second modem;
a Hewlett-Packard Deskwriter C or Deskjet 500 C color printer;
and the Porta compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) drive
and two CDs from CD Technology.

All entries must be working After Dark modules that run under
either Windows or Macintosh versions of After Dark. All that's
needed to write an After Dark module comes with the After Dark
package including programming examples in C and Pascal, the
company said. Digitized artwork must be submitted along with a
script of storyboard detailing the proposed display. Animation
loops or Quicktime sequences may also be submitted.

The entry deadline is midnight April 1, 1992. Entry forms may be
obtained by calling 510-540-5535, extension 1000. Judging is to
take place April 3 at Berkeley Systems. Entries will be judged
on originality, functionality, and appearance, claims the company.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920116/Press Contact: William Chase,
Berkeley Systems, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(UNIX)(HKG)(00008)

NCR Offers Migration Path To Standards-based System 3000 01/16/92
CENTRAL, HONG KONG, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- NCR has introduced
the Galaxy Operating Environment to enable users to move from
proprietary NCR I  series systems to NCR's standards-based
System 3000 family of general purpose computers.

NCR says that it designed the new environment to protect its
customers' investment in the I-series systems (ITX, IRX, and
IMOS), and to provide easy application and file migration to the
System 3000 with minimal impact on day-to-day operations.

"We are committed to supporting our existing customer base, and to
protecting their investment in NCR systems," said Michael Lee,
managing director of NCR (Hong Kong) Ltd. "NCR has a tradition of
providing a strong migration path for our products, and Galaxy is yet
another example of that commitment."

The Galaxy Operating Environment is a set of integrated operating
software and tools that run under Unix System V release 4. Galaxy
provides better performance and access to more applications,
development tools, and communications products than were
previously available for the I-series, claims the company.

Galaxy gives I-series access to all NCR System 3000 features, as
well as providing consistency with NCR's Open Cooperative
Computing Architecture. I-series hardware platforms include NCR's
System 10000, 9000, and 8000 series products as well as the
I-Tower machine based on the RM/COS operating system.

Under Galaxy, existing Cobol applications can reside alongside
new applications on the same system, thereby protecting users'
investment in software, applications and training while offering the
advantages of hardware scalability, the company claims.

Cobol programs developed on I-series machines can be run on
the System 3000 without recompilation and often with improved
performance. Further improvements can be achieved by
recompiling applications using the NCR Interactive Cobol 85
Compiler which is included in the suite of tools.

Galaxy's Interactive Cobol Environment provides a familiar
operating environment to programmers and users moving to the
new platform. Data is moved to the new platform with a file
migration utility that automatically converts ITX files for the System
3000's Unix environment.

Also within Galaxy's Interactive Cobol Environment is the
Interactive File Manager, which provides a high-level programming
interface to disk files stored on the NCR System 3000 for both
Cobol and C programs, claims the company.

In addition there is a Cobol Application Shell - to automatically
interpret ITX's system command language (SCL) for the Unix
platform - and a "message control system" (MCS) to support
external devices such as automatic teller machines (ATMs) and
retail point-of-sale (POS) terminals.

The company claims that the NCR Windows-DOS tool puts Unix
and DOS icons on the same screen to enable quick and easy
access to data, while an optional Interactive Cobol Network utility
allows the System 3000 to interoperate with the ITXNET networking
environment on I-9000 and System 10000 platforms.

(Norman Wingrove/19920116/Press Contact: Vivian Kung, NCR,
[phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(HKG)(00009)

New For Networks: 16-bit EtherLink II Adapter Debuts 01/16/92
ADMIRALTY, HONG KONG, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- 3Com Corporation
has introduced a new family of 16-bit ISA (Industry Standard
Architecture) network adapters, called the EtherLink II/16 series.

According to the company, the EtherLink II/16 family is designed
for users requiring a reliable, affordable 16-bit adapter. It also
offers a migration path for existing 3Com EtherLink II customers
wanting to upgrade to 16-bit performance.

"The demand for 16-bit Ethernet adapters is booming in line with
the wider availability of computers and workstations offering higher
performance," said William Messer, 3Com's general manager,
Asian operations.

"Enterprise-wide information sharing capabilities are becoming a
competitive issue. These new adapters can assist in getting the
data to where it's needed, faster than ever before. The emergence
of multimedia applications will also increase the demand for
faster, higher-capacity networks and supporting devices," he
added.

The EtherLink II/16 family includes the EtherLink II/16 TP -- a 16-bit
adapter for 10BASE-T networks -- and the EtherLink II/16, a coax
version. The company claims that the EtherLink II/16 family is
completely software compatible with 3Com's popular eight-bit coax
adapter, the EtherLink II.

"Many software vendors design their products for easy installation
of EtherLink II drivers," said Messer. "Since the EtherLink II/16
adapters are completely compatible with the EtherLink II, the new
adapters will allow simple plug-and-play installation for a
seamless transition."

There two versions of the EtherLink II/16 are a standard coax
version, plus the EtherLink II/16 TP for 10BASE-T installations.

(Norman Wingrove/19920116/Press Contact: Marshall Gabin,
3Com, [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(HKG)(00010)

China: Xiamen Airlines Enhances Ticketing Operations 01/16/92
XIAMEN, CHINA, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- The purchase of a
computerized air ticketing system (CATS) from Bull HN Information
Systems has made Xiamen airlines (XAL) the first regional Chinese
carrier to set up its own computerized ticketing system.

In a deal valued at HK$1 million (US$129, 870), the CATS is now
up and running on a Bull DPS6000 transaction processing system,
installed at XAL's Xiamen City office in Fujian Province. It
became operative in October 1991.

XAL is a regional carrier for Xiamen. The Xiamen Gaoqi
International Airport is China's fourth largest in terms of passenger
traffic. Its ticketing operations were previously centralized on
CAAC's computerized ticketing system in Beijing.

Wu Gang Shui, manager of XAL's Operations Department, said:
"Travel agencies and hotels that want ticketing information have
to call up XAL. Most often, telephone lines are jammed and
customers cannot get the tickets they want."

The inefficiency of the existing network prompted XAL to set up its
own computerized system. Terminals are installed at ticketing
outlets at XAL offices, hotels and travel agencies. "CATS allows
us to have better control of ticketing and to upgrade our level of
customer services," said Wu.

According to the deputy director of XAL's Communications and
Computer Center, Zhou Shu Ming, the airline examined various
offerings and settled on Bull's system because of the application's
success elsewhere in the Chinese travel sector.

CATS runs on a Bull DPS6000/422 computer to provide on-line
ticketing services to travel agents, hotels, and XAL outlets in Xiamen.
Initially, the system supports 32 users and will increase to 100 as
demand increases. CATS will also interface with CAAC's system
at a later stage, said the company.

(Norman Wingrove/19920116/Press Contact: Richard Law, Bull HN,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(HKG)(00011)

China Adopts New Regional Telephone Numbering Scheme 01/16/92
GUANGZHOU, CHINA, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Guangzhou (Canton),
the capital city of South China's Guangdong Province, instantly
increased its line capacity ten-fold to five million with the introduction
of a new numbering system on 1st January.

The change-over was achieved smoothly and with minimal
disruption to traffic from neighbouring Hong Kong, according to
Roger Barlow, manager of international traffic with Hong Kong
Telecom. "The increase in line capacity from 500,000 to 5 million
lines will be enough to meet the city's needs until the year 2050,"
he said.

Advance publicity by Hong Kong Telecom ensured that the majority
of people in Hong Kong were aware that the change was taking place
and were able to reprogram the memories of their PABXs (private
branch exchanges) and fax machines to accommodate the change,
according to Barlow. "Less than two percent of calls on the day
following the change were wrong numbers, and the wrong-number
rate declined rapidly from then on," he told Newsbytes.

The change of numbers was made as simple as possible. The first
digit of the previous six-digit number was repeated to make a
seven-digit number.

Hong Kong Telecom is becoming quite expert at massive changes to
dialing numbers. At midnight on December 30, 1989, the
telecommunications company changed every telephone and fax line
number in Hong Kong to eliminate local area codes and convert them
all to standard seven-digit form. At the time, the company reported a
very low incidence of complaints or connection problems. It ran an
increasing-frequency information and advertising campaign over
the preceding eighteen months.

Hong Kong Telecom has close cooperative ties with the
Guangdong telecommunications authorities and has assisted in
many of its trunk network upgrading projects.

(Norman Wingrove/19920116/Press Contact: Roger Barlow,
HK Telecom, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00012)

Novell Upgrades LANalyzer Product 01/16/92
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Novell has
begun shipping version 3.11A of LANalyzer. This new version
of the network analysis tool incorporates requests made by
Novell's customers, the company claims.

Novell also claims that it is constantly talking to its customers
about ways in which their products can be improved, and about the
most common network problems that they encounter. This new
release addresses some of the more common requests that
Novell has received. According to the networking specialist, there
are four main areas of improvements in the new version.

LANalyzer's Automated Troubleshooting System has been greatly
expanded. It now comes with over 175 separate, predefined,
network tests. These are used to identify and suggest corrections
for a large set of problems. Most of the tests have some degree
of local customization capability. In addition, users can create
their own special tests using the Novell provided test templates.

LANalyzer 3.11A can now decode 18 protocol stacks. This is an
increase of five protocol decodes since the previous version. The
protocol decodes that have been added include Netware Lite,
DEC's LAT, SNMP over IPX, X-Windows, and OSPF (open shortest
path first - a newly defined IP routing protocol).

LANalyzer data can now be exported in the Lotus 1-2-3 and
Microsoft Excel data formats. This enhances the ability of network
administrators to generate reports and charts. It also eliminates
the need to learn Novell's specialized report generation software
formats.

A downsized Ethernet card is now included as a standard feature.
The new card is half the size of the previous version and yet
operates twenty percent faster. The idea behind the downsizing is
to allow its use in most portable computers that support the ISA
(Industry Standard Architecture) bus. The new card also consumes
only half as much power as the previous version. This allows use in
the new Toshiba 5200 and Epson machines.

LANalyzer 3.11A is shipping now. There are three versions of the
product -- Ethernet- and Token Ring-only versions sell for $12,500,
while the version that allows you to work on both network types
sells for $19,980. Members of the LANalyzer Update Program will
receive the upgrade for free.

Contact Novell at 1-800-243-8526 or 408-473-8333 for more
information.

(Naor Wallach/19920116/Press Contact: Steve Genova, Novell,
408-473-8381)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00013)

 ****Its Time To Look At Tax Software 01/16/92
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- In
case you have not noticed, tax time is approaching. But even if you
use the "shoe box" method of keeping track of income and expenses,
computer retailers say it is not too late to computerize your tax return.

Most tax preparation programs, which retailers say is one of the
fastest growing software categories, are reasonably priced, and
fairly easy to use. The programs eliminate most of the need to look
up, and understand, Internal Revenue instructions. Many programs
offer an on-screen version of the various tax forms in which you
enter the numbers: income, expenses, and deductions. The
programs take care of the calculations. Many will allow you to play
out "what-if" scenarios, that is, trying different scenarios to see how
it affects the amount of tax you end up paying.

Some tax programs have the capability to let you know if your
entries fall outside the IRS guidelines, which could trigger an
audit. And of course, since the calculations are done by the
computer, the possibility of mathematical error is virtually
eliminated. This can be an important factor in getting your refund
back promptly, since IRS spokesperson Kate Gregg told
Newsbytes that more than 12 percent of last year's returns came
in with some sort of mathematical error.

Gregg told Newsbytes that a whopping 76 percent of all 1990 returns
contained some sort of error. Common mistakes included using the
wrong tax table or picking the wrong number from the table, putting
the right information in the wrong block, illegible returns, or no
social security number on the return. Computer prepared returns
would have eliminated most of those problems. Even if a computer
is used, the printed form still has to be signed.

Many programs will also print IRS-approved tax forms on a
dot-matrix or laser printer, eliminating the need to transfer the
computer results to the IRS-provided forms.

Computer prepared tax returns can also be submitted to the IRS
via modem through service bureaus located in many cities.
According to the IRS, electronically submitted returns will generate
refunds more quickly than manually prepared forms mailed in. The
agency said more than 7.5 million taxpayers filed electronically last
year, and they expect that number will go to over 10 million this year.

(Jim Mallory/19920116)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00014)

Network Devices Intros AS/400 Gemini 2000 Star Cluster 01/16/92
SANDWICH, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Users
who have multiple IBM AS/400 minicomputers can now attach them in
a star network configuration through the use of Network Device's new
Gemini 2000 Star Controller.

The Star Controller is actually somewhat of a misnomer for this
product. After you pay your $2,256 you will receive a set of four
Gemini 2000 devices with a Gemini 25A "breakout box" plus all of
the cables and other accessories needed to connect up to eight
AS/400 host ports and 40 peripheral devices across UTP
(unshielded twisted pair) wiring.

According to the company, there are two big advantages to the
Gemini 2000. Firstly, it was designed from the start to reduce
the noise in the cabling system. With the different kinds and
quality of wiring that can be found in almost any network
installation today, noise is a frequent, and sometimes severe,
problem. Secondly, it sports direct connections to the AS400
ports. This allows one to achieve the rated data rate of 1 Mbit
per second that IBM is advertising.

The devices were designed with the IBM Type 3 UTP wiring in
mind. However, users can use practically any wire that they may
have in the facility due to the extra care that the company claims
to have taken in the design of the device. Company officials are
claiming that they have seen customers order their devices to be
used as a benchmark and a debugging tool because
it is so good in relieving noise problems that other star
controllers cannot handle.

The Gemini 2000 is shipping now and retails for $2,256. Users who
have a Gemini 2000 or other Network Devices equipment and are
interested in upgrades, are to call the company directly at
508-888-8200.

(Naor Wallach/19920116/Press Contact: Peg DiMauro, Network
Devices, 508-888-8200)
(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00015)

 ****Poqet Announces Pen System; 3rd-Party Agreements 01/16/92
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Poqet
Computer Corporation has announced the introduction of PoqetPad,
a 1.2-pound hand-held MS-DOS pen-based computer. It has also
announced agreements with GRiD Systems and Traveling Software
for system software products for the new computer.

According to Poqet, the PoqetPad is the smallest, lightest,
lowest cost pen-based computer available and the only pen-based
computer powered by AA-size batteries. "At a suggested single unit
price of $1,995, it is also the first MS-DOS pen-based system priced
under $2,000," company officials claimed.

Although IBM PC-XT-compatible, the machine is an NEC
V20HL-based computer that uses a wireless pen (stylus) instead of
a keyboard or mouse to enter data directly onto the computer
display screen.

It measures 9.65-inches by 4.59-inches by 1.26-inches and,
according to Poqet, "can be held easily in one hand, carried
in a tool bag or hung in a belt pouch for ready access."

PoqetPad's 7.25-inch (diagonal) display can be configured to show
forms in either landscape or portrait mode with graphics and
multiple font sizes. In standard computer display format, the CGA-
(color/graphics adapter) compatible screen shows 80 characters
by 25 lines, with a separate status line. In graphics mode, it provides
640 by 200 screen resolution.

The unit contains 640 kilobytes (KB) of RAM and one megabyte
(MB) of ROM for the storing of MS-DOS and the pen-support and
handwriting recognition software. The system also contains two
memory card drawers for the use of removable memory card
storage of programs and data. Industry standard cards used
with the PoqetPad can accommodate up to 4MB of storage.

The handwriting recognition software pre-loaded into ROM is
NestorWriter, a product licensed from Nestor, Inc. Also pre-loaded is
Poqet's "PenShell" environment and software controlling mouse
emulation for the pen and a virtual, on-screen keyboard and numeric
keypad.

The new computer is, according to Poqet: "designed for use in
vertical market applications, such as field inspection, automated
forms completion, and remote data collection, as a replacement for
dat
a collection terminals or paper forms."

Poqet spokesperson Bob Owens, in a conversation with
Newsbytes, expanded on the market thrust of PoqetPad, saying:
"General purpose pen-based computing is realistic for some
period beginning well beyond 1992."

"Everyone that has examined our approach has agreed that the
PoqetPad is a solid viable unit for 1992. We have provided a very
attractive unit for third-party developers to build vertical
market applications and the response from developers has been
strong. We feel that this approach is a lot quicker way to bring
a system to the market and the reaction to our announcement
indicated that we are on the right track," he added.

In a related announcement, GRiD Systems announced that Poqet
Computer will be the first pen computer manufacturer to license
GRiD's PenRight! software platform for use on the new
PoqetPad pen computer. PenRight! , which will be offered as an
option for the PoqetPad, is an MS-DOS-based graphical
application development platform specifically designed to
support data collection applications.

Announcing the agreement, Kirk Cruikshank, GRiD's vice president
of marketing, said: "We are pleased that Poqet will be offering
PenRight! with the PoqetPad. Once licensed, Poqet customers will
have immediate access to software being developed by more than
300 software developers using PenRight! to create applications
for a range of vertical markets. Licensing PenRight! to Poqet
will do two important things. It will expand the overall pen
computer market by giving these software developers more
hardware options. It will also give end-users the flexibility to choose
from multiple platforms to meet their specific needs. GRiD is
currently working with a number of other pen computer vendors who
want access to the same market potential that enticed Poqet."

Cruikshank added: "Poqet recognizes that PenRight! is an excellent
software environment for vertical market applications. For users in
vertical markets, PenRight! applications provide simple forms,
check boxes and buttons that make training a breeze. The PenRight!
software platform and its improved handwriting recognition engine
are combined in a package that eliminates unnecessary computing
overhead and has enough horsepower for adding sophisticated
features."

A GRiD spokesperson told Newsbytes that GRiD is also discussing
licensing arrangements with other firms offering pen-based systems
and that similar announcements should be forthcoming in the future.

Traveling Software also announced an agreement with Poqet under
which it will PenConnect, a connection product linking PoqetPad to a
desktop PC, to purchasers of the new computer. PenConnect is a
client/server-based program designed to make the drives of the
server computer appear as additional drives on the client machine.

In most cases, a desktop PC would act as the client, because of its
keyboard and larger screen and the PoqetPad would be used as the
server. Instead of transferring files between the PoqetPad and the
desktop PC, the user simply accesses the PoqetPad's drives from
the desktop computer.

Mark Eppley, chairman & CEO of Traveling Software,
commented on the agreement, saying: "Due to the PoqetPad's size,
ease-of-use, and reasonable price, I'm confident it will be one of the
first widely used pen-based computers, especially within vertical
markets."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19920116/Press Contacts:
Robert Owens, Poqet Computer Corp., 408-764-9465; Bob Goligoski,
GRiD Systems Corp., 510-656-4700; Marci Maule, Traveling
Software Inc., 206-483-8088)


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

Florida Approves Enhanced Call Return 01/16/92
MIAMI, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- The Florida Public
Service Commission has approved a new service from Southern
Bell called Enhanced Call Return, an improved version of an
existing service.

With regular Call Return, a subscriber has the opportunity to
press a few digits on a touch-tone keypad and return the call of
the last person who called them.

"With Enhanced Call Return the customer will also hear a voice
message which gives the telephone number of the last incoming
call," said Southern Bell spokesperson Spero Canton. "In some
areas, the date and time the call was received will also be
provided." Subscribers will be prompted to enter the number
"1" to activate the new feature.

As in many states, however, the Caller ID information necessary
for the service can be blocked on a per-call basis, by dialing
(star) 67 on touch-tone phones before placing the call, or 1167 on
rotary phones. Per-line Caller ID blocking is also available in
Florida, Southern Bell said.

Another enhancement in the new service is that if the line being
called is busy, the subscriber will hear an announcement and
over the next 30 minutes, both the calling and called lines will
be checked periodically to determine whether the call can be
completed.

A distinctive ring is heard when the called line is available and
the call is completed when the customer picks up the phone.
There will be no additional cost for all this -- it will automatically
be added for existing Call Return subscribers.

The only limitation on the new service is that, if the incoming call is
from a caller served by a PBX, or private branch exchange switch,
then only the main number of the PBX will be transmitted and
made available for call-back.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920116/Press Contact: Spero C. Canton,
Southern Bell, 305-530-5405)


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

Cellular Payphones Coming Soon 01/16/92
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- You may
soon see cellular pay phones in remote areas without regular
phone service, based on a deal between Technology Service
Group, which makes pay phones, and Photocomm, which makes
solar electric power systems.

The two companies have agreed to combine their technologies
and create new applications "in the public communications and
emergency communications markets." Trials are already
underway in Arizona and California, testing new solar-powered
cellular payphones under actual in-service field conditions.

The new phones incorporate solar system designs from
Photocomm and feature TSG's Gemini phone technology,
meaning they are compatible with both U.S. and international
cellular systems and take credit cards, bank cards, coins or tokens.
Because of the combination of technologies, they can be put
anywhere, either as emergency units in rugged areas, or as
regular pay phones, anywhere in the world.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920116/Press Contact: Don Nelson,
Technology Service Group, 404-368-8055; Myron Anduri,
Photocomm, 602-948-8003)


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

Update On Wired, Wireless Systems Worldwide 01/16/92
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- A Swedish
company has announced major sales to Portugal and Mexico,
while two Arab countries have announced new services, in the
continuing move towards the provision of universal
telecommunications service.

Ericsson said it will install an X.25 data network for the
Commission Federal de Electricidad, the national electricity
generation and distribution company in Mexico, at a cost of $3
million.

Similar systems are already installed at the Italian, British and
Irish power generating companies. Ericsson has also announced
a deal with Telecel Communicacoes Pessoais, S.A. of Portugal,
worth $150 million, for the installation of a national digital mobile
telephone system for Portugal. The system, backed by two
Portuguese financial houses and PacTel of the U.S., will run a
GSM digital cellular net for up to 150,000 subscribers covering
over 85 percent of the country by 1996. The system will begin
commercial service in October 1992.

Also, the Middle East News Network reported that in the United
Arab Emirates, the Emirates Telecommunications Corporation,
known as Etisalat, has begun offering so-called "Class" services,
called Star services because they are invoked by pressing the
star key on a touch-tone keypad.

Alarm calls are made with "(star) 55 (star)." Other familiar
services available include: call waiting; call transfer; code
controlled barring, to prevent other numbers from dialing in;
"do not disturb," preventing anyone from dialing in; and "hold for
enquiry/add-on conference," for creating teleconferences.

All attract an installation fee of Dh50 per service, plus
quarterly rentals ranging from Dh25 to Dh90. The same service
reported that Saudi Arabia's PTT will launch a paging network
February 1, first in Riyadh, and then in other regions. More
sophisticated services will follow said the Posts, Telegraphs
and Telephones Minister, Dr. Alawi Darwish Kayyal, but only
Saudi Telecom licensees can distribute equipment.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920116/Press Contact: Ericsson, Lars
Jonsteg, 212-685-4030)


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

Atlanta Convention Center Getting Mobile Phone Microcells 01/16/92
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- The Atlanta
convention center will shortly get a series of new "microcells,"
increasing the call-handling capacity of BellSouth Mobility
customers, the company has announced. The Georgia World
Congress Center and Georgia Dome stadium will both get their
new cells in the summer.

"Microcells target specific coverage areas more precisely than
conventional cellular facilities, enabling us to provide high-
quality service in areas that traditionally have been considered
hard-to-cover areas," said the company's network directory,
John Davis. Buildings and other densely-packed areas have
traditionally been hard to cover.

BellSouth Mobility had its first trial of the microcell technology in
Miami in 1991. The Atlanta microcells will be linked to a new
AT&T cellular switch.

The Microcell technology is loosely based on a system known
as sectorization, first developed by British Telecom's Cellnet
cellular phone network. The fancy name belies the simplicity of
the concept -- polarization and high directivity of the radio
signals allows each set of channels to be re-used up to six times
within a cell, with each Microcell occupying a segment of 60
degrees of the original cell, a bit like slicing a pizza six ways.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920116/Press Contact: BellSouth Mobility,
John Davis, 404-392-8300)


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

Analyst Calls 1992 Critical Year for Prodigy 01/16/92
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Gene
DeRose of Jupiter Communications writes in his "Consumer
Information Appliance" newsletter that early 1992 shapes up as
a critical time in the history of Prodigy, the IBM-Sears joint
venture in videotex.

The company claimed it had 1.25 million members at the end
of the year, but DeRose notes this adds up to only about
700,000 families.

While Prodigy membership grew 60 percent in 1991, and
drew 12 million on-line sessions in December, there are danger
signals, he writes. Prodigy must get renewals, at about $100 per
year, from subscribers who got the service as a "Christmas
present" starting in late 1990.

The software was bundled with IBM's PS/1, and those customers
must also be moved to send checks. Prodigy is also facing a
problem from "bootleg" members who use other peoples' software,
artificially inflating session numbers without increasing revenue.

He concludes: "While Prodigy did seem to realize in 1991 that it
needs to constantly tinker with and enhance the service, will the
trend continue, and will a killer application be found that kicks
membership up by more than, say, 200,000?"

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920116/Press Contact: Jupiter
Communications, Gene DeRose, 212-941-9252)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00021)

 ****Digital Equipment Reports First Quarterly Loss 01/16/92
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- As
expected, Digital Equipment Corporation has reported its first
operating loss. In the fiscal second quarter, ended December 28,
Digital lost $138.327 million on revenues of $3,479.489 million.

In the same period last year, Digital had net income of $111.141
million on revenues of $3,352.417 million.

Digital lost $1.11 per share in the quarter, a result slightly
worse than analysts had predicted before Christmas. In December,
after the company warned Wall Street to expect a quarterly loss,
financial analysts were calling for a per-share deficit between 30
cents and $1.00.

For the six months ending December 28, Digital reported total
operating revenues of $6,772.574 million, up five percent from the
$6,445.787 million of the same period a year ago. Net loss for the
six months was $109.747 million, versus $137.318 million in net
income for the comparable period a year ago. The loss per share
was 88 cents, versus net income of $1.12 per share last year.

In a prepared statement, Digital's founder and president, Kenneth
H. Olsen, said the company's systems integration, consulting, and
services businesses continued to grow, but competitive pressures
slowed the growth of hardware sales and forced price cuts.

"For over two years," Olsen continued, "we have been continually
increasing our efficiency. We are in the midst of programs to
even further increase our efficiency and we anticipate that they
will pay off in the near future."

Earlier, when Digital first acknowledged it would report a loss in
the quarter, company spokesman Bradley Allen told Newsbytes
several factors were to blame. First is the worldwide recession, he
said.

"Typically in recessions in the past," Allen said, "when it's
raining in one place it's sunny somewhere else." In the current
recession, though, "virtually every geography we do business
in is extremely weak."

International currencies that have helped Digital's financials in
the past have been neutral lately, he added, and have not helped
to shore up results. Allan added that Digital has been suffering
from competitive pricing pressures in many of its markets.

Finally, Digital has been going through a product transition in
some of its product lines during the quarter. That has been
affecting the company's revenues by slowing down shipments
of hardware.

Analyst Chris Christiansen, who follows Digital for The Meta Group
in Westport, Connecticut, told Newsbytes the transition to a new
generation of reduced instruction-set computing (RISC) processors
for DEC's flagship Vax minicomputer line will continue to affect
the company's results for the next couple of quarters.

Anticipation of new machines based on the RISC processor
dubbed Alpha will cause "significant portions of DEC users to
delay purchases" until a firm shipment date for the new systems
is announced, Christiansen predicted.

A generally weak economy and a poor market for minicomputers
are also hurting the company, Christiansen added. He said, though,
that these factors do not necessarily spell losses for Digital in the
coming quarters. That depends on the company's ability to reduce
costs, Christiansen said.

In announcing the loss, Digital officials said the company planned
to accelerate its cost-cutting efforts.

(Grant Buckler/19920116/Press Contact: Mark Steinkrauss, Digital
Equipment, 508-493-7182; Bradley Allen, 508-493-8009)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TOR)(00022)

HDS-Lotus Deal: Buy A Terminal, Get A Spreadsheet 01/16/92
KING OF PRUSSIA, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) --
Human Designed Systems and Lotus Development have announced
a joint promotion. Buyers of some models of HDS's ViewStation FX X
Window terminals will get a free node license for the Lotus 1-2-3 for
Sun SPARC Systems version 1.1 spreadsheet software.

HDS spokesman Michael Kantrowitz said that more than half of the
FX Series terminals his company sells go to sites using at least
some Sun workstations.

HDS will include with each terminal a certificate offering a node
license for 1-2-3, worth $695 retail, while supplies last. Each
customer must purchase, or already have, one media version of
1-2-3, Kantrowitz said.

HDS' ViewStation FX Series of RISC-based X Window terminals
includes color, monochrome, and gray-scale models, with screen
sizes from 14 to 35 inches. The terminals use an i960CA RISC
processor running at 30 megahertz (MHz). Up to 72 megabytes
(MB) of memory can be added to the ViewStation FX, the company
said. Ethernet is supported through built-in thin-wire, thick-wire, and
twisted pair ports.

Full versions of both the Open Look and Motif window managers run
locally in the ViewStation FX Series. Two serial ports and one
parallel port are included for local printing and for running X
over serial lines. Compressed serial protocol is included, and a
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) agent is built into the
ViewStation FX for network management, HDS officials said.

1-2-3 for Sun SPARC Systems version 1.1 is fully compatible with
all releases of 1-2-3, including DOS, Windows, and previous Sun
SPARC spreadsheet versions, Lotus said. It supports the X Window
System, integrates Lotus' C Add-in Toolkit, features a bundled
Sybase SQL Server DataLens Driver, and works with Lotus
Realtime, a system that feeds real-time financial data directly
into 1-2-3.

(Grant Buckler/19920116/Press Contact: Michael Kantrowitz, Human
Designed Systems, 215-277-8300; Rebecca Seel, Lotus,
617-693-1579)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00023)

New For PC: Corporate Calendar Is Windows Groupware 01/16/92
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- The Windows
Support Group has announced The Corporate Calendar, scheduling
software for Microsoft Windows. The software is meant mainly for
large corporate users.

The Corporate Calendar is built around SQL Server, Microsoft's
database server software for PC networks. Company officials said
that the software can maintain schedules for unlimited numbers of
people and resources.

Individuals can use The Corporate Calendar to maintain to-do lists,
tickler files, and work schedules. The software also helps in
planning meetings by letting co-workers check each other's
schedules to find possible meeting times. Security features allow
users to control who can see their calendars and how much
information is public.

The software will search the calendars of a group of users to find
a time when all are free. Users can limit the search to certain
time periods, such as normal working hours or 9 a.m. to noon, the
vendor said. The system informs participants automatically when
they have been scheduled for a meeting. The Corporate Calendar
can be used to schedule the use of conference rooms as well, and
will search for a meeting room with the facilities needed.

Further, the company said, organizations can maintain their
corporate directories in The Corporate Calendar's address book,
which stores a "virtually unlimited" number of names. The address
book comes with a 42,000-entry zip code directory. Personal
directories are also available.

Available now from The Windows Support Group, The Corporate
Calendar will sell for $275 per user, with discounts for larger
orders. It requires SQL Server version 1.11 and works with a
variety of networks, the company said.

(Grant Buckler/19920116/Press Contact: William Cornfield, The
Windows Support Group, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00024)

Progressive Computing Announces WAN Analyzer Product 01/16/92
MENLO PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Progressive
Computing has introduced the LM1 Pocketscope, a device that it
claims will make life significantly easier for wide area network
(WAN) administrators.

The LM1 Pocketscope is a full featured network protocol analyzer.
The major difference between the unit and other WAN analyzers is
in its physical size and method of operation. Physically, it is
the size of about two packets of cigarettes. To operate the unit,
the user connects one end to the WAN cabling and the other to the
parallel port of the PC that is used as the host.

The PC does not need to be dedicated and portables can also be
used. The software that operates the Pocketscope is completely
MS-DOS compatible. The sum of all of these features lead to
some very interesting ways of using the device.

A network administrator may leave these devices at certain
critical chokepoints on the network. When a problem, or issue
comes up, it is relatively simple to have a modem attached to the
PC and call in remotely. Then the network administrator can
activate and control the Pocketscope remotely.

Another use is to have the Pocketscope with you at all times. So
when a trouble call comes in, you simply hook it up to the
nearest PC and check out the network. Since it attaches to the
parallel port of the PC there is no longer a need to open up a PC
and potentially tear its guts out.

The Pocketscope collects all kinds of information on the network.
This information can then be transferred to the PC and stored as
simple ASCII text. This allows the user to accumulate data that can
then be brought over to the administrators workstation and
manipulated in various ways for reporting and analysis purposes.

The LM1 Pocketscope retails for $2,495 which includes network
decoder software for the Async and Bisync protocols. If you need
to attach to SNA or X.25, Progressive Computing will sell you a
software module for that protocol for $395. All of these products
will be available in March.

(Naor Wallach/19920116/Press Contact: Charley Smart,
Progressive Computing, 708-574-5746)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00025)

Apple To Release Cross-Platform Quicktime Toolkit  01/16/92
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Better
late than never for Apple, as the company has announced it will
begin development of tools to allow users of other computers to
integrate dynamic data such as sound, video, and animation (a
format called "Movie") into applications on other computer
platforms. The Movie format is to describe the capability of
the newly released Quicktime, an extension to Apple's System
7.0 operating system.

The Apple announcement comes a year after Microsoft released
beta versions of its Multimedia Development Kit (MDK) to
independent software developers (ISDs), including those
developing on the Macintosh. The MDK, officially released in
August of 1990, includes a Movie Converter disk for moving
Quicktime Movies to Microsoft Windows multimedia applications.

Microsoft representative, Ray Berardinelli, said Apple ISDs want
to be able to leverage the investment they have made in Apple
Quicktime-savvy products by bringing them over to the Microsoft
Windows Multimedia Personal Computer (MPC) platform.

Apple's planned Quicktime Movie Exchange Toolkit for developers
will support a wider range of platforms including MS-DOS, Cray,
Silicon Graphics, Sun, DEC, and IBM computers. The kit will
contain utilities to allow a developer on another platform to
convert the multimedia application, such as an animation to
Quicktime. The completed conversion can then be distributed
over a network or on a floppy disk.

The Quicktime Move Exchange Toolkit will retail for $79, Apple
said. Further information is available from APDA at 800-282-
2732 in the US and at 800-637-0029 in Canada. International
locations are encouraged to call 408-562-3910.

Apple says it is also working with Corel Systems Corporation,
makers of the popular Corel Draw!, a graphics and animation
program that runs in Microsoft Windows. The plan is to develop
Corel file format translators to be shipped as a part of a
Macintosh utility in the Quicktime Starter Kit. The Corel
translators will allow for the conversion of the MS-DOS and
Windows format presentation, graphics, and animation files to
the Apple Quicktime Movie file.

Apple says the software development community has expressed
interest in playback functionality for Quicktime on other
platforms such as Microsoft Windows. Apple demonstrated a
prototype of a Quicktime player for Windows at the Macworld
show and says it is exploring the possibility of releasing the
player for Windows and other possible partners.

As a final note, Apple said its latest version of Unix, A/UX
3.0 scheduled to ship early in this year, will integrate
Quicktime into the Macintosh running the Unix operating system.
Apple says A/UX 3.0 will be one of the first Unix-based systems
in the computer industry that integrates dynamic data "movies"
into documents.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920116/Press Contact: Patty Tulloch, Apple,
tel [phone], fax [phone]; Ray Berardinelli, Waggener
Edstrom for Microsoft, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00026)

 ****Apple Licenses Appletalk To Sony For News Workstation 01/16/92
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Apple and
Sony have made it official and announced an agreement under
which Sony has licensed Apple's Appletalk network software for
the purpose of allowing Sony workstations to communicate with
computing systems that support Appletalk.

Apple and Sony have been rumored to be working together, but
the reports were the partnership was on Apple's newly announced
personal digital assistant (PDA) products planned for release
late this year.

This current agreement will enable Sony to offer Appletalk as
an option for networking on the company's Unix-based News
workstations by the middle of this year.

The networking capability, Appletalk, is built into every
Macintosh personal computer. Apple says it offers users an
intuitive view of network services and ensures the services
will work consistently despite the platform the Macintosh is
networked with.

Apple says the agreement announced today will provide both
Sony and Apple customers with interconnectivity, allow Macintosh
users to take advantage of Sony's reduced instruction-set
computer (RISC) chip services such as file and print service, and
allow communication at up to 10 million bits-per-second
over industry-standard Ethernet connections.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920116/Press Contact: Nancy Keith Kelly,
Apple, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Jonathan Hirshon,
Sony,  201-930-7454)

(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEL)(00027)

India: HCL Intros 80486-based 50 MHz Minicomputer 01/16/92
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1991 JAN 16 (NB) -- HCL Hewlett-Packard, the
recently-restructured division of Hewlett-Packard here in India
has launched the Meteor III minicomputer. The machine, which is
based around a 50<Hz 80486 microprocessor is billed as the
world's fastest by the company.

Racking up a speed of 22 MIPS, the machine supersedes the Meteor
I and II series, which were based, respectively, around a 25 and
33MHz version of the 80486 chipset.

While all official clearances required for starting up the
operations of HCL Hewlett-Packard in India have been obtained,
the company appears to carefully dividing the duties. HCL's own
research and development team is concentrating on the micro- and
minicomputer side of the business, leaving HP to work on the
superminis and workstations.

HCL is making some impressive claims for the Meteor III machine,
which has been cross-licensed to three OEMs in USA -- two for
boards and one for the design, and is promising delivery next
month.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19920116)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEL)(00028)

India: Software Copyright Controversy Settled Out Of Court 01/16/92
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- The year-long legal wrangle
over the authorship of a novel handwriting software, My Word/My
Script, between Statart Software Pvt. Ltd. and two of its former
employees, has finally ended in an out-of-court settlement.

The dispute was resolved when the owner of the firm and well-
known television anchorman, Pronnoy Roy, conceded that the two
engineers, Vimalendu Verma and Karan Khanna, were actually "the
principal and main authors" of My Word/My Script and had laid
down the foundation work for the package.

The problem began when Time magazine credited Roy for the
development of the handwriting software, although the original
copyright bears only the names of Verma and Khanna. The storm in
a teacup turned into a controversy when another report in an
Indian fortnightly ascribed it to Roy and four others without
mentioning Verma and Khanna.

Following the controversy, Roy appeared to go on naming himself
and others as the programmers behind the software, despite
repeated attempts by Verma and Khanna to resolve the situation.
Legal proceedings were initiated a year ago.

Roy issue a countersuit seeking to prevent an ex-parte stay order
being imposed on his company. The out of court settlement is
reported to be acceptable to all parties.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19920116)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00029)

US Company Buys Into Indian Software House 01/16/92
BANGALORE, INDIA, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Inventa Corporation, a
California-based company specializing in distributed computing
software and graphical user interfaces (GUIs), has acquired a
majority equity stake in Ventura Data Systems, a venture capital
aided firm headquartered in Bangalore.

Renamed Inventa Software India to reflect its new status, the
company will concentrate on off-shore software development
projects for its American parent. Joint software R&D projects are
also planned. According to Mr Muthuswamy of the company, an
approval for a 100 per cent export-oriented unit has already been
secured.

Ventura Data Systems Pvt. Ltd. has been providing mostly
customized software solutions in the areas of GUIs, client-server
distributed computing environments and PC-based networks over the
last five years.

Major clients of the company include the TTK group and Asia Brown
Boveri here in India, as well as Gould, Olivetti, Sequent
Computer Systems and Oracle Corporation in the US. The Technology
Development and Information Company of India (TDICI) holds a
minor equity in Ventura.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19920116)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(MOW)(00030)

Moscow News Spreads Via Fax Delivery 01/16/92
MOSCOW, RUSSIA, 1992 JAN 16 (NB) -- Moscow News Weekly has
added Kuala-Lumpur in Malaysia as its seventh international customer
centre for its weekly fax digest edition. The ten page digest is
published in Russian, English, German, and French, and includes
excerpts from the Moscow News, one of leading independent
newspapers.

Subscriptions cost US$350 per year, US$90 per quarter. The
newspaper is currently faxed to subscribers in New-York, Berlin,
Paris, Copenhagen, Warsaw, Bratislava, and Kuala-Lumpur. The
paper's editor, Len Karpinsky, claims that Moscow News is the
only Russian newspaper which is published in a fax format.

Moscow News digest is also available using electronic mail.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19920116/Press & Public Contacts: Moscow News
headquarters, phone [phone]; fax [phone]; in New
York: phone [phone]; fax [phone]; in Paris: phone +33-
1-39-90-54-70; fax [phone]; in Kuala-Lumpur: phone +503-757-
8206, fax [phone])