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/nb920814

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(NEWS)(GOVT)(HKG)(00001)

HK Judiciary Pioneers Client-Server Computing With Oracle 08/14/92
CENTRAL, HONG KONG, 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- In a project valued at HK$17
million, the Judiciary of Hong Kong is the first government department to
implement a large scale client-server application.

The system, known as CASEMAN (Case And Summons Management system),
went live in July this year and is used to computerize summons and
charge cases in Hong Kong's magistrates courts. It uses Oracle's NLM
Server for Novell's Netware operating system to streamline the
processing of nearly half a million summonses and charge cases each
year.

It is expected that some 50 clerical staff posts in Judiciary and
prosecution departments will be saved after implementing the system
In addition, CASEMAN improves the tracking of fine payments at the
courts.

In choosing a client-server configuration, the Judiciary is
pioneering a new government initiative to make use of industry
standard microcomputers for complex applications.

The new Oracle Server for Netware 386 system allows the relational
database to reside directly on Novell file servers. These consist of
11 Compaq SystemPro computers installed at the 10 courts and
at the Police Central Traffic Prosecution Bureau. Oracle SQL*Forms
Version 3 has been used to develop the front-end user interface
which supports Chinese language.

The system is used by around 300 staff in Judiciary and other
prosecution departments for issuing summonses, scheduling court
hearings and tracking fines.

To issue a summons, users enter details of summons applications into
their PCs. Key items such as names, locations and offense
descriptions are translated automatically into Chinese for the
printing of summonses.

The summons applications are electronically transmitted to the
Information Technology Services Department's bureau computer where
hearings are centrally scheduled and summonses are printed. They are
then downloaded for local processing by the Oracle server at the
site where the hearing will be conducted.

Under the previous system, every prosecution department issued
summonses using its own offense descriptions. The new system is
designed to improve the quality of summonses and reduce time spent
in data entry by developing a set of around 3,000 "standard offense
descriptions."

Under the new system, instead of keying in the full offense
description which could take more than one thousand characters,
users need only key in the "offense code" and its associated
variables. As the Chinese translations of the standard offense
descriptions are completed, they will be implemented on the summons.

Another benefit of the new system is that, by coding offenses as
"heavy" or "light," the system can achieve more efficient
utilization of valuable court time during the scheduling of the
hearings.

According to the Information Technology Services Department which
developed the system for the Judiciary, the important advantages of
CASEMAN's client-server architecture are the ability to fully use
the local processing power of PCs and the ease of developing user
friendly front-ends with PC-based software.

The Oracle/Novell system is also considered truly open, not just
in the sense of an architecture which gives a flexible solution, but
in the sense that the supporting hardware is industry standard and
available from a wide range of suppliers. The continuity of future
support and services is therefore not dependent on the product
strategy of any particular vendor.

(Brett Cameron/19920812/Press Contact: Karen Wan, Oracle, tel: +852-
824 0118;HK time is GMT + 8)


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

Petroglyph Bundling Macintosh Software 08/14/92
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Petroglyph Inc.,
is taking on a more active role as software bundlers and packagers.
This is the second such promotion that it has arranged and
Newsbytes has learned that more of these arrangements are in the
planning stages.

At this time, what Petroglyph has done is bundle together three
packages from three different companies. The three products are:
DocuComp 1.5 from Advanced Software, Thought Pattern 1.3 from
Bananafish Software, and Petroglyph's own Editorial Advisor 1.0.
All three packages can be purchased together for the price of $49.95
which is distinctly less than the $459.85 at which these products
normally retail.

Newsbytes has learned that the reasons for this bundle are complex.
First, all three companies have learned that the best way to get
software sales is by word of mouth advertising. To get this, the
products need to be placed in people's hands and used. What they
are betting on is that once more people are using these products,
they will talk to their friends and recommend the products which
will drive sales up. A secondary reason is that all three companies
are apparently planning to issue major upgrades to these programs
over the next few months. By having more copies of the programs
out there, the companies can be assured of getting more upgrade
orders when the revision starts shipping. A third reason is that
Petroglyph has taken off most of the glitzy packaging and glossy
covers that add so much to the price of the product. What the
customer receives is the program, manuals, and any necessary
additional information packaged in a plain wrapper.

This particular set of products is called the Macintosh Productivity
Secrets Bundle. Petroglyph has worked with the companies that
produce the software before and have featured another Bananafish
product in an earlier bundling deal. Just for trying the bundle,
a copy of Spectre Lite will come with it and the customer gets to
keep it even if he or she decides to return the other software.
This bundle is being offered for the next 45 days or while supplies
last.

(Naor Wallach/19920813, Press Contact: Howard Metzenbaum, Petroglyph
Inc., 415-979-0588/Public Contact:Petroglyph, 800-437-5939)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00003)

Australia: IT Graduates Made Microsoft Fellows 08/14/92
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Three of Australia's top
computer science graduates have been awarded scholarships by the
Microsoft Institute. The scholarships will see the graduates
undertaking study at some of the most prestigious institutions
around the world.

Mark Lauer, Alpha Luk and Richard Buckland all received first class
honors and were awarded the Medal, the highest award for graduating
scholars. After an initial period of research work with the
Institute, the graduates will undertake studies at MIT, Stanford
University and Carnegie Mellon University, among others. They will
also gain access to Microsoft's worldwide computer network and
prerelease versions of Microsoft software (for which they will have to
sign a nondisclosure agreement). Once their studies are completed,
they are under no obligation to join Microsoft.

The fellowships from the Institute form one of the basic elements of
that body's operations. Institute director, Professor Vance
Gledhill, said, "The Institute is unique in the world and a good
model for other companies to follow in Australia." Gledhill hopes to
see three fellowships awarded a year, and to have a core research
team of ten students. Applications for the fellowships were made via
posters at Universities throughout Australia. The twelve applicants
were short-listed, and the final three winners chosen.

Doctoral topics including natural language understanding,
distributed computing, human/computer interaction and software
engineering were chosen by Gledhill for their potential to provide
projects earning exports in the future. Commenting on why subjects
such as these were chosen, Gledhill said, "Operating systems and
hardware are done thoroughly in the US, we need things we can build
on here."

(Sean McNamara/19920814/Press Contact: Microsoft Institute, phone in
Australia [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00004)

Qantas Installs Australian Cabin Mgt System 08/14/92
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- An Australian-designed
passenger management and entertainment system is to be installed in
Qantas' fleet of 747 and 767 aircraft. The system, developed by
Melbourne avionics manufacturer, ASI, incorporates passenger and
meal information, in-flight movies, information services and video
games.

The system features terminals for cabin crew and video terminals on
the back of seats for use by passengers. ASI originally made a name
for itself in the 1980s developing "boutique" avionics for
private jets - purchasing off-the-shelf components, packaging them
in more secure casing, and then integrating them and installing them
in the cockpit. "Our work was fitting out customized cockpits for
business jets with fancy communications packages," said Dallas
Clarke, ASI's director. However, the stock market collapse in October
1987 saw many business jets sold, and therefore ASI's main market
disappeared almost overnight.

Despite this setback, ASI continued to operate, and it was Qantas
which approached the Melbourne firm looking for a cabin management
system. The AUS$10M is seen by ASI as essential in continuing its
push for export sales. "We have demonstrated the system to over 70
airlines, and while all are interested, they all want to know when
Qantas will fly it. In fact, a sale to a national airline is
obviously a prerequisite for entry into the field," Clarke said. ASI
has already negotiated the installation of the system on the French
Airbus A340 and the Russian Ilyushin Il96M as a factory option. ASI
has also completed an AUS$350,000 contract to fit the system on the
Mexican Presidential Flight.

The onboard terminal works as a normal terminal on the Qantas
network, allowing cabin crew to keep track of passenger
requirements, next-of-kin, and so on. This information can be
updated by cabin-crew - a process which formerly required paperwork
to amend a printed copy of the passenger list. With a normal
configuration, passengers are offered several free channels, a few
pay services, information services and video games. Qantas has also
negotiated with Telecom to provide a on-board text fax service for
its passengers through an X.400 gateway.

(Sean McNamara/19920814/Press Contact: Qantas, phone in Australia
[phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00005)

Australia: AAP Joins Arena Bid For Mobile Licence 08/14/92
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- AAP, one of Australia's
largest news, information and communications groups, has entered the
race to compete against AOTC (Australian and Overseas
Telecommunication Corp) and Optus by providing Australia's third
national mobile phone licence. AAP is joining the bid by the Arena
GSM consortium, led by British firm Vodafone.

The AAP-Arena bid is one of 11 submitted by the Australian government
for the third mobile licence. Of these 11, 9 will be invited to
apply for the third licence. The AAP involvement on the Arena bid
will satisfy the local ownership requirements set by the government.
Foreign companies will hold 45 percent of the consortium, leaving
55 percent for their Australian partners.

The Arena bid offers the provision of both its standard GSM mobile
system and a microcellular network (MCN), cutting some customers'
bills by up to 50 percent it claims. "The fact that Vodafone has
pioneered technological advances such as the microcellular network,
which can bring tremendous benefits to Australia, has been a major
factor in our decision," said Barney Blundell, AAP Information
Service general manager of communications, commenting on AAP's
involvement.

The successful bidder will begin establishing the network in July
1993. The Arena bid would see AUS$550M invested over the next 7
years, with the creation of between 5,000 and 10,000 jobs. City
services would be offered first, with further expansion into remote
areas second by 1996.

(Sean McNamara/19920814/Press Contact: AAP, phone in Australia +61-
2-692 1000)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00006)

Australia: Carriers Clash Over Pay TV Decision 08/14/92
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- A row has emerged over the
appointment of Optus Communications as the exclusive carrier for pay
TV for the first year of the service. AOTC (Australian and Overseas
Telecommunications Corporation) has claimed in a submission to the
Federal Government that there should be no exclusivity - while Optus
is asking for 7 years' exclusivity.

The decision to appoint Optus' satellites as the exclusive delivery
technology for one year was recently made by the Federal Cabinet,
and is being reviewed by the Senate Select Committee on Subscription
Television Broadcasting Services. Telecom has claimed that any
exclusivity will affect its installation of a broadband optic fiber
network connecting home users to information and video services.
This network will provide the basis for such services as interactive
video services, multimedia daily newspapers and the like.

Telecom sees its future as lying with such services, which can
provide network traffic of a magnitude approaching (and in some
cases far exceeding) normal voice telephone traffic. Research
commissioned by Telecom has estimated that if all hired videos
(currently 60 per household per year with a market value of
AUS$1.35B) were distributed via such a broadband service, the
traffic would account for 20 times the voice traffic by the end of
the century. Telecom must now await the Committee's decision, which
will also include many other pay TV operational considerations.

(Sean McNamara/19920814/Press Contact: Optus, phone in Australia
[phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00007)

Artisoft Produces Own Ethernet Chip 08/14/92
TUCSON, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Artisoft is doing
something that it believes is unique in the industry. It is planning
to produce its own Ethernet chip for use in network interface
cards.

The new chip will be known as ALICE (Artisoft's LAN Interface Chip
for Ethernet). ALICE's biggest advantages from Artisoft's
perspective are that it will be totally under the control of the
company. No longer will they need to be dependent on the whims and
whimsy of some other silicon vendor.

In addition, due to the high level of integration that Artisoft
has achieved on this device, the company expects to be able to reduce
both the number of components on a board as well as the manufacturing
cost of the boards. This, in turn, will allow Artisoft better control
of their costs and perhaps better margins.

Engineering samples of ALICE are available right now. Quantity
shipments to support Artisoft's own production plans as well as
potential purchasers will begin in the 4th quarter of this year.
Artisoft is planning to sell these chips to qualified PC and
peripheral manufacturers. No price has been set for the chip at this
time.

Since Artisoft is primarily known as a software company, the question
of how much hardware knowledge officers have is immediately raised. The
company points to its years of manufacturing its own interface
cards and claims that having much software knowledge is actually an
advantage. For instance, the company is saying that the chip is
completely software programmable. As a matter of fact, it is
conceivable to have Ethernet boards designed without the need for
any jumpers or other hardware settings at all.

The chip is designed to be compliant with both ISA and Micro Channel
busses. In addition, it is compatible with almost any of the various
software protocols that exist in the networking world today. So the
card can be used in an Artisoft LAN, a Novell LAN, or a Banyan Vines
LAN with no difference to the hardware.

(Naor Wallach/19920814/Press Contact: Joe Stunkard, Artisoft, 602-
690-3231/Public Contact:Artisoft, 602-293-4000, 800-TINY RAM)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00008)

Microdyne Licenses 6 Cards From Novell 08/14/92
ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Microdyne has
announced that it has signed another in the series of agreements by
which it licenses various hardware devices from Novell for
manufacturing and improvement on its own.

With this agreement, Microdyne becomes the second company that will
be manufacturing Novell's most popular and well-known cards. The
cards involved are: the NE1000, the NE2000, the NE2000T, the NE2100,
the NE3200, and the NE1500T. All of these cards are currently being
manufactured by Eagle Manufacturing and sold in Novell's familiar
red box. Once Microdyne is up to speed on manufacturing these boards,
they too will be selling the boards in the red boxes. The decal on
the box will say Novell by Microdyne.

Microdyne officials told Newsbytes that they see this arrangement as
being beneficial to all three companies. Eagle and Microdyne have
different channels of distribution and they will not turn out to be
competing against each other too much. With Eagle enjoying a 14%
share of the overall Ethernet adapter market, Microdyne will gain as
its cards take on a larger share. Novell will gain since it is
to receive a royalty payment from Microdyne for every card sold.

Microdyne is also in the process of designing a new generation of
network interface cards. The agreement calls for Novell to test and
certify the new Microdyne cards when they become available so that
the customer is assured that the cards will work in their network.
This new generation of cards is scheduled to become available in the
early part of 1993.

Over the past eight years, Microdyne and Novell have entered into
a number of these agreements. This past year, the trend has been
accelerating as Novell has exited the hardware manufacturing
business. This agreement is still very unique in that it could
represent the largest volume product that Novell has licensed to
Microdyne and could easily be a major factor in Microdyne growth.

Microdyne is not planning on increasing prices at all. The first
cards that Microdyne will manufacture are expected to be available
in October.

(Naor Wallach/19920814/Press Contact: Neal Sanders, Microdyne,
703-739-0500/Public Contact:Microdyne, 703-739-0500)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00009)

New For Macintosh: Attain Upgrades "In Control" 08/14/92
SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Attain has
announced an upgrade to its In Control to-do-list organizer. The new
version is characterized by two major enhancements and a whole host
of small improvements and bug fixes.

The first major improvement in the program is the addition of file
sharing capabilities across a network. This will allow multiple
users to work on the same file if needed. The program allows only
the person who created the file to modify and save the contents in
stead of the original file. All other users can view and modify the
contents of the file, but they cannot save the file to the same
name. What those other people can do is make the necessary changes
and then save the file under a different name.

Another aspect of this feature is that the program will notify a
user when the underlying file has changed. For instance, if users
A and B are both working on the file, and user A is the owner, user
B will be notified once the file has been changed and saved to the
file server. In this way, user B can be prompted to save his work
and go look at what changes user A made to the file. This feature
only works if both users are in the same file at the same time. If
User B activates the file some time after user A has saved it, then
user B will not get the file changed message.

The second major enhancement was one that was requested by many of
Attain's customers. When the user is arranging the to-do items and
moves the around, the program will now adopt the style rules that
are in place in the new location and apply them to the data that
was moved. This is true for column formatting as well as row
formatting and carries through to fonts, sizes, colors, and styles
of the text.

The minor improvements in the program include the addition of a
manual page break feature and the addition of time stamps to the
printed headers and footers.

Version 1.1 of In Control is available now and retails for $129.95.
Current users can upgrade to the new version for a $5 handling fee.
Those users who bought the stand-alone version after June 1 of this
year are eligible to receive the upgrade for free.

(Naor Wallach/19920814/Press Contact: Alan Albert, Attain, 617-776-
1110/Public Contact:Attain, 617-776-1110)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00010)

Chinese Satellite Launch 08/14/92
XICHANG, SOUTH WEST CHINA 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Australia's new
telecommunications carrier Optus had reason to celebrate today as
its most ambitious project finally came off when a Chinese rocket
launched a communications satellite into orbit.

The launch was originally planned to take place a few months
ago, but was aborted after two of the rocket's booster engines
failed to ignite. But today there was no hesitation - at 7am local
time, the one main and four booster engines lifted the rocket like a
flaming pencil into the sky. This is the first commercial payload
carried by China's latest Long March 2E rocket and is China's first
commercial launch of a satellite for a western owner. It had a
lift-off weight of 464 tons, but a thrust of more than 600 tons.

Both first and second stages of the rocket use nitrogen tetroxide
and unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine for fuel (this information
is included for you backyard experimenters). The boosters
separated by firing small sideways rockets, and severing the
supports pyrotechnically.

The satellite is also a first. It's a Hughes HS 601, with 15 more
orders already on the books (Optus has another planned for launch
at the end of the year). It consists of 15, 50 watt Ku band
transponders, one 150 watt L band transponder and an experimental
30 gigahertz beacon. It also has a laser retoreflector for precise
satellite location and precision time distribution setting. Power
demand is 3.5kW, but the nine meter, three-panel solar cell arrays
are capable of producing six kW and there are NiH batteries for
eclipse conditions.

At present the satellite is in a low, highly elliptical orbit, and over
the next couple of weeks will be nudged into final geostationary
orbit by five firings of the apogee motor. The orbital slot is over
the equator, north of eastern Australia. It will be slipped into the
position currently held by one of the first Optus satellites (actually
Aussat, as part of the deal in becoming Australia's second carrier
was that Optus took over the satellite carrier Aussat).

The HS 601 satellites carry sufficient fuel for a 14-year lifespan,
twice that of the models they are replacing. In addition the
transponders are three times as powerful. The transponders will
cover all of Australia and some surrounding areas such as New
Zealand, via a number of broad and spot beams.

Mission control is based in Sydney, with staff from Optus and
Hughes. In fact, Hughes still owns the satellite until it is
successfully in operation. The entire bill for placing both satellites
into operation is more than $500M, though more than $30M of
that has gone to Australian components of the project.

The new satellites will carry existing TV material transfers and
direct broadcasting but it is proposed that the following services
be added -- pay TV broadcasting direct to homes via small (60cm -
2 foot) dishes; and direct earth to space to earth mobile
communications covering the entire continent.

The launch "party" was based at Optus ground control headquarters
in Sydney, with live TV coverage of the event provided by China
Central TV. The English commentary seemed to consist mainly of
an very long ad for the Chinese equivalent of TV Week magazine,
and a description of the programs offered in Chinese and other
languages.

(Paul Zucker/19920814/Contact Optus tel [phone] fax
+_61-2-2387100 and if you happen to have a steerable satellite
dish, have a listen around 12.5 GHz after 22nd August.)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00011)

 ****Apple Powerbook Beats Sharp In Freezing Test 08/14/92
ZERMATT, SWITZERLAND 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- An Apple Mac Powerbook
computer and an Australian skier helped pull a World Cup skiing
event out of trouble when the original result recording computer
failed. It was a Sharp notebook, and its liquid crystal display (LCD)
froze so that it couldn't display anything at the Swiss event.

Ian Pidgeon, an ex-Australian freestyle skiing champion, and
developer of ski scoring software was there, and was able to set
up a scoring system on his Powerbook in minutes allowing the
event to continue. He said his machine has given faultless
performance in skiing conditions for the past seven months in
Europe and Canada.

Pidgeon's program is built on Claris Resolve. The freestyle ski
championships are divided into three disciplines: aerials, moguls
and ballet. For each round in each discipline relevant information
must be extracted for each person, random starting positions
selected and competition print-outs produced. Later, the scores are
entered into the program and results calculated.

Pidgeon also uses his Powerbook for public address announcements.
He records sponsorship message on the computer using the standard
microphone, then feeds these back into the PA system when needed. He
uses Resolve's scripting to make the announcer's job easier. Everything
is printed on the screen as needed.

The MacFreestyle program now produces graphical versions of
the results and these can be fed from the computer to TV coverage
via a graphics generator. Lastly, the scoreboard is controlled
directly via the PowerBook's modem port.

(Paul Zucker/19920814/Contact Claris Australia phone +61-2-
4528585 fax [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00012)

Australia: Compaq To Back Export Initiatives 08/14/92
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Compaq Computer Australia is
taking on the role of white knight in helping small, innovative
Australian information technology companies develop export products.
The company announced yesterday that it is strongly committed to
supporting local R&D/export initiatives as part of its Fixed Term
Arrangement (FTA) with the Australian government.

The new four year FTA agreements target Australian companies
with more than $10M in government sales and are part of the
government's export drive. Senator John Button said, "The signing
by Compaq of the first FTA agreement marks a commitment by
the company to their future in Australia and the region."

A key element of the FTA agreement involves Compaq's collaboration
with local companies involved in its new value-added reseller program.
Compaq aims to boost development of PC-based applications with
international sales potential, and create export markets. It will
provide technological support to local companies through its two
Australian Systems Centers in Sydney and Melbourne.

Compaq Australia's marketing director, Inge Fuglestved, said that
Compaq had already assisted two smaller IT companies involved
in software and peripherals, to develop export products.

(Paul Zucker/19920814)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(BOS)(00013)

New Aldus Drawing Program For Mac And Windows 08/14/92
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Aldus
Corporation has started to ship IntelliDraw 1.0, a multi-featured
"smart" drawing program for the Mac and Windows.

Kevin LaRue, product marketing manager, told Newsbytes that the
savvy new software is intended for quick creation and revision of
complex artwork, such as organizational charts, technical drawings,
forms, space plans, and fliers.

According to LaRue, IntelliDraw is based on a platform-independent
object-oriented architecture that lets users designate
relationships among objects they draw. Relationships can be based
on spatial, alignment, dimensional requirements, along with other
criteria.

The user can choose to keep the designated relationships intact no
matter how much the individual components of a drawing change.
Alternatively, objects can be "linked" together, so that a change
in one component does generate changes in others. Object linking
might be used, for example, to see how big an entire graphic would
get if one component became larger.

IntelliDraw comes with a command menu and tool pallette for
defining relationships, plus a set of "smart" templates and clip
art containing time-saving predefined object relationships.

Drawing tools include Align/Distribute and Symmetrigon, a feature
for single-step drawing of multi-sided symmetrical shapes. Other
tools are directed at design modification. Sticky Connectors lets
the user "tell" lines to stretch, rotate or remain rigid when a
drawing is being modified. The Clonable Master allows alterations
to be made to multiple copies, merely by editing a "master object."
Connectigon permits quick establishment of connections between new
objects and existing shapes.

The clip art in IntelliDraw can be manipulated in the same ways as
user-created objects. So, a designer can make a clip art tree
"grow" to show what a landscape will look like over time, or add
new "chairs" to a clip art dining room scene without knocking the
original "chairs" askew.

The Windows and Macintosh versions of IntelliDraw share a common
code base, permitting cross-platform compatibility and seamless
file sharing. In addition, each edition supports interapplication
communication - the Mac edition via Publish and Subscribe, and the
Windows version via OLE (object linking and embedding).

The recommended configuration for the Mac edition is a Quadra,
PowerBook 140 or 170, II series, SE/30, LC, or Class II computer
with 4 MB of RAM, System 6.0.6 or higher, Finder 6.1 or later, and
a hard disk.

The recommended configuration for the Windows version is a 386-
based IBM-compatible PC or higher with 4 MB of RAM, Windows 3.0 or
later, an 80 MB hard disk, a VGA or other high-resolution graphics-
adapter card, and a mouse. Each package is priced at $299.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19920813; Press Contact: Kathy Episcopo, Aldus,
tel [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00014)

 ****Image World: Desktop Video Wars Heat Up 08/13/92
LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 13 (NB) -- The fight for
market share in the desktop video market is heating up with some new
players entering.

Matrox, a 16-year-old company Canadian company is already doing some name
calling in comparing its product, which won't ship until the fourth
quarter of this year, to other products on the market.

Matrox was demonstrating its Matrox Studio product at Image World, a
conference in Long Beach, CA. The company handed out flyers comparing
it to other video products, including New Tek's Video Toaster. The
company was even comparing its product to those not shipping yet,
like Fast Electronic's Video Machine.

The attraction to the Matrox product is the company's claim it
includes everything you need and can use a standard IBM compatible
computer, which can then also be used with other software for business.
Matrox Studio is a Microsoft Windows-based product with five hardware
boards, in either NTSC or PAL versions, that fit into an IBM or
compatible personal computer and includes the company's own Personal
Producer software package.

Matrox recommends a 486 33 megahertz-based computer with at least an
80 megabyte (MB) hard disk, 8 MB of random access memory (RAM), a
video graphics array (VGA) monitor, speakers or headphones, DOS 5.0,
and Windows 3.1. The company says it only supports computers from
Advanced Logic Research, AST, and Everex -- and will not support Dell.
When asked why not Dell, company representatives told Newsbytes some
incompatibilities exist between their equipment and Dell's.

Desktop video production still requires some running around to gather
up software tools and component parts, and the Matrox product, despite
boasts to the contrary, is no exception. While the company includes
its Producer Profile editing software, and for a limited time says it
will throw in Mathematica's Tempra Pro graphics and title creation
application, it still requires third party software for audio editing,
and may require a universal control network for decks. The company
says some decks may not be controlled by its RS-422 card that will
support up to five video cassette recorders (VCRs) and recommends
V-LAN Controller from Vidoemedia.

The company claims you can get started in video editing with its
$10,000 system. It says it allows you to define your own transitions,
something the Toaster doesn't do, and allows work with up to five
video and graphics layers at once. The company also points out the
Toaster doesn't come with a video editor. However, the Toaster does
come with a 3D animation module and a titler, while the Matrox product
doesn't.

Matrox also said it offers off-line and on-line non-linear
editing, allowing users to produce final tapes from compressed
disk-base video or original tapes.

Matrox says its product is the most like Video F/X Plus, a product for
the Macintosh that can import graphics from other Macintosh applications.
However, Matrox points out it can also import TGA and BMP format
files in Windows.

The most interesting comparison was with Fast Electronics' Video
Machine, a product that isn't even available on the market yet. Matrox
says the most important difference between it and the Video Machine
is it can do five-layer compositing while the Video Machine can only
handle two layers.

While some of the other products talked about by Matrox were
not represented at the Image World show, the ones that were
there, including New Tek, declined to comment on Matrox's
claims.

Dorval, Quebec-based Matrox says it has offered graphics and
video processing products through the original equipment
manufacture (OEM) channels for years. However, in 1991 it
formed the Video Products Group to offer computer-based tools
to video producers.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920813/Press Contact: Janet Matey, Matrox,
tel [phone], fax [phone] ; Public Contact, 800-361-
4903)


(REVIEW)(APPLE)(SFO)(00015)

Review of: Now Utilities 08/14/92

From: Now Software, 520 SW Harrison, Suite 435, Portland, OR, 97201,
503-274-2800

Price: $129

PUMA Rating:3.5 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest)

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: Naor Wallach 08/14/92

Summary: A set of ten utilities for the Macintosh. Some of the
things that these utilities do should have been done by Apple.
Many of them will serve various needs that you may not realize you
even had. But once you understand what they do, you'll wonder how
you did without them.

======

REVIEW

======

Now Utilities -- we reviewed version 3.01 although 3.02 is now
out and 4.0 will be out later this year -- is a collection of
ten utilities for the Macintosh that are intended to help make life
easier or more comfortable for the user. The collection is simply
that - a collection. It is not necessary to use any specific utility
in order to gain the benefits of another. The program comes on two
disks and a 160-page book that explains each of the utilities.

The installation process is almost a pleasure. You start the Install
program and then indicate which of the utilities you want to install
in your computer. Since initially you are not sure of which utility
does what, the program gives you assistance in the form of a short
blurb on each utility when you pass the mouse cursor over the
program's checkbox. Once you have made your selections, pressing the
OK button causes the program to go ahead and do all the work for
you. One of the nicest of all the features in this excellent
installation program is the ability to de-install a program. After
you installed a utility, you can get back into the installation
program and unclick the selection checkbox. This will result in the
program asking you whether you intend to uninstall the utility.
If you answer in the affirmative, the program goes ahead and takes
out all the files that were a part of the installation process.
This is a feature that is very valuable and one that I'd like to
see implemented in every program that provides an installation
routine.

Another nice feature is that the set of disks contain all the
necessary software for the operation of the utilities. For instance,
some of the utilities require the Claris XTND toolset or CE
Software's CE Toolbox. Now Software has included copies of those
programs on the diskettes and the installation program knows of the
need and takes care of installing them if necessary.

I will now briefly describe each of the ten utilities that come with
this collection and offer my opinion on their usefulness. The
utilities are described alphabetically as they appear in the manual.

First in the list is "Alarms Clock." This utility places a small
digital clock at the upper right hand side of your menu bar. The
utility is smart enough to know about any other menus that may appear
at that location and shifts the location of the clock appropriately.
This is a much more useful clock than the one that Apple supplies as
a desk accessory or the myriad of public domain and shareware clocks.
In addition to displaying the time, the clock also displays the date.

Doubleclicking presents you with the alarm options of this utility.
You can set periodic alarms as well as one-time alarms. And if
all of this was not enough you can also use this utility in its
stopwatch mode to time up or time down various events. Then, to
top it all off, each and every option and display is configurable
in some fashion.

Desk Picture is a utility that allows you to replace the standard
Macintosh background display with anything you like. The only
requirement is that the file that you wish to display be in one of
the three graphics formats that the program understands: PICT,
MacPaint, or Startupscreen. This is not a prohibitive requirement
as most graphics programs can work in one or more of these common
formats. Not only can you place a picture on any of your monitors,
but you can resize the pictures and have multiple pictures appear
on your desktop. Each of those can be resized and moved around until
you get just the effect you seek. Finally, you can spice up your
life even more by giving the utility a list of pictures that you
like and having it choose one at random each time you turn your
computer on.

Multimaster is billed by the company as "...the quickest way to
launch files and applications without returning to the Finder."
The way it works is simple. You set up a configuration file that
contains your preferences and application lists. Then, when you want
to swap among applications you can select either the icon from the
menubar or the pop up window and by selecting your application name
from there, immediately jump into that application.

Two other pieces of Multimaster are known as the memory view and
the memory sizer. Memory View gives you a graphical presentation
of each application and of its memory usage pattern. Memory Sizer
allows you to change the amount of memory allocated to any
particular application without having to go back to the Finder
and select the Get Info... command.

NowMenus creates submenus under the Apple, Chooser, and Control
Panel menus so that you can have instant access to the items that
would normally take a couple of steps to reach. The appearance of
the Apple menu is changed to reflect the installation of NowMenu.
This is done via the appearance of the little triangle that
represents nested menus.

NowSave is another one of those utilities that once you realize the
need for, you cannot understand why it is not a part of the normal
operating system. What this utility does is monitor the amount of
activity or time that is happening on your computer. Once a certain
predefined threshold has been reached, the computer automatically
saves all of your work. If you've ever been in a situation where
several hours of work have gone down the tubes when a power failure
occurs or someone kicks out your power cord, you will fully appreciate
the power of this utility.

Of course, this utility has a set of customization features. It
is possible for you to set different intervals for saving items per
application. Also, each application can be set to save after a
certain time period, a certain number of keystrokes, or a certain
number of mouse clicks.

Profiler is a utility that you will likely use only once or twice.
On the other hand, if you are responsible for the computers in
your department or organization, or are a network administrator,
then you may wish to use it more frequently. What Profiler does
is go through every part of your computer and completely analyze
its contents. Then, a report is generated that you can peruse and
print to keep. You can even have it flag duplicate file names in
different parts of your hard disk. Your profile can be modified in
various ways that primarily relate to the depth and extent of the
report that you get.

Screen Locker provides password protection to your Macintosh. This
is especially appreciated by people who may be in open office
environments and who have files that are confidential in nature
on their hard disks. In addition to password-protecting your
computer, Screen Locker will also log all activities that occur
on your computer as another security monitoring feature, and it
comes with a set of screen saver routines. Should you forget your
password, Screen Locker gives you a back gate - an additional
password that overrides the original and allows you access to
your machine.

Startup Manager gives you control over the incredible number and
variety of system extensions, INITs, and other extensions that are
available to the Macintosh user. In essence, you can use Startup
Manager to decide whether or not to activate an extension at startup,
and you can also control the order in which the extensions are
installed in the computer. In addition, this utility gives you a
modicum of additional security by protecting against crashing
extensions and allowing you to reset memory limits as they apply to
your system. As with the other utilities, there is a full range
of customizations that you can perform.

Super Boomerang replaces the standard file open dialog box with one
of its own. This one is distinguished by having its own menu bar
across the top of the dialog box. Among other functions, Super
Boomerang remembers the number of last used files and puts them in a
pull down menu so that you do not have to hunt for them again. It
also remembers the folder in which the last used file was and when
you open a file again, it automatically shows you the contents of
that folder. This repairs the aggravation that many users encounter
when they start up an application via a particular file and then,
when they want to work on another file in the same folder, are
required to navigate back to the folder.

Again, there is a full set of customizing options available to you
to get this utility working in exactly the manner that would perform
best for you.

Finally there is WYSIWYG Menus. This utility does one thing. It
displays any application's Font menu using the actual fonts.
No longer do you have to try to remember what each
font looks like. You also do not need to keep a page of all the
fonts and their visual appearance next to your monitor. With
WYSIWYG Menus you can pull down the font menu and see each font
appear in its own font style. Should this feature not work for
you under certain conditions, it is possible to exclude certain
applications from the utility. This is one of several customization
options that the program allows.

I have been using these utilities for some time now. I have found
that I do not need all of them all of the time. Some I used once,
others I used a couple of times, and some I would not part with. I
suspect that most customers of this utility set would have similar
experiences to mine. However, I believe that this utility set is
diverse enough and powerful enough that most Macintosh users will
be willing to spend the money necessary to acquire the set.

A final word of caution. Like any other program, there is a cost to
using these utilities. Each and every one of them takes up a certain
amount of memory and a certain percentage of your CPU. At one point
in my testing I had noticed that a program that I use frequently and
which maintains a time of use clock seemed to be ticking very slowly.
A quick comparison of its tick rate with the Alarm Clock's clock
revealed that it was about 30% slower than real time (i.e. it took
10 seconds to perform 7 seconds of work). When I disabled all of
the utilities that I had active at that time, my program started
operating at peak efficiency again. This may be a minor point to
most of you, but you should be aware of the effect of such utilities
on your Macintosh.

===========

PUMA RATING

===========

PERFORMANCE: 4 The programs worked as advertised. Aside from the
additional load that they placed on the CPU, which is expected,
there seemed to be no problems or performance degradation that I
could detect.

USEFULNESS: 3 Some of these utilities are life savers. Others will
be perceived as so so. In general I suspect that most people will
find several that they wish to use and will not bother to install
the others.

MANUAL: 4 It is very clear, full of examples and screen shots, and
well organized. Whenever I wanted to make a change I had no problem
finding just the right section to read.

AVAILABILITY: 3 This program is widely available in software stores
or in mail order houses. The only beef I have with the company here
is that they do not provide a toll-free number for support calls. I do
not expect that many people would have occasion to call, but a toll
free number is not too much to expect.

(Naor Wallach/19920804/Now Software, 503-274-2800)


(REVIEW)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00016)

Review of: Xpedite Fax Service (with software) 08/14/92

From: Xpedite Systems Inc. 446 Highway 35, Eatontown, New Jersey,
07724, 908-389-3373

Price: The software is sold along with fax broadcast services

PUMA Rating: 3.0 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest)

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: Dana Blankenhorn 08/14/92

Summary: Xpedite offers fax broadcast and delivery services from
any PC with a modem.

======

REVIEW

======

Fax broadcasting is becoming an increasingly large market. And as
more and more people come to depend on their fax machines,
broadcasting is becoming a luxury demanding use of a service
bureau.

A fax broadcast, put simply, is delivery of a single fax message
to a large number of addresses. It could be a newsletter, news
release, or sales data sent to satellite offices. But sending
such a message can tie up a fax machine for hours. Messages sent
by day also cost much more than those sent at night.

Fax broadcasters can also provide an improvement in quality for
messages. By taking the fax as a computer file, rather than a
scanned image off a plain fax machine, the service can deliver
exactly what was sent, not its second cousin.

Xpedite offers two separate software programs, which are loaded
onto separate directories of your hard disk. PC-Xpedite lets you
maintain a fax mailbox with the service, and send individual fax
messages using common word processing standards. A separate
program, PC FaxCast, also lets you maintain mailing lists and
send broadcasts, and goes into a separate sub-directory.

The two programs do work together, however, with the PCX program
used to handle telecommunications regardless of which program is
placing an order. This can cause problems, if you're not careful.
Each time you start a broadcast, the program must encrypt your
computer file for transmission, then set-up a communications
session with Xpedite. If the transmission fails, and you try to
re-start, the system will assume you now have two messages
pending, and send two copies. This can get expensive fast, and
very embarrassing when those who have multiple copies of the same
message on their fax machines call back.

Eliminating these pending messages means dropping out of the PC
FaxCast program and going into the PCX program in order to delete
messages from the pending queue. This is made difficult by the
fact that none of the software can run under DesqView. You have
to drop out of that multitasking program in order to start
the faxing process.

Despite these glitches, I found PCXpedite worthwhile. The
quality of the received messages was high. I didn't need a
separate fax board to use the service. And, by scheduling the
broadcasts late at night, I saved money on the transmission.

I must say something about the telephone-based product support.
It's excellent. It's delivered on a toll-free number, and
questions are always answered on one call. This more than makes
up for any problems with the manual.

===========

PUMA RATING

===========

PERFORMANCE: 3.0 Despite glitches, it finally works well.

USEFULNESS: 3.0 The software is most effective if you lack a fax
board, but need to do fax broadcasts.

MANUAL: 4.0. Excellent telephone support means you don't need it.

AVAILABILITY: 2.0 Xpedite is working with a number of small
resellers and agents. It can be hard to find.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920805/Press Contact: Xpedite Systems Inc.,
908-389-3373)


(EDITORIAL)(GOVT)(WAS)(00017)

Editorial: Can/US/Mex Trade Agreement: We All Will Benefit 08/14/92
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- By John McCormick.
President Bush has been touting the North American Free Trade
Agreement this week with a vengeance - obviously hoping to build his
image among his more affluent supporters.

He certainly won't win any points with union workers because low-
skill repetitive factory assembly work is exactly the sort of job
which will go south from as far as Saskatchewan and Bangor to the
friendlier no-benefit $5/day labor market of Mexico.

Nevertheless, I fully support the NAFTA and agree with the
President when he says that it will boost the American economy,
and so should nearly everyone who reads computer publications.

You see, technical workers will benefit from NAFTA because the
US and Canada have the high-tech skills needed to design,
finance, and market the products built south of the border.

NAFTA merely continues the current trend of exporting low-skill
jobs overseas and building high-skill business here.

We should all applaud this agreement if only because instead of
exporting our low-pay jobs to Asia they will now go to a major
trading partner on our southern border.

Let's stop and think for a minute about what this difference
means. Low-skill jobs will always migrate to where the workers make
the least and get the lowest benefits.

I have little sympathy with union leaders who are losing their
power, perks, and positions as membership fades, but I do
empathize with the union workers who haven't seen the writing on
the monitors and gotten training so they will fit into the growth
industries.

It isn't their fault; they saw their parents winning the good
life by working in factories, and the American school system has
totally failed to explain to them that things are changing.

But water will always flow downhill, eventually even getting
over tariff barriers and around poor unions, providing the rest
of us with lower-priced goods.

Given that rational analysis, just where do we want those jobs to
go? Is it better to see jobs go to Asian nations which actively block
US imports? Their workers will get new jobs but they won't
import more US goods, so our trade deficit will continue to
soar.

Mexico, on the other hand, will be a free trade zone, loaded with
people making more money who are desperate to buy US and
Canadian-made goods.

Many low-pay jobs such as those in the garment industry are
already going to Mexicans who are illegally living and working in
the US - the only difference will be in where they work and
live.

If you don't believe that NAFTA will benefit the US, how do you
explain the loud screams of outrage coming from the Japan
Automobile Association?

But those who fear the NAFTA should take heart.

It took years to negotiate and President Bush only announced the
agreement this week; Congress, which won't even look at the
agreement until next year, will take months or years to accept or
reject some modified version of NAFTA.

Even if a miracle happens and it is quickly approved, did you
know that those tariff barriers won't totally disappear for
another 15 years?

What we really need to do is find a way to export federal
bureaucrats' jobs south of the border.

The US now has about 17 million local, state, and federal
employees, many of whom do nothing productive that adds to our
economy.

I have no argument with the guys who patch potholes or enforce
dog license and rabies laws, but last week I got a call from the
Commerce Department where a high-level PR type was whining that
no one has ordered any government reports on new Eastern European
markets.

I suggested that it might be because everyone knows that there is
little money in the newly freed former Communist countries and,
besides, companies such as Microsoft already had offices there.

He asked me if I didn't know of any high-tech companies that had
used Commerce Department research and I couldn't think of any
which had relied on such research that were still in business.

Then he tried to get me to order some of his agency's research
for use in my news reports and I pointed out that we hardly
needed his research because Newsbytes already had a Moscow
Bureau.

In case you have forgotten, the Commerce Department is the same
group which failed for years to convince President Bush that the
US was in a deep recession and is always releasing massively
revised trade and economic reports to correct errors made in
their earlier reports about inflation and exports.

It seems to me that his job and his entire department would be
excellent candidates for export to Mexico, where we could
continue to ignore the same questionable research but would only
have to pay one-tenth as much for it out of our taxes.

It's just my opinion, but there are certainly other places where
we could save some money on government expenditures.

For instance, the Environmental Protection Agency (under Republican
control) works to promote strict antipollution regulation while
Vice President Quayle (under Republican control?) chairs a
commission that battles the same regulations - at least for their
friends. I can't help but feel that we could save a bundle by
eliminating either or perhaps both jobs.

The least we could do is give those particular assignments to
$1/hour Mexicans.

Excuse me, I think the FBI is at the door again.

(John McCormick/19920814/)


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

Bellcore Issues Fiber Net Standard Plans 08/14/92
RED BANK, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Bellcore, the
research arm of the regional Bell companies, announced a
networking and operating plan for the fiber network standard
called SONET.

A standard for linking fiber networks will allow all US phone
companies to install the technology with confidence, and will let
companies implement the same features, functions, and operations
support nationwide. The idea is to put "optical highways" in
local and interstate phone networks. The plan was published for
equipment suppliers and the phone companies, it carries the
number SR-TSV-002387 and it can be ordered through Bellcore's
Customer Service office at 908/699-5800.

However, in a press statement, Bellcore SONET project manager, Ray
Ritchie, emphasized this is not the final word on fiber
networking. "This is a living document that gives a high-level
view of all aspects of SONET planning, and remains active until
full implementation of the technology," he said.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920814/Press Contact: Bellcore, Deanna Munoz,
201/740-6110)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00019)

Gandalf Reports Loss, Points To Order Backlog 08/14/92
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Communications
equipment maker Gandalf Technologies lost US$3.6 million in its
first quarter, ended June 27, a setback after the company reported
a profit in the fourth quarter of fiscal 1992. However, Gandalf
pointed to a growing order backlog and said business is now on
target.

"Actually we've had a good trend for the first quarter," company
spokeswoman Janice Drummond told Newsbytes. "April was the worst
month. May and June were on target."

First-quarter revenues slipped to US$39.66 million, compared to
US$43.35 million in the same quarter last year. The net loss on the
most recent quarter compares to a US$6.16-million loss in the
corresponding quarter last year.

In its 1992 fiscal year, Gandalf lost C$11.4 million on revenues of
C$137.15 million. With the beginning of the current fiscal year,
the company has switched to reporting its financial results in U.S.
currency. The 1992 fiscal year covered only eight months due to a
change in Gandalf's fiscal year-end to March 31.

Gandalf officials said the company's order backlog from March to
July of this year averaged 55 percent higher than for the period
from November to February, and was the highest in Gandalf's
history. Gandalf's gross profit on product revenue is also getting
better, according to officials of the company.

In 1992, Gandalf acquired Infotron Systems of Cherry Hill, New
Jersey. Reorganization following the merger included laying off "a
couple of hundred people" with "fairly generous severance
packages," as well as moving a Gandalf test and assembly operation
from Wheeling, Illinois to Cherry Hill and moving Infotron's
manufacturing from Cherry Hill to Nepean, Drummond said.

(Grant Buckler/19920814/Press Contact: Janice Drummond or Alastair
Davie, Gandalf, 613-564-0183; Public Contact: Gandalf,
613-723-6500)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00020)

ROUNDUP: Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 08/14/92
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Roundup is a brief
look at some computer stories carried in other publications
received here this past week.

The August Systems Integration Business explores Anderson
Consulting's expanded role as a business systems integrator
rather than just a computer systems integrator.

The August 11 Bay Area Computer Currents concentrates on PC
desktop publishing.

Computerworld dated August 10 gives over its guest editorial page
to two guys named Bush and Clinton, allowing them a chance to
explain their outlook on technological imperatives.

August 10's Communicationsweek starts a two part series on using
network-modeling tools to cut development costs.

Government Computer News for the week of August 3 carries a story
on how low 386DX-based computers prices have fallen for Agency
GSA contract buyers and carries a major buyer's guide on
geographic information (mapping) systems.

The August 10 Telephony says that the Network Operations Forum
has launched a large scale test of signaling system 7's network
components.

(John McCormick/19920814/)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00021)

Bill To Force Bells Out Of Info Biz To Get Vote 08/14/92
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Judiciary Committee
chair Jack Brooks won a turf war before speaker Thomas Foley and
will be able to put his Bell bill before the full House.

Brooks' bill, which is called an "anti-trust" bill, would force
the seven Bell companies out of the information services business
at least for a time and regulate their re-entry. The Bell
companies have been fighting the bill hard, and hoped that the
Energy and Commerce Committee of Michigan Democrat John Dingell
would be given jurisdiction over the issue. However, the chances
of the Brooks bill becoming law this year is almost nil. It
would not be voted on until September 25 at the earliest, and the
House is due to adjourn October 2.

In the end, some analysts say, reregulation of the Bells depends
on the Presidential race. President Bush favors deregulation and
has threatened to veto any bill re-imposing it. Democratic Vice
Presidential nominee Al Gore is known as a telecommunications
expert and might try to shape legislation to his liking.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920814)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00022)

Bell News Briefs 08/14/92
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Bell Atlantic, which
seems to be taking the hardest line this year in labor negotiations,
is trying to show it is willing to compete in its captive markets
through a deal with Metropolitan Fiber Systems, one of the nation's
largest "bypass" companies.

Bypass firms run rings of fiber cable around major markets, and
large companies can save on local service by connecting to them.
The deal Bell Atlantic signed lets MFS "co-locate" some of its
gear in Bell Atlantic central offices, on a trial basis, for some
special services. It is not nearly as far-reaching as a deal
NYNEX signed earlier, and covers only three offices in
Pennsylvania. The agreement will settle a complaint filed last
year with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission by MFS.

Meanwhile, Southwestern Bell ran into more criticism for its
handling of Telmex, the Mexican phone company. On the eve of the
signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement, press reports
indicate that Telmex service has not improved much since the
company and Grupo Carso of Mexico took it private a few years
ago. The result is that Mexican businessmen are flocking to
private cellular firms in droves, even over TelMex' own Telcel
cellular unit, while reaping millions of pesos in profit on
TelMex stock, which has risen in value on expectations that
improved service will improve cash flow. TelMex claims it has
added 670,000 new lines this year, and will add another 1.6
million by 1994, but Mexico still has just over seven lines for every
100 citizens, against 50 per 100 in the US. And complaints over
poor service have doubled. The result of the criticism could be
demands that TelMex step-up new investments, which could hurt
Southwestern Bell's own results in the near-term.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920814/Press Contact: Eric Rabe, Bell
Atlantic, 215-466-5611)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00023)

New Transatlantic Phone Cable For AT&T, MCI 08/14/92
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- A new trans-
Atlantic cable, dubbed TAT-10, is opening for service between
Green Hill, Rhode Island and Alkmaar in the Netherlands. Both
AT&T and MCI will use it. A total of 35 telephone companies own
the cable, which was laid by AT&T.

The $300-million system is one of three major transoceanic
systems slated for service this year, compared with four in the
past four years. The system replaces satellite-delivered calls,
and eases capacity concerns on the older TAT-8 and TAT-9 cables.
Deutsche Bundespost Telekom, one of the partners in the link,
also hopes the new cable will provide more direct access to
Eastern Europe.

A third cable system, TAT-11, is targeted for service next year
to connect the United States with the United Kingdom and France.
TAT-11 also will offer added route diversity and service
reliability across the Atlantic. Each transatlantic system can
carry up to 80,000 simultaneous voice conversations or any
combination of voice, data and video.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920814/Press Contact: AT&T, Patricia Sieh,
201/326-4224)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00024)

Toys R Us Buys Field Computing System 08/14/92
BOHEMIA, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Toys R Us, the
world's largest toy retailer, is buying a field computing
system which will eventually link its sales floor with its
headquarters computer system.

Symbol Technologies said it will supply its Spectrum One wireless
data network, which operates at high frequencies to deliver data
from hand-held scanners on the sales floor to a central computer
in the store, and its Laser Radio Terminal bar-code reader to 54
of the company's stores in the US. The reader includes a
radio modem which can deliver data directly to a PC in the store.
It will be used for shelf-tag labeling, with managers first
scanning a bar-code, then looking-up prices on the central
system without leaving the floor. Symbol has been selling
equipment to Toys R Us since 1987.

That system can be extended through a contract the company
signed with General Motors' Hughes Network Systems division,
which will deliver a satellite network to all of its 720 US
stores for $15 million. The network will link the stores to the
company's headquarters in Paramus, New Jersey, and will be able
to deliver point-of-sale, inventory, and credit verification
information. The system was tested during the 1991 Christmas
selling season, with 40 earth stations put on stores in Ohio, and
data delivered to local area networks.

Toys R Us is also evaluating a new international VSAT service
being jointly developed by Hughes and MCI for use in its European
store locations.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920814/Press Contact: Judy Blake, Hughes,
301\428-7113; Doug Picker Symbol Technologies, 516-244-4699)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00025)

Satellite Cable -- DirecTv -- Closer To Reality 08/14/92
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Hughes'
DirecTv satellite broadcasting network is ready to go following
an agreement with Digital Equipment and Network Computing to
provide a billing system and customer support.

DirecTv will allow the equivalent of 150 channels of cable
service to be seen by customers who buy an 18-inch satellite dish
and set-top converter for $700, which the company will also
lease. A new kind of satellite, due for launch in 1994, will be
able to deliver those channels using a proprietary compression
algorithm. Hughes has licenses for direct broadcast satellite
channels which can cover the entire US, and will share some
transponders with Hubbard Broadcasting, which hopes to create a
network of off-track horse-betting parlors nationwide.

DirecTv is one of a number of companies seeking to enter the
direct satellite broadcast business, but it is furthest ahead in
its planning. The company has a deal with the National Rural
Telecommunications Cooperative, a consortium of rural phone
companies, to sell a version of the service to its customers. And
it has FCC approvals to launch its satellite.

In addition to compressing its signal to avoid interception, DirecTv
will also offer "copy protection," a scheme in which signal delivery is
sped-up and slowed down to foil copying by home VCRs. This will
let it offer first-run movies and concerts, and pay-per-view
sports. Since its set-top converters will be "addressable,"
meaning it can turn specific channels off and on at will and bill
for them, the company could offer pay-per-view access to Boston
Celtic games in Los Angeles, for instance, or Laker games in
Boston.

Under the latest agreement, Digital will act as prime contractor
for the DirecTv billing system, running on VAX hardware. Network
Computing, which is based in Charlotte, North Carolina and
specializes in satellite TV billing software, will also provide a
customer support system. The set-top converters will be made by
Thomsen of France but sold under the RCA brand name at a retail
cost of $700, and it will include the 18-inch antenna needed to
pick up the service.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19920814/Press Contact: Thomas M. Bracken
DirecTv, 310-535-5027)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00026)

Radio Shack Intros Cyrix-Powered Notebook 08/14/92
FORT WORTH, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Radio Shack has
joined several other PC-compatible computer companies to offer a
notebook PC with the Cyrix Corporation low power Cx486SLC
microprocessor.

Radio Shack's 3800HD notebook will use the 20 megahertz version of
the Cyrix chip, and will carry a $1,999 retail price tag. About 2
inches by 12 inches by 10 inches and weighing about six pounds
including the rechargable Nicad (nickel cadmium) battery, the
3800HD is equipped with 2MB (megabytes) of memory and a 60 MB hard
drive. Radio Shack says the battery is good for about two
hours, and quick-charges in about the same length of time.

System memory can be expanded to 4MB. Available options include a
math coprocessor chip and a modem that can send and receive data at
2400 bps and send and receive faxes at 9600 bps. The 3800HD is also
equipped with one serial port and one parallel port that can also be
used to attach an external floppy disk drive.

Radio Shack says it will install Microsoft Windows 3.1, Microsoft
QBasic, Microsoft Shell, and America Online software.

The memory upgrade carries a suggested list price of $259.95, while
the modem is $149.95. Additional batteries are available for
$99.95, and a charger to charge the extra battery when it's not in
the computer is $229.95. Carrying cases are available in fabric
($39.95) and leather ($99.95)

As reported by Newsbytes, Cyrix entered the competition with Intel
Corporation for PC makers microprocessor business in March of this
year. Last month, a federal court in Texas ruled that an Intel
cross-licensing agreement with SGS-Thomson, which manufactures Cyrix
products, protects Cyrix from Intel's patent infringement claims.
Cyrix co-founder and president, Jerry Rogers, said in a recent
interview that defending the Intel patent suit had cost the company
well over $4 million.

(Jim Mallory/19920814/Press contact: Fran McGehee, Radio Shack,
817-390-3487)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEN)(00027)

 ****BBS Operators Convene in Denver 08/14/92
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- More than 1,000 BBS
(bulletin board system) operators got together at the Stouffer
Concourse Hotel in Denver yesterday for a four-day conference.

Conference attendees came from all over the world, organizer and
Boardwatch magazine editor, Jack Rickard, told Newsbytes. Rickard
said he estimated that about 8 percent of the operators
were attending the event from outside the United States, citing
registrations from Norway, Spain, Japan, and a number of European
countries. He said there are about 66,000 BBSs operating
worldwide, serving as many as 500,000 users.

Rickard told Newsbytes he saw a need for such an event. "A lot of
these people are physically fairly isolated from each other,
although they are in touch electronically," Rickard said. He told
Newsbytes that no one has a chance to look at what the industry
looks like overall. "When they get together face to face, there's a
really neat cross-pollination type things, with a sharing of
information," said Rickard.

Rickard predicts that in five years the industry will have evolved
into a lot of special topic boards, with focus on special interests.
He also told Newsbytes that computer users can expect modems
transmitting data at the speed of light within 15 years.

Attendees will have the opportunity beginning today to view hardware
and software at a special exhibitor area at the Denver convention
site.

About half of the attendees indicated they had been operating their
public access bulletin boards for two years or less. Rickard said
it was about then that technical advances in hardware and software
reduced the amount of technical expertise needed to operate a board.
Consequently, boards can now be operated as a business, rather than
as a hobby. "They are making a very good living, and have a somewhat
independent life style," Rickard told Newsbytes. He estimated that
a board can be started for $5,000-10,000, and can be built into a
$250,000 business annually.

Conference attendee Craig Dunstan, from Topeka, Kansas, told
Newsbytes he was very pleased with the conference. "I'm hoping to
get to meet a lot of other operators. I know there's people making
good money in the business," he told Newsbytes. Dunstan is a
shareware author, and says he hopes to get tips from other authors
about how to distribute his software and make more money from it.
Shareware is computer software which is distributed through bulletin
boards and on disk. On the honor system, if the user likes the
software, they send in a registration fee which is usually much less
than what commercial software costs. "Maybe this (the conference)
will bring bulletin boarding to a new level," he told Newsbytes.

(Jim Mallory/19920814)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEN)(00028)

 ****John Dvorak Keynotes BBS Conference 08/14/92
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- "The BBS community has
to examine how it operates." That was the message of PC
communications proponent and writer John Dvorak as he addressed
about 1,000 attendees at the BBS industry's first conference.

Dvorak, whose wry humor had the BBS operators chuckling several
times throughout his talk, said the industry "is a seam in the
fabric of today's society," and needs to examine its public
relations efforts. Referring to occasional appearances on a few
bulletin boards of unsubstantiated derogatory information, Dvorak
told the operators, "You can't allow slander and libel to be part of
the system."

Dvorak encouraged the industry to establish lobbyists in centers of
government to promote legislation favorable to the industry. "Every
state (legislature) should have a lobbyist to represent the BBS
community and the federal government should have two," he said.
Dvorak also said involvement in politics is essential.

Dvorak also told the assembly that a constitutional amendment to
protect electronic rights is necessary. "Nothing will happen until
that's done," he said. Dvorak believes that amendment must be
passed by the year 2000.

BBSs, often thought of places where messages could be exchanged or
games played, have matured greatly since the first BBS was started
by Ward Christiansen in 1978. Some examples of BBS use cited
by speakers include independent truckers accessing a BBS
at truck stops to find out where they can pick up their next load;
newspapers dialing into a BBS to download tonight's TV listing you
read in your local paper; consumer information comparing cars; and
real estate listings. You can even dial into an EPA BBS to get
environmental information, or check with NASA and download
information about space launches. Many companies also operate
private boards for such purposes as keeping their field
representatives up to date on product information, and exchanging
electronic mail.

BBSs are there for the using, and offer more information about more
subjects than most of us can imagine. As organizer and Boardwatch
magazine editor Jack Rickard told Newsbytes, "The public systems
would welcome a call."

(Jim Mallory/19920814)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00029)

 ****Reports Say Household Mac Due 08/14/92
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Bill Gates
predicted a computer in every household and industry sources
speculate Apple wants it to have the Apple brand name.

While Apple has said it will announce a new line of Macintosh products
for distribution in mass market channels, reports are the line is
to be called the Performa and is a stripped down version of the
current Macintosh.

Three new models in the Performa series are predicted by the
San Francisco Chronicle. Two of the three are simply the
Macintosh Classic II and the Macintosh LC II, but the third is
reported to be a version of a new Macintosh expected for
business customers.

So what's different about the Performa? It won't have any expansion
slots for the addition of chip boards to add functions, and the
high end Performa will be minus the math coprocessor chip which
will be available on the new business Macintoshes to be introduced,
the Chronicle said.

While exact pricing figures weren't available, the report said
the Performa line will cost between $700 and $1,800 and Sears
has already agreed to carry the new computers.

Other new Macintosh computers were reported as well. Apple is
expected to introduce a new business line of computers with CD-
ROM drives and math coprocessor chips to be called the
Macintosh IIvi and the IIvx. Apple also plans to capitalize on
the success of the Powerbook notebook computer by introducing
three new Powerbook systems as well, the report says.

Newsbytes asked Apple USA's public relations representative
Betty Taylor about the Performa product line. Taylor said the
Chronicle piece was purely speculative. "We have said we intend
to announce a new line of Macintosh products geared toward mass
market distribution channels including Sears, but that's all
we've announced."

When asked when the announcements would be made, Taylor said
they're expected this fall.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920814/Press Contact: Betty Taylor, Apple
USA, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00030)

Apple Contracts For Radio Wave Shield Technology 08/14/92
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- California Micro
Devices reports that Apple Computer has contracted for approximately
$5 million worth of thin film filters and networks designed to
reduce radio-wave emissions and improve system-wide performance,
thereby allowing portable computers to comply with FCC regulations.

California Micro Devices also claims to have received orders for
the devices recently from Amdahl, AT&T, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Intel,
Kodak, Silicon Graphics, and Sony.

As computers get smaller and faster, internal interference from signal
noise becomes an increasing problem, and high quality thin film
components that save space become an increasingly practical
necessity, California Micro Devices' Chan Desaigoudar, chairman,
says in a press statement. He says the products are a $150 million
market.

(Wendy Woods/19920814/Press Contact: California Micro Devices Corp.
Steven J. Henke, 408/263-3214)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00031)

MacHandwriter Maker, CIC, Records $1.5M Loss 08/14/92
REDWOOD SHORES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- This firm,
one of the brightest stars in pen computing software, reports
revenues for the second quarter of 1992 increased 328%
to $642,000 -- up from $150,000 for the like quarter a year ago.
But, ironically enough, the firm lost $1.5 million.

Communications Intelligence makes MacHandwriter, a pen-based user
interface for the Apple Macintosh computer. Japanese sales were
strong, the company reports, accounting for the increase in revenues.
However, the second quarter loss of $1.5 million is due to a
staff increase and marketing expenses, the company explains.

On July 10, Communications Intelligence released a new version of
its PenDOS operating system to the US, European and Japanese
markets. CIC has especially targeted the Japanese market, due
to the growth expected to emerge out of the difficulties
involved in entering the Japanese language onto computer
keyboards. NEC of Japan will use CIC's pen-based technology
in its first pen-based products in Japan this year, a press
statement says. NCR has already begun marketing PenDOS on the NCR
3125 NotePad computer in Japan

The company claims other positive developments this year. There is
a licensing agreement with Dynamic Signature Verification, and
development contracts signed with the US Department of Commerce and
Intel Corp.

CIC expects to release new cursive character recognition software in
1993.

CIC's competition in pen computing software currently include
Microsoft Windows for Pen Computing, GO Corporation's Penpoint,
and proprietary systems such as Grid's PenRight!, a DOS-based
environment for custom vertical applications.

(Wendy Woods/19920814/Press Contact: Maurice Boucher, CIC,
800/567-5888)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00032)

More Red Ink For Software Toolworks 08/14/92
NOVATO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Software Toolworks
reports another quarterly loss. This time it's $1.9 million
on revenue of $16.4 million. The loss was $0.9 million or
($0.04) per share on revenue of $16.4 million for the comparable
quarter in the prior fiscal year.

On the brighter side, in June, sales of The Miracle Piano Teaching
System quintupled over what they were a year ago, the company
reports. Software sales gained 21 percent to total $7.7 million
in the first fiscal quarter. International sales jumped 29
percent above the comparable quarter a year ago to equal $5.9
million, and represent 36 percent of total sales, the company's
statement says.

Sales of Nintendo game cartridges, however, were down 43 percent
compared to last year, the company reports. Duplication, printing and
packaging sales were down 50 percent to $0.6 million and
Software Toolworks blames this on the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing
of DAK Electronics, one of its distributors.

Software Toolworks plans to ship new Super Nintendo and Sega
titles and is working hard to increase the number of retail outlets
carrying its main product, The Miracle. The product is now being
distributed by Microcraft Computer and Engineering Private Ltd.
in Singapore where it is distributing the product in Singapore, Hong
Kong, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand. According
to the company, it is the largest distribution agreement for The
Miracle in the Far East, and is expected to generate at least $1
million in sales for The Software Toolworks by April, 1993.

The company has been reporting losses on and off since 1990.
Toolworks depended heavily on its game titles for the personal
computer and Nintendo markets, which simply became saturated, until
its introduction of the Miracle Piano.

(Wendy Woods/19920814/Press Contact: Software Toolworks,
415-883-3000, ext. 568 - Vincent Turzo)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00033)

Tandon Blames Wars W/IBM, Compaq For $19.3M Loss 08/14/92
MOORPARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1992 AUG 14 (NB) -- Tandon, one
of the first computer manufacturers to offer the controversial
Cyrix 486 chip, has reported losses of $19.3 million (30 cents
per share) for its second quarter. The company says price wars
with top-of-the-line manufacturers forced it to lower prices and
take losses.

Tandon says net sales were almost $93 million, but down from
net sales of $122.7 million in its second quarter last year.
The company compared the loss of $19.3 million to a gain in the
same quarter last year of $696,000 (1 cent per share).

The company said $10.3 million of the loss was taken due to a
revaluation of its inventory.

For the six-month period sales were down to approximately $201
million compared with the approximately $243 million the company
reported in the same period last year. Net loss for the period
was about $18.3 million (28 cents per share) compared to a gain
last year in the same period of $6.7 million (10 cents per
share).

Tandon complained part of its losses were due to price
reductions it had to make because of competition from vendors
it never had to worry about before, and it named IBM and
Compaq. The company also said mass merchandising sales, which
account for 12 percent of the company's quarterly revenues,
brought it lower profit margins on products that bring it
higher margins through other distribution channels. Of course,
the recession was listed as a reason as well.

The lower margins and price reductions forced the company to
revaluation of its inventory as well, Tandon said.

Late last year the company reported a $35 million loss in its
third quarter and said it would have to layoff workers. The
company has steadily been reducing its workforce and cutting
costs for several years now. It was forced to close down its
Chatsworth, California facility and some workers were relocated
to its current Moorpark, California operation.

Tandon tried introducing The Option, a line of modular
computers last year and was one of the first this year to
introduce a computer based on the Cyrix 486 clone chip.

(Linda Rohrbough/19920814/Press Contact: Ranjit Sitlani,
Tandon, tel [phone], fax [phone])