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/1993/NB111193

Text File | 1993-11-11 | 73KB | 1,589 lines

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00001)

 ****AST Cuts Jobs In California, Adds In Texas 11/11/93
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- AST is
restructuring because of its acquisition of Tandy's manufacturing
operations. As a result, the company says it will have to perform
a job shuffle that will result in the loss of 200 jobs.

The company says 16 percent, or 1,050 jobs will be impacted by
the move, but 850 new jobs will be added in the Fort Worth,
Texas, and Limerick, Ireland, manufacturing facilities.

Officials at AST said the company hopes to move current
employees into the new positions, but does not know how many
can be handled in this manner. Over half the jobs will be lost in
California with 450 planned cuts in the company's Fountain
Valley facility. An additional 200 service and repair positions
in California will be eliminated. Some cuts will be made in Fort
Worth in the sub-assembly manufacturing, because AST plans to
outsource those operations, but 500 jobs will be added in that
same location to increase manufacturing capacity, repair, and
service operations.

Overall, AST claims it has increased its unit shipment growth
111 percent in its first fiscal quarter of 1994, ending October
2, 1993, when it combined with Tandy's manufacturing.

The company plans to establish two manufacturing centers for
mobile computers in Fountain Valley and Taiwan. The Fort Worth
facility will be the manufacturing center for multiprocessors,
the company added. The company's manufacture of desktop and
server computers for the Americas, Asia, and Europe will take
place in Texas, Hong Kong, and Ireland, respectively. The aim
is to improve time to market and to lower costs.

Overseas, AST plans to shift all its European production to
Limerick under a newly announced agreement with the Irish
Industrial Development Authority. The plan is to move
production from the East Kilbride, Scotland, facility to a
larger plant in Limerick and center European distribution
and repair in Ireland.

In Texas, AST plans to purchase land around its Fort Worth
facility for future expansion and consolidate its other leased
facilities in Texas to the Western Center complex in Fort
Worth.

A new facility in Tianjin, China, is also planned and will open
in the third quarter of calendar year 1994, AST added. AST
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Safi Qureshey told
Newsbytes the company is pursuing opportunities in the Chinese
market and its next move will be for the large untapped Indian
market.

Number 367 on Fortune Magazine's list of the top 500 US
companies, AST reported sales of $1.412 billion and shipment
increases of 69 percent for fiscal 1993. The acquisition of
Tandy's manufacturing makes Irvine, California, headquartered
AST the fourth largest computer company in the US and the sixth
worldwide, according to International Data Corporation (IDC).

(Linda Rohrbough/19931111/Press Contact: Emory Epperson,
AST, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LON)(00002)

UK - Austin Computer Wins Dutch Health Contract 11/11/93
KEMPSTON, BEDS, ENGLAND, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Essex Electric BV,
the Dutch distributor for Austin Computer Systems in the UK, has
secured a contract worth UKP1 million to deliver a total of 825
486-based PCs to Netherlands-based Bazis over the next 15
months.

Bazis is the Dutch government subsidized information technology
coordinator who will, in turn, provide the systems to hospitals
throughout the Netherlands. To start the contract off, Austin will
deliver 200 PCs -- 150 25 megahertz (MHz) and 50 33MHz
systems -- before the end of the year.

The machines to be supplied to Bazis are 486SX-25 and 486DX-33
systems and feature integrated local bus video, 4 megabytes (MB)
of memory, 129 kilobytes (KB) of cache RAM, a 170MB IDE
(Integrated Drive Electronics) hard drive. Also standard on the
machines are 1MB local bus accelerator cards, plus a 14-inch
super VGA monitor.

According to Richard Choi, Austin UK's sales and marketing director,
the machines are pre-loaded with MS-DOS 6.0 and Windows 3.1. In
addition they have a three year warranty -- all for UKP885.

Said Choi: "This is just the kind of accomplishment that now
typifies our operation. We now know that we have the perfect
product range priced at an optimum level."

(Steve Gold/19931110/Press & Public Contact: Austin Computer
Systems, tel [phone]; fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00003)

Tecmars New Concurrent Transfer Backup Technology 11/11/93
READING, ENGLAND, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Tecmar has announced
what it claims is a brand new technology -- concurrent transfer.

According to the company, concurrent transfer technology (CXT)
provides unparalleled network backup performance and reliability.
Tecmar is handling distribution of CXT products in Europe on
behalf of the developers, Rexon.

The company also claims that Proserve CX (Tecmar's name for its
product) has been developed in response to the increasing amount
of valuable data that organizations are generating which needs
to be backed up efficiently and securely.

So what is CXT? According to Tecmar, it allows the backup of up
to eight clients to one tape drive simultaneously, and will ship
initially with Tecmar's new Proline CX Novell data management
tape backup system.

The idea is that the Proline range will consist of a series of high
performance digital audio tape (DAT) and QIC drives coupled with
CX technology to provide claimed superior performance.

Announcing CXT, Charles McCarthy, the president of Rexon Europe,
the company that developed the technology, said: "With CX
technology, our product line will be able to meet the large volume
backup demands of networks quickly while improving restore
operations."

CXT features several software technologies that work together to
maximize the available network bandwidth. Firstly, CXT uses
distributed processing via Fileflow and active clients to improve
the performance of individual clients on the network. Dynamic load
balancing then makes maximum use of the bandwidth on the network,
with all clients backing up at the same time. The backup speed
thus becomes the sum of all the clients on the network.

Distributed processing allows each client on the network  to
operate at their own top speed for both backup and restore
operations. To speed up backup operations, Tecmar's Fileflow
technology allows each client agent to communicate with the
tape server to share the workload.

The idea with Formflow, according to Tecmar, is to establish what
needs to be done before the transaction takes place, rather than
the client constantly polling the tape server with individual
requests.

Pricing on the CXT systems varies depending on customer
requirements. The systems, Tecmar says, are available to ship
worldwide now.

(Steve Gold/19931110/Press & Public Contact: Rexon Europe,
tel [phone]; fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEL)(00004)

UK Telecom Firms Seek Indian Joint Ventures 11/11/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- IBPI's (Indo-British
Partnership Initiative) Telecom Group is expecting many joint
ventures to take shape during the "UK Week" to be held November
16-19 in India.

Rajive Kaul, chairman of the Telecom Group, claims that the Indian
telecommunications sector offers tremendous scope for private
sector initiatives and foreign collaboration.

The demand for phone lines in India is expected to reach 100 million
by the year 2010. With only Rs. 25,137 crore being allocated
for the telecom sector by the government, against a reported
Rs. 40,555 crore requirement, a large gap has been left for capital
investment which Indian and foreign private companies can fill.

Financial investment required in the year 2000 will reach
Rs. 80,000-100,000 crore. That, and the Department of
Telecommunication's decision to auction licenses ensures there
will be tremendous potential for investments, and that the
atmosphere is conducive for joint ventures.

UK firms, since the Indian visit of Prime Minister John Major
some months ago, have shown special interest in the telecom
sector, especially rural, and in voice and non-voice services.
They have also expressed particular interest in data transmission,
facsimile, mobile radio, radio telephones and leased line services
catering to both the residential and business markets.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19931111)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00005)

IBM Considers Sale Of Federal Systems Unit 11/11/93
ARMONK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- IBM is looking
into the possibility of selling its Federal Systems Company, IBM
officials have confirmed. The company said it has talked with
several potential buyers, but company spokesman Rob Wilson
would not name any of the interested parties.

Federal Systems is based in Bethesda, Maryland, and employs
some 11,400 people. Last year, it recorded revenues of $2.2
billion. The unit sells information technology products and
services, primarily to the US Department of Defense and other
federal agencies.

A published report in The Washington Post said the division
could be worth from $750 million to $1 billion. Wilson said he
could not comment on that estimate.

He also had no comment on whether IBM might consider a joint
venture with another company, as it did in spinning off its
printer manufacturing operation to become Lexmark, now
partially owned by IBM. However, a prepared statement from
IBM referred to the possible sale of "all or part of" the division.

(Grant Buckler/19931111/Press Contact: Rob Wilson, IBM,
914-765-6565)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00006)

Ontario Legislators Want Action Over Sexy Video Game 11/11/93
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Opposition
members of the provincial legislature called on the Ontario
government recently to take action against an animated computer
game that includes scenes of partial nudity.

Elizabeth Witmer, Progressive Conservative member of provincial
parliament for Waterloo North, urged the government to introduce
controls on the sale of video games involving both sex and
violence. Her target was a game called Metal and Lace: The Battle
of the Robo Babes, from Megatech Software of Torrance, California.

Metal and Lace uses a Japanese animation technique called anime,
which is derived from American comic-book art of the 1940s and
1950s. The action is mostly typical of other action video games --
armored characters in battle. However, some of the animated
characters are attractive young women who sometimes remove
their armor and, in a version of the game meant for players 18
years of age or over, all their clothes above the waist. There is
no nudity in a version of the game intended for those under 18,
noted Ken Wu, president of Megatech.

Witmer called on the New Democratic Party government to "limit
who can purchase this type of video game," suggesting a legally
enforced rating system like that used for movies.

Wu told Newsbytes he is all for a rating system, and Megatech has
in fact placed ratings on its games. The company used the same
ratings used by the Motion Picture Industry Association (MPIA)
until the association told Megatech it was violating MPIA
copyrights by doing so, he said. Now there are versions of Metal
and Lace rated NR-13 (not recommended for those under 13) and
NR-18 (not recommended for those under 18). "We feel we're being
as responsible as possible," Wu said.

As for the Ontario government, Marion Boyd, the minister
responsible for women's issues, replied to Witmer's comments by
saying the provincial government has limited power to control the
sale of games. She said the provincial government has discussed
the matter with the federal government, which has jurisdiction.

She also suggested that members of the public who object to such
games can refrain from buying them, prevent their children from
doing so, and put pressure on the manufacturers and on retailers
that carry them.

Wu at Megatech said Ontario was the only area where Metal and
Lace has provoked such a reaction. The game has gone over very
well in Europe, he said, and has not provoked controversy in the
United States.

(Grant Buckler/19931111/Press Contact: Sharon Rummery,
Megatech Software, 415-583-6422; Elizabeth Witmer, Ontario
MPP, 416-325-3865)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00007)

Microsoft Ships 32-Bit Fortran For Windows NT 11/11/93
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corp., has announced it is now shipping its Microsoft Fortran
32-bit PowerStation 32 development systems for Windows NT.

Fortran is computer shorthand for "formula translation" and is
one of the earlier computer languages, developed to express
computer programs through the use of arithmetic formulas.

The development tools is designed primarily for the scientific and
engineering workstation market and for organizations that are
downsizing applications from mainframes, minicomputers, and Unix
workstations to PCs. Independent software developers will also be
able to use PowerStation 32 for Windows NT to port their existing
Fortran applications to Windows NT.

Microsoft says the 32-bit flat memory model of the windows NT
operating system allows access of up to four gigabytes (GB) of
addressable memory. In addition to the standard local and global
optimizations common in Unix workstation compilers, Fortran
PowerStation 32 includes specific Intel i486 and Pentium
optimizations as well as automatic inlining of procedures to reduce
procedure call overhead. That allows users to run large simulations
on PCs that would previously have required a mainframe or
minicomputer or a Unix workstation.

The software supports symmetric multiprocessing, multithreaded
applications and preemptive multitasking in order to reduce the run
time of applications. Microsoft does not charge a fee for run-time
modules distributed with developer's applications.

The program includes Visual Workbench, a Windows-based
integrated development environment that is consistent with
PowerStation for DOS and the Microsoft family of Visual C++ tools.
Microsoft says that will reduce development time by eliminating
the need to exit and load separate tools.

Features include an editor with syntax coloring that allows columns
one to six, each colored differently, and comments colored differently
from code. There is also an automatic "make file" generator that
generates a make file using point-and-click operation to specify
the file to be added and the desired compiler options.

Double clicking on a syntax error located by the compiler
automatically loads the editor and brings up the line in which the
error occurred, and an integrated debugger allows the user to toggle
break points on and off by clicking with the mouse, and to view and
step through assembly language listing and source code at the same
time in the same window.

Three kinds of windows can be open: watch windows, to see the
changing values of local and global variables and expressions; local
windows, to view changes in local variables only; and register
windows, to see register values change during debugging.

A browser displays the program's structure and allows the
programmer to jump to a specific routine or variable.

To use Fortran PowerStation 32 for Windows NT you need an IBM-
compatible personal computer powered by at least a 25 megahertz
386 microprocessor, 16 megabytes (MB) of system memory, one
floppy drive, 12MB of available hard disk space, and Windows NT
version 3.1. The product has a suggested retail price of $795, but is
available for $495 through January 31, 1994. Current users of earlier
versions of Microsoft Fortran can upgrade for $299, and users who
switch from a competitor's C Fortran compiler can do so for $495.

(Jim Mallory/19931111/Press & Reader Contact: Microsoft
Corp., 206-882-8080)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00008)

 ****VP Gore Visits Colorado High Tech Plant 11/11/93
LOUISVILLE, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Vice President
Al Gore is taking the administration's campaign for passage of the
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to the people, telling
them to write their members of congress to support the campaign.

"If we have the courage to make the right decision the entire world
will follow us. If we yield to fear, the consequences will be
catastrophic," he said during an appearance in Colorado this week.

Gore made his plea during an appearance at Storage Technology
(Storagetek), a high-tech company based in Louisville, Colorado,
that manufactures computer data storage systems.. He spoke to
about 200 Storagetek employees and another 200 college students,
Colorado lawmakers, and small business representatives from
around the state.

At the beginning of the Vice President's appearance, technicians
encountered a pothole on their own information highway when
they could not get a phone connection to the White House working
correctly, but quickly smoothed over the glitch in time for the
surprised audience to hear President Bill Clinton praise Gore for
his showing in a debate over the merits of NAFTA with former
presidential candidate Ross Perot.

Gore, obviously in high spirits following the debate, declined to
characterize Perot's performance on the event carried live on CNN.
The VP said the issue was not who is the best debater but rather
whether NAFTA is good for the nation's economy.

Several business leaders from around Colorado extolled the virtues
of the plan to smooth out the tariff difference between the US,
Canada and Mexico, estimating that they could increase their job
opportunities by as much as 15 percent and pledging they would not
take their plants to Mexico as NAFTA opponents fear. "A 20 percent
increase can make a tremendous difference to startup companies,"
said one high-tech business official. He was referring to the
dropping of import tariffs of up to 20 percent that are currently in
effect for goods shipped into Mexico, which would be gradually be
reduced to zero if NAFTA becomes law in its current form.

Another high-tech Colorado business owner compared Mexico City's
altitude and environment to that of the Colorado Front Range area,
and said if NAFTA passes the development of environmental
technology "will really explode."

Speaking about the reluctance of Congress members to put into
effect something that could result in adverse headlines, Gore said:
"Congress worries about headlines about job losses, but thousands
of companies will add jobs if NAFTA passes." The loss of jobs is a
strong theme in criticism of NAFTA leveled by Ross Perot.

Gore predicts a huge increase in US sales across a broad spectrum
of the economy if NAFTA becomes law, and estimates that the
volume of goods sold in Mexico would double. He believes the
adoption of NAFTA would be the opening wedge that will allow US
companies to gain a foothold in other markets such as Latin America
and Asia.

Following his 30 minute talk Gore toured a portion of the Storagetek
facility and got to see Storagetek's long-awaited data storage
product, Iceberg, being built. A number of the devices, the size of
two large refrigerators, were in various stages of assembly.

Storagetek Director of Public Relations David Reid declined to say
exactly how many Iceberg units had already been assembled. Reid
told Newsbytes the computer code to run Iceberg, long the delaying
element in bringing the product to market, was still being tested.
"We expect revenue from Iceberg in 1994," said Reid.

(Jim Mallory/19931111/Press Contact: David Reid, Storatetek,
303-673-4815)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00009)

 ****VP Gore Says NAFTA Good For Computer Sales 11/11/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- This week's 90-
minute debate between Ross Perot and Vice President Al Gore on
CNN's Larry King Live talk show, resulted in a win with the
viewing public for both Gore and NAFTA, the North American
Free Trade Agreement, according to several media polls. However,
it was not a pretty sight, according to more than one Washington
insider who pointed out that it was Congress, and in particular
about 30 Representatives, and not citizens, who need to be
convinced.

Interspersed with a series of personal attacks on his opponent,
Vice President Al Gore cited one major reason for computer
executives to be in favor of NAFTA. According to the Vice
President, NAFTA would eliminate the 20 percent tariff now
imposed on computers going from the US to Mexico, while
maintaining the same import tax on computers from Europe and
Asia, leading to increased US computer sales, he argued.

But while computer managers see the opening of the Mexican
market as an unmixed blessing -- one Intel executive calling it a
"no brainer" -- electronics workers and their unions are not so
certain. Intel, which has several billion dollars in sales of
semiconductor products to Mexico each year, is strongly anchored
in the US, with plans for new manufacturing facilities and
expanded research efforts. However, workers at smaller
companies which are struggling to match Intel's marketing
strengths with low-priced alternative products, are worried
that a move south could be an attractive proposition for some
semiconductor companies.

On his side, Perot pointed to the "dictatorial" government in
Mexico which he says oppresses workers and fails to enforce its
own anti-pollution laws as a good indication of how life will
continue to be hard on Mexican workers even with the passage of
NAFTA, which is intended to eventually eliminate most trade
barriers among Canada, the US, and Mexico.

Perot emphasized that sales numbers given by the Administration
showing a lot of high-tech trade with Mexico are "cooked" numbers
which count every item that crosses the border on the way South,
even the large amount of components that are actually installed
in products which are then sold back into the US.

One of his favorite points was that, since Mexican workers only
earn about $10 per day, it is obvious that they cannot be buying
many US goods. He proposed a different trade agreement which
would encourage Mexico to raise the standard of living of its
workers before lowering barriers.

For his part, the Vice President attacked Perot at every step.
After the debate, the White House immediately declared
victory and showed an "undecided" Florida Democrat who, just
a few minutes after the debate ended, held a live and obviously
pre-arranged press conference where he announced that the Vice
President's arguments had caused him to come out in favor of
NAFTA.

Looking directly into the camera and addressing members of
Congress with the reminder that the entire House was going to be
up for reelection soon, one-time presidential candidate Ross
Perot said, "We'll remember in November when we step into that
little booth." Gore referred to this as a threat, asking Perot if
that meant his United We Stand organization would work to
defeat any members of Congress who voted in favor of NAFTA.

The obviously frustrated Perot at one point called the Vice
President a "liar" when accused of personally lobbying the House
Ways and Means Committee for tax breaks in the 1970's. For his
part Perot said that he had no idea what Gore was talking about
and continued his attack on the foreign lobbyists who, he says,
are influencing the government to the detriment of the US people.

Gore's main argument in favor of NAFTA appeared to be that
unless it was passed, Japan would make a similar deal with Mexico
displacing the US, and that without the prestige generated by
ratifying NAFTA, it would be impossible for the US to complete
the even more important Uruguay Round General Agreement on
Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which is now about four years overdue.
No real details were cited to support either argument.

A parting shot from Perot warned that if the US keeps exporting
manufacturing jobs it will not be able to provide the military
hardware needed by the Pentagon if we ever get into a major
armed conflict.

(John McCormick/19931110)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TOR)(00010)

Stand-Alone Fax-On-Demand Device Coming 11/11/93
WAKEFIELD, NEW HAMPSHIRE, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Resource
Partners is preparing to release a stand-alone device that will
fax documents to callers on request. The unit will compete with
products that plug into a personal computer to do the same job.

Initially, the device will handle one incoming line and will
allow users to set up one to 99 mailboxes for documents that
callers can request, said Serge Nepomiastchy, head of engineering
for Resource Partners. Later, the company will probably release a
version that can handle multiple telephone lines, he said.

The unit will just plug into an electrical outlet and a
telephone jack. To load documents into it, users will fax them
from a fax machine or from fax software running on a PC.
Nepomiastchy said Resource Partners' existing fax software
would work well for this purpose, since PC-based fax software
produces cleaner faxes than a stand-alone fax machine.
The device will not function as a standard fax machine.

While the unit is not yet formally announced, Nepomiastchy
said it is likely to be available either late this year or in the
first quarter of 1994, at a price somewhere around $1,200.

Resource Partners sells fax software and hardware for personal
computers running Microsoft Windows and attached to local area
networks.

(Grant Buckler/19931111/Press Contact: Louise Horton, Resource
Partners, 603-522-9500)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00011)

Didatech Brings Crosscountry USA To Mac 11/11/93
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) --
Didatech Software has announced an Apple Macintosh version of
Crosscountry USA, a geography education program that the
company already offers for DOS personal computers and the
Apple II.

Home and school versions of Crosscountry USA will be available
for the Macintosh in the first week of January, the company said.

Paul Melhus, president of Didatech, said that while sales of the
Apple II version of the package are still quite strong, schools
are clearly moving away from the older machine toward either the
Mac or DOS computers. Some buyers are now reluctant to buy new
Apple II software unless they know they will be able to upgrade
to a Macintosh version when they change hardware, he said.

To address that concern, Melhus said any school that has a site
license for the Apple II version of Crosscountry USA will be able
to buy a Mac site license for half price.

The software teaches American geography by letting a child play
the role of a truck driver hauling freight across the country.
According to the vendor, it helps children learn map-reading,
distance and time concepts, anticipating and solving problems,
and other practical skills.

Melhus said Didatech will release a Macintosh version of
Crosscountry Canada, its Canadian geography program, in the
spring. The company also sells specialized state versions of the
program called Crosscountry California and Crosscountry Texas. No
decision has been made yet about producing Mac versions of these,
Melhus said.

The school edition of Crosscountry USA for the Macintosh,
including a teacher's manual and software for one computer, will
cost US$79. Lab packs are US$159 and site or network licenses are
US$595.

(Grant Buckler/19931111/Press Contact: Paul Melhus, Didatech
Software, 604-299-4435)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00012)

Eicon Intros OS/2, AS/400 Products 11/11/93
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Eicon Technology
Corp., has enhanced its Access for OS/2 terminal emulation
software and launched new software that lets personal computers
work with IBM's midrange AS/400 systems.

Release 3.15 of Eicon's Access for OS/2 3270 and Access for OS/2
5250 now work with OS/2 2.1. Both products provide display and
printer emulation allowing users to use the OS/2 graphical user
interface (GUI) to reach IBM mainframes (the 3270 version) and
midrange systems (the 5250 software).

Both packages can run on the same desktop machine at the same
time, Eicon officials said. Multiple Document Interface (MDI)
support also lets users run multiple sessions without additional
copies of the software.

Both new versions of Access for OS/2 are due to ship in
mid-December. A single-user package will cost C$495. Eicon will
also offer a 10-user pack for C$3,900, a 25-user pack for C$6,500,
and a LAN (local area network) gateway pack, allowing an unlimited
number of users per gateway, for C$9,750.

Eicon's new Workstation Support for AS/400 works with the
company's SNA (Systems Network Architecture) Gateway products
to connect stand-alone PCs or those attached to LANs to local or
remote IBM AS/400 computers. By emulating the AS/400 PC
Support Router (Adapter Handler) interface, the software lets
PCs use AS/400 PC Support applications.

The software can be used with Eicon's Access for DOS 3270 and
Access for Windows 3270 products, which provide access to
mainframe systems from IBM, company officials said. It can also
work with the company's Access for DOS VT220, providing access
to ASCII hosts, or its Access for DOS 5250, which connects with
AS/400, System/36, and System/38 midrange machines.

Now shipping, Workstation Support for AS/400 costs C$130 per
single-user package. A 10-user pack is C$650, a 25-user pack is
C$1,300, and a LAN Gateway pack is C$1,950.

(Grant Buckler/19931111/Press Contact: Cynthia Yacowar, Eicon
Technology, 514-631-2592)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00013)

Apple And IBM Distance Themselves From Fed Markets 11/11/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- As reports
proliferate that IBM may be selling its Federal business division
which deals directly with federal government buyers in support of
some massive contracts, Apple Computer appears to have almost
closed its Washington operations, leaving sales and support
efforts almost entirely to third-party resellers.

Although Apple has apparently just left its federal efforts
quietly fade into the background, IBM Federal has an estimated $2
billion in direct sales and thus is much more likely to either
maintain its office or sell it than just let it fade away.

The Washington Post has named Hughes Aircraft as having the
inside track on the purchase, but Washington insiders point out
that the defense contractor may not be interested in all of IBM's
federal contracts - especially not the FAA (Federal Aviation
Administration) air traffic controller system reform.

Hughes was the loosing bidder when it went up against IBM to win
the multi-billion dollar, decade-long FAA computer system
overhaul. However, despite the efforts of IBM's Gerald Ebker who
immediately made contact with the interim FAA administrator
during the Clinton Administration changeover, the FAA project
seems to be collapsing in an acrimonious exchange of charges
from both sides.

One Washington observer told Newsbytes that the first real
appearance of trouble on the FAA project, which is now about
three years behind schedule, came when Ebker started winding
down his associations with Ada (the government-mandated
programming language) standards groups and backed off from
direct control of the FAA project.

The new permanent FAA administrator is apparently not happy with
IBM's performance on the contract. A knowledgeable insider
told Newsbytes, that the FAA is often regarded as an agency
where everyone "goes their own way," something indicated by the
way air traffic controllers testing the proposed new system were
always making changes in their requirements -- therefore making
it nearly impossible to meed contract deadlines.

Reports from Washington maintain that the FAA may pull
the plug on the IBM contract, after Big Blue spent billions of
dollars on preliminary development of specialized software.

IBM's federal offices have reportedly had a lack of IBM
employees recently, with many positions ranging from the
receptionist to guards, to press representatives being filled by
outside contractors.

Apple Computer, which used to have a considerable direct presence
in the federal marketplace has, according to a number of reports
from Washington technology reporters, repeatedly failed to follow
through on offers of review hardware and software, a strong
indication that Apple may have lost interest in the market
despite a prominent contingent of strong Macintosh supporters
among federal users. SOme reports have the Apple Washington
contingent down to a skeleton crew.

Of course this does not mean that Macintosh computers are no
longer being sold to federal users, or that they are not being
supported by resellers. Falcon Microsystems was formerly an
Apple-only federal supplier and did quite well by doing the leg
work necessary to sell and support computers in the Washington
market.

However, taken with today's suggestion that IBM may be selling its
federal operations, and the long-standing feud between Microsoft
and other major software publishers and the General Services
Administration, it certainly looks like major hardware and
software suppliers are finding direct sales to the government to
be either too much hassle or unprofitable.

Procurement reform has long been the target of several
Congressional critics and this trend of big companies virtually
abandoning direct federal marketing may add some added
impetus to these moves.

(John McCormick/19931111)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00014)

Retix Fastest Growing European Router Vendor 11/11/93
GUILDFORD, SURREY, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Retix, which has been
pushing hard to establish its presence in the UK networking market
over the last year, claims it has succeeded in its quest. The
company is now citing surveys that point to it being the fastest
growing router vendor in Western Europe.

Retix is well-known in the US as a supplier of open networking
products. It is only in the last few years, however, that the company
has started actively promoting itself worldwide, Newsbytes notes.

Retix claims that its growth of has been particularly strong in the
UK, where the company has increased its share of the router market
to 13.5 percent. The company claims that this makes Retix second
only to Cisco in the UK, with its 22.7 percent market share.

According to the International Data Corp. (IDC) report, Retix
is the leader in the remote bridge market in Western Europe with a
hefty 29.1 percent share of the market. This puts Retix ahead of IBM
which has a 15.95 percent market share. In the UK, the company
claims an even bigger slice of the market, with 44.2 percent of
sales of remote bridges.

Pim Bilderbeek, manager for IDC's Network Expertise Center in
Europe, said that routing technology is a major requirement of
modern companies updating their networking systems.

"Routers represent the fastest growing segment of the LAN (local
area network) internetwork market. By leveraging its position as a
leading bridge vendor and, at the same time, expanding its range of
routers offerings, Retix is poised to take advantage of that
expanding opportunity," he said.

Retix claims to have sold more than 50,000 routers and bridges
around the world. The company has more than 260 open systems
integration (OSI) licensees worldwide.

(Sylvia Dennis/19931111/Press & Public Contact: Retix UK,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


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

UK - Texas Instruments Intros New Color Notebook 11/11/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Texas Instruments (TI) has
unveiled the TravelMate 4000E WinSX/25 Color, a new portable
PC which it claims is one the lightest color notebooks currently
available.

According to TI, the TravelMate can compete on pricing and
performance terms with all of the color 486-based notebooks
currently on the market, even with many monochrome 486-based
machines. The company describes it as being enriched with a
new advanced passive color display that provides good colors
due to improved filters, smaller pixels, and better contrast ratios.

The 8.2-inch VGA screen displays 256 colors and supports
simultaneous display with an external monitor. Also, the company
says that the TI designed ASIC (application specific integrated
circuit) with a high-speed video bus and 512 kilobytes (KB) of
video memory enables Windows users to run their typical
operations much faster -- erasing or dragging Windows, creating
hatches and fills, as well as screen painting.

Since both MS-DOS and Windows 3.1 are pre-installed on the 120
megabyte (MB) hard disk, user can power up straight into Windows in
about 15 seconds. There is also BallPoint mouse attached without a
cable -- straight into QuickPort connection and supporting an
oversized cursor.

Other key features of the TI 4000E include an advanced BatteryPro
power management system for quick entry in and out of Windows.
For the keyboard, the TravelMate introduces a new feature that TI
claims to prevent lock up when multiple keys are depressed. In
addition, separate F11, F12, Page Up, Page Down, Home and End
keys come with the computer.

Apart from the three to four hours average for battery-powered
operations, the TO 4000E notebook claims to be very low on power
consumption and environmentally friendly. Including batteries, its
total weight is six pounds.

As supplied, the TravelMate 4000E WinSX/25 Color comes with
4MB of memory, expandable to 20MB internally, and costs UKP1,995.
The machine is available through TI's distribution network and
dealers on a world-wide basis.

(Sylvia Dennis/19931111/Press & Public Contact: Texas
Instruments, 44-234-223273)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LON)(00016)

EC Opens Investigation Into Air France Subsidies 11/11/93
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- The European Commission
(EC) has announced the opening of a full inquiry into the cash
investment of FF1.5 million ($250 million) into Air France in
March of this year.

EC officials say they regard the investigation as very serious,
since sources suggest that it may have been a subsidy -- which
is something that flies directly in the face of several EC laws
on free market trade and competition.

In a prepared statement, officials say that they had decided to
start the enquiry without a complaint from a third party -- as is
the norm in such cases -- because of the dubious nature of the
cash investment by a state-owned company, the Caisse des
Depots et Consignations et Participations.

Newsbytes notes that the EC has the power to demand inspection of
the books of Air France to determine where the investment is going.
Newsbytes understands that the only possible getout for the French
government is if the investment was linked to some sort of
financial restructuring upon which the future of the airline
depended.

If this is the case and the French government is forced to admit it,
then it could involve a severe loss of face for both the government
and Air France. If, on the other hand, the investment was not some
form of rescue bid, then the EC has the power to force Air France
to hand back the money, in one lump sum, if it sees fit.

(Sylvia Dennis & Steve Gold/19931111)


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

 ****Mercury Returns BT Fire In UK Telecoms Price War 11/11/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Just a few weeks after
British Telecommunication (BT) announced it was introducing a new
weekend economy call rate for all standard non-local calls in the
UK, Mercury Communications has hit back with a number of discount
offers which it claims will beat BT all the time.

The first discount is the introduction of a new "weekend rate"
of 2.5 pence per minute for all trunk calls. This represents a
considerable saving on the standard economy rate normally
applicable during the weekend of up to 5.3 pence per minute.
The new rates take effect on December 4.

The second discount is the introduction of the "Friends and Family"
concept as seen with MCI calls in the US. Subscribers nominate up
to five regularly called numbers, one of which can be international,
to qualify for an extra five percent discount during off-peak times
-- outside the Monday-Friday 8am to 6pm periods.

This scheme is called "Your Call" and starts from March of next
year. According to Mercury, subscribers will be polled for their
"Your Call" details from January, 1994.

If the phone users at the frequently called numbers then go on to
register for Mercury's long distance service themselves, a further
'special bonus," details of which will be announced in due course,
will be given. Mercury officials have said that subscribers will be
allowed to change their "Your Call" numbers at will.

The third discount is a "special" lasting through December and
January and involves a further reduction of four percent on short
haul trunk calls and eight percent on long haul trunk calls. Mercury
claims that this effectively beats BT's rates by a further five
percent -- over and above the 10 percent guaranteed savings that
Mercury claims to offer.

These new rates are in addition, Newsbytes notes, to the existing
five percent discount offered to all standard subscribers whose
calls are in excess of UKP20 a month.

Announcing the new deals, Andy Coleman, Mercury's managing
director of business and consumer operations, said that he
welcomes recent press comments by the Consumers Association
and the Telecommunications Users Association in favor of
Mercury's long-standing and time-based tariffs. "We listened to
our customers and restructured our tariffs in September to make
them easier for customers to compare our prices with BT's and
to give guaranteed savings," he said.

Continued Coleman, "With our announcements today, we have
confirmed our commitment to leadership in the residential market.
We intend to stay ahead on value and customer service. Customers
will be missing out if they do not add Mercury's long distance
services over their local BT line."

(Steve Gold/19931111/Press & Public Contact: Mercury
Communications, 44-71-528-2651)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00018)

 ****Intel To Double California Folsom Expansion 11/11/93
FOLSOM, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Intel says it
will more than double its previously announced expansion of its
Folsom, California, facility to the tune of $52 million. The
company says the change of plans could add as many as 1,750
badly needed new jobs, as opposed to the 750 jobs announced in
July.

The change is mainly due to changes on the part of the state of
California to attempt to prevent more business from leaving.
California's hostile business climate has run off a number of
major corporations and cuts in defense spending, a major
industry for the state, has not helped matters.

Companies are eyeing the greener and less expensive pastures
of other states and Texas has been very aggressive in winning
several major corporate relocations. In addition, the Golden
State lost big when Intel decided to expand its Rio Rancho, New
Mexico, manufacturing facilities by $1 billion this year instead
of expanding in California -- a move that surprised state
officials.

Robert Perlman, vice president of Intel's Finance Group said:
"We are extremely pleased with the successful efforts of the
legislature and Governor Wilson to reduce the costs of doing
business in California." Intel claims it has invested more than
$500 million in capital additions in California over the past
three years and increased the number of California-based
employees over 25 percent since 1990 -- going from 5,300 to
6,700 in its Santa Clara and Folsom sites.

The state legislature worked overtime to put in place several
incentives to entice businesses to stay including: a tax credit
for cost of equipment used in production or research and
development (R&D); permanent extension of the R&D tax credit;
and a watering down of the "unitary" taxation of the global
profits of multinational corporations.

The Folsom site, originally opened in 1984, will be expanded by
adding a four-story, 360,000 square foot building, as opposed
to the two-story 160,000 facility which would house 750 new
employees that was originally announced. The 256 acre site has
had permanent buildings since 1985 and has grown an average of
11 percent a year to today's employee count of 2,600. The new
construction will begin in early 1994 and should be completed
in early 1995, Intel said.

Intel has the money to stay in California. The boom in the
personal computer (PC) market has propelled Intel to its
current position as the world's largest semiconductor
manufacturer and each quarter's earnings has been a record
breaker for nearly two years now. The company announced just
last month it made more money in the first nine months of 1993
than it did all year in 1992 with net income so far this year
of $584 million on revenues of $2.24 billion.

While Intel has decided to expand, other high-tech companies are
still announcing plans to move jobs out of the state. AST just
announced it would cut 650 California jobs and is expanding its
North American manufacturing operations in Fort Worth, Texas,
instead. Apple Computer has denied reports that it is moving
Apple USA out of California. But the company is negotiating
with the city of Round Rock, a suburb of Austin, Texas. to build
permanent housing for its employees there and has said it will
move more of Apple USA operations out of the high-cost
California economy to Austin.

(Linda Rohrbough/19931111/Press Contact: Howard High,
Intel, tel [phone], fax [phone])


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

International Telecom Update 11/11/93
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- In Asia,
Japanese, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysian telecommunications
firms have began work on a fiber network worth $335 million.
Chinese traffic, Philippine traffic, and even Australian traffic
could be easily linked to the network via spur lines.

All this follows the successful first leg of the privatization of
Singapore Telecom, which was designed in part to increase the
size of that nation's stock exchange. The company said it expects
to post good results for the second half of the year, after a
profit rise of 18.8 percent in the first half. That should give
it capital to expand its investments throughout the region.

But Singapore's neighbors continue to hedge their bets, hoping
diversification can prevent Singapore from dominating the
region. PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia, for instance, set a
cooperation agreement with PTT Telecom of the Netherlands. The
five-year plan of PT Telkom Indonesia is to add seven million lines
over the next five years and double its employment, and as part
of that move it will link its Jakarta telecommunications district
with that of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, rebuilding the central
business district's network to Dutch standards.

The laggard in all this remains Vietnam, which remains under a
US embargo imposed after the Vietnam War. But that is changing,
with evidence seen at the second Vietnam Telecom trade show in
Hanoi early this month. The big headline from this show is the
participation of an American company, Motorola, which had the
largest booth, according to the Pac Rim Intelligence Report. A
total of 70 companies from 19 countries exhibited, as did a
number of local companies.

In China, the debate over liberalization continues. The
government is trying to tighten and control wireless traffic, as
well as reign-in inflation and maintain political control. But
Western executives, who have urged their governments to ignore
China's human rights abuses and expand trade, are also telling
the Chinese government that market liberalization is the only
way to unleash dramatic development.

In Latin America, debate continues over whether Chile's long
distance market will become competitive. Chile's lower house
re-affirmed its decision to allow Compania de Telefonos de Chile,
or CTC, to enter the market, but the current monopoly power,
Entel, still hopes to win in the Senate. CTC dominates local
services.

Generally, however, all eyes will be on Mexico until the NAFTA
treaty is voted on by the US House next week. While opponents
claim they have the votes to defeat the treaty, US businesses
still remain hopeful. AT&T said it is exploring the possibility
of Mexican alliances, and could move ahead if NAFTA wins.

Finally, Millicom of the US expanded its activities in Russia.
The company owns 45 percent of a consortium which won the
right to operate a cellular system in Moscow's suburbs -- it
already has a license in the city itself. Service starts on
that urban network in January, using Motorola equipment.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19931111)


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

FCC Cable Rate Freeze Extended 11/11/93
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- The Federal
Communications Commission has decided to extend a freeze on US
cable television rates until February 15. Commissioner Andrew
Barrett dissented from the decision, which came on a 2-1 vote.

Rates were frozen in April, through September, by the commission,
which is trying to enforce a 1992 law re-regulating rates, but
many operators raised rates in that month, citing benchmarks from
the commission. After complaints from rate-payers and Congress,
the rate freeze was extended through the middle of this month.

The commission noted in its orders that its benchmarks were only
a first step in rate regulation. Local governments can now be
certified to be rate-making authorities, they can seek lower
rates, and the FCC would then have the final say.

But the commission said just 5,000 jurisdictions out of a
possible 33,000 have filed to regulate rates so far. Without local
government certification, local operators will be able to raise
rates on "basic" service, which includes local and government
channels, thus increasing overall rates.

In Georgia, many small cities have filed to regulate rates
because they are sharing the resources of the Georgia Municipal
Association, their private trade group. But many large counties,
like Cobb County in the Atlanta suburbs, are declining to
regulate, saying the cost and complexity are not worth it.
But Cobb and other counties have another option. They could ask
the FCC to do their job for them. If governments refuse to
regulate, the FCC warned, cable companies could combine basic
and expanded basic packages into a single offering free of all
regulation.

An FCC survey last month of the 25 largest cable operators saw
that 68 percent of subscribers have seen decreases in their
monthly charges while 31 percent experienced increases since
the re-regulation law came into effect. The FCC said it will hold
public hearings on cable reregulation in Boston, Atlanta, Kansas
City, Seattle, Chicago and San Francisco early next year, in
part to drum up support for local certification.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19931111/Press Contact: FCC Press Office,
202-632-5050


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

Paramount Drama Claims A Victim 11/11/93
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- The struggle for
Paramount Communications has claimed a victim -- namely the
third quarter results of Information America Inc.

Information America, which offers databases of legal records in
a number of cities, reported a loss of $677,000 for the quarter
ending in September.

The company reported it spent $1.3 billion on the proposed
acquisition of the information services and software units from
Paramount Publishing, but discussions on that were terminated
after the Viacom-QVC battle for Paramount heated up. Had the
deal gone forward, Paramount would have gained a huge share of
Information America common, and the company itself might
have become a subject of the takeover fight.

As it was, Information America President Mary Madden said, the
company reported revenues of $6.734 million, up 44 percent from
the $4.667 million reported for the same quarter a year earlier.

Without the Paramount costs, it would have reported earnings of
three cents per share for the September quarter. Operating results
were impacted by the costs of handling a new government
contract, and with the first phase of a series of enhancements
affecting the entire product line, including a new desktop
software product called Liaison and new enhancements to the
company's search software due for completion next January.

Madden also said that a continuing recession in the law means
"softness in sales to existing customers" and that Information
America is increasing its work with banks, government, and
private investigation firms.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19931111/Press Contact: Mary A. Madden,
Information America, 404-892-1800)


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

BellSouth Cuts, PacTel Buys 11/11/93
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- BellSouth has
increased its estimate of jobs to be lost due to its continuing
automation  by 2,200. The company now says that 10,200
positions will be gone by the end of 1996 from a current work
force of 83,000.

The company set a $1.2 billion restructuring charge to handle
the cuts, cutting earnings for the last quarter by $760 million.

All US telephone companies have been cutting staff in recent
years thanks to computerized switching, which requires far less
maintenance, and the replacement of operators by computer-
assisted voice recognition systems. By 1996, BellSouth said, it
will have fewer than 35 employees per 10,000 access lines,
down from 43 per 10,000 now.

BellSouth has continued to refuse comment on reports it will
invest in QVC's bid for Paramount Communications, as negotiations
on terms of the investment continue with QVC head Barry Diller.

Pacific Telesis, meanwhile, signed AT&T as lead contractor for
its previously-announced plan to greatly expand the capacity of
its network. Pacific Bell President Phil Quigley, who will
command the full company once wireless operations under current
PacTel Chairman Sam Ginn are spun-off, estimated the cost of the
project at $16 billion, and said that 1.5 million phone lines
will have access to the resulting fast-data services by 1996.

Pacific Bell serves California while Pacific Telesis' Nevada Bell
operation serves Nevada. The San Francisco Bay area, Los Angeles,
Orange County, and San Diego will be the first areas hooked up,
and five million lines will access it by the end of the decade.

The PacTel spin-off will result in the third largest US stock
offering ever, although US West is also planning a major stock
offering soon to offset debt. The stock in all regional Bell
companies has risen sharply in price this year as they move to
acquire cable franchises, expand the data-carrying capability of
their networks, and win increased profits from wireless
operations, with the prospect for more once the 200 megahertz
(MHz) in new spectrum for personal communication networks
(PCNs) is auctioned next year.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19931111/Press Contact: BellSouth, Scott
Ticer, 404-249-2824; Pacific Bell, Scott Smith, 415-542-0597)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(BOS)(00023)

Windows NT, Pen Systems Gaining In Software Support 11/11/93
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Out of all
hardware platforms, pen-based systems will receive the greatest
rise in software support in 1993. Among operating systems, the
same will hold true for Windows NT, according to a newly
released study.

Interactive video will be the fastest growing software market in
the horizontal arena, and legal applications will lead the way in
the vertical sector, according to the 929 software company
executives who took part in the 1993 Software Industry
Business Practices Survey.

In the programming language area, the executives projected the
greatest growth in internal use for three object-oriented
languages:  C++, Object C, and Smalltalk. On the other hand,
respondents foresaw a slight decline in the use of object-
oriented techniques, reports Price-Waterhouse, the international
accounting and consulting firm that undertook the study.

In the hardware category, pen-based systems garnered a projected
growth rate of nearly 200 percent. Other up-and-comers were: the
DEC Alpha, at just over 160 percent; massively parallel systems, at
about 150 percent; handheld computers, also at 150 percent; Sega,
at 120-percent; Nintendo, at 100 percent; and the Apple Macintosh,
at 46 percent.

Among all hardware platforms supported, actual and projected,
Intel 386/486 ranked number one, at over 80 percent. Apple
Macintosh was number two, at more than 30 percent, followed in
descending order by the IBM RS/6000, Sun Sparcstation, Digital
VAX, HP 9000, IBM mainframe, and DEC Alpha.

Among operating systems, support for Windows NT was predicted
to rise by over 700 percent. Next came Pen Windows, at about 350
percent; Penpoint, at above 200 percent; OSF/Mach, at around 150
percent; and OSF Unix, MS Windows 3.x, IBM OS/2, and Apple Mac
OS, three systems rated in the 50 to 100 percent range.

Among all operating systems supported, actual and projected, MS
DOS came in first, at around 70 percent, with MS Windows a close
second. Novell's Netware got the nod from about 40 percent of the
companies, and Windows NT from approximately 35 percent. Mac OS
was supported by around 30 percent of those surveyed, followed by
IBM OS/2 at a few percentage points behind. IBM AIX and Sun
OS/Solaris were supported by about 20 percent of the companies
surveyed.

In horizontal markets, interactive video, multimedia and speech
processing were each expected to grow at over 90 percent this year.
Other rising application areas, in declining order, were groupware,
animation, games/entertainment, network administration, and
image processing.

In the vertical markets, legal applications were closely followed
by entertainment, with each of the two areas projected to rise at
about 30 percent. Also anticipated to expand were sales support,
"other business services," customer support, education, and the
categories of transportation/utilities/communications and
agriculture/mining/construction/real estate.

Among programming languages, C++ showed the greatest incidence of
actual new usage for 1993 (161 vendors, or 18 percent growth). But
in the 1992 version of the same study, the projected increase for
C++ was an even-greater 100 percent, according to Price Waterhouse.
The movement to C++ may not be as great as vendors originally
expected it to be, Price Waterhouse conjectured.

Further, actual use of object-oriented techniques was down in all
four areas studied: user interface, programming languages,
analysis and design, and database. Theorized the researchers,
"The gap between C++'s popularity and the low number of
respondents who say they use object-oriented techniques for
programming may be explained by the fact that C++ may appeal
more to respondents as 'a better C' than as a programming tool."

The survey also discovered large increases in the use of
client/server development tools and graphical user interface (GUI)-
builders, along with a slight decline of three percent in the use of
CASE (computer-aided software engineering) tools.

Among areas of industry concern, the respondents rated customer
satisfaction number one, followed by profitability, price
competition, system software trends, and hardware trends.

Among areas of company concern, customer satisfaction also took
the top spot, followed by profitability, cost-effective marketing,
short-term cash flow, and new product flow.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19931111/Reader contact: Price Waterhouse,
617-439-4390; Press contacts: Paula Sinclair, Price Waterhouse,
617-439-7364; Ion Bielat, Price Waterhouse, 212-819-5120)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00024)

 Japan - Sega To Distribute Games Via Cable TV 11/11/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Major Japanese game machine
firm Sega Enterprises says it will start distributing its game
programs via cable television. It will be on an experimental basis
and Sega also plans to begin testing in the US early next year.

Sega Enterprises will start the experiment in cooperation with
Tokyo Cable Network and a telephone facility firm Kandenko. The
experiment will start in Japan by the end of this December. Sega
will choose 500 household in Tokyo to test the system.

Under the service, Sega will upload about 50 to 100 kinds of game
programs to the cable TV's host system. The users will download
the programs into their adapters, which are placed on their TV
sets. Then, the users can play the games by connecting Sega's
game machine, called the Mega Drive, into the adapter.

In the US, Sega will test the system around mid-January in
cooperation with Time-Warner and Telecommunications (TCI).
Sega will choose about 2,000 household for the US experiment.

Observers speculate that the experiments will fuel sales of Sega's
game machine, called Genesis, which is the overseas version of
the Mega Drive.

It is reported that the fee to download the game programs
will be cheaper than comparable personal computer networks.
Large programs with three-dimensional features can
be sent at high speed via a cable network.

Sega is also thinking of developing an interactive game system
for use over the network.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19931110/Press Contact: Sega
Enterprises, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00025)

Netherlands PTT Telecom Teams With Indonesian Firm 11/11/93
THE HAGUE, THE NETHERLANDS, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- PTT Telecom
of the Netherlands has announced a joint cooperation deal with
Telekomunikasi Indonesia, the Indonesian telecommunications
company.

Terms of the arrangement call for both companies to work together
on special projects in South-East Asia. The deal, Newsbytes notes,
will effectively allow Telekomunikasi Indonesia to tender for
contracts all over South-East Asia, without having to set up sales
offices -- PTT Netherlands can draw on its alliances in the region
with other telecoms suppliers.

Newsbytes also understands that the deal will involve both
companies exchanging staff for training purposes, allowing
experience gained in one country to be shared with the other. The
ultimate aim of the deal is to allow Jakarta, the capital of
Indonesia, to achieve the same level of telecoms sophistication
as seen in Rotterdam, which now has a state-of-the-art telecoms
infrastructure.

According to PTT Telecom, Telekomunikasi Indonesia has around
2.8 million lines installed in Indonesia. The Indonesian state-
controlled telecoms company plans to increase this to around seven
million lines by 1998, a task it can only achieve by increasing its
staffing levels by more than 50 percent to 60,000 over the next few
years. It is this expertise that Telekomunikasi Indonesia wants to
draw upon from the Dutch telecoms company.

(Sylvia Dennis & Steve Gold/19931111/Press & Public Contact:
PTT Telecom, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00026)

BT Plans Entry Into Satellite-Based Services For Planes 11/11/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- British Telecommunications
(BT) is reported to be on the verge of making a major investment in
satellite telecoms equipment development for the airline industry,
according to television reports in the UK.

Although BT officials are refusing to elaborate on their plans, they
have confirmed that they are looking very seriously as the matter.
The news comes in the wake of a similar investment by Mercury
Communications, which is already installing test phones and faxes
in British airliners, Newsbytes understands.

Today's London Financial Times, meanwhile, said that BT has
around UKP130 million to invest in the right operation.

This news comes in the wake of BT's ongoing expansion in
multimedia technology over the last year. Earlier this year BT
started retailing satellite TV systems at its "Phone Shops" around
the UK. Tests are currently under way -- much to the chagrin of the
cable TV operators -- involving the use of video-on-demand
services into people's homes using the phone line as a video
conduit for films and audio-visual entertainment services.

(Steve Gold/19931111/Press & Public Contact: BT,
44-71-456-5000)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00027)

Dutch Shoppers Get Their First Taste Of Smart Cards 11/11/93
AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS, 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- After years of
seeing smart cards spread into widespread usage in France, Dutch
citizens are starting to experience their own use of the technology.

Shoppers at Albert Heijn, the supermarket chain, in Amsterdam are
being allowed -- under careful controls -- to scan in their own
shopping and download it to their own smart card.

On arrival at the check-out, these shoppers then hand over their
card, whose contents are printed out and the goods paid for. Only
"credit worthy" customers are being given the cards, the
management of the 600 strong chain has admitted. Spot checks
on the honesty of the shoppers are also taking in place. If
customers make too many "mistakes," their smart cards are
withdrawn.

Despite the cost of installing bar code readers and simple keyboards
on the shopping trolleys, Albert Heijn officials claim that they can
still make money, providing their shoppers are honest. In announcing
the scheme, which Newsbytes notes is just in time for Christmas,
officials said that their check-out staff will be trained to quickly
assess whether a customer's printouts match what is in the trolley.

Coupled with spot checks, where customers will be asked to run
their shopping through a standard check-out system, as a "check on
the accuracy of the bar code readers," officials say their system is
fairly reliable.

(Sylvia Dennis/19931111/Press & Public Contact: Albert Heijn,
31-20-691-2228)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00028)

 ****Cyrix Intros 486 Upgrade Chip For 386SX Systems 11/11/93
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Cyrix Corp., the
company that dared challenge Intel Corp., in its strangle-hold on the
personal computer chip market, has announced a new member of
its upgrade microprocessor family.

The new chip is designated the Cx486SRx2 and is a 386 to 486
upgrade chip that allows users to upgrade their 16, 20 or 25
megahertz (MHz) 386SX-based PCs to 486 class performance. Cyrix
says the upgrade extends the life of existing 386SX desktop systems
by delivering up to a 70 percent improvement on application
performance.

Cyrix upgrade chips are now available nationwide from CompUSA
under a distribution agreement signed by the two companies, and
can be purchased in the 60 CompUSA stores designed as upgrade
centers.

Cyrix says the new SX upgrade chip uses the same microprocessor
core used in the company's DX upgrade. Features include: clock
doubling circuitry; a one kilobyte on-chip cache; improved input/
output (I/O) operation of data; single-cycle execution; and a
hardware implemented integer multiplier.

Cyrix has also implemented cache coherency logic that is designed
to ensure data integrity between the upgrade microprocessor's
internal cache and the system's external memory. A clock duty
cycle correction circuit compensates for variable clocks on 386
motherboards.

To make installation easier, Cyrix teamed up with Augat Inc., to
develop a clip-on device that snaps the upgrade chip onto the
existing 386SX microprocessor. That automatically disables the
original chip and lets the upgrade chip take over all microprocessor
functions. Cyrix says the chip cannot be installed in notebook
computers because of the spacing required for the chip and heat
sink. The company is working on plans for upgrade products for the
386SX-based notebook market.

The upgrade kit comes with the chip, the clip-on device, an
installation manual, and cache installation software on 3.5 and 5.25
inch diskettes. The cache software can be installed on systems
using DOS, Microsoft Windows, or IBM's OS/2. Cyrix says installation
takes about 15 minutes. Users can obtain a free upgradability test
disk to determine if their microprocessors are compatible with the
special float pin that makes automatic takeover of the original chip
possible.

The chip to upgrade 486SX 25 MHz systems has a suggested retail
price of $299. A similar chip designed to upgrade 16 MHz and 20 MHz
systems sells for $269.

(Jim Mallory/19931111/Press contact: Katherine Dockerill, Cyrix
Corp., 214-994-8461; Reader contact: Cyrix Corp., 800-462-9749)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00029)

Wordperfect To Buy SoftSolutions Tech, Cuts Jobs 11/11/93
OREM, UTAH, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) --  Wordperfect Corp.,
has announced it will purchase Softsolutions Technology
Corp., a document management application provider for local
area network (LAN)-based systems. The software company also
announced it will cut some jobs.

Wordperfect says the Softsolutions acquisition will allows it to
incorporate cross-platform document management technology into
its workgroup applications.

The company says Softsolutions, headquartered in Orem, Utah,
also the home of Wordperfect, will continue to operate as an
independent business unit for the foreseeable future. Formed in
1989, Softsolutions has over half the DOS, Microsoft Windows
and Unix-based LAN document management market, according to
research firm International Data Corp.

"Wordperfect has two distinct customers needs to address," said
Dave Moon, Wordperfect vice president of development. "The first
is to provide complete product solutions by bridging document
processing and workgroup applications -- acquiring Softsolutions
will enable us to build this bridge. The second need is to provide
connectivity with multiple document management players. For this
reason, we will continue our partnerships with other document
management companies."

Softsolutions will retain its name and continue under the
leadership of Ken Duncan, its founder and president. The company
employs about 125 people.

Wordperfect says it will likely cut some jobs in early 1994, the
first layoffs in its 14-year history. "We've kind of been on a path
to change our ways in a few areas," said Senior Vice President
John Lewis.

The company declined to say how many jobs might be lost, but
spokesperson Deborah Hendrickson told Newsbytes she is not
aware of any plans to reduce Softsolutions staffing.

Wordperfect has lost some market share to Microsoft after holding
leadership in the word processing market for a number of years.
The company employs 4,700 people in the US, most at company
headquarters in Orem, Utah.

(Jim Mallory/19931111/Press contact: Deborah Hendrickson,
Wordperfect Corp., 801-28-5022, Ronda Shill, Softsolutions,
801-226-6000)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LAX)(00030)

Creative Gets Injunction Against Covox Over "Blaster" 11/11/93
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 NOV 11 (NB) -- Creative
Technology, the parent company of Creative Labs, announced it
has obtained a temporary injunction against Covox. Both
Creative Labs and Covox make sound cards for personal computers
(PCs) and Creative is concerned that the Covox product could be
mistaken by consumers for its own product.

The fight is over the name "Blaster." The preliminary injunction
granted by the US District Court in San Francisco, California,
requires Covox to provide stickers to its distributors and retailers
to place on its Voice Blaster product, indicating it is not
associated with Creative's Sound Blaster. The stickers must be
out by December 1. By January 1, the order says Covox must
change the packaging so it does not use the Blaster name at all.

Ed Esber, president and chief operating officer (COO) of
Creative Labs, said: "The preliminary injunction sets a strong
precedent for manufacturers who leverage the success of
standard-setting companies and their products." Esber is well-
known as the chief executive officer (CEO) of the notoriously
litigious database company Ashton-Tate, who resigned just
before the failing giant was purchased by Borland International
in 1991.

Larry Robertson, executive manager at Covox, said his company
has opposed Creative Technology's application for trademark of
the "Blaster" name, so Creative has resorted to litigation.
"Creative currently has no registered trademark for the name
Blaster, though they still have an application pending,"
Robertson said.

But despite the lack of an official trademark, Creative
Technology claims its case is strengthened by Covox's apparent
acknowledgement of its trademark on the Voice Blaster
packaging. The wording on the current Covox Voice Blaster
packaging reads: "Sound Blaster and Sound Blaster Pro are
trademarks of Creative Labs Inc."

Robertson told Newsbytes the case could be settled out-of-court
before it goes to trial in March of 1994. For now, Robertson
said Covox will probably rename its Voice Blaster product in
line with its other "Master" product line.

(Linda Rohrbough/19931111/Press Contact: Benita Kenn, Creative
Labs, 408-428-6600; Larry Robertson, Covox, tel [phone],
fax [phone])