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/NB930726

Text File | 1993-07-26 | 69KB | 1,537 lines

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00001)

Computer Associates Supports Novell In NCSC C2 Security Pledge 07/26/93
SLOUGH, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Computer Associates
(CA) International has announced it plans to provide the software
technology to enhance security across Novell networks. The idea
behind the link-up with Novell is to assist the networking company
as it seeks to obtain a C2 security rating for Netware from the
Netware Computer Security Center (NCSC).

C2 security classification is a level of security defined by the US
Government (specifically, the Department of Defense and the NCSC).

The idea behind the definition to give defense contractors a
yardstick by which they can measure the level of security required
before the US Government will consider their technology for
inclusion in a Government contract that requires high levels of data
integrity and security.

Since it was first defined in the 1980s, C2 has become enormously
popular in the US, in both the private, as well as the public
sector. In Europe, C2's broad equivalent is known as the Commercial
Licensed Evaluation Facilities' (CLEF) E2 classification. Although
European figures on E2's acceptance are unavailable, C2 is thought
to be in active use across two thirds of public and private sector
organizations.

Announcing the company's support for Novell, CA officials said that
they intend to work with Novell on three fronts:

[] The provision of advanced security intercepts enabling Netware
   users to benefit from a real-time security engine that is C2
   compliant.

[] CA-Unicenter for Netware will be made available to certified
   Netware engineers for corporations and federal agencies who are
   seeking C2 compliance.

[] CA will work with Novell to develop advanced security interfaces
   (adhering to C2 and E2 standards or better) to Netware, Novell's
   network operating system.

Kurt Seibert, CA's vice president with responsibility for strategic
business alliances, said that he is pleased to be working with
Novell on the project.

"Netware enabled with CA Unicenter will bring to network computing
environments the same level of security now available to the more
than 60 percent of federal and commercial sites using CA mainframe-
based security software," he said.

It's still very early days on the pooling of research and
development (R&D) facilities between the two companies, but
Newsbytes notes that CA Unicenter is specifically engineered to take
advantage of Netware's features and functionality. This includes
NLM, 32 bit addressing, the IPX/SPX communication protocol and
Netware directory services.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Computer Associates -
Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00002)

Nortel Matra To Supply MCI Digital Mobile Phone Net 07/26/93
MAIDENHEAD, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Nortel Matra
Cellular (NMC), the groupe speciale mobile (GSM) network equipment
and services supplier, has won a prestigious contract to supply MCI
in the US with a complete personal communication system (PCS) mobile
phone network, including the core switching office products and cell
site radio technology.

Plans call for MCI to make use of the NMC products as part of a
three month trial, testing extra facilities such as voice messaging,
call blocking and call screen, to digital mobile phone users.

MCI has an experimental licence from the US Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) to conduct nationwide testing in the US, across the
1850 and 1900 megahertz (MHz) wavebands. The idea is that the
telecoms giant will submit progress reports to the FCC every 90
days. Testing will take place in the Richardson/Plano area, the
Texas area and the area enclosed by Washington DC.

"This is an extremely important contract for NMC, for a number of
reasons," explained Emile Gratton, NMC's chief executive.

"Firstly, it is our testimony to our ability to deliver complete
personal communication system (PCS) solutions, including radios and
switches. Second, although GSM is acknowledged as a European
standard, this order shows that NMC's products address a truly
global mobile communications market," he said.

Gratton added that his company plans to deliver both the 900
megahertz (MHz) GSM and 1800 MHz DCS technologies to the digital
mobile phone market-place. "Now we have shown that we have an
equally sophisticated solution for the PCS 1900 market emerging in
the US," he said.

According to Gratton, the real significance of the MCI digital phone
network is that it represents the maturity of mobile telephony. "We
are moving from simple mobile telephony to a more far reaching
concept of personal communications," he explained.

"The advanced functionality that we incorporate into our intelligent
network switches enable operators like MCI to offer their customers
a rich set of calling features. In other words, we pass our own
competitive advantage to our direct customers," he said.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Northern Telecom Europe
- Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(SYD)(00003)

Birds Of Australia Now Available On CD 07/26/93
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Simpson and Day's "Birds of
Australia" book is now in its fourth edition. This edition has been
used to produce the first edition of the CD-ROM (compact disc read
only memory) version.

Published by Natural Learning, the disk contains 792 bird pictures,
more than 400 birdsong recordings and a complete list of the bird
families of the world. The CD is designed for schools, libraries and
naturalists. It requires a multimedia compatible PC.

In use, the disc allows bird species and families to be selected by
common or Latin name. Each bird is displayed with picture and song
where available. The combination is meant to help users identify
species, along with a distribution map and details of food,
activities and nesting habits.

Newsbytes' one complaint about the disc is that the pre-release
version we saw had moire patterns on many of the photos as they had
been scanned from published pictures, not the original photos.

127 bird species are under threat in Australia and "Birds of
Australia" records the status of each and lists the threats they
face. These details are from the Royal Australian Ornithologists
Union.

The CD also contains a complete list of Australian bird habitats
with photographs and environmental notes. Other features of the disk
include a bird trivia quiz, a glossary of bird terms, bird anatomy,
bird evolution, bird regions of the world, bird fossils and bird
nests.

There is an ongoing national census of Australian birds and this
information will be progressively added to the CD in new versions.
The cost is AUS$199 or AUS$179 for educational use. Contact: Natural
Learning at 14 McKinley Place Cherrybrook NSW 2126 Australia, on
phone [phone] or fax [phone].

Another new disk of interest is the Macquarie Australian National
Dictionary. This AUS$199 has over 110,000 entries and 300,000
definitions. It is perhaps the most up to date reference to the
Australian Language. For further details of this disc, contact SCSI
Corporation on phone [phone] or fax [phone].

(Paul Zucker/19930723)


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

Federal CD-ROM Directory Published 07/26/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Everyone knows that the
federal government in the US collects a lot of information, but did
you also know that it offers a great deal of that data on
inexpensive compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM) discs?

At $11, the SIGCAT (special interest group, CD-ROM applications
technology) CD-ROM Compendium offers an easy way to locate both
obscure and popular titles carrying government information.

The April 1993 issue of the directory, which is compiled by the
world's largest CD-ROM user's group (sponsored by the US Geological
Survey), runs to about 180 pages and contains half-page description
of hundreds of titles, with a full index and a cross-reference to
the publishing agency.

Some of the CD-ROMs listed are actually published by federal
agencies such as the US Geological Survey (USGS), which provides a
lot of raw climatic and seismic data for students and scientists;
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with satellite
and deep sea data; and NASA, with its near-Earth satellite
statistical data and planetary images.

Federally published titles are often very inexpensive (the entire US
Federal Code costs $34 on disc vs. about $2,000 for the print
version) or even free, while many outside publishers charge high
prices to format and publish data already paid for by taxpayers. But
some companies such as Quanta Press publish reams of public data at
very reasonable prices.

Here are some sample titles found in the directory:

Viking Orbiter Images of Mars; the 10-disc set costs less than $10
per disc from NASA.

US Exports of Merchandise, $150 for a single month's data from the
US Bureau of the Census.

Side-Looking Airborne Radar images, $32 per disk (22 available) from
the USGS.

Pre-Magellan (radar data of Earth, Moon, Venus, Mars, and
Mercury), $32, NASA.

While this is an important directory, the descriptions are very
brief and there is no information about CD-ROM technology so it
isn't suitable for novice users. But for those business information
specialists, librarians, and individual users who are familiar with
CD-ROM, this inexpensive directory is a vital guide to government
data on CD-ROM.

To obtain a copy of the disc-based directory, send $11 ($13.75
foreign orders) to Superintendent of Documents, P.O. Box 371954,
Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954 and specify document #021-000-00158-9.

(John McCormick/19930726/Press Contact: Jerry McFaul, SIGCAT
only, 703-648-7126)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LON)(00005)

Oracle UK Adds Six More Companies To Its Reseller Channel 07/26/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Six new companies, all
specializing in different aspects of desktop system development,
have joined up to Oracle's System Reseller programme.

The move marks the latest building block in UK general manager Tony
Scrivens' decision to shift sales from a direct-sell basis to a
reseller-only channel. The System Reseller programme, which has been
in operation since August of last year, now has 28 resellers on
board, including the six announced today.

The six new companies are Anix Computers, the Database, Instech,
Michael Business, Morse Data and Olico. Scrivens described the new
additions as specialists in their respective areas.

"They have all recognised the opportunities offered by working with
Oracle and the potential our products give them in developing new
applications for their customers," he said.

Scrivens said that he concentrating on the quality, rather than the
quantity, of resellers joining the channel and he does not expect
any extra significant increases at this stage.

"Oracle is in the very heart of its transition from selling only
through direct channels to selling also through a highly-skilled and
professional indirect channel. This first year has been
outstandingly successful and we are planning for a three-fold growth
in business through resellers in the coming year," he said.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Oracle UK - tel: 0344-
860066)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00006)

Free E-Mail Package On Offer For LAN Users 07/26/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Systems Support, in conjunction
with CE Software of the US, has announced it is offering a free five
user local area network LAN) package through a new scheme known as
Quickmail Connect Now, for use with Quickmail v2.6, the electronic
mail software.

According to Jeanne Razzell, Systems Support's commercial director,
claims that Connect Now is a unique idea in the software industry.

"CE has taken its number one selling E-Mail package, Quickmail. and
provided us with free five user LAN packs, which means we can
install five users of Quickmail free to any site which we feel would
benefit from an electronic mail system," she said.

"I know of customers who do not currently use E-mail and of others
who have an E-mail system installed, but are not satisfied with the
performance. By using the Connect Now package from CE Software, we
can let them try before they buy," she added.

Quickmail 2.6 is billed as a cross-platform E-mail system that has
everything in one box and claims to provide a consistent "look and
feel" for messaging from Mac, DOS and Windows users. The five user
package is claimed to have a street value of UKP 400.

Razell said that the "great thing about Quickmail is that it is an
all in one package."

"With the advent of mixed LOANs -- Macs, DOS and Windows -- all on
one network, there's a need for one system that addresses all users
in a consistent manner. Quickmail also providers a fairer networking
solution as it is sold by number of users, not type of machine," she
added.

So why is Systems Support offering a five user version of Quickmail,
with a nett worth of UKP 400, free of charge? According to Razell,
the company hopes they will take a full version once they've seen
what the package can do. "If they make a decision to install a full
version, the free five users stay," she said.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Systems Support - Tel:
0223-462140)


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

Stac Utility For Doublespace File Access Under OS/2 07/26/93
CARLSBAD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Although IBM's
graphical operating system, OS/2 2.1, supports Microsoft's new MS-
DOS 6.0 operating system, if DOS 6.0 files are compressed using the
DOS 6.0 Doublespace utility, there is no way to access them from
OS/2 -- until now. Stac Electronics, claims it has developed a
utility to convert those DOS 6.0 compressed files so users can
access them under OS/2.

Stacker for OS/2 & DOS product was originally designed with DOS 5.0
in mind. OS/2 is widely regarded as a disk space hog, requiring a
minimum of 40 megabytes (MB) of hard disk space, so data compression
is attractive to OS/2 users.

Announcing the utility, John Bromhead, Stac Electronics' director of
marketing said: "The response to Stacker for OS/2 & DOS has been
greater than we expected, and a large portion of these people are
using MS-DOS 6.0.

"They are concerned because they are unable to access their
compressed DOS files from OS/2. They want to know that they will be
able to take advantage of OS/2 2.1 without leaving their DOS data
behind," he added.

The catch is only registered users of the OS/2 data compression
product, Stacker for OS/2 & DOS, can get the utility which does a
one-time conversion of Doublespace compressed files to Stacker's
compression format.

Once the files are in Stacker's format the Stacker product installed
on the computer makes them accessible under OS/2. Stac is offering
the conversion utility to registered Stacker for OS/2 & DOS users
for $19.95 and includes 90 days of free technical support.

Since OS/2 2.1 provides for users to boot either OS/2 or DOS, users
may find themselves wanting to replace the DOS 6.0 Doublespace
compression with Stacker. Stac officials said that the Stacker 3.1
competitive upgrade can be used to transparently replace the DOS 6.0
Doublespace compression system with Stacker compression technology,
and can be used in conjunction with Stacker for OS/2 & DOS.

IBM has aligned itself with Stac, which is good for Stac since it is
currently embroiled in a suit with Microsoft over the data
compression in MS-DOS 6.0. In July, IBM Personal Software Products
(PSP) Europe and Stac Electronics signed a joint marketing agreement
to allow Big Blue to market Stacker for OS/2 & DOS in Europe, the
Middle East and Africa.

Both OS/2 and Stacker are offered in retail stores in the same
packaging and IBM Europe supports both products. Stacker
representatives said there are no plans for the same arrangement in
the US, however.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930726/Press Contact: Lois Leslie, Stac
Electronics, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Public
Contact, Stac Electronics, 800-522-7822)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00008)

UK Modem Approvals Group Acts On Illegal Ads 07/26/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- The Modem Approvals Group (MAG)
has announced it is stepping up its campaign against unapproved
modems by asking magazine publishers to ensure that advertising for
such products is not illegal.

Jeremy Hunt, MAG's chairman, has written to all major magazine
publishers asking to explain their policies with respect to
advertising and product reviews. This idea is to publicize the fact
that, under the Telecoms Apparatus Order 1985, it is illegal to
advertise most modems without indicating whether they are approved
or unapproved.

"Since we launched our campaign last month, I have been sent a
number of advertisements for unapproved modems that do not state
anywhere that the products are not approved," he said.

According to Hunt, not only is this type of advert illegal, but it
is highly misleading for customers. He claims that sorting out this
kind of confusion lies at the heart of what we are trying to
achieve.

"Given that use of unapproved modems on the public network is a
breach of telecoms licensing regulations, publishers should ask
themselves whether they ought to accept such products in advertising
or product reviews at all," he said.

Newsbytes questioned Hunt on the implication that publishers who
accept advertising for unapproved modems may find approved modem
manufacturers withdrawing their advertising is correct.

"No," he replied, adding that the aim of writing to the publishers
querying their attitude was merely to publicise the fact that
advertising unapproved modems without clearly identifying them as
such is illegal.

"I'm sure that none of the reputable publishers would want to
take such advertisements. Our long-term aim, of course, is to get
rid of such advertising altogether, but we recognise that this will
take some time to achieve. Our short term aim is to avoid confusing
the consumer," he told Newsbytes.

The MAG currently includes seven of the 10 largest suppliers of
modems to the UK market-place. Members include: Andest
Communications, BT Datacomms, Cray Communications, Dataflex Design,
Faxback, Microcom, Modular Technology, Motorola-Codex, Penril
Datacom, Psion Dacom, PSL, Racal Datacom, Tricom and Pace
Electronics.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Clare McCarthy, Profile
Public Relations - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00009)

Wall Data Unveils Rumba Gateway System 2.1 07/26/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Wall Data has introduced
version 2.1 of its Rumba gateway system. According to the company,
by using Rumba v2.1, PC/Banyan users can now access a host system
over a local area network (LAN) through the Rumba gateway system,
while still using their native Banyan Vines protocols.

Julian Rigg, Wall's vice president of European sales, claims that
this allows Banyan users to utilize their host computing assets
while maintaining the advantages of the Vines system.

As well as supporting Banyan Vines, Rumba now also supports
multiplexed TCP/IP, dual Rumba SDLC co-processor links and Windows'
Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) within remote management.

"Rumba 2.1 is another element of our strategy to offer the most
complete and flexible systems network architecture (SNA)," Rigg
explained, adding that, with an installed based of almost half a
million users (source: Forrester Research), the Banyan market
accounts for eight percent of the total installed LAN node market-
place in 1992.

"We're committed to providing connectivity to these Banyan users,"
he said.

Under a TCP/IP-configured Rumba system, up to 64 users can each have
a multiple simultaneous host session on a TCP/IP LAN. Coupled with
its ability to link dual SDLC network links to SNA computers, Rigg
claims that the network becomes more robust and manageable.

A site licence for Rumba 2.1 costs UKP 1,115. The package, which is
available immediately, is based on Microsoft Windows, which Wall
claims makes it easy to install and efficient to use.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Wall Data - Tel: 081-
813-8188)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00010)

Sybase Signs Up SHL; Enhances Channel Partners Program 07/26/93
EMERYVILLE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- SHL Systemhouse
has become a member of Sybase's third party Open Solutions Program.

Sybase maintains that SHL will benefit from new, dedicated program
resources in technical, sales and marketing areas. SHL will also use
Sybase technology in its enterprise client/server systems.

Announcing the deal, Stewart Schuster, Sybase's vice president of
marketing, said: "SHL, like Sybase, is one of the pioneers in
client/server."

"Our focus on the database engine, connectivity, administration, and
tools products combined with the planning, architecture,
implementation and systems management expertise of SHL, offers our
customers best-in-class solutions," he added.

The alliance is seen as an indication of the current trend among
software vendors and systems integrators to team up in order to
address market demand.

Plans call for SHL to resell Sybase products, while Sybase will
support SHL through the Open Solutions Program. The companies
maintain that SHL will benefit from demonstration software,
discounts on educational courses, compensation on joint sales, and
access to consulting services.

Phil York, vice president, technology research and alliances for
SHL, said: "Our desire to partner with Sybase is driven by its leading
client/server technology. Equally important, however, is Sybase's
understanding of our role in growing the market by delivering
cost-effective solutions to business needs."

Sybase has also announced enhancements to its Open Solutions
Program for channel partners, by establishing a new systems
integrator channel, and by adding new dedicated technical services,
sales and marketing support for companies that participate in the
program.

Sybase was in the news about a week ago, when Newsbytes reported
that the company had introduced a new version of its object-
oriented, multimedia database application software, Gainmomentum
2.0.

(Ian Stokell/19930726/Press Contact: Holly McArthur, 510-596-3500,
Sybase Inc.)


(CORRECTION)(APPLE)(LAX)(00011)

CORRECTION - 1,500 Developers Interested In Newton Toolkit 07/26/93
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- In the story run
July 23, 1993, Newsbytes was informed by Apple Computer Personal
Interactive Electronics (PIE) division representatives that about 20
developers have had access to beta copies of the Newton Toolkit.
Philip Ivanier, manager of developer relations for PIE has since
informed Newsbytes that more than 100 developers have, in fact, beta
tested the Toolkit.

When asked what the criteria was for determining who got beta
copies of the Newton Toolkit, Apple representatives were
uncertain.

Two criteria mentioned were the resources of the developer and how
close the developer was to offering a viable product. However,
Ivanier corrected the statements saying the criteria for choosing
developers included the areas of application planned by the
developer, as well as the core competency and technical abilities of
the developer.

Ivanier was also careful to point out that start-up companies as
well as established developers were chosen for beta testing.

The Apple Newton personal digital assistant (PDA) is expected to be
launched next Monday, August 2.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930726/Press Contact: Philip Ivanier, Apple
Computer, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00012)

Microsoft US OLE Development Team To Host UK Conference 07/26/93
WOKINGHAM, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Microsoft has
announced that its object linking and embedding (OLE) development
team from Redmond, Washington, is hosting an intensive two-day
developer's conference in Europe this September.

The event, which will take place at the Park Hilton Hotel in Munich
on September 6/7, along with a repeat at the Olympia Conference
Centre in London on September 9/10, aims to provide commercial
software developers, solutions providers and consultants with an
opportunity to spend some time with Microsoft's OLE experts.

Both events will discuss many aspects of Microsoft's OLE strategy,
specifically, the company's Object Model for Windows, which the
company claims provides the foundation for Object Linking, Object
Embedding, In-Place Activation and inter/intra application
automation and Drag and Drop.

"The conference should make it easier for those vendors who are
looking to develop applications with support for future Microsoft
strategies," explained Brian Iddon, Microsoft's marketing manager
for developer services.

"In addition, it will provide a unique opportunity for all those
interested parties on this side of the Atlantic to participate in
the mind share of the Microsoft think tank in Redmond," he said.

Attendance at the event will set you back a fairly hefty UKP 300,
plus local taxes. This price includes refreshments and lunch on both
days, along with an evening buffet on the first day, plus an OLE 2.0
development kit from Microsoft.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Microsoft Registration
Hotline - Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00013)

Microsoft & 20 Others Get behind JPEG Windows 07/26/93
WOKINGHAM, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- More than 20
leading multimedia software and hardware vendors have agreed to
standardize on a common joint photographic expert group (JPEG) file
format for bit mapped images and compressed video data under
Microsoft Windows.

The idea is that JPEG still image files will be supported under
Windows as device independent bitmaps (DIB) files. JPEG video files,
meanwhile, will be supported under Video for Windows as audio/video
interleaved (AVI) files.

Mark Edwards, Microsoft's Windows marketing manager, claimed that,
by standardizing JPEG still image and video file formats, Windows
software and hardware producers can ensure that their products will
work together.

"The addition of JPEG compliance will strengthen Video for Windows'
overall compatibility, making it easier for users to capture and
store different types of video data," he said.

According to Microsoft, industry standardization on the JPEG
technology will mean that users will be able to choose from a
variety of cost-effective products that use JPEG compression
technology to lower the storage requirements of high color still
images, as as improve the quality and performance of full motion
video.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press & Public Contact: Microsoft UK - Tel:
0734-270001)


(CORRECTION)(IBM)(LAX)(00014)

CORRECTION - PC Retail Sales Predicted To Jump By 1996 07/26/93
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- In the story that
ran July 19, a word was inadvertently left out of the copy. The
estimated number of PCs purchased through retail outlets should
have read forty-six million instead of forty-six.

Newsbytes apologizes for any inconvenience this may have caused.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930726)


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

Media Vision Announces Pro Moviestudio PC Card 07/26/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Media Vision has unveiled the
Pro Moviestudio video card, a card which it claims offers real tine
video compression to deliver affordable, high quality video capture
for multimedia applications on PCs,

According to Media Vision, real time compression is important in
optimizing storage requirements on the hard disk. Using the Pro
Moviestudio card technology, data is captured from any standard
video device, such as a TV, camcorder, laser disk or VCR, and is
compressed instantly. The minimum system requirement is an 80386-
based PC or better.

"Multimedia video can enhance a variety of entertainment and
business applications," explained Paul Jain, Media Vision's
president and CEO. "With the Pro Moviestudio, we're taking one more
step towards bringing the power of multimedia to the broad base of
mainstream PC users."

Media Vision is bundling an MS-DOS player and recorder with the card
as well as an AVI to Quicktime converter. This means that data
images captured on a Windows PC can be played back on a DOS or Mac
computer system, as well as a Windows PC.

This facility is important, according to Satush Gupta, Media
Vision's vice president of strategic marketing and development.

"Cross platform video playback is a key benefit of the Promovie
Studio. Now, when I'm using desktop video with electronic
communications, I'm no longer restricted to those people using
Windows on a PC," he said.

The Pro Moviestudio is the first add-in video card to use Media
Vision's twin chip Motive video chipset. Without the chipset, one
minute of video would take up around 70 megabytes (MB) of hard disk
space and eight minutes to compress. With the Motive chipset, this
file now compresses down to just 4.5MB and compressed in real time.

The card comes with support for 32,768 colors and can capture
screen resolutions of up to 320 x 240 pixels. The card claims to
support a wide range of broadcast standards, including NTSC, PAL and
SECAM.

The Promovie Studio card costs UKP 350 and is available through UK
computer resellers who source their hardware through Merisel, the
computer distributors. Merisel handles Media Vision's products on
this side of the Atlantic.

(Steve Gold/19930726/Press Contact: SMI - Tel: [phone]; Fax:
071-354-3519)


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

When A Busy Tone Is Not All It Might Seem 07/26/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Most Newsbytes readers will be
familiar with the difference between US and UK busy tones, so, if
call were to be placed from the UK to the US and a UK engaged tone
were returned, you'd presume that all international circuits were
busy. Right?

Wrong. If a call from the UK to the US is made and the destination
number is a phone or a fax machine linked to an integrated services
digital network (ISDN) connection, then the remote US link will
signal to the local exchange in the UK if the distant line is busy.
This means that the UK caller hears a busy tone generated by his/her
local exchange.

Newsbytes encountered this problem when calling earlier today from
London to Hayes' US' fax machine in Atlanta. This bureau was amazed
to hear a UK engaged tone. On enquiry with the ISDN hotline support
desk with British Telecom, it appears this is a normal area of
confusion with UK phone users.

The same problem occurs in the reverse direction, with US phone
users hearing their own (US) busy tone when attempting to call a UK
phone or fax linked to an ISDN connection.

"It's because the distant switch signals to the subscriber's local
switch using supervisory circuits. The idea is to cut down on
unnecessary use of international circuits," said a BT spokesman.

Eventually, even trunk phone calls will be treated in the same way,
preventing non-revenue earning trunk calls from clogging up the
national exchange network.

So, next time you hear what sounds like a local busy tone on an
international call, remember that the network might not be busy --
it could just be an ISDN link is being used at the other end of
your call.

(Steve Gold/19930726)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEN)(00017)

US West Asks For Rate Hike; Gets Thumbs Down 07/26/93
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- US West Communications
has announced it will seek an eight percent raise in residential
phone rates. However the state's Office of Consumer Counsel says it
will fight the hike.

US West wants to raise its rates to bring in an extra $28 million in
order to offset the cost of paying for employee retirement benefits.
The company took a $1.8 billion charge against earnings last year in
order to comply with the new rules for reflecting retirement costs.

Previously, many companies have used a "pay as you go" approach but,
under new rules, publicly held companies with 500 or more employees
must carry the entire cost of current and future employee's
retirement as a liability. US West employs about 12,000 people in
Colorado.

If the Colorado Public Utilities Commission approves the rate
increase, it will cost residential users $1.75 each month for the
next 17 years. It will also be the biggest rate increase since 1991
when the Colorado PUC approved a residential rate increase of $1.43
and business rates rose $4.21 per month.

US West faces some opposition to the increase from the Office of
Consumer Counsel, who says regulators should look at the telecom
company's books and consider all expenses and income, including
revenue from new services such as Caller ID, as well as lower
expenses because of declining interest rates.

OCC Director Ron Binz thinks it's even possible a rate decrease
would be appropriate. Binz also feels its unfair for the company to
ask only its residential customers to bear the brunt of the
accounting rule change. US West also claims that raising business
rates would put it at a competitive disadvantage, but Binz discounts
that argument, saying US West's competitors have the same expenses.

(Jim Mallory/19930726)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00018)

Landmark Announces Two New Packages 07/26/93
CLEARWATER, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Landmark Research
International has announced two new software packages: one is a
Windows troubleshooting program and the other a Windows application
that uses the mouse to execute most DOS commands and launch
programs.

The company claims that WinProbe troubleshoots hardware problems,
helps resolve setup conflicts, and optimizes the Windows
configuration on your personal computer. WinProbe includes 14
different diagnostic tests, as well as offering several dozen
Windows optimization tips and more than 1,000 items of system and
Windows information.

Diagnostic tests include CPU and system board testing in 16 and 32
bit operation, testing a math co-processor chip if installed,
testing conventional, extended, expanded and XMS memory, floppy
drive speed and surface analysis, hard drive surface analysis, video
adapter and screen, mouse initialization and interrupts, printer
operation, and cable testing.

Using the WinProbe Tuneup feature provides the user with up to 35
suggestions on how to speed up his or her system. It analyzes
SmartDrive, identifies and explains how to set up a permanent swap
file, identifies whether you should run Windows in standard or
enhanced mode, identifies the optimum driver for an installed VGA
video card, frees fragmented memory, and suggests the best Windows
setup for your particular system.

WinProbe also includes the Installation Wizard, which the company
says provides detailed information on installing a new hard
drive;CMOS display and edit; IRQ, DMA, and UMB usage; what to do
when installing an add-in card; ways to clean up .INI and .GRP
files; memory allocation and management tips; and how to locate and
remove duplicated system files.

Also being announced is DOS for Windows, a utility program Landmark
says looks, feels, and acts like DOS but is actually a Windows
program. Users can run DOS for Windows instead of shelling out to
the DOS prompt. The company says that DOS for Windows activates the
mouse, allowing the user to point and clock on any program or
associated data file to launch the program. Landmark says DOS for
Windows is safer than using the DOS shell when running Windows in
the enhanced mode.

WinProbe has a suggested retail price of $99, which includes PC
Certify DOS troubleshooting software and DOS for Windows. You can
purchase DOS for Windows separately for $49.

(Jim Mallory/19930726/Press contact: Nancy Garcia, S&S Public
Relations for Landmark, 719-574-2868; Reader contact: Landmark
Research International Corp, 800-683- 6696


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00019)

Canadian Product Launch Update 07/26/93
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- This regular feature,
appearing every Monday or Tuesday, provides further details for the
Canadian market on announcements by international companies that
Newsbytes has already covered. This week: IBM's PC-DOS 6.1,
Olivetti's Quaderno 33 subnotebook and M6 Suprema desktop PCs, and
Xerox's 4700 II laser printer.

IBM Canada said that its latest version of the DOS operating system,
PC-DOS 6.1 (Newsbytes, June 30), will be available this week. The
Canadian list price is C$189, and an upgrade from a previous version
of DOS will cost C$109. IBM Canada also has a 90-day introductory
offer, which says that by calling the company at 800-465-7999
customers can get the software for C$59.95.

Olivetti Canada announced the Quaderno 33 (Newsbytes, July 7), a new
version of its subnotebook computer that comes with Microsoft
Windows 3.1 plus Microsoft's Works for Windows integrated software
and Lotus' Organizer personal information manager preloaded. To be
available in August, it has a list price of C$3,269.

Olivetti also launched in Canada its M6 Suprema line of personal
computers (Newsbytes, May 7), which includes models based on the
Intel 33-megahertz (MHz) 486SX, 33-MHz 486DX, and 66-MHz 486DX2
processors. The machines are modular and use Intel's OverDrive
technology to allow for later processor upgrades.

Olivetti is now shipping the 486DX and DX2-based models in Canada,
at list prices of C$3,500 and C$4,300 respectively with eight
megabytes (MB) of memory, 240-MB hard drive and video controller.
The 486SX-based M6-420 is not yet available in Canada, a spokesman
said.

Xerox Canada launched its 4700 II Color Document Printer (Newsbytes,
July 1), a full-color laser printer that supports both the
PostScript and Hewlett-Packard PCL5 page description languages and
is rated at 7.5 pages per minute in full color and as fast as 30
pages per minute in black and white. All Canadian customers with
Xerox 4700 printers are eligible for a free upgrade to the 4700 II,
starting in September, the company said.

(Grant Buckler/19930726/Press Contact: Paul MacVicar, IBM Canada,
416-474-3037; Frances Critchley-Moore, Olivetti Canada,
416-477-8250 ext. 220; Nathan Rudyk, Xerox Canada, 416-733-6726)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00020)

Fear of Technology Is Phobia of the 90's, Says Dell Survey 07/26/93
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- According to the results
of a nationwide survey released today by Dell Computer Corporation,
more than half of all Americans are still resistant to taking
advantage of technology in their everyday lives.

The survey showed that one-fourth of all US adults have never used a
computer, set a VCR to record a television show or even programmed
their favorite stations on a car radio. The survey gauged the
"techno-tolerance" of 1,000 adults and 500 teens across the country.

Dell says that the survey is part of a broader study over the past
10 years which includes extensive market research, focus groups and
feedback from some of 35,000 customer calls Dell says it receives
daily.

Dell chairman Michael Dell says the company used the survey results
to "techno-type" users into one of several broad categories. Dell
says techno-typing will help people understand what computers can do
specifically for them and how they can go about finding their
perfect PC match. Dell sees the low tolerance for technology as an
obstacle that must be overcome to achieve broad consumer acceptance
for computers in the US.

The survey shows that teenagers are more technically literate than
adults, with 92 percent of all teens surveyed saying they are
comfortable using technical gadgets such as answering machines,
VCR's, CD players, and computers. About 74 percent of surveyed
adults said they are at ease with the equipment. Teens and adults
agree that using computers can save them time, although 32 percent
of the adults say they are intimidated by computers and fear they
might damage the machine when using it.

Dell's techno-types include techno-wizard, techno-to-go, techno-
boomer, techno-phobe, and two corporate techno types: techno-teamer
and techno-critical. The company says that techno-wizards are
usually technology experts or hobbyists who want the hottest
technology for the lowest price.

Techno-to-go describes the person who wants a computer that comes
ready to work right out of the box, and is interested in what the
computer will do but not how it does it. A techno-boomer, says Dell,
wants to look smart, does research and seeks recommendations before
making a purchase. Techno-phobes reject technology or avoid it
whenever possible.

Corporate techno-teamers use computers at work, usually on a
network. Productivity is their primary concern for work that is
largely job or team-oriented. Techno-critical describes the
corporate or business user who relies on computers for more
sophisticated tasks which are critical to doing the job, such as
computer-aided engineering or design.

Often a techno-critical person will be an independent operation who
is technically dependent but also practical. His or her greatest
concern is system failure because it hurts business.

(Jim Mallory/19930726/Press contact: Jenice Murphy, Fleishmann
Hillard, 214-522-7550)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEL)(00021)

HCL HP, Siva Offer Local Bus On 486-Based Systems 07/26/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Just as in the US, PCs based
around local bus architecture are all the range in India, so it
comes as no surprise to learn that HCL Hewlett-Packard, the largest
information technology (IT) company in India, has teamed with
Sterling Computers, to move into the technology in a big way.

HCL-HP and Sterling have leap-frogged ahead of Siva, a local PC
supplier, which has been supplying a local bus card in its PCs. The
HP Busybee, Oasys and Meteor range of PCs, which have an 80486SX, DX
or DX2 processor, will now include at least two video electronic
standard association (VESA) local bus slots as well as their
standard ISA (industry standard architecture) slots.

Local bus architecture serves as an extension of the ISA/EISA bus,
opening up a 32-bit expansion 33 MHz pathway between the video
subsystem and the main CPU. This acts as a major speed booster when
running Windows programmes. With the VL bus, HCL HP guarantees a
response between three and eight times normal when running Windows,
than when running on a AT bus VGA card.

Considering the speed advantage, the price premium for the local bus
technology is not that great, between five and 10 percent. Sterling
provides a local bus architecture on all its 80486-based PCs. It's
even possible to upgrade your existing machines to local bus
technology -- upgrades from VGA to local bus will set you back
around Rs 3,000 ($100) or from IDE to local bus around Rs 2,000
($67).

(C T Mahabharat/19930726)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00022)

Low-Priced, Customizable Multimedia PCs Debut From Hertz 07/26/93
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Hertz Computer has
unveiled a line of highly customizable, Intel-powered 80486-based
multimedia PCs with prices starting from $2,295.

The new Hertz 486 multimedia family is based on a choice of Intel
486 SX and DX2 processors. All systems comes standard with a 130
megabytes (MB) hard drive, 4 MB of RAM, an internal 9600/2400
send/receive fax modem, a super VGA monitor, a VGA accelerator, an
internal Photo CD-compliant CD-ROM (compact disc read only memory)
drive, a selection of CD-ROM titles, and an advanced audio board
with speech recognition and text-to-speech software.

"But all of our systems are upgradeable to, basically, anything you
want," noted Hertz's Danny Levine. The hard drive, for example, is
upgradeable to 3,000 MB.

Hertz specializes in providing customized PCs to businesses, but the
company also sells to individual end users, Levine told Newsbytes.
Production, systems integration, and service are performed at
Hertz's site on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

"We keep prices low, while using only the highest quality
components," asserted the integration specialist. All lower capacity
drives used in the systems, for instance, are from Maxstor, and all
higher capacity drives are from Micropolis, he said.

The new line of multimedia PCs is targeted at a wide range of
applications, including training, education, business research,
industrial simulation, and informational kiosks.

(Jacqueline Emigh/Press contacts: Wendy Freid, Hertz Computer - tel
212-684-4666, or Linda Kallman, Kallman Communications
for Hertz, tel [phone]; Reader contacts: Danny Levine or Fred
Hetzel, Hertz Computer Corp., tel [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00023)

Power Publishing Seminar Will Visit 16 Cities 07/26/93
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Aldus Corporation
says it will participate in the Power Publishing color seminars
hosted by the Power Publishing Alliance visiting 16 cities beginning
next month.

The Power Publishing Alliance consists of Adobe Systems, Dell
Computer Corporation, and SuperMac Technology. The organization will
offer eighteen seminars in 16 cities beginning next month and
running through December. The seminars will focus on how to do
professional color publishing in the Windows environment. Aldus
Pagemaker 5.0 will be used to do the page layout portion of the
seminars, and Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator will also be
used.

Each seminar will be five hours in length. That includes a three
hour presentation that will walk participants through the design,
production and output of a color project featuring Adobe, Dell,
Aldus, and SuperMac products.

The demonstration will show how to set up hardware, what types of
software are necessary, how color documents are created and printed,
and what production problems users might encounter. A two hour
table-top publishing trade and show reception follows the
demonstration.

Dell will be demonstrating its Power Publishing SuperStation, an
$8,995 486 EISA-based desktop computer running at 66 megahertz and
equipped with 32 megabytes of system memory, a 420 megabyte hard
drive, external cache, and Windows 3.1. The system will use a
Supermatch 17 17-inch multi-mode color monitor and SuperMatch
Thunder/24 EISA video card with color calibration software.

The seminars open August 17 in San Francisco, then move to Los
Angeles, New York, and Chicago. Other sites include Atlanta, Boston,
Dallas, Detroit, Houston, Miami, Minneapolis, Orange County
(California), Philadelphia, San Jose (California), Seattle, and
Washington, D.C. The Alliance operates a tollfree number for more
seminar information or registration.

(Jim Mallory/19930726/Press and Reader contact: Power Publishing
Alliance, 800-257-8666, ext 174)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00024)

Wellfleet Reports Strong Growth 07/26/93
BILLERICA, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Wellfleet
Communications has reported strong growth in the fourth quarter and
fiscal year ended June 30. Revenues for the year were $180.13
million, up 112 percent from last year's $85.11 million. Net income
grew 143 percent, to $27.80 million from $11.46 million.

In the fourth quarter, Wellfleet reported net income of $9.26
million on revenues of $59.22 million, up from net income of $3.98
million on revenues of $27.82 million in the fourth quarter of last
year.

The net income figure for last fiscal year does not include the
benefit of a loss carryforward that brought last year's final net
income figure to $14.26 million. No such carryforward was available
this year, Wellfleet said.

Seven-year-old Wellfleet, which has about 300 employees, makes data
communications hardware, including network bridges and routers,
modems, and multiplexors, as well as communications and networking
software.

John P. Delea, Wellfleet's assistant treasurer, said that the
company expects to grow 10 to 15 percent per quarter in the coming
fiscal year. Company officials also said that Fortune magazine named
Wellfleet the fastest growing publicly held company in the United
States for the second year running.

(Grant Buckler/19930726/Press Contact: R. Stephen Cheheyl or John
P. Delea, Wellfleet Communications, 508-670-8888)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00025)

McAfee To Acquire Personal ButtonWare 07/26/93
SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- McAfee
Associates, the anti-virus software publisher, has signed a letter
of intent to acquire the "assets and product rights" of Buttonware,
the personal database developer.

Phil Talsky, spokesman for McAfee, told Newsbytes that, in terms of
a finalized deal, "we expect it to close within 45 working days." He
also said that "it is really just a matter of completing the due
diligence."

McAfee says that it intends to broaden ButtonWare's distribution
with its own network of 180 domestic and international agents and
electronic distribution system. McAfee also expects to market
ButtonWare's products to its base of over 16,000 corporate accounts.

ButtonWare's flagship product, PC-File, is a personal database with
a claimed installed base estimated at over one million
users. ButtonFile is a Windows-based personal database product which
was released in June 1993.

Talsky also told Newsbytes that, "we are really excited by their new
Windows product -- ButtonFile -- and their Windows technology in
general. We clearly recognize that Windows is where everybody needs
to be, and we are increasing our base of Windows technology."

Announcing the deal, John McAfee, chief executive officer of McAfee
Associates, said: "We plan to fully exploit the market potential of
PC-File and ButtonFile by reaching a wider audience with their
products."

"Our established marketing infrastructure will allow ButtonWare's
products to achieve their full potential in the global market-place.
In addition, this acquisition will expand our base of Windows
products, technology, and programming expertise," he said.

Jim Button, ButtonWare founder and president, says that "McAfee
Associates will provide ButtonWare with the resources to develop and
enhance our database products and technologies. In addition, these
resources will ensure the development of new and exciting products
that capitalize on our franchise as the leading value-priced
developer of personal database and productivity products."

Terms of the agreement were not disclosed and the letter of intent
is not binding. The ButtonWare acquisition marks McAfee's latest
move to diversify beyond the anti-virus category. McAfee says that
its strategy is to acquire and develop additional products that can
benefit from its strong marketing and distribution infrastructure.

(Ian Stokell/19930726/Press Contact: Phil Talsky, 408-980-3629,
McAfee Associates)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00026)

Banyan Systems Net Income Up 89 Percent For Second Quarter 07/26/93
WESTBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- As a further
indication that the place to be is in networking products, Banyan
Systems has reported that net income for its second quarter ended
June 30, 1993 was $3,494,000, an 89 percent increase over the prior
year's second quarter net income of $1,846,000.

The company reported that net income per share was $0.19 for the
quarter, versus $0.12 per share in 1992's second quarter. Revenues
for the second quarter were $32.2 million compared with $27.5
million in the second quarter of 1992.

For the first six months of 1993, Banyan reported net income of
$6,272,000, or $0.34 per share, compared with $3,460,000, or $0.22
per share in the same period in 1992. Revenues for the first six
months increased to $62.6 million, from $54.6 million in the same
six month period of last year.

Announcing the results, David C. Mahoney, chairman and chief
executive officer, said: "We are very pleased with our performance
this quarter. Our software revenues increased 31 percent to $23.6
million, which reflects the successful growth and leverage of our
networking software business."

According to Mahoney, North America was a major market, "The
company's business in North America continues to be one of Banyan's
strengths as revenues increased to $27.3 million this quarter from
$21.6 million for the same period last year. North American software
revenues increased 39 percent to $19.5 million this quarter."

However, the international market was not as promising. Said
Mahoney, "International revenues were $4.9 million compared with
$5.9 million in the second quarter of 1992. International software
revenues were essentially flat at $4.2 million, while hardware
revenues declined."

Mahoney remained optimistic though, saying: "Despite the very
difficult economic conditions in Europe, we are continuing to invest
in expanding our international operations. We believe that the
strategic realignment of the international sales operations which we
initiated in the first quarter of 1993 should begin to improve our
performance overseas by year end."

In the past year, Banyan has entered into strategic alliances with
Hewlett- Packard, IBM, and Sun Microsystems.

Banyan markets the Vines network operating system (NOS). Until
recently, Vines was considered by many analysts the best NOS for
internetworking corporate networks over a wide area.

However, Novell, which commands nearly 70 percent of the NOS market
with its flagship NetWare NOS, released version 4.0 of NetWare
designed specifically to compete against Vines in the
internetworking market. It will take some time before the effects of
version 4.0 can be properly seen on the market.

(Ian Stokell/19930726/Press Contact: Lucia Graziano or Siobhan
Carroll, 508-898-1000, Banyan Systems)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(SFO)(00027)

Acer To Manufacture Portables With IBM's AIX 07/27/93
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Original equipment
manufacturing (OEM) deals are increasingly important for hardware
manufacturers that are reluctant to commit their own manufacturing
resources to a product. Now Acer America has begun manufacturing the
Powerportable portable system that runs AIX Version 3.2.

The system is based on the IBM RS/6000 Powerstation 220 workstation.
The company plans to offer the portable system to RS/6000 users who
need to use their AIX applications away from the office.

According to the companies, the Powerportable workstation will be
made available in the United States exclusively from an IBM
fulfilment center at 800-366-3355.

The Powerportable was developed and engineered by San Jose-based
QTA. The system uses the RS/6000 Powerstation 220 planar board and
claims to offer Model 220 functionality.

The company says that customers will include AIX users who need
to perform real-time data analysis away from the office, such as
engineers who need to analyze oil, soil, or water.

Lou Bifano, IBM Advanced Workstations and Systems director
of OEM and technology licensing, said, "This OEM relationship will
enable us to provide customers with a portable workstation based
on proven IBM hardware and software technology."

The system will be manufactured at Acer's factory in San Jose. Ken
Tai, president of the Acer Open Division of Acer America, said of
the deal, "We're excited about dedicating our sophisticated
manufacturing capabilities to producing this portable for IBM, which
is known for the quality, reliability and longevity of its computer
products."

The System features the IBM RS/6000 model 220 Planar Board,
which features a 33 megahertz (MHz) clock speed, an eight kilobyte
(KB) I/O (input/output) cache, a CMOS (complimentary metal oxide
semiconductor) 2S RISC single chip processor, 32-bit Micro Channel
adapter slot and system I/O control logic.

The unit also offers Gt1 2D graphics, a 10.4-inch 640 by 480-pixel,
active-matrix thin-film transistor color LCD (liquid crystal display),
a 2.88 megabyte (MB) diskette drive, a 457MB or 1.2 gigabyte (GB)
removable hard-disk drive, 16MB of on-board RAM (expandable
to 64MB), and a keyboard with integrated trackball.

In addition, the system, which includes Ethernet, as well as a SCSI
(small computer systems interface), parallel, serial and external-
CRT ports, weighs 17 pounds and operates on AC power, with battery-
powered operation to be offered in the future. Preloaded on the
system will be AIX version 3.2 and AIXwindows.

The Powerportable workstation will be available in the US through
the Advanced Workstations and System's Customer Fulfilment Center in
Austin, Texas, beginning August 2. The price for the basic system is
$13,495.

(Ian Stokell/19930726/Press Contact: Lee Cannon, or Michelle
Fitts, 408-432-6200, Acer America)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEL)(00028)

Punjab Communications Gets Into Packaged Software 07/26/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Having established its lead as
a manufacturer of telecom equipment, Punjab Communications Limited
(PCL) is now venturing the realms of consultancy and packaged
software.

The diversification for the Punjab government-run enterprise will
begin with the launch of the Wizdom series of packaged software in
India and South-east Asia later this year. The Wizdom range of
ready-to-use interactive menu-driven packages will be priced between
Rs 5,000 to Rs 7,000 (around $200). One of the packages will enable
a PC to also serve as an telephone answering machine.

PCL is the second largest equipment supplier to the Department of
Telecommunications, after the Indian Telephone Industries. Its
product range includes DTL multiplexing system, modems, PABX, port
RAX (rural automatic exchange), digital UHF (ultra high frequency)
radio channels and V-SAT (very small apperture terminals) earth
stations. The company has recently developed software for switching
systems for Fujitsu India.

PCL is one of the few public sector units yielding rich dividends to
its invstors. It has declared a 60 per cent dividend for the third
consecutive year.

(C T Mahabharat/19930726)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00029)

Hinditron Medical In Joint Venture With Schiller 07/26/93
BOMBAY, INDIA, 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Bangalore-based Hinditron Medical
Systems has set up a joint venture with Schiller AG of Switzerland
to produce a wide range of mutichannel ECG analysers and pulse
oximeter systems.

Plans call for the new company, which is called Hinditron Schiller
Medical Instruments, to make the equipment at Hinditron's Bangalore
facility. Hinditron is also aiming to diversify into other areas of
medical technology and enhance its range of services to encompass
application support.

The Schiller Cardiovit AT-3 multichannel ECG analyser, with a liquid
crystal display (LCD) meter, will support the simultaneous capture
of 12 channels of ECG data. With additional software, the unit will
help interpret ECG readings and also enable monitoring of arterial
oxygen saturation.

Hinditron Medical Systems made its debut in 1990 with medical
cardiagnostic equipment through its distribution tie-up with
Schiller AG, the well-known maker of cardiac monitoring and
diagnostic equipment.

(C T Mahabharat/19930726)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00030)

 ****Morphing On A PC Arrives 07/26/93
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- ImageWare
Software has unveiled MorphWizard, a Windows-based package for
creating morph transitions and making "morph movies."

Morphing is the latest craze in video imaging. Newsbytes readers may
have seen the technology in use on movies such as Terminator II, but
in very high resolution for the wide screen cinema. Morphwizard,
while not working to the very high definitions necessary for the
movies, produces very acceptable morphing images on a PC screen.

According to the company, MorphWizard 1.0 for Windows lets users
morph an unlimited number of images of different resolutions, sizes
and rotations. Users can also produce video or animation files of
the morphing process, saving files in AVI, FLI or FLC format for
viewing either within MorphWizard or in third-party applications.

The Morph Video Viewer that is included in the package permits
"morph movies" to be viewed on a frame-by-frame basis or over a
specified time sequence. Through another capability, the Morph Video
Manager, the movies can be stored, cataloged and indexed.

In generating a "final morph," the user can independently control
the amount of color and shape to be included from each image,
according to the company. Entire images can be morphed, or only
user-selected portions.

The new morphing software can use images created in TGA, TIFF, GIF,
PCX, BMP, CMP, JPEG, and RLE, as well as other file formats. The
package can be used with ImageWizard+, the company's object-oriented
image editing package, or on a standalone basis.

MorphWizard requires a 386SX IBM-compatible PC or higher with at
least 4 MB of memory, running Windows 3.1 or later in enhanced
mode. A 256-color VGA display or better is also required. The
package lists for $139.00, but is available for $89.00 on an
introductory basis.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19930726/Press and reader contact: ImageWare
Software - tel [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00031)

 ****Newton Applications To Be Demonstrated At Macworld 07/26/93
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- With the pending
introduction of the first Newton, called the Messagepad, scheduled
for next week at Macworld Boston, speculation is running high as to
details concerning the new personal digital assistant (PDA).

Applications for the Newton are in the works, according to Apple,
but whether or not users will have many available for the launch of
the PDA is not certain.

Newsbytes' sources said there may be as many as 20 applications
available at the launch of the Newton at Macworld, but other
sources, such as Macweek, are saying applications for the PDA won't
be ready until later.

In addition, while it appears to be widely agreed upon that the
Messagepad will be offered for sale at the show, there is some
speculation that Apple Computer will not sell the unit itself, but
have retailers offer the units instead. Macweek reports Apple will
not offer the units, but Salem, New Hampshire-based reseller
Computer Town Corporation will have 1,000 Newtons for sale at its
Macworld booth.

Apple has acknowledged a select group of developers was chosen to
receive beta copies of the Newton Toolkit, announced in May, for
application development. Over 1,500 developers have inquired about
the Toolkit, which should be available beginning this fall, Apple
maintains. Most of the development of Newton applications is being
done on Powerbook notebook computers and ported over to the Newton,
Apple representatives said.

Several vendors are expected to demonstrate Newton applications at
Macworld according to Macweek. These include: accounting software
company State Of The Art of Irvine, California, who show off
business expense tracking program Polaris; ON Technology of
Cambridge, Massachusetts demonstrating software to link the
Messagepad and its Macintosh-based group scheduling program Meeting
Maker; Windows-based computer aided design (CAD) software designer
Saltire Software of Beaverton, Oregon, who will demo Drawpad; Dubl-
Click Software of Woodland Hills, California will show Gofigure, a
calculator program; CTM

Development of Geneva, Switzerland who will demo Voiceaccess for the
Macintosh that comes with a free Newton application for use while
traveling; Pastel Development New York will exhibit contact
management software Contactpad; Portfolio Systems of Cupertino,
California will present outline application Dyno Notepad; Chancery
Software Limited of Burnaby, British Columbia will demonstrate a
program for teachers to do anecdotal report cards about students on
the spot and transfer them to a Macintosh called CSL Profiles; and
accounting software maker Great Plains Software of Fargo, North
Dakota who will demo both Personal Time & Billing and Financial
Analyst.

Newsbytes talked with a few of the vendors, such as State of the Art
Software, most of whom said while they will demonstrate the
applications at Macworld, they are not releasing shipping dates and
not talking about the Newton. Prices for the applications range from
$100 to $150, according to Macweek reports, and some vendors have
not announced pricing information.

The software applications will initially ship on floppy disks,
according to one vendor, who told Newsbytes that while the Newton is
equipped with a Personal Computer Memory Card International
Association (PCMCIA), the expense of putting software out on PCMCIA
cards is prohibitive and time consuming. In lots of 3,000 cards,
vendors will pay as much as $15 each and it can take 4 to 6 weeks to
get cards reproduced once vendors send in a "golden master."

So, most of the software for the Newton will be distributed
initially on floppy disks that will require a connection with a
desktop computer, either a Macintosh or a IBM-compatible personal
computer (PC) running Windows in order to get the software to the
Messagepad. The highest priced of the three Messagepads introduced
at Macworld will offer a modem, cabling, and software from Apple for
connection with desktop computers for data transfer, Apple said.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930726)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00032)

 ****Apple To Intro Servers, Speech Recog Macs, Software 07/26/93
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 26 (NB) -- Apple Computer
has announced it will unveil several models of its workgroup servers
next week at Macworld Boston, as well as new Quadras and Centras and
new software as well. Some of the Macintoshes will even include
long-awaited speech recognition capabilities, sources say.

Apple says that, beginning today, it will offer for the first time
its Workgroup Server 60, an entry-level file and print server, and
the Apple Workgroup Server 80, a mid-range file and print and
communications server.

Both the new machines come with the Macintosh System 7.1 operating
system and the newly announced Appleshare version 4.0 pre-installed.
AppleShare 4.0 provides file and print server services and is
designed to boost server performance approximately two or more times
that of its predecessor AppleShare 3.0, Apple officials claim.

The Workgroup Server 60 offers a Motorola 68040 microprocessor
running at 20 megahertz (MHz) and comes with 8 megabytes (MB) of
random access memory (RAM) expandable to 68 MB, a built-in Apple
Superdrive, built-in Ethernet, and a choice of hard drives in either
230 or 500 MB capacities. Prices range from $2,949 to $3,899, Apple
said.

The Workgroup Server 80 is equipped with the Motorola 68040
micrprocessor at 33 MHz, comes with a minimum of 8 MB of RAM
expandable to 136 MB interleaved, a built-in Apple Superdrive,
built-in Ethernet, and a 500 or 1000 MB hard disk drive. Apple
announced prices start of $5,489 to $9,049, depending on the
configuration.

Either of the new Workstation Servers can be optionally equipped
with an internal compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM). Apple also
announced a deal with Hewlett-Packard to which will allow the
company to offer the HP 4-mm Digital Audio Tape (DAT) drive for
backup on the new Servers. The HP DAT drive which typically provides
four gigabytes of storage of compressed data. Users who opt for the
HP DAT drive will also receive the Dantz Development Corporation's
Retrospect Remote backup software.

Apple reportedly will introduce other models as well, according to
Macweek. The company is expected to introduce the Quadra 840AV with
a 40-MHz 68040 microprocessor. The unit reportedly will be offered
with a minimum of 8 MB of RAM up to 16 MB of RAM, and hard disks
from 230 up to 1000 MB in price. Suggested retail prices will start
at $4,069 up to $6,249, an internal, dual-speed Applecd 300i CD-ROM
drive.

A Centris 660AV is also expected with a 25-MHz 68040 and priced from
$2,139 for an 8 MB of RAM, 80 MB hard disk configuration to $3,499
for an 8 MB, 500 MB hard disk configuration with CD-ROM. In
addition, both models reportedly will come with two Apple
programs, Applephone and Apple Plaintalk. processor.

ApplePhone uses an American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T) digital
signal processor (DSP) to offer a virtual speakerphone and answering
machine on the Mac desktop. Apple Plaintalk uses Casper voice
recognition technology to offer text-to-speech capabilities so users
can control the Macintosh by voice commands, Macweek added.

In addition, Apple announced At Ease 2.0 and At Ease 2.0 for
Workgroups, which it says will be available in mid-August. The
company says the software will make it easier for customers to share
Apple Macintosh computers among multiple users.

At Ease 2.0 customers offers the ability to share a single system
with up to 10 named users. Apple claims a new easy-to-use setup
application features enhanced file management, security and privacy
capabilities, providing owners with the ability to customize At Ease
folders for each user.

At Ease 2.0 for Workgroups is designed for administrators of
multiple Macintosh computers in workgroup or multi-user
environments, such as classrooms, training labs, service bureaus and
large offices. The new product features an application for setting
up At Ease on groups of Macintosh computers, allowing administrators
to create customized security and desktop settings for different
groups and users, Apple said.

At Ease 2.0 is retail priced at $59 and At Ease 2.0 for Workgroups
is $295 with a license for up to 10 Macintosh computers.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930726/Press Contact: Cindy McCaffrey,
Apple, tel [phone]; Public Contact, 800-769-2775)