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/nb930304

Text File | 1993-03-04 | 68KB | 1,515 lines

(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00001)

Japan - Fujitsu Creates 256-megabit-level ASIC 03/04/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Fujitsu says it will
incorporate the firm's advanced chip process technology in
the development of application specific integrated circuits
(ASICs).

The technology is reported to be the same as that used for
processing 256-megabit DRAMs. Fujitsu claims to be the
first manufacturer to incorporate this kind of technology
into ASICs.

Fujitsu is planning to implement a 0.3 micron-level CMOS
(complimentary metal oxide semiconductor) process at its
Wakamatsu plant in Fukushima Prefecture in March,1994.
The firm wants to start the production of the ASICs
in April 1994.

A reported five billion yen ($42 million) will be spent on
the new facility. Fujitsu is planning to create a variety of
ASICs at the plant. Currently, Fujitsu is producing gate arrays,
standard cells, bipolar and 0.5-micron-level CMOS products
at the plant.

Fujitsu invested about 20 billion yen ($165 million) into the
ASIC facility in 1990. It is claimed to be one the largest ASIC
plants in the world.

The demand for ASICs is rapidly increasing in Japan. ASICs are
used with a variety of electronics products, including personal
computers, calculators, word processors, and air-conditioners.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930303/Press Contact:
Fujitsu, [phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00002)

Japan - Digital Integration Project Begins 03/04/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Japan's ASCII, Hitachi,
Japan Victor (JVC), and NTT Electronics Technology are set to
begin developing technology to provide high resolution pictures
for a variety of multimedia products.

The four firms will create a joint venture firm focusing on the
development of the technology at the end of March, 1993. The
project will be called Graphics Communication Laboratories.
It will get financial support from the Fundamental Technology
Laboratory of the Japanese Ministry of Posts &
Telecommunication and the Ministry of International Trade
and Industry.

The new firm will develop basic technologies to compress digital
data and interface technologies to be used for a variety of
digital media including high definition televisions, broadband
ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Networks), as well as optical
disks.

Through these technologies, digital data can be exchanged with
each other regardless of devices. For example, extremely crisp
HDTV digital pictures will be seen on personal computers using
a gigabyte (GB)-level optical disk.

An ASCII spokesman told Newsbytes that almost any HDTV
picture - including the Japanese, American, and European types -
can be integrated under these technologies.

A total of five billion yen ($42 million) in project development
costs will be paid by the Fundamental Technology Laboratory
(70 percent), ASCII (10 percent), Hitachi (eight percent), JVC
(eight percent), and NTT Electronics Technology (four percent).

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930303/Press Contact: ASCII,
[phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEL)(00003)

Siemens Set To Enter Rural Indian Telecom Market 03/04/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Siemens is planning a
major foray into the rural telecommunications market in India.

Siemens Chairman V. Pierer said rural areas offered a large
market for telecommunications services. The company has
already participated in tenders floated by the Indian Department
of Telecommunications for microwave transmission equipment.
In addition, the company also plans to harness solar energy in
rural areas.

Pierer said if there was to be a turnaround of the Indian economy,
investments in infrastructure had to be increased. He also said
that the government has assured him that there would be no
going back on industry liberalization. Pierer, however, felt that
implementation of reforms in the country required to be
"speeded up."

He also made a case for lower taxes on the corporate sector. He
refused to make any statement on the controversy surrounding
the validation tests of the main line exchange installed by
Siemens in Calcutta (which reportedly failed in a "busy-hour"
call rate test). "We do not believe in talking through the media,"
he said, "as it often leads to misunderstandings. All I can say is
that the system installed in Calcutta meets the technical norms
specified by  DOT."

The company has also set up a software firm with more
than 100 engineers. This will go up to 1,000 in the next
few years, he said.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19930304)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEL)(00004)

India - BEL & Thorn-EMI In Radar Marketing Deal 03/04/93
BANGALORE, INDIA, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Bharat Electronics
Limited (BEL), a company in the public sector, and Thorn-EMI
Electronics of the United Kingdom, are setting up a joint venture
company in India for worldwide marketing of the Cymbeline
Mortar Locating Radar, The deal calls for combined technical
support from both companies and manufacturing support from
BEL.

An agreement to this effect was signed by executives of the
two companies during a recent visit of a British defense
mission to the BEL facilities in Bangalore.

Details of the joint venture will be worked out and necessary
approvals obtained for the registration of the company over the
next few months. It is envisaged that the new company will
operate with a very low equity and no investment in
manufacturing facilities, as these are already available
with BEL.

An preliminary agreement was signed by the two companies in
1992, which called for a market survey listing the requirements
of the radars worldwide. BEL has been manufacturing the
Cymbeline mortar locating radar in India for Indian customers,
under license from Thorn-EMI Electronics, since 1986.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19930304)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00005)

 ****Bell Atlantic Commits To CDMA 03/04/93
BEDMINSTER, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Bell Atlantic
has become the second cellular company to announce it will
install Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) digital technology
in its network, instead of the Time Division Multiple Access
(TDMA) technology endorsed by the industry. Earlier, US West
has made a similar announcement.

The impact on callers could be devastating. Those who choose
digital service in the future could be locked-into a carrier when
they buy their new phones. Most carriers, including McCaw
Cellular, the largest cellular company, have announced they will
use the TDMA system.

Both CDMA and TDMA systems are "dual-standard," meaning a
TDMA phone could still make an analog call on a CDMA system,
and vice versa. However, the phones cost more than analog
phones, and the ability to place a digital call would be lost, in
a competitive environment, when a user changed carriers.

Like US West, Bell Atlantic chose CDMA mainly because it offers
more capacity, in its present configuration, than the TDMA scheme
endorsed by the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association.
The TDMA system being installed by McCaw and Southwestern Bell,
for instance, offers three times the capacity of present analog
systems. The CDMA system being installed by Bell Atlantic, using
equipment from Motorola Nortel, offers 10 times the capacity of
analog systems. Bell Atlantic says it will start deploying CDMA
equipment in 1994.

Confusion will be increased because carriers are not discussing
the technical issues involved when they roll out their disparate
digital services. Bell Atlantic, in its announcement, followed
the trend, saying only that CDMA offered "clear benefits." A
spokesman identified capacity as one of the benefits in an
interview with Newsbytes. Other benefits claimed by Bell
Atlantic in announcing the change are shared with TDMA,
including increased privacy and lower power requirements.

In its statement on CDMA, Bell Atlantic officials also discussed
data applications, saying that with CDMA modems will be able to
connect through the system to land-line systems regardless of
the protocol being used at each end. A 60-day trial of the system
starts in April and lasts 60 days. In addition to serving the
mid-Atlantic states, where it is the regional Bell company,
Bell Atlantic Mobile also has operations in New England, the
Carolinas, and the Southwest US.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930304/Press Contact: Bell Atlantic
Mobile Communications, Steve Fleischer, 908/306-7539)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00006)

LuxCel Signs Russian Paging Network Deals 03/04/93
PARAMUS, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Luxcel,
which was formerly known as Drivefone, said its Russian
joint venture, International Paging Group LP, signed agreements
in eight Russian cities to develop paging networks which could
turn into wireless phone ventures.

While the company is currently in a quiet period pending a
public offering of stock, Lee Montellaro of Luxcel discussed the
announcement with Newsbytes. "Our goal is initially paging.
Following on the paging will be CT-2," he said.

Montellaro explained that many Russian phone networks are in
such poor shape that some form of wireless service will offer
more "bang for the buck" than re-wiring. CT-2, sometimes called
Telepoint, offers small hand-sets that can only make calls
within a fixed distance from a base station, which can also be a
bank of pay phones. However, the handsets can receive calls
from anywhere.

Montellaro acknowledged that CT-2 has not done well in other
areas, like the United Kingdom, where it has had to compete with
other wireless systems that have more flexibility.

However, he blamed some of CT-2's problems in the UK on
marketing problems, and blamed US regulators for the failure
of a New York group headed by a Luxcel executive to get a
frequency license.

"In these Russian ventures we're forming ventures with local
telephone companies, working not towards improving their
switch, but switching to wireless." There, CT-2 may be the only
calling alternative, and its low cost makes it preferable to
cellular systems - a number of cellular licenses were given out
by Russia recently.

Luxcel's Polish partner also has a paging license, but
Montellaro said the company has no plans to offer CT-2 there.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930304/Press Contact: Lee Montellaro,
Luxcel, 201-843-6400)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SYD)(00007)

 ****Australia - Video Games Cleared In Epilepsy Scare 03/04/93
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Neurological experts
from the Australian Neurological Association and the Australian
Brain Foundation have cleared video games from claims that
they cause epilepsy. They say recent concerns confirm the lack
of public knowledge about the condition.

Dr Roy Beran of the Epilepsy Association said around one to two
percent of the population has active epilepsy, and of these around
10 to 15 percent (mostly children) have photosensitive epilepsy -
where seizures (fits) are triggered by flickering light. Both
natural and flickering light can precipitate the seizures, but
the most common appears to be television or strobe lights (such
as used at discos).

Television around the world usually has a repetition rate of 50
times per second (UK and most of Europe) or 60 times a second
(US and many nearby countries). The lower rate can trigger fits
in around 40 percent of epilepsy-photosensitive people, regardless
of the program content, or whether or not the TV is connected to
a TV games console.

Dr Beran said parents of photosensitive children can take a
number of preventative measures such as making sure the TV
sets are in good order, that the ambient light is high enough and
that really sensitive people also consider wearing polarizing
lens sunglasses. He said there is also medication for sufferers.

The Australian Brain Foundation confirmed that video games
could not cause epilepsy and that photosensitive people had to
take care in any situation where there was slow flickering light.

(Paul Zucker/19930304/Contact: Epilepsy Association, phone
[phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00008)

Australia: Lotus Offers "Art of Business" Seminars 03/04/93
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Lotus Australia is
touring its "Art of Business" seminars throughout Australia in
March and April.

New products are planned for introduction during the seminars,
including Lotus Improv, Lotus 1-2-3 for Windows 2.0, Lotus
Notes 3.0, Lotus Freelance Graphics 2.0, and a number of other
products such as Organizer, Ami Pro, cc:Mail, and other versions
of 1-2-3.

The two-hour seminar is designed to introduce Lotus products to
PC users, and show how they fit their business needs. National
Marketing Manager Kim Medway said this year's seminar focuses
on spreadsheets, Microsoft Corp's Windows graphical user
environment, and workgroups. "It's a must for anyone thinking of
moving to the Windows environment or for people wanting to find
new ways of producing, sharing, and using information more
effectively."

Show attendees will be able to buy the new Lotus Improv for
Windows spreadsheet program on the day for AUS$195 (around
US$140) which is less than a third of the suggested retail price.
Special 3.5-inch-only versions will available. Improv was
originally developed for the NeXT platform and has since been
adapted to the Windows environment.

(Paul Zucker/19930304)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00009)

Compaq Centralizes European Distribution 03/04/93
GORINCHEM, NETHERLANDS, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- As has happened
with so many companies seeking to cut distribution costs in the
worldwide recession, Compaq has centralized its European
distribution arrangements.

Compaq has chosen Gorinchem in the Netherlands to act as its
central distribution point, with buffer stocks of products still
being held in selected countries. The aim of the centralization
is to cut costs, while maintaining service to the company's
resellers, the company claims.

Compaq officials are not discussing the possibility that its
European operations may follow the lead from the US in
establishing a direct sell operation. Sources close to Compaq in
the UK, however, suggest that the company will use the Gorinchem
facility to "feed" hardware supplies direct to major resellers,
emulating the US direct sales operation while keeping its reseller
channel happy.

The official line is that the Gorinchem facility will create 140
jobs in the Netherlands, although Newsbytes notes that many of
the staff are being drawn in from across Europe.

Announcing the plans for the facility, Andreas Barth, Compaq's
senior vice president of European operations, said that the new
center will allow an improved and more responsive service in
delivery terms for resellers.

"The opening of this distribution center is a reflection of two
dominant trends in the PC industry - the growing importance of
the European marketplace and the need for PC suppliers to
streamline operations and be more cost-competitive," he said.

Barth went on to reveal that, during 1992, product sales in
Europe had increased by 48 percent when compared with 1991.
During the same period, the number of company outlets (resellers)
had increased by more than 200 percent - from 1,800 to 4,000.

Much can be read into the centralization of Compaq's European
distribution arrangements. One company - Kaypro - centralized
its operations in the late 1980s before withdrawing from
mainstream UK sales altogether. More recently, Applied Logic
Research (ALR), in the wake of falling profits from the US
parent, shaved its staffing levels by centralizing distribution.

At the time, Gerry Kelley, ALR's marketing director, told
Newsbytes that the main reason for centralizing was to cut costs.
He claimed that it was perfectly possible for a company to offer
European distribution in this way, providing a local country
buffer stock system is used, as Compaq has implemented.

(Steve Gold/19930304/Press & Public Contact: Compaq - Tel:
081-332-3000)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00010)

"Slow But Steady" Forecast For European IT Demand 03/04/93
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- A study on European
trends in information technology (IT) anticipates that demand
for products and services will rise steadily over the next two
years, if relatively slowly.

The situation contrasts with the US, where recent reports have
suggested a marginal downward trend as industry cuts back in
these financially difficult times. The study, organized by Eurobit
in conjunction with IDC. the market researchers, was
commissioned, Newsbytes understands, as a precursor to the
opening of the Cebit Computer Faire, which opens in Germany
in March.

According to Eurobit, demand for IT products and services will
grow by 4.3 percent in 1993 and 6.8 percent in 1994.

Announcing details of the study, Bruno Lamborghini, president of
Eurobit, said that the figures are relatively low owing to the
general slowdown in business activities in Europe. "In 1991-92
the European market and industry were hard hit by the crisis in
the IT sector and the outlook for 1993 is not too bright," he said.

There could be light at the end of the tunnel, however.
Lamborghini, who is vice president of Olivetti in addition to his
duties with Eurobit, added that, in the medium- to long-term
(beyond 1995), regardless of the way industry pans out in Europe,
there will be new computer infrastructures. These, he said, will
gradually offer new services on the back of mobile computing
and communication products.

IT products in Western Europe, notably those countries in the
European Free Trade Association, will form the focus of growth,
he said. Projected figures suggest that the EFTA countries will
account for 36 percent of worldwide demand for products and
services.

One interesting statistic is that the EFTA group of countries'
share of the IT production is 27 percent. This suggests that
Europe will become a net importer of software and services.

(Steve Gold/19930304)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00011)

Europe To Follow US Plans For "Information Highways?" 03/04/93
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Bruno Lamborghini,
president of the Eurobit trade organization and vice president of
Olivetti, has suggested that European companies should follow
President Clinton's lead in the US over the establishment of
"data highways."

Speaking at a press conference in Brussels on a market report on
European IT trends, Lamborghini said that, on a recent visit to
Washington, he was impressed with President Clinton's plans
for the technology infrastructure of the US.

"We need to do the same, a similar program for new infrastructure
and investment. The new policy should be promoted by the new
(executive European) Commission. This would show citizens that
the unification of Europe can mean something different from the
past," he said.

In what onlookers to the conference took to be a thinly-veiled
comment aimed at the normally lethargic European Commission
(EC), Lamborghini said that the EC should be acting as a catalyst
for change in respect of data highways. He added that money
should not be a problem since, after the initial launch, a project
of this type should be self-financing.

(Steve Gold/19930304)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00012)

Olivetti Targets Education/Training Multimedia Markets 03/04/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Olivetti has announced it
is targeting the educational and training markets with its
multimedia expansion kits of 386 and 486-based PCs.

The company says it is basing its marketing strategy on its own
sales experience, as well as predictions from Inteco, the market
research company. This information shows that sales of
multimedia upgrade kits are likely to increase dramatically,
from 31,000-plus units in 1991, to more than 730,000 units in
1996.

The bulk of the sales are expected to come from power and
technical PC users, two categories of user that Olivetti claims
are able to exploit Windows-based multimedia products thanks
to their technical and hardware capabilities.

"Most users of 386 and 486-based PCs are more than equipped to
create and use multimedia applications," explained Trudi Austin,
Olivetti UK's systems marketing and management product
marketing manager.

"Until now, systems have been too expensive to us. Olivetti's
aim with these two self-contained kits is to make the move to
multimedia an easy step. Based on intuitive graphical user
interface (GUI) development tools, which are easy to install and
use, the kits will enable professionals to take full advantage of
readily available technology."

Based on this, Austin believes that the market for multimedia
will mainly be in the educational and training sectors, where
multimedia is already being successfully used to create
"dynamic and interactive presentations." In the longer term,
however, she said, "we envisage that other sectors will also
begin to sit up and take notice as the market matures."

Initially, two kits are being offered in the UK: kit A for UKP840,
and kit T for UKP930. Kit A includes the Authorware Star
Authoring software, an MPC CD sampler and a configuration
guide. Kit T includes the Asymetrix Multimedia Toolbook, as well
as the CD sampler and configuration guide.

Both kits, Austin said, are compliant with the MPC specifications
defined by the Multimedia PC marketing council, which defines a
multimedia PC as consisting of five components: a minimum 386SX
PC with 4 megabytes (MB) of RAM, VGA Plus (640 by 480 pixels
with 256 colors), and at least 30MB of hard disk space. Other
components include a CD-ROM drive, a digital audio board and
stereo loudspeakers plus Windows 3.0 or later with multimedia
extensions.

(Steve Gold/19930304/Press & Public Contact: Olivetti UK -
Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00013)

 ****IBM Forms Software Manufacturing Company 03/04/93
SOMERS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- IBM has added one
more to its list of business units with the creation of the IBM
Software Manufacturing Company, which will provide services to
outside software developers, as well as to other parts of IBM.

The new unit will duplicate disks, tapes, and CD-ROMs, produce
and print manuals, translate materials into other languages,
package software, and provide worldwide distribution and
marketing support. Until now, IBM has offered these services
through its IBM Programming Systems (PRGS) line of business to
other IBM units and independent software vendors.

The company will also provide inventory management, distribution
of updates and error corrections, customized ordering and
fulfillment services, technical support, credit-card processing,
and telemarketing services to software vendors. Services to
software vendors outside IBM will be a growing part of the new
unit's business, a spokesman for IBM said.

The new unit will remain with IBM's programming systems
business unit, and will continue to report to Earl F. Wheeler,
senior vice-president and general manager of programming
systems. Walter L. Price has been named its general manager.

A spokesman said about 2,400 employees will work in the new
unit initially. Among its facilities will be a recently-opened
CD-ROM manufacturing facility in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The company is based in Somers, which is also the home of the
IBM Personal Computer Company, another IBM business unit
launched last year.

IBM also announced that its vice-chairman and former president,
Jack D. Kuehler, has been named to the board of directors of
Taligent, the joint venture with Apple Computer that is
developing object-oriented operating system technology. He
will replace Bernard Puckett, senior vice-president and general
manager of IBM's Application Solutions business, on the Taligent
board.

(Grant Buckler/19930304/Press Contact: Peter Dorfman, GCI for
IBM, 212-546-2359; Tara Sexton, IBM, 914-766-3781)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00014)

SCSA Standard Aimed At Communications Processing 03/04/93
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Hoping to create
a standard for computer handling of voice and facsimile messages,
Dialogic has unveiled Signal Computing System Architecture
(SCSA). The Parsippany, New Jersey-based firm said the effort
has the backing of more than 70 companies, including IBM,
Siemens, Tandem, and NEC.

SCSA is aimed at hardware and software designed for processing
voice, data, and images, such as voice store-and-forward,
facsimile, speech recognition, and speech synthesis. Howard
Bubb, chief operating officer of Dialogic, told Newsbytes it will
"provide a framework for the development of products across
the computer and communications industries."

It will mean that a software developer could create, for
instance, a package to manage voice messages, and know that if
it conforms with the specifications, it will work with hardware
products that also conform. The specifications will also ensure
interoperability among hardware products from different
vendors or software from different vendors, Bubb said.

This will open up applications such as voice processing to
independent software vendors, Bubb said.

Dialogic said SCSA is a multi-layered open architecture that
extends existing industry standards and defines specifications
for building communications systems. The SCSA specification
defines the functional levels of the architecture and interfaces
between levels. Dialogic announced several specific components.

SCbus is a digital resource-sharing bus with 131
megabit-per-second bandwidth, able to handle full-motion
video and suitable for PCs and other computer hardware.
Dialogic said a SCbus integrated circuit has been developed and
will be available through VLSI Technology and other distributors.

"SCxbus" is an inter-node bus that can link single nodes together
to create multi-node, distributed systems. "Hardware/Firmware
Services" lays out the rules to control the signaling channel and
the host interface. "Device Driver Services" includes device-
independent code that Dialogic said will do away with the need
for custom device drivers for individual products. "Object-
oriented Application Program Interfaces" are meant to insulate
applications from the underlying feature modules and allow
development of custom application development tools.
"ServerAPI" is a byte stream protocol for controlling system
resources from a remote host in client/server systems.

The specifications are documented in the SCSA Specification
Manual, which is available, without a license requirement, for
$125. The price covers the cost for revisions for one year, the
company said.

Several vendors already have products conforming to those parts
of SCSA that are now defined, and more will be coming over the
next few months, Bubb said.

Parts of the specifications are still preliminary and SCSA
supporters are being asked to provide feedback before the
specification is finalized.

(Grant Buckler/19930304/Press Contact: Terry Henry, Dialogic,
201-334-8450; Michele Macauley, Kahn Communications Group
for Dialogic, 212-889-0202)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00015)

Delrina Offers PC Fax Bundle With CrossTalk/SuperStor 03/04/93
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Delrina
Technology has put together a limited-time offer that bundles its
WinFax Pro 3.0 fax management software with the Crosstalk for
Windows data communications software from Digital
Communications Associates and SuperStor Pro file compression
software from Addstor. All three software packages run in the
Microsoft Windows operating environment.

The Communications Pak for Windows will be available through
Delrina's dealers for a limited time, probably in the vicinity of
three months, company spokesman Shelly Sofer said.

The package is a follow-on to last year's WinFax Fax Pak, which
offered Calera's FaxGrabber and Norton Desktop for Windows 2.0
software along with an earlier version of WinFax Pro. That bundle
reached Egghead Software's Top Ten list last September, Delrina
said.

The Communications Pak for Windows is being offered in Canada,
the United States, and the United Kingdom. Delrina said it is
expected to have a street price of about US$149, C$199, or
UKP199. According to Delrina, the packages would cost a total
of about US$470 if bought separately.

(Grant Buckler/19930304/Press Contact: Shelly Sofer or Josef
Zankowicz, Delrina, 416-441-3676; Public Contact: Delrina,
800-268-6082)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00016)

Environmental-Issues Conference Scheduled 03/04/93
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- The Microelectronics
and Computer Technology Corporation (MCC) says it is one of the
sponsors of a conference to be held next week to discuss
environmental issues that affect the electronics and computer
industries.

Other sponsors of the conference, being held at the McLean Hilton
in Washington, DC, on March 10 and 11, include the Los Alamos
National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, the
Environmental Protection Agency, and Sematech.

The conference is the outcome of a study facilitated by MCC and
sponsored in part by the Department of Energy at a workshop in
Albuquerque, New Mexico, last August. More than 100
representatives from 40 organizations reportedly attended the
workshop.

The meeting this month will see the results of seven task forces
formed at the August meeting to look into environmental issues
across the life cycle of a computer workstation. Subjects being
examined include chemicals, semiconductors, semiconductor
packaging, computer systems, printed wiring boards and
assemblies, displays, and education. Each task force will present
a comprehensive report as well as a summary that includes key
recommendations.

Brian Kushner, MCC VP of corporate development says his
organization  believes the study and conference represent an
important milestone in developing a coordinated and proactive
industry initiative to address environmental issues. "An overriding
theme throughout the study has been that sound environmental
practices are essential to competitive success - being
environmentally conscious means being efficient," said Kushner.

Frank Squires, Sematech senior VP believes the conference and the
studies have the potential to set an important course for the
electronics industry. According to Squires, "The environmental
efforts of individual companies are vital, but far more can be
accomplished by pulling together as an industry an setting out a
coordinated technology roadmap."

Scheduled speakers at the conference include: Senator Max Baucus,
chair of the Senate Committee on Environmental and Public Works;
George Brown, chair of the House Science, Space and Technology
Committee; and Dr Brad Allenby, chair of the American
Electronics Association's Design for the Environment Task Force.

An MCC spokesperson told Newsbytes that a number of computer
companies, including Apple, AT&T, Compaq, Digital, Hewlett-
Packard, IBM, Intel, Sun Micro, Texas Instruments, and Zenith
would be participating in the conference. Attendance is by
invitation.

(Jim Mallory/19930304/Press contact: Bill Stotesbery, MCC,
512-338-3785; Reader contact: MCC, 512-338-3545)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00017)

Cray Supercharges Automobile Engine Design Software 03/04/93
EAGAN, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Supercomputer
maker Cray Research says it has signed a technology partnership
agreement  with Austria-based AYL LIST, to provide as
much as a 40-fold  performance increase in AYL's FIRE program.

FIRE is a computational fluid dynamics program designed primarily
for analyzing the internal air flow and combustion in an automobile
engine as part of the engine design process. It is also used in the
auto industry to simulate the flow of air conditioning, in order to
improve duct design, engine exhaust for better manifold designs,
and exhaust flow through catalytic converters to aid in the design
of converters that meet the emissions standards of the US
Environmental Protection Agency and similar agencies in other
countries.

Cray Research spokesperson Mardi Schmieder told Newsbytes the
program speed will be increased in increments. "The target for
this year is 10-fold," she told Newsbytes. The company says part
of the agreement is to install a Cray Y-MP EL, the company's
entry-level supercomputer system. AYL will also buy a Cray T3D
when that massively parallel processing system ships later this
year. AYL says it will port FIRE to the T3D when it is installed.

In addition to automotive applications, FIRE has also been used to
simulate avalanches and the flow of blood through veins, according
to Dr Wilhelm Brandstatter, head of AYL's computational fluid
dynamics department. FIRE was first ported to the Cray platform
in 1987, and the code is currently licensed for use at 10 Cray
Research customer sites worldwide. Supercomputers are also
used to simulate manufacturing processes like sheet metal
stamping and forming, plastic injection molding, and die casting.

Dean Hammond, Cray Research director of automotive industry
marketing, said: "The improved performance of FIRE on Cray
Research systems will provide the auto industry with a
competitive edge by assisting in lowering research and
development costs, shortening design cycles, and allowing users
to quickly bring to market more environmentally sound cars and
other vehicles."

(Jim Mallory/19930304/Press contact: Mardi Schmieder, Cray
Research, 612-683-3538)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00018)

Windows Hardware Engineering Conference Highlights 03/04/93
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Some of the
highlights of the second annual Microsoft Windows Hardware
Engineering Conference being held in San Jose, California, this
week include a proposal to make PCs easier to configure, and
technology that turns a PC screen into three simultaneous
television screens for videoconferencing.

Major industry players Intel, Microsoft, and Compaq joined with
other companies in developing a proposal for an ISA (Industry
Standard Architecture) specification that, if adopted, would
make it easier for users to configure personal computers.
According to Microsoft more than 90 percent of all PCs
use the ISA bus which was first introduced in the IBM PC in 1981.

"Now, you have to set switches and jumpers (on IBM-compatible
personal computers). Compared to a Macintosh, it's a big pain in
the neck. We're trying to make it easier to configure PCs so the
user doesn't have to have as much involvement. We're trying to
make things more automatic," Microsoft spokesperson Beverley
Flower told Newsbytes.

Flowers said the companies have been working together for
about three months to refine the proposal so it could be presented
at this week's meeting with a request for feedback from
convention attendees. Conference participants and other
interested parties can provide feedback about the project to
Microsoft.

At least eight companies also announced support for the Extended
Capabilities Port  - the ECP protocol is designed to make printers
and other peripheral devices faster and easier to use.

"PC printing needs a shot in the arm. The ECP is a genuine
advance that brings value to the computer user," said National
Semiconductor Marketing Director Mike McCullough. The
bidirectional parallel interface is backwards-compatible with
the existing PC standard parallel port configuration, using
existing parallel connectors and cables. Bidirectional data
transfer between the printer and the PC is designed to enable
the operating system to provide more responsive control of
devices and more relevant and useful status information to
the end user, such as status messages.

At the opening session, Microsoft stressed the need to create open
designs for "plug-and-play" PCs and peripherals as the next critical
step in making PCs easier to use. Microsoft Senior VP of Systems
Paul Maritz said making the PC easier to use is the industry's big
challenge, and told the conference it cannot be done with either
hardware or software alone. "We have to do it together. The
collaborative efforts at the conference this week are important
steps," said Maritz.

Microsoft called for active participation by the industry in
defining plug-and-play standards, and several companies, including
Advanced Micro, American Megatrends, Compaq, Intel, Microsoft,
National Semiconductor, and 3Com announced support for the
would-be standard.

Plug-and-play is a term that describes hardware and software
that automatically detects the hardware installed in a PC and
provides automatic configuration of the hardware and software
with minimum involvement on the part of the user.

Also being shown at the conference is a new networking
technology from National Semiconductor that converts a personal
computer screen into three simultaneous television screens for
video conferencing. Called IsoENET, National Semiconductor calls
the technology, "the world's first networking technology for
real-time interactive multimedia desktop communications."

Only a demonstration technology at this stage, according to
National Semiconductor spokesperson Margaret Mehling, the
system has the ability to link as many as 48 conferees on an
Ethernet network. The demonstration system at the conference
showed the product running with three people teleconferencing.
With the full 48 people on-line, each visual image would be
about the size of a postage stamp, Mehling told Newsbytes.
An attached microphone and a small camera at the top of the
monitor carry the voice and image. Mehling said IsoENET is
scheduled to ship in the third quarter. Pricing has not been
established.

National Semiconductor Chief Technical Officer Charlie Carinalli
says the conference is the premier PC hardware design event of
the year in Silicon Valley. "It's where new technologies are
introduced, standards proposed, and new ideas kicked around," he
said. He was the keynote speaker for the general session, and
talked about the challenges of improving the ease-of-use and
productivity of computers through multimedia, networking,
wireless communications, and improved power management.

New products being shown at the conference included energy saving
monitors, sample designs for multimedia functionality, a graphics
accelerator for PCI bus-based systems, a low power single-chip
PC controller for energy-efficient PC and portable applications,
improved codes for PC audio, Windows NT-based driver support for
single chip Ethernet controllers, and SCSI (Small Computer
System Interface) controllers for low end an midrange PCs.

The conference closed with a presentation by Stanford Professor
Dr John Hennessy speaking about the personal computer in the
year 2000. Hennessy reviewed and analyzed how the rapid rate of
improvement in CPUs (central processing units), memory size and
speed, disk size and speed, and miniaturization will impact PC
architecture in the future. More than 1,000 participants from
318 companies are attending the conference. Sponsors include
National semiconductor and Ziff-Davis Publishing.

(Jim Mallory/19930304/Press contact: Beverley Flower,
Microsoft, 206-882-8080, Margaret Mehling, National
Semiconductor, 408-721-2639; Reader contact: Microsoft,
800-426-9400)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00019)

Micron Technology Settles Shareholder Suit 03/04/93
BOISE, IDAHO, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Micron Technology says
it has reached a tentative settlement for a lawsuit filed by
shareholders in 1989, that alleged the company did not provide
the correct information for the shareholders to make a fair
determination about stock purchases and sales.

Micron spokesperson Kipp Bedard told Newsbytes the class action
suit had asked for $150 million in damages, but was settled for
six million. Part of the settlement, which is still subject to the
execution of a definitive agreement and approval of the US
District Court for the District of Idaho, is that settlement does
not constitute an admission by the company of liability or
wrongdoing by Micron or any of its past or present officers and
directors.

Micron has filed suit against American Casualty Company of
Reading, Pennsylvania, the firm that issued a directors and
officers liability insurance policy to Micron. That suit seeks
reimbursement for the amount of the shareholder settlement
plus attorneys fees and costs incurred in defending the action.

Micron says it anticipates taking a one-time $3 million
pre-tax charge against its fiscal second quarter.

The company is also involved in at least two other lawsuits. It is
suing Texas Instruments, and in turn being countersued by TI, over
certain patents owned by the two companies. Bedard said that suit
is still ongoing.

Micron also filed an anti-dumping petition with the US
Department of Commerce in April 1992 charging that Korean
DRAM makers are selling devices below cost in the US in order to
gain market share. Bedard told Newsbytes the company expects
a final "margin determination" to be made March 15. Bedard
explained that the term "margin determination" refers to the
amount by which each Korean company had been dumping product.
He declined to comment on what that margin might be.

(Jim Mallory/19930304/Press contact: Kipp Bedard, Micron
Technology, 208-368-4400; Reader contact: Micron Technology,
208-368-4000)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00020)

 ****Miniature Camera Transmits Images To PC 03/04/93
ENGLEWOOD, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Cellular and
TVX, a Broomfield, Colorado-based company, have announced the
development of a miniature camera that transmits video images
to a personal computer from a remote location.

Designed for use with monitored security systems, the system
was demonstrated using a cellular and wired network at the
CTIA exposition and conference WIRELESS '93 being held in
Dallas, Texas this week. Cellular Marketing and Sales Specialist
Stephen Stribley told Newsbytes that the hard-wired technology
is already available and the company expects to deliver the
cellular version in the second quarter.

The system integrates a camera and lens onto one chip about the
size of a postage stamp, and is designed to provide visual
verification of an alarm received at the monitoring station.
For example, if a fire alarm were received for a specific area
of a building the central station operator could determine
visually if there were actually a fire at the monitored location.
The company says the system is an objective means of
distinguishing actual emergencies from false alarms.

Dubbed the camera on a chip and formally known as the TVX
system, an  installation can also incorporate infrared strobes,
allowing monitoring without visible light. The camera takes four
pictures in a five-second period, and is automatically activated
in response to an alarm, transmitting the pictures in compressed
form to a 386-based personal computer equipped with a VGA
monitor using either cellular phone technology, or through a
hard-wired system.

Stribley said the system is cost-competitive with other types
of surveillance systems, with a complete installation costing
about $1,000. That includes the camera on a chip and the
necessary compression and transmission equipment.

Stribley told Newsbytes that Cellular is exploring some
non-traditional uses of video for surveillance, such as monitoring
taxicabs, children at home while the parents are out, motion
detectors, and gates. He cited the recent instance of a Denver,
Colorado bus driver being killed, saying that, had the camera
been installed on the bus police would have a picture of the killer.

In a mass transit application, TVX can be set to snap a series of
pictures each time the door opens to pick up passengers. With
miniaturization, says Stribley, a camera could even be implanted
in the name tag of a police officer, snapping pictures of a driver
stopped for traffic violations. Should some emergency arise or
the officer be injured, a visual record of the suspect would be
available.

TVX maintains distribution rights for the camera systems in
North, Central, and South America. Cellular and Automated
Security Holdings each have a 40 percent equity interest in
TVX.

(Jim Mallory/19930304/Press contact: Stephen Stribley,
Cellular Inc, 303-694-8910; Reader contact: Cellular Inc,
800-767-6077 or 303-694-3234)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00021)

 ****Microsoft Initiates Japan Anti-Piracy Campaign 03/04/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Microsoft says it will lead a
campaign against what it describes as "growing software piracy"
in the Japanese personal computer industry.

The company says that beginning next week it will send letters
to 50 personal computer hardware manufacturers and 290
software vendors in Japan appealing for greater awareness of
the problem. "Our goal is to educate and possibly start cleaning
up the market," Microsoft Japan spokesperson Kei Morita is
quoted as saying by the Reuters news service. She also claimed
that while it is hard to estimate the scale of piracy occurring in
Japan, Microsoft wants to nip it in the bud.

Microsoft spokesperson Katy Ehrlich told Newsbytes that Japanese
PC sales account for about 18 percent of the worldwide market,
while software sales there only make up about five percent of
global sales annually. This indicates to Microsoft that software
is not being bought at the same rate as hardware.

Diane Smiroldo, PR Director for the Business Software Alliance
told Newsbytes that BSA's most recent figures indicate that
software sales in the US are approximately twice that of
hardware units. Smiroldo cautioned that the two figures were
difficult to compare, since it would depend on the average
number of applications in use on the PCs sold in each country.

Asked about the scope of the problem, Ehrlich said "It's huge.
Japan has good laws in place. The problem isn't that there
aren't laws. The problem is that they aren't enforced."

At the present, Microsoft's approach is going to be one of
education, Ehrlich told Newsbytes. "Prosecution would only happen
in very extreme cases. It's not the intent (of Microsoft) to start a
lot of litigation. It's much more the intent to raise awareness that
this is an issue and it is enforceable."

One of the missions of The Business Software Alliance is to
educate people as to the correct use of software. Smiroldo said
the organization is active in Japan in the areas of public policy,
education, and enforcement. "We work with foreign governments
in over 30 countries to strengthen copyright protection for
software publishers. We also have aggressive marketing and
education programs to inform the public and end users how to
properly use software, and that it is illegal to use copied
software. We also have enforcement programs to investigate
the use of improper software use."

Microsoft has been a leader in the war on software counterfeiting
and piracy in the US, working with federal and local law
enforcement officials to confiscate pirated software when it is
found. The company frequently follows through with lawsuits. In
the U.S., Congress recently passed a law making software
counterfeiting a felony and providing stiff jail sentences and
fines.

Morita said that, while Japan is considered a relatively crime-
free society, the level of consciousness about copyright and
intellectual property rights is relatively low. "In the U.S it is a
felony, but here probably not many people know," she said.

(Jim Mallory/19930304/Press contact: Katy Ehrlich, Waggener
Edstrom for Microsoft, 503-245-0905; Diane Smiroldo, BSA,
202-737-7060)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00022)

 ****Red Ink Time At Philips For 1992 03/04/93
EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS, MAR 4 (NB) -- As expected, Philips
has reported net losses for its 1992 financial year. Analysts
were surprised, however, when the Dutch electronics giant
turned in a loss of 900 million guilders ($480 million), despite
reporting a profit of 1,200 million guilders last year. Financial
markets were expecting a loss of between 100 and 150 million
guilders.

The 1991 figures themselves came in the wake of a hefty 4,240
million guilders loss for 1990 - the largest ever recorded on a
Dutch company's records. The 1990 figures were due to a massive
restructuring the company went through that year.

Announcing the results, Philips' executives said that the main
reason for the disappointing results is the continuing recession
- now officially recognized as the longest on record since the
1930s depression years. Hardest hit has been the consumer
electronics business which still accounts for around half of
Philips' business, despite heavy diversification in the late
1980s.

Philips, which has gone into the history books as the inventor of
the compact cassette and co-inventor of the video recorder and
compact disc (CD) is pinning its hopes for success on two new
technologies, the compact disc interactive (CD-I) and digital
compact cassette (DCC), which have been launched in the last
few years.

Jan Timmer, Philips' chairman, said that the results were worse
than expected, owing to a number of setbacks in the final quarter
of the year. The financial problems were made worse, he said,
because Philips was forced to honor a 1984 agreement with
Grundig, which the German electronics company called upon in
1992 when it too hit hard times. The 1984 agreement meant that
Philips had to partially fund Grundig's losses, since Philips has
a 31.6 percent stake in the company.

"We also know our financial position is vulnerable. But our aim
is to navigate through this difficult period with our portfolio
largely intact," he told analysts, as the company turned in its
second annual loss in three years.

Detailed examination of Philips' accounts shows that Philips had
to contribute 200 million guilders to the Grundig losses. This
still leaves losses of 700 million guilders to staunch. Timmer
said that he plans to slash a further 15,000 jobs from the
company payroll to cut costs, though he declined to give further
details at this stage.

The Reuters news agency quotes a spokesman for FNV, the
Dutch trade union, as saying that Philips' Far Eastern and
non-Netherlands European operations look likely to bear the
brunt of the job losses this time around.

(Steve Gold/19930304)


(CORRECTION)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00023)

Correction: Pen-Based Expo Becomes Mobile World 03/04/93
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Newsbytes
would like to correct an error in the story titled, "Pen Expo
Becomes Mobile World" of March 3, 1993. The story stated that
Pen Expo has spread its wings to cover all types of portable
devices, and the newly expanded show, Mobile World, got off the
ground yesterday in Boston. In fact, Pen-based Expo is the
show which changed its name, not Pen Expo.

Pen Expo is still slated for August 30-September 3 in Boston
at the Hynes Convention Center. That show is hosted by Boston
University's Corporate Education Center and Pen Magazine.
The Pen Expo, a competitor to Pen-based Expo, will be the
third annual event devoted to pen, mobile, and wireless
computing.

Newsbytes apologizes for the error.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19930303/Reader contact: DCI, tel
508-470-3880, Press contact: Keith Todd, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00024)

Media Vision Video For Windows Chipset Offered To OEMs 03/04/93
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Media Vision
has announced a compression/decompression chipset based on
its "Motive" (Motion Video Engine) video software technology.
Microsoft licensed the compression portion of Motive, called
the codec, from Media Vision for use in Video for Windows, so
the chipset being introduced for personal computers (PCs) will
support the Microsoft video standard.

The company says the MVV251 chipset is specifically geared
toward the approximately twenty million 386- and 486-based
personal computers for real-time, full-motion digital video
capture and playback.

Media Vision representatives said the company is trying to make
video an impulse item that users can afford to purchase and play
with in order to get a more wide-spread use of the technology.
Other video compression standards are more widely used in the
professional video industry, such as MPEG, JPEG, and DVI, but
Media Vision argues that users who want to dabble in the new
technology will not pay the $1,000 or more it costs to get into
professional video compression.

Two chipsets will cost original equipment manufacturers (OEMs)
$40, and the company hopes the price will be attractive enough
for OEMs to build the technology into a motherboard or put the
chipset on a video board. The chipset is capable of "on-the-fly"
compression as high as sixteen-to-one.

Media Vision originally introduced the Motive software
technology a year ago and Microsoft became one of the licensees.
Microsoft calls the Motive codec built into Video for Windows
the MS Video 1 Codec.

The MVV251 chip works with most video digitizer integrated
circuits (ICs) that produce standard red, green, blue (RGB) video
outputs. Media Vision says it permits independent horizontal
and vertical scaling, as well as image cropping, and is compatible
with North American (NTSC) and European (PAL) video formats.

In a related announcement, Media Vision also announced its
intent to acquire San Francisco Bay area-based Pellucid, a
company that specializes in video and graphics accelerators.
Pellucid makes chipsets, board products, and software for video
and graphics. Media Vision says its intent is to focus more on
cross-platform video graphics products and mentioned PCs, the
Macintosh running System 7, and Silicon Graphics workstations.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930304/Press Contact: Abigail Johnson,
Roeder Johnson, 415-579-0700, fax [phone]; Roberta
Brosnahan, Media Vision, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LAX)(00025)

Typos On "Counterfeit" MS-DOS 5.0 Alert Users 03/04/93
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Microsoft is
after alleged software counterfeiters Spring Circle and BTI
again. Typographical errors on counterfeit copies of MS-DOS 5.0
have tipped some users into calling Microsoft.

San Jose and Concord, California, Police Departments, the FBI and
the Criminal Investigation Division of the IRS, with assistance
from Microsoft counsel and investigators, conducted raids
in January and February and discovered large amounts of
counterfeit Microsoft MS-DOS 5.0 and Windows 3.1 operating
systems. Approximately 18 tons of counterfeit manuals, disks,
product components, business records and artwork were seized
during these raids.

While Spring Circle did have licensing rights at one time to
offer MS-DOS 5.0 with its brand computer systems,  Microsoft
representatives told Newsbytes the company has been illegally
duplicating the packages. Allegedly counterfeit Spring Circle
MS-DOS 5.0 packages have turned up in the Los Angeles area. One
computer user told Newsbytes they purchased the Spring Circle
MS-DOS 5.0 at extra cost with their computer system, but
noticed something suspicious when the spine of the manual was
printed with "MD-DOS 5.0," instead of "MS-DOS 5.0."

A call to the Microsoft piracy hotline revealed the copy of MS-
DOS 5.0 was counterfeit. Microsoft advised the user to return
the operating system to the vendor it was purchased from and
insist on a legitimate copy of DOS 5.0. If the vendor refused,
Microsoft hotline personnel recommended the user return the
entire computer system to the vendor.

Jim Lowe, a Microsoft Corporate Attorney has said publicly that
any Microsoft products bearing the names of Spring Circle or
BTI should be considered counterfeit, if found on the market
now. Lowe said the counterfeit products are often defective and
can carry viruses.

Microsoft is encouraging consumers to call its piracy hotline
at 800/NOCOPYN (800-662-6796) if they have any doubts about
the legitimacy of their Microsoft products.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930304/Press Contact: Alison Gilligan,
Microsoft, tel [phone], fax [phone])


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

Aldus Offers Upgrade Price To Mac Search Users 03/04/93
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Aldus says it
is trying to entice Multi-Ad Search 1.0 users to try its Fetch
product for cataloging and retrieving files on the Macintosh.
Through April 30, 1993 Multi-Ad users can buy Fetch for $99.

Designed for use in a multiuser environment, Aldus says Fetch
allows users to browse illustrations, digitized photographs,
clip art and sounds stored on the Macintosh. Users view the
files in a gallery of low-memory thumbnail sketches, which
contain pointers to the source files, and can preview the items
at full resolution without the applications that created them.
In addition, several users can search through the same catalog
at once.

Fetch works with a variety of file formats, including Quicktime
video and sound files, scanned photos, and graphics. The
product also offers connectivity to other Aldus products
including Aldus Persuasion, Aldus Freehand, and Aldus
Pagemaker, the company said.

Multi-Ad users wishing to upgrade must mail the original title
page of their Search 1.0 documentation and payment to Aldus.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930304/Press Contact: Belinda Young,
Aldus, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Customer Service
206-628-2320)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00027)

Call For Computer Game Ban On Aircraft 03/04/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Flight crew concerns
over unexplained anomalous instrument readings have led to a
recommendation by the International Air Transport Agency's
Safety Advisory Committee that use of certain computer-related
devices like hand-held Nintendo GameBoy games and personal
stereos be banned during critical parts of flights. The use of
transistor radios during flights was banned by the Federal
Aviation Administration a decade ago because of similar safety
concerns.

This is not yet a law or even an FAA rule, but the Safety
Advisory Committee's recommendations will carry a great deal
of weight and may well end in a ban on the use of these and
other personal electronic devices. This may even effect the
use of laptop computers, although this last is far less likely
because they must already conform to rather strict Federal
Communications Commission anti-interference standards.

The ban on personal stereos is proposed during pre-flight safety
instructions and other times when important safety-related
announcements are made and not because they might interfere
with onboard electronics.

Reuters reports that the ban was proposed at a safety committee
meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, during February.

Computers, electronic games, cellular telephones, and any type of
radio receiver can pose a potential danger during flights because
they all make use of radio frequencies that can travel far enough
to affect extremely sensitive avionics (aircraft electronics).

This does not just apply to radios like cellular phones, wireless
microphones and CBs which are designed to transmit radio signals,
but to almost any radio receiver except a crystal set. This is
because transistor and other radios make use of internally-
generated radio frequencies to hetrodyne or resonate with weak
received signals and make them available to audio frequency
amplifiers.

Computers (and computer games) use many timing circuits to
control events, thus the megahertz (MHz) frequency ratings given
for almost all computers. As the frequency increases the speed
of the computer also increases, but today's common 20MHz to
66MHz clock speeds are in the same range as those used CB,
short wave, and home portable telephones.

Obviously these frequencies are suitable for long distance
transmissions and many a "ham" radio novice has been surprised
to learn that his one-watt practice sessions could be picked up a
thousand miles away, so even the tiny milliwatt or microwatt
emissions caused by these non-transmitting devices can reach
from the tail of an airplane to the cockpit, especially since there
are so many wires running the length of the aircraft, not to
mention the entire metal fuselage which can also carry signals
at a nearly undiminished strength.

(John McCormick/19930304)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00028)

 ****ITC Reaffirms Tariff On Active Matrix LCDs 03/04/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Bowing to a recent
court ruling that it had incorrectly measured the Japanese flat
panel display market, the International Trade Commission (ITC)
has separated active matrix LCDs from other flat screens in
evaluating whether they should be subject to a massive 63
percent anti-dumping tariff.

Unfortunately for those seeking to overturn the 1991 ruling,
after separating the two types of displays, the ITC has repeated
its decision that the Japanese had dumped active matrix screens,
thereby harming US manufacturers.

The flat panel displays covered by the initial decision included
large area, matrix-addressed displays having more than 120,000
pixel resolution. The thin displays are active-matrix liquid
crystal (AMLCD), passive-matrix liquid crystal, gas plasma, and
electro-luminescent technology-based computer displays.

In separating the cases the ITC has now decided that although EL,
or electroluminscent, displays were also dumped, they have been
determined not to have had any adverse effect on the US market
and the seven percent tariff has been dropped.

In the initial decision, the ITC had also determined that gas
plasma screens had been the subject of dumping, but that a
tariff was not warranted because of the tiny size of the market.

Compaq, Apple Computer, IBM, and other US computer
manufacturers, as well as the Japanese screen makers, protested
the initial August 91 ITC decision which resulted in punitive
tariffs being assessed on the most advanced portable computer
screens imported for assembly in the US.

They have pointed out that this decision was illogical because
there was no domestic AMLCD industry which made screens
suitable for laptop computers. Also, completed computers
using the screens were not subject to the import tariffs.

This led some companies to say they would be forced to move
their manufacturing or final assembly completely overseas,
actually costing US jobs.

At the time of the initial decision, Carol Butler-Suis, a
spokesperson for Newport, Virginia-based nVIEW which makes
LCD projection screens, told Newsbytes that the active matrix
screens they use are produced by Sharp in Japan and cost the
US company about $2,100.

The 62.7-percent tariff would, she said, raise the company's cost
by more than $1,300 per panel. Asked about whether nVIEW would
now buy screens from an American company, she pointed out that
the equivalent US-built screen costs more than $20,000, a
prohibitive price.

Near the end of 1992 US Court of International Trade ruled that
the ITC had to take another look at its decision. That court
directive led to this week's decision.

Jim Burger, Apple's director of government law previously
summarized the court ruling to Newsbytes: "Apple, the
Japanese FPD manufacturers and the other portable computer
manufacturers appealed the International Trade Commission's
decision finding injury and thus resulting in the imposition of
the duty on AMLCD's to the Court of International Trade (CIT).
Judge Goldberg issued his ruling finding in favor of Apple's
argument that the ITC improperly failed to treat EL and AMLCD
screens as separate products. The Judge remanded the case to
the ITC with detailed instructions."

Continued Burger: "Judge Goldberg agreed with Apple and the other
respondents that the ITC incorrectly applied the dumping law.
Specifically, the Court held that the ITC had improperly combined
US EL producers with (alleged) US active-matrix producers into a
single domestic industry for purposes of the injury analysis. The
Court agreed with Apple's arguments that, since Commerce (the
US Department of Commerce) had concluded that EL and active-
matrix panels were separate classes of merchandise, the ITC must
separately analyze injury to each class. Thus, the Court remanded
the decision to the ITC for a separate injury analysis on each
category of merchandise."

"The like product issue is pivotal to the case. As a result, the
Court did not decide the other major issues which would have to
be addressed in order to sustain the dumping order. Rather, if
the ITC agrees with Apple's position that, when properly
analyzed, there is no injury to the active-matrix industry, then
the dumping order will be revoked."

Concluded Burger: "The Court's decision is narrowly drawn and
well-reasoned. The computer systems manufacturer's have been
convinced, since the beginning, that the record clearly supports
a no-injury finding in the case of active-matrix panels. In the
past, however, the ITC has been reluctant to reverse its decisions
even in the face of CIT remands. Thus, while Judge Goldberg's
decision (was) a clear victory, the ITC could continue to find
injury while paying lip service to the Court's decision."

That last comment by Burger proved prophetic this week as the
ITC seperated the two types of flat panel displays, but reiterated
its ruling that punitive tariffs are warranted against the most
sophisticated active matrix displays.

Domestic computer makers have expressed disappointment in the
decision and vowed to seek reduction or elimination of the tariff.

(John McCormick/19930304/Press Contact: Jim Burger, Apple,
703-264-5112)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00029)

Mobile World - Dauphin Intros Mini Pen/Notebook System 03/04/93
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- At Mobile
World, Dauphin has introduced the DTR-1, a pint-sized
pen/notebook convertible.

Slated to ship in May at a price of $2,500, the new, 486-based
handheld unit consists of a 2.2-pound pen computer with an
attachable miniature keyboard, plus a pen, AC/DC adapter, and
carrying case.

In a demonstration on the show floor, Alan Yong, company
president, explained to Newsbytes that a backlit 640 by 480 VGA
display doubles for use as a pen digitizer and notebook monitor.
Internal rechargeable NiCad batteries are also included. The
entire system, when packed in the carrying case, weighs only
3.5 pounds.

The DTR-1 comes with a 486SLC 25 megahertz (MHz)
microprocessor, a math coprocessor, two megabytes (MB) of
RAM, expandable to 6MB, and a 20MB internal hard drive.

Hard disk space can be expanded through Dyna Drive, another
new product from Dauphin announced at the show. Equipped to
hold up to 85MB in miniature hard drive cartridges, the portable
device plugs into the IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) port on
the DTR-1.

The pen/notebook also provides six other input/output ports,
including an RJ-45 Ethernet port, an RJ-11 modem port, a
bi-directional parallel port, an RS-232 serial port, a VGA/SVGA
port for an external CRT, and a PS/2-style mini-DIN for the
external keyboard.

DTR-1 supports MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows, and the Microsoft
Windows for Pen Extensions.  In the future, Dauphin will be
adding a PCMCIA slot, Yong told Newsbytes.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19930304)


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00030)

EZ Effects For Windows Type Manipulation 03/04/93
GLENVIEW, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1993 MAR 4 (NB) -- Filmotype's
EZ Effects is a TrueType font manipulation and special type
effects program designed for the computer novice or the
inexperienced computer graphic designer who needs to add a
special flair to ordinary fliers, newsletters, or business
documents.

Features include the ability to use TrueType fonts up to
245 points in size. The program moves letters together or
up and down accurately on-screen and in very fine increments
at the touch of a button, the company claims.

Special effects include mirrored type, shadowed letters and
text, text in a spiral or vertical column, and three-dimensional
circular effects. The effects can be combined. With EZ Effects,
users  can slant, condense, expand, and rotate individual letters
or  lines of text.

The suggested retail price is $129.95 which includes 100
unique TrueType fonts, claims the company.

(Computer Currents/19930304/Public Contact: 708/998-0871)