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/nb930803

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(EDITORIAL)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00001)

Editorial - Microsoft Victim Of "Conventional Wisdom" 08/03/93
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- By Dana Blankenhorn.
The Justice Department is reviewing anti-trust complaints against
Microsoft now. At issue is the fact that Microsoft writes both
Windows and software running under it.

The control of both an operating system, or environment, and
applications which depend on it can be very damaging to
competitors. Microsoft has been accused, for instance, of using
undocumented features in Windows to give its applications an edge.
It's assumed by most people these days that Microsoft controls the
computer industry.

That assumption is known as "conventional wisdom." Such "wisdom"
exists on every beat. In sports, "conventional wisdom" says the
Giants will win the National League West over the Braves. But a
few months ago, "conventional wisdom" said the Giants were a
second-division outfit. At the movies, "conventional wisdom" says
Steven Spielberg is king and Arnold Schwarzenegger is in trouble.
A few months ago, "Jurassic Park" was still a much-delayed vapor-
movie, sort of a Dinosaur-NT, and Arnold was the big gun.

In politics, "conventional wisdom" can change moment-to-moment.
There were a lot of complaints about this during the last
campaign. That, too, became "conventional wisdom." But the
knowledge that such "wisdom" is bogus doesn't prevent it from
weakening President Clinton today, and won't stop it from
weakening his opponents should he win a few battles tomorrow.

What's common in all this "conventional wisdom" talk is one
element -- the press. Us. Me. We spread it, we change it, we call
it our power. In computing, "conventional wisdom" is generally
driven by advertising. DesqView and GeoWorks may be great
programs, but Microsoft has more money to spend, and thus it's
Windows NT that was the hit of the last Comdex, despite the fact
it wasn't shipping, that it was, truly, vaporware. You, the
reader, come to a computer magazine or newspaper looking for
truth, for unvarnished judgment. Instead you're fed assumptions
based on ad revenues.

But here's the point. You have the last laugh, always. The
computer press doesn't control this market. You do. Not you,
personally -- you can still get ripped-off or stuck with rotten
software. But the "jungle telegraph" of customer response, passed
through user groups, bulletin boards, and word-of-mouth, is what
controls the market. Just 10 years ago, IBM was the 800-ton
gorilla, and "conventional wisdom" held it would always be so.
For a time, Digital Equipment rode high. Then Apple. Wasn't it
just a few months ago that John Sculley was considered a genius?

The point is that no lead is secure, that the crown always hangs
heavy, that one misstep can be fatal. If NT continues to be
delayed, or if it doesn't work as advertised -- and as promoted
by editors -- you'll get something else. Maybe in a few years
we'll all be worrying about Ray Noorda and Novell. The question
of whether one company should be allowed to control both
operating systems and applications is a valid one. Justice and
the FTC should be looking at it. But in this business, such
control is no guarantee of tomorrow. Because, given time, all
"conventional wisdom" turns out wrong.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930802)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00002)

Creative Labs Relocates Tech Center Out Of CA 08/03/93
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Just a few days
after reporting that revenue for its fourth quarter was up 248
percent from the same quarter last year, Creative Labs Inc., has
opened of a new technical support center in Stillwater, Oklahoma.

A company spokesperson told Newsbytes that the center was
originally in Milpitas, California. According to the spokesperson,
the Milpitas support location has already been closed down, to
be centered in Oklahoma. "We expanded, and actually hired over
100 new people."

The company already had a facility at the new location. "It is
our headquarters building for Creative Labs. (The new center) is
contained within the building," said the spokesperson.

According to the company, the hours of operation have been
considerably expanded and the number of technical support agents
has increased four-fold. Creative's new facility now operates
seven days a week, extending its hours from Monday through
Friday to include Sunday and Saturday.

In announcing the center, Edward M. Esber Jr., Creative Labs' president
and chief operating officer, said: "With the increase in manpower and
hours, our customers will experience a significant improvement in
response time when placing a call to the new center. Our decision to
relocate our technical support center was in response to the dramatic
increase in the number of Creative Labs customers."

Creative Labs technical support hours of operation are Monday to
Thursday and Saturday 9 am to 9 pm; Friday 9 am to 3 pm; and Sunday
12 pm to 9 pm Central Time.

Just last week Newsbytes reported that the company's revenue
for its fourth quarter was up 248 percent from the $25.1 million
reported last year to $87.4 million. For the year, the company said
revenue was up 240 percent from $85.8 million last year to $291.7
million. The company said growth in the multimedia hardware and
software market was the reason for good showing.

Creative Labs went public in August of last year. It also purchased
Macintosh video teleconferencing products company Sharevision
and music synthesizer company E-mu.

(Ian Stokell/19930802/Press Contact: Benita Kenn, 408-428-6600,
Creative Labs Inc.)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00003)

Adobe Premiere 3.0; Acrobat Reader Singles; HP PostScript 08/03/93
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Adobe Systems
has announced the availability of version 3.0 of Adobe Premiere for
the Macintosh, designed for creating digital video movies,
videotapes, and multimedia presentations. In other news Adobe also
says that Hewlett-Packard has introduced a PostScript software
option for its HP DeskWriter 550C color printer. Adobe has also
announced that it will offer Adobe Acrobat Reader software in
single-unit packaging.

According to the company, new features in version 3.0 include
faster previewing, 99 stereo audio tracks and 97 superimpose
tracks, sub-pixel motion and field rendering, plus a video waveform
monitor, multiple layering, batch digitizing and an enhanced Title
window.

In addition, the company says that the program offers a variety of
effects and filters, and more powerful motion and transparency
controls.

The standard floppy diskette version of Adobe Premiere 3.0 for the
Macintosh is available at a suggested retail price of $695. The
Deluxe CD-ROM Edition is set for availability by the end of August
at a suggested retail price of $795.

The Deluxe CD-ROM Edition will also include a number of other
extras, such as QuickTime tutorials on new features; QuickTime
tips and techniques demonstrations; Sixth Sense, a QuickTime movie
created by artist John Sanborn; Adobe Acrobat Reader software and
key documentation in PDF format; demo versions of Adobe and third-
party products; as well as the Type On Call CD-ROM.

The minimum system requirements for Adobe Premiere 3.0 for the
Mac include a system with a 68040 or better processor; an 80
megabyte (MB) hard drive and 4MB of available RAM; Apple System
Software 6.0.7 or better and QuickTime 1.6 software (included with
the Adobe Premier 3.0 program).

HP's PostScript software option for its HP DeskWriter 550C is
set at $249. According to the company, the product is called
PostScript Software for the HP DeskWriter Family, and is a
software raster image processor (RIP) option that allows Mac
users to produce "full-color PostScript language-based pages from
any application." The RIP is based on Adobe's Configurable PostScript
Interpreter (CPSI) and includes 35 of Adobe's Type 1 fonts.

CPSI is a PostScript interpreter that resides in a workstation and
performs the PostScript language rasterization function usually done
in RIPs embedded in an output device.

In announcing the offering of Adobe Acrobat Reader software in
single-unit packaging, John Kunze, Adobe's director of product
marketing for the Application Products Division, said: "When we
introduced Adobe Acrobat in June, we envisioned primary demand
for Acrobat Reader coming from large corporations and commercial
publishers that bundle viewers with information content for wide-
scale distribution. However, individuals, and small business users
have also expressed tremendous interest in Acrobat Reader."

Adobe Acrobat enables one to view, navigate, and print
electronic documents received as Portable Document Format
(PDF) files. The viewer was previously available only in multipacks
involving 50 seats, 100 seats, or 500 seats.

The Adobe Acrobat family of products includes Acrobat Reader,
Acrobat Exchange and Acrobat Distiller.

Individual packages of Acrobat Reader is expected to be available
by August 16 for both Macintosh and Windows platforms at a
suggested retail price of $50 per copy.

(Ian Stokell/19930802/Press Contact: Patricia J. Pane,
415-962-3967; or Linda Prosser, 415-962-3840, Adobe
Systems Inc.)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00004)

Canadian Product Launch Update 08/03/93
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 AUG 3 (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
new stand-alone monitor business and Pentium-based server.

IBM Canada Ltd. of Markham, Ontario, like its US parent, has
announced plans to sell monitors that will work with personal
computers from other manufacturers (Newsbytes, July 30). The IBM
14V, 14P, 14PT, 15V, 15P, and 15PT color monitors, and the 21M
monochrome monitor, are all due to be available in Canada in
August. Suggested retail prices will range from C$650 to C$2,100.

IBM Canada said it had about a 10.9-percent share of the Canadian
monitor market in 1992, and it expects the market to grow at 11.4
percent through 1997.

IBM Canada also joined its parent company in announcing the PS/2
Server 95 560, the company's first piece of hardware based on
Intel Corp.'s Pentium processor (Newsbytes, July 30). The Server
95 560 is to be available for ordering in Canada in September,
the company said, and prices will be announced then.

(Grant Buckler/19930802/Press Contact: Jim Harper or David
Keating, IBM Canada, 416-946-4138 [re monitors]; Lyle Turner, IBM
Canada, 416-946-4652 [re Server 95]; Anne McDonagh, IBM Canada,
416-946-4841 [re Server 95])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00005)

NEC Ramps Up For 64-bit RISC Chip Production 08/03/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- NEC is preparing to start
quantity production of 64-bit RISC (reduced instruction set
computing) chips this fall.

NEC is currently producing 64-bit RISC processors called the
VR4000 family, which includes the VR4200 and the VR4400. These
chips are based on MIPS Technologies' architecture. Currently, only
10,000 units of these chips are being shipped per month from NEC's
plant but the company expects to raise shipments to a whopping
100,000 units per month by early 1994.

Personal computer firms plan to use the RISC chips in personal
computers when Microsoft's Japanese Windows NT begins to
gain popularity. Taiwan's Acer is planning to ship a PC
based on the VR4400 as early as this fall.

NEC's RISC processors are currently produced at its Hiroshima
plant in Japan. The firm will expand production to its
Roseville, California plant in April 1994.

Other RISC chip makers such as Toshiba are also planning to
increase production of the chips in the near future, meaning
competition will heat up.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930802/Press Contact: NEC, +81-3-
3451-2974, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEL)(00006)

Digital Equipment India In The Red 08/03/93
BANGALORE, INDIA, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Even as Digital Equipment India
Ltd.'s accountants are assessing the spoils, they are certain that
the DEC subsidiary in India is in the red. While exact figures are
not yet out, sources put the losses for July 1992-June 1993 between
Rs 4 crore to Rs 6 crore (around $1.3 million to $2 million).

Turnover, at Rs 111 crore (around $37 million), has grown only
marginally over the previous year's Rs 98 crore (around $32 million).
With software exports totalling Rs 35 crore (around $11.7 million)
last year, DEIL made a profit of Rs 10 crore (around $3.3 million) in
that area. But in the hardware segment the company has suffered heavy
losses. Sources say hardware losses could be anything from Rs 10
crore to Rs 14 crore (around $3.3 million to $4.7 million).

While the general recessionary trend in hardware sales did have a
bearing on the losses, observers feel that large-scale recruitments
and increases in operational costs coupled with the company's
inability to penetrate certain target market segments spelled
a dismal year for DEIL.

Anticipating the consequences, DEIL put a ban on fresh recruitments
a couple of months ago. Denying rumours that the company has cut 80
jobs in the recent past, Maya Reddi, vice president, indicates
that retrenchments may have to be made in the days to come. A cost-
cutting exercise has already been put into motion. A reorganization
in terms of dropping certain products also seems to be on the anvil.
Hints Kapil Jain, general manager, marketing, "We may not drop any
product line, we will focus more on certain products."

Digital's main problem last year appears to have been variety of
overlapping products and the resulting confusion as to which products
to promote. Almost around the same time DEIL announced the
manufacture of DEC PCs and Macintosh LC IIs. There were new additions
to its MIPS R-3000/R4000 based workstations and the launch of DEC's
Alpha AXP workstations. "All these besides its VAX range must have
put DEIL's marketing force into confusion," remarks a former DEIL
executive.

The product clash was most evident in the PC segment. The focus
suffered as the same sales force sold DEC PCs and Macs. The result
was that DEIL ended up building up a huge inventory of Macs. "It was
true that we had a big inventory during the Jan-Feb-March period,"
admits Jain. "But increased sales of Macs during June have enabled
us to bring it down to 100 which I think is normal."

Yet another reason for the poor performance could have been DEIL's
relative inexperience in the desktop market where distribution
networks are important. DEIL had to make do with a handful of
resellers and with its direct force doing most of the selling, it was
not able to get beyond its regular customer base. Realizing this
drawback, DEIL has beefed up its channel to 25 dealers. Lack of
proper R&D is cited as yet another cause for DEIL's debacle.
According to one analyst: "R&D would have helped them customize
products to changing local needs."

DEIL is not giving up on the Macintoshes, though local manufacturing
may be discontinued. User seminars have already begun. The company's
marketing planners are figuring out ways of managing overlapping
products without losing focus. The mini and workstation ranges are
likely to witness rationalization and there is talk of discontinuing
some models in the VAX range. DEIL is likely to restrict
manufacturing only to PCs and low-end workstations.

(C T Mahabharat/19930802)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEL)(00007)

Indian Scientists Evolve Code To Design Cruise Missiles 08/03/93
BANGALORE, INDIA, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Indian scientists
have evolved an aerodynamic code for a wide range of missile
configurations including the most advanced of them all,
the cruise missile. The development makes it possible to design
a number of missiles like large ballistic, small heat seeking,
and even cruise missiles.

The comprehensive aerodynamic code enables rapid estimation of
aerodynamic forces acting on the missile's surface when in flight. It
is called the Missile Aerodynamics Design Manual. A team from the
National Aeronautical Laboratory (NAL) and the Defence Research and
Development Laboratory (DRDL) in India worked on the complex
mathematical project for over four years. Defence scientists
describe this as the "most significant development in the Indian
missile calendar since the first flight of the intermediate range
ballistic missile, Agni."

Some details of the project classified as "secret" were revealed
during a recent symposium at NAL on fluid dynamics. It was disclosed
that with the new code, it will be possible to shorten the time taken
for a new missile development by at least one-third.

The most laborious aspect of any aerospace project is the time taken
to study the effects of wind on a projectile. The movement of a
missile is dependent on wind flow and scientists worked out an
optimum surface design that can cruise through the most difficult
wind conditions. This is a complex process involving several
hundred man hours using powerful computers. NAL sources said at
least 25 different missile types can be configured with the new
missile prediction code.

Though there are rumors of India developing a cruise missile,
official confirmation is not forthcoming. The authoritative Jane's
Defence Review on Missiles lists an Indian cruise missile program
with a 600 km range and 450 kg warhead. The US has been crying wolf
over missile proliferation in the subcontinent and has already
placed India at the top of a list of nations that are "potential
missile threats to the United States."

(C.T. Mahabharat/19930803)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEL)(00008)

India A Stop On Global Digital Highway 08/03/93
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Bombay will be on the
route of a major global telecom pipeline from New York to Tokyo.
The New York-based Nynex Corporation and a consortium of
international telecom companies are setting up the submarine
telecom pipeline, reports the Economic Times.

The global digital highway, an underwater fiber optic cable pipeline
which will directly compete with AT&T's global lines and with
satellite transmission, will cater to telecom firms which wish to
utilize the channel for routing international telephone traffic.

Work on the $3-billion project has already begun and in the first
phase, the pipeline is being built from London to Tokyo. According to
Jagdish Sheth, a consultant to major US telecom firms, the pipeline
can be easily utilized by Indian telecom firms. All they have to do
is set up short feeder pipelines to access the main pipeline which
will pass a short distance offshore from Bombay.

(C.T.Mahabharat/19930803)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00009)

Japan - Major NEC Dealer To Sell IBM PCs 08/03/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 AUG 2 (NB) -- Tokyo-based major NEC PC
dealer Otsuka Shokai will sell IBM Japan's personal
computers alongside NEC PCs. The firm has until now been an
exclusive NEC dealer in Japan, but due to the popularity of
DOS/V PCs, will now add IBM Japan's personal computers to
its stable.

Otsuka Shokai has strong sales channels at corporations and
organizations in Japan. The firm made 200.3 billion yen
($2 billion) on sales of personal computers in fiscal 1992 and
about 90 percent of the machines sold were from NEC.

Otsuka Shokai is responding to a market trend. Many firms including
Dell, Compaq, and IBM Japan have been selling low-cost PCs,
and consumers are gradually shifting to these low-cost high-
performance personal DOS/V computers.

Otsuka Shokai will sell the desktop PS/V and the notebook-
type ThinkPads as part of its LAN (local area network) offerings.
Otsuka Shokai will further get assistance from IBM Japan
concerning network technology to support its customers.

This is seen as extremely good news for IBM Japan. IBM Japan's
PCs will be sold through Otsuka Shokai's 80 sales outlets in
Japan.

Currently, NEC has more than a 50 percent PC market share in
Japan but that share has gradually been chipped away by makers
of Intel-based PCs and Apple Computer.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930802/Press Contact: Otsuka Shokai,
 [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00010)

Flat Panel Color Display TV 08/03/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- The first of a long line of
expected flat panel display televisions will roll off the
Matsushita Electric assembly line this fall. Matsushita's
14-inch color television set has a screen which is only
98-mm thick. It is called the Flat Vision TV, and will sell for
288,000 yen ($2,750) in Japan in October and in North America
late next year.

Matsushita began to develop this flat panel display in 1980.
The first version was complete in 1985 and was shown at the
Tsukuba Science Expo in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture. This flat
panel has similar picture quality to a CRT (cathode ray
tube) display, which is in most current TV sets. It is
unique, however, in that it uses electrostatic deflection
instead of current magnetic deflection. The screen consists of
about 10,000 units of matrix screens, and each one has an
independent electron beam source. With these matrix screens,
Matsushita was able to create a display which is three
times thinner than the average CRT TV. The actual screen
size of this flat panel display is 27.2 cm x 20.2 cm, and it
has 442 x 440 pixels. It weighs 16.2 kg. It supports VHF, UHF
and CATV.

Matsushita plans to develop a larger, wall-hanging type of
Flat Vision display in the near future which will support
HDTV (high definition TV). In order to do this, however,
the resolution of the display must be raised to make the
picture even sharper.

Matsushita has registered 133 patents on the Flat Vision
technology in Japan, and will apply for an additional
1,300 patents. Overseas, the firm has applied for 67 patents,
and 50 patents have already been granted.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930803/Press Contact: Matsushita
Electric, [phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00011)

 ****Is It EO vs Newton, Or Will PDAs Fly At All? 08/03/93
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- American
Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T) is struggling to differentiate its
AT&T/EO Personal Communicator from the newly announced Newton
Messagepad from Apple Computer. Market analysts are saying
AT&T, Apple, and the rest of the crowd who will announce pen-
based personal digital assistant (PDA) devices, have much work
ahead to educate the public as to what the differences are and
how the devices will be beneficial to users.

AT&T is complaining loud and bitterly that the Newton is
getting undue attention as a business communication device.
AT&T describes the Messagepad as "little more than an advanced
organizer with 'add-on' capabilities that provide limited
communication."

The EO was the first of the new breed of personal digital
assistants (PDAs) to market, available by special order
beginning in April. However, the AT&T/EO 440 just became
available in the retail market last month in select AT&T Phone
Center stores around the country. Dataquest analyst Janet Cole
said the EO has many of the organizer functions the Newton
Messagepad has, but offers cellular phone capabilities (at
additional cost), a larger size screen, and a built-in 20
megabyte hard disk drive.

The retail prices of the EO start at $2,000 and go to $4,000
but the Messagepad starts at $699 and goes to an estimated
$949. According to Cole, the difference in price gets much
smaller when you consider that the 2-megabyte Personal Computer
Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) memory cards for
storage of data and applications on the Newton are $300 each,
compared to the built-in 20-megabyte drive offered with the EO.
Apple claims the Messagepad's operating system requires less
storage space for data than the Penpoint Operating system for
the EO, so users don't need as much additional storage space,
but Cole says that remains to be seen.

AT&T's Kevin Cole said the EO is designed as a lightweight,
highly portable replacement for that "15 pounds of stuff you
have to pack along to keep in touch when you travel." The unit
incorporates a computer, a date book, a notebook, cellular
phone capabilities, send/receive fax capabilities via normal
phone lines, and other business functions.

AT&T has been heavily advertising, but Dan Ness, an analyst with
Computer Intelligence, said AT&T doesn't have quite the
marketing clout of Apple. Also it is difficult to expect
consumers to buy something they can't see and put their hands
on, which was the case with the EO until last month, Ness said.

He feels Apple has more experience in reaching the new
market at which the PDAs are aimed, but the entire PDA realm
is a big gamble for a lot of people. "Remember the Momenta?"
Ness added, referring to a pen-based laptop computer and company
by the same name that made a big splash, but went out of business
just about as quickly a couple of years ago.

Apple, like AT&T, is also aiming at the business market, but
hopes the device will become a consumer item as well. The
company announced a deal with Motorola and BellSouth that will
allow users to add paging capability to the Newton. A credit
card-sized pager called the Message Card, developed by Motorola,
can receive messages, mail, and news electronically, even when
carried in a jacket pocket. Once it has been plugged into the
PCMCIA slot on the Messagepad, the Message Card enables a user
to go through and read the messages the device picks up.

One of the things consumers probably will understand is paging,
Cole said, which will be an advantage to Apple Computer. However,
it remains to be seen whether or not the larger screen, and larger
size, of the EO is an advantage in use.

"This has added a chance for new excitement in the computer
industry, but it is still a 'wait and see' proposition," Ness
cautioned.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930803/Press Contact: Paul Wheaton,
Dataquest, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Kevin Compton,
AT&T, tel [phone], fax [phone]; )


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00012)

Oracle Has Lion's Share Of Unix RDBMS Market 08/03/93
REDWOOD SHORES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Oracle,
known for its cross-platform database product of the same name,
has the lion's share of the worldwide Unix relational database
management software (RDBMS) market and the company is growing
fast.

Oracle held 44 percent of the 1992 market share,
according to market research firm International Data
Corporation (IDC), and its fourth fiscal quarter 1993 net
income increased 140 percent or to $69 million on record
revenues of $473 million.

The company credits its flagship product, Oracle7, a
distributed relational database management system (DBMS) that
is available on Intel Unix, Sun Solaris 2, and Apple A/UX
platforms. Oracle said its performance was balanced across all
its markets worldwide, despite the struggling European economy.

In addition, Oracle and Novell say they can capture even more
market share and may even take on industry giant Microsoft with
their recently announced alliance. The companies announced they
plan to combine technology, distribution, and service in order
to offer enterprise network computing products under the brand
name Oracleware. Oracleware will combine Novell's popular
Netware or Unixware network operating systems with the database
server Oracle7 and multiserver messaging system Oracle Office.
Thus Oracleware will support small to large workgroups on a
single server while multiple servers automatically cooperate to
support enterprise and inter-enterprise applications, Oracle
said.

The companies said the Oracleware System Netware 3.x Edition
will be available in September of 1993, while the Oracleware
System Netware 4.0 Edition will be released toward the end of
1994.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930803/Press Contact: Christine Mossmer,
Oracle, tel [phone], fax [phone])


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

IRS Employees Caught Tapping Computer Files 08/03/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Ever wondered what
your neighbor, father-in-law, or mortal enemy was doing with
their money, or just how much they had? Well, according to an
internal study just completed by the Internal Revenue Service,
some IRS employees have been using their computers to satisfy
just that sort of curiosity - illegally. Sen. John Glenn (D-
Ohio), chairman of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee,
yesterday released a multi-year study of the Southeast Region
completed by the tax agency last fall.

Several hundred employees in just one IRS region were found to
have been perusing the personal tax records of friends,
neighbors, and even celebrities with no agency authorization and
not as part of any compliance program. Inotherwords, these IRS
workers were looking at other people's private financial records
for their own personal profit or just out of curiosity.

Some enterprising workers even set up a side-line in selling
refunds in which they received payments for altering reports which
resulted in lower tax obligations.

Using the opportunity to promote the need for its new multi-
billion dollar computer system, IRS officials pointed out that
the sort of abuses discovered in last-year's investigation would
be caught and eliminated on a more sophisticated system.

All of the agency employees concerned were using the Integrated
Data Retrieval System, which only contains a tiny fraction of the
total tax-data files for any individual.

Many civil-liberties concerns have been raised over the move to
provide more information online so agents and the public can
quickly access more information.

Senator Glen, who just learned about the IRS study last month,
has called for an expanded investigation which would look at
employees in all IRS regions, not just the Atlanta-based workers.

Nearly half of the more than 100-thousand IRS employees currently
have access to the Integrated Data Retrieval System, and if the
same pattern applies to other regional offices, more than 1,000
IRS employees would be expected to routinely be looking at
private records.

Senator Glenn has scheduled a hearing on the IRS computer
security problem for this Wednesday before his Governmental
Affairs Committee.

(John McCormick/19930803/)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00014)

Canadian Firm Pleads Guilty To Piracy Charges 08/03/93
BELLEVILLE, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Rexcan Circuits
Inc., the first computer user slapped with criminal charges for
software piracy in Canada, has pleaded guilty on four counts and
been fined C$50,000. Related charges against two individuals have
been dropped.

In late May, the Canadian Association Against Software Theft
(CAAST) announced that after an investigation carried out with
its support, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police had laid 63
charges against Rexcan, a circuit-board manufacturer, and two of
its executives, for copying and distributing software illegally.

These were the first criminal charges laid against a computer
user in Canada -- as opposed to a dealer -- for software piracy,
said James Courtney, general manager of Quarterdeck Office
Systems Canada Inc., one of CAAST's member companies.

The court also ordered Rexcan to submit to a software audit by
CAAST within the next three months.

In a statement from CAAST, Michael Eisen of the Toronto law firm
Morris/Rose/Ledgett, CAAST's legal counsel, said CAAST is
considering civil claims against Rexcan for copyright
infringement as well.

CAAST is a group of software vendors working together to combat
software piracy. Its member companies are Autodesk Canada,
Borland Canada, Computer Associates Canada, Lotus Development
Canada, Microsoft Canada, Novell Canada, and Quarterdeck Canada.

Software involved in the Rexcan case included products from
Lotus, Microsoft, Software Publishing, and WordPerfect.

At the same as it announced the Rexcan charges in the spring,
CAAST announced creation of software piracy "hotlines" to let
people report suspected cases of software piracy. The
organization said a number of calls have been received and it is
evaluating them.

(Grant Buckler/19930803/Press Contact: Michael Eisen, Morris Rose
Ledgett, 416-981-9322; Allan Reynolds, CAAST, 416-598-8988, fax
416-598-3584)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00015)

WordPerfect 3.0 For Mac Goes To Beta 08/03/93
OREM, UTAH, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- WordPerfect Corporation
announced this week that release 3.0 of its WordPerfect for Apple
Computer's Macintosh platform has entered beta testing and is
expected to ship this fall. The software is being shown at the
Macworld Expo in Boston this week.

The company says WordPerfect 3.0 for Macintosh users will get an
innovative interface that simplifies the menu structure for some of
the program features. It's also feature-compatible with the newest
version of WP for other platforms, and supports the Apple Open
Collaboration Environment, AppleEvents, AppleScript, WorldScript,
and QuickTime. Grammatik 5 for Macintosh, the grammar checking
software WordPerfect Corporation acquired several months ago, is
incorporated into the word processing program and is directly
accessible from a menu.

WP Corporation says the ruler in each document window in release 3.0
can expand to display various ruler bars that give quick access to
both basic and advanced features. A Control Bar allows the user to
control which Ruler Bars appear. In addition to the Ruler, uses can
display additional bars from which they can choose layout, font,
style, table, list, and merge functions.

The new release also included three pre-defined Button Bars for use
in editing text, graphics, or equations. Users can customize
multiple Button Bars and perform tasks such as bullet indent, quick
sort, headers and footers. The Button Bar appears outside the
document window, and its location (left, right, top or bottom edge
of the screen) is user-selectable. Button Bars are
context-sensitive, with the correct bar appearing depending on what
you are doing.

The company says a new tables feature allows the user to create
tables of information in columns, rows, and cells. Tables can be
freestanding or contained in a moveable box within a document.
Buttons on the Tables Ruler Bar allows users to insert or delete
rows and columns, join or split cells, and fill cells with colors or
patterns. Users can also create custom borders around a table and
manipulate the graphical lines that separate the columns and rows of
the table. Existing text can be converted to a table, or a table
can be converted to text. Basic math functions such as column or row
totals can be inserted in a table to allow it to work like a
mini-spreadsheet.

The program will also include an equation editor that lets the user
create the elements of an equation such as a fraction, or exponent.
Equations can also be displayed and edited in DOS or Windows
versions of WordPerfect . Drag and drop is supported, and an
Open Dialog box permits document and graphics preview without
opening the file.

WordPerfect 3.0 for Mac runs on any Macintosh computer with a hard
drive. It needs two megabytes (MB) or system memory on systems
running under System 6.0.5 or higher, and 4MB on computers using
System 7.x.

(Jim Mallory/19930803/Press contact: Dave Terran, WordPerfect
Corporation, 801-228-5013; Reader contact: WordPerfect Corporation,
801-225-5000, fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DEN)(00016)

Software Available In "Store-on-a-Disc" 08/03/93
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- In what one
company calls "the evolving business of electronic commerce
that could revolutionize the way goods and services are
bought and sold," two companies announced this week that users will
be able to buy software from Microsoft and other publishers
instantly via a CD-ROM disc included with their new personal computer
just by phoning in their credit card number and getting the secret
access code.

Gateway 2000 says it will initially offer its Store-on-a-Disc
service to 25,000 existing customers using its personal computers.
The company will distribute the discs at no charge in a pilot
program that will offer 33 Microsoft titles. Available programs
include Money, Publisher 2.0, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Word,
Golf, and the MS-DOS 6.0 upgrade. An on-line version of the MS-DOS 6
user's guide is also included.

Boulder, Colorado-based InfoNow says it has signed a deal with IBM
to offer a similar service to Big Blue buyers. Called Options by
IBM, InfoNow's electronic catalog of titles includes more than 80
popular software titles from Microsoft, Aapen Software Corporation,
Arro International, Berkeley Systems, Campbell Services, Central
Point Software, Metz, Micrografx, Symantec and T/Maker. The InfoNow
discs will allow potential software purchasers to test-drive the
pre-installed, encrypted programs before they purchase.

Dale Christensen, product manager of Microsoft's Desktop Division,
says the distribution system also benefits Microsoft. "Our
relationship with InfoNow allows Microsoft to explore customer buying
habits from CD distribution of software."

Once you browse through the electronic catalog and select the
programs you want to buy, you call a toll-free number and provide the
operator with your credit card number. The operator gives you a
special access code that unlocks access to the selected program.
When you enter the access code, the software is automatically
installed on your hard drive.

InfoNow initiated its program for OEM (original equipment
manufacturers) PC makers in October 1992, and says it can customize
a software catalog and user interface for each manufacturer.

(Jim Mallory/19930803/Press contact: Anne Theriault, InfoNow
303-442-6666; Glynis Gibson, Gibson Communications for Gateway 2000,
312-868-9400)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00017)

 ****Insiders Speculate On FTC/Justice Probe Of Microsoft 08/03/93
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Just when it seemed
safe for Microsoft to give its legal staff a day off, word came out
of Washington late last week that the Federal Trade Commission had
passed along its investigation to the Justice Department. At the very
least this will mean a very prolonged investigation and mounting
legal fees, according to a number of Washington insiders, many of
whom say the FTC was too weak to properly pursue the investigation.

Newsbytes has talked with several well-placed Washington insiders
who say that the reason the FTC was unable to come to any real
decision on the Microsoft case, where the software giant has been
accused by some other companies of anticompetitive practices, is
mostly due to the very weak position of the FTC.

For the past decade the FTC, which can institute a civil case before
an administrative law judge, has been operating on a year-to-year
basis because of low funding, a legacy of the hands-off
low-regulation stand of the Reagan and Bush Administrations. In
addition, one Washington insider pointed out that the FTC lacks the
statutory authority to really dig into such a complex case.

By moving the Microsoft case to the much more powerful Justice
Department, which could pursue either civil or criminal court cases,
the FTC has ensured that the investigation will be more thorough and
will, in all likelihood, continue for several more years at a
minimum.

The FTC has twice failed to reach a decision either way on the
Microsoft case.

One observer also pointed out that there were some new staff members
at Justice who were better connected and more able to pursue such a
complex case.

Another Washington insider said that she felt part of the problem
was just that the FTC didn't understand what was going on with
high-tech industries and, like many law-enforcement and regulatory
agencies, was poorly equipped to investigate such cases.

Yet another Washington, DC-based specialist in regulatory affairs
told Newsbytes that part of the reason for the transfer of the case
might be that Justice could pursue criminal cases.

Microsoft is also currently in a prolonged battle with the General
Services Administration over releasing its confidential sales data
and is therefore not on this year's GSA Microcomputer Schedule. This
has caused American Telephone & Telegraph to carry Windows NT on its
Standard Multi-user Small Contract Requirements Contract so it would
be available to the US Defense Department and to civilian
government agencies.

One reason Microsoft has been reluctant to open up its books to the
GSA is thought by many observers to be related to the ongoing
anti-trust investigation.

Of course, none of this indicates that Microsoft has done anything
wrong nor will be found guilty of any improprieties or illegal
actions and the company may eventually be held totally blameless,
but just the need to defend itself is certain to cost a substantial
amount of money.

For more than three years the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has
been conducting its investigation, but has deadlocked twice this
year when it tried to decide if it would bring charges against
Microsoft. The commission was able to decide that it would not issue
an administrative complaint. One commissioner has reportedly
excluded himself from the two votes.

Microsoft told Newsbytes it has provided the FTC with "hundreds of
thousands" of documents in connection with that agency's inquiry. In
the meantime the FTC case remains open.

Last week, apparently about the time the Justice Department was
beginning to get involved, Newsbytes reported that Microsoft
Chairman Bill Gates told financial analysts the FTC probe hasn't
created any problems for the company. "There has been nothing that
has come up that causes us the slightest concern," said Gates.

While the FTC inquiry continues at least in part because of
complaints from Microsoft's competitors, Justice may have entered
the case based on congressional pressure. Reportedly Ohio
Democratic Senator Howard Metzenbaum, chair of the Senate Judiciary
Committee's antitrust committee, and Utah Republican Senator Orrin
Hatch, have both urged the Justice Department to look at the case.

A Microsoft spokesperson told Newsbytes the company has no comment
at this time, and has not been notified of any inquiry by the
Justice Department. Microsoft shares dropped $1.25 yesterday,
closing at $72.75 in heavy trading after news of the possible
Justice Department inquiry became known. More than 4 million shares
were traded.

(Jim Mallory & John McCormick/19930803/Press contact: Microsoft
Public Relations, 206-882-8080)


(NEWS)(IBM)(MSP)(00018)

HP Offers CD-ROM Technical Answerbook 08/03/93
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Hewlett-Packard
Company is offering a CD-ROM information tool called the
HP Support Assistant. It provides technical and product information
on the HP NetServer series, HP Vectra personal computers, HP LaserJet
printers, and networking and accessory products.

The CD-ROM is indexed and searchable, and is designed to give support
administrators and MIS managers quick and easy access to technical
documentation and information, including graphics.

A Windows application based upon Microsoft Multimedia Viewer, the HP
Support Assistant looks and works like Windows Help, the company
says, and allows users to do keyword searches, annotate topics,
and set up hotlinks between related topics.

"The HP Support Assistant saves me time and energy by providing
answers with greater speed and convenience than traditional
documentation," said Greg Scott, computing services manager, College
of Business, Oregon State University, in an HP press statement.
"Since it looks like Windows Help, there's no learning curve, and
the search capabilities are very advanced."

The HP Support Assistant includes technical reference manuals,
service manuals, user manuals printable from CD ROM, application
notes, product certifications, service notes, data sheets and
workarounds. The HP Support Assistant, available worldwide, is
provided as a yearly subscription service and includes four
CD-ROM disks. One disk will be mailed each quarter and will
include the latest support and product information, as well as
all the data included on previous HP Support Assistant disks.

The HP Support Assistant requires an 80386SX processor, 2MB RAM,
30MB hard-disk storage, 4-bit VGA graphics adapter, VGA color
monitor, MPC-compatible CD ROM drive, two-button Microsoft-compatible
mouse, 101-key keyboard, MS-DOS 3.30 or higher and Microsoft Windows
3.1 or higher. The yearly subscription price for the HP Support
Assistant is $395 (U.S.), and an evaluation disk is available for
$45 (U.S.). To subscribe to HP Support Assistant, or to receive an
evaluation disk, contact authorized HP resellers, or call 1-800-457-1762.

(Wendy Woods/19930803/Press Contact: Larry Sennett, HP, 408/720-3061)


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

Iridium In Business 08/03/93
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- After months of
speculation and press leaks, Motorola officially launched Iridium
Inc., which will offer mobile phone service worldwide through a
network of 66 satellites in low-Earth orbits of 250-310 miles, or
400-500 kilometers above the ground. The project is expected to
go online in 1998, with calls costing about $3 per minute.

Motorola said that $800 million in equity has been raised from
companies in the US, Europe and Asia, and it's confident of
getting another $800 million. Motorola Vice Chairman John
Mitchell said in a press conference the $800 million was the
"minimum" needed for a formal announcement of the project, and
predicted it will bring thousands of jobs to the troubled US
aerospace sector. Motorola said another $1.8 billion needed to
launch its satellite group will be raised through debt, and
Motorola's final interest in the project, now worth $270 million,
will decline to about 15 percent of total equity in time.
Motorola stock closed on the day of the announcement at about $95
per share, nearly twice the $50 per share price quoted in
January, in the wake of a health scare involving cellular phones.

Perhaps the biggest surprise in the announcements was the Chinese
component. China Great Wall Industrial Corp., the state-run
commercial launch concern, will invest $40 million in the project
and gain an equity stake. Great Wall will also win some Iridium
launches, with the first launch of two satellites scheduled for
1996. That's a big win for the Chinese, who have been fighting to
gain credibility in the market since the failure of launches for
Australian interests. The Chinese said their contract with
Iridium was signed in April. Great Wall also has pending
contracts with the Intelsat consortium and two Hong Kong groups,
offering much lower prices than US or European launching
alternatives.

Also, as reported in April, a group of Japanese companies,
organized as Nippon Iridium, including the DDI long distance
concern, Kyocera, and Mitsui, formalized their relationship with
Iridium, putting in $120 million for a 15 percent stake in the
project. A Saudi Arabian industrial group, the Mawarid Group,
also put in $120 million. From the US, Sprint Corp., put in $40
million, Lockheed and Raytheon teamed to put in $40 million, BCE
Mobile Inc., of Canada put in $40 million, and so did Muidiri
Investments BVI Ltd. of Venezuela, and United Communication
Industry Co. Ltd. of Thailand, STET of Italy, and Khrunichev
Enterprise of Russia.

Like Great Wall, Khrunichev is expecting to launch some of
the rockets carrying Iridium satellites into orbit. Motorola
said each $40 million of investment equity brings with it a
seat on the new Iridium Inc., board, which will be based
in Washington, D.C. Sprint will operate the company's North
American gateway, while Nippon Iridium will operate a gateway to
the service in Japan.

Broad international investment in Iridium is needed not only to
spread the risk, but to assure that frequencies needed to provide
service in all countries are allocated to Iridium. The company
must compete with plans by the International Maritime Satellite
Organization, or Inmarsat, which has a group headed by British
Aerospace PLC planning its own "constellation" of satellites.
There are also a number of other groups, especially in the US,
working on their own low-Earth orbit systems.

The biggest competitor to Iridium calling, however, will be
Earth-based cellular telephone systems, which are spreading
throughout the world. To belay that industry's objections to
Iridium, Motorola has promised that it will offer dual-mode
phones, which look for a cellular signal first before seeking out
a satellite. Cellular services also cost about 50 cents per
minute, one-sixth the cost of an Iridium call, and some analysts
question whether there will be enough "cellular free" areas by
1998 to let Iridium make a profit. In addition to voice services,
Iridium will offer fax, paging, and geographic positioning
service, but there, too, there is competition.

One reason that Motorola stock rose on the news is that it is
already making some money from Iridium. The new company signed a
five-year $3.4 billion contract to purchase the Iridium space
system from Motorola's Satellite Communications Division, along
with a follow-up contract for $2.8 million covering operation and
maintenance of the system for five years. Motorola said that it
has executed significant subcontracts with other industrial
suppliers, so it's not getting all that cash. Motorola expects
the two contracts will pay for its own development expenses,
payments to subcontractors, and liabilities. Among the
subcontractors are other Iridium owners, including Lockheed,
Raytheon, Khrunichev, Great Wall, and STET. Siemens of Germany
will also be making Iridium equipment.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930803/Press Contact: John Windolph, Iridium,
202-371-6889)


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

Toshiba To Distribute PictureTel Equipment 08/03/93
DANVERS, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Toshiba signed
a deal with PictureTel to distribute its videoconferencing
systems in Japan and to work together on development of new
multimedia applications. The deal could, in time, open use of the
system to videophones and laptop computers.

PictureTel's videoconferencing systems were originally based on
digital phone lines and special equipment which would often be
wheeled around a company on a dolly. In recent months, PictureTel
has committed to producing add-in boards which let PCs use
PictureTel services. Digital phone lines of 64,000 bits/second or
faster are still needed.

A PictureTel spokesman told Newsbytes that it and Toshiba will
explore a wide range of technologies aimed at making
videoconferences more practical when used with desktop and laptop
computing software applications. Toshiba will bring a wide range
of computer chips, cameras, flat screens and other products to
the table, while PictureTel retains the underlying technology.

The two companies hope they can find a way, in time, to link
videophones, multimedia workstations, and even PDAs like the
Apple Newton into PictureTel videoconferences using software-
based codecs.

PictureTel has about a 70 percent share of the TV conference system
market among systems with a transmission speed of 384 kilobits
per second. The firm has also developed the PCS1000 system, which
supports advanced pictorial and audio data transmission on personal
computers.

PictureTel Japan currently has agreements with 10 Japanese
electronic firms, including Oki Electric and Otsuka Shokai,
to sell PictureTel TV conference systems in Japan.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa & Dana Blankenhorn/19930803/Press
Contact: Toshiba, [phone]; Ron Taylor, PictureTel,
508-762-5178)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00021)

Apple Targets Youngsters On MTV 08/03/93
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- To attract 18
to 25-year-old students at universities and community colleges
nationwide, Apple Computer says it will start advertising its
Macintoshes on the Music Television (MTV) Network. The company
says a variety of "frenzied techniques" will be used by a
"college-aged" spokesperson in 30-second spots designed to get
students to call an 800 telephone number for Macintosh student
pricing information.

The commercials will run over 400 times through the 12th of
September on a number of popular MTV programs such as
"Alternative Nation," "MTV Jams," "Big Picture," and "Week in
Rock."

Five different commercials - two general awareness and three
direct response - will offer a series of flashing titles
depicting a myriad of complex questions and issues faced by
college students. The spot will then end with the statement, "A
lot of stuff in life is complicated -- at least your computer
doesn't have to be. Macintosh - It's Easy, It's Powerful. What
Else Is There?"

According to Diane Brundage, director of marketing for Apple
USA's Higher Education Division, the campaign represents a
departure from Apple's previous advertising efforts on major
television networks, which traditionally targeted more
mainstream business and elementary education markets.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930803/Press Contact: Bill Keegan, Apple
Computer, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00022)

Quantum Posts 1Q Earnings, As Many As 147 Jobs To Go 08/03/93
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- It is not just
the PC hardware markets that are feeling the profit crunch as a
result of intense price wars - it is also highly competitive in the
hard disk drive market as well. Now Quantum Corp., has posted
substantially reduced income for its first fiscal 1994 quarter,
ended July 4, 1993.

The company reported sales for the first quarter as $479 million,
an increase of 30 percent over the $369 million reported for the
first quarter of fiscal 1993. However, like the PC hardware
manufacturers that have been reporting an increase in sales but
a decrease in income, Quantum too has reported a net income for
the first quarter of just $3.4 million, or $0.08 per share fully
diluted, which compares pretty unfavorably with $21.5 million, or
$0.41 per share fully diluted reported for the first quarter of 1993.

It was the market's fault, said William J. Miller, chairman and chief
executive officer, in announcing the results, "Our unit shipments
increased relative to the March quarter, but weak demand in
distribution channels and the aggressive pricing environment led to
the sequential quarter decline in our sales and earnings."

The company says that sales to its top five OEM (original
equipment manufacturer) customers represented 57 percent of
sales in the first fiscal quarter. Sales to Apple and Compaq
represented 29 percent and 14 percent of sales, respectively,
for the quarter.

Things are unlikely to get much better in the short term because of
the price battles. Said Miller, "We believe we are positioned well for
long-term success and leadership in our industry, but the current
aggressive pricing environment will have a negative impact on our
September quarter results. Although we expect to increase our unit
shipments relative to the June quarter, the positive revenue
impact of that increase will be more than offset by price declines."

The company plans to cut back production for some products.
"Given the current oversupply condition and continuing intense price
competition, we are working aggressively to reduce our inventory
in terms of weeks of sales. This includes scaling back production of
certain products," said Miller.

Quantum intends to cut its workforce as one way of reducing
expenses. According to Miller, "One aspect of this program is a
reduction in employment which is being implemented this quarter.
Although we are still in the planning stages, we expect this reduction
to impact between five percent and seven percent of our worldwide
permanent workforce of approximately 2,100 employees."

The company has also announced the ProDrive 1800 seven-platter,
two gigabyte (GB)-class 3.5-inch drive to be available in volume
this quarter.

The half-height ProDrive 1800 SCSI-2 (Small Computer Systems
Interface-2) drive provides 1.8GB of formatted capacity. The drive
will be available this quarter for both original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) and distributors.

In addition to average seek times of 10 milliseconds (reading), the
ProDrive 1800 drive include a 512-kilobyte (KB) segmented cache
buffer with DisCache and WriteCache firmware, proprietary
AutoRead and AutoWrite ASIC (application specific integrated
circuit) hardware, tagged command queuing with seek reordering
and an embeded SCSI-2 controller which supports Fast SCSI. Single
unit evaluation pricing to qualified OEMs is $1,295.

International Data Corporation reports that shipments of 1.2GB to
2GB drives will grow seven times over from 1993 to 1995, reaching
2.4 million units by 1995.

In September, the company plans to announce four new families
of drives for notebook systems, personal computers, and the
workstation and server markets

The company also announced that William J. Miller has been named
chairman of the board of directors of Quantum Corp., succeeding
Stephen M. Berkley who remains on the board as a director.

(Ian Stokell/19930803/Press Contact: Catherine Hartsog, or
Kelli Trask, 408-894-4000; Quantum Corp.)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00023)

SCO In Shareholder Suit; Ships OSI 2.0 08/03/93
SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Any time a
company commits to a public stock offering, it runs the gauntlet of
possible litigation. It has not taken the Santa Cruz Operation
long to find that out. Now the company has announced that a lawsuit
has been filed against it alleging securities law violations in
connection with statements made by the company relating to its
initial public offering of stock in May.

According to the company, the lawsuit "purports to be a class action
brought on behalf of all purchasers of SCO stock during the period
May 27, 1993 and July 26, 1993."

Not much more information is available at the moment. Zee Zaballos,
spokesperson for the SCO, told Newsbytes that, "I have not seen
the suit so I cannot really address any more than what was in the
release. The plaintiffs have indicated a suit based on statements
that had been issued earlier. Not reading the entire briefing I am
not really in a position to address it in detail. Currently our
company is going through the entire briefing."

The complaint was filed in the United States District Court in San
Jose, California, on July 29, 1993, and asserts that SCO and certain
of its officers and directors made "misleading statements about
the company's prospects."

In an official release the company says it, "strongly denies the
allegations made against it, and intends to vigorously defend this
lawsuit."

In other news, the company has announced that it is shipping version
2.0 of its SCO OSI. The company claims that SCO OSI is the most
widely available GOSIP 2.0-compliant product in the federal market
for industry-standard microcomputers running the Unix system.

Version 2.0 is now available to federal and commercial customers
from GSA schedule holders, select systems integrators and
resellers, and on the RCAS and Super Minicomputer Program
contracts.

SCO OSI 2.0 is compatible with the SCO Open Server and SCO Open
Desktop operating systems. Products in the suite include: LAN
Transport; FTAM; Virtual Terminal; X.400 Message Server; OSI
Transport for TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet
Protocol); SMTP Gateway to X.400.

In announcing version 2.0, Jeffrey Ait, vice president of SCO's
Federal Systems Group, said, "The enhanced SCO OSI product suite
reinforces our commitment to provide our federal customers with
products that incorporate the latest technologies, meet the latest
government standards, and are widely available from established
vendors."

Suggested list prices vary with individual products and type of
user license, but range from $495 to $1,995.

(Ian Stokell/19930803/Press Contact: Zee Zaballos, 408-427-7156,
or Rebecca Somers, 408-427-7103, The Santa Cruz Operation Inc.)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00024)

Northern Telecom Secures $100M Contract In China 08/03/93
HONG KONG, HONG KONG, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Northern Telecom has
announced the sale of US$102 million worth of its flagship DMS
family of central office switching systems to the Chongqing, Hebei
and Jilin provinces of the Peoples Republic of China.

According to Ming Li, senior managing director with Northern
Telecom's Asian operation, the contracts with the respective
provincial Post and Telecoms administrations call for the
installation of large capacity DMS-100 and DMS-100 Supernode
switching systems.

"We're extremely pleased that the three provinces have chosen us to
support their growing telecom needs," commented Li, who added that
Northern Telecom has established a healthy name for itself in the
Chinese telecom market-place over the past few years.

This deal, however, is one of the largest in the region undertaken
by Northern Telecom. The company claims it has more than two
million telecom lines installed or on order in China. In 1992, the
company claims it was the largest producer of digital private branch
exchanges (PBXs) in China, through its joint venture manufacturing
operation, Tong Guang Nortel, which is based in Shekou, in the
Shenzen province of China.

Li said that the $102 million contract will be implemented with
amazing speed over the next 18 months. Plans call for the
installation of telecom equipment in all three provinces to be up
and running within the next two years.

(Steve Gold/19930803/Press & Public Contact: Tom Koppel, Northern
Telecom Asia Pacific - Tel: [phone])


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

UK - Compulink Information Exchange Hit By Virus 08/03/93
SURBITON, SURREY, ENGLAND, 1993 AUG 3 (NB) --- A system operator's
worst nightmare came true on July 29 when conference coordinators
on the Compulink Information Exchange (CIX) learned that users had
downloaded a virus-infected file.

The alarm was raised by CIX subscriber Swami Anahata who had
downloaded a PC communications utility only to find his anti-virus
utility reporting that his system had been infected with a
virus. At first, Anahata believed the report to be false, but
later the file was examined by S&S International, the company that
runs CIX, who confirmed it was a new virus.

The CIX conference coordinator immediately removed the virus-
infected file from the download area. Meanwhile, System Manager Matt
Sims was able to check the download registers and immediately
electronically mailed (e-mailed) the 36 subscribers who had
downloaded the file, with a message about the infection.

Malcolm Muir, the conference coordinator on CIX, told Newsbytes
that he had checked the file prior to allowing it to be downloaded
using version 106 of McAfee's Scan. The anti-virus package however
had failed to detect the virus and thus it had slipped through.

CIX has announced it intends to beef up its anti-virus security by
checking files made available for download with three anti-virus
scanners. The company plans to continue with McAfee but will be
adding Dr Solomon's Toolkit (the package which detected this virus)
and F-Prot.

The virus, which is so new it has not yet been named, apparently has
no payload. However, that was a small consolation to CIX subscriber
Ken Haylock, who was working on a client's system and was not able
to detect the extent of any infection using either McAfee or
Microsoft's anti-virus utility bundled with DOS 6.

CIX has now mailed copies of the public domain version of F-Prot to
all users who downloaded the infected file. According to Sims, the
likelihood of users catching a virus from a downloaded file is now
very significantly reduced; users should, however, continue to take
sensible precautions.

(Paul Robinson/19930803/Press & Public Contact: CIX - Tel: 081-
390-8446)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(BOS)(00026)

 ****Apple Newton Launched At Symphony Hall In Boston 08/03/93
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Apple Computer
expects the Newton to match or exceed the success of the
Macintosh, top company officials chorused yesterday to the ringing
cheers of a packed audience at the official launch of the new PDA
at Symphony Hall, Boston.

In addition to hearing Apple's plans and dreams for the Newton,
the hundreds of Newton fans in the audience got a chance to see the
personal communicator in action, in dozens of demos of real
applications from Apple and third-party vendors.

"We have a rosy future with the Newton," Bob Puette, president of
Apple USA, told the crowd. After shipping to destinations
throughout the US in August, the Newton will become available in
Canada, Australia, and the UK in September, Germany later this fall,
and France and Japan early next year, he announced.

Apple is aiming the Newton not only at consumers, but at
business users in the corporate enterprise computing market and
professional service providers in segments like health care and
finance. In a recent market study for the Newton, Apple determined
that the business and professional service markets represent
potential markets of 11 and six million, respectively, said Puette.

At many companies, mobile applications haven't even been
implemented yet, because prior to the Newton, automation couldn't
be done in a "natural" way, he said. The Newton has a "human
element" that will set it far above any other PDA.

Companies will be motivated to use the Newton by the bottom
line, he predicted. "Their revenues increase with the services
they can provide, and the Newton will allow them to provide more
services."

In the future, Apple will offer the Newton in a variety of
versions, according to Puette. "We realize that a
`one-size-fits-all' model doesn't meet everyone's needs," he noted.

"The Macintosh was a revolution for the desktop. The Newton is a
revolution for the pocket," echoed another speaker, Apple's John
Sculley.

"The two technologies are complementary, but quite different," he
added. Where the Mac made it easier for end users to create
documents on the desktop, the Newton will let them communicate from
virtually anywhere.

"But while the Mac was easy for end users, it wasn't necessarily
easy for developers," he acknowledged. In contrast, developers are
finding the Newton Developers Kit extremely easy to use. Already,
some 1500 of them are at work on applications for the Newton, he
explained.

"When PDAs become a reality, we'll be very well positioned,"
Sculley asserted. "We'll make money at every step of the value
chain, and so will our third-party developers."

Ultimately, there might be desktop versions of the Newton, and
Newton technology might be integrated into other office equipment,
such as telephones, he revealed.

Applications of all kinds will get a major boost in 1994, with the
arrival of fax receive capability, said Apple's Gaston Bastiaens,
vice president of Apple Personal Interactive Electronics Division
(PIE). Owners of the original Newton will be able to upgrade to that
feature, he disclosed.

"The Newton has arrived, that is clear. And it's not about being
a `souped up' pen computer," stated Bastiaens. "The Newton is more
intelligent, and easier to use, by far."

To back up its contentions, Apple presented a series of Newton
demos on stage, featuring actual and hypothetical users. In one
demo, for instance, an Apple employee showed how she uses the
Newton to upload spreadsheets from the hotel to a Windows-based PC
while on the road. In another, a "doctor" depicted the use of the
Newton to call up X-rays and fill out prescriptions while doing his
rounds.

Apple and third-party developers demonstrated a mind boggling array
of additional applications after the presentation, in booths dotting
the floor of a Symphony Hall decked out for the day with huge purple
Newton banners.

Chancery, for instance, showed CSL Profiles in Hand, a tool that
will let teachers call up student records and lesson plans, take
attendance, and enter grades while walking around the classroom.

CSL Profiles will be integrated with desktop software for entering
classroom-related data, a Chancery spokesperson told Newsbytes.
Teachers will upload this information from the desktop to the
Newton.

In another corner of the floor, an Apple representative showed how
a clothing designer might use the Newton's electronic ink mode to
sketch out and label his work. The electronic ink mode operates
through a combination of gestures and menu choices.

Placing a line straight across the page will automatically move you
to the next page, the rep told Newsbytes. To file your work, or
copy or send it, you touch the pen to one of two buttons in the
upper right-hand corner of the screen. To change fonts or type
faces for electronic ink text, you use menus on the bottom of the
screen.

Also in the electronic ink mode, you can train the Newton in
handwriting recognition. After you enter a word in your own
handwriting, the Newton will come back with a series of possible
interpretations. You then tell the Newton which one is correct.
At each step of the way, the Newton informs you as to its level of
confidence in understanding what you've written -- 25 percent, for
instance, or 74 percent.

Other applications shown yesterday included Pastel's ContactPad
contact manager; MobileSoft's MobileCalc spreadsheet; Fingertip
and Stats, Inc.'s Stats baseball statistical software for modem
updates, and Avalon Engineering's PresenterPad, a suite of tools
for creating and monitoring meetings and presentations.

Also shown were Ex Machina's PocketCall terminal program and
Notify! wireless messaging software; Saltire Software's DrawPad;
Medical Software from ComputerBooks; DublClick's GoFigure
calculator, and a great many more.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19930803)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00027)

Apple Intros Quadra 950 For Publishing/Graphics 08/03/93
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Apple Computer
introduced the Apple Macintosh Quadra 950 Publishing
Configuration, a special version of the Quadra 950 just for
publishing and graphic arts. The announcement was made at the
Siggraph Show in Anaheim, California.

Based on the Motorola 68040 microprocessor running at 33
megahertz (MHz), this special floor-standing Quadra 950 comes
preconfigured from the factory with a Supermac Thunder II Light
card for 24-bit color graphics on 21-inch displays. Designed to
work with Adobe's popular Photoshop product, dual Digital
Signal Processors (DSPs) can offers users up to five times the
performance on many Photoshop functions.

In addition, the Quadra 950 Publishing Configuration comes with
Micronet Technology's Raven 040 small computer systems
interface (SCSI) one gigabyte hard disk array, designed
specifically for the built-in dual channel SCSI drive
architecture of the Quadra 950 to handle transfer rates that
are approximately twice that of the single drive architecture,
Apple added. The SCSI hard disk array achieves higher transfer
rates by simultaneously transferring data in parallel to each
of the dual SCSI channels of the Quadra 950.

Features standard to the Quadra 950 include Ethernet
networking, a built-in 24-bit color video system that allows
the addition of a second monitor, and microprocessor-based
caching and floating-point processing. An additional 5.25-inch
half-height SCSI drive, a removable media device such as a
compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) drive, magneto-optical,
cartridge drive, can also be added to the Quadra for additional
storage or backup capability.

While it sounds like Apple Computer may have thought of everything
publishers and graphic artists might want, there are
limitations. The most critical is that while the Quadra 950 can
be configured with up to 256 megabytes of dynamic random access
memory (DRAM), no DRAM comes installed in this special
Publishing Configuration. Apple's reasoning is this offers
publishers maximum flexibility in adding the amount of DRAM
they prefer, as previous Quadra 950 models came with 8 MB of
DRAM expandable to 64 MB. However, a recent fire in a factory
of a major supplier to DRAM manufacturers has limited supply
and DRAM prices are nearly double the prices of a month ago.
This means users may find they're not saving the estimated
$1,333 Apple points to in comparing the Publishing
Configuration, priced at $8,995, to buying each of the
components separately.

In addition, the Quadra 950 usually offers five open Nubus
slots, but only four are available in the Quadra 950 Publishing
Configuration.

Apple Macintosh computers have had a strong foothold in the
publishing and graphics communities for some time. However,
Apple again mentioned a comparison between the Quadra 950 and a
similarly configured IBM compatible personal computer (PC) made
by ALR running Microsoft Windows. In benchmark tests conducted
by Ingram Laboratory using productivity applications built for
both Windows and Macintosh, the Quadra 950 ran the same
application 20 percent faster than the 50 MHz 486-based ALR
Business Visa machine. However, no tests were reported as to
how the Quadra 950 compared to a PC equipped with the newly
announced top-of-the-line Intel microprocessor, the Pentium.

Users can expect to see the Quadra 950 Publishing Configuration
in September of this year, Apple said.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930803/Press Contact: Stacey Byrnes, Apple
Computer, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Apple Reseller
Location 800-538-9696)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00028)

Broadband Commits To MPEG 08/03/93
RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NORTH CAROLINA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) --
BroadBand Technologies Inc., which sells fiber-in-the-loop
systems to local phone companies, said it will commit to the
Moving Picture Experts Group-2 (MPEG-2) standard and abandon its
proprietary compression system.

BroadBand will also work with Compression Labs and the US
consumer products unit of Holland-based Philips NV to create
set-top converters which will link TVs with phone networks for
"video dialtone" services. MPEG-2 will then be used to transmit
interactive video programs over Broadband's Fiber Loop Access, or
FLX, platform to phone subscribers. CLI and Philips will make
the set-top boxes, which will be sold by local phone companies.
Compression Labs has long used a system related to MPEG for its
videoconferencing gear, and is working with General Instruments
to make cable set-top converters that work under a version of
Microsoft Windows.

Broadband has been selling its FLX platform for some time, and
originally it was offered in a form that could be upgraded simply
to offer video. This year the company has been turning the video
on its systems, as local phone companies have won the right from
the Federal Communications Commission to offer video to
consumers. In addition to movies-on-demand, the phone companies
are looking to home shopping, electronic yellow pages, education,
and medical markets, and Bell Atlantic has been a big booster of
the FLX platform for that. Switching makes phone-fed video far
more interactive than existing cable services, but normally fewer
channels are offered because of the low capacity of most phone
wires. The three companies hope to have their equipment delivered
by the end of 1994, a Broadband spokesman told Newsbytes.

Using MPEG-2 compression, Broadband added, it hopes to allow
phone customers access to up to 640 channels of on-demand,
interactive switched digital video, based on the system's current
10:1 compression capability, and FLX' capability of handling 64
45 megabit/second input ports. Broadband is also committed to
making sure the systems it produces are offered at a cost phone
companies consider affordable, the company pledged. Because the
Broadband FLX platform is now based on a standard, it could also
be used by video game boxes, multimedia PCs, CDI players, and
other devices.

Newsbytes discussed the new deal with Salim Bhatia, president of
Broadband. "We have always looked forward to standardized
compression algorithms," he said, and "We're happy MPEG-2 is
coming along. The core of our system is designed with head-room
for all kinds of standards, including HDTV. We will be phasing
out the proprietary compression."

Many in the cable industry are now addressing on what software the
converters attached to their new systems will be based. Bhatia
said his company is working with a number of companies on that
question. "Our approach is to have an open system. We
know we're good at managing bandwidth and delivering it with lots
of flexibility. We believe they'll be a lot of people with
consumer electronics in the house that, if they can hook up with
our system, will offer even more." He added that Bell Atlantic,
one of Broadband's largest customers, will take the MPEG system
as the proprietary compression is phased-out of the product line.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930803/Press Contact: Broadband, Beverlee Hanley,
919/544-0015)


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

More Price Cuts On Powerbook Duo, Centris, Quadra 08/03/93
CAMPBELL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- Apple has
announced still more price cuts, ranging from 18 to 33 percent,
in this its fourth round of price cuts this year. The products
affected this time are the Powerbook Duo Notebooks, the Centris
650s, and the Quadra 800s.

Apple just introduced the Macintosh Quadra 800 in February of
this year when it also introduced the first color Powerbook
notebook computer. Depending on their configuration, the Quadra
800s have been reduced from 17 to 27 percent and to a range
from $3,139 to $5,289.

In addition, this is the second round of price cuts this year
on the Powerbook Duo 210 and 230 line which has gone from a
price range of $2,249 to $2,969 at their introduction in
October of 1992 to a range of $1,499 to $2,319. The portable
Duos "dock" with a desktop station that is available for about
$1,000 and a keyboard is extra.

The Centris 650 models have seen some of the largest reductions
ranging from 27 to 33 percent. Starting prices are now $2,139
and go to $3,139.

Apple suffered an enormous and motivating financial blow
reporting losses in excess of $188 million in its most recent
quarterly financial statement. The company says the new pricing
strategy has helped unit shipments and it intends to continue
to cut prices to attract consumers.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930803/Press Contact: Jayme Curtis, Apple
Computer, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Public Contact
800-776-2333)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00030)

 ****Sharp Express Pad, Differences From Newton Explained 08/03/93
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 AUG 3 (NB) -- As
anticipated, Sharp Electronics of Japan, the manufacturer of
the Apple Newton Messagepad personal digital assistant (PDA),
has introduced the PI-7000 Expert Pad PDA at the Macworld show
in Boston a day after Apple stole the limelight with the
introduction of the Messagepad. Sharp is featuring the Expert
Pad in its booth today, the official first day of Macworld, and
Sharp officials told Newsbytes the differences between the new
PDAs.

It doesn't come as any surprise that the PI-7000 Expert Pad is
very similar to the Messagepad. Mark Deltufo, product planning
and development manager for Sharp, said the Expert Pad has the
same operating system and the same software as the Messagepad.
Deltufo confirmed for Newsbytes that the delightful animations
as seen in the Newton are included in the Expert Pad. These
include discarded documents wadded up and thrown into an on-
screen trash can and the sound of pages turning. In addition,
all software that will run on the Apple PDA will run on the
Expert Pad.

The main differences are in the housing of the units. Sharp has
a thin, protective door that acts as a cover to the screen of
the unit. Also the pen of the Express Pad is housed on the
front of the unit beside the screen instead of on the right
side of the unit as in the Messagepad. The modem is external in
both the Messagepad and the Expert Pad, so users may purchase
the modem for the Express Pad as a separate item.

Retail pricing of the Express Pad has been announced at $899,
but the street price is expected to be lower. Exactly how much
lower Sharp officials were reluctant to say. Sharp is planning
to offer the Express Pad bundled with accessories that could
effect its pricing, Deltufo added. Retail availability of the
Sharp PDA is expected in a week through many of the channels
through which Apple will distribute the Messagepad.

Sharp officials in the booth at Macworld Boston said they do
not plan to offer the Express Pad for sale at the show.
However, they did not know whether or not distributors of the
unit would do so. Apple has already said Macworld attendees can
expect to see Messagepads for sale at the show as well as at
limited retail outlets in Boston and in New York.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930803/Press Contact: Lisa Daniele, Dorf &
Stanton Communications for Sharp, tel [phone])