Cupertino, Calif. - Apple plans to deliver its first Personal Digital Assistant - a handheld, RISC-based computer that uses a pen as its only input device - in January 1993.
Described by sources as "a Sharp Wizard on steroids," the device will have a HyperCard-like interface and will use infrared networking to "dock" to a Mac.
An array of personal-organization applications will be built in, but users will be able to run other software from static RAM cards half the size of a credit card. The device's target price is $700, sources said.
It will be followed by a more powerful Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), code-named Newton, which is expected to incorporate wireless radio networking, a full-blown mobile operating system and support for add-on hardware modules.
>Hardware.
The first device, reportedly small enough to fit in the inside pocket of a business suit jacket, will be powered by a low-power RISC (reduced instruction set computing) processor that will give it near-68040 performance. The chip will come from Advanced RISC Machines Ltd., a Cambridge, England-based company partly owned by Apple (see MacWEEK, Dec. 4, 1990).
The PDA is expected to have a 3-by-5-inch supertwist (but not backlit) screen, 512 Kbytes of RAM, a small speaker and a few ports, including one Mac-compatible serial port. It will come with a pen, which can be stored in a compartment on the face of the unit.
The machine uses such little power, sources said, that it should run for hours on standard alkaline batteries.
>Software.
Built-in applications will include electronic-mail software, a Rolodex-like address manager, a to-do list manager and a notebook. Additional programs can be run one at a time from cards loaded into a slot on the side of the device, sources said.
Apple is expected to distribute most PDA titles on SRAM cards, sources said. Most of these will be content, such as encyclopedias or electronic books, although some applications, such as financial planners, are also expected to ship on the tiny cards.
The iconic interface is reminiscent of a stylish version of HyperCard, sources said. Users can arrange program icons on the screen, which zoom out to another window when activated. Windows are displayed in layers and also can contain icons. The system reportedly will recognize both gestures and handwriting. A built-in scripting language will allow users to integrate data from several programs.
>Networking.
The first PDA is not Mac-compatible, but it will be able to communicate with desktop Macs via an infrared link to a receiver attached to the Mac serial port, sources said. Like the Hewlett-Packard 95LX, the device will need to be within 2 feet of the receiver to maintain the connection.
Once connected, the PDA will be able to access printers on the network and exchange data with Mac applications through a System 7 extension that will ship with the device, sources said.
>Newton.
Apple's real consumer juggernaut, code-named Newton, won't ship until the end of next year at the earliest, sources said.
Using radio instead of infrared communications, it will connect directly to an AppleTalk network. A new operating system will include a way to manage files and not just data. Users reportedly will be able to add hardware modules such as CD-ROM drives and cellular fax/phones.
The device may support Apple's Casper voice-recognition technology. Users will be able to instruct Newton to perform repetitive tasks automatically, sources said, and will even be able to have it gather interesting data as it becomes available using intelligent agent technology similar to Apple's Reporter.
Newton is expected to be compatible with SRAM cards used by the first PDA, sources said.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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BeagleWorks joins the pack of Mac integrated programs
Beagle Bros. delivers seven-module litter
By Carolyn Said
San Diego - Beagle Bros. Inc. jumped into the integrated software fray last week with the release of BeagleWorks.
The $299.95 package is modular in design like competitors from Microsoft Corp. and Symantec Corp. It contains separate modules and document types for creating different kinds of data. But a hot-links feature similar to System 7's publish and subscribe lets users combine information from any of the modules into a single document and then edit all data types from within that document.
"It has the most seamless integration between modules that I've seen," said beta-tester Kent Hayden, financial analyst at Boeing Commercial Airplane Group in Auburn, Wash.
"Microsoft Works is very clumsy by comparison," said beta- user Richard Trovato, an electro/mechanical designer at Lockheed Corp. in San Diego.
"If you pull a spreadsheet into a BeagleWorks word processor document, you can just double-click on the spreadsheet window, go into it, make your change and save it. It's saved in both the word processor and the spreadsheet," he said.
The modules use a common tool palette with buttons specific to the active module. "Since there are a lot of shared features,
it's not like going into a totally different application," said beta-tester Chris Lauritsen, senior engineer at General Dynamics Corp. in San Diego.
>The word processor offers text wrap-around; multiple columns; type and paragraph styles; and the option of assigning different headers, footers and column formats to different sections of a document.
It includes a 110,000-word spelling checker and 660,000- word thesaurus. "It has excellent page-layout features and is the best word processor I've ever used," Hayden said.
>Spreadsheet offers in-cell editing; up to 16,384 rows by 256 columns; 64 built-in financial, statistical, time and date functions; and cell notes.
>Chart offers eight chart types, including line, bar, column, area and pie; manual and automatic scaling; and labeling, grids and titles.
>Database can manage up to 16,384 records with up to 256 fields per record. It supports seven data types (text, number, date, time, picture, memo and computed) and can be used for mail merge with the word processor.
>Draw supports eight-bit color and offers line, arc, text, rectangle, rounded rectangle, oval, polygon and freehand tools.
>Paint supports eight-bit color and offers standard painting tools, 32 custom brushes and a fat-bits editing mode.
>Communications is based on Apple's Macintosh Communications Toolbox. Users can create log-in scripts and store phone numbers and settings.
BeagleWorks uses Claris Corp.'s XTND technology to support import of data from other file formats, including Microsoft Works, Apple Works, Paint and MacWrite.
The program runs under System 6.0.5 or higher. Under System 7, it supports publish and subscribe, Apple events, virtual memory, 32-bit addressing, TrueType and balloon help.
Publish and subscribe is accessible through keyboard shortcuts. "You don't have to go through the rigamarole that publish and subscribe usually needs," Hayden said.
Beagle Bros., which developed AppleWorks 3.0 for Claris, is offering a $99.95 sidegrade offer to owners of Microsoft Works, Symantec's GreatWorks, MacVONK USA's Ragtime 3 and HandiWorks, Zedcor Inc.'s Desk, ClarisWorks, AppleWorks or AppleWorks GS.
Beagle Bros. Inc. is at 6215 Ferris Square, Suite 100, San Diego, Calif. 92121. Phone (619) 452-5500; fax (619) 452- 6374.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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HP palmtop gets wireless Mac links
By Mitch Ratcliffe
Corvallis, Ore. - Mac users may have to wait until next year for Apple's Personal Digital Assistant, but this month they'll be able to communicate with their Mac from afar using a palmtop computer from Hewlett-Packard Co.
HP has announced support for an array of wireless connections that can link its 95LX palmtop computer to the Mac. A new $799 HP 95LX with 1 Mbyte of RAM (up from 512 Kbytes) is due this month. Like the Apple PDA, the 95LX has an infrared interface that provides palmtop-to-desktop docking. Unlike the Apple PDA, the 95LX lets users input data by typing on a keyboard.
The HP device ships with several built-in applications, including a personal information manager (PIM), a telecom program and Lotus Development Corp.'s 1-2-3 spreadsheet. The 95LX filters incoming data with user-defined headers that route it to the appropriate application.
Macs currently can exchange data with the HP device only through serial-port connections. New wireless connections mean Mac users will be able to employ an application and a pager device to send messages to the 95LX. With the addition of a wireless modem, they will be able to receive messages as well. The parts of the wireless puzzle include:
>Notify! is a $149 Mac application from Ex Machina Inc. of New York that can send data to the 95LX through paging services and pagers. Notify! provides Apple events or HyperCard links to programs on a single Mac (see MacWEEK, Jan. 13). A network version is available for $399.
Ex Machina also plans a gateway between Notify! and CE Software Inc.'s QuickMail. The gateway, tentatively priced at $199 and due early next quarter, will let the 95LX receive electronic mail from a Mac.
Notify! can send messages to a number of pagers, but the HP95 requires a pager with an infrared port, such as Motorola Inc.'s NewsStream.
>NewsStream is due from Motorola of Schaumberg, Ill., this month for $339. The NewsStream pager attaches to the HP95 with HP's $119.95 Mobile Data Link. The link includes a cradle that aligns the infrared ports of the two devices and 95LX software that handles data input and filtering.
NewsStream can store up to 56 messages, each up to 240 characters, and is designed to receive messages from SkyTel Corp.'s SkyStream paging service. Monthly service is available for $49 plus 50 cents per message or $69 a month for unlimited service.
>Mobidem Portable Wireless Modem is due this month from Ericsson GE Mobile Communications Wireless Computing Division of Paramus, N.J. The first release of the $1,795 modem for wireless-packet networks is for IBM PCs and compatibles; a Mac version is due this fall (see MacWEEK, Feb. 3).
Mobidem will give 95LX users in metropolitan areas two-way radio connectivity through the RAM Mobile Data Mobitex network.
Mac users of the HP device said they would welcome its wireless links to the Mac.
"My field research program is five or six miles from my office, and we don't have communications unless we hook up a citizens band radio," said Reed Barker, a research geneticist at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Corvallis, Ore.
Barker, who uses a Mac at the office, said he is interested in receiving E-mail and PIM updates on his 95LX while working in the field.
"As soon as Apple comes up with a Mac that fits in the palm of my hand, I'll buy it," said Harold Bean, vice president in the municipal finance department at New York-based Dean Witter Reynolds Inc.
"When I'm on a plane and want to noodle through a financial problem, the 95LX lets me do most of the outlining in 1-2-3," he said.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Intelligent agents take U.S. bows
By Mitch Ratcliffe and Andrew Gore
Monterey, Calif. - Apple's intelligent agents last week performed an American encore to their Macworld Tokyo debut.
Apple CEO John Sculley demonstrated Reporter, a software agent that can search and filter text documents, and Casper, a voice-driven intelligent assistant that can recognize continuous speech, at the third Technology Entertainment and Design Conference here.
Reporter could be released commercially as early as year-end, sources said; Casper is expected next year.
>News on demand.
The Reporter preview showed how an intelligent agent can automate mundane research. The software searches on-line databases or news services, such as The Associated Press news wire, and retrieves articles related to a user query.
The application allows users to type questions or statements into a dialog box, which Reporter examines to identify keywords it will use in a text search.
During the conference demonstration, a user posed the question, "Is Dan Quayle qualified to be president?" Reporter then searched the United Press International news service for recent newspaper stories related to the vice president, ranking the returned items by relevance to the user's question in a scrollable list of Best Guesses. Clicking on the title of a story in the list brings up a summary of it in a Preview window.
The top-ranked story dealt with Americans' concerns about Quayle's statesmanship in the wake of President Bush's Tokyo stomach flu. Another story, ranked lower, reported a Quayle campaign appearance.
Reporter also will let users create personalized newspapers by configuring agents to search different subjects at intervals and excerpt passages where the desired keywords appear most often.
At least one developer is reportedly at work on a newspaperlike interface that will collect news stories and personal information such as incoming faxes, electronic mail and collaborative documents into a single document.
>Casper speaks volumes.
Casper, Apple's speaker-independent voice-recognition software, demonstrated the ability to handle vague commands from several users.
In January, when Casper was trotted out at the Demo '92 conference in Palm Springs, Calif., the program crashed after only a few commands (see MacWEEK, Feb. 3). Last week, however, the voice-driven agent was able to program a VCR, write checks and schedule meetings. When told to "dial Bob Strong," Casper opened an address-book stack, searched for Apple engineer Bob Strong's name and dialed his telephone number.
Casper also was able to make cognitive leaps, such as correctly changing the date of a VCR recording session when told to "record next Thursday." Casper reportedly listens for between 100 and 300 keywords, which kick it into subsets of its 100,000-word vocabulary, to process vague commands.
The software was demonstrated running on a Quadra 900 with a digital signal processor chip added. But Sculley revealed that Casper will run on 68030-based Macintoshes with voice-input capabilities. Sources said, however, that Casper currently performs very slowly on '030 models.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Claris refutes HyperCard death rumors
By Raines Cohen
Santa Clara, Calif. - Claris Corp. said HyperCard will have not only a colorful future but a long one. The company last week flatly denied widespread rumors that it is planning to sell the product or curtail development.
"We've just completed an ambitious development plan for the next two years and beyond," Claris spokesman Steve Ruddock said. "It covers Version 2.5 and several (decimal) point revisions beyond that, as well as a major revision most likely to be called 3.0, and cross-platform development."
Claris has begun showing HyperCard 2.5, expected this May, to education and business customers. Version 2.5 reportedly adds speed enhancements, color painting and integrated QuickTime support, among other features.
While customers said they are looking forward to the upgrade, many said they feared it would be HyperCard's last. The HyperCard community has been rife with rumors that Claris has no plans for further enhancements other than compatibility updates.
The rumors may have been spurred by a stream of departures from the HyperCard team in the past several months: Bill Duvall, director of HyperCard development; Tom Hammer, manager of stackware and testing; and Mike Holm, HyperCard product line marketing manager. Although more than a dozen Claris employees are still working on HyperCard, the team reportedly is dispirited by the loss of key people.
Since acquiring responsibility for the unique application from Apple a year and a half ago, Claris has had only limited success in marketing it as a development tool. And the company is likely to face reduced HyperCard revenues this year as Apple divisions gradually stop bundling the program with new Macintoshes, according to industry sources. With AppleScript and smarter system software in the pipeline, there could be even less demand for a separate user programming tool.
Claris said it will respond by integrating better support for System 7 features such as publish and subscribe. However, Ruddock said the company will integrate the product with the rest of its family, probably via Apple events.
The future of HyperCard-based products has been uncertain ever since Apple's software subsidiary took over the product in 1990. As a result, third-party developers with stack products are attempting to become less dependent on HyperCard.
For instance, Mitem Corp. of San Jose, Calif., recently announced a version of its host communications application for ACIUS Inc.'s 4th Dimension. "There are applications where HyperCard makes a great deal of sense for our application," said Barry Margerum, president of Mitem.
"If you're looking for just a GUI front end with quick prototyping, then HyperCard is outstanding. Certainly we would be very disappointed if it were no longer supported," Margerum said.
Some users and Claris employees said Claris should jettison the product or return it to Apple, where it started in 1987.
"It's been a disaster from the outset," said a Claris employee who asked not to be named. "For all the screaming evangelists, Claris and Apple haven't decided what to do with it.
"The [John Zeisler] regime lobbied hard to get it but didn't look at the business model. It's been a millstone [around Claris' neck]," the employee said. Zeisler was Claris' vice president of marketing until 1991.
Some users agreed. "As I look over the [HyperCard] landscape, I feel I'm looking at a train wreck in progress," said Danny Goodman, instigator of a recent letter-writing campaign aimed at encouraging Claris to market HyperCard (see MacWEEK, Jan. 20).
"A lot of the letters I've received tell how HyperCard drew users to the Mac. For it to fade away would certainly have a negative psychological impact on people's perceptions of Apple. If it's going to survive, it needs to go back to Apple."
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Cornell students jailed, briefly, on virus
By Henry Norr
Ithaca, N.Y. - It wasn't exactly death row, and it lasted only overnight, but two college students found themselves in Tompkins County Jail here last week, charged with unleashing the latest Mac virus.
David S. Blumenthal and Mark A. Pilgrim, both 19, were arrested on misdemeanor computer-tampering charges related to the release of the MBDF A virus and the Trojan horse program that carried it. Both are sophomores at Cornell University and employees of its information technologies department.
After posting a cash bond of $2,000, the two were released and returned to campus. New York state authorities last week were continuing to investigate the case, and "additional charges are expected to be filed," according to a statement issued by the university.
Federal authorities, however, have decided not to press charges, according to M. Stuart Lynn, Cornell's vice president for information technologies.
The infection, an "implied loader" virus like WDEF, was carried by Tetricycle, Obnoxious Tetris and Ten Tile Puzzle, a trio of games posted Feb. 14 on several on-line software archives in the United States and abroad. Tetricycle, which had a Death Row Software copyright, was a Trojan horse carrying the virus in encrypted form; the other two games were simply infected.
When an infected program is run, MBDF A spreads to the user's System file and applications. It does not directly destroy data but reportedly can cause a variety of problems, including long delays; users who reboot in frustration could find their systems corrupted.
The virus was uncovered when a mathematics professor in Wales who had downloaded the games found that his Claris Corp. applications reported that they had been altered. Claris programs include self-check code designed to alert users in case of infection.
The user reported the problem to John Norstad, author of the freeware Disinfectant program, who in turn alerted other anti-virus developers. Investigation quickly led to the infected games and eventually to Cornell, Blumenthal and Pilgrim.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Antidote developers quick on the update
By Henry Norr
Evanston, Ill. - Anti-virus developers last week rallied quickly to give Mac users the tools to prevent the spread of the newly discovered MBDF A virus.
>Disinfectant.
John Norstad, author of Disinfectant, upgraded the his freeware detection and protection utility to Version 2.6. The new release can find and repair files contaminated by the new virus and disable the Trojan horse that carried it, a game called Tetricycle. Disinfectant, which also includes revised documentation, is available through on-line services and user groups.
>Gatekeeper.
Chris Johnson updated his free Gatekeeper utility to Version 1.2.4. The main program, configured through a control panel, now protects against infection by the new virus; Gatekeeper Aid, a companion extension, kills it on contact. The new releases also resolve some compatibility issues, including problems with Apple's System 7 Tune-Up.
>SAM.
Symantec Corp. released a new virus-definitions file that enables Version 3.0 of Symantec Anti-Virus for Macintosh (SAM) to detect MBDF A and repair infected files.
The file, which replaces the definitions file in the user's System folder, can be downloaded from the company's own bulletin board or its forums on on-line services.
A search string that users can simply type into the SAM VirusClinic application to provide detection but not repair is also available on-line and through the Symantec virus newsline.
>Virex.
Microcom Inc., which just last month shipped Version 3.5.2 of its Virex package, last week replaced it with Version 3.6 to cope with the new virus. The update will be shipped to customers enrolled in the company's Annual Subscription Service and is available to other Virex owners for $15.
>Rival.
Microseeds Publishing Inc. released a "vaccine" file that enables its utility to block MBDF A and Tetricycle. The file is available through on-line services and the company's bulletin board; customers participating in the Rival Vaccine Express program will receive it automatically. The program was updated to Version 1.1.9 last month to resolve a problem with the Mac Quadras.
>Anti-Toxin.
Mainstay, publisher of Anti-Toxin 2.0, said it is considering an update to its utility, but details have not been set.
>VirusDetective.
Shulman Software Co. previously updated its shareware VirusDetective to Version 5.0.2 (see MacWEEK, Feb. 24).
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Hayes to extend LANstep connectivity
Mac client, E-mail gateway readied
By Louise Fickel
Norcross, Ga. - Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. this year will try to broaden the appeal of its LANstep network operating system with added Macintosh and TCP/IP connectivity, as well as electronic-mail gateways to Novell Inc.'s mail services.
LANstep currently provides peer-to-peer network capabilities to DOS and Windows clients, which the company has promoted as a small-office network solution. But Hayes now touts LANstep as a foundation for building wide-area networks.
>LANstep Mac Connection, due this fall, will allow Macs to become peers on the Hayes network. Users will have access to LANstep's shared file and printer services via the Chooser, according to Hayes. The Mac client software reportedly will cost less than $595.
Because of Hayes' focus on telecommunications hardware, such as modems and ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) terminal adapters, LANstep provides the ability to easily share these devices. This is one key to Hayes' WAN strategy; the other is increased E-mail connectivity.
>LANstep Mail Gateway 1.1, a new E-mail gateway due this month, will help LANstep communicate with remote Novell and AppleTalk networks. Priced at $395, it will let LANstep users exchange E-mail with users of any Novell Message Handling Service (MHS)-compliant E-mail system, such as Da Vinci Systems Corp.'s eMail.
Third-party gateways from Cambridge, Mass.-based Lotus Development Corp. and StarNine Technologies Inc. of Berkeley, Calif., will work with Gateway 1.1 to extend LANstep's reach even further, to cc:Mail and Microsoft Mail for the Macintosh.
>LANstep 2.0, due this month, will add NetWare and TCP/IP gateways, which will allow LANstep clients to log onto third- party file and database servers.
Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. is at 5835 Peachtree Corners E., Norcross, Ga. 30092. Phone (404) 441-1617; fax (404) 441-1213.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Review: Quark XPress embraces middle age
Upgrade brings greater stability
By Kathleen Tinkel
The bratty child of desktop publishing is growing up. With QuarkXPress 3.1, the System 7-savvy upgrade to XPress, Quark Inc. has produced a tauter, more responsive program and made it easier for users to be more efficient and productive than with any previous version. This isn't to say that the enhancements are trivial: XPress is perhaps most powerful as a production tool, and this new version of XPress makes many tasks faster, more accurate or easier to understand. XPress 3.1 also seems much more stable than past versions; we had no crashes with either the pre-release or the release version of XPress 3.1.
>Bye-bye Data.
The most dramatic change to the program is that there is no longer an XPress Data file. Kerning and tracking tables, hyphenation exceptions, frames, and some other preferences are stored within each document and in a new type of file called XPress Preferences. This obviates the need to include a supplemental file such as XPress Data when sending most jobs to the service bureau.
There is one exception, however - changes to settings in the Application Preferences dialog, including changes to the Trap settings, are recorded only in the application, not in the document; this could be a pitfall for the unwary.
>Significant improvements.
Trapping has been improved with XPress 3.1. Users can trap individual elements, choosing explicitly (through menu items) whether they should spread or be choked by the background. The new Trap Information palette simplifies the process of applying trapping specs, aided by a balloon-help function (available even with System 6) that explains some of the critical relationships.
There's also an interesting new control (in the Edit Color dialog) that allows a user to specify a screen value set - angle, frequency, dot shape - for printing up to four spot colors. (Using this function is counterintuitive, and it is documented only in the release notes that come with the XPress 3.1 upgrade disks.) By choosing a CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) color, you assign that color's default screen values to the spot color in question. The defaults are preset to the conventional values - cyan is 105 degrees; magenta, 75 degrees; yellow, 90 degrees; and black, 45 degrees - but users of custom screen angles may override them.
XPress now will update the list of open and available fonts dynamically and safely when you open font files with a program such as Fifth Generation Systems Inc.'s Suitcase. This was a problem with Version 3.0.
The Preview function in the Get Picture dialog now allows you to see miniatures of TIFF and RIFF files before placing them in the document. The preview can be halted instantly by unchecking the preview button, a great convenience when working with many or very complex bit-mapped illustrations.
>Print prep enhancements.
XPress 3.1 has a new Printing Status window, activated by pressing Shift as you click on Print in the Print dialog. The window provides information about the page, plate, tile and pictures as they print or are spooled. This is a useful debugging tool for solving printing problems, allowing you to see where XPress stops a print job.
There are a couple of useful changes in the Print dialog: A user can choose to include TIFF images for proofing purposes, or just the OPI (Open Prepress Interface) comments for output to most OPI pre-press systems. You also can choose to suppress printing of Encapsulated PostScript images; in this case, OPI comments will be added to the file for EPS images as well, although only a very few OPI systems can use them.
A new Calibrated Output button in the Print dialog allows a user to turn off the XPress calibration settings, which are of limited usefulness to most users, who lack access to a calibrated output device. Most laser printers seem to produce better screened images with the Calibrated Output button off.
>Practical improvements.
It's now possible to display a baseline grid, and users have new control over color of the grid and other guides, and over the width of the pasteboard. Scrolling has also been fine-tuned; users now can choose to see the contents of boxes while dragging, rotating, resizing or cropping, and the scrolling speed can be customized. There are three new palettes for applying trap information, colors and style sheets.
There are three useful new tab functions: a right indent tab; new decimal and comma tabs designed to ease the setting of columns of figures, even those with parentheses; and an Align On tab that lets you define any character as the alignment point for a tab stop.
Text and typography. XPress' typography, like that of its competitors on the desktop, lags well behind the standards set by dedicated typesetting systems. Now that the program is reaching maturity, it would be nice to see improvement. For example, XPress should give the user more control over flush left (ragged) text, offer hung punctuation and use more- flexible style sheets. It is altogether astounding to us that the program still lacks a "smart quotes" feature.
XPress should also join the mainstream, typographically speaking. It has always defined the em as the width of two zeros in the font being used. This is different from the industry-standard definition, which is the width of the type size in points (the standard em in any 10-point type is 10 points wide; in XPress it could vary from about 10 to nearly 20 points). Quark has included a small utility called the Alternate Em Space to allow users to choose the industry-standard em. It's included in the Freebies package, but it should become the standard for XPress, not an option.
The upgrade includes several useful enhancements to the way XPress handles type, including a new ligatures function: The program will automatically replace occurrences of "fi" and "fl" with a font's built-in ligatures, and it will automatically restore the single characters if tracking or range kerning widens adjoining letter spacing beyond a user-specified range. This clever feature also permits ligatures to hyphenate properly and to work with a spelling checker.
The flex space now can be user-defined, as a percentage of the en space.
>Future enhancements.
Quark says it will continue to enhance XPress through XTensions, many of them distributed without cost via on-line networks. The first of these, the Freebies package, includes the FeaturesPlus, Net-work Connection and Calibration XTensions, and it's available now. Besides the alternate em space, other features of the FeaturesPlus package include utilities to create fractions and prices, remove manual kerning from a selected range of text, and track word spacing. Future offerings will include an extension for creating instances of Multiple Master fonts.
>Conclusions.
Without any doubt, XPress 3.1 is a formidable program. It needs further refinement more than major new features, and in particular, there's room for improvement in the way users interact with XPress. For example, trapping, made much clearer in 3.1, needs to be made still easier to understand and use. XPress needs a better way of working with text - the fast non-WYSIWYG text editors that are being built into Quark's forthcoming CopyDesk should also be part of XPress.
The display needs to be cleaned up. The palettes that now litter the screen - especially if you adopt several XTensions - need to be ordered. The way EM Software Inc.'s XStyle XTension (see MacWEEK, Oct. 22, 1991) can be called forth with a keystroke when needed, only to disappear at once, is a good model that Quark should consider for all the palettes.
XPress Tags is an extremely powerful feature but is still too difficult to understand; it should be further documented (in fact, it deserves its own small manual). The style sheets need to be made more flexible and should incorporate all the functions of Microsoft Word's styles, including Word's Next Style function.
With all that said, XPress clearly deserves its place as the technology leader in the page-layout arena. Although the program doesn't always solve every problem perfectly or gracefully, it is the most practical program for producing a wide variety of complex color documents of moderate size from the desktop. Its overall mastery of layout and output makes it a tough program for competitors to beat.
Score Card: QuarkXPress 3.1
Overall value Very good
Performance Very good
Features Excellent
Ease of use Very good
Documentation/support Very good
List price $895*
*Upgrades are free to anyone who bought XPress 3.0 after March 4, 1991, or who was covered by an extended service contract at that time. Others pay from $75 to $175 depending on version.
>On Balance
System 7-savvy XPress 3.1 is both mature and stable, with myriad enhancements that affect the way users work with the software as well as output quality. The problematic XPress Data file is gone, and the process of trapping has been extended slightly and simplified greatly. There are new palettes for applying colors, style sheets and trapping specs. With this upgrade, Quark has solidified its position as the foremost desktop pre-press tool. Now it mostly needs subtle enhancements to the way it gets the job done.
System 7 compatibility
Balloon help Yes
TrueType Yes
Publish and subscribe* Yes
Apple events Yes
32-bit addressing** Yes
*No publish capabilities; XPress can subscribe only to PICT files.
**According to vendor.
Quark Inc. is at 300 S. Jackson, Suite 100, Denver, Colo. 80209. Phone (303) 934-2211; fax (303) 377-6327.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Apple channel changes official
By Jon Swartz
Campbell, Calif. - Conceding there are almost no small Mac value-added resellers, Apple USA last week launched a new VAR strategy.
"We do not have a presence in the small VAR market," admitted Cliff Jenks, vice president of Apple USA channel development. "We think this program, over time, will change that."
As expected, Apple USA authorized three leading distributors to sell the entire Apple product line (see MacWEEK, Feb. 24).
>The company signed agreements with Merisel Inc. of El Segundo, Calif.; Ingram Micro D Inc. of Santa Ana, Calif.; and Tech Data Corp. of Clearwater, Fla., to supply Macs to small- and medium-volume VARs that specialize in vertical markets such as desktop publishing and accounting. The agreements go into effect this spring.
Apple is counting on all three distributors to recruit vertical- market VARs, most of which offer MS-DOS solutions. The distributors are the first organizations outside Apple authorized to recruit VARs, although Apple USA will retain final authorization approval.
Apple USA President Bob Puette said Apple hopes to enlist 1,000 to 3,000 VARs under the program. The company currently has fewer than 150 VARs authorized to resell Mac hardware.
"It's terrific for users," said Pieter Hartsook, editor of The Hartsook Letter, a Mac market report published in Alameda, Calif. "Ingram Micro D, for example, could put together a bundle of Claris software and Macs.
"
>Apple also launched the Apple Exchange Program, which lets U.S. businesses and institutions trade in selected Mac and MS-DOS computers and laser printers when purchasing or leasing new Apple equipment. Apple refused to provide pricing details, however.
The plan is expected to bolster sales of high-end Macs at sites that still use Mac Pluses and SEs.
>Apple signed CompuAdd Computer Corp., a rapidly growing chain of 125 retail stores in 37 states, as its largest reseller. Until now, the Austin, Texas-based company had sold only IBM PCs and compatibles and Sun SPARCstations.
While analysts praised Apple's channel moves, most said the changes came a year late. They also questioned the need for three distributors instead of one for the VAR program.
"It might spark a huge war among distributors for discount prices," said Doug Kass, personal-computer analyst at Dataquest Inc. of San Jose, Calif. "Apple's margins won't be hurt. But it may force one or two distributors out of the mix [by the end of 1992].
"The last thing the industry needs is price squabbling among distributors," he said.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
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Knife: The price of portable power
If you live in a state that's on the presidential primary roster, you probably think that every time the phone rings it's a pollster asking you what you think of the president's economic plan or your views on the relevance or lack thereof of military service in time of war to the ability to lead in the post-Cold War age. But that isn't always the case.
Sometimes the call is from one of Apple's hired polling outfits doing market research about future products. Last week, for example, these phone-based intruders were sampling reactions to various names for the IIci and IIsi replacement, described by the Knife last week.
Based on these interviews, Apple still has a long way to go before it comes up with a name that doesn't evoke outright scoffing. But this does imply that Apple is toying with the idea of giving future products names instead of just scooping up whatever rises to the top of the alpha-numeric soup bowl.
The company's apparent decision to push the dockable PowerBook project further down on the laptop to-do list has so far generated remarkably little wailing and gnashing of teeth. That's as good an indication as any that the market studies indicating nearly invisible demand for such a product were right on the money.
On the other hand, there's a great deal of interest in the new color PowerBook. Sources say the specifications are for a 33-MHz 68040. Those familiar with such things know that high-speed '040 chips usually sport a heat sink high enough to poke a hole in the case of a PowerBook. To get around this, the color PowerBook CPU heat-sink design will be a flat radial affair, sort of like a tiny but powerful cow chip.
>The old-fashioned way.
Then there's the little matter of supplying power to a 10-inch color active-matrix backlit screen. Since a battery pack up to this task would be about the size of a small calf or the original Mac Portable, Apple will probably elect to forgo battery power altogether in favor of the old-fashioned wall-socket technology that has served it so well.
Even with the extra space freed up on the inside of the color PowerBook by the absence of a battery, sources say there still won't be a video-out port on the new machine. Apple seems to think that with a video-out on a color '040 Mac, buyers would have very little incentive to shell out for a separate desktop Mac.
His master's voice. Depending on whom you talk to, Apple's voice technology is either too good to be true or it's not. A personal demonstration convinced the Knife that Casper, as it is called, does indeed obey verbal commands.
Pen technology, however, is another matter completely. Sources tell the Knife that Apple's pen software still has a long way to go. Despite this, Apple is telling people that Rosetta, as the project is known, is scheduled to ship as a System 7 extension by year-end. This has led some of the more skeptical souls interested in this issue to point out that Apple can meet this self-imposed deadline only by acquiring the technology elsewhere.
>SCSI management.
As many Quadra 900 users will tell you, the wait for Apple's new and improved SCSI Manager software is getting frustrating. Sure, the old manager has already been patched to enable both of the tower's SCSI buses, but the system's still limited to a total of seven SCSI devices rather than the 14 that ought to be available. According to the Knife's sources, the wait ain't over yet. Three teams at Apple have been told that they are the one working on the project, but the Knife is convinced that we won't see a release until the end of the year at best.
>The QuickTime wait.
Director 3.1, which will include QuickTime support, is scheduled to ship next quarter. Other new features include the ability to make QuickTime movies into cast members, lay out the movie in the score window and animate it, and make QuickTime movies into buttons. And the deal for MacroMind-Paracomp to acquire PixelPaint from SuperMac Technology may be slow in coming, but the Knife hears that a deal is close.
As any owner will tell you, it's the MacWEEK mug experience that is truly unforgettable. The rest is merely a historical trespass. If you've got something the Knife won't want to forget, he'll make sure you're remembered at mug time. Reach him at (415) 243-3500, fax (415) 243-3650, MCI (MactheKnife), AppleLink (MacWEEK) and CompuServe/ZiffNet/Mac.
(MacWEEK, March 2, 1992) (c) Copyright 1992 Coastal Associates, L.P. All rights reserved. This material may not be reproduced in any form without permission.
