Newsbytes - Internationa…ews 1983 May to 1994 June/Newsbytes - International Computing Industry News 1994 Edition - May 1983 - June 1994 - Wayzata Technologies (5045) (1994).iso/pc/text/mac_text/1989/nb890411.302

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(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00001)

SONY DRIVES INSIDE MACINTOSH SE/30S
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- A 40 megabyte hard
disk drive made by Sony Corporation has been found inside an Apple
Macintosh SE/30, marking the first time a Sony drive has been
found inside an Apple computer, so says Quantum Corporation's
Joseph Rodgers, vice president for finance. Quantum and Seagate
Technologies currently are known to supply hard disk drives to
Apple, but Sony has no announced contract with the Cupertino,
California firm, nor has it announced the availability of disk
drives either to computer firms or the retail market. Neither
Sony, Seagate, nor Apple would confirm or deny the report.

California Technology Stock Letter sparked interest in the possible
Sony contract with Apple by reporting in a March, 1989 issue that
Apple was "slithering away from Seagate as a supplier." "Apple is
palavering with Sony and saying unkind words about Seagate's uneven
product quality." The newsletter put it bluntly, "Word is they've
lost the Apple contract to Quantum." In a later statement, Michael
Murphy, the author of the newsletter, said, "Sony disk drives started
appearing in production Macintoshes at the beginning of February."

Jim Porter, editor of Disk/Trend, told Newsbytes he could not
confirm the story, but says Sony is expected to enter the disk
drive business, and if this report is true, Apple Computer is
Sony's "first real product and its first real customer."

Meanwhile, Quantum's Rodgers tells Newsbytes, "One of our employees
opened two SE/30s and both had Sony 40 megabyte hard drives." He says
he personally saw them and expected as much. "We've known that Sony's hard
drive was being evaluated by Apple. So it's not really a surprise.S
Quantum Corporation is supplying a huge portion of Apple's drive
needs, reflected in the most recent financial statements. The
Milpitas, California firm will report revenues of $75 million in
the quarter ending March, up from $51 million in the previous
quarter.

Newsbytes called several computer dealers and none said they'd
found Sony drives inside Macintosh computers, so the units with
the Sony drives may be fresh off the assembly line.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Quantum, 408-432-1100)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00002)

APPLE INTRODUCES VIDEO CARD FOR APPLE II
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Hoping to dispel
rumors that the Apple II series computers are to be discontinued,
Apple has introduced a video overlay card which will allow the
8-bit machine to superimpose computer graphics over video images
from an external source. The card employs genlock circuitry to
synchronize Apple II timing to external video timing so both
images can appear simultaneously on a single screen. The result
is broadcast-quality, or NTSC [National Television Systems Committee]
output.

The $549 card is for the Apple IIe with 128K RAM [random access
memory] and enhanced main logic board revision B or higher, and
on the Apple IIGS with 512K of RAM and ROM [read-only memory]
version 01 or higher.

The card is designed mainly for use in elementary and high schools
and homes, which have the largest installed base of Apple IIs
and video equipment.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Janet Male, Regis McKenna,
415-494-2030)


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

KOALA TECHNOLOGIES IS BACK
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Convinced the
name Koala means quality, Pentron has reestablished the firm's
original name, Koala Technologies, and announced it is shipping
MacVision Version 2.0, as well as the newest incarnation of
the firm's popular Koala Pad.

Douglas Kenny, president and chief executive officer of Koala,
which is a division of PTI Industries, is credited with having
restored Koala's financial health after two disastrous
quarters in 1987. "The name Koala," he says in a prepared
statement, "has a well-deserved reputation for ingenuity
and quality in the microcomputer industry. We plan to
leverage that reputation as we move into the computer components
sector." He said his firm is eyeing several component
manufacturing firms as possible takeover targets.

MacVision 2.0 allows Macintoshes users to capture and manipulate
video-recorded images on the computer and print out high-
resolution reproductions. The product is $400 or $80 for
owners of Version 1.4.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Stephen Russo, Koala,
408-432-9151)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00004)

GUY KAWASAKI BOOK ON APPLE
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Coming this
summer to a bookstore near you -- "The Macintosh Way." This is
former Apple guru and software evangelist Guy Kawasaki's version
of the inside story at Apple Computer. Scott, Foresman and
Company will publish the book in July. Kawasaki is telling the
media that it will be a how-to book on starting a high
technology company the right way.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Kawasaki at Acius, 415-408-
252-4444)


(ADVANCE)(APPLE)(SFO)(00005)

NEW NUPAINT INTRODUCED AT WASHINGTON D.C. MACWORLD
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 26 (NB) -- NuPaint Version 1.04
is to be introduced at the Washington, D.C. MacWorld Exposition.
The monochrome paint program adds several new features, including
support for color monitors, a resizeable eraser, and the ability
to use NuPaint's innovative Masking Tape feature with additional
tools. The product offers shadowing, scrollable pattern palette,
mixing bowl and masking tape functions.

"NuPaint incorporates many features once found only in high-end
computer-aided design programs," boasts Gary Wagner, president
of NuEquation, Inc., the makers of NuPaint.

The program costs $140 but will be available at a special price
at the MacWorld show.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Susie Hegg, NuEquation, 214-
699-7747)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(ATL)(00006)

MACROMIND SHIPS MACROMIND DIRECTOR ON ITS WAY WEST
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- In what may be its
last public act before the company moves to San Francisco,
MacroMind announced its newest multimedia software, MacroMind
Director, is now available through computer dealers and software
resellers. Designed for professional users, MacroMind Director
runs on the Apple Macintosh and contains the richest set of tools
available for combining text, graphics, animation, audio and
video images.

The product can be used to create high-impact multimedia
presentations, producing desktop video productions and
storyboards, visualizing complex or abstract scientific and
engineering concepts and interactive learning in higher education
and corporate training. "MacroMind Director gives you the power
of an entire multimedia production department on your desktop,"
said Marc Canter, MacroMind chairman and founder. The new product
has a suggested list price of $695.

In addition to offering upward compatibility with files created
for its older VideoWorks II files, MacroMind Director adds more
than 100 new features including automatic animation, titling and
other text effects, a powerful color paint program, advanced
color palette control, enhanced sound and music features such as
MIDI controls and an improved user interface with pop-up menus
and online help.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Leigh Johnson, Regis
McKenna Inc., 415-354-4471)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(BRU)(00007)

APPLE MACINTOSH II HEADS WEST GERMAN BEST-SELLER LIST
MUNICH, WEST GERMANY, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- The Apple Macintosh II
seems to be West Germany's favourite system, according to Chip
Magazine. Readers of the magazine voted the Mac II as their
favourite machine in the April edition.

Following on from Apple in number two slot is the Schneider
PC, followed by the Commodore PC-10, Amstrad PC-1640, Tandon PCA
series, Apple IIgs, Commodore Amiga 2000, Atari's PC-3, Schneider
Tower AT and the Compaq Deskpro 286.

On the home computer front, Commodore scored first and second
places with, respectively, the perennial C64, closely followed by
the Amiga 500. In third position came Amstrad with its tape-based
CPC-464. Successive place were filled by the Atari 1040ST,
Commodore's PC-1, Schneider's Euro PC1, Atari's 520ST-FM and the
Commodore 128D.

(Peter Vekinis/19890407)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00008)

CASE DEVELOPER, DATABASE VENDOR ANNOUNCE DEAL
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Deft Inc., a
developer of computer-aided software engineering [CASE] tools for
the Macintosh based here, has announced a joint development and
marketing agreement with Sybase Inc., a database developer in
Emeryville, California, U.S.A. Eric Goldman, president of Deft,
said the two firms will work together to integrate Deft's CASE
software, also called Deft, with the Sybase relational database
management system. The first step will come with Version 4 of
Deft, due for release to beta testers in June or July. This
version will have facilities to analyze and design -- but not
generate -- Sybase applications. The ability to generate Sybase
code will come "very early in 1990," Goldman said.

The marketing part of the deal provides for Sybase marketing
staff to call in Deft when they identify a need for CASE tools.
The two companies have already worked together in some accounts,
Goldman said.

Deft as a product has existed since December, 1985, but the
company came into being in February of last year. Deft Inc. was
spun off from the custom software arm of TSB International, also
of Toronto, which developed Deft.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Eric Goldman, Deft, 416-
249-2246)


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

TANDON FIRES WORKERS
MOORPARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Tandon Corp.
[NASDAQ:TCOR] has fired a significant portion of its domestic
workforce. Approximately 130 employees at all levels and areas of
the company's U. S. operations were cut. The resizing brings
Tandon's U. S. head count to approximately 520. The move is
being taken to cut costs "so the company can function more
cost effectively in an increasingly competitive market,"
according to a company statement.

(Wayne Yacco & Wendy Woods/198904/Press Contact: Tandon, Ranjit
Sitlani, 805-523-0340)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00002)

DIGITAL RESEARCH EXPANDING
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- Digital Research,
Inc., is apparently seeing a resurgence and has opened four
additional sales offices in New York City, Washington, D. C.,
Chicago and Dallas. Sales managers for the new offices can be
reached by a toll-free telephone number: 800-443-4200.

Now known more for its GEM presentation and publication software,
the company at one time dominated the category of operating-system
software for microcomputers with its CP/M. However, Digital has
suffered a dramatic decline in that market for several years since
the introduction of Microsoft DOS. The company has also had to
compensate for its rejection of the extremely successful Ventura
Publisher title marketed, instead, by Xerox.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: Eliska Amyx, 408-646-6001)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00003)

ATARI SHUTS DOWN FEDERATED STORES
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Preparing for
the sale of its Federated chain of electronics stores, Atari
Corporation has laid off 400 people and closed 15 of the chain's
43 stores. Three will be closed in Texas, four in Arizona and
eight in California. Additionally, Atari says it is consolidating
the firm's headquarters from Dallas to Sunnyvale.

The Federated chain of stores lost $106.3 million for the
fourth quarter ending December 31, and has dragged down Atari's
otherwise stellar earnings.

(Wendy Woods/19890407)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00004)

HEWLETT PACKARD LAUNCHED ADVERTISING BLITZ
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Hewlett Packard
has unleashed a massive advertising campaign aimed at convincing
America that its products constitute the "better way." The
estimated $50 million campaign, designed to promote all Hewlett
Packard products, started Thursday with a Wall Street Journal
ad touting an HP workstation as a solution to an overwhelmed
stock broker's data management problems. The ads will feature
the slogan "There is a better way," with before and after
scenarios. HP's previous slogan, "We never stop asking what if..."
has been officially dumped.

(Wendy Woods/19890407)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00005)

DEST LAYS OFF 28 PERCENT OF WORKFORCE
MILPITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Plagued by
substantial losses and attempting to work out an agreement with
creditors, Dest Corporation has laid off 25 workers, 28
percent of the workforce, and says it expects to report
another substantial loss for the fourth quarter and the
fiscal year ending March 31.

Dest, maker of scanners, is actively seeking a partner in
order to stage a comeback.

(Wendy Woods/19890407)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00006)

VIDEO SEVEN AND G-2 MERGE
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Video Seven and G-2
Corporation, whose majority owner is LSI Logic, have tied the knot and
become one, a move designed to combine chip and board technology for
more powerful computer graphics. Video Seven makes color graphics
boards for IBM PCs and compatibles, and had been the largest
customer of G-2, which makes integrated chip sets used in embedded
applications. The new firm is called Headland Technology.

"By driving the development of new system and graphics solutions,
Headland Technology will be able to accelerate the pace of
technological change," said Wilfred Corrigan, chairman of
LSI Logic. The new firm will serve the laptop and desktop
computer markets by providing system and graphics technology at
the chip and board level to original equipment manufacturers and
resellers. Based in Fremont, Headland Technology will employ more
than 200 people. The combined 1988 sales of the two firms were
$69 million.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Martha Flock, Video Seven, 415-
683-6221)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(BOS)(00007)

DEC ANNOUNCES $3.2 MILLION SALE TO VALID LOGIC SYSTEMS
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- Digital
Equipment Corp. has made a $3.2 million sale of its DECstation 3100
and VAXstation 3100 workstations to Valid Logic Systems. The
workstations will be used for new software product development,
customer beta-site testing and sales support.

Valid Logic Systems is part of Digital's Systems Cooperate Marketing
Program, in which both companies work closely together to market
electronic design automation products based on DEC systems. "This
order underscores the significant which leading electronics
applications vendors place in our RISC [reduced instruction set
computer] platform," said Don McInnis, vice president of DEC's
Engineering System Group.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Richard Goldberg, DEC, 508-467-
6780)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(BOS)(00008)

WANG CUTS ALMOST THREE PERCENT OF WORKFORCE
LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- Wang
Laboratories has reduced its workforce by 880 employees, or 2.8
percent. The company, which has been beset with financial and business
woes, has made the reduction through layoffs and attrition, and will
continue a hiring freeze indefinitely.

Profits has taken a dive over the last two years, from $34 million for
the quarter ending Dec. 31, 1987, to just $1 million for the quarter
ending Dec. 31 1988.

(Jon Pepper/19890406)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00009)

TOSHIBA EXPANSION
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Toshiba
America, Inc./Industrial Electronics Business Sector [TAI/IEBS] has
just completed the addition of 153,000 square feet of manufacturing,
office and warehousing facilities to its Irvine headquarters. The
space will expand its local manufacturing of office automation
products beginning with the BD3810 compact desktop copier.

Initially, 1,000 copiers will be produced monthly, with production
expected to double within six months. Other models will eventually
be produced at the facility. Within two year, production is
expected to reach 8,000 units per month, creating 150 additional
jobs.

From a start-up of 5,000 laptop computers a month two years ago,
Toshiba America's monthly production in Irvine has grown to 10,000
laptops, 3,300 key telephone and PBX systems and 12,000 cellular
mobile telephones.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Berkhemer Kline Golin/Harris, Los
Angeles, Linda G. Dozier, Scott Heath, 213-620-5711)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00010)

KENFIL ADDS LEXCEL TO LINE
VAN NUYS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Kenfil Distribution
and Lexcel Systems, Inc., have entered into an agreement for the
distribution of Lexcel titles in the legal, sales and educational
markets.

The line includes PI Master and Work Comp Master, two prelitigation
case-management programs for personal injury and workman's
compensation attorneys. Each program lists for $1995, single user,
or $2995, network ready.

Datacal Plus is a sales and marketing package for managing business
contacts and communications. Features include call tracking,
follow-up, mailmerge, and unlimited comments for each contact. The
single-user version is $295, network is $495.

Showboat is a $99 demonstration and tutorial system which is not
dependent on graphical display environments. Screens can be
captured from text-based applications such as word processors,
databases and spreadsheets.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: 818-785-1181)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00011)

TRACE INSTRUMENTS FORMS ASIAN DIVISION
CANOGA PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- Trace Instruments
has formed a new division based in Taipei, Taiwan, to service the
Asian market. The staff of five management and technical personnel
oversee sales efforts of five representatives--in Hong Kong, Japan,
South Korea, Taiwan, Philippines, Singapore and Mainland China--with
a total of nine offices. The division also has to service all Trace
bare board test system products and provide training for the reps.
Asian markets represent about 20 percent of annual Trace sales.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Trace Instruments, George
Hroundas, 818-341-5593 or Darryl Lloyd, Kelly Lloyd, 213-877-8775)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00012)

KENFIL EXPANDS LINE WITH NEW RECREATIONAL TITLES
VAN NUYS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- Kenfil Distribution
has added 11 new titles to it line for a total of 250 recreational
programs. The new acquisitions include software from Mindscape and
Broderbund for both the Apple Macintosh and the IBM PC and
compatibles.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Marilyn Braunstein, 818-785-1181)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00013)

SPECIAL-ORDER SERVICE OFFERED TO DEALERS
CHATSWORTH, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- SoftKat is
offering a special-order service to dealers which allows them to
order products that are not kept in the distributor's inventory.
The service, which SoftKat claims is the first of its kind, applies
to the products of SoftKat vendors that are not ordinarily stocked.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: 818-700-9000)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(ATL)(00014)

WILLIAMS FINISHES ACQUIRING LIGHTNET
TULSA, OKLAHOMA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Williams
Telecommunications has finished the acquisition of Lightnet, adding 4,500
miles of wire to the capacity of its fiber optic network, bringing total
mileage up to 11,000. Williams' is mainly run by an old oil and gas
pipeline firm, and the businesses are very similar. The capital cost
of the lines are amortized, and leases on the capacity are sold
to all of the major alternate long-distance companies as well as
businesses which use phone lines for moving everything from data
through modems to sales presentations on digitized video.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact:  Carolyn Martindale,
918-588-2075, for Williams Telecommunications)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(ATL)(00015)

MISSISSIPPI'S SUNRIVER MOVING TO AUSTIN, TEXAS
JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- This was a sad
day in Jackson, a town without much high-tech to speak of. Its
first high-tech start-up of note, SunRiver Corp., makers of
workstation systems linked via fiber optic cables, is moving to
Austin, Texas at the behest of its venture capitalists. A $5
million investment from a group headed by Sevin Rosen Bayless of
Dallas, Texas, prompted the move, as founder Bill Long makes way
for new chairman Sam K. Smith, who has been incubating start-ups
at Sevin since 1984, and cut his teeth with Texas Instruments.

Long, who will remain with the company, had this final cut in the
press release sent on the move. "The funding and relocation to
Austin places us in a wealth of technical talent."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Jane Bator, CAM Group,
404-925-7643)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00016)

TATEISHI TO TIE UP WITH IBM JAPAN ON SIGMA WS
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- Omron Tateishi Electronics and
IBM Japan will cooperate in the Software Industrialized Generator
and Maintenance Aids [SIGMA] workstation business. The SIGMA
project, led by the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and
Industry, aims to increase the productivity of software
engineers.

IBM Japan, expecting SIGMA workstations will be widely accepted
by multivendor users and software houses, plans to adapt its
PS/55 Model 5570 workstation to run Tateishi's SIGMA operating
system and application software by the end of September.
Tateishi, expecting IBM Japan's support for SIGMA to boost demand
for Tateishi's products, has decided to transplant its SIGMA
technology to the IBM product. IBM Japan expects to sell the
SIGMA workstation by the end of this year, but has not announced
its price.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406/Press Contact: Omron Tateishi
Electronics, 075-463-1161; IBM Japan, 03-586-1111)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00017)

IBM JAPAN SETS EARNINGS RECORD IN FISCAL '88
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- IBM Japan's sales earnings hit
a record high in fiscal 1988. The company's financial statement
shows total sales revenue up 12 percent over the previous year to
1,187.847 billion yen or $8.8 billion. Exports grew 10.1 percent
to 349.32 billion yen or $2.59 billion. Also, IBM Japan's current
profit of 202.977 billion yen or $1.5 billion was up 36.1 percent
over fiscal 1987, according to the statement.

These figures reflect an increase in product shipments. For
instance, IBM shipped 20 percent more general-purpose mainframes
and more than 30 percent more personal computers in 1988 than in
the previous fiscal year. The Japanese version of the Personal
System/2, the PS/55, seems to have been accepted in the Japanese
market. IBM's minicomputers also showed remarkable growth,
doubling last year's sales.

IBM Japan hired 500 new employees in the middle of last year and
is adding 2,000 new graduates this month. The company says it
will add another few hundred employees this year to provide
satisfactory service for its users.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00018)

BORLAND SETS UP JAPANESE OFFICE
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Borland International has
established Borland Japan, under joint management with
MicroSoftware Associates [MSA], Borland's sales agent in Japan.
The Japanese arm of Borland started operation at the beginning of
April. Junichi Okada, president of MSA, and Hiroshi Oki, director
of MSA, are president and vice-president of Borland Japan
respectively.

"Japan has a large and growing software market, particularly in
the area of programming languages," said Philippe Kahn, president
and chief executive officer of Borland International, at a Tokyo
press conference. "Turbo C is the best-selling C Compiler in
Japan, and we feel there is great potential for our other Turbo
language products as well as our Professional Business Series."

Borland Japan will translate its parent company's software into
Japanese, and MSA will market the products here. Borland Japan
has already released a Japanese version of Turbo Assembler and
Debugger for the NEC PC-9800 series, priced at 39,800 yen or
$300.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00019)

APRICOT SCORES MAJOR SCANDINAVIAN CONTRACT WORTH UKP 500,000
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Apricot Financial Systems [AFS],
the London-based financial services division of Apricot
Computers, has landed a contract worth UKP 500,000 with Plus
Forsikring of Scandinavia. Terms of the deal call for AFS to
supply its Adataco insurance administration system to Plus
Forsikring, a subsidiary of UNI, one of Norway's largest
insurance companies.

Commenting on the contract, Paul Foll, managing director of AFS,
said: "This is a real breakthrough for us in terms of
establishing Adatco within the European market. It is already
extremely successful in the U.K., but this order highlights the
flexibility and appeal of the system to a wider audience."

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press Contact - AFS - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00020)

SEMI-TECH WINS SSMC, PLANS TO REINSTATE SINGER NAME
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- The Singer Personal
Computer took a large step closer to reality this week.
International Semi-Tech Microelectronics, a Canadian firm with
extensive operations in the Far East, has acquired SSMC Inc. of
Delaware, formerly the Singer Sewing Machine Company. Semi-Tech
makes personal computers, and its subsidiary STM Systems is
Canada's largest computer service bureau. James Ting, president
of Semi-Tech, has said he wants to reinstate SSMC's old name. To
do that he will need the agreement of Singer Co., which owns the
rights to the name. It is believed that Ting wants to put the
Singer name on his company's personal computers. The other
attraction of SSMC was its extensive distribution network.

Semi-Tech said more than seven million shares of SSMC -- some 96
percent of the outstanding stock -- were tendered by the deadline
of midnight, April 6. Semi-Tech's latest offer was $38 a share,
following a bidding war with a Malaysian group.

Semi-Tech also announced that it has completed a private
placement of some 2.28 million shares, raising C$17.938 million
for general corporate purposes.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Michael List,
International Semi-Tech, 416-475-2670)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00021)

OTTAWA-BASED COMPANY BUYS LANPAR ASSETS
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Softco Manufacturing,
a year-old systems integrator, has bought the assets of bankrupt
Lanpar Technologies of Markham, Ontario. Formed in a basement by
a former Lanpar employee and an ex-stockbroker, Softco is a
hitherto obscure firm that specializes in Tempest technology
equipment that resists electronic eavesdropping. The purchase
price has not been disclosed.

Lanpar manufactured computer terminals through a subsidiary,
Northern Technologies. It also distributed an assortment of
computer products and ran a nationwide third-party service
operation. The Royal Bank of Canada, Lanpar's largest creditor,
appointed Coopers and Lybrand as receiver for the company in
March. Lanpar owed the bank C$11 million.

(Grant Buckler/19890405/Press Contact: Softco Manufacturing, 613-
594-0039)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00022)

ACQUISITION PUTS AISI RESEARCH ON VANCOUVER EXCHANGE
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- AISI
Research, a developer of home- and building-automation technology
based in Victoria, British Columbia, is now listed on the
Vancouver Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "AIZ". Using a
device popular for taking private companies public quickly, a
company with an existing listing, Garbo Industries Ltd., took
over the privately held AISI and then changed its own name to
AISI Research Corp. Along with the name change, AISI announced a
two-for-one stock split and private placements totalling about
C$1.2 million.

(Grant Buckler/19890405/Press Contact: John Borg, Smith Marketing
Communications, 415-989-3104)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SIN)(00023)

U.S. HIGH-TECH VENTURE FUND FIRM EXPANDS IN ASIA
SINGAPORE, S.E. ASIA, 1989 APR 1 (NB) -- H&Q Asia Pacific
Venture, part of the United States-based financial services
company Hambrecht & Quist, has established an office in
Singapore. The office will help manage the unlisted portion of
the $150-million ASEAN Fund sponsored by the ASEAN Banking
Council late last year.

H&Q's past successes have included such notable customers as
Apple Computer and Genentech. The firm has lowered its
expectations in Asia, though, "due to the dearth of investment in
R&D and high-tech type of projects." However, according to Chan
Kok Pun, vice-president, H&Q will open a network of offices
throughout the region, staffed with local personnel. The intent
is to achieve close contact with local business opportunities.

Ta-Lin Hsu, managing director -- Asia Pacific, said the firm
adopts a "hands-on" approach to investments, offering a range of
management services, such as recruitment, business planning and
network support, as well as finance. H&Q is involved with some
250 technology companies in the United States, many of which are
looking for manufacturing opportunities in Asia. H&Q is helping
them set up local subsidiaries and locate suitable partners.

H&Q already has offices in the United Kingdom, Japan, Philippines
and Taiwan, and plans further locations in Thailand, Hong Kong
and possibly Indonesia. Independently raising "workable,
worthwhile money" in each location, the firm aims to attract
funds by its investment performance.

(Michael Worsley/19890403/Press Contact: George Macklin,H & Q
Asia Pacific Venture,[65] 221.8144)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SIN)(00024)

INDONESIA ATTRACTING MORE SINGAPORE INVESTMENTS
JAKARTA, INDONESIA, 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Since Indonesia relaxed tight
government controls on foreign investment last year, new investment
has flowed slowly but steadily into the country from Singapore.

In the computer and electronics industry, mainly Japanese firms have
led the way, with mixed results. Some time ago, Wearnes Technology,
part of the quoted Wearnes Bros. Group, took over a small
semiconductor plant in Bandung, on the main island of Java. Many other
projects are thought to be under negotiation with the central
coordinating body BKPM.

Keppel Corporation, a Singapore-listed shipbuilding, engineering and
technology company, announced today it is looking into operating a
shipyard in Indonesia, to match its existing investments in India and
Philippines. Banking is also attracting attention. The Overseas-
Chinese Banking Corp. has applied to set up an office in Jakarta.
United Overseas Bank, International Bank of Singapore, Tat Lee Bank
and Asia Commercial Bank already maintain offices here. Other banks
are watching the situation.

(Michael Worsley/19890405)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SIN)(00025)

KOREAN PRODUCTION MOVES INTO SOUTHEAST ASIA
SEOUL, S.KOREA, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- One hundred and three South Korean
firms moved part or all of their production facilites abroad last
year, according to Park Un Suh, Director of the Industrial Policy
Division of the Korean Ministry of Trade and Industry. Park said
another 150 firms are planning moves to escape the effects of the
rising value of the won.

Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines are popular destinations, but
one or two firms are considering South American countries in their
search for lower costs. Thailand is popular with the electronics
industry. Some 27 firms set up plants there last year, and another 50
plan to move there this year. Larger firms, however, many of whom
already have substantial manufacturing operations in Southeast Asia,
are now more intent on establishing new plants in Europe and the
United States to protect export markets there against possible import
barriers.

The average wage increase in South Korea was 19.4 percent last year.
The won rose 15.8 percent against the U.S. dollar over the same
period. Another factor was growing labor unrest in South Korea.
However, wage rates are not the whole story. A garment firm chose the
Philippines over Indonesia. Although wages were a little higher, the
company found the better educated workforce yielded higher
productivity over all.

Park went on to outline plans for a survey mission to China,
Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines next month to assess which
country is most suitable for the establishment of an industrial zone
for South Korean enterprises.

(Michael Worsley/19890405/Press Contact: Mr. Lim, Korean Trade Centre,
[65] 221.3055)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00001)

COMPUTER USED TO MAP ALASKAN OIL SPILL
VALDEZ, ALASKA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Scientists and engineers
attempting to track and clean up the oil spill in Alaska are
relying on computer technology to help them. Using computer
graphics developed by Autodesk Inc., a Denver firm's system,
called Generation 5 "MunMAP," allows scientists to integrate
data from aerial fly-overs, sampling station instruments, and
individual sightings, to create a map of the course of the oil.

The oil spill is depicted on screen as an "awesome, amoeba-like,
black pool of disaster," according to Dan Hinckley of Generation
5 Technology.

The engineers are working in the converted courthouse building
in Valdez in rooms occupied by the Alaskan Department of
Environmental Conservation [DEC]. "We haven't begun to see the real
benefits of the mapping system," says Marshall Kendziorek, data
coordinator for DEC, "but it has already proven invaluable.
Every night at our science meetings, we show up with a new
map showing where the spill has moved during the day." He says
the same maps are passed out to reporters who then use them for
their stories.

Kendziorek says the next stage will be to use the maps to determine
how to prioritize the clean-up.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Dan Hinckley, Generation 5, 303-
427-0055)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00002)

DATA GENERAL INTRODUCES NEW LOW-END MV/FAMILY COMPUTER
WESTBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Data
General has introduced the Eclipse MV/1000 DC, which is now the
company's lowest-priced 32-bit computer system. The new system
lowers the cost of entry into the MV/Family by approximately 34
percent.

Price for the new system, with four megabytes of memory, a 38 megabyte
hard disk, and a 737 kilobyte floppy disk drive, is $8,150. A one year
parts and labor warranty is included.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Brent Bluth, DG, 508-898-4074)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00003)

KODAK AND OLIVETTI SIGN OPTICAL DISK AGREEMENT
ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- Eastman
Kodak and Ing. C. Olivetti & C. Spa have agreed to jointly develop,
manufacture and market 5.25-inch and 3.5-inch optical disk drives for
personal computers.

Under the agreement, Kodak and Olivetti will share majority
ownership of Laserdrive Ltd., a Santa Clara, Calif. company that is
currently controlled by Olivetti.

The two companies plan to combine a 3.5-inch erasable optical disk
program being developed by Kodak's Verbatim Crop. with operations
at Laserdrive, which currently manufacturers write-once/read-many
[WORM] optical drive storage subsystems.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: John Labella, Kodak, 716-477-
0786)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00004)

COLORFAX TO BE SHOWN AT SHARP BOOTH AT COMDEX
MAHWAH, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- The world's
only color facsimile machine, the Colorfax, will be demonstrated
at the Sharp Electronics exhibit at Comdex in Chicago.

The product, introduced in February by StarSignal and previously
reported in Newsbytes, can scan any document in full color, and
transmit the page in less than five minutes on standard telephone lines
anywhere in the world, reproducing it in 256,000 color combinations.

The key to the technology is a new color compression system that can
transmit a color image up to 100 times faster than an uncompressed
image.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Carter Elliott, Carter Elliott PR,
408-395-1161)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00005)

MIT AND CRAY RESEARCH TEAM UP
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- The
Massachusetts Institute of Technology [MIT] and Cray research announced a
five-year, joint effort in supercomputer research. Part of the effort will
include the installation of a Cray supercomputer, model 2/4/256,
valued at $7.5 million, on the MIT campus.

The computer, which has four central processors and 256 million 64-bit
words of memory, will be used in various research projects at MIT

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Bob Dilorio, MIT, 617-253-2700)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00006)

UNISYS TO MARKET ELECTRONIC ELECTION SYSTEM
BLUE BELL, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- Unisys has announced
it will market a highly accurate and secure electronic system
to local government jurisdictions.

The system, Election System-2000, allows voters to mark choices on a
paper ballot that is inserted directly into a ballot processor. The
processor optically scans and records the votes. All tallies are than
fed into a Unix-based software program that tallies results for an
entire jurisdiction.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Charlotte LeGates, 215-542-4213)


(NEW)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00007)

NEW HOT-LIST CATEGORIES ANNOUNCED
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- Softsel Computer
Products, Inc., has added several new product categories to its
well-known Hot List. The new format now includes computer systems;
printers, plotters and scanners; monitors and terminals; boards and
interfaces; modems; connectivity; communications and utilities;
languages and systems; and home, education and recreation. The
biweekly list [circulation 13,000] indicates the sales volume of
products distributed by Softsel and is used by dealers to gauge the
popularity of software titles.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Jim Novy, 213-412-8271)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(ATL)(00008)

NCR GETTING PART-WAY OUT OF SOUTH AFRICA
DAYTON, OHIO, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- NCR plans to sell its
South African subsidiary but will continue selling its products
there through a distributor. Fintech Ltd. will acquire a controlling
interest in NCR's South African organization, with the help of
European investors. NCR said that the impact on revenue or earnings
would not be substantial. They are less than one percent of our
overall $6 billion sales," said a spokesman.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Mark Feighery of NCR
513-445-2033)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00009)

NINTENDO LICENSES SOVIET GAME SOFTWARE FOR VIDEO GAME MACHINES
KYOTO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- A license agreement with the
Soviet technology management organization Elektronorgtechnica
will let Nintendo rewrite the Soviet game software Tetris for all
the video game machines it distributes worldwide, including
Famicon and Game Boy machines. Tetris, designed by game designer
Alexey L. Pazhitnov and programmer Vaddim Viktorovich Gerasimov
of the Computer Center at the U.S.S.R. Academy of Science, is
gaining popularity worldwide. Though Yokohama-based software
house BPS markets the Tetris software for personal computers and
video game machines in Japan, a Nintendo spokesman said BPS's
version is different in details from the software Nintendo will
distribute.

Nintendo plans to start selling Tetris, primarily in the United
States and Japan, by this summer.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406/Press Contact: Nintendo, 075-541-6111)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00010)

LOW-PRICED 145-MEGABYTE HARD DISK FROM CTS
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- Tokyo-based microcomputer
development and marketing firm CTS will release a 145-megabyte
hard disk drive priced at 245,000 yen or $1,900. The unit is
scheduled for shipping April 10.

The new unit will contain a power supply, a hard disk drive made
by Micropolis in the United States, and an extension unit. The
memory capacity can be increased by changing the drive. A small
computer system interface [SCSI] board and a software driver for
the NEC PC-9800 series and Seiko-Epson's PC-286 series will be
standard equipment. The SCSI board will also allow the unit to be
connected directly to workstations such as Sony's NEWS, Sun
Microsystems' Sun 3/4 series, Fujitsu's FMR series, the Apple
Macintosh, the IBM PC/AT and AX [Japanese-language AT-compatible]
machines.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406/Press Contact: CTS, 03-837-4355)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00011)

DEVELOPER PLANS INTELLIGENT TRON DENNO BUILDING
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- Hazama-Gumi, one of Japan's
largest civil engineering firms and eager for construction orders
for a computerized building, has unveiled plans for a "TRON Denno
Building." With advice from TRON advocate Ken Sakamura of the
University of Tokyo, Hazama-Gumi plans what it calls the ultimate
intelligent building project, using microcomputers, sensors, and
communication systems. The systems will adjust temperature and
moisture, keep track of where people are, and move information
through the building. Office robots will manage physical
distribution.

Hazama-Gumi expects the building to cost about five billion yen
or $38 million, and plans to construct it at Aoyama and Harajuku
in Tokyo in a few years.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00012)

SUPERCOMPUTING SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULED
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- The Ontario Centre
for Large Scale Computation and the University of toronto will
hold a national symposium on Supercomputing in the 1990s June 19-
21. To take place in Toronto, the conference will deal with
computer science issues, technology transfer between universities
and industry, Canadian supercomputing initiatives and other
topics. The Ontario Centre for Large Scale Computation is based
at the University of Toronto and operates a dual-processor Cray
X-MP supercomputer.

(Grant Buckler/19890403/Press Contact: Lloyd Parker, Ontario
Centre for Large Scale Computation, 416-978-8258)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00013)

CANADIAN DATABASE HELPED PREPARE OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY
WATERLOO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- The second edition
of the Oxford English Dictionary, launched in England March 30,
took five years to prepare. Not bad, considering that the first
edition took 10 times as long -- and the new edition is 20
volumes rather than the original 12. Computers made most of the
difference, and one ingredient was the work done at the Centre
for the New Oxford English Dictionary at the University of
Waterloo. Waterloo, one of North America's most respected
universities in the computer science field, developed the
database software used to produce the dictionary. A team led by
Dr. Frank Tompa and Dr. Gaston Gonnet created software uniquely
suited to handling large volumes of text and designed to make
future updates easier. The university retains ownership of the
software and is considering possible spinoff applications.

The Oxford English Dictionary, by the way, is scheduled to be
launched in Canada April 20 and will cost C$3,125.

(Grant Buckler/19890403/Press Contact: University of Waterloo
Information Office, 519-888-4444)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SIN)(00014)

SINGAPORE COMPANIES DO GOOD BUSINESS AT CEBIT'89
SINGAPORE, S.E. ASIA, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Once again, taking part
in the CeBIT trade show has paid off for Singapore firms. Many
participants reported immediate orders worth several million
dollars.

Alphasoft, which launched an integrated point-of-sale system,
said it appointed a network of some 15 distributors in Europe as
a result of contacts made at the show. Anthony Chai, Alphasoft
sales manager, said total orders this year in Europe should top
$5 million. The firm has already booked 50 square meters of space
-- five times this year's space -- for the 1990 show.

ATS Compucentre, which produces sophisticated software packages,
predicts sales of its popular CAD/CAM [computer-aided design and
manufacturing] software will exceed $500,000 over the next six months.
According to Thum Mun Cheong, language is the greatest barrier to
major software sales in Europe. However, custom language capabilities
in ATS's upgraded Supervision package should overcome such barriers.

Andrew Lim, European marketing manager of International Control
Systems [ICS] expects European sales to increase more than 50
percent this year. Total group sales are expected to triple from
around $5 million last year to $15-$20 million this year.

Wearnes Technology, which was looking for large buyers at the
show, feels it may have secured some nine potential customers who
could account for more than $20 million in orders. Wearnes plans
to return next year with a larger, more comprehensive display,
covering not only its complete personal computer line but also
associated companies producing printed circuit boards, die-
castings and plastic injection mouldings, said Herman Ho, the
company's European manager.

Robert Ng of Proteq Technologies, which manufactures what it
claims is the first computer-based circuit tester, Boardwizard,
expects to sell some 100 units in West Germany alone, with total
European sales likely to exceed 1,000 units for 1989.

It wasn't only computer systems that sold well. Michael Ng,
managing director of computer furniture maker Sitoca Marketing
Service, also reported brisk enquiries. He expects European sales
of around $600,000 in the next six months, with total sales up 20
to 30 percent for the year.

(Michael Worsley/19890403/Press Contact: Alphasoft, [65]
748.9633; ATS Compucentre, [65] 225.8311; International Control
Systems, [65] 278.8288; Proteq Technologies, [65] 296.0721;
Sitoca Marketing Service, [65] 338.9988; Wearnes Technology, [65]
259.2521)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SIN)(00015)

SINGAPORE SHIP PLANNING SYSTEM WINS U.S. AWARD
SINGAPORE, S.E. ASIA, 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- A system jointly developed by
the Information Technology Institute [ITI] and the Port of Singapore
Authority [PSA] has won the Innovative Application Award from the
American Association of Artificial Intelligence [AAAI]. Lim Joo Hong,
head of the Artificial Intelligence group at ITI, said at a press
conference here the award puts Singapore's AI engineers alongside the
developers of systems like the U.S. National Space Administration's
space shuttle mission control system.

Singapore is now one of the few ports in the world with an expert
system to plan container loading and unloading. Lim said understanding
the ship planner's job and translating human expertise into computer
form were the 12-man development team's major challenges.

The system went into trial operation last year, but only the first
phase is in use. By the end of this year, when the complete system is
fully operational, it will automate the entire ship planning process.
The size and weight of each container and such factors as the
stability of the ship, its ports of call and order of loading and
unloading are considered in producing a loading plan.

The next two modules will allocate berths for ships and space for
containers in the port storage yards. Five years ago, shippers had to
bring in containers 24 hours before loading so the ship planner could
decide how to load them. New systems already operating have reduced
the time to around eight hours. With the full system operating, port
authorities hope to cut the time to four hours, although total
container traffic has grown about 48 percent per year in the meantime.

(Michael Worsley/19880405/Press Contact: Lee Chee Yeng, PSA
Operations, [65] 274.7111)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SIN)(00016)

NEW COMPUTER CENTRE PLANNED FOR SINGAPORE PORT AUTHORITY
SINGAPORE, S.E. ASIA, 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Speaking at the opening of
the 25th Anniversary Conference of the Port of Singapore, the Minister
for Communications and Information, Dr. Yeo Ning Hong, said a new
$500-million container terminal will be built on Pulau Brani, a small
island just off the main Singapore wharves.

Goon Kok Loon, deputy executive director of the Port of Singapore
Authority [PSA], gave more details when he unveiled plans for the new
70-meter-high control tower building, a central feature of the new
terminal, which will house the new $40 million Computer Integrated
Marine Operations System [CIMOS]. He said the new system will include
"active" management of vessels by means of integrated graphic displays
of all information for command and control, real-time tracking of
vessels and resources, and expert systems for ship and container
management. The new system will involve full radar monitoring of all
vessels. The first phase, to track vessels outside the main port
waters, will be working by the end of 1989, and the full system is to
be completed by 1992.

(Michael Worsley/19880405/Press Contact: Goon Kok Loon, PSA
Operations, [65] 274.7111)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SFO)(00001)

XEROX CHALLENGED TO DEFEND ITS VISUAL INTERFACE
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- Metaphor
Computer Systems has asked a San Jose federal court to end a
copyright dispute with Xerox over its visual interface. Xerox
has reportedly been sending letters to Metaphor claiming the
maker of data interpretation software has been infringing
on Xerox's proprietary rights with its display technology.
Metaphor has asked the court to intervene, challenging
Xerox to get more specific about which aspects of the display
are at issue.

Metaphor, interestingly enough, is chaired by David Liddle, one of
the pantheon which developed the first icon and windowing user
interfaces at Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center, back in the 70's.
Liddle and another former Xerox executive started Metaphor
in 1982 and are employing an "intuitive" visual interface
for their product which searches out and interprets data from
a variety of databases.

(Wendy Woods/19890407)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(BOS)(00002)

ITALIAN FIRMS FINGERED FOR PIRATING
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- The Business
Software Association [BSA] has taken legal actions against two Italian
corporations for unauthorized copying of software.

According to the BSA, the firms have extensive unauthorized copies
of software produced by BSA members Ashton-Tate and Lotus
Development Corp. The pirated copies have been confirmed in on-site
inspections. Further action by the BSA is planned.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Pilar Cloud, BSA, 202-737-7060)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(BOS)(00003)

GOVERNMENT SITES NOW MAKING LOCAL BUYS, STUDY SAYS
BETHESDA, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- A recent study
showed that federal government sites in the West are now making
more than 80 percent of their final computer purchase decision
locally, rather than in Washington. The study was released by Jacobs
Jenner & Kent, an East Coast market research and consulting firm.
The research was commissioned by Information Development Corp.,
producers of the Federal Computer Conference and the Defense and
Government Computer-Graphics Conference.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Diane Block, Information
Development Corp., 301-961-8990)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(ATL)(00004)

PATRICK ERA AT FCC ENDS WITH A BANG OF DEREGULATION
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- The reign of Dennis
Patrick as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is
ending as soon as a successor is confirmed. Patrick's resignation
letter to President Bush, reported April 6, follows by one week
decisions to deregulate AT&T's rate-of-return in favor of a
price cap, and a decision letting Bell holding companies develop
databases for toll-free 800 lines. The original 1984 divestiture
agreement has kept the Bells out of computer software and
database vending, but the FCC agreed that the gain of improved
toll-free sales support was worth the move.

Patrick was appointed chairman of the FCC by Ronald Reagan in
1986, and may be best known for his failed campaigns to tone-down
TV by threatening stations broadcasting what he called
"indecency" with license revocations. Among the candidates under
consideration to succeed him are Alfred Sikes, head of the
Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, Sherrie Marshall, a former FCC legislative
affairs director, Andrew Barrett of Illinois' Commerce
Commission, and two Washington lawyers, Susan Wing and James
Smith.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TYO)(00005)

KOREA MAKES FIRST DECISION ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- The Seoul District Public
Prosecutor's Office has made the first decision on intellectual
property since Korea introduced copyright law and legal
protection for computer programs in July, 1987. The office fined
both Philko Corp. and its representative, Yi Pong Hak, 10 million
won [about $15,000] in damages for plagiarizing Japanese and
American video game programs.

Philko, a Korean company, counterfeited Japanese and U.S. firms'
video game machines and software, sold the copies domestically
and internationally, and used the counterfeits in its game
centers in Korea. The copied games were sold for about half the
price of the originals in the international market.

The suit was filed by five Japanese companies, including Sega
Enterprise, SNK and Data East, and four subsidiaries of U.S.
companies. The firms' total losses are estimated at more than
160 million yen or about $240,000.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406)


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

ANNOUNCEMENT IMMINENT ON RESERVATION SYSTEM CASE
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Canada's national
competition bureau has reached an agreement with the country's
two major airlines concerning their jointly operated online
reservation system. The competition bureau is to file an
application for a consent order on April 12, effectively asking
the government's competition tribunal to dismiss the year-old
case. Gilles Menard, a spokesman for the competition bureau, said
further details of the agreement with Air Canada and PWA Corp.
will be available then.

Air Canada and PWA, which owns Canadian Airlines International,
set up Gemini Group Automated Distribution Systems early last
year. The competition bureau began investigating the move soon
after. Air Canada and Canadian are the only Canadian airlines
flying coast to coast. PWA has also recently moved to acquire
Wardair, which flies most of the way across the country and is
Canada's third-largest airline. That move is also under scrutiny
from the competition watchdogs. Meanwhile, Gemini itself signed a
deal last month to link up with Covia, which runs the Apollo
reservation system in the United States and the Galileo system in
Europe. That deal, if completed, would make Covia one-third owner
of Gemini. A similar deal with PARS, another U.S.-based system,
fell through earlier.

(Grant Buckler/19890407)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SIN)(00007)

NEW U.S. MOVES ON THAI COPYRIGHT LAWS
BANGKOK, THAILAND, 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Continuing pressure to tighten
Asian copyright laws, the United States Embassy in Bangkok has asked
the Thai government for consultations on intellectual property rights.

The request followed a report by the U.S. Interagency Group reviewing
market access barriers and intellectual property rights affecting
American trade with Thailand. Under the 1988 Trade Act, the U.S. Trade
Representative must decide by April 30 which trading partners have
failed to meet U.S. standards. Not meeting those standards could
result in imposition of 100-percent tariffs on future imports of some
goods into the United States.

The new talks would continue earlier bilateral talks on intellectual
property rights that focused on Thailand's entitlement to benefits
under the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences [GSP]. Those talks
failed to produce agreement on protection for U.S. pharmaceuticals and
computer software. Thailand's GSP preferences, totalling some $165
million per year, were withdrawn.

It is understood Kamchorn Sathirakul, governor of the Bank of
Thailand, held preliminary discussions last Friday with Richard
McCormack, President George Bush's nominee for Under-Secretary of
State for Economic Affairs, on the possible impact of such new
punitive tariffs on Thailand. Sathirakul was in Washington for a
meeting of the International Monetary Fund.

(Michael Worsley/19890405)


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00001)

IBM MAKES OWN 386 CHIPS
BURLINGTON, VERMONT, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- IBM has confirmed
that since January, it has been making its own 25 MHz 80386
microprocessors under license from Intel Corporation. The chips are
being installed in IBM PS/2 Model 70 and 80 computers. IBM spokesman
Doug DeLay tells Newsbytes, "We've always had the right to make
them. We prefer to have more than one source for the '386."

DeLay would not say what percentage of the 80386 microprocessors
in Model 70 and 80 machines are made by IBM, but said, "We're still
committed to getting a significant share of 80386's from Intel."

The semiconductors are being manufactured in IBM's Burlington,
Vermont semiconductor manufacturing plant. IBM is the only
outside firm Intel has license to "second-source" or manufacture the
popular 80386.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Doug DeLay, IBM, 201-930-5223)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00002)

NEW 8086-BASED PC INTRODUCED BY IBM
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- IBM has
rolled out a new version of an old stand-by. Its Personal System/2 Model
30-001 computer comes with a single diskette drive and numerous
storage options. The computer, based on the low-end Intel 8086 central
processing unit, can be outfitted with a second floppy disk drive, a 20
megabyte fixed disk, or a new 30 megabyte fixed disk with a faster
access time. Price for the Model 30-001 is $1,695.

The company also announced price reductions on the PS/2 Model
50Z, to $3,250 [with a 30 megabyte fixed disk] and $3,650 [with a 60 megabyte
fixed disk] and the Model 70-E61, to $5,495 from $5,995.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Linda Dezan, IBM, 201-930-5183)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00003)

COMPAQ: NEW HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE, PRICE REDUCTIONS
HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Compaq Computer
Corporation [NYSE: CPQ] has announced the Compaq Deskpro 286e, a
line of small-footprint, 80286-based desktop computers designed for
the business community. The 286e models are priced between $2,699
and $3,599, depending on their configuration. The machines range
from a two-floppy version to a 40-megabyte model at the top of the
line.

The new 12-MHz. computers include VGA graphics controllers, one
megabyte of memory, five available expansion slots, and four
storage-device bays. Compaq's statement described the units as
meeting "basic business computing needs."

New software releases of MS-DOS version 4.0 and Microsoft OS/2
Standard Version 1.1 accompanied the hardware. In addition, the
company reduced the price of its Deskpro 386s models by 9 to 16
percent placing them within $600 of their 286e counterparts.

(Wayne Yacco/198904)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00004)

DEC FACING TOUGHER COMPETITION FROM IBM
WESTBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Digital
Equipment will be facing tougher competition from IBM in the midrange
market, according to a report recently released by Sentry Market Research.

The 300-page report says that IBM is planning a major software
roll-out in the next 90 days for its AS/400 series, according to Ed
Bride, editorial director of Software Magazine.

Thirty-six percent of those responding to a survey cited in the report
indicated they will install IBM midrange computers this year, compared to a
current installed base of 21 percent. If the predictions hold, it could spell
trouble for DEC, a company that depends heavily on its midrange
computer line for profits.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Ed Bride, Software Magazine,
508-366-2031)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00005)

NEW BOOT STRAP UPLOAD TECHNIQUE INTRODUCED BY RUPP
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Rupp has introduced
a new technique for its Fastwire II file transfer program that eliminates
the need to carry a program diskette. The new technique, developed
under the name Beanstalk, clones the file transfer program on the
second computer so that the target computer doesn't need to have
a copy of Fastwire loaded on it.

The new technique will work on any two MS-DOS PCs that both have
a functioning serial port, along with a special seven-wire cable sold by
Rupp. The product is available now.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Joseph Riser, Pollare Fischer
Communications, 213-478-0995)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00006)

IBM INCREASES APPLICATION PROCESSING POWER
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- IBM has expanded
options for configuring and managing information systems by increasing
the application power of its Enterprise System of computers.

A new, more flexible way of configuring large multiprocessors and a
new processor, the Enterprise System/3090 Model 380S were
announced by the company. George Conrades, IBM senior vice
president and general manager, U.S. Marketing and Services, said that
the new products, "provide our customers with a broader range of
capabilities and opportunities for improved productivity and business
growth."

Announced concurrently were new storage options, and new laser
printer, the IBM 3816. Pricing for the Model 380S processor, which
will be available in November 1989, is $7,990,000. The 3816 printer is
priced at $16,500 and is available immediately.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Bill Dunne, IBM, 914-642-4654)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00007)

IBM SELLS MANUFACTURING OPTIONS TO MASSTOR SYSTEMS
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Masstor Systems
has signed an agreement with IBM to license technology and
purchase physical equipment for the manufacturing of mass storage
system cartridges used for recording and storing large volumes of
data processing information.

"The decision to build our own cartridges marks the next logical step
in Masstor's long-term strategy," said David Addison, chairman and
chief executive officer of Masstor.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Michael Beadsmoore, Masstor,
212-818-0540)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00008)

LOTUS FREELANCE NOW COMPATIBLE WITH BITSTREAM FONTWARE
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Lotus
Development and Bitstream announced this week that a Bitstream
Fontware Starter Kit is now available for Lotus Freelance Plus 3.0.
The Fontware Installation Kit allows Freelance Plus users to
incorporate typefaces from the extensive Bitstream Scaleable Typeface
Library.

Included in the starter kit are four styles of the Dutch typeface. The
starter kit, with a retail value of $290, is available for a $15 shipping
charge to all registered users of Freelance Plus 3.0.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Allison Parker, Lotus, 617-577-
8500)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00009)

IBM OFFERS NEW ELECTRONIC DATA INTERCHANGE PRODUCTS
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- IBM
announced this week a new series of Electronic Data Interchange
[EDI] translator software that enables different businesses to
electronically exchange standard-format business documents, including
purchase orders, invoices, and order acknowledgements.

The products, called the IBM expEDIte DataInterchange Series, is
designed to decrease the time spent in manual processing and
mailing of business documents and to help reduce bookkeeping
errors.

The new products translate supported documents that are created on
a company's computer into a standard EDI format so that they can
be transmitted electronically to a vendor, supplier, or customer
location. An EDI product at the receiving end reverses the operation,
eliminating any differences in computer types and data formats. The
software will run on IBM PS/2, AS/400, System 36, System/38, and
IBM mainframe computers.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: Andrew Russell, IBM, 914-642-
5463)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00010)

IBM TO OFFER BUSINESS RECOVERY SERVICES
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- IBM has
announced the limited availability of IBM Business Recovery Services,
designed to provide emergency back-up capabilities for customers'
critical information processing operations.

The service will provide IBM midrange and large systems customers
access to a business recovery center for recovery plan testing and
disaster recovery operations. Customers may subscribe for one, three,
or five-year periods, during which they have access to equivalent or
greater system capacity at an IBM Business Recovery center.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: John Clark, IBM, 201-930-5127)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00011)

IBM ANNOUNCES TWO CIM SOFTWARE PROGRAMS
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1989 APR 6 (NB) -- IBM has
announced to new software programs, Product Engineering Support
and Computer Aided Design Integration, that represent a major step
toward a fully integrated CIM or computer-aided manufacturing
product.

CIM is the process by which manufacturers link departments by
computer. The two new products aid management in shortening the
time needed to release a product and control the flow of work
throughout the design stage. The products, which run on the IBM
mainframe System /370 VM, will both ship this summer.

(Jon Pepper/19890406/Press Contact: George Clements, IBM, 404-956-
4677)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00012)

VERSACAD/386 OFFERS NEW LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE
HUNTINGTON BEACH, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- Versacad
Corporation has announced VersaCAD/386, a new version of its CAD
[computer-aided design] software written specifically for 80386-
based microcomputers. The program uses the 80386 chip's full 32-bit
data path and operates in protected mode to break the DOS 640-
kilobyte barrier and improve performance by a factor of up to three
times.

Versacad promises to ship its new $3,495 flagship product by the end
of April. An upgrade from VersaCAD Design is available for $295
until August 31. 1989. Subsequent upgrades will be available for
$495. VersaCAD 2D users can upgrade for $995. All VersaCAD/386
purchasers will be entitled to a free copy of the OS/2 version when
it is released.

VersaCAD/386 includes two-dimensional drafting, three-dimensional
modeling capabilities, bill-of-materials report generation, and
universal CAD communications utilizing IGES, DXF, VLINK, PostScript,
HPGL and DMPL. QuickRender 3D Model Viewer is a new feature that
can provide shading, hidden-line removal and near real-time wire-
frame animation. The QuickRender feature is implemented with HOOPS,
a standard object-oriented display technology and requires the use
of certain graphics coprocessor boards.

A math coprocessor is required by VersaCAD/386 and the program
supports either the 80387 or Weitek Abacus. Other minimum
requirements include 3 MB [megabytes] of memory, 8 MB of hard-disk
space, and MS-DOS 3.0 or later.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: Scott Harlin, 714-960-7720)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00013)

CASH-FLOW PROGRAM USES EMS
ENCINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- Superior Software,
Inc. [SSI], has introduced CFM -- a $795, extended-memory version of
its CF: Cash Flow Analysis software. CFM is a menu-driven stand-
alone application that performs the cash-flow analysis necessary for
efficient management, for business planning, and for substantiating
credit worthiness. The addition of extended-memory support removes
limitations on the program's capacity when running on 80286- or
80386-based computers.

The use of extended memory to provide a large linear address space
was achieved by incorporation of DOS 16/m by Rational Systems, Inc.,
of Natick, Massachusetts. DOS 16/m gives CFM a protected/real-mode
switching solution that breaks DOS's 640-kilobyte barrier. In
addition, a company spokesperson claimed that CFM has been optimized
through the use of special 80286 instructions that improve
performance up to five times.

CFM calculates a five-year projection and can produce 13 different
reports for each year. Reports include, Line of Credit, Net Income,
Cash Flow, Working Capital, Sales, Gross profit, G & A, Expense,
Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, Accrued Expense, Ending
Balance Sheet, Ratio Analysis, and Data Input Summary. SSI claims
that projections can be quickly changed and recalculated for the
comparison of alternate financial scenarios.

Purchasers of the original program can upgrade to CFM for $400
within 90 days after acquiring CF. CFM is also licensed as a five-
user version for $1045 and as an unlimited site license for $1395.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Victoria Geurts, 800-421-3264,
818-990-1135)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00014)

SPECIAL EFFECTS FOR FONTS
ENCINITAS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- SoftCraft
has released the Font Special Effects Pack, a complete package for
IBM PC/AT compatibles. The program helps users to create special-
effect text images and fonts from Bitstream Fontware which can be
incorporated into word-processing and desktop-publishing documents.

The $295 package provides support for curved, slanted and circular
text images. The images can be created from Fontware outlines or
from newly created headline and display fonts.

Printing is supported for Hewlett-Packard LaserJet Plus and Series
II compatible laser printers. Fonts are automatically installed for
WordPerfect and Microsoft Word. Fonts and matching screen fonts are
created for Aldus PageMaker Xerox Ventura Publisher and Microsoft
Windows.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press contact: Softcraft, Bill Overman, 619-944-
0151, or Sue Varga, 619-281-8991)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00015)

DATABASE-PUBLISHING PROGRAM SHIPS
PHOENIX, ARIZONA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 29 (NB) -- Digital Composition
Systems [DCS] has begun shipping dbPUBLISHER. The $695 program
provides desktop-publishing for database as well as text and graphic
files. Typical applications, including catalogs, price lists,
telephone directories, inventory reports and form letters, are
supported by data-query capabilities and specialized format control
that facilitates the production of recurring documents. Many
popular file formats can be imported: dBASE, R:BASE, Lotus 1-2-3,
Symphony, and others. Reports can include six types of bar code.
DCS has signed an agreement with Softsel Computer Products, Inc.,
for the distribution of dbPUBLISHER throughout North and South
America.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: Susan Dockeray, 602-870-7667)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00016)

NOVEL WORKS ON FOXY DBASE SERVER
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- Novell, Inc., and Fox
Software, Inc., Tuesday announced a joint development and technology
transfer agreement. The two companies plan to codevelop FoxServer,
a database server which combines NetWare SQL, Novell's open-
interface, relational-database engine, with Fox's dBASE-language
technology.

The agreement will result in Fox providing server-based relational
database management to the dBASE-language market. While FoxServer
will initially support DOS workstations, the companies intend to
extend support to other workstation environments in the future,
including the Macintosh.

Fox Software becomes the first NetWare SQL Original Equipment
Manufacturer and will exclusively manufacture, market and support
FoxServer, giving their customers a single source for Fox
development products. Both companies will participate in a series
of joint marketing activities designed to promote the use of these
products in implementing distributed database management solutions.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Novell, Mary K. Ellsworth, 512-
346-8380 or Fox Software, Richard Ney, 419-874-0162 or Regis McKenna
Public Relations, Renee Wildman, 415-354-4483 or Glenn A. Hart
Associates, Glenn Hart, 914-357-2055.)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00017)

FLORIDA DEALER BUNDLING DR DOS
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- PC Systems of
Riviera Beach, Florida, is bundling the DR DOS operating system from
Digital Research with its house line of computers. The company
offers a family of 80286- and 80386-based personal computers through
a chain of nine retail stores in the Southeast. DR DOS version 3.4
will be shipped with all of the retailer's machines. In addition,
all 80386-based PC Systems computers will include Concurrent DOS
386, Digital Research's multiuser, multitasking operating system.

PC System's founder Stewart Fason has most recently received
attention for his efforts to resurrect Leading Edge from bankruptcy.
However, Fason is also known for his practice of selecting young
computer enthusiasts to open and manage new stores in the PC Systems
chain. Fason has also personally written the company newsletter
which is as likely to describe a new product or liquidation as a
Fason gambling adventure. The colorful entrepreneur enjoys
recounting the free high-roller junkets which allow him to clean up
at the tables while traveling at the casino's expense.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: Digital Research, Eliska Amyx,
408-646-6001)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00018)

CASIO ENTERS THE AX FIELD
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Casio Computer has released two
AX personal computers, following senior AX makers such as Sanyo,
Bussan Digital, Mitsubishi, Sharp, Acer Japan, Nihon Unisys,
Canon, Kyocera, Oki Electric, Yokogawa Hewlett Packard and Sony.
An AX personal computer is an IBM PC/AT-compatible machine with
Japanese language features.

The Casio AX-8000L is a laptop with an 80286 central processor, a
640K-byte main memory expandable to 2.6 megabytes, and an eight-
gradation, 12-inch backlit white liquid-crystal display. It
measures 312 x 360 x 89 millimeters. The M01 with two floppy disk
drive units weighs 14.75 pounds and costs 498,000 yen or $3,800.
The M02 with a 20-megabyte hard disk weighs 15.42 pounds and is
priced at 598,000 yen or $4,600.

The desktop Casio AX-8000 has an 80386SX central processor and a
1.6-megabyte main memory expandable to 7.6 megabytes. The M20
with a 20-megabyte hard disk is priced at 698,000 yen or $5,400 and
the M40 with a 40-megabyte hard disk is 798,000 yen or $6,100.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406/Press Contact: 03-347-4830)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00019)

IBM JAPAN TO BEEF UP ASIAN PRESENCE
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- IBM Japan will send another 100
employees to the IBM Asia/Pacific Group or A/PG, IBM's headquarters
for Asia. This brings IBM Japan's total staff contribution in A/PG to 340.
IBM Japan dispatched its managing director, Hideki Kurashige, to
become vice-president of A/PG in January. Its director, Masahiro
Ichihara, will go to Asia/South Pacific Area or A/SPA, an
organization covering 17 Asian countries, not including Japan.

IBM Japan has also transferred technology for assembling magnetic
heads for hard disk drives to Thai IBM, a move likely to drive a
wedge into the Asian market and expand business operations rather
than reducing production costs.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406)


(EXCLUSIVE)(IBM)(BRU)(00020)

TOSHIBA PITCHES FOR COLOUR LASER PRINTER MARKET
PARIS, FRANCE, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Not content with taking the
lion's share of the laptop PC market, Toshiba is said to be preparing a
similar pitch for the colour laser printer market. Sources in France
suggest that, following the unveiling of a colour LCD screen laptop in
the near future, the company will move quickly into colour laser
printer production.

Newsbytes understands that Toshiba's move is made possible by the
development of a high-speed 300 dots-per-inch laser printer
engine that works at twelve pages per minute. With three colour
passes per page, this translates into a full-colour printed
output rate of four pages per minute.

The printer is expected to be available in 1990 in Europe and will
probably be manufactured in Toshiba's existing plant in West Germany.

(Peter Vekinis/19890407)


(EXCLUSIVE)(IBM)(BRU)(00021)

SAMSUNG TO SELL LASER PRINTER FOR $999
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Samsung is expected to
launch a budget laser printer into the European market during the
third or fourth quarter this year. The machine will feature a Samsung-
designed laser engine and retail for $995.

Currently, Samsung retails a series of laser printers in the Far
East based around a Canon laser printer engine. The Samsung unit,
scheduled for launch in Europe later this year, will have 512 kilobytes of
system memory, expandable to 1.5 megabytes for full page graphics
printing.

(Peter Vekinis/19890407)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00022)

PROCOMM PLUS VIEWDATA READY FOR 01 MAY SHIPMENT
BEER, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Shareware Marketing, the U.K.
software distribution company, and Dortec, the Danish software
house, are collaborating on an extension to Datastorm
Technologies' Procomm Plus PC communications software. The
extended package - called Procomm Plus Viewdata - will retail for
UKP 89 and ship on 1 May.

Unusually for a PC communications package, Procomm Plus Viewdata
supports several viewdata systems, including the U.K.'s Prestel and
West Germany's Bildschirmtext formats, as well as the French
Minitel standard. The viewdata and Minitel terminal emulations
were coded by Dennis Dornoy of Dortec, who told Newsbytes that he
is open to suggestions for extra utilities and emulations in
future releases.

Steve Townsley of U.K.-based Shareware marketing says that existing
users of Procomm Plus will be allowed to upgrade to the U.K.
viewdata edition [which supports Prestel] for UKP 30.

"What we're doing is to offer the basic Procomm Plus, without
viewdata emulation, at UKP 59. The U.K. viewdata option for Prestel
will cost UKP 30, with Bildschirmtext and Minitel modules to
follow later this year," he said.

"That means that, if a user wants only the Minitel module and
Procomm Plus, then he or she need only pay the modular price. It
saves the user paying for facilities that they don't want," he
added.

(Steve Gold/19890331/Press & Public Contact: Shareware Marketing
Tel: [phone], E-mail - Compuserve 73447,1253)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00023)

DELL ANNOUNCES DELL ENHANCED MS-DOS 4.0
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Dell Computer Corporation
had begun shipping Dell MS-DOS 4.0, an enhanced version of the
latest Microsoft Disk Operating system. The package ships as a
option with new Dell PCs with immediate effect. Individually, the
package retails for UKP 95 in the U.K., with similar pricing across
Europe.

In addition to the DOS shell function and support for hard disk
partitions greater than 32 megabytes, Dell Enhanced MS-DOS 4.0
incorporates a number of extra utilities such as PC-Kwik and
Encrypt. PC-Kwik centres around a disk caching system, while
Encrypt allows confidential files to be encoded and decoded with
a high level of security.

"We believe in offering our customers the widest possible choice
of operating systems. Dell Enhanced DOS 4.0 will therefore be
available in addition to Dell's enhanced versions of DOS 3.3 and
OS/2," said Martin Slagter, Dell Computer U.K.'s marketing manager.

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press & Public Contact - Dell Computer U.K.:
Tel: [phone] [toll free])


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00024)

APRICOT OFFERS ZENITH LAPTOPS TO ITS U.K. DEALERS
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Zenith has secured a major
deal with Apricot to supply its Supersport 286 and Turbosport 386-
based series of laptops. Terms of the deal call for Apricot to
offer the three laptops to its U.K. dealerships.

In parallel with the laptops, Apricot is also marketing the
Apricot Environment Pack [AEP], which includes MS-Windows
Presentation Manager, MS-DOS or OS/2, a mouse and a number of
other utilities, for the laptops. The AEP will sell for UKP 250.

Ed Sherman, Apricot computer systems division's managing
director, said that the Zenith PCs represented the best
price/performance laptops on the market at the moment, hence the
selection of the machines for resale to its dealers.

"On thorough research of the market, it became clear that Zenith
laptops considerably out-perform anything else in this sector. We
believe that this latest agreement will enable us and our
resellers to penetrate this market with the best range of
laptops available," he said.

Zenith's Supersport 286 is available in 20 or 40Mb hard disk
configurations at UKP 3,195 and UKP 3,795, respectively. The
Turbosport 386, with a 40Mb internal hard disk, sells for UKP
4,995.

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press Contact - Jes Dorell, Apricot Computers -
Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00025)

COMPUTOPIA BREAKS UKP 200 BARRIER FOR 40MB HARD DISK
SWANSEA, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Computopia, the PC systems
mail order specialist, has broken the under 200 pound price barrier
with its 40 megabyte hard card. According to Paul Fletcher of
Computopia, the UKP 199 drive represents the best value currently
on the market.

"There are other hard drives around at around this price, but
they're limited to just 10 or 15 megabytes. Our hard card has a full 40
megabytes of capacity and it takes less than ten minutes to install," he
told Newsbytes.

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press Contact - Paul Fletcher -
Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00026)

MISSION CYRUS TO INTRODUCE MCA MACHINES AT COMDEX
BURNABY, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Mission
Cyrus Corp. has scheduled a press conference at Comdex/Spring
April 10 to introduce three personal computers based on IBM's
Micro Channel Architecture. Among them, the company said, will be
the first Micro Channel portable.

The Darius ProPortable will have a 25-megahertz 80386 processor
and be fully compatible with IBM's Personal System/2 Model 70 and
80, Mission Cyrus said. It will have one megabyte of RAM as
standard equipment, expandable to 16 megabytes. Built-in tape or
optical disk backup will be optional. The system will use a gas-
plasma VGA display, weigh less than 20 pounds and cost just under
$10,000, according to the company.

The Darius ProFessional will be a desktop PC with essentially the
same features as the ProPortable, excepting the gas-plasma
display. Prices for this model will start at about $7,500.

Mission Cyrus will also announce the CentralNtelligence network
file server. This unit will be available in Micro Channel and
Industry Standard Architecture [ISA] models. There will also be a
choice of 25-megahertz or 33-megahertz 80386 processors. Prices
will start at about $12,500.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Tania Elvin, Mission
Cyrus, 604-432-7727)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00027)

COMPAQ LAUNCHES 286E IN CANADA
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Compaq Canada has
launched the new Deskpro 286E, MS-DOS 4.01 and OS/2 Standard
Version 1.1 in Canada. Canadian prices for the 286e range from
C$3,999 with one megabyte of random-access memory and a single
3.5-inch diskette drive to C$5,099 for the same machine with a
40-megabyte disk drive added. DOS 4.01 will sell for C$196, and
OS/2 Standard Version 1.1 for C$498. Compaq plans to begin
shipping the products to Canadian dealers in April.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Compaq Canada, 416-733-
7876)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00028)

PROMARK ANNOUNCES NEW RELEASE OF POSTAL CODE SOFTWARE
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- A new
release of PostLink, PC software that retrieves Canadian postal
codes, is memory resident and adds a couple of other new
features. The software, from ProMark Software, can now stay in
memory and be called up from inside other applications. This
makes it possible, once a postal code has been found, to insert
it at the cursor position in the current application. The address
entered in PostLink to find the postal code can be transferred,
along with the postal code, into word processing programs.
Another new feature is reverse lookup -- you can now enter a
postal code and have PostLink retrieve the address or addresses
to which the code applies.

A national edition of PostLink, covering all of Canada, retails
for C$249. Regional editions sell for C$99 each.

ProMark has also hired Cancourse Marketing of Vancouver to mount
an advertising and promotional campaign for PostLink.

(Grant Buckler/19890403/Press Contact: John Henry, ProMark
Software, 604-988-2051)


(REVIEW)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00011)

Review of: JOURNALPHONE, an audiotex service

Runs on: touchtone phones in the Atlanta area

From: The Wall Street Journal, P.O. Box 300, Princeton, NJ 08543

Price: Free to selected Journal subscribers.

PUMA Rating: 1 [on a scale of 1 to 4, 4 being highest]

Reviewed by: Dana Blankenhorn, 5/19/89

Summary: JournalPhone is a news service delivered to touchtone
phones.

REVIEW
------
"The Wall Street Journal," looking for new ways to sell us
news, now wants to put it in our telephones with JournalPhone, an
audiotex service it's test-marketing in Atlanta to selected
newspaper subscribers.

To use it, you dial a local number -- 404-365-4949 -- and enter
numbers from your touch-tone phone corresponding to different
types of news. We tried the Atlanta Corporate Report, from the
paper's own Dowphone service, and found one longish [2 minute]
story on it -- a day-old report on troubles with the American-
Delta sponsored Sabre merger, totally lacking in background and
overwritten. We tried the World News Report and got a one-minute
summary of the Chinese student demonstrators' battle. Again,
JournalPhone was way behind the story, and didn't have news
easily found on TV about a crackdown against the protestors and
the resignation of Premier Zhao Ziyang.

The heart of the service should be its Stockquote Hotline, which
can give you current sales prices of any stock you want to know
about. Unfortunately, trying to compress 26 letters onto a 10-key
pad is hopelessly muddled -- you need a two-letter code to enter
any letter, so the symbol for Coca-Cola, which trades under KO,
comes out as 5263. Not easy to memorize. Or local computer
services firm National Data, which trades under NDTA, becomes
62318121 with StockPhone -- and don't forget the * key when
you're done.

Generally, JournalPhone needs work. Fortunately, Dow-Jones has
money to work with it.

PUMA RATING
-----------
PERFORMANCE: 1. Slow and cumbersome.

USEFULNESS: 1. Unless you have just a few stocks to follow.

MANUAL: 4. It's a two-page set of codes, so the service
really is easy to use.

AVAILABILITY:1. Limited to selected "Wall Street Journal"
subscribers in Atlanta. May be rolled-out nationwide.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890519/Press Contact: Dorothea Coccoli Palsho, The
Wall Street Journal, P.O. Box 300, Princeton, NJ 08543)


(REVIEW)(IBM)(TOR)(00001)

Review of: MAGELLAN

Runs on: Any MS-DOS PC with 512K RAM and hard disk

From: Lotus Development Corp., 55 Cambridge Pkwy., Cambridge,
Mass. 02142, 617-577-8500

Price: U.S.$195 [Introductory $139 until June 30]

PUMA Rating: 3.5 [on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest]

Reviewed by: Grant Buckler, 6/17/89

SUMMARY: Magellan's reason for being is the increasing size of
hard disks. It finds files containing specified information, and
it makes tidying up the clutter on your hard disk a little easier
than in DOS.

REVIEW
------
Many people who have not used computers expect to sit down at a
keyboard, ask a question, and have the computer tell them
everything they always wanted to know about whatever. We know it
doesn't work that way. Lotus Development's Magellan sets out to
make the reality just a little closer to that science-fiction
image -- and, at the same time, to put another piece of software
bearing the Lotus name on everybody-and-her-brother's PC.

If your PC has a large hard disk, you can store lots of
information but the problem is to find it. Magellan does that for
you. Its most useful feature is "Explore." You specify a piece of
information such as the phrase "French Revolution." Magellan
finds every file on your disk that contains the words "French
Revolution" or the word "French" or the word "Revolution." It
also rates them according to how well they match your criteria.
The rating is a percentage: in this case, the percentage of the
words in the file that are "French Revolution." Your search can
also be constrained by file location or type. You can restrict
it to a particular directory, for instance, or look only at
WordPerfect files.

This full-text searching is Magellan's primary function, but it
does a few other things too. It incorporates some file management
commands, including move, copy and rename functions that are more
flexible than those built into DOS. You can also search file
names. Unlike a DOS DIR command, Magellan's filename search will
find your file regardless of which directory it's in.

When you find the file you want, Magellan can also "launch" it
for you -- load the file and the application program that goes
with it. Apple Macintosh users are used to being able to double-
click on a data file and have the relevant application start up
automatically; Magellan brings that capability to DOS.

Magellan uses about a megabyte of your hard disk. Since you don't
need the program unless you have a sizeable hard disk, that
shouldn't be a problem. It needs 512K bytes of memory to operate.
The basic functions are very easy to understand, but reading the
manual rewards you by revealing a few features that aren't
obvious at first glance.

PUMA RATINGS
--------------
PERFORMANCE: 3. Magellan finds and sorts files reasonably fast,
largely because it takes a bit of time to build an index of your
disk when you install it. File management operations like moving
and copying are tolerably but not spectacularly speedy.

USEFULNESS: 3. If you don't have a big hard disk, you probably
don't need Magellan. But big hard disks are the way of the
future, so some day you will need it. This program will not
change your life, and you probably won't use it every day, but it
will often come in very handy.

MANUALS: 4. The organization of Magellan's manuals could be a
model for most software: first straightforward instructions on
installing the software, then a brief but comprehensive tutorial,
then an alphabetical reference to functions. Lotus also includes
a Quick Launch booklet for the impatient, and an Idea Book to
help users explore the program's potential.

AVAILABILITY: 4. Your local computer store is unlikely to have
missed this one.

(Grant Buckler/19890613/Press Contact: Susan Jensen, Lotus
Development, 617-577-8500)


(REVIEW)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00001)

Review of: SMARTMAX fax/phone autoswitch device

From: MaxTrek, 2000 Powell Street, Suite 1290, Emeryville, Ca.
94608, 800-445-4451 or 415-658-1162.

Price: $245

PUMA rating: 4 [on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest]

Reviewed by: Wendy Woods, 6/15/89

Summary: SMARTMAX is a low-cost switchboard device which automatically
distinguishes between fax and voice calls, and routes each to either a
fax machine or an answering machine/phone.

REVIEW
------
Every once in a while a product comes along that is so good, I
just have to shout about it. The Smartmax is one such device. Like
millions of small businesses, I don't want to install a dedicated
phone line just for my fax machine. I want something to route
incoming calls to my answering machine/phone, or the fax machine,
automatically, so that I can use the same line for both. Smartmax
does that.

The SmartMax unit offers two sockets in back where the fax and the
telephone/answering machine are plugged in. The unit is then plugged
into the wall. In a series of tests performed at the Newsbytes office,
callers voice-phoning our office were routed directly to our answering
machine with no delay whatsoever, ditto for the fax machine. The way
this works is very simple -- there is an electronic tone that issues
from a fax machine on connect. If the Smartmax hears it, the call goes
to the fax machine. If it doesn't, the signal goes to the phone/answering
machine device.

Another beauty of this device is it allows you to manually transfer
calls to either device. Inotherwords, if a fax call is detected and
instead, you want to pick up the call on the phone line, you just
push the "transfer" button and the call is routed to the other
device.

Only once did we have a problem. That was when a caller used a
fax machine with a speaker phone to call us before sending a fax.
The SmartMax, not hearing the initial fax tone, routed the call
to the answering machine, where our caller was caught in a dead-
end. Without someone to manually push the "transfer" switch, the
call would consistently dead-end to the answering machine, not the
fax machine. Had she allowed the fax machine to call directly,
without listening for the fax "tone" on her own phone/fax, the
call would have been routed properly.

The SmartMax is G2, G3 and G4 fax-compatible.

PUMA Ratings
------------
PERFORMANCE: 4.

USEFULNESS: 4. Would get a 5 if there was such a rating.

MANUAL: 4. Not much need for one, but the one provided is simple and well
written.

AVAILABILITY: 4. Order direct from the company on this toll-free
number in the US: 800-445-4451 or 415-658-1162.

(Wendy Woods/19890615)


(REVIEW)(IBM)(BRU)(00001)

Review of: VENTURA PUBLISHER 2.0

Runs on: IBM PC/XT/AT and compatible systems with at least 512K

From: Xerox Corporation, 360 North Sepulveda Blvd, L2-11, El
Segundo, CA 90245, United States, 1/800/445-5554

Price: $795

PUMA Rating: 3.9 [Very high - maximum is 4.0]

Reviewed by: Peter Vekinis, 6/5/89

Summary: Ventura Publisher is THE desktop publishing program for
PCs and related systems. Release 2.0 is the latest version of the
program and is an improvement on the almost perfect 1.1 release.

REVIEW
--------
Installation:
VP 2.0 is a big professional program. It is supplied on 26
diskettes. Included with VP is Bitstream's Fontware which
gives you the opportunity to develop your own fonts. VP is supplied
with either Swiss [Helvetica] or Dutch [Times Roman] as standard.

To install VP on a system you need at least 512K [although 640K is
the minimum], one hard disk and a printer. After a quick and painless
installation, you have created a subdirectory called VENTURA on the
disk which contains the various files. You have also created a
subdirectory called TYPESET which has the working files, such as the
VP examples. In the process of installation, the program is configured
by the operator. VP needs to know the type of mouse you use, the
graphics adapter installed and the type of the printer.

You can select more than one printer, and the program will load the
fonts needed into the working disk. I installed VP for both the
Epson and the HP Laser Jet printers. In contrast with other
programs, Ventura does wonders on Epson printers which can produce
professional print-outs, although slower than the LaserJet.

Operation:
VP is a gem to operate. The program offers a multitude of options
and a variety of improvements over version 1.1. The size of the
document can be large. As VP 2.0 swaps the file from the disk to
memory, your document can be larger than before [I work with
documents sized at 180K]. The documents can increase even
further with the professional extension to 32MB. Also, the speed of
operations has decreased in this release.

You can now read many more file formats than previously possible
in either image, graphic or text mode. You can now produce multicolor
mechanicals for typesetters, and capture images with other products,
such as PixelPop, and use them in professional graphics engines, such
as Scitex machines. Text can be rotated in four directions and aligned
vertically. Halftones can be generated for picture processing,
WordPerfect 5.0 documents can be loaded, fractions are available,
there are new help screens and high resolution screen fonts.

Although you can print excellent documents on Epson printers, the
process is painfully slow. Newsbytes printed editions take four hours to
print on the Epson against 20 minutes on the LaserJet.

Manuals:
Ventura Publisher is supplied with five manuals: Quick reference guide,
Training Guide, Workbook, which includes examples of VP's applications,
VP Reference manual, VP Professional extension guide, and
numerous other registration documents and booklets. All of the VP
manuals are written by professionals and are easy to understand. The
Training guide is extremely important for those who would like to
learn about VP.

Professional Extension:
VP Professional Extension is an optional package which includes
EMS support for large documents, a hyphenation dictionary,
cross referencing automatically generated, variable insertion,
equations, tables, and vertical justification.

With PE, VP becomes a very powerful product. It needs a lot of
memory however [640K recommended plus 2MB of EMS memory].

PUMA Ratings
--------------
Performance:3.9. Excellent performance for fast [at least 12MHz
systems]. Should offer magazine support in next version.

Usefulness: 4.0.

Manuals:  4.0. Well-written, informative manuals including a
training guide.

Availability: 4.0. VP is available through dealers and
distributors. VP 2.0 costs $795 and the Professional extension
costs $495.

(Peter Vekinis/19890604/Press Contact: Xerox Corporation, 800/445-
5554)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SFO)(00001)

GENIE CUTS PRIME TIME RATES IN HALF EFFECTIVE MAY 1
ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- GEnie will cut rates
in half as of May 1, taking the cost of prime time access [between
8 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday] at 300 and 1200 baud to
$18/hour from $35/hour, and lowering the cost of 2400 baud access
to $18 from $42.50/hour.

Additionally, GEnie, General Electric's information service, will
lower the 2400 baud rate for non-prime time access to $10 from
$12.50 per hour. 300 baud access will stay at $5/hour. The only
rate hike affects 1200 baud non-prime sign-ons, which will increase
from $5 to $6/hour.

Says GEnie General Manager Bill Louden, "We are especially
pleased that our rapid growth since 1985 has allowed us to make
these significant reductions in the prime time rates and in the
2400 baud non-prime rates.....These new rates make us an even
stronger player in the consumer online industry."

The GEnie service is available via local access numbers throughout
the United States, and in selected cities in Canada and Japan.
Information for U.S. subscribers can be had by calling 1-800-638-9636.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Steve Haracznak, GEnie, 301-340-
4494)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LAX)(00002)

MODEM AWARDED FOR 25 GIGABYTE UPLOAD
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 1 (NB) -- The Consumer and
Business Network BBS has awarded the prizes in its contest to upload
the most ARC and ZIP files. The contest was held from January 1 to
March 31, 1989. First place prize of a US Robotics 2400-bps [bits
per second] modem will go to Randall Braverman who uploaded a total
of 25,450,680 kilobytes to the BBS. Second through fifth place
efforts won annual subscriptions to a major computer magazine. The
winners were Andy Omori, Derrick Burgess, Mike Olsen, and Richard
Solis.

In addition to Newsbytes, the Consumer and Business Network, Fidonet
member [102/921], offers options called Business Information, Classified
Ads, ECHO Mail, Government Publications, Macintosh Files, Messages
and Mail, On Line Shopping, Real Estate, Westlink Ham Radio, USA
Today, and ZIP Files [IBM]. The BBS' telephone number is 818-360-4679.

(Wayne Yacco/198904)


(EXCLUSIVE)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00003)

CNN HEADLINE FACTOIDS RESULT OF ONLINE SEARCHING
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- As part of his
complete redesign of CNN Headline News, John Petrovich decided to
insert what he calls "factoids" into each 30-minute newscast.
Some examples: "Only one-third of people feel good about the
level of respect they get at work." "Only one in five husbands
regularly cook the evening meal." They come to the viewer without
references or context. Says Petrovich, "We have everything
referenced" but "there's no room on the page to put it."

Petrovich buys potential factoids by the hundreds from
information broker Aaron/Smith Associates, Atlanta, then has his
staff rewrite the best. "The service provides us with facts and
references. A lot of them come from trade associations and
statistical booklets." Polls in magazines like "Glamour" and
"Working Mother" are also used a lot. Before calling Aaron-Smith,
Petrovich says he tried to get factoids from the wire services
but neither AP nor UPI were producing what he needed.

Rob Aaron, president of Aaron/Smith, showed Newsbytes the "quick
and dirty" method he was using for the first few weeks of his
firm's factoid contract. He searched two online files, the PR
Newswire and BusinessWire. On Dialog, Aaron looked for words like
"statistic? and "survey?" over one month, last January, then went
through the 400-odd headlines that search revealed, downloading
stories that might looked like they might contain factoids, and
printing the results using Borland Sprint. Later, at home, he'd
circle good factoid material and, in the morning, create a list
of potential factoids. His list for April 4 ran 10 pages.

Aaron's long-term plan includes contacting often-quoted trade
associations, and buying oft-quoted books or magazines to feed
television's voracious appetite of 56 factoids per week. His
factoids will also go into a database for later retrieval. And he
added what he called a great idea for CNN. He could make up
absolutely ridiculous statements, or "fictoids," and CNN could
offer two audiotex 900-numbers, like 900-ItsTrue or 900-IsFalse.
Results of the tallies could be read on the air to see it
Americans can tell truth from falsity. "Factoid or Fictoid" could
become the next Trivial Pursuit, Aaron suggested.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Rob Aaron,
404-330-2100)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00004)

SOUTHWESTERN BELL JOINS THE GATEWAY RACE IN HOUSTON
HOUSTON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 4 (NB) -- Following Bell Atlantic, but just
preceding NYNEX and Southern Bell, Southwestern Bell has opened its
electronic gateway in Houston.

The voice segment of the gateway, called QuickSource, requires a
touchtone phone to choose from a spoken menu of services.
The video segment of the gateway, called SourceLine, can be
accessed by a PC or Minitel-compatible Videotel terminal.

QuickSource and SourceLine are opening with over 100 information
services addressing the mass market, according to Ray Mashburn,
Southwestern Bell gateway director. "Size makes this gateway
stand out," Mashburn said. "All it takes is a touchtone phone
to reach QuickSource, and there are a million customers using
them in Houston. The combined Videotel users and personal
computer owners add up to a potential 60,000 customers for
SourceLine." There is no subscription fee for either gateway.
Southwestern Bell is renting terminals for SourceLine at $10 per
month, and there's no access fee for PC users.

A Bell spokesman told Newsbytes the videotex gateway went live
March 21, the voice gateway April 3. You must be inside the
Houston free calling zone to get the service. The QuickSource
number is 323-2000. U.S. Videotel is the gateway operator on the
data side, Audio Information Sciences on the voice side. A
massive direct mail drop was done recently in Houston to
encourage people to call a phone number and get the Minitel
emulation software free, for PCs and the Macintosh. After 12
months in Houston, Southwestern Bell will take another look at
the gateway business, and will carefully watch who uses it, how
much, and for what.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Bill Motchan,
Southwestern Bell, 314-247-461)


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

DA SYSTEMS SIGNS UP CIGNET
CAMPBELL, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- DA Systems Inc.
signed up Chautauqua Communications of Seattle's new CIGnet
electronic mail and computer conferencing service. That means
CIGnet users can send electronic mail to any of the three million
people worldwide who use electronic mail systems linked by the
DASnet Inter-System Electronic Mail Service. Susan Valdez, who
runs CIGNet, told Newsbytes her service will also be joined to
the Japan Talk conference now running on seven online services in the
U.S. and Japan. "We run Caucus as well as a full-text database of
information on the conferences called Personal Librarian," she
added.

DASnet will automatically distribute each entry from CIGnet's
Japan Talk conference to the other participating conference
systems, and CIGnet will receive copies of their entries as well.
This technology results in one "parallel" conference which can
include computer conference systems worldwide.

Chautauqua Communications, located in Seattle, provides
consultation and a host system for computer conferencing,
customized full-text databases, international electronic mail,
and group writing applications. CIGnet is intended as a group-
work toolbox, designed to the customer's specifications.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Susan Valdez,
Chautauqua Communications, 206/937-0515)


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

BELL OPERATING COMPANIES SHOULD BE FREE, SAYS BELL SURVEY
WASHINGTON, D.C,. U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Most Americans
probably don't know a lot about the Bell divestiture agreement,
but the seven Bell companies gathered their opinions anyway to
buttress their case that they should be allowed to make and sell
anything they want. Surprise, 58 percent said Congress should consider
lifting the restrictions placed on the bells in the 1984
divestiture pact now overseen by Judge Harold Greene. Greene said
in court last year that, if the Bells were freed from the
agreement's restraints, they might engage in predatory pricing
and roll over competitors with profits from their phone
monopolies. Ed Reilly, president of Kennan Research of New York
City, which took the poll, summarized it this way. " Consumers
want as many choices as possible."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Beverly McClure,
BellSouth, 404-249-2831)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00007)

AT&T BEGINS U.S. LABOR'S BIGGEST NEGOTIATION OF 1989
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- It might be the
current equivalent of the Big Steel talks 40 years ago. AT&T has
begun discussing new contracts with its unions, the Communications
Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical
Workers. The CWA and IBEW have joined forces for the first time
this year, hoping to restore cost-of-living adjustments to their
contracts, which are due to expire midnight May 28.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00008)

PATRICK ERA AT FCC ENDS WITH A BANG OF DEREGULATION
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- The reign of Dennis
Patrick as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission is
ending as soon as a successor is confirmed. Patrick's resignation
letter to President Bush, reported April 6, follows by one week
decisions to deregulate AT&T's rate-of-return in favor of a
price cap, and a decision letting Bell holding companies develop
databases for toll-free 800 lines. The original 1984 divestiture
agreement has kept the Bells out of computer software and
database vending, but the FCC agreed that the gain of improved
toll-free sales support was worth the move.

Patrick was appointed chairman of the FCC by Ronald Reagan in
1986, and may be best known for his failed campaigns to tone-down
TV by threatening stations broadcasting what he called
"indecency" with license revocations. Among the candidates under
consideration to succeed him are Alfred Sikes, head of the
Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, Sherrie Marshall, a former FCC legislative
affairs director, Andrew Barrett of Illinois' Commerce
Commission, and two Washington lawyers, Susan Wing and James
Smith.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00009)

EXEC-PC BULLETIN BOARD KEEPS DOZENS ONLINE AT ONCE
SHOREHAM, WISCONSIN, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- Many online
services which claim to have thousands of users don't get much
use. If some have a few dozen online at once, it's a miracle.
It's a good night at MNEtwork if four show up to talk. Meanwhile, at
the Exec-PC bulletin board in Shoreham, Wisconsin, 50 people at
once are uploading, downloading, and leaving messages for each
other.

So take these Interactivity Report numbers with a grain of salt.
They claim there are 1.3 million people using online services. If
anything, they claim, their estimates of overall use may be way
high. For the record, they say, CompuServe is #1, with 500,000
members, Dow-Jones is #2, with 275,000, GEnie #3 with 150,000,
and no one else has over 100,000 users. Exec-PC isn't listed.

Bob Mahoney, the sysop of Exec-PC, suggests it's time for a new
definition of size. Forget how many users you claim, he asks. How
many are online, at once, at a standard hour -- say 8 pm on
Sunday, Eastern time? By those lights, Exec-PC is one of the
giants of this industry. He's got hundreds of picture files in PC
Paintbrush, PostScript and Word Perfect, thousands of program
files for Macs, Amigas, and PCs, and, on a recent Sunday night,
over 50 customers lined up at 80 modems. His charge -- $60 per
year.

Exec-PC maintains 80 lines, four of them at 9,600 baud and more on
the way. Besides offering the usual bulletin board functions,
Exec-PC also acts as a clearinghouse for IDC Financial Publishing
of Hartland, Wisconsin. IDC, no relation to International Data
Corp., uploads large files of bank and savings and loan financial
data to Exec-PC at 9,600 baud, and clients download it at their
leisure.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890331)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00010)

NIF DEVELOPS NEW BUSINESS WITH E-MAIL
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- A new communications service
links the beeper or radio pager, known as a pocket bell in Japan,
to computer-based electronic mail for the first time. Computer
network operator NIF, noting that current pocket bell models have
32-digit liquid-crystal displays, asked the pocket bell company
Tokyo Telemessage [TTM] for a link-up. The result combines pager
and e-mail functions.

NIF's NIFTY-Serve electronic mail network can now relay a message
from any of its subscribers to TTM, which will send the message
on to one or more pocket bells. The e-mail system will accept
messages of up to 40 characters in the kana alphabet, figures and
symbols and can send the same message to as many as 10 pocket
bells. The service will replace such annoyances as phone calls to
head office to confirm orders.

NIF, which has 45,000 members, hopes to capture more members and
create demand for its personal computer network business through
this hookup with TTM's 180,000 registered users.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406/Press Contact: NIF, 03-221-0219; TTM,
03-508-1441)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(BRU)(00011)

EUROPEAN TELECOM USERS GETTING QUESTIONS ANSWERED
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1989 APR 06 (NB) -- European data processing
[DP] managers are getting what they want in terms of
telecommunications services, according to an official European
Community [EC] poll.

When asked about the growth in communications, 73 percent
said that their growth in telecoms usage will exceed 5 percent
over the next year while 50 percent placed the growth rate at
10 percent.

Ten percent of the respondents polled said they were sure that
online budgets will be increased by 10 percent and 87 percent
said that their line quality was satisfactory. In addition,
automatic log-ons were used by 73 percent of the poll
respondents, while 84 percent were satisfied with quality of
service from their host systems.

English language online system services should note that the poll
revealed that 52 percent of the data processing managers surveyed
favoured native language databases, while 72 percent said that local
language was necessary for easy training.

(Peter Vekinis/19890406)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00012)

COMPUSERVE READIES FOR A EUROPEAN ROLL-OUT 3RD QTR 1989
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Compuserve, the online system
that broke the 500,000 subscriber mark last month, is heading for
Europe. The Columbus, Ohio-based giant announced last week that
it will team up with two European services - Tele Columbus of
Baden and Radio-Schweiz of Berne, both in Switzerland - to roll
out a European version of Compuserve in the third quarter of '89.

Future plans call for the establishment of a European computer
centre - Compuserve European Information Services [CEIS] - during
the first quarter of 1990, in preparation for a global networking
and messaging system. When complete, Compuserve will link Nifty-
serve in Japan and CEIS in Europe with its own domestic service
in the US to form the world's largest interconnected online
service.

The agreement with the two companies is in two parts. First,
local sales and support of Compuserve is to be offered in the U.K.
and Switzerland, followed by other European countries. Then
follows the development of the European version of Compuserve for
launch in twelve months.

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press & Public Contact: Compuserve
Tel: [US] 614-457-8650)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00013)

U.K. CELLNET CELLPHONE NETWORKS SECTORISES TO INCREASE CAPACITY
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- British Telecom's Cellnet
cellular phone network has completed a UKP 10 million expansion
project that gives congested areas up to 200 percent greater
call capacity. The project, which was completed last week,
involves polarising the radio signals to split existing transmitter
regions [known as cells] into as many as six subcells.

Sectorisation is an expensive option, however, and only used
where all available channels are in use in a given area. In the
U.K., with 600,000 subscribers to cellular phones hooked up, and
2/3,000 more linking up each week, the network is heavily
overloaded in London and the South East.

Short of limiting subscriber usage in the South East by hiking
pricing through the roof, BT saw sectorisation as the only viable
option, despite the fact that no-one had installed a sectorised
system on a such a wide scale before.

The result has been a dramatic improvement in cellular network
capacity in the South East of the U.K. for Cellnet subscribers.
Subscribers to Vodafone [the other U.K. cellular network] are still
left with their old un-sectored network, and are reported to be
looking on enviously.

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press Contact - Cellnet - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00014)

DOWTY ANNOUNCES NEW RANGE OF MODEMS
NEWBURY, ENGLAND, 1989 APR 07 (NB) -- Dowty Information Systems
has launched five new models in its Quattro family of modems. In
addition, the company has announced a smart-card plug-in
cartridge system to allow for software upgrades and the Dowty
Semco high-level security system.

All the new modems feature 300, 1200 and 2400 baud full duplex to
CCITT standards, as well as a 1200/75 baud facility. MNP Class 5
error correction and data compression is also supported. Tone and
pulse dialling with a full Hayes command set is supplied as
standard, allowing access to BT, Mercury and other third-party
telephone services.

The higher models in the Quattro range support V26bis and V29
standards. V26bis allows 2400 and effective 2400 bits per second
[bps] synchronous link over the telephone network. The V29
standard supports effective data transfers of up to 19,200 bps.

Pricing on the new Quattro modems starts at UKP 695, with
smartcard upgrades available from UKP 100 to 250.

(Steve Gold/19890407/Press & Public Contact: Dowty Information
Systems - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00015)

WIRELESS LAN NOVELL-COMPATIBLE, NEEDS NO LICENSE
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Telesystems SLW will
introduce at Comdex/Spring in Chicago a wireless local-area
network that is compatible with Novell software and needs no
license for operation. Wence Zenko, president of Telesystems,
told Newsbytes his company's product is unique because it uses
spread-spectrum transmission, a modulation technique favored for
military covert operations. The military likes spread spectrum
because it is hard to intercept or jam. For the same reasons, it
does not cause radio interference and works well inside buildings
where reflections from walls cause problems with conventional
radio transmission. Because of the freedom from interference, the
Federal Communications Commission in the United States allows
Telesystems' Arlan products to be used without a license.

Telesystems has been selling Arlan 100, an asynchronous wireless
LAN product, since 1986. At Comdex, the company will launch Arlan
400. Arlan 400 uses plug-in interface cards that fit in any IBM
or compatible PC, and works with the popular Novell LAN software.
The wireless LAN has a 200-kilobit capacity, Zenko said. The
interface cards will cost $1,500 in small quantities.

In Canada, the federal Department of Communications has given
experimental approval for Arlan's use. Final regulations on
wireless LANs need government approval, Zenko said.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Linda Pelzer or Wence
Zenko, Telesystems SLW, 416-441-9966)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00016)

CANADA-EUROPE DIGITAL SATELLITE TRANSMISSION CAPACITY BOOSTED
MILL VILLAGE, NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Teleglobe
Canada has doubled the capacity of its digital satellite
transmission facility here, increasing the amount of voice and
data traffic possible between Canada and Europe. The Mill Village
earth station is now compatible with counterpart earth stations
in France and England, and stations in Sweden, Germany and
Switzerland are expected to be upgraded soon. Teleglobe Canada is
the Canadian signatory to the international satellite
organization INTELSAT.

(Grant Buckler/19890403/Press Contact: Philip van Leeuwen,
Teleglobe Canada, 514-289-7481)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00001)

IBM A SLEEPING GIANT, WATCH OUT FOR THE 1990s
LOS ALTOS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- While for the
short term, IBM may appear to be treading water technologically,
in the long term there are major surprises IBM has in store, according
to International Technology Group, a Los Altos, California-
based independent information service and consulting firm, in a
startling new report called The IBM Directions.

IBM has spent $19 billion in research and development between
1983 and 1988 and over $13 billion of this investment has yet to
appear in any real form in the product line. The money is being
spent to address the fundamental limitations in computer
architecture and technology, according to the report, which was
two years in the making.

Revolutionary products will appear between 1991 and 1996, according to
Robert Simko, in charge of IBM corporate strategy and positioning,
products such as highly advanced 96-bit architecture for
large systems, capable of addressing up to 281 terabytes [trillion
bytes] of single-level storage -- approximately 300 times more
powerful than IBM's current mainframe architecture. Also,
IBM is working on a new concept of system organization that "combines
multiple, functionally specialized processors to achieve levels of
performance that would be impossible with historical forms of
computer architecture."

In addition, says the report, IBM is working to implement
complex system architectures at the chip level and high-bandwidth
architecture, creating an infrastructure capable of massively
greater and more complex information traffic -- to the tune of
100 megabytes per second to multiple gigabytes per second.

There is also work in the area of high-level interfaces, systems
to integrate data, text, graphics, image, voice, and video,
gallium arsenide chip technology, optoelectronics, and RISC [reduced
instruction set computer] technology.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: R. Simko, ITG, 415-941-2433)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00002)

WORKGROUP COMPUTING TO BE WORTH $40 BILLION IN FIVE YEARS
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Why is "groupware"
the latest buzzword in industry circles? Because it's worth an
estimated $40 billion by 1995, according to a survey done by
Market Intelligence Research Company. The $1,495 report, based
on extensive telephone interviews and secondary sources, says the
U.S. will get about $20 billion of the total world revenues
for departmental workgroup multiuser computer systems, and
Europe and Japan will get the rest. The multiuser systems are
used for office automation, graphics, and database management,
among other tasks. The biggest users of these systems will be
financial services, government and military agencies, the medical,
engineering, and scientific communities.

(Wendy Woods/19890407/Press Contact: Anna Laurita, MIRC, 415-961-9000)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00003)

CD-ROM EXTENSIONS SUPPORT INTERLEAVED AUDIO
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 28 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation [NASDAQ: MSFT] announced Microsoft MS-DOS CD-ROM
Extensions version 2.1 at its Fourth Annual CD-ROM Conference.
Version 2.1 includes support for interleaved audio in CD-ROM XA
applications, compatibility with DOS version 4.0, and the ability to
share CD-ROM drives on a LAN [local area network] server supporting
Microsoft Networks.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: Sarah Charf, 206-882-8080)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00004)

NETWORKED ENCYCLOPEDIA ON CD-ROM
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Encyclopedia
Britannica and Education Systems Corp. [ESC] have unveiled a
CD-ROM-based, networked version of Compton's which ESC will market
to schools. Compton's MultiMedia Encyclopedia, offers multiple
computer workstations simultaneous access to each of more than 5,000
Compton's articles with more than 12,000 images, including maps,
charts, graphs and pictures. Articles are also enhanced with color,
animation and sound. A search-and-retrieval system gives users
access to data by keyword search or through image browsing.

The encyclopedia is one of two interactive products which comprise
the Discovery Learning System. The system also includes
Explorations in Middle School Science, a series of interactive
science-lab simulations. Many of the experiments are impractical to
perform in a classroom otherwise.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Education Systems Corp., Mary
Claire Scanlon, [phone], [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00005)

SEMATECH PRODUCES FIRST CHIPS
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Sematech has processed the
first group of wafers its new facility since the consortium moved to
its Austin location April 15, 1988. Processing was completed March
28, three days early.

The processing facility for computer chips with circuit elements
1/100th the width of a human hair, was dedicated on Nov. 15, 1988.
Yields from the first batches have been much higher than expected.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: Sematech, Deborah Cipolla, 512-
356-3492)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00006)

MOTOROLA SELLING 50 MHZ VERSION OF ITS 68030 PROCESSOR
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 5 (NB) -- In the years after a chip is
introduced, their makers learn to make faster and faster versions
so users can get incremental speed increases while waiting for
the next major upgrade. That's the background behind Motorola's
announcement that it's now selling a 50 megahertz version of its
68030, or 030, microprocessor.

Motorola noted its new chip's clock speed is faster than both
standard chips and the RISC [reduced instruction set computer] chips
used in engineering workstations. Motorola rated the chips processing
speed at 12 million instructions per second, not as fast as Motorola's
own RISC chips but faster than other standard processors, and said
it's made with a new technology which lets it make a chip in just
one micron of space. The new 030 is the direct descendent of the
68000 processor first introduced by Motorola in 1979.

The new chip is only available in sample quantities, at $650 per
chip, until the third quarter of this year. Prices are expected
to drop as volume increases.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890407/Press Contact: Cunningham
Communications, 408-559-1386)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00007)

A TRULY PHOTONIC DISK COULD EMERGE IN TWO YEARS
ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- A new compact
disk [CD] which works in a manner similar to a wireless microphone,
on which you write information with an ultraviolet light and read it
with infrared, is in the works at Optex. The Rockville, Maryland start-up,
which was spun out of Quantex Company, also continues research in the
light-sensitive material for the Pentagon.

A light-sensitive CD would have a big advantage over today's disks,
where a heat source burns or pits the surface, and a laser beam
reads the bumps. Even the best read-write versions of the current disks
become useless as the metal in them fatigues.

Optex, headed by inventor Joseph Lindmayer, is now negotiating
for venture financing which will let it build a prototype drive
and a pilot disk-making plant over the next 18 months, as Manager
of Business Development Laurie Barris told Newsbytes. She
confirmed Lindmayer's complaints, printed in "The Washington
Post," that Japanese companies are more interested in investing
in the technology than American companies.

"We're not changing the medium. We're not making bumps on it.
That's why we can get 100 million cycles out of the media --
others will fatigue from heating and reheating she explains.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19890403)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00008)

FUJITSU GEARS UP TO DEVELOP FASTEST SUPERCOMPUTER
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Fujitsu has started developing
the world's fastest parallel-processing supercomputer, with a
capacity of 16 billion floating point operations per second [16
GIGAFLOPS]. Fujitsu will connect four of its four-GIGAFLOPS
VP2600s, the world's fastest single-processor supercomputers,
using the results of research on a high-speed calculation system
for scientific technology conducted by Japan's Ministry of
International Trade and Industry.

Meanwhile, NEC is said to be developing a one-central processing
unit [CPU] supercomputer with power equal to or exceeding that of Fujitsu's
VP2600, and also capable of having four CPUs connected to form a
multiprocessor machine.

The United States currently has the largest share of the world
supercomputer market. But these new Fujitsu and NEC products
could change the picture drastically.

(Ken Takahashi/19890406)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TOR)(00009)

COLOR COPIER HAS MOUNTIES WORRIED
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- Canon's color
copiers are like a license to print money. Not for the vendor,
for the users. According to Business Week magazine, the high-end
laser copiers produce such accurate reproductions they can be
used to counterfeit money. The magazine says the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police are maintaining a list of buyers of the Canon
copiers. Apparently one user has already been caught copying
Canadian currency with one of the machines, and was charged. A
Canon Canada employee said his company has talked with the RCMP
about the machines, and would cooperate with the national police
force's efforts to control counterfeiting by copier. He could not
confirm the existence of a list of buyers. Most purchasers of the
copiers, which cost about C$50,000, are print shops.

(Grant Buckler/19890407)


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

IMAGING CENTER'S VERSATILITY BELIEVED UNIQUE
HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- A new computer
imaging center at Dalhousie University is the first of its kind
in Canada and possibly in North America, said Phil Gagnon, the
center's director. The center will allow computer users at the
university or off campus to send graphics files, in a wide
variety of formats, to a central facility where they can be
printed or turned into slides. Personal computers will transmit
files over phone lines to a Digital Equipment VAX minicomputer,
which will produce slides or output graphics on a color thermal
printer. Initially the system can only handle files from IBM and
compatible PCs, but the center plans to add support for the Apple
Macintosh shortly. Gagnon said the center will serve not only
Dalhousie but other users, particularly other universities in
Nova Scotia and neighboring provinces.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Phil Gagnon, Dalhousie
University, 902-424-3726)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SIN)(00011)

SINGAPORE COMPANY DEVELOPS NEW SEMICONDUCTOR MOULDING MACHINE
SINGAPORE, S.E. ASIA, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- Advanced Semiconductor
Automation [ASA] claims its new Auto Moulding System ASA 808
automatic semiconductor moulding machine leads the world in
productivity and quality control. Developed for an American
company at a cost of around $500,000, the computer-based system
is used in the encapsulation process of integrated circuit [IC]
manufacture. Bonded ICs are capped with plastic and formed into
moulded strips. After trimming, the strips are packed into
containers for use by automated assembly machines.

Jimmy Chew, managing director, said the ASA 808 is unique in
moulding eight IC strips at the same time. If one strip is
faulty, work stops on that strip alone while the other seven are
completed. In most such systems, any fault would stop production
of all strips in process. The ASA 808's self-diagnostic software
displays all errors detected and keeps product loss to less than
50 pieces per million. The system is priced at about $400,000.

Specializing in designing and manufacturing automated systems,
ASA was established in 1987 to support an associated company,
Microfits & Methods, which manufactures IC moulds. Earlier this
year, it announced the ASA 800, which cost some $250,000 to
develop, partially funded by a grant from the Economic
Development Board of Singapore. The ASA 800 produces two IC
strips per cycle, and costs about $225,000.

Total sales of the two models are forecast at around $7.5 million
this year, with the United States and Malaysia as the principal
markets. Already, tentative orders have reached $5 million. Later
this month ASA plans to move into a new 930-square-meter factory,
about three times the size of its present facility. ASA expects
its total staff to increase to around 50, up 10 from the current
strength.

(Michael Worsley/19890403/Press Contact: Jimmy Chew, Advanced
Semiconductor Automation, [65] 748.7664)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00001)

AD PRODUCTION MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE DEBUTS
CULVER CITY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- Information
International, Inc. [triple-I; NASDAQ: IINT], has introduced the Ad
Manager advertisement production management system. Ad Manager's
Unix-based production support modules provide control over
advertising workflow in an electronic environment. System modules
include Ad-Stack Monitor, Ad Auditor, Ad Reporter and AD Tracker.
The integrated product was unveiled at the American Newspaper Layout
Managers Association [ANLOMA] conference in Phoenix.

Ad-Stack Monitor works in conjunction with either an automated
advertising layout system--such as triple-I's Layout ADvisor, SCS's
Layout 8000, SII Layout, or Atex Architect--or manual advertising
layouts to monitor the status of all advertisements for a given
product. Up to the limit of the layout system's capacity, a product
may be a complete newspaper edition, a section, or a zone, and
multiple products can be monitored. Advertisements are
automatically associated with completed news pages and scheduled for
full-page recording by Ad Monitor.

Ad Auditor analyzes the advertising makeup process, continuously and
transparently collecting data on workstation functions.

Ad Reporter--scheduled for mid-year release--will provide an
administrative tool with access to the production database through
query-by-example. Its reports can be generated for the screen or
hard copy.

Ad Tracker--scheduled for release late in the year--will follow the
physical progress, and provide the location, of advertisements as
they move through the production cycle. The module obtains data
from bar code and/or badge reader stations placed strategically
around a newspaper plant.

All modules are built around triple-I's Sun-based display Ad makeup
Station [AMS/2] and have a standard, window-driven interface.

(Wayne Yacco/19890406/Press Contact: 213-390-8611)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00002)

TI CLAIMS SPEED ADVANTAGE
AUSTIN, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- New Texas Instruments
[NYSE: TXN] 1500 computers, based on the 68030 microprocessor,
outperform competing models from major manufacturers by as much as
177 percent, according to recent Neal Nelson's Business Benchmark
tests said an announcement from the Texas computer vendor.

According to TI, their 1520 computer was tested against other
comparable systems using Neal Nelson's Business Benchmark Test 1,
which measures a "normal" mix of calculation and disk input/output
to indicate overall system performance.

The results of these tests show the TI 1520 ran 27 percent faster
than an NCR 32/850, 66 percent faster than a DEC 6310, 104 percent
faster than a UNISYS 5000-95, and 177 percent faster than a Hewlett-
Packard 9000-840. The roughly equivalent IBM AS400 model does not
run UNIX software and therefore could not be compared.

TI also said its 1500 computers are the only multiuser systems on
the market which carry a lifetime parts warranty.

(Wayne Yacco/198904/Press Contact: BJW Marketing for Texas
Instruments, Cindy Smith, 512-250-7984)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00003)

YHP LAUNCHES NEW HP-UX VERSIONS
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 30 (NB) -- Yokogawa Hewlett Packard has
begun marketing two new versions of its HP-UX operating system.
HP-UX 6.5 has been developed for the HP9000 engineering
workstation, series 300 and HP-UX 3.1 for the Series 800.

The Common X Interface [CXI], part of OSF/Motif and the user
interface developed for the X Window System, is bundled with both
new versions. The CXI contains three important elements. The 3D
appearance will provide menus in three dimensions on the display,
3HP Window will provide almost the same environment as
Microsoft's Presentation Manager for OS/2, and the HP CXI tool
kit will be used in developing applications for OSF/Motif.

The new HP-UX releases are based on AT&T's System V Release 3 of
Unix and support functions of the Berkeley Software
Distribution version. They comply with the X/Open portability
guide version 2. The systems are also bundled with Native
Language Support, the language support function developed by HP,
and Sun's Network File System.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406/Press Contact: Yokogawa Hewlett Packard,
03-335-8177)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00004)

FUJITSU AND HITACHI AIM UNIX SUPERCOMPUTERS OVERSEAS
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 MAR 31 (NB) -- Two Japanese computer giants,
Hitachi and Fujitsu, have revealed plans to develop the United
States and European supercomputer markets.

Hitachi will adopt OSF/1, the Open Software Foundation's
developing Unix-based operating system, for its supercomputers.
The company has experience doing business overseas, but it
recently purchased U.S-based National Advanced Systems and will
soon control a large portion of the West German company Comparex.

Meanwhile, Fujitsu has disclosed a plan to supply its latest
supercomputer, the VP2000 series, on an original equipment
manufacturer [OEM] basis to West Germany's Siemens, which will
distribute the products throughout Western Europe. Fujitsu hopes
to sell 15 to 20 of the supercomputers within four years, more
than double its sales to Europe in the past. Fujitsu's
distributor in the United States, Amdahl Corp., will receive the
VP2000 on an OEM basis in addition to systems Amdahl already
sells. In Australia, Fujitsu will sell the machines under its own
name.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TYO)(00005)

NCR JAPAN HOPES TO EXPAND BUSINESS THROUGH CONNECTIVITY
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1989 APR 3 (NB) -- NCR Japan will use the network
control functions of its Tower series of minicomputers to connect
with general-purpose mainframes and personal computers from
different vendors.

The Tower's Unix operating system will handle differences in
networking architecture. The minicomputer supports IBM's System
Network Architecture [SNA], Fujitsu Network Architecture and
Hitachi Network Architecture. It also supports the IBM PS/55
series and NEC PC-9800 series personal computers, allowing them
to function almost the same as dedicated terminals.

Between them, these three firms control nearly 80 percent of the
Japanese mainframe market. The ability to connect to their
hardware should expand NCR's business, especially in the
financial and distribution sectors.

(Naoyuki Yazawa/19890406)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(TOR)(00006)

NEXT STOP CANADA FOR STEVE JOBS' WORKSTATION
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1989 APR 7 (NB) -- BusinessLand Canada
already has several NeXT workstations. The Canadian subsidiary of
U.S.-based BusinessLand, which recently announced a deal with
Apple founder Steve Jobs' new venture, will feature the high-
powered, Unix-based workstation that starts June 9. Bob
Henderson, vice-president and general manager of BusinessLand
Canada, said the workstation will probably be available from
BusinessLand's Toronto location "well before that." A Canadian
retail price has not been set yet, but BusinessLand's U.S. parent
has set a retail price of $9,995. Allowing for currency exchange
and Canadian federal sales tax, this is likely to translate into
a Canadian price between C$13,000 and C$13,500.

(Grant Buckler/19890407/Press Contact: Bob Henderson,
BusinessLand Canada, 416-470-7077)


(EDITORIAL)(GENERAL)(LAX)(00001)

WYSIWYG - Wayne Yacco's Gazette

THE MONSTER THAT ATE CHICAGO
BURBANK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A, 1989 APR 8 (NB) -- COMDEX starts this
week. It's the Spring COMDEX of course--not the big one in Las
Vegas that many exhibitors and dealers think of as the national
event.

More and more, people think of this COMDEX as a large regional show.
It has the conferences and many of the largest vendors but there are
differences.

I noticed one of these differences last week when I opened my mail.
Here we were, just a week before COMDEX, and instead of seeing the
flow of announcements slow to a trickle, I found the normal piles of
mail. Before the Fall show, almost everyone holds announcements for
several weeks so they can be made in Las Vegas. That's where the
news becomes an attraction to the dealers and press that attend,
that's where the coverage is. News dries up the first weeks of
November.

It's not that there won't be plenty of new products, important
products, announced in Chicago. It's just that so many vendors,
especially smaller ones, don't announce there -- or even attend.

What's the cause? Oddly enough, it seems likely that the reason
that the Spring COMDEX, and most other general events, are only
perceived as regional attractions, may be the phenomenal success of
the Fall program. Fall COMDEX is growing to the point that it is
becoming the only show that everyone wants to attend. That makes it
still more desirable from the standpoint of the exhibitors. And
that makes it even more desirable to those who attend. Its a
profitable cycle.

Spring COMDEX will probably suffer as a result. But it suffers less
than most other shows. At least it can attract regional interest
from dealers who wouldn't make the trip west. Regional shows in the
Los Angeles area are all but dead. Not one of the regular shows in
the area amounts to more than a flea market. Some of the special
events like the Egghead Eggzibition and the Macintosh Business Expo
have a narrow enough focus to put on a good show. But there are no
successful general shows here. Corpcom all but died earlier this
year. Although its promoters claim it will have a resurgence next
year, that remains to be seen.

Of course, the Interface Group is determined to have two national
shows. But is it really working out that way? Not according to
most of the people with whom I'm talking. Yet, Interface puts in
the effort. It still produces a show daily.

In contrast, H. A. Bruno won't have a paper at its Atlanta-based
Citex this year. It is admittedly a regional show. It's regional
and it's just a few weeks after the Chicago COMDEX. My guess is that
it will owe a measure of whatever success it achieves as much to the
weakening effect Fall COMDEX has on Spring COMDEX as to its own
regional attraction.

There's just one more thing I want to consider here about the demise
of regional computer shows. Once there was the potential to
differentiate an event by the class of buyer that attended: dealers,
corporate buyers, end users, etc. Today, though, the user goes to
COMDEX in ever greater numbers -- as the guest of his dealer.

So the monster that ate Chicago isn't the Spring COMDEX, it's Fall
COMDEX. And if Chicago isn't completely digested, Los Angeles has
certainly been reduced to bare bones. San Francisco no longer has a
strong general show. It will be a testimony to its perseverance if
even PC Expo can continue in New York.

Copyright (C) 1989 Wayne A. Yacco.

(Wayne Yacco/19890407)