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/1990/nb900419

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(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00001)

MICRO-BOUTIQUE COMES TO TORONTO}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Micro-Boutique
Business Centres, the major Apple dealer in the province of
Quebec, has opened a location in downtown Toronto.

Said to control some 60 percent of the Macintosh market in
Montreal, Canada's second-largest city, Micro-Boutique has three
locations there and one in Sherbrooke, Que. The Toronto operation
is the beginning of an expansion into the rest of Canada, Harry
Wakefield, director of marketing, told Newsbytes.

Micro-Boutique emphasizes the expertise of its highly-trained
staff, for whom the company has coined the term "humanware." This
is the third pillar of computer sales, along with hardware and
software, Wakefield said. At the Toronto opening, Micro Boutique
introduced specialists in computer-aided design, desktop
publishing, connectivity and networking, productivity
applications and multimedia.

Describing the 1990s as a decade of opportunity for Apple and for
Micro-Boutique, the company's president, Phrixo Tsakpinoglou,
said his goal is to make Micro Boutique "the Apple store in
Toronto."

Micro-Boutique became an authorized Apple dealer in 1983, and
last year logged sales of C$40 million. Welcoming the company to
Toronto, Peter Jones, vice-president of sales for Apple Canada
said the company has succeeded by focusing on vertical markets.
"We have been extremely pleased with our relationship with Micro-
Boutique over the years," he said.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Dave Welling, Micro-
Boutique, 416-365-3184)


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

NEW FOR MACINTOSH: File Force from Acius}
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Acius
has released File Force, a general-purpose relational file manager
for Macintosh computers with the simplicity of basic file managers
but the power and sophistication of high-end relational databases,
according to the company.

File Force is the brainchild of Laurent Ribardiere, who also wrote
4th Dimension 2.0 (from Acius). In designing File Force, Ribardiere
automated the tasks users need most; for example, the relational
capabilities available as options in 4th Dimension are completely
automatic in File Force. Automatic record locking and multiuser
transactions management are also built into the new program. Other
features include a forms generator with layout and drawing tools;
data validation tools; a quick report editor; 14 example databases
and a library of custom icons, control panels, borders, and patterns.

File Force sells for $395. For more information, call 408/262-4444.

(Computer Currents/19900417)


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

NEW FOR MACINTOSH: Timbuktu 3.1 From Farallon}
EMERYVILLE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Farallon
Computing has released version 3.1 of Timbuktu, its network software
for screen sharing and file transfer.

The new version lets users observe and control numerous Mac computers
at once, in multiple, resizable windows that are updated "live,"
regardless of which window is selected and active. Point-to-point
file transfer speeds have also been increased three to seven times
over version 3.0, according to the company.

The new release also features a guest menu and faster file transfer.

Timbuktu for one Macintosh sells for $149; a 30-Mac package is
$1,995. Volume pricing for sites with more than 100 users is
available. Upgrades will be mailed for free to registered Timbuktu
3.0 users. New user's guides can be purchased directly from Farallon
for $10. Registered users of version 2.0 can upgrade to 3.1 for $50
for the initial package plus $5 for each additional serial number.

(Computer Currents/19900417)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00005)

AUSTRALIAN MACWORLD "APRIL-FOOLS" READERS}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 APRIL 17 (NB) -- Monthly Australian Mac
magazine, Macworld caused not some little confusion among its
readers with an elaborate April fool's day article. Titled
"Toffee Mac," the story explained how most Macs can be sped-up by
a factor of up to 50 times by doping the processor chip with
candy to create a superconducting layer.

The story explained that a process worker in the Singapore Apple
factory accidentally mixed a box of chocolates with a batch of
motherboards in production, and said nothing about the accident.
The result was a batch of Macs which reached the market,
potentially able to outperform almost any other computer.

Speed improvements quoted are: room temperature, 3 times; Mac in
basement, 6 times; Mac packed in ice, 30 times, Mac placed in
deep freeze, 800 times.

The article includes instructions for do-it-yourself doping,
using commercially available candy - melted Mars bars poured over
the mother board. These instructions were supposedly (but not)
written by this reporter, and were complete with his address and
phone number. Suffice to say the instructions were also a joke,
as was the advice to ring Apples Australian PR manager for
further details.

Macworld is, at this moment, awaiting the first damages action
for a ruined computer.

(Paul Zucker/19900418/Contact: Australian Macworld, Editor Osmund
Iversen [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00003)

HYPERTEC WINS AUSTRALIAN EXPORT AWARD}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 APR 12 (NB) -- The 1989 Australian
British Chamber of Commerce [ABCC] New South Wales [NSW] Small
Business Award for Export Initiative and Innovation has been
awarded to Hypertec, an Australian PC enhancement board builder.

Hypertec has been exporting to the United Kingdom [UK] since
1988, and with earnings from projected UK sales amounting to
AUS10.3M for 1990. It is expected that the company's UK sales
will pass domestic sales in 1992.

The award is aimed at highlighting exceptional efforts made by
Australian Small Business in bringing around a resurgence of
exports to the UK. The ABCC assists businesses in Australia and
Britain to make successful export contacts in Australia and
Britain. The main criteria used in determining the winner of the
award were: the opening of new markets in Britain, exporting
products which reflect current trends in Australian design and
development and innovative marketing and sales techniques.

(Sean McNamara/19900418/Contact:David Cunneen, phone in Australia
[phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00001)

ZENITH AND GROUPE BULL AGREE ON PURCHASE PRICE}
GLENVIEW, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1990 APR 16 (NB) --  Zenith Electronics
Corp. has announced that it has reached final agreement with Paris-based
Groupe Bull on the purchase price for the sale of Zenith's computer
products business to Groupe Bull. Under the terms of the agreement,
Zenith will receive an additional payment of $15 million (plus interest
from Dec. 28, 1989) -- a figure that brings the total purchase price to to
about $511 million.

The additional payment was a result of on-going negotiation betweens the
two firms. Groupe Bull, who paid Zenith $496.4 million on Dec. 28, 1989
when the sale was announced, later claimed that post-closing adjustments
should result in a refund from Zenith of approximately $49 million.
Zenith, on the other hand, concluded that Groupe Bull still owed it an
additional payment. If the companies had been unable to reach agreement
by negotiation, the matter would have been submitted to arbitration, a
process that would have been costly to both and uncertain in outcome.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418/Press Contact: John
Taylor, Zenith, 708-391-8181)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00005)

CONTROL DATA CHAIRMAN TO STEP DOWN}
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A.,1990 APR 16 (NB) -- Control
Data Chairman of the Board Robert M. Price has announced that he will
not stand for re-election and will announce his resignation at the board's
annual meeting to be held May 2.

This decision, a reversal of Price's previously stated plans,
comes at a time that the firm is under criticism for the amount
of the severance package that the 59-year-old Price will receive.

The severance package, valued at over $5 million, calls for a payment of
$1.35 million in each of the next three years for what was originally to be
a consulting arrangement but was yesterday referred to by a Control Data
spokesperson as part of the separation arrangement. Another Control Data
spokesperson added: "We may call on him from time to time."

Criticism from employees and Minneapolis area groups has focused on the
fact that under Price's leadership in the 1980s, Control Data lost
of hundreds of millions of dollars and laid off thousands of employees. A
business columnist for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune was quoted as
characterizing the payments to Price, previously retired founder
William C. Norris and Vice Chairman Norbert Berg as "obscene piles of
cash." Norris received nearly $9 million to held finance a private
institute while Berg left with a $3.2 million lump-sum payment, stock,
an annuity and a leased car.

Commenting on his decision, Price said: "Control Data has been through a
tumultuous period.  For the past decade, the computer industry has
undergone fundamental and irreversible change.  For many enterprises,
that has been fatal.  For Control Data, the task of reshaping the company so
that it has the potential for future profitability and growth has been long,
difficult and painful.  It is clear that, under current circumstances, my
decision to withdraw from active management at this time is best for the
company.  I have had the privilege of helping build an enterprise which is a
source of pride to our community, to the state of Minnesota and all of us
who have been a part of it. What I most deeply wish is that this may be true
for current and future employees as well."

Control Data President Lawrence Perlman, who earlier this year replaced
Price as CEO, was quoted as saying: "Bob Price has served Control Data
with commitment and loyalty for almost 30 years. He has many
contributions yet to make to the community in the areas of quality and of
educational and technology policy."

It was announced by Control Data spokespersons that no replacement for
Price as chairman will be announced at this time and that the size of the
board of directors will be reduced to 10 at the annual meeting.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418/Press Contact:
Linda J. Jadwin, Control Data, 612-853-7472)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(NYC)(00007)

CONTROL DATA SELLS TICKETRON}
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A.,1990 APR 17 (NB) -- A new
international partnership, The Ticketron Limited Partnership, today
announced that it has purchased Ticketron, the automated ticketing and
reservation system, from Control Data Corporation.

The new firm is comprised of Centre Group LP  of Landover, MD
and the Carlyle Group, a Washington, D.C private merchant banking firm
as general partners and Ogden Allied Service Corp. of New York and
London's Wembley Group as limited partners.

Peter Jablow, the firm's new chief executive officer, announced that the
company will open an office in Atlanta, GA in early June, bringing the number
of North American regional offices to 19. The firm is also expected to
install a new computerized ticketing system in September utilizing its own
customized software running on Control Data's Cyber 900 series of super
computers.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(HKG)(00003)

3COM OPENS REGIONAL OFFICE IN TAIPEI}
TAIPEI, TAIWAN, 1990 APR 16 (NB) -- Networking systems specialist
3Com has established a Northern Asia sales and support office in
Taiwan, following the opening of its first Asian office in Hong Kong
last August.

District Manager Northern Asia, James Liu, says 3Com is the first
international networking company to set up a permanent representation
in Taiwan.

In addition to sales personnel, the Taipei office will have support
engineers to assist 3Com's locally-based distributors. The company
has also organized a series of seminars for customers, starting on
May 1.

Liu says 3Com offers one-stop shopping which allows governments,
universities and businesses to purchase their complete network
systems from one source. "Taiwan represents one of the fastest
growing markets in Asia for networking products because of the
country's strong international ties and the new 3Com office has been
set up in anticipation of that growth".

(Norman Wingrove/19900418/Press Contact: William Messer, 3Com,
+ 852 529 0356 ext 316)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LON)(00002)

PHILIPS SECURES G10 MILLION ORDER FROM WEST GERMANY}
EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS, 1990 APR 18 (NB) -- Philips
Gloeilampendfabriken has secured a major order from Praxis
medical clinic in Heidelberg, West Germany. Terms of the
contract, which is worth ten million Dutch guilders, call for the
electronics giant to supply computerised imaging equipment.

Philips also stands to gain from parallel orders from the West
German health service. The company is participating in a
feasibility study to determine the prospects for a picture
achieving and communications system at the clinic.

(Steve Gold/19900418)


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

AST TO DISTRIBUTE IN MEXICO THROUGH SIGA}
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- AST Research has
signed a distribution agreement with SIGA Corporativo, SA of
Mexico City authorizing that company to distribute AST's complete
line of personal computers and board-level enhancement products
throughout Mexico.

According to Safi Qureshey, AST's president and CEO, the
agreement is a continuation of AST's movement into international
markets that currently account for some 35 percent of the
company's sales. He noted that the agreement follows the recent
opening of the Mexican computer market to foreign vendors
resulting from an easing of import restrictions on computers and
computer components.

SIGA Corp. is a subsidiary of Grupo SIGA that was established in
1989 to function solely as an importer and distributor of AST
products. The parent company is a privately held company
specializing in manufacture, distribution and marketing of
computer products.

(Janet Endrijonas/19900418/Press Contact: Joel C. Don, AST
Research, 714-727-7957)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00004)

TOSHIBA AUSTRALIA INFO SYSTS REPORTS 70 PERCENT RISE IN REVENUE}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 APR 12 (NB) -- Going against general
trends in the PC market, Toshiba [Aust] Information Systems
division has increased pre-tax revenue from AUS$58.8M to AUS$101M
for the fiscal year ended Mar. 31. Not only has Toshiba
increased revenue but market share is up to 46.6 percent from
38.1 percent six months ago.

Toshiba's major goal, according to recently appointed General
Manager Kim Hamilton, "is to become the number one PC vendor in
Australia within two years."  Hamilton also highly praised staff
at Toshiba - each of the 83 employees earned for the company, on
average, AUS$1.2M. "I don't know of any other company in
Australia which can show results like those. Our people are
highly motivated and have a clear understanding of where the
market is heading," Hamilton said.

(Sean McNamara/19900418/Contact:Caroline New, phone in Australia
[phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00003)

DATAPRODUCTS FINDS BUYERS FOR THE COMPANY}
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 16 (NB) --  Hitachi
Koki, Ltd., and Nissei Sangyo Co., have jointly announced with
Dataproducts that the companies have signed a definitive merger
agreement under which the two Japanese firms will acquire
Dataproducts for $10 per share in cash through a joint venture
corporation formed expressly for purposes of this acquisition.

Under the agreement, the joint venture corporation will begin a
cash tender offer for all of the outstanding common stock of
Dataproducts to be followed by a merger in which all remaining
shares will be acquired at the same cash price. The total amount
to be paid to Dataproducts stockholders is about $160 million.
The transaction has already been approved by the Dataproducts
board of directors.

Dataproducts, a printer manufacturer, has been seeking a
strategic alliance of this sort for some time. According to Jack
C. Davis, chairman of the board, president and CEO of
Dataproducts, this deal should enable the company to build for
the future without the distractions that followed in the wake of
last year's takeover activities.He added in his published
statement: "We are confident that linking up with Hitachi Koki
and Nissei Sangyo, with their financial resources, engineering
and world-wide marketing capabilities, will greatly help
Dataproducts' future growth."

(Janet Endrijonas/19900418/Press Contact: Jack C. Davis,
Dataproducts, 818-887-8355)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00003)

TORONTO DEALER PLANS MORE SUPERCENTRES}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 11 (NB) -- BusinessWorld, a
Toronto-based computer dealer, plans at least two more
SuperCentre stores like the one it opened in Toronto in December.

Karl Anto, BusinessWorld's director of marketing, told Newsbytes
the company will open an office in Montreal early this summer,
and "the store should follow quite quickly." A Vancouver
SuperCentre is expected to open late in 1990, he said. The
company is currently scouting real estate in both cities.

The Toronto SuperCentre cover more than 6,700 square feet and
handles more than 1,200 different computer products. Among the
lines BusinessWorld handles are Epson, Zenith, Toshiba, Lotus,
Borland and Ashton-Tate. In March, 1989, Microsoft Canada revoked
BusinessWorld's authorization, accusing the company of selling
software to grey-market dealers.

BusinessWorld expects its sales to exceed C$70 million in fiscal
1990.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Karl Anto, BusinessWorld,
416-792-7330)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00006)

MICROSOFT CANADA HAS NEW BOSS}
MISSISSAUGA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Patty
Stonesifer is the new general manager of Microsoft Canada.

Stonesifer spoke with Newsbytes briefly during her first day on
the job. She moves up from Microsoft's Redmond, WA
headquarters, where she was general manager of Microsoft Press,
to take the post vacated by Malcolm MacTaggart, who resigned
early in April after five years with the company. Stonesifer said
she is currently living out of suitcases in a hotel room while
making plans to move her family to the Toronto area.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Microsoft Canada, 416-673-
9811)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00009)

RICHMOND SOFTWARE SIGNS MASTER DISTRIBUTOR FOR EUROPE}
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1990 APR 5 (NB) -- Richmond
Software of Vancouver has signed The Westex Group of Vancouver
and Antwerp as its European master distributor.

Westex will establish agreements with distributors in all
European countries. Tom O'Flaherty, president of Richmond
Software, told Newsbytes that could include Eastern Europe,
though he said he had "no idea what the potential is" in those
rapidly liberalizing countries. Richmond has "sold the odd
product" in Europe in the past, O'Flaherty said, but has not had
a major marketing effort there.

The Maximizer is a contact management package aimed primarily at
sales people. It runs on IBM and compatible personal computers.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Janette Peters, Richmond
Software, 604-299-2121)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00001)

SANTA CRUZ SHOP FIRST TO OFFER VENTURA KERNING}
SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Metro
Typography is the first typesetting service in the U.S. to provide
enhanced kerning capabilities to users of Ventura Publisher.

Kerning is the automatic spacing of a pair of letters closer together
in order to create visually consistent spacing between all letters.

According to Metro Typography, typesetting services traditionally
have only run files, limiting users to the capabilities of their
desktop publishing packages. Metro said they transferred the
kerning information from their front-end system to Ventura
Publisher width tables, enabling users to produce the same
high-quality type produced on Metro's in-house system (including
access to 1,400 fonts).

Metro Typography offers file processing services for as low as
$3 per page.

For more information, call 408/429-1969.

(Computer Currents/19900417)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00004)

COMPUTER PRESS ASSOCIATION HOLDS ANNUAL AWARDS LUNCHEON}
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- The Computer
Press Association, at a luncheon held at New York's Ritz Carlton
Hotel, announced its fifth annual award winners for excellence in
computer-related journalism. The awards, co-sponsored by Citizen
America Corp., were determined by panels of judges who reviewed more
than 800 entries in 19 categories.

Awards were presented to:
BEST NEWS STORY IN GENERAL INTEREST PUBLICATION
Winner:  Jonathan B. Levine, Neil Gross and John Carey, "Is the U.S.
Selling its High-Tech Soul to Japan?" -- Business Week
Runner Up:  M. Mitchell Waldrop, "Flying the Electric Skies" -- Science
Magazine
Runner Up:  M. Mitchell Waldrop, "PARC Brings Adam Smith to
Computing" -- Science Magazine
BEST NEWS STORY IN COMPUTER PUBLICATION
Winner:  Bruce Caldwell, "Washington's Revolving Door Crisis"--
Information Week
Runner Up:  Scott Mace, "Bugs Uncovered in dBase IV's SQL" --
InfoWorld
BEST FEATURE IN COMPUTER PUBLICATION
Winner:  Dennis Livingston, "Federal Systems Integration" -- Systems
Integration
Runner Up: Ron Levine, "Dispelling Disaster" -- Dec Professional
Runner Up:  Thomas Defanti and Bruce McCormick, "Visualization:
Expanding Scientific & Engineering Research Opportunities" -- IEEE
Computer
BEST FEATURE IN GENERAL INTEREST PUBLICATION
Winner:  Brenton R. Schlender, "How Steve Jobs Linked Up with IBM" --
Fortune
Runner Up:  Keay Davidson, "Computers:  The Sleepy Giant Stirs" -- San
Francisco Examiner
Runner Up:  Brenton R. Schlender, "How to Break the Software Logjam" -
- Fortune
BEST OPINION OR EDITORIAL IN COMPUTER PUBLICATION
Winner:  Paul Somerson, PC/Computing Column
Runner Up:  Carl B. Marbach, Dec Professional
Runner Up:  Paul Somerson, PC/Computing Column
BEST COMPUTER NEWSPAPER, CIRCULATION LESS THAN 50,000
Winner:  Macintosh News
Runner Up:  Electronic World News
Runner Up:  Link-Up
BEST COMPUTER NEWSPAPER, CIRCULATION MORE THAN
50,000
Winner: Computer Systems News
Runner Up:  ComputerWorld
Runner Up: InfoWorld
BEST COMPUTER MAGAZINE, CIRCULATION LESS THAN 50,000
Winner: VARBUSINESS
Runner Up:  MIPS (Magazine of Intelligent Personal Systems)
Runner Up:  Supercomputing Review
BEST COMPUTER MAGAZINE, CIRCULATION
MORE THAN 50,000
Winner:  Personal Computing Magazine
Runner Up: MacWorld Magazine
Runner Up:  PC Magazine
BEST COMPUTER NEWSLETTER
Winner: SOURCEfile, David J. Wendland
Runner Up:  NETLINE, Tim Wilson, Caryn Fox, Paula Hollingsworth
Runner Up:  Release 1.0, Esther Dyson
BEST SOFTWARE PRODUCT REVIEW
Winner:  David Buerger, Tracy Capen, Raphael Needleman and Mary
O'Donnell, "Move Over Netware?" -- InfoWorld
Runner Up: Edward L. Perratore, Henry Fersko-Weiss and Catherine D.
Miller, "Integrated Software Gets it Together" -- PC Magazine
Runner Up:  Jim Seymour "Spreadsheets: The New Look" --
PC/Computing
BEST HARDWARE PRODUCT REVIEW
Winner: Bill Howard and Bruce Brown, "286 Laptops Compute en Route"
-- PC Magazine
Runner Up: Fredric Paul, "Incredible Shrinking Laptops" -- PC/Computing
BEST NON-FICTION COMPUTER BOOK
Winner:  Microsoft CD-Rom Yearbooks 1989-90, Microsoft Press
Runner Up:  Dvorak's Guide to PC Telecommunications, John Dvorak and
Nick Anis
Runner Up: The Data Exchange, Alfred Poor
BEST HOW-TO BOOK
Winner:  Ronnie Shushan and Don Wright, Desktop Publishing by Design
Runner Up: David Rygmyr and Michael Halvorson, Learn BASIC Now
Runner Up:  Van Wolverton, Running MS-DOS, 4th edition
BEST SOFTWARE PRODUCT-SPECIFIC BOOK
Winner:  Cary N. Prague and James E. Hammitt, dBASE IV
PROGRAMMING
Runner Up:  Michael Utvich, The Ventura Publisher Solutions Book
Runner Up:  P.J. Plauger and Jim Brodie, Standard C Programmer's
Quick Reference
BEST HARDWARE PRODUCT-SPECIFIC BOOK
Winner: Neil J. Salkind, The Big Mac Book
BEST COMPUTER COLUMNIST
Winner:  John Dvorak, PC Magazine
Runner Up:  Deborah Branscum, MacWorld Magazine
Runner Up:  Bill Machrone, PC Magazine
BEST TELEVISION PROGRAM
Winner: ABC News Business World, "High Tech into the 1990s", Gary
Kaye
Runner Up: The Computer Chronicles, Sara O'Brien, Stewart Cheifet,
Patrick Moyroud
BEST ON-LINE PUBLICATION
Winner:  The Well
Runner Up:  Newsbytes News Network
Runner Up:  Report from the Consumer Electronics Show

The Computer Press Association will begin to solicit entries for its
awards for excellence during 1990 in November of this year.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418/Press Contact:
Holly Padove, Horizon Communications, 805-466-5955)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00006)

LOTUS AND NYNEX ANNOUNCE PRODUCT ALLIANCE}
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- NYNEX and Lotus
Development have announced to creation of an alliance to integrate
NYNEX's broadband data communication technologies with Lotus' personal
computer client/server applications.

The implementation of this effort will be the integration of NYNEX's SMDS
(Switched Multimegabit Data Service) offering, currently being tested at
NYNEX's Science & Technology Center, with Lotus Notes, Lotus' newly
released group communications product. It is planned that the first public
showing of Notes working in conjunction with SMDS will be at the Eastern
Communications Forum May 7-11, 1990, in Boston.

Under the terms of the agreement, Lotus and NYNEX will explore joint
marketing research, technical specifications and requirements, and will
conduct joint R&D activities. The companies will also pursue specific
customer opportunities. Commenting on the agreement, Larry Moore,
general manager for Lotus' Communications Products Group said: "We are
delighted to work together with NYNEX by sharing our knowledge base of
PC-based client/server computing. The SMDS service is a major
advancement for client/server computing and for products like Lotus
Notes.  We look forward to the relationship and its availability in 1991."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418/Press Contacts:
Victoria Petrock, NYNEX, 914-644-7245; Sue Jensen of Lotus
Development Corp., 617-577-8500)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(HKG)(00001)

CHINA HIT BY COMPUTER VIRUS EPIDEMIC}
BEIJING, CHINA, 1990 APR 18 (NB) -- The English language newspaper,
China Daily, reports that thousands of computers in China have been
hit by viruses, many of which struck last Friday, Apr. 13.

Industries, offices and universities have fallen victim to the
plague of viruses, among which is the notorious Jerusalem variety,
which has caused havoc in some systems in the West. The other viruses
have not yet been identified, but official warnings are being issued
to all computer users to be vigilant.

Operations at an important coal field are said to have come to a
standstill and the full extent of the damage in other concerns
throughout the vast nation is not known.

Sabotage on a large scale has not been ruled out. The outbreak
coincided with the first anniversary of the death of popular elder
statesman Hu Yao Bang, which sparked last year's democracy protests,
culminating in the Beijing massacre of June 4, and with the
reappearance in Paris of student activist Chai Ling and her husband
after ten months on the run in China.

At the time of the protests last spring, facsimile machines and
personal computers were widely used to disseminate news of events,
not only within China but to and from the outside world.

(Norman Wingrove/19900418)


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

TURKISH COMPUTER CONGRESS SCHEDULED FOR MAY 28}
ANKARA, TURKEY, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- The 7th Annual Turkish
Computer Congress has been slated for May 28-30 in Istanbul,
Turkey.

The Turkish Computer Congress is a forum for Turkish
decision-makers, including the Turkish military, public and
private businesses, and the educational establishment, to
see the latest in technology available to this part of the
world.

Companies participating include IBM Turk, Digital Equipment,
Hewlett-Packard, KOC-Unisys, Oracle, NCR, Nixdorf, Olivetti,
Biltek, Eltek, PTT, Simko, Strabis, TES Computer Marketing,
Yazilim, UTE Computer Systems, TOFAS, Eliar Corporation,
the Turkish Army Komdata, ROMAR, the Middle East Technical
University, and Teksis.

More information on the event can be had by calling show
organizer YA-SA Publishing, Artistic and Cultural Services,
Bilgisayar Magazine, Atac Sokak #21, Yenisehir, Ankara,
Turkey. Phone [phone], fax [phone].

A travel package from the U.S. to the event is being organized
by International Travel Group, 1823 S. Hope Street, Los
Angeles, California 90015. Phone [phone], fax
213-746-8707.

(Wendy Woods/19900417)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00003)

TANDEM FORMS TWO JOINT VENTURE COMPANIES IN EUROPE}
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 18 (NB) -- Tandem Computers has
formed two joint venture companies in Europe with the COS group's
EBB division in Switzerland and EII (Engineering Ingegneria
Informatics) in Italy.

According to Tandem, both the joint ventures will provide
Tandem's corporate customers with project management contract
consulting services for major online application-intensive
projects.

(Steve Gold/19900418)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(HKG)(00004)

NEW PRODUCT: General Automation Intros Wireless Barcode Readers}
SINGAPORE, SOUTH EAST ASIA, 1990 APR 15 (NB) -- General
Automation Singapore (GA) has announced the introduction of a
new line of wireless barcode readers, decoders and terminals
from LXE Inc of Norcross, GA (U.S.A.).

The readers send data by radio from a collection point to a host
computer to assist in the real time tracking of labor, materials and
transactions.

GA says this system gives managers the flexibility to relocate data
collection points wherever needed in minutes without downtime.
Equipment can be moved from shift to shift, across the aisle or to
another side of a plant or warehouse without time-consuming rewiring.

GA's Regional General Managing Director, Carl Parker, says:
"Communications from the LXE wireless products to host computers is
by industry-standard IBM3270 or ASCII protocols instead of hard-wired
proprietary software. They can be integrated into existing hard-wired
systems, or can function within a dedicated network of wireless LXE
products."

(Norman Wingrove/19900418/Press Contact: James Tan, GA,
+ 65 467 785)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TOR)(00005)

MAY BIG MONTH FOR SMART CARDS IN CANADA}
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- The month of May
will see two first-time events related to smart cards in Canada.

On May 1 and 2, the Advanced Card Technology Association of
Canada will hold the Advanced Card Technology Symposium '90 in
Winnipeg. The event is the first of its kind in Western Canada,
the association said.

The program includes a keynote address from Guy Peyronnet of the
French government, on public policy implications of smart cards.
There will also be technology overview and applications sessions,
and exhibits by a variety of vendors. Further information is
available from the Advanced Card Technology Association of Canada
at 416-925-2488.

The first Canadian international seminar on smart card
applications will be held May 22-24 in Montreal. The conference
organizers, Steria Canada of Montreal, say the conference will
include exhibits by smart card manufacturers from around the
world, and presentations dealing with practical applications.

The Province of Quebec's communications ministry and Desjardins
Group of Montreal are sponsoring the three-day conference.
Simultaneous French/English and English/French translation
services will be available. Further information is available from
Steria Canada at 514-875-6265.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Advanced Card Technology
Association of Canada, 416-925-2488; Steria Canada, 514-875-6265)


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

ATARI TAIWAN CHARGED WITH SOFTWARE PIRACY}
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) --Atari's Taiwan
subsidiary and Pacific Electric Wire and Cable Company of Taipei,
one of the country's top manufacturers, have been charged
with copyright infringement by the Business Software Alliance
(BSA), which represents leading personal computer software
companies.

The alliance, backed by Lotus, Ashton-Tate, and other top American
software firms, charges that the firms have engaged in unauthorized
copying of copyrighted software in their business operations, a practice
BSA believes to be widespread in Taiwan.

The software that is the subject of legal action includes Ashton-Tate
dBASE III Plus database management software and Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet
software.

Criminal proceedings have been started in Taiwan for suspected
copyright infringement by the two large companies in Taipei. BSA
said that an additional company was also the subject of a similar legal
action in Taiwan and that further actions are planned.

In a news conference linking Washington and Taipei by satellite,
Douglas E. Phillips, president of BSA, spoke from Washington and
Harry Yu, chairman of the ROC Software Industry Association, spoke
from Taipei. They both emphasized the importance to Taiwan industry
of ensuring that only authorized, original software is distributed and
used in Taiwan.

The companies were the targets of surprise court-ordered searches
conducted by Taiwan police, accompanied by BSA's lawyers and computer
experts, where "significant numbers of software copies which BSA believes
to be unauthorized" were confiscated.

Although Phillips did not disclose the specific content of the claims in the
litigation, he did note that the law of Taiwan provides for statutory
damages of 500 times the retail value of the copyrighted works. He
added that both defendants were significant users of software.

None of Atari's officers or spokespersons at its Sunnyvale, California
headquarters would comment on the development at deadline.

(Wendy Woods/19900417/Press Contact: Lori Forte,
Business Software Alliance, 202/737-7060)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LAX)(00001)

ATARI RESPONDS TO BSA CHARGES OF PIRACY AT ATARI-TAIWAN}
SUNNYVALE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 18 (NB) -- Atari has responded
to statements by the Business Software Alliance (BSA) that it had
found several individual copies of Ashton-Tate and Lotus Development
business software programs on PC compatible systems at Atari
Taiwan Manufacturing in Taipei.

In a published statement, Atari President Sam Tramiel stated: "Atari has
a long standing corporate policy against the copying of software and does
not permit unauthorized duplicates of software to be used for corporate
functions or any other purposes. PCs are allowed at the Taiwan plant
for employees' personal use. The Atari Taiwan Manufacturing plant
uses an IBM 360 mainframe computer and MAPICS software along with
Atari ST computers and software for operations and engineering."

Tramiel added: "While we support the ideals of BSA in its endeavor to stop
piracy, we believe that they are misdirected and have blown this matter
completely out of proportion and have failed to fully investigate the
facts or meet with Atari. We are investigating the matter at this moment
and will take such actions as are appropriate but we believe that if
such duplicates were found in the plant, they were the result of
individual employees who did so for their own personal use on their
individual computers and clearly without authorization."

Jack Tramiel, Atari chairman of the board also issued a published
statement in which he said: "It is highly unfortunate that time and
effort are wasted on such a matter when billions of dollars of
revenue are being robbed from American companies each year by mass
producers of pirate software, computers and consumer electronics right
in the middle of Taiwan and the Taiwan government does little to
stop that. Each year Atari loses millions of dollars in revenue due
to pirate video game producers in Taiwan who manufacture exact duplicates
of Atari equipment and sell them the world over, yet that is not the
issue they choose to investigate or take a stand against."

(Janet Endrijonas/19900418/Press Contact: San Tramiel, Atari Corp.,
408-745-2000)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00001)

CORPORATIONS IN AUSTRALIA TO BE INVESTIGATED FOR PIRACY}
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 APR 12 (NB) -- In a further move to
combat software piracy in Australia, the Business Software
Association of Australia [BSAA] is using an international firm of
private investigators to gather evidence of piracy in several
major Australian organizations.

Five organizations are currently being investigated by BSAA and
the Australian Federal Police [AFP]. Quoting figures that showed
that only 33-50% of software used is legally purchased in
Australia, BSAA Chairman Mark Herford said "No industry in a
small, competitive market like Australia can absorb such a loss
and continue to develop and grow".

BSAA has been involved in a six month educational campaign, and
has reported a high number of individuals and organizations who
have made inquiries with BSAA about complying with the law. The
five organizations currently under investigation have
consistently and blatantly breached the Copyright Act, according
to BSAA. If convicted, individuals face fines of up to AUS$50,000
or six months jail, and organizations face fines up to
AUS$250,000 and wide publicity to deter other potential
offenders. Despite all this, "BSAA's primary objective will
always be education and offering help to individuals and
organisations who wish to voluntarily comply with the law" said
Herford

(Sean McNamara/19900418/Contact: Mark Herford, phone in Australia
[phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(NYC)(00002)

NOVELL STOCKHOLDERS SUE OVER NOVELL/LOTUS MERGER}
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1990 APR 15 (NB) --  Lotus
Development and Novell have announced that a law suit has
been filed in the Delaware Court of the Chancery against Novell, its
directors and Lotus on behalf of all Novell stockholders by some existing
stockholders attempting to block the recently announced acquisition of
Novell by Lotus.

The complaint alleges, among other things, that Novell
and its directors breached their fiduciary duty to stockholders in executing
the letter of intent to merge Novell with Lotus, and that Lotus aided and
abetted such breach. The suit seeks an injunction preventing Novell and
Lotus from completing the merger, compelling the Novell directors to
carry out their fiduciary duties and awarding costs and attorneys' fees.

When contacted by Newbytes, Novell would only repeat the comment
attributed to Novell inhouse counsel David Bradford who said: "Novell
and Lotus believe the suit to be without merit and intend to defend it
vigorously."

Commenting on the litigation, Richard Shaffer, publisher of the
Technologic Newsletter, told Newsbytes: "Stockholder lawsuits may be
expected in any type of merger situation and the mere filing of such suits
certainly does not indicate that they will be successful. While it is true that
Hewlett-Packard might have paid more for Novell than Lotus did, it is also
true that they might have paid less and then they would have been the
object of a similar suit." An investment analyst, who preferred to be
unnamed, agreed, telling Newsbytes: "What shareholders have to consider is
whether anyone else would be willing to pay that much for Novell which
may be at its peak facing imminent competition from Microsoft."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418/Press Contact: Heidi
Sinclair, Lotus, 617-225-1364; Jan Johnson, Novell, 801-429-5867)


(EXCLUSIVE)(IBM)(SFO)(00001)

WINDOWS 3.0 SLATED FOR MAY 22 RELEASE}
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- As Microsoft
prepares to unveil the latest incarnation of its Windows product
for MS-DOS machines on May 22, in a multimillion dollar,
multimedia, multi-city roll-out, details about it are
beginning to surface.

The new version of Windows offers several advances over
previous versions, according to Fred Gault, vice president
San Francisco Canyon Company Inc., a Windows and OS/2
Presentation Manager developer.

"One of the most interesting things that Windows (3.0)
is bringing is the ability to handle the 386 processor to
its best advantage," he told Newsbytes. Existing versions
lock the machine to its 640,000-character DOS memory
limit, but the new version doesn't. It will operate in
protected mode, providing access to up to 16 megabytes of
memory for applications and does this through
virtual memory and better memory management.

On the downside, the new Windows is not compatible with
previous versions, and existing Windows applications will
have to be rewritten to run on it.

Many in the industry are remarking on Windows 3.0's
enhanced graphics, going so far as to compare them to the
Macintosh's graphical interface. "In many people's
minds, it looks as elegant as Presentation Manager right
now," says Gault.

He says OS/2 has fewer applications, but is technically
superior in many respects, especially in areas of font
support, true pre-emptive multitasking, and high performance
file systems.

Several manufacturers are said to be preparing versions of
their products for Windows 3.0: Xerox (Ventura Publisher),
Lotus (1-2-3), Ashton-Tate (Applause), Software Publishing
(Professional Write), IBM and Adobe.

(Wendy Woods/19900417)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00001)

INGRAM MICRO D FORMS NEW DIVISION FOR WINDOWS 3}
SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 16 (NB) --  Computer products
distributor Ingram Micro D has announced the formation of a new division
to sell the next generation of software based on Microsoft's Windows 3.0
due to be released next month.

The new division has been named the Windows and Presentation Manager
division and will also seek to distribute products developed under
Presentation Manager OS/2 (operating system).

In a published statement, Ingram Micro D President David R. Dukes said that
the new Windows release will represent a major improvement and he
predicted many DOS users will upgrade to enjoy its benefits. He also
estimated that more than 2,000 software manufacturers are working with
Microsoft to develop products based on Windows 3.0.

(Janet Endrijonas/19900418)


(NEWS)(IBM)(NYC)(00003)

IBM FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS UP}
ARMONK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1990 APR 16 (NB) --  IBM has
announced that earnings for the first quarter of 1990 have exceeded those
amassed in the same period of 1989. The figures released showed that
worldwide revenue was $14.2 billion, up 11.4 percent from the prior
year's $12.7 billion and that net earnings for the period were $1 billion in
1990 compared with $.95 billion in 1989.

The improved net earnings resulted in after-tax profit margin of 7.3
percent compared with 7.5 percent in 1989. and an earnings-per-share of
$1.81 compared with $1.61 in 1989, a 12.4 percent increase. The improved
earnings-per-share was considerable above Wall Street analysts' projections
which had ranged from $1.35 to $1.70 a share and is credited today's 3 3/4
rise in the stock price to $110 7/8.

In announcing the improved earnings, IBM noted that a number of
first quarter product introductions and business developments were
important to its improved profit picture.

IBM Chairman John Akers released a statement on the first quarter results
saying: "Our strategy of listening to our customers and improving the
competitiveness of our products and services is working. We are focusing
our investments to take advantage of the opportunities in our industry, and
we are streamlining our operations while we improve our product line."

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19900418/Press Contact: Peter
W. Thonis, IBM, 914-765-6565.)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00001)

CD-ROM EUROPE '90 SHOW DETAILS}
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1990 APR 18 (NB) -- PLF Communications has
announced it is hosting CD-Rom Europe '90, a three day conference
and exhibition that is billed as Europe's only Europe-wide forum
devoted to CD-Rom (compact disk read only memory).

The show will be held at the London Novotel hotel May 22 through 24,
1990. In 1989, visitors from 13 countries attended the first show
to see a total of 18 exhibitors.

According to PLF, more than 35 exhibitors have booked to attend
the 1990 show, including CD-ROM publishers and distributors from
across Europe and the US. The show is being sponsored by Research
Machines, the UK manufacturer and supplier of computers and CD-
ROM drives to schools and other educational establishments.

(Steve Gold/19900418/Press & Public Contact: Jane West, event
manager, PLF Communications - Tel: 0733¡60535)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00002)

NEW FOR IBM: Kaypro Launches 80386/SX Microcomputer}
SOLANA BEACH, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 16 (NB) --In the
company's continuing march toward regaining market share and
stability, Kaypro has added another product to its KC-2 line of
16 bit microcomputers, the KC-2/SX.

The new unit is a desktop model based on the 80386/SX chip and
can be ordered with either 16 MHz (megahertz) or 20 MHz clock
rates. The unit has 1 MB (megabyte) of RAM (random access memory)
that can be expanded to 8 MB on the motherboard. The basic
configuration includes a 1.2 MB 5.25 inch floppy drive, floppy
drive controller and IDE hard disk interface with 1:1 interleave.
The system also comes with two RS-232 ports and one Centronics-
compatible parallel port.

The 16 MHz system sells for $1,695 and the 20 MHz lists at
$1,745. Each comes with 101 key AT-style keyboard.

(Janet Endrijonas/19900418/Press Contact: Nancy Casey, The
WestCom Group, 619-259-1288)


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

NEW FOR IBM: Letter-Art 6.0 For The Sign Industry}
CORONA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Symbol Graphics
has announced release 6.0 of Letter-Art, PC software designed
specifically for the world's sign industry.

New features available for the new release include inline/outline
manipulation of text and graphics, importing of CAD.DXF, .PLT files,
and scanned images for raster-to-vector conversion. These various
graphic formats can be combined within Letter-Art and merged
with text generated from a selection of over 200 fonts. International
symbols, clip art, and scanned data can be manipulated and sized as
standard Letter-Art entities. Letter-Art 6.0 boasts a 25% faster
run time (font changes occur in a second), and all user menus can
be customized for personal or multilingual applications.

For information about Letter-Art, call 714/735-1622.

(Computer Currents/19900417)


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

NEW FOR IBM: Discoversoft's TreeSaver 1.11}
BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Discoversoft
has released a new version of TreeSaver, a print utility for HP's
LaserJet printers that lets existing software print two or four
pages on one sheet of paper.

TreeSaver 1.11 has a non-resident mode, support for 32 symbol
sets (up from 24), improved network compatibility, and a refined
graphics reduction algorithm.

TreeSaver sells for $89.95; registered users can upgrade to the
new version for $10 directly from Discoversoft. For more
information, call 415/769-2902.

(Computer Currents/19900414)


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

NEW PC: Computer Peripherals' 100-Megabyte Goupil Golf 386}
NEWBURY PARK, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Computer
Peripherals has announced a 100-megabyte version of its Goupil
Golf transportable (both desktop and portable) computer.

Winner of two awards of excellence in Germany, the Goupil Golf
line of computers is manufactured by Computer Peripherals in
cooperation with the leading French microcomputer manufacturer,
SMT Goupil.

The Golf has a 16-MHz (megahertz) 386sx central processing unit
and comes with a 40- or 100-megabyte high-speed hard disk. It has
1 megabyte of memory (expandable to 9 megabytes); an on-board
VGA controller with VGA-resolution, cold-cathode, backlit
supertwist liquid crystal flat screen display; a full-size,
detachable keyboard that includes PS/2 editing keys; an auto-
switching power supply; serial, parallel, mouse, external monitor, and
external drive ports; and DOS 4.01 and manuals.

All of this is packed into a heavy-duty, shock-proof carrying
case, delivered as standard. The 100-megabyte hard disk
enables the Golf to run DOS, OS-2, Unix, and Pick applications and
provides the storage necessary for complex databases. The
hardware also supports passwords through custom menus.

The 100-megabyte Golf 386 SX sells for $7,190, the 40-
megabyte version for $6,495. For more information, call
800/854-7600.

(Computer Currents/19900417)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00002)

IBM CANADA BUYS 10 PERCENT OF DELRINA}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 19 (NB) -- A young Canadian
forms software company is getting a boost in credibility and
capital from IBM Canada.

IBM Canada has bought a 10-percent interest in five-year-old
Delrina, maker of the PerFORM forms processing software for IBM
and compatible personal computers. The purchase builds on
development and marketing agreements. IBM Canada and its parent
in the United States sell PerFORM as part of IBM's Forms
Available When Needed (FAWN) multi-platform software offering.
IBM is also providing development assistance on an OS/2 version
of PerFORM.

Mark Skapinker, president of Delrina, told Newsbytes the deal is
a valuable boost to Delrina's credibility. "The difficulty of
being a fairly new company ... is the lack of credibility," he
said. Now customers need not worry about being left high and dry
if Delrina folds, because the agreement specifies that IBM will
own the software if Delrina disappears.

Delrina has more than 40 employees. Its stock is traded on the
Toronto Stock Exchange, and the major shareholders other than IBM
are Skapinker and two other company executives, Bert Amato and
Dennis Bennie.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Mark Skapinker, Delrina,
416-441-3676)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00004)

CANADIAN DEVELOPER TAKES BACK VP-INFO MARKETING}
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- VP-Info, the
database package formerly sold by Paperback Software, will now be
sold by a company affiliated with its Canadian developer.

Sub Rosa Publishing of Toronto has also launched a shareware
version of the software, called SR-Info. Bernie Melman, president
of Sub Rosa Publishing, said the shareware version has about the
functionality of the first release of VP-Info, though many
changes in a new and more powerful release have been
incorporated. SR-Info is now available on the Canada Remote
Systems BBS in Toronto, and Melman said Sub Rosa will be
distributing it through bulletin board systems across North
America and in Europe.

Sub Rosa Publishing is a spinoff from Sub Rosa of Winnipeg, which
developed the database package. Melman was the chief programmer
on that project. Melman said the company reclaimed marketing
rights from Paperback Software because the California firm,
shaken by Lotus Development's look-and-feel copyright lawsuit
over its VP-Planner spreadsheet program, was unable to market it
effectively.

The commercial VP-Info package is available in a single-user
version for US$150, and in a network version for an unlimited
number of users for US$250, Melman said. More than 32,000 copies
of VP-Info have been sold in the United States, Melman said, and
he estimates another 20,000 have been sold in the rest of the
world.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Bernie Melman, Sub Rosa
Publishing, 416-630-6323)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00008)

AT&T TO SERVICE TOSHIBA LAPTOPS ACROSS CANADA}
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- An agreement
between Toshiba distributor Compuserve and AT&T Canada, under
which AT&T will provide full and extended warranty service on
Toshiba products across Canada, will mean better service for
customers and may lead to other deals between the two companies,
according to Marty Grieve, vice-president of product planning at
Compuserve.

AT&T's field service organization will provide service on Toshiba
laptops, printers and peripheral products. AT&T will also be able
to sell warranty upgrades from offsite to onsite support during
the standard warranty time. The deal will serve customers better
than Compuserve's previous policy of doing the service itself,
Grieve told Newsbytes, because "they (AT&T) just physically have
more locations across Canada."

Grieve said there are no specific plans for other deals with
AT&T, but Compuserve does have other product lines on which AT&T
Canada might provide service.

Compuserve is a Canadian hardware and software distributor not
connected with the Ohio-based online information service
CompuServe.

(Grant Buckler/19900417/Press Contact: Marty Grieve, Compuserve,
416-477-8087)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00001)

AT&T, BELDEN ANNOUNCE JOINT CABLE DEVELOPMENT}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 16 (NB) -- AT&T and the
Belden  Wire & Cable division of Cooper Industries announced a
joint development and marketing agreement on hybrid cable which
combines copper and fiber on the same wire. Their first products
are a coaxial cable replacement called Superlite and the Shielded
Network Solution, a copper-fiber cable for local area networks
in high-security areas. The deal will, over time, allow AT&T to
get out of copper wire entirely. For Belden, which also makes
metal wires for power systems, it's an entree into higher
technology.

The announcement was made at the SuperComm '90 show in Atlanta, a
major event for companies which supply equipment to the nation's
phone companies. At the same press conference where it announced
the Belden deal, AT&T also announced a new fiber splicing system,
CSL LightSplice, as well as a fiber multiplexer and new
networking software under its Unix System V to replace older MS-
DOS solutions. The fiber splicing concept is novel in that it can
handle multiple fiber sizes, and takes just minutes to install.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900416/Press Contact: Wilma Mathews, AT&T,
201-631-6970; Eric Sells, Belden, 317-574-3220)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00002)

GTE DENIES NATIONAL DRIVE TO CHARGE SYSOPS BUSINESS RATES}
IRVING, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- In response to
repeated inquiries, GTE has denied that it plans to force
bulletin board operators (also known as SYSOPS or "system
operators") nationwide to pay business rates for their
phone service, but confirms that its Indiana subsidiary,
GTE North, is doing so. According to spokesman Bob Curtis,
"It's basically a state issue, [although] we aren't
monitoring lines looking for modems" in order to force
higher prices on people.

He adds, "My understanding of the situation from the people I
talked to is we had a tariff in effect last year which we
believed allowed us to charge the bulletin board operators a
business rate. There were questions about whether in fact it did
that. So we went to the commission to seek their clarification on
the matter, and they said that it did, but to clarify ambiguity
we went to clearer language. We looked at some tariffs that other
companies have, and filed the language that has been approved."

Spokesman Curtis confirmed that the clarification went
through the Indiana Public Utility Commission's
engineering department in December. The engineering
department, without a public hearing, approved the changes, and
the commission approved the department's recommendation Jan.
31. System operators in Northern Indiana knew nothing about GTE
North's action until they received notices they would be charged
$20 per month extra per line early in April, 1990.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900417/Press Contact: Indiana Public Utility
Commission, Scott Bell, 317-232-5888; Bob Curtis, GTE, 213-718-
4944)


(EXCLUSIVE)(TELECOM)(MOW)(00002)

MOSCOW: GLOBAL RESEARCH NETWORK OPENS TO EASTERN BLOC}
MOSCOW, U.S.S.R., 1990 APR 11 (NB) -- Eastern Bloc countries
Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, and the U.S.S.R. will be
admitted onto Europe's research network, EARN, a system similar
the U.S.'s Bitnet.

This information comes from Michal Pawlak, a networking expert
from Warsaw, Poland, who says the announcement was made by
Dr. Frode Greisen, president of EARN.

State scientific research facilities will play a leading
role in this project.

Due to communication problems with Poland, Newsbytes was
unable to gather further details at deadline.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19900413)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00003)

NORTHERN TELECOM DEBUTS FIBERWORLD}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- At the SuperComm
show in Atlanta, Northern Telecom debuted the first of what it
calls its FiberWorld line of products. FiberWorld represents
Northern's vision of a world in which every phone line, from
trunks between cities to individual phone lines on your street,
will be made of optical fibers rather than copper.

The first product to emerge from that vision is S/DMS
TransportNode, which moves data at speeds up to 2.488 billion
bits/second under Synchronous Optical Network, or SONET,
standards. The SONET standards are a set of international
standards which should make European and American offerings in
fiber directly competitive over the next few years.

As part of its exhibit, Northern also demonstrated this equipment
working in what it called a SuperHome, using a Switched Digital
Video System to deliver TV pictures in a system that could be
used by local phone companies to compete directly against cable
TV firms, once permission for that is granted by the Federal
Communications Commission.

Perhaps most important, Northern announced a free upgrade program
under which it will install standard ISDN Basic Rate service on
its DMS-100 and DMS SuperNode central office switching systems.
What this means is that currently installed Northern phone
switches will be changed to meet approved digital service
standards under ISDN for free.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900417/Press Contact: Cynthia Williams,
Northern Telecom, 404-661-5307)


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

AUGAT ANNOUNCES AUTOMATED DISTRIBUTING FRAME}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Augat
Communications  announced a new central switch box which lets
telephone companies connect and disconnect numbers unattended for
the first time. According to  Tom Kunst of Seattle, WA-based
Augat Communications Group, "The idea is to eliminate
windshield time. They're looking at this hot and heavy for
Alaska, for offices they rarely get into. It can go into a non-
climate controlled room."

While conventional switches can only connect and disconnect
numbers by workers pulling jumpers, the way old-time telephone
operators would connect and disconnect calls, the Augat Automated
Distributing Frame can handle that work remotely, using an IBM PC
or compatible with a 20 megabyte hard drive, 640,000 bytes of
memory and a Hayes modem. "It has a callback security system,"
Kunst noted, so phone companies need not fear hackers. The worker
calls the switch, inputs the number he's calling from, and then
waits while the switch's security system checks to make sure
that's a valid number and calls back. The complete program is
stored twice, one on chips inside the switch and again on the PC
hard drive. Each box, which is about the size of a refrigerator-
freezer, can handle up to 900 lines. The product is presently
undergoing field trials, and Kunst expects shipments to start in
the summer.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900417/Press Contact: Laura Eusterman
Peterson, Augat Communications, 206-932-8428)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SFO)(00011)

UPDATE: Softklone's Takeover Offers Remote PC Control}
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Softklone
has introduced Takeover, its new PC remote control software
product. Newsbytes wishes to correct some errors in the
Apr. 14 story about this product in this report.

The program enables a user to operate his PC remotely to
perform a wide range of data communications tasks. The product
offers pull-down menus and keyboard or mouse control,
high-speed background file transfer, automatic call-back,
activity log, password checking, chat mode, session recording,
and the ability to disable the host screen or keyboard.

In addition, Takeover includes all the features of Mirror III, the
company's PC communications software.

The basic package includes software for both the guest and the
host machine.

The product costs $139 for current Mirror users through
Dec. 31, 1990. For all others, the price is $295.

(Wendy Woods/19900417/Press Contact: Keith Ackerman,
Softklone, 904-877-9763)


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

OPT FOR FIBER CABLE, SAYS INTEREST GROUP}
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1990 APR 11 (NB) -- A public interest
organization called Opt in America says the U.S. should set the
specific goal of bringing fiber cable to every home as part of
its vision of the future.

Responding to a request by the National Telecommunications and
Information Administration for comment on a plan for the
telecommunications infrastructure due out early next year, Opt
urged that "a parochial debate on process and technique" end.
Instead, the broad goal of bringing fiber cable to the home
should be emphasized, an Opt spokesman told Newsbytes.

"My understanding is that in a few years new home installations
will be fiber," Greg Lipscomb of Opt said. "But that leaves a
huge bulk of homes still wired with copper. New homes go to the
more affluent, and they get an advantage over the less affluent."

Opt doesn't believe faster write-offs of existing copper cable
will be necessary. Instead Opt wants to see increased revenues
allowed through such things as letting phone companies carry
cable TV signals, which is now prohibited.

Opt In America Chairman John Eger, a former CBS executive who was
once White House telecommunications policy director, commented:
"We need a driving vision of where we want to end up. We had that
with telephones, cable and broadcasting. We do not yet have that
with fiber optics."

Of the 94 million American homes, only 15,000 are scheduled to get
fiber cable, and then only on an experimental basis. Meanwhile, Japan
and Europe are moving ahead on fiber optic plans for homes. This is
even more ironic, Opt notes, because fiber is now becoming as
inexpensive as copper.

Left to the current schedule, Opt In America cites sources that
say "it could take 40 years" for Americans to get fiber wiring.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900413/Press Contact: Greg Lipscomb, Opt In
America, 202-659-5212; FAX: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00002)

PACIFIC ISLAND COMMUNITIES NOW LINKED TO THE WORLD VIA SATELLITE}
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- Several Pacific nations
have joined together in an agreement to allow small island
countries to have comprehensive telecommunications services.

Signed in Fiji after three years of negotiations, the Pacific
Cooperative Telecommunications [PACT] network utilizes "Demand
Assigned Multiple Access [DAMA] technology in a way never
previously used anywhere in the world" according to the Group Manager
of Network and Carrier Projects for OTC International.
OTC International is the overseas operations and marketing subsidiary
of OTC Limited, Australia's world-wide communications company.

The network will allow more economical telecommunications links
between the widespread member countries [Cook Islands, Kiribati,
Marshall Islands, Nauru and Australia] to communicate with each
other and the rest of the world, as well as their own remote
communities. This is done through the use of DAMA to allow
countries to be charged only for the satellite time they use,
rather than the previous system of being charged for full-time
access. "The Sydney Satellite Earth Station will act as the
network management center," Masterton said. Other members of the
South Pacific Forum are expected to join PACT in the near future.

(Sean McNamara/19900418/Contact: Jeff Bird, phone in Australia
[phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SYD)(00006)

TIMED LOCAL PHONE CALLS MOOTED AGAIN IN AUSTRALIA}
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1990 APRIL 16 (NB) -- Telecom Australia has
once again hinted at the possibility of introducing time-charged
local phone calls in Australia. At present, calls within city
boundaries (currently as many as 4 million people) are charged at
a flat 21 cents (US 16 cents) for subscribers and 30 cents for
call boxes, for unlimited connection times.

This has led to some situations where de-facto leased lines are
established for little more than the rental on two phones. Users
such as bulletin board operators, companies with dial-up modem
connections and similar, are accused of using services which are
subsidized by typical phone users who only spend and average of
around two minutes per call.

Toll calls in Australia currently cost 57 cents per minute for the
greatest distance (over 745 kilometers), dropping to 38 cents
and 23 cents for night and weekend rates.

The federal government has vowed it won't allow timed local
calls, but Telecom has said it cannot relinquish other, more
profitable areas to third-party operators without increasing
rates on these loss areas.

(Paul Zucker/19900418)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00007)

ALEX SERVICE GETS GO-AHEAD FOR TORONTO}
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 APR 18 (NB) -- Bell Canada's Alex
videotex service has received regulatory approval for a
commercial launch in Toronto at the end of April.

Bell spokeswoman Lynn Francour told Newsbytes the Canadian Radio-
television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) gave formal
approval April 6, and Bell is planning a formal launch on April
30. Alex has operated in Montreal for more than a year.

(Grant Buckler/19900418/Press Contact: Lynn Francour, Bell
Canada, 613-781-3768)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00009)

DOCUMENT CONVERSION FIRM OFFERS 1,600 DOTS-PER-INCH SERVICE}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 9 (NB) -- Computer
Graphics/Atlanta announced it is using Intergraph Scan Data
Capture software to scan, convert and restore drawings at up to
1,600 dots-per-inch, suitable for use in computer-aided design
systems.

CGA says that while many customers use the service because they
don't have such scanning capabilities, others use it because CGA
can get the work back in 40 percent less time than it would take an in-
house unit. Final drawings are given to customers either as a
laser plotted mylar drawing or on magnetic media. Prices range
from $100-2,500 per drawing, depending on complexity and
condition.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900413/Press Contact: R. Wayne Shannon,
Computer Graphics/Atlanta, 404-433-0550


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00010)

21ST CENTURY LIFE PORTRAYED}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 5 (NB) -- In his newest
periodical, "Site World," publisher-futurist McKinley "Mac"
Conway has tried to take on John Naisbitt directly with some bold
predictions of what life will be in the 21st century.

Conway's firm, Conway Data, specializes in publications for executives
involved in corporate facility planning, site selection, and economic
development, but the latest predictions run a little farther afield.
Among Conway's predictions:

 *Separate computer-controlled lanes on all major
expressways for vehicles using robot drivers;

 *Two or more perimeter-like highways around each major
city. Most U.S. cities now have one such road;

 *Weather controlled by science, raising ethical questions
and allowing the disabling of hurricanes and other disasters;

 *Direct links between the human brain and computers,
allowing for uploads of your dying thoughts;

 *Wireless electric power to extend transmission lines and
allow greater flexibility in locating homes and businesses;

 *New techniques to regrow organs in the body instead of
replacing them;

 *Electronic scanners to tell consumers when fruits and
vegetables are ripe;

 *Developments in diet, hormone balances and drugs to
increase the human life span to 110 by the year 2020;

 *The use of sensors to detect personnel for signs of drug
use or disease, replacing urine testing;

 *Alternative energy sources supplying the bulk of human
energy requirements, with petroleum playing a small role;

 *A continuing population explosion forcing governments to
apply strict birth control programs, including penalties on
families which have too many children.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900413/Press Contact: Paul Ryan, Conway Data,
404-446-6996)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(ATL)(00004)

DEC CHIEF OLSEN KEYNOTES PHONE SHOW}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- In a move
indicative of how completely computing has permeated the world of
telephony, Digital Equipment Chairman Ken Olsen was the keynote
speaker for the annual SuperComm show, a major telephone
equipment exhibition which this year was held in Atlanta. He
transfixed his audience, which mainly consisted of executives
from telephone companies and the vendors who serve them directly,
by discussing Unix and the future of software.

"People want transportable software," he said. "The problem
has been solved for a long time," in the discipline of
programmers to write using specific rules. He added that
unfortunately, most software authors lack this discipline,
and Unix won't magically solve their problems. Proprietary
features in operating systems like DEC's VMS and IBM's AS/400
may look desireable, but they lock users in and cost them the
ability to transport their software to other platforms.
"Your choice is not to use those features," he said.

Human interface represents another problem. "It permeates
applications, and if it's not standardized it's a terrible job to
port software from platform to platform," he said. "What is the
solution? It's to follow standards for all external interfaces,
never use features in the operating system you don't need, use
standard languages, and insist that people follow the rules. No
magic word like Unix takes care of that."

Perhaps reflecting his company's continuing warm relationship
with Apple, Olsen also discussed that company's products in light
of the problems in porting software. "When people love an Apple
get them an Apple. You might lose them otherwise. An Apple person
you can't ever change. In our world, computing is what is
important. They in their genius use all the computing in the
human interface. It's a compromise we could never make."

Olsen also had praise for the Japanese telephone giant NTT. "They
invented a word, multi-vendorization. Their goal is to write
standards so any vendor can supply computers that will take any
application written to these standards. They call networking
system interconnection interfacing under standards called OSI
(Open Systems Interconnection). What it means is any database,
or computer, or workstation on the network can share data and
share work. They also specify the human interface. Thus they avoid
the problems of transportability. And there's a style guide,
so when you sit before anyone's workstation you're familiar
with it. I'd encourage all of us to work with them and see
if we can't, as an industry, solve the problems we really have
and not work with just a particular solution."

Olsen concluded, "We're working hard to make Unix work. But
software is not transportable. We're doing System V for
telecommunications, SCO Unix for other industries,
OSF (Open Systems Foundation) for the
rest. The synergy is not there. We have to work as partners to
find a solution."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900417/Press Contact: Jeff Bartman, Digital
Equipment, 508-474-6392)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(ATL)(00004)

DIGITAL MOVES BUSINESS GROUP TO FRANCE}
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1990 APR 17 (NB) -- At the SuperComm
show in Atlanta, Digital Equipment announced that it has
formed a worldwide telecommunications group to serve the entire
field of telephony.  The group will be headquartered in Nice,
France. It's the first time the company has headquartered a
business group away from its main office in Maynard, MA.

According to William R. Johnson, vice president for
telecommunications and networks, "The European location for this
new group reflects the continent's rapidly changing
telecommunications scene and regulatory environment and
underscores the importance of Europe to Digital operations
worldwide." Heading the group will be Ernst Wellhoener, a German
national who joined the company in 1986 after 15 years with IBM.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19900417/Press Contact: Jeff Bartman, Digital
Equipment, 508-474-6392)