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(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BRU)(00001)

AMIGA WORKBENCH ON-SCREEN HELP FROM INNOVAtronics
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- INNOVAtronics of
Dallas has introduced HyperHelper for the Commodore
Amiga. The program offers on-screen help for users of
Workbench, the Amiga Graphical User Interface.

It covers both Workbench 1.3, The version current on the
Amiga 500 and 2000 models, and Workbench 2.0, which is
bundled with the new Amiga 3000 and will be made
available soon for the rest of the range.

When run, the program displays a small window showing a
list of the topics covered. Clicking on one of these
reveals a list of sub-topics. Selecting one gives you a
full explanation, complete with cross-references.

HyperHelper also supports AREXX, the Amiga version of the
mainframe language REXX, which is designed to provide
communication between applications running in the multitasking
operating system of the Amiga.

The package costs $59.95 and will be available from the
beginning of November.

INNOVAtronics also market CanDo, an authoring system
based on cards and stacks, similar to HyperCard on the
Apple Macintosh.

(Peter Jones/19901025/Press contact: INNOVAtronics,
214-340-4991. Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LON)(00002)

UK: ACE SELLS ITS LEX SOFTWARE INTO YUGOSLAVIA
BRENTFORD, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) --Ace
Microsystems, the UK-based software house, has signed a
prestigious sales/distribution agreement with Rimacor Computer.
Terms of the agreement, one of the first of its type, call for
Rimacor to distribute and support Ace's Lex range of office
automation software in Yugoslavia.

Rimacor plans to start selling complete systems based on Lex
and second-hand DEC VAX hardware - immediately. The software sold
in Yugoslavia has been translated into Slavian and Serbo-Croat.
There are also plans for Rimacor to add Czech and Hungarian
versions by the end of 1990.

"We have established a strong association with Ace Microsystems
through our operations in Switzerland over the last year and are
looking to build upon this with our move into Eastern Europe,"
said Edwin Erb, president of Rimacor.

"Lex is an ideal range of software designed to complement the
Digital hardware we supply. Its two distinct advantages lie in
its tailorability, the ability to customize almost every aspect
of its use, and its ease of translation into foreign languages.
Neither Wordperfect nor All-in-1 provides the range of features
and foreign language capabilities offered by Lex," he added.

(Steve Gold/19901025/Press Contact: John Irwin, Ace Microsystems
- Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00003)

AUSTRALIA: 1ST MICROSOFT INSTITUTE SCHOLARSHIP AWARDED
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Patrick Lam, a
student of Sydney Technical College, has been awarded
Australia's first Microsoft Institute of Advanced Software
Technology scholarship, a fund set up to reward promising talent
destined for the computer field.

The scholarship was set up by Microsoft and is awarded to
two top students in C Programming at Sydney and Newcastle
Technical Colleges. According to Professor Vance Gledhill,
director of the Microsoft Institute, "Training is a crucial
part of cultivating a strong software development industry,
and advancing software development skills are severely
lacking in this country. The Microsoft Institute, with
initiatives like the Technical College prize, aims to
redress this."

Microsoft established the Institute in partnership with the
Australian government, and it is run on a non-profit basis.
Any surplus revenue it earns is pooled into the Developers'
Fund, which is used for interest-free loans to local
developers.

(Sean McNamara/19901025/Press Contact: Vance Gledhill,
phone in Australia [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(SYD)(00004)

AUSTRALIA: EXPERT SYSTEM USED FOR VETERAN PENSION QUERIES
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- An expert system
developed by Canberra company, SoftLaw Corp, is being used
by the Department of Veterans Affairs [DVA] to allow staff
of the department to easily access information about
pensions and legislation relevant to veterans affairs.

"The General" is named after Major-General Alan Morrison
(retired) because of his work with the Repatriation
Commission over the last eight years. The system is based
around "Statute," developed by SoftLaw to allow the easy
tracking of legislation and case law.

In collaboration with SoftLaw and the Computer Power Group,
the DVA customized the system to cater to their needs.

The system allows staff to access sections of legislation,
case law, departmental rules, rates of pensions, and fringe
benefits, and works under Windows 3.0. According to the
Minister for Veterans' Affairs, Mr Humphreys, the system
"will mean greater certainty, less red tape, and simpler
forms for veterans and their families to fill in when
claiming pensions or benefits." The Department of Social
Security and the Australian Taxation Office are in the
process of developing applications based around the Statute
system, and Canada's veterans affairs administrators and
New Zealand's accident compensation authorities have also
expressed an interest in the system.

(Sean McNamara/19901027)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00005)

AUSTRALIA: NEW LAB TO TEST PRODUCTS FOR EASE OF USE
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- A laboratory to test
computer equipment and software (amongst other computer-
related products) for the level of ease of use is to be
established in Sydney early next year.

The laboratory, to be set-up by Products Usability Testing
Service [PUTS], will allow the installation of equipment to
be tested, and it will then be used by operators of various
levels of expertise to determine the ease of learning and
ease of use for the product. Brian Spilsbury, a member of
the team involved in PUTS, said, "The idea of a usability lab is
to test a product out with real users in a simulated environment
and make sure it's going to work before it's put onto market.
Usage of the system is recorded on video and audio equipment,
and any problems are presented to developers in an audio-visual report.

PUTS developed the testing scheme using the in-house
testing facilities available at large corporations in
Sydney. Spilsbury said PUTS expected the main users to be
banking and financial institutions, who will use the lab to
test equipment including automatic teller machines, teller
terminals and computer networks.

(Sean McNamara/19901027)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(SYD)(00006)

AUSTRALIA: STATE GOVERNMENT SELLS HI TECH LICENCE
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- The state
Government of Victoria in Australia has decided to sell a
high technology license, which comes with funding, to Ramtron
for the development of Ramtron's FRAM (ferroelectric random access
memory) technology. The government is shying away from
venture-capital projects and wants to find a better home for its
government-funded research.

The FRAM technology was developed in Australia, but is now
largely held by Ramtron in the US. The original technology
applies to gallium arsenide circuitry, and the license for
sale is for research into a silicon version.

The Victorian State government had a policy of funding
high-risk technology "sunrise" projects, but far too many
of these went sour so the government is in financial
difficulties and looking for ways to earn some cash. A
spokesperson said that it was believed the licenses would
probably go out of the country.

(Paul Zucker/19901025)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00007)

AUSTRALIA: GAMBLING SYSTEM GOES STATEWIDE BY NETWORK
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Registered clubs in
the Australian state of New South Wales are to add another
form of gambling to their existing slot machines. A $30M
statewide network will operate a Keno game (picking numbers
from a card), connecting over 1500 clubs.

President of the registered clubs association, John Whittle,
said that he expected the system to have an annual turnover
of $1 billion Australian dollars. The system has been in development
for five years, and has only just been given government approval.
The clubs will connect to the system through Telecom's
FlexNet multiplexing system which will have an anticipated 200
millisecond system response time.

The system will be free to the clubs, with profits funding
the installations. The heart of the system consists of dual
Concurrent Micro V processors. The clubs will generate some
computer graphics locally (for rolling balls, and so on),
using a Commodore Amiga PC at each location.

(Paul Zucker/19901025)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(EWR)(00008)

OSF HARDWARE AHDERENTS ANNOUNCE SHIPMENT PLANS
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A. 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- With the recent
release of the Open Software Foundation's OSF/1 operating system,
hardware vendors are unveiling their plans to support open systems.
Digital Equipment Corporation announced plans to bring its
proprietary VMS operating system into line with the least-common
denominator POSIX standard.

Also, DEC officials said VMS will support "key elements " of OSF/1's
distributed processing. The company had previously said VMS would
support the OSF-endorsed Motif user interface.

Ultrix, DEC's flavor of Unix, already complies with POSIX, a standard
published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
and the federal government.

"Our focus on selling one architecture, and our outstanding
success with it, have caused some people in the industry to wonder if
we are really serious about Unix," DEC President Kenneth Olsen said
in a company statement. "On the other hand, some other people wonder
if Unix is our new one architecture, and we will eventually stop
selling VAX VMS. Both viewpoints are wrong. We are an Open Systems
company, with open standards spanning our VAX VMS and Unix lines."

Also supporting OSF/1 was Siemens Nixdorf Informationssysteme AG.
SNI was formed by the merger of the Data and Information Systems
Group of Siemens AG and the Nixdorf Computer AG, and claims a 20
percent share of the European information technology market. With
DEC a founding member of OSF, SNI said it will be shipping OSF/1 "as
soon as possible" on its workstations.

Encore Computer Corp. also announced plans to ship OSF/1 on its
Multimax multiprocessor systems in "early 1991." Encore developed
OSF/1's parallelized kernel.

(Daniel J. Rosenbaum/19901025/Press Contacts: Encore, Ann Marie
Matthews, 305-797-5748 or Jim Spoerl, 508-460-0500; SNI, Angelika
Bottcher, 49-89-3601-4130; DEC, Linda Giragosian, 603-884-3196)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(EWR)(00009)

NEW FOR MACINTOSH: Word Processing Module For Developers
VANCOUVER, WASHINGTON, U.S.A. 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Macintosh
programmers can now license a word processing module that avoids the
32-kilobyte limit imposed by the Mac's read-only memory.
DataPak Software is shipping Word Solution Engine for a royalty-free
fee of $300. Programmers can license the compiled object code for
inclusion in their own programs.

The Macintosh's read-only memory includes a set of standard routines
called TextEdit, which programmers can use to create limited word
processing modules in their programs. TextEdit, however, limits the
text to 32,000 characters -- about 10 single-spaced typewritten
pages. Word Solution Engine does not have that limit, and also
supports multiple fonts, colors, type styles and sizes. In addition,
the routines support Apple's Script Manager system calls, so
programmers can customize their programs to work in foreign
languages.

Included in the package is a programmer's guide, sample source code,
and interface files for MPW Pascal and Think C. The routines, the
company said, can be accessed in C, Pascal and Assembly.

(Daniel J. Rosenbaum/19901025/Press Contact: Mike McJensky, 206 573
9155)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(MOW)(00010)

MOSCOW: CADEXPO RESCHEDULED
MOSCOW, U.S.S.R., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- The annual Moscow CADexpo
scheduled to open October 29, will take place in spring of next year.
According to a spokesman of Parallel, AutoDesk's Moscow affiliate,
the company decided to shift this show to spring due to "some
logistics problems."

In contrast to earlier reports, these problems are not connected to
the Presnya exhibition center's refusal to make available the
necessary exhibition space, Mr Semen Becker of Parallel told Newsbytes.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19901024/Press contact: Semen Becker, Parallel,
phone [phone] fax [phone])


(EXCLUSIVE)(UNIX)(MOW)(00011)

SUN COFOUNDER WILL ADDRESS MOSCOW UNIX CONFERENCE
MOSCOW, U.S.S.R., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Bill Joy, cofounder and vice
president of Sun Microsystems, will be a keynote speaker at the first
annual meeting of the Soviet Unix Users Group to be opened in
Moscow next week.

The four-day convention hosted by the Moscow-based International
center of scientific and technical information (MCNTI) will also
include presentations by U.S., European, Finnish and British Unix users
groups.

An exhibit of hardware and software will accompany the conference.

(Kirill Tchashchin/19901024/Press Contact: Peter Brusilovsky, MCNTI,
phone [phone] fax [phone])


(EXCLUSIVE)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00012)

TANDY CEASES COLOR COMPUTER PRODUCTION, CONTINUES SUPPORT
FORT WORTH, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- In an exclusive
interview with Newsbytes, Ed Juge, director of marketing for
Tandy, said that Tandy had recently ceased production
of the inexpensive Color Computer. Mr. Juge indicated that Tandy
would continue to offer software, cables, and repair services for
the more than one million Color Computers (known as the CoCo)
already in homes, saying, "We will even continue to sell older
games and introduce new software [for the CoCo] if there is
enough demand."

Tandy's production of the CoCo won't be resumed; according to Mr.
Juge, the Color Computer is discontinued. Commenting on present
inventory, Mr. Juge said, "There are still some in the warehouse
but I don't believe the present supply will last past this
Christmas."

Mr. Juge cited declining sales volume as the reason for dropping
the CoCo; he pointed out that sales of all Tandy non-MS-DOS
computers had been dropping by half every year for the past five
years.

Explaining why Tandy would cease production for a computer when
all the development and tooling costs had already been made, Mr.
Juge said that costs of components would increase with lower
production volume.

The Tandy CoCo is a 6809-based, self-contained home
computer with keyboard, ports, built-in BASIC, and monitor
support, all selling for less than $200. Over the years users
have seen the introduction of many games, educational programs,
and even powerful multitasking business applications for the
inexpensive system.

Birmingham, Alabama-based Vulcan Publishing's "Computer Monthly"
magazine has announced that it will support the Color Computer
community with a monthly column beginning in the January issue.

(John McCormick/19901026/Press Contact: Fran McGehee, Tandy, 817-
390-3487)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(WAS)(00013)

CENTRAL POINT SOFTWARE REVENUE INCREASES 149%
BEAVERTON, OREGON, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Central Point
Software, maker of the highly popular PC Tools Deluxe utility
software package, has reported shipping 216,000 units during the
second quarter, bringing the company's revenues to $30.4 million
for the first half of the fiscal year, up 149% from the same
period last year.

A Government Computer News survey of federal users has shown PC
Tools Deluxe was very popular in agency offices and was installed
or supported by 40 percent of those surveyed. Central Point has
just released a new stand-alone version of its backup software,
called CP Backup, which this bureau is evaluating.

(John McCormick/19901026/Press Contact: Corey Smith, Central
Point Software, 503-690-8090)


(NEWS)(IBM)(WAS)(00014)

NEW FOR IBM: Ricoh And APT Rewritable Jukebox For LANs
LOS ALTOS, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Ricoh File
Products Division has announced that it will supply its RJ-5330E
Rewritable Deskside Optical Library to Applied Programming
Technologies for use with that company's APT-NOSS or Network
Object Storage Systems NETBIOS LAN systems. The Ricoh jukebox can
provide 33 gigabytes of on-line storage by swapping any of the
library's 56 discs to the dual-sided 594 megabyte (MB) drives.

Average access times for data contained on an already loaded disc
is under 70 ms, and a system can be configured with up to 1,000
gigabytes of on-line storage. Time to load a new disc is about
two and one-half seconds.

The APT-NOSS system runs on a 286 or more powerful AT or Micro
Channel compatible dedicated system and the NETBIOS compliant
system will run under Novel, AT&T, IBM, 3-COM, Banyan, and
Ungerman-Bass networks.

For further information, contact: Applied Programming
Technologies, One Hollow Lane, Suite 313, Lake Success, New York
11042, 516-365-1098.

(John McCormick/19901026/Press Contact: Catherine Swanson, Ricoh,
415-962-0443)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00015)

ONLINE COMPUTER LIBRARY TO DEMO REFERENCE CD-ROMS IN DC
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- OCLC, the Online
Computer Library Center, will demonstrate its DiscLit: American
Authors, Search CD450, and EPIC products at a November 8 show to
be held at the Washington Hilton & Towers in Washington, DC.

DiscLit contains the 143-volume "Twayne's United States Authors
Series" in full text; Search CD450 is a CD-ROM disc containing 15
reference databases covering Arts, Humanities, Education,
Agriculture, and Science & Technology; EPIC is an online
search system.

For free attendance information, contact Lois Shama at 800-848-
5878, Ext. 6251.

(John McCormick/19901026)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00016)

ROUNDUP: STORIES CARRIED BY OTHER MEDIA THIS WEEK
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Roundup is a brief
look at some computer stories carried in other publications
received here this past week.

November's Computer Shopper carries a half-page story about the
troubles one Washington-based political reporter had with
inexpensive Macintosh hard disk and monitor supplier
Ehman/Cutting Edge. Broken promises and a drive finally shipped
after the order was cancelled were just a part of the sad story.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) for Tuesday, October 23, carried
these interesting items.

Scientific American Editor Jonathan Piel dropped veteran
freelance writer Forrest Mims III as an "Amateur Scientist"
feature writer after learning that Mr. Mims is a firm believer in
creationism. Forrest is well known for his electronic hobbyist
designs. Arthur Salsberg, editor of Modern Electronics, is aware
of Mr. Mims' beliefs but will still run his column, stating that
two other Modern Electronics writers also believe in creationism.

Du Pont and N.V. Philips reportedly stopped their four-year-old
joint venture to make optical disks, Philips-Du Pont Optical,
because of no yearly profits except in the first year (they
expect to break even this year) and because each company's goals
now differ.

The 24th's WSJ reported that several hundred Times Square-area
electronics dealers, are under scrutiny by New York City's
consumer affairs department after a deluge of consumer complaints
of bait-and-switch and other questionable tactics during the past
few years. Prices are allegedly routinely inflated, and many
retailers regularly promote "going out of business" sales; they
reportedly view fines as part of the cost of doing business.

The following were in the Thursday, October 25, edition of the
WSJ.

The United States proposed this week, via the Paris-based COCOM
(the body through which the U.S. and 16 allies set rules for
screening military-applicable technology shipments), to release a
new generation of computers for potential sale to the Soviet
Union and Eastern Europe. Reportable, however, no comparable
concessions were offered regarding telecommunications equipment.

N.V. Philips, based in The Netherlands, will institute cost-
cutting measures in its lighting and medical-imaging divisions,
following such cuts in its computer and semiconductor operations
which were announced in July and will eliminate some 10,000 jobs,
primarily in Europe. One Dutch newspaper, the NRC Handelsblad,
predicts that perhaps 5,000 jobs, about 10% of the workforce in
these divisions, will be affected by the latest cutbacks.

The Journal also reported that IBM is expected to introduce a
high-end workstation next Wednesday, to bolster its earlier
success in the market. Digital Equipment is also expected to
bring out a high-end, competitively priced workstation next week
and Sun Microsystems plans a November 5 introduction of its most
powerful machine yet.

Friday's WSJ also reported that the massive Netherlands-based N.V.
Philips electronics company's chairman has announced the company
expects to lay off up to 16 percent of its workforce, between
35,000 and 45,000 people, by the end of next year in a world-wide
efficiency drive.

(John McCormick/19901026)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(ATL)(00017)

ANALYST WONDERS IF MOTOROLA HAS RIGHT STRATEGY TO WIN
SCHAUMBURG, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Motorola's
newest wireless data communications system, the Wireless In
Building Network, has analysts questioning its strategy of
relying on wireless communications for growth.

WIN will allow companies to use radio waves, instead of wires, to
link their computer networks. The first product based on the new
scheme will come out in the first quarter of 1991, with more due
throughout the decade. It's designed for companies that move
offices around regularly, and for old buildings where regulations
may limit the amount of cable that can be run.

Al Zaborsky, general manager, strategic operations for Motorola
in Arlington Heights, Illinois, will run the WIN strategy. He
told Newsbytes that "we did not announce pricing" but "we
said we'd be price competitive." He added, "We don't think this
is a niche market. We invested too much and too long for that to
be the case."

Buyers will have to compare WIN to wired alternatives, including the
cost of running wires through old buildings. And in many cases,
Zaborsky said, Motorola will have to win with WIN to succeed.
 "The way you drive costs down is through volume. You can't survive
with 5% market share."

Zaborsky said WIN's technology uses RF radio waves instead of
infrared, which won't go through walls, giving it an advantage.
"This is faster than the other wireless technologies, it's more
transparent and it will work well in closed environments, where
infrared won't work," he said. WIN's 18 gigahertz signal will not
be shared under its FCC license, so the only interference to it
will come from illegal transmissions or factory equipment.

John Pemberton, program director, wireless communication for the
Gartner Group, Stamford, Connecticut, disagreed with Zaborsky's
analysis and remains skeptical about Motorola's chances. "They're
not trying to compete on a per-unit price with wired systems. The
strategy is that savings is in moves and changes," he told
Newsbytes. "There isn't a large user community that's prepared to
accept this. Few of our clients have thought about it. Motorola
will have trouble carving a market."

Pemberton added that the 18 gigahertz signal will, because it's
a microwave, have trouble going through walls. "They have an
omnidirectional antenna, but they need a tight fit" to make it
work, he said. "And on the Motorola system the frequency range
requires a high-cost installation. The cost will be significant.
If someone has a good wiring plan in place, this won't knock it
out. But this might work in new buildings or new locations in
buildings without a system."

Still, Pemberton is excited about the prospect of wireless
networks replacing wires in the future. "This is not a single
product, but a whole lot of things. It will be exciting long-
term. You'll see hybrid systems by the turn of the century that
are commonly accepted."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: Cheryl Beck, Motorola,
708-632-2853; John Pemberton, Gartner Group, 203-964-0096)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(ATL)(00018)

UNIX SYSTEM RUNS 900 INFO SERVICE
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- UniBridge of
New York is offering a new financial service through a caller-
paid 900 number, and relying on a unique computer system for
success. The service, 1-900-820-STOCK, relies on an Arix computer
system running under the Unix operating system, and voice
processing software from Phitech of San Francisco.

The service includes immediate access to stock quotes stock ratings,
trading alerts, and opinions on individual stocks or entire industries.
It will compete with a number of other services, including
JournalPhone from The Wall Street Journal.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: Arix, Terri Ohryn,
408/922-1745; Unibridge, Meg Body, 212-797-9730)


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

FIGHT FOR IN-FLIGHT PHONES STILL FESTERS
OAK BRIDGE, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- GTE Airfone
is considering further legal action against its founder John D.
Goeken, to keep him from involvement in his new In-Flight Phone
company. Goeken reacted to losing a lawsuit on a non-compete
clause in his original Airfone sale contract by naming his
daughter Sandra to head the company.

GTE could challenge the move in court, calling it a subterfuge on
Goeken's part to retain control over In-Flight.

Airfone spokesman Kevin Petschow told Newsbytes the move "was
something we expected him to do." He added the company expects
to compete in the market for placing phone calls from airplanes.
"The way we've viewed it is we always expected competition."

October 22 was the deadline for companies to apply to the
Federal Communications Commission for licenses to operate air-
phone services. Five companies, including both GTE Airfone and
In-Flight, applied for licenses, and the FCC could eventually
grant all of them licences. Since 1984 GTE Airfone has been
operating under an experimental license, but Petschow told
Newsbytes 1,300 aircraft and 17 carriers have already committed
to its system.

In-Flight's application included contracts with 3 major airlines
and indicated the company has spent close to $8 million on
engineering and other costs. The company expects to have a
digital phone network in place by the second quarter of 1991. To
win an air-ground telephony license, companies must demonstrate
financial stability, have at least one airline under contract for
its service, and have ground stations built. The FCC has not
indicated how long it will take to rule on the applications. In
addition to founding Air Fone, John Goeken was also a founder of
MCI, FTD, and Railfone.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: The Goeken Group,
Sandra K. Goeken, 708/573-2660; GTE Airfone Kevin Petschow, 708-
575-1448)


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

PHILLIPINES TO GET CELLULAR PHONE SYSTEM
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Millicom has won
approval from the Filipino Supreme Court to operate a cellular
phone network in the Philippines and connect it with the
Philippine Long Distance Company.

The authority of the National Telecommunications Commission to grant
a license to Millicom's Express Telecommunications subsidiary had been
questioned. By ruling in favor of the NTC, the Supreme Court said the
commission is the regulatory agency of the government with
jurisdiction over all telecommunications entities.

In a press release, Millicom quoted the Supreme Court as calling
present service "sadly inadequate" and calling for "free
competition in the industry" to reduce the dissatisfaction.
Millicom Chairman J. Shelby Bryan said the company is already
arranging interconnects with the PLDT.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: Millicom, Andrea Van
Raalte, 212/475-8200)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00021)

MCI FORMS MARKETING ALLIANCE WITH COMDISCO
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- MCI has formed a
marketing alliance with Comdisco Disaster Recovery Services, the
largest company in the market for back-up computer "insurance"
systems, which take over when a company's main network goes down.
The marketing alliance will permit customers to obtain a
combination of MCI's data communications services and CDRS'
business continuity services.

MCI will also design and implement a data network to support CDRS'
backbone network which is an integral part of CDRS' new delivery
architecture, CDRS Net.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: Tim Fiala, for
Comdisco, 212/696-4744)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00022)

INFONET ADDS PORTUGAL TO GLOBAL TELECOM LINKS
EL SEGUNDO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Infonet,
the packet network owned by MCI and international phone
companies, announced the formation of Infonet Portugal, which
will offer the company's services in that country.

The new firm is jointly owned by Infonet, Conpanhia Portuguesa Radio
Marconi, Telefonos Lisboa e Oporto and Time-Sharing S.A. CPRM and TLP
are both telecommunication companies in Portugal. Time-Sharing S.A.
is a Portuguese computer services firm.

Infonet Portugal will market Infonet's global public data network
and store and forward messaging services in Portugal. An
interconnect is also being established between the Infonet
network and Portugal's national Telepac public data network.
Once this interconnect is completed, Telepac subscribers will be
able to gain direct local access to the Infonet network from
Faro, Setubal, Lisbon, Porto, Coimbra and numerous other cities
in Portugal.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: Mike Radice, Infonet,
213-335-2875)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00023)

FINANCIAL ROUNDUP: GOOD NEWS FROM WANG, CA, INTERLEAF
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Results for the
fiscal quarter ended September 30 brought good financial news
from Computer Associates, Interleaf, and battered Wang Laboratories.

Wang, based in Lowell, Massachusetts, reported a net profit of
US$2.6 million for the first quarter ending Sept. 30, compared to
a net loss of US$62.1 million in the first quarter of last year.
Revenues from continuing operations totalled US$571.5 million,
compared with US$604.8 million in the year-earlier quarter.

Software giant Computer Associates, of Garden City, New York,
reported quarterly net income of US$27.9 million on revenues of
US$310.6 million. That compares with US$9.6 million net income on
revenues of US$282.0 million in the same quarter last year.

For the six months ended September 30, CA reported net income of
US$31.5 million on revenues of US$565.7 million, up from US$20.3
million income on US$585.2 in revenues in the same period last
year.

Another software vendor, Interleaf, of Cambridge, Massachusetts,
reported a profit of US$55,000 for the second quarter of its 1991
fiscal year, ended Sept. 30. This is a turnaround from a
US$968,000 loss in the same quarter last year. However, revenues
fell from US$22 million to US$20.7 million.

Interleaf said its software revenue increased, but this was more
than offset by a drop in hardware revenue that resulted from its
leaving the turnkey systems business last year.

(Grant Buckler/19901025/Press Contact: Deborah Coughlin, Computer
Associates, 516-227-3300, ext. 7222; David Collard, Interleaf,
617-577-9800 ext. 7949; Frank Ryan, Wang, 508-967-7038)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00024)

UNISYS POSTS $356.8 MILLION LOSS, ANNOUNCES LAYOFF
BLUE BELL, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Unisys
Corporation, stung by a third quarter loss of $356.8 million, says that
it will lay off 5,000 workers over the next six months. W. Michael
Blumenthal, the chairman of the board, has also resigned. Unisys
blames its trouble on the sluggish economy and the Middle East
crisis.

Unisys President James A. Unruh, who also becomes chairman, said
the results "reflect a weakening general business environment and the
pronounced softness of demand in the worldwide computer industry."
He blames weak order growth, especially from Europe in recent
weeks, as a reflection of "customer concern about general economic
conditions and about the Middle East situation."

Unisys, of Blue Bell, Pennsylvania, says its loss includes a special
pretax charge of $181 million to cover planned reductions in workforce
and operational consolidations. In the third quarter a year ago, the company
reported a net loss of US$648.2 million. The prior year results
included a special charge of US$231 million.

Revenue was US$2.40 billion compared to US$2.35 billion in the
year-ago quarter, which benefited from accelerated shipment of
new 2200 Series mainframe systems.

For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 1990, the net loss was
US$348.2 million on revenue of US$7.18 billion. In the same
period one year ago, the net loss was US$673.3 million on revenue
of US$7.13 billion.

Blumenthal, 64, cited increasing international obligations for
his decision to leave the board. He is a limited partner in the
investment banking firm of Lazard Freres & Co. and co-chairman
of a newly formed International Coordinating Group of Lazard. He
said his business headquarters will be in Paris.

Unisys will size down its operations to reflect weak order activity,
announced that a fourth quarter loss is also likely.

(Wendy Woods & Grant Buckler/19901026/Press Contact: J. Peter
Hynes, Unisys, 215-986-6948)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00025)

IBM AND MICRO FOCUS SIGN CICS OS/2 AGREEMENT
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- IBM and Micro
Focus have announced a distribution agreement designed to help
users of IBM's Customer Information Control System (CICS) develop
and test CICS applications on personal computers using a
combination of IBM and Micro Focus software. The applications can
then be used on IBM mainframes or personal computers.

Micro Focus will provide screens and other features that
integrate IBM's CICS OS/2 transaction processing software into
the Micro Focus COBOL/2 Workbench, a tool that helps programmers
develop and test applications. CICS OS/2 provides both the CICS
application programming interface and, with the operating system,
services for transaction processing.

Part of IBM's Systems Application Architecture (SAA), CICS OS/2
also provides support for cooperative transaction processing, in
which information is processed on a local workstation, invoked on
a CICS host, or on another networked CICS OS/2 system.

The CICS OS/2 feature of the Micro Focus COBOL/2 Workbench
requires an IBM Personal System/2 computer running OS/2 Extended
Edition Version 1.2 or later. Micro Focus, of Palo Alto,
California, will provide technical support. The new feature is
due to be available by the end of the year, IBM said.

(Grant Buckler/19901025/Press Contact: Andy Kendzie, IBM,
914-642-5448)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00026)

UK: LOTUS SHIPS AGENDA 2.0
STAINES, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Lotus
Development Corporation UK has announced that version 2.0 of
Agenda, the company's personal information manager, is now
shipping. The package costs UKP 395.

According to Lotus, Agenda 2.0 was developed in response to
feedback from existing users of the package. Amongst other
enhancements, four new starter applications modules are included:
Activities Planner, People Manager, Account Manager, and
Information Sifter.

"The new Agenda's ease of use gives it a major advantage," said
Mike Shelton, product marketing manager with the Lotus UK. "Users
will not have to spend valuable time setting up Agenda, but can
use it to improve their productivity right away, spending time on
the day to day business, rather than its organization.╙

Shelton went on to say that early tests have shown that the gains
from spending time on business rather than organization, can be
achieved with half an hour.

Existing Agenda users can upgrade to the version 2.0 for UKP 95.
The package runs under DOS 2.1 or later and requires a minimum of
640K RAM to run effectively. An OS/2 version is being readied for
release at a later date.

(Steve Gold/19901026/Press ARE Contact: Jennifer Bacon, Lotus UK
- Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00027)

GRAMMATIK SCORES THIRD MAJOR OEM AGREEMENT
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Reference
Software has announced that its DOS-based grammar checking package,
Grammatik, will be bundled on an OEM (original equipment manufacturer)
basis with Lifetree's Volkswriter 4 Release 2.0 and Volkswriter 6
packages. The OEM agreement is third for Reference Software, following
on the heels of similar deals with Ashton-Tate for Multimate 4.0,
and Software Publishing for Professional Write.

Lifetree previously used its own Correct Grammar package with
Volkswriter. The company has switched to OEM, incorporating
Grammatik because it says the package offers more flexibility and
increased power. In addition, the package is available in several
international versions.

Volkswriter 4 R2.0 will ship later this quarter and will sell for
$249. Volkswriter 6, meanwhile, is scheduled for release in the
first quarter of 1991 with a price tag of $499. Volkswriter 2
users will also be offered the opportunity of upgrading with
Grammatik very shortly.

(Steve Gold/199001026/Press & Public Contact: Sigrid Metson,
Reference Software International - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(HKG)(00028)

HONGKONG: GILMAN SETS NEW DIRECTIONS
WANCHAI, HONG KONG, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Speaking this week at the
Gilman Business Systems exhibition and conference, GBS Chief
Executive, Mr Robert Young, observed that business system
selling at the personal computer level was a rarity in Hongkong.
"This is the first show (by a local PC distributor or dealer) that is
totally devoted to bringing the latest business system technology
together and presenting solutions to business problems," said Mr
Young, "Our slogan - Solutions, No Problems - says it all."

GBS is the largest PC level operation in Hongkong. The company is the
largest Apple and Hewlett-Packard dealer in the region, and also
markets Digital Equipment's PCSA networking products, NCR and General
Automation Unix and Pick-based products. It distributes Microsoft and
Aldus software products, and represents a raft of other companies.

Its parent - the Inchcape Group - is one of the largest and oldest
trading groups in the territory, having been established for more
than 150 years.

Mr Young told Newsbytes that major international computer
manufacturers such as Digital Equipment, Hewlett-Packard, IBM and
Unisys have all announced restructuring and new directions recently,
and what they were saying made sense.

"The majors have decided that the only road to success in the '90s
and beyond is a much closer working relationship with their customers
and we have simply changed our structure and direction in line with
that thinking," he said.

"The concept of business consultative services and systems
integration is just as important at entry level as it is with large
networks. The customers needs are identical. Selling boxes alone does
not achieve that end and the ridiculous price wars which have built
up recently do no favours at all for the business world at large."

The move have been lauded by local information technology
professionals, most of whom believed that the GBS example would
create considerably more stability in the marketplace.

(Norman Wingrove/19901026/Press Contact: Robert Young, GBS,
[phone]; HK time is GMT + 8)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(HKG)(00029)

PACIFIC GROWTH BOOSTS NCR THIRD QUARTER
CENTRAL, HONG KONG, 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- NCR says continued growth in
the Pacific region contributed to its solid performance in the third
quarter of its financial year, which ended in August. Worldwide
revenue increased nine percent to $1.52 billion, a record for any
third quarter in the company's history.

Earnings per share were up 11 percent but net income declined
three percent. Both items were affected by NCR's share repurchase
programme, which favours earnings per share at the expense of net
income.

"Revenue was strongest in our Pacific and Europe marketing groups,"
said NCR Chairman Chuck Exley. "Revenue from our operations in the
United States achieved slight growth over the prior six-year period."

On a US dollar basis, orders from outside the US achieved substantial
gains, led by the Pacific marketing group. Self-service financial
terminals and personal computers were the top-performing product
lines.

(Norman Wingrove/19901026/Press Contact: Vivian Kung, NCR,
[phone]; HK Time is GMT + 8)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00030)

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN DROPS CREATIONIST WRITER
HICKVILLE, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- In the wake of
this week's Wall Street Journal disclosure that Scientific
American had reportedly dropped respected electronics hobbyist
columnist Forrest Mims III, Newsbytes talked with Art Salsberg,
editor-in-chief of Modern Electronics, an editor who has been
working with Mr. Mims for over 14 years. Salsberg told Newsbytes that
he didn't see any reason why a believer in creationism should be
prevented from writing about technology, especially since Mr.
Mims mostly writes how-to or experimenter's articles.

Mr. Salsberg said that he has no intention of altering the way
the long-time columnist is given assignments for his magazine and
also pointed out that he had never seen that Mr. Mims' religious
beliefs were reflected in any of his articles.

Modern Electronics is a electronics hobbyist magazine.

(John McCormick/19901026)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00031)

HOTELECOPY SEEKS $5.25 MILLION FROM U.S. POSTAL SERVICE
MIAMI, FLORIDA, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Hotelecopy filed
a claim seeking recovery of $5.25 million invested in its joint
venture FaxMail program with the U.S. Postal Service. The Miami-
based firm cited Postal Service non-compliance with its
contractual obligations to provide merchandising and awareness
support. Hotelecopy and the Postal Service, nevertheless, are
continuing their joint venture, going forward with the FaxMail
program.

Hotelecopy spokesman Stanley Fields told Newsbytes the move is
pro-forma and that his company does not want to end the Faxmail
program. "We're not pulling out. Far from it. We and the Post
Office have pledged to continue. They've got our claim and have
60 days to respond, according to the Government Disputes Act.
They tell us they'll move ahead."

Fields explained that Hotelecopy has put in 265 of its Business
Center terminals, costing $10,000 each, at the nation's Post
Offices. "We supported and installed and supplied and maintained
them, and we have a staff watching them," he said. The Post
Office was supposed to promote the program, "which they failed to
do." Fields says Hotelecopy is hoping for more marketing support
to make the project a success, and noted a survey the Post Office
itself made showed 88% of consumers liked it.

"There's demand out there from consumers to have this service,"
he said. "We engaged in hefty marketing research before we made
this investment, proving there's a market out there." Fields said
most people think 90% of businesses have fax machines, but only
25-30% do, and executives are in a "fax-less no man's land" when
on the road. Hotelecopy also has 2,000 of its machines in hotels,
and plans to install them at American Express travel centers.
Faxes sent by Hotelecopy machines are sent over MCI lines.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19901026/Press Contact: Stanley Fields,
Hotelecopy, Inc., 800-765-3334; fax, 305-651-7731)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00032)

DATA TRANSLATION LAYS OFF 15 PERCENT
MARLBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- Data
Translation, maker of image processing boards used in Apple, DEC,
IBM, Intel, and Sun machines for the medical, laboratory, and industrial
markets, says it has reduced its workforce by 37 people, approximately
15 percent of the staff, due to continuing depressed sales.

The reduction in force reflects action taken by the company to control
expenses across all areas, the company said. No further
reductions in force are planned at the present time.

(Wendy Woods/19901026/Press Contact: Robert P. Cirrone, Data
Translation, 508/481-3700, ext. 220)


(EDITORIAL)(APPLE)(SFO)(00033)

APPLE'S NEW MACS - Editorials by P. Pawlyschyn and The McMullens
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1990 OCT 26 (NB) -- In response
to last week's editorial by John McCormick downplaying the Apple
"vision" portrayed by its followers and by its commercials, Newsbytes
received the following two replies.

A MOST CLASSIC APPLE

by Peter Pawlyschyn of Toronto, S.MURPHY3 on Genie

Lately, some interesting remarks have been made about the new Mac
Classic. Interestingly, some of those are reminiscent of that old no-name
challenge...a challenge where the no-name cola is compared to the
classic one. While it may appear to have the same "look and feel,"
there's no guarantee it will ever be the _real thing_!

It appears some doubting DOS'ers still suffer from an inferiority
complex, going so far as to claim that low end DOS computers can be
bought for much less than the new Mac Classic, particularly when
compared as "similarly powered PC compatibles." What is curiously
omitted with these comparisons are those little "extras" that help
distinguish computers as toys or formidable tools - something most
Mac users have taken for granted.

What are these little extras?

A SCSI card for DOS machines usually runs you a few g-notes. Do DOS
users need one? They might if they wanted to use their machines
for anything more than a glorified word processor. CD-ROM, scanners,
multiple HD's scream for the speed and interconnections of SCSI
devices. The Mac Classic has a SCSI port _standard_!

Do you like the look and feel of Windows? Great, for only another $100
any DOS user can have it, but not MAC users, they have it built in for
free _standard_!

One megabyte of memory not enough for those new desktop publishing
programs? That's OK, it's true for both MAC and DOS worlds! However
it costs another $100 or so for that extra memory expansion board on
your DOS machine. Not on the Mac, it's _standard_!

Do you like voice mail, or perhaps something more sophisticated than a
grunt or squeal coming out of your computer's loudspeaker? It's only a
couple of extra hundred dollars for a sound card on the DOS machine.
What's that? On the Mac Classic it's _standard_?!

Want to convert a Mac file to be read by DOS or vice versa? How much
will that cost on a DOS machine? What's that? You need an extra $100!
Not with the Mac. On the Mac Classic, you guessed it, it's _standard_!

Ah-ha! But, now we have you! The DOS machine has access to a large
monitor. We _know_ that the Mac Classic doesn't! ... What's that? The Mac
monitor has higher resolution than most standard DOS monitors, so you
don't need to lug around a larger screen to see the same image? Rats!
Foiled again!

Low end DOS users can continue to plug their computers into their TVs
and toy around, but the MAC Classic is a great value considering the
hardware and software included in it's base price, and it's all _standard_
equipment!

Add to that portability, simple plug and play operation, easy
expansion, free Hypercard database software, free operating system
upgrades, network readiness, and you have the best computing value
any $1000 will buy you this side of the universe. But that's OK. Some
people will still prefer soda pop to Perrier, or crackers to pizza!

If you need to run your computer hard, you'll notice the differences
under the Apple edge. You'll appreciate the real thing. And if you don't,
maybe all you really needed was that electronic memo/calculator for
under $100!

-0-

A DIFFERING VIEW OF THE NEW APPLE PRODUCTS

by Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen

A few days ago, our esteemed colleague John McCormick
wrote a column for Newsbytes criticizing Apple Computer's new
models, the advertising campaign for these models and Apple's
method of pricing and doing business in general. While these opinions
are well-presented, we feel that they are built on premises that don't
really support the conclusions.

In our judgement, the fact that Apple has, in John's words, "fought tooth
and nail to keep others from building Macintosh-computers which would
lead to real competition" has nothing to do with the value or lack thereof of
its new computers. Nor do we think that Apple has any legal or moral
obligation to "open" its system for others to duplicate.

Apple, from the advent of the Lisa, has chosen to take complete
control of its operating environment. It set standards for software
development to insure that all Macintosh-based applications behaved
generally the same way. Such a stance was, in our judgement,
necessary if Apple were to be able to adhere to its goal of producing
a system with a common user interface. This strategy flew in the
face of the design method that IBM chose in the introduction of the
IBM-PC and thus seemed fraught with danger -- particularly when the
Lisa failed, due in part to the lack of third-party software.

Apple continued this strategy with the Macintosh, making it first a closed
system and eventually a quasi-closed one (quasi-closed because the Small
Computer System Interface (SCSI) port allows third-party manufacturers
to develop their own peripherals and attach them to the Mac. Additionally,
the "SuperDrive" allows transfer of files between the Macintosh and MS-
DOS systems).

With the approach that Apple took, it took a good deal of time to build a
significant market share but eventually, partially because of the
development of the Apple LaserWriter and the explosion of the new sub-
industry, desktop publishing, it did capture the minds and hearts of
many users and the Macintosh flourished. We doubt that it would have
reached the level of success that it has if it had gone the open system route
that John advocates.

One might suggest, on the other hand that, if IBM had it to do over, the
IBM-PC would have been designed as a closed system. The decision to
make it an open system was not based on any humanitarian wish but rather
on a lack of understanding of the capability of others to duplicate the
processing. Developers involved in the initial roll-out of the PC have told
your authors that IBM was committed to the Apple II model (so
committed, in fact, that it had to be convinced by the third party developers
that the world needed more than a 64K machine) and there had been no real
"cloning" to that time of the Apple II.

The initial attempts by such firms as the now-defunct Columbia to
duplicate the processing of the PC gave credence to this feeling. They
ran "almost" everything the PC did and "almost" just wasn't good
enough -- particularly when the program that didn't run was usually
Lotus 1-2-3! It was only when Compaq took the industry by storm
with its Compaq Portable that true compatibility became a reality.
Soon the standard was no longer "IBM-compatible" but rather "MS-DOS
compatible" and IBM was faced with Compaq out-performing it in
the high priced range while Tandy and foreign firms attacked it with
comparable systems at much lower prices.

IBM today finds itself in a position that, while MS-DOS machines well
outsell the Apple Macintosh, Apple sells more Macintoshes that IBM sells
PCs.

It is, of course, only speculation to say what IBM might have done had it
known better. It is, however, in our judgement clear that the user
community has been well served by diversity in the MS-DOS world. One
only has to recall the IBM Portable Computer and the IBM PC-Convertible
to imagine what the state-of-the-art would have been if innovation had been
left solely to Big Blue.

The Macintosh can not be viewed simply as another computer of the MS-
DOS type. It is rather an alternative to MS-DOS processing and the
strength of its position as a viable alternative lies in its common user
interface -- a feature mandated and controlled by Apple. We do not believe
that the Macintosh would have developed into the position it presently
occupies without this strong corporate direction of its vision.

We also don't believe that Apple has ever had any moral responsibility to
provide a low priced computer or even to limit its profit margin on units
sold to any fixed percentage. The determining of price, rather, is an
economic decision based on the maximizing of profit -- profit that will
hopefully, but not necessarily, be plowed in large back to R&D. The fact
that Apple now feels that technology and market conditions make the
market ripe for a $995 Macintosh is a business decision that may prove to
be right or wrong. It is not, however, an admission that it behaved in a less
than forthright manner in the past.

As to the contention that the introduction of a $995 system shows a lack of
commitment to those who previously bought Mac + and SEs at higher
prices, we think that there is no merit to this position. On the MS-DOS
side, we can now buy a 386 system for less than the original 8088-based
IBM-PC. Likewise, we can buy a 2400 baud modem for less than a 300
baud one cost only a few years ago. It has always been a fact of life in
this industry that what we buy today will always be shortly replaced by
something both better and cheaper. We can only attempt to get our money's
worth out of the choice that we make today.

It has been our experience that most Plus and SE owners do feel that
they have gotten proper value for their investment. In fact, we have
generally found a higher level of satisfaction on the part of Plus and
SE owners than that exhibited by owners of low end MS-DOS machines.

Finally, John takes Apple apart for not having a video port on the Classic
saying that "miniature 9" black-and-white screen that has been turning off
users for years." Funny -- the Macintosh SE is the largest selling Macintosh
model in history and it has the 9" screen with no video port. Most Mac
users that we know much prefer the Mac 9" with its crystal clear black-on-
white bit-mapped graphics to any non-color video (and some color) video
available on the MS-DOS side. Since many original Mac & Mac 512 users
later bought Plusses, SEs and SE/30, it stands to reason that more than
a few fall into those who are not turned off.

One thing that we do agree with John about is some of the advertising. We
think that the TV ad that depicts a highly high-strung black teacher
delivering an almost evangelical pitch to his students depicts a "Rev. Jesse
Jackson meets Technology" image - an image that we find insulting to
black and white alike. This is an ad for a personal computer and not a
challenge to built-in bigoted views. No matter how enlarged Apple's sense
of the importance of the Macintosh is, it certainly cannot be elevated to a
moral crusade.

Well anyhow, we're glad that we found something to agree with John
about.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/19901024)


(REVIEW)(IBM)(ATL)(00034)

Review of: PC-Globe 3.0, mapping program for the PC

Runs on: PC, PC-XT, PC-AT, PS-2, AND 100% compatibles with 512K
RAM using PC/MS-DOS 2.0+, and a VGA, EGA, CGA, or Hercules -
compatible monochrome monitor. Storage: one hard disk and one
floppy disk drive.

From: PC-Globe, Inc, 4435 South Rural Rd, Bldg 5, Suite 333,
Tempe Arizona 85282, 602-964-6866, FAX [phone]

Price: $69.95 annual updates on data can be obtained for $20-$30

PUMA Rating: 3.925 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest )

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: tbass HNDYPRSN, MCI:379-5378 10/10/90

Summary: PC-Globe is a map and demographic database that can
offer the user a world perspective.

======

REVIEW

======

PC-Globe has a database for 177 countries from which to obtain
preorganized charts and graphs. The database includes
demographics and health statistics, industrial and agricultural data,
gross national product and economic trends, major cities and their
populations and time zones, telex and ham radio codes,
tourist attractions, visa and health requirements, government
leaders and political parties

The database will allow the user to calculate the conversion of
currencies. If the rate of exchange has changed the user can
enter the new rate for the conversion and then calculate.

With this program the user can look up areas with and without
boundary lines. The countries major cities can be marked on maps.
One can look up and impose upon a map the longitude and latitude,
the distances between locations, or international time zones.
These maps are given by region, group, continent, or world view.

The data can be exported to programs such as PC-PaintBrush,
WordPerfect, PageMaker, Ventura, and Lotus1-2-3. It captures
screens in PCX format and can output data as ASCII files. These
output files make it possible to use the data in many ways.

============

PUMA RATING

============

PERFORMANCE: (3.7) Performs as advertised. Of course, I'd like
to be able to change database information for future reference.

USEFULNESS: (4) For all it provides this program is really quite
reasonably priced.

MANUAL: (4) Documentation is sufficient and the most features are
self explanatory.

AVAILABILITY: (4) PC-Globe is seen in many computer stores. It
can be ordered directly from PC-Globe via phone with VISA,
Mastercard, or AMEX from 800-255-2789. PC-Globe will, also,
accept payment for an order with a check, money order, or COD. A
DEMO can be had for $3.

(tbass, HNDYPRSN/19901010/Press Contact: Richard Burger, 602-730-
9000)


(REVIEW)(IBM)(ATL)(00035)

Review of: OmniKey/Ultra keyboard for the PC

Runs on: PC, PC-XT, PC-AT, PS-2, and 100% compatibles. It is,
also, said to interface with Amstrad, except laptop, Tandy 1000
SX & TX, AT&T series including WGS, 6300, and 6300-plus, and
Amiga 2000 & 2500.

From: Northgate Computer Systems Inc., 13705 First Avenue North,
Plymouth Mn 55441.

Price: $149

PUMA Rating: 3.95 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest )

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: tbass HNDYPRSN, MCI:379-5378 08/25/90

SUMMARY: The Northgate OmniKey/Ultra keyboard is an expansion of
the well-designed Northgate OmniKey Plus. Versatility is the name
of the game with this keyboard; keys are everywhere.

=======

REVIEW

=======

Northgate's OmniKey/Ultra keyboard interfaces with a surprisingly
large number of computers; it takes just the flick of a few dip
switches to change from one to another. Now users that have been
denied access to a decent keyboard and were destined to type on a
sponge for the rest of the life of their motherboard or computer
can buy a Northgate quality keyboard and have it be compatible
with their computer.

As a user that has enjoyed typing on a Northgate Omni102 keyboard
for years, I can say, honestly, the feel and sound of these
keyboards make a difference. I look forward to sitting down to a
real keyboard.

The OmniKey/Ultra has added many features to the Omni102. One
feature is the "*", or "SHIFT 8" which can be initiated from a
single key located between the Right CTRL and Right ALT keys. It
works fine in DOS but it has trouble functioning from within
PC-Write where it acts as if nothing happened. This key is suppose
to initiate the normal "*" scan code, in some cases it seems to initiate
nothing.

Another one of the problems is the reversal of the CAPS LOCK
function. If this happens Northgate says to just issue a SHIFT
CAPS LOCK to change it back.

Northgate says that some of these problems are caused by programs
that issue occasional random shift codes.

The Left CTRL and Caps Lock keys can be exchanged and the package
includes new covers for them. This is done via dip switches.

There are three extra keys above the cursor keys. These keys
perform specified functions. The comma Period Lock key will
toggle the capability of the SHIFT key to affect the "," and/or
"." keys. No more 'less than' and 'greater than,╒ i.e. U>S>A>,
symbols when typing commands in DOS. Yet it is easy enough to get
them back when needed. The Rate Select speeds up and slow down
the rate of movement of the cursor. The SF Select key control the
alternative operation of the F-key across the top of the key-
board. If the user wants those F-keys to always give a Shift-
function key response then the SF Select key will direct it to do
so.

If the user has become familiar to a left-handed or right-handed
Dvorak layout, this keyboard will give it to them.

The backslash/pipe key can be exchanged with the asterisk key if
the user finds that more convenient.

===========

PUMA RATING

===========

PERFORMANCE: (3.8) If this keyboard can indeed work for as many
different machines as they claim that would have to be a strong
suit; if it does not please the purchaser it can be sent
back within 60 days for a full refund. Northgate keyboards have a
five-year repair and replacement warranty. The mechanical
switches, touch and sound of the Northgate are definitely big
plusses for getting one. The asterisk key still does not work in
some programs, i.e. PC-Write.

USEFULNESS: (4.0) The computer as we know it functions well with
a keyboard as its human interface; the Northgate keyboards make
that interface more pleasurable than most. The Northgate
OmniKey/Ultra interfaces with more computers than its
predecessors.

MANUAL: (4.0) The manual is short and to the point. This manual
has nearly everything in it for the novice as well as the expert.

AVAILABILITY: (4.0) Northgate products are not found in the
stores, but they can be ordered via telephone at 800-526-2446.
Northgate even finances its own credit card.

(tbass, HNDYPRSN/19900825/Press Contact:Mona Hendrickson, 800-
526-2446)