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/1993/nb930716

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(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00001)

Library of Congress Standardizes On SAS 07/16/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- In Washington,
the nation's library, the Library of Congress (LOC), is swamped
with documents because it receives copies of virtually every
document published in the United States. This has led to a
variety of systems and proposals to catalogue and make this
information available to the public and government, but one of
the most important uses is to provide research data to the
members of Congress.

Recently, the LOC's Congressional Research Service installed a
Unix-based local area network using SAS Institute (Cary, North
Carolina) statistical software to analyze a vast collection of
census data, legislation, maps, and commercial databases.

Because of the volume of information being processed, this
client-server network is based on two SPARCstation 2 Sun
Microsystems computers, one configured as server and the other
as client.

Government Computer News reports that response times had slowed
to a crawl when using PCs to conduct searches because just one
part of the 1990 Census data consists of 40 gigabytes of
information stored on more than 60 CD-ROMs.

Borland's dBASE was formerly used for the CRS's PC-based
research, but even routine searches, which took several hours
using dBASE, now reportedly need only a few minutes' processing
using SAS software running under SunOS.

(John McCormick/19930713/)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00002)

UK - Elonex Intros VL Bus PC Series 07/16/93
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Elonex has announced the PC-
400/VL series of machines, which it claims are the first PCs from a
top five manufacturer that combine conventional Industry Standard
Architecture (ISA) expansion slots with high speed local bus slots
conforming to the VL Bus standard defined by the Video Equipment
Standards Association (VESA).

VL-Bus slots virtually eliminate system bottlenecks by providing
a direct connection between the peripheral bus and the central
processor unit (CPU).

The PC-400/VL series is available immediately and is supplied with
a VL-Bus video card as standard. The card features an accelerated
SVGA chipset capable of delivering 65,000 on-screen colors and
speeds of more than 18 million Winmark. (A Winmark is a measure of
the speed of a Windows-based PC).

Other VL-Bus expansion options include a high-end, 24-bit video
adapter that can achieve 16.7 million on-screen colors and speeds of
more than 50 million Winmarks, plus a range of cached hard disk
controllers.

Three machines comprise the PC-400/VL series: the PC-433/VL, the
450, and the 466. These are based, respectively, on the Intel 33
megahertz (MHz) 80486SX, the 50MHz 80486DX2-50, and the 66MHz
80486DX2-66 chipsets. Each model is claimed to be CPU-upgradable
and ready for Intel's Pentium Overdrive processor.

All machines come with a minimum of 64K of cached memory, with 256K
available as an option for memory configurations of more than 16MB.
Main memory options range from 4 to 64MB.

Buyers have a choice of two casing options -- the slimline M style
with a 90 watts power supply, with room for three full length ISA
slots, two VL-Bus slots and two drive bays; or the Compact B case,
which has a 150 watt power supply and room for five full length ISA
slots, two VL-Bus slots and five drive bays.

Pricing on the new machines is highly dependent on the
configurations required. Pricing starts at UKP 1,110 for a floppy-
only PC/433M/VL with 14-inch color display, to UKP 4,210 for a
20-inch color screen-equipped PC-466M/VL with 1,200MB of SCSI
hard disk capacity.

(Steve Gold/19930714/Press & Public Contact: Elonex - Tel: 081-452-
4444; Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00003)

Japan - Intec Beefs Up VAN 07/16/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Japan's major VAN (value-added
network) service firm Intec says it will add more powerful
features to its VAN, called Tri-P, in October. With the new
services, the firm expects to gain additional 10,000 users.

Intec will provide 9,600 baud rate access to network users
and hopes to specifically attract those with pictorial data
to send. Also, Intec is preparing to provide connections to
overseas major personal computer networks including CompuServe,
Colleague (Mitsubishi Trading), Delphi, and Dialog.

The firm has until now specialized in domestic networks and
provides access to about 400 kinds through Tri-P. The domestic
networks include NEC's PC-VAN, ASCII Network, JAL network and
Nikkei Mix. An Intec spokesman says there are about 20,000
registered members for Tri-P. With the system upgrade, the firm
hopes to gain another 10,000 members, including many overseas.

Online sign-up outside Japan is not currently available and
prospective members need to write to Intec at 2-6-10
Sarugaku-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101, Japan, or send a fax request.
The online usage fee is 10 yen (9 cents) per minute for domestic
networks and 70 yen (65 cents) for overseas networks.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930714/Press Contact: Intec, +81-3-
3292-2911, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00004)

UK - Andest Cuts Modem Pricing 07/16/93
MILTON KEYNES, ENGLAND, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Buying a modem these
days seems to be getting cheaper and cheaper, with most of the
majors cutting their prices, either by releasing new lower-priced
models, or by simply cutting their prices. Andest Communications has
taken the latter path, significantly cutting pricing on its Quad
series of modems.

The company's Roadrunner Quad modem, which supports all modem speeds
to 2,400 bits per second, now costs UKP 249 -- down from UKP 329 --
while the Quad data/fax version, which supports 9,600 bps fax
capabilities, costs UKP 299 -- down from UKP 399.

Despite the price cuts, both modems are supplied with batteries and
AC adapters, plus all the comms software and cables in a "ready to
go" combination.

Tony Sellers, Andest's managing director, claims that the price
reductions are the result of increased market competition, plus the
company's economies of scale. He reckons that the price move will
boost sales still further.

Interestingly, Sellers claims that there is still a significant
demand for a low-speed range of modems such as the Roadrunner Quad
series for use where the volume of data does not justify the cost of
a high speed modem.

"The Quads are well proven products for the professional user. Both
models feature error-correction and data compression, and are ideal
for applications where data reliability is more important than sheer
throughput," he said.

(Steve Gold/19930715/Press & Public Contact: Andest Communications -
Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00005)

5th Generation Computer Assn Links With Oregon Univ 07/16/93
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Japan's 5th generation computer
development association has signed an agreement with Oregon State
University which calls for both parties to jointly improve ICOT's
current parallel processor and the software.

The research results are expected to be free to the public.

ICOT (Institute for New Generation Computer Technology) will grant
$150,000 to Oregon State University. The association will
also supply all the necessary hardware and software to the
university. Professor John Connery and Assistant Professor Evan
Tic of the Computer Information Science Division will be in charge
of this joint project at the university.

To start, the university team will rewrite ICOT's parallel
processing computer language called "K1 Compiler" in C language.
Also, the university team will study gene data processing on
ICOT's prototype parallel processor. The first phase of this
project is expected to be completed at the end of 1994.

All research data will be open to public according to ICOT's policy.

ICOT was created by the Japanese Ministry of International Trade
and Industry in 1982. The association ended a 10-year project
to develop a parallel processor last year. The association is
studying the possibility of further improvements to its prototype
parallel processor.

ICOT has conducting joint research with other universities and
private firms concerning parallel processing computers.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930715/Press Contact: ICOT, +81-3-
3456-2511)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(MOW)(00006)

Russia - Ural Factory Produces CD-ROMs 07/16/93
MOSCOW, RUSSIA, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- A former military factory in the
city of Ekaterunbourg in the Ural mountains, is producing CD-
ROM titles and CD players under license from Philips.

According to the factory, the cost of producing a single CD is
10-15 percent less than in similar factories in Eastern Europe and
Southwestern Asia.

Production started in late June. Currently the company produces
200,000 discs, mainly with the medicine and patent information, which
will be distributed through a Holland subsidiary.

The project, which was a result of 1.5 year long cooperation with ODME,
former Philips subsidiary, will allow to fulfill demand for Russian
information on CD-ROMs, according to Valery Savin, the project manager.

Commersant daily newspaper said that the ex military factory, equipped
with the modern technology and having access to the sales channels, will
be able to get hold of substantial market share in CIS and Eastern
Europe, driving current suppliers off the market.

(Kirill Tchashchin & Newsbox Monitor/19930715/Press Contact: Ural
Electromechanical factory, phone [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00007)

Animated Software Teaches Money, Time, Languages 07/16/93
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- If your kids are
having trouble with their money counting, clock reading, or
want to learn a foreign language, Nordic software says it has
software that can help. The company has announced Coin
Critters, a program designed to introduce children to US coins,
Clock Shop for learning to read and set analog and digital
clocks, and Language Explorer for learning words in four
languages.

Coin Critters starts with a bird's eye view of a woodgrain
table with coins tossed onto the table accompanied by the
jingling sound of change. The game is to get the "critter"
through a maze of objects collecting coins and avoiding bombs
and other perils. To play the game, children must correctly
answer a set of problems. The beginning problems ask players to
identify specific coins with their "heads" side up. At higher
levels children are asked to choose the greater amount between
two piles of coins, and in the advanced lesson kids will need
to determine if they have enough money to purchase items.

Clock Shop has the characters "Old Father Time" and his
"Helping Hands" to lead the players through eight lessons with
multiple skill levels. In the beginning, children are asked to
set a digital clock from an analog clock set in whole hour
intervals. Later lessons ask the player to set the clock from
words and phrases, such as "nine thirty-three" or "a quarter to
eleven." The advanced lessons teach math skills by having the
player determine what time it will be when an amount of time is
added to the current time, such as what time it will be five
hours and thirty-four minutes from now. Players earn time in
the Clock Shop game for each lesson they complete.

Learning useful words in German, French, English, and Spanish
is the focus of Language Explorer. Animated picture tiles
and words are presented and the child must match the word to
the correct picture. A compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)
version of the product features the words spoken aloud by a
native speaker. Nordic claims children ages seven to twelve are
capable of learning twelve words in a foreign language per day,
and younger children can learn words in their own language. The
program is not only for aspiring polyglots (persons who can
read, write, and speak several languages) but can also be used
as an English as a second language (ESL) tool, Nordic said.

All four products require at least a Macintosh Plus with System
6.0.7 or higher and one megabyte of random access memory (RAM).
The CD-ROM version of Language Explorer requires a CD-ROM drive
and retails for $77.95. The other three titles retail for
$57.95.

Lincoln, Nebraska-based Nordic Software was founded in 1981 and
describes itself as a developer of educational software. The
company plans to demonstrate its latest titles at the Macworld
show in August.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930715/Press Contact: Jim Wrenholt, Nordic
Software, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00008)

East-West Sending PCs To Sarajevo 07/15/93
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 15 (NB) -- Alex Randall's
East-West Foundation, which sent PCs to the Soviet Union and
Eastern Europe before the Iron Curtain fell, now plans to aid
Bosnia.

Randall, founder of the Boston Computer Exchange, a used computer
market with affiliates around the nation, said the foundation
will join with the National Endowment for Democracy in sending
two donated, refurbished computers to Kemal Kursaphic, editor of
the newspaper Oslobodjenje, or Liberation. The paper has lost its
building to mortars and some of its staff to snipers, yet it
continues to publish.

Randall, in a press statement, called Kurspahic "the last bastion
of the free press in Bosnia. There is an urgent need for
donations of recyclable computers to keep democratic principles
alive in key sites around the world.

Kurspahic describes his paper as representing the "multi-ethnic,
multi-racial, multi-religious Bosnia" being systematically
destroyed by Serbs and Croats, which have been accused of
practicing genocide against the Bosnian Muslims, who
are descendents of Turkish invaders who nearly seized Vienna in
the 17th century.

While the paper's building has been partly destroyed, it has moved
in a "nuclear bunker," designed to withstand A-bomb attack by the
government of the former Yugoslavia.

Since its creation in 1990, East-West has donated over 5,000
computers. Its best-known donations before this were to Russia,
including the shipment of a laptop PC to then foreign minister Edvard
Shevardnadze. Shevardnadze is now president of the republic of
Georgia, which itself is fighting a civil war against
separatists.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930715/Press Contact: Alex Randall, East-
West, 617-542-1234)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00009)

Smithsonian Starts Significant Software Collection 07/15/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 15 (NB) -- The Smithsonian
Institution, which often refers to itself as "the nation's
attic," has started The National Software Collection at the
National Museum of American History. This collection will
eventually include much of the Institute's vast mainframe and
minicomputer software collection.

Microsoft Word will be the first program officially inducted into
the collection.

Mr. Hampton Shaddock of The History Factory, told Newsbytes this
morning that Microsoft Word would indeed be the very first
software to be formally accepted in the Smithsonian's new
collection but that other publishers' significant products are
expected to follow quickly as the word spreads about the new
collection.

According to Mr. Shaddock, Microsoft is not making any financial
donation to the Smithsonian in conjunction with this new
collection, but in addition to the software itself, the company
is also donating archives containing materials relating to the
creation and subsequent development of Microsoft Word.

The History Factory is a unique Washington-based communications
firm consisting of a group of professional historians and
communications specialists working for the competitive advantage
of business.

(John McCormick/19930715/Press Contact: Lisa Matchette, Microsoft
Corporation, 206-882-8080; or Hampton Shaddock, The History
Factory, 202-387-3228)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(NYC)(00010)

KGB, CIA To Share Intelligence Tips 07/16/93
WASHINGTON, D.C, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Open Source
Solutions has announced that its second international symposium,
"National Security & National Competitiveness: Open Source
Solutions," will be held November 2nd through 4th at the Omni
Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC.

According to Open Sources, "The symposium focuses on three themes of
urgent interest to national security organizations as well as
international enterprises concerned with their viability in
an era of major change: what unclassified sources of multimedia
(imagery and signals as well as print) data can be bought
relatively inexpensively by government and private sector
organizations; information handling tools which can convert
information into intelligence; and opportunities for government
and private sector contracts to increase organizational capabilities
to collect, process, and exploit or disseminate unclassified data."

Robert David Stelle, president of Open Source Solutions, told
Newsbytes, "Last year's conference was the first time that the
intelligence community, the information industry and buyers of
information and intelligence services were brought into the same room
for open discussion. It is imperative that we move rapidly to change
the way we have been gathering and using intelligence. The
intelligence community has spent billions on building and
maintaining a super highway between here and Moscow and running
a Cadillac on it. The problem is that now we need 6 jeeps, 100
motorcycles and 1,000 bicycles; the Cadillac can't do off-road work."

Steele told Newsbytes that the symposium will attract speakers from all
over the word. He said, "We have just received confirmation that three
colonels from the KGB will be participating."

Among the speakers confirmed to date are Alvin Toffler, author; Mitch
Kapor, Electronic Frontier Foundation; Vint Cerf, Internet Society; and
Robert Gates' former director, Central Intelligence Agency. Tentatively
scheduled as a luncheon speaker is Vice President Albert Gore.

(Barbara E. McMullen & John F. McMullen/Press Contact: Robert Steele,
Open Sources Solutions, 703-536-1775 (voice); 703-536-1776 (fax);
[e-mail] (e-mail)/19930715)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(DEN)(00011)

Control Data Shipping Mail*Hub For SPARC 07/16/93
ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Control
Data Systems says it is now shipping Mail*Hub, a suite of electronic
mail integration services and products for Sun SPARC systems
running the Solaris operating system.

CDS says this is the first step in its strategy to provide customers
with a choice of server platforms for the product. A Unix server
version is expected to be announced later this year.

CDS says Mail*Hub is designed to integrate all of a company's
existing e-mail systems and directories into a single system that
incorporates all of the current standards in electronic mail and
directory services, including X.400, SMTP, and X.500. The program
also includes a set of gateways, add-on features and services which
allow end users to use their own e-mail systems to communicate with
people using other e-mail packages running on desktop, department
and mainframe computers from a variety of vendors including local
area network (LAN)-based personal computers and Unix systems.

CDS says gateways are provided for cc:Mail, Microsoft Mail, Lotus
Notes, WordPerfect Office, and MHS Mail. Jim Payne, marketing
manager for CDS network integration, says the company will also help
customers evaluate their needs, select appropriate technologies,
then help test, configure, and monitor the system.

CDS says prices for Mail*Hub are based on the number of users in an
organization and the type of services they need. A basic Mail*Hub
"backbone," which includes X.400, SMTP, X.500, directory
synchronization, and two PC gateways, starts at $18,000.
Installation of an additional PC gateway starts at $2,000.

(Jim Mallory/19930715/Press contact: Charlotte Fransen, CDS, 612-
482-4857; Reader contact: CDS, 800-257-6736)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00012)

Japanese Adobe Type Manager 3.5J 07/16/93
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- The
Japanese market is becoming increasingly important for many
software publishers. Now Adobe Systems Japan has introduced
version 3.5J of Adobe Type Manager. At the same time the company
has also announced that its PostScript Level 2 technology is being
used in Hewlett-Packard's new HP LaserJet 4ML printer.

Patricia J. Pane, spokesperson for the company, told Newsbytes
that previous versions of the product had been "successful" in
the Japanese market, and in the US where it is popular with
Japanese-speaking users "working in an English environment."

Pane told Newsbytes that one of the main enhancements to the
product is that it comes bundled with Adobe Type Composer 1.0,
a new type application that, "allows users to mix-and-match
Japanese language fonts and therefore create new styles," she
said.

ATM 3.5J is claimed to be compatible with all PostScript and
non-PostScript printers, virtually all Macintosh applications, with
the more than 1,600 fonts in the Adobe Type Library, and with most
Type 1 fonts from other vendors. The program also supports Adobe's
multiple master fonts and Roman font substitution. The company
says that this gives users the capability to perform font
substitution when used in conjunction with Adobe's SuperATM
software.

Adobe says that Adobe Type Composer allows users to
manipulate type to: change the styles of Hiragana, Katakana,
Roman and punctuation characters; adjust the baseline of Roman
characters relative to Japanese characters for optical centering;
add Gaiji characters; download new fonts to any PostScript
Japanese printer; and make other custom choices such as screen
fonts sizes.

In announcing the new product, Masahiko Kozuka, Adobe Japan's
director of Japanese typography, said: "Traditional Japanese
typesetting systems allowed designers to make sophisticated style
choices that have been difficult to achieve on the Macintosh. Adobe
Type Manager 3.5J and Adobe Type Composer 1.0 software give
even novice users the freedom of traditional typesetting right on
the Macintosh desktop. The ability to customize fonts to specific
company or design needs brings power and creativity to individuals
using type on the desktop."

Adobe also plans to offer new companion font packages later in
1993, including the Heisei Mincho W3 Gaiji Pack and packages of
Kana fonts designed for use with the ShinGothic family of
Japanese fonts. The company says that Kana fonts from the
LogoLine, LogoCut, LogoArl families are expected to be available
in four weights each: light, medium, bold, and ultra. The Heisei
Mincho W3 Gaiji fonts include JIS Level 3 Kanji and other
characters and will allow users to add non-standard characters
to any PostScript Japanese font.

Adobe Type Manager 3.5J retails for Y40,000 (approximately $400)
and is available now through Adobe authorized distributors in Japan
and the United States. Registered users of earlier versions of the
Adobe Type Manager program can upgrade to version 3.5J with the
Composer product for Y15,000 or to the ATM 3.5J software program
only for Y5,000.

Minimum system requirements for the Adobe Type Manager 3.5J
include a Macintosh with KanjiTalk 6.07 or later, including
KanjiTalk 7.1; two megabytes (MB) or more of RAM (4MB for
KanjiTalk 7); and a hard disk with about 9MB of space.

The company has also announced that Hewlett-Packard's new
HP LaserJet 4ML printer incorporates Adobe's PostScript Level 2
software and related technologies. The HP LaserJet 4ML is a
300-dots-per-inch (dpi), four pages-per-minute (ppm) laser
printer that, in addition to incorporating PostScript Level 2
software, also comes with the new PostScript Level 2 printer
driver for the Macintosh platform plus enhanced HP PCL5.

The printer also includes Type 1 and TrueType rasterizers, both
licensed from Adobe with the PostScript interpreter, and HP's
new EconoMode and Intelligent On/Off features.

(Ian Stokell/19930715/Press Contact: Patricia J. Pane,
415-962-3967, Adobe Systems Inc.)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(WAS)(00013)

Roundup - Stories Carried By Other Media This Week 07/16/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Roundup is a brief
look at some computer stories carried in other publications
received here this past week.

UnixWorld for August carries an extensive profile of Novell's
head, Ray Noorda, whom the magazine describes as "the second-
most important man in computing and the industry's most enigmatic
figure." Contrasting him with Bill Gates, the article asks if a
fellow who lives in a tract house can hope to compete with
Microsoft in the Unix field.

July's Voice Processing Magazine has a good introductory article
explaining just what interactive voice response can do for a
business.

Federal Computer Week for July 12 compares prices for 486DX/33
systems on five federal contracts. The least expensive supplier
is EDS on the DoD SMC contract and most expensive, with a smaller
hard drive, is Lockheed on the Veterans Administration NOAVA
contract.

Reseller Management for June advises consultants to take
advantage of speaking at computer seminars to boost their
credibility and access to markets but emphasizes that they should
provide real, unbiased information, not tout their own products
or services.

Computer Reseller News for the week of July 5 says that resellers
are reporting disappointing sales of the new NetWare 4.0
operating system which they have been pushing since April. The
front-page article blames NetWare 4.0's complexity, quoting a
Novell spokesperson as saying that it takes time for users to
evaluate major new releases.

(John McCormick/19930716/)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00014)

GTSI Counters ZDS 486 Desktop IV Offerings 07/16/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Zenith Data Systems
may have been the first out of the starting gate when it came
to upgrading its offerings on the finally awarded Desktop IV
contract. But when competitor Government Technology Services Inc.,
or GTSI, of Chantilly, Virginia, was finally able to unveil its
486 entries, it edged into the lead as far as Government Computer
News's Cynthia Morgan is concerned.

In her July 5 review of the Desktop IV entrants, Ms. Morgan said
that the GTSI CLIN 3AA provides a better network interface,
faster video, and a slightly lower price.

GTSI offers four basic PCs on the Desktop IV contract, ranging
from the $1,327 Everex 20 megahertz (MHz) 386 with 2 megabytes
(M) of memory and a 120 MB hard drive to a 33 MHz 486-based IBM
system with 8 MB of memory, a 527 MB hard drive, local bus video,
and a 16-bit Ethernet card with 10Base-T priced at $6,335.

All four come with windows or Unix software and 14-inch Super VGA
monitors.

Although the Desktop IV computers it sells will carry the GTSI
label, IBM will actually make the three 486-based systems while
Everex, which once hoped to be a major player in this contract,
will only be providing the very low-end 386-based PC.

Desktop IV is a major contract to supply the next generation of
network workstations to Pentagon and other government buyers. In
the course of the "fast track" contract negotiations Desktop IV
was awarded several times and heavily protested, causing awards
to be withdrawn.

After several years of negotiations, the contract is now finally
in force and pent-up federal demand for high-performance PCs is
expected to spark a mild surge of buying, mostly of the IBM-built
486-units.

One insider pointed out that the Everex model is unlikely to sell
well, since Desktop III, which remained in effect during the
Desktop IV contract bidding, offered similar machines and any
manager wanting them wouldn't have waited for Desktop IV to take
effect.

Buying pressure would be greater, but apparently a number of
agencies just bought computers from the annual General Services
Administration Schedule while watching Desktop IV's struggle to
be born.

Suppliers on government contracts like Desktop IV are always free
to lower prices at will but must have approval from the
contracting agency, in this case the Air Force, to add new
products the way GTSI has with its addition of IBM 486 machines.

(John McCormick/19930716/Press Contact: Bob Capose, GTSI, 703-
631-3333 or fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00015)

Federal Users Rate PCs 07/16/93
WASHINGTON, DC, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- In its latest Product
Preference Survey, Government Computer News has reported in its
July 8 issue that Hewlett-Packard and Gateway 2000 personal
computers are most popular among the nearly 500 federal users who
responded to the GCN mail survey.

In order of preference, Dell, Swan, Northgate, Zeos, Epson,
Apple, Compaq, and IBM PCs followed top rated HP and (tied)
Gateway 2000 machines.

Northgate PCs rated highest for low maintenance costs, with IBM
rating poorest in this category.

Dell came out on top for quality and speed of customer support,
while Hewlett-Packard PCs were rated tops for both reliability
and quality.

Some users also cited Zeos systems both for quality and customer
support.

Gateway 2000 scored far ahead of the others in price vs.
performance, quality and speed of upgrades, and cost of support.

Details of the survey are given in the current issue of
Government Computer News.

(John McCormick/19930716/)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SYD)(00016)

Apple Australia Celebrates Half-Millionth Mac Sale 07/16/93
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Apple Australia has
distributed a promotional booklet to 2 million Australian
households. "Apple Advantage" tells how buyers can "save up to $2000"
on an Apple Computer.

The promotion is tied into the imminent sale of the 500,000th
Apple Computer Macintosh. The lucky purchaser will have his/her
money refunded. Also, buyers who register their new machines during
the promotional period will go into a draw for a PowerBook computer.

Marketing Manager David Rigg said, "We're telling people about the
Apple Advantage. It features a toll-free beginner's helpline where
they get easy-to-understand advice when looking to buy their first
computer. Those with DOS/Mac compatibility questions can call the
compatibility helpline to find out how easy it is to connect a Mac
to a DOS PC or LAN."

The book includes a ready-made financing plan so potential buyers can
see just what their system of choice will cost to lease. It shows
testimonials from four very different users, ranging from a family
to small business. These are people who have "found improved
productivity and lifestyle with the intelligent use of their Macs."

The promotion runs until August 31. Four of the products offered
include: Performa 250 for AUS$2095, Stylewriter II for AUS$795,
CD Drive 150 for $695, and PowerBook Duo 210 for AUS$2995
(AUS$3 is about US$2). These prices range from 20 to 45 percent
discount on book price.

(Paul Zucker/19930716/Contact: Lee Hansen at Apple Australia
on phone [phone] or fax [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00017)

Apple Canada To Lay Off 21 07/16/93
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- In the wake of its
parent company's announcement that it lost US$188.3 million in
its third quarter and will lay off about 2,500 employees over the
next 12 months, Apple Canada Inc., said it has given 21 employees
their pink slips.

The 21 employees, who received their notice July 15, are
scattered throughout the company and not concentrated in any one
functional area, said Franca Miraglia, a spokeswoman for Apple
Canada. They represent roughly 10 percent of the Canadian
subsidiary's work force; the layoff leaves Apple Canada with 199
employees, Miraglia said.

The parent company said it took an accounting charge of US$320.9
million, or US$198.9 million after tax, for a previously
announced restructuring and other cost-cutting measures now under
way. This turned what would have been a quarterly profit into a
loss.

In the third quarter, which ended June 25, Apple had revenues of
US$1.862 billion, up seven percent over the same period last
year.

Miraglia said Apple Canada made every effort to cut costs without
cutting jobs, but was unable to avoid layoffs.

"The goal was to significantly and permanently reduce our expense
structure," she said. The cuts do not change the nature of the
work Apple Canada is doing, she added.

(Grant Buckler/19930716/Press Contact: Franca Miraglia, Apple
Canada, 416-513-5511)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00018)

Comdex/Canada: Print Server, Net Hub From Protec 07/16/93
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Protec Microsystems
Inc., a Montreal-based manufacturer, launched a new print server
card and a network hub at the Comdex/Canada show here.

The four-port NetAdvantage PSC print server card is meant for
Novell NetWare local-area networks (LANs) and installs in an
Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) or Expanded Industry
Standard Architecture (EISA) expansion slot in any Intel-based
personal computer with at least 256K bytes of memory. The PC can
be linked to the network using any NetWare-compatible interface
card, including Ethernet, Token Ring, or Arcnet cards, according
to the vendor.

The server card uses RJ45 connectors (similar to the RJ11 jacks
used for plugging in telephones) and twisted-pair cabling that
converts to standard parallel connectors at the printer end,
company officials explained. It allows printers to be placed as
far away as 600 feet.

The NetAdvantage PSC has a suggested retail price of US$795, and
is due to ship by the beginning of August, the company said.

Protec also launched the Bytenet Hub, a peer-to-peer networking
device designed to link as many as eight PCs. A software-only,
four-PC version is also available. The eight-PC version is a
stand-alone box, about one foot by seven by three inches, with
its own AC power supply. It uses twisted-pair cabling.

The list price for the eight-PC Bytenet Hub is C$345. The
four-port software only version, which runs on any Intel-based PC
with at least 256K bytes of memory, is $230.

Blanca Novoa, a company spokeswoman, said Protec sells its
products in Canada, the United States, Europe, and Australia, and
is likely to enter the Mexican market in the near future. She
added that Protec also builds hardware for other vendors who sell
it under their own brand names, among them the medical division
of Hewlett-Packard Co.

(Grant Buckler/19930716/Press Contact: Blanca Novoa, Protec
Microsystems, 514-630-5832 ext. 224, fax [phone]; Public
Contact: Protec Microsystems, 800-363-8156)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TOR)(00019)

Mohawk Data Sciences Changes Name 07/16/93
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Mohawk Data
Sciences - Canada, Ltd., has changed its name to Recognition
Canada Inc., a logical move since the company was acquired six
years ago by Recognition International Inc., of Dallas.

MDS Canada was at one time the Canadian subsidiary of Mohawk Data
Sciences Corp., a New York manufacturer of computer terminals and
small computer systems. But in the spring of 1985, the Toronto
firm's management bought it from the parent company and turned it
into a Canadian-owned distributor and software developer. The
purchase was part of a breakup of the parent by corporate raider
Asher Edelman.

Then Recognition International, a maker of data entry and cheque
processing systems, bought the company in 1987. The Canadian
company began marketing Recognition's products along with others.

The company now provides networking, document processing, image,
and general systems integration services. It has about 140
employees, down from roughly 200 in the mid-1980s.

Michael D. Briand, Recognition Canada's vice-president and
general manager, said the firm has come a long way from its
original mission. It now works with a number of large corporate
and government accounts, he said, with the largest being Canada's
federal Department of Employment and Immigration.

(Grant Buckler/19930716/Press Contact: Peter Brugger, Recognition
Canada, 416-475-6060)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00020)

TI's Record 2Q Revenues, Profit 07/16/93
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Texas Instruments has
announced its second quarter financial results, and unlike a number
of other companies which are using words like "disappointing" to
describe results, TI says its second quarter reached an all time
high for net income and net revenues.

The company said net revenues for the quarter, which ended June 30,
were $2.1 billion, a 13 percent increase from nearly $1.9 billion for
the same period last year. Net income was reported at $112 million
compared to $472 million last year. For the current quarter earnings
per share were up 62 percent to $1.18 from last year's $0.73.

Profit from operations for the quarter was reported as $173 million
compared to $128 million for the same period in 1992. TI says a
substantially higher profit in semiconductors more than offset a
loss in the information technology category. Defense electronics
margins remained stable on lower revenues.

The company said second quarter results include an accrual of $20
million for employee profit-sharing plans, up from $7 million in
the first quarter of '93. There was no accrual for profit sharing in
1992. Profit after tax return on assets was 7.4 percent, compared
with 5.4 percent in the first quarter.

TI said its semiconductor orders reached all time highs in the
second quarter, with orders reaching record levels in Japan, Europe,
and the Asia-Pacific region. Semiconductor revenues grew faster
than the total market, and also reached record levels in the
quarter, supported by increased shipments of bipolar products,
memory, and microprocessors. The company says it will increase
capital spending in 1993 to 4700 million, up $50 million
over previous projections, to support the demand for submicron CMOS
semiconductors. In a letter to stockholders, TI Chairman, President
and CEO Jerry Junkins said more than one-third of the company's
bipolar logic and linear revenues come from differentiated CMOS and
BiCMOS products.

(Jim Mallory/19930716/Press contact: Terri West, Texas Instruments,
214-995-3481)


(EDITORIAL)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00021)

Editorial - Home Shopping Net Mergers 07/16/93
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Editorial by
Dana Blankenhorn. The appointment of Reed Hundt as FCC chairman
brings anti-trust concerns to the fore in US telecommunications.
The first challenge will be passing on the proposed merger of
QVC and Home Shopping Network, the two largest cable shopping
outfits.

At first glance, this looks like trouble. The two companies,
between them, totally dominate a $2.5 billion industry. Both
stocks were up as the deal was done, so analysts expect big
profits. But are they right?

In fact, home shopping is an easy business to get into. The only
assets of the new combine are cable clearances, some broadcast
licenses, studios, computer systems, and operators. Only the
first two assets are anything special, and with increasing
numbers of cable operators moving to increase the number of
channels they offer, it's a short-term advantage at best.

Every major retailer, every phone company, and every credit card
processor has the computers and operators needed to handle home
shopping. Every city has lots of TV studios, and they're easy to
build in any case. What Macy's and others who want to get into the
business lack is the formula, which is not patented, and some way
to differentiate themselves.

Home shopping today is very primitive. You can either look at
pictures in a catalog, or buy on impulse from TV. IBM executive
Lucie Fjeldstad showed one image of the future at the recent
broadcasting show, systems which keep track of your size, which
put you online with personal shoppers who know your tastes, and
whose costs are built-into the price of the goods, costing
consumers no more than today's choices. The race should now be on
to create such a system. All I know is, it's far from being a
reality yet. I've never bought anything off TV -- I find the
offerings tacky and overpriced. When I'm ready to plunk down my
credit card, regularly, on TV-fed offerings, and when you're
ready to do the same, the technology will have arrived. Until
then, don't worry about it.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19930716)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00022)

Custom Exercise Video Program On CD-ROM 07/15/93
FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 15 (NB) -- You might want
to clear some room in front of your computer as Computer
Directions says it has introduced Fitness Partner, a program on
compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) that acts as a personal
exercise consultant. Fitness Partner not only helps you decide
what exercises to do and for how long, it even creates a custom
exercise videos complete with sound.

The program determines an exercise routine based on gender,
goals, age, and fitness level from over seventy-five full-
motion video exercises, the company said. Award-winning,
certified, workout trainer Roni Smaldino is featured on the CD-
ROM to demonstrate each exercise and offers coaching to be sure
each exercise is performed properly.

Unlike fitness videos, the user is not faced with learning the
exercises while trying to perform with the video because a
special learning section is available. In addition, the program
is designed with limited space in mind, so users aren't
expected to have a lot of room in which to exercise.

While the actual video is half-screen size, the company claims
the learn portion of the video, and the fact that it is
customized so it isn't too strenuous, means users don't need a
close-up view to follow the routine. Nine custom routines can
be programmed for each of ten people, the company said. The
routines can also be changed by the user to include different
exercises or styles of music.

Fitness Partner tracks seven different measurements and goals
for each participant and includes a measuring chart, a
measuring tape, and a complete user guide with the CD-ROM.
Those who send in $4.95 with their registration can get Covet
Bailey's book "Fit or Fat" as well.

The program requires an IBM or compatible personal computer
(PC) with a CD-ROM drive, a video graphics array (VGA) display,
a digital sound card, and Windows 3.1 or higher. The program
can also be played on the Radio Shack VIS player, which
connects to a television set and saves the custom information
in cards which are inserted into the unit. Retail price of
Fitness Partner is $69.95.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930715/Press Contact: Jeff White, Computer
Directions, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Public Contact
800-600-2348)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00023)

Great Plains Software Gets Estimating Link 07/16/93
BEAVERTON, OREGON, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Timberline Software
Corporation and Great Plains Software said this week they will team
up to produce a link that will integrate Timberline's estimating
software with the job cost module in Great Plains Accounting program.

Timerline says the link between its Precision Estimating software
and the accounting package supports its goal of providing an open
exchange of information between its product line and other software
applications. "We want to break down the productivity barriers that
now exist between Prevision and other software applications used by
construction firms," says Curtis Peltz, vice president and manager
of Timberline's estimating division.

Great Plains sales and marketing VP Dan Malmstrom calls the
relationship between the two companies a win/win situation, saying
the ability to link estimating with job costing will save time and
eliminate duplication of effort.

Using the two software packages, contractors will be able to set up
their own estimating database by selecting from a list of pre-built
residential, commercial and specialty construction databases
developed specifically for Great Plains Accounting, according to
Timberline.

Other benefits include automatic linking to job costing of change
orders entered in Precision, an optional import/export module, and
optional support for digitizing.

Scheduled to ship in October, the Precision package and its Great
Plains link will have a suggested retail price of $1,290. The
Digitizer software will sell for $1,290, and the import/export
module carries a $290 price tag. To use the combination you will
need an IBM- compatible PC running DOS 3.0 or higher and equipped
with a minimum of 640 kilobytes of system memory.

In addition to its own accounting software, which is available for
both Apple Computer's Macintosh platform and PCs, Great Plains
worked with Microsoft Corporation to develop Microsoft Profit, an
integrated accounting and business management software package. The
company also provides the customer support for that program.

(Jim Mallory/19930716/Press contact: Terry Kalil, Great Plains
Software, 701-281-3130; Reader contact: Deb Carpenter-Beck,
Timberline, 503-526- 8166)


(REVIEW)(APPLE)(SFO)(00024)

Review of - Time Treks, Game For Macintosh 07/16/93

Runs on: Macintosh

From: Earthquest Inc., 125 University Ave., Palo Alto, CA94301
[phone]

Price: $59.95

PUMA rating: 2.5 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest)

Reviewed for NEWSBYTES by: Naor Wallach

Summary: A historical trivia game. Somewhat limited and buggy.

=======

REVIEW

=======

Time Treks is a combination of Jeopardy, Trivial Pursuit,
and Concentration rolled into one that uses only history as its
source of material. However, if you're looking for any kind of
in-depth learning of historical information, Time Treks
is not for you.

With a subject as wide and deep as history, I guess it's not
really surprising that a single program cannot cover the whole
arena. However, the program does make some rather broad claims
about its teaching capabilities which are sadly not even
approached.

In the game, one works to redeem some mistakes that an over-eager
archaeologist made. Seems that in his haste to learn about
previous civilizations he created a time machine. However, this
time machine has the unfortunate tendency to leave open time doors
which allow some unscrupulous characters to try and change
history. Your task is to close the time doors. If you achieve
your task, you are allowed to go after a more difficult villain.
If you fail .... well ..... I'll let you find out.

When the program is running one is presented with a gameboard.
On this board are 30 tiles with different designs. The idea is
to control more tiles than the villain, then you win. To win a
tile you must do one of the activities that is associated with
that tile. Each tile has an icon inscribed on it that tells
you what kind of riddle or challenge you need to solve to gain
control of that tile. Most of the tiles only give control
over themselves. Some types of tiles can give control over
many tiles.

When you look at the half dozen or so different tile types, you
might think that this game could really entertain or educate you.
Unfortunately, it turns out that only two or three really
different types of games exist. All the others are merely
variations on the same themes. The most common type is a
trivia game. It may be presented in various forms but the
mechanics are the same. You find the correct answer to a
question from among several presented. In all cases, each
game or riddle is timed. You are allowed to use the program's
extensive resources to search for an answer, but time does not
stop while you do so. If you get the correct answer, you are
rewarded with some musical tones and given that tile. Should
you fail, a different tone is presented and the tile is given
over to the villain. Unfortunately, the correct answer is
not indicated so you have not really learned anything except
that you were wrong.

The other type of game is an exploration type. Here you are
given a hint about something and you need to find it within the
timeframe allocated. If you get to the right screen, the game
gives you a very broad hint as to where the item is. In some
cases it even places an X over it and plasters a colorful
rainbow in a corner of the screen.

The third type of game is somewhat of an adventure as you
need to solve several riddles in a row to gain a whole bunch
of tiles. This last has no knowledge component to it at all.
You simply must remember what worked in the past and repeat
it. When you get to a point where you earlier went wrong,
choose a different alternative. Given enough playing time,
you will solve the complete adventure.

The Macintosh version of the program is based on Hypercard. This
makes a very large and very slow program. There are various
technical defects which definitely distracted from my
enjoyment of the game. For instance, the game shows the tiles
in a single color. However, when you select a tile, it
appears very briefly in full color mode before becoming
monotone again. At one point in the program, the whole tile
array is displayed in color which serves to remind you of
how good the program could have looked.

In addition to the tiles, almost every screen piece that
you see is also in some monochrome color. This is unfortunate
since the artwork that went into the program is very nice.
The lack of color makes sure that you will not want to spend
too much time admiring the drawings. You are allowed a method of
changing the colors. This is very limited though and I found little
use in seeing things in a monotonic brown or red versus the
monotonic blue that the program started in.

When you manage to take control over the majority of the tiles
on the game board, you are given the option of moving up to
the next level immediately, or of continuing with the current
game board to get more points. If you choose the latter route,
you will need to turn all of the tiles before being allowed
to move up. You cannot change your mind in midstream. When
you do move up a level, the only difference in game play
is that you are given less time to complete each riddle or
challenge. Everything else (including the riddles) stays
the same.

The MS-DOS version of the program shares all of the faults
discussed above. In essence, the two programs are almost
identical. They certainly run exactly the same. Any minute
differences between them appear to be caused by the fact that
Hypercard is not available on the PC so Earthquest's designers
simulated many of its aspects.

While the graphics were interesting, many of the animations
are failures. This happens as early as the opening screen.
The first animation is of a space vessel of some type zooming
across the screen and bringing to light the words "Time Treks."
For some reason, the spaceship appears momentarily and then a
whoosh sound is heard and the title text appears. This is very
disjointed and appears very amateurish.

Another poorly implemented aspect of the game is the quitting
routines. I could not believe it but whenever I wanted to
quit, I had to press a Quit button in four or five different
places before the program would let me out. Not only that,
but each time I pressed the Quit button, I would be sent to
an area of the program that was totally unexpected.

The program's archives are a completely separate arena and
can be explored independently of the game. I spent some time
in there trying to learn different things that might help me.
Here I was accosted with the exact same sets of problems that
I discussed above in terms of feel and attractiveness. It got
so bad that I just wanted to leave the area due to its look.

Another problem that I found with the actual material was
that it is extremely shallow. Should you decide to really dig
into one of the little factoids given by the program, you'll
quickly find that there is nothing there. The problem with this
is that I might not learn so much by knowing that Columbus
discovered America in 1492.

Maybe I also would be interested in the origin of the continent's
name?Perhaps the story of Columbus's travels might intrigue me?
If that is the case, then I need to look elsewhere for the
information. It will not be present in the program.

I was also confronted with another problem. Namely bugs. Many
times in the period of this review, I tried answering a question
or moving from point to point only to be presented with an
error message from the program. The error was not my action,
since at other times it would execute just fine, but rather
with the program itself not knowing what to do next. Pushing
the "Continue" button enough times eventually cleared the problem.
This is simply not acceptable in a program that you are
asked to spend money for.

As a history buff I really wanted to like a program that
promises as much as this one does. However, one disappointment
after another leads me to the sad conclusion that I cannot in
good heart recommend this game to anyone.

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

PUMA RATINGS

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

PERFORMANCE: 2 The program runs slowly and painfully. There
are many areas that are not properly implemented which
lead to consequent operational problems.

USEFULNESS: 2 If you know all your factoids, the game
degenerates very quickly into repetitiveness. If you do not,
there is almost no way for you to learn.

MANUAL: 3 All the information that you need is there. However,
to go with the rest of the program, it is printed in a
brownish reddish ink that is very unappealing.

AVAILABILITY: 3 From mail order houses and retail software
stores. The company does not maintain a toll-free number for
technical support which can become necessary.

(Naor Wallach/19930627)


(REVIEW)(IBM)(WAS)(00025)

Review of - All About Cows CD-ROM 07/16/93

Runs on: MS-DOS-compatible; hard disk drive with at least 5.12MB
RAM space available; CD-ROM player; MS-DOS CD-ROM extensions; MS-
DOS 2.11 or higher

From: Quanta Press Inc., 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite 208C,
Minneapolis, MN 55414., 612-379-3956 voice or 612-623-4570 fax

Price: $30

PUMA Rating: 4 on a scale 1=lowest to 4=highest

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: Rick Bender, 07/16/93

Summary: All About Cows is an informative and entertaining CD-ROM
for cow lovers everywhere or just those who want to find out more
about the bovine world.

======

Review

======

If you are interested in cows, eat cheese, have a farm, or just
like learning new things, this CD-ROM database will probably
satisfy your curiosity. Cow breeds, behavior, history, myths,
famous cows, judging standards, a list of cow terms, even poetry,
literature, and song titles including cows, make up some of the
documents included in All About Cows.

Ever wonder how milk is processed for market? The entire process
is described here. Want to find out about different cow breeds?
Look under "cow." You can search for any word related to cows or
the dairy industry by simply typing the word and pressing Enter,
or you can do a narrowed, combined word search using operators
such as "and," "or," or "andnot." For example, if you typed "cow"
and "milk," you would get a list of articles with both those
words; the process works similarly with "or" and "andnot."

In addition to full-text searching with the TextWare access
software, you may mark entries, called "cards," and compile them
in a sequential list for later reference. You can also save cards
to an ASCII file or output them to a printer.

All About Cows is helpful for research because it contains lots
of statistical data as well as factual data. In addition, the
poetry and literature references can spice up a report or just be
read for a laugh.

Very easy and fun to use, this CD-ROM database will be helpful to
high school and college students who need to find out more about
cows. It could also be useful for farmers, especially FFA (Future
Farmers of America) members.

===========

PUMA Rating

===========

PERFORMANCE: 4 Fast and interesting enough for the average user.

USEFULNESS: 4 A good, though relatively small, database.

MANUAL: 4 Simple, brief, clear, and easy to follow.

AVAILABILITY: 4 Mail order direct from Quanta, Bureau of
Electronic Publishing, or many other CD-ROM dealers.

(Rick Bender/19930611/Press Contact: Mark Foster, Quanta Press,
612-379-3956 voice or 612-623-4570 fax)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00026)

Apple Posts Major Loss 07/16/93
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Things have
never been the same at Apple Computer since it tried to compete in
the low-end personal computer market. Now the company has posted
a huge loss for its third fiscal quarter which ended June 25,1993.

On the bright side, net revenues for the third quarter were $1.862
billion, a seven percent increase over the third quarter of the prior
year. Macintosh computer unit shipments for the quarter were up
20 percent compared to the third quarter a year ago.

However, Apple also announced that it has taken a charge of $320.9
million, or $198.9 million after tax, for the previously announced
"restructuring and other cost reduction activities" now underway.
As a result the company reported a net loss for the quarter of
$188.3 million, or $1.63 per share. Even without the huge
restructuring charge, Apple's profits would have been small.

Needless to say, the company's stock has taken a battering. The
results were announced after stock markets closed on Thursday.
Even so, the San Jose Mercury News reports that, in after hours
computer trading Thursday afternoon, Apple stock plummeted by $4
to $31.75 - under half the stock's $65 in January.

Apple claims that "continued gross margin pressures - a result of
ongoing price wars in the personal computer industry, as well as a
weaker than expected European economy - contributed to the
disappointing results."

As a result, Apple plans to "compete more aggressively on price
in its personal computer business, while dramatically reducing its
cost structure to compensate for lower gross margins."

Having made the decision just a couple of years ago to compete
aggressively in the low-end personal computer market, and
therefore lose out on high profit margins it had with its
upper-end Macintoshes, Apple really does not have much choice
but to continue to cut prices in line with the IBM PC market.

Apple gambled years ago in its attempt to increase its market
share with new low-end systems. However, the company was used
to high profits from its high-end Macintoshes, favored by such
niche markets as desktop publishing and general graphics-oriented
applications. Profits for low-end machines were, even then,
small by comparison. The PC price wars of the past year or so have
further devastated profits. A number of major IBM PC manufacturers
have already filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and more
are hovering on the edge.

According to Apple, it will now focus its product development
efforts on such areas as "multimedia, education, publishing,
mobility, and ,"graphics-intensive solutions in key markets."

The company has also entered into a devastating layoff program,
cutting workers by the thousands. The company officially plans
to "lay off approximately 2,500 full-time, temporary and contract
employees worldwide over the next 12 months, consolidate some
operations across divisions, and sharpen organizational focus.
A broad re-engineering of the company, aimed at lowering costs,
has also begun."

In other words the company is thinking about moving more of its
operations out of Silicon Valley in an effort to cut costs.

Michael H. Spindler, Apple's new president and chief executive
officer, tried to put on a brave face, saying: "We're confident
we can put our business back on a growth path by aggressively
pursuing market share while offering innovative technology. At
the same time, we must significantly - and permanently - lower
our cost of doing business."

Spindler continued: "Early indications suggest that our most recent
price reductions are accelerating our unit shipments. Development
of new Macintosh desktop systems and new PowerBook notebook
computers are on track. And prospects for our new and emerging
businesses - personal digital assistants, servers, and software
products - are promising to contribute to revenue and profits in the
coming fiscal year. As a result, we see excellent opportunities
for growth in Apple's future."

Analysts are skeptical of any short-term relief, however. And,
judging by the plummeting stock price, so are Wall Street and
Apple's investors.

Apple has consolidated operations into five business units, with
each business unit now holding "greater responsibility for
profitability." The five business units are: the Personal Computer
Division; the AppleSoft Division; the Apple Business Systems
Division; the Personal Interactive Electronics Division; and Claris
Corporation.

Things have been pretty turbulent all round for Apple this year
already. John Sculley even stepped down as CEO in June to be
replaced by former Chief Operating Officer (COO) Michael Spindler.

(Ian Stokell/19930716/Press Contact: Kate Paisley,
408-974-5453, Apple Computer Inc.)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(SFO)(00027)

Kaleida Appoints Mike Braun President 07/16/93
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- Kaleida
Labs Inc., the joint venture company between Apple Computer and
IBM, has announce the appointed of Michael A. Braun to the posts of
president and chief executive officer by its board of directors.
Braun is a 20-year IBM veteran and succeeds Nat Goldhaber,
effective July 31, 1993.

Newsbytes asked Diane Samples, spokesperson for Kaleida, if
funding is likely to be affected by Apple's dismal earnings this
quarter. Said Samples, "Not at all. The board has already gone
through the process of reaffirming funding for Kaleida."

Both IBM and Apple remain committed to Kaleida, she told
Newsbytes. "Apple and IBM both recognize that multimedia is
the technology of the future" for the computer industry, she said.

Goldhaber has been named co-chairman of the board and Braun will
serve as a director. Dr. Robert Carberry, president of IBM's
Fireworks Partners, will continue as Kaleida's other co-chairman.
The other board members are listed as Albert Eisenstat and
David Nagel of Apple Computer, and Nobuo Mii of IBM.

Said Goldhaber, "I'm glad that Mike is joining our team at Kaleida.
As an international leader in multimedia technology and business,
he possesses the skills and vision to carry the Kaleida message of
cross-platform multimedia compatibility to the worlds of computer
and consumer electronics."

Goldhaber maintains that he never intended to stay longer in the
posts, saying, "I signed up to head Kaleida for one year because that
was my goal for creating an independent company."

Goldhaber claims Kaleida's first year accomplishments include a
hardware manufacturers' alliance designed to support the market
development of Kaleida's ScriptX technology. Charter members
include Apple, IBM, Toshiba, Mitsubishi, Hitachi, and Creative
Technology Ltd.

In the past year, the company also formed a consortium with
Scientific-Atlanta and Motorola, in which Kaleida will supply the
software for a digital set-top terminal for use in the cable
television industry.

Said Goldhaber, "Now, IBM and Apple have reaffirmed their support
for Kaleida. The board firmly believes that Kaleida's customers and
partners are best served by a privately held, strategic company
committed to a non-proprietary cross-platform solution. My talents
are best exploited by continuing to work with Kaleida as its
co-chairman during the months ahead and as a developer of new
venture opportunities outside Kaleida. I will explore opportunities
with those technologies I sponsored at Kaleida that can be optimized
in start-up environments. That is my specialty."

Braun served with IBM for 20 years in a number of posts including
executive positions in marketing, sales, product development,
planning and channel management. As vice president of multimedia,
he guided IBM's multimedia strategies and investments across all
lines of business worldwide. Most recently, he was vice president
and managing partner of IBM's Fireworks Partners, a new IBM unit
responsible for the formation of businesses that use multimedia
technologies.

(Ian Stokell/19930716/Press Contact: Diane Samples,
415-966-0499, Kaleida Labs Inc.)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00028)

SCO Posts 3Qtr Income 07/16/93
SANTA CRUZ, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- As one of the
major players in the Unix operating systems market, Santa Cruz
Operation may be effected greatly if Microsoft's elusive
Windows NT OS ever becomes successful. For now, however, the
company has posted net income for the quarter ended June 30, of
$1,937,000 or seven cents per share on revenues of $42,744,000.

The company says that average weighted outstanding shares for the
quarter were 29,510,000. This compares to net income of $2,741,000
or 11 cents per share on revenues of $40,209,000 for the third
quarter of 1992, during which average weighted outstanding shares
were 25,906,000.

For the nine months ended June 30, 1993, revenues totalled
$131,497,000, compared to the prior year nine month total of
$115,901,000. Net income for the like period is $9,638,000 in
1993, compared to $5,358,000 in 1992.

In announcing the results, SCO President and Chief Executive Officer
Lars Turndal said: "While we are pleased with the continuing
customer acceptance of our products, we are somewhat disappointed
with our overall sales results. Gross margins and expenses were
carefully managed during the quarter."

"Current worldwide economic conditions," were blamed by the
company for the results. Turndal also said that, "the quarter was
negatively affected by the delay in signing of a number of contracts,
which are shipping in the fourth quarter."

It is difficult to predict how sales for the company will be affected
by the introduction of WIndows NT. Microsoft has publicly "declared
war on Unix," with the new NT OS, claiming that it is targeting the
Unix market with its marketing efforts. If the Microsoft hype and
some segments of the computer press are to be believed, you would
think NT was already a best-seller, even though it is not really in
general release yet.

However, analysts contend that it remains to be seen how many
companies actually commit to such a new platform as NT, in the
short term, for their important and critical information
technology computing environments.

(Ian Stokell/19930716/Press Contact: Jeff Finn, 408-427-7671,
The Santa Cruz Operation Inc.)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SFO)(00029)

Interactive Network Wins Case Against NTN 07/16/93
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- In a case
involving Interactive Network Inc.'s interactive television
patent, the United States District Court for the Northern
District of California has ruled in favor of Interactive on a
motion for summary judgement, filed against NTN Communications Inc.

According to Interactive, the court rejected NTN's principal claim
that Interactive's interactive television patent was invalid because
of fraud.

The court also found that NTN is "expressly barred" from arguing
that its interactive football application, QB1, does not infringe
the Interactive Network patent, because NTN conceded otherwise in
a 1987 agreement settling prior litigation with Interactive Network.

The court's ruling reportedly leaves only Interactive Network's
claims, including claims over the violation and interpretation of
the 1987 settlement, in the suit, says Interactive. Also pending
before the court is Interactive's motion to add to its claims a
request for revocation of Interactive Network's technology license
to NTN for QB1.

Speaking of the case, David Lockton, president and chief executive
officer of Interactive Network, said: "When the fraud claim was
filed, NTN knew full well that it had conceded this issue in a prior
Settlement Agreement in 1987. Unlike NTN, which has instituted
four separate lawsuits over the past six years, we moved for
Summary Judgement to resolve the claims quickly. Interactive
Network is very pleased that the court has upheld our position
in this matter and we intend to vigorously pursue enforcement by
seeking damages and other appropriate relief."

He commented too on Interactive's services, saying "Our
proprietary technology and lead time have allowed us to
successfully launch in Northern California and will take us to
the Chicago market for the first phase of our national roll-out
in the fall."

The ruling given by United States District Court Judge D. Lowell
Jensen, who said that, "In light of the 1987 Settlement Agreement
between the parties, there are no genuine issues of material fact
in dispute regarding NTN's claims of patent unenforceability,
invalidity and non-infringement."

The court also held that NTN is "expressly barred" from contending
the Interactive Network's patent is "invalid or unenforceable" by
claiming NTN, rather than Lockton, was the true inventor, says
Interactive. The judge also said that NTN conceded in the 1987
settlement that it had nothing to do with conceiving or developing
Interactive Network's patented technology.

Interactive Network claims to be the only company offering an
interactive simulcast television system to home subscribers. It
says it has developed over 38 separate games, airing seven days a
week and produces 120 televised and stand-alone events a day.
Interactive Network is a subscription-based, patented
entertainment service.

(Ian Stokell/19930716/Press Contact: David B. Lockton,
415-903-4016, Interactive Network Inc.)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(LAX)(00030)

3DO Lines Up Japanese Distributor 07/16/93
SAN MATEO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1993 JUL 16 (NB) -- The Japanese
are being targeted by the 3DO Company as a potential market for
its 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, expected to be available this
fall. The company announced it has established 3DO Japan in
Tokyo and appointed Japanese software publisher executive Aki
Kodama to head the new subsidiary.

While the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer is expected to be
introduced by Matsushita under the brand name Panasonic in the
US this fall, plans are to introduce the 3DO units in Japan
nine months later in 1994. The 3DO Interactive Multiplayer has
been described as the next generation video cassette recorder
(VCR), a compact disc (CD)-based unit equipped with a reduced
instruction set computing (RISC)-based chip and the ability to
display workstation-like graphics on a television set. Over 300
companies have signed up with 3DO for a license to develop
titles for the new unit, and 50 of those are Japanese software
developers.

Hardware licensees are fewer, but a new Japanese member, Sanyo,
has been added to Matsushita and American Telephone & Telegraph
(AT&T) as a licensed hardware developer.

As a company, 3DO has an unusual role. Started by Trip Hawkins,
the founder of computer game company Electronic Arts, 3DO
neither develops hardware nor software. The company's role is in
developing the technology which it then licenses to hardware
and software developers and acts as a catalyst. From its
introduction at the 1992 Winter Consumer Electronics Show in
Las Vegas the company has garnered impressive backing from
companies such as AT&T, Time Warner, MCA, Electronic Arts,
Matsushita, and Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner
Perkins Caufield & Byers. Since its introduction, 3DO has also
gone public.

The new head of the Japanese subsidiary, Kodama, was formerly
executive director at Imagineer, a Japanese software publisher.
Trip Hawkins said Kodama has a strong track record of success
working in the Japanese consumer electronics industry and is
key to 3DO's plans. "The new Japan office demonstrates our
commitment to delivering on the promise to make 3DO a worldwide
standard in interactive multimedia," Hawkins added.

(Linda Rohrbough/19930716/Press Contact: Diane Hunt, 3DO, tel
415-574-6786, fax [phone])