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/1994/jan_feb_94/nb013194

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

Apricot Achieves BS5750 Award For Entire Mfing Division 01/31/94
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Apricot Computers has
announced that its surface mount technology (SMT) manufacturing
plant in Scotland has been awarded the British Standard Institute's
(BSI) BS5750 part II quality award.

The award comes in the wake of last year's accreditation of
Apricot's assembly plus research and development operations in the
UK, to the BS5750 standard.

According to Dr Peter Horne, Apricot's managing director, the
company is now applying for BS5750 accreditation for its business
group operations. If the company is successful in this third
application, then it will make Apricot the only UK computer
manufacturer with this award.

"High quality design and manufacture has always been central to
Apricot's product philosophy. We have, therefore, in conjunction
with our parent, Mitsubishi Electric, invested heavily in quality
systems at our manufacturing facility and have seen this policy pay
dividends both for us and our customers," Horne said.

So what does the BS5750 quality award mean for Apricot? Although the
more cynical in the computer industry may dismiss the award a
marketing ploy, Newsbytes notes that this quality award is only
given where quality has been achieved at all levels of production.

Generally speaking, the award means that the company's standards in
that particular sphere of operations are as high as possible and
that customers can look forward to receiving goods and/or services
which have been "vetted" by the BSI.

(Steve Gold/19940131/Press & Public Contact: Apricot Computer - Tel:
[phone]; Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LON)(00002)

Hewlett-Packard To Distribute SoftWindows In Europe 01/31/94
HIGH WYCOMBE, BUCKS, ENGLAND, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Hewlett-Packard
(HP) has announced it is action as the European master distributor
for Insignia Solutions' SoftWindows PC emulation package for Unix
systems in Europe.

Launched last year with Microsoft's support to enable Unix
workstation users to run any Windows-based application or utility at
the same performance level as an 80486-based PC, SoftWindows is
available with the HP9000 Series 700 and 800 PA-RISC (reduced
instruction set computing) based workstations and servers.

SoftWindows will be available on Laserpro Compact Disc (CD) to allow
HP users to test drive the package on their workstation before
choosing to buy. According to Zdravko Podolski, product marketing
manager with Insignia, the HP deal shows Insignia's commitment to
use the best means available to get SoftWindows out into the
European marketplace.

"We are taking advantage not only of HP's excellent distribution
channels, support infrastructure and existing corporate customer
base in Europe, but also benefiting from its first class sales and
marketing worldwide," he said.

Bernd Kirchere, HP's product manager, said that, although the
company evaluated a number of options, "SoftWindows is really the
only product of its kind to offer such high levels of compatibility,
performance and speed consistently in our workstations."

In use, SoftWindows runs under Unix and comes with pre-installed
real MS-DOS and Windows. When installed and run on a Unix system,
the package allows Windows 3.x and DOS programs to be run directly
from the Unix shell. The package is claimed to be so fully
compatible with the "real thing," that Windows dynamic data exchange
(DDE) and object linking and embedding (OLE) facilities are fully
supported.

European pricing on SoftWindows will be announced closer to shipment
date, which Newsbytes understands will be some time next month.

(Steve Gold/19940131/Press & Public Contact: Hewlett-Packard - Tel:
[phone]; Insignia Solutions - Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(HKG)(00003)

Microsoft Works 3.0/Wins Helps Non-native HK English Speakers 01/31/94
WANCHAI, HONG KONG, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- According to local
professionals in Hong Kong, the latest Microsoft Works 3.0 for
Windows, should prove popular among the large numbers of non-native
English speakers in the territory.

With the package, users can create letters, school reports, shopping
lists, a database of business contacts, household budgets and other
useful facilities without a lot of the pain normally associated with
such tasks.

"Microsoft Works for Windows has sold more than three million units
worldwide in the two years since its introduction," explained
Amanda Young, Applications Product Manager at Microsoft Hong Kong,
adding that "it has been very successful in Hong Kong," as well.

"We wanted to ensure that any changes to the product reflected the
way our users work. The resulting updates are based on direct
customer feedback, combined with our own usability testing on the
task-based needs of the integrated software user," she said.

"Works 3.0 for Windows is easy to learn and use, and powerful enough
for complex tasks. The tools are straight-forward to follow and
customers are able to build quite sophisticated systems, " she
added.

(Keith Cameron/19940131/Press Contact: Amanda Young: [phone])


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

Windows Maths Package For 6-11 Year Olds debuts 01/31/94
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Maths Around Us is a new
educational program for children aged six to 11 years. According to
Windows by Design, the company behind the package, it is designed to
aid children who find maths threatening. The company claims that the
software is interesting and fun for students who enjoy the subject.

Through workshops, Maths Around US claims to teach children skills
in three different areas -- time, shape and measurement. Children go
into an activity screen and use the skills they learned to solve
challenging problems. The aim is to keep children interested and
motivated while ever they are using the package.

Designed specifically to run under Windows, the package gives
children the opportunity to pick up and move objects around the
screen to find answers to real-life maths problems. Using the
package, the company claims they get exercise in the four basic
maths processes.

The program was designed by an Australian primary school teacher
Johanna Rivers and it claims to complement the school curriculum as
well as being suitable for home use. The RRP in Australia is AUS$89
(around US$63).

(Paul Zucker/1994031/Contact: Windows By Design. tel. +61-3-521
2945, fax [phone]/PHOTO)


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

New Broadcasting Remote From Laser Communications 01/31/94
LANCASTER, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Most people
think of the infra-red beam on their remote controls as a means to
change the channel on a TV set. Now Lancaster-based Laser
Communications is using the technology to send TV signals.

The company has announced the Lace Video Transceiver series, which
can transmit pictures and sound one or two-ways on a bandwidth of
7.5 MHz, using infrared. Laser claims that the technology is ideal
for security, surveillance, and teleconferencing applications, at
line-of-sight distances up to 1 kilometer.

In use, the system can handle North American/Japanese NTSC
transmissions, European PAL transmissions, or French/Eastern Europe
SECAM TV standards. The system costs about $11,000 -- the specific
price depends on how you configure it.

Newsbytes discussed the product with the company's vice president of
marketing, Michael Berman: "Most regular TV signals use 3.58
megahertz (MHz)," he explained. "The reason we're making it 7.5 is
it gives us 1,000 line video capability, and we can sell this thing
all over the world. PAL and SECAM require 6 MHz transmissions.

"We see two classes of applications," he added. "One is for
surveillance, which is why we have remote control data channels on
it. The other is a teleconferencing application, where you have an
A/V link and both sides want to see and hear each other. We run into
that with remote arraignments of prisoners. We've also had interest
from broadcasters to use our link as a remote feed. We've had a
number of applications talked about during the Olympics in
Barcelona, feeding video to remote transmitters."

But the technology has its limits. You can't use it while on the
move. "It needs a direct line of sight, and needs to be tracked
along a very narrow path. That also makes it very secure. It's
intended for permanent, semi-permanent or temporary installations,
not moving," Berman said.

Berman also discussed his company, which is best-known for data
applications. "About 90% of our business is in data transmission,
connecting Ethernet and Token Ring networks between buildings, and
T-1s," a standard telephone trunk line speed equivalent to 1.544
million bits/second.

"We're basically a data communications company." But the new product
brings it back to its roots. "The company originated and wound up in
Lancaster because video was the first thing we did -- we were
founded by RCA engineers transmitting video on a laser. The high
bandwidth got them into LANs (local area networks), and we've done
that for 5 years. We've always had video transmission products, but
we restructured the line a little bit," he said.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940131/Press Contact: Phil Hall, for Laser
Communications, 212-714-3575; Customer Contact: Laser
Communications, 1848 Charter Lane, Suite F, Lancaster, Pennsylvania,
17605, 717/394-8634; FAX: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00006)

ChipSoft Intros CD-ROM Tax Preparation Bundle 01/31/94
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- It is getting to
be that time of year again where everyone either begins scurrying
around trying to collect together all their receipts, or else they
put everything in a draw until April 14.

However, tax preparation software is becoming increasingly popular
for those that do not want to pay a third-party to work out their
deductions. Now, ChipSoft has bundled the TurboTax for Windows tax
preparation software with six other related products, and put them
together on a CD-ROM (compact disc - read only memory), called
TurboTax Deluxe.

Debra Kelley, spokesperson for the company, told Newsbytes that, by
buying the CD-ROM, "You will have everything you need,not only to
prepare your taxes, but to plan the best strategies for the future,
all on one desktop, in one format," she said.

According to the company, the seven products on the TurboTax Deluxe
CD-ROM are: TurboTax for Windows, which includes IRS-approved forms
and full-text IRS instructions; Marshall Loeb's full-motion,
multimedia Video Tax Guide; J. K. Lasser's "Your Income Tax,"
reference data; the TurboTax Tax Planner multi-year tax forecasting
and analysis program; the TurboTax Tax Savings Guide interactive
guide to money-saving tips and tax strategies; TurboTax for
Windows/State program; along with on-line IRS instructions and
taxpayer information publications as published by the IRS.

Said Kelly to Newsbytes concerning the motion video segments,
"Marshall Loeb's Video Tax Guide appears in full-motion video, and
it is extremely helpfull in actually giving you the idea of being
face-to-face with a very credible authority on tax and finance."

The company claims that a multimedia installation module talks the
user, step by step, through the process of installing TurboTax
Deluxe.

The CD also includes the "Head Start" version of TurboTax for
Windows/State (which is available for 20 states plus the District
of Columbia), and the Final state forms for New York and California.

Users who need states other than New York and California can use an
included coupon to order a free final version of the state they
need. HeadStart versions are used to initiate the data gathering
process, says the company, with the final state programs containing
all the forms a user needs to file a 1993 state personal tax return.

The company expects the CD-ROM to sell at the retail level for about
$60. Chipsoft claims that the combined value of the products if
purchased separately is approximately $160.

TurboTax Deluxe requires a multimedia-capable PC. Minimum
requirements are an 80386-based system or better; DOS 3.3 or higher;
4 megabytes (MB) of RAM; a 256-color VGA (Video Graphics Array)
monitor; a hard disk drive with 10MB of free space; an MPC-
compatible CD ROM drive, sound board & speakers; MSCDEX 2.2 or
higher; and Windows 3.1 running in standard or enhanced mode.

(Ian Stokell/19940131/Press Contact: Debra Kelley or Leanne
Buck, 619-453-4446)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00007)

PPCP Unveils PCMCIA 2.0 Serial I/O Adapter 01/31/94
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- PPCP, the portable connectivity
distribution specialist, has announced the availability of a
personal computer memory card industry association (PCMCIA) 2.0
serial I/O adapter.

According to the company, the UKP 149 PCMCIA card adds an industry-
standard serial port to any PC equipped with a PCMCIA card slot. The
card is said to be compatible with all serial port software and
hardware, including printers and modems. The serial port is a
standard nine-pin connector with a captive cable, Newsbytes notes.

Unusually for a "pseudo" serial port of this type, the port can be
configured to function as COM 1, 2, 3 or 4. The adapter can be
configured to run in either I/O or memory-mapped mode for operation
on a variety of computing platforms. According to John Nolan, PPCP's
managing director, this means that the card is compatible most
portables, including machines from Cirrus Logic, Sharp, Toshiba and
Texas Instruments.

"The Socket Serial I/O adapter cover comes one of the major
obstacles in portable PCs -- the lack of expansion ports. With it,
users have a flexible, on demand method of connecting to external
peripheral devices without having to unhook other equipment already
in use, such as serial pointing devices. It's a real problem solving
product," he said.

In use, the adapter does not need an external power supply, since it
taps the PCMCIA power supply from the PC. It has three power modes,
two of which have been designed to conserve battery power. The
maximum power drain of the unit is 150 milliwatts.

(Steve Gold/19940131/Press & Public Contact: PPCP - Tel: [phone]-
2277; Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00008)

Gateway 2000 Launches Three New Pentium Systems 01/31/94
DUBLIN, IRELAND, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Gateway 2000 Europe has
announced three new Pentium-based PCs that it claims add to its
already extensive range of machines. The systems -- the P5-60
Multimedia, P5-66 and P5-66 Executive -- are billed as pushing
Intel's Pentium processor further into the mainstream.

According to David Prais, European marketing manager with the
company, delivery of the 60 megahertz (MHz) machines is expected
within three weeks of order and the 66MHz will be available within
four weeks of order.

"Gateway 2000 Europe is making huge strides to making Intel's latest
technology available to its customers at mainstream prices. We were
amongst the key original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) pushing 486-
based Pcs in the mainstream in 1991 and we're doing the same thing
for the Pentium processor PCs in 1994," he said.

Prais added that the machines are fully configured Pentium processor
systems, "at prices equal to or less than many of our competitors
charge for 486 machines."

"We know our customers want the power of Pentium processors and
we're giving them that, plus the extra value that's become
synonymous with Gateway 2000," he said.

Pricing on the new machines ranges from UKP 2,499 to UKP 2,999. For
the money, users get a Pentium-based system with 16 megabytes (MB)
of memory and a fast 540MB IDE hard drive, plus color monitor, and
DOS plus Windows pre-installed.

Optional extras include a choice of applications software available
on a pre-installed basis.

(Steve Gold/19940128/Press & Public Contact: Gateway 2000 Europe -
Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00009)

Xplor Int'l To Host Electronic Document Vendor Show 01/31/94
TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- While some experts
say the completely paperless office will never be a reality, Xplor
International is working hard to make it happen.

The trade association has just announced its Vision 97 electronic
document systems vendor trade show will be held April 27-29, 1994 at
the Syndham Paradise Valley Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Vision 97 is an acronym for Vendor Interaction Symposium Information
Opportunity Networking, a vendor-to-vendor gathering to facilitate
"strategic partnering discussions to best address user needs through
1997," according to Dr. Keith T. Davidson, Xplor's executive
director.

The organization says more than 200 electronic document systems
vendor senior executive, strategic and market planners, hardware and
software engineers, and technology and market research managers are
expected to attend the gathering.

Keynote speakers include author Guy Kawasaki, former director
of software product management at Apple Computer,; Michael Witte,
chairman and chief executive of Alphagraphics; Ruben Lopez of the
University of Miami; and Vincent Vaccarelli, director of Xerox
Corporation's business research group.

The technology breakout sessions will include color management,
document architecture, enterprise output management, forms
automation, full color production printing, and future needs of
service bureaus. There will also be sessions on multi-functional
document processing, postal automation, pre- and post-processing
equipment for printed documents, scanning and image capture,
supplying print on demand solutions,, and workgroups and networks.

(Jim Mallory/19940131/Press contact: Anne Davison, Xplor
International, 310-373-3633, ext 239; Reader contact: Xplor
International, 310-373-3633, fax [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00010)

Inacom to Support Intel's ProShare 01/31/94
OMAHA, NEBRASKA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Inacom Corporation has
announced a program that company claims will focus on marketing and
supporting Intel Corporation's Proshare Personal Conferencing
products, as well as other travelers on the proposed information
superhighway.

Inacom says the program, called Interlink, will expand its role in
the information highway products market. "For several years Inacom
has positioned itself to be a contractor, as the computer and
communications industries converge on the information highway," said
Inacom President and CEO, Bill Fairfield.

Interlink Director Dan Kemp says the company will open a resource
center that will offer information, carrier services, and design
expertise to the company's partners. Specifically the center will
provide availability and provisioning of an integrated services
digital network (ISDN) and, according to Inacom spokesperson Geri
Michelic, smooth the way for users of that electronic roadway.

Michelic told Newsbytes that the resource center personnel are in
effect system integrators. "The term system integration today tends
to be used with computers. This carries it a step further,
integrating other aspects of a solution for a customer."

The Intel Proshare Personal Conferencing family is a line of PC-
based products that allow users to work together on documents,
spreadsheets, and other applications and communicate through video
conferencing even if they don't have the same applications on their
PCs. Proshare was introduced during the recent Comnet trade show in
Washington, DC with a live coast-to-coast demonstration of the
technology.

(Jim Mallory/19940131/Press contact: Geri Michelic, Inacom, 402-392-
3923)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00011)

Wrath Of The Gods" CD-ROM Disc For PCs & Macs Unveiled 01/31/94
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- "`Wrath of
the Gods' is an excellent example of what the future holds as far as
Hollywood meeting Silicon Valley," asserted Jeff Braun, CEO of
Maxis, the company that will be distributing the new multimedia CD-
ROM (compact disc read only memory) adventure game to retail stores
starting later this winter.

"Wrath of the Gods" was produced by Luminaria, a startup launched in
1991 by professional animators Jeff Cretcher and Joel Skidmore, the
same team that previously founded the San Francisco Production
Group. Cretcher and Skidmore's Hollywood credits include award-
winning animation for Hanna Barbara, Anheuser Busch, and ABC's "Good
Morning America."

Production techniques used on Luminaria's new CD-ROM disc for the
Mac and Windows include a lavish sound track, plus layers of
digital special effects that are combined in a way intended to
establish the feeling of full-screen motion.

"Wrath of the Gods" features digital video of 60 actors in full
costume, with more than 300 backgrounds collaged from original
photos of Greece.

The action of the game is also modeled along the lines of a
Hollywood film. In a claimed more than 40 hours of game time,
players experience dozens of interactive adventures based on the
exploits of Greek heroes.

On a quest to "regain the kingdom," the participant faces challenges
like battling the many-headed Hydra, navigating the Labyrinth of the
Minotar, and stealing the Golden Fleece from a fire-breathing
dragon.

Unlike many a Hollywood movie, though, the multimedia adventure game
has been crafted to avoid "gratuitous violence," Cretcher told
Newsbytes. As players acquire appropriate inventory, they can roam
the ancient terrain at will, interacting with the exotic creatures
and trying to solve puzzles and dilemmas. For quicker navigation and
hints to puzzles, an animated Oracle offers clues in exchange for
points from the player's scores.

An integrated "information space" -- illustrated with images of
Greek mythology obtained from museums and private collections around
the world -- provides the user with background information on the
Greek myths.

Players are never ousted unceremoniously out of the action, a fate
that would give them no recourse but to restore the most recently
saved game. Instead, they are transported to worlds like Hades or
Olympus for further adventures -- and another chance at the kingdom.

"Wrath of the Gods" for the Macintosh is slated to ship February 8,
for a suggested retail price of $79.95. A Windows version is
expected in early March.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940131/Reader contact: Luminaria, 415-821-0536;
Press contact: Marilyn Young, Technology Solutions for Luminaria,
415-617-4524)


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

Canadian Product Launch Update 01/31/94
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- This regular feature,
appearing every Monday or Tuesday, provides further details for the
Canadian market on announcements by international companies that
Newsbytes has already covered. This week: Lotus Development's
Freelance Graphics for Windows SmartMaster Business Pack,
Microsoft's Multimedia Schubert compact disk read-only memory (CD-
ROM), and 3Com's Netbuilder Remote Office routers.

Lotus Development Canada of Toronto, announced that its Freelance
Graphics for Windows SmartMaster Business Pack is now available in
Canada. It is available to registered Freelance Graphics users for
C$15 and may be copied freely. It can also be downloaded from the
Ziffnet and CompuServe on-line services at no charge other than
regular connect-time rates.

Microsoft Canada of Mississauga, Ontario, announced Multimedia
Schubert (Newsbytes, Jan. 11), a CD-ROM featuring the composer's
well-known Trout Quintet. Multimedia Schubert is to be available
from computer stores and mass retailers in Canada by the end of
January for C$99.95.

3Com Canada of Richmond Hill, Ontario, expanded its Netbuilder
product line with two new Netbuilder Remote Office routers
(Newsbytes, Jan. 27). The Netbuilder Remote Office 200 has a North
American list price of US$1,795, and the Netbuilder Remote Office
201 lists at US$1,995. Both are to begin shipping by the end of the
first quarter, 3Com Canada said.

(Grant Buckler/19940129/Press Contact: Marsha Connor, Lotus Canada,
416-364-8000; Linda Carnell, Microsoft Canada, 905-568-0434 ext.
4238, fax [phone]; Heather Bussey, The Communications Group for
3Com Canada, 416-696-9900; 3Com Canada, 905-882-9964, fax 905-882-
9967)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00013)

Answering Machine, Modem, Fax Combo From Spectrum 01/31/94
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Spectrum
Signal Processing has introduced an add-on for personal computers
that combines an answering machine, modem, and facsimile functions
and is also an audio card useable by other applications.

The Spectrum Envoy uses IBM's Mwave digital signal processing
technology for sound processing. And the software included in the
package works with various features that telephone companies
provide.

For instance, said Julie Copithorne, a spokeswoman for the company,
the software can take advantage of Caller ID, an increasingly common
offering that will display the phone number of a caller before you
pick up the phone. Spectrum Envoy can take the caller's number
provided by the phone network and use it to look up the caller in
the software's contact list, displaying information about the caller
on the computer screen.

The software will also let you choose what to do about incoming
calls after you see the caller's name. You can answer the call, let
the Spectrum Envoy's built-in answering machine take it, or ignore
it, Copithorne said.

The present version of the product is designed for a single user, so
it doesn't support multiple lines or mailboxes for different users.
The company is planning a two-line version, Copithorne said, and is
also working on a version to fit in a Personal Computer Memory Card
International Association (PCMCIA) slot, to be ready in about a
year. Compatibility with Microsoft Corp.'s Plug and Play standard is
also in the works, company officials said.

The current release supports data transmission at 14,400 bits per
second (bps) and facsimile transmission at 9,600 bps. Because IBM's
Mwave technology allows for software upgrades, Copithorne said,
Spectrum will be able to bump the speed up to 28,800 bps using the
V.Fast standard this summer.

Because the device has 14-bit audio capabilities meeting Multimedia
Personal Computer (MPC) standards, it can also be used to add voice,
sound effects, or music to other applications, the company said. Due
to be available March 1, Spectrum Envoy is to have a list price of
$349.

(Grant Buckler/19940131/Press Contact: Julie Copithorne, Spectrum
Signal Processing, 604-421-5422, fax [phone]; Ryan Wilson,
KVO Public Relations for Spectrum, 503-221-2395)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(HKG)(00014)

Digital Targets Emerging Asian Video-On-Demand Market 01/31/94
CHAI WAN, HONG KONG, 31ST JAN 1994 (NB) -- Digital Equipment
Corporation has signed an OEM (original equipment manufacturer)
agreement with USA Video Corporation, under which the two companies
will work together to increase their market share of the video-on-
demand industry worldwide.

It is expected that early implementations will be seen throughout
the Asian region well before any major installations in the USA
because of the compactness, cohesiveness and sophistication of high
speed digital communications within the region.

By joining forces, Digital and USA Video claim to be able to offer
industry-leading video information services, including interactive
video servers and end-to-end video-on-demand solutions, to the
growing interactive information services market.

"This announcement highlights Digital's ability to deliver now the
most comprehensive solutions to interactive information and video-
on-demand suppliers," explained Tony Leung, Director of Marketing at
Digital Asia.

"With Hongkong Telecom planning to introduce a commercial video-on-
demand service next year, there are exciting prospects for rapid
market growth within Asia," he said.

"Our video server platform incorporates Digital's Alpha AXP
processors, StorageWorks disk storage arrays, Digital Linear Tape
library systems, interactive gateway unit, server management unit
and GIGAswitch, a high-speed networking switch linking the various
elements together," he added.

A Hong Kong Telecom spokesman told Newsbytes that the co-operative
venture should serve to enhance the on-line video services already
available for some years in the territory.

USA Video will incorporate Digital's interactive video server
technology into its end-to-end video-on-demand system, which
includes programming, video compression, transmission systems and TV
set-top boxes.

Digital and USA Video also expect to demonstrate their new
relationship by jointly supporting Bell Atlantic Corporation's
deployment of a trial video-on-demand service for 40,000 end-users
in northern Virginia this spring. USA Video will be a video
information provider in the trial, delivering services that employ
Digital's interactive video server technology.

(Keith Cameron/19940131/Press Contact: Bonnie Engel (Digital): +852-
805+3510)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00015)

 ****Lotus' Upcoming Video Notes To Offer Video-On-Demand 01/31/94
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Video Notes,
an upcoming add-on to Lotus Notes, will provide video store-and-
forward as well as video-on-demand right from the start, according
to Mike Kirschenbaum, product manager for Lotus' Advanced Technology
Group.

In a preview and demo for Newsbytes at Lotus headquarters,
Kirschenbaum explained that, also in its first release, Video Notes
will run on OS/2 Notes servers and Windows and OS/2 Notes clients.
The compressed video clips used in Video Notes documents will be
stored separately from the data on dedicated video servers,
Newsbytes was told.

"Eventually, we'd like Video Notes to go to all the platforms
supported by Notes," Kirschenbaum added. Developers caught a glimpse
of Video Notes at Lotusphere in December. The first version of the
still unannounced new companion product for Notes will enter beta
testing this spring, he reported.

From the end user's perspective, Video Notes will seem to allow
video clips to be captured and embedded in Notes applications,
according to Kirschenbaum. The clips will be represented by
thumbnails. Lotus officials expect this capability to be especially
useful in training, advertising, and maintenance applications, as
well as in multimedia "product catalogs."

An ad agency, for instance, might use Video Notes to include video
clips of a focus group session in a multimedia document for a
corporate client, Kirschenbaum illustrated. By communicating the
smiles or grimaces, body language, and vocal intonations of focus
group participants, the video clip will reflect what really went on
in the session better than a written transcript ever could, he said.

But although the forthcoming Video Notes documents will appear to be
embedded with video, the documents will actually contain handles to
video objects stored on the video server. "Through some intervening
software, that boils down to a pointer," the product manager
explained.

Lotus' main reason for using dedicated video servers for Video Notes
is that video servers are optimized to be able to stream video and
conserve overall bandwidth, Kirschenbaum said. The video clips on
the Video Server will not only be stored separately, but forwarded
or routed separately, from the Notes data files.

"We're trying to give the (network) administrator, the database
designer, and the end user flexibility in how the video moves. For
video that is tightly bound to documents, the video and documents
can replicate in parallel, so that as a document arrives at a site,
the local site manager `wakes up' and goes and gets the video,"
Newsbytes was told.

Conversely, though, the administrator will also be able to route the
video over a different path than the data, and on a different
schedule. "The administrator might decide, for instance, to only
move video between two or four in the morning, or only when the
network is quiescent."

Lotus has been talking with two video server vendors, Novell and
StarLight, about the prospect of using their video servers with
Video Notes, he said. Novell produces NetWare Video, a new NetWare
Loadable Module (NLM). StarLight produces some software that runs on
its own proprietary system, and some that runs on NetWare, he added.

Video Notes' video-on-demand capability, which will also appear in
the first edition, will let the end user access video clips linked
to Notes documents by asking for the clips to be moved to a local
video server. "You'll open up a Notes document and see a thumbnail
for the video. You'll then be told that the video is not available
locally, and asked you whether you'd like it to be moved to your
local server," said Kirschenbaum.

If the user responds "yes" to this question, Video Notes will
estimate when the video is likely to come in, he continued. The user
will also be given the option of having an alert posted when the
video arrives.

At some point in the future, Lotus expects to add the ability to
video remotely. "If you were in Detroit, for instance, and you had
an integrated services digital network (ISDN) line back to your
office, you could play back the video in Detroit. We don't expect to
do this in the first release. But as compression and the networking
infrastructure continue to improve, this should become an option
over time."

Also in the future, messaging capabilities could be developed that
will make it possible to send attached video clips between vendors'
e-mail systems, he maintained. But Kirschenbaum is much less
optimistic over whether and when this might happen.

Video Notes does have an external interface that other vendors can
use for building products that take advantage of Lotus' stored video
infrastructure, Kirschenbaum acknowledged. "A videoconferencing
company, for example, might use this to develop a `video answering
machine,'" he elaborated.

A number of outside vendors have been working at interfacing with
Notes, he reported. "Probably the most advanced of these is
Picturetel, which has been demonstrating some connections between
their desktop conferencing system and Notes."

Independently of Video Notes, Lotus has been experimenting with
building a videoconferencing application, according to Kirschenbaum.
Lotus' videoconferencing application, though, is only a prototype,
and isn't "on a product track."

Lotus has not yet built a desktop conferencing application, but
company officials believe videoconferencing and desktop conferencing
to be closely associated, he added.

Last week, at the introduction of Intel's ProShare Personal
Conferencing products for desktop and videoconferencing, Intel
announced that it was teaming with industry leaders to develop a
specification for PC conferencing.

"We are a member of this industry consortium. We will be working on
developing standards for shared desktop applications, and we've been
talking to Intel about what this means," Kirschenbaum told
Newsbytes.

Said Jeffrey Papows, vice president of Lotus' Notes Products
Division, announcing Lotus' support for Intel's ProShare: "We see
conferencing as a natural extension of the workgroup capabilities of
Notes and anticipate the market for such products to grow rapidly."

"We expect, as a result of customer demand and given the natural
synergy between the applications, that we will extend our products
to work well with the ProShare family of products," he said.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940131/Reader contact: Lotus Development
Corporation, tel [phone]; Press contact: Kevin Kosh,
McGlinchey & Paul for Lotus, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(BOS)(00016)

Scanner Sales To Reach 4.5 Million Units By Year 2000 01/31/94
NORWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- More than 1.3
million scanners will be sold in 1994 -- up from less than 500,000
in 1990 -- and the explosive growth in scanner sales will reach 4.5
million units by the year 2000, according to a new study by BIS
Strategic Decisions.

Scanners will continue to serve as an input mechanism for the
proliferating technology of computer fax, but the devices will also
carry out a multitude of other functions, according to Kristy Holch,
director of BIS' Scanning Market Strategy Advisory Service.

"Scanner sales are poised to soar as scanners become the primary
input device for communications, multimedia, publishing, and
automation," Holch predicted.

Factors contributing to the sales boom in scanners include
continuing price reductions and improvements in performance,
application software, and technology, the BIS researchers
determined.

Better image-manipulation programs, new color management technology,
advanced computing equipment, and developing standards each play a
role.

To explore these developments along with market growth and new
distribution channels, BIS is holding the Ninth Annual Test and
Image Scanning Conference on March 14 and 15 at the Red Lion Hotel
in San Jose, California.

Conference registration fees are $1045 for the first participant,
$995 for the second participant, and $945 for the third registrant.

Team discounts are available for groups of four or more. Admission
is complimentary to members of the press. For more information on
the conference, contact Laura Murray, BIS Strategic Decisions, by
telephone at 617-982-9500, extension 214, or by fax at 617-878-6650.

BIS has also announced "Electronic Forms and Automation," a new
research report that delves into why users implement forms and
automated workflow, profiles major vendors in the market, and
reviews what to expect in hardware, software, forms and paper over
the next three years.

"Electronic Forms and Automation" is priced at $1,225. To order the
report, contact Robin Osborne, BIS Strategic Decisions, by phone at
617-982-9500, extension 382, or by fax at 617-982-1724.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940131/Reader contact: BIS Strategic Decisions,
tel [phone]; Press contacts: Martha Popoloski or Robin Osborne,
BIS Strategic Decisions, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00017)

Sony Expands Wireless Headphone Product Line 01/31/94
PARK RIDGE, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Sony has
unveiled the MDR-IF610K Cordless Headphone System, a product that
adds another option to the growing list of choices available for
listening to audio wirelessly.

The introduction of the new model means that Sony will soon be
selling four different wireless headphone systems, and 70 different
headphone systems all told, to users in the United States, according
to Masa Yamamoto, director of Sony's Accessory Products Division.

In an interview with Newsbytes, Yamamoto said that Sony has been the
first vendor to market wireless headphones in the US. Like Sony's
corded systems, some of the wireless models are aimed only at use at
home, while others can be used outdoors. Also like Sony's corded
headphones, the wireless systems vary widely in pricing, he added.
Sony's wireless headphones are priced from $99.95 to $279.95.

All four wireless sets use infrared (IR) wireless technology, are
powered by two AA batteries, and provide frequency modulation of 18
to 22 kilohertz (kHz). All of the wireless sets but one come with
30 millimeter (mm) diameter driver units. The entry-level
MDR-1F210K provides 23 mm diameter driver units instead.

Sony's newly announced MDR-IF610K is slated to ship in February for
$199.95, a price that includes a transmitter supplying
connectivity to any audiovisual (A/V) system. Designed for use at
home with a Sony Discman player, cassette deck, TV, or other audio
or video component, the MDR-IF610K lets you roam freely up to 23
feet from the sound source.

The MDR-IF21OK, an entry-level system introduced at Fall Comdex, is
also designed to be used in the home. The user's range from the
power source can be more than 20 feet. The lower-priced system
features an auto power on/off capability meant to extend battery
life to up to 80 hours by automatically shutting off the headphones
when contact is removed from the earpad. Reception is instantly
reactivated when the headphones are returned to the listening
position, according to Yamamoto.

The MDR-IF210K system is priced at $99.95 with transmitter. The MDR-
IF210K headphones, which can be used with other Sony wireless
infrared systems, can be purchased without the MDR-IF210K
transmitter for $69.95.

Sony's previously released wireless headphone sets include the MDR-
IF310K, priced at $149.95, and the MDR-IF510K, available for
$279.95. The MDR-IF310K is a lightweight (under six-ounce), midrange
headphone/transmitter set that can be worn outdoors.

The MDR-IF510K is a top-of-the-line headphone/transmitter system,
for use at home, that is equipped with Dolby C noise reduction. The
Dolby system encodes signal transmission to eliminate high frequency
"hiss" noises. A circuit built into the headset then decodes the
signal for crisp high fidelity sound.

Sony's first US rollout of a headphone product took place in 1979,
in conjunction with the company's US launch of its portable Walkman,
Yamamoto said. The US debut of Sony's wireless headphone sets
happened a decade later, in 1989.

Before introducing headphones for the US market, Sony officials
considering using radio frequency (RF) spread spectrum technology,
the division director reported. But Sony opted to use IR instead,
due to the large numbers of FM radio stations operating at various
frequencies throughout the United States. "The radio stations create
noise and drift that would interfere with the sound quality Sony has
traditionally achieved," Yamamoto told Newsbytes.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940131/Reader contact: Sony Electronics, tel
201-930-1000; Press contact: Marilyn Young, Technology Solutions
for Sony, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00018)

Tektronix Launches Electronic Test Tools For Daily Life 01/31/94
BEAVERTON, OREGON, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Tektronix has
launched TekTools, a new family of electronic tools for electrical
engineers, technicians and electronic hobbyists who repair and
maintain embedded computer systems in cars, appliances, and other
devices used in daily life.

In an interview with Newsbytes, Dan Terpak, VP of Testing &
Measurement, said that, with TekTools, Tektronix has drawn on its
long experience in building test and measurement tools for high-end
systems like mainframes, while adding new "intelligent" features and
ease-of-use accessories for the roving troubleshooter.

"We've scaled down our capabilities to provide tools for this new
marketplace that are portable and personal, rugged and reliable,
inexpensive, `smart,' and easy to use," Terpak told Newsbytes.

To arrive at the features and accessories to be included in the
TekTools line, TekTronix carried out extensive research among users
in the emerging marketplace, the company VP said.

TekMeter, the flagship product in the new Tektronix line, combines
the capabilities of an oscilloscope -- a device for obtaining value
measurements on electronic signals -- with features that let the
user "see" the characteristics of the signals, he explained.

Terpak added that a pouch accessory for TekMeter allows users to
keep their hands free when the testing tool is not in use. Attached
to a strap worn loosely over the neck, the pouch rests at abdomen
level, for quick access to TekMeter whenever the situation demands.

Other products in the new TekTools line include handheld digital
multimeters and probes. "But this is just the beginning. In the
future, we'll be offering a range of handheld testing products that
address specific application areas," Terpin maintained.

Application areas that Tektronix might target include the automotive
market, telecommunications, and the environmental field, according
to the executive. Environmental measurements might encompass
temperature, humidity, and even air quality.

Tektronix, a company that produced 1993 fiscal revenues of $1.3
billion, is a leading player in computer graphics and television
systems as well as the test and measurements market. The vendor has
previously produced handheld digital meters, in addition to benchtop
instruments such as oscilloscopes.

But up to now, the company's products have been slanted to
customers with a very high level of technical sophistication, Terpin
said.

"We've also incorporated a lot more functionality (in TekMeter)
than was provided in the earlier handheld digital meters. Not only
do you get the value (of the electrical signal), but also the
statistics of the value -- the `highs,' the `lows,' and the
`mediums' of the values. And you can look at the wave forms, too,
because the product is an oscilloscope in addition to being a
digital multimeter," he told Newsbytes.

The oscilloscope and digital multimeter both provide automated
features that save the user from setting adjustments, he added.

TekTool displays are also larger than those in previous products,
and the new handheld products are less expensive than their
predecessors. TekMeter is priced at $859 to $1259. Other products
in the new TekTools family range as low as $69.

By leveraging its expertise in tools for larger systems, rather than
devising a new product line "from scratch," Tektronix has achieved
rapid time to market, according to Terpin. "Our first (TekTools)
products were designed in half the time, at half the price, and with
twice the features of any (competing product) on the market today,"
he asserted.

Customer demand for products like TekTools is very high, he added.
But TekTools also poses a new marketing challenge to Tektronix.
"Most of the customers in this new market will be unfamiliar with
the Tektronix name," he acknowledged.

To reach this new market, Tektronix has gone outside of its
traditional direct sales channels to rely instead on major
electrical/electronics test and measurement distributors. The vendor
has also created an awareness and merchandising program larger than
any in company history. The program includes direct mail,
advertising, publicity, channel promotions, and retail displays.

Why did Tektronix decide to expand its presence in the handheld tool
market? Because traditional tool markets are maturing, Terpin
responded. With the current trend toward downsizing, more computing
is being done on PCs and other smaller systems that contain self-
test and diagnostics. These systems can often be repaired with a
simple board replacement, he said.

For the future, the VP foresees a continuation of current trends. On
the one hand, electronics is coming to be embedded in increasing
numbers of "nontraditional" products -- from heating and ventilation
systems, to security, to aircraft -- that are serviced by roving
technicians. "Because the electronics are integrated into the
product, you need tools like TekTools for troubleshooting."

On the other hand, the tendency toward built-in test and diagnostics
will spread to more and more office equipment, communications
systems, and large computer systems, he predicted. "But there will
still be a need to repair these systems, and we'll be working with
manufacturers to pursue this area, as well," he concluded.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940131/Reader contact: Tektronix, tel 800-426-
2200; Press contacts: Marianne Radwan, High-Tech Communications for
Tektronix, tel [phone]; Wendy Eimers, Tektronix, tel 503-627-
1438)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00019)

NewsPix Images For Newsbytes Publishers 01/31/94
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- These are the
photos that have been digitized and correspond to stories Newsbytes
has reported recently.

These photos are not available to the general public, but are
designed for use by licensed Newsbytes publishers who log into our
private bulletin board system in Minneapolis. For information onhow
to become a licensed Newsbytes publisher in any medium call
Newsbytes at 612-430-1100.

Newspix weekly summaries will appear Mondays on the Newsbytes wire.
All photos are in JPEG format. Photo file names correspond to year-
month-day-story number-brief name of picture contents.

---------------------------

Week of January 31 - Februrary 5, 1994

---------------------------

94012515ZiffInter - Screen shot (color from slide) of Interchange,
new on-line service from Ziff Davis.

94011423gore - Head and shoulders portrait vice president
Al Gore, (b&w).

94010708sumer - Color from slide. Wide shot of Sumerian
ziggurat courtesy Sumeria, producers of the CD-ROM
Ancient Cities images of historical sites.

94011019nagel -  David Nagel, senior vice president and general
manager of Apple's AppleSoft Div. Color from slide.

94011310gryph - Gryphon software in action, Mona Lisa morphs
into wacky grin. Color from slide.

93111611spindl - Michael Spindler, Apple's president and chief
executive officer (CEO). Color from slide.

94011207mosc - Very wide angle, almost fish eye, shot of
Moscone center, site of recent Macworld Expo. Color from slide.

94010428Eworld - View of E-world, Apple's coming online service,
screen.

94011423LaTime - Color group shot of Pacific Telesis and
Times Mirror execs signing agreement for the creation of
"the home-shopping lane of the communications superhighway."
Includes Richard T. Schlosberg III, publisher & CEO of the LA
Times; Hal Logan, general manager of the Pacific Telesis
Electronic Publishing Services; Robert F. Erburu, chairman,
president and CEO of Times Mirror; Lee Camp, president of
Pacific Telesis Electronic Publishing Services and VP of
Pacific Bell.

93111613bastien - B&W portrait of Gaston Bastiaens, general
manager for the P.I.E. division of Apple Computer.

94010608SirSp - B&W shot of Sir Speedy franchisee at
workstation with Team CD.

94011321philip - B&W of fullmotion video cartridge and box.
Cartridge is being inserted in back of CDI unit with Maganavox
monitor in background.

9401008citiz - B&W product shot of new lightweight Citizen printer.

94011015photoCD - Basic product shot of PhotoCD.

94011817qms - Color (from slide) view of QMS desktop office system:
monitor, keyboard, and printer.

94011317Ident - Color (from slide) view of Identity Systems Technology
Select notebook computer.

94011912Dbeam - Color view (from slide) of Farsite screen which
allows a virtual 'electronic whiteboard' to be shared on computers.

94010723whisp - Color view (from photo) of Brother Whisperwriter,
two-piece inkjet word processor.

94010724Ptouch - Color view (from transparency) of the Brother
P-Touch PC, dedicated label printer for Mac & IBM.

94011212kapor - B&W portrait of Mitch Kapor, chairman of the
Electronic Frontier Foundation.

94011126malone - B&W portrait of John Malone, president
Telecommunications.

(Newsbytes/19940131)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00020)

Quarterdeck Quarterly Losses, Acquires Mosaic License 01/31/94
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Showing signs
of the setback caused by alignment difficulties with DOS 6.2,
Quarterdeck Office Systems, reported a net loss of $0.03 per share
from first quarter revenues of $9.2 million.

Quarterdeck also says it has been awarded the first commercial
world-wide license of NCSA Mosaic, a multimedia document viewing and
navigating software for Internet developed by the National Center
for Supercomputing Applications (University of Illinois, Urban-
Champaign).

The release of DOS 6.2 caused an unexpected upgrade for Quarterdeck
as well as several other major utility developers. Speaking to
Newsbytes, Ron Howard, vice-president of finance, said: "The
difficulties with DOS 6.2 were very specific to the area of our
Stealth feature and the automount feature in DOS."

"We moved as quickly as possible to make the necessary corrections
in our upgrade, QEMM 7.03. This incompatibility certainly caused an
adverse affect in our first quarter, but we are already showing
signs of recovery and know that our memory management products will
continue to play a strong role. We will continue to push harder for
technological innovation in memory management," he said.

Quarterdeck's states that its financial position remains strong with
cash, short-term investments and receivables amounting to $36.7
million at December 31, 1993.

Quarterdeck adds Mosaic to three other acquisitions, X-Window for
UnixWare, Hyper-X and SideBar for Windows, targeted towards easier
remote computing. Robert Kutnick reported to Newsbytes, "We want to
take Mosaic out of the academic level and develop a commercial,
user-friendly face with great technical support. Its viewer
technology is excellent for both sending and receiving to Internet
and other remote computing situations."

Quarterdeck will also use Mosaic to provide corporations with tools
to create multimedia documents and information servers. In March of
1994, Quarterdeck will be releasing version 2.0 of DESQviewX, a
cross-platform workstation software with enhanced graphics and new
performance improvements. For information call Quarterdeck Office
Systems at 310-392-9851, fax [phone].

(Patrick McKenna//19940131/Press Contact: Rolph Rudestam, The
Rudestam Group, tel. [phone], fax [phone], Newport
Beach, Calif.)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00021)

ATI Announces High-Speed Data/Fax Modems 01/31/94
MARKHAM, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Want to send data or a
fax really fast? ATI Technologies has something for you, though you
may have trouble finding anyone who can receive your data or fax as
fast as ATI's new modems can send it.

The company has launched the 19200 ETC-I and ETC-E modems, both of
which can move both data and fax messages at 19,200 bits per second
(bps) using AT&T's V.32terbo chip set.

While other modems can transmit data at 19,200 bps, ATI claims to be
the first vendor to have made this speed available for fax
transmission. That means that for the time being the 19200 ETC
modems will only be able to reach their top faxing speed when there
is another 19200 ETC at the other end of the line, company spokesman
Andrew Clarke told Newsbytes. So they will appeal initially to
organizations that want to speed fax and data transmissions between
locations.

However, Clarke said, higher-speed modems are becoming more common.
He noted that the CompuServe online information services has 14,400-
bps dial-up ports in several major cities now. And he said other
manufacturers are working on 19,200-bps data and fax modems. In
time, Clarke maintained, the higher speeds will be common.

The external and internal versions of the 19200 ETC offer the same
functions. The internal version, which fits an Industry Standard
Architecture (ISA) slot, has a high-speed 16550 Universal
Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART) with a first-in, first-out
(FIFO) data buffer to protect against data loss. The unit also
features Multiple Interrupt Select (MIS) so serial ports can be
assigned to alternate interrupts for compatibility with other
expansion cards.

The external version has a front panel providing easy access to
frequently used functions. Both versions offer V.42bis and MNP
(microcom networking protocol) data compression and error control,
according to the company.

The 19200 ETC-E has a suggested retail price of US$279 or C$359.
The 19200 ETC-I lists for US$259 or C$339. Both are due to ship
in mid-February.

(Grant Buckler/19940131/Press Contact: Andrew Clarke, ATI
Communications, 905-882-2600 ext. 8491, MCI Mail 612-0298/PHOTO)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00022)

New PCs Debut From NEC, Oki & Mitsubishi 01/31/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- No less than three PC
manufacturers in Japan have unveiled their first crop of new
machines aimed at the consumer and business marketplaces. The
machines, from NEC, Oki and Mitsubishi, are aimed a broad spectrum
of users, Newsbytes notes.

NEC's new PCs include multimedia and compact systems, while Oki's PC
is equipped with the IC card, and Mitsubishi's business computer is
based on the Pentium processor.

NEC has released a new compact PC, known as B5-size format, which
tips the scales at 1.7 kilos (just under four pounds). The machine
comes equipped with two major application programs Ichitaro
(Japanese word processor) and Lotus 1-2-3 as well as the ubiquitous
MS-DOS.

The keyboard pitch of this new PC is just 16mm. However, the LCD
screen is large enough for users to work for long hours, the company
claims. The retail price is 328,000 yen ($2,980), which is slightly
more expensive than the average price of similar notebook-type PCs,
although NEC points out that the price does include the software.
When this is taken into account, the complete deal looks quite
attractive price-wise, Newsbytes notes.

NEC's other new machines is a desktop-type multimedia PC known as
the Ce2. It comes equipped with a compact disc read only memory (CD-
ROM) drive, stereo speakers and a full-color screen with a maximum
resolution of 1,024 x 768 pixels. This PC costs 298,000 yen
($2,700), which is about 29 percent cheaper than that of the current
version.

Oki Electric's new notebook-type PC is equipped with an IC
(integrated circuit) memory card drive, which is based on the
personal computer memory card international association (PCMCIA)
type 2.0 and the Japanese Electronics Industry Development
Association (JEIDA) V4.1 standard. The machine is also equipped with
a 25 megahertz (MHz) 80486 microprocessor with DOS/V and Windows
3.1. A color version of this PC is also available.

Mitsubishi Electric, meanwhile, has released a client-server-type
computer known as the Apricot FTIIe. This 2.58 million yen ($23,500)
machine, which is sold in the UK under the Apricot brand name, is
based around a 60 MHz Pentium chipset and features a 512K memory
cache, plus Microchannel II architecture which is claimed to have a
40MB per second data transmission throughput.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19930131/Press Contact: NEC, +81-3-
3451-2974, Fax, [phone], Oki Electric, [phone],
Mitsubishi Electric, [phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00023)

TI Reports Record 93 Profits But Cuts 700 Jobs 01/31/94
DALLAS, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Texas Instruments has
reported that 1993 was a banner year with profits of $472 million
but the company will still eliminate 700 jobs.

TI calls 1993 "one of the best financial years in its history" but
says that the job cuts are part of its continuing cost-cutting and
restructuring measures. Five hundred of the positions being
eliminated are in TI's defense electronics business due to the
continued shrinking of government contracts. The other 200 positions
are being eliminated in the consolidation of consumer and peripheral
products businesses.

TI reports that its fourth quarter profits rose to $134 million, or
$1.42 per share, from the $70 million reported in the same period
last year. For the complete year the company reported earnings of
$5.03 per share compared to $2.50 a share earned in 1992.

TI President, Chairman and CEO Jerry Junkins said that the company's
defense-related business is maintaining stable margins, but he
expects to see continued market decline in 1994 and a resultant
dampening effect on defense revenues.

The defense-related jobs being lost will be cut next month and
nearly all of them are in the Dallas. Junkins said TI will try to
place as many affected employees as possible in other positions
within the company. TI's defense unit has cut more than 11,000 jobs
since 1988 as government defense spending has declined.

TI spokesperson Robert (Buddy) Price says TI's materials and
controls business has invested in several opportunities that could
add substantial growth in 1994, including the TIRIS radio-frequency
identification system. Ford Motor Company has adapted TIRIS for auto
security in Ford Fiesta and Escort models products produced for sale
in Europe.

An electronic code is embedded in the head of a special ignition key
and a radio frequency reader is installed in the car's steering
column. When the key is turned in the ignition, the reader checks
for a unique code. If the code is not there a critical component of
the vehicle, such as the fuel system, will not work. TI says that
the special keys cannot be used to make duplicates or a master key
is needed to copy the keys.

TIRIS is also being tested on a 14 mile stretch of California
highway in a special toll paying system that would bill drivers
automatically and eliminate the need to stop at toll booths. A
variation of the system would allow drivers to pre-purchase a
specific amount of tolls with the TIRIS system and an associated
transponder system deducts the correct amount each time the car
passes through a toll gate equipped with the appropriate reader
equipment.

Price says that the company has also accelerated its investments in
research and development (R&D) for new technologies in addition to
supporting its base businesses. TI funded R&D to the tune of $590
million for 1993, compared to $470 million the previous year.

One of those technologies is TI's digital micromirror device (DMD).
Junkins says while the company is still assessing the business
potential for DMD, he believes it could offer "a significant
opportunity for the future."

In February 1993 Newsbytes reported TI's unveiling of the DMD system
in a prototype imaging projection display system that the company
hopes will be a key player in the emerging high definition
television field. DMD research began in the early 1980's.

(Jim Mallory/19940131/Press contact: Robert Price, Texas
Instruments, 214-995-2355 ;Editors: do not publish this number)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00024)

 ****Microsoft-Sega: A Deal or Not? 01/31/94
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- The British news
service Reuters reports Microsoft has finally confirmed that it is
working with video game company Sega Enterprises to develop an
operating system for a new high performance game known as "Saturn,"
but a Microsoft spokesperson contacted by Newsbytes still denies any
such agreement.

Reuters says that Microsoft Executive Vice President Mike Maples has
confirmed the announcement made by Sega and reported by Newsbytes on
January 19, 1994, but Microsoft public relations spokesperson Mich
Matthews told Newsbytes today: "We are talking to these guys (Sega)
but there is still nothing official. To my knowledge there is no
deal."

Reuters quotes Maples as saying the venture is an indication
Microsoft is moving beyond its plan to develop software for
incorporation into office machines and into the area of consumer
electronics.

Sega says that the new 32-bit game, which could have the potential
to download software through cable television lines, is scheduled to
ship later this year.

Last year Microsoft announced Microsoft At Work, saying it was
working with dozens of companies to incorporate a Windows-type
operating system that would connect fax machines, copiers, printers,
and personal computers. Reuters quotes Maples as saying the Sega
venture is an extension of Microsoft At Work into consumer
electronics.

"It's not a very broad extension to extend that same operating
environment (Microsoft At Work) into consumer products like
microwaves and telephones and game machines," he said.

An increasing number of consumer devices are incorporating digital
electronics, and consumers frequently have trouble programming such
machines as videocassette recorders. Maples reportedly told Reuters
the Windows operating system can be built into such devices to make
their use easier.

According to Reuters Maples says companies such as Sega will pay a
royalty on each unit sold to use Microsoft software. "It's not big
numbers per unit, it's just a lot of units."

The Sega announcement earlier this month caused the company's stock
to jump significantly. A Sega spokesperson told Newsbytes at the
time of the announcement that the company will provide more details
about Saturn, reported to use 32-bit reduced instruction set
computing (RISC) chips, in March of this year.

(Jim Mallory/19940131/Press contact: Microsoft Public Relations,
206-882-8080; Reader contact: Microsoft Corporation, 206-882-
8080 or 800-426-9400)


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00025)

 ****Novell Ships DOS 7, Includes Low-End Networking 01/31/94
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- When Novell picked
up Digital Research a few years ago, it also acquired the company's
DR-DOS operating system competitor to Microsoft's dominant MS-DOS,
designed for IBM PC and compatible computers. Now the company has
finally renamed DR-DOS to Novell DOS, and introduced a new version
that offers DOS users enhanced features and, what the company calls,
"seamless integration with Novell's NetWare market-leading network
operating system."

Newsbytes notes that DR-DOS failed to have a significant impact on
the MS-DOS market, even though the product was critically well-
received, and did take some market share. Now Novell is hoping the
addition of peer-to-peer networking features will be the very thing
that gives its product the edge in the market.

Peer-to-peer networking was reportedly being considered for
inclusion in the last version of MS-DOS, but was abandoned in the
later stages of development.

Novell says it actually began shipping Novell DOS 7 on January 28.
According to the company, version 7 "enhances the core functionality
of DOS by providing fully integrated NetWare client support, peer-
to-peer networking, desktop network management, network
installation, Stacker disk-compression, pre-emptive DOS
multitasking, enhanced memory management, and desktop security."

Novell's product line manager for Novell DOS 7 and Personal NetWare,
John Linney, told Newsbytes that, "The main feature about DOS 7
(different from the MS-DOS product) is the networking that we've
included with it. It includes a full NetWare client, which allows
users to access any version of NetWare -- 2, 3, or 4 -- and also any
version of Personal NetWare. We call that the Universal NetWare
Client. The second piece to the networking is the peer-to-peer
server that is included."

Continued Linney: "If you collect all the networking that we're
adding to Novell DOS 7, that's exactly the same as what you get when
you buy the Personal NetWare product that we announced just before
Christmas."

So what's the distinction between them?, asked Newsbytes. Linney
said that "Personal NetWare and Novell DOS 7 are completely separate
products. Personal NetWare is an entry-level networking product --
you can go into your store and buy it with network interface cards,
and find it bundled with hardware. You'll find Novell DOS 7 in the
operating system (O/S) section. All of the features that are in
Personal NetWare are also included as part of Novell DOS 7."

Novell claims that DOS 7 is fully compatible with MS Windows 3.x and
Windows for Workgroups (WFW) 3.1 and 3.11. The version also includes
DOS Protected Mode Services (DPMS), which, according to Novell,
reduces the demand for conventional memory. Novell DOS 7 includes
five DPMS device drivers which reside in extended memory and execute
in protected mode on 286, 386 and 486 computers.

The peer-to-peer networking features for DOS and Windows
environments allow for files, printers and other resource sharing.
The NetWare client feature supports Personal NetWare, NetWare 3.x,
and 4.x. A features called Single-Network View allows for the
management and administration of a simple network, and pre-emptive
multitasking allows multiple DOS programs to execute at the same
time.

In answer to a question concerning the status of the NetWare Lite
peer-to-peer product, Linney said that, "We're keeping NetWare Lite
available as we do have customers with existing NetWare Lite
networks who would like to add NetWare Lite nodes. So, much in the
same way that Novell has kept NetWare 2.x in the channel, we are
keeping NetWare Lite in the channel."

Newsbytes asked if NetWare Lite would be enhanced. Said Linney:
"We're basically going to keep that product as it is. It is very
stable right now. It meets the requirements that were first set out
for that product. But our real push now is on Personal NetWare."

Novell DOS 7 is currently available for $99. Users of DR DOS or the
NetWare Lite/DR DOS bundle can upgrade for $39.95 if they do so in
the next 90 days. The company also says that localized versions will
be available in German, Spanish, French, and Italian.

(Ian Stokell/19940131/Press Contact: Roberta Alfred, 408-970-1478,
Novell)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00026)

 ****HP Intros Entry-Level HP 3000 Servers 01/31/94
PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- With the
increasing popularity of networking environments in business, there
is also an increased need for less expensive servers. Claiming to
recognise the need, Hewlett-Packard (HP) has introduced eight entry-
level  HP 3000 commercial servers based on the company's Precision
Architecture-RISC (reduced instruction-set computer) chip
technology, the PA-7100LC.

Michelle Pritchard, a spokesperson for HP, told Newsbytes that the
systems are designed for small- to medium-sized businesses, that
"can be used for host-based environments or client-server. It
provides the benefits of both. For example, some client-server
environments today don't provide the high availability and ease of
use that the HP 3000 provides. Those are some of the qualities it's
known for. It is a platform where you can still have that yet you
have access to these client-server applications."

Announcing the new products, Glenn R. Osaka, general manager for
HP's Commercial Systems Division, said that the new servers are
designed for "sites that want to evolve to a client/server
environment, yet still require high on-line transaction processing
(OLTP) capability, high availability, ease of operation and leading
price/performance."

There are four two-slot and four four-slot systems in the new line,
offering between 53 to 153 transactions per second (tps). The two-
slot servers can be expanded to the Series 9x8 four-slot servers.

In reply to a question concerning the product line replacing any
product, Pritchard told Newsbytes that, the servers are a "new low-
end product line for us, as an addition to our product line, which
complements the mid-level -- being the HP 3000 Series  9x7 -- and
the high-end -- being the HP 3000 Corporate Business systems. They
are targeted towards the low-end. They eventually going to replace
some of our two-slot, low-end systems that we have, but not
immediately."

HP claims that the PA-7100LC chip, announced in December 1993,
offers built-in multimedia capabilities, and is expected to operate
at frequencies up to 80 megahertz (MHz). The CPU (central processing
unit), floating-point controller and memory controller all reside on
a single chip.

The new HP 3000 systems also include new HP PowerTrust
uninterruptible power supply (UPS) power-protection technology,
support for higher-capacity internal disk and tape drives, and
optional preloading of networking software in addition to the
operating system and database.

The HP 3000 Series 9x8 includes the MPE/iX operating system, which
includes such features as an integrated transaction manager, print
spooler and job scheduler.

Olivier J. Helleboid, marketing manager for HP's Commercial Systems
Division, claims that, "The HP 3000's open systems and POSIX
standards-based MPE/iX operating system have made it possible for
our software partners to bring Unix system-based applications easily
to the platform -- in some cases as quickly as two weeks. Porting to
MPE/iX now is essentially as easy as porting to a version of a Unix
operating system."

The server prices are as follows, with the LX servers being two-
slot, and the RX servers four-slot. The HP 3000 Series 918 LX costs
$11,750 and includes an 8-user license; the HP 3000 Series 918 RX
costs $15,750 including an 8-user license; the HP 3000 Series 928
LX costs $39,000 with a 64-user license; the HP 3000 Series 928 RX
costs $43,000 with a 64-user license; the HP 3000 Series 968 LX is
priced at $62,000 with a 100-user license; the HP 3000 Series 968
RX $66,000 with a 100-user license; the HP 3000 Series 978 LX is
$81,000 with a 100-user license; and the HP 3000 Series 978 RX
costs $85,000 with a100-user license.

The price includes the CPU, 32 or 64 megabytes (MB) of memory, a one
gigabyte (GB) integrated disk drive, a 2GB integrated tape drive,
system console, an integrated SCSI (small computer system
interface)/LAN (local area network)/Console interface card, an HP
PowerTrust UPS, and the base MPE/iX operating system user license.

Return credits of between $1,000 to $65,000 are available for
current users of older HP 3000 systems who want to upgrade to the
Series 9X8. The new servers are set to be orderable February 1,
except for the Series 978, which is expected to be orderable in May.

(Ian Stokell/19940131/Press Contact: Michelle Pritchard,
408-447-1259, or Jim Christensen, 408-447-1678, HP)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00027)

Gates Testifies In Stac Electronics Lawsuit 01/31/94
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Microsoft
President Bill Gates appeared in federal court late last week to
defend his company's data compression software in a patent violation
suit brought by Stac Electronics Company about this time last year.

At issue is whether Microsoft "borrowed" some of Stac's technology
when it developed its Doublespace data compression software. Data
compression reduces the amount of space needed to store data and
slows down the rate at which hard disk space is used up. The
technique has become increasingly important as computer software
programs and user-created files have become larger.

Gates told the court that Doublespace bears no relation to the
compression program patented by Stac Electronics. Microsoft
spokesperson Collins Hemingway told Newsbytes Gates testified last
Friday how Microsoft examined the care it took to assure that its
compression program didn't infringe on Stac's patent after the Stac
suit was filed. Doublespace shipped in March of 1993.

Hemingway said that Gates had gathered "the best patent and legal
experts inside and outside the company" as well as several of
Microsoft's top technical people to review what the company was
doing and to come up with ways to make sure Microsoft hadn't
violated Stac's patents. "We wanted to make sure we were absolutely
clean on this thing," said Hemingway.

Gates described to the court the final meeting at which the task
force agreed that the product was ready to go. Hemingway said no
significant changes were made to Doublespace in MS-DOS 6.2 when it
shipped that impacted the patent case.

Hemingway stressed that the Stac suit was initiated before Microsoft
was shipping a production version of Doublespace. "They sued us when
we were still in the R&D (research and development) phase. We hadn't
shipped any kind of a commercial product at that time."

(Jim Mallory/19940131/Press contact: Collins Hemingway, Microsoft
Corporation, 206-882-8080; Reader contact: Microsoft Corporation,
206-882-8080 or 800-426-9400)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00028)

 ****Videoconferencing with Analog Phone Lines 01/31/94
WALTHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Right now,
businesses have a choice between buying special digital lines for
videoconferencing, or getting limited two-way videocalling
capability with incompatible videophones from AT&T and MCI.

Aox, which designs equipment which other companies manufacture, is
now offering a third way. The company says that with its
SignalMASTER chip and kernal, along with Aox software, companies can
design add-in cards for PCs which combine fax, data, and
videoconferencing functions.

The company's technology includes what it calls a "low-bit rate
video codec," which can encode video into low bit-rate signals,
allowing simultaneous video, voice and data communications over
regular analog phone lines, known as "Plain Old Telephone Service"
or POTS lines. The company says boards implementing its technology
could sell for under $1,000 and be out by fall.

Along with the codec we're providing the DSP programming and the
whole sub-system," spokesman Christine Hirshland told Newsbytes.
"Our prototype is a single add-in card that includes our ASIC and a
kernal to allow multi-functionality. It's also a fax-modem and 16-
bit audio card." The fax-data modem can run at up to 19,200
bits/second, under industry standards, while the audio card would
also be compatible with industry standards.

In a statement issued by Aox, Richard Doherty of The Envisioneering
Group in Seaford, New York praised the technology. One of Doherty's
technical advisors is Steve Wozniak, co-creator of the Apple II.
Doherty said that the Aox technology can open videoconferencing to
"99.5 percent of all American homes and nearly all businesses." He
indicated the video quality of the Aox equipment is actually better
than most systems he's seen which depend on ISDN.

People interested in licensing the technology should contact Rich
Levandov, Aox's vice president of business development, Hirshland
told Newsbytes.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940131/Press Contact: Christine Hirshland
Aox, 617-684-1410; OEM contact: Rich Levandov, Aox, 617-684-1400)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00029)

Parsons, Computer Associates In Dispute Over Tax Program 01/31/94
ISLANDIA, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- A tax preparation
program that made waves earlier when Computer Associates (CA)
International announced it would be given away for a shipping and
handling charge has run into a legal storm.

Hiawatha, Iowa-based Parsons Technology has obtained a court order
barring further distribution of the Early Bird edition of CA-Simply
Tax, based on a claim that the CA program copies text from its own
Personal Tax Edge programs.

The judge also ordered Computer Associates not to copy any text
from the Parsons program in the final edition of CA-Simply Tax.

Computer Associates said that it has changed the disputed text to
avoid any possible concern. The company also pointed out that CA-
Simply Tax was developed for it by SoftKey Products International,
B.V., and said in a statement that "CA did not know and had no way
of knowing that SoftKey may have copied some portion of the Parsons
text."

Seeking to distance itself from the alleged copying, CA was careful
not to admit that text in the program was copied or to deny it. CA's
statement referred to "alleged copying." Parsons' statement said CA
had admitted portions of the program were copied. However, CA
spokesman Bob Gordon would give no direct answer to questions about
this alleged admission, saying only that CA has changed the disputed
text in the final version of the software.

Joan Dyal, spokeswoman for Parsons, told her firm has not taken
legal action against SoftKey because it is CA that is selling the
disputed software even though SoftKey developed it. However,
Computer Associates said that SoftKey has agreed to take
responsibility for defending the case.

Newsbytes understands a legal dispute may be brewing between CA and
SoftKey over the allegations.

Gordon told Newsbytes that current users of CA-Simply Tax will
not be affected by any such dispute. CA also stressed that the suit
does not allege any copying of source code. It is the wording of
questions that the program asks in helping a user prepare a tax
return that Parsons alleges was copied.

(Grant Buckler/19940131/Press Contact: Joan Dyal, Parsons
Technology, 319-395-9626, 319-395-0102; Bob Gordon, Computer
Associates, 516-342-2391, fax [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(SFO)(00030)

Toshiba Intros Satellite T1910 486 Color Notebook 01/31/94
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- The trend towards
color notebook computing and the increasing dominance of the 486
processor architecture have been highlighted by the Computer Systems
Division of Toshiba America Information Systems, which has
introduced the 33 megahertz (MHz) Satellite T1910  notebook.

Announcing the new machine, Steve Lair, vice president of marketing
for the company, said: "Our research indicates that consumers are
requiring value-added features in their notebooks that provide
performance, ease-of-use and value backed by a strong service and
support program. Today, given the needs of Windows applications, the
33MHz i486 and larger 120 megabyte (MB) hard disk drive have become
the expected standard level of performance."

Newsbytes notes that the 80486 seems to have overtaken the 80386
architecture as the dominant processor-type in the market.
Additionally, as power management and battery management technology
improves, and peripheral hardware components continue to fall, users
are opting for the slightly more expensive color systems instead of
monochrome. Until recently, color notebooks were expensive and
power-hungry, giving users only a short time in which to work when
the system was running solely on batteries.

The Satellite T1910 series offers a variety of choices and features,
including dynamic-STN (SuperTwist Nematic) dual-scan color or STN
monochrome display, a 14.5 millimeter (mm) PCMCIA (Personal Computer
memory Card International Association) expansion slot, a keyboard, a
1.44-inch integrated floppy disk drive, a minimum of 120MB hard disk
drive capacity and a BallPoint Mouse 2.0 with QuickPort.

According to the company, the 14.5mm PCMCIA (personal computer
memory card international association) "hot plug" expansion slot
accepts Type I, II, III and larger cards, including modems with RJ-
11 jacks, networking cards, and hard disk drives.

The Satellite T1910 models are being sold through the traditional
sales channel and in more than 2,000 retail outlets, including
Adray's, Best Buy, Circuit City, Comp USA, Computer City, Incredible
Universe, Lechmere, Nobody Beats the Wiz, Office Depot, OfficeMax,
Price Club/Costco, Sam's Wholesale Club, Service Merchandise, and
The Good Guys.

The Satellite T1910 includes MS-DOS 6.2, Microsoft's Windows 3.1
graphical user interface, and UltraFont pre-installed on the hard
disk drive. A productivity bundle is included for those buying
through retail outlets that consists of Lotus Organizer, ClarisWorks
for Windows, a Toshiba "first-time user" video, and a portfolio
carrying case.

The T1910 offers a large 9.5-inch, high-contrast STN-monochrome VGA
display with 640 by 480 resolution, while the T1910CS offers
dynamic-STN dual-scan color on a 9.5-inch VGA screen with 640 by 480
resolution (or 256 colors from a palette of 226,981 at 320 by 200).
The company says that both models feature a graphics accelerator to
enhance video performance in the Windows operating environment.

The company also says that the T1910 comes in a "rugged design" that
includes user ergonomic features such as sliding port covers and
retractable feet for keyboard tilt. The 33MHz SL Enhanced i486SX CPU
(central processing unit) includes eight kilobyte (KB) cache.

System memory of 4MB RAM is standard, expandable to 20MB using 4MB,
8MB or 16MB user-installable memory cards. The T1910 and T1910CS
comes with a 120MB hard drive, with a 200MB option available on the
T1910CS. A front-loading 1.44MB 3.5-inch floppy disk drive is
integrated into the unit. Standard interfaces include: serial,
parallel, PS/2 mouse and keyboard ports, and an external monitor
port.

The products include Toshiba's own MaxTime power management system
to allow the user to achieve longer battery life, which includes an
automatic display and hard disk drive shut down after a user-
specified time of inactivity, automatic CPU "sleep" mode, as long
with a low battery warning light. Also included is a new Advanced
Power Management (APM) BIOS (basic input/output), which according to
the company, allows Windows applications to automatically tell the
computer when it is idle (such as between keystrokes).

Powered by a removable, rechargeable NiMH battery pack, the T1910
achieves over three hours of battery life in run-down time and
recharges in 2.3 hours, according to the company, while the T1910CS
runs for over two hours and recharges in 1.4 hours.

The 6.5-pound T1910 measures 11.7-inches by two-inches by 8.4-
inches, and the 6.8-pound T1910CS measures 11.7-inches by 2.1-inches
by 8.4-inches. The T1910 is already shipping, priced at an an
estimated street range of $1,599 to $1,699 dependent upon
configuration and bundle purchased. The T1910CS ranges from $2,299
to $2,499 dependent upon configuration, bundle and hard disk drive
purchased. T1910 models include a limited one-year warranty honored
in the United States and in 24 countries.

(Ian Stokell/19940131/Press Contact: Howard Emerson,
714-583-3925, Toshiba America Information Systems Inc.)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEN)(00031)

US West Customers Get Voice Dialing 01/31/94
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1994 JAN 31 (NB) -- Some US West customers
in portions of Colorado can now tell their telephones what number to
dial instead of wearing out their dialing digit.

The company says that the new voice dialing service is currently
available to about 80,000 residential and 8,000 small business
customers in Aurora (a suburb of Denver), Golden, and Grand
Junction, Colorado. The service is expected to be available in other
parts of metropolitan Denver in the spring. In Aurora only specific
prefixes have access to voice dialing so far.

Voice dialing allows users to create a directory of names and
numbers. The phone automatically dials the numbers when told to do
so. A US West spokesperson says voice dialing has been tested for
about 18 months and is now ready for use. The technology was tested
in Boise, Idaho in 1991 and last year in Golden, Colorado.

US West is introducing voice dialing with a special promotion that
includes free installation and two months of free service. After
that residential users will be charged $4.95 per month for up to 50
names stored and $2 for second-line access, while small businesses
get a 75-name directory for $8 each month. Business users can also
get second line access for an additional $4. Once the promotional
period is over installation will cost $8.50 for residential users
and $10 for businesses.

Voice dialing requires no additional equipment in your home or
office. The numbers are stored by pressing keys on a touch-tone
phone and speaking the name associated with the local, long
distance, or international numbers.

US West spokesperson Sharon Price told Newsbytes services such as
call forwarding can also be programmed. Lifting the receiver gets
the user a beep, and he or she then speaks the name associated with
the desired number. Because of the differences in individual's
voices, different people can record the same names in the
directories for different numbers and share the service.

(Jim Mallory/19940131/Press contact; Sharon Price, US West
Communications, 303-896-6942)