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/mar_apr_94/nb040694

Text File | 1994-04-06 | 85KB | 1,812 lines

(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00001)

Watermark Intros Image Server & Professional Edition 04/06/94
BURLINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Watermark
has announced Watermark Image Server and Professional Edition,
products billed as the first Windows NT-based imaging server and
fully OLE (object linking and embedding) 2.0-compliant imaging
software to become available on the market, respectively.

The Watermark Image Server uses SQL (structured query language),
multi-threading, and SMP (symmetrical multiprocessing) to produce
large-system performance and throughput, according to officials.

Support for OLE 2.0 in the Watermark Professional Edition client
software will allow the software to "image-enable" Windows
applications based on either OLE 1.0 or 2.0, permitting developers
to add functionality to these applications that will let users
integrate scanned and faxed documents, the company maintained.

The new Watermark Professional Edition also brings a number of
other new capabilities, including "tight integration" with Lotus
Notes through a series of pre-programmed Smart Icons, as well as
integration with Expervision OCR (optical character recognition)
and fax server products from vendors such as Alcom, Optus and
Delrina.

Additional enhancements include a "deskew" feature for correcting
scanned or misaligned documents, improved annotation tools that
show the name of the author, and the ability to mail an image from
directly within Watermark, using MAPI or VIM.

"Full" support for OLE 2.0 means that Watermark Professional
Edition is able to support such OLE 2.0 functionality as drag-and-
drop, in-place editing, and OLE Automation, according to Watermark.
Company officials described OLE Automation as "a new feature that
enables container applications to fully control key functions in a
component object."

Fully OLE 2.0-compliant products let the user start with a
"container application" such as PowerBuilder or Lotus Notes, and
then add functions such as imaging, fax, electronic mail, workflow,
word processing, spreadsheets, back-end relational databases, and
mainframe access as OLE objects, a company spokesperson explained.

Watermark has coined the term "Component Object Model" to refer to
this process, the spokesperson told Newsbytes. Watermark Image
Server and Professional Edition are designed to operate as image
and fax components under OLE 2.0.

In recent tests on dual Compaq Pentium ProLiant processors,
Watermark Image Server retrieved single-page images at the rate
of 28,000 images per hour, and archived single-page images to the
server at the rate of 19,000 per hour, according to officials. For
10-page documents, Watermark Image Server retrieved images at
the rate of 103,000 images per hour and archived single-page
images to the server at the rate of 99,000 images per hour.

Watermark Image Server and Professional Edition are both slated to
ship this month. Image Server is priced at $2,995 for 25 users and
$9,995 for 100 users. Professional Edition is priced at $295 for
a single user, $1,395 for five users, $2,495 for 10 users, and
$19,995 for 100 users.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940405/Reader contact: Watermark Software,
617-229-2600; Press contacts: Kevin Lach, Watermark, 617-229-2600
ext 228; Leahanne Hobson, Albie Jarvis, or Peter Gorman,
Copithorne & Bellows for Watermark, 617-252-0606)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEL)(00002)

India - Power Mac To Debut This Month 04/06/94
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Michael Spindler, president
and CEO of Apple Computer Inc., made a recent visit to India. The
two-day trip included meetings with the Prime Minister P.V.
Narasimha Rao, who is an avid computer user, the Finance
Minister, and business leaders.

"We are looking at partnering here for substantial amount of
distribution and support, doing more in the sense of developer
support to bring Indian applications on the (Mac) platform. We
might also want to tap into the talent pool that sits in here, in
software," he told Newsbytes.

Spindler spoke of the ill effects of India's decree of high import
tariffs. "The question of manufacturing (in India) doesn't pose
itself. Because it is such an infant marketplace. The economy of
scale isn't here."

With a liaison office already in Delhi, Apple is stepping up
its portfolio of machines in all segments -- publishing, education
and telecommunications. Spindler also announced that "publishing
centers" would be opened soon. The launch of Power Mac is set
for this month.

Apple's long-time distributor in India, Raba Contel, is no longer in
the picture. In its place is a new company called Odin Computers,
owned by Raba Contel's founder, Rakesh Gandhi. Odin's president is
Sanjiv Kishan, the assistant president of Jaraisy Computers in
Saudi Arabia. The other distributor is Wipro Infotech, which was
chosen a few months ago after a manufacturing project with DEC's
Indian subsidiary, Digital Equipment India Ltd., fell through.

"The Mac is now making a foray into office automation segment,
especially after the entry of multinationals,'' said Sandip Bhagi,
country manager for Apple in India.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19940406)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00003)

Japan - Matsushita, Nintendo In Separate Video Game Deals 04/06/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Matsushita Electric has
announced that it has set up two sales firms for the company's
latest 32-bit video game machine, the Real, and has also signed
a deal with a discount dealer. Meanwhile, Nintendo has signed a
licensing agreement with Chicago-based WMS Industries and has
reached a basic agreement to create a joint venture firm
involving software for the company's 64-bit video game machine.

Matsushita has set up two sales firms for its 3DO-based video
game machine, the Real, which was released in Japan in March.
The two new firms are called Tokyo Matsushita Interactive Media
and Osaka Matsushita Interactive Media, and are located in Tokyo
and Osaka respectively.

Each firm has a capitalization of 50 million yen ($500,000). A
total of 140 employees are working for the two firms, which hope
to gain 13 billion yen ($130 million) in video game machine sales
for the first year.

Matsushita Electric has also inked an agreement with Tokyo-based
major franchise discount shop, "Sofmap." Under the agreement,
Matsushita has already begun supplying video game machines.
This is seen as a major policy change for Matsushita, which has
declined to supply its products to discount dealers in the past.

Meanwhile, Kyoto-based Nintendo has signed a software licensing
deal with WMS Industries in Chicago. The agreement calls for
WMS Industries to develop three-dimensional game software for
Nintendo's next generation 64-bit video game machine. A joint
venture firm may also be part of the deal, called Williams-Nintendo.
Both WMS and Nintendo are expected to have equal equity in the
firm.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940404/Press Contact: Matsushita
Electric, tel [phone], fax [phone]; Nintendo,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(APPLE)(TOR)(00004)

PhoneDisc Directory Offered For Mac 04/06/94
BETHESDA, MARYLAND, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Digital Directory
Assistance Inc., a publisher of telephone directories on compact
disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), has announced that its PhoneDisc
products now work with Apple Computer Inc.'s Macintosh. The
company claimed PhoneDisc is the first national phone listing
available to Macintosh users.

PhoneDisc contains listings for 91 million people, businesses,
and organizations. J.J. Schoch, a spokesman for Digital Directory,
told Newsbytes the disk currently contains accurate listings for
70 to 80 percent of the United States, and the company hopes to
increase that figure to about 97 percent by this summer.

The company claims its disk offers 50 percent more up-to-date
and accurate listings than its nearest competitor, with phone
numbers and full addresses including zip codes. The vendor said
its software also locates partial names and can narrow a search
by city, state, street address, zip code, and area code.

Macintosh users will use the same disks currently offered to the
owners of DOS-based PCs. Only the software that allows the
computer to search the disk is different, Schoch said. The new
software for the Macintosh is included with the latest PhoneDisc
updates and is available free to any existing PhoneDisc customers
through online services such as AppleLink and Compuserve. All
existing PhoneDisc products are compatible with the new
Macintosh software.

PhoneDisc directories include: PhoneDisc Residential, with more
than 81 million residential listings nationwide on two disks for
a suggested retail price of $79; and PhoneDisc Business,
containing 9.5 million business listings on one disk for $79.
PhoneDisc Business lets users locate businesses by name,
business type, SIC code, street address, and phone number.

PhoneDisc Reverse integrates the Residential and Business
directories with full reverse search indexes. It occupies five
regional discs and lists for $249.

PhoneDisc is available at major software retail stores, including
Egghead and CompUSA. Support for Microsoft Corp.'s Windows
operating environment is planned for this summer, Schoch said.

(Grant Buckler/19940406/Press Contact: J.J. Schoch, Digital
Directory Assistance, 310-390-4493; Public Contact: Digital
Directory Assistance, 800-284-8353)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00005)

Find Civilian Markets Or Perish, Editor Tells Space Firms 04/06/94
COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- "Change or
shut your doors." That's the advice Aviation Week & Space Technology
Senior Editor William Scott had for the dozens of aerospace
industry-related businesses participating in the 10th National Space
Symposium being held at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs
this week. The symposium is organized by the US Space Foundation
headquartered in Colorado Springs.

Scott said companies must find non-traditional ways to capitalize
on the technology and expertise developed during the Space Age's
heyday, and enumerated some possibilities.

He said one possibility is ranchers and farmers using a combination
of wireless phone, computers and video to communicate visually and
verbally with their veterinarians, or monitor the health of their
livestock via implanted sensors. Crops might be stimulated
electrostatically  and wheat might be cut by laser or high pressure
water.

Scott also talked about the possibility of using non-stick coatings
developed for space use to frustrate graffiti artists who try to
apply their work to walls coated with the substance.

Some companies are already taking his advice. Grumman Corp.
spokesperson Terry Miller said the company is exploring the
possibility of converting its ALARM missile launch detection
system technology to detect forest fire hot spots. That could help
the US Forest Service better manage its fire-fighting efforts.

Geodynamics Corp., a Torrance, California company, used the
Space Symposium to launch its Space Trainer software into the
civilian market. Advanced Programs Manager Thomas Webb says
Space Trainer was initially developed to improve the targeting of
ballistic missiles. Now the software is available to schools and
individuals with personal computers to study astrodynamics
fundamentals, gain a basic understanding of satellite operations in
space, view various types of orbits, and view the results as they
dynamically change elements of those orbits.

Scott says both government and industry will have to change their
way of thinking to make the conversion to civilian applications a
success. Government agencies will have to change the "black hole"
attitude that classifies much of the technology secret. For its
part, industry will have to reshape the hierarchies that reward
conformity. It also needs to stimulate employee creativity, reward
innovation, and be willing to take risk, he said.

Used to calling on government purchasing offices and government
contractors, how can companies find non-government outlets for
their products? Like sales people in all industries, by calling on
prospects. "Technology transfer is still a contact sport,"  says
Scott.

(Jim Mallory/19940406)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00006)

Sun Microsystems Opens Developer Conference 04/06/94
SAN FRANCISCO, U.S.A., 1994 APRIL 6 (NB) -- The Sun
Microsystems developer conference has opened at the Moscone
Center in San Francisco.

Scott McNealy, CEO of Sun Microsystems, told an audience of OEMs
(original equipment manufacturers), developers, and press members
that, "The keyword for this conference is applications,
applications, and applications. Solaris has nearly 8,800 applications
available and promises to provide backward availability while
aggressively moving forward with the delivery of OpenStep (a
developers' starter kit)."

The conference will highlight Sun's "Illuminar Industries," a virtual
corporation in which attendees will experience and learn first-hand
the problems companies face and the role technology plays in solving
those problems.

The demonstration, developed in cooperation with Andersen
Consulting, will be replicated in Paris and Tokyo later this month.
In an elaborate Tool Workshop set, Sun delivered a fast, high-tech,
almost-slapstick show for opening the conference and introducing
the audience to Sun's latest developments and promises for the
future.

The list of announcements from Sun included: the debut of Solaris
2.4; a  roadmap for Solaris Distributed Objects; OpenStep; NetWare
compatibility for Solaris; increased support of DOS and Windows
applications through Wabi; increased support of MAC applications
through MAE; a suite of enterprise data management products; and
key installations of Solaris x86.

Fulfilling a promise to run in all architectures, Sun demonstrated
Solaris in DOS, Windows, and the Mac environments, as well as its
Unix homeground. Their OpenStep developer kit, produced in
collaboration with NeXT, was introduced when Steven Jobs joined
Ed Zander, president of SunSoft, to deliver the announcement of,
what was claimed to be, the industry's first "volume, object-
oriented standard."

According to the companies, the kit, based on Nextstep release 3.2,
will reduce the lines of code needed to create a distributed
application. SunSoft (Sun's software company) plans to deliver an
OpenStep implementation through the Project DOE (distributed
object environment) effort in early 1995.

Responding to questions regarding recent negative comments about
Sun's overall condition, Scott McNealy told Newsbytes, "We have
been reported by analysts and the media to be down-and-out of the
picture so many times that we pay no attention to such comments.
We ask those who wish to measure the health of the company to
come and investigate our aggressive strategies to continue to be
a leader in the computing world."

Hardware products highlighted at the show included SPARCprinter
II, SPARCstations 5 and 20, SPARCstation voyager, SPARCstorage
Array 100, SPARCservers 5 and 20, SPARCcenter 2000, SunATM
board and Sun FastEthernet.

(Patrick McKenna/19940405/Press Contact: Carol Sacks, Sun,
415-336-1462)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(LAX)(00007)

Energizer Bunny Software Program Threatened By Patent 04/06/94
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- PC
Dynamics is being accused of patent infringement for its Energizer
Bunny screen saver software, but not from the Eveready Battery
company, who uses the bunny in its commercials. The patent
infringement accusation is coming from Software Advertising
Corporation of La Costa, California, which claims it has a patent
on putting advertising into software programs.

Software Advertising claims it holds US patent No. 5,105,184
granted in 1992, which covers any "...system which integrates an
advertisement into a computer software program without altering
the function of the program." Software Advertising is seeking
royalty payments from PC Dynamics for using advertising in its
screen saver.

Like television screens, computer monitors "burn-in" images
displayed without change over a long period of time, so the shadowy
image appears even when the monitor is turned off. To prevent this
effect, screen saver software tracks the computer users' activity,
and during periods of inactivity, automatically display moving
images on the computer screen.

However, according to PC Dynamics President Peter Avritch:
"Burn-in is now almost impossible with newer monitors, but
screen savers are enormously popular because they put fun
back into computing and help users personalize a computer."

Screen savers have become more humorous and imaginative, with
everything from flying toasters, to images of Microsoft Chief
Executive Officer (CEO) Bill Gates washing the computer screen (or
window). PC Dynamics came up with the Energizer Bunny screen
saver, for which it pays royalties to creator Eveready Battery. The
screen saver depicts the famous pink bunny parading, parachuting,
and snorkeling across the screen.

PC Dynamics claims the Energizer Bunny screen saver is not
advertising, as it does not promote batteries, neither does it ask
or compel users to buy batteries. But even if it were, "This may be
the most bizarre software patent in history," Avritch said. "We
believe this is an outrageous effort to wring money from a small
software publisher, creating a precedent that threatens continuing
litigation against any display of a logo or symbol on a computer
screen."

Avritch described the action as "akin to putting your company logo
on a coffee mug, or 800-STAPLES across the top of a stapler -- a
patent for which would be preposterous. We may as well tell
thousands of kids playing on Little League teams across America
to turn in uniforms that sport the names of sponsors. Yet the patent
office apparently says you can patent advertising on a specific
medium, whether or not you own the patent on the medium or a
trademark on the symbol or the logo."

This type of patent is precisely what the Interactive Multimedia
Association (IMA), a group of 260 multimedia companies, has been
fighting. Ken Christie of the IMA said the Software Advertising
patent is another example of a relatively over-broad patent that
threatens people engaged in multimedia development.

Partially prompted by a computer industry outcry, US Patent and
Trademark Office (USPTO) Commissioner Bruce Lehman recently
rejected a patent on multimedia granted to Compton's Newmedia in
August of 1993, saying the 41 claims in the patent were obvious
and not new.

Compton's was claiming it owned the concept of multimedia and
announced a royalty payments schedule for anyone using sound,
images, and text together. Compton's is expected to respond to the
USPTO rejection in the next two months.

"I do not think the patent office ever imagined or considered that
this patent might extend to high definition TV with station logos in
the corner, or text and data that does not interfere with the
function of videophones or the computers that will run the automated
homes of the future, even holograms and holodecks," said Avritch.

There was no official reply from Software Advertising Corporation
by Newsbytes deadline.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940404/Press Contact: Edward Treska, Knobbe,
Martens, Olson & Bear for Software Advertising Corporation, 714-
760-9502; Software Advertising Corporation, 619-729-9669; Steven
Leon, Technopolis Communications for PC Dynamics, 310-670-5606;
Peter Avritch, PC Dynamics, 800-888-1741 or 818-889-1741)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(SFO)(00008)

Information Superhighway Summit Announced 04/06/94
FRAMINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- With
so much discussion in the media about the supposed "information
highway," many people are unsure what exactly it is, where it is,
and when they can expect to access it.

Entering the circle of sources willing to discuss and answer these
questions is IDG World Expo and McQuillan Consulting. Together
they have announced an industry summit to address such issues.

The Information Superhighway Summit, scheduled for September
26-28, 1994, in San Jose, California, will feature business,
government and academic leaders who will discuss and debate the
course to be taken by this national infrastructure.

IDG promises a comprehensive summit offering a keynote, tutorials
and plenary sessions featuring practical operations, legal and social
issues, necessary technology and architecture, providers, possible
assignments within the infrastructure, debates over voice and data,
updates on current trials and trends, extent of services, and the
role of wireless.

Dr. John McQuillan, president of McQuillan Consulting and general
chairman of the conference, will present the keynote address. At the
end of the conference, Dr. McQuillan and Dr. Robert Metcalfe,
publisher and CEO of InfoWorld Publishing Co., founder of 3Com, and
the inventor of Ethernet, will summarize the themes and conclusions
as well as outline future developments.

Newsbytes recently reported on a study by Robert Half, which
concluded that many business leaders are awaiting a clear definition
of the superhighway, and an outline of the major players and their
investment commitment, prior to making any decision about their
particular role in this new and undefined technology.

However, some analysts point to the prospect of a long and
complicated fight over control of the "highway" and possible
government regulations. Others argue that the basic infrastructure
is already there, or under development, with extensive fiber optic
networks already in place from such sources as long distance
telecommunications carriers and electric utility companies.

(Patrick McKenna/19940405/Press Contact: Jeff Silha, IDG World,
800-545-3976 or Glen Whelden, McQuillan, 617-491-6754)


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

 ****Judge Erects Road Block To AT&T-McCaw Merger 04/06/94
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Judge Harold Greene
of the US District Court for the District of Columbia, the man
who ordered the breakup of the AT&T telephone monopoly in 1982,
has ruled that the proposed $12.6 billion merger of AT&T and
McCaw Cellular Communications violates that consent decree.

Greene said that AT&T and McCaw must convince him that the
merger is in the public interest before he will grant a waiver
that would let the merger go forward.

"There can be no doubt that the merger would indeed violate the
plain and express language" of the 1982 antitrust decree that
left AT&T in the long-distance business and turned over local
service to the seven regional Bell operating companies. Because
BellSouth, one of those companies, owns some cellular operations
jointly with McCaw, AT&T's acquisition of the Seattle-based
cellular giant would also mean that it was acquiring an interest
in BellSouth, Greene said, and that violates the consent decree.

"This ruling does not absolutely foreclose the waiver or
modification that AT&T requests," Greene wrote in a 25-page
opinion. "The court holds only that AT&T must satisfy the legal
standard for a decree modification--a standard it has thus far
failed to meet."

"This means AT&T must prove two things" BellSouth's Washington
lobbyist John Schneidawind told Newsbytes. "First, they must
prove that they deserve a modification of the decree and second
that the merger is in the public interest." Atlanta-based
BellSouth filed the complain with Greene that led to the ruling
on the merger.

"In order to prove they deserve a modification," said Schneidawind,
"AT&T must convince Greene that things have changed since the
breakup. For us, that's a major victory, because we have been
arguing for a decade that things have changed, and now we will
have AT&T making the same argument. It's the first time I can
think of that Greene has sided with the Bells on an issue related
to the decree."

BellSouth says it is not opposed to the AT&T-McCaw merger, but
wants the company to be held to the same legal standards as apply
to the regional Bell operating companies. Under Greene's order,
the Baby Bells must get waivers from Greene on many business
issues.

AT&T immediately put out a statement that it will "move quickly
to state our case. We're confident that we can win a waiver on
the merits and complete the merger on schedule." AT&T hopes to
close the merger, which it announced last August, by September
30.

When AT&T announced it was acquiring McCaw last August, some
feared that it was a backdoor way to "reach out and touch" the
local market again. "This ruling basically says that is what AT&T
was trying to do," Mark Cooper of the Consumer Federation of
America told Newsbytes, "and he is saying he won't allow it."

What happens if AT&T fails to get a waiver. "Other than
triggering further litigation, it's difficult to tell," said
Cooper. "Greene is making it clear that he intends to continue
to exercise his authority. He's a feisty son of a gun."

The ruling puts Greene back in the forefront of
telecommunications issues after a three-year absence, following
a Court of Appeals decision that took the issue of information
services away from him. After igniting the divestiture issue in
1982, Greene stayed intimately involved in the issue as he issued
a series of rulings to clarify his roadmap, until the higher
court stripped him of much of his authority.

Ironically, Greene ruling came the same day as the merger of
Southwestern Bell and Cox Cable Communications cratered.

(Kennedy Maize/19940406/Contacts: John Schneidawind, Bell
South, 202-463-4183; Mark Cooper, CFA, 301 384 2204)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00010)

100 Million CD-ROMs Produced In 1993, Says Trade Group 04/06/94
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Approximately 100
million compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) discs were
manufactured worldwide in 1993, according to the Optical
Publishing Association (OPA). Further, the group asserts the
CD-ROM manufacturing rate is increasing at an annual rate of
150 percent.

The 100 million number is an important benchmark, According to
OPA Executive Director Richard Bowers, demonstrating that
CD-ROM has become a commercial success. "We also hope that this
information provides a dose of realism to industry analysts who
have been generating market size data on the thinnest of
evidence, or, in some cases, no evidence at all."

Bowers also asserts the growth rate of CD-ROM manufacturing has
remained very constant over the last three years the group has
conducted surveys. From information generated by actual
production reports of US manufacturers and informal surveys of
other manufacturers outside the US, the OPA claims 70 percent of
the CD-ROM discs manufactured in 1993 were produced in North
America. Europe had 25 percent of the manufacturing and five
percent was done on the Pacific Rim and in the rest of the world.

The total value of the CD-ROM titles sold in 1993 approached $1.5
billion, but the group is predicting strong continued pressure to
bring prices down will impact the growth in the value of products
sold this year.

"Planners should remember that the multimedia game, educational,
and reference products sold at computer software retailers
accounted for -- at most -- 20 percent of the total sales figure.
The unit volume of these discs is high, but their prices are very
low. The vast majority of revenue in the CD-ROM arena still comes
from relatively high-ticket database, professional, and corporate
products," Bower warned.

The installed base of CD-ROM drives in North America is estimated
at 7.5 million by the trade group, based on sales of 4.5 million
drives in 1993. Bowers asserted: "It may be that, by the end of
1994, it will be difficult to buy a personal computer without a
CD-ROM drive installed."

(Linda Rohrbough/19940406/Press Contact: Richard Bowers, Optical
Publishing Association, tel [phone], fax [phone];
Public Contact: Optical Publishing Association, PO Box 21268,
Columbus, OH 43221)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00011)

Sybase To Publish Documentation On CD-ROM 04/06/94
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Sybase, the
company that makes enterprise client/server software development
tools by the same name, has announced it will deliver
documentation for its products on compact disc read-only memory
(CD-ROM). Called Sybooks, the CD-ROM documentation is being
implemented by Electronic Book Technologies (EBT) of Providence,
Rhode Island.

The announcement was at the Sun Solutions Fair held by Unix
vendor Sun Microsystems in San Francisco, California this week.
Sybase made the announcement at the show because the company
is the largest independent software vendor (ISV) for the Sun
hardware platform.

The first Sybook will be documentation for the company's
structured query language (SQL) Server 10, described as Sybase's
core database engine. The implementation will be in EBT's
Dynatext interface, which is available for Unix, Apple Macintosh,
and Microsoft Windows computing platforms. Sybase said it is
going to CD-ROM to provide its customers with easier and faster
access to documentation.

Dynatext is based on the International Standards Organization
(ISO) Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) format. SGML,
designed to be cross-platform and application-independent, stores
documents as data objects. Dynatext browsers allow Sybase users
to view a dynamic table of contents (TOC) which in turn allows the
location of specific information. Text, tables, and graphics can
all be references, and the TOC displays the number of occurrences
of the item in the document.

EBT claims Dynatext will allow Sybase customers to annotate
material for public or private viewing and create hypertext links
of associated material for their own cross-referencing. No
information was available by press time as to when the first
Sybooks would be distributed or the pricing of the titles.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940406/Press Contact: Kent Summons,
Electronic Book Technologies, tel [phone],
fax [phone]; Susan Trainer, Sybase, 510-922-4799)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00012)

IBM Adds New PowerParallel System 04/06/94
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- As part of a
series of announcements aimed at boosting its position in
client/server computing and open systems, IBM unveiled the
second in its PowerParallel line of computers.

Based on the company's Power2 processor -- a variant of the
reduced instruction-set computing (RISC) chip used in IBM's RISC
System/6000 workstations and servers -- the new SP2 is designed
for parallel processing.

It can be set up with from four to 128 of the RISC chips, which
are also closely related to the PowerPC processors IBM has
developed in cooperation with Motorola Corp., and Apple Computer
Inc.

IBM officials said the PowerParallel architecture combines the
numeric-intensive processing capabilities of scientific and
technical computers with the storage and analysis strengths of
commercial systems. Applications include complex simulations,
executive decision support, local area network consolidation,
centralized management of distributed systems, and quick-
response "data mining" in financial investment research, banking,
insurance, and retail industries, IBM said.

In a strategy briefing last November, Irving Wladawsky-Berger,
general manager of IBM Power Parallel Systems, said IBM sees
three principal markets for its PowerParallel hardware: users
scaling up from IBM's RISC System/6000 systems; the traditional
highly parallel computing market, which has been mainly in
universities and laboratories but is expanding to business; and
the data center.

Commercial users are starting to need systems able to store and
process vast amounts of data, Wladawsky-Berger said. "We already
have customers telling us that they are getting a terabyte of
data a day or they are worried that they will soon be getting a
terabyte a day." He described this as a new "grand challenge" (a
term widely used to describe certain scientific problems that
gobble up large amounts of computer power) facing commercial
computer users.

For the data center, IBM plans to bring more and more of the
capabilities found in its proprietary MVS operating system to its
AIX variant of Unix, Wladawsky-Berger said.

He described the PowerParallel systems as "basically the high end
of the RS/6000 family," able to run any application written for
the RS/6000 hardware. The systems run AIX/6000, IBM's variant of
the Unix operating system for RS/6000 hardware.

At Tuesday's briefing, John Thompson, senior vice-president and
group executive responsible for IBM's server offerings, said the
SP2 and new ES/9000 mainframes (Newsbytes, April 5) would
"fundamentally change the nature of large-scale computing." He
said IBM is positioning its mainframes -- a category of computer
whose future has been in doubt in recent years -- as "ideal
super-servers" for client/server computing.

(Grant Buckler/19940406/Press Contact: Nadine Taylor, IBM,
914-766-2458)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00013)

 ****Canadian Telcos Launch Info Highway Plan 04/06/94
OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- The nine regional
telephone companies that make up Canada's Stentor consortium have
announced their plans for the much-touted information highway, a
widespread network delivering assorted communications services.

The Stentor companies, which together provide local and
long-distance telephone service across Canada, said they are
creating a nationwide broadband network. They will also invest in
initiatives to provide new communications services that take
advantage of this network.

The Stentor scheme has four key pieces: upgrading local telephone
networks over the next 10 years; developing seamless national
connectivity over six years; creating a new company to supply
multimedia services and applications; and setting up a venture
capital fund to invest in new products and services.

The Stentor companies -- Newfoundland Telephone, Island Telephone
in Prince Edward Island, Maritime Telegraph & Telephone in Nova
Scotia, New Brunswick Telephone, Bell Canada in Ontario and
Quebec, Manitoba Telephone System, SaskTel in Saskatchewan, AGT
in Alberta, and British Columbia Telephone -- said they plan to
lay optical fiber to every neighborhood and coaxial cable into
most homes. This should be in place in most areas within 10
years, Stentor spokeswoman Maureen MacDonald told Newsbytes.

Stentor expects the effort to cost about C$8 billion over that
time. The consortium claimed this local upgrade program alone
will fund 12,000 jobs across the country over the next 10 years.

The companies also said they will spend about $500 million on
upgrading their national network. This will include attaching
about 100 asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) switches and other
electronics needed to deliver multimedia communications to
existing fiber-optic networks over the next six years.

Stentor is also creating a new multimedia products and services
company, provisionally named MMI. The company will get another,
official name when it is formally launched this summer, MacDonald
said. It will be owned by telecommunications holding companies,
including but not necessarily limited to the holding companies of
Stentor's member firms, such as BCE Inc. of Montreal, which
controls Bell Canada.

The Stentor companies expect MMI to require an investment of some
C$250 million over its first five years of operation, officials
said. Its activities will include developing content and applications,
distributing consumer and business multimedia equipment, providing
support to third-party service providers, and developing and
operating a user interface to communications services.

Finally, Stentor's plans include a venture capital fund to back
companies developing new products and services for the
information highway. This fund could reach C$50 million, Stentor
said. A small part of this money will come from the member
companies of Stentor, according to MacDonald, but much of it will
come from other sources, such as pension funds and other
institutional investors.

Stentor has named its over-all plan the "Beacon Initiative."
MacDonald said the plans outlined are consistent with the
direction the consortium outlined to federal regulators at
hearings last fall, and Stentor does not believe any of the newly
announced plans will require further approval from the Canadian
Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) or
other authorities.

(Grant Buckler/19940406/Press Contact: Maureen MacDonald,
Stentor, 613-781-9232)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00014)

 ****Novell Names New President 04/06/94
PROVO, UTAH, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Saying he has been
training for the job for 10 years, former Hewlett-Packard Vice
President Robert J. Frankenberg has assumed the mantle of president
at Novell Corporation. Frankenberg replaces Novell founder Raymond
Noorda.

The company said Frankenberg, 46, will serve on Novell's board of
directors, while Noorda will continue as chairman of the board.
Novell will dissolve its office of the president, with the chief
financial officer and chief operating officer continuing with their
respective responsibilities, reporting now to Frankenberg.

 The company's chief technology officer, general counsel, and Ad
Rietveld, president and CEO of Wordperfect will also report to the
new president once the recently announced acquisition of
Wordperfect is completed. Until joining Novell, Frankenberg had
been vice president and general manager of the personal information
products group at Hewlett Packard. He had been with H-P since 1969.

Asked how he would cope with software giant Microsoft, Frankenberg
said "I've dealt with other juggernauts. The key element is to
deliver solutions to meet needs that Microsoft isn't doing,
including networking."

While seemingly careful to avoid any indication of planned changes
for Novell or be specific about future products, Frankenberg did
give some clue to the future direction of the company. He said he
sees the European, Asia-Pacific and Latin American markets as
offering "huge" opportunities for networking and workgroup
applications.

He also sees Unix as a rising factor in the industry. Novell
recently acquired AT&T's Unix Labs. He called Unix a "king-pin" in
most companies for downsizing and off-loading from mainframe
computers to networked personal computers.

Frankenberg stressed the open architecture concept of Novell
software, saying the future offers many opportunities for
developers. He also hinted at multimedia programs, particularly
networked multimedia programs, electronic document management,
and consumer software in Wordperfect's Main Street product line.
Wordperfect will make a major Main Street product announcement
in New York next week.

Frankenberg said the key to further acceptance of Netware 4.0,
the high-end version of Novell's network operating system software,
is increasing the number of NetWare Loadable Modules (NLMs) and
releasing version 4.1 that will enhance the enterprise
computing capability.

(Jim Mallory/19940406/Press contact: Novell Corporation,
801-429-7000


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00015)

Phoenix Gets Patent For PostScript Color Scheme 04/06/94
NORWOOD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Phoenix
Technologies Ltd., said it has been granted a patent for its
PostScript language color half-toning technology.

The patent covers half-tone color screening techniques used in the
company's PostScript-compatible raster image processor and deals
with depiction of images on color display systems.

Phoenix said its Enhanced Color Screening (ECS) includes software
algorithms that assign unique parameters to angles, sizes, and
spot functions to create color half-tone images. The technique
uses a proprietary half-tone cell pattern design and spot function
to increase gradation of color information without sacrificing
apparent resolution or using more memory to define multiple
intensity levels for each pixel making up the image, Phoenix said.

Phoenix said its ECS technology deals with the common tradeoff
between the number of color intensities a device can produce and
the resolution of the image. It does this by using as many as
eight bits of memory to represent each color of each pixel of an
image, and by using a spot function that covers a larger area of
the image, company spokesman Tom Spillane told Newsbytes.

Traditional 300 dots-per-inch (dpi) PostScript devices use only
one bit of memory for each color of each pixel, so only eight
combinations of the three primary colors, or four combinations
of these colors plus black, are possible for each pixel.

The patent further protects the PhoenixPage color imaging
technology, and color output devices from printer manufacturers
that incorporate the halftoning software, the vendor said.

Phoenix licenses its software to a variety of hardware
manufacturers for use in their products. Products that use it
include Lexmark International's Color Jetprinter 4079, Raster
Graphics, Inc.'s ColorStation 400X, and products from CalComp,
Seiko Instruments, Sharp, and GCC Technologies.

Phoenix is not aware of existing products from other vendors that
infringe on the new patent, Spillane said, but will be watching
new products to ensure they do not infringe.

(Grant Buckler/19940406/Press Contact: Tom Spillane, Phoenix,
617-551-5030)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00016)

DEC Launches AlphaGeneration Trademark For AXP Products 04/06/94
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- DEC has
announced a new "AlphaGeneration" trademark to be used with
products and services that are based on the company's Alpha
AXP 64-bit technology.

The AlphaGeneration "word mark" will appear on the packaging or
casing of all Alpha AXP products from Digital, said Michelle Hoey,
public relations consultant to DEC. Third-party vendors will be
able to use the word mark, but will not be required to do so, she
told Newsbytes. "We are currently in the process of working this
out with our vendors," she added.

DEC will begin to roll out "AlphaGeneration" this month in
advertisements and other promotional materials bearing the new
trademark, said Hoey. Also this month, the word mark will start to
show up on products. The trademark is designed to represent the
"expandability," "scalability" and power of Alpha AXP, Newsbytes
was told.

Items to be identified by AlphaGeneration include Alpha AXP
microprocessors, systems using Alpha AXP microprocessing
technology, operating systems running on Alpha AXP, hardware
options for Alpha AXP, and service products related to Alpha AXP
technology. There are also more than 5,000 applications available
for use on Alpha AXP, according to Hoey.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940406/Reader contact: Digital Equipment
Corporation, 508-493-5111; Press contact: Michelle Hoey, DEC,
508-493-0295)


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00017)

LaserData Subsystems For Image & Windows Acceleration 04/06/94
TYNGSBORO, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- LaserData
has unveiled a series of PC subsystems aimed at providing image
acceleration along with Microsoft Windows acceleration for the
price of Windows acceleration alone.

The new LaserDX subsystems come with ISA (Industry Standard
Architecture)-bus display controllers and color or grayscale
monitors, according to Brad Luebker, marketing communications
director for the Tyngsboro, Massachusetts-based vendor.

The "image-accelerated display subsystems" are compatible with
LaserData's DocuData, a software development kit for document
management applications, and LaserView for Windows, a package
for adding imaging to Windows applications, as well as with
applications programming interfaces (APIs) for hardware from
Cornerstone, Xionics, and Pixel Translations.

Luebker told Newsbytes that many Windows applications are already
compatible with monitors from Cornerstone, boards and monitors
from Pixel Translations, or image accelerators and display
controllers from Xionics. Any Windows applications that will work
with these products will also operate with the LaserDX subsystems,
without modification, said Luebker.

LaserData's DocuData is designed to streamline development of
specialized applications for capturing, organizing, and managing
documents, according to Luebker. LaserView for Windows can be
used to add imaging to any kind of Windows application, he added.

A 20-inch color monitor available for the LaserDX subsystems, with
0.28 millimeter (mm) dot pitch, is produced by Hitachi, Newsbytes
was told. A 17-inch color monitor with 0.26 mm dot pitch comes
from MAG Innovision, and the 19-inch grayscale monitor supplying
120 dots-per-inch (dpi) has been "specially made" for LaserData.

The two color subsystems supply up to 1280-by-1024 resolution,
and support either 16 or 256 colors, depending on the controller
selected. The grayscale subsystem provides 1600-by-1280
resolution and 16 shades of gray.

A sample configuration with a 19-inch grayscale monitor and
LaserDX 120 display controller is priced at $2,395. At the high end,
a sample configuration with a 20-inch color monitor and LaserDX
Color 256 display controller is $5,255.

The LaserDX Color 16 and LaserDX Color 256 display controllers
can also be purchased separately, at prices of $770 and $860,
respectively. The LaserDX 120 display controller can not be
purchased separately.

All products in the new LaserDX family of image-accelerated
subsystems are shipping immediately, according to Luebker.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940406/Reader Contact: LaserData,
508-649-4600; Press Contact: Brad Luebker, LaserData,
508-649-4600 ext 279)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00018)

Network Expo To Offer "Superhighway Driver Training" 04/06/94
DELRAN, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1994 APRIL 6 (NB) -- Networks Expo '94,
scheduled on April 19-21 in San Francisco, will offer an hour-long
introduction to first-time Internet users by John Krick, senior
analyst with Datapro.

"Driver Training On The Information Super Highway: An Introduction
To The Internet," will be offered, complimentary, three times during
the show in Room F-5 of San Francisco's Moscone Center.

The presentation will be directed towards novices who wish to learn
Internet applications like Telnet, FTP, Gopher, and WAIS. Business
uses, including electronic-mail, mailing lists and network news,
will be demonstrated, and attendees will have a chance to see Archie
and Veronica search tools.

Specific paths to different information sources will give a view
of this Public Domain world.

Speaking to Newsbytes, John Krick said, "The presentation will
provide business solutions and suggestions for increased
productivity and profits through expanded communication with
business partners, suppliers, markets and customers. We are also
preparing a day-long tutorial that will provide more detailed
information and training. We plan to offer the tutorial at Unix
Expo in New York."

With more than 15 million users, and growing up to 15 percent
each month, many computer companies see the Internet as the
first model and station on the information superhighway.

The role and development of the Internet on the superhighway
is likely to become a hot topic of government and business
regulation in the very near future.

Networks Expo '94 will be produced by Blenheim's I.T. Events
Division, a trade show management firm of the Blenheim Group
PLC, which also produces the Networks Expo in Boston and Dallas,
PC Expo, and Unix Expo.

(Patrick McKenna/19940406/Press Contact: John Krick, Datapro,
800-328-2776 ext 2307, 609-764-0100 ext 2307)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00019)

Sidebar, New Windows Interface From Quarterdeck 04/06/94
SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Quarterdeck
Office Systems, known for its QEMM memory management products for
DOS-based personal computers (PCs), has announced Sidebar, a new
desktop interface for launching programs and managing files in
the graphical Microsoft Windows user interface.

According to Quarterdeck president and chief executive officer
(CEO), Therese Myers, "Sidebar combines Windows program and file
management, adds a desktop and launching pad and takes advantage
of `drag and drop' and `associations' to make controlling Windows
powerful, yet simple."

Quarterdeck says Sidebar allows applications to be placed
directly on the desktop where they can be launched with a single
click of the mouse. Users can also create buttons that launch an
application and automatically load preselected data files.

Since some tasks are still more easily accomplished using a DOS
prompt, Sidebar offers an optional command line box in every
window so users can use DOS commands at any time.

Also, the product replaces the File Manager directory tree with
folders. These folders imitate the directory structure and can be
placed on the Windows desktop or in other folders. A click on a
folder displays its contents on the screen and folder names can
be any length, bypassing the 8-character limit imposed by DOS.

Sidebar is delivered on a single floppy disk, takes up less than
1 megabyte (MB) of hard disk storage space, and less than 300
kilobytes (K) of random access memory (RAM). It also fits on the
right edge of the computer's display to take up as little screen
space as possible.

Quarterdeck has exclusive license of Sidebar from Paper Software
of Woodstock, New York. Paper Software originally distributed the
product on a try-before-you-buy basis as shareware, then
Quarterdeck licensed it, made significant changes, and is now
shipping the product. The suggested list price is $59.95.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940406/Press Contact: Jeff Greenberg, Maples &
Associates for Quarterdeck, tel [phone], fax 310-314-
4218/PHOTO)


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

NYNEX Buys Gear To Implement Digital Services 04/06/94
WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- NYNEX, the
regional Bell company for New York and New England, made another
move toward making Signaling System 7 technology available
throughout its network in a contract with AT&T. SS7 is the
digital technology which makes possible services like Caller ID.

In a deal worth several hundred million dollars to AT&T, NYNEX
agreed to buy enough AT&T 5ESS switches and other gear to equip
1.73 million access lines with the service. "Our plan is to have
100% of our access lines digital by 1998," NYNEX spokesman Linda
Ruggieri told Newsbytes. "We have ongoing negotiations with
another vendor from whom we're also purchasing digital lines."

NYNEX has a total of 16.1 million customer lines.

NYNEX also announced an agreement with Fujitsu to buy Synchronous
Optical NETwork or SONET multiplexers, at speeds ranging from 155
million bits/second, called an OC-3, to 1.2 gigabits per second,
called an OC-48. "This is brand new technology, and the first
NYNEX deployment of it," Ruggieri told Newsbytes. The latter
speed can handle 32,000 simultaneous conversations. She said
densely populated areas will get the OC-48 gear, rural areas the
OC-3 equipment. She said that the SONET equipment and digital
switches will combine to create a platform that can support
advanced telephone, data and video services.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940406/Press Contact: NYNEX, Linda Ruggieri,
914/644-5137)


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

Cox, SW Bell Call It Off, Blame FCC 04/06/94
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Like Bell Atlantic
and TCI before them, Cox Cable and Southwestern Bell have called
off a planned phone-cable business combination and blamed the
Federal Communications Commission.

Once again, FCC Chairman Reed Hundt has pled not guilty. He
claimed the 17 percent price reductions ordered by his agency
will, in the long run, attract more cable customers, increasing
the industry's penetration from the present level of 60 percent
and increasing long-term cash flows. Cox and Southwestern Bell
begged to disagree. "The effect of this latest rate regulation
has been on cash flow," insisted Cox' spokesman Dave Andersen to
Newsbytes. Southwestern Bell executives told reporters they
expect more regulations to impact the cable industry going
forward.

Cox and Southwestern Bell had announced in December a partnership
worth $4.9 billion combining Cox' cable operations, with 1.6
million customers, the sixth-largest in the US, and Southwestern
Bell's money. Cox was to bring $3.4 billion in cable assets to
the venture, Southwestern Bell $1.6 billion in cash for a 40
percent ownership stake which could have risen to 50 percent.

Southwestern Bell remains in cable -- it bought Hauser Cable in
the Washington suburbs last year. US West's deal to buy part of
Time Warner Entertainment for $2.5 billion, including its cable
operation, has also closed. But other deals could now be at risk,
including BCE Telecom's decision to put $400 million into Jones
Intercable, which is being re-evaluated.

In the end, phone companies could actually benefit from the new
climate. The failure of these big deals is lowering the value of
all cable systems, and could lead to bargain hunting, some
analysts say.

Newsbytes discussed all this with Gene Gawthrop, chief
operating officer of Communication Equity Associates in Tampa,
which does a lot of cable deals. He indicated Southwestern Bell
and Cox may have disagreed both on the expected cash flow they
would see and the multiple to that cash flow Southwestern Bell
would pay. "The uncertainty of cash flow was a function created
by the FCC," he said, and rising interest rates may have caused
some rethinking of multiples. "It may be the prospects of future
revenue streams were getting dimmer, and they couldn't get
comfortable on the number. There were other uncertainties in the
reregulation which caused the deal not to come together." Still,
"If there are good reasons for a deal the pricing can be gotten
around. But there's uncertainty about this jeopardizing the future
revenue stream of cable, and that creates a gap between bid and
ask."

Gawthrop also discussed where things might be headed from here.
"Everyone got real excited about the deal last fall. Perhaps
cooler heads will prevail now. Clearly there's a value going into
an established wired market, and a premium can be paid for that.
Once the uncertainty is taken out on the reregulation in the next
three months, the Bell companies will come back to the market,"
he predicted.

On the CNBC cable network, Edward Markey, the Massachusetts
Democrat who heads the House Telecommunications Subcommittee,
which passed the 1992 Cable Act at issue, and Paine Webber
analyst Chris Dixon, exchanged some sharp words. "It destroyed a
great industry," Dixon charged. "Since the first of the year
we've seen close to $10 billion walk out of this industry,"
delaying development of the information superhighway by perhaps
two years. Replied Markey, "If they thought they could charge
monopoly rates the deals should never have been done. The
superhighway won't be built by cartels gobbling each other up.
It's being built now by small, entrepreneurial companies."

Bob Thompson, a senior vice president at TCI, played peacemaker.
"Cable values remain strong. What's at stake is accelerating
deployment of the information superhighway. We don't yet know how
it's been slowed. Cable's lean, entrepreneurial, and dealt with
crises before. What we need to focus on now is the future. The
regulations make it more difficult to raise capital, but our
companies are best positioned to accelerate development" of the
information superhighway.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940406/Press Contact: Bob Ferguson,
Southwestern Bell, 210-351-3990; Dave Andersen, Cox Cable, 404-
843-5855)


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

AT&T, MCI Take Their Battle International 04/06/94
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- AT&T moved to
"trump" MCI's new WorldPhone plan with an offer called WorldPlus,
and MCI responded with a new low-cost calling plan for
international callers.

WorldPlus Communication Service comes from a new unit of AT&T
called AT&T WorldPlus. It provides a single way to make and bill
calls, and unlike MCI's WorldPhone, it's all done in the caller's
language. WorldPhone works only in English. WorldPlus also
features a speech recognition application, enabling it to be
accessed with voice commands. In addition to offering the
service directly, AT&T will offer it through international PTTs
and other service providers, starting with Canada's Unitel. The
initial roll-out of the service covers 40 countries, using toll-
free numbers. Touch-tone commands open up an automated,
personalized menu of services for access to all functions. The
service goes live May 1.

AT&T spokesman Maureen Lynch went right to the competitive heart
of the matter in describing her company's service to Newsbytes.
"MCI's release looked like a repackaging of existing services
with some new information services. WorldPlus is more. The
automation, the voice and fax messaging mailboxes, the in-
language prompts, the voice recognition trials...we think it's a
lot richer."

MCI has just begun advertising WorldPhone, after debuting it
March 28. In the past, advertising has proven a more important
point than features in these market battles. MCI's 1-800-COLLECT
has proven far more popular than AT&T's 1-800-OPERATOR because
it's more heavily advertised.

MCI's latest move in this growing international race is a new
calling plan for business customers called Proof Positive
WorldWide, an extension of its existing Proof Positive brand.
The new plan offers simplified billing on international calls,
and rates that it says are 20-50 percent below those of AT&T.
"It's an international calling plan for business customers in the
US," explained spokesman Catherine Graves to Newsbytes.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940406/Press Contact: Maureen Lynch, AT&T,
201-564-3265; Catherine Graves, MCI, 404/668-6011, AT&T WorldPlus
Customer Contact: 1-800-382-5612)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00023)

UK - Inaugural Conference Of Int'l Mail User Group 04/06/94
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- 170 people, representing 80
organizations, attended the inaugural conference of the Microsoft
Mail International User Group (MSMIUG) which was held recently at
the Kensington Great Hall in London.

According to the user group, delegates from a wide range of
industries, including British Telecom (BT), Brown & Root, Bass PLC,
and the ANZ Banking Group, met to discuss their various
implementations of Microsoft's Mail for PC Networks.

Dick Beddoe, chairman of the user group, said that electronic mail
is proving to be a critical tool for communications within his
organization. "It's extremely useful for use to be able to talk to
our peers about business requirements and this kind of forum is
ideal for the exchange of information," he said.

Beddoe added that he was overwhelmed with the response to the first
meeting. "We knew there were a lot if users out there, but we had
not expected more than 100,000 users to be represented," he
said.

The user group also announced its new committee. Dick Beddoe of
Brown and Root will act as chairman, with Bob Pearmain of BT, Paul
Gough of Bass, Phill Humphries of Royal Insurance and Karen Kendrick
of the ANZ Banking Group comprising the remaining committee members.

The next event in the user group's meetings will be held on the 18th
of April and will feature a technical seminar on managing
directories and the administration of Microsoft Mail on a domain-
wide basis. New members are welcome and should contact Dick Beddoe
on 081-544-4408.

Established earlier this year, the MSMIUG is an independent body
which exists in order to promote the exchange of ideas and
experiences of Microsoft Mail users and administrators. The
objective of the group is to bring together representatives from the
corporate environment and share experiences for the
benefit and understanding of the group as a whole.

(Steve Gold/19940406/Press & Public Contact: Dick Beddoe, Brown &
Root - Tel: [phone])


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

UK - Apricot Unveils "World's Fastest Workgroup PC" 04/06/94
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Apricot has announced the
the XEN-LS II 590/100 series. The company claims that this machine
is the first workgroup PC designed to deliver to network users the
full power of Intel's new 90 and 100 megahertz (MHz) Pentium
processors.

The machine is billed as the world's fastest workgroup PC and will
ship before the end of June. The heart of the machines is the LPX
form factor motherboard which Apricot has code-named Jade. This
motherboard, Newsbytes understands, will also be sold through
Apricot's original equipment manufacturer (OEM) channels, so that
third party PC suppliers can offer what the company describes as
"high levels of network and system performance."

In addition to the XEN-LS II, Apricot has also announced support for
the new INtel DX4 processors, as well as a significant extension of
its range of Pentium systems, which the company claims spans every
category of PC product, from slimline desktop through to super
server.

According to Dr Peter Horne, Apricot's group managing director, the
new Pentiums offer greatly increased and "incredible" performance.
"But it's important to remember that the power of the processor is
only half the story," he said.

"To get maximum performance, you need a system specifically designed
to offer the right architecture and to capitalize on the individual
features of the new processors. If you want maximum Pentium
performance you should be looking at Apricot's products; if you want
to use a Pentium on a network, then Apricot is the only choice," he
offered.

The first desktop systems based on a 90MHz Pentium processor, is the
EPx 590, which Apricot will be shipping later this month, The
machine is billed as a highly expandable EISA desktop system with
accelerated VL local bus graphics and up to a gigabyte (GB) in disk
storage. Pricing starts at UKP 2,795 including an SVGA monitor.
100MHz versions of the system will ship, Newsbytes understands, in
the fourth quarter of this year.

Also being readied is the XEN PC 566, a 66MHz Pentium-based system
with PCI local bus technology. This machine, will ship next month
(May) and price from UKP 2,299 including SVGA monitor.

UKP 5,295, meanwhile, will get you a 90MHz FT/ex workgroup server
system, which will ship later this month. The machine is billed as
Apricot's entry-level server offering state of the art performance
and an optional high performance drive array.

(Steve Gold/19940406/Press & Public Contact: Apricot Computers -
Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LON)(00025)

Hewlett-Packard Plans 24 Gigabyte DAT Drive 04/06/94
BRACKNELL, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Hewlett-Packard
has announced plans to develop a high-capacity 24 gigabyte (GB)
digital audio tape (DAT) drive using the new Digital Data Storage-3
(DDS-3) format, adopted last week by the DDS Manufacturers Group.

Newsbytes understands that the new format is based on technology
developments which triple the storage capacity over the current DDS-
2 format.

Earlier this week, the Digital Data Storage (DDS) Manufacturers
Group announced an enhancement to its format migration path
for DDS that provides a 50 percent capacity increase over
previously announced DDS-3 specifications. Newsbytes understands
that members of the DDS Manufacturers Group agreed to adopt a
revised format using new technology that will increase DAT capacity
to 12GB native (24GB using data compression) on the 125-metre DDS-3
cassettes.

According to HP, this technology will allow 24GB (48GB compressed)
capacity in the DDS-4 format. The current DDS-2 format provides a
native capacity of 4GB (8GB using data compression) on
DDS-2 cassettes.

According to Karen Widdows, HP UK's storage product manager, the
company's proposed 3.5-inch DAT drive, which is expected to be
available in the second half of 1995, will comply with the DDS-3
definition, providing 12GB native capacity (24GB with typical data
compression) on a 125-meter DDS-3 tape. With a SCSI-2 interface, it
will have a native data transfer rate, within the expected migration
path range, of 720KB to 1.5MB/s (native). The drive will be designed
to be backward compatible with present DDS, DDS-DC, and DDS-2 format
tapes.

"This announcement confirms HP's commitment to lead DDS development
and to be at the forefront in digital data storage. By capitalizing
on the latest advances in tape and data-channel technology we are
able to accelerate capacity and data-rate figures in the DDS
migration path," she explained.

"This development ensures that DDS will keep pace with trends in
network and workstation data backup, archival and interchange. DDS
will continue to be the technology of choice for cost-effective,
medium- to large-scale removable data-storage applications but now,
it can vie for a variety of image-processing and multimedia
applications as well."

According to Widdows, the significant capacity jump realized in DDS-
3 is achieved by increasing the bit density on tape. This is the
result of optimizing the head-tape interface and by incorporating
several new innovations, including the use of a partial-response
maximum likelihood (PRML) data channel.

"DDS-3 will change the complexion of high-capacity backup and
present a significant challenge to 8 mm technology. It puts DAT
squarely in 8 mm territory but with lower-cost hardware and media,"
she said.

(Steve Gold/19940406/Press & Public Contact: Hewlett-Packard - Tel:
[phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00026)

SQN's Signature Verification System 04/06/94
RANCOCAS, NEW JERSEY, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- SQN Peripherals has
announced Signer Confidence, a software package that adds signature
verification to a check image processing system made by IBM.

Pricing from $25,000 to $30,000, the package claims to check the
validity of check signatures, a particularly labor intensive task in
banks and other financial institutions. The cost of check checking
is getting so high that most institutions now only sample check
checks and, even then, only where checks exceed a predetermined
value, Newsbytes understands.

Company officials claim that this automated signature verification
allows banks to process several times more checks with near-100
percent accuracy, than if they were checked by a human being.

SQN officials say that Signer Confidence is an enhancement of
Veritas, another of the company's package that allows banks to
create a computer database of signature types and compare the paper
checks with an on-screen version.

The company claims that using Signer Confidence is even quicker,
since checks are scanned into the system and automatically compared
to the signature files.

In use, the software interfaces directly with IBM's check image
processing system known as High Performance Transaction System
(HPTS). As Signer Confidence receives check images with variable
high dollar amounts from the IBM system, the software pulls the
corresponding stored signature images from its data base and
displays them on a PC's screen.

The software makes a comparison between this image and a stored
image of the signature, and then gives a rating of 1 to 99, with 99
being the closest match. SQN officials said this will make it easier
for banks to spot fraud and improve efficiency.

Joe Uhland Junior, SQN's director of marketing and sales, said that
results of tests with a major, but unnamed, East Coast US bank,
have been "very impressive." Four to five times more checks can be
verified with the software than with manual methods, he claimed.

Signer Confidence is claimed to be one of the first products to
bring two images -- the signature image from a database and the
check image from IBM's image processing system -- together on a
computer screen for comparison and verification.

(Sylvia Dennis/19940406/Press & Public Contact: SQN Peripherals -
Tel: [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00027)

Credit Card-Sized Cellular Phone Developed 04/06/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Sony has announced that it has
developed a cellular phone small enough to fit into a shirt
pocket, the size of a credit card. Sony plans to release
this phone on May 10 for a retail price of 105,000 yen ($1,050).
The firm will also release another lightweight cellular
phone at 79,800 yen ($798).

Sony's card-sized cellular phone, called the CM-R111,
weighs only 188g and comes with an attachment, allowing it
to be used hands-free. User will be able to take
a memo or note while making a phone call. This card-type
cellular phone has a small LCD (liquid crystal display) which
displays phone numbers. Up to 100 phone numbers can be stored
in memory. A small collapsible microphone is built-in in this
phone.

Despite its size, the phone is rugged, according to Sony, which
has made the unit with shock-resistant material.

This cellular phone is an analog-type based on Japan's TACS
standard. Sony will supply it to cellular phone firms including
IDO on an OEM (original equipment manufacturer) basis.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940406/Press Contact: Sony, +81-3-
5448-2200, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(TYO)(00028)

IBM Japan Suffers First Major Loss In 50 Years 04/06/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- IBM Japan has announced that it
has suffered a major financial loss in fiscal 1993, which
ended in December 1993. The firm has lost 23.5 billion
yen ($235 million) mainly due to restructuring. This is
IBM Japan's first major loss since World War II.

IBM Japan claims the worst is over, however, and expects to
recover its profitability this fiscal year.

The largest chunk of IBM Japan's profit loss came in a payment for
its early retirement plan. The firm paid 45 billion yen ($450
million) to employees who had agreed to retire prior to their
fixed retirement age in 1993. This amount is more than was paid
to employees in a similar situation in 1992. At that time, IBM
Japan paid out 16 billion yen ($160 million). IBM Japan ended
this early retirement plan early this year.

IBM Japan claims that despite the cost, the early retirement plan
was successful. 3,000 employees left the firm since early 1993.
As a result, IBM Japan expect to save 15 billion yen ($150 million)
on salaries.

Also, IBM Japan has already cut 30 percent from its distribution
costs, and reduced inventory. Given this restructuring, IBM
Japan expects to make about 30 billion yen ($300 million) in profit
this fiscal year.

However, about half of IBM Japan's income comes from sales
of large scale computer systems. So, analysts are suggesting that
the company needs to shift toward the downsizing of computers.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940404/Press Contact: IBM Japan, +81-
3-5563-4310, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00029)

Owner Becomes Publisher For Computer Currents 04/06/94
EMERYVILLE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- In a surprising
announcement, Computer Currents Publisher Stephanie Ericson is
retiring from her job and the magazine's owner, Stan Politi, is
returning to the publisher position.

Ms. Ericson leaves Computer Currents after four and a
half years on the best of terms, the company reports, and
has decided to take leave to consider various career options.

Stan Politi, founder and owner of Computer Currents,
originally left to start CM Ventures and Centex, both trade
show production companies. Mr. Politi resumes publishing chores
with a number of other new developments at Computer Currents,
the company says.

The Company has decided to name as editor, Michael Tshong,
who has been interim editor in the absence of David Needle.

Also joining the new team is Jeff Miller who will be acting as
associate publisher for the immediate future. Mr. Miller,
president of Business Resources Institute, has previously been
with Ziff-Davis, Macuser, and Windows magazines.

Recently, Computer Currents took on a new "look and feel" and
according to Jeff Miller, "We intend to take Computer Currents
to the next level of publishing by making it a greater
resource for the public." He says that will be accomplished
by offering a 'smart yellow pages' look and a product
source at the end of columns and articles.

Miller said the new policy is, "to present Computer
Currents as a newspaper edited for buyers in the late stages of
the purchasing process. Computer Currents' editorials emphasize
news, reviews, opinions, and now where to buy, to help
readers make educated decisions."

Computer Currents is published in the San Francisco, Los Angeles,
and Boston areas, as well as by licensed publishers in Dallas,
Atlanta and Chicago. The April 19 issue promises to
unveil many of the new concepts that are being developed.

(Patrick McKenna/19940406/Press Contact: Computer Currents, tel
510-547-6800)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00030)

Microsoft Lowers Cost of Volume Software Licensing 04/06/94
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation has announced an expansion of its Microsoft Select
volume-based licensing program it says will give medium-sized
businesses, academia, and government agencies a cost-effective way to
buy software.

Organizations with more than 50 personal computers can participate
in the Microsoft Open License Pak (MOLP) program to standardize on
Microsoft products such as Microsoft Office, Microsoft Windows, and
Windows NT, and Microsoft Windows NT Advanced Server. The new
licensing option is available through all participating
Microsoft-authorized resellers and Microsoft Solution Providers.

The program allows qualifying customers to acquire licensing rights
for the desired number of software copies through a simple
order/reorder process. The company is also offering a lower price
for product upgrades within a two-year period after the original
software is purchased.

Microsoft says since MOLP's launch in January 1993 for large
organizations, more than 1,000 companies have signed up for the
program.

MOLP includes three initial purchase levels: Level A is designed for
purchase of 100 software units, Level B covers 500 units, and Level
C covers purchase of 1,000 units. The higher the purchase level,
the lower the suggested retail price of the software. The program
allows the acquisition of an unlimited number of additional licenses
in quantities of 20 units or more. Various software titles can be
combined to reach a higher level.

Microsoft spokesperson Katy Ehrlich provided Newsbytes some typical
volume pricing information. Ehrlich said Microsoft Office for
Windows, which has an individual unit price of $750, sells to
Level A companies for $395. Microsoft Word for Windows, with a
suggested retail price of $495, sells to level A buyers for $263.
Level B buyers pay $248, while Level C purchasers pay $228.
Resellers are not bound by the suggested prices.

Available immediately in North America, Microsoft says it will
expand the program to Eastern Europe, the Nordic countries, and
several African and Middle Eastern countries in the coming months.

(Jim Mallory/19940406/Press contact: Katy Ehrlich, Waggener Edstrom
for Microsoft Corporation, 503-245-0905; Reader contact: Microsoft
Corporation, 206-882-8080 or 800-426-9400)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(MSP)(00031)

Newsbytes Daily Summary 04/06/94
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 6 (NB) -- These are
capsules of all today's news stories:

1 -> Watermark Intros Image Server & Professional Edition 04/06/94
Watermark has announced Watermark Image Server and Professional
Edition, products billed as the first Windows NT-based imaging server
and fully OLE (object linking and embedding) 2.0-compliant imaging
software to become available on the market, respectively.

2 -> India - Power Mac To Debut This Month 04/06/94 Michael Spindler,
president and CEO of Apple Computer Inc., made a recent visit to
India. The two-day trip included meetings with the Prime Minister P.V.
Narasimha Rao, who is an avid computer user, the Finance Minister, and
business leaders.

3 -> Japan - Matsushita, Nintendo In Separate Video Game Deals
04/06/94 Matsushita Electric has announced that it has set up two
sales firms for the company's latest 32-bit video game machine, the
Real, and has also signed a deal with a discount dealer. Meanwhile,
Nintendo has signed a licensing agreement with Chicago-based WMS
Industries and has reached a basic agreement to create a joint venture
firm involving software for the company's 64-bit video game machine.

4 -> PhoneDisc Directory Offered For Mac 04/06/94 Digital Directory
Assistance Inc., a publisher of telephone directories on compact disk
read-only memory (CD-ROM), has announced that its PhoneDisc products
now work with Apple Computer Inc.'s Macintosh. The company claimed
PhoneDisc is the first national phone listing available to Macintosh
users.

5 -> Find Civilian Markets Or Perish, Editor Tells Space Firms
04/06/94 "Change or shut your doors." That's the advice Aviation Week
& Space Technology Senior Editor William Scott had for the dozens of
aerospace industry-related businesses participating in the 10th
National Space Symposium being held at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado
Springs this week. The symposium is organized by the US Space
Foundation headquartered in Colorado Springs.

6 -> Sun Microsystems Opens Developer Conference 04/06/94 The Sun
Microsystems developer conference has opened at the Moscone Center in
San Francisco.

7 -> Energizer Bunny Software Program Threatened By Patent 04/06/94 PC
Dynamics is being accused of patent infringement for its Energizer
Bunny screen saver software, but not from the Eveready Battery
company, who uses the bunny in its commercials. The patent
infringement accusation is coming from Software Advertising
Corporation of La Costa, California, which claims it has a patent on
putting advertising into software programs.

8 -> Information Superhighway Summit Announced 04/06/94 With so much
discussion in the media about the supposed "information highway," many
people are unsure what exactly it is, where it is, and when they can
expect to access it.

9 ->  ****Judge Erects Road Block To AT&T-McCaw Merger 04/06/94 Judge
Harold Greene of the US District Court for the District of Columbia,
the man who ordered the breakup of the AT&T telephone monopoly in
1982, has ruled that the proposed $12.6 billion merger of AT&T and
McCaw Cellular Communications violates that consent decree.

10 -> 100 Million CD-ROMs Produced In 1993, Says Trade Group 04/06/94
Approximately 100 million compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) discs
were manufactured worldwide in 1993, according to the Optical
Publishing Association (OPA). Further, the group asserts the CD-ROM
manufacturing rate is increasing at an annual rate of 150 percent.

11 -> Sybase To Publish Documentation On CD-ROM 04/06/94 Sybase, the
company that makes enterprise client/server software development tools
by the same name, has announced it will deliver documentation for its
products on compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM). Called Sybooks,
the CD-ROM documentation is being implemented by Electronic Book
Technologies (EBT) of Providence, Rhode Island.

12 -> IBM Adds New PowerParallel System 04/06/94 As part of a series
of announcements aimed at boosting its position in client/server
computing and open systems, IBM unveiled the second in its
PowerParallel line of computers.

13 ->  ****Canadian Telcos Launch Info Highway Plan 04/06/94 The nine
regional telephone companies that make up Canada's Stentor consortium
have announced their plans for the much-touted information highway, a
widespread network delivering assorted communications services.

14 ->  ****Novell Names New President 04/06/94 Saying he has been
training for the job for 10 years, former Hewlett-Packard Vice
President Robert J. Frankenberg has assumed the mantle of president at
Novell Corporation. Frankenberg replaces Novell founder Raymond
Noorda.

15 -> Phoenix Gets Patent For PostScript Color Scheme 04/06/94 Phoenix
Technologies Ltd., said it has been granted a patent for its
PostScript language color half-toning technology.

16 -> DEC Launches AlphaGeneration Trademark For AXP Products 04/06/94
DEC has announced a new "AlphaGeneration" trademark to be used with
products and services that are based on the company's Alpha AXP 64-bit
technology.

17 -> LaserData Subsystems For Image & Windows Acceleration 04/06/94
LaserData has unveiled a series of PC subsystems aimed at providing
image acceleration along with Microsoft Windows acceleration for the
price of Windows acceleration alone.

18 -> Network Expo To Offer "Superhighway Driver Training" 04/06/94
Networks Expo '94, scheduled on April 19-21 in San Francisco, will
offer an hour-long introduction to first-time Internet users by John
Krick, senior analyst with Datapro.

19 -> Sidebar, New Windows Interface From Quarterdeck 04/06/94
Quarterdeck Office Systems, known for its QEMM memory management
products for DOS-based personal computers (PCs), has announced
Sidebar, a new desktop interface for launching programs and managing
files in the graphical Microsoft Windows user interface.

20 -> NYNEX Buys Gear To Implement Digital Services 04/06/94 NYNEX,
the regional Bell company for New York and New England, made another
move toward making Signaling System 7 technology available throughout
its network in a contract with AT&T. SS7 is the digital technology
which makes possible services like Caller ID.

21 -> Cox, SW Bell Call It Off, Blame FCC 04/06/94 Like Bell Atlantic
and TCI before them, Cox Cable and Southwestern Bell have called off a
planned phone-cable business combination and blamed the Federal
Communications Commission.

22 -> AT&T, MCI Take Their Battle International 04/06/94 AT&T moved to
"trump" MCI's new WorldPhone plan with an offer called WorldPlus, and
MCI responded with a new low-cost calling plan for international
callers.

23 -> UK - Inaugural Conference Of Int'l Mail User Group 04/06/94 170
people, representing 80 organizations, attended the inaugural
conference of the Microsoft Mail International User Group (MSMIUG)
which was held recently at the Kensington Great Hall in London.

24 -> UK - Apricot Unveils "World's Fastest Workgroup PC" 04/06/94
Apricot has announced the the XEN-LS II 590/100 series. The company
claims that this machine is the first workgroup PC designed to deliver
to network users the full power of Intel's new 90 and 100 megahertz
(MHz) Pentium processors.

25 -> Hewlett-Packard Plans 24 Gigabyte DAT Drive 04/06/94
Hewlett-Packard has announced plans to develop a high-capacity 24
gigabyte (GB) digital audio tape (DAT) drive using the new Digital
Data Storage-3 (DDS-3) format, adopted last week by the DDS
Manufacturers Group.

26 -> SQN's Signature Verification System 04/06/94 SQN Peripherals has
announced Signer Confidence, a software package that adds signature
verification to a check image processing system made by IBM.

27 -> Credit Card-Sized Cellular Phone Developed 04/06/94 Sony has
announced that it has developed a cellular phone small enough to fit
into a shirt pocket, the size of a credit card. Sony plans to release
this phone on May 10 for a retail price of 105,000 yen ($1,050). The
firm will also release another lightweight cellular phone at 79,800
yen ($798).

28 -> IBM Japan Suffers First Major Loss In 50 Years 04/06/94 IBM
Japan has announced that it has suffered a major financial loss in
fiscal 1993, which ended in December 1993. The firm has lost 23.5
billion yen ($235 million) mainly due to restructuring. This is IBM
Japan's first major loss since World War II.

29 -> Owner Becomes Publisher For Computer Currents 04/06/94 In a
surprising announcement, Computer Currents Publisher Stephanie Ericson
is retiring from her job and the magazine's owner, Stan Politi, is
returning to the publisher position.

30 -> Microsoft Lowers Cost of Volume Software Licensing 04/06/94
Microsoft Corporation has announced an expansion of its Microsoft
Select volume-based licensing program it says will give medium-sized
businesses, academia, and government agencies a cost-effective way to
buy software.

(Wendy Woods/19940406)