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/nb041294

Text File | 1994-04-20 | 84KB | 1,844 lines

(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEL)(00001)

India - BFL Software Wins Sunsoft Development Contract 04/12/94
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- BFL Software Ltd., of Bangalore,
has won a software development contract worth $380,000 from Sunsoft,
the software arm of Sun Microsystems.

According to B.V. Venkatesh, executive director of BFL, the relationship
with Sunsoft is a long term one and BFL will get projects periodically.
Currently BFL is writing device drivers for new releases of the Solaris
operating system. According to sources, Sunsoft has shifted to BFL
some of the work that was earlier given to Sun's major Indian partner,
Wipro Infotech Ltd.

In the last few months BFL has won a number of other orders from
overseas clients. The major one among them was a $540,000 order from
Comshare of the US. Also, the company is handling a $160,000 project
for Software International. It has also undertaken development in the
area of image processing for Scan-Optics, which is worth another
$100,000. All along the company has taken on work in niche areas like
image-processing, CAD/CAM (computer-aided design/manufacturing)
and device drivers.

Venkatesh pegs total order bookings so far at $1.24 million, out of
which $ 1 million will come from offshore development. The company
recorded a revenue of R1.05 crore (about $3 billion) in 1993-1994 and
an operating profit of R15 lakh (about $4.5 million). Plans are call for
the start of a domestic division. "We are in the process of identifying
areas where we can take up contracts," said Venkatesh.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19940412)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00002)

Compass '94 - Ad Pros Need To Attend Computer Shows 04/12/94
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Advertising
professionals should read computer magazines and attend technical
trade shows so as to be able to advise their non-high-tech clients on
the use of new technologies for marketing purposes, recommended
Andrew M. Jaffe, executive editor/VP of Adweek Magazines, and the
guiding hand behind Compass '94, in an interview with Newsbytes.

Jaffe told Newsbytes that many traditional ad agencies are not yet
dealing with the advent of interactive TV, online services, and
other "new media." But these agencies must come to terms with the
emerging technologies if they are to avoid losing out to the new
"faster and leaner" high-tech-oriented agencies that are now
starting to spring up, he added.

Compass '94, a series of nationwide seminars being co-sponsored by
Adweek and Apple Computer, is intended to set the new technologies
"in context" for ad agency executives, according to Jaffe.

About 10 to 15 percent of the agencies that sent representatives to
the kickoff Compass event in Boston have computer companies as
clients, while the remainder of these agencies concentrate on
non-high-tech clients, he estimated.

The upcoming Compass '94 seminars in Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit,
New York City, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Dallas, Miami, and Seattle
will follow the same format as the seminar in Boston, Jaffe said.

The format revolves around presentations by ad agency professionals
who are using new marketing technologies, and by consultants,
vendors, and other experts in the field. Apple, Aldus, and Radius
give demonstrations to the group. Attendees can also take part in
demos of the interactive TV technology that has been developed by
Interactive Network (IN).

The pace of change is so rapid in the computer industry that it can
seem overwhelming, and for this reason, some ad agencies are now in
a "state of denial," Newsbytes was told.

To gain a firmer grasp on new technologies, ad professionals should
read as much as they can, Jaffe suggested. Even more importantly,
agency professionals should get in touch with "the people who
design the hardware and software," and remain in contact with these
individuals. The best method of going "straight to the source" is
to visit computer industry trade shows, he said.

Adweek Magazines sponsors many seminars for ad professionals, but
Compass '94 is only the second such series to possess a largely
technical thrust, according to the executive editor/VP. Adweek was
previously a co-sponsor of Createch, a series of high tech seminars
held in New York City that has since been spun off as an
independent venture by its producer, Alan Brody.

Apple Computer is serving as co-sponsor of Compass '94 at Jaffe's
invitation. Apple has been participating in a "Creative Shootout"
that takes place as part of Adweek's Creative Seminar, and has
donated prizes for this event, Jaffe explained.

Since the time when the Compass '94 schedule was originally
prepared, the date of the New York City event has been changed from
July 29 to July 27, and the site of the September 9 seminar has
been switched from Richmond, Virginia, to Philadelphia.

The full updated schedule is as follows: Chicago, April 15; Los
Angeles, May 11; Detroit, July 8; New York, July 27; Minneapolis,
August 10; Philadelphia, September 9; Dallas, September 16; Miami,
October 12; Seattle, October 27.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940411/Reader & Press Contact: Bill Flocco,
Adweek Seminars, 800-676-3387)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(LAX)(00003)

Toshiba Plans Portable 3DO Players For Car Navigation 04/12/94
REDWOOD CITY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- The 3DO
Company has announced that Toshiba is planning a portable version
of the 3DO Multiplayer that can also be installed in automobiles.
The announcement came on the heels of the signing of a hardware
licensing agreement between 3DO and Toshiba, allowing Toshiba to
manufacture, market, and distribute 3DO products.

Car navigation is the current focus of Toshiba's plans for the
portable unit, but 3DO company officials said it is not limited
to just that application. It may be possible to plug the 3DO into
the car, get the directions to St. Louis, and then throw it into
the back seat for the kids to play with, said 3DO representatives.

Founded by Electronic Arts President Trip Hawkins, 3DO's focus is
to create compelling technology, then let other companies run
with the hardware manufacturing, software development, and
distribution. The 3DO Multiplayer is one of the video cassette
recorders (VCRs) of the 90s, a reduced instruction-set computing
(RISC) chip-based box that connects to a television set and
offers workstation-like graphics.

Japanese electronics giant Matsushita Electric Industrial (MEI)
was the first to deliver the hardware in the US via its daughter
company Panasonic and was the first to deliver a Japanese market
version in mid-March of this year.

The company claims 50,000 3DO systems have been shipped to its
10,000 Japanese retailers in less than a month. Panasonic also
said it is planning a United Kingdom rollout of its 3DO REAL
brand Multiplayer this fall.

The Japanese retail price is 54,800 yen, about equal to the $500
price tag the 3DO player was dropped to earlier this year in the US,
from its original $700 price tag.

Software titles for the unit have been scarce, though 3DO claims
that literally hundreds of US developers have titles under
construction. Twenty-five titles are currently available in the
US, 11 titles are available in Japan, and 20 developers in the UK
are working to get titles available in that market, 3DO said.

3DO says its other hardware licensees include: AT&T, Sanyo,
Samsung, and Goldstar. Atari Games, American Laser Games, and
Electronic Arts have also been granted licenses to develop coin-op
arcade devices using 3DO technology, and Creative Technology
recently signed a tentative agreement to develop a personal
computer (PC) card based on 3DO technology.

Redwood City, California-based 3DO has had its ups and downs
with Wall Street. The company's stock was a popular item in
1992 before its products were even introduced, but has yet to
turn a profit. In its defense, company officials said 3DO has
been open in saying it could be as late as 1996 before the company
shows black ink.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940411/Press Contact: Cindy McCaffrey, 3DO,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00004)

Japan - High-Speed Fax/Modem Card, Display Phone 04/12/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- TDK claims to have developed a
high-speed fax/modem card with a data transmission speed of 28,800
bits-per-second (bps). TDK plans to release the card in the US priced
at 200,000 yen ($2,000) early next week. Meanwhile, Fujitsu and
Matsushita Denso have jointly developed, what the companies claim,
is a "unique" display telephone.

TDK's latest high-speed modem, which also supports fax data
transmission, is called the DF2814. The fax/modem card is based
on the PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International
Association) standard, while data transmission is based on the
V-Fast standard.

To start, TDK will produce the fax/modem card in Japan, and ship
it to the US. A total of 3,000 units are expected to be shipped per
month. TDK will also release the card in Japan this fall.

Meanwhile, Fujitsu and Matsushita Denso have jointly developed a
hybrid telephone device, which is equipped with a full-screen
display, a fax machine, a PC data transmission feature, a printer,
and a telephone. The device has a 640 by 480 pixel display and
supports a touch-panel feature. It is also equipped with an
integrated circuit (IC) memory card. Other features are expected
to be added before it is released this summer.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940408/Press Contact: TDK,
tel [phone], fax [phone]; Fujitsu, tel 81-3-
3213-4160, fax [phone])


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

 ****DEC Intros 1st Alpha AXP-Based Server 04/12/94
MAYNARD, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Digital
Equipment Corp. has announced its first server built on Alpha AXP
processors, and brought the function of its OpenVMS operating
system for Alpha machines in line with that of OpenVMS for the
older VAX hardware. These and other announcements by the company
are aimed at penetrating the client/server computing market,
officials said.

In addition to its new 2100 Server Model A500MP and the new
release of OpenVMS AXP, Digital unveiled its AdvantageCluster for
Unix program, which lets DEC computers running the company's DEC
OSF/1 variant of the Unix operating system work together somewhat
the same way as its older VAX machines can cooperate in
VAXclusters. New TechAdvantage application development software
is meant for use with these Unix clusters.

DEC OSF/1 was also enhanced, and Digital said it would be the
first vendor to provide the Distributed Computing Environment
(DCE) for Microsoft Corp.'s Windows NT operating system.

Rene Martinez, Digital's group manager for system and server
product marketing, told Newsbytes the 2100 Server Model A500MP
is "the first member of a new server family from Digital" at
"absolutely a breakthrough price." Combining the features of a
large system with many advantages of a smaller one, Martinez
claimed, the 2100 is "the most significant product that Digital
has announced since the MicroVAX II."

Jim Brennan, senior director of industry-watcher WorkGroup
Technologies in Hampton, New Hampshire, agreed that the 2100's
price is impressive. "Based on the preliminary performance
information it looks like it's performance-competitive with
boxes that would cost almost twice as much," he said.

The 2100, which can have from one to four DECchip 21064 Alpha
processors running at 190 megahertz (MHz), starts at $18,900.

Brennan also praised a three-year warranty that promises next-
day, on-site service, something he said is a first in the server
market.

The 2100 uses the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) local
bus as well as the Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA)
system bus. PCI is the primary input/output bus on the system,
Martinez said, and its adoption indicates the direction DEC sees
the market going. "We will be putting PCI into all our future
servers and many of our future clients," he said.

As part of its AdvantageCluster program, DEC is offering
AdvantageCluster Compute Servers, which are cabinet-mounted
arrays of four to 32 DEC 3000 AXP workstations that the company
said can compete with high-priced supercomputers in heavy-duty
technical applications. There is also an AdvantageCluster File
Server, said to deliver up to 4,000 Network File System (NFS)
operations per second and to be well suited to technical
applications with high NFS activity. Third, the AdvantageCluster
Available Server uses clustered AXP systems to provide high
availability for jobs such as order processing and on-line
customer service, DEC officials said.

DEC is offering TechAdvantage application development software to
help developers create applications create technical applications
for both single-stream and parallel processing on Alpha AXP
processors. The line includes FORTRAN and C++ programming tools.

For the present, Martinez said, Digital sees the market for
parallel processing mainly in technical applications.

AdvantageCluster technology does not offer all the features of
DEC's VAXclusters today, Martinez said, but many of the same
developers are working on both and the long-range plan is to
bring all the features of VAXclusters to the Unix world over the
next couple of years.

The new Version 3.0 of DEC OSF/1 adds support for symmetric
multiprocessing, as well as performance enhancements, according
to DEC.

Martinez said DEC OSF/1 systems currently account for about 45
percent of the company's sales, with the older OpenVMS operating
system making up another 45 percent and Windows NT accounting for
the balance. The strongest growth is in OSF/1 and Windows NT, he
said, though OpenVMS is "holding its own."

Digital announced that the latest release of OpenVMS for its
Alpha AXP systems now has all the same functions as the version
for VAX machines. This will be important to current VAX users
contemplating a move to the newer Alpha hardware, Martinez said,
because it will let them avoid changes to their software.
However, he also said the more important factor in the growth of
Alpha AXP sales is the availability of application software.

DEC said there are now some 5,000 applications available for
Alpha AXP systems -- about 2,300 each for OpenVMS and OSF/1,
and about 500 for Windows NT.

Brennan said DEC's latest announcements are the "best shot
they've made yet" at boosting the company's share of the
client/server market. But he added that he believes DEC is
lagging in this market to date, behind Hewlett-Packard Co., Sun
Microsystems Inc., IBM, and possibly also AT&T Global Information
Solutions (the former NCR). "The issue is, can they get business
outside their installed base," he said.

Martinez said all of DEC's sales of Windows NT-based Alpha
systems, many of its DEC OSF/1 sales and even some sales of
OpenVMS-based hardware are to new customers.

(Grant Buckler/19940412/Press Contact: Ed Canty, Digital, 508-
493-1821; Sarah Miller, Digital, 508-493-1822; Sandy Hennessy,
Digital, 508-493-1827; Patrick Ward, Digital, 508-493-1840)


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(ATL)(00006)

Cirrus Logic Launches New Chips 04/12/94
FREMONT, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Cirrus Logic
and its Pixel unit have launched three new chip-sets.

Cirrus is one of dozens of "fab-less" chip makers in the US --
companies without their own plants to fabricate their chip
designs. Recently, some press reports have indicated the "fab-
less" companies are threatened by strong sales which are leading
companies with fabs to close-off access.

However, Cirrus Logic spokesman Connie Duncan told Newsbytes
that supplies of the new chips are not constrained, and that the
company retains strong ties to its fabricators.

Among the new chip sets is the CL-MD1414BA, which combines a
modem under the V.32bis standard, running at 14,400 bits-per-
second (bps), with fax, voice and sound card functions. There are
three chips in the unit, making it ideal for placement on a
computer's motherboard, claims the company. It could also be put
onto a half-card or a plug-in personal computer (PC) card under
the PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International
Association) standard.

It is also pin-compatible with older Cirrus Logic designs, which
should speed it to market. Cirrus said the audio quality on its
new chip-set is "suitable for all business audio applications,
including multimedia," and superior to regular telephones or radios
thanks to on-chip direct access memory (DMA), which increases
the audio sampling rate. The chip also provides full telephone
emulation.

Cirrus' Pixel Semiconductor unit announced two new chips. One,
the CL-Px4070 and CL-Px4080, is a low-cost product for decoding
analog TV signals into the digital formats needed for use in a
computer, and encoding it back into analog formats for play-back
on a TV or through a VCR. Combined with existing products, Pixel
President Jim Fontaine said, they offer "a seamless method for
combining TV/video standards and desktop video."

Pixel also announced a real-time digital video processor, called
the CL-Px1070, designed to meet the need for low-cost video and
MPEG (Motion Picture Experts Group)-playback acceleration in
desktop video, interactive education, multimedia presentation,
and TV-in-a-window applications. An older chip, the CL-Px2070,
has been heavily used in desktop videoconferencing systems.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940412/Press Contact: Cirrus Logic,
Connie Duncan, 510-226-2346; Reader Contact: Mason
Woodford, 510-226-2037)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00007)

Metromail Business Listings On PCMCIA Cards 04/12/94
LOMBARD, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 11994 APR 12 (NB) -- R.R. Donnelley's
Metromail unit plans to offer business listings on PCMCIA
(Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) cards.

A spokesman for the company told Newsbytes that PC cards under
the PCMCIA standard represent just another distribution channel
for Donnelley listings. Donnelley is the nation's largest
commercial printer, and Metromail is its subsidiary for creation
and maintenance of address lists. That database is very valuable,
and constantly updated. It has been used for years by direct
marketers, market research companies and other reference
services.

Businesses can currently access the database on a CD-ROM, but the
spokesman said many business people who are traveling do not take
CD-ROM drives with them. So the PCMCIA cards, which can hold
several hundred thousand listings each and will go by the name
InfoCards, are seen as a possible answer.

The InfoCards go into a palmtop display device called the
InfoReader, sold by InfoPak, which employs a keypad and LCD
(liquid crystal display) screen in a case the size and length of a
checkbook, meaning salesmen will not need to bring laptop
computers with them to access listings.

Metromail will supply its listings to InfoPak, which will make the
InfoCard and reader. InfoPak specializes in data compression and
dissemination systems for managing large amounts of data on PC
cards. The result is a cross-reference phone directory that fits in
a shirt pocket, smaller than a local phone book. The product will
be sold starting in April, with the first directory produced for
Phoenix and other cities following later in the year.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940412/Press Contact: Metromail, John
Tomkiw, 708-218-6340; Reader Contact: John Matlock, InfoPak,
602-997-1990; Karen Talavera, Metromail, 708-620-3191)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(ATL)(00008)

Software Toolworks Offers Mario Educational Titles 04/12/94
NOVATO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- The Software
Toolworks, which is in the process of being acquired by Pearson
plc of Great Britain, has produced a line of educational
software based on Nintendo's Mario and Luigi characters.

In recent months a number of licensed characters have been signed
for use in educational software, mainly aimed at elementary
schoolchildren. At least one such program, Snoopy Yearn2Learn
from Image Smith of Torrance, California, has drawn strong
reviews. But there are always risks to such deals. A licensed
character may wind up selling unimpressive games, diminishing
its value in other areas, especially if the games do not do well
in the market. And software is a lot more complicated than other
products subject to character licensing, like lunch boxes.

Nintendo's Mario and Luigi characters will be on software under
MS-DOS initially, although versions for the Super Nintendo
Entertainment System are in the works, according to Software
Toolworks.

A complete line of games are being produced, in a variety of
subjects. Two series are being produced, a pre-school series
called "Mario's Early Years" and an elementary-age series
called "Mario Discovery Series."

The first title in the Discovery Series, "Mario is Missing," will
also be available on the Macintosh, and the company's description
of the product makes clear it is aimed at a niche now dominated
by Broderbund's "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego" --
Broderbund recently announced it will be acquired by Electronic
Arts.

A version of the product on MS-DOS CD-ROMs will include photos
and video clips from 25 cities around the world, along with
digitized voice and animation. Another product in that line,
"Mario's Time Machine," aims at teaching history and features
historical characters, and versions on CD-ROM will be available
later this year.

The pre-school "Mario's Early Years!" line features only
products under MS-DOS, and includes a "Fun with Numbers" title,
a "Fun with Letters" title, and a "Pre-School Fun" title which
teaches things like colors and shapes with rhyme and rhythms.
All three titles will be put on a single CD-ROM.

Among the best-known titles developed by The Software
Toolworks are "The Miracle Piano Teaching System" and "Mavis
Beacon Teaches Typing."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940412/Press Contact: Tracy Egan, The
Software Toolworks, 415-883-3000 ext 828)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00009)

Claircom Wins 2nd European Air Phone Contract 04/12/94
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- McCaw's
Claircom air-ground phone unit has won its second major European
airline award, taking the business of Germany's Lufthansa.
Earlier, McCaw had won Air France's business, and it has a number
of US airlines on its system. Claircom's North American contracts
include American, Northwest, Alaska, and Southwest Airlines.

McCaw's AirOne phones will be installed in every seatback on
Lufthansa's First Class and Business Class cabins, and in
bulkhead-mounted units in coach. The agreement covers the 48
jets in Lufthansa's long-haul fleet, and installation will start
with the company's A-300 and A-310 planes from Airbus.

According to McCaw, Lufthansa made its selection on technical
grounds. The system will use Inmarsat satellites and a link from
Skyphone, which is a partnership among British Telecom,
Norwegian Telecom and Singapore Telecom.

Claircom is presently involved in litigation with a rival,
In-Flight Phone, which charges the company stole its business and
technical plans, violating confidentiality agreements. That suit
will be heard in an Illinois state court.

In-Flight, started by Airfone and MCI founder John Goeken, alleges
that it was negotiating with McCaw on an investment in In-Flight
and gave it access to corporate documents, which McCaw then
used to start Claircom. Claircom calls those charges "groundless."

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940412/Press Contact: Claircom
Communications, Todd Wolfenbarger, 206-828-1851)


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

 ****Microsoft Shipping MS-DOS Without Compression 04/12/94
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Microsoft
Corporation says it has started shipping an upgrade to MS-DOS for
retail sale without its Doublespace disk compression utility.

MS-DOS 6.21 has already been available for PC manufacturers.
The user version is currently available only in the US.

Microsoft had to remove Doublespace from MS-DOS after it lost
a patent violation court battle with California company Stac
Electronics. Stac produces data compression program Stacker
which has been licensed by several PC makers in order to give
their customers data compression capability.

Data compression allows more data to be stored on a hard disk
than would be possible without compression. Data files generally
compress more than program files.

Users buying the MS-DOS version 6.21 upgrade get a coupon which
allows them to obtain the disk compression technology that is
expected to be available from Microsoft in June, 1994, as a
replacement for Doublespace.

Microsoft spokesperson Colleen Lacter told Newsbytes the
suggested retail price of the MS-DOS 6.21 upgrade is $77.95. She
said buyers may still be able to find copies of MS-DOS 6.2 with
Doublespace on some retail shelves.

(Jim Mallory/19940412/Press Contact: Colleen Lacter, Waggener
Edstrom for Microsoft Corp., 503-245-0905; Reader Contact:
Microsoft, 206-882-8080 or 800-426-9400)


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

Aeon Ships 150MHz Alpha AXP-based Systems 04/12/94
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Aeon
Systems Inc., has announced it is now shipping three new Alpha
AXP-based systems for Unix and real-time application development,
VME system integration and target applications on 64-bit
architecture.

Aeon says the new systems are intended for OEMs (original
equipment manufacturers) and systems integrators that provide
real-time applications requiring alternative configurations,
networking capabilities and immediate interrupt response times,
such as scientific and medical imaging, distributed process
control, robotics, and telecommunications.

The new VMEAlpha64 family of computers uses the 150 megahertz
(MHz) Alpha AXP RISC (reduced instruction-set computing)
microprocessor. Tower and rack mount chassis are available and
come with a one gigabyte (GB) disk drive.

Features include: a 512 kilobyte (KB) write back secondary cache;
up to 128 megabytes (MB) of main memory, dual ported to VMEbus;
128-bit local bus with parity for secondary cache and main
memory; a 512KB dual port byte/word/long buffer memory; a
32-bit input/output bus; and SCSI (small computer system
interface) and Ethernet interfaces.

Buyers also get a VMEbus master/slave interface; support for
A64/D64 and block mode; two RS232 console ports, 8KB non-
volatile memory with clock; a real-time clock with six 32-bit
counters, and a front panel diagnostic display. Options include
an i960 I/O (input/output) coprocessor and a tape drive.

All of the VMEAlpha64 models support Digital's DEC OSF/1 and
Posix. Standard Unix tools and facilities are available including
TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), NFS,
editors, and command line interpreters.  The Aeon-developed
VMEbus Access Support Library allows integration of other
VMEbus devices without the need for additional device driver
development.

Pricing for the VMEAlpha64 systems begins at $16,875.

(Jim Mallory/19940412/Press Contact: Barbara Patterson,
Patterson & Associates for Aeon Systems Inc., 602-957-4500;
Reader Contact: Aeon Systems Inc., 505-828-9120)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DEN)(00012)

Random Access Completes JLV Acquisition 04/12/94
DENVER, COLORADO, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Random Access
Inc., has announced the completion of its acquisition of JLV
Enterprises Inc.

Random Access acquired JLV for 275,000 shares of common stock,
with a value of about $1.68 million. Random Access spokesperson
Beth Lawrence told Newsbytes the transaction is expected to be
non-dilutive and will be accounted for as a pooling of interest.
JLV has annual revenues of about $5 million. Both companies are
headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

JLV's Jeff Veres will become vice president of Networking Services
for Random Access. JLV specializes in computer networks,
videoconferencing systems, telecommunications consulting, and
related services. Random Access CEO Bruce Milliken says JLV
products will be integrated across all Random Access branch
offices.

JLV's computer networking operations will become part of
Random Access' Enterprise Network Group, while the
telecommunications and videoconferencing business will fall
under Random Access' Computer Telephony Group.

Lawrence told Newsbytes all the JLV employees are expected to
be integrated into the Random Access organization. JLV
operations will be gradually moved to the Random Access
headquarters location.

(Jim Mallory/19940412/Press Contact: Beth Lawrence, Pfeiffer
Public Relations for Random Access, 303-393-7044; Reader
Contact: Random Access, 303-745-9600)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(DEN)(00013)

 ****Altsys Lawsuit Could Threaten Aldus-Adobe Merger 04/12/94
RICHARDSON, TEXAS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Altsys Corp.,
has filed a lawsuit alleging that the pending merger between
Aldus Corp., and Adobe Systems Inc., violates certain terms of a
software license agreement between Aldus and Altsys.

Altsys says the agreement grants Aldus exclusive worldwide
marketing rights to the software code for Aldus Freehand, a
design and illustration program for Microsoft Windows-based
personal computers and Apple Computer's Macintosh line.

Aldus describes the suit, filed in the 95th Judicial District
Court of Dallas County, Texas, as "without merit" and says it
will "defend against it vigorously."

Newsbytes reported the $525 million Aldus-Adobe stock-swap
merger in mid-March. The deal still requires shareholder and
regulator approval. Aldus stockholder approval is expected to be
forthcoming easily, particularly since Aldus President Paul
Brainerd has agreed to vote his shares for the deal. Brainerd gets
a position on the board of the new company.

When contacted by Newsbytes for specific details of the suit
Altsys' Kirk Heinlein said Altsys President James Von Ehr is the
only Altsys official authorized to comment on the suit. Von Ehr
was not available.

Aldus spokesperson Brad Stevens told Newsbytes the suit
claims the Aldus-Adobe merger violates the non-compete clause
in the Aldus-Altsys agreement. Adobe publishes the illustration
program Illustrator.

Stevens said the wording of the complaint is vague. "We do know
that they would like to be able to enter into other distribution
and licensing agreements with regard to Freehand," he told
Newsbytes. No monetary damages are listed in the suit, said
Stevens. Asked about the next step in the suit process, Stevens
said: "Now the attorneys take over."

Stevens said current plans are for both Freehand and Illustrator
to continue to be marketed.

(Jim Mallory/19940412/Press Contact: Kirk Heinlein, Altsys
Corp., 214-680-2060 or Brad Stevens, Aldus Corp., 206-628-2361;
Reader Contact: Altsys Corp., tel [phone], fax 214-680-
0537; or Aldus Corp, 206-622-5500)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(LAX)(00014)

 ****Apple Intros New Multimedia Products 04/12/94
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Apple
Computer announced new multimedia products for both the
Microsoft Windows personal computer (PC) platform and its own
Macintosh product line at the New Media Expo in Los Angeles. The
products include Appledesign Power Speakers II, the Applecd 300e
Plus external compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) player,
and a Multimedia kit for both the Macintosh and Windows.

The Appledesign Power Speakers II offers stereo sound, are
magnetically shielded to prevent interference with other
appliances, and come in a slate color or platinum to match the
Macintosh. They are retail priced at $79 and expected to ship in
June of this year.

The Applecd 300e Plus external CD-ROM drive offers a motorized,
caddyless tray for loading compact discs (CDs), and the ability
to play both three-inch and five-inch CD-ROM discs or audio CDs
as well as Kodak PhotoCDs. Apple claims the 300e is one of the
fastest doublespeed drives on the market with a 342 kilobytes-
per-second (Kbps) streaming data transfer rate. With its 256
kilobytes (KB) of cache memory, the company claims the drive is
almost as fast as a triple-speed CD-ROM drive as it can also
produce burst data transfer rates of up to 2.5 megabytes (MB) per
second.

A Macintosh SE or later model running System 6.0.7 or later with
a separate small computer system interface (SCSI) or peripheral
cable is needed for the Applecd 300e Plus. The new CD-ROM drive
is expected to ship in the US this summer and in Europe and the
Pacific regions by May of 1994. Retail pricing has been announced
at $349, which includes three CD-ROM titles the customer can
choose from a list of over 30 available titles.

For the Macintosh, Apple's new Multimedia Kit includes the
Appledesign Powered Speakers, headphones, Compton's Interactive
Encyclopedia for Macintosh, the required cables, set up software,
the Applecd 300e Plus, and the user's choice of three CD-ROM
titles from Apple's title list. The kit will work with any
Macintosh with a 68020, 68030, or 68040 microprocessor, 4MB of
random access memory (RAM), a color display at 640 by 480 picture
element (pixel) resolution or higher, and System 6.0.7 or later
or Macintosh Performa system software.

Apple lists its Performa, Power Macintosh, and Powerbook models
as meeting the criteria for the Macintosh Multimedia Kit, but
warns that some CD-ROM titles require 5MB or more of RAM and/or
a 13-inch display.

The Windows version of the Multimedia Kit includes an internal
version of the CD-ROM drive, the Applecd 300i Plus. The kit also
includes Appledesign Power Speakers, headphones, Compton's
Interactive Encyclopedia for Windows, a Mediavision 16-bit sound
card, the required cables, set-up software, and the user's choice
of three CD-ROM titles.

Windows users will need at least an IBM-compatible PC with a
80386SX microprocessor running at 25 megahertz (MHz), 4MB or
RAM, a Video Graphics Array (VGA) display, a free 5.25-inch drive
expansion slot, an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) internal
expansion slot, MS-DOS 5.0 and Microsoft Windows 3.1 or later.

Both Multimedia Kits carry a retail price of $449 and will
be available in Europe and the Pacific regions by May. US
availability is expected this summer.

The CD-ROM titles users have to choose from for either the
Macintosh or Windows include: Business Backgrounds, Macromedia
Clipmedia, A Zillion Sounds, Multimedia World Fact Book, The
Family Doctor, National Parks of America, the Better Homes and
Gardens Cookbook, World View, Tropical Rainforest, Shelley
Duvall's It's a Bird's Life, Great Literature, Monarch Notes,
Electronic Library of Art -- A Survey of Western Art, Americans
in Space, The Awesome Adventures of Victor Vector and Yondo: The
Last Dinosaur Egg, The Awesome Adventures of Victor Vector and
Yondo: The Vampire's Coffin, the Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde,
Dinosaur Safari, Who Killed Sam Rupert?, The Magic Death, The
Grand Canyon -- A Sierra Club Electronic Guide, The Blue Whale --
A Sierra Club Electronic Guide. The Great Wall of China, and Big
Anthony's Mixed-Up Magic.

Titles only available for the Macintosh include: Peter's Magic
Adventure, Peter's Alphabet Adventure, Peter's Number Adventure,
The Journeyman Project (counts as two titles), and From Alice to
Ocean. The New Basics Electronic Cookbook is the only titles
available only for Windows.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940412/Press Contact: Katy Boos, Apple
Computer, tel [phone], fax [phone]/PHOTO)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TOR)(00015)

Newbridge, Westell To Marry ATM & ADSL 04/12/94
KANATA, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Newbridge
Networks Corp. and Westell Inc. have announced an agreement to
tie together two communications technologies they say will
help bring new services into the home.

Newbridge will work with Westell, a subsidiary of Electronic
Information Technologies of Oak Brook, Illinois, to combine
asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) with asymmetrical digital
subscriber line (ADSL) technology.

ATM is an emerging standard for high-speed communications that
resembles the familiar packet-switching technology used in
today's wide area communications networks, but is faster and can
handle a combination of data, voice, and video. ADSL is a way of
getting higher transmission speeds -- on the order of six
megabits per second (Mbps) -- on ordinary copper wire.

Jim Marshall, a spokesman for Newbridge, said the two companies
expect the combination of ATM and ADSL will make it possible to
provide high-bandwidth communications services, such as
interactive video and home data services, to homes without having
to replace existing copper wire with optical fiber.

It is "a means of actually taking advantage of the existing
infrastructure at very little cost," Marshall told Newsbytes.

ADSL is a very new technology which has not yet seen commercial
use, but North American telephone carriers, including Bell
Atlantic, have indicated interest in the combination of ADSL and
ATM, Marshall said.

ATM technology figures prominently in Newbridge's product line,
while Westell, a supplier of telecommunications equipment to
phone companies, has been heavily involved in ADSL development.

They will work together to define a dual-function ADSL system
permitting delivery of either American National Standards
Institute (ANSI) T1/EI standard six Mbps signals or ATM virtual
circuits over copper wire.

The two firms expect to announce specific products based on their
collaboration, and be ready to ship them to customers, by the end
of this year, Marshall said.

(Grant Buckler/19940412/Press Contact: Jim Marshall or Sandra
Plumley, Newbridge, 613-591-3600)


(NEWS)(IBM)(TOR)(00016)

 ****Montreal Firm Claims Virus-Proof PC 04/12/94
MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Jitec Corp., a
small personal computer maker, claims to have built a PC that is
immune to viruses.

Benoit Laliberte, president of Jitec, told Newsbytes that his
company's Vectoria PCs use a built-in chip called an electronic
virus activity control (EVAC), that spots any activity in computer
memory that indicates a virus. It stops the virus from doing what
it is trying to do and warns the computer user with a message on
the screen.

Laliberte claimed that Jitec has tested the chip, which was
co-developed by Jitec and a Chinese firm, with a wide variety of
viruses and is confident it will catch any virus. If a virus
succeeds in affecting a Vectoria PC, he said, the company will
refund the purchase price.

The Vectoria computers come in several models, ranging from an
entry-level machine at C$1,300 to a model based on Intel Corp.'s
Pentium processor for about C$4,000. Jitec is selling them
through a joint venture called Vectoria Toronto, which it co-owns
with Safety Network Inc. of Toronto.

The company is concentrating on the North American market for
the time being, Laliberte said, and plans to open a US office
within the next two months. Jitec is also negotiating to set up a
European office in France, he said.

The company has about 30 employees but plans to grow rapidly in
the coming year, according to Laliberte.

(Grant Buckler/19940412/Press Contact: Benoit Laliberte, Jitec,
514-462-3132)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00017)

Multimedia Dev't Group To Host "Killer" Content Seminar 04/12/94
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- The
Multimedia Development Group (MDG), a trade association
developed as a "catalyst for interactive multimedia products and
services," has announced a seminar to discuss "Killer Content."

Co-sponsored with Pacific Bell Information Services, the event
will feature film and television celebrities as well as leaders in
multimedia, advertising, music, and publishing, who will discuss
the question of "Yugos or Ferraris," regarding product and service
quality to be produced for the information superhighway.

MDG claims to be a not-for-profit group of 500 companies involved
in multimedia development and has a stated purpose of "providing
access to multimedia information, business, service and technology;
showcasing members' products and services; and representing of
concerns and needs of the marketplace to the public.

Newsbytes previously reported on Pacific Bell Information
Services' development of its Re:Source Network Solutions.

Hosting the panel and the question and answer session will be
Roland Wolfram, vice president of Interactive Services at Pacific
Telesis Video Services, and Hal Logan, general manager of Pacific
Telesis Electronic Publishing Services.

Among the panelists are: Edward Saxon, producer of Silence of the
Lambs and Philadelphia; Steven Peterman, executive producer of
Murphy Brown; Scott Page, formerly with Pink Floyd and executive
vice president of 7th Level Inc.; Garry Hare, president of Griffin
Fathom Co.; Susan Margolis, New Media Liaison and president of
Deep Content Solutions; and Tom Lombardo, executive vice
president of Whittle Communications, Medical Network.

Speaking to Newsbytes, Susan Margolis, said, "This seminar will
provide developers, publishers and investors with a look at 'deep
content' and attempt to show and discuss what high quality
producers and providers have done in other fields that can now
be carried over to multimedia. We want to take a look at what
we can do better and how we can maintain a high level of content."

Margolis continued, "At first multimedia was driven by
entrepreneurs and technologists, but now my clients are reflecting
and expressing an ambition to make their content even deeper and
richer so that people will find multimedia irresistible."

The "Killer Content" seminar will be held at the San Francisco
Marriot Hotel on April 28, 1994. Admission for MDG members is
$15, and $40 for non-members.

(Patrick McKenna/19940412/Press Contact: Pat Meier, Pat Meier
Associates, 415-957-5999)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00018)

Microsoft UK Intros Access 2.0, Office Prof 4.3 04/12/94
WOKINGHAM, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Microsoft
has launched the Access database management system 2.0 for
Windows. According to the company, plans call for the company to
include the package in Office Professional 4.3.

Microsoft is making some bold claims for Access 2.0, saying that
it is the first desktop database to bridge the gap between end user
and developer needs, providing a single "solution" for all levels of
users.

This version of the package has more than 300 new and updated
features that Microsoft claims offers ease of use for end users and
developers when it comes to managing and presenting data. Company
officials say that the package has tight integration with other
Microsoft Office applications using the Officelinks technology.

Officelinks is a set of tools that allow Office users to import and
export data from Microsoft Word, Excel and Mail using quick
"toolbar" commands. These improvements, Microsoft claims, make
Access 2.0 the only desktop database to meet the broad range of
users' requirements in the database marketplace.

"Our research has consistently shown that customers are looking for
a single database product that is easy to use, while still providing
the tools to create custom database applications," explained Julie
Cox, Microsoft's senior database product manager. "Customers want
a desktop database that meets a wide range of needs, just as
spreadsheets and other business productivity applications. Access
2.0 meets that challenge by integrating closely with Microsoft
Office and delivering power for the developer."

Cox added that the new features in Access 2.0 reflect the results
of feedback from more than a million Access users, as well as
"extensive customer research" on both simple and complex database
needs.

Access 2.0 will available in the UK later this week with a retail
price tag of UKP280. Registered users of version 1.0 and 1.1 can
upgrade to the new version for UKP99. Various other upgrade pricing
packages are available on request, Newsbytes understands. These
include a UKP149 upgrade facility for users of competing packages.

Access 2.0 needs MS-DOS 3.1 or later, running under Windows
3.1/Windows for Workgroups 3.1 or later, an 80386SX or higher
processor, six megabytes (MB) of RAM and 6MB of hard disk space.
An EGA or higher resolution monitor plus a Microsoft-compatible
mouse is also required.

(Steve Gold/19940412/Press & Public Contact: Microsoft UK,
44-734-270001)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LON)(00019)

UK - Gold Disk Intros Windows Presentation Software 04/12/94
WINDSOR, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Gold Disk, a
desktop presentation software house, has announced Astound 1.5 for
Windows in the UK. Developed by the company's Santa Clara office in
the US, the package is billed as "combining the ease of use of
traditional software with the impact of sound, animation, narration,
video and interactivity" to create an "award-winning state-of-the-
art presentation tool."

Kailish Ambwani, CEO of the company, said that multimedia is
nothing more than an natural evolution of people's ability to interact
with a computer. "As more and more people discover how easy
Astound is to use, multimedia presentations will become the
standard, not the exception," he explained.

Astound is claimed to be the only "solution" of its type that
seamlessly integrates the best of the current crop of presentation
products with the latest multimedia technologies. The software ships
with a bonus CD-ROM (compact disc read only memory) disc with a
variety of clip media. Company officials say the disc has more than
1,200 sound effects on it.

So how does Astound work? The package takes the usual slide and
outline approach to a presentation and allows the user to create
slides, overheads and notes with, the company claims, little or no
training. Files can be imported from PowerPoint or Freelance into
the package as live documents, which Gold Disk claims, allows
users to move safely between them.

Interestingly, the package includes its own run-time libraries for
the Windows and Apple Mac environments, allowing users to create a
presentation on the PC and run it on the Mac. To assist users, Gold
Disk is offering unlimited free technical support.

Until the end of May, in the UK, the package sells for UKP99, after
which time it will revert to its usual price of UKP259.95.

Gold Disk is a privately held company with its headquarters in
Santa Clara, California, and with international offices in the UK
and Canada.

(Steve Gold/19940412/Press & Public Contact: Gold Disk,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00020)

 ****CompuServe UK Announces Internet Plans 04/12/94
READING, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- After months
of rumors and tests, CompuServe has opened up the next stage in
its Internet connection. Following on from the Internet mail link
introduced a few years ago, subscribers to CompuServe can now
log on across the Internet using the "telnet" procedure.

Telnet is a function of the Internet that "bounces" data calls
between hosts on the Internet, sometimes around the world. For
example, in the UK, a telnet/Internet call is routed to a central
hub in the UK, across to the Netherlands and then through to the
East Coast of the US. From there, the data call is routed to the
West Coast and then into CompuServe's computer network in
Columbus, Ohio.

Newsbytes notes, however, that Internet telnet performance
differs markedly from one network to another and, at peak times,
even a 9,600 bits-per-second (bps) data link can slow to a 300
bps crawl as data is bottlenecked across the Internet.

Nevertheless, Internet access to CompuServe is a lot cheaper than
packet-switched access (rates vary depending on called route and/or
local Internet host charges). In the UK via CIX, for example, the
telnet link works out cheaper than using BT or Mercury's packet
switching networks.

CompuServe has also committed to opening up the third and final
stage in its Internet links later this year, allowing outgoing
telnet access, plus read/write privileges on the Internet's
Usenet newsgroup services. Rates for the service have yet to be
determined.

CompuServe is also offering free online sign-up to any potential
new subscriber who access the service across the Internet. To
access the CompuServe Internet link, type in the command "telnet
compuserve.com" at the Internet prompt.

So what is the Internet? It is used for inter-system electronic
mail and low-cost links between networks.

The Internet is often confused with two similar, and connected
networks -- Bitnet and Usenet. Like the Internet, Bitnet is a world-
wide network. Its users can exchange electronic-mail with each
other (and Internet users). However, some parts of it are referred
to by different names, which reflects administrative differences
rather than actual differences.

For all intents and purposes, the Internet is under the same
umbrella as Bitnet and both networks are fully interconnected.

The Usenet is an altogether different service. Usenet is a worldwide
network that provides a news broadcast service which acts like
an informational bulletin board system (BBS). The Usenet pipes its
news across the Internet, except that, unlike the Internet, there
is no formal structure for the Usenet.

This means that news, typically conferences with 1,000's of
messages, zip around the network and can be accessed at will by
anyone with access to the Usenet or the Internet.

Generally speaking, most Internet access points are either pure
Internet services, or online services/BBSes which, as CompuServe
is phasing in, offer access to the Internet's wide range of services.

(Steve Gold/19940412/Press & Public Contact: CompuServe UK,
tel [phone], fax [phone]; E-mail on the Internet,
[e-mail])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00021)

CompuServe UK Reports 100,000 Subscribers In Europe 04/12/94
READING, BERKSHIRE, ENGLAND, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- CompuServe,
the online service, has revealed it has achieved a considerable
success with its relatively recent efforts to recruit new members
in Europe. To date, more than 100,000 members have signed up in
Europe, company officials said.

CompuServe provides local support to European members through
offices in Bristol and Reading in the UK, and also in Munich,
Germany, and Paris. According to the company, all of its customers
can access the CompuServe Information Service via a local phone
call thorough most of the UK and in nearly all major European
cities.

"Membership in the United Kingdom alone has doubled each year since
we opened an office in Bristol nearly three years ago. With over
35,000 members, we are clearly the leader in the UK. We expect
membership to double again in the next year, both in the UK and
throughout Europe", explained Andrew Gray, general manager of
CompuServe UK

According to Gray, CompuServe has recently put a lot of pressure
on developing services which are suitable for the British market.

"We recently launched four travel databases provided by the
Automobile Association which are already proving to be very
successful. This arrangement with the AA is just the first of
several relationships we plan to establish with the UK's leading
information providers this year," said Martin Turner, CompuServe
UK's product marketing manager. "Within the coming months we
expect to introduce a number of leading UK -- focused news,
travel, entertainment and financial products."

(Sylvia Dennis/19940412/Press & Public Contact: CompuServe UK,
tel [phone], fax [phone]; E-mail on the Internet,
[e-mail])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(WAS)(00022)

 ****Exploring The Congo By Videoconference 04/12/94
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- A team of 16
explorers, with thousands of students following electronically, is
launching a 12 month, 6,000 mile trek recreating explorer Sir
Henry Morton Stanley's search for the sources of the Congo and
Nile rivers in Africa.

Sponsored by the Alliance for Environmental Education, the
Congo expedition includes an education program involving
live interactive teleconferences along the route to link 12
high schools across the country with the expedition.

Also, thousands of other schools can participate passively by
picking up the downlink signal from the satellite. The explorers
will have an Internet address for two-way communications.

"We hope to have five interactive broadcasts from Africa
during the reenactment," Coleen McNerney of the alliance
told Newsbytes, "plus regular data feeds, and some old-
fashioned print products, such as a newsletter. You'd be
amazed how many teachers have never heard of a modem
and are still in the Weekly Reader mindset."

The purpose of the expedition and the educational program is
environmental education. "This distance-learning application
provides for a factual, global perspective that will assist
in teaching critical thinking and problem solving for issues
that stretch beyond the local community," said Duane Cox,
president of the alliance.

The schools that will be participating in the interactive
videoconferences are all members of a national consortium
called Schools for Excellence in Math, Science and Technology.

According to Laura Hunt of Videolinx Communications, which
is providing the telecommunications technology for the project,
the conferences will be "one way video and two-way audio."

The project kicks off tomorrow with the first of the nationwide
videoconferences. The major venue for the conference is Thomas
Jefferson High School in Arlington, Va., were expedition leader
Jim Ownes, Tazanian Ambassador Charles Nyirba, and Jack
Gibbons, the White House science advisor, will be on hand.

According to McNerney of the alliance, based in Manassas, Va.,
the first year of the project, including the actual on-foot
expedition, will cost about $1 million. Funding has come from
CNN News, Jansport, Casio, Hi-Tec Sports and Mead Corp.

Once the expedition is finished, McNerney told Newsbytes, "We
hope to keep this alive," recapturing the trip for future classes
through multimedia on CD-ROM. Among the classroom materials
the project is delivering before the trip is the complete diary
the colorful Stanley kept during his journey on the Congo.

Born John Rowlands in Wales, Stanley grew up in a workhouse
and sailed for New Orleans as a cabin boy at age 16, where
he was adopted by a cotton broker named Stanley. He served
in the US Civil War first in the Confederate Army, then on
the Union side.

In 1867, Stanley became a reporter and in 1871, the New York
Herald sent him to find Dr. David Livingstone, lost in the
heart of Africa. Stanley located Livingstone in Tanzania,
uttering the famous words, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume."

Between 1874 and 1877 Stanley circumnavigated Lake
Tanganyika and Lake Victoria and explored the Congo from
source to mouth. Stanley served in the British Parliament
from 1895 to 1899 and was knighted in 1899.

(Kennedy Maize/19940412/Press Contacts: Colleen McNerney,
Alliance for Environmental Education, 703-330-5667; Laura
Hunt, Videolink Communications, 703-658-5469, Internet,
[e-mail])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00023)

Sony Launches Watergate Haldeman Diaries CD-ROM 04/12/94
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Sony Electronic
Publishing Co. is betting there are still plenty of people around
who are interested in Watergate. The company is rolling out a
multimedia CD-ROM based on the "never before published" diaries
of former White House chief of staff H.R. Haldeman.

Titled, "The Haldeman Diaries: Inside the Nixon White House,
the Complete Multimedia Edition," the CD-ROM will be available
near the end of May, the same time Putnam Publishing is
releasing the edited version of the diaries in hard copy.

Sony's title includes the complete, unedited Haldeman diary,
Sony spokesman Jeffrey Fox told Newsbytes, along with 45
minutes of video edited from 27 hours of footage Haldeman
personally shot, 700 photos and 2,000 pages of exclusive
documents from Haldeman's tenure. "It is much more than
Watergate," Fox said. "It's about anything you need to know
about the White House and how it worked in those days. The
strength of multimedia is the ability to cross-reference and
get deeper and deeper into the subject."

The CD-ROM is narrated by Dwight Chapin, Nixon's appointments
secretary and another name familiar to Watergate buffs. But
there is no identification on the CD of the mysterious "Deep
Throat" who kept Bob Woodward on the track as the Watergate
scandal unraveled, says Fox.

The title will be available initially for DOS machines. A
Macintosh version will follow, and the manufacturer's
suggested retail price is $69.95. "We will be distributing
through all the normal channels," Fox said.

The Haldeman project is Sony's first foray into public
affairs CD programming. While it does not have any further
White House projects underway, Fox told Newsbytes Sony is
working with ABC News on a CD-ROM on the subject of
earthquakes.

(Kennedy Maize/19940412/Press Contact: Jeffery Fox,
310-449-2371)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00024)

Santa Fe Institute Gets "Messy" Systems Grant 04/12/94
SANTA FE, NEW MEXICO, U.S.A. 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- The Santa Fe
Institute, a small, leading-edge research lab, has picked up a
 $323,000 grant from the Pentagon's Advanced Research Projects
Agency for work on computer science and the study of complex,
"messy" systems. The ARPA grant follows a visit to the lab by Vice
President Al Gore and Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.).

The grant title is "Simulation of Adaptive Complex Systems." SFI
has also won funds from the National Science Foundation and the
Department of Energy for research in this area.

The vice president requested the meeting, according to the
institute, as a follow-up to previous meetings with scientists
researching adaptive computation with complex systems, a field
that SFI is pioneering.

Among the kinds of messy systems that SFI is looking at are
neural networks, individual and group behavior in economic
markets, social ecology, trading systems, and the like. "We are
into non-linear, multivariate systems," Bruce Abell, vice
president for operations, told Newsbytes.

Abell said work on the grant will help ARPA and other
government agencies understand some of the most difficult
questions facing the nation, including nuclear proliferation
and drug trafficking.

SFI is a 10-year-old independent research center in Santa
Fe, New Mexico, and loosely affiliated with the nearby Los
Angeles National Laboratory, one of the Energy Department's
weapons labs. "Some of our program leaders are Los Alamos
scientists," Abell said.

SFI has affiliations with four Nobel laureats, Abell said,
including physicists Murray Gell-mann and Philip Anderson,
biologist Manfred Eigen and economist Kenneth Arrow.
Gellmann is with the institute full time. Its president is
former National Science Foundation Director Edward Knapp,
and its board of trustees is headed by David Liddle, co-
founder of Interval Research Corp. in Palo Alto, Calif.

(Kennedy Maize/19940412/Press Contact: Bruce Abell,
505-984-8800)


(NEWS)(UNIX)(LAX)(00025)

SGI Upgrades Entry-Level Indy Workstation 04/12/94
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Silicon
Graphics Incorporated (SGI) said it is offering more power for
the same amount of money in its entry-level Indy workstation
system. The company said the low-end Indy offers a faster
microprocessor, faster graphics display, and faster three-
dimensional (3-D) performance for the same price tag - just
under $5,000.

Best-known to some for its workstation computers used in
special-effects in such movies as Jurrasic Park, SGI workstations
are powered by the reduced instruction-set computing (RISC)
microprocessors from manufacturer MIPS. The speed increase in
the entry-level Indy comes from the replacement of the MIPS
R4000 microprocessor with the 100 megahertz (MHz) R4600 MIPS
microprocessor.

Performance-wise the system was rated at 36 SPECint92, 37
SPECfp92, with an AIM benchmark of 36.2, but is now rated at
62.8 SPECint92 and 49.9 SPECfp92, with an AIM benchmark of
59.2.

In the San Diego benchmark for the popular AutoCAD desktop
computer-aided design (CAD) package the original Indy received a
22:00 minute San Diego "create model test" completion time
compared to the 44:19 minute result turned in by the upgraded
Indy, according to SGI. In graphic designer package Adobe
Photoshop tests, results are claimed to show similar performance
gains, particularly rotation of 10 megabyte (MB) images, which
are now executed 90 percent faster.

SGI said it has also upgraded the Irix Unix operating system to
version 5.2, from 5.1. The upgrade offers faster performance with
less memory and is being offered on all SGI systems.

The new entry Indy configuration is priced at $4,995, is
available now, and includes the 100 MHz R4600 Indy system,
Virtual24 bit (dithered 8-bit) color graphics, 16MB of main
memory, 15-inch 1,024-by-768 picture element (pixel) resolution
color monitor, the Indycam color digital video camera, a keyboard,
a mouse, the Irix 5.2 operating system, and the Indigo Magic user
environment.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940412/Press Contact: Carl Furry, Silicon
Graphics, tel [phone], fax [phone]/PHOTO)


(NEWS)(IBM)(LAX)(00026)

New IDE CD-ROM Uses Standard Hard Disk Controller 04/12/94
IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Advanced Logic
Research (ALR) announced, what the company claims is, the first
compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) drive to connect to a
standard hard disk drive controller. The new ALR Express Model
CDE-1200 connects to the computer's existing 16-bit Integrated
Drive Electronics (IDE) controller, which the most widely used
controller interface for hard disk drives in personal computers
(PCs) sold today.

Dave Kirkey, vice president of worldwide sales and marketing at
ALR, said: "The ALR Digital Express IDE CD-ROM drive offers
customers the existing attributes of IDE interface technology
making it compatible with practically every PC in the market.
Furthermore, users don't have to purchase an additional
proprietary interface card."

ALR claims the IDE CD-ROM drive will be attractive to users
interested in multimedia because its easier to install and
does not require the added expense of a special user interface.

The Model CDE-1200 is fully compatible with standard CD-ROM
ISO9660 discs and audio CDs as well as the Kodak Multisession
Photocd, ALR said. The drive also meets the Multimedia Personal
Computer Level 2 (MPC2) standard and supports DOS and Windows
environments. Use of Western Digital's AT Attachment Packet
Interface (ATAPI) protocol as well as Phillips Laser Technology
offers the drive its performance, IDE compatibility, and
International Standards Organization (ISO) compatibility,
according to ALR.

A double-speed drive, the CDE-1200 has a 307.2 kilobyte per
second data transfer rate and includes a 256 kilobyte (KB)
buffer for smoother audio and video playback. The typical seek
time is 350 milliseconds (ms).

To install, the Model CDE-1200 features a software setup
program that provides the user with easy installation without
additional hardware or switch settings, ALR asserts. The drive
itself offers a motorized assisted tray loading mechanism and
full control panel so users can load, play, stop, eject, and
change tracks without having to use software utilities.

A two-year limited warranty comes with the drive as well as via
an 800 number in the US, a fax back system, and on-line support
on the company's Compuserve forum.

Available in May of this year, the ALR Express IDE CD-ROM drive,
Model CDE-1200, is retail priced at $299.

The company also announced the Musical Instrument Digital
Interface (MIDI)-compatible ALR Kurzweil Wave Express Module
sound card as well as the Wave Express Multimedia Kits, Model
DE-200 kit and Model DE-250.

Described as providing 16 multi-timbre MIDI channels, access
to 6MB of sound read-only memory (ROM) with over 357 sound
programs and MIDI software, the Kurzweil Wave Express Module
is retail priced at $399.

The DE-200 Multimedia Kit retails for $399 and comes with the
Digital Wave Express audio card, a dual-speed CD-ROM drive,
speakers, three multimedia utility packages on floppy disc, and
one software title on CD-ROM. The Model DE-250 retails for
$499 and includes all of the DE-200 features, plus a dynamic
microphone for sound recording, and a seven disc CD-ROM library.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940412/Press Contact: Genevieve Ortegon,
Advanced Logic Research, tel [phone], fax 714-581-
9240/PHOTO)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(BOS)(00027)

HP Intros Low-Cost 20GB Jukebox, Disk Array For LANS 04/12/94
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Hewlett-
Packard has introduced a product billed as the least expensive 20
gigabyte (GB) optical jukebox on the market today, plus a new file
system for making a Unix-based optical jukebox appear to be a
single large drive, and a new disk system and disk array system
for local area networks (LANs).

In a product preview for Newsbytes in Boston, officials of HP's
newly established Storage Systems Division said that the new
offerings represent the start of the division's plans to respond to
the burgeoning rise in storage requirements on PC- and Unix-based
LANs.

HP's new division will meet these needs through a combination of
disk storage systems, magneto-optical drives and jukeboxes, and
storage management software, said Tex Schenkkan, marketing
manager for the division, and Peter Way, optical product manager.

A trio of other HP divisions will fulfill other kinds of storage
requirements, Schenkkan noted. HP's Disk Mechanism Division
produces hard disk drives. The Computer Peripherals Bristol
Division handles DAT drives, while Colorado Memory Systems
concentrates on QIC tape backup.

The Storage System Division's disk storage systems will be targeted
at database storage on LANs, while the optical storage systems will
be aimed at archiving microfiche, paper document images, and other
"large storage objects," he added.

A recent study by Peripheral Strategies projects that average LAN
storage capacity will explode from 7.2GB per server today to 41GB
per server by 1997, said the marketing manager.

Database storage is already a $1.5 billion industry, and is
expected to grow at the rate of 20 to 50 percent a year, Newsbytes
was told. In regard to demand for optical storage, 900 million new
documents are now being created every day, a figure that does not
even take into account all the previously existing documents that
might be moved online.

The division's optical storage products will be geared to
applications needing more storage capacity that is practically
affordable with a hard disk, or that require hard disk performance
for only a small portion of the data, according to Way.

Way told Newsbytes that the new 20GB optical jukebox, the HP
Model 20XT, is being offered for the "breakthrough price" of
$6,995, or $3,000 less than the previous HP Model 20LT.

Allowing either rewritable or WORM (write-once, read-many)
storage, the jukebox features a new idle mode for energy savings,
an aluminum chassis for weight reduction, and a new "peek"
window that lets the user see inside.

Schenkkan explained that the "peek" window was inspired by similar
windows offered in demo jukeboxes displayed at trade shows.
"Customers kept indicating that they would like to have a window
like that in the real product," he recalled.

The new Archival Jukebox Storage Solution (AMASS) file system,
which is designed to provide a single view of optical jukeboxes
that is transparent to applications, is available for HP's 20GB to
200GB capacity jukeboxes. AMASS can be used with HP 9000 S700
as well as Sun 4 systems.

"HP used to concentrate on providing the highest quality hardware.
Now, though, we're reaching beyond that goal," Schenkkan remarked.

The newly announced HP Disk System and HP Disk Array, he said, are
modular systems that work with all PC operating systems as well as
with all major network operating systems, including Novell NetWare;
Windows NT; LAN Manager and DOS; OS/2 and LAN Server; SCO (Santa
Cruz Operation) Unix; and Univel UnixWare.

The HP Disk System provides software-based RAID (redundant
array of inexpensive disks) for Levels 0, 1 and 5. The system works
with MCA (Micro Channel Architecture) in addition to EISA (Extended
Industry Standard Architecture) and ISA (Industry Standard
Architecture) host bus adapters. The products also support DAT
(digital audio tape) backup.

A new SSDiag diagnostics software utility provides soft error
monitoring for errors on disks, and also uses data to predict disk
failures, according to the marketing manager.

The new HP Disk Array provides hardware-based RAID for levels
0, 1, 5 and 6, in addition to two fast SCSI-2 (small computer
system interface-2) channels with a 10 megabyte-per-second
channel transfer rate. A 32-bit, 1960 processor on the controller
manages subsystem storage and fault tolerance. A second disk
system can be added without an additional controller, Schenkkan
said.

Capacity for the disk array is up to 20GB per server. Seek times
range from 9.0 to 10.7 milliseconds. Other features include 4MB
cache memory; hot swap; hot spare; enhanced JetSet installation,
configuration and management utilities; and integration with
NetServer Assistant 2.0 and HP Open View.

HP has also announced the Referenced Solutions Program, a program
for partnering with ISVs (independent software vendors) in the
areas of document and imaging management, hierarchical storage
management (HSM) for Novell and Unix-based platforms, and
desktop publishing applications for Macintosh and DOS.

The HP Disk Array, priced starting at $2,699, and the HP Disk
System, priced starting at $3,019, are available immediately. The
HP Model 20XT and HP/AMASS Optical Jukebox Storage Solution are
expected to ship May 1. A catalog of products that can be purchased
by end users through the Referenced Solutions Program is set to be
available April 18 through HP's literature distribution center.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940412/Reader Contact: Hewlett-Packard,
415-857-1501; Press Contacts: Deanna Dilling, HP, 208-396-5596;
Karla Nelson, HP, 303-350-4683; Lou Hoffman, Ray Shuster, or
Laurel Redden, The Hoffman Agency for HP, 408-286-2611)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00028)

Technology Conference Set For San Francisco 04/12/94
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Hambrecht
& Quist have announced the 22nd annual Technology Conference to
be held at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. More than
160 electronic technology companies will be present for the three-
day conference which provides corporations an opportunity to
showcase themselves before the Wall Street community.

Hambrecht & Quist, an investment banker and underwriter of
companies, varying from large industry leaders to small emerging
growth companies, originally backed Apple Computer and Genentech
in their founding days.

Highlights of the conference will include: introductory
demonstrations of Power  PC by Apple, Adobe, Radius and Aldus,
as well as presentations by Intel, Solectron, Sybase, Compaq,
Microsoft and Motorola.

William R. Hambrecht, chairman, and Daniel H. Case III, president
of Hambrecht & Quest, will deliver a luncheon keynote address on
April 25.

Speaking to Newsbytes, Bruce Lupatkin, director of technology
research for Hambrecht & Quist, said, "Right now institutional
investors are selling and the corporations have a challenge to
change that to a buying environment. They will be delivering their
strategies and strengths to a very sophisticated field of influential
money managers. The timing of the conference comes at a time
when a lot of the companies will be issuing their quarterly reports."

The conference will also be the first in-person debut of Novell's
newly announced CEO, Robert Frankenberg, to the Wall Street
community.

Hambrecht & Quist arranges the conference so that presentations
are made by CEOs or CFOs of the invited corporations. Lupatkin
continued saying, "one of the most interesting sessions is the
'Views From the Buy Side', where producers and manufacturers
have a chance to hear from the investors."

(Patrick McKenna/1994/Press Contact: Carol Newman, Hambrecht
& Quist, 415-576-3611)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00029)

Japan - Fujitsu Intros Notebook Workstation 04/12/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Fujitsu has released a
notebook-type workstation, which is compatible with Sun
Microsystems' Unix workstations, priced at 1.28 million yen
($12,800).

The firm claims that it is the first notebook workstation which
is compatible with Sun Microsystems' workstations in Japan.

Fujitsu's S-4/Leia is an A4-sized workstation weighing 3.5
kilograms. It is equipped with a color TFT (thin film transistor)
LCD (liquid crystal display) with a resolution of 1,024 by 768
pixels. Also, it is equipped with a 500 megabyte (MB) 2.5-inch
hard disk, which can be increased to a one gigabyte (GB) disk.

The notebook operates under a 50 megahertz (MHz) RISC
(reduced instruction-set computing) processor, called the
Micro SPARC. Fujitsu has incorporated ergonomics into the
workstation with a palm-rest area on the keyboard.

The workstation also has Fujitsu's original key-input system,
called the "Leia Point," which functions as the mouse. It also
has a socket for a PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card
International Association) card.

Although Fujitsu has begun accepting orders of the new
workstation, the actual shipment will not be until the end of
this June.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940412/Press Contact:
Fujitsu, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DEL)(00030)

India - Yellow Pages On A Card 04/12/94
NEW DELHI, INDIA, 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- Calcutta-based PBM
Cybernetics has launched an electronic card, which allows the
user to access on-line yellow pages services without an
information retrieval operator.

When fitted into the expansion slot of a personal computer, it
converts electronic data into voice recorded messages, which
can be tapped on a telephone line. Named "dataphony," this would
allow a user to directly access the database on an ordinary
telephone.

This is one step ahead of the similar services, like Ask Me, where
an operator has to answer queries after retrieving information
from the database stored on the system. Priced at R2.5 lakh, the
card is aimed at stock brokers, travel agents, doctors, and the
hotel market.

Although, commercial production is slated to begin later, firms
like Bata and Mecon are said to have shown interest in the card.
CMC, the company responsible for the installation and maintenance
of railway reservation and timing schedules, is also understood
to have expressed interest in the system.

PBM Cybernetics, which has spun off from a pharmaceutical
company PBM, is in the field of videoconferencing, interactive
television through telephone cable networks, radio paging systems
based on infra-red wireless data communications, and free space
laser communication.

(C.T. Mahabharat/19940412)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00031)

Newsbytes Daily Summary 04/12/94
PENN VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 APR 12 (NB) -- These are
capsules of all today's news stories:

1 -> India - BFL Software Wins Sunsoft Development Contract 04/12/94
BFL Software Ltd., of Bangalore, has won a software development
contract worth $380,000 from Sunsoft, the software arm of Sun
Microsystems.

2 -> Compass '94 - Ad Pros Need To Attend Computer Shows 04/12/94
Advertising professionals should read computer magazines and attend
technical trade shows so as to be able to advise their non-high-tech
clients on the use of new technologies for marketing purposes,
recommended Andrew M. Jaffe, executive editor/VP of Adweek Magazines,
and the guiding hand behind Compass '94, in an interview with
Newsbytes.

3 -> Toshiba Plans Portable 3DO Players For Car Navigation 04/12/94
The 3DO Company has announced that Toshiba is planning a portable
version of the 3DO Multiplayer that can also be installed in
automobiles. The announcement came on the heels of the signing of a
hardware licensing agreement between 3DO and Toshiba, allowing Toshiba
to manufacture, market, and distribute 3DO products.

4 -> Japan - High-Speed Fax/Modem Card, Display Phone 04/12/94 TDK
claims to have developed a high-speed fax/modem card with a data
transmission speed of 28,800 bits-per-second (bps). TDK plans to
release the card in the US priced at 200,000 yen ($2,000) early next
week. Meanwhile, Fujitsu and Matsushita Denso have jointly developed,
what the companies claim, is a "unique" display telephone.

5 ->  ****DEC Intros 1st Alpha AXP-Based Server 04/12/94 Digital
Equipment Corp. has announced its first server built on Alpha AXP
processors, and brought the function of its OpenVMS operating system
for Alpha machines in line with that of OpenVMS for the older VAX
hardware. These and other announcements by the company are aimed at
penetrating the client/server computing market, officials said.

6 -> Cirrus Logic Launches New Chips 04/12/94 Cirrus Logic  and its
Pixel unit have launched three new chip-sets.

7 -> Metromail Business Listings On PCMCIA Cards 04/12/94 R.R.
Donnelley's  Metromail unit plans to offer business listings on PCMCIA
(Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) cards.

8 -> Software Toolworks Offers Mario Educational Titles 04/12/94 The
Software  Toolworks, which is in the process of being acquired by
Pearson  plc of Great Britain, has produced a line of educational
software based on Nintendo's Mario and Luigi characters.

9 -> Claircom Wins 2nd European Air Phone Contract 04/12/94 McCaw's
Claircom air-ground phone unit has won its second major European
airline award, taking the business of Germany's Lufthansa.  Earlier,
McCaw had won Air France's business, and it has a number  of US
airlines on its system. Claircom's North American contracts  include
American, Northwest, Alaska, and Southwest Airlines.

10 ->  ****Microsoft Shipping MS-DOS Without Compression 04/12/94
Microsoft Corporation says it has started shipping an upgrade to
MS-DOS for retail sale without its Doublespace disk compression
utility.

11 -> Aeon Ships 150MHz Alpha AXP-based Systems 04/12/94 Aeon  Systems
Inc., has announced it is now shipping three new Alpha  AXP-based
systems for Unix and real-time application development,  VME system
integration and target applications on 64-bit  architecture.

12 -> Random Access Completes JLV Acquisition 04/12/94 Random Access
Inc., has announced the completion of its acquisition of JLV
Enterprises Inc.

13 ->  ****Altsys Lawsuit Could Threaten Aldus-Adobe Merger 04/12/94
Altsys Corp., has filed a lawsuit alleging that the pending merger
between Aldus Corp., and Adobe Systems Inc., violates certain terms of
a software license agreement between Aldus and Altsys.

14 ->  ****Apple Intros New Multimedia Products 04/12/94 Apple
Computer announced new multimedia products for both the  Microsoft
Windows personal computer (PC) platform and its own  Macintosh product
line at the New Media Expo in Los Angeles. The  products include
Appledesign Power Speakers II, the Applecd 300e  Plus external compact
disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) player,  and a Multimedia kit for both
the Macintosh and Windows.

15 -> Newbridge, Westell To Marry ATM & ADSL 04/12/94 Newbridge
Networks Corp. and Westell Inc. have announced an agreement to  tie
together two communications technologies they say will  help bring new
services into the home.

16 ->  ****Montreal Firm Claims Virus-Proof PC 04/12/94 Jitec Corp., a
small personal computer maker, claims to have built a PC that is
immune to viruses.

17 -> Multimedia Dev't Group To Host "Killer" Content Seminar 04/12/94
The  Multimedia Development Group (MDG), a trade association
developed as a "catalyst for interactive multimedia products and
services," has announced a seminar to discuss "Killer Content."

18 -> Microsoft UK Intros Access 2.0, Office Prof 4.3 04/12/94
Microsoft  has launched the Access database management system 2.0 for
Windows. According to the company, plans call for the company to
include the package in Office Professional 4.3.

19 -> UK - Gold Disk Intros Windows Presentation Software 04/12/94
Gold Disk, a desktop presentation software house, has announced
Astound 1.5 for Windows in the UK. Developed by the company's Santa
Clara office in the US, the package is billed as "combining the ease
of use of traditional software with the impact of sound, animation,
narration, video and interactivity" to create an "award-winning
state-of-the- art presentation tool."

20 ->  ****CompuServe UK Announces Internet Plans 04/12/94 After
months  of rumors and tests, CompuServe has opened up the next stage
in  its Internet connection. Following on from the Internet mail link
introduced a few years ago, subscribers to CompuServe can now  log on
across the Internet using the "telnet" procedure.

21 -> CompuServe UK Reports 100,000 Subscribers In Europe 04/12/94
CompuServe,  the online service, has revealed it has achieved a
considerable  success with its relatively recent efforts to recruit
new members  in Europe. To date, more than 100,000 members have signed
up in  Europe, company officials said.

22 ->  ****Exploring The Congo By Videoconference 04/12/94 A team of
16 explorers, with thousands of students following electronically, is
launching a 12 month, 6,000 mile trek recreating explorer Sir  Henry
Morton Stanley's search for the sources of the Congo and  Nile rivers
in Africa.

23 -> Sony Launches Watergate Haldeman Diaries CD-ROM 04/12/94 Sony
Electronic  Publishing Co. is betting there are still plenty of people
around  who are interested in Watergate. The company is rolling out a
multimedia CD-ROM based on the "never before published" diaries  of
former White House chief of staff H.R. Haldeman.

24 -> Santa Fe Institute Gets "Messy" Systems Grant 04/12/94 The Santa
Fe  Institute, a small, leading-edge research lab, has picked up a
$323,000 grant from the Pentagon's Advanced Research Projects  Agency
for work on computer science and the study of complex,  "messy"
systems. The ARPA grant follows a visit to the lab by Vice  President
Al Gore and Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.).

25 -> SGI Upgrades Entry-Level Indy Workstation 04/12/94 Silicon
Graphics Incorporated (SGI) said it is offering more power for the
same amount of money in its entry-level Indy workstation system. The
company said the low-end Indy offers a faster microprocessor, faster
graphics display, and faster three- dimensional (3-D) performance for
the same price tag - just under $5,000.

26 -> New IDE CD-ROM Uses Standard Hard Disk Controller 04/12/94
Advanced Logic Research (ALR) announced, what the company claims is,
the first  compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) drive to connect to
a  standard hard disk drive controller. The new ALR Express Model
CDE-1200 connects to the computer's existing 16-bit Integrated  Drive
Electronics (IDE) controller, which the most widely used  controller
interface for hard disk drives in personal computers  (PCs) sold
today.

27 -> HP Intros Low-Cost 20GB Jukebox, Disk Array For LANS 04/12/94
Hewlett- Packard has introduced a product billed as the least
expensive 20  gigabyte (GB) optical jukebox on the market today, plus
a new file  system for making a Unix-based optical jukebox appear to
be a  single large drive, and a new disk system and disk array system
for local area networks (LANs).

28 -> Technology Conference Set For San Francisco 04/12/94 Hambrecht
& Quist have announced the 22nd annual Technology Conference to  be
held at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco. More than  160
electronic technology companies will be present for the three- day
conference which provides corporations an opportunity to  showcase
themselves before the Wall Street community.

29 -> Japan - Fujitsu Intros Notebook Workstation 04/12/94 Fujitsu has
released a  notebook-type workstation, which is compatible with Sun
Microsystems' Unix workstations, priced at 1.28 million yen
($12,800).

30 -> India - Yellow Pages On A Card 04/12/94 Calcutta-based PBM
Cybernetics has launched an electronic card, which allows the user to
access on-line yellow pages services without an  information retrieval
operator.

(Ian Stokell/19940412)