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/may_jun_94/nb060394

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(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00001)

UK - Intercom Data Launches Telecoms Call Mgmt System 06/03/94
GUILDFORD, SURREY, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) - Intercom Data Systems (IDS) has
launched Prophet, a new call center analysis service that it claims
has been specifically designed as a self-contained package to take any
type or size of organization through the complete process of call
analysis.

"Many organizations are changing the way in which they conduct
business, and the telephone is taking more of a leading role in the
interaction and communication with their customers. To successfully
achieve radical change in any company's business processes requires
both careful planning and the cooperation of many areas of the
business concerned," explained Colin McLaren, ISD's sales director.

According to McLaren, Prophet takes call data in at the front end and
allows customized reports on the call data to be printed out. This, he
said, "Leapfrogs companies through the time-consuming area of call
data analysis."

Exact pricing of the Prophet service depends on user requirements,
McLaren said, adding that customers must agree on the scope of
the Prophet processor and what is most appropriate for the business
and prepare initial background research and establish personnel
to be involved on both sides. There must be research by IDS on-site,
through work study, interviews, and discussion with follow-up
research and information analysis, primarily handled on an
off-site basis.

An interim report is then generated, feedback comes from all
concerned, a final report is issued that details the
outcome of the call center analysis.

"The beauty of Prophet is that we are able to give our customers a
fixed price, fixed time commitment, and agree what the final report
will cover from the outset. This means they know exactly what we will
be doing on their behalf, how long it will take, and what kind of
information they can expect from it," said McLaren.

(Steve Gold/19940602/Press & Reader Contact: Colin McLaren, IDS - +44-
483-755205)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00002)

Nokia Equipment To St Petersburg's GSM Net 06/03/94
ST PETERSBURG, RUSSIA, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Nokia Telecom has signed a
contract with Northwest GSM for the supply of a global system for
mobile (GSM) communications digital mobile phone network in the St
Petersburg region of Russia.

Northwest GSM, the network operator, is a jointly owned company, with
Telecom Finland, Telia International of Sweden, Nortelinvest of
Norway, and several Russian telecoms firms, as shareholders.

Construction of the GSM network will begin this summer, with full
commercial operation expected towards the end of the current year.
Initially, the service will cover the St Petersburg area only using a
handful of base stations, although plans are in hand to roll the
service out to cover other cities and major roads as far as 200
kilometers away from the city, the limit of Northwest GSM's
operating area. The rollout will take four years, Newsbytes was
told.

The total area of Northwest GSM's licence covers around 7.5 million
people. Despite the relatively small size of the network, Nokia claims
that the network will be heavily used, primarily because no mobile
phone network exists at present, plus the fact that the local telecoms
infrastructure dates back to the 1950s.

The arrival of more than 1,500 joint venture companies into the region
over the last decade has placed an intolerable load on the wireline
(fixed) phone network with many users experiencing delays of several
minutes to receive a dial tone when they lift the wireline phone
handset off the hook.

Northwest GSM intends that its mobile phone network will act as a
replacement for the wireline network. Although outbound calls from the
phones will be charged at a premium rate, inbound calls will not be
surcharged as far as the caller is concerned -- the surcharge is
imposed on the GSM mobile subscriber.

Despite this limitation, Northwest GSM is confident of selling several
tens of thousands of subscriptions in its first year of commercial
operation.

(Steve Gold/19940602/Press & Reader Contact: Matti Suvanto, Telecom
Finland - [phone]; Tapani Kaskinen, Nokia - [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(DAL)(00003)

Average Hard Disk 1GB In Capacity By 1996, Says Survey 06/03/94
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Increased
demand for storage space will push computer users to seek five to
15 times more hard disk space, according to market research group
Frost & Sullivan. By 1996, the average hard disk on a stand-alone
desktop PC will be 1 gigabyte (GB) in size, the market research
group said.

The 1993 total US personal computer/workstation storage
market totaled $8.2 billion in 1993, with nearly $6.2 billion
from hard disk drives, over $700 million by floppy
disk drives, $600 million from tape drives, nearly $450 million
in optical disk drives and over $100 million each by flash memory
and removable disk drives.

The demands for storage media are being prompted by the obvious,
such as graphics-intensive software programs and 32-bit operating
systems, but are also being affected by the increasing size of
user files and the expanding number of installed software
programs per computer, Frost & Sullivan analyst John Kelly said.

Currently users need 125 megabytes (MB) of hard disk space for
the seven to eight applications typically installed per PC, Kelly
maintains. Programs are not the 4 to 5 MB in size they were even
5 years ago, said Kelly, who noted basic word processing programs
require much more disk space. For example, Microsoft's Word for
Windows needs 24 MB while WordPerfect for Windows requires 33 MB.

Increasing capacities in smaller form factors are also expected to
continue. For example, the Kittyhawk II hard disk drive
introduced by Hewlett-Packard last year offers 42.8 megabytes of
storage in a 1.3-inch form factor and is aimed at the mobile
computing market.

Hard disk drive storage capacities have increased by nearly 60
percent a year, with falling per-megabyte prices, and that trend
is also expected to continue, Frost and Sullivan asserted. In
addition, improvements in access times, data-throughput rates,
and capacity (due to magnetoresistive heads) will keep magnetic
hard disk drives in demand as the dominant online storage medium.
In fact, by 1996 most file servers will have an average storage
capacity of over 20 megabytes.

Despite assertions on the part of some analysts that flash memory
would dominate the storage market, flash memory cards, Kelly claims,
will need dramatic price declines to heavily penetrate the
broad portable computer markets.

Optical drives, for which market growth is only surpassed by flash
memory cards, have not met predictions for broad market
acceptance, but have had success in application-specific
markets. Hard disk drive technology is improving at a rate that
continually raises the threshold optical drives need to meet to
compete, and file access times and capacities have not advanced
in the optical arena as fast as expected. However, growth in the
market is expected at 30 percent a year as advances in the
performance and commercial availability of green and blue laser
technology continue.

The number of storage units overall is expected to more than
double by the year 2000, with 43.4 million units shipped in 1993
and a predicted 75.3 million units predicted to ship in the year
2000. Revenues however, will not grow as fast, with a 6.3 percent
overall revenue growth rate predicted by the end of the 20th
Century. While 1993 revenues overall were at $8.31 billion,
predicted year 2000 revenues will be at $12.78 billion.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940602/Press Contact: Amy Arnell, Frost &
Sullivan, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00004)

CompuServe Releases CD 06/03/94
COLUMBUS, OHIO, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- CompuServe released
CompuServeCD, a multimedia extension of the CompuServe
Information Service, for CD-ROM drive-equipped computers
that run Microsoft Windows.

CompuServe is the first major online service to offer the
enhancement. Some copies of the disc were offered to the media at
the recent Spring COMDEX trade show, but a formal announcement
was held-up until delivery of the product.

Debra Young of CompuServe told Newsbytes that the CD will be
available by subscription, at $7.95 per issue, and will be
updated once every two months until the middle of 1995, when it
will become monthly. "You don't need to be a member to see the
CD, but you'll want to make the most use of it. About the
only thing that the disk lacks is an automatic sign-up to the
service. "Maybe next year," said a spokesman.

Each issue also includes the latest version of the CompuServe
Information Manager, Windows Edition, known as WinCIM, the
graphical interface to the information service, as well as
File Finder.

Newsbytes asked about the enhancements the CD gives to CompuServe
members. "If you go into the electronic mall area on the
CompuServe CD and decide to purchase something, you hot-link
directly to the CompuServe service, in that area, where you can
provide billing information, an address and credit card." The
decision on when to process the order goes through the merchant.

The CD is organized into six departments: Technology and
Trends, Entertainment, Home & Leisure, Personal Enterprise,
Shopping and Member Services. To run CompuServeCD, members need
an MPC II standard PC, Windows 3.1, 4 megabytes of memory
although 8 are recommended, a 256-color monitor with 640x480
resolution, and at least an 8-bit Sound Blaster or equivalent
sound card, although again the 16-bit sound card and external
speaker configurations are recommended. CompuServeCD requires
approximately 5 megabytes of disk space, plus 2.6 megabytes for
WinCIM and .4 megabytes for Viewer for Windows if these programs
are not already resident on the system.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940602/Press Contact: Debra Young,
CompuServe, 614-538-4553)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(TYO)(00005)

Sega Makes Deals With Coke, Hudson 06/03/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Sega Enterprises has signed an
agreement with CocaCola Japan which calls for a joint advertising
campaign for both firms' products. Sega's agreement with Hudson
concerns joint development of video game software for Sega's
video game machine.

Under the agreement with CocaCola Japan, Sega Enterprises will
develop video game software incorporating CocaCola's cartoon
advertising characters for its next-generation video game
machine, due at the end of this year. Sega has several amusement
facilities in Japan where the ad campaign will most certainly
be launched.

Meanwhile, Sega has linked with Hokkaido-based game software
maker Hudson to develop video game software for Sega's
next generation video game machine. Hudson makes software
for NEC Home Electronics' video game machine and specializes
in CD-ROM.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940602/Press Contact: Sega
Enterprises, Tel, [phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00006)

Toshiba Multimedia Car Navigation System 06/03/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Toshiba has announced that it has
developed a small-sized car navigation system. It is equipped with
a CD-ROM drive that plays both music CDs and CD-based software.

To be released at 268,000 yen ($2,680) on September 1, Toshiba's
latest car navigation system is called the NP-A50. It consists
of a controller, display monitor, and CD-ROM-based map software.
The controller measures 14.5 x 5 x 19.5 and weighs 1.15kg.
This is about a fourth the size of Toshiba's existing model.

Due to the size, this system can be installed in almost all types
of cars and is portable. Toshiba has additionally enabled it to
be connected with a regular television set.

The car navigation system uses a global positioning system to locate
the car's position. The controller receives signals from eight
different space satellites owned by the US military but
available for public use. Interchangeable map software allows the
system to be used in almost any area in the world.
Due to Toshiba's "map-matching" feature, the firms says, the
system's ability to locate a car's position has a high degree of
accuracy.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940601/Press Contact: Toshiba, Tel,
[phone], Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TYO)(00007)

Mini-Disks Store TV Programs 06/03/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Japan's Hitachi has developed a
powerful Mini-Disk that stores a whopping 100 times more data than
regular Mini-Disks. Hitachi reports that the new medium can store
motion picture data, including TV programs.

Hitachi's latest Mini-Disk technology was developed by improving
the method with which data is written to the disk. Optical fiber
material is used instead of a lens. The optical fiber enables data
to be written by an extremely narrow laser with a wavelength of
0.07 micron, or about a 10th the size of the laser applied on a
regular Mini-Disk. Hitachi has applied what it calls "the tunnel
effect" of lights in combination with this optical fiber material.
Hitachi claims it is possible to further increase the amount of
data stored to about 1,000 times higher by applying even narrower
optical fiber material.

Hitachi did not specify how long it will take for the technology
to reach the market.

With 100-times more data, the Mini-Disk will be able to store
about one hour of motion picture data, the company reports.
That makes it capable of storing more than a regular compact disc,
which stores only two minutes of motion picture signals.

The Mini-Disk technology was originally developed by Sony, and
many electronics firms including Matsushita and Sanyo have been
selling Mini-Disk-based products.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940531/Press Contact: Hitachi, +81-3-
3258-2057, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(TYO)(00008)

Japan - Kyocera Develops Set-Top Multimedia Box 06/03/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Kyoto-based Kyocera has developed
a multimedia box for video-on-demand service called the Set Top Box.
Kyocera claims that this represents the first time a Japanese
firm has developed this kind of multimedia box.

Kyocera's Set Top Box is a terminal device for home television.
It measures 31 x 23 x 40 cm, which fits on top of a television
set. This box has an interactive data transmission feature which
allows users to receive motion picture data from a host
computer, and also allows them to send commands to the host
computer. They can stop or "freeze-frame" pictures on the
screen or choose their favorite video programs to be played
instantly. It is said it can also be used as a karaoke device.

Kyocera is planning to sell this device to video-on-demand service
firms including TV broadcasters and cable TV firms in the
US. Kyocera claims to have the technology and capability to
produce 50,000 to 60,000 units of this device per month.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940519/Press Contact: Kyocera, +81-3-
3274-1551, Fax, [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(TYO)(00009)

Japan - Hitachi ATM Cleans Money 06/03/94
TOKYO, JAPAN, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Hitachi has developed
an unique automatic bank teller machine (ATM) which flattens and
sterilizes dollar bills. The firm claims to be getting its
first purchase orders for the device from hospitals.

This ATM has a steam roller inside which rolls across a
dollar bill at a temperature of 200 degrees centigrade. All
the wrinkles, germs, and bacteria are said to be vaporized
when a bill goes through this ATM.

The price of this unique ATM is 9.80 million yen ($98,000),
which is about seven percent more than a regular ATM.

(Masayuki "Massey" Miyazawa/19940519/Press Contact: Kyocera, +81-3-
3274-1551, Fax, [phone], Hitachi, [phone], Fax, +81-
3-3768-9507)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(LON)(00010)

Denmark - Computer News Roundup 06/03/94
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK, 1994 JUN 3 - In computer news from Denmark,
OS/2 has strong base in Denmark, Danish technology in future
digital superhighway, and first Danish interactive book on CD-ROM.

OS/2 Has Strong Base In Denmark

Microsoft's Windows NT operating system is not faring well in
finding customers in the Danish financial sector, especially
the banks. Danish banks continue to expand their systems using
IBM's OS/2. The latest examples are the Jyske Bank and SDC, a
service provider for a number of banks.

OS/2 also has a strong base in the Danish public sector, where it
competes head-to-head with Microsoft Windows. According to a new
analysis from IDC, OS/2 has a market share of about 20 percent
in government offices, with Windows holding about 40 percent.

IDC also estimated the hardware market shares in the Danish public
sector. In government offices, IBM, Olivetti, and ICL are the
most common PC brands. Multi-user systems are dominated by Bull,
Digital and the Danish manufacturer DDE. In municipal administration
the predominant PCs are the same, while ICL, IBM and Olivetti
sell the most multi-user systems.

Danish Technology In Future Digital Superhighway

HyperVision, a small Danish high-tech company in Copenhagen,
has great ambitions for participating in the creation of a European
digital superhighway. It has created an interactive television
set-top box.

HyperVision, which counts the famous hi-fi manufacturer Bang &
Olufsen among its shareholders, has developed a "black box"
designed to be placed between the TV set and the cable network.
The box allows the user to select among a variety of interactive
offers. Among the possibilities, HyperVision mentions home
banking, video on demand, and tele-education.

First Danish Interactive Book On CD-ROM

On May 31st, the first interactive, electronic book was
published in Danish. The CD-ROM, available for both
Macintosh and Windows, is not just a multimedia show, but
can be "read" like a regular book with a beginning and an end.

"Computer Pictures," as the CD-ROM is titled, is produced by
three artists and programmers working with the Danish television
network TV2. It is published by the publishing house Gyldendal,
which hopes to acquire experience in tomorrow's form of publishing.

The book is comprised of text and examples of professional computer
graphics, both internationally known animations and the authors'
own work for Danish television. The graphics are shown as
QuickTime movies or Video for Windows clips.

(Leif Bomberg/19940525/Internet: [e-mail])


(REVIEW)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00011)

Review of - The Telescan System, online service, 06/03/94

Runs on: Interface requires PC with 640K of RAM and EGA or VGA
graphics, 2 free megabytes of hard disk space, MS-DOS 2.1 or
higher, plus a Hayes-compatible modem running at 2,400 or 9,600
baud.

From: Telescan Inc., 10550 Richmond Ave., Suite 250, Houston,
Texas 77042, 800-324-8246

Price: Free Analyzer software, $12.75 including shipping and
handling, and includes 30 days of free non prime-time access.
ProSearch software costs $295. Non prime-time online time costs
41 cents, with prime-time service, 7 AM to 6 PM on weekdays,
costing 94 cents per minute. Those per-minute charges don't
include a 10 cent charge for each graph downloaded. There's also
a flat billing-rate program, $45 per month for unlimited
analysis, non prime-time. ProSearch searches add $15 per month to
the unlimited use monthly fee, or add $2 to each search made
during prime time, $1 in non-prime time.

PUMA rating: 3.9 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest)

Reviewed for Newsbytes by: Dana Blankenhorn

Summary: The best tool yet to help individual investors track the
stock market.

=======

REVIEW

=======

Financial analysis software, and online services, can become very
intensive and expensive. Traders' systems, which work with real-
time data, display multiple charts, and allow for direct
communications with floor traders, can cost thousands of dollars
per month, per workstation.

Individual investors can't afford that, and until now they've
been greatly hampered as a result. Most services, like the
online service Dow Jones News-Retrieval and Signal, which works
on FM sub-carriers, only offer text, and then on a 15-minute
delay.

Telescan fills the gap. Like the low-end services, its data is on
a 15-minute delay. But unlike those services, it offers charts
galore. And not just price action, but all sorts of tools, like
stochastics, which sophisticated investors like to use.

In addition to buying the software directly from Telescan, you
can also get its software and services indirectly, through
brokers like Charles Schwab and Fidelity which offer private-
label versions of it, and tie their trading desks to it. The
company's latest link in this area is an agreement with Schwab to
support its InvestorSource program and Schwab Visa card, which
allows cardholders to earn credit on charges for investment
information products, including Telescan.

Telescan's software runs under MS-DOS, but now DesqView. Simply
load it into a subdirectory called TELE30 and invoke it from that
prompt by typing the letter t. What you get are an impressive
array of tools which can minimize your time online.

Two of these programs were tested by Newsbytes. Analyzer creates
online graphs of price action. ProSearch lets you compare
valuations based on a number of different measures. Both
packages can be used with a keyboard, but work well with a mouse,
and they have windowing features, although they're not MS-Windows
packages. When you move through the ProSearch menu, a separate
window explains the meaning of things like P/E ratios, which can
be very helpful.

In addition to the graphing software and downloading of reports
on stocks, Telescan offers a number of other services, most of
which weren't reviewed. Among its text services are a number of
different newsletters including one by Ian Woodward, whose "high
growth stock" method is made much easier to work with Telescan.
Telescan, in fact, recently backed a speaking tour by Woodward,
and resells his videotapes.

I've always felt that investing is a lot like gambling, except
with better odds, and a better reputation. With its data, graphs,
and helpful touts, Telescan is bidding to become an online
version of the "Daily Racing Form" used by horseplayers. If
Pete Rose had had Telescan, the action would likely have kept
him from wanting to bet on sports.

Some Telescan products were not tested, and cover different
securities. Mutual Fund Search costs $100, Profit
Tester/Optimizer costs $100, Portfolio Manager costs $395,
Options Analyzer costs $895, and Options Search costs $595. All
work within the Telescan system.

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

PUMA RATINGS

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

PERFORMANCE: 3.9 Setting up the software is simple, and it runs
on a low-end machine. Pity it doesn't work with DesqView,
however.

USEFULNESS: 3.9 If you play the stock market a lot, this is one
of the most useful tools you can own.

MANUAL: 3.9. All the manuals were useful. The one search I
couldn't find within the manual, an insider trading report on a
whole group of companies, couldn't be done through the system.

AVAILABILITY: 3.9 The toll-free number is useful, but that's the
main route to getting the service.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940601/Press Contact: Richard Ames,
Telescan, 713-952-1060)


(REVIEW)(APPLE)(SFO)(00012)

Review of - Castle of Dr. Brain 06/03/94

Runs on: Color Macintosh computers

From: Sierra On-Line, P.O.Box 485, Coarsegold, CA, 93614,
800-376-2683, 206-644-4343

Price: $59.95

PUMA rating: 3.25 (on a scale of 1=lowest to 4=highest)

Reviewed by: Naor Wallach

Summary: A quasi-adventure game that requires you to solve scores of
logic problems to get a job. Very well done graphics and sounds help
attract interest.

=======

REVIEW

=======

Castle of Dr. Brain is a collection of mind-bending puzzles
masquerading as an adventure game. It is one of the slickest
presentations of the logic puzzle genre that I have encountered. The
graphics and music are fantastic and the story line is believable
enough to draw you in. In short, a good game.

The Castle of Dr. Brain comes on four diskettes. Along with the
diskettes you get a 30-page game manual, a ten-page instruction
manual, and a selection of assorted brochures.

Sierra also throws a book into each copy of this game. Titled
"Fantastic Book of Logic Puzzles," it contains 70 puzzles and mind
bending logical exercises for those who like this sort of thing.
Given that this skill is necessary for success in the game, I suspect
most players would enjoy the additional challenges being posed by the
puzzles in the book. The book is completely independent of game play.
There are no clues hidden within it nor need for it during game play.

There is an installation utility on the diskettes which takes care of
all the tedious details once you've started it. Installation takes
only a few minutes. Be prepared to use up about 3 MBof hard disk
space for this game. Once installed, the game is ready to be played.

The storyline is that a famous scientist and researcher called Dr.
Brain is looking for an assistant to help him save the world. You,
being unemployed at the moment, are interested in applying for the
job. Since Dr. Brain is interested in good candidates only, he has
set up a unique interviewing system. To get hired you must find him
within his castle. And to do that, you must enter the castle and
solve all kinds of challenges until you get to him. The game is
designed for players from age 12 to adult. This is a proper
characterization of the age range. Any child younger than middle
school age would have trouble with several of the sections. Even
some of us who are slightly older might need to dig into our memory
or encyclopedias!

There are three levels of play. You may switch between them at any
time. Once switched, they affect the next puzzle that you come up
against. I worked through this game at both the Novice and Expert
levels and noticed that the difficulty level of the puzzle does
increase.

The puzzles are of different types. There are more than 25 different
puzzles. Some of them are solved in one sitting, some require you to
assemble some tools from other puzzles, and yet others cannot be
solved unless you've solved several other puzzles in the right
sequence. Some of the puzzle areas are: Memorization skills,
arithmetic, magic numbers, timing combinations, following directions,
mazes, anagrams, tangrams, hangman, ciphers, star charts, and
unlocking safes. None of the puzzles are violent or cause you to
"die." In this game, the object is to exercise your mind, not your
hand-eye coordination.

Each scene along the path is rendered in full color and was
obviously created with great care by the art staff at Sierra. The
locations have an almost movie-like quality to them. In some cases,
the scenes and puzzles take on a cartoonish flavor. In either case,
gazing at the graphics took some of my time the first couple of times
through a particular scene. Many of the scenes have background music
associated with them. In most cases, the music is relatively
unobtrusive. But there is a way to turn it off.

The game supports three different screen sizes so that you can size
the window to fit your screen or eyesight. The game does not remember
what the last setting was, so every time you start the game up again,
you will need to reset the screen size. That's assuming that you want
a size that is larger than the smallest one. The top part of the
window shows the name of the game and the difficulty level you have
selected. By placing the cursor on that part of the screen, the game
will eventually show you an additional menu of choices for
controlling various aspects of the game. This is the place where you
decide whether to look at different things or touch things and try to
make things happen.

Following the introductory screen, the first scene shows you outside
the castle looking at the entrance door. The door is closed, of
course. To enter, you must figure out what starts the first
puzzle, and then solve it. Pay particular attention to the pink
flamingos! Once past the entryway, you are placed in the first level
corridor. There are three rooms running off of this corridor. Each
one of them is behind a closed door. Each closed door can be opened
if you solve the puzzle associated with them. This first level,
concentrates on mathematical puzzles. (Each level tends to have a
concentration of similar subject puzzles.) You need to solve things
in the right order to get through the level. The order is easily
determined, but make sure that you look at everything! Some of the
things that you can do will give you things that might
not be needed until very late in the game.

The game is copy-protected by forcing the user to retrieve the
documentation to solve some of the puzzles. The method is really
buried in the game play and is not as obtrusive as some that
I've encountered before.

You might find that you are unsure on how to proceed as you are
presented with a particular puzzle. Each puzzle is outlined in a box
with three buttons that are common to all puzzles: The question mark,
the coin slot, and the Exit button. The Exit button lets you leave
the puzzle in midstream. The question mark gives you instructions on
how to work the puzzle. The coin slot allows you to buy hints or
partial solutions. Each time you solve a puzzle, you get additional
hint coins. If you spend them all on buying hints there are no more.
So, be very careful to use them only when you absolutely must.

0nce you reach Dr. Brain's study, you are almost done. When you
do find Dr. Brain, the game is essentially complete. The only
thing that remains is the sequence of credits and
the tantalizing hint about the next game in this series.

On the negative side, all the graphics and sounds take up a lot of
computer horsepower to play and consequently, you will find that you
are waiting during transitions. Even on my Centris 610, the delays
were typically measured in the tens of seconds. This is unfortunate
as the delays detract from an otherwise finely executed game. There
are other problems as well. The game menu seems to take forever to
appear and when it does, it sometimes does inconsistent things. For
instance, I've given up trying to predict if, when I leave the
inventory screen, I'll be in look mode, or in touch mode. It seems to
be a totally random process. Also, there is a major defect in version
1.0 of the game. If you are playing it any time beyond September 1992
(kind of a given, isn't it?) the game will lock up at a certain
point. According to Sierra technical support this is due to a
software fault. There is a patch available which Sierra will send you
at no charge. However, you must first call Sierra and report the
problem. I do not know if there are subsequent versions out on the
market and the box is not labeled with the version number. A
temporary solution that Sierra suggested was to reset your Macintosh
clock to any date prior to 1992. I tried that solution and it worked.

Sierra maintains a technical support phone number (toll call). There
is also a hint line (900 type toll call). And you can also talk to
their sales department (toll free). In addition, Sierra maintains
their own on-line system for both playing games and getting answers
to questions, and they are present on all of the major on-line
services as well.

To summarize: I was very happy with this game. It took no effort for
me to find the time to dedicate to this review. I liked the concept
and found that Sierra's adventure game background was of great help
in this game. Unfortunately, there are several problems with the game
that detract from it.

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

PUMA RATINGS

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

PERFORMANCE: 3 There is a major bug as described above. The ending
sequence takes a very long time to run and there is no way around it.
Some of the transitions between scenes seem to take a very long time.

USEFULNESS: 4 This is a good game, in a good setting, with an
interesting storyline, and beautiful presentation.

MANUAL: 3 Once you figure out which manuals do what, you're all set.
It seems odd to me that Sierra includes a manual that addresses
telephone numbers but in which everything else is not germane to this
game.

AVAILABILITY: 3 Available from mail order and software stores.
Although technical support is available, it is not a toll-free call.
And in this game, it was needed.

(Naor Wallach/19940506)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(DAL)(00013)

California Can Save Millions Using Videoconferencing 06/03/94
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- The State of
California is implementing videoconferencing and encouraging
government offices to use the service instead of spending money
on travel. The California Department of Transportation
(CALTRANS), one of the six government charter entities to begin
use of videoconferencing, estimates it will save $1 million
annually in travel expenses, travel time, and increased
productivity.

Joanne Corday Kozberg, Secretary of the State and Consumer
Services Agency in Sacramento, said, "The expansion of
videoconferencing will deliver twin benefits. It will cost
millions of dollars from the state's yearly bill for employee
travel and it will boost productivity... With the traditional
meeting format, those attending must report back to distant
colleagues and then schedule further meetings. With
videoconferencing, all the principals needed to make a decision
are present."

She added, "Videoconferencing also give employees many more
productive hours by eliminating time wasted in airports and
on the freeway." Travel time in congested California is always
an issue.

Three demonstration sites have been established: one in
Sacramento at 455 Capitol Mall, one in San Francisco at 185 Berry
Street, and a Los Angeles location at 300 South Spring Street in
the Ronald Reagan Building. Two of the sites are open now, and
the San Francisco site will open in July. The sites are operated
by the California Department of General Services (DGS).

Each test site supports communication at 56 kilobytes per second
(Kbps) to 1.44 megabytes per second (Mbps) at standard 30 frame
per second (fps) rates including support for the video full
common intermediate format (CIF). In addition the sites offer the
use of a six-line Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
interface, a document camera, an electronic writing surface, a 35
millimeter (mm) slide-to-video projection system, a video
cassette recorder (VCR) with play and recording capability, and a
computer interface.

Pacific Bell and partners Compression Labs, Inc. (CLI) and Tele-
Images, Inc. were awarded a three-year, state-wide master
contract for comprehensive videoconferencing services. The
contract called for equipment ranging from desktop to hearing
room configurations, and contains provisions for equipment
purchase, lease, and rental in addition to training and
maintenance services. CLI, known for video compression, worked
with American Telephone and Telegraph on the development of the
AT&T Videophone, designed for home and business users that sends
live, color video images over standard telephone lines.

The state has also formed a committee just to handle
videoconferencing -- the State of California Videoconferencing
Advisory Committee. Charter members include six government
entities, including CALTRANS and DGS. The four other government
divisions involved are: The California Department of Insurance
(CDI); The California State University at Sacramento (CSUS); and
the Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES).

The Videoconferencing Advisory Committee claims the State can
save millions each year using videoconferencing instead of travel
and is attempting to entice state agencies to test drive the
technology at one of the three DGS test sites. The DSG conducted
a live videoconference Thursday, June 2 between Kozberg in
Sacramento and Michael Fitzpatrick, Pacific Bell's executive
vice-president for state-wide markets in San Ramon to show off
the system's capabilities.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940603/Press Contact: Mary Ann Olsen, State of
California Department of General Services, tel [phone], fax
916-322-3850/VideoConf940306/PHOTO)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SYD)(00014)

Australia - Computer Associates Revamps Distribution 06/03/94
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Computer Associates, the
world's number two software manufacturer, has re-organized
its Australian distribution, appointing a single distributor
for all PC products. The distributor is Sourceware, a mid-level
organization which claims to offer a higher level of service
and support than the two main distributors.

Gary Mitchell is regional manager of Computer Associates
Channel Partners, with responsibilities for all PC business
as well as Unix and AS400 software area resellers. He
explained, "We looked for a distributor for all CA PC products
and Sourceware best fitted the bill. Our experience in the
PC marketplace has taught us that a one-stop distributor
strategy is best for us, hence our move to Sourceware.
It is able to provide the support and backup and the
professional assistance our resellers need. In the Australian
distribution scene it appears to be a Merisel-versus-Tech Pacific
battle with the result that the little distributors get
squeezed out. But distributors like Sourceware who are able
to offer a different focus will continue to succeed."

Mitchell explained that the CA products Sourceware distributes
fall into these categories: accounting (ACCPAC Plus),
development and productivity. They include Realizer, Clipper,
Cricket, Simply Money, and SuperProject.

ACCPAC Plus accounting software is a separate group within
Sourceware. "We have tightened our ACCPAC Plus reseller
program. There are now two levels - authorized dealer and
professional reseller. Dealers can sell product but they
have to nominate a qualified installer so that the customer
is assured of expert assistance."

CA also has a range of Unix Products it distributes directly.
"I look after HP, DG, Wang, Fujitsu, Arthur Anderson and
Applied Micro Systems," said Mitchell. "These businesses are a
combination of hardware and systems integrators. In that
area we have a Unix product called CA-Unicentre which
provides systems management for Unix. With the trend to
downsizing this provides a way to run mission critical
applications on Unix machines. Security, problem management,
storage management, job scheduling, console automation and
helpdesk. The majority of interest has come from Unix people
saying 'That's great, we'll have that.' It opens a number
of opportunities because it runs on many different Unix
platforms. The aim is to run the entire enterprise from the
one point. Perhaps from the one OS/2 or Windows machine but it
operates across the system."

Ever since CA bought Nantucket and took over the Clipper
development system, resellers and developers have been
waiting for the much-touted Visual Objects for Clipper
product. "You won't have to wait much longer," Mitchell
announced. "It's scheduled for US availability in late
August and Australia soon after. And you can expect
competitive pricing to introduce it."

He continued: "We're continuing to do some interesting
things in the SOHO [small office, home office] market in
June, when we're using Simply Money to do a spot of
strategy testing with Uniloc. We've put a fully functional,
but 'locked' Simply Money on the cover of PC User magazine.
That's 50,000 copies. The software is locked with Uniloc
which means it's much more than a demo disk. You can actually
use the product but you can't save or print anything. If
people like it and want to be able to use it they simply pay
$40 to have it unlocked and receive the manuals."

He said that if the response rate was over five percent
then CA would probably use Uniloc on other products.

(Paul Zucker/19940603/Contact: Sourceware tel. +1-02-427
7999 fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SYD)(00015)

Dell Australia Gets New Boss 06/03/94
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Dell Australia start-up
man Jeff Herrick has gone from the company, leaving a
functioning and mildly successful part of the US-based
multinational operation.

In his exit statement, Herrick said he had achieved what he
set out to do, that the parting was "amicable" and that it was
time to "pursue other interests." Saddling up in his place is
David Bernstein who speaks in a good-ol'-boy drawl and wants
the local subsidiary to take its place in the sun with volume
PC vendors like Osborne, IBM, and Compaq. Bernstein will ride
herd on the local Dell for three or four months while
the company head-hunts for a fresh MD from local stock. He
believes the company can ascend from its lowly position on
the market share charts to be one of the top five vendors
in Australia within three years.

"We're going to ride the Pentium bandwagon," said Bernstein,
adding that Pentium server sales and Dell's new notebook
line will boost the company's fortunes. A wider channel,
including retail outlets and more VARs (value-added resellers)
is being looked at. Dell Australia started selling here in
January 1993 using its trademark telesales method.

According to IDC's Australian Personal Computer market review
and forecast study, Dell sits at number 23 with a one percent
market share and shipments of around 7,500 units for 1993.
The company made bellicose marketing noises early last year,
taking on Compaq in a series of glossy spreads in newspapers
and magazines. Mimicking Dell's US efforts, the local subsidiary
attacked Compaq on price, ignoring the fact that the real price
leaders in the ultra-competetive Australian market are the
hundreds of small assemblers.

(Stuart Kennedy and Computer Daily News/19940603)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(SFO)(00016)

Internet Business Association Formed 06/03/94
SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Like any other
community, the Internet brings together business partners whose
common goals are best met in a spirit of cooperation. Much like a
chamber of commerce, the Internet Business Association (IBA)
brings together small companies doing business on the Internet.

The IBA will monitor the role of government, provide education
through the dissemination of information to other businesses,
the media, and the public in general, create a World Wide Web
server, represent the interests of small to medium-sized
Internet businesses, and address the issues of privacy, rights,
and conduct within the Internet community.

From Internet World '94, the founding members of InterCon
Systems, Performance Systems International, Digital Express
Group, NETCOM On-Line Communications Services, Portal
Information Network and Frontier Technologies, announced the
availability of charter memberships and a mid-June charter
meeting of this new association.

The IBA plans to disseminate information through press
conferences, advertisements, videos, seminars, newsletters,
and speeches.

Kurt Baumann, CEO of InterCon Systems and founding member of
IBA, told Newsbytes, "Large corporations have a lot of
influence in Washington, but the only way small and medium-sized
companies will have any voice is to join together. There is
a lot of concern across the Net about the role of the
government and many fear that if we do not have united
representation we will never have input into the evolution
of a community that has been founded on individualism and freedom
of restrictive regulations."

Privacy and freedom of access and contribution are the
hallmarks of Internet and conversations and seminars throughout
Internet World '94 often featured discussion of people's concerns
that government regulatory agencies would recreate their
open landscape. IBA representatives claim that they need to
show they are able to police their own environment before
an outside influence does. Even the policing role of IBA
was met with some argument as these fiercely independent
participants and contributors dig in their heels at every
indication of control.

Mary-Ann Carolan, assistant inside sales manager for
Performance Systems international, told Newsbytes, "Policing
ourselves is not the main focus of IBA. We are really here
to establish a representative group of small companies and an
educational outlet about the Net and our community."

(Patrick McKenna/19940603/Press Contact: Ben Merritt, Ben
Merritt Media Relations, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(DEN)(00017)

Bill Gates will Give Away Billions - Eventually 06/03/94
REDMOND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Microsoft Chairman
Bill Gates says eventually he will give away most of his wealth,
leaving about $10 million to any children he might have.

Gates, 38, is considered the second wealthiest American, with a
net worth of about $6 billion. Gates points out that his fortune is
mostly on paper, saying "I don't own dollars. I own Microsoft
stock. So it's only through multiplication that you convert what I
own into some scary number." Since late April Gates and other
Microsoft officers have sold millions of shares of Microsoft
stock. That includes 1.12 million shares that brought Gates over
$93 million. Microsoft officials decline all requests for
information about the sale of stock by its officers. Share prices
have fluctuated from a low of 41-1/2 in mid-April to 52-1/2 this
week. Gates said when he divests himself of much of his wealth it
will go to charities and scientific groups.

In November 1991 Gates personally donated $12 million to the
University of Washington School of Medicine to create a Department
of Molecular Biotechnology. In August of 1991 he donated $1 million
to the Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and a
year later gave $6 million to Stanford University to help the
school complete its new Information Sciences building.

Gates recently married Melinda French, manager of a Microsoft
business unit, in a lavish ceremony held at a Hawaiian golf
resort. He is building a multimillion dollar home on the shores of
Lake Washington not far from the Microsoft headquarters campus. The
home will reportedly include electronic entertainment devices
and digitized versions of classic art works. The project is
reportedly about a year behind its four-year construction
schedule.

Gates says he will continue to run Microsoft for another decade,
then step aside to let a younger person run the day-to-day
activities of the giant software company.

Gates says despite Microsoft's success he still worries about the
competition. "In this business, by the time you realize you are in
trouble, it's too late to save yourself. Unless you're running all
the time, you're gone."

Gates says he tries to make his life as normal as possible,
flying coach class when he travels, and eating at McDonald's more
than most people.

(Jim Mallory/19940603)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00018)

CA Wins Class Action Suit, Newtrend Trial Postponed 06/03/94
ISLANDIA, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Computer
Associates International Inc., has emerged the victor in a
three-year class action lawsuit that accused its officers of
securities fraud after disappointing quarterly financial results
in 1990. Meanwhile, a trial has been postponed in another dispute
involving CA and Newtrend Group, of Orlando, Fla., over a joint
venture that went sour.

A federal court jury unanimously rejected allegations that CA and
its officers engaged in federal securities fraud. A group of
shareholders had filed the class-action lawsuit after the
company's stock price fell on July 12, 1990, just after CA
announced preliminary figures for its first quarter of fiscal
1991.

Those results were below analysts' predictions, though the
company did make a profit in the quarter, CA spokesman Bob Gordon
told Newsbytes.

A statement from CA said the lawsuit was frivolous and
legislation in the United States should be reformed to discourage
such claims.

Also on the legal front, a trial scheduled for June 2 in the
CA-Newtrend dispute was postponed. Due to problems in scheduling
witnesses, Newtrend has asked for a postponement to July 11 and
CA has asked for July 25, Gordon said. The new trial date has not
been set.

CA and Newtrend, a vendor of banking software founded in 1977,
entered into a joint venture in 1991, under which Newtrend was to
sell CA's Infopoint commercial banking software. "Early on we
began disagreeing on decisions concerning the joint venture,"
Gordon said. CA filed its first lawsuit against Newtrend in
August, 1993, and a second suit later.

(Grant Buckler/19940603/Press Contact: Bob Gordon, Computer
Associates, tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(GOVT)(TOR)(00019)

Saskatchewan Reseller Fined For Pirating MS-DOS 06/03/94
REGINA, SASKATCHEWAN, CANADA, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Duncan Computer
Corp., which was the largest computer manufacturer and reseller
in Saskatchewan until closing two years ago, and its former owner
have been convicted of pirating copies of Microsoft's
MS-DOS operating system and ordered to pay fines and
compensation.

The company must pay a C$40,000 fine and C$32,500 in compensation
to Microsoft, while John Duncan, its owner, was ordered to pay a
C$5,000 fine and C$10,000 in compensation to the Redmond, Wash.,
software firm.

Duncan Computer was convicted of installing hundreds of copies of
MS-DOS on personal computers sold to customers without having the
proper licenses.

The court decision was announced by the Canadian Alliance Against
Software Theft (CAAST) and the Business Software Alliance (BSA).
Microsoft is a member of both groups.

CAAST, a Toronto-based group of eight major software vendors, has
been instrumental in several convictions of computer resellers
and users for software piracy in the past few years.

Among them was the first conviction of a Canadian computer user
for software piracy: Rexcan Circuits Inc. of Belleville, Ontario,
was fined C$50,000 after pleading guilty to four counts of
software piracy last summer. These were the first criminal
charges laid against a computer user in Canada -- as opposed to a
dealer -- for software piracy, said James Courtney, general
manager of Quarterdeck Office Systems Canada Inc., one of CAAST's
member companies.

(Grant Buckler/19940603/Press Contact: Allan Reynolds, CAAST, tel
416-598-8988, fax [phone]; Public Contact: CAAST, tel
800-263-9700)


(NEWS)(APPLE)(DEN)(00020)

Megabytes Of Mac Sample Code Available On CD-ROM 06/03/94
PORT TOWNSEND, WASHINGTON, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Celestin
Company has released a collection of more than 450 megabytes of
Macintosh source code on CD-ROM disc called Apprentice. The
company says the collection provides Mac programmers up-to-date code
samples at an affordable price.

Celestin says it got permission from over 200 Macintosh developers
to include their sample code and utilities on the CD-ROM disc.
Included are working examples of applications, games, control
panels, extensions, and utilities, most written in C, C++ and
Pascal.

There are also shell programs and application frameworks that handle
tasks such as menus, standard dialog and, file management. Dozens
of libraries contain routines designed for a specific task, from
graphics and sounds to menu management and serial communications.
In addition to complete source code there are hundreds of small
routines that perform tasks like displaying a color icon or
resolving a file name alias.

Apprentice contains several complete programming environments. Ada,
C, Forth, Lisp, Modula-2, Oberon and Prolog come with
documentation, programming examples, and some source code for those
languages. You also get a collection of information from a Mac
programmer discussion group, and demonstration versions of
commercial programmer utilities.

The disk's contents are indexed so users can easily find what they
are looking for.

Celestin President Paul Celestin told Newsbytes the company plans
to release updates to Apprentice, probably about every six months.
The current version of Apprentice contains standard Mac code, but
Celestin says future versions will include code for the Power
Macintosh. Celestin also markets a high-speed Macintosh modem cable
that supports hardware handshaking and carrier detect, and a
resource for the Mac communications program Microphone that shows
users how to script and solve specific programs using that
software.

Apprentice sells for $35, including shipping in the US and Canada.
It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

(Jim Mallory/19940603/Press contact: Christine Convy, Celestin
Company, 206-385-3767; Reader contact: Celestin Company,
206-385-3767 or fax [phone] in the US, and Analysis Limited,
011-44-203-419-996 in the United Kingdom)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(WAS)(00021)

More Patent Problems For Clipper 06/04/94
WASHINGTON, D.C., U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Massachusetts
Institute of Technology computer scientist Silvio Micali,
already holder of a patent that could apply to the Clinton
administration's proposed Clipper encryption technology, says
he has been awarded a second patent that the government must
license if it wants to implement Clipper.

"I just heard from my patent lawyer that a second patent has
been issued," Micali told Newsbytes. He added that he has
"various" information security patent applications pending that
could apply to Clipper.

Micali confirmed that he has been negotiating with Michael
Rubin, an attorney at the government's National Institute of
Standards and Technology, over royalties for his technology.
"The negotiations are coming along more slowly that I like but
they are continuing," he said.

"There is no question the government will need a license,"
Micali told Newsbytes. "I think they know that and the conflict
will be resolved amicably. I believe we can have some trust in
the government."

Micali says he invented the notion of breaking the key to an
encrypted message into two parts and entrusting those parts
with a trustee or agent. Only when the pieces of the key are
united can the scrambled message be decoded.

Under the Clipper approach, the government would determine who
the escrow agents are that hold the parts of the key. Then,
under court order, the government could unite the key and
decode the message.

Micali says he prefers a bottoms-up approach rather than the
top-down government solution. "The user should pick the secret
key and pick the trustees," he said. "That's much more suitable
for a democratic society."

If the government is forced to license parts of the Clipper
technology, it could drive up the cost of the technology and
harm its position in the marketplace. The administration has
said that its encryption technology, which includes a chip in
communications devices using it, is voluntary. But it hopes it
will become a standard.

In a related development, the International Chamber of Commerce
has called for a global encryption policy "that will ensure
that encryption remains an effective tool enabling business to
secure international electronic communication."

In a policy statement, the international business group says
encryption policy should follow three principals:
standardization, flexibility, and free trade.

"Users should be free to use and implement the already existing
framework of generally accepted encryption methods and choose
keys and key management without restriction, and cryptographic
algorithms and schemes for key managements must be open to
public scrutiny," says the policy statement.

"Encryption methods should be implementable in both hardware
and software. Vendors and users should be free to make
technical and economic choices about modes of implementation
and operation, and owners, providers, and users of encryption
methods should agree on the responsibility, accountability and
liability for such methods," the policy continues.

Finally, "encryption methods, except those developed for
military or diplomatic uses, should not be subject to export or
import controls, usage restrictions, restrictive licensing
arrangements or other restrictions."

The US Council for International Business, the New York-based
US affiliate of the ICC, says it "fully endorses the ICC
position."

(Kennedy Maize/19940603/Contacts: Silvio Micali, tel
617-253-1000; Nanette Di Tosto, US Council, tel [phone])


(NEWS)(TRENDS)(TOR)(00022)

Experts Debate Canada's Information Highway 06/03/94
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- At the annual
conference of the Canadian Science Writers' Association here this
week, pundits and representatives of various industry players
agreed that Canada has a good base for "information highway"
communications services, but differed on what needs to be done to
build on that position.

Andrew Bjerring, president of the Canadian Network for the
Advancement of Research, Industry, and Education (CANARIE), cited
a recent Canadian study that placed this country third in
overall existing information infrastructure among seven
countries studied, after Singapore and France. He added that
Canada placed first in the penetration and quality of its
telephone and cable television networks.

Bjerring said Canada was found to be second only to Singapore in
the competitiveness of its "pre-broadband" network. But he added
that the same study forecast that, based on present levels of
spending on communications networks and on the current regulatory
climates, Canada will drop to fifth by 1997.

Bjerring said Canada needs some changes in telecommunications
regulation to prevent this. For instance, he said, telephone
companies should be allowed to depreciate their infrastructure
faster than they now are, to encourage more new investment.

But others said the talk of Canada being left behind in new
communications services in alarmist.

Ken Englehart, vice-president of regulatory law at Rogers
Communications Inc., which owns sizeable cable-television
interests and a stake in long-distance telephone carrier Unitel
Communications of Toronto, said it is misleading to point to
lower levels of spending on new communications technology in
Canada, because the existing infrastructure is more modern than
in most other countries.

"Part of the reason that we're not spending as much money as
other countries is because we spent it before they did," he said.

And he warned against comparing the reality in Canada today to
the ambitious future plans announced in other countries. "A lot
of these plans are just hype," he said, "and it's important to
look at them in the context of what those countries are actually
doing."

As an example, Englehart cited a widespread belief that Japan is
installing optical fiber to every home. An ambitious plan
announced a few years ago has since been scaled back and little
has actually been done, he said. In fact, Englehart claimed Japan
is actually well behind Canada in fiber deployment.

And Terry Rochefort, director-general of economic, social and
technology analysis for the Canadian Radio-television and
Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) -- the federal regulatory
body that oversees broadcasting and voice and data communications
-- said Canada is not missing the boat. In fact, he said, "the
boat hasn't been completely designed yet."

Greg van Koughnett, vice-president of legal and corporate affairs
for Stentor Telecom Policy Inc., agreed with Bjerring that
regulatory changes are needed. He called for a move away from
setting prices by regulating carriers' rates of return, and
sought open access to the cable carriers' networks.

Van Koughnett said that if telephone companies had access to
cable companies' networks all the pieces needed to feed broadband
information to homes would be brought together. "We've got the
switches, they've got the distribution network."

But Englehart retorted that "what he didn't tell you was that he
got narrowband switches. They can't switch broadband."
Asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) switches are needed, Englehart
said. Neither telephone companies nor cable carriers have those
today, and either could buy them.

As this verbal sparring suggests, Canada's telephone companies
and its cable carriers are battling for dominance of new
services. But neither will necessarily emerge the victor.
Bjerring said he believes there will be "at least two driveways"
from Canadian homes to the information highway, with telcos and
cable carriers competing to provide access.

However, said Gordon Gow, assistant deputy minister with the
Province of Ontario's Ministry of Economic Development and Trade,
"it's important to remember that the four, eight, or even 12-lane
superhighways that we take for granted today are less than 40
years old, nor did they appear overnight."

The technological issues of building information "highways" will
take care of themselves for the most part, Gow said. The social
issues may be trickier. He cited questions of privacy, changes in
the nature of jobs, and the protection of Canadian culture.

Bjerring agreed. "The real challenge that we face will be social,
not technological," he said.

(Grant Buckler/19940603)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00023)

UK - BT Announces Major Price Reductions 06/03/94
LONDON, ENGLAND, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- After weeks of conjecture on how
it was going to reduce its overall level of charges in line with
government requirements, British Telecom (BT) has unveiled a basket of
price reductions that it claims will "hand back" around UKP 550
million of profits during the current year to its subscribers.

The basket of price reductions sees a shuffle of the customer discount
schemes for both residential and business subscribers, allowing what
BT calls its smallest business and medium usage residential
subscribers, to enjoy discounts starting from 15 percent on all their
calls. The new discounts, which kick in on 1 July, replace and augment
existing schemes, which offer discounts of 10 percent-plus for major
users of the phone.

Users will also get the opportunity to earn "air miles," bonus
vouchers entitling holders to free air travel, although only one air
mile is being issued for every UKP 10 spent on telecoms services,
Newsbytes was told by a member of BT's press office.

Many international calls to selected European destinations, as well as
long haul destinations such as Japan, are being reduced by up to 20
percent. BT claims that the reductions will stimulate trade with these
foreign countries, citing the fact that 95 percent of calls to Japan,
for example, are for business.

Industry experts see the reductions as a method of BT selectively
"putting the squeeze" on its main competitor, Mercury Communications,
which has announced it plans to meet BT's price reductions and still
offer better value for money.

This should not be too difficult, Newsbytes notes, as many
international circuits are rented by BT out to Mercury. Any reduction
in customer tariffs will be followed by reductions to its major
customers -- in this case, Mercury Communications.

Announcing the changes, Mike Hepher, BT's group managing director,
said: "More choice and better value for money has been our constant
theme this year. These price cuts underline that commitment -- more
good news for business and residential customers."

The shuffles also see the scrapping of existing cheap rate periods
of 8pm to 8am weekdays and weekends and a new cheap rate for all
international calls, from 6pm to 8am on weekdays and all weekend.
Cheap rate calls to Ireland will also be slashed by a hefty 28
percent, while daytime calls are cut by 25 percent.

(Steve Gold/Press (only please) contact - BT Corporate News Room -
[phone]; Reader Contact - 150 for residential subscribers and
154 for business subscribers; non-BT network subscribers - 0800-100-
150 or 0800-100-154 as appropriate)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(LON)(00024)

Electronic Firms Press EC For Open Telecoms Market 06/03/94
BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- It's ironic fact that, ten years
ago, the European Commission was pressing EC member state telecoms
companies to open up (liberalize) their markets. Since then, the EC
has achieved a lot of what it set out to do, but now it's the telecoms
companies' turn to press the EC to force the pace at which things are
moving.

At a meeting of the EC last week in Brussels, the EC telecoms and
electronics companies petitioned the EC to impose heavy legislation on
to the EC telecoms marketplace, forcing the more laggardly of
countries to open their markets to all comers from within the EC.

The companies have formed a pressure group, known as the Bangemann
Group, to express their disappointment that draft proposals
by the EC do not go far enough. Members of the 19-strong
Bangemann Group include IBM, ICL, Philips and Siemens.

According to Martin Bangemann, the EC's industry commissioner, who
chairs the group, liberalizing Europe's telecoms markets is critical
to fostering the information superhighway in the EC. He has criticized
the report of the EC meeting, published this week, which concludes
that the EC should not get involved in the continuing liberalization
of the Euro-telecoms market, when the current directive expires in
four years time.

The Bangemann Group, Newsbytes understands, is currently compiling its
own report and expects to offer this to the EC within the next few
weeks.

(Steve Gold/19940603)


(EDITORIAL)(GOVT)(ATL)(00025)

Editorial - Clipper And The Market 06/03/94
ATLANTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- By Dana Blankenhorn.
A paper by Dr. Matthew Blaze of AT&T Bell Labs has renewed the
political firestorm over the "Clipper" chip.

Clipper represents an attempt by the government to maintain its
current ability to eavesdrop on potential lawbreakers as networks
become digital. Using the technology, all phones, fax machines,
and computers would get special chips which would automatically
encrypt transmissions, but would include a decryption key which
law enforcement agencies, using a subpoena, could use to learn
what's going on.

The battle is often seen as one between privacy and security, or
between the ethical anarchy of the Internet and the legal
fearfulness of the government. But in the end it may be more than
that.

Throughout history, government and markets have been in conflict.
What government makes illegal, the market supplies nonetheless.
Law enforcement raises the price, but it doesn't stop commerce in
illegal goods and services. In the foreign policy arena, this
fact has served US ends well. Communism fell as much because
its government could not control the economy as because of Star Wars
or other military technology. The Clinton Administration will now
rely on markets in its struggles with China. As "Business Week"
recently made clear in a cover story, China's policy of
systematic abuse of human rights is now being opposed by a
market-driven network emphasizing the rule of law. Moves to
destroy this network risk wrecking the economy.

But markets are amoral. The same forces which bring Thomas
Jefferson to Shanghai also supply the desires of pedophiles and
cocaine kingpins in this country. Some fast-growing Asian
nations, like Singapore and Malaysia, are now trying to prove
that fast growth and civil order are not incompatible, if
government is prepared to be ruthless. That is the lesson of
Michael Fay's torture.

While most Americans could go along with Singapore's rules most
of the time, the important question is the price Singapore will
pay in the market for its stance. This question is very
important for American conservatives. If the market and human
rights can be decoupled, as fascists for a century have sought to
do, then human freedom can indeed be quashed in our lifetime. As
many libertarians note, a government with the power to absolutely
halt bad actions also has the power to halt actions it deems bad,
like dissent and religion.

Which brings us back to the Clipper chip and Dr. Blaze. A draft
of his paper, titled "Protocol Failure in the Escrowed Encryption
Standard," was sent to reporters on background, and a copy was
received by Newsbytes. (See "Blaze Stoked On Clipper Criticisms
06/03/94" published by Newsbytes.) Without violating our
confidentiality agreement with Bell Labs, we can report that,
according to Blaze, the flaws in the Clipper chip can be corrected.
And they're limited. Blaze has not found a way to unscramble
files which have been scrambled with the chip. And his paper
discusses techniques which could make the system more secure.

But in a market, no one is alone. No government can mandate use
of its encryption technology by citizens of other governments. As
with all attempts at law enforcement, widespread use of the
Clipper technology will only stop those without the resources or
know-how to get around it. The worst criminals -- foreign
intelligence agencies, drug cartels, or hard-core pedophiles --
will find ways around it, either by using other techniques like
Pretty Good Privacy, or PGP, which was recently posted on the
Internet, by creating alternate encryption schemes, or by finding
real holes in the Clipper algorithms. As with all efforts by law
enforcement, Clipper is a tax which upper class criminals can
pay, but the middle class cannot pay, except by allying, from
time to time, with upper class criminals.

The battle over Clipper, in the end, will not be fought in the
courts or the Congress. It will be fought in the labs and the
markets.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940603)


(NEWS)(TELECOM)(ATL)(00026)

Sprint Not Talking About Latest Rumors 06/03/94
OVERLAND PARK, KANSAS, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Sprint will not
comment on reports it's discussing possible minority investments
by major international PTTs as an alternative to merging with
General Motors' EDS unit.

"Our longstanding corporate policy is we don't comment on rumors
or speculation," spokesman Steve Dykes. "We confirmed the EDS
discussions only because of widespread media reports."

According to The Wall Street Journal, Sprint has held
discussions with Japan's NTT, Germany's Deutsche Telekom and
France Telecom about minority investments. The result could be to
make the company's ownership structure similar to that of
Infonet, a worldwide packet network once owned by Computer
Sciences.

Sprint and EDS confirmed a few weeks ago they were discussing a
variety of possible combinations, including a merger, but since
then nothing has been finalized. EDS is reportedly anxious to get
out from under the corporate umbrella of General Motors, while
Sprint is being pressed hard by AT&T and the combination of
British Telecom and MCI on the one hand, and smaller rivals like
LDDS and IDB Communications on the other. The assumption on all
analysts' parts is that more capital is needed to compete.

But Sprint is more than a long distance company, something it
repeated at-length after its acquisition of Centel a few years
ago. It also has interests in cellular phone networks and local
exchanges, as well as other units. Merger discussions based on
its long distance holdings must make employees at those units
nervous, but Sprint executives indicate they have no choice but
to keep silent until they make final decisions.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940603/Press Contact: Sprint, Steve Dykes,
828-7422)


(NEWS)(GOVT)(ATL)(00027)

 ****Blaze Stoked On Clipper Criticisms 06/03/94
NEW YORK, NEW YORK, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- A draft paper by a
Bell Labs scientist has re-ignited debate over the government's
attempts to allow wiretaps on the Information Highway.

The paper, due for presentation at a conference this fall,
discusses possible flaws in implementing the Escrowed Encryption
Standard, or ESS, using PC Cards under PCMCIA standards. The
cards Blaze worked with contain "Clipper" chips the Clinton
Administration hopes will maintain security for legal
correspondence but allow government wiretaps of illegal activity.
Blaze found some techniques which could be used to frustrate the
system, and discussed his findings with John Markoff of The New
York Times.

The effect was electric, and AT&T officials quickly moved to stem
the political damage. David Maher, chief scientist at AT&T for
secure communication systems, emphasized that the flaws found by
Blaze don't involve transmission of common voice, fax, or slow-
speed data calls. AT&T's official policy is to support Clipper --
the company is currently the only supplier of the necessary
chips. Bell Labs, however, does operate with a degree of
independence, and scientists there may not be as enthusiastic
about Clipper as executives at the parent company.

The government also worked to contain the damage. A spokesman for
the National Security Agency noted it would take a half-hour to
run the necessary programs to thwart the ESS standard using
techniques discussed by Blaze, making them impractical. In
addition, a Bell Labs spokesman noted to Newsbytes, Blaze's own
paper discusses possible approaches to closing the holes he
identifies, improvements in the Law Enforcement Access Field, or
LEAF, that would render it less vulnerable.

Still, opponents of Clipper, like the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, were quick to charge the technology is being rendered
impractical. The idea is that government officials still could
not use the Clipper to decode voice or data conversations
without a subpoena, but critics charge such subpoenas are granted
routinely, and in testimony before a Senate Judiciary sub-
committee headed by Vermont Democrat Patrick Leahy, the
government confirmed it wants to make keyholders immune from
liability over the use of decryption keys.

The debate over Clipper has become increasingly heated in recent
months, with law enforcement concerns over criminality facing off
against engineering and civil liberatarians' concerns over
privacy. While analog phone conversations are routinely tapped by
police agencies, digital conversations can be scrambled to avoid
detection, and as the world moves toward digital communication
systems it must decide whether to mandate decryption or risk the
abuse of such systems.

(Dana Blankenhorn/19940603/Press Contact: Donna Cunningham, AT&T
Bell Labs, 802-482-3748)


(NEWS)(IBM)(DEN)(00028)

Massively Parallel Processing Comes To Your PC 06/03/94
BEAVERTON, OREGON, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- When you think of
massively parallel processing (MPP) you probably think of
supercomputers or high-performance workstations. But the
technology will soon be available for your personal computer.

Adaptive Solutions Inc. (ASI), says it will ship a MPP coprocessor
board for the PC in July. The company says the board, designated
the CNAPS/PC, can speed up performance of a Pentium-based system by
as much as 1,000 times. ASI spokesperson Craig Tenney told
Newsbytes it also works with 386 and 486-based systems. The board
complements the PC's microprocessor by accelerating high-volume
pattern recognition applications such as real-time optical
character recognition (OCR), forms processing, image processing,
signal processing and neural networks.

"This allows the PC to perform those tasks which humans
traditionally perform but which have been difficult for even the
most powerful computers, such as reading handwritten text,
recognizing an individual's face, or quickly understanding patterns
within complex data such as a manufacturing process," according to
Adaptive Solutions President John Heightley.

Using CNAPS/PC as a coprocessor to perform extremely high-speed
parallel computations (multiple computations performed
simultaneously) leaves the main CPU free to control the system and
interface tasks. ASI says that offloads the main CPU of demanding
pattern recognition tasks, similar to the function performed by
math and graphics co-processors.

Tenney said at present CNAPS/PC is an OEM (original equipment
manufacturer)-only product, since it also requires some
application software. However the company is working on plans,
yet unannounced, to release the board as an after-market item.

Development of CNAPS/PC was funded in part by the Advanced
Research Projects Agency (ARPA), a Department of Defence agency,
under a grant aimed at bringing low-cost MPP to the government and
civilian workplace.

CNAPS/PC is priced at $2,995 to $6,695 in OEM quantities and is
scheduled to ship in July.

(Jim Mallory/19940603/Press contact: Margie Yap, Communications
Focus for Adaptive Solutions Inc, 503-642-2646; Reader contact:
Adaptive Solutions Inc, 503-690-1238, fax [phone])


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

Networking Roundup 06/03/94
PENN VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- This is a
regular feature, summarizing networking news not covered
elsewhere by Newsbytes: Fore Systems Inc., Precision Software,
Midnight Networks Inc., Telebit Corp., Cisco Systems Inc.,
Spry Inc., Artisoft Inc., and Optical Data Systems Inc.

Fore Systems Inc., (412-772-8681), announced the first
customer shipments of 155 Mbps OC-3c/STM-1 adapter cards. The
company says that all adapters are in "full compliance" with
the ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) Forum specifications and
are immediately available. The new cards provide support for
Sbus, HP EISA (Extended Industry Standard Architecture) bus,
EISA bus, and VMEbus. The SONET (synchronous optical network)/
SDH ATM adapter cards utilize the Advanced Cell Processing
Architecture developed by Fore Systems, which is based on
an embedded Intel i960 RISC processor. Quantity one list price
for the OC-3c cards ranges from $1,895 for Sbus to $2,995 for
VMEbus. All adapters are available with either SC or ST
interfaces for multimode fiber.

Precision Software, (617-890-7730), announced Loan Server
2000, a client/server software product that reportedly gives
commercial lending operations capabilities previously available
only through expensive mainframe computers. Loan Server 2000
is claimed to be a comprehensive, multicurrency commercial
loan-processing system, built specifically to handle all
domestic and international loan needs, including syndications
and asset sales. Loan Server 2000 uses open client/server
software technology, a relational database and Microsoft
Windows as a user interface. Loan Server 2000 reportedly
enables lending operations to reduce their processing costs
when compared with mainframe-based solutions. Bank personnel
can access information as well as enter data through PCs. Loan
Server 2000 will enter beta testing at several major financial
institutions during fall, 1994, with production shipments to
begin in the first half of 1995.

Midnight Networks Inc., (617-890-1001), announced the
addition of a Point-to-Point Protocol test suite to their
automated testing system. ANVL (Automated Network Validation
Library) reportedly allows networking vendors to test their
PPP implementations "quickly, inexpensively, and more
thoroughly than with standard testing methods." ANVL PPP
includes tests for ensuring a device can establish a PPP
connection, authenticate a user via PAP (Password
Authentication Protocol) or CHAP (Challenge-Handshake
Authentication Protocol), and set up an IP (Internet Protocol)
connection over the PPP link. Negative tests that check how
a device reacts to incorrect packets are included in addition
to tests that verify behavior under correct conditions. The
test suite contains over 150 tests in all. ANVL PPP is
available now for direct purchase through Midnight Networks,
with pricing starting at $15,000, based on the type of
license and number of test suites purchased.

Remote LAN access company, Telebit Corp., (408-745-3340),
received the Internet Industry Award from Mecklermedia Corp.
for its NetBlazer PN1, a dial-up router with an integrated
modem designed to provide easy access to the Internet. The
award was presented during the Spring Internet World '94
trade show held in San Jose, California. The NetBlazer PN1,
reportedly provides "cost-effective" remote access for small
office environments.

Cisco Systems Inc., (408-526-5486), and Spry Inc.,
(206-442-8231), have announced an agreement to enhance
the Cisco Configuration Builder, a software application
that is designed to simplify the task of configuring Cisco
multiprotocol routers on a network, to run on the Windows
NT operating system, as well as on its original platform,
Windows for DOS. Spry, a developer of transport-independent
TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)
applications for Windows and Cisco, will co-develop the
Windows for DOS and Windows NT versions of Configuration
Builder, which are expected to be completed in third-quarter,
1994. Cisco Configuration Builder, reportedly simplifies
the initial configuration of Cisco routers and synchronizes
the configurations of multiple routers across a network. It
includes tools for viewing, checking and changing
interrelated configuration parameters, enabling users to
configure whole networks, not merely individual devices,
according to the company.

Artisoft Inc., (602-670-7100), announced the CorStream server,
a dedicated server for its LANtastic network operating system.
According to the company, the server is a "high-performance,"
32-bit LANtastic network NetWare Loadable Module (NLM) combined
with a runtime version of the Novell NetWare 4 32-bit
operating system. The CorStream server is expected to begin
shipping during June, 1994. The product is claimed to provide
"substantially increased performance" to LANtastic 5.0 and 6.0
networks "without adding complexity or changing the way
workstation users work." The CorStream server appears as a
LANtastic server to LANtastic 5.0 and 6.0 network clients.
It also provides the same look-and-feel of LANtastic while
providing additional features and increased performance
capabilities, including fault tolerance, file system/media
management, mission-critical reliability, and applications
compatibility. The CorStream dedicated server will be
offered as a stand-alone server for use within existing
LANtastic networks, or as a network kit including the server
and the LANtastic v6.0 client software, both being offered
in 5-, 10-, 25-, 50- and 100-user kits. Pricing starts at
$949 for the 5-user stand-alone version, and $1,149 for the
5-user network bundle.

Optical Data Systems Inc., (214-234-6400), an intelligent
hub developer, has announced an ATM switch that supports up
to 16 ATM interfaces. The 1093-ATM-16 incorporates Newbridge
Networks Corp.'s ATM matrix switched interfaces and switches
with an ODS designed backplane. The company's design forms
a compact switch enclosure which takes up only 37 inches of
rack space. The company says that the ODS/Newbridge ATM
components are based on a "true matrix switched" architecture
rather than a bus-type architecture, and claims that "as a
result does not have the inherent capacity and contention
problems found in bus-based ATM systems."

(Ian Stokell/19940603)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(SFO)(00030)

Personnel Roundup 06/03/94
PENN VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- This is
a regular feature, summarizing personnel changes not covered
elsewhere by Newsbytes: Sierra On-Line Inc.'s ImagiNation
Network, Sigma Designs Inc., Individual Inc., Western
Publishing Group Inc., SyQuest Technology, Acclaim
Entertainment Inc., Edmark Corp., and National Semiconductor
Corp.

The main personnel news of the week involved the resignation
of Sierra On-Line Inc.'s (206-649-9800) The ImagiNation
Network's Morris Goldstein. He resigned as president and
chief operating officer of The ImagiNation Network to return
to Ziff Communications Inc., his previous employer, after
Ziff "made me an offer I could not refuse."

Meanwhile, Sigma Designs Inc., (510-770-2673), a
manufacturer of multimedia computer products, added Bill
Almon to its board of directors. Almon, 61, is currently
chairman and CEO of StorMedia in Santa Clara, California.
Almon served as president and chief operating officer of
disk drive company Conner Peripherals Inc., from 1989 to
1992. During his time at Conner, the company grew from
revenues of $256 million in 1989 to $2.2 billion in 1992.

Individual Inc., (617-354-2230), announced that Bruce Glabe
joined the company as vice president and chief financial
officer. Glabe was previously senior vice president for
finance and administration at Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN)
in Cambridge. He also held the position of president and
general manager for BBN's Communications division. He is a
graduate of MIT and the Harvard Business School. Individual
provides electronic information services

Western Publishing Group Inc., (212-688-4500), a company
involved in the publishing of interactive electronic books,
computer and multimedia edutainment products, announced the
resignation of Frank P. DiPrima as president and chief
operating officer. In addition, DiPrima will not stand for
re-election to the board of directors of Western Publishing
Group. He will assume the position of vice chairman and
president of the consumer division of a developmental
pharmaceutical company.

SyQuest Technology, (510-226-4000 ), announced the appointment
of Tom Kobayashi as president and representative director of
SyQuest KK in Japan. He will be responsible for all marketing
and sales activities in Japan, Korea, and Taiwan for SyQuest's
entire product line of removable hard cartridge drives. He will
report to David Everett, SyQuest's executive vice president of
sales and marketing. Prior to SyQuest, Kobayashi was the
representative director Seagate KK in Japan for two years. At
Seagate he was responsible for customer engineering, sales and
marketing efforts in Japan. Before that, Kobayashi was
president and representative director of Harris KK in Japan
for nearly 15 years.

Former president of Sega's North American coin-op company,
Thomas Petit, has been chosen to head Acclaim Entertainment
Inc.'s (516-624-8888) newly formed Coin-Operated Amusements
Division, and in the position of President, spearhead
the company's 1995 coin-op market entry. In the new position,
Petit will report directly to Robert Holmes, president of
parent company, Acclaim. One of the founding executives of
Sega Enterprises Inc., U.S.A., Petit was responsible for the
development, sales, marketing and distribution of Sega's
amusement products, including arcade uprights and virtual
reality simulators throughout North America. Prior to
joining Sega, Petit was vice president of sales and marketing
for DataEast's coin-op division, and held various sales and
marketing positions with Nintendo of America and Atari
Corporation prior to DataEast.

Educational Software company, Edmark Corp., (206-556-8810),
announced the appointment of Mark McNeely to the newly created
position of vice president of marketing and sales. The position
will have overall responsibility for all marketing and sales
activities in both the consumer and education channels. McNeely
previously served for five years as chairman of Cole & Weber.
He has an MBA from Harvard University.

National Semiconductor Corp., (408-721-2646), announced expanded
responsibilities for three executives, including the appointment
of a chief operating officer. Kirk P. Pond is appointed to the
newly created position of executive vice president and chief
operating officer. He is responsible for overseeing the
company's daily worldwide operations. Rich Beyer, president
of the Communications and Computing Group, assumes the
additional responsibility of leading the corporation's
Strategic Market Segment program.

(Ian Stokell/19940603)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(SFO)(00031)

Company Results Roundup 06/03/94
PENN VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- This is
a regular feature, summarizing company results not covered
elsewhere by Newsbytes: Borland International Inc., The
Software Developer's Company Inc., CompuTrac Inc., and
GameTek Inc.

While software giant Borland continues to post losses, this
time for the fiscal year, The Software Developer's Company
reported a small income for its most recent quarter. Law
firm software provider CompuTrac also posted a small
operating income, while game company GameTek posted a 25
percent increase in revenue for its third quarter.

Borland International Inc., (408-431-1621) reported revenues
for the fiscal year ended March 31, 1994 of $393.5 million,
a 15.2 percent decrease compared with $464 million for the
prior fiscal year. The net loss for fiscal year ended March
31, 1994 was $69.9 million compared with a net loss of $49.2
million for the fiscal year ended March 31, 1993. The company
lost $2.62 per share for the year compared with a loss of
$1.87 per share for the prior year. On March 31, 1994, the
company announced a restructuring of its organization
including significant changes to its sales and marketing
programs. The results for the quarter and year ended March
31, 1994 include a pre-tax restructuring charge of $14
million principally for work force reduction and the closing
of facilities related to these changes. Additionally, the
results include a charge of $8.2 million related to the
write down of real estate held for sale. Fourth quarter
revenues were $51.0 million, a 56.4 percent decrease compared
with $117.1 million for the same period of fiscal 1993. Net
loss for the quarter ended March 31, 1994 was $76.0 million
compared with a net income of $5.1 million in the fourth
quarter of the previous year.

The Software Developer's Company Inc., (617-740-0300), reported
net income for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 1994, of
$44,000 as compared to a loss of $(610,000) for the same period
in fiscal 1993. Net income per share for the fourth quarter of
fiscal 1994 was $0.01 as compared to a net loss per share
(after assumed dividends of $0.08 per share) of $(0.32) for
fiscal 1993. Net revenues for the quarter were $8,336,000 as
compared to $8,433,000 in fiscal 1993. For the fiscal year 1994,
net income was $214,000 as compared to a loss of $(971,000) in
fiscal 1993. Net income per share for the 12 month period was
$0.03 as compared to a net loss per share (after assumed
dividends of $0.38 per share) of $(0.81) for fiscal 1993. Net
revenues for fiscal 1994 were $31,098,000 as compared to
$34,463,000 in fiscal 1993. The company markets, distributes
and supports PC-based specialty software and hardware through
The Programmer's Shop and Personal Computing Tools.

CompuTrac Inc., (214-234-4241), a Hewlett-Packard provider of
law firm management software, announced results for its first
fiscal quarter ending April 30, 1994. The company reported
consolidated revenue of $2.1 million and operating income of
$100,000. In the same period last year, the company reported an
operating loss of $600,000 on nearly identical revenue of $2.1
million.

GameTek Inc., (305-935-3995), reported revenues of $13,633,000
for the third quarter ended April 30, 1994, a 25 percent
increase from $10,910,000 in revenues reported for the third
quarter of 1993. Income before taxes for the quarter totaled
$1,602,000, up 27 percent from $1,260,000 in the comparable
1993 period. Net income for the third quarter totaled
$1,031,000, or 14 cents per share, compared to last year's
$1,068,000, or 18 cents per share, on 1.7 million fewer
shares. For the nine months ended April 30, 1994, the company
reported revenues of $36,750,000, up 45 percent from revenues
of $25,303,000 in the comparable 1993 period. Income before
taxes for the fiscal 1994 nine-month period totaled $3,727,000,
up 45 percent from $2,577,000 last year. Net income for the
1994 period totaled $2,426,000, or 38 cents per share,
compared to net income of $2,184,000, or 38 cents per share,
in 1993. GameTek develops, publishes, markets and distributes
interactive entertainment, educational and productivity
software for use on personal computers and Nintendo and Sega
platforms.

(Ian Stokell/19940603)


(NEWS)(BUSINESS)(DAL)(00032)

 ****Borland 4Q Losses Large 06/03/94
SCOTTS VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- Borland
reported $76 million in losses for its final fiscal quarter of
1994 and went back to charge another $3.3 million against its
third quarter 1994 results, putting that quarter in the red as
well. The company has already said it expects the next quarter,
closing June 30, 1994, to be a losing proposition as well.

Fourth quarter revenues were $51.0 million, a 56.4 percent
decrease compared with $117.1 million for the same period of
fiscal 1993. Net loss for the quarter ended March 31, 1994 was
$76.0 million compared with a net income of $5.1 million in the
fourth quarter of the previous year. The company lost $2.84 per
share for the fourth quarter of fiscal 1994, compared with an
income of 19 cents per share in the fourth quarter of fiscal
1993.

For the fiscal year (FY) ended March 31, 1994, Borland lost $69.9
million compared to a loss of $49.2 million in the FY 1993.
Revenues were $393.5 million, a 15.2 percent decrease compared
with last year's $464 million. The company lost $2.62 per share
for the year compared with a loss of $1.87 per share for the
prior year.

As for the third quarter of 1994, ending December 31, 1993, the
company said marketing commitments were not fully accrued and an
accounting adjustment was necessary. The adjustment was $3.3
million charge for the December quarter, taking the formerly
reported net income of $419,000 down to a net loss for the
quarter of $2.9 million.

Borland is blaming lower Quattro Pro and Paradox for Windows
sales and a stalled introduction of dBASE for Windows for the red
ink. Borland delayed its fourth quarter earnings report and
during the delay began a $14 million restructuring campaign which
included cutting back its workforce by 200, or about 14 percent.

In addition, Borland's chief financial officer (CFO), Alan
Hendricks, resigned and Borland appointed its first chief
operating officer (COO), Price-Waterhouse turnaround expert Keith
Maib.

The sale of Quattro Pro to networking giant Novell for $145
million is expected to help next quarter's bottom line. But
Borland could lose its profits from the sale to spreadsheet
competitor Lotus in an expected judgement in a legal battle
between the two companies that analyst's have said could cost
Borland as much as $100 million. In addition, Borland will take a
one-time write-off of approximately $16 million in connection
with the acquisition of database report writer software company
Reportsmith, which closed during the June quarter.

Philippe Kahn, chairman, president, and chief executive officer
(CEO), has been complaining loud and vehemently about how the
Microsoft Windows graphical user interface has turned the
software market into a commodity market by making every product
look and feel pretty much the same. Borland's ace is the long
awaited dBASE for Windows, according to Kahn.

Analysts agree. Market research firm Dataquest has already said
it expects an enthusiastic greeting for dBASE for Windows. Chris
Letoq, an analyst with CI/Infocorp said that while he can't talk
about dBASE for Windows because of a commitment to Borland, the
beta test version of the product that is already out there has
received excellent reviews and developers appear to be
enthusiastic about it.

Newsbytes asked if Borland is putting all its eggs into one
basket and Letoq answered that dBASE for Windows, given the
current climate, is the company's primary basket. He added that
it would be a bad idea for Borland to come up with any
diversionary baskets at this point.

(Linda Rohrbough/19940603/Press Contact: Steve Grady, Borland,
tel [phone], fax [phone])


(NEWS)(IBM)(BOS)(00033)

 ****Microsoft Summit - 1600 More Alpha AXP/Windows NT Apps 06/03/94
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- A total of 530
"native" applications are now shipping for Windows NT running on
DEC's Alpha AXP, and about 1600 more are slated for release by the
end of this year, said Charles B. Piper, Windows NT marketing
manager for DEC, speaking at the Microsoft Envision Summit in
Boston.

The applications for Alpha AXP cover a sweeping range of vertical
and horizontal areas, and are part of a strategy by DEC to offer
Alpha as well as Intel-based "solutions" from "the laptop to the
data center," he added, in one of a series of talks presented by
Microsoft's "hardware partners."

Windows NT applications show "a dramatic performance increase" when
operated on Alpha AXP, Piper asserted. "But at the same time, there
is demand for (Intel-based) products," he acknowledged.

Piper advised attendees that they could witness the speed of
Windows NT applications on Alpha AXP in a show floor demonstration
of DEC's new 2100 Server Model A500MP, which comes in
configurations with either one or four 190 MHz Alpha AXP chips, and
supports OSF/1 and OpenVMS in addition to Windows NT Advanced
Server.

DEC's 2100 Server, Piper added, will be upgraded to a 275 MHz Alpha
AXP chip six months from now. "The plan is to offer additional
(chip) upgrades for the 2100 Server every six months," he said.
Speaking with Newsbytes at the close of the presentation, Piper
noted that the 275 MHz Alpha AXP chip is already being used by
Carrera and Aspen, two of DEC's OEMs (original equipment
manufacturers).

Issues related to compilers and databases could possibly affect
plans to release all 1600 of the new Windows NT applications by the
end of 1994, he told Newsbytes.

Although Piper did "talk products," the bulk of his presentation
was devoted to a discussion of the "close relationship" between DEC
and Microsoft, including the two vendors' collaboration in the
Common Object Model (COM), a crossplatform communications
specification that brings together elements of Microsoft's object-
linking-and-embedding (OLE) 2.0 and DEC's ObjectBroker 2.5.

The Windows NT marketing manager also showed a video concerning use
by the Chicago Stock Exchange of Windows NT applications running on
Alpha AXP.

Other Microsoft "hardware partners" who have delivered talks at the
Microsoft Envision Summit include NEC, Sequent, Gateway 2000, and
AT&T Global Information Systems (GIS).

The Microsoft conference, which continues through today at the
World Trade Center in Boston, also features several general
sessions, plus breakout sessions on the use of Windows-based
applications in fields ranging from medicine to law and accounting.

(Jacqueline Emigh/19940603/Press and Reader Contact: Microsoft,
206-882-8080)


(NEWS)(GENERAL)(MSP)(00034)

Newsbytes Daily Summary 06/03/94
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, U.S.A., 1994 JUN 3 (NB) -- These are
capsules of all today's news stories:

1 -> UK - Intercom Data Launches Telecoms Call Mgmt System 06/03/94
ntercom Data Systems (IDS) has launched Prophet, a new call center
analysis service that it claims has been specifically designed as a
self-contained package to take any type or size of organization
through the complete process of call analysis.

2 -> Nokia Equipment To St Petersburg's GSM Net 06/03/94 Nokia Telecom
has signed a contract with Northwest GSM for the supply of a global
system for mobile (GSM) communications digital mobile phone network in
the St Petersburg region of Russia.

3 -> Average Hard Disk 1GB In Capacity By 1996, Says Survey 06/03/94
Increased demand for storage space will push computer users to seek
five to 15 times more hard disk space, according to market research
group Frost & Sullivan. By 1996, the average hard disk on a
stand-alone desktop PC will be 1 gigabyte (GB) in size, the market
research group said.

4 -> CompuServe Releases CD 06/03/94 CompuServe released
CompuServeCD, a multimedia extension of the CompuServe  Information
Service, for CD-ROM drive-equipped computers that run Microsoft
Windows.

5 -> Sega Makes Deals With Coke, Hudson 06/03/94 Sega Enterprises has
signed an agreement with CocaCola Japan which calls for a joint
advertising campaign for both firms' products. Sega's agreement with
Hudson  concerns joint development of video game software for Sega's
video game machine.

6 -> Toshiba Multimedia Car Navigation System 06/03/94 Toshiba has
announced that it has developed a small-sized car navigation system.
It is equipped with a CD-ROM drive that plays both music CDs and
CD-based software.

7 -> Mini-Disks Store TV Programs 06/03/94 Japan's Hitachi has
developed a powerful Mini-Disk that stores a whopping 100 times more
data than regular Mini-Disks. Hitachi reports that the new medium can
store motion picture data, including TV programs.

8 -> Japan - Kyocera Develops Set-Top Multimedia Box 06/03/94
Kyoto-based Kyocera has developed  a multimedia box for
video-on-demand service called the Set Top Box.  Kyocera claims that
this represents the first time a Japanese  firm has developed this
kind of multimedia box.

9 -> Japan - Hitachi ATM Cleans Money 06/03/94 Hitachi has developed
an unique automatic bank teller machine (ATM) which flattens and
sterilizes dollar bills. The firm claims to be getting its first
purchase orders for the device from hospitals.

10 -> Denmark - Computer News Roundup 06/03/94 n computer news from
Denmark, OS/2 has strong base in Denmark, Danish technology in future
digital superhighway, and first Danish interactive book on CD-ROM.
OS/2 Has Strong Base In Denmark

11 -> Review of - The Telescan System, online service, 06/03/94 Runs
on: Interface requires PC with 640K of RAM and EGA or VGA  graphics, 2
free megabytes of hard disk space, MS-DOS 2.1 or  higher, plus a
Hayes-compatible modem running at 2,400 or 9,600  baud.

12 -> Review of - Castle of Dr. Brain 06/03/94 Runs on: Color
Macintosh computers

13 -> California Can Save Millions Using Videoconferencing 06/03/94
The State of California is implementing videoconferencing and
encouraging government offices to use the service instead of spending
money on travel. The California Department of Transportation
(CALTRANS), one of the six government charter entities to begin use of
videoconferencing, estimates it will save $1 million annually in
travel expenses, travel time, and increased productivity.

14 -> Australia - Computer Associates Revamps Distribution 06/03/94
Computer Associates, the world's number two software manufacturer, has
re-organized its Australian distribution, appointing a single
distributor for all PC products. The distributor is Sourceware, a
mid-level organization which claims to offer a higher level of service
and support than the two main distributors.

15 -> Dell Australia Gets New Boss 06/03/94 Dell Australia start-up
man Jeff Herrick has gone from the company, leaving a functioning and
mildly successful part of the US-based multinational operation.

16 -> Internet Business Association Formed 06/03/94 Like any other
community, the Internet brings together business partners whose common
goals are best met in a spirit of cooperation. Much like a chamber of
commerce, the Internet Business Association (IBA) brings together
small companies doing business on the Internet.

17 -> Bill Gates will Give Away Billions - Eventually 06/03/94
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates says eventually he will give away most
of his wealth, leaving about $10 million to any children he might
have.

18 -> CA Wins Class Action Suit, Newtrend Trial Postponed 06/03/94
Computer Associates International Inc., has emerged the victor in a
three-year class action lawsuit that accused its officers of
securities fraud after disappointing quarterly financial results in
1990. Meanwhile, a trial has been postponed in another dispute
involving CA and Newtrend Group, of Orlando, Fla., over a joint
venture that went sour.

19 -> Saskatchewan Reseller Fined For Pirating MS-DOS 06/03/94 Duncan
Computer Corp., which was the largest computer manufacturer and
reseller in Saskatchewan until closing two years ago, and its former
owner have been convicted of pirating copies of Microsoft's MS-DOS
operating system and ordered to pay fines and compensation.

20 -> Megabytes Of Mac Sample Code Available On CD-ROM 06/03/94
Celestin Company has released a collection of more than 450 megabytes
of Macintosh source code on CD-ROM disc called Apprentice. The company
says the collection provides Mac programmers up-to-date code samples
at an affordable price.

21 -> More Patent Problems For Clipper 06/04/94 Massachusetts
Institute of Technology computer scientist Silvio Micali, already
holder of a patent that could apply to the Clinton administration's
proposed Clipper encryption technology, says he has been awarded a
second patent that the government must license if it wants to
implement Clipper.

22 -> Experts Debate Canada's Information Highway 06/03/94 At the
annual conference of the Canadian Science Writers' Association here
this week, pundits and representatives of various industry players
agreed that Canada has a good base for "information highway"
communications services, but differed on what needs to be done to
build on that position.

23 -> UK - BT Announces Major Price Reductions 06/03/94 After weeks of
conjecture on how it was going to reduce its overall level of charges
in line with government requirements, British Telecom (BT) has
unveiled a basket of price reductions that it claims will "hand back"
around UKP 550 million of profits during the current year to its
subscribers.

24 -> Electronic Firms Press EC For Open Telecoms Market 06/03/94 It's
ironic fact that, ten years ago, the European Commission was pressing
EC member state telecoms companies to open up (liberalize) their
markets. Since then, the EC has achieved a lot of what it set out to
do, but now it's the telecoms companies' turn to press the EC to force
the pace at which things are moving.

25 -> Editorial - Clipper And The Market 06/03/94 By Dana Blankenhorn.
A paper by Dr. Matthew Blaze of AT&T Bell Labs has renewed the
political firestorm over the "Clipper" chip.

26 -> Sprint Not Talking About Latest Rumors 06/03/94 Sprint will not
comment on reports it's discussing possible minority investments  by
major international PTTs as an alternative to merging with  General
Motors' EDS unit.

27 ->  ****Blaze Stoked On Clipper Criticisms 06/03/94 A draft paper
by a  Bell Labs scientist has re-ignited debate over the government's
attempts to allow wiretaps on the Information Highway.

28 -> Massively Parallel Processing Comes To Your PC 06/03/94 When you
think of massively parallel processing (MPP) you probably think of
supercomputers or high-performance workstations. But the technology
will soon be available for your personal computer.

29 -> Networking Roundup 06/03/94 This is a regular feature,
summarizing networking news not covered elsewhere by Newsbytes: Fore
Systems Inc., Precision Software, Midnight Networks Inc., Telebit
Corp., Cisco Systems Inc.,  Spry Inc., Artisoft Inc., and Optical Data
Systems Inc.

30 -> Personnel Roundup 06/03/94 This is  a regular feature,
summarizing personnel changes not covered  elsewhere by Newsbytes:
Sierra On-Line Inc.'s ImagiNation Network, Sigma Designs Inc.,
Individual Inc., Western  Publishing Group Inc., SyQuest Technology,
Acclaim  Entertainment Inc., Edmark Corp., and National Semiconductor
Corp.

31 -> Company Results Roundup 06/03/94 This is  a regular feature,
summarizing company results not covered  elsewhere by Newsbytes:
Borland International Inc., The  Software Developer's Company Inc.,
CompuTrac Inc., and GameTek Inc.

32 ->  ****Borland 4Q Losses Large 06/03/94 Borland reported $76
million in losses for its final fiscal quarter of 1994 and went back
to charge another $3.3 million against its third quarter 1994 results,
putting that quarter in the red as well. The company has already said
it expects the next quarter, closing June 30, 1994, to be a losing
proposition as well.

33 ->  ****Microsoft Summit - 1600 More Alpha AXP/Windows NT Apps
06/03/94 A total of 530 "native" applications are now shipping for
Windows NT running on DEC's Alpha AXP, and about 1600 more are slated
for release by the end of this year, said Charles B. Piper, Windows NT
marketing manager for DEC, speaking at the Microsoft Envision Summit
in Boston.

(Wendy Woods/19940603)