HyperCard Featured, New Products Introduced at Macworld
Macworld. Boston, Massachusetts. August 10, 1988. The HyperCard(TM) application and the introduction of new hardware products will be the focus as Apple Computer, Inc. participates in the largest Macworld(R) Expo held to date. Reflecting the continuing growing interest in the Apple(R) Macintosh(R) personal computer family and its solutions, this year's conference has been expanded and will now be held at three separate sites. More than 40,000 attendees and 400 exhibitors are expected to participate in events at the Bayside Exposition Center, the Wang Center and the World Trade Center.
"The Freedom to Associate" will be the company's main theme as Apple reviews HyperCard a year after its introduction. Although a new concept in computing, HyperCard is experiencing an accelerated adoption rate for a new technology. Macintosh users are actively exploring HyperCard, a personal software toolkit, resulting in its rapid integration into all segments of Apple markets and customer base. The innovative approach of HyperCard to information navigation, user programming and its use as an "interface toolkit" continue to be distinguishing elements in its success.
Today at the Apple press conference, Jean-Louis Gassee, Apple senior vice president, research, development and product marketing, will launch Apple's activities this year with a reflection on HyperCard: One Year Later and the introduction of the Apple Scanner, the Macintosh II 4/40, and a Macintosh II 4MB memory expansion kit.
Product Introductions
Apple Scanner
Apple will introduce the the Apple Scanner, an optical image scanner for inputting high quality images and text into the Macintosh computer, and its two accompanying applications, AppleScan(TM) and HyperScan(TM).
The Apple Scanner will feature a bit 8.5" x 14" flat bed and will be capable of scanning text, line art, and images into any applications supporting PICT, TIFF or MacPaint(R) file formats, at variable rates up to 300 dots per inch (DPI).
The accompanying AppleScan application offers users several options to select from in preparing and modifying scanned images for use in desktop publishing. HyperScan, written by HyperCard author Bill Atkinson, will allow images to be scanned directly into HyperCard stacks. A powerful application that is delivered in the form of a HyperCard stack, HyperScan offers several user-selectable options and a powerful automatic adjustment feature for handling brightness and contrast.
At a suggested retail price of $1,799, the Apple Scanner reflects Apple's continuing and demonstrated commitment to enhancing the graphics and image processing capabilities of the Macintosh computer for professional desktop publishers, graphics artists, business, education and consumer users.
Macintosh II 4/40 and 4MB Memory Expansion Kit
Apple also revealed a new configuration for the Apple Macintosh personal computer family, the Macintosh II 4/40. Based on the Macintosh II, Apple's first open-architecture computer, it will feature a 40-megabyte internal hard drive and 4MB of memory. Business, government, technical and higher education professionals are expected to take advantage of the enhanced storage capacity of the Macintosh II 4/40. The unit will be priced at $7,269.
Apple is also shipping a 4MB memory expansion kit for Macintosh II users featuring four one-megabyte SIMM strips, priced at $2,399.
Keynotes
At Thursday's opening keynote address at the Wang Center, John Sculley, Apple president, chairman and chief executive officer, will review the impact of HyperCard one year after its introduction, and describe a vision of future computing into the 21st century.
Gassee will continue the HyperCard theme at Saturday's keynote and will address Macintosh enthusiasts on his hopes for the future of Apple technology.
Bill Atkinson, author of HyperCard, will be a feature speaker at a series of HyperCard seminars being held each morning of the conference at the Wang Center. Mr. Atkinson is scheduled to discuss and demonstrate HyperCard to MacWorld Expo attendees. Panelists for the remaining seminars will represent a cross-section of HyperCard users, developers, programmers, authors and experts.
Apple Exhibits
Apple Computer will host two main exhibition booths to handle the increasing interest in the technological benefits of the Macintosh personal computer family, and the expansion of the MacWorld Expo. At the World Trade Center, booth #5440, a demonstration of business solutions will be the focus, while at the Bayside Exposition Center, booth #1618, Apple will display its solutions for the education market.
HyperCard and "The Freedom to Associate" theme, connectivity, product displays and the first public viewing of the Apple Scanner and Macintosh II 4/40 will be a showcase of both booths.
HyperCard will be woven into each demonstration presented by Apple employees illustrating its relevance as an important solution across multiple business and education applications and markets. Visitors to the business booth can navigate through a variety of HyperCard stacks in the hands-on display area. The education booth will feature HyperCard-based education research projects from major universities nationwide.
The growing number of connectivity solutions for businesses in multi-application, multi-operating system and multi-architecture hardware environments will also be demonstrated in the business booth. The Macintosh will be shown accessing and manipulating data on MS-DOS, mini- and mainframe computers.
As an important addition to Apple's connectivity solution, HyperCard will be shown as a front-end accessing four different types of networked servers. In the education booth, the AppleTalk(R) Network System will present networking and filesharing solutions for use in high schools and higher education. Product areas located in each booth spotlight the AppleCD SC(TM) CD ROM drive, AppleFax(TM) Modem, Apple Scanner with AppleScan and HyperScan software, and the LaserWriter(R) II printer family. In addition, Apple representatives at two information stations will discuss application and development opportunities for inquiring developers, programmers and HyperCard enthusiasts.
Attendees to the conference are expected to include business and education professionals, dealers, distributors, developers, industry leaders, as well as Macintosh enthusiasts. The Macworld Expo will be open Thursday, August 11 through Saturday, August 13, and is sponsored by Mitch Hall Associates, Westwood, Mass
Apple, the Apple logo, HyperCard, Macworld, Macintosh, MacPaint, LaserWriter, and AppleTalk are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. AppleScan, HyperScan, AppleCD SC, and AppleFax are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.
