Silicon Times Report The Original Independent OnLine Magazine" (Since 1987) September 27, 1996 No.1239 Silicon Times Report International OnLine Magazine Post Office Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32221-6155 STR Electronic Publishing Inc. A subsidiary of STR Worldwide CompNews Inc. R.F. Mariano, Editor Voice: 1-904-292-9222 10am-5pm EST STReport WebSite http://www.streport.com STR Publishing Support BBS THE BOUNTY INTERNATIONAL BBS Featuring: * 5.0GB * of File Libraries Mustang Software's WILDCAT! Client/Server BBS Version 5 95/NT Featuring a Full Service Web Site http://www.streport.com Voted TOP TEN Ultimate WebSite Join STReport's Subscriber List receive STR through Internet MULTI-NODE Operation 24hrs-7 days Analog & ISDN BRI Access 904-268-4116 2400-128000 bps V. 120-32-34 v.42 bis ISDN V.34 USRobotics Courier Internal I-MODEM FAX: 904-268-2237 24hrs Toad Hall BBS 1-617-567-8642 09/27/96 STR 1239 The Original Independent OnLine Magazine! - CPU INDUSTRY REPORT - 56k bps Modem - WARP 4 Ships - S. Cray Fights for LIFE - VR Golf '97 - Hayes in Hi Gear - Motorola MAC Attack - Cracker Bill Passes - USPS to do Email? - JTS 90 days LATE? - People Talking - Dana's TidBits DOJ & Microsoft at it AGAIN! FBI plan REJECTED! Swedes Blamed in CIA Break-in! STReport International OnLine Magazine Featuring Weekly "Accurate UP-TO-DATE News and Information" Current Events, Original Articles, Tips, Rumors, and Information Hardware - Software - Corporate - R & D - Imports STReport's BBS - The Bounty International BBS, invites all BBS systems, worldwide, to participate in the provision and distribution of STReport for their members. You may call The STReport Home BBS, The Bounty @ 1- 904-268-4116. Or obtain the latest issue from our WebSite. Enjoy the wonder and excitement of exchanging all types of useful information relative to all computer types, worldwide, through the use of the Internet. All computer enthusiasts, hobbyist or commercial, on all platforms and BBS systems are invited to participate. ** WEB SITE: http//www.streport.com ** CIS ~ PRODIGY ~ DELPHI ~ GENIE ~ BIX ~ AOL IMPORTANT NOTICE STReport, with its policy of not accepting any input relative to content from paid advertisers, has over the years developed the reputation of "saying it like it really is". When it comes to our editorials, product evaluations, reviews and over-views, we shall always keep our readers interests first and foremost. With the user in mind, STReport further pledges to maintain the reader confidence that has been developed over the years and to continue "living up to such". All we ask is that our readers make certain the manufacturers, publishers etc., know exactly where the information about their products appeared. In closing, we shall arduously endeavor to meet and further develop the high standards of straight forwardness our readers have come to expect in each and every issue. The Publisher, Staff & Editors Florida Lotto - LottoMan v1.35 Results: 9/21/96: 2 of 6 numbers, three 2 number matches From the Editor's Desk... We're almost at the end of September and the beginning of all the hoopla of another Comdex in Vegas. This year, there are going to be many new faces that are not really new but renamed and a result of mergers and partnerships. All to the ultimate benefit of the users. The coming hardware products are amazing. Things we only hoped for a year or so ago are now reality. One of which was part of older, now very dead system. a separate mouse port where a rodent does not fight for a serial port. It may not mean much at a glance but when one runs a communications net or BBS, every free serial port is needed. The key BUZZ word this year is going to be INTERNET and how to make it easy for John Q. Public to use and enjoy. While at the same time, keeping the politician's grubby hands off as far as excessive taxation is concerned. I don't I'll ever forget the "as a matter of fact" remark I got for an "appointed" TAX Goniff in Tallahassee when we talked about the proposed Florida NET TAX on all Email. This guy has the gall to say the State was entitled to TAX the NET because it was new technology. I don't know whether he said that to "push my go button" or , in fact he really meant it. But I can tell you this. If the _appointed geeks_ in government can find a way to tax something.. they will. You see, they use the old well tried theorem. "possession is nine tenths of the law." By that I mean once they get the tax in place you'll play craps with the Devil to get it knocked out. It can be done though, the Impact Fee (tax) in Florida was ruled illegal and the State has been paying out refunds for almost two years now. For those of you who haven't noticed we are voting for Bill Clinton. Why? For a number of reasons but the main ones are . the deficit is way down already and with another term for Clinton, my grands will not have to pay it for me. Next, its the manner in which Mr. 1940's Dole has allowed the sleaze to conduct his campaign. that drug ad he runs really irks me its such lies. Then there is the factoid that I'd probably be voting "Kemp for President as Dole, in all likelihood will not finish his term. The Office itself is a killer. Look ast how Clinton has aged. I've seen it with every president since Ike. Lastly, you should know I'm a registered Republican.. but simply cannot stomach lowball tactics I've seen coming form them for the last eight years. From the deceptions of Iran-Contra to the experimental drugs being administered to the Desert Storm Troops. Some day I'll write the whole story about those drugs and so called inoculations that were being administered to the Armed Services in such as "as a matter of fact" way when in reality, they and the firms producing the stuff had no idea of what the drugs would induce as a reaction. Especially long term. In 1991, Charles Bennett (D Ret.) of Jacksonville, FL helped ensure the service records of those troops would reflect the pills and inoculations that were forced upon the Troops. I've had enough of the "Republican" way of doing things.. Ralph... Clinton and Gore: Good for Four More! Of Special Note: http//www.streport.com STReport is now ready to offer much more in the way of serving the Networks, Online Services and Internet's vast, fast growing site list and userbase. We now have our very own WEB/NewsGroup/FTP Site and although its in its early stages of construction, do stop by and have a look see. Since We've received numerous requests to receive STReport from a wide variety of Internet addressees, we were compelled to put together an Internet distribution/mailing list for those who wished to receive STReport on a regular basis, the file is ZIPPED, then UUENCODED. Unfortunately, we've also received a number of opinions that the UUENCODING was a real pain to deal with. So, as of October 01,1995, you'll be able to download STReport directly from our very own SERVER & WEB Site. While there, be sure to join our STR list. STReport's managing editors DEDICATED TO SERVING YOU! Ralph F. Mariano, Publisher - Editor Dana P. Jacobson, Editor, Current Affairs Section Editors PC Section Mac Section Beginner's Section R.F. Mariano J. Deegan Lloyd E. Pulley Gaming & Entertainment Kid's Computing Corner Dana P. Jacobson Frank Sereno STReport Staff Editors Michael Arthur John Deegan Brad Martin John Szczepanik Paul Guillot Joseph Mirando Doyle Helms John Duckworth Jeff Coe Steve Keipe Victor Mariano Melanie Bell Jay Levy Jeff Kovach Marty Mankins Carl Prehn Paul Charchian Vincent P. O'Hara Contributing Correspondents Dominick J. Fontana Norman Boucher Daniel Stidham David H. Mann Angelo Marasco Donna Lines Ed Westhusing Glenwood Drake Vernon W.Smith Bruno Puglia Paul Haris Kevin Miller Craig Harris Allen Chang Tim Holt Ron Satchwill Leonard Worzala Tom Sherwin Please submit ALL letters, rebuttals, articles, reviews, etc... via E-Mail to: CompuServe 70007,4454 Prodigy CZGJ44A Delphi RMARIANO GEnie ST.REPORT BIX RMARIANO AOL STReport Internet rmariano@streport.com WebSite http://www.streport.com STReport Headline News LATE BREAKING INDUSTRY-WIDE NEWS Weekly Happenings in the Computer World Compiled by: Dana P. Jacobson New Microsoft Probe Launching The U.S. Justice Department has notified Microsoft Corp. that it will seek additional information from the software giant regarding competitive practices. Reporting from Microsoft's Redmond, Washington, headquarters, the Reuter News Service quotes a company statement as saying the request is part of the department's "continuing examination of software industry issues." The last requests to Microsoft were issued in the summer of 1995. The federal government has been investigating Microsoft since 1990 for alleged anti-trust practices. Microsoft Vice President William Neukom says the latest request appears to be prompted by "complaints from competitors which are reminiscent of allegations that were thoroughly reviewed in the past." He added, "Internet Explorer 3.0 is consistently rated better than competing technology and is winning strong consumer support. In response, some of our competitors have resorted to a public relations campaign of baseless allegations designed to divert attention from the quality of our technology." Neukom says it is disappointing Microsoft's competitors "continue to seek government intervention in the competitive process rather than concentrating on improving their products. The facts will show that Microsoft is competing vigorously and legally, and our efforts are benefiting consumers by spurring greater innovation, better products, and lower prices. We intend to cooperate with the Justice Department." As reported, Netscape Communications Corp. last month accused Microsoft of anti-competitive behavior and urged the Justice Department to take action. It alleged Microsoft made written offers to computer makers, Internet service providers, systems integrators and large corporations providing for payments or discounts on the Microsoft desktop operating system or payments in the form of "real estate" on the Windows 95 screen on the condition that rival browsers would be less accessible than Microsoft's browser. Microsoft has denied the allegations. Georgia Seeks Net Controls Civil libertarians have brought a federal suit to challenge a new Georgia state law that attempts to impose local regulations on the global Internet. At issue is a law that makes it illegal in some instances to communicate anonymously on the Internet and to use trademarks and logos without permission, writer Jared Sandberg reports in today's Wall Street Journal. The law imposes a penalty of up to 12 months in jail and $1,000 in fines. The American Civil Liberties Union, joined by 13 plaintiffs including a number of public-interest groups, is suing, contending the Georgia law is "unconstitutionally vague" and that its restraints on using corporate logos and trade names are "impermissibly chilling constitutionally protected expression," Sandberg reports. They also argue that the law illegally tries to impose state restrictions on interstate commerce, a right reserved for Congress. "The legal challenge is one of the first major assaults on state laws that seek to rein in the Internet, despite its global reach and audience," Sandberg observes. Other instances: ú Connecticut passed a law last year making it a crime to send an electronic-mail message "with intent to harass, annoy or alarm another person." ú Virginia enacted a bill this year making it illegal for a state employee to use state-owned computers to get access to sexually explicit material. ú New York state has tried to resurrect prohibitions on "indecent material" that were struck down as unconstitutional by a federal appeals panel ruling on the federal Communications Decency Act three months ago. The Journal says most Internet laws target child pornographers and stalkers, adding, "Opponents argue the well-intended efforts could nonetheless chill free speech and the development of electronic commerce. They maintain that the Internet, which reaches into more than 150 countries, shouldn't be governed by state laws that could result in hundreds of different, and often conflicting, regulations." However, Don Parsons, th Republican state representative who sponsored the Georgia bill, told the paper he believes the law is a necessary weapon to combat fraud, forgery and other online misdeeds. He said the groups that oppose it "want to present (the Internet) as something magical, as something above and beyond political boundaries." Parsons also said the Georgia law does not seek to ban all anonymity, that instead, it targets people who "fraudulently misrepresent their site as that of another organization." Pssst: Somebody please, tell the honorable Gentleman for Georgia to make sure his bill says and does exactly what he means it to do. Clinton Encryption Plan Not Done A widely anticipated proposal by the Clinton administration to relax export restrictions on computer encoding technology is not ready for release. At a hearing today of the House Judiciary Committee, Undersecretary of Commerce William Reinsch said the proposal had not yet been formalized, adding in prepared testimony, "Our work is not yet done. We are continuing to consult with industry and international partners to refine our proposal." The Reuter News Service notes the Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on Resolution 3011, a bill that would dramatically relax encryption export limits. As reported, last July Vice President Al Gore outlined the administration's ideas for relaxing limits on encryption exports, saying export controls should be liberalized only if encryption programs include so-called key escrow components. As noted, the computer industry and many members of Congress oppose such a key escrow and argue foreign competitors will sell encryption programs without escrow features. Reuters says Reinsch believes the key escrow approach is needed to help law enforcement and intelligence agencies deal with encryption. In his statement, Reinsch said, "This approach balances economic needs with law enforcement concerns and is one that many of our major trading partners, most notably the United Kingdom, are also adopting," adding the U.S. is working in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to craft a global policy for encryption. Swedes Blamed in CIA Break-in Word is that it was a group of Swedish intruders, angry over a court case in their own country, that broke into the CIA's World Wide Web page this week. As reported, the CIA pulled the plug on its Web site (http://www.odci.gov/cia) after vandals altered the page to declare the agency the "Central Stupidity Agency." Cyberspace writer Elizabeth Weise of The Associated Press reports the vandals, who dubbed themselves "Power Through Resistance," also added a slam against the Swedish prosecutor in the case, Bo Skarinder, urging him to "Stop Lying." "The Swedish case the hackers were angry about involves a different group of hackers between the ages of 16 and 20 who were caught in 1991 but whose trial began only this week," Weise reports. AP says the offending Web page was removed after about 12 hours and as of early today the agency's entire site was still unavailable. (However,before the CIA removed the page, numerous copies were made by individuals in no way involved with the attack. One such copy is available at http://www.is.co.za/mikev/cia--hack/) Best to Offer 56K bps Modem Best Data Products is the latest modem vendor to announce plans to ship a 56K bps modem in 1997. The modem, which will operate over standard telephone lines, will be based on new modem technology recently announced by Rockwell Semiconductor Systems. The Rockwell technology is expected to become a worldwide standard. Although significantly faster than current analog transmission methodologies, the technology does not require the installation of expensive digital ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network) telephone lines. "Multimedia and graphic content on the Internet are creating an increasing demand for greater bandwidth than today's analog modems can provide," says Bruce Zaman, president of Best Data Products, which is based in Chatsworth, California. "The new modems will address this demand over existing telephone lines." Hayes Launches TV Ad Blitz Modem maker Hayes Microcomputer Products Inc. has launched a national TV advertising campaign with 60-second spots based on the theme "How Fast Do You Want to Get There?" The Norcross, Georgia, company says the campaign is intended to stimulate demand for its ACCURA high-speed modems. Special promotions and dealer incentives will complement the campaign. With ads created by Lighton Colman of Chicago, Hayes says it will deliver over 1 billion targeted advertising impressions on major cable networks, including CNN, ESPN, CNBC, CNN/Headline News, Sci-Fi Channel, MSNBC, Discovery Channel and Comedy Central. The campaign will run through to the end of January. The TV blitz is part of an aggressive new marketing focus at Hayes, which earlier this year emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. "We intend to generate demand for our modems by communicating to consumers the essence of the Hayes brand," says Marshall Toplansky, Hayes' vice presidentof corporate marketing. Apple Updates Color Architecture Apple Computer Inc. has begun shipping ColorSync 2.1, a updated version of its color management architecture for Macintosh computers. ColorSync 2.1 is an operating system-level technology that allows Mac users to get more predictable and accurate color from their applications, scanners, digital cameras, displays and printers. Apple developed ColorSync to provide an industry-standard method of interpreting and synchronizing the capabilities of color devices, so that users get consistent results when using devices that do not share the same color range. The newest version features named color profile support, enhanced hi-fi color functions, expanded bitmap formats, increased speed and a new way of embedding profiles in documents using only a fraction of the usual storage space. "Color management is critical in the changing information market," says Carla Ow-Chu, Apple's ColorSync product manager. "We are constantly working to make the creation and delivery of color easy, fast, and consistent on any media, anytime." ColorSync 2.1 is offered as an extension to the Macintosh operating system and is available today on the World Wide Web, free of charge, at: http://www.macos.apple.com/ in the "Innovative Technologies" section. Claris Updates Mac Organizer Claris Corp. says it has begun shipping Claris Organizer 2.0, an updated version of its personal information manager for Macintosh and Power Macintosh computers. The Apple Computer Inc. subsidiary notes that the software is now Internet savvy with new e-mail and Web links, providing the ability to launch Internet programs like Netscape Navigator or Claris Emailer from within Organizer. The program also offers a simplified on-screen contact card that displays information much like a business card and helps users track contacts, appointments and tasks. "Claris Organizer 2.0 sets a new standard in usability and efficiency for contact managers. It provides customers with an easy-to-use solution for managing business and personal contacts and a powerful featureset for more efficient time management," says David Christopher, customer marketing manager for Claris Organizer. Claris Organizer 2.0 is available now for $69. Current users can upgrade to the new version for $49. A Windows 95 version of the product is scheduled to ship next year. IBM Ships Updated OS/2 Warp IBM has released OS/2 Warp 4, the latest version of its PC operating system. Incorporating features like Sun Microsystems' Java technology and IBM VoiceType speech recognition software, IBM says OS/2 Warp 4 promises to "help transition customers into the era of network computing." "IBM envisions a future in which people have easy access to the information they need to work more productively," says John M. Thompson, senior vice president and group executive of the IBM Software Group. "IBM's Software Group is making great strides toward that future by ensuring that our software lineup assists IBM in delivering to our customers network computing solutions based on open standards. Today we introduce an exciting new version of OS/2 Warp -- a key member of IBM's entire family of software products." Minimum requirements for using OS/2 Warp 4 are an Intel 486/33 or higher processor with 12MB to 16MB of memory. For speech navigation, a 75MHz Pentium or higher processor with 16MB to 20MB of memory is required. For speech navigation and dictation, a 100MHz or higher processor with 24MB to 32MB of memory is required. OS/2 Warp 4 requires 100MB to 300MB of free disk space. OS/2 Warp 4 is immediately available in U.S. English. IBM plans to offer the product in 28 national language versions by the second half of 1997, beginning with many major European languages within the next 45 days. The suggested retail price of OS/2 Warp 4 in the U.S. is $249 for first-time OS/2 customers and $149 for upgrades from previous releases of OS/2. Postal Service Explores E-Mail The U.S. Postal Service is exploring its electronic options, wanting to offer the assurance of its postmarks -- guaranteeing time and date somethig was sent -- to e-mail. Associated Press writer Randolph E. Schmid says prime customers of a new project called Electronic Commerce Services are expected to be businesses, particularly the financial, legal and medical professions. Paul Raines, who is managing the program, told the wire service the growth of the Internet has led to an explosive increase in electronic messaging as more and more people and businesses have computers, but copies of contracts and other business documents still have to be sent on paper for legal purposes. "The new system could change that," says AP, "permitting contracts, government applications, financial documents and other items to be sent electronically with the post office providing proof they were sent and guaranteeing the accuracy of the copies. The agency could also provide an archive service, maintaining copies of documents for use if proof were needed of what was sent and when." Raines says the current test is to determine a reasonable price for the service, get customer feedback and determine what features work best. If all goes well, the system could become widely available sometime next year. But aware the post office often runs into criticism when it considers ventures that might conflict with private businesses, postal spokesman Mark Saunders emphasized, "The post office itself will not run an e-mail service," stressing the system will operate over the Internet and connect to proprietary networks. The planned system isn't simple, Schmid notes. For instance, if someone wants to send an electronic message to a bank and needs to prove it was sent by a certain date, the message might be sent from a commercial system such as CompuServe to the bank, via a post office computer. "The post office would receive the message, stamp it with an electronic postmark, and forward it to the bank, providing proof of when the message was sent," AP notes. "For legal documents that need to be kept secret, it gets even more complex, requiring an encoding system using software that would be sold commercially or could be included in other available programs." Intel Tests Net Phone Chipmaker Intel Corp. says it will release a new test version of its Intel Internet Phone free of charge from Intel's Web site, allowing users to call each other long-distance through the Net without phone company long-distance charges. Reporting from Santa Clara, California, United Press International says the software is designed to operate with systems from different vendors or running on different types of computers. Intel officials told United Press International hundreds of thousands of the first test version of the Internet phone have been downloaded from the Web sie since its introduction in July. The software is designed for personal computers powered by Pentium chips from Intel. "The new version includes additional functions, such as busy line indicator and call progress indicator, and the size of the file downloaded from the Internet has been reduced by one-third," UPI says. "The new version is also designed to work with other Internet directory services to locate other Internet phone users." Intel's software is based on the H.323 technology, a standard already endorsed by 120 companies that is designed to allow users of different computers and phone software to talk to each other. Of course, the disadvantage of making a phone call through the Internet is a delay in transmission, sometimes as much as one-half second, "but," notes UPI, "if the idea catches on, it could start to raiding the massive profits generated by telephone companies." BBC to Offer Internet Service Starting next spring, the BBC, Britain's largest broadcasting company, will offer an Internet access service for computer users. In London, The Associated Press quotes Bob Phillis, BBC Worldwide's chief executive, as saying, "We aim to remain the touchstone of quality in the new global multimedia environment." AP notes BBC Worldwide has gone into partnership with ICL PLC, a British-based computer company, to develop the service. The BBC also talked with Microsoft Corp. before choosing ICL, which is largely owned by Fujitsu Corp. of Japan. Adds the wire service, "The BBC isn't putting up any money but will provide all material from its radio, television and publishing operations, while ICL will operate the access service and provide all start-up costs of the venture." AP adds news will be a major part of the service, "but there are also expected to be sites for the BBC's most popular soap operas and dramas as well as shopping sites to buy BBC brand products." In addition, the BBC promises a "morality button" to prevent children from gaining access to pornography. Passport Forms Now Online Passport application forms now can be obtained through the Internet. U.S. State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns told the Reuter News Service the department's Consular Affairs bureau home page (http://travel.state.gov) has online facilities for printing out the form. The completed form will still need to be mailed or taken to one of the government's passport offices. Forms to report a lost or stolen passport or to amend a current passport can also be downloaded from the State Department's Web site, Reuters said. Device Allows Mind-Control of PCs A peripheral device that allow users to control a PC with their minds has been released by The Other 90% Technologies Inc. The San Rafael, California-based firm says its MindDrive product allows users to move on-screen images, run computer programs and even play video games through their thoughts. The MindDrive device consists of a small sensor sleeve that fits onto a finger and a micro controller interface that plugs into the PC. According to the manufacturer, the sensor reads and instantly transmits one's thought signals to the computer. The MindDrive sells for $149.95, and 10 initial applications are priced from $24.95 to $39.95. The products are available at CompUSA, Computer City, Software Etc., Electronic Boutique and Egghead, as well leading regional consumer electronics retailers. Cray Continues Fight for Life Seymour Cray still battles for his life in a Colorado Springs, Colorado, hospital after breaking his neck and severely injuring his head in a traffic accident now blamed on a careless driver. The 70-year-old supercomputer pioneer is critical and unstable condition at Penrose Hospital. Hospital spokeswoman Kate Brewster told The Associated Press he underwent surgery to relieve brain swelling after Sunday's accident. AP reports Cray's Jeep Cherokee rolled three times after the driver of a Chevrolet Camaro tried to pass him and then struck another car, which slammed into Cray's vehicle. The other motorists weren't injured. A 33-year-old Colorado Springs man has been cited for careless driving causing serious bodily injury. Dole Wins High-Tech Support Republican presidential contender Bob Dole is getting the endorsement of some 180 Silicon Valley executives, venture capitalists and lawyers. Reporting from San Francisco, the Reuter News Service says the official announcement is to come today from the headquarters of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. in Sunnyvale, California. This comes about a month after Bill Clinton received the endorsement of 75 Silico Valley executives, including Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and former Hewlett-Packard Co. chief John Young. Those now coming out for the Dole-Jack Kemp ticket include Jerry Sanders of Advanced Micro Devices, T.J. Rodgers of Cypress Semiconductor Corp., Scott McNealy of Sun Microsystems Inc., Gilbert Amelio of Apple Computer Inc. and Wilfred Corrigan of LSI Logic Corp. Floyd Kvamme, a partner at Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers and one of the organizers of the group, told the wire service the Republican group came into being within the last 15 to 20 days. It got off the ground after the executives saw a newspaper report that said Silicon Valley was backing Clinton again in 1996, Kvamme said, adding, "Everybody that I knew said: 'What! You've got to be kidding me.' ... We sent out some letters to folks and the response has been absolutely incredible." Kvamme, who said the group had not yet been in contact with Dole, told the wire service many Silicon Valley executives wanted capital gains tax cuts and faster U.S. economic growth. He said they strongly opposed Proposition 211, a measure on the California ballot in November that would make it easier to file securities fraud lawsuits in the state. Reuters notes both Clinton and Dole oppose the California measure, "but Clinton last December vetoed federal legislation restricting securities fraud lawsuits, costing him support in Silicon Valley, even though Congress later overrode the veto." FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 11, 1996 VR SPORTS ANNOUNCES MARKETING DRIVE FOR VR GOLF '97 (Buy one get one free by mail offer expected to drive sales) Irvine, California -- VR Sports stepped up its marketing drive for its newest title, VR Golf '97, today in anticipation of the title's November release. VR Sports, a division of Irvine-based Interplay Productions, announced that it will offer its inaugural sports title VR Soccer '96 free by mail with the purchase of VR Golf '97. "We're putting the strength of the VR Sports brand behind VR Golf '97 because it's a great game and now it's a great value for the holidays," said Paul Sackman, director of marketing for VR Sports. "A release with as much potential as VR Golf '97 requires strong marketing support to ensure sell-through and drive gamers to retail." The promotion will feature the free VR Soccer '96 offer in spread ads through Christmas and is expected to drive gamers to retail, while P.O.S. materials will flag the promotion at retail for greater sell-through. VR Golf '97 will also feature a vibrant burst on its packaging to catch the eye of browsing gamers. VR Golf '97 is the only golf simulation game on the market to offer immersive 360-degree, 3D views for players along with motion capture and faster gameplay. In VR Golf '97, golfers can see the shot from virtually anywhere on the course: ú behind the player, ú from the fairway or from the pin. The game also features three different commentators including Pat O'Brien from CBS Sports. Recent reviews of VR Golf '97 herald the game as "realism extraordinaire," "an astonishing piece of work" and, as Video Games magazine said, "The best damn golf game ever." VR Sports, the sports division of Interplay Productions, is a developer and publisher of state-of- the-art, real-time, 360 degrees, 3D sports software. VR Sports releases sports software for SEGA Saturn, Sony PlayStation, Macintosh, Windows '95 and IBM and 100% compatible computers. More comprehensive information on VR Sports and its products is available through the company's worldwide web site at http://www.vrsports.com. Adobe Announces Adobe PostScript Level 3 The Printing System for the Wired World San Jose, California (September 11, 1996) (Nasdaq:ADBE) Adobe Systems Incorporated today advanced printing into a new era, announcing its newest printing systems solution, which includes the next generation of Adobe(R) PostScript(R), the worldwide imaging language standard. Geared for the requirements of the new wired world, Adobe PostScript Level 3 will offer original equipment manufacturer (OEM) customers and end users dramatic enhancements in printing functionality, performance, reliability and quality. Adobe's integrated printing system solution focuses on changing the printing experience by allowing OEM customers to build best- in-class printing solutions and providing users the ability to print complex graphics and Web content, when and where they need it. Adobe has gone beyond offering a page description language to providing customers with a total systems solution for delivering and printing digital documents. Adobe PostScript Level 3 offers Advanced Page Processing, Enhanced Image Technology, NetWorks(TM) System, and PlanetReady(TM) Printing benefits. At any consumer level - from home and small office to corporate workgroups, production printing to graphic arts - Adobe's innovative digital imaging technology is at the core of electronic and hard copy document solutions. By incorporating new levels of functionality, Adobe PostScript Level 3 offers exceptional benefits to consumers in each of these market segments. "The genesis of Adobe PostScript Level 3 is a result of three market trends which are a driving force in our industry: the pervasiveness of the Internet, the increasing use of color, and a shifting workflow model from print and distribute to distribute and print-on-demand," said Fred Schwedner, senior vice president and general manager, Adobe Printing and Systems Division. "Adobe's objective is to support digital document delivery for all types of document content, from any possible source, to every available output destination. Our goal is that with incessant delivery of innovative solutions like Adobe PostScript Level 3, every page printed uses Adobe technology." Adobe is the only company to offer a complete range of printing systems solutions with Adobe PrintGear(TM) for the small office/home office (SOHO) market; Adobe PostScript as the standard from corporate desktop printers to high-end publishing printers; a new architecture, code named "Supra", that incorporates both Adobe PostScript language and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) for production printers; and Adobe PrintMill(TM), an Intranet- based printing and printer management solution. Adobe also collaborates with leading operating system vendors and printer manufacturers to provide robust printer drivers. "We are delighted to have our OEM customers, development partners, and application software developers endorse Adobe PostScript Level 3," stated Jim Stephens, vice president of marketing, Adobe Printing and Systems Division. "Since its introduction in 1985 when Adobe PostScript software helped spawn the desktop publishing revolution, Adobe has continued to drive the industry forward with powerful printing solutions. We have expanded our technology offerings to meet the changing needs of customers in every market segment so our OEM customers can deliver best-in-class products across the board." Adobe has developed an advanced level of functionality in Adobe PostScript Level 3 to accommodate the new digital document creation process which includes varying sources, complex composition and virtually unlimited destinations. Users are now accessing content for use in digital documents from varying sources including electronic mail, World Wide Web pages, Intranets, on-line services, content providers and digital cameras. Ocument composition now includes not only text, but also complex graphics, clip art, corporate logos, Internet content, multiple fonts, scanned images and color. Finally, the digital document's destination is to printing systems anywhere in the world such as personal printers, network printers, service bureaus, pay for print providers, or data warehouses for electronic archival. With Adobe PostScript Level 3, users can print when and where they need to with insured reliability and quality. Adobe PostScript Level 3 Benefits Enhanced Image Technology Enhanced Image Technology insures that documents print faster, easier, and with optimal quality. A key benefit to the user is that Enhanced Image Technology recognizes image objects and automatically optimizes processing to deliver the highest possible quality, and at the same time speed return to application. Adobe PostScript Level 3 will include new imaging features that support the increasingly complex documents available via the Internet, support for three-dimensional images, photo quality grayscaling, smooth gradients in graphic objects, image compositioning and full-color spectrums. Advanced Page Processing Adobe PostScript Level 3 with Advanced Page Processing significantly increases the performance of an imaging system. As components in a document become more complex, the printing system will process each component as a separate object in order to optimize imaging throughnput. PostScript Level 3 will support direct processing of Web content, including HTML and Adobe PDF. Advanced Page Processing will also extend the resident font set to provide compatibility with the resident fonts of all leading operating systems, enhancing performance by reducing font downloading. Adobe has also integrated PDF into Adobe PostScript Level 3 to provide users with a more robust ability to manage individual pages within a document, thereby improving the user's control over the printing process. NetWorks System Adobe's NetWorks System improves ease of use, ease of connection and ease of printer management all in one environment through Adobe PostScript Level 3. A printer with Adobe's NetWorks System functionality will include a printer based Web page, Web based printer management, printing directly from the printer's Web Page, support for all industry standard remote management technologies, and a single step CD-ROM installer for all drivers, fonts and value-added software. Adobe's NetWorks System ultimately allows users to leverage the power and benefits of the Internet. PlanetReady Printing Adobe PostScript Level 3 offers PlanetReady Printing to allow our products to fully meet the local language needs of our users anywhere in the world. We intend to provide the ability for users to easily display and print any language with any Adobe PostScript Level 3 printer. PlanetReady Printing enables OEMs to more easily develop complete imaging systems that are savvy to localized demands of language and usage. Specific features of PlanetReady Printing include robust drivers that are tightly integrated into the operating system, be it Microsoft(R) Windows(R) 3.1, Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows NT or Apple(R) Macintosh(R), full support of international font requirements, and tools for OEMs to quickly and easily customize and localize their printing systems. Adobe PostScript with PlanetReady printing capabilities offers users enhanced performance and simplified printing. Availability Adobe has completed Adobe PostScript Level 3 language feature development and will now begin its system integration process. The product schedule includes two internal quality assurance cycles before system delivery to OEM printing system manufacturers and third party development partners in December 1996. In the second half of 1997 when OEMs begin to deliver Adobe PostScript Level 3 based products, Adobe will disclose the Adobe PostScript Level 3 operators and language specific features. Based in San Jose, Calif., Adobe Systems Incorporated develops and supports products to help people express and use information in more imaginative and meaningful ways, across all print and electronic media. Founded in 1982, Adobe helped launch the desktop publishing revolution. Today, the company offers a market-leading line of application software and type products for creating and distributing visually rich communication materials; licenses its industry-standard technologies to major hardware manufacturers, software developers, and service providers; and offers integrated software solutions to businesses of all sizes. For more information, see Adobe's home page at http://www.adobe.com on the World Wide Web. Adobe, the Adobe logo, Adobe PostScript, Adobe PrintGear, Adobe PrintMill, PlanetReady Printing and NetWorks System are trademarks of Adobe Systems, Incorporated. Apple and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Incorporated. 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Mariano, Editor STReport International Online Magazine EDUPAGE STR Focus Keeping the users informed Edupage Contents Wireless Industry Rejects FBI Surveillance Plan All Eyes On E-Money Justice Department Continues Microsoft Inquiry New York Enacts Net Indecency Law Hardware, Systems Administrators Cause Most Glitches Postal Service Tests Electronic Postmark No Communications Deal For U.S.- Canada Speedy HotWire Modems Seymour Cray Injured In Automobile Crash SAIC Eyes Bellcore Cracker Bill Passes Senate Increasing Use Of Direct Internet Service Providers FTC Seeks Privacy Safeguards In Response To P-TRAK Flap Stiff Competition For PC Shelf Space Motorola's Mac Attack AOL Resumes Junk E-Mail Block, Settles Class Action Suit Fujitsu To License Its Plasma Flat-Screen Technology VLSI Chips Slash Set-Top Box Prices AT&T Closes Its Personal Online Services Group The Art And Science Of Naming Technology Products WIRELESS INDUSTRY REJECTS FBI SURVEILLANCE PLAN The members of the Cellular Telecommunications Industry, a trade organization, have voted to reject a Justice Department plan that would give federal law enforcement agencies the ability to determine the location of a cellular phone caller and to begin almost immediately to monitor the status of the call. The wireless industry, which says the plan would be too expensive to administer, is supported by privacy groups fearful of giving police agencies additional surveillance capabilities. The FBI says it simply wants the same kind of location information already routinely available in tracing traditional phone calls: "The privacy people say we shouldn't have this information, but the notion that we in law enforcement should not be able to take advantage of the technology is a crazy notion." (New York Times 20 Sep 96 A1) ALL EYES ON E-MONEY Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin has formed a task force to examine what impact the move toward electronic money transfer and storage technologies will have on consumers. Specifically, the team will look at how these technologies will affect lower-income Americans, and assess standards for consumer protection. The task force also will come up with non-regulatory measures that can be taken to protect consumers while allowing the market to develop. "I want to be certain that we make the right decisions as we begin this new era so that the benefits of these developments are broadly shared and have a positive impact on our economy," says Rubin. (Investor's Business Daily 20 Sep 96 A19) Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan and Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp. have jointly developed a very advanced, secure electronic money system, using NTT's high- speed digital signature system and its patented E-sign algorithm. The new system allows a number of banks to issue the same type of e-money to customers, relieving them of the responsibility of developing their own proprietary e-money systems. NTT hopes its new system will become the de facto standard for e-money in the country. (BNA Daily Report for Executives 13 Sep 96 A2) JUSTICE DEPARTMENT CONTINUES MICROSOFT INQUIRY The Justice Department is proceeding into a new phase of its investigation of Microsoft's trade practices; the move follows last month's accusation by a Netscape attorney that, in defiance of a 1994 settlement with the government, Microsoft is giving computer manufacturers a $3 rebate for every machine on which they give Microsoft's Internet Explorer browsing software greater prominence than the corresponding Netscape Navigator browser. Microsoft has denied the accusation. (New York Times 20 Sep 96 C1) NEW YORK ENACTS NET INDECENCY LAW New York Governor George Pataki has signed into law a bill that makes transmission of material "harmful to minors," depicting nudity, sexual contact or sadomasochism a felony punishable by up to four years in prison. The New York Civil Liberties Union says it will continue to fight the law and may seek its repeal. (Broadcasting & Cable 16 Sep 96 p64) HARDWARE, SYSTEMS ADMINISTRATORS CAUSE MOST GLITCHES A report recently published by Ontrack Data Recovery lays the blame for data losses primarily on hardware malfunctions, with mistakes made by systems administrators second. While 44% of problems were attributable to the hardware, 32% were caused by systems administrators. Software malfunction caused 14%, and computer viruses only 7%. The remaining 3% were caused by natural disasters. (Investor's Business Daily 18 Sep 96 A6) POSTAL SERVICE TESTS ELECTRONIC POSTMARK The U.S. Postal Service is testing a system that would place an electronic postmark on e-mail messages, verifying the date and time the message was sent, and guaranteeing that the content had not been tampered with. The new system would enable more business functions to be conducted electronically, and would also provide an archive service, maintaining copies of "e- postmarked" mail, should any questions arise later. The current test will determine what price people would expect to pay for such a service, and which features work best. (St. Petersburg Times 20 Sep 96 E6) NO COMMUNICATIONS DEAL FOR U.S.-CANADA Industry Canada says there is no deal, at least in the short term, between Canada and the U.S. on communications policy. The U.S. government is pressuring Ottawa to open up Canada's industrial and cultural policies as a way to resolve Telesat Canada's problems with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. (Toronto Globe & Mail 19 Sep 96 B8) SPEEDY HOTWIRE MODEMS The new HotWire system from Paradyne Corp. use an RADSL (rate adaptive digital subscriber line) modem that can send data at speeds up to 2 million bits per second, making it possible to send video over ordinary telephone lines. The technology is more than 15 times faster than conventional ISDN (integrated services digital network) lines. (Tampa Tribune 21 Sep 96 B&F1) SEYMOUR CRAY INJURED IN AUTOMOBILE CRASH Seymour Cray, the supercomputer pioneer who founded Cray Research Inc. and Cray Computer Inc., was injured in a three-car accident Sunday in Colorado Springs. Mr. Cray has severe head injuries and is listed in critical and unstable condition. (New York Times 24 Sep 96 C2) SAIC EYES BELLCORE Science Applications International Corp. is negotiating its proposed purchase of Bell Communications Research, better known as Bellcore, the research arm of the seven regional Bell operating companies. The price is rumored to be around $700 million, and the sale would give SAIC access to Bellcore's networking expertise, said to be the best in the world. Bellcore scientists are widely respected for their unsurpassed abilities in network disaster recovery, computer virus detection, and fiber optic technology. In choosing SAIC as their buyer, the Bell companies have selected a company that will not pose an immediate threat in their markets -- SAIC specializes in systems integration, national security, transportation and health care. (Wall Street Journal 23 Sep 96 A3) CRACKER BILL PASSES SENATE A bill (S 982) that would make it easier to prosecute computer crimes passed the Senate last Friday, but its companion bill in the House (HR 4095) is not scheduled for any action. The National Information Infrastructure Act of 1996, sponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) would explicitly outlaw: interstate or foreign theft of information by computer; blackmail and threats against computer systems and networks; and unauthorized use of computer systems. Leahy says a Carnegie Mellon University report found that more than 12,000 computers were attacked in more than 2,400 incidents in 1995. The Computer Systems Policy Project reports that U.S. companies lost somewhere between $2- and $4-billion last year due to security breaches in computer systems. (BNA Daily Report for Executives 20 Sep 96 A35) INCREASING USE OF DIRECT INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDERS A survey from Odyssey Inc. of San Francisco says that 48% of all households connected to the Internet use an Internet service provider, up from 30% six months ago. The president of the firm notes that this is not good news for commercial online services: "There are now lots of places to get information, and lots of ways to get onto the Internet. Commercial online services are going to have to sell themselves in a different way than they have been selling themselves. They need to explain what value they bring in addition to access to the Internet and the World Wide Web." (New York Times 23 Sep 96 C1) FTC SEEKS PRIVACY SAFEGUARDS IN RESPONSE TO P-TRAK FLAP The Federal Trade Commission has recommended broader privacy protections, responding to public outcry over an information service offered by Lexis- Nexis Inc. that critics say provides individuals' Social Security numbers, mothers' maiden names, and other confidential data to anyone willing to pay a nominal fee. "The ready availability of this information through a tracking service may facilitate identity fraud, credit fraud and other illegal activities," says the FTC. The P-TRAK service says it eliminated access to Social Security numbers earlier this year following consumer complaints, but users can still call up information by typing in a Social Security number. P-TRAK also says it doesn't provide mothers' maiden names (often used by credit card companies as a safeguard against unauthorized access), just individuals' maiden names, as part of its service. The FTC has recommended that credit-reporting agencies would no longer be able to supply this information to database operators such as Lexis. (Wall Street Journal 24 Sep 96 B7) STIFF COMPETITION FOR PC SHELF SPACE PC makers are facing new competition from big consumer-electronics companies such as Sony Corp. and Toshiba Corp., both of which are weighing in with new lines of personal computers in time for the holiday sales season. "There's definitely more competition," says an International Data Corp. analyst, which has predicted a 14% rise in PC sales in the third quarter and 21% rise in the fourth. "There's not enough shelf space to go around." (St. Petersburg Times 23 Sep 96 p12) MOTOROLA'S MAC ATTACK Motorola has unveiled its StarMax Macintosh clones, becoming the first major manufacturer to get into the Apple clone business. The new machines, powered by Motorola's PowerPC processor, are priced anywhere between $1,600 and $4,000 and include a five-year warranty. (Business Week 30 Sep 96 p46) AOL RESUMES JUNK E-MAIL BLOCK SETTLES CLASS ACTION SUIT America Online has received permission from a federal appeals court in Philadelphia to resume its practice of blocking junk e-mail messages sent to its subscribers. Cyber Promotions Inc. had filed for and received an injunction earlier this month ordering AOL to end its practice of blocking unsolicited messages to its members from companies that specialize in "junk e-mail" for promotional purposes. A related lawsuit is scheduled to go to trial in November. In a separate case, a judge in San Francisco tentatively approved a settlement to a class action suit brought by subscribers who claimed they were improperly charged for fractions of minutes that they didn't use. The settlement calls for refunds of $2.95 for each $300 in charges to former members. AOL's total payout could add up to $700,000, $200,000 more than was agreed to in the preliminary settlement. (Wall Street Journal 23 Sep 96 B6) FUJITSU TO LICENSE ITS PLASMA FLAT-SCREEN TECHNOLOGY The Japanese company Fujitsu, which has patented a way to develop plasma- display panels that could be used to create big screens for computer monitors and TV sets, will license the technology to other Japanese and Korean TV manufacturers. Whereas most thin screens, such as those used in laptop computers, currently rely on liquid crystal displays (LCDs), the Fujitsu technique makes use of a thin layer of plasma gas coated on the back of a screen, which is then lit up in various colors when the plasma crystals are activated by an electric charge. (New York Times 23 Sep 96 C4) VLSI CHIPS SLASH SET-TOP BOX PRICES New chips from VLSI Technology Inc. can handle both audio and video, eliminating the need for multiple chips used in set-top boxes for cable and satellite TV. The Vista System-Level Silicon chip should bring the prices of set-top boxes down from $450 to about $200, says a VLSI VP. (Investor's Business Daily 24 Sep 96 A8) AT&T CLOSES ITS PERSONAL ONLINE SERVICES GROUP AT&T will scrap its Personal Online Services Group and transfer the group's 40 employees to other jobs. The group had focused on providing a service called the Home Town Network, offering users information on local government, entertainment and other localized content. The company says it will concentrate instead on access and hosting services such as its WorldNet Internet access business. (Wall Street Journal 23 Sep 96 B6) THE ART AND SCIENCE OF NAMING TECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS As companies fight over high-tech names with the words "net," "power," or "link" in them, others reach further afield for inspiration. The founder of Marimba, a software company creating Java-based applications, says: "I thought of tons of names, but most of them were taken." So she appropriated the name of the musical instrument: "I was looking for something dynamic and fun... Sure, we're marketing to nerds, but I think nerds like to be marketed to like everybody else." (New York Times 23 Sep 96 C5) Edupage is written by John Gehl (gehl@educom.edu) & Suzanne Douglas (douglas@educom.edu). Voice: 404-371-1853, Fax: 404-371-8057. Technical support is provided by the Office of Information Technology, University of North Carolina. EDUPAGE is what you've just finished reading. To subscribe to Edupage: send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu and in the body of the message type: subscribe edupage Marvin Minsky (assuming that your name is Marvin Minsky; if it's not, substitute your own name). ... To cancel, send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu and in the body of the message type: unsubscribe edupage... Subscription problems: educom@educom.unc.edu. EDUCOM REVIEW is our bimonthly print magazine on learning, communications, and information technology. Subscriptions are $18 a year in the U.S.; send mail to offer@educom.edu. When you do, we'll ring a little bell, because we'll be so happy! Choice of bell is yours: a small dome with a button, like the one on the counter at the dry cleaners with the sign "Ring bell for service"; or a small hand bell; or a cathedral bell; or a door bell; or a chime; or a glockenspiel. Your choice. But ring it! EDUCOM UPDATE is our twice-a-month electronic summary of organizational news and events. To subscribe to the Update: send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu and in the body of the message type: subscribe update John McCarthy (assuming that your name is John McCarthy; if it's not, substitute your own name). INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE The CAUSE organization's annual conference on information technology in higher education is scheduled for the end of this month in New Orleans. The conference will bring together administrators, academicians and other managers of information resources. For full conference information check out or send e-mail to conf@cause.colorado.edu. ARCHIVES & TRANSLATIONS. For archive copies of Edupage or Update, ftp or gopher to educom.edu or see URL: < http://www.educom.edu/>. For the French edition of Edupage, send mail to edupage-fr@ijs.com with the subject "subscribe"; or see < http://www.ijs.com >. For the Hebrew edition, send mail to listserv@kinetica.co.il containing : SUBSCRIBE Leketnet-Word6 or see < http://www.kinetica.co.il/ newsletters/leketnet/ >. For the Hungarian edition, send mail to: send mail to subs.edupage@hungary.com. An Italian edition is available on Agora' Telematica; connection and/or free subscription via BT-Tymnet and Sprint (login: or = sign between the represented quantities. The aesthetic qualities of the program are excellent. The graphics are colorful. The characters are well conceived and expertly animated. The voice characterizations are done exceedingly well with each character having a definite personality, yet all are extremely friendly. The background music is only adequate, but the sound effects are top notch. Edmark products always feature strong user interfaces. The program is very easy to negotiate. Spoken help is always available to assist inexperienced users. The manual is very complete with thorough operating instructions, a parent guide and a troubleshooting section. The disc also has a special parents section that details the fine features of the program. This program is a lot of fun. The activities are filled with humorous touches that will entice your children to play longer. The colorful characters and fun gameplay will induce your child to come back for more. Educational value is very high. This is a teacher-designed program that covers most of the math concepts learned in pre-kindergarten through second grade. While it will not substitute for school work, it is a wonderful complement to the lessons learned there. Edmark has another winner on its hands with Might Math Carnival Countdown. It combines quality graphics and sound with an easy-to-use interface. It's wonderfully fun, yet it contains an astonishingly rich learning experience. The program is reasonably priced and backed by a 30-day satisfaction guarantee. Finally, Edmark is currently offering a $10 rebate on this fine title. This makes Carnival Countdown a stupendous value. Check this title out! Ratings Graphics 9.5 Sound 9.0 Interface 9.5 Play Value 9.5 Educational Value 10.0 Bang for the Buck 9.5 Average 9.5 STReport's "Partners in Progress" Advertising Program The facts are in... STReport International Online Magazine reaches more users per week than any other weekly resource available today. Take full advantage of this spectacular reach. Explore the superb possibilities of advertising in STReport! 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(STR, STReport, CPU Report); ú maintains a commitment to utilizing the power of the Internet and Web to keep computer users, worldwide, both private and commercial, informed of new trends in equipment, upgrade reports and future planning. ú offers highly informative Hardware and Software Reviews, Press Releases, hands-on stories, user experiences and show reports. ú presents the NEWS about new hardware, new software and how-to publications within HOURS of its being made public. ú is dedicated to keeping the users informed of what your company has to offer at incredibly, almost the moment its offered! Take full advantage of STReport's Exciting "Partners in Progress" Programs! MAXIMIZE your Company's Presence Worldwide. TODAY! Eighth Page - $200 per Quarter Page - $400.00 month per month Half Page - $800.00 per Full Page - $1200.00 per month month Your company's color ad, as described by you and designed by us, will appear in STReport International Online Magazine. STReport is published and released weekly on Fridays Evenings. All sizes based on a full color, eight and a half by eleven inch page. Email us at or, for quick action call us at: VOICE: 904-292-9222 10am/5pm est FAX: 904-268-2237 24hrs Support BBS DATA: 904-268-4116 or, write us at: STR Publishing, Inc. P.O. Box 6672 Jacksonville, Florida 32205 STR hopes you will take full advantage of this wonderful opportunity to provide information concerning your company and your product line to Computer Users, world wide via STReport International Online Magazine (Since 1987). And, at the same time, helping to keep the very best Independent Online Magazine available each and every week for many years to come. Gaming & Entertainment Section with Atari User Support Editor Dana P. Jacobson From the Entertainment Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!" Well, I've been under the weather for about a week now and finding it quite difficult to focus on an editorial between sneezes and coughs. Ugh! The first time I've really been sick since my bout with pneumonia a few years ago. Can't seem to shake this thing... Not much happening this week, but I may have missed a few things during my cold-induced "haze". Toad Computers has announced a date change for their annual "Toad Fest" this year (see below). If you've ever been down there, or have wanted a reason to visit them, here's a good opportunity. They're good folks. Join the fun! Until next time... AtariFest '96 STR ShowNews TOAD COMPUTERS ANNOUNCES ATARIFEST '96! Come celebrate TEN WONDERFUL YEARS of AtariFests, Toad Computers, and TOS at AtariFest '96. Toad Computers is pleased to announce AtariFest '96, to be held October 26th, 1996 at Toad Computers, in Severna Park, Maryland, USA. - Door Prizes - Atari BARGAINS - PC Systems - Browse the Internet - Atari Show & Tell - FREE REFRESHMENTS! - FREE ADMISSION! We will be featuring a wide range of SPECTACULAR deals on new and used Atari products including Jaguar, Lynx, ST, TT, Falcon, Portfolio, and the 8-Bit series. We are really excited about the show! CELEBRATE THE WORLD OF ATARI! Atari products are drying up fast; this may be your last chance to pick up Atari hardware, software, and accessories, all at incredibly low prices! Plus, see what's new from Europe for the ST and Falcon, including: - MagiC 5 (with Windows 95 Long Filename Support) - MagiC PC (MagiC for the PC with Ease 5) - MagiC Mac (running MagiC 5 and Ease 5) - Ease 5 for Atari - Texel -- NEW Atari Spreadsheet! Don't miss this opportunity! AtariFest '96 is being held in place of our Holiday Festivals we have hosted for the past three years. Now, it's a little earlier, and it's a different format. We really hope you'll join us for what we're sure will be a once-in-a-lifetime event! SPECIALS you can take advantage of at ATARIFEST '96: Toad Chameleon 166MHz: JUST $1299.00! - Pentium 166 - 16MB RAM - 1.3GB Hard Disk - Gemulator 96 - 1MB PCI Video - Windows 95 & Plus! - 3.5" Floppy - Mini Tower Case - 8X CD ROM - Keyboard, Mouse - Speakers - 16-Bit Sound Card Comes with Gemulator '96 -- RUN YOUR FAVORITE ST PROGRAMS! Includes MagiC, so no hardware is necessary to run Gemulator! ATARI JAGUAR: Just $59.00! - Includes Complete Atari Jaguar Console - Includes WOLFENSTEIN 3D Game! Hundreds of fantastic deals on CLEARANCE ITEMS, OVERSTOCKS & DEMO MODELS in ALL PRODUCT CATEGORIES! Must be present to take advantage of these prices! Don't miss this event! Door prizes! Free stuff! Great prices! Bring your most unique Atari memorabilia for show & tell! Select developers will be in attendance to answer your questions about products! Stay tuned to STNEWS/JAGNEWS and www.ataricentral.com for more details! When: 9:00AM - 5:00PM Sat., Oct. 26, 1996 ONE FUN-PACKED DAY ONLY! Where: Toad Computers 570 Ritchie Hwy. Severna Park, MD 21146-2925 More Info: http://www.ataricentral.com info@toad.net (410) 544-6943 Info (410) 544-1329 FAX Directions: http://www.toad.net/direxns.html David Troy, ToadNet Information Services [dave@toad.net] Toad Computers, Inc. (800) 448-8623 Orders Systems,Upgrades,Internet,Training (410) 544-6943 Info WEB: http://www.toad.net/ (410) 544-1329 FAX FTP: ftp://ftp.toad.net (410) 544-6999 BBS IC Magazine Price Corrections STR Infofile Greetings, Following earlier emailings of prices for IC magazine, I unfortunately have to inform that some people's readers were not capable of showing the uk pound sterling symbol and consequently have received incorrect price lists. Here is the complete price list. Once again all prices are in uk pound sterling. 1 Trial Issue 5 issues 10 issues UK mainland 0.50 N/A 5.00 Rest of Europe N/A 4.50 N/A USA and Canada N/A 7.00 N/A (European rates are applicable to residents of European countries, as defined by the British Royal Mail, except countries with additional customs procedures.) Remember that the first issue of ICM is mailed before the end of this month. Regards, Matt. P.S. I can be contacted at either there@dial.pipex.com or at mabb23@dial.pipex.com. Entertainment Section Psygnosis' Soccer! PSX Games! JTS Update! Jaguar? From the Editor's Controller - Playin' it like it is! The past few issues have been really lacking of Jaguar news. I've received a few e-mail messages asking me if I have "abandoned" the Jaguar users and/or "gone over" to the Playstation and Nintendo 64. The simple answer is - NO! However, the unfortunate truth is that once Atari "abandoned" the Jaguar, the bottom has fallen out and anything "newsworthy" is hard to come by. There's talk of completed games that may be released, but it's just that, talk - for the moment. I simply refuse to raise the hopes of the few remaining "loyal" Jaguar users by spouting off that "the games are coming!" It would be a disservice to you, and myself. When, or if, it happens, we'll be there for you with the news. In the meantime, to keep myself busy and out of trouble , I need to diversify a bit and provide our readers the news and information that they are seeking: what's happening with the "other" game systems? We're working to bring more of that information to you. While the Jaguar has played an integral part of my role here at STReport, I simply can't report about things that aren't happening. Be assured that we'll bring you the "latest and greatest" when it's available. Until next time... Industry News STR Game Console NewsFile - The Latest Gaming News! Metrowerks Announces Embedded Systems Tools SAN JOSE, CALIF. AND AUSTIN, TEXAS (Sept. 17) BUSINESS WIRE -Sept. 17, 1996--Metrowerks(R) Inc. (NASDAQ:MTWKF)(TSE/ME:MWK), the leading provider of software development tools for Macintosh(R), Tuesday announced it's plans to extend support for embedded systems software development. By introducing a series of new Mac(TM)OS and Windows(R)-hosted development solutions for mainstream embedded microprocessors and real-time operating systems, Metrowerks furthers its commitment to the developers of the embedded systems market. Until now, Metrowerks' efforts in the embedded tools arena have focused on support for proprietary operating systems such as: ú PalmOS(TM), in the form of CodeWarrior(R) for Pilot(TM) (development tools for the Pilot organizer from U.S. Robotics(R)), ú PlayStation(TM)OS in CodeWarrior for PlayStation (development tools for the Sony PlayStation game console), ú Magic Cap(TM)OS for PDAs (included in CodeWarrior Gold), and ú Power TV(TM)OS for set-top boxes rom Scientific-Atlanta (included in CodeWarrior Gold). Later this Fall, Metrowerks will introduce a new series of products, entitled CodeWarrior for Embedded Systems, which will allow embedded systems engineers to build applications for generic RTOSes and embedded microprocessors. "We view this market as an opportunity for significant growth," said David Perkins, senior vice president strategic products of Metrowerks. "Today, embedded systems engineers are in real need of powerful, easy-to-use, commercial development tools that will shorten time-to-market and increase productivity. Metrowerks is able to respond rapidly to this need due to the modular, front-end/back-end architecture of our CodeWarrior development environment." "In cooperation Apple, Motorola, and Metrowerks are working to bring the power and ease-of-use of the Power Macintosh, to the world of embedded systems development. This, along with our collective experience in transitioning the Macintosh from the 68K microprocessor to the PowerPC microprocessor, uniquely prepares us to meet the needs of customers making the transition from the 68K to the PowerPC for embedded systems development. "In particular, Metrowerks, with experience in converting over 1 billion lines of code to the PowerPC, brings a highly mature and productive set of tools to this market," said Ellen Hancock, chief technology officer and executive vice president of Research and Development of Apple Computer, Inc. The first product in the CodeWarrior for Embedded Systems series will provide support for Motorola(R)'s MPC8xx and is expected to ship in the 4th quarter of calendar 1996, followed by CodeWarrior for Embedded 68k which is expected to ship in the 1st quarter of calendar 1997. Pursuant to an agreement announced today in a separate release with Microware(R) Systems Corporation, Metrowerks will offer support for Microware(R)'s OS-9(R) real-time operating system running on the MPC8xx. "As our line of embedded PowerPC processors becomes increasingly popular in the marketplace, our goal is to have the most effective and powerful development tools available to our customers," said Ken Edwards, marketing manager, Motorola's Portable Systems Operation. "With the sophistication and ease-of-use offered through CodeWarrior, Metrowerks is helping us meet that goal today." "CodeWarrior for Embedded Systems will be a powerful and highly productive environment in which to develop embedded software," said Richard Nabavi, chairman of MicroAPL Ltd., specialists in porting tools for the Macintosh and embedded markets. "At the end of 1996 we will release CodeWarrior-hosted versions of our PortAsm/68K(TM) and PortAsm/86(TM) assembly-language translation tools, so that CodeWarrior users will be able to port embedded CISC assembler code to new RISC processors in the same way that many major Apple developers have done." "CodeWarrior for OS-9 brings affordable high performance development tools to our customers uilding the next generation of advanced consumer electronics," said Ken Kaplan, president and chief executive officer of Microware Systems Corp. In addition to the Power PC(TM) and 68k Embedded tools, Metrowerks will provide support for the MIPS(R) R3000 and R4000 series of microprocessors, in a product expected to ship in the 1st quarter of calendar 1997. CodeWarrior for Embedded Systems series will also offer support for specific proprietary Digital Signal Processors, or DSPs, with a product expected to ship in 1st quarter of calendar 1997. Each product in the CodeWarrior for Embedded Systems series will include the award-winning CodeWarrior Integrated Development Environment, or IDE, with full-featured GUI tools and C/C++ source-level debugging support, online documentation, two free updates and technical support. In an effort to provide developers with a choice of platforms from which to work, Metrowerks will be offering both Mac OS and Windows 95/NT versions of the software. These product offerings will enable embedded systems developers to efficiently build applications for PDAs, smart phones, Web TV(TM), set-top boxes, navigational systems, car area networks, game machines, and other communications and graphic intensive platforms. Pricing and Availability CodeWarrior for Embedded Systems will be available directly through Metrowerks and authorized distributors at an expected retail price of $499. About Metrowerks Founded in 1985, Metrowerks develops, markets and supports a complete line of Macintosh-hosted computer language products for building Mac OS, Windows 95, Windows NT(TM), BeOS(TM), Magic Cap, PowerTV OS, Palm OS and PlayStation OS applications. Metrowerks CodeWarrior products have become the industry standard for professional Mac-hosted software development with more than 50,000 registered users in over 70 countries. Additional information on Metrowerks and its products can be obtained in the U.S. by sending Email to infometrowerks.com, by calling (800) 377-5416, or via the Inernet at http://www.metrowerks.com. Metrowerks, the Metrowerks logo and CodeWarrior are registered trademarks of Metrowerks, Inc. Macintosh is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Mac is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. Windows, Windows NT and Windows 95 are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. Microware and OS-9 are registered trademarks of Microware Systems Corp. PortAsm/68K and PortAsm/86 are trademarks of MicroAPL, Ltd. All other companies and products may be trademarks of their respective holders and are hereby recognized. CONTACT: Metrowerks Inc., Austin Cynthia Fray, 512/873-4758 cynthiametrowerks.com David Perkins, 512/873-4774 perkinsmetrowerks.com CONTACT: Psygnosis, Inc. Dana Oertell, 415/655-8060 doertellpsygnosis.com Mark Day, 415/655-5679 mdaypsygnosis.com Psygnosis Launches adidas Power Soccer FOSTER CITY, CALIF. (Sept. 25) BUSINESS WIRE -Sept. 25, 1996--If you're looking for the ultimate soccer game for the Sony PlayStation game console, Psygnosis' adidas Power Soccer is now available for the taking. Licensed by adidas to Psygnosis both in Europe and in the U.S., adidas Power Soccer is the ultimate soccer challenge from start to finish. Praised for its beautifully rendered, real-time 3D environments and realistic motion capture resulting in precise player movements, adidas Power Soccer is one of the most advanced soccer titles yet. adidas Power Soccer lets players compete against top European soccer athletes, leading their team through the National League and, in the end, the European Cup! Developed in Europe by Psygnosis, France, adidas Power Soccer features teams from England, France and Germany. Individual players sport their own physical, technical and mental characteristics, which change between and during matches, as they tire and become injured throughout the season. adidas Power Soccer features two playing modes, Arcade and Sim. In the Arcade mode even the most docile players will get a rush just thinking about the unique combo moves they can do to physically disable their opponents. The Arcade mode allows mini-championships between 10 special teams with predefined characteristics. In the Sim mode, there are three playing options. The Friendly Match option is for exhibition matches; Tournament lets you choose to play against four, eight, 16 or 32 teams, and Season lets you choose a team and take it through a whole season, earn money, and buy and trade players and qualify for the European Cup. adidas Power Soccer allows players to slide, tackle, take corner kicks and rush goalies as though they were in a live soccer match. A full motion video (FMV) training mode also lets players hone their skills on several different fields. The 16-bit digitized sound effects make for realistic crowd reactions and stadium DSP effects. adidas Power Soccer supports two player competition or simultaneous play on a single PlayStation or, using a multi-tap, up to four people can play at the same time. Online Contest To support the launch of the game and generate excitement nationwide, Psygnosis is featuring the enormously popular "Spot the Ball" contest on Psygnosis Online (www.psygnosis.com) which will run through the end of the year. ThePsygnosis "Spot the Ball" contest allows web browsers to enter-to-win valuable adidas merchandise and copies of adidas Power Soccer by identifying the approximate location of missing soccer balls from screen shots of the game on the site. "Online internet contests and sweepstakes on the internet have been very successful for us and we feel that supporting our products in this way proves very beneficial to our overall sales momentum," said Mark Beaumont, senior vice president, marketing, Psygnosis U.S. "Last winter our Destruction Derby contest alone generated over one million hits and response to our 'Spot the Ball' contest has been outstanding." adidas America, Inc. headquartered in Portland, Ore., is a subsidiary of adidas AG, located in erzongenaurach, Germany. adidas AG is a leading worldwide designer, marketer and distributor of athletic footwear, apparel and equipment. Psygnosis employs over 340 people with publishing and development offices in the U.S., U.K. and across Europe. Working with over 30 development teams across the world and with six internal development sites, the company is now the largest development house in Europe. Psygnosis is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. Visit us on the Net. Psygnosis' latest offerings, including current and future titles, game tips, contests, press releases and company information can be found at http://www.psygnosis.com. Sony Ships 7.2 Million PlayStations FOSTER CITY, Calif., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Sony Corp. announced Tuesday it has shipped 7.2 million PlayStation videogame consoles in the past year, including 3.5 million in Japan, 2.1 million in North America and 1.6 million in Europe. The machines, powered by a 32-bit processor, currently retail for $200 in North America. It originally sold for $300 when rolled out a year ago but the price was cut to take away market share from Sega's 32- bit Saturn, also now being sold for $200. Sony said more than 10 million copies of software for the PlayStation have been shipped i North America. It also said more than 15 PlayStation titles have sold in excess of a quarter of a million units in North America, and projected that 10 additional titles will reach or exceed that 250,000 unit benchmark by the end of 1996. Sony said its newly instituted value-pricing structure, which offers titles at a discounted price of $40 (Destruction Derby, NFL GameDay, NHL Face Off, Twisted Metal, WarHawk and WipeOut), has further boosted software sales. It also said Namco's Tekken 2 sold 450,000 units in the first three weeks of release, while Capcom's Resident Evil has topped sales of 450,000 units. Both titles are only available for the PlayStation. Nintendo has also entered the advanced videogame market after a long delay. It began selling its Nintendo 64 player this summer in Japan and will launch in North America Sept. 30 at a manufacturer's suggested retail price of under $250. Nintendo has said it expects to sell through a total of 3.6 million systems in the Japanese market in its first nine months of availability, and more than 1 million units in North America. CONTACT: Sony Computer Entertainment America P. Kevin Horn, 415/655-5513 Molly Smith, 415/655-6044 or Fleishman-Hillard, Inc. Samantha Sackin, 213/489-8250 PlayStation Game Console Sales Continue to ... FOSTER CITY, CALIF. (Sept. 24) BUSINESS WIRE -Sept. 24, 1996-Sony Computer Entertainment America announced today that more than 15 of its first and third party titles have sold in excess of a quarter of a million units in North America. The company also projected that 10 additional titles will reach or exceed that 250,000 unit benchmark by the end of 1996. "Central to our leadership position is the diversity and quality of software titles available for the PlayStation game console," said Andrew House, vice president, marketing, Sony Computer Entertainment America. A 6-to-1 tie ratio of hardware to software, and an impressive line-up of upcoming first and third party titles, will further solidify the PlayStation's leadership position. Whether its sports, fighting, racing or action, PlayStation offers more triple A titles than any other platform." In just one year in the videogame hardware industry, worldwide shipments of the PlayStation game console has topped 7.2 million units (3.5 million, Japan; 2.1 million, North America; and 1.6 million, Europe). Consumers and retailers have unanimously declared PlayStation as the platform of choice," added House. "The incredible hardware numbers are a testament to consumer and retailer support. In addition, we anticipate continued, strong software sales figures, which have already exceeded 10 million pieces shipped in North America alone." Sony's newly instituted value-pricing structure, which offers certain titles at a MSRP of $39.99 (Destruction Derby(tm), NFL GameDay(tm), NHL(r) Face Off(tm), Twisted Metal(tm), WarHawk(tm) and WipeOut(tm)), has further boosted software sales. In fact, in the first 30 days of this new program, the six titles have sold in excess of 150,000 units combined. "Sony Computer Entertainment America truly understands the needs and desires of the next-generation market," said Michael Goldstein, CEO, Toys R Us. "The PlayStation marketing efforts have driven store traffic and keep consumers coming back. By offering great front line games and classic titles at great prices, the PlayStation continues to be a tremendous sales success at Toys R Us." In addition to its retail support, Sony Computer Entertainment America's partnership with an extensive list of third party developers continues to expand the depth and breadth of the PlayStation software collection. Importantly, third party developers are experiencing incredible software sales. For example, Namco's Tekken 2 sold 450,000 units in the first three weeks of release, while Capcom's Resident Evil has already posted sales of 450,000 units. Both titles are exclusively available for the PlayStation game console. "It is our belief that Resident Evil could have only been brought to life on the PlayStation," said Greg Ballard, president, Capcom. "The incredible sales success of the title is proof that consumers have never seen anything like it." Sony Computer Entertainment America, a division of Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc., is based in Foster City, Calif. The company markets the PlayStation game console for distribution in North America, Publishes software for the PlayStation game console for the North American market, and manages the U.S. third party licensing program. Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. Visit us on the Web at http://www.sony.com. Crystal Dynamics Adopts Entertainment Studio ... MENLO PARK, CALIF. (Sept. 24) BUSINESS WIRE -Sept. 24, 1996--In a move to address the ever-evolving entertainment software marketplace, Crystal Dynamics as reshaped its business strategy by adopting the entertainment studio model, it was announced today by Ted Ardell, chairman and CEO. In doing so, the company will continue to aggressively fund the development and marketing of its popular gaming products while reaching strategic alignments with strong distribution partners. In a separate, yet related announcement, Crystal Dynamics has reached a distribution partnership with Electronic Arts for the company's 3D action platform video game, PANDEMONIUM! -- a highly-anticipated title that will be marketed under the Crystal Dynamics brand. The studio model allows Crystal Dynamics to focus its resources on the design and marketing of original products and characters while aligning strategies with its distribution partners. "The entertainment software industry is in a period of change and we have reacted to the changing market," said Ardell. "This strategy allows us to focus on what we do best: develop and market superior entertainment software." The agreement with Electronic Arts is the first of several distribution partnerships the company is establishing as a newly-formed entertainment studio. EA has secured North American distribution rights to the Sony PlayStation and PC CD-ROM versions of PANDEMONIUM! and plans to distribute the Sony version of the game in time for the holidays under the Crystal Dynamics brand name. The highly-anticipated PANDEMONIUM! features the madcap antics of Fargus, Nikki, and the demented puppet-on-the stick, Sid. "Aligning ourselves with Electronic Arts truly validates our commitment to securing strong distribution partners," said Ardell. "Recognizing the reach of EA, this alliance assures us that we will have a major holiday hit with PANDEMONIUM!" Crystal Dynamics, the Menlo Park-based entertainment software studio, was the first to develop and publish a 32-bit video game in 1993. Since then, the company has developed an entertainment studio business strategy where product development and marketing are funded in-house while aligning itself with strong distribution partners. Crystal Dynamics' designers, programmers and artists continue to set the pace for the next generation gaming experience with strong innovation and playbility in state-of-the-art games. ONLINE WEEKLY STReport OnLine The wires are a hummin'! PEOPLE... ARE TALKING On CompuServe compiled by Joe Mirando CIS ID: 73637,2262 Hidi ho friends and neighbors. Another week has come and gone and, as I had hoped, activity is picking up a bit here in the CompuServe Atari forums. It's not up to what it was in its heyday, but it's a good deal better than the past few weeks. And with most of the folks still in the Atari community anxiously awaiting more news on a new web browser for the Atari, it's sure to generate some message traffic when more information is available. Be sure to look here for the info when it does arrive. Unfortunately, this isn't one of the weeks when you'll be able to garner scads of information about it. Let's take a look at what people ARE talking about. From the Atari Computing Forum Rob Rasmussen tells us: "My Falcon and ST both got zapped by a lightning surge in August. Strange but true, when I wasn't home, one machine not even turned on (but connected to cheap surge protector). Anyway, I have 2 new machines now. A PC, and a C- Lab MK-X with a German accelerator called PowerUp2 which takes it to 32 mHz. The 16 meg Wiztronics board and the hard drive from my blown Falcon were installed in the MK-X. I'm delighted to have the audio in and out as 1/4" jacks instead of those mini jacks. It's like a rack-mount unit with a separate keyboard. So far most of my ST and Falcon software is compatable. It felt really weird getting a PC (hp pavilion 7270, 166/24/2.5) after almost 10 years to the day of using nothing but Atari. The things I like most about the slick W95 are it's smooth multitasking and window management, and easy access to the Web. There are also things about it that drive me crazy! The Atari is so much more logical at doing certain things, like file management - I really miss Maxifile not being on the PC. Explorer on the PC seems like it's designed backwards, and it takes me a long time to do any file management with it, maybe because I'm not used to it yet. WordPad is ok, but Edit Plus on the Atari is easier to use. I have ordered Gemulator, and one of the first things I will try is Maxifile on the PC. I wonder if that will work for PC files? I had so much software, especially for Midi and graphics on the Atari, combined with years of learning how to use it, that I decided I would still want an Atari after I lost the 2 I had in one fell swoop! Plus the Falcon is so much fun to use. It feels like I'm starting all over again with the PC/W95, but I'm slowly getting the hang of it. My main question right now - I have a Megafile 60 that I used with my ST before the ST got fried. The heads are not parked, and I don't know if they _can_ be parked so that I could store it or try to sell it. Is there any way with the MK-X (Falcon) that I could connect to the Megafile and run SHIP.PRG to park the heads?" One of STR's Editors, Dana Jacobson, tells Rob: "It was my impression that most larger drives (50+ megs) were auto-parking and the heads got parked when powered-down. You should be able to connect the Megafile to the C-Lab Falcon via a SCSI-SCSI2 cable and check it out. SHIP.PRG should work, but I can't say for sure as I do not have a C-Lab machine." Sysop Bob Retelle tells Rob: "I believe Dana is correct... most drives these days, and hopefully the Megafile 60 is included, have "self parking" heads. To be absolutely sure though, his suggestion of getting a cable and connecting it to the MK-X would be good to try. You'll find lots of excellent add-on software for your PC... just like in the Atari world, the functions and utilities that come with, or are built-into the system usually are just enough to get by. Although it's probably not applicable to your WIN95 system, I use Norton Commander for my file management on my PC. It's a DOS based application that pops up a couple of windows into the disk (remarkably similar to the GEM desktop.. not in appearance, but in function) and lets you move files with just a keystroke or two (or the mouse, but I find that my system is way too fast for my aging reflexes." Wayne Padgett adds: "Welcome to Win'95!! I'm not really enthused about Explorer and much preferred File Manager in Windows 3.1. Fortunately it is in Win '95 under a new name. Click 'Run' in the 'Start' menu and enter winfile then hit return. This gets you the old File Manager. You can open as many disk windows as you like and drag and drop files and folders to your hearts content. It beats the whey out of Explorer. I have a keyboard shortcut to File Manager. all I have to do is put the mouse pointer on the 'Task Bar' and press Control + Alternate + F and Voila!! there's file manager for me to do all sorts of file management chores from any program, any time. It's great." On the subject of last week's "Error 35... what is it?" question, Mike Mortilla tells Andreas Eschenbach: "It's amazing to me that you've gotten so many answers and nobody seems to know what the TOS 35 error is. I've only gotten this error when I've tried to run a non-Atari program on an Atari ST or similar computer. That doesn't mean that is the definitive answer, but again, it's the only time I've EVER seen a 35 error since 1988." Andreas tells Mike: "Yes, seems I've found some really hot topic! I want to thank all who answered. Although, as I must confess, the question is not answered in a way that would make me feel safer." Sysop Bob Retelle tells Andreas: "To put it as simply as possible, "TOS Error 35" indicates that the program you've tried to execute is corrupted in some way. It may be due to a disk error, or trying to execute a compressed file, or as Mike suggested, trying to execute a non-Atari program, but the result is the same. The file is not (or no longer is) executable, and "TOS Error 35" is the ST's somewhat ambiguous way of reporting that fact. The other answers, dealing with "Too many open files" or "Not enough file handles" are actually something quite different. Those are a result of GEMDOS Error 35, which you're not likely to ever see." Mike Mortilla mirrors my own thoughts when he tells Andreas: "...whatever BobR says I would take to be the definitive answer... Really and truly, Bob is one of the true experts on all things Atari." Terry Cano asks for help with recovering data from a floppy disk: "I need floppy disk help......it contains valuable tax data in LDW Power files. The disk sudddenly is giving me a DISK MAYBE DAMAGED message. If I click on CANCEL several times it will read the disk. However, many files are not there. This happened after saving a Word Up file to the disk. MAXFILE file shows the following: sides 1 (should be 2 it was formatted DS) 80 Tracks 137,216 Bytes free 9 Sectors 1st. Dir. Sect. 11 I've tried UNDELETE.....it didn't work........" Albert Dayes tells Terry: "Did you try running Diamond Edge to see if it can find the specific errors? It sounds like your directory chain is not complete or missing an entry. For example ... a directory listing ... [ file 1 ] [ file 2 ] [ blank or damaged entry ] [ file 3 ] [ file 4 ] ... Anything below the blank or damaged entry will not display when showing a directory. I have created similar problems on my hard drive when using a sector editor to delete files that could not be deleted any other way. You should make a backup of your disk and then attempt to rescue the information on the backup disk. You can try Diamond Edge to see if it can find the error for you. Since Maxifile reports it as single sided it sounds like boot sector of the disk is beginning to fail. You might have to use a sector editor to fix." Now interested, Terry asks Albert: "Where do I find Diamond Edge?" Albert tells Terry: "Most Atari Dealers should have the program ... I'm sure Toad Computers does. I believe it is around $50 or so. The newest version has a sector editor built into the program." Wayne Padgett asks: "[Has] anybody received an issue of ST Informer lately? If so what is the issue number? The last one I got was May 15, 1996 number 97. It's been a long dry spell." Chief Sysop Ron Luks tells Wayne: "Now that you mention it, I haven't seen an issue of ST Informer since last spring. My guess is that they probably gave up the effort for lack of an audience. Too bad. They were really good folks and they held on much longer than just about anyone in the Atari marketplace." Wayne tells Ron: "If that's the case it is too bad. Rod was aiming to complete 100 issues. It will leave me 2 issues short on my subscription which was a trade for Band in a Box V4. It isn't the first time. Sigh." Well folks, that's about it for this week. Be sure to tune in again next week, same time, same station, and be ready to listen to what they are saying when... PEOPLE ARE TALKING STReport Confidential News, Tips, Rumors, Expos‚s1, Predictions JTS; Forecast. sales 90 days behind The Tramiels seem to bring the "Luck" with them. or, is it the same old game with different names?? SAN JOSE, Calif., JTS Corp. reported this past Thursday that the company is about 90 days behind meeting the publicly stated estimates for the sales forecast set forth in the Securities and Exchange Commission documents filed when JTS merged with Atari in July. ú First, the company detailed, it is experiencing sales delays as several of its new customers have taken longer than expected to re-configure their notebook computers as well as their manufacturing operations to use JTS's new family of 3-inch hard drives. Five companies have now completed their new designs to accommodate a 3-inch disk drive format. ú Second, a major manufacturer decided to switch its order for JTS' initial 3-inch hard drive to its 1 gigabyte capacity hard drive, which is expected to ship in October. ú Third, JTS had expected to initiate financing approximately 45 days ago and the delay in completing a financing has resulted in a slower ramp up of our production volume," the company said in a statement. "We had originally forecast that we would achieve $230 million in revenues in the 12 months ending January 31, 1997, it noted. The company said it "is currently pursuing financing." "Assuming adequate financing, we now anticipate that we will achieve these results by the 12 months ending April 30, 1997, and we also expect to turn profitable about that time. "Given the magnitude of what we've already accomplished, we're confident that the company is well positioned to achieve both its short and long term revenue and profitability targets," JTS said. The company said it "will start volume production of our second generation of 3-inch hard drive products for notebook computers" in the next few weeks. These drives offer greater capacity at a lower cost than the 2.5-inch hard drive currently used in notebook computers, it noted. In October of 1995, JTS started production of 3.5-inch hard drives for desktop computers in in Madras, India. During the second quarter of this year, it said, "we shipped a total of 118,000 drives," or some 8,000 drives per week. The company said it is now shipping about 20,000 drives per week and has the capacity to ship 25,000 per week. "We expect to double our capacity to 50,000 units per week by the end of the calendar year. When the final results are in, we anticipate that revenues will have nearly doubled in the third quarter from the second, and will have grown over 100 percent in the fourth quarter versus the third. JTS expects that in the first quarter of fiscal 1998, ending April 30, 1997, they will ship over $100 million in hard drives." EDITORIAL QUICKIES Top 10 Ways That Windows '95 Is Like Having Sex 10. Either way, you get screwed 9. It will keep you up late at night 8. After a while, you find yourself looking for interesting gadgets 7. It makes it easy to catch viruses 6. You can spend an hour huffing and puffing without going anywhere 5. One word: GUI 4. If you do it too long, your system goes down 3. Two words: Plug & Play 2. The older your system is, the more trouble you have 1. You are likely to utter the phrase "Oh God!" STReport International OnLine Magazine [S]ilicon [T]imes [R]eport HTTP://WWW.STREPORT.COM AVAILABLE through OVER 200,000 PRIVATE BBS SYSTEMS WORLDWIDE All Items quoted, in whole or in part, are done so under the provisions of The Fair Use Law of The Copyright Laws of the U.S.A. Views, Opinions and Editorial Articles presented herein are not necessarily those of the editors/staff of STReport International OnLine Magazine. Permission to reprint articles is hereby granted, unless otherwise noted. Reprints must, without exception, include the name of the publication, date, issue number and the author's name. STR, CPU, STReport and/or portions therein may not be edited, used, duplicated or transmitted in any way without prior written permission. STR, CPU, STReport, at the time of publication, is believed reasonably accurate. STR, CPU, STReport, are trademarks of STReport and STR Publishing Inc. STR, CPU, STReport, its staff and contributors are not and cannot be held responsible in any way for the use or misuse of information contained herein or the results obtained therefrom. STR OnLine! "YOUR INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE" September 27, 1996 Since 1987 Copyrightc1996 All Rights Reserved Issue No. 1239 _______________________________ 1