IBM Introduces New Content Manager Software. IBM began shipping IBM Content Manager software for managing unstructured data. The product debuts at a time when companies find themselves wrestling with huge volumes of electronic documents, digital audio and video, and intarnet/ Internet content.

Meta Group predicts that the market for content-management software is growing 20% every year and will reach $10 billion by 2004. The rise of the Internet and the growth of E-commerce is spurring the need for technology that can manage electronic documents, digital media assets such as digital video and audio, and Web content, says Janet Perna, general manager of IBM's data management operation. "Data is not just rows and columns anymore," she says.

IBM Content Server will combine technology from IBM's VisualInfo electronic-document-management software and its Digital Library software for media asset management. The system will provide advanced search and rights-management capabilities, and will support more than 200 media format standards.

The content-management system will be bundled with IBM's Websphere application server, DB2 database, and Tivoli Storage manager. The package is priced at $15,000 per workstation server, plus $2,000 per concurrent user. The software is available for IBM AIX and Windows NT platforms, with versions for Sun Solaris, HP-UX, and Linux due to ship shortly.

(Source: http://www.informationweek.com)

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Dell says it will also use Ariba's software to connect more efficiently with its own suppliers, such as circuit-board and memory manufacturers. Company officials say they expect the move will save the company $2 billion annually in procurement costs. Under the terms of the deal, Dell is taking an equity stake in Ariba, details of which were not disclosed.

Last week, IBM disclosed a similar pact with Ariba, and IBM also took a stake in the company. Observers say the moves are part of PC makers' continuing efforts to diversify beyond manufacturing. "More and more, they want to define themselves as services companies," says Bill Lesieur, a Technology Business Research analyst.

(Source: http://www.informationweek.com/769/eds.htm)

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UPS/ USA, Electronic commerce has evolved into a driving force for the shipping business, and package-delivery company United Parcel Service of America Inc. is looking to take full advantage of online opportunities.

UPS is forming a sales force and technical support team that will focus specifically on getting customers to integrate its latest E-commerce offerings into their current systems, the company said yesterday. UPS recently expanded its electronic capabilities by adding UPS OnLine Tools, which includes seven shipping and logistics applications, letting customers see shipping rates, timetables, address validation, and service mapping.

The company's Internet offerings already include secure document exchange and UPS Internet Tools for package tracking. UPS says its new sales force will help customers create a more customized E-commerce shipping system from the company's array of offerings.

The company also recently emphasized the importance of E-commerce to its overall financial performance. UPS's logistics group, which encompasses E-commerce and supply-chain products and services, saw a 41% increase in net income quarter over quarter.

(Source: http://www.techweb.com/se/directlink.cgi?INW19990419S0025)

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The server software, formerly known as LotusPump, lets developers integrate supplier-relationship management, customer-relationship management, and other types of ERP applications with Domino Application Server R5.

Lotus Enterprise Integrator's features include event-driven transfers and data archiving services; a forms-based data mapping interface that lets managers check off fields in Domino and map them to PeopleSoft applications; and support for SAP R/3, J.D. Edwards' One World, Oracle's Applications/Financials, PeopleSoft, and BEA Systems' Tuxedo.

(Source: http://www.informationweek.com/731/eai.htm)

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To help operators meet this anticipated demand, Nortel Networks* [NYSE: NT/TSE: NTL] has introduced an innovative portfolio of subscriber services called e-mobility* services.

Featured at the third annual Universal Wireless Communications (UWC) Global Summit in Miami, this recently-announced offering from Nortel Networks pushes the envelope for Wireless Intelligent Network (WIN) services, providing rapid, flexible deployment of leading-edge voice and data capabilities optimized for Internet Protocol (IP) environments.

"Wireless operators want service differentiation for revenue enhancement, with a sensible evolution to IP-based services," said John Vice, vice-president and general manager, Wireless Solutions, Nortel Networks. "Our e-mobility services are designed specifically to meet this need."

Nortel Networks e-mobility services available today include Wireless Prepaid, Group Conferencing, Smart Mobile Access, Wireless Voice-Activated Dialing, Mobile Messaging Gateway and Information Management Services.

"We have an extensive portfolio operators can implement to generate revenues right now," Vice said, "and an evolution strategy that capitalizes on existing infrastructure investments - rather than discarding them - to move from a circuit-based WIN environment to packet-based IP."

e-mobility services are an important element in the Nortel Networks plan to deliver the Wireless Internet. Nortel Networks is also showcasing another key element at the UWC Global Summit this week - its RF technology leadership, including advanced, multi-beam antenna technology and the industry's most comprehensive RF management portfolio.

Nortel Networks multi-beam antenna technology, demonstrated in trials last year with Cellcom Israel, reduces bit error rate to as little as one tenth of a percent on both forward and reverse links, offering the high signal quality needed to reliably deliver e-mobility services.

The Nortel Networks RF management portfolio includes an RF Toolkit, which improves system performance, capacity and audio quality to help operators increase revenues and subscriber satisfaction. Nortel Networks also offers Hierarchical Cell capability for improved coverage and capacity, allowing operators to target niche markets and increase revenues.

Collectively, these industry-leading RF technologies offer very high spectral efficiency, eventually allowing operators to overlay third generation radio technology within existing spectrum.

Nortel Networks e-mobility services are available over an open, distributed, redundant network architecture that leverages these advanced radio technologies, industry standard computing platforms and a packet backbone for a high degree of availability and reliability.

Elements of this architecture include the Nortel Networks Standalone HLR (Home Location Register) for seamless roaming and mobility management, and the Nortel Networks Wireless Service Node, a distributed computing platform that delivers services over a TCP/IP backbone.

The Nortel Networks Standalone HLR features an on-board Java* virtual machine, supporting downloadable, platform-independent software. This allows third-party software developers to easily integrate customized services.

Nortel Networks delivers value to customers around the world through Unified Networks* solutions, spanning mission-critical telephony and IP-optimized networks. Customers include public and private enterprises and institutions; Internet service providers; local, long-distance, cellular and PCS communications companies, cable television carriers, and utilities.

Nortel Networks' common shares are listed on the New York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and London stock exchanges. Nortel Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately 75,000 employees worldwide.

* e-mobility, Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks Globemark, Unified Networks and How the world shares ideas are trademarks of Northern Telecom Limited.

*Java is a registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.nortelnetworks.com )

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In a series of agreements signed in conjunction with today's visit by Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, Nortel Networks concluded additional equity investments of more than US$30 million in joint venture company Guangdong Nortel to initiate local manufacturing of cdmaOne* and GSM wireless equipment for the Chinese market.

Nortel Networks also signed agreements worth US$60 million with China Unicom for expansion of two existing GSM digital wireless networks in Zhejiang province.

"These agreements continue our 27-year history of investment in the Chinese market," said Robert Mao, CEO and president, Nortel Networks China. "Now we look to the future, harnessing our innovation to help evolve China's communications infrastructure to deliver the integrated data, Internet, video and voice services of tomorrow."

The Chinese Premier's visit included a preview of the future - the world's first public demonstration of cdma2000* third generation digital air interface technology for delivery of very high-speed (384 kilobits per second) data, video and other wireless Internet services.

Today's preview also included a demonstration of sophisticated software for controlling quality-of-service over IP (Internet Protocol) networks. This software allows an operator to ensure the highest levels of transmission quality and reliability to users of premium services.

Nortel Networks delivers value to customers around the world through Unified Networks* solutions, spanning mission-critical telephony and IP-optimized networks. Customers include public and private enterprises and institutions; Internet service providers; local, long-distance, cellular and PCS communications companies, cable television carriers, and utilities.

Nortel Networks' common shares are listed on the New York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and London stock exchanges. Nortel Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately 75,000 employees worldwide.

* Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks Globemark, Unified Networks and How the world shares ideas are trademarks of Northern Telecom Limited.

* cdmaOne is a trademark of the CDMA Development Group.

* cdma2000 is a trademark of the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA).

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.nortelnetworks.com )

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The new products shipped this week include the VST FireWire Hard Drives in 2, 4, and 6 Gigabyte sizes, combining a variety of storage sizes with hot-plug/unplug and blazing transfer speeds, up to 8 MB/sec. This unparalleled combination provides seamless storage performance for any FireWire-equipped computer. Just cable the drive and computer together, and the volume mounts automatically, ready for high speed file transfers.

"VST's new FireWire drives combine the best aspects of portability, modularity and FireWire connectivity to offer the most exciting high performance storage product the industry has seen yet," said Vincent Fedele, Chairman and Founder of VST Technologies. VST's ultra compact drives measure only 3 in (W) x 5.5 in (D) x 0.7 in (H), and weigh only 6.5 ounces. "FireWire technology is already proving its superiority in moving today's large multimedia files and data between devices. We're certainly excited about what this technology means for the performance of peripheral storage devices and ultimately for the people who use them everyday."

Introduction of the VST FireWire drives marks the company's first offering of desktop peripherals devices, and one that is completely platform independent. "The desktop is a natural expansion of VST's peripheral product offerings," explained Fedele. This is the first of many VST desktop peripherals that will take advantage of today's superior technologies, allowing VST to effectively transfer its expertise from the mobile environment, to the desktop and reach across platforms.

VST Technologies, Inc. is a market leader in the design, engineering and marketing of peripheral products for the notebook and desktop computer industries. VST peripheral products can be found as optional features or as after market add-ons from leading OEMs and from notebook manufacturers, including Apple Computer, Fujitsu, NEC, and IBM. In addition to the VST FireWire Drives, VST Technologies, Inc. manufactures notebook Zip Drives, SuperDisk TM Drives, Hard Drives, AC/DC Power Adapters, Battery Chargers and Auto Adapters.

VST's products can be viewed and purchased through their web site at http://www.vsttech.com and from major distributors, resellers and catalog mail houses.

Apple and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Corp. Inc. SuperDisk is a trademark of Imation Corp. IBM is aregistered trademark of International Business Machines Corp. Zip is a registered trademark of Iomega Corp.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.vsttech.com )

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BOSTON - Dedicated to offering telecommunications service providers and enterprise customers with the capabilities needed to quickly and efficiently deploy and manage large-scale BayRS* router networks, Nortel Networks* [NYSE: NT/TSE: NTL] announced the general availability of their online Router Management Labs (RML). The RML configuration tools and support facilities, available at http://www.nortelnetworks.com/rml, provide free and unlimited access to router management support for all visitors. Creating easy access to open, scriptable, text-based software utilities, Nortel Networks' RML is designed to simplify the labor-intensive configuration, monitoring and reporting tasks typical of large network installations.

Customers benefiting from the online RML include those who are deploying or maintaining a large BayRS router network, and require the productive roll-out of new networks or the efficient upgrade of existing networks. RML's easy access through the Web allows network administrators and operations managers to utilize network management tools that provide scalable solutions for the carrier and managed service provider environment.

"When faced with the challenge of upgrading a 1000 router network maintained for a bank, we immediately turned to the facilities provided by the Router Management Lab," said Guido Suter, product manager for Swisscom, in Zurich, Switzerland. "The RML's utilities and support facilities were used in a prior roll-out to enhance functionality. The flexibility of the tools allowed us to create a fully customized application, which automatically upgrades the router's software suite at predetermined times, dramatically simplifying and speeding up the deployment. Network management staff is thus free to focus on other important activities. We are very pleased."

The tools available through Nortel Networks' RML allow a central site to create and customize router configuration files on flash cards that can then be directly deployed on BayRS routers. RML's online tools focus on increased ease-of-use, device monitoring and reporting, while reducing the time it takes to manage the inevitable changes that happen with every network.

Service providers and telcos who have installed the software utilities, such as MCI Worldcom, have seen significant benefits including scaling a configuration process that would have taken two days down to about two hours.

"These tools have saved us time and money; it's that simple," said Greg Starks, senior manager, Network Delivery & Implementation, MCI Worldcom. "Nortel Networks' web accessible software utilities, available through their Router Management Labs, have greatly simplified the management of our network, and have provided MCI Worldcom the benefit of being able to enhance our network operating staff's productivity."

Improving the productivity of the staff responsible for deploying and maintaining router-based networks is critical. RML offers rapid generation of configuration data for network roll-out, and saves valuable time in the deployment of new services and installations. Nortel Networks' RML also enables the development of custom applications, enhances customers' existing network management capabilities, and allows for centralized management and manipulation of configuration data.

"The tools included in Nortel Networks' Router Management Labs provide an invaluable resource for Service Providers deploying large scale managed router services for enterprise customers," said Michael Speyer, industry analyst at the Yankee Group, located in Boston, MA. "By having the ability to update, configure and provision multiple nodes in an expansive and geographically distributed network installation, Service Providers are able to reduce operational costs associated with network support and maintenance, in addition to freeing up valuable employee man-hours and enhancing overall productivity."

RML online capabilities are also critical in giving network operators the tools necessary for bringing an existing network of routers into Y2K compliance in a productive, timely manner.

"Nortel Networks Router Management Labs has demonstrated dramatic economic and productivity gains for users of the tools," said Ron Sutherland, senior manager at Nortel Networks. "Network savvy engineers are expensive and often hard to retain. The RML utilities are designed to make operators of a network more productive by providing the tools they can use at a central site to set up or re-configure a network more quickly."

The specific utilities currently available through Nortel Networks' Router Management Labs exist for both router configuration and management and include:

Configuration. CUSTCFG allows user to define and maintain versions of BayRS router configurations as templates. The templates can generate multiple ASCII router configuration files. Mass-merge capabilities are available which facilitates the configuration (or re-configuration) of a large number of routers.

RPT2CFG converts ASCII configuration files created by CUSTCFG or Site Manager Report Generator to bootable binary for eventual loading on a BayRS router flash card.

BNFS95 enables the network manager, using a Windows PC, to manipulate the file system on the BayRS flash storage media used by the router. The tool works with flash cards inserted in a PC's PCMCIA slot and enables the user to format, partition, compact, delete and copy files between the PC and the flash card or between separate flash cards.

Management. PERL/SNMP is an application program interface (API) that allows the creation of customized applications that monitor and manage BayRS routers in ways that are tailored to specific customer needs. The tool provides a full-featured SNMP client side API written in Perl5 for accessing and manipulating BayRS SNMP router attributes.

HDWRPT is a hardware inventory report tool that polls BayRS devices and catalogs the equipment installed. The tool also assists in timely part replacement by retrieving Field Replacement Unit (FRU) numbers for each BayRS router installed in the customer's network.

TI Scripts provides networks administrators with valuable information about router performance. TI scripts are command line utilities that run from the router console's Technician's Interface (TI). The TI 'show interfaces' tool, for example, provides monitoring and diagnostic information. These scripts augment the existing TI commands shipped as part of the standard BayRS software suite.

"The web is increasingly the preferred method of accessing and collecting information," said Joe Marzot, principal engineer for Nortel Networks' Router Management Labs. "The RML web site allows the customer to access and download the utilities on an ad hoc basis, getting the most current version of the utility, and to ask questions via email."

Nortel Networks' Router Management Labs is currently available to all customers. Access to the utilities is provided via the web site at http://www.nortelnetworks.com/rml, and there is no charge when the utilities are downloaded. Other support facilities available via the RML web site include an Email Help Line, Frequently Asked Questions listing, Contributed Tools, Related Links listing, and Hot News.

Nortel Networks delivers value to customers around the world through Unified Networks* solutions, spanning mission-critical telephony and IP-optimized networks. Customers include public and private enterprises and institutions; Internet service providers; local, long-distance, cellular and PCS communications companies, cable television carriers, and utilities.

Nortel Networks' common shares are listed on the New York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and London stock exchanges. Nortel Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately 75,000 employees worldwide.

*Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks' Globemark, Unified Networks and How the world shares ideas are trademarks of Northern Telecom Limited.

*BayRS is a trademark of Bay Networks, Inc.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.nortelnetworks.com )

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GK Tricom reviewed all of the leading telephony and data vendors and chose Nortel Networks as the best supplier of Unified Networks solutions. Extensive research conducted by GK Tricom found Nortel Networks to be ahead of the industry in developing and delivering high quality, reliable, end-to-end integrated network solutions.

David Parker, director of channels UK and Ireland for Nortel Networks said, "By developing the best business partner relationships possible, Nortel Networks is forging the way ahead as the undisputed leader in the unified networking market. We want to work with partners that understand the concept of voice and data integration and who are gearing their organisation to reflect this change in the networking industry. GK Tricom is one of the frontrunners in this field. With their proven capability in providing LAN and WAN infrastructures and stated mission to deliver real business benefits and to become 'the Partner of Choice' for integrated network projects, they are an ideal company to take on as one of Nortel Networks strategic channel partners."

GK Tricom will focus on Nortel Network's range of Passport* products which complement the company's strengths in data/telephony convergence across enterprise networks. Their association with Nortel Networks will allow them to build "Industrial Strength Networks" with a common management platform that can be monitored from a state-of-the-art Service Centre at the company's headquarters in Stokenchurch.

GK Tricom (previously GK Data Services) is one of three lines of business under the multi-million, multi-site GK Communications Groups, an engineering and technology group. GK Communications - which in turn is part of $1billion world-wide integration specialist Dimension Data - has over 5 locations around the UK with its main HQ based in Stokenchurch and a staff level of over 350.

GK Tricom have operated in the Network Integration market place since 1982. The company specialises in the Design, Implementation and Service of end to end Network solutions from Concept to Reality. The Company's stated intention is to become the 'Partner of Choice' to both customers and suppliers alike when working on integrated network projects.

Nortel Networks delivers value to customers around the world through Unified Networks solutions, spanning mission-critical telephony and IP-optimized networks. Customers include public and private enterprises and institutions; Internet service providers; local, long-distance, cellular and PCS communications companies, cable television carriers, and utilities.

Nortel Networks' common shares are listed on the New York, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and London stock exchanges. Nortel Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately 75,000 employees worldwide.

*Nortel Networks, the Nortel Networks Globemark, Passport, Unified Networks and How the world shares ideas are trademarks of Northern Telecom Limited.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.nortelnetworks.com )

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GreenCommute is an attempt to change the commuting habits of Nortel Networks' workforce located at the company's Carling campus in Nepean. The program will provide a wealth of incentives and information to remove some of the misperceptions and obstacles to alternative forms of transportation - carpooling, transit service, biking, walking, and telecommuting - in an effort to reduce the level of single-occupant automobile traffic to the campus.

"GreenCommute is a joint effort to learn how to positively influence transportation choices for the health of the region and environment," said Bob Chiarelli, regional chair. "We are pleased to be working with the region's largest private sector employer on an initiative that will benefit us all."

Al Loney, chair, OC Transpo, said: "This pilot program offers exceptional opportunities for OC Transpo to reach and educate new parts of the population on the merits of one of the most effective transit services in the province. Through GreenCommute, we can experiment with new types of marketing and services that should help boost ridership in Ottawa-Carleton."

"GreenCommute is a step towards our fulfillment of commitments we made to minimize the traffic impact and need for parking spaces fueled by our expansion of the Carling campus," said Peter Becke, vice president, corporate services, Nortel Networks. "It also promotes healthy lifestyle choices for our employees and has significant potential in helping people make informed choices about their methods of transportation."

Nortel Networks' employees at the Carling campus are being equipped with a variety of tools providing a wealth of information on commuting options. The company has invested in a new transit hub and made several routing changes to reduce transit time by bus. Nortel Networks is also expanding or enhancing access by bicycle and walking trails. For its part, OC Transpo has implemented changes that effectively double the number of buses serving the campus and reduce the travel time for individual bus routes.

Incentives include preferential parking treatment in the province's first-ever parking garage dedicated to carpooling, opportunities to "test ride" OC Transpo's transit service, a web-based tool for finding and matching carpoolers, information kiosks and sessions, contests, and more.

The knowledge gained from the program will be used to shape future commuting initiatives at other Nortel Networks locations in the region and will be applied to the Region's Transportation Demand Management (TDM) efforts.

Nortel Networks had 1998 revenues of US$17.6 billion and has approximately 75,000 employees worldwide. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.nortelnetworks.com )

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With the new IBM Magstar 3590 E-Model tape drives, IBM continues its leadership role in delivering strategic enterprise-class tape storage solutions while protecting storage investments. The new Magstar 3590 E drives are backwards-read compatible with cartridges written on current Magstar 3590 drives and can be upgraded onsite. When used with the new drive, the more than seven million Magstar cartridges already owned by customers can potentially be doubled in capacity and doubled in value. The drives will begin shipping in May.

With these new enhancements, IBM continues to meet changing enterprise customer requirements driven by higher performance backup, the growth of server storage for e-Business, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and other storage-intensive environments.

IBM Magstar products connect to major server platforms, both IBM and non-IBM, and are supported by leading storage management software products. With the recent introduction of the IBM SAN Data Gateway, Magstar products are already attaching to Fibre Channel Storage Area Networks (SANs). They are also building blocks for IBM's Seascape enterprise storage architecture. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ibm.com)

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Streaming Server source code available to whomever wants to improve it, the technology will continue to evolve thanks to the applied collective brainpower of the open source community.

A note on streaming-seeing is believing. There are basically two types of streaming-HTTP streaming and RTP streaming-and QuickTime does them both.

HTTP streaming works by downloading an entire movie to your hard disk. QuickTime has supported HTTP streaming for over a year. QuickTime streaming files formatted for HTTP via the Apache Server work so well on both Macs and PCs that-in addition to a large Macintosh user base-QuickTime HTTP streaming has attracted millions of Windows users as well. Fact is, the quality of QuickTime HTTP streaming is one of the reasons why the release of the Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace trailer turned into the biggest online download event in history.

Just-in-time streaming. RTP (for real-time protocol) is a just-in-time streaming technology that keeps your computer in constant touch with the server running the movie. Digital data is transferred and displayed-and discarded once you've seen it. Though a 3-10 second cache of data is stored to compensate for occasional network "burps" that might otherwise compromise quality, at no point is the entire movie stored on your computer.

The difference? HTTP streaming is great for short movies and anything else you intend to play over and over again. RTP streaming, on the other hand, is ideal for full-length movies and live events. With a combination of industry-standard streaming protocols and cutting-edge compression technologies, QuickTime 4 delivers perfectly synchronized audio and video streams.

What you need to get started: If you've already installed the QuickTime Streaming Server Preview which shipped with Mac OS X Server, you'll need to download a general kernel update-recommended for all Mac OS X Servers-and QuickTime Streaming Server 1.0.

Minimum requirements are a Power Macintosh G3 computer or Macintosh Server G3 with 256MB or more of RAM, 1GB of hard disk space, and a software update to Mac OS X QuickTime Streaming Server 1.0. The recommended system, of course, is the heavy-duty 400MHz Macintosh Server G3 with 1GB of RAM, 9GB hard disk, 4-port Ethernet card and the software update to Mac OS X QuickTime Streaming Server 1.0.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.apple.com).

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Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., IBM chairman and chief executive officer, said: "We started 1999 with a strong quarter. We saw a significant improvement in our business in Asia, and we also had double-digit revenue growth in Europe and the Americas. Our operating results were excellent, led by services and software -- which together produced 60 percent of our gross profits this quarter. Our Technology Group results were mixed, with growth in hard disk drives offset by continued weakness in memory chips. Our PC unit also had substantially improved results.

"What's more exciting, however, is that this quarter's performance is a direct reflection of the power of the strategies we have put in place over the last few years," Mr. Gerstner said. "Services is clearly the largest and fastest-growing portion of the information technology industry, and we continue to extend our leadership position each quarter. Our software business continues to gain momentum. For example, we are now the number one database company in the world. Our strategy of providing leading-edge technology to the marketplace received substantial impetus this quarter as a result of major, long-term agreements we announced with Dell and EMC. And finally, our strategy to reposition the System/390 continued to move forward, with an increase of more than 80 percent in MIPS shipments in the first quarter." In as-reported terms, excluding revenues from the company's original equipment manufacturer (OEM) business, first-quarter revenues from the Americas totaled $8.8 billion, an increase of 13 percent (14 percent in constant currency) compared with the first quarter of 1998. Revenues from Europe/Middle East/Africa were $6.3 billion, up 20 percent (18 percent in constant currency). Revenues from Asia-Pacific increased 20 percent (13 percent in constant currency) to $3.5 billion. OEM revenues totaled $1.8 billion in the first quarter of 1999, a 5 percent increase (5 percent in constant currency) compared with the year-earlier period.

Total hardware revenues were $8.6 billion in the first quarter, an increase of 17 percent (16 percent in constant currency) from the first quarter of last year. Revenues from personal systems increased significantly. Within servers, System/390 revenues increased while RS/6000 and AS/400 revenues declined. Within technology, storage revenues increased and microelectronics revenues declined.

Revenues from IBM Global Services, including maintenance, grew 19 percent (18 percent in constant currency) in the first quarter to $7.6 billion. Excluding maintenance, services revenues increased 24 percent (23 percent at constant currency) to $6.3 billion. IBM signed $9.8 billion in services contracts in the first quarter and concluded the quarter with a total services contract backlog of approximately $55 billion.

Software revenues increased 10 percent (9 percent in constant currency) in the first quarter to $2.9 billion, with strong results from the company's database, Lotus Notes and transaction processing products. Revenues from Global Financing declined 2 percent in the first quarter to $705 million.

Revenues from the Enterprise Investments/Other area, which includes custom applications and other products designed to meet specialized customer requirements, decreased 6 percent (8 percent at constant currency) year over year to $558 million.

IBM's overall gross profit margin was 35.7 percent in the first quarter compared with 36.6 percent in the first quarter of last year.

The company's expense-to-revenue ratio improved 2.6 points year over year to 25.4 percent. IBM's tax rate in the first quarter was 30.0 percent compared with 32.0 percent in the year-earlier period.

IBM spent approximately $2.1 billion on share repurchases in the first quarter. The average number of shares outstanding in the quarter was 911.9 million compared with 950.2 million in the first quarter of 1998. There were 907.4 million common shares outstanding at March 31, 1999.

Debt in support of operations, excluding global financing, increased $1.1 billion from year-end 1998 to $2.8 billion. Global financing debt decreased $559 million from the end of 1998 to a total of $27.2 billion.

Forward-looking and cautionary statements. Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements included in this release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, as discussed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ibm.com)

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As a result of the agreement, Origin will offer a wide range of services for PTC's Windchill and Info*Engine technologies as part of its Engineering and Industrial Solutions (EIS) portfolio for multinational corporations. This partnership will provide Fortune 500 companies access to the resources, expertise, and global scale required to implement end-to-end solutions for achieving product development and worldwide business goals.

Close the gap between product development and ERP. While ERP systems have successfully integrated business-critical transaction-based processes such as purchasing, logistics and human resources, the same has not occurred with the non-transactional systems that support product creation. Today, product development,manufacturing, maintenance and service are addressed by a variety of proprietary systems that share data at a basic level.

As a result, companies must write custom applications or modify off-the-shelf systems in an attempt to make data available to those who need it. The challenge of providing transparent data access across the extended enterprise is complicated by the dynamic nature of product development, supplier relationships and information technology.

The Origin-PTC partnership combines Origin's expertise in product creation and innovation and expertise in large-scale, complex ERP implementations with PTC's state-of-the-art, web-based Windchill product and process life cycle management solution. The companies will help multinational companies close the gap between product development and ERP, and achieve effective information flow across the product life cycle.

"Origin's engineering expertise and knowledge of both the product-creation process and its underlying business drivers make it an ideal partner for extending the delivery of our Windchill and Info*Engine technologies worldwide," said Stacey Lawson, PTC's vice president of Windchill technical and strategic marketing. "The company's commitment to supporting the product-creation and innovation process, and its technical excellence in this area were important factors in our decision to enter into this agreement."

Global strategy for delivering state-of-the-art life cycle solutions Origin's Enterprise Solutions Practice provides the capability and the resources to design, implement and support enterprise life cycle solutions on a global scale. The company's broad experience in implementing and supporting the leading product-data-management (PDM) and ERP systems uniquely positions it to deliver end-to-end support for these business-critical systems.

PTC's Windchill architecture, along with the Info*Engine framework for integrating disparate PDM, ERP and legacy systems, provide the tools and methodologies required by Origin for establishing a coherent foundation for effective data management across the enterprise.

"Our partnership with PTC enhances our ability to deliver enterprise solutions that integrate product development, ERP and the supply chain on a global scale," said John Le Rossignol, vice president, enterprise solutions, of Origin. "The relationship will play an important role in our global strategy for delivering enterprise solutions to the market."

About Origin B.V. With revenues of $1.9 billion (US) in 1998, Origin B.V. is one of the largest full-service information-technology service providers in the world. Headquartered in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, the company has more than 17,000 employees in offices in 32 countries. According to leading IT analyst firms, Origin ranks #1 as the provider of full life cycle management for your ERP system. The company has strategic partnerships with the major ERP vendors, including SAP, Baan, QAD, and PeopleSoft, and is also recognized as a global pioneer in ERP outsourcing. Origin can be reached via the Web at http://www.origin-it.com

About PTC Parametric Technology Corporation, founded in 1985 and headquartered in Waltham, Mass. develops, markets and supports integrated product development and life cycle management solutions that help companies spur innovation and achieve sustained competitive advantage. PTC's software solutions are complemented by the strength and experience of its professional services organization, which provides training, consulting and support to customers worldwide. In its fiscal year ended September 30, 1998, the company achieved more than $1 billion in revenue. PTC can be reached at 781-398-5000, or via the Web at http://www.ptc.com. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ptc.com)

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Siebel also announced yesterday a multiyear partnership with IBM that will see the front-office vendor bundle IBM's DB2 database with its Siebel 99 sales, marketing, and customer-service applications. Customers who buy the bundled package will pay "substantially less" for the two products than if they buy them separately, and IBM also will provide service and support to those customers. While Siebel will continue to support other databases, including that from its front-office rival Oracle, DB2 will be integrated closely with Siebel applications. The integrated package will be available in the third quarter.(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The merger will bolster DataChannel's XML Framework, a package of products and services that includes DataChannel's XML applications and systems integrators. Isogen brings experience in designing, integrating, and implementing XML applications for clients such as Chase Manhattan Bank, Lockheed Martin, Lucent Technologies, and Nortel Networks. The combined companies will employ about 40 systems integrators. "This is the largest concentration in the world of people who are intimately familiar with building XML applications," says George Kondrach, general manager at Isogen.

DataChannel and Isogen will work to flesh out DataChannel's XML Framework 4.0, due for release next quarter. They will enhance the framework's XMLBluePrint, XML Design and Architecture, and training components. "We'll be putting together a packaging of the XML Framework so other integrators, consultants, and developers can license technologies, for example," Kondrach says. "We think XML has its greatest value in becoming ubiquitous." (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Lucent rolled out the Mobility Server last month, and yesterday unveiled interfaces with switches from Ericsson, Hitachi, Nortel Networks, Panasonic, Rolm, and Siemens. The Definity pocket phones handle three phone lines and screen, forward, transfer, and place calls on hold. Users can also access and forward their voice mail, and use most of the features that they use at their desks.

Companies can connect to the Lucent Mobility Server via a bridged analog connection on the station side; on the trunk side, the PBX connects via tie trunks such as ISDN PRI. The system has a transmission range of 2.4 million square feet, and can support 1,500 pocket phones. The system operates at a low power level in the 1.9-GHz frequency. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The current quarter's results included a $42 million net favorable impact from non-recurring items including an after-tax gain of $50 million resulting from the sale of 2 million shares of ARM Holdings plc., and a net restructuring charge of $8 million associated with improving the flexibility and efficiency of manufacturing operations. Without these non-recurring items, the Company's net profit for the quarter would have been $93 million, or $.60 per diluted share.

Strong sales of iMac™ and Power Macintosh® G3 computers drove overall unit growth to 27% year-over-year. This compares favorably to IDC's worldwide forecast for industry growth of 14%.

"We are delighted that Apple grew faster than the industry in its sixth consecutive profitable quarter," said Steve Jobs, Apple's interim CEO. "Demand for iMac exceeded our most optimistic forecasts, with Apple's share of U.S. retail and mail order desktop sales climbing as high as 12.5 percent during the quarter, as reported by ZD Storeboard. And Apple continues to lead the industry in asset management by ending the quarter with a record 1 day of inventory, beating Dell for the third quarter in a row."

"Strong demand for iMac and new Power Macintosh G3 computers combined with continued operational efficiency and asset management improvements resulted in positive cash flow from operations of $269 million," said Fred Anderson, Apple's CFO. "Apple now has over $2.9 billion in cash and short-term investments."

Apple® also announced today the early call for redemption on June 1, 1999 of all of its 6 percent convertible subordinated debentures due June 1, 2001.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the statements in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Potential risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, continued competitive pressures in the marketplace; the effect competitive and economic factors and the Company's reaction to them may have on consumer and business buying decisions with respect to the Company's products; the ability of the Company to make timely delivery of new products and successful technological innovations to the marketplace; the ability of the Company to successfully evolve its operating system and impact on the Company's business due to internal systems or systems of suppliers, infrastructure providers and other third parties adversely affected by year 2000 problems. More information on potential factors that could affect the Company's financial results is included from time to time in the Company's public reports filed with the SEC, including the Company's Form 10-K for the 1998 fiscal year, and the Company's Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 27, 1999, to be filed with the SEC.

Apple Computer, Inc. ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II, and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is now recommitted to its original mission&emdash;to bring the best personal computing products and support to students, educators, designers, scientists, engineers, businesspersons and consumers in over 140 countries around the world. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.apple.com).

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"The iMac combines the simplicity and ease of use of Macintosh; the excitement of the Internet; Pentium-toasting performance; and great design," said Steve Jobs, Apple's interim CEO. "This powerful combination is making iMac one of the most popular computers around the world."

The 333MHz PowerPC G3 processor brings blistering performance to iMac customers. A processor comparison based on the BYTEmark integer index gives the iMac with 333MHz PowerPC G3 processor a score of 11.1, while a new Pentium III desktop running at 500MHz scored a 6.7. In real-world game performance tests comparing Dark Vengeance software, the latest iMac clocked 26.5 frames per second, beating out a Compaq 5240 with 400MHz K6-2 processor which rated 18.3 frames per second.* (*Actual user experience may vary depending on components and software. )

iMac, the complete Internet-age computer right out of the box, features:

• A fast PowerPC G3 microprocessor running at 333MHz with a high-speed 512k backside L2 cache;
• Built-in 15-inch high-quality display with 1024 x 768 resolution (13.8-inch diagonal viewable image size);
• The world's easiest to use operating system, Mac® OS 8.5.1;
• 32MB SDRAM, expandable to 256MB;
• RAGE Pro Turbo Graphic controller and 6MB SGRAM;
• 6GB IDE hard disk drive;
• 24x CD-ROM drive;
• 10/100BASE-T Ethernet;
• 56Kbps modem that supports V.90 and K56flex;
• Two 12Mbps Universal Serial Bus (USB) ports;
• Built-in stereo speakers with SRS sound;
• Apple USB Keyboard and Apple USB Mouse.

Pricing and Availability. The 333MHz PowerPC G3-based iMacs are available immediately via The Apple Store™ (www.apple.com), and through Apple® Authorized Resellers for an estimated retail price of U.S. $1,199.

Apple Computer, Inc. ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II, and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Apple is now recommitted to its original mission-to bring the best personal computing products and support to students, educators, designers, scientists, engineers, businesspersons and consumers in over 140 countries around the world. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.apple.com).

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The software helps manufacturing departments manage their product-related data and associated processes required to design, manufacture, and maintain products throughout their entire life cycles. SAP says the product is integrated within its core R/3 suite.

The new software includes functionality for document management, engineering change management, parts management, and workflow for engineering processes. It also includes integration with SAP's logistics software, including production planning, plant maintenance, and service management. Product data management software can also be integrated with non-SAP applications, such as CAD systems. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Enhancements Accelerate Information Flow Throughout The Enterprise WALTHAM, Mass., April 19, 1999 -- Parametric Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: PMTC) announced Windchill Release 2.1, an update to its family of solutions for product and process life cycle management. Windchill Release 2.1 provides a richer environment for managing and visualizing product and process information within a company and across its supply chain, allowing customers to collaborate more easily with partners and suppliers and streamline the product development process.

Windchill Release 2.1 introduces three new components: Pro/INTRALINK Gateway, making Pro/ENGINEER data managed within an engineering workgroup available to a broader enterprise community, Info*Engine enterprise application integration software and ProductView visualization technology.

This combination of gateway, data acquisition and visualization capabilities allows Windchill users to access external data sources, include external data in Windchill processes and make the data available to the entire enterprise for visualization and mark-up. Utilizing these three new components, Windchill users can unleash valuable information to members of the extended enterprise who only need a web browser to access the information.

"Windchill's federated software architecture is built upon three powerful web-based information handling capabilities: data management, data acquisition and data visualization," said James Heppelmann, PTC's senior vice president and chief technology officer. "With our recent acquisitions of enterprise application integration and visualization technologies, we now can uniquely provide customers information connectivity, despite the diversity of systems and processes they and their supply chain partners employ. The significance of this latest release is that we are accelerating our ability to provide customers browser-based access to nearly any type of information, from on-line forms and applications to nearly any type of graphical information."

"With Windchill, we will be able to integrate multiple PDM, ERP, database and legacy systems so that the information they contain can be more easily and efficiently shared throughout our enterprise," said Frank Cappuccio, vice president and program manager of Lockheed Martin's new Joint Strike Fighter program. "This unique ability makes Windchill the ideal solution for our Joint Strike Fighter program."

Pro/INTRALINK Gateway Pro/INTRALINK is PTC's premier data management environment for Pro/ENGINEER users. Focusing exclusively on managing Pro/ENGINEER data, Pro/INTRALINK facilitates collaboration among design teams and effectively manages the power of Pro/ENGINEER's associativity. The Pro/INTRALINK Gateway maintains connectivity between Windchill and Pro/INTRALINK by publishing references for parts, assemblies, product structures and meta-data from Pro/INTRALINK into Windchill. While the actual Pro/ENGINEER files remain outsourced to the local Pro/INTRALINK vault used by engineering, visibility to this information is now made available through a web browser to enterprise users via various Windchill applications that are used throughout the product development process.

Windchill Info*Engine Windchill Info*Engine data acquisition capabilities "web-enable" legacy and incumbent information for use during the product and process life cycle. Windchill Info*Engine provides a general-purpose integration framework that unlocks legacy information so it can be incorporated into web pages and

Windchill-based information structures and processes. The Windchill Info*Engine architecture uses a combination of an HTTP-based hub (to which references to outsourced data are made) and a series of "adapters" which are capable of extracting information from legacy information sources. PTC offers a set of pre-built adapters as well as the ability to build custom adapters. With Windchill Info*Engine, companies can now make critical product and process information available to the extended enterprise.

Windchill ProductView ProductView allows users throughout the enterprise to view all types of product-related information - from documents such as Microsoft Office files and 2D drawings, to 3D models - all in a familiar web-based framework. With Windchill ProductView, users can employ their web-browser to visualize,review, take accurate measurements, and markup graphical information from a variety of heterogeneous systems. Windchill ProductView eliminates the need for users to have access to the native authoring application and allows non-engineers to participate in the product design process for the first time.

Pricing and Availability Windchill Release 2.1 will ship to customers this month in English, French, German and Japanese.Windchill Release 2.1 is sold on an enabled-user basis to encourage broad adoption. Windchill Foundation is priced at U.S. $1,000 per enabled user. The Windchill PDM Package is priced at U.S. $1,000 per enabled user. Windchill Information Modeler, the rapid application development environment, is sold separately and is priced at U.S. $10,000. The Pro/INTRALINK Gateway can be ordered at no charge. Info*Engine and ProductView are available for purchase separately or as options within the Windchill product line.

About PTC Parametric Technology Corporation, founded in 1985 and headquartered in Waltham, Mass.,develops, markets and supports integrated product development and life cycle management solutions that help companies spur innovation and achieve sustained competitive advantage. PTC's software solutions are complemented by the strength and experience of its professional services organization, which provides training, consulting and support to customers worldwide. In its fiscal year ended September 30, 1998, the company achieved more than $1 billion in revenue. PTC can be reached at 781-398-5000, or via the Web at http://www.ptc.com.

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Win2000 Beta 3, originally set to ship this week, will be the first version of Win2000 to be "feature complete." New in this release are a global directory service, security system, plug-and-play support for add-in cards, self-healing IntelliMirror software, Windows Terminal Services, and technology that enforces applications-install rules. Microsoft estimates that 500,000 copies of the beta will be distributed. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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IBM executives say the integration will give E-commerce sites and applications easier access to critical data such as product and inventory information, which allows E-commerce to become part of the enterprise. IBM claims that companies wanting to link to back-end systems often spend as much as 50% of their budgets on integration. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The design of the N class will let customers squeeze a lot of power into a fixed amount of space. A low latency memory controller allows data to move across the bus at 7.6 Gbytes per second, and dual input/output controllers with 12 hot-pluggable PCI slots can move data in and out of the system at speeds up to 5.8 Gbytes per second. Power will come from as many as eight PA-8500 350-MHz and 440-MHz RISC processors.

The Internet capabilities include HP WebQoS 2.0 software, which lets companies distinguish between Internet buyers and browsers, and structure services appropriately. The IA-64 readiness means that an N-class server purchased next month will be able to run both HP-UX and Windows 2000 when the 64-bit chips are available. Even before the dual operating support, an N-class cluster will be available with 99.995% availability guarantees for the server, the operating system, the Oracle database, EMC storage, and Cisco Systems. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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VA TECH ELIN Transformatoren GmbH is a part of the Power Transmission and Distribution Business Division of VA Technology AG. The globally active company delivers power transformers to power utilities and industrial customers. VA TECH ELIN will use Pro/ENGINEER mechanical design, functional simulation, production and data management solutions to further automate its entire product development process.

"After an extensive evaluation of all considerable CAD vendors, VA TECH ELIN has decided to deploy Pro/ENGINEER software as the standard automation tool for all mechanical development and design processes," said Mr. Vötsch, general manager of VA TECH ELIN Transformatoren. "With that decision we'll be able to expand the worldwide leading position of VA TECH ELIN

Transformatoren in the area of Power Transformers to 1300 MVA and 765 kV." (PTC can be reached at 781-398-5000, or via the Web at http://www.ptc.com.)

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He said Compaq is going further than Dell by building a framework for dedicated application appliances using its InsightManager tool set, which would offer better integration and management capabilities between different boxes. The first appliances under development are for Web caching and file serving. But also "under investigation" are dedicated devices for security, database, telecom, Internet serving, and mail and messaging. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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ThermoJet is a professional office printer intended for today's design engineer. But similar to the evolution of laser and ink jet printers, the company envisions the future ThermoJet to be significantly smaller and less expensive -- lending itself to personal office use, and ultimately personal home use.

"Today it's routine to create newsletters and graphic designs on PCs, and to use laser and ink jet printers to put them on paper," said Dr. Richard Balanson, 3D Systems' president and chief operating officer. "Tomorrow, with future generations of ThermoJet, we could just as easily custom-design and 'print' a chess set or a toy, create a model of a new invention, or download a file from the Internet to print out a replacement for a broken plastic appliance part. That's when we enter the realm of personal manufacturing."

ThermoJet uses the concepts and technologies of solid object imaging pioneered by 3D Systems 13 years ago, and now used worldwide in corporate design and engineering settings. But ThermoJet -- with a U.S. list price of $49,995 for single units -- produces its output quickly and affordably in an office setting.

"Certainly ThermoJet is an exciting new development simply because it makes the advantages of solid object imaging available to many more businesses," said Dr. Balanson. "Now you can finish the design work on a new product and hold a sample of that product in your hand within hours," he said. "ThermoJet offers the flexibility to make changes or modifications easily and to individual specifications -- it's a tool for mass customization."

Bold Vision for the Future. ThermoJet is the cornerstone of a sweeping new 3D Systems strategy to bring a new level of ease and productivity to solid model making. The solid object printer rounds out a series of recent hardware and software innovations intended as next-generation advents for the company that created the industry.

Last month, 3D Systems introduced its latest industrial machine, the SLA 7000, that is capable of near-production parts and is four times faster than its predecessor. Earlier, the company announced 3D Lightyear Windows NT software for its SLA line, which delivers optimum performance with a user-friendly interface.

Applications. ThermoJet's ability to turn an idea into a physical model has significant benefits. A designer who has just created a mechanical part using computer-aided-design (CAD) software can send the file to ThermoJet over an ordinary office network. Within hours, ThermoJet produces a sample in a plastic-like material that the designer can hold and evaluate. The part then becomes a real-world example of what may be difficult to comprehend when viewed as a complex CAD image on a computer screen.

In addition, ThermoJet allows designers to detect flaws immediately. Users can share samples with customer focus groups to obtain useful feedback, or generate ideas for product packaging or potential marketing programs.

The uses for ThermoJet are far-reaching and span many industries. Telecommunications companies can use it to design new cellular phones or pagers, while a sporting goods manufacturer can create a new line of golf clubs. Artists can use ThermoJet technology to print three-dimensional samples of sculptures, just as easily as orthodontists can create models of a patient's smile.

Because ThermoJet files can be sent over any network, including the Internet, the machine can be used as a "3D fax" to send models to other cities or continents in moments, for output within hours. This is especially valuable when complex designs must be communicated in a multi-national, multi-cultural environment.

"This is not virtual reality - this is physical reality," said Dr. Balanson. "And the applications and opportunities go beyond one's imagination."

Availability. Thermojet is available in limited quantities immediately, with full production commencing in April. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.3dsystems.com).

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Intel had originally planned to ship the 433-MHz chip in the third quarter. But the chipmaker stepped up its production and marketing efforts as rival Advanced Micro Devices has grabbed a large amount of business in the sub-$1,000 PC market. Most of the Celeron machines, without monitors, are now priced at $800 to $1,000. Anticipating long-term pressure from AMD, Ron Peck, Intel's director of value PC marketing, described the competition at the low end as a "marathon" rather than a "sprint."

Independent tests show Celeron's performance to be only about 10% slower on common applications than Intel's Pentium III of the same clock speed. But most Pentium III PC prices are at least 20% to 30% higher than Celeron PC prices. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Pro/ENGINEER 2000i, which includes more than 500 enhancements, also introduces new functionality and applications for very large assemblies, adaptive process features, design animation and feature-based production manufacturing tools. In addition, the new release of Pro/ENGINEER software includes major enhancements for sharing engineering information over the Internet and provides significant ease-of-use advancements with its "Designed for Windows" graphical user interface.

"Pro/ENGINEER 2000i embodies significant innovations for mechanical design automation," said John MacKrell, senior consultant of CIMData, an industry-leading consulting firm. "These position Pro/ENGINEER as an engineering tool for the designer as opposed to a product definition and documentation system. With its new behavioral modeling technology and a greatly simplified user interface, Pro/ENGINEER 2000i enhances user productivity and allows more time for innovation. Behavioral Modeler, in particular, reduces the need for designers to iterate through multiple designs to achieve a required result by automatically solving design problems - leaving design engineers with more time to focus on innovation."

Behavioral Modeling With behavioral modeling technology, PTC provides engineers with the tools they need to design product models driven by their requirements and specifications. In traditional MDA systems, designers manually iterate on the geometry of their design, hoping to get close to their objective. Many times, solutions are not identified.

Rather than having to settle on a design estimate that is "close enough," the introduction of Pro/ENGINEER2000i enables design engineers to explore the optimal solution with a complete understanding of the design's performance and behavior.

Behavioral modeling promotes design excellence through the creation of fully engineered designs driven by specifications and requirements within an adaptive, responsive and extensible environment. Behavioral modeling capabilities include smart models (completely captured intelligent designs that adapt to their environment) and objective-driven design (turning models into designs based on specific product requirements). The tool functions within an open, extensible environment that is connected to the entire engineering process. By allowing specific requirements and desired functional behavior to drive the model, Behavioral Modeler helps to improve the functional operation and quality of a design early in the product development process.

"We fundamentally changed the MDA marketplace a decade ago when we shipped Pro/ENGINEER with its paradigm-shifting parametric, solids-based modeling technology," said Jim Baum, executive vice president, engineering, research and development, PTC. "We believe behavioral modeling represents another paradigm shift for MDA software, by fundamentally changing what users expect and can accomplish within the modeling environment. Our nearly 24,000 customers compete every day on the basis of cost, quality and time to market. We believe our behavioral modeler will enhance our customers' competitive positions, no matter what dimension they compete on."

Mechanism Design Pro/ENGINEER 2000i also includes a new module for mechanism design, which allows concurrent design and simulation of kinematic assemblies in a single-user environment. With easy-to-use grab and drag functions, Mechanism Design allows designers to specify functional connections and joints between components in the assembly, test the range of motion against specifications, and check for interferences among adjacent components as the assembly moves. Users can now include functional design intent early in the development process, enhancing productivity and overall product quality.

"Groupe Schneider has worked closely with PTC during development of the new functionality in Pro/ENGINEER 2000i," said Jean-Christophe DeJean, CAD/CAM Manager, Groupe Schneider, a leading supplier of electrical components. "The integration of associative design and simulation in a common user environment is central to our requirements for optimizing our design process. This new capability will allow designers to investigate and improve the functional operation of a design early in the product development process."

Adaptive Process Features The Pro/ENGINEER feature modeling paradigm has been extended to include more applications within the product development process. These features (called Adaptive Process Features) allow behavioral and process intelligence to be built directly into the design which can then influence downstream product development activities.

For example, in the Behavioral Modeler, users can define non-geometric features such as reflectivity, volume and center of mass. These specification features can be used to drive the optimal design of a product model. Or, users can define features such as joints and welds. Assembly features form kinematic relationships that can then be animated for in-process conceptual studies using the new Design Animation module.

New VLA Functionality With significant enhancements for Very Large Assembly (VLA) -- the electronic modeling functionality that allows users to streamline model data for assemblies that contain tens of thousands of components -- Pro/ENGINEER 2000i can now be used to design and manage even the most complex product assemblies. PTC's new Shrinkwrap tools allow users to create lightweight solid model representations that retain accurate surface and mass properties information. This new functionality alleviates hardware system performance issues and allows manufacturers to share designs with component suppliers, for example, without compromising proprietary design information. (See today's related announcement.) Additionally, Pro/ENGINEER 2000i allows maintenance studies for whole products by tracking part removal paths with interference prevention.

Design Animation Design Animation provides Pro/ENGINEER 2000i with a toolset for rapidly producing animations or product assembly sequences using associative design data. Design Animation recognizes the kinematic relationships defined in Mechanism Design, allowing re-use of design intent during product development. This new module also provides powerful tools for communication of ideas and concepts throughout the enterprise.

Expert Machinist With the introduction of Expert Machinist, part of the Pro/NC product line, adaptive process features are also available in the manufacturing environment. With Expert Machinist, manufacturing engineers are able to easily classify design geometry in terms of common manufacturing-specific features. The software generates NC toolpaths that can be custom tailored to the user's environment, resulting in rapid generation of part programs that are efficient and consistent.

Internet-Enabled MDA PTC also has enhanced its Internet-specific applications within the Pro/ENGINEER environment. Pro/ENGINEER 2000i includes drag and drop access to DesignSuite, an online 3D CAD model library of more than 300,000 widely used standard components. Customers can use J-Link, a new Java-based, object-oriented programming toolkit to customize Pro/ENGINEER and create platform-independent applications. Other tools provide capabilities to publish designs to the Web, attach hyperlinks to components in an assembly and view and access 3D assemblies from any Web browser.

Ease of Use "Designed for Microsoft Windows" certified, Pro/ENGINEER 2000i provides customers with user interface enhancements that will increase productivity for new and existing users. Pro/ENGINEER 2000i is coded directly to the Windows NT APIs and conforms to the Windows user interface style guide. PTC also has enhanced usability with new context-sensitive help, on-line tool tips and easy customization of the user environment.

Other Enhancements Pro/ENGINEER 2000i also leverages PTC's associative topology bus (ATB) technology, which supports concurrent engineering across different MDA applications. Pro/ENGINEER 2000i is associative with CADDS 5 and Pro/DESKTOP, allowing real-time sharing of accurate product data. With ATB, users can maintain legacy data while creating an optimal product development environment based on their individual needs. Moreover, Pro/ENGINEER 2000i introduces the Import Data Doctor, an automatic surface clean-up tool that enhances data import capabilities so users can more easily incorporate data from other systems in their designs.

In addition, the new software offers significant productivity and usability enhancements to Pro/SHEETMETAL piping and welding applications.

Availability, Pricing, and System Requirements Pro/ENGINEER 2000i is available for order immediately. An English language version will ship in late April. International language versions will ship later this year. J-Link is available within Pro/ENGINEER-Foundation, priced at US $5,995.

Shrinkwrap functionality is embedded in the Advanced Assembly Extension, which is priced separately. The Behavioral Modeler, Expert Machinist, Mechanism Design, Design Animation and Import Data Doctor modules are sold separately, with prices starting at U.S. $3,495.

Pro/ENGINEER 2000i is available for Windows 95, 98 and NT. A native UNIX implementation is also available. (PTC can be reached at 781-398-5000, or via the Web at http://www.ptc.com.)

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The product, which comes in a PC Card form factor for notebooks and access points and ISA cards for desktops, is targeted at companies interested in establishing wireless connections throughout their enterprises.

The WaveLAN/IEEE Turbo automatically adjusts its speeds as notebooks and other devices are moved into and out of areas capable of supporting higher-connection rates. For example, in a warehouse, where there are few access points and transaction processing applications require only a low data rate, a notebook computer may get a 1.5-Mbps network connection and be able to operate as far as 1,800 feet from an access point. But when the same notebook is moved into an office structure with a higher concentration of wireless access points, the data rate automatically ramps up to as fast as 10 Mbps so long as it remains 400 feet or less from the access point. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Until the AT&T-BT venture receives regulatory approval, AT&T will be reselling Concert Virtual Network Service and Concert Frame Relay Service, joint services of AT&T and BT, U.S. domestic asynchronous transfer mode and frame relay service, dedicated digital private-line services, and inbound and outbound voice services.

In the next few months, Unisys will become one of the first customers to access AT&T's voice and data services over a single network access point. "Pricing will determine how quickly we move to integrated services" on the backbone, says Bard Haerland, VP of worldwide telecommunications for Unisys. "With switched voice becoming so cheap, it almost undermines the costs of moving to an integrated network." (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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AIMx (Asset Investment Management and Execution), according to J.D. Edwards officials, is an integrated software product that lets organizations manage business resources such as people, facilities, customers, and stakeholders. AIMx comprises J.D. Edwards OneWorld applications that are tailored to services companies, as well as industry-specific third-party applications. About 30% of all J.D. Edwards customers are in the services industry.

The AIMx model includes other enhancements for the services industry, such as customer-service management to let managers monitor response times, escalation procedures, and fulfillment rates; a profitability module for managerial accounting, activity-based management, and activity-based costing; and an expanded decision-support system for better analysis of operations, customer, supplier, and employee information. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Vendors showing new Xeon products included top-tier vendors such as Compaq, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and IBM. There were also plenty of lesser-knowns, such as Sequent Computer Systems, which builds only very large enterprise servers, and VA Research, which builds only servers running the Linux operating system. Many of the 500-MHz machines will be available immediately. Workstations running at 550 MHz with up to two processors will ship in April. Most servers with at least four 550-MHz processors will not be available until the third quarter.

Intel and the server vendors also talked about the pending standardized architecture for economically building eight-processor Intel servers. Most say they expect to ship eight-way systems, which were originally slated for late last year, by around July. A key obstacle has been the unexpected testing time it has taken to ensure that the numerous software applications being optimized for the new systems run smoothly. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Integrating the business processes and synchronizing data between the two systems lets IT staff respond or act proactively when departments are acquiring new systems that will need installation, when technologies are being deployed in business units, and when training needs to be arranged for new users or new applications. Should problems arise along the ERP system, trouble tickets are instantly generated at the service desk. "Usually what happens to the IT group is that somebody calls up and says 'I've got a new computer, come help me,'" says Peggy Menconi, an analyst at AMR Research. "If you get all those calls on Monday morning, it can be overwhelming. This hands the IT organization information about how the rest of the corporation is either acquiring or deploying new assets." Pricing begins at $25,000 per suite. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The new measurement company, which will be headed by current measurement organization general manager Edward Barnholt, will include the testing products that accounted for approximately $7.6 billion of HP's $47.1 billion in revenue last year. HP's PC and Unix hardware, printers, and enterprise software will come under the aegis of an independent computing and imaging company.

Lew Platt, HP's current chairman, president, and CEO, will stay on as head of the computing and imaging company until a permanent CEO is named. Once the spin-off is complete, HP shareholders will have stock in each of the two companies. HP is also looking into an initial public offering of roughly 15% of the outstanding shares in the measurement company. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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As part of the overall Pro/NC product family, Expert Machinist provides reliable CAM software for production machining. New technology within Expert Machinist enables manufacturing engineers to easily translate the complex geometry of existing Pro/ENGINEER 2000i or imported design models into manufacturing-specific features to which machining strategies are applied. These default strategies are based on shop-floor-proven machining fundamentals that can be modified by each user to meet specific needs.

"Expert Machinist allows our customers to continue to experience all the benefits of programming directly on a parametric solid model," said Joe Lichtenberg, vice president, technical marketing, PTC. "But by focusing the functionality on production machining, and presenting the user with a radically new paradigm, we have been able to create an NC programming tool that is extremely easy to learn and use, and is just as powerful as Pro/NC."

"We've always carried the associative benefits of the Pro/ENGINEER model straight to tooling simulation," said Jim Naramatsu of BPS Industries Inc., a machining firm in Baltimore, Md. "Now, because of the simple learning curve for Expert Machinist, we can extend those benefits right to the shop floor, with on- or off-line programming. We'll be able to start toolpath programming before the design is finalized, increasing the shop's influence on the concurrent engineering process. Moreover, the potential labor savings from using Expert Machinist for machined prototyping -- let alone for production manufacturing -- are significant."

The program is "Designed for Microsoft Windows" qualified and offers a user interface that emulates the natural thought process of the manufacturing engineer. Windows-based dialog boxes offer step-by-step options, often accompanied by pictures. These options are presented in a manner and sequence expected by the manufacturing engineer. The toolpath generation capabilities in Expert Machinist are built upon the mature, shop-tested functionality that has been available for years within PTC's Pro/NC products.

Like other PTC tools, Expert Machinist leverages Pro/ENGINEER 2000i's single, associative product model, which ensures accurate and consistent information exchange among design and manufacturing teams. For customers that use CAD systems other than Pro/ENGINEER for design, Expert Machinist can be used together with PTC's new Import Data Doctor, a module within Pro/ENGINEER 2000i that provides automated repair capabilities of imported data. This software allows machining operations to more easily utilize legacy data from other CAD systems while working in the Pro/ENGINEER 2000i environment.

Availability and Pricing An English language version of Pro/ENGINEER 2000i will be commercially available at the end of April. The Expert Machinist module will be available in June. Pro/ENGINEER-Foundation, priced at U.S. $5,995, is a prerequisite for both Expert Machinist and Import Data Doctor, which will be priced separately.

Pro/ENGINEER 2000i is a "Designed for Windows" application available for Windows 95, 98 and NT. A native UNIX implementation is also available. PTC can be reached at 781-398-5000, or via the Web at http://www.ptc.com

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IBM outlined sweeping plans to integrate Linux into several of its products, as well as to offer global technical support for all major versions of Linux. The company will team with four major Linux distributors--Caldera Systems, Pacific HiTech, Red Hat Software, and Suse Holding AG--to co-develop and market Linux products and provide training and support to customers. IBM will include in its offerings the IBM WebSphere Web development products, including two application servers. Also to be included are Linux-based offerings of IBM's Host On-Demand Java-based emulator for Web-to-host connectivity and an On-Demand Server that manages E-business applications. The company is also working on porting Linux to selected IBM RS/6000 models.

Computer Associates also joined forces with Red Hat yesterday, outlining plans to release its Unicenter TNG framework integrated with Red Hat's Linux operating system. The companies say they intend to co-market and co-sell CDs carrying both companies' offerings by midyear. CA and Red Hat will share technical resources in developing Unicenter TNG and Linux, but won't be sharing support services. Meanwhile, Intel and VA Research followed the lead of Hewlett-Packard as the two companies unveiled plans to port a fully configured Linux operating system to the IA-64 architecture. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Once vendors and carriers implement VXML, users will be able to access Internet and intranet information from a regular or wireless telephone, or from a multimedia PC. For example, a traveling salesperson might be able to call into an intranet to check the status of a client's order, monthly sales projections, or a competitor's price for widgets. "People won't need their laptops to access information," says Mitesh Patel, director of Motorola Mobile Applications in Naperville, Ill.

Other members of the Forum include British Telecom, Dragon Systems, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, 3Com, and Unisys. VXML is similar to HTML, enabling companies to build almost a single interface to their back-end data systems. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Beefing up its efforts to speed the adoption of Linux in the enterprise and Internet software development arena, HP outlined a new organization designated to develop tools and technologies for applications deployed on Linux, Windows NT, or HP-UX systems. The Open Source Solutions Operation will be a subdivision of HP's Internet and applications systems unit. According to HP, Linux is becoming the platform of choice, particularly in the E-commerce and ISP market, and therefore the company intends to make Linux a key part of its operating-system strategy. The company also plans to provide services, training, and electronic support for developers and system administrators using Linux. HP earlier this month integrated Linux into its NetServer and IA-64 architecture systems.

SAP also jumped on the Linux train yesterday, outlining plans to offer its R/3 enterprise application on the open platform by the third quarter. The company says it is responding to demands by its customers to include the platform in its ERP offerings. SAP will be joined by several of its hardware and software partners when it presents a full-scale offering of Linux systems, tools, databases, and support services next week at the CeBit 99 conference in Hanover, Germany.

Today also promises to be a big day for the platform, as companies including Computer Associates, IBM, and Intel are preparing to make Linux development announcements and to outline partnerships with Linux software distributors Caldera. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The product merges the traditional videoconferencing world of large videoconferencing rooms with the new world of desktop video. Customers can use the gateway to connect between IP-based video on the LAN and ISDN-based videoconferencing. "This helps videoconferencing get away from being just for the very elite corporate audience," says Todd Hanson, an analyst with Dataquest. "Engineering teams are starting to use videoconferencing and whiteboarding to collaborate."

With the Madge product, customers can make four simultaneous video calls over a single gateway. The gateway provides call control features, such as blocking if someone is already on a video call. It also provides policy networking features, letting an administrator, for example, limit the number of users doing LAN videoconferencing simultaneously. It also uses the policy networking features inherent in token ring technology, letting administrators prioritize video ahead of other traffic. The Gateway will be available next month at prices starting from $11,000. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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"We broke all the boundaries by creating a system with a new architecture and outstanding capabilities," said Richard Balanson, 3D Systems president and chief operating officer. "We believe the SLA 7000 system sets a new industry standard for performance by being an order of magnitude faster than its nearest competitor."

The SLA 7000 is ideal for concept modeling, rapid prototyping, tooling and near production applications in a wide variety of industries, including automotive, aerospace, consumer products, consumer electronics, toys, entertainment, and medical imaging.

"Past process improvements were in the range of 10 to 25 percent, so 400 percent is tremendous," said Steve Deak, manager of rapid prototyping at Hasbro, Inc., and also one of the first purchasers of the new system. "We believe the SLA 7000's speed and surface finish improvements will permit Hasbro to shorten product development lead times and reduce project costs. We're looking forward to reduced cost of ownership through lower operating and maintenance expenses."

According to Charles Wilson, 3D Systems vice president of worldwide sales and marketing, "The SLA 7000 system--integrated with our new 3D Lightyear software and high-speed resin--means better, faster, cheaper parts to meet our customers time-to-market and time-to-volume demands. And it brings us one step closer to our ultimate goal of developing an SLA that will take us into final production."

New Design Benefits Customers. Equipped to build ultra-thin .001 inch (.025 millimeter) layers, the SLA 7000 system produces parts with excellent surface finish. This is a critically important feature for rapid tooling and other applications that require extreme part precision and high surface resolution. This fine layer thickness also reduces the need for hand finishing of parts.

The SLA 7000 system's high throughput and efficiency is due in part to a dual-spot, high-power laser. A totally self-contained, maintenance-free cooling system creates greater system stability by tightly controlling the temperature of the laser. Combined with a revolutionary build process, the system allows the customer to tailor build speed and surface finish to meet application needs.

The SLA 7000 has a maximum build area of 20 x 20 x 23.62 inches (508 x 508 x 600 mm), which allows customers to produce a significantly large part, or multiple smaller parts simultaneously.

With a U.S. list price of $799,995, the SLA 7000 offers three times the price performance of the SLA 5000, the current industry leader. The SLA 7000 will begin shipping worldwide in March 1999.

New Windows NT Software Platform. The SLA 7000 includes the company's new highly-integrated 3D Lightyear part preparation software, designed for the Windows NT operating environment, plus companion NT-based

Buildstation 5.0 software to control the mechanical functions of the machine.

Easy-to-use 3D Lightyear software provides significant performance improvements over Maestro, 3D Systems' comparable Unix-based software. 3D Lightyear verifies files up to 150 times faster, renders parts up to 6 times faster, and prepares files more than twice as fast. "The net effect is that the SLA 7000 system stays productive and continuously builds parts, instead of waiting for file preparation and transfers," said Balanson.

The new Windows NT part preparation software will operate with all SLA devices, including the SLA 190, SLA 250, SLA 350, SLA 500, SLA 3500 and SLA 5000 systems.

New Generation Solid Imaging Materials. Developed by Ciba Specialty Chemicals Corporation in conjunction with 3D Systems, the new SL 7510 high-speed, multi-purpose stereolithography resin is an integral component in the SLA 7000 process. SL 7510 resin features fast photospeed and improved mechanical properties.

SL 7510 is the latest development in a 10-year joint effort by 3D Systems and Ciba Specialty Chemicals to develop advanced photopolymers for stereolithography. 3D Systems is the exclusive worldwide distributor of Ciba's photopolymer products produced under this development partnership.

"This integrated combination of hardware, software and materials gives 3D Systems the broadest family of solutions in the marketplace today," concluded Balanson. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.3dsystems.com).

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Microsoft will unveil the next version of Site Server Commerce Edition, tentatively renamed Commerce Enterprise Server. The upgrade will feature improvements in personalization, site analysis, and transaction processing. In addition, integration with Windows 2000 is expected to improve the commerce server's scalability. Furthermore, Microsoft will introduce an add-on for Commerce Enterprise Server, tentatively titled Commerce Interchange Server, which is based on a feature in Site Server Commerce Edition called Commerce Interchange Pipeline. Commerce Interchange Server will add support for new document formats based on the Extensible Markup Language standard that lets companies connect their own product catalogs to a central product catalog on the Internet and update them regularly. Both the Commerce Enterprise Server and Commerce Interchange Server are scheduled to ship after the release of Windows 2000 later this year.

Microsoft will use Commerce Interchange Server to offer a hosted service tentatively called MSN Marketplace, a shopping catalog set to launch on MSN this summer. Merchants will list their wares in the catalog, and MSN users will be able to search for them. Microsoft will also host merchants' sites on MSN's servers, which will run Commerce Enterprise Server and Commerce Interchange Server. Microsoft officials declined comment. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Western and its procurement software vendor, Intelisys Electronic Commerce LLC, will host about 175 suppliers near Western's headquarters in Houston this week to begin training and conversion. Western hopes to have those suppliers selling online within 60 days, then extend the capability to an additional 200 vendors later this year.

The company's goal is to cut processing costs to less than $10 per transaction and pay for the system in six months, says David Durham, manager of purchasing. Western will use Intelisys' IEC-Enterprise purchasing application, which it has been testing with four suppliers for the past six months. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The technology brings order to a process that has been chaotic at best, says VF Corp., a retailer in Wyomissing, Pa., that owns such brands as Lee Jeans, Wrangler, and Playtex. The company is deploying SmartPath to help it automate Web site creation and the production of other documents to give users a standardized process and help them track photos, text, and approvals necessary for the project. "Having all of these things literally at your fingertips on your desktop is a huge benefit," says Amy Robinson, E-commerce manager for VF's IT division. "We're not running around looking for missing photos or papers." SmartPath has helped VF reduce its production cycle time by 40%, which has led to a corresponding cost savings.

SmartPath is available immediately, starting at $125,000 for 50 users, training, and a year's maintenance. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Wyse's Winterm 3350SE and HP's NetVectra GT310 use Cyrix's 200-MHz Media GX processor. The Media GX's multimedia support, including MPEG decoding, better enables the CPU to handle demanding graphics and video applications.

Wyse is positioning its system as a multimedia terminal for supporting video-on-demand and IP multicasting. But the companies that offer multiuser Windows NT--Microsoft and Citrix Systems Inc.--won't have the necessary software extensions in their RDP and ICA protocols until late 1999. Jeff McNaught, Wyse's senior director and general manager, says users can download the extensions when they're available. The Winterm 3350SE is priced at $749. HP says it will deliver multimedia firmware later this year that will help customers better use the NetVectra's multimedia abilities. The GT310 is priced at $699. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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A critical component in keeping the RISC System/6000 available is the AIX operating system. It has been designed for both dynamic reconfiguration and scalability. And it meets all industry standards for open systems as well as supporting thousands of applications. That assures you maximum connectivity to all of your existing systems and systems capable of running all of your business applications. All RISC System/6000 systems utilize the same operating system, allowing you to run your applications unchanged on any of these platforms.

A key component of all business systems is the database, which maintains all the critical information, which fuels corporate activities. Todays companies rely on a combination of applications to run their businesses. The core applications have been grouped to form what is known as enterprise resource planning. Oracle Applications cover this key area and execute in conjunction with the Oracle database on the RISC System/6000. They have been designed to scale from the smallest workstations to the very largest RISC System/6000 servers available from IBM. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ibm.com)

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Dell, which has a small R&D operation compared with most hardware companies, says it needs a strong partner to help increase its budding enterprise server and storage business. As part of the pact, Dell has agreed to buy $16 billion in IBM products -- including storage, microelectronics, networking, and flat-panel display technology -- within seven years.

IBM, meanwhile, stands to benefit from getting access to Dell's build-to-order manufacturing process, as well as its direct-distribution model. IBM, along with other vendors that sell PCs and servers through the reseller channel, plans to expand its ability to build systems based on customers' specifications, and ship them directly to customers. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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It is simple and cost-effective, and you will always have instant access to someone who is familiar with your business and can help you fulfill your system needs. At Dell, hands-on project management and tight quality control mean that your systems are built on time and delivered to you, ready to run right out of the box.

Taking the bite out of costs.DellPlus can provide your company with an efficient method of installing corporate hardware and software, customized services, lower total cost of ownership (TCO), and an accountable single-source vendor. DellPlus also reduces the compatibility problems typically associated with multiplatform environments. Our ability to produce high-volume jobs quickly and efficiently, while maintaining a high quality standard, results in a reliable, cost-effective solution for your company. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ibm.com)

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By June, IBM plans to deliver a Microsoft-certified extension to Microsoft Cluster Server that lets users cluster up to eight IBM Netfinity systems for load balancing, data sharing, and failover using a Fibre Channel interconnect, sources say. Compaq and Microsoft signed a clustering co-development agreement last fall; next month, they'll disclose a road map for delivering advanced clustering, company sources say. But that agreement focuses on standard technology to be made available to all server vendors.

Meanwhile, IBM is planning an eight-way Pentium Xeon system that corrects up to 8 bits of memory at a time, reducing the risk of crashes due to memory failures. Compaq is designing a rack-mounted eight-way server. Both vendors' units will support up to 16 Gbytes of memory. This week, IBM and Compaq will also unveil four-way servers using the 550-MHz Pentium III Xeon, which Intel is debuting along with a 500-MHz Xeon CPU. IBM's 5500M20 starts at about $8,500, and its high-end 7000M10 is priced at about $10,500. Compaq will offer the 550-MHz chip in up to four-way configurations in its ProLiant 6000, 6500, and 7000 models; starting prices range from $9,943 to $21,193. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Both products will give Siebel exposure in a market segment where it has virtually "zero" name recognition, says founder and CEO Tom Siebel. Although the company hopes that Sales.com will generate revenue from business sponsors paying to provide content and services such as travel reservations and mapping, Siebel Everywhere's focus is not to create immediate revenue in the low-end market. Instead, Siebel says, it will help seed the market with Siebel products. "We think that many of these individual Siebel users would cluster in workgroups and create demand for servers," Siebel says. "The payoff is in the midmarket."

Analysts are skeptical, however, of Siebel's ability to move individual users into higher-end workgroups and enterprises. "There's no pipeline," says Steve Bonadio, an analyst at the Hurwitz Group. "There has to be a channel to move those users upstream." He added that Siebel's services partners are not used to dealing with such small deals, either. Siebel says the company will address the move from individuals to workgroups with a yet-to-be announced deal with Compaq's services group.

Both products are available immediately, at no charge to users. They will have no pricing impact on Siebel's enterprise products. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Under the Oracle Upgrade2000 program, customers with Oracle 7.3.3 or earlier unsupported versions can upgrade to newer, year 2000-compliant versions at no cost. The program will run through April 30. The company will also offer its migration and support services to customers who upgrade, although Oracle will charge fees for those services.

The program could be a lifesaver for owners of obsolete versions of Oracle software. But it is also a savvy move by Oracle: Owners of old, unsupported software are generally the most likely to switch to products from other vendors. Offering free upgrades helps keep those customers in the Oracle fold. Most are small to midsize customers, Oracle says. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Surprisingly, Internet and networking jobs are among those with the fewest openings. Still, 41% of people surveyed in Internet jobs and 39% of those in networking positions say there are openings for jobs in those functions at their companies.

The survey indicates that the larger the company, the more IT job openings. Nearly 60% of all companies with annual revenue greater than $750 million say they have job openings for IT professionals, compared with less than 40% at smaller companies. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Directory systems provide a range of services: Within corporate environments, they store employee look-up data and human resource records, for example, while ISPs and telecom providers use them for storing subscriber information and listing Web site addresses. But when directories are poorly maintained and scattered throughout a corporation, they can become a security risk. Former employees may still have access to corporate information systems, for example.

Oracle Internet Directory can hold more than 500 million entries, according to Oracle, and support tens of thousands of simultaneous users. The system will comply with the LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) standard for directory interoperability. Both the Enterprise (corporate) and Hosting (ISP) editions of the directory are expected to ship on March 1, the same day Oracle is expected to ship Oracle8i. Although prices have not been set, the Enterprise Edition will likely be priced according to the number of users or attached devices, while the Hosting Edition will be priced according to the number of subscribers with access to the directory. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Lucent has added forms capability to CentreVu, which lets agents and customers simultaneously complete online forms, such as loan applications, in real time. Call centers also now can route Internet calls to the best available agent located at multiple sites. Lucent is providing application programming interfaces so that businesses can integrate the CentreVu system with their current desktop applications.

Lucent has improved the capability of the system to work with firewalls as well, letting agents securely communicate with customers coming in through the Internet. All features are available immediately, with pricing, including the enhancements, beginning at $1,500 per simultaneous agent session. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Your business needs may dictate a stand alone configuration or a comprehensive mix of Netfinity (NT) servers, RS/6000 (UNIX) servers, or S/390 (mainframes), all which are complemented by IBM's Storage Solutions. When you consider the wide selection of products, unmatched quality, and long-term investment protection built into every solution, it's not surprising that IBM technology can keep your fast-moving business functioning smoothly.

IBM Netfinity and PC Server systems help you confidently build a reliable foundation for your networked business systems, by delivering outstanding POWER, SCALABILITY, CONTROL and SERVICE. Our Netfinity Server products are reputed in the industry as highly reliable, with the advanced technology, function and unrivaled systems management you need to run your business. IBM's Netfinity Server line offers systems ranging from entry level departmental servers to enterprise-wide mission-critical servers, with more flexibility than any other vendor in the industry.

IBM is committed to lead the Intel-based Server industry by providing the highest quality implementation of open, industry standard technology through our Netfinity Server line. IBM will provide certified support for off-the-shelf hardware and Network Operating Systems , such as Windows NT, Novell Netware, SCO Unixware, Solaris and OS/2 Server offerings.

A key component of all business systems is the database, which maintains all the critical information, which fuels corporate activities. Today's companies rely on a combination of applications to run their businesses. The core applications have been grouped to form what is known as enterprise resource planning. Oracle Applications cover this key area and execute in conjunction with the Oracle database on the Netfinity Servers. They have been designed to scale from the smallest workstations to the very largest Netfinity Server available from IBM. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ibm.com)

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New VST FireWire Hard drives and MO drives bring blazing speed and choice of size for FireWire-enabled desktops and laptops, Apple or PC.

SAN FRANCISCO, January 4th, 1999: VST Technologies, Inc., long known for its expertise in mobile computing peripheral products, is now bringing its expertise to the desktop, unveiling its first new FireWire peripherals during MacWorld Expo, January 5-8 in San Francisco.

The new products include the VST FireWire Hard Drives and VST FireWire Magneto Optical (MO) Drives, combining a variety of storage sizes with hot-plug/unplug and blazing transfer speeds, up to 400 mB/sec. This unparalleled combination provides truly seamless storage performance for any FireWire-equipped desktop or laptop computer, including the Apple G3.

"FireWire technology is already proving its superiority in moving today's larger multimedia files and data between devices. We're certainly excited about what this technology means for the performance of peripheral storage devices and ultimately for the people who use them everyday," said Vince Fedele, chairman and founder of VST Technologies. Introduction of the VST FireWire drive, marks the company's first offering of desktop peripheral devices and one that is completely platform independent. "The desktop is a very natural expansion of VST's peripheral product offering," explained Fedele. "This is the first of many VST desktop peripherals that take advantage of today's superior technologies, allowing us to effectively transfer our expertise from the mobile environment and also help us to reach across platforms."

Product Specifics: VST is introducing two product lines: the VST FireWire Hard Drive and the VST FireWire Magneto Optical Drive. Both drives are lightweight, completely transportable and fully hot-pluggable. They feature auto-configuring with no device IDs or termination, dual six-pin ports and the Hard Drive series is FireWire bus powered, so no external power supply is required. The products will be offered in the following sizes:

VST FireWire Hard Drives:

• Drive size options from 4GB up to 14GB
• Availability: Late Q1 or Early Q2 '99
• Prices: TBD
• VST FireWire Magneto Optical Drive
• Drive size options will be 640MB and 1.3GB
• Availability: Late Q1 or Early Q2 '99
• Prices: TBD

The FireWire Advantage FireWire is a cross-platform implementation of the high-speed serial data bus -- defined by IEEE Standard 1394-1995 which can move large amounts of data between computers and peripheral devices. It features simplified cabling, hot swapping, and transfer speeds of up to 400 megabits per second.

The VST FireWire drives will be on display at MacWorld Expo, January 5-8, in the Mascone Center, booth # 3735.

About VST Technologies, Inc. VST Technologies, Inc. is a market leader in the design, engineering and marketing of peripheral products for the notebook and desktop computer industries. VST's peripheral products can be found as optional features or as after market add-ons from leading OEMs and from notebook manufacturers, including Apple Computer, Fujitsu, NEC and IBM. In addition to the FireWire Drives, VST Technologies, Inc. manufactures notebook Zip(r)100 Drives, SuperDisk(tm) Drives, Hard Drives, AC/DC Power Adapters, Battery Chargers and Auto Adapters.

VST's products can be viewed and purchased through their web site at http://www.vsttech.com and from major distributors, resellers and catalog mail houses.

Apple and iMac are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. SuperDisk is a trademark of Imation Corp.

IBM is a registered trademark of International Business Machines Corporation. Zip is a registered trademark of Iomega Corporation.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.vsttech.com )

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Paradigm Enterprise Edition 4.0 includes a new integrated change order-management tool that monitors all tasks connected to service requests such as new software, hardware, or phone services. The tool sends an alert to the help-desk operator automatically if an installation delay occurs. CA says this will not only make it easier for help-desk operators to communicate effectively with users, but it will also give them a way to find workarounds to potential bottlenecks caused by a delay. The new software includes revamped operational SLA management for tracking existing problems and service requests.

Paradigm Enterprise Edition 4.0 also shows asset data, which is cross-referenced to end users. Help-desk operators can use this information to quickly find out the state of both dedicated and shared assets. Operators can launch a remote-control tool to speed up support tasks associated with a specific asset. Pricing starts at $6,400. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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The Sabre BTS/Buying Chain application will integrate Sabre Business Travel Solutions' business travel purchasing system with Trilogy's Buying Chain software. The application will include reporting tools to track purchases, employee spending, and frequent-flier miles. It will be available sometime this summer for an undisclosed price. Trilogy's existing Buying Chain software starts at $995.

Internet procurement systems help businesses save money by reducing the cost of processing purchase orders and of goods companies are buying, says Erica Rugullies, an analyst at Giga Information Group. She predicts that the Internet procurement software market will soar to $375 million in the year 2000, from $25 million in the spring of 1998. About 20 companies offer systems for companies, but "Trilogy is the first with a low-end solution," she says. The only downside of Buying Chain is that businesses can't integrate it with existing workflow, order-management, or business systems. But while that's problematic for large or rapidly growing companies, she adds, few smaller companies have those systems in place. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.informationweek.com).

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Oracle and IBM Offer Integrated Enterprise Application Offerings for Mid-Sized Manufacturing Firms. Solutions Combine Oracle's Industry-Leading Manufacturing and Financial Applications with Rapid Implementation by IBM Global Services

REDWOOD SHORES, Calif., Jan. 19, 1999 - Oracle Corp. announced turnkey enterprise application solutions for mid-market process and discrete manufacturers with rapid deployment using IBM's SMOOTH Implementation Services for Oracle(R) Applications. These complete offerings, created specifically for manufacturers with annual U.S. revenue between $50 million and $500 million, feature Oracle's manufacturing and award-winning financial applications running on IBM Corp.'s Netfinity and RS/6000 servers to help streamline business processes and improve customer service.

Mid-sized manufacturers, both process and discrete, are faced with enormous competitive pressures, including the need to decrease inventory and supplier costs, make faster decisions and better integrate business operations. These new offerings can help manufacturers quickly implement Oracle Applications, which in turn can help them reduce cycle time and inventory investment while improving their responsiveness to customers and managing Year 2000 issues.

Process manufacturers, who have to contend with variability in raw material quality attributes as well as manufacturing processes that often involve chemical reactions with multiple outputs, require a formula-based solution dedicated to their unique needs. Oracle Process Manufacturing, helps tame variability by tightly integrating all departments-from manufacturing to financial accounting-so process manufacturers can better track inventory and available resources. Process manufacturers, which represent about 40 percent of all manufacturing worldwide, use Oracle Applications to help achieve significant value, including more consistent product quality, lower manufacturing and supply-chain costs and superior customer service.

IBM Global Services will deliver rapid implementation services to help companies rapidly and cost-effectively take advantage of Oracle Applications. As part of IBM's ERP Solution Series, IBM intends to provide performance protection for Oracle

Applications to ensure their customers' return on investment. "Mid-sized manufacturing firms are increasingly faced with growing competition and shrinking margins," said Laurent Pacalin, vice president of Oracle's Mid-Market Business Solutions. "Together, Oracle and IBM are producing turnkey solutions to offer discrete and process manufacturers the ability to leapfrog the competition while lowering their total cost of ownership."

"Our mid-sized customers have requested integrated packages for their manufacturing applications," said Ronald Hitter IBM's Industrial Sector Small and Medium Business segment executive for the Americas. "The combined Oracle/IBM integrated solution with its rapid implementation approach will help them quickly and cost-effectively get up and running. In addition, to protect our customers' investments, IBM intends to provide performance protection for Oracle Financials(R) and other modules in the future at no extra charge."

Configured for 50-, 75-, and 100-users, both offerings include Oracle Financials, consisting of Oracle General Ledger, Oracle Payables, Oracle Assets, Oracle Purchasing and Oracle Receivables.

Each solution also has the Oracle Applications modules for: Discrete Manufacturing: Oracle Bill of Material, Oracle Capacity, Oracle Cost Management, Oracle Engineering, Oracle Inventory, Oracle Master Scheduling/MRP, Oracle Work In Process and Oracle Order Entry; and, Process Manufacturing: Systems, Formula Management, Inventory Management, Purchasing Management, Sales Management, Quality Management, Material Requirements Planning (MRP), Master Production Scheduling (MPS), Cost Management, Production Management and Manufacturing Accounting Controller.

Customers may choose IBM's Netfinity servers for cost-effective Intel-based servers or IBM's high-end, UNIX-based RS/6000 servers for these offerings. IBM's platforms ship complete with Lotus Domino and Lotus Domino Connector for Oracle (initially available for discrete manufacturers). Financing is also available from IBM Global Finance.

Availability. The Oracle/IBM offerings for process and discrete manufacturers are scheduled to be generally available in Q1 1999. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.ibm.com)

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Under the terms of the agreement, RPT will be FANUC Robotics' exclusive supplier of all non-metallic routering robot systems to the North American market, and RPT will use FANUC Robotics products exclusively within the routering market. In addition, tools developed by the two companies will be available exclusively through RPT for non-metallic routering applications, and through FANUC Robotics for other process applications.

This is the second operating agreement between FANUC Robotics and RPT, which currently have a similar agreement for the supply of waterjet cutting systems. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.fanucrobotics.com)

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The PalletCell 100/200 Series includes:

• A FANUC Robotics M-410i HS high-speed palletizing robot
• Multiple-case vacuum end-of-arm tooling with pallet grip fingers, which adjusts to various case sizes
• Two 15-ft. infeed conveyors (PalletCell 100 includes one conveyor) with case-presence sensors, controlled via PLC
• Two 15-ft. pallet conveyors (PalletCell 100 includes one conveyor) with pallet-presence sensors, controlled via PLC
• A pallet magazine that holds pallet stacks of up to 75 inches high and includes an integrated empty magazine sensor to minimize downtime
• Integrated R-J3 controller (the industry's most technologically advanced robot controller) with PalletTool software designed for plant-level operator programming
• PalletTool PC software, which allows users to set up palletizing applications on a PC by entering data graphically
• Collision Guard software, which detects even the slightest collision before damage occurs and eliminates the need for a collision sensor clutch.

The systems can be expanded to include four infeed and four pallet conveyors per cell. Other options include an increased payload M-410i HW robot, which can lift up to 550 lbs.; row and layer end-of-arm tooling for higher throughput applications; fork grippers for handling bags, trays, pails or open-end cases; a magazine designed for slip-sheets; cell guarding; and a robot riser for taller unit loads.

The PalletCell 100/200 Series can also be used in freezer/cold room applications of as low as -20 degrees F.

FANUC Robotics North America, Inc., headquartered in Rochester Hills, Mich., is the North American robotics industry leader, with 1997 sales of approximately $370 million. A subsidiary of FANUC LTD in Japan, the company has facilities in Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati and Toledo, Ohio; Toronto, Ontario; Montreal, Quebec; Mexico City and Aguascalientes, Mexico; and Sao Paulo, Brazil. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.fanucrobotics.com)

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The M-410i HS high-speed robot has the fastest motion speed in its class, which results in reduced cycle time and improved productivity. With a maximum payload of 220 lbs., this robot can reach speeds significantly faster than previous-generation palletizing robots. Its 123-inch horizontal reach, 115-inch vertical reach and 360-degree waist rotation create a large work envelope for increased versatility in manufacturing.

A heavy-weight version - the M-410i HW - is also available, which can lift up to 550 lbs.

The M-410i HS/HW is a four-axis, modular construction, electric servo-driven robot with an integrated mechanical and control unit designed for a variety of high-speed manufacturing applications, including palletizing, material handling, machine load/unload, parts transfer and glass handling. The robot's integral controller and compact design make it ideal for limited floor space applications.

The robot comes equipped with FANUC Robotics' new R-J3 controller, the industry's most technologically advanced robot controller, which is ideal for applications that require complex process control. The R-J3 is faster and easier to maintain than previous-generation controllers, yet compatible with existing FANUC Robotics standard robot software such as PalletTool™ for palletizing applications and HandlingTool™ for material handling applications.

The sealed bearings and drives of the M-410i HS/HW allow it to operate in harsh factory environments. The M-410i HS/HW can also be used in freezer/cold room applications of as low as -20 degrees F. Available options include row and layer end-of-arm tooling for higher throughput applications, and fork grippers for handling bags, trays, pails or open-end cases.

FANUC Robotics North America, Inc., headquartered in Rochester Hills, Mich., is the North American robotics industry leader, with 1997 sales of approximately $370 million. A subsidiary of FANUC LTD in Japan, the company has facilities in Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati and Toledo, Ohio; Toronto, Ontario; Montreal, Quebec; Mexico City and Aguascalientes, Mexico; and Sao Paulo, Brazil. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.fanucrobotics.com)

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The LR Mate 100i HS is a five-axis, modular construction, electric servo-driven robot designed for a variety of manufacturing applications, including machine load/unload, material handling, welding, parts cleaning, dispensing, assembly, and material removal. The robot's multiple mounting positions and tabletop size increase installation flexibility. The robot can be mounted in either upright or inverted positions with no modifications.

The sealed bearings and drives of the LR Mate 100i HS allow it to operate in harsh factory environments. In addition, the robot is equipped with drip-proof and waterproof protection. FANUC Robotics' IP65 dust and liquid intrusion protection package is standard on the LR Mate 100i HS, making it suitable for severe splash or dust manufacturing environments.

"The most significant benefit of the LR Mate 100i HS is its speed," said Mark Handelsman, director of product and applications engineering, FANUC Robotics. "Speed represents increased productivity &endash; more product out the door in less time &endash; which is what our customers want. And giving our customer what they want is what FANUC Robotics is all about. It's innovations like this that have made us North America's leading supplier of robots since 1984."

FANUC Robotics North America, Inc., headquartered in Rochester Hills, Mich., is the North American robotics industry leader, with 1997 sales of approximately $370 million. A subsidiary of FANUC LTD in Japan, the company has facilities in Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati and Toledo, Ohio; Toronto, Ontario; Montreal, Quebec; Mexico City and Aguascalientes, Mexico; and Sao Paulo, Brazil. (This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.fanucrobotics.com)

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Available in three models (M-6iT, M-16iT, and M-16iLT) that offer a variety of reach and payload capabilities, these overhead robots are designed for load/unload applications in the machine tool and plastics industries. These modular construction, electric servo-driven robots are engineered for precision, high-speed operation and user-friendly installation.

The robots' six axes of motion (one linear and five rotary) result in a "mobile" robot capable of servicing multiple machines, stations or operations. In addition, this six-axis dexterity provides the ability to re-orient parts between operations and/or service both vertical and horizontal machines.

The rail mount allows top, front or side entry into the machine tool, and allows the robot to reach back behind itself to provide a three-dimensional work envelope, as opposed to the two-dimensional work envelope offered by a traditional linear gantry. The overhead mount allows a full range of motion for secondary operations such as trimming, washing, deburring, palletizing, labeling or packing. It also reduces floor space and ceiling height requirements (compared to gantry robots) and keeps the front of the machine tool clear for tool change and maintenance.

A severe dust and liquid protection package for die cast spray and other harsh environments is an available option. "These new overhead rail-mounted robots provide all-in-one support for our customers," said Mark Handelsman, director of product and applications engineering, FANUC Robotics. "They are fast, flexible and accurate, capable of performing a variety of intricate tasks in a single cycle. This is the latest example of how FANUC Robotics is continually working to improve our customers' productivity through advances in flexible automation."

FANUC Robotics North America, Inc., headquartered in Rochester Hills, Mich., is the North American robotics industry leader, with 1997 sales of approximately $370 million. A subsidiary of FANUC LTD in Japan, the company has facilities in Chicago, Illinois; Los Angeles, California; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati and Toledo, Ohio; Toronto, Ontario; Montreal, Quebec; Mexico City and Aguascalientes, Mexico; and Sao Paulo, Brazil.

(This is a carefully selected hot news item based on http://www.fanucrobotics.com)

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