ST Report: 18-Sep-98 #1430

From: Bruce D. Nelson (aa789@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Date: 10/11/98-08:42:45 AM Z


From: aa789@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bruce D. Nelson)
Subject: ST Report: 18-Sep-98 #1430
Date: Sun Oct 11 08:42:45 1998



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 September 18, 1998                                                No.1430


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- Seagate Launches NEW B/U - Learning Co. Sales   - MindSpring Buys
Exec                       Offers                 DirectNet Subs
- Print House Magic Deluxe - MediaVision Execs    - Florida Fishing & Tide
Review                     Nailed                 Guide
- FCC OKs WorldCom/MCI     - Doubts About DIVX    - Kaplan Plans Online Law
Merger                                            School
- Psygnosis Denies T/O     - Mimic For The iMAC   - EA Ships Jane's Israeli
Rumors                                            Air Force



             ORACLE CHIEF CALLS GATES "THE POPE OF PC INDUSTRY"
                JUDGE REJECTS MS REQUEST TO DISMISS DOJ SUIT
               PENTAGON CONCERNED ABOUT INFO ON ITS WEB SITES





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                              Featured Weekly
         "Accurate UP-TO-THE-MINUTE News, Reviews and Information"
  Current Events, Original Articles, Tips, Rumors, Gossip and Information
             Hardware - Software - Corporate - R & D - Imports



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  From the Editor's Desk...

  My, my, did I raise a few hackles with last week's editorial?? You bet
  I did.. I selected the two most emotional responses to last week's
  editorial and we have the end result in this week's "MailCall." It
  never ceases to amaze me as to how much people will say or do in the
  face of facts to avoid admitting that the facts are there and are real.
  The Republican Party, henceforth called the "GOP" (good acronym for
  them) is in fact behind the "Get Clinton JIHAD." This time though, with
  the tapes, they've really blown it. To begin, the GOP has indeed "swung
  the vote" to release the video tapes of the "secret" Grand Jury
  Testimony of Bill Clinton. To echo a very profound if not telling
  remark the goofs on The Hill who have voted and released the tape are
  now responsible for bringing forth the most serious blow to Law
  Enforcement Investigative and Prosecutorial Procedures the country has
  yet to endure. Even more detrimental than the "infamous" Miranda
  Decision. I can see and hear it now US Attorney to citizen "You can
  testify against that Mafia Don, your testimony before the investigating
  Grand Jury will be kept secret" the Citizen's reply "Yeah Sure!! Just
  like it was for Clinton, take a hike!"

  And so, the GOP has shown their true colors once again. Yes sir,
  they've proven all over again that there is no such thing as "FAIR &
  EQUAL" treatment under the law Gotti, Noriega, Nixon and countless
  other BAD guys have had all the Grand Jury Investigative testimony KEPT
  SECRET. But not Bill Clinton.

  Further have you listened to all the lamenting and rhetorical threats
  by the members of the GOP about the anticipated revelations of the
  secret sides of their private lives?? Especially after Rep. Henry Hyde
  R. IL , had his youthful extramarital tryst exposed?? Hah! talk about
  running for cover!! So they now threaten Clinton and The White House...
  because of the Hyde disclosure, it almost guarantees impeachment
  proceedings. Honorable people eh? Not!! To use the Constitution as a
  cudgel is a corruption of Elected Responsibility and Public
  Officialdom. The GOP of today is truly made up of a bunch of
  screwballs. The real shame of it all is they are but a reflection of us
  because they are us. I am profoundly ashamed of their collective anal
  retentiveness and selfishness. The Democrats are not far behind. They
  are acting like a bag of jelly-backed wimps instead of defending the
  "right to privacy" (complete) for all duly elected officials. It is a
  sad time in our country's history when we see these slimeball
  politicians, special prosecutors and THE PRESS CORP. so deeply
  wallowing in each other's sex lives to make the natural human libido
  become a total liability. Next, we will be reading about the "kinky
  sex" between legitimately married politicians.

  It is truly time the politicians of this great nation got back on
  track. Running the government, doing the citizen's and taxpayer's
  bidding instead of running each other into the ground. Can you imagine
  how much good the Oh, so self-righteous Biden's, Hyde's, Hatch's,
  Amato's and all the other "self serving loudmouths" on the Hill could
  have done had they directed all this energy and taxpayer dollars toward
  doing good for the citizen's of this country?? Especially the elderly,
  homeless and youngsters.

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            Judge Rejects Microsoft Request To Throw Out Charges

 WASHINGTON - Federal District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson has
 turned down Microsoft Corp.'s attempt to get Justice Department
 allegations against it thrown out, setting the tage for a major antitrust
 trial. Jackson did dismiss one claim by 20 states, which had made some of
 their own allegations. The judge also approved an agreement by Microsoft
 and the government to move the trial's starting date from this month to
 Oct. 15.

 Another hearing will be held Thursday. Jackson ruled that Microsoft must
 stand trial on Justice Department and state allegations that it illegally
 maintained a monopoly in its operating system software and illegally
 tried to extend that monopoly to Internet Web browsers. The judge said in
 his 26-page opinion that there are enough facts in dispute that a trial
 must be held. But the judge ruled that a related claim by the states that
 Microsoft leveraged its monopoly for competitive advantage is not covered
 by antitrust law.

                     Microsoft Not Surprised by Ruling

 Microsoft Corp. chief operating officer Bob Herbold said Tuesday the
 company was not surprised by a judge's ruling that an antitrust case
 against the software giant must go to trial. "Judge Jackson had given us
 the impression he wanted a trial," Herbold said. Herbold said the company
 runs an "ethical business" and would be ready for a trial slated to begin
 Oct. 15. He also said sales of the company's Windows 98 operating system
 upgrade remain "slightly ahead" of the unit pace set by Windows 95, which
 was launched into a far smaller installed base. Without providing further
 specifics, he said the company had shipped more than 1.5 million copies
 of the upgrade since its launch on June 25.

             Digital Officials Say Microsoft Pressured Company

 Five current and former executives of Digital Equipment Corp. said their
 company was forced to drop a planned Internet product last year under
 threats from Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates, The New York Times
 reported. This offers new evidence supporting the government's
 allegations that Microsoft routinely suppresses competition in any new
 market that might threaten ts monopoly in personal computer operating
 systems, the report said.

 The Digital executives said their company disbanded a product development
 group after Gates told then Digital CEO Robert Palmer that a product the
 group was developing with Oracle Corp. would threaten an earlier deal for
 Microsoft to develop a version of its Windows NT operating system for
 Digital's new processor. A Microsoft spokesman Wednesday said his company
 placed no improper pressure on Digital.

                Quark Drops Efforts To Take Over Rival Adobe

 Quark Inc., a privately held publishing and graphic software company, on
 Monday dropped its efforts to take over its chief rival, Adobe Systems
 Inc., saying it did not believe a hostile deal would be beneficial for
 either company. Quark said in August it was interested in pursuing
 discussions with Adobe to buy all or a part of its rival, but Adobe
 quickly said that it was not for sale. Adobe, based in San Jose, Calif.,
 and Denver-based Quark together dominate the market for publishing and
 graphics software used to print newspapers, magazines and brochures with
 products such as QuarkXPress and Adobe's PageMaker.

 "Since last week, we have again tried to open a dialogue with Adobe, but
 to no avail -- they have not returned our phone calls. We wanted to
 engage in friendly discussions regarding the specifics of our
 proposal,but Adobe is not even willing to do that," Quark President Fred
 Ebrahimi said in a statement. Quark said it would pursue other
 acquisitions that would help it provide new products and services. "Adobe
 has made it clear that it is not interested in pursuing any type of
 friendly transaction, even if it would benefit the Adobe stockholders,"
 Ebrahimi said.

 Quark founder and Chairman Tim Gill said the company had sought a
 friendly deal with Adobe and did not think that a hostile deal would be
 "beneficial to Quark, Adobe, the Adobe stockholders or our respective
 customers." "Not only would this involve a protracted and expensive legal
 battle in light of Adobe's poison pill and other defenses, but we are
 also concerned that it could significantly detract from our day-to-day
 business operations," Gill said.

 In recent months, Adobe has been hurt by slowing sales of its software to
 Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL - news) Macintosh computer users and plunging
 sales in Japan. It also has been criticized for a lack of new products.
 Adobe stock is now at $28.50, up 50 cents from Friday, but down sharply
 from its 52-week high of $53.125 on Nasdaq. Industry analysts had said,
 however, that they doubted the 17-year-old Quark could raise the money to
 buy Adobe, whose 1997 revenue of $919 million dwarfs Quark's, and that
 any deal would have faced high antitrust hurdles. "The whole thing was
 preposterous anyway," said Peter Rogers, an analyst at Volpe Brown.

                   MindSpring Buys DirectNet Subscribers

 ATLANTA - MindSpring Enterprises Inc. said it has bought the consumer
 dial-up Internet subscribers of DirectNet of Southern California LLC of
 Los Angeles for undisclosed terms. Each DirectNet subscriber will receive
 the MindSpring Starter Kit, which includes MindSpring's user access
 interface and a complete suite of Internet software for Windows 95,
 Windows 3.x, or Macintosh. Transition of the DirectNet subscribers should
 be complete within 30 days, the national Internet service provider said
 in a statement. DirectNet currently serves about 1,200 subscribers in
 metropolitan Los Angeles. As of June 30, MindSpring reported 393,000
 customers.

                 Seagate Launches Backup Software Products

 Seagate Technology Inc.'s majority-owned Seagate Software Inc on Monday
 announced the launch of a series of backup software products. The
 software products include Seagate Backup Exec for Windows NT, Seagate
 Backup Exec Agent for SQL Server, Seagate Backup Exec Agent for Exchange
 Server, Seagate Replication Exec, and Seagate RAIDirector, it said. The
 software, which has multi-language support in English, French, German,
 Spanish and Japanese, will expand language support to include Italian,
 Portuguese and Chinese planned by the end of the year, the company said.

 Director Kevin Bush said the products have great potential in the region
 as data base protection is fast becoming one of the most significant
 elements for today's enterprises. Seagate Software opened a Hong Kong
 office three months ago, will set up an office in Beijing shortly and in
 other areas in the Asia Pacific region. "We are very bullish on the Asia
 Pacific market," Bush said. Seagate Software's annual revenue grew 35.2
 percent to $293. 23 million for the fiscal year ended in June 1998.

          Online Reference Librarians Take Bite Out of Info Quest

 In the days before the Internet, if you wanted to learn more about a
 subject a good place to start was the reference section of your school
 library or local public library. If the librarians at the desk did not
 know the answer, they always knew where to look. Now, with the Web
 evolving into the world's largest repository of information, companies
 such as Ask Jeeves http://www.askjeeves.com , InfoPlease
 http://www.infoplease.com , Answers.com http://www.answers.com , and
 Electric Library http://elibrary.com  are attempting to duplicate the
 services of flesh-and-blood reference librarians. Expect to see more of
 these reference services soon. Officials at Ask Jeeves and Information
 Please are negotiating partnerships pairing them with major portal sites
 - such as Yahoo! http://www.yahoo.com  - that are popular gateways for
 users seeking information on the Web.

              U S West Also Wants to Charge for Internet Calls

 U S West is the second local phone company with plans to charge companies
 that carry long-distance phone calls over the Internet the same fees
 traditional long-distance companies must pay. The move could narrow the
 cost savings enjoyed by people making Internet calls. BellSouth several
 weeks ago announced plans to do the same thing, prompting analysts to say
 it will be a test case for federal regulators. Less than 10 companies
 would be affected by U S West's decision, said spokeswoman Emily
 Harrison. The companies have been notified that they will begin getting
 charged for the fees in November, she said. U S West declined to identify
 the companies.

          I'm OK. You're OK. We're all OK -- Because We're Online

 If you spent more than a few hours surfing the World Wide Web over the
 past week, then repeat after me: I am not depressed. I am not depressed.
 I am not depressed. OK, now that you have convinced yourself, it's time
 to convince the folks over at Carnegie Mellon University. That's because
 a recent study by CMU's HomeNet research project found that heavy Web use
 makes people feel lonely and depressed. According to HomeNet, the
 "Internet paradox" is that a social technology actually can foster
 antisocial behavior. Translation: People who network online don't network
 offline.

 If the study is right, then we may be in for some serious trouble. As The
 Net Set reported a few weeks back, Nielsen Media Research says that 70.5
 million adults in the U.S. are logging onto the Internet. Now, imagine
 what would transpire if all of those people logged off in a severe state
 of depression. Talk about "no joy in Muddville." But that's assuming that
 the HomeNet findings are correct. And in The Net Set's opinion, they're
 not. Cyberdepression, you say? Ha! Don't take our word for it. Here's a
 cyberdepression screening test that compares typical symptoms of
 depression with The Net Set's own online impressions.

    * Question 1: While using the Internet, have you ever felt sad or
      "empty"?

      Well, The Net Set has never come away from a surfing experience
      feeling either. Except, of course, after encountering disappointing
      Web sites that fail to live up to expectations. And any Netizen can
      tell you that there are plenty of those. But that's just an
      occasional blue mood, wouldn't you say?
    * Question 2: Has surfing ever brought on insomnia or oversleeping?

      Sure, what Net devotee hasn't burned the midnight oil and had a
      tough time getting up the morning after? That doesn't make us
      depressed, does it?
    * Question 3: Have you noticed any restlessness or irritability since
      getting online regularly?

      It's true that slow home pages can make The Net Set pretty restless.
      And how can you avoid getting irritable when dead links keep turning
      up "Not Found" messages. But those are normal reactions, don't you
      think?
    * Question 4: While online, have you observed any physical symptoms
      such as headaches or chronic pain?

      Sure, everyone's heard of carpal tunnel syndrome. And staring at a
      computer screen for hours isn't exactly what the optometrist
      ordered. But those aren't depressive disorders. Right?

 Actually, maybe the folks at Carnegie Mellon have a point after all.









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                                  [Image]

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        A T T E N T I O N ** A T T E N T I O N ** A T T E N T I O N







 [Image83.gif (18866 bytes)]

                           KID'S COMPUTING CORNER

 By Frank Sereno
 fsereno@streport.com

                            The Learning Company
                            Special Promotions!

 There has never been a better time to buy software from The Learning
 Company!

 Now available at your local software retailer are a variety of special
 offers on many of our best-selling titles! So whether you're shopping for
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 out these great offers specials! But hurry, they won't last!

 Look for these fantastic rebates and offers happening now (details are
 below):

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 Hurry to your local software retailer, as the above offers are available
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 [corel1.gif (21026 bytes)]

                       Corel Print House Magic Deluxe

                        [corel pi.GIF (16166 bytes)]

                             Corel Corporation
                     for Windows 95 and Windows NT 4.0
                        Suggested Retail Price - $69
                        Estimated Retail Price - $45

                            http://www.corel.com



 by Donna Lines (dlines@streport.com)

 Print House Magic Deluxe, Version 3 gives you the same great features as
 Print House Magic, but adds thousands of new graphics and photographs.
 Included in the package are 3 separate, but well-integrated programs:
 Corel Print House 3, Corel Photo House 2, and Corel Family & Friends. It
 also includes Paper Direct paper samples and valuable coupons for Kodak
 products and digital imaging services.

 Corel Print House Magic Deluxe is a fun and user-friendly program that
 the whole family will enjoy. You can create banners, signs, cards,
 certificates, envelopes, labels, business forms and more. Customize the
 samples or create your own designs. Corel has included 40,500
 high-quality clipart images in over 80 categories (thats 15,500 more
 imges than in the Standard edition); 55,000 royalty-free professional
 photos (up from 5,500); dozens of true 3D objects; over 2500 sample
 projects; 150 borders; 200 backdrops and 300 fonts. If you need help
 finding just the right words for that special greeting card, Corel
 includes 1,000 phrases to choose from. Corel includes a full color users
 manual that includes thumbnails of the clipart, 3D objects, and
 photographs.

 I found the programs interface easy to understand and use. The menus are
 straight forward and you will have little trouble using the program right
 out of the box. The property bar is context sensitive, automatically
 displaying the available commands for the object that you are editing.
 Although there are several menus to work through, depending on how much
 you are going to add to your project or customize a sample project, the
 program is very easy to navigate. The users manual provides a short
 tutorial for Corel Print House 3 and Photo House 2 to get you started.

 There are lots of options to customize your project. I found the text
 presets fun to use. Just highlight the text you would like to apply the
 preset to and double click on the text preset. You can even create your
 own text presets by dragging your customized text into the text preset
 dialog box. I liked the ability to fade an object. Fading a background
 allows you to add some color and graphics in the background, without
 overwhelming the main subject. You can add a shape to your object, skew,
 rotate, flip, just to name a few. There are many other features included,
 many from Corels high end graphics program, CorelDRAW.

 Photo House 2 is an intuitive photo-editing program. It has many of the
 same features found in its "big brother," Corel Photo-Paint . You can
 easily repair or retouch your photos with the red eye remover, or even
 remove dust and scratches with just a couple of clicks of the mouse. Add
 amazing effects to your photo such as page curl, change colors, add a
 lens refraction, emboss, add texture, or make your photo look like a
 drawing. You can even use the included Auto F/X program to create a
 unique frame for your photo. The possibilities are endless.

 Family & Friends helps you organize your busy life with the Calendar,
 Address Book, List Book, and reminders. You can populate the Calendar
 with special events such as birthdays and anniversaries, then set up the
 program to remind you up to 365 days in advance of the special event. The
 Address Book is a handy reference for all your contacts. You can list
 each persons name, address, home, work, fax, and mobile phone number,
 and even their e-mail address. You can also list special events for that
 person  birthday, anniversary, special notes, and tie the address record
 to a list created in the List Book. The List Book allows you to create
 lists of people or items. I created a list of all of my collectibles. The
 program has some limitations (e.g., you cannot sort the data once
 entered). I found the List Book a little difficult to use and the users
 manual contains very little instruction on this feature. Family & Friends
 is a nice bonus program that complements the other two programs well.

 One of the advertised bonuses for Print House Magic Deluxe owners is
 access to dozens of free animated electronic greeting cards through the
 software on a special web page (in addition to those at Corel Greetings
 Online). I was unable to access the special web page during the review
 period. Corel is addressing the problem and should have it corrected
 within a few days.

 Corel Print House Magic Deluxe is a value-packed program that you will
 enjoy using again and again. The options are absolutely endless for
 customization of projects. You can even import clipart and photos from
 other programs. You may never purchase a greeting card or stationary
 off-the-shelf again!

 System Requirements:

 486 DX or better processor, Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0, 8 MB System RAM
 (16 MB RAM for Windows NT), SGVA Card and Monitor, mouse or tablet, and
 CD ROM drive.









 EDUPAGE STR Focus Keeping the users informed



  [Image]  Edupage







 Contents

  Winners Of Student Essay Contest       White House Mulls New Internet
                                         Tax Proposal

  Media Vision Execs Indicted In Fraud   Judge's Ruling Frees $60-Million
  Case                                   For NSF Grants

  Microsoft-Compaq Team Up In Corporate
  Marketing Plan                         Researchers Target E-Commerce

  Microsoft Teams Up On Remote Control   IDC Sees Online Software Sales
  Device                                 Boom

  FCC Approves WorldCom-MCI Merger       VLSI Technology Can Cut Chip
                                         Design Time In Half

  Intel: Let Us Entertain You (With A    Attack On The New York Times Web
  Billion Connected PCs)                 Site

  Internet Proves Itself With Starr      Oracle Chief Calls Gates "The
  Report Distribution                    Pope Of PC Industry"

  Honorary Subscriber: Hannibal Barca    Pentagon Concerned About Info On
                                         Its Web Sites

  U.S. Plans To Relax Limits On
  Encryption Exports                     Kaplan Plans Online Law School

  Choke Points For E-Commerce            Intel Licenses Software To
                                         RealNetworks

  Mimic For The iMac                     Doubts About Divx

  Hacker Diverts U S West Computers In
  Search Of Prime                        Toys R The Internet

  Banned From Doing Business On The Net

                      WINNERS OF STUDENT ESSAY CONTEST

 There were more than 300 entries to the student essay contest sponsored
 by Edupage and Educom Review. We want the entrants to know that we
 enjoyed reading their submissions and that selecting the winners was an
 impossibly difficult task. We offer our congratulations to the following
 winners and the institutions with which they are affiliated:

 First Prize Winner ($1,000):

    * Christian Crews, University of Houston-Clear Lake (M.S. Program in
      Studies of the Future). His essay will be published in the Jan/Feb
      1999 issue of Educom Review.

 Second Prize Winners ($100 each):

    * Abbie Brown, Indiana University - Bloomington (Instructional Systems
      Technology)
    * Julie Chen, University of Texas at Austin (Journalism & Pre-Med)
    * Jennifer.L.Dziura, Dartmouth College (Philosophy & Women's Studies)
    * Anil Kumar, Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, India
    * Joyce Kyeyune, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda (Mass
      Communication)
    * B. Babur Turna, Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey (Department of
      History)

 Third Prize Winners ($50 each):

    * Terry Baggett, Illinois State University (Grad. Program in Computers
      & Telecommunications)
    * Genelle Belmas, University of Minnesota (Journalism & Mass
      Communication)
    * Anne Marie Dinardo, Georgetown University (Grad. Program in
      Communications, Culture and Technology)
    * Kalpana Shankar, University of California - Los Angeles
    * Kaushal Sharma, Indian Institute of Management, Calcultta, India

                WHITE HOUSE MULLS NEW INTERNET TAX PROPOSAL

 Ira Magaziner, President Clinton's senior Internet advisor, has proposed
 a new plan for tracking and taxing goods sold over the Internet that
 would use electronic "resident cards" and private-sector escrow agents
 around the world. Consumers would obtain digital cash at banks that would
 allow merchants to identify which country the buyer is in, but would
 reveal no other personal information. Consumption taxes would then be
 calculated, collected, and placed with an escrow agent who would then
 funnel the money to the appropriate government. "Governments would get
 their money more quickly... they would get a higher compliance rate...
 and the system would be easier to police," says Mr. Magaziner. (Wall
 Street Journal 11 Sep 98)

                 MEDIA VISION EXECS INDICTED IN FRAUD CASE

 Paul Jain, former CEO of Media Vision Technology of Fremont, Calif., and
 Steven Allan, former chief financial officer, were indicted in what has
 been described as the largest financial fraud case ever seen in Silicon
 Valley. Following a four-year investigation by the FBI and the Justice
 Department, Jain and Allan were charged with mail, wire and bank fraud,
 insider trading, money laundering and making false statements to the
 Securities and Exchange Commission and to Media Vision accountants. The
 indictment says the two former executives allegedly created false sales
 and inventory, hid millions of dollars in returned product, recorded
 shipments as sales before the products were shipped, and misrepresented
 Media Vision's expenses. Jain and Allan could face up to 10 years in
 prison and fines of up to $1 million if convicted. (Reuters 11 Sep 98)

            JUDGE'S RULING FREES $60-MILLION FOR NSF GRANTS U.S.

 District Court Judge Thomas F. Hogan has rejected arguments from
 plaintiffs who have been fighting to prevent money in the "Intellectual
 Infrastructure Fund" from being spent on the Next Generation Internet
 project. The plaintiffs -- four companies and nine individuals -- had
 sued Network Solutions and the National Science Foundation last November,
 charging that the $15 portion of the Internet domain name registration
 fee collected by Network Solutions was actually a tax in disguise, and
 that it was illegal, because it had been levied, in effect, by NSF rather
 than Congress. The assets in the fund were then frozen, pending
 settlement of the case. Congress retroactively authorized the fund's
 collection in April, and authorized NSF to spend all $60-million in the
 fund "in support of networking activities." The plaintiffs then
 challenged that action, charging that Congress had acted deceptively, not
 actually calling the fee a "tax," and had violated its own rules by
 "sneaking" the provision into the FY 1998 Supplemental Appropriations and
 Rescissions Act. In his most recent decision, Judge Hogan held that
 Congress did not have to call the fee a tax in order to ratify it, and
 that the court was precluded "from interfering with the internal
 procedures of another branch of government." (Chronicle of Higher
 Education 11 Sep 98)

           MICROSOFT, COMPAQ TEAM UP IN CORPORATE MARKETING PLAN

 Microsoft has agreed to license technology for operating large data
 centers from Compaq Computer, in an effort to boost the performance and
 reliability of Microsoft's Windows NT operating system. The features
 include methods for handling large volumes of transactions and for
 recovering data after disasters. The two companies have also agreed to
 make Compaq's Digital Unix system more compatible with Windows NT. (Wall
 Street Journal 11 Sep 98)

                       RESEARCHERS TARGET E-COMMERCE

 A group of scientists meeting at the University of Texas this past
 weekend says that more funding for research into Internet-related issues
 such as security, trust and networking could result in a major boost for
 electronic commerce. The meeting, sponsored by the National Science
 Foundation, addressed those areas of R&D that are not likely to be
 pursued by the private sector: "There is a whole segment of society whose
 job it is to bridge the consumer and the supplier that will be affected
 by e-commerce," says a Lucent Technologies researcher. "Who is going to
 investigate what happens to this segment and the bigger picture of how it
 affects society?" One fear expressed by the researchers is that the
 proliferation of proprietary technology that results from private,
 patented research will have an inhibiting effect on e-commerce. The hope
 is that more publicly funded research would result in equal access to
 advanced technologies. (TechWeb 15 Sep 98)

                MICROSOFT TEAMS UP ON REMOTE CONTROL DEVICE

 Microsoft has been working with Harman International Industries to
 produce a remote control, complete with tiny screen and internal
 computer, that can be set to perform up to 32 activities on any of 15
 separate devices. The product, dubbed Take Control, is the first
 Microsoft device to emerge with an operating system that isn't based on
 MS-DOS and Windows. It will be marketed by Harman Kardon for $350, and
 Madrigal Audio Labs will offer a $400 version. (Wall Street Journal 14
 Sep 98)

                    IDC SEES ONLINE SOFTWARE SALES BOOM

 International Data Corp. has released a report predicting that online
 sales of packaged software will soar to $5.9 billion by 2001. And one
 area of software sales -- site licenses for businesses -- will be
 conducted 100% over the Net by 2008. Purchasing the licenses requires a
 lot of paperwork, says an IDC research director, which is why doing it
 electronically is so attractive. Electronic purchasing can also make it
 easier to keep track of who's got what in the organization: "Applied
 correctly and wrapped with value-added services, it can help them get a
 view of their software assets." (TechWeb 15 Sep 98)

                      FCC APPROVES WORLDCOM-MCI MERGER

 The Federal Communications Commission has given its approval to
 WorldCom's takeover of MCI Communications. The new company, called MCI
 WorldCom, will offer a full range of communications services -- from
 local and long-distance phone service to Internet connections to 22
 million customers in more than 200 countries. (USA Today 14 Sep 98)

              VLSI TECHNOLOGY CAN CUT CHIP DESIGN TIME IN HALF

 VLSI Technology has developed a new Velocity technology that allows
 semiconductor hardware and software engineers to work simultaneously,
 rather than in a laborious back-and-forth process, cutting design time by
 50%. "Our key to success is reducing time to market," says the CEO of
 VLSI. "This is a major step in achieving that." (Wall Street Journal 14
 Sep 98)

         INTEL: LET US ENTERTAIN YOU (WITH A BILLION CONNECTED PCs)

 Though it's still very much in the chip business (and preparing the world
 for the introduction of the successor to its Pentium II chip, code-named
 Katmai), Intel Corporation is broadening its focus beyond microchips and
 planning to become a "platform" technology company. Intel executives say,
 "Our core business becomes married to the vision of a billion connected
 PCs, not just microprocessors... It's about the things that bring us
 information and entertainment... Maybe we are different now. Maybe we
 have different assets -- not just fabs [chip fabrication factories] and
 microprocessor lines -- but relationships with other companies, cash,
 clout, and an understanding of the industry that can make a difference."
 (Washington Post 15 Sep 98)

                   ATTACK ON THE NEW YORK TIMES WEB SITE

 A group calling itself HFG (or Hacking For Girlies) hacked its way into
 the New York Times Web site for about nine hours on Sunday, replacing the
 site's opening screen with images of nude women and a diatribe against
 the Times for its past coverage of Kevin Mitnick, a convicted felon now
 serving time for malicious hacking. George Washington University
 professor Lance Hoffman says, "The material posted by the hackers is
 offensive, childish, threatening and chilling. It's a good example of why
 we have to bring accountability to the Internet." (New York Times 14 Sep
 98)

           INTERNET PROVES ITSELF WITH STARR REPORT DISTRIBUTION

 The market research company Relevant Knowledge estimates that 5.9 million
 people read the Starr report via the Internet. It projected its figures
 by watching about 8,000 randomly selected Internet users 13 years of age
 and older in the U.S. (AP 15 Sep 98)

             ORACLE CHIEF CALLS GATES "THE POPE OF PC INDUSTRY"

 Oracle CEO Larry Ellison says the Justice Department probe into
 Microsoft's activities is justified: "You can think of Microsoft as the
 company that gives you permission. It used to be that you couldn't get
 divorced unless the church said you could. Right now you can't build
 personal computers unless Bill gives you permission. If Bill's not in a
 good mood... he'll say, 'You're doing stuff to annoy me, so I'm going to
 raise the price of Windows and make you not competitive.' ... Bill Gates
 is the pope of the personal computer industry. He decides who's going to
 build." (Investor's Business Daily 14 Sep 98)

               PENTAGON CONCERNED ABOUT INFO ON ITS WEB SITES

 The U.S. Department of Defense has ordered a comprehensive review of all
 military Web sites to determine whether they provide information that
 could be valuable to terrorists. Many of the sites serve as a way of
 opening communications between officers and enlisted personnel, as well
 as a means of providing information to military families and the public
 at large. However, computer advisors to the Pentagon are concerned that
 online information about troops and their families could be used by
 terrorists seeking targets for attack. (USA Today 17 Sep 98)

              U.S. PLANS TO RELAX LIMITS ON ENCRYPTION EXPORTS

 The Clinton administration is planning to further loosen restrictions on
 the export of data-scrambling technologies for use by certain industries
 such as insurance and health care. The announcement is similar to one
 made last year for the financial industry. The plan, which focuses on
 "key recovery" systems, will ease all controls on products that use a
 56-bit key to decode messages, except in seven countries suspected of
 terrorist activities. In addition, export of products with any length key
 will be eased for insurance and medical companies, as well as online
 merchants seeking to encrypt electronic-commerce transactions in 45
 countries that have signed an agreement with the U.S. The announcement
 comes in response to a private-sector proposal made last May that
 suggested a broad relaxation of the export limits. (Reuters 16 Sep 98)

                       KAPLAN PLANS ONLINE LAW SCHOOL

 Kaplan Educational Centers, the big standardized-test coaching company,
 is planning to offer the first online law degree through its newly
 established Concord University School of Law. Concord has received
 authorization from the California Bureau of Post-Secondary and Vocational
 Education to grant degrees, which will allow students to sit for the bar
 in that state. The school does not yet have accreditation from either the
 state or the American Bar Association, and an ABA spokeswoman says
 association standards refer to "class time" and library collections
 "within the facilities." Accreditation is necessary for students who wish
 to sit for the bar in states other than California. Kaplan says Concord
 students will receive video lectures via the Internet, and that library
 materials will be made available online, but the company doesn't plan to
 apply for accreditation until it can demonstrate its students are
 learning the same things as traditional students. "We're seeing industry
 look at the higher-education sector in a way they've never looked
 before," says Arthur Levine, president of Teachers College at Columbia
 University. "It's a $225 billion market where there are questions about
 price and management. It's ripe for private-sector involvement." (Wall
 Street Journal 16 Sep 98)

                        CHOKE POINTS FOR E-COMMERCE

 Hal Varian, dean of UC-Berkeley's School of Information Management and
 Systems, says there are two major hurdles that e-commerce must overcome
 before it's mainstream: "Micropayments are a tough nut to crack. My guess
 is people aren't going to want to use a separate form of payment for
 online commerce as opposed to offline. I think you are going to see some
 smart cards, store-value cards you can use both in the physical world and
 the electronic world. The other big bottleneck is the interface. It's
 quite clear nobody really wants to sit in front of the computer to read
 an extended amount of material or watch a movie clip, or even look at a
 lot of still images. You are going to have an interface people feel much
 more comfortable with. Maybe it's WebTV or electronic books." (TechWeb 17
 Sep 98)

                  INTEL LICENSES SOFTWARE TO REALNETWORKS

 In an agreement that will result in new demand for Pentium 2 chips, Intel
 is licensing its technology for advanced video software to Seattle-based
 RealNetworks Inc., which will use it to improve the quality of videos
 transmitted over the Internet. (AP 16 Sep 98)

                             MIMIC FOR THE iMAC

 A $499 computer manufactured by eMachines Inc. through a joint venture
 between South Korean companies TriGem Inc and Korean Data Systems will
 offer the general look-and-feel of an Apple iMac system, but will be
 based on the Windows operating system and be powered by Intel's new
 333-megahertz Celeron processor. In appearance, it will be taller and
 less squat than an iMac, will be colored (possibly green or ivory), and
 -- unlike the iMac -- will have a floppy disk drive. The systems will be
 introduced next April. (San Jose Mercury News 16 Sep 98)

                             DOUBTS ABOUT DIVX

 Divx, the alternative technology to DVD (digital video disk) that is
 backed by Circuit City, is set to roll out nationally in the next few
 weeks and analysts say the big question is whether Divx (digital video
 express) will be DOA (dead on arrival). The format enables users to rent
 a digital movie, watch it over a period of two days, and then throw it
 away, or pay more to reactivate orpurchase it. Critics charge the
 disposable format means that viewers will be going to video stores only
 half as often, since they won't have to return their movies. Also, unlike
 DVD, Divx movies can't be watched on a computer -- an option that has
 little appeal now, but may become more popular in the future. Meanwhile,
 Circuit City has tested its new product in two markets  San Francisco
 and Richmond, Va. -- and says the results are "encouraging." (Los Angeles
 Times 17 Sep 98)

            HACKER DIVERTS U S WEST COMPUTERS IN SEARCH OF PRIME

 A 28-year-old computer expert is under investigation for computer fraud,
 having allegedly diverted 2,585 U S West computers to assist him in his
 effort to solve a 350-year-old math problem -- the search for a new prime
 number. The man, who has not been charged, is a contract computer
 consultant working for a vendor for U S West. "I've worked on this (math)
 problem for a long time," he told investigators. "When I started working
 at U S West, all that computational power was just too tempting for me."
 Investigators estimate that during a very short period he used 10.63
 years worth of computer processing time -- while the computers should
 have been hard at work retrieving telephone numbers for U S West
 customers. (AP 16 Sep 98)

                            TOYS R THE INTERNET

 Toys R Us Inc. is closing 90 stores (40 in the U.S. and 50 overseas), and
 analysts say that one of the reasons is the growing challenge the company
 faces as a result of the popularity of video games and the Internet
 competing for children's time with traditional toys. (Washington Post 17
 Sep 98)

                   BANNED FROM DOING BUSINESS ON THE NET

 Because he defrauded 25 people in online computer auctions, a Florida man
 has been banned for life from doing any business on the Internet, as part
 of a settlement reached with the Federal Trade Commission. (AP 16 Sep 98)





 NEW!



                       [BITSBYTES.GIF (64527 bytes)]



 by R. F. Mariano

 The "Antenna Farm" is done and its gorgeous. I checked out a slew of
 different types of setups ranging high priced tower "deals" that
 ultimately proved to be rather "overpriced" and "underdesigned" to
 outright garbage being peddled as the latest and greatest technology for
 the installation of Radar domes, Open Arrays, GPS and Differential
 Antenna etc.. Its amazing when one finds the best solution in one's own
 "backyard". The company that fabricated the "Antenna Farm" for Pablo
 Creek Marina was Offshore Marine Components in Mayport, FL. We do have a
 few photos to present:

 [Mike Adams1.GIF (101621 bytes)]

 Above, we see Mike Adams of Pablo Creek Marina laying out the
 installation of the power cables, data cables and locations of the
 various devices associated with the Radar, DGPS, and Depthsounder.  To
 Mike's right you can see the "Antenna Farm" from Offshore Marine and
 installed by Pablo Creek Marina.  Additionally, you can now see the
 magnificent decals from Graphitek that were trimmed and applied by Jean
 Shimp of Shimp Signs.

 [Mike Adams.GIF (40445 bytes)]

 Hiya Mike!  Gotta hand it to you.... and all the guys at PCM. Y'all know
 how to get the job done.

 My mind's made up... These folks are the best as far as we are concerned.

 [electronics.GIF (116141 bytes)]

 The final layout for the devices.  from left to right, Furuno 1621mk2
 Radar, Northstar DGPS, Compass, Garmin 235 Depthsounder./GPS.
 Incidentally, the Toshiba T4850CT Laptop that'll tie all these goodies
 together through the NMEA Standard Ports will be mounted directly beneath
 the Radar Head on its own fold-away shelf.  The Laptop will operate on
 its AC charger/power supply and a dedicated 150watt inverter.

 [port decal.GIF (159769 bytes)]

 The Port and Starboard Decals are gorgeous "in-person".  The darn things
 are almost true 3D.  We are getting closer and closer to the BIG day. The
 anti-fouling bottom paint is next and then... in the water we go.





                       Florida Fishing and Tide Guide

 [Start_up.gif (100405 bytes)]

                          [fftg.GIF (3315 bytes)]

 Have you ever wanted or wished for an easy way to get back to a fishing
 hot spot or predict, with reasonable accuracy, the best times to go for
 your favorite type of fishing?  Well Bunkie, there is a way!  Its a
 program called Florida Fishing and Tide Guide. This software package
 almost .... I said almost makes the fish jump in the boat and then the
 Fishbox! Actually, FFTG is very well done. It answers just about every
 need you might find as far as documenting each fishing trip.

 Additionally, this program allows you to reference:

    * NOAA Charts of the Entire State
    * Tides and Currents for all of Florida
    * Info on Florida Game Fish and Fishing Methods
    * Solunar Tables
    * Sunrise/Sunset Times
    * Moon Phases
    * Florida Fishing Regulations
    * Fishing Records
    * Fishing Knots and How to Tie them
    * Fishing Term Glossary
    * Fly Selector Guide
    * Fishing Statistics
    * Data Analyzation
    * GPS Settings

 With all this data, the average Fisherman is able to hit the fishing
 grounds (term for a known fishing area on the open water) with the
 combined experience of many seasoned anglers. Of course there's no
 guarantee of catching fish... that's all up to them, but you can be
 certain of being able to "do all the right things".

 To sum up the overview of Florida Fishing and Tide Guide, this puppy is a
 "Gotta Have" for any serious Fisherman. It is, without a doubt, the
 easiest, most comprehensive (that means it holds a lot of retrievable
 info about fishing) Saltwater Fishing database we seen thus far. In a
 Nutshell, You NEED this software if you plan to catch fish on a
 consistent basis.

 Below are a few screen shots;

  [CHART_SAMPLE.gif (200707 bytes)]

 Above, we see the NOAA Chart section.  Here, we are able to locate sites,
 bottom conditions and other prime fishing environments.  When used in
 conjunction with more accurate charting software or NOAA Charts
 themselves this becomes an un-beatable combination for locating the fish.

 [RECORDS_SAMPLE.gif (132291 bytes)]

 This (above) is what I call the "incentive section" of the program.
 Everytime I look at these records I find my self saying, "I can do that
 too!" So will you.  Because with FFTG, it all gets that much easier to
 achieve.

 [REGS_SAMPLE.gif (129965 bytes)]

 Oh well, there is always the next guy and of course our children to think
 of.  That's one of the major reasons for the FMP and the Fishing
 Regulations they enforce.  They're simply making certain there will be
 fishing for everyone in the future.  I just wish they would rethink the
 goofy regulation scheme on Red Drum (better known as Red Bass). Something
 closer to Georgia's Rule on Red Bass or even Texas' Rule would be easier
 to follow than the rule on Reds we have in Florida.

 [SPECIES_SAMPLES.gif (44618 bytes)]

 Above is the "Here's all the help you need" section.  This area of FFTG
 will most certainly give a good deal of the assistance needed to land a
 biggie or two.

 System Requirements:

    * IBM Compatible PC

    * 486Mhz or Better

    * Windows 3x - Windows 9x

    * 8mb RAM

    * 10mb Free HD Space

    * CDRom Drive

    * Data good through 1998

    * All Data updatable via the Internet www.saltwatersoftware.co

 To get your Copy now CALL:

                             Saltwater Software
                      333 Southern Boulevard Suite 304
                       West Palm Beach, Florida 33405

                         Telephone: 1-561-659-5995

                        Email: saltsoft@flinet.com



  [Image]

 Fishing for

                           Big Southern Flounders



 By Ralph F. Mariano

 Drifting blindly on sandy flats for Southern Flounder will, during
 certain times of the year produce sufficient fish.  But to hook the real
 "Doormats," you must concentrate your efforts on fishing structured areas
 of the bottom while you're strategically anchored. Large Flounders, fish
 in the 7 - 20 pound class, (Record is 20lbs, 9oz - 1983 Nassau County, FL
 - ctsy FFTG) tend to congregate around structure such as wrecks, rock
 piles and hard-bottom areas. They particularly like to hang out where
 sandy bottoms coincide (meet) with structure. Big Southern Flounder are
 attracted to structured spots for the same reason all predatory fish come
 to such areas. To find food such as mud minnows, shrimp, crabs, tiger
 minnows, finger mullet and more. With this thought in mind, the
 "anchoring on structure" method of Flounder fishing seems rather straight
 forward. Everybody should be doing it. But most Flounder fishermen don't.
 Instead, most simply drift fish mud and sand flats. "Flounder" and
 "drifting" have become almost synonymous among flounder fishermen of all
 types.

 Fact is, by drifting, you can indeed catch a mess of Flounder, including
 some big Flounder during certain times of the year, particularly during
 the popular spring spawn and less-well-known fall spawn. During these two
 runs, large schools of Flounder gather on the flats. Most of the fish are
 the smaller males, all set to fertilize the eggs of big females once the
 eggs are released. If you find the spawning fish, the action is fast. And
 the easy fishing can last for days or even weeks. The hardest part is
 hooking a "keeper," since the most abundant Flounder are the small,
 aggressive males. That's not to say that big males or female Flounders
 aren't caught at these times. They most definitely are. But please bear
 in mind, among the large numbers of boats drifting for Flounders during
 the spawn, a very small percentage hook Big Doormats in the 7- 20 pound
 range. For anglers who want to increase their chances of hooking big
 Southern Flounders as well as those who want to pursue flounders all
 year, structure fishing is the key. Don't expect large quantities, just
 big fish.

 Check these pointers out:

 Types of Structure

 There is no bad type of structure for Southern Flounder. Fish for them
 around just about any conceivable type of salt water structure -- docks,
 wrecks, rock piles, shale bottom, gravel bottom, oyster and mussel
 bottom, scattered rocks, inshore reefs, jetties and seawalls. Depth does
 not seem to be a critical factor, either. This may surprise the drift
 fishermen, since the spawning aggregations tend to stick to a particular
 depth at any given time. Not so with structure dwelling Flounders. Their
 main objective is food, and they'll swim anywhere to find it. We've
 caught Flounder on structure as deep as 60 feet and as shallow as 5 feet.
 Most of the structured spots fished are anywhere from 5 to 75 feet deep.
 Different types of structure do require different techniques. Flounder
 structure can be divided into two basic categories:

    * high plane (visible)
    * low plane (invisible)

 High plane structure includes docks, wrecks, rock piles, reefs, jetties
 and seawalls. (In other words visible structure) Ninety percent of the
 time, Flounder will stake out or actively hunt near the base of high
 plane structure -- around the structure/sand coincidental (meet) zones.
 Occasionally, we will hook a fish right on top of a wreck or one hunkered
 down on top a flat boulder in a rock pile, but this is not the rule, its
 an exception. With this in mind, you should anchor your boat so you can
 fish the coincidental zone (bottom area immediately adjacent to the
 structure area). You should also work the structure itself, since a
 Flounder may also hunt within the structure zone but be prepared to lose
 terminal tackle.

 Low plane structure includes hard shale bottom, oyster and mussel bottom,
 gravel bottom and small scattered rocks. In this case, most Flounder move
 right into the structure area. You should anchor your boat so that you
 can present your lures and baits directly within the structure zone.

 Try Anchoring Up

 No matter what type of structure or depth, the best method calls for
 anchoring just slightly upwind or up-current from the structure. Whether
 you're working the base of the structure or the structure itself, keep
 your presentation on or very near the bottom, well within the
 all-important vertical feeding zone of the bottom-dwelling Doormats.

 Water movement or current is an important factor in Flounder fishing.
 Flounders definitely feed more actively when there's a nice current,
 carrying bait fish and other forage around the structure zone. Many
 factors influence current, but tides are certainly one of the strongest.
 So, time your fishing to the middle part of the falling or rising tide,
 when water movement is at its best.

 No matter what stage of the tide you're fishing, if you're a private
 boater who's after a "Doormat", remember this: Stop drifting and start
 anchoring on or near wrecks, rock piles, reefs and hard bottom spots.
 It's the coincidental zone of your next doormat.

 Use the Right Baits and Techniques

 Big fish go after big baits. And a big live bait works great in
 attracting doormats. Some of the best include combinations of live baits,
 tiger and mud minnows, finger mullet, squid, clams, crabs or even shrimp
 and cigar minnows. Many big Southern Flounders have been hooked on soft
 plastic lures, rigged on a lead head or the famous, 1/2 - 1 oz. Diamond
 Jig. A real favorite lure is the single-tail, four to six-inch flutter
 tail. The "glow green and glow orange" colors have produced more big
 Flounders than any other for us. Use lead heads with a 5/0 hook and
 ranging in weight from 3/8 to 1 ounce, depending on how much we need to
 keep the lure working on the bottom.

 Despite the presence of big fish, most successful Flounder anglers
 recommend using the lightest line possible. Most prefer 15-pound test
 line; hardly any use line heavier than 20-pound test. For fishing live
 bait, a sliding egg sinker held above the hook by an in-line barrel
 swivel or small split-shot keeps the bait on the bottom. A sharp hook is
 mandatory for Flounder fishing. Kahle hooks are rapidly growing in
 popularity for live bait Flounder fishing, as they seemingly increase the
 "hook up" ratio. Carry a variety of sizes -- from 1 to 4/0 thus handling
 a wide range of sizes in live baits.

 Anglers who keep their baits moving around structure catch more Flounder.
 Southern Flounders are sight feeders. Movement triggers strikes. This is
 one reason lures produce well. The most productive technique calls for
 "twitching" the bait or lure on the bottom to attract the attention of
 Flounders. As Flounders lay hiding, they will voraciously chase and grab
 a good-looking meal. You simply have to "entice" the Flounders to do so.

 Speaking of good Meals.

 Here's one of my favorites using flounder filets:

 2 eggs
 3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan or locatelli cheese
 2 tbsp. self rising flour
 2tbsp. finely chopped garlic
 4 fish filets (4 to 6 oz. ea.)
 3 tbsp. olive oil
 3 tbsp. margarine or lightly salted butter
 1/2 cup finely chopped nuts (optional)

 Place a 10 x 15 baking pan in oven as it preheats to 425 degrees. Beat
 eggs until blended in a shallow dish. On wax paper combine flour and
 cheese. Rinse fish and pat dry. Dip each filet in egg to coat, drain
 briefly. Then coat with cheese mixture. Place fish in a single layer on
 wax paper. Remove pan from oven, add oil, chopped garlic and margarine
 then swirl until margarine is melted. Lay a filet in pan, turning to coat
 with seasoned olive oil mixture. Repeat with remaining filets arranging
 pieces slightly apart in pan. Sprinkle with nuts and any remaining
 flour-cheese left over. Bake uncovered in a 425 degree oven 7 to 10
 minutes or until fish is done. Broil for one minute to brown slightly
 before serving. Serves 4. (Increase quantities proportionally for more
 servings)



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 STR Editor's Mail Call "...a place for the readers to be heard"



                              Editor's MailBag



                    Messages * NOT EDITED * for content



 From: James L Peck Jr [peckjl@gptmail.globalpac.com]
 Sent: Monday, August 10, 1998 6:43 AM
 To: rmariano@streport.com
 Subject: Too Old To Understand

 I have lessened to all the noise being generated by the press and the
 Republicans and the Democrats. Everyone seems to forget the JOB of the
 President. He is to receive data from every source available to our
 country, filter it through the cabinet and act on it. I, as a citizen,
 will never see the data upon which his decisions are made. The press sees
 some of it and then reports only the part of the part they see fit. No
 one but the president sees all the data and no one but he gets to make
 the decision.

 Clenton, The President, has been given this opportunity by the people.
 They expect him to make decisions that favor the country. Clenton has
 proven by his actions that he has neither the will or the desire to
 choose for the better of the country when his own pleasure is involved.

 He ran to England instead of for filling his obligation to the nation by
 (1) joining the military, (2) protesting, (3) defying the draft. He
 played around on his wife prior to leaving his home state. The money
 scandals. And now Sex on the job. Is this great judgment. Lied to the
 people about it. Is this HONOR. Should this man be in a position to send
 our sons and daughters to war (in harms way) or place the country in a
 bad position.

 I could care less what other Presidents did or did not do. We can judge
 them by history. Clenton is in place today. He has proven his Honor,
 thought process and trustworthiness. Does he truly have to heart the
 nation before we try to do better.

 Jim Peck

 Jim,

 Sad to say, I think you need to bone up on your social studies and the US
 Government in particular.  Forget about Funk and Wagnall's or the Oxford
 Dictionary.  We can arrive at the gist of your missive. Surely you must
 agree that selective punitive measures are totally unfair and have no
 place in a free society.  Also I am certain you have no liking for group
 punishment.  So, with that I'll re-iterate my contention that Clinton
 should be treated like his Presidential Predecessors.. At the time they
 were ALL President of this country, their private sexual lives were never
 invaded and/or bandied about like so many party jokes.  Clinton has been
 done dirty by the GOP. There is no denying this FACT.  Its been that way
 since Bill Clinton defeated Georgie Boy.   Newt led the hit parade back
 then.



 Message 80373
 From: Ralph Mariano (STREPORT)
 To: ALL (& Greg Evans)
 Posted: 9/15/98 3:05 PM
 Reply to: 80369

 "I had to respond to your editorial this week as too many statements you
 made were false or misleading. Here goes, (and I'm typing this live so
 please excuse _my_ typos): "

 False???? Misleading???? THAT might be your interpretation but what was
 in the editorial was, in every instance, FACT.

 "1. The Republicans could not stop Ken Starr, and neither could anyone in
 Congress. That is the law. Only the President can fire an Independent
 Counsel through the Justice Department."

 They might not have been able to STOP Ken Starr, but their majority vote
 could've limited and in fact, stopped the funding of the Great
 Inquisition of the Century. Once the DOJ opened the doors the only way
 for Starr to be stopped was through Presidential or Executive Order with
 the Approval of the House and Senate. That we BOTH know would never have
 been forthcoming.

 "2. Janet Reno (I know you're not a fan of hers) who expanded the
 investigation to include Monica Lewinski. Prior to this, a three judge
 panel had expanded the OIC's scope to include Travelgate, Filegate, etc."

 "3. Ken Starr has been the most succesful Independent Counsel. His
 investigation has resulted in more than a dozen convictions including the
 Governor of Arkansas for crimes committed in connection with the original
 Whitewater investigation."

 My like or dislike of Janet Reno has no bearing on these matters.  Janet
 Reno would never have expanded Starr's investigation had the GOP members
 of both Houses not pushed the issue to the rafters.  Travel File gate
 etc., all went nowhere fast. How can you call reams upon reams of bland
 and mostly irresponsible accusation success?? Successful in what"
 Delving into Clinton's Zipper? And Monica's perfectly preserved "stained"
 dress??  I suppose this is all normal behavior for a young woman to keep
 a dress in that sort of condition for months on end!!  It sure is.. IF
 she is on a quest. This is not a true investigation! its been a foul
 smelling witch hunt from day one. Bush wanted re-election so bad he
 tasted it!! I, for one, had enough of the CIA's Man in the White House
 and was ever so glad to see him out the door.  Yet it would appear he is
 still playing the game from behind the scenes.  As all this garbage going
 on is so "CIA-like" in its scope and depth.

 "4. The election of 1994 (where not a single Republican was defeated)
 puts the lie to your statement that they have been trying to thwart the
 "will of the people". Oops, that should have been "incumbent"."

 True.... the incumbents carried the elections.  But no statement was made
 by such its happened in many previous national elections. So what's your
 point?? The Ballots were expertly setup so the mad rush voters simply
 punched rows as always. Since we were just coming out of Bush's
 Administration, there would have been a large number of incumbent
 Republicans. Again so what?? Ever since that day, the Republicans have
 done everything in their power to thwart anything Clinton has attempted
 to do. With Newt "The Beaut" leading the "Pack of Yapping GOP Dogs." Of
 course they were unable in most cases since what was being done was the
 right thing for both this country as a nation and its populace.

 "5. The budget is still not in balance because the government is spending
 excess Social Security receipts. So much for saving Social Security
 first."

 Baloney!!!! Even the Republicans have admitted Clinton balanced the
 budget. So much so they wanted to make a large TAX CUT to absorb the
 surplus. Check your facts. I did.

 "6. The budget would not even be in the shape it currently is in if
 1992's Health Care reform legislation had been passed. In fact, without a
 massive tax increase the budget would be out of balance by half a
 trillion dollars."

 Not true..... That was the Republican malarkey at the time. And still is
 now.

 "7. The national debt has increased from 3 to 5 trillion in the last 6
 years. (I know you didn't mention this, but it relates to balancing the
 budget)."

 Regardless..... the budget remains balanced at this time no matter what
 the figures amount to...

 "Finally, don't worry, there will be additional information coming out
 about the other administration scandals. I feel sorry for the President
 and sorry for people who have to find some way, any way, to defend him.
 If impeachment decisions were made as a result of balancing the crime(s)
 with accomplishments, Nixon would have finished out his term -- detente
 with the USSR, opening dialog with China, the EPA, food stamps, etc."

 I'm not worried, Clinton's approval ratings are as high as they ever
 were. Regardless of whatever "Herr Starr" comes out with subsequently,
 it'll look like exactly what it is, afterthoughts and more diatribe. Had
 Starr stayed with the Whitewater matters.... he'd never have lost his
 credibility.  He's in the toilet right along with many of today's
 politicians.

 RFM....









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 [image87.gif (45316 bytes)]

 Classics & Gaming Section
 Editor Dana P. Jacobson
 dpj@streport.com





 From the Atari Editor's Desk "Saying it like it is!"

 Another week draws to a close and more of the summer remnants are fading
 away... Closed the pool last weekend, the weather has been nice -
 delightfully cooler, kids are back to school, and the like. Still, I've
 been getting in some golf and the barbecue is still in full use. It's
 hard to believe we've been in the "new" house for just over a year, one
 season each so far. It's been wonderful so far.

 Not much Atari news this week, but I did spot the Atari Times Awards
 "ballot" on the Usenet. I've included it here for you to check out. While
 there are no real awards, take a few minutes to read it, fill it out and
 send in. People still continuing to support the Atari community should be
 recognized. They get little return for their endeavors these days, so a
 little recognition can serve to go a long way. Trust me, it means a lot
 to be appreciated for what you do for others.

 Until next time...





                          1998 Atari Times Awards

 From: "Colin Polonowski" polonowski@zetnet.co.uk



 1998 Atari Times Awards

 What are they?

 They are our attempt at repaying those people out there who still believe
 the Atari platform is a viable alternative to the PC dominated computer
 world. Those people who spend time and money pushing the Atari platform
 to its limits and supporting it in any way they can...

 Is this the first time?

 No! The Atari Times Awards were launched in 1997 and proved to be
 surprisingly successful. This year we want to surpass this and make them
 extremely successful!!!

 What categories are there?

    * Best Programmer
    * Best Commercial Release
    * Best Shareware Release
    * Best PD/Freeware Release
    * Best Game
    * Best Hardware Add-on
    * Best Company
    * Best Non-Profit Organisation
    * Best Disk Magazine
    * Best Paper Magazine
    * Best Web Page
    * Best Internet Service Provider
    * Special award for services to the Atari community

 How do I vote?

 Voting is easy, you have three options:

 1) E-mail your nominations for each category to: polonowski@zetnet.co.uk

 2) Fill in the form provided on the Atari Times Homepage at:

 http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/polonowski/atimes/

 3) Write your nominations on a piece of paper and send them to:

 AT Awards 98, c/o Colin Polonowski, The Croft, Hope Rd, Nibley,

 Nr Yate, Bristol, BS37 5JH, ENGLAND

 That's all there is to it!

 So, go on and show your support for the Atari platform by voting in the
 1998 Atari Times Awards and show those Atari supporters out there that
 you have noticed the effort they are putting in!

 Cheers,

 * Colin Polonowski, polonowski@zetnet.co.uk

 * The Zone - http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/polonowski/

 * Editor - Atari Times(UK), Programmer - Croft Soft Software





 Announcing:

                        Atari Serial Mouse Interface

 From: Mario Becroft mb@tos.pl.ne

 28/8/1998 ANNOUNCING THE ATARI SERIAL MOUSE INTERFACE ** REVISED **

    * Allows any serial mouse (as used on IBM compatibles) to be connected
      to Atari ST(E), TT, Falcon or compatible computers.
    * Support for serial mouse, track-ball, touch-pad or any other
      Microsoft or Mouse Systems compatible serial pointing device.
    * Easy installation: just plug in and go.
    * Unlike other "solutions", the interface doesn't tie up your serial
      port, or require special software drivers.
    * Third button or wheel can act as a double click of the left button,
      or on software/hardware that supports it, as a real middle button.

 The Atari Serial Mouse Interface is the best solution for replacing a
 worn-out Atari mouse, or ensuring that you will never have trouble
 obtaining a mouse in the future. Serial mice are used on IBM compatible
 computers, and are readily available from any computer dealer. The
 interface is also handy for those who are tired of the slow and clumsy
 Atari mouse. With the wide range of serial mice, trackballs and
 touch-pads available, you will have no trouble finding a pointing device
 to suit your taste and budget.

 Plus, if like many users you find double clicking tedious, simply obtain
 a serial mouse with middle button or wheel. Then a simple press on the
 middle button or wheel acts like a double click - no more double clicking
 hassles. Or if you use UNIX or other software that uses a middle button
 for other purposes, the interface can be configured for that, too.
 Installation is simple. The interface is a small unit measuring only
 4x5x1 cm, with a serial mouse plug at one end, and a cable that plugs
 into your Atari mouse port at the other end. To install the unit, simply
 plug it in - no other setup is required. And being so small, it sits
 comfortably on your desk without taking up too much space.

 ORDERING:

 Units are available directly from me:

    * $50 New Zealand dollars, $25 US dollars or 16 UK pounds each
    * $60 New Zealand dollars, $30 US dollars or 20 UK pounds each
      including 3-button serial mouse.
    * Controlling price is in New Zealand dollars, prices are subject to
      change based on fluctuating exchange rates and other factors.
    * User groups or clubs, contact me for information on quantity
      discounts.

 Dealership inquiries welcome.

 Postage to most locations in the world for a few units will be $5 US
 dollars or 4 UK pounds, and delivery will take a week or two. Contact me
 for an exact figure. The interface will be available locally in the UK
 very soon.

 Inquiries: Email: mb@tos.pl.net

 Post:

 Mario Becroft
 PO Box 332
 Kumeu
 Auckland 1250
 NEW ZEALAND

 If ordering from outside New Zealand, you can pay by a BANK CHEQUE IN NEW
 ZEALAND DOLLARS (NOT PERSONAL CHEQUE). Alternatively, you can send US or
 UK currency by post, but it is YOUR RISK if it gets lost in the post.

 P.S. Please distribute this announcement to any relevant Atari forums as
 you see fit. And watch this space for some more Atari hardware
 announcements soon.





                               Gaming Section



    * 'Project X'!!
    * Psygnosis Sold?
    * "Quake 2 Mission Pack"!!
    * And much more!





 Industry News STR Game Console NewsFile - The Latest Gaming News!



                    Project X - Revolution in the Making

 Sep. 14, 1998 (INSIDE MULTIMEDIA, No. 176 via COMTEX) -- The ECTS show
 was an opportunity for a face-to-face with Richard Miller, chairman and
 CEO of VM Labs. Not only is Richard an avid reader of Inside Multimedia,
 he also heads of one of the most exciting multimedia projects in the
 world: Project X. In essence Project X is a chip, a very powerful chip,
 which Richard and his team have designed and Motorola have produced. It
 is a media processor, easily the most powerful in the world, which
 replaces about five conventional chips. Motorola have won the exclusive
 license to manufacture and sell it throughout the world. Its
 ramifications will send shock waves through the entire industry.

 To understand the implications of Project X you have to consider the role
 of the TV in the digital future. It has two roles: video games and
 digital TV entertainment. The latter is based on MPEG-2 data streams
 embracing DVB, DVD, HDTV, digital cable - at present passive, linear
 mediums. The VM Labs chipset replaces the MPEG-2 decoder and turns a
 passive MPEG-2 product into an interactive multimedia station. To say
 that this is bad news for C-Cube is an understatement. It might also be
 bad news for Sony. The reason is that Project X gives the other
 manufacturers the opportunity to add games functionality to DVD boxes.
 You have to understand that everyone hates Sony. They are jealous of the
 success of PlayStation (that now accounts for a third of Sony's
 revenues). The PlayStation success has legitimised gaming for the
 consumer electronics companies and they want a slice of the action.

 Motorola, Thomson and Toshiba see the opportunity to create DVD players
 that also play games. The next wave of consumer electronics products will
 have gaming built in. It gives them the chance to customize the look and
 feel of their DVD players with a software platform they can customize.
 What will be the cost to manufacturers to incorporate Project X
 technology into their hardware? VM Labs say there is minimal incremental
 cost because this chip replaces the 'hard wired' audio and video decoder
 ICs and often many other additional ICs that are required in a typical
 digital video product. It incorporates all the functions necessary for
 video and audio decode, including subpicture, closed captioning,
 navigation, user interface and so forth, into a single, high performance
 media processor.

 We had a sneak preview of the DVD capability and were totally impressed.
 Remember this is a 1500 mip processor, that means it can execute 1.5
 billion instructions per second. It hardly blinks when decoding MPEG-2,
 including Dolby Digital, DTS and MPEG audio. When it comes to games the
 results are truly awe-inspiring. Forget those crude pixellated images
 based on polygons. Richard demonstrated a computer-generated landscape,
 three spheres drifting through the sky in a graceful, random ballet above
 a rippling blue lake. One sphere appears chromed; it reflects the lake,
 and the lake reflects it. This is the kind of demo that animation studios
 used to create 15 years ago, using a chain of SGI workstations. The
 difference is that the VM Labs board was doing it in real time using ray
 tracing, not polygons - all from a program less than 2 Kb in size. We
 also watched an amazing demo of a ballet dancer pirouetting on the
 screen. She passed the 'bottom test': she had buttocks which Lara Croft
 would die for.

 Forgive our excitement but we think this is revolutionary. Richard Miller
 and his team have produced 'The Anything Machine'. By producing a media
 processor that responds to software commands he has destroyed our
 existing mental boundaries between set-top boxes, DVD Video and games
 consoles. He has blurred the dividing line between TV, DVD and games.
 Think what this does for education - the ability to mix and match high
 definition video and audio with incredibly detailed 3D ray-traced
 graphics. The mind boggles. Richard Miller knows that he cannot win in a
 straight fight with Sony, Nintendo and Sega. He has chosen the Trojan
 Horse approach, sneaking in through the back door of the DVD player. The
 first boxes from Motorola, Toshiba and Thomson should appear next spring
 at around Pounds 250.

 The first application was announced by Motorola at IBC on Sunday.
 Code-named Blackbird it is a flexible consumer electronics platform that
 can be customized using network interface modules (NIMs) to support
 terrestrial, cable, satellite or digital subscriber line connections. The
 system will run the latest release of Microware's David real-time
 operating system which supports Java. It uses Project X's microkernel,
 along with its own graphics APIs and development tools, to run Project
 X-enabled games or other interactive applications. Richard Miller is a
 Brit who cut his teeth designing the Sinclair Spectrum and Jaguar. He
 escaped to America because no one in Britain would back him (a familiar
 story). In Silicon Valley he has surrounded himself with some of the
 world's smartest guys, like the fabled Jeff Minter of Atari fame. He has
 pulled off something that has evaded Philips and Chromatic Research - a
 massively powerful multimedia processor that has captured the hearts and
 pocketbooks of Motorola, Toshiba and Thomson.

 The whole PC versus TV debate is now sterile. Hollywood movies are
 increasingly relying on computer-generated imagery. Games are
 increasingly becoming lifelike and can now incorporate MPEG-2 imagery.
 The worlds of movie so-called reality and games virtuality are about to
 fuse together. Project X unites DVD and powerful ray-traced 3D graphics.
 It is interactive DVD. Thus DVD-i has arrived and nobody spotted it. But
 is also much more. Project X leaps the boundaries to digital television
 and games. It truly changes the world as we know it.

   The Battle to Save Mankind Continues With The Release of id Software's
                     Quake II Mission Pack: Ground Zero

 There will be no rest for the weary and nowhere to hide when the wicked
 army of Strogg unleash the greatest threat ever to mankind. Players must
 once again struggle to avoid annihilation with id Software's(TM) new
 QUAKE II Mission Pack: Ground Zero(TM). Developed by Rogue Entertainment
 and distributed by Activision, Inc., QUAKE II Mission Pack: Ground Zero
 will be available in stores throughout North America the week of
 September 14, for the suggested retail price of $29.95.

 Featuring 15 thrilling single-player environments and 14 new deathmatch
 levels, QUAKE II Mission Pack: Ground Zero offers more new, never before
 seen levels than any other Mission Pack released by id Software. Seven of
 the new deathmatch levels have been specialized for one-on-one combat
 while the remaining new levels focus on deathmatch battles for up to
 eight players. With new deathmatch powerups such as the Vengeance Sphere,
 Doppelganger and Hunter Sphere, players will be challenged to demolish
 their enemies with a new ferocity.

 In Ground Zero, as players battle on to save their comrades trapped by
 the Gravity Well, the new menace to mankind, each must confront ominous
 foes such as the Stalker, Daedalus, Medic Commander, Carrier and the
 vicious Black Widow. Armed with the newest weapons of destruction such as
 the ETF (Explosive-Tipped Flechette) Rifle, the Proximity Mine Launcher
 and the Plasma Beam, gamers will launch ruthless QUAKE II battles. "With
 Ground Zero, id offers a new opportunity for gamers to devastate and
 annihilate their opponents with an added bonus," said CEO of id Software
 Todd Hollenshead. ``Not only does this Mission Pack provide all new
 deathmatch levels and environments, but it also provides updates to the
 original QUAKE II, which allow players to auto download skins or mods and
 also utilize the viewable weapon mode on all QUAKE II games.

 Gamers will enjoy combating their foes in this new action packed surge of
 ruthless carnage.'' "id and Rogue pushed the limits of the QUAKE engine
 with the hugely successful QUAKE Mission pack No. 2: Dissolution of
 Eternity. GroundZero reunites id and Rogue in what is destined to become
 one of the most awesome game add-ons ever,'' states Mitch Lasky, senior
 vice president, Activision Studios. "Killer levels and sinister monsters
 are what we've come to expect from Rogue, and this mission pack delivers
 beyond expectations." id -- Freud's primal part of the human psyche and
 one of the hottest game shops on Earth _- has been rocking the gaming
 world from Mesquite, Texas since 1991. As a renown leader in the
 industry, id Software has forged frenetic titles such as Wolfenstein 3-D,
 DOOM, DOOM II, QUAKE, and QUAKE II. With intense graphics and
 mind-blowing adventure, id's games continually break retail and shareware
 sales records. id's advanced QUAKE II engine is leading the next
 revolution in 3-D interactive games with both single and multiplayer
 technology. And, in keeping with tradition, id Software amplifies the
 world of adrenaline pumping 3-D gaming with the development of their
 latest action title, QUAKE III Arena. Check out more about id Software at
 http://www.idsoftware.com.

               Electronic Arts Ships Jane's Israeli Air Force

 Built in Israel by IAF Fighter Pilots, Jane's Israeli Air Force is the
 First Product to Simulate an Entire Air Force SAN MATEO, Calif.--Sept.
 14, 1998--Electronic Arts(TM), the world's largest interactive
 entertainment software company, today announced it has shipped Jane's
 Israeli Air Force (IAF). Developed for Electronic Arts (EA) by Israeli
 fighter pilots, Jane's IAF is the first product to simulate an entire air
 force rather than one plane or one era. Jane's IAF is published under
 Electronic Arts' Jane's(R) Combat Simulations brand, which delivers
 authenticity and realism to the simulation experience. Jane's is a
 leading provider of defense-related information to the world's
 militaries, governments and businesses.

 "Today, the Israeli Air Force is recognized as the world's best-trained
 and best-equipped air force, and is highly respected for its
 achievements," says Executive in Charge of Production Paul Grace. We
 established a great working relationship with the Israeli Air Force and
 that has allowed us to bring an unprecedented product to market."
 Developed by Pixel Multimedia, a Tel Aviv, Israel-based development
 company founded by active duty Israeli Air Force pilots, Jane's IAF
 features the most advanced Israeli aircraft and utilizes a breakthrough
 terrain engine. The engine delivers stunning, photo-realistic terrain
 mirroring real-life textures. Development involved capturing stereoscopic
 satellite data, in some places exceeding one meter per pixel resolution
 with true elevation and coloring.

 Jane's IAF offers a full complement of training missions and beginner
 gaming modes to get novices in the air quickly and easily. It also
 features online play on Jane's CombatNet at Similar to the tactics used
 by Israeli pilots, players must dogfight through Middle Eastern canyons
 at extremely low altitudes on full afterburner. The game features seven
 jets from the Israeli Air Force including the F-4, the jet that has flown
 more combat missions than any other jet worldwide; the F-4 2000, the
 1990s version of the F-4 equipped with highly advanced systems and
 weaponry; the F-15i, the world's best air-superiority fighter aircraft;
 the F-16, a sophisticated multi-purpose fighter; the Lavi, Israel's next
 generation fighter; the Kfir, an Israeli dual-role single-seater, for
 both air and air-to-ground combat; and the Mirage III, the single-engine
 French-built fighter with more victories than any other Israeli Air Force
 aircraft.

 Jane's IAF is available now with an expected retail price of $50.00. It
 can be purchased online at the EA Store at or direct by calling
 1-800/245-4525. More information on Jane's IAF can be found on the
 Internet at the Jane's Combat Simulations Web Site located at ystem
 Requirements: Windows(R) 95/Windows(R) 98, 233MHz Pentium with MMX(TM)
 technology, 32MB RAM, 4MB video memory, DirectX(TM) compatible sound
 card, 8x CDROM drive. DirectX(TM) 5 (or 6), Indeo(R) video drivers
 (available on CD). Minimum install: 251MB hard disc space. Full install:
 635MB hard disc space.

 Recommended: Windows 95/Windows 98, 266MHZ or faster Pentium with MMX
 technology, 64MB RAM, 3-D accelerator, DirectX compatible sound card, 12x
 or faster CDROM drive, 635MB hard disc space, 4-button joystick, DirectX
 5 (or 6), Indeo video drivers. Internet connection (for multiplayer
 games) 33.6 Kbps modem Internet connection with TCP/IP-compatible
 protocol and web browser. Required for Multi-Player: Internet connection
 (for multiplayer games), 28.8 Kbps modem Internet connection with
 TCP/IP-compatible protocol and web browser. Network (2-8 Players) IPX
 compliant network and TCP/IP and one CD per player.

            Infogrames Assaults Market With Massive Fall Lineup
    Top 10 Publisher Readies to Translate Summer Success Into Fall Hits

 SAN JOSE, Calif.--Sept. 15, 1998--Buoyed by the success of this summer's
 hit ``Mission: Impossible,'' Infogrames Entertainment Inc. announced its
 fourth quarter lineup, further cementing its stake in the interactive
 entertainment industry. The fall showcase includes 11 titles spanning
 three platforms, led most notably by the November kick off of the
 highly-anticipated Looney Tunes brand games.

 Infogrames will rollout the new Looney Tunes line with two color Gameboy
 titles, ``Carrot Crazy,'' based on Bugs Bunny and Lola Bunny, and
 ``Twouble'' starring Sylvester. The titles represent the first of an
 entire product line devoted to the lovable Warner Bros. characters.
 Additional titles will be released throughout 1999 for both the Nintendo
 64 and Sony PlayStation. ``V-Rally,'' last year's success on the
 PlayStation, will now be packed into a smaller punch for the

 Gameboy this fall. ``We've made a huge commitment on our second-half
 offering, from development to distribution,'' said Mike Markey, vice
 president, sales and marketing, Infogrames Entertainment. ``The success
 we've achieved with `Mission: Impossible,' combined with our Q4 lineup,
 further positions us as a formidable player in the worldwide videogame
 market.''

 PC Addictions

 Infogrames' PC offerings start with the early September launch of
 ``Hexplore,'' published under the I-Motion label. The title is an RPG
 transporting players to the year A.D. 1000 in a search for the fabled
 Garden of Eden.

 Catapulting players from the middle ages to the distant future,
 ``Independence War'' enlists gamers as futuristic dreadnought pilots in
 the year 2268. Also available in early September, the sci-fi simulation,
 published under the Ocean brand, captures players' imaginations with an
 all-out interstellar battle, all the while zooming past the likes of
 Jupiter at warp speed.

 ``F22 Total Air War,'' slated for release this fall, puts players in the
 cockpit of the ultra-combat flight simulation. The latest in the renowned
 franchise of developer DID's ``F22'' titles, players engage not only in
 aerial combat, but also have the chance to plan strategy from the point
 of view of an AWACS commander. ``F22 Total Air War'' will be available in
 October under the Ocean brand of titles.

 Console Cravings

 For its console lineup, Infogrames has five titles scheduled for release
 through the fall: ``GT 64 Championship Edition'' and ``Starshot'' for the
 N64; and ``Asterix,'' ``Smurfs'' and ``Lucky Luke'' for the PlayStation.
 ``GT 64,'' developed by Imagineer, takes to the streets in a series of
 short and long track races, which include officially licensed GT cars
 from Honda, Toyota and Nissan. The simulation racer will be available by
 mid-September under the Ocean brand.

 ``Starshot,'' formerly known as ``Space Circus,'' is available in
 December under the Ocean brand. The title introduces the lovable roving
 juggler Starshot and his whimsical band of interstellar circus
 performers. The ``toon-fiction'' takes players on a fantastical
 exploration of galactic worlds and comical adventures. For the
 PlayStation, Infogrames will present three titles geared specifically
 toward the younger audience. ``Lucky Luke,'' a comical, western-themed
 action/adventure game will debut first, followed soon after by
 ``Asterix'' and ``Smurfs.''

                     Eidos Acquires Gex Game Developer

 September 15, (Tech Web - CMP via COMTEX) -- Eidos Interactive, publisher
 of Tomb Raider, announced last week it has acquired game developer and
 publisher Crystal Dynamics for $47.5 million. Eidos [EDISY] is part of
 London-based Eidos plc. The company develops and publishes entertainment
 titles for the PC, Sony PlayStation, and Nintendo 64. Crystal Dynamics,
 publisher of game franchises Gex and Legacy of Kain, will continue
 developing its own software brands with operations remaining unchanged,
 according to a company statement.

 Their product-release schedule will also stay the same. The Unholy War
 and Akuji the Heartless will be released before the holiday season.
 Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver and Gex 3 will ship in the first quarter of
 1999. Scott Steinberg, Crystal's vice president of marketing, described
 the deal as a win-win situation for all involved. "Eidos was by far our
 No. 1 choice. ...I think they're the most exciting up-and-coming company
 in the industry right now."

 Crystal, which didn't expect to weather the shift to next-generation
 consoles, has spent the past year preparing itself for an acquisition by
 keeping an eye on overhead and maintaining a streamlined staff, Steinberg
 said. Because of this, few layoffs are expected -- though changes will be
 made over the next month and a half. "The company is tailor-made to be
 absorbed by another and not have to go through the trauma that interrupts
 the development process," Steinberg said.

 According to Steinberg, the two companies share similar marketing and
 development philosophies, which will ease the integration process.
 "[Eidos] markets aggressively, they promote in the retail channel
 aggressively and understand the hit-driven [nature] of this business. If
 you can't really get behind your hits and exploit your hits, then you'll
 never get ahead in this business. They understand this," Steinberg said.

                      Psygnosis Denies Takeover Rumors

 Sep. 14, 1998 (MULTIMEDIA WIRE, Vol. 5, No. 177 via COMTEX) - Psygnosis
 late yesterday asserted itself as a wholly-owned subsidiary of
 PlayStation maker Sony Computer Entertainment America, denying widely
 reported rumors that it will be acquired by Eidos. In addition, Psygnosis
 confirms that it laid off 40 staffers from its San Francisco development
 studio as it killed two projects. Both titles were at least two years
 from being published. The move appears to be cost-cutting and, in the
 grand scheme of things, the layoffs are not a huge chunk out of
 Psygnosis' operations. Remaining are more than 800 staffers and about 50
 projects, representing internally developed titles and managed publishing
 projects from outside developers.





 ONLINE WEEKLY STReport OnLine The wires are a hummin'!



                           PEOPLE... ARE TALKING



 Compiled by Joe Mirando
 jmirando@streport.com

 Well friends and neighbors, this is a very rare occasion! It seems that I
 don't have much to say this week. Can you believe it? There's the Clinton
 thing that's still being hashed out around the world, but I'm tired of it
 already. There's the fact that CompuServe will be discontinuing ASCII
 access in The Computer Club Forum starting this Sunday (the 20th), but
 I've been assured that there is no amount of bluster or venom that will
 change that situation. There is the fact the Atari userbase is getting
 smaller and smaller, but that's old news, isn't it?

 Heck, I remember giving a talk at an Atari show (it seems like only
 yesterday) about the need for timely news in the computer world, and how
 the new field of "digital journalism" offered access to current news and
 happenings in a way never imagined before. "Sometimes the news is so
 fresh it's still bleeding", I told the audience. Although it got some
 chuckles because of ongoing flame-wars with various factions of the
 "Thought Police", most people understood the value of news-on-demand and
 what it might be able to do for them.

 It kind of reminds me of a scene from one of the Star Trek movies... STAR
 TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME, I think it was. Our favorite galaxy-saving crew
 was standing on the earth of the 1980's and came upon a newspaper stand.
 They stood there and waited for the headlines to change and when they
 didn't, they realized that it was a printed news paper. "My God", said
 one of them, "it's a wonder we ever got out of the 20th century"!

 That may sound a bit dramatic, but stop and think a moment about the
 state of computing and the leaps it has made in just the last twenty five
 years. In 1973, computers were still at-least-desk-sized monstrosities
 that had to be pampered and protected. It was inconceivable that an
 individual could own and use one, because of the expense and technical
 expertise required. Then came the Altos and the Apple. They put computing
 power into the hands of the individual.True, you had to build it yourself
 from the parts provided, but it was a start. With the introduction of the
 Apple II, along with a few others, all you really had to do was to shell
 out the money and you could compute! In '79 I was attending college and
 got hooked on computers, even though I knew right from the start that I'd
 never be a programmer. Class assignments that took me two or three flow
 chart pages and several hours to complete were done by others in half an
 hour and took up less than a page. Sure, my programs worked, but they
 were never as efficient or elegant as others. So I settled on enjoying
 the programming work of others. The next semester, the college popped for
 modems for our Apple II's. We connected up to a local University's
 mainframe and stored our classwork there. The modems were
 state-of-the-art Hayes models with smoked acrylic cases and rainbow
 ribbon cables connecting them to the computers. They also transmitted
 data at a rip-roaring 300 baud. Sure, there were people who could type
 faster than that (if you figure in error checking and system lag), but
 _I_ couldn't. And I guess that no one had thought of off-line reading and
 composition for personal computers yet, but everything was done online.
 There was no such thing as uploading a picture file (Why would there be?
 The monitors could only display ASCII anyway), so everything was text.

 When I finish typing, cutting, and pasting this column, I'll be
 compressing it in ZIP format and uploading it to another editor at 56K.
 Yes, yes, I know... it's really only 52,000 baud, but we'll call it
 56,000 just for the heck of it. That's somewhere on the order of 186
 times the speed of that old Hayes modem. If someone had told me all those
 years ago that I'd be telecommunicating at that speed, I would have told
 them to go back to watching Star Trek, and called them a fool as they
 walked away. At that time, I hadn't envisioned the ability to upload data
 files or do things off-line. Many others didn't either, and we had to
 play catch-up once things got going. Now, everyone wants the 'eye candy'.
 Lots of graphics and pretty colors to amuse you while you learn whatever
 it is that you're trying to learn. And that's not necessarily a bad
 thing. The bad part is when thepretty colors, moving pictures, and
 bold-faced text become more important than the content and, because of
 the large file sizes, actually keep you from finding what it is that
 you're looking for. Of course, just because the FCC has limited
 communications over telephone lines to 56K, that doesn't mean that you'll
 never be able to go faster than that. Cable modems are becoming more
 common (of course you've got to have cable for that), and satellite
 modems may soon appear that will allow you to receive data from a
 satellite dish and send data through your phone lines (but what you send
 is normally much less than the data transmitted back to you). And I'm
 sure that the near future will see more cool things that most of us have
 never envisioned.

 So will these advances put an end to the "World Wide Wait"? In the long
 run, I doubt it. Imagine three dimensional real-time images, spoken
 commands and responses, and virtual reality elements on the web, and you
 can also imagine the huge amounts of overhead that will be needed in both
 computing power and communications ability. It seems that no matter how
 fast we can go, there will always be one bottleneck or another to remind
 us that we are not omnipotent. And perhaps that's as it should be.

 Now let's get on with the news, hints, and tips...



 From the comp.sys.atari.st NewsGroup

 Kenneth Medin asks about using his TT to a monitor:

 "Is it possible to use a TT with a svga monitor in monochrome mode? This
 would mean TT high i suppose. I have a strong feeling this does not work,
 but a friend says the opposite. He will come over to my place tomorrow
 with his TT to try this out. Is there any danger involved when connecting
 a modern pc monitor to a TT?"

 Tim Conrardy tells Kenneth:

 "There is no danger hooking up a svga monitor to a TT...that is what I
 use. It is a standard 15 pin connector. As far as getting TT Hi res on
 it.. I think you need a graphics card with that."

 Roger Cain adds:

 "Hummm .... he's 'half' right, I suppose. You can run ST-High Res. from a
 TT on an SVGA but you CANNOT run TT-High Res. So 'monochrome' - yes: TT
 High -no. Danger? I don't think so. There is a special mono-detect line
 on the monitors which will support TT-High. Without this the TT will not
 allow you to select the mode."

 Last week we heard someone ask about implementing JAVA for CAB, and the
 answer seemed to be "who needs it?"

 Ken Springer posted:

 "It was just recently pointed out to me that without JAVA, you cannot
 have secure websites for doing business on the web. Apparently, HTML does
 not support the encryption necessary to protect your credit card number,
 for instance, as it travels from you to the vendor when buying a
 product."

 Steve Hammond tells Ken:

 "I just recently got a nice US Robotics Modem from MicroWarehouse over
 their web page using SS (secure sockets), which I beleive is the
 currently accepted method for these types of transactions, with CAB 2.7
 Demo and CAB.OVL 1.3011b with STiK. Order went thru without a hitch.
 Interesting enough when I tried the first time from work using NetScape
 3.0 I kept getting an "Address Field" incorrect error from MW's server.
 Tried at home on the trusty ol' TT and did not have a problem <smile>."

 Charles Silver tells Steve:

 "CAB.OVL1.3011 doesn't support SSL. You don't need JAVA either for SSL.
 It's a separate encryption. MicroWarehouse doesn't use/need SSL browsers.
 I do have a broker account that does. Whatever, it's nice to know that
 CAB/ CAB.OVL did work properly for you to send in your order. That's a
 big plus. Hope Atari dealers would implement the same."

 "Jim at Studio 9" adds his thoughts:

 "I think the JAVA/CAB issue is an interesting one for TOS. If it is
 unlikely that anything less than the new clones could support JAVA and if
 it is unlikely that anyone is prepared to port it then well ... we've got
 to do without it! I am a passionate Atari user but I accept that my
 beloved STe is 15 year old technology. Face facts our platform will
 increasingly come a cropper of new software technologies that demand fast
 processors and large memories. But this is OK!! It's horses for courses
 as I've said before. An Atari remains an extremely productive tool but if
 you want to render broadcast quality video, master 32 tracks of digital
 audio, or even just fiddle with JAVA then think again. I assure you aint
 missing much! What we can do ... a plug-in for CAB that at least
 recognizes all the new formats and (1) prevents a system crash and (2)
 tells you what you might have had ie-where a shockwave movie should
 appear CAB could say "Non-TOS file embedded here!" or something, a
 160x120 vivo movie would generate a 160x120 pixel message on screen
 saying "Movie format - not supported by TOS" etc. We can also bully
 people into adhering to a multi-bandwidth/multi-platform design model,
 after all most computers out there in cyberspace are 486s and 680x0 MACs
 anyway. Javascript might be a more viable option - Gemscript? -
 Particularly if it 'emulated' Javascript and was in non- bloatware
 optimized assembler or something .... ?"

 K. Hampf asks:

 "Is Cab supposed to work with Yahoo as of yet? I sure can't get it
 working with Cab 2.7/OVL 3.011b/STiNG. And I have tried different time
 and GMT settings."

 John Logan tells K.:

 "I normally have no difficulty with "commercial" CAB (version 2 perhaps)
 and STiK. After reading your message, I tried Yahoo using OVL 1.3011b and
 got a message I had not seen before viz Post Got Redirected. Clicking on
 Re-post seemed to get things going again."

 James Aubrey asks:

 "Are there any programmes out there to transfer data from palmtop
 PCs/Organizers to the ST. I am considering buying one, although I have
 access to a PC and can run ACSII files via disks, I would perfere to do
 it directly."

 Nick Bales tells James:

 "As far as palmtop PCs go, as long as they are DOS compatible and have a
 serial or parallel port then it's the same as with any PC: ghostlink,
 parcp, paralink, Zmodem... There is a page somewhere that deals with
 connecting the Atari to a PalmPilot or to Psion S3. Do web search on
 that."

 Derryck Croker tells James:

 "Perhaps the best supported palmtop is the Psion Series 3X and Sienna
 range, there is a suite of utilities written by Keith Baines that will do
 practically all you want including searching database files and
 converting from Psion's WRD format Word files to ASCII. There's an OPL
 editor too. It's not on the web AFAIK but you can get it from the FaST
 Club."

 Jim Logan tells us that he...

 "... purchased this CD ROM recently. It contains a lot of stuff but it
 recommends that folders are copied to hard disk before running the
 programs. Problem is, all the files are write protected so that once you
 have copied a folder to your hard disk, you will have to reset the
 read/write status on every file if you want to delete the folder. The
 Calamus 96 demo, for instance, has 147 files in 13 folders. That's a
 fairly boring task for one demo alone. Better surely to have set them all
 to read-and-write (perhaps not as safe but overall better)."

 Claes Holmerup tells Jim:

 "I believe the problem is that since the files are on CD-ROM, the
 computer sees them as write-protected (since you can't write to a CD-ROM)
 and keeps that status when you copy them to your harddisk. I'm not sure
 if there's anything to do about it, but it would have been nice... A task
 for Kobold maybe?"

 Michael Olin adds something that I was thinking myself:

 "Seems to me I recall that ExtenDOS had this as an option, that you could
 configure it to NOT set the write-protect bit on each file when it was
 copied to the harddrive... Of course, that would mean that NO filecopied
 from a CD would ever be auto-write protected but then that pretty safe
 considering the CD will still always contain the original."

 Niall Moran asks:

 "Is cab 2.7 available in english yet, apart from the demo. Has System
 Solutions got round to selling it over here."

 CJohns tells Niall:

 "[I] Phoned them yesterday - it's coming, but not yet...."

 Paul Nurminen asks about an Alert Box in CAB:

 "A strange (to me anyway) dialog box has been popping up in CAB lately
 that I've never seen before. BTW: I'm using CAB 2.5 with the Beta OVL
 1.3011 (under MagiC 5.11). At seemingly random moments while clicking my
 way around various web pages, I get the following dialog box:

 ---------------------------------------------------

 "Post got redirected!"

 "Get this" "Re-post" "Cancel"

 ---------------------------------------------------

 (With "Get this" the default selection)

 Hitting RETURN or clicking continues with whatever CAB was doing, but the
 box often reappears shortly after. What's going on here? I'm not posting
 anything (ie. not trying to send any e-mail), just browsing. At first I
 thought perhaps the site I was on had moved some of it's pages elsewhere,
 but after experimenting a bit, this doesn't seem to be the case. Is this
 something attributable to the beta OVL? If so, what purpose does it
 serve? More importantly, how do I make it stop?"

 Chris Gray tells Paul:

 "I don't use CAB 2.5 (hey, I *will* order it sometime!), but this sounds
 very like the behavior which started puzzling lynx users a year or so
 ago: URL: http://www.crl.com/~subir/lynx/why.html .

 The site in question is doing something questionable in HTTP terms, and
 lynx/CAB is asking if you really want to go along with this. Other,
 lesser (but strangely popular) browsers don't notice that something odd
 is happening, so the badly programmed script continues to proliferate."
 Peter Rottengatter, the author of STinG, adds his two hundredths of a
 dollar's worth: "If you're a newbie, then you shouldn't use beta
 versions. Beta versions are such because the author knows they might
 contain bugs the effects of which are very hard to separate from the
 effects of a newbie's misconfiguration. It's the Microsoft world that
 made everyone believe that betas are just as good as final software.
 Maybe it's because Windows never made it out of beta status ..."

 A bit abrasive perhaps, but he does have a point. <grin>

 [He has a point alright..... At the top of his head! Rfm.... <vbg>]

 Paul Nurminen asks:

 "Is it possible for a PC (Win98) to read an Syquest EZ135 from an Atari
 (or the other way around)? In the past, I've transfered files to and from
 PCs with floppies without problems. However, My roomate (Win98 PC) and I
 (Falcon) were attempting to swap some large audio files - too large for
 floppies, and very time consuming to send as e-mail attachments, and were
 unsuccessful. We both have external SCSI EZ135 drives, but neither of us
 can read the other's format. His PC says the (Atari formatted with ICD)
 cart is UNFORMATTED, and when I try to use the cart formatted by Win98, I
 get error messages - as if there is no cart in the drive. I'm pretty sure
 the Win98 FAT32 filing systems is one of, if not THE problem, but my
 roomate doesn't know how to format the cart any other way. I've seen
 mention of a utility here called st2dos, but have not tried it. Is this
 for floppies only? Any suggestions or help, or am I trying to do the
 impossible?"

 Terry Kelly tells Paul:

 "It is possible if you use HD Driver on the ST. HD driver will read the
 PC formatted cart on your ST, although there may be a partition size
 limit depending on what version of TOS you are using."

 Well friends, that's about it for this time around. Tune in again next
 week, same time, same station, and be ready to listen to what they are
 saying when...

                             PEOPLE ARE TALKING







                             EDITORIAL QUICKIES



                               Fun with Words



    * Foreploy: any misrepresentation about yourself for the purpose of
      obtaining sex.
    * Fortissimoe: the musical moment produced when someone serially slaps
      the faces of the first-violin section.
    * Tatyr: a lecherous Mr. Potato Head.
    * Doltergeist: a spirit that decides to haunt someplace stupid, such as
      your septic tank.
    * Giraffiti: vandalism spray-painted very, very high, such as the
      famous "Surrender Dorothy" on the Beltway overpass.
    * Sarchasm: the gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the
      recipient who doesn't get it.
    * Contratemps: the resentment permanent workers feel toward the fill-in
      workers.
    * Coiterie: a very VERY close-knit group.
    * Whitetater: a political hot potato.
    * Impotience: eager anticipation by men awaiting their Viagra
      prescription.
    * Reintarnation: coming back to life as a hillbilly.
    * DIOS: the one true operating system.
    * Inoculatte: to take coffee intravenously when you are running late.
    * Hipatitis: terminal coolness.
    * Writer's tramp: a woman who practices poetic licentiousness.
    * Taterfamilias: the head of the Potato Head family.
    * Guillozine: a magazine for executioners.
    * Adulatery: cheating on your wife with a much younger woman who holds
      you in awe.
    * Emasculathe: a tool for castration.
    * Burglesque: a poorly planned break-in. (See: Watergate)
    * Genitaliar: an image-enhancing object that can be carried in a man's
      front pocket.
    * Glibido: all talk and no action.
    * Eunouch: the pain of castration.
    * Hindkerchief: really expensive toilet paper; toilet paper at
      Buckingham palace.
    * Hozone: the area around 14th street.
    * Dopeler effect: the tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when
      they come at you rapidly.
    * Hindprint: indentation made by a couch potato.
    * Intaxication: euphoria at getting a refund from the IRS, which lasts
      until you realize it was your money to start with.





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