1997 10 canadian computer wholesaler by The Computer Paper

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AMacByAnyOtherName?GuessNgt When Apple officially t eamed up with t h e c ore of a l l t h a t i s Wintel — M i crosoft, we thought that was

really shaking the tree. But now Apple has pulled up roots on that business with the announcement it has no plans to license MacOS 8.0 to adherents of the Common Hardware Reference Platform (CHRP). (For more on the story, see "Apple abandons clone experiment," page 12.) That effectively cuts off sapling cloners from tasting the fruits of the future generation of Mac-compatible sales. Back when Apple finally decided to start licensing its operating system to cloners, many observers mourned it was more than a decade too late. But prevailing wisdom said Apple needed that broader support to grow market-share for its platform. In March, market research firm Computer Intelligence published figures indicating Mac clonevendors were helping the Mac OS platform take market share from the X86 platform in the U.S. dealer channel. So, does Apple have a grand master plan, or is this just sour grapes? As a co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs was of course pivotal in Apple's early days decision to keep cloners off the market. The closedarchitecture and the accompanying higher Macintosh prices did little to halt t h e c o m petitive r u s h o f the IBM/Intel/Microsoft players and cloners, despite a far-flung admiration of Apple's technology. Now that Jobs is back at the helm as i n terim C EO, ( Please see "People," page 60), he was no doubt central in the return to the OS/hardware fortress mentality. This is a marked contrast to the eventual strategy he pursued at NeXT Computer, where Jobs actually sold off the hardware business, and concentrated on trying to market NeXTStep across hardwareplatforms. Stephen Cheung,sales manager for Discount Mac Club in Richmond, B.C., s aid the presence of c l ones i n t h e Macintosh market has driven down prices and encouraged more shoppers to buy into the Mac option. "People could afford to buy a Mac." He predicts, without clones in the future Macintosh market: "We' re not going to see prices as competitive as last year." However, he said the Macintosh will still have a market among certain buyers, although they may complain about higher 6

prices. Discount Mac Club sells Apple, Power Computing, Umax and Motorola options. A sister business — Discount Computer Club, sells Intel-compatibles. Reduced competition in that market (particularly if prices rise, as pundits fear), could easily hand any momentum the Mac market as a whole has achieved back to the Intel-basedPCs. Resellers who have based their businesses on the young Mac cloners may soon be scrambling. Some will follow Power Computing's lead and turn to Intelbased sales opportunities. But not all. In September, Macintosh dealer WestWorld Computers Ltd. launched a major B.C. expansion, opening stores in Victoria, Prince George, Vancouver and Kelowna. The 19-year-old business already had stores in Edmonton, Calgary and Red Deer. "We saw an opportunity present itself. Our market is growing," said Stephen Boone, sales manager for WestWorld in Edmonton. "We' rethere to meet the needs of ourspecialized users — our graphics, education and business customers." A r ecent r e port b y Co m p uter Intelligence says Apple has more brand loyalty than any other computer vendor. The firm reported that four in five Apple Macintosh users who purchased a computer in 1996 bought another Macintosh. Regarding Apple's decision to not licenseMacOS 8, Boone said:"Apple has to make sure it's taken care of itself first. In other news, Future Shop will no longer

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Publisher David Ritter Associate Publishers Judy Prange Hari Singh Khalsa Editor Grace Casselmaii

(gracec@netcom.ca) Associate Editor Jeff Evans (jeff@tcpon.corn) Contributing Writers Graeme Bennett Tim Bingham-Wauis Jazz Bhooi Russ Cobbe Gary Davies Douglas Gray ;,Ii"-,',:,";;I.'p, Steve Hahnda Stephen Ibaraki David Rosen David Tanaka Alan Thwaits Geof Wheelwright Paul Weinberg Alan Zisman

Production Stuff Sherly Ho Karin Hsrtwig Jana Kolar

Key Account Manager(Enst) Tino Wong (tinointcpon.corn) Key Account Mnnnger(West) Jamie Lcighton (jamie®tcp.ca) Account Mnnegers Marsha Miller (marsha@tcpon.corn) Frank Houston (frankintcpon.corn) Controller Christine McPhie Accounting Farida Aini Circulation Scott Rice Esther Palivoda Founders Kent Liqin Chen Li Ding

be selling Macintoshes. Dennis Manning, directorof corporate communications for Apple Canada, said in September, Apple Canada andFuture Shop came to"a mutual agreement to end the business relationship." He cited differing target customers as the main cause, as Future Shop aims at consumers, and Apple is targeting high-end multimedia customers. This month, be sure to stop in at our Lab Test (page 28), for the best of business laser printers under $3,000. Also on the peripherals front, don't miss: "The Big Picture: A Look At Monitors and Displays For I998, In High-Resolution," (page 22). Meanwhile, we' ll watch the pruning and planting over at Apple, to see what fruit it all may yield. Drop us an E-mail with your thoughts, or visit our discussion

g roup, o n CC W ' s W e b si t e , a t http: //www.ccw.corn. WCC W Grace Casselman

CA N A DIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 hn pttwwwccwmag.corn

Editor

Canadian Computer Wholesaler is published 12 times a year by Canada Computer Paper Inc. Toronto Qffico

J)gi„;j(fl:;,

Suite 408 - 99 Atlantic Ave. Toronto, Ont. Canada M6K 3J8 Tel: (4163 535-8404 Fax: (4163 588-8574

Vancouver Office Suite 503-425 Carralt St. Vancouver, B.C. Canada V6B 6E3 Teh (604) 608-2688 Fax: (6043 608-2686

Taipei Office pRIsco Tel: 886-2-71l-4833 Fax: 886-2-74I-5 i 1 0 Internet E-mau address:ccwitcp.ca Web Site: http:I/www.ccwmag.corn Subscription applications and change of address notices must be made ia writing to one of the above addresses. Free subscription io qouined individuals, $110 per year for nonqualified subscribers. Contents ofCeuutian Computer Wholesalersubject to copyright. Material and advertising designed byCandian Computer Wholesaler in this publication may not be reproduced in any form without per-

mission. All rights deserved.Theopinions expressed in articles are not necessarily those of the publisher. Printed ia Canada Postage paid in Vancouver B.C. 197322399

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I did want to askabout acomment in Alan Zisman's article entitled "Clone CPUsChallenge intel At Both Ends." (CCW August, page57.) I was hoping that youwould beable to point metowards a source of information that discussesthese limitations. This would bevery important and interesting to meas it would assist me in selecting CPUsfor myclients. I consult and sell hardwareandsoftware to small businesses andhomeowners. I always enjoythe information supplied in CCWandespecially the honest writing displayed in Mr.Zisman's articles. Manyarticles in other publications orother forms of media report on the computer businessbut never darewrite anything that even suggests there may be aninferior component on the market or a bug existing in somesoftware. While I am new, I doknowthere are manyproblems with products. In fact it is these problems that cause methe most headaches. Onthe other side, it is theseproblemsthat help keepmein business. PeterLeidenfrost, owner AspenComputerServices, Mission, B.C.

I know this is a late response to your article in the June '97 issue. The Comdex show in January was my first experience and I dobelieve from that there should be an age limit. There were somanystudents attending that it was often difficult to talk with sales reps. Onerep I spoke with was very upsetwiththe vastnumbers ofnon-business related persons and particularly students at the show taking up valuable time. She was very abrupt in dealing with students and I might add rude to them. However, shewas simply reacting due to frustration. Your article mentioned several very brilliant young people whowould fall underthe age limit. My suggestion: They shouldcontact someoneinthe computer industry for a special interest pass. Allen Pauls, purchasingagent Docs Computers, Penticton,B.C. apauls@silk.net

Cefamlist Ahe2hmee nesfrunzfL ThePentiumProis apowerful CPUdesign. Nevertheless, there are several limitations, whichwere widely discussed. 1. Theintegration of the Level2 cachewithin the samechip as the CPUitself leads toquick accessof thecacheby the CPU,but results in a large designthat requires quite a bit of power, andis expensive ro produce.Oneresult hasbeen no PentiumPronotebooks; anotheris that Intelitself hasabandonedthe design in favor of putting the CPUandcacheonto a card, as discreet components, in the Pentium II, andfuture products. 2. 7hePentiumFfo wasoptimized for running32-bit code.Itis lessefficient at running 16-bitcode. Becauseofits speedandpower it doesanokayjoh running 16bit Windows3.land 16MB/32MBhybrid Win95, but doesn'tdo aswell with thoseoperating environments asother CPUdesigns(including AMD's KBjrunningat thesamespeed. Thereare a numberof pluses for thePenlium Pro.Inparticular, there are motherboard designsthat support lwo, fourandevenmorePentium Pros. Forhigh-end servers requiring multi processors,it's currently thebest choice, asthe Pentium II lacks thesamerange of support at this time.Intel, however,is not continuingdevelopmentof the Pentium Pro. We' re seeing its speed top out at around 200MHzto 233MHz, while PentiumII designs arealready at 300MHz, withmodelsgoing to400MHzpromised for the next year.

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Clarification: The screen shots included in our recent special report on POSsoftware, (CCW,Septemberissue, page46), were of the WinPOS product, distributed by LogicControls Canada Inc. For more information on the company, see http: //www.logic-ca.corn/. We welcome your letters on industry issues and concerns, as well as yourcommentson oarmagazine. We reaawatheright to edit yourcontributions for lengthandclarity. Please write to The Editor, via E-mail at ccw@tcp.ca, or fax: I604) 608-2686.

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The small business sector, including many computer VARs and resellers, has in recent decades become the principal engine of new job creation in Canada. However, many small businesses that would like to take advantage of marketing and selling opportunities via the World Wide Web have been deterred by the cost and complexity of on-line commerce solutions. On Sept. 9, a t t h e I n ternet C ommerce Expo show i n L o s Angeles, IBM introduced the Net.Commerce START which is an entrylevel version aimed at small businesses with the emphasis on extreme ease

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Digital has recalled some AC power adapters D igital E q uipment C o rp. h a s announced avoluntary recall of AC power adapters(the external power supplies that regulate power from an external source to a notebook) for the HiNote VP 500 line of notebook PCs. According to Digital, the recall is to address a potential problem with the connector pins on the adapters, which if broken could pose a hazard

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High-tech virtual pets banned in school (NB) â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Beeping pagers in classrooms around the U.S. were banned ~ in various schools over the past years, but today, new disturbing beeps are emerging. The latest disruptive classroom beep comes from Tamagotchi "virtual pets," which are no longer allowed in one California elementary school, Like most fads, the small egg-shaped devices became highly sought-after toys as soon as they began shipping in May of this year. Using an embedded chip, Tamagotchi, or one of its "look-a-likes," will hatch an electronic pet which "lives" in a liquid crystal display. Typical of a pet, chores such as feeding, cleaning, affecnon, health care and attention must be provided by the owner. Tamagotchi has embedded display, audio, randomization and other features but lacks the artificial intelligence to realize it is in school. Officials at Bay Farm Elementary School in Alameda, Calif., announced a ban on Tamagotchi or any electronic pet from the entire school. A spokesperson for the school said:. "Students are going to have to leave their electronic pets at home. They are causing a distraction in the classroom." The result of leaving Tamagotchi unattended is illness and eventual death. Students can play electronic games with Tamagotchi and the goal is to keep Tamagotchi alive as long as possible. Electronic pets are becoming a worldwide epidemic. Reports indicate similar bans were issued in Australia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Hong Kong and other locations.

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Indications are Apple Computer Inc. has called it quits on the cloning front. Recently, Apple's chief financial officer,Fred Anderson, said, "We have no plans at this time to license MacOS 8 for CHRP (common hardware reference platform), CHRP certification, or future notebook computer technologies."

Hewlett-Packardhas announced a collaborative relationship with Japan's Mitsubishi Electric Corp. to "enable the two companies to combine Mitsubishi's super-thin keyboard, battery and LCD display technology and manufacturing strengths with HP's notebook PC system expertise, distribution and support infrastructure." The announcement was made by HP with the intention of expanding its product line with the thinnest, lightest notebook PCs yet brought to market, says the company. A preliminary 'concept' notebook was demonstrated in order to show the physical natureof the new notebook PC architecture. The new product is intended to weigh 3.1 pounds, be based on the latest low voltage Intel Pentium MMX 200MHz and 233MHz chips, be less than one inch thick, with a 12.1-inch TFT screen. Danny Savard, business development manager for HP Canada's mobile products stated: "HP's collaboration with Mitsubishi is a significant step in our strategy to ignite growth in the notebook PC market-place.We' ve already made great strides by expanding our product line, and this new relationship will go even further in our effortsto meet the varied needs of today's corporate customer." If HP can differentiate itself from the competition by launching a radically improved mobile computing platform, it may be able to use the new mix of technology to leapfrog the better established competition, at least temporarily. For more information, contact http: // www.hp.corn/omnibook, http: //www.hp.corn/ go/smallbusiness, or http: //www.hp.corn/go/ pcworkstation, or call: 1-800-387-3867. CCW

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end to Apple's Macintosh clone experiment. Without a licence to use MacOS 8 on a CHRPbased computer system or without certification of a CHRP-based system, clone-makers cannot build and sell systems competitive to the new generation of Macs that Apple plans for next year. Apple shared that news, after announcing its recent acquisition of Mac cloner Power Computing Corp.'s core assets in a deal valued at US$100 million in Apple common stock. Power Computing will, however, keep its name, and the company has already launched an Intel microprocessor-based family of notebook computers called PowerTrip. Apple and Umax Computer Corp. announced a deal that will permit Umax to bundle MacOS 8.0 on existing Mac clones. The agreement expires next July. Motorola Corp. has announced it will exit the Mac clone business, because it has "not been able to reach an acceptable longt erm l i censing a greement w it h A p p l e Computer Inc.," said Motorola's vice-president of investor relations Ed Gams. The company says the decision will result in lowerthan-expectedQ3 earnings.

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Informlx Canada restructures I nformix Software (Canada) Inc. h a s announced a restructuring. The restructuring is part of a worldwide plan initiated by its parent, Informix Software, Inc., with a goal "to improve the company's long-term profitability and continued growth." Informix's Canadian workforce is being reduced by 18 people, primarily in the areas of management, finance, sales and marketing. As part o f t h e r estructuring, Don Jackson has been named country manager, Informix Software (Canada) Inc. David Outhwaite, past general manager of the Canadian operations, has left the company.

Things are zooming along for Calgary's own w o rld leader. We' re very excited because DiscoverWare Inc. This summer, that devel- w h at Drake brings to the table for us in oper of interactive multimedia training softb r e adth and depth of experience to be truly ware announced a private placement of more e f f ective on a global basis." than three million d o llars b y D r a ke He saidDiscoverWare willgo beyond (Luxembourg) SarL — a member of th e ed u cational titles to skills assessment and Drake International group of companies. resource-typeproducts for businesses. As part of th e deal, DiscoverWare In September, DiscoverWare Inc. entered into cross-licensing arrangements a p pointedWilliamDormanaschairmanof its with Drake company ComputerPRP of bo a rd. Dorman is CEO of several Drake Phoenix. ComputerPREP may distribute In t ernational companies. He replaces Todd DiscoverWare's CD-ROM products under Y o u man who has resigned to return to the the ComputerPREP private label. An d se c urities industry, in Ontario. DiscoverWare will distribute ComputerPREP Meanwhile,the company has teamed up products and services and with Ingram Micro use the ComputerPREP (Canada) Inc. for a Web@ssessor product to promotion called Easy ' manufacture and distribRider, where VARs ute DiscoverWare prodget points by selling DiscoverWare products. ucts t ha t c a n be Drake now owns 43 redeemed t o w ards per centof the company. DiscoverWare president leather jackets, mountain bikes and HarleyMichael Anthony said: "

"This i s a s i g n i ficant Discoverware' presi sdent MichaelAnthonyandIngramMicro's Davidson S Portster senior manager,technical services, Al Nasturzio. motorcycles. a lliance wit h t r ul y a

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There's nothing like fresh air, lovely scenery and an errant golf ball or two as a backdrop for expanding business relationships, as Canadian channel players can attest to. Indeed the channel has been out in full force, swinging clubs, hitting balls at trees, sand and even on occasion, the greens. In late August, 112 industry people showed up at Silver Lakes Golf sic Country Club in Newmarket, Ont., for the Second Annual Local Area Network Dealers Association (LANDA) Golf Tournament and banquet. LANDA is a non-profit professional association, dedicated to the on-going training of Canadian networking resellers, systems integrators and consultants. Also this summer, the Canada Chinese Computer Association's Third Annual Golf Tournament drew 140 computer industry and associated professionals to the Sleepy Hollow Golf and Country Club, in Stouffville, Ont. Then, 144 Western golfers swung their clubs at the Western Canadian Computer Distributors Society (WCCDS), at the Mayfair Lakes course in Vancouver. And NEC went big-time, as a major sponsor of this summer' s Export-A Skins Game in Whistler, B.C., where Greg Norman triumphed over Jack Nicklaus, Fred Couples and Nick Faldo. Meanwhile, as cold w eather looms, Canada's computer industry golfers are squeezing in their last few ee days at the driving sseelslcl range, in preparation for next year' s rounds. Fore! ItQII

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%Vit'i M by David Rosen Like some horror-movie elevator ride, PC prices are dramatically plunging out-of-control. You know it and your customers know it. Not only are computers cheap, they' re getting cheaper every month. How low can PC prices go? How low should they go? It seems that the computer is becoming a simple commodity, bought and sold like a toaster or a pair of blue jeans. Most resellers have long recognized the irony of selling better technology at lower prices. Historically, however, falling prices have been offset by steeperincreases in consumer demand and, consequently, increased revenues. The problem is this trend appears to be changing. According to Albert Daoust, an analyst at Toronto-based Evans Research Corp., demand is up for new machines but supply is up even more, leading to falling prices. "This year'saverage selling price of a desktop computer is $1,835, down over $200 from lastyear's price of $2,070," warns Daoust. "That represents more than an 11 per cent drop in j ust one year," he adds. Meanwhile, demand for desktop systems are up only an three per cent from last year' s numbers. While the forecast for desktop systems is rather depressing, some resellers point to the increases in laptop computer sales to buoy their spirits. While it's true that laptop sales are experiencing healthy growth, it's too early to tell if long-term relief can be found in chasing t h e t e c hnology a d option c u r ve. Numerically speaking, sales of laptop systems areup approximately 24 per cent compared with 1996 according to Evans' Daoust. But prices for laptops are falling as well. "In 1996, the average price of a laptop was $3,580, now it's about $3,070."

Up And Down With Santa Clara, Calif.-based Intel Corp. readyinganotherround of chip price cuts for the fall, does that mean that even more price drops are on the way? Not necessarily says Ralph Hyatt, Compaq Canada's product marketing manager and the company's point person for p roduct l ifecycle management. 16

"Average selling prices sometimes go up when Intel cuts prices, because customers will decide to buy a higher-end system whose price has just been lowered, rather than take the low-end model," he explains. Traditional channel vendors such as Compaq are also moving to lower prices and trim their on-hand inventories. The company recently cut suggested list prices on 10 notebook PCs in its Armada line and four models of its ProSignia 200 server, with reductions ranging from five to 16 per cent. A few months ago, Compaq slashed prices on three popular Deskpro models, some up to 24 per cent.

What's Going Onl A number offactors combined, are responsible for the price drops, including the fact that the PC is becoming increasingly cheaper to manufacture. Some industry watchers theorize that PC prices will fall below $1,200 in the next year or so. Meanwhile, as consumers become more comfortable with technology, they are more willing to buy based on price ratherthan brand name appeal. The commercialmarket tends put more emphasison performance, service and support, so it is less likely to gravitate toward the lowest price machines. As supply chases demand, manufacturers are slashing prices to keep up with direct sellers such as Dell Computer Corp. and Gateway 2000 Inc. A few weeks ago, Dell established a new stand-alone business unit for the consumer market. According to Paul Bell,general manager of Dell's consumer and small-business group, the company's home PC sales in the Americas grew by more than 90 per cent in the most recent quarter. "Consumers alreadyrepresent about US$1 billion in annual Dell sales in the United States alone," says Bell. "But we think that' s just the beginning." Perhaps more ominous for consumerfocused resellers is the news that Dell has tripled its marketing budget for the home PC segment from a year ago. Additionally the company has gone on record as saying it would strengthen its customer service and

CA N A DIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 3997 ht tp/twwwccwmag.corn

support offerings, two important advantages of traditional storefront resellers.

Now The Good News Dell, of course, has no storefront locations so it can't sell to those consumers who want to touch andfeelthe products before they buy them (a category which includes many first time consumers). In addition, Dell seems to be targetingmore experienced end-user con sumers who know their way around a corn puter. Dell's Web site â&#x20AC;&#x201D; especially attractive for experiencedcomputer buyers â&#x20AC;&#x201D; generates about US$2 million in sales every day according to the company. Resellers should take heart, recognizing that most consumer products eventually stick at a certain price point. Remember pocket calculators? After dropping dramatically in price, manufacturers starting adding features to stabilize the market. Perhaps at a price level of $1,200 for bare-bones PCs, computer manufacturers will stop cutting prices? Compaq's Hyatt remains sanguine despite the uncertainty. "Smart resellers will survive, and do well, even with the falling prices," he asserts.

Fasten Your Seatbelts Still, while buyers cheer the dwindling prices the effect on the industry may be devastating and, in the long run, not likely to be in any one's best interests. Lower prices and a barely moving market mean that some manufacturers are likely to fail while others will likely become more conservative. Without suffi cient profit margins, many manufacturers won't invest in additional research and devel opment. In turn, resellers will be forced to trim high sales-cost customers and increase margins by even more emphasis on support service and training. Summarizing the feeling of most people in the industry, Evans' Daoust concludes, "the channel is in for a really rocky ride." Itttl David Rosen is a Toronto-based joun>alist who specializesin high-technology reporting He can bereached atDavidYYZ@aol.col

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Buyers, Sellers Seek Ileals At SoftWovld '$7 In Vancouver by David Tanaka If y o u ' re u s e d to Comdex-style computer technology events, attending SoftWorld would be a bit of culture shock. You won't find quartermillion dollar booths or stacks of the latest and greatest. But what you do find are clusters of people earnestly discussing funding, joint ventures and partnerships. That's what SoftWorld is about. Established in 1991 as a bi-annual event, the show now alternates yearly between the east and west coasts, with this year's event back in Vancouver, from Sept. 7-10. The show's slogan describes its raison d' etre: software deals made here. The estimated 700 attendeesfrom three dozen countries cover the complete spectrum of software wheeling and dealing, from code cowboys to venture capitalists to government associations. The Electric Mail Company Inc. is typical of the small developer looking for new opportunities at SoftWorld. The company had some specific goals to achieve at the show, according to Guy Steeves, director of marketi ng with th e V ancouver-based LA ¹ oInternet consultancy. "One thing I want to do is make sure I connect with the Canadian consulates," he said, during the show. The company plans to expand into the U.S., and the consulates there would be able to provide regional information about VARs, distributors and other opportunities. Electric Mail recently announced its AKA service. Aimed at distributed companies that might use a different ISP in each regional office, AKA allows the company to create a consistent mail address through an alias, while behind the scenes, the mail is routed to the correctmail server provided by each ISP.To that end, the company is also looking for a LAN gateway software author/developer. It may seem ironic that a company that specializes in making E-mail more effective would be seekingout face-to-face connections, but Steeves says: "It's the relationshipbuilding that's the key to everything." He says business relationships "can be as virtual as possible but it strengthens and expedites the potential of any relationship if you' ve met 18

Canada to fill information technology posithe person eyeball-to-eyeball." A little-publicized aspect of the software tions which can't be filled by Canadians." business that smaller developers may want to Stockmann is quick to point out that the know about are escrow services. For example, project is not intended to bring in competitors Fort Knox Escrow Services Inc., in Clarkston, to Canada's existing skilled software workers, Ga., a suburb or Atlanta, offers to physically but to fast-track managers with the skills that hold softwaresource code in tamper-proof are needed but do not exist in the labor pool. containers in fireproof vaults — to protect "the "The whole goal behind bringing in tempoheart and soul of the product." That's how raryforeign workers is to have them retrain Tracy Conkin,international account manager Canadians to increase competitiveness for for Fort Knox Escrow, characterized the intel- Canadian industry, and also to increase jobs." lectual property. While this seems like a serStockmann says that for every temporary vice for developers, in fact it serves both the foreign manager a company brings in, it will developer and the licencee, says Conkin. "We create three to four new jobs. However, "we' re provide a legal agreement which the licensee not interested in bringing in a Cobol programand the developer sign saying that if certain mer or a C++ programmer because Canada has conditions are met — for example if the devel- a lot of them. We want to see those positions oper goes bankrupt — then the source code filled by Canadians," she notes. will be released to the licensee, so that the On thelastday of the conference,federal licensee can continue to support themselves or industry minister John Manley delivered a support that product if need be." In other keynote address, and released the final words, it acts like an insurance policy. Information Highway Advisory report entitled: Fort Knox Escrow presently has about Preparing Canada for a Digital World. The 7,000 clients in 37 countries, says Conkin. reportsummarized the 224 recommendations But she notes: "As software continues to be made during Phase I, along with information developed at an exponential rate, I think more on the progress being made. These cover sevpeople are feeling the need for escrow, and eral broad categories of the so-called informafeeling the need to protect their investment or tion highway, including infrastructure, access, help their licensee protect their investment. Canadiancontent,economic and employment It's being proactive about it." factors,and education.The report recomMany of theattendees represented govmends, for example, that a Canadian multimeernment departments and industry associations. dia fund should be established "to support the Tanja Stockmann, projectmanager of the development, production, distribution and SoftwareHuman Resource Council's software marketing of Canadian cultural and multimedevelopment worker pilot project, described dia products," and that government should the needs her project is trying to meet. provide additional funding to public libraries "Canadian indusny has indicated it is facing a to support public access sites. ~L' 'NL' real skills shortage," she says, noting that the Contacts: technology industry has identified seven job descriptions that they are having a difficult time Fort Knox Escrow Services Inc.: filling. Among the jobs crying to be filled are (404) 298-2003 embedded systems software designer, software http:/ /www.fortknoxescrow.corn productsdeveloper, MIS software designer, Electric Mail Co.: multimedia software designer, senior anima- (604) 482-1111 tion effects editor, and software designers for http:/iwww.electric.net telecommunications and services. Software Human Resource Council: The council, working with three govern(613) 237-8551 ment d epartments: H u man Resources http: //www.shric.ca Development Canada, Industry Canada, and Citizenship and Immigration, is working at David Tanakaisa Vancouver-based journalstreamlining the issuing of work permits "that ist and Editor of The Computer Paper. He can allow temporary foreign workers to come to be reached a/ david ®tcp.ca.

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A Look At Monitors And Displays For 1998, In High-Resolution I) >'.I<'(/ ('. >'<>i>s

h>» p,>»t y<..>r has»«..» thc Pc>son«l Co»1pute> colltinuc to change it»»h,>pe, into <1>) 1»»" y ot' no>)-t>adit'-' t i on:>I fo»h'»', Ilicti>teil . bj~":"'c»i>»tome>„:«..buclget»-''new"'. > ' ' I <')i»1» of nctwo>k»1" anti co»acct>v>ty'. »cw encl-i>sc> aced», ,'-":, ' si<":."i <i;:.;.l>)~i"-:'1:.,l- "<'"'"'@<,, ',t>nd new cli»pl;>y tcchnol<) ics <,;t'<!~ '-'.;"qi":.',„::ll ""<"-"',"„'.~~" iM!=, ' <t <"'' The reach <)I per»on;>I con<)rf)uitl'>)g hn»< beef> c'.»Panded '. b y h;>ndhcld device» »uch as the P;>Impilot and t h e ; ' ';.";;-.;,::"""'"' i ~ " - ,.+V«i»do<v» 01) co>nputc>s. Plus limited-I'unction Network :;;a :,Con>puters pX'»)::a»d Network,':;PCs(,:along w>th;:;lay>sh , >l„,,r~"i)>ulth»edi > "l>om<.'" co>nl)»tin<> ky»tc»1» ' >»leg>">ted ','rs>tl>:1 ho»>c thc;>t>cr» and true 'de»l tr>p repl«cement' notcbool»». ,«ncl;>Il these new pcrmut<>tions of personal i»formation ' 4<4'; '""'-.'=,-,.=' <fcviccs have both demanded new display technologies', < ;

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';:i~ionltor cate '<~»'ic«s havel rc>»:>ii'icil 'flic i»ainst;>y (if" c<)>».'-;~ji ,,<I:l jI,'.,'.;~j.,d putcr rc»cllcr». These traditional >nonitors have. become ,;. che;>per;>nd ol'tcn '.Sm;>rter.' and easier to use. Aroi>nd the cclge» ol' this basic <lisph>y >echnology however, a»veird '»1d vv<»>cl<'>'I ill g'» d<'.» Ol »10>'c exotic d> spit>y opt>ons '~%>)I>(: <®', -i» >apidly sprouti»g. Da>ge forn>at clesktop monitors " * >»<.'h, 1.9-.1»oh;i*'a»el I, »gc>' ),'.'»c,."gain>»g lnalkct-.'„»ha>le',"" ~"1 1-7 — .';,'<)).",„".'<p,>'colo> I.t..'ll p:»>el» are availablein' ai dizzying spectitii)'i ol : .:::::,'..'.~ h)r>nats. and large-I'ormat televi»ion sets and flat plasma ' 4"-„:-~-' 4 d i s p lays a<c sta>th1g to link the,i:omputer to the..llome ) idco >n;>rket. All ol' these ch:>nges in the computer display '

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The Old Way Is Still The Best Way (for those on a budget)

and quality. According to NEC, the average 80KHz. A new trend in multimedia monitors is monitor outlives two to three of the desktop to extend the horizontal frequency range down The more some things change, the more at PCs beneath it. Experienced end-users know to 15.75KHz, to make them compatible with least a few other things remain the same. In that the choice of monitor is an important composite NTSC signals. Especially with Qte 1997, there is still a surprisingly healthy long-term decision. This gives resellers a large format TV/computer monitors, this eases < "d'emand for 14-inch monochrome cathode ray good business case to make in support of a the integration of computer with television. '.'~: tube (CRT) desktop monitors, but it's mainly good quality, large-format monitor — it's a The verticalfrequency range of most 'ty computing areas such as point of sale good investment. Large format monitors also, monitors is from about 40Hz to 120Hz. A b network terminal applications. The in spite of falling prices, generally offer a bet- 60Hz display is likely to be very shaky and ' '.tmilla 14-inch color SVGA monitor is ter margin to resellers. uncomfortable to view for long periods. The 'inarkably popular in One of the most excit- most suitable, rock solid display is 90Hz or ing new kids on the monitor above. Most current graphics cards will out,ljwest-end, budget-conblock is the 19-inch format put signals ranging from about 40Hz to retail, education and monitor. With a desktop 150Hz, and picture resolutions ranging from , ess computer market footprint very close to that 320 by 200 pixels to 1,280 by 1,024, or soments, but there isn' t of a 17-inch monitor, 19- times, 1,600 by 1,280 pixels. In general, the ,~ i nt e resting to say about inch monitors offer a much higher the resolution supported at the highest 14-inch workhorse, larger viewable area than vertical frequency, the better the image qualiFew manufacturers 17 inches, at a much lower ty of the monitor. kh'sting much effort into cost than 21-inch monitors. ' ving 14-inch monitors Most monitormakers offer a range of Over 19 inches, prices still quality in each size category. The best quality -of enlther the black and white haven't b e e n re d uced (and the most expensive) monitors have Sony or co lor v~eties. Indeed, 14- princet nArcadi Arcadi Pnnceton aa e nough to a l lo w a bi g Trinitron tubes or comparable tubes from inch monitors are low-price, increase in sales. Very large monitors Hitachi or NEC, .26-mm or better dot pitch or low-margin, 'no-brainer' items for resellers and end-users alike. But their small size makes generally only make sense to end-users as part equivalent, lavish on-screen controls for them unappealing to end-users with serious of a high-end professional computing solu- adjusting the picture, and sometimes extra feagraphics, desktop publishing or multimedia tion-typically a workstation or 'workstation- tures such as professional graphic arts color needs, where the 14-inch monitor's cramped class'PC used forjobs such as engineering, matching,and separate BNC connectors for dimensions and limited pixel resolution rapid- animation, or CAD. The key to upselling each color component. Further down the food -,IIi.. becomes tiring and frustrating, leading monitor users is to connect the benefits of a chain, monitors with coarser, larger CRT dot many end-users to trade up to larger displays. better monitor to the user's past experiences pitches (generally .28 mm), fewer control options, and lower overall crispness and brightThis can be a boon to resellers — any home and current needs. ness offer a decent quality for a low price. PC owner with a 14-inch monitor is a good bet Features And Benefits For example, the Daytek DT-1731D has to return to the store eventually, ready to be Of Current Monitors .28-mm dot pitch, and a maximum resolution upsold to a bigger, better monitor. The 15-inch color CRT desktop monitor is Until a couple of years ago, features such as of 1,280 by 1,024 at 60Hz, for a street price of still the most popular choice for the mainstream Energy Star power saving, MPR II low energy around $640. The AcerView 78ie 17-inch is a high res computer user It has a surlciently large view- emissions, decent anti-glare coatings, and comprehensive, easy-to-use olution (1,280 by 1,024 ',;" t>,able area to display a spreadsheet, game, Web controls were sufficiently at 75Hz, with a .26-mm ',; ,Page or a letter-size document page for comdot pitch) representative ' fortable viewing. Manufacturers such as NEC, rare as to rate special menof the line, that sells for ViewSonic and Sceptre are still investing con- tion. Now, however, there are few salable monitors about an $850 street siderable research and development efforts into price. ,;i <: improving such features as easy to use controls, that don't have these feaViewsonic's new ", unscreen displays, and maximum flatness, tures. The main selling points now are the size of P775 17-inch monitor ", ', bHghtness and viewable area. the dot pitch, the quality (16-inch viewable) has But Bigger IS Better of the CRT (the Sony a .25-mm dot pitch, and One of the monitor categories that has seen the Trinitron tube is sflll the m aximum 1,600 b y + + ~ S O' 0 'e "„. greatest growth in 1997 has been in the over- king, though both NEC t,"," 1,280 resolution at 76Hz ,i, "i 15 inch desktop monitor segment. The 17-inch and Toshiba have highand 1,280 by 1024 at monitor has come down in price to well below quality competitors), the 88Hz, plus a menu-dri ven OnView control set $1,000 in many cases, making it an affordable issues of frequency range NEC Multisync A500 choicefor a much larger number of computer and screen resolution. for a MSRP of $1,139. users. As the spread of computers into the A monitor's frequency range determines "t" hatids of new users has slowed in recent years, the comfort level for the user, and the detail of The Lm R e volution an increasing number of PC and monitor sales image that can be displayed. The horizontal Perhaps the biggest change in the monitor are to second- or third-time buyers. frequencies of monitors can range from market has been outside the traditional CRT These buyers,after years of computer 15.75KHz (NTSC television frequency) to monitor sector. Bigger, cheaper liquid crystal using experience, are often willing to invest a about 100KHz. Most computer monitors sup- displays have helped allow notebook PCs to ,'"'I'„" httle more money to get increased comfort port a horizontal range from about 30KHz to become a real competitor for traditional desktop http/twwwccwmagcom October 1997 CANADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER 2 3

M O N IT O R S

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computers and their CRT monitors As well, e n t ial to CRT monitors, up to a quarter of PC advances in LCDs have also allowed displays u sers claim they will buy them. In the meanto be integrated with a wide range of comput- t i me, sales of LCD monitors will remain er and audio visual equipment, ranging from r e stricted, attracting more window shopping activity than sales. n otebook PCs t o handheld PC s, to On Sept. 11, at the Metro Toronto - "When Small ls Beautiful: video pr o j ection Z oo, Sceptre T echnologies I n c . Tiny Screens Everywhere devices, to digital unveiled its latest display products to , The tiny but brilliant and detailed screen of cameras and digital the Canadian market, and also sigâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;: Toshiba's Libretto computer shows an video cameras. naled its intention to become an active .' incredible amount of detail in the Windows , = As major supplicorporate citizen i n t h i s c o untry. display of that handheld PC sized ers such as Hitachi Sceptre's corporate mascot Brutusa colorful Monitor Lizard, helped a nd S h ar p h ave powerhouse, and points the way sponsor the Komodo Dragon and for color LCDs to become norrefinedtheir manufacWhite Alligator exhibits at the zoo. mal for all kinds of handheld turing technology with The Komodo Dragon is the world' s billions of dollars worth computers. The main push currentbiggest Monitor Lizard, and accordof investments in recent ly in the notebook market, however, seems ing to Sceptre representatives, Sceptre to be to build notebooks with full-sized years,the cost of color LCD screens has is aiming at b ecoming Canada's plummeted, while the size and resolution of s c reens and keyboards, while reducing weight biggest computer monitor vendor. and thickness. Sharp, in particular, has largely screens has increased. Current industry figures indicate that Many resellers are finding that notebook e x plained its re-entry into the North American in little over a year, Sceptre has vaultusers often no longer need a desktop monitor notebook market in terms of its expertise ed into the top five of monitor vento attach to their mobile PC while in the in building LCD screens, dors in Canada, and may even rank as high as number three, after Daytek office. The 13.3-inch screens on today's top..â&#x20AC;&#x17E; and i t s new line of and Samsung. of-the-line notebooks have nearly the same notebooks combine Sceptre's president and CEO viewable area as a 15-inch CRT monitor. compactness with . Stephen Liu, and Canadian distribuThis represents the loss of some CRT large, bright screens. tion manager Richard Gallegos were monitor sales, but the Handheld PCs, f ' g- <'. P'~ higher cost of top of - j,>;i''~<:i,.~ ; ~ such as the Fujitsu > >':.'; l' -',r z. ~ j r the line notebooks Styl i s tic, also display , can more than corn.; the W i ndows u s er pensate for this. interface on small forToshiba Libretto mat LCD, w it h t o uch LCD Screens SCCPTRr= screen capability. On The Desktop A more subtle trend is to integrate tiny An increasing number of LCD color LCDs into all kinds of digital devices. screens are being mounted in The Kodak LC120 high resolution digital frames for use with desktop camera,for example, has an excellent prePCs. Their main selling feature, view screen to allow users to check the basic aside from looking cool, is that composition and lighting of pictures before they take up less room on the transferring them to a computer. The integratdesktop, weigh less, and can be left running ed small format LCD screen is likely to keep on hand t o a n nounce Sceptre's without degrading a picture tube. However, spreading in the handheld PC market. involvement with the Metro Toronto desktop LCD screens are far Zoo as a symbol both of the compaSet-Top Boxes, more expensive than a CRT ny's commitment to environmental monitor, they have a limited Surfing From The causes, and to its desire to put down diagonal viewing angle, and c ommunity ro o t s i n Cana d a . Sofa, And Other users complain that the picAccording to Liu: "Sceptre is workNew Waves ing to increase its Canadian involveture quality, particularly After 15 years of computer ment," and is "now really a part of brightness and color accumonitors evolving away from Canada." racy, is generally lower television's 15.75KHz frequency In conversation with CCW, Liu than the best quality (to escape from the jittery, blurry went on to say that Sceptre, which has Trinitron CRTs. Neverquality of text on a TV monitor), a been making monitors since 1984, and theless, some manufacvariety of factors are driving moninotebook PCs since 1989, is particuturers such as Sceptre tor makersto offer some big,TV larly interested in bringing the LCD have made a splash frequency compatible monitors that monitor into the mainstream. "Last Sceprre Flatscreen with their elegant lookcan connect to various kinds of year (1996), the market for LCD paning LCD desktop monitors, and look forward computerand consumer video devices.This els was cold," he explained. "The to increasing sales as prices decline. market did not want to pay thousands re-connecting of computers and TVs is being of dollars for 10-inch or 12-inch LCD According to an NEC study, once LCD driven by many factors: the desire of families panels." screens get within a 50 per cent price differ- to have large-format displays for gaming and

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The advent of 15-inch LCD panels has excited much greater practical interest, and the only task remaining is to drive down prices. "We have invested very large amounts of money bring the price for LCD panels down to affordable levels, and ensure plug and play compatibility for all kinds of graphics chipsets," he s aid. Liu also stated that Sceptre is committed to driving the cost of 15-inch LCD monitors down. He said future models of LCD monitor will likely have the capability to display either computer or NTSC television signals. Liu also commented that as concern for environmentally friendly and healthier computing increases, the LCD monitor, with it s z er o r a diation e mission l e v el , l o w e r energy consumption, and less tiring, flicker-free display, will become the preferred desktop monitor for p discriminating PC users. And although traditional CRT monitors will retain their position as the choice for most Sceptre customers, LCD monitor sales will take off in 1998, he predicts. Richard Gallegos, who has shepherded the Sceptre line to its current level of sales in Canada, claimed that an industry-wide price drop on LCD monitors could be expected in Ql of 1998. Sceptre has decided to jump the gun on the rest of the industry, however, by dropping the price of the FT15 LCD monitor from a street price of US$2,995 to US$2,195. He claimed that Sceptre sales through its Canadian distributors are booming: "For example, sales through MultiMicro/Hartco doubledbetween June and September." Gallegos also claimed that the new P75A 17-inch CRT monitor, which has won awards since its first appearance a few m o nths a go , d e m onstrates Sceptre's intention to avoid becoming just another commodity monitor supplier. "We want to establish a brand name for quality, a reputation that customers can trust. We' ll offer good value without simply competing on price." 26

V CR or camera, onto a screen or a suitable wall. There are a variety of vendors of LCD projectors, including Sharp, NEC and Epson. Computer-driven Portrait pixelboards are an Lcp example of a fairly Monitors simple technology A rcadia Home format o n D V D ) , that is proven to be Monitor and theusefulness of effective as a public displaying business or educational information and adpresentations and videoconferenc- vertising aid Outsized video ing on large format TV sets. The new line of Arcadia monitors from displays, such as jumbo colored displays in p ublic Princeton Graphics is a potent example of display technology that combines television places, video walls and very and computer compatibility in 28-inch or 31- large, non-portable LCD projectors, are usuinch CRTs, for use in the ally the province of specialized A/V resellers home or corporate presenta- and VARs. tion room. Web browsing, the advent of high-quality digital movies on compact discs (either MPEG-1 format on regular CDROMs, or MPEG-2

Beware The Drool Factor

The Monochrome C hetto Aside from the remaining markets for monochrome dumb terminals and the like, there is still a relatively large class of computing devices that use monochrome of greyscale displays. They are mostly handheld gadgets such as the tp5p 3Com Palm Pilot, the Windows CE devicesfrom makers such asLG Electronics, Compaq, NEC and Philips, the Newton MessagePad 2000, the PSION 5 and a variety of other electronic organizers. Aside from cost, the main factor keeping handheld computer displays colorless is power consumption-either color LCDs will have to be made requiring less energy, or battery technology will have to improve. The one really sophisticated new monochrome device to hit the market in 1997 was the Apple E-Mate 1000, a near-notebook device which uses Newton technology to offer students a cost-effective alternative to a full-fledged notebook PC. However, Wmdows CE version 2.0, already in the hands of hardware vendors; promises support forcolor screens. NEC, for example is gearing up to ship a color Windows CE handheld.

Resellers should be aware that the amount of presscoverage a display technology receives is not always proportionate to its salability today.The so called 'drool factor,' or 'geewhiz' quotient of a really sexy new technology like 40-inch plasma screens for hanging on a wall is in inverse proportion to its significance in the market. Large-sized LCD desktop monitors and plasma screens will gradually come down in price, but for the time being, they are more a technology demonstration than a money making opportunity. Give them a few years though, and who knows?

Displaying The Future

It seems likely that there won't be any absolute winner in terms of display size or type. End-users have a wide range of needs, including degree of portability and cost. There m ay someday be a marketfor credit cards with LCD screens on them. Public phones may include videophone screens within the next decade. More homes will have large TV sets connected to the Web, or satellite Direct-ToHome dishes and DVD players. There may even be display s ystems that p r oject 3 D images directly to the interior of the viewer's eyeball. For now, though, the transition to 17-inch and 19EZPRP55P inch monitors, and the high Projectors, Pixelboards market demand for 13-inch notebook screens seem to offer the best and jumbotrons CRT and LCD screens are not the only display prospects for sales and profits in 1998. IttWI technologies for viewing computer data. LCD technology is widely used in LCD projectors, Jeff Evans t's Associate Editor of Canadian devices which can project the graphics output Computer Wholesaler. He can be reached at of acomputer video card, or a feed from a j eff I tcpon. corn.

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All's well that ends welP That's assuming one is content with the printer that's on the end of a desktop or at the end of a network, of course. But, laser printers now deliver impressive output for just pennies a page. However, when selling a new printer, first think about what it must print. If it's mainly text with minor logos and graphics, then a monochrome laser printer is suitable. Will your customers be doing color presentations? Consider a color laser. If that's too rich for their budget, a high-quality, low-cost, ink-jet printer may do. Choosing the right printer means striking a balance between creative impulses and the more pedestrian tasks we all have to wade through. And the purchase price may be only a fractionof the revenues a printer may bring you overall.

On a positive note, don't be surprised to see high-end ink-jets become network workhorses. and monochrome printers will step up to 1,200-dpi resolution. Watch for prices on color laser printers to drop — by up to 50 per cent.

But you can brighten up your customers' world with the latest color printers. Who ever buys a black-and-white television? Only if you are a collector and keep interest in antiques. You may want to remind your customers of this when they' re shopping for a new printer. If they' re eyeing the rockbottom price tags adorning most monochrome laser printers, they may be wasting their time. Going with color does open up more In The Black possibilities. Your customer creates a crisp For your customers, although it's a cliche (but business presentation from scratch, prints it with good reason) — you get what you pay on transparencies, all the night before. (On for. If cost-per-page (which includes ink and the home front, could the kids raise their GPA paper) is high, the printer will be purchased an entire point with eye-catching term many timesover.Colorlaserprinters,howevpapers?) er, are still a bit pricey and their cost per page A new color printer is also the perfect is higher since users need to buy toner color companion for a snapshot scanner, a digital cartridges and special paper. A color laser camera,orthe photo-storage CDs you can get should only be required for serious color from professional film developers. Color needs or sharing a color printer over a net- looks great, no doubt. But you' ll still need work. This explains why most companies are sharpmonochrome printing forletters,forms, and other projects that have well-defined content with their monochrome laser workhorses. A monochrome laser printers black text, but without smears or badly designed for small- to medium-sized work- blurred edges. groups is the average choice, and a wise one. Heavy use of a light-duty printer can end up Memory And Speed costing the buyer more in the long run. The amount of RAM in a printer very much 28

C A NADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 r rrpttwwwccwmagcom

depends on the task. Documents of up to 10 pages can easily be printed on a printer with a minimum of 1MB of RAM. As a rule, 512KB (on up to 2MB) of RAM is typical for a desktop laser, while 1MB or so is adequate for a color ink-jet. For network printers, a minimum of 2MB is standard. Although it depends on the network environment, the printer is in graphics departments should have no less than 24MB of RAM and office environments should have 12MB of RAM. Furthermore, the higher the resolution of a printer the sharper is the text and images, and 600 dpi is standard. In desktop lasers, engine speedsrange from eight pages per minutes (ppm) to 12 ppm. For network use, look for monochrome models that can do 12 ppm. As a rule of thumb, the higher the resolution, the more RAM is needed and the higher the RAM, the faster the output.

Our Tests We asked various manufacturers to send us monochrome laser printers with speeds ranging from 12 ppm to 16 ppm that are networkable, either out of the box or via an optional network interface card. We also stated that the printers should be priced under $3,000 if at all possible. In the end, we ended up with a very good mix o f v a rious monochrome machines, each with certain qualities that would make it a great addition to any small or medium-sized office. We compared print speeds, output quality, and ease of setting up the units right out of the box.

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Fu itsu PrintPartner 14ADV Suggested Retail Price: $1,895 Street Price: $1,395

requirements for this market segment Duplex printing is a growing trend in larger size businesses

Reseller Authorization Requirements:None.

System Strengths: O "Impressive features include a 40MHz processor, standard 11MB of memory,a 35,000 pages/month duty cycle as well as low running costs. In addition the PrintPartner Maintenance And Technical Relationship With Resellers: 14ADV's paper handling includes two One-and-a-half-year warranty i n cludes parts an d l a b or standard automaticpaper feeders and the printer can easily be expanded to do duplex printing," says Toms (Authorized Service Agents only). Toll-free tech support. Editors' Notes: Dedicated technical BBS. Fujitsu's newest design is the PrintPartner 14ADV. It packs in a Web site includes technical information and drivers. lotof greatfeatures fora very reasonable price.Under the hood is Free technical training for Authorized Service Agents. a SPARCLite RISC processor operating at 40MHz. This will help M arketing SupportForResellers: Reseller referrals. Toll-free-tie in to resellers. National advertising. Incentive programs.

Volume Discounts:No. Demo Unit Availability: On loan for evaluation purposes only. Handled directly by Fujitsu Canada. E-mail printers@fujitsu.ca Fujitsu's View Of The Market: "The product market is quite wide and includes everything from the SOHO environment needing a high-volume business printer, to a network/workgroup printer in a small to large corporation. The market typically requires more flexibility and features than lower-endlaserprinters," says Gord Toms, marketing manager of print products at Fujitsu. "Versatile paper handling capabilities, along with PCL and PostScript printing are becoming basic

process the documents and get them out onto paper with very lit tie delays. It's classified as a 1,200 dpi-class printer, with a maxi mum output resolution of 600 by 2,400. Print speeds go as high as 14 ppm when printing on standard 8.5 by 11-inch paper. The stan dard options on this unit include 11MB of RAM, a parallel interface and a total paper capacity of 650 sheets. The RAM is easily expandable to 67MB in total using industry standard 72-pin SIMMs. A duplexing option for this printer is listed at $495 from Fujitsu. Customers who buy this printer before Dec. 31 are eligi ble to purchase a coupon for $50, which would entitle them to two toner cartridges. These normally have a suggested retail price of $145 each, making this offer a great bargain. The price makes this printer one of the least expensive printing solutions in this entire survey.

Hewlett-Packard Laser Jet 5M list Price: $2,751 Reseller Authorization Requirements: Must be an Advanced Solutions Provider. Marketing Support For Resellers: Co-op advertising. Marketing funds. Reseller referrals. Toll-free tie-in to resellers. Pop displays (for the HP LaserJet 5, not the SN or SM). National advertising.

copy product manager at HewlettPackard

System Strengths: Morgan cited: faster application return and complex printing; ease of use and expandability; seamless printer sharing and robust printer management for Macintosh, PC or mixed client environments

Editors' Notes: The LaserJet 5M from HP is a good example of HP's commitment Maintenance And Technical Relationships With Resellers: to quality printers. Powered by an Intel i960JF processor at Warranty is for one year, and includes parts and labor. 33MHz, this unit is rated at 12 ppm and comes standard with 6MB There is an optional three-year extended warranty. of memory, further expandable to 52MB. Maximum output reso Reseller can offer service. lution is a standard 600 by 600 dpi, which turned out very crisp Toll-free tech support. output in both text and graphics. The SM features a 250-sheet Dedicated technical BBS. paper tray as standard, plus an additional 100-sheet/10-envelope Web sites includes dealer-specific space, and drivers. tray for a total capacity of 350 sheets out of the box. Interfaces are Demo Unit Availability:Available on request. provided for parallel, serial, modular VO, Ethernet and AppleTalk HP's View Of The Market: Options for the SM include a duplexing unit, a 75-envelope power "It is designed for any network for general office use in medium feeder, and a third paper tray with a 500-sheet capacity. There is to largecompanies. The HP LaserJet 5 advances the art of busi- also an option for infrared wireless communications, as well as ness printing. It's built on the proven performance of the HP flash memory storage. Toner cartridges are good for about 6,800 LaserJet 4 Plus printer with improvements that make printing eas- pages, and the printer's monthly duty cycle is rated at 35,000 ier and more productive," saysCatherine Morgan, corporate hard- pages. 30

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• 10M/1 00M LAN

Another proven success of QDI's innovative technology - the New Legend Series. It uses the latest Intel 440LX Chipsets, which incorporates the most advanced AGP support. For. those who are striving for perfection in multimedia performance and power server platform, the new Legend Series is definitely the choice for you. It does not only offer you the best multimedia performance, but a variety of choices to meet your every special need as well. The series has also tailor-made for both Server applications e.g. SCSI, LAN and Home Users

requirements e.g. TV out, Sound on board etc. QDI is the true pioneer in computer technology. With our continuous efforts in dedicating ourselves to innovations, our products are highly recognized from customers worldwide and renowned magazines. This new Series is no doubts another proven results of bringing QDI to a newer height of the high-end products ladder. High end motharboards are no more a legend - QDI is your answer!!! '

LE E D DI IBANNIBNINN ROINNBPIIIBIICANAN), INC. 753bfeldsCourl, Unit4, Markbam,Ontario, IAA9T4 Tsb1-9059403827 Fax1-9059409709

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Okidata OKIPAGE 16n Suggested Retail Price: $1,599

Volume Discounts: No.

Street Price: $1,350

Demo Unit Availability: Must be an authorized dealer. Demo units are based on availability and limited to 30 days.

Reseller Price: $1,150 Reseller Authorization Requirements: Required to participate in reseller programs. Marketing Support For Resellers: Co-op advertising. Reseller referrals. POP displays. Maintenance And Technical Relationship With Resellers: One-yearon-site warranty includes parts and labor. Reseller can offer service. Toll-free tech support. Dedicated technical BBS. Web site includes technical data, and dealer-specific space. There is a five-year limited print-head warranty.

E-maib comments@okidata.corn Editors' Notes: With a maximum speed of 16 ppm and 600 by 600 dpi printing, this printer offers a good balance of features at a very attractive price. Standard options out of the box include 2MB of RAM, a parallel interface and a total paper capacity of 600 sheets. The RAM can be expanded to a total of 66MB with 72-pin SIMMs available everywhere, and optional interfaces are available for Ethernet, Token Ring and AppleTalk networks. The OKIPAGE 16n has a monthly duty cycle rating of 24,000 pages, making it very well suited for small to medium-sized offices.

Xante Accel-a-Writer 8200 Estimated Street Price: US$3,495

E-mail:canadasales Nxante.corn

Reseller Price: US$2,970

Xante's View Dl The Market: Its high-resolution output, extensive paper handling capabilities, fast processing, and cross platform flexibility make it perfect for anyone in a desktop publishing environment, says Xante.

Reseller Authorization Requirements: This is based on location, the number of years in the industry, the types of markets served, the number of employees, and volume/revenue. Marketing Support For Resellers: Co-op advertising. Reseller referrals. POP displays. Maintenance And Technical Relationship With Resellers: O ne-year warranty is return to factory — parts and labor. Toll-free tech support and dedicated technical BBS. Web site includes technical information, manuals and drivers. Volume Discounts:Yes. Demo Unit Availability And Restrictions: One per type, every six months, with special price consideration.

Editors' Notes: The Accel-a-Writer 8200 features a 33MHz AMD 29030 processor with print speeds up to 16 ppm. Standard RAM configuration is 12MB, with a maximum capacity of 64MB. At 1,200 by 1,200 dpi, this printer can produce incredibly sharp text and graphics with great use of grey tones. Standard paper capacity is a 250sheet input tray plus an addition 100-sheet feeder, for a total of 350 sheets. An optional 250-sheet additional tray is also available. Standard interfaces on this unit include parallel, serial, and Apple Talk connectors which are capable of being accessed simultaneously. An optional Ethernet interface is also available for high-speed network connectivity. One of the most attractive features about this unit is its ability to print on oversized media up to an impressive 12 inches by 25 inches.

Xerox DncnPrint 4512 Suggested Retail Price: 4512 Base — $1,795 4512 Network — $2,265 Marketing Support For Resellers: Co-op advertising. Reseller referrals. Maintenance And Technical Relationship PVith Resellers: One-yearon-site warranty includes parts and labor. Toll-free tech support and dedicated technical BBS. Web site includes technical information and drivers. Demo Unit Availability And Restrictions: Units are available through the Premier Reseller Program. E-maiI:ask-xeroxI xc.xerox.corn Editors' Notes: The new Xerox4512 offers an excellent mix of performance and 32

lES~cg BLBlcE competitive pricing. This 12-ppm printer is powered by an AMD 2 9240 processor running a t 20MHz, and is equipped with a standard 4MB of RAM, upgradeable to 50MB. A parallel interface is standard, with optional support for Ethernet, Token Ring and AppleTalk networking. The 4512 comes standard with two 250-sheet paper trays. An optional high-capacity paper tray is available which can hold a whopping 1,000 sheets. Another impressive feature on this machine is its built-in duplexing unit at no extra cost. The unit taxes up considerably less desktop space than other machines in its class. The monthly duty cycle is up to 35,000 pages.

CANADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October1997 httpvwwwccwmag.corn

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The new Commander III Penhiom® II based Mother board

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As a top ranked independent motherboard manufacturer, QDI experienced a tremendous growth in sales last year of more than 150%. It is not by chance. This magnificent achievement can be attributed to our strong manufacturing capability, and our local

marketing and technical support, which we provide to our customers. Aff our resellers are happy with our products. More importantly, they are a0 profitable due to our business. You will be impressed 6y our superb product quality and our fully comprehensive range of products from Pentiume to Pentiume Pro Motherboard. P51430VXNEOOM EXPIO464 4

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.QDI.COM PUTER(MONTREAL), INC. 2845HalpernStreet, SLLuurent, Quebec,H4S1PS,Canada Tel:1-514-3356811 Fax:1-514-3356822

WORLD CLASS MAINBOARD dnttpd/www.ndad ddpm p.corn mImdem mhcandrejinemdnadecnechchehmgcoealrcmpealoammpanlm 'Spedicagom aremlfeafochangewghoet pricenonce.

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Brother HL-1660 Suggested Retail Price: $1,999.99

equipment, with 17 ppm, 4MB memory expandable to 66MB via standard SIMMs, and a 650-sheet capacity, that's expandable to 1,150 sheets, plus an optional 500-sheet lower cassette.

Street Price: $1,599 Reseller Price: $1,325 Marketing Support For Resellers: Co-op advertising. Reseller referrals. POP displays. National advertising. Maintenance And Technical Relationship PVith Resellers. One-year warranty includes parts and labor. Optional on-site warranty. Toll-free tech support. Dedicated technical BBS. Web site includes technical information and drivers. Volume Discounts:Yes. Demo Unit Availability:One per location per six month period. E-mail For Channel Use:dan@brother.ca E-mail For Public Use:support@brother.ca Brother's View Of The Market: "This is an extremely cost-effective alternative to HP and Lexmark. The HL1660 exceeds industry standards in virtually every specification. It's easily networkable via the Brother NC1200 MIO card," says Dan Courville, of Brother. System Strengths: Courville points to PCL5e and PostScript Level 2 as standard

Editors' Notes: 1 The HL-1660 from Brother is among the newest in the line, and offersa good mix of standard features and several expansion options. It's powered by a MIPS R3000 processor which runs at 20MHz, and is rated at 17 ppm on letter-size paper, with a maximum output resolution of 1,200 by 600 dpi. The standard RAM complement is 4MB, which is further expandable to an impressive 66MB in total using standard 72-pin SIMMs. Standard interface options include a parallel port, as well as serial and modular I/O ports. Optional interfaces are available for Ethernet, Token Ring and AppleTalk networks. The NC-1200 network card from Brother has an estimated street price of $439 and offers 10Base-T Ethernet connectivity, Other options on this model include a lower cassette which holds an additional 500 sheets, and has a suggested retail price of $899. A duplexing unit is available for a suggested list price of $999, known as the DX-1600. Flash memory and HDD cardscan also be added to save anything from macros to fonts to printer data. Toner cartridge life is rated for 6,000 pages on this unit with a typical 5 per cent page coverage. This is a great printer overall.

Lexmark 0 tra S1650 gpss<~ggEUBI

Ring and Apple Talk. There is a 2 50-sheet standard Estimated Street Price:$1,975 input tray, plus an additional Editors' Notes: multi-purpose feeder capable of Lexmark hasrecently launched a new line of printers, one of holding an additional 100 sheets '/ which is the Optra S1650. This machine without a doubt, offers for a total of 350 sheets. The excellent performance at a very competitive price. It boasts the menu system in the printer' s fastest processor in this entire survey, an Intel i960JD operating at control panel is easy to use, and 66MHz. Lexmark printers are best-known for their incredibly offers a vast number of setup sharp output at true 1,200 by 1,200 dpi, and the S1650 is no options. Toner cartridges for t he exception. S1650 are rated at 7,500 sheets, while This unit is rated at 16 ppm, and comes standard with 4MB of the printer has a very impressive monthly duty RAM which is expandable to a whopping 132MB using standard cycle of 65,000 pages. 72-pin SIMM modules. Standard interfaces out of the box include If your clients' office needs a no-nonsense printer that is both both parallel and serial, with options available for Ethernet, Token capable and affordable, the Optra S1650 is an excellent choice. Suggested Retail Price: $2,200

QMS 2060 WX Suggested Retail Price: $2,799

a 250-sheet standard tray and a 150sheet multi-purpose tray. Editors' Notes: A duplexing option is also available Known for making high performance printers, QMS has submit- for double-sided printing, as well as ted its model 2060 WX. This printer features an Intel i960SA an additional 500 sheet paper tray. processor operating at 16MHz, and offersspeeds of20 ppm at600 On the consumable side of things, the toner cartridge is rated for an by 600 dpi. Standard RAM complement is8MB and can be expanded to a impressive 10,000 sheets and the total of 32MB. The 2060 WX has both a parallel and Ethernet monthly duty cycle on this unit is equalinterface as standard issue, making network connectivity a breeze. ly impressive at 50,000 pages. The 2060 There is a total storage capacity of 400 sheets through the use of WX comes with a one-year on-site warranty. 34

CANADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October1997

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SPARC Lite RISC 40MHz 600 by 2400 14 11M B/67M B Yes Parallel

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Serial, Ethernet, A leTalk 81 650 A4, A5, Legal, Letter, Executive

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45 350 A4, A5, Letter, Legal, Executive

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5,000 35,000 $1,895 $1,395 18 months www.fujitsu.ca 1-800-263-8716

600 by 600 12 2MB/66MB Yes Parallel, Serial, AppleTalk Modular I/O, Ethernet

Intel i960JD 66MHz 1,200 by 1,200 16 4M B/132M B Yes Pa r a llel, Serial

6,800 6,800 35,000 $2,751

7,500 7,500 65,000 $2,200 $1,975

1 year www.hp.corn 1-800-387-3867

1 year www.lexmark.corn 1-800-358-5835

RISC 600 by 600 16 2MB/66MB Yes Parallel Ethernet, AppleTalk Token Ring 45 600 A4, A5, A6, B5 Letter, Legal, Executive 5,000 30,000 24,000 $1,599 $1,399 $1,150 1 year www.okidata.corn 1-800-654-3282

Intel i960SA 16MHz 600 by 600 20 8MB/32MB Yes Parallel, Ethernet

AMD 29030 33MHz 1,200 by 1,200 16 12M B/64M B Parallel, Serial, Apple Talk Ethernet

400 A3, A4, AS, B4, B5, Letter, Legal, Ledger, 13"x19"

350 A3, A4, A5, B4, B5, Letter, Legal, Ledger, 12"x25"

10,000 10,000 50,000 $2,799

7,500 7,500

1 year www.qms.corn 1-800-268-0343

US$3,495 US$2,970 1 year www.xante.corn 1-800-926-8839

Editors' Choice

AMD 29240 20MHz 600 by 600 12 4MB/50M B Yes Parallel Ethernet, AppleTalk Token Ring 70 500 A4, A5, Folio, Letter, Legal, Executive 10,000 15,000 35,000 $1,795

1 year www.xerox.corn 1-800-275-9376

Performance The performance award this month goes to the Lexmark Optra S1650. This machine is superb, no matter how you look at it. Everything from its i960JD processor to its 1,200 by 1,200 dpi resolution to its total RAM capacity makes this machine well-suited for any medium-sized office. Price/Performance This award goes to theFujitsu PrintPartner 14ADV. It offers a unique resolution of 600 by 2,400 dpi which puts it into a 1,200 dpi-class printer, comes standard with 11MB of RAM, and has a print speed of 14 ppm. All this for only $1,395 (estimated s t r eet price). With the 18-month warranty, this printer is an a ttractive option f o r a n y office. Overall The award for best overall printer this month goes to the Xerox DocuPrint 4512. It has an excellent balance of features such as its standard paper capacity of 500 sheets and a b u i lt-in d uplexing option, not to mention its very attractive look and overall compact design. 'ÂŤII Steve Halinda, Tim BinghamWallis and Jazz Bhooi are CCfV's Lab Test Editors.

They can be r eached at (416) 535-8404.

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P R OF I LE

Taiwan's AcevHuldinl Its Own; Amonl The Heavyweilhts by Geof Wheelwright

One of the world's Top 10 personal computer companies recorded revenues last year of US$6 billion, and comes from one of the tiniest nations in the world. Indeed, Taiwan's Acer Group makes almostevery kind of PC one can imaginealong with printers, scanners, mobile telephones, CD-ROM drives, computer memory and pretty well anything else that might be used with a PC. But this has been no overnight success story. Originally founded in June of 1976 as Multitech International Corp., the company has gone from being a fairly anonymous "clone-maker" to a worldwide powerhouse. Acer not only sells millions of PCs under its own name brand, but also has a successful businessmaking PCs forother leading computer companies under OEM (original equipment manufacturer) agreements.

worldwide â&#x20AC;&#x201D; including Scotland, Mexico, the Philippines and even mainland China. The latter is a major feat for a Taiwanese businessperson, particularly c onsidering there are still no direct commercial flights b etween T a iwan a n d China due to the political animosity between the governments of the two nations. The very fact that he was able to broker a deal toopen a manufacturing plant in mainland China is a testament to what Shih is all about: unbridled optimism.

The Many Generations Of Acer

CANADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997

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Consider, for example, the number of permutations Acer has gone through in order to Unique, In Asia achieve the success that Shih sought for the Acer claims the title of company. It started in 1976 as Multitech the only non- Japanese International Corp. and first became known Asian company among o utside Taiwan as t h e c r eator o f t h e the world's Top 10 PC MicroProfessor 11 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; an Apple II clone that manufacturers, despite was much more compact thanthe product the success of PC compa- then being shipped out of Cupertino. n ies f r o m t h e ot h e r Apple, however, was never keen on Stan Shih "Asian tiger" economies. clones and the MPF-II didn't last long. Much of this success can be traced to the Undaunted,the company adopted the Acer door ofAcer chairman, CEO and co-founder name in 1984 and proceeded to launch its Stan Shih. first 16-bit computer in the wake of the IBM In his own country, Shih is hailed as "the PC's success. Domestically, business boomed Bill Gates of Taiwan" and has been toasted by as Acer created a 100-outlet computer store the likes of BusinessWeetrand Fortune maga- chain in Taiwan, while overseas Acer slowly zines for his achievements. He has also emerged as a credible PC clone manufacturer. served an advisor to the Republic of China's In 1986, the company opened a U.S. presidential office on technology issues and office in San Jose, Calif., and followed with a head of the country's National Information U.K. operation in 1987. By 1989, Acer had Infrastructure advisory board. He is most shipped one million PCs and began to taste well-known however, for cleverly creating a therealfruits ofsuccess.One such perk came vast worldwidemanufacturing base for Acer in 1990 when Acer had deep enough pockets with facilities in no less than 25 locations to buy multi-user computing pioneer Altos 38

be attributed to Shih's often "hands-off' management style. Unlike the Microsoft CEO and co-founder to which his Taiwanese admirers compare him, Shih apparently does not spend a lot of time micro-managing the company and issuing "flame-mail" about company projects he is unhappy with.

Independent Units Acer is organized instead into independent business units. They include strategic business units (which have their own responsibility for research and development, product management, manufacturing, and O EM sales) as well as regional business units that are responsible for distribution, service, and marketing functions. The company says this structure produces independent ownership and responsibility, which in turn creates strong motivation incentives. It says that under this scheme decisions are made faster; management becomes much more focused;and a better understandingof overseas markets is developed. In addition, the company developed

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P RO F I L E what it calls a "fast food" logistics and assembly business model, and a "client-server" organizational management sn ucture. Components are pre-prepared in large, centralized mass-manufacturing facilities, then are shipped to assembly sites close to local customers. Acer says this makes it possible to enjoy production economies-ofscale while also tailoring each individual product to suit the needs of each individual customer — and that the result is standard-

ized quality, customizable products, and lower inventory costs. Meanwhile, the so-called "client-server" management model lets each business unit, and other Acer-affiliated business, act independently. However the model also coordinates efforts to benefit from full use of Acer's international resources.

"I believe in employee ownership and l ocal society o wnership," says Shih. "We create many companies that look good to the (parent) company and look good to the market. If they are not good, of course I am in trouble. But they are independent and include so many sister companies that can help each other. So internally there is a common vision.Employees are free to m ake decisions for their local market. It is not a headquarter-cent ric concept."

New Strategy In North America, the task of implementing a new Acer manufacturingstrategy — which willsee some measure of both custom configuration and build to order operations — has fallen to new Acer America president Max Wu. Although he was only appointed to his new post in August, Wu has already signed a deal to implement a "custom configuration" strategy. Acer's AOPEN subsidiary is supplying Canada's Future Shop consumer electronics retail chain with all the components needed to 40

create their low of custom-configured computers for sale in Future Shop stores. "Future Shop recognized that there is a growing market segment who know exactly what they want and (under the terms of this deal), they can come to the store and specify exactly what they want," explains Wu. "With AOPEN components, it gives Future Shop the flexibility to build the machine that the customer specifies." Wu also says that the company is continuing to press into the retail market with its own Aspire range of PCs — and will offer some basic "build-to-order" capability there (although still only through the existing retail channel). He further explained that the company is still also working to make a bigger impact on corporate personal computer buyers through new markets opened by its purchase earl ier this year of the notebook computer operations of Texas Instruments.

AcerNote Light) are sold via one national retailer (Future Shop) and one retail distributor (Beamscope Canada). Meanwhile, Acer's AOPEN components (such as CD-ROMs, scanners, and motherboards) division is managed from the AOPEN division located in San Jose, Calif.

The Canadian manufacturing initiative is divided into two areas: Acer-branded manuThe Canadian Effort facturing and OEM manufacturing. OEM While much of Acer's North American focus manufacturing is already underway in the right now is on the United States, it also has Canadian plant. Acer says it is planning to put areasonable degree of resources into the expand its Canadian production capability to C anadian market. T h e begin local assembly of Acer-branded desktop company has 50 employ- products soon. ees in Canada, including s taff w o rking a t t h e Struggles Ahead assembly plant in Miss- Not everyone appearsto be convinced of i ssauga, Ont. Acer i n the inevitability of Acer's success. Leslie Canada is a branch office Fiering, vice-president of pl atform and of Acer America, and as operating system technologies at market such does not disclose research firm Gartner Group, says that revenues for the Canadian w hile Acer does benefit f ro m a h u g e operations except as part worldwide manufacturing infrastructure, of the overall sales figures manufacturing is not the company's probfor Acer America (which lem in the U.S. "They are not doing a very reported total sales revenue of US$1.3 billion good job — they have just not done the marketing," she said. "They have squanin 1996). Canadian sales, marketing, assembly and dered the momentum that they bought customer service activities are managed from (with the Texas Instrument notebook busithe head office in Mississauga, Ont. Anthony ness acquisition)." Fiering says Acer's current challenges Lin is Acer's general manager in Canada. The Acer Americahead office in San Jose, are multiple. "They need to restore momenCalif., is used to support the Canadian branch tum to the Acer name. Although they have in research and development, engineering, won some government deals they are getting killed by Gateway (a large U.S. PC product marketing, and administration. Acer Commercial Systems (AcerPower manufacturer that sells PCs direct)," she desktops, AcerAltos servers and Acer's comments. "We are just not seeing them stake out Texas Instruments notebooks) are sold through four national distributors: EMJ Data an area (in the corporate sector). They had Systems; Globelle; Merisel Canada; and such good product in the notebooks, but Tech Data Canada. End-users purchase their between now and Fall/Comdex there will be some fabulous products and strong new Acer systems through a wide variety of value-added resellers and retailers across players." KW Canada. The Canadian Acer sales force is Geof Wheelwrightisa Vancouver-based techcurrently responsible only for commercial nology and businessjournalist. He can be systems sales. Acer Retail Systems (Acer Aspire, reached at geofwheelwright@msn.corn.

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A S IA S C A P E per centin the second quarterof the year as compared with first quarter shipments of nearly 1.5 million units. Total end-user revenue from printer sales to these markets grew by over eight per cent from the first quarter to 'N the second quarter of the year. With more than 3.1 million printers worth more than US$1.6 billion in end-user revenue shipping in the first half of the year, the region is on a pace to exceed six million units shipped and US$3 billion in end-user revenue in 1997. Ink-jet models continue to shape the region's printer market, taking 61 per cent of by Newsbytes the total shipments in the second quarter and registering 11 per cent growth in volume over Asian printer sales above the first quarter. The page/laser technology US$3 million, says study segment is growing at the expense of impact Dataquest Asia Pacific has just released figures printers this year, with second quarter laser for the second quarter 1997 in the printer mar- shipments climbing more than 16 per cent ket in Asia Pacific region (outside Japan) which over first quarter volume. At the same time, serial dot matrix printers fell from 22 per cent show over 1.6 million printers being shipped. A total worth more than US$835 million share of first quarter volume to account for just in end-user revenue, this represents nearly 40 above 20 per cent of second quarter shipments. South Koreaaccounted for24 percentof per cent growth in shipment volume and 20 per cent growth in total end-user revenue over the total market, followed by Australia with the same period in 1996. nearly 18 per cent, then China with over 16 The region's unit shipments grew by 11 per cent and Taiwan at nearly 10 per cent. ' ,

Empak opens new cleanroom molding plant in Malaysia The Southeast Asian microelectronics industry has a new cleanroom molding plant in Malaysia, marking both the increasing g demand for memory disk products in the region, and the growing importance of Malaysia as the region's electronics hub. The 103,000 square-foot facility, constructed by Empak, a Colorado Springs, Co., provider of memory disk process and shipping products, is located in the Kulim Hi-Tech Park outside the Malaysian capital of K u ala Lumpur. The location, said Empak spokesperson Deborah Smith, "has the ability to significantly cut lead times and lower customer shipping, administrative, a n d s t o rage costs. There is a growing need for local molding facilities in Southeast Asia," Smith said, "and the geographic location allows for quick delivery anywhere in the region."

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Reality Cheque: Corel Follows The Money by Jeff Evans Corel's radical shift away from an emphasis on the Java programming language perhaps signals a re-commitment to common sense and market realities. In August, Corel announced that it was no longer promising any imminent release of its much ballyhooed Corel Office Suite for Java, an integrated set of platform independant business applications written in the Java programming language. Instead, Corel would scale back its short-term Java ambitions, and concentrate on developing new applications based on the Windows NT operating system. (Corel says it will work on developing its Remagen Java technology so Corel WordPerfect Suite 8,or othersoftware such as Microsoft Office,can be run on a server and accessed via a thin Java client on any Java virtual machine.) But this was a considerable turnaround for Corel,which for the last year had been displaying analysts' projections that suggested that sales of low cost Network Computers (NCs) wo u ld v e r y qu i c k ly o u t s trip Windows/Intel PCs, and the Java software market would quickly become a bonanza for Corel. In fact, sales of NCs have been extremely modest in terms of market-share, and Corel's Java suite was proving extremely difficult to bring to completion as a bug free, high performance product. So, Corel finally faced up to reality, and while insisting that there is a long term opportunity in the Java market, it has to admit that in the short term, the market still prefers the MS Windows operating systems. The switch of emphasis from Java to Microsoft NT is part of an overall Corel strategy to concentrate on proven winners, rather than gambleon 'bleeding edge,'unproven or unprofitable products and markets.

Rise, Fall And Rise Again Corel pretty much invented the mass market for desktop graphics on the PC with its first release of CorelDraw in 1986. While most of the sophisticated graphics software developers concentratedon the Mac platform, Corel 46

saw a huge untapped need for relatively simple to use, affordable graphics software in the Microsoft mainstream of computing. The result was a bonanza for the Ottawa-based company, as business computing professionals and graphics pros and amateurs all voted with their wallets for what was then the only full featured illustration software on the MS-DOS/Intel platform. Corel cemented its leadingposition for over a decade, by offering unbeatable value for money. Corel's CEO, Michael Cowpland, also developed a canny marketing organization that kept CorelDraw's profile high in the market, and which also cultivated a fierce loyalty among hundreds of thousands of CorelDraw users. The company was profitable, respected, and experienced solid growth.

But Then What? To enable further growth, Corel moved into new product areas, both through in-house research and development, and acquisitions. The company led the world in the development of inexpensive digital stock photography libraries, eventually establishing a line of thousands of Photo CD titles. It published dozens of home 'edutainment'and games CD-ROM titles, as well as a professional reference CD-ROM library. Corel purchased the Ventura Publisher program, seeing that title's powerful document publishing capability as a natural complement to the CorelDraw package's illustration and image processing muscle. Corel also developed a videoconferencing hardware product line. For relatively little up-front money, Corel also bought up the struggling WordPerfect product line after Novell's bungled attempt to integrate it into the networking giant's line. And, finally, Corel undertook its boldest venture, an effort to unseat mighty Microsoft by becoming the world leader in business software based on the untried Java programming language. In the last year-andhalf, though, virtually all of these varied effortshave proven not to be the magic.

What Went Wrong None of Corel's new ventures generated the enormous sales needed to catapult Corel into

CA N A DIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 hrrpi/wwwccwmag.corn

the billionaire's club of software makers. The PhotoCD venture made decent sales and, likely, profits, but partly due to the problem of marketing and selling thousands of CD-ROM titles via retail software channels, remained a limited money earner. The home and educational CD-ROM division was sold off. The videoconferencing line struggled in a market dominated by many other players, including industry leader Picture Tel. Ventura Publisher turned out to be an unexpected mess, as its tangled, aging code was virtually un-upgradeable:after an unusable new version of Ventura was released and then essentially withdrawn from the market, the whole program had to be re-written from scratch. The WordPerfect s uite g e nerated respectable sales, but its ongoing marketing, support and development costs dwarfed the initial acquisition price, boosting Corel's gross sales but contributing little to shortterm profitability. And, finally, the Java initianve simply didn't show any prospect of immediate revenue generation. The Java OfficeSuite remained far from a usable state, and there was no rapid growth in the installed base of Javathirsty Network Computers (NCs) to run the software on, if and when it could be perfected.

Back To Basics So now Corel has refocused on its core business, meaning those parts of the product line for which there is demonstrable demand, and credible sales potentiaL As with all re-engineering efforts, there is always the spectre of 'too little, too late,' but in the case of Corel, the company has frequently displayed technological and marketing skills that earned it the nickname of 'Microsoft North.' The question remains whether, after catching its breath and entering the NT software market â&#x20AC;&#x201D; can Corel quickly regain its traditional momentum as one of Canada's handful of 'world-class' software publishers? ICCJN Jeff Evans is Associate Editor of Canadian ComputerWholesaler.He can be reached at

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by Russ Cobbe There are a number of pieces of software that I like to call "Internet gadg ets" that s hould b e included in your service tool-kit, and can be helpf ul t o m any o f y o u r j:k, L. ~ I cÂťe n ts. While there are many tools available, the following have been narrowed down based on price. As usualwith freeware or shareware, it is worth everyone's while to support the authors of these products by registering the software orpurchasing more elaborate versions. A lot of these utilities deal with the most common problem reported on the Internetwaiting. There are some quite simple solutions to improve the performance of your connection without spending a lot of money.

you will arrive at a time per request. By increasing the numbers, it is possible to see how increased load affects the site and the Web server.This can also be used to benchmark CGI's and other Web server extension software.

Product: Net.Medic Company: Vital Signs Inc. http:llwww. vitalsigns.corn/ Price: US$49.95(free trial downloads) While this program is not shareware, it is an extremely useful program. Net.Medic allows the measuring the health of your internet connection and where the bottlenecks lie so they can be improved. Is it your PC, your modem, ISP, remote Web site or the Internet itself. This program provides an immense amount of reports on the status of your connection and provides hints on how to speed it up.

Product: ICQ Company: Mirabilis http:llwww icq.corn Price: free (while in beta) This is one of the most useful gadgets that I have seen for the Internet. It is basically like a pager, telephone and monitoring device all in one. When you load it, you can let people "see" that you are on-line and when they are on-line. Small messages can be sent to people which will pop up on their screen. It also has a nice chat feature. Although this is an Internet tool, it could be used within a company for your own staff to keep in touch. Product: Socrates Company: Morph Tech http;llwww.morphtech.corn Price: free Socrates is a great tool for stress-testing a Web site to find out if it can handle differing amounts of traffic. It will simulate a specified number of clientmachines performing a specified number of hits to the site. It then calculates the time it takes to process those requests. By taking the total number of requests and dividing that into the total time, 48

Product: TweakDUN Company: NetPro Northwest http:/lw w w.sns-access.corn/-netprol maxmtu.htm Price: shareware, US$10 This is all aillaziilg dls-

covery that will help speed up d ial in modem connections. T he W i ndows 9 5 d efault settings f o r TCP/IP frames sizes a re great fo r L A N access but perform poorly on a SLIP or PPP connection. TweakDUN will make all the necessary registry setting changes to maximize filled frames and speed of the dial up connection for downloading data to the PC. Some people have reported doubling the twalCIUNN

Peakjet.html Price: US$29.95 (free trial d o wnload available) The NetJetproduct increases surfing speed by up to 50 per cent, by making smart use of the browsercache. It basically reads ahead to the hotlinks on a page that is currently being viewed, in anticipation of the user clicking on one of them. This gives a perceived performanceincreasebecause most browsers sit idle for 90 per cent of the time while the user reads the page on the screen. By intelligently looking ahead, when the user clicks a hotlink, the page is already downloaded and can be displayed instantly. NetJet uses a Java plug-in to do the background page downloading.

Product: iHTML Freeware Company:Inline Internet Systems Inc. http:llwww.ihtml.corn Price: free (more advanced versions avail able) The product is used to provide database connectivity to Web pages. This is loaded on the Web server and provides additional tags to the HTML language to provide for database accessas wellasthe serverenvironment variables. Other editions in this product family provide a more robust set of HTML-like tags to allow the developer to create dynamic and interactive Web sites. I hope you find the above mentioned

gadgets worthwhile in your business. I am sure that I have left out many wonderful pieces of software that are worthy of a mention, so please feel free to bring those to my attention so that they may be included in a future column. CCW

Russ Cobbeisthe president of Inline Internet transfer rates after using this utility program to c. w nhicfhocuses thoe SystemsI ndeveloptune the machine. ment of dynamic Web sites for corporate . c l i ents H e is also president of the Toronto Product: NetJet Internet Developers Association ( h ttptl/ Company: Peak Technologies www.tida.corn) and can b e r e ached at http: llwww.peak-media.corn/Peak Jet/ . russ.c@inlinenet

CA N A DIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 httpr//wwwccwmag.cpm

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TECH N O L O G Y~

The choice of processors for PC-compatible pers onal computers h as exploded this year, with the newly-competitive options from challengers Cyrix and AMD , d i scussed last issue. This time, let's see how Intel is responding in the attempt to keep itself the choice of the overwhelming majority of computer users. We' ll start with a quick overview of Intel's current lineup, which, partly as the result of the company's 'Intel Inside' advertising campaign, powers 90 per cent of the world's personal computers. • Pentium. Intel was surprised by the speed and extent with which the market switched to its newer MMX models, and was stuck with a large number o f s t o ckpiled 'classic' Pentiums. The result: rapidly dropping prices. Bargain-priced P166 systems and P133 notebookscan be good value,ifyou can convince consumers to purchase them! • Pentium MM X. A d d 5 7 m u l t imedia instructi ons,and a largeron-board cache to a classic Pentium and you get a Pentium MMX, Intel'scurrent standard processor. Desktop speeds at233MHz and portable versions at 166MHz are common. Look for modest speed improvements, particularly in the version aimed at mobile users, with the so-called Tillamook chip (Intel CPUs are mostly codenamed after riversin Oregon) offering 200MHz to 233MHz speeds at lower voltages. Intel, however, wants to move the market away from the Pentium designs. • Pentium Pro. This CPU was initially marketed as the next-generation up from the Pentium, but has become a developmental dead-end for Intel; its integration of the L2 cache with the CPU in a sort of super-chip was expensive and difficult to manufacture. As well, its optimization for 32-bit code with poorer performance for Windows 3.1 and 95 16-bit code made it unpopular on the desktop. Despite this, it is Intel's strongest choice for network servers requiring multiple processors and support for large amounts of RAM. And, the on-chip L2 cache lets a 200MHz Pentium Pro perform as quickly as a 233MHz Pentium II. A new version of the chip has IMB of L2 50

Colum n

cache (up from 512KB), but its speed is stuck port, helping to pull the graphics traffic off at 200MHz, and no further enhancements are the main system bus. To benefit from this, expected. users will need a new-model AGP video card, • Pentium II. Intel's current top-of-the-line along with operating system support not model is available at 233MHz, 266MHz and available until the release of Windows 98 300MHz. Current models have been hot-rod- (Memphis) or NT 5.0 next year. (In the interded to speeds of up to 450MHz (don't try this im, Intel i s r eleasing a patch allowing at home boys and girls — special cooling is Windows 95 to support AGP). The 440LX needed!). In brief, Intel removed the L2 cache chipset also allows Pentium II systems to use faster SDRAM RAM from the Pentium Pro, simplifying manufacture,then added the MMX instrucmemory and tions. Then, the company put the CPU and the a ccess h a r d L2 cache onto a Single-Edge Contact (SEC) disks using the cartridge, about the size of two audiocassette faster ATA-33 cases. This forces the processor to communibus standard. cate with the cache at half the speed possible In the last half in the Pentium Pro design, and requires of 1998, look extensive motherboard redesign to accommo- for the 440BX date the so-called Slot I needed to hold the chipset f or SEC cartridge. This design also rules out the 100MHz bus current Pentium II for today's notebook form support, and factors. Ironically, the 440FX chipset, used 450NX for quad-processor support. with first-generation P-II motherboards, lacks • Ever faster Pentium II models. Expect featuressuch as SDRAM support that are 333MHz versions in early 1998, with speeds available on less-powerful Pentium MMX ramping up to 400Hz later that year. As well, systems. look for a compact cartridge design, aimed at As well, Intel is continuing to squeeze as slim-line notebooks. much performanceas itcan from its procesIntel also has a number upcoming CPU sor designs. Here's what we can be looking m odels,for now, code-named after rivers. forward to from the company: Brush up on your geography for: • A s peeded system bus. Motherboard • Deschutes.Expected early next year,as a designs have been maxed-out with a 66MHz 300MHz to 330MHz Pentium II model aimed system bus for the past three years, limiting at notebooks. real-world performance improvements even • Katmal. This Alaskan river chip is expectwith faster CPUs. Intel is expected to push ed to offerMMX-2, with enhanced 32-bit the system bus up to 100MHz sometime next multimedia instructions in mid-1998. year (April?). First, however, there is a prob- • Willamette. Expected late next year, an lem to overcome — such systems leak radio- enhanced P-Pro core, with MMX (or MMXfrequency noise that can interfere with TV 2), designed for the 100MHz bus. signals. Slot I cartridges will be modified to • Merced. (a California river). It's aimed provide less noise — look for incompatible more for the turn of the century. With input Slot 2 designs for the faster system-bus. Slot from Hewlett-Packard, this marks the end of 2 designs will also support up to four Pentium the 32-bit x86 series that debuted with 1985's II CPUs, up from the limit of two in Slot 1 80386, replacing it with a 64-bit IA-64 designs — more of a match for current instruction set. Merced is expected to use a RISC-like design, and to be backward comPentium Pro systems. (The Slot 2 design will also allow the CPUs to access the L2 cache patible with Intel's 32-bit designs and current RAM at full speed — again like the current software and operating systems. !tttt' Pentium Pro). • The video-subsystem freed up from the Alan Zisman is a computer journalist and CPU. A just-released Pentium II chipset teacher,living in Vancouver. He can be (440LX) adds Advanced Graphics Port sup- reached ar azisman@rogers. wave. ca.

CA N ADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 http//wwwccwmag.corn

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by Douglas Gray If you are operating a proprietorship or partnership, you are personally liable for the full debts or liabilities of your business. So you decide to incorporate a company to avoid personal liability. Does this really protect you in all situations? The answer is yes, no, and maybe. Although it is accurate that shareholders are not personally liable for any debts or liabilities of the corporationunless the shareholder signed a personal guarantee, directors and officers could be liable. Lenders are more likely to request that all the directors of the company sign personal guarantees for corporate loans, which would mean that your spouse or other relatives, if they are put on the company as directors, could be asked to sign a personal guarantee. Be cautious, therefore, about

fails to make Workers' Compensation Board payments, the WCB could sue the company and, depending on the provincial legislation, could also make a claim against the directors. In addition, employees who assume they were covered for WCB protection in the event of injury, could sue the company as well as the directors for negligence, and the WCB could charge to your company the full amount of the payments that were incurred due to the employee's disability. In addition, they could hold the directors responsible if the company did not pay. • Extra-provincial business activity. If you are doing business in another province, and have not extra-provincially registered your corporation in that province, you could be personally liable as a director if someone sues your company in that other province. The test for doing business in the other province usually means having all the trappings of a business, such as telephone number and listing, office address, business licence, dkrectorstups. The liability that most directors are potenand staff. Marketing products by mail order or tially exposed to is statutory liability under federal providing c onsulting s ervices t h roughout and provincial legislation. You should be aware of Canada,based from your home provincialaddress these areas of potential exposure to he sure that you does not mean doing business in another province. ;,'tIhtrt'ISt)ats u do not innocently or inadvertently allow yourself to be Speak to your lawyer if you intend to provide services sued as a director. Directors can be individually and color products outside your province. • Environmental damage.Both l ectively liable for t h e f u l l amount of the debt or liability 'To protect yourself as much as possible from the federal and provincial govunder most of these statutory ernments have legislation makpersonal liability exposure as a director, regulations. If you are a director ing directors liable for environof a company, you are deemed damage caused by their it is your responsibility to be duly diligent in terms mental to know or should have known company. of the obligation of the company T o protect yourself a s of monitoring the company's operation." to meet its commitments under much as possible from personal p rovincial or federal legislation. Naturally, provincial legislation may l i ability exposure as a director, it is your responsibility to be duly diliv ary. Some of the common areas of potential director liability are as gent in terms of monitoring the company's operation. If you do not have the time or inclination to do so, or you are being frustrated by the follows: • Employee deductions.W hen deductions are taken off an employee's i n ability to obtain the information that you need because of poorly s alary, they are to be remitted every month to Revenue Canada. If the managed systems or lack of cooperation from management, then you f unds are not remitted, Revenue Canada could sue you for the amounts s h ould consider resigning as a director and making sure that you prooutstanding, in your capacity as director. tect yourself in writing in terms of spelling out clearly the reasons for • Sales tax. I f you are operating a business that is responsible for col- t h e resignation. Always keep copies of any correspondence. lection and remitting provincial sales tax on a regular basis, and the Also, make sure that you speak with a lawyer specializing in busic ompany fails to do so, you could be held responsible as a director for ness law, to make sure that you have structured your director and offithose financial obligations of the company. cer corporate relationship in such a way as to avoid or minimize the • Corporateincome tax and GST. Ifyour company owes money to n 'sk of liability exposure. IttttI Revenue Canada and fails to pay it, you could be responsible as a director for money that should have been remitted. Douglas Gray, LL.B. is a Vancouver-based lawyer by training, speak• Employment standards. If your company has not paid employees er, columnist and author of l5 best-selling business books, plus a real for past services rendered or for holiday pay, then employees can for- estate investment software program. His books include The Complete mally complain to the appropriate government department. That Canadian Small Business Guide and Home Inc.: The Canadian Homedepartment could sue you as a director of the company for arrears of Based Business Guide (botIh Published by McGraw-Hill Ryerson) and wages and salaries owing to all employees plus holiday pay. Start and Run a Profitable Consulting Business and Marketing Your • Workers'Compensation Board. In the event that your company Product(both published by Sel f-Counsel Press). 52

CA N A DIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 jt npritrpwwccwmag.horn

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F ea t u r e

Ave Your

Customers Secure?

Providing solutions to your customers' security concerns is a crucial service you can provide; and the rewards are lucrative. by Paul Weinberg

The excitement surrounding the Internet is also producing some legitimate fears about security — and indeed is creating opportunities for value-added resellers. Small-to-medium-sized organizations are finding their internal networksfully exposed to the fullforce ofopen cyberspace.Five years ago, a company with a 10-workstation LAN might have had zero concerns about vulnerability. But nowadays, a day does not go past without a new computer virus appearing to wreak havoc, or a news story appearing about a hacker breaking into a corporate installation. "TCP/IP doesn't care if you are a president or an individual," says Greg Shannon, chief scientist for the Ottawa-based Milkyway Networks, a provider of security software solutions. Robert Fabian, director of Knowledge Transfer at the Torontobased GSA Consulting Group, said external threats to computer networks may be providing lots of opportunities for consultants and VARs with solutions at hand. Shannon adds there is a shortage of consultants in the field. Althoughthe price for security products such as proxy servers, firewalls and restrictive routers are still high, market resistance is about to melt, Fabian says. "Both the level of awareness and level of attack [on a system] is going up. [Security] might lead to the purchase

uTCP/IP doesn't care if you are a president or an indiwdual.n — Greg Shannon. of a $5,000 box, but it is worth the expense." The number ofactual computer hackers available to damage one's system may be infinitesimal, but that does not alter the need for a shield against unwanted outside influences, states Fabian. "It is not too different from insuring your automobile. If you have a PC, it is vulnerable to attack." Fabian adds that business opportunities lie primarily with external network protection, while internal security is primarily a low-tech matter involving intelligent corporate procedures for the handling of 54

privately stored data. No new technology is required, he says, because, the vendors for the main networking operating systems — NT, Unix and Novell NetWare — "have gone a fair distance to include protective measures." Bob Pritchard, president of the Toronto-based R.J. Pritchard & Associates, asserts however that it will be another six months or longer before resellers can begin to gain some business opportunity from computer security. He notes that the products are mainly configured as part of a network solution sold directly to the end user organization by the vendor itself. There are also proprietary issues, particularly with encryption and the electronic key access that need to be resolved within the industry, Pritchard adds. "I can think of a half-a-dozen different standards." Security is part of doing business in network installation, but it does not stand out yet as a market by itself, explains Larry Noble, president of t h e T oronto-based Evron Computer Systems Corp. "Customers want a reasonable level of security, but they don't want it taken to the level of the RCMP. "People are not into exotic products." He notes that all his clients are running tape backups, anti-virus products and a firewall if there is Internet access, but little demand exists yet for encryption. Markham, Ont.-based A.C. Nielsen & Co., a firm that measures purchases through the reseller channel, has not yet included firewall products in its research because sales at the low-end of the PC market are insignificant right now, says account executive, Darrel Ryce. On theother hand, concerns regarding easy Internet access to internal networks has made the adoption of an anti-virus application more of a priority with a growing number of users. Also, vendors have started to take reseller channel more seriously, he says. The result is that more than 197,000 pieces of anti-virus software were sold in the reseller channels in Canada last year, compared to 86,359 in 1995. Even a year ago, it didn't matter if one had antivirus software." Michael Zboray, vice-president and research director for the Stamford, Conn.-based Gartner Group Inc., estimates there are about 10,000computer viruses,ofwhich about 200 are considered serious. Becausenew virusescontinuously appear,updates of standard antivirus products can be downloaded off the vendor Web sites to neutralize

CA N A DIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 ht tpltwwwccwmag.cpm

S ECU R I T Y the Milkyway firewall technology is bundled with encryption tools developed by Ottawa's Entrust Technologies Inc. Another company, the Edmonton-based Galahad & Associates Inc., has a different approach to the market. Formerly a reseller representing Checkpoint firewall products, it has since switched into becoming a consultant in document management, where security remains an important element in solution design. Jayson Tymko, Galahad's chief financial officer, said: "Most of issues, including authentication, access con- resellers got into security because they thought it was sexy. But we trol, privacy of information, integrity of data, wanted to get back to our main focus. Customers are not sure what non-repudiation (verification of r ecorded they want." L'CW transactions) and disaster recovery planning, each of which generate unique products.

the new threats. Major anti-virus software vendors include Symantec Corp., McAfee Associates, Cheyenne Software Inc., Dr. Solomon's Software and IBM. Some clients will cover themselves by installing different brands of antivirus products because some vendors are faster off the mark with fresh updates than others, adds Shannon. Computer security is complex because it involves a whole range

But resellers and systems integrators engaged in such solutions often shy away from calling themselves security specialists. It has something to do with liability, explains Brian Dilks, national manager for Internet solutions for the Ottawabased Kanatek Technologies Inc. Although Kanatek, a VAR and systems integrator, is knee-deep in assisting multibranch organizations in implementing secure networks, relying on products developed by Ottawa's Milkway Networks, it distinguishes itself from th e security consultants who

promise to provide a certifiably safe computing environment. Often these security professionalsare ex-hackers who have established "Tiger-Team companies," which make it their goal to shore up gaping holes in an intranet, says Dilks. Clients appreciate Kanatek's limitations, he adds. No organization is absolutely secure, states Dilks, even with all the protection in place, including perhaps a hierarchy of firewalls that determine which category of employee has access to sensitive information. "People are lulled into a false sense of security when they implement a firewall. It is just one tool in the implementation of a security policy," he says. Hence, Kanatek's step-by-step building block approach to creating a systems architecture. Dilks has found that clients prefer to graduate into newer levels of security, he adds. Kanatek is on retainer with accounts to maintain an ongoing process of security management, in a partnering relationship. One of Milkyway's products, SecurIT Audit assists the client to pre-empt breeches in an Internet-based network, as well as offer solutions to root them out. Secerlt firewall.

"People are lulled into a false sense of security when they implement a firewall. lt : is just one fool in tQe implementation of a security policy."

"If you have a PC,itis vulnerable to attack."

— Robert Fabian. A.C. Nielsen — (905) 475-3344 Evron — http: //www.evron.corn Fabian — http: //www.GSALink.corn Gartner Group — ht t p: //www.gartner.corn/newsltrs/index. html Kanatek — http: //www.kanatek.corn Milkyway Networks — http: //www.milkyway.corn R.J. Pritchard 4 Associates — (905) 294-1852 Paul Weinberg is a Toronto-based journalist, specializing in hightechnology reporting and business. He can be reached at pwei nbg @i nterlog. corn.

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T HE complex pages, for example, only account for five requests each. Accessing a simple page with only one graphic makes only two requests. A typical article in any monthly issue on the site (including graphicsand text)averages about six requests.Therefore,the standard rule of thumb — about a 10-to-1 requests-to-hits calculation, tends to be extremely pessimistic when calculating the number of visitors received at the site. Also note that the "unique domains" would increment only once if 10,000 people from compuserve.corn all visited the site. Cached pages similarly do not register in these numbers. For the month of August, traffic on the site increased 20 per cent from earlier in the year, which is encouraging because that month is usually a slow time for computer use. Usage patterns had grown almost uniformly, in opposition to any suggestion that the Internet a I • is just a fad. Interestingly, some of the most popular images on the Web site during that I. a • • • 0 m onth were a series of pictures of a Pentium II moth• 0 erboard. It a ppears that 0 • r • many people are interested in looking inside a Pentium I II to see the improved •0 4 • • • • 4 board layout and new SEC connector. 4 • 4 We also found that a a I "off-beat" p a ges with a• u nusual c o n tent we r e • a • • • • • extremely popular. For example, a page of Kahlil • g5 , Gibranprose,for example, was more popular than a roundup reviews of digital cameras or printers! Tellingly, the Gibran page was not linked anywhere on the site — ample proof that the large volume of "hits" were coming from search engines, not idle browsing. We can only assume that the fact that Gibran's book, The Prophet, is a popular source of quotes to use in weddings may have boosted this page's popularity further during the April-to-June "wedding season." Here's a disturbing trend: A picture on the Web site with the title "warez.gif' was one of the most popular requests. "Warez," of course is a term for pirated software. Presumably, the search engines were to blame. (The picture was unrelated to pirated software and was simply named inappropriately.) Articles about the "Year 2000 problem" are attracting a growing number of visitors.Web authoring asa category was fairly hot,asw ere reviews of new hardware. There is ample evidence to suggest that, at least on this site, highly focused "lists of links to related content" sections are the most visited — especially when the frame remains visible on the left side of the screen. In other words, whether you like frames on Web pages or not, there is evidence that they keep people on your pages a lot longer. Other topics and editorial areas that were especially hot in August included: • Microsoft conspiracy theories, • Pentium II, • hard drive upgrades, •

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• other PC upgrades, especially NT and Windows 98, • Macintosh, especially "the future of," clones and Mac OS 8 tips, • 3D and VRML, • Internet,

• gardening, • digital map making (GIS), and, • scanners. Digital cameras and ink-jet printers did not fare as well as we had imagined they might. But is Java popular? Not based on these stats: the Java article link from the August issue scored only eight hits — a dud! We' ve been impressed with a new Web statistics analysis program called Marketwave Hitlist. It extrapolates monthly data from shorter periods, displays relevant stats as bar charts, shows how many people read only one page (a worthwhile figure to ponder!), and so on. A trial version is freely downloadable from http: //www.marketwave. corn/hl. Obviously, the reading pattern of on-line visitors to any particular Web site doesn't tell the whole story. There is much to be said for asking visitors outright about how they feel about the service and products they obtain from you. Find out what products they are thinking of purchasing in the coming months, and what part of your operations could be improved upon. People like to know you care about their opinion. There aremany ways you can improve customer feedback for your own business, but the Internet can play a role. In order to better serve your customers' needs, you have to gather intelligence. It~~

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Graeme Bennett is the Senior Editor of The Computer Paper and a former computerretailer.He can be reached atgraeme @tcp.ca.

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P RO D U C T S

n Panasonic Digital Video Palmcorder links to PCs Panasonic has announced a lightweight digital videocassette (DV Cassette) palmcorder that features an IEEE Standard 1394 digital interface, enabling high resolution digital video and high quality digital audio to be transferred between the palmcorder and a suitably equipped PC or compatible video device. The model PC-DV710-K palmcorder has a SRP of $3,699.95. According to Barry Murray, marketing manager for Panasonic Video: "Panasonic was the first with a DV cassette camcorder for the consumer market, and now we' re the tirst to offer models with full digital input/output capability at an affordable price." The better

the quality of a video feed being sent to a digitizing device such as an MPEG 1 encoding card, t he better t h e

q uality of t h e resulting MPEG oic PC-DV710-K or A VI or QuickTime video file, which can be played over the Internet or recorded on a CD-ROM. Digital video footage can be dubbed to other digital tape systems, or PCs, as a perfect 'clone' of the original tape, without the generational loss of analog video tape technology. The pricemakes this product an affordable tool for both video professionals and serious amateurs, students, artists, and teachers. See http: //www.panasonic.corn.

NEC unveils Pentium II PC (NB) â&#x20AC;&#x201D; NEC Computer Systems, a division of Packard Bell NEC Inc., has introduced its first Pentium II-based Express5800 personal computer to the Canadian market. The LE2200 wasdue to be available by the end of August, with a typical entry-level configuration priced at about $4,200. See http: //www.nec.corn. 58

Toshiba's Tecra 750 CDT features 233MHz Pentium On Sept. 8, Toshiba of Canada, Information e f f i cient power management, and longer batSystems Group (ISG), introduced its top-of- t e r y life. the-line notebook, one of the first on the marOther standard features of the 750CDT ket to offer the new low-power-consumption i n c l ude: 512KB of pipelined burst Level 2 version of the Intel Pentium 233MHz chip. cac he; 32MB of EDO RAM (expandable to According to Robert Grossman, the 1 6 0 M B), internal PCI Version 2.1 architecvice-president and general manture; a 13.3-inch, 24-bit activeager of Toshiba of Canada ISG, F matrix display with maximum the Tecra 750 CDT also features 1,024 by 768 resolution; 4MB a 3D chipset and an integrated o f video R AM ; a 4 7 7 G B video camera. removable hard drive, and an Toshiba says the mobile optional 4 , 7GB DVD-ROM version of the Intel 233MHz drive (available in late 1997). Pentiumchipoffersa 40 percent Multimedia features include 16~$1 I ft t~ increase in clock speed over the bit duplex audio with support Intel Pentium 166MHz chip, for 3D sound and Wavetable while at the same time lowering Synthesis, built-in digital videoCPU power consumption by 50 ToshibaTecra conferencingincluding camera, a n d NTSC and composite video output to per cent. This lower system power overhead has enabled the inclusion of features such as e n able presentations via standard television video and 3D graphics without degrading monitors. The Toshiba 750CDT weighs eight battery life, according to Toshiba. In order to furtherenhance performance pounds including battery and internal CDthe Tecra 750CDT also incorporate s R O M drive. The basic unit has a suggested Toshiba's new SuperSmart technology fo r li s t price of $10,869, and comes with a threefaster bootup and shutdown, DMI 2.0 BIO S y e ar limited warranty on parts and labor. For m o r e i nf o r mation, c o n tact support, ACPI Version 1.0 support with PC97 compliance for full plug and play capability, http: //www.toshiba.ca, or (905) 470-3478.

Zerox adds color to home, office multifunction markets Xerox has introduced two multifunctio n m e nt workshop, enabling school-age children devices â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the Document WorkCentre 450c t o enjoy producing high quality creative proaimed at the small or home office (SR P j e c ts with their parents, while enabling adults $799), and the D ocument HomeCentre t o p roduce full color documents for work or p l a y." According to Ron Pratt, vice-president ($699), aimed at the family computing audience. Both new devices add color to the muI- and general manager of Xerox Canada's "People might be surprised C h annels Group, tifunction feature mix of faxing, copying and to see Xerox developing products for home scanning. The Document WorkCentre 450c resem users, but we see this as a great opportunity to bles its highly successful black-and-white d e l iver our outstanding quality and leadingpredecessor, the WorkCentre 250, but offers e d g e technology to market that deserves it. The HomeCentre is a great way color printer output, and XeroxDocumeot for parents and kids to be creative, incorporates true multihave fun and get some high qualitasking fo r i n c reased ty, professional-looking work throughput and producdone." t ivity. I t c o m e s w i t h The Document HomeCentre PagisPro and TextBridge Pro software to handle comes with aseparate hand held i'~ color scanner that connects to The scanning, copying, faxDocument HomeCentre by a flexing and Optical Character Recognition ible c a ble. T h e Do c u ment (OCR) tasks. Xerox claims that HomeCentre also comes with a the WorkCentre is simple to install and use, c o mprehensive suite of software, including Xerox PerfectScansoftware, a Topic Search aided by a quick installation routine and intu itive user controls on the device's front panel. En g ine program, TextBridge Pro, Sierra Print The WorkCentre450c comes with a one-year A r t i st Pro 4.0 (a consumer graphics and printing pro g ram ) and Pi ct u re Works warranty and an overnight exchange policy The Document HomeCentre is literally P h o toEnhancer for image processing. intended to be child's play to use, with the For more information, contact http: // www.xerox.corn or 1-800-832-6979. aim of turning a home PC into a "color docu

CA N ADIAN COMPUTER WHOLESALER October 1997 rrrr z v c c ~mag corn

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Steve Jobs is interim Apple CEO Apple says its new board of direct orshave "formalized' * the role of Steve

Jobs by naming him interim chief executive officer of the company until a new CEO is named. The board has announced it expects a new CEO will be named before the end ofthe year.

Compaq adds partner manager Compaq CanadaInc.hasappointed Sue Good as str ategic partnermanager forthe company. The company says she will be responsible for identifying key industry partners and leveraging their capabilities. Good joined Compaq after 10 years in sales and technical marketing roles at Minicom Data and Novell Canada Inc. Most recently, she was OEM manager at Novell.

CA gets lieutenant-general Computer Associates International Inc. has announced that retired Lieutenant-General Otto J. Guenther has joined CA as director of strategic initiatives. W ith morethan 30 years experience in government procurement, contracts administration and information systems management, CA says the general will play an important role in growing the company's federal business and supporting government clients. His responsibilities will include establishing government contracts, management of strategic alliances, and the ongoing administration of IS-related procurement activities. He will be based at CA's Federal Division in Reston, Va. Computer Associates International Inc. is headquartered in Islandia, N.Y., and develops, licenses and supports more than 500 integrated products that include enterprise computing and information management, application development, manufacturing and financial applications.

SoftQuad has new managers (NB) — Toronto's SoftQuad International 60

Inc.has appointed Richard Rabins chiefexecutive officer of the company. Selwyn Rabins has been appointed president. Richard Rabins has also been appointed to the company's board of directors. He previously served as executive vice president of SoftQuad. He co-founded Alpha Software Corporation in 1982 and was its Co-chairman u ntil it s a c quisition b y S o f tQuad i n December, 1996. Selwyn Rabins previously served as executive vice president of SoftQuad. He also co-founded Alpha Software Corp. At Alpha Software Rabins has reportedly developed extensive expertise in product marketing, product development, and strategy. He was with previously with Interactive Data/Chase Econometrics. SoftQuad provides a broad range of multi-platform, standards-based software tools for creating and publishing information.

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Sega gets PC games director (NB) — Sega Entertainment Inc. has appointed SkipMcFerran director of sales for its PC games business. McFerran will be Sega's first sales director dedicated specifically to the PC games category, says the company. McFerran most recently served as Sega of America's midwest regional sales director for home console video-game sales. The company says it will ship 12 PC titles this year.

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Apple VP resigns Guerrino De Luca, Apple Computer Inc.'s executive vice-president of marketing has resignedfrom the company. De Luca was in that position since February 1997. "This is a personal decision which does not reflect my assessment of the company's prospects," said De Luca, in a statement. "We are seeing a lot of changes at Apple, and I'm confident that Apple will shine again."

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5r' CCCA Charitable Foundation 4th Annual BowlingTournament and Gala Dinner

Canada ChineseComputer Association (CCCA) is proud to host this Gala Event which marks the formation of the CCCA Charitable Foundation. This ear, we are pleased to announce that the proceedswill go toward: CCC A haritable Foundation, World Vision Canada, and Yee Mong Centre for Geria tric Care. World Vision Canada is an international Christian humanitadian relief and development organization dedicated to the world's poor and suffering, building their hope for the future.

Date : November I, l997 (Saturday)

Yee Hong Centre for Geriatric Care is a community-based organization of volunt eers and staffproviding a variety ofservices to meetthe health and social needs of CanadianChineseseniors.

Hosted by:

Bowling Tournament:

World Bowl - Richmond Hil $53.50* entry fee per team

Gala Dinner

Cent ur yPalaceChineseRestaurant-Markham * per table(*GST included $856.00 )

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Forfurtherinformation please contact: CCCA Tel: (905) 5I3-0675 Fax: (905) 5I3-6275

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Dominant Players Ar eNowEmeriini In Application DevelopmentToolsMarket

Desktop Scanner s Move Towards Commodity anadian Scanner INnrket-Share

By Leslie Arrand and Margery Leach Oracle, Sybase, Microsoft, Cognos and IBM are five of the most fierce competitors in the application development (ADl tools market. This industry encompasses a wide spectrum of products targeted at software application developers. The AD tools family includes 3GL, object-oriented programming tools,

Hewfett-Packard — 14% Ilicretek — 13% IWnetek — 11'/o Legitach — ltd/o " = : - :

oriented technology has been met with resistanceand has only recentl y begun to be accepted as a viable tool for increasing productivity. Consumers are using more bought comDeclining prices in scanponents, and there is an increase in the use of n ers led t o a large-scale application subsystems among rapidly expandthose bought components. There is a e d market i n requirementfor more reuse and 1996, propelling adaptation of existing code base, growth to 35 per increasing the demand for objectcent, says a r e port oriented technology and off-thecalledScanner Market In ,' shelf, pre-built solutions that can be Canada (1995-2000), procustomized. duced by Evans Research Corp. The recent launch of Microsoft's Visual Moreover, dropping pricing will conStudio 97 has signaled a major shift in the tr i b ute to another 23 per cent growth inshipmarket, towards lower margins and bundled m e nts this year. ERC predicted the market software. Small niche or single product wo u l d grow another 22 per cent, in 1988. focused vendors will find it increasingly diffiERC suggested scanners may attain c u l t to compete successfully, and we expect to d e sktop "necessity" status, along the lines of see substantial consolidation in this industry. p r i nters or modems. The company predicted A f ew large vendors that have a broad product s i x per cent of PCs in use this year will have b a se will emerge as dominant players. scanners attached. Les l ie Arrand and Margezy Leach are ronThe study cited other important growth sul t a nts at T he Branhmn Group Inc., in fact o rs in the market, including: declining PC Ott a r va — an izzterzzatic»zczl marketing and mem o ry prices; declining storage costs; better ma n agenzent consulting firm with a stared ima g e manipulation; more advanced OCR softc a m mi tment ror"Deli veri zzg Cam peri ri ve wa r e; and more innovative applications. nII A di>antage ta the IT Izzdustz3>." Phc»zer (6131 E v ans Research Corp., in Etobicoke, Ozzt.. can Ize reached at: (416) 621-8814. 7 2 5 -2955 ert. 215; or fax: (613)725-03I8. '

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scripting languages, DBMS tools, and application generators, to name a few of its members. The AD tools market represents close to one third of the entire software market, with the applications they develop representing close to another third. System level software captures the remaining portion of the market. The AD tools industry has always been prolific, promising increased productivity with each new generation of tools. Suffering from a legacy of failed expectations, the new object-

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';:. Furt h er on the App e ont, that company has indicated it is withdrawing from its flirtation with licensing out its operating sys' ' L@sg„l~ . t are ' ~ a pple says .zt,® >no .p~,tp' Iicense ~p a> c os-.g;tor..th > ~l t >eti + >'rly indust'r'ys' pu >edits, %hat effect ss'n1'I the pktnershlp w' ' Microso ttztve oh App e. s: Coznrl(on Hard wares'ReferencevÃatfoitrz. Ma are questioning Apple's wisdom, at what appears to be the end : +ou Sttiti» ~>of Azgjde's cloning ~eriment. I'm optimistic that'the fiizarznel input a ' 'te>chnology peltnership will help give stability to Apple, and will lead to Ou r q u e S t i On tO y O u: ' OO greater compatibtI(zty between thn platforms. Has Apple done the'ttght thing for its busineas5y decichng to not license the MacOS 8> to CHRPLcomp!iant clorte makeret ragmatic mFve for the companies, but This couM be a. Q while increasing, the viability of Apple;~~i~~the relationship Q . Yp 1.,rI.', > p Q ,+ q „ !.> „. I „ ,~>~~ ~~ *' ~~ dM ~ . with Microsoft'~'cvetrtiialf'y'~c Apg @ess" of'tt uzti~"; I ~~ ~~'~ ~~ ~ ~ :: ' gintoCer Vkbsite: . ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ technological arwt culture entity, in the market. ,

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