The Open Systems Show is playing second fiddle to Olympia’s Mac User Show in London this week, having to make do with three floors of the unsuitably shaped Olympia 2 – a tall and narrow venue that isolates the various parts of the exhibition and destroys a sense of the whole. But despite the shadow of the recession, the overall mood was positive, and the stands hid a fair amount of interest for the more intrepid explorers. Biggest and best stand at the show was from DEC, which had Unix chief Dom Lacava in attendance, with demonstrations of Recital Corp’s dBase products on the new DECsystem 5100; it was also showing IT Security International’s Link tool and Imperial Software Technology’s X-Designer (see below); the Show closes today, Friday at 4pm.
AT&T uses show to launch its StarServer 80486 machine into the UK through AT&T Istel
AT&T Computer Systems International chose London as the venue for the first showing of its latest StarServer computer using the Intel 80486, which it announced two days before (CI No 1,549). The StarServer S is the uniprocessor version of the multi-processor StarServer E announced back at Comdex Spring in June (CI No 1439) – Bell Laboratories-designed machines that use the EISA bus and run Unix System V.4. Rated at 26.5 MIPS, the Starserver S costs from UKP12,000 in the UK with 4Mb RAM and 300Mb hard disk and uses a 33MHz 80486. Both machines have been shipped to customers, although the StarServer E is unlikely to be shipped in multi-processor configurations until early next year, when the symmetric multi-processing operating system AT&T is working on in conjunction with Pyramid Technology has been fully completed. AT&T also announced the availability of Unix V Release 4 version 2.1, a binary end-user version to run on its WorkGroup product lines, plus a European Language supplement. The machines will be sold in the UK through AT&T Istel, which hopes to gain business through Istel’s vertical markethe Intel 80486, which it announced two days before (CI No 1,549). The StarServer S is the uniprocessor version of the multi-processor StarServer E announced back at Comdex Spring in June (CI No 1439) – Bell Laboratories-designed machines that use the EISA bus and run Unix System V.4. Rated at 26.5 MIPS, the Starserver S costs from UKP12,000 in the UK with 4Mb RAM and 300Mb hard disk and uses a 33MHz 80486. Both machines have been shipped to customers, although the StarServer E is unlikely to be shipped in multi-processor configurations until early next year, when the symmetric multi-processing operating system AT&T is working on in conjunction with Pyramid Technology has been fully completed. AT&T also announced the availability of Unix V Release 4 version 2.1, a binary end-user version to run on its WorkGroup product lines, plus a European Language supplement. The machines will be sold in the UK through AT&T Istel, which hopes to gain business through Istel’s vertical market segments. Up until now, Istel sold mainly DEC and IBM hardware to automotive, manufacturing, financial services, retail and health businesses. It will also sell to AT&T corporate accounts, and is beginning to establish a value-added reseller network. British Olivetti is still selling AT&T’s 3B supermicros in the UK under the original agreement.
ICL finally gets around to launching its DRS 3000 onto the home market
Also on the hardware front, ICL was playing catch-up with its US subsidiary by introducing the Intel-based DRS 3000 deskside server line. Running Unix System V.4, the DRS 3000 boosts the performance of the older DRS 300 and 400 machines, which will continue to be supported, but will no longer be the strategic first choice. Supporting up to 32 users, the new machines are positioned below ICL’s Spabc-based DRS 6000 machines. Prices start from UKP16,000, with a typical 32-user configuration costing UKP38,000. Originally planned for early next year, the introduction took place earlier than planned due to pressure from software houses and resellers according to ICL. Perhaps the same motivation will prompt ICL UK to
come clean about multi-processor DRS 6000s, which have already been introduced in the US. There are reportedly two and four processor models rated at up to 60 MIPS, which ICL is using to supply OEM customers such as Sun Microsystems. A two processor model with 32Mb RAM, dual 660Mb disk drives plus a high-speed bus and input-output support should cost around $150,000. In the UK, ICL also said that Unix System V.4 would be available on its 80486-based DRS Model 75.
EurOSInet to buttress UK fainthearts
Although – or perhaps because – commercial UK computer companies have proved to be one of the slowest in Europe to support Open Systems Interconnection standards, EurOSInet announced that it was regionalising its operations to form a UK-specific arm under Pat Sutton from Bull and marketing consultant (ex-Concurrent) David Steele. And the OSI Network Management Forum will hold its next President’s Round Table meeting here in London on December 4.
Renaissance storage, optical archiver
Thame Microsystems Ltd has the rights over here for the Epoch Systems Renaissance line of storage, back-up and archiving products (CI No 1,550), which it was showing on the Sun Microsystems stand. Meanwhile, Computer International was showing the CIL optical archiver, a jukebox with up to six Sony magneto-optical disks for up to 100Gb storage per jukebox. Computer International also launched the Cabletron Spectrum network management system, an X-Window-based product able to flag bad or questionable network components either through building plans or logical network topology maps. It was shown running on a Solbourne Computer workstation.
Yet another continental generator
Despite the fierce competition, North London-based SkillAdvance thinks there is still a gap in the market for another fourth generation language. The company has joined forces with Transmediair of Bilthoven in the Netherlands, to market the SuperNova 4GL already popular in continental Europe, and beginning to emerge in the US through Four Seasons Software of Iselin, New Jersey. SuperNova is a database independent application developer that encourages a non-procedural, top-down, object-oriented approach to programming. Meanwhile Computer Power Europe, the Australian that is now responsible for the Today generator, is beginning to talk about Version 4 of Today, which is due out in the second quarter of next year. It promises to provide the full set of standard graphical user interfaces and sophisticated windowing capabilities.
