The Technology Watch section of this issue contains John C Dvorak’s Great Operating System Quiz from PC Magazine Sept 24, 1991.
<><><><><><><><> T h e V O G O N N e w s S e r v i c e <><><><><><><><>
Edition : 2450 Wednesday 13-Nov-1991 Circulation : 8216
VNS MAIN NEWS ..................................... 71 Lines
VNS COMPUTER NEWS ................................. 57 "
VNS TECHNOLOGY WATCH .............................. 131 "
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VNS MAIN NEWS: [Tom Povey, VNS UK News Desk]
============== [Reading, England ]
Here is the News at 07:00 GMT on Wednesday 13-November-1991
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UK News
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FT-SE = 2575.5
Exchange Rate for UK pound = $ 1.7720 = Dm 2.9035
Oil = $ 21.45 (Dec) {down from $22+}
The Government had a comfortable majority of 89 in a vote on the new
bill to replace the "Poll Tax" by a council tax. Although many
conservatives voiced objections to details in the bill, none voted
against. However, 10-12 did abstain.
Bottles of Lucozade are to be removed from shelves today after police
report that some may have been contaminated through action by an animal
rights group seeking publicity. This follows publicity on Monday in
support of limited drug testing on animals. Monday's publicity was by
people who are being treated by drugs that could only have been
developed through a programme including tests on animals.
A laywer representing the Maxwell family has said that there is evidence
that Robert Maxwell could have been in the water for some 3-4 hours
before he died. His heart attack could have been brought on by his
struggle to survive in the water. This makes his death appear an
accident or, although said to be unlikely, murder.
A Church group have written to the General Synod of the Church of
England saying that it will setup a network of churches if the the C of
E approve the ordination of women. The group claim the support of one
third of the C of E.
Senior civil servants are to appear before a UN committee in geneva
today to discuss the treatment of prisoners in Northern Ireland. This
follows a report by Amnesty International that criticised Britain's
handling of prisoners at a jail in NI.
European News
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Lord Carrington is returning to Yugoslavia to discuss the deployment of
an international peace-keeping force following requests from both sides.
The continued fighting and the desctruction of Vukovar and the damage to
Dubrovnik is said to have turned the opinions of world leaders towards
being willing to intervene in the affair. A sticking point is where new
borders should be established: Croats want a return to the old borders
while Serbs want new borders where the fighting now is.
World News
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Baghdad has offered to lift its blockade of Kurdish northern Iraq if
Kurdish guerrillas withdraw from the cities. Kurdish leaders say that
the guerrillas will setup positions outside the cities.
{News courtesy of the BBC}
Local Weather
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Today is forecast to be a mixture of sunny periods, frequent showers and
strong winds. High 9C/48F. Show is forecast for hills above 500ft in the
north and west. Scotland is already having some problems with drifting
snow. In the storms yesterday, 20 houses in Kendal, Lake District, were
struck by lightning while a tornado struck a village near Market Raison
in Cambridgeshire. One person was killed in Lancashire by a falling barn
gable.
The weather is to continue cold, wet and windy for a few days.
VNS COMPUTER NEWS: [Tracy Talcott, VNS Computer Desk]
================== [Nashua, NH, USA ]
Monday's Market Digital Fair Market Value
Quote Change 3-Dec-1990 $53.50
IBM 100 1/8 - 1/8 31-May-1991 $68.375
85% of lower $45.50
Tuesday's Market Dow Jones Change 3-Jun-1991 $68.125
DEC 61 +1 3054.11 +11.85
Digital, Microsoft - To announce new alliance
{The Nashua Telegraph, 12-Nov-91, p. 12}
Digital and Microsoft next week will announce a new alliance that
analysts say could escalate the feuding among companies atop the computer
industry. The announcement next Tuesday is expected to combine Microsoft's
strength in developing software for desktop computers with Digital's expertise
in linking computers in global networks. Microsoft was once a string ally of
IBM. But the two have become bitter rivals over the development of operating
systems for personal computers. Observers say this relationship frayed further
with IBM forging an alliance this year with onetime rival Apple Computer. But
by turning to Digital, which is the world's second-largest computer company,
Microsoft could bolster one of IBM's fiercest competitors, analysts say.
Alliances have become more common in the computer industry, as companies try
to compete in a market with shrinking profit margins. IBM, for example, also
announced alliances this year with Wang Laboratories and Lotus Development.
Craig Mitchell, a spokesman for Digital, said the Maynard-based company has
developed a broad range of products to be announced next week. They will be
teamed with Windows, a hot-selling software product developed by Microsoft
that allows computer users to manipulate symbols and graphical images on their
screens, rather than memorizing keyboard commands.
Computer Associates - Buys some assets of Access Technology Inc.
{The Boston Globe, 12-Nov-91, p. 44}
The assets were purchased from H&R Block for an undisclosed amount of cash.
Access was owned by CompuServe Inc., a unit of H&R Block. The purchased assets
include stock in Access' European and Australian subsidiaries and 20/20, an
electronic spreadsheet for Digital Equipment's VAX computers.
Fibronics - Wins nearly $1 million contract for networks for Wal-Mart Stores
{The Boston Globe, 12-Nov-91, p. 44}
Wal-Mart will buy Fibronics' products to improve the speed and control of
inventory and distribution operations between Wal-Mart's corporate
headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., and its 18 warehouses across the country.
WordPerfect - Ships Windows version of its word-processing software
{The Wall Street Journal, 11-Nov-91, p. B3}
Willard E. Peterson, WordPerfect's executive vice president, thinks the
company's new Windows program is well-designed and said retailers have already
ordered 300,000 copies. "I think we can hold our share of the market," he
said. Mr. Peterson said he expected WordPerfect to sell $50 million to $75
million of the new Windows product by year end, bringing the company's 1991
revenues to nearly $600 million. Richard Shaffer, editor of Computer Letter,
praises WordPerfect's management but argues that the flexibility of Windows
makes it unlikely that users will find it as desirable as in the past to
standardize on a single word processor. This is because newfangled word
processors don't rely on users typing strings of letters to control their
documents, meaning customers don't have to memorize kooky command lines.
Windows programs share the same type of menu systems and allow users to
control programs by pointing at visual prompts on a screen with a pointing
device called a mouse.
VNS TECHNOLOGY WATCH: [Mike Taylor, VNS Correspondent]
===================== [Littleton, MA, USA ]
John C Dvorak's Great Operating System Quiz
{PC Magazine Sept 24, 1991 }
Finding the right operating system is as simple as ordering a pizza
and answering some easy questions.
In the months (and perhaps years) ahead, many of us will be
confronted by a decision: What operating system to choose? DOS?
Unix? DOS with windows?
As I watch more and more users choose sides, it's apparent that there
are aspects of individual personalities that work into the decision.
So I did some arduous research to develop one of my famous tests to
help people determine which operating system is best for them. I
examine a combination of both computing needs and personal habits.
Circle either the DOS, OS/2, W (for Windows), or Unix choice next to
your favorite answer. Count up the number of answers for each choice.
Whichever one dominates should be the right operating system for you.
If there is a mismatch of answers, then you should probably wait a year.
Dvorak's Operating System Quiz
1. What application do you expect to use the most?
DOS) spreadsheet
OS/2) large complex database
W) solitaire
Unix) GREP
2. What is your favorite TV show?
DOS) "Nova"
OS/2) "The MacNeil-Lehrer Report"
W) Woody Woodpecker
Unix) The 3 A.M. test pattern
3. What is your favorite hobby?
DOS) stamp collecting
OS/2) bird watching
W) snail racing
Unix) button collecting
4. What kind of clothes do you prefer?
DOS) sports suit, no tie.
OS/2) suit and tie.
W) sweater and jeans.
Unix) Nerdy T-shirt, jeans, and no underpants.
5. What kind of music do you like?
DOS) The Beatles
OS/2) classical
W) New Age fusion music
Unix) tuba solos
6. What's your favorite color?
DOS) modern beige
OS/2) blue
W) stark white
Unix) pizza-stain red
7. What's your favorite car?
DOS) Ford
OS/2) Lexus
W) fake Bugatti
Unix) Borgward
8. Who is your favorite artist?
DOS) Rembrandt
OS/2) Pollack
W) Dali
Unix) Gary Larsen
9. Who is your favorite author?
DOS) Robert Heinlein
OS/2) Tom Wolfe
W) John Madden
Unix) Walt Disney
10. Who is your favorite actor?
DOS) Rod Steiger
OS/2) John Wayne
W) Leonard Nimoy
Unix) Richard Simmons
11. Who was your favorite president?
DOS) Abe Lincoln
OS/2) Ronald Reagan
W) Jack Kennedy
Unix) Hubert Humphrey
12. What's your preferred breakfast food?
DOS) cereal
OS/2) steak and eggs
W) softboiled egg
Unix) pizza
13. If time wasn't important, how would you prefer to travel?
DOS) walk
OS/2) steam train
W) hot air balloon
Unix) pogo stick
14. (to be answered by men) If you were stuck on a desert island
with only one woman, whom would you choose?
DOS) Kim Basinger
OS/2) Meryl Streep
W) Dr. Ruth Westheimer
Unix) a photo of Kim Basinger
15. (to be answered by women) If you were stuck on a desert island
with only one man, whom would you choose?
DOS) Kevin Costner
OS/2) Arnold Schwarzenegger
W) Bill Gates
Unix) a photo of Kim Basinger
16. When you get up in the morning, what is the first thing you do?
DOS) shower
OS/2) brush teeth
W) gargle
Unix) pick off food stuck to body from sleeping with pizza
17. What's the last thing you do before going to bed?
DOS) let out cat, turn off lights
OS/2) brush teeth
W) pray
Unix) check to see if there is a pizza in the bed
Tally your score and don't waste a minute finding pleasure in the
operating system that suits you best. One disclaimer I have to make:
Anyone scoring 17 straight "Unix" answers should seek counseling
immediately.
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<><><><><><><><> VNS Edition : 2450 Wednesday 13-Nov-1991 <><><><><><><><>
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