News & announcements

October 1998

Week ending 30 October, 1998

Wave of 64-bit processors to rock workstation arena

"As Sun Microsystems Inc. prepares this week to unleash a battle-hardened, 64-bit version of its Unix-like Solaris operating system, the fight for control of the engineering-workstation market is about to veer off in an unexpected direction...

 

No processor will provide a more potent competitor for Merced than the upcoming Alpha 21364 from Compaq. The architecture, which was disclosed at the Microprocessor Forum, is pitted directly against Intel's IA-64 designs. The 21364 boasts an integrated L2 cache, memory controller and network interface. More important, it is intended to enable scalable, multiprocessor systems."

 

LSI Logic Announces Support For the Alpha Processor and Future Alpha-Based Platforms from Compaq

"LSI Logic Corporation (NYSE:LSI) today announced its continuing and expanded support of the 64-bit Alpha processor, the only RISC processor currently running Microsoft WindowsÒ NT. LSI Logic provides a complete family of PCI-SCSI host adapters that support Compaq Computer Corporation’s Alpha computing environments, including Windows NT, DIGITAL UNIX and DIGITAL OpenVMS. As an increasingly important computing engine, Alpha supports a growing portfolio of more than 12,000 applications."

 

Moldflow Announces Part Adviser 3.0 Release

"Moldflow Corporation today announced release 3.0 of Part Adviser^TM, simulation software used to determine the manufacturability of injection molded plastic parts during preliminary design. The software can now be shared over networks through floating licenses and features enhanced design advice, further CAD integration and emulation as well as the ability to export files for secondary analysis and production."

 

Network Associates Launches Next-Generation Virus Protection For Lotus Notes/Domino

"Network Associates, Inc. (Nasdaq: NETA) today announced the availability of GroupShield for Lotus Notes v4.0. The totally redesigned version continues to provide industry-leading virus security native to Lotus Notes/Domino servers while offering best-of-breed logging and alerting, faster performance, and the most intuitive graphical user interface (GUI) in the category. Version 4.0 is now shipping for Windows NT, and will support all major commercial platforms, including IBM AIX, Sun Solaris, and DEC Alpha beginning in November. With this announcement, Network Associates' underscores its commitment to providing comprehensive virus protection that meets the demands of today's heterogeneous distributed enterprise environments."

 

Alpha ahead by a nose in 64-bit sprint

"Ray Mooney loves a good horse race. And as a customer of Digital Equipment Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and IBM, he's got a front-row seat in the vendors' contest to deliver 64-bit processing power to customers.

Mooney, the manager of SAP integration technologies at chemical manufacturer Solutia Inc., has mostly been content to observe the competition from the sidelines. That is, until last year, when he began deploying SAP AG's R/3. He started the rollout on HP PA-RISC-based servers running HP-UX, but when the platform seemed stretched, he took a more active interest in backing the best 64-bit player. After SAP's ERP (enterprise resource planning) modules were migrated to Alpha, Mooney decided to cast his bet with Digital's architecture.

"We believed the Alpha 64-bit technology was the way to go," says Mooney, in Pensacola, Fla. "It would take one and a half HP [servers] to do what one Alpha could do.""

 

Compaq's John Rose expounds on standardization, Alpha, and direct sales

"Like most former Digital veterans, John Rose was instrumental in the dramatic changes in computing through the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. At DEC, Rose attained the position of vice president of the personal computing systems business, before joining Compaq in 1993. Currently vice president and group general manager of Compaq's enterprise computing group, Rose spoke with InfoWorld Reporter David Pendery about the PC giant's future direction."

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Week ending 23 October, 1998

Compaq Affirms Commitment To Alpha

"Compaq is living up to a commitment made in January to stand by Digital Equipment's Alpha processor and AlphaServer line.

The Houston-based computer company, which acquired Digital in June and quickly set to ramping up AlphaServer volumes through the channel, Monday renamed the AlphaServer line, added a new logo and look, and rolled out the long-awaited Alpha 21264, or EV6, processor."

 

Backing Alpha bet

"Aficionados of the Alpha processor will be happy to know that Compaq is backing its claims that it will continue to support the RISC chips with several new products based on forthcoming versions of the chip.

Compaq's Alpha road map includes not only the use of the processor in its Tandem supercomputers, which Compaq recently announced, but also the graduated release through 1999 of the full Digital Alpha Server line, powered by the latest Alpha EV6 processor and its follow-ons. The servers will be rebranded as Compaq Alpha Servers in three categories: Departmental (DS), Enterprise (ES), and Global (GS) servers. Compaq is also planning to expand its ProLiant line of Intel servers with Alpha models."

 

Visual Studio Alpha Platform Editions

"For the cost of shipping and handling, licensed users of the Enterprise Editions of Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0, Visual Basic 6.0 and Visual C++ 6.0 are entitled to receive copies of Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0 and Visual C++ 6.0 for the Alpha platform. With these editions you can develop applications for the Alpha platform. The Alpha platform editions contain all of the updated components from the release of Visual Studio 6.0 Service Pack 1.

Availability: Products are scheduled to ship late fall. Place your order now and be the first to receive your Alpha platform edition as soon as it is available."

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Two+ Weeks ending 19 October, 1998

Compaq Servers Use Next-Generation Alpha Chip

"Compaq plans today to introduce two high-end enterprise Alpha servers, signaling its ongoing commitment to key Digital Equipment technology.

The Compaq AlphaServer GS60 and GS140 will be the last Alpha servers built using bus technology. Beginning next year, Compaq systems will be based on a switched architecture similar to the VAX 9000 mainframe, which should improve performance and scalability, said John Bennett, product marketing manager for high-end Alpha servers."

 

K7, EV7 and IA-64 detailed at forum -- MPUs primed for architectural war

"The end of the century will be marked by architectural wars as intense as the battle between RISC and CISC, but far more complex. That was the repeated message from a series of major microprocessor papers at the Microprocessor Forum here last week. Intel Corp., IBM Corp., Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Compaq Computer Corp. each unveiled details of their new flagship CPUs, revealing both common trends and profound differences in the pursuit of power."

 

Processor rites of passage -- MPU clone companies map out their own courses

"After years of watching Intel Corp. break trail in the chip market, Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Cyrix Corp., and other chip makers used the Microprocessor Forum in San Jose last week to strike out in new directions...

 

AMD described its forthcoming K7 chip, which not only will use the EV-6 system bus licensed from Compaq Computer Corp.'s Digital Equipment Corp. subsidiary, but will be the first seventh-generation CPU from any chip maker."

 

Compaq prepares direct initiative -- Revamps Enterprise Channel Efforts

"Compaq Computer Corp. appears ready to more aggressively pursue direct sales even while boosting its reliance on service and enterprise solution partners...

As part of the new enterprise push, Compaq will require a separate certification for resellers to sell Alpha, Tandem and Digital's high-end storage products.

"Alpha will not be in the program in [the fourth quarter], but storage products will be," said Roberts. "But in [the first quarter] we will be moving all of the products, including Tandem, into the program.""

 

Chaotic PC market shapes processor road maps

"The Microprocessor Forum will kick off Tuesday (Oct.13) with a look across a landscape that's become terra incognita. The personal computer industry, long seen as a steady line of incrementally more powerful Intel X86 processors, marching — more or less unaccompanied — toward the horizon, has devolved into chaos.

 

With its once monolithic market fractured, Intel Corp. is no longer in control. Competitors of every stripe, from historic archrival AMD to completely new ventures, are sinking their roots into a niche or two, hoping to outmaneuver the Santa Clara, Calif., giant...

 

"Realistically, it's going to be years before Merced or IA-64 processors are as significant as even Alpha is today. It's probably going to be 2002 before they get there, which is a long time in this business," [Michael] Slater [executive editor of Microprocessor Report] said."

 

Battle Lines Drawn For Next-Generation MPUs

"The end of the century will be marked by architectural wars as intense as the battle between RISC and computer instruction-set computers, but far more complex...

 

Two vendors will challenge the performance of IA-64 by exploiting process-level parallelism. Both Compaq and IBM described fast, superscalar RISC machines that are aimed at tightly coupled multiprocessing."

 

With Merced delayed, RISC chip makers unfurl road maps

"Hoping to capitalize on the delay of Intel Corp.'s next-generation Merced processor, some of the leading RISC chip makers this week spelled out plans for their high-performance 64-bit processors...

 

Compaq, making the most of the Alpha architecture it bought from Digital Equipment Corp. earlier this year, offered a peek at the next-generation Alpha 21364, often referred to as EV7."

 

Compaq backs Alpha future

"Compaq will finally put its plans for the Alpha platform in concrete form on Monday when the Houston, Texas-based computing giant rolls out its first Alpha-based servers and provides details on future generations of processors that will hit 1,000-MHz and more."

 

Compaq headed for high end

"Compaq's acquisition of Digital Equipment Corporation and Tandem is giving the company a serious and growing presence in the world of high-performance, "enterprise" computing, industry observers say."

 

Compaq rolls out Alpha server

"Compaq released a new class of enterprise corporate servers today, its first products to contain Alpha processors.

 

The "global system" GS60 and GS140 servers, built inside a blue box, are the first Alpha-based servers that bear the Compaq moniker instead of Digital's."

 

Intel's days numbered as primary supplier of Alpha?

"Over the next few quarters, Intel Corp. will have less to do with producing one of its biggest competitors, the Alpha chip.

That's because Compaq Computer Corp., which now owns Alpha, is looking to IBM Microelectronics and Samsung Electric Co. Ltd. to be the primary suppliers of the processor."

 

Compaq Pledges Digital Allegiance

"Compaq Computer Corp. appears to be putting its Digital money where its mouth is.

At the Digital Equipment Computer Users Society conference here last week--the first since Compaq acquired Digital Equipment Corp.--Compaq officials laid out plans for further development of such Digital technologies as the Alpha processor and servers, Digital Unix, and OpenVMS."

 

64-bit future up for grabs in vendors' plans

"Although their products in some cases are several years from release, the leading manufacturers of 64-bit processors are jockeying for position in the mind share of corporate users by uncharacteristically revealing their long-term road maps...

 

Compaq's new Alpha processor, also referred to as EV7, will be coupled with a chip set that enables up to 12.8GB-per-second peak data throughput, compared with about 2GB per seconds peak on today's Alpha, said Jesse Lipcon, senior vice president of the high-performance server division at Compaq's Maynard, Mass., office."

 

Pfeiffer spells out future for Digital users

"Compaq CEO Eckhard Pfeiffer addressed the Digital Equipment Users Society here Monday, sketching out the next phases of Compaq's strategy as the pieces of the Digital puzzle fall into place.

"We start from a position of strength," Pfeiffer said by videotape to the audience. "You will see that Compaq is driving many of the key technologies and solutions that define computing into the new millennium."

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Week ending 2 October, 1998

Compaq sees life in Alpha chip

"Compaq Computer said today that it planned to continue using Digital Equipment's high-powered Alpha processor for another ten years even as Intel nears the release of its competing Merced chip.

"There has been a total commitment by Compaq to maintain and enhance these [Alpha] capabilities," Enrico Pesatori, Compaq's senior vice president of marketing, told Reuters in an interview."

 

Troubleshooting Win32; Maximize your applications' NT compatibility

"Life was simple before Microsoft released Windows NT. Most users had only 16-bit DOS and Windows applications that ran only on Intel processors. NT supports most 16-bit DOS and Windows applications and runs 32-bit native applications on multiple hardware architectures, such as Intel, Alpha, and MIPS.

In NT environments, application compatibility and support can be confusing. Users waste time and money determining which applications are NT compatible, and they waste time troubleshooting application compatibility problems. Users often ask the following questions about running Win32 applications on NT."

 

New Messaging Language REBOL Transforms Information Exchange over Networks

"REBOL Technologies (www.rebol.com) today announced the release of REBOL/Core V1.0, a network messaging language designed to revolutionize the exchange and interpretation of information on the Internet. REBOL (pronounced "REB-ul") represents a powerful new domain of computer languages – described as context-sensitive by computer scientists. By their nature, languages in this domain are more robust, simple, and elegant than C++ and Java, and also more customizable and easier-to-understand than scripting languages like PERL and Tcl...

 

...The company will also produce commercial and professional upgrades, as well as distribution licenses, over the next few months. These will be accompanied by releases of REBOL/Core on Linux for SPARC and DEC Alpha, DEC Alpha NT, IRIX 6.2, BeOS x86, and BSDi."

 

Compaq Brings NT, OpenVMS Closer

"Compaq Computer Corp. announced Affinity Wave 6, the Windows NT and OpenVMS integration program started by Digital Equipment Corp.

"We are moving forward with both Digital Unix and OpenVMS," says Rich Marcello, vice president of OpenVMS, Compaq. "Our goal is to work with Microsoft to enhance NT so it becomes more enterprise-capable. This is part of the same strategic roadmap we recently announced with Microsoft regarding Digital Unix." "

 

Alpha Users Pressure Microsoft for Support

"In the aftermath of Compaq Computer Corp.’s acquisition of Digital Equipment Corp., officials from both companies did their best to quell the concern of current or prospective customers of Digital’s high-end Alpha microprocessor. But that’s not enough, says a group of Alpha developers, who prepared an open letter to Microsoft Corp. to pressure the software giant to provide Alpha software products that are equivalent to their Intel counterparts.

At the time of Compaq’s acquisition of Digital, both Digital and Microsoft announced plans to increase Windows NT support for the Alpha microprocessor. Among other initiatives, Microsoft committed to continue shipping Windows NT products with the same features for both Intel and Alpha, including Windows NT Server and the BackOffice components. Because of a lack of any substantial application base, however, Alpha’s client-side support on the Windows NT platform is being neglected."

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