don@BENSUN.CS.UMD.EDU (Don Hopkins) (02/10/88)
SUN MICROSYSTEMS' NeWS FOR 80386 PLATFORM NeWS Now Licensed By Over 50 Organizations DALLAS, TX -- February 9, 1988 -- Sun Microsystems today announced that its Network extensible Window System (NeWS) source product now includes support for platforms based on the Intel 80386 microprocessor running standard UNIX System V.3. This new support is an addition to the existing NeWS source product for Motorola 680X0-based UNIX System 4.2BSD and VAX-based Ultrix 1.2 platforms. The 80386-based product will speed the availability of 80386-based hardware products able to run NeWS applications. Sun is hosting a show-wide NeWS demonstration across a range of systems, including Apple Macintoshes, workstations, and mini-supercomputers, at the UniForum show in Dallas, Texas this week. To date, more than 50 companies and universities have licensed NeWS. Companies who have announced products based on NeWS include AT&T, Silicon Graphics, Santa Cruz Operation, Parallax Graphics, Acorn Computers, and Raster Technologies. These companies will make NeWS available on a wide variety of platforms including the Macintosh II in early 1988, OS/2 by mid 1988, and Xenix by late 1988. As previously announced, NeWS will be available in the future converged UNIX System V from AT&T through the X11/NeWS merged window product. Dr. Eric Schmidt, vice president and general manager of the Software Products Division at Sun, said, "Application developers and other workstation vendors are choosing NeWS because of its technological advantages. Many Sun users are requesting it because of its easy-to-use application development environment. "Sun is committed to providing a full implementation of the PostScript language and enhancing that technology in a distributed computing environment," he continued. "NeWS brings the PostScript page description language to the screen. Sun delivers this advanced windowing technology through a set of source code products that are both licensable and affordable for implementation on many different platforms." In addition to the more than 50 organizations that have licensed the NeWS technology, more than 2,000 development copies of NeWS have been shipped. Companies who have announced products based on NeWS are: --Santa Cruz Operation, Santa Cruz, CA, NeWS on Xenix --Palladio, New York, NY, NeWS on OS/2 --Silicon Graphics, Mountain View, CA, NeWS for SGI workstations --Parallax Graphics, Santa Clara, CA, Video windows via NeWS --eXP Software, Cambridge, MA, NeWS for Macintosh --Whitechapel Workstations, London, U.K., NeWS for Whitechapel workstations --Acorn Computer, Cambridge, U.K., NeWS for Acorn Computers --Raster Technologies, Westford, MA, NeWS for the GX4000 --Ameristar Technologies, Long Island, NY, NeWS for the Amiga 2000 --Celerity, San Diego, CA, NeWS for Celerity computers --Alliant, Littleton, MA, NeWS for Alliant computers --Ridge, Santa Clara, CA, NeWS for Ridge computers --AT&T, Summit, NJ, X11/NeWS for the future standard UNIX system NeWS, based on the PostScript page description language, provides advanced features, such as display resolution independence, portability of graphics applications, high interactive performance, flexible architecture, and sophisticated user interface tools. NeWS release 1.1 is currently shipping and lists for $100 per copy for Sun workstations. NeWS support for 386/System V will be available in March 1988 as part of the regular NeWS source code, which can be licensed for $25,000. Sun will make the X11/NeWS technology available to the industry through the same technology licensing program. Sun Microsystems, Inc., is a leading supplier of network-based distributed computing systems, including technical workstations, servers, and UNIX operating system and productivity software. ### NeWS Licensees Acorn Computers Ltd. Ameristar Technologies AT&T-IS AT&T Bell Labs AT&T Technologies Eastman Kodak Company Evans & Sutherland eXP Software, Inc. Franz Inc. Jet Propulsion Laboratories Lawrence Livermore Laboratories Los Alamos National Laboratories Microsoft Corporation Parallax Graphics ParcPlace Systems Raster Technologies Rand Corporation SAE (Solutions Are Everything) Silicon Graphics Computer Systems Stratus Computer Tektronix Inc. Unicad, Inc. Whitechapel Workstations Brown University Cambridge University Columbia University Duke University Hull University New York University Princeton University Purdue University Queen Mary College Rutgers University State University of New York at Stony Brook Turing Institute University College of London University of Calgary University of Maryland University of Manchester University of Michigan University of Milan University of Pittsburgh University of Wisconsin University of Southern California UC Santa Barbara UC Santa Cruz NeWS Supporters Alliant Computer Bell Technologies Celerity Computer Cornerstone Technology Intel Corporation MICOM-Interlan, Inc. Ridge Unipress