Issue No. 73
- SPARC INERNATIONAL WELCOMES MEMBER ATP ELECTRONICS!
- TATUNG SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, INC. ANNOUNCES NEW RACK MOUNTABLE SYSTEM IN 2U FORM FACTOR
- SUN DETECTIVE OFFERS MULTIMEDIA TRAINING CD
- RED HAT AND COMPAQ PARTNER TO PROVIDE WORLDWIDE ENTERPRISE SUPPORT FOR OFFICIAL RED HAT LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM
- TADPOLE ACQUIRES UTILITY SOFTWARE DEVELOPER CONIC SYSTEMS, CREATES ENLARGED BUSINESS UNIT FOR UTILITIES AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS MARKETS
II. VERIFIED TESTING ADDITIONS IN OCTOBER
III. SPARCSHOP
I. SPARC News
I. A. – SPARC INERNATIONAL WELCOMES MEMBER ATP ELECTRONICS!
Sunnyvale, CA–October 20, 1999–ATP Electronics joined SPARC International. ATP Electronics, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of top-performance memory products specializing in the design and manufacturer of high-end, high-density memory modules for servers, workstations, desktops,notebooks, networking and embedded systems. We pride ourselves in a highly trained engineering department capable of addressing your most sophisticated memory needs. With ATP’s expertise in the DRAM business, we’re committed to building long term business relationship with our customers by providing top-quality products and value-added services. For more information visit their web site at www.atpusa.com.
I. B. – TATUNG SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, INC. ANNOUNCES NEW RACK MOUNTABLE SYSTEM IN 2U FORM FACTOR
Milpitas, CA–Oct. 11, 1999–Tatung Science & Technology, Inc. (TSTI), celebrating more than ten years of commitment to the SPARC systems market, today unveiled the COMPstation U10-440R2U. This new Sun Ultra 10-compatible system features the 440 MHz UltraSPARC-IIi chip. Housed in a compact 2U enclosure, the rack mountable server is ideal for Web hosting, telecommunications, industrial and e-commerce environments where space is critical.
“The COMPstation U10-440R2U is specially designed for users who demand a system that can meet tight space requirements, without sacrificing performance or speed,” said Dr. Kam Chan, president of TSTI. “The server’s small chassis form factor enables users to take advantage of limited real estate by accommodating more systems in a given space.”
Compact Rack Mount Systems Designed to Meet the Needs of ISPs and OEMs
The new rack mountable, Ultra 10-compatible COMPstation U10-440R2U is configured to meet the requirements of ISPs, OEMs and industrial and communications applications. Tatung designed the system to easily and cost effectively accommodate memory and peripherals expansion.
Equipped with 2 MB of external cache, the U10-440R2U delivers a system performance of 18.7 SPECint_95* and 21.1 SPECfp_95*. The 64-bit, 440 MHz UltraSPARC-IIi processor supports two 32-bit PCI devices at 33 MHz to provide plenty of system flexibility.
The U10-440R2U features a rack mountable chassis design that conveniently fits into existing ISP server banks and adapts easily to OEM configurations. With a small footprint that is 3.5″ high x 17.25″ wide x 20″ deep, the system’s space-saving design allows for easy vertical stacking. Front panel access to CD-ROM and floppy drives facilitate upgrades and routine maintenance tasks for administrators.
The COMPstation U10-440R2U supports four drive bays suitable for two, 3.5″ hard drives (one inch thick), a 5.25″ CD-ROM drive and a 3.5″ floppy drive. Standard features consist of 128 MB of RAM, 9 GB hard drive, dual-channel Ultra-Wide SCSI built into the motherboard, two serial ports, one parallel port, Solaris 7 and a 10/100-BaseT Ethernet interface. Suggested list pricing starts at $4390 for a standard configuration.
While the COMPstation U10-440R2U comes pre-installed with Solaris 7, it also provides support for the Linux open source operating system, Apache Web Server and many other applications running on the UltraSPARC platform.
Optional features on the new server include up to 1 GB of memory, 36 GB or more of hard disk capacity and 24-bit PCI graphics.
Optional Rack Mountable RAID Storage Subsystem Increases Disk Capacity
Another option available from Tatung is an add-on disk array storage subsystem that increases hard disk capacity to 250 GB or more and makes the COMPstation U10-440R2U servers robust enough to support departmental or small enterprise Internet or Intranet applications.
Tatung Science & Technology, Inc. is the leading provider of SPARC-compatible workstations and web servers and a U.S. subsidiary of the over $4 billion, multi-national Tatung Co. Backed by more than ten years of commitment to the SPARC systems market, TSTI workstations and servers are installed at tens of thousands of user sites throughout North America. TSTI is a founding member of SPARC International.
For more information, contact Tatung Science & Technology, Inc., 1840 McCarthy Blvd., Milpitas, CA 95035. Toll Free: 1-800-659-5902; e-mail: mkt@tsti.com, Web site: www.tsti.com.
I. C. – SUN DETECTIVE OFFERS MULTIMEDIA TRAINING CD
Waterford, MI–October 1, 1999–SoftTech Solutions announces a new multimedia automated demo for the On-Line! Detective for Sun. The demo is and excellent marketing and training tool providing individuals a quick overview of the key features and benefits of the product. The Detective is a system support software package for everyone who interfaces with Sun equipment. It provides quick and accurate information for locating and resolving Sun problems in a very intuitive fashion. The tool uses a number of navigational techniques to put information at the point of need. Key users of the Detective include system administrators, field engineers, help desk personnel and resellers of Sun equipment.
The new demo uses both sound and graphics to highlight each module of the Detective. Users receive a quick tour (each module is 1-4 minutes in length), outlining key information on specific systems, troubleshooting, part number information, and configuration rules and guidelines. The demo is instrumental in bringing new customers up-to-speed in utilizing the Detective. Individuals who spend a few minutes reviewing the demo have a very strong grasp of the benefits and functional attributes of the product.
“One of the challenges of any software company is training”, states CEO Paul Violassi, “coupling this new training tool with the On-Line! Detective, individuals raise their level of Sun competence in a very short period of time.” This has become particularly important with large corporations, such as StorageTek, AT&T, Department of Defense and others deploying the Detective throughout their service organizations.
The new demo is also providing a tremendous benefit in the marketing arena. “Technical and economic buyers are able, in a very short period, understand the features of the full Detective and make a decision on whether it is right for their organizations”, offers Michael Neff, Director of Marketing at SoftTech. SoftTech recently sent out 17,000 demo CDs through PCI’s, SunServer magazine. “The feedback and early response is very encouraging”, replies Neff.
Currently the automated demo is PC based. An interactive demo is available on SoftTech’s website at www.stsolutions.com that is downloadable on both Windows and Solaris. SoftTech is currently working on a Solaris automated demo. If you have access to a PC with a sound card, the new demo is worth a look. To contact SoftTech Solutions call (248) 738-7738 or (888) 786-4393.
I. D. – RED HAT AND COMPAQ PARTNER TO PROVIDE WORLDWIDE ENTERPRISE SUPPORT FOR OFFICIAL RED HAT LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM
Durham, N.C.—October 18, 1999—Red Hat, Inc., the leading provider of open source Linux-based operating system (OS) solutions and Compaq Computer Corp. (NYSE: CPQ) today expanded their strategic partnership to provide call center support for enterprise users worldwide of the Official Red Hat Linux OS.
Under the agreement, Compaqs Customer Services organization, which serves hundreds of thousands of organizations in more than 100 countries worldwide, will escalate the most advanced support issues to Red Hats services and support organization. As Compaq modifies and optimizes the Red Hat Linux OS during the support process, Red Hat will evaluate and test these changes, make them available in future revisions of the OS and deliver them freely to the entire open source community under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
Compaq has one of the most powerful, worldwide call center support operations. This agreement combines Compaqs hardware and networking expertise and Red Hats superior development expertise in open source software solutions, said Bob Young, chair and CEO of Red Hat, Inc. At the same time, Compaq and its customers some of the most innovative users in the world will be contributing to the growth and development of Linux-based operating systems under the open source model. This is a perfect example of how commitments to open source by major software and hardware vendors like Compaq and Red Hat can further propel the benefits of Linux-based operating systems to enterprise organizations worldwide.
The agreement expands the relationship between Red Hat and Compaq, which included an equity investment earlier this year from Compaq and joint marketing, development and certification to maximize compatibility and interoperability with Compaqs Tru64 Unix OS and Alpha Server and Proliant server and workstations. More information on Red Hats partnership with Compaq can be found on the Web at www.redhat.com/about/1999/press_compaq.html and www.redhat.com/about/1999/press_industryleaders.html.
To support our customers ever-increasing deployment of Red Hat Linux into business critical environments, Compaq will introduce its suite of services for Red Hat Linux, said Peter Mercury, Vice President of Compaq Customer Services. With this agreement, a key building block is in place for Compaq to support customers deploying Red Hat Linux in Internet, high performance technical computing and other applications where non stop availability is required. Additionally, joint support from Compaq and Red Hat Linux will eliminate many of the finger-pointing problems customers typically face between hardware and software vendors.
Red Hat is based in Durham, N.C. and has offices worldwide. Visit Red Hat on the Web at www.redhat.com. For investor inquiries, please contact Lippert/Heilshorn at (212) 838-3777.
LINUX is a trademark of Linus Torvalds. RED HAT is a registered trademark of Red Hat, Inc. All other names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
I. E. – TADPOLE ACQUIRES UTILITY SOFTWARE DEVELOPER CONIC SYSTEMS, CREATES ENLARGED BUSINESS UNIT FOR UTILITIES AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS MARKETS
Carlsbad, CA–October 6, 1999–With the goal of becoming the mobile computing vendor of choice for the world’s utilities and telecommunications industries, Tadpole Technology today strengthened its position through the strategic acquisition of the business and certain assets and liabilities of Texas based Conic Systems Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary Scottish based Conic Systems Limited for a total consideration of $1.25 million in cash.
The acquisition of Conic enables Tadpole to further extend its mobile software product offerings for the utilities and telecommunications markets, add significant new companies to its customer base, access more geographies through Conics extensive partner network, and enhance its technical skills and market coverage.
Founded in 1991, Conic is a software developer of mobile geographical information systems (GIS) and mapping solutions. Headquartered in Edinburgh, the companys customer base comprises over fifty gas, water, cable, telecommunications, national mapping and government industries, including BC Hydro (Canada), CME (Brazil), EDP (Portugal), First Energy and Texas Utilities (USA), Ordnance Survey, Scottish and Southern Energy and Northern Electric (UK). Conic has approximately 20 business partners across Europe, North America and Australasia.
Tadpole announced its Cartesia and J-Slate product family for the utilities and telecommunications markets in late April this year – a unique Java-based suite of hardware and software that allows detailed maps and job-management data to be downloaded from corporate servers via GSM or conventional phones to field workers using hand-held, diskless pen computers. With the acquisition of Conic Systems, Tadpole has extended its range of mobile computing software platforms and solutions by enabling field workers to access a wider range of GIS and CAD data allowing the utility industries to maximize their business potential from field operations, notably through improved works management, asset exploitation and inspection.
Conic’s core product is Conic GIS, which enables field workers to access, collect, verify and update spatially-related information and provides levels of customization ranging from configuration of the user interface through to tailor-made applications using Visual Basic and other tools. Conic GIS provides four graduated levels of functionality: Conic View as a map display and navigation tool, Conic Redline to redline and sketch facilities, Conic Query for database review and update, and Conic Capture to add full graphic interaction and provide the ability to link to external instrumentation and perform data analysis.
Tadpole-RDI Inc., global leader in protable UNIX workstations and servers for applications of Sun operating systems; Tadpole-Cartesia, leader in field information systems for the utilities, telecommunications and public service industries. Website: www.tadpole.com.
II. VERIFIED TESTING ADDITIONS IN OCTOBER
The SPARC Verified brand, awarded by SPARC International, assures end users that the peripherals they want to use will work on the SPARC Compliant systems they target. This list, updated monthly, includes changes made to the master list of SPARC Verified products. To view the master list, please go to SPARC.certified.
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- email sparcshop@sparc.org
- phone us at 1-408-748-9111 x240
Currently available
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– Managing Editor –
Cheryl Hostetler
Direct Inquiries To – sparc-flash-request@sparc.org
SPARC International promotes the design, development and application of SPARC to computer and peripheral products; establishes hardware and software standards; enables compatibility across SPARC-branded products; and provides, promotes and protects SPARC and SPARC-related brand names.
SPARC International has verified to the best of its ability all of the product information contained in this newsletter. Information in this newsletter has been provided by the vendors. SPARC International has not reviewed claims made about product features or functions, and is not responsible for the accuracy of such claims. Users may want to obtain references, documentation, and/or demonstrations before purchasing any products or services. No vendor is authorized to act as an agent of SPARC International, or to make any representations or warranties on SPARC International’s behalf.
The following are Registered® Trademarks of SPARC International, Inc.:
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Other Trademarks that are in use or Pending Registration include:
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Products bearing SPARC trademarks are based on an architecture developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc. UNIX is a registered trademark in the United States and other countries, licensed exclusively through X/Open Company, Ltd. All other product names, trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.