Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 21

nionaay, ''mm February 27, 1995 Computer cop looks out for untimely game playing C2 TechStocks C2 Local stocks C6 1 1 Fun Games ROFIT IBM ready with a new DOS version By Lori Hawkins American-Statesman Staff DOS isn't dead yet. IBM today will announce an up-: dated version of what many consider to be the Model of com- puter operating systems. i PC DOS 7 will offer as much as 40 kilobytes more memory than earlier versions, as well as Stacker data compression technology, which roughly doubles the capacity of a personal computer's hard drive. An operating system is the un Lbcal companies taking a healthy slice of the video gaming pie By Lori Hawkins American-Statesman Staff heir parents said playing computer games wouldn get them jobs in the real world. T.

I fi Austin's got some really creative talent doing some excellent work; 5 Johnny Wilson, editor of Computer Gaming World Little did their parents know. A generation that grew up waging intergalactic dogfights on video screens is building a software gaming industry in Austin that has attracted national attention. The city has the mix of people techies, artists and musicians needed to develop games and that's making it a hotbed of the growing industry. "Austin's got some really creative talent doing some excellent work," says Johnny Wilson, editor-in-chief of the trade magazine Computer Gaming World. Austin startups have created game cartridges and CD-ROMs on topics from space exploration to basketball to science fiction strategy.

Hot companies include: SimTex, which has sold more than 100,000 copies of its award-winning science fiction strategy game Master of Orion, and its latest release, Master of Magic is expected to become a top seller. Lion Entertainment, which recent- Staff photo by Larry Kolvoord Stephen Barcia's SimTex Software is a rising star in the video game market. SimTex is best known for the award-winning science fiction strategy game Master of Orion. ly finished the Macintosh version of Doom II and released its first original title, Slayer, a 3-D dungeons and dragons-style CD-ROM. Iguana Entertainment, which gaming giant Acclaim Entertainment Inc.

paid an estimated $25 million to acquire. Iguana was founded by 26-year-old Jeff Spangenberg. Iguana, whose NBA Jam and NFL Quarterback Club are two of Acclaim's hottest selling games, is the in-house development team for Acclaim, based in Oyster Bay, N.Y. The progenitor of gaming in Austin is Origin Systems, which Electronic Arts acquired in 1992 for an estimated $30 million. Origin, which had $50 million in sales last year, has spawned at least one startup, The Logic Factory, and has created a pool of talented programmers, which fast-growing startups are using.

Origin's founder said he doesn't mind the competition. "When we were the only ones in town, we tapped out the local market," Richard Garriott said. "With other companies coming to town, even though it means we have some headhunting going on, we also have a pool we can dip into." Development houses say Austin's mix of techies and artists is a gaming dream team. The pool of programmers provides technical expertise, and artists and musicians supply cutting-edge art and audio. "It's a rare blend," says Jim Butler of the Governor's Office of Music, Film, Television Multimedia Industries.

"That's not easy to find in a lot of communities, and it's extremely helpful for gaming folks." Still, with so many companies expanding so quickly, recruitment has become more difficult. Iguana, which has 44 employees in Austin and 24 in the United Kingdom, wants to fill 50 positions, including programmers, artists and musicians. But finding people with a college degree and a passion for programming and video games hasn't been easy. "We've had a hard time finding people with experience," Spangenberg says. As a result, Iguana and other gaming companies are recruiting from college campuses including the University of Texas.

It's hard to tell how many programmers and artists are developing games in Austin. An informal count shows 12 Austin companies directly involved in gaming. More are on the way even though See Austin, C5 derlying software that controls the basic functions of a computer. PC DOS 7 will be available in stores on Tuesday and will cost less than $55. Austin's Personal Software Products division will market the system, but the campaign will be low-key "We're doing subtle things like direct mailings," says Karl LaWall, Worldwide PC DOS brand manager.

Analysts praised the move, saying not all computer users have moved on to more advanced systems such as Microsoft's Windows or IBM's OS2. "It's great they're keeping it alive," says Cheryl Currid, an industry analyst in Houston. "People are still using DOS, and for those who have reached their limits with it, this will be nice." While it won't rock the charts, Currid predicts IBM will sell a couple million copies. "They'll make money on it," she says. U.S.

retailers carry only a very few top-selling DOS applications, such as Lotus 1-2-3, WordPerfect for DOS, and the Norton Utilities for DOS. But DOS, which debuted with the first IBM computer in 1981, is still used by many businesses and governments, either because they can't afford to upgrade or they're content with DOS. By and large, computer users consider DOS, which uses typed commands instead of icons, to be an arcane, unfriendly system. Some good news for DOS users comes from a study by California-based market analysis company Computer Intelligence InfoCorp, which polled more than 10,000 business and home computer users and found that six of the top 10 most common software applications for both home and corporate use are DOS-based. And DOS is still the operating system of choice in many parts of the world.

"Many PCs in Europe, Asia, and Latin America run straight DOS rather than Windows," says Currid. Adds LaWall: "Even if it's a flat market, it's a pretty big market." 1 -J-i Staff photo by Taylor Johnson of Acclaim, Iguana has been able to invest in high-end equipment to develop such popular titles as NBA Jam and NFL Quarterback Club. Jeff Spangenberg's Iguana Entertainment was recently acquired by video game giant Acclaim Entertainment Inc. Under the protective financial cover Software giant Microsoft feeling a little heat of late Like any company, Microsoft is vulnerable to customers' images, the strength of competitors, and its own mediocrities. Austin consultant Werner to unveil Internet on-line magazine this week Austin technology consultant Jerry Werner this week unveils an Internet on-line magazine devoted to covering advanced transportation technology known as intelligent transporation systems.

The publication, ITS Online, will provide national and international news of technology, new product information and guest commentaries. The initial "issue" features Werner's recent interview with House Speaker and technology enthusiast Newt Gingrich. Internet access provider Dluminati Online provides the host server for Werner's publication, which will include discussion forums and a set of hypertext links to other transportation-related sites on the Internet. Werner intends to support the effort by selling corporate sponsorships and selling ad space for for new products. The Internet address for ITS Online is: io.com.itsol Object-oriented technology subject of March seminar at Stouffer Hotel Peter Coad, president of Object International, will discuss object-oriented technology March 9 at the Stouffer Hotel.

Coad, developer of the Coad Method, a comprehensive approach to object development, will offer insight on building better object models. Admission to the presentation, which is hosted by the Austin Forum for Object Oriented Technology, is $5. For more information call May Howard at 452-9455. Pluggedln is compiled by the business news staff of the Austin American-Statesman. Fax contributions to 445-3971 or mail them to: RO.

Box 670, Austin 78767. UniSQL among leaders in object-oriented databases UniSQL chief executive Won Kim predicts his company will become the largest supplier of object-oriented database software by the end of the year. The Austin company, which claims leadership in bridging two advanced database technologies, had nearly $10 million in sales last year. Kim expects sales will triple this year because two big companies Oracle Corp. and Cincom Systems are reselling UniSQL's software.

The company has grown to 80 employees and has five sales offices in this country and one in London. Its software enables users with large amounts of complex data computer graphics and other multimedia information to rapidly store and retrieve that information along with simple text. IBM makes big push for OS2 Warp, will install the software on its PCs IBM is making a big push to attract more users for its OS2 Warp software. In a change of policy dictated by chairman Louis Gerstner, the company soon will include OS2 Warp on all its machines. Buyers still will have the option of requesting Windows.

But when that happens, IBM will install both OS2 and Windows. At first IBM will include Warp with the 300 and 700 series of its popular notebook computer, the ThinkPad. It gradually will include Warp with its 300 and 700 models of desktop systems over a period of a few months. IBM said it believes Warp will be on more than half of its systems by midyear. To accommodate Windows lovers, the company said, it might add software that would give the user a choice of using either system each time the computer is turned on.

By Evan Ramstad Associated Press NEW YORK After the stinging rebuke of Microsoft in its antitrust case, more complaints are being heard about business tactics that have had its competitors seething for years. The company is a tempting target biggest maker of personal computer software, hugely ambitious and led by the richest man in the country. What could harm its dominant role in high technology? Many industry watchers say nothing can, even with the scrutiny of U.S. District Judge Stanley Sporkin, who rejected the company's antitrust agreement with the Justice Department as not in the public interest. But one sign that Microsoft Corp.

itself feels pressure came last week when, accused by Apple Computer Inc. of bullying tactics and threats, chairman Bill Gates' cool facade crumbled. "I am writing to make clear how disappointed I am in the lack of candor and honesty Apple has shown in dealing with Microsoft during the last several months," Gates said in a letter to Apple that Microsoft distributed publicly. Some of his own discomfort showed through the point-by-point response to Apple's charges. For instance, Gates has long bristled at suggestions he hates Apple's Macintosh, the only big-selling personal computer that does- n't use Microsoft programs at its base.

Worried, perhaps, that Apple's charges fed that impression, he wrote, "I think the Macintosh has a bright future." Like any company, Microsoft is vulnerable to customers' images, the strength of competitors and its own mediocrities. And recently, there have been signs of trouble in all three areas for Microsoft, led by growth in customer dissatisfaction. For example, it has been sharply criticized for troubles in the update of the Microsoft Word word processing program for Macintosh. And the continuing delay bringing out an update of its core Windows product has angered software developers as well as corporate and individual customers. In addition, a panel of business executives that advises the computer magazine In- foWorld in December expressed considerable worry about Microsoft's growth.

They said the company is eliminating choice in the See Ominous, C2.