The News and Observer from Raleigh, North Carolina • 40

10D The News and Observer, Raleigh, N. Feb. 28, 1984 Microcomputer race still undecided By THOMAS C. HAYES New York Times News Service LOS ANGELES More than 600 business computer buyers put Apple Computer new Macintosh through its paces at a trade show last week. After 40 minutes on the machine, Robert Dieter, an executive of the Home Federal Savings and Loan Association of San Diego, was still not sure which microcomputer maker would get the big order he expected to place for Home Federal's 160 branches.

But, he said, "Whatever it is has to be easy to use, and this is easy to use. I'm Many industry analysts, however, say the jury is still out on the Macintosh. Some accuse Apple of arrogance in not making the Macintosh and its three sisters in the Lisa series compatible with the International Business Machines personal computer. Apple may yet pay for that arrogance, analysts warn. Although more than 150 companies are writing software for the Macintosh, few programs are available.

And until they are developed, the product's success will remain in doubt. Nonetheless, one month after Apple's chairman, Steven P. Jobs, introduced the machine before a cheering crowd of 2,600 at the company's annual meeting, it is clear to many that the Macintosh appears to be on its way, at least, to a very big first year. James McCamant, co-editor of the California Technology Stock Letter, estimates that Apple could sell as many as 500,000 Macintoshes by the end of September, the close of its fiscal year, if the company can make them that fast. He expects Apple's sales to climb to about $1.5 billion, or more than 50 percent above last year's $982.8 million.

however, is far more con- Coal firm acquires W. Va. properties CHARLESTON, W.Va. (UPI) Peabody Holding Co. and Armco Inc.

announced Monday the closing of the sale of Armco's West Virginia coal production properties to Peabody for $257 million. Under the terms of the sale, Peabody Coal, a wholly owned subsidiary of Peabody Holding, acquired Armco's 14, operative mines and related facilities and about 464 million tons of high BTU low fur coal reserves in West Virginia. Peabody also has a five-year option to buy Armco's remaining undeveloped coal reserves in West Virginia. Peabody Holding also acquired Armco Terminal Co. and its 7.5 percent interest in the new 12 million-ton-a-year coal export facility, Dominion Terminal Associates, which is nearing completion at Newport News, Va.

Armco also signed a 10-year contract for Peabody Coal to supply metallurgical coal to Armco's steelmaking operations in Ashland, and Middletown, Ohio. Peabody Holding paid Armco $142 million at the closing. The balance is payable, with interest, by Dec. 31. Armco estimates the sale will add about $165 million to its net income this year.

Business calendar Wednesday The Raleigh chapter of Credit Women International will meet at 6:30 p.m. at Don Murray's Barbecue on U.S.1. N.C. Science and Technology Research Center will hold an open house on Management from 1-4 p.m., corner of Cornwallis Road and Davis Drive, Research Triangle Park. Thursday A seminar on "Telephone Selling and will be sponsored by the Division of Continuing Education, East Carolina University, at the Raleigh Marriott Inn.

The Carolinas chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute will meet at 2 p.m. in the President's Room, Charlotte City Club. The Piedmont chapter of the Risk and Insurance Management Society will hold its 5th annual Insurance Day at 8:30 a.m. at the Bryan Enrichment Center, Greensboro. Durham Corp.

target of investment firm Continued from page ID pressure from this offer as from the American General takeover threat. "American General was known as an aggressive company that was interested in buying I up other insurance companies," he said. "I don't think this investment fund has the wherewithal to buy Durham Corp." he said. "Whether or not they can make something happen, that's anybody's guess." The analyst said the Financial Investors Fund interest in Durham Corp. stock could have contributed to a 10.9 percent increase in the company's stock price this year.

Durham Corp. stock closed Monday at 56 bid in over-the-counter trading, unchanged from Friday but up from on the last trading day of 1983. The company's stock gained 29.5 percent in 1983, rising from 39 bid at the end of 1982. Durham Corp. owns Durham Life Insurance Co.

of Raleigh, several other insurance companies and Durham Life Broadcasting which operates WPTF-TV and WPTF-AM radio in Raleigh. The company earlier this month reported a record $16.2 million or $5.66 per share net income for 1983. "Don't overlook a copier maker that's bigger than Xerox." servative about its prospects. A spokesman, Barbara Krause, declined to give production figures for Macintosh, but estimated that the company would sell 200,000 to 250,000 units by the end of the calendar year. Apple last week added a second shift to its highly automated production plant in Fremont, pushing its daily potential output to more than 2,000 units.

The enthusiasm building for the Macintosh has helped Apple recapture a bit of the momentum it lost to IBM last year, according to Infocorp, a research concern in San Jose, Calif. It forecasts that Apple will finish 1984 with 25 percent of the market for desktop computers in the price range of $1,000 to $10,000. The Macintosh is $2,495. Apple's 25 percent market share would compare with 27 percent for IBM, Infocorp said. At the end of last year, IBM's share was 24 percent and Apple's 25 percent." One thing in Apple's favor, analysts say, is the fact that sales of IBM's PCjr, which was introduced Nov.

1, have disappointed some dealers. Many report excess inventories and are cautious about future orders. Perhaps most surprising are the strong endorsements of the Macintosh by large dealers in business computers and dozens of consultants to major corporations, many of whom attended the Office Automation Conference in Los Angeles last week. "It's poised for a stunning success," said Don Tapscott, a computer systems consultant for the Systems Group, which is based in Toronto. But many analysts read Apple's emphasis on small and mediumsize businesses and the education market as a lack of will to do bat tle with IBM among the billion-dol- Lisa series if they haven't already lar corporations.

That decision adopted IBM as a standard," said could have been a reaction, at Dr. James H. Carlisle, president of least in part, to Apple's disappoint- Office of the Future Inc. in Guttenment with its Lisa berg, N.J. He is a consultant to the year, said Stephen A.

Caswell, edi- First Boston the Chase tor of an industry newsletter. Manhattan Bank and the Xerox The Macintosh does present Corp. problems for business users, he "If Apple can build an industry said. Its memory, at 128,000 char- around it and develop a way for acters, is too small to run multi- companies to tie it into their existfunction programs such as the ing systems, the Macintosh will Lotus 1-2-3. It also does not include not only parallel the success of the among its type fonts the 10-point IBM PC but by far surpass it," style favored for business corre- said Tapscott, the consultant.

spondence. "Right now, though, it is not a However, several companies are very useful machine because of working on software improve- the limited software." ments that promise to make the He said that as more programs Macintosh highly appealing to bus- become available, many employinesses in six to nine months, ees will buy a Macintosh for home Caswell says. There will be pro- use. This trend will pressure corgrams to manage several func- porate managers to find a place tions at once, including dialing for the Macintosh as they plan intelephone calls, connecting with formation processing strategies existing computer systems and re- for the future, he said. calling and adding information Richard L.

Bradley, an execufrom, a variety of computer files, tive with National Training Syshe said. tems, a company 1 in Santa Maria, Many companies, after looking that trains people use at the Macintosh, have concluded computers, said the Macintosh that the more powerful Lisa 2, with may prove difficult for people alits greater memory and speed, is ready accustomed to computers better than the Macintosh. "'The because it requires a more intui-1 Lisa's are really a better buy for tive approach than the sequential, large companies," he said. "They logical operations of existing comare really 'Big the 'Mac' puters. He said this will make the for big business," said Seymour Macintosh more accessible for Merrin, president of Computer- people encountering computers for works Inc.

in Westport, Conn. The the first time. most expensive Lisa, the 2-10, car- For now, Apple says its biggest ries a price tag of $5,500. problem is keeping up with deStill, the Macintosh has the po- mand. Dealers report delays of tential to succeed with big busi- five weeks or more in filling orness as well as home users.

ders. "I'd love to have product," "The information system direc- said Neal Riemer, sales manager tors at the Fortune 500 companies for Love Computers Inc. in Glenwho are looking comparatively at dale, one of the largest of technology will be hard- to 130 Apple dealers in Southern Calirecommend the IBM PC for future fornia. "It's driving me up the purchases over the Macintosh and wall." LANIER INTRODUCES A PHONE SYSTEM THAT PUTS THEIR GOOD NAME ON THE LINE. The Lanier Force.

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