Subject: SUN FLASH!! (Merged Windows)

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 23 Apr 87 20:27:41 EST

Date: Wed, 22 Apr 87 08:21:25 PDT
From: lorrie@lizard (Lorrie Duval)
To: [email-masked]
Subject: SUN FLASH!! (Merged Windows)
Cc: lorrie@lizard

The following was released this week:  an announcement of Sun's
new window system strategy to merge NeWS and X Window; an announcement
of a growing list of NeWS licensees; and a compendium of endorsements
of Sun's strategy from a wide range of companies in the computer industry.

Marketing contact: Smita Deshpande, NeWS product marketing manager
(415) 354-4634   Additional information will be coming to Sales and
Marketing in the next couple of days from Smita. Please refer any
questions in the interim to her.

Press contact: Lorrie Duval (415) 691-7533

	SUN MICROSYSTEMS TO INTEGRATE X and NeWS WINDOW SYSTEMS;
		GROWING LIST OF NeWS SUPPORTERS

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA -- April 21, 1987 -- Continuing its commitment to
industry standards, advanced technology, and powerful networking
platforms, Sun Microsystems today announced a new window system
strategy, which combines support for Version 11 of the X Window System
(X.11) from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with the
continued availability of Sun's PostScript-based Network/extensible
Window System (NeWS).  Sun plans to merge the popular X.11 with NeWS,
providing a unified window system for its customers.

Sun's new strategy responds to a growing industry demand for one window
system that combines both the wide acceptance of the X Window System,
an emerging industry standard window system offered by MIT for
technical workstations, and the leading-edge technology of the NeWS
product.

Sun also announced several new NeWS licensees and increasing support
for NeWS by a variety of companies, including computer manufacturers,
application developers, and major corporations.  The list of licensees
and supporters includes Alliant Computer Systems, Data General, EDS,
Intel, Interactive Systems, Toshiba, and Unicad.

Commenting on Sun's new strategy, Eric Schmidt, vice president and
general manager of the Software Products Division, said, "The computer
industry has long acknowledged the value of standards combined with
continued innovation in technology.  This is particularly true today in
the area of window systems, where the market is demanding cooperative
and complementary window system standards, which include the X Window
System, NeWS, and Microsoft Windows.  We are committed to providing our
customers with high-performance implementations of a comprehensive set
of standards, state-of-the-art technology, and a smooth migration path
and coexistence between these environments."

Schmidt continued, "With today's announcement of a unified window
system approach, Sun takes the first step in offering application
developers a single window system that combines the workstation
industry backing provided by X.11 and the advanced technology of NeWS.
The integration of the two technologies will be transparent to the
application developer and the end user, thus protecting their
investments in application software and personnel training.  We want
application developers to program to NeWS or X.11 today with the
understanding that applications developed now on NeWS or X.11 will run
on Sun's merged window system version."

NeWS and X Integration Strategy

Sun is working with MIT to ensure the continuing development and future
stability of X.11.

"MIT is pleased to have Sun supporting the X Window System," said Steve
Lerman, director of Project Athena at MIT.  "We look forward to Sun's
involvement in the further evolution of X as a widely adopted means of
display management.  A number of Sun's technial staff have made
informal contributions to the X architecture through the process of
comment and review on specifications, including Version 11 of X that
will be released in Fall, 1987. MIT will provide the Sun version as
part of this release of X."

Sun's evaluation of an early release of the X.11 version indicates that
X.11 and NeWS can be integrated while maintaining the high performance
that the technical workstation market demands.  Merged X and NeWS will
meet the same high-performance standards as separate implementations of
the two window systems.  The merged version of NeWS and X.11 will be
available in Spring 1988.

Sun is one of the first companies to implement X.11 for its technical
workstations.  X.11 on the Sun-3 family of workstations will be
available from MIT with the next release of X.11 scheduled for later
this month.

The X Window System was developed at MIT by Robert Scheifler of the
Computer Science Research Labs and Jim Gettys of Project Athena.  It is
well-suited as a graphical window interface for technical UNIX
system workstations.  The current version 10 of the X Window System
(X.10), shipping since December 1985 for Sun workstations, is available
from MIT's Project Athena.  Version 11 is hailed as the basis of
standardization, and a reference port will be available from MIT in
Fall, 1987.

Growing Industry Backing for NeWS Technology

Sun also announced growing support for the NeWS technology.  More than
12 companies and universities have licensed NeWS to date including
Microsoft Corporation, Toshiba Corporation, Tektronix, Inc., Raster
Technologies, Inc., Unicad, Incorporated, and Acorn Computers, Ltd.

A range of companies, including application developers, system
integrators, and computer manufacturers, have endorsed NeWS and Sun's
merged X Version 11 and NeWS strategy for future development to meet
their windowing requirements.  These include Alliant Computer Systems
Corp., Applix, Incorporated, Culler Scientific Systems, Electronic Data
Systems Corporation (EDS), Floating Point Systems, Inc., Frame
Technology Corporation, Franz, Inc., Intel Corporation, IntelliCorp,
Interactive Systems Corporation, Island Graphics Corporation, Lucid,
Inc., Microport Systems, Inc., Pyramid Technology Corporation,
Reasoning Systems, Teknowledge, Inc., Visual Engineering, Inc., and
Whitechapel Workstations.

NeWS, based on a subset of 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
1.0 is currently shipping and lists for $100 per copy for Sun
workstations.

INDUSTRY COMMENTS ON NeWS AND THE X WINDOW SYSTEM

Alliant Computer Systems Corp.
Craig Mundie, Vice President, Product Development

"NeWS provides a visual interface to our network-based supercomputing
environment.  Our users can now combine the ease-of-use features of
workstations and PCs   windows, pop-up menus, icons, and bit-map
graphics   with the number-crunching power of the Alliant FX/Series.
The Alliant FX/Series, with its multiple parallel processors, large
physical memory, and parallel I/O capabilities, is ideally suited as an
interactive server supported multiple networked users.  Alliant's
support for interactive network graphics complements our long-standing
support for interactive file and compute sharing, via Sun's Network
File System (NFS)."

Applix, Inc.
Jit Saxena, President

"We are very excited about the merge of NeWS and X for application
developers such as Applix.  We whole-heartedly support the merge
towards a standard."

Culler Scientific Systems
Dr. John Richardson, Research Director

"Sun's announcement of their window system strategy enhances the
relationship between Sun's network of high-powered workstations and
Culler Scientific's Personal Super Computer, allowing for more
homogeneous solutions to compute intensive applications."

EDS
Jeff Heller, Senior Vice President

"NeWS from Sun represents the type of open systems environment which
EDS encourages. The announcement that Sun will unify NeWS with Version
11 of the X Window System and making that technology widely available
means that EDS can take full advantage of the applications to be
developed for NeWS, as well as those applications being developed on
X.11.  Sun is following the tradition of NFS with this announcement of
a strategy to unify window system platforms across workstation
vendors.  Their contribution to the standardization of workstations,
LANS, and the overall computing facility and capability by promoting
open architecture and standards is very much in the spirit of the open
systems cooperation among the various vendors which is beginning to
take place.

We see this as a step forward and trust that Sun will continue to
support and expand the standardization of the workstation/communications
environment while also promoting technical innovation."

Floating Point Systems
John M. Harte, Vice President, Marketing

"Floating Point Systems is pleased to endorse Sun's converged window
system strategy.  This will allow our customers of the FPS M64 220 and
230 Super Servers to better distribute graphics applications and
provide them the flexibility to use X.11 applications and
Postscript-based NeWS applications."

Frame Technology Corporation
Charles Corfield, Principal Author of Frame Maker

"In developing Frame's desktop publishing software, it was a constant
struggle dealing with a first-generation window system.  NeWS has
changed all that. It is by far the best windowing environment
available."

Franz, Inc.
Fritz Kunze, President

"As an application developer in a field where window systems and
graphic sophistication are key, and portability across varied platforms
is essential, the combination of NeWS and X as a window system platform
is an exciting answer to our needs.  We fully support Sun in the search
for standards coupled with technical excellence; both NeWS and the
NeWS/X merge offer solutions to the problem of application portability
and vendor independence."

Inference Corporation
Larry Lesser, Director, Corporate Development

"Our dynamic expert systems shell creates special challenges for window
system development.  Users of the ART system from Inference demand a
flexible window system environment with sophisticated graphics and high
performance.  In the past, we have had to provide this capability
ourselves with a window system tailored to each platform. We can now
depend upon NeWS to supply the functionality and vendor independence we
need.  Sun's announced merge of NeWS and X.11 will allow us to take
advantage of the features of both these significant window systems
without having to make an exclusive choice."

Intel Corp.
Dave House, Vice President and General Manager, Microcomputer Group

"With its high-performance capabilities and ability to run applications
from other window environments, we believe NeWS will be the window
system of choice for many OEMs in the upcoming generation of 386-based
standard computing platforms.  NeWS and UNIX System V/386 will showcase
the capabilities of the 386 for scientific and technical applications."

Interactive Systems Corporation
Ron Fisher, President

"We applaud the coming together of these two key windowing
technologies  X Window and NeWS.  The industry benefits not only from
the broader support of such standards but also by the advanced
technology that NeWS offers to the market.

Island Graphics Corporation
Paul Remer, Executive Vice President

"Island Graphics supports Sun Microsystems' incorporation of the two
windowing systems, X version 11 and NeWS.  This joint windowing system
is ideal for graphics applications in that it offers the advantage of
being able to use the emerging industry standard interface of X Window,
along with the sophisticated imaging model available in NeWS."

Lucid, Inc.
Dr. Richard Gabriel, President and Chief Technical Officer

"Lucid has already made significant progress in porting our system to
make use of NeWS facilities, and are excited about seeing it available
on different platforms.  Sun's strategy to combine both NeWS and X
version 11 provides an ideal application development environment for
software developers interested in both portability and state-of the art
technology."

Microport Systems, Inc.
Chuck Hickey, President

"We are a very strong supporter of NeWS.  We believe this
PostScript-based window system provides the next generation of
technology advancement to window systems and that it will provide a
strong bridge to the continued evolution of computer hardware and
software."

Pyramid Technology Corporation
Robert A. Ragan-Kelley, Director, Advanced Software Development

"Pyramid Technology is committed to providing the standard tools,
environment, and applications that will allow Pyramid's powerful
multiprocessors to work in high-performance distributed-processing
architectures implemented with connections between PCs, workstations,
microcomputers, mainframes, and other superminicomputers."

Reasoning Systems
John Anton, President

"Sun's strategy to unify the NeWS and X Window systems provides the
application developer with both market penetration and technical
sophistication. It removes the uncertainty in the windows standards
arenas for applications developers. Adding Sun's active commitment to
open systems, standards, and high technology to the X Window System
direction is very important to us."

Teknowledge, Inc.
Dr. Earl Sacerdoti, Vice President

"In supporting over 100 fielded customer applications, Teknowledge has
learned that the integration of expert system technology with
conventional computing is critical.  Fully half the effort in fielding
an expert system typically involves integration with other
applications, existing databases, or existing user interfaces.
Teknowledge supports the growing movement to interface standards on the
range of hardware platforms its software employs.  By committing to
support both NeWS and X, Sun will facilitate the coming proliferation
of expert systems into computing applications of all types."

Unicad, Inc.
Chad Alber, VP Technology
Kenneth E Garnett, Graphics Manager

"We are integrating NeWS into our software development tools because
NeWS meets our requirements for device independence, high performance,
and consistency of presentations across a wide variety of hardware
platforms.  We are particularly excited about our NeWS-based User
Interface Design System, which will provide applications developers
with unprecedented power and flexibility to develop interfaces that end
users can then tailor to their individual needs.

Visual Engineering, Inc.
Allen Ginzburg, Vice President, Engineering

"NeWS incorporates some useful new features, however, X has emerged as
a de facto UNIX window standard.  It is gratifying to see Sun's
commitment to maintaining UNIX standards, making it easier for UNIX
software developers like VE to support a wide range of hardware and the
NeWS window system."

Whitechapel Workstations

"We welcome the availability of NeWS, the first UNIX windowing system
to resolve the conflicting demands for interactive performance, a
powerful graphics model, and device independence. We shall take a
source license for NeWS as soon as it is available, and NeWS will
become the basis of windowing software on future Whitechapel products.
Whitechapel endorse Sun's choice to provide X.11 functions within NeWS,
and will be taking the same path.  We see this as the best way to
support the valuable but less sophisticated X standard."