Date: Thu, 15 Dec 94 17:01:27 PST

Date: Thu, 15 Dec 94 17:01:27 PST
From: [email protected] (olcay cirit)
To: [email protected]
Subject: Computer News: Volume II, Issue 14

______ __ __
/ ____/\ / \ / /\
/ /\___\/ / /\ \ / / /
/ /_/__ / / /\ \/ / /
/______/\ /_/ / \__/ /
\\\\\\\\/ \\\/ \\\/

COMPUTER NEWS
"Your eye to the computer industry"(tm)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, May 3rd 1995 Vol. 2, Issue 14
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

INSIDE CN:
----------
There are currently 1922 subscribers on the CN list. Also, I would like
to note that IT IS ALL RIGHT TO PASS COPIES OF CN AROUND TO YOUR
FRIENDS AS LONG AS YOU DON`T CHARGE THEM.

I spent the last week testing out Netscape, and I have to admit, it's
a really good Web Browser. I only have one problem with it, and that is
it complains about my .sig when I try to post on Usenet. It says
something to the effect of: "Signature exceeds recommended length of
four lines. Please edit it". What the heck? Is Netscape Communications
in on some proper Netiquette conspiracy? Oh, well, I guess only Mozilla
knows.

Lots of *BIG* Headlines this week. Yup. ;)

See ya,
-"olo"

THIS WEEK'S CONTRIBUTORS:
-------------------------
The NullBytes News Service <[email protected]>
Rob Slade <[email protected]>

Quick Overview
__________________________________________
NEWS:
1. Vinod Dham leaves Intel for Nexgen
2. Microsoft Merger Blocked
3. Law of Electronic Commerce (updated)
4. MIPS Magic Carpet chipset
ARTICLES:
1. Book Reviews (5)
ETC:
1. Classifieds
2. Lighter Side
__________________________________________

__ __
/ \ /\_\
/ /\ \/\/ /
/_/\/\ \/ /
\_\/ \__/ EWS:

Vinod Dham leaves Intel for Nexgen
----------------------------------
Vinod Dham, former Vice President of Intel's microprocessor group
and overseer of Pentium products, has now assumed the role of
chief operating officer at Nexgen.
Nexgen recently announced the Nx586 line of chips that directly
compete with the Pentium. It beat other well established chip-makers
such as AMD and Cyrix to market and signed up Compaq Corp. as a
customer, despite over $90 million in losses over the past nine
years.
Atiq Raza, CEO and President of NexGen, stated that he was very
excited Dham would be working for them. (SOURCE: Mercury News)

Microsoft Merger Blocked
------------------------
The U.S. Justice Department sued to block the merger between
Microsoft and Intuit. Intuit, a maker of the popular Quicken personal
finance software, and Microsoft, the software industry behemoth.
The Justice Department stated that it filed the lawsuit because the
acquisition would lead to higher prices and stifle innovation. The
merger, if not blocked, would have been the biggest in the software
industry history, giving Microsoft a head-start in the highly
concentrated on-line transaction market.
Following the announcement, Intuit stock dropped 10-1/4 to 72-3/4,
and Microsoft stock was down 1-3/8 to 78-3/8. (SOURCE: AP)

Law of Electronic Commerce (updated)
------------------------------------
The National Computer Security Association announces a new form of
professional education -- an on-line seminar. It is education
delivered through the NCSA InfoSecurity Forum on CompuServe or via
Internet mail. For 30 days, attorney and author Benjamin Wright will
convene a seminar covering The Law of Electronic Commerce -- EDI and
E-mail Contracts and Records.

Participants will attend the seminar by exchanging computer messages
with Wright in a private discussion forum. Thus, no one will have to
travel or miss time away from the office or home.

The seminar is designed for security managers, Online and MIS
professionals, EDI managers, purchasing managers who use EDI and E-
mail, lawyers, accountants and auditors. Topics on the agenda:

1. Electronic Contracts
2. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Electronic Funds Transfer
3. Electronic Signatures & the Role of Cryptography
4. EDI Trading Partner Agreements
5. Value-Added Network Agreements
6. Electronic & Optical Evidence
7. EDI & Optical Tax Records
8. UCC Article 4A
9. Electronic Healthcare Data
10. E-mail Privacy

Says Nathaniel Borenstein of the seminar:

"Electronic commerce, and particularly Internet commerce, is so new,
and so different from what has come before, that there is an enormous
amount of confusion, uncertainty, and misunderstanding surrounding it.
The NCSA seminar manages to cut through a great deal of the fog and
confusion and illuminate the underlying legal and technological
realities that will shape the future of business. While participating
as a guest lecturer in the seminar, I have been impressed at how much I
have myself learned. I recommend this seminar to anyone who wants to
better understand the shape of commerce to come."

Tuition is $350 for NCSA members and $395 for non-members. (Group
discounts are available.)

The starting dates for the next sessions of the seminar are May 9,
September 12 and October 24, 1995.

Special Guest Lecturers:

Nathaniel Borenstein, Chief Scientist,
First Virtual Holdings Incorporated

Richard K. Crone of KPMG Peat Marwick LLP,
electronic banking expert

Charles R. Merrill, Chair of the Computer and High Tech Dept.,
McCarter & English law firm

For more information and a free brochure, contact:

http://infohaus.com/access/by-seller/
Benjamin_Wright/seminar.free.html

National Computer Security Association
10 South Courthouse Ave.
Carlisle, PA 17013
Tel: (800) 488-4595
Tel: (717) 258-1816
Fax: (717) 243-8642
[email protected]

Promotional support for this seminar is provided by First Virtual
Holdings Incorporated, the leader in Internet payment systems. For more
information, see URL http://www.fv.com or send email to [email protected].

MIPS Magic Carpet chipset
-------------------------
MIPS Technology has announced the Magic Carpet chipset which uses the
new R4300i cpu, and an additional co-processor that is built to handle
real-time audio/video and 3-D graphics. The co-processor, called the
MMA, or MIPS Multimedia Accelerator, combines an MPEG decompression
engine, a specialized 2-D/3-D rendering processor, and several
pixel-level operations such as color conversions, etc.
Nintendo will be using a slightly modified version of the Magic
Carpet chipset in a real-time video game chipset. (EET, May 1, 1995)

____
/___/\
/ /\ \/\
/ /\/\ \/\
/_/\/__\ \/\ RTICLES:
\_\/ \_\/

Book Reviews
------------
By Rob Slade <[email protected]>

Books
------------------------------------------
1. "Computer & Communications Security"
2. "Student's Guide to the Internet"
3. "UNIX Security: A Practical Tutorial"
4. "10 Minute Guide to the Internet"
5. "Introducing Computers"
------------------------------------------

"Computer & Communications Security", James Arlin Cooper, 1989,
0-07-012926-6

%A James Arlin Cooper
%C 2600 Tenth St., Berkeley, CA 94710
%D 1989
%G 0-07-012926-6
%I McGraw-Hill Communications Series
%O 510-548-2805 800-227-0900 [email protected]
%P 411
%T "Computer & Communications Security"

This is a textbook for a security course. It has a good breadth of
coverage in theoretical areas. There are problems and ethical dilemmae
at the end of each chapter. The bibliographic references are a bit
dated.

The author is obviously unused to practical security considerations:
social engineering is never mentioned. An engineering background shows
through: there is a lot of math, including a theoretical basis for
"doppler" detection of intruders (motion). The coverage of "hackers"
and software threats indicates a heavy influence from the popular press
and no real understanding of the issues.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 BKCPCMSC.RVW 950320

---

"Student's Guide to the Internet", Clark, 1995, 1-56761-545-7

%A David Clark [email protected]
%C 201 W. 103rd Street, Indianapolis, IN 46290
%D 1995
%G 1-56761-545-7
%I Alpha Books
%O U$14.99/C$20.95 800-858-7674 [email protected]
%P 314
%T "Student's Guide to the Internet"

Yes, this is well-suited to be a student's guide. There is just enough
information on the various aspects of the Internet (well, we could do
with maybe just a touch more information on SLIP) without going into
turgid detail. The tone is very light; almost, but perhaps not quite,
flippant.

After a general introduction to the types of applications, chapter two
talks about getting connected. This topic still gets the weakest
coverage in Internet texts. (The fact that this is understandable,
given the range of options, does not help the frustrations of the
uninitiated.) The coverage here, while still weak, is better than
most. Chapters three through ten give brief, but basic, information on
UNIX, email, Usenet news, Gopher, World Wide Web, ftp, IRC and WAIS.
The selling of Gopher and WWW tends to be a bit overenthusiastic, but
Clark redeems himself with the first realistic coverage of SlipKnot
that I can recall.

Chapter eleven is a topical catalogue of resources, while twelve has a
list of access providers (including Freenets). Chapter thirteen is a
miscellaneous "FAQ" (Frequently Asked Questions list) of random
information. There is a helpful appendix listing Internet client
software and where to get it.

The tone and level are easily appropriate for the target audience. A
good, basic starting point for Internet exploration.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 BKSTDINT.RVW 950320

---

"UNIX Security: A Practical Tutorial", N. Derek Arnold, 1993, 0-07-002560-6
%A N. Derek Arnold
%C 2600 Tenth St., Berkeley, CA 94710
%D 1993
%G 0-07-002560-6
%I McGraw-Hill
%O 510-548-2805 800-227-0900 [email protected]
%P 386
%T "UNIX Security: A Practical Tutorial"

This is intended as a text for a course on UNIX security. It is
suitable for a beginning tutorial in that field.

The level is quite simple and the material is basic. The book has an
oddly dated feel to it. There is information on UUCP, but nothing on
the Internet. The X windowing system is not mentioned at all.

The chapter on viral programs, interestingly, is quite realistic.
Unfortunately, the book includes C source and shell scripts for viral
programs in the appendix listings.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 BKUNSCPT.RVW 950324

---

"10 Minute Guide to the Internet", Kent, 1994, 1-56761-428-0

%A Peter Kent [email protected] [email protected]
%C 201 W. 103rd Street, Indianapolis, IN 46290
%D 1994
%G 1-56761-428-0
%I Alpha Books/Macmillan Computer Publishing
%O U$12.99/C$16.99 800-858-7674 [email protected]
%P 162
%T "10 Minute Guide to the Internet"

There are twenty "lessons" here. Each could be read in ten minutes.
The material provides a basic grounding in email, UNIX, Usenet news,
mailing lists, Gopher, telnet, ftp, archie, WAIS and World Wide Web.

The book starts out by assuming that you are already connected to an
Internet provider with a UNIX shell account--then, immediately talks
about the different types of connections, the equipment you need,
configuring your system, and navigating menus on the Colorado Supernet.
Most of this material (particularly the chapter on setting up your
modem) is too rushed to be of any use. The later chapters are better,
though some are disorganized (chapters six and eight both cover
email--first with Pine and then with mail), or limited (chapter eleven
covers BITNET LISTSERVs--and *only* BITNET LISTSERVs).

Kent provides definitions, notes and warnings throughout the text. The
warnings point out valuable information and common pitfalls, such as
the delays you may experience using telnet, or the differences between
the DOS and UNIX command line.

After the first five chapters, the book is a decent enough introduction
to basic network services. It does not, however, have the quality of
the comparable "Zen and the Art of the Internet" (cf. BKZENINT.RVW).
This is a pity, since Kent has demonstrated his ability to provide
better content in both "The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Internet"
(cf. BKIDTINT.RVW) and "The Complete Idiot's Next Step on the Internet"
(cf. BKCINSIN.RVW).

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 BK10MINT.RVW 950323

---

"Introducing Computers", Robert Blissmer, 1995, 0-471-11360-3, U$29.95
%A Robert H. Blissmer
%C 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158-0012
%D 1995
%G 0-471-11360-3
%I John Wiley
%O U$29.95 800-CALL-WILEY 212-850-6630 Fax: 212-850-6799 [email protected]
%P 322
%T "Introducing Computers"

This is the usual style for a computer literacy text: fairly
simplistic content, lots of pictures, questions (simple ones) at the
end of each chapter. A quick flip through is heartening. Unlike the
usual pictorial fare of Sixties' outfits and hairdos, these
illustrations seem to be quite recent. Appearances, however, can be
deceptive.

The curriculum follows outlines from ten and twenty years ago. This
does cover the basics, but says very little to current uses and
emerging technologies. There is some new material, such as a rather
good outline of object orientation. The newer 28,800 bps modems,
however, are said to obtain their speed through data compression. (The
section on viral programs is completely useless.)

There are resources listed at the end of each chapter. Sometimes
individual articles, always books, often magazines. Most of these
citations are dated and not of significant importance or quality.
Sometimes, the choice of a particular reference is very odd, given the
topic of the chapter.

The questions at the end of the chapter concentrate heavily on
vocabulary (matching terms to definitions), true and false, and
multiple choice--and then jump into some very heavy essay questions and
projects. I suspect that little of any consequence will come from the
projects, since their scope is quite simply beyond the average student
at this level. Those who are being taught that registers are some vague
part of the CPU are unlikely to be able to assess the comparative
strengths of CISC and RISC architectures, even when you phrase the
question in terms of Pentium and PowerPC.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1995 BKINTRCM.RVW 950310

_____
/ ___/\
/ /\\\\/
/ ___/\
/ /\\\\/
/____/\
\\\\\\/ TC:

Classifieds
-----------
The classified ad section is free for anyone who would like to post an
advertisement. There are limits of 100 lines per ad, 1 ad per person,
and 10 ads per week. By posting, your message will get to +/- 1922
people. Advertisement space will be alloted on a first come, first
served basis. NOTICE: PRODUCTS AND/OR SERVICES DISPLAYED HERE ARE NOT
NECESSARILY THOSE ENDORSED BY COMPUTER NEWS.

---Begin Classified Ads---
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
***************************** MISCELLANEOUS *****************************
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted By: Computer News Server <[email protected]>
Subject: LIST OF SERVICES & FEATURES FOUND IN COMPUTER NEWS:

Services:
=========
Classified Ads

Features:
=========
Weekly News Reporting
Weekly Book Reviews
Monthly Internet Entertainment Reviews
Humor Section "Lighter Side"

Suggestions for any new features, services, or how we could improve any
one of our features or services, can be directed to [email protected].

---
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
*************************** SITUATION WANTED ****************************
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted By: Anu Garg <[email protected]>
Subject: Situation Wanted

Are you looking for a creative computer science graduate with some
innovative ideas? Please ask me for my resume or view it at my WWW
home page:

<URL:http://www.wordsmith.org/~anu/anu.html>

---
Posted By: [email protected]
Subject: Situation Wanted

SITUATION WANTED:

APPLICATIONS CONSULTANT/SYSTEM ANALYST
Financial Applications Development
Software Conversions - Installation and Customized
Training
Design And Implementation - Sales/Marketing Support -
Domestic/International

Professional system executive highly skilled in the design and
development of computer hardware and software applications. Proven
abilities in solving intricate MIS problems and bottlenecks with
efficiency and effective cost controls. Proficient in the use and
application of local and wide area networks and in the use of popular
software products. Exhibits strong communication skills with all levels
of management. Effective project manager.

Send inquiries to [email protected]

---End Classified Ads---

__
/ /\
/ / /
/ /_/_
/_____/\
\_____\/ ighter Side
--------------------

Read on the Telecom Digest:
---------------------------
From: [email protected] (Dave Leibold)
Date: 02 May 95 22:04:13 -0500
Subject: Reach Out and Defibrillate Someone

An Associated Press report (carried in {The Toronto Star} 1 May 1995)
mentioned studies (by a surgeon from Mt. Sinai Medical Center in Miami
FL, and a heart pacemaker expert from the Mayo Clinic) that indicated
digital cellular phones could cause some "inhibition of the pacemaker
function" in some test cases. Analog phones were tested, but the news
report implies these did not cause any noticeable pacemaker problems.

There appeared to be no effects when the cell phones were in a normal
talking position (receiver to ear). The problems appeared to occur when
the cell phone antenna was close to the "pulse generator" of the
pacemaker, often installed in the collarbone area. Any interferences
found in these tests were not reported to be harmful, however.

Fidonet : Dave Leibold 1:250/730
Internet: [email protected]

More Wisdom of the Usenet Oracle:
---------------------------------
The Usenet Oracle has pondered your question deeply.
Your question was:

> How computer networks work?

***********And in response, thus spake the Oracle:

}
} Well it depends on what kind of computer network you're looking at.
} Different networks work in different ways.
}
} Let's consider as an example one commonly used network: Ethernet. An
} Ethernet consists of a fine web made up of strands of ether. (That's
} not the chemical ether they use to anesthetize fruit flies in the
} biology lab. It's the ether that radio waves are transmitted
} through.) This web is strung up throughout the building, especially in
} the vicinity of the light fixtures, and it traps photons which get
} entangled in it.
}
} The photons are then used as messengers to send data between the
} various computers on the network. There's a coaxial cable which is
} used as a roadway by the photons.
}
} You may hear talk about master-slave protocols. The photons are the
} slaves.
}
} You owe the Oracle a treatise on HappyNet.

To find out all about the Usenet Oracle, including how to participate,
send mail to [email protected] with the word "help" in the subject
line.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer News is Copyright (C) 1995 by Olcay Cirit. All Rights Reserved.

ALL TRADEMARKS/COPYRIGHTS CONTAINED HEREIN, MARKED OR UNMARKED, BELONG TO
THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS. THE TEXTS CONTAINED HEREIN MAY BE REDISTRIBUTED
IN WHOLE OR IN PART PROVIDED THAT THE ARTICLE REMAIN INTACT AND THAT THE
ABOVE NOTICE BE DISPLAYED. INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS
PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED,
INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY,
FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND FREEDOM FROM INFRINGEMENT. THIS
ARTICLE MAY NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES BE RESOLD OR REDISTRIBUTED IN ANY
FORM FOR ANY COMPENSATION OF ANY KIND WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN PERMISSION
FROM MR. OLCAY CIRIT.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
To SUBSCRIBE to Computer News, send e-mail to [email protected] with
the following in the body of the message:

subscribe cn

To UNSUBSCRIBE from Computer News send e-mail to [email protected]
with the following in the body of the message:

unsubscribe cn

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Suggestions/Submissions/Comments may be directed to <[email protected]>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Computer News is edited by Olcay Cirit