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April 25, 1998
News
- This past week, at the Windows World show in Chicago, the
world found out why Microsoft isn’t quite shipping Windows 98. There, for all the
world to see, Microsoft CEO Bill Gates had his Windows 98 demo crash on him, forcing him
to comment on how, as much as we all rely on technology, it doesn’t always work.
Yeah, that’s for sure. Actually, I finally got a chance to install and play around
with beta 3 of Windows 98 and I have to say that I’m very underwhelmed. Certainly it
offers some nice improvements over Windows 95, but other than a new startup sound and a
few sliding menu tricks, there isn’t much there. In fact, interestingly, the Windows
version number is listed as 4.1, which suggests that even Microsoft’s programmers
recognize that the it’s really more of a minor upgrade to Windows 95, which carries a
version number of 4.0. Because I’ve been using Internet Explorer 4.0 for a long time
now, the only things that I really noticed and felt were interesting were some new and/or
updated diagnostic utilities that should make troubleshooting much easier. The new Dr.
Watson utility, which is kind of like existing utilities, such as First Aid, looks nice,
as well as the System Configuration utility, and the updated version of Microsoft System
Information should also be very helpful. But they’re definitely not all worth $89.
And interestingly, I found that they all work under Windows 95 so I don’t see why
Microsoft doesn’t just make them available to everyone who wants them. They could
certainly help existing Windows 95 users get around a lot of frustrating problems.
- Iomega announced a new low-cost ATAPI version of their
popular Zip Drive. The $99 internal-only version works with your computer’s built-in
IDE controllers, which is what your hard drive and probably CD-ROM drive also attach to.
You have to crack open your PC case to install it, but Iomega is apparently providing an
accompanying CD-ROM that shows how the installation is generally done.
- In some not so good Zip news, listener John Chase e-mailed me
this week to inform me of a problem he came across and wanted me to warn others of which
is that Zip disks will wear out and eventually stop working. After a certain, unknown
number of reads and writes the disks simply fail, he says. This is different from the Zip
Click of Death problem that’s been reported elsewhere—that basically involves
the drive mechanism. This is a problem with the disks themselves. Bottom line: just as
with floppies, you may need to keep multiple copies of critical files on separate Zip
disks.
- Micron introduced a new series of slim new notebooks
they’re calling the GoBook line. The new models, which are expected in May, measure
about 1 ¼" high and weigh just 4 ½ pounds. While this is thinner than many existing
models, it’s still half-an-inch thicker than the wafer-thin HP Sojourner and
Mitsubishi Pedion, although those two machines are much more expensive. Inside the
GoBook’s diminutive package you’ll find a 266 MHz Pentium MMX, 32 MB of RAM, 2.1
GB hard drive, CD-ROM and 12.1" active matrix for around $3,299. A $2,599 model
includes a 233 MHz processor. Both machines are also available with an extra 2-pound
battery "slice" that you can attach to the main notebook to up the battery life
from the standard 3-5 hours to an impressive 11 hours. Gateway also introduced a new
lower-cost line of portables they’re calling the Transport Trek series. The
entry-level Trek comes with a 233MHz Pentium MMX, 12.1-inch display, 32MB of RAM, and a
2.1GB hard disk drive for $1,999.
- Gateway 2000 officially shortened their name to simply
Gateway this week in an attempt to downplay their home-y cow-spots image and attract more
small businesses. In conjunction with the move the company also announced a new low-cost
Pentium II system that includes a 266 MHz Pentium II, 32 MB of RAM, 5 GB drive, CD-ROM and
a 15" monitor for $1,499.
- Speaking of the Pentium II, this week Intel unveiled the name
for what will be yet another addition to the Pentium II line of processors. The Pentium II
Xeon, which will use the upcoming Slot 2 connector, will be a very expensive new version
of the PII that’s designed specifically for servers and workstations. The company has
said it will not be put into any normal PCs. The chip itself won’t be ready until
later this summer but, as with the Celeron, they announced the name early to get people
used to the idea, I guess.
- HP has announced a new line of fast and, in some cases,
networkable color inkjets that are expected to be available in June. The new HP 2000C is
priced at $799, which is pretty pricey compared to most of today’s single user
printers, but the company is claiming that the printer can generate up to three complete
color pages in under a minute, which is five times faster than most inkjets and close to
black-and-white laser speeds. And based on the specs, it doesn’t look like the
quality will suffer. The 2000C offers 600 dpi resolution and uses HP’s PhotoREt II
resolution enhancement technology, which basically mixes color inks as they’re
sprayed on the page to produce a wider variety of colors. A networkable version of the
printer called the HP 2000 CN will retail for $1,199.
- Here’s an interesting one you may have heard about. The
CIA has introduced a special Site for Kids that explains what the government agency’s
role is and what CIA agents and "spies" really do. The site explains what the
different types of intelligence gathering are in a way that seems best suited for kids
working on a school report. Still, if you ever wanted to know a little more about what the
CIA does, or if your kids have asked and you haven’t been able to explain, you might
want to check it out.
- In an effort to maintain the high levels of traffic coming to
its home page, Netscape is joining the throngs of other sites on the web offering free
e-mail. The NetCenter section of the company’s site will soon be offering a service
called WebMail in which you can sign up for a free e-mail account that can be accessed
from any web browser anywhere in the world. The WebMail service will offer some pretty
impressive features, including language translation, built-in virus checking,
auto-responses, consolidation of multiple e-mail accounts and more.
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