ISPs Form Alliance

Nine Internet service providers have joined forces to form IOPS.ORG, an association of ISPs committed to make the commercial Internet more reliable. IOPS.ORG will focus on resolving and preventing network integrity problems, especially those requiring technical coordination and information exchange among the various ISPs. The founding members are ANS Communications, AT&T, BBN, EarthLink Network, GTE, MCI Communications, NETCOM On-Line Communications, PSINet and UUNET, a unit of WorldCom.

Firms Team For Wireless Access

U.S. Robotics and Northern Telecom have announced an agreement to jointly develop wireless computer access products. The products will be targeted at on-the-go professionals who need to access e-mail, the Internet and other computer applications using a wireless phone. At the moment, plans call for development of equipment and software to connect wireless calls to networks such as the Internet or company Intranets. U.S. Robotics provides products and systems that provide access to information. Nortel works with customers worldwide to design, build, and integrate digital networks.

Pay Phones To Feature The Web

The next time you want to reach out and touch someone, you might use the Internet. King Products, a Canadian multimedia firm, says it has received a $2.2 million order to supply multimedia and Internet-ready pay phones to INFA Telecom Asia of Hong Kong. Called PowerPhones, the units will be installed in the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center in time for the July 1 handover ceremony marking the transfer of the former British colony to China.

Firm Rolls Out Pentium Clone

The computer chip industry continues to get more competitive. Integrated Device Technology says it now offers a chip that it says works just like Intel Pentium microprocessors, but doesn't cost as much. The company, which until now has focused on producing specialty memory chips, says it plans to target the market for cheap computers that retail for under $1000. The new IDT-C6 microprocessor is comparable to a 200-megahertz Pentium with MMX graphics capabilities from Intel, Henry said. The chip will be sold for about $100, about a quarter of what Intel currently charges for a 200-megahertz Pentium.

Easy Come, Easy Go

Have trouble saving money? You're not alone. A survey by the Quicken Financial Network shows a full one-third of Americans spend their paychecks before they get them. The survey, conducted over the Internet, found that 32 percent of 7,210 respondents have simply given up on saving altogether. Twenty percent admitted that they routinely get overdue notices from creditors. Even more serious, 17 percent don't have enough money to pay their taxes.

UK Frets Over 2000 Bug

When the year 2000 rolls around, the National Audit Office says only 80 percent of British government departments and agencies are confident of having computers that still function. It warned that work on resolving the so-called Millennium bug should be stepped up. At the turn of the century, older software programs will be unable to distinguish between "2000" and "1900." The NAO said the types of problems that could arise included salaries not being paid, police records being wiped out, tax collection being put at risk and defense systems malfunctioning.

Dell Reports Higher Profits

The year is off to a good start for Dell Computer. The company reports profits more than doubled in the first quarter as a strong upturn in global sales propelled Dell into the number three spot for personal computer sales. Net income jumped to $198 million in the quarter ended on May 4, from $82 million a year earlier. Sales grew to $2.6 billion from $1.6 billion. Sales in the Americas rose 64 percent to more than $1.7 billion.

Firm To Sell Video Online

Frustrated at not being able to find that hard-to-get movie at your local video store? Now, you can order it on the Internet. A company in San Francisco, Reel Inc., has opened a World Wide Web-based "store" for buying and renting videotapes. The online store, at www.reel.com, said it's aiming the service at rural and small-town audiences unable to obtain hard-to-find titles in their local retail stores. That's much the same strategy that's been touted by online bookseller Amazon, which recently launched its initial public offering. Chances are you'll be able to find what you're looking for. Reel says it plans to offer 35,000 titles.

Microsoft Shows Its Stuff

Microsoft pulled out all the stops this week as it staged "scalability day" in New York. The event was designed to demonstrate that the Microsoft BackOffice family of server applications can manage large enterprise applications, including online banking systems, large data warehouses and enterprise mail systems. Microsoft also took the wraps off its new enterprise editions of Windows NT Server, Microsoft SQL Server and Microsoft BackOffice.

Conference Calls On Your PC

Soon you'll be able to use your computer to take part in a conference call. Internet telephone company VocalTec has announced development of technology that will allow conference calls between callers using traditional phones and personal computer phones. The new product works in conjunction with the VocalTec Telephony Gateway server software to bridge the public switching telephone network with the Internet, the company said in a press release. The product, called Atrium, consists of the new VocalTec Conference Server, the new VocalTec Forum Server, and the Internet Conference Professional software.

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