Newsbits

By Scott T Boyd, Editor

PowerPC Fast Software FPU

For a limited time, Itty Bitty Computers is marketing its own floating point emulator for the Power Macintosh. Implemented in native code within the Apple emulator, it works about 10 times faster than the popular shareware “SoftwareFPU”, while maintaining full 80-bit precision.

$20 + CA tax (Visa & M/C accepted). 30-day money-back guarantee.

For orders and info, contact Itty Bitty Computers, P.O. Box 7278, Spreckels, CA 93962. E-mail to CompuServe 72457,2237 or AppleLink Itty.Bitty.

AppleScript Development Tools

Main Event Software, publisher of products in the field of application scripting and data processing, presents Scripter®, the Script Construction Set, the first in a family of scripting products.

Scripter is a powerful, easy-to-use environment for creating and debugging AppleScript scripts. As an introduction to the powerful capabilities of Apple’s system-level scripting technology, or an advanced tool to develop and debug complex scripts, Scripter will appeal to the novice and expert alike. For the solutions provider, Scripter is a shortcut to reaching AppleScript’s full capabilities, presenting the individual capabilities of each target application to the user. It also allows the user to execute commands step-by-step to ensure accuracy, and speed the automation process.

A range of advanced tools for AppleScript development is available, including over 25 features. Most of the features fall into four major areas: extended editing capabilities, better access to application vocabularies, shortcuts for saving time in writing scripts, and aids which facilitate the process of debugging scripts.

Scripter is being introduced at $199, and is available through MacTech’s Mail Order Store (see page 89).

Main Event Software is at 1814 Belmont Road NW, Washington, DC 20009, AppleLink main.event.

Prograph CPX Support For StoneTable

StoneTablet Publishing and Bannister Lake Software, announced StoneTable support for Prograph CPX users. StoneTable for other development environments has been shipping since early 1992.

StoneTable is a library of functions that replace and extend the functionality found in the List Manager (which is part of the Macintosh toolbox). StoneTable provides such features as variable size columns and rows, titles for rows and columns, sorting, and different fonts and colors for each cell. An additional product, StoneTableExtra, provides additional functionality for StoneTable users. StoneTable for CPX and StoneTableExtra for CPX will allow the Prograph CPX developer to add sophisticated tables to their applications with all the features that StoneTable offers.

The joint marketing arrangement will allow StoneTable to reach additional Macintosh developers with support provided by a company that understands the needs of the Prograph CPX developer.

Pricing will be consistent with the standard StoneTable products for Think C, Think Pascal, MPW C, MPW Pascal, and CodeWarrior C. StoneTable $150. StoneTableExtra $50. All prices per developer, per compiler. Discounts are available for multiple compiler support except for CPX.

For more info on StoneTable, contact StoneTablet Publishing, PO Box 12665, Portland, OR 97212, or e-mail stack@teleport.com. (503) 287-3424 voice/fax .

Voodoo

Voodoo (the name stands for Versions Of Outdated Documents Organized Orthogonally) is a version management tool for the simple and clear management of projects in which files are created in numerous versions (variants and revisions).

Voodoo allows both variant and revision control, and it manages not only variants and revisions of single files, but of a whole software project (multi files, multi users, multi variants, access rights, ...).

The tool offers a neat graphical user interface and is not only suitable for mere source code control but can handle all kinds of files with excellent compression rates: the typical delta between arbitrary files is 5%, whether the files are plain text or any other documents - e. g. MSWord, WriteNow, Canvas, FileMaker.

Voodoo differs from previous source code control systems in its orthogonal approach to version management. This means that for every component of a project hierarchy you can not only store its revision history but also different variants of the same component. The orthogonal organization of revisions and variants leads to a much clearer organization than with other RCS/SCCS-based tools like Projector/SourceServer and others.

A lite version of Voodoo is being distributed on a shareware basis ($30). The package included contains VoodooLite 1.5 together with a readme document and a manual. You can get the current version directly from an ftp-server at:

ftp.swe.uni-linz.ac.at in /pub/voodoo

as well as at:

sumex-aim.stanford.edu in /info-mac/cmp

mac.archive.umich.edu in /mac/util/organization

The single copy price is $190. Shipping charge for each order is ATS 150 for Europe, and $27 outside Europe, respectively.

For further information, please contact the author at +43-7262-2166 voice, +43-7263-3338-30 fax, Erlenweg, A-4320 Perg, Austria, or e-mail at chrei@unisoft.co.at.

More PowerPC Machines To Go Around

Apple, IBM, and Motorola agreed on a new hardware reference platform for the PowerPC microprocessor that aims to deliver a much wider range of operating system and application choices for computer customers.

The new hardware reference platform for the PowerPC microprocessor is expected to support popular operating systems, such as the Mac OS, OS/2 for the PowerPC, AIX, and Microsoft Windows NT. Novell is also reportedly planning to support the platform.

The platform will combine many technical characteristics and features from Apple’s Power Macintosh and from the current IBM and Motorola PowerPC Reference Platform.

Each company intends to take technical and financial responsibility to port an operating system to the common platform. Apple will port MacOS, IBM OS/2 and AIX, and Motorola will port Windows NT.

The hardware reference platform aims to create new business opportunities and alternatives for software developers and hardware vendors who demand a higher return on their investment. This new platform will allow vendors to invest once in developing a product and have it reach a huge installed base of computers from a variety of vendors.

The objective is to achieve 100 percent compatibility with current PowerPC-based hardware and software application products, with room to grow (e.g. high-performance peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus, system boot or start-up independent of the operating systems, and industry standard components and I/O systems for compatibility.

More technical info will be published in the Spring of 1995. The alliance members plan to present prototypes of the systems based on the spec in 1995; the first computers are expected in 1996.

Cross-Platform Titles

- Apple delivered QuickTime 2.0 for Windows. Licenses available now at $300 per year, per title. Both Macintosh and Windows versions together is $400 per year, per title. For licensing info, call (512) 919-2645 or AppleLink SW.LICENSE.

-ACI shipped Object Master for Windows. The programmer’s editor helps programmers write, edit, organize, and navigate through source code using familiar drag-and-drop Windows functions. This version is aimed at large ISVs and cross-platform developers. $249, available through retail outlets. For more info, contact ACI US at (408) 252-444 voice, (408) 252-4821 fax.