Hard and software

Press, 27 September 1983, Page 23

Hard and software

Australia’s new Labour Government is planning to be on the leading edge of the “information age” rather than being carried along behind other countries. The Australian Minister of Science and Technology, Mr Barry Jones, has called a National Technology Conference for this week. Being held in Canberra, the mini summit has brought together politicians, academics, unions and leaders of industry and commerce io discuss strategies to enable Australia to profit from the technological revolution. Present at the conference will be Professor Tom Stonier (a recent visitor to Christchurch) and New Zealand’s Minister of Science and Technology, Dr Shearer. Mr Jones has also announced extensions to the Australian Industrial Research and Development Incentives Act to provide additional support for computer software development. The Government recently announced measures to create a venture capital market which will force the pace of the development of “sunrise” industries in Australia.

rHnameuvraumuvaiacsßmniUMiiMaßo The portable computer manufacturer, Osborne Computer Corporation, is desperately trying to sort out financial problems and has filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 of the United States bankruptcy Faw, which provides a special scheme of arrangement with creditors. This scheme provides an opportunity for the company to work out arrangements with its creditors until it can find funding. Manufacturing at the company’s United States plant has now ceased and the 75 employees have been laid off. The SUSIOOM a year revenue company has reportedly been looking for a

large company to take over its business. But the company currently has a negative net worth of SUSSM, which will work against a rescue. Osborne recently released two new computers, with more features than the Osborne 1 but at a higher price. Sales of the Osborne 1 slowed down after the launch of the Executive portables, and at the same time the company was unable to keep up with the demand for the new models.

Computer games of the Space Invaders kind have earned their place in the schools which have installed them by improving children’s performance in mathemathics, according to a British Government school inspector’s report. The inspector found the games stimulated the children’s interest in the subject and led many of them on to master quite sophisticated computer operating techniques. Children were often so keen they arrived at school before the gates opened. However, the report also found that some schools had had to crack down on computer games-playing because of its very popularity: the games were beginning to monopolise the few machines available, and school authorities had to impose restrictions to release them for more serious work.

Industry sources in the United States have said that Apple Computer will cut the price of its new Lisa computer by 18 per cent in an attempt to stimulate lagging sales of the innovative machine, according to a report in the “Sydney Morning Herald.” The price of the Lisa would be reduced to 5U58190 from its current list price of 5U59995, they said, and Apple would allow customers to buy the hardware separately for $U56995.