Library to buy DEC

Press, 6 October 1987, Page 51

Library to buy DEC

The Canterbury Public Library, which automated using Datacom Bureau facilities early this year, now plans to buy its own $900,000 Digital Equipment Corporation system. Ms Dorothea Brown, the city librarian, says the management and staff of the library are delighted with the American system they are using and this will be transferred to the new machine. The new 25-terminaf system has been selected with an eye to incorporating other Christchurch libraries should the city’s local bodies merge. The French way The French are introducing regulations to prevent IBM from dominating their State-encouraged and thriving telecommunications industry. The regulations will prevent IBM from relying on its own proprietary standards. In France it will be forced to use the Open Systems Interconnection standard, which is non-proprietary and is used by a number of West European computer makers. Lotus unprotected The Lotus Development Corporation says it will drop anti-copying devices from its next release of 1-2-3. This version, release 3.0, will probably be on the

market early In 1988. Defence contract The United States Air Force has awarded the Massachusetts Institute of Technology $U5415.6 million to develop advanced electronics software. The work will be completed by September, 1989. Professor Joseph Weizenbaum, the MIT professor and peace activitist who addressed the national Computer Society conference in Christchurch recently, will not be chuffed. Auditing package Chambers Nicholls, the accounting firm, is introducing to New Zealand CBEAM, an auditing package. The IBM PC-bases system includes features such as a consolidation package to produce group accounts, automated audit sampling, a spreadsheet, and graphics. The package will first be used in the Christchurch branch of Chambers Nicholls. :