Lotus articles from February 1990

Lotus archives from February 1990

Send us your models. (appeal for user's spreadsheet models) (Staff letter)
February 1, 1990... SEND US YOUR MODELS Part of what we do in this magazine is present spreadsheet models that can help solve real problems. If you've been a reader for a while, chances are you have adapted one or more of our models to your own purposes....

Electronic mail: ready for the 1990s. (new look, better connectivity, and voice) (Ideas and trends)
February 1, 1990... ELECTRONIC MAIL: READY FOR THE 1990s For more than a decade, American business has been reaping the benefits of electronic mail. Delivery is virtually instant. Costs are low. Paperwork is reduced. And messages can get through even when...

80386SX machines make a strong comeback: aggressive pricing and new software drive sales.
February 1, 1990... 80386SX MACHINES MAKE A STRONG COMEBACK Intel Corp.'s 80386SX microprocessor wasn't an instant success when it was introduced last year. In fact, the research firms that keep track of PC sales generally didn't bother to segregate '386SX...

Extending release 3: beware of "Shadow" ram.
February 1, 1990... EXTENDING RELEASE 3: BEWARE OF "SHADOW" RAM 1-2-3 Release 3 offers substantial enhancements to previous versions of 1-2-3, but in order to run it, you need a '286 or a '386 system with at least 1 megabyte of available memory. To help it...

The growing VDT radiation debate: new studies try to measure the health risks.(video display terminal)
February 1, 1990... THE GROWING VDT RADIATION DEBATE Q: Can radiation from a computer monitor harm you? A: Nobody knows for sure. Concerns about radiation from video display terminals have surfaced from time to time over the past decade, but until...

The making of 1-2-3/G, Lotus's graphical spreadsheet. (behind the scenes with Marty Fahey, general manager for 1-2-3/G) (interview)
February 1, 1990... THE MAKING OF 1-2-3/G, LOTUS'S GRAPHICAL SPREADSHEET Lotus Development Corp. will soon release 1-2-3/G, its graphical spreadsheet for OS/2's Presentation Manager. The program was demonstrated in mid-November at Comdex/Fall '89, at the same...

New England numbers. (computerized business and economic statistics by telephone)
February 1, 1990... NEW ENGLAND NUMBERS Now your computer can check up on New England business and economic statistics with just a phone call. The New England Electronic Economic Data Center, a joint effort of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and the...

The lives of a a battery. (portable computer battery life)
February 1, 1990... THE LIVES OF A BATTERY After the initial media type over notebook and other subcompact computers, users and analysts began to focus on their key deficiency: poor battery life. NEC Home Electronics' popular UltraLite portable, for example,...

Computer cuisinart. (Canon Navigator) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... COMPUTER CUISINART One of the more interesting products to surface recently is the Navigator, from Canon U.S.A. (Lake Success, N.Y.). It is essentially the PC equivalent of a Cuisinart: Think of a piece of office equipment and it's...

Lotus to ship Symphony upgrade. (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... LOTUS TO SHIP SYMPHONY UPGRADE By the end of this quarter, Lotus Development Corp. expects to ship Symphony Release 2.2. The Symphony upgrade includes such enhancements as file linking, more extensive database capabilities, and more...

Windows/386-Release 3 conflict explained.
February 1, 1990... WINDOWS/386--RELEASE 3 CONFLICT EXPLAINED With all the recent confusion over the direction of personal-computer operating systems, many people are unclear about which operating systems 1-2-3 Release 3 supports. Here's some information...

Lotus announces 1-2-3 for Sun. (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... LOTUS ANNOUNCES 1-2-3 FOR SUN In January Lotus Development Corp. and Sun Microssytems announced 1-2-3 for Sun, the offspring of last summer's joint development and marketing agreement 1-2-3 for Sun is a version of 1-2-3 Release 3 ported to...

Notes ships. (Lotus Development Corp's Notes communications program) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... NOTES SHIPS In December Lotus Development Corp. shipped Lotus Notes, a group communications, program that lets people create and share information over personal-computer networks. Sales of the program got off to a rousting start: Price...

Top honors for Lotus programs. (awards from major computer magazines)
February 1, 1990... TOP HONORS FOR LOTUS PROGRAMS Last year, Lotus Magellan, Lotus Freelance Plus, 1-2-3 Release 3, and 1-2-3 Release 2.2 received awards from major personal-computing magazines. A PC Magazine technical Excellence award in the Utilities...

FNN buys Lotus's LINC. (Financial News Network, Lotus Information Network Corp)
February 1, 1990... FNN buys lotus'S LINC Lotus Information Network Corp. (LINC), a San Mateo, Calif., subsidiary of Lotus Development Corp., has been acquired by Financial News Network (FNN), a cable television network. LINC delivers real-time market...

A Magellan navy. (Magellan Fleet) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... A MAGELLAN NAVY Lotus Development Corp. has begun shipping Magellan Fleet, a special package containing 25 copies of Magellan, Lotus's DOS-based utility that lets users find, view, and use information stored on their hard disks. Magellan...

Enhanced graphs: titles and legends clarify your graph's message. (Lotus 1-2-3 graphs)
February 1, 1990... ENHANCED GRAPHS A good graph enables you immediately to interpret the data it represents. Take a quick look at the bar graph discussed in last month's column, and you'll agree it violates this basic principle. On its own, the graph...

Talk to us on CompuServe. (Lotus magazine on-line)
February 1, 1990... Talk to Us on CompuServe By now you probably know that you can download our 1988 and 1989 models from CompuServe. For details, see the January issue, page 80. But there's more. Besides downloading template files, you can also leave...

Alphabetical disorder. (a macro to handle anomalies produced by databases when sorting names) (includes related articles on entering formulas and improving macros)
February 1, 1990... ALPHABETICAL DISORDER When 1-2-3 sorts names in a database, you're likely to find that the O'Connors, Le-Roys and Le Maitres fall in odd places. This is because 1-2-3 treats apostrophes, hyphens, and spaces as characters. One solution...

A set up for power users: create add-ins with Lotus's Add-In Toolkit for Release 3. (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... A STEP UP FOR POWER USERS An important new player that recently joined the 1-2-3 product team promises to increase your ability to customize a worksheet. Last September Lotus Development Corp. released the Add-In Toolkit for Release 3....

Macros can make decisions. (Macro Basics) (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... MACROS CAN MAKE DECISIONS Storing keystrokes in macros is a great time saver. When you need to repeat a label in several cells, you can type it in one cell, assign it a macro name, then reproduce it instantly in any other cell by pressing...

Here's the missing link. (multiple-file applications permanently connect data between files) (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... HERE'S THE MISSING LINK The concept of linking data in one file to data in another file is not new. 1-2-3 has always contained File Combine commands that enable you to pull information from subordinate worksheets into a master worksheet....

Order entry made simple. (streamlining keyboarding information) (includes a related article with tips for users of 1-2-3 releases 2.2 and 3) (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... ORDER ENTRY MADE SIMPLE If you've ever tried to use 1-2-3 to enter sales orders into a table, you may have run into a few snags. For instance: * Enter a street number, a zip code, or a phone number without a label prefix, and your...

Testing choices in a hurry. (a data table for seeing the impact of many different values in a formula) (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... TESTING CHOICES IN A HURRY Sometimes you're lucky enough to have a problem that you can solve by using one simple formula. For example, you might know the principal, interest rate, and term of a loan and need to find what the monthly...

Chart your process flow. (create a visual model to finding areas for improvement in a business system) (Lotus 1-2-3 or Symphony) (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... Chart Your PROCESS FLOW The day-to-day operation of any business is the sum of its operational systems. Before radios can be sold, they have to be assembled. Before they can be assembled, the parts have to be procured from inventory....

How to win with financial leverage. (a way to assess the leverage impact of preferred stock or debt) (includes a related article on how financial leverage works) (tutorial)
February 1, 1990... HOW TO WIN WITH FINANCIAL LEVERAGE The annals of modern business are rife with tales of corporate fortunes won and lost as a result of financial leverage. Financial leverage assures an investor (a person expanding his business or plant)...

Answers to your questions about Lotus products. (Q & A)
February 1, 1990... ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT LOTUS PRODUCTS 1-2-3/SYMPHONY COUNTING ENTRIES Q. My worksheet has several columns, each containing mixed letters, as shown in the figure below. I'd like to count the occurrences of selected...

More tips on using Lotus products. (Good Ideas)
February 1, 1990... MORE TIPS ON USING LOTUS PRODUCTS SYMPHONY USING CODES IN A SYMPHONY FORM Here's an idea to help speed up data entry and decrease typing errors while maintaining your Symphony Release 2.0 database. In the...

4 budget assistants: The Budget Express, Budget Solutions, (at)Ease, and Master Planner. (Software Review) (evaluation)
February 1, 1990... 4 BUDGET ASSISTANTS Do you develop and analyze budgets in a 1-2-3 worksheet? If so, you've probably wished for an easier way to do one or more of the following: * Lay out your budget worksheet * Extract or display data based on a...

A new leader among 1-2-3 compilers. (includes a related article on King Jaguar: future promise, present problems) (Software Review) (Baler 5.0) (evaluation)
February 1, 1990... A NEW LEADER AMONG 1-2-3 COMPILERS Past reviews have thoroughly covered the benefits and drawbacks of worksheet compilers for 1-2-3. The chief benefit: By compiling 1-2-3 worksheets into stand-alone applications, you can save users the...

3 personal income tax templates for 1-2-3: TaxTime, TaxEase, and Lotax. (Software Review) (evaluation)
February 1, 1990... 3 PERSONAL INCOME TAX TEMPLATES FOR 1-2-3 Have you filed your income tax yet? If you haven't, and if you need to itemize on forms other than Form 1040, you might consider preparing your taxes with one of several tax templates for 1-2-3....

Compaq LTE and LTE/286: redefining the notebook computer. (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Compaq LTE and LTE/286: Redefining the Notebook Computer At 8.5 by 11 by 1.9 inches, Compaq's new LTE computers may be the first full-function portables that are small enough to qualify as notebook-size. Or they may be the first...

Make valuation, prospectus for closely held business. (DealMaker) (Business, finance) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Make Valuation, Prospectus for Closely Held Business DealMaker (a trademark of ValuSource) analyzes the purchase or sale of any closely held business. It includes a sales/purchase feasibility study and several approaches for appraising a...

File sales tax for any state, county, city, or town. (Sales Tax) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... File Sales Tax for any State, County, City, or Town Sales Tax automates the entire process of sales tax-compliance with any state or local unit of government. The program lets you download sales data from a mainframe, minicomputer, or PC. It...

1-2-3 template to file and plan business-income tax. (FAS-96 for 1-2-3) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... 1-2-3 Template to File and Plan Business-Income Tax FAS-96 for 1-2-3 lets corporations use the balance-sheet approach to comply with the Federal Accounting Standards Board's accounting regulations for income taxes, also referred to as FASB 96....

Template for preparing private-offering circular. (P.P. Memo) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Template for Preparing Private-Offering Circular P.P. Memo (for private-placement memorandum) provides the documents necessary to handle the offering of Regulation D exempt securities for investments of under $1 million. Sales of these...

Perform risk analyses on your existing 1-2-3 worksheet data. (Plan) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Perform Risk Analyses on Your Existing 1-2-3 Worksheet Data Plan lets you make projections using any number of independent variables in your worksheet. For each variable you enter low, expected, and high values. Plan will automatically create...

Manufacturing overview and control on nine worksheets. (Manufacturing 9-Pack) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Manufacturing Overview and Control on Nine Worksheets Manufacturing 9-Pack helps you interpret manufacturing conditions and institute controls. It gives you manufacturing-oriented financial reports. The reports cover a master schedule, a bill...

Model your business to better anticipate its success. (Production - Equalizer) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Model Your Business to Better Anticipate its Success Production*Equalizer lets you create a model of your sales-, manufacturing-, or service-related business. This lets you gauge the financial effect of a plan before you implement it. Your...

1-2-3 template used for rent-roll analysis. (Rollin) (Real estate) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... 1-2-3 Template Used for Rent-Roll Analysis Rollin will project annual income for any income-producing property. This procedure is also known as "rent-roll analysis." The macro-driven template takes into account the dates and terms of each...

Mouse drivers let you create and customize 1-2-3 menus. (Mouse Patch) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Mouse Drivers Let You Create and Customize 1-2-3 Menus Mouse Patch lets you use a mouse to select menu options and highlight ranges, as well as cut and paste parts of your worksheet. You can also substitute Mouse Patch's custom menus for...

Enhance mouse performance. (MicroSpeed Mouse Utilities) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Enhance Mouse Performance MicroSpeed Mouse Utilities improves the performance of any mouse by adding an accelerator algorithm. The algorithm lets you instruct the cursor to move farther in response to a quick movement of the mouse than it...

Library of functions for add-in toolkit developers. (The Developer's Library) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Library of Functions for Add-In Toolkit Developers The Developer's Library, for users of the Lotus Add-In Toolkit, increases the types of mathematical, engineering, scientific, and statistical functions available to an add-in developer. With...

Graphics-tracing program for Freelance Plus. (QuickTrace) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Graphics-Tracing Program for Freelance Plus QuickTrace converts scanned images stored in TIFF format into CGM Metafile format. Once in the new format, you can use Lotus Freelance Plus to read the image and edit it. QuickTrace has three...

Draw-and-graph program uses WordPerfect graph format. (DrawPerfect) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Draw-and-Graph Program Uses WordPerfect Graph Format DrawPerfect, a presentation graphics program, lets you graph, draw, and create on-screen presentations. The program comes with a library of 500 images and lets you import 14 types of...

Easy-to-use database-application developer. (Clarion Personal Developer) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Easy-to-Use Database-Application Developer Clarion Personal Developer lets people with no knowledge of databases create simple database applications immediately. The product creates both the database file and the programs that control its use....

1-2-3 Release 3/2.2 courses for experienced users. (The Lotus 1-2-3 Release 3 Training Series and The Lotus 1-2-3 Release 2.2 Training Series)
February 1, 1990... 1-2-3 Release 3/2.2 Courses for Experienced Users The Lotus 1-2-3 Release 3 Training Series and The Lotus 1-2-3 Release 2.2 Training Series each consist of two videotapes, two guidebooks, and two disks. Both are designed for experienced users...

Instructor-led courseware for 1-2-3 Release 2.2. (Lotus 1-2-3 Release 2.2 Spreadsheet and Database and Graphics) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Instructor-Led Courseware for 1-2-3 Release 2.2 Lotus 1-2-3 Release 2.2 Spreadsheet and Database and Graphics provides a complete course for both instructor and students. The starter package consists of an instructor's guide with color...

Add-in toolkit newsletter. (Technically speaking.) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Add-In Toolkit Newsletter Technically Speaking is a monthly journal for users of the Lotus Add-In Toolkit for Release 3 who are developing applications for 1-2-3 Release 3. It provides programming techniques, sample applications of the...

Sideways Version 3.3. (Upgrades. ) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Sideways Version 3.3 Sideways Version 3.3 now contains an add-in for 1-2-3 Release 3. It lets you print text files and WKS or WK1 files. The program also includes add-ins for 1-2-3 Releases 2/2.01 and 2.2 and for all releases of Symphony. ...

BizPlanBuilder 4.0. (Upgrades.) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... BizPlanBuilder BizPlanBuilder Version 4.0 provides text and formulas to help you create a business plan quickly and easily. The 1-2-3 worksheet prompts you for information, so you need not know 1-2-3 to use it. Advanced users can edit the...

Rescue Plus 1.2. (Upgrades) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Rescue Plus Rescue Plus Version 1.2 will now recover lost files that were originally saved with 1-2-3 Release 2.2 or any previous release of 1-2-3 or any release of Symphony. The new release will recover files that have been damaged more...

Andrew Tobias' Tax Cut. (Upgrades) (product announcement)
February 1, 1990... Andrew Tobias' Tax Cut Andrew Tobias' Tax Cut lets you prepare a signature-ready federal tax return. The program not only prompts you to fill in entries on the tax forms, but provides lay explanations of the methods involved. The program...

Windows has a bright future.
February 1, 1990... WINDOWS HAS A BRIGHT FUTURE When it comes to the future of Windows, Microsoft Corp. is as hard to pin down as a politician. Until last November, the party line, according to Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, was "Write software for Microsoft...

Template to assess Risk of real estate investment.
February 1, 1990... 1-2-3 Template to Assess Risk of Real Estate Investment RITA (Realty Investment Template Analysis) helps you measure the risk associated with any realty investment. You can analyze the risks of shopping centers, office buildings, apartment...