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Debut of new Pentium II marred by flaw

By JIM BROOKS

Intel Corp. rolled out its new and long-awaited Pentium II processor line this week.

The new computer chips pack more advanced multimedia capabilities and computing power, all at record-breaking processor speeds, according to Intel.

The Pentium II line offers speeds up to 300 MHz -- though engineers testing the chips have already reported at least one flaw in how the Pentium II and the older Pentium Pro operate.

Unlike the glitch two years ago that resulted in Intel replacing some Pentium processors, the fault reportedly discovered in the new Pentium Pro is minor, according to PC Week's testing labs.

The flaw isn't easy to duplicate, according to a PC Week interview with Richard Doherty, director a Seaford, N.Y. test lab.

"We are still looking for it," Doherty said. "It's somewhere between searching for Elvis and being a potential business problem."

Santa Clara, Calif.-based Intel has acknowledged the reported flaw and may have already made an announcement by the time this column is printed.

Intel is aiming the new chips at the corporate and business market, but manufacturers are already shipping lower-priced Pentium II-equipped PCs aimed at the consumers.

The list includes Gateway 2000, Acer, AST, Compaq, Dell, Digital, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Micron and NEC.

A number of retailers are offering new Pentium II-equipped PCs -- 233 MHz models with 32 megs of memory and a 3.2 Gigabyte hard drive -- for less than $2,500.

This isn't cheap, especially when you consider than most computer makers are offering starter systems for about $1,000. But in comparisons, it took nearly four years for new 486-equipped PCs to drop to this level.

BUDDY LISTS ON THE WEB. If you've used America Online much in the last year, you're more than likely familiar with AOL's "Buddy List" feature.

The list -- a collection of names of your friends and acquaintances on AOL -- allows you a number of ways to communicate and keep track of your friends.

The list allows you to monitor -- and be alerted -- when a listed person logs on or off of AOL's system. You can also page others on your list.

In the year its been available, the Buddy List features has been very popular. AOL reports that more than six million users are using the lists.

Now the "Buddy List" concept comes to the Internet and the World Wide Web.

Using the software created by iChat -- a maker of Web-based chat software -- you can create your own buddy lists while using the Web and outside of America Online's system.

The software, called iPage, alerts you when a listed friend is logged on to the Internet. The software allows you to exchange instant messages and stage impromptu chat sessions (both users are required to be running the iPage software).

At this writing, the software was still in beta testing, and was only available for the Windows 95 operating system.

If you're a Win95 user who enjoys the "instant message" capabilities of AOL, then iChat may have what you want.

For more information, point your browser to www.ichat.com.

GTE BUYING SPREE. GTE announced plans this week to buy BBN, a Stamford, Conn. Internet Service Provider.

The company also announced plans to buy a national, state-of-the-art fiber-optic network -- both come as part of a major move to expand the services it provides.

The moves are aimed at making GTE a telecommunications company that can offer one-stop shopping for Internet and networking equipment and services for businesses and consumers.

WHO'S ONLINE FIRST? U.S. consumers using the Internet are still going primarily with online services, according to a Consumer Survey Report issued recently by the Software Publisher's Association.

Seventy percent of Internet users connect via one of the online services, the survey said. The balance of users turn to Internet Service Providers (ISPs)for their access.

Users accessing the World Wide Web via an ISP stay online longer --two hours longer per week, the survey said.

Men are more likely to access financial investment sites, sports and technology sites, while women are more likely than men to view educational and travel sites, the survey said.

Adults with children were more likely to examine educational and child-related content than adults without children. Parents spend about three hours a week online longer than childless adults, the survey said.

TWO-LINE MODEMS SOON. A number of modem manufacturers are developing products for release that will speed past the current top-end modem speed of 56kbps -- all the way to 100kbps and beyond.

The technology isn't really new; the companies are developing modems that can utilize two or more telephone lines, and thereby doubling or tripling current modem speeds.

Two phone lines "fused" offers speeds upwards of 100kbps. Three lines connected mean about 168 kbps.

With computers in more homes, multiple lines aren't uncommon.

And the modems would offer a "call bumping" feature to allow an incoming voice call to come in on one of the lines while keeping the computer online using the second line.

The hitch? The "fused line" modems are based on the 56k technology --which is still a hot topic of debate since two company's technology is vying for dominance until a standard is set.

This means that even if you have two (or more) phone lines, your Internet provider's equipment will need to support the 56k data transmission rate.

NETSCAPE IN THE NEWS. Netscape Communications has released Communicator Preview Release 4, the latest incarnation of its next-generation of Web software.

The new version is only available for Windows platforms, and adds a few features lacking in the previous version.

This latest version does not include Netcaster, Netscape's new push technology component.

Netcaster will allow Communicator users to subscribe to various content Web sites, and have that content delivered as Web pages automatically.

Both Netscape and Microsoft plan to offer push technology in their latest Web software packages. Netscape says Communicator will be officially released in June; Microsoft says Internet Explorer 4.0 will be out sometime this summer.

For more details on Communicator, visit Netscape's Web site at http://home.netscape.com.

FTC, ONLINE SERVICES SETTLE. Online services who offer "free" trials will be changing how they do business after a recent FTC ruling.

Following up on complaints about the "free" trials offered by America Online, Compuserve and Prodigy, the FTC found that consumers often ended up with unwanted credit charges or bank account debits.

The FTC also alleged that AOL added 15 seconds of connect time to every session and then rounded the call up to the next minute, adding to consumers' charges (these practices allegedly occurred before AOL went to the flat-rate access plan last December).

Online services will now be required to get written authorization before they can tap into consumers checking accounts electronically. The services must also give consumers notice before additional charges above the normal fee can be electronically deducted.

AOL will also create a consumer education plan regarding access fees to its service.

The FTC levied no fines against the three online services.

Comments and questions about this column may be sent to jbrooks@myoldkentuckyhome.com, or visit www.myoldkentuckyhome.com on the World Wide Web.

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