IBM Unveils New Software That Links Different PCs
International Business Machines Corp. on Tuesday unveiled new networking software aimed at expanding both the number and types of desktop personal computers that can be linked with IBM mainframes to share information.
The new products, part of IBM’s “Systems Network Architecture,” are initially designed to allow customers to more easily tie IBM’s own PS-2 personal computers into their large, corporate-wide computer networks.
However, the new software architecture is also being adopted by Apple Computer for its popular Macintosh personal computers. Apple’s support of the IBM networking software is widely viewed as expanding potential corporate sales for the Macintosh, which so far has failed to penetrate the business market as deeply as the rival IBM personal computer.
Ellen Hancock, IBM’s vice president and general manager for communication systems, said the new software underscores IBM’s commitment to supporting data exchange among computers of all types and from many different manufacturers.
“In today’s world, the ability to attach a wide variety of different systems to networks is at the top of customers’ priority lists. That is why IBM is committed to openness,” she said.
In addition to Apple, three other companies announced their intentions on Tuesday to link their products to the IBM network: Novell Inc., the leading publisher of PC networking software; Siemens Nixdorf, the Germany technology giant and sometime business partner with IBM, and Systems Strategies Inc., a subsidiary of the Nynex phone company.
Although computer users can now link Macintosh and other personal computers on an IBM network, data communication is usually clumsy and difficult because the Macintosh cannot directly hook up with a specific user of an IBM computer within the network.
The new software system reportedly makes it easier to operate a network because it eliminates all but three commands of instructions that have to be keyed into the system. This improvement simplifies information-sharing among users. Additionally, the new software allows customers to use the same application programs, such as word-processing systems and spreadsheets, on different-sized computers.
