The Microsoft Office to ship on CD-ROM

Business Wire

August 1, 1989

MILLBRAE, Calif. -- Microsoft Corp. Tuesday announced that The Microsoft Office, a collection of four of the most popular business applications for Apple Macintosh systems, will soon be available on CD-ROM disc.

This is the first general business software for Macintosh systems to be made available on CD-ROM disc.

''From the beginning of the Macintosh, Microsoft has been a leader in business software with innovative products,'' said John Sculley, chairman, chief executive officer and president of Apple Computer Inc. ''It is not surprising that Microsoft would now be the pioneer in bringing mainstream business applications to CD-ROM.''

The four applications included in The Microsoft Office, each the top seller in its category, are Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Mail. The CD also includes documentation for each of the products and several items from other developers that enhance the value of The Microsoft Office. These additional products include clip art, a linear programming program, a thesaurus, templates and other items.

''The compact disc provides a super medium for delivering large amounts of information to computer users,'' said Bill Gates, Microsoft cofounder and chairman. ''The Microsoft Office brings customers all the software they are likely to need, as well as documentation that is easy to use in a way that hardcopy documentation never can be.''

A powerful search engine included on the disc allows the documentation to be searched electronically on virtually any word included in the manuals. Multimedia segments, including animated sequences and voice-overs, are used extensively throughout the CD to demonstrate how to accomplish some of the more complex features in the applications programs.

Third-party programs selected for inclusion in The Microsoft Office enhance the use of the Microsoft applications in the product. For Microsoft Word users, third-party products include the WordFinder thesaurus from Microlytics; a document comparison program, DocuComp; and Mac Daisy Link for expanded printing capabilities.

Microsoft Excel users will enjoy a variety of templates from Heizer Software as well as ''What's Best?'' a linear programming progam. Clip art from Genigraphics, T/Maker and Multi-Ad services, and SuperPaint from Silicon Beach Software will be valuable additions to users of either Microsoft PowerPoint or Microsoft Word. The AutoMac macro package works across the Microsoft applications.

System Requirements, Pricing and Availability

The Microsoft Office on CD-ROM requires a Macintosh with two megabytes of memory (four megabytes of memory to run the multimedia introductions) running System 6.0.2 or higher and HyperCard 1.2.2 or higher, a hard disk and a Macintosh-compatible CD-ROM player. The suggested retail price of the CD-ROM vevsion of The Microsoft Office is $949. It is expected to be available by the end of September.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) develops, markets and supports a wide range of software for business and professional use, including operating systems, languages and application programs, as well as books, hardware and CD-ROM products for the microcomputer marketplace.

NOTE:

-- Microsoft, the Microsoft logo and PowerPoint are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corp.

-- DocuComp is a trademark of Advanced Systems Inc.

-- Apple, Macintosh and HyperCard are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc.

-- Mac Daisy Link is a trademark of GDT Softworks Inc.

-- AutoMac is a trademark of Genesis Micro Software.

-- WordFinder is a registered trademark of Microlytics.

CONTACT: Microsoft Corp., Redmond Sarah Charf/Marty Taucher, 206/882-8080 or The Waggener Group, Portland Diana Godfrey/Pam Edstrom, 503/234-0905 15:47 ET