---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Florida SunFlash 5 Graphics Partners Show Support Of SMCC's New "Open Graphics" Initiative SunFLASH Vol 38 #5 February 1992 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- SMCC's Objective to Give Users A Broad Array of Graphics Options MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. --January 27, 1992-- Five of the graphics partners of Sun Microsystems Computer Corporation (SMCC) --DuPont Pixel Systems, Evans & Sutherland, Nth Graphics, VICOM Visual Computing and Visual Information Technologies Inc. (VITec) --are demonstrating commitment to SMCC's new "open graphics" initiative by announcing new products. The initiative echoes SMCC's open systems strategy of encouraging the creation of a broad selection of SPARC(R)/Solaris(R) systems from many different vendors. With open graphics, SMCC is moving on several fronts to facilitate the development of a wide range of graphics products that are easily integrated into the SPARC/Solaris platform. As a result, users will have many more graphics solutions that can be tailored to meet their specific needs, thus giving them lowered cost and greater functionality. The efforts of these partners are further evidence of how SMCC is encouraging "parallel innovation." For example: * SMCC and Evans & Sutherland (E&S) announced today that E&S will develop sophisticated new 3-D graphics accelerators for SMCC's * DuPont Pixel Systems recently introduced a line of SPARCstation graphics accelerators that supports Iris GL(TM). * Nth Graphics recently introduced the Nth Portable Graphics Library, which offers source compatibility with Iris GL, giving SPARCstation users with standard Sun graphics access to GL applications. * VICOM Visual Computing is the exclusive provider of the VX/MVX accelerator boards for both VME and SBus-based SPARCstations and will continue to develop high-end visualization accelerators for SMCC SPARCstations. * VITec recently introduced the RasterFLEX(TM) family of Raster Accelerators, targeted at users and system builders with a need for interactive display and manipulation of 24-bit true color data. SMCC's volume leadership has created demand for Sun products in many diverse markets that require a variety of solutions. Through the open graphics initiative, SMCC has made it easy for software and hardware developers to address these specialized markets. "Graphics are now integrated into almost every technical, scientific, business and arts area," noted Carl Machover, president of Machover & Associates, a graphics industry consulting firm. "Graphics markets have become extremely fragmented. No one company can deliver solutions to every problem that's out there." The graphics strategies of other system companies result in limited third-party support because of the closed interfaces and proprietary buses of these companies' platforms. However, SMCC is addressing these issues by working with its vendor partners to design a variety of products for systems based on the SPARC RISC microprocessor and the Solaris distributed computing solution. The Open Graphics Initiative SMCC is facilitating open graphics in various ways. Through the use of published hardware and software interfaces, the company is making its high-volume, open platform appealing to third-party partners because they can easily develop and integrate innovative, specialized graphics products. SMCC has also licensed some of its own products, such as its high-end visualization accelerators, to third parties. The company aids partners with development and is designing its platform to ease integration. One of many examples of SMCC's efforts is licensing its GX graphics accelerator and XGL(TM) graphics software library to proliferate graphics among SPARC compatibles. Others include incorporating loadable device drivers into XGL, allowing third-party hardware to be integrated into a user's workstation with full binary compatibility. SMCC will continue to add partners as part of its open graphics initiative. According to Larry Hambly, vice president of marketing at SMCC, "The feedback we've been getting about this concept is overwhelmingly positive. In fact, some graphics products vendors tell us they want to innovate first on Sun in order to be able to participate in this effort. They feel this will lead to a much larger market for graphics products, which benefits everyone. Our open graphics initiative is another example of our focus on being a high-volume supplier." Sun Microsystems, the Sun logo and Solaris are registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. SPARC is a registered trademark of SPARC International. SPARCstation is a registered trademark of SPARC International, Inc., licensed exclusively to Sun Microsystems, Inc. Products bearing SPARC trademarks are based on an architecture developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc. XGL is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. IRIS GL is a trademark of Silicon Graphics Inc. RasterFLEX is a trademark of Visual Information Technologies Inc. All other products or services mentioned in this document are identified by the trademarks or service marks of their respective companies or organizations. PR contacts: Sun Microsystems, Inc. Cathleen Beall Garfield (415) 336-6536 Carrie Dillon (415) 336-3564 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ For information send mail to info-sunflash@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. Subscription requests should be sent to sunflash-request@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. Archives are on solar.nova.edu, paris.cs.miami.edu, uunet.uu.net, src.doc.ic.ac.uk and ftp.adelaide.edu.au All prices, availability, and other statements relating to Sun or third party products are valid in the U.S. only. Please contact your local Sales Representative for details of pricing and product availability in your region. Descriptions of, or references to products or publications within SunFlash does not imply an endorsement of that product or publication by Sun Microsystems. John McLaughlin, SunFlash editor, flash@sunvice.East.Sun.COM. (305) 776-7770.