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Technology Stocks : Corel - Investors with no Humor -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: A. Reader who wrote (760)	8/18/1998 7:44:00 AM
From: A. Reader	Respond to of 1094

Combatting the brain drain issue ....Different companies, however, take different approaches to dealing with these and other challenges. Ottawa's Corel Corp., for example, has brand recognition and financial resources working in its favor, but that just means its challenges are different. "With CorelDraw, where we're the leader, we can't just go and look at competitors and say, 'Oh we can copy that or we can copy this.' We have to break new ground and think of new things, so that's a very hard challenge," says Cathy Wright, vice-president of product engineering. "At this point, there's been eight versions of it, so there's a lot in it right now. We have to make sure that what we're putting in provides real value to the user and not just more fluff." Adding to the challenge is Corel's rate of producing upgrades. The company's two flagship products, CorelDraw and Corel WordPerfect, have traditionally been upgraded every 12 months. But Corel is beginning to trail off from that breakneck pace. CorelDraw8, for example, was released in November but the next version will not be available until the first or second quarter of 1999. Easing the rate of upgrades is one way to take pressure off a strained workforce and like any software vendor, Corel always has shoes to fill. "That's certainly an issue for us," says Wright. "There's obviously a lot of opportunities out there, there's a lot of positions in the United States that people find attractive as well - it is very competitive out there." One advantage Corel has in attracting skilled workers is the high profile of its products. Wright explains that programmers enjoy having something tangible to show for their efforts. She points out that programmers who work in systems and telecommunications - while they may find it rewarding in other ways - don't have a consumer product they can show for their efforts. "I think what you have to do is offer a good environment for people to work in, interesting technologies or products for people to work on, get them excited about that," she says. "That probably helps you more in the sense of retaining because that's obviously a key element - keeping the people that you do have. It's so hard out there, to get your company noticed, having world-leading applications obviously helps." .....Corel is also on the lookout for new platforms for its software. To this point, Corel has developed primarily for Windows. While a Macintosh version of CorelDraw is scheduled for release this fall, it will be the first Mac release in two years. This version will feature file formats that will be compatible with PC versions. But another intriguing possibility is Linux, the freely distributed Unix-based operating system invented by Linus Torvalds. Linux has an estimated total installed base of 4.8 to 5 million users and has been getting a great deal of attention in the industry. "Corel has shown a lot of interest recently in terms of the Linux market," says Corel's Wright. "I can't say that we'll be releasing products for that market right now, but it's certainly something that we'll be investigating and looking at with some interest. I think that Corel sees it as an environment where it's not proprietary, it's completely free, it's open in the sense that everyone contributes to it. So there's some potential there." plesman.com

To: A. Reader who wrote (760)	8/18/1998 7:45:00 AM
From: A. Reader	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1094

Corel WordPerfect Business Solution Has Arrived Corel Corporation today announced the availability of a new product bundle created especially for Value Added Resellers (VARs). The Corel(R) WordPerfect(R) Business Solution is a low-cost, well-rounded solution that will complement PCs being built by small- and medium-sized vendors. The Corel WordPerfect Business Solution will be available to VARs in North America only and is expected to be shipping by mid August. nt.excite.com