It's official! Stac issued the following press release announcing Stacker 3.0 Stac Unveils Stacker for Windows and DOS New Release Provides Tools for Monitoring and Tuning Performance Enhancements CARLSBAD, Calif., October 26, 1992 - Stac Electronics (NASDAQ:STAC), the leading supplier of high performance data compression for IBM PCs and compatibles, today announced the availability of Stacker© for Windows and DOSTM, version 3.0. This new version, which installs from Windows or DOS, enhances StackerÉs disk doubling capabilities with increased performance, data security and new tools that enable users to monitor and tune the compression and performance of their systems. "Stacker has been designed for the Windows user who isn't necessarily out of disk space," said Gary Clow, Stac's president and chief executive officer. "By installing Stacker from the start, Windows users get the benefit of using our new monitoring tools that function like the gauges on a car dashboard to keep tabs on the disk drive." Monitoring Gives Insights into Drive Performance: Stackometer (TM) Windows users can monitor their systems with the new Stackometer, a set of real-time gauges showing disk capacity, compression ratio and fragmentation levels. The Stackometer can display any or all of a user's drives simultaneously, providing useful feedback at a glance. DOS users can get information on their systems with a new tool that gives drive statistics based on the compression ratios of various file types. Flexible Setup for Less Technical and Advanced Users Alike "Stacker for Windows and DOS caters to the needs of a full range of users," said Anne Galdos, Stacker product manager. "We've made installation much easier for less technical users who simply want to double their disk capacity, and we provide the tools and functionality for advanced users who want to customize and maximize system performance." Stacker now offers an Express Setup that Stacks a system with minimal user interaction. This can be accomplished from either Windows or DOS. In addition, Stacker provides comprehensive, context-sensitive on-line help in both Windows and DOS. Stacker's Custom Setup offers the more experienced user a host of configuration options for maximum control These options include expected compression ratio, cluster size, EMS support, and path statement modification. Custom Setup also provides users the ability to tune their systems from maximum speed or maximum compression. Tuning: Customizing Compression for Optimal Performance Stacker now allows users to maximize the performance of their systems by tuning the speed and compression ratio. The default setting gives the fastest performance and uses the least amount of memory. By changing the settings, users can opt for more compression - up to 10 percent - with and only a small decrease in speed. This means that on a 200 MB drive, users can gain up to 40 MB of additional space. In a typical Windows environment, this might mean being able to add two new applications. In addition, users of faster machines may wish to maximize their systems for compression, since for them the speed tradeoff is likely to be imperceptible. Password Protection Users can password-protect Stacked drives for either read-only or read/write access. This feature offers security for all files on a Stacked drive. By choosing read-only, users can allow others to read files but not to alter the data. Read/write access allows users full access to the data providing they know the password. Read and Write Stacked Floppies on Any System: Stacker Anywhere (TM) Stacker for Windows and DOS allows users to both read and write Stacked floppies, Bernoulli disks, Syquest cartridges, Flopticals or any removable media on any PC, even one where Stacker is not installed. With Stacker Anywhere, data can truly be shared across all PCs easily and transparently. Support for 2 Gigabyte Disk Drives Stacker for Windows and DOS now supports Stacked drives up to 1 gigabyte in size, yielding 2 gigabyte Stacker drives. Previous versions of Stacker were limited to 512 megabytes per Stacker drive. Faster and More Flexible Stacker Optimizer Stacker's disk optimizer has been improved to provide a substantial increase in speed. In addition, the optimizer has been enhanced, providing visual representation of the defragmentation process on screen, similar to popular disk utility products. A new quick defragmentation option has been added to speed the process even further. UnStack (TM) With Stacker for Windows and DOS, users now have the ability to UnStack compressed disks. Designed primarily for corporate software evaluators, the UnStack command automatically returns the system to its original state. Transparency Stac has made several enhancements to make StackerÉs operation even more seamless than before. Stacker Setup recognizes Windows permanent swap files and handles them automatically. The Automount feature means that Stacked removable drives are immediately ready to use. Improved synchronization means Stacker detects changes to a user's configuration, and automatically updates system files. Compatibility As with all Stacker products, Stacker for Windows and DOS is compatible with all standard disk drives, utilities, applications, memory managers and caching programs. Price and Availability Stacker for Windows and DOS will begin shipping October 30. The suggested retail price is $149. An upgrade release is available at a suggested retail price of $49.95 through retail channels and direct from the company. The upgrade release requires that an earlier Stacker version be previously installed. Stacker for Windows and DOS version 3.0 is fully compatible with all Stacker hardware. The Company Stac Electronics is the leading supplier of high-performance data compression product for IBM PCs and compatibles. The company's products, implemented in software and silicon, are sold direct form the company and through traditional retail and OEM sales distribution channels worldwide. - 30 -