Corel and S3 Showcase 3D Graphics on the Linux Desktop at CeBIT 2000

Business Wire, Feb 24, 2000

Business Editors

CeBIT 2000

OTTAWA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 24, 2000

Corel Corporation (NASDAQ: CORL)(TSE: COR.) and S3 Incorporated Professional Graphics Division (NASDAQ: SIII) will showcase 3D graphics on the Linux(r) desktop at CeBIT 2000, which starts today in Hannover, Germany.

The two companies have joined forces to deliver 2D/3D graphics for Linux. S3's Professional Graphics Division (PGD) is currently developing the 3D Linux driver for the Fire GL1(tm) accelerator. It will be included in an upcoming release of Corel(r) LINUX(r) OS (operating system).

Also today at CeBIT, Dr. Michael Cowpland, Corel's president and chief executive officer, is delivering a keynote speech to identify the company's Linux strategy for the desktop. S3's PGD President Ian Cartwright will attend to address 2D/3D graphics-related inquiries during the question-and-answer segment following the speech.

"Last year, we began our partnership with Corel to deliver 2D graphics to the Linux desktop," said Ian Cartwright. "We are now adding 3D graphics support through our expanded driver development for the Fire GL brand and plan to continue collaborative efforts with Corel, a leading Linux developer, to bring high-performance hardware/software solutions to the Linux corporate desktop market."

"The Linux operating environment is receiving great attention from the media and leading workstation vendors," said Dr. Michael Cowpland. "Corel's development of its first Linux OS built specifically for the desktop with a full suite of applications demonstrates our commitment and we are pleased to be joined in our efforts by a leading graphics card manufacturer such as S3."

Linux is a powerful and reliable operating system that runs on hardware ranging from PCs and Mac(r) systems to Alpha(tm) systems and more. Linux is being used by a growing number of programmers worldwide as a platform for running Internet servers and software applications.

Visitors to CeBIT can see the beta of S3's 3D Linux driver at workstations at Corel's booth, in Hall 2 C-28, and S3's booth, in Hall 21 A-43.

Developed in-house by engineers in S3's PGD, a beta 3D Linux driver for the Fire GL1 accelerator is available for download at www.firegl.com. The final 3D Linux driver is expected to be available online by April 2000. The 2D Linux driver for the Fire GL1 is also available for download and both drivers will be bundled in the Corel LINUX OS beginning this spring.

Most graphics cards that currently support the Linux operating environment have required the assistance of third-party companies for the development of Linux drivers. The Fire GL1 drivers, developed completely in-house, support the Corel LINUX OS as well as other versions of Linux. Featuring IBM's first graphics chipset for the Windows NT(r) platform, the Diamond Fire GL1 accelerator delivers the first 256-bit engine for Windows NT and brings powerful graphics performance to NT workstations. Available in PCI and AGP configurations, the Diamond Fire GL1 comes with 32MB of memory and carries an estimated retail price of $699*. The award-winning Fire GL brand of professional graphics accelerators (www.firegl.com) will be on display at CeBIT 2000 in Hannover, Germany from February 24 through March 1, at the S3 booth in Hall 21, A-43.

* Suggested retail price. Dealer may sell for less.

Corel Corporation

Corel Corporation is an internationally recognized developer of award-winning business productivity, graphics and operating system solutions on the Windows(r), Linux(r), UNIX(r), Macintosh(r) and Java(tm) platforms. Corel also develops market-leading, Web-based solutions including applications, contents, e-commerce and online services. For access to these services and more information go to www.corel.com or www.corelcity.com. Corel is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada. Corel's common stock trades on the NASDAQ Stock Market(sm) under the symbol CORL and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol COR.

Corel is a registered trademark of Corel Corporation and Corel Corporation Limited. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. UNIX is a registered trademark of The Open Group. Windows and Windows NT are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Macintosh and Mac are registered trademarks of Apple Computer Inc. All other products, font and company names and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.