02/10/97 ONE ANSWER TO 'BLOATWARE'

ONE ANSWER TO 'BLOATWARE'

SOFTWARE ISN'T WHAT IT used to be: inexpensive and svelte. Take, for example, Microsoft Corp.'s $200 Office 97 package of Word, Excel, and Powerpoint. A ''typical'' installation takes 120 megabytes of hard-disk space. Now, a San Francisco startup company called Xoom Software Inc. thinks it has the answer to expensive ''bloatware.''
In February, the company will start $30 yearly subscriptions to its Web site, dubbed the Software Network. From it, subscribers can download Xoom's own software suite which includes programs that are compatible with Microsoft Office 97. By cutting out fancy features--say, animated icons found in Office 97--each application is reduced to less than 10 megabytes. But if Xoom subscribers want such features, they can log in anytime during the year and add them. Subscriptions to Xoom's Web site include free updates and support.
By Paul Eng
EDITED BY IRA SAGER