New software keeps crashes and bumpy rides out of the picture.
Consumer product design means less for people to do, more automation and sophistication "under the hood".

CyberMedia, Inc. (Santa Monica, CA; NASDAQ\NMS: CYBR) announces new Windows software, First Aid 97, that keeps computers up and running and protects them from crashes, freezes, viruses and other problems. First Aid 97 is expected to appear on software dealer shelves by mid-November with a $39.95 estimated US shelf price at participating resellers.

First Aid 97 does more than any software ever has to prevent computer problems from getting in a user's way. It intercepts many problems as they're happening - and some before they happen. It offers to automatically fix or resolve most difficulties, and offers fast, friendly alternatives when it can't.

Under the hood, CyberMedia has a software "engine" that thinks for itself, and offers users many ways to take advantage of that. For example, if it senses a crash about to occur or some other computer "gremlin" about to do mischief, it thinks through tens of thousands of possible problem scenarios that it already knows about to come up with a fix for the problem.

Having a system problem? First Aid 97 has an Advisor built-in. It asks questions that are easy to answer. For example, you might click on a picture of a system's speakers. Is there sound coming out of them? Are they plugged in? Is the volume turned up? Is a headset plugged in? Does the audio sound scratchy? Does it sound like that for just a few sounds or all the time? If it's all the time, that's a problem that First Aid 97 can't fix - but it makes it easy for you to fix it by suggesting that you replace the speaker wires. In resolving problems, its goal is to first try to fix things itself, but if it can't, to make it as easy as possible for you to get fixed.

First Aid 97 takes the work and confusion out of keeping a PC running smoothly. A special Guardian keeps watch over how a computer is running. It leaps in - sometimes like an air bag - to keep you from crashing when the system heads you for one, to give you advance warning when some of the parts start to fail, and to make sure everything stays reliable.

Want to give your system a complete "physical exam"? With one mouse click, First Aid 97 checks out a system's components for hidden errors and possible problems. When it's over, First Aid 97 may even suggest some ways to improve your system's performance - and ask your permission to make those changes for you, automatically.

Have a question about something that doesn't seem quite right? Chances are the Advisor will have the answer. If it doesn't, First Aid 97 can automatically connect to the Internet. It then automatically searches for fixes or updates at the Web sites of the companies that made the hardware and software on your system, as well as answers to questions that may be on file there.

Another way that First Aid 97 can make brilliant use of the Internet is through its "Update" button. When you click on it, First Aid 97 automatically plugs itself into CyberMedia's constantly updated Help Central server. There, it improves itself with new updates, and adds new knowledge to its built-in "smarts" about computer problems and their solutions.

Thanks to the "Update" button, First Aid 97 stays current with the latest available improvements. When you register First Aid 97, you're entitled to free online updates for a year, and economical annual renewals.

First Aid 97 even offers a more appealing, nicer looking, more consumer-friendly control panel than almost any software out there. Its few controls look like little rubber-domed pushbuttons. For example, to use the Advisor, you look at a picture of a computer system and click on the part that concerns you.

CyberMedia President Unni Warrier says it's about time the computer industry addressed more of the needs of more of its users. "Most of the computer industry seems to be wearing blinders," he says, "ignoring the four out of five users who aren't reading computer magazines and aren't enthralled by the buzzwords. I hope that's never us. We need to create software products for all people who use computers, not just for 'computer people'. Like it or not, the computer industry has to recognize that computers and software are now a consumer marketplace.

"We are doing away with complicated menus and control panels," Warrier adds, "coming as close as we can to the ease of use of a telephone, a dishwasher or a vending machine. And we're creating software that solves or prevents problems - no matter how fancy our footwork has to be behind the curtains, that's the only thing that should ever make any difference to a buyer."

CyberMedia, Inc., founded in 1991, develops and markets software products that help Windows PC users fix or avoid problems on their own, reducing their dependency on vendor hot lines or help desk technical support. Its First Aid 95 product family has consistently been on top-ten Windows 95 business software best-seller lists since Novembe, 1995 and has sold more than one million copies. Its newer Oil Change software updates Windows software automatically over the Internet.

For additional information contact CyberMedia, Inc., 3000 Ocean Park Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA 90405; phone (310) 581-4700; fax 310-581-4720; e-mail info@cybermedia.com;

First Aid is a registered trademark and Oil Change is a trademark of CyberMedia, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their owners.