Date: Wed, 15 Dec 1999 14:00:09 -0700
Subject: Akopia unveils Tallyman(tm) - open source end-to-end ecommerce
	software, available free for download.
From: Akopia PR 
To: 


PRESS RELEASE:  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Akopia unveils Tallyman(tm) - open source end-to-end ecommerce software,
available free for download.

Salt Lake City, UT 12/14/1999.  Akopia, an emerging provider of open source
end-to-end internet commerce software, announces the availability of
Tallyman(tm), a highly customizable yet easy to use system for creating and
managing a commerce web site.  Tallyman comes from the same development team
that created ShopSite, the industry's best-selling commercial electronic
commerce system, now owned by Open Market.  Though its features are
comparable with commercial ecommerce systems costing ten thousand dollars
and more, Tallyman can be downloaded free from Akopia's web site.

Tallyman provides users with an easy web-based interface to manage a complex
database of products, enter new items for sale, and set up a shopping cart,
tax, and shipping by filling out a few forms. Though one of Tallyman's
primary strengths is its ease of use, it is also designed to give web
developers virtually unlimited power to customize the functionality and user
interface according to merchants' needs.  Web designers, using only the HTML
editing tools they normally use, can create custom templates which will
determine site navigation and layout.

According to David Adams, Akopia's founder and CEO, the availability of
ecommerce software with such extensive capabilities for free is
unprecedented and will revolutionize the industry:  "Until now, the only
free ecommerce software available has been individual components; a shopping
cart here, a search engine there.  Tallyman handles everything:  from
database upload, site building, and merchandising, to shopping cart, sales
tax and shipping calculation, and order management.  Until now, developers
implementing ecommerce have had to make the tough choice between spending
half their budget to license software that isn't even modifiable or starting
from scratch and assembling something from various components.  Tallyman
offers the best of both worlds."

David Wingate, lead Tallyman developer, comments: "This kind of
functionality has been available for years in closed systems costing ten
thousand dollars and more, but we've pulled back the curtain.  There's no
Wizard of Oz, it's just an old man charging money for software that you
can't modify."

The Tallyman Developer release is designed for Linux, but can be modified to
run on any major server operating system, with Oracle, PostrgeSQL, or any
other SQL database, Apache, Netscape, or any other major web server
software.  The upcoming general release will support multiple platforms.

Tallyman is released under the GNU General Public License (GPL), the same
license used by Linux, the cornerstone of the open source software movement.
Like Linux, Tallyman is available free for download by developers, along
with source code.

For end users who lack the expertise to install and configure Tallyman,
Akopia offers comprehensive services ranging from installation support,
configuration services, and template building to turn-key hosted solutions.
Akopia can also act as an outsourced provider of commerce services for web
developers and service providers implementing Tallyman.

Tallyman DR1, the first developer's release, was posted November 1.
Tallyman DR3, released today, though more refined, is still intended to be
installed by web developers with technical knowledge and server management
skills.  A general release, with an easy installer, a full array of sample
site templates, and comprehensive documentation, will be available in early
2000.

Since Tallyman is server-based software, there is no software required to
use it other than a standard web browser.  There is a fully functional
online demo available at http://www.tallyman.com.  Members of the press and
potential partners can request personal demonstration sites, which are fully
functional Tallyman installations that can be used to conduct real
transactions.  Email pr@akopia.com to request a personal demo site.

Akopia, with headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah, has provided internet
commerce services since October 1998.  For more information about Tallyman
and Akopia:

Email:            pr@akopia.com
Phone:            801-994-9680
Fax:              707-885-3931
Web sites:        http://www.akopia.com
                  http://www.tallyman.com