Vector Capital Announces Spin-Out of Tripos Discovery Informatics.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Vector Capital, a private equity boutique specializing in buyouts, spinouts and recapitalizations of established technology businesses today announced an agreement to purchase substantially all of the assets of the Discovery Informatics business from Tripos, Inc for $25.6 million in cash. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2007 and is subject to customary closing conditions including approval by the Company's shareholders.

Headquartered in St. Louis, Mo., Tripos Discovery Informatics is a division of Tripos, Inc. and is a leading provider of critical software solutions to biotechnology, pharmaceutical and other life science enterprises. Tripos Discovery Informatics software products accelerate scientific research and innovation by allowing scientists to manage, analyze and share critical drug discovery information across the enterprise. Tripos customers can leverage their investments in scientific research through improved visibility, increased productivity and sophisticated modeling capabilities delivered by the Tripos SYBYL and Tripos Benchware product portfolios.

"The extensive customer base, leading product portfolio and outstanding domain expertise make Tripos Discovery Informatics a terrific platform from which to build our investment in the sector," said Amish Mehta, a Partner at Vector Capital. "We look forward to working with the Discovery Informatics team to continue servicing customer needs through new product offerings and continued innovation."

"Vector Capital has an established track record of spinning out business divisions and accelerating their growth," said Dr. John P. McAlister, Chief Executive Officer of Tripos, Inc. "We believe that the employees and customers of Tripos will benefit from Vector's expertise in building successful companies."

Tripos Discovery Informatics is an investment from Vector Capital III, a $350-million private equity fund raised in 2005. Limited partners in the fund include university endowments, foundations, family offices, funds of funds, and pension funds. Two thirds of these investors also participated in Vector Capital II, Vector's previous fund.

Vector's past spin-out transactions include LANDesk[R] Software, which was sold to Avocent Corporation (NASDAQ:AVCT) in August 2006, and Savi[R] Technology, which was sold to Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) in June 2006. Tripos Discovery Informatics will join Vector's existing portfolio companies including WatchGuard Technologies, Register.com and Corel Corporation (NASDAQ:CREL).

About Vector Capital

Vector Capital is a private equity boutique specializing in spinouts, buyouts and recapitalizations of established technology businesses. Vector identifies and pursues these complex investments in both the public and private markets. Such opportunities are typically underserved by traditional buyout and venture capital firms. Vector actively partners with management teams to devise and execute new financial and business strategies that materially improve the competitive standing of these businesses and enhance their value for employees, customers and shareholders. Among Vector's portfolio companies are WatchGuard Technologies, Register.com and Corel Corporation (NASDAQ:CREL). For more information, visit www.vectorcapital.com.