In uniform Banach algebras, the spectral norm is equal to the supremum of all continuous multiplicative seminorms whose kernel is a maximal ideal. Two different such seminorms can have the same kernel. Krasner-Tate algebras are characterized among Krasner algebras, affinoid algebras, and ultrametric Banach algebras. Given a Krasner-Tate algbebra A=K{t}[x], the absolute values extending the Gauss norm from K{t} to A are defined by the elements of the Shilov boundary of A.