Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.tech From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: tech Tue, Mar 31 1992 Date: Tue, 31 Mar 92 05:49:46 EST Message-ID: 03-31 0000 DECISIONLINE: Technology USA TODAY Update March 31, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network INTERVAL RESEARCH FORMED: Former Microsoft and IBM executives launched a research firm Monday. Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen will be chairman and David Liddle, former IBM vice-president, will be president and chief executive of Interval Research. One of the first products to be developed will be a hand-held computer that can gain access to information instantly from anywhere at anytime. (For more, see special Interval package below.) SEMICONDUCTOR TRADE A CONCERN: U.S. Trade Representative Carla Hills said Monday that Japan's failure to import more semiconductor chips is a serious concern. Hills says Japan imported only 14.4% of its chips the third quarter. Under a trade agreement, Japan is supposed to boost chip imports from all foreign suppliers to 20% by the end of 1992. Hills says the issue is being discussed by U.S. and Japanese officials. BROOKTREE SELLS CENTER: Brooktree Corp. Monday announced the sale of its Bristol Development Center located in Bristol, England, to a wholly owned subsidiary of Pioneer Electronic Corp., a Japanese company, for $3.7 million. The center designs high-performance digital components for image signal processing. Pioneer also granted Brooktree certain rights to the technology developed at the center. CRAY-3 NOT READY YET: Cray Computer Corp. said Monday that problems that have caused the delay in the development of its CRAY-3 supercomuter have been reduced, but not completely eliminated yet. The problems are chiefly mechanical. The company has decided that it will not accept orders for the CRAY-3 until it is at the point where it can demonstrate the computer to buyers. MORE COMPUTERS IN SCHOOLS: Fewer students now have to vie for computers as there are more of the machines in school these days. Quality Education reports that in grades K-12 public schools there are only 18 students per computer in the 1991-92 school year. The number has dropped every year for about the past decade; in 1983-84 there were 125. LENOIR TO LEAVE NASA: Former astronaut and NASA spaceflight chief William Lenoir is quitting the agency - the fifth top manager to leave in as many months. Lenoir gave his resignation Monday to NASA Administrator Richard Truly, whose last day on the job is Tuesday. Lenoir, who has served as a NASA associate administrator for three years, gave no reason for his resignation. He could not be reached for comment. 900,000 JOBS COULD BE LOST: More than 900,000 defense industry jobs could be lost over the next five years under Bush administration spending plans. Larger defense spending cuts, as proposed by some congressional leaders, could push job losses as high as 1.15 million, according to a report released Monday by the Defense Budget Project, a non-profit organization that specializes in national security issues. DOW JONES, NYNEX TEAM UP: Dow Jones & Company Inc. and NYNEX Corporation have agreed to jointly develop and test a prototype video service that would enable Dow Jones to transmit video programming and information over the NYNEX telephone network, the companies said Monday. The video service would be designed to serve the corporate market and would integrate video into existing information and data services. SHIVA SERVER DUE OUT: Shiva Corp. Monday introduced LanRover:L, a second-generation dial-in server for the new Apple PowerBook. Compatible with AppleTalk Remote Access (Apple's dial-in software), LanRover:L is a compact hardware device that connects directly to the network. Remote users dial in and are able to access any of the network's services. It will be available in May for a retail price of $699. IBM PROTESTS CONTRACT: IBM Federal Systems Co. Monday filed its second protest of the Treasury Multiuser Acquisition Contract claiming the Internal Revenue Service has again failed to justify awarding the contract to AT&T. AT&T's $1.4 billion bid won the contract. IBM said its proposal met all of the IRS' requirements at half the price. INTERACTIVE SYSTEM PLANNED: Pacific Bell, Sutter Bay Associates and South Sutter Cable Inc. Monday unveiled plans to link a fiber-optic telecommunications network and a cable television system to provide the Sutter Bay, Calif., community such services as telecommuting, two-way educational programs and videoconferencing. The plans must be approved by state and federal authorities. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON INTERVAL: FIRMS OFTEN DON'T SEE LONG-TERM: The founders of Interval Research say computer firms focus too much time on short-term projects, rather than looking at the long-term. "David (Liddle) and I have a vision of future computing that is far from anything we see today," says Paul Allen, a multibillionaire who left Microsoft in 1984 and also owns the Portland Trail Blazers pro basketball team. INTERVAL TO TAKE NEW APPROACHES: The company plans to develop machines beyond typical computing methods. "We'll focus on new models of computing, for both businesses and individuals, and this means new ways of thinking about algorithms, about communications and even about knowledge," Allen says. FUNDING SET FOR 10 YEARS: Liddle says Interval has funding for 10 years, in the $50 million to $100 million range. The launch comes less than a week after Liddle resigned from IBM. Liddle, a PC software pioneer, worked 10 years at Xerox's research center. He joined IBM when it bought his Metaphor Computer Systems. (End of package.) Technology Editor: Ed Kelleher. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM