Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.tech From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: tech Tue, Jun 30 1992 Date: Tue, 30 Jun 92 05:22:40 EDT Message-ID: 06-30 0000 DECISIONLINE: Technology USA TODAY Update June 30, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network BLOOD SENSOR BEING DEVELOPED: Boston Advanced Technologies said Monday it has received a contract from NASA to build a sensor for blood analysis during space flight. The sensor uses laser light to probe through the skin and detect the oxygen, glucose, and cholesterol content of blood. It provides continuous information and eliminates the need to draw blood. The contract is valued at more than $500,000. RESERVATION SYSTEM IN TROUBLE: AMR Corp.'s plans for an industry-wide travel reservations network is in trouble amid reports that the computer system was mired in technical difficulties, Bloomberg Business News reports. Marriott Corp. withdrew its support for the deal Monday, making AMR the only remaining member of what was a four-company consortium. The CONFIRM system is 18 months behind schedule. DELL EXPANDS SERVICE: Dell Computer Corporation Monday said it has expanded customer services and support for every computer in its Dell line of personal computers. That includes a 30-day, toll-free service focused on assisting non-technical customers who are just getting started with new computers. Dell also announced price reductions of up to 20% on a wide range of systems. DELL INTRODUCES NEW LINE: Dell Computer Corporation Monday introduced Dimension by Dell, a family of 10 floor-standing, desktop and notebook computers. All Dimension systems include a 386 or 486 microprocessor, an SVGA or UltraVGA color display, a system mouse, and MS-DOS 5.0 and Microsoft Windows 3.1 pre-installed. Prices start at $1,259. MEDISCIENCE TO FINANCE LAB: Mediscience Technology Corp. said Monday it will finance the establishment of a laboratory at the City College of the City University of New York to study the use of light in disease detection. Work will focus on the use of light and laser technology for cancer diagnosis and therapeutic purposes, the company said. DEFENSE SOFTWARE BUYS ATIR: Defense Software & Systems Inc. said Monday it has acquired ATIR Ltd. Terms of the transactions were not disclosed. Based in Petah-Tikva, Israel, ATIR manufactures meteorological data processing sensors. Defense Software provides software engineers and systems analysts to clients. TAIWAN CENTER TO BUY C3840: Convex Computer Corporation said Monday the National Center for High-Performance Computing in Taiwan has ordered a Convex C3840. The supercomputer will be used as a compute server, file server and visualization server. The center was founded in 1991 by the National Science Council to provide the research community in Taiwan with high-performance systems and application consultation. SEIKO SHIPPING LABEL PRINTER: Seiko Instruments USA Inc. said Monday has begun shipping its new Smart Label Printer Plus for Windows and DOS. The one-pound unit is targeted at personal computer users who still handwrite or use a typewriter to produce labels for envelopes or anything else. It retails for $249.95. It comes with a printer, software, printer cable and a roll of 130 labels. IBM SELLING TRAINING VIDEO: IBM introduced a videotape Monday designed to teach new users the skills needed to use IBM's OS:2 Version 2.0. "Working With OS:2 Version 2" combines animation, graphics and video. The 90-minute tape shows an instructor demonstrating OS:2 features and operating procedures. It comes with a workbook. Now available, it sells for $79 and can be ordered by calling 1-800-3-IBM-OS2. IBM, VIDEOLOGIC TO SIGN DEAL: IBM and VideoLogic said Monday they have formed a joint development agreement. They will jointly develop and manufacture high-volume videographics and multimedia products for the IBM PS:2. All jointly developed products will be marketed independently by both IBM and VideoLogic. ABODE ACQUIRES OCR SYSTEMS: Adobe Systems Inc. said Monday it has acquired OCR Systems. Terms were not disclosed. OCR Systems, founded in 1969, develops and markets optical character recognition systems for DOS and Windows-based computers, as well as Macintoshes. Adobe develops computer software products that enable users to create and communicate electronic documents. AT&T SIGNS DEAL WITH HP: AT&T and Hewlett-Packard Company said Monday they will link their computer and phone systems. The agreement is designed to help businesses make telemarketing and call center operations more efficient. HP also introduced a new product for its Applied Computerized Telephone (ACT) product line that connects HP computers to AT&T's Definity system. COMCAST TO MAKE INVESTMENT: Comcast Corp., said Monday it has agreed to invest as much as $100 million for a 12% interest in Fleet Call Inc., a wireless communications company. The investment gives Fleet Call money to expand in the wireless market. Market Intelligence Research Corp. estimates the market has annual revenue of about $1.5 billion. It is expected to expand to as much as $30 billion within five years. 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. 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