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, Aug 11 1992 Date: Tue, 11 Aug 92 04:32:26 EDT Message-ID: 08-11 0000 DECISIONLINE: Technology USA TODAY Update Aug. 11, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network COMPUTERS USE POWERFUL CHIP: More powerful personal computers were introduced Monday by IBM, Compaq and Dell. Analysts say that could spark a new battle over personal computer market share. The new PCs are powered by Intel's 66 megahertz 486DX2 chip, twice as fast as the most widely used PC chip, Intel's 33MHz 386. JULY SEMICONDUCTOR SALES UP: July orders for semiconductors in the U.S. market were up nearly 30% over July 1991, the Semiconductor Industry Association said Monday. July bookings in the U.S. market (orders based on a three-month moving average) were $1.6 billion, 28.8% higher than the figure compiled one year ago. However, July bookings were off 4.6% from the $1.7 billion recorded in June, 1992. MCDONNELL TO MERGE DEFENSE BIZ: McDonnell Douglas said Monday it is further streamlining its operations in response to shrinking defense spending. McDonnell, the top U.S. defense contractor, says it will merge six defense and aerospace divisions into two and may sell the unit that makes the Army's Apache helicopter. The company also says it will close its Columbus, Ohio, plant next year and slash about 1,000 jobs. FIRM COULD SAVE $100 MILLION: The consolidation of McDonnell Douglas' defense units could save the company more than $100 million a year, company officials say. The Mesa, Ariz.-based helicopter division will be sold or put into a joint venture with another company. Selling it could fetch $300 million to $400 million, analysts say. Potential buyers include Boeing, United Technologies and Textron's Bell Helicopter unit. FIGHTER ENGINE BEING DEVELOPED: Pratt & Whitney said Monday it has gained U.S. Air Force approval to continue developing the engine for the F-22 Advanced Tactical Fighter. Pratt said it had completed the critical design review and initial production readiness review of the F119-PW-100 engine, which was selected more than a year ago to power the F-22. BOARD USES NEW PROCESSOR: Micronics Computers Inc. Monday announced the development of new system boards specifically designed around the 66 MHz Intel 486 DX2 microprocessor. The new products include the 80486 Gemini DX2 and the 80486 Gemini VL-Bus boards. These products feature an advanced write buffer and paging memory design to take full advantage of the 66 MHz speed of the Intel486 DX2 CPU. AEROJET GAINS CONTRACT: The Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center said Monday it has awarded a three-year, $24.5 million contract for the Central Tactical Processing Program (CTPP) to Aerojet Electronic Systems Division in Azusa, Calif. The purpose of CTPP is to enhance ballistic missile defense by employing space-based sensors to provide early warning to areas under attack. SATELLITE IS LAUNCHED: A U.S.-French satellite roared into orbit aboard a European Ariane 4 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana Monday. The Topex-Poseidon satellite, to study ocean currents and tides, is the first NASA project put into orbit by the European Space Agency. ENDEAVOUR CREW TO BE DIVERSE: Shuttle Endeavour will climb into space next month with the most diverse astronaut crew ever assembled. Riding aboard the winged spaceship will be the first black female astronaut, the first married couple and the first Japanese to fly on a shuttle. Also on board will be two female frogs, a nest of hornets, two Japanese carps, chicken eggs and fruit flies. ATLANTIS GETS BANGED UP: Shuttle Atlantis suffered more than 200 "dings" to its protective thermal tile system during its recent mission, officials said Monday. A $110,000 cockpit window will have to be replaced as a result of being struck by debris during flight, officials said. The damage is considered about average for a shuttle flight, said Conrad Nagel, the NASA manager in charge of preparing Atlantis. MOTOROLA SIGNS TWO DEALS: Motorola Inc. said Monday users of electronic mail systems provided by both General Electric Information Systems and IBM Corp.'s Information Network will be able to send and receive data through wireless communications. Motorola said both companies agreed to connect their systems to Motorola's Electronic Mail Broadcast to a Roaming Computer (EMBARC) wireless network. ISDN TEST IS SUCCESSFUL: A national Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) has moved a step closer to reality with the successful completion of the first interstate long-distance trial call testing MCI Inc.'s ISDN-capable network and two regional telephone companies' ISDN access capabilities. ISDN technology allows simultaneous voice, video, data, graphics and signaling over a single telephone line. SEIKO INTRODUCES MONITOR: Seiko Instruments USA Inc. Monday introduced a new color monitor. The CM2070LR is a 20-inch, high-resolution Trinitron monitor. It is compatible with the Macintosh and IBM PC environments. It is virtually flat and is treated with an anti-reflection coating. It lists for $2,999. RADAR GUNS MAY CAUSE DAMAGE: Police officers told Congress Monday they fear radar guns used to catch speeders may cause cancer, and they want federal health agencies to determine if the link exists. The Senate Environmental Affairs Subcommittee is pushing the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to study radar guns and cancer. FIRST WIN32 KITS DELIVERED: More than 10,000 copies of the Microsoft Win32 preliminary Software Developers Kit have been delivered to professional and corporate developers worldwide, Microsoft Corp. said Monday. The Win32 SDK contains software tools for documentation developers to design 32-bit applications for the Microsoft Windows NT operating system. 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