Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.tech,americast.usa-today.tech From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: tech Thu, Sep 17 1992 Date: Thu, 17 Sep 92 04:53:17 EDT Message-ID: 09-17 0000 DECISIONLINE: Technology USA TODAY Update Sept. 17, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network TANDY TRIES MEGA-STORE: Tandy hopes to prove bigger is better with its new retail store, Incredible Universe, outside Portland, Ore. The Incredible Universe is nearly four acres of beeping, blipping electronics: $8 million worth of appliances, audio and video equipment, computer hardware and software. There are 315 television models, 48 computers, 340 video games and 292 car stereo products. FIRST STORE OPENED WEDNESDAY: Tandy's maga-store in Portland, Ore., covers four acres. "We knew we needed to go beyond the warehouse store to bring extra value to the customer, yet capture the excitement of our products," says Tandy Chairman John Roach. The store opened Wednesday; a second is slated for Arlington, Texas. Tandy plans a review in six months. POLAROID UNVEILS NEW CAMERA: Polaroid, trying to boost its instant photography business, unveiled a camera Wednesday that takes clearer pictures and looks more like popular 35mm cameras. The camera is available in Germany and will be introduced in the USA next summer, priced under $100. Pictures are smaller than previous instant photos and are automatically stored inside the camera. MISSION IS EXTENDED ONE DAY: Japanese and U.S. scientists will have an extra day to run experiments aboard Shuttle Endeavour, NASA officials decided Wednesday. The shuttle's return to Earth now is scheduled for 7:22 a.m. ET Sunday at Kennedy Space Center. Astronauts will use the extra day to catch up on material science experiments delayed early in the flight because of an equipment problem. BILL CUTS DEFENSE SPENDING: A Senate subcommittee recommended Wednesday cutting President Bush's request for the anti-missile Strategic Defense Initiative by $1.6 billion Wednesday, while providing $2 billion to help defense workers thrown out of work by spending cutbacks. The $250 billion bill also sharply cuts funding for development of tactical aircraft, to $3.4 billion from a Pentagon request of $4.1 billion. PROGRAMS WOULD BE CUT: Defense spending cutbacks recommended by a Senate subcommittee Wednesday would force the services to decide which program - the Comanche and Apache helicopters, the F-22 advanced fighter, the new versions of the F-18 or the AX long-range bomber - would lose all or some of its funding. The bill also eliminates funds for the V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft SONY UNVEILS CD-ROM PLAYER: Sony Corp. Wednesday showed off its PIX-100 portable, multimedia CD-ROM player targeted for sale to U.S. consumer market for the Christmas shopping season. The $1,000 electronic player merges VCR, compact disc player and personal computer technology. It has educational and entertainment applications. LITTON GAINS CONTRACT: Litton Industries Inc. said Wednesday that its Applied Technology division has been awarded a contract to make electronic radar systems for five Sikorsky helicopters the Greek government purchased from United Technologies Corp. Litton will make five ALR-606V radar systems for each of the Sikorsky S-70B-B helicopters. The value of the deal wasn't disclosed. SCHOOL PROGRAMS ON 1 SATELLITE: Schools, colleges and universities nationwide can now receive educational programming from a single satellite source. The National Education Telecommunications Organization (NETO) has signed a deal with GE American Communications Inc. GE Americom will provide both C-band and Ku-band service via EDSAT transponders on ASC-1, located in geosynchronous orbit at 128 degrees W.L. DATATIMES TO INCLUDE N.Y. TIMES: Abstracts of articles from The New York Times are available for electronic searching and retrieval through the DataTimes information network, DataTimes said Wednesday. Approximately 100-150 article abstracts from The New York Times will be added daily to the network, representing about 85% of the newspaper's content. Abstracts will be available 24 to 48 hours after publication. RESERVATION SYSTEM RULES CHANGE: Secretary of Transportation Andrew Card announced Wednesday a change in airline computer reservation systems. CRSs provide information on airline schedules, fares and seat availability to travel agencies and allow agents to book seats and issue tickets. The new rules would allow travel agents to use equipment and software from suppliers other than a CRS vendor. PRISM GROUP BUYS SOFTWARE FIRM: Prism Group Inc. said Wednesday it has signed a letter of intent to acquire Software Production Inc., a software manufacturing services firm based in Bellevue, Wash., for $3 million, payable in cash and stock over a three-year period. Software Production has sales of about $4 million in 1991. Prism group acquired another software manufacturer in November 1991, MicroDisk Services. 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