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Buoyed by a rise in sales from a year ago, Apple Computer posted fourth-quarter earnings that narrowly topped expectations. The Mac maker posted a net income of $44 million, or 12 cents per share, on revenue of $1.7 billion, for the three months ended Sept. 27. That compares with a net loss of $45 million, or 13 cents per share, on revenue of $1.4 billion in the same quarter a year ago.

U.S. corporate technology purchases may not be increasing in a big way, but chipmaker Intel (INTC ) certainly isn't crying. The Santa Clara (Calif.) outfit's investment in new technology, such as wireless gear, during the long earnings downturn is boosting profits big-time. How big? On Oct. 14, Intel reported that profits had more than doubled from a year ago. Third-quarter net income came in at $1.7 billion, or 25 cents a share, vs. $686 million, or 10 cents a share, in the same period of 2002. Revenue for the quarter was $7.8 billion, vs. $6.5 billion a year ago. The...

Global sales of chip-making equipment rose 5.7 percent to $1.44 billion in August from the same month a year earlier, helped by a recovery in capital spending by semiconductor manufacturers, an industry group said on Wednesday. The August figure was down 22.3 percent from July after two straight month-on-month gains, Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI) said in a preliminary data release. July sales were up 2.25 percent compared with June. The volatile data is largely seasonal. For example, equipment orders fell 31.7 percent in August 2002 from the previous month. The narrower month-on-month drop from a year ago suggests...

During the tech boom, Jay Weidner typically received three calls a week from recruiters trying to pry him out of his job as a consulting project manager for software maker Siebel Systems (SEBL ) Inc. The calls stopped when tech went bust -- a good two years ago. But a funny thing happened a few months back. "The headhunters started calling again. Not like they were, but two or three times per month," says Weidner, who started a new job in mid-September with RightNow Technologies Inc., a Bozeman (Mont.) startup that delivers call-center software as a service over the Net....

Tech skills pop up in manufacturing Too few qualified machinists and auto repairers are replacing those who retire, experts say By VICTOR GODINEZ / The Dallas Morning News Traditional tech industries are still losing jobs, but experts say technology jobs are popping up in one of the industries hardest hit by the economic slowdown: manufacturing. "The average age of a machinist in the U.S. is 54. An auto technician is 49," said Tom Applegate, president of the Association for Career and Technical Education ( www.acteonline.org). "Now both of those are highly skilled, highly trained technical jobs. What happens to...

TOKYO -- The threat to Microsoft from the free Linux operating system could intensify with the help of a powerful Asian triumvirate: Japan and South Korea are prodding China to join an effort that promotes alternatives to Windows. Japan has earmarked $8.6 million for the project and will hold a meeting in November for the three governments to strengthen research in Linux, including versions that better handle Asian languages. Like some European countries, Japan, South Korea and China have long been wary of leaving too many government computers and networks dependent on Windows. Many experts see Windows as too prone...

Using several new technologies and more than 1,000 dual-processor Power Mac G5 computers, Virginia Tech University is building a supercomputer cluster that is likely to rank among the fastest in the world.In addition to the G5 machines, the university said it is using a beta version of the latest release of OS X, new networking hardware from Mellanox and Cisco, and cutting-edge configuration and cooling technologies to build the powerful cluster for a fraction of the price of a traditional supercomputer."The total price tag is probably a factor of 10 lower than a machine in this class in the past,"...

GNU Servers Hacked, Linux Software May Be Compromised ByTechweb News In mid-March, someone hacked the primary file servers hosted by the GNU Project, the group which supports the development of many of the components in the Linux operating system, the group acknowledged Wednesday. It warned that the attacker may have inserted malicious code into the free software available for download, including Linux, and posted a set of hashes that users can check against to determine if what they retrieved is clean. The CERT Coordination Center noted in an advisory posted Wednesday that "because this system serves as a centralized...

The SCO(R) Group Announces Final Termination of IBM / Sequent's Contract to Use or License Dynix Software LINDON, Utah, Aug 13, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- The SCO(R) Group (SCO)(Nasdaq: SCOX) delivered final written notice yesterday to Sequent Computer Systems for termination of its UNIX System V software contract. Sequent is now owned by IBM. The Sequent (IBM) contract was terminated for improper transfer of Sequent's UNIX source code and development methods into Linux. As a result, IBM no longer has the right to use or license the Sequent UNIX product known as "Dynix/ptx." Customers may not acquire a license...

When a laser successfully destroyed an artillery projectile in flight during a recent test, it was a first-time event, said U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command officials in Huntsville, Ala. Over the New Mexico desert at the SMDC's High-Energy Laser Systems Test Facility, the Mobile Tactical High-Energy Laser, MTHEL, tracked, locked onto and fired a burst of protons at an artillery projectile, destroying it.An artillery shell is roughly two feet long, compared to a rocket's 10 feet, and is much more difficult to hit because it gives off less heat.The MTHEL Program, managed by USASMDC, is a collaborative program...

Refilled Inkjet Cartridges Going Cheap Sun August 3, 2003 08:26 AM ET By Ellis Mnyandu and Steve James NEW YORK (Reuters) - There's gold in those empty inkjet printer cartridges. A thriving new economy has grown from selling refilled or remanufactured cartridges for up to 80 percent less than manufacturers like Lexmark International LXK.N , Epson 6724.T , Canon 7751.T and Hewlett-Packard HPQ.N charge. And, the big office-supply superstores, such as Staples SPLS.O and Office Depot ODP.N , have got into the act, collecting empties and shipping them to third parties for refilling and selling in their stores under their...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Bomb disposal experts may soon have an alternative to their hazardous hands-on duties, thanks to a laser detector under development at Israel's nuclear research center. The instrument uses a laser beam's ultra-violet spectrum to "light up" molecules in fumes given off by TNT explosives from a distance of eight feet, a spokesman at Nahal Soreq said Wednesday. "This project was launched in the 1990s to contend with the threat of terrorist smugglers on our borders," the spokesman said of the prototype, for which no marketing date has been set. "The benefits to the wider world post-Sept. 11...

A cheap alternative to the lasers used in surgery has been devised using an energy source that is free and abundant - sunshine. The working prototype made by Israeli physicists concentrates sunlight down a fibre-optic cable to provide a tool for surgeons. Jeffrey Gordon and his colleagues at Ben-Gurion University in Israel hope it might one day replace the expensive surgical lasers used in operations such as the destruction of tumours in the liver. The light for the surgical "suntrap" is gathered by a parabolic mirrored dish, 20 centimetres across. This concentrates the light, which is then focused on to...

I have a constant stream of emails from Mailer Daemon from the same address. I just received an email telling me that my email address is going to expire. I also have been told that a lot of my email is not gettng through. I have been using mailwasher and have disabled the filters so I can personally examine what is coming in. Would a technically astute and wonderful Freeper explain? Thank you. The Technically-impaired mlmr

How chat rooms were used in the Iraq war Run silent, run chat By Doug Mohney: Monday 28 July 2003, 06:56 DURING IRAQI Freedom, twelve U.S. submarines lurked beneath the seas within Tomahawk cruise missile range of the unfortunate misbegotten country. Over the course of active hostilities, the sub fleet (plus two Brit subs) fired almost a third of the estimated 800 missiles used during the campaign. More remarkably, the US boats communicated with each other and higher command in real-time via four different chat rooms on a 24 x 7 basis, according to Rear Adm. Paul F. Sullivan, director...

Israel is one step closer to producing the most advanced air-to-air missile in history, according to Rafael, the government-owned Israel Armament Development Authority. Its Python-5 has recently passed "significant milestones" in testing and will be ready for operation by 2005. Together with the American manufacturer Lockheed Martin, Rafael currently produces the Python-4, a 1990s-era heat-seeking missile that effectively gives the attacking pilot a lethal gaze: anything he sees from his cockpit, he can shoot down. But the Python-5 promises, in addition to sharper target recognition electronics, a "full attack envelope" - meaning the pilot can destroy aircraft on his tail...

WASHINGTON - A vehicle control system that has been proven in Germany to cut down dramatically on accidents is available on just 6 percent of vehicles in the United States. Electronic stability control, a feature on one of every three vehicles in Europe, has yet to catch on among American drivers. Many have never heard of it, and that has prompted suppliers to kick off an eight-city tour Wednesday in Washington. Suppliers of stability control systems say they hope consumer demand, not government mandates, will persuade automakers to overcome their well-known aversion to added costs and offer the system on...

The Creation Story, By Hilary Leila Krieger Jul. 10, 2003 In search of the miraculous in the everyday: drip irrigation, the Arrow missile, and eight other inventions that make Israel great For nearly two decades Americans have been trying without success to create an anti-ballistic missile system that can bat down incoming enemy missiles. It took Israeli aeronautical engineer Dov Raviv and his Israeli Aircraft Industries crew just seven days to come up with a successful solution. The year was 1986 and the Israeli government had just signed on to develop an ABM defense system. Other experts proposed mechanisms involving...

Normally, glaucoma can be treated with medication or laser surgery; however, some cases are not responsive to these treatments. That is where Optonol’s patented Ex-PRESS Miniature Glaucoma Implant comes in. The treatment significantly reduces intra-ocular pressure, by ridding the eye of excess fluid, which does not drain normally in glaucoma sufferers. The device can also serve as an effective, long-term alternative to the traditional treatments. The Ex-PRESS implant - 3mm long, 400 microns in diameter - consists of a microscopic conduit that drains excess fluid out of the eye and harmlessly deposits it into the surrounding tissues. The resultant pressure...

It may be baseball's biggest technology controversy since lights were installed at Wrigley Field. Like Chicago's beloved baseball park, the umpire's home behind the plate is a somewhat sacred spot. So adding technology that claims to improve the game does not sit well with everyone, especially those who control the play on the field. Major League Baseball umpires are fighting the QuesTec Umpire Information System, a series of cameras that track each pitch and compare the machine's ruling with the ump's call. The technology, which first was tested by the major leagues in 2001, is currently used in 10 ballparks....