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  Headlines and summaries from the pages of Electronic Engineering Times . Previous editions are available from the 1994 , 1995 , 1996 , 1997 , and 1998 News Archives.
Friday, February 6, 1998IBM storms into ISSCC with a Gigahertz processor(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)IBM Corp.'s announcement of a gigahertz processor at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference here is a sign that, sheer process advances aside, architectural improvements can take the industry to gigahertz speeds. And when the functional improvements are combined with copper interconnects, a further 20 percent performance gain can be expected, said Mark Dean, director of the IBM Austin Research Lab.
Communications called new driver for industry(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)Keynote presenters at the 45th International Solid-State Circuits Conference provided the electronics industry with a timely reminder that communications applications are joining the personal computer as drivers of the electronics industry.
Toshiba's MPEG-4 chip consumes little power(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)Toshiba Corp. has developed a single-chip MPEG-4 device that integrates all of the functions presumed to be included in MPEG-4 Version 1. The part, which will be announced here today at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC), consumes just 60 mW of power.
IBM researcher predicts processors' future(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)David Luick, a researcher with IBM's AS/400 unit (Rochester, Minn.) used yesterday's ISSCC session on digital directions to polish his c rystal ball.
Synopsys and Alcatel team up for system-on-a-chip methods(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)Alcatel Microelectronics (Brussels, Belgium) will work with Synopsys Inc. (Mountain View, Calif.) to develop system-on-a-chip methods for the management, development and assembly of intellectual property (IP) in the form of system-level macros. Johan Danneels, president and chief executive officer of Alcatel Microelectronics, and Aart de Geus, president and chief executive officer of Synopsys, announced the partnership yesterday at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference.
Two papers pulled from ISSCC(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)Two papers were pulled out of the International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC), leaving plenty of material with a total of 155 papers, plus eight evening panel sesions and numerous ancilliary meetings.
Intel to field Java performance-tuning tool(12:00 p.m. EST, 2/6/98)Intel Corp. will come to the Software Development '98 conference on Monday to unveil a new performance-tuning tool aimed at helping engineers streamline their Java code.
Hitachi ASICs to skip quarter-micron(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)Hitachi Ltd.'s ASIC group is planning to skip 0.25-micron technology and move directly from 0.35-micron to 0.18-micron CMOS. Stung by the perception that it has fallen behind in process technology, the ASIC group has begun a major initiative to leapfrog competitors in the intensely competitive CMOS ASIC market.
Taiwan DRAM maker linked to industrial espionage case in Korea(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)South Korean police arrested 16 engineers on Thursday for allegedly stealing 64-Mbit DRAM technology from Samsung Electronics and LG Semicon and selling it to Nan Ya Technology Corp., a DRAM manufacturer in Taiwan. Eleven of those arrested were former researchers at Samsung Electronics and two had worked for LG Semicon. All currently work for a small Korean startup called Korean Semiconductor Technology Co. (KSTC).
Web postings to fuel science of biometrics(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)Biometrics, the science of human identification, will take a big step forward next week when IBM and a leading fingerprint-ID firm post the key software underpinnings for this industry to their Web sites.
Lexar chip promised faster write times to digital-camera memory(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)Cirrus Logic Inc. spinoff Lexar Media has developed a flash-memory controller that it says can achieve a 1.6-Mbyte/second sustained write time to existing flash chips on a CompactFlash card, up from the current 500 kbytes/s. The move could make next-generation digital still cameras more multimedia-capable and thus more competitive with their higher-resolution, analog counterparts.
FCC limits LMDS auction(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)In a ruling designed to promote competition in the local loop, the Federal Communications Commission said on Tuesday that eligibility to bid on wireless licenses to provide local multipoint distribution services (LMDS) will be limited.
Intel's i740 processor may upend 3-D graphics chip marketAnalysis (6:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)Intel's upcoming i740 processor will cause a train wreck of mammoth proportions when it hits the market for 3-D graphics chips in just a few weeks. A team of EE Times reporters examines what's at stake. A separate story looks at the controversy surrounding benchmarks for 3-D gra phics chips.
Thursday, February 5, 1998Gigabit Ethernet spec delayed by test issues(2:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)The IEEE 802.3z standard for Gigabit Ethernet will not be finalized until June at the earliest, due to unresolved test issues surrounding a short-wavelength laser transmission problem known as Differential Mode Delay (DMD).
Cadence recruits StrongARM team(2:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)A dozen members of Digital Equipment Corp.'s StrongARM processor design team have moved en masse to the consulting services unit of Cadence Design Systems Inc. (San Jose, Calif.), according to sources at the International Solid State Circuits Conference, where a 200-MHz version of the RISC core will be discussed on Friday. Other members of the team, which is based in Austin, Texas, have joined microprocessor vendors that compete with Intel Corp., which acquired the Stron gARM design center as part of a deal last year with Digital (Maynard, Mass.).
Winbond pushes USB for video(2:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)Winbond Systems Laboratory has disclosed details of a digital camera interface that gives the Universal Serial Bus (USB) the ability to transmit digital video. While it isn't the first digital camera-to-USB interface (Intel Corp.'s digital camera uses USB), Winbond said it is the first to send a full 30 frames/second of video over the four-wire bus.
Nortel puts Micom, Entrust into enterprise data group(2:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)Northern Telecom has combined its Micom Communications Corp. and Entrust Technologies Inc. subsidiaries into a new line of business with several Nortel data-oriented product groups, creating a new enterprise data networks unit.
Artisan files for IPO(2:00 p.m. EST, 2/5/98)With its successful initial public offering (IPO) on Tuesday, Artisan Components Inc. became one of the first providers of chip intellectual property to go public. The company offered 2.9 million shares at $10 a share, which rose to nearly $18 on their first day of trading.
IgT adopts "evil twin" switch architecture(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)Integrated Telecom Technology Inc. (IgT) is sampling a switching element and routing table for asynchronous transfer mode that could revolutionize crossbar switching architectures. The Quad Switching Element and Quad Routing Table jointly borrow from the supercomputing industry the so-called "evil twin" algorithms, in which the switching logic looks for its alter ego in a Banyan architecture to ensure that no cells in a network will be blocked.
Gambit appears ripe for the picking(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)Bring ing a fledgling company to success, cashing in, then trying to do it again is becoming a way of life for Lanny Ross, Michael Burstein and Boris Gruzman.
Acer becomes a fab player(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)Acer Inc., Taiwan's leading PC maker, will be joining Taiwan's ever-expanding ranks of IC fabrication companies. While the plans of Japanese and Korean companies to increase IC fabrication this year have stalled, the role of Taiwan as a leading IC producer continues to expand.
Microsoft aids Sega on next-generation game machine(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)Sega Enterprises Ltd. has officially acknowledged a long-rumored alliance with Microsoft Corp. for its next-generation Sega game machine.
EDA veteran resurfaces at MCAD company(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)Joseph Costello, former president and chief executive o fficer of Cadence Design Systems Inc., has emerged in the mechanical CAD (MCAD) marketplace to run Cad.Lab.
Broadband carriers set expansive hiring plans(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)The ambitious plans of new nationwide broadband data carriers could lead to a concrete shortage of electronic engineers with communications expertise, analysts are quietly warning. No one wants to raise alarms about shortages of talent after the Chicken Little clamoring of the late 1980s and early 1990s-but the signs are everywhere.
Bay grabs Java network tool specialist Netsation(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)Bay Networks Inc. has added an important element to its Optivity network management suite with its acquisition of a startup network design tool specialist, Netsation Corp. (Research Triangle Park, N.C.), for $11.6 million in cash.
Compaq sig ns Canon to help its PC sales in Japan(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/4/98)To beef up its sluggish PC sales in Japan, Compaq Computer Corp. has allied with Canon Sales Co. Inc., to which is has consigned exclusive sales of its Presario PCs in Japan.
Wednesday, February 4, 1998Analog Devices puts new spin on data-acquisition chips(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)In a bid to extend the reach of smart networking in embedded systems, Analog Devices Inc. has disclosed a May launch target for a chip that combines a 12-bit A/D converter with an 8052 processor core and on-chip flash memory.
Defense Department seeks more Net funds(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)The Defense Department is seeking nearly $50 billion in fiscal 1999 for weapons modernization, with special emphasis on network-based command-and-control systems designed to link weapons and sensors, as well as c ommanders to troops in the field.
Neural agent enables personalized surfing(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)Charles River Analytics has spun a new incarnation of its neural-based agent technology, called Learn Sesame, for an entertainment-information service that creates personalized Web pages for users.
Tuesday, February 3, 1998Motorola chip to combine ColdFire, FPGA cores(1:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)Motorola Inc.'s Semiconductor Products Sector is preparing to announce a ColdFire 32-bit microprocessor core that will be combined with a moderate-sized field-programmable gate array (FPGA) on a single die.
Avant! files amended counterclaim against Cadence(1:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)Avant! Corp. has filed an amended counterclaim in U.S. District Court against Cadence Design Systems Inc. and Joseph Cos tello, the former president and chief executive officer of Cadence (San Jose, Calif.). The counterclaim details acts of insider trading, racketeering, and antitrust violations by Cadence and Costello, according to Avant!
Nu-Thena buys Savantage for system-level boost(1:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)In a move that pulls together a comprehensive system-level design solution, Nu-Thena Systems Inc. intends to purchase Savantage Inc. (Austin, Texas), a provider of high-level estimation tools.
Designers urged to demand action from chip makers(1:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)Attendees of last Tuesday's IBIS panel session at DesignCon98 made it clear that they are unhappy with the quality of currently available IBIS models, and with the apathy of semiconductor vendors about the sparse supply.
As pricing pressures mount, Intergraph launches new workstation models(1:00 p.m. EST, 2/3/98)In a bid to thrust its Windows NT-based workstations into bread-and-butter engineering applications, Intergraph Computer Systems Inc. next Monday will introduce two new, down-market members of its TDZ 2000 product line.
With Intel's help, Alpha 21264 will hit 1-GHz(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)Digital Equipment Corp. is sampling its third-generation 64-bit Alpha RISC microprocessor, which maintains at least a two-times performance advantage over other microprocessors, including Intel's Merced. Digital said the latest Alpha processor, named the 21264, was being introduced with a clock frequency of 600-MHz, and that the frequency is expected to be increased to 1-GHz by the year 2000. Current and future version of the chip will be built by Digital's chip partners, including Intel Corp.
Distributors refine their Web presence(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)Only about 18 to 20 months ago, the National Electronic Distributors Association was in the position of being a missionary about the Web. Half the NEDA members didn't have a Web site, though many planned one. Today, Internet sites are commonplace among franchised distributors, and NEDA's Electronic Commerce Task Force is focusing on some of the mechanics of electronic transactions and the need for standards. And distributors have certain problems that must be solved, including real-time access to supplier information.
Extranets provide access behind firewalls(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)Electronics distributors have been moving in fits and starts toward setting up extranets, the closed-loop business-to-business intranets that are restricted to qualified users. While some have fairly advanced customer-supplier links, others are only now developing theirs. But there's urgency among distributors to develop links to both their suppliers and customers, primarily because suppliers and customers are demanding them.
Shift in Intel's road map hints at Rambus setback(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)The belief that the wide adoption of Direct Rambus memory technology will face significant delays spread across a wide cross-section of the DRAM industry last week as reports circulated that Intel Corp. has amended its DRAM road map to allow a future chip set the option of using either 133-MHz SDRAM or Direct Rambus DRAM for PC main memory.
Startup Cubus unveils Net design environment(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)A tiny software startup will show an ambitious Internet-enabled collaborative design tool here at this week's Demo '98 conference. The company, Cubus Corp. (Oakland, Calif.), touts ReviewIt as a virtual work environment for design engineers that lets them share, review and revise desi gns from disparate geographic locations in real-time on the Net.
Tools barely keep pace with embedded designs(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)The designer of embedded systems has always faced difficult technical challenges during the development of hardware and software that were not only in conflict with each other, but with the requirements of the marketplace as well. Now, as the industry moves into the next century with the microprocessor, it is no different-just more difficult.
LG Semicon preps 64-Mbit Rambus DRAM(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)LG Semicon Co. is turning up the heat in the Rambus DRAM market, and expects to begin mass-production of a 64-Mbit concurrent Rambus DRAM in the second quarter.
Consygen tool automates 'Year 2000' software conversions(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)Consygen Inc. has developed an auto mated approach to preparing corporate software programs for the turn of the century. The company's tool works on a variety of.
Hardware, software tools control WAN frame-relay traffic(6:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)The recent ComNet show here saw the emergence of the first tools to allow monitoring and controlling of frame-relay traffic across a wide-area network (WAN).
Monday, February 2, 1998Synopsys pushes formal tools into the mainstream(1:00 p.m. EST, 2/2/98)The emerging formal verification market joins the EDA mainstream this week as Synopsys Inc. introduces Formality, its long-awaited equivalency-checking tool. As the first of the top three EDA vendors to field a formal verification tool, Synopsys hopes to quickly legitimize the market and overshadow the small companies now serving it.
ETS I pushes for world UMTS body and standard(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) wants to create a world specification body this year to flesh out details of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) for third-generation mobile terminals. The move is being made to promote a smooth transition from GSM, the current European digital cellular telephone standard, to UMTS, which is expected to support wideband services such as mobile Internet access and mobile video.
U.S. plan would shift net control to industry(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Management of key technical elements of the Internet would shift from the government to the private sector over a two-year period under a plan unveiled by the Clinton administration on Friday.
Windows gets turned on to real-time tasks(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Real-time ca pabilities could be coming to the Windows operating system-enabling desktop PCs to juggle multiple, time-critical tasks such as video processing, speech recognition and animation-thanks to technology refined by computer scientists at Microsoft Corp.'s Research Center.
GOP seeks overhaul of telecom reform act(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Growing dissatisfaction with the slow pace of telecommunications reform has prompted Republican critics to prepare legislation designed to jumpstart competition. The congressional move could prove a shot in the arm for the telecom industry.
Digital attacks, Compaq adopts Intel's Merced(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Digital Equipment Corp.'s Alpha microprocessor division is preparing to come out with its answer to Intel's Merced at a time when Alpha's fate is clouded in the wake of Compaq Computer Corp.'s announced plan to acquire Digital. The com pany is expected to detail significant new Alpha products on Monday, possibly including plans to take the processor to speeds of 1 GHz. Separately, Compaq disclosed that it has been working with a new design group at Intel Corp. to build Merced-based servers.
Intel to shift flash fab to 0.25-micron(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Trying to regain lost market share and boost sales for its flash memories, Intel Corp. will soon announce plans to spend $1 billion over the next two years to convert its Fab 9 flash memory plant to run a 0.25-micron process using 8-inch wafers. The process will be almost identical to the one used on the company's Pentium II processors.
Chromatic to deploy Motorola's software modem(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Chromatic Research Inc. will make the software modem technology of Motorola Inc. a part of its forthcoming module for the Mpact-2 media process or. The companies will work together to offer software for next-generation analog, cable, digital subscriber line and ISDN modems.
Standards urged for epitaxial wafer substrates(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)A consortium of manufacturers has proposed standard specifications for epitaxial wafer substrates in an effort to reduce their complexity and cost.
PHS abilities brewing for Windows CE(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)Microsoft Corp. has formed an alliance with a subsidiary of Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. to develop protocol software for Windows CE use in Japan's personal handyphone system (PHS).
Burr-Brown joins Paradyne on ADSL(11:45 p.m. EST, 1/30/98)The hoopla over Universal ADSL at ComNet this week almost drowned out the deal that Paradyne (Largo, Fla.) made with analog chip maker Burr-Brown Corp. (Tucson, Ariz.) on a digital subscriber line service called Hotwire MVL.
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