Stories by Linda Rosencrance

Tech Firms Lobby for Open IM Standards

A group of 43 technology companies including Microsoft Corp. and CMGI Inc. has sent a letter to Washington urging support for instant-messaging (IM) interoperability. The letter, sent to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC), expressed "concern" about the IM marketplace in light of the proposed America Online Inc. merger with Time Warner Inc.

Smithsonian Awards for Technology Innovators

As the recipients - or "the new heroes," as they're called - of the 12th annual Computerworld Smithsonian Awards took the stage at the National Building Museum on Monday to accept their coveted trophies, one could almost sense the presence of the people for whom the building was originally erected - the heroes who went to war to ensure the right of every citizen to think and create.

Mom-and-Pop Approach Works for Developer

Who says bigger is always better? Certainly not the customers of Toronto-based Blinco Systems Inc., a 12-person, family-owned and -operated developer of international supply-chain and distribution software called 3rdWave and 3rdWave Logistics.

Digital Nervous System Speeds Airline Data

Imagine if buying an airplane ticket were as easy as taking money from an automated teller machine. Well, it can be - at least if you fly Delta. As part of its new customer care system, Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc. has installed new self-service ticketing kiosks at Delta Shuttle locations in Boston, Washington and New York and plans to roll out kiosks in additional cities this month.

UPS to Buy Service Parts Operating Network

UPS Logistics Group Inc. in Atlanta, a division of United Parcel Service of America Inc., announced yesterday that it will purchase the national service parts operating network of Burnham, an Atlanta-based supplier of logistics services. The companies are not disclosing the terms of the sale.

IBM lays off 1000 US services employees

IBM is laying off close to 1000 technicians from the US division of its services unit, IBM Global Services, in part due to the completion of year 2000-related contracts, a company spokesman confirmed today.

UK Postal Service Launches Online Mail Service

The Royal Mail, the United Kingdom's postal service, is starting to offer its corporate customers a newfangled way to get their paper mail: Employees at the Royal Mail will open letters for companies and then transmit them electronically to the intended destination.

Competition Killed Toysmart

Online educational-toy seller Toysmart.com Inc. this week joined the ranks of failed dot-coms, another victim of competition and a corporate investor that was unwilling to take unnecessary risks.

Federal Judge Blocks Web Bot from EBay

A federal judge has sided with auction giant eBay Inc. in its lawsuit against auction aggregator Bidder's Edge Inc. U.S District Court Judge Ronald Whyte Wednesday issued an injunction barring Bidders Edge from using an automated system like a Web crawler to search eBay's site for information about its auctions.

Vignette to Acquire OnDisplay

Looking to expand its customer base and rapidly move into the business-to-business e-commerce market, software maker Vignette Corp. in Austin, Texas, plans to acquire San Ramon, California-based OnDisplay Inc. in a $1.7 billion stock-swap deal, the companies said Monday.

Toysmart Goes Out of Business

Toysmart.com Inc. in Waltham, Massachusetts, has shut is virtual doors, the victim of more well-known online toy retailers such as Toysrus.com and Walmart.com.

Switching to Cleaner Air

Since 1992, when 135 countries signed the Rio Accords on environmental issues, nations around the world, including Malaysia, have begun measuring and monitoring air quality. They use sophisticated gas-analyzing devices, sometimes placed in isolated sites spread out over great distances and linked by computer networks.

[]