Austin American-Statesman (Austin, TX) articles from May 2001

Austin American-Statesman (Austin, TX) archives from May 2001

Texas Lawmakers Pass Tax Incentive for Businesses; Job-Training Program Cut.
May 31, 2001... Byline: Claudia Grisales May 31--Texas dances to a different tune than other states when it comes to economic development, leaving the responsibility mostly in the laps of local governments. The Legislature made that distinction even...

IBM Invests in Future with High-School Intern Program.
May 31, 2001... Byline: Jerry Mahoney May 31--Amanda Schnell's friends at Pflugerville High School don't understand exactly what her summer internship at IBM Corp. entails, but they've told her it's better than the part-time, retail and fast-food jobs...

IBM Honors Expert in Chip Design.
May 30, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 30--In his 17 years at IBM Corp. in Austin, Ravi Arimilli has propelled Big Blue forward with a string of chip design innovations and a crucial leadership role in the company's most ambitious microprocessor...

Dell Computer's Future Growth Will Occur Outside of Texas, Chairman Says.
May 25, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 25--Dell Computer Corp. Chairman Michael Dell left no doubt Thursday that his company won't be the same engine for growth of the Central Texas economy in the next decade that it has been in the past 10 years. ...

Ties to International Markets Help Austin, Texas-Area Businesses Thrive.
May 25, 2001... Byline: Amy Schatz May 25--Some segments of Austin's economy are in distress, but you'd be hard-pressed to see it at Ray Brimble's air cargo facility at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The amount of international cargo moving...

Texas House Approves Letting School Districts Cap Businesses' Property Taxes.
May 25, 2001... Byline: Claudia Grisales May 25--Boeing was a bust, and Intel isn't inside, but state lawmakers decided Thursday that $1.6 billion worth of tax breaks will help Texas win future business-recruitment battles. Despite warnings that the...

Community Work Helps Austin Construction Firm Gain Arts Center Contract.
May 24, 2001... Byline: Amy Schatz May 24--Austin Commercial, an Austin construction company, was tapped Wednesday to build the $89 million Long Center for the Performing Arts, center officials announced. A unit of Dallas-based Austin Industries,...

Economic Development Agency Survives in Texas Senate.
May 24, 2001... Byline: Claudia Grisales May 24--The Texas Department of Economic Development has survived another close call. Just five hours after a bill that would have abolished the agency was distributed to members, the state Senate voted...

Dell Debuts Itanium-Based Server Powered By New Intel Chip.
May 23, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 23-- At long last, Intel Corp.'s much-hyped Itanium chip appears headed for a server near you. And no one is as excited about Itanium than Dell Computer Corp. For Dell and Intel, the new high-powered chip is a...

April Home Sales Fall, Listings Rise in Central Texas.
May 23, 2001... Byline: Shonda Novak May 23--Home sales in Central Texas declined 9 percent in April from the same month a year ago, but the number of listings jumped nearly 107 percent. Real estate agents say the latest figures from the Austin...

Austin, Texas, Software Company Pares Costs to Aid Acquisition.
May 22, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 22--In March, when workers at Austin-based Exterprise Inc. found out their company had agreed to be bought by California-based Commerce One Inc. for about $70 million, they toasted the deal with champagne. ...

Austin, Texas, Chip Design Facility Succeeds through Innovation, Efficiency.
May 21, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 21--Conventional wisdom in the chip industry holds that good engineers have only so many microprocessor design projects in them. The work is too grueling and pressure-packed. It wears people out. Industry...

Austin, Texas-Based Security Software Company Creates Self-Destruct Mechanism.
May 21, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 21--It's the phrase made famous by "Mission: Impossible": This message will self-destruct in five seconds. An Austin company has made the '60s TV series' line into reality. Infraworks Corp., a 65-person...

Dell Computer Survives Difficult First Quarter, Meets Earnings Expectations.
May 18, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 18--With the help of aggressive cost cutting, including layoffs, Dell Computer Corp. muscled its way through a difficult first quarter to meet Wall Street's expectations. Dell earned 17 cents per diluted share,...

Developer Has New Proposal for Controversial Austin, Texas, Property.
May 18, 2001... Byline: Shonda Novak May 18--Stratus Properties Inc. will unveil early next month a new development proposal for its controversial Circle C land in Southwest Austin, the company's chairman said Thursday. Stratus hopes its plan will...

Austin, Texas, Brothers Out to Create Another Online Game Company.
May 18, 2001... May 18--There's a new game in town, but we've seen these players before. The Garriott brothers, Richard and Robert, the creators of Austin's Origin Systems Inc., are back in the gaming business. The pair scooped up about 30 recently...

Unemployment Rises in Austin, Texas, Area But Still Below State Average.
May 18, 2001... Byline: Amy Schatz May 18--Layoffs continued to take their toll on Central Texas last month, pushing the unemployment rate to 2.7 percent for April, up from 2.5 percent in March. But while technology workers might be in a funk over...

Personal Bankruptcy Filings Increase in Austin, Texas.
May 16, 2001... Byline: Jerry Mahoney May 16--After a three-year decline that paralleled Austin's economic boom and the stock market's rise, personal bankruptcy is increasing sharply. Experts say the economic slowdown that began last year and a rush...

Irish Company Buys Austin, Texas-Based Chip Designer.
May 16, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 16--Chicory Systems, a 2-year-old Austin chip design startup, has been acquired by an Irish technology company in a deal valued up to $80 million. The buyer is Parthus Technologies of Dublin, a publicly...

Austin, Texas, Chip Maker Makes Decision to Cut Employee Pay.
May 16, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 16--Applied Materials Inc. has decided to cut employee pay, not jobs, as the world's largest chip equipment maker weathers a severe decline in the chip industry. Applied employs about 4,000 workers in...

Texas House Reauthorizes Existence of Oil, Gas Oversight Agency.
May 16, 2001... Byline: Claudia Grisales May 16--The state House on Tuesday reauthorized the Texas Railroad Commission, which oversees the state's oil and gas companies, for another 12 years. The agency was up for review under the Legislature's...

Texas Natural Gas Utility Southern Union Co. Names New President.
May 15, 2001... Byline: Shonda Novak May 15--Southern Union Co., the parent of the company that supplies natural gas to Austin residents and more than a half-million customers in Texas, named Thomas Karam president and chief operating officer, replacing...

Austin, Texas, Tech Companies Bemoan Dearth of `Angel' Investors.
May 14, 2001... Byline: Lori Hawkins May 14-- If he had it to do again, entrepreneur David Schofman would be a lot less picky. It was spring 2000, and wealthy individuals known as angel investors were still giddily pouring millions into Internet...

Austin, Texas, Company Helps Monitor Usage of Network Systems.
May 14, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 14--There comes a point in nearly every work day when employees' grumbles grow louder. The speedy network connection in the office has slowed to a crawl. Customers, business partners and anyone else trying...

Two Dell Computer Executives Announce Plans to Leave Company.
May 11, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 11--Tom Meredith, who played a key role in Dell Computer Corp.'s growing success during the 1990s, will leave the company in August. Alex Smith, who with Meredith runs the company's venture capital arm, also will...

Dell Computer Announces Big Round of Layoffs in Central Texas.
May 11, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 11--Dell Computer Corp.'s consolidation and cost-cutting strategy isn't limited to moving notebook-computer production from Central Texas to Nashville, Tenn. Since January, Dell has been shipping some notebook...

Central Texas to Gain New Spanish-Language Television Station.
May 11, 2001... Byline: Diane Holloway May 11--Central Texas is getting its own Spanish-language television station, but how soon depends on how fast the Federal Communications Commission can cut through its own red tape. Univision Television Group...

Dell Computer Leans on Strong Sales Numbers in Asia as U.S. Demand Slows.
May 10, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 10--Even though the U.S. market is in a funk, Asia continues to be one of the few bright spots for the computer industry. While Dell Computer Corp., for example, is cutting workers and idling some facilities in...

University of Texas to Receive $5.5 Million to Improve Finance Education.
May 10, 2001... Byline: Sharon Jayson May 10--The University of Texas business school will announce today a $5.5 million gift that could seal the school's goal of becoming a giant in finance education. UT alumni Gary Crum and Bob Graham, Houston...

Austin, Texas, Hip Implant Company to Pay for Replacement of Defective Items.
May 10, 2001... Byline: Mary Ann Roser May 10--Medicare patients with defective hip implants will have their replacement surgery and other medical costs covered by the Austin manufacturer -- not by U.S. taxpayers. "The responsibility is ours to pay...

Personal Computer Companies Vie in Price Cuts, Layoffs.
May 9, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 9--The price war in the personal computer industry is grinding into its ninth month, and the casualties are piling up. The count at Dell Computer Corp., which started the war last year, could hit 5,700, with...

Austin, Texas-Based Schlotzsky's Restaurant Chain Boosts Sales.
May 9, 2001... Byline: Amy Schatz May 9--Higher sales volume at existing stores helped Schlotzsky's Inc. earn 8 cents per share in the first quarter, the company announced Tuesday. The Austin-based restaurant chain's revenues of $15.3 million...

Austin, Texas-Based Vignette Corp., Halts Plans for New Office Complex.
May 9, 2001... Byline: Stephen Scheibal May 9--Vignette Corp. has scuttled plans to build a $350 million office complex near Town Lake, blaming an economic slowdown that has jarred technology companies around the world and hobbled the building boom in...

Dell to Cut Up to 4,000 More with Layoffs, Mostly in Central Texas.
May 8, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 8--Dell Computer Corp. confirmed what many had feared Monday, saying it will cut an additional 3,000 to 4,000 jobs in the next six months, most of them in Central Texas. As one more beat in a steady chorus of...

Earnings Rise 12 Percent at Austin, Texas-Based Whole Foods Market Inc.
May 8, 2001... Byline: Amy Schatz May 8--Strong sales helped Whole Foods Market Inc. post profits of 54 cents a share for the second quarter, despite the slowing economy and increased energy costs. The Austin-based natural foods supermarket chain...

Palm, Microsoft Try to Set Standard in Market for Personal Digital Assistants.
May 7, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 7--Like many lawyers, Brandon Janes doesn't go anywhere without his personal digital assistant. But as indispensable as he finds his Palm V, he knows he may be forced to give it up soon. The lawyers at Akin,...

Austin, Texas-Based Software Firm Provides New Technology for Medical Industry.
May 7, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 7--Technology has invaded the medical profession, but it hasn't always made it simpler. A new Austin company is trying to change that -- and greatly expand the role of a machine in medical care and study...

Dell Computer Issues Second Recall of Notebook-Computer Batteries.
May 4, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 4--For the second time in eight months, Dell Computer Corp. is recalling notebook-computer batteries because of defects that could cause fires. Dell said Thursday it will replace 284,000 batteries shipped to...

New Braunfels, Texas, Fabric Company to Stop Yarn Production.
May 4, 2001... Byline: Amy Schatz May 4--For 80 years, Mission Valley Fabrics in New Braunfels has spun out yarn-dyed, woven fabrics for shirt makers and sofa stitchers. Thursday, citing competitive pressures, the company announced it will halt its...

Austin, Texas, Online Business Information Company to Take New CEO.
May 4, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 4--Online business information company Hoover's Inc. reported a dismal quarter Thursday and announced a replacement for its longtime president and chief executive officer. Jeffrey Tarr, formerly of the...

Dallas Companies Eclipse Austin in Amount of Venture Capital Raised.
May 4, 2001... Byline: Jerry Mahoney May 4--In Texas, where being No. 1 counts, Austin will always be the capital. But Dallas has regained its stature as the venture capital of Texas. A national survey of venture capital investing released...

Austin, Texas, Circuit Maker Pulls Out Narrow Profit.
May 3, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 3--Cirrus Logic Inc. pulled out a narrow profit of $4 million, or 5 cents a share, in its fourth quarter that ended March 31 despite being forced to write down the value of its chip inventories by $17.4...

Austin, Texas, Financial Services Company Lay Off 54 Workers.
May 3, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 3--An Austin financial-services company has become the latest firm to be hit by the slowdown in technology sectors. FundsXpress Inc. laid off 54 employees Tuesday, a quarter of its work force. The...

Austin, Texas-Based Financial Services Firm Lays Off 54 Workers.
May 3, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 3--May 3--An Austin financial-services company has become the latest firm to be hit by the slowdown in technology sectors. FundsXpress Inc. laid off 54 employees Tuesday, a quarter of its work force. The...

Austin, Texas-Based Technology Firm Ekes Out Narrow Profit in Quarter.
May 3, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 3--Cirrus Logic Inc. pulled out a narrow profit of $4 million, or 5 cents a share, in its fourth quarter that ended March 31 despite being forced to write down the value of its chip inventories by $17.4...

Dallas Becomes Texas' Venture Capital Hot Spot.
May 3, 2001... Byline: Jerry Mahoney May 3--In Texas, where being No. 1 counts, Austin will always be the capital. But Dallas has regained its stature as the venture capital of Texas. A national survey of venture capital investing released...

Dell Computer Could be Gearing Up for More Layoffs.
May 1, 2001... Byline: John Pletz May 1--Dell Computer Corp., the region's largest private employer, could be gearing up for another, larger round of layoffs. Dell could cut more than 3,000 jobs -- twice the 1,700 positions it eliminated in...

Debate Flares Again over Texas Job-Training Program.
May 1, 2001... Byline: Claudia Grisales May 1--The unexpected disclosure that $100 million is available for the state's main job-training program has renewed debate about who should administer the program and sparked a debate about whether the money...

Austin, Texas, Investors Bail Out Troubled Media Company.
May 1, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 1--Spider-Man is out of Stan Lee's life these days, so a group of Austin investors is coming to the rescue of the legendary comic-hero creator. Interfase Capital LP, an Austin firm that has invested in...

Austin, Texas-Based Software Services Firm Lays Off 10 Percent of Work Force.
May 1, 2001... Byline: Elizabeth Goldman May 1--Vignette Corp. laid off about 70 people in Austin on Monday, part of a 10 percent reduction in its worldwide work force. Spokesman Maury Lane declined to discuss the staff reductions further. ...

Austin, Texas-Based Online Security Startup Raises $45 Million in Financing.
May 1, 2001... Byline: Kirk Ladendorf May 1--@Security Broadband Corp., an Austin startup that plans to offer an online security service over cable modem networks and other high-speed communications networks, has raised $45 million in second-round...