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To: Road Walker who wrote (168981)	8/2/2002 4:57:33 PM
From: John F. Dowd	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 186894

JF: Yeah I hate to share the profit with US but that has cost me dearly in INTC and MSFT. Hey what do you think of this: New Chip Process Fuels 'Fantastic' Products Send this Article Print this Article Talkback Related Stories By Jay Lyman NewsFactor Network July 9, 2002 Using simple, water-based chemistry, the new crystalline oxide film process eliminates the need for extreme temperatures and vacuum conditions -- an expensive part of making chips. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Learn how the right management practices can speed the enablement of e-business enterprises, while providing continuous availability, flexibility and scalability. Get a copy of the IBM white paper, "Infrastructure Resource Management: A Holistic Approach" today at www.ibm.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oregon State University researchers announced a breakthrough technology to produce crystalline oxide films that will allow scientists and engineers to "dream up some fantastic products." The films are widely used in the manufacture of electronics and computing components -- from microchips to batteries. OSU chemistry professor Douglas Keszler and OSU electrical and computer engineering professor John Wager coauthored a report on the technology, published in the journal Science. "If you have seen the movie 'Minority Report,' you saw a variety of fictitious transparent devices. We are trying to make them a reality," Keszler told NewsFactor. "For the longer term, the technique allows the preparation of materials that just could not be processed together in the past, such as organics and crystalline oxides. This new processing capability should lead to new devices that we have not even thought about," he added. A D V E R T I S E M E N T Going from Extremes The researchers say by eliminating the need for extreme manufacturing conditions, the oxide film process may vastly improve semiconductor manufacturing, allowing for cheaper production and smaller devices. The work involves the creation of crystalline oxide film on such materials as plastic, at room temperature. It could enable advances in flat panel displays, glass insulation, batteries and other devices -- including an MP3 player the size of a credit card. "Most substrates, such as plastic or glass, that you would want to put a thin film of crystalline zirconium oxide onto would vaporize or melt [with current production methods]," Wager told NewsFactor. "Thus, the new process described will allow you to do things that you could never do before." Keeping Chips Cool Funded through the National Science Foundation and partnerships with Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) and Bend, Oregon-based research firm ReyTech, the OSU work could significantly impact semiconductor manufacturing. The ever-shrinking dimensions of semiconductor manufacturing require lower-temperature processing to prevent diffusion, Wager said. Using simple, water-based chemistry, the OSU process eliminates the need for extreme temperatures and vacuum conditions -- an expensive part of making chips. "The dramatically lower temperatures that we have achieved should be of great interest to semiconductor manufacturers," Wager said. "Will it result in manufacturable products? I think so." High-Tech Impact For semiconductor production, Wager said, the best way to implement the oxide film process would be a cluster-tool configuration -- a robot-loaded group of processing chambers. "Our collaborators at ReyTech in Bend are working on the first cut of a cluster tool realization of [the process]," Wager said. "The process is quite generic and is likely to impact semiconductors , photonics, metallurgy, chemical sensors, ferroelectrics, magnetic materials, superconductors and more." Speeding Fiber Optics Keszler, who said the technology could be fully developed and used for mass production in three to five years, told NewsFactor the cheaper, faster, lower-temperature oxide film process will likely alter photonics and the optical networks of the future. "We have talked with the industry about optical coatings and fiber-optic applications," Keszler said. "I think there may be some real opportunities applying the technique in these areas. If we have some success making multiplayer films, I think there could be considerable interest there."

To: Road Walker who wrote (168981)	8/2/2002 5:29:45 PM
From: Dan3	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 186894

Re: Don't want to pay those cap gains on my early 90's purchases, if I wait long enough, it doesn't appear I'll have to. LOL!!! You gotta keep your sense of humor (and I see you are). Some day things will get better. Dan

To: Road Walker who wrote (168981)	8/2/2002 8:24:40 PM
From: Jim McMannis	Respond to of 186894

RE:"Don't want to pay those cap gains on my early 90's purchases, if I wait long enough, it doesn't appear I'll have to" Excellent iteration of the problem. Another reason the public is left to slaughter. Jim

To: Road Walker who wrote (168981)	8/2/2002 9:43:15 PM
From: Proud_Infidel	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 186894

SEC's Proposed Financial Disclosures Encounter Oppostion By By Phil McCarty Dow Jones Newswires WASHINGTON -- Intel Corp . , Deloitte & Touche LLP and other companies came out swinging against a Securities and Exchange Commission plan to provide more detailed accounting disclosures. The SEC proposed in May that companies disclose estimates and assumptions they make when applying their accounting policies, as well as disclosure of any accounting policy which has a "material impact" on a company's bottom line once it is adopted. The agency also wants a company which had a choice of accounting policies to disclose how and why it made its choice. The information would be featured in a section of corporate annual and quarterly reports known as "management's discussion & analysis," which provides detailed commentary about important business trends. The information also is to be included in securities registration and proxy statements. The SEC introduced the proposal in order to improve the quality and transparency of corporate-accounting policies in the wake of recent corporate scandals. The companies' objections to the proposal came at a time when Congress was finishing the most sweeping accounting legislation in decades. , Intel's executive vice president and chief financial officer, said while the chip giant supports the SEC's goal, the proposal could impair rather than enhance disclosures. "We think the disclosures required under the current proposal would be overly detailed, difficult to implement, potentially hurt the competitive position of the company," he wrote in a July 19 letter to the SEC. Mr. Bryant added the agency's plan "would not provide meaningful information for the average investor." He didn't return a telephone call seeking comment. Mr. Bryant's letter came four days after the Senate approved a bill to strengthen regulation of accounting firms by creating a new accounting-industry oversight board. The bill, signed into law Tuesday by President Bush, also stiffens criminal penalties for those who commit securities fraud or shred documents. Deloitte & Touche said it supports the SEC's goal to improve the quality and transparency of companies' financial disclosures, but the accounting firm believes much of the new disclosures will result in potentially excessive and confusing information to investors. Deloitte's letter came on July 19, the closing date for public comments on the plan. The SEC will review the comments and could act on the rule before the end of the year. A Deloitte spokesman didn't return telephone calls seeking comment. , director of investor protection at the Consumer Federation of America, said the firms' arguments are irrelevant, noting, "Industry executives are always saying additional disclosure will confuse investors." She went on to say the bulk of investors rely on money managers and financial planners to plow through the SEC documents. "The point of additional disclosure is to provide the professionals with information they need to make better investment decisions," said Ms. Roper. She isn't alone in her concerns. The proposed disclosures will "enable investors to focus on important accounting estimates that involve significant management judgment, and to understand management's process for developing them, " Craig Tyle, general counsel of the mutual-fund trade group Investment Company (NYSE: INV - News) Institute, said in a July 19 letter. Deloitte & Touche also argued some of the disclosures about critical accounting estimates and initial adoption of accounting policies duplicate information already required in financial statements' footnotes. That shouldn't prevent companies from including the information in the management's discussion and analysis section, said Ms. Roper. If the information is already in the footnotes, "why are they opposed to putting it in MD&A?" she asked. "The point is to get the relevant information out of the footnotes and in a place where it's more likely to be read." A top executive of Lockheed Martin Corp . , while proclaiming support for the SEC's efforts to improve the quality of financial reporting, opposed several elements of the rule proposal. Specifically, the company opposes including in the MD&A a discussion of the impact of alternative accounting policies under generally accepted accouting practices and a sensitivity and quantitative analysis of critical accounting estimates. Rajeev Bhalla, Lockheed's vice president and controller, wrote in a July 22 letter the company believes the SEC's definition of critical-accounting estimates is too broad. He added several of the agency's proposed disclosures " would encourage second-guessing and likely result in companies having to constantly explain their accounting policy preference determination." Ms. Roper said such arguments show how some companies want to present incomplete financial information when public opinion and legislation are moving in the opposite direction. Accounting firm KPMG LLP (KPM - News) offered some support for the SEC's proposal, but it noted difficulties in how to best communicate the information. KPMG asked the SEC to consider a simplified approach to address investors' needs and encourage a revision of existing disclosure requirements under GAAP.