Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 33

i Wednesday, November 8, 2006 Austin American-Statesman statesman.com Section Dell to debut quad-core business computers 1 It's all about the core If I Cores operate like engines on processors. 1 I The more there are, the more productive the i 111 processors will be. Multicore chips also do 1 more work without generating more heat -a if i key consideration in computers. processor. By using quad-core chips in those servers, the company said, customers can rival the performance of higher-end, four-socket servers while paying less.

While quad-core processors should allow more productivity and use power more judiciously, they haven't received the same hype as their dual-core predecessors. "It was an innovative technology idea, the concept of going from one to two," said Cyndi Kubich, director of product marketing at Dell. "Now that we've made that leap, people are going to expect two to four, four to eight." While the benefits of dual-core processors were easier to sell, especially to consumers and. small businesses, quad-core chips can deliver higher productivity and more efficient power usage for advanced software applications. See CHIPS, D3 Machines will be more powerful and efficient than those with standard chips By Dan Zehr AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Dell Inc.

will begin selling business computers with quad-core processors today, making the new chips available for the first time in mainstream business machines. Dell will roll out six new industry-standard servers and three new workstation desktop computers designed around Intel quad-core Xeon processors. The new Xeon features four processing cores on a single chip, which allows it to simultaneously handle more tasks than standard or dual-core processors. Dell's most popular servers have two sockets, each of which holds a separate BUSINESS DIGEST U.S. ECONOMY Consumer borrowing declines in September WASHINGTON Consumer borrowing, weakened by a big drop in auto loans, fell in September by the largest amount since the recession of the early 1990s.

The Federal Reserve reported Tuesday that borrowing declined at an annual rate of 0.6 percent in September, compared with a 4.6 percent rate of increase in August. Borrowing fell by $1.2 billion in September the biggest drop since a $1.78 billion decrease in April 1992. It was the first decline since March, when borrowing marked a far milder decrease of 0.24 percent. Borrowing for auto loans slipped at an annual rate of 3.2 percent in September, reversed from an increase of 3.5 percent the previous month. The overall economy has lost momentum because of the housing slump.

Fresh evidence came Tuesday, when luxury home builder Toll Brothers Inc. forecast a 10 percent drop in quarterly construction revenue. AIRCRAFT DULL INC. Some of Dell Inc's new machines, from bottom to top: the PowerEdge 1950, Pow-erEdge 2950, PowerEdge 1955 blade, and, at right, PowerEdge 2900 tower. The new servers and office computers run on quad-core Intel Corp.

processors. art of Northcross Wal-Mart plans City's first two-story supercenter will play role in revitalizing North Austin mall 1 V'VV i fit A Wal-Mart goes urban Across the country, the retailer is building two-story stores in urban centers that are tailored to their neighborhoods. Some examples: Atlanta: Two-story store sells organic cotton clothing and gourmet cheese and has an expanded wine department Chicago: Store on west side includes a locally owned fried-chicken restaurant and merchandise tailored for Hispanic and African American customers. Flagstaff, Arte Plans for a two-story store include some underground parking, native stone on the exterior, preservation of some of the site's Ponderosa pines. rrr AIUHIISSA8 Cancellation leaves Airbus with 15 orders for A380 freighters.

Airbus loses FedEx order to Boeing after delays PARIS Boeing Co. scored a victory in the airliner wars Tuesday when FedEx became the first customer to cancel an order for Airbus' much-delayed A380 jumbo jets and said it instead will buy Boeing 777s. FedEx the world's largest express transportation company, cited production delays for its decision to retract an order for 10 of the new double-decker A380s. Its FedEx Express unit has ordered 15 Boeing Co. 777 freighters with a list price of $3.5 billion and taken options on another 15.

The A380 cancellations leave just 15 superjumbo freighter orders on the Airbus books from United Parcel Service Inc. and International Lease Finance Corp. NEWSPAPERS Los Angeles Times editor announces resignation LOS ANGELES Los Angeles Times Editor Dean Baquet resigned Tuesday, just weeks after the paper's publisher, Jeff Johnson, was forced to leave after a dispute with the pa I i 1 Keith Hadley photos coxNUWSSiiuviCE Merchandising supervisor Colleen Ross does inventory at an neighborhood activists, much of the store is below street level Atlanta Wal-Mart that opened last month. To appease and incorporates hardwood floors and small signs. Wal-Mart's Northcross Mall plans The retailer plans a two-story store as part of a major renovation of the North Austin mall.

Existing New Parking garage (three levels) Retail -v Current mall a I Wal-Mart will anchor a refurbished North-cross mall, which new owner Lincoln Property Co. is renaming Northcross Center. Dallas-based Lincoln plans to demolish more than half of it to make way for new tenants as well as some of the existing ones. Robert Dozier, executive vice president of Lincoln's retail group, said he's talking to a dozen potential retail and restaurant tenants to occupy space on the east side of the mall, which will get new storefronts facing Burnet Road. He said he's in talks with Chipotle Mexican Grill but declined to name other prospects.

Walgreen Co. plans to build a store on a parcel facing West Anderson Lane, Dozier Existing stores and businesses that will remain include the Norris Conference Center, the Veranda restaurant, a Guitar Center music store and a hair salon. Work is expected to start on the Wal-Mart in late 2007. The eastern portion of the center is expected to be ready for tenants by the summer of 2007, and the entire project is scheduled to wrap up in late 2008. The project will include a three-story parking garage adjoining Wal-Mart, with See STORES, back page By Shonda Novak AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Austin will get its first two-story Wal-Mart Supercenter when the world's largest retailer opens one of its new urban stores as part of a major redevelopment of Northcross Mall.

Like the handful of urban stores Wal-Mart has opened in cities such as Chicago and Atlanta, the Northcross store at Burnet Road and West Anderson Lane will break the mold of the ubiquitous sprawling gray boxes that Wal-Mart usually builds. Though the Austin store is still in the design phase, some of Wal-Mart's other urban stores have brick and stone exteriors, hardwood floors and sell wine, gourmet cheese, organic clothes and plasma TVs. The retail giant has launched its two-story urban-style supercenters as it plants its flag in central-city locations, seeking to tailor the stores to local tastes and aesthetics. Some of the urban stores have more upscale merchandise that traditional Wal-Marts don't carry, but company officials say most goods are priced comparably in all of its stores in any given market. With 90,000 square feet on each floor, per's parent, Tribune over cost cuts.

Baquet will be replaced Monday by James O'Shea, the managing editor of the Chicago Tribune, the Times reported on its Web site. Existing building Xltrh'n Two-story suPercenter Dean Baquet 1lmilo "SJI-i i 100 Source: Jones Carter Inc, Robert Calzada, Linda Scott AMKI 1 1( AN-ktatksm AN Toyota on track to surpass GM O'Shea will be reunited with David Hiller, who took over for Johnson a month ago after serving as publisher at the Tribune. Baquet and Johnson had publicly rebuffed the parent company over possible job cuts. BEVERAGES Citrus woes put squeeze on PepsiCo's juice prices ORLANDO, Fla. PepsiCo Inc.

said Tuesday it will boost prices on Tropicana and Dole orange juice by 4 percent to 8 percent at the start of 2007, further fallout from what's expected to be the worst Florida citrus crop in more than a decade. The company also said it would trim the size and frequency of consumer discounts. Combined with price increases announced in September, the changes effective Jan. 1 amount to a 20 percent increase for Tropicana and Dole over juice prices that had already been on the rise. Last week, the Coca-Cola Co.

raised prices 9 percent to 11 percent for its Minute Maid and Simply Orange juice products. Items compiled from staff and wire reports. )TQYOTA Rapid sales growth puts the Japanese automaker in line to be the world's biggest Remote call centers feed fast-food sales ByJenn Abelson THE BOSTON GLOHE NASHUA, N.H. When Jairo Moncada pulled up to the drive-through at Wendy's in Burbank, for his usual cheeseburger, fries and soda, he knew things looked different. There was an extra lane.

But Moncada could not see the biggest change: The woman taking his order was sitting 3,000 miles away at a computer terminal in Nashua, N.H., fielding calls from Wendy's customers at drive-throughs as far away as Florida and Washington, D.C. "I had absolutely no idea I was talking to someone in New Hampshire," Moncada said later that day. order was ready at the window." It took 66 seconds. The Burbank store is one of several Wendy's across the country that have been testing the concept, and franchisees plan to expand to at least 200 stores by spring. Other fast-food companies, including Burger King and McDonald's, also have started routing drive-through calls to remote locations to get faster orders and let in-store employees See CALL, D2 FKOMWIRKKKPORTS TOKYO ToyotaMotor Corp.

is on the brink of ending the 80-year reign of General Motors Corp. as the world's largest automaker. Details about the growth of Toyota, which has 15.2 percent of the U.S. market and is second only to GM worldwide, were announced Tuesday, along with news of sharply higher earnings. Analysts said the No.

1 ranking for Toyota could be reached in the next couple of years, if not earlier. "Toyota really wants to become the world's biggest automaker," said Andreas Moerke, chief economist at Interlogue JEB Ltd. in Tokyo. "The growth rate is very impressive." Including sales for its Hino Motors Ltd. and Daihatsu Motor Co.

David Zalubowski ASStxiATKIU'liKss Toyota Motor the world's second-largest automaker, says it expects to sell 8.47 million automobiles this fiscal year. If it meets that goal, Toyota could beat General Motors Corp. in sales for the first time. A Dow Jones 51.22 12,156.77 0.42 Nasdaq 9-93 2,375.88 0.42 3.06 1,382.84 0.22 million for GM. Toyota said it expects to sell 8.47 million autos this fiscal year, and if it meets that goal, See CARS, D3 units, Toyota sold 6.61 million vehicles in the first nine months of this calendar year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News.

That compares with 6.89 Stocks, D4-5 Dividends, D2 For updated stock quotes, go to statesman.combusiness..