BOSTON CAPITAL
Tech firms turn in golden performances
(By Steven Syre and Charles Stein)
You can argue about the sky-high prices of technology stocks until you're blue in the face. But there is no debating how those same companies have delivered on towering expectations this year.

Verizon strikers' focus on required overtime echoes labor complaints at other companies
(By Diane E. Lewis, Globe Staff)
For several days, negotiators for Verizon Communications and its two striking unions have been locked in debate over an issue with which many working Americans can identify: overtime.

Key firms give Linux a big boost
Goal is to grab part of Windows market
(By Alex Pham, Globe Staff)
OAKLAND, Calif. - Hoping to vault the Linux operating software into the desktop market, a group of key companies today is expected to make a series of announcements aimed at boosting Linux's chance of becoming a viable alternative to Microsoft Corp. products.

Cerulean in deal for $150m
(By Beth Healy, Globe Staff)
Cerulean Technology Inc., a Marlborough company that makes wireless systems for police and other emergency workers, has agreed to be acquired by Aether Systems Inc. of Maryland for $150 million.

News Corp. to buy Chris-Craft in $5.35b deal
(By Bloomberg News)
NEW YORK - News Corp., owner of Fox Television, agreed to buy Chris-Craft Industries Inc. and two subsidiaries for about $5.35 billion in cash and stock, outbidding rival Viacom Inc. for the company's 10 US TV stations.

BRIEFS
DaimlerChrysler's Freightliner unit to cut 3,745 jobs
(By Globe Staff and Wire Reports)
DaimlerChrysler AG's Freightliner unit said it will fire 3,745 US and Canadian workers, or 19 percent of its total, as the truck maker cuts production because of slower North American truck demand. Freightliner said the job cuts will be at plants in Portland, Ore.; Cleveland, Mount Holly, and Gastonia in North Carolina; and St. Thomas, Ontario. The US cuts will start Oct. 20 and those in Canada on Dec. 4, the Portland-based unit said. Freightliner expects North American heavy-truck sales to fall as much as 25 percent this year from 1999. Industrywide, North American heavy-truck output slipped to a 270,000-unit annual pace in the first half from a record 316,000 for all of 1999. DaimlerChrysler is the world's largest truck maker. Its US shares rose 6.25 cents to $56.4375.

June inventory growth exceeds expectations
Report suggests economy still on a roll
(By Bloomberg News)
WASHINGTON - Inventories grew more than expected in June as US businesses worked to keep pace with increasing sales, government figures show.

Bloomberg's computers breached; extortion alleged
(By Bloomberg News)
NEW YORK - Two citizens of Kazakhstan arrested in London were accused of breaking into Bloomberg LP's computer system in New York and trying to extort money from the financial data and news company.

Intel offers dual digital, PC camera
(By Associated Press)
SAN JOSE, Calif. - After dipping its toe into the water with a branded Internet appliance, Intel Corp. is making another foray into the pool of businesses that complement its computer chip-making with a dual-purpose digital camera.

Broadcom Corp. to buy NewPort
(By Bloomberg News)
IRVINE, Calif. - Broadcom Corp., the biggest maker of semiconductors for cable modems, agreed to buy closely held NewPort Communications Inc., a designer of chips that send information on fiber-optic networks, for $1.32 billion.

Agilent to lay off 450 full-time workers, including 150 in Andover
(By Ronald Rosenberg, Globe Staff)
Agilent Technologies Inc., facing slower sales of its patient monitoring, ultrasound, and cardiology equipment, yesterday said that it will fire 450 full-time employees, including 150 in Andover.

DOLLARS AND NONSENSE
Educational hazards
(By Steven Levingston)
A s of March 31, 2000, ZapMe! had deployed equipment to approximately 1,800 partner schools compared to 1,250 schools as of Dec. 31, 1999, and less than 500 schools as of March 31, 1999. The student population in partner schools exceeds 1.5 million students. ( ZapMe! press release)

Verizon self-help site halted after notice of security breach
(By Bloomberg News)
NEW YORK - Verizon Communications said it shut down a self-help Web site and is adding security measures after being alerted to a breach that could reveal unlisted telephone numbers of customers.

Toys 'R' Us profit in 2d falls 75% on store woes, Web-unit losses
(By Bloomberg News)
PARAMUS, N.J. - Toys ''R'' Us Inc., the largest US toy seller, said fiscal second-quarter profit dropped 75 percent as sales fell at its US stores and its Internet division lost money.

Treasury bill rates mixed in auction
(By Associated Press)
WASHINGTON - Interest rates on short-term Treasury bills were mixed in yesterday's auction, with three-month bills declining slightly and six-month bills rising.

Peco to buy Sithe stake for $682m
(By Knight Ridder)
In a bid to become one of the largest power generators in the nation, Peco Energy Co. said yesterday it agreed to buy 49.9 percent of Sithe Energies Inc.'s North American fossil fuel operations for $682 million.

REGION BRIEFS
WorldCom seeks Mass. approval for service
(By Globe Staff and Wire Reports)
WorldCom Inc. said it has applied for a license to offer high-speed Internet access across Massachusetts and, by late this year or early next year, through fixed-wireless systems. WorldCom plans a system offering Internet access at speeds similar to cable modems and telephone digital subscriber lines, but allowing subscribers to ''burst'' up to 10 megabits per second for downloading large files and movies. WorldCom owns the microwave spectrum involved, generally in the 2.1 gigahertz and 2.5-2.7 gigahertz bands, but needs permission from the Federal Communications Commission to use it for two-way communications instead of the one-way wireless television services for which it was approved. The FCC license filing opens a 60-day comment period for opponents, such as spectrum owners who fear WorldCom's service could create interference. But WorldCom officials expressed confidence they face no serious threats to rolling out the service within six to nine months. WorldCom is filing this week for approvals in the Boston, Hyannis, Springfield, Worcester, and Providence metropolitan markets as part of a nationwide 160-market rollout. Clinton, Miss.-based WorldCom's shares rose $1.8125 to $35.50.