Also . . .

* VA Linux Systems Inc. said it will quit making Linux-based computers at the end of the year to focus on its software business. The Fremont, Calif.-based company also said it will slash its work force by 35%, or about 152 jobs, and take a $10-million charge in its fourth quarter ending July 31 as a result. VA Linux shares fell 3 cents to close at $3.26 on Nasdaq.

* French telecom giant Alcatel plans to sell most of its manufacturing plants worldwide by the end of 2002, leaving it with about a dozen factories, Chief Executive Serge Tchuruk said. He declined to comment on the number of employees expected to lose their jobs, saying the matter was still being negotiated.