High-Tech Companies: Apple Computer Inc. reported a...

High-Tech Companies: Apple Computer Inc. reported a 29% drop in quarterly profit, while Lotus Development Corp. said its earnings fell 71%. Apple, the personal computer giant based in Cupertino, Calif., said second-quarter earnings were hurt by previously reported problems with high-cost computer memory chips. Apple’s net fell to $56.4 million. Revenue totaled $1.25 billion, a 44% increase over the 1988 period. Lotus, the Cambridge, Mass., maker of personal computer software, said first-quarter earnings fell to $5.3 million. Revenue edged up 2% to $120 million. Lotus incurred a setback last fall when it announced that the newest version of the spreadsheet program Lotus 1-2-3, the engine that has driven its growth since 1983, was projected to be shipped in second quarter 1989 instead of the end of 1988 as planned.