Latest Hot News!!!

India Vs Australia - 2010 - Test Series - Part 01

2010-09-30T07:32:00.000-07:00

An ankle sprain to Harbhajan has cast a cloud over India's hopes of having their first-choice attack back in action, following endless fitness issues in Sri Lanka. Dhoni said India will take a call on the offspinner on Friday morning. If Harbhajan does not make the cut, Pragyan Ojha will assume the role of lead spinner. Mohali's seamer-friendly reputation gives Sreesanth an opportunity to make the final XI as the third fast bowler, ahead of legspinner Amit Mishra. The batsmen pick themselves and, barring last-minute fitness issues, M Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara are likely to sit out.

India (possible) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Gautam Gambhir, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 VVS Laxman, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (capt and wk), 8 Harbhajan Singh / Amit Mishra / Sreesanth, 9 Zaheer Khan, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Pragyan Ojha

Australia are waiting to see how well Doug Bollinger and Michael Hussey train after their last-minute dash to India from the Champions League in South Africa. However, it would be a surprise if either man was left out. The only change from the team that lost to Pakistan at Headingley in July is likely to be the inclusion of Nathan Hauritz, who has recovered from his foot injury, at the expense of Steven Smith.

Australia (possible) 1 Shane Watson, 2 Simon Katich, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Clarke, 5 Michael Hussey, 6 Marcus North, 7 Tim Paine (wk), 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Nathan Hauritz, 10 Ben Hilfenhaus, 11 Doug Bollinger.

Facebook Extends Reach of 'Like' Button to Apps!!!

2010-09-13T06:51:00.000-07:00

Facebook this week added a few updates to its "like" button that will make the feature a bit more pervasive on the site.

The three upgrades are directed primarily at developers, but users will see the results in their favorite apps, Pages, and on the Facebook news feed.

"Since we launched social plugins in April, we've been listening to user feedback and working with developers to optimize the Like button to make it as seamless as possible for people to like content around the web and share it with their friends," Facebook wrote in a blog post.

The first change will allow users to "like" something within an application. Did your friend get a high score on a game you both play? If the developer enables this functionality, you can "like" it. Anything you do "like" will be sent to the news feed, and anyone who clicks on that mention will be directed to the app in question, potentially generating more traffic for developers.

Second, Facebook has enabled the "like" button for Facebook Pages. A developer can opt to put a "Like button" or a "Like Box" on their site, and anyone who clicks on it will be directed to the developer's Facebook Page.

Finally, Facebook introduced a new "like" button that includes a box count, or the total number of likes the app has received. As Mashable pointed out, this might signal the end of the Facebook "Share" button, which was introduced in October and essentially does the same thing.

In other Facebook news, AllFacebook.com reports that Facebook has filed a patent application for a "social CAPTCHA" system. CAPTCHA's are the words that some Web sites ask you to type in before you enter a secure site or make an online purchase, for example. A "social" CAPTCHA would apparently ask you to identify something you should know - like the identify of someone in a photo - instead of typing in a bunch of letters.
-pc mag

Apple iOS 4.1: Faster or Not?

2010-09-13T03:08:00.000-07:00

The new iOS 4.1 update for the iPhone and iPod touch offers security fixes and new features on different models. But does the new operating system change the speed of the phones? After running five benchmarks, we found no significant speed gains or losses on an iPhone 4, 3GS or 3G.

The benchmarks were first executed on the phones running the previous version of iOS, version 4.02. We then upgraded all the phones to 4.1. After running the benchmarks in 4.1, we found speeds on the various tests remained within about 10 percent of the iOS 4.02 results. Click on the charts below to see the scores.

• Graph: Change in Performance
• Chart: Change in Performance
• Chart: iPhone 4 Scores
• Chart: iPhone 3GS Scores
• Chart: iPhone 3G Scores

Our benchmarks were split into three categories: processor and memory performance; application loading speed of a complex game; and Web browser performance.
Processor and Memory

BenchTest 1.4 ($0.99 in the iTunes store) tests memory allocation, floating point and integer calculation, 2D drawing performance using CoreGraphics, filesystem writes, and some JavaScript functions.

Geekbench 2 ($1.99 in the iTunes store) tests floating point and integer calculation and measures sustainable memory bandwidth and memory performance.

Application Load Time

"NFSU Launch" is the time for the device to launch "Need for Speed Undercover 1.2.0" ($4.99 in the iTunes store) to playable mode.
Web Browser Performance

SunSpider and V8 (version 5) are complex JavaScript benchmarks that test JavaScript runtime performance. The iPhone 3G could not run the entire V8 suite, so we picked two tests, "Richards" and "EarlyBoyer."

All tests were run with devices connected to a Wi-Fi network.

-pc mag.

Suraj Randiv gets one-match suspension!!!

2010-08-18T08:56:00.000-07:00

Suraj Randiv has been suspended by Sri Lanka Cricket for one match following the no-ball controversy that denied Virender Sehwag a century during Monday's match between India and Sri Lanka. In an extraordinary and unprecedented decision, he has also been docked his match fees for the game, as has Tillakaratne Dilshan, who was reported to have encouraged Randiv to bowl the no-ball. Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara has been advised to ensure that such incidents are not repeated in the future.

The decision, taken by a six-man committee set up by Sri Lanka Cricket, capped a day on which the issue - which involved a transgression not of any law but of the spirit of fair play - escalated beyond proportion. Upping the ante were statements issued by the ICC - which said it would wait for SLC to act - and the Indian board, which called for strict action. In Dambulla, on the eve of a crucial match against New Zealand, Sangakkara's routine press conference was consumed almost entirely by questions relating to the issue.

In a statement announcing the punishment, the SLC said the incident went against the spirit of the game. "Sri Lanka Cricket is extremely proud of its team and their achievements over the years. It is of paramount importance to maintain the discipline of the Gentlemen's game, especially with Sri Lanka Cricket being winners of the 'ICC Spirit of the Game' award for two consecutive years," it said.

With Sehwag on 99 and India one run away from victory, Randiv bowled a big no-ball that denied the batsman a chance to get his century. Sehwag's initial reaction was to shrug it off in typical manner but he later said Randiv had done it deliberately. Sehwag also speculated that Randiv was acting on orders from senior players in the side.

Sangakkara denied playing any role in the incident and said he hoped it was not deliberate. Though Randiv later apologised to Sehwag, SLC instructed the team management to probe the incident. Following the enquiry, Dilshan's role in the incident has come to light.

-CricInfo

Apple Global Supply Manager Accused of Accepting $1 Million in Kickbacks!!!

2010-08-15T11:35:00.000-07:00

A mid-level Apple manager faces twenty-three counts of a federal grand jury indictment alleging that the 37-year-old Paul Shin Devine, a global supply manager, is guilty of wire fraud, money laundering, and kickbacks related to his position at the company. Andrew Ang, of Singapore, faces the same charges as well.

And if that's not bad enough, Apple itself has filed a separate civil suit against Devine, alleging that the Sunnyvale, CA-based (former) employee accepted more than $1 million in bribes and kickbacks from countries including China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore.

According to the indictment, Devine allegedly used his position at Apple to acquire various bits of confidential information about the company. He would turn around and sell this information to more than a half-dozen Apple suppliers—including the aforementioned Ang—and both would receive payments for their efforts. Using the confidential knowledge, said suppliers would be able to better position themselves to bid for and receive Apple contracts.

The San Jose Mercury News reports that the companies in the indictment remained unnamed, but they're said to be involved in supplying materials for Apple's iPods and iPhones.
"Apple is committed to the highest ethical standards in the way we do business," said Apple spokesman Steve Dowling in a statement. "We have zero tolerance for dishonest behavior inside or outside the company."

The somewhat-complicated scheme, reads the indictment, involved a number of U.S. and foreign bank accounts, as well as the falsified company "CPK Engineering," to process the payments. Devine allegedly attempted to conceal the money transfers using code words as to not clue his employer into what was actually transpiring, and would even go so far as to open the foreign bank accounts in his wife's name.

The Internal Revenue Service reports that Devine is currently in the custody of U.S. Marshals, awaiting a 1:30 p.m. court appearance this coming Monday in the U.S. Northern District Court in San Jose.

-Pcmag

Google Pondering Paypal-based Purchases for Android Applications???

2010-08-15T08:29:00.000-07:00

If you want to pick up a new app on an Android-based smartphone, you have one option with which to pay for your new purchase: Google Checkout. At least, for now—sources indicate that Google is chatting with eBay's PayPal business to bring the latter as a secondary option for smartphone-based payments.

While that doesn't necessarily help the speed of the transaction—Google Checkout is, after all, is still a fairly convenient method for purchasing applications—it does help Google attract users who, for whatever reason, have simply opted not to use Google's single payment service for their purchases.

Integrating Paypal would open up Android phones to the service's 87 million active accounts, which would surely go a long way toward increasing the propensity of a user to pick up a new application on a whim—especially if the Paypal service is integrated into the mobile operating system in a similar style to how purchases work on Apple's App Store.

"As an Android user, I'd certainly be more inclined to buy apps from the Android Market if PayPal was a payment option," writes Intomobile's Marc Flores. "Make it a one-click feature and perhaps I'll even go nuts loading my EVO 4G with new applications."

Neither Paypal nor Google are discussing the alleged talks, which may or may not lead to a finalized deal between the two companies, reports Bloomberg.

According to the research firm Gartner, Google's Android operating system is now the most popular piece of smartphone software in the United States. Sales of Android-based devices rank third of any smartphone in the world in 2010 thus far, nestled behind RIM and Symbian's respective sales of 11.2 million and 22.3 million units. Apple's iPhone sales rank fourth at 8.7 million, or a market share of 14.2 percent to Android's 17.2 percent.

It's quite a turnaround from this same time period one year ago, when Apple commanded 13 percent of the market to Android's 1.8, and Symbian carried the majority market share at 51 percent. Microsoft's Windows mobile phones continue to lag with only 3 million units sold in 2010, a market share of a paltry 5 percent (itself, a decrease from 2009's 9.3 percent)
-pcmag

Speak Commands with Google's Voice Actions for Android Application!!!

2010-08-13T08:31:00.000-07:00

Google on Thursday introduced the next generation of interaction with its Android operating system: voice-driven actions.

Google executives outlined 12 new "Voice Actions for Android," including phone calls, reminder e-mails, direction search, and music search. (Searching for generic links, a traditional function of Android, is number 13.) The app is called "Voice Search," requires Android 2.2, and is available in the Android Market now, Google executives said.

A second improvement, dubbed "Chrome to Phone," allows users to click on a new "mobile phone" icon to send links, YouTube videos, even directions, to the phone.
So far, the features are exclusive to Android phones and U.S. English, although the capabilities will be moved to other languages and other operating systems (including the iPhone) in the future, executives said. "It's probably, on Android, the easiest," said Hugo Barra, director of product management for Google.

Voice actions can be triggered by clicking the "microphone" icon on the screen. Saying "call John Smith at home" will trigger the contacts list and voice dialer, "find art museums in Amsterdam" would launch a Google Maps application, and "listen to Ace of Base" will search for music from the artist on Pandora, Last.fm, or another music application. A "note to self" command, meanwhile, will send an automated e-mail to a default e-mail address. If Android is confused about which application to use, or a location, it will present a list of choices.

Within the phone, the microprocessor can power just hundreds or thousands of MIPS, a measure of processing power. But connecting the phone to the cloud allows the phone to basically put a supercomputer in your pocket, Barra said.

Voice actions allow the user to essentially command the phone's actions, where previous iterations have focused on looking for links. Google has no plans to add sponsored search listing, and the company will use your location if you provide it. Barra said that there is a roadmap to increasing the capabilities of the voice actions, including the possibility for adding a scripting language.
"There's a place where you want to type, and there's a time and place where you want to use voice," said Dave Burke, an engineering manager at Google and the author of the "Chrome to Phone" function. About 25 percent of the data Google processes via Android is search data, Barra said.

"Chrome to Phone" is as described: within Chrome, clicking the "phone" icon sends a search result, a YouTube link, or directions directly to an Android 2.2 phone. The Chrome to Phone capability is a Chrome extension, and is available on the App Market, Burke said.
For now, the transfer is one-way; data can not be sent from the phone to the PC, Barra said. The phone-to-PC capability may be added in the future, Barra said.
-pcmag

India Threatens to Drop BlackBerry Services???

2010-08-13T06:18:00.000-07:00

India jumped into the BlackBerry controversy Thursday by demanding that Research in Motion allow Indian law enforcement access to Blackberry Enterprise Service and Blackberry Messenger Service data by Aug. 31.

If RIM refuses, the country will "take steps to block these two services from the network," India's Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement.

India wants its law enforcement agencies to have access to the information traveling via BES and BBM for surveillance purposes. The country already has access to BlackBerry voice, text, and Internet services, the ministry said.

"Although RIM cannot disclose confidential regulatory discussions that take place with any government, RIM assures its customers that it genuinely tries to be as cooperative as possible with governments in the spirit of supporting legal and national security requirements, while also preserving the lawful needs of citizens and corporations," RIM said in a statement.

RIM said it has "drawn a firm line" and insisted that any carriers that provide BlackBerry services adhere to four basic principles: the carriers' capabilities be limited to the strict context of lawful access and national security requirements; the carriers' capabilities must be technology and vendor neutral; no changes will be made to the security architecture for BlackBerry Enterprise Server customer since; and RIM maintains a consistent global standard for lawful access requirements that does not include special deals for specific countries.

India is just the latest country to threaten to shut down BlackBerry services. Earlier this month, the United Arab Emirates said it would block BlackBerry services by Oct. 11 over similar concerns. Saudi Arabia followed suit several days later, promising to shut down service by Aug. 6, but officials relented this week, and said they would allow BlackBerry services to remain while talks continued.

At issue is the encrypted network over which BlackBerry data travels. After the announcement from the UAE, RIM said it offers one BlackBerry enterprise solution to all its customers, and does not favor one country's government over another.

"The BlackBerry enterprise solution was designed to preclude RIM, or any third party, from reading encrypted information under any circumstances since RIM does not store or have access to the encrypted data," RIM said at the time. "RIM cannot accommodate any request for a copy of a customer's encryption key, since at no time does RIM, or any wireless network operator or any third party, ever possess a copy of the key. This means that customers of the BlackBerry enterprise solution can maintain confidence in the integrity of the security architecture without fear of compromise."

New In Twitter - 'Tweet' Button!!!

2010-08-13T05:11:00.000-07:00

Twitter on Thursday unveiled its "tweet" button, which will let users share links on Twitter directly from the Web site they are visiting.
About one-quarter of all tweets include a link, but sharing those links can sometimes be complex, Twitter spokeswoman Carolyn Penner wrote in a blog post.

"Copying and pasting, link shortening, and bouncing between browser tabs just to share a link in a Tweet is too much work," Penner wrote.
To simplify the process, Web site owners can now add a few lines of code to their pages for quick tweeting. When a user clicks on the "tweet" button, a pop-up box will appear. The Web site URL will already be shortened, so all a user has to do is add a message and click "tweet." It will be sent to a user's Twitter feed automatically, and that user can continue browsing.
Twitter has also incorporated its follow suggestion feature into the tweet button. After a user sends off a tweet, Twitter will suggest a few people it thinks you might want to follow. Select those people or just click out of the box.

Twitter said the tweet button can be added to sites of all sizes – from recreational bloggers to major media organizations. More than 30 sites will start using the tweet button on Thursday, including CNN.com, Hulu, Gawker Media, The Onion, and USA Today.

"It only takes a few lines of code," Penner wrote. "The tweet Button will help publishers grow traffic and increase their Twitter following."
For those wondering how this offering differs from the "retweet" buttons that already populate many Web sites, that was a feature produced by third-party company TweetMeme. Going forward, Penner said Twitter will be working with Tweetmeme and incorporating its "retweet" button into the tweet button.

"What does this mean? Firstly we will be assisting Twitter with the technical challenges involved with the button and secondly we will be working even more closely in the future on delivering real-time curation of the Twitter Firehose," TweetMeme founder and CEO Nick Halstead wrote in a blog post.

The partnership will result in the launch of new TweetMeme products, Halstead said, the first of which he unveiled Thursday. DataSift will give developers "the ability to leverage cloud computing to build very precise streams of data from the millions and millions of tweets sent every day," he wrote.

For more information, follow DataSift on Twitter.

For those who want to add Twitter's tweet button to their sites, meanwhile, can find additional information on twitter.com/tweetbutton.

-Pcmag

Apple the wanted Technology!!

2010-08-09T11:31:00.000-07:00

Apple provides a complete ecosystem for developers. All the components including hardware, the operating systems, and the developer tools are designed by one company, and they’re all designed to work together seamlessly — creating an easier, more intuitive experience so developers can focus on making great applications.

Apple Platforms & Technologies

iOS, Mac OS X, and Safari provide three amazing opportunities for developers to turn their concepts into reality. Built on the same core foundation, iOS and Mac OS X offer dynamic environments that will change what you thought was possible in software applications. With Safari, you can render today’s and tomorrow’s web applications the way they are meant to be seen.

iOS

iOS is the world’s most advanced mobile platform, redefining what can be done with a mobile phone. For developers, the iOS SDK and Xcode tools make it possible to create revolutionary applications that will set the bar for the next generation of mobile applications.

Mac OS X

Mac OS X is the world’s most advanced operating system, built upon a proven UNIX foundation. Using the Cocoa frameworks, amazing audio & video capabilities, and a host of incredible features, you’ll see just how easy it is to create gorgeous, feature-rich Mac OS X applications.

Summer Jobs Worldwide 2010

2010-08-09T10:26:00.000-07:00

Summer Jobs Worldwide 2010: Make the Most of the Summer Break (Paperback)

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Full description for Summer Jobs Worldwide 2010

Now in its 41st edition the best-selling Summer Jobs Worldwide 2010, is a comprehensive guide to all summer jobs abroad and in the UK. Perfect for anyone considering working this summer, this book is jam-packed with ideas to inspire you and help you decide where to go and what to do.

This guide covers all types of paid and unpaid work, comparing wages and includes descriptions of working as tour guides, fruit pickers, sports instructors, volunteers and many more sociable and interesting jobs. In addition to covering Britain, Europe, Australasia and the USA, this global book includes some stimulating jobs for the more adventurous in countries such as Egypt, Ecuador, Peru, and many more.

Summer Jobs Worldwide 2010 combines both fun ideas and practical information ensuring that you have an exciting but safe summer. If you want to have memorable experience, make some great new friends and earn some good money while you are at it, then this book will help you make it happen!

Publisher: Crimson Publishing
Format: Paperback 416 pages
Categories: Reference Works Directories Advice On Careers & Achieving Success Living & Working Abroad Tips & Advice
Published: 23 October 2009
ISBN 13: 9781854585363 ISBN 10: 1854585363Sales rank: 284,638

Next Generation Surgical Robots: No Need a Doctor!!!

2010-08-07T23:50:00.000-07:00

As physician-guided robots routinely operate on patients at most major hospitals, the next generation robot could eliminate a surprising element from that scenario -- the doctor.

Feasibility studies conducted by Duke University bioengineers have demonstrated that a robot -- without any human assistance -- can locate a man-made, or phantom, lesion in simulated human organs, guide a device to the lesion and take multiple samples during a single session. The researchers believe that as the technology is further developed, autonomous robots could some day perform many more simple surgical tasks.
"Earlier this year we demonstrated that a robot directed by artificial intelligence can on its own locate simulated calcifications and cysts in simulated breast tissue with high repeatability and accuracy," said Kaicheng Liang, a former student in the laboratory of Stephen Smith, director of the Duke University Ultrasound Transducer Group at the Pratt School of Engineering and senior member of the research team. "Now we have shown that the robot can sample up to eight different spots in simulated human prostate tissue."

The results of the Duke research appear in the current issue of the journal Ultrasonic Imaging. An earlier study reported in the January issue of the journal Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology described the Duke team's results on simulated breast tissue. In both experiments, whole turkey breasts were used. Raw turkey breasts are commonly used in medical research because the tissue closely resembles that of humans in texture and density, and appear similar when scanned by ultrasound.

The Duke team combined a "souped-up" version of an existing robot arm with an ultrasound system of its own design. The ultrasound serves as the robot's "eyes" by collecting data from its scan and locating its target. The robot is "controlled" not by a physician, but by an artificial intelligence program that takes the real-time 3-D information, processes it and gives the robot specific commands to perform. The robot arm has a mechanical "hand" that can manipulate the same biopsy plunger device that physicians use to reach a lesion and take samples.
In the latest series of experiments, the robot guided the plunger to eight different locations on the simulated prostate tissue in 93 percent of its attempts. This is important because multiple samples can also determine the extent of any lesion, Smith said.

Smith believes that routine medical procedures, such as biopsies in other tissues in the body, will be performed in the future with minimal human guidance, and at greater convenience and less cost to patients.

An important challenge to be overcome is the speed of data acquisition and processing, though the researchers are confident that faster processors and better algorithms will address that issue. To be clinically useful, all of the robot's actions would need to be in real time, the researchers said.

"One of the beauties of this system is that all of the hardware components are already on the market," Smith said. "We believe that this is the first step in showing that with some modifications, systems like this can be built without having to develop a new technology from scratch."
Advances in ultrasound technology have made these latest experiments possible, the researchers said, by generating detailed, 3-D, moving images in real-time. The Duke team has a long track record of modifying traditional 2-D ultrasound -- like that used to image babies in utero -- into the more advanced 3-D scans. The Duke lab invented the technique in 1991.

"We're now testing the robot on a human mannequin seated at the examining table whose breast is constrained in a stiff bra cup," Smith said. "The breast is composed of turkey breast tissue with an embedded grape to simulate a lesion. Our next step is to move to an excised human breast."
The research in Smith's lab is supported by the National Institutes of Health. Other members of the team were Edward Light and A.J. Roberts from Duke, and Daniel von Allmen from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.

F.I.R HEAT THERAPY

2010-08-07T23:14:00.000-07:00

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Portable Digital X-Ray

2010-08-07T15:31:00.000-07:00

Source-Ray is a leading Developer, Manufacturer and Supplier of Innovative Diagnostic Medical Imaging Equipment for Healthcare Professionals. Source-Ray also supplies integrated diagnostic x-ray sources to Original Equipment Manufacturers for Medical, Analytical and Industrial markets.

Source-Ray's diagnostic portable imaging equipment product line is focused on the growing demand for Digital Portable Imaging Solutions for General Radiography in the Medical Imaging and Diagnostic Outreach Markets.

Today's diagnostic service providers are required to produce the highest quality radiographic portable x-ray images possible. Digital Portable Imaging Systems provide DICOM 3 connectivity capabilities that display, transmit, archive and retrieve images in an efficient, cost effective manner.

Source-Ray's diverse line of conventional film based portable x-ray systems and Direct Capture Digital portable imaging equipment; address a broad range of clinical and technological innovation, for general purpose radiography.

Our staff has over 25 years experience in the design, manufacture and service of X-ray sources and sub-systems. Source-Ray has the experience and resources to handle all of your X-Ray requirements.

Steps large banks can take to avoid being shrunk!

2010-08-07T01:21:00.000-07:00

Global legislative and regulatory pressure continues to grow to prevent banks from becoming too big to fail. One of the potential outcomes is that banks may be forced to split retail banking (safe, low-margin business) from investment banking (high-risk, high-profit business) to create two (at least) legal entities.
If banks want to avoid a return to the restrictive days of Glass-Steagall (or a modern counterpart), they are going to have to become much more rigorous and transparent in their reporting, risk analysis and financial controls. In other words, making the transition from "too big to fail" to "too smart to fail" means seriously rethinking traditional banking operations.

STEP 1: IDENTIFY YOUR BANK'S 'TOO BIG TO FAIL' RISKS.
Improperly managed, a few key measures can create a big target on a bank's back. For example, if a bank can't prove liquidity levels, financial status or exposure to certain financial instruments and/or geographies, it risks being labeled as the kind of irresponsible institution that members of Congress say has necessitated the coming raft of regulatory change.

Banks that can't demonstrate the kinds of measures described above will lose market cap and long-term competitive advantage. For example, at the moment, the fear across both Europe and the U.S. is banks' exposure to financial institutions in Portugal, Italy, Greece and Spain -- if a bank can't prove a solid position or even fully understand its exposure to these markets, using technologies that support transparency and control, it is in danger of being forced to float off business units, which will greatly devalue the component parts.

Banks need to implement a comprehensive regulatory risk audit, taking worst-case scenarios into account for processes including regular liquidity reporting, complex/controversial financial instrument exposure assessments, and geographic risk reporting. If this review shows that a bank can't "see" information around liquidity and risk because that information is buried in the complexities of financial instrument creation, or because siloed parts of the business keep information locked away, it's a clarion call for greater transparency. The business can't make smart decisions about regulatory reporting processes without a clear and consistent view of risks across the global organization.

STEP 2: BRING IN TECH SUPPORT

Once a bank has identified the processes and protocols that keep information about risk hidden from key decision makers, it's time to consider which technology systems and solutions will support a transition to greater transparency. Ironically, compliance systems shouldn't be at the top of the list. Too often, these solutions sit at the narrow end of the funnel of information. By the time information gets to the mouth of the funnel, it's too late in the reporting process to measure the data's accuracy or its relevance to the organization's risk and reporting strategies.
Rather, banks need to consider compliance in the context of the many business processes that take information from one point to another throughout the organization. Rules-based business process management systems that require equal ownership between business and IT managers can create an operating environment that lends itself to greater transparency.

STEP 3: BENCHMARK AGAINST THE BEST

Banks that have successfully positioned themselves for the new regulations share three characteristics:
A customer-centric back office. Although customer service interfaces are typically the remit of the front office, companies that understand the relationship between data maintained in the back office and customers served in the front office have a more holistic view across the entire business.

Risk-aware culture. Not necessarily risk-averse, these banks have a culture of risk awareness that supports prudent decisions.

Agile IT infrastructure. Banks whose systems leverage the best in "enterprise 2.0" technologies, such as SaaS architecture and cloud computing, typically find it easiest to adopt systems that best support risk reporting, control and transparency.
American military general Omar Bradley once said, "Bravery is the capacity to perform properly even when scared half to death." Be brave, banks -- the long-term rewards of smart reporting investments will be worth the short-term fear of breaking the budget.

Court: David Sherriff, Microgen

Financial IT Jobs Growing; C Developers In a good Demand

2010-08-07T00:40:00.000-07:00

Career site eFinancial Careers reported yesterday that there were 24% more postings for financial IT jobs in July 2010 than in July 2009.

This is part of a trend — further numbers the site editors gave me show that although new financial IT jobs were down by 12% in January and by 13% in February compared to last year, they ticked up in March by 3%, and then skyrocketed to a 37% increase in April, a 27% rise in May and 38% growth in June. This is cheery news for any out-of-work bank IT executives out there and for those who care about them.

Even more interesting is what the job listings show about which skills are in demand in the world of bank technology. eFinancial Careers shared the numbers of financial job listings mentioning specific IT skills (below) as of yesterday (the numbers change every day).

Most coveted are programmers who know C, C++ and C#. This reflects the fact that, generally speaking, programs written in C are still faster than those in any other language. But Java developers are also being hired, and database administrators and those with risk management expertise have strong prospects.

Hottest Bank Technology Skills

1. C, C++, C# — 123
2. Java/J2EE — 75
3. DBA/Database Administrator — 71
4. SQL — 58
5. Unix — 50
6. Linux — 48
7. Risk Management — 44
8. Project Manager — 41
9. Perl — 37
10. Oracle — 35

Court: Penny Crosman

HSBC Sees at Least $110 Million Impact!!!

2010-08-07T00:05:00.000-07:00

HSBC's North American chief executive expects the new U.S. financial reform law to cost it at least $110 million in annual revenue.

HSBC's North American chief executive expects the new U.S. financial reform law to cost it at least $110 million in annual revenue.
The company expects its biggest hit from the Dodd-Frank law to come from restrictions on fees HSBC receives for processing debit card transactions, and from what its North American CEO called "changes to FDIC levies." The law increased the fees that U.S. banks will pay the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The sweeping law establishes a consumer protection agency, which could eventually deepen the cuts to HSBC's U.S. revenues, North American CEO Niall Booker told reporters on a conference call Monday.
"We don't know what the impact of the new consumer protection agency will be, and exactly what tone and what action it will take, so that makes dealing with the cards business and to some extent the personal financial services business ... (and) trying to figure out what that would look like a bit more difficult," Booker said.
HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, reported half-year profits of $11.1 billion Monday.
Other elements of the law may hit the bank too, Booker said. The $110 million estimate "doesn't factor in any changes that we might have to make to the global banking and markets platform - albeit those will be small - or the impact of any further activity by the consumer protection agency," he said.
The law's restrictions on proprietary trading "will have minimal" impact on HSBC, because its U.S. arm does not do much private equity or propriety trading business, Booker said.

(Reporting by Maria Aspan; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)
Court: Reuters. All rights reserved.

New Mercedes-Benz Cars

2010-08-05T04:26:00.000-07:00

2011 Mercedes-Benz Cars

2011 Mercedes-Benz E-Class

MSRP$56,200 - $64,800
The 2011 E-Class is a 2- or 4-door, up to 7-passenger sports coupe, luxury sports coupe, convertible, luxury

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class

MSRP$102,600 - $198,750
The 2011 SL-Class is a 2-door, 2-passenger luxury convertible, or convertible sports car, available in 3 trims

2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS-Class
MSRP$183,000
The 2011 SLS-Class is a 2-door, 2-passenger luxury sports car, available in one trim only, the AMG.

Mercedes - The World Famous Name!

2010-08-05T04:08:00.000-07:00

Word Origin & History

Mercedes

fem. proper name, from Sp., abbrev. of Maria de las Mercedes "Mary of the Mercies," from pl. of merced "mercy, grace," from L. mercedem (nom. merces).

Encyclopedia

Mercedes

city, east-central San Luis provincia (province), west-central Argentina. It is located on the Quinto River in a semiarid transition area between the Pampa (east) and the San Luis Mountains (northwest).

It was founded in 1856 as Fuerte Constitucional, and the surrounding lands were distributed to veteran army officers who guarded the frontier.

In 1861 the settlement was renamed Villa Mercedes in honour of the Virgen de la Merced (Spanish: "Virgin of Mercy"), its patroness.

From 1863 to 1865, the city was constantly attacked by Indians and mountain rebels; they were finally repelled and the rebel leader, Puebla, was killed. Water for irrigation from the Quinto River has enabled the area to become an important grain (corn [maize], sorghum, and rye) and cattle-producing region. Incorporated as a city in 1896, Mercedes has a large grain mill and refrigerator plants to process beef for export. Pop. (2001) 51,967.

7 myths about Swiss bank accounts!!!

2010-08-03T21:30:00.000-07:00

1. Swiss bank accounts are only for millionaires

This is not true. The majority of our clients are not major manufacturers or movie stars, but everyday people (business people, computer engineers, civil servants, etc.). Swiss banks are no longer only for stars.
You can open a Swiss bank account with a deposit of only 5,000 Swiss francs. We even offer accounts with no minimum balance.

2. Money invested in Switzerland yields no interest

Nothing could be more untrue. You can invest your money worldwide from your account in Switzerland through investment funds, bonds, the stock market, the purchase of metal values, raw materials, derivatives and many other types of investments. Swiss bankers are among the best finance managers in the world, so it comes as no surprise that they manage over 35% of offshore holdings.

3. It's impossible to open an account in Switzerland by correspondence

This is not true. Most of the accounts that we offer can be opened by correspondence as long as you comply with our opening procedures and provide us with the necessary documents. What is more, your banking relations can be conducted by correspondence, using the telephone, Internet banking, bank transfer and credit cards. That said, we encourage our customers to meet with their banker at least once in order to get acquainted and see where their money is held.

4. Swiss bank accounts are very expensive to maintain

This is not true. Most of the accounts we open don't charge a cent in annual fees. Even if you would like additional services such as retained correspondence or numbered banking relations, the annual fees are very reasonable.

5. It is difficult to close a Swiss bank account

On the contrary. You can close your account in Switzerland whenever you wish and without any restriction. You will pay no financial penalty. If need be, you will just have to realize your investments. Contrary to many onshore banking practices, your money is not held hostage by Swiss banks.

6. Swiss bank accounts attract only criminals and dictators

Not true! The vast majority of Swiss bank account holders are honest people who want to keep their savings in a country renowned for its stability. Swiss banks are extremely cautious regarding politicians who wish to open an account and they systematically refuse to accept any money that is of dubious origin or poorly founded.

7. Numbered accounts are anonymous

There are no anonymous accounts in Switzerland. A numbered account is an account that is identified solely by a number, rather than a name, in order to preserve the strictest confidentiality possible during teller transactions or bank transfers. Only the bank manager and a few select people know the identity of numbered account holders.

Profits double at HSBC as bank!!!

2010-08-03T21:20:00.000-07:00

Global banking giant HSBC yesterday said "disenchantment" with Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group had helped it recruit customers north of the border as it reported a doubling in first-half profits to $11 billion (£7bn).

The bank said it had witnessed a 44% increase in the number of small businesses switching to it in Scotland.

Total revenue north of the border also rose by 23% against a 7% fall in its wider European business, with HSBC saying it had filled a gap left by other banks.

It had particular success in Aberdeen, Alan Keir, chairman of HSBC’s Scottish advisory board said, with the city’s "micro- economy" helping it escape much of the recession.

Keir told The Herald: "In Scotland it is going extremely well indeed. I think there are significant opportunities for us there."

Elsewhere, HSBC executive director Stuart Gulliver said gross new lending to what the bank classes as SMEs – those with turnover of greater than £25 milion – was up by £1.4bn, or 38%, in the first six months of the year against the same period of 2009.

But he acknowledged: "Net lending is more or less flat. About the same number of people repaid us as took new lending."

Despite this, HSBC’s profit for the period easily beat analysts’ expectations of around $9bn, with pre-tax earnings coming in at $9.6bn – an increase of 30%.

The key driver was a fall in loan impairment charges and other provisions to $7.5bn, some $6.4bn less than the charge reported this time last year.

Chief executive Michael Geoghegan said: "I hope we are through the worst for loan impairment charges."

The company was profitable in every region apart from North America, where pre-tax earnings narrowed by $2bn to $80m as bad debts eased.

Asia, meanwhile, accounted for $5.9bn, or 58%, of the bank’s overall profit.

Geoghegan, who relocated to Hong Kong in January, said: "Asia remains the bedrock of our profitability."

HSBC last month boosted its presence in the region by purchasing a retail and corporate banking business in India from RBS.

While Asia continues to be strong, Geoghegan said the global outlook was "uncertain".

"Whether the West can sustain growth will remain unclear for some time," he explained. "We remain bullish on emerging markets. Led by Asia, they will continue to drive world growth."

He added: "Until the US feels confident about its economy the rest of the world will have to have its doubts."

HSBC’s investment bank, meanwhile, made a profit of $5.6bn, its second-best half ever, but down 13% from a year ago.

Gulliver, chief executive of the division, said that $2.5bn in employee expenses booked by the arm was inflated by a $350m payroll tax to pay bonuses earlier this year.

He added that investment banking pay was down to 21% of revenues from 24% a year ago even though HSBC had hired 400 new investment bankers this year.

Elsewhere, HSBC’s Tier 1 capital ratio was 11.5% at the end of June, well above its target range.

The bank will review its aim of a return on capital of 15% to 19% once regulators decide how much of a cushion banks should carry.

While Geoghegan warned that HSBC’s extra capital would depress returns, he said it could still achieve the lower end of its targets over the medium term.

He added that an agreement on banking reform by the G20 nations would help the market.

"A level playing field is beneficial for all global markets," he said.

"That’s why all G20 countries must participate according to the same rules."

HSBC’s results sent shares in the company soaring 34p, or 5.3%, to 680p.

The other banks followed.

RBS closed up 2.14p, or 4.3%, at 52.1p, above the break-even level for the Government’s 83% stake.

Lloyds finished at 72.44p, up 3.18p or 4.6%.

Barclays closed up 11.15p, or 3.4%, at 343.95p.

HSBC offshore banking!!!

2010-08-02T05:28:00.000-07:00

HSBC provide offshore banking for customers in over 200 countries and territories

What is offshore banking?

Offshore banking is a convenient, safe and potentially tax-efficient way to grow your wealth. An offshore bank is simply a bank located outside your country of residence, usually in a low tax jurisdiction.

Offshore accounts

Sterling, US Dollars, Euro and 14 other currencies

International money transfers

No account opening fee

How Swiss Bank Accounts Work??

2010-08-02T05:21:00.000-07:00

James Bond enters a Swiss bank in Spain and is frisked before he can meet with the banker. In the "Da Vinci Code," a triangular-shaped key activates a robotic arm that pulls a safety deposit box from the wall in a Swiss bank in Paris to ultimately reveal the secret to Christianity. The funny thing is neither of these scenes would actually happen in a real Swiss bank. There is no such robotic system and, while Swiss banks do have security, they don't search their clients before letting them access accounts. Most of us have formed ideas about what Swiss bank accounts are and how they work based on scenes like these that we've seen in the movies, read in books, or maybe even heard in the news. In other words, most of us have a distorted or mostly unrealistic view of what it really means to have the prestigious Swiss bank account. Let's dig deeper into Swiss Bank Accounts and see how they started, who can have an account and unlock the mystery.

Swiss bank accounts aren't just for millionaires, criminals or government officials trying to hide ill-gotten wealth, or celebrities protecting their assets from former spouses. They're available to anyone and lots of average people have Swiss bank accounts. People who live in countries with unstable governments and banks in particular often turn to Swiss banks because of their security and privacy.

But let's face it, most of us really just want to be able to say, "Oh, I'll wire the money from my Swiss bank account."

Privacy
Your relationship with your Swiss bank can be compared to doctor/patient confidentiality or the private information you might share with an attorney. Swiss law forbids bankers to disclose the existence of your account or any other information about it without your consent (except for certain circumstances, which we'll discuss later). Where the similarity ends is when that privacy is violated. Whereas in the United States, if your doctor or attorney violates your confidence you must begin legal action; in Switzerland, if a banker divulges information about a bank account without permission, immediate prosecution is begun by the Swiss public attorney. Bankers face up to six months in prison and a fine of up to 50,000 Swiss francs. And, you have the option of suing the bank for damages. Needless to say, Swiss banks are very careful about protecting your privacy.

The only exceptions to the Swiss banking privacy rule are criminal activities such as drug trafficking, insider trading or organized crime, which we'll talk more about later.

Low Risk
So privacy is a big deal if you have money you don't want other people to know about, and unless you're a criminal it's highly unlikely anyone can ever find out about your account. For example, doctors who might be sued for malpractice might have money in a Swiss account to prevent them being totally wiped out in the event of lawsuit. Unethical, yes, but it happens. Really, anyone can have assets that they want to protect from attack. Sometimes, though, privacy isn't the main reason people want a Swiss bank account. Switzerland has had an extremely stable economy and infrastructure for many years and hasn't been at war with another country since 1505. Swiss bankers are also highly trained in investing and know how to grow your money.

Increasing your wealth means little if your money isn't protected. So, how safe is your money in a Swiss bank? Depositor protection in Switzerland is governed by the Swiss Bankers Association's (SBA) self-regulatory Depositor Protection Agreement and, since July 1, 2004, was also codified into the Swiss Banking Act with a few additional requirements that significantly strengthened depositor protection in Switzerland [Source: SwissBanking.org]. The revised Depositors' Protection Agreement covers all deposits and is also applicable to non-bank securities dealers. Protecting depositors is vital in maintaining public confidence in the Swiss banking system and, in order to strengthen this confidence, the SBA had drawn up a self-regulatory Depositor Protection Agreement with its member banks in 1984. This agreement guarantees that, in the event of a bank failure, depositors will rapidly receive their legally privileged claims. As an additional safety measure, Swiss law demands high capital adequacy. Swiss banks can therefore certainly be counted amongst the safest in the world.

In fact, the Swiss franc is considered one of the world's premier currencies with virtually zero inflation and has been historically backed by at least 40 percent gold reserves. Swiss banks are also known to have very sophisticated investment services and Internet banking.

Citibank - a major international bank!

2010-07-29T08:25:00.000-07:00

Citibank, a major international bank, is the consumer banking arm of financial services giant Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, later First National City Bank of New York. As of March 2010, Citigroup is the third largest bank holding company in the United States by domestic deposits, after Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase.

Citibank has retail banking operations in more than 100 countries and territories around the world. More than half of its 1,400 offices are in the United States, mostly in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco/Silicon Valley, and Miami. More recently, Citibank has expanded its operations in the Boston, Philadelphia, Houston, Dallas, and Washington D.C. metropolitan areas, albeit with a mixed record of success.

It was reported that Citigroup executives were pleased with the performance of the Boston branches, but were less impressed with the Philadelphia experiment, according to a person familiar with the situation.

On September 24, 2009, The Wall Street Journal reported that Citi planned to narrow the focus of Citigroup's U.S. branch network to just six major metropolitan areas, including New York, Washington, Miami, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles, where Citi has a substantial presence but ranks no higher than No. 3 in deposits. The article also noted that Citi could abandon or scale back where it is an also-ran, including Boston, Philadelphia and parts of Texas, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.

In addition to the standard banking transactions, Citibank offers insurance, credit card and investment products. Their online services division is among the most successful in the field,[citation needed] claiming about 15 million users.
As a result of the Global financial crisis of 2008–2009 and huge losses in the value of its subprime mortgage assets, Citibank was rescued by the U.S. government under plans agreed for Citigroup. On November 23, 2008, in addition to initial aid of $25 billion, a further $25 billion was invested in the corporation together with guarantees for risky assets amounting to $306 billion

What is Fly UK?

2010-07-27T09:41:00.000-07:00

Fly.co.uk

The Cheap Flights Search Engine

Fly.co.uk provides you with real-time prices and availability, meaning were providing you with the best, up-to-date deals. The price you see on screen includes government taxes and airport fees, enabling you to quickly find the flight that best fits your needs.

Fly.co.uk compares over 140 well-known airlines and suppliers, bringing you the best possible price, saving you the hassle of having to do it yourself. All results are displayed in price order, which make it quicker for you to find the cheapest deal available.

Fly.co.uk also provides hotel and airport guides, and weather forecasts, helping to make it easier to plan your perfect holiday. We even have our own travel blog, which provides you with advice and insider travel information.

What is Flydubai?

2010-07-26T05:35:00.000-07:00

Flydubai is the low cost airline operating flights to, from and via Dubai. All fares are one way and tax-inclusive. You just need to pay for the extras you choose. Experience the freedom to fly at the most competitive prices with the best fares available when you book online.

More about FlyDubai

Flydubai (styled as flydubai) is an Arabian start-up low-cost airline in the United Arab Emirates, with its head office in Terminal 2 of Dubai International Airport.Flydubai aims to offer competitive ticket prices, along with flexible hotel, car rental, insurance, and visa services to Dubai.

The airline operates from the modernised and enhanced Terminal 2 at Dubai International Airport.

The airline was founded on 19 March 2008 by Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum the chairman of Emirates Airline. Although not part of The Emirates Group the airline has had support from Emirates to get them off the ground.[3] Flights were commenced with a service to Beirut, Lebanon on 1 June 2009, and Amman, Jordan the following day, with additional destinations added since the launch.

Updated Skype for iPhone 4 Now Available

2010-07-25T05:53:00.000-07:00

Skype has released an update of its VOIP app for Apple iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS smartphones running iOS4. The multitasking-savvy version lets users run Skype in the background, among other features.

Skype has launched a Version 2.0.1 of its VOIP (voice-over IP) software for Apple iPhone 4 and iPhone 3GS handsets running iOS4.

Released July 21, the newest version of the application plays to the operating system’s multitasking capabilities, enabling users to run Skype in the background, as well as receive Skype calls and instant messages while other applications are running or the phone is locked. Also new — users can continue a Skype call while switching to another application.

Skype’s popular VOIP application for iPhones, the iPod touch and iPads allows users to make and receive calls or instant messages with other Skype users around the world. In addition to using WiFi, calls can these days also be placed over AT&T’s 3G network, though “operator data charges” are said to apply.

Skype competitor Fring also offers VOIP services, and on July 9 introduced an app enabling iPhone 4 owners to enjoy two-way video calling over WiFi or 3G networks. The app even works across multiple platforms, so users can call friends with a single-camera iPhone 3GS, or those on Android- or Symbian-running phones. It also allows multitasking, and so can run in the background while a user interacts with other applications, such as email.

Fring explains that its service allows Fring users to additionally communicate with friends on third-party networks such as GoogleTalk, SIP, Twitter and Skype. Skype, however, recently made its displeasure with this arrangement known by threatening Fring with legal action.

“Skype’s anti-competitive ambush comes in the wake of Fring’s mobile video calling on iPhone 4 launch,” Fring announced in a July 12 statement, airing the squabble in public. Fring CEO Avi Shechter added that he was “disappointed” that Skype, which once “championed the cause of openness, is now attempting to muzzle the competition.”
Given the popularity of these applications, and particularly their new video-messaging capabilities, a number of smartphone manufacturers — such as Motorola and Samsung, in addition to Apple — are incorporating second cameras in their handsets’ design.

The new Skype application is free to download and can be found in the Apple iTunes store.

Enterprise Mobility: Android 2.2 Should Make Apple Nervous: 10 Reasons Why???

2010-07-21T23:22:00.000-07:00

With Google's Android 2.2 update coming soon to several Android mobile devices, it's time for Apple to really be concerned about its chief competitor. The new version of Android is arguably the most important since the mobile operating system's launch, and it delivers functionality that could rival Apple's iOS 4. Now the real battle between Android and iOS has started. And with signal reception problems spoiling the iPhone 4's debut, Apple might want to bear in mind that success today doesn't guarantee continued success tomorrow. Here are 10 reasons why Apple should worry about Android 2.2.

1. Speed and Performance
According to Google, Android 2.2 will deliver far better performance and improved speed in native applications running on the software. That's good to hear. One of Android's biggest problems is that its native apps are still much slower than those in iOS 4. With the help of Android 2.2, Apple could lose that advantage.

2. Flash Support
The addition of Adobe Flash to Android OS 2.2 is a major upgrade for Google's mobile platform. Unlike Apple, which contends that Flash will hurt its customers more than help them, Google is going to allow its users to access the vast majority of video and games on the Web that they can't view on iOS 4 devices. There is still some doubt as to whether or not Flash will work all that well on Android, but if it does, and users don't experience any security problems when using it, then Google will have a major advantage over Apple.

3. Better Exchange Support
A key success factor in the smartphone market is support for Microsoft Exchange. And as much as it surely pains Google to support a platform that its archrival offers, the company had no choice. In Android 2.2, calendar synchronization, remote wipe, auto-discovery and several other Exchange-related features will be added to the platform. Previously, Apple had a big lead over Google when it came to Exchange. All that will change with Android 2.2.

4. WiFi Hot Spot
When Motorola introduced the Droid X, the company said users would be able to access the device's built-in WiFi hot spot, thanks to support in Android 2.2. Up to five devices can connect to Verizon's 3G network through the Droid X's 3G Mobile Hotspot. Even though it costs an additional $20, it certainly makes the service far more viable than AT&T's iPhone tethering rate for the same price. Being able to share a 3G Web connection with up to five different people will undoubtedly come in handy at Starbucks or in a professional setting when a team needs a Web connection. And it can't be overlooked as a key component in Android's value to customers.

5. An Improved Android Market
The Android Market is quickly becoming integral to the success of Android OS. In Android OS 2.2, the store will be updated a bit to allow users to make batch upgrades to their apps. Google has also added several APIs to the developer SDK (software development kit), which should improve the applications that make their way into the store. Even better, users can install apps on removable media such as SD cards, so they can bring their favorite programs with them to new phones. That's a nice option to have.

6. A Better Browser
According to Google, it will be offering an improved browser in Android 2.2 that will help users surf the Web far more effectively than before. The update is so good that some users who have worked with it claim the mobile Chrome browser built into Android 2.2 is faster than mobile Safari on Apple's iPhone. If consumers generally find that to be true, Google could be well on its way to challenging Apple. Although the browser is just one component in making a smartphone buying decision, it's an important one. More and more people are relying on the Internet to get work done. If they can enjoy a better browsing experience on Android 2.2 than on iOS 4, they might opt for Android-based devices more often.

7. Support from Major Phones
Android 2.2 is available to Google Nexus One users first. But over the next few months, the software will debut on all major Android phones, including the HTC Droid Incredible and the Motorola Droid X. That's important. As Apple offers just two versions of the iPhone on store shelves, Google has the luxury of partnering with vendors that deliver dozens of products to consumers. Customers attracted by Android 2.2 will have a slew of options available to them with which to replace the iPhone. As nice as it is to have the iPhone 4, Apple should become increasingly concerned as its top competition adds Android 2.2 support.

8. It's What Vendors Have Waited for
Although Google has been successful in attracting vendors to the Android platform, the company's software has so far been inadequate compared with Apple's iOS. And hardware vendors, knowing that Apple is heavily entrenched in the smartphone space, have decided to stay out until there was an operating system available that could compete. With Android 2.2, all those companies, such as Dell, that have stayed out of the mobile OS mix now have a reason to jump in. Google's latest OS version is the best competitor yet to iOS 4, and it's putting Apple on notice. Look for more Android-based devices over the next year.

9. The Enterprise Solution?
Google keeps making the point that with Android 2.2, its mobile operating system is ready for enterprise use. Although that might be a little far-fetched, since the company is only now starting to make a push for corporate customers, there is reason to believe that Android OS is more enterprise-friendly than ever. By appealing to enterprises, Google gains another avenue of growth. That doesn't necessarily mean that enterprises will ditch the BlackBerry OS and opt for Google's solution over Apple's, but with a viable alternative to iOS 4 on the market, companies have more to choose from. Apple can't be happy about that.

10. Design Improvements
Android is getting a slight face-lift. The design changes won't be drastic, but the tweaks should help the operating system match Apple's iOS 4 design just a little better. For Apple, Android's improvements could prove worrisome. Although iOS 4 still has a better design, Android is catching up. Now the pressure is on Apple to stay ahead.

VILIV - Netbook with Intel® Atom™ Processor - Pearl White

2010-07-21T03:33:00.000-07:00

Model: S73GUS | SKU: 9690051

This netbook features a built-in webcam and microphone along with a 7" widescreen touch-screen display for video chatting with friends and family. Connect wirelessly to the Internet via the 802.11b/g high-speed wireless LAN.

What's Included

VILIV Netbook with Intel® Atom™ Processor
2-cell lithium-polymer battery
Power cord, AC power cable
Media Car kit (car charger, car mounting bracket)
Leather case, stylus, stereo earphones
Owner's manual

Product Features

From our expanded online assortment; not available in all Best Buy stores

Intel® Atom™ processor Z520
Features a 533MHz system bus, 512KB cache and 1.33GHz processor speed.
1GB DDR2 memory
For multitasking power.
Note: Optical drive not included

Compatible with optional external recordable CD/DVD drives (not included).

7" WSVGA widescreen touch-screen display
With 1024 x 600 resolution showcases movies, games and other images in 720p high-definition video.
32GB hard drive
Offers spacious storage and fast read/write times.
Built-in webcam and microphone
Make it easy to video chat with family and friends.

Built-in GPS
Delivers driving instructions to get you where you want to go.
Media reader
Supports Secure Digital High Capacity formats for storing or transferring media.

2 high-speed USB 2.0 ports
For fast digital video, audio and data transfer.
Built-in high-speed wireless LAN (802.11b/g)
Wirelessly connect to the Internet. Built-in Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate)interface for link with other Bluetooth-enabled devices, such as a mobile phone or MP3 player.
3G HSPA broadband modem

Keeps you connected in more places without searching for a Wi-Fi hotspot.

Weighs only 1.5 lbs. and measures just 1" thin
For lightweight portability.
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition operating system preinstalled
Provides a stable platform for word processing, Web navigation, gaming, media storage and more.

Intel, Pentium, Celeron, Centrino, Core, Viiv, Intel Inside and the Intel Inside logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.

Amazon Selling More Kindle E-Books than Hardcovers!

2010-07-20T08:14:00.000-07:00

Amazon said Monday that sales of electronic books for its Kindle e-book reader have surpassed sales of hardcover books on the site.

"Even while our hardcover sales continue to grow, the Kindle format has now overtaken the hardcover format," Jeff Bezos, founder and chief executive of Amazon.com, said in a statement. "Amazon.com customers now purchase more Kindle books than hardcover books."

Bezos said this was "astonishing" given that the site has sold e-books for just 33 months, compared to 15 years with hardcover books.
Specifically, for every 100 hardcover books sold by Amazon, the company now sells 180 Kindle books – up from 143 for the past three months. Amazon has sold three times as many Kindle books in the first half of 2010 than it did in the first half of 2009.

The Kindle bookstore now has 630,000 books, including 106 of the 110 New York Times best sellers. About 510,000 of these books are $9.99 or less, Amazon said, while 1.8 million are free, out-of-copyright books.

Five authors - Charlaine Harris, Stieg Larsson, Stephenie Meyer, James Patterson, and Nora Roberts – have sold more than 500,000 Kindle books.
The news comes almost a month after Amazon dropped the price of the Kindle from $259 to $189 – hours after competitor Barnes & Noble slashed the price of its Nook e-reader to $199. Days later, Amazon also cut the price of the larger Kindle DX from $489 to $379.

Bezos said sales of the Kindle have tripled since Amazon lowered its price.
Amazon is expected to announce its second quarter financial results on Thursday.

VILIV - Netbook

2010-07-19T17:23:00.000-07:00

Best Buy > Computers > iPad & Tablet PCs > Wi-Fi Handhelds

VILIV - Netbook with Intel® Atom™ Processor - Matte Black
Model: S5 PRE-H US | SKU: 9728901

Connect to the Internet wirelessly via this netbook's 802.11b/g wireless LAN with Bluetooth capability. The built-in GPS delivers driving instructions to get you where you want to go.

What's Included

VILIV Netbook with Intel® Atom™ Processor
2-cell lithium-polymer battery
Power cord, AC power cable
Strap, stereo headphones
Owner's manual

Product Features

Intel® Atom™ processor Z520
Features a 533MHz system bus, 512KB cache and 1.33GHz processor speed.
1GB DDR2 SDRAM
For multitasking power.

Note: Optical drive not included

Compatible with optional external recordable CD/DVD drives (not included).
4.8" WSVGA widescreen touch-screen display
With 1024 x 600 resolution showcases movies, games and other images in 720p high-definition video.
60GB hard drive
Offers spacious storage and fast read/write times.
Intel® Graphics Media Accelerator 500
For lush images. Built-in stereo speakers.
Built-in GPS

Delivers driving instructions to get you where you want to go.
2 high-speed USB 2.0 ports
For fast digital video, audio and data transfer.
Built-in high-speed wireless LAN (802.11b/g)
Wirelessly connect to the Internet. Built-in Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) interface for link with other Bluetooth-enabled devices, such as a mobile phone or MP3 player.
3G HSPA broadband modem

Keeps you connected in more places without searching for a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Weighs only 13.8 oz. and measures just 1" thin
For lightweight portability.

Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition operating system preinstalled
Provides a stable platform for word processing, Web navigation, gaming, media storage and more.
Intel, Pentium, Celeron, Centrino, Core, Viiv, Intel Inside and the Intel Inside logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.

UK Student Visa: New Rules - Effective February 22, 2010

2010-07-19T04:45:00.000-07:00

Students and education providers beware: new UK student visa rules will apply starting Monday February 22, 2010. The new rules, introduced under Tier 4 of the points-based system, mean UK student visa applicants will soon have to obtain a confirmation of acceptance for studies from their prospective sponsor, rather than a visa letter.

After February 22, the UK Border Agency will ignore applications from students who send visa letters - even if an education provider issues a letter before February 22. Until February 21, however, students can continue to apply under Tier 4 using a visa letter, even if their course of study will start after February 22.

Information for education providers / sponsors:

As stated above, the UK Border Agency will no longer accept visa letters after February 22.

Moreover, Tier 4 sponsors will need to use the UK Border Agency's sponsorship management system to issue confirmations of acceptance for studies to all potential students after February 22.

The sponsorship management system is a secure IT system, which enables licensed sponsors to bring students to the UK and manage their stay here.

For example, the system will allow sponsors to send a 'sponsor note' to the UK Border Agency to inform them about minor changes to a certificate of sponsorship or a confirmation of acceptance for studies before the overseas student uses it.

---UK immigration Laws - additional information & advice---

Learn more about UK immigration laws - including the points-based system, identity cards for foreign nationals, and UK student visa rules - on FindLaw. Alternatively, you may prefer to speak with an immigration law solicitor. You can find a solicitor in your area for free via solicitor matching services, which can also help you to understand the best course of action for your situation and whether you are ready to hire a solicitor.

Have a Plan to Working Holiday in the USA and obtain a visa?

2010-07-18T19:27:00.000-07:00

Finding work in the USA can seem like a daunting task. Firstly there is a lot of red tape to get through, then there is the sheer size of the country - it is no wonder that the majority of young people elect to use the services of reputable organisations.

Whatever gap year job you are looking for - summer camp work; bar and hotel work; office work holiday resort work - the companies in this links will help, plus these Ultimate Guides are full of advice, handy hints, information and website links to help you!

Ultimate Guides

Organised Work Programmes in the USA
http://www.gapwork.com/usa-organised.shtml

Guide to organisations helping you get through all that American red tape!

Find out more >
http://www.gapwork.com/usa-organised.shtml

Going it alone in the USA
Guide to finding a job under your own steam.

Take control of your finances!!!

2010-07-16T06:25:00.000-07:00

Take control of your finances by getting help and advice on debt solutions that are right for you.

Experts can help you to freeze interest and charges on your debts through government backed legislation and take away the worry by helping you write off the debts you can’t afford.

Compare gas and electricity suppliers and prices online to reduce your fuel bills. Change to a cheap gas and/or cheap electricity price plan, including green energy tariffs, and save your money!

Tupperware - the name of a home products!

2010-07-16T06:19:00.000-07:00

Tupperware is the name of a home products line that includes preparation, storage, and serving products for the kitchen and home, which were first introduced to the public in 1946.

Tupperware develops, manufactures, and internationally distributes its products by its parent company Tupperware Brands Corporation and it is marketed by means of direct sales through an independent sales force of approximately 1.9 million consultants. Tupperware is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tupperware Brands Corporation.

Company history

Tupperware was developed in 1946 by Earl Silas Tupper (1907–1983) in the USA. He developed plastic containers used in households to contain food and keep it airtight. The formerly patented "burping seal" is a famous aspect of Tupperware, which distinguished it from competitors.

Tupperware pioneered the direct marketing strategy made famous by the Tupperware party. Brownie Wise (1913–1992), a former sales representative of Stanley Home Products, developed the strategy. During the early 1950s, Tupperware's sales and popularity exploded, thanks in large part to Wise's influence among women who sold Tupperware, and some of the famous "jubilees" celebrating the success of Tupperware ladies at lavish and outlandishly themed parties.

Tupperware was known—at a time when women came back from working during World War II only to be told to "go back to the kitchen"—as a method of empowering women, and giving them a toehold in the post-war business world. The tradition of Tupperware's "Jubilee" style events continues to this day, with rallies being held in major cities to recognize and reward top-selling and top-recruiting individuals, teams, and organizations.
In 1958, Earl Tupper fired Brownie Wise over general difference of opinion in the Tupperware business operation. It is believed that Tupper objected to the expenses incurred by the jubilee and other similar celebrations of Tupperware.

Tupperware spread to Europe in 1960 when Mila Pond hosted a Tupperware party in Weybridge, England, and subsequently around the world. In 2003, Tupperware closed down operations in the UK, citing customer dissatisfaction with their direct sales model as an issue [3], and relaunched after a restructuring in 2005.[citation needed]Rexall bought Tupperware in 1958. Rexall sold its namesake drugstores in 1977, and renamed itself Dart Industries. Dart merged with Kraftco to form Dart & Kraft. The company demerged, with the former Dart assets named Premark International. Tupperware Brands was spun off from Premark in 1996; Premark was acquired by Illinois Tool Works three years later.
Tupperware is now sold in almost 100 countries, after peaking at more than a hundred after 1996.

Tupperware Brands

After our acquisitions in December 2005, Tupperware Corporation changed its name to Tupperware Brands Corporation to mark the dramatic expansion in our brand portfolio. We now sell products under eight brands consisting of Tupperware, which represents food preparation, storage and serving solutions for the home, and seven brands of beauty and personal care products including Avroy Shlain, BeautiControl, Fuller, NaturCare, Nutrimetics and Nuvo.

Yellow Pages!

2010-07-13T05:53:00.000-07:00

Yellow Pages refers to a telephone directory of businesses, categorized according to the product or service provided. As the name suggests, such directories were originally printed on yellow paper, as opposed to white pages for non-commercial listings. The traditional term Yellow Pages is now also applied to online directories of businesses.
The name and concept of "Yellow Pages" came about in 1883, when a printer in Cheyenne, Wyoming working on a regular telephone directory ran out of white paper and used yellow paper instead. In 1886 Reuben H. Donnelley created the first official yellow pages directory, inventing an industry.

Today, the expression Yellow Pages is used globally, in both English-speaking and non-English speaking countries. In the United States, it refers to the category, while in some other countries it is a registered name and therefore a proper noun. The term Yellow Pages is not a registered name within the United States and is freely used by many companies.

In Belgium, the Republic of Ireland, Israel, the Netherlands, and Romania the 'Yellow Pages' are known as the Golden Pages.

ACUVUE

2010-07-12T08:47:00.000-07:00

1•DAY ACUVUE® MOIST® Brand Contact Lenses

Why ask for them?

Along with the convenience of no solutions, no lens cases, and no hassles, 1•DAY ACUVUE® MOIST® Brand lenses gives you exceptional comfort from the moment you put them in, to the moment you toss them at the end of the day. That's because they're the only daily disposable lenses with our exclusive LACREON™* technology.
And for allergy sufferers, clinical research has shown that a fresh pair of lenses every day (made from etafilcon A) may provide improved comfort for people suffering from mild discomfort and/or itching associated with allergies while wearing contacts, compared to lenses replaced at intervals of greater than two weeks.

Super Comfortable

LACREON™ for a fresh lens feeling,
all day

UV Protection

The highest UV-A and UV-B protection
available in a daily disposable lens‡

Otrivin

2010-07-12T08:30:00.000-07:00

Generic Name: xylometazoline nasal (zye loe me TAH zoe leen)
Brand Names: Otrivin

What is Otrivin (xylometazoline nasal)?

Xylometazoline nasal is a decongestant. It works by constricting (shrinking) blood vessels (veins and arteries) in the body. The nasal formulation acts directly on the blood vessels in the nasal tissues. Constriction of the blood vessels in the nose and sinuses leads to a decrease in congestion.

Xylometazoline nasal is used to treat congestion associated with allergies, hay fever, sinus irritation, and the common cold.

Xylometazoline nasal may also be used for purposes other than those listed in this medication guide.

What is the most important information I should know about Otrivin (xylometazoline nasal)?

Do not use xylometazoline nasal for longer than 3 to 5 days. Longer use could cause damage to the nasal tissue and lead to chronic congestion. If your symptoms do not improve, see your doctor.

Do not use this medication in larger doses or more often than is recommended. Too much xylometazoline nasal could be harmful. Xylometazoline nasal should not be used more often than two to three times a day (every 8 to 10 hours).
What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before using Otrivin (xylometazoline nasal)?

Do not use xylometazoline nasal if you have taken a monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibitor such as isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), or tranylcypromine (Parnate) in the last 14 days. This could cause a dangerous drug interaction with serious side effects.
Before using this medication, tell your doctor if you have

high blood pressure;

heart disease, hardening of the arteries, or irregular heart beats;

thyroid problems;

diabetes;

glaucoma or increased pressure in the eye;

an enlarged prostate or difficulty urinating;

liver disease; or

kidney disease.

You may not be able to use xylometazoline nasal, or you may require a dosage adjustment or special monitoring during treatment if you have any of the conditions listed above.

It is not known whether xylometazoline nasal will be harmful to an unborn baby. Do not use xylometazoline nasal without first talking to your doctor if you are pregnant or could become pregnant during treatment. It is not known whether xylometazoline nasal could be harmful to a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without first talking to your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

10 Ways to Score an iPhone 4 on Launch Day

2010-06-25T08:17:00.000-07:00

With the iPhone 4 launching on June 24,
consumers and even some enterprise customers are undoubtedly excited to finally get their hands on Apple's new smartphone. Such excitement is understandable. The device is arguably the best iPhone, at least on paper, that Apple has ever released. Not only does it run the company's new iOS 4, which boasts multitasking, it includes a new feature called Face Time, which allows users to place video calls over WiFi. And thanks to a new and improved display, the fidelity of the iPhone 4's touch screen should be second to none.

But most folks already know that. Now, they want to know how they can get their hands on an iPhone 4 on June 24. For some, preordering was the way to go. Those that were lucky enough to get through the trials of preordering an iPhone 4 on June 15 should have their smartphones in-hand that day. But those that weren't lucky enough to get through or simply don't want to wait until July to get the iPhone 4, need to find a way to buy one in-store on June 24. Admittedly, it will be a difficult task. Apple has said that it and its retail partners will have a small number of available iPhones for those that drop into the store. But they will be there. And they will go to the people that have the best strategy for getting one.

Let's take a look at 10 strategies that customers should follow if they want to get an iPhone 4 on launch day.

------------------------

1. Get in line early

The first thing that anyone who wants to get an iPhone 4 on launch day should do is get in line at a store as early as possible. As previous releases of the iPhone have shown, those that get to stores early have a much better chance of getting their hands on a smartphone. Apple plans to have a small number of available iPhones in its retail outlets on launch day. That means that users in the top 20 are probably guaranteed to get their hands on an iPhone 4. But being in that top 20 will be extremely difficult. It requires getting in line extremely early. In fact, most customers might want to consider lining up the night before the iPhone 4 launches.

2. Get ready to pay up

It might not be ideal, but if customers want an iPhone 4 badly enough, they can always show up a few minutes before the doors at the Apple Store open and hand over some cash to folks toward the front of line. It seems that every year, some people are content to stand in line and wait for someone else to come up to them, pay them to take their spot, and walk away. Admittedly, those spots fetch some serious cash. And only the most ardent Apple fans will buy a spot in that line. But there is always that option. It just depends on whether a spot in an iPhone 4 line is really worth $500 to someone.

3. Go for a long drive

Although the big Apple Store could be right down the road, those that get their hands on the iPhone 4 on launch day will be going to places where there isn't so much foot traffic. That's a key component in the success or failure of folks getting their iPhones on launch day. Everyone will be going to stores in major areas, meaning there will be long lines. But in out-of-the-way areas where stores aren't so popular, there is a greater chance of getting an iPhone 4. Simply put, getting an iPhone 4 is a numbers game.

4. Check eBay, Craigslist listings

As soon as customers buy an iPhone 4 on launch day, they do one of two things: open it up and start using it, or put it on eBay or Craigslist to turn a quick profit. Although customers will end up paying more for the device, buying an iPhone 4 on eBay doesn't seem like such a bad idea. After all, it eliminates the need to stand in line and allows users to get it sooner, rather than later. Expect to pay a premium when buying an iPhone 4 online, but those that want it badly enough can certainly use it as an option.

5. Go to Best Buy or Walmart

Best Buy and Walmart are two of the many retail partners that Apple has inked deals with. And although Radio Shack might seem like a good place to go to pick up an iPhone 4, Best Buy or Walmart could be ideal. Both companies will have iPhones available in their stores on a first-come, first-serve basis. And considering most folks have been conditioned over the past few years to go to either Apple or AT&T retail outlets to get an iPhone 4 on launch day, the crowd might not be as big at either of the big-box retail outlets. That doesn't mean that iPhone buyers can walk into a Best Buy store when it opens, but it could make for a slightly easier time of getting an iPhone 4.

6. Don't waste time at Apple stores

The last thing consumers should do on June 24 is try their luck at an Apple Store. Yes, there is a chance that they will be able to get in line and buy a device before it's released, but the vast majority of customers will be going to an Apple Store to pick up an iPhone 4. Realizing that, it's best to keep away from those locations. Those that don't follow the tech industry so closely will only know of one place where they might be able to buy an iPhone 4 on launch day: Apple stores. Stay away from those stores. It's a smart move.

7. Wait for folks on the way out

As mentioned, there are two types of iPhone customers on launch day: those that want to use the device, and those that want to sell it. Realizing that, waiting for customers that are willing to sell their iPhone 4 could be a solid strategy for most customers. Simply wait outside for someone to come out and ask them if they want to sell their iPhone 4. The vast majority of folks might not, but there are always some who wait outside stores just to do so. But beware: in previous years, some iPhone sellers have been asking nearly double the price of the iPhone 4's MSRP.

8. Remember the past

When deciding what to do on iPhone 4 launch day, it's always a good idea to take a step back and evaluate how things went years ago. Each year, the iPhone's demand has steadily risen. On launch day back in 2007, consumers were able to walk into stores and pick up a new iPhone the very day it was released. In future years, only those that were quick enough to get to an Apple store or AT&T outlet in the morning were able to get their hands on Apple's smartphone. This year, a similar scenario will likely play out. Potential iPhone 4 owners should go back and look to see when customers were lining up last year. Based on that information, they should line up a few hours sooner. Demand really is that high.

9. Be prepared to go to multiple places

Those expecting to stay in one spot for an iPhone 4 could be in for a rude awakening. In the vast majority of cases, stores offering first-come, first-serve iPhones will have a very small number of available units. Realizing that, potential iPhone buyers should expect to go to multiple locations before they finally find a single place where the iPhone 4 is available. Yes, it might be a headache, but that's the reality of trying to get an iPhone 4 on launch day.

10. Work in teams

iPhone 4 customers should work in teams. By having more than one person out searching for an iPhone 4 at different locations, potential buyers can down on the chances of missing a device at another retail outlet. One person can go to the Apple Store, the other person can go to a Best Buy location, and maybe another person can try an out-of-the-way spot. If it's just one or two iPhones they're looking for, the chances of getting one of Apple's smartphones on June 24 are that much higher.

'The guys were pumped-up to perform' - Dhoni

2010-06-25T08:03:00.000-07:00

The same two sides had contested the final of the Asia Cup two years ago, and the totals and margin of victory are similar to the title clash at Dambulla on Thursday. The two matches couldn't be more different though.

Sri Lanka's win had come on the back of two freakish performances - Sanath Jayasuriya's counterattacking 125 to revive them from 66 for 4, and Ajantha Mendis' star-making haul of 6 for 13 that derailed a rampant India - while MS Dhoni's side won through an array of mostly routine but important contributions from nearly everyone in the side.

Ashish Nehra may grab the headlines but his quick-bowling partners had done their bit earlier on. Praveen Kumar showed off yet again how dangerous he can be in conditions that suit him, and removed the dangerous Tillakaratne Dilshan in the first over, while Zaheer Khan tormented Upul Tharanga with sideways movement before getting him to shoulder arms to an indipper that took the offstump.

As for the batting, Dinesh Karthik was the surprise Man of the Match but five other batsmen made 25 or more to steadily drive India's total towards the zone labelled 'competitive'. For a side that has often ridden on individual brilliance and its batting arsenal, a bowler-led team-based victory in a tournament final is especially significant.

Dhoni was a pleased man after witnessing his side lift their game every time it mattered in the tournament, with the only defeat coming in the inconsequential league match against Sri Lanka. "This was a very satisfying win for us since we won three out of four games," Dhoni said. "It was an important tournament, four of the best sides were playing, and each side was quite balanced, overall happy with the performance."

With the final being played on a fresh pitch, getting to bat first proved a big advantage at a venue where the team batting second usually finds it harder to score. "The guys were pumped-up to perform. It was a good toss to win, conditions were ideal for batting," Dhoni said. "It got a bit slower as the game progressed and it started doing a bit under the lights, the fast bowlers made the most out of it."

There were some aspects of Thursday's showing that he felt needed improvement, such as the number of batsmen who didn't go on to score half-centuries after getting their eye in. "Most of us got the starts that was needed, we should have converted those starts," he said. "But if you win a game nobody questions that but it is very important to learn even if you are winning games, I still think we could have scored more runs and given the bowlers the extra cushion of 15-20 runs."

India's next limited-overs assignment is the tri-series in Dambulla, also involving New Zealand, following the Tests against Sri Lanka next month. With none of the batting youngsters having made compelling cases in the Asia Cup and the Zimbabwe series, it will be interesting to see what the pecking order is when the squad is chosen for that triangular.

Another facet that Dhoni wanted the team to improve in was fielding, which had played a key role in Sri Lanka's win in Tuesday's league game. Kumar Sangakkara's team was flat in the field during the finals, with several dropped chances and plenty of fumbles in the outfield.

Kris Srikkanth, the Indian chairman of selectors, had said the players' fitness and fielding levels had been looked into while picking the squad for the tournament, and the team has also shown a renewed focus on fielding during their practice sessions. "We need to improve our fielding, but one good thing, we had a few youngsters who did really well, so we don't really have to hide too many in this side," Dhoni said. "All our fielders are not brilliant but it was good in this series, if we gradually improve our fielding till the World Cup, we will be a safe fielding side, and fielding really contributes in one-dayers."

(Thanks: cric-info)

Featured Football Joke!!!

2010-06-15T21:59:00.000-07:00

Q: What's the difference between the Buffalo Bills and a dollar bill?
A: You can still get four quarters out of a dollar.

Q: Why is the Oakland football team like a possum?
A: Because they play dead at home and get killed on the road.

Q: What do Billy Graham and the Buffalo football team have in common?
A: They can both make a stadium of 50,000 people say "Oh, Jesus."

A football coach was asked his secret of evaluating his new recruits. "Well," he said, "I take 'em out in the woods and make 'em run. The ones that run round the trees, I make into running backs. The ones that run straight into the trees, I turn into linemen."

Q: What's the difference between the Green bay Packers and Cheerios?
A: Cheerios belongs in a bowl.

Q: What has eight arms and an I.Q. of 60?
A: Four blokes watching a football game.
---

Buzzkill: Vuvuzelas ruining World Cup experience

2010-06-15T03:12:00.000-07:00

They are plastic, noisy and cost no more than a few bucks. And they are, sadly, sabotaging the World Cup.

The constant droning of the vuvuzela – the traditional South African horn that has been a permanent backdrop to this tournament – is becoming such an annoyance to fans, players and television viewers that soccer’s governing body is considering drastic action.

According to a source who has regular contact with top World Cup officials, FIFA president Sepp Blatter, FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke and World Cup organizing committee chief Danny Jordaan will hold fresh talks over the next few days to discuss whether to reverse policy and implement a vuvuzela ban.

They should.

Remarkably, in a tournament involving the finest, richest and most controversial soccer stars on the planet and a misbehaving soccer ball, the most-discussed issue has revolved around a brightly colored plastic instrument so simple that a child could blow it.

It takes a lot to distract the world from the event it has waited four years and focus on something so apparently trivial, yet tortured eardrums and pounding headaches have done just that only four days into the month-long World Cup.

Supporters everywhere have reacted angrily to the continuous use of the horns, which have been heard on television broadcasts every second of the games so far. But the problem for soccer’s loyal fans is not so much the ever-present buzz – enterprising locals have made a small fortune by selling earplugs to help drown out the sound for those in attendance. It is more about what is missing, namely the typical color and atmosphere that is normally seen at top-level matches.

Because the vuvuzelas create a wall of sound, there has been little of the usual chanting, singing and roaring that are a staple of soccer games everywhere else in the world. Even the fans of the England national team, normally among the loudest in international soccer, could not bring themselves to muster their usual diet of boisterous chants and songs during Saturday’s 1-1 draw with the United States, effectively admitting defeat to the almighty horn.

Furthermore, players admit they have struggled to concentrate amid the noise and there have been regular communication problems among teammates. Slovenia’s Samir Handanovic and Marko Suler screamed furiously at each other in their team’s victory over Algeria following a mixup that almost led to a goal for their opponent.

“It is impossible to communicate,” said Argentina’s Lionel Messi, the world’s best player. “It is like being deaf.”

Some fans might already be thinking that deafness is not such a bad option compared to the incessant aural assault they are currently suffering through. The vuvuzela, which is made to replicate the call of an elephant, comes across as a drone on television. In real life, though, the noise reaches 144 decibels, equivalent to the sound made by a passenger jet.

Also, vuvuzelas come with only one sound, one pitch. Fans blow them as hard as they can during dead periods of action as they do after a thrilling moment, so there is none of the inspirational roar from fans that urges an attack from their team. None of the imaginative and patriotic chants are sung to light up games. None of the childish yet always amusing crescendo aimed at increasing a goalkeeper’s nerves as he steps up to take a goal kick is heard.

Portugal plays its first match Tuesday. The team – which played in the Confederation Cup in South Africa last summer – knows what awaits them. And it’s not happy about it.

“There is something missing,” star Cristiano Ronaldo said. “I like the atmosphere of football; it is beautiful. This is not beautiful.”

There is an argument that this is South Africa’s event and the rest of the world should adapt. But this is more than a South African event. The World Cup is a truly global spectacle – and the world is making itself heard that it doesn’t want its ears bashed any longer.

-yoo

How to Buy a GPS ???

2010-06-12T00:47:00.000-07:00

It's a great time to buy a GPS. The category has matured and competition from nav-equipped smartphones has helped drive prices way down. As a result

, you can get a capable stand-alone GPS that can do much more than just help you find your way for a lot less than you would have paid just last year. Still, there are several factors to consider when choosing the right GPS: Do I need a big display? Should I spring for a live traffic subscription? How about voice control? Should I even bother with a GPS, or can I just use my phone? H

ere's what you should consider when navigating the GPS market.

The Basics: Screen Size, On-Board Maps, and POIs

Screen size is an important factor in choosing the right GPS. The current sweet spot for displays is 4.3 inches, with the majority of models on the market hitting this mark. You can typically save a bundle if you're willing to settle for a smaller display: The excellent, Editors' Choice 3.5-inch Garmin nüvi 265T rings up for about $120 these days. On the flip side, if you have trouble reading small text, you may want to opt for a larger unit

like the Magellan Roadmate 1700, whose bright, brilliant 7-inch, 800-by-480-pixel WVGA display almost guarantees you'll never have to squint to read a street name. Remember though, the larger the screen, the more of your dashboard or windshield space the unit gobbles up. The 5-inch screen on the TomTom XXL 540-S is a nice compromise since it's thin and not terribly unwieldy, but is large enough to display easy-to-see type and graphics and ensure accurate on-screen button taps.

Virtually every GPS you buy today will come with preloaded maps for the United States—some also include a combination of Canada, Mexico, or Puerto Rico too. If you need additional maps, you can typically buy them from the device manufacturer and download them via PC or sideload them on an SD card.

Since construction is inevitable and roads are constantly changing, keeping your maps up-to-date is also important. Larger vendors such as TomTom and Garmin include free or one-time-pay map updates for many of their devices. But some companies charge for each map update—and they can be expensive. Be sure to check the map-update policy before you buy.

Along with maps, every GPS comes with an integrated points-of-interest (POI) database so you can find, say, for example, the closest Chinese restaurant, Home Depot, auto body shop, or tourist attraction. POI database sizes can vary wildly, and each device handles searches and delivers results differently. Some are far-reaching and are intuitively designed to serve up logical, accurate results, while others have slim databases and leave you scratching your head, driving in circles trying to find a gas station. Some devices even integrate cellular radios to perform POI searches on the Web, so you get real-time results. (More on connected GPS devices in a minute.) The best way to get a handle on a device's POI handling is to read hands-on reviews.

Voice Control and Other Extras

A handful of GPS models let you speak commands so you can keep your hands on the wheel rather than poking at buttons on the device's touch screen. The most-capable voice-controlled GPS we've seen is Garmin's nüvi 885T. This $275 (street) live-traffic-enabled unit includes a wireless switch that you attach to your steering wheel to activate a listening mode, where it accepts voice commands for most functions. In our tests, the 885T recognized our spoken commands very accurately.

Voice control on the Magellan Maestro 4700, on the other hand, is very limited, and we didn't have much luck getting the feature to work correctly in our tests.

If you want some entertainment with your navigation, many devices include media players that support common audio, photo, and/or video formats for playback from an SD card. A much more practical extra feature, however, is an integrated phone interface, so you can connect your Bluetooth-enabled phone and access your contact list to make hands-free calls through the GPS, rather than wearing a clunky headset. While you'll find this feature on many mid- to high-end GPS models, not all devices support all phones. If this feature is important to you, check the manufacturer's Web site to make sure your phone is compatible before you settle on a device.

FIFA World Cup 2010—3D, HDTV, Cell Phone & Web Viewer's Guide!

2010-06-12T00:40:00.000-07:00

We've compiled the best ways for all you soccer (football) fanatics to watch, listen or track all of the FIFA World Cup 2010 action—whether you're watching online, on your TV, using your phone, or something else.

The world's most popular sport—some call it soccer while many around the world refer to it as football—is about to kick off its most important event. This coming Thursday, June 11th, marks the start of the FIFA World Cup 2010. If you're a fan, the good news is that your four-year wait is almost over. The bad news is that it's likely that many of the games played over the course of the month-long tourney will be on while you're at work. That's why we've set up this mini World Cup guide. We've got the best ways for you watch the games and stay connected to all the action wherever you are.

On Your HDTV

ESPN and ABC have exclusive TV rights to the FIFA World Cup 2010 games in the United States. They're the only way you're going to get the games in HD—for free and in English—this year. Luckily, the games are staggered, for the most part, so there won't be many instances of two games taking place at once.

Watching sports on a flat-panel HDTV can be a trying experience, especially in a fast-paced, constantly-moving contest. If your TV doesn't have a fast response rate, the picture can become blurred when there's a lot of action taking place. In a soccer game, for example, watching a goal kick sail in front of a moving crowd can be a little wonky. To avoid this kind of motion blur, we suggest getting an HDTV with a high response rate—the Sony Bravia KDL-52NX800, for example. It has a response rate of 240 HZ, which is one of the highest on the market right now.

Streaming to Your PC

ESPN will also be broadcasting the games online over its ESPN3 service. Most of the games will be available at ESPN3.com, as long as you subscribe to one of the participating broadband carriers. And there's the rub; several of the major broadband providers are not playing ball with ESPN and will not allow you to stream the games. However, AT&T, Yahoo, Verizon FiOS, Frontier, and Hotwire are playing nice. That said we couldn't find the opening U.S. game versus England on their broadcast schedules.

You can also stream the game from your television to your PC using a Slingbox. The Slingbox PRO-HD media player, for example, lets you watch and control the programming on your TV remotely.

Of course, there are several Web sites that offer unofficial streams of the games (though they're often just someone's webcam pointed at a TV). They're usually shut down quickly by Ustream.com or whoever is hosting them, but new ones usually pop up pretty fast. It's hard to recommend this semi-legal method for obvious reasons and because the picture quality is often terrible.

'Transformers' Fans to Receive a Shock!!!

2010-06-11T23:43:00.000-07:00

The first step to fixing a mistake is admitting a wrong. For his part, Michael Bay has done that verbally.

Bay admitted the second "Transformers" movie deserved some of the negative feedback it received: "I'll take some of the criticism. It was very hard to put (the sequel) together that quickly after the writers' strike [of 2007-2008]."

OK, fair enough. Now he's trying to fix the abomination that was "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" through his actions, too.

Bay revealed in an interview with USA Today two tidbits about the third Transformers film that should make fans happy. First came a decision that should surprise absolutely nobody: The third film is being shot in 3D (even though Bay had hinted in the past that it wouldn't be). In a more surprising announcement, Bay confirmed that fan-favo

rite Shockwave will be a featured villain.

Shockwave has an interesting history as a toy and as a Transformer. Shockwave's mold was originally produced by a company called ToyCo. Hasbro purchased the rights to add him to the Transformers universe, but not before quite a few other companies did the exact same thing.

Shockwave, with a different paint job, appeared in toy stores around Christmastime, confusing many young Transformers fans (including this author) by being sold under names such as "Galactic Man."

As a Transformer, Shockwave -- who could transform into a powerful laser gun -- was left in charge of the Transformer home planet Cybertron as the Autobots (the good robots) and Decepticons (the bad robots) battled against each other on Earth. Shockwave made an admirable and powerful leader in waiting.

Transformers fans will be the first to heed this warning: Don't get too excited about this announcement. Remember when Michael Bay also announced that fan-favorite Soundwave would be featured in the second film? Remember how that turned out? Soundwave, who as a toy transformed into a cassette player, spent about three minutes onscreen (if that) as some sort of spy satellite in "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen."

-webmax

Mandela relative killed after World Cup concert

2010-06-11T23:29:00.000-07:00

It should have been a moment of triumph—Nelson Mandela, basking in the cheers as Africa’s first World Cup opened.

Instead, South Africa’s beloved anti-apartheid icon stayed at home with his family Friday in northern Johannesburg during the opening ceremony and game, mourning his 13-year-old great-granddaughter Zenani, who died in a car crash on the way home from a tournament-eve concert in Soweto.

The Nelson Mandela Foundation said the tragedy “made it inappropriate” for the former president, who is 91, to attend the opening ceremony in Johannesburg.

“We are sure that South Africans and people all over the world will stand in solidarity with Mr. Mandela and his family in the aftermath of this tragedy,” the foundation said, adding that Mandela “will be there with you in spirit today.”

Johannesburg Metro police spokeswoman Edna Mamonyane said the driver of the car had been arrested and charged with drunk driving. Mamonyane said the driver, whom police didn’t identify, could also face homicide charges.

“The Metro police found that he was drunk,” Mamonyane said. “He lost control of the vehicle and it collided with a barricade.”

Police spokesman Govindsamy Mariemuthoo, who earlier said the driver would appear in court for a preliminary hearing Friday, said that had been postponed for further investigations, and that the driver was not being held. Mariemuthoo said that was not unusual.

“It’s a decision of the prosecutor,” he said.

The Mandela foundation denied reports that the former president’s ex-wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela was in the car, but said she was treated in a hospital for shock after being told of the fatal accident. She was discharged after a few hours.

She was on the VIP list for the opening ceremony, and a press box official confirmed she was at Soccer City, but the foundation said later that Madikizela-Mandela did not attend.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, who was in South Africa to lead his country’s delegation to the opening ceremony, were among those who offered condolences.
South African President Jacob Zuma, calling Mandela by his clan name Madiba — a term of affection—referred to the death in the Mandela family in an address to the crowd before the Mexico-South Africa game started.

He said Mandela had wanted to be there, “but unfortunately there was a tragedy in the Mandela family.”

“But he said the game must start. You must enjoy the game,” Zuma added.

Mandela has achieved glory as a politician and human rights campaigner, but suffered many personal tragedies.

In 1969, three years after arriving on Robben Island to serve a life sentence for sabotage, Mandela received a telegram from his younger son, Makgatho, informing him that his eldest son, Madiba Thembekile, died in a car crash.

Prison authorities refused to allow Mandela to attend the funeral.

“I do not have words to express the sorrow, or the loss I felt,” Mandela wrote in his autobiography. “It left a hole in my heart that can never be filled.”

Thirty-six years later, Makgatho died. Mandela announced his last surviving son died of AIDS-related complications, saying the only way to fight the disease’s stigma was to speak openly.

Mandela’s family life suffered during years devoted to politics, as an underground anti-apartheid fighter and in prison. Two marriages fell apart, the second to Winnie. He began his 27-year imprisonment only four years after marrying her.

Mandela was freed in 1990. Four years later, his lifelong battle over apartheid won, he became South Africa’s first black president. He served just one term, then devoted himself to international causes, including fighting AIDS.

He has announced his retirement and desire to devote time to his family several times. Increasingly, those close to him and other South Africans have said the reward for all he has done for his country should now be freedom from the public’s demands.

On his 80th birthday July 18, 1998, he married Graca Machel, a veteran of the anti-colonial struggle in her native Mozambique, former education minister, noted international child rights advocate and widow of Mozambique’s first president, Samora Machel.

Graca Machel once told a television interviewer she helped Mandela reconnect with his family. Family photos released by his foundation Friday showed a relaxed and smiling Mandela with Zenani and other great-grandchildren.

Zenani was one of the anti-apartheid icon’s nine great-grandchildren.
--

Video Chat: How to Get Started

2010-06-04T22:14:00.000-07:00

Not too long ago, video phones were more sci-fi fantasy than reality—something you'd see, for instance, on the popular cartoon, The Jetsons. Then along came broadband Internet.

Suddenly, what was once a technological pipe dream became reality. Not surprisingly, the first few attempts were disappointing.

These days, however, video chats, or calls, are practically mainstream thanks to the proliferation of webcams, and fast Internet connections.

Video chatting is easy—if you know where to look, how to set it up, and how to get all of your friends, family, and co-workers on compatible systems. Here's all the information you need to get started.

Webcams

The cameras used today for most video chats are called webcams, a term that dates back to the days when they were mainly used to show a continuous streaming image of something on a Web page. Today, they're built into just about every laptop. And the free-standing Webcams can do a lot even though they're powered by nothing more than a USB connection.

In fact, most even come with an improved microphone and almost high-definition video capabilities. Don't expect to get that kind of quality with full-motion video on most calls; even a mediocre Internet connection will drop the quality.

Recommended Webcams:

Logitech Webcam C600

$79.99 list

The Logitech Webcam C600 offers 2-megapixel still image capture, clear, 720p HD video recording (even in lower light), crisp audio, and useful bundled software, all for a very reasonable price.

• Read our Logitech Webcam C600 review.

Microsoft LifeCam Cinema

$79.95 list

The Microsoft LifeCam Cinema offers sleek styling and solid video quality, but audio performance isn't this HD webcam's strong suit.

-pcmag

2010 FIFA World Cup

2010-06-03T11:38:00.000-07:00

The 2010 FIFA World Cup will be the 19th FIFA World Cup, the premier international football tournament. It is scheduled to take place between 11 June and 11 July 2010 in South Africa.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup will be the culmination of a qualification process that began in August 2007 and involved 204 of the 208 FIFA national teams. As such, it matches the 2008 Summer Olympics as the sports event with the most competing nations.

This will be the first time that the tournament has been hosted by an African nation, after South Africa beat Morocco and Egypt in an all-African bidding process.

This decision left the Oceania Football Confederation as the only confederation yet to host the FIFA World Cup.

Italy are the defending champions. The draw for the finals took place on 4 December 2009 in Cape Town.

Hero: Clint Eastwood - at 80

2010-05-31T19:27:00.001-07:00

Eighty things you might not know about the octogenarian and Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood

1. His middle name is Elias; he was born on 31 May 1930.

2. His nickname among nurses was Samson: at birth he weighed an eye-watering 12lb 6oz.

3. He should be called Clint Jnr, as he is named after his steelworker dad.

4. Drafted into the army aged 20, he managed to spend the Korean War poolside as an army swimming instructor.

5. Clint claims to have never sworn in front of a woman.

6. Despite spending half his career in the saddle, he is allergic to horses.

7. He has directed 32 films – more than Steven Spielberg or George Lucas.

8. A late bloomer, 10 of these were released in the past decade.

9. Clint met swimsuit model Maggie Johnson on a blind date in June 1953; they married six months later.

10. They divorced in 1984, nine years after separating.

11. Despite his Dirty Harry films, Clint has been very critical of violence in the movies.

12. He intended to study music before being drafted into the US army.
13. Eastwood has 109 film awards, including four Oscars, five Palme d'Ors and two Golden Globes.

14. Gran Torino is the only film in which Eastwood's character is shot dead. The Beguiled (by poison) and Honkytonk Man (tuberculosis) are the only other films in which Clint's character bites the dust.

15. He lost his virginity at 14 and has been called a "serial womaniser".

16. Spike Lee accused him of not casting enough black actors in Flags of Our Fathers. A spat ensued, Clint pleaded historical accuracy.

17. American feminist magazine Bust praised him, however, for casting female actresses in traditionally male roles.

18. In 1954, he auditioned for the lead in The Seven Year Itch but lost out to Tom Ewell who went on to star opposite Marilyn Monroe.

19. His first (uncredited) movie appearance came a year later, in Revenge of the Creature.

20. His only line was: "I've lost my white mouse."

21. In the 1950s, he was the face of Maxim Coffee.

22. He was first choice to play Charles Bronson's part as Harmonica in Sergio Leone's 1968 epic Once Upon a Time in the West, but turned it down.

23. Clint was, at one time, believed to be a vegan.

24. But he denied this, saying: "That's why I don't look at the internet."

25. Customers can tuck into hog's baby back ribs at his Hog's Breath restaurant in the seaside town of Carmel, California, where he lives.

26. He has been known to spend Friday nights manning the restaurant's barbecue.

27. In a 1959 issue of TV Guide, Clint advised readers to "always eat plenty of fruit, vegetables and vitamins and always avoid drinking excess alcohol".

28. Before he hit the big time, he made his living digging swimming pools.

29. Eastwood was also a paper carrier, forest fire-fighter, golf caddy, gas station attendant and bar room piano player.

30. He recites the Greek alphabet to calm his nerves.

31. Harry Callahan's line, "Go ahead, make my day" from Sudden Impact (1983), is the sixth most memorable movie quote ever.

32. Clint successfully ran for mayor of Carmel to overturn a law banning public ice-cream eating.

33. He stood down after one term.

34. An attempt at pop stardom bombed after his 1961 debut single "Unknown Girl" failed to enter the charts.

35. He was so appalled at his performance in Ambush at Cimarron Pass in 1958 that he almost quit acting.

36. In 1976, he called Richard Nixon's handling of the Vietnam War "immoral".

37. That didn't stop him being a card-carrying Republican who supported both presidential campaigns for Richard Nixon.

38. Clint has also supported the Democrats.

39. Director Arthur Lubin first spotted him in 1954, recalling him as "a soft, awkward, hayseed type".

40. His character in the Fistful of Dollars trilogy constantly smokes a cheroot – an unpleasant experience for the militant non-smoker.

41. He has practised Transcendental Meditation every morning for more than two decades.

42. He was the owner of the US's largest bluegum eucalyptus. A taller tree was discovered in 2002.

43. Meryl Streep claimed his Bridges of Madison County filmset was the quietest she'd ever worked on.

44. In 1958, executives at Universal Studios fired Eastwood for having a distractingly large Adam's apple.

45. Eastwood swam three miles to safety after he was in a military air crash in the Pacific Ocean in 1951.

46. His most famous singing role is in 1969's Paint Your Wagon.

47. Since 2002, Eastwood has campaigned against hunting.

48. In 2007, France honoured Eastwood with the Légion d'Honneur.

49. His heritage is English, Irish, Scottish and Dutch.

50. Clint's big break came in 1959 when he was cast as Rowdy Yates in the TV western series Rawhide.

51. He even recorded an album – Rawhide's Clint Eastwood Sings Cowboy Favourites, in 1962.

52. Eastwood married anchorwoman Dina Ruiz – 35 years his junior – in 1996.

53. They met when the 28-year-old Dina interviewed the 63-year-old Clint.

54. Clint and the cast were so cash-strapped on the 1964 movie A Fistful of Dollars that they made their own costumes.

55. Eastwood was fifth choice for the role of The Man With No Name, after Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Ty Hardin, James Coburn and Richard Harrison.

56. He's not been out of work since.

57. It was Harrison who recommended Clint as a cheap actor who could play a cowboy.

58. Harrison later said that turning down the role and recommending Eastwood was his greatest contribution to cinema.

59. Clint still describes himself as a shy kid.

60. Clint retired from acting after 2008's Gran Torino.

61. He learned to play the piano by imitating records.

62. He wrote the love theme, "Doe Eyes", from The Bridges of Madison County for his wife Dina.

63. Chopin is one of his biggest musical influences.

64. In 2005, Clint agreed to supply the voice for a Dirty Harry video game.

65. His favourite food is sushi.

66. He used to play the flugelhorn.

67. His favourite exercise is on a less-than-manly cross-trainer.

68. As a child, his family moved around a lot because his father had to look for work during the Great Depression.

69. All that house-moving left him so lonely that he invented imaginary friends.

70. He loved Freddy the Pig stories about talking barnyard animals.

71. During the Rawhide years Clint cashed in by performing with other cast members at rodeos for as much as $15,000 a time.

72. He is a stolid admirer of Winston Churchill.

73. His passion for jazz led to the 1988 film Bird, about saxophonist Charlie Parker.

74. He had a tempestuous 14-year relationship with Sondra Locke, with whom he co-starred in six films.

75. The actor, famous for wielding a 44 Magnum, supports gun control.

76. He has seven children with five different women.

77. His oldest son, Kyle, was born in 1968. Morgan, his youngest, in 1996.

78. He co-wrote a hit single, "Why Should I Care", for Diana Krall.

79. He sings the closing song in Gran Torino.

80. He has 164 movie credits as a writer, director, actor, producer and composer.

-CowBoy

Security: How to Control Facebook's New Privacy Settings

2010-05-31T19:17:00.000-07:00

After causing a major user backlash, Facebook announced a series of new privacy settings that the social networking site plans to roll out during the course of the next several weeks. The new privacy settings are supposed to simplify the process although some are questioning Facebook’s motives.

Facebook Simplifies Privacy Settings Amid Backlash
Facebook CEO Says Company ‘Missed the Mark’ with Privacy
Young People Care About Privacy, Says Pew Survey
How to Protect Your Child’s Facebook Privacy

If you Google the words "Facebook" and "privacy," you are likely to come up with a few thousand news stories and blog entries. After weeks of talk about everything from government regulation to user boycotts, Facebook officials revamped their site's privacy controls to add a dose of simplicity to what some contended had become too complex a process. The changes will be rolled out to all 400 million of the site’s users in the coming weeks. But what do those changes mean, and what will they look like? Here at eWEEK, we have the answers.Update 5/28: While Zuckerberg's changes have garnered praise in some corners, some privacy groups say the Facebook privacy control updates do not go far enough. The fundamental issue, critics say, is that Facebook's approach to privacy is for users to opt-out of sharing information instead of opting-in.
-ewk

Alice in Wonderland (2010 film)

2010-05-27T00:38:00.001-07:00

Alice in Wonderland is a 2010 fantasy adventure film directed by Tim Burton, written by Linda Woolverton, and starring Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne Hathaway, Crispin Glover, Michael Sheen and Stephen Fry and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It is an extension of Lewis Carroll's novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. The film uses a technique of combining live action and animation.

In the film, Alice is now nineteen years old and accidentally returns to Underland (misheard by Alice and believed to be called Wonderland), a place she visited thirteen years previously. She is told that she is the only one who can slay the Jabberwocky, a dragon-like creature controlled by the Red Queen who terrorizes Underland's inhabitants. Burton said the original Wonderland story was always about a girl wandering around from one weird character to another and he never felt a connection emotionally, so he wanted to make it feel more like a story than a series of events.

He does not see this as a sequel to previous films, nor as a re-imagining. It premiered in London at the Odeon Leicester Square on February 25, 2010, and was released in Australia on March 4, 2010, and the United States and the United Kingdom on March 5, 2010, through IMAX 3D and Disney Digital 3D, as well as in traditional theaters.

The Prince of Persia - Is Jake Gyllenhaal Right for This Blockbuster?

2010-05-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The Prince of Persia videogame franchise has been acclaimed by critics, not only for its innovative gameplay but also for its Middle Eastern protagonist and cast of characters. So it comes as no surprise that Disney’s decision to cast the Swedish-Jewish Jake Gyllenhaal as the titular prince has generated some controversy. Chris Lee of the Los Angeles Times noted recently that the film, which is directed by Mike Newell and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, has rubbed a lot of Asian-Americans the wrong way, since literally “none of its principle cast members are of Iranian, Middle Eastern or Muslim descent.”

And they probably have a right to be upset. Hollywood has a long history of casting white actors in minority roles, and often those characters have been portrayed in stereotypical or offensive ways (Robert Downey Jr. brilliantly satirized this tradition in Tropic Thunder). Still, it’s hard to blame Disney for picking Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, and Alfred Molina to play three of Prince of Persia’s leads; when a studio is investing $200 million (production price people, that's not counting P&A) in a summer movie, they don’t experiment with casting lesser-known, non-white actors. (Of course, there’s reason to hope that paradigm is changing: Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire was a massive box-office success, and NBC’s upcoming fall comedy Outsourced proves that the networks are recognizing the marketability of larger minority casts.)

Disney has tried to preempt the controversy by hiring marketing firm BoomGen Studios during the film’s scripting process to consult on issues of historical accuracy and cultural sensitivity. Their advice: set Prince of Persia in a decontextualized “mythological” age, avoiding the issue of Islam and other touchy subjects altogether (although apparently Gyllenhaal’s greasy hair-do is completely historically accurate!). According to BoomGen’s co-founder Reza Aslan, Prince of Persia should be “the anti-300,” referring to the Zack Snyder flick that caught flack in 2007 for its vilification of Persians. And what about Gyllenhaal’s casting? “Iranians are Aryans,” Aslan said recently. “If we went back in time 1,700 years to the mythological era, all Iranians would look like Jake Gyllenhaal.”

Ha! But even if we accept that the historical Prince was decidedly non-swarthy, I still have some doubts about Gyllenhaal’s casting. Remember, this is the actor who is probably better remembered for his turn as gay cowboy Jack Twist in Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain than for his more macho posturing in Sam Mendes’ Jarhead. I’m not sure how that association is going to play with some American audiences.

But more importantly, has anyone else seen the trailer? Gyllenhaal has all of three questionably pronounced lines – four if you include the breathy “Hassassins!” Which probably means that his accent in the movie is hilariously bad. But it also suggests that the marketing team behind Prince of Persia is cautiously backing away from the film’s leading man. In the trailer we get a lot of Gyllenhaal twirling, flipping, and generally failing to scowl convincingly – but he’s suspiciously quiet, even demure, and overshadowed by Gemma Arterton’s narration. Are the filmmakers hedging their bets by downplaying Gyllenhaal’s role?

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time opened as No. 1 in 18 of the 19 international markets it was released in this weekend, but failed to garner the box office grosses of Kingdom of Heaven or Iron Man, which Disney was using as benchmarks. You can draw whatever conclusion you want from that (studio execs are blaming the heat), but I say Prince of Persia is going to need a little bit of luck domestically to make the kind of money Bruckheimer is gunning for. Then again, what else are you going to watch this weekend, Sex and the City 2? Booo. At least Gyllenhaal and company will be doing something more exciting in the desert than wandering around looking for Cosmos and discussing fake orgasms.

Source: LA Times

Office 2010: Not Your Only Choice

2010-05-22T21:11:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Office 2010 is the obvious choice when it comes to office suites. But is it always the right one? What about Google Docs, OpenOffice.org, Zoho, or Corel WordPerfect Office? Is one of these alternatives right for you?

Microsoft Office 2010 is an impressive, monumental suite of applications. But, let's face it, with every new version Microsoft's juggernaut gets bigger and pricier. And with every new release the question comes up again: do you really need all this? Is it time to jettison Office altogether, and go to one of three main alternatives: a cloud-based application suite like Google Docs (or the less-famous Zoho), a free or low-priced Office workalike such as OpenOffice.org, or even a suite that works very differently from Office, such as Corel WordPerfect Office X5? For some readers, Office 2010 is definitely the right choice: check out Samara Lynn's Analyst's View: 6 Reasons Your SMB Might Choose Office 2010 Over Google Apps for Business. But that doesn't mean it's the right for everyone. We've examined the best of the competition to help you decide.

GoogleDocs This cloud-based service is a terrific choice for editing simple Word documents from someone else's computer, or when you're carrying only a lightweight netbook without Office installed. As a complete replacement for Office, it's only ideal for users with minimal needs for advanced formatting and long-document features, users who'll never need to use endnotes or cross-references (as in "see page 9," where the correct page number is inserted by the word-processor), and who'll never need to print an envelope or send out mass mailings. Google Docs automatically keeps track of your revisions—no need to turn on tracking, as in Office—but GoogleDocs won't satisfy anyone who wants tight control over formatting or who needs to write anything more complex than a term paper. Also, are you really sure you want to leave your documents in the cloud, subject to Google's occasional outages or those times when you can't find a connection to the Internet? I don't want to trust my data to the cloud, and unless your data is worthless to you, I don't think you should trust it there either. For most users, I recommend Google Docs as an adjunct to Office, not a replacement. Note: Cloud-computing fans who want to avoid Google can try Zoho, but they're the only people I'd recommend it for; while Zoho has a richer feature set, it's far harder to use.

OpenOffice.org This suite is free, powerful, and compatible with almost all Office documents, but it's clumsy to navigate, and it lacks dozens of conveniences that make Microsoft Office worth having. On the other hand, it doesn't try to format your documents for you the way Word does, and if you're comfortable with the old menu interface in Word 97 through Word 2003, you can still use it in OpenOffice.org. Also, if you're ideologically committed to open-source software, OpenOffice.org is the least bad choice. OpenOffice.org still looks and feels like a last-century application, and it contains import filters that let it open dozens of ancient document formats that Office can't handle. If you even need to work with old documents that nothing else can open, OpenOffice.org is an essential feature in your toolbox. But the main reasons anyone would use it instead of Microsoft Office are price and open-source ideology.
Corel WordPerfect WordPerfect is the only surviving alternative of note to the Microsoft Word way of organizing documents, and the only word processor that gives you clear and simple control over the way your documents are formatted. With WordPerfect, all formatting is controlled by codes that (for example) turn on double-spacing and then turn it off again. When you move, modify, or delete one of these codes in WordPerfect's Reveal Codes window, you control exactly where your document's formatting will change, and exactly how. You won't get the kind of surprises you get in Microsoft Word when you delete a specially-formatted paragraph and other paragraphs suddenly change format. WordPerfect retains its last-century interface and overloaded menus, but it's by far the best program for managing long documents, and it includes security features like redaction that Word still doesn't offer. It isn't for everyone, but plenty of legal and government offices rightly refuse to settle for anything else.
Mac Users If you need a desktop suite, your best fully-functional suite is still the disappointing Microsoft Office for Mac 2008. If you don't need quite so much office power, you'd probably be far happier with iWork '09—at least until Microsoft Office for Mac 2010 is released sometime later this year.
To read the full texts of all our office suite reviews, click through the links below. Make sure to tell us which office suite you prefer (and why) in the comments section.
--------------------------------

Corel WordPerfect Office X5 Standard Edition
$249 (street)

For WordPerfect's many government and legal clients, WordPerfect Office X5 is the best upgrade in years; but for home and SOHO users, it's not an essential upgrade from previous versions.

Google Docs/Google Apps
Google Docs: Free/Google Apps: $50 per year per user

Google Docs is good enough for uncomplicated documents and worksheets, especially when a group of people need to make changes in a document, but not so much for serious work. It also has the built-in security and reliability risks of all cloud-based services.

iWork '09
$79 (direct)

Apple's productivity suite isn't yet a replacement for Microsoft Office for the Mac, but iWork '09 offers a terrific set of programs for light word processing and medium-to-heavy spreadsheet use. And the stellar Keynote presentation app leaves the competition in the dust.

Microsoft Office 2007
$399 (street, for Professional)

Office is like the weather—you can't get away from it—but the 2007 version combines power, ease of use, and visual clarity in ways that leave earlier versions far behind. If money's you're happy with Office 2007, you might want to stick with it, unless you truly need one of the new features in Office 2010.

Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac
$399 (list)

A disappointing upgrade, with almost no must-have improvements. Stick with Office 2004 unless you absolutely need some feature of the new version.

Microsoft Office 2010
$499 (direct, for the full Professional Version)

Office 2010 is a dazzlingly attractive upgrade, but probably essential only for enterprise customers who need the new collaboration features.

OpenOffice.org
Free

OpenOffice.org is the best, cheapest desktop alternative to Microsoft Office, but there's no need to switch if you don't require open-source software and you've already paid for a copy of Microsoft's suite.

Zoho
Free

This smorgasbord of free online services has more functions than any other MS Office alternative, but that doesn't add up to a best-of-breed service.

----pcmag

Apple iPad App Store Opens for Business!

2010-04-02T23:44:00.000-07:00

Apple has opened up the iPad App Store floodgates, with hundreds if not thousands of apps to get purchasers of the new iPad started.

From the looks of it, there'll be no shortage of apps to get users started when the tablet goes on sale tomorrow. There are a number of high profile developers in this first round, including eBay, IMDB, Netflix, NPR, Disney, ABC, Electronic Arts, the NBA, Cisco, Weather Bug, Yahoo, and Warner Bros.

A cursory glance at the store all reveals that, while there are, in fact, some free apps in the store (including, notably, Shazam and Twitterific), the average iPad app looks to be a good deal more expensive than the standard iPhone app. Take, for example. EA's Need for Speed Shift, which runs $14.99 in its iPad incarnation, 150 percent of the price of its iPhone counterpart.

-pcmag.

Top 5 Business Laptops!

2010-04-02T23:21:00.000-07:00

Looking for a durable, powerful, portable, business laptop that can last through a cross-country flight? These are the best business laptops you can buy.

Finding a great laptop for work is serious business. After all, you need something that's durable, secure, powerful, light, and can last through an intercontinental flight. With the countless options available, it can be a daunting task to find the perfect one. Fortunately for you, we have already found the top five business laptops on the market today.

If weight is the biggest factor in your buying decision, then you couldn't do better than the Sony VAIO VPC-Z116GXS ($1,800 direct, ), our Editors' Choice for ultraportables. It weighs a scant 3 pounds, and runs a powerful Intel Core i5 CPU. Add to that switchable graphics and support for two solid state drives (our review unit came with only one 256GB SSD), and you've got the lightest and most powerful ultraportables around

Another ultraportable laptop that should be on your short list is the Lenovo ThinkPad X201 ($1,625 direct, ). While it might be mistaken for a netbook, given its 12-inch screen and tiny footprint, it's a lot more powerful. It packs a Intel Core i5 540M CPU. And because of a big battery, its battery life is an impressive 9 hours 36 minutes.

The HP Elitebook 2540p ($1,629 direct, ) also sports a 12-inch screen, but comes with a low-voltage Intel Core i7 CPU to maximize the system's battery life (8 hours 2 minutes, in this case). The chassis design is both aesthetically pleasing (with aluminum metals on its lid) and ruggedized for travel. Like the Lenovo X201, it sports dual pointing devices (pointing stick and touchpad), and it also has a full-size keyboard.

Those who crave a feature-packed business laptop will want to take a serious look at our Editors' Choice for business laptops, the Lenovo ThinkPad T410 ($1,484 direct, ). While its design is pretty bland, it's what's inside that impresses. It features a strong inner framework and shock-proof component protection. With its 2.53GHz Intel Core i5-540M processor, 4GB of DDR3 memory, and Nvidia Quadro NVS 3100M graphics chipset, it made short work of graphics and CPU-intensive tasks. This much performance comes at the price of battery life; the T410 scored 5 hours 30 minutes on MobileMark 2007, though this is still respectable for most daily commuters.

For those looking for a business laptop that's both pleasing to look at and powerful to use, the HP EliteBook 8440w ($1,650 direct, ) is one to check out. Like the HP 2540p, it's ruggedized for travel, and it features a dual-core Intel Core i7 processor, workstation-class Nvidia graphics, and speedy hard drives. Like the Lenovo T410, it features a 14-inch screen and a big 9-cell battery. Its "fully-loaded" feature set includes 4 USB ports, FireWire, an ExpressCard slot, and a multimedia card reader. The HP 8440w adds a standard 3-year warranty to sweeten the deal.

So there you have it, five laptops that will definitely get you working. One of them is sure to be good for (your) business.

-pcmag.

10 Places NOT to Use Your Debit Card!

2010-03-20T22:08:00.000-07:00

Debit cards have different protections and uses. Sometimes they're not the best choice.

Sometimes reaching for your wallet is like a multiple choice test: How do you really want to pay?

While credit cards and debit cards may look almost identical, not all plastic is the same.

"It's important that consumers understand the difference between a debit card and a credit card," says John Breyault, director of the Fraud Center for the National Consumers League, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group. "There's a difference in how the transactions are processed and the protections offered to consumers when they use them."

While debit cards and credit cards each have advantages, each is also better suited to certain situations. And since a debit card is a direct line to your bank account, there are places where it can be wise to avoid handing it over -- if for no other reason than complete peace of mind.

Here are 10 places and situations where it can pay to leave that debit card in your wallet:

1. Online

"You don't use a debit card online," says Susan Tiffany, director of consumer periodicals for the Credit Union National Association. Since the debit card links directly to a checking account, "you have potential vulnerability there," she says.

Her reasoning: If you have problems with a purchase or the card number gets hijacked, a debit card is "vulnerable because it happens to be linked to an account," says Linda Foley, founder of the Identity Theft Resource Center. She also includes phone orders in this category.

The Federal Reserve's Regulation E (commonly dubbed Reg E), covers debit card transfers. It sets a consumer's liability for fraudulent purchases at $50, provided they notify the bank within two days of discovering that their card or card number has been stolen.

Most banks have additional voluntary policies that set their own customers' liability with debit cards at $0, says Nessa Feddis, vice president and senior counsel for the American Bankers Association.

But the protections don't relieve consumers of hassle: The prospect of trying to get money put back into their bank account, and the problems that a lower-than-expected balance can cause in terms of fees and refused checks or payments, make some online shoppers reach first for credit cards.

2. Big-Ticket Items

With a big ticket item, a credit card is safer, says Chi Chi Wu, staff attorney with the National Consumer Law Center. A credit card offers dispute rights if something goes wrong with the merchandise or the purchase, she says.

"With a debit card, you have fewer protections," she says.

In addition, some cards will also offer extended warrantees. And in some situations, such as buying electronics or renting a car, some credit cards also offer additional property insurance to cover the item.

Two caveats, says Wu. Don't carry a balance. Otherwise, you also risk paying some high-ticket interest. And "avoid store cards with deferred interest," Wu advises.

3. Deposit Required

When Peter Garuccio recently rented some home improvement equipment at a big-box store, it required a sizable deposit. "This is where you want to use a credit card instead of a debit," says Garuccio, spokesman for the national trade group American Bankers Association.

That way, the store has its security deposit, and you still have access to all of the money in your bank account. With any luck, you'll never actually have to part with a dollar.

4. Restaurants

"To me, it's dangerous," says Gary Foreman, editor of the frugality minded Web site The Dollar Stretcher. "You have so many people around."

Foreman bases his conclusions on what he hears from readers. "Anecdotally, the cases that I'm hearing of credit or debit information being stolen, as often as not, it's in a restaurant," he says.

The danger: Restaurants are one of the few places where you have to let cards leave your sight when you use them. But others think that avoiding such situations is not workable.

The "conventional advice of 'don't let the card out of your sight' -- that's just not practical," says Tiffany.

The other problem with using a debit card at restaurants: Some establishments will approve the card for more than your purchase amount because, presumably, you intend to leave a tip. So the amount of money frozen for the transaction could be quite a bit more than the amount of your tab. And it could be a few days before you get the cash back in your account.

5. You're a New Customer

Online or in the real world, if you're a first-time customer in a store, skip the debit card the first couple of times you buy, says Breyault.

That way, you get a feel for how the business is run, how you're treated and the quality of the merchandise before you hand over a card that links to your checking account.

6. Buy Now, Take Delivery Later

Buying now but taking delivery days or weeks from now? A credit card offers dispute rights that a debit card typically does not.

"It may be an outfit you're familiar with and trust, but something might go wrong," says Breyault, "and you need protection."

But be aware that some cards will limit the protection to a specific time period, says Feddis. So settle any problems as soon as possible.

7. Recurring Payments

We've all heard the urban legend about the gym that won't stop billing an ex-member's credit card. Now imagine the charges aren't going onto your card, but instead coming right out of your bank account.

Another reason not to use the debit card for recurring charges: your own memory and math skills. Forget to deduct that automatic bill payment from your checkbook one month, and you could either face fees or embarrassment (depending on whether you've opted to allow overdrafting or not). So if you don't keep a cash buffer in your account, "to protect yourself from over-limit fees, you may want to think about using a credit card" for recurring payments, says Breyault.

8. Future Travel

Book your travel with a check card, and "they debit it immediately," says Foley. So if you're buying travel that you won't use for six months or making a reservation for a few weeks from now, you'll be out the money immediately.

Another factor that bothers Foley: Hotels aren't immune to hackers and data breaches, and several name-brand establishments have suffered the problem recently. Do you want your debit card information "to sit in a system for four months, waiting for you to arrive?" she asks. "I would not."

9. Gas Stations and Hotels

This one depends on the individual business. Some gas stations and hotels will place holds to cover customers who may leave without settling the entire bill. That means that even though you only bought $10 in gas, you could have a temporary bank hold for $50 to $100, says Tiffany.

Ditto hotels, where there are sometimes holds or deposits in the hundreds to make sure you don't run up a long distance bill, empty the mini bar or trash the room. The practice is almost unnoticeable if you're using credit, but can be problematic if you're using a debit card and have just enough in the account to cover what you need.

At hotels, ask about deposits and holds before you present your card, says Feddis. At the pump, select the pin-number option, she says, which should debit only the amount you've actually spent.

10. Checkouts or ATMs That Look 'Off'

Criminals are getting better with skimmers and planting them in places you'd never suspect -- like ATM machines on bank property, says Foley.

So take a good look at the machine or card reader the next time you use an ATM or self-check lane, she advises. Does the machine fit together well or does something look off, different or like it doesn't quite belong? Says Foley, "Make sure it doesn't look like it's been tampered with."

ZigBee to Run Over Wi-Fi, Too

2010-03-18T06:00:00.000-07:00

The ZigBee Alliance said Wednesday that its Smart Energy 2.0 protocol for Smart Grid-enabled homes will run on Wi-Fi, in addition to its own low-power network.

Originally, the first-generation Smart Energy technology was designed to run just on the low-power ZigBee protocol. But the Alliance later added HomePlug and then Wi-Fi as transport mechanisms, to allow customers and solutions providers greater flexibility.

"ZigBee has always interworked with Wi-Fi using ZigBee and Wi-Fi gateways. Now there is an opportunity for the organizations to collaborate more closely for the smart home of the future, leveraging the intelligence of ZigBee Smart Energy," said Bob Heile, ZigBee Alliance chairman, in a statement. "Wi-Fi is a major global success and an important wireless networking technology for the home environment. Our collaboration will help spur further innovation in solutions for the Smart Grid."

ZigBee was formed as a low-power protocol for so-called Home Area Networks, a network of low-power sensors inside so-called "smart homes" that can settle into a prolonged sleep modes to preserve power. The specification was ratified in 2004.
-pcmag

Google-Powered Google TV" Set-top Box Concept Surfaces Again

2010-03-18T05:55:00.000-07:00

A little more than a week ago, The Wall Street Journal reported that Google and DISH Network had begun testing a set-top box that uses Google as a search algorithm. In a story published late Wednesday, The New York Times went a step further, claiming that a "Google TV" platform is in the works, from Intel, Google, Sony and Logitech.

The Times reported that the Google service will run on Atom-powered set-top boxes, and that Logitech is developing complementary remote controls. The Google TV platform will be opened to third-party developers to write their own plug-ins, as they have for the Android platform, the paper reported.

Given the two complementary reports from two of the major daily papers, it seems logical to assume that Google is likely leaking the news ahead of a launch. Furthermore, the open platform concept seems to be in keeping with Google's strategy.

Sony apparently will manufacture the set-top boxes, although I have yet to see a mass-market Sony set-top besides the PlayStation 3.

EDIT: I wrote earlier that, since the announcement of a plug-in TV widget technology with Intel in 2008, a Yahoo-Intel partnership for developing widgets on set-top boxes has been extremely quiet. Yahoo representatives have pointed out that the company has announced partnerships with Vizio, LG, Sony, and Samsung.
-pcmag

God of War III

2010-03-12T03:49:00.001-08:00

It is a fact of the universe that every review of a God of War game is going to have the word "epic" in its opening sentences, and this review is no different. God of War III ($59.99, list, PS3 only) is colossal, bigger-than-life, and redefines the limits of video game scale—it's epic in both plotline and technical prowess. The opening moments of the game have more action and high drama than some other games' climaxes, as the player—controlling the very bald, very pale, and very angry Kratos—rides to conquer Mount Olympus on the back of a nearly-mountain-sized-herself Titan. Massive set pieces like this are the hallmark of the series, and the series' move to next-gen on the PS3 ($399.99 direct, ) allows them to be truly stunning in scope.

The storyline picks up directly where God of War II left off in its cliffhanger climax, following Kratos's quest to kill his father, the god Zeus. Those who haven't played the games leading up to this one will be able to pick up the basic thread of the plot quickly: Kratos is angry at Zeus (possibly the angriest anyone has ever been, judging from the way his voice actor growls and screams), and he will kill anything and everything in his path to get his revenge on Zeus. What's he getting revenge for? He has good reasons, but in the end, they don't really matter; while God of War III's plotline is full of betrayal and famous faces from Greek myth, no one is actually coming to this game for the story—they're playing for the action, and the game does not disappoint in that respect.

Combat is primarily a two-button deal, alternating between light and heavy attacks and performing combinations of the two. On an easier difficulty setting, one can get through the game by gleefully and aimlessly button mashing, but at higher levels, some tactics, like blocking, dodging, and timing your hits, come into play. No matter the difficulty level, combat is brutal and satisfying; Kratos is a one-man army against hordes of enemies, taking them out with the twin blades that swing out from his wrists on chains, with brutal punches from giant stone gloves, and with other weapons and special attacks.

When it comes to larger enemies—the gorgons and centaurs and cyclopses that rise above the more easily-dispatched undead horde—Kratos has the option of dispatching them in violent and gory ways unique to each enemy class, with timed button-presses following prompts that appear onscreen. These minigames get a little repetitive, especially once you've seen the same animation of a minotaur getting a sword rammed into its throat six times, but it's hard to resist going for the gore.

God of War III absolutely earns its Mature rating. It elevates violence almost to an art form; on the way to take down Zeus, Kratos murders his way through other Olympians and stars of myth, each more bloody and shocking than the last. The game is not for the squeamish or those who don't enjoy some simulated violence; when you beat Hercules's head into a nigh-unrecognizable pulp, you have to pound a button for each skull-crushing blow. When blood is not enough, the game offers some nudity, as well. Bare breasts abound (though most of them in the form of less-than-sexy gorgons, harpies, and sirens), and there is a sexual mini-game featuring the goddess Aphrodite. Simply put, God of War III is for adults only in every way.

There isn't much to find flaw with in God of War III. The largest complaint that can be made is that gameplay just hasn't changed much from its previous iterations; some new elements have been added, but the game stays the same at its core. However, when it comes to God of War III, it's a definite case of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." The game simply works, a basic formula refined over several games. Quicktime events can become a little tiresome or are sometimes out of place (one puzzle involves a Guitar Hero—esque rhythm mini-game), but for the most part they're well-integrated into the flow of action.

In the end, God of War III brings the series to a stunning climax, finally giving PS3 owners a game-based justification for buying their console.
-pcmag.

Oscars 2010 Results | Oscar Winners 2010 list!!!

2010-03-08T18:20:00.000-08:00

Oscars 2010 Results | Oscar Winners 2010 list – The Hurt Locker won big and garnered a total of 6 Academy Awards, including best picture, in the 82 Academy Awards held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.
The Best Picture went to The Hurt Locker which bested movies such as Avatar, The Blind Side, District 9, An Education, Inglourious Basterds, Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire, A Serious Man, Up and Up in the Air.
The Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow beat her ex-husband, James Cameron, to the Best Director prize. Mark Boalwon Best Original Screenplay for “The Hurt Locker”.
Jeff Bridges, Sanda Bullock, Christoph Waltz and Mo’Nique won their first Academy award. Bridges won the Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role in Crazy Heart as Otis “Bad” Blake. Bullock won Best Actress in a Leading Role for her role in The Blind Side as Leigh Anne Tuohy. Christoph Waltz won the Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in Inglourious Basterds as Col. Hans Landa. Mo’Nique won Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her role in Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire as Mary Lee Johnston.
Here are the other Academy Awards given that night:
The American drama film Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire won Best Adapted Screenplay. Up won Best Animated Feature and El Secreto de Sus Ojos (Argentina) won Best Foreign Language Film.
Art Direction – Avatar (Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg- Art Direction; Kim Sinclair- Set Decoration)
Cinematography – Avatar (Mauro Fiore)
Costume Design – The Young Victoria (Sandy Powell)
Documentary Feature – The Cove (Louie Psihoyos and Fisher Stevens)
Documentary Short – Music by Prudence (Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett)
Film Editing – The Hurt Locker (Bob Murawski and Chris Innis)
Makeup – Star Trek (Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow)
Music (Original Score) – Up (Michael Giacchino)
Music (Original Song) – Crazy Heart (“The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)”; Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett
Short Film (Animated) – Logorama (Nicolas Schmerkin)
Short Film (Live Action) – The New Tenants (Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson)
Sound Editing – The Hurt Locker (Paul N.J. Ottosson)
Sound Mixing – The Hurt Locker (Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett)
Visual Effects – Avatar (Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones)

Microsoft Announces Free Office 2010 Upgrade!

2010-03-06T18:58:00.000-08:00

Microsoft kicked off its "Technology Guarantee" program for Office 2010 on Friday, meaning that anyone who buys and activates Office 2007 between now and Sept. 30 will get to upgrade to Office 2010 for free when it's available.
Microsoft also confirmed Friday that Office 2010, SharePoint 2010, Visio 2010, and Project 2010 are "on schedule and will release to manufacturing (RTM) next month."

he business launch for the 2010 set of products is May 12. Consumers will see it hit shelves in June. For now, the beta is available at www.office.com/beta.

To be eligible for the Office 2010 Tech Guarantee program, users must purchase a standalone version of Office 2007 or a new PC with the software between March 5 and Sept. 30. They must also have or create a Windows Live ID and redeem the Tech Guarantee before Oct. 31 by visiting www.office.com/techg.

The upgrade will be distributed through an online download.

-Pcmag

HP Jumps Back Into the Camera Business!

2010-02-25T18:19:00.000-08:00

Hewlett-Packard has not introduced new digital cameras since 2007, but after spending some time with their 2010 lineup of cameras and a pocket HD camcorder at PMA, it appears that their most compelling feature is the price point.

The HP CW450 is the least expensive of the bunch at just $99. The camera is powered by AA batteries, does 12.2 megapixel captures, includes 4x optical zoom, and has a 2.7-inch LCD. For just $9 more, you can step up to the HP CW460t, a nearly identical device that incorporates touch into its 2.7-inch LCD.

The thinner models, which use rechargeable lithium batteries, start at $129 with the HP SW450. It also has a 2.7-inch LCD, 4x optical zoom, and 12.2 megapixel captures.

The most expensive models are priced at $149. The HP PW550 does 12.2 megapixel captures, has 5x optical zoom on a 28mm lens, a 2.7-inch LCD, and a rechargeable lithium battery. The HP PW460t does 12.2 megapixel captures but uses a 29mm 4x optical zoom lens and has a 3-inch touch LCD.

All the models have the same inexpensive, plastic feel, which is in line with what you'd expect at these price points.

HP also unveiled a pocket HD camcorder, the HP V1020h, which is priced at $109. It captures 720p30 video, is powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, and has a 2.5-inch LCD. There's also an HDMI port and an HDMI cable (included) for digital connectivity to HDTVs for playback.

-pcmag

Canada vs. U.S.: Who Will Win in Wireless?

2010-02-18T01:04:00.000-08:00

If you think Americans have had a tough time with their cell phone carriers, you haven't heard about Canada's woes. For years, Canada was a somnolent mobile desert, ruled by a slow-moving oligopoly of wireless carriers that often cloned U.S. product lines and required three-year contracts.

But over the past year, something very radical happened in the land of maple-flavored toques.* First, all three of the country's major carriers (and some minor players) started building HSPA+ networks. Then, since they were all using the same standard, they started competing on phones. And now, with fearless new companies coming into the game, plan prices are starting to come down, too. If this trend continues, Americans may soon be headed up north to smuggle cool phones across the border, rather than the other way around.
Here are three lessons the U.S. needs to learn before we become a mobile backwater compared to our Molson-swigging neighbors.

Lesson 1: Standards are great for consumers. Here in the U.S., we have a wide array of different wireless networks: HSPA 7.2, HSPA+, CDMA, iDEN, and WiMAX. That made sense when the networks were being built, but now it just throws up a bunch of barriers to competition and choice. Most of the world has standardized on HSPA+ and the upcoming LTE, which makes it more difficult for the CDMA, iDEN, and WiMAX carriers (that's everyone but AT&T and T-Mobile) to tap into the wide world of phones, iPads, and such.

The advantage of using a common standard is most clearly shown by the fact that now, in Canada, there are three carriers that offer the iPhone. Three. Competition! We don't have that here, in part, because our number one, three, five, six, and seven carriers all use CDMA. Apparently, Apple doesn't want to build a CDMA iPhone just for the U.S. and a few other countries, or throw over AT&T just to gain access to the #number four carrier.

Some of this will straighten itself out as Verizon, AT&T, MetroPCS, and T-Mobile all move to the next-generation LTE system over the next several years. But that's "over the next several years," and it still leaves Sprint scouring the globe for the occasional WiMAX device hidden under Motorola's couch cushions.

Interestingly, the HSPA+ transition in Canada wasn't mandated by the government. It was a business decision on the carriers' parts.

Now, this could all turn around again; we don't know how quickly the Canadians will be able to transition from HSPA+ to LTE. But for now, they have the upper hand.

Lesson 2: The consumer, not the operator, should be the customer. Right now, in the U.S., consumers are not the customers for mobile phones. This sounds weird, but it's true. Because of our huge wireless carriers and oddball standards, manufacturers are constantly kowtowing to operators not consumers. Even Apple does this; otherwise you'd be able to tether your iPhone by now.

In Canada, we're starting to see global-standard phones, such as the Nokia N-series, the Sony Ericsson Xperias, and the LG New Chocolate, that haven't been heavily tampered with by carriers. That's going to result in some exciting choices for Canadians.

This isn't just about Canadian carriers all going to global HSPA+. Canadian carriers are much smaller than AT&T and Verizon (think one-tenth the size) so they have less buying power. But I think it's safe to say that when carriers spec out phones, consumers lose. I'm not sure how to stop the carriers from interfering with phone features and choices in the U.S.

Lesson 3: More spectrum and more entrants equals a better market. The HSPA+ revolution in Canada created competition between networks and handset makers, but it didn't do much for service plans. Now, two new entrants, WIND and Mobilicity, are beginning to make waves with low-cost, no-contract plans combined with surprisingly powerful phones.

This is what Cricket, Boost, and MetroPCS have done for a while in the U.S., of course. But while our low-cost carriers have been curiously tentative about the fast-growing smartphone market, three out of four of WIND's currently available phones are smartphones. Just as WIND gets up and running, Mobilicity will hit the Canadian market and then there's Quebec's Videotron too.

A continual flow of new entrants with new ideas keeps the big guys from falling asleep at the wheel. While the U.S. has zero chance of seeing any truly new wireless carriers soon, we could get a similar shot in the arm if some of our smaller carriers merged to play in the top five. A combined MetroPCS/Cricket or a U.S. Cellular/Alltel/Revol merger could definitely throw our top four carriers off guard. Then maybe we'd have some lessons to teach those Canadians again.

-pcmag.

Canadian Privacy Office Eyes Google Buzz!

2010-02-18T00:56:00.000-08:00

Canada's privacy commissioner has promised to examine charges that the Google Buzz protocol may violate the country's privacy laws.
In a statement released on Wednesday, Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart said that she had asked Google to explain how Buzz had addressed Canada's privacy issues.

"We have seen a storm of protest and outrage over alleged privacy violations and my Office also has questions about how Google Buzz has met the requirements of privacy law in Canada," Commissioner Stoddart said in a statement.

The commissioner said that she had held a conference call with Google to explain her concerns, which included the fact that Google had not consulted with the office before launching the product in Canada. Google simultaneously made Buzz available to estimated 146 million users last week.

Buzz has come under fire because, at launch, the service instantly tied users to frequent Gmail contacts as part of the Buzz program. Since Buzz allows other users to "follow" other users without permission, those contacts were exposed to the world. Bloggers and journalists worried about exposing sources and other private relationships.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center filed a complaint against Google in the U.S., seeking an injunction or other relief to counter Buzz. EPIC asked the Federal Trade Commission to make Google Buzz entirely opt-in, and allow users to accept or reject followers.

Although Google's headquarters are in the United States, Canada's privacy office has forced rivals to make sweeping changes. In August 2009, the office criticized Facebook, saying it did not do enough to protect user privacy. In response, Facebook pledged to embark on a year-long overhaul if its privacy practices, revamping and then rolling out the updated policy in November.

On Tuesday, Google pledged to continue to make "improvements" in the Buzz technology. ""User transparency and control are top of mind for us, and we review all products carefully before we roll them out," Bradley Horowitz, vice president of product management, said in a statement released by a Google spokeswoman. "When we realized that we'd unintentionally made many of our users unhappy, we moved quickly to make significant product improvements to address their concerns. We'll continue to make more improvements in dialog with our users."

To date, Horowitz's only Buzz post has been a reiteration of what Horowitz said he said at the Buzz launch.

"I want to let you know today that we're just getting started. We're not launching this today because we think we're 'done'... We don't think that's how a product like this is built," Horowitz posted. "You don't pull of the covers on a completely finished work. We're launching this today, because we're just getting started... There's so much opportunity... rather than... 'navel-gazing' we're going to put the product in market and we're going to get in dialog with our users... our developers... and help inform the trajectory of the product based on real data from 'in the field' experience."

Others pointed out that the rush to market was uncharacteristic of Google. "It's called a beta program," Mike Elgan wrote, responding to Horowitz via Buzz. "I don't understand why you called Gmail "beta" for five years, but didn't call Buzz "beta" for five minutes. Gmail obviously wasn't beta in the final few years of the so-called "beta" program, and Buzz obviously is beta. Can you explain this?"

-pcmag.

Dinosaurs: American Museum of Natural History Collections (for iPhone)

2010-02-16T06:18:00.000-08:00

When the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) announced its Dinosaurs: American Museum of Natural History Collections free app for the iPhone, I wasted no time in downloading it, having spent many pleasant hours over the years in the museum's dinosaur halls looking at the magnificent fossil collection. I think it's a worthy addition to the iPhone of any dinosaur fan.

On opening the app, you encounter a photo of the museum's Tyrannosaurus rex head. Clicking on it takes you to a stunning color photo mosaic of a T. rex head that's composed of more than 800 images from the Museum's archive. Double-tapping or stretching the mosaic will let you zoom in on individual images, which include photos of the fossils both on exhibit and in their collection; drawings; dioramas; photos of dinosaur digs showing the terrain, paleontologists, and fossils in the ground; photos and correspondence from the museum's famous paleontologists (such as the letter by Barnum Brown announcing the discovery of T. rex in 1902); and a world map showing how the continents looked in the late Cretaceous.

You can either zoom in on images from the mosaic, or once you're in an image, go to adjacent ones by flicking either left, right, up, or down. It would be nice if there were a search function, so you could locate images of particular dinosaurs.

Features and Interface

In the upper right hand corner of each image is an Info button. Clicking on it reveals a title and caption for the image, as well as the photographer's name. You can also add a comment. But there are multiple copies of at least some of the images within the mosaic, for instance, the feathered velociraptor and the raptor claw. I'd uploaded a comment for the feathered raptor image, and when I checked back later my comment hadn't been posted, but someone else's had. Now when I look, I find at least three copies of the same raptor image, none of which have any comments. Did I miss the one with the comment? Or had it been deleted? I couldn't tell.
You can e-mail an image to a friend (or to yourself). Unfortunately, the top center of the image is watermarked with an ad: "Dinosaurs—Now Available on the iTunes App Store."

Tapping the bottom of the screen brings up a menu with three options: Mosaic, Stories, and About. The Mosaic button takes you back to the full T. rex mosaic. Stories takes you to a menu listing the names of individual dinosaurs. There are currently only six stories: T. rex, Velociraptor, and four relatively obscure dinosaurs. (The skeleton of one of them, Barosaurus, is prominently displayed in the museum entrance's lobby, though I doubt many people know it by name.) The stories provide more in-depth info about the creature and are augmented by additional photographs, drawings, and maps. The AMNH has promised additional stories to augment the sparse selection.

I could see them adding additional stories not tied to particular species; an example might be the difference between Saurischian (lizard-hipped) and Ornithischian (bird-hipped) dinosaurs, seeing that the AMNH's two main dinosaur halls are segregated into these two groups. The AMNH also plans to add additional images and info to the mosaic. The About button gives you instructions and detail about the app.

This free app should appeal to anyone with even a passing interest in dinosaurs. It's worth downloading just for the cool mosaic itself. I hope it serves as inspiration for other museums' apps.

-pcmag

Indian Premier League 2010 - Bidding - Photos

2010-02-16T06:03:00.000-08:00

Only T20I: Australia v Pakistan at Melbourne Feb 5, 2010

2010-02-05T04:54:00.000-08:00

What a game, absolutely riveting. Pakistan did so well to shoot Australia out for 127 but their batting, apart from Kamran, was abysmal against a very determined attack. Tait was quick, very quick, and his three wickets for 13 runs were incredibly crucial to Australia winning. Nannes was Nannes, Johnson came back after a horror first over, and Watson varied his pace and used those cutters to good effect. Smith, the rookie, struck two big blows on debut. Australia's fielding was sharp and Pakistan choked. Kamran's blazing fifty had them on course, despite four early wickets, but Pakistan managed to let this one go against a superb outfit. After Kamran's 64 the next best was 21 from his brother.

So Pakistan leave Australia without a single win. Another poor tour Down Under.