tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22643093543805368822024-02-19T00:30:38.705-10:00All Old NewsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3861125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-78803575537868435552013-06-12T10:50:00.000-10:002013-06-12T11:01:53.942-10:00Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. caseMonday, May 24, 2010
<br> ISLAMABAD &ndash; Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
<br> They said during a news conference Sunday they are concerned the men were mistakenly targeted because they are devout Muslims.
<br> They demanded the government either officially charge the men or release them.
<br> The three have been in custody at least two weeks. They are among at least six men who have been detained in Pakistan for alleged ties to Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani-American arrested in the United States two days after the failed May 1 attack in New York.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-41777797689589507562013-06-12T10:48:00.000-10:002013-06-12T11:00:09.651-10:00Taiwan denies boycotting Australian film festivalThursday, August 6, 2009
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<br> AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the exiled leader of the Uighur minority.
<br>adx_data_23607="A=206,AN=09%2f742735-GIJoe_lrec_vid2,AC=,AV=,PB=1/SIG=15brgc93e,X=1249506772,B=5800126,K=DA7Oh1Hc_OscHGDmGAebiw,C=742735.13574581.13644889.2151373,D=LREC,Z=,R=sgnews-ent,P=I1sAGnxsfeqa6PO5cVGgNwPhRSvg4kp59dMADkSv,E=35614783,Y=SG,V=1.0";Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-43970450273738339902013-06-12T10:30:00.000-10:002013-06-12T10:42:38.575-10:00Merkel's support dips, regional ally resigns InternationalThursday, September 3, 2009
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<br> By Sarah Marsh and Noah Barkin
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<br>BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east Germany resigned his post and a new poll showed support for her conservatives at a three-month low weeks before an election.
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<br>Merkel has held a double-digit poll lead over the rival Social Democrats (SPD) for months and looked on track to win a second term on September 27 and seal the center-right coalition that eluded her four years ago.
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<br>But her party suffered big losses in two German regional elections on Sunday and nervousness in her conservative camp is rising as the federal vote approaches.
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<br>The poll from Emnid for private television station N24 was the first to fully take into account the results of the regional votes and showed support for Merkel's conservatives dipping to 34 percent, their lowest level since early June.
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<br>It also showed her conservative bloc -- the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) -- short of the backing it needs to form a governing majority with the business-friendly Free Democrats (FDP).
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<br>Merkel wants to partner with the FDP after the federal vote to push through tax relief and extend the lifespan of Germany's nuclear plants. But the new poll suggests another awkward "grand coalition" with the SPD could result.
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<br>"I am quite sure Merkel will be re-elected but I'm a lot more cautious about whether she'll be able to get her preferred coalition with the FDP," said Frank Decker, a political scientist at Bonn University.
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<br>FATAL SKI CRASH
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<br>As a consequence of the decline in support for her party in the eastern state of Thuringia at the weekend, state premier and longtime Merkel ally Dieter Althaus resigned on Thursday.
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<br>Althaus, who ruled in Thuringia for a decade, saw his popularity dip after he was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for crashing into and killing a 41-year-old woman on a ski slope in Austria on New Year's day.
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<br>He also caused an uproar weeks before the state election by suggesting that federal subsidies for eastern regions that date back to German reunification in 1990 should be pared back.
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<br>"This is the result of the dramatic losses from last Sunday," said SPD leader Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Merkel's challenger in the federal vote.
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<br>Althaus' departure could allow the CDU to hold onto power in Thuringia by forming a "grand coalition" with the SPD -- an option regional SPD leaders had said they would only consider if the conservative stepped aside.
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<br>"The Althaus resignation actually improves the chances of Merkel's party to hold onto power in Thuringia, so it shouldn't be seen as overly negative," said Decker.
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<br>The other option in the state is a leftist grouping of the SPD, Greens and far-left "Linke," or Left party.
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<br>Thursday's poll showed Merkel's conservatives on 34 percent, eight points ahead of the SPD. Together with the FDP they would have 48 percent, matching the combined scores of the SPD, Greens and Left.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-22144162172530970182013-06-12T10:15:00.000-10:002013-06-12T10:27:44.269-10:00Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websitesWednesday, December 16, 2009
<br> ROME (AFP) - &ndash; The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who suffered a bloody attack at the weekend.
<br> "After Sunday's very serious attack a proliferation of sites... praise the head of government's assailant," Interior Minister Roberto Maroni told parliament.
<br> "As has happened in the past, they incite violence against Berlusconi," Maroni said.
<br> "Judicial authorities have been alerted, but we also plan legislative initiatives to bring about the closure of these sites that send out messages of real incitement to delinquency, with the effects that we have all seen," he added.
<br> The attack by a man with a history of mental problems occurred in Berlusconi's native Milan on Sunday, leaving the 73-year-old prime minister with a broken nose, two broken teeth and other facial injuries.
<br> The assailant, 42-year-old Massimo Tartiglia, hurled a heavy souvenir model of Milan's many-spired gothic cathedral at Berlusconi following a political rally in the northern city.
<br> Two groups on the social networking site Facebook are already under investigation.
<br> One calling itself "Ten, a Hundred, a Thousand Massimo Tartiglias" counted 84,000 members as of Tuesday.
<br> Another is called simply "Death to Berlusconi".
<br> Rome prosecutors launched a probe in October into calls for the assassination of Berlusconi posted on Facebook.
<br> Legal authorities asked Facebook to pass on the personal details of those making the threats and threatened to sue if it does not comply.
<br> The government also wants to set up a way to monitor the Internet to combat content that incites hatred and violence, Maroni said.
<br> Berlusconi will leave hospital on Wednesday after which he will be under doctor's orders to halt "important" public activities for "at least" two weeks, his personal physician said Tuesday.
<br> Tartaglia, who is in jail facing charges of inflicting premeditated gross bodily harm, has sent a letter to Berlusconi apologising for what he called a "superficial, cowardly and inconsiderate act".Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-83649534738867871972013-06-12T09:42:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:54:27.976-10:00Asian markets mixed after Wall Street rallyWednesday, March 18, 2009
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<br> By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an overnight surge on Wall Street, as investors cashed in on recent gains amid persistent doubts about the outlook for the global economy.
<br>adx_data_18992="A=286,AN=sg_martel%2fmartel_lrec_726612,AC=,AV=,PB=1/SIG=158p8a4g5,X=1237362462,B=5650264,K=tcQqYpBUzEuhWo0naSnhdQ,C=715734.13161538.13444197.2318854,D=LREC,Z=,R=sg_news,P=CS_p6XxsferlmTDJ8f7CxgCKRSvg4knApx4ABpgx,E=38501218,Y=SG,V=1.0";Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-60503116375688833322013-06-12T09:35:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:47:26.955-10:00Researchers Discover Ruins Of Entire City In PeruWednesday, December 24, 2008
<br>AHN Staff Lima, Peru (AHN) - Researchers discovered then ruins of an entire city in northern Peru, which could provide the missing link between the old cultures of the Wari people and the Moche civilization.
<br>The find is located near the city of Chiclayo, estimated to date back to the Wari culture which ruled the Andes from the 7th to the 12th century. The ancient city indicated human sacrifices were made.
<br>It confirms earlier findings by forensic anthropologist John Verano from Tulane University in New Orleans and published by the National Geographic in 2002, that skeletal remains he found in the valleys of lowland Peru underwent brutal deaths. Some were skinned alive, while others had their bloods drained, heads chopped or tied up and left to be consumed alive by vultures.
<br>Cesar Soriano, chief archeologist of the research team, theorized the victims were thrown over a nearby cliff.
<br>Aside from skeletal remains, also discovered by the archeological team were ceramics, clothing and remains of a young woman.
<br>The National Geographic's theories were that under the Moche culture people were sacrificed to please their gods and improve their land's fertility or the skeletal remains belong to victims of Moche executioners who won after a fierce power struggle between rival city-states.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-49951213307732064222013-06-12T09:32:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:43:56.979-10:00Banks Agree To Foreclosure Moratoriums Until Obama Details Housing PlanMonday, February 16, 2009
<br>David Goodhue - AHN Reporter Miami, FL (AHN) - Some major U.S. banks have halted foreclosure proceedings until President Barack Obama unveils the details of his $50-billion plan to keep more people from losing their homes.
<br>JPMorgan Chase &amp; Co., Morgan Stanley, Citigroup Inc., Wells Fargo &amp; Co. and Bank of America Corp., and Florida banks BankUnited and BankAtlantic announced that they would stop foreclosures for at least a month until they learn more about Obama's proposal.
<br>Lawmakers asked bankers for the foreclosure moratoriums during a congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday.
<br>U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner unveiled an outline of Obama's plan last week and said the details of the proposal will be released at a later date.
<br>Obama is scheduled to discuss his plan to slow foreclosures this week.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-13507360594781462642013-06-12T09:21:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:33:08.354-10:00Afghanistan a UN priority: chiefWednesday, February 4, 2009
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<br> AFP - 55 KABUL (AFP) - - UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday declared Afghanistan a priority for the United Nations and pledged to do the utmost to support key presidential elections this year.
<br>Ban made a surprise visit to Kabul as the embattled country prepares for its second-ever presidential vote in August while facing an insurgency at its highest point since a US-led invasion ousted the Taliban regime in 2001.
<br>"For the United Nations, Afghanistan will be a priority in 2009," Ban told reporters at a news conference with President Hamid Karzai.
<br>"I am here to demonstrate and to convey my strong commitment and support for peace and stability, and development of Afghanistan's people," he said.
<br>The August 20 elections would be a challenge, Ban said.
<br>"But we will do our utmost to ensure that the Afghan Independent Electoral Commission, with the technical assistance from the United Nations, is adequately supported by donors," he said.
<br>The poll, expected to cost around 223 million dollars, has been delayed for three months to allow time for adequate security and logistics over fears that insurgent violence could compromise the ballot.
<br>"The voter registration process has proceeded smoothly. We must ensure that the electoral process proceeds as smoothly as possible," Ban said.
<br>The UN chief also called for international military and political efforts to be "balanced" in Afghanistan.
<br>The presence of international troops was important but so was "an Afghan-led political solution based on the constitution," he said.
<br>He was likely referring to Kabul's efforts to persuade Taliban rebels to drop their fight against Karzai's Western-backed government and accept the new system.
<br>Ban, who was last in Afghanistan in 2007, also stressed the importance of improved coordination among the nation's many international donors and "tangible changes" to people's lives in the country.
<br>The United Nations has boosted resources for Afghanistan -- announcing in December it would double its budget in the country for 2009, allowing for more staff to be employed and more offices opened.
<br>Besides holding talks with Karzai, Ban was also due to meet Afghan lawmakers and a range of international officials, including commanders of the NATO-led force of 55,000 troops and representatives of UN agencies, the UN said.
<br>The United Nations has said security reached its lowest point in Afghanistan last year since the Taliban was removed from government with a spike in attacks, including on aid workers.
<br>"The situation in Afghanistan is serious and it's getting worse," the UN's top relief official, John Holmes, said in Geneva on Tuesday.
<br>The reasons were "escalating conflict and also because of the serious drought which has been raging there for two years in some parts of the country," he said.
<br>Violence has prevented UN and other aid workers from accessing large swathes of the country, and several World Food Programme aid convoys have been attacked and looted in recent years.
<br>The United States, the main provider of international aid and troops to Afghanistan, is also planning to boost its assistance, including the deployment of additional soldiers, although no figure has yet been announced.
<br>Military commanders have said they expect Washington might send 15,000-30,000 more soldiers for the south, a Taliban stronghold where several districts are out of government control.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-40271265076012576052013-06-12T09:20:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:32:33.668-10:00Obama to meet with Colombian presidentMonday, June 29, 2009
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<br> AP - Tuesday, June 30WASHINGTON - When President Barack Obama meets Monday with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, the political turmoil in Honduras is expected to be a major topic of discussion.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-5667813165301605352013-06-12T09:19:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:31:41.504-10:00Music industry urged to embrace the Internet TechnologyTuesday, January 20, 2009
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<br> By Kate Holton
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<br>CANNES, France (Reuters) - The music industry needs to learn from the "dark side of the Internet" that has so decimated its business if it is to ever regain the upper hand in the fight against piracy.
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<br>At the annual industry gathering in the south of France, executives revealed a sliver of optimism for the first time in years, after agreeing retail deals with the likes of Nokia, Amazon and MySpace.
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<br>But the music industry's many critics say executives need to relinquish more control and could even pick up some ideas from the pirates - people who have created services to download music illegally - who they are fighting.
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<br>After years of trying to protect its content and sue anyone who illegally downloaded it, the industry has moved to forge partnerships with online retailers as sales slump.
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<br>In 2008, some 95 percent of the music downloaded from the Internet, or more than 40 billion files, was illegal, leaving the overall music market down around 7 percent on 2007.
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<br>Michael Robertson, the head of MP3Tunes who had to speak via video link because he is still engaged in copyright infringement lawsuits in the United States, urged the industry to go further and allow more experiments with their music.
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<br>"When you sue a new technology, you lose the opportunity to channel that into a positive direction," he said.
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<br>"There is innovation happening but it's coming from the dark side of the Internet, from pirates, from the underground. And that is showing where the industry is going to be.
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<br>"You have to look underground, to see what people are doing and then give them commercial outlets that mirror that."
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<br>Consumers will only move to legal sites from illegal ones if the proposition is better and easier to use, critics say.
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<br>"There are only so many of those (large, established retailers) around," Ted Cohen, who has been involved in hosting the MidemNet conference for the last 10 years, told Reuters.
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<br>"The tap is going to run out. So there's got to be room for retailers who can't write a half a million dollar check."
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<br>CULTURE CLASH
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<br>One of the sharpest critics at Cannes was David Eun of Google, the owner of video sharing site YouTube, one of the most powerful music discovery tools on the Web.
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<br>"Being partners means that you work together ... and you don't necessarily presume that the other person is trying to screw you frankly," he told the audience at Cannes. Continued...Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-51994505017975181692013-06-12T09:18:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:30:32.387-10:00Hungary parties fail to pick new PM InternationalSunday, March 29, 2009
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<br> BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary's Socialists and liberal Free Democrats failed once again to agree on a new prime minister on Sunday but promised to continue negotiations on Monday, Free Democrat Chairman Gabor Fodor said.
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<br>"We have made it clear that we're ready to keep on talking as long as there is hope for a solution because this is in the best interest of Hungary," Fodor told reporters. "But clearly there's a point beyond which we can't go."
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<br>"We'll continue talks tomorrow and after that," Fodor said.
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<br>The Socialists, who rule in a minority and need the Free Democrats to secure a majority, proposed Economy Minister Gordon Bajnai late on Saturday to replace Ferenc Gyurcsany.
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<br>The Free Democrats have already rejected at least three of the Socialists' proposals for prime minister while all three candidates it proposed withdrew.
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<br>Hungarian politics has been in turmoil since the deeply unpopular Gyurcsany unexpectedly announced on March 21 that he would step down in early April.
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<br>Fodor said failure would mean early elections, which would impair the government's ability to tackle the country's worst economic crisis in nearly two decades.
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<br>Hungary, whose economy is seen declining by 4.5 percent this year, needed a $25.1 billion IMF-led rescue package late last year to avoid collapse but analysts say further fiscal tightening is necessary.
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<br>The Free Democrat votes are the last hope of the Socialists, who are a handful of parliamentary seats short of a majority because all other parliamentary parties, as well as President Laszlo Solyom, have urged them to dissolve parliament and call an election.
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<br>Analysts said both the Socialists and the Free Democrats are desperate to avoid an early election because if a vote were held now, the center-right Fidesz would score a decisive win over the weakened Socialists while the Free Democrats would struggle to reach the 5 percent threshold needed to re-enter parliament.
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<br>(Reporting by Balazs Koranyi; editing by Myra MacDonald)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-13436624630771871882013-06-12T09:16:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:28:05.720-10:00Aceh peace in peril as Indonesian elections loomTuesday, March 24, 2009
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<br> AFP - Tuesday, March 24JAKARTA (AFP) - - The Indonesian province of Aceh is on a knife edge as political violence mounts and hostility between ex-rebels and the military peaks ahead of next month's elections, analysts said.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-66602871327978254112013-06-12T09:14:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:26:26.422-10:00Reviews praise Apple iPad battery life, ease of useSaturday, April 3, 2010
<br>NEW YORK (Reuters) - Apple Inc's iPad scored well on battery life and ease of use in its first reviews, but it will not obliterate the laptop computer market yet, according to The New York Times and Wall Street Journal.
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<br> Technology|MediaReviewers at both papers said the tablet computer, which goes on sale Saturday, works nicely for Web surfing or using media such as video and books, but it may appeal less to people who need laptops for more heavy-duty chores.The iPad won largely upbeat reviews from other blogs, newspapers and magazines, including USA Today, the Houston Chronicle, PC Magazine and Newsweek, while so-called tear-down firms are preparing to take apart the gadget on Saturday for an even more detailed look inside.Apple shares, which have been on a run ahead of the iPad launch in hopes it will be a hit, closed up 97 cents at $235.97 on Nasdaq Thursday afternoon.Even if the device launch goes well on Saturday, there is a good chance its shares will trade down the week after because they had gained ground ahead of the launch, analysts said."These stocks like Apple tend to trade up into events and trade down after," said Hudson Square Research analyst Daniel Ernst.This would likely!
<br> be temporary as the shares have more room to rise because Apple's valuation does not reflect that its earnings growth is about 10 times economic growth, he added.The Journal's Walt Mossberg -- one of the most closely followed tech columnists -- said he prefers the iPad as an e-reader to the popular Kindle e-reader from Amazon.com Inc. Amazon shares closed down $3.96, or almost 3 percent, at $131.81 on the Nasdaq on Thursday.David Pogue from The New York Times said the device's 1.5 pound weight is too heavy for reading compared with Kindle's 10 ounces. "You can't read well in direct sunlight" and "you can't read books from the Apple bookstore on any other machine, not even a Mac or iPhone," he wrote.Both reviewers were impressed with the gadget's battery life because it lasted longer than Apple's claim of 10 hours.Pogue said he was able to use the device for 12 before it needed a charge, while Mossberg said iPad withstood 11 and 28 minutes of continuous use.The device could!
<br> only replace laptops for a certain kind of computer buyer, th!
<br> e review
<br>ers said."If you're mainly a Web surfer, note-taker, social-networker and emailer, and a consumer of photos, videos, books, periodicals and music... this could be for you," Mossberg said."If you need to create or edit giant spreadsheets or long documents, or you have elaborate systems for organizing email, or need to perform video chats, the iPad isn't going to cut it as your go-to device," he wrote.Pogue, who wrote a review for techies and one for "everybody else," highlighted shortcomings versus laptops."The bottom line is that you can get a laptop for much less money with a full keyboard, DVD drive, USB jacks, camera-card slot, camera, the works," he wrote.Mossberg said the device was "wicked fast," but had "annoying limitations.""For instance, the email program lacks the ability to create local folders or rules for auto-sorting messages, and it doesn't allow group addressing. The browser lacks tabs. And the Wi-Fi-only version lacks GPS," he said.Both noted iPad's support!
<br> for the popular Flash video technology and questioned consumers' willingness to carry another device along with their laptop and phone."If people see the iPad mainly as an extra device to carry around, it will likely have limited appeal," Mossberg said.But they admired iPad's speed and ease of use."The iPad is so fast and light, the multi-touch screen so bright and responsive, the software so easy to navigate, that it really does qualify as a new category of gadget," Pogue said, adding it would appeal to less tech-savvy users."Some have suggested it might make a good goof-proof computer for technophobes, the aged and the young; they're absolutely right," he said.Another influential reviewer, Edward Baig at USA Today, summed up his thoughts on the iPad by proclaiming it "a winner" in his latest column."Apple has pretty much nailed it with this first iPad, though there's certainly room for improvement. Nearly three years after making a splash with the iPhone, Apple has deliv!
<br> ered another impressive product that largely lives up to the h!
<br> ype," Ba
<br>ig wrote.(Reporting by Sinead Carew and Paul Thomasch; editing by Ian Geoghegan, Andre Grenon and Robert MacMillan)
<br> Technology
<br> MediaUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-36890699989192824822013-06-12T09:12:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:23:48.490-10:00US congressmen seek explanation from FacebookWednesday, October 20, 2010
<br> WASHINGTON (AFP) - &ndash; Two members of the US Congress have asked Facebook to explain how applications transmitted information about users to advertising and Web tracking companies in violation of the social network's rules.
<br> Representative Joe Barton, a Republican from Texas, and Representative Edward Markey, a Democrat from Massachusetts, asked Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to reply to 18 questions about what they called a "privacy breach."
<br> Facebook on Monday acknowledged that some popular third-party applications had passed on user identification (UID) information but played down the privacy implications.
<br> "Nevertheless, we are committed to ensuring that even the inadvertent passing of UIDs is prevented and all applications are in compliance with our policy," Facebook engineer Mike Vernal said in a blog post.
<br> "Our policy is very clear about protecting user data, ensuring that no one can access private user information without explicit user consent," Vernal said. "We take strong measures to enforce this policy, including suspending and disabling applications that violate it."
<br> In their letter, Burton and Markey, co-chairmen of the House BiPartisan Privacy Caucus, said: "Given the number of current users, the rate at which that number grows worldwide, and the age range of Facebook users, combined with the amount and the nature of information these users place in Facebook's trust, this series of breaches of consumer privacy is a cause for concern."
<br> They asked how many users were impacted, what information was transmitted to other parties and how many third-party applications were involved.
<br> They also asked whether Facebook will "seek the deletion of its users' personal information from data bases of the Internet or advertising companies who received it as a result of this series of privacy breaches?"
<br> Andrew Noyes, a Facebook spokesman, said Facebook "is committed to safeguarding private data while letting people enjoy meaningful social experiences with their friends.
<br> "As our privacy policy states, when a Facebook user connects with an application, the user ID is part of the information that the application receives," he said.
<br> "The suggestion that the passing of a user ID to an application, as described in Facebook's privacy policy, constitutes a 'breach' is curious at best," Noyes said.
<br> The Wall Street Journal said applications were providing access to Facebook members' names and, in some cases, their friends' names, to companies that build detailed databases on people in order to track them online.
<br> All of the 10 most popular applications on Facebook were transmitting unique user ID numbers to outside companies, it said. They include Zynga's FarmVille, with 59 million users, Texas HoldEm Poker and FrontierVille.
<br> Facebook is the world's most popular social network with around 500 million users, but it has been dogged by complaints about privacy protection.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-65001928942848814042013-06-12T09:09:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:21:10.662-10:006 NATO troops killed by Afghan bomb were AmericansMonday, December 13, 2010
<br> KABUL, Afghanistan &ndash; An Afghan army official says the six NATO troops who were killed in a suicide attack on Sunday were Americans.
<br> An explosives-packed minibus blew up at the entrance of a joint NATO-Afghan base in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, killing six NATO troops and two Afghan soldiers as they prepared to head out on patrol.
<br> It was the deadliest attack on coalition troops this month.
<br> NATO has declined to identify the victims' nationalities. But an Afghan army official in southern Afghanistan said on Monday that the six were Americans. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak about NATO casualties.
<br> He says the confirmation came in an official report about the attack.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-37028342616505064322013-06-12T09:05:00.001-10:002013-06-12T09:17:07.651-10:00Former NYC top cop discussed filing rights suitFriday, October 23, 2009
<br> WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. &ndash; Former New York City Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik, jailed and awaiting trial on federal corruption charges, says he is under indescribable stress and has considered filing a lawsuit 'to redress the civil wrongs I believe I have suffered,' according to newly unsealed court papers.
<br> Kerik alluded to a potential lawsuit several times in an affidavit that was unsealed Wednesday night as part of the corruption case against him, which is scheduled to go to trial Monday. He has pleaded not guilty.
<br> He also said he has thought about withdrawing his guilty plea in a 3-year-old Bronx case related to the corruption charges.
<br> Defense lawyer Barry Berke would not comment.
<br> Judge Stephen Robinson had demanded that Kerik detail his relationship with New Jersey lawyer Anthony Modafferi in the affidavit. Modafferi was not part of Kerik's defense team, the judge said, but had seen some sealed court information.
<br> The issue eventually resulted in Robinson revoking Kerik's bail and sending him to jail Tuesday for violating a court order governing the distribution of sealed material. He said Kerik 'sees himself as a victim.'
<br> In the heavily redacted affidavit, Kerik said that at his very first meeting with Modafferi, in March of 2008, they discussed 'the remedies I might have if I opted to bring a 1983 action.'
<br> A '1983 action' is a case brought under section 1983 of the federal Civil Rights Act.
<br> It's not clear whom Kerik would sue, although he and his supporters have suggested that federal prosecutors have gone too far in their case against him. The U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment.
<br> Kerik said he and Modafferi also discussed the possibility of withdrawing Kerik's 2006 misdemeanor guilty plea in the Bronx case. That case, like the federal case, centered on charges that Kerik accepted the gift of a renovation of his Bronx apartment.
<br> Kerik said that between May and November 2008, 'I had several conversations with Mr. Modafferi concerning the Bronx case, including the preparation of a motion to vacate the plea and instituting a civil litigation to redress the civil wrongs I believe I have suffered.'
<br> Steven Reed, spokesman for the Bronx district attorney's office, said there had been no motion to withdraw Kerik's plea.
<br> 'People can and do make motions to withdraw pleas periodically but those motions are subject to review by the courts,' he said.
<br> Kerik's affidavit said that this year, 'Modafferi provided me with his written view of the case, reviewed the law, and discussed legal strategies, including bringing a civil rights action.'
<br> Modafferi's lawyer, Jeffrey Lichtman, said he would not comment on the lawsuits discussed by Kerik and Modafferi.
<br> At one point in the affidavit, Kerik blames stress, in part, for causing him to forget that the court order existed.
<br> 'The stress on me, my wife and my children is without description,' he said in the affidavit.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-67048434824214139622013-06-12T09:05:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:16:48.990-10:00Japanese plane seat maker admits falsifying safety dataWednesday, February 10, 2010
<br> TOKYO (AFP) - &ndash; Japan's Koito Industries has admitted to fabricating safety data for seats in more than 1,000 aircraft used by 32 carriers, striking another blow to corporate Japan's image of reliability.
<br> The Yokohama-based company used fake strength test data for more than 150,000 seats used in the Boeing and Airbus aircraft of customers including Air Canada, KLM, Scandinavian Airlines and Singapore Airlines.
<br> Among the affected aircraft were some 300 jets of domestic carriers Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways (ANA).
<br> Transport minister Seiji Maehara rebuked Okito for its way of handling the trouble, calling it "vicious."
<br> Japan's transport ministry has already instructed the company to improve its business operations, but stressed there was no problem with the planes continuing to fly.
<br> The manufacturer omitted part of a test process and used figures from past tests, the ministry said, adding that the data falsification could have been going on since the mid-1990s.
<br> "That the company had intentionally fabricated data was extremely vicious," Maehara told reporters late Tuesday. "It's shameful that Japanese companies fabricate data. Koito must face some stern social punishment."
<br> The nation's largest plane seat maker was ordered by the ministry to retest the products to confirm their safety and would fix them if necessary, the company said.
<br> "I deeply apologise," company president Takashi Kakegawa told a news conference late Monday. "The whole section in charge was systematically involved in it," he said, explaining that the company had been worried "that we would delay our delivery if we failed in tests."
<br> The seat maker is a subsidiary of Koito Manufacturing, an auto parts maker affiliated with Toyota Motor, which is now under fire over recalls of millions of vehicles worldwide due to problems with gas pedals and brakes.
<br> Toyota Motor has no direct equity stake in Koito Industries. Related article: Toyota to recall hybrids
<br> A transport ministry official said on condition of anonymity that the authorities had been alerted to Koito's problem after they "received several reports from insiders" over the company's data fabrication.
<br> "We will make copy samples of already delivered products, retest the safety standard and possibly decide on a recall if the samples fail to meet the standards," said Koito spokesman Yoichiro Kuroiwa.
<br> The data-cooking scandal has delayed deliveries of seats for two of ANAs' Boeing 737-800 planes, a spokeswoman of the carrier said, adding that the company would continue flying its aircraft as usual.
<br> "About 26,000 seats are subjected to safety checking by the ministry and Koito," said ANA spokeswoman Nana Kon.
<br> "But it will not affect our current flight schedule as the authorities have decided it would not cause an immediate safety concern."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-69708347167978029592013-06-12T08:59:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:11:32.168-10:00New video shows Jackson's head catching fireThursday, July 16, 2009
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<br> AFP - Thursday, July 16NEW YORK (AFP) - - A US entertainment magazine has released never-before-seen footage of Michael Jackson's hair catching fire while filming a commercial in 1984, an accident it said led to an addiction to painkillers.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-28685041373399934272013-06-12T08:58:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:10:40.824-10:00Indonesian ranger escapes Komodo dragon attackTuesday, February 23, 2010
<br> JAKARTA, Indonesia &ndash; An Indonesian park ranger escaped an attack by a Komodo dragon, the world's largest lizard species, when his colleagues heard his cries for help and drove the reptile away.
<br> Marcelinus Subanghadir was outside his hut on Komodo Island late Monday when a nearly 7-foot-long (more than 2-meter-long) dragon grabbed hold of his right foot, Komodo National Park chief Tamen Sitorus said.
<br> The dragon had Subanghadir's foot clamped in its shark-like, serrated teeth until fellow rangers heard his screams and drove it off with wooden clubs, Sitorus said.
<br> Subanghadir, 34, suffered deep lacerations and was recovering at a hospital on nearby Bali.
<br> Komodo dragons can be found in the wild only on the eastern Indonesian islands of Komodo, Padar and Rinca. The lizards _ thought to number fewer than 4,000 _ can grow longer than 10 feet (3 meters) and weigh 150 pounds (70 kilograms).
<br> An 8-year-old boy was killed by one of the lizards in 2007 on Komodo Island.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-72888610038915334442013-06-12T08:54:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:06:17.300-10:00Colombian rebels planting landmines in Panama: governmentSaturday, July 3, 2010
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<br> PANAMA CITY |
<br> Fri Jul 2, 2010 11:57pm EDT
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<br>PANAMA CITY (Reuters) - Colombian drug-running rebels are planting landmines in neighboring Panama along cocaine smuggling routes between the two countries shared border, a top Panamanian official said on Friday.
<br>"Panama, for the first time, is finding landmines in its territory," said Jose Raul Mulino, Panama's public security minister, without specifying how many devices were found.Authorities found the landmines in the remote, densely forested Darien province where two Panamanian border police were injured last week in a mine blast.Colombian President Alvaro Uribe on a visit to Panama this week said the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, were responsible for planting the mines that wounded the police officers.The FARC has been smuggling cocaine to the United States for two decades, according to U.S. anti-drug officials. In Colombia, where the FARC are fighting a decades-old insurgency against the government, they regularly use homemade landmines to attack Colombian troops and protect coca fields.The group has turned increasingly to overland routes across the porous border with Panama to haul drugs. Rebels use indigenous people as guides and mules as more police sea a!
<br> nd air patrols cut off traditional smuggling routes northward."In this region they are protecting something with mines," Mulino said, adding the Panamanian government was stepping up efforts to stop the incursions.Panamanian border police shot and killed three suspected FARC rebels in January. A month later, coast guardsmen fought gun battles with suspected traffickers near port towns close to the Colombian border. After the attacks, outgunned Panamanian border police told Reuters they feared reprisals and the landmines could signal escalating violence.(Reporting by Sean Mattson; Editing by Doina Chiacu)
<br> WorldUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-70379175711635930622013-06-12T08:50:00.000-10:002013-06-12T09:01:54.335-10:00McDonald's recalls 12 mln tainted 'Shrek' glassesSaturday, June 5, 2010
<br> NEW YORK (AFP) - &ndash; McDonald's is recalling 12 million drinking glasses sold in the United States to promote the popular "Shrek" movie as they were found to be tainted with a toxic metal, US authorities said Friday.
<br> "The designs on the glasses contain cadmium. Long-term exposure to cadmium can cause adverse health effects," said the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, an independent government agency.
<br> "McDonalds is asking consumers to immediately stop using the glass out of an abundance of caution," it said of the US-manufactured "Shrek Forever After 3D" collectable drinking glasses.
<br> They were sold exclusively at McDonalds restaurants nationwide beginning in May for about two dollars each as part of a campaign to promote "Shrek Forever After," produced by DreamWorks Animation and released by Viacom's Paramount Pictures.
<br> McDonald's said the glassware was evaluated by an independent third-party laboratory accredited by the commission, "and determined to be in compliance with all applicable federal and state requirements at the time of manufacture and distribution."
<br> "However, in light of the CPSC's evolving assessment of standards for cadmium in consumer products, McDonald's determined in an abundance of caution that a voluntary recall of the Shrek Forever After glasses is appropriate," the fast-food giant said in a statement.
<br> The company said its safety standards were among the highest in the industry and that it had a strong track record.
<br> "When the US Consumer Product Safety Commission approached McDonald's about cadmium in their current movie-themed drinking glasses, the company responded quickly, agreed to cooperate fully and acted on the side of caution," said CPSC spokesman Scott Wolfson, according to the statement.
<br> "The glasses have far less cadmium than the children's metal jewelry that CPSC has previously recalled," he said
<br> According to the World Health Organization, cadmium is classified as a human carcinogen and exerts toxic effects on the kidney and the skeletal and the respiratory systems.
<br> Cadmium is generally present in the environment at low levels, but human activity has greatly increased those levels, according to WHO.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-63926564930964230062013-06-12T08:46:00.000-10:002013-06-12T08:58:24.709-10:00South Africa make Australia struggleFriday, March 20, 2009
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<br> AFP - Friday, March 20CAPETOWN (AFP) - - South Africa dominated the first day of the third Test at Newlands Thursday, bowling out Australia for just 209 before reaching 57 for no wicket at the close.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-56795999029414502852013-06-12T08:45:00.000-10:002013-06-12T08:57:33.478-10:00FCC wants more competition with set-top boxesThursday, December 17, 2009
<br> WASHINGTON - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is considering ways to enable access to the Internet through set-top boxes for television sets.
<br> Citing a lack of competition and innovation in this market, FCC staff said on Wednesday they are considering how to increase online access as part of the agency's national broadband plan.
<br> "It's time ... to consider if there are better ways to open the set-top box market to greater competition and innovation," William Lake, FCC's media bureau chief, said at an open meeting.
<br> With limited access to the Internet by all consumers seeking more online content on their television sets, FCC officials are seeking ways to increase the adoption of broadband access to all Americans through mobile and television.
<br> Recommendations on ways to encourage competition and innovation are likely to be included in the broadband plan submitted to Congress in mid-February.
<br> Lake said current rules on cable set-top boxes have failed to spur innovation and competition.
<br> "Set-top box innovation is lacking," the FCC said in open meeting materials. "Improved boxes could be an important driver of broadband adoption and utilization."
<br> Motorola Inc and Cisco Systems Inc's Scientific-Atlanta are the top makers of set-top boxes.
<br> One of the options the FCC is considering is to require cable and broadband providers such as Comcast Corp, AT&amp;T Inc and Verizon Communications Inc to supply a small, low-cost, network-interface device that would act as a bridge for an Internet modem and cable boxes.
<br> When asked by FCC Commissioner Michael Copps how much new technology would be involved in manufacturing new bridge boxes, Lake said that manufacturers would likely add little new technology.
<br> "Many of the standards in place already exist, it would take commission action to drive the effort," he said.
<br> Cable subscribers normally lease set-top boxes to access videos, but FCC officials believe it is basically a "one-way" street that does not allow customers to do more such as accessing the Internet.
<br> Some retail devices are starting to emerge with built-in applications to access movies through online providers such as TiVo Inc and videos from Google Inc's YouTube.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-78392816191640006062013-06-12T08:42:00.000-10:002013-06-12T08:54:08.819-10:00Philippine free port reinvents itselfThursday, June 25, 2009
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<br> AFP - Thursday, June 25SUBIC BAY, Philippines (AFP) - - Subic Bay and Clark were once US military bases that employed thousands of Filipinos. But a 1992 US military pullout left the Philippines scrambling to find alternative uses for the facilities and jobs for the locals.
<br>Amazingly, Subic adapted swiftly and efficiently, transforming from a naval base into a 13,600-hectare (33,600-acre) free port with an international airport and factories that turned out electronics, garments, shoes, armoured vehicles and medical equipment.
<br>May de los Santos used to make laptops and mobile phones at a high-tech Taiwanese electronics factory in Subic Bay free port, near Manila.
<br>She joined the ranks of the laid off as the global financial crisis kicked in, but the 31-year-old has since been training to work as a chambermaid in a local hotel.
<br>"I don't mind going to these classes. I am used to hard work and the hotel industry is the one with demand for workers," she told AFP.
<br>She is one of an army of laid-off workers who are being retrained to meet the demands of the free port, said Severo Pastor, an official of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, the government agency that oversees the enclave.
<br>And these days, he said, that demand is coming from tourism.
<br>Like de los Santos, the port is adapting to the times -- transforming from a light industrial zone to a tourism zone and regional logistics hub.
<br>Free port administrator Armand Arreza says Subic's manufacturing future had been in question even before the crisis hit its electronics companies.
<br>For years, low-wage competition from China and Vietnam has been luring companies away and a recent upgrade of Clark, just 75 kilometres (47 miles) from here rendered many of Subic's facilities redundant.
<br>Special "techno-parks" were set up for Taiwanese and Japanese manufacturers.
<br>Federal Express (FedEx) established its Asian courier hub in 1996, using the former base's military airport while South Korea's Hanjin Heavy Industries built a shipyard in 2006 that is now the world's fourth largest.
<br>This year however low-wage rivals abroad and the economic crisis have forced Subic factories to retrench more than 4,000 workers or place them on "forced leave," said Arreza.
<br>FedEx shut its Subic hub in February, moving to China with its larger market and attractive perks.
<br>Arreza said the situation is improving and some workers may be re-hired but he doubts that Subic will ever return to the days of the 1990s.
<br>"Low-cost manufacturing is not the area where Subic is competitive," he said. "Most of our land area is protected forests and protected seas. We don't have any space to accommodate large industrial parks."
<br>Only 4,000 hectares of Subic can be developed compared to 30,000 hectares in nearby Clark.
<br>The future lies in tourism, medical care, ship building and logistics, using the ample space still available for warehouses especially around the largely unused Subic airport, said Arreza.
<br>Hanjin is staying put and companies that require skilled labour may also find it more economical to remain in Subic, he said.
<br>For displaced workers, the government is offering re-training for positions in Subic's tourism industry or even abroad.
<br>Its well-preserved forests, wide seafront and recreational facilities and hotels have always made it popular with tourists and a new highway has made the area even more accessible to day-trippers.
<br>There are no figures on Subic tourist arrivals but Arreza notes that between 8,000 and 10,000 cars of non-free port workers enter Subic everyday, presumably many of them carrying tourists.
<br>Zenaida Pineda, 40, a former electronics worker here, said she now earns as much working as a chambermaid in a Subic hotel as she did at her factory job.
<br>"I like housekeeping more because you can move around, not just stay at your work station. Besides, working on electronics hurt my eyes," she said.
<br>Danny Piano, president of the local chamber of commerce, said: "Subic manufacturers can survive. The Philippines has the capability to do good high-end work," due to workers' better education, communication and English skills.
<br>Subic exported 977.8 million dollars worth of goods last year.
<br>"There needs to be a balance between industry and tourism. After all, this is a free port," Piano said.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2264309354380536882.post-12345581319489481432013-06-12T08:37:00.000-10:002013-06-12T08:48:46.211-10:00Japan, Sweden hold bailout lessons for USFriday, February 13, 2009
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<br> By YURI KAGEYAMA and KARL RITTER,Associated Press Writers AP - Saturday, February 14TOKYO - As the U.S. grapples with its banking crisis, President Barack Obama is pointing to Sweden and Japan as offering lessons for what the United States should _ and shouldn't _ do.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0