Ron Paul’s op-ed on CNN: Economy flounders, despite the stimulus.
Related posts:
Good for GM. I don’t just congratulate them on a strict “buy American” level, but the decision to break off from the pack and both design and build the next generation of electric engines is a good one. Of course, there’s the question of whether they’ll be using Panasonic batteries and other Japanese parts. They’re still pretty much cornered in some of those areas. But hey, we’ll take what we can get.
The reasons for designing and manufacturing your own engine are pretty easy to see, and it’s a lot easier to do with an electric engine than an internal combustion one. Not nearly as many parts, and you aren’t managing hundreds of carefully controlled explosions every second. That’s not to say I could design one, but clearly GM thinks they can, and we should give them a slap on the back for it. How good it’ll be, we’ll just have to find out, but in the meantime just buy some flags and start waving.
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Jimin-with-the-big-FLAC-collection and I met with one of the SteelSeries guys today. It’s funny: you think you understand where a company’s coming from, but then you sit down and actually talk to them and it’s like, “Wow, OK, you guys are pretty cool.” So to the people who will walk out of Sunday’s Grammy Awards with one of those fancy gift bags you always hear about, I can say this: you’ll probably enjoy the SteelSeries headphones you find in there.
Yup, SteelSeries’ Siberia V2 headphones will be part of the super-fancy gift bag that Grammy Awards presenters receive on their way out the door. (The gift bag for the average tech press party? A t-shirt and USB thumb drive. So there’s a bit of a discrepancy there.) I guess it’s a way to bring attention to the fact that SteelSeries headphones, while designed for crazy professional gamers (and I mean that in a good way, of course), they’re also not too shabby when it comes to listening to your music collection.
In other SteelSeries news, we got a sneak peak at some of their upcoming gear. Hot stuff all around.
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Apple might think it’s going to change the world tomorrow with some sort of crazy tablet, but we’re here to tell you that the world has already changed. American humans will soon be able to buy a product called “Puppy Tweets,” a product actually designed, tested, and released by the Mattel corporation. First, you need a dog with a Twitter account. (Who doesn’t have one of those?) Then, you need to use $30 of your actual money to buy Puppy Tweets, a plastic sound-and-motion sensor that clips onto your dog’s collar and sends out several pre-written tweets that have extreme amounts of dignity, like “YAHOOOOOOO! Somedays you just gotta get your bark on.” Then you have to weep gently for the future of our society.
Puppy Tweets lets your puppy… tweet originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 23:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The Lady Hawks recorded a convincing victory over Madison Area Technical College, 62-43. The win moves their record to 13-8 overall and 4-3 in conference play.
Leading the way with 23 points, 5 assists and 2 steals was guard Peggie Parahas. Anna Kirchoff added 20 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals, Siobhan Cerney scored 9 points and grabbed 7 rebounds, and Betsy Bailey recorded 15 rebounds and 2 steals.
Next up is a trip to Glen Ellyn for a match with the College of DuPage on Saturday, January 30th with a 5:00 PM tip off. The Lady Hawks defeated the Lady Chaparrals in their first contest, 57-37, at Harper.
If there’s anything technology has been driving towards, it’s the innovation that allows corpses to wink. Finally! But don’t worry, there’s a use for this for people other than flirty necrophiliacs.
You see, these electroactive polymer artificial muscles use soft acrylic or silicon layered with carbon grease to contract like muscle tissue when it gets a little jolt. It’s being tested on cadavers, but the hope is that it’ll eventually allow paralyzed folks to blink as well. They’re hoping to get it to patients within five years. [UC Davis via Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery via Engadget]
Canonical, the company behind the popular Ubuntu Linux distribution, revealed today that it has established a revenue sharing agreement with Yahoo. As part of the deal, the Firefox Web browser that is shipped in Ubuntu will be configured to use Yahoo as the default search engine.
Rick Spencer, the leader of Canonical’s desktop team, announced the search engine change today on a public Ubuntu mailing list. The specific terms of the agreement have not been disclosed. According to Spencer, the new default will appear in the current development version of the distribution “as soon as reasonably possible” and will be in place in time for Ubuntu 10.04, which is scheduled for release in April.
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With the entertainment industry pushing hard to turn ISPs into copyright cops, some are quite reasonably concerned about privacy rights. Over in Europe, a human rights group has asked the European Commission to do an assessment of Virgin Media’s new copyright cop software, and the EC has agreed to “monitor” it. Virgin Media insists there are no privacy issues, though it does seem worth mentioning that the maker of Virgin’s software, Detica, has a strong relationship with government and intelligence agencies, working with them to “reveal actionable intelligence,” so it seems pretty reasonable to question just what Virgin’s software really does.
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Darriell (Roco) Owens (Sophomore – Proviso West High School), defensive back on the 2009-2010 Harper College football team, will be attending Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, this spring.
“Roco did an unbelievable job for us this fall,” said Harper’s Head Football Coach Eric Waldstein. ” He isn’t the biggest guy on the field, but he plays with the biggest heart. Roco was a force on special teams and rarely makes a mistake at corner. He was one of the best tacklers on the team. He will be missed next season both on and off the field. I believe Roco will do a great job at Millikin and could be an All-CCIW player there.”
Millikin is a member of the CCIW athletic conference. Millikin finished last season 3-4 in the CCIW and 6-4 overall.
Check out this Etsy find. It’s a sweet little brass necklace named “Dummy Cat” by Bangkok-based Etsy seller Labyrinth Vintage. She’s a jewelry designer whose inspirations include animals, vintage style, and fashion. Dummy Cat is based on an original illustration of the designer’s cats and he has movable arms, which I think makes him that much more charming.
Olympus is announcing.. something.. soon. We think. It kinda looks like a camera. But it might be fingernail clippers, or perhaps prosthetic hands. We’re not sure.
Ok, all kidding aside, it looks like Olympus is announcing another camera. Most likely, another micro 4/3 unit, since that seems to be their favorite product line as of late, and it’s been paying off for them. Of course, given the fact that the E-P2 came out just last December, it would be surprising to see another camera from them so soon. As always, once we know more, we’ll let you know.
[Via PhotoRumors]
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Short version: Iomega has been making storage devices for years, and it shows. I’m a fan of NAS hardware and technology, and Iomega has created a product that not only stores data, but has enough value add to make it stand out from the dozens of other black boxes for storing your data.
Features:
Pros:
Cons:
A good NAS should be invisible. You should be able to set it up, start your schedule for your backups, plug the thing in, and forget about it. As such, reviewing a NAS is a very difficult thing to do.
So let’s talk about the basics. The ix4-200d supports dual gigabit ethernet, along with a laundry list of compatibility and features. Want to use it with Windows Backup? No problem. Time Machine user? It’s got you covered. Something more esoteric, like VMware, iSCSI, or BlueTooth picture transfer? It’ll do that too. The ix4 will even work with Axis network cameras to function as a DVR, and record from up to 5 different video sources.
The NAS in itself isn’t terribly impressive looking, but it doesn’t have to be. There’s a power button, three status lights, a USB port, and an LCD display on the front. The LCD display shows you that status of the device, including if there are any jobs working, and how much space you have remaining. The back has two gigabit ethernet ports, and the power plug in point. Oddly, the cover to the case sits sideways, meaning that the drives are mounted sitting sideways as well, instead of facing out of the front of the case. Iomega puts four drives in the NAS for you, and you can select from the various RAID configurations to choose the one that works best for you. Drives are hot-swappable of course, based on the level of RAID selected.
The problems start when you install the software that comes with the device. I’m an experienced user, and consider myself to be quite knowledgeable, so it was a bit of a disappointment when I was unable to get the NAS set up at first. After reading the instructions further, I was able to determine that you must install the software first, before you plug the NAS into your network. That will allow your computer to talk to the NAS and set up the various network options and formatting, and allow the system to work. Once the software is installed and configured however, it works perfectly with any computer on your network. Back up processes happened as scheduled, and never missed a beat.
One extremely convenient function is the QuickTransfer. You can plug a USB device into the front of the NAS and press the transfer button, and the data on the device will automatically download into the storage device. This could be a USB drive, or flash drive, and I even used a memory card reader and downloaded photographs directly into the file server. It’s fast, efficient, and easy to control from the LCD screen.
Conclusion
Overall, I liked the ix4-200d. It did what it was supposed to do, without issues, and worked as intended. As far as the feature set goes, it’s almost too much. This makes the set up a little difficult, but once you get through the process it’s seamless. Additionally, as a photographer, I love the QuickTransfer feature. I’d come home from shooting, plug my card reader into the NAS, push the button, and it would automatically back up my images. This made backing up really easy.
The Iomega ix4-200d is currently available from your favorite electronics retailer, for a MSRP of $699.99 for the 2 TB version.
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Pat Czerwiec (Sophomore – Ridgewood High School), quarterback for Harper’s 2009-10 Football team, will be attending Concordia University-Wisconsin for the spring term. Pat leaves Harper after 3 semesters with a 3.58 cumulative GPA.
“I am very excited for Pat,” said Eric Waldstein, Head football coach at Harper. “I think this is a tremendous opportunity and I know he will be very successful at CUW. I know Coach Etter (CUW Head Coach) and some of the members of his staff very well, and I know that Pat will be playing in a class program with high expectations. Coach Etter and I have very similar coaching styles, so it will be an easy transition for Pat. I look forward to following Pat’s football career at CUW. I am very proud of him.”
Pat will be competing for the starting quarterback position on a CUW football team that was 5-5 overall and 5-2 in the Northern Athletic Conference last season.
Filed under: Apple Corporate, Odds and ends
As we count down the final tablet-free hours, we’ve gathered our writers together to predict what we think will be announced tomorrow at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Feel free to add your own predictions in the comments below.
Sang Tang
9.6 inch LED-backlit display
Wireless HDMI support (to output to TV)
Front facing camera
Erica Sadun
Tomorrow, we expect to see Apple finally launch the long awaited tablet. It will likely feature a 10.5-inch diagonal capacitive touch display and look and function much like a large iPod touch. Running iPhone OS, it may feature an enhanced vocabulary of user-interaction gestures, suitable for the larger screen size.
The new tablet should offer a variety of augmented reality applications, allowing users to interact with and annotate many kinds of media including TV and movies, maps, newspapers, and more. Although I’d like to see a front-facing camera on the unit, I can easily see why Apple might omit one, so I’ll take a pass on voting for or against. Looking towards the netbook market for competition, the tablet may provide optional nationwide wireless for a monthly fee.
I’m keeping my prediction on the conservative side — so I’m guessing no mind blowing new tech on-board, at least at the start with product launch. A larger iPod with good connectivity options and excellent media provider deals is enough to get the tablet going without any special OMG One More Thing items needed. It will help if the new tablet better integrate with Apple’s emerging cloud services, namely Mobile Me and iWork.com.
The rainbowunicornpuppies will be an optional extra for a small fee, and Uncle Steve will be giving candy to all the good little children.
David Winograd
The most amazing thing to me is that with thousands of rumor stories fueling the blogs, we really know nothing that’s completely official. The controlled leak to the Wall Street Journal was brilliant since it gave not one detail outside of the fact that the thing is real. So, my random guesses are:
I see Verizon coming on board but not now. My guess is that it’ll be announced later in the year with Phone OS 4.0.
Steve Sande
I’m predicting that the tablet, after all of the hype and alleged “forecasting” by every Apple fanboy, will make absolutely nobody completely happy. I also predict that many of our commenters will say that it’s the stupidest thing they’ve ever seen, it’s too expensive, and too limited in what it can do. Then we’ll all go out and buy them anyway!
In terms of the display, I’m thinking it’s going to be something new for Apple and the industry — they’ll use a 10.5″ version of the Pixel Qi hybrid screen, which will give us insanely great battery life (especially when using the tablet as an e-reader), and readability in bright sunlight.
Nobody seems to talk about storage, but at the price I think we’ll see at least 64 GB and probably 128 GB. It’s going to be running a PA Semi-designed chip set.
I can’t see 3G / 4G wireless being forced upon the masses. There are too many of us who already have one or two expensive wireless plans, and the additional cost of yet another plan would be a deal-killer for many. 802.11/n connectivity will be built-in, of course, with an option for 3G / 4G wireless.
The built-in apps? Mainly for media, including a Zinio-like magazine / newspaper reader with built-in browsing for books and other printed media, which will of course be located in the App Store. I think it will also have the next generation of iWork built in for light productivity. I’d love to see a way to use the device with a built-in universal remote app to control all of my other devices — think of it as a Logitech Harmony on steroids.
We’re also going to hear about iLife 2010, the newest and greatest version of the iLife suite, now with a new member of the suite in the form of a painting program!
I also predict that most of our predictions will be totally off-base.
Dave Caolo
Apple will introduce and demo the new tablet, with a shipping date in June or July. It’ll have a 10.5″ touch display, it’s own store in the the revamped iTunes, and work in a way that none of us have guessed.
The device’s emphasis will be on fun, not work. Yes, you’ll be able to access a more web-based version of the iWork apps (tablet-friendly iLife ‘10 will also be introduced), but just as Apple has been promoting the iPod touch as a gaming platform, they’ll really amp it up with the tablet.
I also expect ereader capabilities with Apple style and flair. Gorgeous, full-color books will appear from a select group of publishers and newspapers, with lots of interaction.
Finally, the new web-based version of iTunes will allow for steaming of TV shows at $0.99/pop. That will have been a concession on Apple’s part, as they wanted a subscription model. Expect that to change by year’s end.
The iPhone will not get a mention, as this isn’t its show.
Mike Schramm
The Tablet will appear with a 10″ display, full App Store compatibility, and some groundbreaking media partnerships with lots and lots of paid content flowing through Apple’s gates. No camera at all. I’d really love to see that dynamic touch keyboard, but I don’t think it’s going to happen, unfortunately — this is a larger iPod touch. All kinds of connectivity though, including possibly a 3G or 4G connection on a plan set up through Apple with whatever provider you want. $1000 price tag, in stores in March.
One more thing, if there is one, is a Verizon iPhone. But they may save that until later this year.
Mel Martin
Tablet will have a major focus on publishing, with interactive, colorful books and magazines. It may be a death blow to the Kindle if it is priced right. Clearly it will have the option of 3G access and Wi-Fi. I personally would not be enthusiastic about another monthly data plan, especially with AT&T unless it is VERY reasonable.
Expect lots of games, probably scaled up from the iPhone. BT keyboard and mouse would be a good option. Expect it will be integrated with iTunes for music, movies, and probably publications.
There aren’t really difficult predictions to make, but I think they are close to the target.
High price will kill it. Apple, are you listening?
Megan Lavey
I’m throwing my money in with Chris on this one. Everyone pretty much has said what I was thinking.
But, I also think that Steve makes a wonderful point about everyone not being happy at all.
So, I’m going to do a prediction completely out of left field. That despite the leaked specs and the speculation, “Tablet” isn’t its own device at all, but a piece of software integrated with OSX and the iPhone that is like a hyper-iTunes bringing you whatever content that you desire and can be synced on any Mac you own, including the iPhone – designed to stream books, magazines, TV shows, music, etc. The 10-inch device is slated to be part of the MacBook line, replacing the current white plastic models, but is essentially a cross between a current MacBook and a really big Nintendo DS.
Aron Trimble
I would like to go on record saying that if Apple releases an appropriately-priced tablet, their stock price will not go down.
Chris Rawson
Tomorrow’s event:
Lauren Hirsch
A lot of the tech specs seem to already have been leaked, so I’m going to go out on a limb and talk about some of what I think they’re going to show off that it does for you:
First and foremost, I strongly suspect that a good portion of the announcement speech will describe some sort of newspaper subscription service, starting with New York Times. I know it’s supposed to be a “Kindle Killer,” and I’m sure part of the announcement will be that there are already publishing houses on board for eBook delivery through iTunes, but I think Apple wants to ease it into your hands as a daily media device, where users can enjoy the morning paper in its full, graphic glory, just like things used to be. This would dovetail nicely with the fact that newspaper media companies have been wringing their hands for a few years on how to stem the revenue hemorrhage from loss of traditional paper subscribers, and this will be a nice way to recapture some of that market from folks who long ago stopped subscribing to a physical paper service, but will pay for cohesive, graphic content if it’s delivered effortlessly and cleanly through a bright, easy media device. It also offers a bit of the nostalgia of getting “the paper” and could bring back a viable subscription model to an industry that needs revenue for the kind of investigative, research-based journalism that’s starting to wane in recent years. I think its an innovative idea, and throws newspaper companies a much-needed rope. Expect some kind of overhead picture of the device displaying the New York Times in its full, print glory.
I think we’ll hear of the beginnings of some sort of monthly TV subscription service, also delivered through iTunes, as Apple ramps up for some kind of assault on traditional cable service. I don’t think all the content is quite there yet, but I think we’ll see some sort of trajectory laid out. I think Apple TV is gone, and this device will interface with your TV in some meaningful way, with subscription access to content streaming rather than local storage.
Lastly, I think in terms of how the device will fit into Apple’s product line, I’m starting to think that Apple might be poising it to replace the lowest end MacBook, as it’ll have all the web/email/entertainment features that most people use those laptops for.
Share your own predictions below, and look for a scorecard after the event. Stay tuned for our liveblog as well!
TUAWTUAW predicts tomorrow’s event originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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While running on a rough road with small ups and downs, if we turn the steering to right or left, I hear a "kadak, Kadak" noise from the steering wheel. This noise comes only when the steering wheel is truned right or left. On the same stretch of road, if we drive in straight line there is no noise.
I actually noticed this problem when I took my car to Yercaud (small hill station near Salem, Tamil Nadu). There are around 20 hairpin bends on this ghat road. In almost all the hairpin bends, the road was having little rough patches. When turning in these bends, I first heard the noise. After coming back, I checked for this nosie in the normal roads with little rough patches. Whenever the wheel hits small ups and downs on the road there is this noise (only when the steering is turned left or right). This noise is heard when the steering is rotated even for 30 deg or more.
I took the car to my only service Center "Rajshree Ford, Coimbatore" and they told that there is a problem in steering column and it needs to be changed. During first service, they changed the column (they told that rake is ok(?) but I don’t know what they are talking) and told that the problem is solved. But when I took my vehicle back from service center, I found the same noise on similar kind of situations. I immediately told them over phone and they have promised to look into the issue after the holidays (republic day).
Friends, what could be the real reason for this noise?
Note: I had already posted the same querry in the thread "All Fiesta owners- you are here, Page No. 105 (post No 1564)".
One of the replies I got was, that this problem is available in all Fiestas. (Reply No, 1571 in the same page). This reply has increased my worries.
What should I do now? Can anybody help? I am planning to visit the service station tomarrow. How should I deal with the service people. Till now, they are very amicable with me and even now they say that they will look into the matter and solve it.
I am not familiar with all those models, but I do know that Camry, Corolla, Rav4 and Highlander, all 2008 to 2010 models, figure in that list.
I wanted to share this information, and will update this thread when I get more information.
Quick Spin: 2010 Volkswagen Polo TSI 1.2 could preview what’s to come — Autoblog
At last year’s Geneva Motor Show, we got our first in-person look at the all-new fifth-generation Volkswagen Polo, the brand’s popular B-segment model that slots in below the ever-expanding Golf and Jetta range. While subcompact vehicles like the Polo have been a staple in Europe for decades where fuel prices hover around $8/gallon, in the last few years, Americans have finally started to take a serious look at cars of this size. With the Honda Fit and Mini Cooper well established, the Ford Fiesta and Mazda2 twins on the way and an all-new Chevrolet Aveo coming late in 2010, the market for subcompact runabouts is picking up steam in the States and VW is taking a long, hard look at adding the Polo to its North American lineup in the next few years.
With that in mind, VW trotted out a fleet of Polos for us to sample on its home turf near Wolfsburg, Germany recently and while the automaker has yet to make a firm decision about importing the Polo to the U.S., they clearly wanted our feedback. Here’s what we told VW of America CEO Stefan Jacoby and his staff.
The new Polo is a handsome little hatchback with a very attractive implementation of Volkswagen’s latest design language. The front fascia shares a lot with the new Golf, including the slim, black, horizontal grille above the bumper and the primary air intake and fog-lamp mounts down below. Along the sides, the pronounced wheel arches work nicely with the chiseled character lines just below the windows and along the rocker panels to give the Polo a pleasantly aggressive stance. For such a small car, it looks quite stocky, especially on the 17-inch, five-spoke alloys fitted to our tester.
All of the Polos on hand were powered by one of VW’s newest engines: the 1.2-liter TSI four-cylinder. As its TSI designation implies, the 1.2 includes both a turbocharger and direct fuel injection, with a different cylinder head configuration than current TSI mills. Larger displacement versions from this engine familly all feature dual overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder, while the 1.2 uses a single cam and only two valves per cylinder. While this might seem like a step backwards, there’s some solid reasoning behind it.
The first and most obvious is cost. A single cam, two-valve head is considerably less expensive to build, along with being notably lighter. Both of these elements are important in an engine for an entry-level car. However, there is also a functional reason that could make the two-valve layout advantageous for a direct-injected engine. Four smaller valves take more space in the combustion chamber, and they don’t leave much space to locate the spark plug and injector. This usually creates a situation where the spark plug is located in the center and the injector is off to one side. With only two valves, both the plug and the injector can be located closer to the middle, so fuel is distributed more evenly. The pressurized intake air from the turbocharger also helps to offset some of the four-valve configuration’s breathing advantage. Overall, this results in a reasonable compromise for a subcompact vehicle and a rather impressive amount of power.
The 1.2-liter TSI churns out 103 horsepower and 129 pound-feet of torque, and while that doesn’t sound like much, maximum twist is available between 1,500 and 3,500 rpm, making for excellent around town drivability. By comparison, the 1.5-liter, 16-valve normally aspirated engine in the North American-spec Honda Fit produces 117 hp, while maximum torque a meager 106 lb-ft peaks at 4,800 rpm. Mated to either a six-speed manual or new seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, the Polo’s demeanor is nearly unmatched by anything in the U.S., and the run to 62 miles per hour takes place in a perfectly adequate 9.7 seconds. Making things even more enticing is the Polo’s fuel economy, up from 35.1 mpg (U.S.) to 42.8 mpg compared to the outgoing port-injected 1.6-liter four-cylinder in the previous Polo, with a drop in CO2 emissions to boot (159 g/km versus 129 g/km).
Attachment 274660 Attachment 274661
Inside, the Polo provides typical Volkswagen fare well finished, high quality materials of the sort rarely found in Stateside subcompacts. The design is simple, clean and functional, with everything located exactly where it should be. Large, round gauges for the speedometer and tach flank an information display that keeps tabs on the clock, mileage, range and other useful info-tidbits. The overall design is very similar to the Golf, with a seamless surface across the top of the dashboard. Our tester came equipped with an optional in-dash navigation system, along with a large storage bin below the climate controls and cloth seats that proved comfortable while providing plenty of lateral support.
One aspect where the Polo loses out to the class-leading Honda Fit is interior volume. The Japanese hatch is about five inches longer and 2.5 inches taller than the Volkswagen, although the wheelbase is only about an inch longer. Most of the Fit’s extra length is the result of its longer nose (something not found on non-North American variants), yet its extra size can be felt most clearly from the rear seat, where the extra height allows for a more upright position for passengers and room for four adults. The Polo is noticeably more snug, albeit easily on par with the forthcoming Ford Fiesta.
Attachment 274662
Attachment 274663 Attachment 274664 Attachment 274665
The five-door Polo we sampled was equipped with a DSG transmission but, unlike the Golf TDI, it didn’t have paddle shifters. If you’re hot to swap your own cogs, slotting the gear selector to the right from Drive allows you to tap-shift the transmission up or down. Around town, the torquey engine proved very responsive and the Polo never felt sluggish or strained, and shifts were quick and smooth whether commanded by the powertrain ECU or the driver.
Going around corners, the Polo’s steering was quick and the electro-hydraulic assist had good feedback. Our drive loop south of the Oschersleben track included stretches through several small villages coated in cobblestones, and the Polo’s poise and reasonably comfortable ride on such uneven surfaces bodes well for how the V-Dub will behave on pitted U.S. roads.
But will it make the trek?
Officials from Volkswagen of America seem intent on bringing the Polo to the States, but the big question seems to be what bodystyle U.S. consumers will get. While European VW dealers offer three- and five-door hatchback configurations, the thought seems to be that Americans would prefer a sedan. To our eyes, a hatchback and its attendant utility makes a lot more sense than an undersized trunk, but our position might not jibe with mainstream consumer tastes. From where we sit, the smarter choice may be something analogous to the Euro-only Golf Plus, which is a taller version of VW’s C-segment hatch. A vertically stretched Polo Plus could match the space of the Fit on its existing footprint, negating our only serious ding with the Polo a lack of interior space.
However, the more intractable problem is cost. With the euro trading at nearly $1.50, sourcing an inexpensive B-segment car from across The Pond is a non-starter. VWoA CEO Stefan Jacoby told us that the site of the new Chattanooga, TN assembly plant has space to double in size and could ultimately produce up to 500,000 vehicles annually. The Puebla, Mexico plant that builds the Jetta and New Beetle is also being expanded, so if the Polo is offered here, it will almost certainly be built in North America and offered throughout North, Central and South America.
VW will no doubt be closely watching how the all-new Ford Fiesta and Mazda2 fare to help determine its path. And if we were betting gentlemen and we often are our money would be on the Polo arriving on U.S. shores within the next three-to-four years. With the exemplary 1.2-liter TSI and an enlarged cabin, the Polo could easily find favor with Stateside consumers currently reassessing what they need in a vehicle, and with more subcompacts arriving each year, VW needs to strike while the iron is hot to solidify its place in a segment that’s finally garnering some attention in America.
Every major country in the ACTA negotiations claims that its own laws will remain unchanged by the treaty. But without changing a word of domestic law, ACTA can still be dangerous to a country’s — or a continent’s — economy. This week at Deeplinks, we’ve asked guest bloggers from around the world to give their perspective on the trade agreement. Today, giving the view from the heart of the European Union, is Ante Wessels, analyst for the Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure, a group best known for their work in Europe’s debate over software patents.
Negotiations on the highly controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement are now in mid-flow in Guadalajara, Mexico. Topics for this round of closed negotiations will be civil enforcement, border measures and enforcement procedures in the digital environment.
After the last round of negotiations in November, the secret EU analysis of the Internet chapter (as proposed by the US) was leaked to the press. This document suggests the EU would prefer ACTA to mirror existing EU legislation.
Questioned in January by the European Parliament, Neelie Kroes, now Commissioner for the Digital Agenda, confirmed this. She said “There has been a first proposal tabled by the United States. For the Commission, the objective of the negotiations is that our international partners guarantee the same level of protection of IP rights as the EU currently applies. There will be no harmonization via the backdoor. We stick to the line they have to move to our side and that’s it.”
What would be the outcome of an ACTA where EU IP legislation is exported to the world? One troubling possibility is that our most controversial IP regulations would be frozen in ACTA with no obvious way to reform them. The EU is still in the middle of an ongoing political debate over the future of intellectual property enforcement, including how best to handle patents, a discussion that the Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure is intimately involved in. But if these current laws were to be established in an international agreement, they would be effectively unfixable, in the EU or elsewhere.
Europe’s Flawed Legislation
“Exporting EU-style enforcement legislation to foreign trading partners is an (un)official goal of EU policy”, Professor Annette Kur of the Max Planck Institute in Munich, remarked in a presentation last December. She added: “If and where legislation is (partly) flawed, export is not a recommendable option.”
If the European governments and Commission have it their way, we believe ACTA will look like the recently negotiated EU-Korea free trade agreement. This agreement proposes to apply harsh anti-counterfeiting measures against patent infringements, which as most readers here will know, are often complex, of unclear validity, and require argument in a civil court.
An FFII analysis of the agreement showed that the free trade agreement contained drastic civil and border measures, including injunctions, seizures, destruction of goods, and the removal of online repositories. Applied to patents, we believe these could well threaten companies that produce software, companies that use software, and free software projects alike. And the “safe harbours” for online hosting providers proposed by the agreement are no safe harbours at all. We believe these are the kind of regulations that Europe is proposing exporting to the world.
Traditional models of IP rights are being challenged world-wide. With a few mouse-clicks anyone can copy whole libraries of works. Children record, download, mix and publish music and video. Twitter and blogs spread news. How to best deal with all these new developments is still unclear. Yet, in this moment of great uncertainty, governments gather to impose and freeze broken, old-school measures on these new developments. They do so to protect old interests against innovation. And they do so in secret.
On Friday, delegations have set aside just one hour to discuss transparency. It is clear what should happen: stop these negotiations until all documents are published.
Congratulations to Peggie Parhas (Sophomore Guard) who was named Region IV Division III Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for January 25, 2010.
Peggie was recognized for her play in last week’s games against Madison Area Technical College and Milwaukee Area Technical College. She scored 35 points, handed out 13 assists, grabbed 19 rebounds, collected 4 steals and went 5 for 5 from the free throw line.
This makes 2 Region IV Division III Women’s Basketball Player of the Week honors for Peggie this season!
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that Apple is supposedly set to introduce a tablet device (AKA the Apple Tablet, iSlate, etc.) at its latest event that will change the lives of every man, woman, and child on the planet. Sure, it could just be a fresh version of iLife and an 8GB iPhone 3GS, but we kinda doubt that. If you know what’s best for you, you’ll tune in for our minute-by-minute, live coverage of the event. There won’t be a better seat in the house… well, except for wherever Steve Jobs is sitting.
The show gets going on Wednesday, January 27th at 10AM PT.
Here’s the URL where you should park your browser, and below are starting times around the globe:
08:00AM – Hawaii
10:00AM – Pacific
11:00AM – Mountain
12:00PM – Central
01:00PM – Eastern
06:00PM – London
07:00PM – Paris
09:00PM – Moscow
03:00AM – Tokyo (January 28th)
Our live coverage of the Apple ‘latest creation’ event starts tomorrow at 10:00AM PT / 1:00PM ET originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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