As mentioned in our review, the added RAM in the Palm Pre Plus means you can run “a LOT” of apps. You know, like 10! Absurdist logic site PreCentral asks the obvious question: why not 50?
Anyway, I’m stuck on the third mission of GTA: Chinatown Wars on my iPhone, because I keep getting calls while I’m playing, which shuts down the game completely. So, my question is, is this Pre Plus making fun of me? Because it sure feels that way. [PreCentral]
Jumbo Aniebiet is a native Nigerian Jazz and R&B singer, song writer and producer who’s biggest tragedy in his life lead to his vocation. Although Jumbo began playing the harmonica at age 6, it wasn’t until the tragic loss of his mother that he developed a stronger passion for music. Through hard work ,and growth of his artistry, Jumbo’s doors opened up as he worked with great artists such as South African legendary jazz musician, Hugh Masekhela and Nigerian Queen of Soul, Yinka Davis.
Jumbo – Brand New Day
Earlier this week, we told you about the thriving startup scene in Austin, TX, which is home to South By Southwest (SXSW), one of the largest events of the year for the startup community. Many startups have used the Interactive portion of SXSW to launch their new product, including Twitter and Foursquare, and now the organizers of the event are offering special package for companies that can help with that process.
Announced yesterday, The aptly named “Launch Package” provides companies with floor space at March’s Film and Interactive Trade Show, as well as advertisements in the event program, inclusion at an invite-only press event, and the opportunity to get their “creative swag” in gift bags to be distributed at the event.
Sponsor
Priced at $5000, the Launch Package also includes two sponsored posts on both the SXSW Facebook page and on the event’s Twitter account. Combined with the other offers, companies can save over $2000 by purchasing the package.
“This turn-key solution includes assets to maximize your footprint at the festival, as well
as outreach through the SXSW social networking channels and direct access to key media
at a private meet the press event,” says Katie King, who manages sales for SXSW Interactive.
Exposure is great for any small business hoping to gain traction and there is no better place to be seen than at SXSW. Last year’s SXSW event saw over 31,000 attendees with over 24,000 visiting the Film and Interactive trade show, making the Launch Package a highly valuable opportunity for startups.
Pricing for vendors at SXSW can get fairly expensive depending on the size of the display and when it is ordered. The last chance to save any money on a display was back in November, and now business looking to set up shop on the trade show floor are looking at prices ranging from $1560 for a single stand to $4446 for a large end cap. Bundling the floor display with print advertisements and “swag bag” inserts could be an excellent way to save some money with the event just two months away.
Photo by Flickr user Matthew Simantov.
Filed under: Convertible, Coupe, Sedan, Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Europe, BMW, Rumormill
As far as we can tell, there’s little if anything wrong the E92 M3. However, according to a post on Bimmerfile, that small point will not be stopping BMW from offering a Competition Package on 2011 models. What goes into a Competition Pack? We’re not certain, and Bimmerfile can only speculate (bigger wheels, brakes, maybe). Knowing that much, we’ll join ’em. But first, a little history.
Way back in 2005, BMW began a Competition Package for the E46 M3. Included were upgraded wheels, larger brakes, stickier tires,a firmer suspension and a revised Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) system identical to the one on the hardcore M3 CSL. In addition, the E46 M3 Comp Pack also came with a quicker steering ratio. Inside, a bit of fussing took place in the form of Alcantara steering wheel and hand brake coverings and the steering wheel saw a few buttons (multi-function controls and cruise) deleted in favor of a DSC M button.
Will the E92 Competition Package feature similar upgrades? Hard to say, but we’ll guess yes. For their part, Bimmerfile is speculating that larger wheels and brakes will be part of the package (at least), along with an upgraded interior. The E46 Comp Pack added about $4,000 to the price of the M3. You can be certain that this number will increase when the new package drops. Is there any chance that the Competition Pack will offer a few of the goodies found on the hardcore M3 GTS (pictured above)? Once again, maybe. Improved wheels, brakes and tires being the safest bet.
One curious note: there’s a 7MA option pack attached to the Competition Package code (ZCP) that might simply mean a manual transmission option, or (according to Bimmerfile) could be an upgraded exhaust system good for a few ponies more. We’ll keep you posted, though we should get some clarification right around Geneva.
Gallery: BMW M3 GTS
[Source: Bimmerfile]
Rumormill: 2011 BMW M3 coming with Competition Package originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
By Jamie McGee
Jan. 21 (Bloomberg) — President Barack Obama’s proposals to regulate banks should include a requirement that chief executive officers and their spouses forfeit their assets when companies fail, billionaire Warren Buffett said on the Fox Business Network today.
“There ought to be a huge downside,” said Buffett, whose Berkshire Hathaway Inc. is the largest shareholder in Wells Fargo & Co. “Make it so that the CEO of an institution that fails, or goes to the government and needs help, really gets destroyed himself financially. Why should he come out any better than somebody that gets laid off as an auto worker at General Motors?”
Buffett, who collects a $100,000 salary as Omaha, Nebraska- based Berkshire’s leader, said CEOs should act as “chief risk officer.” He has criticized bankers for failing to realize that housing prices could fall.
Obama today introduced a plan that he said would reduce risk-taking by financial institutions. The proposal is part of an effort to overhaul financial regulations and would specifically prohibit banks from running proprietary trading operations or investing in hedge funds and private equity funds. Banks conduct proprietary trading for their own benefit, not for that of their clients.
Buffett said he hadn’t had an opportunity to review the administration’s proposal. He supported Obama’s campaign for president.
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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid hasn’t yet filed cloture (to limit debate and overcome a filibuster) on Ben Bernanke’s nomination for a second four-year term as Federal Reserve chairman, pushing a vote into next week at the earliest. Does that suggest anything about Bernanke’s prospects?
 |
| Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) leads the charge against Fed Chairman Bernanke. (Getty Images) |
Probably not, even if the delay might feed speculation on Capitol Hill and Wall Street. Given the Senate upheaval after the Republican victory in Massachusetts, the focus on scheduling a central bank nominee’s confirmation surely dropped a bit in the leadership office. But Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), who is leading the charge among liberals to fight the nomination, thinks the Massachusetts outcome will influence the Bernanke vote in another way. In a statement Wednesday, Sen. Sanders said he senses “growing opposition” to the nomination in light of the Massachusetts “wake-up call” for Democrats.
There is a growing understanding that our economy is in severe distress, a greater appreciation that people are disgusted with the never-ending greed on Wall Street, and a better recognition that we need a new direction at the Fed,” he said in his statement. People do not want another term for the man whose major job as Fed chairman was to protect the safety and soundness of our financial system but instead was asleep at the switch. I am confident that more and more senators understand that we need a new Fed and a new Wall Street and will oppose Bernankes confirmation.
Of course, Sanders is one of at least four lawmakers trying to block the Bernanke vote, so it’s not surprising that he’d want to build opposition. In an interview, he said he’s been talking with other senators and urging them to vote “no.” (In public, many Democrats have been noncommittal about how they’d vote.) Sanders said he’s heard from more Democrats in recent days who would vote against Bernanke, but he declined to name them. “You’re beginning to see, maybe this vote is kind of symbolic of one’s attitude toward Wall Street, and whether or not we’re going to stand up to them and move it in a new direction with new leadership, or whether we keep up the same old same old,” he said.
Would opponents actually have the 41 votes needed to block the Fed chairman for another term? The Fed chairman regulates many Wall Street firms, but this battle may come down to how many senators buy the argument that a mild-mannered former Princeton professor — who lawmakers routinely say they like personally — is really that closely linked to Wall Street.
If the full Senate votes in the same proportion that the Senate Banking Committee did in its 16-7 approval last month, Bernanke would receive at least 69 votes — nine more than he needs to clear under Senate rules. (That would be worse than Paul Volcker, who was confirmed 84-16 amid economic turmoil in 1983.) Even if he lost roughly two-thirds of the 41 Republicans on the Senate floor — more than the 60% he lost in committee — he’d still need to lose almost a quarter of Democrats to be defeated. All of that is not entirely inconceivable, but it would be surprising for a former Bush administration official who is the Democratic president’s nominee. (So far from the left, only Sanders and Sen. Jeff Merkley have indicated their plans to vote against Bernanke, while Sen. Byron Dorgan is also seen as a possible “no” vote.)
Sanders, when we walked through the math, acknowledged the odds. But he maintained that he has a shot at getting 15 Democrats. “It’s going to be close,” he said.
According to AppleInsider’s sources, this flickr image is the closest mockup of the Apple Tablet that anyone has seen to date. And yes, it’s essentially a big, first-gen iPhone that’s “met its match with a rolling pin.”
Rather than a plastic back, AI claims the Tablet will have the same, two-tone aluminum look of the original iPhone. But while this image is thought to be very close to Apple’s final design, it doesn’t sound like a full-fledged OS X will be on board. Why? The Tablet will have an iPhone-inspired Home button (along with a 10-inch screen, 3.5-mm stereo headphone jack, built-in speaker grills, a microphone, GPS, 3G connectivity and a 30-pin dock connector, if AppleInsider has it right).
Personally, I never grew tired of the iPhone’s original look, and I’d love to see the design in tablet form. What about you? [AppleInsider and flickr]
A judge Wednesday dismissed a libel lawsuit filed last year by a Chicago property firm against a tenant who complained about her “moldy apartment” on Twitter.
“Who said sleeping in a moldy apartment was bad for you? Horizon realty thinks it’s okay,” Amanda Bonnen wrote in her Twitter feed May 12 at 9:08 a.m.
Horizon Group Management, which leased the Uptown apartment to Bonnen, wasn’t pleased and filed a libel suit against her saying she “maliciously and wrongfully published the false and defamatory Tweet.”
On Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court Judge Diane J. Larsen ordered the case dismissed with prejudice, meaning that Horizon cannot refile the same case. According to Bonnen’s attorney, the judge felt the tweet was too vague to meet the legal standards of libel.
The offending message apparently rose out of a class-action suit filed in March after a contractor caused a roof leak that affected some units at 4242 N. Sheridan Road, then Bonnen’s home.
When it filed the libel suit in July, Horizon said in a statement that all grievances with tenants in the class action were resolved “amicably,” except Bonnen’s.
While responding to the class action, Horizon’s lawyers found Bonnen’s tweet and “acted to protect our reputation just as we would for any other related comment made in a public forum,” Horizon said at the time of the libel suit.
Bonnen moved out of the apartment at the end of June “of her own volition … at which time there was no mold in her
apartment,” the statement said.
The last entry in her Twitter account was logged at 10:11 a.m. July 22, a day before Horizon’s filed the libel suit. The account itself is no longer online.
One of Bonnen’s lawyers said this morning the judge dismissed the case on the grounds that the tweet itself was too vague to fit the legal elements required to prove a libel case.
The tweet, said Leslie Ann Reis, “could be innocently construed. It could be construed as her opinion.”
“It mentioned Horizon Realty but it never specified whether it referred to Chicago or Illinois and knowing that Twitter is international, that could pertain to any company that uses the name Horizon,” said Reis, who is director of the Center for Information Technology and Privacy Law at John Marshall Law School.
That, she said, runs afoul of one of the elements required in proving a libel, that the plaintiff show the defendant made a false statement specifically about the plaintiff.
Another requirement is that the statement be published — which it was, via Twitter — but the third element asks the plaintiff to prove actual harm from the statement.
While the publication channel was novel, the legal grounding was not. “This was not a case about Twitter. This was a case about defamation. … The fact of the matter is that you have to meet all those elements” to prove libel, Reis said.
A lawyer for Horizon did not immediately return a call for comment. By law, the plaintiff has 30 days to appeal the judge’s ruling.
Reis said the center took on Bonnen’s case pro bono and was assisted by a group of law students and attorneys Richard Balough and Jeff Sobek.
Read the original article from Tribune News Services.
The UFC really hits the road this year with an aggressive international expansion that include shows in Sydney, Australia and Abu Dhabi. The Aussies are ready for UFC 110. Boy, are they ever. The Acer Arena, configured for 17,300, is already sold out. The UFC’s U.K. president told Cagewriter the promotion will be adding a closed circuit seating venue adjacent to the arena. The event in Abu Dhabi is a little more tricky. The "arena" is far from sold out. That’s because there is no arena and yet the event is tentatively scheduled for April 10. What gives?
Zelaznik scouted the area last week and said the plan is moving forward. The UAE is experienced at holding big events.
"The majority of the events are held outdoors. The opportunity for us would include the building of an outdoor arena."
He said it’ll be similar to Las Vegas superfight venues of the ’70s and ’80s.
"You’d have some sort of covering on it. You’d have a pretty intimate live setting. In our current planning, we’d look to have 10,000 seats or more depending on the configuration we go with."
Zelaznik said the thought that Flash Entertainment and the UAE would have a standard 20,000 seat arena finished by April is far-fetched.
"Make no bones about it, the area we’re looking at is gravel currently. It will be built for a UFC event. It will be dressed in a way that it will feel very special. With the exception of walls and a roof, it will be an arena with raised seating, coliseum-style seating where you have people very close to the action."
The main event for UFC 112 has B.J. Penn defending his title against Frank Edgar. Renzo Gracie, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu instructor to the UAE royal family and a legendary member of the Gracie clan, will make his UFC debut as well. The 42-year-old will fight a fellow legend in Matt Hughes. Gracie will try to avenge the loss his brother Royce to Hughes back at UFC 63.
Zelaznik said he felt an optimism, almost a "gold rush mentality" because of all the success in the UAE right now. Abu Dhabi has become an entertainement mecca.
Zelaznik didn’t specify where the arena was slated for but he did say the Emirates Palace Hotel has hosted big events in the past.
“As you know we have a problem this year and it’s not going to get better in 2010-11 and onward. The picture is not very bright.” — Interim City Administrative Officer Ray Ciranna, May 5, 2009.
“This is just the beginning, next year is worse.” — Assistant City Administrative Officer Tom Coultas, Dec. 12, 2009
Don’t blame the bureaucrats for this City Hall financial crisis that will force drastic action to avoid bankruptcy. Blame your elected officials who failed to heed the warnings and follow their advice, and hold them accountable
.
Here’s a retrospective on what was reported and recorded here, starting with this video and article on May 5 of last year, showing how the mayor and City Council failed in their duties to deal with the financial crisis despite being told over and over that hard decisions were needed.
MAY 5, 2009:
City Council to Unions: Your Jobs or Your Money
MAY 13, 2009:
MAY 18, 2009
MAY 19, 2009
MAY 21, 2009
JUNE 3, 2009
JUNE 18, 2009
JUNE 24, 2009
JUNE 26, 2009
JULY 3, 2009
JULY 19, 2009
AUGUST 3, 2009
AUGUST 4, 2009
AUGUST 6, 2009
SEPTEMBER 3, 2009
SEPTEMBER 5, 2009
SEPTEMBER 13, 2009
SEPTEMBER 16, 2009
>
SEPTEMBER 18, 2009
SEPTEMBER 22, 2009
OCTOBER 9, 2009
OCTOBER 13, 2009
OCTOBER 30, 2009
DECEMBER 12, 2009
JANUARY 21, 2009
I hope you enjoy my photograph.
I’m the only person allowed to post images, 😉
Lets to start the voyage across my beautiful country
:lol::)
mural paintings by Diego Rivera,
Inside National Palace,
Mexico City.
Localização: Rua da Fundação Bradesco. Lado oposto ao Arte Vida II
Financiamento: Caixa | Minha Casa Mina Vida
Construtora: Sólida Engenharia
Caracteristicas: 100% revestido em pastilhas; 2 ou 3/4 com suíte
Vendas: Conlar
Late Wednesday, series regular Neil Patrick Harris Tweeted the first image of Carrie Underwood on the set of How I Met Your Mother. The country star will make her sitcom debut on the popular CBS comedy in March. The recently-engaged Underwood is snapped beaming as she sports a beehive and a retro ’60s flight attendant uniform.
“This week’s awesome guest star: . HIMYM – You’ll Love The Way We Fly!” Neil’s caption reads.
Charges were dropped today against the St. Charles woman accused of stealing a dog and trying to sell it online
Kane County prosecutors said they lacked the evidence to proceed with theft charges against Jennifer Aviles, 26, who said she believed the dog was a stray when she found it on a St. Charles street last month.
“Whether her statement is true or not – about thinking the dog was a stray – we’ll never know,” Kane County Assistant State’s Attorney Steve Sims said.
But since the German Shepherd didn’t have a collar and wasn’t in a yard, it would have been difficult to prove Aviles intended to steal the animal, Sims said.
Aviles declined to comment as she left court.
She was charged Dec. 9 with misdemeanor theft after the dog’s owner was alerted to an ad on Craigslist.com, which sought to sell the dog for $150. St. Charles police tracked the listing to Aviles.
Aviles said last month that she saw the dog as she drove to work Dec. 7 and thought — based on the dog’s thin appearance and lack of a collar — that it was a stray. So she placed the dog in her car and drove off.
A day later, Aviles said she found a home for the dog and said she gave it away for free. After she was contacted by police, Aviles returned the dog to its rightful owner, who decided to press charges.
The $150 asking price online was intended to weed out non-serious offers and deter dog-fight fans and animal researchers, Aviles said. But police said it showed intent of theft.
–Clifford Ward
Read the original article from Tribune News Services.
Amazon is getting into the apps game, with “active content” coming to the Kindle later this year with the announcement of the Kindle Development Kit (KDK.) You’ll be able to download these apps wirelessly using the Kindle Store once they launch, and we already know that there are some devs that are already hard at work on their Kindle active content.
Amazon says it has already released the Kindle Development Kit to a select number of partners, including the video game giant Electronic Arts, and will make it more widely available when a limited beta period starts next month. It anticipates formally adding what it calls “active content” to the Kindle store sometime later this year.
Some are seeing this as a reaction to the many, many new ereaders that we saw debut at CES 2010, while others think it is a preventative measure to take some steam out of whatever it is that Apple will be announcing next week at the January 27th Apple Event. Regardless of what it is, having more value added to a device is never a bad thing.
Tags:
active content,
amazon,
apps,
dev kit,
kdk,
kindle,
kindle development kit,
kindle dx,
kindle sdk,
sdk,
sidefeatured,
Turns out the New Jersey Nets were just what the doctor ordered for our Phoenix Suns (25-18, 2nd in the Pacific Division). The Suns flattened the Nets 118-94 on the strength of 27 points from A’mare Stoudemire and 15 assists from Steve Nash. The Suns look to get back to their winning ways this week, with three of four games in the comfy confines of US Airways Center.
The Baby Bulls (18-22, 2nd in the Central Division) are better than their record might indicate but they have struggled mightily on the road (4-16), including a loss Wednesday at the Clippers. Believe it or not, Chicago is the currently the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, showing just how watered down the East really is. Second-year point guard Derrick Rose leads the Bulls, averaging 19 points and 6 assists per game. Player to watch: Suns’ center Robin Lopez, who upon being inserted into the starting lineup promptly scored 20 points in the win over the Nets.
It’s always fun when the Warriors (12-27, 5th in the Pacific Division) and Suns hook up, unless of course you’re a fan of good defense. Player to watch: Warriors’ guard Monta Ellis, who scored 39 points in an overtime loss to the Nuggets on Wednesday.
Monday at Utah
Salt Lake City is a tough place to play for any team, much less one that struggles on the road as much as the Suns do. Worse news for the Suns is that the Jazz (24-18, 4th in the Northwest Division) have really begun to hit their stride as of late, including a huge road win at San Antonio on Wednesday. Players to watch: Just like John Stockton and Karl Malone in the 80s and 90s, the high-low game between Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer fuels the Jazz attack. Williams and Boozer average 19 points per contest each.
The Bobcats (21-19, 3rd in the Southeast Division) are breathing rarified air, playing above-.500 ball and challenging for its first playoff berth in franchise history. Player to watch: Gerald Wallace is as dynamic a swingman as you’ll find in the NBA, averaging 18.6 points, 11.3 rebounds, 1.69 steals and 1.23 blocks per game.
The Charlotte Observer reports: Word is that former Bulls star Michael Jordan remains interested in purchasing the Charlotte Bobcats.
The issue is whether Jordan, now the Bobcats’ managing partner, can agree on price and terms with majority owner Bob Johnson that would give him controlling interest in the NBA team.
Get the full story: CharlotteObserver.com
Read the original article from Tribune News Services.
Applications are now being accepted for the 2010 G.I.R.L. Scholarship to help educate and recruit more women into the field of video game production and design. Sponsored by Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) and administered by Scholarship America, a leading non-profit educational support program, applications are available and more details, including official rules for entry are also available online. One skilled student will win up to $10,000 to be applied toward tuition and other educational expenses at the school at which the student is currently enrolled, and an optional internship of up to 10 weeks at one of Sony Online Entertainment’s studios (room, board, transportation and living expenses not included).
“The past two G.I.R.L. Scholarship recipients were such a valued addition to our team that we are thrilled to offer this program for the third consecutive year,” said Laura Naviaux, Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing, Sony Online Entertainment. “Our goal is to continue to encourage and reward women who share our commitment and passion for developing cutting edge online games for all demographic groups.”
To be eligible to participate, entrants must be currently enrolled in an undergraduate program related to video games, including video game art, design, animation, production, programming or visual effects, must not graduate before the end of the 2011 spring term and must comply with the program’s official rules. Entrants are required to complete an online application along with an existing piece of art, and if chosen as semifinalists, submit two pieces of concept art and one essay that will be reviewed by a panel of SOE judges. Online applications must be completed and submitted on or before February 15, 2010.
SOE will announce the winner on or about May 20, 2010.
This week has been a wet and dreary one in LA. So yesterday, in an effort to cheer up the kitchen and fill the fridge with something we could eat for a couple of days, we broke out dad’s recipe for ratatouille.
[JURIST] A Moscow court on Thursday rejected an appeal of a lower court ruling that denied recognition of a marriage between two women. The couple, Irina Fedotova-Fet and Irina Shepitko, applied for a marriage license in March, but were refused by the registry. The women appealed to the Tverskoi District Court in Moscow, arguing that nothing in the Russian Constitution prohibits the recognition of same-sex marriage. That court rejected their appeal in October, and the appeals court affirmed that ruling Thursday, stating that Russia only recognizes marriage between a man and a woman. Counsel for the two women stated that they plan to appeal the case to the European Court of Human Rights for a violation of Article 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
In Europe, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain, Norway, and Sweden all allow same-sex marriages, while several other European countries allow partnerships with limited rights. Earlier this month, the Portuguese Parliament approved a bill to legalize same-sex marriage after Portugal’s high court ruled in August that the right to a same-sex marriage was not present in the country’s constitution. In June, Ireland passed a bill that gave limited rights to same-sex partners. Last year, the European Court of Justice, spurred by a complaint from a German man, ruled that same-sex partners have a right to survivor pensions.
Friday vs. Chicago