In addition, JPS Co is now on target to build Jamaica’s first Gas Turbine Plant to utilize LNG as its main fuel in St. Catherine with Diesel Generators to provide backup Power. More details on the LNG Plant in the days ahead as they become available.

This announcement is basically a re-affirmation of the Government of Jamaica’s commitment to International bidders who had come forward in response to Jamaica’s license issued for the procurement of:

• LNG Supply
• LNG Floating Storage Facilities
• LNG Re-gasification Terminal
• Pipeline Infrastructure to supply JPS Co Power Plants and JAMALCO’s Alumina Works and Power Plants

Before I begin this gas filled article, a few pointers:

• LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) is a transportation format for Natural Gas, a by-product of Oil Mining
• CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) is the on-land storage and pipeline transportation form
• LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) is the Commercial and Residential usage form. It is also suitable for motor vehicle usage

So on to the Big News! The coming LNG as part of Jamaica’s Energy Mix is estimated to save Jamaica some US$300 million annually on our Oil Bill, both for Electricity Generation and Motor Vehicle Fuel Usage.

It is also a part of Jamaica’s long term Liberalization of the Energy Sector that began three (3) months prior with Energy Minister Clive Mullings’ suggested alternations of JPS Co’s exclusive ten (10) year license that signals the beginning of Energy Sector Liberalization as pointed out in the article Solamon Energy Corporation to build Caribbean’s Largest Solar Plant – Jamaica to get a Green Energy Boost , which Phillip Paulwell can now complete.

It is also a follow-on of the previous JLP-led Administration’s Energy Minister Paul Robertson push for Energy Sector Liberalization and introduction of LNG to JPS Co as well as reducing the cost of the production of Bauxite and possibly the production of Alumina here in Jamaica.

These are exciting times folks!

Progress on an issue that has had the previous political administrations in Jamaica set in deadlock is now a reality. Phillip Paulwell has even gone a step further and announced plans at the same American Chamber of Commerce which were recently published in the Jamaica Gleaner on Monday February 13^th 2011AD for the establishment of a bi-partisan Energy Council to handle the complex issue of the diversification of Jamaica’s Energy Mix!

His word sum it up best, quote: “The council will take all the talk, all the papers over the years, and policies left on paper, and have them implemented once and for all. We have to get it right. We have wasted decades. We have not seen the improvement in the JPS largely because the Government failed to make appropriate and timely decisions. We have not seen the right fuel sources, and we intend to change all of that now. It is through this council that we will get the bureaucracy to work.”

A fulfillment of a recommendation made by then Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller on Friday May 6^th 2011AD! With the number one priority being to reduce the cost of Electricity to both Residential and Commercial Customers!

Back then in May 2011AD in a three (3) hour speech, Portia Simpson Miller, now Prime Minister of Jamaica since the PNP’s landslide victory in December 2011AD, had outlined the composition of the Energy Council.

It was argued then to be bi-partisan in nature and to consist of members of the various Private and Public Sector entities whose businesses were directly impacted by the spiraling costs of Energy due to the movement of the price of Oil on the Global Mercantile Exchange Markets. Specifically she had recommended:

• Government
• Opposition
• Petroleum dealers
• Marketing companies
• Power-generation companies
• Academia
• Consumers.

Phillip Paulwell has apparently followed through, with himself as Chairperson and Opposition Spokesman on Energy, Gregory Mair as Deputy Chairperson. LNG and Coal are set to be the main talking points, with the well known facts as it relates to obvious advantages laid out plain for all members of the Energy Council to Debate.

The developments in Energy in Jamaica should attract more FDI (Foreign Direct Investors) and Local Investors, as according to Phillip Paulwell, energy costs should fall by 55% to 62% over the next three (3) years.

• Wind Energy is already on the cards as the Wigton Wind Farm is set for further expansion of the Phase II Project valued at US$47.5, gaining the PCJ (Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica) pet project in November 2011AD an award from the Jamaica Institution of Engineers’ (JIE)
• Hydroelectric Power is also set to feature in a big way as part of the GOJ’s Energy Sector Liberalization plans with licenses being issued for Hydroelectric Plant installations in December 2011AD.
• Solar has already gotten a big boost by way of plans by Canadian-based Solamon Energy Corporation for what is effectively the largest Solar Power Plant in Jamaica as per my introduction  Solamon Energy Corporation to build Caribbean’s Largest Solar Plant – Jamaica to get a Green Energy Boost
• American-based Green RG Management LLC or Green RG for short, has declared its intention to build a Plant in Jamaica to manufacture Solar Power Gear. Their aim: use Jamaica as a guinea pig to push into Latin America, a common theme among FDI’s seeing Jamaica as an excellent staging ground for their Grand Latin American Ambitions

But what are the advantages of LNG over Coal?

They are as follows:

• LNG Plant and associated facilities are cheaper than a Coal Plant albeit LNG’s price is more expensive than plentiful Coal. This mainly has to do with increasing demand for LNG, as everyone is planning to use it instead of Coal
• LNG in its companion form LPG burns cleaner in combustion engines than Oil and reduces Maintenance costs. An advantage for motor vehicles as per my article Auto LPG as a Motor Vehicle Fuel
• It’s easier to store than Oil or Coal as its main storage form being LNG (Liquid Natural Gas), pipeline transportation form being CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) and Commercial and Residential usage form being LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas)
• It’s easily transported using pipelines, as opposed to Coal which mains uses Trucks, large Trailers or via Trains. Huge reductions in labour costs
• LNG only poses an explosion danger to the environment as well as being as Greenhouse Gas. This is as opposed to Coal which poses a health, dust nuisance and explosive dust problem to residents living near to the LNG Re-Gasification Plant
• LNG has a higher Energy Density packing 53 MJ/kg. This when compared to Diesel and Gasoline sporting figures of 46.2 MJ/kg and 46.4 MJ/kg respectively, making it excellent for use as a Motor Vehicle fuel
• It can be used as fuel for Public Transport, saving the GOJ billions of dollars, a plan the Government of China has for its Public Transport system
• Albeit LNG is a by-product of Oil Mining, it is actually renewable. It can be made in commercial quantities via the Anaerobic digestion of organic matter by Methane producing Bacteria
• Generators that use LNG are Gas Turbine Generators. These Generators can be easily modified to use Hydrogen Gas in the future enableing Jamaica to transition to the so-called Hydrogen Economy in the future with the Hydrogen Gas obtained from the electrolysis of Seawater to produce Hydrogen and Oxygen, with Salt and other minerals as byproducts
• Employment and training for local Jamaican Power, Mechanical and Generator Engineer in Gas Turbine Generator technology, a boost to Jamaican Economy in much the same way that the Liberalization of the Telecommunications Sector did in 2000

But what of the practical benefits of LNG to motorists? And will Digicel throw their hat into the Energy Sector Ring now that Energy License are available as speculated in my article Digicel Jamaica’s Alternative Energy Future – Increased Electricity Bills and Energy Sector Opportunities collide?

Another article, another time….

Fans of the popular Legends franchise, Pocket Legends and Star Legends, will discover a gameplay evolution in Dark Legends that draws them even deeper into the experience. The combat system delivers fast paced, action oriented gameplay that includes new mechanics such as charge attacks and the ability to drain enemies. A wide breadth of solo and multiplayer content will also be available.

The most significant change is a much deeper focus on narrative. In addition to story communicated during the 3D multiplayer missions, players will periodically be given the option to complete quick action missions with a single tap. These missions use brief cut scenes to create an interactive storybook, where players experience the life of a vampire up-close and personal.

The company’s goal for Dark Legends is to combine casual, strategic advancement content with their award winning real-time 3D multiplayer system to create a blend of gameplay never before seen.

“With each entry to the Legends franchise we raise the bar for the pick-up-and-play MMO space,” said Gary Gattis, CEO, Spacetime Studios. “The changes between Pocket Legends and Star Legends were significant, but Dark Legends is a quantum leap forward in interactive storytelling! Players can live the dark fantasy anytime, anywhere, with anyone.”

Dark Legends opens with the player recently raised and under the direction of the vampire that sired them. The secret existence of vampires has been exposed and angry, misguided humans are uniting to exterminate the undead plague by any means necessary. Players must work with their clan to survive this brutal new world.

The previous Legends titles, fantasy Pocket Legends and sci-fi Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles have been downloaded more than seven million times, making it the world’s largest mobile MMO franchise.

The blow post goes on to recap and analyse how the Windows logo has evolved over the years it it’s various iterations:

With Windows 8, we approached the logo redesign with a few key goals on mind.

1. We wanted the new logo to be both modern and classic by echoing the International Typographic Style (or Swiss design) that has been a great influence on our Metro style design philosophy. Using bold flat colors and clean lines and shapes, the new logo has the characteristics of way-finding design systems seen in airports and subways.
2. It was important that the new logo carries our Metro principle of being “Authentically Digital”. By that, we mean it does not try to emulate faux-industrial design characteristics such as materiality (glass, wood, plastic, etc.). It has motion – aligning with the fast and fluid style you’ll find throughout Windows 8.
3. Our final goal was for the new logo to be humble, yet confident. Welcoming you in with a slight tilt in perspective and when you change your color, the logo changes to reflect you. It is a “Personal” Computer after all.

Read the full post on the Windows Team Blog and vote in out poll below.

 Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Of course one could just get a Data Plan for their Smartphone but unless you own an iPhone or a Blackberry (BB) which would be able to provide internet to their sister devices the iPad and or Playbook respectively then only one device would be able to benefit from that type of data plan and any other Tablet than the iPad or Playbook would not benefit.

The concept of a portable WiFi may look good on paper but execution is always another matter all together so I was relieved when I saw how small and experienced how light weight the MiFi unit was, it is somewhat like a small cellphone easy to travel with something that one could just slip into their pocket if they chose to do so, it is not that much larger than the portable modem dongle that Digicel utilizes for their 4G internet service, the device is shipped along with a micro USB cable for charging and wired connectivity (connecting to the Mifi from a computer via the USB).

The basic plug and play set up of the device is relatively simple especially on Windows 7 as most may know due to the vast driver database usually has little to no issue installing any USB device. After the drivers are installed your default browser pops up and takes you through the process of registering the device, which is also straight forward process.

Piece of cake no?

Unfortunately I came across several short comings in regards to the device firstly the secondary configuration process, I would have expected a device like this to be more user friendly but even as someone with a good amount of computer knowledge I had to tinker with it a bit to get it up and running.  For one the information that was shipped with the device was not accurate, information such as the IP address to access the user interface, the username and password to log on to the user interface to achieve such things as changing the password or the SSID (the name which devices identify the wireless as) and even the WEP (wireless security password) printed at the back of the device for access to the device after a wireless connection has been established was also apparently incorrect, it would allow you to connect but would not transmit properly if any at all.

All the information I mentioned above I had either had to contact Digicel to acquire or utilize knowledge of detecting devices connected to my computer (lengths that I don’t think that the average consumer should have to take to get their product to work).  After one gets past all that rigmarole the device its pretty straight forward.   Turn on the device wait for it to pick up a signal from Digicel and start to broadcast its own wireless signal (all these which are indicated by lights on the device) then connect to it type in the WEP and you are good to go.

The range on it is pretty good I left the unit at one end of the office and was able to pick up a decent strength signal from practically the other end which is about 20 odd feet apart, as advertised it allows up to 5 devices to connect to it I have successfully connected up to three devices to it a Laptop, iPad and a Smartphone with no issues.   What I was not impressed with was its battery life strangely enough one cannot know when it is fully charged it has a dedicated battery led that blinks when its below 25% charge, stays steady when its above 25% but unlike the other leds that change color depending on its status there seems to be no way to know when the battery is fully charged all one can really know is when its above 25% charge which I found a bit foolish.  It does try to remedy this issue with a some what intelligent senor system, when it does not detecting any information being sent or received via the device it goes into a sleep mode to conserve battery strength.

Otherwise from that I found the signal strength from the ISP to be less than impressive not to be confused with the signal from the device itself that as I stated is pretty good.  Even though one is able to do regular browsing to the usual sites Hotmail, Google, Facebook and it even loads youtube videos at an acceptable rate slightly slower than the WiFi in the office but anything which is even slightly demanding will not work e.g. light messengers like Xfire and Google Talk will load but more robust messengers like MSN Messenger will not.

We purchased these for use with some iPad 2 so overall it does what we purchased them for but for overall performance I was not impressed with the weak internet signal and poor battery life I expected much more from this device.

After all, it is nice that in the use of LNG with all its advantages and benefits will save Jamaica US$300 million annually on our Oil Bill, both for Electricity Generation and Motor Vehicle Fuel Usage. Even nicer is the potential reduction in the electricity bill of the Residential and Commercial consumer by about 55% to 62% over the next three (3) years.

Déjà vu, as the same thing was said in 2010 by then JLP Energy Minister Paul Robertson when JPS Co was indeed considering LNG, the only difference being that the estimated savings to Residential and Commercial consumers was calculated to be between 25% to 30%!

The accuracy of these benefits to consumers in terms of electricity costs are estimates, so the difference in estimated savings remains to be seen when Jamaica’s First LNG Power Plant is built in St. Catherine.

But how can LNG be used in Motor Vehicles? And is it cheaper and more cost effective than Gasoline or Diesel?

First a few definitions, for those who came late:

• LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) is a transportation format for Natural Gas, a by-product of Oil Mining
• CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) is the on-land storage and pipeline transportation form
• LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) is the Commercial and Residential usage form. It is also suitable for motor vehicle usage

Thus for LNG to be used in Motor Vehicles, it has to be in the form of LPG, effectively the same form as used in Cooking Gas for Domestic purposes. When in the LPG form, it can be easily stored and transported in the form of an additional cylinder in the back of your Motor Vehicles

As to being more efficient than Gasoline or Diesel, here are a few facts:

• The mere fact that LPG is a gas means it burns more cleanly than Gasoline. This as Gasoline and Diesel in Jamaica has a high sulphur content in the 5000 ppm (parts per million) range, exceeding international standards of 5 to 15 ppm, a situation which is very damaging to your vehicle’s engine
• Auto LPG, the portable form of LNG, has a higher Energy Density of 53 MJ/kg. Diesel is 46.2 MJ/kg and Gasoline is 46.4 MJ/kg respectively
• It can be used as fuel for Public Transport, which means it can replace Diesel. A potential  saving to the GOJ of billions of dollars, practical examples of which being the Government of China use of LNG to fuel buses in its Public Transport system

But how does the price compare?

CHALLENGER Auto LPG, a subsidiary of Challenger Transport Company, offers Auto LPG since March 2010AD and estimates the prices as being around $51 to $58, half that of Gasoline or Diesel.

Challenger Transport CEO Nigel Pagon lays the number out straight, quote: “Filling an average 45-litre tank would therefore amount to a minimum of $4000, which could last some drivers maximum two-and-a-half weeks, depending on the voyage distance and driving frequency. Drivers can travel the same distance with the same performance level on Auto LPG, which would drastically reduce their gas bill”

Please note that these figures are based on an estimated price of $89 per litre for 89 octane and $93 per litre for 90 octane – back in 2010AD! So imagine the cost saving now!!!!

CHALLENGER Auto LPG is currently the ONLY Company in Jamaica that installs Auto LPG Kits that for Motor Vehicles in Jamaica to run on LPG, a trend already prevalent in such countries as Australia, India, Europe, Canada, and in South America.

CHALLENGER Auto LPG has ISO9001 Technicians trained by Zavoli Sri of Italy, the suppliers of Auto LPG kits that can be installed in virtually any Motor Vehicles. Prices for these kits range are as follows:

• Four-cylinder vehicle costs US$1000
• Six-cylinder vehicles costs US$1200
• Eight-cylinder vehicles costs US$1500

For those doubting Thomas’s worried about reduced vehicle performance, some more comforting words from Challenger Transport CEO Nigel Pagon, quote: “This kit upgrades the vehicle’s management system to a dual one, allowing for functions such as being able to effortlessly switch between regular petrol and Auto LPG by the touch of a button installed on your dashboard”

Thus the Auto LPG Kit is as simple to operate as pressing a button, with a software upgrade to your vehicles’ engine management system ensuring optimum performance after the Auto LPG Kit’s installation. Again from Challenger Transport CEO Nigel Pagon quote: “This is due to a second computer being installed in the vehicle which downloads the data from the vehicle’s existing computer, so as not to compromise your performance, thus allowing the vehicle to operate at the same performance level as before”.

Currently CHALLENGER Auto LPG targets mainly fleets, but with the coming of LNG to Jamaica being officially endorsed by the GOJ, don’t be surprised if more people finally decide to cough up the money to convert to Auto LPG and save themselves more money on Motor Vehicle Fuel.

For details call CHALLENGER Auto LPG  at 926-6414 or check out their FaceBook Page

This time it’s the Griffin HELO TC Helicopter, which like the Sphero Robotic Ball from robotics Developers Orbotics (what a concept!!) made a good showing of itself at CES (Computer Electronics Show) 2012AD in Las Vegas, Nevada. It’s also strong evidence of the developing trend of toys being made for the Apple iPhone and other smartphones tied into gaming, the so called gaming add-ons that extend the game into our physical realm.

An update from its previous debut in the Summer of 2011AD priced at US$50, the Griffin HELO TC Helicopter is now priced at US$60. But for the extra US$10 bucks aside from the nostalgia of reliving episodes of Airwolf in your back yard, you get the fun of being able to use your Apple iPhone (sorry no android support at this time!!) to visit the same level of terror on your co-workers, children, friends and your cats, dogs and even flying pigeons (a favourite of mine!!).

Controllable over short ranges with the Infrared Dock that connects to your Apple iPhone that comes as part of the package, the Griffin HELO TC Helicopter is the added fun of the Sphero Robotic Ball but in the air! Best of all its foldable and easily fixable on the spot, making it a durable toy and relatively cheap too at US$60.

But it’s the other aspect of the Griffin HELO TC Helicopter that I like: modifiability. Albeit not originally designed to be modified, it can be done. With a little DIY (Do-it-yourself) tinkering with the Communications Electronics system, you can add on the following to your toy:

• Wi-Fi Receiver
• Mini Camera
• Microphone
• Mini PhotoVoltaic package

Voila!! A few hours on the workbench and your US$60 spend with you Scotia VISA debit card becomes a silent flying spy capable of unlimited flight far beyond your field of view. More interestingly, it would have true commercial value, as your modified Griffin HELO TC Helicopter would catch the eye of Entertainment and Broadcasting interests, eager to have an extra pair of eyes where they are not permitted.

A proverbial Fly on the Wall is the potential derived from the evolution of this toy with a little elbow grease from a simple spend of US$60 on the Griffin HELO TC Helicopter. Thus making the US$60 Griffin HELO TC Helicopter Apple iPhone’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy!

Pidgeons, say HELO to my little flying friend…..

As the title says, we Jamaican have been under some serious laps in that treadmill called Research. An American-based Green RG Management LLC, better knows as Green RG, has had us under such Guinea pig testing since June 2011AD, when they and the GOJ (Government of Jamaica) entered into an agreement to use Jamaica to test out their Solar Power equiptment.

This have now made of better of these plans, with announcement in the Media that they [Green RG] plan to build a plant in Jamaica to manufacture Solar Power Equiptment to supply Jamaica with said Solar Power Equiptment.

This announcement was made in the last week of January 2012AD, around the same time that  Canadian-based Solamon Energy Corp played its hand and revealed its crazy plan to come to Jamaica and set up what is effectively the largest Solar Photovoltaic installation outside of the US and in the Caribbean as note in my article Solamon Energy Corporation to build Caribbean’s Largest Solar Plant – Jamaica to get a Green Energy Boost.

In effect we are following in the footsteps of the Twin Island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago into the production of Solar Power Equiptment which they had announced in September 2010AD. More on that possibly in another article when Jamaica finds Oil…..

Electric Cars may now be a reality in Jamaica as per my article Oregon-based Porteon to assemble All-Electric Vehicles in Jamaica – One By One. So too Free shipping as envisioned in my article Porteon heralds the coming of Free Local Shipping in 2012 – Amazon.com beckons.

Wouldn’t be surprised if Digicel does indeed decide to take advantage of the coming Liberalization of the Energy Sector! Who knows what they may have possibly in store for Jamaica after a reasonably profitable 2011AD as reported in my article CLARO’s Freeness ends 5th January 2012 – Digicel’s Bigger, Better with Data and Cloud and a possible windfall of US$250 million from their most recent Bond placement!!

Digicel may yet announce plans to purchase an Alternative Energy PPV (Private Power Producer) License and throw their hat in the ring to compete against the dominant monopoly JPS Co to become the “Bigger, Greener Energy Company” as per my musings in Digicel Jamaica’s Alternative Energy Future – Increased Electricity Bills and Energy Sector Opportunities collide.

All now VERY possible thanks to the presence of Canadian-based Solamon Energy Corp and now American-based Green RG Management LLC (Green RG)!

The presence of an American company Green RG in Jamaica putting us on a treadmill should not come as a surprise, as the American are doing the same thing to their own people as it relates to Alternative Energy.

Jamaica benefits by way of:

• Training and Employment of hundreds of thousand of Electrical, Power, Mechanical and Telecoms Engineers
• Cheaper Solar (photovoltaic) equiptment, helping many Jamaicans to finally get of JPS Co’s Grid

Green RG Management LLC (Green RG)’s in turn benefits via using Jamaica as a launching pad for its loftier goal of pushing into the heart of Latin America, effectively making Jamaican guinea pigs for their “Solar Energy Technologies”, mainly Solar Powered Streetlights and Photovoltaic Equipment.

There is even the possibility that Green RG may become the contractor of choice to upgrade the streetlights in Jamaicato Solar powered LED (Light Emitting Diode) to counter the growing power wastage due to streetlights being on in the daytime.

Alfred Heyer CEO and President of Green RG Management LLC (Green RG) says as much, quote: “We believe that Jamaica is the gateway for the rest of the Caribbean. So we feel from here we can actually launch a campaign into the rest of the Caribbean and into South America”.

According to the Government’s mouthpiece, JIS (Jamaica Information Services) in a report published 16^th June 2011AD, Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Local Government Reform, Robert Montague had signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Green RG to test out “Solar Energy Technologies” in Jamaica.

This is part of the GOJ ongoing push since February 2011AD to reduce the high costs associated with running the Public Services and the GOJ a partnership which became official in October 2011AD. Already changes in the behaviors at staff at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security have yielded JA$9 million in savings and rewards for its staff.

Possibly source of inspiration for Telecom Provider Digicel to have boldly gone all out with to become the “Greenest Company in the Caribbean” as per the article Digicel Jamaica’s Alternative Energy Future – Increased Electricity Bills and Energy Sector Opportunities collide!

Apparently Canadian-based Solamon Energy Corp are not the only ones who are crazy about making a long term investment in Jamaica’s now obviously semi-liberalized Energy Sector as noted in Solamon Energy Corporation to build Caribbean’s Largest Solar Plant – Jamaica to get a Green Energy Boost. Green RG is here to do business, also attracted by the winds of change blowing through Jamaica in the form of what appears to be the beginning of Energy Sector Liberalization.

This thanks to the auspices of the JPS Co 10-year License Restructuring some three (3) month ago by Minister of Energy and Mining Clive Mullings to introduce the basic framework that would make Energy Sector liberalization a reality when JPS Co 10-year Lease expires in 2020AD.

This ongoing initiative had been described by then Prime Minister Bruce Golding as stated in a Sunday February 13 2011AD Editorial in The Jamaica Gleaner, the Government of Jamaica hopes to reduce their JA$10 billion Electricity Bill by spending some US$90 million on energy saving Alternative Energy technologies, of which testing of Solar Equiptment by Green RG became paramount.

This was a direct crib of the ideas of Barack Obama Administration to have Solar panels placed on the roof of the White House as mentioned in early October 2010AD and then expand this concept to the other arms of the US Government under the stewardship of Energy Secretary Steven Chu’s ambitions plan to take State Agencies off the Grid.

During Secretary Steven Chu’s speech to the Green Gov Symposium a talk shop for the White House Council on Environmental Quality at George Washington University he spoke of this ambitions plan, saying: “Around the world, the White House is a symbol of freedom and democracy. It should also be a symbol of America’s commitment to a clean energy future”.

In addition to Solar Panels on the White House, the DOE (Department of Energy), Energy Secretary Steven Chu will be seeking to cut the Government Public Sector Electricity usage via the implementation of an Energy Competition in a bid to determine which Government Department and Agency can save the most power from the implementation of Alternative Energy

Sound’s spookily if not eerily familiar?

US President Barack Obama has also been known as an ardent supporter of Alternative Energy initiatives, pumping billions of dollars of US Taxpayers money into:

• All-Electric Car or EV research, specifically battery technology development
• Solar Power Investment in Silicon Valley
• Bio-Fuels Sector for alternatives to corn-based ethanol

The support for research into All-Electric Vehicles is more of a hold that the US Government has over the Auto Industry, as the US Government has actually bailed them out of financial bind they found themselves in due to the Recession to the tune of US$50 billion as noted in The American Race towards Alternative Energy.

Research into Battery Technology relates more to alternatives to Lithium-ion Batteries, the main material for which being Lithium as explained in Chinese Crisis in Rare Earth Metals – Afghanistan is Silicon Valley’s Savior, a material plentiful in the People’s Republic of China which is the world’ largest supplier and also found in Afghanistan, a war torn country.

A pickle and potential bonanza for the US and British as described in Lithium-Ion Batteries and Electric Vehicles – Alternatives as 2012 Supply Crunch Nears, who needs alternative supplies as the Year of the Dragon 2012AD, which is widely expected by experts to result in a crunch in Lithium Supplies worldwide in this the Year of the Dragon.

The third model to be revealed be Tesla is the Model X, taking style points from a minivan and a SUV it aims wow potential customers with a breathtaking interior, zero emissions and gulf wing doors!

The Model X is described on the Tesla Motors website as:

Model X is designed from the ground up to blend the best of an SUV with the benefits of a minivan, as only an electric car can. It is an automobile above category, built around the driver—and six of her friends. It artfully provides unfettered performance and brilliant functionality.

Production doesn’t begin until next year with deliveries starting in 2014. Lots more details on the Tesla Model-X on the official website. teslamotors.com/modelx

Press Release

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, a global leader in digital media and digital convergence technologies, today introduced its first line-up of tablets for 2012 with the launch of the GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0), expanding the choice of tablets to customers. Light and portable, the GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0) is the ideal personal on-the-go device, available in 3G and WiFi versions. Starting from UK, the GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0) will be launched in global market from March.

“Two years ago, Samsung GALAXY Tab began to offer customers more possibilities on the go. Since then, Samsung has actively enhanced our tablet line-up with several tablets in different sizes,” said JK Shin, President of IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics. “The new GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0) will provide people with delighted multimedia experience and allow efficient communication.”

Samsung’s first Android 4.0 Tablet

Samsung’s first Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich)-powered tablet offers a variety of new and improved Android OS features. An upgraded Android Market enables access to more than 400,000 applications which can be enjoyed across phones or tablets. Furthermore, a more intuitive user interface includes the ability to swipe-control applications as well as a wholly redesigned app gallery for easier sharing of content. The new OS’s vastly faster performance and response times across multiple applications is further enhanced by HSPA＋ 21Mbps or WiFi connectivity.

Additionally, Android 4.0 includes a selection of embedded Google applications that enables users to quickly launch sites and applications that they use frequently; meanwhile, the innovative Face Unlock feature unlocks the tablet through unique facial recognition software.

A complete experience with enriched multimedia content

The GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0) offers users easy multimedia access, playback and sharing experiences with Samsung Hub services. Samsung’s Music Hub provides a full music store solution with access to over 17 million tracks. Additionally, the Readers Hub provides the user with access to over 2.3 million e-books, 3,500 magazines and over 2,000 newspapers in 51 languages, while the Game Hub instantly connects users to the latest game titles. Samsung is also introducing the Video Hub, which offers over 1,000 film titles for purchase or rent, and provides reviews, trailers and recommendations for easier content selection using the GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0).

Complementing the GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0)’s multimedia offering is Samsung’s upgraded Touchwiz user interface that features Hub widgets for one-step access to users’ content in Hubs; the device also presents S Suggest, a new service offering recommendations of apps suited to users’ tastes directly on a home screen.

The GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0)’s superb multimedia experience is further boosted by Samsung’s AllShare Play, a new content-sharing service available for the first time on any Samsung mobile device. AllShare Play allows users to play or live-stream their multimedia content on their GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0) from PCs, other Samsung smart devices as well as third-party web storages. Users can also easily transfer content to other devices or directly to web services.

Better Communication Capabilities

Connecting socially has never been easier with GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0)’s built-in powerful communication capabilities.With the voice call capability, the GALAXY Tab 2 (7.0) can be used just as easily as a phone, affording users the handy convenience of a second device in case they misplace their primary phone. It also lets users to spontaneously arrange multi-party video calls via Google＋ hangouts, as well as engage in group chats or micro-communities to collectively chat or share content. In addition, ChatON, Samsung’s cross-platform communication service, connects all phone users of any platform into a single community. ChatON uses phone numbers instead of ID and passwords, and provides easy instant messaging and group chatting in various formats—images, video, voice, contacts—to make messaging simple and intuitive.

“How do I do that”, you may be asking, nose wrinkled in consternation? Even better query: “how do avoid being robbed on the Information superhighway?”

You are indeed correct to be concerned. Using Payment methods online, be it a Credit or Debit Card, is fraught with the same level of danger, as both can be stolen and your funds used by unscrupulous hackers or phishers to purchase items or withdraw funds without your knowledge. More on such hacking methods in another tightly tailored article. For now I shall speak on the Defense against the Dark Arts of the Online Hackers!

ScotiaBank official Company Release at the time of the launch of the product back in August 2011 laid out the security features of the product, quote: “Visa [Debit Cards] offer security protections that help prevent, detect and resolve fraud, including continuous fraud monitoring and coverage by Visa’s zero-liability policy, which protects cardholders from unauthorized charges, the Bank promises.”

Good to note too that transactions using the Scotia VISA Debit Card are easily traceable, making calls to your Bank to check on purchases a snap, again quoting ScotiaBank’s Company Release: “Transactions are automatically deducted from a Bank or checking Account and typically posted within 36 hours of purchase, helping cardholders track and manage expenses, all with the same protections that consumers enjoy on Visa Credit cards.”

ScotiaBank’s website stacks up its defenses straight too:

• Transaction limits can be set to limit the amount of money spent per transaction or per month
• You can select to receive monthly statements to keep track of your online expenses, which are identified on your Bank Statement
• Scotia VISA Debit Card will be monitored for fraudulent activity or unusual purchasing activity and you the Cardholder will be alerted immediately

For your personal protection, however, there are a few simple common-sense and tech centric tips to observe whenever using a Credit or Debit Card:

• Make sure to use the most up-to-date Browser to do your online transitions, preferably Mozilla FireFox or Google Chrome or IE8 (Internet Explorer for computers running Windows XP or IE9 (Internet Explorer 9) for Windows 7.
• Have the latest versions of JVM (Java Virtual Machine), .NET 3.5 and .NET 4.0 installed on your Laptop or Computer. The later versions are more secure.
• Make sure your Laptop or Computer has an up-to-date antivirus. BitDefender is the IT Technician or Network Administrator’s friend, but I personally like Avast Antivirus or Avira Antivir Personal because of its no-brainer ease of control, Virus Quarantine feature you can control and they can BOTH work together, if you so choose. Not to mention Avast Antivirus talks to you like the Apple iPhone 4S Siri Voice Assistant, a really nice feature and BOTH are Freeware
• Make sure the section of the website that you are using your Scotia VISA Debit Card to purchase items has a SSL (Secure Socket Layer)
• Make sure you regularly scan your Laptop or Computer for hidden malware and Trojan. Here again is a recommended Freeware pair tag team is MalwareBytes and Spybot Search and Destroy.
• Clean your Browsers Cache regularly. For that a nice little Freeware called CCleaner does a pretty decent job as per Kelroy’s review in CCleaner – Keep your Computer Optimized and Sparkling but I personally like IoBit’s Advanced System Care as it does this and all the above in one nice Freeware package
• If the website you are purchasing from accepts PayPal as a Payment all the better. Best to use PayPal than to have to repetitively be re-entering your Credit Card information every time you have to make an online purchase.

If you are really as paranoid as I am, then try installing a Linux Distribution (…or flavours of Operating Systems if you prefer!!) on a partition on your harddrive or a bootable Linux Distribution such as Debian, Ubuntu or Fedora, my personal favourite which I use quite often. When you go online, boot up in the Linux Distribution and you can surf and shop securely using Mozilla FireFox or Google Chrome, both of which are compatible with these Linux Distributions.

Better yet, get an Apple Mac and you can just trash the first part of my article, as Apple Mac OS 10 on their line of Macs as well Apple MacBook Air, the Apple MacBook Pro as well as iOS on the Apple iPhone, Apple iPad  and other members of the Apple ecosystem of products never get viruses!

Now that we got the security stuff out of the way and you have your Defence against the Dark Arts lesson in hand, it’s off to the interesting stuff: using your PayPal Account as a means of receiving funds. This can be very useful if you have a Blog or website and wish to accept payments from:

• Other persons online who have a Credit or Credit Card as sales or donations
• Sales of your wares on eBay as an EBay Merchant
• From other websites or services e.g. Google Adsense

These payments can be accepted from any of the leading four (4) Credit Card Merchants worldwide:

• VISA
• MasterCard
• Discovery Card
• American Express

You can also request payments via:

• PayPal Email Payment
• PayPal Express Checkout option for people who have a PayPal Account
• PayPal Payment Button on customized to your website or Blog

PayPal offers the option to add a customizable PayPal Payment Button to your website or blog to accept Payments online. This can potentially turns your website or Blog into an online store, Amazon style, with the following Amazon-esque options:

• Selling Multiple Items
• Selling Multiple Items in a shopping cart
• Setting up subscriptions for products from your website e.g. e-magazines

It’s especially useful if you’re the Developer of apps or thinking to get in on the act by forming your own Developer Team and writing Freemium Gaming apps as described in my article Smartphones and Apps – Freemium Games are No. 1  and want to enable customers with the power to use their Credit and Debit Cards in your Games to make 1-click in-app purchases.

A great example of this trend towards Freemium Gaming on Mobile Devices is EA’s Tetris as per my article EA’s Tetris on a US$30 yearly subscription: VIP for Casual & Smartphone Gaming Addicts and Microsoft Flight Simulator, which Microsoft plans to re-launch as Microsoft Flight in the First Quarter of 2012AD as per my tech ditty Microsoft Flight Simulator goes Freemium – Phoenix takes Flight in the Spring of 2012

For setting up your PayPal Account to receive online payments to your Website or Blog:

1. Set up a PayPal Account. Have your Scotia VISA Debit Card to add the 16-digit Scotia VISA Debit Card code as well as the 3-digit CVV Code at the back of the Card as your Payment Method ready!
2. Make sure the Scotia VISA Debit Card has at lease US$2.00 in the Account. This is to allow PayPal to verify the Scotia VISA Debit Card as being a valid Payment Method that is able to send and make payments
3. To receive funds from PayPal once a customer has made a purchase and PayPal  alerts you via email, you have to opt to receive funds from Credit Cards or Debit Cards in either your US Bank Account or via a Cheque. This is set under the Request Money Tab in your PayPal Account.
4. Since most Jamaicans may not have a US Bank Account or be unable to afford one, the second option is the only other option available to receive fund from online transactions.
5. After the Verification process is completed, usually in seven to ten (7 to 10) working days, you can begin to use your email address associated with your PayPal as the Payment Method as opposed to entering the 16-digit Scotia VISA Debit Card code as well as the 3-digit CVV Code every time you shop. Hint: go with a brand new Google email Account; more features and separate from your regular email Accounts to avoid cluttering your personal email Accounts
6. You then set up the Payment Method for potential customers from the Products and Services Tab in your PayPal Account that you wish to use, be it a PayPal Button on your website or Blog, PayPal Express or PayPal Email Payment options.
7. Once all of this is set, you’ll eventually receive the cheque via air mail from PayPal in about two to five (2 to 5) business days, depending on how the USPS (United States Postal Service) sends their International airmail. Make sure your address is correct in your PayPal Account and matches EXACTLY TO THE LETTER AND CASE the address and name that is on your Scotia VISA Debit Card.
8. Cheques from US Banks take about seven to ten (7 to 10) working days to clear, depending on the US Bank Cheque disbursement policies and ScotiaBank’s Policies as it relates to verifying funds in the cheque are from a valid source.

That’s it!

So folks, get your Developers Teams together and start coding some Freemium Gaming apps and represent Jamaica on either of the following relevant Platforms:

• Apple App Store (for Apple iPhones, Apple iPad and other iOS enabled devices)
• Amazon’s App Store (for the Amazon Kindle Fire)
• Google Marketplace (for Google Android smartphones and Tablets)
• Blackberry App Store (For Blackberry phones!!)
• Windows Phone 7 (for smartphones!!)
• Windows 8 (for Tablets, PC and Ultrabooks)

Why? Because in my next article, I’ll be dealing with:

• Common Hacking methods use to steal your Scotia VISA Debit Card (beware)
• Scripting for Gaming apps so as to allow customers who download your app to make 1-click in-app purchases via PayPal.

Here’s the Links for the programs listed above in alphabetic order:

Avira Antivir Personal

http://www.avira.com/en/support-download-free-antivirus

Avast Antivirus

http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download

BitDefender

http://www.bitdefender.com/solutions/free.html

CCCleaner

http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download

Google Chrome

http://www.google.com/chrome

IoBit’s Advanced System Care

http://www.iobit.com/ascdownload-promo.php

Linux Distributions

http://www/livecdlist.com

MalwareBytes

http://www.malwarebytes.org/

Mozilla Firefox

http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/

Spybot Search and Destroy

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/