TechPlus

Apple reportedly announcing iPad Pro with USB-C, MacBook Air successor, and new Mac Mini next week

2018-10-28T04:26:00.000+01:00

Apple plans to announce updated iPad Pros with USB-C ports, a 13-inch laptop meant to replace the MacBook Air, and long-awaited updates to the Mac Mini during its event Tuesday morning, according to Bloomberg. Just about all of this has been rumored before, but Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is usually the definitive name when it comes to nailing exactly what we’ll see on event day, and with a few days to go, we now have those answers.

Gurman confirms rumors that the iPad Pro — seemingly both sizes of it — will be getting a redesign, giving it a nearly edge-to-edge display, Face ID, and a USB-C port. That’ll be a huge deal, as it’ll mark the first time that Apple has traded out its exclusive Lightning port in favor of the increasingly universal USB-C standard. The new iPads will lack a home button, according to the report, and they’ll gain an Apple-made graphics chip, something that’s never been in an iPad before.

Perhaps even more exciting is news of a MacBook Air successor with a high-res screen. It’s still not clear exactly what we’re in for — whether it’ll be updated parts in the Air’s body, a brand new take on the Air, or just an alternate version of the MacBook. But it’s clear that some kind of much-needed update is coming. Bloomberg says it’ll have a 13-inch screen, which means that at the very least, it’ll be different than today’s MacBook.

Mac Mini fans will also find their immense (and honestly questionable) patience rewarded, as the much-neglected PC will get a spec update for the first time since 2014. Bloomberg says it’ll get new processors and some other features meant for pro users. Updated iMacs and iMac Pros are also in the works, as is a processor bump for the 12-inch MacBook, but it’s not clear if those will all be ready for the event.

Paypal bans Gab following Pittsburgh shooting

2018-10-28T04:17:00.001+01:00

Earlier today, a gunman walked into the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and killed eleven people before being apprehended by police. The suspect has since been identified as 46-year-old Robert Bowers, who appears to have had a history of anti-Semitic speech on the social network Gab. Following these revelations, Paypal banned the site from its payment platform — the latest action taken against the troublesome social network by a major technology company.

In a statement to The Verge, a PayPal spokesperson confirmed the ban, citing hate speech as a reason for the action:

The company is diligent in performing reviews and taking account actions. When a site is explicitly allowing the perpetuation of hate, violence or discriminatory intolerance, we take immediate and decisive action.

Almost immediately after the shooter’s identity was revealed by media outlets, screenshots of his profile on Gab appeared, revealing a slew of anti-Semitic rants. Gab released a statement on Medium, saying that it “unequivocally disavows and condemns all acts of terrorism and violence,” but it has long been welcoming of hate speech on its platform. It says that it contacted law enforcement officials after it was notified that Bowers had a profile on the site, and that it turned over relevant information to them before suspending his account.

Paypal is the latest major platform to boot Gab. Apple has refused to host the site’s app in its iOS store, and in August 2017, Google removed the app from the Google Play store, for violating the company’s hate speech policy, while Microsoft threatened to stop hosting the site after a pair of anti-Semitic posts were published on the site in July of this year. With Paypal’s revocation of its services, Gab could be deprived of a major revenue conduit.

Since Paypal’s action, Gab’s Twitter feed has struck out at Facebook and Twitter, saying that it doesn’t “allow terrorists on our platform,” and dismissed the idea that the rhetoric on its platform translates into real-world violence. But researchers have found that anti-Semitic messaging on online platforms is on the rise, and the attempted bombing of prominent Trump critics in the past week has put a spotlight on the role that online rhetoric has played in recent weeks, months, and years.

Lenovo's Bendable Tablet Is One Heck of a Prototype

2017-07-29T03:33:00.000+02:00

Technology that's been "rumored" for years, is starting to take a shape—a very strange shape.

Bendable tablets and smartphones are something of a myth of consumer technology. Big companies are always talking about them and showing off demos, but they never make it to store shelves. Samsung, for instance, been promising a bendable smartphone for years and we still havent seen one. Now in a new hands-on video with one of Lenovo's latest attempts at the idea, we can see how far the tech has come, even if it's still years away from being buyable.

Called the Folio, this tablet concept (with unfortunately no plans for consumer release...yet) is one we've heard before. When you want to do tablet-y things, you can make use of the Folio's big 7.8-inch screen. But if you need something more pocket-friendly, you can actually fold the tablet into a 5.5-inch phone.

The Folio runs on a Snapdragon 800 processor, which is a few years old, and a 1920x1440 screen—pretty good, but not great. The real stunner is some of the other things a foldable screen allows you to. In the video, a Lenovo spokesperson shows how the Folio can transform into a camera where the subject can actually see the composition before you snap the photo.

Of course, a great first step would be creating a foldable phone people could actually buy, turning myth into technological legend.

DEAD!!! The iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano

2017-07-29T03:11:00.001+02:00

Never to return. They've been removed from Apple's online store,

Apple quietly killed off two of its oldest surviving MP3 players today by removing them from its online store. The iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano aren't just off the site, they are no more according to an Apple spokesperson who confirmed their death to The Verge.

The iPod Nano is the older of the two having been announced back in 2005 as the successor to the iPod Mini (remember the iPod Mini?). Unlike older iPods which still used large and heavy hard drives, the Nano was one of the first iPods to use more modern flash memory, which allowed for the shrinkage in size. Between its launch in September 2005 and today, Apple put out 7 different generations of Nano, abandoning the iconic clickwheel on revision number six.

The Shuffle came a bit later in September 2010, a product aimed pretty squarely at the active set who would be willing to sacrifice things like a screen or easily choosing what song they wanted to listen to in order for a tiny form factor that was practically unnoticeable while strapped to the arm. The iPod Shuffle went through four generation, changing its shape every time.

It should be no surprise that Apple has finally canned these two older 'Pods which no longer really fit into Apple's suite of modern devices. Neither device supports apps, which have become a cornerstone of Apple's music business now that Apple Music has all but replace the aging, bloated disaster that is iTunes. Similarly, streaming (which neither of these devices can fully support given they've got no capacity for a data connection) has overtaken older download-ing based habits.

The throwback to music listening that doesn't rely on app subscriptions or cut into your data cap made these older Apple gadgets beloved and uniquely useful to the folks who kept them in active rotation. So if you've got one that still works, you better take good care of it. New ones will be hard to find.

Apple Watch U.S. Pre-Orders Hit ~1M On Launch Day, Says Data Firm

2015-04-13T16:18:00.000+02:00

How much demand is there for Apple’s “most personal device ever”? That’s the question that will be busying tech industry analysts for the foreseeable future. Or at least until Apple releases firm sales data on the Apple Watch (if it chooses to do so).

Apple’s debut smartwatch went up for online pre-order on Friday, with in store retail appointments available for those wanting to try before they clicked buy. Shipping fulfilment dates range between late April/early May for those especially quick on the pre-order button, but soon extended into June for many models.

Apple has not specified how many units it made available at pre-order launch, however U.S. online commerce market research firm, Slice Intelligence, has crunched e-receipt data from 9,080 online shoppers to extrapolate some data on U.S.-specific demand over this initial sales period.

On Friday’s pre-order launch day the firm reckons nearly one million (957,000) people in the U.S. pre-ordered an Apple watch. Unsurprisingly, the most popular model to order was the less expensive Sport model — purchased by 62 per cent of U.S. consumers.
(The Sport range starts at $349; the mid-priced Watch line starts at $549; the premium Edition line starts at $10,000.)

The average spent by all U.S. Apple Watch pre-orderers was $503.83, according to Slice’s data. While Apple Watch Sport buyers spent an average of $382.83 per watch, and those purchasing the mid-priced Apple Watch each spent $707.04 on average — so some pre-orderers were splashing out on more than the least expensive model in their chosen range.

Many buyers opted to combine shelling out for a pricier case with spending the minimum possible on a band, with more than a third of buyers opting for the cheapest Sport band, in black or white. It also found that the black Sports band was by far the most popular band option among buyers of both the Sport and Apple Watch lines.

When it comes to the case, most consumers opted for the larger 42mm case — whether they were buying an Apple Watch or the Sport edition — with 71 per cent selecting the larger format. (That may indicate that more pre-orderers were men than women, given relative average wrist sizes, but Slice’s data doesn’t confirm either way.)

Sport Watch buyers were slightly more likely to choose the smaller 38 mm case — with a third (32 per cent) purchasing the smaller version, versus a quarter (24 per cent) of Apple Watch buyers.

The data indicates the most popular type of case among early adopters is the Space Gray aluminum option, chosen by 40 per cent of pre-orderers; followed by stainless steel (34 per cent); silver aluminum (23 per cent). Least popular: Space Black stainless steel (three per cent).

Slice also found that Apple Watch pre-orderers are very engaged and loyal Apple consumers, as you might expect, with 72 per cent of those buying the smartwatch also having purchased another Apple product (iPhone, Apple computer or iPad) in the past two years. While a fifth (21 per cent) had pre-ordered an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus a matter of months ago.

Add to that, nearly a third had purchased two Apple products in the past two years, and 11 per cent had bought all three devices, in addition to their new Apple Watch.

Slice also pulled data on sales of Apple’s new super slim, port-lite Macbook, which also went on sale Friday. It estimates around 48,000 Macbooks were sold online, with the Space Gray colorway the most popular option (58 per cent), followed by the new gold version (36 per cent). The 512 GB model was marginally more popular than the 256 GB model.

Close to half (43 per cent) of Macbook buyers also bought an Apple Watch, according to the data.

While a strong majority (75 per cent) of Macbook buyers had purchased another Apple product in the past two years. And a quarter (26 per cent) of Macbook buyers had previously pre-ordered an iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus.

It’s worth stressing that these figures are just guesstimates made by one company, and only pertain to the U.S. market — which is just one of nine initial markets where the Apple Watch went up for pre-order Friday. The other eight markets are: Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, and the U.K.

Apple does sometimes release sales data for a new device launch so stay tuned for official figures which might land in the next few days.

Source: Techcrunch

fans of Apple queue to be the first to own an iPhone 6

2014-09-20T17:57:00.000+02:00

Huge crowds of people around the world queue to get Apple iPhone 6 or iPhone 6 Plus, according to Apple, more than 4million pre-orders were received in the 24 hours after the sale was announced

Crowds wait in anticipation for the release of the iPhone 6 at Apple Store in Sydney, Australia

Photograph: Cole Bennetts/Getty Images

Jasmine Juan and David Rahimi travelled from California to the Sydney Apple Store to be the first in the world to lay hands on the new iPhone 6. Australian buyers got first dibs because of the local time zone, which is several hours ahead of the US and other parts of the world Photograph: Cole Bennetts/Getty Images

Yuki Manno shows off his new iPhone after being the first person to purchase the new device at the Apple Omotesando store in Tokyo, Japan

Photograph: Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Mr Butch displays his iPhone 6 at the Softbank mobile phone shop in Tokyo

Photograph: Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP/Getty Images

Customers stand in line outside the Apple store in Hong Kong

Photograph: TYRONE SIU/REUTERS

People try out the iPhone 6 at the Apple Store in Berlin, Germany

Photograph: Hannibal Hanschke/Reutrs

Queues in front of the Apple Store in Paris

Photograph: FRED DUFOUR/AFP/Getty Images

People wait on the pavement in central London

Photograph: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP

Men queuing outside an Apple Store in London

Photograph: Ray Tang//Rex

Tinie Tempah takes a selfie with fans after an intimate gig for O2 customers on the rooftop of the O2 arena in London to celebrate the arrival of the iPhone 6

Photograph: John Phillips/PA

Update Samsung Galaxy Note GT-N7000 to Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean Oficial Firmware

2013-02-28T13:02:00.001+01:00

Samsung started the Jelly Bean update roll out for a host of devices back in September last year. The Galaxy Note 2 was the first device from the manufacturer to be released with Android Jelly Bean firmware out of the box. The OEM later pushed the new version of the OS to the Galaxy S3. At that time very few of us expected that the update will hit the old best-sellers like the Galaxy S2 and Note. The Facebook page of Samsung Sweden was the first to leak the news that these two phones would be getting the JB update. The news was taken merely as a rumor but it was confirmed later when Samsung released the details of the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update. Droidviews.com was the first to leak the details of the firmware update for the Galaxy Note.

The release date for the new update was postponed several times and the wait seemed to be perpetual. But now all anxiety has finally been put to an end as Samsung has started pushing the Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean update for the Galaxy Note International version with model number GT-N7000.

The Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean OTA update has already started rolling out via Kies and on-device-software update feature. The Galaxy Note users in Hong Kong, Germany, and Mexico have reported getting the new update.

But if you do not belong to the countries mentioned above, you can still update your Galaxy Note 2 GT-N7000 manually via Odin flasher. Only make sure is phone is not locked to a network provider/carrier.

Galaxy Note Android 4.1.2 Features:

The Android 4.1.2 update for the Galaxy Note GT-N7000 contains all the features of Samsung’s Premium Suite Upgrade. Below is a list of all known new features:

OS Upgrade to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean:

Google Now, Smoother UI (Project Butter), New Notifications Panel

Easy Tasking in One View:

Multi Window: Chat On, E-Mail, Gallery, Gmail, Internet, Maps, s-Note, Talk, Video-Player, YouTube
Popup Note, Popup Video, Popup Browser

S Pen Experience:

S Note, Photo Note/Photo Frame, Handwriting on S Planner/Email
More S Pen Gestures, Signature Unlock, Easy Clip

Enhanced Multimedia Tools:

New Samsung Gallery, Tag Buddy, Paper Artist

Easy MotionWiz:

Smart Stay, Direct Call, Shake Panning, Camera Unlock

Rich Content Services:

Video Hub, Learning Hub, Cloud Sync, Allshare Play, Group Cast

More Upgrades:

News and Face Ticker on Lockscreen, S Note Widgets, TalkBack Setup Wizard, Blocking Mode

Galaxy Note Android 4.1.2 Screenshots:

Download Galaxy Note Android 4.1.2 Firmware:

Below are the links of all available currently available and it will be updated as new firmwares arrive. If you want English as your phone language, download the German firmware. In case, you see any German text anywhere, open Settings> Language and Input> Language and select English.

Download the zip and extract on your desktop. Inside the extracted folder you will find two files:

KIES_HOME_N7000XXLSZ_N7000OXALSZ_906407_REV02_user _low_ship.tar.md5
ss_dl.dll

While flashing with Odin tool, click on PDA and select the file with .tar.md5 extension (detailed tutorial below).

Germany: N7000XXLSZ_N7000OXALSZ_DBT.zip

Mirrors Link (DBT): Link1, Link2, Link3, Torrent,

Mexico: N7000UBLS4_N7000TCELS1-TCE.zip

Hong Kong: N7000ZSLM5_N7000OZSLM5_TGY.zip

How to Install:

Installing an Official firmware on a Samsung Galaxy device is very easy and if you have ever done it, you can do it easily within a few minutes. If you belong to the countries mentioned above, the installation via Odin should take around three minutes. But if it is not so, it might take about 5 minutes. We’ll recommend a data factory reset via Stock Recovery after the firmware is installed, otherwise you might confront minor issues like connectivity, lagginess, etc. If you phone is rooted, it will be a good idea to backup all your apps using Titanium Backup or Koush’s Carbon app.

Before proceeding to install the firmware, do these things:

Charge your GalaxyNote to at least 60% of battery level.
Backup your contacts, messages, apps etc.
Turn on the USB Debugging mode on your phone: Settings> Developer Options> USB Debugging

Having made the preparations instructed above, follow the following steps:

Download the appropriate firmware file from above and extract the zip on your desktop.
Download and install the Samsung USB Drivers on your computer and restart PC when it is installed.
Download and extract Odin3_v3.04.zip.

Put your Galaxy Note in Download Mode: turn off the phone, press and hold Volume Down+Home buttons and then long press the Power key for a few seconds till the screen turns up and you see a screen asking you to press the Volume Up key to continue. Press it.

Run the Odin program by double clicking the Odin3_v3.04.exe.
Connect you phone to computer using the USB Cable.
The ID:COM port at Odin turns blue and you can see “Added!!’ text at the message box below. This show that the connection between phone and Odin has been established.
Make sure that only the “Auto Reboot” and “F Reset Time” options are checked on Odin.
Click on PDA button and select the file with .tar.md5 extension inside the firmware folder.

Finally hit the “Start” button and wait for a few minutes till the installation is finished.

When it is done, you will see a “PASS!” message at the ID:COM and the device will reboot automatically. You can now disconnect the USB cable and close the Odin window.

The first boot will take a little longer time that usual so you need to be patient till your phone gets ready to b used. In case, your phone id caught into a bootloop and it does not start, do as directed here. If you do not like the new Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean firmware and wish to downgrade the firmware, follow this tutorial.

Do not forget to share how you enjoy this new software with us... And never forget to drop a comment too.

Source:

The F-14A “Tom Cat” Microprocessor

2013-01-08T19:41:00.000+01:00

The first microprocessor was designed and developed from 1968-1970. This site describes the design work for a MOS-LSI, highly integrated, microprocessor chip set designed starting June 1968 and completed by June 1970. This highly integrated computer chip set was designed for the US Navy F14A “TomCat” fighter jet by Mr. Steve Geller and Mr. Ray Holt while working for Garrett AiResearch Corp under contract from Grumman Aircraft, the prime contractor for the US Navy. The MOS-LSI chips were manufactured by American Microsystems, Inc of Santa Clara, California.

The MOS-LSI chip set was part of the Central Air Data Computer (CADC) which had the function of controlling the moving surfaces of the aircraft and the displaying of pilot information. The CADC received input from five sources, 1) static pressure sensor, dynamic pressure sensor, analog pilot information, temperature probe, and digital switch pilot input. The output of the CADC controlled the moving surfaces of the aircraft. These were the wings, maneuver flaps, and the glove vane controls. The CADC also controlled four cockpit displays for Mach Speed, Altitude, Air Speed, and Vertical Speed. The CADC was a redundant system with real-time self-testing built-in. Any single failure from one system would switch over to the other.

Two state-of-the-art quartz sensors, a 20-bit high precision analog-to-digital converter, a 20-bit high precision digital-to-analog converter, the MOS-LSI chip set, and a very efficient power unit made up the complete CADC. A team of over 25 managers, engineers, programmers, and technicians from AiResearch and American Microsystems labored for three years to accomplish a design feat never before attempted, a complete state-of-the-art, highly integrated, digital air data computer. Previous designs were based around mechanical technology, consisting of precision gears and cams.

In 1971, Mr. Ray Holt wrote a design paper on the MOS-LSI chip set design which was approved for publication by Computer Design magazine. However, because of national security reasons the U.S. Navy would not approve this paper for publication. Mr. Holt attempted again in 1985 to have the paper cleared and the answer again was no. Finally, in April 1997, he started the process again and this time was able to receive clearance for publication as of April 21, 1998.

The entire contents of this original 1971 paper, “Architecture Of A Microprocessor“, is made available here. The first public announcement of the F14A MOS-LSI microprocessor chip set was a published article by the Wall Street Journal on September 22, 1998. This paper and the details of the design were first presented publicly by Mr. Ray Holt at the Vintage Computer Festival held at the Santa Clara Convention Center on September 26-27, 1998.

Make Money-Top 5 Paid to Click Sites (PTC)

2012-12-19T18:57:00.005+01:00

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Google's iPhone Gmail app is finally good

2012-12-05T13:07:00.001+01:00

Google's new iPhone Gmail app brings long-awaited support for multiple Gmail accounts.

EW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Google released a major overhaul on Tuesday of its email app for the iPhone and iPad.

App updates aren't usually that exciting, but this one matters for three reasons: We use email a lot. There still isn't a perfect iOS email app. This is Gmail.

Gmail's new release is a total revamp. Up until now, you've only been able to log into a single account using the app -- a huge disadvantage for Gmail junkies who create new accounts for sport. Now you can add up to five separate mailboxes.

The stock iOS app has always supported multiple Gmail accounts, but the only path to push email delivery in Apple's built-in "mail.app" is to configure the Exchange-based Google Sync -- something that would drive a tech Luddite to tears. Gmail's new app now bridges the gap.

Along with expanded account support, the revamped Gmail app features infinite scrolling in message lists, the ability to directly respond to Google Calendar invites from the app, and a completely redesigned user interface, which looks positively beautiful.

Word of warning for existing users: The new app needs to be re-downloaded entirely and not just updated.

All in all, the app feels faster and smoother, and the lighter color palate of the top layer makes it easier for your eyes to make their way through the never-ending sea of mail. The iOS Gmail app has always been better than Apple's own app at handling folders, labels, priority inboxes and, most importantly, search. These cosmetic upgrades enhance that experience.

Whether or not Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) used elements of the Sparrow email app it acquired earlier this year is uncertain, but a report from Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) watcher MG Siegler says the Sparrow team was not involved.

Either way, this is a far cry from when Gmail first launched its app last year on the iPhone. That version lacked push delivery, multiple user accounts and offline viewing. In short, it was an unusable mess.

The new app still doesn't officially support offline viewing -- it kind of, sort of lets you return to previously viewed mail, but without any reliable indication about what is and is not cached. Still, all the gradual improvements add up to the best iPhone email app for power Gmail users.

Ice Storm in Switzerland

2012-10-10T15:56:00.000+02:00

Did You Know?

These pictures were taken in Versoix, a town near Geneva in Switzerland.
Very cold conditions, (-8 to -12 deg C, 10 deg F) combined with winds of over 100 km/hr (62 miles/hr) resulted in a spray that froze on anything that it touched! It took place in January 2005. The water is from Lake Geneva (Lake Léman). You can see more photos from the Ice Storm here.
YouTube : ice storm in Switzerland 2005

How to subscribe to a podcast using iTunes.

2012-07-04T16:49:00.000+02:00

Simple steps for downloading podcasts using iTunes, Micrsoft Outlook 2007, and iGoogle.

In my opinion, iTunes is one of the best overall podcast subscription tools out there. It lets you find, manage and organize your podcasts very easily.

1) On the left side of you iTunes program under Library, click Podcasts.

If you are new to podcasting you will have nothing in your playlist. No worries, you can add a podcast in no time!

2) Click Podcast Directory on the bottom right of your iTunes window.

This takes you to iTunes neatly organized and easy-to-use directory full of free podcasts. Look

around, you can find a podcast on just about any subject.

Find a podcast that interest you and click it. For example “CarCast” by Adam Corrolla.

Browse the subscription page for descriptions, reviews and a list of prior episodes from this podcast.

3) To subscribe, simply click Subscribe at the top of your screen.

This tells iTunes that you want to download this podcast, and that every time the author releases a new episode to download it automatically into your iTunes Podcast playlist.

4) Click Podcasts under the Library heading again and it takes you back to your playlist where you should see your new podcast!

Keep in mind that only the most recent episode of this podcast has been downloaded. If you want to get prior episodes click on triangle to the left of the podcast title. This drops down a list of prior

episodes from the same author. Click “Get Now” to download these episodes individually.

IF THE iTUNES LIBRARY DOES NOT HAVE THE PODCAST YOU ARE LOOKING FOR…

5) If the iTune library does not have a podcast, but you are sure that it exists, you can download it into iTunes directly from the source. Click the Advanced tab in your iTunes program and then click Subscribe to Podcast.

6) Simply insert the RSS Feed URL of the podcast you wish to subscribe to and it will find the podcast on the internet and download it into your playlist.

RSS Feeds for podcasting are generally easily to find as they can be located on any website that delivers a podcast. The universal symbol for RSS is

RSS feeds typically looks something like:

http://www.howstuffworks.com/podcasts/brainstuff.rss

This is for the howstuffworks podcast.

The “settings’ button at the bottom of the screen is also a very helpful tool. It allows you to choose how often new podcasts are updated, how many episodes to download when a new one becomes available, and how many old episodes to keep in your system so it doesn’t become full of wasteful podcasts.

See Also:

How to subscribe to a podcast using OutLook.

RIP iGoogle, Google continues its cleaning act

2012-07-04T16:11:00.000+02:00

Google said Tuesday it was discontinuing its iGoogle page designed as Web "portal," saying it had become less relevant in the age of the mobile Internet.

The portal, which allowed users to personalize their start page, will be cut in November 2013 and was among a handful of products axed by the California tech giant.

"Technology creates tremendous opportunities to improve people's lives. But to make the most of them, we need to focus -- or we end up doing too much and not having the impact we strive for," Google's Matt Eichner said in a blog post.

"So last fall we started a spring clean, and since then we've closed or combined more than 30 products.
Today we're announcing a few more closures."

Among other products being eliminated was the Google Mini search service for businesses, Google Talk Chatback and Google Video.

Eichner said users will be given time to go without iGoogle.

"We originally launched iGoogle in 2005 before anyone could fully imagine the ways that today's Web and mobile apps would put personalized, real-time information at your fingertips," he said.

"With modern apps that run on platforms like Chrome and Android, the need for iGoogle has eroded over time, so we'll be winding it down.

"Users will have 16 months to adjust or export their data."

He said Google Talk Chatback had become "outdated" and functions were now served by its Meebo toolbar.

Google Video stopped taking uploads in May 2009 and by Aug 20, the remaining content will be transferred to YouTube, which Google acquired in 2006.

The Symbian search app, which duplicated Google's own search, will also be discontinued.

"Closing products always involves tough choices, but we do think very hard about each decision and its implications for our users," Eichner said.

"Streamlining our services enables us to focus on creating beautiful technology that will improve people's lives."

Microsoft grabs Xbox 8 domains, sends rumour mill into overdrive

2012-07-04T15:46:00.000+02:00

As a part of its ongoing marketing strategy, Microsoft seems to be expanding on its acquisition of domain names. Such purchases are always the first to spark of rumours of a new product in the market and a specific name. This time it is the procurement of multiple ownerships, some of which include the domain name Xbox 8.

According to Fusible.com, Microsoft Corporation recently won two disputes over a batch of Xbox-related domains owned by a resident of China who apparently goes by the name "Cheng Juan". The disputed domain names include XboxPhone.com, XboxTablet.com, XboxLiveTV.com, XboxCompanion.com, and surprisingly, Xbox8.us and Xbox8.org.

The first four domain names obtained are understandable enough. But the last to come as a real surprise, especially since we were pondering that Microsoft would release the Xbox 720, according to online leaked documents. So where does this new Xbox 8 enter the picture from?

One view could be that with the onset of the new Windows 8, Microsoft may design and release a new Xbox of the same numerical name so that it appears as one unified set of products, equating the release of the operating system with the console.

Another curious inversion of the number 8 could be the word infinity, which is represented by the number 8 written on its side, ergo leading to the name Xbox Infinity. A far simpler interpretation would be on the basis of the age of the console, which completes its eighth birthday next year.

Despite the wild theories of speculation, it is important to keep in mind that companies often secure domains for products that they aren't even currently working on, and may never even make. Microsoft could just be protecting its trademarks and has no actual plans for a product known as Xbox 8. Apple, for example, recently secured the rights to iPhone5.com when it is currently unknown what the next iPhone will be called.

Only time will tell which of our theories is true. But one thing is for certain: a new console generation from Microsoft will be releasing sooner or later.

Driving Traffic To Your website

2012-07-03T15:54:00.001+02:00

Written by: Ryan Lee, Guest Author

Oh traffic, my friend.

You are vital to any online business – but yet, you are so elusive.

Do you want to know the REAL secret to driving traffic? Something that has personally worked for my business over the past 13 years, and still works today?

It comes down to one word… CONSISTENCY.

I have good news. Driving traffic to your site is actually very simple – but it might not always be “easy.” And by easy, I mean you don’t just “click a button” and millions of people flood your site. I’m sorry, but that’s just not reality.

Traffic does take a bit of effort – but the effort pays off. Big time.
Here are a few simple steps you can take to build a consistent, reliable stream of traffic.

Update Your Blog: Google loves blogs with fresh content. So stop being lazy and commit to update your blog at least 2-3 times a week. It can be as simple as a YouTube video you pasted with a couple of lines of commentary.
Think Syndication: There are hundreds of sites with high PR ranks of 4-9 that are desperate for YOUR content. Sites like eHow and Instructables are just a few. Get out there and get in front of more people.
Be Prolific: Find out where your target market goes – and get in front of them. It might be a Facebook group, an Association discussion forum or even a Ning community site. Answer questions, write articles, speak at their events and contribute to the community.
Be Networked: Reach out to the influential people in your industry. And offer to help them (do NOT just pitch your products and commissions!). Think long-term relationships and keep in touch. Always.
Create a Ritual: For me, it’s setting a goal for my daily “marketing tasks” and doing that in the morning from Starbucks (that’s why I created the tool in my author box below). Find a place you enjoy working from. And build it into your day.

Stop looking for the magic bullet or “loophole”- it’s an illusion.

Be consistent. Deliver outstanding products & services. Create no-brainer offers. And turn your “customers” into raving fans who, in turn, spread the word and become your new source for traffic.

It all starts with… consistent baby steps. Now get out there and take that first step!

About the Author
Ryan Lee is a highly respected marketer with a business that spans multiple categories. He has famously gone from working as a gym teacher in the roughest area of the South Bronx to an entrepreneur whose business empire now generates over 7-figures per month. Ryan’s new program, Traffic Organizer, has revolutionized and simplified the way entrepreneurs run traffic campaigns.

How To Sign a Nokia Symbian Free

2012-03-02T19:49:00.000+01:00

Get your Nokia Symbian Themes/Applications Symbian Signed yourself! Its dead easy so Do It Yourself!!! (…err with pics n a tutorial it really is!)

All righty sparky! Here we go:

Step by Step Symbian Signed Tutorial to Self Sign you Nokia Themes or Applications:
Here is a flick of the entire steps of what you have to do in a signing process:

1) Go to https://www.symbiansigned.com and register a new account immediately.

Since they dont let you register with any email services like (yahoo, gmail, hotmail etc.) try to register with a local or office or even university email address that you might have. Don’t have any local or office email address? No problem! Then you can just search google for any social networking site and register there, usually ninety nine percent would provide you with an email address once you register. Once registered there, use that email address to register with Symbian Signed and veriy everything they say accordingly.

2) Go to My Simbian Signed, Developer Certificates and download DevCertRequest tool.
Direct link: http://developer.symbian.com/main/downloads/files/DevCertRequest_windows.exe.zip

3) Install the application in your PC and download the private keyfile (Chaos Inc Key file aka or the back up .key in attachment, I have provided an extra key file just in case)

4) It’s now time to create the certification request: open the DevCertRequest application you just installed and fill in the fields like this:

Use the key you just downloaded ( Chaos Inc.key or sultan.key ). Set your desired password: 0123456 5) Go ahead to next steps and follow examples shown below:

6) Insert your IMEI number (…and yours only, don’t experiment otherwise, you may sign up for someone else’s phone and not yours lol) and add all application capabilities:

7) Click on finish and your Certificate Request will be created. You can find this file in the folder C:\Program Files\Symbian OS Tools\Developer Certificate Request\xxxxxxx.csr xxxxxxx = the name you have used in step 4 (in this specific tutorial it is : dzed.csr)

Go back to Symbian Signed website and go to My Symbian Signed, Developer Certificates Request! Here is the Direct link: h**ps://www.symbiansigned.com/app/barclayhtml/devcert/requestupload.jsp and upload the Certificate Request file you just created (in this specific tutorial : dzed.csr).

9) Go to My Symbian Signed Developer Certificates. My DevCert Direct link: h**ps://www.symbiansigned.com/app/page/devcert/certListdownload and download your certificate (in this specific tutorial : dzed.cer) !

10) Create a folder and place in FExplorer.sis as in this tutorial (it can be any file), the certificate you downloaded from Symbian Signed website, Private Keyfile (Chaos Inc. or the other .key) and signsis.exe and auto_signsis.bat (you can find it in the attachment)

11) Open auto_signsis.bat with notepad Code: signsis FExplorer.sis (or any application or theme), FExplorer_signed(your file, theme or application).sis xxxxxx.cer, Chaos Inc.key 0123456 (xxxxxx.cer is the certificate you created, and downloaded from Symbian Signed web site change it with yours) example with this tutorial and the version downloaded : Code: signsis FExplorer_english_3ed_116b_unsigned (or any unsigned application or themes).SIS, FExplorer_signed(or any unsigned application or themes).sisdzed.cer Chaos Inc or the other .key 0123456 – Save auto_signsis.bat (do not use Save-As just Save)

12) double click on auto_signsis.bat This will create a new file called FExplorer_signed.sis (or whatever you want, just change the filename), install it and enjoy this great App And you are done!!!! Here are all the files in one package: Symbian Signed Files and Tools and the Key Certificate Files!
The time frame in which Symbian Signed lets people without publisher ID sign applications/games/themes etc is from 9:00am to 3:00pm GMT. Please sign your thing within that time to be successful with the signing process. Godspeed!

Facebook Smiley Codes

2011-08-28T17:55:00.000+02:00

Facebook as the largest social networking site today has various features that many facebook users are not aware of or are aware of them, but do not know how to use those features.

One of those many features is the "facebook smiley". This may sound strange to many who have never used yahoo messanger before. Well let me briefly tell you what a smiley is and how it works. According to Wikipedia, "A smiley, or happy face, (☺/☻) is a stylized representation of a smiling human face. It is commonly represented as a yellow (many other colors are also used) circle (or sphere) with two black dots representing eyes and a black arc representing the mouth. “Smiley” is also sometimes used as a generic term for any emoticon."

I think you now know what smileys are. Smileys or emoticons are used to make a message clearer or to express fellings. If you are a good yahoo messanger user in those days, before the advent of facebook,you will be very familiar with what smileys are. well, I think that is a technology in computer that I appreciate. Facebook has it's own default smiley codes which you can use by typing the correct codes. If you what to use this computer technology called smileys below are the codes.These are the few available smiley codes for now on facebook.

Just type or copy the codes and paste.You can use this codes by copying or typing them directly.
You can use these codes in many ways:

1. While chatting: Type or copy the code, leave a space, then type your message and press enter.
The code will automatically change into a graphical emoticon.

2. While messaging

3. While writing on a friend's wall

Note: that you must always leave a space between your smiley or emoticon code and your message in order for it to appear.

Hope you like this article, leave a comment...

Antichat Hacker Forum Breach Reveals Weak Passwords

2011-08-21T17:17:00.001+02:00

Ordinary Internet users frequently are scolded for choosing weak, easily-guessed passwords. New research suggests that hackers in the cyber underground are also likely to pick lame passwords for their favorite online forums.

Antichat.ru, a Russian language hacker forum that has attracted more than 41,000 users since its founding nearly a decade ago. By matching the user names in the database with those listed in the public pages of the forum, I discovered that I’d been given a snapshot of all Antichat user information and private messages prior to June 2010, when Antichat.ru apparently experienced a forum compromise.

I wanted to match the Antichat user names, associated email and ICQ addresses with those of other forums for which I’ve collected user databases. I also wanted to see how many of the passwords were easily crackable. To do this, I enlisted the help of an anti-spam source that has access to some serious hardware and software capable of cracking thousands of passwords per hour.

More than 18,000 of the 41,037 passwords in the database were crackable within a few days. 4,500 passwords were used by five or more individual users.

The most easily-guessed passwords were six characters long or less, and 75 percent of the top 20 most common simple passwords were uncomplicated number strings. More than three percent of Antichat users whose passwords were cracked (567) picked one of the simplest passwords, “123456″; 1.77 percent (322) chose “111111″; Just over 1 percent selected “123123″. Another 196 users opted for “qwerty,” a common meme easily typed from left to right across a keyboard. Sixty-five Antichat users picked a single-character password: “0.”

Although nearly half of the Antichat user passwords were crackable, the passwords aren’t useful for gaining access to Antichat user accounts: Forum administrators have changed the site’s login process to automatically tie the user’s credentials to his or her Internet address. However, the Internet address data tied to each account may be of interest to law enforcement investigators.

Top 25 most-used Antichat passwords.

The Antichat database also included many private messages that forum users sent to each other. Most of these messages are short, banal or unremarkable (e.g., “How do I get this bot working right?”); others appear to involve more serious transactions, including the theft of sensitive personal and financial data from organizations and individuals.

The hardware used to crack the Antichat passwords was an EVGA GTX 295 graphics card running Hashcat software under CUDA. The Antichat forum runs on Vbulletin 3.0, which uses a salted hash to add complexity to stored passwords. Depending on the approach used, the number of hashed passwords processed in an hour ranges between approx 1,000 – 7,000, this compares with many billions of permutations per hour on unsalted hashes.
The number ‘cracked’ per hour depends on the complexity of the passwords and the method of attack being used. My anti-spam associate worked on this hash list for about 18 days, operating 24/7. The total number cracked is 18,225 of 41,037, or 44% of the total.

It may be that many Antichat users weren’t worried about picking strong passwords because they didn’t care whether their accounts got hacked. But it’s important that KrebsOnSecurity readers understand the basic principles for picking strong passwords and for avoiding practices that lead to weak and easily-cracked passwords. Take a look at my password primer

Free Backlink: How to Get to a PR 3 Ranking in 90 Days

2011-08-21T16:22:00.000+02:00

By Marc Marseille

Climbing to the top of the search engines is the goal of every home base business owner that own a website. A well optimize website alone may help you achieve those goals if you are a niche market with little competition. On the other hand if your niche market is one shared by many marketers, you will have to prove to the search engines that you site has more relevance. The way to differentiate your business from the many on the internet is by creating high quality backlinks.

Many website owners are deterred from generating high quality backlinks to their website either from lack of time or lack of money. The truth is that creating thousands of backlinks does not have to be time consuming or costly. In fact there many ways to generate high Pr backlinks to you website for free. Using the methods I am about to share with you will be able to generate a PR 3 ranking in 90 days or less.

The first thing you must do to create free backlinks is to join five forums related to your niche. Once you have joined five forums, make sure you make a least 10 post per day to each forum. Forums usually have a high pr ranking and they are indexed by the search engines. Furthermore, every one of your post will equal to a high quality backlinks as long as you make sure you include you website's url in you forum signature.

The next step you will need to take is to submit your website to as many directories you can that are relevant to your websites content. You can either submit

your websites manually or you can use a submission service to speed up the process. In addition to the backlinks, you will also generate a great deal of traffic.

The third step will be to write three articles per week and submit your articles to fifty article directories every week. This method is one of the most effective, because once you submit your articles, chances are they will get picked up by other article directories creating even more backlinks to your website.

The fourth method is to post to one hundred social sites at least three times a week. There are hundreds of social networking websites like Digg, Sphinn, Stumble Upon and Mixx. These social web 2.0 sites have a high Google ranking and also can create a heap of traffic. I suggest posting to one hundred social networking and social bookmarking sites daily. To make the submission faster you should use a social bookmarking software to post to multiple sites at one time.

The final step is to submit your RSS feed to one hundred RSS directories. If you do not have an RSS feed for your website, you should look into creating one. RSS feeds are important in generating backlinks and traffic to your website. In the meantime you can substitute for not having an RSS feed by posting comments to ten do follow blogs daily.

The steps provided will take you approximate 3 hours per day to complete, while establishing a PR 3 website will bring you tons of traffic from the search engines. You may also receive offers from advertisers to display their ads on your PR 3 website thus increasing your income dramatically.

3000 Backlinks From High Pr Site

Backlink Guru: The Official Webmaster's Guide To Unlimited Back

How to Backlink: Using the NEW Linkerati to Reach Page 1 of Google

How to spot a fake web site – Phishing

2011-07-13T13:15:00.001+02:00

In computing, phishing is a criminal activity using social engineering techniques. Phishers attempt to fraudulently acquire sensitive information, such as passwords and credit card details, by masquerading as a trustworthy person or business in an electronic communication. Ever got an email asking you to urgently update your account? And you get these kind of mails several times…Welcome to Phishing zone.

Tips on How to find a fake website

Check Security Signs while doing any money transaction

You must always look for “https” on any site you use to enter sensitive information. This includes login pages, online shopping sites and bank web sites. Mind you there is one extra “s” in bold which tells actually that server is secure. e.g https://login.yahoo.com/config/login_verify2 for yahoo login.
Notice the closed padlock on the lower right corner of the browser window.If you click on it, it will open a window that gives you more details regarding the certificate. Every company that asks you for sensitive information must have a digital certificate, preferably one from an established certificate authority.

Misspelled and fake URL Madness:-

Sometimes a site is replicated so well that you wont be able to find a difference if its really a fake one.You won’t be able to tell if a web site is a fake just by looking at the web design. These smart criminals can replicate any web site down to the last detail, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they used the same web designer to do it.
Take care of these things :-

Misspelled domains are big deceivers. Phishers will purchase a domain name that resembles the real domain. They will replace letters with numbers or with other letters. Pay close attention to the spelling of a domain names, and learn to spot a fake like www.yohoo.com or http://www.paypol.com/.
Variations of domains should also be a red flag. Don’t click on any email that contains URLs like http://center.yahoo-security.net. A legitimate URL should read http://center.yahoo.com if it actually belongs to Yahoo! Anyone could’ve purchased www.yahoo-security.net for a scam (I’m just using Yahoo! as an example here).
An IP address looks something like 102.199.60.250. Bottom line, never trust emails that point you to URLs that only show an IP address.

Some more tips :-

Ask F-Secure Tool to see if the website is fake or not.
Never test web sites to see if they’re legitimate or not. This means entering passwords or personal information. These sites may install malicious software known as key logger software that records everything you type, then sends that information to spammers. Learn how to protect your computer from keyloggers and how to detect Hardware KeyLoggers
Stay abreast of the latest scams: The FBI’s web site has a list of all the latest scams reported, so check it periodically.
If you’re being urged to “verify” sensitive account information, contact the company directly instead. Always type the web site’s address in the address bar instead of clicking links on suspicious emails.
PayPal never uses generic greetings in their emails. Next time you get an email from PayPal, check the salutation, as PayPal will usually use your member name.
Emails from banks and credit card companies will usually include partial account numbers. Therefore, one should always be suspicious if the message does not contain specific personal information.

Test Your Phishing IQ:-

The Washington Post and MailFrontier have some excellent tests you can try out. Find out how well you recognize a fake. Then come back, and tell me how you did.
Phishing is a one of the. fastest-growing cyber crimes according to the FBI, and one that costs consumers millions of dollars each year. These scams have one purpose: to get as much personal information from a user as possible. This includes login information, Social Security numbers, date of birth, and other identifiable information that can help scammers open up bogus accounts under your name or steal from your existing ones.

Knowing Which Website is Safe to Visit by Asking F-secure

2011-07-13T13:11:00.000+02:00

Generally the Antivirus system installed on your computer takes care of websites you open in your browser, and in case of any malicious data/activities it warns you before rendering the page in front of you.
In order to add another layer to you security, here is an online tool F-Secure Browsing Protection, all you need to do is enter the site URL in the below interface, and it will tell you if it’s safe to browse the particular website.

Ask F-Secure if the website is safe to visit

So, if you are finicky, and avoid browsing new websites and pages just because you are not sure about them, then try this tool, you will like it. Click Here to Try F-Secure Browsing Protection

Download Seo Panel 2.3.0

2011-07-12T12:54:00.002+02:00

Download world's first seo control panel and install it in your server to manage search engine optimization of your websites. Its an free software for seo released under GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE V2. It will help us to track and manage seo process of different websites. It also contanins lots of seo tools and seo plugins to help you to achieve your seo goals.

Supported languages:

English, French, German, Polish, Italian, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Chinese, Greek

Seo Panel Latest Stable Version

Download

click here to download seo panel 2.3.0 from code.google.com.

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click here to download seo panel 2.3.0 from www.sourceforge.net.

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Download Seo Panel Bulgarian Version 2.2.0, Bulgarian translation by Dimitar Kukov | Web Lab Bulgaria

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Download Seo Panel Chinese (Simplified) Version 2.2.0, Chinese (Simplified) translation by 许腾飞 | 斐然小居

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Download Seo Panel Dutch Version 2.2.0, Dutch translation by Bas van Eijk and Manuel Schroyens | Bureau Creaties | Webaholic

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Download Seo Panel French Version 2.2.0, French translation by Erik De Zeeuw | ez-solutions.fr

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Download Seo Panel German Version 2.2.0, German translation by Grauhut | ONLINE MARKETING

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Download Seo Panel Greek Version 2.2.0, Greek translation by Vaggelis Tsagklis | BLB.gr

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Download Seo Panel Hungarian Version 2.2.0, Hungarian translation by Bocskói Botond | MSN Downloads

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Download Seo Panel Italian Version 2.2.0, Italian translation by Antonio Cionfs Confessore | Cionfs'Forum CMS

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Download Seo Panel Polish Version 2.2.0, Polish translation by Marek Cich | marekcich.co.uk

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Download Seo Panel Portuguese Version 2.2.0, Portuguese translation by pedro vaz | internet services

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Download Seo Panel Romanian Version 2.2.0, Romanian translation by Sfetcu Paul | freelancer RO

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Download Seo Panel Russian Version 2.2.0, Russian translation by Alexander Arapov | Arsko

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Download Seo Panel Spanish Version 2.2.0, Spanish translation by AnunciosEnLinea.es and Alex Rubio | AnunciosEnLinea.es | miniz

Seo Panel Older Versions

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click here to download seo panel 2.2.1 from code.google.com.

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click here to download seo panel 2.2.1 from www.sourceforge.net.

Click here for more webmaster SEO software

Lagos flood kills 25

2011-07-12T12:08:00.000+02:00

By OLASUNKANMI AKONI, EVELYN USMAN & MONSUR OLOWOPEJO
LAGOS—THE pain inflicted on Lagosians by the torrential downpour last Sunday bit harder, yesterday, when 25 corpses were recovered including those of 11 children.
The corpses were recovered from two canals at Dopemu and Aboru, in old Alimosho Local Government Area and Agbado-Oke Odo Local Council Development Area, LCDA, among other areas , even as
property worth several billions of Naira were destroyed.

Some of those who died included occupants of a Toyota saloon car who were trying to maneouvre through the flood and ended up in a ditch. At the time of this report, several families were still looking for their relations and loved ones who have not been either seen or heard from since the rains stopped.
State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, who led a team of government officials, including the commissioner for environment, Mr. Tunji Bello and his Transport counterpart, Kayode Opeifa, to assess the level of devastation by the flood which was the worst to hit the state in recent times, however, assured that his administration would do everything within its power to alleviate the plight of the residents.
Most of the residents who lamented their ordeal at various spots during the inspection, appealed to the Governor to come to their rescue, because, according to them, they have lost their life savings to the flood with nowhere to relocate to.

Some of the worst-hit areas which Fashola inspected included: Mobil Filling Station, Ogba, where the fence of a company collapsed due to flood, Odejobi Street off Iju Road Agege, Abattoir canal in Orile-Agege Local Government Area, Abeokuta – Lagos Expressway failed portion of the road at Obadeyi Busstop, and Aboru canal, at Iyana-Ipaja end of Abeokuta-Lagos Expressway among others.
The flood also affected high brow areas including Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Apapa where property like vehicles, office equipment and house hold property were destroyed.
Disruption of transmission

The premises of Silver-Bird Communications, Lekki in Lagos Island and Channels Television, Isheri North, along Lagos Ibadan Expressway were submerged by the flood disrupting transmission temporary.
A source told Vanguard that in the early hours of Monday when the flood had receded, three dead bodies suspected to have drowned as a result of the previous day’s rainfall were removed at Aboru community, Agbado-Okeodo LCDA.

An eyewitness and a resident of the area, Mr. Kasali Akinwale said, “the incident occurred on Sunday when a Toyota car was manoeuvering through the flood, but unknown to the driver, he ran into a ditch and drowned with other occupants of the vehicle.”
When contacted on the incident, the Vice Chairman of the Council, Mr Austin Arogun said some people died because they could not distinguish between the roads and the drainage channels already covered by the flood.
He also attributed the high death toll to what he described as ‘’the unnecessary exposure of people to the canal which is still under construction without any barrier or warning signals’’.

Fashola inspecting a flood prone area in Agege.

Also at Dopemu, Agege area, residents of 16, Adesokan Street, wailed uncontrollably as the officials of the state Fire Service from Agege removed the corpse of a 22-year old Muri Olanrewaju who died inside a sewage tank.
It was learnt that Olanrewaju slipped into the sewage pit that was already submerged by flood.
Though, the state government had on Sunday asked school children to stay away from their schools yesterday, because of the effect of the heavy down pour, civil servants also seized the opportunity to stay away, as many of them tried to rescue their already damaged propertyincluding house hold items like electronics, vehicles among others from the flood.

Fashola, who inspected areas affected by the flood on Monday, empathized with victims who lost their relatives and properties to the flood.

He, however, warned that the state government will immediately commence the enforcement of a new regime of laws affecting the environment, stressing that such matters would no longer be compromised.
“Those who are in buildings that we have marked as structurally unstable or those who built on canals should leave the building immediately because we are coming to take possession, we are not going to risk human lives anymore.
“My sympathy goes to the people affected in the flood. I condole with people who lost children or properties; they should know I am with them, I will be making an appeal to the President to help with funds to relocate and resettle flood victims. I will also write to the Federal Government on the failed portion of Abeokuta Expressway. We hope the Federal Government would respond because we havevirtually lost that road and traffic will be terrible,” Fashola said, while inspecting areas affected by the flood.
He said: “Those who are in buildings that we have marked as structurally unstable or those who built on canals and drainage channels should vacate the building immediately because we are coming to take possession, we are not going to risk human lives anymore. My sympathy goes to the people affected in the flood. I condole with people who lost children or properties; they should know am with them, I will be making an appeal to the president to help with fund to relocate and resettle flood victims.
“I will also write to the federal government on the failed portion of Abeokuta Expressway. We hope the FG would respond because we have virtually lost that road and traffic will be terrible.”

However, unconfirmed report in Akara area of Alagbado, had it that a yet to be identified young man, about 25 years old, was killed on Sunday night when a wall fell on him. He was said to be returning from an outing when the fence, which was obviously weakened by the flood collapsed on him, killing him instantly. The deceased’s fiance is said to be pregnant and they were billed for wed next month.

Stay at home
directive of pupils
Following the stay at home directive on Monday, the public schools and some private schools remained shut. The directive was to avert a possible disaster such as school children being swept away in the floods which ravaged most parts of the metropolis. Businesses were also at a low ebb in different locations on Monday as some offices did not open until noon.
Some workers who left their houses early in the morning for their offices could not make to their work places, as they were forced to return home as the rain started again, coupled with scarcity of commercial buses on the roads just as some pupils who reported in their schools were immediately turned back by the school management in compliance with the governor directive.
Lagos ACN sympathizes with residents
The Lagos State chapter of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN has sent its message of condolence to the victims of the unprecedented flooding in Lagos on Sunday and indeed to all Lagosians over the flooding experience. The party says it shares the grief of many Lagosians that were subjected to the harrowing effects of the day-long torrential rainfall and says that the Lagos State government is committed to avoid a repeat experience in the future.
In a statement by the Lagos State Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Joe Igbokwe, noted that that it was a thing of joy that the flood was gradually easing off few hours after the rain and that the state government environmental officials worked through the flood to ease the situation.
ACN stated: “We are alarmed that what is turning out to be global scourge of flooding is hitting Lagos, and many other parts of the country with the kind of force we all experienced on Sunday. That rain started as early as 5.00am in some parts of Lagos and lasted to well into the early hours of Monday is an unprecedented experience that was worsened by the volume of the rains.”
28 families homeless in Ajegunle
The resultant effect of Sunday’s twenty-hour down pour which continued for the better part of yesterday, had its toil on several families, some of who were sacked from their abodes yesterday.
In Ajegunle area of Lagos, over twenty-eight families have been rendered homeless, as four buildings which foundations were weakened by the heavy down pour, caved in.
Although no life was lost but the homeless families watched helplessly as their hard earned property floated on the flood. Buildings affected included those on numbers 4A, 7, 8 Okatapo street and another on Young lane.
Others whose apartments are still flooded, had to relocate members of their families, children in particular , to their relatives homes.

Number 8 Okatapo street, according to report, caved in at about 6.30pm, Sunday. Just as sympathizers were helping out with property of those affected, part of number 4A collapsed yesterday at about 7.30am. At about 4pm, numbers 7 and that on Young lane also caved in.
At Jakande estate, Oke-Afa Isolo, a woman and her eleven-month -old baby escaped death by the whiskers Sunday night, after they were carried away by the resultant flood of the twenty-hour down pour.
The woman identified as Mrs Nkechi Ngbidi, was reportedly on a visit from the eastern part of the country. She was said to have been stranded in the gridlock,resulting in her arriving the estate at about 11pm.
Report said they were being carried away by the torrents around sewage area,when some concerned residents who were also returning late, rescued them. The baby simply identified as Tochukwu was thereafter rushed to an unidentified hospital as he had gulped some of the dirty water .
This is just as the residents have called on the urgent need for the state government and management of the Power Holding of Nigeria Plc Company to find a lasting solution to the high tension wire around mechanic junction. The call came following report of electrocution anytime it rained.
Just yesterday, unsuspecting workers and traders who covered themselves with umbrellas while it was raining, almost got electrocuted on arriving the junction.
Barely two months ago, a commercial motorcyclist reportedly met his untimely end ,following an explosion at the junction.

Meanwhile, a visit to Olodi Apapa and Ajegunle areas of Lagos, revealed the sufferings of most Lagosians who have been sacked from their homes by flood. Mustapha, Lawani, Rashidi, Apana, Babatunde,Isikalu lane among other streets were most affected as the residents were sighted still bailing water out of their apartments. At a point, most of them gave up, as water kept coming out from the ground.
Most shanties around Orile and Oyingbo were completely brought down by the rain, with the helpless residents watching the situation with their hands folded.

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Build a Real Ray Gun at Home

2011-07-11T19:46:00.000+02:00

Is it possible to build a ray gun at home? With mostly houshold items, it is. Perhaps many of you have seen tutorials online on how to build a laser pistol, but these tutorials are almost always only reliant on weak laser diodes. This pistol is a SOLID STATE PUMPED laser.

In order to prevent confusion, I will explain the difference. A SOLID STATE laser is pumped with intense light from a flash lamp in a single pulse onto a lasing medium. In this tutorial we will be using Neodymium:YAG as our lasing medium. If you build this pistol properly, it should be able to punch through plastics, wood, styrafoam, or even thin metals instantaneously or make blind spots on television screens.

WARNING: Due to the inherent dangers of this project, make sure to take all necessary safety precautions including eye protection. Never point the ray gun at any living thing, and always make sure to have proper supervision.

This tutorial simply gives basic instructions for a way to build the pistol but does not go into great detail on how it will work.
Before you begin this project, it is advised that you first watch this brief instructional video covering the bare basics:

Click Here to go to step one

Build a Real Ray Gun at Home

2011-07-11T19:41:00.001+02:00

Step 1 Getting Cameras

To begin with, you are going to need a ton of disposable cameras. Depending on how powerful you would like your ray gun to be, you will choose how many disposable cameras (though at a sufficient amount there is a ceiling to how much the pistol can pump out). Politely go to a nearby photo developing store and ask if they have any used disposable cameras.

From my experience, the store employees' willingness to cooperate is dependent on a few things:
1.) How old you look
2.) How much you look like you know what you are doing
3.) How dangerous your project sounds when they ask you what you need the cameras for

Once you have a big bag full of cameras, its time to start shucking! Inside each camera there are many useful components we will need. But before removing the outer plastic container, you must first remove the camera's battery, and have a thick piece of metal insulated from your hand. Use this to discharge the camera's capacitor very carefully by tapping the two pieces of metal jutting out from it. Once the capacitor is discharged and the battery is removed, the electronics are safe to touch. Remove them. I have attached a photo with the basic information on it. Though there are many different designs for disposable camera circuits, they all work similarly.

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