ME & TECHNOLOGY

Self Build Super Computer, China American Shock

2011-11-05T22:30:00.000-07:00

Super Computer made in China, named Tianhe-1A is located at the National Supercomputer Center in Tianjin.

China has successfully built the first supercomputer based microprocessor chip made in China itself. This will surprise the United States as a specialist high-performance computing. The announcement was submitted by the presence of the supercomputer industry organizations and the government of China in Jinan, China, Sunday (10/30/2011).
The new machine called the Sunway Bluelight MPP, has been installed in September 2011 on China's national supercomputing system in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong province. Sunway System can perform 1,000 trillion calculations per second, which makes this supercomputer into the top 20 fastest computers in the world. Even more important is the supercomputer consists of 8700 mikroposesor Shenwei (SW1600). Microprocessor is designed in a computer institute in China and produced in Shanghai.
"This is a bit of a surprise," said Dr. Jack Dongarra, a computer scientist at the University of Tennessee and project leader of the world's fastest computer list, the TOP500.
Last fall, China had published supercomputers based in China, namely computer Tianhe-1A and K. However, Tianhe built from processor chip made by U.S. companies, namely Intel and Nvidia, although the internal switching system designed by Chinese engineers. Similarly, the Fujitsu-made K computer, designed with the Sparc chip and the initial design started at Sun Mycrosystems in Silicon Valley.
Dr. Dongarra said, Sunway theoretical peak performance of 74 percent faster than the fastest supercomputer United States - Jaguar developed the Department of Energy National Laboratory in Oak Ridge. Supercomputer made by Cray Inc. was listed as the third fastest machine in the world.
To build a supercomputer from existing components, require large amounts of electricity, roughly the equivalent of a nuclear power plant size. However, Dr. Dongarra said the power requirements of the new Chinese supercomputer is relatively small, only about 1 Megawatt, according to a report technician. While supercomputer Tianhe mngkonsumsi approximately 4 Megawatts and Jaguar supercomputer about 7 Megawatts.
According to some experts the U.S. supercomputers, microprocessors Shenwei seems to be based on some design principles are similar to Intel microprocessors. However, engine cooling technology owned by Sunway is questionable compliance with supercomputer-class future.

Photo supercomputer Sunway then answer the question. Photo shows the water cooling system which is a significant advancement in engine design. "This tells me that this supercomputer has a serious design. This design is appropriate for exaflop scale supercomputers. China can win in this case," said Steven Wallach Convey Computer's chief scientist, who also had developed a supercomputer.

Congratulations Road John McCarthy, creator of Lisp Programming Language

2011-11-05T21:49:00.000-07:00

John McCarthy, creator of LISP, one computer programming language, dies on Monday (10/24/2011) night. Information obtained from the daughter's death John unofficially and then published by Stanford University.
John is a scientist who won many awards, including the Turing Award from the Association of Computing Machinery (1971), Kyoto Prize (1988), the National Medal of Science (USA, 1991), and the Benjamin Franklin Medal of the Franklin Institute (2003).
John was born in Boston, September 4, 1927. He steeped mathematics as a teenager, using the books used by the California Institute of Technology. Two years later after he was accepted as a student, he managed to get through college quickly. John continued to go to college and received his PhD in mathematics from Princeton University in 1951. He married Vera Watson, programmers and mountaineer who died in 1978.
John became a full professor at Stanford University in 1962 and retired at the end of 2000. John did research about mathematical logic and artificial intelligence. In 1958 he started working on logic programming. In 1959 he developed the LISP programming language which later became the programming language of choice for applications of Al after being published in 1960. John also motivates the manufacture of MAC at MIT, and in 1962 he founded the Stanford laboratory of Al to support the MAC project.
LISP is a programming language family of the leading computer. LISP advantage lies in its ability to manipulate symbols and relationships antarsimbol easily so the language is suitable for use in the field of Artificial Intelligence (artificial intelligence) and decision making. However, this language can also be used to solve other problems.
During its development, LISP produce many variants and is the forerunner of many other languages (such as Logo and Smalltalk). On December 8, 1994 ANSI (American National Standard Institute) managed to standardize LISP, which is named ANSI Common LISP.
LISP is much different than with programming languages such as Pascal and C. After many uses LISP, programmers will be able to see or analyze a problem from a perspective that had not previously been imagined.

Preparing to Go to Ubuntu Smartphone, Tablet, and Smart TV

2011-11-05T21:47:00.000-07:00

Ubuntu is more known as a Linux-based operating system for use on a PC or laptop. But starting next year, will Ubuntu can be found in other devices, like smartphones, tablets, and smart TV.

The official announcement of future plans is actually the new Ubuntu will be conducted at the Ubuntu Developer Summit which took place from tomorrow (01/11/2011) in Orlando, USA. However, this information is actually "leak" directly from Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu Linux disro, when interviewed by a journalist from ZDNet.

Mark said, short-term plans to design Ubuntu Ubuntu is 12:04 (which was released in April 2012) as stable as possible and equip it with the Unity desktop interface, so it can meet all the needs of users. After that, the new Canonical will expand from a desktop computer Linux to all types of computing devices (computing devices).

"This is a natural expansion that is consistent with the mission of Ubuntu as the Linux for all mankind. All people will switch from desktop computing to new media, therefore it is important for us to get closer to the communities that use this new medium. So, we will take the challenge of applying Ubuntu on smartphones, tablets, and smart television, "said Mark added.

Ubuntu plans will certainly enliven the competition inter mobile operating current is still struggling between the (Google) Android, Windows Phone, and (Apple) IOS.

Unfortunately, Ubuntu is not the plan will be done in the near future. Mark Shuttleworth says Ubuntu for mobile devices and television will be available in April 2014.

Defeat India Indonesia Contestant

2011-11-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

IT Contestants Go Travelers from Indonesia failed to compete with contestants from India. Although Indonesia is getting the most votes online through blogs and social networks, but overall, India was established as the major prize winner and received $ 20 thousand dollars. However, competition is not over. One contestant from Indonesia still had a chance to earn money worth 5000 U.S. dollars and become "Ambassadors Taiwan Excellence".

"Gadget from Taiwan that complements our trip very helpful in capturing, creation and sharing our experiences through blogs and social media"

"We are very proud and impressed with the dedication of the IT Travelers from Indonesia in its participation in this competition. We are confident that through this contest, the contestants are able to experience and share the experience how Taiwan brands make their lives easier and more enjoyable," said Wayne W. . Wu, vice president of TAITRA.
At a press conference at the Decanter Wine House, Plaza Brass, Jakarta contestants share their experiences. "We're exploring the beautiful towns with historical backgrounds and different cultures. Gadget-gadget from Taiwan that complements our trip a great help in the capture, creation and sharing our experiences through blogs and social media," said Arif, one of the contestants .
Contestants IT Travelers Go from 3 countries, namely Indonesia, India, and Vietnam, has gone through two sessions of a total of 3 sessions that they have to undergo. The first session is selected in each country to determine the four representatives who represent their country. The second session is a 21-day trip by 12 contestants from the three countries to visit Indonesia, India, and Vietnam, and ended up in Taiwan. In this second session of the contestants were given supplies gadgets for 2500 U.S. dollars from Taiwan IT brands such as Acer, MSI, Trend Micro, HTC, Genius, Innergie, PQI, Transcend, Optoma, ZyXEL, Apacer, Adata, D-Link, Mio, Thermaltake, Silicon Power, and ASUS. In this second session, India managed to beat Indonesia and Vietnam and received the grand prize worth 20 thousand dollars.
But the struggle is not over. There is still a third session, ie all the contestants back to their respective countries to compete with his own friends. Examples contestants from Indonesia who today officially gone back to Indonesia and tomorrow (05.11.2011) will share their experiences to the people of Indonesia in Taiwan Excellence Experiencing Zone in Mangga Dua Mall, Jakarta. In this session, visitors to the mall to choose their favorite contestant. For visitors who choose to have the opportunity to bring home gadgets Taiwan after raffled.
Contestants from Indonesia came from Yogyakarta (Ivan Loeviano Sukarno and Arif Satrio Pambudi), Bandung (Yasmin), and Pekanbaru (Rahmat Hidayat). After sharing experiences in Jakarta, each contestant will be returned to their towns to create a blog post once again. They are required to write a blog post as many as 1000 to 2000 words which is equipped 5 photos and one video, with the topic "If I Become Ambassadors Taiwan Excellence". After doing a blog post, then online voting will start from 11 to 20 November 2011.
Only one contestant will be the "Ambassador of Taiwan Excellence" from Indonesia and won 5000 dollars cash. Assessment as much as 80 percent comes from the most votes obtained during offline event in the shopping center. The rest, 20 percent based on online voting.

"Anonymous" Threatens Shut up and Fox News

2011-11-04T19:25:00.000-07:00

Community of hackers called "Anonymous" plans to close the social networking site Facebook and the site Fox News, Saturday (11/05/2011) future. Despite having different reasons for the closure of both the web site, they chose the same date because on that date they are planning to commemorate Guy Fawkes to blow up parliament, but failed.

Anonymous wants to close up because the site is considered to have violated the privacy of its users. All the important information the user will be embedded in the database up, even though the user has closed their account.

"Facebook is even more about you than your own family," said a spokeswoman for the community.

This last group of hackers declared, the actions they performed precisely to protect Facebook users around the world, not harm. However, one can imagine if this did occur, then the 750 million Facebook users worldwide will lose access to inter-connected with his friends.

Meanwhile, the reason this community is close to Fox News as a news site is considered to be biased in reporting a rally on Wall Street. Fox News is considered very cornered the protesters.

"Fox News will be an example to all the corporate media. As long as they do not stop protesters cornering, the site will be our turn," said the spokesman.

Anonymous is a group of hackers who stood in 2003. His first known attack began in 2006. This year, during September, nearly 20 Web sites had been destroyed by this group, including news sites. This group also has attacked PayPal, Mastercard, and Visa for freezing funds that go to Wikileaks.

Link youtube : www.youtube.com/watch

The Internet conglomerate China Shutter Yahoo

2011-11-04T19:14:00.000-07:00

Jack Ma, founder and top executive officers (CEOs) of e-commerce giant China, Alibaba, openly declared highly interested in buying Yahoo. It was not only save capital Alibaba to own some shares of Yahoo, Ma wants to have Yahoo as a whole.

Not only that, as reported by Reuters news agency on Friday (30/09/2011) night when the United States or Saturday morning GMT, Ma has also been discussing the possibility of taking over Yahoo with several other potential buyers. This development was disclosed when answering a question Ma seminar participants at Stanford University, Palo Alto, California. The United States.

When asked whether Alibaba interested in healing pressure experienced by the United States Internet company. Then Ma said, "Very interested in the Yahoo". Former English teacher and then insisted that he was interested in every part of Yahoo, when asked, which part of Yahoo that he liked. "China has become ours, is not it? He (China) are already in my bag," said Ma.

Shares of Yahoo's own experience price spikes up to 13.8 U.S. dollars per share. Taking Yahoo will help Ma widen its Internet empire into one of the most important players in the Internet business world. Already widely heard that Alibaba is already eyeing the American market since long and is preparing a new base at Cape San Francisco.

However, since his visit in America began 15 days earlier, Ma admitted not seeing the Yahoo. "However, we are likely to be one of the few companies that really understands Yahoo better," he said, while reminding participants of the seminar in collaboration with Yahoo since 2005.

Google Yahoo! Want to Master the Core Business

2011-11-04T19:10:00.000-07:00

Google has spoken with at least two private equity firms about the potential financing to buy Yahoo's core business. Google and prospective partners that has conducted the initial stages of discussion, but no formal proposals. As written the Wall Street Journal, Google is doing this to have ownership of shares owned by Microsoft.

According to observations eMarketer, Google is the number one player in a web search, but weak in display advertising. In the United States, Facebook is expected to generate more than 2 billion U.S. in net revenue from display advertising in 2011 and Yahoo following the U.S. produces 1.6 billion. Google estimated that only produce 1.1 billion U.S..

To that end, Google wants to sell advertising space on the Yahoo site. Such as graphics, interactive, and video ads. This business is estimated to potentially generate 2 billion U.S. per year. Industry experts said Yahoo's ad space is "undermonetized," which means it can make more money if Yahoo! invested more in the technology. This is what Google wants to get in behind the investment opportunities.

Yahoo actually want to do again partnering with Microsoft, AOL, and other publishers of online content to create advertising space together to create a market for challenging competitors, DoubleClik, owned by Google. In addition, Yahoo also has a working relationship with the owners of premium content such as ABC News, which provides video content.

Google saw the opportunity to embrace Yahoo's 700 million visitors to be able to use social networking Google Plus is being developed this year. Google executives have contacted Yahoo executives about the relationship of cooperation, but until now there has been no development of the results of the meeting.

(wall street journal)

Google changed its search engine algorithm

2011-11-04T19:01:00.000-07:00

Google re-overhauling its search engine algorithm so that users get the information more accurate and relevant. Update 'algorithm fresh' This will convert most of the search results, for example when you search with keywords 'Olympic' then search results will bring up more information about the 2012 Olympics, compared to the 2008 Olympics.

Search results of this new algorithm will also feature the latest information from news stories that are "warm" and analyze trends that are going to give the most revelan on your search query.

In a posting on the company blog, Amit Singhal of Google said the update will bring nuances that are closer to results of the event is happening.

"If I find the word Olympics," he wrote. "I might want information about the upcoming Olympics next summer, not the 1900 Summer Olympics.

"Offal latest version of the Google search engine is designed to provide the most updated results for you, even when I just enter 'Olympics' only without determining the 'Olympics 2012', I still find what I was looking for," Singhal added.

This change was built thanks to the Caffeine Index Update, which allows netting faster web archive information that directly makes it easy to explore the latest information

Obama: G-20 Leaders Made ‘Important Progress’

2011-11-04T18:14:00.001-07:00

President Barack Obama ended a two- day summit of world economic leaders with his appeals for more ambitious action to safeguard economic growth unmet by congressional leaders at home or his counterparts abroad.

World leaders at meeting of the Group of 20 nations in Cannes, France, balked at committing new funds to help bail out the euro-area, demanding the continent’s own governments first do more to fix the two-year-old debt crisis. In the U.S., Obama’s plan to revive hiring remained stalled in Congress.

Obama’s stay in Cannes was capped by a Labor Department report yesterday that job growth fell to 80,000 in October even as the unemployment rate unexpectedly dropped to 9 percent from 9.1 percent in September.

At a closing news conference dominated by domestic concerns, Obama called the drop in the jobless rate “positive,” even as he conceded that the U.S. economy’s progress is “way too slow.” He said hopes the unemployment report prompts Congress to act on his proposals, including tax cuts and spending.

“There’s no excuse for inaction,” he said. “That’s true globally and it’s certainly true back home right now.”

The debt crisis in Europe and the struggle to come up with a rescue plan for Greece overshadowed efforts by the Group of 20 nations to promote global growth. Stocks, the euro and Italian bonds slid as a disagreement emerged at the meeting on boosting the International Monetary Fund’s resources.

Greece and Italy

The reluctance of the leaders of the world’s biggest economies to immediately channel funds to the euro area reflects frustration with Europe’s failure to end a crisis that sparked again this week, with Greece’s government lurching toward collapse and Italy facing intensifying pressure to restore fiscal order.

European leaders face ‘more hard work ahead and more difficult choices to make,” Obama said.

He also said he got “a crash course in European politics” while in Cannes.

In individual and group meetings Obama sought to keep the focus on the steps needed to stem the debt crisis and beyond the political pressures in individual countries, said an administration official who wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly.

U.S. actions in the aftermath of collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (LEHMQ) in September 2008 repeatedly came up as examples of the tools that can be used, the official said.

Market Signals

“What we’ve seen is all the elements for dealing with the crisis put in place,” Obama said. Financial markets are looking for a “strong signal” from European governments that they are standing firmly behind the euro.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index lost 0.6 percent to close at 1,253.23 at 4 p.m. in New York, paring a drop of as much as 1.8 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index retreated 1 percent as the euro weakened 0.3 percent to $1.3777. Ten-year Italian bond yields rose to a euro-era high, while rates on 10-year German debt capped the biggest weekly drop on record.

“The European political leadership, understands how much of a stake they have in making sure that this crisis is resolved, that the euro zone remains intact,” Obama said.

While in Cannes, Obama met separately with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, leaders of Europe’s two biggest economies and the drivers of attempts to win agreement on a rescue plan.

Economy and Currency

The G-20 also moved toward goals for “rebalancing” the global economy, including on China’s valuation of its currency, Obama said. In its final communique, the G-20 beefed up language on exchange rates by vowing to “move more rapidly toward market-determined.” In an appendix they highlighted China’s “determination” to increase the yuan’s flexibility.

China is showing increased willingness to let the yuan appreciate, Obama said. “This is something we’ve been calling for for some time, and it will be a critical step in boosting growth,” he said.

The yuan reached a 17-year high yesterday rising 0.19 percent to close at 6.3392 per dollar in Shanghai, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.

Even with Europe’s debt crisis weighing on global growth, Obama said that the U.S. as the world’s largest economy will play a key role in driving expansion. He used a question on U.S. economic leadership to promote his jobs plan and defend his record.

Economic Growth

Obama, who faces re-election next year, offered “a simple way of thinking about” his track record.

“When I came into office, the U.S. economy had contracted by 9 percent, the largest contraction since the Great Depression,” he said. “A little over a year later, the economy was growing by 4 percent, and it’s been growing ever since.”

The economy has grown at an average pace of 1.4 percent during the first nine months of this year.

“We’re going to keep on pushing,” he said of his campaign to press Congress to act on his proposals and his vow to use executive authority wherever possible to promote hiring and growth.

“But if we’re going to do something big to jumpstart the economy at a time when it’s stabilized but unemployment is way too high, Congress is going to need to act,” he said.

Republican opposition to tax increases on the nation’s wealthiest individuals and spending more on infrastructure and aid to states has blocked passage of the $447 billion jobs plan Obama unveiled in September.

Infrastructure Bank

The administration and congressional Democrats since have tried pushing through individual components of the proposal. The Senate this week blocked a measure to provide $60 billion for work on the nation’s transportation system and create an “infrastructure bank” to leverage capital for more such projects.

Before leaving France, Obama joined with Sarkozy to honor members of both nations’ armed services who took part in the campaign that helped drive Muammar Qaddafi from power in Libya. He also participated in a joint interview with Sarkozy for French television. Sarkozy, like Obama, faces re-election next year.

“We need the United States of America to achieve growth,” Sarkozy said in the interview, “and they need a stable Europe.”

To contact the reporters on this story: Mike Dorning in Cannes, France, at mdorning@bloomberg.net; Roger Runningen in Cannes, France, at rrunningen@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net

The Death Clock.

2011-11-03T17:51:00.000-07:00

Have you ever asked yourself 'when will I die?', our advanced life expectancy calculator will accurately* predict the date of your death for you depending on where you live, how much you smoke and your lifestyle. To predict the date of your death, simply input your date of birth, sex, smoking habits, your BMI and the country you live in. If you don't know your BMI simply click the link and our calculator will work out your BMI for you.

EMC News - Recently, millions of viewers of mainstream news programs around the world witnessed the body of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi being dragged triumphantly through the streets by the rebels who took his life.

Few would deny that Gaddafi deserved this fate, after ruling over the Libyan people for decades as a ruthless dictator. However, the ubiquitous availability of the images of the leader's violent death have sparked some debate over how much is too much for the six o'clock news.

As disturbing as these images are, we don't really see a problem with them being aired during prime time, as long as some sort of warning is issued beforehand, and they are not used gratuitously. After all, the images are easily available all over the internet anyway, and people need not look if they would prefer not to witness such violence.

However, we feel it is worth pointing out that there are some double standards involved in what is and is not deemed appropriate for TV. If the story of Gaddafi's death were fiction, for instance, it would probably be accompanied by a strong, severe-sounding warning before the program came back on after a commercial break. It would also likely need to be aired after 10 p.m.

Furthermore, profanity of any kind has certainly been deemed inappropriate for prime time news, and if any occurs on a later program it is once again preceded by a warning.

Images are powerful, even more so when they are grounded in reality. We simply ask media outlets to use discretion and moderation when broadcasting them.

Consider the following: it cannot be argued that if the media had had the opportunity, photographs of Bin Laden's lifeless corpse would have spread like wildfire. Such an occurrence would constitute an indelible image on the world's consciousness, and may even serve to further inflame and galvanize the Islamic world against the West. In this case, perhaps we are better off due to the restraint used on the part of the U.S government.

Justin Bieber baby mama drama gets spoofed by Jimmy Fallon

2011-11-03T17:46:00.000-07:00

The pop star says he's trying to ignore the paternity rumors

Jimmy Fallon poked fun of Justin Bieber's paternity lawsuit with '(It's Not My) Baby.'

Despite saying he was going to “ignore the rumors” after getting slapped with a paternity lawsuit, Justin Bieber appeared on “Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” to clear up the air.

Well, sort of.

Wearing the pop star’s signature baseball cap and mopped-top, host Jimmy Fallon resurrected his hilarious impersonation of the Biebs and took to the stage to perform an updated version of his hit song “Baby,” appropriately dubbed “(It’s Not My) Baby.”

“You said we did it, and I’m a dad. My lawyer’s tripping, ’cause this looks bad. You only said this to get my cash. Now Selena Gomez is going to kick my a—,” Fallon sings in Bieber’s high-pitched voice. “It’s not my baby, baby, baby. Oh-oh, it’s not my baby, baby, baby.”

“You said I didn’t use protection, I only lasted 30 seconds. But that’s not true. No that’s a lie. It was totally more like 45,” the funnyman continues to croon, before breaking out some impressive dance moves.

While the audience found the sketch hilarious, Bieber may not be a fan of the situation in general.

In a lawsuit filed Monday, the 17-year-old singer is accused of having sex with Maria Yeater, 20, backstage at his L.A. concert in October 2010. Yeater claims Bieber fathered her child, a son named Tristyn Anthony Markhouse Yeater, who was born three months ago.

Yeater claims that when she discovered she was pregnant, she tried to speak with Bieber’s representatives, but was unsuccessful. She wants the singer to take a paternity test to “scientifically confirm” he’s the dad, according to documents.

A spokesman for Bieber vehemently denies the allegation.

“While we haven’t yet seen the lawsuit, it’s sad that someone would fabricate malicious, defamatory and demonstrably false claims,” he said in a statement. “We will vigorously pursue all available legal remedies to defend and protect Justin against these allegations.”

Following the shocking claim, Bieber took to Twitter to say he’s going to ‘focus on the positives.”

“Im going to ignore the rumors ... and focus on what is real,” he wrote Wednesday. “an opportunity to help by doing what i love. Judge me on the music! Love yall!”

BY Cristina Everett

iPhone 4S battery issue reminiscent of 'antennagate'

2011-11-01T22:36:00.000-07:00

commentary Apple's silence on a problem that appears to be affecting a number of iPhone 4S users is bringing back memories of last year's "antennagate," something that could give hope to those expecting a fix.
As noted last week, users have flocked to Apple's support site to complain about lower than advertised battery life on the new phone, which went on sale in mid-October.
On paper, the new phone beats out its predecessor by one hour of 3G talk time, yet falls 100 hours shorter when it comes to standby--the time a phone will continue to run when not being used for phone calls or other functions. But affected users say Apple's numbers are far too generous, with fully charged devices running out of juice during the course of a workday, even with minimal use.
Despite what's now a 170-page support forum thread (among several others like it 1, 2, 3), and a number of media stories on the matter, Apple has refrained from weighing in to users or to press.
Why is that? Look no further than what happened when users took aim at the iPhone 4's antenna design last year. Owners posted videos holding the phone tightly, showing that it would eventually lose some reception, something that was criticized as being a hardware flaw. Apple did not weigh in on the matter for three weeks, deciding instead to hold a press conference to address what had been dubbed "antennagate" with a sea of data to show that other phones had similar issues.
Is it too soon to classify Apple's lack of reaction this time around to what happened last year around the iPhone 4 antenna? Not necessarily.
First off, this is affecting some users with the iPhone 4 as well as those with Apple's newer iPhone 4S. In those cases it can be assumed that the culprit is iOS 5, a major software release Apple put out just ahead of the iPhone 4S hitting shelves that adds on a number of new features to the iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 hardware.
So does that mean the software is half-baked? The run up to its release would suggest otherwise. Apple spent a considerable amount of time in near-public testing before delivering it to users (seven beta versions for developers, in fact), all inside a four-month span. That said, it's not without some bugs.

Apple's A5 processor, the first dual-core processor to come in an iPhone.

(Credit: Apple)

Looking at the iPhone 4S specifically, it's easy to wonder if it's the hardware that's slurping the battery life away. New to the 4S is a dual-core processor, a first for an iPhone, though not a first for an Apple device, with the iPad 2 jumping to Apple's A5 processor earlier this year. A teardown by iFixit shortly after the iPhone 4S' release showed it to be the very same processor that's in the iPad 2, though running at a lower speed to save energy.
Does that really hold up as something to point a finger at though? During Apple's iPhone 4S unveiling, Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing, suggested otherwise, saying the company had not only matched the battery life of the previous model but beaten it in some cases. "You would think if you put a processor that powerful inside a super thin phone, one of the things you're going to trade off is battery life. But the hardware and software teams have worked really hard to get industry leading battery life as well," he said.
Then again, if a report in the The Guardian last week is to believed, Apple engineers have been contacting some unhappy iPhone 4S users who had weighed in on the growing support thread about the issue, all in order to collect relevant phone usage logs. In a follow-up over the weekend, the outlet then suggested that the problem had to do with turning off an automatic time zone setting that was pinging for location data non-stop. Yet users who read CNET's own coverage of that fix, and a number of users on Apple's forums said that didn't help.
What's next?
Looking back at what Apple did to handle both the iPhone 4 antenna issue in 2010, as well as the location collection log that researchers highlighted earlier this year, one thing becomes clear: if it's going to be addressed, there's going to be data crunching on Apple's end to either back it up or debunk it. As late Apple co-founder, then chief executive officer Steve Jobs said at the antenna press conference last year (emphasis mine):

"We heard about this not long after we started shipping just 22 days ago from today. It's not like Apple's had its head in the sand for 3 months on this guys, it's been 22 days. Apple is an engineering-driven company. We've got some of the finest scientists and engineers here in the world in the areas were need to create our products. And the way we work is we want to find out what the real problem is before we start to come up with solutions. So we've been working our butts off for the last 22 days to understand what the real issues are here, so that we can come up with real solutions."

That sentiment was echoed again in April this year, when all eyes turned on Apple to explain what it was doing with a collection of unencrypted location data that was being stored on iOS devices. In an interview with All Things D, Jobs said:

"We're an engineering-driven company. When people accuse us of things, the first thing we want to do is find out the truth. That took a certain amount of time to track all of these things down. And the accusations were coming day by day. By the time we had figured this all out, it took a few days. Then writing it up and trying to make it intelligible when this is a very high-tech topic took a few days. And here we are less than a week later."

In both cases Apple issued a software update to address the issue at hand shortly after acknowledging it publicly. Looking back on the release of the iPhone 4, it took Apple less than a month to release the first iOS software update for that device, which arrived as a patch of sorts to change the way the phone displayed carrier signal strength. For the location database it was two weeks for a fix that would remove the data store outright every time a user turned location services off.
So that brings us back to now. Will we get a similar software update for any battery issues? History would suggest that's the case if it affects a big enough group of users. In those two aforementioned cases it was everyone with an Apple device, which does not seem to be the case with this latest issue. Could there still be a problem though? A 170-page thread on the matter, and reports of Apple contacting users about it for more data suggests so. Just don't expect a press conference about it if there's a fix in store.

by Josh Lowensohn

Apple-iPhone 3GS - Tech Specs

2011-11-01T22:31:00.000-07:00

Size and Weight¹	Height: 4.5 inches (115.5 mm) Width: 2.4 inches (62.1 mm) Depth: 0.48 inch (12.3mm) Weight: 4.8 ounces (135 grams)
Color and Capacity²	Black 8GB flash drive
Cellular and Wireless	UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz) GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz) 802.11b/g Wi-Fi Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR wireless technology
Location	Assisted GPS Digital compass Wi-Fi Cellular
Display	3.5-inch (diagonal) widescreen Multi-Touch display 480-by-320-pixel resolution at 163 ppi Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating Support for display of multiple languages and characters simultaneously
Camera, Photos, and Video	Video recording, VGA up to 30 frames per second with audio 3-megapixel still camera Autofocus Tap to focus Photo and video geotagging
External Buttons and Connectors	External Buttons and Controls Connectors and Input/Output
Power and Battery³	Built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery Charging via USB to computer system or power adapter Talk time: Up to 5 hours on 3G, up to 12 hours on 2G Standby time: Up to 300 hours Internet use: Up to 5 hours on 3G, up to 9 hours on Wi-Fi Video playback: Up to 10 hours Audio playback: Up to 30 hours
Audio Playback	Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz Audio formats supported: AAC (8 to 320 Kbps), Protected AAC (from iTunes Store), HE-AAC, MP3 (8 to 320 Kbps), MP3 VBR, Audible (formats 2, 3, 4, Audible Enhanced Audio, AAX, and AAX+), Apple Lossless, AIFF, and WAV User-configurable maximum volume limit
TV and Video	Video out support at 576p and 480p with Apple Component AV Cable; 576i and 480i with Apple Composite AV Cable (cables sold separately) Video formats supported: H.264 video, up to 1.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Low-Complexity version of the H.264 Baseline Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; H.264 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Baseline Profile up to Level 3.0 with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps per channel, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats; MPEG-4 video, up to 2.5 Mbps, 640 by 480 pixels, 30 frames per second, Simple Profile with AAC-LC audio up to 160 Kbps, 48kHz, stereo audio in .m4v, .mp4, and .mov file formats
Headphones	Apple Earphones with Remote and Mic Frequency response: 20Hz to 20,000Hz Impedance: 32 ohms
Mail Attachment Support	Viewable Document Types .jpg, .tiff, .gif (images); .doc and .docx (Microsoft Word); .htm and .html (web pages); .key (Keynote); .numbers (Numbers); .pages (Pages); .pdf (Preview and Adobe Acrobat); .ppt and .pptx (Microsoft PowerPoint); .txt (text); .rtf (rich text format); .vcf (contact information); .xls and .xlsx (Microsoft Excel)
Sensors	Accelerometer Proximity sensor Ambient light sensor
System Requirements	Apple ID (required for some features) Internet access⁴ Syncing with iTunes on a Mac or PC requires: Mac: OS X v10.5.8 or later PC: Windows 7; Windows Vista; or Windows XP Home or Professional with Service Pack 3 or later iTunes 10.5 or later (free download from www.itunes.com/download)
Environmental Requirements	Operating temperature: 32° to 95° F (0° to 35° C) Nonoperating temperature: -4° to 113° F (-20° to 45° C) Relative humidity: 5% to 95% noncondensing Maximum operating altitude: 10,000 feet (3000 m)
Languages	Language Support English (U.S.), English (UK), Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Arabic, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Indonesian, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazil), Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese Keyboard Support: English (U.S.), English (UK), Chinese - Simplified (Handwriting, Pinyin, Wubihua), Chinese - Traditional (Handwriting, Pinyin, Zhuyin, Cangjie, Wubihua), French, French (Canadian), French (Switzerland), German (Germany), German (Switzerland), Italian, Japanese (Romaji, Kana), Korean, Spanish, Arabic, Bulgarian, Catalan, Cherokee, Croatian, Czech , Danish, Dutch, Emoji, Estonian, Finnish, Flemish, Greek, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazil), Romanian, Russian, Serbian (Cyrillic/Latin), Slovak, Swedish, Thai, Tibetan, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese Dictionary Support English (U.S.), English (UK), Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), French, French (Canadian), French (Switzerland), German, Italian, Japanese (Romaji, Kana), Korean, Spanish, Arabic, Catalan, Cherokee, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, Flemish, Greek, Hawaiian, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malay, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Portuguese (Brazil), Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Swedish, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese
In the Box	iPhone 3GS Apple Earphones with Remote and Mic Dock Connector to USB Cable USB Power Adapter Documentation

iPad Smart Cover - Leather - (PRODUCT) RED

2011-11-01T20:15:00.000-07:00

So much more than a case, the Smart Cover was designed alongside iPad 2 to be its perfect match: a thin, durable cover that magnetically aligns for a perfect fit. It automatically wakes and sleeps your iPad. It’s a handy stand for reading, watching, and typing. Its microfiber lining keeps your iPad screen clean. And it’s a way to make your iPad as personal on the outside as it is on the inside. PRODUCT (RED) cover available exclusively through the Apple Store. *

Overview

Thin, minimal design.

The slim, yet sturdy Smart Cover protects your iPad screen without covering up its durable aluminum back. So your iPad still looks and feels like an iPad — just with a little extra protection.

What's in the Box

iPad Smart Cover

Magnetic connection.

An aluminum hinge magnetically aligns the Smart Cover with iPad for a perfect fit. While magnets inside help it stay put.

Wake on open. Sleep on close.

Open the Smart Cover, and iPad magically wakes up. Close it, and iPad automatically goes to sleep.

Keyboard stand.

The Smart Cover does double duty as a keyboard stand. Fold it back to tilt iPad into a comfortable writing position.

FaceTime and movie stand.

The Smart Cover folds in just the right places to become the perfect FaceTime and movie-watching stand.

Polyurethane design.

The Smart Cover now comes in five more vibrant polyurethane colors with a soft, color-matched microfiber lining that keeps your display clean.

Leather design.

Choose from five beautiful, aniline-dyed Italian leather covers with a soft, color-matched microfiber lining that keeps your display clean — including a PRODUCT (RED) cover available exclusively through the Apple Store. *

*The leather Smart Cover is crafted from high-quality, naturally treated material that gets its color from a rich aniline dye. Some color may rub off during use.

A portion of the proceeds from every PRODUCT (RED) purchase will go to the Global Fund to fight AIDS in Africa.

iPhone 4S Photo Gallery

2011-11-01T20:09:00.000-07:00

View a collection of unretouched photographs taken using iPhone 4S. Click an image to see it larger.

Apple-iPhone 4S

2011-11-01T19:58:00.000-07:00

With 8 megapixels and all-new optics, this just might be the best camera ever on a mobile phone. It just might be the only camera you’ll ever need. And if you think that’s amazing, wait until you see your photos.

Mega megapixels.

The iPhone 4S camera gives you 8 megapixels — that’s 60 percent more pixels than the camera on iPhone 4. They’re engineered with a higher, full-well capacity to collect even more light. With more megapixels and more light, you’ll see a dramatic difference in the resolution and details of your images. So your photos look stunning everywhere you show them off — on your iPhone, your computer, or your HDTV. And they’re rendered pixel for pixel in prints as large as 8x10.

All-new optics make all
the difference.

Great photography isn’t just about megapixels — it’s about light, too. The all-new, advanced optics in this camera work together to make sure whatever light you have gives you the best image possible. The custom lens uses five precision elements to shape incoming light, which makes the entire image sharper. The larger f/2.4 aperture lets in more light, so photos look brighter and better. And the advanced hybrid infrared filter keeps out harmful IR light, so you’ll see more accurate and uniform colors.

Turn down the lights.
Or turn them way up.

Pull out your iPhone in moonlight, candlelight, or under little white lights. Or shoot in bright light. Like at the beach. iPhone captures low-light and lots-of-light moods beautifully. So darks aren’t too dark and lights aren’t too light. Even action shots are less blurry. The next-generation backside illumination sensor is engineered with increased sensitivity and a shorter exposure time to achieve the same scene brightness — colors are less saturated and you’ll see more details. And the LED flash automatically kicks in when it’s needed (but you can always turn it off).

A5 chip and iOS 5.
The power behind your photos.

The A5 chip is designed with an image signal processor that’s just as good as the ones found in DSLR cameras. It’s how you can tap to focus and control exposure. And it’s the power behind zero shutter lag. The image signal processor makes the iPhone 4S camera faster, so you’ll catch all the action as it happens. The camera also uses advanced algorithms in iOS 5 for even more color accuracy, better white balance, and greater dynamic range. When you see your photos, you’ll see exactly what that means.

This camera loves a face.

With new face detection, this camera is smart enough to know whether you’re taking a portrait or a group shot. It focuses on the most prominent face in the frame and balances exposure across up to 10 faces. So you’ll definitely catch smiles. And maybe even a smirk or two.

Capture the moment in
a split second.

Think about all those fun, fleeting moments you wish you’d caught on film. Now you can open the Camera app right from the Lock screen. So when things happen fast, you’ll capture them fast. Compose a quick shot with grid lines and pinch-to-zoom gestures. Focus with a tap. Then press the volume-up button to take a photo. And suddenly, everything is a photo op.

Edit photos right on iPhone.

It’s not just an amazing camera. It’s an on-the-fly editing studio. Crop, rotate, enhance, and remove red-eye right on iPhone — without the help of photo editing software on a computer. Then organize your shots into albums, so you know where your favorites are when you want to show them off.

HDR. The best everything.
All in one shot.

Tap HDR and take a photo. iPhone 4S captures three photos from that one shot, each with a different exposure level. Then it layers the shots together to create a single photo that combines the best parts of each shot. The wide range of light is more accurate in an HDR photo. And iPhone saves both the original and the HDR photo in your Camera Roll. You can clearly see the difference.

Photo Stream.
And other ways to share.

With Photo Stream in iCloud, new photos you take are automatically sent to all your devices, so you can show them off on your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, or PC.¹ Post them to the web the second you take them, and they’ll be the envy of your Flickr, Facebook, and Twitter world. Share them on your HDTV with AirPlay.² Or send your photos through iMessage or MMS. Or go old-school and send them in an email.

School-closings meeting

2011-11-01T19:02:00.000-07:00

The Columbus district laid out the impact of each school-closing option that would affect students in the Brookhaven High School neighborhood today, but officials didn’t pitch any new options.
A school-closings committee is considering three alternatives in the Brookhaven area:

closing Brookhaven and sending future students to Mifflin High;
closing Brookhaven and Medina Middle and sending elementary students into other middle and high schools;
or closing Medina, making Brookhaven a grades 7-12 school and converting nearby elementaries to K-6 buildings.

“All three of these have issues,” said Carole Olshavsky, who oversees district facilities.
Some buildings are too full to accept many more students from the Brookhaven area on the North Side. All three would affect hundreds of students.
An option on the South Side that would close Southmoor Middle, Moler and Heyl elementaries and convert South High to a 7-12 school still seems viable to district officials. Students at Moler and Heyl would be merged and housed in the Southmoor building.
That plan was the only South Side option presented after district officials advised against closing Fairwood or Siebert elementaries, which initially were targeted for closure.
District officials have not said how many schools they want to close or how much money they hope to save, but falling enrollment has spurred the effort to consolidate buildings.
The committee meets again on Monday. Community meetings are to begin in a couple of weeks.

In just a few weeks, a rainy fall could give way to a time of anxiousness for school administrators and parents alike.
It's the beginning of the winter season-and unscheduled school closings.
Belpre City Schools this year is trying out a new telephone service, which will automatically notify parents if classes in that district are cancelled.
"I would caution all families to watch the weather, in the event we make a decision to cancel or delay school," says Tony Dunn, Superintendent, Belpre City Schools. "Those chances are always out there in the wintertime. But 6:00 in the morning is generally the time when parents can expect a phone call to come, if not the night before."
Wood County Schools also tries to decide by six in the morning whether it will be in session. The latest time, says Transportation Director Richard Lance, is 6:30, which is the time buses begin to leave for their routes.
But Dunn says that back roads can be a problem in Belpre as well. An even bigger problem, he says, can be the need to send students home in the middle of the day. That's an occasion, he says, transportation employees rose to one day last winter.
"They explained to me that, last winter, we had a situation where it got snowy in the middle of the day," Dunn says, "and we actually used our Suburban to deliver some students home in our more rural areas. So, I think we're very well equipped to deliver our kids safely."
WTAP, as always, will run school cancellations at the bottom of the TV screen each morning we have them: during "Daybreak" and the "Today" show, and during other times of the day when necessary. That information will also be available on this web channel.
And throughout the winter, we ask that you NOT call us asking us whether your area school is closed.

Kim Kardashian Divorce Kris Was 'Chasing Fame'

2011-10-31T21:47:00.000-07:00

Kim Kardashian's friends are scoffing at Kris Humphries, claiming he's full of BS when he says he wanted to have a simple life with her in Minnesota, because once the marriage fell apart, he immediately began "chasing fame."

They're saying in the last week or so, when they started talking about the possibility of divorce, Kris went into full Hollywood gear, talking about "branding" the Kris Humphries name with cologne, nightclub appearances and what not.

And we're told Kris was pushing to keep their connection going, even if they ended their marriage ... and that threw up red flags.

We're told Kim was especially put off that Kris hired a Hollywood publicist over the weekend to work on his image.

As we previously reported, one of the main reasons for the divorce was that Kris wanted Kim to move to Minnesota, but once it became clear she wasn't leaving Hollywood and the marriage was over, Kris was all about the very things he despised.

Funny, they have more in common than we thought.

Follow @cadlymack on Twitter

E! has shared a relatively candid look at the Kardashian life since "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" premiered -- we have seen everything from Kim Kardashian's not-so-fairy-tale $10 million wedding to that time Kourtney severely burned Khloe's lady-parts with hot wax.

But will we see the fall-out from today's divorce-a-palooza? Kim confirmed that she's divorcing Kris Humphries, (who says he is devastated by the news and still totally committed to his wife)... and tonight, she'll be hopping on a plane to Australia. Without the E! cameras.

THR reports that "Kourtney and Kim Take New York," which just wrapped filming, includes a scene where Kim and Kris decide to "take a break." That break couldn't have been very long -- they spent her birthday together just over a week before the divorce papers were filed, and he was by her side at a taping of "Dancing With the Stars" on Oct. 24.

E! won't be filming Kim's time in Australia, and we have our doubts that they'll be shooting her while she's working in Atlanta on Tyler Perry's film, "The Marriage Counselor." They seem convinced that they'll still get plenty of footage, though.

"All of us at E! are surprised and saddened by this news," says an official statement. "And we send our support to Kim and Kris at this difficult time. The Kardashians have always been uniquely open with all aspects of their lives from joyous events to intimate moments to heartbreaking transitions. E! will continue to share the fascinating real lives and larger-than-life existence of this close-knit family."

Meanwhile, E! is holding "emergency meetings" to discuss, among other things, whether they'll air the planned repeats of the wedding special this week.

Follow Zap2it on Twitter and Zap2it on Facebook for the latest news and buzz

Carina Adly MacKenzie

Windows 8 Developer Preview downloads

2011-10-30T17:36:00.000-07:00

The Windows 8 Developer Preview is a pre-beta version of Windows 8 for developers. These downloads include prerelease software that may change without notice. The software is provided as is, and you bear the risk of using it. It may not be stable, operate correctly or work the way the final version of the software will. It should not be used in a production environment. The features and functionality in the prerelease software may not appear in the final version. Some product features and functionality may require advanced or additional hardware, or installation of other software.
Note: You can't uninstall the Windows 8 Developer Preview. To go back to your previous operating system, you must reinstall it from restore or installation media.

Windows 8 Developer Preview with developer tools English, 64-bit (x64)

DOWNLOAD (4.8 GB)
Sha 1 hash - 6FE9352FB59F6D0789AF35D1001BD4E4E81E42AF
All of the following come on a disk image file (.iso). See below for installation instructions.

64-bit Windows 8 Developer Preview
Windows SDK for Metro style apps
Microsoft Visual Studio 11 Express for Windows 8 Developer Preview
Microsoft Expression Blend 5 Developer Preview
28 Metro style apps including the BUILD Conference app

Windows 8 Developer Preview English, 64-bit (x64)

DOWNLOAD (3.6 GB)
Sha 1 hash – 79DBF235FD49F5C1C8F8C04E24BDE6E1D04DA1E9
Includes a disk image file (.iso) to install the Windows 8 Developer Preview and Metro style apps on a 64-bit PC.
Note: This download does not include developer tools. You must download the Windows 8 Developer Preview with developer tools 64-bit (x64) to build Metro style apps.

Windows 8 Developer Preview English, 32-bit (x86)

DOWNLOAD (2.8 GB)
Sha 1 hash - 4E0698BBABE01ED27582C9FC16AD21C4422913CC
Includes a disk image file (.iso) to install the Windows 8 Developer Preview and Metro style apps on a 32-bit PC.
Note: This download does not include developer tools. You must download the Windows 8 Developer Preview with developer tools 64-bit (x64) to build Metro style apps.

Live SDK

The Live SDK provides a set of controls and APIs that enable applications to integrate Single Sign On (SSO) with Windows Live ID and access information from SkyDrive, Hotmail and Windows Live Messenger. To learn more, sign up for our technical preview.

System Requirements

The Windows 8 Developer Preview works great on the same hardware that powers Windows Vista and Windows 7:

1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
Taking advantage of touch input requires a screen that supports multi-touch
To run Metro style Apps, you need a screen resolution of 1024 X 768 or greater

Notes about installing the Windows 8 Developer Preview

A clean install is supported on all builds, but you can upgrade if you are installing a download without the developer tools. You will receive the full set of migration options when setup is launched in Windows. To dual-boot, you must first boot from media and choose an alternative partition.

Install on:	Windows 8 Developer Preview with developer tools	Windows 8 Developer Preview without developer tools (32-bit or 64-bit)
Windows 7 and Windows Vista	Clean install only	You can keep accounts, files, and settings
Windows XP	Clean install only	You can only keep accounts and files

How to install the Windows 8 Developer Preview from an ISO image

The Windows 8 Developer Preview is delivered as an .iso image that must be converted into installation media stored on a DVD or a USB flash drive. On Windows 7, the easiest way to convert this file is to use Windows Disc Image Burner. On Windows XP and Windows Vista, a third-party program is required to convert an .iso file into installable media—and DVD burning software often includes this capability.
Note: The .iso file that contains the developer tools requires a large capacity DVD called a DVD-9, as well as a DVD burner that can handle dual-layer (DL) DVDs. Most modern burners should be able to handle this format.
Are you an MSDN Subscriber?
Go to the MSDN subscriber page to see additional developer preview downloads available.

Is that really appropriate?

2011-10-30T17:22:00.000-07:00

She's well-known for wearing odd outfits from time to time but last night Jaime Winstone took her love for outrageous fashion a step too far.
The actress arrived at Grey Goose Winter Ball, hosted by Elton John, and left little to the imagination.
Wearing a black sheer strapless dress with silver detail and high waist knickers, the 26-year-old obviously forget to put a bra on before leaving her house.

Leaving little to the imagination: Jaime Winstone arrived at the Grey Goose Winter Ball last night wearing a sheer dress

Certainly not shy: The actress looked confident as she posed for photos in the see-through dress

Despite the charity event being held in honour of the Elton John Aids Foundation, Jaime thought the night out was the perfect opportunity to show off her best assets.
The blonde star didn't look phased as she posed for photographers with her breasts clearly on show but she did decide to cover up her arms in a long-sleeved black cardigan.
Wearing dark purple lipstick and platform heels, the Kidulthood star finished off her look with a pair of long silver earrings.

All for charity: The event was held for Elton John's Aid Foundation and the singer's partner David Furnish was there to accompany him

Thankfully the other female guests of the night weren't so revealing in their attire but looked glamorous as they posed by giant bottles of Grey Goose vodka.
Billionaire heiress, Tamara Ecclestone, showed off her trim figure in a beige full-length dress that maximised her cleavage - but not in the same way as Jaime.

Looking chic: Heiress Tamara Ecclestone covered up in a glamorous floor-length dress at the charity event held at Battersea Evolution

Another actress who graced the event was Hollyoaks star, Rachel Shenton, who also wore floor-length number but looked stunning, even though she'd covered up.
The red frock showed off her curves perfectly and the brunette star wore her hair in a loose curl to the side as she carried a leopard print clutch bag.
Someone else dressed in red was British fod stylist and professional chef, Gizzi Erskine.

Front and back: Rachel Shenton looked stunning as she showed off her curvacious figure in a red dress

Radiant in red: Chef Gizzi Erskine also wore red but showed off her cleavage in the bright frock

The Cook Yourself Thin presenter wore her dark hair in an impressive beehive and also showed off her large cleavage.
Fellow Hollyoaks star, Bronagh Waugh, also opted for red and floor-length but added another colour in the form of grey and showed off a curvy figure in the stripey dress.

Soap girls: Hollyoaks star Bronagh Waugh (L) and Coronation Street actress Kate Ford (R) both attended the event which was held in honour of Elton John Aids Foundation

But it wasn't just the Hollyoaks girls who represented soap land on the night.
Coronation Street star, Kate Ford, showed her face and looked refreshingly casual in a knee-length patterned dress and finished off her look with a large black clutch bag and nude heels.
Someone else who brought effortless glamour to the event was Tali Lennox, daughter of singer Annie Lennox.
The young star wore a floral print maxi dress with minimal make-up but still managed to look great.

Playing it safe: Tali Lennox (L) looked effortlessly chic in a floral maxi dress whilst Zara Martin (R) opted for a black floor-length number

But the theme of floor-length dresses didn't end there as TV presenter, Zara Martin, played it safe in a black dress which she wore with black platform shoes and sparkly jewellery.
Continuing the the trend of black frocks was Dame Shirley Bassey - who wore a corset style dress with a faux fir shrug - and Ruby Wax who opted for a dark two-tone dress with a long-sleeved top worn underneath.

Old school glamour: Dame Shirley Bassey (L) wore a black corset style dress and U.S. comedian Ruby Wax (R) wore a dark two-tone frock

The men on the night also dressed up the occasion with the host himself wearing a smart suit with a glittering tie.
Posing with his partner, David Furnish - who also wore a suit with a bow tie - the singer looked pleased with the turn out as his annual event.

However, leading the men in the style stakes was designer, Giles Deacon, who wore not only a velvet bow tie, but also fashioned a multi-coloured cravat over a white shirt and wore a pair of light-coloured chinos with his trademark geeky glasses.

Mixing things up: British designer Giles Deacon (L) wore a bow tie and a cravat whilst comedian Graham Norton (R) chose to wear a chocolate brown suit

Another guest wearing a bow tie was comedian, Graham Norton, who opted for a chocolate brown suit and a smart white shirt.
The rest of the male celebrities also played it safe by wearing black suits, with Little Britain star, David Walliams, wearing a rather fancy tux.

Dressed to impress: Comedian David Walliams (L) and actor Benedict Cumberbatch (R) both wore black suits and shiny shoes at the event last night

Actor Benedict Cumberbatch opted for a tie instead but completed his look with a pair of unusual shiny shoes.
Former tennis player, Boris Becker, also wore a dark suit but also walked on a pair of crutches and fashioned a cast on his right foot.
His model wife, Lilly Kerssenberg, looked chic in a one-shoulder white dress with black flower detail and looked happy as she posed with her husband.

Hobbling along: Boris Becker wore a cast on right leg and walked on crutches as he posed with his wife Lilly Kerssenberg

By Kirsty Mccormack

Don't forget to turn your clock back: Pauline West won't... she has to do it 4,000 times

2011-10-30T17:16:00.000-07:00

If you had trouble remembering to turn back your clocks today, spare a thought for Pauline West.
The 60-year-old housewife has more than 4,000 crammed into her flat.
And while the rest of the country was making the most of an extra hour in bed, she was embarking on a three-day mission to reset them all.

The clock lady: Pauline West has more than 4,000 clocks, she said they make a 'hell of a racket' when they chime

The collection, believed to be the biggest in the world, covers every wall in the two-bedroom flat and is worth £15,000. It began 24 years ago.

More...

Pauline’s husband Roy, 67, has even had to put more than 60 clocks in the bathroom of their home in Eastleigh, Hampshire.
The only room to escape is her 22-year-old son Kevin’s bedroom. He has a single alarm clock.
Roy, who is retired, is so in tune with the collection he can hear if one clock is not ticking.

Perfect timing: Pauline West knows if any one of her 4,000 clocks is out of time

Don't forget one! Pauline West won't be enjoying the extra hour in bed but starting a three day chore of turning back all her clocks

Tea tock: Even Pauline West's tea pot is a clock which will need turning back

He said: ‘Kevin really does hate them. He curses the clocks if they happen to chime when he’s trying to watch television.’
The couple also spend up to an hour every evening tending to the wind-up clocks. They buy batteries in bulk every month for the modern ones.
The most valuable piece is a £1,000 150-year-old grandmother clock. It cost £20 from a car boot sale.
Pauline said: 'Everyone knows me locally as the clock woman and they have been coming up to me all week reminding me to put them back an hour.

Wall to wall: The collection, believed to be the biggest in the world, covers every wall in the two-bedroom flat is worth £15,000

'They do make one hell of a racket when they chime - it's like someone is dropping pennies into a tin can. The rest of the time it's fine - we're all used to the ticking.
Pauline added: ‘I have a wristwatch but I don’t bother wearing it.’
Roy, a retired delivery driver, has become a dab hand at taking the clocks apart and mending them despite receiving no extra training.

By Daily Mail Reporter

The National Champions Knight Raiders Recognized

2011-10-29T19:46:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the recognition tonight: https://picasaweb.google.com/SPICEChess/KnightRaidersRecognition

This was what the announcer said:

"The Texas Tech Knight Raiders Chess Teams are the reigning National Collegiate Chess Champions in three different divisions. In only the second year competing in Division I, the Knight Raiders stunned the chess world by winning the College Chess Final Four this past April in Washington, DC.

Now, for the first time in school history, they are also ranked as the number one team in the nation and they are looking forward to defend their titles this year.

The Knight Raiders Head Coach, 4-time World Champion and 5-time Olympic Champion, the first woman to lead a men's division I team to the National Championship, and the first woman to coach the number one ranked team in the nation, our very own Grandmaster Susan Polgar. Let's wish the team luck in their title defense.

Here are your National Champion Texas Tech Knight Raiders!"

1st World Chess Games for Disabled

2011-10-29T18:02:00.000-07:00

The 1st World Chess Games for Disabled
Friday, 28 October 2011 14:32

On the 25th of October the first World Chess Games for Disabled (WCGD) began with their official opening ceremony in Dresden, Germany.

With 35 players from 6 nations, some traveled from India and Spain, the WCGD gains international interest and experts call this world championship of all disabilities a forerunner that will influence the history of chess immensely.

Participating in this tournament is a well known chess player: GM Thomas Luther. He is already seen as one of the top players of this tournament and holds a very special position: Luther was appointed as the official "FIDE Adviser Chess for Disabled" at the last FIDE Congress.

5 Round Report

The participants have now played 5 rounds for the title "World Champion of Chess Games for Disabled" and they give each other very little. Draws are given little and the chess players all do their very best. No wonder, as some have taken a long journey and many hardships upon themselves to take part in this tournament. Players from India (Amarnath Inaganti) and Uzbekistan (Amrillo Abdullayev and Ziyoda Kuchkarova), and a large Russian delegation and many players from Europe, like Italy (Michele Visco, and Marco Grudina Ottavi Fini) and Spain (Andres Rey Taboada), gathered in Dresden.

Not always everything goes without problems. For example, when Thomas Rudolph a Dresdner and wheelchair users had to adjust to the unusual game against the blind Hans Jagdhuber. His opponent had a time problem because a helper had to announce all the moves Rudolph made yet the time was running down and this brought Jagdhuber in distress for the entire game. But the problem has been fixed for future games and up to now there have not been any greater conflicts. On first place is still the Grand Master Thomas Luther from Germany andcontinues to defend his rank against chess friends from the German Deaf Association, with Sergei Salov, and the Russian delegation, with Andrei Obodchuk, who are with him in the top group.

Now there are only 2 rounds until the end of the tournament and to the final decision. It continues to be an exciting tournament.

www.fide.com

Interview with Tigran L Petrosian and

2011-10-29T16:14:00.000-07:00

For the full Tigran L. Petrosian Interview along with an interactive board, please visit William's website.

Tigran L. Petrosian is a 27 year old Armenian grandmaster with a current FIDE ELO of 2649 making him the 98th highest rated player in the world. “His first name was deliberately chosen by his father to match the name of the former world champion Tigran V. Petrosian who was also of Armenian descent. It happened that, when the late Tigran won the world title, Tigran’s father dreamt that if he ever had a son he would call him Tigran.” His performance really started to take off in 2002 when he won the U18 Armenian championship and won 2nd place in the World U-20 championship in 2004. These days Petrosian is rapidly rising him making him a prime candidate to break the 2700 barrier.

Tigran L Petrosian vs. GM Pavel Smirnov – Moscow Aeroflot Open, 2006

The Interview - Excerpt

What is next in your chess career?

In the next 10-15 years I am planning to play in many tournaments, gain more ELO rating (make it more then 2700)

Who is your favorite player and why?

Right now I don’t have any favorite player, but from the World Champions I prefer games by Cabablanca, Kasparov, and Petrosian. And now I am supporting Aronian firstly because I am Armenian, and because I know him personally and also because of his brilliant games and unusual style in chess.

Follow William for fresh daily updates: Follow @OnlineChessLess

William Stewart is a National Master. He specializes in Online Chess Tutoring and maintains a daily updated Chess Blog

For the full Tigran L. Petrosian Interview along with an interactive board, please visit William's website.

Indonesia chess tactic

2011-10-29T16:08:00.000-07:00

White to move. How should white proceed?

Source: ChessToday.net

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All in one shot.

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And other ways to share.