Liberty Newsprint Nov-25-09 by Liberty Newspost

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The First Draft: Poll shows growing U.S. support for Afghan troop increase By David Morgan (Front Row Washington) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:54:48 AM

If President Barack Obama opts to increase the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan next week, the decision could be underscored by something a bit unusual for his policies: growing U.S. public support. Polling data have shown for a while now that most Americans don’t favor many of Obama’s policy positions, despite his enduring personal popularity. A USA Today/ Gallup poll depicts Obama battling headwinds on a number of fronts: Americans oppose the closing of Gitmo by more than a 2-to-1 margin; those against healthcare reform edge out those in favor by 5 percentage points; and most don’t want accused Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed tried in civilian court in New York City. Afghanistan is no cakewalk, either. Public opinion is divided

over the question of more troops and 55 percent of Americans disapprove of the president’s handling of the war up to now — a reversal of his 56 percent approval rating four months ago. But the polling data, compiled Nov. 20-22, might also suggest a silver lining for the president as

he nears an announcement that could send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan. Less than half of Americans — 47 percent — favor a troop increase. But that’s up from 42 percent in a Nov. 5-8 survey. Plus, the opposition is down: 39 percent of Americans now want the president to reduce the U.S.

military footprint, vs. 44 percent earlier. What hasn’t changed for Obama is that Republicans, not fellow Democrats, are his best buddies when it comes to increasing troops. Seventy-two percent of Republicans back a bigger U.S. force in Afghanistan, while 57 percent of Democrats say it’s time to start pulling out. That could be important for Obama’s agenda in Congress as the 2010 election approaches and Democratic incumbents in tight races consider how they might fare with Democratic voters. The USA Today/Gallup findings are based on telephone interviews with 1,017 adults. The margin of error is 4 percentage points. Photo credits: Reuters/Jason Reed (Obama and Defense Secretary Robert Gates); Reuters/Mathieu Belanger (U.S. soldier departs for Afghanistan); Reuters/Lucas Jackson (NYC crowd watches Obama)

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Console beeps and nerds play the Tetris theme By John Biggs (CrunchGear) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:15:57 AM

I’m a big fan of people who do fun stuff with computers and so I am a big fan of this. These guys programmed 20 computers to play one note over and over. The resulting cacophony turns out to be a beep-boop version of the Tetris theme. The project is simple, using the internal speaker of each computer in the class to play a different channel (instrument) of the tetris theme. All computers are linked with the upd protocol, so not all the computers are synchronised, but for now it will be good!

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CrunchDeals: $99 LG Bluray player By Matt Burns (CrunchGear) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:40:04 AM

Skip the Black Friday crowds and head over to Amazon for a sweet price on a LG Blu-ray player. But just like most other Black Friday deals, this model is stripped down and isn’t for everyone. Don’t get me wrong, $99 for a name-brand Blu-ray player sounds great, except it’s missing several key features. The player doesn’t have an Ethernet connection and so it’s only a Profile 1.1 player and cannot display any of the BD-Live content on newer titles. The player also doesn’t have compenent, optical or 7.1 analog but it wasn’t. It may have been 19 guns, or audio outputs so your A/V possibly 17, said the official, receiver must be able to decode s p e a k i n g o n c o n d i t i o n o f the digital audio from the HDMI stream or from digital coax. anonymity. But definitely not 21. Only But if you don’t care about any “real” state visitors get that. of that and are just planning on For more Reuters political news, running an HDMI cable from the player to the HDTV, this unit click here. Photo credit: Reuters/Larry seems just fine. Plus, it’s only Downing (Obama and Singh at $99 today. the White House)

Q: When is a “state visit” not a state visit? By Andrew Quinn (Front Row Washington) Submitted at 11/24/2009 1:33:06 PM

A: When the visitor is not head of state. The flags are out in Washington for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is on what is widely billed as the first official state visit of the Obama administration. That’s all fine for Singh, whose

Congress party swept to victory in May elections, giving him a second term as powerful prime minister of the world’s most populous democracy. The problem is, India has also a president — Pratibha Patil — who is the first woman to hold that largely ceremonial office and, technically, India’s head of state. So what’s with all the D.C. pageantry?

A senior U.S. official said the White House had decided to elevate the status of the visit out of recognition of Singh’s friendship and the importance of Indo-U.S. ties, and that everything was set up for full state honors — with one exception. Those listening to the artillery barrage that marked Singh’s official arrival may have mistaken it for a 21-gun salute,

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From Brazil to New York, one album at a time By Rahsheeda Ali (World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk)

chatshow. Another came when Oliviera was asked to be featured in a documentary called Beyond Ipanema. The film, which had its Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:04:23 AM European premiere earlier this Tropicalia in Furs, a lower month, serves as a crash course Manhattan record store, stands as in genres ranging from forro to a testament to Brazil's aural samba and includes interviews diaspora with artists who helped take A s a u t u m n b r i n g s b r i s k Brazilian music past the country's temperatures to New York City, a borders. lower Manhattan record store As the movie continues its offers a warm respite from the journey across the globe Oliviera c o o l w e a t h e r . A l b u m a r t hopes viewers are inspired to featuring Brazilian locales adorns explore a wider spectrum of the shop's burnt orange walls. Brazilian sounds. "It's like a huge The owner, a self-described black hole. It's infinite," he "natural entertainer", teaches stresses. "Every time I go back curious consumers about the home, I find something new. It breadth of his native country's may take a while to search but musical movements while simply there's always something new." enjoying their company. Decades He has faith that true music -old tunes are given new life as lovers will keeping on digging patrons experience the sounds of for the duration. "Music is like a South America's largest nation. drug. And if music is an Welcome to Tropicalia in Furs, a addiction, I'm the dealer," he says vinyl boutique created as a with a laugh. testament to Brazil's aural Capitalising on the buzz diaspora. surrounding his store, Oliviera The store's enthusiastic owner, plans to release a double-vinyl Joel dos Santos Oliviera, has compilation titled Brazilian parlayed his business venture Guitar Fuzz Bananas on the Los into a wave of exposure he's Angeles-based Stones Throw enjoyed since this past summer. record label. Since he deals One notable moment includes exclusively in vinyl Oliviera when actor and loyal customer found it natural to choose the Elijah Wood namedropped the format for what he feels will be a store on Alexa Chung's MTV groundbreaking work: "It's going

to be the most badass compilation out there!" Oliviera's recent emergence stands in contrast to the pace of his life a little more than 10 years ago. While in his 20s and living in São Paulo, he'd lost partial ownership in a discotheque. He was forced to sell many of his possessions to pay off debts and attempt to keep himself afloat. "I lost everything," he laments. He decided it was time to do something drastic: move to the United States. Following a brief period in Miami, Oliviera says a romantic interest led him to New York City. After purchasing a one-way plane ticket from the Florida city, he arrived in New York with less than $15. And after catching an airport shuttle into Manhattan, he'd depleted his meagre finances even more. "I couldn't even buy a hot dog," Oliviera remembers. After jobs at a restaurant and a coffee kiosk, Oliviera was offered a gig shining and repairing shoes at Goldman Sachs. He admits some initial reluctance: "Who [would've] thought that a guy who owned a disco in Brazil, who owned cars, who had a good life, would come to America to clean shoes?!" His tenacity soon trumped his scepticism and he accepted the

job. "My father always told me, 'When you do something, do it as you really love to do it.'" Though he began as a novice Oliviera quickly took to the position, incorporating his personal style and flair. He turned on his charm often engaged Goldman's employees in pleasant conversation during the brief encounters. "Five or 10 minutes with Joel, it was like a little experience," he says proudly. During his time at Goldman, Oliviera came up with the idea of opening a record store. He researched the values of finds in his growing collection, many he'd brought to the US after trips to Brazil. He rented a basement from a storeowner to use as his own retail space. Oliviera gradually stopped shining shoes and DJing, focusing solely on his business. After a few years, Oliveira lost his retail space once a new owner bought the property he'd been using. "I ended up in my tiny apartment with thousands of records, selling on the internet and hating it," he says. The lack of live interaction forced him to shut down his web-based business. "I need to be dealing with people. I need to act." He began scouting sites in

Ping Pong Terminator [Image Cache] By Mark Wilson (Gizmodo) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:35:59 AM

Vietnamese robot TOSY is a master of ping pong. He also has an ab regimen that effectively

hairline. [ Pink Tentacle] distracts from his receding

Manhattan's East Village neighbourhood to cultivate his vision. The process proved to be difficult: "No one wanted to rent to me at first because once they heard my accent over the phone, they wouldn't return my calls." After securing his location and borrowing $15,000 to cover costs, Oliviera forged ahead with his venture and decided not to look back. As he prepares for an even greater presence in the music scene, Oliviera remains optimistically grounded. He certainly believes that "everything is about to transform" but has no problem taking things in stride. He simply offers himself a tiny piece of wisdom: "Viva la vida, and viva las bananas, baby." • World music • New York • United States • New York • Brazil • United States Rahsheeda Ali guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds

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Titanic times five (World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:09:04 AM

World's largest cruise liner Oasis of the Seas – with central park, half-mile perimeter and 2,291 staff – set for first public voyage In pictures: Oasis of the Seas At dock in its vast custom-made port in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the Oasis of the Seas gives you little clue that you are looking at an ocean-going vessel. The dozen above-deck storeys of the world's largest cruise liner, with their identical rows of curved glass balconies, make it all but indistinguishable from the highrise condos and office blocks that line the coast road south from Miami. On board, the illusion is heightened. This is a ship designed to appear anything but. It has at its heart a central park bigger than a football pitch and recently planted with 12,000 trees and shrubs. Contained on all sides by the steep stacks of cabins, the park is crossed by stone-paved paths and walkways leading to cafes and bars. Sitting outside any of them, it is hard to feel anything other than landlocked. The ship is sold as an urban experience, a city on the ocean, and on a preview voyage out towards the Caribbean that is what most people seemed to enjoy: getting a cappuccino in one of the ship's seven distinct

"neighbourhoods" and indulging in some serious consumption. How big is big? Five times the tonnage of the Titanic, the Oasis is longer than any aircraft carrier in the US fleet. It is half as big again as the O2 centre. Stand it on its end and it would look down on Canary Wharf's towers. There is no accessible place on the ship from which you can view both its bow and stern, so once you are aboard you have to find your own ways to understand its scale. You can jog its perimeter, each lap almost half a mile. You can harness yourself into a zipwire and fly nine storeys above the main deck. Or you can attempt the world's most meandering offshore pub crawl: 37 bars and restaurants spread over 16 levels, including an English theme pub, in which smoking is allowed. The Oasis, which is owned by Royal Caribbean International, makes its maiden public voyage next week. It will carry 5,400 passengers, served by 2,291 staff: 40% bigger than any other "megaliner" in the expanding cruise market. Because of its size, there are very few ports at which it can dock; the shipping line has confronted this difficulty by creating its own "resort destination" in Haiti, a purposebuilt docking station called Labadee; and the Jamaican government has invested heavily in upgrading the harbour at Falmouth, in Cornwall, to allow it to discharge passengers there.

Excluding these efforts, at a cost of £800m the Oasis is the most expensive commercial vessel ever constructed. It was built in Finland, and sailed into Florida last month. In order to leave the Baltic, its stumpy funnel had to be retracted and the ship was required to travel extremely slowly, so that it sat low in the water. Even so, it only just scraped underneath the Great Belt Fixed Link bridge, 65 metres (213ft) over the water, by about 50cm. Crossing the Atlantic, the ship's stability was tested in a near hurricane-force storm. Given its towering superstructure, the Oasis had to be of an unprecedented width to prevent it being top heavy – the park at its centre is there to help with balance, as much as anything. It is by no means a sleek craft. It is also sailing very much against the economic current. Royal Caribbean has been the prime mover in the ongoing arms race of liner size, mostly played out in the docks of Miami, where the US cruise industry is based. This decade, the company has three times created the world's largest passenger ship. Up to now, this biggest-is-best philosophy has always worked. The Oasis was planned well before the global economic downturn, however. And that downturn has hit Florida particularly hard. The ship is not yet fully booked for next year's voyages, although 40% of the 1

million-plus British cruisegoers in 2010 will be on this ship. After the Titanic, no one is going to claim that the biggest liner in the world is unsinkable. But its owners are no doubt trusting that the Oasis of the Seas is too big to fail. Ship stats The Oasis of the Seas can carry 6,292 passengers plus 2,165 crew. Its 16 passenger decks contain four pools and 10 whirlpools, a rock-climbing wall, a basketball court, a miniature golf course, an ice skating rink, a shopping promenade, a fairground carousel, a central park with 12,000 live plants and trees, and a 1,380-seat theatre. It has 37 bars and restaurants, 4,100 toilets, 42 lifts and 4,500 air conditioning units. Seven-night cruises start at $1,049 (£628) per person for an inside cabin and go to $16,659 per person for the two-storey Royal Loft suite, which includes a baby grand piano and private 843 sq ft balcony. • In the Observer this Sunday: Tim Adams's verdict on the world's biggest passenger ship • Cruises • Florida • United States • Travel & leisure guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds

Nokia N900 now shipping in the land of Ford freedom trucks By Thomas Ricker (Engadget) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:50:00 AM

Love to tinker and tweak your smartphone? Find running beta apps a challenge, not a burden? Then you'll be happy to hear that Nokia's N900 running Maemo 5 is now shipping in the US, a week later than the press release suggested. This Cortex-A8 phone with 32GB of on-board storage is ripe with potential and the perfect holiday gift for grandma as long as she's comfortable dropping into the X Terminal for the occasional "rm -R /home/user/.microfeed" command. It's still listed for $649 unlocked from Nokia direct though that price will be dropping soon enough. [Thanks, Alex] Nokia N900 now shipping in the land of Ford freedom trucks originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 07:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Nokia USA| Email this| Comments

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Inside the Michelle Obama image fight: why Google won't tweak results By Charles Arthur (World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:13:00 AM

Google is determined not to be seen to make choices, even over results such as the Michelle Obama 'monkey' image Google made its name in search through a simple principle: if lots of other sites point to a particular site that matches a search term, that's probably the most highly thought-of site for that topic. It's rather like asking everyone who's the most knowledgeable about something: they might not all agree, but you'll find a consensus. Before Google, search relied more on who could shout the loudest about themselves – which brought increasingly useless results, just as it would with people. But the internet being what it is, a place where pretty much anyone can put anything up, sometimes the site that everyone's pointing at isn't tasteful, or polite, or even legal in

some parts of the world. That's the risk one takes with free speech: it includes the freedom to offend. But equally, other people can find that "offensive" content amusing or educational or a bolster to their beliefs: is a satirical page about Sarah Palin offensive to women, Republicans, or just the terminally humourless? Knowing that's how Google's algorithm works, people have cooked up "Googlebombs" to attach particular meanings to people: from 2005 to 2007 a search with the words "miserable failure" directed you to the White House home page, where George Bush was in power. Google subsequently "defused" those bombs by tweaking its algorithm to make such attempts fail. At the time, Matt Cutts, Google's anti-spam chief, noted that "people assumed that [the results] are Google's opinion, or that Google has hand-coded the results of these Googlebombed queries. That's not true." And now an ugly image of

Michelle Obama has hit the topic of the image search, in part because so many people were linking to it – either in horror or delight – which created a sort of short-lived Googlebomb, and prompted an explanation(not, please note, an apology) from Google, repeating Cutts from 2007: "Sometimes Google search results from the Internet can include disturbing content, even from innocuous queries. We assure you that the views expressed by such sites are not in any way endorsed by Google." But why not just remove the page from its index? Because Google doesn't want to be seen to be making choices; that would put it into the middle of every battle fought by every special interest group everywhere. Hence, "We do not remove a page from our search results simply because its content is unpopular or because we receive complaints concerning it." The company has already tackled the issue once before, over the search results for the word "Jew", which

found all sorts of racist sites. Only legal action – by the authorities (because the US first amendment allows Google to republish "legal" speech, making it proof against civil action) – can get a page taken out of the index. But for the rest, all Google can offer is: "We apologise if you've had an upsetting experience using Google. We hope you understand our position regarding offensive results." In other words, don't blame us - blame the world out there. • Google • Search engines • Advertising • Digital media • Michelle Obama • US politics Charles Arthur guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds

The Xbox 360 Elegant Edition By Matt Burns (CrunchGear) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:00:44 AM

Does your Xbox 360 look out of place on your equipment rack? Does it just look too juvenile with the concaved case? Are you a boring old fart that still want the the Xbox 360 but need it to look more like a VCR than a gaming system? If so, the Xbox 360 Elegant Edition is for you. The aluminum case not only refaces the 360, but also throws in extra cooling by way of three 120mm fans to help prevent the RROD. Now if I could only figure out how much it costs and how I can order one. [ Industrirepro via technabob]

Sad-Eyed TiVo of the Low Subscriber Rate By John Biggs (CrunchGear)

giving it 8% of the 38 million US DVR market. That’s not much. TVByTheNumbers has the And… it’s… outta here. TiVo is numbers. They’re down 314,000 down to less than three million subscribers to 2.76 million and subscribers and they sold about lost 146,000 last quarter. Rough 500 DVRs a day last quarter, stuff. Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:30:05 AM

to a resounding plop I knew the end was near. We just cancelled our account after years of accepting sub-par video playback – we stuck with the SD TiVo and Listen: I loved TiVo for years, never upgraded – and it can only but after the TiVo HD rolled out get worse.

Godspeed, happy dancing TiVo mascot. We loved you, once.

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Michelle Obama 'racist' picture that is topping Google Images removed By Mark Sweney (World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:53:36 AM

Hot Girls website apologises over 'monkey' picture that had been appearing at the top of Google Images searches A blog hosting an offensive image of Michelle Obama with monkey features has removed it and posted an apology. The image, which has been appearing at the top of search results when the words "Michelle Obama" are put into Google Images, was posted on a blog called Hot Girls, which is hosted by the Google-owned blog service, Blogger. Hot Girls' owner has today removed the image, which appears to have originally been put up with a blog post on 21 October, and displayed an apology in Chinese with a very loose English translation. Google had refused to remove the offensive image from its picture search listings, despite

complaints that it is racist, instead opting to run an ad next to it explaining its policy on how search engine results work. A spokesman for Google said that the Hot Girls blog and image may still temporarily appear when some users make Google Images searches but that it was coming out of the search engine's indexing system. Earlier today Google's ad explaining why it kept the image in search listings was being sporadically replaced by other ads. A spokesman for Google UK said the company was looking into why that was happening for some users and that it was not a "deliberate" action to remove the explanation. "We would generally keep it [the explanation] up for as long as the blog [hosting the content] was up," he added. Google warned, however, that the image of the US first lady could easily reappear in its listings if another blog posted it. It is not the first time that

Google has taken out explanation ads against search queries. In 2004 when searches for the word "Jew" returned antisemitic website results Google responded with a similar approach. • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. • If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication". • Google • Michelle Obama • Digital media • United States • Race & religion • Search engines Mark Sweney guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: VPRT, EV, HPT, NRG, GTE, BNHNA, VAR, ITRI and FARO By Laurie Pasternack (BloggingStocks)

on the stock. • The Advisory Board ( ABCO) was upgraded to overweight from Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:00:00 AM equal weight at First Analysis. Filed under: Analyst reports, • Technip ( TKPPY) was A n a l y s t u p g r a d e s a n d upgraded to outperform from downgrades, Analyst initiations, neutral at Credit Suisse. EMC Corp (EMC), Barclays plc • Jefferies upgraded Energy XXI ADS (BCS) ( EXXI) to hold from Analyst upgrades: underperform and raised its target to $2 from $1. • Citigroup upgraded Vistaprint ( VPRT) to buy from hold on Continue reading Analyst valuation following the recent u p g r a d e s , d o w n g r a d e s a n d pullback in shares. The firm also initiations: VPRT, EV, HPT, raised its price target on the stock NRG, GTE, BNHNA, VAR, to $62 from $55. ITRI and FARO • Fox-Pitt upgraded Eaton Vance Analyst upgrades, downgrades ( EV) to outperform from in line and initiations: VPRT, EV, HPT, citing strong fundamentals. The NRG, GTE, BNHNA, VAR, firm raised its target to $36 from ITRI and FARO originally $34. appeared on BloggingStocks on • Stifel Nicolaus upgraded Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:00:00 Hospitality Properties ( HPT) to EST. Please see our terms for buy from hold citing valuation use of feeds. Permalink| Email and expected cash dividend in this| Comments 2010. The firm has a $22 target

Alien Fembot Killer Found, Invasion Imminent [Robots] By Jesus Diaz (Gizmodo) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:09:00 AM

OK, to hell with everything. I'm not going to stick around

watching how the world is liverwursted by a race of chromed alien fembots. I'm fcking off to an island near Brazil. Enjoy Armageddon! I'll

be sipping cocktails.

According to manufacturer NT Obamaraman watching over all Research, their RAMeX bots are these potential killers? [ NT j u s t h u m a n o i d s w i t h t e l e - Research via PInk Tentacle] operated arms and hands. Whatever, dudes. Wasn't the

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South Africa's marauding baboons add to World Cup worries By David Smith (World news and comment from the Guardian | guardian.co.uk)

baboons raided four cars outside Simon's Town, a small coastal neighbourhood. A baboon dubbed Fred, the Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:10:41 AM leader of the group, opened Thousands of 2010 fans could unlocked doors and jumped o f f e r r i c h p i c k i n g s f o r through windows to search for increasingly aggressive monkeys food. He went through a bag in in search of snacks the back seat of a red car as a Violent crime. Transport chaos. couple panicked about their Over-priced hotels. Visitor passports. anxieties about next year's World A girl screamed nearby as a Cup in South Africa. These could baboon hopped into her car be as nothing compared with a through a back window. Other n e w m e n a c e : m a r a u d i n g baboons climbed on car roofs and baboons. hoods, looking for ways in. The light-fingered primates have Many people who stopped to learned how to open car doors watch the raid had their own cars and jump through windows in broken into by other baboons. pursuit of sandwiches and " W e s p e n d t h e w h o l e d a y snacks. And experts warn that the basically rescuing tourists," said hundreds of thousands of fans Mark Duffels, a volunteer who expected for the 2010 football monitors the baboons in an effort extravaganza in South Africa will to keep them at bay. represent rich pickings. About 420 baboons in 17 Officials in Cape Town, the troupes roam the city's outskirts, country's top tourist destination, especially the popular scenic sites a r e t r y i n g t o c o n t r o l t h e along the coast. Baboons are a increasingly aggressive animals. protected species under South On Tuesday, a troupe of 29 African legislation but their

persistent pursuit of food has led to conflict with residents. The baboons associate humans and cars with food, although people are strongly discouraged from feeding the animals. Justin O'Riain, head of the baboon research unit at Cape Town University, fears the influx of visitors next year will feed the primates' taste for human food yet more. "Tourism is going to go through the roof, and this equals exposure to naive people and rich pickings," he said. "People who stop the car – they're going to get raided." • World Cup 2010 • South Africa • Animal behaviour • Animals • Cape Town • South Africa David Smith guardian.co.uk© Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions| More Feeds

Options Update: Philips Electronics volatility low ahead of annual meeting By Paul Foster (BloggingStocks)

diagnostic imaging products at The Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2009 Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:00:00 AM Annual Meeting on November Filed under: Options 29. December option implied Philips Electronics ( PHG) volatility of 37 is below a level of closed at $27.59, close to a 13- 70 from a year ago and below its month high. Philips will be 2 6 - w e e k a v e r a g e o f 4 0 , displaying its diagnostic imaging a c c o r d i n g t o T r a c k D a t a , products at The Radiological suggesting decreasing price S o c i e t y o f N o r t h A m e r i c a movement. (RSNA) 2009 Annual Meeting Option Update is provided by on November 29. December Stock Specialist Paul Foster of option implied volatility is at 37, theflyonthewall.com. below a level of 73 from a year Options Update: Philips ago and below its 26-week Electronics volatility low ahead average of 46, according to Track of annual meeting originally Data, suggesting decreasing price appeared on BloggingStocks on movement. Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:00:00 SPDR Gold Trust ( GLD) EST. Please see our terms for overall implied volatility at 24; use of feeds. Permalink| Email 26-week average is 24. this| Comments Siemens ( SI) closed at $98.59. Siemens will be displaying its

The Grass Is Greener On the Other Side, China Edition [Infographics] By Mark Wilson (Gizmodo) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:00:00 AM

Newsweek has a series of eight

polls exploring how China looks at the US, the US at China, and the two of us at the world. We have confidence...just not

Newsweek via Fast Company] necessarily in ourselves. [

Start-up Asana promises workplace nirvana By Rafe Needleman (Webware.com) Submitted at 11/24/2009 2:29:00 PM

Heavy on vision but light on the details, new workplace apps company emerges from Facebook tech talents.

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New Facebook share structure hints at IPO By Tom Johansmeyer (BloggingStocks)

Cramer on BloggingStocks: This bullish retail story looks like a good fit By Jim Cramer (BloggingStocks)

Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:30:00 AM

Filed under: Google (GOOG), New York Times'A' (NYT), News Corp'B' (NWS), Initial public offerings Facebook is implementing a new stock structure to make sure the founders retain control, immediately causing rumors about an impending initial public offering. Why would Facebook need Class A and Class B shares otherwise? Under the new structure, which is similar to Google's ( GOOG), Mark Zuckerberg and other early entrants wouldn't have to worry about yielding the floor to outsiders when if the company goes public. The stock structure was adopted to ensure that existing shareholders keep control on voting issues, according to Facebook statement. No details were given as to who the winners are in this arrangement, but a Wall Street Journal report says that, according to its sources, all

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Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:30:00 AM

Filed under: Wal-Mart (WMT), Market matters, Sears Holdings (SHLD), Kohl's Corp (KSS), Stocks to Buy, Cramer on BloggingStocks From TheStreet.com Network • Wal-Mart's Mastery: Analyst's Toolkit • Cramer Responds to Critics on Financial Transaction Tax current shareholders would be converted to Class B shares, which carry 10 times the voting rights of Class A shares. Continue reading New Facebook share structure hints at IPO New Facebook share structure hints at IPO originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

CrunchGear/HourTime secret contest: Win a Swatch Right Track By John Biggs (CrunchGear)

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says you can't ignore the positive outlook of Phillips-Van Heusen's CEO. Can you be as bearish about retail if the company that has almost half the dress shirt business in the country, the one that has more than half the neckwear in this country, the one that has more than 600 stores and is in Kohl's ( KSS) ( Cramer's Take), Wal-Mart ( WMT) ( Cramer's Take), Sears ( SHLD) ( Cramer's Take) and just about

Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:58:36 AM

everyone else, tells you that things are booming? Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: This bullish retail story looks like a good fit Cramer on BloggingStocks: This bullish retail story looks like a good fit originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Comments

Facebook changes stock structure: IPO on the way? By Caroline McCarthy (Webware.com) Submitted at 11/24/2009 2:59:00 PM

The social network has converted all existing shareholders' stock to the more powerful Class B; it'll go back to

Class A if they sell it during an IPO. But the company says it still doesn't have IPO plans set. Originally posted at The Social

I wanted to offer HourTime listeners a bit of a head start but there’s a secret contest going on inside my latest podcast with Ariel Adams. Feel free to fast forward to about 20 minutes in to figure out what’s going on but rest assured you can win the Right Track from Swatch, Swatch’s latest automatic chrono running a beautiful Lemaniainspired automatic chrono movement. This beast has a leather strap and a cool plastic case. I’m really excited about this move – it’s the first Swatch automatic I’ve seen since about 2000 – and it’s a great watch. Get crackin’! Remember, comments should go on the HourTime site. I’ll pick a winner on Monday.

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J. Crew reports an excellent Top growth fund quarter: Is the stock a buy manager sours on before the holidays? Apple, U.S. tech By Steven Mallas (BloggingStocks)

By Tom Johansmeyer (BloggingStocks) Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:30:00 AM

Filed under: Google (GOOG), Apple Inc (AAPL), China One of the top performers in the U.S. growth fund sector has lost bottom line beat the analysts by his appetite for tech. Jerry Jordan several pennies. And you've got has booted almost all his Apple ( to love the increase seen in the A A P L ) h o l d i n g s f r o m h i s portfolio, and he's done the same gross margin. Continue reading J. Crew reports with Google ( GOOG). Both, an excellent quarter: Is the stock Jordan says, have become too expensive. In fact, he's getting a buy before the holidays? J. Crew reports an excellent out of almost all U.S. and quarter: Is the stock a buy before European tech companies for that the holidays? originally appeared reason -- and is turning his on BloggingStocks on Wed, 25 attention to China. Jordan tells Reuters, "The Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please growth [in China] is much faster, see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| it's much more of a green field opportunity." Comments Continue reading Top growth

ABA Journal's Patent Application To Score Interview With USPTO Boss David Kappos By Mike Masnick (Techdirt) Submitted at 11/25/2009 3:55:18 AM

ChurchHatesTucker writes"The ABA Journal was unable to secure an interview with the USPTO chief, so they published a faux business method patent for securing an interview. Within four hours, they got their interview." Yes, but the real question is whether or not the USPTO would approve the patent... Permalink| Comments| Email This Story

Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:00:00 AM

Filed under: Earnings reports, Penney (J.C.) (JCP), Gap Inc (GPS), Abercrombie and Fitch (ANF) Here's a stock I've been wrong about. I've been bearish on J. Crew Group ( JCG), as this previous article will indicate. But since the latest quarterly results show a vast improvement of the retailer's fundamentals, I guess you could say I was decidedly behind the curve. According to the earnings release, revenues increased 14% in the third quarter. Same-store sales advanced 8%. Net income more than doubled to 67 cents per diluted share. A lot of this good news was expected, as Trey Thoelcke pointed out in his earnings preview. Still, the

fund manager sours on Apple, U.S. tech Top growth fund manager sours on Apple, U.S. tech originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

Mobile “Human Assist Guidance Robot” By Serkan Toto (CrunchGear) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:20:46 AM

Tokyo-based (and globalized) bearing supplier NSK has announced[JP] the development of an autonomous mobile robot that one day will be able to assist people in wheel chairs. The main

selling point of the so-called “Human Assist Guidance Robot” is that it can detect obstacles and guide users through them. And uneven surfaces or slopes aren’t a problem either. The robot uses lasers and virtual repulsive forces to calculate distances to obstacles and their

location. It’s able to guide people smoothly through minimizing

those repulsive forces. The way the robot works is that users apply force to a handle inside its body to control the speed and direction of travel. The harder you push, the faster the robot goes. An independent twowheel drive and a caster mechanism (pictured above)

make sure the robot drives smoothly, even on corrugated surfaces. Via Tech-On

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Pixel Qi Dual-Mode LCD Ships Next Lenovo's ThinkPad doyen Arimasa Naitoh speaks about Month; $100, 10-Watt HDTV Up life, liberty and the T400s Next [Displays] By Vladislav Savov (Engadget)

By John Herrman (Gizmodo) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:46:57 AM

Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:18:00 AM

http://www.pixelqi.com/products One is a rough manufacturing start date for a display component, and the other is an announcement so vague it barely means anything. But lest you forget: Pixel Qi's multi-mode, eink-shaming LCD technology is amazing. Pixel Qi's last announced manufacturing dateâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;residue of which still graces their websiteâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;was "the second half of 2009." In big, bold type, they've updated the claim: "We are starting mass production of this screen in December 2009," is proudly emblazoned on Pixel Qi's worryingly retro website, while "We totally totally promise this time," a comforting, if slightly desperate adjunct, is not. But this is: We have begun design of a sub10 watt HDTV that can be used in hundreds of millions of households that don't have steady, if any, access to electrical power. The typical HDTV uses more than 100 Watts and often

First thing's first: the video beyond the break is certainly not up to our usually stellar standards. That said, the voice recording is clear enough, so you may consider it an audio presentation with the bonus of a shadowy figure making occasional hand gestures in time with what's being said (lighting also improves as you go along). Arimasa Naitoh is the man behind the ThinkPad line, having joined the product engineering team at IBM during the 1970s and shifting with the ThinkPad brand on to Lenovo in 2005. Currently the VP for Notebook Development and the head of the Yamato Development Labs, Naitoh-san was kind enough to do a presentation in London yesterday, in which he touched on the history of the fabled laptop line and was also not shy about trumpeting the key

draws several hundred watts. We are working on a way to massively lower the power consumption, and significantly lower the price with a target price of $100. Thus this HDTV can run off of battery that can be charged up when the power is on, or charged with a small solar panel, crank, or so forth. I'm sure there are about a million different applications for a lowpower screen tech that displays full-motion color, static e-ink and

works in the sunlight, but don't get ahead of yourselves: we haven't seen a single nonprototype device yet. Throw us a bone, guys! And by bone, I mean the name of any hardware partner who's willing to make a product with this screen tech once it starts shipping. [ Pixel Qi via Blogeee via Slashgear]

Google Reader adds optional favicon support By Josh Lowensohn (Webware.com)

Google's feed reader gets support for site favicons, which let users see a site's visual

browser identity right from the publication's source list. Originally posted at Web

Crawler

advantages of the latest T400s flagship model. So click past the break, turn your speakers up, and get educated by one of the true founding fathers of mobile computing as we know it today. Continue reading Lenovo's ThinkPad doyen Arimasa Naitoh speaks about life, liberty and the T400s Lenovo's ThinkPad doyen Arimasa Naitoh speaks about life, liberty and the T400s originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| | Email this| Comments

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Dragon Skin body armor gains piezoelectric sensors, keeps bullet-stopping abilities By Vladislav Savov (Engadget)

to a wider area. What's interesting about the new design is the two piezoelectric sensors Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:42:00 AM attached to each end -- one of This Dragon Skin armor has them transfers a low voltage of been knocking about since 2007, power through the armor in the but now that piezoelectrics and form of vibration, which the intelligence have been thrown other picks up, and the reported into the mix we couldn't stop energy loss is interpreted as ourselves from taking a peek at armor degradation. Gnarlier still it. The armor's strength is derived is the ability of these sensors to from a reptilian arrangement of generate electricity from bullet overlapping ceramic and titanium i m p a c t s , w h i c h c a n t h e n composite discs, which themselves give you an simultaneously block incoming indication of what sort of bullet rounds and dissipate the impact hit you. Capable of being applied

to soldiers and vehicles alike, this could make the real act of soldiering a whole lot more like a video game (minus the whole "infinite respawn" thing), with

HUDs showing you how much "shield" you have left. You can see an old(ish) video of the original armor after the break. Continue reading Dragon Skin

body armor gains piezoelectric sensors, keeps bullet-stopping abilities Dragon Skin body armor gains piezoelectric sensors, keeps bullet-stopping abilities originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink Digg| Discovery News| Email this| Comments

iBuyPower lets out five liquid-cooled gaming desktops By Darren Murph (Engadget) Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:14:00 AM

It's never too early to start thinking about that desktop that you really, really need under the tree by the third week in December, and rather than waiting until the last moment and getting stuck with some random configuration and a lofty overnight shipping fee, iBuyPower is encouraging you to have a gander at the five new liquid-cooled rigs that it just

unveiled at NewEgg. The lowend is propped up by the Gamer Extreme 922 SLC at just $989, while the specced-out Gamer Supreme 979SLC will set Santa back just under four large. At the

top, you'll find luxuries such as Intel's Core i7 975, a Blu-ray drive, 128GB SSD and 1.5TB of HDD space, while lower-end systems snag the likes of a Core i7 860, 4GB of RAM and a

Offline Gmail no longer shuns attachments By Stephen Shankland (Webware.com) Submitted at 11/24/2009 1:43:00 PM

No, Google hasn't forgotten about improving offline use of its Web apps. Gmail now can handle attachments when a computer is

off the network. Originally posted at Deep Tech

500GB HDD. Peek the via link below for a more robust look at the specifications, and feel free to get your order in now if you like resting easy. Gallery: iBuyPower lets out five

liquid-cooled gaming desktops Continue reading iBuyPower lets out five liquid-cooled gaming desktops iBuyPower lets out five liquidcooled gaming desktops originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink Hot Hardware| | Email this| Comments

Gasoline Fumes May Fuel Road Rage By Chuck Squatriglia (Wired Top Stories) Submitted at 11/24/2009 2:00:00 PM

It might not be the price of gasoline that's making you angry.

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Palm and Sprint issue statement acknowledging Profile backup issue By Darren Murph (Engadget) Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:18:00 AM

Pomera: Digital notebook with foldable keyboard (video) By Serkan Toto (CrunchGear)

(monochrome, 640×480 resolution), a 89MB of internal memory, a microSD and SDHC Japanese stationery maker King slot (SD: 2GB max., SDHC: Jim announced the Pomera 16GB max.), a USB port and DM20[JP] today, an ultra- ( J a p a n e s e ) c e l l p h o n e compact handheld device that’s c o n n e c t i v i t y . I t s f o l d a b l e based on a “less is more” Japanese QWERTY keyboard in concept. The so-called digital the 145 x 100 x 33mm body is notebook, which is unfortunately the main selling point. Japan-only at this point, is only King Jim will start selling the made for one purpose: It lets you Pomera DM20 in Japan on make notes. No email, no web December 11 for $380. You access, no gaming, nothing but could ask the usual suspects The writing texts or quickly jotting Japan Trend Shop or Geek Stuff down your shopping list. 4 U to get one shipped outside And apparently, the general this country but King Jim states concept did attract enough users, the device is only compatible as the DM20 is a major upgrade with Japanese Windows (it won’t of the DM10 King Jim started work with Macs at all). selling last year. The new model Watch this video to see how the has a 5-inch TFT VGA screen Pomera DM20 looks in action: Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:22:39 AM

Even in a world full of racket, it seems that the squeaky wheel still gets the grease. In yet another blow to this whole "cloud" agenda, a vocal segment of Palm users began to notice that information transferred from their online Palm Profile was only a fraction of what it should have been. Today, both Palm and Sprint have issued a joint statement acknowledging the issue and promising to work much, much harder in order to avoid having something like this ruin your life once again. To quote:

"We are seeing a small number of customers who have experienced issues transferring their Palm Profile information to another Palm webOS device.

Palm and Sprint are working closely together to support these customers to successfully transfer their information to the new device." Between this mess and the T-Mobile fiasco, we're pretty certain we're being forced to stay on the manual backup bandwagon for the foreseeable future. [Thanks, Mike] Palm and Sprint issue statement acknowledging Profile backup issue originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| San Francisco Gate| Email this| Comments

Find Movies Playing Nearby With Google Mobile Search By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!)

Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. You can also browse by theater, Submitted at 11/25/2009 12:36:46 AM which will take you to a map Want to find out what’s playing displaying the theaters near your in theaters near you? Or you just current location. Tapping any want to check out the latest theater on the map will display a movie trailers? Google mobile list of shows now playing. search now has a special section Finally, you can search for a that lets you check out movie Android device, search for movie or a theater directly. listings, with locations, trailers, “movies”, and click on the “More Check out a video demonstration ratings, posters and upcoming movies” link. If you’re not of this new feature below. showtimes. getting any results, it may be Reviews: Android, Australia To try it out, fire up google.com because the service is only Tags: Google Mobile Search, on your iPhone, webOS or available in US, UK, Canada, Movies

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Samsung Go netbook gets $100 cheaper with oneyear Times Reader 2.0 subscription By Darren Murph (Engadget) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:12:00 AM

Publicly, at least, The New York Times has seemed perfectly kosher with the way things are moving in the newspaper industry. Rather than freaking out and wondering why they didn't make the move to digital earlier, it's apparently looking to push the digital distribution of its content via discounts and partnerships with hardware providers. In a rather unique and unprecedented move, the paper has today announced that prospective

readers can receive $100 off of a Samsung Go netbook if they subscribe to Times Reader 2.0 for a year. The machine will come pre-loaded with the Adobe AIRbased application -- which pushes

published content to one's machine on the double -- and will be sold exclusively through J&R Music and Computer World. Of course, NYT wants $179.40 for a one-year sub, so the deal's not

exactly awesome or anything, but the offer stands for first-time subscribers until March 2010 if you're interested. Samsung Go netbook gets $100 cheaper with one-year Times Reader 2.0 subscription originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 07:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink Business Wire| New York Times| Email this| Comments

Official 'Avatar' AIR app is a must-see By Don Reisinger (Webware.com) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:03:00 AM

If you're an Adobe AIR user or you just like playing with new lightweight apps, check out the new official app for the upcoming movie. It's fantastic.

Microsoft opens PC lounge in Saks Fifth Avenue for holiday season By Vladislav Savov (Engadget) Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:46:00 AM

We all know Microsoft's feeling pretty smug -- and with good reason-- about Windows 7 right now. In an effort to drum up yet more hype for its latest OS, and perhaps to try and gauge customer interest in an East coast Store, Microsoft has decided to

open up a cozy "PC lounge" inside Saks Fifth Avenue's flagship New York store -- you know, the one that actually is on Fifth Avenue. As part of the agreement, Windows 7 will be used to drive Saks' window displays, and opportunities will be provided for customers to interact with the new software throughout the building. The lounge itself will be populated by

Saks Fifth Avenue for holiday season originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink Electronista| Microsoft| Email this| Comments W i n d o w s 7 l a p t o p s a n d commercial way that makes us M i c r o s o f t e x p e r t s , w h o ' l l wonder why anyone goes to probably answer your questions offline shops in the first place. in the sort of overly peppy, Microsoft opens PC lounge in

Google mobile coupons save a buck or two By Jessica Dolcourt (Webware.com) Submitted at 11/24/2009 12:36:00 PM

Previously restricted to Google Maps, Google now takes its digital coupons mobile. Originally posted at iPhone

Atlas

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Handbrake 0.9.4 released, includes 64-bit support By Chris Rawson (The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW))

support for transcoding to AVI, OGG, and XviD. Personally I won't miss any of these, as I always transcoded to H.264, but Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:15:00 PM for people who are still clinging Filed under: Multimedia, to AVI (for whatever reason), Freeware, Open Source It's been this update will force them to a year in coming, but Handbrake, abandon the format. the multiplatform, open-source Another new feature that looks video transcoder, has been like it'll be incredibly useful is updated to version 0.9.4. It's one Live Preview, which allows you of the tools I included in my list to encode a small portion of the of 10 must-have apps for a new 0.9.3, Handbrake encodes would video source using current Mac. average around 27 - 29 frames settings and then see what it The Handbrake team has been per second when transcoding a looks like. This will keep you busy indeed over the past year -- VIDEO_TS folder to H.264. In from having to encode the entire their change log shows over 1000 0.9.4, using the same settings, I'm video only to find out two hours changes since the build they seeing encoding rates of closer to later that one of your settings was released last year. The biggest 30 - 34 frames per second. This off, forcing you to start all over new feature with this update is m e a n s t h a t o n m y M a c , again. Handbrake 0.9.4 is a free By Danny Allen (Gizmodo) Obispo, California, for example. support for 64-bit, which allows Handbrake is now transcoding H a n d b r a k e t o e n c o d e DVDs in real time or faster download, available here. It's a major hub for data traveling Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:00:00 AM TUAW Handbrake 0.9.4 to Asia and South America (to approximately 10% faster than thanks to the improvements in released, includes 64-bit support Real, physical places form the the tune of 32 petabits per day). previous 32-bit builds. The 64-bit the new version. Net's backbone: data centers, The sheltered coastline and quiet build is not exclusive to Snow T h e H a n d b r a k e t e a m h a s originally appeared on The under-sea cables, junctions, optic port reduce the likelihood of a Leopard, so if you're still running trimmed some of the fat from this U n o f f i c i a l A p p l e W e b l o g fiber pipes. Wired traced a single s h i p ' s a n c h o r d a m a g i n g a 10.5 on a 64-bit capable machine, release. There are no more (TUAW) on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 bit's journey from England, t r a n s o c e a n i c c a b l e . M o r e you'll still be able to reap the presets for the PSP, PS3, or Xbox 21:15:00 EST. Please see our across the US, and into Asia—a beautiful, informative postcards benefits of reduced encoding 360; all three have been replaced terms for use of feeds. fascinating reminder at how from locations you may never time. with a "Normal" preset that Read| Permalink| Email this| T h a t 1 0 % p e r f o r m a n c e should work on any device that Comments physical the virtual really is. have expected were so important improvement estimate appears to supports Main Profile H.264. Take this sleepy shot of San Luis over at: [ Wired] be very close to the mark, at least Handbrake has also removed on my MacBook Pro. Using

Places Where the Internet Actually Happens (In Real Life) [Internet]

Video: The Big Mist Take (Little Green Footballs) Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:21:27 PM

Environmentalist Peter Sinclair’s latest video deals with the effect

of water vapor on global warming — an effect that’s often exaggerated and misrepresented by climate deniers, even though extensive scientific evidence

shows that water vapor is a much smaller active agent than carbon dioxide.[Video]

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Mashable’s Guide to Social Media & Web Marketing Jobs By Tamar Weinberg (Mashable!) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:27:43 AM

If you’re seeking a job in social media, we’d like to help out. For starters, Mashable’s Job Lists section gathers together all our resource lists, how-tos and expert guides to help you get hired. In particular, you might want to see our articles on How to Leverage Social Media for Career Success and How to Find a Job on Twitter. But we’d like to help in a more direct way, too. Mashable’s job boards are a place for sociallysavvy companies to find people like you. This week and every week, Mashable features its coveted job board listings for a variety of positions in the web, social media space, and beyond. Have a look at what’s good and new on our job boards: Mashable Job Board Listings Web User Interface Developer at TMP Worldwide in New York, NY. As a Developer, you will be a key member of the Product Development team, focusing on the design of web application user interfaces for new and existing features within our projects. Read more about this opportunity here. Web Designer at Big Hedgehog in San Francisco, CA. We’re looking for a person who loves games and loves designing for the web. You want to make stuff on the web that people use

and love, and you’re willing to question any convention in order to reach that goal. And you’ve got the ability to find a design direction for a project and run with it. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Editor at Virilion Inc. in Washington DC. You would be responsible for developing winning content that engages the client’s audiences across diverse online venues and creates results that are needed to win. Read more about this opportunity here. Associate Social Media Director at Virilion Inc. in Washington DC. You would be responsible for leading a team of Editorial and Social Media practitioners for a major client and ensuring this team achieves the results our client demands. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media and Public Relations Manager at The Ad Council in New York, NY. The Manager of Social Media and Public Relations at the Ad Council will be responsible for managing the creation and implementation of social media and public relations programs on behalf of the Ad Council and its national public service

advertising campaigns. Read more about this opportunity here. Web Developer at confidential new startup in New York, NY. An early stage start-up funded by the founders (Stanford and Columbia alumni) are looking to hire an entrepreneurial programmer who would like to join a small, but very strong team of individuals creating an innovative and game-changing web service. The individual would be primarily responsible for back-end development. Read more about this opportunity here. Director of Product Development at Metromix in Chicago, IL. The Director of Product Development’s primary role is to lead the cross functional product development team through an iterative & collaborative process that will deliver key strategic web site development projects in line with consumer experience and business objectives. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Marketing Manager at Mazda North American Operations in Irvine, CA. The Social Media Marketing Manager will be the subject matter expert for Mazda North American Operations (MNAO). Responsibilities will include: the

management, creation, direction and execution of Mazda’s ongoing social media strategy. Read more about this opportunity here. Sr. Product Manager at CafeMom in New York, NY. CafeMom is looking for a Product Manager who will be responsible for taking our site features and functionality to the next level. We’re looking for someone who not only understand moms’ needs and can visualize products that help meet those needs, but who can also dig in, help work on coding pages, create designs or contribute in any number of ways Read more about this opportunity here. VP Product at Covestor in New York, NY. We are looking for a senior professional to take ownership of an industry changing, web-based, consumer finance product. The VP Product will be responsible for setting the product strategy and roadmap and working with a Project Manager and team of engineers to successfully execute it. Read more about this opportunity here. Head of Marketing at Covestor in New York, NY. This is a newly created position, responsible for building an online Investment Management

business. The successful candidate will be responsible for the marketing budget, from planning through execution. They will manage identification of the target audience, and defining the proposition and communications for building an exciting consumer finance platform. Read more about this opportunity here. Back-End Programmer at Brain Hurricane in Chicago, IL. We are seeking a talented individual to develop back-end security/e-commerce features for a massively multiplayer online game. This is a paid internship. Read more about this opportunity here. Digital Marketing Coordinator in Golf at Gathering Storm LLC in Carlsbad, CA. Gathering Storm is looking for a Digital Marketing Coordinator to manage and execute online marketing campaigns for our golf division. We are looking for someone with a passion for digital marketing and social media – and being a golfer would be a big plus. Read more about this opportunity here. Search Program Manager at Starcom MediaVest Group in Chicago, IL. We are looking for a Search Program Manager to supervise a small dedicated team in the creation, optimization and execution of client search MASHABLE’S page 18

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initiatives. Will also assist the Search Director and Associate Director in developing innovative search strategies to meet and exceed our clients’ business objectives. Read more about this opportunity here. Senior Marketing Director at JDub Records in New York, NY. JDub seeks a Senior Marketing Director (SMD) to significantly expand the reach of JDub’s programs and fee-for-service projects. Supervising a team of 23 individuals, the SMD will join the Executive Staff of the organization, managing a substantial budget to engage hundreds of thousands of young Jews each year. Read more about this opportunity here. Internet Marketing Manager at McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul, MN. McNally Smith College of Music is seeking a highly motivated person to work with the marketing team. This position will oversee and maintain versatile and imaginative content of the McNally Smith College Website, including day-to-day maintenance and updating all web content. Read more about this opportunity here. Senior Flash Developer at DNA Games Incorporated in Mountain View, CA. The Flash Developer position is responsible for both designing and creating flash based games and gaming elements. You will

work closely with the Lead Game Designer and Marketing Team to integrate proprietary marketing and design elements into games. Read more about this opportunity here. Website and Social Media Project at The BizWorld Foundation in San Francisco, CA. You’ll have a few roles, including developing and implementing a Website Strategy that would include utilizing social media and RSS feeds and presenting website strategy to executive team for approval. Read more about this opportunity here. Project Manager at Hot Gold Fish Corp in Hollywood, FL. We are looking for a web designer well versed in css, xhtml and current web standards to redesign our current e-commerce site. Read more about this opportunity here. Online Marketing Manager at MusicChoice in New York, NY. This position will be responsible for planning, development and execution of online marketing campaigns. Manage the creation and trafficking of all marketing assets on musicchoice.com. Assist in brand development and execute online marketing strategies to drive traffic and engage consumers with TV and VOD products. Read more about this opportunity here. Sales Associate at AdsBeam in Mountain View, CA. As a Sales Associate, you will be

the driving force behind new client acquisition. You will have a pivotal role in helping the company earn revenue and bring in new business. As a co-founder of the company, you will provide input that will help shape the future of the company. Read more about this opportunity here. Performance Test Engineer at Synacor in Buffalo, NY. We are seeking a Performance Test Engineer that will be responsible for designing, developing and maintaining automated test tools, scripts, and harnesses for application profiling, performance and load test suites. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Manager at Rackspace in Blacksburg, VA. We are looking for a Social Media Community Manager–someone to stay connected and engaged with the Rackspace Email & Apps community, which means our customers, potential customers, fans, and those that have an interest in what we’re doing as a company. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Representative at EMI Music in New York, NY. EMI Music is looking for digitally minded people to join our Interactive Marketing team. Candidates need not necessarily have music or professional marketing experience, but all candidates must be very digitally

engaged and interested in online marketing and trends. These entry-level positions will be based in New York City. Read more about this opportunity here. Director of New Media Marketing at IIR USA in New York, NY. Your job would include the exploration of emerging technologies and enhancements that can increase revenue, brand awareness and improve overall customer experience, while supporting marketing teams to creatively implement successful marketing campaigns online. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Community Marketing Manager at FUNimation Entertainment in Flower Mound, TX. As a social community marketing manager, you will manage all aspects of marketing and promotion of our online social brand to generate awareness, increase customer engagement and maximize overall monetization. Read more about this opportunity here. Marketing Programs Manager at Scout Labs in San Francisco, CA. Scout Labs is looking for a rockstar Marketing/PR Manager to help us execute against our marketing plan and further accelerate our leadership position. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Manager at Critical Mass in Chicago, IL. Critical Mass is currently

seeking a Social Media Manager in Chicago. This position is part of Critical Mass’s Experience Distribution group that is made up of Paid Media, Search and Influence Marketing. Read more about this opportunity here. Online Brand Manager at New Media Strategies in Arlington, VA. The qualified candidate will have 5-7+ years account management experience in social media, online advertising or related field. They will bring a strong record of strategic client support to senior level CPG, Fortune 500 and/or Automotive clients and agencies. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Strategy at McKinley Marketing Partners in Alexandria, VA. We seek mid-to senior-level marketing professionals from corporate and/or agency backgrounds with seven or more years of marketing experience. We offer a wide variety of opportunities which change on a daily basis. Read more about this opportunity here. Drupal Support Engineer at Acquia in Woburn, MA. We’re looking for Drupal experts to join our team of “ninjas” who share an obsession about helping customers overcome roadblocks to make their Drupal sites rock. The right fit is someone with mad Drupal skills and an astute diagnostic MASHABLE’S page 19

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mind coupled with warm people skills — “Support DNA”, we like to call it. Some have it, some don’t. Read more about this opportunity here. Technical Architect at Acquia in Woburn, MA. As Technical Architect, you will be involved in all stages of the client experience including presales, engagement planning, implementation, project management, client management, and post-deployment escalation support. You will engage with clients and teammates as both a leader and an individual contributor, building and maintaining a high-level of technical and business credibility with our clients and partners. Read more about this opportunity here. Product Development Manager at Synacor in Buffalo, NY. Are you energized by the thought of jumping into a product development role and creating a company’s next great product? Do you have experience in the Internet, Cable or Telecom industries? Have you worked in a fast-paced technical or software environment? We are seeking a Product Development Manager who loves to write product requirement documents, provide technical consultation to an engineering team, and serve as a liaison between the customer and the engineering staff to facilitate the development of a great product. Read more about this

opportunity here. Online Community Manager at Heavy Hammer in Annapolis, MD. We are an online marketing firm in Annapolis, Maryland We promote our website by search engine optimization (SEO), social media optimization (SMO) and paid placement (PPC). Our Online Community Manager will oversee and contribute content to support our customers and corporate objectives. Read more about this opportunity here. Visual Designer at Acquia in Woburn, MA. Acquia is looking for an exceptional visual designer to work on a contract to permanent basis. We’re looking for someone who is fast, truly talented and passionate about great design with an appreciation for usability. In this role, you’ll collaborate with internal creative, marketing and engineering teams to identify the vision of an entire site, page, UI component or advertisement and bring it to life. Read more about this opportunity here. Drupal Web Developer at Acquia in Woburn, MA. We are seeking qualified Drupal developers to work on all aspects of Acquia’s customer-facing Drupal systems. Qualified developers will be building and adding capabilities to several systems and sites. Read more about this opportunity here. Continuous Integration / Build and Release Engineer at Acquia in Woburn,

MA. You’ll lead the development and maintenance of Acquia’s automated build, continuous integration, release and deployment systems, add and debug new components to the build, acquire and release tools and packages, improve the build process and infrastructure, manage branching and other subversion activities, and continuously improve our tools for building, unit testing, regression testing, and problem isolation of build, packaging and product problems. Read more about this opportunity here. Interactive Marketing Manager at Barona Resort & Casino in San Diego. The Interactive Marketing Manager works with the Director of Database Marketing and Innovation and property management to leverage, via multi-channel direct marketing programs, Barona’s competitive advantages represented by our customer database as well as various interactive, electronic, emerging, and other media. Design and develop objectives and strategies for properly integrated programs. Analyze the market in order to plan, direct and execute promotions that select the right channel(s) for each player and allow for robust web and behavioral analytics. Assist the Director in contributing to revenue growth through customer acquisition, retention and recovery programs. Provide creative, strategic and

tactical support to the Director for other direct-response marketing programs. Read more about this opportunity here. Web Designer at Alliance Defense Fund in Scottsdale, AZ. ADF is seeking a full-time and highly professional Web Designer responsible for developing and executing creative concepts for all online marketing communication initiatives and the construction of all emails and landing page. The Web Designer is responsible for increasing the quality, quantity and turnaround time of all ADF online marketing communications. As a result, there will be an increase in team capacity – allowing ADF to respond to a greater number of requests and opportunities for growth. Other responsibilities include managing and updating all content on the ADF websites. Read more about this opportunity here. Account Director at M80 in Los Angeles, CA. The Senior Account Director is responsible for driving our relationship and account team for a number of our retained clients within the automotive vertical. An experienced account manager with vertical expertise, coupled with a strong knowledge of social media strategy, tactics and channels is required with an ability to manage teams, and manage relationships with highlevel executives at top global brands.

Read more about this opportunity here. Senior PHP Developer at Gelaskins in Toronto, Canada. Some of your duties include: maintain a php-based eCommerce website including custom shopping cart, develop the back-end infrastructure and front-end features of social community sites using PHP, MySQL, and other open-source technologies, maintain CMS infrastructure and ensure efficient process integration across different departments, and develop, design, test, and maintain highly innovative and scalable web-based applications coded in PHP & MySQL Read more about this opportunity here. Associate Account Executive at IMRE LLC in Sparks, MD. IMRE, a full-service marketing agency located in Sparks, MD is seeking a full time Associate Account Executive for our Word of Mouth (WOM) marketing services team. The opportunity involves working with account teams to research and implement strategic campaigns for clients in home and building, financial services and healthcare. These campaigns could include the following tactics: blog/forum administration, social networking marketing, and ambassador and loyalist program development. Read more about this opportunity here. Social Media Paid Intern at in New York, NY. MASHABLE’S page 22

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Murdoch: Take Your Google Ball and Go Home By Ben Parr (Mashable!) Submitted at 11/24/2009 4:25:06 PM

Newspapers and traditional media have seen their world and their business models crumble before their very eyes. Newspaper revenues have plummeted by nearly 30% in the last year alone, while newspaper circulation numbers are in the toilet. The web is destroying outdated business models and replacing them with more efficient ones. These newspaper and media companies aren’t just letting themselves get destroyed, though. Some have gone webonly, some are embracing social media, and then some are blaming Google. When we first heard that Rupert Murdoch intended to remove News Corp websites from Google, we weren’t impressed. We didn’t understand his plan, but we did believe that it wouldn’t work. Then This Google Thing Got Out of Hand That was, until we learned that Microsoft and News Corp are in discussions to remove content from Google and that most recently, other newspapers and media companies are considering joining Murdoch’s insanity. Let’s think about this: in a few months, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, and most of the 56 daily newspapers of

MediaNews Group could be deindexed from Google and Google News(and in News Corp’s case, displayed prominently on Bing). Experian Hitwise explored yesterday what would happen if this plan comes to fruition. As the following graph demonstrates, Google alone accounts for 20+ percent of newspaper traffic: Some of that traffic would remain intact (we really doubt Murdoch would remove the homepage of the Wall Street Journal from Google, thus searches for the WSJ in general would remain unaffected), but overall it’d be a devastating traffic blow. Google is still the main method of information discovery online, and that trend will only grow as more kids turn to Google instead of the $0.75 daily. In short: Rupert’s plan will gut his company and doesn’t set News Corp up for the future. Rupert, We Understand Your Dilemma Let’s give News Corp some leeway and a little credit though: they know that the old business models are dying and that they have to do something. Even back in August, we stated that good journalism isn’t cheap and that we have to find a better way to compensate media organizations for their work. Here is what we said about his plan to put his websites behind a paywall, with

what will happen: more efficient organizations will step in to fill the gaps. There is no shortage of lean and socially savvy media organizations built in the last five years. The future of media isn’t in The Wall Street Journal, no matter how much value it provides society. No, the future is in the web, fast-paced blogs, and social media. The future is in companies that realize that news a day old is, well, a day old. The future is in information discovery, not in hiding content. We know your empire is not doing so well, Murdoch, but that key points bolded: at the WSJ, because he wouldn’t doesn’t excuse you from taking “ M u r d o c h h a s e s s e n t i a l l y be going with this plan if he your company down a path that declared that the free-for-all in didn’t think they could replicate will take you into oblivion. No o n l i n e n e w s h a s e n d e d . t h a t m o d e l w i t h o u t l o s i n g Microsoft deal will fix the Specifically, he states that good s i g n i f i c a n t r e a d e r s h i p . ” inherent problems with the journalism isn’t cheap (that’s Sorry Rupert, but newspapers newspaper business model. true) and that, while the web has aren’t going to increase anytime What News Corp should be made distribution cheap, it has soon and up-and-coming blogs doing instead: Finding more not made it free. He also hopes to and media companies aren’t efficient means of distribution, gain more revenue from major going away. Maybe we were leveraging its revenue-generating celebrity scoops from his tabloid w r o n g a b o u t y o u s e e i n g assets, exploring new methods of papers (i.e. the Sun). His bet is something in the WSJ model. payments, and encouraging that people will indeed pay for Maybe you just don’t understand innovation. We’re not psychics news content.: h o w m e d i a h a s b e e n or high-profile consultants, but The next paragraph explains our fundamentally altered by the we know which models are arguments, though: web. This Isn’t the Future of winning and which ones are not. “ We’re not so sure. While we Media, Murdoch In short, Murdoch, take your ball don’t disagree with the need to We’ve had enough. Murdoch’s and go home. Your plan can find additional revenue streams plan to de-index from Google is only hurt News Corp. Reviews: for newspapers and quality getting out of control, and it Bing, Google journalism, we think there are t h r e a t e n s t o s p e e d u p t h e Tags: bing, Google, microsoft, plenty of alternative news destruction of all traditional Murdoch, News Corp, rupert resources to turn to. Murdoch media. If other newspapers murdoch must see something encouraging decide to join this insanity, here’s

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California unveils draft cap-and-trade rules (CNET News.com)

Gasoline and residential heating fuel suppliers could be included in the first cap-and-trade phase, California on Tuesday released which had been expected to focus draft rules for its landmark on big pollution sources like greenhouse gas cap-and-trade power plants and refineries. plan that will be the most "California is the first out of the ambitious U.S. effort to use the box," state Air Resources Board market to address global Chair Mary Nichols told warming. reporters on a conference call. State law requires California to The draft rules kick off a cut its carbon dioxide and other comment period that will lead to greenhouse gas emissions to final regulation next fall. 1990 levels by 2020. Measures A less comprehensive will range from clean vehicle and n o r t h e a s t e r n U . S . r e g i o n a l building rules to the cap-and- trading system is already under trade system that lets factories way, focusing on carbon dioxide and power companies trade emissions by big emitters. credits to emit gases that heat up California by contrast plans to the earth. include nearly every source of Federal rules under debate by emissions to reach its goal. Congress could eclipse and California businesses regularly preempt regional plans, but criticize the plan as going too far C a l i f o r n i a a n d o t h e r l o c a l too fast--and costing too much. governments see themselves as Whether the net effect of the plan the vanguard of addressing will be a new green economy or climate change, especially in d i s a s t e r f o r o v e r b u r d e n e d light of slow national action and businesses is still hotly debated. setbacks for international talks New estimates of plan costs, scheduled in Copenhagen next including suggestions on how month. much support to give industry, The draft released on Tuesday won't be available until an shows California, seen as an independent advisory group environmental trend-setter, may issues a report next year. take on even more than expected The draft avoids what may be in its first round of cap-and-trade, the toughest issue--how much to which will start in 2012. rely on auctions of credits, which Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:44:32 AM

American has carbon production of about 20 tons per year, according to the Union of would require power companies Concerned Scientists. and the like to buy permission to The cap-and-trade system will pollute. The emitters want account for only about a fifth of a l l o w a n c e s g i v e n t o t h e m , California reductions but it draws especially early on. outsize attention, in part because But Nichols said California had the state, with the largest U.S. shown a strong preference for economy and population, is part moving to auction as quickly as of the 11 member Western possible and that its 2006 global Climate Initiative, which includes warming law provided clear U . S . s t a t e s a n d C a n a d i a n guidance while politicians in the p r o v i n c e s . U.S. Congress were still raising China, too, will watch support for a bill. California's action, partly by "Congress started this, you know, virtue of the state's partnerships as a political exercise to see how with Chinese provinces, said many allowances you had to give Environmental Defense Fund out to which groups to get them California Climate Change to buy into the program. They Director Derek Walker. didn't have a climate bill," she "In many ways this is similar to said. what you are hearing from "We know how many emissions i n t e r n a t i o n a l c i r c l e s n o w . we have to reduce. The question Everybody is coming to the table is how do we do it in a way that with their opening bets," he said. costs less," added Nichols, whose But unlike most, California has A i r R e s o u r c e s B o a r d w a s committed to cuts and now is appointed by state law as the working out the details. main regulator deciding on how Story Copyright (c) 2009 to cut greenhouse gases. Reuters Limited. All rights The cost of a ton of carbon reserved. dioxide initially could be around This content has passed through $ 1 0 , b a s e d o n h o w o t h e r fivefilters.org. programs operated, she said. That is about half the current European price. The average

Reborn Coma Man's Words May Be Bogus By Brandon Keim (Wired Top Stories) Submitted at 11/24/2009 2:30:00 PM

The Belgian man recently discovered to be conscious and not comatose for 23 years has given some interviews with the

help of an aide. But experts say his words may actually be those of the facilitator guiding his finger over the computer

keyboard.

Companies Realizing That Content Is Advertising Via Web Series By Mike Masnick (Techdirt) Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:21:22 PM

The NY Times has an article about the rise of online "web series" shows that are suddenly popular, noting that many brands are creating such things as a way to produce interesting content online while getting some attention for their brand. It's yet another realization that advertising is content and content is advertising. The key point, that many say they realize (and hopefully they live up to it) is that none of this works if the content itself sucks. So they're working on these shows with a focus on making them good and enjoyable to watch first, and including the sponsorship as a secondary part of the effort. I'm sure there may be some backlash over this idea, but it actually makes quite a lot of sense. It gets more good content out there, and helps brands get themselves noticed and remembered not for intrusive and annoying advertising, but for sponsoring something cool. Permalink| Comments| Email This Story

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Ericsson wins Nortel's North American GSM unit (CNET News.com)

phones. It's the standard in Europe and is dominant around the world, while CDMA (Code Ericsson is slowly building its Division Multiple Access) is wireless business by scooping up more common in the United parts of struggling Nortel. States. In recent years, however, Ericsson announced Wednesday GSM has grabbed a larger that it has won a bid to buy footprint among North American N o r t e l N e t w o r k s ' N o r t h carriers. American GSM business for $70 Ericsson already holds a strong million in cash. The Swedish slice of the global GSM market, communications giant went into especially in Europe, and has the deal with a partner, Austria- been eager to expand its grasp in based Kapsch CarrierCom, which North America. itself spent $33 million to buy On its end, Nortel has gradually Nortel's GSM operations in b e e n s e l l i n g i t s w i r e l e s s Europe and Taiwan. operations as a way to stay afloat This marks the second major in the midst of declining business deal in recent months between and rising debts after declaring Ericsson and Nortel. In July, bankruptcy almost a year ago. On Ericsson won another bid to pay T u e s d a y , t h e c o m p a n y $1.13 billion for Nortel's CDMA announced it would sell its Metro and LTE wireless technologies. Ethernet operations to telecom GSM (Global System for Mobile equipment maker Ciena. communications) is one of two As part of the purchase, Ericsson technologies used for mobile will bring on more than 350 Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:38:05 AM

Nortel employees in North America. With the addition of Nortel's business and a recent deal with Sprint, North America will become Ericsson's biggest operation, said the company, jumping to 14,500 employees from just 5,000 at the beginning of 2009. Ericsson noted that its entire North American business captured revenue of around $2.7 billion in 2008, mostly from sales of GSM and WCDMA (Wideband CDMA) equipment and services. Nortel's North American GSM business generated around $400 million in 2008. No date was given for closing the deal, which is subject to the usual regulatory approvals in both the U.S. and Canada. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Apple to Psystar: And don't get any bright ideas about a Black Friday sale, either (CNET News.com) Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:46:00 AM

Having diligently hewn Psytar's legal coffin over the past year and a half, Apple has now taken up its hammer and set about nailing the Mac clone maker into it. This week, the company called for a permanent injunction against Psystar's operations. "Psystar...has built its business on infringing Apple's copyrights and trademarks, free-riding on Apple's research and development efforts, and trading on Apple's hard-earned reputation for high quality, innovative and easy-to-use computers," Apple said in its motion. "Psystar's appropriation of Apple's intellectual property and goodwill has been systematic and brazen, from the name of MASHABLEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S Psystar's 'OpenMac' computers to continued from page 19 its deliberate pirating of Apple's Safari Sundays is looking to Mashable has a variety of web every week on Mashable.com (in Mac OS X," the company added. staff up our Organic Media team 2.0, application development, addition to exposure all day "Psystar even seeks to profit from with a couple of Social Media business development, and social every day in the Mashable Apple's efforts to protect its interns. We have a number of networking job opportunities marketplace). Reviews: Drupal, rights, extolling this litigation as interesting projects in the works, available. Check them out at Mashable, PHP Psystar's 'opportunity to gain and need help managing the Mashableâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Job Board. Tags: careers, jobs, mashable market share,' in a pitch to social aspects of our campaigns Got a job posting to share with venture capitalists....Unless on a daily basis. our readers? Post a job to Psystar is permanently enjoined, R e a d m o r e a b o u t t h i s Mashable today ($50 for a 30 day it will not stop its unlawful opportunity here. listing) and get it highlighted

conduct-conduct that is causing irreparable harm to Apple's business, brand and goodwill." Catch that? Psystar was pitching VCs on its plan to use Apple's IP to "compete directly against Apple." Shameless. Little wonder Cupertino is so intent on burying the would-be rival. And make no mistake, Apple legal is going to grind Psystar into fine silicon dust. In addition to the injunction, Apple is requesting compensation for legal costs and statutory damages owed under the Copyright Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. And according to Apple's expert witness (PDF), statutory damages for the former should run "between $1500 and $300,000 and for the latter "between $449,500 and $4,495,000." Suffice it to say, that's quite a bit more than the current value of Psystar's assets which, according to its bankruptcy filing, are no more than $50,000. Story Copyright (c) 2009 AllThingsD. All rights reserved. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Gobble up this deal on 1Password Pro touch

How to get the most out of in-flight Wi-Fi

By Kevin Harter (The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW))

By Megan Lavey (The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW))

Submitted at 11/24/2009 5:30:00 PM

Filed under: iPhone, App Store, iPod touch, App Review To celebrate Thanksgiving, Agile Web Solutions is giving thanks to its customers this week in the form of a free iPhone app. Previously $7.99, 1Password Pro touch[ iTunes link] is completely free until December 1st. Whether or not you use the excellent Mac edition of this app, which was recently updated to version 3.0, 1Password touch is a great addition to your iPod touch or iPhone. Essentially a password manager, this app stores login usernames and passwords, wallet information like credit card numbers, software license keys, and secured notes behind one or two levels of protection (depending on how sensitive you deem the data). With cut and paste functionality, as well as a

and past info into Mobile Safari. In addition, there are some Proonly features on the way including MobileMe and WebDAV syncing (I can't wait for that!), and Favorites. If you already have the regular touch edition, make sure to back up your data before removing the old app and upgrading to the Pro built-in web browser, it's a great version. Those with the Mac way to simplify logging into application can rely on Wi-Fi password-protected sites or even syncing to ensure the latest info making online purchases. Of is on the computer, however course, to get the most out of the Agile has instructions on its site mobile version, a copy running for those without. Once you've on your Mac is a must. With it, removed the standard 1Password you'll be able to sync your touch and installed Pro, you can information between the devices. restore the data. The standard app is great and all, TUAW Gobble up this deal on but since both versions are free 1Password Pro touch originally for the time being, you might as appeared on The Unofficial well grab the Pro. Extra features Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, i n c l u d e f o l d e r s f o r b e t t e r 24 Nov 2009 17:30:00 EST. organization, the ability to copy Please see our terms for use of m u l t i p l e f i e l d s t o p a s t e feeds. e l s e w h e r e , a n d a u n i q u e Read| Permalink| Email this| switching mode to quickly copy Comments

Storyboard: James Cameron's Epic Quest for 'Avatar' By Mario Aguilar (Wired Top Stories) Submitted at 11/24/2009 1:48:00 PM

As the Titanic director gets ready to unveil his long-awaited sci-fi adventure, Wired magazine looks at the self-assured

filmmaker â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and the technological achievements that helped him bring his stunning 3D Avatar to the big screen.

Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:00:00 AM

Filed under: How-tos, Internet, MacBook Over the weekend, I discovered that my annual flight from Phoenix to Alabama (via Atlanta) had in-flight Wi-Fi. Best of all? It happened to be free, thanks to eBay jumping in on the free holiday Wi-Fi bandwagon. The promotion was already active on the flight I took from Phoenix to Atlanta. If you're traveling for Thanksgiving or Christmas, here's some things to consider about utilizing this service with your MacBook, MacBook Pro or MacBook Air. Is it worth it? It all depends. It was very nice being able to talk with my fiancĂŠ (who, on his part used FlightStats.com to inform me of where I was at) during the flight. I'm no fan of flying, and when the turbulence got bad, it was a nice distraction. However, I did notice I got a slight motioninduced headache and had to take a break. If the seat in front of you is reclined to the point where your computer is rammed into

your chest, the person in the seat next to you is taking up half of yours with their elbows, or if you're inclined to motion sickness, this may not be for you. Still, a free promotion is the perfect time to give the service a try. Normally, this service can cost anywhere from $6-15 for a flight. Gogo's pricing structure is $5.95 for a flight less than 90 minutes, $9.95 for a flight between 90 minutes and three hours, $12.95 for one more than three hours or a daily pass on a single airline. If you're just using your iPhone, it's $5.95 for a flight less than 90 minutes and $7.95 for one longer than that. Read on for tips on maximizing your battery life in flight. Continue reading How to get the most out of in-flight Wi-Fi TUAW How to get the most out of in-flight Wi-Fi originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

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Holiday Gift Guide: Hackintoshable MusicNAO offers Dell Mini 10v unique dock for iPhone and iPod touch By Erica Sadun (The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW))

Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:00:00 AM

Filed under: Hardware, Hacks For shoppers in the US, Black Friday is right around the corner. With it, of course, are lots of deals, including many that don't make you wait for Friday. Dell is currently offering the highly Hackintoshable Mini 10v unit for just $229 shipped (it's $20 more for Bluetooth, which you have to opt out of; there are many other options configurable as you set up your unit). Here's a typical order, with the lowest end processor and free shipping. 1 Inspiron Mini 10v 1 Intel Atom Processor N270 (1.6GHz/533Mhz FSB/512K cache) 1 1GB DDR2 SDRAM 1 10.1" Widescreen Display (1024x600) 1 Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (GMA) 950 1 160GB, 2.5inch, 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive 1 Obsidian Black 1 Wireless 802.11g (1397) Mini Card 1 Integrated 1.3M Pixel Webcam 1 24WHr Lithium-Ion Battery (3-cell) 1 1Yr Ltd Warranty and Mail-In Service 1 1Yr LoJack for Laptops Theft Protection Save

By Mel Martin (The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)) Submitted at 11/24/2009 4:30:00 PM

Filed under: Audio, Hardware, Bluetooth, iPhone, iPod touch, Music Canadian company Cignias has announced an interesting product in the home audio/iPhone category. It's called the MusicNAO and it allows you to wirelessly control a docked iPod with an iPhone or iPod touch. It also lets you play music wirelessly to the dock from an $139 off this Dell Mini 10 ! - California courts, does prohibit iPhone or iPod touch. The music $139.00 O r d e r S u b t o t a l : you from installing the copy of s t r e a m s u s i n g t h e s t e r e o $229.00 Shipping and Handling L e o p a r d y o u p u r c h a s e o n Bluetooth capability of your Total: $8.00 Shipping Discount: anything other than Apple iPhone or second generation iPod -$8.00 Tax Total: $17.68 Total hardware, meaning that you touch. Amount: $246.68 Hackintosh your system at your The base unit, which is a bit reminiscent of the Bose product, Add in a Leopard license (plus own risk (legal and technical). an optional Snow Leopard TUAW Holiday Gift Guide: has 40 watts of output power, license on top of that) and you Hackintoshable Dell Mini 10v contains equalization circuitry, still have a very reasonably originally appeared on The and uses 4" speakers. You can priced system. If you have a U n o f f i c i a l A p p l e W e b l o g skip music, select music, and monitor, keyboard and mouse on (TUAW) on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 control the volume remotely. If hand, and the Mini 10v makes an 08:00:00 EST. Please see our you have an iPod plugged in, you can view and select playlists, excellent and highly affordable terms for use of feeds. kids' computer to replace an older Read| Permalink| Email this| artists and genres from your iPhone or iPod touch. Mac system. Comments The apps for your iPhone or Note that Apple's EULA, as iPod touch are available free recently affirmed by the from the iTunes app store[iTunes link]. The control connections are through Wi-Fi, while the music streams through Bluetooth. The unit also has an auxiliary

input for plugging in another audio source. Hey, anyone still have cassettes? The MusicNAO is shipping December 1, with an introductory price of U.S. $249.00 until November 30, then it's $299.00. The prices are the same in Canada. I haven't heard the device, so I can't give testimony to the audio quality. I do think the MusicNAO is a unique twist on portable music integration with Apple products. The system also supports Blackberry cellphones that have a stereo streaming feature. TUAW MusicNAO offers unique dock for iPhone and iPod touch originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

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MOG Promises $5 Monthly All-You eBay opens auction app -Can-Eat Music Starting December for BlackBerry 2nd (CNET News.com)

lost a bid. It can also schedule auction-related reminders in the BlackBerry calendar. By Barb Dybwad (Mashable!) another subscription-based music RIM's BlackBerry App World is eBay's app isn't the first of its service that will offer some slowly but surely gaining ground kind for the BlackBerry platform. Submitted at 11/24/2009 3:29:07 PM advertising supported and some as a storefront for distributing Earlier this year, Bonfire Media Subscription music services have paid levels of use when it crosses BlackBerry applications. eBay is released U.S. and international been around for some time, but the Atlantic to launch in the U.S. the latest major company to forge versions of its app, Pocket have never taken off in a way Check out an introductory video a presence in the storefront, in Auctions for eBay. Since Pocket that eclipsed the success of the a about the MOG service below the form of an eBay app for Auctions doesn't include hooks la carte iTunes model. Napster and let us know what you think. BlackBerry auctioneers in the into the phone's native calendar, and Rhapsody are two of the Many folks prefer to own their U.S. and Canada. and costs $10, we're guessing b i g g e r n a m e s t h a t r e m a i n , with editorial curated content music collections, while some The official eBay for BlackBerry that most eBay fans will easily offering services between $7 and focused on identifying hot new prefer the buffet-style approach application, which was co- pick the free, official app over $15 per month for various flavors trends in the music world. On and are eagerly awaiting both developed by eBay and RIM, Bonfire Media's third-party of streaming, MP3 downloads, December 2, they’ll be launching S p o t i f y a n d M O G a s n e w includes features to search for, offering. a n d D R M - t e t h e r e d m o b i l e their ambitious new subscription alternatives to Napster and track, and buy an item from the We got a brief demo of the thensupport. service that hopes to find the Rhapsody. Would you consider smartphone. Unsurprisingly, the under-wraps eBay app at the Now a new entrant will be s w e e t s p o t i n t h e m u s i c spending a monthly subscription e B a y a p p a c c e p t s P a y P a l B l a c k B e r r y D e v e l o p e r breaking onto the scene at a $5 s u b s c r i p t i o n s p a c e . fee for unlimited access to a large payments--PayPal has not only Conference earlier this month. price point for all-you-can-stream Tracks will stream at a high- on-demand music library? been an eBay company since We liked the ease of the PayPal playback and what looks to be a quality 256Kbps in the for now Reviews: Rhapsody, Spotify 2002, it is also currently the only integration, but we won't really very nice interface for managing browser-based service, which has Tags: itunes, MOG, music, payment system for purchasing know how well the app works your music and playlists. The plans to launch a mobile music napster, rhapsody, spotify, BlackBerry apps through the App until we've spent some time with MOG Music Network has existed component by as early as the end subscription World. it. Tune back for our first previously as an aggregated of 2009. The MOG service will In addition to letting users search impressions. collection of MP3 blogs along be neck and neck with Spotify, and buy, the eBay app will notify This content has passed through you of your bidding status, fivefilters.org. including when you've won or Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:00:00 AM

Ustream Launches Viewer for Android Devices By Stan Schroeder (Mashable!) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:28:06 AM

Ustream, one of the best services for those in need of a free video streaming platform, has just launched the Android Viewer, an

app that lets you watch any Ustream show on your Android device, provided you’re connected to the Internet via either 3G or WiFi. The Viewer is the second app you need for a full Ustream experience on the Android. The

first app – Android Broadcaster – was released a couple of weeks

ago, enabling users to stream video from the device. Android Viewer lets you choose from a list of featured or all videos, it includes chat, and works with Android 1.5, 1.6 and 2.0 platform devices. As far as content goes, why not start by

tuning into the live Kiss concert, available here at 9pm PST/12am EST. Reviews: Android, ustream Tags: streaming, ustream, video

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Anti-Piracy Group In Spain Fined For Bad Faith Actions Against File Sharing Systems By Mike Masnick (Techdirt) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:01:00 AM

Official 'Avatar' AIR app is a must-see (CNET News.com)

Screenshot by Don R e i s i n g e r / C N E T ) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:03:00 AM Once you start using the app, I If you're planning to check out t h i n k y o u ' l l b e p l e a s a n t l y "Avatar" when it hits theaters surprised by what you find. You next month, you'll definitely want can view all the trailers released to download its official Adobe so far for the film. You can also AIR app. follow movie updates and the Like so many other Adobe AIR cast with the help of the app's apps, the "Avatar" app has really built-in networking options. pushed the limits of what can be Simply click on the Twitter done with the mobile-widget button and you'll see all their platform. latest updates. The widget even See Avatar in action.(Credit: provides access to the "Avatar"

Flickr account so you can view images from the film. It also lets you view its YouTube page, so you can watch any trailer you want. But if you're looking for a little more than what you've probably already seen, the app provides behind-the-scenes cast-member interviews and some more footage from the movie. The "Avatar" app also adds an element of interactivity to the videos you watch. When you're

watching a trailer, you can click on different spots on the screen to gain a little more insight into the characters. The "Avatar" Adobe AIR app is sure to satisfy you as you prepare for the movie's release next month. Check it out. See also: Adobe releases new Flash, AIR betas This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

We were just talking about how the justice system in Spain seems at least somewhat more reasonable on the subject of file sharing, and here's yet another example. A court has overturned injunctions on two file sharing sites and fined the anti-piracy group that brought charges against them in the first place for "acting in bad faith." The case was dismissed because the court realized (yet again) that linking to infringing material is not infringing itself. But, the "bad faith" part involved the antipiracy group, SGAE, tricking the operator of the sites into believing that two SGAE employees were representatives of the court and had the right to search his home and confiscate computer hard drives. We've seen such things allowed elsewhere, so it's nice that the Spanish courts are letting private anti-piracy groups know that they are not law enforcement. Permalink| Comments| Email This Story

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Avatar + Interactive Trailer + Twitter Could You Prove That = Awesome The Government Was Watching You Illegally? By Ben Parr (Mashable!)

special “hotspots” will come up where you can learn more about the characters. Even cooler In a few weeks, one of the most though is the integration of anticipated and expensive movies Avatar’s Twitter, Flickr, and ever made will debut on movie YouTube feeds. You can get all screens across the world: Avatar. of the latest news right from the The sci-fi epic is making huge interactive trailer. buzz for its unparalleled Honestly? We’re very filmmaking technology, its award Billed as the “Official Avatar impressed with Avatar’s app. - w i n n i n g d i r e c t o r ( J a m e s Interactive Trailer,” the AIR It’s slick, easy to use, and chockC a m e r o n ) , a n d i t s r e c o r d - program brings Avatar’s Pandora full of content. If this doesn’t breaking $230+ million budget. natives straight to your desktop. fulfill your need for an Avatar As you might expect, the Not only does it house all of the fix, then nothing but the actual promotional campaign is in full already-released Avatar trailers, movie will. BONUS: An Avatar swing. While several trailers but it includes dozens of video Trailer! have hit the web, we hadn’t shorts that go in-depth into the Reviews: Flickr, Twitter, stumbled across any very unique making of the movie and the Y o u T u b e web campaigns. That is, until we b a c k g r o u n d o f t h e m a i n Tags: Adobe Air, adobe air apps, discovered the official Avatar c h a r a c t e r s . avatar, Film, movie, twitter Adobe AIR app/interactive Now for the interactive part: trailer. whenever you watch a trailer, Submitted at 11/24/2009 5:57:42 PM

By Mike Masnick (Techdirt) Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:01:26 PM

Wired has an article about a court dismissing a lawsuit by a guy who claimed the government was spying on him. The claims sound pretty much like your runof-the-mill tinfoil-hat-wearing paranoid, so it's no surprise that the government tossed out the lawsuit. But, as David Kravets points out in the article, what if the government actually did put someone under 24-hour surveillance. Would there be any way to prove it? Since the

government won't admit to things like who's on the no-fly list and still supports warrantless wiretaps, it could very easily make anyone who really is under surveillance out to be a nutcase tinfoil-hat wearing lunatic. It seems quite unlikely that was true in this case (or in most cases of such claims), but it does seem bizarre that if you really were in such a situation, proving it would be almost impossible as well. Permalink| Comments| Email This Story

Comparing File Sharing To Payola: Could Have Had That Promotion For Free By Mike Masnick (Techdirt) Submitted at 11/24/2009 3:21:41 PM

BullJustin points us to a short NPR piece about four massive failures by the recording industry. If we skip over number 3 (Kevin Federline), the other three are pretty relevant to what we talk about here on a regular basis: the Sony BMG rootkit

fiasco that opened up security holes on computers without letting anyone know, the RIAA's lawsuit strategy of suing fans and the record labels' ongoing efforts at payola to get songs played on the radio. However, BullJustin makes an amusing point in the submission concerning that last one: It cost the industry untold millions in

actual payola, independent promoter fees, and then more than $25 million in settlements, not to mention lawyer fees. If they would have just let people share the music online, the marketing they were looking for could have been free." It really does make you wonder what goes through the minds of record label strategists. They tossed away

millions paying people to get music heard, when they could have just embraced file sharing and made it cheaper and easier to get music heard without running into the legal problems of payola as well. Of course, the problem with that plan is that the labels also lose "control." They've paid to get songs on the radio because they wanted to just focus on a

small group of artists who they could squeeze for as much profit as possible, dumping all the rest. File sharing makes it harder and raises the possibility that other artists might also get heard. Permalink| Comments| Email This Story

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Sneak Peek: ColorSchemer Studio 2, Sanford Faces 37 Ethics Charges pick your palette By Brett Terpstra (The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW))

big deal for those who take their colors off the screen and into the real world. Even though many modern presses can actually get Submitted at 11/24/2009 3:00:00 PM better color from an RGB file, Filed under: Software, Cool CMYK still rules in the world of tools offset printing. While it's a huge As part of my trade, I work a lot step for this app, it's not the with colors. ColorSchemer coolest part ... read on for an inStudio has long been a valuable depth preview. tool in my toolkit for picking out Continue reading Sneak Peek: color schemes based on solid ColorSchemer Studio 2, pick c o l o r t h e o r y . I t h a d i t s amazing number of new features, your palette shortcomings, though, and some and improves on just about every TUAW Sneak Peek: other tools had surpassed it, both aspect of the existing toolkit. ColorSchemer Studio 2, pick on the desktop and on the iPhone. Firstly, I want to highlight that it your palette originally appeared However, I got a sneak peek at can now work entirely in the on The Unofficial Apple Weblog the up-and-coming version 2.0 of CMYK gamut, if you choose. (TUAW) on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 ColorSchemer Studio, and I'm Screen colors are adjusted to a 15:00:00 EST. Please see our willing to say that it's poised to CMYK profile, and there are terms for use of feeds. regain its lead in the field. export options to match. That's a Read| Permalink| Email this| ColorSchemer Studio 2 adds an Comments

(Little Green Footballs)

gatherings or events “which involved no official business,” Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:47:26 AM and spending campaign funds for P h i l a n d e r i n g c r e a t i o n i s t personal use such as buying a governor Mark Sanford has now t i c k e t t o a t t e n d P r e s i d e n t been charged with 37 counts of O b a m a ’ s i n a u g u r a t i o n i n violating South Carolina ethics J a n u a r y . laws. South Carolina law requires state The complaint follows a three- officials to buy the lowest fares m o n t h i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n t o available for flights, and bars the Sanford’s use of taxpayer money. use of state aircraft for personal Sanford is accused of using tax use. money to buy business-class Sanford’s office did not respond a i r f a r e o n d o m e s t i c a n d to requests for comment about international flights, flying on a the charges. state-owned aircraft to political

Wikileaks Says It Has Half-a-Million 9/11 Pager Messages

Reuters, AP Refuse To Cover Cricket Matches Over Restrictive Press Accreditation Rules By Mike Masnick (Techdirt)

technically, these leagues cannot stop news organizations from covering their events, they can Sports leagues around the world restrict what kind of access they have been trying to put more and have. Of course, for basic more restrictive rules on various coverage, when the events are j o u r n a l i s t s a n d n e w s televised, reporters could just as organizations when it comes to easily cover the event while reporting on their events. In the watching it on TV. Still, it's been US, both the NFL and the MLB disappointing that the major news have put ridiculous restrictions organizations have refused to on what reporters can write about stand up to the football and or post on their websites. While, baseball leagues over this attempt Submitted at 11/24/2009 4:56:43 PM

to restrict their reporting. Apparently, they only do that on sports that don't get as much attention (in the US, at least). Last year, we wrote how the press was planning to boycott various cricket matches over similar attempts to limit reporting. And, once again, major news organizations like Reuters are proudly announcing that they will not be covering certain cricket matches due to the

press policies. The Associated Press has announced similar plans, and says that the AFP is also refusing to cover the matches. At what point do these sports leagues realize that they're better off with press coverage than without? Permalink| Comments| Email This Story

By Kevin Poulsen (Wired Top Stories) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:56:00 AM

The document-leaking site Wikileaks says it’s preparing to release 500,000 intercepted wireless pager messages from a 24-hour period encompassing the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

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Can Universities Make Sure That Drugs Based On Their Research Are Licensed Reasonably?

By Mike Masnick (Techdirt)

Remains of the Day: The Declaration of Google Wave Edition [For What It's Worth]

Submitted at 11/25/2009 1:44:39 AM

By Adam Pash (Lifehacker)

such "principles" are nice to speak about, but are rarely effective in actually creating Joseph Franklin has written change. I would think that a about how a group of universities much stronger argument is have agreed to some basic showing the economic benefits in principles(pdf) about providing keeping people alive. If you drugs to developing nations at could rid some developing reasonable costs (or even free) in nations of certain diseases, you'd the interest of better global be able to open up vast new healthcare. However, Franklin markets for other industries. wonders how well this will work Hell, imagine if you could get in practice, and why it should companies in other industries only apply to developing nations, (food, clothing, transportation, and not domestically as well. It's etc.) to pay for drugs for the poor an interesting question, made in developing nations, knowing more complicated by the fact that that keeping them healthy will many drugs have their research help those nations build their s t a r t e d a t u n i v e r s i t i e s - - economy so they can start frequently backed by government p u r c h a s i n g t h e s a m e f o o d , money -- but are later taken over clothing and transportation... by pharmaceutical companies Permalink| Comments| Email who have no interest in such This Story principles. I tend to think that

Yahoo Keeps Debuting Search Updates, Despite Looming Bing Takeover By Ryan Singel (Wired Top Stories) Submitted at 11/24/2009 2:30:00 PM

Yahoo introduced new search features Tuesday and last week, showing its not giving up on search just yet. But can it survive By Tony Borroz (Wired Top outsourcing its core search Stories) function to Bing? Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:00:00 PM

Submitted at 11/24/2009 4:00:00 PM

Software Update: iPhoto 8.1.1 released

The Declaration of Independence hits Google Wave, Firefox CPU problems are causing some laptops heating issues, and a brilliant little By Chris Rawson (The iPhoto 8.1, there's an extra step application may someday turn Unofficial Apple Weblog you should take after installing your webcam into an impressive (TUAW)) the 8.1.1 update. Select all those 3D scanner. photos, Control-click to open the • Declaration of Independence Submitted at 11/24/2009 5:45:00 PM contextual menu, and then on Google Wave Folks may or Filed under: iLife, Software, choose Detect Missing Faces. may not ever catch onto Google S o f t w a r e U p d a t e I f y o u ' r e This will redetect the faces in Wave for productive purposes, running iLife'09, fire up Software those photos and correct any face but it's been gangbusters for fun Update, because Apple has a bug recognition issues introduced in ideas like this Declaration of fix update out for you. iPhoto iPhoto 8.1. You should not quit Independence wave. (You'll need 8.1.1 "addresses issues affecting iPhoto during the Detect Missing a Wave account.) [Google Wave] face recognition performance and Faces process. iPhoto Update • Thanksgiving themes for accuracy. It also fixes minor 8.1.1 is a 12.5 MB update Firefox Weblog Mozilla Links issues in the areas of book available now in Software r o u n d s u p a f e w f u n o r d e r i n g , a n d i P o d t o u c h Update. Thanksgiving-themed Firefox support." TUAW Software Update: iPhoto personas for your one-click There's an extra step for getting 8.1.1 released originally appeared skinning enjoyment. [Mozilla Faces recognition working on The Unofficial Apple Weblog Links] properly if you imported pictures (TUAW) on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 • Firefox: Heat and the CPU in iPhoto 8.1, which Apple 17:45:00 EST. Please see our usage problem Firefox CPU details on the support page for terms for use of feeds. usage problems are apparently the update: Read| Permalink| Email this| causing some problems on Important: If you imported Comments laptops, particularly of the photos of people while using ultraportable variety. [CNET] • Amazing Software Turns Cheap Webcam Into Instant 3D Scanner A very cool 3DThe youngest of the three wins. scanning software turns your Chevrolet brothers meets an early regular old webcam into a saucy end in the middle of a race at the 3D scanner. [Wired] end of a season. And yet, he

Nov. 25, 1920: Gaston Chevrolet Dies in Race Crash

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It Came From The Future: The Copenhagen Diagnosis The Gorgeous First Else Smartphone [Video] (Little Green Footballs)

been no significant changes in the underlying warming trend. Acceleration of melting of iceTwenty-six climatologists from sheets, glaciers and ice-caps: A around the world have released a wide array of satellite and ice By Stan Schroeder new report in advance of the measurements now demonstrate (Mashable!) Copenhagen climate summit beyond doubt that both the t i t l e d T h e C o p e n h a g e n Greenland and Antarctic iceSubmitted at 11/25/2009 4:36:48 AM Diagnosis, with startling findings sheets are losing mass at an Could First Else, the upcoming based on the latest peer-reviewed increasing rate. Melting of smartphone from Israeli company research, suggesting that sea glaciers and ice-caps in other Emblaze Mobile, be vaporware? levels are rising much faster than parts of the world has also Very little is known of the actual even the IPCC has projected. accelerated since 1990. final product (carriers, price and The executive summary of the Rapid Arctic sea-ice decline: exact specifications are all while the operating system is report is more than a little Summer-time melting of Arctic unknowns), which means that Access Linux Platform, which alarming: sea-ice has accelerated far what we see now could be very was announced back in 2006. but S u r g i n g g r e e n h o u s e g a s beyond the expectations of d i f f e r e n t f r o m w h a t w e ’ l l has never appeared on any actual emissions: Global carbon dioxide climate models. This area of seaeventually see in stores (if it ever device on the market. emissions from fossil fuels in ice melt during 2007-2009 was makes it that far). All that aside, what impressed us 2008 were nearly 40% higher about 40% greater than the But, being the geeks that we are, is the fluid, innovative interface than those in 1990. Even if global average prediction from IPCC we just can’t ignore the sheer of First Else; we’re not sure how emission rates are stabilized at AR4 climate models. beauty of First Else’s futuristic well it’ll work in real life usage, present –day levels, just 20 more Current sea-level rise UI that was unveiled at an event but it definitely looks impressive, years of emissions would give a underestimates: Satellites show in London. especially since you can mostly 25% probability that warming great global average sea-level The device sports a TI OMAP control it with a single finger. exceeds 2 o C. Even with zero rise (3.4 mm/yr over the past 15 3430 processor, a 854×480 pixel, See a detailed demonstration in emissions after 2030. Every year years) to be 80% above past 3 . 5 - i n c h c a p a c i t i v e L C D the video below. of delayed action increase the I P C C p r e d i c t i o n s . T h i s touchscreen, a 5-megapixel chances of exceeding 2 o C acceleration in sea-level rise is camera, and a 1450mAh battery, warming. consistent with a doubling in Recent global temperatures contribution from melting of demonstrate human-based glaciers, ice caps and the warming: Over the past 25 years Greenland and West-Antarctic temperatures have increased at a ice-sheets. rate of 0.190C per decade, in Sea-level prediction revised: By every good agreement with 2100, global sea-level is likely to predictions based on greenhouse rise at least twice as much as gas increases. Even over the past projected by Working Group 1 of ten years, despite a decrease in the IPCC AR4, for unmitigated (ETonline - Breaking News) Khloe and Lamar! Brad and solar forcing, the trend continues emissions it may well exceed 1 Angie! Take a look at some of Submitted at 11/25/2009 3:00:00 AM to be one of warming. Natural, meter. The upper limit has been Hollywood's hottest couples! Keith and Nicole! George and Who else made the cut?! Take a short- term fluctuations are estimated as – 2 meters sea-level occurring as usual but there have rise by 2100. Sea-level will Elisabetta! David and Victoria! look! Submitted at 11/24/2009 3:01:03 PM

Crazy in Love: Hollywood's Hottest Couples!

continue to rise for centuries after global temperature have been stabilized and several meters of sea level rise must be expected over the next few centuries. Delay in action risks irreversible damage: Several vulnerable elements in the climate system (e.g. continental ice-sheets. Amazon rainforest, West African monsoon and others) could be pushed towards abrupt or irreversible change if warming continues in a business-as-usual way throughout this century. The risk of transgressing critical thresholds (“tipping points”) increase strongly with ongoing climate change. Thus waiting for higher levels of scientific certainty could mean that some tipping points will be crossed before they are recognized. The turning point must come soon: If global warming is to be limited to a maximum of 2 o C above pre-industrial values, global emissions need to peak between 2015 and 2020 and then decline rapidly. To stabilize climate, a decarbonized global society – with near-zero emissions of CO 2 and other long -lived greenhouse gases – need to be reached well within this century. More specifically, the average annual per-capita emissions will have to shrink to well under 1 metric ton CO 2 by 2050. This is 80-90% below the per-capita emissions in developed nations in 2000.

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GOP Purity Purge-a-Palooza (Little Green Footballs)

(2) We support market-based health care reform and oppose Obama-style government run This is just unbelievable to me; healthcare; the national Republican Party is (3) We support market-based actually going to consider a energy reforms by opposing cap purity test that candidates for the and trade legislation; 2010 elections must swear to (4) We support workers’ right to uphold — or forfeit any GOP secret ballot by opposing card campaign money. The far right check; section of the GOP is really (5) We support legal immigration feeling its oats lately, and now and assimilation into American they’re trying to force the social society by opposing amnesty for conservative agenda down every illegal immigrants; Republican’s throat. (6) We support victory in Iraq Here’s the complete text of the and Afghanistan by supporting proposed purity oath: military-recommended troop T H E R E F O R E B E I T surges; RESOLVED, that the Republican (7) We support containment of National Committee identifies I r a n a n d N o r t h K o r e a , ten (10) key public policy particularly effective action to positions for the 2010 election eliminate their nuclear weapons cycle, which the Republican threat; National Committee expects its (8) We support retention of the public officials and candidates to Defense of Marriage Act; support: (9) We support protecting the ( 1 ) W e s u p p o r t s m a l l e r lives of vulnerable persons by government, smaller national opposing health care rationing debt, lower deficits and lower and denial of health care and taxes by opposing bills like government funding of abortion; Obama’s “stimulus” bill; and Submitted at 11/24/2009 10:53:28 AM

(10) We support the right to keep and bear arms by opposing government restrictions on gun ownership; and be further RESOLVED, that a candidate who disagrees with three or more of the above stated public policy position of the Republican National Committee, as identified by the voting record, public statements and/or signed questionnaire of the candidate, shall not be eligible for financial support and endorsement by the Republican National Committee; and be further RESOLVED, that upon the approval of this resolution the Republican National Committee shall deliver a copy of this resolution to each of Republican members of Congress, all Republican candidates for Congress, as they become known, and to each Republican state and territorial party office. Look in the cookbook under “failure.” That’s where you’ll find this recipe.

WKRP in Cincinnati: Turkeys Away By Bob Sassone (TV Squad)

including this one. It's the "Turkeys Away" episode of WKRP in Cincinnati that There aren't as many classic originally aired on October 30, Thanksgiving episodes of TV 1978. Carlson tries to come up shows as there are classic with a special promotion for the Christmas episodes. But there are station and, well, you'll see what several we remember fondly, happens. Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:03:00 AM

[Watch episodes of WKRP in Cincinnati and other shows at SlashControl.] Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Video, Reality-Free Permalink| Email this| | Comments

Update: Ky. Census Worker Committed Suicide (Little Green Footballs) Submitted at 11/24/2009 11:48:21 AM

In a bizarre twist, authorities in Kentucky have announced that census worker Bill Sparkman committed suicide and staged it to look like murder, possibly so that his family could collect on two life insurance policies. The Associated Press previously reported, citing law enforcement officials who spoke anonymously, that investigators were examining whether Sparkman manipulated the scene in order to conceal a suicide and make a life insurance claim possible for his son. The two law enforcement officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case. Life insurance policies typically do not cover suicides within a certain time period after the policy begins. Because he was a census employee, Sparkman’s family would have been eligible for up to $10,000 in death gratuity payments if he was killed on the job, according to the Office of Personnel Management. He was not eligible for a separate life

insurance policy through the government because his census work was intermittent, Census Bureau spokesman Stephen Buckner has previously said. Friends and co-workers have said that even while undergoing chemotherapy for cancer, Sparkman would show up for work smiling with a toboggan cap to cover his balding head. UPDATE at 11/24/09 1:28:54 pm: Since this news came out, I’ve received several angry emails demanding that I apologize for saying Sparkman had been murdered by a right wing extremist. The problem is, I never wrote anything like that. For the record, this was my post when the story broke, and I don’t apologize for a single word: There&##x2019;s not enough information yet to say for sure what was behind this killing, so let&##x2019;s not jump to conclusions. But the description of the circumstances and the timing (around the time of the Washington DC tea party) raises a strong suspicion that antigovernment sentiment may have been the motivation.

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World Net Daily Publisher Calls for Theocracy

Buy a One-Day Lounge Pass for Better Airline Service [Air Travel Tip]

(Little Green Footballs)

By Kevin Purdy (Lifehacker)

Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:46:32 PM

Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:00:00 AM

one of those judgments is the explosion of homosexuality in our culture and the absolute The publisher of World Net explosion in the number of Daily, Joseph Farah, is openly people accepting it, condoning it c a l l i n g f o r t h e o c r a t i c and even rejoicing in it. totalitarianism in the United Whether you are a believer or States, in an almost unbelievable not, this affects you. It shapes the a r t i c l e t h a t s a y s t h e U S world in which you and your government should enforce children live. If you think your Biblical law or God will destroy society is depraved now, you us — and once again, it all boils have seen nothing yet. down to a reeking puddle of There’s plenty of empirical homophobic bigotry: Why sin evidence to prove it even to the cannot be condoned by state. most skeptical observer. America is being judged by God. When societies accept, condone The biblical proof text is and embrace sin, they are judged. Romans 1. And Farah’s bad craziness is I am not stating the obvious here endorsed and supported by top – that individuals will be judged GOP politicians. The Republican for their behavior in the afterlife. N a t i o n a l C o m m i t t e e e v e n What I am saying is we are advertises at Farah’s insane already being judged in the here website. and now for rejecting God and

No. 3 Longhorns end Pitt's November win streak By Associated Press (ESPN.com) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:05:31 AM

Fast Facts • The Longhorns improved to 8-1 in their last nine against unranked opponents, outscoring the Panthers 46-28 after being down two at the end of the first half.

• Damion James led the way with 20 points and 9 rebounds for the Longhorns. • Texas became the first team to score more than 60 points on Pittsburgh this season. -- ESPN Stats & Information This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Leaving on a jet plane for the long holiday weekend? The Wall Street Journal suggests a few tips to overcome the stress of delayed flights, including a suggestion to cool your heels in the first class lounge. Photo by joiseyshowaa. Many airlines have changed their policies and fees on bag checking, security, and other protocols since 2008. Even if you're up to date, your fellow passengers may not be, and there's always the chance your flight won't leave on time, regardless. If you're facing down a delayed or missed flight, the Journal suggests a few tactics, including one that makes waiting out a serious delay a bit more palatable: • Use kiosks. Some airlines allow rebooking at kiosks, in addition to buying upgrades or better seating. • Know your rights. If a flight is canceled for an airline problem, such as a mechanical breakdown or crew-scheduling problem, the airline is responsible for your

hotel and meals if you get stranded. If it's a weather problem, you're on your own. If you are involuntarily bumped from a flight, you are entitled to cash compensation, not airline vouchers. If the airline loses your bag, it has to provide reasonable temporary replacements for toiletries and clothing. • Use airline lounges or clubs if you run into trouble. Buy a day pass and escape the masses. Also, the staffers in clubs are usually

the airline's most experienced agents and often the most helpful. It can be worth the cost of a day pass just to get someone to help you rebook. Ever bought yourself a pass into the sky-high-roller's club? Tell us what it's like, and share your other air travel tips, in the comments. How to Survive Thanksgiving Travel[WSJ.com via The Simple Dollar]

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Diagnose and Protect Your iPhone from Worms [Security] By Whitson Gordon (Lifehacker)

password to keep you from easily deleting it. The iPhone/Privacy.A worm is Submitted at 11/24/2009 5:00:00 PM harder to detect, as it doesn't There's been a lot of talk about leave anything on the iPhone malicious software on jailbroken itself—it uses computers to steal iPhones lately, but if you haven't information from iPhones been paying close attention, tech connected to nearby wireless site Network World has a networks. You should, however, breakdown of the worms running have no problem identifying if wild and how to eradicate them it's made its way to your from your device. computer as long as you have As of right now, there are a total antivirus software (and yes, of three known iPhone worms, you're vulnerable even if you're some more harmful than others. running OS X or Linux, so pick You're only vulnerable if you've up some antivirus software to jailbroken your iPhone and make sure you aren't spreading enabled SSH without changing this stuff around!). the default password, though, so If you think you may be if you're still running on factory infected, hit the link to get settings, fear not. If you do fall directions on how to remove into the jailbreaker crowd, them from your device. Also, though, read on to make sure unless your wallpaper was from your iPhone. If you have whether you have a worm or not, you're not infected, and then already a picture of Rick Astley, the second, unnamed worm, it make sure you protect yourself scroll to the bottom for steps on in which case check the top of will direct Dutch bank customers by changing your iPhone's how to re-secure your device. the wallpaper, which, if installed to a fake phishing site in hopes of default root password. It also The first worm is the Ikee worm, by the worm, says "Ikee is never collecting your bank information. might be a good idea to install which merely changes your going to give you up." An infection of the unnamed SBSettings from Cydia so you wallpaper to a picture of Rick The other two worms (the first worm exhibits low battery life as can turn SSH off when you don't Astley (of Rickroll-meme fame). called iPhone/Privacy.A and the a symptom, as it's running a need it—no sense in having your I f y o u ' r e f a m i l i a r w i t h second being unnamed at the background process to spread iPhone more vulnerable than it Rickrolling, you may proceed to moment) are more dangerous, as itself to other iPhones via WiFi. needs to be. De-Worm Your feel embarrassed. It's pretty easy they collect personal information It also changes your default SSH iPhone[Network World] to tell if you have this worm,

Facebook paves way for IPO (Financial Times - US homepage) Submitted at 11/24/2009 4:13:50 PM

Facebook has followed Google’s

lead and introduced a dual-class stock structure, the clearest sign yet that the world’s most popular social networking site is preparing for an eventual public

offering. In doing so, Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s 25-year-old chief executive, looks to be solidifying his long-term grip on the site he

founded five years ago that has become the fourth most popular destination on the web. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Perform By Michael Pascua (TV Squad) Submitted at 11/25/2009 2:35:00 AM

( S06E17) This week determines the top ten of So You Think You Can Dance. We welcome the top twelve dancers and judging by the audience, Legacy and Jakob are the most loved. With Dancing with the Stars ending this week, I'm happy that I can devote more time to this show because the dancing is a higher caliber and it isn't just a celebrity popularity contest. Tonight we got to see the first Can Can and the return of the Lindy Hop. I am happy that the show continues to break the boundaries of dance and shine a light on new choreographers. Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Perform Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance Permalink| Email this| | Comments

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Screenr Shares Screencasts on Twitter, YouTube, and More [Screencasting] By Jason Fitzpatrick (Lifehacker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:30:00 AM

Screenr is a web-based screencasting application that makes sharing short screencasts painless. You can see Screenr in action as we demonstrate how to search Lifehacker.com with Google. Screenr is Twitter-centric but sports a high-degree of functionality even if you don't actively use Twitter. You can easily tweet your screencasts from Screenr—the default, unless you specify otherwise is to share your screencasts on Twitter. If you opt to not share the screencast on Twitter you can

download it as an MP4, upload it to YouTube, embed the screencast, or simply share the URL via email or IM. When you start the Screenr recording tool you can specify which region of the screen you

put together demonstrating how to search Lifehacker.com via Google instead of the built-in search tool here on the site: If you're stuck on a computer where you can't watch flash video the secret sauce is to type: site:lifehacker.com your-searchterms-here in the Google query box. Want a beefier screencasting tool? Check out the Hive Five on screencasting tools here. Screenr is free, requires a Twitter-account want to record—it uses a simple for login, and has a limit of 5 drag-to-resize box—and what minutes per screencast. Know of audio input, if any, you'll be a n o t h e r g r e a t w e b - b a s e d using. Hit the record button to screencasting tool? Let's hear start and the big green Done a b o u t i t i n t h e c o m m e n t s . button to end your recording. Screenr[via FreewareGenius] Below is a quick screencast we

Test Out Google's New Search Look [Google] By Kevin Purdy (Lifehacker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:40:00 AM

Google has, according to some Gizmodo readers, offering up a bolder but more condensed view of its home and search results pages to certain users. Take a full -size look, and try it out for yourself with some JavaScript magic. Our own tips box isn't lit up with readers seeing this new, more Google-Wave-like interface, but Gizmodo reader Matt Karolian sent over these pics that look a

little bit too polished and thought out to be a reader joke (we'd hope/think). Most notable is the permanent sidebar being shown, which breaks searches down into

"News," "Maps," "Everything," and the more familiar drop-down "More" options. Update: Google Blogoscoped already has a JavaScript tweak

that gets anyone into Google's new look test. Head to Blogoscoped, copy the code, paste it into your address bar, and refresh Google's page. You may, like Phillip (and I), have to sign out and back in to get it to work, but it did eventually show up for me. What do you think of Google's maybe-new look? Could the search giant use a new coat of paint after all these years? Google Search's New Interface Being Tested Now[Gizmodo]

The Price Is Right's Rich Fields has officially lost his mind By Danny Gallagher (TV Squad) Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:25:00 AM

I can't imagine the discipline and training it must take to be a top notch TV game show announcer. But whether it involves daily gargling, diction concentration exercises or repeating phrases like "My grandmother brought candy to the bigamist" over and over, it must take a toll on your sanity. That's the only explanation I can fathom for The Price Is Right announcer Rich Fields' slow cognitive eradication as evidenced by this video. Let's hope gets a "brand new braaaiin" real soon. Filed under: Video, Celebrities, Game Show, Reality-Free Permalink| Email this| | Comments

Photochrom Travel By Kevin Collins (Flickr Blog) Submitted at 11/24/2009 10:53:14 PM

• About Flickr Flickr is a revolution in photo storage, sharing and organization, making photo management an easy, natural and collaborative process. Get comments, notes, and tags on your photos, post to any blog, share and more! This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Make Any Pair of Gloves Work with a Touchscreen [DIY] By Kevin Purdy (Lifehacker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:00:00 AM

It's getting cold outside in many regions, and gloves are becoming the norm. If you want to control your touchscreen phone without exposing your hands, or paying for specialty gloves, Instructables suggests grabbing a needle, and some conductive thread. Conductive thread窶馬o, we'd never heard of it, either. Instructables user Grathio points us to this explanation at Fashioning Technology, which also suggests where to grab some of it. You won't need to be skilled at sewing to pull off this glove modification, but you will need to take the time to test out what works with your screen. Grathio suggests leaving a wider, messier spread of thread on the

inside of the glove to facilitate contact with your finger, but limiting the thread exposed on the outside to a tightly wound circle, about a quarter inch in diameter. If you are good with a needle, you'll likely be able to make the end result look a little neater. And if you're really good and

Thunderbird 3 Release Candidate Available for Download [Downloads]

want to offer notes to anyone else looking to tackle this project, drop the advice (or link) in the comments here. Making A Glove Work With A Touch Screen[Instructables via The By Kevin Purdy (Lifehacker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:30:00 AM Gadgeteer]

browser these days. It'll be interesting to see if Thunderbird 3 can be an equal, or at least a Windows/Mac/Linux: The "near complement, to full-fledged -final" release of Thunderbird 3's webmail services like Gmail. release candidate has arrived, Thunderbird 3 is a free adding universal search, nearly download for Windows, Mac, automatic account setup, and and Linux systems. If you're an better RSS and calendar U b u n t u u s e r , g r a b b i n g management to Mozilla's desktop Thunderbird from the Ubuntu mail client. Grab a copy and see Mozilla Daily PPA is likely for yourself. easier than compiling from moments that I will never forget. We've often recommended source code. Note that, on some The look on Kym's face, kissing Thunderbird as a means of builds, Thunderbird may install my wife, and letting Marie hold backing up your webmail and as "Shredder," a kind of in-joke this. I brought her out on stage a c c e s s i n g G m a i l w h e n i t ' s about unstable code. Thunderbird and she held it." "down,", but, to be honest, most 3.0 Release Candidate 1[Mozilla ET caught up with Donny's wife Lifehacker editors (and readers, Messaging via gHacks] Debbie before the show. She we'd guess) are doing most of accurately predicted the outcome, their email management in a declaring, "I think he's won it窶ｦHe sold it last night."

Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson Show Off Mirror Ball Trophy (ETonline - Breaking News) Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:45:00 AM

It was a Donny and Kym show as Donny Osmond and his pro partner Kym Johnson took home the grand prize on "Dancing with the Stars" on Tuesday night. Not only did Donny beat out 15 other couples, he also won an intense case of sibling rivalry with sister

Marie, who also served as ET's special correspondent. She placed third in season five of the show and Donny was determined to outdo his little sister. ET's Mary Hart joined her to congratulate the dancers. Donny said that he did let Marie hold the trophy to share in his glory. The seasoned entertainer recalled, "There were three

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Social Aggregator Sobees Adds LinkedIn Support By Sarah Perez (ReadWriteWeb)

column offers Facebook-specific features like the ability to view photo albums and status updates Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:57:50 AM or check out profiles, friend lists, O n e o f t h e f i r s t s o c i a l and your inbox. Sobees Adds networking aggregators to take LinkedIn advantage of LinkedIn's brand- Similarly, the newly-launched new API is Sobees, whose two LinkedIn functionality will client applications both now offer include features specific to LinkedIn integration in addition LinkedIn. At launch time, those to the other supported networks. are as follows: A challenger to similar services • Update your status like TweetDeck, Seesmic, and • View connections PeopleBrowser, Sobees is a • View profiles social networking aggregation • Get updates (connections tool originally launched as a u p d a t e s , s t a t u s u p d a t e s , desktop app back in 2008 with a application updates, jobs posted, web app version added earlier groups joined, recommendations this year. Like its competitors, and profile changes) Sobees' clients use a columnar • Search or search with advanced interface to display real-time functionality updates from sites like Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace. While the desktop version of the Sponsor program is Windows-only, the Sobees essentially functions as a web-based application is built social networking client for the using Microsoft's Silverlight sites it supports, each site with its technology which works on any own column and separate set of operating system, even Linux. functions and tabs. For example, When you go to set up the web in the Twitter column, you can version for the first time, you'll switch through tabs to see replies be presented with the four and direct messages and you can supported services and a button use buttons on the side to create reading "connect." At first, groups or view your favorites. clicking the connect button M e a n w h i l e , t h e F a c e b o o k seemed to have no effect but that

was because the browser's popup blocker was turned on and Sobees launches the authorization screens in a separate window. After navigating past this small obstacle, the rest of the set up process was completed in a matter of minutes. At this point, you're now presented with multiple columns containing the services you authorized during setup. You can also choose to add a real-time search column if desired and you can re-arrange the columns into a number of different layouts using the "change layout" button at the top. FactFinder API Integration Lets You Know if a Link is Worth Clicking Besides simply displaying the most recent updates from the various services, Sobees also offers a unique feature other social networking applications don't have - Factery's FactFinder API integration. ( Read more about Factery's API here). In short, this API allows the Sobees client to instantly and

automatically parse the URLs posted in Twitter links to help you determine whether or not the link is worth clicking. Using the FactFinder toggle button to the left of the column, your Twitter stream is filtered to show only links with Factery data. Once switched on, tweets with links are appended with the source URL and various "facts" snipped from the article being shared. Depending on the amount of info the API pulls, a "more..." link may appear at the bottom of the facts displayed. Click this link to see more facts - aka snippets - from the article in question and then click "less" to once again collapse the window. Anyone who has switched to Twitter as their primary source of news will love this sort of feature as you can get the gist of an article without ever leaving Twitter. If you're interested in trying the updated Sobees clients, you can download the desktop version here or load the web version at sobees.com/web. Discuss

Adam Lambert Talks Kiss Controversy on 'Early Show' (ETonline - Breaking News) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:02:00 AM

Clad in black from head-to-toe with shiny pants, a high collar jacket, fingerless gloves and his hair swept up, Adam Lambert rocked the "Early Show" on CBS -- after ABC canceled his "Good Morning America" appearance because of his racy American Music Awards performance. Touching on the controversy, Adam said he didn't mean to offend and yet also finds the backlash a double-standard. "If it had been a female pop performer, there wouldn't be nearly as much of an outrage," he noted. "I had no idea the performance would ignite this firestorm." However, he added that he could understand why some were upset. "I admit I did get carried away," he said. "I see how people got offended ... In the future, I will make an effort to stay consistent during rehearsal."

'The Biggest Loser''s Guilt-Free Thanksgiving Tips (ETonline - Breaking News) Submitted at 11/25/2009 12:01:00 AM

On Thanksgiving Eve, "The Biggest Loser" is giving fans of

the weight-loss series a treat when they bring back contestants from all the preceding seasons for " The Biggest Loser: Where Are They Now?"

ET spoke to season four winner Bill Germanakos and Nicole Brewer from "The Biggest Loser: Couples" season to find out what they do to ensure a guilt-free

Thanksgiving. "I know what works for me and Damien," Nicole tells ET. "We just have a spoonful of everything. We don't deprive

ourselves. We just try to eat slowly. If you are the first person to finish your plate, you are prone to go get another one."

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Enterprise 2.0: Study Shows Adoption is Real By Alex Williams (ReadWriteWeb)

Let's get to to the results: Manufacturing Has Surprising High Adoption Submitted at 11/24/2009 4:36:07 PM It's not surprising to see high When you look at Enterprise 2.0, tech companies as leading the you can see the hype pretty way in uses of Enterprise 2.0 clearly but what is not so evident technologies. But it's interesting is how social computing efforts that manufacturing businesses are are faring within corporations proving to be adopters. These are and large organizations. companies with roots deep in the That's what's striking about the industrial age that are showing report from the 2.0 Adoption that they see it as important to Council. The group did a web bring social computing into the survey of its 100 members with work of its employees. 77 responding. That may seem No Surprise About Early like a small number to use for A d o p t i o n any quantifiable conclusion about It should be no surprise that the state of Enterprise 2.0. But Enterprise 2.0 is still in the early the people who responded lead or adopter phase. help lead Enterprise 2.0 efforts at Budgets Are Healthy some of the largest organizations Budgets are less than $500,000 in the world. Thirty-four percent in most organizations but 52 of the respondents work for percent of the respondents have companies with more than budgets between $500,000 and 10,000 employees. Twenty-five $5 milliion. percent work for organizations Projects Are Well Under Way that have more than 100,000 Enterprise 2.0 is not just a employees. concept any more but a reality in Sponsor the enterprise with 34 percent These people have solid footing s a y i n g t h e y h a v e m u l t i p l e into how social enterprise projects underway. We are technologies are being adopted. curious about five percent having

though, that 55 percent of the respondents are very satisfied with their Enterprise 2.0 efforts. Another 26 percent of respondents are somewhat satisfied. Conclusion The 2.0 Adoption Council survey results unquestionably show that Enterprise 2.0 is well becoming a core part of organizations. The challenges Enterprise 2.0 technologies fully will come as more scrutiny is ingrained into their work places. placed on how the organization These must be more service benefits from Enterprise 2.0. oriented companies that do not What really is the ROI? We r e l y o n d e e p l y e n t r e n c h e d expect this question will answer technologies like ERP software. itself as more advanced analytics Who's Driving The Efforts provide more detailed views W e o f t e n u s e t e r m s l i k e about how the efforts are faring. "groundswell," to describe the A Final Note phenomena around social In addition to its survey applications in the consumer research, The Council has also world. In the enterprise, it's a released its first "how-to" different story. Adoption is often report,"A Framework for 2.0 user driven but management is Adoption in the Enterprise," dictating a lot of the efforts. which gives additional insight ROI is Hard To Define into how to successfully The one weakness that implement Enterprise 2.0 Enterprise 2.0 faces is the t e c h n o l o g i e s w i t h i n abstractness of its return on o r g a n i z a t i o n s . D i s c u s s investment. It's important to note,

'DWTS' Judge Carrie Ann Inaba Headed for Surgery (ETonline - Breaking News) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:26:00 AM

According to a report, "Dancing with the Stars" judge Carrie Ann Inaba will undergo surgery Wednesday. People magazine reports that the morning after the big "DWTS" finale in which Donny Osmond was crowned champion, Carrie Ann will have surgery in Los Angeles to treat spinal stenosis. "I have arthritis. The space around my spinal cord has become compressed," Carrie Ann told People. "I have been locked. My neck was so stiff. We're hoping this procedure will relieve that."

Abby's crossover to NCIS: Los Angeles was excellent By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)

What could they possibly do that would make the transfer of the ultimate forensics goth geek from Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:25:00 AM the cozy confines of her lab in I have to admit that when I D.C. to the high-tech, touch initially heard that Abby's s c r e e n c a r a v a n i n L . A . character would be crossing over c o m p e l l i n g ? f r o m N C I S t o N C I S : L o s Well, I tip my cap to Speed for writing the episode, "Random Angeles, my reaction was meh. Weed (that has to be an alias!) On Purpose," which struck me as

one of the best examples that NCIS: Los Angeles is coming together pretty nicely. I could definitely see now how this show is evolving. More on that and the rest of the episode (including spoilers -- be warned -- after the jump). Continue reading Abby's

crossover to NCIS: Los Angeles was excellent Filed under: OpEd, NCIS, Reality-Free Permalink| Email this| | Comments

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Navigation App Waze Makes Crowdsourced Map -Building a Game By Sarah Perez (ReadWriteWeb)

Sponsor Although Waze is an application dependent on critical mass to Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:58:06 AM become successful, they've The latest edition of mobile already had good results since navigation app Waze has just their original launch in Israel. In launched in the iTunes App Store less than a year's time, Waze was and on the Android Market Place able to map 91% of the country with the Symbian and Windows thanks to user involvement. The Mobile versions available on the company believes they will have Waze website. In this updated similar results here in the U.S. version, the company has added with highly populated urban even more features to their areas being mapped first with the already popular "munching" rest of the country following over game which sends a Pac-Man the coming months. Making like character loose on the roads Maps is Just a Game to help build the company's To encourage users to contribute mapping database and validate to the map-building process, the the roads already in place. company came up with an idea to Unlike other mobile navigation m a k e i t m o r e o f a g a m e . apps, Waze "crowdsources" its Originally, the Waze character map-making process, reliant on would appear and munch dots on its users to switch the app on the screen when you ventured when driving around town. Then, onto a road that didn't previously using the phone's built-in GPS exist in the company's database. capabilities, Waze uses the Now, with Waze 2.0, the gaming information sent back to create elements have been enhanced base maps and determine traffic even further. Users will now patterns in order to warn other munch on other goodies like users of traffic jams ahead. cherries, hammers, and small gift

packages which generate bonus points. The extra goodies will be placed on locations where the map has issues with the higherpoint items on maps with the most issues. To kick off this new release, the company is also hosting a contest dubbed the "Holiday High Points Challenge" which runs from November 25th through December 9th. During this time, which includes the busy traveling period of the Thanksgiving holidays, Waze hopes to tap into the high number of drivers who will be trekking around town and across the country to visit relatives. The top three users who earn the most points during this period will win Amazon gift cards in the amounts of $500, $300 and $200, for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places respectively. Crowdsourcing: Better Maps,

Faster The Waze application was one of the more innovative companies to appear at the most recent DEMO conference where they launched their turn-by-turn directions feature. Because they're not using map data from Tele Atlas or Navteq - the two big names that license map data to other companies for use in applications - Waze saves money while also being able to sell their own data to other companies at reduced rates. The company also claims that their crowdsourced method has dramatically shortened the months-long update cycle for maps. While Waze may not be ready to replace your in-dash GPS just yet, it gets closer every day as more roads are mapped and more users join the service. Early adopters who want to contribute to the project can download the mobile application from the company's homepage here. Discuss

Marc Anthony Rocks the House at Carlos Beltran Fundraiser (ETonline - Breaking News) Submitted at 11/24/2009 10:56:00 PM

New York Mets All-Star outfielder Carlos Beltrรกn put on the Carlos Beltrรกn Baseball Academy Fundraiser in Puerto Rico over the weekend, where Latin sensation Marc Anthony took the stage for a good cause! The Carlos Beltrรกn Academy is set to open in July 2010 and will prepare students for college, as well as help students with potential Major League Baseball careers. All proceeds from Sunday's event will benefit the Academy. Watch the video for more from the exciting night!

NY1 Anchors 2/3 of the Way to Terrible Trend [Curses] By Hamilton Nolan (Gawker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:26:07 AM

NY1 news anchors: Cursed? Portly (former) political anchor Dominic Carter ruined his own career by beating his wife and

trying to squirm out of it by name -dropping. Now, another anchor's dad is critically injured in a crack pipe fire. Dean Meminger is a 62 year-old former New York Knick and dad of Dean Meminger, Jr., a reporter

and anchor at NY1. Police found

discarded crack pipes at the scene of a fire in the Bronx that put the elder Meminger in critical condition last Sunday, and proceeded to leave 16 families homeless. Meminger has been battling cocaine addiction for

much of his adult life, according to the NYDN. Two's not quite an official trend. But if Pat Kiernan so much as stubs his toe any time soon, we advise everyone at NY1 to flee while you still can.

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The Most Influential Websites in the Ommwriter: Be Alone World: Wikipedia #1, Twitter #4 with Your Thoughts With a Bullet By Dana Oshiro (ReadWriteWeb)

By Richard MacManus (ReadWriteWeb) Submitted at 11/24/2009 8:10:40 PM

A year ago we profiled an oddlynamed service called://URLFAN, which we concluded was a good 'Influence Index' for the Web. ://URLFAN ranks websites by popularity, based on blog mentions. Unlike analytics services like Alexa or Compete, ://URLFAN doesn't measure website traffic. It's similar to Technorati, only ://URLFAN ranks all websites and not just blogs. We noted in our original review that ://URLFAN's ranking list will inevitably be biased towards users of social media - and in particular bloggers. That's a relatively small proportion of the world, however we think it's still a useful index because social media users are highly influential. With that in mind, which websites are currently ranked the most influential on the Web? Sponsor ://URLFAN is, as we write this, "currently ranking the popularity of 3,783,534 websites by parsing 302,023,552 blog posts from 5,948,937 blog feeds."

The list below is ://URLFAN's all-time top 10. The number in brackets to the right of each item is last year's top 10 ranking (Nov '08). #1. en.wikipedia.org (1) #2. youtube.com (3) #3. flickr.com (2) #4. twitter.com (9) #5. google.com (4) #6. myspace.com (6) #7. facebook.com (-) #8. imdb.com (5) #9. nytimes.com (7) #10. apple.com (8) There is one new entrant, Facebook at #7. washingtonpost.com moved out of the top 10, dropping from #10 last year to #12 this year. Twitter is the biggest mover, up 5 places to #4. Wikipedia is still the most cited website on the Web, for social media users and bloggers. YouTube and Flickr, two oftused media sharing services, occupy the next two spots. Last year we noted that there were 10 independent blogs in the top 100, including ReadWriteWeb. There are the

same number this year, with a couple of new entrants. Here is the blog list circa November '09, again with last year's rank bracketed: #23 techcrunch.com (#25) #26 huffingtonpost.com (#32) #33 engadget.com (#28) #37 boingboing.net (#29) #39 gizmodo (-) #41 mashable.com (#91) #53 arstechnica.com (#50) #60 lifehacker.com (#63) #78 readwriteweb.com (#97) #93 smashing magazine (-) Finally, what's new at ://URLFEED this year? You guessed it, a Real-Time Web feature! The site has introduced a Real-time Buzz Radar, which tracks buzzwords in the blogosphere. 'Chrome OS' is number 5 on the list currently, on the back of Google's Chrome OS event last week. ://URLFAN isn't a perfect measure of influence - you could easily argue that Google's PageRank is far better. However we continue to like the concept and we believe it's an accurate and up-to-date reflection of influential websites on the Web. Discuss

Submitted at 11/24/2009 5:10:31 PM

Between Skype, chat, texts, push news notifications and three screens of scrolling feeds, it's easy to get distracted while writing an email or post. If you've misspelled names, forgotten words or hit send prematurely on numerous occasions, then you probably just need to slow down. Rather than resorting to a life in the woods of hermit-like solitude, you could just take a few moments to think with Ommwriter. Sponsor Built by Barcelona-based design agency Herraiz Soto & Co., Ommwriter is a gorgeous Mac download that allows users to block out other applications and focus on their writing. The company originally created Ommwriter for their own internal use but quickly realized the service's consumer appeal. Ommwriter from Herraiz Soto on Vimeo. Similar to WriteRoom, users download the writing tool and install it on their desktop. Upon

opening it, you receive a distraction-free environment with just a few spartan font choices and an export feature. While WriteRoom offers a CRT monitor-style interface, Ommwriter offers a white Zenlike experience. Keystroke sounds can be replaced by plinking water or what sound like soft footsteps in snow and users can choose to play ambient music or keep their writing space dead silent. If you're the type of person who is married to iPhone editing and a large feature set for word processors, then this is not your tool. But if you just want a few moments to collect your thoughts, then this is a great way to do it. To register for this free service visit ommwriter.com. Discuss

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Firefox's Plan to Kick the Login's Butt By Jolie O'Dell (ReadWriteWeb)

notes. Sponsor Our friends at Mozilla posted Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:00:46 PM this teaser back in the spring, Firefox gets distributed social when they touted a way to n e t w o r k i n g a n d i d e n t i t y eliminate clicks and keystrokes management. between navigating to and being The good people who work on recognized by a given website. the revolutionary, open-sourced, Our own Marshall Kirkpatrick and occasionally maligned enthused, "Earlier this week, we browser have been hard at work argued that browsers and social on making cross-site navigation networks were fast converging, and portable IDs a solvable and that with more users and problem. A discrete button to the some feature advantages, Firefox left of the URL that can tell users could be the best real competition whether or not they are logged in for Facebook... This is just one to a particular site and allow more chapter in a much larger them to log in without further story - but look how easy this n a v i g a t i o n ? A c c u s e u s o f makes OpenID to use!" punning, but definitely sign us But now, Mozilla's UX chief up. Google Chrome: Start taking Aza Raskin has posted more

updates to his personal blog that indicate new hotness is coming soon. The new feature will harness the power of Mozilla's

Weave to make your online identity something that's stored in your back pocket more than it's stored in your cookies or a third party's server. Decrying redirects and iframes, Raskin tells of a brave new world where an in-browser button that defies navigational difficulties allows for something closer to true identity portability than we've seen yet: Identity will be one of the defining themes in the next five years of the Web. Nearly every site has a concept of a user account, registration, and identity. Searching for "sign in" on Google yields over 1.8 billion hits. And yet, the browser does nothing to make this experience better save for some basic auto

form filling. The browser leaves websites to re-implement identity management, and forces users to learn a new scheme for every site... Your identity is too important to be owned by any one company. Finally! They said it! And now, we give you screenshots: So, what's the verdict, readers? Does this surpass Chrome's identity-porting capabilities? Does this create massive privacy issues for users who don't want their personal traffic tracked? Discuss

Mobile Movie Search Gets the Google Treatment By Jolie O'Dell (ReadWriteWeb) Submitted at 11/24/2009 6:22:23 PM

Smartphone users just got an early holiday treat from Google. Now, when searching for movies on their iPhones or Palm WebOS - or Android-powered devices, users can get not only theatres, showtimes, and films; they can also get trailers, ratings, and proximity-based information. This way, you can get in the car and peal out of the driveway before conducting a desktop search for movies, thus saving yourself another excruciating 5

minutes of "holiday cheer" with the family. Sponsor In a quotation-laced post on the Google Mobile blog, Google mobile UX designer Nick Fey revealed that information will be available in English only for now in the US, UK, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. Users of the abovementioned devices can now go to google.com in their web browsers. After searching for the term "movies," users can then tap on the "More movies" link for a panoply of new features and aggregated data. Users can then

posters, and every other imaginable detail about the films listed. The information will also browse through film titles or include upcoming showtimes for the nearest theaters, which are nearby theatres. One of the most welcome conveniently presented in a features is the ability to play Google Maps interface. movie trailers in the mobile "We keep information on this browser without having to page succinct," said Fey, "so you n a v i g a t e e l s e w h e r e . T h i s can quickly browse through eliminates the usual need for shows and showtimes to help you m u l t i p l e b r o w s e r t a b s o r decide which movie to see. If you frustrating cross-app navigation. want more details about a Here's a spiffy demo video from specific movie, just touch the poster or movie title and you'll our friends at Google: The new features also include see our new movie details page ratings and categories, movie that has a synopsis of the movie, a more detailed list of showtimes,

the cast and crew, and pictures." In a way, the features remind us a bit of SkinniPopcorn, a web and mobile app that integrates movie-related Twitter data, movie trailers, film reviews from the New York Times, and synopses. And that site is available on any mobile device with a web browser. Still, for the map and showtime information, Google wins this round. Discuss

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Editors' Picks for the Wired.com Sleep Photo Contest

Alistair Overeem: Real Threat in K-1

By Jon Snyder (Wired Top Stories)

By Michael David Smith (FanHouse)

Submitted at 11/24/2009 5:00:00 PM

: Though Wired.com readers selected 10 excellent photos in our sleep photo contest, we here at the photo department like to fight for the underdog. Here are our 10 favorite submissions that we think deserved more attention. The morning after by J.C. Rojas "Morning comes and you know the sun will wake her up pretty soon. You take a mental note on

how the light looks on her legs before leaving.": Seasons by Jorge Aragon "Dreaming about the sun": The Cocoon by Alexandra Mederrick "Suspending sleep, hammocked in dreams fluttering; secluded now until she wakes.": Jerusalem Syndrome by CoVisions "Late-nite at the Western Wall ...": Mizouen's Back by Van Royko "France has co-ed hostels. Go figure. This girl was sleeping in the bed across from me. I liked

the light.": Linn-Kjersti by Anonymous "Sleeping beauty": Asleep at the Wheel by Eric J Scott "This taxi driver in Delhi seemed exhausted.": Beauty Sleep by Anonymous "All that glitters is gold": sleepy sleepy by adeyinka s "sleeping on d bus home": Book Store Nap by Mark Lazarus "Taken in the Tattered Cover bookstore in downtown Denver."

Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:30:00 AM

by Michael David Smith Filed under: K1 The K-1 World Grand Prix 2009 is the year's biggest kickboxing event, and as we get ready for the December 5 show, we have K-1 announcer Michael Schiavello offering his commentary on each of the fighters. His thoughts on

Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, an MMA fighter taking kickboxing by storm, are below. Alistair Overeem: Real Threat in K-1 originally appeared on Fanhouse MMA Blog on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 06:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs| Comments

eBay Introduces Bargain-Hunting Deals App for the iPhone By Darrell Etherington (TheAppleBlog)

remaining in their auction times, with no reserve price and free or fixed rate shipping, and a total Submitted at 11/24/2009 11:21:55 AM price that includes shipping costs. The biggest shopping day of the In other words, with the deals the year for Americans is this Friday, app presents, you pay exactly the the dreaded Black Friday, and price listed. people are in a consuming mood. The app opens with a few At the same time, economic featured daily deals already pressures have folks watching displayed in rotation on the main what they spend. eBay today screen. You can then click on introduced a new app that category buttons at the bottom, c a p i t a l i z e s o n b o t h t h o s e choosing between apparel, sports, impulses, called Deals. computers, instruments, jewelry, Deals shares a lot of the electronics, collectibles, and functionality of the more full photography to view auctions featured eBay mobile app, but it from those categories that fit the ruinous for those with strong specifically targets eBay’s daily criteria I mentioned above. impulse buying urges), but if you deals, and any zero bid items that The built-in searches are great want to target items more h a v e l e s s t h a n f o u r h o u r s for idle browsing (and possibly

specifically, you can either search on the fly, or create and save your own custom search. Creating a custom search allows you to specify keywords, a category, and a price range, and also assign an icon that will be displayed alongside the other default categories at the bottom of the app screen. If you’d rather not save your search, there’s a magnifying glass icon at the top of the app that you can use instead to launch a one-time search. Next to that is another button that lists all the deals found in your most recent search. In use, I found that there wasn’t enough search criteria to ensure truly focused results. I’d

love the addition of an “at least x dollars” filter, so that when I search for “iPhone,” for example, I can filter out most accessories and replacement parts. Finally, you can sign in with your eBay account so that you can pay on the fly for any deal you find via the app with PayPal. The idea behind the app, after all, is to make sure eBay customers have access to the site no matter where they are. Apparently eBay mobile wasn’t driving enough business, and the Deals app is designed to remedy that situation. The app is free in the U.S. store ( iTunes link), but beware the hidden costs of shopaholism.

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A Tale of Two Hard Drives: Apple’s Secret Weapon? By Dave Greenbaum (TheAppleBlog) Submitted at 11/24/2009 8:00:25 AM

In my day job, helping people with computers, I see many failed hard drives. If the computer is under warranty, I’ll always try to get the system manufacturer to replace the drive rather than order a new one for the customer. Recently, two clients came in, one right after another, and it really illustrated the differences between Apple and everyone else when it comes to hardware support. “ Lauren” bought a sub$1000 PC, but didn’t consider the support costs and time involved. If she had, she might have second thoughts about her decision to buy a PC. The Dell Experience Client #1 comes in because Windows won’t boot. The minute she turns on the PC, I know the problem. It’s that horrible high-pitched clicking noise that is worse than nails on a chalkboard to any technician. It’s obvious the drive has failed and the solution is to replace it. I booted off a test CD and verified the hard drive failure. Fortunately the computer is under warranty. No big deal, Dell should replace the hard drive. I call Dell. After 20 minutes on hold, I’m not getting

a live person, so I try the online chat and wait and wait and wait. Eventually, someone comes online. The first obstacle is that the client is a student and the father bought the computer via his work. Dell will not assist us until we tell them the owner of the computer and the shipping address. Arrrgh. So we play a multiple choice game for about 20 minutes trying to find out which name and address it was under. We are now at about an hour. When we get the “correct” answer to the shipping address, our tech then begins to help us. I explain that the hard drive is making a high pitched clicking noise and the system doesn’t show a hard drive. First, the tech wants me to try a special diagnostic that is preformed off the hard drive. Of course the hard drive is dead, so we go back and forth with that I must be doing something wrong. His English was so shaky that I often didn’t understand his questions. (How does one answer ”Is this issue not facing now?”) Eventually the tech believes I’m doing it right and then asks me to boot off a CD that come with the system, which of course the client doesn’t have. We’re supposed to look for the disks

and contact them again, but I refused. The client didn’t know where the disk is and we needed this resolved. Eventually, the support person realizes we don’t have the disk, but he now wants us to open up the computer and reset everything. We’re now at the 1.5 hour mark. Eventually the agent agrees the hard drive should be replaced. Thank you! However, they must ship the hard drive to one of their contracted field techs per her warranty. Actually, that’s lucky; sometimes you have to ship the computer back to Dell. Her warranty was “upgraded” to include on-site repair. The tech will then contact her to set a time to install the hard drive. Three days later, there was no contact from the tech, no hard drive.

Fortunately, I gave her a loaner and got her up and running. We tried calling Dell to no avail. There was no record of the request for the hard drive. Eventually we contacted Dell “Unresolved Issues” and the hard drive was shipped. Total time on the phone: three hours. Delay in hard drive replacement: almost two weeks. The time involved on the chat I assure you is very typical and it’s not just Dell. I see it with HP/Compaqs as well. Service is simply not part of their deal. The Apple Experience My next client had a Macbook. I could hear it was the same problem immediately. Ironically, it was the same brand and size of hard drive as was in the Dell. I entered her serial number on Apple’s support web site, and it

London Published: November 24 2009 14:25 | Last updated: November 24 2009 23:28

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Obama vows to ‘finish job’ in Afghan conflict (Financial Times - US homepage) Submitted at 11/24/2009 3:28:23 PM

Obama vows to ‘finish job’ in Afghan conflict By Daniel Dombey in Washington and James Blitz in

showed the computer was still under warranty. We then set up a “Speak to an Apple Expert” callback for about 20 minutes later. On the dot, the technician called. I explained the loud noise and told the tech I booted off the Leopard DVD and the hard drive showed errors. He agreed to ship a new hard drive the next day. Total phone time was less than five minutes and it was 30 minutes from problem diagnosis to closure and less than 24 hours from the time I called until the new hard drive arrived on her doorstop. Again, this interaction was very typical. For the sake of argument, let’s say these clients didn’t use a consultant to solve their problem. The Mac client could have made an appointment with a genius if an Apple store or an Apple Authorized Service Provider for the repair. The PC client has no physical store she could go to unless she bought that PC at a store that also offered warranty repair. The phrase “Penny wise and Pound foolish” comes to mind. Did the first client end up saving money because she bought a PC?

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Magazine Publishers’ Plans May Not Should the App Store Be Tablet-Specific Let You Demo Apps? By Darrell Etherington (TheAppleBlog)

By David Klein (TheAppleBlog)

feel. I need to click around and play a little before I decide the fate of an app’s life on my Submitted at 11/24/2009 1:00:09 PM Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:00:25 AM iPhone. Source: Piper Jaffray Recently, here at TheAppleBlog, My question is: why won’t One of the strongest pieces of w e m a d e s o m e b a c k s t a g e Apple allow me to try an app evidence in support of the changes. Over time we realized before I buy it? The availability existence of an Apple tablet has that Socialcast was great for countdown works great for c o m e i n t o q u e s t i o n t o d a y . The company will prepare ambitions of the plan, this might sharing and discussing ideas, but content rented from the store like R e p o r t s t h a t C o n d é N a s t , magazines that can work across b e q u i t e a t r i c k y p r o c e s s . not ideal for handling business movies. I can play all I want for publisher of many magazine m u l t i p l e d i g i t a l p l a t f o r m s , Creating a product that remains related tasks. As a result, we 2 4 h o u r s , a n d t h e n i t ’ s titles, including The New Yorker w h e t h e r t h e i P h o n e , t h e uniform and recognizable across m a d e t h e j u m p o v e r t o deactivated. That would be ideal and Vogue, was preparing a BlackBerry or countless other devices is a major challenge. The Basecamp. It doesn’t have the for apps too. I download it, see digital format specifically for the digital devices. The company c o n s o r t i u m s i m p l i f i e s t h e microblog feel of Socialcast, but how it works, and after some Apple tablet may have overstated will not develop an e-book, but distribution portion of the it’s definitely easier to organize time the app prompts me to the case. purchase when launched. The create something that people equation, though, as a source and communicate. Instead, it looks like Condé Nast familiar with the plans compare explained to the Observer: When we made the switch, my prompt has a link to the app’s and others, including Hearst and to iTunes—a store where you can It’s pretty complicated stuff. The first thought was “I wonder if page in the store and I can make Time Inc., are banding together buy new and distinct iterations of really, really hard part is that there are any iPhone apps for my decision. This is often how to produce a digital distribution The New Yorker or Time. Print you’ve got so many different Basecamp!” A quick search in it’s done on the desktop. Why not joint venture, which will likely magazines will also be for sale. kinds of devices running on the Store reveals 17 Basecamp the iPhone? resemble an iTunes store for the If the deal is successful, different operating systems. And related apps ranging in price As for Basecamp, I ended up magazine industry. The store is according to the interim president how do you handle that? The from free to $12.99. As a sticking with the free version of apparently being designed with of the joint company, John consortium provides one point of potential buyer, how can I Sherpa. It covers the basics and it multiple platforms in mind, and S q u i r e s , a n o f f i c i a l contact for the consumer. When possibly decide which one is the doesn’t crash. I would prefer to is not being specifically targeted a n n o u n c e m e n t c o u l d b e you come to the main store, you best value? try them all, but that’s at a tablet device from Apple, forthcoming within weeks, and can get the content any way you One of my issues with the app i m p o s s i b l e . F o r n o w … which may or may not actually other major publishers could want. store is that ratings are very So, what do you think? Should exist. come on board as well. That I t ’ s p o s s i b l e t h a t t h i s i s inconsistent. A few complaints Apple implement a trial period A report in the New York doesn’t mean we’ll be seeing a completely separate from Condé over accidental crashes can on all for-pay apps? What do you O b s e r v e r t a l k s a b o u t t h e digital newsstand anytime soon, Nast’s plans for Apple’s tablet definitely skew a score, and think are the pros and cons? a g r e e m e n t b e t w e e n t h e though. Publishers still have to device, but the timing and nature screenshots really don’t help me publishing companies, and figure out how to create digital of the digital distribution scheme understand the app’s look and mentions in particular the fact versions of the content they aim make it sound like any tablet that the idea is to produce a cross to provide. formatting may be incidental to a -platform product that’s portable Considering the multiplatform much broader initiative. among many different devices:

Dilbert comic strip for 11/25/2009 from the official Dilbert comic strips archive. By twitter:@woenz (TweetMeme)

d a i l y d i l b e r t C o m i c f o r http://bit.ly/92sKW6 N o v e m b e r 2 5 , 2 0 0 9 : 0 comments Source: dilbert.com

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Reports Surface of Faulty Core i7 iMacs

Who gets their news from Google?

By Liam Cassidy (TheAppleBlog)

(Scripting News)

Submitted at 11/24/2009 8:30:20 AM

Shattered glass. Flickering displays. Non-booting machines. So-goes the list of maladies affecting Apple’s brand new quad-core 27” Core i7-based iMacs. Threads over on the Apple Support Discussion forums are alive with complaints and debate by affected users. After hitting the power button, some owners hear the startup chime, but don’t get to boot successfully to their desktop. One particularly high-profile customer was Engadget, who took delivery of a machine that simply refused to boot. They didn’t even get as far as the teasing chime. A video has surfaced on YouTube of a machine that does boot, but its display ducks out and “flashes” every so often, rendering it impractical (and uncomfortable) for any kind of actual use. Several customers are reporting

shattered or cracked glass on the bottom left hand corner of the iMac’s huge display. There’s currently no official comment on the matter by Apple (I doubt there ever will be) but the favourite explanation floating around the intertubes is that the packaging for these computers is somehow flawed, leading to damage (visible and otherwise) of their precious contents while in transit. Gizmodo says: What’s most plausible is that the

packaging just wasn’t designed to handle the size and weight of the giant 27-inch iMac as it gets tossed around the cab of a FedEx truck. Apple has so far been extremely responsive and effective in making repairs and exchanges, but it’s still a discomfiting sign. This is the second wave of bad news regarding Apple’s new 27 iMac lineup. Late last month reports surfaced on the Apple Support discussion website of incredibly sluggish Flash playback, and claims of a bug causing hard drives to spin down and even of a faulty Snow Leopard installation. You can read those discussion for yourself here and here. So, if you bought one of these machines as a holiday gift for someone, it’s probably a good idea to open the box and take it for a test-drive, while there’s still time to get a replacement from Apple should the need arise. Have you been affected by one of these faults?

Danny Briere Suspended 2 Games By Adam Gretz (FanHouse)

5-4 in Colorado. On Tuesday they learned they will be without forward Danny Briere for the by Adam Gretz next two games as a result of his Filed under: Avalanche, Flyers, hit on Scott Hannan in the second NHL Discipline The Philadelphia period. Flyers dropped their third game Video of the hit after the jump. in a row on Monday night, losing Danny Briere Suspended 2 Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:30:00 PM

Games originally appeared on Fanhouse NHL Blog on Tue, 24 Nov 2009 19:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs| Comments

Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:19:45 PM

Like everyone else, I'm peripherally following the fur flying about Murdoch thinking about whether or not to block Google from searching his news sites. In the background I keep wondering if this isn't all a misunderstanding. I mean, do a lot of people get their news on Google? That's a question. Okay I know I'm not average, so I don't mean to say my experience is statistically significant. For all I know everyone else is getting their news on Google. But I really don't think so. Here's what I think. I think other sites grabbed most of the flow in news before Google got around to doing news, and such habits are hard to break. I guess that Yahoo is still the leader in online news and CNN and MSN are #2 and #3. After that, there's a lot of noise.

Somewhere down there is Google. In the dust. People say silly things like Google would be nothing without the NY Times, but it wasn't until relatively recently that the Times let Google index their news stories. I know this because I had a Long Bet with Martin Nisenholtz that I won more or less by default. Times articles couldn't show up in the ranks on Google because the Times wouldn't let them! It was dumb not just cause it meant that Martin lost the bet, but it was dumb because they let Wikipedia become the authority on so many topics that the Times would have done a better job at, imho. And they were throwing away flow, and flow is money. So I think a lot of this debate is uninformed and generating a bit of heat and not much else. Kind of like a lot of what passes for news these days.

US data offer hope for growth (Financial Times - US homepage) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:15:18 AM

US consumer spending rose faster than incomes last month as Americans shrugged off fears about unemployment in favour of shopping, lifting hopes that consumers will be able to help

propel the economic recovery. Separately on Wednesday, data showed that new jobless claims fell to the lowest level in more than a year last week, while businesses cut back on orders for durable goods. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Natural-born blogger (Scripting News) Submitted at 11/24/2009 8:12:34 AM

Not everyone was born to blog, but some people were. Pity the poor NBB who was born before there were blogs. You can imagine this person wandering the planet with some unspecified sense of purpose. Scratching his or her head, wondering what exactly it is they were supposed to do with their lives. Of course that's a joke, because this instinct had many ways to be satisfied before there were blogs, but it wasn't as easy as it is for people today. I tripped across this in trying to puzzle out what was disturbing about the Julie & Julia biopic. Both main characters were clearly NBBs, and perhaps both deserved their own movies. Smooshing the stories together made for a confusing mess. I was more interested in Julia Child, the proto-proto-blogger, the blogger before there were bloggers, because her spirit is what NBBs everywhere do. Americans should understand French cooking, says Julia. It's hard, she says, but you can do it.

So, did she just wring her hands and wish for it? No, she took matters into her own hands (a phrase Jay thought was pivotal) and made it happen. That's the spirit we love! It seems that the spirit of blogging and the spirit of America are wrapped up in each other somehow. This came up in yesterday's Rebooting the News, which if I do say so myself, was one of our best. We get into the subjectives of what makes natural-born blogger. Here are some of the ideas. 1. An NBB doesn't wait for permission. 2. A NBB explains things, even when they don't understand. An NBB is often proved wrong, to which the NBB shrugs his or her shoulders and says something like Shit happens. 3. NBBs go first. If there's an NBB around you don't have to wait for a volunteer. 4. NBBs err on the side of saying too much. If you find yourself wishing someone would just STFU you're very likely looking at an NBB. NBBs annoy the hell out of you. And if they're good, they get you

to think. There's the big value in having us around. We foster thinking. When I say someone is a Natural Born Blogger, it's the highest praise I know. I am not annoyed by them, but I know that often people are annoyed by me. I don't

plan to change. So who are some NBBs? My mother, for one. It's where I got my NBB gene. I never had to explain to her why she should blog, she just knew. The mechanics of blogging software weren't so natural to her, but she eventually figured it out. Robert Scoble is a total NBB. He has an opinion about everything. I often want to strangle him, but then I realize sheez he has a point. Dan Gillmor, Doc Searls, Jeff Jarvis and Howard Weaver are NBBs. Most good reporters are, but I suspect most of the true NBBs in journalism left about 10 years ago. I was schooled in how the web worked by the striking news writers in the Bay Area in 1994. We came across this in our podcast yesterday. Good reporters and good bloggers == same thing. In American history, Thomas Jefferson and Ralph Waldo Emerson were bloggers. Who else? You tell me.

Miu Miu's Luxe New V-Day Line By ELLE.com (ELLE News Blog) Submitted at 11/24/2009 2:50:08 PM

I love Miu Miu's upcoming capsule collection for Valentine's

Day. Heart themed stuff can look cheap but not these elegantly simple T-shirts, necklaces, handbags, and luggage tags. My favorite is the tee with the shaped sleevesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;so luxe! gathered and tucked red heart-

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ellyn Chestnutt, Accessories Director Follow ELLE on Twitter. Become our Facebook fan!

The best of WoW.com: November 17-24, 2009 By Mike Schramm (Joystiq) Submitted at 11/25/2009 3:00:00 AM

Happy Pilgrim's Bounty, everybody! That's the brand new Thanksgiving holiday going on right now in the World of Warcraft, where you can level up your cooking for cheap, chase turkeys around in-game, and even earn yourself the title of "Pilgrim." You'll find information about Pilgrim's Bounty and everything else in Warcraft over on Joystiq's sister site, WoW.com. Check out the links after the break for much, much more. Continue reading The best of WoW.com: November 17-24, 2009 The best of WoW.com: November 17-24, 2009 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

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Heroes: The Renew/Cancel Index Curse? By Bill Gorman (TVbytheNumbers) Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:01:03 PM

Our Renew / Cancel Index predicts potential renewal or cancellation for scripted broadcast primetime shows for the 2010-11 season (results through November 22, 2009): • Likely To Be Canceled By May, 2010 • Some Danger Of Being Canceled By May, 2010 • Likely to Be Renewed For The 2010-11 Season On November 3 I wrote “ Heroes: Far From Its Peak, But Far From Dead“. Including the night before (11/2), Heroes had averaged a 2.47 adults 18-49 rating its previous six airings. After I wrote that, Heroes’ ratings fell, going 2.3, 2.2, 2.3. That’s the difference between “OK”, and “Uh, Oh”. Those quicker than I to suggest unproven causality might be motivated to call it the “Renew/Cancel Index Curse”, but I think Madden Football’s out of my league. Law & Order’s recent ratings improvement trend hit a pothole last Friday, when it sank back to a 1.4 adults 18-49 rating. Is that temporary or a sign of things to come? If it can hold a 1.7 adults 18-49 rating on Friday (maybe even a 1.6 rating) I think it’s back on NBC next season. With a 1.7 rating and assuming that NBC’s

overall average falls after football to a 2.5, that would produce an Index of 0.68. CBS renews its Friday dramas with those relative ratings, I figure NBC will too. Trauma got an order for three more episodes. Sort of like a condemned man being given three more days to live. Mercy’s ratings make it certain to be canceled at the end of the season. It has a 22 episode order, but it has done no better than Trauma. Parks & Recreation has relatively perked up lately in the ratings, and the ratings carnage at NBC is so complete that unless a miracle happens this spring

with their new shows (and their development slate) the network very well may have to have to hold its nose and keep some of its well below average performers. If that happens, 30 minute sitcoms like Community and Parks & Recreation are the likely candidates. Beginning this week, for show’s in the Some Danger category only, I am including short term Index indicators for shows either with sharply improving or deteriorating Indexes, based on 4 week Indexes instead of season to date Indexes. This is a breakdown of NBC

scripted shows and their renewal and cancellation prospects. Here are links to the other networks: • ABC scripted shows • CBS scripted shows • CW scripted shows • Fox scripted shows Notes: The Renew/Cancel Index is a show’s Season To Date adults 18 -49 rating divided by its network’s Season to Date average 18-49 rating. If a show’s season to date 18-49 ratings average equalled its network’s 18 -49 average, the show would

have an Index of 1.00. Without special factors, scripted shows that were more than 10% below their network’s average are typically canceled by the end of the broadcast primetime season. Factors that could cause a show to be renewed with a well below average Index: • (F) -Fridays: Shows airing on Fridays have been renewed with significantly lower than average Indexes. • (S) – Syndication: Shows nearing syndication (66-88 episodes), often have economic factors that trump ratings leading to renewal. • (T) – Third Party: Shows that have a portion of their cost underwritten by a 3rd party can be renewed with substantially lower ratings. • (P) – Produced by the network’s production company – For shows on the bubble, being produced by the network’s corporate production company can be a survival advantage. For real losers, it’s unlikely to help. While I initially tried to designate shows with “plum” timeslots, I think that’s hard to make that call at this point in the season. It’s likely still a factor, but will have to be an “after the fact” call. What’s the History of the Index and How Did It Do In the Past? Check out the results from the 2007-8 season and the 2008-9 HEROES: page 49

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Fringe: You Just Gotta Believe By Bill Gorman (TVbytheNumbers)

nearing syndication (66-88 episodes), often have economic factors that trump ratings leading to renewal. • (T) – Third Party: Shows that have a portion of their cost underwritten by a 3rd party can be renewed with substantially lower ratings. • (P) – Produced by the network’s production company – For shows on the bubble, being produced by the network’s corporate production company can be a survival advantage. For real losers, it’s unlikely to help.

Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:34:55 PM

Our Renew / Cancel Index predicts potential renewal or cancellation for scripted broadcast primetime shows for the 2010-11 season (results through November 22, 2009): • Likely To Be Canceled By May, 2010 • Some Danger Of Being Canceled By May, 2010 • Likely to Be Renewed For The 2010-11 Season Note that the Index values for all Fox shows will continue to be very depressed for some time because the World Series ratings have unusually boosted Fox’s overall 18-49 average (3.6 vs. ~3.o before baseball). That will slowly subside as Fox’s average averages out post-baseball. For the time being, the order of the shows is far more important than the Index values. I have already written a lot about Fringe’s move to the brutally competive Thursday 9pm timeslot, and its subsequent ratings devastation. Fox will certainly be breaking the “rules” of the Renew / Cancel Index if it brings Fringe back next season, but they might just based on their

limited expectations for the move. Or not. I have no way of knowing. Neither do fans. Nor entertainment writers fed PR spin. You just gotta believe. Or not. Dollhouse, Brothers and‘Til Death are all canceled, either in fact or in practice. Dollhouse fans will see all its episodes that were produced, that’s the best the other two can hope for as well. This is a breakdown of Fox scripted shows and their renewal and cancellation prospects. Here

are links to the other networks: • ABC scripted shows • CBS scripted shows • CW scripted shows • NBC scripted shows Notes: The Renew/Cancel Index is a show’s Season To Date adults 18 -49 rating divided by its network’s Season to Date average 18-49 rating. If a show’s season to date 18-49 ratings average equalled its network’s 18

-49 average, the show would have an Index of 1.00. Without special factors, scripted shows that were more than 10% below their network’s average are typically canceled by the end of the broadcast primetime season. Factors that could cause a show to be renewed with well below average index: • (F) -Fridays: Shows airing on Fridays have been renewed with significantly lower than average Indexes. • (S) – Syndication: Shows

While I initially tried to designate shows with “plum” timeslots, I think it’s hard to make that call at this point in the season. It’s likely still a factor, but will have to be an “after the fact” call. What’s the History of the Index and How Did It Do In the Past? Check out the results from the 2007-8 season and the 2008-9 season. Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved. All ratings used are Live+Same Day viewing. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Melrose Place: All Over, But The Praying By Bill Gorman (TVbytheNumbers)

factors that trump ratings leading to renewal. • (T) – Third Party: Shows that have a portion of their cost underwritten by a 3rd party can be renewed with substantially lower ratings. • (P) – Produced by the network’s production company – For shows on the bubble, being produced by the network’s corporate production company can be a survival advantage. For real losers, it’s unlikely to help.

Submitted at 11/24/2009 8:57:24 PM

Our Renew / Cancel Index predicts potential renewal or cancellation for scripted broadcast primetime shows for the 2010-11 season (results through November 22, 2009): • Likely To Be Canceled By May, 2010 • Some Danger Of Being Canceled By May, 2010 • Likely to Be Renewed For The 2010-11 Season Melrose Place’s addition of Heather Locklear to the cast failed to generate much of a ratings updraft. Now, the only thing to do is wait until May when we see it’s not on next year’s schedule. Fans, however, may wish to call upon divine intervention, because that’s what it will take to save the show. Note that Smallville, Gossip Girl and One Tree Hill have yet to air a repeat, while all other CW scripted shows have. Right now that puts them temporarily on the up side of the see-saw and the others on the down side, but things should even out once every show has a similar number of repeats into their averages which will happen in the next

month or so. At the moment 90210, Melrose Place, Supernatural and Vampire Diaries are a bit lower in the Index than they should be for that reason. *I have frozen The Beautiful Life’s Index at its value the week of cancellation. This is a breakdown of CW scripted shows and their renewal and cancellation prospects. Here are links to the other networks: • ABC scripted shows

• CBS scripted shows • FOX scripted shows • NBC scripted shows Notes: The Renew/Cancel Index is a show’s Season To Date adults 18 -49 rating divided by its network’s Season to Date average 18-49 rating. If a show’s season to date 18-49 ratings average equalled its network’s 18 -49 average, the show would have an Index of 1.00. Without

special factors, scripted shows that were more than 10% below their network’s average are typically canceled by the end of the broadcast primetime season. Factors that could cause a show to be renewed with well below average index: • (F) -Fridays: Shows airing on Fridays have been renewed with significantly lower than average Indexes. • (S) – Syndication: Shows nearing syndication (66-88 episodes), often have economic

While I initially tried to designate shows with “plum” timeslots, I think that’s hard to make that call at this point in the season. It’s likely still a factor, but will have to be an “after the fact” call. What’s the History of the Index and How Did It Do In the Past? Check out the results from the 2007-8 season and the 2008-9 season. Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved. All ratings used are Live+Same Day viewing. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Fox, CBS Share Ratings Demo Leads After Nine Weeks By Bill Gorman (TVbytheNumbers)

which is unlikely to be challenged. You can see past week’s Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:25:30 AM broadcast network primetime Season To Date Ratings season to date average TV ratings ABC and CBS both chipped results here. away at Fox’s adults 18-49 Ratings Increase / Decrease: ratings season to date lead in the 2009-10 Season vs. 2008-9 past week, but if Fox doesn’t Season completely collapse in the next Not much of a change in the seven weeks it could hang onto most recent week with the the seasonal lead until American changes vs. last season. Fox Idol and 24 arrive and its annual continues to be the only English spring ratings beatdowns resume. broadcast network up in all Fox continued to hold it’s big categories vs. last season. While lead in adults 18-34 ratings. This they were certainly helped by a season is shaping up to be a huge big improvement in the World margin of victory for them in that Series numbers, they were well demo. CBS continues to hold ahead of last season before the both the adults 25-54 rating title baseball playoffs began. (which Fox may challenge The CW is ahead vs. last season depending on how Idol does), in viewership and adults 18-49 and the average viewership title, and 18-34, but they should be

well ahead of last season across the board considering their automatic boost to their seasonal ratings averages just by dumping Sunday nights. Compared to last season, the CW’s current situation is a disappointment.

CBS is down or flat across the board. And after reading about how terribly NBC has been doing, but little on ABC’s woes, NBC is finally opening up a bit of a gap with ABC vs. last season, and is now doing

Review: The Biggest Loser - Week Eleven By Jason Hughes (TV Squad) Submitted at 11/25/2009 2:20:00 AM

(S08E11) It was a big week, as the remaining five contestants settled in for their final week on the Biggest Loser campus. With Amanda as a clear outcast in the group, she was feeling the pressure even more to stay above that yellow line. And big weeks aren't something Amanda is known for, despite a valiant ninepound loss last week. She's never

seen double digits and spent most of the season hovering around six pounds a week. However, as one of the smallest contestants in the game, those numbers can make a difference when it comes to her percentages. Liz, Allen, Rudy and Danny have all developed a tight bond over the past ten weeks, and you just know their dream was for Amanda to slip below so they Semi-Finals. c o u l d s e n d h e r h o m e a n d The week was big in a couple of preserve their foursome into the other ways as well. Rudy with

the potential to have the biggest on-campus weight loss in Biggest Loser history, while Danny was in position to break a record of his own. Continue reading Review: The Biggest Loser - Week Eleven Filed under: OpEd, The Biggest Loser, Episode Reviews Permalink| Email this| | Comments

noticeably worse in all the adult demo categories. Each rating point is a percentage of the US TV population in that demographic group and equals: 2.90 million viewers, 1.32 million adults 18-49, 0.68 million adults 18-34 and 1.24 million adults 25-54. Note that the chart includes RATINGS not VIEWERSHIP as was typical in our weekly network ratings posts prior to July, 2009. Nielsen TV Ratings Data: ©2009 The Nielsen Company. All Rights Reserved. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

HEROES: continued from page 46

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Review: V - It's Only the Beginning By Jason Hughes (TV Squad) Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:46:00 AM

(S01E04) Well, that's it until March 2010. The most important thing that V could do this week was to leave us hanging on the edge of our seats as to what's coming next. If the idea was to give us a sense of sheer hopelessness in the face of the power of the Visitors, then that's what we did. More importantly, we got to see the genesis of the Resistance movement led by Jack, Ryan and Erica. It makes an even more powerful figure when you consider that at this point there are exactly four people -- at least that we're following -- taking on 29 Visitor ships with technology and power almost beyond our imagining. Everyone loves a scrappy

underdog, and you couldn't ask for much more than that. But it was great seeing them take some of their first strikes against the Visitors as a unit. This is the struggle, against near impossible odds, that will keep us glued to our seats. Continue reading Review: V It's Only the Beginning Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, V Permalink| Email this| | Comments

Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:41:39 AM

Porsche on Wednesday revealed the legacy of its failed attempt to take over Volkswagen when it said it expected the second multibillion-euro loss in a row in its current financial year.

By Robert Seidman (TVbytheNumbers)

Think You Can Dance on FOX. CBS has reruns of NCIS and NCIS: LA scheduled, followed Submitted at 11/24/2009 9:16:37 PM by the Victoria Secret Fashion The president is tentatively Show. scheduled to address the nation ABC has the classic A Charlie about his Afghanistan plan in Brown Christmas, a new Disney primetime next Tuesday, holiday special, two new December 1. episodes of Scrubs and a new Hans Dieter Pötsch, VW’s and Once a date is confirmed, we’ll e p i s o d e o f T h e F o r g o t t e n Porsche’s chief financial officer, p o s t a n y s c h e d u l i n g s c h e d u l e d . said Porsche might have to impact/changes that result. NBC The CW, which typically doesn’t drastically revalue its stake in is surely hoping the address will a i r p r e s i d e n t i a l a d d r e s s e s VW if a shareholders meeting move to Monday or Wednesday nationally, has new episodes of next week agrees on special as Tuesdays has been one of its 9 0 1 2 0 a n d M e l r o s e P l a c e rights for the state of Lower best nights with The Biggest s c h e d u l e d . Loser leading into The Jay Leno This content has passed through Saxony. This content has passed through Show. A new episode of The fivefilters.org. Biggest Loser is on tap for next fivefilters.org. Tuesday, as is a new So You

Porsche faces huge loss on VW stake (Financial Times - US homepage)

FYI: President Obama Tentatively Scheduled for Prime-Time Speech on Afghanistan, Tuesday December 1

FKIA’s Daily Double: Heavy Metal By ELLE.com (ELLE News Blog) Submitted at 11/24/2009 10:38:51 AM

Give new classics—like this belted boxy jacket from Chloé and last season's DVF pajama pant—an urban edge by wearing razor-sharp pointy pumps like these mirrored Balenciaga's and carrying a tough chic carryall like Alexander Wang's studded roll bag. — Anne Slowey Let me know what you love—and if you have any questions, e-mail me at AnneSloweyFashionKnowItAll @elle.com. Follow ELLE on Twitter. Become our Facebook fan!

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TNT sets return date for Which Celeb Serves Drugs for Leverage Thanksgiving Dinner? [Blind Items] By Allison Waldman (TV Squad) Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:26:00 AM

This morning some good news leaked out sooner than expected, although I don't think it was that big a surprise to learn that TNT is bringing Leverage back on Wednesday, January 13 at 10 p.m. Surprise news or not, it's still great to know that we have fresh episodes coming in early 2010. There are six episodes of Leverage left from season two, then the third season will commence in the summer. This set up is a lot like The Closer, and you know how well that split schedule has been working. By the way, you do know that split

By Brian Moylan (Gawker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:00:06 AM

Between our high-flying Julia Child, a celeb couple that invites the mistress over for the main meal, and a Twilight star lying about being a Native America, we're serving up a whole bunch schedules is one of the things I'm of turkeys this morning. Gooble, most grateful about this holiday gooble. season, don't you? 1."We've been saving this one Continue reading TNT sets for Thanksgiving time and you return date for Leverage should know this story happened Filed under: Other Drama last year at a certain Celebrity's Shows, Programming, OpEd, Thanksgiving table. It's no secret Pickups and Renewals, Reality- to the guests that came, but we Free still thought it was pretty P e r m a l i n k | E m a i l t h i s | | interesting/strange and wanted to Comments share it. Last year, this actress who has bragged about her cooking skills in the past, made a great Thanksgiving dinner for her friends and family. The dinner had a theme: Each guest was asked to bring a side dish laced with their favorite recreational bank said. drug of choice. The dinner was a It added that Mexico had already hit, and full of crazy antics made progress in implementing afterwards. Not Eva Longoria." [ reforms. BuzzFoto] In September, the bank agreed to 2."This celebrity couple is loan India $4.3bn to boost credit spinning some tall tales this to companies and improve Thanksgiving. They have each infrastructure. told their respective families that Print Sponsor they can't attend Thanksgiving This content has passed through with them because their spouse fivefilters.org.

World Bank approves Mexico loan (BBC News | Americas | World Edition) Submitted at 11/25/2009 12:33:50 AM

The World Bank has approved a $1.5bn (ÂŁ900m) loan to support Mexico's economic stimulus packages which aim to help it recover from the downturn. The loan will help to boost government efforts to stimulate the job market and support financial regulatory reform, the

has a film commitment out of town and they need to accompany them. Not true. Neither of them are working that day. They are actually just turning off their phones and staying home. Just them and the kid/sâ&#x20AC;Ś and one spouse's Significant Other. How are they going to keep the kid/s quiet about how they really spent the holiday? Well, these two are such experienced liars, we'll bet their genes have already been passed down to the next generation." [

Blind Gossip] 3."Which up and coming Twilight actress lied about her background and said she lost her birth certificate so she would qualify for her part? She has told everyone she is adopted and Native/First Nations, but in reality has biological parents who raised her and is most definitely not Native/First Nations." [ CDaN]

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Obama Pledges up to 30,000 More Troops for Afghanistan [Front Pages] By Ravi Somaiya (Gawker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:31:28 AM

The news that the President is to announce that his weeks of agonizing are over, and that there will be a troop increase, dominates the front pages. But there's still room for heartwarming Thanksgiving stories. The stories of the day: • The New York Times sends a reporter to bankruptcy court. He finds it's full of people who lost everything because they got sick and insurance companies are scumbags. • The paper also report on the anguish of those who have had to fly home to their families early, to save money, and spend more time with them. • The Washington Post says they'll probably be doing the same next year — the economic recovery will be slow. • The LA Times looks further afield and sends a gripping report of refugee smuggling in North Korea. • The Wall Street Journal straps a journalist into a pie-proof vest to examine the California bakery that has had to hire a bouncer because people fight over its goods. • And the New York Post

applauds a judge who decided to wipe all mortgage debts for a couple because the bank were so terrible. Happy Thanksgiving! Disclosure: I freelance write and report for newspapers that are included in this roundup. Where there is a direct conflict of interest I will make it clear. The New York Times: leads with the Afghanistan story, but gives equal prominence to a piece of news that may cause as much anxiety as Obama's decision - that people will be spending longer with their families over Thanksgiving because they're flying earlier to get cheaper fares. There's a great look at the personal cost of the current healthcare system, a follow-up on the New York Post's story yesterday about suspected scammers at the United Homeless Organization and new that the Atlantic Yards development will move forward. Finally there's a somewhat sickening look at the dangers of The Biggest Loser. It involves someone peeing blood. The Washington Post: in what might be a deliberate decision, the Post has no front page stories that are not local or politics — the two areas that it is cutting back other newsrooms to

concentrate on. There's the Afghanistan decision, with analysis, and a report that the economic recovery will be slow. The obituary of Washington Wizards owner Abe Pollin is the main story above the fold, and a continuation of the murder story that began yesterday below it. The LA Times: is showing off a little today. They have

correspondents in Seoul, to report on the smuggling of refugees from North Korea, Kabul to report on the intelligence battle there, Minneapolis to investigate the terror cell that made news yesterday and DC for the Afghanistan troop levels. It's like they're reporting in 2000 or something. There's just one local story - about a probe into the

giant California pension fund. The Wall Street Journal: is the only paper that runs a front page image to go with the Afghanistan story. Another battle — to save Swedish carmaker Saab— is covered underneath that. There's some positive news too: the Obama administration's push to solve America's energy problems is reinvigorating science. And some negative a bakery in California has had to hire a bouncer to avoid fights over Thanksgiving pies. The New York Post: has a heartwarming Thanksgiving tale: the homeowners who got a $525,000 mortgage wiped out by a judge because the bank were mean. The Daily News: also leads with the Afghanistan news. Ventura County Star: says santas, including this cuddly fellow, will not wear anti-swineflu masks while children sit on their knees. They are, however, guzzling Emergen-C and going down doctors' chimneys to demand vaccines. Star (Malaysia): among entirely serious news is the bizarre headline, under a picture of Adam Lambert: 'I'm the sexy man.'

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Jersey Shore : Racist Against Italians? [Trade Roundup] By Adrian Chen (Gawker)

Dollar lurches to 16-month low (Financial Times - US homepage)

Submitted at 11/25/2009 12:52:18 AM

There was a time when it meant something to be racist against Italians. These days, no one bats an eye if you make an "A-pizza pie!" joke. Except this ItalianAmerican organization has drawn the line at MTV's " Jersey Shore". According to UNICO National, the new reality show "relies on crude stereotypes and highlights cursing, bad behavior and violence in depicting renters at a New Jersey beach house." Sort of proves the old adage about stereotypes: They put little kernels of truth into an air popper to make delicious, bigoted popcorn. [ THR] •TLC's "Jon & Kate Plus 8" got a big farewell for its last episode ever. 4.3 million people watched the reality television equivalent of a tow truck finally dragging a mangled car out from the quarry into which it had started plummeting nearly three years ago. [ NYT]

Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:06:46 AM

•GLAAD is SAAD that Adam Lambert wasn't allowed to perform on ABC's "Good Morning America because of his face-humping antics. "Some music performances, regardless of the sexual orientation of the performer, are tailored for a prime time audience but not for a morning show audience," read a statement. (Lambert was booked instead on CBS' "Early Show".) [ NYT]

•The revolutionary new, interactive "Avatar" trailer is to regular trailers as a video game is to a movie, except imagine that video game consisted only of being able to click "hot spots" on a picture with your mouse, which plays little movie clips. [ The Wrap] •The TV Guide Channel is showing a documentary on uglywoman-with-a-pretty-voice Susan Boyle on Dec. 13. Which

makes that YouTube video of Susan Boyle singing the first viral video adapted into a madefor-TV documentary. [ The Wrap] •"You can prick your finger but you can't finger your prick...": George Carlin's classic comedy album "Class Clown" is one of 25 recordings being introduced into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Also: The Beach Boys' "California Girls". [ LA Times]

15:05 GMT. Gold leapt to another high on Wednesday as the dollar tumbled below significant support levels to hit near 16-month lows. After trading within a tight range for nearly three weeks, the greenback suddenly lurched lower, breaching 74.50 on a trade -weighted basis and decisively cutting through the $1.5050 mark versus the euro. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Kate Hudson Takes the Plunge in Versace By ELLE.com (ELLE News Blog) Submitted at 11/24/2009 11:55:08 AM

Kate Hudson exudes a take-noprisoners kind of sex appeal. The

sultry starlet seems like she’d be just as comfortable naked as she would dressed in head-to-toe designer. At Sunday’s American Music Awards, Hudson chose a tough-chic Studio 54-inspired

Versace number that left little to

the imagination. What do you think of the now infamous, super low-cut neckline—flirtatiouslysexy or in need of double-sided tape? Click here to shop disco diva holiday styles.

—Violet Moon Gaynor Photo: Getty Images Follow ELLE on Twitter. Become our Facebook fan!

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Court: 'Fuck the Police' [Law] By Hamilton Nolan (Gawker)

Pittsburgh one day in 2006. Then some other asshole drive pulled up and blocked him from In perhaps the greatest American parking. So Dave flicks the guy legal decision since "A Book off, obviously. Then some other Named 'John Cleland's Memoirs asshole driver "objected to the of a Woman of Pleasure' v. gesture," so Dave flicked him off, A t t o r n e y G e n e r a l o f too. Dave don't take shit from Massachusetts," a Pittsburgh nobody. court awarded a man $50,000 for Turns out the second asshole flicking off a cop. driver was a fucking cop. So of The historic scene that would course cause cops think they're lead to the heartwarming act of big shit, the pig gives Dave a the cops are all in the shit jurisprudence went down like citation for "disorderly conduct." together. this: Dave Hackbart was just And of course he's found guilty But Dave's not just your average trying to fucking parallel park in and fined, cause the courts and Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:08:00 AM

sucker ready to bow down and get fucked by the cops like that. No sir. He sued the whole god damn city of Pittsburgh, and, god damn it, wouldn't you know, he fucking won $50,000. Let this be a lesson to every fucking cop everywhere, courtesy of Dave: Fuck you, and there's nothing you can do about it. Dave will now get fucked by lawyers. Of the $50,000 settlement, he will get $10,000; the rest goes to his lawyers.

LinkedIn hits 3 million members in the UK, eyes IPO in not so near future By twitter:@TechCrunch (TweetMeme) Submitted at 11/25/2009 3:36:22 AM

LinkedIn Signs Up 3 Million Users In UK, Won't Go Public A n y T i m e S o o n http://bit.ly/6SPuDQ by @robinwauters 0 comments Source: eu.techcrunch.com

Donny Osmond Prevails on 'Dancing Roy's Anthem Absence with the Stars' Draws Attention (ETonline - Breaking News) Submitted at 11/24/2009 11:00:00 PM

Confetti rained down on the dance floor in celebration of new "Dancing with the Stars" champion Donny Osmond and partner Kym Johnson. After a long season full of injuries and flu, but also the forging of new friendships and memorable routines, Donny and Kym rose above the other 15 couples. All of the contestants who had been eliminated in earlier rounds laced their shoes back up to

perform one last dance. Familiar faces from previous seasons, such as Jeffrey Ross, Adam Carolla, Cloris Leachman, Jerry Springer, Jerry Rice, and Steve Wozniak, also made cameo appearances. Chart-topper Whitney Houston entertained with two songs, "Million Dollar Bill" and "I Wanna Dance with Somebody." Other highlights from the evening included NFL Hall of Fame inductees Jerry Rice and Michael Irvin duking it out to a Paso Doble with a golden

football to earn a coveted mirror ball ring. Len Goodman evaluated, saying, "We've discussed it…you've got to be game ready…and we all think that Michael, you are the winner. However…we decided that the battle of the bodies went to Jerry." Both athletes were presented with a ring. Jeffrey Ross returned to induct a new member to the "Loser's Club." As a result of his elimination in the first round, Ashley Hamilton was bestowed with the honor.

By Brett Pollakoff (FanHouse) Submitted at 11/25/2009 8:00:00 AM

by Brett Pollakoff Filed under: Trail Blazers Before every single NBA game, both teams line up at their respective ends of the court while the national anthem is performed live. It's a ritual that we've become so accustomed to seeing, that we're not exactly doing a roster check or a headcount to make sure that every player from each team is participating. If we did, then we'd notice the conspicuous absence of Brandon Roy from the festivities. Portland's all-world guard has chosen since last season to spend this time alone in the tunnel, instead of on the court with his

teammates. And while he's not doing this as any kind of protest, it might be sending the wrong kind of message. Roy's Anthem Absence Draws Attention originally appeared on Fanhouse NBA Blog on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs| Comments

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Adam Lambert is not Sorry About His AMA Performance [Double Standards] By Ravi Somaiya (Gawker) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:01:21 AM

"I'm not a babysitter. I'm a performer," explained Lambert on CBS's The Early Show. He said he got "carried away" but did not apologize for his racy kissing and blowjob-simulating antics. "I think it's because I'm a gay male." An eloquent Lambert said, in an interview somewhat ham-fistedly captioned 'Straight Talk' that the moves had not been part of the rehearsal of the performance and "kind of came from a more impromptu place. ABC was taken a little by surprise." He added that he does see how people got offended, but that his theater background meant that he

didn't consider children watching at home. "I'm programmed to see who's in the live audience," he said. "If it had been a female performer doing those things up on the stage I don't think there would be nearly as much outrage." He pointed out that Eminem had boasted of 17 rapes, and that Janet Jackson had grabbed the crotch of one of her dancers, to little comment. And then came the apology to America moment: "If you had it to do over would you do anything differently?" asked Maggie Rodriguez. "I would sing it a little better." Watch CBS News Videos Online

Tipster Confirms Ten Layoffs at the New York Post [Layoffs] By Ravi Somaiya (Gawker)

based on performance reviews that happened in spring and the current salaries of the journalists A tipster at the New York Post - that go as high as $95,000. He confirms there will be ten does not pull his punches: editorial layoffs in this round, All these people should have and that they'd all have come this been canned years ago, but year if it hadn't been for the management was just too lazy to Sandra Guzman lawsuit. do anything. The tipster, who is clearly no fan We had heard rumors that this of the reporters on the chopping r o u n d o f l a y o f f s w a s block, says the dismissals are not disproportionately targeting economically motivated, but are minorities. Another source at the Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:34:07 AM

paper claims that soon there will be no black or hispanic reporters left. The tipster seems to corroborate this. They were going to get rid of most of them by the end of the year, but the Sandra Guzman lawsuit halted the whole thing because many on this list are minorities and are more likely to sue.

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Will Mauer Make Minnesota the Land of 10,000 Hits? (WSJ.com: The Daily Fix)

Because while Twins fans are surely happy that Mauer got his due at last, they now need to For a while last summer, there worry about how much money was almost an argument. Yes, he’ll be due once he enters free Minnesota catcher Joe Mauer agency after the 2010 season. “It w a s l e a d i n g t h e A m e r i c a n is impossible to picture Mauer L e a g u e i n v i r t u a l l y e v e r y leaving the Twins because, well, offensive category and playing he’s more Minnesota than ice stellar defense and more-or-less fishing,” Scott Miller writes at carrying the Twins to a surprise C B S S p o r t s . “ I t i s m o r e postseason berth. But Derek Jeter impossible picturing Mauer was having a great season with a leaving the Twins than it is any dominant team, and leading the other player in the majors leaving league in dashing-ness and any other team, this side of Derek “intangibles.” Getty Images Joe Jeter and the Yankees. … If Mauer imagines a day next year Mauer is wooed elsewhere after when homers to right don’t Minnesota plays only one season ricochet off hefty bags. in a new park for which it’s been Because it so passionately pitted fighting for more than a decade, stat-minded new-school baseball then that will be the surest sign brains against old-schoolers, the yet that the game’s economic d e b a t e w a s w o r t h y o f F i x system is irreparably broken and coverage, but the argument in need of overhaul.” proved short-lived. Jeter and the In the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Yankees beat Mauer’s Twins in Joe Christensen writes that while the first round of the playoffs and the St. Paul native’s wish to stay wound up with a World Series in the Twin Cities is clear, ring, but on Monday, Mauer got Mauer’s final decision will be his due — 27 of 28 first place less about how much money he’s votes in the American League paid than the players he’ll be paid MVP voting, making him the to play with.* * * first catcher to win the AL MVP When Switzerland’s F.C. Thun since Ivan Rodriguez in 1999, dropped a 5-1 decision against and the second since Thurman fellow second-division Swiss Munson in 1976. team Yverdon back in April, the “My worry was that numerous result was a score that might have voters would go cuckoo and that registered — maybe — with Mauer would get lost in the eagle-eyed watchers of Setanta’s flying Cocoa Puffs,” Joe s c o r e t i c k e r . B u t t h e Posnanski blogs. “But no. He Thun/Yverdon game may have won. He won easily. So its easy also offered gamblers a perfect to move on.” opportunity to rig the results. “As Well, easy for Posnanski. details trickle out in a matchSubmitted at 11/24/2009 8:48:57 AM

games and limping to a 3-9 record and a last-place position in the NBA’s Southeast Division entering Tuesday. Losing is nothing new for Washington’s NBA franchise — one of your Fixer’s favorite basketball blogs exists to chronicle that very fixing scandal described as the ineptitude — but this year’s feels biggest in European soccer somehow more sour. A year off history, the Thun/Yverdon game knee surgery, the ultra-quirky, is one of about 200 under irrepressibly voluble guard investigation in Switzerland and Gilbert Arenas I profiled for the eight other countries for possible Journal back in his Agent Zero m a n i p u l a t i o n l i n k e d t o a n heyday has been reinvented as a international betting ring,” Eric surly, finger-pointing ball hog Pfanner writes in the New York this season, and Arenas’s mood Times. Amid a slow leak of news swings and poor shooting have a b o u t t h e m a t c h - f i x i n g been a big part of Washington’s investigation and a rash of struggles. investigations across Europe, “The trickle-down effect of a UEFA, Europe’s governing substandard Arenas sets in s o c c e r o r g a n i z a t i o n , h a s motion the corrosion of the scheduled an emergency meeting offense,” Tom Knott writes in the Washington Times. “He is going for Wednesday. In the wake of FIFA’s decision to get his shots, just not the kind not to replay France’s ultra- that compromise the integrity of controversial handball-aided a defense. Sometimes there is no elimination of Ireland from the logic to when Arenas takes a World Cup — a decision the shot. … His struggles are those Journal’s Gabriele Marcotti of the team, with no easy explains and defends here— the solutions, other than Arenas game-fixing scandal provides getting more games under his another not-so-nice publicity surgically repaired knee.” moment for the sport. In Der Of course, it might also help if S p i e g e l , D a v i d C r o s s l a n d Arenas knocked off the public provides a roundup of German pouting and teammate-bashing. opinion on the potential fallout In the Washington Post, Michael from the investigation. The Lee dissects Arenas’s most recent overwhelming, unsurprising locker-room rant. consensus: This is not good.* * * While no one on the New Jersey The Washington Wizards have Nets has done any throwing of been something of a bummer this teammates under the bus or season, losing eight of nine complaining about touches, the

Nets — your Fixer’s hometown team and an obsession for much of his young life — may well be too wrung-out to rant. Many respect general manager Rod Thorn and coach Lawrence Frank, and the young team has played hard, but the Nets are an undeniable 0-13. At Yahoo, Adrian Wojnarowski catches up with their hard-working, hardpressed coach and tries to figure out how the Nets fell so far, so fast.* * * For some colleges — think Florida or Alabama — football is a huge revenue source and a way to boost the school’s national profile. For many others, a football program is just a football program. Boston’s Northeastern University, a perennial also-ran in the Colonial Athletic Association, is one such school. When coach Rocky Hager was called into the office of Northeastern’s athletic director Sunday, he thought he was going to get fired — after all, he hadn’t posted a winning season in six years. Instead, Hager learned that Northeastern was, in effect, firing its $4 million-per-year football program. “In the end, it was about the money,” the Boston Globe’s Mark Blaudschun blogs. “Not so much about how much was being spent year after year as Northeastern produced season after season of occasionally successful football teams. But WILL page 60

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Albert Pujols of St. Louis Cardinals is unanimous National League MVP By Associated Press (ESPN.com) Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:25:08 AM

Pujols Wins 3rd MVP In Unanimous Fashion Pujols Wins 3rd MVP In Unanimous Fashion VIDEO PLAYLIST • Pujols Wins 3rd MVP In Unanimous Fashion Pujols Wins 3rd MVP In Unanimous Fashion • Albert Pujols On Winning NL MVP Albert Pujols On Winning NL MVP • What Makes Albert Pujols Great? What Makes Albert Pujols Great? NEW YORK -- Albert Pujols' third National League MVP award put him in select company. Only Barry Bonds has more. "I'm just humbled," Pujols said. Pujols won unanimously Tuesday, becoming the first player to repeat since Bonds won four in a row from 2001-04. Pujols, who also won in 2005, received all 32 first-place votes and 448 points in balloting announced by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. He became the first unanimous MVP since Bonds in 2002. NL MVP Voting By unanimous vote, Albert Pujols became the first player

since Barry Bonds to win back-to -back NL MVP awards. It is Pujols' third MVP award. A breakdown of the voting: A big part of the Cardinals' success this year was the acquisition of Matt Holliday in July. Holliday, who hit cleanup behind Pujols, helped St. Louis win the NL Central and then became a free agent. "The whole city of St. Louis wants Matt back and myself, obviously," Pujols said. "He came at the right time, right when we needed it, right when we were struggling a little bit." While the Cardinals have five division titles and six playoff appearances in nine seasons since Pujols joined the team, they have won the World Series only once, in 2006. "I always make a joke. I got 10 fingers. I want to get nine more rings," he said. "I want to get as many as Derek Jeter has so far [five]. Obviously that's hard to do." Pujols does have one individual goal -- the Hall of Fame. "Obviously, there is still a long way to go," he said. Pujols led the majors in homers (47), runs (124), slugging percentage (.658) and intentional walks (44), and topped the NL in

on-base percentage (.443). He was second in the league in doubles (45) and third in batting average (.327) and RBIs (135). He was especially dangerous with the bases loaded, going 10 for 17 with five grand slams, three doubles and 35 RBIs. "I think it was the most consistent year," he said. "I was pretty much hot April until almost September." Florida's Hanley Ramirez, the NL batting champion, was second with 233 points, followed by Philadelphia's Ryan Howard(217) and Milwaukee's Prince Fielder(203), who tied Howard for the big league lead in RBIs at 141. Pujols didn't homer in his final 89 regular and postseason at-bats after Sept. 9, then had surgery Oct. 21 to remove a bone spur from his right elbow. He had feared he might need ligament replacement, which probably would have forced him to miss the first half of next season. Mike and Mike in the Morning Bob Costas puts Albert Pujols' career in perspective after Pujols picks up another MVP award. Costas also addresses the impact of the steroids era on any great players moving forward and the new statistics in baseball.

More Podcasts » "My elbow was fine," Pujols said. "I don't put that as an excuse. I was still playing every day out there." Pujols, who turns 30 in January, joined Hall of Famer Al Simmons (11) as the only players with 100 or more RBIs in each of their first nine seasons. Pujols also set a big league record for assists by a first baseman with 185. Pujols became the fourth player to win the NL MVP three times. Bonds won seven in the 1990s and 2000s. Stan Musial (1940s), Roy Campanella (1950s) and Mike Schmidt (1980s) each won three. Five players have won three AL MVPs: Jimmie Foxx, Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle and Alex Rodriguez. In addition to Pujols and Bonds, the only unanimous NL winners were Orlando Cepeda (1967), Schmidt (1980), Jeff Bagwell(1994) and Ken Caminiti(1996). Unanimous AL winners have been Hank Greenberg (1935), Al Rosen (1953), Mantle (1956), Frank Robinson (1966), Denny McLain (1968), Reggie Jackson (1973), Jose Canseco(1988), Frank Thomas(1993) and Ken Griffey

Jr.(1997). St. Louis players have won 17 MVPs, second in the majors behind 20 for the Yankees. Pujols has been voted among the top 10 in nine consecutive years, finishing second in 2002, 2003 and 2006; third in 2004; fourth in 2001; and ninth in 2007. Pujols receives a $200,000 bonus for winning the award. He is signed for next season at $16 million, and the Cardinals hold a $16 million option for 2011, so the sides might soon turn their attention to a contract extension. "We don't want this to drag into the 11th hour, but nothing's imminent," Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said in St. Louis. "I don't think anybody could envision what he's accomplished, on and off the field." Joe Mauer of the Minnesota Twins was voted the AL MVP on Monday, receiving 27 of 28 firstplace votes. Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Wizards Owner Pollin Remembered for his Philanthropy (WSJ.com: The Daily Fix)

negotiating deals and trying to move forward with his projects,” Wilbon writes, “Pollin made Lots of professional sports team some enemies during his life, but owners are, naturally, driven to far fewer it always seemed to me succeed and win championships. than 90 percent of the men who For others, it’s all about self- o w n p r o f e s s i o n a l s p o r t s promotion and holding cities f r a n c h i s e s . ” hostage to get a new building — The Washington Examiner’s many times at a great cost to Leon Saffelle and Brian McNally towns facing mammoth budget write that Washington’s sports crunches. Associated Press Abe scene wouldn’t be the same Pollin without Pollin’s contributions.* * Abe Pollin, the longtime * Washington Wizards owner who It was no surprise that voting for died Tuesday at age 85, was the National League MVP was different. Not only was he no contest. Albert Pujols, the d e d i c a t e d t o b r i n g i n g great St. Louis Cardinals slugger, Washington a second NBA was the unanimous first choice championship, he was committed on all 32 ballots in winning the to the community. Pollin is MVP award for the second known as much for helping the straight year and for the third homeless as he is for revitalizing time in his career. Pujols piled up downtown D.C. by building superb numbers: 47 home runs, Verizon Center with hundreds of 1 3 5 R B I s , a . 4 4 3 o n - b a s e millions of his own money. percentage, a .658 slugging (Pollin also paid for the Capital percentage and an OPS of 1.101. Centre in Landover, Md.) St. Louis Post-Dispatch In the Washington Post, Mike columnist Bryan Burwell was Wise weaves a nice story not r e l i e v e d t h a t o l d - s c h o o l about Pollin’s business acumen traditionalism wasn’t trumped by but about his generous helping sabermetrics in determining the hand — especially getting NL MVP. Sabermetric-minded homeless people off the streets voters contributed to Kansas City — and his loyalty to the city. pitcher Zack Greinke’s American Also in the Post, Michael League Cy Young award last Wilbon remembers the man who week despite a so-so win total. b u i l t V e r i z o n C e n t e r a n d “In this corner, Old School mentored Magic Johnson. “Like intuition,” Burwell writes. “In any rich man who spent his life t h i s c o r n e r , N e w S c h o o l Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:24:53 AM

sabermetrics.” At Sports Illustrated, Ted Keith marvels at Pujols’s numbers despite a rotating roster of cleanup men behind him, and predicts another MVP next year. At CBS Sports, Danny Knobler writes it was difficult to slot the No. 2 through 10 finishers. Looking ahead, Yahoo’s Tim Brown wonders what kind of megabucks will be thrown at NL Cy Young winner Ted Lincecum, who is eligible for salary arbitration for the first time. In the San Francisco Chronicle, John Shea speculates whether Joe Mauer, the AL MVP, and Pujols will bolt when free agency arrives for the two stars, in 2010 and 2011, respectively.* * *

Last year, Richard Collier was living a comfortable life as an offensive lineman for the Jacksonville Jaguars. But everything changed when he was shot six times by an assailant intent on revenge for being punched out in a nightclub in an earlier altercation with Collier. Far from being bitter about losing his NFL career and having to use a wheelchair — his right leg is paralyzed and his left leg is gone – Collier still relishes life, Yahoo’s Jason Cole writes. (Remember to come back a little later for the Fix’s NFL picks for Thanksgiving Day.)* * * Thanksgiving is a time for giving thanks for the many blessings in our lives. For many people in the St. Louis area, a post-Thanksgiving tradition includes playing football on Friday, an event that began on Nov. 25, 1960. This year will be no different except for one thing: This is the final game they’ll ever play, the St. Louis Beacon’s Robert W. Duffy writes, with longtime participant Andy Rothschild.* * * “I don’t sweat the small stuff.” Those are the confident words of Ted Smith, a hockey player from Swampscott, Mass., who was paralyzed after crashing into the boards head-first in 2008, then made a stunning recovery and resumed playing in October. But

another accident on the ice left him paralyzed a second time. While Smith’s hockey dream is over, he still believes he’ll walk again, Alan Burke writes in the Salem News.* * * Lyndon Rush is a speed freak. That’s good if you’re an elite athlete in bobsledding, one of the more dangerous but exhilarating sports in the Winter Olympics. Rush, who’s been in bobsledding for only five years, has already put up some impressive preOlympic results, including an unexpected first place in a World Cup race in Utah, the Toronto Star’s Randy Starkman writes. Curling’s appeal grows during Olympic years, too. Many people want to give the sport that’s sometimes called “shuffleboard on ice” a shot. Which led Associated Press reporter Janie McCauley to find out whether just anyone can take up curling. Like, say, a star NFL tight end. How about it, Vernon Davis? – Tip of the Fix cap to readers John Falck and Don Hartline. Found a good column from the world of sports? Don’t keep it to yourself — write to us at dailyfix@wsj.com and we’ll consider your find for inclusion in the Daily Fix. You can email Garey at ris84rap@gmail.com.

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Notre Dame Fighting Irish AD Jack Swarbrick: Jimmy Clausen 'coldcocked'; QB still to play vs. Stanford By ESPN.com news services (ESPN.com)

individual," Swarbrick said. "He just got coldcocked by somebody, and we're very Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:57:19 AM disturbed by that." Clausen Punched In Altercation Monday, ESPN's Joe Schad With Fan Clausen Punched In reported that a source said Altercation With Fan VIDEO Clausen was "sucker punched" PLAYLIST by a fan as he left an â&#x20AC;˘ Clausen Punched In establishment. Altercation With Fan Clausen A message seeking comment Punched In Altercation With Fan was left Tuesday evening for â&#x20AC;˘ Herbstreit on Weis' Future Swarbrick on his cell phone. Herbstreit on Weis' Future Clausen was at C.J.'s Pub at about 2 a.m. with his family and SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Notre girlfriend after Notre Dame's Dame quarterback Jimmy double-overtime loss to Clausen was sporting a black eye Connecticut, according to the behind the tinted visor he wore to official. practice Tuesday. The group decided to leave after Athletic director Jack Swarbrick words were exchanged with said Clausen was the "victim of a others at the bar, the official said. sucker punch" in an incident at a As they were leaving, Clausen's South Bend-area pub on Saturday girlfriend realized she left her night after the Fighting Irish lost purse behind. Clausen went back t o C o n n e c t i c u t i n d o u b l e to retrieve the purse and someone overtime. Swarbrick made the f o l l o w e d h i m o u t s i d e a n d comments during a taping of his punched him, the official said. radio show for WLS Radio 890 Clausen did not fight back and in Chicago, which normally airs left, the official said. on Saturday. South Bend Police Capt. Phil "He was not engaged in a fight. Trent says police were called to He didn't throw any punches. He the scene after receiving a report d i d n ' t d i r e c t l y e n g a g e t h e of a fight. He says police arrived

within minutes and everyone was gone. An employee at CJ's Pub who asked that his name not be used told ESPN's George Smith that several Notre Dame upperclassmen were with Clausen at the bar Saturday. He said the group included several offensive lineman and other offensive players. The employee said off-duty South Bend police officers were working at the bar providing security, which is fairly common there. "If anything had happened inside, we would have handled it," he said. "No one was accosted inside." A message seeking comment was left on the cell phone of Clausen's father, Jim Sr., by The Associated Press on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Chicago Tribune, citing a Century 21 real estate agent, reported that the South Bend house owned by the player's family has been sold. Coach Charlie Weis declined to talk Tuesday about the dustup at his news conference other than to say Clausen would practice this

week and start Saturday against Stanford (7-4). Clausen was not available to comment to the media on Tuesday and his usual Wednesday news conference along with other Notre Dame captains was canceled. Weis called off all interviews for players and assistant coaches this week. Weis poked fun at Clausen during practice on Tuesday, saying his new nickname was "Darth Vader." Weis announced in August that he would allow Notre Dame players to wear visors for the first time. He said at the time that they could wear only clear visors because he didn't think dark visors would look right at Notre Dame and he didn't want players to have "Darth Vader visors." "I thought [they] were way too Hollywood for Notre Dame," he said. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Street Chic: New York By ELLE.com (ELLE News Blog) Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:00:00 AM

Get wrapped up in a luxe fur vest. Photo: Stylesightings Think you are Street Chic? Email us your photo and you could appear in ELLE.com's Street Chic Daily. Follow ELLE on Twitter. Become our Facebook fan!

Seth's Blog: Thirsty By twitter:@leadthetribes (TweetMeme)

I've noticed that people who read a lot of blogs and a lot of books also tend to be intellectually

curious, thirsty for knowledge, work.I wonder which comes first, sethgodin.typepad.com quicker to adopt new ideas and the curiosity or the success? more likely to do important 0 comments Source:

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Ben Roethlisberger of Pittsburgh Steelers likely to play vs. Baltimore Ravens, says coach Mike Tomlin By James Walker (ESPN.com)

fine. So we anticipate Ben practicing tomorrow." Tomlin left the door open to Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:37:06 PM keep Roethlisberger out of the S t e e l e r s M o n i t o r i n g lineup if there were any setbacks R o e t h l i s b e r g e r S t e e l e r s during practice this week. But if M o n i t o r i n g R o e t h l i s b e r g e r Roethlisberger is on the field for Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike practice, he's likely to play on Tomlin said Tuesday that Sunday. s t a r t i n g q u a r t e r b a c k B e n With Charlie Batch out with a Roethlisberger is expected to wrist injury, the Steelers would play this weekend against the have to turn to third-stringer Baltimore Ravens. Dennis Dixon if Roethlisberger AFC North blog cannot suit up. ESPN.com's James Walker "I've been very pleased with writes about all things AFC Dennis' progress as a third North in his division blog. quarterback," Tomlin said. • Blog network: NFL Nation "That's different, of course, than Roethlisberger took a knee to the playing against the Baltimore head in last week's overtime loss R a v e n s o n S u n d a y n i g h t to the Kansas City Chiefs. television. No question we would Tomlin, speaking at his weekly have to do some things to help news conference, confirmed that him if he plays in this game." R o e t h l i s b e r g e r s u f f e r e d a The Steelers are expected to sign concussion but the quarterback quarterback Tyler Palko to their passed all of the neurological practice squad this week, a tests Monday. league source told ESPN's Adam "I met with Ben yesterday; he felt Schefter. Palko played at the normal and he felt fine," Tomlin University of Pittsburgh and was said. "The battery of tests that he with former Steelers assistant took showed that he showed no coach and current Arizona symptoms. So we will continue Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt to monitor his condition and i n A r i z o n a l a s t s u m m e r . where he is on a day-to-day basis Recently, Palko had been on the and let that guide our decision- Montreal Alouettes practice making. But as I sit here today, squad. he is symptom-free and feeling The Steelers, already playing

without star safety Troy Polamalu(left knee ligament) and defensive end Aaron Smith(right rotator cuff), also lost left guard Chris Kemoeatu with a sprained right medial collateral ligament in Kansas City. He is expected to be out for a couple of weeks, and will be replaced by nondrafted rookie Ramon Foster. Tomlin isn't ruling Polamalu out of the Ravens game, calling him "questionable, at best" -- just as he did last week, when it was obvious Polamalu wouldn't play. The five-time Pro Bowl safety could sit out additional games past this one with his second knee injury this season. Polamalu has missed five games and he played only a few plays in a sixth, a 18-12 loss to Cincinnati on Nov. 15. The Steelers lost four of those games. This is a big game for the Ravens (5-5) and Steelers (6-4), as both teams are fighting for playoff positioning in the AFC. James Walker covers the AFC North for ESPN.com. Information from The Associated Press is included in this report. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

WILL continued from page 56

how much it would take over a sustained period of time to upgrade the Huskies’ facilities to where they could compete in the fast lane of Football Championship Division football.” While surely some underclassmen who committed to Northeastern in hopes of a full college career might disagree, the best that can be said of Northeastern’s programtermination is that it has been fair to the athletes. “Northeastern is offering its football players what effectively amounts to a generous buyout,” William C. Rhoden writes in the New York Times. “They can stay and earn their degrees, and they will still have access to academic support, sports medicine and strength and conditioning teams. There just will not be a football team for them to be a part of.”* * * From Sarunas Marciulionis to Zydrunas Ilgauskas, the nation of Lithuania has acquitted itself well in the U.S. when it comes to hoops. The flow of international players into the NBA has undoubtedly improved the American game, but globalization is not a one-way street. Many former American college stars currently ply their

trade abroad and make a decent living doing so. And even before basketball truly became a global industry, there was room for wildcatting basketball adventurers like Larry Luftig. “[Seventeen] years ago, when the Internet was an infant and scouts still thought inside the box, Luftig took a monumental international step, becoming the first American to play professionally in Lithuania,” Sports Illustrated’s Jeff Pearlman writes. “And he’d never logged a single minute of college ball. Not a one.” To say that Luftig’s Lithuanian career equaled the American careers of Marciulionis or Ilgauskas is a stretch but, as told by Pearlman, it is at least a really good story. — Tip of the Fix cap to reader Don Hartline and fellow Fixer Garey Ris. Found a good column from the world of sports? Don’t keep it to yourself — write to us at dailyfix@wsj.com and we’ll consider your find for inclusion in the Daily Fix. You can email David at droth11@gmail.com.

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Report: Boston Red Sox aggressively Obama 'to attend chasing Roy Halladay climate talks' By ESPN.com news services (ESPN.com) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:43:40 AM

The Boston Red Sox are ready to deal and they want to see an ace. Edes: The Race Is On The Red Sox are in the running for Roy Halladay, but they face lots of competition if they're to acquire one of the game's top pitchers, ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes writes. Story Citing an unnamed source, the New York Daily News reported on Tuesday that the team is "putting on a full-court press" to acquire Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays. "They would love to get it wrapped up before the winter meetings [beginning Dec. 7]," the

source said, according to the newspaper. Halladay's name was mentioned prominently in relation to the Red Sox at the trade deadline last summer when the Jays said they were shopping the right-hander, but no deal could be worked out and he stayed put. The six-time All-Star went 1710 with a 2.79 ERA and 208 strikeouts in 2009, but the Jays finished 75-87 and a whopping 28 games behind the first-place Yankees. Halladay, who has pitched his entire 12-year career with Toronto, has expressed a desire to win. The Red Sox, Yankees, and Angels have all been mentioned prominently as possible suitors for the 2003 Cy

Young Award winner. It's a given the Red Sox's interest in Halladay has diminished little since the summer, when all of their offers were rejected by then -general manager J.P. Ricciardi. But a source told ESPNBoston.com reporter Gordon Edes that there is "nothing" to the timing and urgency mentioned in the report. The consensus among baseball people is that new Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos will get the deal he wants this winter, and if not, he will wait until the trading deadline in July. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

(BBC News | Americas | World Edition) Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:55:08 AM

US President Barack Obama will go to the early stages of December's UN climate summit in Copenhagen, but will not stay for crucial talks at the end. Mr Obama will be in the Danish capital on 9 December on his way to Oslo to pick up his Nobel Peace Prize, a US administration official said. The talks will attempt to draw up a new global climate treaty to supplant the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. So far more than 60 world leaders have said they will attend the summit. Observers say the attendance of

Abe Pollin Built More Than Wizards By Kevin Blackistone (FanHouse)

Such a remembrance would be as understandable as it would be unfortunate. Submitted at 11/25/2009 12:30:00 AM Indeed, Pollin, who died by Kevin Blackistone Tuesday afternoon at 85 as the F i l e d u n d e r : N B A longest tenured owner in the WASHINGTON -- If you aren't NBA, was much more than the from the nation's capital, my protagonist in the ending of MJ's hometown, and you know the basketball-playing career as he name Abe Pollin at all, it is was cast -- and wrongly, by the probably because of his audacity. way. He was the kind of owner At the end of the 2002-2003 every fan, and certainly every NBA season, he fired from the city leader, would love to have team he owned, the Washington had. The nation's capital was Wizards, Michael Jordan. lucky for the last 46 years Pollin

owned the Wizards, which was why Wes Unseld -- truly the greatest pro basketball player in

this city's history -- dragged himself into downtown Washington on Tuesday night for what was a unglamorous meeting of a losing team from Philadelphia and Pollin's losing Wizards. Abe Pollin Built More Than Wizards originally appeared on Fanhouse - Kevin Blackistone on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs| Comments

such figures as Mr Obama will raise expectations, although the talks are not expected to result in a new treaty. Delegations from 192 countries will be attending the summit, which runs from 7-18 December. Leaders saying they will attend the summit include UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva. Hu Jintao, president of the world's largest polluter, China, is yet to commit to attending. The US is the second largest polluter after China. Print Sponsor This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Initial jobless claims plummet to 14-month low - Nov. 25, 2009 By twitter:@cnnbrk (TweetMeme) Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:52:24 AM

Number of first-time filers for unemployment insurance fell to 466,000, lowest in 14 months. http://bit.ly/4X4q4i 0 comments Source: money.cnn.com

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Wickmayer Suspended for Agassi's Sins

S.C. Baby Taken From Car Found, Woman Arrested

By Greg Couch (FanHouse)

(FOXNews.com)

Submitted at 11/25/2009 12:00:00 AM

Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:44:59 AM

by Greg Couch Filed under: U.S. Open, WTA It's amazing how much "no comment" can say. I've made a pet project of the curious case of Yanina Wickmayer, the young tennis player banned for a year from the tour for a doping offense even though she never missed a doping test and never failed one. Wickmayer is being punished for Andre Agassi's sins. That's how tennis is trying to save face, by crushing a 20-year old budding star who seems to have committed, at worst, a tiny infraction. I've spent the past few weeks calling and emailing the doping agencies and governing bodies involved. You name the initials, VDT, WADA, WTA, ITF. Most of them are B.S. In the end, this isn't even about Wickmayer anymore. It's about doping tests and steroids in sports

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. Police in South Carolina have found a 1-month-old boy who was taken from a vehicle in North Charleston earlier this week. A statement by North Charleston police spokesman Spencer Pryor said Angel Miguel Perez was found safe at a home in Summerville about 12:30 a.m. Wednesday. Pryor says a 19-year-old woman By Ariel Helwani (FanHouse) fellow fighters have said about has been arrested and charged him during his time away from with kidnapping. Her name was Submitted at 11/24/2009 10:27:00 PM not released. the sport. by Ariel Helwani Finally, we spoke to women's Pryor says officers from North Filed under: MMA Videos, MMA sensation Kerry Vera, who Charleston and Summerville UFC, Strikeforce, FanHouse talked about her recent victory went to the home after getting a Exclusive over Kim Couture and dealing tip. He says the boy was taken to On this week's edition of The with her newfound fame in the the Medical University of South MMA Hour, we were first joined sport. Watch or listen to the show Carolina in Charleston for an evaluation and was reunited with by UFC lightweight star Frankie below. Edgar, who faces Matt Veach at The MMA Hour Featuring his parents. The Ultimate Fighter finale on Frankie Edgar, Cung Le and A police dispatcher referred Dec. 5. Later in the show, we Kerry Vera originally appeared questions to Pryor, who did not s p o k e t o S t r i k e f o r c e on Fanhouse MMA Blog on Tue, immediately return a phone middleweight Cung Le who 24 Nov 2009 22:27:00 EST . message seeking additional returns to action following a 21- Please see our terms for use of information. Police planned a news month hiatus on Dec. 19 against feeds. Scott Smith. Le discussed his Permalink| Email this| Linking conference late Wednesday morning. future in the sport and dealing Blogs| Comments Click here for more on this story with the criticism some of his from FoxCarolina.com. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

The MMA Hour Featuring Frankie Edgar, Cung Le and Kerry Vera in general. We need watchers to keep an eye on the cheating athletes. But who is watching the watchers? Wickmayer Suspended for Agassi's Sins originally appeared on Fanhouse Tennis on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 00:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs| Comments

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Zebra Report: Mangini's Timeout Gaffe

Around the Net In Media: CBS Radio, TV Unveil 'Digital Newsstands'

By Matt Snyder (FanHouse)

(MediaPost | Media News)

Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:00:00 AM

Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:23:32 PM

by Matt Snyder Filed under: Browns, Cowboys, Lions, Redskins, Texans, Titans, Vikings, NFL Coaching, NFL Referees Zebra Report is FanHouse's analysis of actual NFL rules and how they are to be applied ... because most fans think they could do a better job than the NFL officials, yet definitely could not. Click here for an introduction as to how we do things. As the clock struck zero in the Lions- Browns game, there was a pass interference penalty called on Cleveland in the end zone. In the aftermath of the play, Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford laid on the field injured. The officials called an injury timeout for Stafford. Also, Cleveland head coach Eric Mangini took a timeout to seemingly do nothing more than lambast the officials for what appeared a pretty

The CBS-owned TV and radio stations in Philadelphia have joined forces to launch "digital newsstands" around Philadelphia -- HD televisions airing 24-hour news. About 40 newsstands went live on Tuesday and there will eventually be 120 citywide. KYW and its sister station WPSG, provide the TV news updates and the five local CBS Radio stations do the marquee content. KWY/WPSG General Manager Jon Hitchcock says that By Kevin Kelly (Joystiq) Power Glove in it. But don't fret, providing a street-level news there are gloves in this short film. service is "another way to Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:00:00 AM And they definitely have some provide the viewer with the news We talked about the trailer for power. and information they need Turbo back in April, and now Check out all of Turbo after the wherever they are and whenever director Jarrett Conaway has put break. Conaway is hoping to the need it. Ultimately, we want the entire short film up on the make a full-length version of the CBS to be the news source web for maximum watchability. film soon, which means you locally." While it's a short film, it manages could see Turbo: The Video CBS is making TV-radio to make a movie about video Game of the Video Game Movie synergy an increasing focus in its games look like ... a movie about at a store near you. markets. In Baltimore, for video games (and not some Continue reading'Turbo' movie i n s t a n c e , W J Z n o w s h a r e s overblown Bay-gasm). It also trumps Natal, Sphere and Wii content and some marketing and stars Justin Chon, one of the bit MotionPlus sales functions with as many as players from this weekend's 'Turbo' movie trumps Natal, five CBS radio stations. On Nov. m e g a - m o n e y - m a k i n g N e w Sphere and Wii MotionPlus 10, CBS Radio CFO Anton Moon, though he's thankfully not originally appeared on Joystiq on Guitano was promoted to COO playing an emo crybaby in this. Wed, 25 Nov 2009 07:00:00 of CBS Local Media, overseeing Conaway describes his film as" EST. Please see our terms for both local TV and radio. The Karate Kid meets Tron," but use of feeds. This content has passed through it actually feels more like The P e r m a l i n k | E m a i l t h i s | fivefilters.org. Wizard updated with tons of C o m m e n t s CGI. Except there's no Nintendo

'Turbo' movie trumps Natal, Sphere and Wii MotionPlus obvious interference call. Zebra Report: Mangini's Timeout Gaffe originally appeared on Fanhouse NFL Blog on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds. Permalink| Email this| Linking Blogs| Comments

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Around the Net In Media: Havas Media, Zenith Win Reckitt's $1.3 Bil Media Account (MediaPost | Media News) Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:24:55 PM

Undead Labs' Jeff Strain is totally into zombies By Justin McElroy (Joystiq)

considerable amount of insight into how much Strain thinks Submitted at 11/25/2009 9:30:00 AM about zombies. We've already told you about Take this gem for instance: Blizzard/NCsoft vet Jeff Strain's "People are passionate about startup, Undead Labs, which is zombies ... the reason I'm talking c r e a t i n g a z o m b i e - c e n t r i c , about it is because I want zombie console-based MMO (sorry, fans. I want the best developers marketing dept., we're not going in the industry that love zombies to call it an MMOZ), but we to want to work here." haven't told you much about the Or perhaps this: "The reason g a m e i t s e l f . T h o u g h t h i s zombies are so powerful and E u r o g a m e r i n t e r v i e w s t i l l transcend fantasy is because right provides next to no perspective now they are the modern, societal on that topic, it does offer a guilt-free meat-puppet. We've

been through the Nazi phase, we've been through the communist phase, we've been through the terrorist phase. Those were all at various times in history fair game in the gaming culture. Right now zombies are fulfilling that need for us. That no-rules, no-guilt mentality is something that people really resonate with." So, what Strain is saying is that we used to be really angry at terrorists, but now, instead of that, we hate zombies. Will

history remember how close Strain just came to inventing the zombie terrorist, the video game enemy that will someday unite the world, Wyld Stallyns-style? We suspect it will not. Undead Labs' Jeff Strain is totally into zombies originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

Consumer-goods giant Reckitt Benckiser has awarded its $1.3 billion global media account to two roster agencies: Havas Media and Zenith Optimedia. The shops bested challengers Omnicom Media Group, which has handled some Reckitt assignments, and WPP. A seven-month agency review included both digital and traditional media. Reckitt execs say the consolidation is expected to bring economies of scale and improve consistency in media strategies and implementation across countries. Reckitt spent slightly more than $500 million on ads in the U.S. in 2008, up 20% from 2007, per Nielsen. Client brands, include Woolite, Lysol and Vanish. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Activision Blizzard sued by ... yeah, it's the PSN guy By Alexander Sliwinski (Joystiq)

its customers by forcing them to follow the game's sneaky and deceitful practices." Estavillo Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:00:00 AM alleges that the "calculated slow S e r i a l s u i t l a u n c h e r E r i k pace" of the game makes turning Estavillo is making a little name quests in take longer and thus for himself in the game space, as generates more subscription his latest complaint seeks $1 revenue for Activision Blizzard. m i l l i o n i n d a m a g e s f r o m If that wasn't enough, Estavillo Activision Blizzard over the also subpoenaed actress Winona design of World of Warcraft. Ryder and Depeche Mode's GamePolitics reports on the Martin Lee Gore to testify on his complaint, which claims that the behalf regarding alienation. He publisher maintains a "harmful explains that his health issues, virtual environment to many of which apparently include OCD,

agoraphobia, depression (and more), mean that he "relies on video games heavily for the little ongoing happiness he can

achieve in this life." Estavillo had previously sued Sony after being banned from PSN and also has another suit

against Microsoft and Nintendo, for his Xbox 360's Red Ring of Death and Nintendo's disabling of the Homebrew Channel in an update. Perhaps he'll have more luck suing over the design of a game in which millions happily pay to participate. Activision Blizzard sued by ... yeah, it's the PSN guy originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments

Scivelation officially announced for 360, coming Q3 2010 By Griffin McElroy (Joystiq)

have received some supplemental materials informing us how to Submitted at 11/25/2009 10:30:00 AM properly speak the title of the Good news, 360 owners: The g a m e . W e ' r e c o n s i d e r i n g hard-to-pronounce third-person changing our current position to s h o o t e r f r o m T o p W a r e "Skih-vee-lay-shun." Interactive and Black Wing The press release which F o u n d a t i o n , k n o w n a s divulged this information also Scivelation, will be coming revealed a bit more about the exclusively to the platform in the game's story. You'll be playing as third quarter of next year. a member of a rebel faction, Hopefully, by that point, we'll fighting against the oppressive,

for 360, coming Q3 2010 originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments theocratic "Regime." Joining you is a former Regime scientist who has created a "post-human supervirus," and a former

Russian special operative who is also a cyborg. It's like three plots in one! What a bargain! Scivelation officially announced

Those against the new campus say the current campus, or rather, the buildings that comprise UAL (there is no campus right now) have history and feel the way are art school should. Art school is not meant to be shiny and new; it's a place of experimentation and creativity. It is a studio where people can work, and

that's all it ever needs to be according to those opposed to the new campus. So before it is long gone and only a piece of Saint Martins history, here is the canteen, or cafeteria, where students go to grab some food at the Charing Cross Road building, the same building that houses the fashion

Cafe Saint Martins By ELLE.com (ELLE News Blog) Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:51:32 AM

Not only is Central Saint Martins a place of history and talent, the buildings are characters in and of themselves. It is not a shiny, new campus with smart classrooms

outfitted to accomodate the latest technology. Most days, it is a blessing if the heat is even working. Though, this has come up for much debate as the University of Arts London, the parent college of Saint Martins, is building a fancy new campus, and not everyone is supportive of this endeavor.

department. In the days of Jarvis Cocker, the canteen had to be shut down because of the drugs that were being done and dealt. Ah, art school. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Rebecca Suhrawardi Austin Follow ELLE on Twitter. Become our Facebook fan!

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Around the Net In Media: 'NYT,' Samsung Offer $100 Netbook Discount (MediaPost | Media News) Submitted at 11/24/2009 7:20:00 PM

The New York Times has teamed up with Samsung to provide a $100 discount toward the purchase of Samsung's netbook in exchange for a oneyear subscription to Times Reader 2.0. The one-year subscription costs $179.40. The NYT digital edition comes pre-installed on the Go netbook, which is offered for about $380 By JC Fletcher (Joystiq) happened to be wearing them not counting the $100 discount. when he went into, you know, A few other newspapers are Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:00:00 AM the Splatterhouse. considering extending discounts Namco Bandai may have trouble Then again, the Globe version for digital readers in exchange getting a next-gen update to makes up for the inconsistency for subscriptions. For instance, By Ben Gilbert (Joystiq) handful of different colors. For The Detroit Free Press and the Splatterhouse out the door, but by coming with a T-shirt, which $25 (plus $10 domestic shipping, Detroit News plan to offer digital the company seems to have had is something Rick could use. The Submitted at 11/25/2009 2:00:00 AM more for other territories) we can editions of their newspapers on no problem developing a new shoes are available from Namco's iteration of the franchise for the shop in limited quantities for If you're anything like us, you've have all the style we want an e-reader from Plastic Logic spent countless hours of your without all the weight that drives your feet platform. $79.99 a pair. that the papers may subsidize. Namco partnered with Globe Splatterhouse shoes are like a youth hollowing out old gaming o u r t r e e ' s l i m b s p l u n g i n g This content has passed through Shoes to create these sneakers, Terror Mask for your feet controllers for use as gigantic d o w n w a r d . T a l k a b o u t a fivefilters.org. purportedly based on those worn originally appeared on Joystiq on C h r i s t m a s t r e e o r n a m e n t s . C h r i s t m a s m i r a c l e ! by Rick in the game. To be Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:00:00 Though these might have resulted [Via GeekSugar] nitpicky, the real-world shoes EST. Please see our terms for i n y e a r s o f l o p s i d e d t r e e Game controller Christmas tree dilemmas, our penchant for ornaments, minus all the plastic don't feature the green accent use of feeds. found on the in-game versions-- Read| Permalink| Email this| hanging something that at least originally appeared on Joystiq on resembles our favorite gaming Wed, 25 Nov 2009 02:00:00 and the Splatterhouse logo on the Comments controllers on the tree never EST. Please see our terms for shoes would make for a really subsided. use of feeds. weird coincidence if Rick Lucky for us that Ponoko user " Read| Permalink| Email this| d i g i t s " s h a r e s o u r u n i q u e Comments affectation, making a variety of controller-themed ornaments in a

Splatterhouse shoes are like a Terror Mask for Game controller your feet

Christmas tree ornaments, minus all the plastic

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eBay Goes Offline for the Holidays By ELLE.com (ELLE News Blog) Submitted at 11/25/2009 5:02:00 AM

I adore holiday shopping. Running around the city, Starbucks in hand, searching high and low for unique finds for everyone on my list. That said, there are always a few people whose innate pickiness makes the whole process a little unnerving. ELLE’s Gift Guide (in the December issue, on newsstands now) offers chic items for even the pickiest people in your life (porcelain-print Wellies anyone)? I’ll also be scouring eBay for impossible-to-find-anywhere-else items like Sega Genesis circa 1989 for my nephew and ultrafeminine Mayle cardigans for my sister. This season, eBay opens the door to its holiday store on 57th Street (open through November 29), filled with genius gift ideas (vintage Louis Vuitton

luggage, Hermès cuffs, and Balenciaga bags) and kiosks scattered throughout the space so you can bid on-the-spot. If you’re not in New York, simply go to ebayholiday.com and start searching. —Violet Moon Gaynor Follow ELLE on Twitter. Become our Facebook fan!

Michelle Obama image in race row (BBC News | Americas | World Edition)

there and the amount of activity at the site. The shocking doctored image of Submitted at 11/25/2009 4:46:20 AM Mrs Obama must have Google has apologised over a immediately created a flurry of racially offensive picture of interest - mainly negative - and Michelle Obama which appears that sent the image shooting up when users search for images of Google's rankings. the US first lady. "We apologise if you've had an The image comes top of the upsetting experience using G o o g l e I m a g e s r e s u l t s f o r Google," the company says. "Michelle Obama". Google says a website's ranking Google placed a notice over the in its search results relies heavily picture titled "Offensive Search on computer algorithms, using Results", saying: "Sometimes our thousands of factors to calculate search results can be offensive. a page's relevance to a given We agree." query. But it refused to remove the But the search engine says it image from its search. The White does not remove images simply House has declined to comment. because it receives complaints. U s e r s w h o c l i c k o n t h e "Google views the integrity of advertisement above the image our search results as an extremely are directed to a statement from important priority," it says. Google which explains that its "Accordingly, we do not remove results "can include disturbing a page from our search results content, even from innocuous simply because its content is queries". unpopular or because we receive Freedom of access to the internet complaints concerning it." means much offensive material However, the California-based resides there, but ordinary users web giant says it will take down are seldom exposed to it in daily certain images, if required by law online activity. to do so. Occasionally, however, the A spokesman for Google, Scott world's most popular search Rubin, would not give details on engine, Google, highlights such how the image - which has material, which is what has sparked fury in the blogosphere happened with a mock-up photo ended up as top result for the of Michelle Obama. wife of President Barack Obama. The cause is Google's system of 'Slippery slope' algorithmic analysis, which, The picture first surfaced earlier without human intervention, this month, when it was removed ranks sites according to things because the site hosting it like the number of links pointing violated Google guidelines by

spreading so-called malware malicious software designed to infiltrate other computers. But the image has now reappeared on another site, apparently untainted by malware, and therefore Google is bound by its own rules not to meddle with the search, say technology analysts. David Vise, a Pulitzer prizewinning journalist and author of The Google Story, told the BBC the search engine's results get to the top based on popularity, not because of any ranking system by people. He added: "If Google got a call from the White House telling them it's against the law to have an offensive image of this kind which portrays the first lady in a racist manner as a monkey or an ape, then they would be obliged to take it down and I'm sure they would do so immediately." But he said it would be a "very slippery slope" if Google were to try to police the limits of free speech. "Once you begin to block images, who is to say. It's like the Supreme Court of the United States once said, 'what is pornography?' Well we can't define it, but we know it when we see it." Print Sponsor This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Gay marriage momentum stalls in liberal NY, NJ (AP) (Yahoo! News: U.S. News)

Thirty states have amended their constitutions to specify that marriage can only be between a MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. – The man and a woman; all but three state-to-state march to legalize of those amendments were gay marriage across the left- adopted since the Massachusetts leaning Northeast has lost more ruling. momentum since a major setback But in the Northeast, progress three weeks ago at the ballot box has been much smoother for gay in Maine. rights advocates. Since then, legislatures in New The Connecticut Supreme Court York and New Jersey have failed recognized the marriages last to schedule long-expected votes year. on bills to recognize the unions Lawmakers in Vermont, New in those states. Hampshire and Maine all adopted "If they are unable to pass gay gay marriage bills this year. The marriage in New York and New city council in Washington, D.C., Jersey, combined with the loss in is expected to legalize gay Maine, it will confirm that gay marriage next month. marriage is not the inevitable The only state outside the wave of the future," said Maggie Northeast that recognizes sameGallagher, president of the sex marriage is Iowa, where the N a t i o n a l O r g a n i z a t i o n f o r state Supreme Court mandated it Marriage, which mobilizes social earlier this year. conservatives to fight against But last month, voters in Maine same-sex unions. — the only Northeastern state Gay rights activists insist that's where the issue has been put on a not the case and say hope is still ballot — overturned a gayalive. marriage law before it could take "In any civil rights struggle there effect. are going to be periods of New York and New Jersey creeping and periods of leaping," appeared to be the next logical said Evan Wolfson, executive battlegrounds. director of Freedom to Marry. New York is seen as relatively This decade has had some of gay-friendly. Court rulings, both across the country. The including one from the state's most significant was the leap the highest court just last week, have issue made from abstraction to found that gay couples married r e a l i t y i n 2 0 0 3 w h e n t h e outside New York are entitled to Massachusetts Supreme Court some government benefits. ruled that gay couples had the New Jersey offers the legal right to get married. rights afforded to married The fallout was widespread: couples but calls them civil Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:06:47 AM

unions, not marriages. Recent public opinion polls have shown narrow support for allowing gay marriage in the state. However, a new poll out Wednesday from Quinnipiac University finds voters oppose gay marriage by a 49 to 46 margin, with a sampling error margin of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Both states have Democratic governors eager to sign bills legalizing gay marriage. But now it's not clear if bills will ever get to their desks. There could be national implications if they don't. "If this goes down in both states, it will be seen by both sides as building on the momentum that opponents sort of got coming out of Maine," said David Masci, a senior researcher at the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. There's a sense of urgency in New Jersey. This month, voters elected Republican Chris Christie over incumbent Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine. Corzine has said he'll sign a gay marriage bill. Christie promised a veto. As a result, activists are pushing hard to get a bill passed before Christie takes office on Jan. 19. But since the election, key Democrats have said they don't intend to put the bill up for a vote unless they know it will pass. And so far, they say, that's not assured. On Monday, when lawmakers met for the first time since the election, the issue was

in legislative limbo — not scheduled but not declared dead either. Len Deo, president of the conservative New Jersey Family Policy Council, said he believes some lawmakers who were undecided before the election would now vote against a gay marriage bill. "Observing what happened in the general election, I think that took the wind out of the sails of the same-sex marriage movement," he said. Steven Goldstein, chairman of Garden State Equality, the state's main gay rights organization, acknowledges his side has lost some support in Trenton. "Was marriage equality in the bag before the election? Nothing in politics is ever in the bag, but we were looking pretty damn excellent," Goldstein said. Despite the uncertainty, Goldstein says he still expects a vote this year. "Now, we're looking pretty damn good," he said. The situation in New York is similar to New Jersey's, with no clear sign of whether there will be a vote in the state Senate. The state Assembly has already adopted a marriage bill. Some conservatives say the special election this fall in New York's rural 23rd Congressional District may have sent a signal to politicians. A conservative thirdparty candidate who opposes same-sex marriage forced the

more moderate Republican — who supported same-sex marriage — to suspend her campaign. Democrat Bill Owens ultimately won the race. Dan Poust, of the New York State Catholic Conference, said that pokes a hole in the notion that gay marriage is headed for passage this year. "Clearly that was premature, because the people are not there," he said. New York Sen. Thomas Duane, an openly gay lawmaker sponsoring the same-sex marriage bill, said Tuesday he still expects the state Senate to vote on and pass a bill by the end of the year. Social conservatives have long told politicians they could lose their seats if they support gay marriage. But Kenneth Sherrill, a political scientist at Hunter College in New York, said politics have grown more complicated as same-sex marriage has become a major issue. "It's not as if politicians only have to fear an enraged group of people opposed to gay rights," he said. "Politicians also have to be concerned about angry supporters of gay rights." ___ Associated Press Writer Valerie Bauman contributed to this report from Albany, N.Y. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Americans search for cheaper Thanksgiving trips (AP) (Yahoo! News: U.S. News)

survey of 1,300 households. About 38 million domestic travelers are expected to go C H I C A G O – M i l l i o n s o f somewhere this holiday — a far Americans got an early jump on cry from the roughly 58 million t h e i r T h a n k s g i v i n g t r a v e l who made holiday journeys in Wednesday, with many opting to 2005 when the economy was drive or take trains and buses better. instead of shelling out more Traveling for Thanksgiving at money for flights amid a sour any cost was too much for Julie economy still hitting household Bennink, 26, who works in budgets hard. public relations in Chicago. At a Greyhound station in Unexpected medical and other Louisville, Ky., 18-year-old bills meant she couldn't afford student Cathy Smith waited paying what would have been at patiently to catch a bus to spend least $400 for a rental car and gas the holiday with her family in to drive the three hours to Grand Tennessee. Smith has flown Rapids, Mich., for dinner with h o m e i n t h e p a s t , b u t h e r her family. grandparents — who paid for her "My mom was not really thrilled bus ticket— ruled that out this with me when I told her," year. Bennink said. "It was the price of the ticket," Her plan B was to take a 15she said. minute city bus ride to a friend's Many Americans are forgoing house and bring a cornbread air travel for the Thanksgiving casserole. holiday and opting for cheaper Most people have calculated that alternatives because of economic travel by car often makes the pressures. Others are staying most financial sense, said Alan home completely — partly to Pisarski, a leading transportation avoid traffic and airport lines, analyst. About 33 million people partly to save a buck. are expected to travel by car this Thanksgiving travel plummeted Thanksgiving, according to a staggering 25 percent between AAA. 2007 and 2008, and many of John and Janet Lawson of those habits seem to be sticking Elizabethtown, Ky., opted to this year. The number of people drive 350 miles to Dearborn traveling is likely to stay about Heights, Mich., to make dinner the same, inching up only by for one of her sisters rather than about 1.4 percent, according to spend the holiday with her other an AAA prediction based on a siblings in Minnesota. Submitted at 11/25/2009 7:03:32 AM

"It affected us as far as the distance we would travel," Janet Lawson said at a service plaza along Interstate 75 in southwest Ohio. "We didn't want to do any flying." The Lawsons left home at 4 a.m. Wednesday, hoping to beat traffic. Their SUV was loaded with turkey, gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes and pies. "If we get stranded on the side of the road, we are not going to starve," John Lawson said. In Tennessee, Pam Walker and her family of five arrived in Nashville early Wednesday after a more than seven-hour drive from Muskegon, Mich., to visit her son. "It's cheaper and it's also a ride we're familiar with," said Walker, who was meeting her son at a restaurant for breakfast. Train ridership also was predicted to get a holiday boost. Amtrak said it expected Wednesday to be its busiest travel day of the year, with ridership as high as 125,000 passengers. On a typical Wednesday, the railroad carries approximately 74,000 passengers. At New York City's Penn Station, sisters Emily and Katie Jacobs ate breakfast and drank coffee at they waited for their train to Atlantic City, N.J., to visit their family.

Emily Jacobs, 26, said they decided Amtrak was the best option after considering "traffic on the roads, getting out of the city, and then the New Jersey Turnpike... might as well bypass all that." The cost of flying also was a deterent, Emily Jacobs said, since "ticket prices for planes were insane" already and the surcharges for holiday airfare were even more discouraging. Airlines had been depending on holiday travelers more than usual because travel has been so weak the rest of the year, said Stifel Nicolaus analyst Hunter Keay. The AAA predicts there will be a 6.7 percent decrease in air travelers this holiday compared with last year. That doesn't mean fewer sardinepacked planes. Carriers have cut the number of aircraft in service, ensuring full planes. And with extra fees to check baggage on most carriers, many travelers are likely to bring as much as they can on board. So add battles for overhead compartment space to the list of potential aggravations. Some travelers were lured to fly at the last minute by airline bargains. Danny Cruz, 30, a bookstore employee from Atlanta, was facing a holiday apart from her mom who lives in Orlando because airfares were too high. But they took to the Internet and scored a last-minute

deal — from airlines scrambling to sell open seats. "Suddenly one day it went from almost $400 to almost half the price," Cruz said. So far, air travelers found quick lines and little aggravation. The world's busiest airport, Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport, is bracing for a rush of 1.7 million holiday travelers — in line with the holiday period last year, general manager Ben DeCosta said. Matthew Paulk, a student from New York City, said he braced for the worst before he arrived at the Atlanta airport. "I expected it to be hectic — people losing their bags, tripping, dropping stuff, arguments," he said. "But it was really good. It wasn't what I expected." ___ AP Airlines Writer Joshua Freed in Minneapolis; AP Writers Carrie Antlfinger in Milwaukee, James Irwin in Detroit, Tamara Lush in Pompano Beach, Fla., Randall Dickerson in Nashville, Tenn., Dan Sewell in Cincinnati, Bruce Schreiner in Louisville, Ky., and Ula Ilnytzky in New York; and Videojournalists Mark Carlson in Chicago and Jason Bronis in Atlanta contributed to this report. This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Lambert says he got carried away, but not sorry (AP) (Yahoo! News: U.S. News)

sexual edge. ABC received many complaints about the performance and that network's NEW YORK – Adam Lambert morning show, " Good Morning admits he got carried away with America," canceled Lambert's his sexually charged American s c h e d u l e d a p p e a r a n c e o n Music Awards performance, but Wednesday because it said it he's offering no apology. couldn't trust what he would do. T h e g l a m r o c k e r f r o m " "The Early Show" on CBS, American Idol" said on " The perennially third in a threeE a r l y S h o w " t h a t h i s network morning show race, performance would not have happily gave him a platform and caused as much controversy if he milked it — interviewing him, weren't openly gay. He also said having him interact with fans and there were other "adult" moments asking him to sing. One of the on the show that caused no show's hosts, Harry Smith, tied outrage. the flap to rock history, noting "I admit I did get carried away, that camera operators were only but I don't see anything wrong allowed to shoot Elvis Presley with it," he said Wednesday. "I from the waist up during a do see how people got offended n e t w o r k T V a p p e a r a n c e and that was not my intention. g e n e r a t i o n s a g o . My intention was to interpret the Lambert admitted he didn't lyrics of my song and have a rehearse some of the more risque good time with it." elements of his award show Lambert kissed a male keyboard performance — a point that player, dragged a female dancer particularly upset ABC, which around by the ankles and had a said it was taken by surprise by dancer simulate oral sex on him what he did. In the future, he said while performing "For Your he'd try to get these issues Entertainment," a song with a cleared before the show. Submitted at 11/25/2009 6:24:45 AM

But he noted that Lady Gaga smashed whiskey bottles during her performance, Eminem rapped about rape and Janet Jackson briefly groped a male dancer. "Janet Jackson, crotch grab," he said. "I haven't heard one peep about that." He said that "if it had been a female pop performer doing (his) moves that were on the stage, I don't think there would be nearly as much of an outrage." "I think it's because I'm a gay male," he added. Offered a chance to apologize, he declined. He said he didn't consider that there may have been children watching because his American Music Awards performance came at nearly 11 p.m., and that it's a parent's job to monitor what their children are watching on TV. "I'm not a baby sitter," he said. "I'm a performer." Asked what he'd do differently if he had the chance, Lambert said, "I would sing it a little bit better." "I guess I have a tendency to divide people," he added. "

Apples and oranges— you either like it or you don't." "For Your Entertainment" is the title cut and first single from Lambert's new album, which went on sale Monday. He didn't perform that on " The Early Show," opting instead for the songs "What Do You Want From Me" and "Music Again." He said before performing, "Parents, this is appropriate, I promise." Lambert took questions from fans surrounding CBS' midtown Manhattan studio, including one who said she had traveled from Japan to see him. None of the questions were about Sunday's performance. Lambert's mother came on stage between his two songs, and was asked what she thought of her son at the American Music Awards. "I was a little taken aback," she said. "But, you know, I just went with the flow. It's all good." This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

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Zelaya attacks US Honduras stance (BBC News | Americas | World Edition) Submitted at 11/25/2009 2:34:14 AM

US support for Sunday's presidential election in Honduras is creating a grave, undemocratic precedent, ousted president Manuel Zelaya has said. Mr Zelaya told Reuters the US position had "divided the Americas". The Obama administration had indicated it would not recognise the election unless Mr Zelaya was restored to power. But the State Department said this week it backed the election process as an "essential part" of the solution to the five-month political crisis. "It's important that these elections be seen as free, fair and transparent and are monitored by a credible international monitoring process," State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said on Tuesday. "And that's exactly what we're supporting." Mr Kelly said they were unable to judge the outcome of

something that had not yet taken place. "But the process that we see in place is a process that we are supporting," he said. Several Latin American nations, including Brazil and Argentina, have said they will not recognise the result. Priority Mr Zelaya, who was forced out of the country on 28 June, told Reuters it would be undemocratic if the US backed an election held by a post-coup government. "The United States changed its position. Its priority was the restoration of democracy and then elections, now they put elections as the priority," he said in a telephone interview from the Brazilian embassy, where he has been holed up since slipping back home from exile in September. The head of the interim government, Roberto Micheletti, is set to step down from office from Wednesday until 2 December. The move aimed to allow the elections to proceed "peacefully and transparently" and rule out

any suggestion of undue interference, his spokesman said. Mr Zelaya said the step was a trick by Mr Micheletti, who was a "stain on democracy". The Honduran Congress is set to decide after Sunday's poll whether Mr Zelaya should be reinstated to serve out the rest of his term until 27 January. Mr Zelaya was sent into exile on 28 June after trying to hold a vote on whether a constituent assembly should be set up to look at rewriting the constitution. His critics said the vote, which was ruled illegal by the Supreme Court, aimed to remove the current one-term limit on serving as president and pave the way for his possible re-election. Mr Zelaya has repeatedly denied this and some commentators say it would have been impossible to change the constitution before his term in office was up. Print Sponsor This content has passed through fivefilters.org.

Iran leader pushes Venezuela ties (BBC News | Americas | World Edition)

'Personal' The two men are expected to sign some 270 agreements in Submitted at 11/25/2009 3:33:05 AM fields such as agriculture, Iranian President Mahmoud industry, technology and energy Ahmadinejad is in Venezuela on during Mr Ahmadinejad's visit. the third leg of his tour of South Opposition parties and America to boost ties. Venezuela's Jewish community He is set to sign business and expressed opposition to the industrial accords with his close presence of the Iranian president. ally, Venezuelan President Hugo Former deputy foreign minister Chavez. Adolfo Tayllardhat told BBC Mr Chavez, who has said he Mundo that the deep ties were wants to develop nuclear energy, just between the two leaders. has backed Iran's right to a "We've lost count of the number nuclear programme. of accords signed between The Iranian leader arrived from Chavez and Ahmadinejad. But I Bolivia where he and President insist these are just personal Evo Morales stressed the right of relations, not between Venezuela all nations to a peaceful nuclear and Iran, because the only thing programme. that links the two countries is that President Ahmadinejad was they are oil producers and assured of a warm welcome from members of Opec." his Venezuelan host, Hugo Mr Ahmadinejad began his tour Chavez. in Brazil, where President Luiz The two outspoken critics of the Inacio Lula da Silva criticised US have visited each other attempts to isolate Iran over its several times and co-operation nuclear ambitions. between their countries has But he also urged the Iranian grown in recent years. leader to engage with the West. "We have a solid foundation, a Western powers fear Iran is solid base that we have created developing nuclear weapons o v e r t h i s d e c a d e i n o u r technology, rather than civilian relationship, and it shows how uses as it claims. false are the attacks of the world Print Sponsor e m p i r e , " s a i d V e n e z u e l a n This content has passed through F o r e i g n M i n i s t e r N i c o l a s fivefilters.org. Maduro.