Microsoft signs Web video deals with Volvo, Chivas Brothers
SEATTLE (AP) - Microsoft Corp. has signed deals with Volvo Car Corp. and whisky maker Chivas Brothers Ltd. to support two new Web-only video series from Reveille, the production company behind TV shows "The Office" and "Ugly Betty."
For $3.6 billion, Flextronics to buy Solectron
Contract electronics maker says the cash-and-stock acquisition of its rival will help it cut up to $200 million in costs.
Be Careful With Your Video Game Secrets Posted By : Sean Tan
If you have a game console at home, there is no question that it will be one of your most prized possessions. Unless a doubt, you will be spending a lot of time with it, playing your favorite games. When you first brought your game console whether it be Xbox, PlayStation 1, PlayStation2
Une voiture hybride branchée sur le réseau électrique
Les Torontois verront bientôt sur leurs routes une dizaine de voitures hybrides branchées, c'est-à-dire des hybrides que l'on peut brancher dans une fiche électrique de maison (110 volts) afin de... (Read on Source)
Thought for Today
"...to discern the often narrow path between the cowardice which gives in to evil, and the violence, which under the illusion of fighting evil, only makes it worse." (Read on Source)
Obama rolls on in Iowa
by John McCormick Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama continues his bus tour through Iowa today. Here is the link to the Tribune's coverage of his stops Thursday, including one at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines. (Read on Source)
Consumer Alert: Kroger Mustard or Southern-Style Potato Salad, Positive for E.coli
If you have purchased the Kroger brand Mustard or Southern-Style potato salad with a "Best If Used By" date of Sept. 5, 2007, please do not consume them because they may contain E. coli O157:H7 - a foodborne pathogen. Such... Continue . (Read on Source)
Hope for Water on Mars Dims with Sharp New Images
New images obtained by a sharp-eyed Martian satellite reveal that some Red Planet features once thought to have been carved by flowing water were in fact created by other processes. (Read on Source)
Increase Adwords CTR with the Trademark Symbol
Well, Spring has just kicked in Down Under & the weather is beautiful. I can’t think of a better way to welcome in the new weather with a simple Adwords Tip. (Read on Source)
Tiny chips flash memory advance
Electronics giant Samsung shows off what it claims is the world's most powerful flash memory chip.
Gigabyte X48T-DQ6: Linux On Intel's X48 Chipset
Phoronix: "While Intel's X48 Express Chipset is not due out until the middle of March--after having faced a few delays reaching production--the kind folks at Gigabyte have today provided us with the Gigabyte X48T-DQ6 motherboard..."
Shop Best CPA Offers - OfferVault and Affspy Duke it out at Summit
Are you a CPA affiliate? Ever wish you could shop and compare all the network offers without having to join, log-in and search through each network one at a time? Well now you can. Two new (similar? competing?) solutions to this problem are rolling out at Affiliate Summit. Both are free! (Read on Source)
Microsoft Ponders Next Move in Yahoo Chess Match
With Microsoft no closer to acquiring its longtime rival than it was three months ago, the Redmond brain trust feels the pressure to act. What it will do, however, remains unclear.
Cartilage
SF Tidbits for
John Picacio shows off the recently finished cover he did for the original fiction anthology Fast Forward 2 edited by Lou Anders. Click the images for larger versions and check out the levels of detail and symbolism. Awesome. Over at Joseph Mallozzi's blog, Kage Baker fields reader questions about her first Company novel, In the Garden of Iden . ... (Read on Source)
BEST DOLL MAKER Posted By : Panser
The best thing about doll dressing games on this site is that as you become a regular at playing them you automatically develop a keen dressing sense what with different accessories for stylising your dress up dolls and not to mention there's a whole array of dolls based on celebrities whom you would like to dress up.
Gesture-Controlled Laptop
Web Hosting Application, Ensim Unify 4.5 Shared Edition, Supports Microsoft HMC
Santa Clara, California - (The Hosting News) - August 19, 2008 - Collaborative infrastructure and web hosting application, Ensim Corporation, will support the Microsoft Solution for Hosted Messaging and Collaboration Version 4.5 (HMC 4.5).
Francois Depayras, Vice President of marketing and alliances at Ensim Corporation remarked, ''We remain committed to giving our customers the tools that keep them ahead of the curve by supporting a variety of the latest applications. With Unify, service provider customers can focus on delivering their hosted services as opposed to developing them, and are afforded the convenience of deploying these services over any type of infrastructure, whether it be the new HMC 4.5 or a homegrown platform.''
As a participant in Microsoft's Technical Adoption Program (TAP), Ensim extends Microsoft's technology with its Ensim Unify Shared Edition, a single, centralized software application that simplifies the day-to-day burden of activating, configuring and managing a service provider's hosted infrastructure. The latest edition of Unify Shared Edition, Version 4.5, can be installed in a wide range of deployment scenarios, including the new HMC 4.5, HMC 4.0, and homegrown infrastructures.
Some of the features available in Ensim Unify 4.5 are:
Support for Microsoft HMC 4.5: Ensim is pleased to announce that Unify Platform 4.5 is compatible with the latest release of Microsoft's HMC product
Control Panel Customization Using Role Management: With Unify's role management feature set, service providers and reseller administrators gain granular control over all operations performed by the system administrators.
Support for Ensim Migration Tool: Service providers can now use the Ensim's Migration Tool (EMT) to connect to existing organizations, resellers, and users that were created using Microsoft's HMC solution. This feature can also be used to migrate organizations (OUs) and users (created using a legacy solution) to Ensim Unify without having to re-create them.
New Password Management Enhancements: Service providers can now configure Unify to accept more than one password hint question.
Support for Microsoft .NET 3.0: In Unify platform 4.5.0, the Unify provisioning engine and control panel servers use Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0.
New Web Services Methods: Unify platform 4.5.0 includes 50+ new web service methods.
Confirmation for Organization and Reseller Removal: As an added safety precaution, when enabled, this feature requires administrators to enter an authentication password before being able to delete any organization or reseller. Ensim Unify Shared Edition, including support for HMC 4.5, is available for purchase immediately.
Founded in 1998, Ensim Corporation is the leading provider of user provisioning and access control software. Ensim products are used by service providers and enterprises worldwide to accelerate and enable deployment of integrated solutions, simplify and automate secure management of complex environments, and increase user and IT productivity. Ensim is Microsoft Gold Certified, and maintains strategic partnerships with many leading infrastructure vendors including Research In Motion (BlackBerry), Hewlett-Packard, Accenture, Siemens and BroadSoft.
For more information about Ensim, please visit: www.ensim.com.
Forgotten faces
How computers aid forensic facial reconstruction
Ford Improves Gas Mileage
Fueleconomy.gov continues to release 2009 EPA estimates as we inch toward the new year. On average, we?ve seen slight gains from many existing models and larger ones for new models. Automakers are making modest changes to carryover models because buyers are demanding more fuel-efficient vehicles, and all-new models aren?t in the immediate pipeline for every car out there.
We?ve already mentioned fuel economy increases for GM, Chrysler and Hyundai products; now it?s Ford?s turn.
The all-new 2009 F-150 ? the release of which has been delayed ? gets a slight but vital mpg upgrade. Both the 5.4-liter and 4.6-liter V-8 receive three valves per cylinder rather than two; some models are also equipped with a six-speed automatic transmission. These features improve horsepower and help this all-V-8 lineup deliver a fleet-average 1 mpg improvement compared to the 2008 F-Series. This is better than the Nissan Titan, Toyota Tundra and new 2009 Dodge Ram; however, the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra have similar numbers.
The Ford Edge crossover remains relatively unchanged in most respects, but improves by 1 mpg in the city. It?s now equal to its larger crossover stablemate, the Flex. The large Expedition SUV also gets a fairly significant bump of 2 mpg in city and highway driving. It now competes toe-to-toe with the Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban in fuel efficiency, and it bests the Toyota Sequoia and Nissan Armada. The Expedition?s V-8 is now flex-fuel capable.
We mentioned the fuel-efficiency bumps found on the related Escape, Mercury Mariner and Mazda Tribute SUVs in an earlier post.
Below is a table with some of the improvements made thus far. We can?t tell you exact figures for all F-150 models just yet, but we can tell you that the fuel efficiency of those models has also improved. Go to fueleconomy.gov to see more mpg updates as they become available.
2009 F-150 2WD 4.6-liter V-8 (three-valve): 15/20 mpg city/highway
2008 F-150: 14/19
2009 Edge FWD: 17/24
2008 Edge FWD: 16/24
2009 Expedition 2WD: 14/20, 10/14 with E85
2008 Expedition 2WD: 12/18
2009 Escape/Mariner/Tribute four-cyl. FWD: 20/28
2008 Escape/Mariner/Tribute four-cyl. FWD: 20/26
2009 Escape/Mariner/Tribute Hybrid FWD: 34/31
2008 Escape/Mariner/Tribute Hybrid FWD: 34/31
ATTO Technology Readies Next Generation 6-Gb SAS Technology for OEMs and Partners
ATTO Technology announced that they will ship the industry's only 6-Gb SAS/SATA host interface connectivity to storage to select OEMs and partners within the next 30 days for certification and qualification.
Outsides Creative Team Building Events
Outsides Creative Team Building Events
Who are Outside?
Outside are a team building company with a difference, with a creative twist, with a sense of adventure, with a lot of fun and passion and with a real purpose.
Outside offer a wide variety of team building events and activity days, all of which make the most of our exciting outdoor location.
Outside understand the importance of developing essential workplace skills and enhancing team development so the events are designed to drive positive change and bring the best out in your staff or team.
Outside events are not rigid and fixed but are highly flexible so that the day is always tailored and personalised to suit your requirements.
Team Building Events
Our creative team building events are listed below to stimulate your thinking but they are by no means set in stone. We have rarely run the same event twice so tell us which events you like and we will customise a day's activities just for you.
All of our team building events are based outdoors in the fantastic setting of Eastnor Castle estate. Our events are goal orientated, engaging and are designed to enhance workplace skills building on the performance of an individual and the team.
It is very important to us that your day is rewarding, purposeful, inclusive, collaborative and fun with everyone feeling that they have achieved a personal goal and gained knowledge. From cookery to photography, from pioneering to communication, from mentally stimulating giant puzzles to adrenalin packed high and low ropes challenges.
Wilderness Cooking
Take a breath of fresh air and come to a different type of culinary team build day. The ‘kitchen' is situated in the woods around the Castle where you will learn about outdoor and survival cooking such as roasting food over a fire, fire pits, stews and smoking fish.
The locally sourced produce will provide the basis for your team to work in groups to produce a meal in an environment, which they have probably never experienced before. It is a group challenge and regardless of how skilled you are in the kitchen at home, nature's kitchen is a different ball game and a new challenge.
The team will work towards a three course meal, which they will all get to enjoy at the end of the day. The activity is designed to focus on communication skills, leadership, creativity and initiative whist being fun and tasty!
Picture Perfect
This event uses photography to highlight to teams the importance of working together and how each individual role contributes to the team or organisation as a whole.
The participants are given cameras and given the task of creating a large photographic mosaic of the whole team. This requires careful planning and communication as well as group management. The teams will also have to tackle some collaborative tasks in order to complete the challenge successfully. It allows for many skills to come to the fore and does not require all participants to be overly active. The group will leave with a memory of the day, which will act as a reminder of how they can achieve an objective by working closely together.
Creative Expression
Set your creativity free with this activity that is designed to promote free expression whilst developing or enhancing individual and group creativity.
This is not an art course but a team building event situated in the Castle grounds, which uses natural materials found on the estate to create pieces of art. To be successful the participants need to work together in small groups, by planning, using their initiative and managing the flow of ideas. The final challenge is to create a giant picture as one large group with just the natural materials around them and of course their imagination.
The Venue
Outside are exclusively based at Eastnor Castle, which is situated in the Malvern Hills, an area of natural beauty. The Castle offers a venue packed with prestige, high quality facilities for meetings, accommodation and dining, all of which create a special and memorable experience.
The Estate provides 5,000 acres of varied terrain and Outside work with the natural topography of the land to involve underground and tree-top activities with everything in between.
Using the surrounding environment and natural elements we are able to create team building days that are invigorating, inspiring and best of all a real break from the city and the office environment.
Whilst the venue is situated in the heart of the countryside it is only ten minutes from the national motorway network. The Castle is 2½ miles east of Ledbury on the A438 Tewkesbury road.
Find out more about Outside’s <a href="http://www.outside-adventure.co.uk">Team Building Events</a>.
ESPN.com has launched many new hockey widgets that offer scores, stats, and news
Visit the ESPN Widget Center. (Read on Source)
Windows 7 knows where you are
A new interface paves the way for more software makers to more easily make use of location information, although the move also raises potential privacy issues.
Red Hat Fedora Linux: 9.5 Million Users and Growing
InternetNews: "Red Hat's Fedora community Linux distribution has now tallied its user base, and it's a number that on the surface would make it the largest installed base of any Linux distribution, with at least 9.5 million users and possibly as many as 10.5 million. Fedora competitor Ubuntu Linux currently claims to have 8 million users."
IScrapbook 2 Adds Browser, Two-page Spreads
Chronos LC on Monday announced the release of iScrapbook 2.0, a major upgrade to its scrapbooking software for Mac OS X. It is...
Is Linux Ready for the Average User? My Wife Thinks So
Okii Living: "Now here we sit on the cusp of 2009 and there are numerous mainstream vendors such as ASUS, Dell, and HP offering pre-loaded Linux desktops and laptops, which brings me to my story."
Senate recount: Battle of ballot disputes set to begin
A state board prepared to rule today on ballots where voter intent was in question in the hotly contested Senate race. (Read on Source)
CORRECTED: EU, Russia to hold talks over gas flow
(Corrects to clarify that venue for EU talks with Russia not yet confirmed) (Read on Source)
name: MAGPIE