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Chelsea Clinton Better Than Bill
By Tommy Christopher (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 1:43:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Democrats,
2008 President The circle is now
complete...- D. Vader Former President
and would-be First Gent Bill Clinton
seems to have been overtaken in the
political skills department by daughter
Chelsea Clinton, observes Politico: In
Philadelphia Monday night for a final rally
before the must-win Pennsylvania primary,
Chelsea Clinton told a packed crowd that
she and her father are having an "implicit
competition about who is my mother's
better surrogate on any given day."
She may have been joking. She may also
be winning.
Bill Clinton is a master of retail
politicking, widely acknowledged to have
few peers as a campaigner. But after the
latest in a series of dust-ups involving the
former president - the most recent
occurring on the eve of Tuesday's high-
stakes Democratic contest - there's a case
to be made that his 28-year-old daughter is
the more valuable advocate for Sen.
Hillary Rodham Clinton. This also just in:
Scientists are confirming this hour that
North Carolina GOP to McCain: Ad Will Air
By Faye Anderson (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 8:54:00 AM
Filed under: Republicans, Ads, 2008
President John McCain, the titular head of
the Republican Party, is having trouble
getting North Carolina Republicans to toe
the line. McCain told NBC's "Today" show
that an ad featuring Jeremiah Wright's
incendiary comments "is unacceptable."
North Carolina GOP Chair Linda Daves
bears exhibit a clear preference for wooded
areas when excreting bodily waste.
For the unconvinced, here's a quick study
in contrast. First, Bill, then after the jump,
some Chelsea.
Now, here's Chelsea on the grill in
Madison, Wi, earlier in the campaign. Let's
see how she does.
The Politico article does attempt to
balance out the Chelsea love: But so far, it
is Chelsea who has handled delicate
situations with aplomb, and it is Chelsea
who has emerged unscratched from public
events where her family's most sensitive
issues - such as the Monica Lewinsky
scandal - were suddenly and unexpectedly
thrust upon her by questioners.
Only once has she drawn unfavorable
public notice - and that for an absurdly
disciplined approach that led her to refuse
an interview request from a 9-year-old
student journalist. Sure, but they're not
telling you that the kid is a stringer for The
New Republic.
One of the great differences that I see in
Chelsea's approach to campaigning for
Hillary versus Bill's is that Chelsea keeps
the focus on her Mom, whereas Bill has a
tendency to make it all about himself. This
means that even when Bill is on message,
remains defiant. Daves says the ad will air:
Contrary to any media reports,
the'Extreme' ad will run as scheduled next
week. There has never been any intention
to pull the ad and it will air.
The 'Extreme' ad has garnered attention
around the country. I want to thank the
people across North Carolina and across
the country who have shown
overwhelming support for us. Our aim is to
tell the truth and ask difficult questions.
We will continue to do so. ...
23/04/08 - 27/04/08
he's not really helping that much, as it's a
reminder of Hillary's policy differences
with the former president on issues like
trade and LGBTQ issues.
To be fair, there is a world of difference
between riffing with voters on campus and
Democrats in North Carolina are trying
to inject race into this ad. This tactic,
designed to further drive a wedge between
the people of North Carolina, is despicable
and wrong. This ad has absolutely nothing
to do with race. It is completely factual and
contains no information that has already
received a public airing. Let me be
perfectly clear: It is entirely inappropriate
for voters to consider race when judging
the quality of a candidate running for any
office. If Senator Clinton had a pastor who
LibertyNewsprint.com U.S.
the proverbial squared circle of a press
conference. Even so, despite her press
blackout, Chelsea has enjoyed almost
universally positive coverage. I get the
feeling that, given the chance, our
newshounds would have a hard time
asking anything more challenging than
something like this:"Chelsea, two quick
questions. First, it has been widely
reported that you are awesome. Could you
give us some detail as to how you became
so awesome, sort of flesh that out for us?
And secondly, would you rule out the
possibility that you could be more
awesome?" Even if it didn't go that way, so
much the better. Reporters attacking
Chelsea only makes her look better. In
fact, if I were to advise the Clinton
campaign on this, I would recommend that
they set up Chelsea's media "coming out"
on Fox News, with Dick Morris as the
guest. Go ahead, Dick. Swing away!
As for Bill Clinton, I say we agree not to
ask where he is, and the campaign agrees
not to tell us.
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made these same anti-American statements
and the Democrat candidates for Governor
endorsed her, we would be running the
same ad.
The state party's plans may be moot
since some TV stations refuse to run the
ad.
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'Cost' - New
Clinton Ad
By Greg McNeilly (Political Machine)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 2:02:00 PM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Ads, 2008
President
Hillary Clinton's campaign is airing a
new :30 second ad in Indiana, titled
"Cost." The Hosier state Democrats hold
their primary Tuesday, May 6.
Pandering on gas prices is a sure-fire
populist appeal. Every candidate seems to
be doing it and every voter demanding it.
Yet, gas consumption is down - which is
good for the environment. Hmmm...higher
gas prices means lower gas consumption?
Yes, it appears the free market does work.
So when you hear a politican pandering on
gas prices (or your neighor demanding
them) just scowel at them and ask'em why
they hate our planet.
The ad's script reads: Announcer: These
days, it costs fifty bucks to fill up the tank.
How can Indiana families afford that?
Hillary Clinton knows it's time to act,
take some of the windfall profits of big oil
to pay to suspend the gas tax this summer,
investigate the oil giants for price gouging
and collusion.
Make the oil companies invest in new
clean energy sources to free us from
foreign oil and bring gas prices down to
earth.
With gas this expensive, talk is cheap.
It's time for leadership.
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2 Politico*
McCain's Disdain for the Base
By Dave (Political Machine)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 1:38:00 PM
Filed under: John McCain, Featured
Stories, 2008 President
Here's John Mccain ripping on the North
Carolina GOP for using one of the very
few known effective attacks on Obama.
Here's John McCain throwing George
Bush under the bus over the Katrina
response. The problem here is assuming
that a properly run efficient and competent
federal bureaucracy would suddenly spring
to existence under his watch. That's a
crock. There isn't any such thing as
conservatives know. And a conservative
would say that it's stupid to declare that a
manager in Washington DC is the best
person to determine how much tissue paper
to store in every Louisiana courthouse.
But John McCain is all up for signing up
the Federal government to "do better".
But should we have expected any
different? McCain is the nominee despite
conservatives, not because of them. And he
is now clearly taking the strategy toward
the middle assuming conservatives have to
vote for him, but there are other ways to
Bush Banking on Rebates to Boost Economy
By Mark Impomeni (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:00:00 AM
Filed under: President Bush, Democrats,
Featured Stories, Economy, Taxes
President Bush stepped out onto the South
Lawn of the White House yesterday to
announce that tax rebate checks,
authorized by the economic stimulus
package passed by Congress earlier this
year, will be going out to taxpayers by
Monday, two full weeks earlier than
expected. Mr. Bush said that the checks
would help Americans struggling with
higher food and fuel prices to make ends
meet. "The money is going to help
Americans offset the high prices we're
seeing at the gas pump, the grocery store,
and also give our economy a boost to help
us pull out of this economic slowdown," he
said.
express ourselves. Here's one:
I was just about to contribute the full
$4,600 to John McCain for primary and
general election, less the $500 I've already
sent. But I've had it with him trashing
fellow Republicans, which he's made a
career of. I'm not sending another dime to
McCain until he apologizes to the North
Carolina GOP with as much fanfare as he
just embarrassed them publicly.
How does he expect to raise any GOP
money with this B.S. of trashing other
Republicans constantly in the media? He's
doing NOTHING to build the party, it's all
"me, me, me" with McCain.
My support for McCain has been just as
tentative as McCain's support for market
liberty, the Constitution, limited
government, low taxes and not buying in to
the leftist takeover on climate change.
And this explains why McCain is going
to be forced to accept public money and is
lagging behind the Democrats by orders of
magnitude.
My fellow Ohioan at the Darke blog has
more on Wright:
4. In theory, McCain has (for himself and
his campaign) taken the Jeremiah Wright
Democrats in Congress seized on the
president's mention of higher food and fuel
prices to push for a second stimulus
package, and to score political points on
the Administration's handling of higher gas
prices. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY),
chairman of the Democratic Senatorial
Campaign Committee, said, "It's galling to
think that taxpayers' stimulus checks will
be lining the pockets of OPEC." House
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) agreed,
saying, "[Americans] need this rebate to
cope with the rising cost of gas and
groceries." In reality, however, both the
president and Democrats are wrong.
People generally don't use government
rebate checks for new spending, choosing
instead to pay down debt or increase
savings.
View Poll
What are you planning to do with your
rebate? Spend it. Save it. Pay down debt.
issue off the table for the entire election.
Undoubtedly, conservatives will continue
to play the videos, and commentators will
bring up the issue, but McCain himself
probably can't do anything with it (lest he'll
be deemed the dreaded flip-flopper).
Vote
The first to see the rebates will be those
tax filers who are set up to receive direct
deposit. Paper checks will begin going out
on May 9th. The Internal Revenue Service
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
What's even worse is that he has set a
precedent by repudiating the ad. What is he
thinking? He's going to be stuck answering
democrat calls for repudiation now any
time that a conservative brings up Jeremiah
Wright.
Incredibly, McCain has shot himself in
the foot at a time in which he wins by
doing nothing. The old man should go
home and take a nap - and quit interfering
with our efforts to get him elected.
And I'd say the election was over, except
that all three candidates are doing their
best to throw the election to someone else.
Obama is clearly too inexperienced and
naive (or worse) to install in the Oval
Office, Hillary Clinton is a snake, and John
McCain is just intent on ticking off
everyone!
My only consolation is that no matter
how this turns out, two people that I can't
stand will lose.
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estimates that all 130 million households
expected to get a rebate check will have
their money by July 11th.
To the extent that the economic
downturn is driven by rising fuel and
commodities prices, along with a jittery
housing and financial market, the stimulus
checks will not have much of a lasting
impact on the nation's economic health.
Increasing Americans' savings is a worthy
goal, but it doesn't do anything for job
creation. If the president and Congress
want to increase people's disposable
income, and give businesses a shot in the
arm at the same time, they would do better
to cut taxes or make the Bush tax cuts
permanent.
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Sunday Talk
Line-Up
By Greg McNeilly (Political Machine)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:11:00 AM
Filed under: 2008 President, Media If it's
Sunday, it's talking heads time. Here's the
line-up:
ABC - This Week( George
Stephanopoulos): with U.S. Senator Evan
Bayh(D-IN) and ex-Senate Majority
Leader Tom Daschle(D-SD)
CBS - Face the Nation( Bob Schieffer):
with Obama strategist David Axelrod and
Clinton Communications Director Howard
Wolfson.
CNN - Late Edition( Wolf Blitzer): with
U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein(D-CA) and
Congressman Pete Hoekstra(R-MI).
Fox - News Sunday( Chris Wallace):with
U.S. Senator Barack Obama(D-IL).
NBC - Meet the Press( Tim Russert) with
DNC Chairman Howard Dean.
Sunday Night, CBS's 60-Minutes will
feature Supreme Court Justice Anthony
Scalia.
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Obama as a Mill
Stone?
By Greg McNeilly (Political Machine)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:11:00 AM
Filed under: Democrats, Ads
The National Republican Congressional
Committee (NRCC) is running an attack ad
against Congressman Don Cazayoux(LA-
6) featuring Barack Obama. The :30
second ad is titled "Warning Label."
The NRCC, like I'm sure the DCCC will
attempt at some point, is trying to tag the
Party's likely nominee with negatives and
force a disassociation between candidates
of the same stripe. This is always a fun
gimmick for hucksters but rarely effective.
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Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper Politico* Business* Tech* 3

Clinton Supporter AFA Promotes Open-Mouthed Gay

Kissing
McGovern Sees Obama By Tommy Christopher (Political
Machine)
them know they do not support such
blatant promotion of the homosexual

Appeal Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:42:00 AM

Filed under: Media, Gay Rights Well,

By Jay Allbritton (Political Machine)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 8:05:00 AM
Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Barack
Obama, 2008 President In the wake of his
loss to Hillary Clinton in the Pennsylavnia
primary, John B. Judis of the New
Republic compared Barack Obama's
campaign to the ill-fated campaign of 1972
Democratic presidential nominee George
McGovern.
"Indeed, if you look at Obama's vote in
Pennsylvania," Judis writes, "you begin to
see the outlines of the old George
McGovern coalition that haunted the
Democrats during the '70s and '80s, led by
college students and minorities."
George McGovern, who is a Hillary
Clinton supporter, is not buying it.
McGovern believes that Obama's
coalition will equate to electoral success.
"He has very broad appeal," McGovern
told the Huffington Post, "He certainly is
going to galvanize the black vote. But he
has strong appeal to voters of all kinds.
Some of the old buckaroos out here in
South Dakota are for him."
For a Clinton supporter, McGovern is
clearly not toeing his candidate's line. For
instance, McGovern believes that
Michigan and Florida should not be seated.
He also concedes that Obama will most
likely be the nominee and because of that,
the candidates should adopt a more
civilized tone for the remainder of the
primary process. "I don't want to see
Hillary or Barack giving McCain
ammunition in the general election," said
McGovern. "It is more important that we
not have another four years of Bush
government."
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duh! It's no fun with your mouth closed!
The American Family Association,
founded by Rev. Don Wildmon, posted the
video below with the headline, "Procter &
Gamble promotes explicit open-mouth
homosexual kissing." AFA's website ran a
story urging members to contact
P&G:(AFA President Tim) Wildmon
encourages people to contact P&G and let
Jeremiah Wright on
PBS
By David Knowles (Political
Machine)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 3:04:00 PM
Filed under: Democrats, Barack Obama,
Breaking News In case you missed it, here
are some excerpts of Barack Obama's
former pastor, Jeremiah Wright,
interviewed by Bill Moyers. The transcript
of the whole interview can be found here.
Pt. 2.
Pt. 3
Pt. 4
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agenda. And while P&G officials say they
want to treat everyone equally, the AFA
president argues the company is alienating
its core base. The delicious irony here is
that the "As the World Turns" clip that
they posted is the #1 video on Youtube
today, bringing the soapy gay content to a
whole new audience that's probably in
school when the show airs.
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Judge Slams Florida Authorities
For Bogus Toll Fines
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt) should have been easy for the traffic
authorities to correct, but instead they
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:42:00 AM
made it a bureaucratic nightmare for those
It's not just with red light cameras that unfairly and incorrectly accused of running
local authorities are squeezing extra money tolls. The judge has even gone so far as to
out of drivers, Consumerist points us to the bar the two Authorities from issuing any
news that a judge in Florida has tossed out new citations to drivers who have prepaid
thousands of bogus toll citations, slamming or credit-card accounts -- to the point that
both the Orlando-Orange County he's instructed the court clerks in both
Expressway Authority and Florida places to refuse to accept any new citations
Turnpike Authority for failing to deal with without affidavits swearing that the
the fines properly. It appears that some of offenders have no money in their accounts.
the fines resulted from malfunctioning toll Permalink| Comments| Email This Story
transponders. The judge noted that this

Should you be looking at 3M?

By Steven Mallas (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:40:00 AM
Filed under: Earnings reports, 3M
Corporation (MMM), Johnson and
Johnson (JNJ), duPont(E.I.)deNemours
(DD)
There were a lot of earnings reports this
week -- if you weren't setting up some
trades before the reports were released,
you're probably digesting the numbers
now. I had a look at 3M(NYSE: MMM)
this morning. The famous Dow
component, which competes with Johnson
& Johnson(NYSE: JNJ) and
DuPont(NYSE: DD), reported this past
Thursday. Net sales increased 9%, but
diluted earnings per share unfortunately
took a whopping decline of 25%.
However, you need to take a look at what
caused this drop -- there was a gain in last
year's quarter from the disposition of a
European pharmaceutical business, as well
as some other items. Excluding these
elements, you'll find that earnings per
share grew by 8%.
According to the company's release, 3M
did rather well in the free-cash-flow
department. Last year at this time, free
cash flow came in at $276 million. This
past quarter saw free cash flow grow to
just under $700 million. I liked that; I also
liked that most of the company's divisions
reported double-digit profit growth. This is
a healthy, blue-chip dividend player --
plus, 3M is comfortable with its previously
stated forward guidance of at least $5.47 in
adjusted earnings per share for 2008 (or, as
the release put it, management believes net
income will see an increase of "a minimum
of 10% over 2007 earnings-per-share of
$4.98"), and it beat the street this past
quarter by three pennies, according to
Briefing.com.
Here are some things to think about
regarding 3M's stock. If it does earn close
to $5.47 a share, then the company sports a
forward P/E ratio of a little over 14. The
yield on the shares is well over 2%. And,
as of Friday's close, the price of the stock -
- $77.82 -- is well off the 52-week high of
$97 and a little ways off from the 52-week
low of $72.05. Taken together, this 3M
scenario seems like an interesting set-up
for a decent trade. The stock looks like it
will probably meander for a bit, but it
nevertheless should be looked at.
Disclosure: I don't own shares in any of
the companies mentioned here; positions
can change at any time. Permalink| Email
this| Comments
4 Business* Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper

Earnings highlights: Microsoft, Yahoo!, Merrill and TPG do a

Apple, Amazon, Texas Instruments and dance
By Tom Taulli (BloggingStocks)
others Submitted at 4/26/2008 10:40:00 AM

Filed under: Private equity, Merrill Lynch

By Trey Thoelcke (BloggingStocks) (NYSE:
HNP (MER)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:40:00 AM
) Over the years, there has been a
Filed under: Earnings reports, Microsoft earnings plunged symbiotic relationship between investment
(MSFT), Yahoo! (YHOO), Apple Inc on coal prices, but the stock went higher. banks and private equity firms. And it has True, Wall Street is known for dancing
(AAPL), Amazon.com (AMZN), AT and T • Level 3 Communications Inc. been quite profitable (in terms of fees) -- with these conflicts (if not relishing in
(T), Netflix, Inc. (NFLX), QUALCOMM (NASDAQ: that is, until recently. them). But, I'm sure clients will get a little
Inc (QCOM), Electronic Data Systems LVLT Now, with investment banks ailing, the squeamish.
(EDS), Texas Instruments (TXN), ) relationships may get even stronger. In Besides, as a major investor, TPG is
Huaneng Power Intl ADS (HNP), EMC narrowed its loss other words, private equity firms -- which likely to have lots of visibility into Merrill
Corp (EMC), Broadcom Corp'A' (BRCM), on higher sales of networking services. are bulging with cash -- may be providers -- which may provide a strong competitive
Level 3 Communications (LVLT) Here are • McAfee Inc. of much-needed capital. position. In a way, this could mean that
some highlights from this past week's (NYSE: According to a piece in the Financial rival investment banks will be standoffish
earnings coverage from BloggingStocks: MFE Times[a paid publication], there have been when dealing with TPG.
• Amazon.com Inc. ) some discussions between TPG and Then again, another possibility is that
(NASDAQ: Q1 profit plunged Merrill Lynch(NYSE: MER) regarding Merrill and TPG will forge a major
AMZN on product development and marketing financing. Funny enough, Merrill's CEO, alliance, becoming the private equity
) (NASDAQ: costs. John Thain, has been fairly clear that his division. This could be attractive to
profits rose 30% BRCM • MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. firm doesn't need the money. But, hey, Merrill, which is currently hamstrung
, easily beating analysts' expectations. ) (NYSE: things can change, right? So why not keep because of the credit crunch.
• AMETEK Inc. WFR the channels open? That's what good Tom Taulli is the author of various
Q1 profit soared investment bankers do.
(NYSE: , and it raised its guidance. ) books, including The Complete M&A
AME • Cymer Inc. missed analysts' estimates However, the potential linkup does raise Handbook( www.mergerbook.com) and is
) (NASDAQ: for the first quarter. some interesting issues. After all, there also a principal in Averiware, which
beat Q1 estimates CYMI • Microsoft Corp. could be serious conflicts of interest. provides an ERP system to small and mid-
on global strength and recent (NASDAQ: Investment banks are supposed to provide size businesses. Permalink| Email this|
) unbiased advice to their clients. But, is this
acquisitions. beat Q1 estimates MSFT Comments
• Apple Inc. and announced a share million buyback ) possible if TPG is a bidder for a Merrill
(NASDAQ: program. beat earnings expectations client?
AAPL and raised its full-year guidance.
)
easily beat Q2 expectations
• Electronic Data Systems Inc.
(NYSE:
EDS
• Netflix Inc.
(NASDAQ:
A little drug money laundering at
but offered a weak outlook.
• AT&T Inc.
) posted Q1 profits on cost cutting and
new contracts. )
NFLX
Wachovia?
(NYSE: • EMC Corp. profit soared in the first quarter By Douglas McIntyre have been seized claim to be legitimate
T (NYSE: on increase in subscriptions. (BloggingStocks) businesses and that if they cannot get at
) posted EMC • Nintendo Co. their funds, they may go out of business.
strong Q1 results (OTC: Submitted at 4/26/2008 4:40:00 AM
) The open question is whether Wachovia
thanks to the popularity of the iPhone. Q1 earnings fell NTDOY Filed under: Wachovia Corp (WB), employees knew about the transactions.
• Baidu.com Inc. on on acquisition-related charges. ) Mexico It is hard to imagine a well-run bank like
(NASDAQ: • Hexcel Corp. posted record results The Feds are looking into whether drug Wachovia would be involved in such
BIDU (NYSE: due to the popularity of the Wii system. money was laundered by blatant aid to drug operations from outside
) beat earnings and saw an upgrade from HXL Continue reading Earnings highlights: Wachovia(NYSE: WB). The investigation the U.S. Perhaps that is why its shares are
Citigroup Inc. ) Microsoft, Yahoo!, Apple, Amazon, Texas is "part of a broad probe of alleged down almost 50% this year.
(NYSE: beat Q1 estimates Instruments and others Permalink| Email laundering of drug proceeds by Mexican Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at
C on increased commercial aerospace sales. this| Comments and Colombian money-transfer 247wallst.com. Permalink| Email this|
). • Huaneng Power ADS companies," according to The Wall Street Comments
• Broadcom Corp. Journal(subscription required).
Several companies with accounts that
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper Business* Biz Buzz 5

Earnings highlights: Bank of America, An Ohio senator opines on

Merck, Mattel, Phillip Morris, AFLAC free trade
By Gary E. Sattler (BloggingStocks)
and others Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:40:00 AM

Filed under: Competitive strategy,

By Trey Thoelcke (BloggingStocks) on subprime-related write-downs.
Employees, Workspace, Politics
• Cree Inc.
Submitted at 4/26/2008 2:40:00 AM
(NYSE: In the April 23, Wall Street Journal,
Filed under: Earnings reports, Brinker Intl CREE Senator Sherrod Brown, (D) Ohio, made a
(EAT), AFLAC Inc (AFL), Bank of ) earnings slipped while realistic assessment of current government
America (BAC), Bristol-Myers Squibb revenues soared 29% trade policy and how it is diluting the
(BMY), Gannett Co (GCI), Kimberly- . strength of our country. I think that Senator
Clark (KMB), Mattel, Inc (MAT), Merck • Eli Lilly & Co. Brown was just a bit gentle with his words,
and Co (MRK), Hasbro Inc (HAS), (NYSE: and understandably so when given his
Western Union (WU) Here are some LLY position. Suffice it to say that I agree with
highlights from this past week's earnings ) reported him for the most part, but he should have
coverage from BloggingStocks: worse-than-expected Q1 earnings just cut to the chase. The American
• AFLAC Inc. on discontinued product charge. working class has been sold out. He also
. failed to make one critical point about
(NYSE: • Aptar Group Inc. • Gannet Inc.
AFL (NYSE: NAFTA. It was his party and the guidance
(NYSE: of Bill Clinton that navigated that
) reported ATR GCI
better-than-expected earnings ) document into law.
) posted Partisan politics aside, I believe that the decline of the American Dream. It's a
for the first quarter. record Q1 results beat low expectations
• Ambac Financial Group Inc. as earnings and revenue continue slump. current American trade standards are dream, while not referred to by that name,
and raised its Q2 guidance. something we need to be ashamed of. As a that resides in the hearts of workers the
(NYSE: • Bank of America • Hasbro Inc.
ABK (NYSE: free market capitalist, I have nothing world over. Every parent wants their
(NYSE: against the survival of the fittest in the children to have a greater degree of
) posted a BAC HAS
wider-than-expected loss ) posted worlds of manufacturing and business. opportunity and safety than they had.
) However, we're beholden to good sense to Continue reading An Ohio senator opines
; shares hit new low. Q1 earnings plunged better-than-expected Q1 earnings
• Amdocs Ltd. on international strength. provide a level playing field and to on free trade Permalink| Email this|
on further housing-related write-downs. maintain benchmark standards. In that Comments
(NYSE: • Brinker International Inc. • JAKKS Pacific Inc.
DOX (NASDAQ: regard, American workers have been
(NYSE: shorted. Our trade deficit is a testament to
) EAT JAKK
beat Q2 estimates )
on strength in the managed services
businesses.
)
narrowly beat earnings
expectations on cost cutting.
missed Q1 expectations
on restructuring and litigation costs.
Time for a Turnaround?
• Amphenol Corp. • Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. • Kimberly-Clark Corp. (Portfolio.com: News and Markets) Just by not being as bad as expected,
(NYSE: (NYSE: (NYSE: Submitted at 4/25/2008 5:30:00 AM
American Express' earnings "left investors
APH BMY KMB feeling again that this may be more of a
) ) ) beat EPS estimates by a penny, as Revenue up 11 percent and profit down bottom than the start of an accelerating
beat expectations beat analysts' estimates revenue jumped 10% 11 percent? Thank goodness! crisis," Rick Meckler, president of
in the first quarter and raised its for the first quarter. . American Express eased concerns about investment firm LibertyView Capital
guidance. • Credit Suisse Group Continue reading Earnings highlights: financial stocks not by posting earnings Management, told Reuters.
• Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NYSE: Bank of America, Merck, Mattel, Phillip growth, but by beating analysts' gloomy "There is the feeling we are coming to the
(NASDAQ: CS Morris, AFLAC and others Permalink| estimates of even worse shrinkage in the latter innings of this crisis," Meckler said.
AMLN ) reported a Email this| Comments first quarter. "It really seems like investor confidence is
) posted a wider-than-forecast loss The credit card issuer said it earned $974 back." Related Links
larger-than-estimated Q1 loss million in the first three months, down 11 Learning from Amex
percent from $1.1 billion in the same Taking Credit Card Imprints: A Key
period last year. Revenue rose to $7.2 Skill for Prostitutes
billion from $6.5 billion a year ago. American Express Scales Back
Earnings per share slipped 7 percent, to 84
cents a share.
6 Business* Gadgets* Tech Tips* Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper

12 ways to profit from the
middle class recession diet
By Peter Cohan (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 10:26:00 AM
Filed under: Forecasts, Consumer
experience, Wal-Mart (WMT), Starbucks
(SBUX), Marketing and advertising,
Money and Finance Today, Domino's
Pizza (DPZ), Kohl's Corp (KSS), Ruth's
Chris Steak House (RUTH), Economic
data, Stocks to Buy, Stocks to Sell,
Recession
The New York Times reports that
Americans in the economic middle are
eating pasta instead of meat and staying at
Hampton's Inn instead of Hilton as they try
to keep their families together in the face
of flat income and skyrocketing costs. As a
result, some companies are suffering and
others are benefiting. Let's look at two that
are benefiting and 10 that are hurting:
Here are two companies that are doing
better thanks to their lower prices:
• TJX Co.'s
(NYSE:
TJX
) been lots of traction in overseas markets --
• Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
(NYSE:
WMT
) cards work pretty well.
Here are 10 that are hurting because
people can't afford to go out to restaurants
and buy expensive clothes:
Continue reading 12 ways to profit from
the middle class recession diet Permalink|
Email this| Comments
Obopay gets a $20 million
payday
By Tom Taulli (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 8:40:00 AM
Filed under: Citigroup Inc. (C)
Yesterday, I talked to some tech vets
about mobile payments. While there has
especially Asia -- it's still pretty tough in
the U.S. Hey, when it comes to making
payments, it seems that credit and debit
Despite this, a variety of mobile
payments companies are still trying rev
things up. And one is Obopay, an early
pioneer in the space. In fact, this week the
firm announced that it snagged $20 million
in venture funding.
So why Obopay? Well, the firm realizes
that it can't take a "go-it-alone" strategy.
Instead, it has been effective in putting
together key strategic alliances. For
example, some of its investors include
Essar Communications Holdings Limited,
Richmond Global Cellular, and
Citigroup(NYSE: C).
Oh, and some of the company's
employees have invested in the latest
round of funding -- of course, using their
mobile Obopay accounts.
Tom Taulli is the author of various
books, including The Complete M&A
Handbook( www.mergerbook.com) and is
also a principal in Averiware, which
provides an ERP system to small and mid-
size businesses. Permalink| Email this|
Comments
Whiten Your Teeth
with Strawberries
[Clever Uses]
By Adam Pash (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 12:30:00 AM
If you've never been keen on commercial
teeth-whitening products and you love
strawberries, today is your lucky day: Web
site Health.com says that one ripe
strawberry plus half a teaspoon of baking
powder equals a natural teeth whitener.
The secret is malic acid—the product of
the mix—which is an astringent that can
buff coffee and cigarette stains from your
teeth. The post emphasizes that you should
be careful, though—too much use could
lead to damaged enamel. While a
professional teeth bleaching by your
dentist will lead to better results, the
strawberry method is a fast, cheap
alternative.
Whiten Your Teeth the Natural
Way[Health.com]

The Wal-Mart Weekly: Curbing growth can be Comfort Zone Investing: What
a sound strategy
By Brian White (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 6:40:00 AM
Filed under: Wal-Mart (WMT), Columns
Welcome to the 58th installment of The
Wal-Mart Weekly, a column dedicated to
bringing you insight, wit, facts, results,
opinions, and just a bit of everything else
when it comes to a very hot topic these
days: Wal-Mart.
This week's Wal-Mart Weekly looks at
the moves the world's largest retailer is
making to actually slow its growth. When
one thinks of Wal-Mart Stores Inc.(NYSE:
WMT) -- or any other retailer -- the term
Microsoft's Xbox group enjoys second quarter of profit
By Ryan Block (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 8:04:00 PM
Filed under: Gaming
It's taken a few years, but lightning's
struck twice for Microsoft's Entertainment
and Devices division (the portion of the
company responsible for Zune, Windows
to buy, what to sell
growth always seems to come to mind.
That's what Wall Street's short-sighted
investors fret about every day, although by
its nature this kind of focus keeps most
Mobile, and Xbox). The operating profit of
$89 million that E&D drew is just a drop
public companies trying to plan for the
future while appeasing the market makers.
How about actually trying to slow down
growth? There is a lot to be said for
"disciplined growth" and growing at a rate
that fits the general retail landscape and
economy of the countries in which you're
operating. Would -- gasp-- Wal-Mart ever
want to temper its growth and actually
slow things down a bit? Perhaps.
Continue reading The Wal-Mart Weekly:
Curbing growth can be a sound strategy
Read| Permalink| Email this| Comments
in MSFT's far, far larger fiscal bucket, but
unless business turns sour, from here on
out it looks like the group making all the
fun stuff in Redmond is no longer in the
business of losing cash hand over fist.
[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy] Read| Permalink|
Email this| Comments
By Ted Allrich (BloggingStocks)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:30:00 AM
Filed under: Comfort Zone Investing
Ted Allrich is the founder of The Online
Investor and author of the just released
book: Comfort Zone Investing: Build
Wealth And Sleep Well At Night. In this
weekly column, he'll offer advice to
investors who are just getting started.
I read an article that was explaining some
of the credit problems financial institutions
have. It went into the mortgage mess, the
concerns for coming credit card collections stock that will go up. And they don' want
and home equity loans. It was good and to have to research it or know anything
helpful to anyone interested in knowing else about it. Just a name. Give me a name.
more about potential problems for banks
and thrifts. Then I read one of the reader's
Ah, if it were that easy.
Continue reading Comfort Zone
replies: More big picture stuff, just tell me Investing: What to buy, what to sell Read|
what to buy tomorrow morning. Permalink| Email this| Comments
This one reader speaks for many others.
Every investor would love to know what to
buy now. They just want the name of a
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Election 2008: The Air War
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/24/2008 9:00:00 PM
W ith a head start in fundraising and
organization, Barack Obama outspent
Hillary Clinton throughout the
Pennsylvania primary battle. And yet, in
the final week, strategic use of advertising
allowed Clinton to reverse most of her
losses, seize a decisive victory, and revive
her campaign.
Driven by internet donations, fundraising
in 2008 has dwarfed the money hunt in
previous campaign cycles and pumped up
the campaign industry. So it's especially
strange how, until recently, campaign ads
were the dog that didn't bark.
Ads—which are, in theory, the point of
all that fundraising—have had little impact
on most of this cycle. John McCain sewed
up the Republican nomination despite
having little cash for commercials. On the
Democratic side, Clinton has stayed close
to Obama despite his significant financial
edge—at times, a 2-to-1 advantage in
money raised.
A big reason for this apparent paradox is
the fact that voters this year are more
interested in presidential politics than they
have been in a long time. Generally, what
is referred to as "free media"—news
stories on TV and radio and in
newspapers—deliver candidates' messages
to engaged, avid voters, while paid
advertising is needed to reach the many
others who pay little attention to political
news.
This year, with more Americans actively
following the campaigns, the weight of
influence has been tilted toward the news
media. It got to cover the intense drama of
Obama's crowds, Hillary's tears, Bill
Clinton meltdowns, and the many debates.
Candidates still spent heavily to
broadcast ads, but they were usually bland
and reflected little of their intensely
combative dialogue on the campaign trail.
Clinton's early ads, for example, mostly
featured jobs and other kitchen-table issues
that polling identified as convincing, while
Obama's ads seemed aimed mainly at his
converts, often using music and fast-paced
editing to convey the excitement of
building a movement.
Obama's Christmas ad showcased his
family; Hillary's showed her wrapping
presents with labels like "Alternative
Energy" and "Universal Pre-K."
Obama's ability to fire up his base often
trumped Clinton's focus on using issues to
woo undecided voters. His ads appeared to
be secondary to his campaign's top-notch
ground operation and mastery of the
Web—and his own impressive ability to
draw throngs.
One Obama ad from
September,"Believe," attacked "cynics"
who "don't believe we can actually change
politics and bring an end to decades of
division and deadlock." Perhaps too
cleverly, Obama wove the obligatory
disclaimer into a cognitively complex
challenge: "This is Barack Obama. I
approve this message to ask you to believe.
Not just in my ability to bring about real
change in Washington; I'm asking you to
believe in yours."
The ad may indeed have helped rally
Obama's supporters; one commented on a
blog that "I can't wait for the primaries. I
feel like a little kid waiting for Christmas."
But the ad did little to change numbers.
Obama failed to narrow the gap until
Hillary Clinton made a late October debate
stumble over immigrant drivers' licenses.
The most distinctive Obama ad for Super
Tuesday, featuring Caroline Kennedy and
vintage Camelot footage, didn't turn the
tide in states where those endorsements
should have carried weight, California and
Massachusetts. Clinton carried both easily.
Strikingly, voters in most states never
saw a negative ad. Though the contest was
widely depicted as a death match, both
sides made only tentative use of attack ads
until the final week in Pennsylvania, as
when Clinton hit Obama for ducking a
debate.
The first 2008 ad that even approached
game-changing status was Clinton's"3
a.m." spot, just before Texas voted. It was
no masterpiece, like the 1964"Daisy" ad it
evoked, and it cost her a fair amount of
mockery. But it did what it had to: It kept
Hillary alive. And it shifted focus onto
Obama's qualifications, a goal she'd been
struggling all year to achieve.
At $15 million or more, ad spending in
Pennsylvania—made necessary by the
state's size and importance—dwarfed all
previous campaigns in the state. For the
first time, both sides used ads strategically,
conducting a dialogue that became sharply
negative over the contest's final weekend.
Taking advantage of his financial edge,
Obama started weeks ahead of Hillary,
whittling away at her double-digit lead, an
easier task when you are able to dominate
the message. (Clinton's campaign
estimated Obama's Pennsylvania spending
at $11.2 million and its own at $3.8
million.)
When Clinton was able to start
advertising—good strategy dictates
waiting until you can afford a continuous
presence on the air—she
offered"Scranton," emphasizing her
Pennsylvania roots. Puzzled reporters
wondered why Clinton would run a
biographical ad at this late stage.
Everything changed on April 11, when
Obama made his comments about bitter
small-town Pennsylvanians clinging to
religion and guns. Suddenly, Clinton's
biographical pitch seemed to pave the way
for a very helpful contrast.
Not trusting the news media to keep the
"cling" story alive, Clinton
launched"Pennsylvania" after the weekend,
directly attacking Obama's remarks with
rebuttals from average Pennsylvanians.
Obama had given her a safe way to raise
doubts that echoed the Reverend Wright
controversy, too dangerous a topic for
Clinton's ads to tackle directly.
Somewhat defensively, Obama
released"It Won't," using Senator Bob
Casey to vouch for his harmony with small
-town values. A day later, he switched to
an attack of his own,"Represent,"
criticizing Clinton's negative campaigning
without addressing his own original
comments, and repeating his call for a new
kind of politics just as the campaign
entered its most negative phase.
From then on, the campaigns introduced
new ads with dizzying frequency, breaking
a basic rule of political strategy—since
rapid ad traffic changes can muddy the
message without ensuring that any ad truly
penetrates. The Obama campaign, with its
bigger war chest, may have felt it could
run several ads effectively at once,
releasing four ads in the final weekend and
one more the day before the primary.
The candidate was having a rough time
in the free media, stumbling to defend his
San Francisco remarks at press events and
a brutal April 9 debate; the ads offered
Obama a better chance to control his
message. In several, he tried to change the
subject to gas prices, even as Hillary
attacked him for alleged ties to energy-
industry lobbyists.
By the final weekend, Obama had
jumped headlong into negative
territory."Afford" harshly attacked
Clinton's health-care plan (which "forces
everyone to buy insurance even if they
can't afford it"), while"Reason" contrasted
Obama's new politics against Clinton's
divisiveness and negativity.
The late attacks were risky. On the final
weekend before an election, it is often too
late for an ad to sufficiently reach its
target, especially with a split message and
fresh topic (health care). Yet Obama's
upbeat image took a heavy hit for
embracing negative politics.
Clinton's crisp response,"Answer,"
defended her health-care plan, attacked
Obama's, and reminded voters of Obama's
weak debate performance—all within 30
seconds, and without confusing the viewer.
Another new Clinton ad,"Talk," accused
Obama of taking money from drug,
energy, and casino lobbyists.
Obama's reply"Exactly," hit Clinton's
donations from "special interest political
action committees" and "Washington
lobbyists" without using voiceover and
simple captions to link those entities to
unpopular industries, as her ad had.
"P.A.C.'s" and "lobbyists" may have only
fuzzy meaning to disengaged voters;
Hillary's ads show a better ear for voters'
level of awareness, and sharper use of hot-
button phrases.
The difference may be who's in charge of
ads at each campaign. Ad guy David
Axelrod directs Obama's message
operation, while pollsters Geoff Garin (and
Biz Buzz 7
until recently Mark Penn) were in charge
of Clinton's strategy team. Media
consultants often resist direction from
polling, preferring to operate more on
instinct. This might explain why Hillary's
ads often seemed to target messages
toward swing voters better than Obama's.
Late deciders have broken towards
Clinton in many primaries. Slate's Mickey
Kaus had written, "What they see on TV
on Monday will be bizarrely important."
On Monday, Clinton released her most
controversial ad,"Kitchen." The title
referenced Harry Truman's gruff quip
about the pressures of the presidency, but
was also a sly dig at Obama's complaints
about Hillary's "kitchen sink" attack
strategy. A slicker version of the "3 a.m."
ad, it challenged Obama's readiness to lead
in dangerous times.
To hammer home the point, the ad
included a fleeting glimpse of Osama bin
Laden.
The day before an election is, of course,
much too late to build up enough ratings
points behind any ad and get its message
across. But like the 1964 "Daisy" ad,
which ran only once and was aimed at
opinion leaders (much like today's Web-
only ads), "Kitchen" was really a free-
media play. Using Osama guaranteed the
spot would make the newscasts, assisted
by Obama's complaints that Hillary was
resorting to the "politics of fear."
In the end, both candidates' ads showed
signs of effectiveness. From a 16-point
deficit prior to advertising, Obama pulled
almost even with Hillary. Even after she
rallied, he finished 10 points behind.
But Clinton's use of ads to drive her
comeback in a much shorter space of time,
while being so heavily outspent, illustrates
how ad-crafting skill and message
discipline can overcome a significant
financial advantage—perhaps her best
weapon in the contests ahead. Related
Links
Obama Bucks
Clinton, Short of Cash, Taps Her Own
Coffers
What Do All Those Endorsements
Mean?
8 Biz Buzz Gadgets*
Death March
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/24/2008 9:00:00 PM
S everal years ago, Monster.com founder
Jeff Taylor was chatting with his mother
when he found out that she was a regular
reader of newspaper obituary sections. Not
only did she read them in her local paper,
the Boston Globe, she also followed them
in the newspaper of her hometown of
Bloomington, Illinois, a place she hadn’t
lived in for 50 years, on the off chance that
she might read about someone she knew. It
occurred then to Taylor that a lot of the
characteristics that made job postings so
successful online, such as the ability of
users to search in multiple categories and
be notified of new events, could also apply
to obituaries. He stuck the idea into his
mental file.
Fast-forward to 2008, and Taylor, 47, is
now putting his long-gestating idea into
action. His latest venture, Eons.com, on
online community targeted at baby
boomers for which he serves as C.E.O.,
has just spun off a new company called
Tributes.com, a website that serves as a
clearinghouse for obituaries and death
notices. Its revenue is expected to come
largely from advertising and hosting fees
from funeral homes, but the company will
also charge users to create their own
tributes to and memorials for loved ones
on the site.
“Regardless of which business it is, the
consumers have said that their preferred
way of getting information is the internet
over traditional print,” says Taylor. “For a
while, you’ll see obits in both newspapers
and on the Web, but my prediction is that
eventually they will all be online.”
Newspaper owners and publishers must
see Taylor as the Grim Reaper, banging
another nail into the coffin of their
industry, just as he did with classified help-
wanted ads.
Red Zune 80 on its way to retail
By Ryan Block (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 1:26:00 AM
Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable
Video
After building Monster.com, which he
launched in 1994, into an almost $1 billion
company, Taylor left in 2005 to launch
Eons.com. Taylor’s success with Monster
helped the startup attract $32 million in
venture capital from blue-chip firms like
Sequoia Capital, Charles River Ventures,
and Intel Capital.
Eons.com has been no
Monster.com—after attracting lots of
initial attention, traffic dropped
considerably and the company was forced
to lay off one-third of its workforce—but
its launch was fortuitous. On one of Eons’
topic channels focusing on relationships,
Taylor saw an opportunity to implement
his idea of bringing obituaries online. The
first inkling that it could be something was
when Eons created a message board for
tributes to Rosa Parks on the first
anniversary of the civil rights activist’s
death, in 2006. The page received a flood
of traffic and postings. In February, Taylor
decided to turn Eons.com’s focus toward
social networking and to spin off the site’s
obituaries section into its own company,
Tributes.com, raising $4.2 million for it
from backers, including Dow Jones.
According to Elaine Haney, a former
Eons.com executive who is now president
of Tributes.com, the site is keeping a
relatively low profile before its planned
redesign in June and a big consumer-
marketing push in September.
There’s another reason to keep a low
profile until they get it right: Tributes.com
faces a lot of competition. Unlike the early
days of the Web, when Monster.com could
make strides simply because of being
online before others, today even
newspapers themselves print death notices
and obituaries on their own websites. And
there are several other websites with a
similar conceit, the best-known of which is
Legacy.com, a private company started in
1998 that turned profitable in 2003,
Not unlike the early colorized versions of
the original Zune before it, the red Zune 80
looks like it should finally be ready to
make its un-tattooed retail sales debut . If
you've been considering getting loud
according to its spokesperson. Instead of
competing directly with newspapers,
however, Legacy.com has chosen to
partner with and charge them a fee for
hosting their online obituaries. It counts as
clients more than 500 major newspapers,
including the New York Times, the
Washington Post, and the Los Angeles
Times. Legacy.com also hosts popular
guest books and allows users to write and
store their own obituaries; the site boasts
11 million unique visitors per month.
Legacy.com is not concerned about
Taylor’s new venture. “Others have come
and gone in this space, and we certainly
take note of any new competitor, but the
arrival of an online company interested in
obituaries doesn’t alter our strategy in any
way,” says Hayes Ferguson, Legacy.com’s
chief operating officer.
Taylor says Tributes.com’s competitive
edge will be its searchable central
database.
“We can introduce the idea of finding
information based on your contacts in the
past, and you can be on the watch for
people who went to your church or your
school or people who you used to work
with,” Taylor says.
But Taylor is patient, having learned
from his experience at Monster.com how
long it can take to chip away at a new
market. He notes that the Conference
Board recently estimated that last year the
internet helped more people find jobs than
did traditional media.
“It took 14 years from when I started
Monster” to get to that point, says Taylor.
“Building Tributes isn’t going to happen in
one minute.”
Related Links
The Toast of Roasts
Another Monster Executive Falls
Monster Stock-Option Backdating
Settlement
and/or proud with your next Zune, call
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Card Games
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 3:00:00 PM
A Federal court in New York offered a
new lease on life to a lawsuit charging
some of the nation's largest banks with
colluding to force credit card customers
into arbitration.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Second Circuit in Manhattan on Friday
vacated a lower court decision dismissing
class action claims against all of the major
banks – including Bank of America,
Capital One Bank, Chase Bank and
Citibank. The court ruled that antitrust
claims, based on allegations that the banks
colluded to insert such clauses into their
credit card contracts, could proceed.
The antitrust claims, which seek to
invalidate these mandatory clauses, arose
during a class action against the banks
involving currency conversion. In the
course of that litigation, which involves
three different cases, the plaintiffs lawyers
discovered that the bank formed an
“arbitration coalition” and held at least 18
meetings, during which they honed their
mandatory arbitration clauses to make it
clear that cardholders also waived their
right to participate in class actions. The
clauses started appearing in contracts in
1999 and 2000.
By a combination of fate and creative
lawyering, it seems the banks may have to
face up to charges that they colluded to put
these clauses into their contracts. The
clauses are “almost uniform,” according to
Merrill Davidoff of Philadelphia’s Berger
& Montague, lead counsel for the
plaintiffs. Because he is seeking an
injunction, there are no money damages on
the line.
“It was such a travesty of justice, we felt
duty bound to bring these cases,” says
Davidoff.
Bank of America led the charge inserting
mandatory arbitration clauses into the bills
of its credit card customers back in 1992.
For more than a decade, lawyers for
ahead to your local gadget stock keeper
and see if they're in. Read| Permalink|
Email this| Comments
consumers have been pushing claims
challenging mandatory arbitration but none
of them has been very successful: The
United States Supreme Court gave the
green light to mandatory arbitration
clauses in brokerage contracts in 1987, in a
case called Shearson/American Express v.
McMahon, and the financial services
industry has basically thumbed its nose at
consumer complaints ever since.
In the most recent suit, the trial court had
dismissed these claims, finding the
plaintiffs did not have what is known as
“standing” to bring a lawsuit. Standing
requires that there be a “case or
controversy” for a lawsuit to go forward in
federal court and the trial court found the
alleged antitrust injuries of the cardholders
to be “entirely speculative.”
It all may sound technical, but “standing”
as it is called, is a chief weapon
conservative justices on the U.S. Supreme
Court, among them Justice Antonin Scalia,
have relied upon to halt lawsuits in their
tracks. On Friday, the Second Circuit went
out of its way to point out that this is a
very early victory. “We do not address the
question of whether the cardholders’
alleged injuries would survive an antitrust
standing analysis,” according to the
unanimous decision from the three-judge
panel.
The consumer claims go back to the trial
court for further hearings. Meanwhile,
Congress has basically stalled on a billed
called the Arbitration Fairness Act of
2007, a bid by consumer groups to make
mandatory arbitration in consumer and
employee contracts null and void.
A spokeswoman for Bank of America
said the bank had no comment on the
decision. “We haven’t even seen the ruling
at this point,” she said.
Related Links
Four Biggest Banks Tap Fed's Cash
Was B of A Blindsided by Countrywide
Lawsuits?
When Banks Diversify Internationally
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Terror Defense for the Financial District
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 11:30:00 AM
New York City is putting together a
technology-heavy defense for the world's
most tempting terror target, lower
Manhattan. The question is whether any of
the gear -- especially the network of 3,000
spy cameras -- will really work as
advertised.
The 1.7 square miles below Canal Street
boasts the New York Stock Exchange, the
American Stock Exchange, the Federal
Reserve Bank, City Hall, and four major
bridges and tunnels. A bomb at any of
these places could kill hundreds, cost the
city billions, and rattle the world financial
system. Al Qaeda has hit the neighborhood
twice, in 1993 and 2001. Officials say that
several other plots have been broken up
since.
City agencies have done their best to
harden the financial district in the years
since 2001. Today, explosives-sniffing
dogs and two truckloads of cops wearing
military-style body armor and waving M-4
machine guns surround the flag-draped
stock exchange. Black metallic barriers
rise out of the asphalt, blocking traffic on
Wall Street, while concrete planters and
strategically parked trucks keep vehicles
off Broad Street. Some of the other streets
surrounding the exchange have been cut
off to pedestrians, and only invited guests
are allowed inside. "Closed since 9/11,"
the guard tells visitors.
But you can't block off every street or
have a guard by every door. There's no
budget for that, and no one would want to
live or work in that kind of armed camp
anyway. "You can make a justification for
putting bollards in front of every building,"
says a former high-ranking NYPD
Yoko Ono vs. Ben Stein: Imagine There's No Expelled...
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 3:38:03 AM
Talk about a legal argument I'd want no
part of: Yoko Ono is suing the makers of
the anti-evolution documentary Expelled.
The movie has received a ton of bad press,
counterterrorism official. "But pretty soon
you can't walk anywhere. People leave."
So New York has an audacious blueprint
to wrap a high tech cloak around lower
Manhattan. It will provide the most
sophisticated armor of any major urban
area in the world — one that relies on
brains as much as brawn, on barely visible
technology as much as brute stopping
power. My article in the current issue of
WIRED magazine has the details.
There will be upgrades citywide,
including a new, next-gen cell network and
an overhaul of the subway's security
system. Electronic license plate readers,
both stationary and mounted on mobile
police units, can already scan thousands of
cars per day and instantly alert police if a
suspect in their database approaches or
enters the financial district. Massive
vehicle barriers will be able to block off
the busiest streets on a signal from HQ,
even shutting down the Brooklyn-Battery
Tunnel. An array of 3,000 cameras will
turn the area into a 1.7-square-mile, open-
air Panopticon. And unlike London's
surveillance system, the so-called Ring of
Steel, New York's cameras are supposed to
do more than identify terrorists after
they've struck. Assistant chief John
Colgan, who commands the police
department's counterterrorism bureau,
hopes they'll keep the next disaster from
happening. "This is about identifying and
eliminating a threat, rather than dealing
with the consequences," says Colgan, a
compact redhead with a bushy mustache.
"I'm not in the consequence-management
business."
Of course, the same technology could be
used to invade privacy more efficiently,
and even some in the NYPD are
concerned: "I certainly don't want my
and there have been widespread
dissections with the many problems in the
movie which seems to have difficulty
understanding what the scientific method
is actually about. Apparently, in one part
of the movie, the famous John Lennon
song "Imagine" is used, and some of the
family to come under view just because
they're walking through a certain part of
town," one counterterrorism official told
me.
But that's only a concern if the
surveillance net actually works. So far,
similar efforts have flopped, badly.
For example -- and this is an exclusive to
DANGER ROOM -- Chicago officials
promised in 2004 that a citywide array of
2,000 public and private cameras would be
ready by March of '06. Right now, there
are only a few hundred cameras up, in the
downtown "Loop," officials there tell me.
All of them are city-owned. None are
equipped with any kind of video analytics
that would make it possible to interdict a
terror attack.
The problem has been infrastructure:
Chicago thought it had all the fiber it
needed to put a camera ring together – over
500 miles worth; but when the city started
building, it discovered it need 30 miles
more, and right in the heart of town. Then
the sidewalks starting collapsing. Those
are the kind of snags you run into, when
you're slipping new infrastructure into
hundred-and-fifty year-old streets. Now, at
least, Chicago has its core network
complete: the combination of wireless
nodes and fiber, to string the cameras
together; the 56 terrabyte storage area
network, to hold the video; the hot backup
site in an undisclosed location, in case it all
goes down. But it hasn't been easy. Or
cheap.
Related Links
Fools' Paradise
Let the Buyer Be Wired
Stocks Sink, While Oil Climbs
people complaining about the movie got
angry at Ono, thinking she had licensed the
song to be in such a controversial movie.
The clip was not licensed -- but the
filmmakers claim that it's protected fair
use, saying that they're using a short clip of
the song for commentary purposes. I
Genetic Bill of Rights
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 6:00:00 AM
It was a decade in the making, but the
U.S. Senate has passed a federal standard
that protects people who learn through
genetic testing that they might be
susceptible to a serious disease from losing
their jobs or being denied health insurance.
The bill, passed unanimously on a 95 to
0 vote, goes to the House of
Representatives for consideration.
President Bush supports the legislation and
is expected to sign it into law.
The Genetic Information
Nondiscrimination Act, called GINA,
protects the privacy of personal genetic
information so people who are tested can
be assured that the results cannot be used
against them.
The legislation bars access to such
information by insurance companies
making health-coverage decisions, and by
employers making hiring decisions.
"For the first time we act to prevent
discrimination before it has taken firm
hold, and that's why this legislation is
unique and groundbreaking," said Olympia
Snowe, the Republican senator from Maine
who sponsored the act.
She said the hundreds of genetic tests
available today are "absolutely useless" if
people are too afraid of taking them
because they will be denied insurance or
jobs.
Edward Kennedy, the Massachusetts
Democrat who co-sponsored the bill along
with Snow and Wyoming Republican
Mike Enzi, said the bill "opens a new
frontier in medicine in which we read the
genetic makeup of patients to stop diseases
before they even happen."
Hailing the measure as the "first civil
rights bill of the new century in life
sciences," he said its passage "means that
people whose genetic profiles put them at
haven't seen the film, nor can I find that
particular clip online, but, as awful as
Expelled sounds, I have a hard time siding
with Yoko Ono on this. Media companies
have, for too long, been overly aggressive
in claiming that any use of music in a
movie must be licensed. That seems to go
Biz Buzz Tech* 9
risk of cancer and other serious conditions
can get tested and seek treatment without
fear of losing their privacy, their jobs, and
their health insurance."
Snowe said that her interest in the subject
stemmed from a 1997 letter from a
constituent, Bonnie Lee Tucker, who wrote
that she feared having a breast-cancer gene
test even though nine women in her
immediate family had been diagnosed with
breast cancer, and she herself is a survivor.
She worried that the results of the test
would prevent her daughter from getting
health insurance. That wouldn't happen
with the new legislation, Snowe said, who
noted that "up until now, our laws have not
kept pace with emerging technology."
Some business groups have warned that
the bill could spark a flood of lawsuits, and
Tom Coburn, the Republican senator from
Oklahoma, worked to hammer out
compromise language that made it harder
for claims to be brought against employers
perceived as discriminating. Coburn said
he supported the bill.
Although about 40 states have passed
their own legislation protecting genetic
information, Congress has struggled for a
decade to pass legislation. Lawmakers got
a push toward setting a federal standard
when the 2003 mapping of the human
genome was unveiled. But, even so, it took
Congress five years to act.
The legislation twice unanimously
passed the Senate—once in October 2003
and again in February 2005—but same
version did not pass the House. Snowe said
this time she expected it would be passed
by unanimous consent in the House and be
sent to the president to be signed into
law.Related Links
You 2.0: I'm Doomed. Or Not.
Gene-Sequencing Warrior
Remote Control Nano Drugs
against the concept of fair use entirely, and
it would be good to change that. I just wish
it wasn't with a movie such as this one.
Permalink| Comments| Email This Story
10 Biz Buzz Tech Tips*
Microsoft Talks the Talk
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/24/2008 7:00:00 PM
Speak loudly, and carry a soft stick. That
approach won't get you very far, but it was
all Microsoft had to offer.
When Microsoft presented its earnings
Thursday, the software behemoth, as
expected, talked big about how it deserves
to own Yahoo. Less expected was how soft
the stick was that it used to hammer home
its point.
First, the big talk. "Yahoo continues to
lose search share, and profitability
continues to decline year on year," said
Microsoft C.F.O. Chris Liddell, taking the
unorthodox step of discussing a rival's
performance on its own earnings call.
After noting that there were twice as
many eavesdroppers on the Microsoft call
as usual, he pushed in the knife, reminding
everyone that Yahoo's results this week
"were in line with the drivers that they
gave on the last earnings call on January
29, when the stock price closed at $19.05."
Liddell then pointed to a deadline this
weekend for Yahoo to come crawling,
suggesting that Microsoft might either start
talking directly to Yahoo shareholders
or—echoing comments from chief
executive Steve Ballmer earlier
Thursday—simply walk away. "Speed is
of the essence," Liddell intoned.
"Unfortunately, the transaction has been
anything but speedy."
Now about that soft stick. To strengthen
its case, Microsoft needed to deliver the
kind of blockbuster report it showed in the
last two quarters. While earnings per share
Capital Idea
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:30:00 AM
Pressure on banks may be easing
following a storm of mortgage-related
write-downs and quarterly losses, but some
players are taking no chances.
Merrill Lynch is in talks with private
equity firm TPG that could give the bank
access to additional capital in a pinch, the
Financial Times is reporting, citing
unnamed "people familiar with the
situation."
of 47 cents was above the 44-cent forecast,
Wall Street is stuck in a dark mood these
days. So it focused instead on
weakness—and found it in Microsoft's top
line.
Revenue in the quarter was flat
compared with the March quarter of 2007,
which really wasn't a surprise. A year ago,
Vista sales were booming, but they have
naturally slowed down since the launch. So
Microsoft's so-called "client" revenue,
which is derived largely from Windows
software, fell 24 percent to $4 billion.
The real surprise was that Vista delivered
even less than the scaled-down number
analysts were looking for. After all,
industry research had shown that global
shipments of desktops and laptops were
surprisingly strong last quarter, up between
12 percent and 15 percent.
Why didn't Microsoft benefit more from
that demand? The answer may lie in its
Silicon Valley arch nemesis, Apple(which
on Wednesday said its Mac computers
were flying off shelves).
"If you delve into the numbers, Apple
looks like it has a bigger portion of the
market," said Brendan Barnicle, an analyst
at Pacific Crest. "Maybe Apple is doing so
well it's starting to actually affect some of
Microsoft's clients."
And although Liddell insisted speed is of
the essence for Yahoo, he was much more
forgiving when it came to Microsoft's
online-advertising business. Microsoft
spent $6 billion on aQuantive last May, yet
Liddell acknowledged Thursday that
aQuantive's "real revenue potential is some
years out."
The report comes just months after
Merrill secured almost $13 billion in
capital from several Asian sources. In
January, it sold $6.6 billion worth of
preferred shares to a group including the
Kuwait Investment Authority and the
Mizuho Financial Group of Japan. A
month earlier, it sold $6.2 billion worth of
securities to Temasek Holdings of
Singapore.
The Financial Times said Merrill's talks
with TPG—involving Merrill's chief
executive John Thain and president Greg
What's more, revenue in Microsoft's
online-services division may have rose to
$843 million, but that was still less than
Google's $3.7 billion in net revenue in the
same period. It also marked the seventh
straight quarter that Microsoft's online
division lost money.
Still, some analysts were encouraged by
Microsoft's outlook in the next fiscal year.
Andy Miedler of Edward Jones said that
the diversified revenue streams, including
Xbox and server and enterprise software,
would help Microsoft's revenue grow 12
percent in the year through June 2009.
That's down from the 17 percent revenue
growth this fiscal year, but not bad
considering that there are no upgrades
planned for key products like Vista and the
Office suite.
Miedler, who has a hold rating on
Microsoft because he believes its $31-a-
share bid for Yahoo and the potential
integration costs are rich, said there wasn't
enough in either Microsoft's or Yahoo's
earnings this quarter to tilt the needle in
favor of either company.
"We're back where we were at the
beginning," he said. "It doesn't change
things one way or the other."
Barnicle agrees. "I think Microsoft may
wait a while and see if they can sweat the
Yahoo shareholders into believing that
they might really walk away."
Related Links
Microsoft Faces "Uphill Battle" on
Yahoo
Window on the Future
Search Mission
Fleming, as well as TPG co-founder David
Bonderman—grew out of Merrill's efforts
last fall to cope with punishing losses on
mortgage-backed securities.
Back then, TPG and an affiliated hedge
fund, TPG-Axon, offered to inject as much
as $3 billion into Merrill. The bank
eventually demurred, put off by TPG's
desire to nominate a board member and
have an active role in managing the bank.
Thain has said Merrill doesn't need more
capital, although it has raised $9.5 billion
by selling bonds and preferred stock this
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Look Out Below!
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:30:00 AM
The credit crunch that has hobbled Wall
Street is metastasizing into a consumer
crisis that is threatening a much wider and
deeper swath of the economy.
Consumer sentiment plummeted this
month to its lowest level in 25 years,
Reuters and the University of Michigan
report. Behind the gloom: the rising price
of staples like food and gasoline, along
with fewer jobs, declines in real wages,
and falling home prices.
“The recent acceleration in the loss in
confidence indicates a longer and
potentially deeper recession,” Richard
Curtin, director of the Reuters/University
of Michigan Surveys of Consumers, said.
Pessimistic consumers are often more
reluctant to spend, Curtin added, and that
can translate into weakness throughout the
economy, two-thirds of which depends on
consumer spending.
“Rising uncertainty about future living
standards has caused consumers to adopt
more prudent spending plans and become
more wary of incurring new debt,” Curtin
said. Flagging confidence, once limited to
lower-income households, is now seen
throughout the spectrum, he added.
President Bush yesterday urged
consumers to keep their chins up, noting
month.
The Financial Times said the talks were
designed to position TPG as a preferred
investor should the bank's situation
deteriorate any time soon.Related Links
The Taming of Merrill Lynch
Why Bonds are Unloved by the Media
When Banks Don't Manage Their
Bankers' Risks
that the first of his recently enacted tax
rebates will start being distributed today.
But Curtin said that many of the people in
his survey think the cash will be too little,
too late.
Less than one-third of consumers said
they plan to spend their rebates this year,
Curtin said. Most of those surveyed said
they intend to save the money or pay down
debts, neither of which will have as direct
a stimulus effect on the economy.
“With the current high levels of economic
uncertainty, most consumers favor adding
to their reserve funds to increase their
financial latitude as a safeguard against
worsening future conditions,” Curtin said.
The Index of Consumer Sentiment was
62.6 this month, Reuters and the university
said. That is down sharply from last
month's reading of 69.5 and well below the
87.1 recorded a year ago. The index was as
high as 96.9 as recently as January 2007.
Perhaps more worrisome, the Index of
Consumer Expectations dropped to 53.3 in
April, from 60.1 in March. The index,
which gauges consumers' security about
the near future, was 75.9 in April 2007 and
87.6 at the beginning of last year.Related
Links
The Myth of Consumer Confidence
Economic Growth Bounces Back
A Crude Problem: Scarcer Gasoline
Print Your Own
Ruled Paper
[Printables]
By Kevin Purdy (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 6:30:00 AM
Need some lined paper for note-taking,
graph paper for drawing, or bi-color paper
for budgets? Printable Paper has you
covered, assuming you've got access to a
printer. All of the many, many templates
are free and available in PDF format, and
go far beyond 8.5 x 11 sheets to business
cards, receipts and invoices, and beyond.
Good starting point for making your own
templates, or a good bookmark for those
moments where one sheet can hold you
over.
Printable Paper[via MakeUseOf.com]
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Ad-Based Phone Service
Takes Off
(Portfolio.com: News and Markets)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:00:00 PM
One day, we will pay for nothing. All
goods and services will be ad-supported.
This will continue until the only
advertisements are for more ad-supported
services. Then, late one Monday afternoon,
sometime in 2012, the Singularity will
occur, snakes will swallow their own tails
and, born from the collapse of reality, a
second big-bang will birth the
Googleverse.
At least, that's the first thing that popped
into my mind when reading that in Britain,
a free, ad-supported mobile phone service
has hit 100,000 subscribers in just six
months. Blyk gives away text messages
Wix: The Bold Web Content Creator
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 3:03:14 PM
Cluttered and candy-coated are two ways
to describe Wix, a new Flash-based
website and widget creation tool that
we’ve been anticipating for months. It’s
also feature-rich, very well-designed, and -
sorry - still in private beta.
Wix joins a multitude of browser-based
website creators such as Weebly,
Synthasite, and Google Pages. But it
reminds me the most of Sprout, a widget-
creation tool that can also be used to make
websites, since both provide fluid Flash
interfaces that appeal to your inner
designer.
Both of these companies are blurring the
line between content that’s meant to stand
alone as distinct websites, and content
that’s meant for syndication over blogs,
social networks, and other destinations. It’s
because of this obfuscation that they’ve
opted to use the unspecific, yet self-
referential, names “sprout” and “wix”
when referring to their creations.
Whereas Sprout is mainly marketed as a
tool for spreading media content, Wix
most certainly appeals to a younger
population that’s obsessed with expressing
themselves online (call them MySpacers, if
and calls in return for text and video ads
(this is one case where it pays to have a
crappy low tech cellphone). According to
Blyk, the ads are getting a huge 29%
response rate, an order of magnitude better
than most other advertising.
Whether this means that cellphone ads
really work, or that the ads themselves are
just particularly well made, we don't know.
What we do know is that the king of the
new reality will be George Forman, Lord
of the Infomercial.
Ad-funded telco reaches 100,000 clients
in Britain[Reuters]Related Links
Reuters Has News: It's in Play
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The Redcoats Are Coming
you will). Wix does have a collection of
tasteful business themes, but the vast
majority of its templates are for fun and
fall into categories like “street art”, “emo”,
“playground”, and “sexy”.
Once you pick a theme for your new
website (or widget, just depending on your
dimensions), you are taken to a popup Wix
Editor that provides you with an
overwhelming number of ways to spice up
your creation. You can add shapes, clipart,
photos, videos, songs and animations; you
can tweak colors and set visual effects for
user behavior; and you can add text
paragraphs and headlines. Photos can be
uploaded manually or pulled in from either
Flickr or a royalty-free stock collection;
videos can be embedded from YouTube;
and there’s also a collection of free song
clips that can be used in a range of
skinnable music players.
Each wix supports multiple pages with
links between them. When you want to edit
a particular object on a page, you click on
it and options for rotating, resizing, and
positioning are revealed. A Mac OS-
looking doc at the bottom of the screen
also provides icons for setting effects,
behaviors, animations, and more. You
really need to play around with Wix to
fully appreciate how much flair and how
many customization options it affords.
As you work on your wix, you can hit a
preview button to see what it will look
like. And once you’re done with it, you can
publish it either as a website hosted on the
wix.com domain or as a widget to be
embedded or sent to friends via email.
One of the major complaints many have
about Flash is that it doesn’t allow for
indexing by search engines. Wix gets
around this by producing content that’s a
hybrid of HTML and Flash, despite the
fact that it’s editor is entirely Flash-based.
This will be a huge benefit to anyone who
uses Wix to set up a serious website, but it
probably won’t make any difference to
widget creators.
Update: Wix is giving out a couple
hundred private beta invites to readers who
email info@wix.com with requests.
CrunchBase Information Wix Sprout
Information provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because
it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
Presdo, The Magical
Online Scheduler
By Erick Schonfeld (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 1:05:11 PM
I want you to stop what you are doing
right now and go try Presdo. It is a
deceptively simple online scheduling
assistant that is a prime example of what a
modern Web app should be. It only shows
you what you need to see at the moment
that you need to see it. And it understands
what you want to do based on normal (and
not-so-normal) English that you type in.
“We actually threw a lot away,” says
founder Eric Ly, who previously was a co-
founder of LinkedIn and its first chief
technology officer. He wrote most of the
code himself and bootsrapped the entire
site with only $35,000 of his own money.
“I left LinkedIn on a Friday, and started
Presdo on Saturday,” he tells me. That was
back in April, 2006. He had to develop his
own natural-language algorithm to deal
with events, times, and scheduling, and the
words people use to describe those things.
The whole site is built with Ruby on Rails,
Ajax, and the LAMP stack.
The home page is a plain, Google-
inspired box. But instead of typing in what
you are looking for, you type in what you
want to do and with who: “Coffee with
Eric in SF,” “Movie with Nadia Fri night,”
“Meeting with Henry at 2:30 pm.”
It then takes you to a page with pre-
populated fields based on what you typed
in: when, who, where, what. You can
refine the details further on this page. If
you typed in the person’s email in the first
box, it appears in the “who” field. If you
didn’t, you can enter it at this point.
Presdo lets you pick a location by
searching through local listings on a
Biz Buzz Tech* 11
Google map. You can pick one near you,
near the person you are meeting, or in
between. (It helps if you first register with
your own email and location.)
Or you can look at a list view of nearby
places instead.
Presdo guesses what day and time you
meant and puts those in as well. But you
can offer up alternative times and allow the
other party to pick the best one or suggest
their own.
When you are satisfied with what you
have, you hit “Send Invite.” The other
person gets an e-mail with the details and a
link back to Presdo, where they can change
the time or place. You can also add a
message. All the messages back-and-forth
are recorded on the event page.
Once everything is set, you can export
the meeting to your calendar (Presdo
supports Outlook, iCal, Google Calendar,
and Yahoo Calendar).
Every time you schedule an event with a
new person, Presdo remembers who they
are for the next time. You can also use
Presdo as a to-do list. There are some
obvious features Ly needs to add, such as
support for other forms of messaging
beyond email including mobile text
messaging and Twitter. But he is off to a
good start. The service is free, and he
hopes to eventually charge for premium
subscriptions. You can try it out now, and
tell us what you think in comments.
CrunchBase Information Eric Ly Presdo
jiffle TimeBridge Pingg Information
provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
12 Tech* Tech Tips*
Comcast Cares -- But Only About
People Like You
By Tom Lee (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:54:02 AM
You might've already heard about the
Twitter account@comcastcares. Run by
Comcast employee Frank Eliason, its
purpose is to find upset customers before
they even know they're looking for help.
I'd heard of Eliason's project, but had
completely forgotten about it when, on
Sunday, I found my HD service
mysteriously missing and broadcast my
frustration to the Twitterverse. Frank's
immediate Twittered response was
unexpected and reassuring. When the next
day's service call proved fruitless, he asked
me to email him. Within a few hours I had
received phone calls and emails from three
different smart and seemingly concerned
Comcast employees, and by the evening
my problem was solved. I had been
prepared to settle in for a weeks-long fight
with the cable company. Instead, Frank's
quick intervention left me feeling oddly
positive about a company that I had long
considered to be more or less the
embodiment of of malevolent, slothful
IFPI Witness Used To Work For IFPI -- Is That Such
A Big Deal?
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 2:23:00 AM
I think that anyone who reads Techdirt on
a regular basis would recognize that we're
pretty harsh on the entertainment industry
and the way it goes about its business. Yet,
there seems to be an unrealistic expectation
that we should obviously slam the
entertainment industry for every move it
makes -- and if not, we're somehow wrong.
That's simply untrue. While, yes, it is easy
to trash the incredibly dumb things the
industry does all of the time, that doesn't
mean you should automatically jump to
conclusions about the entire industry. Last
week, in writing about how a lead
investigator on the case against The Pirate
incompetence.
I'm not the only one who's noticed
Frank's project, of course. Mike Arrington
wrote about a positive encounter with
@comcastcares earlier this month. And
although Dave Winer remained peeved by
his cable internet woes, it's clear that he
found @comcastcares helpful and
worthwhile.
It certainly is those things. But is it
anything more? Arrington is right, of
course, when he says that more brands
should be using Twitter as a buzz
monitoring tool. But we should all keep in
mind that the sort of concierge-style
customer support offered by
@comcastcares is unlikely to ever scale
beyond the size of a PR exercise.
In this case Twitter's chief virtue is its
userbase: a collection of highly-wired early
adopters whose online complaints about
cable provider malfeasance frequently find
their way into press accounts and Google
results associated with the company. As
handy a notification system as Twitter is,
it's not as if it offers a technological
breakthrough that suddenly makes
Bay had taken a job with Warner Brothers
after the investigation concluded, I
suggested this wasn't as ridiculous or
"shocking" as some made it out to be. As
long as there was no additional evidence of
questionable activities, switching jobs isn't
that surprising. The industry has a long
history of hiring former police
investigators and prosecutors for its anti-
piracy activity. That, alone, shouldn't be
considered strange or questionable -- but a
lot of folks immediately assumed that
something nefarious was up. In fact, one
commenter even accused me of being on
the take from Warner. Given just how
frequently I've totally trashed Warner
Music's activities(in just the last year
alone), including the faux epiphany of boss
competent customer service possible:
there's been nothing preventing Comcast
support from answering email, or getting
on IM, or even just using a phone system
that calls clients back rather than making
them sit on the phone until they hang up or
are driven mad by the hold music.
The reason Comcast and companies like
it don't do those things is simply that
providing high-quality, personalized
support is expensive. Providing high-
quality support to influential users is
expensive, too, but there are many fewer of
them and they make a lot more noise,
which makes it a better investment. I'm
sure Frank isn't undertaking his project
cynically, but it's hard to see how Twitter
can change the economics of tech support.
Tom Lee is an expert at the Techdirt
Insight Community. To get insight and
analysis from Tom Lee and other experts
on challenges your company faces, click
here.
Permalink| Comments| Email This Story
Edgar Bronfman, this seems rather
laughable.
However, it is important to recognize
that not everything is a conspiracy theory,
and not every move the industry makes is
as ridiculous as it's made out to be by
critics. Totally overreacting to these things
doesn't help the case of those of us trying
to help educate the industry on why their
strategy of suing fans and blaming piracy
for their own inability to adapt and grow is
a problem. So, while I'm sure I'll get
beaten up over it again, the latest report
that an expert witness in the Danish
lawsuit against The Pirate Bay used to
work at the IFPI still doesn't seem
particularly shocking or troublesome.
TorrentFreak, who normally has excellent
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Beer, Blogs And Bias
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:40:00 PM
The Wall Street Journal has an article
focusing on a blog set up by Miller
Brewing Company called Brew Blog.
There are a few different, interesting points
worth discussing here. First, the blog isn't
used as a blog about what's going on at
Miller Brewing. Instead, Miller hired an
experienced reporter, and told him to just
cover the beer industry as if he were a beat
reporter. In other words, it's reporting news
-- and even breaking stories on the
competition. In fact, it revealed that main
rival Anheuser-Busch was planning a new
beer before A-B was able to make the
announcement itself. This is certainly a
recognition of how content is advertising.
The blog clearly isn't "advertorial." It's full
-on reporting about the industry, in a way
that's interesting and relevant to those in
the industry.
What may be even more interesting,
though, is what the article says about
journalism. In an age in which journalists
are whining that their jobs are
disappearing, here's yet another example of
where suddenly there are new types of jobs
for journalists appearing every day. But,
coverage, continually paints this news as
"shocking." However, I just don't see it. It's
not surprising that a guy who used to work
on IFPI investigations would go on to
work at an anti-piracy company. And, just
because he does so, it doesn't mean that
he's obviously biased on their side (I
certainly don't think fondly of all of my ex-
employers). The simple fact is that any
expert witness has a bias. They're hired to
help support one side of the case. So, of
course he's going to present the IFPI's case
in the best light. That's what he's paid to do
-- and the court should take that into
account. The fact that he used to work for
the IFPI seems rather meaningless.
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even more interesting, is a quote at the end
of the article highlighted by David Card.
It's from Harry Schuhmacher, the editor
and publisher of a fee-based trade
publication on the beer industry:"I tell
Miller you're subsidizing a free
publication, and it hurts the trade press," he
says. "But they don't care."...Mr.
Schuhmacher adds that he writes fewer
positive pieces about Miller than he once
did because he knows Brew Blog will
always publish the same stories. Think
about this for a bit. People complain that
when you have a company-sponsored
publication it will inevitably be biased --
but the sponsorship of that site is totally
open and in the clear. The site's content
stands for itself. Yet, at the same time, a
supposedly "objective" traditional
journalist is admitting that he writes fewer
stories about Miller because he's upset that
it's competing with his own publication.
From that, it would certainly seem like the
Brew Blog is a lot more credible (it's
biases are out in the open), while this fee-
based trade pub admits that story choices
are sometimes based on personal
vendettas.
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Get Better Tech
Support [How To]
By Gina Trapani (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 11:00:00 PM
Former tech support guy Brett Kelly says
there are a few things you can do to get the
computer help you need most efficiently
over the phone. Before you call, try the
obvious fixes: Reboot, consult the manual,
Google, or help pages, and know how to
reproduce the problem consistently. (You
should know how to describe the problem
thoroughly as well.) On the phone, be
patient, do what your support person asks
you to do, and don't lie about how you got
where you are. Along these same lines,
when you post a question in an online
forum or send an email to someone for
help, be sure to master the art of asking.
11 Tips for Better Tech Support[The
Cranking Widgets Blog]
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Can Blockbuster Turn Its Stores Into
Destinations?
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 8:32:01 AM
Blockbuster clearly knows it's facing
mounting challenges to its business. The
company has been mostly outplayed by
Netflix in the online rental market (though,
Blockbuster's competing offering has done
much better than some others who have
tried to play the Netflix game). The
company's financials have been a bit of a
mess, but it's still planning for the future --
and that includes recognizing that the
market is changing drastically, and it needs
to change with it. While no one knows if it
will be able to survive these changes, it's
still rather refreshing to at least see the
company try to meet those challenges head
on. Recently, it's talked about a strategy to
create its own set top box as well as put out
an unsolicited bid to buy Circuit City.
While both ideas have some problems (the
Circuit City acquisition would be
particularly hard to pull off for example), it
Minggl Offers (Yet) Another Way to Keep Tabs on
Your Friends
By Jason Kincaid (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:41:08 PM
It’s almost painful to write about a social
news aggregator these days. We’ve
covered well over a dozen of them, most of
which do nearly the exact same thing. It’s
getting ridiculous. With so many on the
market, it goes without saying that most of
these are going to fade into obscurity in the
next six months.
Which is why I hope Minggl was telling
the truth when they told us they weren’t
just another event aggregator.
Because right now, that’s basically what
Minggl is. They currently offer a browser-
based plugin for both Firefox and Internet
Explorer that integrates a newsfeed, among
other things. After filling out requisite
information for MySpace, Facebook, and
does show that the company is trying to
branch out.
What may be even more interesting,
though is that Blockbuster clearly
recognizes that it has an asset in its brick-
and-mortar stores that Netflix can't easily
copy. While some may say that the stores
are a liability, that may depend on what
Blockbuster can do with them. Already, it
tries to leverage the stores in its online
rental service (allowing you to return
movies to the stores and immediately pick
up a new film as part of your subscription),
but as Gizmodo points out, it's also
experimenting with making the shops into
real destinations, rather than just rental
shops. It's playing with a few different
"formulas" to see how people respond --
including setting up a bar where people
can buy soda or coffee and another where
there's free WiFi and people can play video
games on a big screen. It's also testing out
setting up a store where shoppers can buy
consumer electronics. You can consider
most of the other major social networking
sites, users are also given one-click access
to each of their profile pages from their
Minggl toolbar. Other features include the
ability to mass-send a status message to
each network (provided they support one),
and the ability to send the same message to
friends across multiple networks.
To be honest, I was surprised by how
well the sidebar feature worked. I
generally detest browser plugins, but the
Minggl toolbars did their job without being
too intrusive. There are, however, a few
annoying quirks that got on my nerves
after a while. Whenever you visit a friend’s
profile while logged into Minggl, a
floating box appears asking if you’d like to
add them as a Minggl friend. I’m sure
there is (or will be) a setting to turn this
off, but it shouldn’t be the default. Minggl
that last one a test run for what would
happen if the Circuit City deal goes
through.
Turning the stores into more of a
destination, with a variety of options on
ways to make money off of the customers
is a necessary strategy -- though, it's hard
to pull off well (so, at the very least, it's
good to see the company experiment
before rolling something out nationally).
Sam Goody, the big record store chain,
tried to do something similar a few years
back, and it didn't work out all that well. A
large part of the problem may be really
convincing people that it's a worthwhile
destination. This is one case where the
company's reputation matters, and
Blockbuster's reputation isn't great. Still,
this is the right strategy -- though, success
or failure is very much dependent on the
execution, which isn't exactly
Blockbuster's strong suit.
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also needs to get away from banner ads,
which are integrated into their newsfeed
sidebar - it just looks tacky.
Besides Minggl’s semi-unique plugin
approach to the social aggregator, the
company says they have a few more things
up their sleeves. First, they plan to offer a
set of filters that will allow users to prune
their newsfeeds down to the stories that
they find most important. If they do it
right, this could be a big stepping stone for
them, as many of these aggregators often
devolve into chaos. Minggl says that
LendingTree Pressures
Blogger To Remove
Comments
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 7:20:04 AM
You may have heard the story earlier this
week about how LendingTree had a
security breach as employees were
apparently handing out company
passwords to mortgage firms, allowing
them to access customer data directly.
LendingTree is now suing the mortgage
firms involved. However, LendingTree is
apparently trying to crack down on some
of the discussion about all of this. On one
blog that wrote about the story, a
commenter left a comment alleging that
LendingTree doesn't actually "let banks
compete" but has its own lending center --
which seems to be based on a class action
lawsuit that was filed against LendingTree
a couple years ago.
However, LendingTree is now putting
they’ve also established a robust
infrastructure, and hope to become a social
networking platform in the future.
Minggl’s going to have a tough time in
the social news aggregator space. They are
very similar to MySocial 24×7, a Firefox
extension for FriendFeed that we recently
covered. If they want to do well, they’re
going to have to quickly establish what
makes them different, or they will sink
with the others. CrunchBase Information
Minggl Information provided by
CrunchBase
Crunch Network: MobileCrunch Mobile
Gadgets and Applications, Delivered
Daily.
Tech* Gossip* 13
pressure on bloggers to remove such
comments, mentioning that they're
defamatory. Of course, thanks to section
230 of the CDA, a blogger is not
responsible for defamatory content left by
others (they are still responsible for their
own defamatory content, of course). While
it doesn't appear that LendingTree's legal
notes have entirely reached the level of a
cease & desist (more like a legalistic
nudge), it does sound like they've
convinced some other bloggers to remove
content that need not be removed. And, of
course, by claiming that the content is
defamatory, it may scare some bloggers
who don't understand their section 230 safe
harbors to feel obligated to remove the
content.
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Tricia Walsh-
Smith is Back
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:46:32 PM
Tricia Walsh-Smith, the disgruntled soon
to be ex wife of Philip Smith, is back with
another video rant. Tricia is proudly
describing herself as a "YouTube
Superstar." What’s her claim to fame?
Tricia is a mess after losing her sugar
daddy husband, and she can’t stop the
diarrhea coming from her mouth. The
more attention she gets, the bolder Tricia
becomes. She desperately wants to become
the next Heather Mills, and go on Dancing
with the Stars. She’d probably dance
better, and who knows, she might even
find a new husband.
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Star Jones Files for Divorce
• Tricia Walsh-Smith Crazy Rant on
YouTube
• Sean Penn and Robin Wright Call Off
Divorce
14 Tech*
Update: Rackspace Files
IPO, Will Set Price Via
Auction
By Erick Schonfeld (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 1:14:32 PM
Web hosting provider Rackspace filed for
an initial public offering with the SEC last
night, as we predicted it would. The
company will try to raise $400 million, and
it intends to set the IPO price through an
auction, much like Google did. The
underwriters are Goldman Sachs, Merrill
Lynch, Credit Suisse, and WR Hambrecht
& Co. (the leading proponent of such IPO
pricing). Pricing through an auction is
designed to make sure the company raises
the most money possible instead of giving
up a first-day pop to investors who are
allocated shares by the investment banks
doing the deal. Shares will still be
allocated to such clients, but anyone who
bids beforehand in the auction at or above
the eventual IPO price will also get shares.
All in all, it is a much more efficient way
to price an IPO and more companies
should do it.
With the filing we also get a clearer
picture of Rackspace’s business and
financials. Its revenues grew 62 percent
last year to $362 million, but it posted net
profits of $17.8 million, which were down
10 percent from the year before. Cash
flows from operations, though, remained
healthy at $105 million last year, up from
$61 million in 2006. (Click on the table
below for a bigger image and more data):
The decline in profits was because the
company spent a lot more staffing up and
spending more on sales and marketing.
About half of the $53 million increase in
CBS SportsLine Founder to Launch OPEN Sports Network
By Jason Kincaid (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 7:27:16 PM
CBS SportsLine founder Mike Levy is
preparing to announce his newest venture,
OPEN Sports Network.
The company’s website is still being
built out but based on their description, it
aspires to be a sports-oriented social
its cost of revenues last year was
attributable to the fact that it nearly
doubled the number of employees to 2,021
(of that, data center employees went from
576 to 994, and sales and marketing
headcount went from 224 to 353). Servers,
software licensing costs, bandwidth, power
and rent made up most of the rest of the
increase.
Another interesting tidbit: that truck
accident that took down one of its data
centers in Texas last November cost the
company $3.4 million in credits to
customers.
At the end of the year, it had 29,193
customers, compared to 12,677 the year
before. But nearly all of that growth was
due to its acquisition of Webmail.us (i.e.,
they are hosted e-mail customers, not
hosted Website customers). Rackspace has
36,692 servers across seven data centers,
114,749 square feet of data center space,
with a 61 percent utilization rate. The
company makes $3,504 a year per square
foot, a number that has been growing
nicely, illustrating that Web hosting is a
scale business with increasing returns the
more servers that can be rented out.
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
network featuring betting-enabled fantasy
sports games, rich news content, and
perhaps most importantly, a game platform
with open APIs.
Fantasy sports leagues are incredibly
popular but many of them are still locked
in archaic walled gardens. If OPEN Sports
Network makes good on their promise of
open APIs, they may be able to
Widgets: The Marketer’s
Recession Survival Tool
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:23:14 AM
This guest post about the widget economy
was written by Michael Jones, an angel
investor, the CEO of Userplane and a
Senior Vice President of AOL.
Userplane, which was acquired by AOL
in August 2006, is a communications
widget provider (add chat and other
services to sites) and a large advertising
network.
Mike Jones’ personal blog is here.
Companies facing a slowing economy
are looking for more cost-effective ways to
reach customers. Forrester’s recent post on
the role of social media during economic
recessions supports the idea that social
media can help companies survive and
thrive in tough economic times. And Josh
Bernoff’s full report on the subject calls
for an end to “toe-dipping” by interactive
marketers and advises a more serious look
at cost-effective and measurable social
marketing programs. A key take away:
…since interactive marketing programs
are now fueled by measurable results, not
dot-com madness, we believe that they can
thrive in a recession. Social applications in
particular, such as communities and social
networking sites, are cost-effective and
have a measurable impact on prospects’
decisions in the consideration stage, which
will be important to companies under
recessionary pressures. Interactive
marketers should stop toe-dipping and
invest only in programs that can deliver on
measurable metrics.
Additionally, Forrester analyst Jeremiah
differentiate themselves from other,
established, sites.
OPEN Sports Network, located in
Deerfield Beach, Florida, was founded in
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Owyang points out that social marketing
costs far less than traditional marketing. So
when purse strings are tightened,
marketing execs will become more excited
about social media’s potential of reaching
exponentially more people with fewer
dollars.
While the recession-proofness of social
media is a case study in the making, the
idea that social applications can thrive in
tight economic times because they are a
cost-effective, precise way for companies
to interact with customers and prospective
customers, is right on the money – quite
literally.
(more…)
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
2007 and the company says that it will
launch in August 2008.
Levy founded SportsLine, his former
project, in 1994. It was acquired by
Viacom (then the parent company of CBS)
in 2004 and is now the flagship sports site
of the CBS network.
This news comes only a day after AOL’s
acquisition of fantasy sports site
And On Second Thought,
Maybe Starbucks Shouldn't
Be In The Music Business
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 6:03:05 AM
We've chronicled Starbucks' successes
and failures as it tiptoed into the music
industry over the past few years. The
ubiquitous coffee shop was trying to
position itself as a "lifestyle" brand. After
successes in selling the albums it regularly
played in stores, the company went so far
as to set up its own record label. While we
noted that this was an interesting play, it
seemed like it would really only work if
the the company didn't try to become a
normal record label. Unfortunately, it
seems like that's exactly what it did. It
focused on selling albums, rather than the
wider musical experience, and pretty much
relied on the Starbucks connection to boost
sales. That just wasn't going to cut it -- so
it should come as little surprise that the
suddenly struggling company is handing
over the record label to someone else to
deal with. Starbucks will continue to look
for music to sell in its stores -- it just won't
be producing albums anymore. This makes
plenty of sense since Starbucks never
really seemed to have much of a plan to do
anything really innovative in the music
business, and right now it probably has a
lot more important things to concentrate
on.
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Fleaflicker- clearly this market is poised
for a shakeup. CrunchBase Information
OPEN Sports Network Information
provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Louis Vuitton Sues Darfur
Fundraiser; Seems Unclear On
The Concept Of Trademark
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 11:16:00 AM
An artist named Nadia Plesner recently
put together a project to try to raise money
for the victims of genocide in Darfur. As
part of the campaign, she created a t-shirt
with a drawn image of a Darfur victim
"pimped" out to look like Paris Hilton --
that is, carrying a designer handbag and a
small dressed up dog. The entire profits
from the t-shirts are going to help the
victims. The handbag drawn in the image
is not specifically a Louis Vuitton bag, but
the design firm seems to have gone
ballistic, claiming all sorts of intellectual
property rights it simply does not possess.
First, it sent a (admittedly friendly) cease-
and-desist, which Plesner wrote about on
the site, while responding and telling the
company that she would not take down the
t-shirt or the image. In response, LV went
from friendly to nasty. It sued, demanding
$7,500 for each day she keeps selling the
product, $7,500 for each day she displays
its original cease-and-desist letter and (my
If Top Gov't Officials Need To Leave Blackberries
Outside A Meeting, Shouldn't Someone Guard
Them?
By Michael Masnick (Techdirt)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 9:37:02 AM
Apparently a Mexican press attache at a
meeting with White House officials in
New Orleans saw an opportunity and
swiped the Blackberries of a bunch of
White House staffers. At many such
meetings, it's required for attendees to
leave their phones and mobile devices
favorite) $7,500 for each day she mentions
the name "Louis Vuitton" on her website.
While, there may be some difference due
to the specifics of trademark law in
Europe, it's hard to see how this is not
overreaching. This is an entirely non-
commercial venture. All of the profits are
given to charity. The design has some
differences from the Louis Vuitton bag,
and hardly seems likely to specifically
damage the Louis Vuitton brand (the
lawsuit will take care of that). The t-shirts
are clearly not competing with Louis
Vuitton and there's little reason to have
anyone think that Louis Vuitton somehow
"endorsed" this effort. Furthermore,
posting the cease-and-desist or even
mentioning the name Louis Vuitton simply
should not be infringing activities. I don't
know if Europe has the equivalent of
the"moron in a hurry" trademark test, but
LV gets the "moron in a hurry" award for
the week.
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outside of the meeting room. You would
think that with such high-powered
government officials that someone would
then be left to guard the devices, but
apparently not. This guy grabbed a bunch
of the devices and made a run for the
airport, where he was caught by Secret
Service officials, who promptly showed
him the surveillance camera footage of him
taking the devices. His response was that
Maybe The Fight Against
Click Fraud Isn’t Hopeless
After All
By Erick Schonfeld (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:14:11 AM
One good quarter does not make a trend,
but there is a glimmer of hope in the fight
against click fraud(fake clicks that can
nevertheless cost advertisers money). Click
Forensics is reporting that the overall click
fraud rate was down half a percentage
point in the first quarter to 16.3 percent.
Although that is still higher than the rate
was a year ago, it could be an indication
that Google’s and Yahoo’s efforts to filter
out bad clicks on search and contextual ads
and improve the overall quality of those
ads is starting to have an effect.
When you look at the click fraud rate on
he thought the devices had been left
behind, and he was merely picking them
up to return them to their owners, which
might be more believable if the folks
weren't still in the meeting room when he
grabbed all the devices. Who knows if it's
true, but I'm still wondering why no one
was guarding the Blackberries.
Permalink| Comments| Email This Story
their respective content networks where
the worst offenses occur, AdSense and the
Yahoo Publisher Network, the click fraud
rate there also dipped slightly to 27.8
percent from 28.3 percent in the fourth
quarter. That is still nearly a third of all
clicks and needs to seriously go down
further.
Perhaps this year the overall click fraud
rate can be held steady instead of rising 15
percent, as it did in 2007. CrunchBase
Information Click Forensics Information
provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
Tech* 15
Hey That’s Pretty Smart
- Amazon Launches A
Gadget Blog
By Michael Arrington (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 3:02:18 PM
The big three gadget blogs ( Engadget,
Gizmodo and CrunchGear) (ok, kidding
about CrunchGear, but it is doing very
well) have a little more competition
starting today: a new gadget blog called
End User. The site is published by
Amazon.
The blog authors are all Amazon
employees and write for EndUserBlog as
well. This is the same model for a few
other blogs that Amazon publishes (
Omnivoracious, ChordStrike, etc.).
Most posts have links into Amazon to
purchase whatever is being discussed,
which helps Amazon directly and
indirectly sell more stuff.
So far the Amazon blogs don’t have
much in the way of a community - most
posts have no comments, for example. My
recommendation is for them to follow,
interact with and link to lots of other blogs
in their respective categories, and actually
join into the conversation directly.
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because
it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
16 Tech* Gadgets* Tech Tips*
You Didn’t Realize It, But You Twitter Reportedly Putting More Gas
Really Want Those Twitter Messages In The Tank
By Mark Hendrickson (TechCrunch)
In Your Calendar
By Michael Arrington (TechCrunch)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:15:57 AM
Belgium-based Twistory launched into
private beta today at MobileWebCamp.
It’s a very simple tool, built by Tijs
Vrolix to show off his coding and design
skills: Subscribe to messages from any
Twitter user in any popular desktop or
online calendaring application (iCal,
Google Calendar, etc.). Those messages
are then automatically added to the
calendar, at the appropriate day and time.
Useful? I don’t know. It’s certainly
useful to closely monitor/stalk people (or
yourself). If you want to add my daily
words of wisdom to your calendar, my
page is here(which also includes a graph of
total twitter usage by day.
Apple looking to Immersion for
haptic technology on iPhone?
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:13:00 AM
Filed under: Cellphones, Displays
Immersion, the same folks responsible for
adding haptic technology (force feedback
from touch panels, pretty much) in a fleet
of Nokia handsets, could be looking to do
the same with Cupertino's one and only.
While VibeTonz isn't specifically
mentioned by name, a recent report (which
should certainly be filed as a rumor for the
time being) is suggesting that bigwigs from
both outfits are in ongoing meetings "over
licensing and implementation issues of
iPhone haptics." Interestingly enough, this
news is flowing hot on the heels of
Immersion appointing Clent Richardson as
president and CEO; if that name rings a
bell, he previously spent five years pretty
high up the ladder at Apple. Of course, all
the signs pointing to yes doesn't mean
anything in and of itself, so we'll just
twiddle our thumbs a bit longer and hope
to have some feedback for 'em soon
Thanks to Robin Wauters for the tip.
CrunchBase Information Tijs Vrolix
Twistory Information provided by
CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over
the sexiest new gadgets and hardware.
enough.
[Thanks, Chris]
Read- Rumors of Immersion bringing
haptics to iPhone
Read- Clent Richardson becomes
president / CEO of Immersion Read|
Permalink| Email this| Comments
Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:27:43 PM
Silicon Alley Insider reports that Twitter
is looking to raise a Series C round.
They’re hearing that the company wants
$15M at a $60M valuation, probably from
former investors Union Square Ventures
and Charles River Ventures, and perhaps
from Spark Capital as well.
Twitter raised over$5M in funding last
July. Digital Garage also invested in the
company this past January as part of
Twitter’s expansion into Japan (the only
market where Twitter is actually making
money).
The news of this Series C comes on the
heels of a couple significant departures.
Fruit fly flight simulator could
smarten up robots
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:42:00 AM
Filed under: Robots Wondering just how
we mere mortals were going to even give a
robot enough smarts to completely
overtake our societies? Oddly enough,
some of that artificial brain power could
come from studying the way fruit flies,
um, fly. A completely bizarre flight
simulator at Caltech actually plays
"scenes" that flys react to, and considering
that the fly is constantly held, researchers
can closely examine how the insect
attempts to navigate away from lines,
blobs and all manners of incoming
obstacles. Those working with the
installation suggest that these studies could
one day help autonomous robots function
better, potentially taking some of the load
off of our human workforce. We know,
Master the Excel IF Function [Excel Tip]
By Gina Trapani (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:30:00 AM
The spreadsheet formula experts at the
Productivity Portfolio blog offer an
introduction to Excel's crazy-useful IF
function. In short, IF sets the contents of a
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
CrunchBase Information Twitter
Information provided by CrunchBase
Crunch Network: CrunchBoard because
it’s time for you to find a new Job2.0
you've got three bold letters and a question
mark running through your noggin right
now -- just hit the read link to see what it's
all about.
[Thanks, Dave] Read| Permalink| Email
this| Comments
spreadsheet cell conditionally, based on a
test. A formula like=IF(A1>90, "A", "Less
than an A") would set the cell to equal A if
A1's value was greater than 90, and Less
than an A if A1's value was 90 or lower.
This works in all modern spreadsheet
proggies, not just Excel—including
Joystiq goes all out
with Mario Kart Wii
controller comparison
By Donald Melanson (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:36:00 PM
Filed under: Gaming As we're all too well
aware, Mario Kart can be serious business
for some folks, and Mario Kart Wii will
certainly be no exception, which makes the
right choice of controller all the more
important. Thankfully, our pals at Joystiq
have now come through with a meticulous
comparison of all five driving options at
your disposal. That includes the Wiimote
on its own, the Wiimote with Wii Wheel,
the Wiimote / nunchuck combo, the
Classic Controller, and the tried and true
GameCube controller. Somewhat
surprisingly, while the GameCube
Controller and Classic Controller each
helped to put in some solid times, Joystiq
actually found the Wiimote / nunchuck
combo to the best all around option, with it
faring particularly well when using a bike.
Lagging far behind, however, was the solo
Wiimote (which they recommend to avoid
at all costs), although the addition of the
Wii Wheel did apparently did help to make
things a bit more manageable. Hit up the
link below for the full rundown. Read|
Permalink| Email this| Comments
Google Spreadsheets. If you haven't used
IF, go check out the tutorial which has an
example sheet to download and try it
yourself.
Excel IF Function Tutorial[Productivity
Portfolio]
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Epson, Sanrio team up for two
more Hello Kitty laptop designs
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 10:16:00 AM
Filed under: Laptops
Don't bother asking if the madness will
ever end; you know good and well it won't.
Now that we're clear, let's focus on the
latest Hello Kitty-blasted laptop: the May-
bound Endeavor NJ2100. Available in
either a floral-inspired or airplane-
dominated theme, the predominantly Pearl
White machine touts rather exceptionally
modest specs (shocked?) including a 15.4-
inch WXGA display, 1.86GHz Intel
Man attempts LCD TV theft using water bottle UPC, fails
By Joshua Topolsky (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:48:00 PM
Filed under: HDTV
Oh, shoplifters of the world -- you're not
going to unite and take over with these
kinds of tactics. A Kirksville, MO. man
was arrested on Thursday for trying to
Maximum PC reviews the Phantom Lapboard, for real
By Joshua Topolsky (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:57:00 PM
Filed under: Peripherals
Maybe we're confused, but we were
under the impression that the oft-delayed,
mist-like device known as the Phantom
Lapboard had been released to the public.
Celeron processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM,
an 80GB hard drive, 3-in-1 multicard
reader, gigabit Ethernet / WiFi and
Windows Vista Home. You'll also find a
FireWire socket, four USB 2.0 ports, a PC
Card slot and around one measly hour of
battery life from the standard cell. Totally
not worth the ¥147,000 ($1,409) asking
price, but then again, cuteness demands a
serious, serious premium these days.
[Via Slippery Brick, thanks David] Read|
Permalink| Email this| Comments
boost a $517 Viore (yeah) LCD television
by swapping the UPC tag with one from a
$3.16 bottle of water. Apparently, cashiers
weren't fooled by the admittedly paper-thin
maneuver, and after four swipe attempts, a
replaced paper spool, and one PA
announcement for a store manager to come
to register 14, they had the super-genius
Apparently, we were mistaken. Regardless,
Maximum PC has gotten a thorough, in-
depth look at the $130 pivoting keyboard /
mouse / mousepad combo. We won't bore
you with the details of their encounter with
this beast -- which they claim is due in
June now -- though we can tell you that
they complain of a "wimpy" left mouse
California man builds his own solar-
electric vehicle
By Darren Murph (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:37:00 AM
Filed under: Transportation Although
Brent Hatch's homegrown solar-electric
whip looks eerily similar (read: just as
ugly) to the SUNN solar car kit, this one
was actually created without the help of
any pre-packaged parts or sophisticated
schematics. After his gas bill rose well
over $700 a month (he and his wife have
seven kids, after all), he decided to
purchase a rather unsightly eight-seater
bicycle and figure out a way to enable roof
-mounted solar panels to power an electric
motor. Nah, the top speed isn't very
impressive, and you certainly wouldn't
want to head out on I-5 with it, but it sure
makes picking up the offspring from their
switcher thrown in the big house. If
convicted, the man faces up to seven years
click, which frankly is a deal-breaker for
4/16ths of the Engadget editorial staff. The
nearby school a whole lot less painful on
the wallet. Check out the video in the read
link for more.
[Thanks, Dave] Read| Permalink| Email
this| Comments
in prison plus a hefty fine... and the
lifelong shame of having tried to pull this
stunt off.
[Via Fark] Read| Permalink| Email this|
Comments
other 12/16ths don't like it because they
had a bad experience with a matte black
keyboard once. Read| Permalink| Email
this| Comments
Gadgets* 17
NVIDIA pushing up
GeForce 9900 to outgun
Radeon HD 4800?
By Nilay Patel (Engadget)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 2:21:00 PM
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets NVIDIA's
been on a hyper-competitive tear lately,
and while the latest rumor isn't quite on par
with Roy Taylor saying that the Intel CPU
is "dead," it reinforces the company's new
win-at-all-costs attitude. Seems ATI's
upcoming RV770-based Radeon HD 4800
might threaten NVIDIA's dominance of the
high-end graphics market, and that's just
not acceptable -- so the company is
planning on pushing up the release of the
GeForce 9900 to July. That's one billion
transistors and GDDR3 memory, if you
haven't been memorizing rumored graphic
card specs -- we're guessing that blue
screen of death will render mighty fast on
that rig. Read| Permalink| Email this|
Comments
18 Web 2.0 TV*
What is Mashable Conversations All About?
By Mark 'Rizzn' Hopkins
(Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 12:00:25 PM
We’ve been talking to a bunch of
interesting folks recently on Mashable
Conversations. If you’re not checking out
our near-daily audio podcast with movers
and shakers in the Web 2.0 world, you’re
really missing out. As it turns out, more
and more of you are becoming dedicated
listeners to the show - but there’s a lot
more that still haven’t taken the time to
check out the show yet. I figured I’d take
the time here to highlight some of the
guests we had over the last several
episodes.
But before I do that, I wanted to explain
the focus of the show and why we go about
it. The show is an interview in the vein of
the naked conversation approach. Very
little editing is done to the show before it
gets posted (other than filtering for noise,
cropping out a bit of dead air, and slapping
the tops, tails and the occasional sponsored
message). What you get from the
conversation is exactly how it took place.
The conversations tend to consist of
three elements. A short introduction of the
guest with an elevator pitch of their
organization and service (when
applicable), a bit of explanation on any
newsworthy events their company may
have going on at the moment, and then the
remainder of the show is devoted to a frank
and informal discussion of how it impacts
the users, developers and advertisers (the
usual suspects, in otherwords).
This is where the bulk of the show takes
place, and it’s where the most interesting
tangents are found. We’re coming up on
close to fifty episodes in the can so far, and
8 Great Sites For Ordering Food Online
By Sean P. Aune (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 10:20:27 AM
If you’re the never-leave-your-desk
variety of geek, you probably also turn to
your computer to bring you food. We hear
ya; having to end that 3 hour long
Wikipedia clickfest just to get something
to eat is a real bummer. Here are 8 sites
that’ll make sure you got at least one of
your bio needs covered without having to
leave the house.
I’ve been pondering who our target
audience is on these. It’s hard to pin
down, since just about every episode has at
least one valuable bit of information,
insight or analysis from a guest that is of
use to users (looking for more efficiency in
their tools), site developers (looking for
services with which augment what they
currently offer), and advertisers (looking to
better understand the landscape of selling
stuff on the Internet).
The best part is that most of this
information is fairly evergreen. Sure,
some of the bits of news we talk about has
a shelf-life, but thankfully not a single
company I’ve spoken to has hit a deadpool
yet, and almost every product and service
discussed has seen significant
improvement since it has been discussed
(so it’s at least as cool as it was when it
was featured on the show, if not better).
Most importantly, though, is that the
analysis from our guests comes from folks
that are experts amongst experts in their
fields, so it’s beyond cutting edge when
you hear it, it’s bleeding edge. That means
that even though you may have missed a
few episodes, going back and picking
through our archives isn’t a pointless
exercise. You’ll find a lot of gems hidden
back in there (so go ahead and subscribe
with the links given below!).
Get the Mashable Conversations podcast
here.
Add directly to iTunes here(or give us a
rating).
Add directly to your Zune here.
Enough talking up our show, though.
Here are some of the guests we had over
the last week. I hope you enjoy listening to
these folks as much as I enjoyed talking to
them.
(more…)
---
Related Articles at Mashable! - The
Social Networking Blog:
Lou Moore and Anil Dharni, Developers
at Hi5.
These OpenSocial early-adopters talk
about this often-forgotten social network
and their experiences with OpenSocial.
Hi5 is fairly renowned for its exceptionally
international userbase. Because of this
unique make-up, the growth patterns for
adoption (as well as translation) of
OpenSocial apps on Hi5 have far exceeded
many other places that have also adopted
the OpenSocial platform as the app engine
of choice.
Michael Crandell, CEO at RightScale
RightScale is an organization that’s
essentially positioned themselves as the
intermediary between the sometimes
confusing world of cloud-based server
environments and the end user. I, myself,
am completely fascinated with the cloud
computing world, and I understand the
basic principals as to how it’s supposed to
work. Michael Crandell came on Mashable
Conversations to educate me on how their
AllRecipes Following Tribune’s Lead to
Ad Networks?
The Daily Plate Leaves Beta with
100,000 Users
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
business worked and gave a good benefit
and downside run-down on the prospect of
moving your server’s computing to the
clouds.
Chris Parandian, Blogger at Mobile
Diner
I had a chance to speak to Chris
Parandian briefly back in March when I
was in Washington D.C. for our MashMeet
and the Politics Online Conference. Chris
is the founder of Tin Can
Communications, a public affairs and new
media centric communications firm out of
Out of the
DC, as well as a blogger at the social
media/mobile industry blog Mobile Diner.
Blogosphere
Chris and I had a great time exploring the By Bob Sassone (TV Squad)
intracacies of where this space is going and Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:02:00 AM
not only why it’s so hard for new entrants
to break out in the mobile space, but given Filed under: Industry, Programming,
that difficulty how exactly we got to where Web, Celebrities, Reality-Free
we are today, so many miles from where What's happening on other blogs via the
the mobile industry was back a decade ago. interweb.
--- • So how did
Related Articles at Mashable! - The Jesse L. Martin
Social Networking Blog: leave
coComment Preparing Version 2.0 With Law and Order
More Community the other night?
Podcast: A Conversation with • I reviewed the
Metacafe’s Michelle Cox Stingray
BuzzLogic Launches Dynamic Targeted DVD
Ad Network recently, and Jaime Weinman has some
New Yahoo Messenger Version Release interesting
Works Better on Macs facts
Jaiku Releases New Microblogging Tool about the show.
for Nokia S60 • Former NBC reporter Arthur Kent is
E-mail Organizer Xobni Goes To Invite- suing
only Beta Universal Pictures and the makers of
Podcast: A Conversation with UStream’s Charlie Wilson's War
Chuck Wallace .
• Cablevision might be
buying The Sundance Channel
.
• PBS'
Jim Lehrer
is recovering from heart surgery.
Check A Restaurant’s Report Card • Gary Coleman
Before Dining Out is going to appear on another daytime
GroupRecipes - New Food Social court show, this time with his wife.
Network • What were the
Men are from YouTube, Women are best seasons of
from FOX? ER
AdBrite Now Offers Full Page Ads ?
DimeTracker Helps You Budget from Permalink| Email this| | Comments
Your Phone
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Time Ends For Microsoft-Yahoo
Negotiations. What Now?
By Paul Glazowski (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:37:53 AM
Time’s up.
If you recall a news development of three
weeks past, Microsoft’s CEO Steve
Ballmer essentially gave Jerry Yang and
the Yahoo board 21 days to decide whether
they wish to deal with the takeover attempt
cordially or fought to a bloody. And now
we’ve effectively (or perhaps ineffectively,
depending on one’s take on the rather ugly
drama) arrived at zero hour. What now?
If the presumptions of Brian Caulfield at
Forbes.com are accurate - which, if we’re
to think sensibly about this, there’s really
little reason to suspect them not to be so -
Microsoft will be spending the weekend
preparing itself to exercise all options
necessary to make sure it gets what it
craves for its $40-billion-plus. What began
as a public bid for the Sunnyvale-based
Web giant just before the clock struck
February has turned into something that is
nearing its fourth month and may well run
close to Yahoo’s annual board meeting,
which the company must orchestrate every
13 months. (The last assembly was June
12, 2007.)
Early on in this journey, which has been
marked by a great share of press releases
and a really exhaustive amount of analysis
and commentary, most of you when polled
thought it best for Yahoo to bite the
proverbial bullet and submit to Microsoft’s
demands. A good percentage of you said
“deny, deny, deny!” But on February 1st,
the majority spoke in favor of a buyout- if
only to see whether Ballmer could perform
Tom Everett Scott to guest on Law & Order
By Jane Boursaw (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 12:01:00 PM
Filed under: Law and Order, Casting,
Reality-Free I really wish Tom Everett
Scott would find a great role he could sink
his teeth into for a few years. He's so
talented, and yet he keeps ending up in
short-lived and dead-end roles.
The actor has signed for a two-episode
guest stint on NBC's Law & Order, playing
Governor Shalvoy, according to a
the near impossible and successfully mate
two very unique companies to create a
complete new whole. This past Tuesday,
however, we put forth to you the same
question, albeit with a nasty, pock-marked
three-month history of the ongoing
chronicle to consider when clicking yea or
nay. And your opinion has changed. Most
of you now think it unwise for Yahoo to
take the bait.
So, how can we parse this information
and make some reasonably sound
judgements? Well, speaking only for
myself, I still consider it likely that
Microsoft will achieve the ends it seeks,
regardless of the means taken to get there.
Why? Well, given Yahoo’s release of good
earnings this week, and Microsoft’s
subsequent publication of its own growth
trend, we’re more or less in the same place
as we were many weeks ago. Relative to
the overall technology market, Yahoo and
Microsoft are neither much worse nor
much better today than they were
yesterday. As some might say, we’re
remain largely at square one. The only
thing to keep a relatively close eye on is
the performance of Microsoft stock in the
near future. (And Yahoo’s own share price,
too, of course.) We may see the valuation
of Microsoft’s offer climb back to the
original $44.6bn, which would certainly
put greater pressure on Yahoo to sell, but
on the whole, I think its safe to say that
Microsoft will not be forced to
“artificially” increase its pledge.
Hollywood Reporter story. He'll be joined
in one of the episodes by Alison Elliott,
playing his wife, Rita Shalvoy.
My impression is that, if push comes to
shove, Ballmer is probably very welling to
follow through on his threat to do away
with formalities and circumvent the Yahoo
board with the promised proxy tactic.
Some might think that an idle warning, and
such an outlook may be vindicated in short
order. But I default on the side that
Ballmer means what he says. The question
now is, given Yahoo’s recent
experimentation with a Google partnership
in the search and advertising arena,
whether Microsoft will have to play an
especially forceful hand to complete the
purchase.
Keep in mind, Microsoft has to make
sure to keep its behavior in check
throughout this process, come hell or high
water, lest its image as a ruthless industry
powerhouse transform into one described
as a ruthless industry madhouse.
---
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Social Networking Blog:
eBay Countdown Turns Bidding Into a
Game
STA Travel Launches Widgets Suite
Microsoft General Council Rebuts
Google Officer’s Anti-Trust Commentary
Deck The Trolls: Winter Trolling Kicks
Off
MySpace Countdowns, Corkboards,
Musical Slide Shows
GetItNext Almost Gets It: Search eBay
Auctions
Yahoo! To Rebuff Microsoft $44.6bn
Buyout Offer; Wants A Whole Lot More
Since breaking onto the Hollywood
scene in 1996's That Thing You Do, Scott
has floundered in short-lived series like
2002's Philly, playing Dana Delany's love
interest, and 2006's Saved, where he
played a troubled paramedic. Most
recently, he played Lucy Liu's estranged
fiance on Cashmere Mafia.
Continue reading Tom Everett Scott to
guest on Law & Order
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
Aegis Trust Seeks Help In
Sudan Via Facebook And
Google Maps
By Paul Glazowski (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 11:59:13 AM
The Darfur region of Sudan has been kept
firmly within the sights of humanitarian
organizations from around the globe in the
last several years. And in that time,
technological developments on the Web
have enabled greater search capabilities as
well as provide individuals throughout the
world to connect with one another.
Facebook, for instance, is now very much
an international brand. And Google is,
well, Google.
So it is a rather interesting to find the UK
-based group Aegis Trust, which is official
coordinator of the Wanted For War Crimes
campaign, promoting the use of
mainstream services from both companies
to gain support and assistance from the
public to locate individuals suspected of
crimes inflicted on the residents of Darfur.
According to Tendai Maphosa of Voice of
America, the Humanitarian Affairs
Minister of Sudan, Ahmed Mohammed
Harun, and Janjaweed militia leader Ali
Kushayb, are both charged by the
International Criminal Court with “over 40
counts of crimes against humanity and war
crimes committed in Darfur in 2003 and
2004.” And through connections
established on Facebook through the War
Crimes Wanted List, an application
officially launching this Sunday, as well as
an custom Google Map and Spreadsheets
mashup(a Google Earth layer has also been
created) with which to view data on
locations where either suspect has been
seen, they hope to increase the
effectiveness of their campaign.
Sudan is the largest country by land mass
on the African continent, so a mashup of
this kind is likely to prove somewhat
useful in maintaining an public profile on
the individuals’ whereabouts given the
impossibility of creating a current, real-
Web 2.0 TV* 19
time view of their situation(s).
A spokesman for Aegis Trust says that
this online campaign, which he expressed
fear will be one fought long into the future,
is intended “to draw attention to some of
the serious crimes…in Darfur.” Because
the Sudanese government has expressed
antipathy for international scrutiny and
claims the ICC has no jurisdiction in the
country, Aegis and other groups must
adapt and maneuver in more inventive
ways to combat the injustices dealt upon
Darfur. The incorporation of Google Maps
and Earth tools as well as the
establishment of a focused Facebook
network is simply to increase regional and
global awareness and participation in the
groups’ efforts.
---
Related Articles at Mashable! - The
Social Networking Blog:
Google Search Comes To Facebook
Facebook Steals More Google Top
Talent
Google Reader Now Available for your
Facebook Profile
Google Adsense Network Taking Over
Facebook Apps?
Unofficial Gtalk Application for
Facebook Launches
Who’s Investing In Facebook: Google Or
Microsoft?
Google Launches Official Facebook App
20 Web 2.0 TV*
Mobile Social Networks To See Sky
High Ad Revenues By 2012?
By Sean P. Aune (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 2:58:48 PM
If you were to believe mobile social
networks about their advertising
predictions, they will by 2012 be raking in
between $28 to $52 billion dollars in ad
revenue. Given that normal online ad
revenue only broke $27 billion for the first
time in 2007, and with predicted drops in
ad budgets due to the economic recession,
the mobile predictions seem a bit hard to
swallow.
Colin Gibbs of RCRWirelessNews
brings us these predictions from Informa
Telecoms & Media, and they may seem
outrageous. They do to me, anyhow.
Traditional online topped $27 billion
globally with devices (PCs) people are
more accustomed. But mobile is something
that is still in a state of relative infancy in a
large portion of the world. Yes, mobile
handsets are everywhere, but how many
places use them beyond their phone
features on a regular basis? Japan is well
known for their tendency to do everything
from their handsets, but in countries such
as the United States, you might see us
doing simple checks for sports scores or
the weather; intensive, fully- interactive
browsing is not quite the norm. Yet.
The iPhone has changed this somewhat,
and with the 3G model expected to launch
soon, people may spend a bit more time
doing things from their mobiles. But I have
to posit a question: Will it be checking
their pre-existing accounts on sites like
Facebook? Or will it be going to mobile-
only sites such as Buzzd? While Informa
says the whole lot will boom, I think the
picture is a little more complex.
Mobile networks are going to have some
successes, but my feeling is that there will
be fewer in operation than the current
litany of traditional social networks housed
Doctor Who: Partners In Crime
By Brad Trechak (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 1:21:00 AM
Filed under: Doctor Who, Episode
Reviews, Reality-Free(S04E02) Catherine
Tate returns as Donna Noble from last
in full-sized browsers. That isn’t to say
some crossover will not occur. A social
network that is on both the computer and
the phone will of course be significantly
more successful due to their ability to
connect people to their one source of social
information. If I’m sitting at the computer
already, why should I pick up my phone to
converse with friends or track their
activities? Naturally, the computer,
whether it be a desktop or laptop, is where
I will offer my focus. However, if I’m on
the go, it certainly is nice convenience to
be able to check in with a site I routinely
use when at my main Internet terminal.
So, for the next few years, networks with
primarily desktop-based sites will logically
receive a good amount of additional
revenue as they release and regularly
enhance feature-rich mobile applications to
complement main operations. Mobile-only
services may have a harder go at success.
Yes, Twitter and a number of other
year's Christmas Special "The Runaway
Bride" and this time she's going to stick
around for a little while. While
investigating a shady weight-loss company
called Adipose (named for the scientific
name of fat tissue), the Doctor and Donna
services have grown largely due to mobile
usage. But they’re still very much rooted in
the traditional full-fledged browser
environment. Only if they bridge that gap
will the torrent of users (and, subsequently,
billions of dollars) pour in.
(Image source: Mobilevenue.co.uk)
---
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Social Networking Grows Significantly
in the U.K.
Virgin Mobile Offers Reply-All SMS
through 3jam
comScore Report Shows Global Growth
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MocoSpace Raises $3M for Mobile
Network
Facebook Mobile Coming Together
Mobile Social Networks Growing
Worldwide
Iomota: Building the Ning for Mobile?
run into each other.
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Andersen Vs. The
Association: For Once, The
Tide Turns Right
By Paul Glazowski (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 4:05:25 PM
We often hear of the sweeping measures
taken by the RIAA to combat piracy, and
the flawed philosophy behind those efforts.
We know that the association distributes
ultimatums to those it assumes are
infringing on copyrights, and that some
individuals submit to such pressure to pay
$4-5,000 to settle with the record
companies. But only occasionally do we
learn of individual stories having to do
with those efforts. Even more rare are tales
of successful battles against the
association.
In a piece by Heather Green of
BusinessWeek, the story of Tanya
Andersen, a 45-year-old relegated to a life
reliant for the past several years on
government disability checks due to
chronic pain (not really a relevant point to
make, but Green makes it all the same, if
only for color), is one that offers a
microcosmic glance at the legal travails of
one woman pressed to go through a
daunting three-year journey through the
US justice system for refusing to kowtow
to the recording industry machine. Mind
you, her predicament has yet to be fully
resolved. Still.
What’s particularly revealing about
Andersen’s story, which stretches back to
2005, is that it shows the bare truth of the
RIAA’s goal in targeting alleged violators
of media copyrights. As Richard L.
Gabriel, partner at Holme, Roberts &
Owen and the lead national counsel for the
association, said quite succinctly: “We
don’t have an illusion that we can shut it
For a Doctor Who episode, this was a
great episode of The Sarah Jane
Adventures. This goes back to my
statement from last week in which Russell
T. Davies, while not a bad writer, simply
cannot write science fiction.
down completely, but we do think that the
suits will help get the marketplace to a fair
place, where the illegal doesn’t control the
legal.”
There you have it. The RIAA’s intent
from the very start of its $5k-a-person tour
of terror is not to halt piracy, per se. They
understand that such activity will never be
completely stopped. Rather, it’s about
reclaiming control, and bringing the digital
space around to fit the legal model they
themselves continue to hammer forward.
No changes necessary for copyright law as
it exists. It’s fine as it is. Perfectly crafted,
perfectly aged.(more…)
---
Related Articles at Mashable! - The
Social Networking Blog:
RIAA Trial Over: Thomas Found Guilty
of Infringement
RIAA’s Sacrificial Lamb Appeals
Damning Court Ruling
EMI and RIAA To Call It Quits? Me
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EMI to Cut RIAA Funding; Death of
RIAA Near?
RIAA’s Sacrificial Lamb Brought to
Trial
In Your Face, RIAA. The University of
Oregon Takes A Stand.
Sony Says: Copying Your Own CD is
Stealing
Continue reading Doctor Who: Partners
In Crime
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Dear Spam, Happy 30th Birthday. P.S., New Features For Google
You Suck. Docs.
By Sean P. Aune (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 8:51:19 AM
May 1978 may not seem like an
important time to you, but to the multi-
billion-dollar spam industry, it’s the
equivalent to the beginning of time. Kurt
Kleiner of NewScientistTech reminds us
that it was Gary Thuerk who sent the first
spam to the 393 users of ARPANET, the
original version of the Internet. Either on
May 2nd or 3rd (sources vary on the
specific day; a Wikipedia entry says 5/2),
Mr. Thuerk sent a marketing pitch for a
new computer model from his employer,
Digital Equipment Corporation. And then
as now, people were rather annoyed by the
concept of getting such an email. Yet, it
apparently resulted in some sales. Thus
Internet spamming was born.
So what did the first spam look like?
Amazingly, Brad Templeton of the
Electronic Frontier Foundation actually has
it archived. You can see the entire mail,
plus the reactions it generated, at his site.
“DIGITAL WILL BE GIVING A
PRODUCT PRESENTATION OF THE
NEWEST MEMBERS OF THE
DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY; THE
DECSYSTEM-2020, 2020T, 2060, AND
2060T. THE
DECSYSTEM-20 FAMILY OF
COMPUTERS HAS EVOLVED FROM
THE TENEX OPERATING SYSTEM
AND THE DECSYSTEM-10
COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE. BOTH
THE DECSYSTEM-2060T
AND 2020T OFFER FULL ARPANET
SUPPORT UNDER THE TOPS-20
OPERATING SYSTEM….”
Amazing to see that not much has
changed in 30 years. Amazingly this one
man’s concept went from one email sent to
Casting for the new 90210: Hilary Duff?
By Brad Trechak (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 4:03:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, Casting, Reality-Free
Hilary Duff is the new Patrick Stewart. By
that, I mean it's rumored that she is going
to be the star of Beverly Hills 90210, the
every ARPANET user to an estimated 120
billion spam mails sent a day, costing
approximately $140 billion dollars a year
to fight. Course, no one should expect
spam to go away anytime soon. As
Mashable editor-in-chief Adam Ostrow
pointed out recently, spam has even come
to Twitter, showing that shameless
marketing always has, and always will,
keep up with the times; there is really no
form of technology that is safe from such
infuriating machinations.
So, mark the coming occassion as you
see fit. For me, it will be expressing love
for Google and the excellent spam filtering
abilities of Gmail, which have made inbox
spam a virtual non-issue.
---
Next Generation(Please note this is not the
actual title. Just my take on it).
Apparently, she's been approached by the
CW for the role of Annie Mills, a high
school girl into theater, boys, cars, iPods,
cosmetic surgery, ostracizing her friends
and all the other standard things that
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Blogger Visitors Under Attack by
Malware
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Spam. So Not Cool.
Spammers Send Emails from YouTube
Servers
Beverly Hills girls are into. There is no
word yet on whether she's accepted the
By Sean P. Aune (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:15:08 AM
The Google Docs team has been hard at
work on numerous aspects of the online
office suite, and they’re ready to unveil the
new features to the public.
Speaker, Google’s answer to Microsoft
PowerPoint, received some new features
this week, according to the Google Docs
Blog. First is the addition of Speaker
Notes, which allows the presenter to access
chosen highlights of their presentation.
These can either be printed out in advance,
or you can pop them up on the screen to
show off to your audience. You can also
now embed videos from YouTube. This
could be quite useful if you wish to beat
the dead horse further and “Rickroll” a
room full of people in the middle of a
presentation.
The Docs Blog is also reporting that the
offline access feature enabled through the
Google Gears plugin has also been added
for spreadsheets and presentations.
Unfortunately these will be view-only for
the time being, but it will at least allow you
to show off your work wherever you need
to go, and make presentation wherever you
choose, regardless of whether you have an
Internet connection at the ready.
With the continuing improvements to
Google Docs, Microsoft has sufficient
reason to be nervous about their future
role.
Continue reading Casting for the new
90210: Hilary Duff?
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
Web 2.0 TV* 21
sales of Office. They themselves are
building an online version, but with the
ease of use of Docs, and quick
access/integration with Gmail, it’s going to
be more difficult to convince some people
to leave the Google empire. As more and
more companies learn of their ability to
inexpensively make Gmail their default
domain email client, and allow multiple
users in the company (even those located
in remote settings) to collaborate on
projects for free, the company’s list of
productivity applications will grow more
appealing for users all around the world.
---
Related Articles at Mashable! - The
Social Networking Blog:
Google Releases Docs Uploader
Offline Google Docs Access Deployed
Google Docs API
Google Docs Introduces Mobile Version
Google Spreadsheets Now Have Charts
New Google Docs on Wednesday: What
Features Do You Want?
Google Docs Opens to Users and Devs
with Gadgets and API
SQL Infection Hits
Over 500K Webpages,
SQL, one of the most widely utilized
Infiltrates DHS
server technologies
SQL today, isAnd
page 22 UN
going through
By Paul Glazowski
a particularly rough time. According to the
Dan Goodin of The Register, a
22 Web 2.0 TV* Tech Tips*
SQL
continued from page 21
“sophisticated mass infection that is
injecting code into hundreds of thousands
of reputable webpages is growing and even
infiltrated the website of the [U.S.]
Department of Homeland Security.”
As of Friday, some 520,000 pages had
been catalogued by Google as
contaminated, with victims including the
sites operated by the U.S. government, the
United Nations, and the UK Civil Service,
among others. As for the vulnerabilities of
particular strings of SQL, both MySQL
and PostgreSQL“are less easily fooled,”
says researcher Ronald van den Heetkamp.
Because SQL infection is comprised
mostly of HEX code, which partially
obscures its true identity, Microsoft SQL is
apparently particularly susceptible to
infiltration.
The response to the SQL hack has been
quick-footed, particularly on the
governmental front. Homeland Security
spokeswoman Amy Kudwa said that
security specialists “scrubbed the page
clean the same day it got infected and took
steps to make sure the same attack couldn’t
succeed against other parts of the DHS
website.”
BeerMenus.com Finds Beers by Bar
[Drinks]
By Gina Trapani (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:00:00 PM
Before you head out on the town tonight
in New York City, find out where to get
your thirsty hands on your favorite hard-to-
find beer at BeerMenus.com. This menu
search site just launched with over 150
beer menus, which include over 1200
beers. Browse by neighborhood, brew, or
Shark gets a new timeslot
By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 4:59:00 AM
Filed under: Programming, Shark, Reality
-Free The failure of Secret Talents of the
Stars has had ripple effects on the CBS
prime time schedule. With Big Brother
coming to an end and Secret Talents
unable to make it past one episode, the
No word has been offered as to the
identity of the attackers, but the
methodology employed, according to
Jeremiah Grossman, CTO of WhiteHat
Security, shows that they had effectively
obtained a “skeleton key” for the Web
systems used by various companies and
organizations.
(Image source: The Register)
---
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RealNetworks Addresses Vulnerability
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Slide-Wordpress, Google-DoubleClick,
ScanScout, When AJAX Attacks
Marvel and DC Comics Partner to Fight
Torrents
Blogger Visitors Under Attack by
Malware
Millions of MySpacers Rejoice:
Photobucket Videos are Back
Terrorists Using Google Earth to Target
Israel
bar to get a beer menu that lists price (by
bottle and tap), alcohol content, and
brewery, plus a map of the location, web
site, hours, and phone number.
BeerMenus.com is New York only (so
far?) and isn't yet comprehensive in its
coverage there, but it's off to a great start
for beer-lovers in the Big Apple.
BeerMenus.com[via CNET]
return of Shark, which was going to come
back on Tuesdays at 10 p.m., will now
return on Tuesday at 9 p.m. for three
broadcasts beginning April 29. Had Secret
Talents worked, CBS wouldn't be
scrambling on Tuesdays.
The CBS Tuesday lineup for next
Tuesday, therefore, will be NCIS, Shark
and a rerun of CSI. Then on May 6, it'll be
Pirate Bay Marks GTA
Pre-Launch With A Joke
And Some Rips
By Paul Glazowski (Mashable!)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 8:15:25 AM
The guys at The Pirate Bay do enjoy
sticking their thumbs into the eyes of
authority. Intellectual property? They say,
“no hablamos law.” (A mangled Swedish
translation probably would’ve been a
better fit.)
And considering the inherent unruliness
of the very successful video game
franchise Grand Theft Auto, which will be
celebrating the launch of the fourth
installment in the series in just a few days,
TPB of course find it their customary duty
to play the jokester. According to Michael
McWhertor of Kotaku, they have
temporarily replaced their logo with the
title “Liberty Bay.”
The rip doesn’t end there, however. Just
a name swap wouldn’t do. Users of TPB
have already taken the liberty (pun very
much intended) to link cracked versions of
GTA IV onto the lists of torrents. Given
Rockstar Games’ intention to make a
record profit in the game’s first week of
release, the company must be none too
happy with this revelation.
Alas, today such activity comes with the
territory, unfortunately. Copyright haters
revolt against copyright holders, creating
an environment for copyright indifference
to thrive. And so the cycle goes, with all
parties strewn with mud. No changes
proposed to existing laws. No changes in
the behavior of hackers and consumers.
NCIS, Shark and a CSI: Miami rerun. On
May 13, NCIS, Shark and a Criminal
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Round and round we turn. Where this
ends, nobody knows.
---
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Minds rerun.
What'll be interesting for Shark fans --
and TV geeks in general like us -- will be
to see exactly how well the James Woods
legal drama performs with a strong lead in
like NCIS. Even the reruns scheduled to
follow the three episodes are all strong
support. Will this Tuesday hammock
experiment be advantageous to Shark,
Numb3rs: End
Game
By Jonathan Toomey (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:45:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, Numb3rs, Episode
Reviews, Reality-Free
( S04E15)"I don't like a guy who thinks a
purple heart gives him a free pass." - Colby
Well there's something you don't see too
often on Numb3rs- resurrecting an old case
from a previous episode. Usually, this
show is pretty self-contained. Each week
it's a wrap. Despite the fact that the last
time we saw Clay Porter was when he
escaped, his story still felt finished. But the
writers took one small detail about his past
and turned it into a pretty solid episode.
Continue reading Numb3rs: End Game
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
securing the kind of Nielsen numbers that
will be a deciding factor in the show's
renewal for next season?
Continue reading Shark gets a new
timeslot
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
What's On Tonight: iCarly,
Robin Hood, 48 Hours Mystery
By Bob Sassone (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:05:00 AM
Filed under: Programming, What To
Watch Tonight, Reality-Free
• At 8, FOX has a new
Cops
. , with guests Tony Curtis and Kevin
• TLC has a new
Flip That House
at 8, followed by a new
Date My House
. , then a new
• ABC Family has the new movie
Princess
at 8.
• There's a new
iCarly
on Nickelodeon at 8.
• ESPN2 has the
2008 NFL Draft
at 8.
• At 9, FOX has a new
.
America's Most Wanted
• TruTV has two new episodes of
Missing Persons Unit
at 9.
• Lifetime has the new movie
TV* Movies* 23
Moonlight: Fated to Pretend -
VIDEO
By Jen Creer (TV Squad)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 6:11:00 AM
Filed under: OpEd, Video, Episode
Reviews, Moonlight, Reality-Free(
S01E13)"Forgive me." Josef to Mick (for
you-know-why)
Whew, boy, a lot going on in this
Battlestar
episode! Mick might have to consider
going to see a shrink for vampires to wrap Galactica: Escape
his mind around all of the whirlwind
changes in just one episode. There was a Velocity - VIDEO
lot to like in this episode-- Mick as he dove By Keith McDuffee (TV Squad)
into a chili dog, Mick eating a strawberry
on the beach, Mick devouring a doughnut, Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:53:00 PM
and we'll talk about more things after the Filed under: Battlestar Galactica, Video,
jump. But there were also some things that sense that our lives are fragile simply Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
just bugged the hell out of me. And I am because we are mortal: We simply have no (S04E04) I went on earlier today about
going to talk about those too. choice. If we thought about it too much, it how a lot of us were cut short in the early
Mick is human now, and it's all the more would cripple us. viewing of tonight's episode, which made
precious because it is fleeting. He doesn't Continue reading Moonlight: Fated to me think perhaps something "big" happens
take for granted the things that we all do:
orange juice and coffee in the morning,
Pretend - VIDEO
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
later that they didn't want revealed early.
With the exception of one "maybe big"
sleeping in beds, mortality. I don't think
that most of us walk around with a strong
moment, I can scratch that theory.
I wouldn't exactly call this a throw-away
episode, though with what we saw in the
Storm Cell
at 9.
• BBC America has the season premiere
The hat making process on 30 past three episodes it did drag is places.
Continue reading Battlestar Galactica:
of
Robin Hood
Rock revealed Escape Velocity - VIDEO
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
at 9, followed by the season premiere of By Allison Waldman (TV Squad)
The Graham Norton Show
Submitted at 4/26/2008 2:01:00 AM
Bacon. Filed under: 30 Rock, Reality-Free Like
• Also at 9: Cartoon Network has two Bob wrote the other day in his TV Squad
new episodes of review, 30 Rock is the kind of show that
Naruto you have to watch and really pay attention
to in order to get all the great lines and
Blue Dragon jokes. That includes the lids on Judah
. Friedlander's noggin. At a recent event, a
• At 10, CBS has a new New York Observer reporter cornered 30
48 Hours Mystery Rock's Frank with a few questions ... all
. about his hats.
• TLC has a new The baseball caps that Judah wears in
Moving Up
at 10.
• At 11, FOX has a new
every show -- and you never see him sans-
hat -- are his own creation. It's a shtick that
he began nearly two decades ago. "I've
his hats to the individual episode. Some are
obvious jokes, some are in-jokes, nothing
Tribeca
is accidental or unplanned.
Mad TV
, then a new
Talk Show with Spike Feresten
been making my own hats for years. I've
been doing stand-up for 19 years and my
hats have always said world champion in
Continue reading The hat making
process on 30 Rock revealed
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
Review: The
.
Check your local TV listings for more.
Permalink| Email this| | Comments
some language." See, the joke is that he's
not the world champion of anything. Now,
as one of the writers on TGS, Judah tailors
Objective
Filed under: Action, Drama, Horror, Sci-
By
Fi &Scott Weinberg
Fantasy, Thrillers,(Cinematical)
TRIBECA Tribeca,
page 24 Theatrical
24 Movies* Gossip*
TRIBECA
continued from page 23
Reviews, War
A horror flick that takes place in
Afghanistan in November of 2001?
Intriguing, to be sure, but I'll admit to
being more than a little skeptical as I
walked in to check out Daniel Myrick's
The Objective. I was half-expecting some
sort of run-of-the-mill occult thriller that
got mixed with modern warfare ... just
because it's a topical thing to do. Happily,
those assumptions turned out to be
completely wrong. Since it works much
better as a bleak adventure flick and a very
sweaty psychological thriller, it'd probably
be inaccurate to label The Objective as an
out-and-out horror flick -- but I enjoyed it
anyway, which means that most of the
other genre fans probably will too. Heck,
how often do you get to check out a movie
described as a wartime horror thriller sci-fi
adventure drama?
Without spoiling anything, here's the
gist: On the hunt for a contact who will
direct him toward some "WMDs," CIA
Tribeca Review: Trucker
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:02:00 AM
Filed under: Drama, Tribeca, Theatrical
Reviews
I was completely honest with actress
Michelle Monaghan yesterday when I told
her, right at the beginning of a one-on-one
interview, that I'd been waiting a long time
to watch her come alive in a role. In her
relatively short career, Monaghan has
already racked up quite the resume --
agent Ben Keynes has returned to
Afghanistain after a ten-year absence, and
it's there that he takes charge of a gung-ho,
no-nonsense, bad-ass military unit. Keynes
has a very shady assignment, but his new
charges are on a need-to-know basis ... and
suffice it to say that the CIA guy's secret
assignment is, well, it's pretty frickin'
weird. On the surface, though, Keynes and
his new troop must head out into the
staggeringly unforgiving desert, and it's
there that their mission goes from
mysterious to bad to a whole hell of a lot
worse. Suffice to say that something not
human is definitely involved, but our
heroes will have to make it through some
perfectly mortal enemies before
discovering any secrets.
Continue reading Tribeca Review: The
Objective Permalink| Email this|
Comments
appearing in films like Mission Impossible
III, Gone Baby Gone, The Bourne
Supremacy, The Heartbreak Kid and the
soon-to-be-released Made of Honor. She's
got a great, girl-next-door quality about
her, but is she memorable? The good news
here is that Monaghan finally delivered the
sort of performance I've known was
trapped somewhere inside her, hidden
behind a variety of big, flashy Hollywood
films. Make no mistake, this is her film.
She owns it. But is that enough to convince
Live from Tribeca: Start
Spreading the Reviews ...
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 3:15:00 AM
Filed under: Tribeca, Festival Reports
Here's the most annoying thing about the
2008 Tribeca Film Festival so far (and I
hate to start off my first "live" post with a
complaint, but it must come out): There's a
rule this year that says the press cannot file
the review of a world premiere until it's
screened for the public. This is pretty
ridiculous no matter how you look at it; if
anything, if your film is playing a festival
alongside hundreds of other films, you
kinda want to take a chance on an early
review in order to get people to come to
the screenings. Not only regular
moviegoers, but buyers too. Sure, a bad
review may screw you if it comes out prior
to the film screening, but regardless that
same bad review will turn up eventually --
so does it really matter when it hits?
Additionally, it stinks for us because we
have to set up a whole system to make sure
reviews don't accidentally get published
before the first public screening. We have
people double and triple checking,
because, well, as moronic as this rule is,
it's still a rule. And we here at Cinematical
follow rules. That being said, I am having
a good time so far, though the screenings
have been hectic and a bit mis-managed.
It's hard, though, since it just NOW got
you to see it?
In Trucker, she plays Diane, a female
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
hella beautiful in NYC (we're talking
sunny and 80 degrees), so EVERYONE is
outside. This makes it harder to do
anything, let alone manage 4 different lines
full of people with either a ticket or one of
several multi-colored badges. "Are you a
pink badge? Blue? Green? Orange? Do
you even have a badge? Who has a
rainbow badge? How did they get a
rainbow badge? And I totally dig the ivory
with a splash of lemon badge!"
Ah, Tribeca -- I love ya! If you were a
normal festival, it wouldn't be set in New
York City.
Permalink| Email this| Comments
truck driver with one helluva edge -- not to
mention a knack for drinking lots of hard
liquor and taking part in more than a few
unhealthy one-night-stands. She's a selfish
woman with not many friends; she knows
just what she needs to keep on truckin', and
she knows just how to get it. Thing is,
you'll never see her give anything back.
These personality traits become a problem
when Diane's 11-year-old estranged son (
Jimmy Bennett) shows up on her doorstep
one day -- brought by his soon-to-be
Mariah Carey’s
perfomance on GMA
was a sight to behold
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 11:20:23 AM
Mariah Carey performed on Good
Morning America this morning as part of
their Summer Concert Series and things
went horribly wrong. During her rendition
of “Touch My Body”, her backup track
started too early. Mariah tried to ad lib and
catch up until they fixed it. But, wait. The
hijinks didn’t end there. In the middle of
the performance her backup singer started
singing her part. Mariah Carey turned
around and sang “stop singing my part
now baby” to the girl. Also, I’m pretty sure
after the show, Mariah Carey had to “slap
a ho.” Not sure what that means, but it
doesn’t sound too pleasant for that backup
singer.
Bonus video: Mariah Carey giving Diane
Sawyer some ‘tude.
Related posts
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(2)
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(0)
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stepmother (Joey Lauren Adams) when
colon cancer forces the kid's dad
(Benjamin Bratt) into the hospital. These
two, mother and son, don't care for one
another, nor are they interested in getting
better acquainted. He needs a place to
crash for three weeks, and she needs to
find a way to let that happen.
Continue reading Tribeca Review:
Trucker Permalink| Email this| Comments
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Tribeca Interview: 'Bart
Got a Room' Writer-
Director, Brian Hecker
By Erik Davis (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 10:02:00 AM
Filed under: Comedy, Tribeca, Festival
Reports, Interviews
Pictured: Bart Got a Room writer-
director Brian Hecker with William H.
Macy
The 2008 Tribeca Film Festival has
already produced its first little gem in Bart
Got a Room, a charming teen sex comedy
set in the vibrant, pastel-colored retirement
communities of South Florida. Cinematical
had a chance to conduct an email interview
with writer-director Brian Hecker prior to
Bart's premiere at the festival, and it went
something like this:
Cinematical: A film like Bart Got a
Room has "personal story" written all over
it. How close is this film to your own life
growing up?
Brian Hecker: The film is very close to
my life growing up as a real nerd in South
Florida. Of course, elements are stretched
for comedic purposes, but the essence of it
is painfully close to home.
Cinematical: Why do teenagers care so
much about what other teenagers are
doing?
BH: I don't think it's just teenagers. In
our society, most people think about or
worry about what other people are doing in
relation to themselves. It's the cause of
most people's suffering, and it's quite
stupid and unnecessary when you start
examining why we do this. High school is
a place where you're stuck with the same
small group of people year after year, so
it's most apparent in this environment.
Continue reading Tribeca Interview:
'Bart Got a Room' Writer-Director, Brian
Hecker Permalink| Email this| Comments
Action and Adventure
Heads for Martin Luther
By Monika Bartyzel (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 11:32:00 AM
Filed under: Action, Thrillers, Deals,
Scripts, Religious We get action-adventure
thrillers all the time, and sometimes, they
even dip back into history a little bit. But
how often do they go really back? I'm not
talking BC-times, but rather, to the
Renaissance era? Variety reports that
Phoenix Pictures has nabbed a spec script
by Javier Rodriguez called The Heretic,
which they are fast-tracking for our eager,
moviegoer eyes.
The film focuses on "a fallen priest-
turned-hitman sent by a rogue archbishop
to assassinate Martin Luther, only to
discover that not everyone is telling the
truth." What? Old religious officials not
telling the truth? That's crazy talk. I don't
know why, but something about religious
hitmen and rogue archbishops is sounding
damn irresistible to me. I keep thinking of
films like Grosse Pointe Blank, Pulp
Fiction, and Leon, but in Renaissance garb
and surrounded by crosses. And just how
do you be a hitman way back then? It's not
like you just sit in the shadows with a
fancy gun and wait for your target to
appear. They'd have to be more tricky --
Tribeca Review: The Wild Man of the
Navidad
By Scott Weinberg (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:32:00 AM
Filed under: Horror, Thrillers, Tribeca
Now here's an intentionally grungy and
effectively low-budget horror flick that
actually feels like it's been hidden in a
vault for the last thirty years. Allegedly
based on some actual documented events
that took place deep inside Texas during
the 1970s, The Wild Man of the Navidad is
certainly nothing new under the horror sun,
but it's an admirably rustic, respectably
presented, and (eventually) rather spirited
little terror tale.
Our semi-hero is a misfit named Dale
maybe Russian-like with poison or
something.
Phoenix is looking to start production by
the first quarter, so we should get more
news on the project relatively soon. In the
meantime, who would you cast in a film
like this? We all know the usual action-
thriller stars, but which of them could pull
off the hitman aspect, the religious flavor,
and the historical, Renaissance context?
Permalink| Email this| Comments
Rogers, who putters around in Sublime,
Texas, as a welder of some sort. Poor Dale
has a very sick wife, a rather twisted best
friend/roommate, and a ravenous man-
Movies* Gossip* 25
Snoop Dogg and
Willie Nelson Perform
in Amsterdam
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:37:32 PM
Snoop Dogg and living legend Willie
Nelson have combined their bags of weed
to delight an audience with a mix of rap
and country. Snoop and Willie performed
Super Man, live at the Melkweg in
Amsterdam, on April 21, 2008. The video
is black until about 30 seconds into it. This
is historic, and totally an unrehearsed live
performance. INCREDIBLE!!!
Willie even let it slip that he recorded a
song with Snoop that will be on his new
album.
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Snoop Dogg Ban Lifted
• Snoop Dogg in German
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Soccer Lessons
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Fatherhood
beast roaming his acreage. But when Dale
loses his job, he's forced to open up his
land for deer hunting, despite the fact that
he KNOWS there's a ravenous man-beast
roaming his acreage. Toss in a few
subplots about moonshine, spooky legends,
and creepy perversions, and you've got a
flick that would probably make for a good
double feature with Sasquatch or The
Legend of Boggy Creek. (If you remember
either of those movies, then you'll probably
dig this one.)
Continue reading Tribeca Review: The
Wild Man of the Navidad Permalink|
Email this| Comments
26 Movies*
'Speed 3': The Non-
Existent Sequel Nobody
Wants
By Eric Kohn (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 1:02:00 PM
Filed under: RumorMonger, Fandom,
Images If the rumors circulating yesterday
about a third Speed movie were true, the
glut of Hollywood product would surely
have reached a breaking point. It's not that
another sequel to this maligned action
franchise would necessarily suck. Almost a
year ago, Dennis Hopper hinted that he
might have some sort of role in an
upcoming Speed movie, an appearance that
could single-handedly elevate the thing to
realm of brilliant camp (it would make a
fine relative of Leprechaun 4: In Space).
There's a distinction worth making,
however, between camp and crap ... and a
Speed movie set in space probably falls
into the latter category. That's exactly what
this placeholder suggests, offering the
image of a troubled Sandra Bullock
peering out the window of a rocketship
above the guffaw-worthy title Speed:
Ignition. Right.
Slashfilm did some homework and
figured out that the site is a fake, which is
a relief--because no studio would be crazy
Ebertfest 2008 -- Gangsters, Devil Worship, Organic Farming
and Ritual Suicide
By Kim Voynar (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 8:32:00 AM
Filed under: Independent, Theatrical
Reviews, Festival Reports, Other Festivals
I missed out on the first film of
yesterday's slate, Shotgun Stories by Jeff
Nichols, because I wanted to get my first
dispatch up before I left the hotel for the
day. By the time I made it over to the
Virginia Theater and found parking (a feat
enough to back such a bad idea--but also,
in a backwards sort of way, a bit of a
letdown. Imagine what a brilliant
catastrophe this thing could be. A rocky
voyage to the stars where the only means
of survival is lightspeed ahead! Keanu
Reeves didn't bother showing up for Speed
2: Cruise Control, and you can imagine
that he'd bail on this one, too. Somebody
get Han Solo on the line. Read| Read|
Permalink| Email this| Comments
almost as difficult as finding parking in
New York City -- okay, not quite, but it is
a bit of a challenge) the screening had
started already.
Fortunately, I've seen the film already on
a screener, and though I would have liked
to have seen it on a big screen, I can tell
you that this tale of brothers in rural
Arkansas coming to terms with the death
of their abusive father is an excellent little
indie film, and very deserving of the
Check Out the DVD Cover
of 'Lost Boys 2'
By Eric D. Snider (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 4:02:00 AM
Filed under: Horror, New Releases,
Warner Brothers, Fandom You know how
you've been really, excited about the Lost
Boys sequel? OK, just pretend you have
been. Seriously, go along with me here. It's
called Lost Boys: The Tribe, and some of
the various Coreys who were in the 1987
original will appear in it, alongside
younger, hotter actors like Tad
Hilgenbrinck and Autumn Reeser. Warner
Premiere is sending it straight to DVD and
Blu-Ray this summer, and the folks over at
Bloody Disgusting have the cover art, a bit
of which I've sampled here.
Yep, sure enough: That's a DVD cover,
all right. The Angus Sutherland referenced
is indeed related to Kiefer (they're half-
brothers). Why there's a guy on a
motorcycle, I don't know. Why not, I
guess?
If you were worried that this sequel
might deviate in some way from the cult-
favorite original, rest easy. Corey Feldman
told MTV News: "Once again, you have a
fish-out-of-water story of two young folks
Independent Spirit Award it won earlier
this year. Hanging out outside the theater
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
who move into a new town to visit their
relatives and find themselves caught up
with a bunch of bloodsuckers.... I really
like the script because of the fact that it is
very close and very true to the structure of
the original film." I take this to mean that,
like most DVD sequels, it will be the exact
same story as the original, but with
different actors. But hey, Coreys! Squeeee!
Permalink| Email this| Comments
throughout the day, I kept hearing fest
folks talking about this film and how much
they loved it, and I'm glad Roger added it
to this year's program.
Continue reading Ebertfest 2008 --
Gangsters, Devil Worship, Organic
Farming and Ritual Suicide Permalink|
Email this| Comments
New 'Wanted' Teaser
Poster -- Angelina
Makes Guns Look Good.
By Elisabeth Rappe (Cinematical)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 2:32:00 AM
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy,
Thrillers, Universal, Angelina Jolie, Movie
Marketing, Comic/Superhero/Geek,
Images, Posters
Cast Angelina Jolie in your movie, and
everything post production becomes that
much easier. No one photographs better
than this woman -- and certainly no one
looks more sexy with a gun.
This new teaser poster comes by way of
Ain't It Cool News, where you can get a
high-resolution version. I do love the way
her tattoo blends into her customized gun.
Not even Lara Croft has guns that fancy.
The movie could be crap (though Erik
Davis liked what he saw of it, AICN's
Quint did too), but I do love a stylish
action chick. Just because you're an
assassin doesn't mean you can't
accessorize!
Wanted opens June 27th, 2008. What do
you think of this one? Is it on your summer
radar?
Permalink| Email this| Comments
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Amy Winehouse Released from Jail
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:06:58 PM
Amy Winehouse was due to be released
at midnight after being arrested yesterday,
but instead she spent the night in jail. A
doctor had to be called in to evaluate Amy,
and he declared she was "unfit to be
interviewed." Which means she was too
high and drunk to be interviewed. Once
she slept off her bender in the drunk tank,
police questioned Amy, she apologized,
and she was "cautioned for common
assault." Police said no charges would be
filed, and she was released. That’s no way
to stop a one woman crime spree like
Amy.
Amy did a lot before she finally went to
the police station to be interviewed on
Friday evening about two assaults she
committed. On Monday Amy told Blake
their marriage was over, and she met with
advisors in an effort to protect her fortune
in a divorce. Earlier in the week Blake’s
mother, Georgette Civil, said, "Her
(Amy’s) behaviour has spiralled out of
control. She’s made a complete fool of
herself and I hope my son divorces her."
Spencer Pratt Claims Lauren Conrad Intimate Tape is
REAL
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 6:11:09 PM
Spencer Pratt will appear on The Tyra
Banks Show, which will air Tuesday,
claiming once again that Lauren Conrad
did indeed make an intimate tape with ex
boyfriend Jason Wahler. Pratt said:
"I know for 100% fact it did exist,
1000%!"
Pratt was then asked if he had ever seen
the tape, and he said:
"I would never watch that. I would rather
throw up, but I know for a fact, and I
would take a lie detector test."
Wouldn’t watch it? Why, is he gay?
Everyone involved should take a lie
detector, including Pratt, Wahler, and
Amy then went on a drinking and drug
spree, during which she got so out-of-
control she committed not one but two
assaults, even head butting one guy. She’s
brutal.
On Thursday evening Amy consulted
attorneys on what to say and do regarding
the assault investigation. Amy went out
Conrad.
Heidi Montag who was also on the show
with Pratt, also confirmed the tape’s
existence, saying:
"The tape is not a rumor. From what I
have heard, from confirmed sources, her ex
-boyfriend was going around trying to sell
it."
Tyra asked how Montag could know the
tape existed if she hasn’t seen the tape, and
Montag said:
"Well, I mean, I am not sure she has it
anymore, but from what I’ve heard. I am
not really allowed to elaborate."
Not allowed to elaborate? Why not?
Who’s stopping you? I’m not sure I
believe these two, even though I
completely believe Wahler and Conrad
drinking again right after her meeting with
attorneys. That evening Amy went
drinking at the Good Mixer pub, and go
thrown out of the Made in Brasil bar at
around 12:30 am.
The next morning Amy skipped Blake
Fielder-Civil’s court hearing. Amy then
picked up her goddaughter from school.
Good thing Amy has a driver. Later that
day, and still drunk, Amy finally arrived at
the police station where a doctor declared
her "unfit to be interviewed."
What a mess! Anyone want to make bets
on when Amy will end up dead, in jail, or
both at the same time?
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Miranda Lambert Accuser Charged
Instead
• Amy Winehouse Cheating on Blake
• Lalaine Vergara Paras Busted for
Crystal Meth
• Amy Winehouse Arrested
• Amy Winehouse Meets with Police
would make an intimate tape, and Wahler
would definitely try to sell it.
In April 2007, Conrad told Us magazine.
"There is no sex tape that exists."
Benji Madden is a killer
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 11:40:43 AM
Benji Madden ran over a paparazzo’s foot
last night as he and Paris Hilton were
leaving the Foxtail nightclub. In the video,
photographers can be seen surrounding
Benji’s car when all of a sudden a
womanly scream pierced the night air.
Benji checked out the damage, concluded
his wheel was just fine and drove off. The
photog went to the L.A. Sheriff’s
Department to file a hit and run report.
It’ll be shocking if the sheriff did
anything but laugh at him. He should stop
being a baby. The car wasn’t even going
fast and he still stood in front of it. In fact,
it’s hard to tell if the car is even moving.
From what I hear the tape does exists,
and someday it will come out. Note: There
is a poll embedded within this post, please
visit the site to participate in this post's
poll.
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Heidi Montag Raps on TRL
• Shauna Sand Endorses John McCain
• Heidi Montag No More
• Showbiz Tonight Exposes Famous for
Nothing Stars
• Heidi Montag and Britney Spears Sing a
Duet
Gossip* 27
Maybe a fat guy just stepped on his foot
and he thought it was the car because he’s
a pansy. Nevertheless, the concern from
his fellow paparazzi was touching. “Don’t
worry about him. Don’t worry about him.”
Paris Involved in Another Hit and
Run[TMZ] Related posts
• In other news
(0)
• Lindsay Lohan is retarded
(0)
• Jessica Alba forced Paris out
(2)
• Paris Hilton threw herself a party
(1)
• Lindsay and Paris fight for relevancy
(2)
Heather Locklear was
at the beach
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:43:15 AM
Heather Locklear made a trip to the beach
and looked pretty good for being in her
50’s… 70’s? More often than not, people
her age sit at home and quietly wait for
death. Not Heather though. She laughs in
the face of death. Ha ha death. You suck.
Related posts
• Heather Locklear is tantalizing
(2)
• Heather Locklear does the beach
(0)
28 Gossip* Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper

Police apprehend
London’s most wanted,
Amy Winehouse
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:21:01 PM

Amy Winehouse made headlines again

yesterday by headbutting a guy trying to
help her into a cab. Amy promised to turn

Stuff you probably don’t care herself in to be questioned about the

Afternoon time wasters
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:42:59 PM
• Drunken Stepfather
: Jodie Marsh’s stupid tits are partying
• Bossip
: Michael Jackson has sworn off
women…
• Bastardly
: Megan Fox gets ready for a photo shoot
• Celebitchy
: Kelly LeBrock lost 12 lbs in 3 weeks
with chocolate, cake and cheese
• Celebslam
: Raven-Symone is hungry
• Asylum
: Copper nabbed for molesting a cow
• CoEd
: 6 things that suck about Coachella
• Yeeeah
: Jada Pinkett Smith has a mullet
• ASL
: Someone was stupid enough to cheat on
Carrie Underwood
incident, but she went to visit her
goddaughter instead.
about That probably wasn’t the smartest thing
to do because today the 24-year-old
• Dlisted singer/songwriter/billy goat was “ arrested
By The Blemish (The Blemish) apprentice show is a bad idea. Fools. on suspicion of assault after attending a
: Chloe Lattanzi is a freak This week in reader’s comments…
• SOW Submitted at 4/25/2008 4:45:55 PM central London police station by
From Paris gave me herpes on“Paris appointment.” However, doctors deemed
: Angelina Jolie shows some color “Harold and Kumar” over “The Hilton is a moron”: I hope the Russian
• College Humor her unfit to be interviewed.
Forbidden Kingdom”: Everyone likes Mafia hunts her down and slips a little Presumably, police will have to wait
: Could this be the cutest thing ever? martial arts movies, but even more people radioactive isotopes into her vodka.
Cuter than me? until the doctor comes back and deems her
like movies about potheads and White From capt. cornhole on “ He’s Back“: fit enough to be questioned. A very
• Jezebel Castle. Do you think he can still smell the shit on
: Madonna appreciates people being unlikely scenario. You’d have a better
Mariah Carey is important: To promote his finger from having up his ass? Related chance asking a poo flinging monkey what
cynical her new album, the lights of the Empire posts
Related posts happened. At least with him, he’ll scratch
State Building have been changed to • I Am Legend alternate ending and time his head and point to a banana. With Amy,
• Haha, Paris ate it and morning time lavender, pink and white making it the wasters
wasters she’ll most likely be high and say
gayest building in all of New York. (0) something unintelligible like
(0) Jamie Lynn endangers her unborn fetus: • Morning news
• Britney killed herself and time wasters “Mmmglllrk.” What was that Amy? Were
Jamie Lynn Spears forgot to wear her seat (0) you answering the question or drowning?
(0) belt. In the South, they call this “hoping for • News to know for the weekend
• It’s almost the weekend so waste time Related posts
a cheap abortion.” Just kidding. It would (0) • Amy didn’t always used to look like this
with these probably cost a fortune to fix her car and • Time wasters
(0) (4)
insurance would be through the roof. (0) • Amy Winehouse says drugs are bad
• In other news O.J. will not be celebrity apprentice: • Tom Cruise iz a Nazi
(0) (0)
Apparently people think putting a man (0) • She put it out on her face
• Morning time wasters accused of double murder on a cutthroat
(0) (2)
• Amy Winehouse is a freak
(8)
• Amy Winehouse is a great performer
(2)
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Amy Winehouse is rich
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 10:01:45 AM
Even though Amy Winehouse’s fortune is
valued at $20 million and has made the list
of music millionaires, she may never reach
the Paul McCartney status. She may not
even have a new album coming out
anytime soon. Her affinity for cocaine has
seemed to halt her music career as her
label is rumored to have refused to release
her album until she cleans up her image.
“Winning Grammys have given her a
really good profile in the United States.
She has such a smooth voice but let’s hope
she doesn’t blow it all,” Sunday Times
Rich List editor Philip Beresford said as
the latest millionaire tables were published.
Amy Winehouse loves coke. More than
anything. Even money. Unless the money
can be used to buy coke, then she loves it
just as much as coke. Given the choice
between coke and breathing. Amy would
choose coke. If you told her her parents
died and that, “by the way, you can’t do
anymore coke,” Amy would start crying
and ask you “what did coke ever do to you,
you monster.” In conclusion, Amy
Winehouse is a retard who doesn’t deserve
$20 million. Related posts
• Amy Winehouse smokes crack on tape
(3)
• Amy Winehouse went to rehab
(1)
• Amy Winehouse is infected
(0)
• She put it out on her face
(2)
• Boing!
(4)
James Brown Family Feud Heats Up
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:01:59 PM
The James Brown family heirs are still
feuding over his estate. Trustees handling
the estate took Tomi Rae Hynie to court
over her claim that her 6 year-old son is a
son and heir of Brown. A south Carolin
judge handling the case has ordered Hynie
to provide a DNA test supporting her claim
the boy is indeed Brown’s biological child.
Hynie’s lawyer claims the boy has been
receiving social security and insurance
benefits since Brown’s death. The lawyer
added:
"Clearly, James Brown has held up this
child to be his son. We have writings that
he has signed indicating that this is his son.
G.I. Joe Accident on the Set
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:57:06 PM
Last week the new James Bond film
Quantum of Solace had filming production
suspended after two serious accidents
occurred in Italy involving two stunt men,
pictured above, one of which had serious
head injuries, and is fighting for his life in
a hospital.
Today SEVEN people were injured in a
collision between a bus and several cars
during the filming of G.I. Joe in the center
of Prauge. It appeared an all-wheel-drive
vehicle hit the bus after having brake
problems.
Phil Collins Retires from Music
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:33:03 PM
At the age of 57 Phil Collins announced
he has retired from music. He notes he
completed his reunion tour with his former
band Genesis, and he will be neither
touring again, or releasing any further
albums.
In his free time he plans to collect
memorabilia from the Battle of the Alamo.
Collins said, "It’s not that unusual for a
man of my age who grew up reading about
He talks lovingly of his child. So all
indications are this is the son of James
Brown.”
We’ll see if the DNA test also supports
those claims.
In April 2002, a stunt man from the
United States was killed in Prague during
the filming of the Rob Cohen action film
Triple X.
Only minor injuries were reported in the
Davy Crockett." Sounds boring, unless
you’ve got literally nothing more exciting
going on in your life.
Gossip* 29
Complicating things further for Hynie,
Brown’s longtime friend Andre White told
The Augusta Chronicle last month, that he
knew Brown had a vasectomy, saying:
"It was just common knowledge among
all his friends."
The truth is in the DNA.
Hynie is hoping the boy really is
Brown’s son, otherwise she’ll be paying
back the social security and insurance
benefits. If the DNA test proves the boy
isn’t Brown’s son, will she tell the boy
who his real father is?
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• No related posts.
G.I. Joe accident.
There needs to be better coordination on
the set, and even better stunt planning and
choreography. Being in the movies can be
dangerous.
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• HG Loves China
• Chris Tucker is a Daddy
• William Hung Retires to Teach
• Fill in the Blank
• Chorus Class Can be Fun
It seems like Collins had already retired.
No one was expecting him to tour, or put
out anymore albums anyway, so why even
go to the trouble of announcing his
retirement?
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• HG Loves China
• Chris Tucker is a Daddy
• William Hung Retires to Teach
• Fill in the Blank
• Chorus Class Can be Fun
30 Gossip*
So is he gay or what?
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 9:00:22 AM
Clay Aiken says that no one cares about
his sexuality besides the media. While on a
promotional appearance for his album and
Broadway show, he told The Billy Bush
Show,
“I think for the most part, people don’t
want to have that type of stuff pushed,
people who are living in Omaha or in
Charlotte or wherever,” he said. “They
don’t want stuff like that pushed in their
face, I don’t think that’s necessary and
that’s also not what I’m here for. I mean I
went on ‘Idol’ to be a singer, I went on
‘Idol’ to be an entertainer and that’s what
my priority is.”
For the most part he’s right. No one cares
because they all know this dude is full on
gay. If shoving phallic vegetables into your
anus was an Olympic sport, Clay Aiken
would be a gold medalist and be known as
the best vegetable-up-ass shover of our
time. He would be praised for his speed,
agility and his ability to “take it without
lube.” Related posts
• Finish this: Clay Aiken has never
(1)
• Clay Aiken is inconsiderate
(0)
• Clay Aiken is what?
(5)
• Clay Aiken is a douche
(0)
• In other news
(0)
Morning time wasters
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 9:12:47 AM
• Pajiba
: Pathology - All I know is I saw a lot of
boobies in the trailer
• Hollywood Rag
: Lauren Conrad’s cleavage club
• UseMyComputer
: Elizabeth Jagger looking modely
• Hollywood Tuna
: Neve Campbell goes nude again
• WIMB
: Kim Kardashian reaches for water the
hard way
• Celebparasite
: Denise Richards: Cougar?
Miley Cyrus Kissing Thomas Sturges
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 4:24:02 PM
Even more pictures are surfacing of
Miley Cyrus doing naughty things. This
time Miley is kissing Thomas Sturges.
She’s only 15 years-old right now, so we
don’t want her making any tapes until after
she turns 18, otherwise we can’t post them.
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Lily Allen’s oral
skills are unmatched
in London
By The Blemish (The Blemish)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 8:32:53 AM
Outside of the over-hyped restaurant,
Nobu, Lily Allen asked photographers if
they knew what she had a “really good
mouth for.” Sensing paparazzi were
befuddled as to what it was, Lily bragged
that she gave really good head. The “best
in London.” To prove her claims, Lily
• INO Allen attempted to blow me. I told her I
: Too much pressure in Hollywood for had a headache and wasn’t feeling it, but
being the nice guy that I am, I let her do it
men?
• Double Viking anyway. The consensus? Meh, it was
: Lady kicks horse in the penis alright. Related posts
Related posts • Lily Allen also pregnant
• Afternoon time wasters
(2)
• In other news
(0)
• Lily Allen had a miscarriage
(2)
• America bans Lily Allen
(3)
• Morning news (1)
• Lily Allen hid in a plastic bag
(0)
• Late morning news roundup (4)
• Lily Allen likes it up the butt
(0)
• Fergie sucks and morning time wasters (4)
(0)
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Bill O’Reilly Slams Miley Cyrus
• Miley Cyrus Signs Seven Figure Book
Deal
• Miley Cyrus Slut Pictures Round Two
• Miley Cyrus has More Slut Pictures
A little over 2 years to go, and counting
down. • Miley Cyrus Wants Peace
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Chika Bow Wow
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 7:10:45 PM
John Travolta attended the induction of
Michael Eisner into the Hollywood Walk
of Fame Friday. Do you love his new gay
porn-stache? Note: There is a poll
embedded within this post, please visit the
site to participate in this post's poll.
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
Should Microsoft Extend XP's Life? [Reader Poll]
By Adam Pash (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 8:00:00 AM
Both Windows users in love with XP and
those in hate with Vista continue to cry out
to Microsoft for clemency, hoping that XP
might be spared from the chopping block
come June 30th (the last day XP will be
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Travolta and Foster Both Wear the
Pants
• John Travolta, Jodi Foster, and Queen
Latifah Threesome
• John Travolta Kissed Kirk Douglas
• Zac Efron Keeps His Body in Shape
• Gwen Breastfeeds Despite The
Occasional Bite
sold in stores). Vista's been out in the wild
for a solid year now, but even so, more
users than Microsoft could ever have
intended still aren't ready or willing to
trade in XP for the shinier, debatably
improved upgrade to the Windows line.
We consider Lifehacker readers to be very
willing adopters when an upgrade is worth
Zac Efron Shirtless
By Hollywood Grind
Submitted at 4/26/2008 10:12:33 PM
Zac Efron shirtless on the set of High
School Musical 3.
© Copyright HollywoodGrind.com 2006-
2008. All Rights Reserved. Related posts:
• Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron at Jazz
Game
• Zac Efron Caught with His Gay Lover
• Zac Efron Rushed to the Hospital
• Jessica Alba Bashes Zac Efron
• Zac Efron in a Wig
it, so we want to know where you stand on
the issue.
Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if
you're viewing this in an RSS reader, click
through to view in your Javascript-enabled
web browser.
Calls for mercy aside, right now it's
looking very unlikely that XP will stick
This Week's Best Posts
[Highlights]
(Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 12:00:00 PM
It's Friday and we're in love—with
stopping this productivity madness and
enjoying the weekend! Before you do, get
a load of our most popular posts this week.
(Remember, if Lifehacker's post volume is
flooding your feedreader with unread
items, subscribe to our trimmed-down,
high-quality top stories feed.)
• Easy Ways to Go Green with Your
Computer
"Not everyone can afford to install solar
panels or get a new Prius this Earth Day,
but there is one place you can go green
without spending an arm and a leg or
radically changing your lifestyle: your
computer."
• Top 10 Amazon Power Shopper Tools
"You already love the one-stop
convenience of shopping online at
Amazon.com, but chances are you're not
getting everything you can out of this
feature-packed shopping engine."
• Tweak Microsoft Outlook to Empty
Your Inbox Faster
"Microsoft Outlook is the company-
issued email client at your place of
employment, so like it or not, it's up to you
to figure out how to manage your inbox,
calendar, and task list every day using it."
• Slim Down, Back Up, and Organize
Your Wallet
around for purchase, so us Windows users
may have to get used to Vista, for better or
worse. Let's hear your reasoning for or
against the Vista takeover in the
comments.
Gossip* Tech Tips* 31
"If that big ol' bump on your butt is
giving you back problems, it's time to
reorganize your wallet."
• Do You Delete or Archive More Gmail
Messages?
"Ever since they launched it without a
Delete button, the folks at Google have
been trying to convince Gmail users to
archive their mail instead of trash it."
• RegToy Tweaks Your PC Every Which
Way
"Free PC tweaking utility RegToy
exposes all sorts of Windows settings that
you'd normally have to dig into the registry
to get to."
• SuperMemo Helps You Remember
Everything Before You Forget
"Windows only: Remember everything
you've learned using spaced repetition with
SuperMemo."
• Best Contact Management Applications
"Your contact list is growing larger every
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BitRipper Converts DVDs
to AVIs in One Click
[Featured Windows
Download]
By Adam Pash (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/25/2008 11:00:00 AM
Windows only: Freeware application
bitRipper provides no-hassle, one-click
conversions from DVDs straight to AVI
video files. Until recently a commercial
program, bitRipper handles the decryption
and encoding of the DVD video in one fell
swoop, emphasizing a very simple one-
click process (though you can set more
BITRIPPER page 32
32 Tech Tips* Food*
Speed Up Ubuntu Updates with a
Mirror Server [Bandwidth]
By Kevin Purdy (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 2:00:00 AM
As anyone trying to download or upgrade
the latest version of Ubuntu likely found,
the servers at Ubuntu can get pretty
overwhelmed, especially on new release
days. The (unofficial) Ubuntu Blog points
out a list of mirror sites you can use to
speed up your software updates and avoid
strained servers. Look through the "Mirror-
De-Clump Sugar with a Slice of Bread
[Household]
By Gina Trapani (Lifehacker)
Submitted at 4/26/2008 5:00:00 AM
You're about to do some weekend baking
and pull out the container of brown sugar
only to find it's dried into a collection of
hard clumps. The LifeSpy blog says you
can use a slice of bread to soften it up
again.
Place the sugar in a microwavable
container and place a slice of bread in the
Kohlrabi
By Elise
Submitted at 4/23/2008 6:22:13 AM
Have you ever eaten a kohlrabi? These
little sputnik-shaped vegetables come in
green or purple, can be eaten raw or
cooked, and taste a lot like broccoli stems.
The word kohlrabi is German for cabbage
turnip (kohl as in cole-slaw, and rübe for
turnip) though kohlrabi is more related to
cabbage and cauliflower than to root
vegetables. We usually eat them raw, just
peeled, sliced and added to a salad, but
they are also delicious cooked and are
often used in Indian cuisine.
If you come by some kohlrabi and are
wondering what to make with them, we
have a kohlrabi ham bake here on Simply
Recipes and the following are several
enticing ideas from other food blogs:
Kohlrabi Kalan with coconut and chiles,
from My Cookbook
Celeriac and kohlrabi rosti an Indian
Mirrors" list for a location near you, copy
the "http://" or "ftp://" line, and then head
to your system's sources list, found in
/etc/apt/sources.list. Make a backup copy,
and then replace all instances of
http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu with
your mirror server line, and you should
notice faster response times when updating
or downloading new packages.
22x Faster Upgrade[Ubuntu Blog]
container on the sugar. Seal the container
tightly and microwave for 15 seconds. The
moisture from the bread will raise the
pressure in the container and the steam will
soften the sugar and you can now easily
work on the clumps. A slice of bread can
also keep cookies fresh, too. Thanks,
Jason!
How to Soften Brown Sugar
Clumps[LifeSpy]
kohlrabi fritter from Rosa Jackson's Edible
Adventures
Kohlrabi and apple slaw from A Veggie
Venture
Roasted kohlrabi from A Veggie Venture
Puréed kohlrabi from Farmgirl Fare
Spicy kohlrabi sukke from Aayi's
Recipes
Kohlrabi curry from Cook's Hideout
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
BITRIPPER
continued from page 31
advanced options if you like). The on-the-
fly encryption and encoding means
bitRipper also works very quickly. The
downside: bitRipper does not support
filetypes other than AVI, which means
you'll want to stick with previously
mentioned HandBrake when you're ready
to rip a DVD for your iPod. If you give it a
try, let's hear how you like it in the
comments. While you're beefing up your
DVD-ripping toolbet, check out the five
best DVD ripping tools.
bitRipper[via FreewareGenius]
Palmiers (Elephant Ears)
By Garrett McCord and sugar. Bake. Done. Class dismissed.
This cookie, due to its simplicity, pairs
Submitted at 4/23/2008 6:22:13 AM
well with many other desserts or after
Please welcome guest author Garrett dinner espresso, coffee, and tea. Yet at the
McCord of Vanilla Garlic who shares his same time the simple addition of spices
dead-easy palmiers cookie recipe with us.
~Elise
Sometimes I just want a quick cookie.
such as nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom or
vanilla sugar can make this a very fragrant
way to end a meal. The palmier can also be
Something simple, yet flashy, with very reworked into a great savory appetizer if
little work on my part. A quick rendezvous you want; instead of using sugar and
in the kitchen with near instant cookie spices, replace the sugar with grated
gratification. Parmesan and roll into it a very thin layer
The answer to this cookie conundrum is of pesto.
the palmier, or elephant ear cookie. A Continue reading "Palmiers (Elephant
simple French classic, and even though it's
Ears)" »
French don't let that scare you. Puff pastry
Kohlrabi and squash empanadas from
Straight from the Farm
Fennel and kohlrabi salad from Food
Stories
Kohlrabi remoulade from Nourish Me
Quick kohlrabi pickles from Restaurant
Widow
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
Chorizo and Eggs
By Elise
Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:55:02 PM
Growing up, we had some of the standard
American foods for breakfast - cream o'
wheat, oatmeal, waffles, fried eggs,
pancakes (no sugar coated cereals in this
household!) - and a couple things I never
saw in any of my friends' homes - huevos,
and my favorite chorizo with eggs. My
mother is hispanic by ancestry and looks,
and even though she doesn't speak a drop
of Spanish she still cooks what she was
taught by her mother, grandmother and
relatives, growing up in Tucson, Arizona.
Thus we alone on our block had chorizo,
Spaghetti and Meatballs
By Elise
Submitted at 4/23/2008 6:22:13 AM
Spaghetti and meatballs, what's there not
to love? Spaghetti and meatballs has to be
one of the most fun dishes ever invented,
at least from a kid's perspective. Mounds
of spaghetti, fork twirling strands in a
spoon, tasty meatballs, even the very
serving of the spaghetti, trying to lift just
the right amount from the bowl, these are
some of my favorite memories from
or Mexican sausage scrambled up with
eggs. I didn't even know that chorizo was
the name of the sausage and not the dish
until I was in my twenties. What is
chorizo? A spicy pork sausage. While the
Spanish version is usually spiced with
paprika and garlic, Mexican chorizo is
spiced with chile peppers. I've seen chorizo
served in Mexican restaurants most often
as a side sausage, like bacon. We cook
ours up with the eggs and add some raisins
as well, the sweetness of which provides
some balance to the spicy chile in the
chorizo.
Continue reading "Chorizo and Eggs" »
childhood. No, it is not an authentic Italian
dish, but an American adaptation. Who
cares? Certainly not I. This particular
Rice Pudding
By Elise
Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:55:56 PM
"Rice pudding is how God intended us to
eat rice," my father announced when I
mentioned I was thinking about making
some. Well that settled it, rice pudding it
would be. With a little investigation, I
found that there are two basic ways to
make rice pudding - baking or boiling.
Then there is my dad's way, which is take
some cold white rice, add some cream,
sugar, and cinnamon. Mix and eat. Dad has
been making rice pudding this way my
spaghetti and meatballs recipe was given to
us by Rick Mindermann, of our local
Italian grocery store Corti Brothers. Rick is
one of these walking encyclopedias of food
knowledge, whose enthusiasm for all
things food and cooking is infectious. Rick
even made a video of this spaghetti and
meatballs recipe, check it out!
Continue reading "Spaghetti and
Meatballs" »
whole life, but dad's method has never
appealed to me that much, so boiling or
baking it would have to be. The first recipe
I tried called for 3/4 cup of heavy cream
for a recipe that only served 2 people.
Yikes! Too rich, couldn't eat it. (Ever
notice that recipes 20 years and older can
be a bit heavy on the cream and butter?) A
couple of adjustments later, I settled on
this recipe, using the boiling method. It is
especially tasty with raisins.
Continue reading "Rice Pudding" »
Food* 33
Curried Potato
and Vegetable
Soup
By Elise
Submitted at 4/24/2008 1:56:55 AM
In honor of my friend Barbara and her
efforts with the food blogger Taste of
Yellow event raising awareness for Lance
Armstrong's LiveSTRONG Day, I set out
to make a vibrant, yellow soup. This
curried potato soup is filled with Yukon
Gold yellow potatoes, cauliflower, yellow
bell peppers, yellow onions, corn, and
yellow summer squash. Can one possibly
get more yellow than that? Wait, the butter
is yellow too, and turmeric stains
everything it touches yellow. This recipe
uses a couple summer seasonal ingredients
- the corn and squash - but you could
easily substitute a sweet potato (put it in
early with the Yukon Golds).
My mother and I both loved it, especially
with some cilantro mixed in. My father
doesn't like curry so his vote doesn't count.
Continue reading "Curried Potato and
Vegetable Soup" »
34 Food*
How to Cut and Prepare Prickly
Pears
By Garrett McCord
Submitted at 4/23/2008 9:36:47 PM
Please welcome Garrett McCord of
Vanilla Garlic as he shows us how to cut
up a prickly pear. ~Elise
Known to few, the fruit of the nopales
cactus(cacti with beaver tail-like paddles),
are actually quite edible. Called prickly
pears, these neon fruit provide delicious
juice that tastes like a cross between all-
natural bubblegum (if indeed there is such
a thing) and watermelon.
Chicken with Mushroom Cream Sauce
By Elise
Submitted at 4/24/2008 8:22:38 PM
From the recipe archive.
"Your website readers are going to love
this," my father exclaimed when he finally
finished his plate of chicken smothered in
creamy mushroom sauce. Mom found the
Prickly pear juice is often used to make
jam or candy, but works wonders in
cocktails and used in vinaigrettes for
salads. I've used the juice to flavor cream
cheese frosting for a lime flavored
cupcake, and have seen others boil it down
with a bit of orange and lemon juice to
make a sauce for fruit salads and
cheesecakes.
Continue reading "How to Cut and
Prepare Prickly Pears" »
recipe from one of her favorite cookbooks*
now long out of print. The note in the
Lemon Tart
By Elise
Submitted at 4/26/2008 9:50:39 PM
My father and I have been experimenting
with lemon tart recipes for a year, without
much success, by the way (until now).
First there was the disastrous lemon tart
from the New York Times, described so
well by Deb of Smitten Kitchen; we had a
similar inedible result. Then there were my
several attempts to make a Meyer lemon
confit over pastry dough crust, still way
cookbook regarding this recipe is"Brides
might well add this to their kitchen
repertoire. It is easy to fix and never fails
to make a hit." We all agree. Our six
thumbs up on this one.
Continue reading "Chicken with
Mushroom Cream Sauce" »
Daily -Click and Print- Newspaper
How to Store Parsley,
Cilantro, and Other
Fresh Herbs
By Elise
Submitted at 4/23/2008 7:53:07 AM
Have you ever had trouble keeping fresh
herbs fresh? Do your cilantro and parsley
go wilty, limpy, or dry after a few days?
Several years ago my mother taught me
too tart. We finally chanced upon a Charlie
this super easy trick, which really works,
and keeps fresh herbs fresh and useable for
Palmer recipe with a fabulous lemon curd
filling, but his cornmeal crust tasted like
baked polenta. Just didn't work with the
up to a couple of weeks. The trick involves
the clever use of a plastic bag.
Continue reading "How to Store Parsley,
lemon curd. So, we took the fabulous Cilantro, and Other Fresh Herbs" »
filling and put it in a tried and true
shortbread crust. Dad even made a batch of
candied citrus peel (you can easily skip
this step) days in advance. And voilá, a
truly delectable lemon tart.
Continue reading "Lemon Tart" »