oxfordt

Click here to view the video in your browser.

Tuesday 10 January 2012

Video Spotlight: J/P HRO Help Haiti Home PSA

J/P Haitian Relief Organization (J/P HRO) is proud to unveil a special new PSA campaign entitled “Help Haiti Home” featuring actors and artists such as Sean Penn, Edward Norton, Miley Cyrus, Zooey Deschanel, Sarah Silverman, Rainn Wilson, LL Cool J, Eric Dane and Pras describing what home means to them, connecting the dots to the struggles many Haitian people still face.

Los Angeles Lakers: 5 Pleasant Surprises of Early NBA Season

The Los Angeles Lakers are 6-4 after 10 games, a record fairly indicative of their up-and-down start to the young season.

While it's clear that Mike Brown is still searching for answers in terms of his rotations and personnel, we've witnessed some positive trends beginning to emerge as well.

Let's take a look at some of the pleasant surprises thus far in the early season.

Begin Slideshow

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1019159-los-angeles-lakers-5-pleasant-surprises-of-early-nba-season

Deadly gun attack on Nigerian bar

Suspected Islamic militants open fire in a bar in the north of Nigeria, killing eight people including several police officers.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-africa-16499659

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-england-wiltshire-16488207

Bird-feeding pensioners get Asbos

Two Wiltshire pensioners are given Asbos ordering them not to feed pigeons for five years or buy more than three loaves of bread a day.

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/10/hipgeo-for-iphone-keeps-track-of-your-when-and-where/

HipGeo for iPhone keeps track of your when and where

HipGeo is a free app that can create a sort of travel blog on the fly with as much or as little user input as you like.

It tracks your location, allows you to add comments and photos, and can even playback an animated map of your travels.

You can keep your travel info to yourself as sort of a diary, or share your adventures via Facebook, Twitter or email. Alternatively, publish your info to the world through a web page or using the app itself.

HipGeo also shows posts from people nearby who've elected to make their locations public. I didn't see a lot of activity near me, but I did see some public posts from the bigger nearby cities, and a lot of activity at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The app works well, and gives you granular control of your privacy ranging from 'keep my travels to myself' or 'let the whole world know where I am and what I am doing.' The app has some safeguards to protect your battery life, because it runs in the background when you activate it. One setting (places) saves your battery by only uploading a new location, while another setting (places and routes) tracks you from moment to moment. It's better to use the latter setting selectively or only if you're plugged in.

HipGeo is an interesting take on location broadcasting, blogging, navigation and social integration. It seems to work as advertised, and is a really effortless way to create a blog of a vacation, or even your daily activities. I think users should take care about publishing photos and locations to the whole world, but if you limit your followers I find HipGeo to be worthwhile for travelers with a preference for sharing.

HipGeo requires iOS 4.0 or greater. It is a 6 MB download. You can see some screenshots in the gallery below.

Gallery: HipGeo travel blog app

HipGeo for iPhone keeps track of your when and where originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://finance.varolmak.com/2011/12/way-to-conserve-money-once-banks-appear.html

The way to Conserve Money Once the Banks Appear Bent on Bleeding You With Charges and Charges

charity news music news news

Acer AcerCloud promo images look just like iCloud

Wow, what a surprising turn of events! Yet another consumer electronics manufacturer has unveiled something "new" that appears to be a blatant copy of something that Apple created. In this case, the guilty party is Taiwanese computer manufacturer Acer. When they're not jumping on the "Ultrabook" bandwagon along with other manufacturers who are designing MacBook Air clones, they're busy parroting Apple's iCloud service.

The Verge published images from Acer (above) and Apple (below) presentations of their respective cloud services. As you can see, they're remarkably similar. Sure, the clouds are shaped differently, but both contain exactly 20 images. Both images contain a laptop, a tablet, and a smartphone. Acer has even named their photo sharing element "PicStream," which sounds remarkably similar to Photo Stream. The only major changes are the location of the devices, the location of the phrase "30 days," and the addition of a tacky Wi-Fi signal indicator. Both slides are done on a gradient background, although the colors are different.

As Acer fans are likely to point out in the comments, Apple didn't invent the concept of cloud computing. SugarSync's old ads even used to show three devices being fed media from a cloud. But when a major manufacturer is so desperate to be like Apple that they do their best to even mimic presentation slides, it shows an amazing lack of imagination and taste. It's just surprising that Acer didn't have a Steve Jobs lookalike make the presentation at CES 2012...

[Images via The Verge]

Acer AcerCloud promo images look just like iCloud originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/09/acer-acercloud-promo-images-look-just-like-icloud/

Henry return a 'dream' for Wenger

Arsene Wenger believes Thierry Henry has added to his legendary status at Arsenal with his late winner in the FA Cup third-round tie against Leeds United.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/sport1/hi/football/16479170.stm

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/LookToTheStars/~3/pja7OFbtBXU/2052-justin-bieber

Spotlight: Justin Bieber's Charity Work

Justin Bieber is known for his 2009 debut album My World.

He took part in recording “We Are The World 25” in 2010.

Some of the proceeds from his 2011 Christmas album are going to charity.

Charities & foundations supported

Justin Bieber has supported the following charities:

Read more about Justin Bieber's charity work and events.

Find out more about contributing, or how to contact celebrities.

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1017762-bcs-swag-nike-killed-it-with-their-clothing-campaign

BCS Swag: Nike Killed It with Its Clothing Campaign

It's been a great start to 2012 for Nike, Inc. as swoosh-sponsored schools ran the table, finishing 5-0 in the Bowl Championship Series.

True to its tradition as one of the great outfitters in sports, Nike presented limited-edition T-shirts to the winners of the big games—and it just might be the company's greatest apparel collection of recent memory.

Seriously, so much swag.

Begin Slideshow

Microsoft's Sesame Street team-up

Interactive episodes of Sesame Street are being developed by its creators in conjunction with Microsoft.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/technology-16482779

SoundHound's most ID'd songs in 2011

SoundHound is a music search and discovery tool for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices. The app has 50 million worldwide users and boasts of over four million music searches per day. The company recently released its Top Ten Identified songs and at the top of the charts was Pumped Up Kicks by Foster the People. The sleeper hit from the Indie band mixes sullen lyrics about teenage homicide with an upbeat, bouncy music track. Following behind Pumped Up Kicks is Someone Like You by Adele, a ballad about a broken relationship from the English singer-songwriter.

You can check out the remaining top ten in the press release below, and grab SoundHound's free app or ad-free paid version (US$6.99) from the iOS App store to start contributing to the best of 2012 list.

Show full PR text

SoundHound's Top 10 Most ID'd Songs in 2011

As we welcome 2012 and all the fantastic new music it will bring, we at SoundHound thought we'd take a moment to reflect on the musical highlights of 2011-by compiling a list of the top 10 songs that you, our users, most frequently identified using SoundHound's blazing fast music recognition. SoundHound users ID'd well over 1 billion songs in 2011! The most ID'd song was-drum roll, please-"Pumped Up Kicks," by indie pop band Foster the People. This track alone was ID'd 1.25 million times in 2011.

Here's the Top 10:

1. "Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People

2. "Someone Like You" by Adele

3. "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO

4. "Just Can't Get Enough" by Black Eyed Peas

5. "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele

6. "Mr. Saxobeat" by Alexandra Stan

7. "Danza Kuduro" by Don Omar & Lucenzo

8. "The Lazy Song" by Bruno Mars

9. "Hello" (Single Edit) by Martin Solveig & Dragonette

10. "Down On Me" (featuring 50 Cent) by Jeremih

Thank you to our users who ID'd these and millions of other great songs in 2011. We look forward to helping you ID many, many more in 2012.

SoundHound's most ID'd songs in 2011 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/09/soundhounds-most-idd-songs-in-2011/

Monday 9 January 2012

Arsenal 1-0 Leeds

Thierry Henry scores the winner in his first game back for Arsenal to beat Leeds in the FA Cup third-round tie at Emirates Stadium.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/sport1/hi/football/16381242.stm

Detox

I just finished medical detox I had to go due to my seizures. It was a very positive experience. But now here comes the hard part I'm deciding on what program I want to do I think I'm going to try a...

Source: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/alcoholism/245683-detox.html

Source: http://finance.varolmak.com/2011/11/money-mastery-3-simple-methods-to.html

Money Mastery - 3 Simple Methods to Mastering Your Monetary Success

charity news music news news

New lead in Queen estate murder

Detectives investigate a possible new sighting of a young woman found murdered on the Queen's Sandringham Estate in Norfolk.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-england-norfolk-16469866

VIDEO: House of Commons

From phone-hacking to the Arab Spring, and from the eurozone to Hillsborough it has been a momentous year in the House of Commons. Democracy Live has some of 2011's parliamentary highlights.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/democracylive/hi/house_of_commons/newsid_9665000/9665387.stm

US ME: Doubts Heard About Medical Marijuana Operation

Kennebec Journal, 09 Jan 2012 - AUGUSTA -- As Maine's largest medical marijuana nonprofit organization plans to open its dispensaries, the man originally tapped to run its growing operation says the organization does not have enough space to grow the product its patients need. Meanwhile, leading state patient advocates say those who have signed up to receive medical marijuana from a Wellness Connection of Maine dispensary in Thomaston have run up against difficulty setting up appointments and stringent product limits that are well below the amounts allowed by state law.

Source: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v12/n025/a05.html

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/06/daily-mac-app-and-friday-favorite-coderunner/

Chelsea Clinton's New Year Wish For Charity

Chelsea Clinton had some nice things to say about her father's on-going charity mission as 2011 came to a close.

“My father is a remarkable man (yes, I am biased!),” she wrote. "Even at 65, he is still traveling tirelessly around the world, imagining new ways to transform the lives of those in need.

“He continues to inspire me with his energy, his vision, his optimism, and his commitment ? ensuring that everyone has the chance, as he did, to “have a heck of a story.” My father wants every person to have an opportunity for a better life, whether in the United States, Peru, Rwanda, or beyond.

“It amazes me and fills me with great gratitude that no matter where he goes, my father finds people who share his vision, and who care.

“As we’re saying goodbye to 2011, my father is already hard at work making sure his Foundation reaches even more people in 2012, including:

Teaching farmers more efficient farming techniques and helping them find stable markets and fair prices. The Foundation’s work in Malawi is already benefiting more than 4,000 farmers;
Providing life-changing cataract surgeries to more than 25,000 Peruvians ? with a goal of reaching 50,000 Peruvians by 2013; and,
Working with private investors, NGOs, Haitian entrepreneurs and the government of Haiti to support education, capacity building, and facilitate the creation of more than 20,000 jobs through new developments.

“All of these efforts are about empowering people to transform their own lives and their communities ? and every day, the Clinton Foundation is working to do just that."

To help Bill, Chelsea and the Clinton Foundation kick off the new year, click here.

Daily Mac App and Friday Favorite: CodeRunner

CodeRunner is a text editor for people who write code. It comes with built-in syntax highlighting for AppleScript, C, C++, Java, JavaScript (Node.js), Objective,C, Perl, PHP, Python, Ruby, or shell scripting.

I have been using it for a few months, mostly for writing shell scripts, and love it. The color coding makes it easy to immediately tell when I am missing a quote or some other basic syntax flaw, which means making fewer mistakes. It automatically applies templates (which are editable) to new files, so whenever I start a new shell script, it automatically includes the header lines and some other settings that I always use. In fact, it defaults to using the same template as the last kind of file you saved, so if you tend to write in one language, it will automatically pick that language and template. Otherwise you can choose manually.

One of my favorite aspects of it is a built-in terminal console, which lets you test the script without switching over to Terminal or iTerm. A recent update even made it possible to define arguments, compilations flags, or arguments before sending it to the built-in console. The console automatically appears when needed, and can be shown/hidden with a keyboard command.

CodeRunner offers "completions" (for example: automatically adding a closing bracket when you open one), but it also lets you turn that off if you don't like it. There are even themes to change the color combinations. I tend to prefer a simple black-on-white, but there are several dark background/light type options as well. In Lion, CodeRunner supports Autosaving, Versions and Fullscreen mode. It also supports "tabs" (multiple documents in one window) if you want to use them, but doesn't require them. Generally I don't like tabs in any apps except web browsers, but it is handy to have the option to keep related files together when working on separate projects.

CodeRunner isn't going to replace a complex program like BBEdit with integrated FTP and a multitude of configurable options, but it doesn't need to. I own, use, and love BBEdit, but I use CodeRunner exclusively for writing shell scripts now, and vastly prefer it for that purpose.

If you want a lightweight tool for writing scripts, you should definitely check it out on its home page or download it from the Mac App Store for $10. (Also: if you use regular expressions -- especially if you have trouble with them -- be sure to also checkout Patterns, an app by the same developer which makes it much easier to see how they expand. I'll probably review that more fully another day but it's currently on sale for $3 instead of $5, so you might want to check it out soon.)

Daily Mac App and Friday Favorite: CodeRunner originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-northern-ireland-16464870

US court hears IRA tape challenge

A court in the United States will be asked later to rule that a confidential Troubles archive should not be handed over to the police in Northern Ireland.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/science-environment-16463759

VIDEO: Hawking misses 70th birthday event

British scientist Stephen Hawking has had to miss a symposium to mark his 70th birthday because of ill health.

Source: http://finance.varolmak.com/2011/12/way-to-conserve-money-once-banks-appear.html

The way to Conserve Money Once the Banks Appear Bent on Bleeding You With Charges and Charges

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/05/new-canadian-apple-store-will-be-eastern-most-in-north-america/

New Canadian Apple Store will be eastern-most in North America

China isn't the only region Apple is targeting for expansion in 2012. The company is also eyeing Canada. Now home to 22 retail stores, the North American country may be getting four new outlets in the upcoming year.

According to allNovaScotia.com and ifoAppleStore, Apple may open a store next to Sears in the Halifax Shopping Center. Located in Nova Scotia, this store will become North America's easternmost location.

The Halifax Shopping Center sounds like the perfect place for an Apple store. The mall was renovated in 2007, and has several big-name retailers. There's also a lot of people in Nova Scotia (over 900,000 residents) and very few nearby Apple stores. The next closest Apple retail store is the Maine Mall store, which is located over 300 geodesic miles (500+ road miles) away in the US.

[Via ifoApplsStore]

New Canadian Apple Store will be eastern-most in North America originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 05 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sunday 8 January 2012

Royals attend War Horse premiere

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge join stars on the red carpet at the UK premiere of Steven Spielberg's new film War Horse.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/entertainment-arts-16461379

Debbie Gibson To Join Celebrity Apprentice For Charity

Singer songwriter Debbie Gibson will appear on season five of Celebrity Apprentice, and has announced she will play for the charity Children International.

Photo: Debbie Gibson and Helen

Celebrity Apprentice is a reality television show where celebrities compete in weekly challenges and donate any winnings to their personal charities. Every week, the celebrity contestants will work in two teams, each under the guidance of a designated project manager, to compete in business-driven tasks around New York City, using their fame, along with their proven business acumen, to win challenges.

Contestants are subjected to long hours, grueling deadlines, intellectual challenges, personality clashes, and intense scrutiny under the careful watch of Donald Trump and his advisors. The last person standing will be chosen as the Celebrity Apprentice and have the honor of delivering a $250,000 bonus check to their designated charity. Also taking part in the show are Clay Aiken, Lou Ferrigno, George Takei, Teresa Giudice, Victoria Gotti, Aubrey O’Day, Tia Carrere, Cheryl Tiegs, Patricia Velasquez, Dayana Mendoza, Lisa Lampanelli, Penn Jillette, Paul Teutul, Sr., Arsenio Hall, Adam Carolla, Michael Andretti and Dee Snider.

Gibson will compete to help provide 5,000 poor children in India with medical and dental care and educational support.

Children International president and CEO Jim Cook said, “Children International is fortunate to have such a dedicated supporter as Debbie Gibson. She has proven she is an ardent advocate for children living in the most extreme poverty.”

Gibson, who is the youngest performer ever to write and record a number one song, has been a supporter of the U.S.-based humanitarian organization since 1991. Currently, she helps support 7-year-old Helen, her mother and five siblings living in a cemetery in Manila, Philippines. Helen and her family guard a cemetery crypt, and live on less than $11 a month. With Gibson’s help, Helen and her siblings now receive medical and dental care and attend school.

Children International’s programs provide poor children like Helen with medical and dental care, educational support and health education to children and youth, some whose families live on less than $1.25 a day.

VIDEO: Has civilian rule changed Burma?

Less than a year since a civilian government came to power in Burma, the BBC's Fergal Keane reports on changes within the country.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-asia-16461735

Source: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1015858-st-louis-rams-fisher-is-concerned-the-rams-might-move-to-los-angeles

St. Louis Rams: Fisher Is Concerned the Rams Might Move to Los Angeles

A long time ago, in an NFL franchise far, far away, Jeff Fisher was the head coach of the Houston Oilers. Bud Adams, the Oilers owner, was unhappy with his stadium, and was threatening to move the team. When his demands weren't met, he struck a deal to move the Oilers to Nashville, Tenn.

Fisher was the coach of the Oilers as they transitioned to being the Tennessee Titans, and it was a miserable experience.

The Oilers had a promising young team that went 8-8 in 1996. However, they went 6-2 on the road and only 2-6 at home, because the crowds were so thin. Support all but vanished, and who can blame the Houston fans?

Things got so bad that the Oilers were released from their stadium lease early, and to make matters worse, the stadium in Nashville wasn't ready yet. So the Tennessee Oilers arrived picked up and moved to Memphis, where they played their games in the Liberty Bowl.

That's right, the Tennessee Oilers were based in Nashville, but played their games in Memphis. That is over 200 miles on a bus, one way, to play your "home games" every week.

It was a miserable experience for the players and the coaches.

Fisher remembers all of this. He wants no part of going through it again, and it is being reported that the possibility that the Rams might move to St. Louis is the only thing stopping him from taking the Rams' coaching job.

Should Rams fans be concerned about any of this?

The Rams lease agreement in St. Louis runs through 2025. However, in 2015 there is an opt out if the Edward Jones Dome is not a "top tier" stadium. Are Missouri tax payers willing to foot the bill on a publicly funded project that might cost $500 million dollars, or more?

Probably not in this economy.

So are the Rams going to stay in St. Louis? If Jeff Fisher is taking this long to make up his mind, maybe he knows something the rest of us Rams fans don't.

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/05/apples-red-friday-sales-launch-in-several-asian-countires/

Apple's 'Red Friday' sales launch in several Asian countries

A one-day "Red Friday" sale on Apple's online store has hit several Asian countries in celebration of the Lunar New Year, including China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Discounts on the Hong Kong store are broadly similar to the modest discounts Apple offered during its Black Friday promotion, with one-day price reductions of no more than ten percent on Apple's own gear.

Discounts on third-party accessories are a bit more generous, so if you're looking for a case or some other accessory for your Mac, iPhone, or iPad, the one-day Red Friday sale may be a great time to buy.

Apple's Red Friday sale runs for the rest of today only, so if you live in one of the eligible countries be sure to check it out.

Apple's 'Red Friday' sales launch in several Asian countries originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Thu, 05 Jan 2012 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Man City 2-3 Man Utd

Wayne Rooney scores twice as Manchester United defeat 10-man Manchester City in a thrilling FA Cup third-round tie.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/sport1/hi/football/16376824.stm

No repeat of Thatcher - Lib Dem

The coalition government will not "repeat the mistakes" of Margaret Thatcher, Lib Dem minister Danny Alexander says.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-politics-16460117

Daily iPhone App: Nearby Now

I don't use the phone book. In fact, I'm not even sure where my copy of the Yellow Pages is placed. It's been gone for months, and the only time I miss it is when I need to find a local plumber or electrician. It's so difficult to find information on nearby contractors. No search tool or website can duplicate the concise listing of the Yellow Pages. That's why I was excited to hear about Nearby Now, an iOS app for service professionals and their customers that helps to fill this gap.

The app lets service professionals create an account and check-in when they are called to someone's house. They can check-in using the app, via SMS or by linking their Nearby Now account to Four Square. When they mark their location, their approximate position is saved to their profile. If contractors use it enough, they can create a detailed heat map of the locations they service.

This service map will help contractors find new customers. When a person needs a repair to their leaking roof, he or she can search Nearby Now for local check-ins. The homeowner could easily see that roofer Bob Smith worked on three houses in his or her town. The app not only marks a service person's location; it also lets people review their service. When a service person works at a house, he or she can send the customer a satisfaction survey via email or SMS. All completed surveys will be attached to the worker's account for others to see.

The app is a fantastic idea, but it's relatively new and needs more service providers to become a useful tool. Getting people to use the app will be key. There's been other similar services, but they've never taken off because only a few people used them. If the developers behind the app can entice contractors to use the service regularly, it could easily become the #1 tool people use to connect with service professionals. The Nearby Now app is free to use for both service professionals and their customers.

Daily iPhone App: Nearby Now originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/06/daily-iphone-app-nearby-now/

charity news music news news

Turn the iPod Down, There's a Train Coming

A headphone toting man was so lost in his tunes that he did not hear or see a New Jersey Transit train bearing down on him. The man walked right into the side of the train but sustained only minor injuries. The New York Post does not have details on what stellar jam so distracted the pedestrian — we'll just assume it was the new Rick Ross mixtape for fun.

VIDEO: Syria's monitors under scrutiny

With the violence in Syria showing no sign of abating, foreign ministers from Arab League countries are due to meet in Egypt to discuss the future of their monitoring mission.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-middle-east-16459072

Nurse held in triple murder probe

A nurse is being questioned on suspicion of three counts of murder by police investigating the poisoning of patients at Stepping Hill Hospital.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-england-manchester-16458478

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/01/06/144781145/jobless-rate-dips-to-8-5-percent-200-000-jobs-added-to-payrolls?ft=1&f=103943429

Jobless Rate Dips To 8.5 Percent, 200,000 Jobs Added To Payrolls

The unemployment rate is near a three-year low and there were 1.9 million private-sector jobs added to payrolls last year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says.

Saturday 7 January 2012

Searching for the most expensive train journey

Rail fares have gone up again, provoking ire from commuters. But what is Britain's most expensive stretch of railway?

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/magazine-16390608

Source: http://www.tuaw.com/2012/01/06/china-unicom-offers-free-iphone-4s-on-contract/

China Unicom offers free iPhone 4S on contract

Want a free iPhone 4S? If you're a customer of China Unicom, you're in luck -- the company announced today (one week from the first day of iPhone 4S availability in China and 21 other countries) that they'll give users a free iPhone 4S for signing a multiyear service contract.

It gets better. The promotion offers the 32 GB iPhone 4S on a three-year contract for as little as 286 yuan (about US$45) per month, or customers can commit for only two years and get the 16 GB model for 386 yuan per month.

Several industry analysts think that the subsidy, which is designed to attract high-end subscribers who will also buy up expensive data plans, is a bad idea for China Unicom. Hong Kong-based analyst Steven Liu of Standard Chartered Bank noted in a Bloomberg article that "After subsidizing the iPhone, the operator will have less money for subsidizing other smartphone users that could be more profitable."

China Unicom's costs for 3G phone subsidies and related marketing expenses were nearly 6 billion yuan in the first half of 2011, almost four times the same period in 2010. The popular iPhone handsets are sure to hit the carrier's subsidy costs even more, but customers don't appear to want to purchase lower priced and less capable smartphones.

China Unicom offers free iPhone 4S on contract originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/newcomers-recovery/245474-day-3-knowing-ice-cold-beer-would-bad-idea.html

Day 3 - Knowing an ice cold beer would be a BAD IDEA

Fighting the craving. Feeling whiny.

On the plus side, I had my hair done today and it is fabulously flaming again.

Wishing I was "normal" does no good so I'm trying not to bother.