[MyAppleMenu] Jan 22, 2007

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/>
Mac news for Mac people

[News]

*** Windows On The Mac Changes Everything
<http://money.cnn.com/2007/01/19/technology/fastforward_parallels.fortune/index.htm?section=money_topstories>
David Kirkpatrick, Fortune

The kind of software sold by the formidable Parallels is transforming computing and challenging Steve Jobs.

*** A Red Cat's Journey, Enhanced By iTunes
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/22/technology/22cooder.html?ex=1327122000&en=0d44c41729c1b1c0&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>
Robert Levine, New York Times

Over the course of his career that has spanned four decades, the guitarist and producer Ry Cooder has recorded with groups from the Rolling Stones to the Buena Vista Social Club. But he hasn't been prolific as a solo artist recently, mostly because he has had trouble capturing the sound he wanted on a compact disc. On his new album, he achieved that sould with a little help from un unlikely source: Apple's iTunes program.

*** Buying An iPod? You Need To Slog Out Over 112 Days
<http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200701220312.htm>
PTI

People may be going crazy over iPods, but it might not play music to ears after hearing that Indians need to work more htan five months to earn enough for buying one piece of this sleek digital music player, which is the highest compared to anywhere else in the world.

[Opinion]

*** The 10 Biggest iPod Annoyances
<http://blogs.pcworld.com/techlog/archives/003591.html>
Harry McCracken, PC World

If I don't listen to any episodes of a podcast for awhile, iTunes decides I'm not interested and stops downloading new episodes. Um, no -- sometimes I'm very interested, but there are just gaps in my listening. Having to go to iTunes and tell it to continue downloading is just maddening.

*** What Will Replace The iSight Firewire Camera? I Suggest A Wireless iSight Camera.
<http://www.rexblog.com/2007/01/21/16497/>
Rex Hammock

I predict it will utilize 802.11n and will work seamlessly with the new Apple Airport Extreme.

*** In Which I Think About Java Again, But Only For A Moment
<http://mooseyard.com/Jens/2007/01/in-which-i-think-about-java-again-but-only-for-a-moment/>
Jens Alfke, Thought Palace

Desktop Java never worked because Sun tried to build their OS on top of the real OS, duplicating every API and feature. THis led to terrible bloat... Worse, the GUI portions of the Java platform are awful, because Sun is a server company with no core competency at GUIs.

*** Apple Un-Service
<http://pixelated-dreams.com/archives/282-Apple-Un-Service.html>
Davey Shafik, Pixelated Dreams

How can Apple expect me to not work for 2 weeks? THis is insane... I would gladly pay extra for weekend repair, or say, 3 business day guaranteed turn around, but APple doesn't seem to want to offer this, a big mistake considering the buisness critical use of many of their machines.

The Tomorrow Weblog
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/tomorrow/>
Emerging Technologies. Innovative Applications. New Economy

[News]

*** A New Crop Of Kids: Generation We
<http://news.com.com/2009-1025_3-6151768.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-20&subj=news>
Stefanie Olsen, CNET News.com

"What we're talking about is a generation that has the ability to be in touch with each other immediately at earlier and earlier ages."

*** In Raw World Of Sex Movies, High Definition Could Be A View Too Real
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/22/business/media/22porn.html?ex=1327122000&en=ae526fc82277506a&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>
Matt Richtel, New York Times

The XXX industry has gotten too graphic, even for its own tastes.

*** Artists Ponder Future Of Digital Mona Lisas
<http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?chanID=sa001&articleID=3B87A374BF05212831DDE204637F56CB>
Amanda Beck, Reuters

Today, a growing number of artists use computers to create, and with technology changing fast, their digital visions could face obsolescence in just a few years.

MyAppleMenu Reader
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/reader/>
The other things in life

[World]

*** Five Myths About U.S. Kids Outclassed By The Rest Of The World
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/19/AR2007011901360.html>
Paul Farhi, Washington Post

Recently, Newsweek International's Fareed Zakaria noted Singapore's success on international math and science exams, but asked Education Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam why Singapore produced so few top-ranked scientists, entrepreneuers, inventors, business executives and academics. "We both have meritocracies," he replied. America's "is a talent meritocracy, ours is an exam meritocracy. There are some parts of the intellect that we are not able to test well -- like creativity, curiosity, a sense of adventure, ambition. Most of all, America has a culture of learning that challenges conventional wisdom, even if it means challenging authority. There are the areas where Singapore must learn from America."

[Life]

*** Of Thought And Metaphor
<http://www.thestar.com/sciencetech/article/173200>
Peter Calamai, Toronto Star

Asking Steven Pinker, Harvard researcher and best-selling author, to pass the salt turns out to be very educational. Not about sodium and high blood pressure, but about how we use language and what that reveals about human nature.

*** Astonish Me
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/21/books/review/Queenan.t.html?_r=1&ref=books&oref=slogin>
Joe Queenan, New York Times

No one was more excited than I was when Maureen Corrigan of National Publc Radio's "Fresh Air" described Alice McDermott's new novel as "astonishing." Several years ago, overwhelmed by the flood of material unleashed annually by the publishing industry, I decided to establish a screening program by purchasing only books that at least one reviewer had described as "astonishing."

*** The Search For Beautiful
<http://www.boston.com/news/globe/magazine/articles/2007/01/21/the_search_for_beautiful/>
Anupreeta Das, Boston Globe

Cosmetic surgery is no longer just for white women. Now recrod numbers of African-Americans, Asian-Americans, and Hispanics are lining up for a nip here, a tuck there. Are they chasing a Caucasian ideal of beauty? Or are they aiming for racial and ethnic ambiguity?

*** A Home, No Matter How Humble: What Happens When The Housing Crunch Leaves You Out Entirely?
<http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/01/21/CMGCNN6BAN1.DTL>
Colin Asher, San Francisco Chronicle

Typically, San Francisco's 20,000 single-room occupancy units are between 100 and 200 square feet. Bathrooms are dormitory style, and there may be only one per floor. Most buildings have no cooking facilities, forcing residents to eat out or cook in microwave ovens. Despite these paltry accommodations, rent on most SRO units is relatively high -- ranging from $500 to $1,000 per month. Because SRO hotels don't typically require security deposits or run credit checks, they are the only housing option for thousands of San Francisco's poorest residents.

*** The World Is Watching. Not Americans.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/21/movies/21scot.html?_r=1&ref=arts&oref=slogin>
A. O. Scott, New York Times

The movies are out there, more numerous and various than ever before, but the audience -- and therefore the box-office returns, and the willingness of distributors to risk even relatively small sums on North American distribution rights -- seems to be dwindling and scattering.

[Expressions]

*** War Babies
<http://www.latimes.com/features/magazine/west/la-tm-warbabies03jan21,1,6425133.story?coll=la-headlines-west>
Kaui Hart Hemmings, Los Angeles Times

Kaui Hart Hemmings is the author of "House of Thieves" (Penguin Press) and the forthcoming novel, "The Descendants," to be published in May by Random House.

SingaporeSurf
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/singapore/>
Life in the city

[Ramblings]

*** This Land Is Your Land. This Land Is My Land.
Heng-Cheong Leong

Grace Fu <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/253918/1/.html>, the Minister of State for National Development "has stressed the need to give residents more say in the running of their estates," reports Channel NewsAsia.

Let's hope this is not going to be a skin-deep exercise. There are a lot of residents who want to have a say whether the shop downstairs should or shouldn't be a Toto shop. There are a lot of residents who want to have a say the town council should spent money to build a bicycle track. In fact, there are a lot of residents who want to have a say what colour the flats should be painted.

Local election: that's something we will have to start exploring.

*** This Is My Grade. This Is Your Achievements.
Heng-Cheong Leong

Paul Farhi <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/19/AR2007011901360.html>, writing in Washington Post, quoted an interview between Fareed Zakaria of Newsweek and Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Singapore's education minister, on why Singapore produced so few top-ranked scientists, entrepreneurs, inventors, business executives and academics.

"We both have meritocracies. America's is a talent meritocracy, ours is an exam meritocracy. There are some parts of the intellect that we are not able to test well -- like creativity, curiosity, a sense of adventure, ambition. Most of all, America has a culture of learning that challenges conventional wisdom, even if it means challenging authority. These are the areas where Singapore must learn from America."

[News]

*** GST Offset Package Will Not Be Based On Housing Type Alone: Dr Ng
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/254038/1/.html>
Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia

"We have sort of put using house types as a proxy, and you can't run away from that as a broad measure, that's probably the more sensible way to go. But in between the gaps, between comparing someone in a 3- or 4-room flat and (someone with) more needs, you need to perhaps spread and use different baskets to do that."

*** Govt Still Holding Consultations On CPF Rate Hike: Manpower Minister
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/253979/1/.html>
Dominique Loh, Channel NewsAsia

Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen said the government was still in consultation with unionists, employers and workers on the proposed increase in employer's CPF contribution. But he added that it would be premature to speculate on the actual rate, if any.

*** Civil Servants' Pay Rise Based On Merit And Performance: Minister Teo
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/253989/1/.html>
Channel NewsAsia

Mr Teo explained that pay was also tied to Singapore's economic climate.

*** Grace Fu Stresses Need To Cultivate Community Bonding Among Heartlanders
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/253918/1/.html>
Norr Nohd Aziz, Channel NewsAsia

"From HDB's perspective, we have been looking at policies to promote community living, to encourage people to live near their parents. But it is the heartware -- what they feel about the policies, do they like the policies, do they think that there are areas that we can improve on -- that's what we would like to know."

*** Singapore Swing
<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16725528/site/newsweek/>
Sonia Kolesnikov-Jessop, Newsweek

The island's economy is booming. So why are so many citizens worse off than they were 10 years ago?

[Opinion]

*** Premium Bus Services *Must* Be More Expensive?
<http://mollymeek.livejournal.com/136818.html>
mollymeek

Why must fares be 1.5 times the equivalent fare of basic public transport services. I mean, if some miracle bus operator manages to provide premium services at 0.8 times the equivalent fare of basic public transport services, then why not?

*** Thoughts After Attenting A Community Forum On GST Hike
<http://aaron-ng.info/blog/thoughts-after-attending-a-community-forum-on-gst-hike.html>
Aaron Ng, Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

For the middle income group, the offset package should be more illiquid.

*** On Eyes, Ears And Mouths
<http://mrwangsaysso.blogspot.com/2007/01/on-eyes-ears-and-mouths.html>
Mr Wang Says So

It's pretty sad that no one even thinks that RCs cold possibly be a "mouth for the people."

*** Revisiting The Far Eastern Economic Review Question
<http://waynesoon.blogspot.com/2007/01/revisiting-far-eastern-economic-review.html>
The Anti-Neo-Democracy Theorist

I wonder if younger Singaporeans, when they grow up to be lawyers, analysts, politicians, ordinary workers, will wonder why the FEER was banned from Singapore? I wonder if expats posted to Singapore would wonder why such an important magazine is banned from our shores? Or as some have argued, no one really cares?

*** Neither Country Served By Thailand-Singapore Spat
<http://www.bangkokpost.com/topstories.php?id=116198>
Veera Prateepchaikul, Bangkok Post

What the two countries should do is to bury the hatchet, mend fences and move on to improve their relationship. But, of course, the Thaksin debacle should serve as a lesson for Singapore and the friends of Thailand.

*** RCs Can Be The Eyes And Ears Of Govt
<http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/portal/site/STI/menuitem.c2aef3d65baca16abb31f610a06310a0/?vgnextoid=7532758920e39010VgnVCM1000000a35010aRCRD&vgnextfmt=vgnartid:edcdf22a51540110VgnVCM100000430a0a0aRCRD>
Philip Ang Keng Hong, Straits Times

Besides a few guidelines pertaining to racial harmony and grants from the government to address concerns of those less well-offs, RCs should be unshackled from politics.

*** What Benefits Do Singapore Citizens Enjoy?
<http://www.mrbiao.com/blog/what-benefits-do-singapore-citizens-enjoy.html>
This Lush Garden Within

Do we really enjoy so much more benefits compared to foreigners that we have to be so indebted to the nation and (for the males) serve 2 years of full-time NS and 13 years of reservist thereafter?