[MyAppleMenu] Jan 25, 2008

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** Review Of iTunes Movie Rentals: What You Need To Know <http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2008/01/25/review-of-itunes-movie-rentals-what-you-need-to-know>
by David Chartier, Ars Technica
For those who are used to managing their own movie collection and/or buying movies from the iTunes Store, the way iTunes handles movie rentals is slightly different and, in some cases, disappointing.

**** First Flight: OmniFocus <http://ihnatko.com/index.php/2008/01/25/first-flight-omnifocus/>
by Andy Ihnatko, Celestial Waste Of Bandwidth
Dangit. It looked so bloody simple in the live demo.

**** Here's Why I Predict iPhone Will Come Down To $299 Within A Few Months <http://blogs.zdnet.com/ip-telephony/?p=3122>
by Russell Shaw, ZDNet.com

**** MacBook Air: First Lab Tests <http://www.macworld.com/article/131805/2008/01/macbookair_first_tests.html>
by Jason Snell, Macworld
In exchange for dramatically lighter weight and an extremely thin profile, Apple has definitely compromised when it comes to the MacBook Air's tech specs. And the results of Macworld Lab's preliminary tests of the MacBook Air reflect those compromises.

**** The Skinny On Why The iPhone Update Lacked Cut-n-Paste And Exchange Support <http://svenontech.com/2008/01/24/the-skinny-on-why-the-iphone-update-lacked-cut-n-paste-and-exchange-support/>
by Sven Rafferty, SvenOnTech
The trouble it is having is implementation: How to easily call up a copy or cut option, and then the paste action.
/Implementing cut/copy/paste on the iPhone is not easy. Especially when the touch-based UI is already so rich with actions such as tapping, dragging, and pinching. You don't want the iPhone to misinterpret your gesture./

**** Office 2008 For Mac - The Good Stuff <http://jkontherun.blogs.com/jkontherun/2008/01/office-2008-f-2.html>
by James Kendrick, jkOnTheRun
Overall I am very impressed with the interface and speed improvements that Microsoft has incorporated into Office 2008 for Mac. I find the new programs run faster than the Windows equivalent and I continue to find little improvements with usage that impress me.

**** How To Upgrade Your iPod Touch Software (In Asia) <http://asia.cnet.com/crave/2008/01/24/how-to-upgrade-your-ipod-touch-software-in-asia-/>
by Reuben Lee, CNET Asia
Ready for more bad news? Apple Singapore finally got back to us and confirmed that its AppleCare centers will not be offering any services for users in Asia to upgrade their iPod touch software.
/Why is Apple not making it easy for its customers to buy stuff? Isn't the iTunes Store set up so that customes can buy stuff legally and easily, rather than go to the route of the pirates?/

**** Has Open Source Sold Out? <http://weblog.infoworld.com/tech-bottom-line/archives/2008/01/red_hat_open_so.html>
by Bill Snyder, InfoWorld
Has the open source software movement become a victim of its own success? A provocative new study by a longtime software analyst suggests that the giants of the commercial software world are cashing in on the poplarity of open source and becoming the dominant force in what was once called the free software movement.

**** Apple Pitches For A Bigger Russia Slice <http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2008/01/24/047.html>
by Tai Adelaja, Moscow Times

**** Microsoft Confirms Office For Mac 2008 Snafu <http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9058840&source=rss_topic123>
by Gregg Keizer, Computerworld
Office for Mac 2008 incorrectly assigns ownership of some files, Microsoft Corp. has confirmed, creating a potential security problem for businesses installing the new application suite: Whomever is assigned user ID 502 has full read/write access to Office's files.

**** Scientists Take New Step Toward Man-Made Life <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/24/science/24cnd-genome.html?_r=1&ex=1358917200&en=804a7c62cbba0dba&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin>
by Andrew Pollack, New York Times
Taking a significant step toward the creation of man-made forms of life, researchers reported Thusday that they had manufactured the entire genome of a bacterium by painstakingly stitching together its chemical components.

**** Apple Hit With Yet Another iPhone Patent Lawsuit <http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2008/01/24/apple-hit-with-yet-another-iphone-patent-lawsuit>
by Justin Berka, Ars Technica

**** Time Capsule: Expo's Buried Treasure <http://www.macuser.com/hardware/time_capsule_expos_buried_trea.php?lsrc=murss>
by Dan Moren, MacUser

**** Smartphones, Seat Belts, Searches, And The Fourht Amendment <http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080124-smartphones-seat-belts-searches-and-the-fourth-amendment.html>
by Julian Sanchez, Ars Technica
A new paper by Adam Gershowitz, a professor at the South Texas College of Law, argues that unless courts or legislators make significant chnges to the rules governing law enforcement searches, the increasing ubiquity of devices like Apple's iPhone will permit police to routinely gather massive amounts of citizens' sensitive personal data without a warrant.

**** Inside The MacBook Air: The Solid-State Drive Option <http://www.macworld.com/article/131796/2008/01/mbair_ssd.html>
by Jon L. Jacobi, Macworld
In addition to being sturdier, more power efficient, and faster than standard hard drives, SSDs are also slightly lighter and can, if necessary, be molded into different form factors to fit tight spaces.

**** The Tao Of Screen: In Search Of The Distraction-Free Computer Desktop <http://www.slate.com/id/2182744/fr/rss/>
by Jeffrey MacIntyre, Slate
There's an emerging market for programs that introduce much-needed traffic claming to our massivel expanding desktops. THe name of this genre of clutter-management software: zenware.

**** Ziplight 1.2 <http://www.macworld.com/article/131799/2008/01/ziplight.html>
by Dan Frakes, Macworld

**** NSURLConnection Crashing Epidemic <http://www.red-sweater.com/blog/452/nsurlconnection-crashing-epidemic>
by Daniel Jalkut, Red Sweater Blog
If you're a user running 10.4.11, chances are you've noticed that network-enabled applications seem to be a bit more flakey and crash-prone.

**** Extending iTunes Rental Times <http://www.macworld.com/article/131790/2008/01/longerrentals.html>
by Christopher Breen, Macworld
Apple has made an accomodation yet, inexplicably, hasn't bothered to mention it to anyone.

**** iTunes Plus And 30 Cents Upgrades: What's The Deal? <http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2008/01/24/itunes-plus-and-30-cent-upgrades-whats-the-deal>
by Jacqui Cheng, Ars Technica

**** Adding Insult To Injury: USB 3G Modems Won't Fit In The MacBook Air <http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/24/adding-insult-to-injury-usb-3g-modems-wont-fit-in-the-macbo/>
by Ryan Block, Engadget
We just tested and confirmed that one of the smallest USB EV-DO modems around, the Sprint/Novatel U727, won't even come close to fitting in the cramped, foldaway USB port on the MacBook Air.

**** Tracking Down Apple's Missing 1.4M iPhones <http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/01/24/tracking_down_apples_missing_1_4m_iphones.html>
by Aidian Malley, AppleInsider
Apple says it has shipped four million iPhones since launch. With just short of two million AT&amp;T customers using the device, however, one analyst suggests that a large number of the handsets are mysteriously unaccounted for.

**** DiskWarrior 4.1 Offers Full Leopard Compatiblity <http://www.macnn.com/articles/08/01/24/diskwarrior.41.leopard/>
by MacNN

The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** The "Work From Home" Generation <http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/the_work_from_home_generation.php>
by Alex Iskold, ReadWriteWeb
What are the pros and cons of working from home?

MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** Populist Prejudice <http://books.guardian.co.uk/departments/crime/story/0,,2246733,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=10>
by Mark Lawson, Guardian
Crime books easier to write than 'serious' novels? That attitude is, frankly, cobblers.

**** The Atonal Century <http://www.nationalpost.com/arts/story.html?id=235947>
by John Keillor, National Post
In 1908, after being lambasted in the press and cuckolded by his wife, Arnold Schoenberg reinvented classical music. We're still trying to figure out what comes next.

**** Pertinent Press <http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=34458>
by Amanda Hess, Washington City Paper
How does an upstart poetry publisher pass the bullshit test?

SingaporeSurf
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**** Polytechnics To Set Cut-Off Points For All Courses <http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/STIStory_199994.html>
by Jane Ng, Straits Times
For the first time, the five polytechnics in Singapore will reveal the cut-off scores for each of their courses so that students aiming for a place in a popular course will be able to guage their chances of getting in.
/Er, the headline of this article doesn't match the actual content./

**** Businesses Can Now Use GOvernment Assets Without Bidding For Tender <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/324925/1/.html>
by Hasnita A. Majid, Channel NewsAsia
If you have an innovative idea, you can make use of government's assets. But you need to be the first one to come up with the idea.
/Great idea, except that the two example quoted in the article are, in my opinion, no where near innovative at all./

**** Mrbrown On Advertisements And Blogging <http://cowboycaleb.liquidblade.com/index.php/archives/2008/01/25/mrbrown-on-advertisements-and-blogging/>
by Cowboy Caleb
Here is the sorry state of the Singapore blogosphere in 2008.
/And one more recommendation: read Dave Winer <http://www.scripting.com/>'s blog too./

**** SMRT's Q3 Profit Down 6% To S$38m <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/324946/1/.html>
by Loh Kim Chin, Channel NewsAsia
This is depite revenue growing 7 percent to S$202 million due to higher ridership.

**** Singapore's Economy To Slow In 2008: PM <http://www.reuters.com/article/gc07/idUSWLB628120080125>
by Reuters

**** Asian Currencies Rise; Singapore Dollar At 10-Year Highs <http://business.inquirer.net/money/breakingnews/view/20080125-114714/Asians-currencies-rise-Singapore-dollar-at-10-year-highs>
by Reuters

**** Government To Accelerate MRT Expansion <http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/STIStory_199935.html>
by Christopher Tan, Straits Times
In what could well be Singapore's most aggressive public transport infrastructure plans ever, the govenment is spending $40 billion to doulbe the MRT network by 2020. Transport minister Raymond Lim said two new lines will be built - barely nine months after he gave the go-ahead to the $12 billion 40km Downtown Line.
One, the Thomson Line, runs to the left of and almost parallel to the North-east Line. To be completeed in 2018, it will have 18 stations and links Marina Bay in the south to Woodlands in the north.
The other is the Eastern Region Line, which is a southern loop of the Downtown Line's eastern wing, and link sMarina Bay to Changi. It is scheduled for completion in 2020.
See Also:
Speech By Mr Raymond Lim, Minister For Transport, At The Visit To Kim Chuan Depot, 25 January 2008, 9.00AM <http://app.sprinter.gov.sg/data/pr/20080125985.htm>, by Singapore Government.

**** Is MM Lee Still Relevant? <http://lalaland9.wordpress.com/2008/01/24/is-mm-lee-still-relevant/>
by Looking For LaLaLand
We are ready to stand on our own. And I dare say also that we of the new generation will do even much better than he did. Only thing is, the government under his tutelage seems to think not &mdash; in spite of all its exhortations to get us to be creative, daring, entrepreneurial and all.

**** Low-Cost Air Services With Singapore To Go National <http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/NewsBreak/20080124182947/Article/index_html>
by New Straits Times
Low-cost air services with Singapore could be extended to several cities in Malaysia besides Kuala Lumpur. Transport minister Datuk Seri Chan Kong Choy said discussions under the bilateral air services agreeemntw ill be held soon. Ipoh would be one of the destinations.

**** Temasek Charm Offensive To Fend Off Protectionism <http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/temasek-charm-offensive-to-fend-off-protectionism-773895.html>
by Danny Fortson, The Independent
For Western politicians and executives, the worry is that opaque funds from the likes of China, Qatar and Libya may buy strategically sensitive companeis, or be motivated by political or other less than commercial reasons. Temasek is desperate not to be tarred with the same brush.

**** Singapore Frees Six Islamic Militants, Nabs Two <http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSSIN170936>
by Reuters
Singapore has freed five Islamic militants belonging to the al Qaeda-linked group Jemaah Islamiah (JI) and on emember of the Philippines' separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the government said on Thursday.
The Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement that is has also detained two "self-radicalised" men and has placed another on restriction orders, under which his movements would be monitored for posing "potential terrorist threat".

**** What Is A World Class Education?
by Heng-Cheong Leong, MyAppleMenu
What is a world-class education? I believe it is defiitley not one that is build solely on KPIs and 100% pass rate.
I don't know what is truly a world-class educatoin, but here's an inspiration <http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/209> from Bill Strickland who "founded Manchester Bidwell, a world-class institute in his native Pittsburgh devoted to vocational instruction in partnership with big business."
<p class="permlink">Permanent Link to This Post <http://www.myapplemenu.com/singapore/2008/01/25/id0014/>

**** How Did Pilot Get So Far? <http://tnp.sg/news/story/0,4136,154424,00.html?>
by Tan May Ping, New Paper
Why would someone fly into Singapore's airspace without filing a flight plan? The Tuesday incident, in which a civilian Cessna 208 had to be escorted by fighter jets to land at Changi Airport, had several pilots puzzled.

**** Put Students' Self-Esteem Before School Rankings <http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Story/STIStory_199828.html>
by Juliana Thay Hui Cheng, Straits Times
We need to have teachers who nurture and encourage our children. The key to learning is motivation, and teachers play a very important role in inspiring that precious spirit. No child should ever be labelled a 'failure' or denied help.

**** How Much Do Cabbies Really Earn? <http://www.todayonline.com/articles/234159.asp>
by Ansley Ng, Today
It was a figure that raised eyebrows and drew incredulous reactions from some taxi drivers as well as commuters &mdash; leading ComfortDelGro to yesterday clarify a mistaken impression: $318 in daily average takings accounts for a taxi's takings over two shifts.
With most taxis shared between two drivers, to defray costs and working hours, the average daily takings for each cabbie &mdash; before deducting rent and petrol costs &mdash; wold work out to $159. Minus expenses, this would mean the average driver pockets about $85 a day.