[MyAppleMenu] Mar 31, 2010

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** Apple Sued Over Multitouch Patent <http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-20001424-37.html?part=rss&tag=feed&subj=News-Apple>
Erica Ogg, CNET News

A Taiwanese chipmaker is suing Apple over the use of multitouch technology in several products, including the iPhone, iPod Touch, and forthcoming iPad.

Elan Microelectronics filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission Tuesday, accusing Apple of violating an Elan-owned patent that covers "touch-sensitive input devices with the ability to detect the simultaneous presence of two or more fingers."

**** Permute Joins The Ranks Of Mac Media-converting Apps <http://www.macworld.com/article/150159/2010/03/permute.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Lex Friedman, Macworld

Fuel Collective on Monday released Permute, a new OS X application for converting media files.

**** Track A Mac's Uptime <http://www.macworld.com/article/150162/2010/03/mac_uptime.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Christopher Breen, Macworld

**** Who Is The Godfather Of The iPod? <http://www.cultofmac.com/who-is-the-godfather-of-the-ipod/35805?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+cultofmac%2FbFow+%28Cult+of+Mac%29>
Leander Kahney, Cult of Mac

I give credit to Rubinstein, who was at the heart of the development process. He had the initial technological insight, put together the team to develop it, and led the charge to keep improving and updating the device. If there’s a godfather of the iPod, it’s Jon Rubinstein.

**** iTunes 9.1 Adds Sync Support For iPad <http://www.macworld.com/article/150169/2010/03/itunes91.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Serenity Caldwell, Macworld

We’re T-Minus four days to the release of the iPad, and amidst all new app sneak peaks and iBooks screenshots floating around on the Web, Apple is doing some extra prep work of its own. On Tuesday, the company released iTunes 9.1, bringing iPad support to the company’s multimedia jukebox software, and improving support for Genius Mixes.

**** Pa. University To Give All Students iPads <http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-10471690-17.html?part=rss&amp;subj=news&amp;tag=2547-1_3-0-20>
Don Reisinger, CNET News

Pennsylvania-based Seton Hill University, which has an enrollment of about 2,100, announced on Tuesday that starting fall semester, all full-time students will receive an iPad tablet device in an effort to boost learning ability and technical know-how.

**** Yep, Chrome OS Is Getting Deep Flash Integration Too <http://techcrunch.com/2010/03/30/chrome-os-flash/>
MG Siegler, TechCrunch

Here’s why this is significant: when Chrome OS-based netbooks launch later this year they will not only compete with Windows-based netbooks, they will also compete with the iPad. The iPad, of course, will not run Flash. This could be a major differentiating factor when people are deciding which machine to buy this holiday season. Especially if those people are addicted to Farmville (which is, of course, Flash-based).

**** What The iPad Means For Social Media <http://www.salon.com/tech/htww/2010/03/30/ipad_facebook_and_twitter/index.html>
Andrew Leonard, Salon

People will use it, but more for their own purposes than for the likes of the New York Times or Wired. The iPad will not solve the content business model problem, but I'm betting a lot of virtual farms will be growing on these new tablets, and an awful lot of people will find something to say to each other via their shiny new touch-sensitive big screens, whether in 140 character bursts, New York Review of Books blog posts, or in the middle of Central European municipality council meetings.

**** The Finder Is Dead. Soon, A PC Won't Have Files, Folders, Or Documents. It Will Have "Apps" Like An iPhone <http://sachin.posterous.com/the-finder-is-dead-soon-a-pc-wont-have-files>
Sachin Agarwal, Posterous

When you launch iTunes, you see your music. When you launch iPhoto, you see your photos. When you launch Mail, you see your email. Where is it all stored? Who cares.

**** How Will Apple Spin iTunes On iPad? <http://news.cnet.com/8301-13526_3-10471713-27.html>
Matt Rosoff, CNET News

The video about music playback (labeled "iPod") did give a couple of hints on how the iPad might evolve to take advantage of all that extra screen real estate.

**** iPhoto Update Released, Adds iPad Compatibility <http://www.macworld.com/article/150173/2010/03/iphoto812_update.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Heather Kelly, Macworld

Apple released iPhoto 8.1.2 on Tuesday, a minor update for iPhoto '09 users. The 13.6 MB download is mostly a bug fix, with some iPad syncing compatibility thrown in.

**** Apple Posts QuickTime 7.6.6 Update <http://www.macworld.com/article/150174/2010/03/qt766.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Nicholas Bonsack, Macworld

This update offers two tiny fixes for Leopard and Windows users, respectively. iMovie users can rest easy with the knowledge that QuickTime 7.6.6 offers “general reliability improvements”, while Windows users should see fewer issues involving playback of h.264 content on multi-core PCs.

**** iPad Apps To Cost More Say Developers Ahead Of Launch <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8590300.stm>
Maggie Shiels, BBC News

Applications for the iPad will generally cost more than ones for the iPhone or iPod touch developers have said.

They blame the extra work involved in designing for the iPad and the risk factor of not yet knowing how many customers will buy the device.

**** Apple Tweaked iPhones To Lessen Strain On AT&T Network - Report <http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/03/30/apple_tweaked_iphones_to_lessen_strain_on_att_network.html>
AppleInsider

A new report profiling the troubles AT&amp;T has faced with millions of bandwidth hungry iPhone users revealed Tuesday that Apple has modified its handset to make it less taxing on its wireless partner&#39;s network.

**** Apple And Google Race For Mobile Dominance <http://news.cnet.com/8301-13846_3-10471786-62.html?part=rss&amp;subj=news&amp;tag=2547-1_3-0-20>
Dave Rosenberg, CNET News

**** iPad Could Redefine Apple's Stores <http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/mar2010/tc20100330_376043.htm>
Om Malik, BusinessWeek

A store redesign is the least Apple can do for the iPad, a device whose ability to sell content might bring the company a fresh bonanza.

**** Living With Windows: Sharing Drives <http://www.macworld.com/article/147100/2010/03/livingwithwindowsdrives.html?lsrc=rss_main>
John Rizzo, Macworld

There are three good ways to share a single hard drive between Macs and PCs for general storage and backup: You can trade a USB hard drive between them; you can use a network-attached storage (NAS) device (such as Apple’s Time Capsule); and you can also use file sharing to back up data on one system to an external drive attached to another system.

**** Apple's App Store Comes To Facebook <http://www.macworld.com/article/150183/2010/03/appstore_facebook.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Aayush Arya, Macworld

Similar to its previous Facebook page for iTunes, Apple has now launched an official App Store page where the company plans to dish out “free exclusive offers, hot tips, tutorials, and more.”

**** Pagehand Is A Nearly Perfect Mac Writing Tool <http://lowendmac.com/ed/walsh/10jw/pagehand.html>
Jason Walsh, Low End Mac



The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** Gmail Becomes An App Platform: Google Adds OAuth To IMAP <http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/ready_for_gmail_mashups_google_adds_oauth_to_imap.php>
Marshall Kirkpatrick, ReadWriteWeb

You may or may not be excited by the acronyms OAuth and IMAP/SMTP, but the combination of them all together is very exciting news. Google Code Labs announced this afternoon that it has just enabled 3rd party developers to securely access the contents of your email without ever asking you for your password. If you're logged in to Gmail, you can give those apps permission with as little as one click.



MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** Taking The Temperature Of Work In Progress <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2010/mar/29/al-kennedy-work-in-progress>
AL Kennedy, The Guardian

Novel-writing is curiously similar to long-term illness. But I will refuse any offers of help.

**** In E-Book Era, You Can’t Even Judge A Cover <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/31/books/31covers.html?partner=rss&emc=rss>
Motoko Rich, New York Times

With a growing number of people turning to Kindles and other electronic readers, and with the Apple iPad arriving on Saturday, it is not always possible to see what others are reading or to project your own literary tastes.

You can’t tell a book by its cover if it doesn’t have one.



SingaporeSurf
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**** Singapore Inc: Competition Ltd, High-tech But... <http://www.pressrun.net/weblog/2010/03/singapore-inc-competition-ltd-high-tech-but.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rana+%28Blowin%27+In+The+Wind%29>
Blowin' In The Wind

Broadband is more expensive in Singapore than not only in America and Britain, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan but also 30 other countries including India, Russia, Egypt, Tunisia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Panama. This is shown by the Global Information Technology Report 2010 presented by the World Economic Forum and Insead.

Two of Singapore's three internet service providers also happen to be government-linked companies.

**** SCDF Seeks Court Order <http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_508708.html>
Elena Chong, Straits Times

In an unprecedented move, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) has applied for a court order to stop business temporarily on the first floor of the popular Mustafa Centre in Little India.

The SCDF is concerned about overcrowding, and its move follows a record number of safety violations at the shopping mall in recent years.

**** Why I Like My Long Bus Rides <http://www.todayonline.com/Voices/EDC100331-0000041/Why-I-like-my-long-bus-rides>
Rachel Yang, Today

**** Trapped In A Gilded Condo <http://business.asiaone.com/Business/My%2BMoney/Property/Story/A1Story20100330-207569.html>
Liam O'Brian, Straits Times

Foreigners who, like me, like to take in the local culture and people when resident in another country will be in for a surprise if they spend much of their time within the gated confines of their lush and well-appointed condo.

**** Parliament: JB-Singapore MRT Project Should Be Implemented Fast <http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsgeneral.php?id=486715>
Bernama

The government has been urged to quickly implement the Mass Rail Transit (MRT) project linking Johor Bahru to Singapore as it will benefit people of both countries.

**** One Flat, 6 Applicants <http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_508780.html>
Jessica Cheam, Straits Times

Fresh evidence has emerged of Singapore's red hot property market with the Housing Board's (HDB) latest launches attracting six applicants for every available flat.

**** CJ Asserts Independence, Will People Listen? <http://yoursdp.org/index.php/news/singapore/3507-cj-asserts-independence-will-people-listen>
Singapore Democrat Party

**** Income Gap Is Not Important : PM Lee <http://singaporemind.blogspot.com/2010/03/income-gap-is-not-important-pm-lee.html>
Diary of A Singaporean Mind

We not only have the biggest income gap, the PAP govt is also doing the least for poor people among all developed countries by any measure.

**** Vivian Balakrishnan – Fallen Off The Speeding Boat? <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/03/vivian-balakrishnan-–-fallen-off-the-speeding-boat/>
Andrew Loh, The Online Citizen

For now, Vivian Balakrishnan has been a huge disappointment to those who had expected him to be a stand-up guy and speak up for the less fortunate – just as he was said to have done before joining the PAP.

**** The Secrecy Of An Overseas Vote <http://thebosonicstate.blogspot.com/2010/03/secrecy-of-overseas-vote.html>
The Bosonic State

**** Romanian Diplomat Ionescu Was The Driver In Fatal Hit-and-run <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1046979/1/.html>
Shaffiq AlKhatib, Channel NewsAsia

State Coroner Victor Yeo has ruled that Dr Silviu Ionescu, Romania's former Charge d'Affaires was the driver of the car involved in the hit-and-run accidents that took place on 15 December last year.

**** StarHub Revamps Channel Numbering System <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1047051/1/.html>
Channel NewsAsia

StarHub is changing its channel numbering system. It said the move is in line with the practices of pay TV operators worldwide and part of its overall strategy to pave the way for the introduction of new content.

**** The Relentless Rising Cost Of Living In Singapore <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/03/the-relentless-rising-cost-of-living-in-singapore/>
The Online Citizen

The following is a collated list of price increases which TOC could find – from various news reports, blogs, websites, forums, etc – since Jan 2006 to the present.

**** Call Me Crazy <http://hardhitting-nobs.blogspot.com/2010/03/call-me-crazy.html>
Musings From the Lion City

**** Registers Of Electors Certified With About 2.3 Million Names <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1047103/1/.html>
Imelda Saad, Channel NewsAsia

The Registers of Electors for all 23 electoral divisions have been certified with about 2.3 million names. The Elections Department said the registers are open for inspection at its office and at the 105 Inspection Centres islandwide.