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A Colorado private investigator has become the first pers
2007-01-15 13:21:01
A Color ado private investigator has become the first person to plead guilty in the spying scandal that has rocked HP Bryan Wagner, a Colorado private investigator ensnared in the Hewlett-Packard pretexting spying scandal that was disclosed in late 2006, recently plead guilty to conspiracy and aggravated identity theft charges in a San Jose federal court.  Although complete details of his plea deal with prosecutors remained sealed, it appears that he is fully cooperating with an ongoing federal probe that may target other people related to the case, including former HP Chairwoman Patricia Dunn.  Wagner will testify for the prosecution against those related to the case, though it has not been published who he would testify against. Wagner was involved with gathering personal and confidential data on a number of HP board members and journalists.  He admitted to falsely creating a phone account in the name of a Wall Street Journal reporter while using the same reporter’s Social...
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Q4 2006 wasn’t so kind to AMD Over the past year, AMD
2007-01-15 13:21:01
Q4 2006 wasn’t so kind to AMD Over the past year, AMD has seen some pretty big ups in its business. The Sunnyvale, CA-based company signed a deal with long-time holdout Dell Computer to provide processors for notebooks, desktops and servers. In July, AMD announced that it was acquiring graphics chip and motherboard chipset maker ATI Technologies. Many industry analysts opinioned that with processors, chipsets and graphics under its belt, AMD would have a better chance of going up against chip giant Intel Corp. Bolstered by the strength of the K8 architecture, AMD has been able to rise from 15.9% of the overall PC market in Q3 2004 to 23.3% in Q3 2006. In Q3 2006, AMD’s marketshare in the server, desktop and notebook sectors rose to 24.4%, 26.5% and 18.3% respectively. But for all the good things that happened to AMD over the past year, Q4 was a particularly rough patch for the company. For all of the marketshare that AMD has been able to gain from Intel over the past fe...
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Mountain View (CA) - Google has released a new version of wh
2007-01-15 13:21:01
Mountain View (CA) - Google has released a new version of what is the firm’s most prominent applications next to its core search engine. Earth 4 features hundreds of new 3D buildings that were created either by Google employees or by users around the world with Google’s SketchUp application.Google Earth 4 in pictures (13 images) … In a rather rare event, another Google application has made it out of Beta. Earth is now available as a 14.3 MB download and adds more structures in 3D. That applies to enhanced 3D terrain as well as more buildings that grow from a third dimension in your imagination into often realistic illustrations in many locations around the world. Google uses pixel as well as vector graphics to integrate 3D models into Earth. Realism reaches from stunningly detailed skyscrapers on which you can read the company label to rather rough vector 3D models that more or less give users an idea of the height of a building, but are otherwise reminiscent of gr...
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Today, 13.01.2007 Adsense is down on 08.46  PM GMT. Main ads
2007-01-14 13:20:07
Today, 13.01.2007 Adsense is down on 08.46  PM GMT. Main adsense Site redirects to google.com/errors/asfe/system_down.html The Google AdSense website is temporarily unavailable. Please try back later. We apologize for any inconvenience. Google AdSense ? web ????????????????????????????????????????? ?? ???????????????????????? Die Google AdSense-Website ist vorübergehend nicht verfügbar. Bitte versuchen Sie es später noch einmal. Wir entschuldigen uns für eventuell enstandene Unannehmlichkeiten. Le site Google AdSense est temporairement indisponible. Veuillez réessayer plus tard. Nous vous prions de nous excuser pour le désagrément occasionné. El sitio web de AdSense de Google no se encuentra disponible en estos momentos. Por favor, inténtelo de nuevo más tarde. Disculpe las molestias. Google AdSense ????????????????? ??????????????? Il sito AdSense di Google è temporaneamente non disponibile. La preghiamo di provare più tardi. Ci scusiamo per il disagio.
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Sony Issues Emmy Award Correction: DUALSHOCK is the Winner
2007-01-11 13:18:01
The real winner Surprise, it’s the controller from 1997 that takes home the prize! Sony Computer Entertainment America on Monday sent out a press release telling all that it had won an Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in the category of ?Peripheral Development and Technological Impact of Video Game Controllers? for its SIXAXIS controller. After some digging by Australian blog, Hydrapinion, it was suspected that Sony may have been in error in its announcement, and that the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences actually bestowed the honor upon an older model of PlayStation controller. Today, two days after the initial announcement, SCEA Senior Director of Corporate Communications Dave Karraker issued the following statement to DailyTech: ?In a press release dated January 8, 2007, SCEA announced we had been recognized by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) with a Technology and Engineering Emmy Award for the S...
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AMD Announces Development of DTX Form Factor
2007-01-11 13:18:01
Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge AMD’s David Schwarzbach holding a DTX PCB panel Click image to enlarge AMD works on new small form factor standard AMD today announced the company developing a new small form factor standard. The new form factor, dubbed DTX, is AMD?s attempt to unify the various proprietary small form factors currently in use. DTX will be an open industry standard available to all case, motherboard and system manufacturers, but not be limited to AMD-based products. There will be two DTX standards available — DTX and mini-DTX. The current DTX specification will only define a few requirements, the primary of which are motherboard mounting points and keep-out areas. Alternative specifications, like Micro-BTX have strict guidelines for everything from airflow regulation to legacy I/O definitions. AMD claims the consumer market needs a small form factor standard for the following reasons: Electricity cost savings Take up less space for bo...
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Apple Launches the Apple TV
2007-01-11 13:18:01
 The “iTV” gets an official name This year, as CES begins, Apple is concurrently holding its annual MacWorld expo. DailyTech previously reported that Apple would be making further announcements about its iTV set-top box at MacWorld 2007, but that the device would not be making an official showing because of quality concerns with its operating system. Fortunately for enthusiasts, the iTV did make an appearance and Apple has given it an official name, calling it the Apple TV. At its core, the Apple TV is a self-contained hardware solution for Apple’s Front Row software that comes with all of the company’s 2006-released Macs. The system is very intuitive and easy to use and the actual interface is gorgeous to look at as well, especially on a high-definition display. All previous specifications for the Apple TV remain the same: Intel processor 40GB hard drive for storing content locally HDMI (video and audio) Component video Optical audio Analog RCA stereo a...
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Wii: Kids? Gateway to Porn?
2007-01-11 13:18:01
Parents worry that porn sites are targeting children. It’s Tuesday, so somewhere, somebody must be blaming the world’s ills on video games. Today’s target? No, not the latest envelope-pushing game from Rockstar, not even some school-shooting teen who played SOCOM one too many times. No, today it’s all about the Wii , and how it’s laying down a stream of rose petals, inviting porn into your living room. WFAA.com has apparently only just noticed that the Wii and the PS3 are capable of accessing the Internets. The station’s crack team of reporters has also discovered that there are lots and lots of pictures of people, you know, doing it on the Internets. Put six and nine together, and you have this week’s example of mainstream media making much ado about nothing. After sifting through the usual reactionary wailing and gnashing of teeth, not to mention blatant inaccuracies (Guitar Hero works on neither the Wii nor the PS3, Shelley), there is one ...
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BMW explores global sourcing from India
2007-01-11 13:18:01
NEW DELHI: BMW plans to global source from India . A top team from the German luxury marque is in India to discuss over it with the Hero group. When contacted Mr Pankaj Munjal of the Hero group confirmed the talks. ?Hero group is into engineering outsourcing discussions with BMW. I was at their headquarters three weeks ago and now a team from there is visiting India,? he said. ?We will start small but move up the value added chain. The initial order is for disc brakes and gears,? he added. At present, BMW India sources only seats, seat trims and electronics and door panelling locally, which together comprises up to 10% of the total production. However, it has been working with industry body ACMA and its global suppliers to increase local sourcing out of India. BMW has been evaluating sourcing possibilities all of 2006 and has decided to have a purchasing office in India to look at sourcing for its worldwide operations as well. BMW, which is investing around Rs 110 crore i...
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2006: 10 stories that changed computing
2007-01-04 19:12:03
PC Advisor reviews the year’s top stories PC Advisor staff 2006 may well be remembered as a turning point for the IT industry. Comp uting’s most famous figurehead announced he would step down, the internet finally started to grow up and a new era of desktop-computer processors promised to change the way we use PCs. ‘); if (navigator.userAgent.indexOf(”Mozil la/2.”) >= 0 || navigator.userAgent.indexOf(”MSIE&# 8221;) >= 0) { document.write(’‘); } document.write(’‘);// –> On top of that, a much-delayed Vista debuted amid speculation that it would be the last of the old-school, big-bang product launches. Plus, software giants announced support for Linux, and manufacturers switched chip allegiances while the open-source industry was thrown into turmoil. But, aside from all the innovation, there was plenty of scandal too, with patent wars threatening one of the key enablers of the mobile workforce, and a snooping l...
More About: Stories , Change , Hat , Computing

The Tech Report
2007-01-04 19:12:03
As Intel continuse to hire staff for a mysterious project some believe will yield a high-end graphics processor poised to compete with the finest from ATI and Nvidia, Intel’s venture capital arm has invested in an Israeli graphics processing startup.Known as Lucid Information Tech nology, the startup is working on a traffic hub chip designed to route data between graphics processors. The chip can spread loads between as many as four GPUs, and Lucid is also developing an associated driver to make multi-GPU setups transparent to software. Lucid plans to have silicon samples out by the end of this year and to eventually kick off volume sales to a major board manfuacturer like Asus, Leadtek, or Gigabyte. Of course, Intel isn’t the only one supporting the startup. Other venture capital firms including Giza Venture Capital and Genesis Partners have also funded Lucid, helping it raise a total of $12 million. Source: Techreport
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eBay Hikes Seller Fees Again
2007-01-04 19:12:03
eBay sellers cry out for a Google Checkout payment option The cost of doing business on eBay just got a bit more expensive. Bill Cobb sent a message to eBay sellers earlier today which noted that increases in listing and final value fees will take place on January 30, 2007. Insertion fees for regular auctions and fixed-priced listings starting between $1.00-$9.99 will increase from $0.35 to $0.40. Final value fees from auction ending between $25.01 - $1,000 will increase from 3% to 3.25%. AuctionBytes details how this fee change would affect sellers: Let’s use an example of an item with a starting price of $5 that ends with a winning bid of $50. Under the existing fee structure, sellers would pay a total of $2.41 in eBay listing and commission fees. Under the new fee structure, sellers would pay $2.52, an increase of 4.56 percent. Take the same item, but assume it sells for $1500, and sellers would pay 6.48 percent higher fees ($40.90 instead of $38.41). Likewise, eBay Motors...
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Toyota Developing Alcohol Detection System For Cars
2007-01-04 19:12:03
Toyota is developing a car system that is aimed at keeping the roads safe from drunken drivers Toyota is in the process of developing a system designed so that cars would be able to detect drunken drivers and automatically shut down.  According to reports, the world’s current No. 2 automaker plans on fitting some cars with the system by the end of 2009. The detection system will be released as an optional extra. Toyota hopes that it can be installed on all car models once manufacturing prices have dropped. New cars equipped in the system will not start if driving wheel sweat sensors pick up a high level of alcohol in the driver’s bloodstream.  The Toyota system will also be able to detect if a driver is driving abnormally, along with a camera that is used to determine whether or not the driver has pupils that are dilated — a sign that the driver may have had too much to drink.  If the system picks up any of the signals, the car will slow down and come to a complete...
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Microsoft Sued by Developer Over Mobile ?Halo? Game
2007-01-04 19:12:03
In-Fusio sues Microsoft over mobile “Halo ” In-Fusio is suing Microsoft over an alleged breach of contract involving Microsoft’s popular Halo video game.  The French game developer has not been able to release a mobile version of Halo since Microsoft has yet to approve any of the company’s game designs.  Although Microsoft has not officially approved a game design, In-Fusio continued to spend development money on the Halo properties. The original agreement between the two companies had In-Fusio paying Microsoft minimum guaranteed royalties of $2 million, divided in $500,000 payments from January 1, 2006, to June 1, 2008, according to the lawsuit.  After Microsoft initially rejected In-Fusio’s designs, Microsoft agreed to temporarily delay the payment system until the Halo design concepts were fixed. In November, 2006, however, things began to turn south for everyone involved.  In-Fusio claimed that Microsoft sent out a notice that would effectively elimi...
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Microsoft doesn?t know when to stop
2007-01-04 01:10:01
Anyone who hates Microsoft has been lapping up the news that the company sent fancy-schmancy Acer Ferrari laptops preloaded with Windows Vista to about 90 bloggers. The story began surfacing last week. The controversy has generated thousands of comments across the blogosphere and has yet to show signs of dying out.The commentary has run the gamut. Many, of course, have focused on Microsoft’s motivation and/or lack of foresight in sending out the machines. And many of the recipients have ended up feeling forced to defend themselves. So much for good publicity. Blog community response: Since I wasn’t sent one of the sweet laptops I can speculate as to what I would do with one…I’d give it to my Grandma. My Grandma has never used a computer…If Vista is really supposed to be so advanced yet simple that anyone can use it, why not send her a laptop and see how she does with it?… Nothing against (Mike Arrington of Techcrunch and Crunchnotes), but Microso...
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Google Misses YouTube Anti-Piracy Deadline
2007-01-04 01:10:01
Google rings in the new year without its promised anti-piracy protection scheme Although YouTube rang in 2007 with a virtual New Year’s Eve festival complete with a performance from Warner Music, live performances and participation from hordes of online members, the company failed to meet its self-imposed deadline to implement anti-piracy protection on its site. In an agreement with Warner Music Group, YouTube promised in September to have an anti-piracy system in place that would feature an “advanced content identification and royalty reporting system.” The anti-piracy system to be in place by the end of 2006 was a part of a deal which allowed Google to distribute Warner music videos, artist interviews and other music-related content. When Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion USD in October, it was widely expected that Google’s deeper pockets would give YouTube the financial backing to implement such anti-piracy measures. Miss ing the year-end deadline ...
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Play All Your iTunes on a Wii, DRM Be Damned
2007-01-04 01:10:01
Now there’s a way to listen to your iTunes on a Nintendo Wii , by using a clever workaround involving the Opera browser. Unless Apple breaks this functionality on its next update of iTunes, you can install a little application called dot.Tunes on your Mac or PC, and then you can access all those tunes in your collection through the Opera browser on your Wii. Oh yeah, the best part of this is that all of that crappy DRM on those iTunes songs is not going to stop you from using your Wii as a music player, either. The only downside? The dot.Tunes application isn’t free, although you get a free demo for 15 days. But if you pay for it during the demo period, it’ll only cost you $15; it’s $30 after the demo period has expired. It’s a music player, too? There’s yet another reason to line up for a Wii. ? Charlie White Source: Gizmodo
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McAfee Amends Options Amid Backdating Scandal
2007-01-04 01:10:01
McAfee announced amendments to its stock option granting process on Jan. 2 in an effort to clear up internal finances after firing its president and chief executive in late 2006 over a share price backdating scandal . The security software maker reported that it has recalculated stock options awarded to former president Kevin Weiss, who was dismissed in mid-October 2006 for allegedly backdating some of his options to inflate their value. McAfee also re-priced options given to former chief executive George Samenuk, who was accused of participating in the backdating incident and subsequently announced his retirement from the company. The practice of stock options backdating, or the assignment of options at a price other than their worth on the date they are granted, has become a controversial issue with investors and regulators worldwide. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission is believed to be investigating as many as 135 U.S. companies for using the practice, which ...
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India headed for hardware boom
2007-01-03 13:09:01
The country is waking up to a hardware manufacturing boom. Over the last 18 months, investments worth $18 billion (around Rs 80,000 crore) have been committed by major global players in the electronics, IT and telecom sector (hardware manufacturing or chip design or research and development or developing software products) in the country. The India n government expects a fresh commitment of about $2 billion over one year in telecom manufacturing alone, according to Dayanidhi Maran, Union minister of communications and information technology. The kind of growth the government has targeted to achieve by 2010 is expected to attract investments of about $20 billion, churning out more jobs, contribution to GDP and increased government revenues. The money committed is already showing results. In less than a year of operations, Nokia?s factory at Sriperumbudur (near Chennai) alone has manufactured over 20 million mobile handsets. Lektela, director of operations, Nokia India...
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Gmail bug exposes your mail account to spammers
2007-01-03 13:09:01
Like your Gmail account? Consider it a sacred place which must be protected from spammers at all cost? Yeah, us too. Well, we hate to break the bad news at the dawn of the new year but there’s a weakness in Gmail which exposes your email address to any web site capable of exploiting the bug. As reported on Digg, the exploit takes advantage of the fact that Google puts your details into a JS file. As a result, if you’re logged into Gmail and browsing the web, any rogue website can declare the function “google” and then parse all your contacts. The only way to safeguard yourself is to disable Javascript in your browser (or enabled it for trusted sites only) or simply climb into a hole and not browse while logged into Google services like Gmail, Blogger, Orkut, Reader, Calendar, etc. — you know, the sites you typically have open all day long. For obvious reasons, we will not link directly to the site which demonstrates the exploit on your personal account ...
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The Three Big Tech Battles of 2007: Who Has the Edge and Wha
2007-01-01 19:07:01
By Rob Enderle Tech NewsWorld 01/01/07 4:00 AM PT I’ve concluded that just as PDAs (personal digital assistants) stand alone, MP3 players will be on their way out in 2007, replaced by phones that pick up this capability. This is one of the reasons Apple is expected to enter the phone space, and since it owns the MP3 space, it has an advantage coming in. Still, it is questionable whether music or messaging will drive the next wave. For this last column of 2006, I thought it would be interesting to look ahead to 2007 and explore the battles that are to come. The three big ones are the Battle for the Digital Home, the Battle for your Pocket, and the Battle for Your Lap. The fighters include Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) , Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) , Samsung , HP (NYSE: HPQ) , Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) , Gateway (NYSE: GTW), Sony (NYSE: SNE) , AMD (NYSE: AMD) , Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) , Linux supporters, Motorola (NYSE: MOT) , Nokia (NYSE: NOK) , Palm (Nasdaq: PALM) , Research In Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM...
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What we want for the new year is safer, faster links
2007-01-01 19:07:01
WASHINGTON 31-Dec-06 FOR much of the world, a new year brings a new opportunity to make wishes for the future. Here are some wish-list items that many of us undoubtedly share. Safety from malware Call it spyware or malware, the effect is the same: there’s software out there that wants to steal your identity, your usernames and passwords, and rob you of your peace of mind. And the problem is getting worse, not better. The traditional antivirus software makers have done an inadequate job in protecting users. In 2007, we need better tools. Faster broadband rollout In 2006, Internet access was still playing catch-up to the needs of the computer-using population. Those in major metropolitan areas have Internet access options galore: DSL, cable, even fibre. But the rest of us are still struggling with dial-up, which just doesn’t cut it in an age when more of what’s relevant is taking place only with the help of a fast Internet connection. Better batteries Battery life i...
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What?s in Store for US Online Poker Players for 2007
2007-01-01 19:07:01
The New Year (2007) will bring more landscape changing events for US online poker players and some changes are already being reported. Full Tilt and Poker Stars are still growing rapidly among US players while shady workaround depositing sites spring up. (PRWEB) December 31, 2006 — Compatiblepoker, which is still tracking all U.S. online poker news at www.compatiblepoker.com/usa.php await major changes for US citizens who play online poker. Some of these changes are starting to rear their ugly heads. Market specialists and pro-online gambling advocates warned that an online gambling ban in the US would cause shady operators to spring up. Forum posts of these “workaround” sites are already being seen for depositing means but players are being urged to steer clear of these potentially scammy sites. Compatiblepoker is warning all players to avoid these fly-by-night “workaround” deposit methods at all co...
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The year 2007: A review through the crystal ball
2007-01-01 19:07:01
It’s the season of the end-of-the-year reviews. We have used our crystal ball to jump forwards a year to provide you the ultimate review of 2007 — here and now. 2007 was the year of the super bots: Never before has malicious software been equipped with so many functions that help it to hide from antivirus software and to resist removal. The majority of malicious software programs used root kits, and their number doubled again on last years figure to over 500. Local privilege escalation vulnerabilities in Windows were increasingly exploited; accounts with restricted user rights were used to gain system rights. Initially, the protective functions in Windows Vista, which has been available for end customers since January, made it more difficult for malicious code to infiltrate the system. The crimeware scene responded and numerous vulnerabilities appeared as the year progressed and these were exploited to cancel or bypass the majority of the security functions. The user acc...
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Wii Appeal
2007-01-01 19:07:01
My thoughts after two weeks of Wii ownership Click image to enlarge Nintendo?s Wii was launched over a month ago and has been selling out at most retailers around the country. While this is typical with most holiday launches, the Wii is still in short supply post-Christmas. Sony?s PS3 on the other hand hasn?t been well received. It?s not that hard to obtain a PS3, at least in Washington State where I live. A walk through Fry?s showed two unsold PS3 60GBs sitting there locked up without anyone caring. GameStop gets a few in every now and then but are able to keep them in stock for at least a day. There are no lines forming for the PS3 anymore while people will still camp out for a Wii. Nevertheless, enough about the Sony PS3 talk I want to talk about the Nintendo Wii and its appeal to gamers and non-gamers. I managed to obtain a Nintendo Wii two weeks ago. After the initial parade of ?Wii? jokes the overall experience has been positive. While the console is no graphics powerhouse it...
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When good toys go bad II: toy cellphone botches ?six?
2007-01-01 01:05:01
There’s acceptable ways to drop the H-Bomb and F-Bomb, and there’s “when good toys go bad.” Presumably turning a joyous, thrilling Christmas morning into one giant moment of awkwardness, a South Carolina mum was aghast when her son’s toy phone, which was purchased from K-Mart as an innocent symbol of motherly love, vocalized “profanity” (mmkay?) instead of “the number six” when pressed. The phone reportedly shouts out numbers when the respective keys are mashed, but unfortunately for Brandy Cunningham, “six” didn’t exactly turn out like it should have. Leading to eventual embarrassment, she claims her son has repeated the taboo vocabulary in places like “church” and “the grocery store,” leaving the parent in quite a predicament. She even purchased yet another one just in case the phone was a one-time mishap, but found that not to be the case. A spokeperson for Sears / K-Mar...
More About: Phone , Toys , Toy , Cell , Cellphone

Bangalore beckons West for its social movements as well
2007-01-01 01:05:01
By Malathi Nayak, Indo-Asian News Service Bangalore , Dec 31 (IANS) Even as the ‘Incredible India’ brand entices tourists with its mysticism and exotica, foreigners are pouring into Bangalore, often called the country’s IT capital, for other reasons. Paul Bowler, 19, with his red hair and rubicund complexion, conspicuously stands out here at a volunteer meeting Dream a Dream, a non-profit group. Taking time off his academic pursuits, Paul has come from Germany to volunteer for a year. He is spearheading a creative art programme for the underprivileged kids who include slum children, runaway street boys and orphans. ‘I had an option to choose between military service and social service. I volunteered in Ecuador before I came to Bangalore to explore its social sector,’ he says. Of late Bangalore, home to major software development companies and a destination for global outsourcing, has acquired its new mascot - the construction crane. But the view fro...
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Wii wins the holiday crunch with massive sales
2007-01-01 01:05:01
Nintendo signs out of 2006 with some very healthy sales numbers indeed. December 31, 2006 - Nintendo’s Wii has experienced an early success, and according to recent numbers revealed by G4TV, it is surpassing Sony’s PlayStation 3 by far, and is already giving Microsoft’s Xbox 360 a serious run for it’s money. G4’s Layla Kayleigh declared Wii to be “a smashing success” in a recent episode, and added, “In its first month since the launch, a total of 3.19 million consoles have been sold worldwide.” Putting the figures into perspective, Kayleigh explained, “For the holiday crunch, it doubled the sales of the PlayStation 3.” More interestingly, she continued, “In just one month, Nintendo has come shockingly close to meeting half of the Xbox 360’s sales over a whole year.” Other sources continue to report numbers exceeding the 3.5 million mark, while Nintendo itself has announced that it expects to sell at ...
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GAMING: FORGET HARDWARE
2007-01-01 01:05:01
As the hangover from 2006 sets in, our critics draw their pens to write a few prescriptions for the new year Here’s hoping that in 2007 fewer people ask me what piece of video-game hardware they should buy. Happy to help, don’t get me wrong, but the answer should be simple: which machine has the games you want to play. The past year was all about that hardware in the game world. A redesigned handheld, Nintendo’s DS Lite, and Microsoft’s year-old console, the Xbox 360, were the big winners; and in the late going Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Wii made a splash before sinking from view for unlucky would-be buyers. In 2007, the race to sell boxes will begin to sort itself out, but the real story should be software. Games must return to the foreground, and look for a new computer operating system from Microsoft called Vista to either reinvigorate PC gaming or send it further into the hinterland. When it comes to games, my prescription for the ind...
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2006 Review: Indian firms go global, make Europe a base for
2007-01-01 01:05:01
New Delhi - After more than a decade of economic liberalisation, 2006 marked the emergence of India Inc. as a worldwide financial player, as domestic companies cast their business vision abroad to acquire bigger and better foreign firms. The hunted turned the hunter. Industrial and business houses that pleaded with the government for protection from foreign takeover soon after the 1991 economic reforms, enhanced their competitiveness in the new environment and went scouting for their own global acquisitions. There was a quantum jump in the value of outward Mergers and Acquisitions (M&As) in the year as companies put together nearly 20 billion dollars to fund their deals, compared to 9.6 billion dollars in 2005. While the corporates clinched over half of their over 320 overseas acquisitions in just the last two years, the average deal size grew five-fold to 150 million dollars, said Neeraj Bhardwaj of Apax Partners, a private equity firm. The acquisitions during the year att...
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