every thing is fried

Guitar Basics

2009-12-23T10:09:00.000-08:00

Guitar one of the most well-know intsument in popular music of the 19th century and later. Countless jazz and popular songs have been composed within the structure of this series or progression of chords.
The basic blues progression uses 3 chords - the Tonic (I) or the chord that the song is centered on, the Dominant (V) or the chord based on the fifth step of the Tonic scale, and the Subdominant (IV) or the chord based on the fourth step of the Tonic scale. In the example below, we use the key of F major. Thus the Tonic is F, the Dominant is C and the Subdominant is B-flat.

There is a cadence starting in measure 9 going from the Dominant (V) to the Subdominant (IV) finally to the Tonic (I) in measure 11. There are many variations on this cadence and may be V-IV-I or V-I or II-V-I, etc.

General Elements of the 12-bar Blues progression:

The progression is 12 measures long.
The 5th measure is typically the Subdominant (IV chord), or the chord based on the fourth step of the Tonic scale.
The 9th measure begins a cadence progressing to the Tonic (I chord).

a cappella
Choral music performed without instrumental accompaniment.

Accelerando
A symbol used in musical notation indicating to gradually quicken tempo.

Accent
An emphasized note

Accent
Stress of one tone over others, making it stand out; often it is the first beat of a measure

Accessible
Music that is easy to listen to and understand.

Accompaniment
Music that goes along with a more important part; often harmony or rhythmic patterns accompanying a melody.

Acoustics
1. The science relating to thecreation and dissipation of sound waves.
2. The way in which sound productionis affected by the physical properties of the room or chamber in which they areproduced

Action
The height of the strings from the fretboard

Adagio
A tempo having slow movement; restful at ease.

Allegretto
Moderately fast, lively. Faster than Andante, slower than allegro

Allegro
A direction to play lively and fast.

Alto
Lowest of the female voices. Also contralto.

Anatomy of the guitar

Andante
Moderately slow, a walking speed

Bar
Also called a measure, a bar is a segment of written music in which there is a designated number of beats

Baroque
Time in music history ranging from the middle of the 16th to the middle of the 17th centuries. Characterized by emotional, flowery music; written in strict form.

Bass Note
Lowest note of a chord

Beat
The unit of musical rhythm.

Binary form
Two part form; the structure of a musical composition consisting of two main sections.

Body
The guitar's body is of utmost importance: it provides the resonance that shapes the tone of an electric or acoustic guitar and provides the volume (or heft) of an acoustic guitar. It also may consist of:
flattop (or just top):
the "front" of the guitar.

treble/upper bout:
the (usually) smaller curved part closest to the strings.

base/lower bout:
the (usually) larger curved part behind the bridge.

waist:
the inwardly curved part between the two bouts.

Factors that affect a guitar body's tonal qualities include the type of wood, the construction (whether layered or one-piece, hollow or solid-body), shape and size, and more. However, a solid-body electric guitar's shape is mostly aesthetic rather than functional.

Bridge
The bridge is found somewhere between the middle and bottom of the body. Depending on the guitar, the strings may originate from the bridge or they might simply be supported by it. Most electric guitars allow the bridge to be raised or lowered, an adjustment necessary in setting up the guitar which may easily and safely be performed by any guitarist. This is typically done by adjusting screws, which are either thumbscrews which can be rotated with the fingers, or traditional screws requiring a screwdriver.

Acoustic guitars usually have a bridge and saddle arrangement. The strings originate at the bridge, usually held in by pegs. The strings then pass over a saddle, a flat piece of material held on its side. The saddle can be made of many materials, but the most common are either plastic or bone. Synthetic bone substitutes are becoming more common.

Cadence
A sequence of chords that brings an end to a phrase, either in the middle or the end of a composition.

Cadenza
Initially an improvised cadence by a soloist; later becoming an elaborate and written out passage in an aria or concerto, featuring the skills of an instrumentalist or vocalist.

Canon
A musical form where the melody or tune is imitated by individual parts at regular intervals. The individual parts may enter at different measures and pitches. The tune may also be played at different speeds, backwards, or inverted.

Cantabile
A style of singing which is characterized by the easy and flowing tone of the composition.

Cantata
Music written for chorus and orchestra. Most often religious in nature.

Capo
A device for transposing a fretted string instrument such as the guitar

Capriccio
A quick, improvisational, spirited piece of music.

Carol
A song or hymn celebrating Christmas.

Castrato
Male singers who were castrated to preserve their alto and soprano vocal range.

Cavatina
A short and simple melody performed by a soloist that is part of a larger piece.

Chamber music
Written for 2 to 10 solo parts featuring one instrument to a part. Each part bears the same importance.

Chant
Singing in unison, texts in a free rhythm. Similar to the rhythm of speech.

Choir
Group of singers in a chorus.

Chorale
A hymn sung by the choir and congregation often in unison.

Chord
Simultaneous combination of three or more tones that constitute a single block of harmony.

Chord progression
A string of chords played in succession.

Chorus
A group singing in unison.

Chromatic scale
Includes all twelve notes of an octave.

Classical
Referring to that period from approximately 1750 1800, characterized musically by objectivity of the composer, emotional restraint, and simple harmonies.

Classical
The period of music history which dates from the mid 1700’s to mid 1800’s. The music was spare and emotionally reserved, especially when compared to Romantic and Boroque music.

Classicism
The period of music history which dates from the mid 1800’s and lasted about sixty years. There was a strong regard for order and balance.

Clavier
The keyboard of a stringed instrument.

Clef
In sheet music, a symbol at the beginning of the staff defining the pitch of the notes found in that particular staff.

Coda
Closing section of a movement.

Concert master
The first violin in an orchestra.

Concerto
A composition written for a solo instrument. The soloist plays the melody while the orchestra plays the accompaniment.

Conductor
One who directs a group of performers. The conductor indicates the tempo, phrasing, dynamics, and style by gestures and facial expressions.

Consonance
A simultaneious sounding of tones that produces a feeling of rest, i.e., a feeling that there is no need for further resolution.

Contralto
Lowest female singing voice.

Counterpoint
Two or three melodic lines played at the same time.

Courante
A piece of music written in triple time. Also an old French dance.

Crescendo
Gradually growing louder

Da Capo
From the beginning. A direction to repeat the entire compositon from the beginning to the place where the word "fine" appears or to the end.

Deceptive cadence
A chord progression that seems to lead to resolving itself on the final chord; but does not.

Development
Where the musical themes and melodies are developed, written in sonata form.

Diminuendo
Gradually growing softer

Dissonance
A simultaneous sounding of tones that produces a feeling of tension or unrest and a feeling that further resolution is needed.

Dissonance
Harsh, discordant, and lack of harmony. Also a chord that sounds incomplete until it resolves itself on a harmonious chord.

Dolce
Sweetly, softly

Double-Stop
Playing two notes simultaneously on a string instrument.

Drone
Dull, monotonous tone such as a humming or buzzing sound. Also a bass note held under a melody.

Duet
A piece of music written for two vocalists or instrumentalists.

Dynamics
Pertaining to the loudness or softness of a musical composition. Also the symbols in sheet music indicating volume.

Dynamics
Varying intensities of sound throughout a given musical composition. (Piano, Mezzo Piano, Forte, etc.)

Elegy
An instrumental lament with praise for the dead.

Encore
A piece of music played at the end of a recital responding to the audiences enthusiastic reaction to the performance, shown by continuous applause.

Energico
A symbol in sheet music a direction to play energetically.

Enharmonic Interval
Two notes that differ in name only. The notes occupy the same position. For example: C sharp and D flat.

Ensemble
The performance of either all instruments of an orchestra or voices in a chorus.

Espressione
Expressively

Espressivo
A direction to play expressively.

Etude
A musical composition written solely to improve technique. Often performed for artistic interest.

Exposition
The first section of a movement written in sonata form, introducing the melodies and themes.

Expressionism
Atonal and violent style used as a means of evoking heightened emotions and states of mind.

Falsetto
A style of male singing where by partial use of the vocal chords, the voice is able to reach the pitch of a female.

Fermata
A pause, stop, or interruption as that before the cadenza of a concerto.

Fermata
To hold a tone or rest held beyond the written value at the discretion of the performer.

Fifth
The interval between two notes. Three whole tones and one semitone make up the distance between the two notes.

Finale
Movement or passage that concludes the musical composition.

Fine
The end of a musical piece

Flat
A symbol indicating that the note is to be diminished by one semitone.

Form
The structure of a piece of music.

Forte
A symbol indicating to play loud.

Fortissimo
Very loud

Fourth
The interval between two notes. Two whole tones and one semitone make up the distance between the two notes.

Fretboard
On the front side of the neck is the fretboard, or fingerboard. On it will be a number of metal frets, usually 20 to 24. Strings are held down behind a fret to change the note a string will produce. The first fret is the one nearest the nut (see below), unless there is one immediately after the nut, which is called a "zero fret".

Fugue
A composition written for three to six voices. Beginning with the exposition, each voice enters at different times, creating counterpoint with one another.

Gain
How much an amplifier increases the signal level is called the gain. This is usually measured in decibels (dB). Mathematically speaking, the gain is equal to the output level divided by the input level. (for power gain in decibels gain is computed by the relation G(dB)=10log(Pout/Pin)(Electrical)).

Galliard
Music written for a lively French dance for two performers written in triple time.

Gavotte
A 17th century dance written in Quadruple time, always beginning on the third beat of the measure.

Glee
Vocal composition written for three or more solo parts, usually without instrumental accompaniment.

Glissando
Sliding between two notes.

Grandioso
Word to indicate that the movement or entire composition is to be played grandly.

Grave
Word to indicate the movement or entire composition is to be played very slow and serious.

Grazioso
Word to indicate the movement or entire composition is to be played gracefully.

Gregorian Chant
Singing or chanting in unison without strict rhythm. Collected during the Reign of Pope Gregory VIII for psalms and other other parts of the church service.

Gusto
In good taste, tasteful

Harmony
Pleasing combination of two or three tones played together in the background while a melody is being played. Harmony also refers to the study of chord progressions.

Headstock (Head)
The headstock lies at the end of the guitar's neck. The major mechanical purpose of the headstock is to support the tuning machines (tuners) which terminate the strings of the instrument. A secondary purpose is identification; many guitar makers use a distinctive headstock shape, perhaps with logo or model information, or imitate that of a more well-known brand.

Homophony
Music written to be sung or played in unison.

Hymn
A song of praise and glorification. Most often to honor God.

Impromptu
A short piano piece, often improvisational and intimate in character.

Instrumentation
Arrangement of music for a combined number of instruments.

Interlude
Piece of instrumental music played between scenes in a play or opera.

Intermezzo
Short movement or interlude connecting the main parts of the composition.

Interpretation
The expression the performer brings when playing his instrument.

Interval
The distance in pitch between two notes.

Intonation
The manner in which tones are produced with regard to pitch.

Introduction
The opening section of a piece of music or movement.

Istesso tempo
The same tempo. (The tempo remains as before, after a change was made)

Just Itonation (just IN-toe-nay-shun)
A manner of tuning in which the intervals are tuned so that they do not beat. In keyboard tuning, this means that the fifths are tuned very small in order to make most of the thirds pure.

Key
System of notes or tones based on and named after the key note.

Key signature
The flats and sharps at the beginning of each staff line indicating the key of music the piece is to be played.

Klangfarbenmelodie
The technique of altering the tone color of a single note or musical line by changing from one instrument to another in the middle of a note or line.

Largo
Large, broad, slow and stately

Leading note
The seventh note of the scale where there is a strong desire to resolve on the tonic.

Legato
Word to indicate that the movement or entire composition is to be played smoothly.

Leitmotif
A musical theme given to a particular idea or main character of an opera.

Lento
Slow

Libretto
A book of text containing the words of an opera.

Ligature
Curved line connecting notes to be sung or played as a phrase.

Madrigal
A contrapuntal song written for at least three voices, usually without accompaniment.

Maestoso
Majestic, dignified

Maestro
Refers to any great composer, conductor, or teacher of music.

Major
One of the two modes of the tonal system. Music written in major keys have a positive affirming character.

March
A form of music written for marching in two step time. Originally the march was used for military processions.

Measure
The unit of measure where the beats on the lines of the staff are divided up into two, three, four beats to a measure.

Medley
Often used in overtures, a composition that uses passages from other movements of the composition in its entirety.

Melody
An arrangement of single tones in a meaningful sequence

Meno
Less

Mezzo
The voice between soprano and alto. Also, in sheet music, a direction for the tempo to be played at medium speed.

Mezzo forte
Moderately loud

Mezzo piano
Moderately soft

Minor
One of the two modes of the tonal system. The minor mode can be identified by the dark, melancholic mood.

Minuet
Slow and stately dance music written in triple time.

Modes
Either of the two octave arrangements in modern music. The modes are either major or minor.

Modulation
To shift to another key.

Molto, molta
Much

Monotone
Repetition of a single tone.

Motif
Primary theme or subject that is developed.

Movement
A separate section of a larger composition.

Musette
A Boroque dance with a drone bass.

Musicology
The study of forms, history, science, and methods of music.

Natural
A symbol in sheet music that returns a note to its original pitch after it has been augmented or diminished.

Neck
The neck of a guitar extends from the body. Some guitars may have it glued on, which is a set neck, and some may have it bolted on. A few guitars are made entirely of one piece of wood, or at the least, one piece of wood comprises the neck and part of the body, up to where the bridge is located, with the sides attached. Set necks are almost universal amongst acoustic guitars. The bolt-on or screw-on neck is similarly common with electric guitars. Both acoustic and electric guitars usually have a steel truss rod going through the neck. It counteracts the pull of the strings on the neck, strenghtening it, and reducing its curvature to an appropriate amount, also allowing for further adjustments if needed. Classical guitars do not require a truss rod, because there is less tension from their strings. Adjusting the truss rod is a step in setting up the guitar, but only an experienced luthier are encouraged to perform this adjustment. There have been several examples of alternative materials for the manufacture of guitar necks, the most noteable being a carbon fibre composite, the neck being the only structural requirement for string tension.

Neoclassical
Movement in music where the characteristics are crisp and direct.

Nocturne
A musical composition that has a romantic or dreamy character with nocturnal associations.

Nonet
A composition written for nine instruments.

Notation
First developed in the 8th century, methods of writing music.

Nut
All strings pass through the nut at the end of the fretboard. It roughly divides the fretboard and headstock. Its function is to maintain proper string spacing and provide an endpoint for the string. On acoustic guitars, the nut and saddle are usually made of similar material. Electric guitars commonly use plastic, synthetics, and sometimes metal. As tremolo bars can cause tuning problems, guitars equipped with them usually have some manner of locking nut, where the strings are clamped down. Fender has recently introduced the roller nut, a nut incorporating a system of ball bearings similar to a locking nut, but easier on the strings.

Obbligato
An extended solo, often accompanying the vocal part of an aria.

Octave
Eight full tones above the key note where the scale begins and ends.

Octet
A composition written for eight instruments.

Opera
A drama where the words are sung instead of spoken.

Operetta
A short light musical drama.

Opus
Convenient method of numbering a composer’s works where a number follows the word “opus”. For example, Opus 28, No. 4.

Oratorio
An extended cantata on a sacred subject.

Orchestra
A large group of instrumentalists playing together.

Orchestration
Arranging a piece of music for an orchestra. Also, the study of music.

Ornaments
Tones used to embellish the principal melodic tone.

Ostinato
A repeated melodic or rhythmic fragment

Ostinato
A repeated phrase.

Overture
Introduction to an opera or other large musical work.

Parody
A composition based on previous work. A common technique used in Medieval and Renaissance music.

Part
A line in a contrapuntal work performed by an individual voice or instrument.

Partial
A harmonic given off by a note when it is played.

Partita
Suite of Baroque dances.

Pastoral
A composition whose style is simple and idyllic; suggestive of rural scenes.

Pentatonic Scale
A musical scale having five notes. For example: the five black keys of a keyboard make up a pentatonic scale.

Phrase
A single line of music played or sung. A musical sentence.

Phrase
A small section of a composition comprising a musical thought. Comparable to a sentence in language.

Pianissimo
Very soft

Piano
An instruction in sheet music to play softly. Abbreviated by a “p”.

Piano
Soft, softly

Pitch
The frequency of a note determining how high or low it sounds.

Pizzicato
String instruments that are picked instead of bowed.

Polyphonic Music
Music in which two or more melodies sound simultaneously

Polyphony
Combining a number of individual but harmonizing melodies. Also known as counterpoint.

Polyrhythms
Music in which two or more keys are used simultaneously in a given composition

Polytonality
Combination of two or more keys being played at the same time.

Portamento
A mild glissando between two notes for an expressive effect.

Prelude
A short piece originally preceded by a more substantial work, also an orchestral introduction to opera, however not lengthy enough to be considered an overture.

Presto
A direction in sheet music indicating the tempo is to be very fast.

Progression
The movement of chords in succession.

Quadrille
A 19th century square dance written for 4 couples.

Quartet
A set of four musicians who perform a composition written for four parts.

Quintet
A set of five musicians who perform a composition written for five parts.

Recapitulation
A reprise.

Recital
A solo concert with or without accompaniment.

Recitative
A form of writing for vocals that is close to the manner of speech and is rhythmically free.

Reed
The piece of cane in wind instruments. The players cause vibrations by blowing through it in order to produce sound.

Refrain
A repeating phrase that is played at the end of each verse in the song.

Relative major and minor
The major and minor keys that share the same notes in that key. For example: A minor shares the same note as C major.

Relative pitch
Ability to determine the pitch of a note as it relates to the notes that precede and follow it.

Renaissance
A period in history dating from the 14th to 16th centuries. This period signified the rebirth of music, art, and literature.

Reprise
To repeat a previous part of a composition generally after other music has been played.

Requiem
A dirge, hymn, or musical service for the repose of the dead.

Resonance
When several strings are tuned to harmonically related pitches, all strings vibrate when only one of the strings is struck.

Retrograde
A form of contrapuntal imitation in which the melody is played backwards.

Reverb

When sound is produced in an enclosed space ,multiple reflections build up and blend together, creating reverberation, or reverb. This is most noticeable when the sound stops but the reflections continue, decreasing in amplitude, until they can no longer be heard.
The time it takes for the sound pressure level of the reverberation to decay 60 decibels is known as the reverberation time, or RT(60).

Rhythm
The variation of the accentuation of sounds or other events over time.

Rhythm
The element of music pertaining to time, played as a grouping of notes into accented and unaccented beats.

Ricercar
Elaborate polyphonic composition of the Boroque and Renaissance periods.

Rigaudon
A quick 20th century dance written in double time.

Ritardando
Gradually growing slower

Rococo
A musical style characterized as excessive, ornamental, and trivial.

Romantic
A period in history during the 18th and early 19th centuries where the focus shifted from the neoclassical style to an emotional, expressive, and imaginative style.

Rondo
A musical form where the principal theme is repeated several times. The rondo was often used for the final movements of classical sonata form works.

Root
The tone of the scale upon which a chord is built

Root Position
The postion of a chord in which the root appears as the lowest tone.

Round
A canon where the melody is sung in two or more voices. After the first voice begins, the next voice starts singing after a couple of measures are played in the preceding voice. All parts repeat continuously.

Rubato
An important characteristic of the Romantic period. It is a style where the strict tempo is temporarily abandoned for a more emotional tone.

Scale
Successive notes of a key or mode either ascending or descending.

Scherzo
Pertaining to the sonata form, a fast movement in triple time.

Scordatura
The retuning of a stringed instrument in order to play notes below the ordinary range of the instrument or to produce an usual tone color.

Septet
A set of seven musicians who perform a composition written for seven parts.

Sequence
A successive transposition and repetition of a phrase at different pitches.

Serenade
A lighthearted piece, written in several movements, usually as background music for a social function.

Sextet
A set of six musicians who perform a composition written for six parts.

Sforzando
Explosively

Sharp
A symbol indicating the note is to be raised by one semitone.

Single Coil
A single coil or just single is a type of pickup for the electric guitar. As its name indicates, it is composed of wire wrapped in a single coil around magnets.

Slide
A glissando or portamento. Also refers to the moving part of a trombone.

Slur
A curve over notes to indicate that a phrase is to be played legato.

Slur
A curved line drawn over two or more notes of different pitches, indicating that they are to be executed in a smoothly connected manner without a break.

Sonata
Music of a particular form consisting of four movements. Each of the movements differ in tempo, rhythm, and melody; but are held together by subject and style.

Sonata form
A complex piece of music. Usually the first movement of the piece serving as the exposition, a development, or recapitulation.

Sonatina
A short or brief sonata.

Song cycle
A sequence of songs, perhaps on a single theme, or with texts by one poet, or having continuos narrative.

Soprano
The highest female voice.

Sostenuto
Sustained

Spirito
Spiritedly

Staccato
Separate. Sounded in a short, detached manner

Staccato
Short detached notes, as opposed to legato.

Staff
Made up of five horizontal parallel lines and the spaces between them on which musical notation is written.

Stretto
Pertaining to the fugue, the overlapping of the same theme or motif by two or more voices a few beats apart.

String Quartet
A group of 4 instruments, two violins, a viola, and cello.

Suite
A loose collection of instrumental compositions.

Symphony
Three to four movement orchestral piece, generally in sonata form.

Syncopation
The rhythmic result produced when a regularly accented beat is displaced onto an unaccented beat.

System
A combination of two or more staves on which all the notes are vertically aligned and performed simultaneously in differing registers and instruments.

Tablature
A six-line staff that graphically represents the guitar fingerboard, with the top line indicating the highest sounding string (high E). By placing a number on the appropriate line, the string and fret of any note can be indicated. The number 0 represents an open string. The 0's mean that string is played "open" (no finger) and the other numbers indicate which fret you place your finger on. An 'X' means to muffle, not let it ring.

#1|-------------------------------Hi-E-string-----------------------------
#2|-------------------------------B---------------------------------------
#3|--------------------------G--------------------------------------------
#4|---------------------D-------------------------------------------------
#5|----------------A------------------------------------------------------
#6|-------Lo- E-string----------------------------------------------------

Tablature
A system of notation for stringed instruments. The notes are indicated by the finger positions.

Temperament
Refers to the tuning of an instrument.

Tempo
Indicating speed.

Tempo
The rate of speed at which a musical compostion is performed

Tenor
1. A high male voice between alto and baritone. In early polyphonic music, it sang the cantus firmus in long held notes.
2. Instruments in the tenor range.

Tessitura
The range of an instrumental or a vocal part.

Theme
A melodic or, sometimes a harmonic idea presented in a musical form.

Theme
A short musical passage that states an idea. It often provides the basis for variations, development, etc.

Timbre
Tone color, quality of sound that distinguishes one verse or instrument to another. It is determined by the harmonies of sound.

Time Signature
A numeric symbol in sheet music determining the number of beats to a measure.

Tonal
Pertains to tone or tones.

Tonality
The tonal characteristics determined by the relationship of the notes to the tone.

Tone
1. A musical sound 2. The quality of a musical sound

Tone
The intonation, pitch, and modulation of a composition expressing the meaning, feeling, or attitude of the music.

Tone less
Unmusical, without tone.

Tonic
The first tone of a scale also known as a keynote.

Treble
The playing or singing the upper half of the vocal range. Also the highest voice in choral singing.

Tremolo
Quick repetition of the same note or the rapid alternation between two notes.

Tremolo Bar
The tremolo bar, also called the "tremolo arm," "whammy bar," or "vibrato bar," is found on part of electric guitars. It was popularized on the Fender Stratocaster, and is now seen on many different models, including some hollow-body electrics. Another popular type of tremolo bar is the Floyd Rose. Its base will be located below the bridge. Pushing down on the bar will lower the pitch of the strings, and pulling it up will raise the pitch. Rapidly pushing and releasing (or pushing and pulling for exaggerated effect) will produce a modulation in pitch, called vibrato. Vibrato is often confused with tremolo (modulation in volume), hence the misnomer tremolo bar.

Triad
Three note chords consisting of a root, third, and fifth.

Trill
Rapid alternation between notes that are a half tone or whole tone apart.

Trio
A composition written for three voices and instruments performed by three persons.

Triple time
Time signature with three beats to the measure.

Triplet
Three notes played in the same amount of time as one or two beats.

Tritone
A chord comprised of three whole tones resulting in an augmented fourth or diminished fifth.

Tune
A rhythmic succession of musical tones, a melody for instruments and voices.

Tuning
The raising and lowering a pitch of an instrument to produce the correct tone of a note.

Tutee
Passage for the entire ensemble or orchestra without a soloist.

Tutto, Tutta
All, whole

Twelve
tone music Music composed such that each note is used the same number of times.

Unison
Two or more voices or instruments playing the same note simultaneously.

Verismo
A form of Italian opera beginning at the end of the 19th century. The setting is contemporary to the composer’s own time, and the characters are modeled after every day life.

Vibrato
Small fluctuation of pitch used as an expressive device to intensify a sound.

Vibrato
Creating variation pitch in a note by quickly alternating between notes.

Virtuoso
A person with notable technical skill in the performance of music.

Vivace
Direction to performer to play a composition in a brisk, lively, and spirited manner.

Voice
One of two or more parts in polyphonic music. Voice refers to instrumental parts as well as the singing voice.

Volume
Degree of loudness or softness of a sound.

Waltz
Ballroom dance type in triple meter; in the Romantic era, a short, stylized piano piece.

Whole
tone scale A scale consisting of only whole tone notes. Such a scale consists of only 6 notes.

Whole note
A whole note is equal to 2 half notes, 4 quarter notes, 8 sixteenth notes, etc.

Xylophone
A percussion instrument consisting of a row of chromatically tuned wooden bars, arranged in the manner of a piano keyboard. The bars are supported by a wooden frame over resonator tubes and they are sounded by being struck with mallets. Currently, the standard xylophone has a range of three-and-a-half octaves (f to c4). Commercial sizes can have as few as three octaves and as many as five octaves. The xylophone sounds one octaves higher than the written note.

Yodel (yõ -del)
A style of singing or calling that involves switching the registers of the voice rapidly from head voice to chest voice (or falsetto and natural voice). The peculiar high warbling of the Swiss and Tyrolean mountaineers.

Zither
Family of string instruments with a sound box over which strings are stretched; they may be plucked or bowed. Zithers appear in many shapes and are common in traditional music throughout Europe, Asia and Africa.

Radios With Micromachined Resonators

2009-12-10T08:39:00.000-08:00

We do love our cellphones. And we hate them, too, of course—when they drop a call, go dead in the middle of a conversation, or simply fail to work in another country. Soon we’ll probably be complaining about other things—perhaps that our handsets can’t receive satellite TV broadcasts or last more than a week on a single charge.

You might guess that better microelectronics will soon provide higher data rates, lower power consumption, and greater flexibility in the types of communication that our handsets can manage. To some extent, that’s true. But transistor advances alone will probably not be enough. The Moore’s Law world of regularly doubling transistor densities has brought us cheap PCs that outperform the multimillion-dollar mainframes of 30 years ago, but those incredible shrinking transistors might not do much to eliminate dropped calls. In this respect, the most significant improvements may, in fact, come from what seems a bizarre source: better mechanical components.

The idea of adding a bunch of moving parts to a radio handset conjures up images of cellphones outfitted steampunk style with brass levers and steel gears. This, of course, is not what I mean. Rather, I’m suggesting that tomorrow’s designs will benefit from advances in the kinds of mechanical devices already found in cellphones and other wireless equipment. If you don’t believe your phone contains such things, open up the back and take a look. You’ll see a battery and integrated circuits—and also such things as thin-film bulk acoustic resonators (FBARs), surface acoustic-wave (SAW) resonators, and quartz crystals. These components, which convert electrical signals to mechanical displacements, do the work that electronics struggle with—for example, selecting a narrow band of radio frequencies and removing interfering signals from all the energy captured by the antenna, and synthesizing extremely stable oscillating waveforms, which are needed to process the incoming radio-frequency signals.

This vision of wireless gear evolving to include more and better mechanical devices of this sort is very different from the approach some radio engineers are now pursuing. They seek to eliminate analog filters and use digital circuits to handle everything—interfering signals and all—using software to do all the filtering. The problem with building such a fully software-defined radio is that the ultrafast analog-to-digital converters that could deal with interfering signals in such a setup are not yet available. Worse, when they do become available, they will probably use too much power to be practical for battery-powered handsets.

Doing more of a radio receiver’s up-front work mechanically has many advantages over relying solely on electronics and software. For example, it eases the demands on the electronics used for further signal processing—the additional filtering, analog-to-digital conversion, and so forth—and that in turn saves on the power consumed in that circuitry. This strategy would allow a portable radio receiver to monitor a wide swath of the spectrum at all times without swiftly burning through its batteries. That will be important in the much-anticipated world of cognitive radio, in which our handsets become agile enough to exploit frequencies that are fair game only when a higher-priority user hasn’t claimed them.

It’s likely that better mechanical components, and the cognitive-radio techniques they enable, will usher in the next wave of mobile telephony by giving our cellphones access to much more spectrum. These phones will operate in multiple bands, provide greater data throughput, and minimize if not eliminate the need for wireless providers to drop our calls because traffic exceeds capacity. Consumers will love the result, even if they don’t know anything about the high-tech mechanics that may soon make it possible.

How can mechanical devices outperform electronic ones? One reason is that they generally consume no battery power. Another has to do with the quality factor of the resonating components, a quantity that physicists and engineers denote with the letter Q. The higher the Q, the more selective the resonator will be in responding only to a narrow range of frequencies.

Like any good radio receiver, the one in a cellphone requires resonators with Qs greater than 1000. Resonant electrical circuits, typically built with capacitors and inductors, have great difficulty achieving values that high. Indeed, the inductors in conventional integrated circuits are dismal, generally yielding circuits with Qs of less than 10. Vibrating mechanical resonators, on the other hand, can easily provide values in the required range.

Unfortunately, the need for such resonators makes handsets more costly to manufacture. If tomorrow’s cellphones were to use many more of these mechanical components, the expense of including them could well dominate the cost of handsets. And the large sizes typical of these mechanical components could be a problem, too, although some are already quite small. Makers of FBARs, for example, use micromachining to construct on-chip gigahertz-frequency resonators with dimensions of about 200 micrometers.

Global Economic Crisis Hits Dubai

2009-12-06T01:41:00.000-08:00

* Barclays, RBS and HSBC face losing billions
* Wall Street plummets by 2 per cent after late opening
* FTSE falls by 1.5 per cent before stabilising
* Banks see £14billion wiped off market value in one day
* Dubai may consider selling QE2 to tackle debt

British banks were teetering on the brink of a fresh meltdown today after it emerged they had invested heavily in crisis-hit Dubai.

An $80billion debt default in the emirate has already reawakened the spectre of a global 'double dip' - that the first shoots of recovery could be wiped out by a second wave of recession.

But the level of exposure that the crippled British banking sector faces is now under renewed scrutiny.

The crisis was prompted by Dubai World, the development company behind three palm shaped islands as well as an off-shore replica of the globe , defaulting on its debt.

Today it emerged that:

* Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) was Dubai World's biggest loan arranger since January 2007, according to JP Morgan
* HSBC has an estimated £9.6billion in loans and advances to UAE customers
* Barclays has an exposure of around £3billion

Gordon Brown

Another bailout? Gordon Brown (right) meets Dubai's ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum at Downing Street earlier this week

The figures are particularly alarming as the sector has had to be bailed-out by the tax payer on a number of occasions over the last year-and-a-half

Earlier this month, RBS and Lloyds Banking group received another £50billion to keep them afloat

RBS - which has received the biggest state rescue anywhere in the world - is now effectively owned by the taxpayer.

As the money markets continued to falter, Gordon Brown moved to dispel investors' panic, claiming that he believed British banks were 'well-capitalised'.

Speaking at the Commonwealth summit in Trinidad, Mr Brown said: 'I think we will find this is not on the scale of the previous problems we have dealt with.'

Asked if the Dubai situation could spark a 'double-dip' recession, he said: 'You are obviously going to have setbacks with a bank here or an organisation there which has had problems, but I do believe the world has a better way of monitoring what is happening, so we can be sure that - despite setbacks - we will continue to go forward.'
Dubai

Under construction: While the world's tallest tower the Burj Dubai nears completion, many ambitious building projects have come to a standstill
Dubai airport

Abandoned: A filthy car left behind at Dubai airport after its owner became one of many ex-pats who fleeing the country after the bubble burst

Stock markets around the world have endured another turbulent 24 hours.

Wall Street plummeted 2 per cent when it opened at 2.30pm GMT this afternoon.

In London, the FTSE fell around 1.5 per cent first thing after a 3 per cent fall yesterday wiped almost £44 billion from blue-chip stocks.

The index recovered its poise to stand 0.5 per cent lower after the first hour of trading. It was at 5188.73 at 12.45pm, down from 5194.13 at start of trading this morning.

In Frankfurt, the Dax index fell 1.32 per cent to 5,540.34 while in France, the CAC lost 1 per cent to 3,639.66.

Asian markets were also under pressure overnight as Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell more than 5 per cent and Japan's Nikkei was 3 per cent lower.

Banks worldwide saw £14billion wiped off their market value yesterday.

Dubai's rulers have done their best to calm fears, claiming the situation was under control.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al Maktoum, the uncle of Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, said: ''Our intervention in Dubai World was carefully planned and reflects its specific financial position.

'The government is spearheading the restructuring of this commercial operation in the full knowledge of how the markets would react.

'We understand the concerns of the market and the creditors in particular.

'However, we have had to intervene because of the need to take decisive action to address its particular debt burden.'

There were reports today that the emirate may consider selling the QE2, bought for $100million in 2007, to tackle some of its debt.l

Emirati traders react as they monitor data on screens at the Dubai Financial Market yesterday

A man in front of a Korea Composite Stock Price Index in Seoul this morning

Much of the debt default falls on Dubai World, which owns property developer Nakhell.

As of August, the conglomerate had $59billion of liabilities which it now hopes to avoid redeeming for six months.

Analysts had expected that the Dubai's oil-rich neighbour Abu Dhabi would offer financial support.

But Dubai may have to abandon an economic model that focused on developing swathes of desert with foreign money and labour.

Even the prospect of an Abu-Dhabi-backed bailout did little to allay concerns among investors, already worried the global economy may not be recovering quickly enough to justify a near doubling of prices for emerging market stocks and many commodities since March.

Tokyo traders have already dubbed the development Financial Crisis Part II.

'The panic button's been hit again,' said Francis Lun, general manager of Fulbright Securities in Hong Kong.

'The biggest worry I have is whether this will trigger a repricing in the overall emerging market,' said Arthur Lau, a fund manager in Hong Kong with JF Asset Management.

'This an important reminder that the credit crisis is forgotten but not gone,' Robert Rennie, strategist at Westpac Global Markets Group, said in a note.

Asian banks, like their European peers, scrambled to distance themselves from Dubai, a desert emirate that emerged from dusty obscurity to invest in global lenders such as Standard Chartered and lure fund managers with the promise of a tax-free lifestyle.
Dubai

Bursting the bubble: The launch of Atlantis hotel (above), on one of the palm islands (below) last November was an extravagant celebration of Dubai's ambitions

Dubai

The nerves showed in credit markets, at the centre of the financial storm triggered by the Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy last year.

Asian credit default swaps, used to insure against default, were at their widest in a month, with the Asia ex-Japan iTraxx investment-grade index touching 124/129 basis points.

Dubai's credit default swaps were being quoted as high as 500-550 basis points, some traders said on Thursday.

Dubai's debt problems are a hangover from a property bubble that imploded after the financial crisis derailed its plans to become a magnet for tourists and a regional hub for everything from shipping to entertainment.

Banks' exposure to a Dubai default pales in comparison to the $2.8 trillion in writedowns the International Monetary Fund estimates U.S. and European lenders will have to make between 2007 and 2010 as a result of the credit crisis.

'Similar stories to the one in Dubai are likely to come out, leading risk money to pull out from assets such as commodities and stocks,' said Takahiko Murai, general manager of equities at Nozomi Securities in Japan.

Japan's biggest bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group fell as Japan's Nikkei average struck a four-month closing low. It also came under pressure from weak exporters after the dollar hit a fresh 14-year low against the yen. The Australian and New Zealand dollars retreated.

Shares in HSBC Holdings, one of the bookrunners on an outstanding $5.5 billion Dubai World loan, dropped more than 7 per cent and Standard Chartered losses topped 6 per cent.

The London listed shares of the two lenders led the biggest tumble in European bank stocks in six months on Thursday.
Revelations of massive debts of Dubai World sent the markets into turmoil

Iconic: Dubai's seven star sail-shaped hotel, the Burj Al Arab, was one of the first prestigious projects to give the emirate an international profile

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1231320/Dubai-debt-crisis-Fears-second-economic-crash-global-stock-markets-tumble.html#ixzz0Ytuevm8N

True reasons of the world economic crisis

2009-12-06T01:32:00.000-08:00

Until 1971 dollar was tied to gold content, so the US currency was supported with gold reserves of the USA. However since 1971 dollar and gold correlation was canceled and dollars were produced in unlimited amount. Dollar purchasing power was ensured not only with the USA GDP (as it usually happens) but also with the GDP of other countries in the world.

It is ok, but the states which indirectly supported the power of dollar with their economies never had control on volume of dollar emission. The USA government doesn’t have such control either. The right of control has only the Fed of the USA.

The Federal Reserve System (which is the central bank of the USA) is a privately owned organization and it is a property of 20 private banks of the USA. Their principal business is to produce the world money. The Fed owners devoted a lot of time (decades, even centuries) and efforts to achieve that privilege. Here we can mention the 1-st and the 2-nd World Wars and Breton Woods Agreement in 1944 etc., and certainly the establishment of the Fed in1907.

Thus finally a group of private individuals obtained a right to produce dollars, determine the volume and terms of production etc. In the period since 1971 till 2009 the volume of dollars in the world was increased in dozens of times, it exceeded the real volume of products in the world in many times.

Fed owners as private organization first of all and secondly the USA held all the aces in this situation. The advantages of the Fed owners we will discuss later. As for the benefits of the USA, this is the opportunity during the last 38 years (since 1944 and especially since 1971) to live beyond their means.

The USA GDP makes up 20% of the world’s production, and consumption of the USA is 40% of goods produced yearly in the world. How is it possible? It’s possible only as result of dollar emission without production increase and great demand for dollar in countries of the whole world. Exchange of goods and tangible assets for uncovered but popular dollars seems to be very similar to the situation when the Island of Manhattan was bought for $24 (in trinkets and beads) from the American Indians.

Many countries build in their economies to the system of dollar purchasing power support. If they also had a right to provide the control of dollar emission as well as if the USA government had the right of control, the world economy would never undergo a crisis. Real volume of dollars would correspond to the volume of assets, which support the currency.

However dollar emission control is provided only by several private individuals. After all, it is well-known that private individuals have private interests.

I didn’t mean to criticize the Fed, the United States of America or someone else. Let’s not rake anyone over the coals. However we should be realistic to get at a true picture of the world we live in. A true picture of the world will help you understand what is going on, what is doing to be next and what you can do to avoid crisis consequences or make them as soft as possible.

Now we have a question. What made the Fed to produce more dollars than the world economy required for stability?

The matter is that if you are a private individual and have a right to issue dollar, which is supported with the world economy, so you are tempted to start overproduction (if only you are no saint like Maria Theresa, but bankers of Fed are certainly not), as it gives you fantastic opportunities and privileges. That was the real purpose the Fed was established for, that was the real aim of affords to make dollar to become the world currency. Your dollar overproduction is your own business. It is the best business in the world. It is much more profitable than any other way to make money. Drugs, prostitution and arms traffic look like childish sports comparing with the right of dollar production.

Dollar overproduction was organized to get rich (what can be other reason?). With help of this actually virtual money you can buy not virtual but really liquid assets (companies, plants, gold and other asset).

In order to prevent the influence of unsecured part of dollar emission on the product market, which can lead to dollar devaluation (and this will inevitably happen if there are more dollars than products and assets in the world) genius Fed owners invented very effective ways to tie up, to freeze the considerable proportion of dollars in a virtual product.

First of all, they used stock market for this purpose. Usual and normal stock market was changed to a great extent into virtual. Shares of a firm really have a certain price. However, the main and almost the only shares value on a normal market depends on business profitability; that means that shareholders get their income as a part of company profit shared between shareholders. Shares grow in prices in case if annual profit from laid-down capital grows. That is the situation on normal stock market.

The situation will be different on a virtual stock market. You will be explained that profitability is not of a great importance. These 2, 3, 4 or 5% of corporate profit, which earn a corporation, and 10, 20 or 50% of this profit which are shared between shareholders don’t mean anything.

The key condition is increase of capitalization and increase of shares value correspondingly. It’s important that your share holding increased in value. That is the main income from investment. Actually that is a trick for chumps. And don’t be disappointed with a fact that very smart and competent people are among these chumps. "The world wants to be deceived, so let it be deceived." Unfortunately, this rule is universal, has no exception and applies to very clever people too.

The situation on a virtual stock market is the following:

Imagine that a businessman made one or several million dollars. He starts thinking about widening of investment, for example about building of a new plant. For this purpose he has to go out of his way to develop a high-quality product which will be on demand, to find a building land, to build a plant, to hire personnel, to train them, to lay in supplies of raw materials, to produce some products, to promote own trademark, to sale own products etc. These are huge inputs of own labor, time and health, and you get only petty money from the investment. This kind of work requires your attention and forces daily, monthly and yearly. No pains, no gains. However, a ‘sweet’ stock market comes to hand as an alternative. You don’t have to make any efforts. Your money and your share holdings rise in prices annually. Actually 10-15% annually is added to initial price for you just on paper. No headaches, no special muscle or mental efforts.

It is easy and clear, as free cheese in a well-known device. It is really difficult not to get deceived and not to trust economic analysts, who explain that the main thing is not a company’s profitability but increase of rate value.

This is really very important for those who changed stock market into virtual. Stock market based of increase of stock price can “utilize” or “tie up” dollar in dozen times more than stock market based on shares value evaluation according to the real corporate profitability. It is really important for virtual stock market creators as they count tens of trillions of dollars.

By the way, options, futures and other stock rubbish are also acts in the same performance which we call “virtual stock market”.

That’s why even very smart businessmen were interested in being deceived and in believing in stock market, they had a hope to lighten their burden. In fact, real money you earned doing a job of work were changed in such market into virtual capital.

A stock market trick founders solved not only the problem of ‘freezing’ dollars. Such market provided other fantastic opportunities for them; it provided them with chance to make vast sums of money.

If you control key events of this market and you are a man of means (if you publish dollars you have surely no problem with money as you can always open long-term credit account for yourself), if you create news which will influence the market, and if you set time and order for news to be broadcasted, you will make fantastic sums of money. For all that, your money (in spite of money of those chumps who also try to gamble on a stock exchange) will be not virtual at all, your real profitability will be not 10-15 virtual percents but real 40, 50, 60,…,100%. And it happens year by year.

The main thing is that you always know exactly when you are going to collapse the market after your money is derived from it. And until that moment you will buy up controlling stocks of really profitable enterprises year by year in order to have a great part of real actives in your hands after economy collapse.

Stock market for other participants can be compared with Russian roulette in its most extreme variant when there are five bullets in a six-shot revolver. That is also a gamble, and even in such kind of gambles there are chumps who win, but there will be not many of them as results are determined with certain starting rules.

Stock market was really ensured with money only by 1-2%. That means that only 1-2% of money can be taken out by invertors without losses, as this market is virtual and it wasn’t supposed that investors could leave this market simultaneously and take out at least the sum they paid at the entry.

This situation is similar to situation at a bank when all clients decide to take their deposits simultaneously. Such bank comes very close to bankruptcy. However, usually a bank should have assets which exceed its liability, and when a bank doesn’t have enough cash to pay clients’ deposits back, this bank is supposed to sell assets in order to meet commitments. In any case a bank will pay at least 80-90 % of deposit back to its clients.

Stock market is totally different, there is no liability at all, nothing is guaranteed and nothing will be paid back ever.

The lowest price of stock market is a real price for shares, which depends on profitability of an enterprise. This price is dozen times lower than shares price on a virtual market.

That’s why I smile when I hear that the USA will assign 700 billion dollars to save their stock market and experts claim that it would be enough.

They need to publish 100 trillion dollars to save virtual stock market; this sum should cover the whole value of the market. But if this money is published the dollar will tumble in 10 times. That’s why nobody is going to save stock market in the form it existed during last decades. It is simply impossible.

Stock market fulfilled certain tasks and its creators don’t need it anymore.

Certainly the market creators are very clever and they will imitate attempts to save stock market until a convenient moment. Prices on stock market will grow for several days (by the way, stock market creators can earn some more money once again as time and volume of growth is determined indeed by them). No stranger will be allowed to win in this gamble.

By the way, did you ever analyze the information given by ‘sophisticated’ experts and analysts about reasons of stock price or oil quotation growth and fall?

For instance, a sophisticated person claims on CNN channel (or any other channel) that the oil price increased $10 per barrel, and the reason of such increase was the information that oil supply in the USA oil storages appeared to be 1 million barrels less than it was expected. Who and in which volume “expected” this and why “expectations” level should be the starting point for published supplies evaluation? Nobody tries to answer this question, but this is another question of the same performance.

First of all, let us say couple words about these 1 million barrels. That is about 131 thousand tons for Brent trademark (or about 2500 tank-wagons of oil). Really such volume of oil is to be consumed in the USA during one hour. There was consumed about 21 million barrels of oil per day in the USA in 2005. Now this is about 24 million barrels. 1 million barrels is 1/8760 part or about 0,012% of annual oil consumption in the USA. One million barrels costs 100 million dollars (if price is 100 dollars per barrel). These 100 million barrels are not lost, they didn’t disappear. This oil is just not brought to oil storages yet. Actually it’s not really certain that oil is still not brought and there is no oil in the storages. He who knows nothing, doubts nothing. What we have here is a piece of informative news for the market. This ‘striking information’ results in cost increase of annual world oil production up to 228 million of dollars (10 dollars x 7,6 barrels in ton x 3 billion tons).

You can evaluate experts’ intelligence yourself when they explain you the reason of price increase up to10 dollars per oil barrel. 99% of other comments by financial experts from stock markets are of the same nature. And now you can make your own conclusion about how much was earned due to this piece of news and who did it.

And now let’s talk about high price of oil. During last 8-10 years we could observe an increase of oil price. High price of oil solved during this period the same tasks as a stock market. It tied up dollars, but in spite of stock market it tied up dollars in real commodity.

Oil is the best choice to tie great amounts of money. It is possible to choose a wrong object and increase price for commodity, which will not be in demand in case price is too high. Oil is really the only commodity which is always in demand. Each citizen driving his own car can hardly be forced to use public transport, it’s practically impossible. Such person would better prefer to stay hungry but save this money to buy petrol and drive his car further more. Actually 69% of oil is refined into petrol or diesel fuel. But for all that oil ties not only money of big corporations but also money of usual citizens, as during last 10 years people possessed too much money and these means became also an early danger for dollar, which is the main commodity of the Fed owners.

Apart from direct tying up several trillion dollars, high oil price is also the best tool to increase prices for other goods (food, mechanical engineering etc.), as each price includes also energy and transport constituents.

Such annual additional rise in prices gave the opportunity to tie up several trillion dollars more.

So the only reason of extremely high price of oil during the last decades was the dollar publishers’ interest. They needed to delay a downfall for several years and get prepared to ‘the managed collapse’ of the world economy.

In order to increase prices so much and clearly explain this fact later they organized a war in Iraq for ‘cheap oil’. But the real purpose was not oil control. The real purpose was to organize that Iraq oil wouldn’t come to the market for several years and that instability in this region would influence on rise in world oil prices.

Let’s continue.

It was ridiculous to observe the messages during spring and summer 2008 that special commission in the USA is looking for traders who are guilty of high oil prices, which makes economy of the USA suffer. Actually these traders were not found.

We shouldn’t blame the Fed of the USA owners. These are just smart as a whip people, who achieved fantastic financial, political and military opportunities to influence our world. They are not obliged to take care of the whole humanity; they are not God after all. They didn’t assume such obligations and don’t have any duties for anybody. They just do their business and build mechanisms for their business to develop and prosper. The purpose of this article is not to accuse anyone; the purpose is to show you a real situation and to help you save your money. Money of those of you who earned them with hard work and saved an average sum of money: 100 thousand up to 1-2 million of dollars. You will not save this money keeping cash. But that is a point for further discussion. And now we shall continue.

Do you know how ‘exchange’ price of gold is set?

Do you think that there are trades on the gold-exchange and balance of supply price and demand price is actually exchange rate? You are wrong. Gold price is set by very clever and respectful people (and that is not irony as people who created such mechanism are really smart and powerful).

Gold price is set by Rothschilds, who meet in their private residence in London. According to exchange bids, which origin is actually unknown, they set gold price. I applauded them in my mind 6-7 years ago when they gradually cut gold price until it became 250 dollars per troy ounce. Than as if somebody waved a magic wand there appeared a lot of articles claiming that gold doesn’t serve as treasure anymore, that gold lost its ensuring function of a part of gold and foreign currency reserves, and that central banks should get rid of gold. As result central banks of Switzerland and England sold half of their gold reserves to investors. This is about 2500 tones, as far as I know (just guess who bought it). Also as far as I know, central banks not only of England and Switzerland made such decision.

During next 3 years gold price increased to more than $1000 per ounce.

Now the price is about $ 750-800. But don’t worry, it will rise up to $2000 and $3000 if it is necessary. Actually the price will be claimed not in dollars but in other currency which will replace dollar.

Everyone can imagine the perspectives of his own welfare if he had the right to set gold price for the whole world. Would he need to have any other business or this business is worth all other businesses in the world?

And now it’s time to tell what is going on now in the world and what is going to be next.

Now we can observe a ‘managed collapse’. We should understand that there is nothing awful for virtual market creators. Everything is under control. This stage of ‘managed collapse’ is called to bring huge incomes and strengthen positions of the Fed owners in the whole world. A stage of collapse is inevitable as laws of Physics are at work and any financial pyramid is always breaks down in a certain time. Egyptian pyramids are for centuries, but financial pyramids are called to collapse.

It would collapse automatically a little bit later, actually 2-3 years later. But in that case the process wouldn’t be managed and could injure the interest of pyramid creators. A managed collapse was prepared for years. The matter is that during this stage the aim is to get the most important and the most profitable companies for peanuts. It is necessary to control all financial flows and to have a possibility to stop those which can damage interests of buying enterprises (we are talking about financial flows which can help an interesting for buyers enterprise to continue work until the end of crisis).

Can we talk about any preparation? Can we see the traces? We can. In the middle and at the latter half of the 90th bank secrecy was practically cancelled. The official cause for bank secrecy revision was the urgent need to fight against non-payment of taxes. Under the threat of losing USA, Canada and some other bank markets Switzerland and other declaring bank secrecy countries refused to deal with it.

However, it is not enough just to know that some money are transferred from one place to another. It is important to be able to influence the situation if necessary. The next step was September 11, 2001. Events which happened that day solved several tasks, but we shall speak about the only one we are interested in at this article. These events resulted in passing the laws for fighting terrorism financing. It’s easy to realize that terrorists are almost always financed not through banks at all. Actually terror acts need quite moderate sums of money to be organized, usually this are no more than several tens of thousands of dollars.

Actually the main purpose of these laws was to create the mechanism for long-term blockage of any sum of money without court decisions, if it is suspected to be finally a mean for terrorists. Judicial procedure in this case is inconvenient, there should be produced evidence that this was really terrorist money and it’s quite difficult to control a lot of trials around the world. That was the way they received a real tool of necessary influence on situation in future ‘managed collapse’.

It was important for successful forthcoming buying up of important assets that big interesting enterprises didn’t accumulate considerable reserves of money until the moment of decline, which would enable them to survive during the period of ‘managed collapse’.

The possible mechanism for enterprisers to accumulate such hidden reserves is nonpayment of taxes or cash.

As you remember since 2000 it was launched a serious world campaign against enterprises which don’t pay taxes. Do you remember WorldCom and others? They were learned from bitter experience that they should pay in any case, even if accounting situation really allows to have different interpretation and not to pay tax in certain conditions. Someone became a bankrupt, someone was imprisoned. That was demonstrative imprisoning.

The super-profits, which could be earned by companies due to high oil prices and due to trading on the exchange, were withdrawn by means of excise duties and other taxes. Companies actually earned about 20 % of earnings so that they could function and just a little bit prosper. That’s why extremely strict control on tax paying was very important. It was necessary to collect as much taxes as possible.

What purposes were tax sources for (except for financing of budget expenses)? They were the source for various reserved and other funds.

During last 3 years there also was a fight for cash. This solved two strategic tasks. The first task is that no one could make big cash supply, which would support business in case of crisis. The second task is to earn huge sums of money as cash cost was 11-12% of a sum.

From the one hand we can state that fight for taxes is a job of any civilized state and it’s not really preparation to ‘managed collapse’. It is really so. But we should mention that the strictest form of the fight for taxes and oil price grow started simultaneously. We must pay our attention also to the forms of taxpaying fight: they choose demonstrative victim (WorldCom), its relations with big bosses leads to conclusion that the main object of fight are big companies. We also should monitor the purpose this money was sent for (USA stock market, USA mortgage bonds etc.). All these facts lead us to the conclusion which has been already made.

Finally, the day which was expected so much by somebody came. A crisis occurred.

The way European and American banks lost their liquidity is well-known and there is no reason to talk about it once again.

With a wave of a magic wand (and you know whose hands hold this wand) demand on metal production fell down, oil also fell in price, capitalization of companies fell rapidly in several times, banks started credits recalling, mortgage lending and bank loans were stopped.

In other words, the process which can be called ‘the managed collapse’ started at full speed.

Stock market collapsed. Problems with products distribution made metallurgy, car, building, chemical and other industries suffer. There is no reason to look through all aroused problems; you can find a lot of such information in headlines.

However there are interesting peculiarities: stock markets collapsed immediately (during 1-2 days) and extent of collapse was great enough to make serious even fatal holes in liquidity of enterprises and banks.

Banks were the first target. Making their life easier banks didn’t like taking the trouble to credit real business sector; it was much more comfortable for them to gamble on a stock exchange with spare money of their clients. Since virtual stock market grew readily and rapidly. And one day it fell rapidly in 20%. If we say it in simple words – banks lost the fifth part of that client money which they gambled on a stock market. Selling shares at the new lower prices would mean setting huge losses and saying good-bye to all hopes that it was occasional fall and everything is going to be ok in a week. Everybody waited for previous prices. Prices however fell in a week more than in twice. The volume of losses became disastrous (prices on virtual stock markets fell in 5 times in some states for today).

Banks got in result big holes in their balances, banks can’t give credits anymore because they are lack of money. European banks start to recall credits which were given to foreign banks and companies because of problems in their countries, which make the situation even more disaster.

The biggest companies lose rapidly their capitalization, which is calculated according to share rates of the company on the virtual stock market. That is the next reason for banks to recall some credits and for rating agencies to decrease a company rating. Credit scale depends on ratings and on capitalization. If these indexes fall down some credits are recalled automatically and a company has no opportunity to take another credit anywhere to survive difficult times.

In general, banks and big companies which depended much on credits found themselves in a very difficult situation.

Actually in working economic model of the world no big enterprise or bank could work without credits during last decades. Credit recourses were widely available and interest rate was sweet for business. However enterprises and banks get in real trouble if they are required to pay credits back before due date. The reasons of recall are very objective; these reasons are mentioned in credit contract– «company's capitalization falls in 10 %». And we know that capitalization of all companies fell down.

By the way, doesn’t it remind you the beginning of the Great Depression, the crisis in 1929? There also was a situation that according to the share purchase credit conditions a creditor could call his money back during 24 hours (that is called marginal credit). When such requests were made unexpected and simultaneously, borrowers were forced to sell their shares urgently, which lead to immediate market default.

If this scheme worked in the thirties, why shouldn’t it be used today with some variations? Actually it is happening.

Now there is a task to buy up the most interesting and most profitable enterprises for peanuts. How can it be done? Should we just go to an owner and propose him to buy his business at a low price? Even if he has some problems, he will not agree for sure. He will probably wait until crisis is over. He will ignore court actions of creditors, delay legal procedures (which really can be delayed for 2-3 years).

That is not a way for the Fed.

In spite of its intellectual and financial power they don’t have enough resources to carry on thousands of lawsuits with people who would protect their business by hook or by crook. Time factor is also very important here. The whole operation should be finished in the short run, as after buying-up is finished the next more important stage will start. This will be discussed a little bit later.

How to buy-up enterprises and the whole branches of business in short terms and at reasonable prices?

It is simple: a state should save ‘damaged’ owners of big business, their banks and companies. A state would propose some ‘saving’ credits for strategically important companies.

The big business owner will have now a difficult choice:

– either the company’s bankruptcy of will start right now when there are no credits, no sales, and current expenses of the company so huge that they will kill the company in couple months even in case all production is stopped

– or he has to take a state credit and try to hold on as soon as all analysts and experts predict forthcoming upturn in spring and all rates will be of level as in July 2008

However, the matter is that when all expected companies will take credits and sign payment, finances will suffer really serious. When the term to pay credits will come, they will not have enough money to pay. Shares will fall in prices, oil prices also will fall up to 20 dollars per barrel, and demand will be really low. That is a scheme of global property redistribution, which is the main purpose of the stage of ‘managed collapse’. Certainly businesses will become state property first (officials will be strict towards non-paying owners), but later they will be bought by those who are expected to do this.

Now let’s talk about a ‘powerful’ dollar.

Dollar will be ‘strong’ all the time until big and not very big companies will have to pay their dollar credits back. There are a lot of such credits not only in the USA but also in other counties where a myth of the dollar as a strong currency is alive. A ‘strong’ dollar is much more difficult to be paid back and it is much more difficult to be bought in necessary volume for devaluating national currency. Dollar will be strong until the credited big enterprises will not change their owners.

Besides dollar will be ‘strong’ until this ‘strong’ dollar is needed to buy an interesting business. We are talking about profitable middle-size business, which will not become the state property until that moment. When business situation becomes really hopeless and businessmen will be close to lose their business, they will be proposed good sum of ‘strong’ dollars and they will be happy to sell their business.

When these two stages are done, the next in turn is the most interesting and the most dangerous stage.

I would like to mention that this article is for people who have some savings, for small and middle-size businessmen who saved $100 000 up to $2 000 000 with their own hard work. Today global processes can be destructive for results of their hard work. In order to avoid this destructive influence it’s very important to understand what is really going on in the world and what is going to be next. Knowing facts you will be able to make favorable decision in time and save the results of your long-term work.

It is a global property redistribution, which will lead to new configuration of the world with new centers of force. The main purpose of redistribution is of cause big companies, banks and enterprises, but not small and midsize business. Anyway everyone will feel a certain negative influence of redistribution and it’s necessary to get ready to avoid influence or at least to make it moderate.

Let’s continue our description of what s going to be after property redistribution.

Next is going an imminent event, which is dollar default. It’s imminently in any occasion, as dollar over-production by the Federal Reserve System is smart and huge, but still is a pyramid. Thus pyramid fulfilled its tasks and brought incredible profits to the creators, but it’s impossible from the one hand and unnecessary from the other to save it. It’s time for a new scheme to make money; it’s time for new Breton Woods agreements.

It’s impossible to pass to the new world system without rejection of the previous world currency, which is dollar.

There are not so many goods and real assets in the world as published dollars. The total quantity of dollars which were put in circulation is ten times more than the total cost of real assets.

There is no variant of further events left in which America could refuse from dollar default.

That’s why default and dollar rejection is going to happen within the next few months, whatever say different ‘experts’ and ‘analysts’.

The question is how it is going to happen, as it should be very serious and dangerous event for all people including organizers of dollar pyramid. Many of those who will lose everything will possibly reflect on who is guilty in this? The strongest move to solve this problem (and the safest for them) would be realization of default through “big blood”.

I think that they can organize a state of emergency on a world scale with hundred thousand of dead. The attack will be made on the territory of the USA or Israel. Attack on the territory of Europe is less possible, probably, together with the USA and Israel but not separately. Separate attack of Europe only would not meet the task to collapse dollar. The attack will be made probably with nuclear weapon or other ‘dirty’ bombs as there should be hundred thousand people dead and radioactive pollutions of large territories (a similar case in September 11, 2001 with 3 thousand people dead is not right for this time, the scale is too small for default).

Who and how will attack?

I suppose that nuclear weapon of Pakistan will be used in this operation, as it is the only muslim country which possess nuclear weapon. The powerful President Musharraf removed from this post for this purpose in August 2008 (actually the USA participated in that). Several months before Benazir Bhutto was killed (she also was a good leader and nuclear weapon couldn’t get out of hand). Zardari, the widower of Bhotto, came to the power after her death. That is ridiculous personality. A year ago he was a patient of a psychiatrist. While Bhotto twice served as Prime Minister of Pakistan, Zardari was kept in jail on corruption charges and accusations of murder, even his wife couldn’t help him to get cleared. This is the best kind of a governor to pass nuclear weapon to terrorists or to organize that Iranians could ‘buy’ or ‘steal’ it and use for bombing the USA or Israel.

I would remind that Zardari was actually a protege of the USA. In fact the USA today do a lot to provoke anti-American sentiments in Pakistan. How would you evaluate weekly attacks of Pakistan villages at the Afghanistan border by the USA air force, which is explained as pursuit of the talibs? There are 20-40 people dead each time, and usually these are women and children. And how would you evaluate recently published secret order dated July 2008 by Bush, which allows the USA air forces to cross Pakistan border and attack Pakistan territory for fighting with terrorist talibs without Pakistan authority permission.

Such actions have great influence on attitude towards the USA. Pakistan people as well as Pakistan air forces, which possess nuclear weapon, are actually provoked to have negative attitude.

It is obvious that after bombing the USA (or Israel) there will be a war with millions of victims. Since those who will attack America must be punished. It is doesn’t really matter who will attack – Iran with nuclear weapon of Pakistan, or Pakistan itself, or both states together, or Ben Laden who can in one way or another take the nuclear bomb. That will be such kind of important events that the question “if the dollar could be saved” will be inappropriate. You will be given a positive answer that that was a quilt of ‘damned terrorists’ or ‘aggressive states’ etc. They will state that they did everything they could: gave 700 billion of USA dollars in support of stock market, and that actions were proved to have positive influence (Dow Jones Index varies during the last time 8100 up to 9600 points). There was a summit of 20 states and we decided to reform International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to control ‘greedy’ bankers, who are the main crisis initiators, in a proper way. We did a lot to plaster and paint the front of the world financial system (a building which has blasted foundation and cracked bearing wall indeed). As plaster and pain are really two main ways to solve such problems.

We need to understand that humanity deals with genius and very influential group of people, who created the world structure which we live in. In order to understand a sense of their actions we should consider their occupation peculiarities. This will help us to understand their actions and forecast future events.

Accountancy is their education, ideology and mission. And such non-account values as ‘humanism’, ‘kindness’ and ‘compassion’ are outside of their vision.

The main things are figures, profit and bargains.

In situation which requires scarify people to get more profit they wouldn’t hesitate in what should be done. The only really important result for them is profit.

That is a great power of those people and their strategic susceptibility as well. The situation is that during hundred years their principles brought huge profits for them and made them powerful. However one day these principles will work against them and will cause damage to them or their business which their lives were devoted to.

Attendant expenses of their operations cost sometimes dozens million lives: the First World War – 20 million, the Second World War – 60 million of lives.

I hope that dollar collapse will be made in other way without war and without blood of innocent people.

It’s difficult to imagine other scenarios. However, everything is possible, everything is real. It depends only on intellect of the authors.

There are various variants. The most stupid is if the USA refuse dollar, announce default giving the reason that dollar can’t be the world currency anymore because of financial crisis and economic recession. ‘Experts’ and ‘analytics’ as well as a huge number of controlled by the Fed owners mass media outlets will tell stories for the whole world that it’s a historical truth that dollar became world currency for 90% and home currency only for 10%. And as dollar can’t be the world currency anymore (because of very objective reasons, because of the serious world crisis, which happened accidentally), it can’t also remain home currency of the USA. In order to save the most important world economy, which is the economy of the USA (in other words: in order to save the USA economy from a huge flow of dollars from the whole world) – only this great and humane mission makes the USA to refuse dollar and set ‘new dollar’ as home currency.

If during next three months after such announcement the world mass media outlets will promote such ideas 99,9% of people will really start to think that it was real the only and the best way to overcome the situation caused by the most impressive in the whole world history crisis.

In any case, there are much more humane ways to achieve a set purpose (without blood of innocent people of Israel, USA, Iran etc.)

They are also much cheaper than a war (only PR expenses).

This variant is acceptable for decision-makers only if after elimination of a one-polar world they will provide a many-polar world with other principles of getting their profit, other principles of their influence and other principles of world finance system correspondingly.

It seems to me for a while that everything is going to fall back into place: virtual stock markets, building of financial pyramids (using several currencies instead of a single), and so on according to the list.

However, there are also other world models, in which they can save their influence, but they don’t see them or just don’t want to.

If it is true, then the only variant of further events is blood. Only this variant allows claiming that everything was well organized and only due to ‘terrorist’, ‘enemies’ etc. everything was broken.

In other variants the truth will be surely revealed, so it would be rather difficult to prove the necessity to create new pyramids which pretty much similar to previous.

In general, dollar collapse and dollar rejection and default are inevitable. Inevitability is determined with the fact that today world finance system is build according to finance pyramid principle.

Whatever will be said by ‘experts’, who really work for pyramid creators, this pyramid can’t be saved and now it’s a time of it to collapse. This will happen in the next few months.

Be sure that it is going to happen 100 % unexpectedly for all except those who manage the process. Until the last moment dollar will be strong and everything will go quite all right.

Euro, ruble and other currencies will collapse simultaneously. There will be no default for these currencies but they will to go down in price in 10-15 times because of a great hole in world finances.

When everybody will feel lack of money a new world economic system will be grounded.

The main positions will have those who have profitable assets (real enterprises etc.). Correctly chosen assets will earn new money for owners fast and in great quantities. Such owners will outdo others.

And now let’s talk how you can save your savings if you have such. You can save your savings in today conditions only obtaining real asset. What does ‘real assets’ mean after currency actually is depreciated?

You can save your money buying property, which will be valuable even after the current events. Cars, furnishings or clothing can be in demand, but you should remember that these goods are not good to save your capital. Car becomes cheaper 15% next week after purchase and 50% in three years, so buying a car you are going to have losses. Your money will not be saved and for sure will not increase. Only really valuable assets, which are people’s bare necessities and which are always in demand, should be considered in the situation of crisis.

Works of art (paintings, sculptures) of famous artists are rather good variant. But ‘entrance ticket’ for such purchase is more than million dollars. Forgery is rather possible, so you can buy just a pig in a poke. You also will need very big bank cell which cost 5-6 thousand dollars per month. And actually at time of world economic turmoil people rarely appreciate art giving their preferences to supply daily needs.

There are pros and cons for jewelry. A work of a jeweler makes up a great part of jewelry cost that is why it’s quite difficult to forecast if a certain piece of jewelry is in price in few years, or it will to the contrary fall in price.

High-quality precious stones are good investment to wait till crisis is over. The only disadvantage is that after such global crisis they will be on demand not immediately but during next 3-5 years as people need to solve more important tasks first, such as food, shelter, clothes, business and only after all some money can be saved to buy precious stones.

Good variant would be real estate investment as people always need shelter to live in and offices to work in. Life goes on even during crisis. However, we probably shouldn’t talk here about any profitability as paying capacity of tenants is quite low during crisis and will grow gradually in compliance with growth of economy. You can’t earn on real estate within the next few years as mortgage lending is temporary stopped and there is almost no solvent demand. So real estate investment can be good long-term freezing of capital.

Gold bullions is one of the best variants considering very special attitude to gold of a certain group of people. They love and respect gold during almost thousand years. They will never let gold fall too much in price. But this rule is for their personal gold, the gold they posses, not for your gold or for gold of someone. Gold is the perpetual value, so you can wait for increase in price for ever, or probably 5-7-10 years. In a certain moment gold price will be 2 or 3 thousand dollars instead of $800 for today. I have already mentioned who and how set gold prices.

Are you sure that price is set for you in order you earned too much profit? I wouldn’t play that game. This is historical business of a certain group of people and it for authorized persons only.

The most logical and correct decision would be investment in production of the resources which people will always be in need in shifting sands – food, water, dwelling and tools for production of these goods. Whatever is going on with economy or currency – people will always consume these goods. Investment in these goods production will not only save your savings but also will give you advantage in hard times, when daily needs are brought to the forefront.

The decision should be made as soon as possible, until currency is not and financial systems functionate. Rich for resources Europe is already in a deep crisis, dozens of states are under the threat of default, and recourses of countries in Eastern Europe, where capital deficit is reality, are de facto for sale. Not only useless luxury goods but also lands, plants and farms here are cheap at half the price at the moment. Resources which are of state importance found new owners at the moment.

Ukraine and Eastern Europe are examples. Hundreds of the most valuable resources of this country are for sale now as local owners are on the beach. They just don’t have enough money to maintain their work. There are machine-building plants with several hundred hectares of land, expensive equipment with dozen million dollars potential output! Chemical plants also held up their work because of lack of capital, but there are only few plants like this in the world… Fertile lands, big farms – at the moment their price is thousand times lower then real price. Each invested dollar will bring thousand dollars next year! At http://www.uinvest.com.ua you can check the list of such profitable investments

Certainly it will come to the end soon. Sagacious American and European investors are buying up these resources in great amounts straight away. Buy low sell high. While many people try to squeeze vestiges of virtual money out of stock exchanges, affiliated mutual funds and investment banks, smart investors buy real assets for a mere song. Such assets will cost tomorrow dozen billion dollars again. Actions, which all this project was started for, are being carried out. This is a change of ownership.

Our team attracts capital for buying such kind of assets. People having average income can legally increase their capital in dozen and hundred times. Today they have real chance to do this.

For Furture Information LOGON to
http://www.articlesbase.com/international-business-articles

First Smart Phone to be launched by Dell in China and Brazil

2009-12-05T11:17:00.000-08:00

Rumors of Dell’s fresh Smart Phone have been growing for months but nowadays it is administrator, Dell’s first Smart Phone tool is about to be launched.

Conventionally a computer group advertising desktops, laptops and net books, it isn’t such a bound in the shady for Dell to move into the Smart Phone advertise as these days Smart Phones control more like mini computers.

dell-plans-its-own-smartphoneAccordingly, phone companies too, Nokia as an case, are initial to fabricate minuscule computers in the outline of Net books, it’s sort of a natural succession as the restrictions between these strategy start to merge.

What is shocking for a little though is that Dell’s first mobile phone will be launched not in the USA or in Europe but in China later this month and in Brazil subsequently month.

As a result why launch it in these two countries first? According to a Dell blog post, it’s since these two countries have a very bulky subscriber foundation and Dell previously has presented partnerships in these countries.

It’s true; China Mobile who will be shipping the phone in China has a vast subscriber base that amounts to virtually double the marketplace in the complete of the US.

In Brazil too, America Movil, the blood relation corporation of the mobile phone shipper that Dell will use in Brazil, has extra subscribers than together Verizon and AT & T put as a group.

The difficulty is of modus operand i that in the US and in Europe, disagreement will be tough, and as it is Dells first uncertain steps into the Smart Phone marketplace they probably want to be more sure of a rock-hard launch.

“I imagine it’s going to be complicated for anybody not including a big wealthy software and app pedestal of support to get customers attracted, at least in the U.S. and Europe,” said Avi Cohen, administration co-worker of Avian Securities.

Dell beforehand has partnership with AT & T and Verizon in the US and among Vodafone in Europe, which will no qualm give them additional opportunities in the upcoming.

“This is a international stratagem” said Dell presenter Matt Parretta.

Dell’s Mini 3 as the original Smart Phone is called, uses Android, Google’s operating system software and this too may be element of the grounds they chose China and Brazil first.

According to Hapoalim Securities USA forecaster Kevin Hunt, Dell will find it not easy to compete with traditional phone companies before at the present using Android such as the likes of Motorola, HTC and Samsung.

“They could have modest accomplishment. I wouldn’t see it being a big driver” Hunt said.

We don’t be acquainted with yet when the Mini 3 will be to be had in other countries but will remain you posted.

orginally posted at sizzlopedia.com

2012 - The Movie, Review

2009-12-04T11:56:00.000-08:00

With a bunch of friends yesterday, I went to see the movie "2012". It was awesome, the plot, the effects, everything. For some time now there has been a commotion around about the Doomsday and the end of world in the year 2012 and that is why the director decided to make a movie on the topic.

While watching the movie i just couldn't stop thinking about what would actually happen if the world does come to an end in 2012? It made me realize that we are so engrossed in our temporary life that we have forgotten about the Day of Judgment and we direly need to start preparing for our life hereafter.

The movie was about how the people don't want to die so soon and just to save the mankind from becoming extinct they make large spaceships. All the rich ones paid a handsome price to be on that ship. The effects when the world was finally coming to an end were too beautiful to describe. It all seemed so real that i just couldn't stop biting my nails and at some points even hiding my face behind my hands.

The movie had an almost happy ending, and no im not telling you what it is :p.

Overall it was an enjoyable movie and maybe for people like me, thought provoking too that how desperate people become when they know that their end is near and would do anything to save themselves from dying.

this post was orginally posted at :
yello.pk

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 FOV Fix

2009-12-04T03:36:00.000-08:00

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is one of those games that doesn’t work well with widescreen monitors. Over at Widescreen Gaming Forums, a fix has been posted that you could try.

Remember, the changes you make the CFG file in your game is done at one’s own risk.

Browse to your MW2players directory. Note that it’s not MW2players for all people. Search config.cfg in your c:documents and settings folder, and you should find the config file. Open config.cfg in wordpad and add the following lines:

set developer “1″
set sv_cheats “1″
set thereisacow “1337″
bind M “cg_fov 90″

Once ingame press M to increase your FOV. You can also change “90″ to whatever FOV you prefer. Optionally, if you don’t want to have to remember to press M to set your FOV, locate the line ‘bind W “+forward”‘ and change it to:
bind W “+forward;cg_fov 90″
This will set your fov automatically as soon as you walk in each level.

Changing FOV in config_mp.cfg is untested, but it may work (no idea if this is detected by VAC).

orinal data was posted here

Motorola Droid 2.0 Photos and Specs Leaked

2009-12-04T03:22:00.000-08:00

It’s been almost a month since Motorola Droid was released by Verizon and now we’re already hearing news of Motorola Droid 2.0 aka Sholes Tablet.

Mobile Android, a Chinese website has posted the first live photos of Sholes Tablet (codename), which looks like an upgrade to Droid.

motorola-droid-20-sholes-tablet

Motorola Droid 2.0 features the same 550MHz OMAP TI 3430 CPU as of Droid. It is expected that Droid 2.0 aka Sholes Tablet will run on Android 2.0 or most probably at Android 2.1 like we saw it on the leaked photos of HTC Hero.

Other features include:

* 3.7? touch screen (800 x 480 resolutio)
* 8 megapixel camera
* HDMI port
* 3.5mm headset jack
* UMTS/HSPA
* Xenon flash

Sholes Tablet won’t have a physical keyboard like that in Droid. It is expected to go on sale in the first half of 2010, when at the same time we’ll be seeing XPERIA X10 from Sony Ericsson.

The article was published at site

The Netbooks are “necessary evil” for Microsoft and Intel

2009-12-04T03:11:00.000-08:00

It doesn’t matter where you go it seem that Netbooks are still very much on the top of the agenda for conversation by those involved in or involved in the computer industry and are still on the top of shopping lists for buyers.

Consumers just love them but the sellers can’t stand them, and amusingly enough for pretty a great deal the same cause and that is that netbooks are cheap.

microsoft-windows7-IntelThere just isn’t a lot of profit in them for company but to stay in the game, particularly as the economy enter into a rough patch, they had to play their part or lose out to others who were all clamouring to cash in on the wave of attractiveness that Netbooks have been surfing for the past two years.

One analyst firm has now said that although companies have maybe missed out on the much larger profit margins offered by fully fledged laptops and desktop computers, these cheap and cheerful devices have proven their worth and transformed the industry.

Canalys, a European tech analyst company, said that Netbooks were “the only PC segment enjoying growth this year”.

Company Vice President Mike Welch said at the Canalys Mobility meeting in London newly that Netbooks are three times more possible than laptops to be used in cafes or other public chairs like parks or on trains. Even on holiday.

That isn’t really astounding though is it, allowing for that is what these ultraportable strategy were meant for?

Netbooks were calculated to be portable, to be small and light, to provide opportune internet access, so we could take them with us everywhere and anywhere without having to lug just about a heavy duty laptop. And that’s exactly what we did.

However, the popularity of Netbooks has come at a charge for Microsoft and Intel says Mr Welch.

“It forced Microsoft to fend off a warning from Linux by reducing its operating system prices and to continue promote its ageing XP brand.

“Netbooks have radically lowered industry price points… furthermore, hard-pressed PC vendors have been required to cut their in commission costs to have any chance of turning a profit” said the companionship Vice President.

Canalys CEO Steve Brazier got without delay to the point and summed it up very succinctly “Netbooks have been a indispensable evil for Wintel” he said.

“They have kept the hard work going this year, but have been injurious to (Microsoft) and Intel” he continued.

article orginally posted at site :

Rumours that Goggle’s Chrome OS will be accessible for download in a week

2009-12-04T02:39:00.000-08:00

There has been much build up and assumption immediate Google’s in service system dubbed Chrome, so we’ve got used to the rumours. The most modern however, is that it could in reality be available for download subsequently week. Is it right?

google-chome-os-leakSome months ago, Google believed that Netbooks operation Chrome would not be to be had pending the second half of 2010.

Then last month there were intelligence emanating from China that a few devices shipping the original operating system would be offered this November, which just come to pass to be this month.

Now according to Michael Arrington from Tec Crunch, the latest site to bring us news of an looming Chrome launch, an early on version of the Chrome operating scheme will be widely available for download after that week.

Arrington, who says their in sequence comes from a “unfailing source,” also says that this early description would not have certain hardware drivers so may only work on a incomplete number of computers to commence with, which of course isn’t much use to the majority of us.

“A robust set of implementation drivers is extremely imperative to Chrome OS’s success” Arrington said.

“Citizens will want to download this to whatsoever computer they use and have it just labor.”

perceptibly without the drivers, the operating system isn’t going to employment so what’s going on?

By the sounds of belongings, it may only be the foundation code that is being on the loose for developers to start functioning on it and not the full version so not all and sundry will be able to download and use the original operating system, you’d have to be tech confidence for a start.

chrome_mushroom_logoRegardless, we’re just departing to have to wait and see but a difficulty on many people’s minds is, is there whatever thing individual about Google Chrome Operating System and will it thump Microsoft off it’s high alight?

Google’s Chrome will rely on many cloud-based application via the internet so the good news is you won’t necessitate a particularly commanding computer but you will necessitate a good Internet relationship.

As to whether Goggle’s Chrome can practically rival Microsoft’s Windows, well as far as Netbooks are anxious, it just might make a gigantic difference.

Netbooks are web equipment that don’t have a lot of influence or storage, Googles Chrome is for all intents and purposes a web operating system that doesn’t want whichever, and the two may well turn out to be faultless connections.

Blackberry Storm Vs iPhone 3G Comparison

2009-11-27T03:06:00.000-08:00

Hardware Spec
Dimension:
Storm = 4.4 x 2.4 x 0.6 inches
iPhone 3G = 5.5 x 2.4 x 0.48 inches
Weight:
Storm = 155g
iPhone = 133g
Screen Size:
Storm = 3.2 inches
iPhone = 3.5 inches
Camera:
Storm = 3.2M pixel
iPhone = 2M pixel
Memory:
Storm = 1GB on board + 16GB expandable with MicroSD
iPhone = 8GB / 16GB (No expansion)
Battery:
Storm = 5.5hrs talk time / 360 hrs standby
iPhone = 5hrs talk time / 300 hrs standby

Unlike T-Mobile G1 that we have reviewed earlier, BlackBerry Storm "steals" the design and looks much like the iPhone 3G. However, it does not look as sleek as iPhone 3G. It's a little bit thicker (0.14inches more) and heavier (22g more) than iPhone 3G. And, surprisingly, BlackBerry Storm does not come with Wi-Fi support or they probably consider Verizon's 3G network is good enough.

BlackBerry Storm's screen is also a little bit smaller (3.2 inch) as compared to iPhone 3G (3.5 inch), however it sports a slightly higher resolution (460x360 pixels) than iPhone 3G (460x360 pixels).

Winner: iPhone 3G

Input Method

With the success of iPhone's multi-touch interface, touch is now the standard for any new smartphone. Like iPhone, Storm does not have physical slide-out keyboard and uses the screen as input, in fact its RIM's first smartphone to feature a touch screen. However, RIM highlights that the touch technology developed on Storm is somewhat different to other touch screen smartphone available. RIM refers its touch technology as "Clickable Screen". That means, when users press key on screen, they can actually feel the key pressed and release, just like you press the mouse button. They call it a game changing touch technology that makes on-screen keyboard more appealing.

Also, like T-Mobile G1, it will have built-in cut and paste capability across applications a feature missing from iPhone 3G.

Winner:Its difficult to call a winner on this one, until we get feedback from users on RIM's touch technology. We love iPhone 3G's revolutionary multi-touch interface.

Multimedia
Multimedia support is not the strong area of RIM smartphones, as they predominantly targets business users. Storm is developed with multiple support in mind to lure more casual users. Standard feature like music and video playback is included. A wide range of audio format (including MP3, AAC, WMA, etc) and video format (including MPEG4, WMV, etc). Storm also allows you to sync iTunes music files via BlackBerry Media Sync and has its own media software to manage your music.

iPhone 3G is the best iPod Apple has ever created. The music and video playback experience is awesome. And, Apple continues to update features like Genius Playlist into iPhone makes iPhone's multimedia support nearly unbeatable. With its seamless integration with iTunes Store, you can download songs wirelessly or sync it between desktop using iTunes. iPhone 3G also supports a wide range of music formats but only plays Quick Time video.

Winner: iPhone 3G

Camera & Video Recording

Apple did not upgrade the camera in iPhone 3G, its still a basic 2 megapixel camera while Storm comes with 3.2 megapixel camera and includes video recording capability. Storm also includes a flash and auto focus for its camera.

Winner: BlackBerry Storm

Modem Capability
iPhone 3G does not support tethering and Apple tends to ban any applications in App Store that adds this capability. The only option you have is to jailbreak the iPhone and use jailbreak apps such as PDANet, iPhoneModem etc. BlackBerry Storm, on the other hands, comes with tethering built-in.

Winner: BlackBerry Storm
Tips: How to convert DVD to Blackberry with Daniusoft DVD BlackBerry Converter?

Enterprise Feature

Apple has made quite a few strides to take market share from RIM in the enterprise area. iPhone 3G, with built-in support for Microsoft's ActiveSync protocol, lets enterprise users to access Microsoft Exchange's services. Also, it takes a great step forwards to support Cisco IPsec VPN, which is a standard in enterprise wireless security. Further, it incorporates a feature to let administrator to wipe data remotely, in case the iPhone is lost or stolen.

RIM is always the leader in enterprise wireless devices. Storm, by no means, continues to lead in this area. The enterprise support is outstanding that different security policies can be defined, such that administrator may enable or shutdown specific bluetooth profiles; and even, to disable its digital camera access.

Winner: BlackBerry Storm

To sum up, BlackBerry strikes a balance between business and causal use. It's, by far, the sleekest BlackBerry; which should help RIM lure causal customers.

Is it another iPhone killer? Its difficult to conclude. iPhone 3G and BlackBerry both come with some unique features that neither have and they are positioned differently in the market.
However, I still fail to understand the omission of Wi-Fi in BlackBerry Storm, its true that BlackBerry is targeted at the business users who use it primarily for email, but still it seems like a major disadvantage over iPhone 3G.

As a consumer device, iPhone will definitely win thanks to the iPod application, its Safari browser which is easily the most advanced web browser on a portable device which makes browsing the internet on the iPhone a treat and overall for its cool factor. But if you turn to some business-savvy users and enterprise, BlackBerry is still the de-facto choice.

RIM has also not disclosed the pricing or the official shipping date.

You can checkout the demo video of BlackBerry Storm to get an overview:

BlackBerry Storm, T-Mobile G1 and soon to be released Nokia's XpressMusic phone (Nokia's first touch screen phone) might or might not end up being iPhone killers but they are healthy competition to Apple's iPhone 3G that will ensure that Apple constantly innovates which in the end is beneficial for consumers like us.

this article was first published at http://www.iphonetopic.com

Telenor to launch 3G

2009-11-27T02:52:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday Telenor opened its new UMTS mobile network for commercial use. The network offers very high data transmission speeds, and Telenor Mobil's customers will have access to third generation mobile services such as video calls and Mobile TV. At the time of launch, the network covers 70 cities and densely populated areas in Norway.

"It is with a feeling of pride and excitement that we now embark upon a new era in Norwegian mobile history. Norwegians are among the world leaders in adopting advanced mobile services, and the potential of such services has now been made significantly greater. At the time of launch, the new network covers approximately half of Norway's population, and we are committed to continue our network rollout as planned," said CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas of Telenor.

UMTS stands for Universal Mobile Telecommunications System . The new technology will give customers of Telenor Mobil even better access to the new mobile services commonly known under the heading 3G services. This involves opportunities for transmissions of live images, and faster Internet connection speeds than what customers have been accustomed to from existing mobile systems.

At the time of launch, Telenor's UMTS network covers more than two million people in 70 cities and densely populated areas. By March 2005, 132 cities and densely populated areas will be covered, and all areas with more than 200 people will have full coverage by 2007.

During an introductory phase, Telenor Mobil customers will be able to make video calls free of charge. During the campaign period, customers in the consumer market will not be charged more than NOK 5 per day for Mobile TV and other Internet access (packet switched).

Facts about 3G services:

To enjoy access to the new 3G services, customers will need EDGE or UMTS handsets, and users must be within an area that has 3G coverage. Mobile phones that support Telenor's 3G services will be easy to identify in sales outlets, and customers should have few problems finding the right models.

Regular phone calls will be charged as today, depending on subscription plan. From next year, regular consumer prices will be NOK 20 per downloaded MB, with a maximum limit of NOK 30 per day. Video calls will be charged NOK 2.24 (Post-paid) and NOK 3.74 (Prepaid) per minute, in addition to a NOK 0.99 start up fee. Regular business prices will be NOK 10 per MB for the first 50 MB per month, and NOK 8 per MB exceeding 50 MB. A full price list will be made available on our web site.

To the editors:

Invitation to press briefing

In connection with the 3G launch, the press is invited to a briefing at Telenor Expo at Fornebu today at 12:00 CET. Berit Kjøll of Telenor, Gunnar Stavrum of TV2 and Ukko Lappalainen of Nokia will give brief talks, and be available for interviews. A simple lunch will be served, and participants will be given the opportunity to test 3G services.

Press briefing:

Telenor Expo, Fornebu

for more info visit telenor

Clearwire raises another US$920M

2009-11-27T02:48:00.000-08:00

Wireless broadband provider Clearwire said Wednesday it has racked up another US$920 million in debt to help it finance the deployment of its nationwide 4G wireless network.

The company had already nabbed US$1.85 billion of senior secured notes due in 2015 to help it pay off an existing US$1.4 billion debt payment. In total, Clearwire has raised nearly US$2.8 billion in debt and equity in the past few weeks.

Earlier this month, some of the company's investors also kicked in an additional US$1.5 billion in funding. Sprint Nextel, Intel, Comcast, and Time Warner Cable all contributed to the additional funding. Google, which also invested in Clearwire, did not contribute to the latest round.

Clearwire said earlier this year that it needed US$2 billion to US$2.3 billion in additional funding to ensure its network could reach at least 120 million people by the end of 2010.

Building new telecommunications networks is not cheap. And many analysts have said they believe that Clearwire will actually need even more money to build its network.

As of the end of the third quarter, Clearwire reported its network was up and running in 13 markets, including Chicago, Baltimore, Portland, and Philadelphia. The company will expand this list next year as it tries to meet that 120 million customer goal.

Even as it builds its network, Clearwire is struggling to sign up new customers. In the third quarter, it signed up a total of 173,000 new subscribers bringing its total subscribership to 550,000. This figure includes consumers who have signed up for service via Clearwire's reseller partners, Sprint, Comcast and Time Warner Cable. It also includes customers who had already signed up for Clearwire's pre-WiMax service that offered fixed wireless broadband.

A broader network footprint should help Clearwire win more customers. And the company's management team says it is confident that this latest funding will finally be enough to help the company move forward with its plan.

"With this latest tranche of additional funding, we have not only exceeded the amount of capital that we have previously stated we needed to fully fund our business plan, but we have also secured additional capital that will allow us to expand more aggressively by covering more people and with more capacity than we had previously planned," Bill Morrow, CEO of Clearwire, said in a statement.

Even with an expanded network and plenty of cash to build it, Clearwire's future is still somewhat uncertain. The company faces tough competition in the wireless broadband market. Not only is Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest cell phone provider, building its own 4G wireless network using a competing technology known as LTE, but other service providers such as T-Mobile USA are upgrading their networks with advanced 3G technology that matches Clearwire's WiMax in terms of download speeds.

The advantage these souped-up 3G networks have over Clearwire is scale. They can leverage a deep device and equipment ecosystem, helping reduce the overall cost of deploying networks and offering services. By contrast, WiMax is a niche technology. Some service providers around the globe are using WiMax to provide fixed wireless broadband. Others, like carriers in South Korea, are using a pre-WiMax standard to offer service. But Clearwire is one of the few companies using the standard version of WiMax to build a large mobile network.

The company has backers, such as Intel, which can drive some demand by embedding WiMax chips into laptops. But so far, there haven't been compelling mobile products with WiMax built-in.

This article was first published as a blog post on CNET News.

New Google search UI brings color, search options

2009-11-27T02:41:00.000-08:00

Google's new search results page brings more search options to the fore amid brighter colors that nod at recent changes made by its rivals.

Small groups of Google searchers over the past week or so have seen the new design as the company tests the new user interface, but not everybody was able to gain access to the interface. On Wednesday, Gizmodo published some tips on how to force Google into serving the new pages, and therefore we can bring you some screen shots of the new look and feel for Google search.

The first thing you'll probably notice is the left-hand rail, which has Google's search options feature presented in full color and in permanent position: previously, you had to toggle the search options feature at the top of the search results page, and the links were presented in Google's classic spartan blue. The search bar at the top of the page also has a big blue "Search" button in place of the gray button that used to occupy that space.

Marissa Mayer, vice president of search products and user experience at Google, told Search Engine Land last week that the new pages are designed to eliminate inconsistencies in how Google presented search results after it added several new elements to the page. But it also mimics what Yahoo and Microsoft have been doing with their search results pages, focusing on presentation and new ways to sort results.

This article was first published as a blog post on CNET News.

Mozilla issues near-final Thunderbird 3

2009-11-27T02:38:00.000-08:00

Mozilla Messaging has released the first release candidate of a Thunderbird 3, software it hopes will significantly improve how people read, write, catalog, and search their e-mail.

Mozilla released the software Tuesday for Windows, Mac, and Linux, several days later than predicted earlier this month but close to a year later than Mozilla planned in 2008. A final version of Thunderbird 3 is expected not long after the release candidate.

Thunderbird 3 has been years time in the making. For its next versions, the Mozilla Messaging group hopes to release new versions more frequently, said Mozilla Messaging programmer Dan Mosedale.

"Part of the plan for Thunderbird is to move our development process in a more agile direction... Rather than having super long releases, we'd like to release significantly more frequently than we have historically done," said a draft Mozilla proposal for what to do in the post-Thunderbird 3 era Mosedale posted. He proposed major Thunderbird releases every four to six months, starting with version 3.1, and also laid out some ideas for Thunderbird after version 3.1.

Thunderbird 3.0 adds a variety of features, according to Mozilla and the Thunderbird 3 RC1 release notes:

• A more elaborate search option to locate specific messages. People can employ a variety of methods to sift the wheat from the chaff.

• An e-mail archive a la Google's Gmail. Rather than filing every message in a folder, an organizational technique that can be hard to maintain with high volumes of messages, people can move them out of the inbox into the archive where search can find them later.

• A streamlined interface that cleans up the toolbar and moves some of its functions to the frame around e-mail messages.

• A new plug-in system designed to be easier to use to replicate some of the success of the Firefox browser. The browser, by the way, is built in so plug-ins can use it.

• A tabbed interface that can reduce clutter of e-mails, e-mail folders, and other tasks. A tab can, for example, house a version of Yahoo's online calendar.

• An easier process to set up new e-mail accounts. The software has preset settings for several e-mail services.

• "Smart folders" that can be customized in a variety of ways. For example, users with multiple e-mail accounts can create a smart folder that provides a unified inbox for all the accounts.

• An easier way to add people to the address book by clicking a star icon next to the sender's name.

This article was first published as a blog post on CNET News.

Godfather of Spam sentenced to four years

2009-11-26T11:13:00.000-08:00

On Monday, Michigan resident Ralsky was sentenced to 51 months in prison and ordered to forfeit $250,000 (£150,000) by a Federal court in Detroit, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said in a statement on Monday. The money Ralsky must forfeit was originally seized by the US government in December 2007.

"With today's sentence of the self-proclaimed 'Godfather of Spam', Alan Ralsky, and three others who played central roles in a complicated stock spam pump-and-dump scheme, the court has made it clear that advancing fraud through abuse of the internet will lead to several years in prison," US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan Terrence Berg said in the statement.

Ralsky was sentenced with his son-in-law Scott Bradley and two others. Bradley was jailed for 40 months, and also had to forfeit $250,000 for his part in the operation.

Fellow conspirator How Wai John Hui was sentenced to 51 months in prison and had to forfeit $500,000, while John Bown was sentenced to 32 months in jail and had to forfeit $120,000.

Pump-and-dump stock manipulation involves sending out spam to artificially increase the price of previously bought 'penny' stock, and then trading in that stock to make a profit. Many of the spam emails the gang sent out promoted "thinly traded" stocks for US companies owned and controlled by individuals in Hong Kong and China, according to the statement.

"The spam emails contained materially false and misleading information or omissions and were created and sent using software programs that made it difficult to trace them back to the conspirators," the DoJ statement said.

Ralsky was the chief executive of the operation, while Bradley served as chief financial officer and director of operations. According to the statement, Hui was the "lead deal maker" and represented the companies that were being promoted by the spam, while Bown was the chief technology officer. Bown was indicted for conspiring to commit fraud by creating a botnet. Ralsky, Bradley and Hui were indicted on fraud and money-laundering charges.

A further six people were sentenced on Tuesday by the same Detroit court for their involvement in the operation, according to a Department of Justice statement on Tuesday.

Frank Tribble, who planned and directed stock trading, got 51 months for his part in the operation. Judy Devenow, who managed the spam, was sentenced to 18 months. William Neil, who created and served one of the computer spam networks, was sentenced to 35 months in jail. James Bragg and James Fite, who were contracted spam-mailers, were both sentenced to 12 months plus one day.

David Patton was sentenced to one day in jail and forfeited $50,100 for creating and selling the spam-mailing program used by the gang. Patton was also fined $3,000, and Devenow was fined $7,500

fot more info visit zdnet

Mafia Wars Cheats , tips and tricks

2009-11-21T04:27:00.000-08:00

For All Who Are Interested To Learn Mafia War Cheats To Dominate Mafia Wars...

Being a die-hard fan of the Mafia Wars, I've explored many forms of effective Mafia Wars cheats. Like many other Mafia Wars players, my goals are to be unbeatable, rich and powerful.

I know that many are searching for Mafia Wars cheats in order to dominate this amazing game, and with the right methods and tactics you can grow your mafia family very quickly, make money like lightning and become the don of the family in no time.

After much research, I can say that some tips and skills can be easily found online in forums or blogs, however, what most people would like to learn are deadly strategies that will bring you countless of victories after victories. In other words, be UNSTOPPABLE!

Dominate Mafia Wars like never before!

You may want to see some guides that fulfills all these criteria at Mafia Wars Secret. Visit MafiaWarsSecret.com to find out more what these amazing guides has to offer.

Growing Your Wealth in Mafia Wars
First and foremost, you will obviously want to do some jobs to get some money. But pretty soon you won't need to do any jobs to make money, only to level up. This is because your investments will make money without having you having to do anything.

At the very start, when you are doing jobs, choose the ones that offer you the highest payoff with the least amount of energy used - good pay/energy ratio. Alternatively, you can choose jobs that have a high experience gained/energy used ratio. The more benefit to you with the least energy lost is the right direction you should take.

As soon as you are paid, it is a wise decision to bank your money. Yes there is a 10% money-laundering fee that the bank will charge you, but this is much better than losing everything in a fight.

When the time is right, remember to buy properties with a good return on investment ratio.

Top 9 Tips To Success In Mafia Wars

1. Bank Your Money

This game is all about mobs and you could very easily end up losing money during fights. Your money is very much safer in a bank.

2. Strengthen Your Mafia Family

Recruit people who play this game almost every day. This will ensure that you are building a strong family. Help other members of your family and by doing this, you are also keeping your family strong.

3. Buy Properties

Work towards making more money and use this money to buy properties that will help you dominate games.

4. Get The Best Weapons

This will help you in defense and gain more attack points too.

5. Saving Energy Packs

They will come handy during times of emergencies.

6. Select The "Maniac" Class

In the Mafia Wars, energy is much valuable than money. Energy allows you to do missions, whereas money will not. This is a common mistake many players make when starting out. With the "Maniac" class, you won't have to worry about any energy issues anymore.

7. Be patient In Building Your List of Mafia Members

You will need some good planning before a successful mafia group is established. Start off by working independently till you are sufficiently ready. This is very much better for you in the later part of the game.

8. Use Your Experience Points On Energy

Do not waste your points around on Godfather points or any other useless items. That can be done in the later part of the game, however for present situation, it will only slow you down. Therefore, i would advise you to focus on "Energy" as it is the most important thing for you to level up quickly in the game.

9. Stay Away From Being On The "Hitlist"

This will prevent you from getting killed constantly by the higher level players. You can start this when you are on a higher level, however, you will only slow down your leveling if you start off at the present stage.

Questions And Answers Q & A Section
Q1. What are the skills in Mafia Wars?

* Attack increases your damage on enemies during fights.

* Defense reduces the damage you receive from enemies in fights.

* Health determines how well you survive fights.

* Energy is your ability to do jobs.

* Stamina allows you to fight more often.

Q2. How to make money in Mafia Wars?

A: Do jobs and help your family with their jobs. Invest in property for a steady stream of income. Get into fights and target players on the hit list. There's nothing better than making dough while icing someone.

Q3: What are the characteristics of the Mafia Wars characters

A: Moguls level up the slowest, but they make money quickly. Maniacs recover energy quickly and are better equipped for doing jobs. The fearless recover health quickly, which gives them an advantage in fighting. At this point you cannot change your character type in the game.
Q4: How do I get more Godfather points?

A: Play every day and you will get a bonus of 3 Godfather points every day that you sign in. When you level up, you will get 1 godfather point.

IBM Unveils a New Brain Simulator

2009-11-19T21:33:00.000-08:00

A big step forward in a project that aims for thinking chips

18 November 2009—Scientists and engineers at IBM’s Almaden Research Center, in San Jose, Calif., announced today at the Supercomputing Conference (SC09) in Portland, Ore., that they have created the largest brain simulation to date on a supercomputer. The number of neurons and synapses in the simulation exceed those in a cat’s brain; previous simulations have reached only the level of mouse and rat brains. Experts predict that the simulation will have profound effects in two arenas: It will lead to a better understanding of how the brain’s architecture leads to cognition, and it should inspire the design of electronics that mimic the brain’s as-yet-unmatched ability to do complex computation and learn using a small volume of hardware that consumes little power.

The cortical simulator, called C2, integrates research from the fields of computation, computer memory, communication, and neuroscience to re-create 1 billion neurons connected by 10 trillion individual synapses. C2 runs on “Dawn,” a BlueGene/P supercomputer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, in Livermore, Calif.

The research was funded by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which is spending at least US $40 million to develop an electronic processor that mimics the mammalian brain’s function, size, and power consumption. The DARPA project, called Systems of Neuromorphic Adaptive Plastic Scalable Electronics, or SyNAPSE, was launched late last year and will continue until 2015 with a goal of a prototype chip simulating 10 billion neurons connected via 1 trillion synapses. The device must use 1 kilowatt or less (about what a space heater uses) and take up less than 2 liters in volume. IBM is one of three groups involved in the project. In addition to $21 million in funds for IBM, DARPA also funded HRL Labs, in Malibu, Calif., and HP Labs, in Palo Alto, Calif.

“Real brains are so impressive to computer scientists,” says Jim Olds, a neuroscientist who directs George Mason University’s Krasnow Institute. “Instead of banging our heads against Moore’s Law, why not build computers more like the brain and get them to solve problems the way the brain does?” Right now, Roadrunner, the supercomputer that comes closest to replicating a human’s ability to drive in rush-hour traffic, weighs 227 metric tons and requires a diet of about 3 megawatts. By contrast, the brain regularly handles rush-hour driving on 20 watts (comparable to the power consumption of a Nintendo Wii), and its 1.5 kilograms fit neatly into a handbag.

IBM’s principal investigator for SyNAPSE, Dharmendra Modha, likens the C2 cortical simulator to an electron microscope or a linear accelerator. “It’s a tool that other scientists can now use to better understand how cognition works,” he says.

Olds says the IBM work is extremely promising. “Each neuron in the network is a faithful reproduction of what we now know about neurons,” he says. This in itself is an enormous step forward for neuroscience, but it also allows neuroscientists to do what they have not previously been able to do: rapidly test their own hypotheses on an accurate replica of the brain. “It’s like the Large Hadron Collider in that respect,” says Olds.

The IBM research shows that a model of the human brain—which has 20 billion neurons connected by about 200 trillion synapses—could be reached by 2019, given enough processing power. But Johns Hopkins University electrical and computer engineering professor Andreas Andreou says the C2 simulator underscores an undeniable fact—to better understand the brain, we’re going to need a better computer.

A major problem is power consumption. Dawn is one of the most powerful and power-efficient supercomputers in the world, but it takes 500 seconds for it to simulate 5 seconds of brain activity, and it consumes 1.4 MW. Extrapolating from today’s technology trends, IBM projects that the 2019 human-scale simulation, running in real time, would require a dedicated nuclear power plant.

The human brain offers tantalizing clues to a better computer architecture. For example, today’s microprocessors separate memory and computation. The brain has no such constraints, and its circuits are reconfigurable, specialized, and fault tolerant, too. This makes the human brain much better at recognizing faces and driving a car, to take two examples, than the world’s most sophisticated supercomputers. DARPA’s Urban Challenge, which required contestants to develop an autonomous vehicle control system, proved this point. The Urban Challenge went off the rails faster than anyone expected, with cars idling indefinitely at stop signs or becoming paralyzed by large rocks.

While Andreou, who studies chip architectures for specialized problems, is generally a skeptic about efforts to reverse engineer the brain, what Modha and his team have done is “quite good,” he says. The most interesting thing about the IBM research, Andreou says, is what it bodes for computer architecture—it points to a future of far more specialized electronics.

“I don’t believe in general-purpose parallel computing,” says Andreou. “The way to get to large-scale computing—like a brain simulation or genomics—is to use a specialized chip that will solve a specific class of problems very well. That’s why this [work] is exciting: It gives a lot of really scientific data to actually design such processors.”

Modha says the next step is ”to demonstrate brainlike visual perception, decision [making], planning, and navigation in virtual environments” by mimicking how the brain interfaces with sensory organs and with muscles.

IBM is also working separately on nanomaterials that could enable the construction of brainlike chips. In the final phase, it plans to build a system of 100 such chips simulating 100 million neurons and 1 trillion synapses.

DARPA is not the only organization working toward brainlike cognitive systems. The best-known brain project under way in Europe is Blue Brain, at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. And the European Union has also lavished 6.7 million ($9.3 million) on a project that will build an artificial mouse brain. The Chinese government, according to a Wall Street Journal report earlier this year, is spending $1.5 million to develop robots whose artificial brains are driven by microcircuits that evolve, learn, and adapt to real-world situations. And in the United States, the National Science Foundation has funded a three-year study at the University of Southern California’s electrical engineering department to develop a synthetic cortex, which will contain carbon-based (as opposed to silicon) nanometer-scale artificial neurons.

Source of Information IEEE Spectrum

Robotic Tightrope Walkers for High-Voltage Lines

2009-11-19T21:23:00.000-08:00

Inspection bots in Canada and Japan roll out to make power lines safe

INSPECTOR GADGET: HiBot's Expliner robot examines active high-voltage power lines by rolling along the upper cables in a bundle of four [left]. A counterweight hangs below, while a sensor arm is deployed in front of the pulleys to inspect the lines [right].

12 November 2009—High-voltage power-line inspection has always been a dangerous job for humans, so a handful of companies are sending in the robots. One such company, the Tokyo-based HiBot, is working with western Japan's Kansai Electric Power Co. to field a new robot next year that can inspect several power cables at once, a first for such daredevil bots.

As power-transmission lines age, preventive maintenance and inspection become more important. Many lines in western Japan are 80 years old, says Michele Guarnieri, a HiBot cofounder and technical consultant for the company. Recent power blackouts in Canada and the United States have also highlighted the need to ensure the power grid's stability.

Transmission-line inspection is currently the domain of humans who walk high on the lines like tightrope walkers, which means that the power lines have to be turned off before inspection can begin. That's a drag for electric companies, which have to reroute power through parallel lines or cut off service altogether for the duration of the inspection. Especially as energy demands increase, says Serge Montambault of Canada's Hydro-Québec Research Institute, it's becoming more difficult and costly to "get a line out of the network"—hence the search for a robotic alternative that can inspect live power lines.

HiBot's inspection robot, called Expliner, proposes to do just that. It's designed to roll along a typical high-voltage "bundle" in Japan: a set of four cables held in place by half-meter-wide square-shaped spacers every 30 meters or so. Expliner has been successfully tested on live wires up to 500 kilovolts, the maximum voltage pulsing through Japanese transmission lines, according to engineer Paulo Debenest, another HiBot cofounder. The robot is like a four-wheeled cable car that rolls along the upper pair of bundled cables. From one side of the robot dangles a manipulator arm, which also serves as a counterweight for balance.

A big challenge for transmission-line robots is crossing obstacles that crop up on the line. Some obstacles, such as the cable spacers that keep bundled lines in place, are relatively easy to roll right over. Others, such as suspension clamps that hold up the line, block the way. Expliner gets around such things by using the dangling counterweight to shift the robot's center of gravity, which in turn raises the wheels on the front and back axles up and out of the way of obstacles.

For example, if the robot is approaching a suspension clamp, which we might think of as a post sticking up in the road, the robot shifts its weight to lift its front axle off the cables, then an automated process rotates the axle out of the way, like pushing open a gate. The robot advances until the axle passes the obstacle, and then it pulls the axle back to the cables. It then does the same routine for the back axle.

If the obstacle is more difficult, such as a steep incline in a mountainous region or a tower affixed to the line with more than a single simple insulator, the robot would have to be brought down and installed on the other side of the obstacle.

But navigation along the lines isn't the only goal. The robot must also do a good job of inspecting the cables. For this, Expliner uses four sets of sensors—one set for each of the four cables in a bundle, each including laser sensors for greater sensitivity—which give the robot the ability to see the whole surface of each cable, to spot corrosion or scratches, and to discern tiny changes in cable diameter that could indicate damage inside the cable, such as a broken steel strand.

In addition to the laser sensors, Expliner has a high-definition, high-zoom camera that can record the details of bolts and spacers up close far more effectively than a helicopter or even a person, says HiBot's Debenest.

Source of Information IEEE Spectrum

Experience and Payouts Guide In Mafia wars

2009-11-19T14:06:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share with you a Mafia Wars guide for experience and payouts. I decided to compile a table that will give a breakdown on exactly what you should be investing into a job. Not all jobs are created equally and you’re obviously going to have to do things that will best serve the family’s needs. If your goal is to remain at a low level in this game, but aim for cash than your best bet is to aim for low experience and high paying missions. Some of the Mafia Wars will require you to have certain requirements if you want to do some of the high level jobs. Typically if you do a high level job, than you won’t be returning to the lower tier.

It is important to note that the table contained in this Mafia Wars guide is only accurate if you don’t account for job bonuses. Obviously you might find a better job to do if the bonus fits your needs.

* EXP - Experience Points Ratio
* LOW/EnP – The lowest payout return per single energy point
* HIGH/EnP – The highest payout return per single energy point

	EXP	LOW/EnP	HIGH/EnP
Street Thug
Mugging	1	$200.00	$300.00
Corner Store Hold-Up	1	$266.67	$400.00
Warehouse Robbery	1	$280.00	$500.00
Auto Theft	1	$260.00	$390.00
Rob A Pimp	1	$366.67	$500.00
Mafia Soldier
Collect Protection Money	1	$420.00	$630.00
Rough Up Dealers	1	$560.00	$840.00
Take Out A Rogue Cop	1	$533.33	$800.00
Perform A Hit	1	$533.33	$800.00
Bank Heist	1.5	$400.00	$650.00
Jewelry Store Robbery	1.33	$333.33	$1,000.00
Hitman Jobs
Destroy Mob Hideout	1	$1,280.00	$1,920.00
Kill A Snitch	1	$1,408.00	$2,112.00
Bust A Man Out of Prison	1	$1,520.00	$2,280.00
Museum Break-in	1.22	$2,666.67	$4,000.00
Fight A Haitian Gang	1	$1,466.66	$2,200.00
*Capo Jobs (incl. prep jobs)**
Federal Reserve Raid	1.2	$4,000.00	$16,000.00
Smuggle Across the Border	1.14	$4,000.00	$6,000.00
Liquor Smuggling*	1.18	$11,250.00	$20,000.00
Run Illegal Poker Game*	1.48	$15,000.00	$25,000.00
Wiretap the Cops*	1.43	$50,000.00	$100,000.00
Underboss Jobs
Repel the Yakuza	1.38	$8,307.69	$12,461.54
Disrupt Rival Smugglers	1.33	$9,466.67	$14,200.00
Invade Tong Neighborhood	1.2	$9,600.00	$14,400.00
Sell Guns to Russians	1.4	$40,000.00	$120,000.00
Protect against Rival Family	1.43	$62,857.14	$120,000.0
Assassinate a Politician	1.43	$71,428.57	$142,857.14
Exterminate a Rival Family	1.75	$75,000.00	$150,000.00

thanks for visiting http://www.everythingisfried.blogspot.com/

if you like this post please comment..

source of article .

Mafia Wars On iPhone

2009-11-19T13:58:00.000-08:00

Can You Really Dominate Mafia Wars With Mafia Wars Cheats?

2009-11-19T13:53:00.000-08:00

Can You Really Dominate Mafia Wars With Mafia Wars Cheats?
The great thing about computer games is the fact that they always have some secret codes and cheats that are built right into it. If you've ever searched online for Facebook's Mafia Wars cheats, you would have found a lot of sites claiming to have all these great cheats and codes. You can easily find scripts that claim to help automate the game. Some of the scripts out there claim that they will send invites to friends in the fight window. The script isn't perfect though, so players can often advance a lot faster by using great strategies instead of using Mafia War cheats. Of course if you want the easy way and advance much faster with cheats, you can check out the complete how-to Mafia Wars cheats.

The first thing that you need to do is grow your family. Basically you need friends on Facebook to join and the more people that join, the stronger your mob becomes. You have to keep the family growing if you plant to be successful with the game. You want the people you invite to start inviting their friends. This helps the family grow large. Another great thing you can do is join other people's families. This way if someone invites you, you can invite them.

Another thing that is very important to this game is the family defense. Each member of the team needs help protecting themselves. The boss of the team is the one that makes everything work. They're the one that keeps the family members with defense tools and weapons. As the mob family gets more wealth, the boss will get much better weapons and vehicles for the family. Obviously when you start out, you're not going to have much of any funds, so the primary goal is to get more wealth. As wealth increases, you can start to get more weapons for your family. It is much easier to do this than looking for Mafia War cheats.

When it comes to the actual accumulation of wealth, it is best to avoid the Mafia War cheats because you want to make sure this part of the game is legit. There are different approaches you can do like taking on a lot of jobs or building up property. Early in the game you can still buy up low investment property, but you usually need a decent amount of family members to do this. As you start getting more money, you just keep collecting more expensive properties. It is important to make sure that the higher end property does provide positive cash flow because you're not getting ahead if you have to pay for expensive upkeep.

Lastly, you'll want to use points strategically. As each of the players in the game level up, they will be given points by the Godfather. These points can be used for various attributes like energy, attack, defense, etc. Applying the points is in a strategic manner is important. You can help knock off your rivals by simply killing them off. This requires using your points for things like attack, stamina and defense. Or you can easily put money into energy, so players can do more jobs and earn more money.

Knowing the strategies for this is very important. Mafia War cheats can help, but without any understanding of strategy you're just wasting your time. Understand what it takes to be good at the game and coupled with cheats, you'll soon be a Mafia Wars rockstar!

if u like this post please comment..

Mafia War Strategy - 6 Amazingly Simple Tips to Success in Mafia War

2009-11-19T13:38:00.000-08:00

Mafia Wars is considered one of the most popular online games these days. If you are serious about winning games, then there are some simple, yet highly effective tips that can help you dominate the game. These tips will help you devise an unbeatable Mafia War strategy. Listed below are 6 amazing tips that will help you come out on top with ease.

Tip#1: As part of your Mafia War strategy, the first thing that you need to do is to bank your money. Remember this game is all about mobs and you could very easily end up losing money during fights. Your money is therefore much safer in a bank.

Tip#2: No Mafia War strategy could be complete without increasing the strength of your family. Try and recruit people who play this game almost every day. This will ensure that you are building a strong family.
Tip#3: You are responsible for helping other members of your family and also for keeping your family strong.
Tip#4a: Buying property is one of the crucial part of any successful Mafia War strategy. You will first of all need to work hard in order to earn and save more. You can use this money to buy properties that will help you dominate games.

Tip#4b: It is always recommended that you do some research on the game over various different online sources. This will help you get to know about various strategies, cheat codes and hacks. Online forums offer a good platform to interact with other fans of this popular game. You can pick up valuable tips from such online forums.
Tip#5: Always make it a point to get the best weapons. This will help you in defense and gain more attack points too.

Tip#6: You should save energy packs, for they will come handy during times of emergencies.

Article source:

if u like this article please comment...

Guide for Mafiz Wars

2009-11-19T13:25:00.000-08:00

Given that Mafia Wars is such a popular Facebook app game, I thought it only made sense to create a Mafia Wars guide. I’ve only recently started playing but I’ve successfully grown my mafia family to over 250 in just a few days. Mafia Wars is a highly addictive Facebook game but it’s also a great place to meet and add Facebook friends too. Everyone I’ve met in Mafia Wars has not only been friendly but supportive and ready to go to war in a moments notice for his/her own Mafia Wars family. Through the help of some Mafia Wars members, I’ve come up with some great Mafia Wars tips on how to play the game:

Bank the money – Protect your money by depositing it into the bank. Otherwise, you run the risk of losing it in fights or getting robbed.
`Gifting to family members – You’re only as strong as your family and therefore gifting to weak members is beneficial to everyone. Make sure each one of your Mafia Wars family members has 1) a vehicle, 2) weapons, 3) armor, and 4) Mafia Wars energy.

Protect your own – When the call for help goes out, you should join the fight to protect family members. That is, unless the opponent is too strong. In that case, bitch slap/sucker punch and make a run for it!
Put in work and buy properties – Work your butt off doing jobs to earn money and complete the various levels. As your Mafia grows, keep buying up Mafia Mike’s as it’s the best return on your money and such property can’t be stolen.
Choose your weapons wisely – Don’t waste your points or money obtaining weapons that have weak attack points. When you join a fight, the weapons with the highest attack points are used first so it’s important you have a lethally strong arsenal. Also, don’t waste your money buying weapons that you cannot use for gifting to others.
Stay energized – If you want more energy, don’t waste your Godfather points to increase it. Instead, use your Godfacther points to buy four upgrade points. It will cost you 14 Godfather points to do so, but it will help you in the long run. As your Mafia Wars energy capacity grows, you’ll eventually be able to pass each level much quicker and with a surplus of energy points.

2X Level Rule – Your attack and defense points in Mafia Wars should be very strong and should scale according to your level. As a rule of thumb many Mafia Wars players like to have their attack and defense points at twice that of the level they are currently playing. Thus if your on Mafia Wars level two, your attack points shoud be at four and your defense points should be just as high.

Fighting loading problems – Sometimes your screen will freeze and refreshing doesn’t help. In that case, just go to your updates and choose a person in your Mafia Wars family to fight. It’ll say something like you can’t fight someone in your own Mafia Wars members but if you look to the right you’ll see the regular fight screen.
Reconsider Brag Gifting – You don’t need to announce that you’ve been gifting. In fact many Mafia Wars players find it quite annoying to see your gifts filling up their news feeds. You can change the permissions for Mafia Wars and other games on Facebook as well as learn how to adjust your Facebook profile’s privacy settings using our Facebook Guide.
Hitlist yourself – Select a lower Mafia Wars level in your profile such as a street thug and ask someone to add you to the Mafia Wars hitlist. They just need to go into my mafia, select your profile, and add you to the hitlist. If you want to guarantee that you get experience and you don’t get snuffed-out, ask some lower level Mafia Wars players to attack you. In return you could provide a service for them such as beating up a local Mafia Wars bully.

Don’t waste energy packs – When you’re within approximately two hundred points of the next level, refrain from using an energy pack as you’ll be instantly re-energized upon reaching that next level.
Visit Cuba – Once you reach Mafia Wars level 35 you should take the trip to Cuba to obtain more powerful weapons and gain experience.

Use a faster browser – Most people use Internet Explorer to play Mafia Wars but it’s super slow. You’d be better off downloading and installing a much faster browser like Opera or Google Chrome.

Become a fan of Stone Cold Pimps – You need to get “pimped” by this fan page to instantly add about 200+ mafia members to your mafia family. After getting pimped, return the favor by inviting your friends to join the Stone Cold Pimps fan page.

Contribute your knowledge – If you have any Mafia Wars tips or strategies, send them to me and I’ll add them to the official Mafia Wars list. If your Mafia Wars tip is included in the list, we’ll give you credit by adding a link to your name next to the tip to help you grow your Mafia Wars family! Befriend Properly – Add other Mafia Wars players on Facebook so they can join your Mafia Wars family. When you request the add, include the message “Mafia Wars” so they know what the Facebook add is for.

Please comment if u like this post :)

Mafia wars cheats and Hints for Facebook

2009-11-06T13:43:00.000-08:00

I am playing Mafia wars on face book..if you are playing Mafia Wars on facebook and know some excellent tricks for this online game let me know..

Link for Easy Energy pack For Mafia Wars At first log in to face book and Copy and paste this link to your address bar and hit Enter to get your energy pack every 24 hours.

Here is the link

Tips for Mafia wars Cuba
Recently Zynga opened a new beta named Mafia Wars: Cuba. Mafia Wars: Cuba is currently in Beta. I am playing that game on Facebook for fun.. In Cuba, Cuban Pesos are limited. You gotta save the Cuban Pesos.here is some tips for Mafia wars Cuba:

1. The fastest way to earn pesos in Cuba is to fight other mafia..So fight and buy some business on Mafia wars Cuba.

2. When you are injured in a fight, don’t go to hospital on Mafia wars Cuba. To save Pesos fly back to NY and heal your player.

3. Earn My Little Friend Achievement easily.. like gifting an M16A1 to a friend. Tell your friend to send it back.. Doing this he or she can earn the My Little Friend achievement.

So build your mafia in Cuba before.. others..

Use Mafia wars Auto player
Did you hard about Mafia wars auto player Scripts.. Before you try that i have to warn you about Zynga terms and conditions.. You might get banned for using any script.. Anyway i posted an picture of this mafia wars auto player Tool. This tool can auto play you mafia wars game according to you saved settings.. To install this tool you need to use Mozilla Firefox. Follow this steps to to install this tool for Mafia wars..

1. Download and install Mozilla Firefox Browser.. If you are using Firefox then go to second step.

2. Now install Greasemonkey Add-on for Firefox. Here the link for Greasemonkey:

link to Greasemonkey

Go to this link and click on Add to Firefox and install the add-on and restart Firefox.
3. Now go to http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/43573 and click on Green Install button now it will a window will appear.. click on install button from the window.
4. Now go to Facebook and log in to your account. Now go to mafia wars you will see some new link named Auto Play Settings, … … Instructions for this Mafia wars auto player (cheating tool) can be found at the following link..

http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dfwpt84g_21db9g8gcd&pageview=1&hgd=1&hl=en

check their forum for latest update. Here is the link. http://www.mafiawarsplayer.org. I found beta script from their site and it was working when i tested that…
Setup your own settings to cheat mafia wars game on Facebook. And have fun..

One of our reader shared some tips about Mafia wars auto player settings..
Your settings will depend on where you are at in the game and how often you will be checking on it. The tool does not make complex decisions, it just runs and auto selects things. Most default settings are ok and if you have a question about what a selection does then hover over the checkbox/dropdown/textbox for an explanation.

Here some settings that I have changed:
1. I have Cuba auto bank at $5000 instead of 50000 – I was losing $ from fights and didn’t like that.
2. Since I check on it often I like to have the tool auto-pause after level up so that I can manually spend the Energy depending on whether I need particular loot or am working on finishing a particular tier.
3. I have the tool set to not auto-purchase Properties but I have set it to auto-fix and auto-protect. The money just needs to be in the bank and it will withdraw what is needed.
4. When I know I won’t be able to check on the auto-process for a long length of time I set the tool to auto-run a job with high energy to exp. ratio. And, also one that doesn’t expend a special loot item like Concealable Camera, Untraceable Cell-phone, etc. The reason is that if I run out of that item it won’t continue to run the job thereby defeating the purpose of the tool.
5. A good tip is to adjust the Stamina settings so that you aren’t fighting huge mafias, especially if you aren’t maxed out in your own. Set the maximum Mafia setting to a number well below your own to ensure you are winning fights.
6. Disable “All” notifications and Gift wall posts. These are not necessary.

I could go on with everything I think about when selecting things but you are better off trying it out and learning the hard/fun way.

Get Lots of mafia wars Friend Request :
If you need mafia wars members quickly.. use this link : http://mafia.monkeytooth.net this will help you get more members. to avoid spam add a second email address to your account then submit that email. I got around 1500 members in a week.

Adding mafia without adding as friend :

One of our reader (John Thomas) shared this trick. Thanks john for adding this trick. You can check the comment below… Have you ever wanted to increase the size of your mafia without having to add weirdos from facebook on to your friends list.

You can actually do this.

Copy the link below:

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=">http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=*

* This is where you insert a players ID number e.g 123456789

This will add the user to your mafia and won’t add that user as a friend in Facebook.

To find a users id number, right click that user and open the link in a new window.

The last 9 digits is that users id number.

copy this number and it to the end of this address and press enter and that user will now be apart of your mafia

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=%28insert">http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=(insert 9digit id number here)

please keep on coming for more updates

Best Uses For Mafia Wars Money

2009-11-03T12:04:00.001-08:00

Best Uses For Mafia Wars Money, Mafia Wars Money Strategy

While Mafia Wars is going to cost you a fortune to play, the great news is that money is much easier to come by in the game legitimately than in your real life! You are going to need lots of money to purchase weapons, real estate, hotels, casinos, and other pleasures of life.

How To Get Your Mafia Wars Money Flowing Like A Fire Hose. Since you already know that you are going to need tons of money, you probably are thinking that you are going to have to work real hard at lots of jobs. Wrong answer! Just as in the real working world, jobs suck! Did you ever play Monopoly as a kid? How did you get rich playing Monopoly? Real Estate. Lots of it! Do you remember Park Place? The rent was high and it cash flowed!

Mafia Mike’s is your cash flow river for Mafia Wars Money. Mafia Mike’s are built on sleazy unoccupied property. They are ugly ducklings, but super useful in spitting out huge amount Mafia Wars Money. Keep in mind that you allowed to purchase only 1 Mafia Mike’s property for every 5 members you have in your mafia. I know that you are smart enough to figure that by recruiting 500 people in your Mafia family can get you up to 100 Mafia Mike’s properties. The fantastic deal with Mafia Mike’s real estate is that they cannot be robbed-you keep your Mafia Wars money! Hold off on developing these properties until after your mafia is well equipped and can defend them.

Mafia Wars Money Bank-Mafia Mike’s. Why pay the 10% laundering fee that banks extort from you? I don’t. Stash your cash into your investment properties until you have so much money, that getting robbed or loosing a fight is a better deal than paying the 10% banking fee on your money.

Keep Your Money Safe By Avoiding Fighting When you are new to MW, it’s best to steer clear of fighting so you can hold on to your Mafia Wars Money. Don’t pick fights. Avoid robbing some one unless they are just so damn stupid and leave you no other choice than to fleece them. Find the weak ducks and steal their money. Be careful of revenge. Just when you least expect it, someone you picked on may come back to get Mafia Wars money out of you!

Think of the bank as just a temporary holding cell-keep it the balance to the bare minimum.

How to Level Up Quickly in Facebook Mafia War?

2009-11-03T11:40:00.000-08:00

Choose a Character

For those that have never played Zynga Facebook Mafia Wars the best character you can choose to be is "maniac"

Grow the Family

The important thing to remember is when you grow your mafia family the only reason why you should keep growing in mafia size is to get more of the Limited Edition Loot and Mafia Mikes. Once you are over 501 members they DO NOT HELP YOU IN A FIGHT.

Only equip with weapons to 501 and no more because they wont do any good.
In Mafia Wars, players form mob families by inviting other Facebook members to join. The more family members a mob has, the stronger they are. The first and ultimately most important key to advancing is to keep the mafia family growing. This can be done in a couple of ways:

* Players invite all of their friends to join

* Link to other players on one of the many add me pages in FB, thousand of players network on these pages

* Reciprocate when players join their mob family, Mafia War players can be members of more than one mob.

* One of the best ways to add literally hundreds of players with just the click of a few buttons is to join an email mass add. This list has been consolidated from over 20 of the largest Mafia Wars Groups and Fan Pages on Facebook. You can find one Click Here!

Profile Points

One of the best strategies to a Mafia Wars player is the careful use of profile points! The best way to allocate points is when you first start the game put them on Energy but only until you have a reasonable amount of energy to do some jobs!

Once you have levelled a few times put the points on your Defence. The defence is the most important allocation of points that you can have. So focus on defense more than anything. Once your defence is quite high you will notice that when people attack you will win most fights and win experience points helping you level faster.

Only higher level players should concentrate on spreading points on attack, health, energy and stamina

Godfather Points

Players often asked what is the best way to use Godfather Reward Points. Are the crates worth it? Is the "Limited Edition" Godfather loot worth it?

While it may be tempting to crack open that unknown crate of loot, we believe that there are really two ways that you should spend your hard earned Godfather Reward Points (or bought if you like completing offers or paying to play).

* Energy Refill: This is the best value at only 10 points. Used at a good time, you can probably level, which in turn would give you 5 profile points to use.

* 4 skill (upgrade) points: For 14 reward points you can obtain 4 additional points to spend to increase the stats on your profile. This is still a better option than purchasing the loot from the crates. Skill points have a MUCH LARGER outcome on the results of combat than loot does (and if you wanted, you could use them for more energy / stamina ... loot does nothing to help you level faster).

* Name Change: I am going to mention this only because it is a viable way to spend your points. Sometimes if joining a clan / group you might have a need to change your name.

Remember Winning/Losing Fights ... Level makes NO difference, Equipment makes little difference but the correct use of points does.

It is quite easy to gain 80+ experience an hour from doing absolutely nothing. If you have a large mafia that likes to fight it can be done. Whenever someone in your Mafia fights and you assist them as their Capo, you earn XP instantly. This is also referred to as "Social Fight Rewards".

If you have notifications enabled for Mafia Wars, you might see the "Click here to claim your reward". Which in turn will reward you with reward points.

Mafia Wars Boss

Using Boss Fights to maximize your XP gain into next level

Ideal Criteria Prior to Leveling

* Use all of your stamina.

* Use all of your energy with enough energy to do a job that provides maximum experience into the next level.

* Don't have any extra energy (this doesnt carry over).

Do Boss Fights Give Anything Special?

The short answer is no but you get a "trophy" on your Mafia Wars profile page that only you can see. Currently there is nothing special given or any reason for doing them.

Now simply do a boss level prior to levelling to maximize experience points

Boss Fight 965300+329 = 965629 experience

Highest XP Job 965300+144 = 965444 experience into the next level.

Mafia War tips to increase your level

2009-11-02T09:08:00.000-08:00

Free God Father Points!!!

The following link givs you free GF points randomly, btw you can use it weekly:

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/index.php?xw_controller=index&xw_action=fan_blast&id=3&skip_interstitial=1

I have tested the link before couple of times and I got 3 GF per each time.

Check Your Energy Pack!!!
By the following link, you can check your Energy Pack situation:

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/index.php?xw_controller=index&xw_action=use_and_energy_all

Promoting Someone to Your Top Mafia

If you want to promote someone as your top mafia, you can use the following link. Then you don't need to look for your member in your family. It is a great help when you have a big family ( saving time) :

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=group&xw_action=view&promote=yes&uid=xxxxxxxxx

Note: Please write the user id of someone that you want to promote instead of xxxxxxxx. I explained before how to find someone's user id in MW and FB before. If you don't know, check the older posts.

General Information and FAQ About MW!!!

The following link is very nice and helpful document which is published be Verbal Di. Perhaps you could find some answer for your questions there:

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dcr4zcqs_5fgm2mdhh

How much exp you earned from your members!!!

If you want to know how much exp you could earn via your family members. You simply click on the below link:

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/index.php?xw_controller=index&xw_action=social_fight_reward

More active mafia members give you more exp!!!!

Direct Link to Access A Profile Page!!!

If you want to access someone's profile page directly, you should copy his/her id number instead of xxxxxxxx. You can find this id number in the bottom of your browser if you move the mouse on his/her FB name or MW nickname.

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=stats&xw_action=view&user=xxxxxxx

Mafia Wars Cheats,Tricks and Codes

2009-11-01T04:09:00.001-08:00

Today i am going to share some random tips and tricks for mafia Wars.

Link for Easy Energy pack For Mafia Wars
At first log in to face book and Copy and paste this link to your address bar and hit Enter to get your energy pack every 24 hours.

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_time=1237585519&xw_exp_sig=e18dcf6e9b149755d11809297ca910cf&xw_controller=index&xw_action=use_and_energy_all

If this link doesn’t work you can do another trick. You can ask your friend for energy pack or you can create another Facebook account and send an energy pack for your mafia wars.. But be careful you might get banned from Facebook for creating second Facebook account.

Tips for Mafia wars Cuba

Recently Zynga opened a new beta named Mafia Wars: Cuba. Mafia Wars: Cuba is currently in Beta. I am playing that game on Facebook for fun.. In Cuba, Cuban Pesos are limited. You gotta save the Cuban Pesos.here is some tips for Mafia wars Cuba:

1. The fastest way to earn pesos in Cuba is to fight other mafia..So fight and buy some business on Mafia wars Cuba.

2. When you are injured in a fight, don’t go to hospital on Mafia wars Cuba. To save Pesos fly back to NY and heal your player.

3. Earn My Little Friend Achievement easily.. like gifting an M16A1 to a friend. Tell your friend to send it back.. Doing this he or she can earn the My Little Friend achievement.

So build your mafia in Cuba before.. others..

Use Mafia wars Auto player

Did you hard about Mafia wars auto player Scripts.. Before you try that i have to warn you about Zynga terms and conditions.. You might get banned for using any script.. Anyway i posted an picture of this mafia wars auto player Tool. This tool can auto play you mafia wars game according to you saved settings.. To install this tool you need to use Mozilla Firefox. Follow this steps to to install this tool for Mafia wars..

1. Download and install Mozilla Firefox Browser.. If you are using Firefox then go to second step.

2. Now install Greasemonkey Add-on for Firefox. Here the link for Greasemonkey:

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/748

Go to this link and click on Add to Firefox and install the add-on and restart Firefox.
3. Now go to http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/43573 and click on Green Install button now it will a window will appear.. click on install button from the window.
4. Now go to Facebook and log in to your account. Now go to mafia wars you will see some new link named Auto Play Settings, … … Instructions for this Mafia wars auto player (cheating tool) can be found at the following link..

http://docs.google.com/View?docid=dfwpt84g_21db9g8gcd&pageview=1&hgd=1&hl=en

check their forum for latest update. Here is the link. http://www.mafiawarsplayer.org. I found beta script from their site and it was working when i tested that…

Setup your own settings to cheat mafia wars game on Facebook. And have fun..

One of our reader shared some tips about Mafia wars auto player settings..
Your settings will depend on where you are at in the game and how often you will be checking on it. The tool does not make complex decisions, it just runs and auto selects things. Most default settings are ok and if you have a question about what a selection does then hover over the checkbox/dropdown/textbox for an explanation.

Here some settings that I have changed:
1. I have Cuba auto bank at $5000 instead of 50000 – I was losing $ from fights and didn’t like that.
2. Since I check on it often I like to have the tool auto-pause after level up so that I can manually spend the Energy depending on whether I need particular loot or am working on finishing a particular tier.
3. I have the tool set to not auto-purchase Properties but I have set it to auto-fix and auto-protect. The money just needs to be in the bank and it will withdraw what is needed.
4. When I know I won’t be able to check on the auto-process for a long length of time I set the tool to auto-run a job with high energy to exp. ratio. And, also one that doesn’t expend a special loot item like Concealable Camera, Untraceable Cell-phone, etc. The reason is that if I run out of that item it won’t continue to run the job thereby defeating the purpose of the tool.
5. A good tip is to adjust the Stamina settings so that you aren’t fighting huge mafias, especially if you aren’t maxed out in your own. Set the maximum Mafia setting to a number well below your own to ensure you are winning fights.
6. Disable “All” notifications and Gift wall posts. These are not necessary.

I could go on with everything I think about when selecting things but you are better off trying it out and learning the hard/fun way.

Get Lots of mafia wars Friend Request :

If you need mafia wars members quickly.. use this link : http://mafia.monkeytooth.net this will help you get more members. to avoid spam add a second email address to your account then submit that email. I got around 1500 members in a week.

Adding mafia without adding as friend :

One of our reader (John Thomas) shared this trick. Thanks john for adding this trick. You can check the comment below… Have you ever wanted to increase the size of your mafia without having to add weirdos from facebook on to your friends list.

You can actually do this.

Copy the link below:

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=">http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=*

* This is where you insert a players ID number e.g 123456789

This will add the user to your mafia and won’t add that user as a friend in Facebook.

To find a users id number, right click that user and open the link in a new window.

The last 9 digits is that users id number.

copy this number and it to the end of this address and press enter and that user will now be apart of your mafia

http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=%28insert">http://apps.facebook.com/inthemafia/remote/html_server.php?xw_controller=war&xw_action=add&xw_city=1&friend_id=(insert 9digit id number here)

you can also download the mafia wars cheats ebooks from the links below

http://www.mafiawarscheats.tk
http://www.upfrontentertainment.6te.net/mafiawars.html
http://www.mafiawarscheats.50webs.com

I Hope you will Enjoy it

For More Details About Cheats You Can Visit
http://www.bytetips.com

Orkut tips and trics

2009-10-31T04:17:00.000-07:00

want to scrap like this
[̲̅h̲̅a̲̅i̲̅ ̲̅f̲̅r̲̅i̲̅e̲̅n̲̅d̲̅s̲̅ ̲̅h̲̅o̲̅w̲̅ ̲̅u̲̅ ̲̅d̲̅o̲̅i̲̅n̲̅g̲̅.̲̅.̲̅?̲̅]

1 Copy this code and go to the profile of the person whom u want to scrap
2 Paste the code in that address bar and
3 Type the message u want to send and
4 Press the GO button and
5 Press the POST SCRAP button...

javascript:var byX9=document.getElementsByTagName('textarea')[0];byX9.value="["+byX9.value.replace(/|/g,"̲̅")+"]";void(0);

Google maps in orkut

Google maps within orkut:
http://www.orkut.com/Map.aspx
Upon clicking on the link you will be able to see where your friends are located around the world( provided they filled out their details correctly).
Upon clicking on a group or a person, you will be able to see your friends address, profile link, photo (provided they filled out their details correctly)

ITS NOT GOOGLE.... ITS UR NAME!!!

Go to google and wrtie goglogo in search box and hit enter...
make the first page as ur home page and then open the site write ur name
now u made ur own search site...........

Google Trick

Nobody knows whether its a mistake or google purposely made ths . any way try this.........
1-Go to Google
2-Type the word "Failure" in the search box (dont put quotes)
3-Instead of clicking "Google Search," click "I'm Feeling Lucky."

Send scrap to all ur friends at once

Send scrap to all your friends at once....
Install Google Pack. its absolutely FREE
Google Pack is available for free download from this Blog..

Enlarge ur photo

javascript:i=128;void(setInterval("i++;document.images[2].width=i",5))

just copy paste them in ur adress bar and press enter
after preview click referesh

Skins for orkut

Hey friends,got bored with same blue orkut background???
wanna change the way your orkut looks??
but the problem is its GREASEMONKEY codes and its for FIREFOX users only...
so if you don't have FIREFOX get it first!!!
Google is now providing FIREFOX with GOOGLE TOOLBAR get it now
and inform me as comment with ur mail id.. i will send u the link....

Shake ur friends orkut page

javascript:function flood(n) {if (self.moveBy) {for (i = 35; i > 0; i--) {for (j = n; j > 0; j--) {self.moveBy(1,i);self.moveBy(i,0);self.moveBy(0,-i);self.moveBy(-i,0); } } }} flood(6);

just copy paste them in ur adress bar and press enter

Different format for ur name ,nickname....

Go to system tools in your system open accessories then character map there open for times new roman...there u will find all the possible fonts...
OR
Make Stylish Nick NamesClick here
SOURCE
Type your nick and click on "Create", copy the result and paste it wherever you want to.

How to make customised messages or scraps

Hey friends did u ever wondered where these wonderful messages are coming....
dont worry here is the solution.......... check this link
SOURCE
On this page...
1. write ur word(better small words) in the box
2. Click the create button
3.Copy and paste it anywhere u want

Invisible name, nickname ,scraps or missed call

simple way to make any thing invisible in orkut.
just hold "alt" and press "0173" from ur num pad and now release "alt"...... and submit
OR
just type [ i ] without spaces and an invisible scrap will b sent (empty scrap)

CRARY SCRIPTS

just copy paste them in ur adress bar and press enter

javascript:R=-1;DI=document.links;DIL=DI.length;function A(a,b,c){return Math.sin(R/350*6.28*b+a)*c+c}function B(a){DIS=DI.item(a).style;DIS.position='absolute';DIS.left=A(5,100,500);DIS.top=A(5.6,60,150)}setInterval('R++;B(R%DIL)',15);void(0)

How to invert a scrap

& # 8 2 3 8
Type it without spaces b4 ur msg and submit ur message, will be inverted.................

Facebook Hack Codes And Tips To Show Off Your Skills

2009-10-29T04:58:00.000-07:00

Make Yer Profile a Pirate’s Page You Landlubber

The second profile hack is also one of the easiest to implement. Facebook offers users the ability to transform their Facebook pages into any language that they like. If you scroll down to the lower left corner of your profile page, you’ll see your current language setting. Click on this, and you’ll have a list of all languages available to you. Notice the English Pirate option?

?

Now as you go through your profile page you’ll notice some pretty hilarious pirate variations.

wall is the Plank, your profile is the Cap’n’s Log, and you can now either click a post as pleasin’ to me eye (like) or blabber t’yer mates (comment). It certainly removes the “boring” factor from your old standard Facebook pages.

Upside Down Status!!! Same like Pirate one :)

Facebook also offers users the ability to transform their Facebook pages into upside down language that they like. If you scroll down to the lower left corner of your profile page, you’ll see your current language setting. Click on this, and you’ll have a list of all languages available to you. Notice the English(upside down)

Download Complete Photo Collections From Your Friends’ Profiles

If you have a lot of friends on Facebook, you may not have the time to keep up with all of the new family photos they’ve posted – but you are very interested in them and would love to have them stored in your own private photo collection to review later. Well, thanks to a very cool FireFox plug-in called FacePAD, you can do just that. The add-on is awesome, and I would recommend that anyone with the resources to do so should send in a contribution to Arthur Sabintsev for his efforts.

After you install the FacePad plug-in, make sure you select Tools->Add-Ons, and configure the options for FacePad so it has your correct Facebook language. Then, all you have to do is go to your friend’s photo albums, right-click on the title and select “Download Album With FacePAD.” That’s right, you’re not downloading a single picture – but an entire album.

Once you do, FacePad downloads every single image within that album into the download folder you’ve configured in FireFox. Don’t forget to organize all of those photos using JetPhoto.

Schedule Facebook Status Updates With Sendible

Do you like to keep your Facebook profile active, but you’re coming down with a cold and may be offline for a few days? Maybe you’re taking a trip and won’t be anywhere near a computer for a week. Or maybe you’ll be playing hooky from work and traveling, but you want your colleagues and boss to think you’re stuck at home sick. Accomplish any of these wishes by using Sendible to schedule your Facebook status updates. This is an application Daniel covered earlier, so check out his article for more details.

But for Facebook specifically, once you sign up with Sendible, just click on Facebook and provide your Facebook login details. Sendible connects directly with your Facebook account. The, under “New Messages” click on “Status Updates“.

On the next page you can schedule out as many updates as you’d like! This service is awesome – and you can distribute scheduled updates to a number of social networks including MySpace, Blogger, Twitter and more.

Hide Your Online Status From Certain People

ll you have to do is open up your chat icon in the lower right corner of your Facebook display, click on Friend Lists, and create a new list called “BlockList.” Make sure after you create it that it’s configured under “Display these lists in Chat.”

Now, all you have to do is either click “edit” and add the friends you want to block, or if they’re already online, just click their name and drag them under this new list. Once you’ve got everyone there who you want to block from see your online status, hover your mouse over the green dot to the right and click on “Go Offline.” Now, you appear offline to only those certain friends.

Facebook, unlike MySpace, is not really easy to tweak – which is actually a good thing. Gone are the days of those horrid eye-bleeding pages with pink flashing backgrounds and instant music that you can’t turn off. However, the tweaks and plug-ins in the list above offer at least a few ways to customize your Facebook account and usage to suit your life and your personality..

Sun, Fujitsu crank Sparc64-VII clocks

2009-10-27T12:02:00.000-07:00

While Sun Microsystems has been muzzled by Oracle to not talk in specifics about the future of the Sparc server line, Sun and its server partner, Fujitsu, can nonetheless keep enhancing their jointly sold midrange and high-end server Sparc Enterprise machines, and at the OpenWorld customer event in San Francisco this morning, the two hardware vendors said they had boosted the performance on servers using quad-core Sparc64-VII processors.

Specifically, the clock speeds on the Sparc64-VII chips used in the midrange M4000 and M5000 servers (which are really Fujitsu boxes that have Sun labels slapped on them when Sun sells them) now have processors that can run at 2.53 GHz, up from 2.4 GHz. The newer rev on the quad-core Sparc64-VII chip boosts the L2 cache on the chip to 5.5 MB, up from the 5 MB of cache available on the 2.4 GHz version of the quad-core chip and the 2.15 GHz dual-core Sparc64-VI processors that predate both of these chips.

The M4000 and M5000 servers, which offer four and eight processor sockets, respectively, allow for processor boards (with two sockets each) to be mixed and matched within the same system, a feature that is unique among high-end server makers that tend to have designs that force processors to be at the same generation and speed within an SMP setup. Anyway, the extra clocks and cache should boost performance by about 5 percent or so.

While a base M4000 using two dual-core 2.15 GHz Sparc64-VI processors, 16 GB of memory, and two 146 GB disks sells for $29,850, bumping that machine up to two quad-core 2.53 GHz Sparc64-VII processors and doubling up the memory to 32 GB raises the price to $42,980. And putting in the full four 2.53 GHz Sparc64-VII processors (still with 32 GB of memory) jacks the price on this midrange four-socket server to $66,380.
.
The M5000, being inherently twice as scalable to a total of eight processor sockets, costs more in a base configuration of two 2.15 GHz Sparc64-VIs, 16 GB of memory, and two disks; $45,080, to be precise, and that means the ability to scale to eight sockets and twice as much main memory has a price tag of $15,230. With four of the new 2.53 GHz Sparc64-VIIs, the M5000 costs $81,880 with 32 GB of memory and two disks, and with eight if these processors (for a total of 32 cores), a machine with 64 GB and two disks runs to $149,340.

Solaris 10 is preloaded on these boxes and included in the price. And at these prices, that should also include at least a year's worth of maintenance and something on the order of a 25 to 30 per cent discount as a starting negotiation price.

The high-end M8000 and M9000 servers designed by Fujitsu were already running quad-core Sparc64-II processors at a 2.52 GHz clock speed, and these have just been cycled down to the M4000 and M5000s for today's announcement. And as El Reg reported in an exclusive back in September, the rev of the quad-core Sparc64 chips from Fujitsu to 2.88 GHz that was announced today was actually expected around now.

And when the Sparc64-VII clocks are cranked again to 3 GHz sometime in late 2010 or early 2011 on these quad-core processors, you can expect that the 3 GHz chips will appear first in the M8000 servers (which scales up to 16 sockets) and the M9000s (which comes in two variants, one that scales to 32 sockets and another that goes up to 64 sockets) and today's 2.88 GHz chips will be pushed down into the M4000 and M5000s. Beyond that, Fujitsu has plans for the APL2 server in mid-2012, probably using the eight-core "Venus" Fujitsu Sparc64-VIII processors, but as of this past June, Sun had made no commitment to these boxes - at least not to the biggest customers who had been given the Sparc roadmap.

The prior 2.52 GHz quad-core Sparc64s used in the M8000s and M9000s had 6 MB of L2 cache on chip, and so does the 2.88 GHz version. The M8000 and M9000 servers support earlier dual-core Sparc64-VI chips running at 2.28 GHz or 2.4 GHz as well as the earlier quad-core chips running at 2.52 GHz. Oddly, the new 2.88 GHz quad-core chip, you will read in the fine print in Sun's tech specs, is only available in fully configured 64-socket boxes. (Like a potato chip, with the Sparc64-VII chip, you can't have just one. You gotta eat the whole bag). The M8000 can be configured with however many 2.88 GHz chips you want. Go figure.

The 2.88 GHz version of the Sparc64-VII processors have also been equipped with a new memory controller, according to Sun and Fujitsu, which boosts throughput on systems with memory-intensive workloads. The clock speed bump alone should be worth 14.3 per cent more oomph, but Sun said in a statement that the newer chips offered "up to 25 per cent" more performance, so presumably it meant on the bigger M8000 and M9000 machines with the tweaked memory controller, with the memory controller contributing a little more than 10 per cent of the throughput boost.

Pricing on the M8000s and M9000s is not available to the public.

As El Reg previously reported, Sun is offering various deals on upgrades from older UltraSparc and Sparc64 iron to the new newer Sparc64 machinery through December 31, which shave prices by 20 per cent. A deal that gave customers a free chassis on an M8000 or M9000 server (worth a stunning $600,000 according to Sun's list prices) expired on September 30.

But rest assured, given this crap economy and the fact that Oracle has not closed the Sun deal and Sun is desperate for revenues, anyone looking to shell out millions of dollars for a big Sun-Fujitsu Sparc box can probably get the salesperson to reanimate that deal. Ditto for the double upgrade promotion, which also expired on September 30. ®

for more visit channel register

Verizon mobile growth beats but FiOS TV goes in loss

2009-10-26T11:02:00.000-07:00

Verizon Communications Inc's third-quarter profit fell a less-than-expected 9 percent as wireless subscriber gains offset slower-than-anticipated growth in its FiOS television service.

While Verizon Wireless added a net 1.2 million mobile customers, beating the average estimate of 1 million from five analysts contacted by Reuters, it is still losing market share to AT&T Inc the exclusive U.S. provider for Apple Inc's iPhone.

Verizon "certainly did see some pressure from iPhone in the quarter but it's tough to complain about 1.2 million net adds," said Stifel Nicolaus analyst Chris King. AT&T added 2 million customers in the third quarter.

The company, which depends on mobile, broadband and TV for growth, also appeared to lose customers to cable rivals such as Time Warner Cable and Comcast , analysts said, adding that the shortfall caused the results of network gear supplier Tellabs to miss estimates.

Verizon reported 191,000 FiOS TV customer additions in the quarter, short of King's forecast of 250,000.

"Certainly cable was a little more aggressive," King said.

Verizon Chief Financial Officer John Killian told Reuters that a promotion to offer netbooks to new FiOS customers did not fuel as much growth as expected, but he said there was no indication of increased pressure from cable rivals.

"This is a very competitive marketplace," he said, repeating a target for 1 million new FiOS users for 2009.

Verizon ended a netbook promotion with Hewlett-Packard in the middle of the quarter because customers were looking for cash rather than product promotions, a person familiar with the promotion said.

The company's third-quarter profit fell to $2.89 billion, or 41 cents per share but before one-time items, earnings were 60 cents per share, compared with the average analyst estimate of 59 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue rose 10.2 percent to $27.27 billion, ahead of the average analyst estimate of $27.17 billion, helped by the purchase earlier this year of rural mobile operator Alltel.

On a pro forma basis, as if Verizon had owned Alltel last year, revenue would have risen 0.6 percent.

BETTER BUSINESS

Wireless brought in just under 58 percent of Verizon's total revenue for the quarter. Verizon Communications owns 55 percent of Verizon Wireless, while Vodafone Group Plc owns the rest.

Many analysts see Verizon Wireless as an obvious second U.S. partner for Apple once AT&T's exclusive rights to sell the iPhone ends. Verizon Chief Executive Ivan Seidenberg said he would like to partner with Apple, but such a decision would be Apple's to make.

AT&T's and Verizon's reports of better-than-expected mobile growth comes ahead the quarterly report of Sprint Nextel, which reports on Thursday October 29, and of T-Mobile USA's owner Deutsche Telekom which reports Nov 5.

"The question is was there enough left over for Sprint and T-Mobile USA. It may have come more at T-Mobile's expense," Piper Jaffray analyst Christopher Larsen said.

In the business segment, which has been hurt by corporate budget tightening and layoffs, Verizon surprised some investors with 2.5 percent sequential growth and the company expects more improvements as the economy recovers.

"I think our growth rate will improve in enterprise over the next several quarters," Killian said, but stopped short of giving a specific target.

Killian said the company was expecting strong growth in wireless in the fourth quarter with new devices including a touch-screen BlackBerry from Research In Motion and two devices based on Google Inc's Android system.

Verizon particularly talked up one of the Android devices, Droid, expected to come from Motorola Inc.

The company told analysts on the call that its 2009 capital spending would likely come in lower than its forecast of $7.4 billion to $7.8 billion and would be at the low end of that range "at worst."

Killian expects capital spending next year to be a smaller percentage of revenue than in 2009.

Shares were down 15 cents to $28.70 in afternoon trade.

for furhter visit: http://www.reuters.com/

Army Tank Design (new)

2009-10-26T03:16:00.000-07:00

The three traditional factors determining a tank's effectiveness in battle are its firepower, protection, and mobility. Since the Second World War, the economics of tank production governed by the ease of manufacture and cost, and the impact of a given tank design on logistics and field maintenance capabilities, have also been accepted as important in determining how many tanks a nation can afford to field in its force structure.?

No tank design has ever been fielded in significant numbers that proved to be too complex or expensive to manufacture, and made unsustainable demands on the logistics services support of the armed forces. The affordability of the design therefore takes precedence over the field performance characteristics. Nowhere was this principle illustrated better than during the Second World War when two Allied designs, the T-34 and the M4 Sherman, although both simple designs which accepted engineering compromises, were used successfully against more sophisticated designs by Germany which were harder to produce, were more expensive and demanding on overstretched logistics of the Wehrmacht. Given that a tank crew will spend most of its time occupied with maintenance of the vehicle, engineering simplicity has become the primary constraint on tank design since the Second World War despite advances in mechanical, electrical and electronics technologies.

Firepower is the ability of a tank to identify, engage, and destroy. Protection is the tank's ability to resist being detected, engaged, and disabled or destroyed. Mobility includes tactical (short range) movement over the battlefield including over rough terrain and obstacles, as well as strategic (long range) mobility, the ability of the tank to be transported by road, rail, sea, or air to the battlefield.

Tank design is a compromise; it is not possible to maximise firepower, protection and mobility simultaneously. For example, increasing protection by adding armour will result in an increase in weight and therefore decrease mobility; increasing firepower by installing a larger gun will force the designer to sacrifice speed or armour to compensate for the added weight and cost. Even in the case of the Abrams MBT which has good firepower, speed and armour, these advantages are counterbalanced by its notably thirsty engine, which ultimately reduces its range and in a larger sense its mobility.

Since World War II tank development has shifted focus from experimenting with large scale mechanical changes to the tank design to focusing on technological advances in the tank's subsystems to improve its performance. However, a number of novel designs have appeared throughout this period with mixed success, including the Soviet IT-1, the Swedish S-tank, the Israeli Merkava, and the incorporation of autoloaders to reduce the crew complement in a number of tanks.

Firepower

The main weapon of all modern tanks is a single, large-calibre gun mounted in a fully traversing turret. The typical tank gun is a smoothbore weapon capable of firing armour-piercing kinetic energy penetrators (KEP), also known as armour-piercing discarding sabot (APDS), and/or armour piercing fin stabilised discarding sabot (APFSDS) and high explosive anti-tank (HEAT) shells, and/or high explosive squash head (HESH) and/or anti-tank guided missiles (ATGM) to destroy armoured targets, as well as high explosive (HE) shells for engaging soft targets or fortifications. Canister shot may be used in close or urban combat situations where the risk of hitting friendly forces with shrapnel from HE rounds is unacceptably high.

A gyroscope is used to stabilise the main gun, allowing it to be effectively aimed and fired at the "short halt" or on the move. Modern tank guns are also commonly fitted with insulating thermal jackets to reduce gun-barrel warping caused by uneven thermal expansion, bore evacuators to minimise fumes entering the crew compartment and sometimes muzzle brakes to minimise the effect of recoil on accuracy and rate of fire.

Traditionally, target detection relied on visual identification. This was accomplished from within the tank through telescopic periscopes; occasionally however, tank commanders would open up the hatch to view the outside surroundings, which improved situational awareness but incurred the penalty of vulnerability to sniper fire, especially in jungle and urban conditions. Though several developments in target detection have taken place especially recently, these methods are still common practice.

In some cases spotting rifles were used confirm proper trajectory and range to a target. These spotting rifles were mounted co-axially to the main gun, and fired tracer ammunition ballistically matched to the gun itself. The gunner would track the movement of the tracer round in flight, and upon impact with a hard surface, it would give off a flash and a puff of smoke, after which the main gun was immediately fired. However these have been mostly superseded by laser rangefinding equipment.

Modern tanks also use sophisticated light intensification and thermal imaging equipment to improve fighting capability at night, in poor weather and in smoke. The accuracy of modern tank guns is pushed to the mechanical limit by computerised fire-control systems. A fire-control system uses a laser rangefinder to determine the range to the target, a thermocouple, anemometer and wind vane to correct for weather effects and a muzzle referencing system to correct for gun-barrel temperature, warping and wear. Two sightings of a target with the range-finder enable calculation of the target movement vector. This information is combined with the known movement of the tank and the principles of ballistics to calculate the elevation and aim point that maximises the probability of hitting the target.

Usually, tanks carry smaller calibre armament for short-range defence where fire from the main weapon would be ineffective, for example when engaging infantry, light vehicles or aircraft. A typical complement of secondary weapons is a general-purpose machine gun mounted coaxially with the main gun, and a heavier antiaircraft machine gun on the turret roof. These weapons are often modified variants of those used by infantry, and so utilise the same kinds of ammunition.

Protection

The British Challenger II is protected by Dorchester armour: second-generation Chobham armour

The measure of a tank's protection is the combination of its ability to avoid detection, to avoid being hit by enemy fire, its resistance to the effects of enemy fire, and its capacity to sustain damage whilst still completing its objective, or at least protecting its crew. In common with most unit types, tanks are subject to additional hazards in wooded and urban combat environments which largely negate the advantages of the tank's long-range firepower and mobility, limit the crew's detection capabilities and can restrict turret traverse. Despite these disadvantages, tanks retain high survivability against previous-generation Rocket-Propelled Grenades in all combat environments by virtue of their armour.

Almost every advanced Main Battle Tank is fitted with the British 'Chobham Armour' design; with two examples being the American 'M1 Abrams' and the German 'Leopard II'. This is the most advanced armour plating available for any tank (with the exception of the British 'Challenger II') and has been proven against a wide array of Rocket Propelled Weaponry and Explosives.

However, as effective and advanced as armour plating has become, tank survivability against newer-generation tandem-warhead anti-tank missiles is a concern for military planners.

Avoiding detection

A tank avoids detection using the doctrine of CCD: camouflage (looks the same as the surroundings), concealment (cannot be seen) and deception (looks like something else).

Working against efforts to avoid detection is the fact that a tank is a large metallic object with a distinctive, angular silhouette that emits copious heat and noise. Consequently, it is difficult to effectively camouflage a hull-up tank in the absence of some form of cover or concealment (e.g., woods). The tank becomes easier to detect when moving (typically, whenever it is in use) due to the large, distinctive auditory, vibration and thermal signature of its power plant. Tank tracks and dust clouds also betray past or present tank movement. Switched-off tanks are vulnerable to infra-red detection due to differences between the thermal conductivity and therefore heat dissipation of the metallic tank and its surroundings. At close range the tank can be detected even when powered down and fully concealed due to the column of warmer air above the tank and the smell of diesel.

Thermal blankets slow the rate of heat emission and camouflage nets use a mix of materials with differing thermal properties to operate in the infra-red as well as the visible spectrum. Camouflage attempts to break up the distinctive appearance and silhouette of a tank. Adopting a turret-down or hull-down position reduces the visible silhouette of a tank as well as providing the added protection of a position in defilade.

Armour

M4 Sherman tank of 741st Tank Battalion, U.S. First Army, burns in a street in Leipzig, Germany, 1945.
The TUSK for the M1 Abrams is intended to improve survivability in urban environments
To effectively protect the tank and its crew, tank armour must counter a wide variety of antitank threats. Protection against kinetic energy penetrators and high explosive anti-tank (HEAT) shells fired by other tanks is of primary importance, but tank armour also aims to protect against infantry antitank missiles, antitank mines, bombs, direct artillery hits, and (less often) nuclear, biological and chemical threats, any of which could disable or destroy a tank or its crew.

Steel armour plate was the earliest type of armour. The Germans pioneered the use of face hardened steel during World War II and the Soviets also achieved improved protection with sloped armour technology. World War II developments also spelled the eventual doom of homogeneous steel armour with the development of shaped-charge warheads, exemplified by the Panzerfaust and bazooka infantry weapons which were lethally effective, despite some early success with spaced armour. Magnetic mines led to the development of anti-magnetic paste and paint.

British tank researchers took the next step with the development of Chobham armour, or more generally composite armour, incorporating ceramics and plastics in a resin matrix between steel plates, which provided good protection against HEAT weapons. Squash head warheads led to anti-spall armour linings, and KEPs led to the inclusion of exotic materials like a matrix of depleted uranium into a composite armour configuration. Reactive armour consists of small explosive-filled metal boxes that detonate when hit by the metallic jet projected by an exploding HEAT warhead, causing their metal plates to disrupt it. Tandem warheads defeat reactive armour by causing the armour to detonate prematurely. Grenade launchers which can rapidly deploy a smoke screen and the modern Shtora soft-kill countermeasure system provide additional protection by interfering with enemy targeting and fire-control systems.

The latest generation of protective measures for tanks are active protection systems, particularly hard-kill countermeasures. The Israeli TROPHY and Iron Fist, the American Quick Kill, the Soviet Drozd, and Russian Arena systems show the potential to dramatically improve protection for tanks against missiles, RPGs and potentially KEP attacks, but concerns regarding a danger zone for nearby dismounted troops remain.

Mobility

The mobility of a tank is described by its battlefield or tactical mobility, its operational mobility, and its strategic mobility. Tactical mobility can be broken down firstly into agility, describing the tank's acceleration, braking, speed and rate of turn on various terrain, and secondly obstacle clearance: the tank's ability to travel over vertical obstacles like low walls or trenches or through water. Operational mobility is a function of manoeuvre range; but also of size and weight, and the resulting limitations on options for manoeuvre. For example, in a given sector of front, a T-80 equipped tank formation might have many more potential axes for rapid advance than a heavier M-1 Abrams equipped formation, because of the capacity limits of roads and bridges. Strategic mobility is the relative ease with which a military asset can be transported between theatres of operation and falls within the scope of military logistics. For example, a smaller tank, able to travel through rail tunnels on flatbed rolling stock, might have greater strategic mobility than a larger one.

Tank agility is a function of the weight of the tank due to its inertia while manoeuvring and its ground pressure, the power output of the installed power plant and the tank transmission and track design. In addition, rough terrain effectively limits the tank's speed through the stress it puts on the suspension and the crew. A breakthrough in this area was achieved during World War II when improved suspension systems were developed that allowed better cross-country performance and limited firing on the move. Systems like the earlier Christie or later torsion-bar suspension developed by Ferdinand Porsche dramatically improved the tank's cross-country performance and overall mobility.[27]

A main battle tank is highly mobile and able to travel over most types of terrain due to its continuous tracks and advanced suspension. The tracks disperse the significant weight of the vehicle over a large area, resulting in a ground pressure comparable to that of a walking man.A tank can travel at approximately 40 kilometres per hour (25 mph) across flat terrain and up to 70 kilometres per hour (43 mph) on roads, but due to the mechanical strain this places on the vehicle and the logistical strain on fuel delivery and tank maintenance, these must be considered "burst" speeds that invite mechanical failure of engine and transmission systems. Consequently, wheeled tank transporters and rail infrastructure is used wherever possible for long-distance tank transport. The limitations of long-range tank mobility can be viewed in sharp contrast to that of wheeled armoured fighting vehicles. The majority of blitzkrieg operations were conducted at the pedestrian pace of 5 kilometres per hour (3.1 mph), that only was achieved on the roads of France.

F-117 Nighthawk fighter Air craft

2009-10-26T01:07:00.000-07:00

The F-117A Nighthawk fighter attack aircraft was developed by Lockhead Martin after work on stealth technology, and the predecessor test demonstrator aircraft, Have Blue, was carried out in secret from 1975.

Development of the F-117A began in 1978 and it was first flown in 1981, but it was not until 1988 that its existence was publicly announced.
The Nighthawk is the world's first operational stealth aircraft. The first aircraft was delivered in 1982 and the last of the 59 Nighthawks procured by the US Air Force was received in 1990.?

The F-117A aircraft is also known as the Frisbee and the Wobblin' Goblin. The mission of the aircraft is to penetrate dense threat environments and attack high-value targets with high accuracy. Nighthawk has been in operational service in Panama, during Operation Desert Storm, in Kosovo, in Afghanistan and during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The F-117 is being replaced in the USAF by the F-22 Raptor. The first 10 of the 55 F-117 aircraft in service were retired in December 2006. A formal retirement ceremony took place at Wright-Patterson AFB in March 2008.

The F-117s are being stored in hangars at an airfield in the Tonopah Test Range, Nevada. The wings and tails are being removed for storage, but some aircraft will be able to be rapidly recalled to flight if required. The last four F-117 aircraft flew to Tonopah on April 22nd 2008.

In January 2004, an F-117 successfully released a JDAM (JDAM) 2,000lb bomb for the first time. The integration of JDAM and other precision-guided weapons on the F-117 is coupled with the block II software upgrade and achieved initial operating capability (IOC) in 2006.

The Nighthawk is only used for night-time missions.

Nighthawk design

The surfaces and edge profiles are optimised to reflect hostile radar into narrow beam signals, directed away from the enemy radar detector. All the doors and opening panels on the aircraft have saw-toothed forward and trailing edges to reflect radar.

The aircraft is mainly constructed of aluminum, with titanium for areas of the engine. The outer surface of the aircraft is coated with a radar-absorbent material (RAM). The radar cross-section of the F-117 has been estimated at between 10cm² and 100cm².

The F-117A has four elevons on the inboard and outboard trailing edge of the wing. The V-shaped tail, which controls the yaw of the aircraft, acts as a flying tail, which means that the whole surface acts as a control surface. The elevons do not act as flaps to reduce the rate of descent for touchdown, so the landing speed of the F-117A is high, at about 180mph to 190mph, and a drag parachute is used.

Cockpit

The cockpit has a Kaiser Electronics head-up display (HUD) and the flight deck is equipped with a large video monitor, which displays the infrared imagery from the aircraft's onboard sensors. The cockpit has a full-colour moving map developed by the Harris Corporation. The fly-by-wire system is supplied by BAE Systems Aircraft Controls.

Weapons

The aircraft can carry a range of tactical fighter ordnance in the weapons bay, including BLU-109B low-level laser-guided bomb, GBU-10 and GBU-27 laser-guided bomb units, Raytheon AGM-65 Maverick and Raytheon AGM-88 HARM air-to-surface missiles.

Sensors

For stealth, the F-117A does not rely on radar for navigation or targeting. For navigation and weapon aiming, the aircraft is equipped with a forward-looking infrared (FLIR) and a downward-looking infrared (DLIR) with laser designator, supplied by Raytheon. The aircraft uses a Honeywell inertial navigation system.

The aircraft has multi-channel pilot static tubes installed in the nose. Multiple ports along the length of the tubes provide differential pressure readings. The flight control computers compare these in order to provide the aircraft's flight data.

Flight management

Before flight, mission data is downloaded on to the IBM AP-102 mission control computer, which integrates it with the navigation and flight controls to provide a fully automated flight management system.

After take-off, the pilot can hand over flight control to the mission programme until within visual range of the mission's first target. The pilot then resumes control of the aircraft for weapon delivery.

The aircraft is equipped with an infrared acquisition and designation system (IRADS), which is integrated with the weapon delivery system. The pilot is presented with a view of the target on the head-up display, first from the FLIR and then from the DLIR.

The weapon delivery and impact is recorded on the aircraft's internally mounted video system, which provides real-time damage assessment.

Engines

The F-117A is powered by two low-bypass F404-GE-F1D2 turbofan engines from General Electric. The rectangular air intakes on both sides of the fuselage are covered by gratings, which are coated with radar-absorbent material.

The wide and flat structure of the engine exhaust area reduces the infrared and radar detectability of the aft section of the engine. The two large tail fins slant slightly outwards to provide an obstruction to the infrared and radar returns from the engine exhaust area.

for further details Visit
http://www.airforce-technology.com

Facebook Tips

2009-10-25T14:14:00.000-07:00

The following tips may help the most experienced Social Networker get a little more out of facebook

1. Added applications don’t have to sit on your profile

Contrary to what the default options for most applications would have you believe, adding and interacting with an application on Facebook DOESN’T automatically mean that it has to clutter up your profile. As well as getting an opportunity to restrict this at the “add new application” stage…
?

…you can also click “applications” in your left-hand menu at any time, and customize it from there too. Just click the little “edit settings” link next to each of the applications, and you’ll be able to further customize them –

you can change who sees them, where they appear, whether they’re allowed to send you e-mails and a few other bits and bobs. Perfect if you’re getting spam from an application in your e-mail – though if you’re being spammed by an app, you probably don’t need it that much!

2. You can change the way different people see your profile

When you add a new friend (or accept somebody who has requested to add you), you get the option of only showing them your limited profile. This is particularly useful if you’re adding somebody you’re not quite sure about, or adding a work colleague (for instance) who you don’t want to see your holiday snaps or the contents of your wall. If you’ve already added somebody but then decide you want to change their settings later, click on “privacy” in the top right corner and you can add people to your “limited profile” (or even “blocked” list) – plus you can click “edit setting” to edit what is actually included in your limited profile as well.

3. Your News Feed is fully customisable too

I often get frustrated because whatever controls my news feed (presumably an algorithm of some kind) has decided that I need to hear a lot more about a certain person – and when I do, I change my settings! You get to your mini-feed settings by clicking on “preferences” in the top right corner of the feed itself. As well as telling your feed to show you more or less about certain people, you can also use their snazzy slider bars to adjust how much your feed shows you about things like photos, status updates, notes, groups and the like.

4. Use friend lists to gather friends together in collections

I won’t spend too much time on the new “friend lists” feature, as I wrote quite a comprehensive post on it when it was released back in December; Needless to say they’re a very nifty way of “grouping” your friends in to lists, from which you can then communicate with them a lot more simply. Your friends will never see what lists you’ve added them to – so don’t worry if you add them to the group “People I don’t like much”, they’ll never know!

5. Most Facebook elements can be dragged and dropped

Because Facebook is built in a fancy, web 2.0 way (lots of Javascript and DHTML, or so I’m told) it’s a lot more customisable than you might at first imagine. Your profile for instance can be rearranged to your hearts content by dragging and dropping elements to change where they appear

As well as your profile, your left hand menu can also be customised. You can drag things between the top (always visible) menu and the bottom (which is only visible when you click “more”) – you can also drag applications in to this menu from your application list. This can be useful if, like me, you’re always playing on certain applications and want to be able to access them from anywhere.

6. Photo comments can be read an album at a time

One of the big things that helps me save time is being able to see all the photo comments in an album at the same time, without having to click through each of the pictures. It might not seem like a useful feature at first – after all, you usually want to see the photo that is being commented on don’t you? But if you find that people keep adding comments to the same album over and over (as they do in some of the family albums I’m tagged in!), you can save quite a bit of time by clicking “View Comments” at the bottom right-hand side of any album’s main page.

7. Don’t want to be a Zombie? Block the App!

If you’re getting annoyed with the same invitations to the same applications over and over (my personal bugbear at the moment is Texas Hold’em Poker!), you can block the application from sending you any more invites. It’s easy to do and saves you cluttering up your feed with hundreds of different invites to play the same thing – but it still lets you add the application if you change your mind later! All you need to do is click on the application’s name to go to it’s “about” page and then click the little “block application” button on the right hand side. Easy! You also get the chance to do this in your notifications list by clicking the X next to the application snippet, though this only removes the notifications from the list and won’t stop people inviting you still.

8. Poking people lets them to see your profile, and vice versa

Whilst most people think that “poking” is just a means of grabbing another user’s attention, it actually originated as a way for you to check out somebody else’s profile without having to add them as a friend first. For instance, if I was searching for a school friend and found several people with the same name, but their profile photo didn’t help, I could poke them all. They’d all then see that Henry Elliss had poked them, and with any luck one of them would recognise me and poke me back. We could then check each other’s profile for a week and have plenty of time to see if we really were the people we thought we were – so to speak. The same thing happens when you email someone who isn’t a friend – they can see your profile. Unless of course you’ve updated your privacy settings!

Clicking on “Edit Privacy” on the above pop-up takes you to a page that shows a list of people who you have poked in the past – and who can subsequently see your limited profile still! So be careful who you poke, and customise that limited profile too.

9. Make friends more easily with a Facebook badge

The Facebook Badgespage lets you create a neat little banner which you can use on a blog or other website to let people know you’re on Facebook.

Clicking on this banner will take users to your public profile – basically a version of what people find when they do a search for you within Facebook, and also the page that comes up if your Facebook page gets listed in a search engine result – don’t worry, it’s very limited as you can see with mine below!

N900 sales delayed till November

2009-10-24T14:59:00.000-07:00

Top cellphone maker Nokia said on Friday its flagship N900 phone will start selling in November, a month later than originally scheduled (27 August 2009 ) as the company awaits feedback from developers.

The N900 -- seen as key for Nokia's future in the high-end of the market -- is the company's first phone running on Linux software

Manufacturer Nokia
Type Mobile Internet device and phone
Media microSD/microSDHC card[1]
Operating system Maemo 5 Linux[2]
Power BL-5J 1320 mAh battery[2]
USB Battery Charger
CPU TI OMAP 3430 SoC
600 MHz ARM Cortex-A8 CPU
430MHz C64x+ DSP[2]
Storage capacity 256 MB NAND flash
32 GB eMMC flash[2]

Memory 256 MB SDRAM
768 MB virtual memory[2]
Display TFT 800 × 480 resolution
89 mm (3.5 in) diagonally
105 pixels/cm, 267 ppi[2]
Graphics PowerVR SGX 530 GPU supporting OpenGL ES 2.0[2]
Input Resistive touchscreen
Localized backlit keyboard with variations for English, Italian, French, German, Russian, and Scandinavian
Camera 5.0MP (2584x1938), f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Tessar lens (rear camera)
0.3MP (640x480) f/2.8 (front camera)[2][3]
Connectivity GSM 850/900/1800/1900
GPRS 107/64 kbps DL/UL
EDGE 296/178 kbps DL/UL
UMTS 900/1700/2100
WCDMA 384/384 kbps DL/UL
HSPA 10/2 Mbps DL/UL
WLAN IEEE 802.11 b/g
Bluetooth 2.1
Integrated GPS with A-GPS[1] FM receiver FM transmitter Infrared port
Dimensions 110.9mm × 59.8mm × 18mm
19.55 mm at thickest part[2]
Weight Approx. 181 g (0.4 lb)[2]
Predecessor Nokia N810

It will come with a touch screen and a slide-out keyboard, and will retail for around 500 euros ($750), excluding subsidies and taxes.
.

Affiliano.com Is A Scam! | Read Before Signing Up

2009-10-24T14:12:00.000-07:00

Can you make money from Affiliano.com that has been recently launched in the name of Payperlead program? What you need to look into before signing up with Affiliano.com? We’ll cover the story short here whether they’re scam or legit?

Before getting started I would like to point out that affiliano is Payperlead program which seems to be worth to work with as few people considering this as great money making system. But, is there any guarantee to make money as merely sending people to sign-up page with name and email ID’s which absolutely doesn’t involved on sale? For some people affiliano is true and when affiliano started few months ago many people started to ask few unclear questions about it. What are they? Well, there are some bad reports about affiliano.com as people doubting and comparing on another website which is now not existing and not surprisingly it is Affiliatejucktion.com. Stop it, I am not going to claim that affiliatejucktion and affiliano would be the same rather that the concept affiliano has today rising many questions regarding legitimacy since affiliatejucktion now no more in the scene. Where did they go? Well, all of sudden stopped working Payperlead program without paying payments to their most members. This is indeed a very bad news to here this. Isn’t it?

What similarities between this two?

Affiliatejuction was also run by new-zealand based company that offered the same payperlead program with credit card registration and the rate per lead was also the same.

Affiliano also currently running from new-zealand based company which offers absolutely the same rate per lead.

Affiliatejuction paid in NZ Dollars. Oops!Affiliano as well.

About affiliano: An Affiliano system works based on site for which you need to pay membership fees. You’ll get a ready made website and need to start sending people to your site. You’ll paid in New Zealand dollar for each referral who signups and confirms the link from the e-mail account. Still some people claiming that they’re making nearly $20000-$30000 simply referring people to their site. Still not sure how far this would be true. More-ever, you should’ve a credit card to access this program and direct pay pal payment method will not work to host your site.

So, people pushing threads to the maximum in the forums and blogs whether affiliano will pay or not? Even through that the concept resembles the same. How do you take this when you were been scammed by another site which had had the same type of program?

So my conclusion is still not very sure about this. But, affiliano works based on number of name and e-mails id’s that you give or send and will be paid between 1.50$-3$ for each referrals I guess. Make sure that you’re right to choose this program before it’s too late to lament. Every decision must be taken with utmost regard. You decide from the above statement how it works and how you’ll get paid after successful sign up since all fingers aren’t the same.

How to creat contact us forum for blogger

2009-10-22T04:10:00.000-07:00

You can see an example of my contact button . By clicking this contact me button you will be sent to contact me forum.

The most easy way of making contact us forum is to use Kontactr which is a one-click?

free contact form service. Using Kontactr, you can fight against the amount of spam that you receive daily. Protect your email address by using its highly secure contact form. You can also use its simple tools to embed the form right into your own website. Everything is as easy as 1, 2, 3...

Sign up with Kontactr
It takes no more than 15 seconds to sign up with Kontactr
Get your form's code
It is available in various forms. Buttons, widgets etc..
Add it to your website
Now, you have a beautiful, secure contact form on your website.

Data recovered by microsoft for side kick users

2009-10-18T12:12:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Corp said on Thursday it has recovered most of the data feared lost by users of its Sidekick mobile phone, following a Microsoft server computer failure.

Data such as contacts, photos and calendar entries saved on the phones and remotely at Microsoft's servers was originally thought to be destroyed, according to T-Mobile USA, a unit of Deutsche Telekom, the U.S. carrier for the handset.
"We are pleased to report that we have recovered most, if not all, customer data for those Sidekick customers whose data was affected by the recent outage," Microsoft executive Roz Ho said in a statement.

Microsoft plans to begin restoring users' personal data "as soon as possible," the company said, adding it now thinks that only a minority of Sidekick users were hit by the data loss.

The problem was caused by a server failure that hurt Microsoft's main and backup databases supporting Sidekick.

The glitch hit as technology companies are increasingly looking to convince customers to use remote storage services to back up their data, and at a time when Microsoft is fighting to gain ground in the market for smartphones..

How to Trim or remove extra Line in AutoCad

2009-10-18T00:56:00.000-07:00

Auto Cad is one of best drawing Software
Here i am going to explain how to remove an extra line.
This is done by using Trim command
click on modify baton then click on Trim or u can write tr in command as tr is the Hot key of Trim
now after Click on Trim you have to click on that line with which that particular extra portion of Line in Connected.Then press Enter then click on that extra portion line which you want to delete.after clicking on that portion of extra line it will be deleted.
here is an example

in above diagram we are going to remove small line which arrow is pointing
now click on Modify then click on Trim.Then select those lines with which that small line is connectted.then click Enter.In the below diagram you will see selected lines in dotted form.

now selected lines are in dotted form
now after pressing Enter click on the small line it will be removed as showen in the diagram below

Why is the wedding ring on the 4th finger?

2009-10-13T12:05:00.000-07:00

Why is the wedding ring on the 4th finger?

The concept of wedding ring on the 4th finger is explained by Chinese in a brilliant way. The video depicts the concept .

How to save Word 2007 file in Word 2003 Format

2009-10-13T11:36:00.000-07:00

Saving file of Word 2007 file in Word 2003 format is very simple. The need of saving file in office 2003 format is actually needed when we dont know that whether our file which we are sending or gonna use on another pc would be opened on that pc or not because still office 2003 is more popular in some places.

To save file in office 2003 format you have to do some basic steps .

To change this setting, click on the Office Button in the upper left hand corner.

Now click the Word Options button in the menu.

Click on the Save tab, and then change the drop-down menu for “Save files in this format” to be “Word 97-2003 Document”.

And save the file . now your format is converted into word 2003 .

Create a resume using microsoft office 2007

2009-10-10T04:46:00.000-07:00

Creating a perfect resume is one of the most difficult tasks. But i recommend that you should try the templates given in the Microsoft office 2007.

If you have an Internet connection, you can choose from dozens of resume templates on the Microsoft Office Online Web site. Or, you can create your own resume by using the wizard given in the Microsoft office.

1. On the File menu, click New.
2. In the New Document task pane (task pane: A window within an Office program that provides commonly used commands. Its location and small size allow you to use these commands while still working on your files.), under Templates, click Templates on Office Online, and then search for resume.

Note: If you upload it to apply for a job it comes up all as one paragraph.

That might be out of your control. You have to create a plain text version
for that site.

For this Save As - plain text. Close Word and open Notepad. Tweak that file to look
right. Do NOT use fancy formats, fonts, pictures, bullets, etc. KISS that
file.

You will have to ask the site where you are uploading your résumé which
formats are supported.

Web-mail market buisness - IBM takes on Google i

2009-10-04T14:53:00.000-07:00

An IBM spokesman said on Thursday that the company will start selling its LotusLive iNotes next week. The lightweight email service will cost $36 per user per year, about 25 percent less than what Google charges for a more robust product.

International Business Machines Corp will likely try to capitalize on the damage that those outages have caused to Google Apps over the past year. Last month millions of business users could not access email for almost two hours.

IBM is introducing an inexpensive Web-based corporate email service that will compete with Google Inc's Google Apps, which has recently suffered several high-profile outages.
IBM's offering does not have as many bells and whistles as Google's, but the technology giant could attract more customers because it has decades more experience serving the business market. Its products include Lotus Notes, one of the world's two most widely used email programs.

"The IBM brand will help a lot," said Forrester Research Inc analyst Liz Herbert.

Google, on the other hand, generates the bulk of its revenue from advertisements placed on free search products targeted at consumers. It is just getting into the business of selling to businesses.

iNotes will also compete with a Web-based email service from Microsoft Corp that costs about $120 per user per year, according to the software maker's website.

Madonna will be available at Youtube again!!

2009-09-30T08:55:00.000-07:00

Madonna and Green Day will be once again available at YouTube. Warner Music Group and YouTube are finalizing an agreement according to which the will be soon again avaible for the viewers of YouTube,

Warner Music has pulled his video over from YouTube due to licensing rights. This deal will resolve this issue and once again the fan of Madonna and other great artist will be available at YouTube. Warner its music videos from YouTube in December.

None of the deal maker are willing to give any comment on the deal although the resources have told that the deal is going to be done.
YouTube is the most popular site in the world for sharing music. By this deal Warner music will be again available on it. Other music companies who are media partner of Google are Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group , and some other companies. Warner is going to join this group too.

Chief Executive Edgar Bronfman has shown his willingness to make a deal with YouTube; though the terms of these deals are not clear but he is showing interest in YouTube . Due to decreasing sale of CD’s he is also willing to join YouTube like other has done.
Vevo which is official website of Warner will be supported by YouTube which was previously backed by Sony and Universal. YouTube will provide a platform so that Warner music will be available again.
The Deal issue is on early stages and can be break at any issue. The sources are not going to tell any thing about the deal due to sensitive issue.
Web music industry is the one of the most important and popular industry in the world .There is lots of fan over web.
Vevo’s top executive earlier is former Universal Music digital chief Rio Caraeff. It will be a joint venture and would be advertised with at least four big brands .

Lenovo Latest Ultralight ThinkPad X300 Laptop Leaked

2009-09-25T08:38:00.000-07:00

Lenovo’s latest offering has just been leaked out …It can be seen as the competetor to the Apple’s Macbook Air on the top of that it also offer internal ultra think DVD writer lacking in the Apple’s Macbook Air. Leaked specifications include 3.3″ LED backlight WXGA+, which display resolution of 1440 x 900 with integrated webcam powered by Dual Core hybrid LV proccy (Merom based) and Solid State Drive (64GB)

Here is the known spec. list:

* 13.3″ LED backlight WXGA+ display
* 1,440 x 900 resolution
* Integrated webcab
* 64GB SSD
* Internal 7mm DVD burner
* 3 USB ports, 1 VGA output and 1 ExpressCard slot
* Optional integrated broadband
* Supports up to 4GB PC2-5300 SO-DIMM memory

for more Info Visit

http://www.techlivez.com/2008/01/lenevo-latest-ultralight-thinkpad-x300-laptop-leaked/

or also from Lenovo Official Web Site

www.lenovo.com

South Africa beat New Zealand by 5 wickets

2009-09-25T08:25:00.000-07:00

South Africa beat New Zealand by 5 wickets CENTURION: AB de Villiers scored an unbeaten 70 to steer South Africa to a five-wicket win over New Zealand in Champions Trophy Group B on Thursday.

The hosts, who lost their opening match to Sri Lanka, will now go into their final group game against England on Sunday knowing that victory would almost certainly book them a place in the semi-finals.

New Zealand were sent in to bat and compiled a mediocre 214 all out built around Ross Taylor's 72 off 105 deliveries.

South Africa lost wickets regularly in reply, but De Villiers ensured that they were always ahead of the required run-rate as he breezed to 70 not out off 76 balls, including
nine boundaries.

The home side gave a much-improved bowling display on a pitch that had more of a green tinge than in the loss to Sri Lanka, with Dale Steyn (two for 32) and Jacques Kallis
particularly economical.

Left-arm spinner Roelof van der Merwe showed that he can both contain and take wickets as he completed figures of two for 35 in 10 excellent overs.

New Zealand opening batsman Brendon McCullum scored 44, before Taylor and South African-born Grant Elliott (39) combined for a fourth-wicket stand of 71.

But the Black Caps suffered a late collapse in which they lost their last five wickets for 11 runs.

Wayne Parnell, expensive in his first two spells, returned to claim three more wickets and finish with career-best figures of five for 57.

Hashim Amla (38) and Kallis (36) put on 52 for the second wicket to keep South Africa on target after the early loss of captain Graeme Smith.

Kallis looked particularly impressive, being quick to get on the front foot as he stroked six fours off 39 deliveries, before edging a leg-cutter from Shane Bond to wicketkeeper McCullum.

The glovework of McCullum was the highlight in the field for New Zealand as he also took fine catches standing up to pace bowlers Daryl Tuffey and Kyle Mills to remove JP Duminy for 11 and Mark Boucher for 28.

For more Details VISIT
http://www.geo.tv/9-24-2009/49697.htm

Go Gocycle Electric Bike

2009-09-25T03:50:00.000-07:00

Taking the electric bike to a whole new level is the – Go Cycle. This urban, sleek designed electric bike uses state of the art technology and is composed of mold injected hic and uses a 9AH MiMH battery which in return not only makes the bike extremely light, taking the weight off the 250 watt motor, but also allows the rider to ride a substantially longer distance of approximately 30 Kilometers just from a single charge up.

The extra performance and advancements of this hi tech bike comes at a cost and this Taiwan manufactured machine will set you back a mere $1,300. Though proof is in the pudding and Go Cycle is becoming more and more popular on the Taiwan electric bike scene as we speak!

For furture details Visit

http://www.electricbikee.com/go-go-cycle-electric-bike/

Numero “Uno” Electric Motorcycle

2009-09-25T03:28:00.000-07:00

When Canadian student Ben Gulak returned from a family holiday from China, it was the pollution chocked air and the crowded streets packed with spluttering motorcycles that got Ben’s inventive mind into overdrive…

By designing a electric motorcycle that would run on battery power and placing the two wheels side by side instead of north to south, he would avoid not only pollution but the size of the Uno electric motorcycle would be compact enough to navigate through the crowded streets and be light enough to be carried up stairs. By using a computer and a gyroscope to balance, the bike maneuvers with a shift of the driver’s body – forwards, back or sideways.

Ben named it the ‘Uno’ electric motorcycle and with his passion for engineering and electric motorcycles he has successfully deisigned a electric motorcycle that has lead to him being named at 19 years of age one of the top 10 inventors of the year by Popular Science and has appeared on “The Tonight Show”.

For More Info VISIT
http://www.electricbikee.com/numero-uno-electric-motorcycle/

VW shows 170 mpg tandem diesel hybrid two seater

2009-09-24T08:12:00.000-07:00

Volkswagen rocked the automotive world at a lunchtime press conference on the first day of the Frankfurt Motor Show with a carbon fiber, half width, 1-liter hybrid electric diesel tandem two-seater car named the L1. When the car makes production in 2013, four years from now, it will almost certainly be the most fuel efficient car available with a combined diesel fuel consumption figure of 1.38 l/100km, thanks to its frugal motor combo, feather-like weight – 380 kg in total - and an aerodynamic drag co-efficient of just 0.195!

Seven years ago, we reported on the development of Volkswagen’s tandem 1-Liter car. At that time, the prospect of a production version of the radical two-seater, which achieved fuel consumption of one liter fuel per 100 kilometers, was so remote as to be unthinkable.

Though the car was driven from Wolfsburg to Hamburg as a public demonstration by Dr. Ferdinand Piëch, at that time Chairman of the Board of Management and today Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Volkswagen Group, it was clear that a production version lay in the far future, if ever.

The L1 is the second generation of the 1-liter car, and close to production readiness. And its dimensions are intriguing - the length of the L1 at 3,813 millimeters is still similar to that of a Volkswagen Fox, and its height of 1,143 millimeters nearly matches that of a Lamborghini Murciélago, while the car’s aerodynamically optimized width (1,200 millimeters) has no comparisons in the world of today’s production cars.

In developing both prototype generations of the L1, Volkswagen questioned everything that typically characterized an automobile, and clearly in the case of the L1. The key starting point was body construction, and a core question was raised here: How would a car have to look and be built to consume as little energy as possible? The logical answer: extremely aerodynamic and lightweight. Yet these objectives had to be achieved under a non- negotiable precondition: a maximum of safety. The approach taken: a narrow two-seater with a CFRP body!

The seat layout fitting this design goal was dictated by the uncompromising aerodynamic form of a glider: One seat behind the other. Entry to the concept car is also similar to that of a glider; through a roof cover hinged at the side. On this second generation of the L1, the concept has been further honed; each component has been redesigned, a special chassis with aluminium components was developed, and above all the crucial CFRP technology from Formula-1 racing and airplane construction was transferred to automotive manufacturing. This has been combined with a unique form of hybrid drive to create a near-production vehicle.

For More Updates VISIT

http://www.gizmag.com/vw-shows-170-mpg-tandem-diesel-hybrid-two-seater/12833/

World's Most Expensive Cars

2009-09-24T08:07:00.001-07:00

Most Expensive Cars In The World: Top 10 List 2009-2010
1. Bugatti Veyron $1,700,000.
The most expensive car available in streets is Bugatti Veryon.In 0.26 seconds it reaches from 0-60.It goes above 235 mph+ . It is the worlld.It is manufactured by German car-manufacturer Volkswagen and produced by the Volkswagen-brand Bugatti Automobiles . Pierre Veyron, the person on whom this car is named who won the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1939 while racing for the original Bugatti company.

Manufacturer Bugatti Automobiles SAS
Parent company Volkswagen Group
Production 2005-2008, 200 produced
2009-present (Grand Sport)
Assembly Molsheim, Alsace, France
Predecessor Bugatti EB110
Class Grand tourer
Body style(s) 2-door coupé
Layout Longitudinal mid-engine,
permanent four-wheel drive
Engine(s) 8.0 L W16 quad-turbocharged
Transmission(s) 7-speed DSG sequential
Wheelbase 2,710 mm (106.7 in)
Length 4,462 mm (175.7 in)
Width 1,998 mm (78.7 in)
Height 1,159 mm (45.6 in)
Kerb weight 1,888 kg (4,162 lb)
Fuel capacity 100 L (22.0 imp gal; 26.4 US gal)
Designer Hartmut Warkuss,
Jozef Kaban[1]

2. Lamborghini Reventon $1,600,000
The second no goes to most powerful lamborghini. To reach 60 Kmph it requirs 3.3 seconds and it can go upto 240.Its silk design makes it too much expensive.

Manufacturer Lamborghini
Parent company Audi AG
Production 2008
(21 Produced)
Assembly Sant'Agata Bolognese, Italy
Body style(s) 2-door coupé
Layout Mid-engine, four-wheel drive
Engine(s) 6.5 L (400 cu in) V12
Transmission(s) 6-speed e-gear
6-speed manual transmission
Wheelbase 2,665 mm (104.9 in)
Length 4,700 mm (190 in)
Width 2,058 mm (81.0 in)
Height 1,135 mm (44.7 in)
Related Murciélago LP640

3. McLaren F1 $970,000.

It was the most expensive and fastest car in 1994. It reaches 60mph in 3.2 seconds and was made 15 yrs back. Even as of today, the McLaren F1 is still top on the list and it outperformed many other supercars.

Manufacturer McLaren Automotive
Production 1992–1998
(106 produced)
Successor McLaren MP4-12C
Class Sports car
Body style(s) 2-door 3-seat coupé
Layout RMR layout
Engine(s) 60° 6.1 L V12
Transmission(s) 6-speed manual
Wheelbase 2,718 mm (107.0 in)
Length 4,287 mm (168.8 in)
Width 1,820 mm (71.7 in)
Height 1,140 mm (44.9 in)
Curb weight 1,140 kg (2,513 lb)
Designer Gordon Murray & Peter Stevens

4. Ferrari Enzo $670,000.

It is one of the most powerful car ever built.Top speed of 217 mph .60 mph is reached by it in 3.4 seconds. Only 400 units were produced and it is currently being sold for over $1,000,000 at auctions.

Manufacturer Ferrari
Parent company Fiat Group
Production 2002–2004
400 produced
Predecessor Ferrari F50
Successor Ferrari FXX
Millechili
Class Sports car
Body style(s) 2-seat Berlinetta
Layout Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Engine(s) 6.0 L V12
Transmission(s) 6 speed semi-automatic
Wheelbase 2,650 mm (104 in)
Length 4,702 mm (185.1 in)
Width 2,035 mm (80.1 in)
Height 1,147 mm (45.2 in)
Curb weight 1,365 kg (3,010 lb)
Designer Pininfarina

5. Pagani Zonda C12 F $667,321.

It is the 5th fastest car in the world and expensive car.It promises to delivery a top speed of 215 mph+ and it can reach 0-60 in 3.5 seconds.

Manufacturer Pagani
Production 1999–present
95 produced
Class Sports car
Layout Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive

6. SSC Ultimate Aero $654,400.

257 mph+ and reaching 0-60 in 2.7 seconds is SSC Ultimate Aero which the 6th most expensive car. It is estimated that only 25 of this exact model will ever be produced.

Manufacturer SSC
Production 2006–present
(25 to be produced)
Body style(s) 2-seat Berlinetta
Layout Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Length 4,475.5 millimetres (176.20 in)
Width 2,095.5 millimetres (82.50 in)
Height 1,092.2 millimetres (43.00 in)
Curb weight 1,250 kilograms (2,800 lb)
Designer Jerod Shelby

7. Saleen S7 Twin Turbo $555,000.

It has a top speed of 248 mph+ and it can reach 0-60 in 3.2 seconds. The first true American production certified supercar, this cowboy is also rank 3rd for the fastest car in the world.

Manufacturer Saleen
Production 2000–2004[1]
2005–2006 (Twin Turbo)
Assembly Irvine, California, United States
Class Sports car
Body style(s) 2-door coupé
Layout Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive[1]
Engine(s) 7.0 L naturally-aspirated V8
Transmission(s) 6-speed manual[2]
Wheelbase 106 in (2692 mm)
Length 188 in (4775 mm)
Width 78 in (1981 mm)
Height 41 in (1041 mm)
Curb weight 2,750 lb (1,247 kg)
Fuel capacity 19 US gallons (71.9 L; 15.8 imp gal)
Designer Steve Saleen,
Phil Frank[3]

8. Koenigsegg CCX $545,568.

Koenigsegg is Swedish made and they are fighting hard to make it the fastest car in the world. Currently, it is the 4th fastest car in the world with a top speed of 245 mph+, the car manufacture Koenigsegg is not giving up and will continue to try and produce the fastest car.

Manufacturer Koenigsegg
Production 2006–present
Predecessor Koenigsegg CCR
Class Sports car
Body style(s) 2-door roadster
Layout Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Engine(s) 4.7 L twin-supercharged V8[1]
Transmission(s) 6-speed manual
Wheelbase 2,660 mm (104.7 in)
Length 4,293 mm (169.0 in)[1]
Width 1,996 mm (78.6 in)[1]
Height 1,120 mm (44.1 in)[1]
Curb weight 1,180 kg (2,601 lb)[1]
Designer Sven-Harry Åkesson

9. Mercedes Benz SLR McLaren Roadster $495,000.

It is the fastest automatic transmission car in the world with a top speed of 206 mph+ and reaching 60 mph in 3.8 seconds. It is a luxurious convertible with a really powerful engine, which results in outstanding performances and style.

Manufacturer McLaren Automotive
Parent company Daimler AG
Production 2003–2009
Assembly Woking, Surrey, England
Class supercar/grand tourer
Body style(s) 2-door coupé 2-door roadster
Layout Front mid-engine, rear-wheel drive
Engine(s) 5.4 L supercharged V8 (M115 ML55)
Transmission(s) 5-speed Automatic
Wheelbase 2,700 mm (110 in)
Length 4,656 mm (183.3 in)
Width 1,908 mm (75.1 in)
Height 1,261 mm (49.6 in) 2006–08: 1,252 mm (49.3 in)
Curb weight 1,768 kg (3,900 lb)

10. Porsche Carrera GT $440,000.

It has dynamic stability control and it can go upto 205 mph+ and it can reach 0-60 in 3.9 seconds. The Porsche Carrera GT offers true caliber of racing on road .

Manufacturer Porsche
Production 2004–2006
(1,270 produced)
Assembly Leipzig, Germany
Predecessor Porsche 911 GT1
Successor Porsche GT1
Class Sports car
Body style(s) 2-door roadster
Layout Mid-engine, rear wheel drive[1]
Engine(s) 5.7 litre DOHC V10[1][2]
Transmission(s) 6-speed manual[2]
Length 4,623 mm (182.0 in)[1]
Width 1,930 mm (76 in)[1]
Height 1,168 mm (46.0 in)[1]
Curb weight 1,380 kg (3,000 lb)[1]
Fuel capacity 92 L (24.3 US gal; 20.2 imp gal)

Japanese professor creates baseball playing robots

2009-09-24T08:07:00.000-07:00

Tokyo (AP)—Look out Ichiro Suzuki and Daisuke Matsuzaka. A pair of baseball-playing robots that can pitch and hit with incredible results have been developed in Japan.
Baseball Robot

(AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)

The pitching robot, with its three-fingered hand, can throw 90% of its pitches in the strike zone, won't need any relief from the bullpen and never asks for a pay raise.

The batting robot, which has a sensor to determine if pitches are strikes or balls, hits balls in the strike zone almost 100% of the time, doesn't swing at pitches outside the strike zone, and is guaranteed to pass all drug tests.

The two robots were created by University of Tokyo professor Masatoshi Ishikawa.

"The demand level of the robotics technology of each robot is very high," Ishikawa said. "What was difficult was to create a mechanism to satisfy such a high level of demand."

The pitching robot throws a plastic foam ball at 25 miles per hour, but Ishikawa is hoping to increase the speed to 93 mph and make it able to throw off-speed pitches like curves and sliders.

Ishikawa is also working on getting the batting robot to be able to hit to all parts of the field.

The robots don't resemble humans but instead the type of robots on a car assembly line.

Japan boasts one of the leading robotics industries in the world, and the government is pushing to develop the industry as a road to growth. Automaker Honda has developed the child-sized Asimo, which can walk and talk.

For more Information About ROBOTICS Visit

http://www.rdmag.com/News/2009/07/Information-Technology-Baseball-Playing-Robots/

Fuji Film S Series FinePix S200EXR / S205EXR

2009-09-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

Specifications
Model

FinePix S200EXR / S205EXR
Number of effective pixels *1

12.0 million pixels
CCD sensor

1/1.6-inch Super CCD EXR
Storage media

* Internal memory (Approx. 47MB)
* SD memory card
* SDHC memory card*2

File format

Still image

JPEG (Exif Ver. 2.2 *3), CCD-RAW (RAW format), CCD-RAW+JPEG
Movie

AVI (Motion JPEG ) with sound
Audio

WAVE format, Monaural sound

(Design rule for Camera File system compliant / DPOF-compatible)
Number of recorded pixels

Still image
L: 4:3 4,000 x 3,000 / L: 3:2 4,000 x 2,664 / L: 16:9 4,000 x 2,248
M: 4:3 2,816 x 2,112 / M: 3:2 2,816 x 1,864 / M: 16:9 2,816 x 1,584
S: 4:3 2,048 x 1,536 / S: 3:2 2,048 x 1,360 / S: 16:9 1,920 x 1,080
Lens

Fujinon 14.3x optical zoom lens, F2.8 (Wide) - F5.3 (Telephoto)
Lens focal length

f=7.1 - 101.5mm, equivalent to 30.5 - 436mm on a 35mm camera
Digital zoom

Approx. 2x
Aperture

Wide: F2.8 - F11, Telephoto: F5.3 - F11
Focus distance (from lens surface)

Normal

* Wide: Approx. 50cm / 1.6ft. to infinity
* Telephoto: Approx. 2.5m / 8.2ft. to infinity

Macro

* Wide: Approx. 10cm - 3m / 0.3in. - 9.8ft.
* Telephoto: Approx. 90cm - 3m / 3ft. - 9.8ft.

Super Macro

* Approx. 1cm - 1m / 0.4in. - 3.3ft.

Sensitivity

Auto / Auto (3200) / Auto (1600) / Auto (800) / Auto (400) / Equivalent to ISO 100 / 200 / 400 / 800 / 1600 / 3200 / 6400* / 12800* (Standard Output Sensitivity)

* Number of recorded pixels: ISO6400: “M” or “S”, ISO12800: “S” only
Exposure control

TTL 256-zones metering
Exposure mode

Programmed AE, Aperture Priority AE, Shutter Priority AE, Manual
Shooting modes

Mode dial

Auto, EXR, FSB, SP, C1, C2, P, S, A, M, Movie
SP

Portrait, Portrait Enhancer, Landscape, Sport, Night, Fireworks, Night (Tripod), Pro Low-light, Pro Focus, Sunset, Snow, Beach, Flower, Text, NP, NP & Flash

Image Stabilization

Lens-shift type
Shutter speed

(Auto mode) 1/4sec. to 1/4000sec., (All other modes) 30sec. to 1/4000sec.

(depends on shooting mode)
Continuous shooting

* Top-6, (max. 1.6 frames/sec.), (CCD-RAW: Top-3)
* Top-24, High speed (max. 5 frames/sec., “S” only)
* Last-6, (max. 1.6 frames/sec.), (CCD-RAW: Last-3)
* Last-24, High speed (max. 5 frames/sec. ,“S” only)

Barcketing mode

Film Simulation BKT (PROVIA / Standard, Velvia / Vivid, ASTIA / Soft)
Dynamic Range BKT (DR 100%, 200%, 400%)
AE BKT (±1/3EV, ±2/3EV, ±1EV)
Focus

Auto focus (Area, Multi, Center) / Continuous AF / Manual focus (One-push AF mode included), AF assist illuminator available
White balance

Automatic scene recognition
Preset: Fine, Shade, Fluorescent light (Daylight), Fluorescent light (Warm white), Fluorescent light (Cool white), Incandescent light
Custom
Self-timer

Approx. 10sec. / 2sec. delay
Flash

Auto flash

Effective range: (ISO AUTO):
Normal

* Wide: Approx. 30cm - 7.2m / 1ft. - 23.6ft.
* Telephoto: Approx. 90cm - 3.8m / 3ft. - 12.5ft.

Flash modes

* Red-eye removal OFF: Auto, Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Slow Synchro.
* Red-eye removal ON: Red-eye Reduction Auto, Red-eye Reduction & Forced Flash, Suppressed Flash, Red-eye Reduction & Slow Synchro.

Electronic viewfinder

0.2-inch, Approx. 200,000 dots, FLCD monitor, Approx. 100% coverage
LCD monitor

2.7-inch, Approx. 230,000 dots, LCD monitor, Approx. 100% coverage
Movie recording

* 640 x 480 pixels, 30 frames/sec.
* 320 x 240 pixels, 30 frames/sec.

With monaural sound
Photography functions

EXR mode (EXR AUTO, RESOLUTION PRIORITY, HIGH ISO & LOW NOISE PRIORITY, D-RANGE PRIORITY), Film Simulation mode, Face Detection (with Auto red-eye removal), High Speed Shooting, Histogram Display, Dynamic Range, Framing Guideline, Frame No. memory
Playback functions

Face Detection (with Red-eye removal), Slideshow, Trimming, Multi-frame playback (with Micro Thumbnail), Sorting by date, Image rotate, Resize, Voice Memo, Histograms (Highlight warning)
Video output

NTSC / PAL selectable
Digital interface

USB 2.0 High-speed
Power supply

NP-140 Li-ion battery (included) / AC power adapter AC-84V (sold separately)
Dimensions

133.4 (W) x 93.6 (H) x 145.0 (D) mm / 5.3 (W) x 3.7 (H) x 5.7 (D) in.
(excluding accessories and attachments)
Weight

Approx. 820g / 28.9oz. (excluding accessories, batteries and memory card)

* *1 Number of effective pixels: The number of pixels on the image sensor which receive input light through the optical lens, and which are effectively reflected in the final output data of the still image.
* *2 Please see the Fujifilm website to check memory card compatibility.
* *3 Exif 2.2 is a newly revised digital camera file format that contains a variety of shooting information for optimal printing.

Memory Card Capacity and Image Quality / Size
Number of images / recording time
Modes Still Image Movie
Number of recorded pixels 4,000 x 3,000 (L 4:3) 2,816 x 2,112 (M 4:3) 2,048 x 1,536 (S 4:3) Movie recording time
Quality JPEG FINE JPEG NORMAL JPEG FINE JPEG NORMAL JPEG FINE JPEG NORMAL VGA (30fps) QVGA (30fps)
Internal Memory
(approx. 47MB) 9 16 16 32 30 59 42sec. 1min. 23sec.
SD memory card 512MB 100 160 160 330 310 600 7min. 14min.
1GB 200 330 330 660 620 1,210 14min. 28min.
2GB 410 660 670 1,310 1,230 2,380 29min. 57min.
SDHC memory card 4GB 830 1,330 1,340 2,640 2,480 4,770 58min. * 114min. *
8GB 1,680 2,670 2,700 5,290 4,980 9,570 116min. * 230min. *

* Actual number of frames and recording time varies depending on the type of memory card or shooting conditions.
* * A movie recording will stop automatically when the movie file size becomes approx. 2GB.

Pakistan defeated the West Indies by five wickets

2009-09-24T07:37:00.000-07:00

Pakistan draw first blood in Champions Trophy JOHANNESBURG: Pakistan defeated the West Indies by five wickets in their first Group A match of the ICC Champions Trophy here at the New Wanderers Stadium on Wednesday night.

Chasing a rather easy target of 134, Pakistan completed the task in just 30.3 overs for the loss of five wickets.

Young batsman Umar Akmal top scored with an unbeaten 41 while stand-in captain Shahid Afridi was 17 not out.

Both added 58 runs for the unbroken sixth wicket stand after Pakistan lost their five top order batsmen for 76 runs.

Gavin Tonge bagged four wickets for 25 runs.

Earlier, Pakistan bowlers skittled out West Indies for 133 runs in 34.3 overs after the West Indies captain Floyd Reifer won the toss and elected to bat first but their batsmen could not resist the Pakistani seamers and the West Indies lost their seven wickets for 47.

Later, their late-order batsmen took out the team from disaster and succeeded in taking the score to 133.

Number nine batsman Nikita Miller emerged as top scorer with 51 from 57 balls. He struck six fours and a six.

For Pakistan, seamers Mohammad Aamer and Umar Gul claimed three wickets each while spinner Saeed Ajmal got two wickets. Sahhid Afirdi and naved-ul-Hasan took one wicket each.

All-rounder Shahid Afridi led Pakistan in the absence of Younus Khan, who was ruled out of the match due to a finger injury.

West Indies: Floyd Reifer (captain), Darren Sammy, David Bernard, Tino Best, Travis Dowlin, Andre Fletcher, Nikita Miller, Dale Richards, Devon Smith, Gavin Tonge, Chadwick Walton.

Pakistan: Shahid Afridi (captain), Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Rana Naved-ul Hasan, Mohammad Yousuf, Kamran Akmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamir, Saeed Ajmal.