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Sunday, July 17, 2011

Panel sees no evidence of wrongdoing at Dow Jones (AP) : Technet

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Panel sees no evidence of wrongdoing at Dow Jones (AP) : Technet

Panel sees no evidence of wrongdoing at Dow Jones (AP)

Posted: 16 Jul 2011 03:06 PM PDT

By Sandy Shore, Associated Press Sandy Shore, Associated Press – Sat Jul 16, 6:06 pm ET

The independent committee charged with monitoring editorial integrity at The Wall Street Journal said Saturday it is not aware of any wrongdoing at the Journal or its parent company, Dow Jones & Co.

Dow Jones is owned by News Corp., which is mired in a phone-hacking scandal involving its British newspapers.

The committee that monitors the Journal's editorial practices also said in a statement that it did not believe Les Hinton's resignation as publisher of the Journal and chief executive of Dow Jones was related to activities at the Journal or Dow Jones.

Hinton resigned Friday. He had been chairman of News Corp.'s British newspaper arm for some of the years its staffers are alleged to have unlawfully accessed the voicemail messages of politicians, sports figures, and celebrities in search of news scoops.

Thomas Bray, chairman of the committee, said the group did not conduct an independent investigation to come to its conclusion.

"All we can testify to is what has or has not come to our attention," Bray said when reached Saturday. "That's our function. We're not a police force."

Even so, Bray said the committee knows a number of staff members at the Journal well enough that if there were a systemic problem like phone-hacking or other illegal activities at the paper, he is "pretty sure we would have known about it."

"Obviously, (there are) no flat guarantees about this sort of thing," Bray said.

The Dow Jones Special Committee was formed in 2007 as a condition of News Corp.'s $5.7 billion purchase of Dow Jones. The acquisition was seen as "the cherry on top of the cake in terms of respectability," for News Corp.'s chief executive Rupert Murdoch, says newspaper analyst Ken Doctor.

Murdoch agreed to set up the committee to ease concerns that the paper's quality and independence would suffer under his control. Each of the group's five members is paid $100,000 a year to monitor the editorial independence of the Journal and Dow Jones.

"Those of us who watch the press didn't really expect (the special committee) to have any teeth," said Doctor. "It doesn't surprise me that it hasn't done an investigation."

Kelly McBride, senior faculty for ethics at the nonprofit journalism think tank Poynter Institute, said that the committee is most like a traditional standards committee that larger newspapers have. She said such groups rarely have an investigative function.

Regardless, McBride said that the Journal's coverage of the scandal is telling. "You can judge a newsroom by its work and in this case, the coverage has been lacking," McBride said. "This is the kind of story the Journal would be all over."

The resignation of Hinton and Rebekah Brooks, who ran the British newspaper arm, suggests that Murdoch doesn't want the Journal, still one of the world's most respected newspapers, to get tarred in a scandal involving the tawdry behavior of journalists at a British tabloid, Doctor said. The Journal, he said, is one of the top global brands in business news, along with the Financial Times and Reuters.

Protecting the Journal's reputation has become more important to Murdoch now that the scandal has diminished his political influence in Britain, Doctor said. Since the Journal had top executives from News Corp.'s British operations, Doctor said it's important for the newspaper to get ahead of the story and conduct an independent investigation "to be absolutely clear with its reading public that it in no way used any of the techniques that News of the World" is accused of.

There have been no allegations that the paper has been involved in phone-hacking or other illegal activity and Doctor and other media-watchers don't expect any such revelations.

For its part, Bray said the special committee will continue to monitor the situation, through its regular quarterly meetings and other interim meetings with staff and management.

In addition to Bray, a former editorial page editor of Detroit News, other committee members are Louis Boccardi, former chief executive of The Associated Press; Jack Fuller, retired president of Tribune Publishing Co.; Nicholas Negroponte, co-founder of the Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and Susan M. Phillips, former dean of the George Washington University School of Business.

• Associated Press writer Michael Liedtke in San Francisco and Associated Press editor Jennifer Merritt in New York contributed to this report.

Belgian newspaper: Google blocking us on searches (AP)

Posted: 15 Jul 2011 10:13 AM PDT

– Fri Jul 15, 1:13 pm ET

BRUSSELS – At least three Belgian newspapers are reporting Google is preventing their web sites from being found through its search engine as part of a legal fight accusing the American-based company of copyright infringement.

A Google spokesman said Friday it was required by a Belgian court order to block the searches. Google searches Friday for the newspapers — La Libre, Le Soir and La Capitale — did not show their web sites.

La Capitale said Google was "boycotting" it.

In 2006, Copiepresse, representing several Belgian newspapers, sued Google, saying it had no right to post unauthorized links to newspaper stories on Google News. Google lost in May. A company spokesman said the decision applied to Google Index as well as Google News and the company feared significant fines.

Reaching 200 Million Accounts: Twitter's Explosive Growth [INFOGRAPHIC] (Mashable)

Posted: 16 Jul 2011 11:39 AM PDT

Charlie White Charlie White – Sat Jul 16, 2:39 pm ET

The 200 millionth Tweep signed up for a Twitter account, and to commemorate the occasion we bring you this infographic tracing the history of the platform that led up to that mind-boggling number. If that 200 millionth Twitterer figure impresses you, get a load of the biggest number on this infographic: 350 billion tweets delivered each day.

[More from Mashable: Google+: The Complete Guide]

Even though Twitter started out with users feeling cramped within its 140-character confines and talking about what they had for breakfast, today it's turned into an explosive dynamo that instantly brings you news from all over the world. In fact, some have even blamed/credited it with overthrowing governments.

The service has enjoyed spectacular growth over the past five years -- its official fifth birthday was in March, but it first became available to the general public in July, 2006.

[More from Mashable: Yelp Hits 20 Million Reviews [INFOGRAPHIC]]

And now that Jerry Seinfeld has jumped on the Twitter bandwagon, it reminds us that the little tweeting platform that was once about nothing, well, now it's about something. Something big. One thing's for sure: It's changed the world.

Guest Blog: Great resources for building a killer app trailer (Appolicious)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 10:00 AM PDT

Lisa Kudrow dishes out some "Web Therapy" (Reuters)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 08:34 AM PDT

By Jill Jacobs Jill Jacobs – Sun Jul 17, 11:34 am ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Former "Friends" star Lisa Kudrow is back on television this coming Tuesday in Showtime's new series, "Web Therapy," -- the first time a show created for the Internet has moved to a 30-minute comedy on television.

Kudrow, who won an Emmy and two Screen Actors Guild awards for her portrayal of ditsy masseuse Phoebe Buffay on "Friends", plays Dr. Fiona Wallice in this new program. Wallice is a self-involved online therapist who attempts to solve her patient's issues in three-minute Web sessions.

Reuters spoke to Kudrow about the show she helped create in 2008, her own skills as a therapist, and her interest in evolutionary biology.

Q: In "Web Therapy" you play a therapist who believes the '50-minute hour' traditional therapy gives people too much room to talk about irrelevant things. How do you think this show will resonate with viewers?

A: "I'm hoping they think it's really funny. It's funny behavior, inappropriate."

Q: How much of the show is improvised?

A: "Writer-director Don Roos and actor Dan Bucatinsky and I write the outlines and then the actors improvise from that. The entire show is improvised based on the outlines."

Q: How did you come up with the idea for the show?

A: "I had the initial idea a while ago when I thought how funny it would be if people were busy and at work and didn't have a lot of time for stuff and they started doing therapy online, three-minute sessions. At least they can say, 'No, I'm in therapy and I'm working on it,' even though it's completely ineffective since it's on the Web and only for three minutes."

Q: What's funny is that your character has limited tolerance for other people's problems. How would you feel about having a therapist like Fiona?

A: "I wouldn't want her. In therapy, it would be nice if it were about me. I think for a handful of people, some of the things she says do makes sense. Sometimes I could see saying, 'Knock it off' to a patient. But I don't think therapists are allowed to say that."

Q: Is there someone you modeled the character after?

A: "I picked from a bunch of different, horrible people just for their impatience, mostly politicians. It's a composite of different people. For the actual character, there is someone that I am thinking of who is very poised, elegant, beautiful, smart and this is a real person that I know and I figure that's how Fiona sees herself."

Q: What kind of therapist do you think you'd be?

A: "I think I'd be kind of good. But I could probably handle only one patient. I can't listen all day to this. Part of me sometimes feels, 'All right, get over it. Your parents tried their best. Now what? Nothing criminal happened. Now you're an adult, (it's) time to make up your own mind'."

Q: If you weren't an actress, you'd be...

A: "I would probably be doing some kind of research in some specific field of evolutionary biology. That's what I studied in college, at Vassar."

(Editing by Jill Serjeant and Bob Tourtellotte)

Sprint: 'We Have True Unlimited Data' (But Not for Long) (ContributorNetwork)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 01:49 PM PDT

Jared Spurbeck Jared Spurbeck – Sun Jul 17, 4:49 pm ET
Contribute content like this. Start here.

Verizon just killed its unlimited data plan, following in the footsteps of AT&T's move last year. And while both carriers allow previous subscribers to unlimited data plans to be grandfathered in, the lesson seems to be clear. Unlimited data plans aren't long for a world in which high-powered smartphones -- or, at least, iPhones -- exist.

T-Mobile continues to offer unlimited data, but as this Sprint ad shows, T-Mobile throttles your connection speed after you've used up 2 GB in a month. As David Ruddock of the Android Police blog put it, "It's like having unlimited milkshakes -- but after the first two, you have to drink them with chopsticks until next month rolls around."

That leaves only one top-tier nationwide carrier offering unlimited data: Sprint. And while contract-free carriers sometimes offer unlimited data, as of a few days ago one of them throttles people who go over 2.5 GB: Virgin Mobile.

Why is this relevant? Because Sprint owns Virgin Mobile.

Looking on the bright side?

The most cynical explanation is that Sprint wants exclusivity. Virgin Mobile has always been a bit of a loophole, and its "Beyond Talk" plans offer the cheapest unlimited data; if you don't mind paying full price for your Android smartphone, and you don't want more than 300 talk minutes per month, you can get unlimited texting and data from them for only $25 a month.

Sprint, by contrast, charges more. Much more. That commercial advertised unlimited data for $79 a month, and in order to get that you have to subscribe to a two-year talk and text contract, with a data plan added on top.

Virgin Mobile's site has an "Us vs. Them" comparison, which shows how much you pay over the course of a two-year contract for smartphone plans from competing carriers. It notably leaves Sprint out (and it shows Verizon as having unlimited data), but the message is clear. And it may have been only a matter of time until Sprint closed that loophole, especially now that its unlimited data truly sets it apart.

But for how long?

Whether or not the iPhone will come to Sprint is anyone's guess. But it's already got Android "superphones" on its network, like the Evo 4G and the upcoming Photon 4G. Not only are these Android smartphones super-powered, they also have super-fast 4G data connections, which the iPhone noticeably lacks.

How long will the last holdout for unlimited data stay that way? Maybe Sprint can somehow dodge the bullet. Or maybe, as Ina Fried of All Things D suggests, it's using Virgin Mobile as a test case. After all, as Virgin Mobile president David Trimble said, "We are all facing the same situation" of exploding data usage.

Flurry: iOS Pulling Developer Interest From Android (PC Magazine)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 06:16 AM PDT

David Murphy - PC Magazine David Murphy - Pc Magazine – Sun Jul 17, 9:16 am ET

Apple's iOS platform has generated more support from developers in the last quarter. But new numbers from analytics platform Flurry don't necessarily mean that Android developers are unsatisfied with the platform. Rather, the launch of Apple's iPhone on Verizon and the launch of the iPad 2 have been large factors in the developer pendulum swinging over to iOS.

Flurry's analysis looked at new projects started by developers between the first and second quarters, which the company measured by the number of developers who downloaded an SDK for the company's analytics packages for either platform. In total, the number of new Flurry projects set up for either platform jumped from 9,100 on the first quarter to 10,200 in the second.

Of these 10,200 projects, roughly 72 percent, or 7,344, were developed for iOS. That's an increase of right around 8 percent as compared to the prior quarter's figures. The total number of new Android projects dropped from 36 percent to 28 percent in the last quarter, which is the second quarter-over-quarter drop for the platform. Android previously showed steady gains for about one year, peaking at 39 percent of all new Flurry projects started in the fourth quarter of 2010.

So what's responsible for the gain? Flurry pointed to the launch of the iPhone on Verizon as well as the March 2011 launch of the iPad 2 as two probable shifts behind the increased developer adoption of iOS. In fact, Apple has only recently been able to overcome its own backlog for iPad 2 sales, and recent analyst predictions point to 2015 as the year when sales of Android tablets can even begin to compete against the iPad.

"We believe that wholesale consumer acceptance and adoption of tablets, which just a year ago was questionable within the industry, is further luring developers to build for iPad instead of Android," flurry wrote in a blog post.

Rising costs for Android development could also play a role in Flurry's shrinking developer figures, thanks to the fragmentation of both the platform and the very stores where developers can offer their apps for public consumption.

"With developers pinched on both sides of the revenue and cost equation, Google must tack aggressively at this stage of the race to ensure that Apple doesn't continue to take its developer-support wind," Flurry said.

Of course, it doesn't help Android much that the average iOS owner is expected to download 83 apps in 2011–and iOS users are more inclined to embrace higher-priced apps now versus 2010.

For more from David, follow him on Twitter @TheDavidMurphy.

Beckham baby debuts on Facebook (Reuters)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 04:28 PM PDT

By Jill Jacobs Jill Jacobs – Sun Jul 17, 7:28 pm ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – David Beckham took to Facebook on Sunday to introduce to the world his new baby daughter, Harper Seven Beckham, the latest addition to his growing brood.

Briton Beckham posted a black-and-white photo showing Harper and her mother, Victoria Beckham, dozing away while doting Dad snapped the shot. He captioned it: "I took this picture of my two girls sleeping."

In another posted on Victoria's Twitter account, footballer Beckham, 36, cradles his newborn in his hands and poses with her, nose-to-nose. "Daddy's little girl," the mom tweeted.

Harper was born on July 10, to Beckham and former Spice Girl and fashion designer, Victoria. Their new daughter joins brothers, Brooklyn, 12 years-old, Romeo 8 and Cruz 6.

(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Cavendish wins Tour 15th stage, Voeckler keeps yellow (AFP)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 09:42 AM PDT

by Justin Davis Justin Davis – Sun Jul 17, 12:42 pm ET

MONTPELLIER, France (AFP) – Britain's Mark Cavendish continued his domination of the Tour de France sprint stages Sunday by claiming his fourth win of the race to take his career tally to an unrivalled 19 on stage 15.

France's Thomas Voeckler, of the Europcar team, remained in the yellow jersey after the mainly flat but wind-buffeted ride over 193 km from Limoux to Montpellier which had the overall contenders fighting for survival.

Voeckler maintained his 1min 49sec lead on Luxembourg's Frank Schleck, with Australian Cadel Evans in third at 2:06.

Andy Schleck, the runner-up the past two years, is fourth at 2:15 while three-time and reigning champion Alberto Contador of Spain is seventh at 4:00.

Cavendish meanwhile showed that when his team are in control, he is virtually unstoppable.

After a strong ride by his HTC team, which helped chase down an earlier five-man breakaway and then countered a late move by Philippe Gilbert, Cavendish was quick to share the plaudits.

"I don't think there's been one of my 19 wins that I've done alone, and that just shows the commitment those guys have towards me and I'm incredibly lucky for that," said Cavendish.

"I crossed the finish line first but it's not just me. I did 200 metres today in a 200 km stage. The team rode and delivered me to the line. I'm incredibly proud to be associated with them."

After a windy ride into Montpellier which had Evans, the Schlecks and Contador nervously trying to avoid losing time due to splits in the peloton, HTC remained in control despite the technical approach to the finish line.

The cosmopolitan American outfit kept their composure when Belgian champion Gilbert, Cavendish's principle rival for the points competition's green jersey, launched an attack with three kilometres to race.

HTC-Highroad were patient, reeled the Omega-Pharma rider in and went about leading Cavendish out for the final drive for the line.

With just over 200 metres to race Cavendish emerged from the wheel of Australian lead-out man Mark Renshaw and drove hard for the finish where he beat American Tyler Farrar of Garmin-Cervelo into second place.

Monday is the second rest day of the race, which resumes Tuesday with a hilly 162.5 km ride from Saint-Paul-Trois-Chateaux to Gap on stage 16.

Voeckler is likely to keep the yellow jersey at least until then, however despite punching above his weight to keep the lead in the Pyrenees the Frenchman said he is under no illusions.

He said: "I give myself zero percent chance of winning the Tour de France."

Shadow Vanguard HD leads iPad Games of the Week (Appolicious)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 11:30 AM PDT

Misrata youth goes from Playstation to front line (Reuters)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 01:37 AM PDT

By Nick Carey Nick Carey – Sun Jul 17, 4:37 am ET

DAFNIYA, Libya (Reuters) – When the war in Libya started, many young men now on the rebel front line at Misrata were so interested in computer games and mobile phones that older residents never thought they would turn into fighters. "Before the uprising, all those young men cared about was hair gel, clothes, music, mobile phones and hanging out in cafes," said Mahmoud Askutri, a businessman who has formed and funds the 1st battalion of the Al Marsa regiment, one of the rebel units fighting here to end Muammar Gaddafi's 41-year rule.

"But now they fight and are willing to die for a cause."

Amid the Arab Spring protests that swept the region early this year, the people of Misrata and elsewhere in Libya demanded greater freedom, so Gaddafi sent in the troops to silence their protests.

After those troops opened fire on demonstrators, the people of Misrata rose up, initially fighting back with petrol bombs and hunting rifles.

Since then, they have wrested control of Libya's third largest city from Gaddafi loyalists and, after mistakes that cost many lives, this army of former civilians has consolidated a front line 36 km (22 miles) west of Misrata.

They have recently encountered better trained troops and have moved forward slowly under sustained bombardment to conserve ammunition, hold territory and reduce casualties.

That they are around 10 km (six miles) east of Zlitan, the largest city between here and the capital, Tripoli, is testimony to the courage of the young men in this force.

"They treat me with great respect," Askutri said before a visit to the men of Al Masra on the front line. "But when I see them I do not feel worthy of that respect. A few months ago they were civilians. Now they are willing to die for their freedom."

Salah is typical of many young men on the front line here. The 20-year-old was attending medical school when the uprising started. Life was easy and he spent a lot of time playing soccer games on Playstation.

"Fifty fifty," he says of his record on Playstation.

Sitting with a group of other young men, he says he is a big fan of FC Barcelona. A second young man shakes his head and says he likes Real Madrid, while a third looks down at the Manchester United logos embossed on his shoes and says nothing.

Salah plans to return to university after the war, as he wants to become a cardiologist.

"But first we must beat Gaddafi," he says. "We cannot be free if we live under him."

"THIS IS MY GUN"

Mobile phones are common at the front line, even though the city has been without mobile reception since the uprising.

Young fighters use them to take pictures of each other and videos of battle. Some of them hand out email addresses, though again internet is available at very few spots in Misrata.

Another sign of the times is that the Al Marsa has an amateur videographer. Yezid, a slight 23-year-old microbiology student with round spectacles, carries a video camera to the front.

He has been wounded twice, with a bullet in his right thigh and a piece of shrapnel in his left knee that makes walking painful and running impossible.

"This is my gun," he said, holding up the camera with a smile.

Dressed in t-shirts, jeans and whatever sensible shoes they have, the teenagers and twentysomethings here have come a long way in just a few months. They joke when Gaddafi forces fire Grad rockets at them from nearby because they are not very effective at close range.

But like soldiers anywhere, what they do not like are mortar attacks where the bombs hit closer to the front line and cause more casualties.

"A Grad is no problem, but I don't like the mortars," said Ahmed, 21, an engineering student sharing a bunker with two friends who jokingly refer to it as a five-star hotel. "The small pieces of metal from the mortar cut you."

When the crump of a mortar is heard, many of the men in the line say "Allahu Akbar," or "God is Greatest," before it lands. Muslims believe that dying with those words on your lips brings you closer to God.

SHRAPNEL WOUND

Despite the concern about mortars, the men at the front all seem focused on their cause.

Asked what thoughts he had of a future beyond the war, one 21-year-old who gave his name as Ali shook his head.

"I don't care about that now," he said. "All I want to do is kill Gaddafi."

Since speaking to Reuters, Ali has sustained a shrapnel wound in the leg but has returned to the front line. Wounds for the "thowar" or revolutionaries have become, as Agila Erfaida, a lecturer at the University of Misrata's Faculty of Medical Technology puts it, "badges of honor."

Certainly the young men of a unit led by Tariq Madi, a former bank employee, are keen to show off their scars.

"Most of the men here have been wounded more than once," said Madi, 36, who managed the safety deposit boxes at BNP Paribas' Misrata branch before the war. Most of them are aged between 17 and 20.

Being wounded is one thing, but watching friends die is another.

Groups of weeping young men can often be seen outside Al Hekma hospital in Misrata after one of their comrades has been killed.

At the field hospital closest to the front, one young lightly injured man wandered around shirtless, bandaged and crying inconsolably, not for his own wounds but for the friend who died next to him.

The toll of those losses can be seen in the faces of men like Sofian, a 21-year-old engineering student.

When asked how he adapted to life in the front line, Sofian responds with a laugh "war is fun."

But the laugh does not reach his eyes. When he looks at you, the eyes of an old man stare out of a young face.

"Now we have begun, we have to go all the way to Tripoli," he said. "If Gaddafi wants to get back into Misrata, he will have to come over our dead bodies."

Older men in the city, like Mohammed Erhyam, are impressed.

"We did not expect this from our young people, that they would fight so hard," said the 49-year-old.

"But they are braver than we are. And braver than we thought they would be."

(Editing by Giles Elgood)

An appreciation of music piracy pioneer Napster in today’s Spotify-centric world (Appolicious)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 06:00 AM PDT

iOS Jailbreakers Crack 4.3.4, iPad 2 Users Left Hanging (PC Magazine)

Posted: 17 Jul 2011 07:09 AM PDT

David Murphy - PC Magazine David Murphy - Pc Magazine – Sun Jul 17, 10:09 am ET

Tell us if you saw this one coming from a mile away. Apple's latest iOS firmware update, which plugged a jailbreaking loophole unveiled earlier this month, has itself been jailbroken.

The hack comes all of a few days after the release of 4.3.4, but it's currently restricted to tethered jailbreaks only–a browser-based jailbreak has yet to be unveiled for the new iOS version.

The backstory goes something like this: In July, three iPhone hackers released an updated version of a Web site called JailbreakMe, which did exactly that for owners of almost every iOS device on the market. That list, for the first time, included Apple's iPad 2—a tablet that previously proved impossible for jailbreakers to touch due to the lack of available bootrom exploits for the device's A5 chip.

The Web-based jailbreak simply required users to hit up the site on their iOS-based device. An exploit in the way iOS renders PDF files would open up the keys to the digital kingdom for a user's device, jailbreaking the handheld or tablet and automatically installing the third-party app store Cydia. Easy as pie.

Apple responded by plugging the loophole in its 4.3.4 update to iOS, which was issued on July 15. While jailbreakers have yet to update the Web-based tool with a new exploit that allows for browser-based jailbreaking, they've nevertheless updated their tethered jailbreak tools to work with Apple's latest patch. So as long as a user doesn't mind going about an iOS jailbreak "the old-fashioned way," one can use both redsn0w and PwnageTool to jailbreak most updated iOS devices.

Why "most?" Like before, the tethered jailbreak doesn't work for the iPad 2. Aspiring jailbreakers are warned to stay away from the iOS 4.3.4 update at all costs: Once Apple closes the signing window for its firmware, iPad 2 users who upgraded to 4.3.4 will be unable to downgrade back to 4.3.3. And they'll lose the ability to jailbreak their devices until the next round of Apple cat and jailbreaker mouse spins up.

For more from David, follow him on Twitter @TheDavidMurphy.
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