Sponsoer by :

Sunday, October 2, 2011

In Jerusalem, an old-fashioned medium goes online (AP) : Technet

Sponsored

In Jerusalem, an old-fashioned medium goes online (AP) : Technet

In Jerusalem, an old-fashioned medium goes online (AP)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 01:15 AM PDT

By DANIELLA CHESLOW, Associated Press Daniella Cheslow, Associated Press – Sun Oct 2, 4:15 am ET

JERUSALEM – For ultra-Orthodox Jews who shun secular newspapers, radio and the Internet, the best way to hear the news has long been by literally reading the writing on the wall.

The insular, strictly religious community still relies on black and white posters pasted up on walls in their neighborhoods to hear the latest rulings from important rabbis on modest dress, upcoming protests and the correct way to vote in elections.

Now one avid collector has teamed up with Israel's National Library to bring this old-fashioned form of communication into the 21st century by scanning more than 20,000 of the posters — known locally as "pashkevilim" — into a digital online archive. The project, which includes an exhibit that opened at the library earlier this month, offers a glimpse into one of the main media used by a group trying to hold the line against the march of modernity.

Yoelish Kraus, a 38-year-old ultra-Orthodox resident of Jerusalem, began peeling the posters off the sooty stone walls of his neighborhood when he was a teenager. Today they fill a windowless, crumbling two-room library. Some are filed by subject. Others lie in piles under a layer of dust and scattered black fedoras.

The posters are typically written in Hebrew or Yiddish and use incendiary language. "Jerusalem is in danger!" one bellows — the danger being a mixed-gender swimming pool.

Others urge the observant to demonstrate and demand the closure of a parking lot because it violates the Sabbath.

The word "pashkevilim" evolved from the name of an Italian statue known as Pasquino, in Rome, where locals pasted satire and protest calls in the 16th century, according to Ido Ivri, digital programs manager at the National Library. Though the Romans have long since abandoned the practice, the name lives on in Jerusalem and other cities home to Israel's 700,000 ultra-Orthodox Jews, about 9 percent of the national population.

Two years ago, the National Library offered to help Kraus catalog and scan his collection. It was an unlikely partnership: Kraus will not enter the library because it carries secular literature and a boycott of it was announced — by pashkevil, of course — decades ago.

Kraus had been looking for a new place to store his collection. His library ceiling is crumbling. He stored posters in the cellar until mold destroyed dozens of them.

"It's strange but I have no choice," Kraus said. "I looked for years for someone to take it."

The library staff agreed to lend him a scanner and computer with no connection to the Internet — largely banned by rabbinic decrees publicized by pashkevil. They then taught him to use it, as Kraus had never used a computer before. Soon, he was scanning and cataloging hundreds of the posters a day. The project cost about $27,000.

The library has put up 100 of the most striking posters in an exhibit. One warns against computer use by showing a Jewish boy turning into a horned beast after spending hours on one. Another provides a visual guide to women, warning against all the ways a shirt collar can be immodest.

The National Library added Kraus' extensive collection to its own archive of about 7,000 posters, including many from the Jewish community in Poland in the 1930s.

The pashkevilim have not been completely successful in keeping modern life out of the ultra-Orthodox world. Some ultra-Orthodox Jews use mobile phones, including a model that automatically powers down on the Sabbath. Others filter their Web use through "Koogle," a kosher search engine.

One service has even taken to photographing pashkevilim and uploading them for smartphone users.

AT&T wants Sprint suit over T-Mobile deal quashed (AP)

Posted: 30 Sep 2011 01:39 PM PDT

By PETER SVENSSON, AP Technology Writer Peter Svensson, Ap Technology Writer – Fri Sep 30, 4:39 pm ET

NEW YORK – AT&T Inc. on Friday asked a court to eject rival Sprint Nextel Corp. from the process that looks at whether AT&T should be allowed to buy T-Mobile USA.

Sprint, the nation's third-largest cellphone company, and a smaller phone company, C Spire Wireless (known as Cellular South until last Monday), both want to be parallel participants in the Justice Department's suit against AT&T's acquisition on antitrust grounds. Participating would give them a chance to affect the proceedings, even if the Justice Department is the most important objector to the deal.

AT&T filed a motion Friday to have the complaints by the two phone companies dismissed, saying Sprint and C Spire are speaking in their own interests, not the public's.

Sprint said AT&T's motion is without merit, and it will respond next week.

AT&T, the No. 2 cellphone carrier in the United States, announced in March its $39 billion deal to buy T-Mobile USA, the No. 4 carrier, with a view to closing it early next year. The Justice Department filed suit to stop the deal a month ago in U.S. District Court in Washington, saying it would concentrate too much market power in one company, leading to higher prices for consumers.

AT&T says the deal will allow it to better serve customers and expand its wireless network.

Several states have joined the suit. Puerto Rico joined on Friday.

AT&T on Friday said Sprint has "spoken disingenuously" about its motives for the merger, and has suggested that Sprint be allowed to buy T-Mobile USA. C Spire has suggested that it would not oppose the merger if AT&T agreed to use its network in Mississippi and surrounding states, C Spire's home territory.

"Such an extraordinary and inappropriate proposal simply confirms that what Cellular South fears is competition, not an alleged lack of competition," AT&T said.

"Today's motion will provide us with another good opportunity to demonstrate why AT&T's proposed takeover of T-Mobile is blatantly anticompetitive," said Eric Graham, C Spire's vice president for strategic and government relations.

AT&T shares fell 32 cents to close at $28.52 in trading Friday.

62 New Digital Media Resources You May Have Missed (Mashable)

Posted: 01 Oct 2011 11:44 AM PDT

Stephanie Buck Stephanie Buck – Sat Oct 1, 2:44 pm ET

This week seemed to go by fast, am I wrong? You barely had time to finish last week's roundup -- it was a doozy with 61 stories -- before our newest list rolled out this week. Not to worry! Mashable has organized all of our features into manageable categories so you can peruse at your leisure. After all, in addition to relaxation, weekends are best for catching up on the latest Facebook changes, the newest Amazon tablet and the most popular Tumblr accounts. Don't you agree?

[More from Mashable: Facebook Is Getting Too Damn Complicated [OPINION]]

Editorial Picks

Social Media

For more social media news and resources, you can follow Mashable's social media channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

Tech & Mobile

For more tech news and resources, you can follow Mashable's tech channel on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook.

[More from Mashable: Battlefield 3: EA's New Shooter Gets Social With Battlelog [HANDS-ON]]

Business & Marketing

Blogger Outreach: 5 Tips for Connecting With Top Influencers (Mashable)

Posted: 01 Oct 2011 11:14 AM PDT

Stacey Politi Stacey Politi – Sat Oct 1, 2:14 pm ET

This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business. Some of the most respected influencers on the Internet today were viewed as illegitimate sources just a few years ago. You know them as "bloggers." In a recent Technorati poll, more than 40% of those surveyed stated that their views closely align with those of bloggers, while their trust in mainstream media continues to wane.

[More from Mashable: Product Development: 9 Steps for Creative Problem Solving [INFOGRAPHIC]]

For those who seek to market a product or service online, this is the perfect moment -- many of the top industry influencers are also the most accessible. A single relationship with the right blogger could lead to thousands of instant relationships with targeted readers who fully trust that particular source; not to mention the back links. Unfortunately, the hunt for the right blogger can be a job all its own. Here are five tips to help make the hunt for the perfect blogger a bit easier.

1. Look Right Under Your Nose

Simply scouring the web in search of the right blog can result in an overabundance of bloggers ill-matched to your business. Why search aimlessly when some bloggers have done a lot of the work for you? Review your site for comments, revisit old emails and check for Twitter mentions where a blogger may have already reached out to you. Bloggers who have made the effort to engage you have proven they are diligent marketers and will help get your brand seen and heard once you collaborate.

[More from Mashable: Battlefield 3: EA's New Shooter Gets Social With Battlelog [HANDS-ON]]

2. Reference Blog Directories

Browse Technorati, review Alltop, crawl BlogCatalog and search Alexa to determine who is the big blog in your field. Find the top influencers in your industry, research them and move in for the kill. If there is a blogger you wish would highlight your business, but you feel they are too big to conquer, search the content of their blog for mentions of smaller, yet related blogs that you can successfully connect with. Once you have built relationships with these smaller blogs, you can return to the once-unapproachable site with some posts under your belt that are worthy of mention.

3. Help a Reporter Out

Join HARO, a service that compiles lists of queries from reporters and bloggers who are seeking experts willing to share their experience, tell their story or sell their product. HARO sends out thousands of daily requests directly to your inbox and can often be better than the best of leads. Since 2008, HARO has published more than 750,000 journalist listings, including many from The Huffington Post and Lifehacker, all of whom need someone like you to complete their post. This tip is a must -- it's free and extremely useful.

4. Utilize a "Blogger Dating" Tool

The rise in popularity of blogger outreach prompts the emergence of sites based entirely on this concept. There are now a number of services to help you find, research, contact and track your outreach effort. Much like dating sites for bloggers and marketers, services like BlogDash, eCarin and GroupHigh help you find relevant influencers and allow you to rate them, group them, contact them and follow up.

5. Utilize Good Ol' Fashion Google

With all the Google products in existence, it's no wonder that more than one can aid with blogger outreach. The obvious choice, Google Blog Search, is where you can search keywords relevant to your business as well as your business name. This allows you to locate and contact those who may already be an evangelist of your product (see Tip #1 above). Similarly, Google Analytics can reveal your product preachers through reports of blogs that have linked back to your site. Need just a simple blog suggestion tool? Google Reader suggests blogs that address the topics you care about and never seems to run out of recommendations.

Follow these five tips and you will find many relevant bloggers, but unless you properly organize your findings, you will end up overwhelmed and discouraged. From the very beginning of your hunt, list all possible candidates in spreadsheet that includes columns for contact email addresses, dates of interaction or engagement, page rank, web statistics and, once a post is uploaded, back links. Implement these tactics in an organized manner and you will be well on your way to a successful and pleasant blogger outreach effort.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, loooby

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Nexus Prime Release Date May Be Oct. 11 (ContributorNetwork)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 10:08 AM PDT

Jared Spurbeck Jared Spurbeck – Sun Oct 2, 1:08 pm ET
Contribute content like this. Start here.

The Nexus series of Android handsets have been Google's flagship smartphones since the original Nexus One was released. The smartphones are designed to fit Google's original vision of Android, and are in many ways the strongest competitors to Apple's iPhone.

The last (and second) Nexus smartphone, the Nexus S, was released in December. So it's about time for an update ... and it just might be coming in the "Google Episode" at Samsung Mobile Unpacked 2011, an event at CTIA in San Diego.

"A look at what's new from Android"

I wonder what that could be? The obvious answer, besides the Nexus Prime, is Ice Cream Sandwich: The new version of Android, possible video of which has already been leaked to the Internet. It's already been anticipated to come out late this year, and Oct. 11 seems like a good bet, especially at a Google Event.

The video shows it to be, in many ways, a cross between Honeycomb and Gingerbread. It doesn't show the rumored "Honeycomb bar" with the on-screen home button, though, possibly because it's running on a handset with hardware keys.

The release of the first Nexus One didn't coincide with a new release of the Android operating system. The Nexus S was the "lead device" for the Gingerbread version of Android, though, and Google may want to show off a new handset with Ice Cream Sandwich ... to show them how it's done, so to speak.

Crisp, clean, and bloatware-free

The Nexus Prime's hardware can easily be assumed to be top of the line. Rumors suggest that it will have a thin metal chassis, a giant Nexus S-style curved Super AMOLED display, and a dual-core processor running at up to 1.8 GHz.

But what about software-wise? The Nexus smartphones have always been as close to "Pure Google" as one can get, and if a leaked list of preinstalled apps is right, there will be virtually nothing to get in between you and your Android. Nearly all of the added apps are Google's, such as Google Earth and Google Maps.

There are a few interesting add-ons, though, that Cameron Summerson of Android Police notes; like a possible app to sync your bookmarks with the Chrome browser, and an app that appears to work with an NFC chip. The Nexus S was the first Android smartphone to feature Google Wallet functionality, and it's probable that Google will build on its success with the Nexus Prime.

But is that really what it's called?

It's important to keep in mind that until the phone -- or whatever Samsung and Google have up their sleeves -- is unveiled, all of this is rumor and hearsay.

Hopefully whatever they've got will live up to the hype ... and maybe even give Apple's upcoming event a run for its money!

Jared Spurbeck is an open-source software enthusiast, who uses an Android phone and an Ubuntu laptop PC. He has been writing about technology and electronics since 2008.

Dreaming Android app dreams (Appolicious)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 07:00 AM PDT

Facebook Says It's Looking Beyond Click-Throughs [INTERVIEW] (Mashable)

Posted: 01 Oct 2011 08:32 AM PDT

Todd Wasserman Todd Wasserman – Sat Oct 1, 11:32 am ET

As innovative and influential Facebook is, the company still mostly relies on a technology that's been around since 1994: display advertising. Facebook's display ads get fewer click-throughs than those that run elsewhere, at least according to one researcher. Not surprisingly, Facebook is looking to redefine the technology and de-emphasize click-throughs as a performance metric. In an interview with Mashable, Brad Smallwood, Facebook's head of measurement and insights (pictured), discussed how the standard metric for online advertising -- the click-through -- is largely irrelevant to most advertisers, why Facebook is working with Nielsen and why digital media buyers are behind the curve on online ad measurement. Excerpts from the interview appear below:

[More from Mashable: HOW TO: Subscribe to the Mashable Team on Facebook]

Why is click-through a poor measurement of performance?

A lot of online has really been focused on search and [the direct-response ad industry] has really been the early adopters online and they're looking at click-through rates, click-to-conversion ratios, all those hard measures. As the Internet grows up, you want to be talking about brand advertising and the stuff that happens beyond the click. There's a study that Nielsen put out that says those things aren't that correlated with one another, that there's actually a negative correlation between CTR and brand lift measures.

"A lot of the digital buyers are very focused on that CTR measure. The guys who are buying on TV they understand that they're not expecting someone to watch a TV commercial and then jump inside a TV and buy the product."
The thing about CTR though is it is a measure. Without that, how are they supposed to know if an ad works?

Just like CTR is a measure of performance, there are a couple of companies like Dynamic Logic and InsightExpress that are trying to measure the other measurements like as a result of being exposed to the advertising, first did it change people's awareness of the product or the message that the advertisers were trying to get across? And did it change a stated intent, like did I intend to go to a Walmart based on what was in this ad? Those companies all have those measures, so what we're focused on is developing standards around those measures so that people can understand how advertising is driving upper funnel measures.

[More from Mashable: Facebook Is Getting Too Damn Complicated [OPINION]]

Are most marketers sophisticated enough to know that CTRs aren't important?

A lot of the digital buyers are very focused on that CTR measure. The guys who are buying on TV -- they understand that they're not expecting someone to watch a TV commercial and then jump inside a TV and buy the product. But the online guys don't have those measures. I'd say there is a massive education that needs to happen and having a bunch of standards that those TV buyers are used to having is a really powerful tool.

Is that what's behind your use of Gross Ratings Points with Nielsen?

There are three main factors -- Who is the ad hitting?, Does the ad actually move perception in those people's brains? and the last is, Does it actually lead to sales?. The [online conversion rate] is really focused on that first one. Is it hitting the right people? The OCR product that Nielsen developed is really about allowing understands who are you hitting? What are their ages and genders and what do those people look like? With what frequency are you hitting them? in exactly the same way they understand the overnights for TV which describes what American Idol hit in terms of ages and genders so it gives a measure that's identical on the reach side.

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Why the iPhone 5’s Unveiling Will Beat Out the Nexus Prime’s (ContributorNetwork)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 10:08 AM PDT

Jared Spurbeck Jared Spurbeck – Sun Oct 2, 1:08 pm ET
Contribute content like this. Start here.

One of Apple's first computing hits, the Macintosh, showed people "why 1984 won't be like (George Orwell's) 1984." It was a thinly veiled jab at IBM, Apple's biggest competitor, which -- like today's Android smartphones combined -- had a much greater overall market share.

Now it looks like we've got two events back to back: Apple's "Let's Talk iPhone" event on Tuesday and Samsung Mobile's "Google Episode" on Oct. 11. Word has it these are the events that the iPhone 5 and the Nexus Prime -- the next iteration of Google's flagship Android phone -- will be unveiled at, respectively.

Assuming those rumors are correct, here's why the iPhone event and its subsequent hoopla won't be like the Nexus Prime's!

People will line up to buy the iPhone

And they won't line up to buy the Nexus Prime.

How do we know this? Because unless Samsung and Google unveil some new alien technology from outer space, that cures cancer and brings about world peace, history's going to repeat itself. As Taylor Wimberly of Android and Me put it, "only the hardcore geeks who read tech blogs" are even aware of the Nexus handsets, whereas a new iPhone launch is like the release of a new Star Wars movie. People will be lined up around the block.

The iPhone 5's new features will build on its successes

Because that's how this century's Apple does things: It iterates on top of things that already work.

Sometimes there's a dramatic leap, like the first iPhone itself. But even it took advantage of Apple's iTunes app and infrastructure, and everything since then has built on it. There might be the occasional Ping or Apple TV, but on the whole Apple knows what it wants and takes calm, decisive steps to get there.

Android handsets, on the other hand, have been in many ways a showcase of failed (or at least unpopular) ideas. Trackballs? 3D displays? NFC chips? Some of these are interesting because of their novelty value, while others (like the NFC chips) might one day be commonplace. By and large, though, Android handsets like the Nexus series put heavy emphasis on raw specs, and then have one or two eye-catching flights of fancy incorporated as features.

The iPhone 5 will be the only Apple phone out there

Except for the iPhone 4, which will probably continue to be sold as a low-end handset.

The Nexus Prime? It'll have to compete with a whole slew of Android smartphones, most of which it will barely differ from in any discernable way. Its biggest "feature" is Google's attention to it, and let's face it ... Google's not exactly known for the same TLC that Apple is.

Prove me wrong, Google

If you're reading this, that is. Believe it or not, I'm an Android fan, and I'd love to see something on our side of the fence turn heads from Apple's direction.

I just don't think it's likely.

Mobile Security Personal Edition will keep your phone safe (Appolicious)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 04:15 PM PDT

Intel acquires Israeli mobile navigation firm Telmap (Reuters)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 06:54 AM PDT

By Tova Cohen Tova Cohen – Sun Oct 2, 9:54 am ET

TEL AVIV (Reuters) – Chipmaker Intel Corp has agreed to acquire mobile navigation software maker Telmap, the chief executive of the Israel-based company said on Sunday.

Details of the deal were not disclosed but Israeli media said Intel is paying about $300 million to $350 million.

Telmap CEO Oren Nissim declined to comment on the price and said the deal was expected to close before the end of the year.

Telmap will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Intel, which has two plants and four development centers in Israel, and will retain its brand, management and 210 employees.

"The unique thing about this transaction is that here comes a giant and says 'We really like what you're doing, we believe in your strategy, we want to enhance and go forward. We're not here to swallow you up,'" Nissim told Reuters.

Teaming up with Intel will enable Telmap to provide a "true alternative" to offerings from giants such as Nokia and Google, Nissim said.

"I think to a large extent that from a strategic perspective came the only company that could have come," he said of Intel.

Intel expects Telmap to become much bigger and reach places it hasn't before, whether it be in Europe, Asia-Pacific or the United States, Nissim said, adding Telmap will stay in Israel but expects to recruit workers abroad.

Peter Riddle, general manager of Intel's AppUp developer program, in a blog posted at AppUp's annual gathering of developers in Seattle, said the deal was a step toward expanding Intel's mobile software services capabilities.

"Telmap delivers great multi-platform consumer experiences every day, and we're looking forward to combining that focus and excellence with Intel's to significantly grow their business," he wrote.

"But Telmap isn't just a great consumer service provider -- with Telmap we can directly provide developers with location-based services spanning devices, operating systems and CPU architectures."

Telmap, which offers location-based services to provide details on traffic data, speed cameras and local offerings, expects to post revenue of $33 million in 2011 and be profitable for the second consecutive year.

Intel, the world's No. 1 chipmaker, has become a larger provider of software and services following its acquisitions of McAfee and Wind River.

"In mobility Intel fully understands that consumers are after where value is being created for them, which is at software, services, content," Nissim said.

"Many things in mobility are happening around a person's whereabouts. A lot of application developments are being done and Intel wants to be close to that pillar," he said.

In addition to its core business, Telmap will open up its platform to third-party developers who will be able to enhance their applications with location-based services, Nissim said.

(Reporting by Tova Cohen; Editing by Robert Birsel and Jane Merriman)

Future for next gen iPhones: Evolution or revolution? (Appolicious)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 01:00 PM PDT

Oracle's Ellison shows off new tech hardware (Reuters)

Posted: 02 Oct 2011 08:02 PM PDT

– 2 hrs 9 mins ago

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Oracle chief executive Larry Ellison unveiled new all-in-one data center products as the world's No.3 software maker steps up its move into the hardware market.

Speaking on Sunday at the start of Oracle's annual technology and user conference in San Francisco, Ellison touted the benefits of parallel computing and showed off the latest version of the company's SPARC Solaris computer.

He also unveiled Oracle's new Exalytics data analysis machine, "hardware and software engineered to deliver data analysis at the speed of thought," Ellison said at the OpenWorld conference, which is expected to attract more than 40,000 people.

With its multi-billion purchase of Sun Microsystems last year, Oracle is aggressively stepping into the hardware business and competing against vendors including former partner Hewlett-Packard.

Ellison spent much of his speech pitching the idea of parallel computing, where computers are built with multiple processors and other components that work simultaneously, improving overall performance.

"How do we make this thing to go 10 times faster? Parallel everything," Ellison said. "Lots and lots of parallel network connections moving enormous amounts of data in parallel. That's how you make this thing go faster."

Last year, the company launched Exalogic, combining hardware technology acquired in Oracle's multi-billion dollar purchase of Sun Microsystems with its own software.

Oracle so far has installed 1,000 of its Exadata database machines with customers and sales are going well, he said.

Oracle has long compete with European software giant SAP AG and IBM in the business software and database products markets.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich; Editing by Matt Driskill)
at 10:34 PM

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

My Blog List