Can Microsoft’s open source problem be solved?

In his recent piece about how Microsoft should be afraid of open source, our own Matt Asay stumbles on a solution to the problem.

He offers this nifty Forrester chart (right) showing how software revenues have changed in the last few years, from licenses to maintenance, with services declining as well.

There are good reasons for this. Open source is one. The need for continual updates on, say, anti-viral programs is another.

All of which leads to my cunning plan

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www.perfumeplus.zlio.com says perfume presents personality Ads by perfume strore

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Stop selling Microsoft software. Rent it.

Microsoft is doing this already in the enterprise space. Contracts routinely include maintenance on server software. So why not do that in the consumer space?

Instead of selling Windows for, say, $150, through an OEM, sell one year of it for $99. Require registration for updates, and then charge $75/year for maintenance, just like the anti-virals do.

The same thing with Office. Don't sell it for $500. Sell it for $300, but for one year only. Then ask for another year of maintenance. Or, even better, get their credit card and charge $30/month for the whole shebang, Windows, Office and all.

Now you've got recurring revenue, you're actually getting more than retail (because people keep PCs for three years, not two), and you've got constant access to the customer's PC in order to provide the service that customer is paying for.

Plus there's constant customer contact and the ability to upsell. Companies like-y the upsell.

Instead of sending out a yearly service pack, you can send out daily or weekly updates, just like the anti-viral guys do. And now your money is coming from maintenance, not license sales.

This isn't rocket science, it's merely adapting what already exists in the enterprise space to the consumer market, using online channels Microsoft and its ISVs already use.

Sure, Microsoft will have to make sure it continually pleases customers, lest they cancel their contracts. It will have to take responsibility for the customer's set-up working.

But that seems like a small price to pay.

So, tell me I'm crazy here.

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Technorati : Perfume

Nokia's Hot New- against iphone

PB : Md Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net
Spurred on by, no doubt, by the iPhone's imminent European release, Nokia yesterday unveiled its latest set of multimedia-ready handsets, including a version of the high-end N95 optimized for the high-speed 3G networks of the U.S. We got an early hands-on look, and were, for the most part, impressed. Here's the gist of ' the announcements:

Nokia N81: This is a sleek and slim music and media phone (pictured) that many people are calling Nokia's answer to the iPhone (probably because it shares the iPhone's onboard memory size of 8GB). Compared to the iPhone, though, it's considerably smaller (like a small candy bar) and more powerful, in our opinion, but then again so are most phones, considering the iPhone's lack of picture- and video-messaging or camcorder ability (among other features standard on even entry-level phones these days). Like other N-series phones, the N81 is feature-packed, with built-in push e-mail, support for most types of music formats and podcasts, Bluetooth stereo capability, and Wi-Fi that not only lets you surf the Internet, but also play the media on your phone on any wireless-enabled TV, stereo, or PC. Sound quality is excellent -- it goes up to 11, and like most Nokia phones we've tried, the dedicated music buttons and navi wheel were responsive to the touch. The N81 will also be compatible with Nokia's new N-Gage gaming service. The N81 is small, but the otherwise traditional slider design is greatly enhanced by a glossy black body with lit-up keys. Our only beef -- it's only got a measly 2-megapixel camera (surprising, considering everything else is relatively state-of-the-art). The N81 -- which comes out in a 4-gigabyte (GB) removable memory-card version and an 8-gigabyte (GB) built-in memory version -- will be out by the end of this year in Europe and in unlocked form directly from Nokia.com (which means it'll work with T-Mobile and AT&T in the States). [For more pictures of the N81, check out the gallery on Engadget.]

Nokia N95 (U.S. HSDPA Version and 8GB Version): Two new versions of Nokia's high-end N95 phone were also unveiled. The new U.S.-optimized version of the N95 is compatible with AT&T's high-speed, 3G HSDPA network, which translates into faster browsing and download speeds when uploading or downloading video or surfing the Net (the current N95 is only compatible with the slower EDGE network). It's also got a longer battery life and twice the internal operational RAM, which means programs will run more smoothly and load up faster (also a sometime problem on the current N95). Also announced, the 8GB N95, which has a bigger screen (about 2-centimeters bigger) than the current model and a scratch-free lens (versus the lens cap that opens easily on the current model). The body is all black, glossy plastic, versus the metal on the current model. It also has assisted-GPS, which means that the mapping software should work a little faster since it'll be getting some help from the cell phone network. Both new iterations of the N95 will be available in unlocked form on Nokia's Web site by the end of the year.

Nokia 5310 Xpress Music: The latest addition to Nokia's Mondrian-esque, two-toned music phones is the slimmest so far (just 9.9-millimeters), yet still has a 2-megapixel camera, stereo Bluetooth capability, a camcorder, and a big 2-inch QVGA screen for watching videos. Music playback battery time is about 18 hours. This is a sleek and slim phone, but it's likely to be pricey when it becomes available in unlocked form on Nokia's Web site. If you're going to be spending the likely $400 plus for this model, you might as well go for one of the higher-end phones above (the N81 or N95, that is).

Nokia 5610 XPress Music: This higher-end entry in the Xpress Music series is a a thicker, slider version of the 5310, but with a better 3.2 megapixel camera (with 8x zoom) and 3G capability (but only in Europe!). It's also got a big 2.2-inch screen for watching all those high-resolution H.265 and MPEG 4 videos you'll be downloading. Again, it will be available directly from Nokia by the end of this year. We only got to play around with these for a few minutes, but Engadget Mobile actually has a couple of these XPress Music phones, so check back there for more up-close-and-personal info.

All in all, an impressive lineup. Our favorite here is probably the N81, just because it's so small, yet pretty feature-packed (too bad about that 2-megapixel camera, though). That said, the N95 in our experience is probably one of the most advanced and powerful cell phones on the market (with built-in GPS and a 5-megapixel camera), and the new 3G capability means it'll finally go head-to-head with the other high-speed phones out there. Either way, without carrier subsidies, these phones are all likely to cost anywhere from $350-$800, so start saving now.

There's no doubt that Nokia's phones, with their powerful Symbian operating system and features, can do a lot more than the iPhone. The question is, will American consumers have the inclination to actually learn how to use all of the state-of-the-art features that Nokia offers? The rest of the world seems sold, but then again, the rest of the world likes Rowan Atkinson (of 'Mr. Bean's Holiday') and soccer, two global phenomenons that haven't managed to catch on Stateside.

Nokia announces launch, games, and fresh details for the brand new N-Gage service.

August 29, 2007 - The N-Gage is reborn. No longer a specific physical device but an online service, the new N-Gage is set to launch worldwide in November. Users with compatible N-series devices can download the N-Gage application directly to their handsets while all future N-series handsets coming out of assembly will have the service already onboard.The new N-Gage, revealed at E3 in 2006, is something of a smart hub, a destination where gamers and community members log in to check out games, download applications, and participate in events like challenges and contests. The service can be likened somewhat to Xbox Live, giving users a central place to download games and demos, engage other players, and check out community features.The new N-Gage is actually part of a new mobile strategy from Nokia called Ovi (Finnish for "door"). The Ovia mantle not only contains N-Gage, but also a new music store and a map service. Nokia Music Store and Nokia Maps are just the second batch of applications announced for the Ovi service beyond N-Gage. Nokia will add additional functionality to Ovi over time.
Nokia has announced several high-profile partnerships for the new N-Gage in recent months, such as Capcom, Digital Chocolate, and I-play. At a London event today, Nokia showed off a spate of new games, including Snakes Subsonic. Games are currently priced in the $8-$15 range.The N-Gage service is compatible with the N73, N81, N95 series, N93 series. Additional devices will be announced in the future.

Hazy Logic spinned off

PB : Md. Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net and www.24hournews.blogspot.com

The Marlboro Man is surrendering his passport.

After spinning off Kraft Foods, tobacco giant Altria Group is set to hive off its international arm, Philip Morris International. It seems like an odd decision. The risk of crippling U.S. lawsuits -- a major rationale for separating the businesses in the first place -- has mostly subsided. And a spinoff might not unlock much shareholder value anyway.

Getting rid of Kraft was a no-brainer. Making Oreos and cigarettes under the same roof never made much sense. But PMI is a different story. Synergies with the domestic cigarette business would vanish by separating them. And strategically, PMI's growth balances the domestic arm's weaknesses.

Tobacco consumption in the U.S. is shrinking. Overseas, the tobacco trade is booming, particularly in emerging markets, and accounts for about two-thirds of Altria's overall profit. There's an argument for milking the mature cash flows of the domestic business to feed faster-growing markets.

That's especially true when it's not clear what financial engineering can accomplish. Assume that Altria's international business fetches an enterprise value comparable to British American Tobacco's, at 12 times earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization. For Altria's U.S. arm, assign a multiple of six times -- a premium to Carolina Group, the tobacco unit of Loews Corp. The result is a blended multiple of about 10 times -- in line with Altria's $146 billion market value.

Sure, PMI now can offer its managers incentives with a currency all their own. And removing any lingering association with the U.S. might make it easier for PMI to woo potential acquisition targets overseas. Yet these are fuzzy benefits. Without a clear path for creating value, Altria's board may regret letting the Marlboro Man's more-worldly cousin ride off into the sunset.

Pox on Both Housing Markets

A year ago, Britain probably looked more vulnerable than the U.S. to problems in the housing economy. Confidence, the expectation that prices would only go up, was equally extravagant in both countries. Economic news also was equally supportive, with solid growth and low unemployment.

But house prices looked bubblier in Britain. In the decade up to 2006, the gap between growth in house prices and in nominal per-capita gross domestic product was 69 percentage points in the United Kingdom. In the U.S., it was 20 percentage points. Also, the recent increase in overnight interest rates should have been more painful in the U.K., since almost all British mortgages are variable-rate, in which the interest rate changes along with short-term rates, although sometimes after a delay. Most U.S. mortgages have fixed 30-year rates.

Yet it was the U.S. housing market that got into trouble -- the average home price is down 3% in a year, and unsold new houses are piling up. Repossessions are up in the U.K., but so is the average price -- 12% from a year ago, according to Halifax, a U.K. bank.

Two trans-Atlantic differences explain some of the U.K.'s resilience. Construction of new housing is a big and highly cyclical industry in America and a midsize and stable affair in the U.K. The U.K. doesn't have to deal with the price-depressing effect of homes dumped on the market by cash-strapped builders.

Second, lenders in the U.K. have to keep a higher proportion of their loans on their own balance sheets -- something like 80%, against 20% in the U.S. That has probably kept British lenders from going to extremes in subprime lending.

Still, investors in U.K real estate shouldn't assume the housing ladder will reach to the sky. Two million borrowers face higher interest payments in the next year, when their two-year teaser rates expire. If enough of them are forced to sell, or if unemployment picks up, the U.K. could start to look a bit more American.

From More source

(MSN)Altria to split up Philip Morris.

Altria Group on Wednesday said it would split the international and domestic operations of Philip Morris, the world's biggest cigarette maker, into separate public companies in a long-anticipated move.

The fast-growing international unit, Philip Morris International, will be spun off to shareholders, severing it from Philip Morris USA, which is suffering from falling US cigarette consumption. The spin-off is set for next year after a unanimous board vote. Timing will be given on January 30.

The tabular content relating to this article is not available to view. Apologies in advance for the inconvenience caused.

Louis Camilleri, Altria chief executive, will become chief executive of PMI, whose operations are based in Lausanne, Switzerland, but with a small headquarters office retained in New York. Altria will in effect become PMUSA, led by Michael Szymanczyk, and it will retain its 28.6 per cent stake in the brewer SABMiller.

The move will complete the break-up of the Altria conglomerate, highlighted by the closure of the New York headquarters, cutting about 400 parent company jobs with an estimated $250m in cost savings.

Altria has restructured, including a spin-off in March of Kraft, its US food unit, to boost value for shareholders as the US tobacco litigation threat receded.

The last step marking a milestone in the global tobacco industry was to restructure Philip Morris, which makes Marlboro, one of the world's most recognisable brands, and PMUSA's and PMI's increasingly different business agendas. Mr Camilleri said: "I am convinced that this transaction will enhance growth at both Altria and Philip Morris International."

A standalone PMI would be a fast-growing global contender. It has a 15.4 per cent share of the international cigarette market, but only 5 per cent of its profits come from emerging markets, which make up 60 per cent of international cigarette consumption. Its balance sheet would be strong and its stock would be robust currency to participate in rapid industry consolidation.

PMI, which accounts for almost three-quarters of the cigarette makers' total revenue, has made recent acquisitions in Indonesia and Pakistan and eyed fast-growing Asian and eastern European cigarette markets.

Bonnie Herzog, analyst at Citigroup, said: "It's at this point that we expect the beast to be unleashed...and shareholders will be rewarded."

Separating PMI and PMUSA is likely to cheer Wall Street as it will free both groups to become more efficient. Altria shares were up by just over 1 per cent at $69.80 at the close.

Technorati : Hazy Logic

New Nokia Handsets

PB :Md Moshiur Rahman . Sponsored by www.careerbd.net

Alongside of it's Internet foray, Nokia has reportedly unveiled 4 new mobile devices that are optimized for entertainment, music, and games.

The N81 multimedia computer has dedicated music and gaming keys that light up when activated, a 3.5-mm headphone connector, and 3G and WLAN connectivity.
Besides, N81 is configured to find, buy, manage, and play music and games purchased from the newly-launched Nokia Music Store and N-Gage games service respectively.

At Euro 360 and Euro 430, the N81 and the N81 8GB are both expected to begin shipping in Q4 this year.

The N95 8GB has all the key features of its predecessor; including a 5 mega pixels camera with Carl Zeiss optics, built-in A-GPS, WLAN, HSDPA, and a 2-way slide, and offers up to 8GB built-in memory.

It will start shipping in the fourth quarter for Euros 560 (before subsidies/taxes).

About 9.9mm thick and weighing less than 71 grams, the 5310 XpressMusic phone offers up to 18 hours of music playback and up to 3,000 songs on an optional 4GB microSD card. The phone features dedicated music keys, a 2 mega pixels camera, and a bright 2-inch QVGA screen with up to 16 million colors.

The 5310 XpressMusic too will ship in Q4 for Euros 225 (before taxes and subsidies).

The other new XpressMusic handset, the 5610 XpressMusic, features a Music Slider key for accessing music with the flick of the thumb.

The phone has a black high gloss finish and aluminium side panels, and features a 2.2-inch 16-million color display, and a 3.2 mega pixels camera with auto-focus and dual LED flash. It offers up to 22 hours of music playback, and memory for up to 3,000 songs on an optional 4GB microSD card.

Like the other new phones, the 5610 XpressMusic too will ship in Q4 2007 for Euros 300 (before taxes and subsidies).

Both new XpressMusic handsets are compatible with the Nokia Music Store.

From Another source

Nokia has entered the mobile music arena, launching its own music download store in Europe along with four entertainment and media-focused handsets.

Finland's Nokia has decided to toss its hand into the ring of digital music sales, announcing today the Nokia Music Store, launching "this fall" in key European markets, and expanding into additional European and Asian markets over the next few months. The Nokia Music Store will offer millions of tracks from major label artists as well as music from independent labels and regional artists for €1 per track, €10 per album, with a PC-based streaming subscription option for €10/month. At least for now, tracks will "typically" be offered in DRM-protected 192Kbps WMA format-thanks in part to Nokia's recent deal with Microsoft to support Windows Media formats.

The Nokia Music Store is part of Nokia's new Ovi brand of Internet services, currently comprised of Nokia's music, mapping, and relaunched N-Gage mobile gaming service. The Nokia Music Store will offer both download-based and streaming music services, and PC-based music services by way of a new Nokia Music PC client, due to be available later this year. The PC client will support reverse synchronization of playlists, enable users to rip a conventional audio CD to both their PC and mobile device simultaneously, as well as automatically sync purchased music between mobile devices and a PC music collection. The Nokia Music Store will also offer dynamic recommendations based on users preferences, as well as genre-based "instant playlists" designed to help users discover (and, of course, purchase) new music.

"The Nokia Music Store brings together a powerful combination of great music and great devices in an easy to use way," said Tommi Mustonen, the head of Nokia's music activities. "You can select from a huge range of music, including local music from your country, and download it directly to your Nokia device. You can choose between purchasing tracks a la carte via your Nokia device or computer, or you can stream an unlimited number of full length tracks to your computer."

Right now, there's no word when (or if) Nokia plans to bring the Nokia Music Store to the North American market.

Of course, a mobile-enabled music service needs music-savvy mobile devices capable of browsing and downloading music content at acceptable speeds. To that end, Nokia also announced four new entertainment- and music-focused handsets for the European market, expected to begin shipping later in 2007 with prices ranging from €225 to €560. The Nokia N81 and N81 8GB will offer dedicated music and gaming keys in addition to Nokia's stable of "multimedia computer" and smartphone functions. The Nokia N95 8GB will sport a five megapixel camera, GPS capability, HSPDA high-speed wireless access, and a mammoth (for a phone) 2.8-inch LCD display-and readers would be correct in assuming the N95 falls at the high end of the new handsets' price range, above. Finally, Nokia is introducing two new XpressMusic handsets, the 5310 and 5610. The slim 5310 sports a 2 megapixel camera, a 2-inch LCD screen, 4 GB of onboard memory (with another 4 GB available via microSD expansion), while the 5610 builds on those specs with a 2.2-inch LCD display, 3.2 megapixel camera, and longer battery life.

Nokia's Music Store-and associated media-centered handsets-may well find a foothold in the European and Asian markets, where high speed wireless networks are less fragmented than the North American market, and high-speed solutions like HSDPA are more practical. And even though Nokia is the world's largest handset maker, it's still looking to diversify its revenue sources as the mobile market matures: a solid content delivery business would be a good step in that direction. It remains to be seen whether Nokia will attempt to offer the services in the U.S. market, or will settle for merely partnering with U.S. carriers-which pretty much all run their own mobile music operations-to distribute North American versions of its media-centric handsets.

Technorati : Nokia

New Nokia web service offers music, maps, games

BEIJING, Aug. 30 (24hoursnews)-- Nokia on Wednesday launched a series of Web services under the brand name Ovi that allows users of its phones to download games, maps and music directly to their cell phones.

The Finnish Mobile phone maker's new Music Store is in direct competition with Apple's iTunes offering. Although Apple's iTunes is less expensive, Nokia's service is a huge step forward in accessibility.

IPhone users have to download songs to their computers, but Nokia's Ovi users can download songs directly to their phones. Ovi will be available in Europe in the fourth quarter of 2007, but at the present there is no timetable for entering the United States.

The company has struck deals with the world's four biggest music labels, Universal Music, Warner Music Group, EMI and Sony BMG, and some of the largest game makers, including Electronic Arts and Gameloft for its game store, N-Gage.

"The services unit will, in terms of sales, be extremely small in the beginning," said Nokia spokesman Kari Tuutti. "But that's really the future we see for Nokia, to be able to develop our business around offering services to people."

Tuutti said there are already more than 900 million people in the world with a Nokia mobile phone in their pocket, who he expects to replace with an Ovi-enabled phone in the next two years. Customers can't download Ovi to their current Nseries phones, they have to upgrade to the new models being launched this autumn.

Nokia is launching worldwide the 350 euro (476 U.S. dollars) N81, and a larger capacity version of its N95, with 8 gigabytes, for 550 euros (748 dollars) in October. Later in the year there will be some lower-priced models with the Ovi software, including the Nokia 5310 XpressMusic, for 325 euros (442 dollars), and the Nokia 5610 XpressMusic for 300 euros (408 dollars). Nokia is hoping that other rival phone makers will want to use its Ovi software, but it's doubtful they will at first.

The first Nseries handset with the capability to access Ovi, Finnish for "door," will be the N81, a slider phone that comes with 8GB of memory. The device has been slightly optimized for gaming, with thumb buttons on either side of the phone's face, a bit like a PSP or Nintendo DS, so users can play games with two hands instead of one thumb. It also comes with a navi-scroller that is touch sensitive, similar to an iPod scroll wheel.

New N-Gage En Route

Nokia announces launch, games, and fresh details for the brand new N-Gage service.

August 29, 2007 - The N-Gage is reborn. No longer a specific physical device but an online service, the new N-Gage is set to launch worldwide in November. Users with compatible N-series devices can download the N-Gage application directly to their handsets while all future N-series handsets coming out of assembly will have the service already onboard.

The new N-Gage, revealed at E3 in 2006, is something of a smart hub, a destination where gamers and community members log in to check out games, download applications, and participate in events like challenges and contests. The service can be likened somewhat to Xbox Live, giving users a central place to download games and demos, engage other players, and check out community features.

The new N-Gage is actually part of a new mobile strategy from Nokia called Ovi (Finnish for "door"). The Ovia mantle not only contains N-Gage, but also a new music store and a map service. Nokia Music Store and Nokia Maps are just the second batch of applications announced for the Ovi service beyond N-Gage. Nokia will add additional functionality to Ovi over time.

Nokia has announced several high-profile partnerships for the new N-Gage in recent months, such as Capcom, Digital Chocolate, and I-play. At a London event today, Nokia showed off a spate of new games, including Snakes Subsonic. Games are currently priced in the $8-$15 range.

The N-Gage service is compatible with the N73, N81, N95 series, N93 series. Additional devices will be announced in the future.

Technorati : Nokia web

Repurchase of Gateway

Acer is criticized more and more for its repurchase of Gateway, announced two days ago (cf "Acer repurchases Gateway for 710 million dollars"). The P.D.G of the firm engaged its responsibility besides by affirming that if the transaction did not succeed, it would give its resignation.
Reasons of dissatisfaction
Criticisms relate first of all to the amount of the repurchase considered to be excessive. The sum of 710 million dollars is far from achieving the unanimity. Acer announced to buy the actions of Gateway for 1,90 $ the action, that is to say 57% of more than their value with the fence of the New York Stock last Friday Exchange. The firm is also a great success on the new continent with sales which grew of more than 100% its last years. Not only this repurchase thus seems useless, but it leaves the impression that Acer was made have.
Moreover, much fear that Acer had "eyes larger than its belly". By repurchasing Gateway, Acer also inherits eMachines and the European division of Packard Bell BV. It is thus much of teams and of resources to be managed of only one blow and it only Acer is not known as was left there.
Lastly, the investors make gray mine, because since the advertisement, the action of Acer lost 6,9% per day to fall to 1,67 $ to Taiwan Stock Exchange.
Ambitions
While waiting, Acer reaffirms its ambition to double its shares of market in the United States and to reach an annual sales turnover of 15 billion dollars for a volume of sale of 20 million machines. The company also hopes to reduce its costs by obtaining better prices on the material integrated in its models because of a greater number of produced machines.
For information, will know that the repurchase is not yet final, but must be approved by the various legal authorities and the shareholders.

News Inside News:

Acer Repurchase of Gateway-
Whereas one believed it interested by the repurchase of Packard Bell, it is ultimately American Gateway whom Acer has just acquired for the moderate amount of 710 million dollars. The manufacturer should propose 1,90 dollar for each Gateway title, that is to say a premium of 7%.
This operation should make it possible to the new giant to double his shares of market in the United States and to reach an annual sales turnover of 15 billion dollars for a volume of sale of 20 million machines. This repurchase consolidates the place of Acer as a third world manufacturer of computers, behind Dell and Hewlett-Packard, but in front of Lenovo…
Under the terms of the agreement, Acer will commence a cash tender offer to purchase all the outstanding shares of Gateway for $1.90 per share, which represents total equity value consideration of approximately $710 million. The acquisition has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both Gateway and Acer and is subject to standard closing conditions, including approval under Hart Scott Rodino, Exon Florio and similar laws outside the U.S. The acquisition is expected to close by December 2007.
Gateway earlier announced that it intends to exercise its Right of First Refusal to acquire from Lap Shun (John) Hui, all of the shares of PB Holding Company, S.ar.l, the parent company for Packard Bell BV - a leading European PC vendor based in France. In addition, Gateway is currently in discussions with a third party with regards to a sale of its U.S. based Professional business.
"This strategic transaction is an important milestone in Acer's long history" said J.T. Wang, Chairman of Acer. "The acquisition of Gateway and its strong brand immediately completes Acer's global footprint, by strengthening our US presence. This will be an excellent addition to Acer's already strong positions in Europe and Asia. Upon acquiring Gateway, we will further solidify our position as number three PC vendor globally."
Gianfranco Lanci, President of Acer, added, "Both Acer's and Gateway's geographical presences and product positioning are highly complementary. We believe that our combined scale will lead to significant efficiencies. Gateway has built one of the industry's most powerful and unique brands and with this acquisition, we will have the opportunity to implement an effective multi-brand strategy and cover all the major market segments. In time, we intend to actively manage our brand portfolio and differentiate our brands to address different consumer segments. We are also acquiring a world-class team and Gateway's employees will be critical to our combined success."
"We believe our complementary geographical and product mixes, and our mutual focus on the consumer market makes Acer an outstanding partner for Gateway." explained Ed Coleman, CEO of Gateway. "Joining with Acer will enable us to bring even more value to the consumer segments we serve and capitalize on Acer's highly regarded supply chain operations and global reach to expand the scope of the Gateway and eMachines brands around the world. Acer has made impressive strides in the global PC market and the board and I welcome this merger."
The combination of Acer and Gateway is expected to result in significant revenue and cost synergies. The considerable increase in scale will result in reductions in per unit procurement and component costs for both companies. This combination also creates a real opportunity for the cross-selling of product portfolios by leveraging the customer relationships of both Acer and Gateway. Significant savings are also expected through the increased efficiency of the combined back-office functions. The pre-tax synergies are expected to be at least $150 million. In addition, this transaction is expected to be accretive to Acer's earnings per share in 2008 without synergies.
Citigroup Global Markets Inc. acted as exclusive financial advisor to Acer; Goldman, Sachs & Co. served as exclusive financial advisor to Gateway.

About Acer-
Acer ranks as the world's No. 4 branded PC vendor, designing easy, dependable IT solutions that empower people to reach their goals and enhance their lives. Since spinning-off its manufacturing operation, Acer has focused on globally marketing its brand-name products: mobile and desktop PCs, servers and storage, LCD monitors and high-definition TVs, projectors, and handheld/navigational devices. Acer's unique Channel Business Model is instrumental to the company's continued success. The model encourages partners and suppliers to collaborate in a winning formula of supply-chain management, allowing Acer to provide customers with fresh technologies, competitive pricing, and quality service. Established in 1976, Acer Inc. employs 5,300 people supporting dealers and distributors in more than 100 countries. Revenues in 2006 reached US$11.32 billion.

The eighth generation of LCD

S-LCD, the joint venture between Samsung and Sony, have just announced that its factory of 8th generation for the production of flagstones LCD was going to begin the sending of the first flagstones.

An increase in the basic flagstone
Concretely, this factory will produce flagstones basic (in which the screens will be cut out) larger than in the 7th generation, which makes it possible to produce more screens with a large diagonal (or simply to increase the number of screens per basic flagstone). In practice, a basic flagstone (mother glass) of 7th generation measures 1.870 X 2.200 mm whereas the 8th generation passes to 2.200 X 2.500 Misters the seventh generation is optimized for the screens of 40 inches and less, whereas the eighth is especially planned for the flagstones of 50 inches. S-LCD hopes to produce 50.000 flagstones per month by the end of the year 2007.

An increase in the size of the screens
Even if screens LCD of our PC do not use the same flagstones exactly that televisions, the evolutions are generally joint. One can thus suppose that the flagstones of 24 inches will decrease by price, and replace rather quickly the flagstones of 22 inches. Moreover, the very large screens (27 and 30 inches) should also benefit from the increased outputs. Let us note that the shape of the basic flagstones of 8th generation is adapted to the broad screens than the 7th generation

Sharp preps 8th generation LCD fab

TOKYO - In the latest example of display suppliers leapfrogging one another to build larger liquid crystal display (LCD) panels, Sharp Corp. of Japan apparently plans to build an 8th generation LCD fab.

Sharp will use its Kameyama plant to produce 8th generation substrates, which at 2200 x 2400 mm in size are suited to 45- to 50-inch LCD TV panels. That eclipses the 1870- x 2200-mm panels possible with the 7th generation line of S-LCD Corp., the joint venture between Samsung Electronics and Sony Corp. located in Tangjung, South Korea.

When Sharp decided in 2001 to replace all its CRT TVs with LCD versions by this year, LCD TV screens were 13 to 20 inches diagonally. When Sharp launched its first 6th generation fab at Kameyama a year ago, the company introduced a 45-inch LCD TV that generated more orders than expected.

Last October, Sharp demonstrated a 65-inch LCD TV, using its 6th generation fab to cut two panels from a single 1500- x 1800-mm glass substrate.

Sharp plans to build the new fab in a vacant part of the Kameyama plant and will release details on next week (Jan. 12) when Sharp president Katsuhiko Machida presents the company's business plan for the year.

To produce the 8th generation substrates, Sharp will rely on LCD steppers built by Nikon Corp., which has been playing leapfrog with rival Canon Corp. to produce next-generation LCD steppers. Nikon plans to begin volume production of the 8th generation stepper in the fall, eclipsing Canon's 7th generation stepper.

Sharp is considered by analysts the leading supplier of LCD TVs. Since January 2001, the company has produced over 5 million units, accounting for just under half the 10.5 million units produced globally, according to the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association.

Technorati : eighth generation

Perfume presents personality .

According to Health Canada, an estimated 2 to 5 per cent of adults may experience mild reactions to the chemicals in cosmetics. For those who suffer from allergies related to chemicals found in fragrances, California-based Rich Hippie offers a synthetic-free alternative perfume.

"We don't use any synthetic ingredients. We just use the real thing," says Rich Hippie owner Nannette Pallrand.

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www.perfumeplus.zlio.com says perfume presents personality Ads by perfume strore

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"... It is more time consuming, more expensive to produce...but it is worth it because it is safer for your health, safer for the environment and a much more beautiful scent."

The two-year-old company has 22 perfumes with rich titles like, "Bohemian Wedding," "Summer of Love" and "Hoochie Coochie" as well as unisex scents like "Nirvana." For the potent fragrance, Pallrand uses old-world French perfume manufacturing methods.

"The perfume industry was traditionally in France where there was a huge wine industry," says Pallrand of the wine alcohol she uses in Rich Hippie. "In France, famous perfume houses would pop up near these vineyards. After World War II, chemical companies needed a new market and went into different areas, like cosmetics."

The result is perhaps one of the most intoxicatingly fresh and light scents on the market that didn't make my throat sore or make my eyes itch.

According to Pallrand, all of the ingredients in Rich Hippie perfume are organic, including the alcohol that is made from organic California grapes as opposed to alcohol derived from petroleum. However, Rich Hippie is not certified organic.

"Perfume recipes are something that one doesn't give out. They are a closely guarded secret," she says, "To certify, one would have to give up the recipe and sources to the certification agency."

Pallrand will disclose that she gets ingredients from around the world: rose and camomile from Morocco, orange blossom from Tunisia, vanilla and ylang ylang from Madagascar, to name a few.

And although the luxurious ingredients are both exotic and expensive, the actual perfume is packaged in simple pharmaceutical bottles.

"I didn't want to do what large conventional companies do where most of the money is spent on the packaging and not the product."

However, the actual perfume box is an impressive shock of yellow and hot pink calligraphy reminiscent of Sofia Coppola's punkesque queen, Marie Antoinette. No retailers in Toronto carry Rich Hippie - yet - so it can only be purchased online. Which raises the question: How does one find a fragrance without smelling it beforehand?

"We sell sample kits of the perfume in small vials," says Pallrand.

Sample kits run between $55 to $325 while full bottles are $225 for a 1/2-oz. vial and $675 for 2 oz. Available at rich-hippie. com

Fragrances

To many people, the word "fragrance" means something that smells nice, such as perfume. We don't often stop to think that scents are chemicals. Fragrance chemicals are organic compounds that volatilize, or vaporize into the air - that's why we can smell them. They are added to products to give them a scent or to mask the odor of other ingredients. The volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) emitted by fragrance products can contribute to poor indoor air quality (IAQ) and are associated with a variety of adverse health effects.

Exposure to fragrance chemicals can cause headaches; eye, nose, and throat irritation; nausea; forgetfulness; loss of coordination, and other respiratory and/or neurotoxic symptoms. Many fragrance ingredients are respiratory irritants and sensitizers, which can trigger asthma attacks and aggravate sinus conditions.

Fragrance chemicals are the number one cause of allergic reactions to cosmetics -- not only to the primary users, but also to those who breathe in the chemicals as secondhand users. Phthalates in fragrances are known to disrupt hormones and are linked in animal studies to malformations of the penis, as well as adverse effects on the developing testes.

In health care facilities, fragrance can come from a number of sources:

scented cleaning products;
fragrance-emitting devices and sprays;
workers, patients, and visitors who are wearing perfume, cologne or aftershave; scented cosmetics, skin lotions or hair products;
or clothes that have been laundered with scented detergents, fabric softeners or dryer sheets.
Indoor air quality can be greatly improved in health care facilities by adopting a hospital-wide fragrance-free policy that includes a fragrance-free policy for employees, maintenance products and non-employee hospital occupants.

Technorati : Perfume

Hot News- iphone against nokia

PB : Md Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net

SAN FRANCISCO -- Apple Inc. is expected next week to introduce new versions of its digital music players that have more features, but cost the same. The new gear, say analysts, typifies how the Cupertino, Calif., company is focusing on its core businesses after expanding into the cellphone industry earlier this year with its iPhone.

Last month, Apple unveiled a similar update of its iMac desktop computers, in which it added more features and in some cases dropped the prices.

Apple, in an emailed invitation, would only reveal that it has scheduled the media event for Wednesday in San Francisco.

According to Goldman Sachs analyst David Bailey -- and several Apple fan sites -- the new iPods would be the first to be based on a version of Apple's homegrown computer operating system. They will be about an inch shorter and will be capable of storing more digital media, according to Apple fan sites.

There is also speculation that the new media players will feature some elements, such as a touchscreen, that Apple first introduced in its iPhone.

Separately, Apple appears to be exploring new opportunities to more deeply integrate its products with the entertainment systems inside vehicles. Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs met recently with Volkswagen AG CEO Martin Winterkorn, according to Hans-Gerd Bode, a spokesman for the German auto maker. German financial magazine Capital reported the two executives discussed a possible "iCar" project that would feature products by Apple, whose iPod music player already has some integration with car stereo systems.

Mr. Bode said "there's nothing going on in the direction of having cooperation" with Apple. An Apple spokeswoman declined comment.Nokia announces

launch, games, and fresh details for the brand new N-Gage service.

August 29, 2007 - The N-Gage is reborn. No longer a specific physical device but an online service, the new N-Gage is set to launch worldwide in November. Users with compatible N-series devices can download the N-Gage application directly to their handsets while all future N-series handsets coming out of assembly will have the service already onboard.The new N-Gage, revealed at E3 in 2006, is something of a smart hub, a destination where gamers and community members log in to check out games, download applications, and participate in events like challenges and contests. The service can be likened somewhat to Xbox Live, giving users a central place to download games and demos, engage other players, and check out community features.The new N-Gage is actually part of a new mobile strategy from Nokia called Ovi (Finnish for "door"). The Ovia mantle not only contains N-Gage, but also a new music store and a map service. Nokia Music Store and Nokia Maps are just the second batch of applications announced for the Ovi service beyond N-Gage. Nokia will add additional functionality to Ovi over time.
Nokia has announced several high-profile partnerships for the new N-Gage in recent months, such as Capcom, Digital Chocolate, and I-play. At a London event today, Nokia showed off a spate of new games, including Snakes Subsonic. Games are currently priced in the $8-$15 range.The N-Gage service is compatible with the N73, N81, N95 series, N93 series. Additional devices will be announced in the future.

Upgrading to Windows Vista -hello to Vista SP1

PB: Md Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net

August 29, 2007 24hoursnews -- After lots of hemming and hawing, obfuscation and obdurate executive attitudes, Microsoft Corp. came clean today, sort of, about Vista's first service pack. The company confirmed a three-month launch window and said it would shortly move Service Pack 1 into a broader beta test.

There are unanswered questions -- when aren't there? -- but we know more today than we did yesterday about SP1, the first major update to Vista, and a package that both Microsoft and its corporate customers have put much faith in -- so much so that there's a lot riding on the success of the upgrade.

With that in mind, we took our first shot at SP1. Certainly, there will be more.

In the meantime, all hail SP1.

So what's the lowdown? when will Windows Vista SP1 roll out in beta, and when in final form? Microsoft is saying only "a few weeks" and "September," which are, after all, one and the same, for the beta. As for the final release, the software maker finally acknowledged rumors circulating since the Google Inc. deal in June that the service pack won't wrap up until the first quarter of next year. Microsoft has kept its lips tight and has officially offered up only that it expected to put a beta into play "sometime this year." Earlier talk had centered on the last quarter of 2007 as the presumed ship time for SP1, but that's clearly not in the cards. The deck used to brief reporters, in fact, included a slide with the line "Release date will depend on confirmation from beta testers," which is essentially what the company said numerous times in 2006 as it worked toward Vista's delayed launch. In other words: Microsoft is leaving itself wiggle room.

Who will get a crack at SP1 beta? You might want to sit down. Microsoft has said that it will seed the September build to between just 10,000 and 15,000 partners and customers. Don't act so surprised. We told you Microsoft almost always does it this way. The beta track regularly runs from private-private to private-public to public-public, with few deviations and no detours. How it plans on doing that is a mystery. Invite only? Concert seating, mad rush to the URL? Lottery?

Microsoft's not saying, not exactly. "The beta will be released to approximately 10,000 private testers that will not include TechNet subscribers," a company spokeswoman said later Wednesday in an e-mail. No specific word that MSDN subscribers would be in the pool or out, however.

OK, I never win anything, so I'm clearly out of luck here. ... Will there be a bigger beta, a public-public? Yeah sure, why not? Actually, Microsoft said it would distribute the beta, or maybe a release candidate, to a larger group between September and the final release. Details? Nothing much, other than that TechNet subscribers would be eligible for the later preview. Oh, and this from the same spokeswoman: "It is too early to discuss any other details."

Why all the fuss about a service pack, anyway? We have a couple of theories -- explanations, actually -- as to why SPs are now very important to the Windows food chain. First, the obvious. The hoary advice to wait for the service pack may be apocryphal, but if it is myth, it has become reality. Microsoft needs to stake out SP1 to convince major customers that it's time to deploy its not-quite-so-new operating system. Sure, they've already paid, or most of them have, for Vista with licensing agreements such as Software Assurance. But the sooner they move to Vista, the sooner they will, presumably, move on to what comes after Vista.

Second, and this is often overlooked, is that the last Windows client service pack -- 2004's XP SP2 -- set the bar very high -- so high that expectations of what a service pack is have grown all out of proportion to what Microsoft will deliver. XP SP2 wasn't just a service pack. As defined until then, an SP was little more than a collection of bug fixes and security patches, tested more thoroughly in the aggregate, but still a collection. XP SP2 changed that by making sweeping changes, most of them in the security arena, to the operating system. Remember, SP2 was the first service pack to be delivered by Windows Update -- not only delivered, but force-fed to users. Because of XP SP2, there's much more made of Vista SP1 than if that 2004 update hadn't happened.

From Microsoft's description of Vista SP1, users expecting another XP SP2 will be disappointed. This is much more in the historical tradition of service packs. For that reason, expect to hear some SP1 backlash or pooh-poohing by users, analysts, bloggers and yes, maybe even a reporter or two.

How big is SP1? At the moment, according to Microsoft, it's around 50MB in the form that will be squeezed through Windows Update and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS). The actual size of the update is likely in the 684MB range of the build leaked last week to BitTorrent Inc. Microsoft managed to reduce the download by both compression and delivering only the file each specific PC needs. In comparison, Windows XP SP2 weighed in at 266MB.

The stand-alone service pack designed for businesses that want a way to update multiple machines is considerably larger: 1GB or so on the DVD. This is what enterprises using System Center Configuration Manager 2007 will deploy.

More to the point of size -- except to those who still live and die by dial-up, to whom 50GB might as well be 50TB -- is that installing SP1 requires what Microsoft characterizes as "a large amount" of free space on the drive. How large? Try 7GB for 32-bit, around 12GB for 64-bit.

What's Microsoft removing from Vista with SP1? This may be a first, but the service pack is actually subtracting from Vista, not just adding. According to the white paper Microsoft released today, "The service pack will uninstall the Group Policy Management Console." GPMC, which debuted with Windows Server 2003, is a one-stop console for setting operating system policies that, say, ban everyone in the office from downloading potentially poisonous .exe files. Instead, the older GPEdit.msc application will have to suffice, at least for a while. "In the SP1 time frame," it said, "administrators can download an out-of-band release that will give them the ability to add comments to group policy objects (GPO) or individual settings and search for specific settings." The "out-of-band release" in that sentence refers to an enhanced version of GPMC, which will presumably be issued before, at the same time, or after SP1.

Why? Microsoft isn't saying much, except that "administrators requested features in Group Policy that simplify policy management."

Vista, who cares? What's the deal with the next service pack for Windows XP? Glad you asked. Microsoft, which has been avoiding the topic of XP SP3 even more judiciously than Vista SP1, confirmed that it will dual release the last rollup of the I'm-not-dead-yet XP "in a few weeks" or "in September." And it hasn't changed the long-stated, long-in-the-tooth schedule of sometime during the first six months of 2008 for a final release.

Here's the QT, such as it is, on XP SP3. "It is a standard practice to release a service pack as a release nears end of ife for the convenience to our customers and partners," said Microsoft. "Windows XP SP3 is rollup of previously released updates for Windows XP including security updates, out-of-band releases and hot fixes. It will also contain a small number of new updates. This should not significantly change the Windows XP experience."

Smell like an obit to you?

It's almost as if Microsoft's embarrassed by how well XP's hanging in there. In fact, we don't believe for a minute that Microsoft, which has previously set a drop-dead date of Jan. 30, 2008, for manufacturers to preinstalli XP on new PCs -- and Jan. 30, 2009 as the similar deadline for smaller-scale system builders -- will actually follow through on those deadlines, what with SP3 coming down the pike sometime between the two. Microsoft will likely smell the XP coffee, and extend at least the manufacturer deadline.

Back to Vista. What's in SP1? Microsoft breaks down the contents into three categories:

• Reliability and performance updates


• Administrative improvements


• Newfound support for some of the newer standards

It'll also include all the updates, patches and nonpatches that have been released between Vista going RTM (release to manufacturing) late last year and now, or the "now" using whatever as-yet-unknown cut-off date Microsoft plans to institute. Several security-related changes that don't easily fit into any of the above categories will be in there, too.

Tell me more. The company white paper lists what Microsoft claims will be in SP1, but there aren't many surprises in the reliability and performance section. Vista will play better with more graphics cards, work better with more printers -- two major hardware clans with which Vista has been notoriously flaky -- come out of and drop into sleep and/or hibernation more reliably (ditto), run Internet Explorer without chewing up as many CPU cycles, and copy files faster.

The BitLocker whole drive encryption tool within some Vista offerings -- Ultimate and Enterprise only -- has been updated so it can encrypt any local drive, not just the primary, or c:, drive. And the Network Diagnostics tool has been enhanced, says Microsoft.

On the new support side, SP1 adds support for the exFAT (Extended File Allocation Table) file system, which is used on flash-based storage devices, typically on Microsoft CE-based devices. The 64-bit version of Vista SP1 also adds Extensible Firmware Interface support, letting 64-bit PCs network boot with this BIOS replacement. "Network boot," by the way, refers to cranking up a PC remotely and often applies to diskless clients that run their operating system and applications off the network.

Got anything else? How about something juicy? This is the best we can do for you: SP1 will include the changes to Vista that Microsoft has agreed to after being pressured by the European Union's antitrust watchdog and then the U.S. Department of Justice.

To get the EU's Competition Commission and its bulldog chief, Neelie Kroes, off its back last year, Microsoft bowed to criticism from the likes of Symantec Corp. and McAfee Inc. and promised to produce several application programming interfaces (API) that would give security vendors some access to the kernel of 64-bit Vista, Microsoft's PatchGuard protection schemes notwithstanding. Also in SP1: another API that allows security companies to better integrate their product's on-screen status features with Vista's built-in Windows Security Center.

This year, Microsoft did a similar dance with Justice and the states involved in the 2002 antitrust settlement over Google's complaints about search in Vista. Microsoft agreed to a number of changes in Vista, including one that lets user disable Vista's built-in search engine and switch to an alternate, such as -- surprise! -- Google Desktop.

Where can I get more information than what you've deigned to drop on me? Your best bet -- other to check back here, of course, since we'll be dissecting various aspects of SP1 in the coming days -- is the official white paper from Microsoft. (Note: A PDF of this will probably be stuck somewhere on the Microsoft site in the new future.)

Related Articles and Opinion

• Vista SP1 beta weeks away; final due in Q1 '08


• Latest Vista SP1 build leaks out


• Wait six months after SP1 to tackle Vista, says support CEO


• How to make Windows XP last for the next seven years


• Windows Vista A to Z

Technorati : Vista SP1

Wharton's Schmittlein named new MIT Sloan dean

pb Md Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net

David C. Schmittlein of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School has been selected as the next John C Head III Dean of the MIT Sloan School of Management, effective Oct. 15 Provost L. Rafael Reif announced.

Schmittlein, who served as Wharton's deputy dean for seven years and as its interim dean this July, is a noted scholar, a widely published author and commentator and an international marketing consultant.

"Dean Schmittlein will be able to hit the ground running when he arrives. He already has deep experience in many of the program areas in which MIT Sloan is active, such as MIT Sloan's collaborations with business schools in China," Reif said, adding that the new dean had overseen similar initiatives with management schools in China and India during his tenure at Wharton.

"I am confident that Dean Schmittlein will continue the MIT Sloan tradition of developing effective, innovative, and principled leaders who improve the world," Reif said.

A native of Northampton, Mass., Schmittlein, 52, described the MIT Sloan appointment as both a homecoming and a great honor.

"No school of management in the world has a greater history of association with ideas that matter and with the kind of thought leadership that can transform both businesses and economies than MIT Sloan," he said.

Schmittlein is well known for his research on the impact of a firm's marketing actions, designing market and survey research, and creating effective communication strategies. His current work focuses on marketing research methods.

Schmittlein joined the Wharton School in 1980 and served as a leading administrator and faculty member for more than 25 years.

He was the founding director of Wharton's interdepartmental M.B.A. major, managing electronic commerce. He has served as the chair of the marketing department, the vice dean and director of doctoral programs and the co-director of Wharton's Center for Marketing Strategy Research.

Schmittlein currently serves on the international advisory board for Groupe HEC, the leading French business school, and on the academic advisory board for the China Europe International Business School in Shanghai.

As a consultant, he has assisted in the design and analysis of market research for world-class manufacturing and service firms including American Express, AT&T, Bausch & Lomb, Boston Scientific, Ford Motor Company, Gianni Versace S.p.A., Hewlett-Packard, Johnson & Johnson, Lockheed Martin, Pfizer, Revlon, Siebe PLC, the Oakland Raiders, Quaker Oats Co., and Time Warner.

Schmittlein received his B.A. in mathematics from Brown University and a Ph.D. and M.Phil. in business from Columbia University. He is a member of the American Marketing Association, the American Statistical Association, and the Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences.

In announcing Schmittlein's appointment, Reif praised Howard W. Johnson Professor of Economics and Management Richard Schmalensee, who served as dean of MIT Sloan for nine years.

"Selecting a successor to Dick Schmalensee was a challenge. In his nine-year tenure, he steered the School with vision, strong leadership, and unflagging principle. His legacy will be shaped in part by his vision for a new MIT Sloan building as a centerpiece of MIT's East Campus," Reif said.

Reif thanked Steven Eppinger, current interim dean of MIT Sloan, for his leadership. The provost also expressed gratitude to members of the search committees.

The internal MIT search advisory committee was chaired by Professor Gabriel Bitran (deputy dean, MIT Sloan) and also included MIT Sloan professors Robert S. Gibbons, Rebecca M. Henderson, Nelson Repenning, Antoinette Schoar and JoAnne Yates; Charles L. Cooney (chemical engineering) and Edward S. Steinfeld (political science).

Lawrence K. Fish, a member of the Executive Committee of the MIT Corporation, chairman and CEO of Citizens Financial Group, chaired the group of external advisors. Other advisors included Alexander d'Arbeloff, co-founder and former CEO of Teradyne, honorary chairman of the MIT Corporation, and professor of the practice at MIT Sloan; MIT Corporation members Gururaj (Desh) Deshpande, founder and chairman of Sycamore Networks, Carly Fiorina, former chairman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard, Judy C. Lewent, former executive vice president and CFO of Merck, and John S. Reed, former chairman of the New York Stock Exchange and former chairman and CEO of Citigroup; Charles E. Harper, executive chairman and co-founder of Sierra Monolithics; and Mary Puma, chairman and CEO of Axcelis.

Technorati : MIT

Hockfield welcomes MIT's sesquicentennial class

pb Md Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net

MIT President Susan Hockfield welcomed the Class of 2011 by challenging the incoming first-year students to follow Louis Pasteur's lead in making extraordinary discoveries that enrich people's lives.

Standing at the head of Killian Court during the Aug. 26 Convocation and Welcome, Hockfield formally greeted hundreds of students and their parents with a call to embrace history and invent the future.

"Welcome to the epicenter of science and engineering, of economics and entrepreneurship, of global studies and urban planning and more," Hockfield said. "MIT is where society and science converge. We're counting on you to make our world a better place."

Hockfield noted that the students gathered in the audience were members of what will become MIT's sesquicentennial class. Their graduation in 2011, 150 years after William Barton Rogers founded MIT, will be an important milestone in the Institute's history.

In the same era in which Rogers was laying the foundation for MIT, Hockfield said, Pasteur was making key contributions in the nascent field of experimental biomedicine. But the French scientist was also establishing links between science and industry so that theory could be turned into practice--a tradition that lies at the core of MIT's mission.

"Pasteur understood that we cannot realize the full promise of science if we do not open avenues for its application to people's lives," Hockfield said. "MIT walks--as you do--in Pasteur's footsteps. That's true in a very practical sense because the work he began continues here."

Hockfield told the incoming students that they had been selected from the largest and most competitive pool of applicants in the Institute's history. Their ranks, she said, include science and math Olympians, winners of the nation's most prestigious academic prizes, world-class musicians, athletes, circus performers and at least one cow breeder.

Chancellor Phillip L. Clay and Dean for Undergraduate Education Daniel Hastings also took turns addressing the audience. Reprising a theme from last year, Clay encouraged students to applaud their parents for helping them on the journey that has led them to MIT.

After the ceremony, Hockfield, Clay and Hastings took part in a receiving line where they personally welcomed new students and their families. Freshman Emily Prentice, 18, of Vienna, Va., was among those who shook hands with the university leaders.

"I went to a challenging high school so I'm excited about working hard and learning a lot. I'm looking forward to it rather than dreading it," said Prentice, a bioengineering student and one of more than a dozen students from her high school admitted to MIT this year.

Audience members also included freshman Andre Thomas, 17, of Kingston, Jamaica. Thomas, who witnessed the fury of Hurricane Dean back home before arriving Aug. 24 in Cambridge, said it was "surreal" being at MIT.

"I look forward to taking advantage of my time here," said Thomas, who will be studying chemical engineering. "We're being challenged to do our best."

Technorati : extraordinary discoveries

Hypnosis session before breast cancer surgery aids recovery

Researchers say women who undergo surgery for breast cancer may be helped in the recovery process if they have a hypnosis session beforehand.
It seems that just one session of hypnosis is enough to lessen the pain experienced and eases the recovery from breast cancer surgery.

The researchers at New York's Mount Sinai Medical Center conducted a study of 200 women about to undergo breast cancer surgery; the surgery was either for a breast biopsy or a lumpectomy (surgery to remove a breast tumor while saving as much of the breast as possible).

The researchers randomly divided the women into two groups - one group of women were given a 15-minute hypnosis session within an hour of their surgery - the other group received a 15 minute talk with a psychologist who was supportive but did not use hypnosis, imagery, or relaxation.

The hypnosis sessions were carried out by psychologists trained to use hypnosis in a medical setting and included guided relaxation, pleasant visual imagery, and soothing techniques.

The hypnosis sessions also included instruction on how the women could perform hypnosis on themselves in the future.

The researchers at the center's oncology sciences department, tracked the women during and after their surgery and found the women in the hypnosis group required less anesthesia medication than women who did not receive hypnosis.

The researchers also found that the hypnosis group reported less intense pain and less nausea, fatigue, discomfort and emotional upset after the surgery than those who were not hypnotised.

Dr. Guy Montgomery says the data supports the use of hypnosis with breast cancer surgery patients along with the use of anesthesia and painkillers and demonstrates that hypnosis substantially reduces pain and anxiety during surgical procedures.

Dr. Montgomery also says the hypnosis cut down on the hospital's surgical costs; breast cancer surgery as a rule costs $8,561 per patient, but the cost dropped by about $772 for the hypnotized patients, mainly due to shorter surgery time.

Hypnosis is often associated in people's minds with a loss of control, but Montgomery says even patients who are skeptical or fearful of hypnosis can benefit if they are properly counseled.

Many doctors consider hypnosis to be a powerful tool that patients can use to take charge of their own health.

The new research suggests that hypnosis is possibly an important tool in helping patients endure the common side effects both physical and emotional of breast cancer surgery.

Previous research has also shown the benefits of hypnosis in other procedures, including gynecological surgery and coronary artery bypass.

Technorati : breast cancer surgery

'Easier' science exams

presented by Md Moshiur Rahman sponsored by www.careerbd.net

Exam boards in England are planning to put more simple questions in science papers, the Times reports

A document seen by the newspaper says that from next year, some papers should consist of 70% "low demand" questions, instead of the current level of 55%.

The document was prepared by the umbrella group of exam boards, the Joint Council for Qualifications.

The organisation denies examiners are being told to make GCSEs easier and says instead, the bar is being raised.

There is concern that fewer students are taking science GCSEs, although there was a small upturn this year.

Simple format

Since 1984, the number of people studying A-level physics has slumped by 57% and the take-up of chemistry has dropped by 28%.

Under the new proposals, exams would contain fewer tough questions requiring detailed answers and more in a simple format, such as asking students to tick a multiple-choice box, the Times said.

The examination will require candidates to demonstrate wider knowledge and understanding to achieve their grades Jim Sinclair, JCQ

The guidelines amount to a non-binding agreement between the exam boards.

The proposal to increase the proportion of "low demand" questions from 55% to 70% relates to the combined science GCSEs.

Some students take what are known as single or doubles sciences - where the various science subjects are studied individually in greater detail.

In this latter case, the new guidelines suggest raising the proportion of easier questions from 45% to 50%.

Raising the bar

Jim Sinclair, JCQ director, told the Times the proposed changes were a way of stopping children being "turned off" by science.

He says the changes amount to a raising, not a lowering of the bar.

In a statement on Wednesday, he said: "Examiners have not been told to make GCSE science examination questions easier.

"The JCQ made recommendations in 2005 for the better use of the full mark range on examination papers and the widening of the ranges of marks for the lower grades in foundation tier GCSE science.

"Therefore, the examination will require candidates to demonstrate wider knowledge and understanding to achieve their grades.

"It is not a lowering of the bar, rather a raising of the bar since candidates have to engage with and positively respond to more questions than previously."

The JCQ added that there would still be a requirement for students to do "a significant proportion of extended writing" in the GCSE science assessment.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) insisted there were no plans to alter the way the subject was examined.

"We have recently revised these examinations and we have no plans to look at them again," a spokeswoman said.

It's the biggest tension we have got in science education Derek Bell, Association for Science Education

Exam boards have to have their exam papers approved by the exams watchdog, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA).

A spokesperson said: "The regulators' code of practice, which governs how GCSE qualifications are run, requires awarding bodies to have the prime objectives of maintaining grade standards over time and across different syllabuses.

"The detailed content structure of question papers is a matter for awarding bodies but QCA requires that the standard of work required to achieve a grade C is the same across different tiers and the same as in previous years."

The chief executive of the Association for Science Education, Derek Bell, said there was a need for balance in exam questions.

"It's the biggest tension we have got in science education and in education more generally.

"If you are trying to open access to demonstrate what all students can do, then you have to look at the system of doing it, but on the other hand you have to make sure the higher achievers also reach their potential."

Make science easier, examiners are told

Examiners will have to set easier questions in some GCSE science papers, under new rules seen by The Times. A document prepared by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), which represents awarding bodies across Britain, says that, from next year, exam papers should consist of 70 per cent "low-demand questions", requiring simpler or multiple-choice answers. These currently make up just 55 per cent of the paper.

The move follows growing concern about the "dumbing down" of science teaching at GCSE and grade inflation of exam results, which critics claim is the result of a government drive to reverse the long-term decline in the number of pupils studying science.

In the past five years, the proportion of students gaining a grade D or better in one of the combined science papers has leapt from 39.6 to 46.7 per cent.

Related Links

• Two-tier approach leaves slow starters behind

• Science exams have declined says watchdog

• Almost one in five GCSEs given top grades

The latest move has been condemned by an education expert. Last night Professor Alan Smithers, head of the Education and Employment Research Centre at the University of Buckingham, said: "Deliberately increasing the proportion of easier questions is a clear example of lowering the bar."

He added: "Already, exam questions have become too predictable and this is another example of making exams more user-friendly. Better exam scores are only good news if they stand for corresponding increases in underlying understanding. Putting in more low-demand questions is the sort of change that gives rise to suspicion."

Students taking GCSE scienc have a choice of two tiers, or papers. The foundation tier assesses grades G to C and the higher tier assesses grades D to A*.

The Government claims that exams are structured in this way to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to show what they are capable of without being thrown off course by questions that are too hard or too easy. However, many experts believe that this approach to science leaves some students poorly prepared to pursue the subject at A level.

Although there has been a small upturn in science entries this year, the number of students taking physics A level since 1984 has fallen by 57 per cent, while the take-up of chemistry has dropped by 28 per cent.

For a student sitting a GCSE science paper, the difference between an easier and a harder question might mean being asked the atomic structure of magnesium, instead of more complex elements such as chlorine or titanium.

There are likely to be more "cue-heavy" questions, where pupils are provided with more background information for answers. The new exams also increase the proportion of easier questions in the higher-tier paper from 45 to 50 per cent.

The document says that changes will take effect next June. Although they are not binding, they represent a "gentlemen's agreement" among the awarding bodies, according to the JCQ. Individual awarding bodies may choose to ignore the guidelines.

With this year's GCSE results showing another rise both in overall passes and top grades, there has been much speculation about whether this trend reflects better teaching, brighter students or easier exams.

But Jim Sinclair, the JCQ director, emphatically denied that the changes would lead to a rise in the number achieving grade C - the top grade in the foundation tier. Future results would depend on how the marks were allocated.

Dr Sinclair added that the changes would help to stop children being "turned off" by science.

"Part of the desire is that the student can come out of the exam with a feeling of success that they have actually tackled a significant proportion of the questions, and achieved the best grade expected," he said. "The vast majority of candidates taking this exam are going to achieve grades D to G, and they deserve a positive experience of science.

"They can only have that by being allowed to attempt questions which are at their level . . . It is making exams accessible to candidates." His comments were echoed by Jim Knight, the Education Minister, who said: "There is no such thing as an easy GCSE. Achievement in the single sciences is outstripping other subjects, with attainment in double-award science rising as well. The new science curriculum will build on this."

Derek Bell, chief executive of the Association for Science Education, which represents 15,000 primary, secondary and technical science staff said: "With the introduction of a national curriculum we now have to cater for all students, the whole ability range. In order to make exams reflect that, it involves changes.

"The danger here is that, by changing requirements to match the needs of the wider ability range, what you risk doing is reducing the potential, the overall standard.

"We have to be cautious about bringing about unintentional consequences. We do need to support the lower-ability students. But there is a danger that, in trying to ensure you have access for the majority, you limit the minority."

Technorati : science exams

JRU, MIT complete Final 4 cast-NCAA basketball tournament

By Md Moshiur Rahman , sponsored by www.careerbd.net

JOSE RIZAL University outplayed San Sebastian College in overtime, 80-73, yesterday to complete the semifinals cast in the NCAA basketball tournament at The Arena in San Juan.

James Sena and Jason Nocom made the big baskets in the extra period, with the former scoring a jumper and the latter nailing a big three-pointer with 2:14 left, giving the Heavy Bombers a 76-71 advantage.

The Heavy Bombers also limited the Stags, who slipped to a 4-7 card, to just two points after regulation play ended in a 71-71 deadlock.

The win, the Heavy Bombers' seventh in 11 games not only towed Mapua into the Final 4 but also gave the hosts the chance for a twice-to-beat incentive in the semifinals - which happen if Letran loses to San Beda College tomorrow and the Bombers beat the Knights in their last game.

Overshadowing the completion of the Final 4 cast was the ferocity displayed by the Red Lions against University of Perpetual Help in the first game despite the absence of main man Yousif Aljamal.

Not wanting to lose their momentum, the Red Lions made their move early en route to a 96-79 win over the Altas.

Tasked to double his effort in the absence of the 6-foot-4 Aljamal, Sam Ekwe obliged and delivered his 10th double-double this season with a career-best 26 points and 14 rebounds in 23 minutes of action.

The win enabled the Red Lions to tighten their grip for the overall lead with a 10-1 record.

But more importantly, the victory gave them the much-needed boost in their game against Letran tomorrow. The Red Lions are hoping to avenge their setback to the Knights in the first round.

"It was a must-win game for us. I told my players before the game not to relax. Without Yousif, we have to work harder. I'm happy with their performance," said SBC mentor Frankie Lim.

San Beda officials decided not to field Aljamal in the remaining elimination games as part of their agreement with the NCAA Policy Board for dropping the court case against the NCAA.

Ekwe, the reigning MVP who shot 12-of-19 from the field, drew solid support from Pong Escobal with 18 points, third year forward Ogie Menor with 15 and rookie guard Chico Tirona with 10.

Rommel Balboa led the Altas, who fell to 3-8, with 19 points while Mike Kong added 14.

The scores:

First Game

SBC 96 - Ekwe 26, Escobal 18, Menor 15, Tirona 10, Hermida 6, Lanete 6, Gamalinda 4, Taganas 4, Marcelo 3, Caram 2, Maggay 2, Taupa 0, Padilla 0.

UPHDS 79 - Balboa 19, Kong 14, Lee 8, Dysam 7, Galabin 6, Manuel 6, Reyes 6, Liaz 5, Ynion 5, Febrian 3, Salanga 0, Mejos 0.

Quarters: 32-21, 54-38, 80-57, 96-79.

SBC 32 22 26 16 - 96

UPHDS 21 17 19 22 - 79

Second Game

JRU 80 - Sena 18, Cagoco 13, Hayes 11, Pradas 10, Wilson 10, Nocom 9, Cunanan 5, Agas 2, Bulangis 2, Kabigting 0, Se 0, Ramos 0.

SSC 73 - Delgado 17, Viray 12, Bulawan 10, Del Rio 10, Aquino 9, Ballesteros 4, De Leon 4, Najorda 4, Quiamco 3, Raymundo 0, Zulueta 0.

Quarters: 23-12, 31-33, 55-58, 71-71 (Reg.), 80-73 (OT).

JRU 23 08 24 16 09 - 80

SSC 12 21 25 13 02 - 73.

Nokia's Go Play music launch in London-First hands-on impressions

By Md Moshiur Rahman , sponsored by www.careerbd.net

First hands-on impressions of the Nokia Music Store

At today's Go Play event, Nokia announced its new Nokia Music Store service (see the earlier story and liveblog for full details). In the afternoon, I got hands on with the web and mobile versions, to see how they're shaping up.

First, some factual info that didn't come out in the earlier press conference:

- The DRM-protected tracks will be WMA files encoded at 192kbps. Initially, it's using Microsoft's old Windows Media DRM, but in the future, there's scope to switch to the newer PlayReady system (you might remember, a couple of weeks ago, Nokia and Microsoft signed a deal to work together on the latter).

- All four major record labels have signed up to supply songs for the service: EMI, Sony BMG, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group. There'll also be tunes from many many independent labels.

- Pricing hasn't been set yet for the UK, but in Europe it's one euro per track, and ten euros per album. Which translates to about 67p per track and £6.70 per album - although I wouldn't be surprised to see that creep nearer to iTunes' 79p / £7.99 level when it launches here.

- Both the PC and mobile Nokia Music Stores are web-based, NOT downloadable applications. More worryingly, at launch the PC store will only work on Internet Explorer 6. Bad news for the near 15% of us who use Firefox in other words. Oh, and Mac users too, obviously.

- Besides individual downloads, there'll be an unlimited streaming service for PC users, which you'll pay 10 euros for a monthly subscription, which will allow as much track streaming as you like, all done through the Nokia Music Store's website. It'll work for promotional playlists too - I saw a celebrity playlist compiled by Rihanna, with one-click streaming of all its songs if you have a streaming subscription. However, streaming won't be available over mobile, at least not initially.

- The demo I saw involved having your own account with a certain amount of credit, indicating that you'll top it up almost like a pay-as-you-go phone, rather than the iTunes model of charging your card every time you make a purchase. However, it's unclear whether that model will also be supported.

- Local music is going to be a big deal for the Nokia Music Store - all the executives I spoke to today mentioned this aspect as being important, particularly in Europe. But like iTunes, you'll still be locked into your country's local store, due to licensing issues (e.g. Band X might be on Label Y in the UK, but Label Z in France).

And now some personal reaction to the store, based on what I saw / used today:

- The Nokia Music Store website is slick and well-designed. Finding your way around is easy, and each song has prominently placed buttons for streaming / downloading / wishlisting / sampling. It doesn't feel too cluttered.

- The notion of 'tagging' songs on your phone for download next time you're at your PC is excellent, and works really well. I can imagine myself filling dead time on the go by cueing up songs, and then grabbing them when you get home. Synchronisation is automatic too, so if you download a song over the air to your phone, next time you connect to your PC, it'll pop up in your library too.

- I'd like to see more Last.fm style personalisation, given the way Nokia's execs are shouting about Web 2.0. Initially, the Nokia Music Store will offer Amazon-style recommendations in a 'people who liked this also liked...' way, but there's no apparent sign of, say, being able to share playlists with friends, or interact in other ways. Hopefully this'll be coming later, but it would have been a good way for Nokia to differentiate its Music Store from the iTunes Store.

- The DRM... well, it's a bit of a disappointment to hear that Nokia isn't following the likes of iTunes, eMusic and Amazon (well, Amazon hasn't launched yet, but...) in offering DRM-free tracks from the start. Maybe the record labels are nervous about doing this in a mobile context, what with those pesky kids Bluetoothing stuff to each other. In fact, that's probably a very good reason to hold off on DRM-free downloads for the moment if you're Nokia, but as a consumer that's still a bit annoying.

And an initial verdict:

- Nokia Music Store might not be selling DRM-free songs, but other stores will be, often as pure MP3 files. So personally, I'd still be minded to buy from those, since I'll be able to play those MP3 files on my Nseries handset, with none of Microsoft's DRM getting in the way of doing other stuff with them too.

- The mobile aspects - discovery and tagging - are very slick indeed, and will certainly appeal to anyone who doesn't mind the DRM aspects to the store. The streaming subscription seems nice, but it's not as fully featured as Last.fm (e.g. personalised stations that learn your tastes).

- The big question is whether the Nokia Music Store's features will persuade mobile users to buy digital music, as opposed to just sideloading their CDs. The mobile features could be the tipping point here, but it's too early to say for sure. If nothing else, the first iteration of the Nokia Music Store is a solid entry into the digital music market, with scope for new features to be added in the future.

- All four major record labels have signed up to supply songs for the service: EMI, Sony BMG, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group. There'll also be tunes from many many independent labels.

Nokia is hosting an event today called Go Play, which looks set to see the debut of the company's rumoured digital music store, which would be a direct iTunes competitor. Its new N-Gage mobile games platform (as opposed to the old N-Gage games phones) is also set to feature.

I'm liveblogging the event in full: see below for the latest couple of entries, and click on the link below for the full liveblog in chronological order.

11.37: Oh, just quickly, the Nokia Music Store will be selling DRM-protected music, which seemingly goes against the trend elsewhere (iTunes Plus, Amazon's upcoming music service. And on pricing: oh, "You'll have to wait until you make your first purchase". Riiiight.

11.26: To recap quickly: Nokia has announced Nokia Music Store, its iTunes rival. It's also revealed that its new N-Gage games platform will launch in November, and has unveiled a music-focused N95 handset, and the new 8GB N81 music phone.

11.25: My laptop battery is about to die, just in time for the Q&A. Key questions though: will the Nokia Music Store be DRM-free, and will there be variable pricing or one £0.80 per track fee across the board? Why will this persuade people to buy legal digital tracks rather than download illegal ones, when other music stores haven't? And who booked Maroon 5, hmm?more

Technorati : Go Play