[MyAppleMenu] Dec 18, 2007

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** MacBook Pro Replaces Desktop, With Tweaks <http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/tech/drmac/5385642.html>
by Bob LeVitus, Houston Chronicle
This was the year I finally found a notebook Mac, namely, my MacBook Pro, that had enough oomph to be my one and only Mac.

**** Apple Options Fallout Continues <http://www.macworld.co.uk/business/news/index.cfm?RSS&NewsID=19972>
by Jonny Evans, Macworld UK

**** Chronos Unveils Clipboard Manager <http://www.macworld.com/article/131127/2007/12/iclipboard.html?t=201>
by Philip Michaels, Macworld

**** Inside iPod Touch <http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/dec2007/tc20071217_113525.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology>
by Arik Hesseldahl, BusinessWeek
Dropping the phone functions meant dropping all the related chips, giving Apple designers a chance to make the device thinner than the iPhne.
/This may means that the iPod part of the iPhone may always trail behind the feature set of the iPod Touch./

**** Are Mac Users More Honest Than Windows Users? <http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=1114>
by David Morgenstern, ZDNet.com
If you feel that you're getting ripped off, then it's easier to rationalize bad behavior.

**** Whatever Happened To The Other iPhone? <http://www.wired.com/gadgets/wireless/news/2007/12/linksys_iphone>
by Rob Beschizza, Wired
Even though it may seem like Linksys' iPhones died quiet and unmourned deaths, they're still on the market.

**** No Privacy At The Apple Store <http://www.steveouting.com/no-privacy-at-the-apple-store.html>
by Steve Outing
Apple is able to find information about us simply by swiping a credit card.

**** Understanding And Using Leopard's Firewall <http://www.macworld.com/article/131116/2007/12/firewall.html>
by Rich Mogull, Macworld
Thanks to the 10.5.1 update the firewall is recommended to all Mac users. And with only a few changes, Apple can significantly improve the security of this already useful tool.

**** Apple Brings Mac OS X Closer To UNIX Standards <http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2007/12/17/apple-brings-mac-os-x-closer-to-unix-standards>
by Erik Kennedy, Ars Technica
It also means that there are some not-so-obvious changes under the hood from pervious Mac OS X systems, which might trip up longtime Mac users.

**** Boot Camp Boots Up Savings, Flexibility For Computer Users: Profile In Success: Bemidji State University <http://www.apple.com/education/profiles/bemidji/?sr=hotnews?sr=hotnews.rss>
by Apple
According to Brian Allen, BSU's director of technical support, "The Mac mini running Boot Camp was faster, hands down."

**** Warning: QuickBooks Hates Your Desktop Folder; Do Not Run Latest Update <http://www.macuser.com/troubleshooting/warning_quickbooks_hates_your.php?lsrc=murss>
by Dan Moren, MacUser
Users have been reporting an issue with QuickBooks 2006 and 2007 which could result in the deletion of your Desktop folder.
See Also:
Intuit Fixes QuickBooks Flaw That Vaporizes Data From Mac Desktop <http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=storage&articleId=9053301&taxonomyId=19&intsrc=kc_top>, by Brian Fonseca, Computerworld.
/As usual, always remember this basic advice: Backup, Backup, Backup./

**** Leopard's Launch Trumped Tiger's, Says NPD Group <http://arstechnica.com/journals/apple.ars/2007/12/17/leopards-launch-trumped-tigers-says-npd-group>
by Jacqui Cheng, Ars Technica

**** Apple Fixes More Bugs With Security Update 2007-009 <http://www.macnn.com/articles/07/12/17/security.update.2007.009/>
by MacNN
Apple has released Security Update 2007-009 for both Mac OS X Leopard and Tiger (Intel, PowerPC).

**** Safari 3.0.4 Security Update Released (Win) <http://www.macnn.com/articles/07/12/17/safari.304.windows/>
by MacNN
Apple has released a security update for Safari 3.0.4 for Windows.

The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** Intel's Ultrasmall Flash Hard Drive <http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/19933/>
by Kate Greene, MIT Technology Review
The chip maker has announced a tiny drive that could help bring the power of desktop computers to handheld devices.

**** Faster Chips Are Leaving Programmers In Their Dust <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/17/technology/17chip.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>
by John Markoff, New York Times
The potential speed of chips is still climbing, but now the software they run is having trouble keeping up. Newer chips with multiple processors require dauntingly complex software that breaks up computing chores into chunks that can be processed at the same time.

**** Startup Ribbit Seeks To Unite Telephony And The Web <http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20071217-startup-ribbit-seeks-to-unite-telephony-and-the-web.html>
by David Chartier, Ars Technica

**** Googling Oneself Is More Popular <http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Personal-Internet-Searches.html?ex=1355461200&en=9190da8e36b78507&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>
by Associated Press
More Americans are Googling themselves &mdash; and many are checking out their friends, co-workers and romantic interests, too.

MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** Below The Falls <http://www.slate.com/id/2178572/fr/rss/>
by Kevin Barents, Slate
Root-barbels high on the soaked trunks grope
what bits of water drilled into the air.
We mvoe together through the woods: a two.

**** Laws Of Nature, Source Unknown <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/18/science/18law.html?ex=1355634000&en=867c0e7c71b80f0d&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>
by Dennis Overbye, New York Times
There is in fact a kind of chicken-and-egg problem with the universe and its laws. Which "came" first &mdash; the laws or the universe?

**** Childhood's End <http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2007/12/18/childhood_end/index_np.html?source=rss>
by Gary Kamiya, Salon
When your children grow up, you have to say goodbye to part of them &mdash; and part of yourself.

**** Couplings <http://www.nerve.com/fiction/butler/couplings/>
by Robert Olen Butler, Nerve.com
Robert Olen Butler's forthcoming book /Intercourse/ imagines the interior monologues of copulating couples throughout history, from Princess Diana and Prince Charles to a chicken and a rooster. Here are three.

**** Volcano Culture <http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2008-01/volcano-culture/andrew-marshall.html?fs=www.nationalgeographic.com>
by Andrew Marshall and John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Magazine
In Indonesia, life plays out in the shadow of fiery peaks.

SingaporeSurf
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**** Guests In The Machine <http://www.reason.com/news/show/123474.html?from=myapplemenu>
by Kerry Howley, Reason Magazine
Superficially, it's strange that states like Singapore and the United Arab Emirates are more welcoming to large numbers of immigrants than the United States and Western Europe. Singaporeans exhibit personality traits that predict hostility to immigrants&mdash;a comfort with hierarchy and traditionalism, for example&mdash;while residents of the U.S. and U.K. are more likely to exhibit immigrant-friendly traits like egalitarianism and openness to change.
Partly, this is explained by contrasting modes of government: Singapore's authoritarian regime is unabashedly pro-immigration; it's not clear that a democratic Singapore would be so welcoming. As important, Chan Hoong, a psychologist at Singapore National University, explains, is Singapore's willingness to accommodate conservatives through policies of segregationt aht Americans would probably find odious. Singaporean conservatives mirror the American right in their fear of cultural erosion and social disorder, but they have largely been placated by a system that invites immigration while emphasizing legality and distance. A comfort with hierarchy expresses itself a sa comfort with inequality, and countries that can tolerate inequality can allow huge influxes of poor people.

**** The Singapore State-Owned Investment Corporations Conundrum <http://bleongcw.typepad.com/simple_is_the_reason_of_m/2007/12/the-singapore-s.html>
by Bernard Leong, Simple Is The Reason Of My Heart

**** No More Apathy <http://smootie.blogspot.com/2007/12/no-more-apathy.html>
by Smoot
Why don't employees in Singapore have real rights?

**** Death To Death Penalty!
by Heng-Cheong Leong, MyAppleMenu
Another state, the state of New Jersey, has repealed the death penalty <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/17/nyregion/17cnd-jersey.html?bl&ex=1198040400&en=5041e607dad7dce7&ei=5087%0A>. "Society first must determine if its endorsement of violence begets violence," said governor Jon S. Corzine, "and if violence undermines our commitment to the sanctity of life. To these questions, I answer yes."
When is Singapore's turn?
<p class="permlink">Permanent Link to This Post <http://www.myapplemenu.com/singapore/2007/12/18/id0019/>

**** Press Digest - Singapore Newspapers - Dec 18 <http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustryMaterialsUtilitiesNews/idUSSIN13933320071218>
by Reuters
Nearly half the buildings in Singapore's prime retail street, Orchard Road, and its financial district are inaccessible to those on wheelchairs, a survey by the Building and Construction Authority has found.

**** Are Ministers Already Being Paid More Than Their Private Sector Salary Benchmark? <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/12/18/are-ministers-already-being-paid-over-their-private-sector-salary-benchmark/>
by Leong Sze Hian, theonlinecitizen

**** I'll Be Leaving You... Singapore <http://www.mrbiao.com/blog/ill-be-leaving-you-singapore.html>
by This Lush Garden Within

**** Government To Increase Funding For Edusave From Jan <http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Story/STIStory_187930.html>
by Straits Times
Edusave contributions will go up by $10 to $180 for students at the primary level, and by $20 to $220 for those at the secondary level, the Ministry of Education announced.
See Also:
Increase In Contributions Rates To Edusave Accounts <http://www.moe.gov.sg/press/2007/pr20071217.htm>, by Ministry of Education, Singapore Government.

**** One-Size-Fits-All Health Messages Miss The Mark <http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Story/STIStory_187862.html>
by Salma Khalik, Straits Times
Health messages, put out regularly for years, did not seem to be reaching the lower-educated.

**** Why Can't Our MRT, Taxi Service Just Be Like Hong Kong's? <http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Online%2BStory/STIStory_187847.html>
by Soh Bee Pheng, Straits Times
If Singapore wants to be world-class, something has to be done before we lose out.

**** Red-Dye Deposits Not A Health Hazard <http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Story/STIStory_187932.html>
by Darius Lim, Mindef, Straits Times
Independent tests by the Inspectorate (Singapore) Pte Ltd and DSO National Laboratories on the red-dye deposits confirm that the deposits are not harmful.
See Also:
Wanted: Answers To Red Dye Saga <http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Story/STIStory_185898.html>, by Law Sin Ling.
/Note that a few of the concerns raised by Mr Law were not answered, including whether Mindef did any assessment to anticipate this accident, and the use of taxpayers' money to make compensation./

**** Fares Up, But Waiting Time Still A Bother <http://www.todayonline.com/articles/228080.asp>
by Leong Wee Keat and Ansley Ng, Today
See Also:
No Shortage Of Taxis At City Fringe Stands <http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Story/STIStory_187864.html>, by Maria Almenoar and Liaw Wy-Cin, Straits Times.

The Shuffe by MyAppleMenu
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**** Christmas In Nashville <http://www.archive.org/details/bobwalkenhorst2006-12-20.shnf>
by Bob Walkenhorst
Click here to listen <http://ia310925.us.archive.org/0/items/bobwalkenhorst2006-12-20.shnf/bobwalkenhorst2006-12-20d1t13_vbr.mp3>.