[MyAppleMenu] Feb 2, 2007

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
==================================================
<http://www.myapplemenu.com/>
Mac news for Mac people

[News]

*** Apple Confirms US Regulators Want More Options Documents
<http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?RSS&newsID=17116>
Macworld UK

Apple has confirmed that US regulators investigating its stock options backdating case have informally requested more information from the company.

*** Apple Issues Patch For iTunes On Vista
<http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/index.cfm?RSS&newsID=17111>
Jonny Evans, Macworld UK

The company says the software update -- which is for Vista users only (whether the operating system is installed on a Mac or a PC) -- will: "Repair permissions for important files required by iTunes to play your iTunes store purchases."

*** Disney Sells 1.3m Films On iTunes
<http://www.ft.com/cms/s/512d389c-b23b-11db-a79f-0000779e2340.html>
Matthew Garrahan, Financial Times

Downloads of Walt Disney films on the iTunes platform have risen sharply to more than 1.3m after only 3 months on sale, putting pressure on other Hollywood studios to join Apple's digital service.

*** Interarchy Interview: Peter N Lewis And Matthew Drayton
<http://daringfireball.net/2007/02/interarchy_interview>
John Gruber, Daring Fireball

It's not every day that one of the most popular indie Mac apps in history changes hands, but that's what happened today, when Matthew Drayton and his new company, Nolobe, acquired the rights to Interarchy from Peter N Lewis' Stairways Software.

*** Al Gore, 'Valley Guy'
<http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/technology/16597205.htm>
Scott Duke Harris, San Jose Mercury News

What is less known -- and what could become a political problem -- is the way Gore has become enmeshed, and enriched, in Silicon Valley through his association with a close-knit elite that includes Apple founder and Chief Executive Steve Jobs, Google Chief Executive Eri Schmidt and venture capitalist John Doerr, a Google director.

*** Sonsini Advised On Apple Options
<http://www.law.com/jsp/ca/PubArticleCA.jsp?id=1170237762721>
Justin Scheck, The Recorder

When Apple Inc. tried to hammer out a new compensation agreement for iconic CEO Steve Jobs in 2001 -- an agreement now being probed by federal prosecutors -- the company called on Larry Sonsini, the lead partner at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.

*** Playing iTunes On Windows Vista Requires Tricky Workaround
<http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=197002510&cid=RSSfeed_IWK_News>
Paul McDougall, InformationWeek

Until Apple comes out with its update, users have to right click on the iTunes.exe program, select Properties, click on the Compatibility tab and then on 'Run This Program As An Administrator.'

*** Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Hospital: High-Definition Endoscopy
<http://www.apple.com/science/profiles/paloalto/>
Grant Ellis, Apple

Dr Roy Soetikno, head of the Gastrointestinal Section and Endoscopy Unit at the Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Hospital and an ackownledged visionary in the field has developed a simple way for physicians to revisit colonoscopies using Apple technology.

*** Freeverse Releases Big Bang Brain Games
<http://www.macworld.com/news/2007/02/01/bbbg/index.php?lsrc=mwrss>
Peter Cohen, Macworld

If you're looking for fun games to exercise your noggin, look no further than Freeverse Software's latest release.

[Opinion]

*** A Rebuttal: Apple's Future Is Real, Not Virtual
<http://www.macuser.com/macuser/a_rebuttal_apples_future_is_re.php?lsrc=murss>
Dan Moren, MacUser

Apple's in the business of selling experience. They spend a lot of money developing their hardware and software to give their uses the best possible experience. I certainly don't think they're about to compromise that vision jsut to make a few more bucks on hardware sales that, let's face it, they don't really need anyway.

*** New Chips Are Nice, But How About Some New Cases, Apple?
<http://www.applematters.com/index.php/section/comments/new-chips-are-nice-but-how-about-some-new-cases-apple/>
Chris Seibold, Apple Matters

All of which is great for computing power but bad for satisfying that new case urge so many Mac fans secretly have.

[Review]

*** xPad Notepad Document Manager Mini-Review
<http://www.applelinks.com/index.php/more/xpad_notepad_document_manager_mini_review_os_x_odyssey_854/>
Charles W. Moore, Applelinks

xPad is a nice little minimalist note pad application. It doesn't have the power of desktop database notepads like DEVONnote or NotePad Deluxe, but they may be overkill for your needs and xPad is free.

*** MYOB AccountEdge 2007: Accounting Application Update Features Universal Support, Minor Enhancements
<http://www.macworld.com/2007/02/reviews/acctedge07/index.php?lsrc=mwrss>
Jeffery Battersby, Macworld

MYOB AccountEdge 2007 is a great accounting application for small and mid-size business, and this Universal version is a significant upgrade to last year's offering.

The Tomorrow Weblog
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/tomorrow/>
Emerging Technologies. Innovative Applications. New Economy

[News]

*** Publisher Launches Its First 'Wiki' Novel
<http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2089553,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03119TX1K0000594>
Reuters

The nove, "A Million Penguins," went live on Thursday and its first lines are already being written, edited and rewritten by enthusiasts on www.amillionpenguins.com.

*** Avoiding Tech Traps For The Unwary
<http://news.com.com/2010-1028_3-6155081.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-20&subj=news>
Bartlett Cleland, CNET News.com

Congress and the White House are key technology players in AMerica, but it's time for them to learn how technology really works, what drives innovation and how to get government out of the way of what could be a spectacular future.

MyAppleMenu Reader
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/reader/>
The other things in life

[Life]

*** Now That A Penny Isn't Worth Much, It's Time To Make It Worth 5 Cents
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/01/business/01scenes.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>
Austan Goolsbee, New York Times

How dumb do you have to be to mint money at a loss? In the latest only-in-Washington episode, we find that the government may have lost as much as $40 million coining pennies and nickels last year.

SingaporeSurf
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<http://www.myapplemenu.com/singapore/>
Life in the city

[News]

*** Govt To Introduce Medical Standards Enabling Info-Sharing Of Patients' Records
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/256272/1/.html>
Noor Mohd Aziz, Channel NewsAsia

The Health Ministry will provide a national IT backbone for doctors from hospitals and GP clinics to tap into medical records, and the aim is to improve long term care since a family doctor will now know exactly what a patient has gone through in hospital.

*** Metropolitan Chief Warns Thai Fans Not To Link Match Against Singapore To Politics
<http://nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30025788>
The Nation

Metropolitan Police chief Pol Lt Gen Wiroj Chantharangsi Friday said Thai fans should have concern about the country's reputation and should have sportsmanship.

*** Singapore Urges Fans To Be Cautious In Bangkok
<http://football.guardian.co.uk/breakingnews/feedstory/0,,-6387803,00.html>
Martin Petty, Reuters

Singapore has urged its travelling soccer fans to exercise caution ahead of a potentially explosvie ASEAN Championship final second leg in Thailand amid soured ties between the two nations.

*** Safety Of Singapore Fans Can't Be Guaranteed: Thai Minister
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/256188/1/.html>
Ng Hun Wei, Today

Thailand cannot guarantee the safety of Singapore football fans travelling to Bangkok this Sunday for the second leg of the Asean Football Championship Final, said its tourism and sports minister, Dr Suvit Yodmani, yesterday. He said that while officials will try their best to ensure that the match goes smoothly, fans should take the necessary precautions.

*** GST Hike Date - The Guessing Game Begins
<http://www.todayonline.com/articles/169494.asp>
Christie Loh, Today

As mental cogwheels go into overdrive about when the Goods and Services Tax (GST) hike will kik in, some are studying the taxman's "movements" for a clue.

*** Unsecured Credit Threshold To Be Lowered To S$20,000 A Year
<http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/256099/1/.html>
Loh Kim Chin, Channel NewsAsia

Unsecured credit refers to things like overdraft facilities. The latest rules do not apply to credit cards.

[Opinion]

*** Blame Singapore!
<http://axinar.blogspot.com/2007/02/blame-singapore.html>
Axinar's

The Johorians, oh, how they live in awe of the Singaporeans. Awe mixed with a tinge of envy and resentment.

*** The Poorest In Our Society
<http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/02/02/the-poorest-in-our-society/>
The Online Citizen

With the increasingly fast pace of life in Singapore, there perhaps is a tendency for us to forget those who are left behind, those who can't run as fast as the rest of us -- even if they want to.

*** A Small Kind Of Joy
<http://mrwangsaysso.blogspot.com/2007/02/small-kind-of-joy.html>
Mr Wang Says So

Some people care, after all. Who knows? Perhaps we are now taking our first baby steps towards a different kind of country. A different kind of Singapore -- one with respect for human life.

*** Singapore - Annual Report 2007
<http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=20796>
Reporters Sans Frontieres

The government headed by Lee Hsien Loong, with his father Lee Kuan Yew behind the scenes, has been engaged in a fierce battle with several foreign publications and at the same time has cracked down on Singaporean bloggers and cyberdissidents.

*** Grant Single Mums Maternity Leave Freely
<http://www.straitstimes.com/portal/site/STI/menuitem.c2aef3d65baca16abb31f610a06310a0/?vgnextoid=7532758920e39010VgnVCM1000000a35010aRCRD&vgnextfmt=vgnartid:a57ac84eb3e70110VgnVCM100000430a0a0aRCRD>
Netina Tan Chiew Pheng (This letter carries eight other names), Straits Times

In the long run, the tying of maternity leave to marriage is likely to backfire on the ministry's pro-family agenda.