[MyAppleMenu] Nov 15, 2008

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** Apple Sued Over Hairline Cracks In iPhone 3G <http://blogs.zdnet.com/gadgetreviews/?p=518>
by Andrew Nusca, ZDNet.com

**** Fifteen Reasons Macs Are Still Better Than Windows PCs <http://apcmag.com/15_reasons_macs_are_still_better_than_windows.htm>
by Dan Warne, APC
On balance, Macs just let you get stuff done, whereas Windows computers constantly find ways of annoying you.

**** 'Should Games Retail Fear Apple?' <http://www.mcvuk.com/opinion/226/Should-games-retail-fear-Apple>
by Michael French, MCV

**** Google Is Taking Questions (Spoken, Via iPhone) <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/14/technology/internet/14voice.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>
by John Markoff, New York Times
Pushing ahead in the decade-long effort to get computers to understand human speech, Google researchers have added sophisticated voice recognition technology to the company's search software for the Apple iPhone.

**** The UrbanSpoon Effect <http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=2514>
by Jason D. O'Grady, ZDNet.com

**** Rah, Rah, Apple U. <http://www.macworld.com/article/136829/2008/11/appleu.html?lsrc=rss_main>
by Dan Turner, Computerworld
At Apple U, you may not see wholesale career changes, but it can't be a bad idea to have various teams learn more about what others do and why. After all, Apple is the exception in the PC industry in that it builds the whole widget, from motherboard designs to external casings to the OS to the final packaging.

**** Papermaster Countersues IBM In Effort To Join Apple <http://www.macworld.com/article/136830/2008/11/papermaster.html?lsrc=rss_main>
by Jim Dalrymple, Macworld
In an effort to sever ties with his former employer, Mark Papermaster has countersued IBM, claiming among other things that Apple and IBM are not significant competitors.

**** Review: XMind 2008 Pro <http://www.macworld.com/article/136563/2008/11/xmind08pro.html?lsrc=rss_main>
by Stuart Gripman, Macworld
XMind Pro 2008 (version 2.3) shines as a mind mapping tool that doesn't get in the way as the ideas come flooding out of your head. Sticklers for Apple's interface standards won't warm to the buys design, and anyone with a significant investment in an unspported import format can move along. But new mind mappers and those not crazy about MindManager or FreeMind should give XMind a shot.

**** First Look: Boxee <http://www.macworld.com/article/136807/2008/11/boxee.html?lsrc=rss_main>
by Christopher Breen, Macworld

The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** In The Culture Of Innovation, Leadership Is Key <http://www.brianmadden.com/blogs/michaelkeen/archive/2008/11/13/change-and-innovation.aspx>
by Michael Keen, Brian Madden

MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** The Joy Of English <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/16/books/review/Shafer-t.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>
by Jack Shafer, New York Times
Roy Blount Jr. has returned from the fileds where the American lingo grows wild to write "Alphabet Juice," his personal lexicon, usage manual, writers' guidebook, etymological investigation and literary junk drawer.

**** We Blew It <http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/015/791jsebl.asp>
by P.J. O'Rourke, Weekly Standard
Let us bend over the kiss our ass goodbye. Our 28-year conservative opportunity to fix the moral and practical boundaries of government is gone&mdash;gone with the bear market and the Bear Stearns and the bear that's headed off to do you-know-what in the woods on our philosophy.

**** Analogy Lesson <http://www.slate.com/id/2204661/?from=rss>
by Richard Thompson Ford, Slate
Racism is the wrong frame for understanding the passage of California's same-sex marriage ban.

SingaporeSurf
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**** Socially Responsible Retrenchments? <http://geraldgiam.wordpress.com/2008/11/15/socially-responsible-retrenchments/>
by Gerald Giam
Ambiguous signals like this latest statement from the acting manpower minister only serve to embolden large corporations to think they can willy nilly cut staff as long as the process is communicated properly from a PR standpoint.

**** The UFOs Have Landed! <http://mrwangsaysso.blogspot.com/2008/11/ufos-have-landed.html>
by Mr Wang Says So
Can you really blame Richard? I mean, everyone knows that employee trade unions in Singapore are supposed to be docile, subservient and useless. How the heck was Richard to know that before retrenching the workers, he was supposed to /consult/ the bank union...

**** Many Investors Have Lost Faith In Government And MAS: Tan Kin Lian <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2008/11/many-investors-have-lost-faith-in-government-and-mas-tan-kin-lian/>
by Andrew Loh, The Online Citizen

**** MOM To Release Guidelines On Management Of Excess Staff <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/390059/1/.html>
by Pearl Forss, Channel NewsAsia
The manpower minister will soon release guidelines on how to manage excess manpower in light of expected increase in retrenchment in Singapore. The guidlines willi nclude what's called responsible retrenchment, where employers work with unions to explain the situation to workers before serving the termination letter.

**** Dressing Down Debacle <http://thestar.com.my/columnists/story.asp?file=/2008/11/15/columnists/insightdownsouth/2545042&sec=insightdownsouth>
by Seah Chiang Nee, The Star
There is no denying that over-regulation that caused people to draft - and follow - regulations, sometimes automatically by instinct, ahs contributed to a safe, clean and efficient Singapore.
That was in the past when people were production ants.

**** Read: Singapore's Troubled Periods Revisited <http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Saturday/Features/20081115082949/Article/indexF_html>
by James Hipkiss, New Straits Times

**** Foreigners Benefit If Singapore Changes Organ Law - Paper <http://uk.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUKTRE4AE0UX20081115>
by Melanie Lee, Reuters

**** The Right Price For The Right To Protest In Singapore <http://wayangparty.com/2008/11/15/the-right-price-for-the-right-to-protest-in-singapore/>
by Eugene Yeo, The Wayang Party Club Of Singapore
The PAP understands perfectly that the only potential threat to their hegemony comes from the educated professionals - the elite and middle class of Singaporeans residing in private landed properties and apartment which forms 10% of the population. Keep them happy even at the expense of the low-income group and this will ensure continued stability.

**** Minority PM Issue: Let's Drop This 'Not Ready' Nonsense <http://geraldgiam.wordpress.com/2008/11/15/minority-pm-issue-lets-drop-this-not-ready-nonsense/>
by Gerald Giam

**** Tigers Stresses By The Incident <http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_302649.html>
by Jessica Lim, Straits Times
The two white tigers involved in Thursday's attack on a cleaner are exhibiting symptoms of stress. This is because of the commotion that occurred during the attack, said the zoo's assistant director Biswajit Guha.

**** Zoo Beefs Up Safety Steps <http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_302608.html>
by Jessica Lim, Straits Times

**** How Transport Body Checks Bus Services <http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Story/STIStory_302452.html>
by Looi Teik Soon, Public Transport Council, Straits Times
Although the standard is measured at the interchange, the operators cannot let bus bunching or delays get out of hand, because that would mean the bus cannot be ready for its scheduled departure at the next bus interchange.
To reduce the impact of traffic conditions, more bus priority measures such as bus lanes, priority traffic signals and giving way to buses exiting bus bays are necessary.

**** Hotel Huff: Different Customers, Different Rules <http://www.straitstimes.com/ST%2BForum/Online%2BStory/STIStory_302310.html>
by Seah Gek Hoon, Straits Times
Apparently, Marina Mandarin has different classifications of slippers for different customers.

**** Why There Won't Be Snap Elections <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/389991/1/.html>
by Loh Chee Kong, Today

**** Growth <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2008/11/growth/>
by The Online Citizen
Singapore's current government-dominated model for industrial growth is too tightly enmeshed with other aspects of its political economy for it to be easily loosened up, much less by the party that stands at the heart of the entire system.

**** Labour Chief Disappointed WIth DBS' Sudden Retrenchments <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/389845/1/.html>
by Valerie Tan, Channel NewsAsia
Labour chief Lim Swee Say has expressed his disappointment in the sudden decision by DBS Bank to cut 900 jobs. In a statement, Mr Lims said that the bank had not consulted with the DBS Staff Union on other alternatives to cutting costs. As a result, the perception on the ground is that DBS Bank decided on retrenchment as a first resort.

**** Singapore Zoo Assures Visitors That White Tiger Exhibit Is Safe <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/389832/1/.html>
by S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia
A day after a cleaner was mauled to death at the Singaproe Zoo's white tiger enclosure, officials assured the public that the exhibit is "very safe".