[MyAppleMenu] Jul 3, 2010

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** iPhone Signal Strength Set Bars Too High <http://db.tidbits.com/article/11403?rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+tidbits_main+%28TidBITS%3A+Mac+News+for+the+Rest+of+Us%29>
Glenn Fleishman, TidBITS

Given that the frequent two-to-three bar drop annoyed customers, it's hard to ascribe too much motivation to the marketing explanation.

**** How To Share Purchased iBooks <http://db.tidbits.com/article/11404?rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+tidbits_main+%28TidBITS%3A+Mac+News+for+the+Rest+of+Us%29>
Adam C. Engst, TidBITS

For sharing of titles purchased from the iBookstore within a household, this approach of signing out of one iTunes account, signing in from another, redownloading books, and swapping the accounts back again should meet the needs of most people.

**** Let's Try To Make Sense Of The "Death Grip" <http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/02/lets-try-to-make-sense-of-the-death-grip-problem/>
David Pogue, New York Times

This one’s going down in the history books—or at least the one called, “Weirdest Consumer Tech Bumbles, 1980-2010.”

**** iPhone 4's Supposed Signal Woes Aren’t Unique, And May Not Be Serious <http://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2010/07/apple-iphone-4-antenna-problems-dropped-calls-att-signals-bars-os-software-bugs-glitches-os-os4-iphone4-reception-problems-in.html>
Mike Gikas, ConsumerReports.org

Even if the alleged signal loss is real, there's an absence of hard evidence that iPhone 4 reception is problematic compared to past iPhones; indeed, there's evidence of just the opposite.

**** Voices For Mac Puts More People In Your Head <http://www.macworld.com/article/152495/2010/07/voices_for_mac.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Jeff Porten, Macworld

Getting tired of Alex? Has your relationship with Victoria waned over the years? Voices for Mac can spruce up your aural interactions with Mac OS X’s text-to-speech feature, with the addition of new voices for your listening pleasure.

**** Poking Holes In Apple's iPhone 4 Antenna Explanation <http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-20009564-266.html?part=rss&amp;subj=news&amp;tag=2547-1_3-0-20>
Marguerite Reardon, CNET News

But hold on a second. How exactly will this ensure that the new iPhone 4 doesn't drop a call? The answer is that it probably won't.

**** The Aesthetics Of The iPad <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/04/magazine/04FOB-medium-t.html?partner=rss&emc=rss>
Virginia Heffernan, New York Times

**** Apple Admits Error, Some Customers Still Skeptical <http://www.pcworld.com/article/200443/apple_admits_error_some_customers_still_skeptical.html?tk=hp_new>
Gregg Keizer, Computerworld

Apple's explanation today didn't address reports by many users the iPhone 4 dropped calls when they held the iPhone 4. On Apple's support forum, most people were skeptical that the upcoming software fix would really solve the problems they have with their iPhones.

**** Apple To Replace False iPhone Reception Reading With Another Clever Exaggeration <http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2010/07/iphone-bars.html>
Mark Milian, Los Angeles Times

As it turns out, companies really aren't supposed to lie about measurable statistics, like cell strength, but doing a little visual magic on how tall the bars look is probably in bounds. It's somewhat furtive but not outright mendacity.

**** Apple Gives One Business Free Bumpers For iPhone 4 Reception Issues <http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/07/02/apple_gives_a_business_free_bumpers_for_iphone_4_reception_issues.html>
AppleInsider

Though it has not given away protective cases to the masses to alleviate reception issues with the iPhone 4, Apple did attempt to appease one small New York business owner with five free $30 bumpers, AppleInsider has learned.

**** Mac Gems: MoveAddict 1.51 <http://www.macworld.com/reviews/product/563803/review/moveaddict_151.html?expand=true&lsrc=rss_main>
Dan Frakes, Macworld

MoveAddict adds the capability to cut and paste files and folders in the Finder, along with some nifty features such as folder merging.

**** Adopting Apple Into The Enterprise? You Might Want To Think Again <http://www.fiercecio.com/techwatch/story/adopting-apple-enterprise-you-might-want-think-again/2010-07-02>
Paul Mah, FierceCIO

So let's put things into perspective here: There are 1,000 users on the iPhone hooked up to your Exchange Servers, and you now have to explain to your CEO how it's not your incompetence (really!) that you have to temporarily disconnect his iPhone from Exchange so that everyone can continue using it. And having explained this point, tell him that you have no idea when this issue can be remedied. So tell me, is Apple ready for the enterprise?

**** China Mobile Lobbies Apple For An iPhone <http://www.informationweek.com/news/windows/microsoft_news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=225702037>
Mike Clendenin, InformationWeek

China Mobile, the country's largest telecom operator, is still holding out hope that it can woo Apple into making a customized version of the iPhone that would work on a network based on homegrown TD-SCDMA technology. However, most observers aren't holding their breath. Apple hasn't even released a CDMA version of the iPhone, though it is likely this will happen.

**** Facetime On iPhone 4 Won't Work Says CEO Of 3 UK <http://www.itproportal.com/portal/news/article/2010/7/1/facetime-iphone-4-wont-work-says-ceo-3-uk/>
Desire Athow, IT Pro Portal

Kevin Russell, the CEO of mobile phone operator 3 UK, has admitted that he's not a great believer when it comes to video conferencing and the use of the iPhone 4's just released FaceTime application.

**** Apple Ditches The 10% Restocking Fee On iPhone 4 Returns <http://appadvice.com/appnn/2010/07/apple-ditches-10-restocking-fee-iphone-4-returns/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AppAdvice+%28AppAdvice%29>
Alexander Vaughn, App Advice

Now, with the debacle around the new iPhone’s antenna issue and the recent lawsuits, Apple has apparently decided to generalize the policy. The difference isn’t very significant as the return on a 16GB or 32GB would cost respectively just $19.90 or $29.90. On the other hand, it might help with the lawsuits.

**** Apple's Hostile Reception <http://www.economist.com/blogs/babbage/2010/07/apples_iphone_headache>
The Economist

Saying sorry is something that does not come easily to Apple, a company known as much for its arrogance as for the brilliance of the electronic gadgets it churns out. But the consumer-electronics giant has just issued what amounts to an apology to buyers of its new iPhone 4, which has been plagued with reception problems. Unfortunately, the excuse that the company has given for the fiasco appears to be as thin as its sleek new smartphone, which has been selling in droves in spite of the adverse publicity.



MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** American Buffet <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/04/magazine/04lives-t.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss>
Susan Silver Cohen, New York Times

It is for a special occasion one recent Sunday that I pull my car into the Jumbo Buffet & Grill parking lot in Harrisburg, Pa., with three of my four foster Vietnamese grandchildren in tow. Jonah, who is 8, just received his first communion in a magnificent midtown church where Masses are held in English and Vietnamese. Lunch at Jumbo Buffet, an Asian-style, all-you-can-eat restaurant, always involves overeating, but we’re excited to celebrate Jonah’s new status in the church.

**** The Floating Man <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/jul/03/katharine-towers-the-floating-man?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29>
Katharine Towers, The Guardian

**** Heartbreak By Craig Raine <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/jul/03/heartbreak-craig-raine-review?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29>
Alex Clark, The Guardian

Written in a series of fragmentary, often incomplete vignettes, some fictional and some drawing heavily on Raine's academic interests and biography, this is a novel that, while proclaiming its intention to anatomise emotional wreckage, relentlessly defaults to the physical, from its inexperienced teenager turned on by the thought of a "gross, wrinkled, restless" fly in search of a dirty landing spot, to its other characters' apparently endless fascination with – and I use the word as deliberately, though not with as much frequency, as Raine does – arseholes.

**** The News Where You Are By Catherine O'Flynn <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2010/jul/03/catherine-oflynn-news-where-review?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29>
Fay Weldon, The Guardian

Writing a second novel is a nervy business for a writer, especially when the first one has been unexpectedly and wonderfully successful, as was Catherine O'Flynn's debut What Was Lost, which went on to win the 2008 Costa first novel and a cluster of other awards. But O'Flynn need not be nervous. Her second novel, The News Where You Are, establishes her as, let's say, the JG Ballard of Birmingham.

**** Many Poisoned Rivers <http://www.literaryreview.co.uk/mirsky_07_10.html>
Jonathan Mirsky, Literary Review

At first you might imagine that Watts is peddling the latest version of the Yellow Peril. After you've read about fifty pages you will find his occasional attempts at fairness bizarre, as in his clichéd conclusion that, faced with two 'extremes', 'the truth was probably somewhere in between'. But there is no 'in between'. China is destroying itself and threatening the rest of us. And, like useful idiots, we are helping the Chinese do it.

**** Ben Franklin Is A Big Fat Idiot <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/04/books/review/Queenan-t.html?partner=rss&emc=rss>
Joe Queenan, New York Times

But a while back I realized that not all the wit and wisdom contained in Poor Richard’s Almanac was equally witty or equally wise. It happened like this: Feeling that my life had lost direction over the years, that I had strayed too far from the path of the righteous, I decided last winter to go back and take a Poor Richard refresher course, in the hope of reconfiguring my moral and ethical infrastructure. In doing so, I was stunned to discover how many of Franklin’s axioms failed the acid test of validity and usefulness.

**** Humanity’s Database <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/04/books/review/Pogue-t.html?partner=rss&emc=rss>
David Pogue, New York Times

This isn’t the first book about Facebook. One, the sensationalist “Accidental Billionaires” (subtitle: “A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal”), is already being made into a movie. But “The Facebook Effect” is the first to enjoy the participation of the blunt, elusive Mark Zuckerberg.

**** The Atheist And The Rabbi: Arguing About God With Christopher Hitchens <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/02/AR2010070202450.html?wprss=rss_print/outlook>
David Wolpe, Washington Post

Ambling across the lobby with a cigarette in one hand and a glass of wine in the other, my antagonist nodded to me and said, "Hello, darling."

It was almost time for another public debate with Christopher Hitchens.



SingaporeSurf
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**** Singapore Boleh!! We're Number 3! Who Says So? We Do!!! <http://singaporeanskeptic.blogspot.com/2010/07/yay-were-number-3-who-says-so-we-do.html>
Singaporean Skeptic

Don't you find it strange that a ranking system developed in Singapore rates Singapore as one of the best cities in the world?

**** 不满建屋局赔偿太低 çº¢å±±æ™¯å¤šååº—ä¸»å¸Œæœ›å¿é‡‘å¢žåŠ  <http://www.zaobao.com/sp/sp100703_015.shtml>
 陈锦柏, 联合早报

受选择性整体重建计划影响的红山景20å¤šåç»„å±‹åº—ä¸»ï¼Œä¸æ»¡å»ºå±‹å‘å±•å±€ç»™äºˆçš„èµ”å¿é¢å¤ªä½Žï¼Œæ˜¨å¤©é›†ä½“è¦æ±‚è¯¥åŒºå›½ä¼šè®®å‘˜è‹±å…°å¦®ä»£ä¸ºä¼ è¾¾è¯‰æ±‚ï¼Œå¸Œæœ›å»ºå±‹å±€èƒ½å¢žåŠ èµ”å¿é‡‘ã€‚

**** 夜间动物园开发展区 çç¨€æ ‘æœ¨ä¸ºäº†åŠ¨ç‰©â€œæ¬å®¶â€ <http://www.zaobao.com/sp/sp100703_005.shtml>
黄伟曼, 联合早报

æ–°åŠ å¡å¤œé—´åŠ¨ç‰©å›­ä¸ºäº†ä¿æŠ¤åœ¨ä¸€ä¸ªå‘å±•åœ°æ®µä¸Šå‘çŽ°çš„å‡ æ£µçç¨€å“ç§å¤§æ ‘ï¼Œç‰¹è˜æ‰¿åŒ…å•†å’ŒåŠ¨ç”¨é•¿è‡‚åŠç§¤è½¦ï¼Œå°å¿ƒç¿¼ç¿¼åœ°å°†å®ƒä»¬åŠèµ·ï¼Œç§»æ¤åˆ«å¤„ã€‚

**** The Importance Of The Public Transport System <http://singaporemind.blogspot.com/2010/06/importance-of-public-transport-system.html>
Diary of A Singaporean Mind

I'm glad there is finally admission that the trains are crowded. I hope the denial has finally ended.

**** Seats Removed To Create More Standing Room <http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_548905.html>
Bernadette Low, SMRT Corporation, Straits Times

Since the introduction of these trains, more passengers have been able to board the train during peak hours. A survey in late 2008, shortly after these trains were introduced, revealed that nine in 10 commuters on platforms and seven in 10 commuters in trains preferred being able to board a train quickly to having a seat.

**** Two To Three Minutes - The Highest Frequency MRT Trains Can Achieve <http://www.straitstimes.com/STForum/Story/STIStory_548915.html>
Bernadette Low, SMRT Corporation, Straits Times

This is the highest frequency our network can maintain given the system's design. At this frequency, train loads range from 1,200 to 1,450 passengers. This averages 3.8 passengers per sq m, lower than that of metros in major cities like London, Shanghai and Tokyo, where it is five to eight passengers per sq m.

**** A Park And Pool 200m Above Singapore <http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/2662b020-8563-11df-aa2e-00144feabdc0.html>
Kevin Brown, Financial Times

The high point of my stay – literally and emotionally – was the Skypark.

**** Politics Of Gratitude <http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/3/focus/6590708&sec=focus>
Seah Chiang Nee, The Star

At the rate their numbers are increasing, it will not be long before the population of new migrants will start leaving a mark on elections in Singapore. It is widely believed that the bulk of their support will go “out of gratitude” to the ruling party for giving them a chance to get a new life here.

This has fuelled talk that the immigration policy is partly motivated by politics to keep the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) in power for many more years.

**** Getting Back To Nature In Singapore <http://travelblog.viator.com/getting-back-to-nature-in-singapore/>
David Whitley, Viator

With a high population and not much space, wildlife and rainforests are not readily associated with Singapore, but seek and ye shall find. Aside from Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Singapore is said to be the only city in the world to have natural rainforest within its boundaries. Admittedly, there’s not much of it left, but some stretches have been deliberately preserved.

**** ICT Opportunities Abound In Singapore's Public Sector <http://www.networksasia.net/content/ict-opportunities-abound-singapores-public-sector>
NetworkWorld Asia

**** Swiss Executive Fricker Appeals Singapore Caning Sentence For Vandalism <http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-02/swiss-executive-fricker-appeals-singapore-vandalism-caning-jail-sentence.html>
Andrea Tan, Bloomberg

Oliver Fricker, the Swiss executive serving a five-month jail term and waiting to be caned for breaking into a Singapore depot and spray-painting a commuter train, appealed his sentence today, his lawyer Derek Kang said.

**** Singapore Says It Doesn't Have Serious Trafficking Problem <http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-07-03/singapore-says-it-doesn-t-have-serious-trafficking-problem.html>
Simeon Bennett, Bloomberg

Singapore doesn’t have a serious human trafficking problem, its government said in a response to a U.S. State Department report that said the city-state had regressed in its battle against the practice.

The report’s reliance on reported and prosecution figures was “superficial and perfunctory at best,” the government said in a six-page response received today by e-mail. The low numbers show that Singapore’s approach to combating trafficking in persons, or TIP, has been effective, it said.

**** Govt Grants For Town Councils: PAP Vs Opposition <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/07/govt-grants-for-town-councils-pap-vs-opposition/>
The Online Citizen

**** Foreign Worker Levy To Rise <http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_549133.html>
Elrica Tanu, Straits Times

Invest in productivity instead of relying on foreign workers, is the government's response to the issue of the foreign worker levy hike, raised at a dialogue session between a panel of ministers and the local business community. Companies here are also being encouraged to invest in innovation and technology to increase productivity in order to grow their business.

**** On Track For A Bridge <http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/3/nation/6598782&sec=nation>
Farik Zolkepli, The Star

A new bridge to Singapore is in sight following the points of agreement (POA) on the KTMB land reached recently between the republic and Malay sia. Johor Baru MP Shahrir Samad said the agreement could be viewed as a precedent towards improved bilateral ties, including possible cooperation in building a bridge to replace the Causeway.

**** Punjabi Girls Trapped In Prostitution Nexus By Greedy Agents <http://sikhsangat.org/2010/07/punjabi-girls-trapped-in-prostitution-nexus-by-greedy-agents/>
Global Sikh News

The lure of greener pastures, coupled with the nexus of a fake travel agent, has landed two girls into the vicious circle of forcible prostitution. The girls have been trapped at Singapore since June 19.

**** Singapore Govt Not Worried Over Battle For Parkway Control <http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/07/03/stories/2010070351160200.htm>
P.T. Jyothi Datta, Business Line

The Singapore Government does not seem to be losing sleep, as two overseas players — India's Fortis Healthcare and Malaysia's Khazanah — battle over its leading healthcare-provider, Parkway Holdings.

**** Putrajaya Won’t Revive Crooked Bridge, Says Nazri <http://national-express-malaysia.blogspot.com/2010/07/putrajaya-wont-revive-crooked-bridge.html>
National Express Malaysia

The Najib administration has no intentions of reviving the crooked bridge project proposed by Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamed to replace the Johor Causeway, according to Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz. The minister in the Prime Minister’s department said the government will stick to the decision reached during Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s predecessor Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s administration.

**** Crane Knocks Into Pedestrian Bridge At Bukit Timah Road <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1067411/1/.html>
Shaffiq Alkhatib, Channel NewsAsia

A crane on Saturday knocked into a pedestrian bridge at Bukit Timah Road, just before the turn into Sixth Avenue.

**** The Parental Leave Question From Sweden To Singapore <http://singaporekopitok.blogspot.com/2010/07/parental-leave-question-from-sweden-to.html>
Singapore Kopi Tok

Although Sweden's model might not fit into the Singapore context at this moment, it does give valuable insights on how parental leave should or should not be done. Parental leave is after all a good populist vote-winning policy when the election comes.

**** The Rape Of The Town Council Funds <http://singaporedesk.blogspot.com/2010/07/rape-of-town-council-funds.html>
Singapore Notes

The stash money is dispensed by the MND, not out of the largesse of their own pockets, but from the taxpayers. Maybe the residents of Hougang and Potong Pasir should get a tax rebate for this exceptionally shoddy treatment.

**** Beyond The Crooked Bridge <http://yawningbread.wordpress.com/2010/07/03/beyond-the-crooked-bridge/>
Yawning Bread

The settlement over the railway issue and the evaporation of one of the water treaties next year cannot be good news to Mahathir and Perkasa. Lowering of tensions undercuts their domestic agenda.

So launch the crooked bridge again.

**** An Analysis Of Dr. Mahathir's Crooked Bridge <http://malaysia-today.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=32860:an-analysis-of-dr-mahathirs-crooked-bridge&catid=17:guest-columnists&Itemid=100130>
Just Gan, Malaysia Today

He has never dared do anything drastic in controversial Malaysia-Singapore issues when he was in power because he knows that Mr. Lee Kwan Yew will defeat him in any showdown.

**** New Fare System Kicks In, But Some Commuters Have To Pay More <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1067434/1/.html>
Sharon See, Channel NewsAsia

One in three commuters would see a fare increase.

**** 6 Hours Of Bukit Timah Traffic Jam & Poor Traffic Police Deployment <http://uncleyap-news.blogspot.com/2010/07/6-hours-of-bukit-timah-traffic-jam-poor.html>
News Release by UncleYap

**** Opposition Wards Achieve More With Less <http://geraldgiam.sg/2010/07/opposition-wards-achieve-more-with-less/>
Gerald Giam

Residents in PAP wards should talk to their friends and family in Hougang and Potong Pasir and discover for themselves that decent opposition politicians can do a good job in running their wards, if given the opportunity.