[MyAppleMenu] May 14, 2010

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** Talk To Your iPod: Inside Apple's Voice Control <http://www.macworld.com/article/151213/2010/05/voicecontrol.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Kirk McElhearn, Macworld

The Voice Control feature lets you use the included Apple earbuds with remote and mic (or compatible earbuds or headphones) to tell your iPod or iPhone what to do: what to play, when to change tracks, and when to shuffle. On top of that, the iPod touch can talk back, telling you the names of tracks that are playing if you’re not sure what you’re listening to.

**** Is The Apple TV On Life Support? <http://www.tuaw.com/2010/05/13/is-the-apple-tv-on-life-support/>
Mel Martin, TUAW

Apple still says that the Apple TV is a hobby, but I pay attention to my hobbies and keep them up to date. If "hobby" means "neglect," then Apple is doing well.

**** This Is How Apple Rolls <http://www.macworld.com/article/151235/2010/05/apple_rolls.html?lsrc=rss_main>
John Gruber, Macworld

So of course this iPad—the one which, a few years from now, we’ll refer to off-handedly as the “original iPad”—does less than we’d hoped. That’s how the people at Apple work. While we’re out here poking and prodding at the iPad, they’re back at work in Cupertino. They’ve got a little gem of a starting point in hand. And they’re beginning to roll.

**** Two Weeks Of Travel, Ten iPad Lessons <http://www.slashgear.com/two-weeks-of-travel-ten-ipad-lessons-1385488/>
Michael Gartenberg, SlashGear

The instant on capabilities, fast performance combined with a full XGA screen make the iPad experience unique, not quite a laptop but certainly more than just a large iPod touch. For me, it’s now a valuable travel companion.

**** Absolute Power Vs. The Pirate Flag <http://blogs.adobe.com/jnack/2010/05/absolute_power_vs_the_pirate_flag.html>
John Nack On Adobe

You shouldn't care about this stuff because you love or hate Adobe*. You should care because these issues affect your choices as a customer & a creative person.

**** Apple Updates Keynote, Numbers For iPad <http://www.macworld.com/article/151253/2010/05/numbers_keynote_ipad.html>
David Chartier, Macworld

**** Adobe And Apple: Please Spare Us The Platitudes About ‘Open’ <http://eberbach.pl/blog/adobe-and-apple-please-spare-us-the-platitudes-about-‘open’/>
Magw.at

Screw being 'open,' let's just be honest.

**** Adobe Announces Angst-laden iPad Software Effort <http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20004985-264.html?part=rss&amp;subj=news&amp;tag=2547-1_3-0-20>
Stephen Shankland, CNET News

Adobe has begun a new effort to bring imaging software such as Lightroom to the iPad and other tablet computers--but the leader of the work also is fretting over the control Apple has over it.

**** Encrypted Time Machine Backups <http://earthlingsoft.net/ssp/blog/2010/05/encrypted_time_machine_backups>
Quarter Life Crisis

**** ITC To Take Up Apple's Complaints Against Kodak <http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1326843420100513>
Diane Bartz, Reuters

The ITC said in a brief statement that it would investigate assertions by Apple that Kodak has violated Apple patents having to do with digital still and video cameras.

**** Create A New File In The Finder <http://www.macworld.com/article/151236/2010/05/createnewfileservice.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Macworld

**** Wireless iPhone Sync Software Rejected By Apple From App Store <http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/10/05/14/wireless_iphone_sync_software_rejected_by_apple_from_app_store.html>
AppleInsider

Apple this week rejected "Wi-Fi Sync," a third-party application that allows the iPhone and iPod touch to sync wirelessly with iTunes.



The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** Google Coding Tool Advances Cloud Computing <http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20004874-264.html?part=rss&amp;subj=news&amp;tag=2547-1_3-0-20>
Stephen Shankland, CNET News

Google has released a programming tool to help move its Native Client project--and more broadly, its cloud-computing ambitions--from abstract idea to practical reality.



MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** In Theory: Towards A New Novel <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/booksblog/2010/may/13/in-theory-alain-robbe-grillet-fiction?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Fbooks%2Frss+%28Books%29>
Andrew Gallix, The Guardian

The reality of any work of art is its form, and to separate style from substance is to "remove the novel from the realm of art". Art, Robbe-Grillet reminds us, is not just a pretty way of presenting a message: it is the message.

**** Putting A Price On Words <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/16/magazine/16Journalism-t.html>
Andrew Rice, New York Times

No one seems to know how to value the product anymore.



SingaporeSurf
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**** Workers’ Party And Race Politics: A Dangerous Ploy <http://yawningbread.wordpress.com/2010/05/14/workers-party-and-race-politics-a-dangerous-ploy/>
Yawning Bread

Yet, instead of working towards common ground, by this kind of messaging, the Workers’ Party is widening faultlines, by stoking communal grievances. This can lead to long-term costs that all of us in this society will have to pay.

**** Pay TV Changes Slammed <http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC100514-0000136/Pay-TV-changes-slammed>
Neo Chai Chin, Today

Consumers may have cheered when mandatory cross-carriage of pay-television content was announced two months ago, but a regional association representing many content owners now warns that the public are the very ones who would lose out.

The Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa) also said Singapore's reputation as a regional content centre would "suffer", and its content investment would be at risk - a conclusion the Media Development Authority (MDA) disputed last night as it emphasised its aim of a thriving pay-TV market that best serves customers.

I think Singapore is negotiating from an extremely poor position in this debate: Singapore does not produce content that other people want, and Singapore does not have the market that other people want. The more regulations that MDA throws at the pay TV industry, the less relevant Singapore becomes in the conversation.

**** Strict Singapore May Be The Most Surprising Place On Earth <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dana-kennedy/strict-singapore-may-be-t_b_574784.html>
Dana Kennedy, The Huffington Post

The real surprise was landing in this lively, ultra-modern nation, which feels like a souped-up, Philip K. Dick sci-fi version of the new American Dream. Except it's in Southeast Asia. It's now poised to become a family-friendly tourist destination -- after being known best for a great airport for stopovers en route to somewhere actually exciting.

**** Goh Keng Swee Dies <http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_526470.html>
Straits Times

**** Pay-TV Sector Hits At Singapore <http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/25d6bb98-5ede-11df-af86-00144feab49a.html>
Kevin Brown, Financial Times

Analysts said the move could have serious consequences for Singapore, which has established itself as the primary window of distribution for new content being produced by regional and international brands, and wants to develop as a centre for Asian programme production.

**** Mandatory Death Penalty Constitutional, Says Court <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/05/breaking-news-mandatory-death-penalty-constitutional-says-court/>
Khairulanwar Zaini, The Online Citizen

The Court of Appeal today has rejected the appeal of Yong Vui Kong and declared that the mandatory death penalty is constitutional.

**** State Funeral For Former DPM Goh Keng Swee <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1056561/1/.html>
Channel NewsAsia

**** Did Our Education Minister Gave Us The Wrong Impression? <http://blog.dk.sg/2010/05/14/did-our-education-minister-gave-us-the-wrong-impression/>
Dee Kay Dot As Gee

If the newspaper quoted him in such a way that would cause wrong impression, his ministry could write a letter to the news agency and clarify the issue on the next day. But nobody from MOE wrote to the newspaper to clarify the issue. Why is that so?

And also, Mr Ng Eng Hen met up with the officials of the Singapore Chinese Teachers’ Union on 5th May 2010. He could have clarified that MOE has no intention of reducing MTL weighting during the meeting. That would clear up all the wrong impression we have since day one. In fact, it would solved all problem. But he didn’t.

**** Singaporeans’ Rights To Social Security And Public Housing <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/05/singaporeans%e2%80%99-rights-to-social-security-and-public-housing/>
Leong Sze Hian, The Online Citizen

The government’s lack of transparency in terms of detailed housing data – such as detailed figures on COV levels, costs of constructing public housing – fails to meet this obligation to allow democratic processes and independent actors to participate in policy monitoring. The result is a lack of accountability.

**** Drug Trafficker Loses Appeal <http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_526551.html>
Selina Lum, Straits Times

Delivering the verdict, CJ Chan observed that there have been many challenges before the courts regarding the constitutionality of the mandatory death penalty on various grounds in the past, which have all failed. In the present case, he said, all possible arguments on this issue have been raised, considered by the court, and rejected.

**** Goh Keng Swee's Major Contributions <http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20100514-216195.html>
AsiaOne

**** Singapore's March Retail Sales Fall 2.4% On-year <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporebusinessnews/view/1056571/1/.html>
Mok Fei Fei, Channel NewsAsia