[MyAppleMenu] May 20, 2010

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** Essential Utilities: Mac Automation Tools <http://www.macworld.com/article/151341/2010/05/essentialutilitiesmacros.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Christopher Breen, Macworld

Macro utilities--which let you trigger a complex series of actions with a single keystroke--enable you to automate the repetitive parts of your workflow. But which one is best for you?

**** Time Capsule And The Limits Of Printing <http://www.macworld.com/article/151360/2010/05/time_capsule_printing.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Christopher Breen, Macworld

Time Capsule and a multi-function printer are generally not a good combination. Have you explored OS X's printer sharing feature?

**** Relationship 2 Makes Contact, Project Management Easier <http://www.macworld.com/article/151351/2010/05/relationship_crm.html?lsrc=rss_main>
David Chartier, Macworld

Jumsoft has released a major upgrade to Relationship, its CRM (contact relationship management) tool for the Mac. In version 2, Relationship gains strong project management, e-mail integration, and a handful of other new features.

**** Are MacBook, MacBook Pro Too Close For Comfort Again? <http://www.macworld.com/article/151368/2010/05/macbook_update.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Jonathan Seff, Macworld

**** Apple Refutes Reports Of Big Final Cut Studio Changes <http://www.macworld.com/article/151378/2010/05/finalcutstudio.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Serenity Caldwell, Macworld

Apple has denied reports that the next major version of its Final Cut Studio suite of professional video applications will be a big departure, focusing less on the professional audience it’s always been for.

**** My First iPhone App – A N00b’s Story <http://curry.com/?p=2265>
Adam Curry

24 hours after the release of my first foray into the world of iPhone app development, I must admit that I’m pretty stoked about the whole experience. What started over the Christmas holiday as a sketch on a page in my “idea book” looks to be a new page in my life as a multimedia performer.

**** Apple Grabs 72% Of Japan's Smartphone Market <http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/05/19/apple-grabs-72-of-japans-smartphone-market/>
Philip Elmer-DeWitt, Fortune

**** Defending Apple's App Store Censorship <http://blogs.computerworld.com/16141/apple_censorship>
Mitch Wagner, Computerworld

Apple has a right to lock down its device. You, on the other hand also have a right to refuse to buy that device, and go buy someone else's unlocked device.

**** Apple Relents, Allows Cash For iPads <http://www.tuaw.com/2010/05/19/apple-relents-and-introduces-the-cash-and-carry-ipad/>
Erica Sadun, TUAW

In response to the public outcry over Apple's no-cash-for-iPad policy, Apple has relented. You will now be able to purchase iPads in-store using cash and gift cards. Yes, you'll also have to set up a traceable Apple account at the same time, but the lack of credit or debit card will no longer bar the sale of iPads to consumers.

**** A Guide To Medical Software For Apple Computers <http://www.softwareadvice.com/articles/medical/mac-emr-software-a-guide-to-medical-software-for-apple-computers-1051810/>
Chris Thorman, Software Advice

**** Apple Laptop User Has "Vultures" Lawsuit Dismissed <http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE64I76D20100519>
Jonathan Stempel, Reuters

A federal judge has dismissed a plaintiff's lawsuit against Apple Inc that accused company employees of waiting like "vultures" to spy on her every time she used an Apple laptop to access the Internet.

**** iTunes Store Now Shows Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer Reviews For Movies <http://www.tuaw.com/2010/05/20/itunes-store-now-shows-rotten-tomatoes-tomatometer-reviews-for-m/>
Michael Grothaus, TUAW

**** What A Free iPad Bought Apple <http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2010/05/20/what-a-free-ipad-bought-apple/>
Philip Elmer-DeWitt, Fortune

How to turn bad publicity into a public relations coup for less than $500.

**** Apple Updates MobileMe With Sync, Security Improvements <http://www.macworld.com/article/151386/2010/05/mobileme_updates.html?lsrc=rss_main>
David Chartier, Macworld

Continuing its careful pace of polishing MobileMe, Apple has improved sync for a couple of apps and finally added SSL encryption to all of its Web apps.



The Tomorrow Weblog
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**** Google Touts WebM, A Single, Open Standard For Web Video <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/19/AR2010051905290.html>
Rob Pegoraro, Washington Post

Google wants to fix two sticking points with the Web of today: watching video without having to fuss with extra browser plug-ins and finding Web-based applications that are good enough to bump off the disk-based programs you're used to.

**** Protecting Websites From Shared Code <http://www.technologyreview.com/web/25358/?ref=rss&a=f>
Erica Naone, Technology Review

A new browser extension would allow developers to use third-party code without worrying about the vulnerabilities that such code might open up.



MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** In Village Restaurants, The Spirit Of Old New York <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/20/nyregion/20nostalgia.html?partner=rss&emc=rss>
Diane Cardwell, New York Times

In some ways, the area has become like a theme park of the past, as these restored standards offer a vision of a lost bohemian New York — albeit with a well-heeled clientele and prices to match.

**** Welcome To NYC's Hidden Golden Age Of Theater <http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-05-18/theater/welcome-to-nyc-s-hidden-golden-age-of-theater/>
Michael Feingold, Village Voice

In New York theater today, what's not imported is what's underrated.



SingaporeSurf
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**** Performance Of The Singapore Economy In 1st Quarter 2010 And Outlook For 2010 <http://www.singstat.gov.sg/news/news/gdp1q2010.pdf>
Ministry Of Trade And Industry, Singapore Government

The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) announced today that the Singapore economy expanded by 15.5 per cent on a year-on-year basis in the first quarter of 2010. MTI will maintain the GDP growth forecast for 2010 at 7.0 to 9.0 per cent.

The strong momentum seen in the first quarter was broad-based, led by the manufacturing sector which expanded by 32.9 per cent on a year-on-year basis. Except for transport engineering, all other manufacturing clusters showed robust growth. The electronics cluster enjoyed the strongest growth, underpinned by strong global demand for semiconductor chips. The construction sector also grew by 13.7 per cent on a year-on-year basis, reflecting continued growth in public sector construction activities.

(Note: Link goes to a PDF document.)

**** Most Competitive Nation? U.S. Ousted As No. 1 <http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1990224,00.html?xid=rss-world&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+time%2Fworld+%28TIME%3A+Top+World+Stories%29>
Helena Bachmann, Time

In the Chinese Year of the Tiger, two Asian tigers have leapt out of recession to take the top spots in a ranking of the most competitive nations in the world.

**** The Malaysia-Singapore Food Fight <http://www.boxingherald.com/boxing-news/the-malaysia-singapore-food-fight/>
Boxing Hearld

Malaysia are proud to have a wide array of cuisines, with influences from all over. But branding-wise, we falter rather miserably.

**** System Negates Interference, Human Inconsistency <http://www.todayonline.com/Voices/EDC100520-0000070/System-negates-interference,-human-inconsistency>
Chong Lee Ming, Today

Giving judges the power to decide on whether to hand out capital punishment would lead to judges being labelled based on track records - for example, one might be thought of as being liberal, or conservative, or even inconsistent. 

What is this writer saying? That we don't give the judges any rights and responsibilities because somebody may abuse them? What sort of argument is that?

**** In Defence Of The Death Penalty <http://www.todayonline.com/Voices/EDC100520-0000071/In-defence-of-the-death-penalty>
Lance Lim, Today

It is often easy to narrowly focus on the plight and rights of the individual, but such a stance boldly overlooks the broader implications should our death penalty laws were relaxed. As far as individual rights should be respected and not lightly encroached upon, Singaporeans should appreciate that our strict laws are a necessary deterrent and ensure that, for example, children cannot freely get drugs. 

The onus is on those who believe in death penalty to prove that there is a causation between the use of the death penalty and a successful and significant deterrent in crimes. I haven't seen any evidence of that, especially since we can choose other forms of penalties such as life-long prisoning that is at least partially reversible.  

**** 7000ä¸‡å…ƒå…¥åœºç¨Žåæ˜ äº†ä»€ä¹ˆï¼Ÿ <http://www.zaobao.com/yl/sl100520_001.shtml>
联合早报

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A large portion of the gambling tax income, in my opinion, should also be used to offset the GST, especially for lower-income families.

**** Singapore GDP Grows Faster Than Forecast <http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703691804575255103418489426.html?mod=WSJ_business_AsiaNewsBucket>
P.R. Venkat and Gaurav Raghuvanshi, Wall Street Journal

Singapore's economy grew at a faster-than-previously estimated pace in the first quarter, driven by a booming manufacturing sector, but the government warned that developments in the European Union show that downside risks to global growth have intensified.

The trade ministry also warned that excessive asset price inflation in emerging Asia remains a concern and that if investor sentiment were to deteriorate or if more monetary tightening measures are taken by Asian countries, there could be sharp corrections in asset prices.

**** Not Going Soft <http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_528978.html>
Teh Joo Lin, Straits Times

The five new sentencing options, including one that allows judges to sentence offenders to community work, do not spell a softened approach to crime.

Nor are they intended to remove any moral stigma attached to those who had been sentenced, said law minister K. Shanmugam yesterday.

**** Singapore MAS: Sibor Rates Decline Not A Concern <http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100519-716613.html?mod=WSJ_latestheadlines>
Gaurav Raghuvanshi and David Roman, Dow Jones

Singapore's government said Thursday a steep drop in the country's interbank lending rates to all-time lows is not a matter of concern, shrugging off concerns that cheap credit may overheat the already fast-growing economy.

**** 地方官員出國培訓增多 æ–°åŠ å¡ç¶“é©—è¢«é‡è¦– <http://news.sina.com.hk/cgi-bin/nw/show.cgi/9/1/1/1522133/1.html>
周志坤, å—æ–¹æ—¥å ±

**** Review Of 1Q 2010 Trade Performance And Revised Outlook For 2010 <http://www.iesingapore.gov.sg/wps/portal/PressRelease?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=/wps/wcm/connect/ie/My+Portal/Main/Press+Room/Press+Releases/2010/Review+Of+1Q+2010+Trade+Performance+And+Outlook+For+2010>
IE Singapore, Singapore Government

**** Rise Of Ethical Gambling <http://www.thedailyindian.com/rise-of-ethical-gambling/>
The Daily Indian

A cloud of apprehension, thanks to the new and upcoming casino culture, can be easily felt across the country.

**** How Much Is Our World Class Education? <http://mysingaporenews.blogspot.com/2010/05/how-much-is-our-world-class-education.html>
Chua Chin Leng, My Singapore News