[MyAppleMenu] Nov 9, 2010

[applesurf at myapplemenu.com]

MyAppleMenu
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**** MacTech 2010: Wil Shipley On Noogle Noggles, A New Delicious Library And The Mac App Store <http://www.tuaw.com/2010/11/08/mactech-2010-wil-shipley-on-noogle-noggles-a-new-delicious-lib/>
Mike Schramm, TUAW

**** Has Apple Misjudged The MacBook Spec? <http://apcmag.com/has-apple-misjudged-the-13in-macbook-spec.htm>
Tony Sarno, Apc

My hunch is that Apple's recent price drops across its MacBook line are as much to do with maintaining sales of the outdated spec as with a desire to own the cheaper segments of the market.

**** Why The iMac Is The Greatest Gadget Of The 21St Century <http://crave.cnet.co.uk/desktops/why-the-imac-is-the-greatest-gadget-of-the-21st-century-50001330/>
Rich Trenholm, CNET

I'm talking about how Apple took something that tech-savvy souls already understood and repackaged it with an extra helping of style -- and made it desirable to the average consumer. The Internet has seen the computer replace the TV as a hub for the home, but that simply couldn't have happened with the brown or grey monstrosities that predated the iMac. Computers had to get sexy, and Apple made the iMac sexier than anything else.

**** Bill Campbell Confirms Apple, Google War Forced Split <http://www.electronista.com/articles/10/11/08/apples.campbell.confirms.android.war.google/>
Electronista

**** A Eulogy For The Xserve: May It Rack In Peace <http://db.tidbits.com/article/11735?rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+tidbits_main+%28TidBITS%3A+Mac+News+for+the+Rest+of+Us%29>
Chuck Goolsbee, TidBITS

The conclusion we come to is that the Xserve never sold as well as it could have. It was hobbled from the start, by Apple’s lukewarm support, by its basic design, and by software that never quite lived up to its promise. Apple says “servers don’t sell,” yet selling servers is exactly what Dell, HP, and others do, in high volume and with good margins. So why did the Xserve have to die?

**** Is Apple's 11-Inch MacBook Air A Netbook? <http://digihub.theage.com.au/node/1907>
The Age

So why should Apple expect anyone to buy the 11-inch MacBook Air when it's worked so hard to convince us that the iPad is a better solution? Because Steve Jobs is wrong - the iPad isn't always the best tool for the job.

**** Amazon Opens The Door For An Apple Newspaper Store <http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-opens-the-door-for-an-apple-newspaper-store-2010-11>
Dan Frommer, Business Insider

Amazon just announced a new program that would allow newspaper and magazine publishers to receive a 70% royalty split from Amazon, which has become the sort-of industry standard revenue share for content, led by Apple's iPhone App Store in 2008. 

**** Verizon iPad TV Ad Is Out <http://www.tuaw.com/2010/11/09/verizon-ipad-tv-ad-is-out/>
Dave Caolo, TUAW

**** Recapping The MacTech Conference <http://www.macworld.com/article/155534/2010/11/mactech.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Rob Griffiths, Macworld

Needless to say, people were quite thrilled with how this first event turned out.

**** Insecure Handling Of URL Schemes In Appleʼs iOS <http://blogs.sans.org/appsecstreetfighter/2010/11/08/insecure-handling-url-schemes-apples-ios/>
 Nitesh Dhanjani, Sans

I do agree with Apple that third-party applications should also take part in ensuring authorization from the user, yet their stance leaves the following concerns unaddressed.

**** BBC iPlayer To Be Made Available Outside The UK <http://www.macworld.com/article/155580/2010/11/iplayer_international.html?lsrc=rss_main>
Carrie-Ann Skinner, PC Advisor

The BBC is set to launch an international version of its catch-up TV service, iPlayer, after the BBC Trust gave the project the go-ahead.



MyAppleMenu Reader
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**** Dispatches And Details From A Life In Literature <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/09/books/09book.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss>
Michiko Kakutani, New York Times

The real-life letters of Herzog’s creator turn out to be just as arresting, seizing the reader by the lapels and refusing to let go. Although Bellow (1915-2005) repeatedly apologizes in this collection for being a lousy correspondent — suffering from some sort of “disagreeable reticence” — he is a gifted and emotionally voluble letter writer, convinced that sharing his experiences and thoughts with friends provides an escape hatch from the “miserliness” of “private consciousness.”

**** We’ll Always Have McSorley’s <http://www.theamericanscholar.org/well-always-have-mcsorleys/>
Robert Day, The American Scholar

How Joseph Mitchell’s wonderful saloon became a sacred site for a certain literary pilgrim.

**** Outstripping The News <http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2010/nov/25/outstripping-news/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+nybooks+%28The+New+York+Review+of+Books%29>
Garry Wills, The New York Review Of Books

There have been other comic strips that dealt with politics, but they did so sporadically, and as one-trick diversions—Al Capp satirizing the welfare state with his schmoos, Walt Kelly turning Senator Joseph McCarthy into Simple J. Malarkey—but Trudeau has reflected on politics at a depth and with a breadth no one else has achieved.

**** Mother And Child <http://www.slate.com/id/2274166/>
Rosanna Warren, Slate



SingaporeSurf
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**** A Mind-field For Children <http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC101109-0000108/A-mind-field-for-children>
Wayne Chan, Today

There are some 500,000 children between the ages of six and 16 here. And about one in 10 has a mild mental disorder, an expert from the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) has estimated based on a national survey in 2004.

**** Singapore Gets 1 Out 2 For Democracy In UN Report <http://www.pressrun.net/weblog/2010/11/singapore-gets-1-out-2-for-democracy-in-un-report.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rana+%28Pressrun.net+%28originally+Blowin%27+in+the+Wind%29%29>
Pressrun.net

Singapore does not get full marks for democracy in the 2010 United Nations Human Development Report, which gives it one out of two for democracy. The report explains: “0 is nondemocratic, 1 is democratic with no alternation, 2 is democratic.”

Singapore also has the least free media among the 42 most highly developed countries and territories in the world, according to the UN report.

**** 留守菜市还是转战如切？ 李奕贤：去留是一半一半 <http://www.zaobao.com.sg/sp/sp101109_014.shtml>
联合早报

如果来届大选被调派到其他选区竞选，李奕贤表示他虽舍不得甘榜菜市区的基层组织团队，但仍然乐意到其他选区效劳。

**** 许文远：如果平时没做什么 大选前才努力为时已晚 <http://www.zaobao.com.sg/sp/sp101109_015.shtml>
联合早报

卫生部长许文远认为，三巴旺集选区很大，如果过去四五年没有与选民联系打基础，到了大选期间才努力，为时已晚。

**** 预购组屋没降温 武吉班让也大热 <http://www.zaobao.com.sg/sp/sp101109_002.shtml>
李静仪, 联合早报

盛港和武吉班让预购组屋（BTO）申购率比市场预期强劲，其中盛港五房式单位更是超额申购高达12å€ï¼Œå°±è¿žä¸å—çœ‹å¥½çš„æ­¦å‰ç­è®©åœ°æ®µä¹Ÿå¾ˆæŠ¢æ‰‹ï¼Œåæ˜ å¸‚åœºå¯¹æ–°ç»„å±‹çš„éœ€æ±‚ä¾ç„¶å¼ºåŠ²ã€‚

**** Singaporeans Complacent About Possibility Of Terror Attacks Here <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1092260/1/.html>
Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia

Deputy prime minister Wong Kan Seng said an experiment conducted recently by the police showed Singaporeans were "generally complacent" about the possibility of a terrorist attack here.

**** The Clash Of Materialisms <http://thebluesweater.blogspot.com/2010/11/clash-of-materialisms.html>
The Blue Sweater

The leaders of our country have themselves stated that the challenges facing our country are complex and multifaceted, and I absolutely agree. Therefore, isn’t it unjustifiable to simply dismiss the concerns of local Singaporeans (as raised in the forums) as materialistic?

**** Singapore Gambling On New Casino Resorts <http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2010/11/09/2010110900945.html>
The Chosunilbo

It appears some of these measures have not had the desired effect. More than one million Singaporeans visited the two casinos in the seven months since the first one opened. Sodhy, an expert on Southeast Asian history, says some local gamblers also have been betting more money to try to recoup the entry fee.

**** What Are You Defending? <http://tribolum.com/archives/2010/11/what-are-you-defending.php>
Tribolum.com

More than just defending Singapore, we need to actively take part in the writing of her next chapter.

**** A Challenge To The National Education Survey: Give Us The Facts From The Numbers <http://kentridgecommon.com/?p=8107>
Christopher Ong, Kent Ridge Commons

This situation presents an irony: the results of this survey were widely reported and established in major news channels in Singapore, but the survey per se remains veiled in an absolute mystery and secrecy.

**** Three New Political Dynamics That May Influence The Outcome Of The Next General Election <http://www.transitioning.org/2010/11/09/three-new-political-dynamics-that-may-influence-the-outcome-of-the-next-general-election/>
Gilbert Goh, Transitioning.sg

It is almost certain that the ruling party will suffer a drop in majority votes even though they have a large contingent of civil servants and newly-converted foreign-breed citizens rooting for them.

**** The Spectacular Spectacular <http://dailyserving.com/2010/11/the-spectacular-spectacular-2/>
Daily Serving

Urban artists in Singapore like ZERO are sought after by advertising companies whose intentions are to speak the lingo of a younger consumer market. The moral dilemma behind what is relatively known to have started on the streets to becoming a recognized trend in the mainstream market leave different impressions.

**** Thirty Free Speech Groups Sign Petition For Alan Shadrake <http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/11/thirty-free-speech-groups-sign-petition-for-alan-shadrake/>
The Online Citizen

Thirty press freedom groups from five continents, all members of IFEX, have signed a petition to Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong about the case of Malaysia-based British writer and journalist Alan Shadrake, who could be sent to prison in Singapore for his book, “Once a Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock” about the death penalty in Singapore.

**** AG Chambers Asks For Shadrake To Be Jailed For Minimum Of 3 Months <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1092334/1/.html>
Leong Wee Keat, Channel NewsAsia

Singapore's Attorney-General's Chambers has asked for British author, Alan Shadrake to be jailed a minimum of three months - arguing that the contempt of court case is unprecedented. Shadrake's lawyer, M Ravi, however, sought a censure for his client and said the book has not been banned by authorities.

**** Amendments Proposed To Make Parliament Sittings More Efficient <http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1092372/1/.html>
Joanne Chan, Channel NewsAsia

These include giving the Speaker of the House the flexibility to extend a sitting beyond the allocated time, and limiting the time each member gets to speak.

Member of the Standing Orders Committee and MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Inderjit Singh said the changes simplify many processes and will allow Parliament to focus on the matters being debated.

**** Train Services To Start From Johor Baru Due To Derailment In Singapore <http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/11/9/nation/20101109181624&sec=nation>
The Star

Train services originating from Singapore, such as the Ekspress Senandung Sutera and Ekspress Sinaran Selatan and those to the east coast of the peninsula, will now start and end at JB sentral in Johor Baru.

This is due to an Express Rakyat (Singappore-Butterworth) train that went off the rails about 100m from the Bukit Timah station in Singapore at 8.17am Tuesday causing KTM's inter-city services in the south to be disrupted.

**** Fate Of British Author Who Scandalised Spore's Judiciary Hangs In Balance <http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=541860>
Bernama

Justice Quentin Loh decided to reserve the sentencing on Alan Shadrake, 76, to Nov 16, after hearing a lengthy mitigation from the writer's lawyer, M. Ravi and arguments from the prosecution represented by Deputy Senior State Counsel Hema Subramaniam.