text:
Embraer’s President of Executive Jets Ernie Edwards revealed that the company’s newest facility—at the Melbourne, Fla., International Airport—is in the process of completing its first airplane, a Phenom 100. The airplane will be delivered to its owner later this year. The 80,000-square-foot Melbourne plant has 80 employees, Edwards said, and is geared up to do final assembly, interior completion, and painting of the Phenom 100. Up to five Phenom 100s at a time can be accommodated on the plant’s assembly line. In 2010, a total of 100 Phenom 100s were delivered—all of them built at Embraer’s Brazilian manufacturing sites.
Embraer also reports that a newly-issued service bulletin will let owners of Phenom 300s install a belted lavatory seat. This will expand the airplane’s seating to nine passengers. To date, there are 50 Phenom 300s in service worldwide.
Meanwhile, at the National Business Aviation Association’s static display for its annual convention, a cabin mockup of the Embraer Legacy 500—the company’s $18 million, Mach 0.82, 3,000-nautical-mile, up to 15-passenger mid-sized jet—is on show. Embraer says the Legacy 500 will have the Rockwell Collins Pro Line Fusion avionics suite. Autothrottles will be standard on the 500, but an autobraking system will be an option. Edwards said that ground tests of the Legacy 500 will begin in December but that plans for the airplane’s first flight have slipped to 2012.
In a review of business aviation’s economic status, Edwards noted that 2010 corporate profits were at levels that exceeded the pre-recessionary highs of 2006. The obvious was not mentioned: that corporate buyers in the aggregate were not responding by buying more business jets.
Edwards gave two scenarios in Embraer’s 10-year forecast of worldwide business jet sales activity. In the period 2012-2021, Embraer predicts deliveries of 11,275 airframes if the world economy shows sustained growth. But if the current downturn persists, deliveries will only reach 9,125 units.
Embraer seems a bit insulated from the current recession at this juncture. For example, Embraer claimed a 19-percent share of the total business jet market in 2010. Not bad for a company that began delivering business jets a mere three years ago. Today, there are 450 Embraer business jets flying worldwide. North America is home to 170 of those airplanes, Latin America comes in second with 100 airplanes, and Europe claims 90 Embraer business jets. In addition, 18 of Embraer’s large-cabin business jets—comprising the Legacy 600 and Lineage 1000—will be delivered in 2011, Edwards said.
Last but not least, Embraer announced it has hired a brand spokesman. It’s the enduring, energetic martial arts movie star Jackie Chan—a celebrity who Embraer says reflects its core corporate values. Chan has purchased his own personal Legacy 650—the latest entry in Embraer’s large-cabin line. It sports a unique paint scheme that features Chan’s name in both Chinese and English, plus a dragon-themed fuselage paint treatment. Chan will take delivery of his airplane before the end of the year. And it will be hard to miss if it taxis to a ramp near you.


text:
Over the next few months, Microsoft will be rolling out its new design for the Office icons.
Millions of users have been using the applications with the familiar logos since 2013, however Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Skype, Teams and more will soon be changing.
The new icon designs for will be pushed out to nearly one billion Office users across the world over the next few months, replacing the existing icons which were released in 2013.
Today’s workforce includes five generations using Office on multiple platforms and devices and in environments spanning work, home, and on the go. We wanted a visual language that emotionally resonates across generations, works across platforms and devices, and echoes the kinetic nature of productivity today.
Our design solution was to decouple the letter and the symbol in the icons, essentially creating two panels (one for the letter and one for the symbol) that we can pair or separate. This allows us to maintain familiarity while still emphasizing simplicity inside the app.
Separating these into two panels also adds depth, which sparks opportunities in 3D contexts. Through this flexible system, we keep tradition alive while gently pushing the envelope. Microsoft
We think these new icons are a refreshing change and bring a modern look.
Do you agree?

domain: news


text:
The first results published by American companies confirm that the economy is overheating at the beginning of this new year.
Caterpillar has increased its turnover by 23%, driven by very strong demand. The company is filling its order book, but the delivery times for its machines are also increasing significantly. Caterpillar is suffering directly from the bottleneck in the production chain.
Results from the Visa credit agency show U.S. consumption in a very strong recovery: credit spending in January 2022 is up +40% (!) since January 2019, and spending on debit cards is also up +29% from the same period. These figures surprise analysts, the stock soars in the stock market.
The ISM services index is up this month in the U.S., activity is stronger than expected, and unemployment figures also continue to improve.
Consumer demand is accelerating upward. And that's what we're seeing in France as well.
This is less the case in Germany, where industry has probably already been in recession for a few weeks due to the energy crisis and the supply problem that is hitting a very export-oriented economy hard.
There is something broken in the very structure of how international trade works.
Inflation, the result of monetary expansion by central bank policies, is the cause, not the consequence, of this bottleneck in the production chain.
US demand was first stimulated by low interest rates, then by unconventional fiscal measures granted during the lockdowns, and now it is the banks that are opening the credit floodgates. Consumers are taking advantage of this to use their consumer credit at a record pace.
But logistics are not keeping up with this demand.
This is very visible in the inbound/outbound operations of U.S. ports. The Port of Los Angeles is unable to handle the ever-increasing flow of cargo. The port's imports are down, not because of a decline in cargo, but because of the port's inability to handle the increased traffic and to organize the emergency logistics that need to be put in place.
While Americans are drawing 40% more on their credit cards compared to pre-crisis, the port's import volume is down -16% compared to December 2018 (pre-pandemic). On the export side, it's even worse: the decline is -40% from pre-Covid numbers. Exports from the Port of Los Angeles are at their lowest in twenty years!
The disorganization of the production chain does not only affect the United States. The globalization of trade, which in the past allowed for a more fluid and productive economy, is now the cause of increased shortages and longer supply times. It now takes three times as long (or longer) to deliver a container from China to Europe or the United States.
Driven by a historic stimulation of demand, American consumption is booming. This creates bottlenecks in the production chain and sustains the inflation that is taking hold in all areas of society: raw materials, energy prices, food prices... and since the job market is tight, inflation is now spreading to wage levels. Inflation is driving up commodity prices and energy costs, and this upward movement is still going strong. Just this week, coal reached a record high in China, at over $260 per ton:
To fight inflation, the Fed chairman has promised to raise rates. This week, the major U.S. banks are releasing forecasts of rate hikes at a steady pace over the course of the year: between five and seven consecutive 0.25% hikes, and perhaps even a direct 0.5% hike in March to curb inflation, which is getting further and further ahead of a central bank that has already been caught off guard for several months.
This abrupt increase alerts several economists who anticipate a sudden halt in economic activity. The expected GDP forecasts for the first quarter are in free fall:
This future "aggressiveness" of the Fed poses a risk of a net halt to this booming economic activity... It also poses a problem for the government's finances.
The good shape of the economy has generated record revenues, up 25% over a year. But with inflation at 7%, real interest charges are still higher than government revenues... In other words, even with an overheated economy feeding the treasury, record tax revenues cannot even pay the interest on the debt, even though inflation is running at 7%. Inflation would have to rise even higher and the economy would have to be even more supercharged for the government to be able to barely pay the interest on its debt!
When you measure the wall of debt that the next repayment dates represent, you quickly see that the equation becomes impossible.
The Fed decided to stop its bond buyback program in March. This February, it is only buying $30 billion, and rates are rising as the market rebalances the price of these bonds to demand. If the Fed completely withdraws from this market, who will buy these short-term debts, at a time when their volume is exploding? Who will "swallow" this mountain of debt over the next five years?
Without a new quantitative easing (QE) program, without additional purchases of this mountain of debt by the Fed, it is simply impossible to have a favorable outcome for either the U.S. government's finances or for the holders of its debt.
Without a new program of securities repurchases by the central banks, default is mathematically impossible to avoid, either in the form of an outright default, or in the form of a massive dilution of this debt by maintaining inflation at record levels over a long period of time, which would cause a massive devaluation of the American currency.
The dithering around rate hike forecasts will not be able to avoid the fundamental question of how to repay this debt.
Investors in gold have understood the impasse in which Western central banks have rushed. There is no simple way out.
Among the gold bulls, there are those who expect a logical resumption of a new QE, which would gradually kick-start the return of a bullish phase in gold. This new program might even be accompanied by a rate hike.
There are those who believe that, even without a new program and with inflation out of control, the dollar will not last long in the face of the rush to protect tangible assets. It is the market that will take over, so to speak.
Then there is a very pessimistic category that expects a financial shock of the same type as the one experienced in 2008, created by a bond crash caused by the too rapid rise in interest rates, provoking a banking panic and brutally testing the entire financial system once again.
In all three scenarios, the long-term price of gold will rise to a level well above that of today. Only short-term movements and volatility in this rise would be impacted under these three perspectives.
Original source: Recherche Bay
Reproduction, in whole or in part, is authorized as long as it includes a link back to the original source.


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ISLAMABAD – Federation of Pakistan Chambers and Commerce Industries (FPCCI) will organise the 4th Canada-Pakistan Trade Expo in July 2017 at Toronto.
This was disclosed by the newly elected President FPCCI Zubair Tufail here on Thursday. The president said that this expo would help our exports to capture the unconventional North American market. The leading entrepreneurs and industrial sector of Pakistan are being invited to participate in the Expo. “He further added that SM Muneer, Chairman, Pakistan Canada Business Council FPCCI shall personally supervise the affairs of the 4th edition of the expo,” he added.
The President FPCCI further stated that holding this expo shall certainly help in introducing Pakistani products to the Canadian market. The previous three Expos received a very encouraging response and a better response is expected this time.
“This will provide an opportunity to the business community of both the countries to come closer and strengthen economic cooperation and trade relations and shall have a positive impact on the export of Pakistani products to Canada,” Zubair maintained.-Online


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After several days of silence on the issue, Google has confirmed that it removed several malicious apps from its Android Market earlier this week and said that it would remove the apps from users' devices as well.
Only devices running an Android version earlier than version 2.2.2 were susceptible to the rogue apps, which took advantage of known vulnerabilities, the Internet giant reported late last night in the Google Mobile blog. The company believes the only information accessed by the apps were the unique codes used to identify the the specific device and the version of Android that it was running.
Fifty-eight malicious apps were identified and removed Tuesday but not before they were downloaded to about 260,000 devices. Google said it would use a kill switch to remotely remove the apps from users' devices and push an Android security update to affected users to repair the damage done by the apps. Affected users can expect to receive an e-mail from Android Market support explaining the action, Google said.
The developer accounts associated with the apps were suspended and law enforcement officials were contacted, Google said.
Earlier this week, a Reddit user discovered thaton the Android Market were infected by a Trojan called DroidDream, which uses a root exploit dubbed "rageagainstthecage" to compromise a device, according to a report on enthusiast site Android Police.
The malware was described as especially virulent because it apparently not only can capture user and product information from a device but also has the ability to download more code capable of further damage.
Google representatives did not immediately respond to a request for further information or comment.


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VRML has promise, but when will it be practical?
October 14, 1997
Web posted at: 4:48 p.m. EDT (2048 GMT)
By David Pescovitz
It was only a year ago that the evangelists of the software
technology known as Virtual Reality Modeling Language, or
VRML, were declaring that the age of "virtual worlds" had
Soon, they said, we'd all be cruising 3-D spaces and living
alternate lives through our own virtual characters known as
avatars. It would be the famed science-fiction novel "Snow
Crash" coming to life.
It hasn't quite worked out that way: Several early ventures
flopped, and others resulted in little more than pointless
demos of dancing corporate logos.
That hasn't discouraged the believers.
Microsoft's Internet Explorer 4.0, released early this month,
has a browser that lets users navigate Web sites that use a
much-improved second incarnation of the software language,
dubbed VRML 2.0.
Netscape's Communicator already is outfitted with a VRML 2.0
browser, and tools to create the worlds have improved
"VRML is good to go," the 3-D evangelists shout.
But the question remains: Go where?
A party with few guests
In 1996, some of the first and most promising VRML
attractions were multi-user environments where avatars --
digital representations of users -- would interact with one
Picture a computer-generated dance club, where avatars of
your own design stroll and fly through the surreal space. As
you approach a group relaxing in a corner, their voices grow
louder until you're immersed in the conversation.
Several companies made good on their promise to develop these
high-tech chat rooms -- but hardly anyone came to the party.
It was a case of too little, too early.
The problems with 3-D chat were "an example of what happens
when a company tries to implement Phase 3 before Phase 2,"
says John McCrea, director of marketing at Cosmo Software, a
unit of Silicon Graphics.
The result: staff cuts
Worlds Inc., maker of the pioneering virtual world known as
Alphaworld, suffered cutbacks early this year and sold its
most advanced product to two employees.
OnLive! Technologies, much-hyped a year ago for introducing
voice to the 3-D environment, has laid off much of its staff
and is now focusing on the decidedly unsexy business of
Meanwhile, Germany-based Blaxxun, formerly Black Sun
Interactive, has drastically cut back its San Francisco
"The early 3-D worlds were like having a McDonald's in
Boonville, Nevada, with six cars a day going by," says Bruce
Damer, chairman of the Avatars 97 conference this month in
"But then, if an interstate goes through, you're OK. The
interstate for 3-D chat will happen when it's relatively easy
for someone at home to build virtual worlds. VRML is still in
the purview of computer model-making people who know
extremely technical programs, and it has to be more like
fitting Legos together," Damer adds.
Great potential for entertainment
According to McCrea, neither VRML nor home PCs were up to the
challenge of a user-friendly 3-D chat space. But that was
hardly the only problem: Maybe no one really cared if the
fish avatar representing them was as visually appealing as
the latest Nintendo 64 game.
"In general, VRML is a very good display standard, but it's
been less than helpful when presentation has been put above
interaction," says Randall Farmer, a pioneer in virtual
communities and co-founder of Electric Communities.
Entertainment is still one of the big potential applications
for VRML. Mark Pesce, co-inventor of VRML, and Jan Mallis,
who created the first VRML animated character at Protozoa
Inc., spend much of their time buzzing around Hollywood
studios these days.
Their privately held company, Santa Monica, California-based
Blitcom, is in the business of 3-D character-based
entertainment delivered via the Web. Imagine a 3-D virtual
comedian doing a two-minute routine on your computer desktop
every hour to lighten up the workday.
"I want every boss in America to hate us," Pesce jokes.
For businesses, VRML displays data well
But Pesce's co-conspirator in the invention of VRML, Tony
Parisi, is taking the technology in another direction. In
addition to producing WorldView, the VRML browser included
with Internet Explorer 4.0, Parisi's company, Intervista, is
dedicated to bringing VRML into the business world.
"If it wasn't for the business applications, this medium
wouldn't be viable," Parisi says. "I think what will make it
take off is people's needs for better data visualization and
simulation. The 2-D environment is really bogus for that.
VRML is really going to help these people who are inundated
with data and have no way to manage and look at it."
Intervista is focusing on networked data visualization for
financial analysis, and plans to announce a product before
year's end. As proof-of-concept, Parisi points to an
application developed by Oracle, SGI and Mincom, called
"Minescape," which uses VRML to help mining companies find
future mine shafts.
Other companies are banking on VRML applications to enable
virtual walk-throughs of real estate or collaborative,
computer-aided design over the Internet.
Plug-ins crucial so more people can view it
"VRML's utility is becoming more apparent, and, when that
happens, the more people will think of including it," Pesce
says. Including plug-ins in the two big Web browsers is
crucial. Previously, users who wanted to view VRML had to
find the appropriate plug-in and successfully install it -- a
"The Web has taken off, because there's software for it built
into every box," Parisi says. "And that's what's happening
with VRML now. That's the vindicating factor. The Web master
can be confident that if he puts up VRML content, people will
be able to see it."
Still, it remains to be seen just whether there is real
demand for VRML-based products. The Pasadena, Calif.-based
Jet Propulsion Laboratory's VRML tour of the Martian
landscape, featuring pictures taken by the Pathfinder rover,
was reportedly the most popular VRML site ever.
And buzz among 3-D developers still abounds over a VRML Pepsi
Web ad "banner" created several months ago by Out of the Blue
"All of this is a matter of the right tool for the right
job," says Farmer, denying an overall distaste for Web-based
3-D. What must be avoided with VRML, he says, is the
situation that arises when "someone owns a hammer and
everything starts looking like a nail."
About the author: David Pescovitz (firstname.lastname@example.org) is a
contributing editor to Wired.
(c) 1997, Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Los Angeles Times


text:
STEPHEN Lansdown, co-founder of financial advisory firm Hargreaves Lansdown, raised £58m yesterday by selling a 2.86 per cent stake in the company.
Lansdown, who sits on the Hargreaves Lansdown board as a non-executive director and founded the firm almost 30 years ago, sold 13.5m shares at 429p, reducing his personal stake to 20.1 per cent, the company said.
Lansdown, who is chairman of Bristol City FC, said the sale was aimed at raising cash for other unspecified investment opportunities.
“The recent share strength backed by strong institutional demand presented an opportunity to trim my holding and free up cash for other ventures. The sale reduces my
holding to approximately 20 per cent of the company, not an insignificant amount, and I remain a long term investor in Hargreaves Lansdown,” he said.
In April last year, Lansdown sold 23m shares for £47m, in part to help finance the building of a new stadium for Bristol City.
Hargreaves Lansdown, having initially fallen as much as eight per cent, pared their losses to close four per cent lower at 452p.


text:
In 2016 Petropavlovsk received $31.7 million of net profits as opposed to $297.5 million of losses in 2015.
According to the company statement, its revenue reached $540.7 million, down by 10% YoY. EBITDA increased by 16%, to $200 million.
Gold manufacture prime cost dropped by 12%, to $660 per ounce.
As of the end of 2016 the company net debt totaled $598.6 million.
Last year the group produced 416.3 thousand ounces of gold. This year Petropavlovsk plans to produce at east 460 thousand ounces of gold. (Ukrainian metal)
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text:
Patron Capital Partners has led the management buy-in of petrol filling stations and retailing stores operator Motor Fuels Group in a joint venture with the new management team Scottish Capital Group. Financial details of the deal remain undisclosed.
Fund exceeded its target of €450m by €90m and was "significantly" oversubscribed
BGF exited 20 businesses in 2020 with an average money multiple of 1.9x and an aggregate IRR of 26%
Our expert speakers will discuss the short-term impacts of Covid-19, as well as the longer-term effect on traditional healthcare infrastructure
Arcus could increase its share to a majority stake in future, the GP said in a statement


text:
In a surprise announcement, Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman said, Tuesday, he will not seek a fifth term. Coleman made the announcement alongside his cabinet and staff members and family and friends.
WOSU News Archives For: June 14, 2004
A Somali national charged with plotting to blow up a Columbus-area shopping mall appeared Monday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Columbus.A four-count indictment unsealed today charges Nuradin Abdi, 32, with conspiring with admitted al-Qaida member Iyman Faris and others to detonate a bomb at the unidentified shopping mall.
The new Medicare drug card program has generated controversy and confusion. Monday federal officials tried to limit both as they held a forum for seniors at Ohio State University.


text:
Xiaomi is rumored to soon launch the second generation model of the original Redmi Pro that came with dual rear cameras. Recent rumors have revealed that the Xiaomi Redmi Pro 2 will be sporting a full-screen design that is available on premium Samsung flagships, the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+. Well-known Chinese leakster, @Reviewer has revealed some key specs of the phone.
According to his Weibo post, the Redmi Pro 2 will be coming with Pegasus full-screen that will measure 5.46 inches in size and it will offer a resolution of 2,160 x 1,080 pixels. It will be delivering an aspect ratio of 18:9.
Previous reports have revealed that the Pegasus screen that offers a full-screen design has 0.5mm left and right bezels. Its bottom bezel is of 1.8mm. The leakster has further said that it will be driven by Snapdragon 660 which suggests that it would be the first smartphone from the company to arrive with the new chip. The SoC will be accompanied with 4 GB of RAM. It is slated to get announced at the end of next month.


text:
AG investigating bogus home business
Published: April 21,2010
JACKSON — A charge on a stolen credit card led state authorities to a home business scam operating in Jackson.
The scam involved repackaging and shipping merchandise purchased with stolen credit cards. It was uncovered when the owner of a stolen credit card reported the unauthorized charge to the Jackson police.
Attorney General Jim Hood says the investigation is still in the early stages.
Hood says homeowner involved said he was just trying to earn some extra cash and had responded to a job offer by e-mail. The job promised to pay the man to receive, repackage and mail merchandise ordered online.
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text:
Two weeks after Steve Jobs’s passing, Apple shut down the entire company — even retail stores worldwide — for two hours to pay tribute to the founder and former CEO. The event featured remembrances from Apple executives and board members, as well as musical performances by Norah Jones and Coldplay. (Did you think any Steve Jobs event, even posthumous, would go on without some musical component?) follow link
Add Notes to Pre-existing Recordings in Pear Note
While most people think of Pear Note as a tool for recording notes live, it can be used to take notes on pre-existing recordings as well. If you have an audio or video recording that you'd like to take notes on in Pear Note, simply:
- Drag the audio/video file to Pear Note and import it into a new document.
- Hit play.
- Click the lock to unlock the text of the note.
Now you can take notes that will be synced to the recording, just as if you'd recorded them live.
Visit Useful Fruit Software
Watch the 19 October 2011 Apple Event Celebrating Steve Jobs


text:
Coronation Street To Launch Wii Game
Characters from Coronation Street are set to appear in their very own Wii game and to celebrate, we have created wii versions of two famous Weatherfield characters, Tyrone Dobbs and Jack Duckworth.
The interactive game will be released to celebrate the soap’s 50th anniversary later this year, it was revealed yesterday. It could even see stars from the past such as Hilda Ogden and Elsie Tanner mixing with those from the present like Rosie Webster on the bestselling console.
This news follows reports that the soap will be launching a range of merchandise in its fiftieth year…


text:
DMS has added an email capability by acquiring Mocade.
NYS Entity Status
NYS Filing Date
JULY 02, 2013
NYS DOS ID#
NYS Entity Type
FOREIGN LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
2013 - DIGITAL MEDIA SOLUTIONS, LLC
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- Digital Media Solutions Acquires Email Provider Mocade
Thursday Oct 5, 2017
- NY Times sees jump in digital subscription revenue
By Reuters - Thursday Jul 27, 2017
The New York Times said on Thursday its digital subscription revenue overtook print advertising revenue for the first time — a key milestone in the 166-year old publisher’s efforts to transform itself into a digital media powerhouse. The company’s shares rose as much as 7 percent to their highest since the 2008 financial crisis as...
- Disney Slapped With Lawsuit Over ‘Guardians of the Galaxy,’ ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ Effects
By Tim Kenneally, provided by
- Monday Jul 17, 2017
Visual effects firm says that Disney contracted with people who stole the technologyThe company was slapped with a lawsuit on Monday by a visual effects company, which claims that its technology was misappropriated for “Beauty and the Beast,” “Guardians of the Galaxy” and Avengers:“[I]n all of the film industry and media accolades about the record-breaking success of ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ and the acclaimed cutting-edge digital MOVA Contour technology that made the film’s success possible, nowhere is it mentioned that the patented and copyright-protected MOVA Contour technology was stolen from its inventor and developer, Rearden LLC, and its owner Rearden Mova LLC,” the suit reads.Nowhere is it mentioned that although Disney had previously contracted with Rearden LLC and its controlled entities on four previous major motion pictures to use MOVA Contour and knew of a Rearden Demand Letter to one of the thieves demanding immediate return of the stolen MOVA Contour system, Disney nonetheless contracted with the thieves to use the stolen MOVA Contour system.
- Infogroup Taps Bhalla To Run Constellation Media, Digital Shop Leveraging Big Data
Wednesday Jul 12, 2017
"Big Data" analytics firm Infogroup has launched Constellation Media, a full-service digital agency and named Publicis and WPP vet Gayatri Bhalla to run it. Bhalla, who hast served as vicepresident-advanced solutions & product management for Infogroup Media Solutions, previously was vice president-group director of media at Publicis' Zenith Optimedia Group and previously held a seniorposition at WPP's Wunderman unit.


text:
Windows 8 Available on Microsoft Connect [Invitation Only]
A number of top blogs are reporting that Microsoft has begun to distribute early copies of Windows 8 to key OEM partners via Microsoft Connect. The software giant’s Connect is an external testing system, My Technology Guide has learned that the company is distributing build 7971.0.110324-1900.
According to one poster at the My Digital Life forums, the program is advertised as Windows 8 and Server vNext Pre-Release Program, on Microsoft’s Connect site and requires a special invite code.
OEM’s have received an invitation code to download Windows 8 via Connect. Following is the download URL but the invitation code has been removed for obvious reasons:
Microsoft is expected to be readying a Windows 8 beta for September. Microsoft’s primary Windows 8 interface is believed to be fully 3D. The interface will be “fully dynamic” and able to adapt to user habits. Icons and shortcuts will adapt to different usage scenarios to speed up daily tasks. Windows 8 is also rumored to include a new fast hibernation system. The system will hibernate in around three to six seconds and save all open documents and running tasks.
Paul Thurrott suggests that Microsoft is working on a tile-based user interface codenamed Mosh. “I have to believe that this UI will be an alternative UI, and not a full replacement, or will appear only on low-end tablet-like devices aimed at the iPad,” wrote Thurrott.
Rumors also suggests about a dual-UI for Windows 8. Windows 8 will also include a new app model codenamed Jupiter that will target a new Windows Marketplace app store. The app store will provide access to new, Silverlight based “immersive” applications that are deployed as AppX packages (.appx). The Windows and Office teams are betting very heavily on this new app type, according to my source, and development has already begun using a beta version of Visual Studio 2012. These apps can be written in C#, Visual Basic, and even C++. Microsoft is also building a system reset function in Windows 8.
Microsoft has so far been extremely quiet on the Windows 8 front. Windows Chief, Steven Sinofsky, took to the stage at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January to introduce a technology preview of Microsoft’s Windows ARM support and show off an early build of Windows 8. Microsoft is partnering with ARM-based manufactures NVIDIA, Qualcomm and Texas Instruments to produce new Tablet devices.


text:
.NYC new extension entered landrush yesterday and New York’s new mayor Bill de Blasio is endorsing the New gTLD.
“This is a chance for more New Yorkers to claim their piece of the City’s high-demand digital real estate,” de Blasio said in a statement on Monday.
“There is no shortage of New Yorkers ready to claim their exclusive .nyc identities online,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio in a statement back in May, “and this is their chance to reserve their piece of this city’s valuable digital real estate.”.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) approved the .nyc new domain names while mayor was Michael Bloomberg. Bloomberg, who made billions in the tech industry, said it would help city businesses and organizations stand out online.


text:
Business should be good next year, but you should proceed with caution. That’s the somewhat mixed message drug chain executives are sending this year.
Responding to Drug Topics’ annual “Business Outlook” survey, 78% of chain executives said they expected the coming business year to be good to excellent–exactly the same proportion who felt that way in last year’s survey. Even more encouraging, not a single one of our respondents rated the outlook for 1988 as “poor.”
Nor did they appear to be shaken by the rumblings on Wall St. Although our survey was taken before the stock market crash of Oct. 19, few of our respondents appear, to be having second thoughts. Ten of the executives in our survey were contacted a second time and offered a chance to change their vote. The results? Nine were firmly sticking to their guns; only one modified his forecast, from a “very good” year to merely a “good” one (see box, page 43).
Fewer openings: Nevertheless, despite the overall confidence, chains seem more concerned about competitive pressures than ever, and perhaps more cautious. Significantly, fewer chain executives this year said they plan to open new stores in the coming year.
Most respondents in our September survey mentioned strong sales figures and a generally strong economy as the reason for their optimism. “It’s a good climate for business,” said the CEO of a small Eastern chain. Many believed the economy is either stable or growing and were cheered by high employment and relatively low inflation and interest rates. A number of executives also mentioned the boost in the economy that an election year usually brings. “Congress and the administration want to make things look good,” said a Midwest executive.
A few took a more jaundiced view of the coming year. A manager of a small Eastern chain who rated prospects for the coming year as “good” did so for cynical reasons: “Our deflated dollar and national deficit will continue the false prosperity,” he predicted ominously.
Some 22% of our respondents rated the business outlook as merely “fair.” A few of our pessimists were mistrustful of the whole business climate. The CEO of a small Southern chain, for example, predicted a recession that would find stores overstocked and merchandise overpriced.
Most of the pessimists, however, were more concerned with the competitive pressures of an increasingly mature drugstore industry. The president of a fairly large chain in the South and midwest predicted that mature stores would see growth of only 3% or 4%. Competition from nondrugstore sources such as mail order and physician dispensing were mentioned more frequently this year than ever before.
Variables: As always, local factors played a large part in determining whether a chain’s expectations were high or low, perhaps widening the gap between successful and unsuccessful chains.
The local economy loomed large in many executives’ calculations. In South Dakota, a small-chain manager was optimistic, based upon the low unemployment and improving agricultural picture in his region. In contrast, a Midwest executive called the local farm economy “very unstable” and rated the coming year as “fair.” An executive in a chain situated in the oil patch was encouraged by recent drilling and expected a good year. Meanwhile, the president of a small Southern chain in the “somewhat depressed” coal-producing region thought business would be only “fair.”
Regional patterns were also discernible (see map below). The prosperous East, for instance, was even more optimistic than last year, while the West–last year’s most confident chains–registered a drop in expectations. The outlook in the Southern chains has brightened considerably over last year, and the Midwest improved somewhat–although it still has the least confidence of any region.
Another variable–and a more important one than ever–was third-party contracts. Clearly, the trend toward managed care is a double-edged sword, profitable for some and disastrous for others. Several executives who rated business prospects as “very good” mentioned favorable contracts with third parties, particularly with health maintenance organizations that were expected to increase in membership.
On the other hand, some of the more pessimistic executives mentioned being shut out of closed HMO contracts or not being able to turn a profit on the ones they were in. “HMOs, preferred provider organizations, and third-party vendors have reduced the gross profit too dramatically,” said the president of a Southern chain.
Winners and losers: In the cautious optimism that prevailed in most quarters, it was pharmaceuticals that were expected to keep bottom lines in the black. Some 59% of our executives expected Rx drugs, especially generics, to be the leading gainer for the coming year. OTC drugs were the next most frequently mentioned category (13%), and there was a special interest in condoms and birth control products.
Emphasis on health care was apparent in the 11% of respondents who predicted home health care would be the fastest-growing category this year (although there was less enthusiasm for home health care than last year, when 18% of the chains expected it to boom). Alternate profit centers were not forgotten; HBAs, eye care, cards, and video rentals each had some strong boosters.
Ad for the “dogs” of the coming season, tobacco and cosmetics split the honors with 16% each, reflecting on the one hand an increased awareness of the dangers of smoking and, on the other, increased competition from nondrugstore sources. HBAs took second place, with prescription drugs, OTCs, and sundries each garnering a handful of doubters.
Bottoms up: Confidence in the economy is reflected in the chains’ expectations that sales will go up (76%) or remain the same (18%). Although slightly fewer chains than last year predicted a growth in sales, the average advance predicted by those who were optimistic (8.4%) was about 1% higher than last year’s prediction. Only 6% of our executives expect sales in their stores to dip this year.
On the other hand, costs were also expected to increase, with exactly the same number of executives predicting a rise as in last year’s survey (68%). The average increase forecast was almost 5%.
Some 21% of our respondents expected to keep operating expenses about the same, and 11% optimistically planned on reducing costs. One place the chains won’t be cutting costs, though, is in pharmacists salaries. The good new for pharmacists is that 91% of the chains expect pharmacists’ wages to rise. How much? The average advance was pegged at 5%.
As for the bottom line, 58% expect to see an increase in profits, down slightly from last year, and they were predicting an average advance of 6.1% (again, down a bit from last year). Some 27% expect profits to remain stable, and 15% are predicting a loss.
Despite the generally cheerful pattern that the numbers show, executives are expressing more concern about competitive pressures than ever. Perhaps because of this, fewer chains than last year see the present as a good time for expansion. The number of executives planning to open new stores dropped 10% this year (from 52% last year to 42%), with more than half of the chains in our survey expressing no interest in seeing their store count expand.
Once again, however, the gap between prosperous and marginal chains may be more glaring this year. Many of the chains that are opening stores this year have ambitious plans. (The average number of projected stores this year is four, as opposed to three last year.) Among the eight largest chains in our survey (those with more than 100 stores), seven were planning to expand, with anywhere from five to 60 new stores in the works. About three-quarters of the projected new stores will be traditional drugstores.
The challengers: The biggest challenge facing the chains is clearly competition. Who are the chains most worried about? The deep-discounters? The new “hyper” markets? Supermarket combos? Surprisingly, mail-order pharmacy, which was only fourth last year, was the competitor most often mentioned, with almost 30% of the executives singling it out. The chain executives would dearly like to pass legislation to curb the ability of such operators to cross state lines.
The next biggest competitive headache for chain executives is the HMO and PPO business they are losing out on (mentioned by 26%) and reimbursement worries from plans they work with (16%). Many mentioned aggressively negotiating for third-party contracts as a goal for the coming year. Others, hurting from closed contracts, would like to see legislation forbidding such arrangements.
As always, competition from deep-discounters and other chain competitors is a fact of life for drugstore chains, with 21% of our executives listing this problem.
One problem apparently on the rise is a shortage of personnel, mentioned by 19%. Labor problems seem particularly acute in the East. “Our biggest headache is getting qualified help for all facets of the drugstore–pharmacists, managers, and clerks,” said the CEO of a small EAstern chain. “We’re competing for entry-level personnel with fast-food chains,” said another Eastern executive.
Larger chains are feeling the pinch as well. “We need an available, qualified work force,” said the CEO of a big chain in the East and South.
The chains are particularly hurting behind the pharmacy counters. “There are too many pharmacies and not enough pharmacists,” said the vice president of a large chain in the East. Other regions feel the pinch too. “Our biggest challenge is finding pharmacists to operate the stores,” the president of a chain in the South said. The only solution proposed was active recruiting and “staying on top of the problem.”
Another headache that’s getting worse is M.D. dispensing. Last year this newest form of competition barely made the list of challenger; this year it was mentioned by 15% of our respondents, nosing past supermarket chains (9.5%). As with mail-order, chains are looking to their legislatures for a possible solution to this one.
Failing new laws to squelch the competition, chain executives would like to see a greater emphasis on customer service to increase consumer satisfaction. A return to basics and the drugstore’s health-care image were also recommended, with specific suggestions such as promoting patient self-testing and working with nursing homes.
Reform worries: When asked what was the greatest problem they foresaw in their own area next year, almost two out of three executives (63%) picked cuts in third-party reimbursement. Although third-party blues are always popular, this year’s special nervousness might be due to uncertainty over the course of the new Medicaid “reforms,” which went into effect on Oct 29. When asked specifically about these reforms, many executives either didn’t know how their business would be affected or expected cuts in profits.
“It will be detrimental to pharmacy, because most states do not understand that the difference between average wholesale price and net acquisition has always been a part of the pharmacy’s ‘fee.’ Most states will choose to treat this as a discount and not increase the ‘fee,’ thus making it unprofitable to fill welfare prescriptions,” said the vice president of operations of a large national chain. The president of a small Eastern chain was equally pessimistic about the state’s new freedom to pursue “innovative” payment schemes: “Is ‘innovative’ Reagan double-speak for ‘lower?” he asked.
Clearly, the chains expect more hassles–and more paperwork–in dealing with new state regulations. The effect, said the director of operations of a large chain in the East, will be “no change in Rx volume, an increase in headaches, and a decrease in third-party collections.” Many respondents also predicted an increase in the use of generics, as hard-pressed pharmacies try to turn a profit from the state plans.
As for other problems facing them in their own operating areas, our chain executives had no shortage of laments (particularly as we invited them to choose more than one answer). Besides the 63% who chose cuts in third-party reimbursement, 54% expect to figh competition from in-house HMOs, 49% said they were battling competition from other drugstores, 47% saw M.D. dispensing as a threat, 45% were worried about the shortage of a good employee pool, and 31% were facing tough competition from hospitals.
With so many headaches within the drugstore industry, the overall economic picture was not a major concern. Only 19% believed–at that time–that a worsening economy would be their major problem this year.
Source Citation (MLA 7th Edition)
Weiss, Barbara. “Drug Topics finds chains optimistic – up to a point.” Drug Topics 14 Dec. 1987: 40+. General OneFile. Web. 23 Mar. 2015.


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Last week, a report from University College London said that by 2012 the UK will be the world's fattest nation, and obesity-related illness will threaten to bankrupt the NHS. The environment we live in, with its daily barrage of junk food messaging, makes it hard for parents and children to choose healthy options.
New government rules stop junk food ads during children's TV. But they're incredibly weak – junk food ads are still running during the shows most popular with kids like X Factor and Coronation Street. Evidence says TV ads significantly affect the food choices children make. So isn't time the government closed the loopholes and stopped junk food ads before 9pm?
Children can only choose healthier foods in a society where government, schools, industry and parents work together to support them. Obese children often become obese adults, with clear implications for future levels of heart disease. We all have a responsibility to stop this happening.
We think that the government must do much more to tighten rules and protect the future heart health of our nation, specifically by creating an environment in which junk food marketing is tightly controlled and clear food labelling supported.
Whose responsibility do you think it is to reverse the current trends in obesity?
· Ruairi O'Connor is an Advocacy Manager for the British Heart Foundation


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Apple is examining a proposal to shift nearly one-fifth of its production capacity from China to India and ramp up it’s local manufacturing capabilities through its contract manufacturers and achieve $40 billion worth of production over the next five years, The Economic Times reported.
The report quoted top ranking Indian government officials as saying that they expected Apple to produce up to $40 billion worth of smartphones, mostly for exports through its contract manufacturers Wistron and Foxconn, availing the benefits under the recently unveiled production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme.
In March this year, the Union Cabinet had taken major decisions to enhance manufacturing in the electronic components, semiconductors and mobile segments including launch of three different schemes - Production-linked incentive scheme (PLI) - Scheme for promoting manufacturing of electronic components and semiconductors'' (SPECS)-Electronics Manufacturing Clusters (EMC) 2.0
The PLI scheme offers a production-linked incentive to boost domestic manufacturing and attract large investments in mobile phone manufacturing and specified electronic components, including assembly, testing, marking and packaging (ATMP) units.
It will extend an incentive of 4 per cent to 6 per cent on incremental sales (over base year) of goods manufactured in India and covered under target segments to eligible companies for a period of five years subsequent to the base year as defined.
Centre had earmarked a budgetary outlay of Rs 40,995 crore for five years under this scheme.
According to ET report, Apple has also raised few reservations on the the government's ambitious PLI scheme which still needed to be ironed out.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met top executives of Apple, Samsung and homegrown phone maker Lava on December 28 last year, which kick-started the process of rolling out incentives to attract hi tech manufacturing to India
India has been attempting to build a robust domestic manufacturing sector in smartphones through a calibrated multiyear programme under which tariffs are introduced gradually on smartphone components, beginning with basic accessories such as chargers in 2016 and working up to touch panels.
Wistron is already making Apple’s low-priced iPhone SE model since 2017 in its Bengaluru unit. It currently assembles the iPhone 6S and 7 models there as well.
Wistron’s second iPhone plant in Bengaluru will make iPhone 7 and 8 models, some of which will be exported.
Wistron's rival, Foxconn, which began making iPhone XR models in India last year, already assembles PCBs locally. India however continues to be dependent on China for supplies of other smartphone parts like display panels and camera modules. In 2018, Samsung opened the world's largest mobile factory, in Noida, India.
Introducing ElectionsHQ + 50 Ground Reports Project
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The answers to these questions provide great insights into where we, as a country, are headed in the years to come.
Swarajya is starting a project with an aim to do 50 solid ground stories and a smart commentary service on WhatsApp, a one-of-a-kind. We'd love your support during this election season.
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New EU Tobacco Pack Criteria Upheld by Court
04 May, 2016
As of 20th May, the EU’s new regulations stressing the need for 65% of cigarette packs to be covered with appropriate health warnings will come into force. This week, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that the new measures are “appropriate and necessary” to reduce smoking.
The Court’s decision also upheld a future EU ban on menthol cigarettes throughout the Union, solely opposed by Poland. Tighter measures on electronic cigarettes were also agreed on, and promotional statements such as “this product is free of additives” or “is less harmful than other brands” have been banned.
The new rules were introduced to the EU Tobacco Products Directive in 2014, but have been delayed by a number of court cases. Overall, the regulations have been appealed against by Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco, with Japan Tobacco International and Imperial Brands acting as related parties, but the Court claims the new regulations protect human health and meet the Union’s responsibilities under UN tobacco agreements.
“The court considers that the prohibition is such as to protect consumers against the risks associated with tobacco use and does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve the objective pursued,” said the ECJ in a statement.
The new measures will be implemented as of 20th May, with a one-year sell-through period for businesses to sell current stock, aiming to cut the number of smokers in the EU by 2.4 million.


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These companies may not lead their industry, but are still worth buying.
Big-cap names get a lot of attention in the market. It’s easy to see why. With the rise of passive investing, more and more money automatically flows into companies that are already large.
That means that smaller players in competitive industries can still do well operationally, and can see their shares rise over time.
- The #1 Indicator Used by Ultra-Wealthy Investors
There’s a reason so few investors are ever able to beat the market: they’ve been lied to. They have no idea what really drives stock prices. When you discover exactly why stocks rise or fall, it’s easy to avoid losers and find more, bigger winners.
But as they don’t get the attention of big companies, smaller investors willing to buy in could really clean up.
What’s more, smaller companies either tend to grow and become larger companies, leading to huge returns for investors—or they tend to get bought out by these bigger companies. Either way, buying the smaller company can make more sense for patient investors.
Small Industry Play #1: FireEye (FEYE)
In the technology space, the past year has seen the rise of companies with trillion-dollar market caps. While those companies are focused on cloud services, it’s companies addressing cyber-security that could be a bigger player going forward.
That’s good news for FireEye (FEYE). It’s a company we’ve looked at before. In the past month, however, shares have dropped following its earnings report.
The company reported a beat on its earnings, showing a slight loss in the most recent quarter. But with billings up 3 percent year-over-year, it’s continuing to grow. And with a gross profit margin of 73 percent, it’s a great space for investors in the short term.
What really held the company’s performance back was a mixed guidance that it gave out following its earnings. That was enough to send shares from an uptrend to a downtrend.
But we still like the company for the long haul. Cyber security will continue to innovate, and the company is a leader in the space with a $3.5 billion market cap. To some of the largest tech names out there, that’s a rounding error, and it’s possible that this company could see a buyout offer in the coming years.
The offer would allow the buying company to ramp up their security, open up new sources of revenue, and also keep FireEye’s products away from potential competitors. That makes the current earnings drop look like little more than a bump in the road.
Shares are a buy up to $16. We see the company continuing to perform well and move towards consistent profitability. At that point, shares could be bought out, or the company could end up being worth $10 billion or so, which would translate to a share price around $45, nearly triple from here.
For speculators, the September 2020 $17.00 calls, trading for around $1.05 right now, look like a reasonable bet on the shares recovering and moving higher from their post-earnings drop.
Small Industry Play #2: B&G Foods (BGS)
The food space is huge, with producers, processors, and some of the best-known brand names in the world. It’s also home to a number of smaller plays as well, like B&G Foods (BGS).
The company has a variety of food brands, the best-known of which include Baker’s Joy, Le Sueur, Cream of Wheat, SnackWell’s, and Green Giant.
The space hasn’t been the best place to invest in the past year, as many food companies are reporting flat or declining sales thanks to changing consumer trends and the rise of generic alternatives.
That’s sent shares of B&G down nearly 48 percent in the past year, even as revenue dropped less than 4 percent and earnings fell less than 3 percent.
But, trading at 8 times forward earnings, it’s looking attractive considering the portfolio of brands. And trading at 0.55 times sales and just above book value, shares are trading at a bargain price that look attractive now.
And, today’s investors are getting $1.90 per year in dividends, a staggering 13.2 percent payout at this rate. With the company trading so cheaply, the dividend is about 70 percent of the company’s earnings, so it’s not at an unsustainable place yet.
Shares look attractive as a potential rebound play that will also give a high dividend yield. But with 53 percent of shares held short right now after such a big drop, this company could also be susceptible to a short squeeze that sends shares far higher.
We like shares up to $14.50. There are some options trades, but given the yield and squeeze potential, the shares look like both a good investment and a good speculation here.


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Looking for a retirement community, assisted living or nursing home for yourself or a loved one? You’ll find a flock of businesses eager to guide you through the elder housing maze, claiming their local experts can find the perfect place at no charge.
But elder advocates say seniors and their families need to be aware of what they’re getting when they say yes to free senior placement services. These businesses, springing up around South Florida as entrepreneurs get in on the latest elder-care trend, are unregulated and require no special licensing or training.
They can be opened by anyone with enough cash to put up a website, and the quality varies widely. Some are small local companies run by seasoned professionals who work with seniors face-to-face and take them on facility tours. Others are national online outfits or franchise operations with work-at-home consultants who do business over the telephone and never have set foot in the retirement facilities they’re recommending.
They all get paid the same way: through their network of care facilities that give them commissions, usually 50 to 100 percent of a month’s rent, when seniors move in and stay.
“We are not saying [placement services] are a lot of bad apples. We are just saying consumers need to be cautious,” said David Spiegel, an attorney with the Federal Trade Commission who specializes in senior consumers. “Deciding where someone will live is an important decision and they need to approach it with care.”
Spiegel handled a settlement two months ago involving two senior placement companies, both offering franchises, on charges they misled consumers.
One, California-based ABCSP Inc. — whose franchises do business in Florida as Always Best Care — allegedly falsely implied its recommendations were based on personal knowledge of retirement communities, the FTC said. Officials at ABCSP’s corporate office, and at a Lake Worth franchise location, could not be reached for comment.
The other, CarePatrol Inc., said it had care consultants in every state and monitored facilities based on the most recent state inspections, the FTC said. But Chuck Bongiovanni, CarePatrol’s owner and CEO, said the allegations involved a mistake on his website, which he changed, and not his business practices.
“Everyone sees senior placement now as a get-rich-quick scheme,” said Bongiovanni, a former medical social worker who started CarePatrol in Arizona 17 years ago. He sells franchises for $44,500 in 37 states — and just started in Florida.


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23 Consecutive Quarters of Losses Amounting To $4.5 Billion Led LG To Exit Mobile Phone Market Worldwide
When the going gets tough, the tough get going. But that doesn't seem to fit in the case of LG mobile phone business. There comes a moment of truth for everybody. In the mobile sphere, with their share getting heavily...
With Upskilling a Focus, Google’s Annual Report Maps out India’s Trends in Search
2020 was a year that accelerated the relationship of the world with technology by leaps and bounds. India was no different. With the digital medium and internet becoming quintessential to engagement, it led to an array of interesting and telling...
WeWork IPO: With $9 Billion Valuation And Merger, Softbank Takes A Shot, Again!
Perseverance does pay off. The news of WeWork IPO is once again creating waves! The development coming from WeWork’s corner is the latest example to prove precisely that. Having failed spectacularly on its first attempt at IPO, WeWork has risen...
Calling All Bounty Hunters! Microsoft Teams Seeks Researchers to Prune Security Flaws
Researchers, cybersecurity geeks, or enthusiasts, gather around! Microsoft bug bounty program can't be more lucrative than this. Your objective, should you choose to accept it, is simple – Fix the vulnerabilities on sight in a new product that was introduced...
Google To Pay News Publishers in India: Prepares The Launch Of Google News Showcase
Google has started making moves in India to avoid similar mistakes that the company made in Australia when it comes to Google News and revenue sharing with news publishers. The winds of change ushered in by the News Media Bargaining...
Vessel of Charity: Facebook Raises Over $5 Billion Through Donation Tools
Every coin has two sides. That is just the nature of how things are. And with a conduit like social media and its poster boy Facebook, in particular, the debate around the seeping misinformation prevalence and concerning threats have...
Microsoft’s Discord Acquisition: A Mouth-Watering Prospect to Bolster Gaming Services
The possibility of Microsoft acquiring discord is making rounds on the internet. With all the possible acquisition deals that have taken place recently, more often than not, Microsoft's name has been one that has kept doing the rounds. Now with the...
Cracking the Whip On Misinformation: 5.5 Billion Fake Accounts On Facebook Axed In 2020
Fake accounts on Facebook has become a nightmare for millions of genuine users, who often find themselves engaged with abusive conversation mostly triggered by such fake accounts. Just as the masses were getting overwhelmed against the storm of fibs,...
Gulf of Mistrust: 33% of Netizens Don’t Trust Any Social Media Company For Their Data Privacy [STUDY]
Trust, arguably the currency with the most value. Arguably the most difficult to build. And in today’s world, where social media is one of the primary chutes of information and data carriage, the onus is more on the services to...
Incurring a Punishment, Is LinkedIn Staring At A Potential Ban in China?
All it takes is one blow for the pack of cards to come hurtling down. An apt description for LinkedIn, which finds itself in something of a quandary in China. In a fresh series of developments coming from China, it...
Voracious reader. Firm believer of the ideal that the pen is mightier than the sword. Just a kid who wants to do his bit. Ciao.
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Made-In-India smartphone shipments 2022: Apple iPhone shipments grew 65% YoY by volume and 162% YoY by value [REPORT]
All major global tech companies, including Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, and others, have established manufacturing facilities in India, in an...
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Millers for Nutrition, a new food industry-led coalition, aims to help millers produce adequately fortified staple foods and reach one billion people with fortified rice, edible oil and flour by 2026.
Millers from Africa and Asia have joined other stakeholders to announce a commitment to reach one billion people1 with adequately fortified rice, edible oil and flour by 2026. To do this, Millers for Nutrition, a new industry-led coalition, will make adequate fortification of staple foods easier and more rewarding for millers, the businesses responsible for processing dietary staples like flour, cooking oil, and rice.
The launch of Millers for Nutrition at the Micronutrient Forum’s 6th Global Nutrition for Resilience Conference comes as the world faces a worsening food and nutrition crisis. Healthy diets, nutrition education, optimal breastfeeding and food fortification are all important components of a comprehensive response to the devastating impacts of malnutrition. By adding essential vitamins and minerals to the widely consumed foods they produce, millers can play an important role in reducing malnutrition and improving public health. Millers for Nutrition has been established to encourage, enable and celebrate this vital work.
Millers who join Millers for Nutrition and commit to improving the nutritional quality of their food will receive free technical support to make it easier to fortify their products. This includes access to tailored technical training and business advice, product testing support and online tools and resources, which will also help millers to reduce their compliance risk and enhance production efficiency. As fortification quality improves, members will benefit as they gain greater recognition for product quality and industry leadership, for example, through inclusion in a specially designed index that rates brands on fortification performance, and associated visibility at events and in local media.
Millers for Nutrition is being implemented in eight countries across Africa and Asia: Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Pakistan and Tanzania, and across three staple food vehicles: rice, edible oil, and flour (wheat and maize). In each country, the focus of Millers for Nutrition activities will be based on governmentled priorities and legislation and will align closely with the existing nutrition and food fortification strategies of governments and NGO partners.
Millers for Nutrition is a cross-sector partnership, with millers at the centre and industry partners from across the food fortification value chain, including founding partners BASF, dsm-firmenich, Mühlenchemie/SternVitamin, Piramal, BioAnalyt and Sanku contributing technical expertise and support to millers. Regional and local technical partners such as Hexagon Nutrition in India are now joining the coalition to support millers in specific geographies or staples. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is providing strategic input and investment to support the creation of the coalition. International nonprofit TechnoServe, which has significant experience supporting industry-led fortification capacity building efforts, will coordinate program activities.
Millers for Nutrition will provide millers—whether they are just beginning to fortify their products or are already experienced champions for fortification— with the support they need to achieve and sustain fortification excellence. Miller members will be entitled to benefits according to their membership level. As fortification performance improves, millers “graduate” to a new membership level and rewards and recognition increase.
The coalition will also serve as a platform for accelerating and scaling industry-led innovation in food fortification. For example, Millers for Nutrition is helping to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of premix and product testing, and to develop better solutions for small mills.


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“I want to be apparent that we are nonetheless ultimately a social firm centered on serving to individuals connect,” Zuckerberg said in the course of a call with investors.
The assertion comes amid information that Facebook guardian company Meta endured the very first quarterly earnings decline in a ten years for the publicly traded firm. And Zuckerberg’s comments illuminate the company’s shorter-time period survival technique as it faces unparalleled macroeconomic difficulties alongside with certain threats to its enterprise product.
Facebook executives warned that entrepreneurs are pulling again expending in component for the reason that of an unsure economic natural environment, which has some specialists warning a economic downturn could be on the horizon. Meanwhile, the organization is dealing with intensifying competitiveness for marketing bucks and customers in the social media marketplace from upstart applications these types of as TikTok and Snapchat. Facebook’s inventory declined in aftermarket investing.
Instagram knows you do not like its modifications. It doesn’t treatment.
Zuckerberg’s rosy photograph about the long run of conversation on its services comes as the organization invests in replicating the method that has made TikTok choose off amid younger people. Final 7 days, the enterprise announced an overhaul of its flagship social network, intended to elevate entertaining written content from strangers around posts from their friends and loved ones.
Instagram has also started out recommending shorter-form video clips, named Reels, in users’ feeds, along with shots and movies from people they know. These alterations activated a slew of criticism in modern times, which includes a protest from Kylie Jenner, Kim Kardashian and other superior-profile influencers, sharing an impression declaring: “Make Instagram Instagram once again.”
Showing to react to the criticism, Zuckerberg stated the organization however intends to create spaces for social connections, but also desires to adapt to the way people today talk on social media. As an alternative of interacting in remarks on their feeds, customers are much more possible to mail personal messages to their mates, in accordance to Zuckerberg. Reels helps make up additional than 50 % the articles that is re-shared into messages on Instagram, he claimed.
Significant Instagram and TikTok adjustments suggest you are going to see for a longer time video clips, fewer pals
“This creates this flywheel of discovery and then social relationship, and then inspiring all those people to generate much more content themselves,” Zuckerberg claimed, touting the company’s ongoing expenditure in Reels, which he stated is on track to make at minimum $1 billion in yearly earnings.
In a vivid place, Fb documented every day active end users on its main social community rose 3 p.c to 1.97 billion in the second quarter. Month to month people also rose about 1 p.c to 2.93 billion, the firm said.
Continue to, Zuckerberg and other executives pointed to looming economical issues, including the ongoing impact of Apple’s new privacy policies, which aim to restrict application makers’ capability to collect data on buyers to power their specific promotion business enterprise.
Fb forsakes good friends and relatives to compete with TikTok
In the latest months, Facebook executives have issued a dizzying range of directives, outlining a new era of higher effectiveness expectations and slowed hiring as the corporation emerges from the pandemic with a expanding checklist of economic worries. Facebook indicated Wednesday that it prepared to lower its costs and lessen hiring this yr.
In the extended run, Zuckerberg said Facebook will keep on to devote in setting up out the so termed metaverse, a put where the business envisions people today will want to work, engage in and shop.
The metaverse will “enable further social ordeals, in which you feel a practical perception of existence with other persons no issue exactly where they are,” Zuckerberg claimed.
The Federal Trade Fee sued the firm on Wednesday to block its acquisition of In, the maker of well-known virtual reality game titles. The FTC argued that the offer would suggest “Meta would be 1 step nearer to its best aim of proudly owning the overall ‘Metaverse.’ ”
Fb workers concern cuts soon after blunt warnings from Zuckerberg, leaders
Facebook also introduced on Wednesday a shake up amid its optimum leaders. Facebook’s chief financial officer, David Wehner, will believe a recently made part as main system officer. Susan Li, the company’s recent vice president of finance, will become the new CFO. Facebook’s chief running officer, Sheryl Sandberg, announced very last month that she would be stepping down soon after 14 many years.


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No, it’s not an April Fool’s joke with bad timing—although it sounds like one. But if all goes according to plan, the 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage will be the most fuel-efficient non-hybrid car in America when it debuts next fall, boasting an EPA line of 37 mpg city/44 mpg highway/40 mpg combined.
Needless to say, the launch of that car could be a tipping point in Mitsubishi’s renewed quest for credibility in the U.S. auto market, especially with the Mitsubishi Outlander and Outlander Sport achieving some recent sales momentum. In fact, the company’s overall deliveries are up 13.4 percent through the first two months of the year and are currently outpacing the industry’s growth rate by a full 5 percent. A high-mileage, next-gen small car would be an ideal bookend to Mitsubishi’s increasingly popular crossovers and the still-effective Mitsubishi Lancer family, and that’s exactly the role the 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage is intended to play.
Potential buyers should note, however, that while Mitsubishi is talking up the Mirage as a “subcompact,” the car will be significantly shorter than the typical hatchback in the segment. The 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage is 148.8 inches in length, while traditional subcompacts like the Ford Fiesta and Honda Fit are just a bit more than 160 inches. The better match for the Mirage is the Chevy Spark, which comes in at 144.7 inches and has turned into a modest success for the Bowtie brand.
A similar outcome for the 2014 Mirage would go a long way toward helping Mitsubishi avoid the fate of Suzuki here in this country.


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Ford Motor Co. will deliver its fourth-quarter earnings report at 7 a.m. Eastern on Thursday. Here’s what you need to know. Read More »
Jan 26, 2015
Volkswagen AG’s Golf and Ford Motor Co.’s F-150 pickup truck on Monday won the North American Car and Truck/Utility of the Year awards, respectively, at the start of the North American International Auto show in Detroit.
The decision, handed down by 57 jurors from newspapers, television and radio stations, magazines and websites, marked a turnaround in Detroit’s truck wars this year and a shakeup on the U.S. car scene.
Volkswagen scored a significant upset, beating out the Ford Mustang and Hyundai Genesis. Volkswagen is looking to boost sales in the U.S. The award followed the German auto maker’s Sunday night announcement that it has hit its goal of 10 million sales globally, four years ahead of its target. Read More »
Neil Young, the legendary musician turned music-player startup entrepreneur, may have inadvertently announced a new Ford model – the 2016 Lincoln Continental. Read More »
Executives at the Detroit Three auto makers have banged their heads against the walls for decades trying to compete with German luxury sedans. Some fresh data from Truecar.com suggests they should focus more on the strong premium franchises they already have, hiding in plain sight.
The definitions of “premium’ and “luxury” in the U.S. auto business get slippery, especially when the average transaction price for a new vehicle is now more than $30,000 – once the boundary line between mass market and luxury. Still a vehicle selling for $50,000 or more qualifies as a premium price by any definition. And which brand is the leader in that category? No, not Mercedes-Benz or BMW, and not Lexus or Cadillac. Read More »
Detroit auto makers let Google, Inc.get the jump on them in promoting the idea of self-driving cars, but they’re making up for lost time this week.
Ford Motor Co. Chairman Bill Ford and executives at his arch rival, General Motors Co. are using the forum of a big auto technology conference in Detroit this week to promote their vision of an automated driving future, one in which drivers can shift some of the burden of boring commutes and long highway runs to the car, but only if they continue to pay attention to the road.
“It’s one thing to do this in a controlled environment,” Mr. Ford said Monday, alluding to Silicon Valley tech giant Google Inc.’s prototypes of cars that operate without steering wheels. But real self-driving cars will have to be able to drive safely “under every possible condition,” he said. More on this after the jump… Read More »
Ford Motor Co. Chairman Bill Ford Jr. said he is open to working with companies trying to shake up the auto industry’s traditional business models, such as smartphone app car-hailing services Uber Technologies Inc. or Lyft.
“Whether it’s Uber or Lyft, or another (auto company), we are open to working with them,” Mr. Ford said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal Friday. “Rather than turning our back on them, or ignoring them, we are both saying we would like to get to know them and, where it makes sense, work together.”
Uber and Lyft, which enable people to use their personal car to earn money giving rides to others, are growing in popularity, creating concern among auto industry executives that they could suppress demand for new vehicles. More on this after the jump… Read More »
Mark Fields, the incoming chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co., is setting his own path as the new leader for the Dearborn, Mich.-based auto company, starting with the key words he uses to explain his approach.
Ford’s outgoing CEO, Alan Mulally, never tired of repeating the phrase “One Ford” as shorthand for his view that the key to success was for the auto maker to field a common lineup of vehicles worldwide, and break down its management fiefdoms. Mr. Fields didn’t once say “One Ford” in a presentation Tuesday. Instead he talked about “innovation” as a means to sustain success.
“How do we disrupt our industry and our own company before other people do it for us?” Mr. Fields said. More on this after the jump… Read More »
Money talks in the car business, and what consumers are saying when they buy new vehicles is, “We love SUVs!”
Consider the 2015 Ford Edge, the newly redesigned sport utility vehicle Ford unveiled Tuesday. It’s now built from the same mechanical building blocks as the Ford Fusion and the European Ford Mondeo sedans. However, by using those building blocks to create an Edge SUV – with a taller seating position and more cargo capacity – Ford Motor Co. executives say they can expect to get $1,000 to $1,500 more per vehicle than they would by selling a standard four-door, mid-size car.
Ford’s global marketing chief Jim Farley says research shows that consumers will spend more of their household income to buy an SUV than any other kind of vehicle. In the case of the Edge, Ford marketers say customers will spend 38% of their family income to buy one, compared to 30% for a sedan.
“People have an emotional craving for these vehicles,” Mr. Farley says. More on this after the jump… Read More »
Alan Mulally said his goodbyes to Ford Motor Co.’s employees Monday at a town hall meeting, but he still hasn’t decided what he’ll do next now that running Microsoft Corp. is out of the question.
“I really haven’t decided, but I do know the world is looking for people to serve. I really haven’t been working on that,” said Mr. Mulally, who leaves Ford on July 1. On July 2, “I am going to be sitting in a Starbucks and I will send them a note and say, nothing has changed.” Read More »
From the WSJ’s Mike Ramsey and John W. Miller:
Auto makers plan a broad shift to aluminum from steel in larger vehicles over the next decade in North America, and 18% of all vehicles will have all-aluminum bodies by 2025, compared with less than 1% now, according to an industry study released this week.
Ford will open the floodgates with its 2015 aluminum-bodied F-150 truck, because rather than putting more aluminum into a niche sports car, the company is putting it into the best-selling car in America. More on this after the jump… Read More »
Content engaging our readers now, with additional prominence accorded if the story is rapidly gaining attention. Our WSJ algorithm comprises 30% page views, 20% Facebook, 20% Twitter, 20% email shares and 10% comments.


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Dodo Pizza: media coverage
17 December 2019
Thanks to our policy of radical transparency, we at Dodo Pizza share a lot of stories and data on this blog and on social. But sometimes it’s nice to have a different perspective and see everything through the eyes of an impartial observer. So, in this post we collect links to the latest media publications about Dodo from all over the world.
Russia’s pizza king wants to use the cloud to take over the world
Once you crack the profit code for delivering hot pizzas in the Arctic, where blocks of cheese arrive on nuclear icebreakers, expanding into more hospitable climes like Britain and Nigeria is as easy as pie. Or so says Fyodor Ovchinnikov, the freshly crowned franchise czar of Russia and soon, he’s betting, beyond. From a single basement oven in his native Syktyvkar in the Far North, the failed bookseller and serial blogger has turned Dodo Pizza into one of Europe’s fastest-growing restaurant chains, leapfrogging Papa John’s, Domino’s and Pizza Hut in his home market in just eight years.
These Russians want to conquer Germany—with pizza
What unites an ex-investment banker from Merrill Lynch, some top Russian programmers formerly employed by Intel and a marketing expert from Poland? They’ve joined forces in a start-up office on the outskirts of Moscow—and they’re making pizza. A lot of it. Working out of a brick building on the site of a former Soviet boiler factory, the Dodo Pizza team has 130 employees: among them are young marketing and finance experts and—somewhat unusual for a fast food chain—more than 70 programmers.
My 500-unit pizza business started as a “delivery only” shop and I don’t believe in dark kitchens
Cheap rent won’t make food cheaper, building brands online is hard and quality is tough to maintain, argues Fyodor Ovchinnikov of Dodo Pizza
Fedor Ovchinnikov, founder of Russian chain Dodo Pizza, may just be the “Steve Jobs of pizza.”
Fedor Ovchinnikov may have a name that’s hard to pronounce, but it’s one worth remembering. As founder of a fast-growing Russian chain called Dodo Pizza(dodopizza.ru), the 33-year-old entrepreneur has reinvented the pizza business in his native land. Using cloud-based computer technology, webcams, guerrilla marketing techniques and a highly influential blog, Ovchinnikov is building an empire worthy of the old czars, attracting ambitious franchisees and, better yet, money men willing to fund his dream of global expansion.
The pizza chain you haven’t heard of that’s trying to take over the world
Everything about Dodo Pizza seems improbable. The fact that the global franchise was born in a tiny town in Russia, well north of Helsinki. The fact that a pizza chain could lead Russia’s largest crowdfunding campaign to date. And the fact that it was among the first to pull off pizza drone delivery (for actual customers, not just on video) in 2014. The feat, which was covered by international media, ended with the Russian police coming to founder Fyodor Ovchinnikov’s garage laboratory to fine him 50,000 rubles ($1500) for disturbing the peace, according to the company. Eight years since its founding, the startup world keeps talking about Dodo.
Inside Dodo Pizza’s innovative strategy to dominate the pizza market
Dodo Pizza might not be the most well-known pizza chain, at least not in the UK. However, it is in fact one of the fastest-growing restaurant chains in Europe, and the largest pizzeria in its native Russia. The chain currently has 549 pizzerias in 13 countries, and plans to add another 1,000 in Europe, Asia, and Africa over the next five years. It’s a bold aim, but one that its founder – who has been described as “the Steve Jobs of pizza” – seems intent on achieving. So what exactly makes Dodo Pizza different to all the rest? Here’s a look at the chain and the reasons behind its flourishing success.


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Read the full story at EDF+Business.
As a Trump Administration appointee tries to dismantle EPA’s credibility as a guardian of public health and the environment, other actors have been stepping up. We recently examined retailers leading the way on removing chemicals of concern from the marketplace – but there has also been significant activity from state governments and companies to increase transparency about the chemicals we are exposed to every day and to empower consumers to make informed decisions about their product purchases.
Read the full story in Forbes.
Chemical manufacturer Solugen, which uses an enzymatic process to turn plant sugars into hydrogen peroxide, announced today that they’re introducing a new line of cleaning wipes, using its hydrogen peroxide compound and biodegradable wipes. The wipes, called Ode to Clean, will start out being sold directly over the internet to businesses and consumers.
Read the full story at Colorado State University.
For more than 100 years, biochar, a carbon-rich, charcoal-like substance made from oxygen-deprived plant or other organic matter, has both delighted and puzzled scientists. As a soil additive, biochar can store carbon and thus reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and it can slow-release nutrients to act as a non-toxic fertilizer.
But the precise chemistry by which biochar stores nutrients and promotes plant growth has remained a mystery, so its commercial potential has been severely limited.
Now, an international team of researchers, with key contributions by Colorado State University experts, has illuminated unprecedented detail and mechanistic understanding of biochar’s seemingly miraculous properties. The Nature Communications study, led by Germany’s University of Tuebingen and published Oct. 20, demonstrated how composting of biochar creates a very thin organic coating that significantly improves the biochar’s fertilizing capabilities. A combination of advanced analytical techniques confirmed that the coating strengthens the biochar’s interactions with water and its ability to store soil nitrates and other nutrients.
Wed, Nov 15, 2017 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM CST
Register at https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/5929804033268092674
Stormwater discharges continue to cause impairment of our Nation’s waterbodies. Conventional stormwater infrastructure, or gray infrastructure, is largely designed to move stormwater away from urban areas through pipes and conduit. Runoff from these surfaces can overwhelm sewer systems and end up contaminating local waterways. When stormwater runs off impervious streets, parking lots, sidewalks, and rooftops, it can carry pollutants to streams, rivers, and lakes. Runoff flows can also cause erosion and flooding that can damage property, infrastructure, and wildlife habitat. In addition to runoff problems, impervious surfaces also prevent water from penetrating the soil and recharging groundwater supplies.
Green infrastructure, such as rain gardens, and porous pavement, is becoming an increasingly attractive way to reduce the amount of stormwater runoff that flows into wastewater treatment plants or into waterbodies untreated, and to recharge aquifers. It provides many environmental, social, and economic benefits that promote urban livability, such as improved surface water quality, water conservation, and improved aesthetic and property value. EPA researchers have been studying green infrastructure practices and developing models and tools to help communities manage their stormwater runoff and address nutrient impairment.
EPA developed the National Stormwater Calculator (SWC) to help support local, state, and national stormwater management objectives and regulatory efforts to reduce runoff through infiltration and retention using green infrastructure practices as low impact development controls. It is designed to be used by anyone interested in reducing runoff from a property, including site developers, landscape architects, urban planners, and homeowners. It can be used for any location within the United States, including Puerto Rico. This webinar will provide potential and example applications, and will present the new cost module and mobile web application version that can be used on mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets.
Read the full story at Waste360.
New York City has a goal to reach zero waste by 2030. And to help the city reach that ambitious goal, approximately 100 product designers, engineers, waste and recycling experts and environmental lawyers teamed up this weekend to participate in Hack:Trash:NYC, a three-day collaborative competition to reduce waste in New York City. The theme for Hack:Trash:NYC was reuse, and the competition challenged teams to “develop and pitch an innovative product, business model, service, policy or education campaign that increases reuse in NYC and results in a meaningful diversion of waste from landfill.”
Read the full story from Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families.
We have some exciting news on Costco! We’re pleased to report that Costco has announced that it is committing to reducing harmful chemicals in the products it sells by adopting a new Chemicals Management Policy! Fewer hazardous chemicals on Costco’s shelves mean fewer hazardous chemicals in our homes, our bodies, and our environment.


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February 20, 2015 – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – Western Economic Diversification Canada
The food processing industry in Saskatchewan will benefit from a new $4.35 million federal investment, announced today by the Honourable Lynne Yelich, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Consular, on behalf of the Honourable Michelle Rempel, Minister of State for Western Economic Diversification.
This investment, through the Western Diversification Program (WDP), will assist the Saskatchewan Food Industry Development Centre Inc. (Food Centre) in establishing an agri-food innovation centre. The centre will house new food development and analysis laboratories, an innovation suite for piloting and prototyping new technologies, and accredited multi-use development suites for use by small- and medium-sized enterprises to support the commercialization of new products for export markets. This initiative will also benefit from additional investments from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and the Government of Saskatchewan through Growing Forward 2, a federal-provincial initiative.
Western Economic Diversification Canada
Saskatchewan Food Industry Development Centre Inc. (Food Centre)
WD Toll-Free Number: 1-888-338-WEST (9378)
Teletypewriter (TTY): 1-877-303-3388
Website: WD is online at www.wd-deo.gc.ca.
Subscribe to news releases and keep up-to-date on the latest from WD. Follow us on Twitter at @WD_Canada.


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Global semiconductor sales look to long term growth after near term challenges
January 03, 2012 // Jean-Pierre Joosting
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) has announced worldwide sales of semiconductors were $25.1 billion for the month of November 2011, a decrease of 2.4 percent from the prior month when sales were $25.7 billion.
On a year to date basis, worldwide semiconductor sales are 0.8% higher compared to the same period last year. All monthly sales numbers represent a three-month moving average.
"Supply chain disruptions resulting from the floods in Thailand have impacted semiconductor sales in the near term, however OEM's are expected to recover production losses over the course of the next few months," said Brian Toohey, president, Semiconductor Industry Association. "November sales were additionally affected by the continuing European financial crisis which is having a broad impact on other economies and global demand."
Despite the near term supply chain and global economic challenges, the industry is still poised to close 2011 with growth and looks towards 2012 for further improvement.
For further information: www.sia-online.org.
Time for a new UI programming paradigm
May 24, 2013
With the ubiquitous usage of smartphones, tablets, and other mainstream screens, traditional products that once had analog ...
Hydrogen power enters the call center
Brussels Calling: Qualcomm wins in a wasteful industry
Europe in 10 billion € bid to boost chip industry
Nujira surpasses own world record for ET PA linearity
Silica moves to fast lane in Europe's LED market
May 23, 2013
In the booming market for LED lighting, electronics distributor Silica intends to lead the pack by offering technological ...
Intel's new CEO shakes things up
Wide-angle lens is less than 3mm high for the same diameter
Low-power wireless projected to make waves in remote controls according to IMS Research
InterviewSilica moves to fast lane in Europe's LED market
In the booming market for LED lighting, electronics distributor Silica intends to lead the pack by offering technological excellence at application level. The company is currently planning to offer tailor-made ...
Filter WizardCheck out the Filter Wizard Series of articles by Filter Guru Kendall Castor-Perry which provide invaluable practical Analog Design guidelines.
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READER OFFERRead more
The development platform for i.MX 6Quad from element14 (built to the Freescale SABRE Lite design) is an evaluation platform featuring the powerful i.MX 6Q, a multimedia application processor with Quad ARM Cortex-A9 cores at 1.2 GHz from Freescale Semiconductor.
This month, Freescale and element14 are giving away five such platforms, worth £128.06 each, for EETimes Europe's readers to win. The platform helps evaluate the rich set of peripherals and includes a 10/100/Gb Ethernet port, SATA-II, HDMI v1.4, LVDS, parallel RGB interface, touch screen interface, analog headphone/microphone, micro TF and SD card interface, USB, serial port, JTAG, camera interface, and input keys for Android.
And the winners are...
In our previous reader offer, Pico Technology was giving away one of its recently launched PicoScope 3207B, a 2-channel USB 3.0 oscilloscope worth 1451 Euros. Lucky winner Mr L. Sanchez-Gonzalez from Spain should be receiving his PicoScope 3207B soon. Let's wish them some interesting findings with his projects.
December 15, 2011 | Texas instruments | 222901974
Unique Ser/Des technology supports encrypted video and audio content with full duplex bi-directional control channel over a single wire interface.


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Internet use in the UK rose by 78% in the first lockdown in March last year compared to the same month in 2019, new figures have shown.
Broadband firm Zen Internet said its latest research showed demand for streaming services, news content and online work tools skyrocketed on its network as millions spent more time at home because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the company’s figures, traffic to BBC sites more than tripled as people sought out the latest Covid-19 news while traffic to both Netflix and Amazon Prime Video more than doubled – compared to only a 28% rise in the year prior.
Another source of entertainment in lockdown, video games, has also caused notable traffic increases between March 2020 and March 2021, Zen said, with the launch of the latest Xbox console in October causing one such spike.
The biggest demand peak of 2020 came on December 16, the company said, when a large update to gaming series Call of Duty went live while live football was streaming on Amazon Prime.
Zen Internet recently also reported a further spike on March 11 this year, when internet traffic hit its highest point ever for the network – 18% above the previous peak in December.
“This time last year, as millions across the country were told to stay at home, demand for online connectivity simply sky-rocketed to unprecedented levels,” Zen Internet chairman and founder Richard Tang said.
“More than ever before people became dependent on the broadband that connects them with the outside world and reliable connectivity became an essential commodity.
“Even as initial lockdowns eased last year, we didn’t witness a dramatic drop-off in internet usage, as you may have expected.
“In fact, entertainment streaming services continue to drive record levels of traffic, but thanks to how we manage our network Zen was more than equipped to handle this, and more if it came to it.
“As we look towards brighter times post-pandemic, we expect this demand to remain, reinforcing the need for infrastructure investment and the continued rollout of full-fibre broadband. This will give the UK the connectivity it needs to support long-term economic prosperity.”


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At negotiations under way in Geneva, there is opposition to the use of the word “counterfeit” in the World Health Organisation’s draft protocol to tackle illicit tobacco trade.
Counterfeits are a trade issue and should be kept out of health-related laws, representatives from India and Brazil have maintained.
The main concern with using the word “counterfeit” in dealing with illicit tobacco trade is it sets a bad precedent. The interpretation is that the product is not what it seems to be, and a lot of time would be spent fighting tobacco manufacturers on trademark issues — when, in fact, the sale of tobacco products need to be discouraged in any form, genuine or otherwise, a Government official familiar with the development told Business Line.
NEGOTIATIONS IN PROGRESS
“We are hopeful that the word ‘counterfeit’ will not be used at all in WHO’s FCTC (Framework Convention on Tobacco Control) protocol on illicit tobacco trade. The final negotiating session is being held now and is due to finish on April 4.
“Brazil has led the charge to have the term removed from the draft protocol, and is supported by a large number of FCTC parties. As I write, the EU is considering its position on this issue,” Mr Jonathan Liberman, Director with Australia’s McCabe Centre for Law and Cancer, said in his response, late on Saturday.
“The use of ‘counterfeit’ is extremely problematic in the tobacco context — because protection of the tobacco industry’s IP (intellectual property) rights is not a matter for a WHO treaty — and, in addition, if it is used in this protocol, in the face of everything that has been happening in the WHO on medicines over the last four years, it may later be argued by those on the IP-maximalism side of the debate that this sets a precedent that should be followed in the medicines context,” he explained.
SUBSTANDARD, NOT COUNTERFEIT
The Indian Government’s position on medicines that are not genuine is to call them “substandard, falsified or spurious” not “counterfeit” — which has to do with misuse of a brand-name, trademark or logo, the Government official said.
Besides, medicines that are not genuine also are of different types: some whose composition could be good and effective, but the product may be falsely labelled; or the entire product may be substandard, the official added.
“We in India have suffered,” the official said, referring to the seizures of several Indian generic medicine exports in Europe on allegations of trademark infringement.
Matters had come to a boil with the Government taking up the issue at the World Trade Organisation’s Dispute Settlement Body.
A truce has since been called. But Indian health authorities are, nevertheless, keen to ensure that trade rules do not get in the way of dispensing health — be it through encouraging affordable medicine or discouraging tobacco products.