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It’s another Friday in a summer that seems, if anything, to be accelerating. Again, we have no shortage of important news and interesting commentary this week.
Faster Wi-Fi at Starbucks
Starbucks is about to add a bit more caffeine to its Wi-Fi connections. This week, the company said that it will switch from AT&T to Google and Level 3. Speeds will increase by a factor of 10, the story at CNET said, though the precise increase in a particular store may be a bit more or less, depending upon need.
The switchover, which will take 18 months, will start with new facilities and then extend to existing Starbucks. There are about 7,000 Starbucks in the United States.
This Round Goes to Samsung
It may be something of a sidelight because the devices in question are older, but an intriguing dust up between Apple and Samsung will come to a head next week, according to InformationWeek.
Earlier this year, The International Trade Commission (ITC) upheld a decision that the iPhone 4 and iPad 2 breach a Samsung patent on how signals are sent and received. Therefore, devices cannot be imported or sold by Apple in its stores or on its website as of Monday. Third-party stores can only sell those already on hand.
The story said that the ITC apparently does not agree with Apple’s argument that the patents are “standard essential” and immune from banning. President Obama or U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman can stay the ban. The story said that neither has indicated that he would.
The Problems with Mobile Enterprise Apps
According to a Mobile Helix survey, IT decision makers in the U.S. and Great Britain are aware of the benefits and rationale for developing enterprise mobile apps or mobilizing existing apps – but aren’t developing those enterprise mobile apps due the cost, complexity and security concerns.
The firm, according to eWeek, found that 65 percent of the 300 IT decision makers queried cited development costs, 63 percent cited security concerns, and 48 percent cited support and maintenance costs as gating factors to development and adoption. The fact that three reasons were mentioned at such a high level is a sign that resistance is unlikely to fade away.
The importance of the findings for three constituencies was mapped out by Galen Gruman at InfoWorld:
For vendors, the data are worrisome because it means there aren’t that many IT customers for their mobile app creation and management wares. For users, it means they can’t be as productive when on a mobile device, which in turn limits business effectiveness and flexibility. For IT, it likely means further irrelevance, as users find commercial apps or build their own departmentally — in a return to the “departmental computing” phenomenon of the late 1980s and early 1990s that saw dBase programmers in every department.
New Paths to Wireless Customer Service
Though it doesn’t directly pertain to business services, the results from the latest J.D. Power and Associates wireless customer satisfaction survey say something to which IT departments should pay heed.
The top line finding is that AT&T, for the first time ever, had a higher overall score than Verizon Wireless. Beyond that, however, the firm found that online chat, at 42 percent, is the top channel for customer service. It almost doubles the runner up, which is email at 23 percent. Along the same lines, 17 percent of full-service customers have used YouTube to resolve a problem.
The bottom line is that social networking is a growing way in which people deal with organizations. IT departments should consider this as they decide how to interact with the people they manage.
Rabbit Ears Survive
And, finally, a story that in a way looks backward, not forward. Usually, the last link of the week looks at some futurist technology or cool (and perhaps scary) advance. This week, however, the choice is to look at an old technology that many thought was gone, but which soldiers on.
Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) research released this week found that 7 percent of people still use broadcast antennas to receive television programming. No smartphones. No tablets. No cable. The release cited previous CEA and Nielsen studies to show that the percentage of antenna-only households – small in the grand scheme of things but, nonetheless, close to one in every 10 households – is holding steady. The release said that 16 percent of households used antennas in 2003.


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Auction record is set
A 1960 Alberto Giacometti sculpture sold for GBP 65 million ($104.3 million) at Sotheby's, shattering the record price for a work of art at auction and signaling a potential resurgence in the art market.
In a tense contest at the company's London salesroom, bidding on the spindly bronze "Walking Man I" began at GBP 12 million and quickly escalated, with roughly 10 bidders vying for the sculpture. The winner, who pays the final bid plus Sotheby's commission, bid over the telephone through Philip Hook, senior director of Sotheby's European operations, and chose to remain anonymous.
The sale breaks the previous $104.2 million auction record, set six years ago at Sotheby's, for Pablo Picasso's 1906 portrait "Boy With a Pipe," whose buyer remains unknown.
The lofty price for the Giacometti work came as a surprise to Sotheby's, which had expected the sculpture to sell for around one-fourth of the final price. David Nahmad, a Monte Carlo-based art dealer who vied unsuccessfully for the Giacometti sculpture, said the sale shows that after a weak year, the wealthy are once again "parking their cash in art."
The nearly two-meter-tall bronze depicts a wiry man in mid-stride, his right foot jutting forward, his head erect and and his arms hanging at his side. Giacometti, a Swiss modern master known for his haunting sculptures of blank-face Everymen, cast the work 60 years ago as part of a commission to plant several of his bronze figures outside Chase Manhattan Bank in New York City's financial district. The artist famously struggled with the project, eventually quitting it but casting stand-alone versions of several of the planned figures, including "Walking Man I."
The steep run-up in bidding for the Giacometti Wednesday was likely aided by two factors: the work's large size and the artist's popularity among buyers from Russia and the Middle East. His nearly nearly three-meter-tall figure of a woman, "Big Standing Woman II," sold at Christie's in May 2008 for $27.4 million, but dealers say his oversize sculptures of men are even more coveted. "Walking Man I" is three times taller than the "Toppling Man" sculpture that Sotheby's sold in November for $19.3 million.
Dealers say the surge in casts of Giacometti's works made after his death in 1966 also have made works crafted during the artist's lifetime like "Walking Man I" more valuable.
"Walking Man I" was being sold by Commerzbank AG, which inherited the work when it took over Dresdner Bank, and its corporate art collection, last year. Commerzbank says it plans to use the proceeds to fund philanthropic endeavors.
The record sale came during Sotheby's biannual auction Wednesday of Impressionist and modern art. The total sale brought in GBP 146.8 million, topping rival Christie's GBP 76.9 million sale on Tuesday.
Highlights included Gustav Klimt's leafy 1913 landscape, "Church in Cassone (Landscape with Cypresses)," which sold for GBP 27 million.
By Kelly Crow

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Medibank Private's float opens to the public today, but analysts say retail investors are being kept in the dark.
From today, small investors will be able to apply for a dollar amount of shares.
But investors will not know how many shares they will get, or how much each share will cost, until the final pricing is announced on November 25, after the final price has been set by large institutional investors.
The prospectus has given an indicative price range of $1.55 to $2 for Medibank shares, and the Federal Government has capped the price for small (under $250,000) retail investors at $2 a share.
Broker firm bids for share allocations are due this Wednesday, but many broking firms are believed to have closed the offer early.
One of the largest retail brokers, CommSec, is believed to have closed its offer on Thursday and Macquarie will do so today.
The head of equities research at Morningstar, Peter Warnes, said this is having the effect of creating false demand and bidding up the price.
"When IPO's were underwritten there was an opening date and closing date and you knew the price of what you were being offered," he said.
"It makes absolutely no sense for these retail broker firm offers to be closed off so early - the only reason you can say is that it creates enough panic or fear of missing out so they'll overbid and that creates false demand."
Small investors 'treated like mushrooms'
Peter Warnes said small investors are being treated like mushrooms.
"Well you know how mushrooms grow, and therefore I'm saying that retail investors are kept in the dark and fed what mushrooms are fed - you know what mushrooms get fed," he said.
"So I think they're being used as cannon fodder quite frankly."
Mr Warnes also argued the whole process has confusing for the average 'mum and dad' share investor.
In particular, the Federal Government has put a very wide price range on the shares, meaning the investors will not know whether they are getting a fair deal until after they have committed to buy.
"John public has the ability to put his application in and if he was pre-registered he'd get more than he'd normally have got," he said.
"But of course he doesn't know the price. You're putting a dollar value on it rather than a number of shares, and I don't know when the last time the finance minister of this country bought something he didn't know the price of."
Mr Warnes added that the Federal Government's clear aim is to get the highest price it can.
"False demand will ultimately result in a false price and, if I had to have a bet, the price will be closer to $2 than $1.55, which I think that's good for the seller, the Government, but that's not what the process is all about," he said.
Medibank sidesteps float concerns
When ABC TV's The Business program asked Medibank Private chief executive George Savvides for his thoughts, he was happy to sidestep the issue.
"The owner of Medibank is the Federal Government, and they and their advisors are managing conducting the sale, so that process that you've alluded to is entirely in their hands," he responded.
What is in the realm of responsibilities for Mr Savvides and his management team is maintaining or increasing the dividend yield for Medibank investors.
The float prospectus commits Medibank to paying out around 75 per cent of its profits in an environment where low-cost internet operators are challenging its business.
"There is [sic] some individuals within the Medibank brand who come to a certain stage in their sort of stage and experience where they're looking for another price point and it may well be that AHM can play a role there," Mr Savvides said.
AHM is Medibank's lower margin online brand and its share of new Medibank customers has more than doubled in the past two years, with much of that business coming through comparison websites like iSelect and Compare the Market.
The risk from lower margin is lower profits.
"Now that we've worked out the tag team between the two brands, we will now invest in efforts to grow the Medibank brand in its own right," replied Mr Savvides.
A noble aim, but there is no guarantee of success, which is one reason why some believe a safe path for small investors could be to wait till after the float, when the market is setting the price.
"This stock could bounce 10 per cent on listing and then come all the way back," cautioned Mr Warnes.
Medibank Private shares are expected to start full share market trading on December 5.


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OTTAWA – The International Monetary Fund cut its growth outlook for the Canadian economy on Tuesday to just 1.0 per cent for the year, due to the drop in oil prices and reduced investment in the energy sector.
The forecast is down from the IMF’s expectation in July for Canadian growth of 1.5 per cent. The organization also lowered its Canadian outlook for 2016 to 1.7 per cent from 2.1 per cent.
The IMF also said the world economy will grow only 3.1 per cent this year, the lowest since 2009, but increased its estimate for the United States to 2.6 per cent this year, up from a July forecast of 2.5 per cent.
A major contributor to Canada’s slowdown, it said, was lower capital spending in the oil sector.
“In commodity exporters, lower commodity prices weigh on the outlook through reduced disposable income and a decline in resource-related investment,” the IMF said.
“The latter mechanism has been particularly sharply felt in Canada, where growth is now projected to be about one per cent in 2015, 1.2 percentage points lower than forecast in April.”
The downgrade by the IMF came as Statistics Canada reported the country’s trade deficit with the world increased to $2.5 billion in August as exports posted their biggest drop since 2012 due to a sharp drop in oil prices.
Economists had expected a trade deficit of $1.2 billion for the month, according to Thomson Reuters.
Statistics Canada also updated its reading for July to show a deficit of $817 million compared with its initial reading of a deficit of $593 million.
Canada’s exports in August fell 3.6 per cent from the previous month to $44 billion, while imports edged up 0.2 per cent to $46.5 billion.
Exports in the energy sector fell 14.7 per cent to $6.3 billion, due to a 20.9 per cent drop in crude oil and crude bitumen. For the group as a whole, prices fell 16.4 per cent while volumes increased 2.0 per cent.
Consumer goods exports dropped 8.0 per cent to $5.9 billion on lower volumes, while metals and non-metallic mineral products fell 9.7% to $4.5 billion.
However, exports of motor vehicles and parts rose 3.1 per cent to $7.8 billion due to a 4.5 per cent increase in exports of passenger cars and light trucks.
On the other side of the trade equation, imports of consumer goods increased 2.6 per cent to $10.0 billion.
WATCH: The latest statistics show our country’s economy has returned to growth. And as Vassy Kapelos reports, the rebound could prove to be a game-changer in the election.


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May 4, 2012
Horticulture Club to host bedding plant sale this weekend
The Horticulture Club's annual bedding plant sale is taking place, again, this weekend. It will be 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Farmer's Market at the corner of Fifth and Humboldt streets in downtown Manhattan. On Sunday, we will hold the sale from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the K-State Gardens.
Come add some color to your garden and help the K-State Horticulture Club raise funds!


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Samsung Electronics’ QLED 65 and QLED 75 2020 TV models have obtained certifications for their fire prevention systems and risk-reduction design structure from TÜV Rheinland, a leading German organization for product safety inspection and certification.
The certificate ensures that Samsung’s latest QLED TVs will benefit from various safety features to prevent fires, including built-in surge protections, flame-retardant designs and materials, and protection against high temperatures and physical shock.
Samsung plans to certify all of its 2020 QLED TVs
Along with the recent announcement comes an official confirmation that Samsung intends to extend the TÜV Rheinland certificate to all of its 2020 QLED TV models. The approval process requires TÜV Rheinland to conduct safety verifications in three main areas, from the development process and the product’s design to quality and safety systems.
Interestingly enough, this is the second certificate Samsung has obtained for its TV lineup since the beginning of the year. The company has joined the 8K Association not long ago to obtain the 8KA certificate, and its 2020 8K TVs will be among the first to bear it.
Safety is another matter, of course. The 8KA certificate guarantees a high image quality and helps customers pick the right TV, while the TÜV Rheinland certificate ensures that the product has gone through the necessary safety steps to achieve a reduced risk of fire.
Samsung’s 2020 QLED TV lineup – or at least part of it – is expected to make an appearance at CES 2020 next week.


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For today's top designers, getting your gowns on the Oscars red carpet is no cheap feat.
Beyond the cost and time required to create an extravagant gown worthy of the event, physically transporting said designs to the celebrity comes at a high price. Christian Siriano, who made custom designs for Whoopi Goldberg, Kelly Ripa, Janet Mock and Laurie Metcalf for this year's ceremony, as well as ensembles for Janelle Monae, Amy Adams, Rachel Bloom and Holland Taylor for the after parties, "probably sent about 100 dresses" for the big day and paid thousands of dollars in shipping alone.
The fashion designer told Michelle Collins on her Sirius XM daily show, The Michelle Collins Show, "It's so much money to make these custom things and send them around the world. I mean it can be $2,000 to overnight a large box to L.A."
When the host estimated the shipping total to be about $58,000, the designer stated, "Maybe about $8,000 shy of that."
Initially, you'd think the celeb's stylist would front the high Fedex bill. They are the ones making the requests. According to the designer and his husband Bill Walsh, who was also a guest on the show, the stylists and celebs just don't have the money, when they're choosing so many pieces.
"The reason that [stylists] say they don't have a budget for shipping is because they're pulling a hundred dresses," Bill said on the podcast.
It is quite typical for celebrities like Janelle Monae, who worked with stylist Alexandra Mandelkorn this year, to go through at least 50 garments before choosing the one. If she had to pay for the shipping costs of each dress, for every event, getting dressed would be very, very expensive. And while celebs want to the belle of every ball, the press surrounding the gowns is really valuable to the fashion brands, not the celebrities. Thus, if a fashion designer wants a certain star to wear his or her gown, the designer will have make sure the celeb receives it...for free.
This leaves designers with a pretty large bill, yet they still pay it. According the designer, while there's a financial hit in getting your designs on the carpet, the payoff of the exposure makes it worth it.
RELATED ARTICLE: 9 Kids' Choice Awards Style Trends You'll Be Seeing All Spring


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The three-day Business 20 (B20) conference of the G20 dialogue forum for the global business community in Northeast states concluded in Imphal, Manipur on Sunday.
The B20 delegates visited Khwairamband Ima Keithel and Kangla Fort on the concluding day on Sunday. Delegates praised the women of Ima Keithel, calling it a symbol of women empowerment in India.
Delegates from the European Union told the media that a concrete project has to be looked at. It is all about the trajectory the state takes, they said, adding that they look forward to it as stability and security has been made.
The North-eastern states, including Manipur, are seen as the gateway to South East Asia. Also, India is to implement its Act East Policy through these states. After the India-Myanmar Asian Highway construction completes, it will only take 16-18 hours to cover the distance between Bangkok and Manipur.
Also, there are plans to operate cargo flights between the Manipur capital Imphal and Mandalay, Myanmar. The three-day meeting discussed opportunities for multilateral business partnership, ICT, tourism, healthcare and handlooms.
The Business 20 (B20) is a group that represents the private sector within the Group of 20 (G20) forum.
The organisation was created to provide a platform for the business community to engage with the G20 and to offer recommendations on policies that can support global economic growth and development.
A foreign delegate from New York told the media that she will bring her relatives and family to show the beauty of Manipur, particularly the Khwairamband Keithel.
“I will tell the world that there is a beautiful market run by women that sells authentic handicrafts, clothes and others,” the delegate said.
The delegates also expressed that the hospitality of the people is rare anywhere in the world.
Another woman delegate from Russia said that she had never known that India has a beautiful state which has an extraordinary culture and tradition that is totally different from other states in the country. The handicraft and others need to be exposed to the world, she added.
WATCH: A Dive Into Ima Keithel: The Other Side of the Women-only Market in Asia
The Imphal event was the first B20 conference part of India’s G20 presidency and the second will be held in Aizawl, Mizoram from March 1 to 3. The next will be in Sikkim, Gangtok from March 15 to 17 and the fourth will be in Kohima in Nagaland from April 4 to 6.
Delegates from Australia, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Chad, Canada, China, France, Greece, Ghana, Iceland, Japan, Nepal, Russia, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Switzerland, Tunisia, Togo, Uganda, and the United States participated in the event, according to a release by PIB Manipur.
WATCH: Ima Keithel and Women Vendors: Whose Survival Are We Talking About?
Delegates from overseas trade delegation- Bhutan Chamber of commerce and industry, Asia supporting organisation, APO, Japan, India-Bangladesh chamber of commerce and industry and Bilateral organisation-Indian Association of Japan, Indo Iceland Business Association were among the participants.
Besides, diplomats-ambassadors from embassy of the republic of Tunisia, High Commissioner-Bangladesh High Commission, High Commissioner- High Commissioner of the republic of Seychelles, New Delhi, deputy head of mission-embassy of Iceland, Charge ‘d’ Affaires/head of mission- High Commission of Togo in India were part of B20 event, according to the PIB Manipur.
Also Read: First B20 conference concludes in Imphal


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The European Central Financial institution (ECB) Eurosystem digital euro undertaking’s two-year investigative part has reached its midway level. The ECB printed a progress report Sept. 29 that checked out design and coverage points which can be into consideration or have been determined.
The report said commerce in bodily shops and on-line is the largest use case for a euro central financial institution digital forex (CBDC). At present, most digital cost options are restricted in attain and never of European origin. Thus, a digital euro could harmonize payment solutions and strengthen European strategic autonomy according to coverage objectives. The report mentioned:
“A digital euro would protect the function of public cash because the anchor of the funds system within the digital age. It could guarantee the sleek coexistence, convertibility and complementarity of the assorted kinds that cash takes.”
The ECB Governing Council has authorised exploration of on-line funds validated by a 3rd occasion as a part of a primary digital euro launch, in addition to an offline peer-to-peer validated resolution with no timeline. On-line peer-to-peer options won’t be pursued additional on this part.
Anti-Cash Laundering necessities and the need to restrict the CBDC’s use in investments prevent the full anonymity of a digital euro, however the report prompt a digital euro would have privateness provisions just like present digital cost choices, with probably higher privateness for low worth and low-risk transactions.
The digital euro will limit giant holdings and be designed to restrict its use as an funding instrument, as a consequence of monetary stability issues. The Governing Council has authorised a waterfall mechanism that would switch digital euro holdings above the restrict to a industrial checking account. An offline holding limits might also be imposed. A “large set of instruments” will likely be integrated into the design to reply to future monetary situations.
The European Fee will suggest a regulation to determine the digital euro within the first quarter of 2023. The Governing Council will resolve in October 2023 whether or not to maneuver on to improvement and testing. That part might final round three years.
In an announcement in entrance of the EU Parliament, ECB board Panetta confirmed that the ECB’s Governing Council has now endorsed a primary set of foundational design decisions for the digital euro.
He mentions these two explicitly:
— Patrick Hansen (@paddi_hansen) September 29, 2022
The progress report regarded solely at a retail CBDC. ECB government board member Fabio Panetta lately discussed the possibility of creating a wholesale digital euro to be used by banks and monetary establishments. Panetta summed up progress on the digital euro in his quarterly presentation to the Committee on Financial and Financial Affairs of the European Parliament additionally on Sept. 29.


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Virtua Fighter co-creator Yu Suzuki has teamed up with NFT firm Oasyx to produce 1,000 NFTs of the popular fighting game series.
In a statement, Oasyx has said that the NFT range “will include 11 characters from the first three Virtua Fighter games” and is for “new and old fans of Virtua Fighter alike.”
These NFTs will, apparently, “serve as a base for future metaverse avatars.”
#OASYX collaborates with SEGA’s iconic 3D fighting game, Virtua Fighter, Virtua Fighter 2 and Virtua Fighter 3!!!
1,000 out of 10,000 OASYX series 1 NFTs will be this limited Virtua Fighter edition
— OasysBlockchain for Games (@oasys_games) March 17, 2023
The NFT market has cooled significantly in the last six months and such projects have generally attracted negative sentiment among video game fans, and this Virtua Fighter project is no different, with Virtua Fighters taking to Twitter to complain.
Virtua Fighter was the first 3D fighting game and was a forerunner for titles like Tekken and Soul Calibur. The most recent entry in the series was 2021’s Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown.
Sega appears to have licensed the IP for the NFT project although it’s unclear whether the company themselves have any involvement. The publisher has previously claimed that they’re interested in exploring NFTs but hasn’t yet announced any projects.
Yu Suzuki is one of Sega’s most famous faces. He served as the director on the Virtua Fighter series from the franchise’s inception in 1993. He worked as a producer on racer Daytona USA and light gun shooter Virtua Cop but Suzuki is best known for his role as director on Shenmue and Shenmue II. Suzuki left Sega in the late 00’s, but was in charge of Virtua Fighter until that time.
In a statement, Suzuki said: “During my time as a director at SEGA, I initially developed Virtua Fighter using innovative 3D computer graphics technology, which was cutting-edge and industry-leading at the time. Since then, the Virtua Fighter series has grown to be loved by many players and continues to be supported by numerous fans today.
“Through my work supervising the development of OASYX’s unique worldview, I am delighted to combine innovative technology in the form of blockchain-based NFTs, with three titles from the Virtua Fighter series to create new entertainment for a wide range of gaming fans.”
In other gaming news, Total War developers Creative Assembly has opened a new studio in Newcastle, named Creative Assembly North.


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It is no secret that the next generation iPad is coming next month. Not everyone is going to pick up an iPad 3 when it hits the market. Some Apple fans have been waiting a long time for iPad 2 prices to drop. The rumors we have heard suggest Apple will start offering older iPads at a significant discount once the iPad 3 is launched. But you don’t have to wait that long to get iPads for cheaper. Meijer, a regional retailer in the U.S., has slashed the in-store price of the 16 GB iPad 2 by $70. The deal will be available for the week of February 12-18.
This is a limited time deal as the retailer gets ready for the next generation Apple tablet. The iPad 2 has gotten promotional discounts in the past. But this is perhaps the best deal on the device yet. There are rumors that Apple will slash iPad 2 prices by $100 in March though.
The iPad is not the only device Apple intends to update this year. The iOS 5.1 code does suggest that a new Apple TV may be in the works (codenamed J33). A Best Buy source has told 9to5 Mac that not only Apple TV is out of stock in some stores but is no longer shipping to stores at all. Even Amazon does not ship these units right away (ships in 2 to 5 weeks). Details are quite sketchy about the next Apple TV. But it does seem a new one will be released very shortly. Will it be a 1080P device? We will have to wait and see.


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SUNBURY, Pa. For the fiscal year ended Dec. 26, 2009, Weis Markets posted sales gains of 3.9% to $2.5 billion on the strength of comparable-store sales increases of 1.8%, the Pennsylvania-based grocer announced Monday.
Weis also said its fourth-quarter sales increased 8.4% to $671.4 million compared with $619.4 million for the same period in 2008. The company's fourth-quarter comparable-store sales increased 1.9%. Meanwhile, the company reported diluted earnings per share of 58 cents for the fourth quarter compared with 63 cents for the same period a year ago.
"We continue to make progress in a difficult market environment, marked by cautious customer spending and price deflation in key categories," stated David Hepfinger, Weis Markets' president and CEO. "Despite these challenges, we have produced five consecutive quarters of strong operating results through improved operating performance, more focused promotional programs and increased efficiencies at store and distribution levels."


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Rusty Hearts Heroes initially popped up on the Google Play store not too long ago, but was quickly taken down for whatever reason, more than likely bug fixing. Then it ‘officially’ launched back in January of this year. Now the game has once again been taken down and it looks like it may be a permanent one this time.
When the game launched for the second time, it was running smoothly. Sure technically the game lacked a little of what Rusty Hearts fans were hoping to see in terms of gameplay, as the entire mobile game was more automated than most. Your character would attack automatically and all that players had to deal with was moving and using special abilities when doing your dungeon crawling.
Shortly after the game’s second launch, there were some server issues that would pop up from time to time, mainly with lag and login issues. Whether this second launch was more to gauge interest and player retention or not, we don’t know right now. What we do know is that it wasn’t really up long enough to get a good measurement of either of those two points.
Whatever the case may be, Rusty Hearts Heroes has been removed from Google Play and the reason why it looks permanently is because the publishers have refunded everyone’s money that was spent on IAPs. That move isn’t usually done on a temporary removal. We’ve contacted the developers/publishers to find out what is going on with Rusty Hearts Heroes and we will post an update when we hear back.
Thanks to MewMew for the heads up!


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Harrisonville, MO (11/21/2019) – Andy Huston, CEO and founder of American Hemp Research, will be one of the speakers presenting during the upcoming “Heart of America Agricultural Hemp Classic.”
Andy was the first farmer in Illinois to grow and harvest a hemp crop in 2018. He has been featured in The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal for his efforts in leading the growing hemp market throughout the Midwest. His company, American Hemp Research, specializes in cultivating high CBD hemp and offers consulting services and seed sales.
“Andy is a great source of knowledge, and we are thrilled that he will be joining us for the hemp classic,” said Bill Cook, Executive Director of the Missouri Hemp Association LLC. “Having grown hemp in the Midwest, he will bring pertinent information to our growers.”
Andy will be speaking during the January 16th program that is open to the public. He will discuss his experience and recommendations for growing a hemp crop. He will discuss both indoor and outdoor production. You can learn more about Andy and his company at www.americanhempresearch.com.


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Top stories in today’s VentureWire:
Inkling Systems Inc. Chief Executive Matt MacInnis thinks the iPad will let book publishers innovate in ways they couldn’t before. Now the company has raised $17 million in Series B funding to develop interactive textbooks for the tablet computer. Inkling got its start after MacInnis, a former Apple employee, noticed that students considered technology and textbooks to be rivals. “It was clear we had to throw that thing [the textbook] out,” he said. “Nothing could compete as efficiently as Facebook or iPods for the attention of students.”
Ellipse Technologies Inc. said it has secured $17.6 million in Series C financing as it introduces a medical technology that could save children with severe spinal scoliosis from the need to have recurring surgeries. Ellipse’s magnetically controlled implant can be directed by remote control to adjust as needed, meaning that a child should need only one minimally invasive procedure rather than several, according to the company.
Also in today’s VentureWire: Early-stage investor Kepha Partners has landed a commitment of up to $15 million for its new fund from the Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board, VentureWire has learned, giving the fund a good start toward its $100 million target…As it prepares for a commercial launch in Europe, surgical sealant developer NeoMend Inc. has turned to insiders for a $20 million Series D-1 funding round…And Janrain Inc., a company whose technology enables people to log in to websites through their social media accounts, has raised a $15.5 Series B round led by Emergence Capital.
(VentureWire is a daily newsletter with comprehensive analysis of all the investments, deals and personnel moves involving start-ups and their venture backers. For a two-week trial, click here.)
Elsewhere around the Web:
OpenView Venture Partners has become something of a shadow economic development agency for Massachusetts, as founder Scott Maxwell, who grew up in Silicon Valley, has persuaded more than a half-dozen companies to relocate to the Bay State, writes the Boston Globe’s Scott Kirsner.
BlackBerry maker Research In Motion has rolled out five new devices, including its first all-touch screen phone, as it looks to step up its game against the iPhone and Android. The Wall Street Journal considers whether RIM is up to the challenge.
Lockerz, an e-commerce company building a rewards program aimed at teens, is wrapping up a third round of venture capital at $45 million, WSJ blog All Things Digital says. DAG Ventures is leading the deal, which includes new investor Live Nation Entertainment.


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Microsoft has released a brand new system software update for the Xbox One. This system software update is not exclusive to the Xbox One Preview Members and it is available to all the regular users.
If you still haven’t received the update, you should get the prompt soon as it is slowly being made available across all regions. This update weighs in at 263 MB but there is still no official changelog available for it yet. We will update the article once a changelog is made available.
Update: You can check out the update number and changelog below.
OS version: 6.2.13329.0 (xb_rel_1508.150825-1633) fre
New or updated features
Stability and performance update
The update provides a few minor fixes that address an in game audio issue.
Microsoft are planning to release a major firmware update for the Xbox One in November so this latest update could be in preparation for the upcoming firmware update.
Let us know if you have updated to the latest version of Xbox One in the comments below.


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A report from the brokerage firm Citigroup concludes that Amazon is likely to produce an iPhone competitor in the fourth quarter of 2012. Calling it “the next logical step” for Amazon, Citigroup says it reached its conclusion after conducting “supply chain channel checks” in Asia. Citi believes that Amazon is working together with Foxconn, the manufacturer of the iPhone and many other devices, to develop the Amazon smart phone, which Citi thinks is likely to use a Texas Instrument OMAP 4 processor, which will make the phone a “mid end device” by late next year.
Though I contested the idea that Amazon’s purchase of Yap represents a bid for a Siri competitor, it’s not surprising to learn that Amazon is indeed going after the smart-phone market. Many have been predicting this since the launch of the Kindle Fire, and well before. A New York Times report about the Amazon lab that developed the Kindle from back in August 2010 discussed a potential Amazon smart phone. The Times quoted an anonymous source saying that Amazon was weighing the idea, though at the time it “seemed out of reach.”
No longer, apparently, if Citi’s sleuthing is accurate. The research note from the firm has set the tech blogosphere into a collective fever dream, imagining the possibilities a Kindle smart phone—a Kindle Spark? Kindle Flint? Kindle Matchstick?—might bring. The mantra to bear in mind, of course, is Jeff Bezos’s now semi-famous comment during the Kindle launch: how Amazon could afford to be “building premium products and offering them at nonpremium prices.” It all hinges, of course, on leveraging Kindle hardware to fuel further business in Amazon’s universe of content.
Could Amazon therefore afford to sell the phone at cost, something like $150? Or could it sell it at a loss, as it is already believed to do with the Kindle Fire? Or—man bites dog—might Amazon even pay you to own its phone, in the form of a service credit? Dan Frommer imagines the latter to be possible, in his own experience, blogging that in or around 2004, Amazon essentially “paid” him “something like $200 after a rebate to ‘buy’ a new cell phone and move my account to T-Mobile.”
Questions abound. Would the Amazon phone be an Android device (most likely), or might it snap up HP’s moribund WebOS to build its own smart phone experience? Might it be an unlocked, multi-carrier phone? Or, while we’re allowing our imaginations to run wild, might Amazon decide to get into the business of being a mobile virtual network operator unto itself, cutting out the thicket of middlemen? One blogger, Jean-Louis Gassée, recently advocated for Apple to buy a carrier. In an era where Google is bidding to be your next cable company, stranger things have happened.
Why China is still obsessed with disinfecting everything
Most public health bodies dealing with covid have long since moved on from the idea of surface transmission. China’s didn’t—and that helps it control the narrative about the disease’s origins and danger.
These materials were meant to revolutionize the solar industry. Why hasn’t it happened?
Perovskites are promising, but real-world conditions have held them back.
Anti-aging drugs are being tested as a way to treat covid
Drugs that rejuvenate our immune systems and make us biologically younger could help protect us from the disease’s worst effects.
A quick guide to the most important AI law you’ve never heard of
The European Union is planning new legislation aimed at curbing the worst harms associated with artificial intelligence.
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Everyone knows online shopping revolutionized how we buy clothing, electronics, and other merchandise.
Many malls across the country have closed their doors because people simply don’t shop at malls like they once did. Instead they buy things online. After a few days, the things show up at their doorstep.
The media nicknamed this phenomenon the “Retail Apocalypse.” And it has led to…
The “Rewiring” of American Real Estate
To ensure these packages make it to their destination, a whole new network of infrastructure was built out. Industrial warehouses and distribution centers form the heart of this network.
These facilities store, process, and ship the packages you order online.
You might drive by an industrial warehouse on your way to work. They’re generally non-descript cement buildings, located off highways. They can stretch over a quarter mile long. And they usually have dozens of trucks docked outside.
Without these centers, online shopping would be impossible. And the stocks of companies that operate them have been great investments. Just look at the returns you could have made…
Terreno Realty (
First Industrial Realty (
If You Missed Out on This Run, It’s Not Too Late
There’s a second real estate transformation happening now… thanks to the boom in online grocery shopping.
In just the last five years, online grocery sales have tripled. By 2023, the market is expected to quadruple again.
It’s easy to see why. Visiting the grocery store is a chore. The typical American family spends over a hundred hours a year shopping for groceries. A lot of that time is spent in the car and waiting in the checkout line.
Online shopping eliminates all that. It leaves you with more time to spend with your family, friends, and doing things you like.
This might surprise you, but…
The US Lags Behind Many Countries in Online Grocery Shopping
Last year, groceries accounted for just 1.6% of total US online sales. In China, they accounted for 3.8%. In Japan and South Korea, they accounted for 7.1% and 8.3% of total online sales.
You don’t see this often. Normally, the US is a leader in tech trends. In this case, it has some catching up to do.
There’s every reason to believe online grocery shopping will catch on soon in the US. The Food Marketing Institute and Nielsen predict 70% of consumers will try buying groceries online within the next four to six years. This should push grocery sales to 3.5% of total online sales by 2023.
Will Grocery Stories Disappear?
We’re not necessarily headed for a “Grocery Store Apocalypse.” But much like retail did, the industry will evolve.
Grocery stores will shrink because there will be fewer people walking up and down the aisles. They’ll store more food and beverage offsite.
As you can imagine, regular warehouses aren’t adequate for storing and processing groceries. Unlike most of the things you might buy on Amazon, groceries go bad.
A grocer can’t place a frozen chicken or a bunch of broccoli in a box and mail it to you. They have to keep the food fresh.
Cold storage warehouses store frozen and fresh food before it reaches a supermarket. About 96% of frozen food stops by one of these warehouses before reaching the grocery store.
Cold storage warehouses are specialized facilities. They aren’t cheap or easy to build. They require extensive piping, large HVAC systems, and a whole lot of refrigeration.
So, it’s unlikely Amazon, WalMart, or any other online grocer will build their own. Instead, they’ll leave cold storage to the pros.
I Like Americold Realty Trust (COLD)
The company has been around for decades. But it went public back in January 2018… and it’s been on a tear since then, as you can see here:
Americold’s stock has rocketed 112% since its IPO. I expect it to climb much higher as online groceries catch on.
About 82% of Americold’s sales come from the United States. And Americold commands a 23% market share in the US. Lineage Logistics is the only bigger player in the space, and it’s private. You can’t buy its stock.
Americold serves some of the biggest players in the food and beverage space. I’m talking Walmart, Kroger, Trader Joe’s, and Beyond Meat.
Finally, Americold pays a 2.5% dividend. The S&P 500, for perspective, yields 1.9%.
Americold is a unique and safe way to capitalize on the emerging online grocery market. But it also offers plenty of upside. I wouldn’t be surprised if its stock doubles over the next two to three years as online groceries take off.
Download our free report The Great Disruptors: 3 Breakthrough Stocks Set to Double Your Money. These stocks will hand you 100% gains as they disrupt whole industries.
Equities Contributor: Justin Spittler
Source: Equities News


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Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings and member of Standard Bank Group, has awarded the total sum of N32 million naira to twelve creative nigerian youths in the FUZE Talent Hunt 2022.
The FUZE Festival which held on December 21, saw winners of the FUZE Talent Hunt emerge from music, dance, fashion, and technology categories and walked away with N5 million naira each.
The first runner-up and second runner-up from each category were also rewarded with N2 million naira and N1 million naira, respectively.
In addition to the cash prizes, they will receive industry recognition and access to mentorship opportunities to support their creative careers and enterprise.
The FUZE Talent Hunt is a platform curated for creative young Nigerians making strides in music, dance, fashion and technology.
Recall that MSME Africa had announced a call for applications on the 1st of December, 2022.
Over 4,000 entries were received digitally via the Stanbic IBTC Events App, 40 contestants were shortlisted for the quarterfinals, 24 contestants made it to the semifinals and 12 to the finals.
Details of the auditions, contests and finale will be revealed in a three-part episode of the FUZE Talent Hunt which would be aired in Q1 2023 on selected media channels across the country.
The top three winners got the chance to perform live for the first time at the FUZE Festival, held at the Livespot Entertainment Centre, Lekki, Lagos; a first-of-its-kind event hosted by Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers.
Olumide Oyetan, Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, said the organisation did well to seek, discover and empower young talents whose ingenuity deserved to be in the limelight, noting, “It is a proof of being responsible,”
Olumide stated that the FUZE Festival equally allowed Nigerian business owners to showcase their products at the event for free, thereby positioning them for visibility and patronage. He described FUZE as an experience that was created to add positive value for everyone who participated.
Nike Bajomo, Executive Director, Business Development, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers, congratulated the winners and thanked all those who worked hard to make the event a remarkable success.
She said “Asides from being a merry and exhilarating venture, the FUZE Festival was also impactful and timely. The event was aimed at making Nigerians end the year 2022 on a high note regardless of what the rest of the year had been like.”
It was also an entire day of fun and excitement at the FUZE Festival. Attendees had a great time enjoying a robust trade fair with an amazing shopping experience where they bought items at discounted prices.
Guests also enjoyed fun games with lots of food and drinks, face and body painting for kids and adults with many other entertaining activities for individuals and their families to celebrate the yuletide. Nigerian musical artistes – Ladipoe, Teni, Wurld, DJ Crowd Kontroller performed and thrilled the audience at the event.
Also in attendance at the FUZE Festival were Ikechukwu Eric Ahiauzu (Ric Hassani), Founder of Riverlands Records, who judged the Music Category; Banke Kuku-Lawson, Founder & Creative Director of Banke Kuku, judged the Fashion Category; Bunmi Olunloyo, Founder & Creative Director of Bailamos Dance Company judged the Dance Category, while Stanley Jacob, Chief Executive, Stanbic IBTC Financial Services, judged the Tech Category.


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Proton Global Small Car (GSC) was rumoured to be named Iriz, same is now confirmed via leaked trademark certificate document.
Proton Compact Car (PCC) has been testing a lot for a long time and now launch is imminent. The B-segment five-door hatchback from Proton codenamed P2-30A was called as Global Small Car (GSC), which is now rumoured to be named Iriz.
Hyundai Elite i20 launched just a few days back and just the pre-launch bookings (4,600 orders) show that it is up for a bigger game the i20 nameplate ever saw in India. Question that comes up here is, will second generation i20 premium hatchback beat the yet-unassailable Maruti Swift? Here is our comparison review.
Nissan India reports 2,913 vehicles sold in July 2014 over 1,226 units sold in July 2013 equating to 138% sales growth. For the current financial year, Nissan India Sales to Date stands at 17,597 over 7,494 for the same period last year, equating to 135% sales growth.
Launched in India in 2009, Tata Nano in its latest Twist variant avatar now enters Bangladesh three years later than planned, due to pricing issues. After receiving tepid response in India, Nano is launched as a low budget car in Bangladesh and expected to capture greater attention here.
While major players in category B premium hatchback segment spent time in makeup room to woo customers through facelift launches, south Korean automaker Hyundai was busy developing a strategically smart move in the race, at Design Center in RÃ¼sselsheim, Germany. Product of which is new Elite i20, launched in impeccable timing too.
Mahindra Reva Electric Vehicles has launched a new Premium e2o variant with an extended 120 km range (single charge), and electric power steering. As of date, Mahindra e2os have run over 2 million kilometres globally to benefit customers, and dear earth, having saved on fuel and facilitated 0 tail pipe emissions.
Volkswagen GT TSI has arrived much earlier than hinted launch in last week of August and has started deliveries as well, which was told to begin from first week of September 2014. Volkswagen Cross Polo with new 1.5 TDI diesel engine has also arrived at showrooms ready to find home.


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Private investment company buys Virginia Business magazine
- September 24, 2009
Virginia Business Magazine, published by Media General, Inc., has been sold to Virginia Business Publications LLC, a Virginia-based investment company that will include Bernard A. Niemeier, the magazine’s president and publisher. The sale was effective today. No terms were released.
Virginia Business, a statewide business news monthly that covers major industries and business trends, has published for nearly 24 years. “We are delighted to be able to acquire a strong, long-standing, statewide brand that is the best in its category. The reputation of Virginia Business is excellent, and the quality of the executive audience it reaches is unsurpassed in the marketplace. The award-winning magazine has an excellent staff, and we expect to retain all full-time employees,” said Niemeier on behalf of the new ownership group.


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The retailer, which this week announced a fall of 3.9% in like-for-like sales since January 28 last year, has commissioned three new TV commercials using its fictional news reporters, Wooly and Worth, to bring the latest news on offers and promotions.
The ads are set to air at prime viewing times, with the first 30-second execution fixed to break on Wednesday (April 5).
Introducing a new strapline, 'More Great News from Woolworths', the television campaign is set to be backed by heavyweight on-line, in-store and press advertising. Woolworths' marketing director Stephen Robertson said: "Easter is the second biggest retail event in the calendar after Christmas and vitally important to us.
"To ensure we get the clearest messages to our customers, we've revamped our advertising and in-store communications and created a format that provides us with an excellent mix of brand and product messages."


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The amount of acid whey, the liquid low pH byproduct left over from Greek yogurt production, has been mounting over the past 10 years as Greek yogurt went from from accounting for 1% of the yogurt sales in 2007 to roughly 54% last year, Chobani previously told DairyReporter.
Greek-yogurt production requires three cups of milk to produce one cup of yogurt, resulting in the production of large volumes of acid whey waste, according to the study’s researchers.
Many US farmers have been using acid whey to spread across their farmland while other solutions involve converting it into methane gas, researchers said.
However, the farmer demand for acid whey for their crops has been outpaced by supply, and revenue from methane remains low due to the abundance of the natural gas in the US from other methods such as fracking.
“Until now, no other products could be produced with microbiomes from this waste stream,” the researchers wrote.
“This has now changed. Here, we showed that acid whey was converted into valuable medium-chain carboxylic acids (MCCAs), such as n-caproic acid (n-hexanoic acid) and n-caprylic acid (n-octanoic acid), without addition of external electron acceptors.”
Converting acid whey to methane results in a “a significant carbon footprint” as it spends a lot of time being transported from the Greek yogurt manufacturing plants to offsite anaerobic digesters, sometimes hundreds of miles away, all for a very low cost, the study’s lead author Largus T. Angenent said.
“If converting acid whey to methane was really economical, a dairy plant would just build an onsite digester because it’s off-the-shelf technology,” Angenent told DairyReporter.
“We wanted to develop a technology that was available on site (to Greek yogurt manufacturers) and create a product with a much higher (monetary) value.”
To do this, researchers collected acid whey from Fage Company’s two New York production facilities and stored it at −20°C until placing it into bioreactor systems.
Then they created MCCAs from the acid whey, which contain more carbon molecules than methane gas.
“The chemical we make is between six and nine carbons long and the cost of these chemicals are much more related to the demand for oil and that has a higher price,” Angenent said.
Angenent and his team believe if this technology is made available on site or nearby Greek yogurt manufacturers, it will create a sustainable circular economy to convert the tons of acid whey leftover each year.
“Temperature-Phased Conversion of Acid Whey Waste Into Medium-Chain Carboxylic Acids via Lactic Acid: No External e-Donor”
Authors: Largus T. Angenent, et al


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ObENObEN is an artificial intelligence company that creates complete virtual identities for consumers and celebrities in the emerging digital world. ObEN"s full-stack solution provides a Personal AI that simulates a person’s voice, face and personality, enabling never before possible social and virtual interactions. Founded in 2014, ObEN is a Softbank Ventures Korea and HTC Vive X portfolio company and is located at Idealab in Pasadena, California. Source: Crunchbase has announced they had signed a letter of intent with STAR48 to develop a suite of new virtual intelligence applications for SNH48 Group.
ObEN also recently entered into a joint venture company (based in Hong Kong) with SM Entertainment of South Korea to develop this line of business in Asia for the entertainment industry.
The company is promoting this as the “first idol group in the world equipped with artificial intelligence.”
Stay tuned for further news on this venture as it becomes available.


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The Bitfury Group, the full-service blockchain technology company, today announced it has launched its artificial intelligence (AI) division, a major expansion that supports its mission to build innovative new solutions across the emerging technologies landscape.
The AI division will operate alongside Bitfury’s well-established blockchain services portfolio and build on several years of research and development by the company’s award-winning engineering team.
Bitfury’s new AI division will use the company’s world-class hardware and software technologies to build integrated product solutions at the edge, as well as cloud-to-edge enterprise solutions for corporations and governments.
Bitfury has appointed veteran technologist Fabrizio Del Maffeo to lead its new AI division. Before joining Bitfury, Fabrizio was Vice President and Managing Director of AAEON Technology Europe, which is the AI and internet of things (IoT) computing company within the ASUS Group. During his time at AAEON, Fabrizio founded “UP Bridge the Gap,” a product line for professionals and innovators which is now a leading reference solution in AI and IoT for Intel.
In 2018, Del Maffeo launched alongside Intel their “AI in Production” program. Previously, he served as country manager for France and Sales Director for Northern, Southern, and Eastern Europe for Advantech, the largest industrial IoT computing company. In this role, he also led the intelligent retail division. He graduated with a master’s degree in telecommunication engineering from Milan Politecnico University.
“Just as blockchain technology enables us all to fix our most broken and distrusted systems, artificial intelligence will bring new and extraordinary benefits to nearly every facet of our lives. To help this incredible technology achieve maximum impact, Bitfury is expanding our mission to offer hardware and software solutions designed especially for AI applications.”
– Valery Vavilov, CEO and co-founder of Bitfury
Del Maffeo said he joined Bitfury because he believes the company’s successes in blockchain and HPC confirms its strong commitment to increasing market access to emerging technologies. “I look forward to leading Bitfury’s AI team and to launching products that make it easier, safer and more cost-efficient for businesses to adopt artificial intelligence at scale,” he stated.


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HTC M7 to be named simply HTC One?
The upcoming HTC M7 could be rechristened the HTC One according to the latest whirl of internet rumours
HTC is relying heavily on its upcoming HTC M7 flagship handset to return the company to former Android glories - but the latest rumour suggests the Taiwanese company may simply call the phone the HTC One.
The Taiwanese company isn't the most secretive tech firm out there, so even though this is just another internet rumour, there could be a shred of truth to it. After all, Peter Chou recently pulled out the handset at the company's end-of-year party in Taipei to snap a couple of pictures - and even shouted "HTC One" at the audience.


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ltechnologygroup.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.http://tctechcrunch2011.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/simplisafesamplesystem.jpg
SimpliSafe was one of the first modern startups in the home security space. Over the course of the last few years, though, as others entered the market, too, SimpliSafe’s rather pedestrian design started to look stale. Now, at CES, the company is introducing a full redesign of its system, both in terms of design and technology. In addition, it’s also launching a video doorbell, a smart lock and an outdoor camera.
The new system’s sensors are half the size of the old ones (but with double the range). Indeed, the idea here is that the new design, which the company worked on with IDEO, is meant to be invisible. The new base station, which includes both a Wi-Fi and cellular connection with a 24-hour battery backup, now features a new firmware and increased processing speed — and even if an intruder smashes the base station, siren and keypad, the new system should now still be able to get an alert out to the authorities.
“For the new SimpliSafe, we’ve improved everything,” said Chad Laurans, SimpliSafe’s founder and CEO. “It’s a doubling-down on SimpliSafe’s core mission from day one: to make the best home protection possible available at a price that is radically fair. There is nothing else like it.”
Details for the video doorbell, outdoor camera and smart lock are still a bit sparse. The company says that its video doorbell will feature 1080p video, two-way audio and motion alerts. As you’d expect, the outdoor camera will feature motion detection, though the company hasn’t said much about its smart lock yet. SimpliSafe does say, however, that it will also soon support Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant across its product line.
The price for the SimpliSafe security system will remain the same. An entry-level kit will retail for $299, with a system with more sensors will retail for $539. Individual sensors will cost $15 for basic entry sensors and $99 for the company’s indoor camera. The subscription price for 24/7 monitoring remains at $15/month.
At L Technology Group, we know technology alone will not protect us from the risks associated with in cyberspace. Hackers, Nation States like Russia and China along with “Bob” in HR opening that email, are all real threats to your organization. Defending against these threats requires a new strategy that incorporates not only technology, but also intelligent personnel who, eats and breaths cybersecurity. Together with proven processes and techniques combines for an advanced next-generation security solution. Since 2008 L Technology Group has develop people, processes and technology to combat the ever changing threat landscape that businesses face day to day.
Call Toll Free (855) 999-6425 for a FREE Consultation from L Technology Group, https://www.ltechnologygroup.com.


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LG Innotek is introducing a C-V2X (Cellular-Vehicle To Everything) module based on LTE cellular communication.
C-V2X technology is expected to overcome the limitation of self-driving cars that recognize the environment by relying on automotive sensors such as camera and radar. It is possible to recognize blind spots or unexpected situations through communication with other vehicles and road infrastructures.
With LG Innotek’s C-V2X module, automaker and components manufacturers can now speed up their progress in developing the next generation communication platforms. The company used Qualcomm 9150 C-V2X for its communication chip set that functions as the brain for the C-V2X module because it is considered the most advanced among the communication chip sets. Even though C-V2X is an unprecedented piece of technology that is difficult to modularize, LG Innotek was able to succeed by utilizing its own circuit design technology and automotive components business knowhow.
Also, LG Innotek has allowed various manufacturers to use this module regardless of the region or type of car by adhering to the international technical standards. The module is in accordance with the LTE-based C-V2X direct communication (PC5) standards set by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) last March.
LG Innotek is actively engaged in developing V2X communication platforms with numerous global companies in Europe, North America, and Asia. According to the market research institution Lux Research, the size of the global V2X communication module market is set to reach $6.5 billion by 2020.
LG Innotek is unveiling the C-V2X module at the 2018 Electronica this week in Munich.


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A survey conducted by CNBC he pointed out that 83% of Generation Y millionaires, born between 1981 and 1996, in the US invested in cryptocurrencies. In addition, the vast majority of this generation does not plan to change their cryptocurrencies anytime soon, on the contrary, they want to buy more.
The investment contrast between generations X and Y may be related to technology, as the latter is much more inclined to use cryptocurrencies, as a store of value or as a currency.
In addition, another point that may be crucial in this decision is the high inflation in the US, which has reached values not seen for 40 years. In this way, many are preferring to use a currency that has a fixed control over its offer, such as Bitcoin.
In addition to more millionaire millennials being more attached to cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, the survey also shows that the wealth of more than half of them is concentrated in cryptocurrencies than in fiat currencies such as the dollar.
While the portfolio of 30% of Generation Y millionaires, known as millennials, is made up of at least 74% in cryptocurrencies, only 4% of baby boomer millionaires, born between 1950-1964, invest in them, with a much smaller share in their portfolios.
This shows the contrast between these generations, suggesting that while older people aren’t as keen on technology, younger generations will be the ones who will take the most advantage of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, which doesn’t depend on any government to exist.
Generation Y will continue to invest
The CNBC survey also points out that only 6% of these millionaires intend to reduce their investments in cryptocurrencies. Another 39% intend to keep their current positions and 48% of them want to buy even more cryptocurrencies in the next twelve months.
This flight to a supply-constrained currency could be largely linked to high US inflation reaching worrying proportions. With a cumulative 6.8% in the last twelve months, this is the highest rate since 1982, when the first millennials were born.


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Oct 31, 2007
German retail sales show one-month surge in September
Oct 31, 2007
FRANKFURT, Oct 31, 2007 (AFP) - German retail sales were stronger than expected in September but fell on a yearly basis for the second month in a row owing to a calendar effect, official figures released on Wednesday, October 26th showed.
Retail sales in the biggest eurozone economy rose by 2.3 percent on a monthly basis, posting a much sharper increase than the 0.9 percent average forecast of analysts polled by Thomson Financial News.
They had fallen in August by 1.6 percent from the level in July.
On a 12-month basis however, retail sales dropped by 2.2 percent following a decrease in August, with the federal statistics office Destatis noting there had been one less shopping day in September 2007 than in the same month a year earlier.
Analysts warned against reading too much into the September increase, which might not be repeated this month.
On a 12-month basis, food and tobacco showed the sharpest falls meanwhile, down by 4.6 percent, a statement said.
In categories such as clothing, footwear, cosmetics, medicines and mail-order however, sales rose on the year, Destatis said.
German unemployment has been steadily decreasing this year, and wages have also risen somewhat as the economy expands, prompting repeated forecasts that household consumption, traditionally the country's weakest economic link, would pick up.
But on Tuesday, analysts took a cautious view of the figures.
At IXIS-CIB, economist Sylvain Broyer forecast that "consumption will improve next year, while only moderately."
He noted that labour income has already gained 3.0 percent this year and said sluggish private spending was the result of "a strong increase in consumption and households' taxes."
Germany raised its value added tax in January from 16 to 19 percent.
Commerzbank analyst Matthias Rubisch said that while the September figures were good, "higher energy and food costs are eroding real purchasing power and undermining consumer sentiment."
He added that the figures appeared to have been distorted by an 11.7 percent annual increase in clothing sales, estimating that "cold weather evidently prompted shoppers to invest in the new autumn collection."
October would thus likely see a sharp dip in comparison, Rubisch suggested.
With private spending still sluggish, he warned that "consumption will hardly meet the high expectations made of it next year."
In addition to sharp real increases in the cost of food and energy, "general talk about rising food prices and higher inflation rates will no doubt have helped to unsettle consumers," the analyst said.
Broyer forecast German consumption would rise by 1.8 percent in 2008, but Rubisch put the figure at 1.5 percent.
That "would be the strongest result for seven years, but this hardly constitutes a boom," he noted.
Copyright © 2021 AFP. All rights reserved. All information displayed in this section (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the contents of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presses.


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- Tesla has “a shot at a record quarter for vehicle deliveries,” Elon Musk told staff in a leaked email on Sunday, seen by Bloomberg.
- The email, titled “All hands on deck!,” urged employees to sell as many vehicles as possible by the end of the electric vehicle company’s third quarter.
- Tesla’s current deliveries record is 112,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2019. The pandemic pushed down sales, and therefore deliveries to customers, in the first half of 2020.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Tesla may beat its previous record for quarterly vehicle deliveries to customers if employees “rally hard” before September 30, CEO Elon Musk told staff in an internal email seen by Bloomberg.
He urged employees to beat the previous record in an email titled “All hands on deck!” sent on Sunday, ahead of Tesla’s annual meeting of stockholders on Tuesday, September 22.
Musk described vehicle deliveries as “absolute top priority,” and said it was vital to keep factory output “as high as possible” in the days leading up to September 30, when the company’s third quarter ends.
“This is the most number of vehicles per day that we’ve ever had to deliver,” he added.
Delivery numbers are important to Tesla because, unlike most other vehicle manufacturers, it owns its entire distribution system. This means that revenues aren’t reported until the company delivers vehicles to buyers. Tesla therefore tries to deliver as many vehicles as possible before the end of each quarter.
Tesla recorded 112,000 vehicles in the fourth quarter of 2019, its record so far. In total, the company delivered around 367,500 vehicles in 2019, 50% more than in 2018.
But consumers cut back spending on cars during the pandemic, and Tesla delivered around 179,050 vehicles in the first half of 2020 – a 15% drop from the second half of 2019. It produced fewer cars between April and June than the previous quarter because factories shut down during the pandemic, but recorded slightly more deliveries.
For Tesla to beat its record from the fourth quarter of 2019, it needs to increase its vehicle deliveries by more than 20,000 from the 90,650 reported last quarter.
Musk had previously sent similar emails to staff nearing the end of a quarter.


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The universe of indie edition is set to bear nonetheless another tectonic shift, instituted by a world’s biggest publisher: Amazon.
In a summary posted to a website final week, a association announced skeleton to dramatically change a approach it pays authors enrolled in a Kindle Unlimited program, a Netflix-like use that allows readers to compensate a prosaic cost ($10) to steal an sum series of books each month. As of Jul 1, authors will be paid formed on a series of pages a consumer reads.
“We’re creation this switch in response to good feedback we perceived from authors who asked us to improved align payout with a length of books and how many business read,” a summary said.
Previously, Amazon paid authors formed on either a reader had reached a 10% symbol in a book, no matter a length. After that was calculated, a ubiquitous income pool was divided adult and divvied out to authors. But some indie authors schooled to diversion a complement by edition a incomparable series of shorter books, so earning a same, and in some cases, some-more income than those with fewer titles, though longer page counts.
Some authors, including those participating in online forums such as the Writer’s Cafe on KBoards.com, called a arrangement unfair. They pronounced Amazon was inadvertently rewarding unethical hustlers peddling 20-page pamphlets by profitable them a same as an author who slaved over a 300-page novel for several years.
Now that’s all changed.
If, for example, a stream payout account is $10 million and 100 million sum pages were review in a month, a indie author of a 100-page novel that was borrowed and review all a approach to a finish 100 times would acquire $1,000, according to Amazon’s payment explainer.
Of course, a volume in a KDP Select Global Fund shifts month to month, so authors enrolled in Kindle Unlimited (automatic if they enroll in KDP Select, that requires Amazon exclusivity for their book) will still be mostly in a dim about monthly revenue. Compared to a some-more straightforward, non-Kindle Unlimited complement that pays authors a tangible cut of a squeeze cost on each book sold, Kindle Unlimited will still seem like a large play to many indie authors.
A recent poll on a Writer’s Cafe suggests that many indie authors like a change, though still have some regard about a abruptness of a implementation. Amazon announced a change only dual weeks before it will take effect. Once enrolled in Kindle Unlimited, authors contingency keep their books in a module for 90 days.
That said, authors still have a choice on either they wish to opt into a Kindle Unlimited/KDP Select system, and abandon a aloft prominence for a potentially incomparable cut of income by normal sales. That’s an critical point. The ebook bullion rush of 2009 to 2012 generated a lot of income for indie authors, such as Hugh Howey and Joe Konrath, though many of that success came before Kindle Unlimited’s rather some-more severe gain environment.
Now, a fear — mostly tacit within indie author circles — is either Amazon competence one day force all authors into Kindle Unlimited, a pierce it could govern tomorrow with relations ease. If that happens, today’s capricious indie edition sourroundings would, in hindsight, demeanour like a good aged days.
Have something to supplement to this story? Share it in a comments.


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Toyota Kirloskar Motor has said the Centre’s earlier target of setting up an all-electric fleet from 2030 will be possible from only 2050 and suggested that hybrid cars will be an “interim” solution till that time.
Vice-chairman and whole-time director at TKM, Shekar Viswanathan said the Japanese car maker is in the process of shipping around 4,000 newly launched Toyota Yaris sedan across the country for consumers even as he maintained that as of now they have about 60,000 customer enquiries on the car.
“The central government itself has backtracked on the 100 per cent e-vehicles by 2030 target. They realised that you can’t have electric charging infrastructure in place by 2030 to achieve that target.
“I think this is going to become a reality only by 2050. Second we (TKM) are well positioned to introduce all types of technology products whether electric, hybrid hydrogen and any other technology that may come up in the next five years,” the official said in a press conference.
The car maker today officially launched Tayota Yaris in Telangana.
He said they are suggesting the Government to encourage hybrid cars so that it need not create any additional infrastructure for charging of vehicles.
“Our message for the Government of India is we don’t have charging infrastructure today. It will take 20 to 30 years to build that charging infrastructure.”
“In the interim period we believe that the ideal solution is hybrid vehicles. This is what we told the Government. And the Government will not have to spend a single penny in creating charging infrastructure for hybrid vehicle,” he explained.
Replying to a query he said their two plants put together have a capacity of producing 3,10,000 vehicles per annum and the capacity utilisation is to the extent of 100 per cent for the plant one and about 30 per cent for the second unit.
Viswanathan said the target for the current calendar year is 1,60,000 units and this may change once the order book for newly launched Yaris is clearly emerged.
“For the calendar year, it will be 1,60,000 vehicles we are targeting. We will probably revise this number once the Yaris booking gets clear picture after a month or so. We have 60000 enquiries and counting. Lot of these will be converted in to orders,” he said.


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Staff from UMaine’s Highmoor Farm in Monmouth will be on the Orono campus again this fall to sell high quality apples and pumpkins. We hope to see you there!
Highmoor Fall Harvest Sale
Thursday, October 10, 2013 – weather permitting
10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Located by the Cyrus Pavilion Theatre, between Winslow Hall and Fogler Library
The following apple varieties will be on sale:
Gala Golden Delicious
Apple prices: $1.00/lb
$2.00/lb for HoneyCrisp and organically grown HoneyCrisp
There will be several varieties of pumpkins on sale.
For more information, please contact Greg Koller, Highmoor Farm Superintendent, at 933.2100 or email@example.com.
Image Description: Apples
Image Description: Variety of pumpkins
Renae Moran, a tree fruit specialist with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, spoke with WVII (Channel 7) about this year’s apple crop. Moran said southern Maine is having an above average year due to the good weather conditions during pollination when trees were in bloom. She said a week later trees in northern Maine came into bloom when there was a long period of rainy, cold weather.


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The backdrop of well being care reform together with the conversional medical machine tax have failed to prevent the continued developments in medical know-how by quite a few companies which are targeted on healthcare merchandise that aren’t solely cheaper, but additionally provide proficient patient care. Know-how blogs include the topics on internet designing, web growth, UI & UX, cell application growth, the latest iOS or Android update, fashionable devices corresponding to wearables, and different programming languages (like php,.net, Python, Java, and so forth.). Nowadays, technology blogs additionally speak about automated cellular app development platforms and cross platform growth.
People will be extra up to date with the assistance of online newspapers. Since technology is ever evolving, tech blogs and tech news have develop into a fad. However, one thing is definite, and that’s right this moment’s era are better capable of adapt to the modifications and calls for of technology.
As of late, I don’t have as many occasions to open the app, however anytime I have to get by means of a prolonged court docket document or research paper, LiquidText is my go-to. I use Freedom primarily on my MacBook while working to dam the web sites that suck a number of trip of my day: Twitter, YouTube and Fb (once I nonetheless used Facebook), to name the biggest culprits.
New kinds of storage devices corresponding to newer versions of flash reminiscence playing cards, exhausting disks using newest know-how and disks of ever-increasing capability are the outcomes of development in latest technology in compute hardware. Startup Clearview AI has built a facial recognition system that claims to be able to ID folks in real-time, matching them with billions of photos pulled from databases and scraped from social media.
Watch The First Trailer For Gillian Flynn’s Amazon Collection ‘Utopia’
With our rapid evolution on the planet of technology, one ought to never be surprised at new and unique shops for expression. For example, Washington Reuters acknowledged that “nearly one-third of American Internet customers surveyed said they go online only for fun fairly than to check e-mail, read News, or use a search engine, a pointy improve from a yr in the past,” (Reuters, 2006, p 1). Therefore, which means as a society, though there has been a rise in software program engineering of games and programs, society has saved up in terms of spending time on the computer with a view to use these software and packages.
From accessing massive quantities of information on the web to simply experiencing an enriched private lifestyle, technology continues to profit us day in, day out. We now have already got video calling by which we’d have the ability to see the individual that we are speaking to. This could be really nice for people who have loved ones which are away from house.
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The month of Could is not only the time the annual Cannes Movie Pageant shall be held in addition to the Monaco F1 Grand Prix, this month also holds a couple of surprises for video players and fans. The joint investigation follows final week’s massive tech antitrust hearing wherein House representatives requested Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in regards to the company’s alleged misuse of third-celebration vendor knowledge Bezos instructed the Home Judiciary Antitrust Subcommittee he couldn’t ensure the corporate had avoided misusing that data.
A ‘Firewatch’ Movie Is In The Works, Once more
In a couple of transient many years of human history, data know-how has permeated every nook of the world and every facet of the human experience. Every day information and media news is in no way just like know-how news, it may contain a part of it, but it’s simply not covers all the pieces in it. Nonetheless, recent events make an early recovery in India’s data know-how firms, promising. Frequent Updates: A online game or tech information web site that isn’t up to date actually is not worth visiting.
It was time consuming and so on. Nowadays, you’ll be able to actually use a computer to save lots of information and retrieve it. In simply once click on, you may immediately find the identify of a buyer, the delivery date, address and so on. As far I do know laptop expertise has helped quite a lot of businesses to raised serve the community.
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In case you run an IT firm, subscribing to blogs on know-how can assist you be taught the most recent developments in the market. Stuff is first to tread where no other technology magazines assume to tread.


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Ground Report | New Delhi: Facebook denounces 6 companies; Meta Platforms Inc. reported Thursday that seven spy companies have used its platform to spy on 50,000 people in 100 countries. These seven companies are located in China, Israel, India and North Macedonia.
BellTroX, which is based in India, is among seven companies identified in four countries in the investigation that has been ongoing since the beginning of this year. Meta is a parent company and social media platforms and messaging services like Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram are part of it.
Facebook denounces 6 companies
Through a statement, the parent company of Facebook, Meta, alerted people who were the object of surveillance by “cyber mercenaries”, who work hand in hand with government agencies, as well as with companies.
In an announcement Thursday, the social media giant said the seven entities had targeted people in more than 100 countries on behalf of their government clients. Only two of the companies named by Facebook, Black Cube and Cobwebs Technologies, had responded to questions by email or phone at the time of publication.
One of the seven is a North Macedonian startup Cytrox, an iPhone and Android malware developer, Facebook said. Although his business model depends on staying in the shadows, one of the few times his name appeared in the press was in Forbes in 2019, when a Cyprus-founded and Israel-founded surveillance “alliance” emerged dubbed Intellexa that it had acquired. Cytrox. for $ 5 million.
Intellexa CEO Tal Dilian claimed that he had rescued the Macedonian-founded company from extinction, shortly before showing a $ 9 million surveillance van that could hack a Huawei smartphone from hundreds of meters away to steal private data, including WhatsApp messages.
(Intellexa has since received a $ 1 million fine from a data protection authority for using the van.) Facebook announced the removal of 300 Facebook and Instagram accounts that it has linked to Cytrox, and revealed a “large” number of websites that appear to have been used by the surveillance provider that mimics those of major public companies such as Apple, Fox News, Google, Facebook’s Instagram and the automaker Tesla. The indication was that these could have been used in phishing attacks against targets, Facebook said.
Along with the Facebook ban, researchers from the surveillance industry monitor Citizen Lab claimed today that Cytrox’s iOS malware, dubbed Predator, was discovered on the iPhone of an Egyptian activist and former presidential candidate, Ayman Nour, who allegedly also was the target of a surveillance tool created by under fire Israeli spyware maker NSO Group.
Citizen Lab, based at the University of Toronto, identified countries that are potential Cytrox customers: Armenia, Egypt, Greece, Indonesia, Madagascar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Serbia. Facebook said it had also identified evidence of victims in Armenia and clients in Germany, Vietnam, the Ivory Coast, and the Philippines.
A person identified by Citizen Lab as CEO of Cytrox had not responded to requests for comment, while the founder, referred to by Pitchbook as Rotem Farkash, did not respond to requests for comment. Intellexa founder and director Tal Dilian declined to comment. However, NSO denied that it had ever sold spyware tools to Egypt and that the claims in the Citizen Lab report were false.
Apple also denounced the NSO Group
Apple filed a legal complaint against NSO Group and its parent company to demand responsibility for surveillance and targeted attacks on users of Apple devices.
The lawsuit contains information about the infection of the devices of affected individuals by the NSO Group with its Pegasus spyware.
The iPhone smartphone maker said it filed the lawsuit to prevent NSO Group from harming its users again and asked for a court order permanently banning NSO Group from using the company’s software, services, and devices.


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For those who awoke this morning with the sudden need for a minimalist mask that blends seamlessly with one's skin tone, know that Skims has your back (and, uh, your face). The Kim Kardashian West-founded shapewear and underpinnings label is launching its first line of non-medical face coverings — and they're shoppable right this minute.
The breathable, one-size-fits-all Seamless Face Masks are available in five shades and cost $8 for one, $15 for two, and $25 for four. In addition to pledging $1 million to support the COVID-19 relief efforts of Baby2Baby, Good+ Foundation, L.A. Food Bank, and National Domestic Workers Alliance, the brand is also donating 100,000 masks to each of the nonprofit organizations.
Shop the masks online at Skims here.


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The WTF stock chart of the year. And another WTF chart of just how tiny Tesla is compared to the top 10 automakers.
Is this the black-swan event people have been predicting for years?
OK, let’s look at the Tesla magic briefly.
Shares, which at peak-hype spiked 1,200% in a month, go to zero. Board of Directors goes to zero. Executives go to zero. Sales already zero.
Another money-losing, cash-burning, over-hyped unicorn in a ho-hum low-tech business (bedding retailer) tries to make it out the IPO window.
Tesla’s Stock Makes it the Second Most Valuable Automaker in the World. But How About its Size?
Shares plunged 20% on the spot, and are down 44% in nine months.
Its debt surged to fund the share buybacks. And truckers ate its lunch. But don’t tell any of this to the “market.”
Texas at the epicenter. We’re witnessing the destruction of money that loosey-goosey monetary policies encouraged.
Brick & Mortar melts down on mall owners. So “repurpose” malls into housing?


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Italy’s beloved Parmigiano Reggiano cheese has long been a target for counterfeiters seeking to profit from its prestigious reputation. And they’re not alone.
In an effort to protect the authenticity of products, promote consumer safety, and even comply with expanding requirements around food tracing, food and beverage producers around the world are exploring revolutionary technologies to improve visibility across the supply chain.
And the world is paying attention.
A cascade of recent news coverage has explored this battle against counterfeiting in the food and beverage industry, and, more specifically, how the integration of p-Chip microtransponders into Parmigiano Reggiano food-tracing efforts represents a watershed moment in the realm of food tracking and tracing technology.
The Wall Street Journal:
The Times of London:
And much more
The battle against imitation has taken a high-tech turn, as the Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano introduces p-Chip crypto anchors into the production process to safeguard authenticity and protect consumers from fraudulent knockoffs.
p-Chip microtransponders represent a significant leap forward in food tracking and tracing technology. Roughly the size of a grain of salt, the trackers are discreetly embedded within QR-code labels on the cheese’s rind. They serve as durable, scannable food tags that act as digital anchors, enabling producers to trace the product’s origin and path through the supply chain.
The integration of microchips into Parmigiano Reggiano addresses several key challenges in the fight against counterfeiting. And other producers are tuned in.
As demand for authentic delicacies grows globally, the risk of fraudulent products infiltrating the market escalates. With estimated global sales of counterfeit cheese, for example, reaching a staggering $2 billion annually, the need for robust protection solutions has never been more urgent.
Stay tuned here or keep an eye on our News page for updates on this exciting story and its coverage.


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Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
The driver of a Tesla Model S who crashed into a fire truck on a California freeway last year was not paying attention to the road thanks to “overreliance” on Autopilot, the National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday. In addition, investigators determined that another probable cause for the crash was the design of Autopilot, “which permitted the driver to disengage from the driving task.”
No one was injured in the crash, but the driver’s use of Autopilot has brought regulator and media attention to the incident. There have been a number of reports of Tesla owners who were using Autopilot at the time of a crash, as well as a handful of people who have been killed. Tesla has consistently said that drivers who use Autopilot are…
Read more: theverge.com


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Highlights from Milan Fashion Week SS20
This week saw the global fashion elite descend on Milan for the Spring/Summer 2020 collections, where the industry titans gave us a look into our sartorial futures. And if there's one thing we can take away from the week, it's that our futures certainly look colourful.
But, there's more to it than that... Here are some of the highlights.
The Italian fashion house's show may have been marred by controversy, but critics are otherwise lauding the ready-to-wear line (controversial garments aside, of course).
While it was luxe tailoring and throwback fabrics up top, models were strutting the runway in mismatched neon and silver sneaks, complete with disc-and-wire fastenings, channelling the past and the present in an oh so Gucci way.
Well, Versace went and got all nostalgic on us, didn't they. Throughout the show, we saw subtle (and not so subtle) hints at that dress. From palm-printed handbags, to luscious green heels, there was no denying where their head was at.
Piquing our interest, the brand presented an apparent follow-up to their Concepts Chain Reaction colab, sending a similarly printed Cross Chainer down the runway paired with a suit in the same fabric.
But really, all else paled in comparison to this... Iconic.
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For the Spring/Summer 2020 Collection, @versace honoured an iconic moment when fashion and culture became a catalyst for technological progress. Debuting in the Spring/Summer 2000 Collection, the Jungle print dress worn by @jlo at the Grammy Awards that year, garnered global attention. The epic red-carpet look became one of the most popular search queries for Google at the time, inspiring the team to create Google Images. This season, Jennifer Lopez walked the Versace runway in a reinterpretation of the dress, celebrating 20 years of the legendary moment in both fashion and Google history. #VersaceSS20 #MFW
Portuguese designer Alexandra Moura closed out the week with a tribute to Portugal's fishing villages. Layered patchwork, ribbon ties and over-sized, asymmetrical pockets bring a 19th century look to the 21st century runway, but thick-treaded sneakers refresh the look. Is this the swansong of the chunk, or does the ubiquitous trend have more life to live?


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Portal 3 Officially On The Way?
It’s been more than 11 years since the release of Portal 2, and fans nearly gave up hopes for any kind of sequel to one of the most iconic video games ever. However, following the ultimatum they dropped a year prior, the writers of Portal games have recently revealed that they already have a concrete story set out for the Portal 3 game. While the game hasn’t been scripted yet, the writers have a fleshed-out idea for the entire story and a good starting point. We just hope it doesn’t wind up in the same pit as The Last of Us Part 3 game.
According to ComicBook.com, Portal 3 might be a real possibility following the writers’ announcement, leaving it up to Valve to decide whether or not they want to continue the franchise. The two writers have already pitched the story to the gaming company and got an enthusiastic response, but given Valve’s internal structuring, setting things up is easier said than done. Still, this is great news for the fans of the franchise, who would like to see the narrative unfold further, despite it being concluded with the ending of the second game.
For those that aren’t familiar with the Portal franchise, the ending of the second game has concluded the narrative of both installments and brought closure to the game’s silent protagonist, Chell — who appears as the main playable character in Portal games and a supporting character in other games produced and released by Valve.
However, while the silent protagonist got her long-awaited freedom and the treacherous antagonist was sent into space, concluding the story, the core concept of the game is so fantastic that it deserves to be explored further in Portal 3 or the announced film.
Well, Valve really has a problem with threequels, following the attempted development of Half-Life 3, which never came to be despite numerous attempts to make the game. This trend has continued with Portal 2, Team Fortress 2, and Left 4 Dead 2, all of which have never received any proper sequels, prompting many to wonder about Valve’s issues with threequels — what exactly is going on here? All of this stems from the nearly historical times when Valve was still making video games instead of selling games and manufacturing Steam Deck.
As it turns out, the internal structuring at Valve is making sequels and threequels difficult to produce. Massive releases and high-quality follow-ups, such as Portal 3, are incredibly difficult to make, much more difficult than the originals.
Additionally, Valve is structured in a way that allows anyone to make whatever they want, which implies that the developers have to rally a group of people to make the game and ensure that they all stay committed to the development project during its entire duration. This, of course, isn’t an easy task to accomplish.
Organizing developers within Valve would have to take place during the collective downtime when the company’s employees aren’t busy with a particular project, and while Valve has provided writers with a green light, any type of further development and its result falls on their hands. We’re stressing that Portal 3 hasn’t been announced, and it’s currently not in active development at Valve.


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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Technology stocks were largely on the rise in early trading Friday, with gains coming from IBM Corp. IBM, -1.80% Texas Instruments Inc. TXN, +0.22% and Microsoft Corp. MSFT, -3.29% Declines came from Hewlett-Packard Co. HPQ, -3.50% Sun Microsystems Inc. java and Dell Inc. dell Apple Inc. AAPL, -3.50% which fell 86 cents a share to $153.58 after the company named a new general counsel. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index $compq rose 5 points to 2,714.
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