‘India has effective system for Tsunami alerts’

New Delhi: India has put in place an effective system to issue Tsunami alerts after the catastrophe had hit country in 2004, a senior government official said.

Ruling out any shortcoming in the tsunami alert system in the country, Secretary of the Ministry of Earth Sciences Secretary Shailesh Naik said that Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) is a world-class tsunami warning system.

"This has been proved now, as we were able to issue the first bulletin just seven minutes after the massive quake in Japan, ruling out a tsunami threat for the Indian Ocean, where as the American tsunami warning system, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued its first alert 12 minutes after the massive earthquake near the coast of Honshu," he said.

The Indian tsunami warning system, which was conceived after the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004, works by assessing data it received from seismic stations, sea level gauges, bottom pressure recorders (tsunami buoys) and predicts the water level changes expected at various locations.

"Following a big earthquake, the system can issue a tsunami alert within in 10 minutes not only in India but also for other neighbouring countries," Naik said.

The Rs 125-crore tsunami warning centre set up in 2007 at the INCOIS in Hyderabad has assessed 25-30 major earthquakes in the last three years.

China rejects comparison with North Africa uprisings

Beijing: China on Monday rejected any comparison between itself and the Middle East and North African countries where popular uprisings toppled autocrats.

Premier Wen Jiabao told a news conference at the end of the country's annual legislative session that the country was wrestling with finding the right mix between creating jobs and fighting inflation. The result is key to maintaining stability amid a growing gap between rich and poor, and is a big concern of the government.

He said it was not right to compare China with protest-hit countries.

"We have followed closely the turbulence in some North African and Middle Eastern countries. We believe it is not right to draw an analogy between China and those countries," Wen said.

The National People's Congress that closed on Monday promised higher social spending, controls on inflation and measures to urgently close the divisive rich-poor gap, betting that rising living standards and better services will dampen growing public expectations for political change.

The emphasis comes as the government seems increasingly anxious about online calls of unknown origin urging Chinese to stage peaceful rallies every Sunday like the ones in Tunisia and Egypt. Beijing has been smothered under ever-heavier security since the Internet messages first appeared more than a month ago. No similar protests have emerged in China.

When asked about political reforms, Wen said political and economic restructuring should be coordinated. When Chinese leaders talk about political reform, they usually mean expanding experiments with direct elections at the village level and enabling greater public input — not transitioning to a multiparty system.

Wen's comments came after the congress approved economic plans for the next five years that aim to empower consumers but rejected any hints of political reforms.

The Five-Year Plan to run through the end of 2015 calls for a shift from rapid economic growth to higher quality, more sustainable development with a greater emphasis on services and broader distribution of wealth. If carried out, the plan could drive a far-reaching transformation of the world's second-largest economy from low-cost factory into a major consumer market.

More consumer demand could help to boost imports, narrowing China's trade surplus with the United States and other major economies.

China also needs to shift money from companies to households, which could narrow the gulf between China's poor majority and its rich elite and fledgling middle class — who have profited from economic reform.

The wide-ranging plan promises more rural health care spending and job help for out-of-work farmers — a step that could promote growth of service industries and consumption.

The nearly 3,000 members of the congress approved the economic plan after 10 days of meetings. The Five-Year Plan is a throwback to central planning but a useful roadmap of Communist Party goals.

The government said at the beginning of the session that it planned to boost defence spending by 12.7 percent this year. A legislative spokesman said Beijing's return to double-digit military growth after a dip in 2010 was not a threat to other countries.

The economic transformation plans come as President Hu Jintao and other party leaders prepare to hand over power next year to a younger generation. They are trying to ensure a smooth transition while leaders manoeuvre furiously in private to secure top posts for younger allies.

The plans for expanding access to health care would free up money for consumer spending, helping to push ahead the consumption drive.

In the countryside, home to some 800 million Chinese, the plan promises more spending to modernise agriculture and increase grain output — a key concern for Beijing, which sees food security as a priority.

The government will boost spending 12.5 percent this year, with bigger outlays for education, job creation, low-income housing, health care and pensions and other social insurance. Spending on police, courts, prosecutors and other domestic security will also exceed the military budget, climbing 13.8 percent to USD 95 billion.

Bureau Report

Beijing: China on Monday rejected any comparison between itself and the Middle East and North African countries where popular uprisings toppled autocrats.

Premier Wen Jiabao told a news conference at the end of the country's annual legislative session that the country was wrestling with finding the right mix between creating jobs and fighting inflation. The result is key to maintaining stability amid a growing gap between rich and poor, and is a big concern of the government.

He said it was not right to compare China with protest-hit countries.

"We have followed closely the turbulence in some North African and Middle Eastern countries. We believe it is not right to draw an analogy between China and those countries," Wen said.

The National People's Congress that closed on Monday promised higher social spending, controls on inflation and measures to urgently close the divisive rich-poor gap, betting that rising living standards and better services will dampen growing public expectations for political change.

The emphasis comes as the government seems increasingly anxious about online calls of unknown origin urging Chinese to stage peaceful rallies every Sunday like the ones in Tunisia and Egypt. Beijing has been smothered under ever-heavier security since the Internet messages first appeared more than a month ago. No similar protests have emerged in China.

Survivors return to confront all that was lost

Natori, Japan:  One couple rode out the tsunami on top of an irrigation tower, crammed in with three other people. A man had to abandon his car in a field and run for it. Another couple simply got lucky, riding out the torrents in their house, one of the few in a swath of destruction that inexplicably held together.

They began streaming back to this stricken rice farming town on Monday morning, long lines of people returning to see what, if anything, was left of their lives after the waves came. They walked slowly, gazing in bewilderment at a scene that they could only struggle to comprehend.

Officials said the death toll in Friday's tsunami was certain to exceed 10,000. But even that seemed conservative -- a leading Japanese daily reported Monday that 20,000 people in two small coastal towns were missing.

Many returning here Monday were in tears. One couple said between sobs that they were trying to find their elderly mother, whom they had been forced to leave behind. There were many older people in the area, residents said, and many of them were trapped in their houses.

Until last week, Natori's farmers had tilled fields of rice in the summer and, in the winter, vegetables in neat white rows of plastic greenhouses, fields that most of the world saw inundated on Friday by a wall of water, mud, cars and wooden debris.

The devastation extends miles inland, so much so that even some evacuation centers were reportedly engulfed. In satellite images, Natori and nearby Yuriage, just south of the battered city of Sendai, seem to have been swept away without a trace, as if a giant razor had shaved the earth clean.

Kayo Miura said she was upstairs at her house when the earthquake struck, knocking her off her feet. She turned on the radio and heard a tsunami alert, but she had heard those before and nothing had come of them. After all, she thought, the house was almost two miles from the beach.

About 20 to 30 minutes later, she said, she saw a line of cars on her field. "Why are those cars parked in the field?" she wondered. Then she saw them moving, heard screams about a tsunami coming and froze. Her husband, Ken, ran upstairs just as the waves hit. Inexplicably, in an area where virtually every house was destroyed, theirs held together.

Others told harrowing tales of escape. When Naoko Takahashi, 60, and her husband, Hiromichi, 64, saw a jumble of cars and burning fuel bearing down on them, they ran as fast as they could, but the menacing wall kept gaining. Not sure what to do, they caught sight of an irrigation tower that was 12 to 15 feet high and scrambled up just in time, joining two others in riding out the flood.

"The only reason we made it were some earthen walls that slowed the water just enough," Mr. Takahashi said. "They gave us a few seconds."

They made their way home after dark, they said, wading through water that was up to their armpits while fires burned all around. The next day, some soldiers came and took them to a shelter.

As they got home, Ms. Takahashi turned to her husband and said: "Look, there's our house. What is that boat?" Indeed, there was a fishing boat sitting in a rice paddy to the side of their house.

The gloom was occasionally pierced by a ray of humor, of the gallows sort. Ko Miura, 56, a wholesaler, said he tried to drive home after the quake. But he was driving parallel to the wave, so he was forced to abandon his car and run. He just managed to get to a highway overpass before the waters swept by. When he looked up, he said, he saw his car float by.

The immediate future for Natori and its residents is undoubtedly grim. Rescue workers have been hampered by quake-damaged roads and debris, enormous traffic jams and fuel shortages. After a spell of relatively mild weather, temperatures were dropping and snow was in the forecast.

And even as people picked through what little was left in the rubble, the fires continued to burn. 

Indian student's body found in suitcase in Australia

Sydney:  The body of a 24-year-old Indian-origin student, who was murdered after being sexually assaulted, was found stuffed in a suitcase in a park in Sydney, a media report said Monday.

Police said the "predator" had waited until her housemate was away to sexually assault and kill her.

Tosha Thakkar's body was found Friday morning in a canal behind the Meadowbank Park in northwestern Sydney. It had been stuffed into a large, black, cloth suitcase, The Age reported.

Ninteen-year-old Daniel Stani-Reginald has been charged with raping and murdering Thakkar last week.

The case was mentioned briefly in the Burwood Local Court Monday.

Stani-Reginald, an Australian of Sri Lankan descent, is alleged to have murdered Thakkar last Wednesday. He was arrested Friday night and charged over Thakkar's murder.

About 20 friends and family members of Thakkar, who had been living in Australia to study accounting, turned up at the court, the newspaper said.

"We are very upset, of course, and are just waiting to get justice ASAP. She was very nice, the type that got along with everybody and she didn't deserve this, such a painful death," The Age quoted a friend as saying outside the court.

Detective Chief Inspector Pamela Young said Thakkar was a respectful young woman and did not deserve this at all.

Young said Thakkar's parents had not yet made plans to come to Australia and police hoped to return her body to India for a proper Hindu funeral service.

Brazil's boxing champ, 17, shot dead by police

Brasilia:  A 17-year-old youth, considered one of the most promising boxers in Brazil, has been shot dead by a police officer after an argument, officials said.

Tairone Silva was shot several times during an argument with a police officer in Porto Alegre, capital of Rio Grande do Sul state.

Silva's killing was a blow to the sport, the Brazilian Boxing Federation said.

"Brazil has lost an athlete of the future who dreamed of becoming a great boxer and competing in the 2016 Olympic Games" in Rio de Janeiro, the federation said in a statement.

Silva got into an argument Saturday with a police officer at a business in Porto Alegre, police said.

The officer fired at least four shots at him in front of several witnesses. The unidentified officer was arrested and taken to a police station.

Silva was Brazil's national champion in the 75-kg class for boxers in the 15-16 age group.

Volcano erupts in southwestern Japan

Tokyo:  A volcano in southwestern Japan erupted on Sunday after nearly two weeks of relative silence, sending ash and rocks up to four kilometres (two and a half miles) into the air, a local official said.
  
It was not immediately clear if the eruption was a direct result of the massive 8.9-magnitude earthquake that rocked northern areas on Friday, unleashing a fierce tsunami and sparking fears that more than 10,000 may have been killed.
   
The 1,421-metre (4,689-feet) Shinmoedake volcano in the Kirishima range saw its first major eruption for 52 years in January. There had not been any major activity at the site since March 1.
   
Authorities have maintained a volcano warning at a level of three out of five, restricting access to the entire mountain.

   
In April last year, the eruption of the Eyjafjoell volcano in Iceland dispersed a vast cloud of ash, triggering a huge shutdown of airspace that affected more than 100,000 flights and eight million passengers.

Another explosion at Fukushima nuclear power plant

Washington:  As the scale of Japan's nuclear crisis begins to come to light, experts in Japan and the United States say the country is now facing a cascade of accumulating problems that suggest that radioactive releases of steam from the crippled plants could go on for weeks or even months.

The emergency flooding of two stricken reactors with seawater and the resulting steam releases are a desperate step intended to avoid a much bigger problem: a full meltdown of the nuclear cores in two reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. On Monday, an explosion blew the roof off the second reactor, not damaging the core, officials said, but presumably leaking more radiation.

So far, Japanese officials have said the melting of the nuclear cores in the two plants is assumed to be "partial," and the amount of radioactivity measured outside the plants, though twice the level Japan considers safe, has been relatively modest.

But Pentagon officials reported Sunday that helicopters flying 60 miles from the plant picked up small amounts of radioactive particulates -- still being analyzed, but presumed to include cesium-137 and iodine-121 -- suggesting widening environmental contamination.

Japan: Another explosion at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant

Tokyo:  Tokyo Electric Power Co. says three workers have been injured and seven are missing after an explosion at the stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant.

Japan's chief cabinet secretary says a hydrogen explosion occurred Monday at the facility's Unit 3. The blast was similar to an earlier one at a different unit at the facility.

Yukio Edano says people within a 12-mile (20-kilometer) radius were ordered inside following the blast. AP journalists felt the explosion 25 miles (40 kilometers) away.

Edano says the reactor's inner containment vessel holding nuclear rods is intact, allaying some fears of the risk to the environment and public.

More than 180,000 people have evacuated the area in recent days.

Milestone referendum in Egypt just days away

Cairo:  With the referendum over the constitutional amendments that will shape Egypt's immediate political future just days away, the country's nascent political forces were squaring off on Sunday, scrambling to influence a choice that leaves many confused.

The Muslim Brotherhood and rump elements of the disbanded governing National Democratic Party, which both stand to gain the most from a rapid rebirth of electoral politics, support the amendments.

Arrayed against them is much, but not all, of the remaining political spectrum, centered on the young organizers behind the Tahrir Square demonstrations who fear a yes vote would ultimately rob them of their revolution.

Yet everyone agrees on two things. The referendum, which is scheduled for Saturday, will be a milestone and the first one not rigged outright in about 60 years. "Whether we accept the amendments or we reject them, either situation means a page in our history will turn," said Amr Shubaki, a political analyst at the state-financed Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies.

Japan scrambles to prevent full meltdown at crippled nuclear reactors

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Tokyo:  Three days after a massive earthquake and tsunami, the Japanese authorities were still struggling on Sunday to avoid full meltdowns at a plant with two stricken reactors on Japan's coast.

As of Sunday night, technicians' increasingly desperate measures to keep the reactors from overheating, and possibly melting down, had not yet brought them under control. In one case Sunday, a mechanical failure left the plant far more vulnerable to additional fuel melting and the release of more radiation.

Twenty two people who live near the plant are already showing signs of radiation exposure from earlier releases. The challenge of bringing the plant under control comes as the country is also struggling to rescue and feed people buried in rubble or stranded after the country's largest earthquake in recorded history.

Yemen: One killed, over 100 injured in anti-government protests

Sanaa:  More than 100 people were injured and one was killed in Yemen on Sunday as police and government supporters attacked protesters in the capital Sanaa, a day after security forces killed at least seven demonstrators in protests around the country.

The protesters were camping near Sanaa University, calling for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down, when they were attacked by officers and government supporters.

Police on rooftops fired live bullets and teargas.

The day's violence, which left one dead in a southern province, was the latest evidence that monthlong protests demanding the resignation of Yemen's longtime leader were spiralling out of control.

Saleh has resorted to increasingly violent tactics to try and put down the burgeoning uprising against his 32-year rule, deploying dozens of armed supporters on the streets in an attempt to intimidate protesters.

Wielding clubs and knives, police and regime supporters described by protesters as government sponsored thugs attacked activists camped out near Sanaa university, said Mohammed al-Abahi, a doctor in charge of a makeshift hospital near the university.

Among the 100 wounded Sunday in Sanaa, more than 20 suffered gas inhalation, and one was in critical condition after being struck with a bullet, the doctor said.

In the main square and in surrounding streets, eyewitnesses spoke of people being beaten up, threatened and gone missing.

The escalating violence came a day after security forces killed seven demonstrators in protests around the country.

In the city of Dar Saad in the southern province of Aden, medical officials said one protester was shot dead and three others wounded as police tried to disperse a demonstration.

Earlier in the day, protesters torched three police cars and blocked roads to try to stop security troops from
bringing in reinforcements.

Unfazed by the violent tactics, young activists camped out in the square near the university continued to expand the area of their sit-in and threatened to march on the presidential palace about three miles (five kilometres) away.

Rock throwing battles between protesters and security troops broke out on the edges of the encampment.

They said the authorities were trying to draw the protesters into a cycle of violence to further justify a crackdown.

Protesters continued to pour into the main square Sunday, but many said they were stopped by thugs wielding iron rods, sticks, knives and machetes.

In the Aden province, demonstrators also stormed a police station, seizing weapons after the police fled, witnesses said.

In Taiz province, clashes between demonstrators and police left at least four wounded, witnesses said.

Yemen has been hit by constant protests since mid-February. Even before that, the country's government was weak and struggling to confront one of the world's most active al-Qaida branches, a secessionist rebellion in the south and a Shiite uprising in the north.

The protests are part of a wave of unrest sweeping the region. Yemen's demonstrators are calling for Saleh to step down, a demand he has repeatedly rejected while also trying to assuage opposition groups.

Saleh has said he would not seek another term in office in 2013, and offered to form a national unity government with opposition figures. These overtures have failed to satisfy the protesters.

On Sunday, Saleh sacked a close relative from a senior military post. The relative later announced his support for the protests.

Bahrain unrest: Protesters cut off country's financial centre

Manama:  Thousands of anti-government demonstrators cut off Bahrain's financial centre and drove back police trying to push them from the capital's central square, shaking the tiny island kingdom on Sunday with the most disruptive protests since calls for more freedom erupted a month ago.

Riot police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at anti-government demonstrators blocking the highway into Manama's financial district and surrounded the protesters' main camp in the capital, eyewitnesses said.

The government said security forces dispersed about 350 protesters using tear gas, but eyewitnesses said police failed to dislodge the thousands of protesters blocking the highway.

Thousands of protesters had gathered before dawn to block King Faisal Highway, a four-lane expressway leading to the financial district.

They caused huge traffic chaos during morning rush hour and prevented many from reaching their offices on the first day of the working week.

Traffic was clogged until late morning and many drivers sent messages of rage and frustration to social media sites.

Demonstrators also clashed with security forces and government supporters on the campus of the main university.

About two miles (three kilometres) away, police at the same time moved in on Pearl Square, site of a month long occupation by members of Bahrain's Shiite majority calling for an elected government and equality with Bahrain's Sunnis.

Two protesters sustained serious head injures during Sunday's clashes and hundreds looked for medical help, mostly with breathing problems from tear gas, hospital officials said.

The clashes fuelled fears that Bahrain's political crisis could be stumbling toward open sectarian conflict between the ruling minority Sunnis and Shiites, who account for 70 percent of the nation's 525-thousand people.

Many protesters in recent days have pressed their demands further to call for the ouster of the Sunni dynasty that has held power for more than two centuries.

Wi-Fi only Motorola XOOM to launch March 27th for $600?

Just last week we reported that internal documents from office retailer Staples indicated that the store would be offering the Wi-Fi only variant of the Motorola XOOM. Another leak has confirmed that as a photograph of an upcoming Staples flyer shows the Wi-Fi only Motorola XOOM on sale March 27th for $600.

Because Motorola has not made any announcement yet about this launch, nothing is official. But if it is true, the March 27th launch would come more than a week after the expected download of the Adobe Flash Player 10.2 for those XOOM units already purchased. That means that the Wi-Fi only model could come to the market with Flash already installed on the device.

source: Droid-Life

This leaked Staples flyer shows the launch of the Wi-Fi only Motorola XOOM on March 27th for $600

Certain Android 2.2 devices about to score Hulu + app

With Hulu blocking the use of its service to Android users running Adobe Flash Player 10.1, it looked like the service might never be available for Google's open source OS.  But that appears likely to change. On the Hulu website is the image of the Nexus S with a comment that hints that the Hulu + app will be available soon to certain Android 2.2 models.

Late last year, Hulu + was made available for iOS devices at a cost of $7.99 per month after a one week free trial. There is no word on whether the pricing will be the same for Android devices, nor is there any idea when the app will be up and running. The fact that the company's own web site says that the app will be coming soon is about as close to an inside source as you can get. And since Android users have already waited so long to use the service, waiting just a little bit longer probably won't do any harm.

source: Engagdet via AndroidCommunity

It looks like the long awaited Hulu service is coming soon to certain Android 2.2 models

Apple iPad 2 Gaming Test

Already deemed as a venerable gaming machine in its own the regard, the iPad 2 will undoubtedly kick things up a notch, as it should, thanks to upgraded internals found under the hood. If 3D gaming is more your kind of thing, then the 1GHz dual-core Apple A5 processor is an inviting evolutionary step forward that should bring along some graphically rich titles down the road once developers begin to take advantage of it. In the meantime though, we decided to check out the kind of graphics prowess that the iPad 2 has to offer – and more importantly, how it compares to its brethren.

Since there are no games out there yet that are developed specifically to run on Apple’s blazing A5 dual-core processor, we just decided to go at it with Epic Citadel that utilizes the Unreal Engine 3. Sure it isn’t necessarily an actual game, but it does a great job in providing us a surreal environment that produces some fantastic 3D looking visuals. As we started moving around, it’s quickly evident that the game doesn’t skip a beat as we fluidly traverse through the rich looking environment. From shadows to textures, everything looks rather sharp as it manages to submerse us with some fluid movements. Impressively, it’s even able to keep a steady frame rate when things like smoke effects come into play.

Of course, we just had to pit it against the original iPad to compare and contrast their performance. And surprisingly enough, the iPad 2’s dual-core A5 processor shines ever so brightly. In fact, we experienced just a little choppy movements when smoke effects came into view with the iPad – which didn’t phase the iPad 2 one bit. Although this is just only a snippet of what the iPad 2 can truly produce, it’s going to only get better from here on since developers will no doubt create visually stunning games that are catered to run with the A5 processor.

Apple iPad 2 Benchmark Comparison

Always the hot topic of any conversation regarding any new product release, in the world of consumer electronics, it’s only expected to find successive devices to pack upgraded hardware over their predecessors. Obviously, that’s indeed what we’re presented with the Apple iPad 2 since it packs a highly touted 1GHz dual-core Apple A5 processor. Despite not being the first tablet in the market to come packing with a dual-core chipset, it’ll nonetheless be the center of attention for most gadget hounds since it represents the latest and greatest out there in the market.

In yet another comparison to see how it stacks against some of its contemporary rivals, we pit the iPad 2 against its older siblings found with the iPhone 4 and original iPad. First and foremost, we ran the Linpack Benchmark app which basically performs some basic vector and matrix operations that reports the results in millions of floating point operations per second. Astonishingly, we started the test on all three devices and watched in awe at how more quickly the iPad 2 is able to complete the test. In fact, it finished calculating a single run in just 0.03 seconds – which demolishes the 0.1 and 0.17 seconds of the original iPad and iPhone 4. Furthermore, the results for the iPad 2 places it at averaging 168.90 Mflops/s, while the iPhone 4 tallies in at 33.35 Mflops/s and original iPad at 44.06 Mflops/s.

Secondly, we used the 3D Benchmark app to test the 3D power of all three devices. With the first wave of results, the numbers tell the honest truth in how much better the iPad 2 is in running 3D titles. Although it might not be the most intensive 3D benchmark out there, the iPad 2 propels at the speedy average rate of 59.8 frames per second – which is still better than the 53.9 fps and 51.3 fps put up by the iPad and iPhone 4 respectively.

For our last test, we relied on the CometBench app that shows a traveling comet entering our system and really crunches down to test the performance of the devices by giving us the ability to place additional comets into the mix. With no comets around, we see average scores of 60 fps, 53.9 fps, and 59.7 fps put up by the iPad 2, iPad, and iPhone 4. However, after we increased the amount to 10 comets on-screen simultaneously, the results are pretty substantial. Specifically, the iPad 2 shines brightly at an average speed of 60 fps – which is remarkably better than the 53.1 fps and 23.2 fps pumped out by the iPad and iPhone 4.

So what can we conclude from this quick comparison? Well, it’s no denying that Apple’s A5 dual-core processor is one amazingly fast thing that separates itself from its older siblings. Ceck out the video to see it in action!

Apple iPad 2 Web Browsing Comparison

Being the newest tablet on the block, it’s only natural to give the iPad 2 a run for its money when it comes down to the web browsing department. Lucky for us, just had to see for ourselves how much faster it’s able to load up complex web pages against some of the competition – namely, the Motorola XOOM and the original Apple iPad.

In our quick real world comparison, we turned off the cellular connections on all three tablets and connected them to the same Wi-Fi network. From there, we pointed their respective browsers to our site, and moved forward in opening up particular articles in separate new windows. Granted that it was mainly tricky in attempting to properly press the corresponding on-screen buttons to open up a link in a new window/tab, we managed to correctly hit them at approximately the same time for the most part.

As usual, kinetic scrolling and pinch zooming is always buttery fluid in motion and is preferable over the Motorola XOOM, but it isn’t all that different from the original iPad. However, in almost all occasions, the iPad 2 is primarily the first to load up text, followed by the Motorola XOOM, and then the original iPad. Additionally, pictures also load up just smidgen faster, but the Motorola XOOM manages to keep up with its pace. All in all, it’s quite obvious that the dual-core processors working diligently inside the Apple iPad 2 and Motorola XOOM does in fact translate to a faster rendering time. Check out the video to see the entire comparison.

* Apple iPad 2 Photo & Video Samples

Initially, it’s a little bit difficult to fathom seeing people whipping out their iPad 2 from underneath their jacket or something to quickly snap a candid shot, but it’s nonetheless nice to see the functionality now on board with the tablet. Since we’ve been checking out Apple’s latest creation, we decided to simply share with you some snapshots that we took to better illustrate and break down its quality.

For starters, the one annoyance we have using the camera interface is the horrendous placement of the shutter key when you’re holding the iPad 2 in landscape. Naturally, our first instinct is to grasp the iPad 2 on its sides with both hands to provide ample grip, but unfortunately, the shutter key is placed squarely towards the bottom middle of the interface – and too far to comfortably reach with our thumbs. However, it’s not much of an issue in portrait since we obviously use both hands to hold onto the bottom edge of the iPad 2.

As for the rest of the interface, it’s pretty much a direct port of what’s used on the iPhone 4, but instead of finding touch focus, we’re treated to something more like touch exposure. Sadly, the iPad 2 shoots photos at the resolution of 960 x 720 pixels – which is the same as the current generation iPod touch. Moreover, it lacks auto-focus to precisely sharpen specific items in your shot – which tends to make close-ups a bit fuzzy looking. Lastly, it does have the ability to shoot videos in 720p at 29 frames per second, but from our quick video, we’re not all that excited by its output. Check out the gallery and tell us your thoughts about the iPad 2’s photo and video shooting abilities.

* Apple iPad 2 Photo Booth Demonstration

Now that there are cameras on board with the iPad 2, it seemingly opens up an entirely new category of functionality for users since it allows you to snap shots on the go. Out of the box, we find one particular app on the homescreen interesting seeing that its presence is rather foreign when looking at the original iPad, but naturally, the Photo Booth app on the iPad 2 is only there because of the tablet’s inclusion of cameras.

Quickly tapping on the icon, we’re quickly transported to one mind blowing interface at first as we’re struck with awe at to what’s actually going on. After some fiddling around, we finally realized that the camera is active and displaying all of the photo effects on screen at once. The 9 paneled grid layout essentially provides you a preview of what the image will look like with each specific photo effect applied.

In fact, there are a total of 8 different effects, and they include things like the thermal camera, mirror, x-ray, kaleidoscope, light tunnel, squeeze, twirl, and stretch effects. Although it might seem like some kind of novel feature, much like any other third party photo editing app out there, it’ll definitely provides some chucks and laughs for people who try it out for the very first time – especially with the squeeze and stretch effects. Check out the gallery and video below to see what we’re talking about.

Photo Booth Interface	Thermal Camera	Mirror

X-Ray	Kaleidoscope	Light Tunnel

Squeeze	Twirl	Stretch

Sprint CEO Dan Hesse steps in front of the camera to explain what "unlimited" means

CEO Dan Hesse stepped in front of the camera once again, this time making a convincing argument about why Sprint's unlimited plan really means unlimited services for the customers of the nation's third largest carrier. Hesse notes that in the dictionary, the word unlimited doesn't mention words like throttling, overage and metering which the executive said is all code for capping your service.

There is no question that some of the major U.S. carriers are resorting to things like throttling or data capping in order to ease the congestion on jammed up carrier pipelines. Hesse has picked a good time to promote his firm's unlimited service. In a press release that was released along with the ads, Sprint said that its customers don't have to worry about surprises on their monthly bill from data overage charges. Nor do they have to keep track of how much data they are using in fear of using too much bandwidth and thus having the speed of their data plan unilaterally slowed down, a process known as "throttling". Sprint's senior Vice President of Corporate Marketing, Bill Morgan, said, "If you have to worry about additional charges appearing on your bill based on usage, that's not an unlimited plan. We chose to use Mr. Hesse to deliver that message because he's become a trusted voice."

Sprint's "Simply Everything" plan offers unlimited calling, web, text, email, GPS, TV, radio, and social networks on the carrier's 3G and 4G pipelines for $99.99 a month plus a $10 premium data charge for smartphones.

source: Sprint via Engadget

HTC Droid Incredible 2 poses for the camera wearing the Verizon brand

 One of the most enigmatic Android handsets in Verizon's line-up has been the HTC Droid Incredible. With incredible demand hitting Verizon right off the bat, the handset was on back order almost immediately after launch, partially due to Samsung's inability to keep up with production of AMOLED screens. Eventually, HTC switched to Super LCD displays, but by then it was too late for the unit to regain the momentum it once had and by then, the Motorola DROID X had taken over flagship status at Big Red.

Now, it's time for the sequel unit to make its mark on the carrier. While AndroidSpin caught the device with Android 2.2 under the hood, the phone is expected to launch with Android 2.3 running the show. Changes from the first model to the sequel include an increase in screen size from 3.7 to 4 inches. The camera on the rear stays intact at 8MP, but the Droid Incredible 2 will feature a front facing 1.3MP camera for video chat, something that was not on the original version.

A source told Electronista that the sequel will still have the 4GB of built-in storage that the original model had, but RAM has been increased to 768 MB. While the first Droid Incredible was powered by a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, the sequel will have the second generation 1GHz Snapdragon unit. One major part of the Droid Incredible 2 that unfortunately is staying the same from the first model is the connectivity; the new handset will be 3G and will not hook-up to Verizon's 4G LTE pipeline and no update is expected.

There are no details yet as to when we might see the Droid Incredible 2 hit the market. Besides, HTC is tied up right now trying to get Verizon's first 4G handset, the ThunderBolt, launched.

source: AndroidSpin via electronista

The HTC Droid incredible 2 will not offer a connection to Verizon's 4G network

Apple iPad 2 Digital AV Adapter Demonstration

When so many devices nowadays are increasingly making it very easy to share content via wired connection to high-definition television sets, it’s only fitting that we’re seeing it coming aboard with the iPad 2. If there’s one ideal accessory worth shelling out for with your cold hard cash, it has to be none other than Apple’s optional digital AV adapter that sells for $39! Come to think of it, this doesn’t only enable you to quickly play 1080p videos and music stored on your iPad 2, but it doubles as an HDMI mirrored video output.

As much as it would’ve been nice to see an HDMI port built into the iPad 2, the optional adapter is still nonetheless not all that obtrusive – although it does seem to just dangle on there. Regardless, you basically connect your standard HDMI cable to the adapter, and from there, it’ll output the iPad 2’s display onto the big screen. So whether you're holding the tablet in portrait or landscape, it’ll mimic every action to the teeth with almost very minimal evidence of lag.

Obviously, you can do just about anything on the iPad 2 as it keeps up in displaying all your actions on the big screen. From navigating between the homescreens to browsing a complex web site, it’s effortlessly accomplished and really shows the added functionality that is experienced by using the adapter. Furthermore, we’re able to even play videos and music stored on our iPad 2 through our television.

Interestingly enough, the biggest use for the adapter in our opinion comes in the gaming department since you can basically rely on the iPad 2 to act as the gameplay controls – while viewing your actions on your television set. Without a doubt, there are some interesting things that developers will be able to concoct at this point in getting the most out of the adapter’s usage. Even more, we were able to comfortably place aFaceTime call while sitting back on our couch as we relied on chatting it up with friends on our television.

So for only $39, it’s almost a no-brainer in picking it up – albeit, it’d be beneficial to have a lengthy HDMI cable on hand if you want to sit back far enough from your television. Well, that’s unless you can tolerate being up close and personal instead.

Google Search now lets users block websites they don't like

London, Mar 12: Google has updated its search engine to add a new feature using which users can block websites they don't like.
Search Quality Engineers Amay Champaneria and Beverly Yang wrote on Google Blog, "You've probably had the experience where you've clicked a result and it wasn't quite what you were looking for," reports the Telegraph.
"Perhaps the result just wasn't quite right, but sometimes you may dislike the site in general, whether it's offensive, pornographic or of generally low quality. For times like these, you'll start seeing a new option to block particular domains from your future search results."
"Now when you click a result and then return to Google, you'll find a new link next to "Cached" that reads "Block all example.com results."
Once a domain has been blocked, it won't appear in future results but users will be informed if search results would have contained results that their preferences now mean they have blocked.
Champaneria and Yang said that data about sites getting blocked will not be used to inform more general search results for other users.
They also write, however, that "while we're not currently using the domains people block as a signal in ranking, we'll look at the data and see whether it would be useful as we continue to evaluate and improve our search results in the future."
The move is seen as an attempt to step up its fight against spam and so-called "content farms", which chase web traffic simply by writing about subjects that are popular search terms.
The new feature is rolling out initially on google.com in English for people using Chrome 9+, IE8+ and Firefox 3.5+.

Facebook encourages women to stalk ex-boyfriends

London, Mar 12 : A study has found that women are finding it increasingly difficult to move on once a relationship has ended and that Facebook provides them the perfect means to stalk their ex-boyfriends.
Experts have likened the habit of following ex-boyfriends on the web to the lure of online gambling.
And according to the first British study into cyber-stalking, around 35 percent of victims are now men, and all cases are virtually committed by women.
But offline, just 8 percent of harassment victims are male, with female stalkers a rarity.
Dr Emma Short, a psychologist at the University of Bedfordshire, has had hundreds of responses to an online survey as part of her research with the Network for Surviving Stalking.
Her findings reveal women leave unwanted messages for their ex-partners on their Facebook pages, send inappropriate emails and set up fake accounts to lure them into communicating with them.
"Facebook makes stalking more acceptable and removes the aspect of physical fear," the Daily Mail quoted her as saying.
"Women who would not be able to overpower men physically can have a go at them online," she added.

Tibetan jails are like Guantanamo, says ex-political prisoner

Dharamsala, March 13 :- Lukar Jam was only 20 when he was forcibly jailed in Tibet by the Chinese police for raising his voice against rights violations. The memories of the extreme torture he suffered prompts him to say that there is no difference between the notorious Guantanamo Bay detention centres and Tibet jails.
The torture has left Jam with a weak body and multiple injuries, but that has not deterred him from continuing the fight for Tibetans' rights in their own home country.
Jam is a former political prisoner who spent five years in a Tibet jail before escaping to India in the late 1990s.
'Many political prisoners are still lodged in Tibet jails. They are tortured brutally by the Chinese police very similar to the practices followed by 17th century rulers and kings. Tibetan prisoners are chained and beaten almost every day,' Jam told IANS.
He added: 'The Chinese police go wild while beating. There is no difference between Guantanamo Bay jail (the infamous prison for militants and terrorists run by the US in Cuba) and Tibetan jails. I had become very weak and had sustained several internal injuries, so the Chinese police left me in a hospital to die.'
Jam fled from the hospital and reached India. He was again admitted to a hospital in Dharamsala where he underwent surgery.
'I can proudly say that my life was saved with the help of Indian blood donors who came forward to help me,' Jam recalled.
He said he was still in pain.
Jam recalled how the Chinese police operated against Tibetan protesters.
'They tortured political prisoners severely in order to frighten others and prevent them from joining the freedom movement. Even after their release from jails, which happened only in very rare cases, they kept track of people's activities and made sure nobody did anything to help them,' he said.
'Our freedom fighters are quite similar to Indian freedom fighters like Subhas Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi. But our struggle is very different as we are fighting it from a foreign soil where we are given refugee status,' Jam added.
Jam was a student when he was arrested in 1991.
He recalled: 'I had been witnessing the atrocities of the Chinese government and police and that prompted me to join a revolutionary group. I was arrested with three others for our anti-China campaigns.'
'Political prisoners are not provided with any medical aid. The wounds kept bleeding. There was nobody to help and it was horrible.
'After months of extreme torture, the Chinese police left the prisoners to die in hospitals, with broken bones and multiple injuries. They did not want to take the responsibility of death in jail,' Jam said.
He stressed that the Chinese police did not impose any charge against him nor did they take him for court trial.
'They labelled me as a separatist who was a threat to the country's security. I was also not allowed to hire my own lawyer.
'Yes, they offered the services of a Chinese government lawyer, but I refused to accept him. I knew he was only the mouthpiece of the Chinese police,' said Jam.
According to him, there are still over 800 political prisoners in Tibetan jails, including writers, social activists and students. He said he is working from India to gather social support for them and to ensure their release.
Jam is also very radical when it comes to use of violence against China.
'It's very difficult to constitute a revolutionary group in Tibet. But I feel that if China is allowed to enter Tibet with tanks, arms and artillery and to use bombs against us, then similar rights should be given to Tibetans,' Jam insisted.

With Gaddafi forces closing in, Libya town fearful

 
BREGA, Libya  - Rebels fighting the forces of Muammar Gaddafi in the east of Libya said on Sunday the front line had been pushed back to the rebel-held oil town of Brega, and residents in the area said they were fearful.
"The Libyan people need help. We're in danger. The east is in danger," Abdel Hadi Omar, a civilian rebel volunteer, speaking in the nearby town of Ajdabiyah, said on Sunday.
"The Libyan people can't cope with Gaddafi's weapons. We have people but we don't have means," he told Reuters.
Further east down the strategic coastal road, Gaddafi troops had pushed insurgents from Ras Lanuf after attacking the oil port in an assault pitting tanks and planes against rebels armed with light weapons and machineguns mounted on pick-up trucks.
It was clear the rebels had retreated from Ras Lanuf, but with a rapidly-moving battlefield just how far was uncertain.
The next big oil town of Brega was alive with rumour that Gaddafi forces would be advancing shortly, mounting another overwhelming show of military force. Many families had fled.
On the outskirts, some rebels had made preparations in armed vehicles to defend the town in this barren landscape dotted with oil terminals that divides the west with Tripoli as its capital from the rebel-held east and Libya's second city of Benghazi.
WATCHFUL FROM DESERT
This correspondent noted that the coastal road appeared thinly protected by rebel soldiers and said in Brega there was a feeling that the town could fall at any moment. Rebels said their soldiers were watchful from positions in the desert.
"This will be their next target. They will be coming here next," Rafah Farsi, 31, an oil worker and one of the few residents to remain in Brega, said on Saturday night.
"It saddens me seeing people fleeing their own homes for safety," a tearful Farsi told Reuters. "Ras Lanuf was a residential area and now it's destroyed, why?"
In the local barber's shop in Brega, a revolutionary poster celebrating the uprising against Gaddafi had been replaced by a poster of the flamboyant and autocratic leader.
Several customers said they were prepared to welcome Gaddafi forces out of self-preservation rather than loyalty.
But Ali Zwei, 41, said he would not join them along the streets. "These people have no principles. How can you wave a flag for someone who bombs his own people. If our brothers around Libya can't stand with us now, then when," he said.
There was growing support for the scenario that Gaddafi's push east could leave him fighting a prolonged guerrilla war.
"We don't care how long it takes, five years or 10 years. The gate has been opened," said Bashir Warshfani, 30, a rebel in military fatigues and wearing a keffiyeh.
"If I die, my brother takes my place, if he dies, my neighbour. Gaddafi will only get this country when he kills us all," he said, lifting his shirt to show the entry and exit wound of a bullet that was freshly bandaged.

Israel to build settler homes after Palestinian attack

 
JERUSALEM  - Israel said on Sunday it would build several hundred homes for settlers in the occupied West Bank, a day after a Palestinian attack killed an Israeli couple and three of their children in a settlement.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a special session of a ministerial committee on settlement to approve the step after pledging publicly the stabbings on Saturday would not deter Israel from building more homes for Jews in the West Bank.
Troops searched outside the settlement of Itamar, near the Palestinian city of Nablus, for the attacker or attackers who snuck into the home of Ehud and Ruti Fogel at night and knifed them and three of their children, aged 11, 4 and 3 months, as the family slept.
A 12-year-old daughter found their bodies after returning home from an evening youth group meeting.
With anger high in Israel and among settlers, Netanyahu's office said in a statement that "ministers decided to authorise construction" of several hundred housing units in the Etzion bloc of settlements and in Maale Adumim, Ariel and Kiryat Sefer.
The move was likely to draw international dismay and harden Palestinian resolve not to return to peace talks frozen over Netanyahu's refusal to extend a 10-month moratorium that expired in November on housing starts in West Bank settlements.
"This decision is wrong and unacceptable and will only create problems," said Nabil Abu Rdainah, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
Expanded construction in West Bank settlements could bolster Netanyahu within his governing coalition, which is dominated by pro-settler parties, including his own right-wing Likud.
CONDEMNATION
No group claimed responsibility for the attack but the Hamas Islamists who rule the Gaza Strip said they offered their "full support" to any actions taken against settlers.
A senior figure in Hamas's exiled leadership, Izzat al-Rishq, said on Saturday: "We had nothing to do with it."
A funeral for the family was to be held later on Sunday.
Several hours after the attack, Abbas put out a statement condemning "all acts of violence against civilians, regardless of who carried them out and their motives."
Netanyahu, who spoke with Abbas by phone, said the statements by the Palestinian leadership were not strong enough and it must move to end what he termed incitement against Israelis in Palestinian schools, mosques and media.
No starting date was given for the new housing projects, in settlements Israel has said it intends to keep in any future peace deal with the Palestinians. Israel's left-leaning Haaretz newspaper put the number of planned homes at 500.
The World Court has deemed illegal Israeli settlement in the West Bank, territory captured along with the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem in a 1967 war.
Some 500,000 settlers live among 2.5 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Palestinians fear the enclaves will deny them a viable state.
Violence in the West Bank has dropped significantly since its peak during a Palestinian uprising a decade ago, although tensions had risen earlier in the week when Israeli troops fired live rounds at Palestinians after they clashed with settlers.
Ten Palestinians and one Israeli were wounded in the confrontation.