Paul Thompson

My new novel, DEAD WRONG, has just been released. For those of you who have finished it, I would appreciate it if you would take a couple of minutes to post a short review on Amazon.

Best,
Richard Phillips

Now we know what Nick Cannon was saying about in his new song referencing Mariah Carey ... He's actually talking about a text ... and not what it sounded like.It sounded like he said "I got a check," referring to his soon-to-be ex-wife.…

The latest smartphone sales data released today from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech highlights good news for Apple on the strength of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus launch, with Apple gaining share year-over-year in every country surveyed except for Japan.

The report, focusing on the September-November 2014 period, points out that Android market share dropped in most European markets and saw its first decline in the U.S. since September 2013. In the surveyed period, Apple reached 42.5 percent of UK sales, up 12.2 percentage points from the same time in 2013.


In the U.S., the Cupertino-based company's share of smartphone sales grew 4.3 points to reach 47.4 percent of the market, an unsurprising performance given the strong early sales of the company's latest iPhones. More data from Apple on October-December iPhone sales will be announced later this month when the company releases its quarterly earnings report.

Apple's strong performance is being attributed in part to enthusiasm for the redesigned bodies and larger screens of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, with the iPhone 6 leading the smartphone pack during the time period.

“The iPhone 6 was the best selling phone in the three months through November 2014, capturing 19% of smartphone sales”, said Milanesi. Verizon and AT&T made up 57% of iOS sales while Verizon and T-Mobile were the top two carriers for Android accounting for 33.7% of all Android smartphones sold.

Despite declines in many markets, Android remains the dominant platform in Europe with 69.9 percent of the market, although that number is down 3.2 percentage points from the same period in 2013. Kantar also notes that customers switching from Android to iOS remained at a steady 18 percent from 2013 to 2014, suggesting Apple's larger-screened phones have yet to represent significant motivation for switchers.

Gary Sheffield said in November that it was an honor to be considered for the Hall of Fame. He received votes on 64 out of 549 ballots submitted, or 11.7 percent. It was more than enough to keep him on the ballot for next year, but not nearly enough to make him a serious candidate for induction for now.

What's a good remedy for a first set bagel? Serena Williams orders a coffee at the end of the first set at the Hopman Cup 2015.

Panasonic also announced a trio of compact superzoom cameras, covering all price ranges. The base model is the Lumix DMC-SZ10, which has a 16MP CCD, 24-228 mm equiv. lens, and flip-up 2.7" LCD. Stepping up to the DMC-ZS45 (TZ57 outside of US) gives you a 16MP CMOS sensor, 24-480mm lens, 1080p video, Wi-Fi with NFC, and a larger/sharper LCD. The top model is the ZS50 (TZ70) that has a 12MP sensor, 24-720mm lens, 60p video, and a 1.2M dot EVF. More details

Recently Jello Biafra joined Rev. Horton Heat on stage in Dallas, Texas to play a rendition of "Viva Las Vegas." The song was written by Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman and was made famous by versions recorded by both Elvis Presley and The Dead Kennedys.

While there are several apps designed to turn the iPad or iPhone into a secondary display for a Mac, the most popular options use Wi-Fi, which can render them all but unusable at times due to unavoidable lag. A new app from developer and former Apple Engineer Rahul Dewan aims to solve these lag problems with a tethered solution that turns an iOS device into a more reliable secondary display.

Duet Display, which is launching today, is the one of the first apps that transforms the iPad and the iPhone into an extra display for the Mac using a Lightning or 30-pin cable. By sending data over a cable instead of Wi-Fi, Duet Display is able to greatly improve on the lag is typically present when an iOS device is used as a secondary display.

Duet Display offers both a Retina mode and a non-Retina mode, along with options for 30 or 60 frames per second, and it's easy to install and setup, requiring just the Mac app, the iOS app, and a cable to connect the two devices.

The Duet Display app is inarguably an improvement over other options today, but it is not a perfect solution. As detailed in the video walkthrough of the app below, MacRumors experienced some issues when testing the app. On a 2012 Retina MacBook Pro, Duet Display's Retina mode caused a significant amount of cursor lag, rendering the app nearly unusable, and the CPU usage climbed to well over 200 percent.


Non-Retina mode (which is enabled in the app by default) offered a more lag free experience, but the trade off caused the secondary iPad Air 2 display to look fuzzy -- a disappointment given the inherent clarity of the screen on Apple's newest tablet. Non-Retina mode in Duet Display degrades the quality of all Retina displays to a noticeable degree.

According to the developer, performance is better on Macs released in 2013 or later, and users who only want to view one static window may not have any problems. Furthermore, many users may find the utility of a secondary iPad or iPhone display to be enough to outweigh the lack of a Retina experience.

Though the iPad Air 2 and other Retina devices don't look good in non-Retina mode, Duet Display is a great solution for older iPads that people might have little use for. An original iPad or iPad 2 does not have a Retina screen, and will work well with older Macs as secondary displays. iOS 5.1.1 is not yet compatible with Duet Display, but the developer is working on a fix.

Along with the Retina issue, potential buyers should be aware of some other small issues that we ran into. Even in non-Retina mode, on a 2012 Retina MacBook Pro, there was some slight cursor lag, and we also had problems with visual artifacts on some apps. When watching YouTube videos, for example, there were some occasional performance blips.

The developer assures us that he is working on improving Duet Display, and he plans to release iterative updates in the months to come to clear up lingering problems. As he suggests, it's better to have an app that works most of the time with just a few problems rather than one of the existing Wi-Fi solutions that can be almost non-functional.


The Duet website claims that all Macs using OS X 10.9 or later work with the app, as well as all iPads and iPhones, but MacRumors was unable to get the software to work with a 2010 MacBook Air running OS X 10.10.2. According to the developer, the issue was due to the 10.10.2 beta software, which does not work with the app.

Duet Display may not provide the perfect secondary display experience, but in our testing, we found that it was more reliable than current Wi-Fi options, and we believe it's a fantastic way to make good use of older iOS devices.

Duet Display for the Mac can be downloaded from the Duet website for free. The accompanying iOS app can purchased from the App Store for $9.99 for 24 hours, and then the price will go up to $14.99. [Direct Link]

Update 12PM PT: Some of our forum members have not been able to get Duet Display to work on an iPad running iOS 5.1.1, and the developer has asked people who want to use it with an iPad running iOS 5.1.1 to wait for an upcoming update before purchasing.

Turns out one the stories behind Mark Wahlberg's 1988 arrest is FALSE  ... because his victim just broke his silence, saying Mark didn't poke his eye out.As TMZ first reported, Wahlberg is gunning to have his felony assault…

Following in the footsteps of Dashlane, popular password management app LastPass has also debuted a new "Auto-Password Change" feature that is designed to let users enable a setting for automatic password changes.

Introduced last week to the company's Pre-Build Team, the new Auto-Password Change in LastPass is now available for all beta users in Chrome, Safari, and Firefox at no charge.

According to LastPass, Auto-Password Change has been developed to help its users initiate frequent password changes following major security incidents like Heartbleed, an OpenSSL vulnerability that left hundreds of thousands of machines open to malcious attacks.

We're excited to announce that the Auto-Password Change feature we released to our Pre-Build Team last week is now available for all users in beta. LastPass can now change passwords for you, automatically. We're releasing this feature for free to all our users, on Chrome, Safari, and Firefox (starting with version 3.1.70).

Maintaining your privacy and security is our top priority. That's why we're doing this differently. We've implemented this feature to make password changes locally on your machine, ensuring we stay true to our mission and never have access to your data. All of your sensitive information is encrypted on your computer before syncing, and your encryption key is never shared with LastPass.

Auto-Password Change supports 75 popular websites, like Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Pinterest, and Dropbox. In LastPass, users can turn on the feature by clicking "Edit" for a supported site and then clicking on "Change Password Automatically."

After choosing the password update option, LastPass will open a new tab, log into the site and create a new password, updating the information both on the site and within LastPass.

Earlier today, competing password management app Dashlane unveiled a similar "Password Changer" feature, which also allows users to implement easy password changes. Dashlane's new password changing functionality is somewhat more comprehensive than LastPass's password-by-password solution, as it can allow users to change all of their passwords with a single click.

LastPass is available for free on iOS and Mac with ads, but a $12 per year subscription gets rid of the ads, adds priority tech support, and multi-factor authentication. The browser extension can be downloaded from the LastPass website while the iOS app can be downloaded from the App Store. [Direct Link]

Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf was released from a Montana prison Wednesday ... more than two years after beginning his 5-year sentence for breaking into a home to steal Rx pills. But Leaf isn't in the clear yet ... the #2 overall pick in the…

Aaron Rodgers said today that his thirtieth year on planet Earth was a pretty good one for him … and you possibly can’t doubt him. He was awarded more money in a single contract than you and I and everyone else reading this will ever earn in many lifetimes; he has hooked up with Olivia […]

Happy birthday, Aaron Rodgers: Pictures through the years - Lombardi Ave - Lombardi Ave - A Green Bay Packers Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.

While there are an endless variety of external batteries on the market capable of charging iOS devices while on the go, two recent entrants at the higher end of the market are giving consumers more options as they consider holiday gifts.

Elgato Smart Power (left) and Mophie Powerstation Plus 2X (right)
The first is Elgato's Smart Power, a 6,000 mAh external battery priced at $99.95. Housed in a compact plastic enclosure that is slightly smaller than and roughly as thick as an Apple TV, Smart Power's key feature is app integration on iOS that allows users to wirelessly monitor charge level of the battery and initiate pinging sounds by the Smart Power unit to help locate it in the house.

Notifications are also an important part of the app integration, with users able to receive push notifications when the battery has been recharged or is running low. Users can also set a specific time for automatic daily power level checks and receive reminder notifications if the charge level is below a user-defined threshold. Finally, users can grant the app access to their Calendar apps, allowing Smart Power to automatically remind users to take the device with them on busy days.

Elgato Smart Power app
Offering adaptive charging at up to 2.4 amps and 12 watts, Smart Power can quickly deliver charge to high-capacity devices such as iPads. The device includes an integrated USB connector on a short cable for recharging, but requires a separate cable connecting to a USB port to connect to the device, so users will need to make sure they have one with them when traveling with Smart Power. For those who prefer to quickly check battery level without opening the iOS app, Smart Power also includes battery level lights on the unit itself.

Elgato Smart Power charging an iPhone 6 Plus
Smart Power worked well in our testing, recharging itself and charging devices at a reasonable rate while the notifications and app integration proved very handy for monitoring battery status. The size and shape of the Smart Power made it easy to slip into a bag for traveling, but carrying it in a pocket is a bit more touch-and-go. While the battery is roughly the same width as an iPhone 6 Plus in a thin case (and substantially shorter obviously), the thickness of the device makes it somewhat uncomfortable unless relatively loose-fitting pants are worn. And with a separate Lightning cable also needed, the Smart Power is undoubtedly best suited for carrying in a bag.

A second recent addition to the high-end external battery market is Mophie's Powerstation Plus, which was introduced a few weeks ago in a range of capacities. While Powerstation Plus lacks the handy app integration of the Elgato Smart Power, the multiple capacities and high-quality aluminum covers with hideaway cable management may be appealing to some users, although some may be hesitant to put the aluminum edges in close proximity to their devices.

The smallest Powerstation Plus, known as 2X, is roughly the size of a deck of playing cards and offers 3,000 mAh of charge for $79.95. A thicker 5,000 mAh 3X model is also available for $99.95, and coming soon are even higher capacity models including a 7,000 mAh 4X model for $119.95 and a 12,000 mAh 8X model for $149.95. While substantially larger in size than their smaller siblings, the 4X and 8X models include an additional USB port for charging multiple devices simultaneously.

Mophie Powerstation Plus 2X opened to show integrated cables
One significant advantage for the Powerstation Plus over Elgato's Smart Power is an integrated device cable, a short Lightning cable that makes it easy to charge devices on the go without worrying about having a separate cable or getting a longer one tangled. Micro-USB versions will also be available for non-Apple devices, but those do not begin shipping until December 17 and only then with the 2X and 3X variants.

As with the Elgato Smart Power, Mophie's Powerstation Plus offers 2.4-amp adaptive charging and button-activated lighted charge level indicators. And with pass-through priority charging, users can connect the Powerstation Plus and an iOS device in series to a USB port or charging adapter, with the Powerstation Plus allowing the iOS device to fully charge first before charging its own power pack.

Mophie Powerstation Plus 2X charging an iPhone 6 Plus
In our hands-on time with the 2X Powerstation Plus, we found it quite convenient to charge an iPhone while holding both devices in one hand for those times when an extra charge is needed while using the phone on the go. The compact design with hideaway cables is very nice for sticking in a pocket or bag, although at only half the capacity of Elgato's Smart Power, it is unsurprising the Powerstation Plus 2X is less bulky. We do have concerns about the metal covers potentially scratching other items, so it seems best to carry it alone in a pocket or a separate bag compartment unless kept with other non-scratchable items.

The Elgato Smart Power and Mophie Powerstation Plus do not come cheap, but with some good features and well-known brands behind them, they will undoubtedly be popular options with consumers.

Good Friend are streaming their new single "Irish Goodbyes". The single will be available January 20 via iTunes and Amazon Music.

The group will be heading out for a small run of dates in December as well as recording their new EP.

Best Deals: The step-up configuration of our favorite budget laptop, the Lenovo Flex 2 14, is $650 (down from $720). [Amazon]

Tamar Braxton is no fool -- she's using her new-found notoriety over her beef with Chris Brown to pimp her music ... in-between taking shots at CB and Karrueche Tran.Braxton fired back at Chris for the barrage of insults that came her way ... in…

Iggy Azalea and Rita Ora are huge stars, but based on a new Vegas offer they're not getting their due respect.The "Black Widow" singers have been courted to perform 2 shows at Planet Hollywood ... for $200K per show, and that's for…

Kesha admitted Dr. Luke did NOT drug her, did NOT sexually assault her, did NOT have sexual relations with her ... and she swore all of it under oath, which contradicts her lawsuit.Kesha has accused Dr. Luke of a variety of misdeeds in her lawsuit,…

Michael J. Fox's foundation is attacking a Parkinson's lab for destroying tens of thousands of critical samples ... and setting back much-needed research in the process.The Foundation claims in a new lawsuit ... Coriell Institute exposed more than…

Apple knew about an iCloud security flaw six months before it was utilized to hack celebrity accounts on the service, reports The Daily Dot. The company was notified of the exploit by independent security researcher Ibrahim Balic, who shared emails between himself and members of Apple's product security team.

In an email from March 2014, Balic told Apple that he was able to bypass the security of any iCloud account by using a "brute-force" hacking method that was able to try over 20,000 password combinations. Balic recommended to Apple that it should implement a feature in iCloud that prevents log-ins after a set number of failed attempts, and even reported the exploit through Apple's Bug Reporter. Balic was also the developer said to be behind the extended outage of Apple's Dev Center last year.

In May 2014, Apple emailed Balic and questioned the validity of the exploit, stating that it "would take an extraordinarily long time" to find a valid authentication token to get into an iCloud account using the flaw. Balic states that Apple continued to ask him about the exploit and how it would be utilized.

On September 1, 2014, hackers breached the iCloud accounts of many well-known actresses, downloading and leaking private photos and videos. While it was not initially known what caused the breach, The Next Web linked to a Python script on Github that may have been used for the hacking. The script utilized a brute-force like method which allowed hackers to keep guessing passwords without being locked out.

Apple acknowledged later in the day that it was investigating the breach, ultimately leading to comments from CEO Tim Cook along with new security implementations. Those implementations included automatic emails when iCloud accounts are accessed via web browsers, automatic two-factor authentication for iCloud.com, and mandatory app-specific passwords for third-party apps accessing iCloud.

Apple has announced on its official retail website (via Apfelpage.de, Google Translate) that it will be opening its new retail store in Hanover, Germany on Saturday, September 27 at 10 AM.


The announcement follows a prior report which stated that the store would open at some point in September after a year of work. Apple originally put up its traditional black barricades at the store in April 2013, however issues with physical defects, mold, and ventilation issues pushed back its grand opening.

The layout of the Hanover store is said to be similar to that of the Apple Store Opéra in Paris, France, which boasts a wide space and multiple floors for numerous products and services. The Hanover store will be Apple's 14th location in Germany, joining stores in Berlin and Frankfurt among others.

In 2010, a U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot a fleeing teenage drug smuggler twice in the back. Investigators deemed the shooting justified. But was it?

In a lengthy article covering Apple's iWatch and iPhone 6 plans for next Tuesday's media event, The New York Times reports the iPhone 6 will support an optional "one-handed mode" to make it easier for users on the larger-screened devices.

To deal with concerns that a bigger phone will make typing with one hand difficult (the current iPhone has a 4-inch screen), some changes to the design of the iPhones’ software interface will allow people to type or use apps with just one hand — there will be a one-handed mode that can be switched on and off, two employees said.

The report reiterates rumors that the iPhone 6 will come in 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch sizes, considerably larger than the 4-inch screen included on recent iPhone models. Apple has touted the ease of one-handed use on its current lineup as competitors have moved to even larger displays, and this new one-handed mode will clearly serve as an answer to Apple's own previous criticism of large-screen phones. Exactly how this mode will work is unclear, however.

iPhone 5s next to physical mockups of 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch iPhone 6
The New York Times also reiterates circulating rumors that the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 will be priced higher than the 4.7-inch model, with both devices also including near field communications (NFC) to support a new mobile payments initiative.

Apple's media event kicks off at 10:00 AM Pacific Time next Tuesday, and Apple will be providing a live video stream of the event. MacRumors will also be providing coverage of the event with a liveblog and Twitter updates.

TOMAH -- Dr. T.J. Bramwell first became interested in medicine while playing running back for Tomah High School’s football team in 1998.

The Fujifilm XF 18-135mm F3.5-5.6 is a weather-resistant lens designed as a companion to the weather-resistant Fujifilm X-T1. Covering a 27-200mm equivalent range, it claims to offer the world's most advanced image stabilization system, using gyro sensors for a gain of up to five stops. Is it the ideal pair for the X-T1? We took it out for a spin. See gallery

The globe-spanning white hat network hacked for the Dalai Lama and inspired arms legislation.

Nachtmystium has posted the first song from what will be their final album. The record is titled The World We Left Behind and is due out August 5, 2014.

An animated Montel Williams pounded his chest, and launched into an epic rant ... calling out President Barack Obama for failing to respond to his petition to fix the VA hospital crisis.Montel -- a 14-year military vet and staunch…

The Green Bay Packers‘ 2013 season ended in disappointing fashion with a quick exit in the first round of the playoffs thanks to Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco Forty-Niners for the second year in a row. Now, the Packers prepare for the 2014 season with hopes of getting over their recent playoff slump and […]

The 10 Most Important Packers of 2014 - Lombardi Ave - Lombardi Ave - A Green Bay Packers Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.

Details discussed during a recent earnings conference call by Apple supplier TPK Holdings suggest the production of the iWatch is behind schedule, reports UDN via GforGames. According to earlier rumors, the iWatch may debut in late 2014 with the latest report claiming it will launch alongside the 5.5-inch iPhone 6.

Based on reports from Asian sources, TPK executives spent a portion of the company's Q3 2014 earning conference call explaining why it sees poorer than expected financial projections for the current quarter. TPK is allegedly supplying Apple with flexible displays that use silver nanowire touch screen technology for inclusion in the iWatch wearable.

iWatch concept based on TRIWA's Havana Nevil Brown watch, by Gábor Balogh
Though the iWatch was not mentioned in the call, pundits believe TPK's shortfall is the result of a slip in the production schedule for the iWatch, which had been expected to be in production and contributing to TPK's bottom line during the third quarter. Now, the company is projecting an increase in profits during Q4 2014, suggesting the iWatch rollout may be slated for closer to the end of this year.

Shares of TPK stock dropped significantly late last week on the outlook.

At an investor conference Thursday, TPK forecast flat quarterly growth, or at best a 5 percent sequential increase, of its consolidated sales for the third quarter, citing decisions by its customers to postpone the launch of their new products. [...]

Sales growth, however, could pick up in September, TPK said, forecasting a break-even operating margin in the third quarter on higher operating costs.

This late start in production may result in Apple shipping fewer iWatch units than expected in 2014, claims analysts at CSLA, a leading Asian investment banking and asset management firm. Instead of shipping 20 million iWatch units by the end of the year, Apple may only be able to deliver a significantly smaller 6 million units. It is unknown if this lowered estimate will translate into a shortage of the device at launch.