Shortly after midnight, the newspaper [The New York Times] says, people near the fighting received a text message that read: “Dear subscriber, you are registered as a participant in a mass disturbance.”
The Times adds:
”The phrasing echoed language in a new law making participation in a protest deemed violent a crime punishable by imprisonment. The law took effect on Tuesday.
”This law and a package of other legislation passed by pro-government political parties in Parliament appeared modeled on rules in neighboring Russia, which has pioneered the coordination of legislation tightening rules on free speech and public assembly with technological capabilities.”
Backfire, from Spiegel Online, Picture This. Photo credit: Reuters.
Caption: Protests have been raging for weeks in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, with conflicts between opposition activists and security forces growing more intense by the day. Neither side has shown a willingness to back down. This demonstrator didn’t immediately notice that his pants had caught fire.
Google's mission for 2014 is to make its Blink rendering engine faster and lighter on mobile platforms. To do this, it's planning not simply to improve the Blink code. The company is investigating the removal of its current (albeit disabled-by-default) support for CSS Regions, a specification that enables rich, magazine-like text layouts, and Google developers are now arguing that CSS Regions should not ship.
Google's position is that the Regions code is complicated, with some 10,000 of Blink's 350,000 lines of code being in some sense Region-related. Additionally, the code is not particularly self-contained. Google developer Eric Seidel argues that it's hard to reconcile this with Google's plans to improve performance, especially on mobile.
Seidel recognizes that Regions does address deficits in CSS's text layout capabilities, and he expresses the hope that Adobe can help find some simpler way to address these omissions.
Over the holidays, Apple's iPad and iPhone sold better than they've ever sold before: 51 million iPhones and 26 million iPads in a single quarter. The lowly iPod, however, didn't do nearly as well. The company moved just six million of the trademark MP3 players, a 52 percent decline compared to the same period last year. All told, iPod accounted for just $973 million of the company's record $57.6 billion revenue last quarter. While some would probably be happy to claim they ran a slightly-less-than-a-billion-dollar business, it's getting pretty small for a company the size of Apple. You might even call it a hobby — if not now, then by this time next year.
What happened to the iPod? Simple cannibalization, for one: every one of those 51 million iPhones can take the place of an iPod. (Steve Jobs famously called the iPhone "the best iPod we've ever made.") And as people increasingly get their music from streaming services, a constant internet connection could be key, something you don't get with an iPod or even a iPod touch unless you have a Wi-Fi hotspot to pair with.
The decline of MP3 players shouldn't be news to anyone though, certainly not to anyone who follows Apple closely. In June 2009, Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer admitted that cannibalizing the company's MP3 players was all part of the plan:
For traditional MP3 players, which includes Shuffle, Nano, and Classic, we saw a year-over-year decline which we internally had forecasted to occur. This is one of the original reasons we developed the iPhone and the iPod Touch. We expect our traditional MP3 players to decline over time as we cannibalize ourselves with the iPod Touch and the iPhone. [emphasis ours]
Since 2009, iPod sales have declined time and again. For five years, every quarterly financial call would include a dedicated mention of how the company's "music product" sales had slipped by a million units here, a couple million units there. Every time, Apple would soften the blow by saying how the iPod still had a 70 percent market share in MP3 players in the US, and remained the top-selling MP3 player around the world.
But in the middle of last year, the company changed its tune. It failed to introduce any new iPods (unless you count the cheaper $229 iPod touch) and removed that dedicated section from its quarterly conference calls.
New iPods or no, a downhill trend
The lack of new iPods could certainly be responsible for the most recent decline in sales. Usually, purchases pick up drastically every time Apple releases a new iPod, and this year they clearly did not. Still, that's not the whole story: as you can see in the chart above, the peaks had been shrinking even before Apple stopped updating the iPod nano like clockwork.
But does the lack of attention and decline in sales mean the company's killing off the iPod entirely? That's completely uncertain. It's not the first time we've gone without an iPod refresh, and there appear to be plenty of dollars left to scrape out of the bottom of the iPod barrel. And even that assumes that Apple isn't about to pull another Mac Pro. After neglecting the Mac Pro for nearly three whole years, it unveiled a radically redefined version of the workstation computer in 2013 with the resounding phrase "Can't innovate anymore, my ass."
It might be premature to write the iPod's obituary, but barring some such bravado from Apple, it seems like the MP3 player's days are finally running out.
In William Gibson's Neuromancer, the mercenary Molly Millions has a lot of enhancements — including retractable razor blades beneath her fingernails. These 3D printed nails from The Laser Girls are how I imagine Molly's nails would look from the outside, when the razors are withdrawn.
eggboard writes "Henk Rogers was a Dutchman who arrived in Japan in the 1980s following a girlfriend (later, his wife). An inveterate D&D player, he became enthralled with the NEC-8801, and nearly killed himself trying to create a D&D-like world that he released as The Black Onyx. No one initially knew what to make of it, and the game sold slowly at first. Through savvy pricing, packaging, and press attention, sales grew, and the game jumpstarted RPGs in Japan. Rogers got left behind, though, as Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy hit a local nerve better than his efforts. 'I also realized that I didn't quite understand the Japanese aesthetic and way. These games were quite different to mine, and just struck a more effective cultural chord.' Rogers went on to license Tetris to Nintendo, though, so he did just fine."
While Shonda Rhimes may be best known as the showrunner who discovered “Kerry Washington” plus “red wine” equals “must tweet-TV,” she’s also been long respected for her commitment to diverse casting. Until the more recent efforts by Fox to promote diversity, Rhimes’ shows—including Scandal, Grey’s Anatomy, and Private Practice—were some of the only spaces on network TV that presented a wide array of men and women of color in highly skilled jobs and positions of power, from Chief of Surgery to top political crisis manager. Race is a part of her characters’ identities, but it's far from their sole defining factor.
Rhimes and Scandal executive producer Betsy Beers were honored for their efforts with the Diversity Award at this weekend’s Directors Guild of America Awards, and Rhimes used her acceptance speech to discuss what such an award means about American television—as well as ...
Destined to make the owner of this painting of a mauled, shirtless Jeff Goldblum feel kind of dumb, now you can own an arguably even better piece of Jurassic Park memorabilia: the actual crate that housed the velociraptor seen in the opening of the film. As picked up by Reddit, eBay is currently hosting an auction for the prop crate in which a gatekeeper becomes the first to discover that maybe resurrecting man-eating dinosaurs and putting them in a malfunction-plagued zoo isn’t the best idea. As a bonus, the crate comes complete with a velociraptor prop crafted for display at the film premiere, thus saving you countless seconds of explanation of the function of the giant steel box that’s in your living room and/or serving as your son’s “college,” since you spent all your money on a raptor cage.
An anonymous reader writes "Dell today announced a partnership with MakerBot to offer Replicator 3D printers and scanners to small and medium-sized businesses looking for faster and more affordable ways of prototyping. The products are slated to become available for purchase on February 20 in the U.S."
So, we've finally gotten a look at the outfit Peter Capaldi will be wearing as the Doctor. And while it's a brand new look, it's also strangely familiar.
Bernie may be dead, but nearly 25 years after Weekend At Bernie’s came out, money from the movie isn’t. To that end, 20th Century Fox and MGM were sued today for breach of contract by director Ted Kotcheff and writer Robert Klane for profits they say they are due from the 1989 comedy. Stating that the gross box office receipts for what they call “one of the most hilarious and endearing goofball comedies of the 80s” were more than $30 million and residuals for further venues for Bernie’s equal more than $16 million, the duo says they “have been, and continue to be, deprived of at least hundreds of millions of dollars.” While Fox was the distributor of the film back in 1980s, the complaint (read it here) filed in LA Superior Court today names both the studio and MGM as defendants because it says producers Gladden Entertainment Company, transferred all rights to Bernie’s to the two not long after the pic came out on July 5, 1989. Former MGM CEO David Begelman, who died in 1995, formed Gladden in 1984. Weekend At Bernie’s starred Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman as two up-and-coming corporate men trying to hide the fact their rich boss is dead and avoid the hitman after him. Hilarity ensues.
In their no-joke 6-claim complaint seeking a 2- to 3-day jury trial, Klane and Kotcheff are seeking unspecified “monetary damages,” general, special and punitive damages as punishment against the studios for their “wanton, willful, and fraudulent conduct”: as well as a full accounting, legal fees and pre-judgment interest. Both Klane and Kotcheff allege that the deals they individually signed in 1987 to do the Bernie’s pic guaranteed them a flat fee for their jobs and a percentage of the film’s net profits and a percentage of the film’s adjusted gross receipts, respectively. Both also were paid a flat fee as EPs. Despite their respective deals, and the WGA and DGA agreements meant to back them up, both the former M*A *S*H TV writer and Rambo: First Blood helmer say they haven’t seen any royalties nor been given a chance to look at the books on the pic. Now, like many before them in other suits over other movies against other studios, they want their chance and their money via the courts.
Kotcheff and Klane are represented by Stephen Doniger and Scott Burroughs of Culver City firm Doniger/Burroughs APC.
' "It's a Vivienne Westwood Buffalo hat from when she was with Malcolm McLaren," said Williams. "It's not vintage -- I would've been really stylin' if I had one from the '80s." '
While Pharrell Williams’ gigantic brown Grammys hat might have seemed at best ridiculous—and at worst, inspired by Arby's—it turns out it actually has a pretty solid hip-hop history. As Williams told The Hollywood Reporter, the hat was designed by Vivienne Westwood back in the '80s, when it was featured prominently in the video for Malcolm McLaren’s “Buffalo Girls.” Released in 1982, McLaren’s song with the World’s Famous Supreme Team is one of hip-hop’s early classics, with the song’s origins coming from an old standard, 1844's “Buffalo Gals,” by blackface minstrel singer John “Cool White” Hodges. McLaren’s version was later sampled in Neneh Cherry’s 1988 hit “Buffalo Stance.” The hat originally appeared in Westwood’s ‘82/’83 collection, and has several names, including the “Buffalo Hat,” the “Mountain Hat,” and “the Jelly Mould Hat.”
UltraCade Technologies founder David R. Foley has been sentenced to two years in prison for fraud stemming from the illegal copying and selling of arcade game data.
UltraCade offers a lineup of full-size arcade cabinets outfitted with emulated games ...
not enjoying this trend of chopping down initial caps
Sans Triumphs Over Flared
With roots as far back as 1885, Triumph Motorcycles is the largest British manufacturer of motorcycles and, apparently, the world's longest continuous production motorcycle manufacturer despite changes of ownership and including going into receivership in 1983. Triumph designs and produces a range of motorcycles from ones that go vroom-vroom really fast and others that go vroom-vroom to make you look like a bad-ass. (This should clarify my expertise in bikes). At the end of 2013, Triumph introduced a revised logo and new emblem designed by the London office of Wolff Olins with typographic assistance by Rick Banks.
Logo history.
[We developed a refreshed logo and new brand symbol. For the logo we made only a small change, redrawing it slightly to make it more usable on their modern bikes whilst staying true to its original unique design and heritage. Alongside this we developed a new and bolder brand symbol to use both on bikes and at events and shows — this incorporates the new logo into the original 'makers mark' triangle with a design that celebrates their British heritage. Supporting this we worked with McCann Birmingham who developed a new more biker focused communications style and activation platform and strapline 'For the ride'. This activation platform is designed to highlight Triumph bikes capability to deliver the best ride (handling, drive, ridability), represent Triumph as a brand that enables the rider to have 'the ride' — the perfect ride in terms of their experience (the desert tour, the road trip, the best ride to work ever) and ultimately position Triumph more in the customers world.
"For the Ride" promo.Logo detail and logo detail for super nerds.Logo sample sheet.
The new wordmark maintains the basic premise of the "R-H" ligature wordmark introduced in 1934 but now comes in a rounded-corner, sans serif flavor that takes away some of the more baroque aesthetic of the previous version. I'm a fan of flared serifs in general so I personally would have liked to see those stay in the new version while cleaning up its usability as the new one does. It's definitely crisper and better developed but it also lost some bite. The new emblem… I don't know, it's clunky. In the quote above they refer to a "makers mark" which I am guessing is something along the lines of this, with the Union Jack flag in a triangle; this new interpretation sort of looks like parts of the flag but it also looks like a pair of mechanical wings, neither very convincing or pleasing. It's just oddly spaced and arranged inside the triangle.
Sexy motorcycle shots.
However, when you have sexy motorcycles to put the logo on and the light reflects just so on its metallic surfaces, you can't help but be smitten by it. It's good that the bikes feature the wordmark more prominently than the emblem, because it does look pretty good on them.
'a navy Crombie coat, a cardigan, and some ill-fitting pants, which—coupled with a rather dramatic hand gesture—make him look like the sternest magician in the world'
Doctor Whofans are accustomed to certain rites of passage when it comes to the regeneration of the show’s central alien. First comes the announcement of the actor (this time with more fanfare than the Royal Wedding). Then there's his first onscreen appearance (which kind of already happenedtwice). And finally there's the reveal of his new costume, a box that Whovians can check off now that the BBC has released the below first image of Peter Capaldi in the 12th Doctor's costume, confirming he’s wearing, well, clothes.
Specifically, the Scottish actor is wearing a navy Crombie coat, a cardigan, and some ill-fitting pants, which—coupled with a rather dramatic hand gesture—make him look like the sternest magician in the world. Speaking of the 12th Doctor’s look, Capaldi said, “He’s woven the future from the cloth of the past. Simple, stark, and ...
Venture capitalist Tom Perkins, who is under fire for comparing the attack on America's rich to "Kristallnacht," was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in France in 1996 for killing someone -- with his yacht.
This year is a midterm election year, with all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives and 33 (of 100) seats in the US Senate up for grabs. (Not to mention, there's a slew of other state and local elections.) And this year, according to Politico, individuals on both the political left and libertarian right are attempting to position themselves as the pro-privacy, anti-National Security Agency candidates.
In Maine, Shenna Bellows, the former head of the American Civil Liberties Union of Maine, is facing off against incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins. Bellows told Politico that she’s hitching her candidacy to her position on surveillance.
“Constitutional freedoms is how I win the race,” Bellows said. “I think the erosion of constitutional freedoms exemplifies how Washington has become out of touch with some of the values that we share as communities.”
Just halfway through its three-month lunar mission, China's Jade Rabbit has experienced a "mechanical control abnormality." Experts now fear the lunar rover may be permanently lost.
'SEAHAWKS WIN RT @KatieSimpson24: Mayor Ford wearing Broncos jersey'
'The world is again captivated by a media & police pursuit of a slow moving white Ford Bronco'
The zinger of the century came out of Rob Ford's Toronto-themed jersey selection.
Perhaps you have heard of Rob Ford, the man who is somehow mayor of a major North American city despite his drug use, constant drunkenness, occasional racism, very public statements about "eating pussy," and just generally being a huge buffoon. (He's also fat and makes a lot of funny faces, which sometimes prevents people from getting elected to public office, but that's neither here nor there.)
Anyway: since he's technically the mayor of Toronto, he gave a press conference Tuesday to talk about the city's budget. Of course, he did that while wearing a Broncos jersey:
Specifically, he's wearing the jersey of Orlando Franklin, the Broncos' starting RT who grew up in Toronto after being born in Jamaica. We bring this up not because it's crazy for a mayor to wear a football jersey of a player from his city before the Super Bowl, but a) because it's Rob Ford and b) because this brought us THE BEST TWEET OF ALL TIME:
Bernie may be dead, but nearly 25 years after Weekend At Bernie’s came out, money from the movie isn’t. To that end, 20th Century Fox and MGM were sued today for 
breach of contract by director Ted Kotcheff and writer Robert Klane for profits they say they are due from the 1989 comedy. Stating that the gross box office receipts for what they call “one of the most hilarious and endearing goofball comedies of the 80s” were more than $30 million and residuals for further venues for Bernie’s equal more than $16 million, the duo says they “have been, and continue to be, deprived of at least hundreds of millions of dollars.” While Fox was the distributor of the film back in 1980s, the complaint (read it here) filed in LA Superior Court today names both the studio and MGM as defendants because it says producers Gladden Entertainment Company, transferred all rights to Bernie’s to the two not long after the pic came out on July 5, 1989. Former MGM CEO David Begelman, who died in 1995, formed Gladden in 1984. Weekend At Bernie’s starred Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman as two up-and-coming corporate men trying to hide the fact their rich boss is dead and avoid the hitman after him. Hilarity ensues.
UltraCade Technologies founder David R. Foley has been sentenced to two years in prison for fraud stemming from the illegal copying and selling of arcade game data.
UltraCade offers a lineup of full-size arcade cabinets outfitted with emulated games ...
