firehose

Philly.com

Asked if he's gay, Booker says: 'So what does it matter if I am?' Hunterdon County Democrat - NJ.com NEWARK — It's a question he has been asked in the past, but this time it came amid a campaign for the U.S Senate. In a profile that appeared in the Washington Post on Monday, Newark Mayor Cory Booker was asked about the persistent rumor that he is gay ... Cory Booker: A man made for 'This Town'Washington Post Booker OK With Speculation That He's Gay: 'So What Does It Matter If I Am?'TPM Booker, other mayors to discuss reducing youth violence with ObamaThe Republic Huffington Post all 59 news articles »

Architectural Mash-ups by László Rentka

San Francisco Chronicle

Midshipman to testify on alleged sex assault by Navy football players Baltimore Sun (blog) Article 32 hearing is underway for three Naval Academy football players accused of sexual assault. (WJZ video). By Pamela Wood, The Baltimore Sun. 9:47 p.m. EDT, August 27, 2013. WASHINGTON ——. A midshipman who says she was sexually assaulted ... Lawyers debate evidence in Naval Academy hearingWatertown Daily Times Hearing on rape charges filed against three former Navy football players starts ...Washington Post Hearing begins for Naval Academy football playersSan Francisco Chronicle all 56 news articles »

Last week at Gamescom, Peter Moore made some statements to the effect that EA no longer ships offline games, but products that are enmeshed in online and social functionality. In a missive on the EA blog today, Moore added clarity to those statements, saying EA's approach does not mean all its games are required to be online.

"Many, if not most, of our games include single-player, offline modes that you can play entirely without an Internet connection, if you so choose," Moore wrote. "We know that's something many of our players want, and we will continue to deliver it."

Moore went on to address growing negative perceptions toward EA's free-to-play lineup, specifically Command & Conquer. "We will continue to explore new free-to-play experiences for our franchises when we believe there is gamer interest and a cool new game we can build. But of course we will continue to deliver award-winning core gaming experiences on ALL of these franchises." While many EA franchises offer free-to-play options, Moore said it is not a sweeping company mandate for all EA games moving forward.

Moore: Not every EA game will require online connection originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 27 Aug 2013 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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_{The Lord of the Rings Musical.}

HOW DID I NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS

Original Source

Floating Room by Leandro Erlich

It’s probably too late to complain about something in iOS 7, since we’re probably already using the last pre-GM beta. They’ve fixed most major complaints since the first beta, but there’s a big one still left:

The Springboard animations take far too long.

It’s pretty cool the first time we see all of the icons fly in. But do we really need to sit through that every time we unlock the phone or leave an app? The show-home-screen animation is simply too long, and for such an extremely common task, it adds up.

Potentially even more common: the new fade-in and fade-out when the Sleep/Wake button is pressed. In iOS 6 and earlier, the screen would turn on and off instantly. Now, it’s simply slower as we wait for the animation.

Entering and leaving the multitasking switcher is much less common, but it’s also too long.

Animation can be impressive, instructive, and delightful when done right. But when it’s too heavy-handed, it becomes annoying and patronizing: You think you’re impressing me, but you’re wasting my time.

These animations in iOS 7 feel like its designers are showing off their cool new abilities, and we’re just along for the ride. After sitting through all of these, day after day, it’s no longer impressive — it just feels needlessly, artificially slow.

Cut the animation durations in half.

If you’re going to screw over a business partner, you probably shouldn’t target the man known as “Europe’s last dictator.”

Vladislav Baumgertner, CEO of the potash mining giant Uralkali, learned that lesson the hard way this week when he was arrested in Belarus, the former Soviet state ruled by President Alexander Lukashenko since 1994. After being invited to Minsk to meet with the country’s prime minister, Baumgertner was seized at the airport, charged with crimes that could result in a 10-year prison term, and held responsible for $100 million in damages. The country is seeking four other Uralkali executives on similar charges and announced plans to seize the company’s assets.

A month ago, Uralkali broke up the informal cartel that had helped protect high prices for potash, the nitrogen-rich mineral that is a key ingredient in chemical fertilizers. Uralkali, a Russian firm, had previously partnered with Belaruskali, Belarus’ state-owned potash producer, to market their wares through the Belarussian Potash Company (BPC), where Baumgernter served on the advisory board; it appears that Belarus has charged him with abusing his powers in that capacity.

Uralkali’s decision to go solo—inspired by Belarus’ own plans to cut side-deals outside the joint marketing company—crashed the stock prices of potash companies around the globe, with investors expecting that big buyers like China and India will now drive prices lower.

Bad timing for Belarus

Still, many potash companies are sanguine. Among the North American potash giants, Canpotex, played down the Russian firm’s decision, and BHP Billiton announced plans to invest $2.6 billion in a new potash mine in expectation of rising global demand in the decades ahead.

The problem is that Belarus and Lukashenko aren’t playing a long game. They need money from their commodities exports now, mainly because of poor economic management, like the shenanigans behind his last ‘re-election’ campaign, in which Lukashenko’s government raised state wages and caused massive inflation that still lingers today. Potash makes up 10% of the country’s exports and 12% of the government’s revenue, so a drop in prices really hurts—potash brings in approximately $1 billion in foreign income that keeps a balance of payments crisis at bay.

The no-holds-barred post-Soviet business milieu

Russia’s foreign ministry has demanded that Baumgartner be released, but so far Belarus has declined. Analysts say the arrest is a negotiating tactic: the next tranche of a $3 billion Belarusian bailout package, granted by a regional economic organization dominated by Russia, is set to be released soon.

As part of the loan, the organization has urged structural reforms, including the privatization of state-owned Belarusian businesses. While most observers, including the International Monetary Fund, think getting Belarus’ government out of business would be best for the country’s economy, Belarus sees it as an attempt to give politically-connected Russian billionaires another crack at the liberalization bonanza.  Belarus is also investigating Suleiman Kerimov, a Russian politician-tycoon who owns 22% of Uralkali and has expressed an interest in purchasing some or all of Belaruskali in the past.

In short: Belarus needs the loan, but doesn’t want to sell its potash cash-cow, so it’s pressuring executives like Baumgertner for leverage.

The region is well known for this kind of hard sell: Russia under Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has shut off gas shipments to Belarus and other countries when other negotiations failed. But the arrest of a private citizen by Belarus—while common enough within Russia—is a new tactic, further complicating matters in a part of the world where it was already tricky to do business.

 

rjmarvin writes "Two developers were able to successfully reverse-engineer Dropbox to intercept SSL traffic, bypass two-factor authentication and create open-source clients. They presented their paper, 'Looking inside the (Drop) box' (PDF) at USENIX 2013, explaining step-by-step how they were able to succeed where others failed in reverse-engineering a heavily obfuscated application written in Python. They also claimed the generic techniques they used could be applied to reverse-engineer other Frozen python applications: OpenStack, NASA, and a host of Google apps, just to name a few..."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

firstbook:

The lack of diversity in kids’ books is a real problem for many kids in need. To become strong readers, they need to see themselves in books and stories.

Today, at the 2013 Clinton Global Initiative America (CGI America) meeting,  First Book proposed a solution.

READ MORE: http://blog.firstbook.org/2013/06/13/lack-of-diversity-in-kids-books-and-how-to-fix-it/

The rules announced on Tuesday offered good news to employees getting health coverage through a union-sponsored plan. They clarify that these employees will not be penalized, said tax lawyers who reviewed the rules on Tuesday. The IRS rules also said employees getting healthcare coverage from a temporary staffing agency are safe from penalties.

The Most Famous Painter in the World takes on a daring new subject.

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Bethesda is in talks with Microsoft to allow non-Xbox Live Gold members to play Elder Scrolls Online, according to an OXM interview. As it stands, players will need the paid Xbox Live subscription to play the game on Xbox One, which Bethesda recently announced is no longer free to play, but will launch with its own $14.99-per-month subscription plan in place.

Bethesda marketing boss Peter Hines told OXM the developer has been "seeing whether or not there's any room to change [Microsoft's] minds about that for folks who are only playing The Elder Scrolls Online and don't want to pay for an Xbox Live Gold subscription just to play The Elder Scrolls Online."

He added, "The answer right now is that's the way it works, but it's something that we're aware of and we keep pushing on to see if there's something that can be done." Elder Scrolls Online will launch in 2014 on PC, Mac, Xbox One and PS4.

Bethesda 'pushing' against Xbox Live Gold fees for Elder Scrolls Online originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 27 Aug 2013 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vancouver Sun

'Girls Gone Wild' creator Joe Francis receives jail, probation for assaulting woman Fox News LOS ANGELES – "Girls Gone Wild" creator Joe Francis was sentenced Tuesday to 270 days in jail and three years' probation for choking a woman and repeatedly slamming her head to the ground at his Los Angeles mansion in 2011. Los Angeles Superior ... Joe Francis Sentenced to Jail Over AssaultHollywood Reporter Joe Francis ArrestedEntertainment Tonight News Joe Francis -- SENTENCED TO JAILTMZ.com Los Angeles Times -NBCNews.com (blog) all 128 news articles »

John Gruber:

So this is weird. Back when Chromecast was announced, I wrote that it doesn’t do something that Google made it seem like it did — stream video directly from your phone (or tablet) like AirPlay. But then it ends up it was capable of something like AirPlay, but it required a third-party app, so I linked to it.

But now Google has removed the API that made this possible. I don’t get it. I mean, no one loves to make “open always wins” jokes at Google’s expense like I do — I really enjoy pointing out the instances where Google, the self-professed corporate king of openness really isn’t open at all. But here I just don’t get it. Why block this? What am I missing?

I love Gruber, but I think his confusion (and he’s hardly alone) is a great example of what I wrote when the Chromecast was announced:

The surest route to befuddlement in the tech industry is comparing a vertical player, like Apple, with a horizontal one, like Google.

Vertical players typically monetize through hardware, only serve a subset of users, and any services they provide are exclusive to their devices. Horizontal players, on the other hand, monetize through subscriptions or ads, and seek to serve all users across all devices.

Start with Apple and Airplay: Apple makes money by selling iPhones and iPads, ergo, Apple TV’s best feature – Airplay – makes iPhones and iPads better and helps lock you in to iOS. To put it another way, the end goal is more iPads and iPhones, and Apple TV’s feature set flows from that.

Android, though, is not an end, but a means. As I wrote in The Android Detour:

For Google, Android was a detour from their focus on owning and dominating web services; it ensured that those services would be freely accessible in this new world of computing, including on the iPhones and iPads that were used liberally in nearly every keynote demo. And, now that Android is successful, Google is back to focusing on “the best of Google”.

I added in Understanding Google:

One could make the argument that Google can no longer control Android. I would contend they don’t even want to. In fact, that was the point. No one company will ever control mobile (or a great many other things that will run some variant of Android), but all mobile devices will access the web.

Given this, Google doesn’t have a particularly pressing motivation to ensure that Chromecast’s feature set makes Android better. And so, the original lack of “Airplay for Android” is no big deal.

Still, why block this app?

Most obviously, as Aaron Pressman points out,¹ this is (real) beta software.

Beyond that, though, the app is potentially an affront to some of Google’s best customers/advertisers/partners. No one in the TV business has any interest in unbundling pay TV (note that all of the recent AppleTV channel additions require a pay-TV subscription), and Google has learned – painfully – that running an end around content providers is a sure route to disaster.

In short, Google does care about Chrome and about getting it on every screen, and thus would (gladly) sacrifice Android and its user experience.

Note: I read Google’s statement as mostly true; that said, if and when an SDK comes out, I bet it gives content owners the same right to not allow Airplay that iOS does.

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This article was updated to add the point about beta software and, relatedly, soften the content angle language.

ē

1. And as I should have noted in the original version of the article

The post In Chrome Versus Android, Chrome Wins appeared first on stratēchery by Ben Thompson.

Don't hold your breath for a new Blake's 7. Those reports that Microsoft would be producing the reboot of the classic British space opera as original content for the Xbox? Apparently not true after all.

Read more...

Former teacher gets 30 days for violating sentence Helena Independent Record A former Billings Senior High School teacher who pleaded guilty to raping a 14-year-old student who later committed suicide has been sentenced to 30 days in jail by a judge who said the victim was "older than her chronological age" and "as much in control ... and more »

The Feedbin RSS feed reader was open-sourced today...

A herd of deer calmly hangs out in the middle of a road in Nara, Japan as cars pass by and occasionally have to navigate around the deer.

video via BLUEBELLS9999

via reddit, Daily Picks and Flicks

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Description: It’s that time again! The Mary Sue seeks a kick-ass editorial intern. This is a no coffee-and-errands internship; our interns spend 90% of their time writing and most definitely receive bylines for all of their stories. “But what will I do as an intern?” you ask, wringing your hands in anticipation, or possibly consternation. You’ll join us in our offices, write, look at Google Reader an RSS reader of your choice, write, write some more, learn to be a Real Live Blogger, etc.. “How can I get this wonderful gig?” you ululate, collapsing to the floor in paroxysms of excitement, perhaps foaming at the mouth for a bit of effect. It’s pretty simple.

They stood on the shoulders of giants, and now thanks to a solid turn out at the Chinese box office, Jurassic Park has joined the exclusive club of movies that have grossed more than a billion dollars. Not bad for a wizened twenty year old.

Yesterday we reported that the adorably whimsical French film Amélie is being turned into a musical. But despite the fact that it's not even been written yet, said musical already has found an impassioned critic in a quite unlikely form: The film's director. Don't hold back, Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Tell us what you really think.

Oxford Dictionaries Online (ODO) is adding a slew of words that only recently came into general usage, many driven by fast-moving trends in technology and culture. Yes, “twerk” is now in the dictionary.

The most relevant addition to the dictionary for Quartz readers is probably “phablet,” a portmanteau of “phone” and “tablet” used to describe oversized smartphones. Other new words and phrases that resonate with Quartz include “bitcoin,” “internet of things,” and “space tourism.” We are less enamored of “vom,” which is shorthand for “vomit.”

Oxford University Press publishes both the ODO and the more famous Oxford English Dictionary (OED). These words are only going into the ODO, which prides itself on staying up-to-date with modern lingo. The OED describes itself as a “historic dictionary” and never removes any words, even if they fall out of use.

Here is a partial list of the new words along with the ODO’s definitions:

• apols, pl. n. (informal): apologies.

• A/W, abbrev.: autumn/winter (denoting or relating to fashion designed for the autumn and winter seasons of a particular year). (See also S/S)

• babymoon, n. (informal): a relaxing or romantic holiday taken by parents-to-be before their baby is born; a period of time following the birth of a baby during which the new parents can focus on establishing a bond with their child.

•  balayage, n.: a technique for highlighting hair in which the dye is painted on in such a way as to create a graduated, natural-looking effect.

•  bitcoin, n.: a digital currency in which transactions can be performed without the need for a central bank.

•  blondie, n.: a small square of dense, pale-coloured cake, typically of a butterscotch or vanilla flavour.

• buzzworthy, adj. (informal): likely to arouse the interest and attention of the public, either by media coverage or word of mouth.

• BYOD, n.: abbreviation of ‘bring your own device’: the practice of allowing the employees of an organization to use their own computers, smartphones, or other devices for work purposes.

• cakepop, n.: a small round piece of cake coated with icing or chocolate and fixed on the end of a stick so as to resemble a lollipop.

• chandelier earring, n.: a long, elaborate dangling earring, typically consisting of various tiers of gemstones, crystals, beads, etc.

• click and collect, n.: a shopping facility whereby a customer can buy or order goods from a store’s website and collect them from a local branch.

• dappy, adj. (informal): silly, disorganized, or lacking concentration.

• derp, exclam. & n. (informal): (used as a substitute for) speech regarded as meaningless or stupid, or to comment on a foolish or stupid action.

• digital detox, n.: a period of time during which a person refrains from using electronic devices such as smartphones or computers, regarded as an opportunity to reduce stress or focus on social interaction in the physical world.

• double denim, n.: a style of dress in which a denim jacket or shirt is worn with a pair of jeans or a denim skirt, often regarded as a breach of fashion etiquette.

• emoji, n: a small digital image or icon used to express an idea or emotion in electronic communication.

• fauxhawk, n: a hairstyle in which a section of hair running from the front to the back of the head stands erect, intended to resemble a Mohican haircut (in which the sides of the head are shaved).

• FIL, n.: a person’s father-in-law (see also MIL, BIL, SIL).

• flatform, n.: a flat shoe with a high, thick sole.

• FOMO, n.: fear of missing out: anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on a social media website.

• food baby, n.: a protruding stomach caused by eating a large quantity of food and supposedly resembling that of a woman in the early stages of pregnancy.

• geek chic, n.: the dress, appearance, and culture associated with computing and technology enthusiasts, regarded as stylish or fashionable.

• girl crush, n. (informal): an intense and typically non-sexual liking or admiration felt by one woman or girl for another.

• grats, pl. n. (informal): congratulations.

• guac, n.: guacamole.

• hackerspace, n.: a place in which people with an interest in computing or technology can gather to work on projects while sharing ideas, equipment, and knowledge.

• Internet of things, n.: a proposed development of the Internet in which everyday objects have network connectivity, allowing them to send and receive data.

• jorts, pl. n.: denim shorts.

• LDR, n.: a long-distance relationship.

• me time, n. (informal): time spent relaxing on one’s own as opposed to working or doing things for others, seen as an opportunity to reduce stress or restore energy.

• MOOC, n.: a course of study made available over the Internet without charge to a very large number of people.

• omnishambles, n. (informal): a situation that has been comprehensively mismanaged, characterized by a string of blunders and miscalculations.

• pear cider, n.: an alcoholic drink made from the fermented juice of pears.

• phablet, n.: a smartphone having a screen which is intermediate in size between that of a typical smartphone and a tablet computer.

• pixie cut, n.: a woman’s short hairstyle in which the hair is cropped in layers, typically so as to create a slightly tousled effect.

• selfie, n. (informal): a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to a social media website.

• space tourism, n.: the practice of travelling into space for recreational purposes.

• squee, exclam. & v. & n. (informal): (used to express) great delight or excitement.

• srsly, adv. (informal): short for ‘seriously’.
street food, n.: prepared or cooked food sold by vendors in a street or other public location for immediate consumption.

• TL;DR, abbrev.: ‘too long didn’t read’: used as a dismissive response to a lengthy online post, or to introduce a summary of a lengthy post.

• twerk, v.: dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance.

• unlike, v.: withdraw one’s liking or approval of (a web page or posting on a social media website that one has previously liked).

• vom, v. & n. (informal): (be) sick; vomit.

You can annotate any of the dictionary entries—or other paragraphs—in this piece. Hover over the text, and click the bubble in the right-hand margin.

Samurai Gunn, the precision-based Bushido brawler from developer Teknopants, was nominated for Excellence in Design at the 2013 IGF awards, is one of the eight Spotlight games at this year's Fantastic Arcade, was a featured title in the EVO 2013 Indie Showcase and it has a spot in the PAX Prime Indie Megabooth, among other accolades. People seem to like this game. People like Cards Against Humanity designer Max Temkin.

Under his company, Maxistentialism, Temkin provided an angel investment to Teknopants, insuring designer Beau Blyth and his team can finish the game on time and to its full potential.

"I first got to play Samurai Gunn at GDC and I was immediately hooked," Temkin says. "Beau shared a build with me and I started taking it around to parties .... Whenever I brought it out the party would grind to a halt and everyone would gather around the laptop. I want to share that experience with everyone."

Samurai Gunn is a local multiplayer extravaganza, which jives with Temkin's expertise. Blyth is pretty fond of that aspect, too.

"The conventional wisdom is that you need to have online multiplayer for a game to sell, but I guarantee that getting a bunch of your friends in a room together will always be more fun," Blyth says.

Samurai Gunn is on its way to PC this holiday, via Steam and direct purchase. It's also (be)headed to PS4 and Vita in 2014.

Continue reading Samurai Gunn nets investment from Cards Against Humanity designer

Samurai Gunn nets investment from Cards Against Humanity designer originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 27 Aug 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[Welcome to Popsicle Week, wherein I admit that I had something of a popsicle incident this summer, wherein incident = gotta a little carried away, made too many and now can't let summer end without sharing the queue with you. This is Popsicle 1 of 3.]

This — and amazingly, not the fudge, banana-nutella-salted-pistachio or the strawberry-lime-black-pepper ones before it — is the popsicle that sent me into a tailspin that begin in late June and continues to this moment, when we managed to squeeze in one last vacation before summer was over but are maybe kind of sad we forgot our popsicle molds? No, that would be weird. Which doesn’t mean that it’s not true, just that I’m not going to admit it.

You’d think that the one that sent me over the edge into some sort of popsicle fevor/fervor would at least been insanely decadent, all salted caramel ganache and peanut butter penuche. At the least, it would have been extraordinary in complexity, one of those recipes that imagine you’d like to tether yourself to the freezer for an afternoon in the name of a stunning striated popsicle, frozen in segregated layers (but that, sadly, disappear in the exact same amount of time as the frozen juice varieties do). You wouldn’t guess that it might be a popsicle with but five ingredients, one that is no more complicated than a pinch of salt and another that comes straight from a can.

... Read the rest of key lime pie popsicles on smittenkitchen.com

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