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Apple invades France

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:01:04 -0600

iPhone For Verizon In 2010

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 10:03:40 -0600

Apple will release a new iPhone next summer that works on Verizon Wireless as well as all global networks a report claims citing sources in the Taiwan supply chain.Read the rest of this story &#187See AlsoThis Year The iPhone Will Actually Have Some Serious Holiday Competition AAPL RIMM MOT GOOG20 Guesses About What The Apple Tablet Will Look Like AAPLHow A Year With The iPhone Changed My Life AAPL

How Steve Jobs changed music

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:01:05 -0600

Those ubiquitous white earbuds only hint at how profoundly Apple has revamped the way we hear buy and make music.

Google Android Is Already Getting Confusing

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:02:59 -0600

The good news for Googles Android mobile operating system Its finally getting a lot of good support from mobile phone manufacturers and carriers.Read the rest of this story &#187See AlsoThis Year The iPhone Will Actually Have Some Serious Holiday Competition AAPL RIMM MOT GOOGGoogle Android Is Getting Huge GOOG AAPL RIMM MSFT If You Dont Buy An iPhone Buy A Droid GOOG AAPL MOT

Business schools in the recession Resilient wreckers

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:02:55 -0600

The market for MBAs is defying the economic gloomBUSINESS schools have been widely accused of fashioning the wrecking balls and training many of the demolition crews that have wreaked such havoc in the economy over the past two years. And the crisis whether it was forged in business schools or not is undoubtedly making it harder for students to afford their fees or to get jobs when they graduate in America only half the class of 2009 had been offered a job three months before graduating. Yet business schools are thriving. More than two-thirds of full-time MBA programmes received more applications this year than last their best performance for five years according to the Graduate Management Admission Council a business-school association. Deciding whether to go to business school or not is difficult. The long-term benefits sound substantial an improved chance of getting a corner office and a six-figure salary. But the short-term costs are also weighty two years at a leading American business school can cost $100000 even before you take living expenses and forgone income into account. Many of the world&#8217s most famous business people from Bill Gates down did not bother with an MBA whereas some of the most illustrious products of business schools have covered themselves with ignominy of late. Consultancies which were forced to recruit more people without MBAs in the late 1990s because of competition from high-tech companies found that they performed no worse and sometimes better. ...

Earth to economists Recession isnt over

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:01:01 -0600

Apple Has No Sense Of Humor. Luckily Google Does.

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:02:30 -0600

Last month Apple rejected the Someecards iPhone app because it contained satirical comedy about public figures. After attempting to make their case and getting stonewalled Someecards eventually gave into Apple and removed the offending cards which made fun of Hitler and Roman Polanski among others. Apple swiftly approved the app and all was well. Well not exactly. Apparently Apple contacted Someecards a couple days ago because of some new content in the app Someecards pushes new cards into the app just as it does on its site. There was one in particular that Apple did not find amusing and wanted clarification on A card making fun of President Obama Halloween costumes. Its fairly easy to see why Apple wanted some clarification the card involves race. Heres what it says Just double-checking that your Obama costume will involve a mask and not shoe polish.

After Citi Sells Phibro Whats Next?

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:03:26 -0600

Citigroups recovery plan is a bit of a disappearing act. But as it sells off profitable divisions the question of Citis future growth gets larger

Wall Street looks to the Fed

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 06:01:01 -0600

U.S. stock futures advanced early Tuesday after a lackluster session although ongoing fears about a recession and a rise in crude prices could crimp any opening gains.

Firmer crude price lifts energy sector

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 11:01:00 -0600

An overnight jump by crude-oil prices back above $97 a barrel pushed oil and gas stocks higher early Tuesday putting more momentum behind a modest rebound taking shape late in the previous session.

What Does IMS Health Do Anyway?

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:37:26 -0600

Among other things IMS sells drug companies information about the prescribing habits of individual doctors.

Mint.com Staying Free At Intuit Android App In The Works

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:03:01 -0600

Just two years after its launch personal finance site Mint.com was acquired by Intuit for $170 million.So whats next now that the popular Web 2.0 tool -- developed by a small startup -- will be part of a huge company? Mint founder and CEO Aaron Patzer sat down with us this week to share some of his plans.A few key pointsMint will stay FREEThey are looking into a one-click bill pay and funds transfer processWith Intuit theyre hoping to expand internationallyGoogle Android app on the way BlackBerry will take longer because of platform challengesRead the rest of this story &#187See AlsoMint.com Founder Heck No My VCs Didnt Force Me To Sell To Intuit INTUMint.com Founder Happy To Sell To Intuit VC Conspiracy Wrong INTUMint.com Deal Intuit Paying $170 Million Cash Keeping Quicken Online INTU

Paris Bike Rental Program Is Proving Costly for Decaux

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:01:43 -0600

Sarah Palin Joins Al Gore In Not Realizing That Everyones A Reporter These Days

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:02:18 -0600

Last year we wrote how odd it was that former VP Al Gore banned reporters from a speech he gave where all audio-video equipment was also banned. These days such no reporters allowed speeches make no sense -- because anyone can be a reporter. Yet it seems that theres something in the veep sauce or veep wannabe sauce that leads to these sorts of positions as former VP candidate Sarah Palin is trying to do the same thing barring reporters along with any kind of recording devices from a talk that she is giving. You can understand perhaps why politicians like to do this but it seems both out of touch and completely pointless. Every single person in that room can be a reporter in one way or another -- and it doesnt take a recording device but a pencil and some paper or a decent memory. Trying to block out the official press is just a waste of time.Permalink Comments Email This Story

Watchdogs Shell Schemes Are on the Rise

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:01:31 -0600

When corporate identities and credit histories are for sale the potential for fraud is part of the package

The 10 Biggest Social Media Stories This Week

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:03:07 -0600

From disliking on Facebook to the launch of the Motorola Droid to the debut of Twitter Lists it&#8217s been an exciting week in the social media and tech space.Here&#8217s our pick of the top 10 stories this week from the serious to the bizarre.1. HOW TO Use Twitter Lists &#8211 Twitter has launched Lists a new way to organize people you follow on Twitter. Josh Catone tells us how to get the most of the new feature.2. 10 Ways You Can Use Twitter Lists &#8211 More Twitter List goodness this time with real-world examples of Twitter list usage. 3. LEAKED Microsoft Courier Tablet User Interface Details &#8211 Microsoft is working on a slick-looking tablet. Now interface details have emerged.4. Google Dashboard Now You Know What Google Knows About You &#8211 Google this week launched a single location to find all the data the company is storing about you. 5. BREAKING Rollout of Twitter Retweet Feature Has Begun PICS &#8211 Twitter is set to support retweets as a native feature. Some users already have access.6. Now You Can Dislike Stuff on Facebook With a Firefox Plugin &#8211 Facebook&#8217s &#8220Like&#8221 feature is a handy way to show props for a status update photo or link &#8230 but what if you want to express dislike? Facebook has no such feature natively but a Firefox plugin lets you do much the same thing. 7. The Top Internet Memes of 2009 &#8211 What were the top Internet memes of the year? We look back at a year in Internet culture.8. T-Mobile Down Nationwide &#8211 T-Mobile suffered a major outage this week affecting users across the country.9. Motorola Droids New Stealth Commercial Video &#8211 The Motorola Droid is here along with a new ad that includes stealth bombers and cowboys.10. Out of Control Forklift Driver Destroys Vodka Warehouse VIDEO &#8211 A video of a forklift crash went viral on YouTube this week making for an amusing diversion.Image courtesy of iStockphoto AndrewJohnsonReviews Facebook Firefox Google Twitter YouTube iStockphotoTags social media

Freebies for the jobless

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:01:00 -0600

From free dry cleaning to a no-cost vacation these 5 businesses have come up with creative ways to help out unemployed residents in their communities.

Stop the jobless recovery madness!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 14:02:50 -0600

Its time to stop glorifying our economic doldrums with this jobless recovery nonsense.

The bankruptcy of Christian Lacroix End of season

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 09:46:23 -0600

Lessons for the luxury industry from the demise of a famous brandIN THE end a shortage of cash brought out the best in Christian Lacroix a fashion designer whose couture house filed for bankruptcy in May. Unable to spend freely on what was probably his final show on July 7th he presented restrained wearable clothes in just a handful of colours&#8212a far cry from his usual baroque fantasies.Mr Lacroix&#8217s fashion house had lost money every year since it was founded in 1987 inside LVMH a luxury-goods group. LVMH&#8217s plan was to create a fashion house which would sell products from haute couture to handbags and perfume. But Lacroix never had a hit perfume or an &#8220it&#8221 bag. In 2005 LVMH sold the firm for a nominal sum to the Falic Group owner of Duty Free Americas a retail chain. ...

HOW TO Create a Mac Theme for Windows 7

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:04:36 -0600

Yesterday Microsoft released Windows 7 to crowds of adoring fans. Although similar to Vista Windows 7 has a look and feel all its own and Microsoft has set up a new Windows 7 Personalization Gallery featuring themes backgrounds and desktop gadgets you can add to your system to personalize it further. That means that just because you&#8217re using Windows 7 doesn&#8217t mean it has to continue to look like Windows 7. Microsoft&#8217s latest is a fine-looking OS but because creating your own Windows 7 theme by customizing the background the icons and even your mouse pointers is so easy you can make it look even better by customizing it to pay homage to anything you want &#8212 like perhaps Mac OS X.Interested in making your own Windows 7Mac OS X mashup theme? Just follow these instructions!Pick your Wallpaper and Window ColorThe first step in creating your theme is to find the right wallpaper. Since we&#8217re going for a Mac feel I decided to grab one of the wallpaper images form Mac OS X Snow Leopard. If you want something a little less on-the-nose but with a distinct Apple style there are literally hundreds of choices out there. This blog post has some gorgeous options.To begin actually creating your theme first right click on your desktop and choose &#8220Personalization.&#8221 From here you can modify an existing theme or create a new theme. After clicking on the &#8220Desktop Background&#8221 button you can choose an image from your library to use.If you see an image on the web that is large enough for your desktop you can right click on it in Internet Explorer or Firefox and choose &#8220Set As Background&#8221 right from the Internet.The Window color which offers the option for transparency if your graphics card supports Aero section can be any color of your choosing. Since I wanted to match the overall &#8220feel&#8221 of Mac OS X I chose a shade of white and enabled transparency.Choosing your Icons and PointersTo make your Windows desktop icons more Mac-like you can alter the default desktop set directly in your theme. Click on the &#8220Change Desktop Icons&#8221 item on the left hand side of the Personalization window.You&#8217ll see the default Windows 7 icons for My Computer User Network and Recycle Bin Empty and Recycle Bin Full. Click on any icon and press the &#8220Change Icon&#8221 button and select an icon in the .ICO format you want to use in its place.There are a ton of places to get cool icons Iconfactory DeviantArt and Iconpaper all have a large selection of icons for Mac and Windows.However if you want to use the actual Mac OS X icons as I did you can download the VistaWindows 7-ready versions from this DeviantArt user.Once you&#8217ve chosen the icons you want it&#8217s time to make your mouse pointers and hourglass animations look more like Mac OS X.Select &#8220Change Mouse Pointer&#8221 from the Personalization menu and bring up your default mouse pointer icons. Again numerous sites across the web offer other options but if you want to get that Mac OS X look check out this set which mimics Mac OS X pointers including the color wheel.Save Your Theme and Share With OthersOnce you have your theme the way you like it you can click on the &#8220Save Theme&#8221 option and name your theme so that you can keep it around. You can always edit it later if you decide you want to tweak something.If you want to share your theme with others just right click on the theme in your theme list and choose &#8220Save Theme for Sharing&#8221 then choose a name for your theme. By default it will be stored in the My Documents folder.Final ResultsIn under five minutes once you choose your wallpaper and icons you can make Windows 7 look something like thisYes it&#8217s not the most dramatic makeover but in a very short amount of time we&#8217ve taken Windows 7 and given it enough subtle Mac-like touches that it will feel just a bit homier to Mac fans.Of course if you&#8217re a little more adventurous and really want to transform Windows 7 you can check out this complete Mac OS X skin made for Windows 7! Note that the skin was made for an older build of Windows 7 and may not work with newer versions out of the box &#8212 so it&#8217s definitely not for the faint of heart.What other places do you go to find wallpaper and icons? Share your favorites in the comments.Reviews Firefox Internet Explorer deviantARTTags apple desktop customization mac Windows 7 windows 7 themes

Fox News Ratings Soar After Snub From Obama

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:05:07 -0600

Gee do you think Roger Ailes and Rupert Murdoch love being The White Houses least-favorite news channel? Duh of course they do.Heres a chart comparing network ratings from the period 9282009-101109 which is when Anita Dunn slammed the network and the two weeks after that post feud. The numbers on the bottom right of this chart show the sequential gain for all demos +9% and the 25-54 year old demo +14%.Read the rest of this story &#187See AlsoEntire Media In Revolt After White House Denies Fox An Interview With Pay CzarDemocrats Dismayed By White Houses Idiotic War On Fox News

6 Ways To Create Opportunities on LinkedIn

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:01:12 -0600

Life is so unfair. Just because theyre shiner Twitter and Facebook often scoop up the attention for being social networking powerhouses. And they are! However if youre a small business owner you also need to be paying attention to LinkedIn.Over the past few years LinkedIn has proven itself to be a legitimate business tool for many helping SMB owners to develop and nurture targeted opportunities. And if the numbers of friend requests in my inbox are any indication the strengthRead MoreFrom Small Business Trends6 Ways To Create Opportunities on LinkedIn

Verizon Sends Out the Droids

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:03:30 -0600

Verizon Wireless took the wraps off the Motorola Droid smartphone. The device is an effort by both companies to woo customers considering the Apple iPhone which is only available on AT&T.

Two Months After Joining Kirshenbaum Lori Senecal Lands a New Account

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:02:01 -0600

Investment management company Vanguard has moved its $50 million U.S. account to Kirshenbaum Bond Senecal &amp Partners from incumbent Y&ampR Brands. Its the first win for new president-CEO Lori Senecal who joined in August from McCann Erickson

Kara Visits TEDMED Featuring Synthetic Skin and Heart-Scanning iPhones!

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:02:12 -0600

Can your cell phone check your blood sugar? What does a wireless bandaid do? Is my pill networked? Can a video game cure cancer? Will a robot care for my mom? Can an iPhone save my life?And of course does synthetic skin feel gross?The answer to the last question is yes but it is also pretty astonishing to touch as part of one of the many tech-heavy talks at TEDMED the medical and health care conference which has returned after a five-year hiatus to Hotel Coronado near San Diego.

Karmic Koala Ubuntu 9.10 Is Here

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:03:09 -0600

After the dust from the Snow Leopard and Windows 7 launch has settled we have another important OS launch the new version of one of the most popular Linux distributions Ubuntu 9.10 is available for download. Named Karmic Koala the new Ubuntu &#8211 as always &#8211 promises to be faster and easier to use bringing version 2.6.31 of the Linux kernel latest version of GNOME and Firefox 3.5. The biggest news however is Ubuntu One a web sync service that gives you 2 GB of online disk space and lets you synchronize notes and contacts as well as share files between several computers. Boot time has been significantly reduced claims Canonical the company behind Ubuntu accessibility has been improved Ubuntu is now translated into 23 languages and the OS comes packed with open source software with more available through Software Center. Finally netbook owners can download and install a version specifically created for them called the Ubuntu Netbook Remix. &#8220Ubuntu 9.10 gives users more reasons than ever to seriously consider Linux at a time when many are thinking again about their operating system options. We are delivering a platform for users interested in an easy-to-use great-looking web-friendly operating system&#8221 said Canonical COO Jane Silber. Check out an overview of Karmic Koala over at the official web page. Reviews Firefox Ubuntu linuxTags Karmic Koala Ubuntu

Why PE Firms Are So Downbeat And What It Means For The Media Sector

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:19:40 -0600

Ken Sonenclar is a managing director at DeSilva + Phillips LLC a New York investment bank specializing in media. Every day brings an earnings release government report or trade-association survey that indicates the worst is behind us. Even news from the long-dormant upper reaches of corporate dealmaking is encouraging. Disney NYSE DIS Dell Xerox and Cisco NSDQ CSCO - &#8220strategics&#8221 in every sense of the word are all in the midst of billion-dollar acquisitions and Comcast NSDQ CMCSA GE and Vivendi EPA VIV are seeking to hammer out some kind of megadeal for NBCU. On a smaller scale Intuits $170 million takeout of hot competitor Mint.com and the gravity-defying valuation bestowed on Twitter have energized bankers and entrepreneurs alike.Still its hard to find a more pessimistic bunch these days than private-equity managers who are understandably feeling like theres a dance getting underway and theyre not invited. Private-equity firms and companies they control have largely abandoned the M&ampA marketplace forced instead to nurse last years over-leveraged and under-performing acquisitions back to health even as they are shut off from the financing needed to do new deals. Capital IQ reports that the value of PE-backed deals in North America through September of this year dropped to less than 5% of what it reached over the same period in 2007.

Remembering a Fast-Food Icon The Rise of NYC Start-ups

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:01:15 -0600

Fred Wilson on slow capital.The VC and blogger Fred Wilson tackles the slow movement today and introduces a new term slow capital. The slow movement encourages people to focus less on accomplishing tasks and more on taking ones time with things. Wilsons take includes focusing on meeting the companys needs rather than the investors and being flexible with timing. Ive spent almost twenty five years in the capital markets watching investors behave he writes. Way too often it is a wham bam experience and then off to the next deal. Things like exploding offers fly by board members and shotgun marriages are so common that you sometimes wonder how anyone makes any money. Theres a reason why Warren Buffet is the best investor of his generation. How to come up with a company name. Dont stress. Thats the advice of Thomas Petersen who says that a great product will more than compensate for a bad name. So focus on that. There are no perfect names only great products he writes. Still coming up with a name--especially at a time when many short dot-coms are taken--is hard. Petersen advises picking a name that says something about your product. And keep in mind that bad names can start sounding pretty good if your company does a good job. Your brand cannot make your product better only you can make your name better he writes. By making sure that your customers and users get good experiences when they interact with you your name will gain value. Therefore concentrate on your customer service optimizing the service providing superior experiences and maximum utility and your name is well on its way to be the perfect name you wanted it to be. Remembering a fast-food legend. Sad news for fast-food aficionados as Troy Smith founder of the drive-in burger chain Sonic passed away this week at the age of 87. As the Wall Street Journal reports Smiths burger joints were originally named Top Hat but after he introduced a system where drive-in patrons could deliver their orders via speakers the name Sonic was chosen and gave birth to the companys slogan Service with the speed of sound. An innovator in the restaurant field Smiths original fast-food chains in the 1950s included waitresses on roller skates a streamlined kitchen and angled parking spots so that the wild teenagers as he described them couldnt park window-to-window. Smith became Sonics chairman emeritus in 1983 but remained involved with the business as an advisor. In 2008 Sonic had $3.8 billion in sales and 3600 stores in 42 states. The SBA ups the size limit for small businesses. If this first round of proposed revisions is adopted more than 12000 additional companies would be considered small businesses and hence become eligible for SBA loans and preference for federal contracting reports the Washington Business Journal. A total of 71 different types of businesses would enjoy SBA-sanctioned benefits should the changes be approved including hotels retailers and various sectors within the service industry. According to SBA Administrator Karen Mills the size increase is designed to reflect changes in the economy and the marketplace. Facebook and Zappos on hiring strategies It seems like theres always some new company started by former Google employees but is that good press for the company or brain drain? As the Wall Street Journal reports Facebooks Mark Zuckerberg and Zappos Tony Hsieh recently discussed their opposing philosophies of employee hiring and retention at Y Combinators Startup School. Zuckerberg favors a revolving door of bright people honing their craft at Facebook and then going on to their own creative endeavors. Hsieh said he aims to keep employees for the long haul and explained how he achieved that goal. We now provide mentorship and training so employees can join at the entry level and over a period of five to seven years have the opportunity and training to become senior leaders in the company he said. Constant growth is what will keep them in the company for a very long time. Get some additional hiring tips from Whole Foods John Mackey. Do you know where your children are? Well if theyre at Keith Valley Middle School be afraid says TechCrunch. Very afraid. Thats because Microsoft has gotten a hold of them and the result is a cult-like video starring the Bing jingle. Directors note What isnt shown is the aftermath in which the Bing students get stuffed in lockers by their Google counterparts. Vibrant tech startups emerge from New Yorks financial wreckage. According to Wired New York Citys tech scene has got an unexpected boost from the financial sectors demise. Investors that used to look to larger institutions are giving startups that need just a couple hundred thousand more of a chance. Scrappy tech CEOs are also having an easier time pulling good talent. With the financial and media industries in turmoil the market in general is more hospitable to th

CrunchGear PSA If You Run XBMC Or Boxee On Your Apple TV Do Not Upgrade To 3.0

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:02:24 -0600

To repeat do not upgrade your Apple TV to 3.0 if youre running hacked ATV plugins like XBox Media Center or Boxee. Im sure this will be fixed in a matter of days - if not hours - but as of right now it means a ride on the Failboat to Sad Trombone Town. Thats right this update destroys the only thing that makes Apple TV usable and good. Also as an added bonus Apple TV firmware 3.0 is insignificant. It adds Internet radio to the package and improves the UI. It also adds Genius playlists. My cup as they say runneth over. You can pop through to see a video of me trying to hack my 3.0 Apple TV or you can just take this as a word of warning. More info on hacking Apple TV after the jump.

Whats Next For Some Of the Biggest Gadgets Of 2009?

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:03:06 -0600

Its time to put on the Swami hat and predict just what we have in store for 2010 and beyond. Considering all of the movement in the gadget world in the past few months Im fairly sure most of this going to be accurate. Given the current status of some of these technologies its hard to prognosticate very far out but there are a few things that have become apparent over the past year especially the rise of Android and our expectations for the iPad. Without further ado... the envelope please Apple TV -&gt 27-inch iMac -&gt Wall Mount for 27-inch iMacIts sad but true Apple doesnt care about Apple TV. All the real brain power is going to the desktop and laptop and probably onto the iPad. Theyve made it clear with the 27-inch iMac that they can make a high-resolution screen and powerful computer inside of a case the thickness of a college textbook. Who needs a TV let alone an Apple TV? The obvious conclusion here is that the 27-inch iMac becomes a real Apple TV. The Mac Mini already makes a great multi-media system and a quick update to FrontRow now considered abandonware may make it a great 10-foot interface.