Archive for July 16th, 2009
July 15 (Bloomberg) — Apple Inc. released an update to its iTunes online store today that prevents the software from working on Palm Inc.’s new Pre smart phone.
The free update, called ITunes 8.2.1, provides “important” bug fixes to the software, which runs music, video and applications on the iPhone and iPod media players, Cupertino, California-based Apple said in a posting on its Web site.
The update disables devices such as the Pre from connecting to the iTunes software, said Natalie Kerris, a spokeswoman for Apple. “As we said before, newer versions of iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with unsupported digital media players.”
Full Article
Guess I won’t be updating my iTunes anytime soon.
This really stinks. I have my own personal boycott against ATT for how I was treated years ago, and vowed never to return to them, which means I can’t get an iPhone. I really did like the idea of using my Pre to synch with my iTunes. Heck, I haven’t bought music from iTunes for a very long time, but when I was able to sync my Pre to my iTunes, I started to buy music again.
Blerg.
July 16th, 2009
More pics here.
July 16th, 2009
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — One of the nation’s largest Christian denominations is addressing the nation’s financial crisis with what it hopes will be a spiritual teaching moment as well as a cost-saver.
Fifty United Methodist Church bishops in the United States will roll back their salaries by 4% next year in what Bishop Gregory Palmer of Springfield, Ill., president of the Council of Bishops, says is a gesture of solidarity with others hurt by the global economic downturn.
The salary cut is one of the strongest statements taken yet by a faith group as U.S. churches respond to a recession that has left growing numbers of people jobless and hungry. Other denominations have eliminated jobs, frozen salaries or canceled mission trips.
United Methodist leaders say the move, approved in May, is an acknowledgment that churches are hurting too and there’s less money to go around. But some Methodists said the bishops’ action would have been more effective — and might have saved some church jobs — if it had come earlier.
Full Article
The article goes on to list the salary of a bishop and the amount that they will be forfeiting:
The bishops’ salaries will fall back about $4,700 annually to their 2008 level, $120,942, on Jan. 1 from $125,658 currently. The annual pay, based on a formula, is set by the denomination’s General Council on Finance and Administration, which voted in May to accept the bishops’ recommendation. The money comes out of denomination coffers.
Granted, I don’t know the scope or responsibilities of a Methodist bishop or the cost of living in their area, but off hand, that sure does seem to be a large amount of money for someone working in the ministry.
Pastor salaries are a sticking point for me. Since it’s a calling, they pretty much know what they are getting into when it comes to sacrifice of all means, and I always thought that the calling should come with some sort of vow to financial humbleness; and I’m sure it does for some. I understand the stress, dedication, the study, the amount of time, and other sacrifices involved, but it almost seems like tithes aren’t being properly allocated to help those in need. This isn’t a stab at the Methodist church, but the church in general. To me, it’s almost as if people will turn first to the government for help, food stamps and what have you, because the church has their funds allocated to paying a high salary for a pastor. And I bet in some cases, the pastor of church makes more than three quarters of his or her congregation. And perception is a big deal. There’s nothing wrong with treating yourself every now and then, but a pastor driving a luxery car to church can send an unintended message. I don’t know what a proper salary should be, but off hand, anything over a $100,000 seems high.
Sorry for the rant, and I know several pastors read this blog, so this isn’t an attack on them. If anything, I hope they can take this as one church goer’s perception of things.
July 16th, 2009
Not a bad idea . . .buy one here.
July 16th, 2009
It is surely the biggest Big Brother project yet conceived. India is to issue each of its 1.2 billion citizens, millions of whom live in remote villages and possess no documentary proof of existence, with cyber-age biometric identity cards.
The Government in Delhi recently created the Unique Identification Authority, a new state department charged with the task of assigning every living Indian an exclusive number. It will also be responsible for gathering and electronically storing their personal details, at a predicted cost of at least £3 billion.
Full Article
July 16th, 2009
Read the full article here, but below are some highlights:
Facebookers
They are more likely to be married (40%), white (80%) and retired (6%) than users of the other social networks. They have the second-highest average income, at $61,000, and an average of 121 connections.
Twitters
They’re more likely to be employed part-time (16% vs. 11% average), have an average income of $58,000, and average 28 followers and 32 other Twitterers they’re following. They’re not particularly attached to the site, though — 43% said they could live without Twitter.
MySpacers
The content MySpace users put up is most often about specific hobbies, or pictures of family and friends. Their average income is the lowest, at $44,000, and they have an average of 131 connections. They’re more likely to be black (9%) or Hispanic (7%) than users of the other social sites. They are also more likely to be single (60%) and students (23%).
LinkedIn Users
It’s probably no surprise these guys are all about business. We say guys because LinkedIn has the only user group with more males than females (57% to 43%). They have the highest average income, at $89,000, and are more likely to have joined the site for business or work, citing keeping in touch with business networks, job searching, business development and recruiting as top reasons.
I sometimes use Twitter, no so much for updating, but just checking out what some friends and celebrities are up to, and to see what kind of promotions my favorite businesses touting.
I refuse to become a part of MySpace or FaceBook, because I don’t want anyone to easily find me. With that said, I’m tempted to be a part of LinkedIn for a professional standpoint, but just concerned someone from my past just wants to get in touch with me.
In case you are wondering, it’s not that I’m necessarily trying to hide from people in my past, but I get tired and annoyed of all the small talk when you get in touch with someone you haven’t seen in a while. I prefer having relationships of substance, and if we haven’t kept in touch in all these years, then we really weren’t that close of friends to begin with. And besides, I commit my Internet time to this blog and don’t have time for the other stuff.
July 16th, 2009
- Yesterday was a long day, I ended up working an extra four hours at work.
- And then I had to come home and try to repair our bed.
- How did our bed break? Well, a friend is painting the bedroom as a favor to us and he shoved it a bit too hard.
- Nothing a little J.B. Weld can’t fix.
- I hope.
- McCartney on Letterman, returning to the Ed Sullivan Theater, was pretty cool.
- He had a good “magazine dropping” line last night.
- Being someone who really didn’t know much about him, he came across as very charming.
- McCartney played outside on the marquee, and the crowd outside was just massive. I found some great pictures that were recently uploaded to Flickr.
- I remember the first time I saw him, I think it was on an MTV awards show where he made a surprise appearance, and I wondered why everyone was cheering for the old man no one knew.
- I’m going to have to work Saturday. Blerg.
- The Dallas Morning News has this new feature called the Problem Tracker. It’s a way for people to report problems such as potholes, graffitti, broken stop lights, etc in a GoogleMaps format.
- I like the idea of nurses tweeting from the operation room so that family members can follow. Link
- Speaking of Twitter, someone from the audience now tweets during the Price is Right. Link
- Jimmy Valvano died back in 1993, and ESPN continues to honor his legacy. That’s a very cool thing.
- NASA will let you send your name to Mars free of charge. Link
- Can Twitter Kill Your Church
- A bit of a dark joke: Helen Keller Simulator
- As a kid, I remember hearing a lot of Helen Keller jokes, and laughing even though I didn’t know who she was.
- The same thing happens to us Texas – We all don’t wear boots and cowboy hats, or ride horses to work.
- When reporting about banks, the media should use more specific terms such as commercial banks and investments banks to help their audience. I’m guessing someone without a finance or banking background can get easily confused and wouldn’t know what bank is which. I mention this with all the talk of Goldman Sachs in the news the last couple of days.
- I’m not saying dumb down the news, but the audience needs a little guidance every now and then.
- For my fellow Star Wars fans: Wookieepedia
- For you Davey and Goliath fans, here are the lost episodes.
- I just recently found out they were part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
- Grace
July 16th, 2009
