National Poll: Thompson 25% Giuliani 24%

Rasmussen Reports - The race for of the Republican Presidential nomination following the July 4th holiday looks a lot like it did before the nation's birthday party. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani essentially tied for the lead. It's Thompson at 25% and Giuliani at 24%.


(InfoWorld) - Fewer Chinese users are seeking out Google for its search services, according to a new report by the China Internet Network Information Centre (CNNIC). According to the survey by China's official Internet number cruncher, 62.1 percent of Chinese users turned to local favorite Baidu for search, up from about 52 percent in 2005. Much of that growthÂ came at Google's expense. Baidu also had the highest brand recognition among search engines, with 86.5 percent of respondents identifying with the name, compared to only 64 percent for Google. CNNIC is an agency organization that monitors Internet use in China. Although its surveys are considered representative of Chinese Internet use, CNNIC rarely releases its methodology or sample size. However, for this survey, CNNIC said that it interviewed 4,500 total Chinese Internet users, 1,500 each in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, and that the poll had a 5 percent margin of error. Google saw its market share drop from 33 percent last year to 25.3 percent in the current survey. While a majority of users identified with the brand, 31.9 percent recognized Google's Chinese name, "Gu Ge," or "Harvest Song," in Chinese, compared to 16.3 percent for its English name. Google did come out ahead in one respect: it was the first choice for more non-student users with an income of greater than 3,000 renminbi ($378) than its rivals, with 46.5 percent. Despite the rivalry between Baidu and Google, it seems that a bigger user search pie would benefit both: 76.3 percent of survey respondents said they used more than one search engine regularly for a given subject.


With Addition  Of Emilio, United Sees the World

D.C. United is new forward Luciano Emilio's eighth club since turning pro a dozen years ago and team officials expect he will bring the scoring ability he has shown at his other stops.


MAKYBE Diva joined racing's immortals with a commanding win in the $4.6 million Melbourne Cup today. Backed into 5-2 favouritism by a flood of money from around the country, she became the first mare to win


A Picasso painting stolen by Nazis during World War II is at the centre of a legal battle over its ownership.


BOLSTERED by investors, Oracle appears set to complete its long-sought takeover of PeopleSoft, unless its rival proves it is worth more than the $US9.2 billion ($11.7 billion) bid currently on the table.


Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice passed a note to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during a news conference Wednesday, and the two diplomats shared smiles and nods as he read what she'd written.


Labour AM Joyce Watson faces claims she misused assembly resources by mailing 1,000 party members.


Four white teenagers are jailed over an attack which led to the racially-aggravated murder of an Asian taxi driver.


After 8 Years in Jail, Husband of Bhutto Is Free

Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, was released Monday on $16,900 bail on the last of numerous corruption charges that have kept him in prison since 1996.


Scientists say they have worked out the date the African and Asian elephants diverged, putting it at 7.6 million years ago.


Barry Bonds rested Sunday, staying out of the starting lineup in the San Francisco Giants' series finale against the San Diego Padres.


Delinquencies and foreclosures among homeowners with weak credit moved higher in the first quarter.


Five years ago, Ruby Burns of Laurel underwent surgery to replace two disks in her neck. But the replacements apparently weren't all that entered her body that day. Burns, then 41 and a former hospital chaplain, developed a staphylococcus infection that formed an abscess on her spine at the site ...


Corte appello Parigi accoglie richiesta procura


During nearly every stop of her six-city "listening tour" this summer, Katie Couric said viewers told her they wanted the network evening news to be an hour instead of just 30 minutes.


This display of nerve leaves Rick at a loss. The croupier comes out of the gambling room and up to Renault. He hands him a roll of bills.


Indian police question two hospital workers after 390 pieces of bone from newborns or foetuses are found.


A quota 0,7265 mai raggiunta da introduzione moneta nel 1999


Japan: Mystery 'Intruder' Submarine was Chinese

Japan says it will file a protest with the Chinese government after one of its submarines intruded into Japanese territorial waters.


British boxing pundits are united in their praise for Ricky Hatton's fourth-round stoppage of Jose Luis Castillo.


Tv, il ritorno di Paolini tra il rugby e gli anni '70

Dopo Il Sergente, l'attore bellunese porta in tv Album d'Aprile per un'altra serata evento su La7. Mentre scoppia la polemica sulla partecipazione di Fabrizio Corona a una fiction


Boeing Co.  won orders for 51 commercial jets in February, worth about $8 billion at list prices, doubling its tally from the same month last year and making up for a relatively small number in January.


Terror must stop before progress on Kashmir: Natwar

NEW DELHI: Indiaâs External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh reiterating Indiaâs stance that cross-border infiltration must be stopped before any progress on Kashmir in talks with Pakistan.


Roma, 22:47 - CALCIO, EUROPEI UNDER 21: LE QUATTRO SEMIFINALISTE

Saranno Olanda-Inghilterra e Serbia-Belgio le due semifinali dell'Europeo Under 21 2007. Le gara si ...


Lo ha deciso la Consulta che ne ha respinto solo uno


DOT investigating BP valve allegations: paper

The Department of Transportation said  it is investigating allegations by some workers that two safety  valves at BP PLC's  oil field in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska,  were not working at the time of a large oil leak in March, the  Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.


Monaco di Baviera, 20:29 - CALCIO, RIZZITELLI: TONI AL BAYERN E' ANCHE MERITO MIO

C'è anche Ruggero Rizzitelli dietro la decisione di Luca Toni di trasferirsi in germania. L'e...


Senior envoys from the US and North Korea are to meet in Geneva to discuss ways of normalising relations.


Sudan Govt, Rebels to Sign Permanent Truce-Kenya

Sudan's government and southern rebels will agree a permanent cease-fire on Friday at peace talks aimed at ending Africa's longest-running civil war, said Kenya's government, which is hosting the negotiations.


Federal Grants to Support Sound Projects

By John Nickerson, The Stamford Advocate, Conn.  Sep. 16--The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, the town of Westport and Stamford-Based SoundWaters are among five organizations awarded a total of $117,900 for Long Island Sound conservation projects.


The Pittsburgh Penguins signed forward   Evgeni Malkin to his first National Hockey League contract on   Tuesday, giving the prized rookie a three-year deal worth at   least $3 million.


Group Hopes to Honor China AIDS Activist

By ALEXA OLESEN  BEIJING - A U.S. women's advocacy group said Tuesday it hopes that an apparent travel ban against a prominent Chinese AIDS activist can be lifted so she can be honored at a ceremony in Washington next month.  Dr.


NCAA Ban on Tournaments In South Carolina Is Targeted

A Confederate heritage group plans to challenge the NCAA's ban on championship events in South Carolina as long as the Confederate flag flies on the grounds of the state capitol.


Pro Football Hall of Fame names inductees

Fred Dean, Darrell Green, Art Monk, Emmitt Thomas, Andre Tippett and Gary Zimmerman were elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.


Roma, 15:44 - VOLLEY, WORLD LEAGUE: GRUPPO AZZURRO AL COMPLETO

Con il rientro dei Campioni d'Italia della Sisley Treviso, prende corpo la squadra con cui Montali a...


Shrinking population threatens an ancient faith

BOMBAY -- For centuries, this city has been the citadel where Zoroastrianism, one of the world's oldest religions, has persevered in the face of overwhelming odds.


Pechino, 12:43 - CALCIO, IN CINA NIENTE PIU' PREMIER LEAGUE IN CHIARO

Niente piÃ¹ Premier League in chiaro per gli appassionati cinesi. La pay tv WinTV ha acquistato i dir...


The British prime minister arrives in Ethiopia for a meeting he hopes will help change Africa's fortunes.


Astronautâs Arrest Spurs Review of NASA Testing

NASA will also try to determine whether âindications of concernâ in Capt. Lisa M. Nowakâs case were overlooked.


Spain's Liberal Plans Spark Church Counterattack

Relations between Spain's government and  its clerics have turned hostile. Socialists swept to power  earlier this year with a pro-gay, feminist agenda and the  church is putting up a fight.


Royals snap 13-game losing streak, barely

The Kansas City Royals' 13th consecutive loss was painful enough. No. 14 would have been devastating. It didn't happen.


Group fights for consumer rights on the Internet

In view of continuous integration of applications between the telecommunications industry and the Internet, a non-profit organization yesterday released a list of the year's top 10 Internet-related


Opener Justin Langer was last out after a glorious innings of 191 as Australia totaled 381 on the second morning of the first test against Pakistan in Perth on Friday.


Launch Day: Space Shuttle Atlantis Ready to Fly      (SPACE.com / LiveScience.com)

SPACE.com / CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - After a few false starts, NASA's shuttle Atlantis stands poised to launch six astronauts and a hefty addition towards the International Space Station (ISS) today to jump start construction of the orbital laboratory.


Berners-Lee: Congress should consider net neutrality

(InfoWorld) - Timothy Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, advocated that the U.S. Congress protect net neutrality and questioned the value of DRM (digital rights management) Thursday. Berners-Lee, speaking before the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet in the U.S. House of Representatives, said it was "very, very important" for lawmakers to protect the ability of users to access the Web content they want regardless of their ISP. Berners-Lee didn't endorse specific net neutrality proposals largely supported by congressional Democrats, but he said the Web as a communications medium deserves "special treatment" to protect its nondiscriminatory approach to content. While he was growing up in the U.K., there were high penalties for interfering with mail delivery because mail was one of the main ways to communicate, Berners-Lee said. Now, the Web is a major communications medium worthy of protections, he said. One company or country shouldn't control access to the Web, he added. "We are a society only in as much as we are individuals communicating," said Berners-Lee, founder of the World Wide Web Consortium and author of the first version of HTML. For the past two years, many e-commerce companies and consumer groups have called on Congress to pass a law prohibiting broadband carriers from blocking or slowing Web content from competitors or from speeding up partners' content. In mid-2005, the U.S. Supreme Court and the Federal Communications Commission freed broadband providers from nondiscriminatory carriage rules, and net neutrality backers say large broadband providersÂ like Verizon and ComcastÂ will now be tempted to provide tiered speeds based on which Internet companies pay them the most. Broadband providers and many Republicans have opposed a net neutrality law, andÂ efforts to pass one failed in a Republican-controlled Congress in 2006. Democrats took over Congress this year. While Berners-Lee didn't hear a lot of opposition to his net neutrality comments at the hearing, Representative Mary Bono, a California Republican, challenged his assertion that DRM copy protections could hinder the growth of some parts of the Web. Berners-Lee called for open standards instead of closed DRM technologies. Instead of DRM, copyright holders should "allow people to do the right thing" by providing the information on how to legally use the material, he said. Bono questioned if his idea would prevent mass stealing of copyright materials. "Is that not the equivalent of having a speed limit but not enforcing the speed limit?" she asked. But Berners-Lee suggested DRM limits the market for digital music downloads, echoing recent statements by AppleÂ CEO Steve Jobs. "What is the enforcement for speeding?" he said. "The enforcement for is not that the car grinds to a halt. [Instead of DRM] I'm inclined to make software to allow people to do the right thing first." But Bono said strong protections for digital content are needed. "With great respect to Steve Jobs, he's trying to sell hardware, first and foremost," she said. "I wonder if he would feel the same way about his patents being on the Internet free of patent protection."


Protection for a "musical tree" stops short of requiring violinists to carry permits for their rare wood bows.


How many old sayings are there about boat buying? "Every boat is always for sale, just awaiting the right price."


Egypt pursues suspects over deadly Sinai bombings

Egyptian investigators into car bombings at resorts on Egypt's Sinai peninsula which killed at least 30 people said that they had identified a number of suspects, as rescuers continued to sift through the rubble.


Novell will begin shipping this week a desktop version of its open source Linux operating system aimed squarely at enterprise users.


But for the entertaining second half, Thamaashegaagi can be passed off as yet another also-ran film.


English soccer plays four games while rest of Europe takes a break

LONDON: While the rest of European soccer shuts down for a midwinter break, England turns up the heat. The big leagues of Italy, Spain and Germany take a breather so that players can heal injuries and aching


A suspected bomb attack has killed "tens of people" in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan, police say.


Many Fools think it's just a bunch of hooey.


Tenor Pavarotti dead at 71, manager says

Italian opera star Luciano Pavarotti, hailed by many as the greatest tenor of his generation, died in the early hours of Thursday, his manager Terri Robson said.


Colin Farrell has declared his love for Oliver Stone who directed his latest movie Alexander. Farrell, 28, was thrilled to spend eight months working with Stone on the epic biopic of the Macedonian leader


Stocksextend decline on consumer sentiment

Stocks extended declines on Friday after a measure of consumer sentiment for February came in weaker than expected, adding to worries about the economy in an environment of mounting risk aversion.


David Blunkett: Does the inquiry go far enough?

The man in charge of standards in public life has criticised the inquiry in to the Home Secretary's conduct. Is the inquiry too limited?


U.S. moves to reduce diplomatic presence in Syria

The United States moved on Thursday   to reduce its diplomatic presence in Syria following this   week's attack on its embassy in Damascus by offering free   flights out of the country to non-essential diplomats and   family members on a voluntary basis.


Famous defeat a case of whiskey on the rocks

Steve Waugh was so certain Australia would break its 32-year Indian hoodoo in the Calcutta Test of 2001 that he arrived at Eden Gardens on the infamous fourth day in possession of his favourite celebratory drink.


Complutense University in Madrid has signed an agreement with Google to enable the search giant to scan its library of 3 million works, becoming the first non-english library to join the Google Book Project. Spanish-language books including those from Cervantes and Sor Juana Ines will be digitized.


Mark Thatcher, the son of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, has been arrested in South Africa on suspicion of involvement in a mercenary plot against the government of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.


Ticket Scalpers Not Doing Good Business in Athens

The perennial Olympics pariah, commonly known as the ticket scalper, is having a hard time in Athens. Scalpers normally buy hard-to-get tickets, with hopes of selling them later at highly inflated prices.


Thousands of wildlife sleuths are being recruited for an inquiry into the affects of climate change on wildlife.


Soft Cell singer Marc Almond is in intensive care in hospital after a motorcycle crash in central London.


Cardinals Top Dodgers 6-2 to Win NL Series

St. Louis Cardinals' Albert Pujols (5) swings for a 3-run home run in the fourth inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Sunday, Oct. 10, 2004, in Los Angeles.


Computer giant Apple launches a version of its web browser Safari for Windows XP and Vista.


This week you'll learn about what you can do with webbots and how they capitalize on browser limitations. You'll learn about creative ideas,  exploiting webbots and how to use them to your advantage. By Michael Schrenk. 0423


Iraq said on Tuesday it would shut down the operations of Kurdish rebels based on its soil, hoping to head off a threatened invasion to crush them by Turkish troops massed on the border.


Prices soar as Maoists blockade Nepal capital

Prices have soared as Nepalese stockpile food and fuel in response to an indefinite Maoist rebel blockade of the capital, the government and residents said.


Insurgents Attack Iraqi National Guard Headquarters near Baghdad

Iraqi officials say insurgents fired mortars at an Iraqi National Guard headquarters in al-Mushahida,) north of Baghdad Tuesday. News reports say there were heavy casualties, but no figure was immediately available.


NVIDIA and Intel Sign Broad Cross-License, Chipsets License ...

SANTA CLARA, Calif. --(Business Wire)-- Nov. 19, 2004 -- NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq:NVDA) and Intel Corporation today announced the companies have signed a broad, multi-year patent cross-license agreement


The Red Sox are halfway to capturing something that's slipped just out of reach since 1918 -- the World Series trophy. Boston is gearing up for Game Three Tuesday night when they send Pedro Martinez to the mound against St.


BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. - Stranger things have happened. What the heck, Phil Mickelson won the Masters earlier this year. But the long and short of what Team USA faces on the final day of the Ryder Cup


'Undercover' Security Tool Could Replace Passwords

MIT researchers develop an authentication system that's not so easily revealed to prying eyes.


After Being Bounced Around Florida Is Bouncing Back

Bob Ellis was picking up plywood and two-by-fours on his second trip of the day for supplies to deal with the wreckage from Hurricane Frances, the second of three


Brazil planes collide over Amazon, 155 missing

SAO PAULO, Brazil  - A Brazilian airline passenger plane with 155 people on board disappeared over the Amazon jungle on Friday after colliding with a small plane, the company and news reports said.


To obscurity and beyond for the quiet space hero

ONE of Americaâs greatest unsung heroes, an astronaut who touched the stars yet barely scraped the surface of public recognition, is to retire.


U.S. Panel: Childhood Obesity a National Crisis

America's children are fat and  getting fatter, and parents, schools, the government,  advertisers and the food industry all need to make changes to  battle the problem, a panel of experts said on Thursday.


Charleston tourism brisk after busy hurricane season

The busiest hurricane season in years chased tourists from the South Carolina coast last summer. But in recent weeks, as hurricane season passes, tourists are again returning.


Palestinians Register Candidates for New President

Palestinians began registering candidates on Saturday for a presidential election to replace Yasser Arafat, while officials warned the vote may be delayed if Israel does not halt military activities.


Fenner, Banks give JMU ground control on way to I-AA title

In this mountainous area, James Madison's Dukes seemed to play offense downhill last night. With a veteran offensive line and two physical runners, JMU overpowered Montana


Fears of a looming war in Somalia are hampering relief efforts for up to 1 million people hit by severe flooding, a senior U.N. official said Friday.


Nigeria adopts new gas policy to favour domestic users

Energy-rich Nigeria has approved a new policy requiring gas producers to direct a part of their output to the domestic market, rather than exporting it, a presidential statement said Friday.


China Detains Eight Roman Catholic Priests -Group

China has detained eight Roman Catholic priests in northern Hebei province, continuing a crackdown on those loyal to the Pope, a U.S.-based religious right group said on Wednesday.


When the year's most eagerly awaited Test series starts here tomorrow Australia, who have dominated the world game since the fading of West Indies a dozen years ago, will feel the uncommon pressure of having to prove a point.


Stars take red carpet ahead of Oscar ceremony

Hollywood's elite braved cold dreary skies with barely a shiver on Sunday as they crossed the red carpet in off-the-shoulder gowns and designer tuxedos for the 79th annual Oscars.


A look at what lawmakers are saying about the Iraq war:


Iraqi Peace Mission in Najaf; U.S. Pounds Militia

NAJAF, Iraq  - An Iraqi peace delegation urged a  radical Shi'ite cleric to call off his uprising in the city of  Najaf Tuesday, where U.S. troops pounded militia positions near  the country's holiest Islamic sites.


Blog: Blogger adds TV to his celebrity gossip repertoire, taping a series of one-hour shows that's planned to start this fall.


Kerry to Bush: Take immediate steps for peace in Iraq

NEW YORK - Sen. John Kerry said Monday that President Bush's invasion of Iraq has created a crisis that could lead to unending war and raises questions about whether Bush's judgment is up to presidential standards.


Mexico Mayan site fears becoming victim of success

Mexico's most famous Mayan ruins, at Chichen Itza, could become a victim of their own success if they are named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in a global competition.


Harlequins stun Super League champions St Helens at home.


Computer Associates has announced a deal with the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission that will solve the software vendor's accounting scandal.


Researchers have launched an appeal to find more than 100,000 women to take part in a decades-long study to pinpoint the causes of breast cancer.


Blog: Both FeedBurner's Stats PRO and MyBrand are no longer paid services.


2 US GIs Are Killed in Iraq; Churches Bombed in North

BAGHDAD, Dec. 7 -- The US military said Tuesday that two servicemen were killed in Iraq. One soldier was killed by small-arms fire while on patrol in Baghdad, and a Marine died in a vehicle accident in Anbar province in western Iraq.


UN atomic agency gets invitation to send inspectors to North Korea

UN inspectors are now set to travel to North Korea and will be leaving in the "next few days," the International Atomic Energy Agency said Tuesday, after receiving a formal invitation from Pyongyang.


Palestinian gunmen free CNN producer kidnapped in Gaza strip

Palestinian gunmen have released an Israeli Arab producer working for the CNN television network who was kidnapped yesterday in the Gaza Strip.


Symbol's Stock Rises After Rumors of Motorola Merger

By Mark Harrington And James Bernst, Newsday, Melville, N.Y.  Sep. 19--Shares of Symbol Technologies Inc. rose more than 15 percent  yesterday, as some speculated the Holtsville mobile computer and bar-code  scanner giant was closing in on finding a possible suitor.


Since Albion made the statement yesterday that Gary megson had been asked to leave the club, we have been flooded with e-mails from you telling us how you feel about the crisis at Albion.


Insurance probe doesn't frighten Century Shares

Lanny Thorndike, whose Century Shares Trust mutual fund has about one-third of its assets in insurance stocks, is keeping his investments in Marsh & McLennan and American International Group


Netherlands' Inge de Bruijn successfully defends her 50m freestyle crown.


Lehman and Donald Share Lead at Buick Invitational

Britain's Luke Donald completed his  fog-delayed third round at five-under 67 to grab a share of the  lead with U.S. Ryder Cup captain Tom Lehman at the Buick  Invitational in California Sunday.


Turkey pledges reforms ahead of EU talks

Turkey has given human rights guarantees that set the stage for a recommendation that it should begin membership talks with the European Union, the top EU officials in charge of the negotiations said Thursday.


Intel Sheds Light on 2005 Desktop Strategy

Intel's products for the digital home and digital office in 2005 will give consumers and IT managers more capabilities than just raw performance, and the company plans to highlight those products as it did with its Centrino mobile technology, Intel


Feds tell Residents not to fret over shot

Enough flu vaccine exists to protect most of those at the highest risk of developing serious complications, federal officials said during a stop in Detroit on Tuesday as


Everyone knows that the iPod has been very successful--especially makers of add-ons such as Belkin and Monster Computer.


Aging Pope John Paul lights peace candle, celebrates midnight mass

Pope John Paul ushered in Christmas on Friday by lighting a candle for peace in his window and then celebrating midnight mass in a new test of the 84-year-old pontiff's frail health.


Firenze, 21:37 - CALCIO, TONI PREMIATO CON LA SCARPA D'ORO

Luca Toni è stato premiato con la Scarpa d'Oro prima dell'inizio di Fiorentina-Inter. L'attac...


Uncover financial insights for your business daily with The New York Times - the authority on market trend news and analysis. Now delivered to your home or business starting at $2.40/wk.


Italy's Berlusconi spends night in hospital

Former Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi  spent a quiet night in an intensive care unit after fainting at  a rally with an irregular heartbeat, a spokesman said on  Monday.


Soldier accepts blame in Abu Ghraib case

The most senior US soldier accused of abusing Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison is expected to plead guilty to some of the charges, according to a statement released by his attorney Monday.


Will historic flight launch space tourism?

Regardless, space competitions are poised to become big business.


The death toll continues to climb, but so does the number of survivors of the epic earthquake and tsunami that struck South Asia and Africa this weekend.


Pianistâs Widower Admits Fraud in Recordings Issued as His Wifeâs

William Barrington-Coupe has admitted passing off recordings as those of his wife, Joyce Hatto, a much-praised but little-known British pianist.


Paris Hilton nabbed driving on suspended license

Police seized Paris Hilton's  $190,000 Bentley after the heiress was caught driving on a  suspended license, and prosecutors vowed on Wednesday to ask a  judge to revoke her probation for reckless driving.


Parigi, 15:23 - CALCIO, LIVORNO: DHORASOO RISOLVE CONTENZIOSO CON PSG

Il nuovo acquisto del Livorno, Vikash Dhorasso, non dovrà presentarsi domani al tribunale del...


Carlos Boozer led six players in double figures with 16 points Friday night as Utah coasted to a 102-80 victory over Golden State.


Edison Int'l Raises '04 Earnings Forecast

Edison International EIX.N on  Wednesday raised its earnings forecast for 2004, citing  improved performance at its utility unit Southern California  Edison.


Capitals Try to Shake Off Their Shaky Performance

After Monday night's meltdown against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Capitals' Coach Glen Hanlon tries to lighten the mood at practice


Patient Enrollment Commences in Bioenvision's US Prostate

NEW YORK - (BUSINESS WIRE) â-ept. 23, 2004 â -envision (Nasdaq:BIVN) today announced that the first patients have been enrolled at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston in a clinical study of


Homeland Security Workers Rules Supported

New rules for a merit pay system at the Homeland Security Department won cautious support Thursday from congressional investigators who also urged the agency to explain how the change would be carried out.


Europe and the US get a first look at each other's possible Ryder Cup pairings during practice on Tuesday.


More flu vaccine due to arrive next week

About 440,000 doses of flu vaccine will be shipped to Florida during the next week, with 160,000 going straight to physicians and the rest to health departments, state health officials said on Friday.


Suicide bomber strikes near Kabul airport

A suicide bomber blew up a car packed with explosives near an entrance to the Afghan capital's airport on Friday, killing one Afghan soldier and wounding around a dozen people, police and witnesses said.


Art Review: Roars of Argentinaâs Past, Murmurs of Its Present

An exhibition about contemporary Argentine art at the Americas Society offers insight into the countryâs extremist rebels in the â60s and â70s.


ElBaradei: Iran's Uranium Move a Step in Right Direction

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran's promise to suspend uranium enrichment activities is a step in the right direction.


No. 25 St. Mary's routs Loyola Marymount

Freshman Patrick Mills had 22 points, including four 3-pointers, to lead No. 25 St. Mary's to an 80-49 victory over Loyola Marymount on Saturday night.


AFRICA/MALI - Mali: la scheda del Paese Roma (Agenzia Fides)- In occasione della visita ad limina dei Vescovi del Mali pubblichiamo una scheda del Paese (vedi Fides 16 maggio 2007). La Repubblica del Mali confina a nord con la Mauritania e lÂAlgeria, ad est con il Niger e il Burkina Faso,...


Interphase iNAV 31K AdvancedTCA Carrier Blade Achieves 10G Performance

Interphase Corporation (Nasdaq:INPH), a leading international supplier  of next-generation networking technologies, today announced successful  10Gbps testing of its iNAV 31K carrier card product.


Kevin Harvick is so hot right now that the competition clearly is concerned — so much so that Harvick believes a rival intentionally spread false allegations of cheating to rattle his team.


Torino, 18:50 - OLIMPIADI 2016, MELANDRI UFFICIALIZZA LA CANDIDATURA DI ROMA

Nel pomeriggio a Torino in occasione dei Mondiali di scherma il Ministro per le Attività spor...


SBC Communications will begin selling residential phone services that use the Internet in 2005, aiming for those in its existing markets who buy broadband access but gave up their traditional home phone.


NASA is about to embark on an unprecedented asteroid-belt mission with a spacecraft aptly named Dawn. The 3 billion-mile, eight-year journey to probe the earliest stages of the solar system will begin with liftoff, planned for just after sunrise Thursday. Rain is forecast, however, and could force a delay.


Opposition to restart protests against President Mwai Kibaki's disputed re-election


Experts Weigh Giving Up on Killing Polio

LONDON -- Nearly 20 years ago, the World Health Organization and its partners launched an ambitious program to eradicate polio by the end of the millennium. That deadline passed and another was missed in 2005 _ and polio still strikes about 2,000 people a year, mostly children.


Japanese cabbies take mobile drink drive test

NTT Go-NoGo 3GSM Japanese transport firms are using mobile phone technology to prevent drunk drivers from starting their shifts.â¦


Suicide bomb kills at least 85 in Iraq's Kirkuk

At least 85 people were killed on Monday by a suicide truck bomb in the volatile Iraqi city of Kirkuk, some of them trapped on a bus where they burned to death, a witness said.


Microsoft is introducing a new line of keyboards and mice this week, including some with fingerprint readers that lets users scan a finger instead of having to enter a log-in name and password when accessing online services or logging on to the PC.


Phone Companies Seek Cable Market Access

By Jason Rosenbaum, Columbia Daily Tribune, Mo.  Feb. 17--JEFFERSON CITY -- The Missouri Senate gave initial approval Thursday to a bill that would shift licensing of cable TV companies from the cities where they operate to the Missouri Public Service Commission.


MILANO - Juve sempre piu' in fuga dopo la settima giornata del campionato di serie A. I bianconeri sono soli al comando con 19 punti, seguiti dal soprendente Lecce di Zeman. Con la vittoria di goleada (4 a


The U.S. command announced Saturday that it was sending 3,700 troops to Baghdad to try to quell the sectarian violence sweeping the capital, and a U.S. official said more American soldiers would follow as the military gears up to take the streets from gunmen.


Hercules Receives Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award

Hercules Incorporated, in collaboration with Professor Kaichang Li of  Oregon State University and Columbia Forest Products, received a 2007  Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award for the Greener Synthetic  Pathways category.


BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. Marines launched air and ground attacks Thursday on the insurgent bastion Fallujah after city representatives suspended peace talks with the government over Prime Minister Ayad Allawi's demand to hand over terror mastermind Abu Musab al-Zarqawi...


Discussions about the economy and health care were overshadowed by heated exchanges between rivals Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama during tonight's Democratic debate. At one point, John Edwards asked: "Are there three people in this debate?"


Egyptian militant killed, policeman wounded in clashes in Sinai

CAIRO, Egypt  - Security forces clashed with Islamic militants in the mountains of Sinai on Tuesday, killing a suspect in last year's deadly bombings of beach resorts on the peninsula, the government said.


Privacy International report calls search giant hostile to users' privacy.


Parlux Fragrance's accelerating sales has it smelling like a champ.


ADV: Distance Learning Directory - Online Degrees

Bachelor, Master and Post-Grad degrees online from accredited colleges and universities. Business, Education, IT, Healthcare, more. Browse by degree or program. Request info and get started today.


Wireless technologies should mean a more clutter-free future, says Click Online's Ian Hardy.


Records show Kobe Bryant's accuser told her mother, 'Mom, I was ...

Kobe Bryant's accuser phoned her mother the day after the incident, begging her to come home from work. Later, the daughter revealed: "Mom, I was raped last night," according to newly unsealed documents.


Condannata aver guidato ubriaca e con patente scaduta


Del Ponte: No EU-Serbia pact before Mladic arrest

The European Union should not grant  closer ties to Serbia until former Bosnian Serb military  commander Ratko Mladic is arrested, United Nations war crimes  prosecutor Carla del Ponte said on Tuesday.


When a legal battle pitting Hillary Rodham Clinton's supporters against Barack Obama's erupted in Nevada this week, Sen. Harry Reid, the most powerful Democrat in the state, took heat for declining to play referee.


L'ex dg della Juve "non e' tesserato" federale


Two Misplaced Souls Decide They Might as Well Live

Love doesn't just hurt in this jagged German romance about two strangers with suicidal tendencies; it cuts and bleeds and even kills.


Pope, in Assisi, urges end to Mideast wars, terror

ASSISI, Italy  - Pope Benedict on Sunday made one of his strongest peace appeals, calling for an end to all wars and saying the people of the Middle East have had enough of "the horrors of combat, terrorism and blind violence."


Carole Leigh Hutton, the editor of The San Jose Mercury News, was replaced in a top-level shake-up at the newspaper.


New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer will file a lawsuit as early as Friday against an insurance company, the second suit stemming from his sweeping probe into bid-rigging in the industry, Spitzer told Reuters on Friday.


Russia plans to release the captain from one of four Japanese fishing boats seized in disputed waters last week out of concern for his health, Japan's Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.


Ministro belga all'Eurogruppo: nel 2008 pochi miglioramenti


NFL star indicted in Virginia dog fighting

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and three other men were indicted on conspiracy charges tied to a dog-fighting operation by a federal grand jury in Richmond, Virginia, on Tuesday.


Admirers massed by the hundreds in Modena's main piazza Thursday night to pay their final respects to Luciano Pavarotti, the tenor cherished by many as "the last, great voice" of Italian opera.


Motorola Inc. , the world's second-biggest mobile phone maker, said it expects to cut an additional 4,000 jobs, bringing the total to 7,500 this year, as it works to reduce costs to return to profit.


Numerosi i feriti, colpiti edifici di Hamas


Business leaders call for more crisis leadership

DAVOS, Switzerland  - Business leaders appealed for more leadership from U.S. and other central banks to head off an economic downturn on Wednesday, with some accusing policy makers of losing their grip and their nerve.


Study Suggests How COX Drugs Cause Heart Disease

Painkillers suspected of causing  fatal heart disease may act by starting the process of  hardening the arteries, researchers proposed on Thursday.


The Marine Corps launched a rare tribunal Monday to publicly investigate disputed allegations that a special forces unit killed as many as 19 Afghan civilians after the military convoy was rammed by a car bomb.


Microsoft vows to punish whoever stole the hotly anticipated Xbox game, due for release next month.


Canadian prosecutors say they will appeal the second-degree murder convictions of serial killer Robert Pickton.


Fifty civilians, 6 U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq

Car bombs and mortar attacks killed 50 people in Iraq, police and local officials said on Saturday, while the U.S. military said six of its soldiers had been killed in the past two days.


North Koreans holed up at Canadian Embassy in Beijing released

OTTAWA (CP) - A tense standoff where several North Koreans risked deportation and possible execution for seeking refuge in a Canadian embassy came to a safe conclusion Wednesday.


Republican presidential candidate Tom Tancredo knows what he wants.


Judge Nixes Internet Child Porn Law in Pa.

A federal judge threw out on Friday a Pennsylvania law requiring Internet service providers to block Web sites containing child pornography, saying the law was unconstitutional and cannot be enforced.


Top of the charts: Warne smashes Muraliâs record

Shane Warne has swapped places with Muttiah Muralitharan to become world cricket's highest wicket-taker. Before the Test began, he was very excited and said, "I would have been happy had I got this opportunity to achieve this feat at home.


Minutes after a massive earthquake rocked the Indian Ocean on Sunday, international ocean monitors knew that a tsunami would likely follow.


Greek fires kill 60 but spare ancient Olympia ruins

Firefighters saved the  temples and stadiums of ancient Olympia, birthplace of the  Olympic Games, from forest fires which razed nearby villages  and took the death toll from Greece's three-day inferno to 60.


Kurds rally in Iraq against Turkish incursion vote

ARBIL, Iraq  - Thousands of Kurds, many of them students, marched on the U.N. offices in the Kurdish capital Arbil on Thursday to protest the Turkish parliament's authorization of military incursions into northern Iraq.


FM Transmitter has Bluetooth, fits in cup holder

The BTCUP, a new Bluetooth-equipped FM transmitter for the iPod, is designed to fit snugly in an automobile car holder.


This one was for KG. Leon Powe made a layup at the buzzer to lift Kevin Garnett's Boston Celtics to an 88-86 victory over the Timberwolves on Friday night in the All-Star's emotional return to Minnesota.


Search Engines are Ready For Broadband  The past year saw immense growth in the search sector. Search is bigger today than it was twelve months ago in every respect. With the Internet becoming a larger part of people's lives and broadband access becoming the norm around the world, 2004 was the ...


Singer Abhijeet has a knack of putting his foot in his mouth. But this time he seems to have gone too far.


Embryonic Stem Cell Debate Divides US Presidential Candidates

President Bush and his Democratic Party challenger, John Kerry, have staked out sharply different positions on the controversial subject of embryonic stem cell research.


Wal-Mart Sued Over Evanescence CD Lyrics

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which promotes itself as a seller of clean music, deceived customers by stocking compact discs by the rock group Evanescence that contain the f-word, a lawsuit claims.


The United States space agency Nasa has salvaged precious solar dust from the $260-million Genesis capsule that crashed to Earth three weeks ago.


FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. -- With voters jamming phone lines saying they haven't received absentee ballots in the mail, elections officials planned to mail out thousands of replacement ballots.


Democratic leaders backed away from aggressive plans to limit President Bush's war authority, the latest sign of divisions within their ranks over how to proceed.


DNA fingerprinting not foolproof, research pioneer says

The genetic profiles held by police for criminal investigations are not sophisticated enough to prevent false identifications, according to the father of DNA fingerprinting.


Shares of Applied Digital Solutions Inc. and Digital Angel Corp. soared Wednesday morning on news the companies' VeriChip implantable radio frequency identification microchip for humans has been cleared by


A Witness's Personal Life Is Fair Game in Ebbers Trial

Lawyers for Bernard Ebbers, the former chief executive of WorldCom, won the right to introduce personal details about the prosecution's main witness.


Teenager Michelle Rome can't imagine life without instant messaging. Baby boomer Steve Wilson doesn't care that it even exists. They're part of an "instant messaging gap" between teens and adults. And the division is wide, says an AP-AOL survey on how Americans use or snub those Internet bursts of gossip, happy date-making and teen tragedies that young people exchange by the hour while supposedly doing homework.


Democrats Vow to Protect Social Security

Democrats vowed on Saturday to  protect the Social Security retirement program from  "privatization" by President Bush and his Republican allies,  who expanded their congressional majorities in elections this  week.


Athletics: Greek celebration is not meant to be

ATHENS As the sprinters walked out for the final of the men's 200 meters, the crowd in the packed Olympic Stadium began to boo.


Chirac in Hong Kong as Asian tour winds up

President Jacques Chirac has arrived in Hong Kong on the first official visit here by a French leader, rounding off an Asian tour that has won billions in trade contracts and avoided confrontation with China over thorny political issues.


Russia School Siege Town Prepares to Bury Dead

The sound of weeping mothers who lost their children in the bloody end to Russia's school siege drifted out of the houses of Beslan on Sunday as relatives prepared to bury the first of 333 people killed.


Mystery Cloaks Couple's Firing as Risks to U.S.

Seven months later, Aliakbar and Shahla Afshari still have no answers for why they failed secret background checks.


Fourth-quarter results were bland, but consumers may be warming up to a new line of soups.


Three 767s will start running the technology in April, but experts question this use of homeland-security resources.


Oil eased below $63 a barrel on Monday as investors weighed plans by OPEC members Nigeria and Venezuela to trim output against healthy inventories in top consumer the United States.


The Atlanta Braves have exercised the team's $8 million option for 2007 with John Smoltz, ensuring the right-hander will return for his 19th season with the team.


Allies rally to Olmert before war report

A government-commissioned report is expected to criticize Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government over the 2006 Lebanon war on Wednesday but allies said he would not quit and ruled out a snap election.


If the Giants make it deep into the playoffs, credit has to go to the players and the coaches but also to Jerry Reese, the teamâs unobtrusive first-year general manger.


Maria Sharapova just keeps getting better at the Australian Open. Two days after ending top-ranked Justine Henin's 32-match winning streak in the quarterfinals, Sharapova outclassed Jelena Jankovic 6-3, 6-1 on Thursday to advance to the final Saturday and a bid for her third Grand Slam singles title.


Pizzighettone, 16:40 - CALCIO, C1/A: VENTURATO LASCIA LA PANCHINA DEL PIZZIGHETTONE

Roberto Venturato si è dimesso dalla guida del Pizzighettone (C1/A). La decisione è ma...


It was astonishing to see extensive TV news coverage of the aftermath of Typhoon Aere: the mudslides in Tuchang Village in Hsinchu County's Wufeng Township, the first major flooding


Gates Foundation offers Wa. school $105M

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is giving $105 million to the University of Washington to open a new research center to assess the performance of global health programs.


Vietnam Vet Says Has No Proof for Claim Kerry Lied

A veteran who disputed Democratic  presidential candidate John Kerry's Vietnam war record  acknowledged on Sunday he had no proof to back his charge that  Kerry fabricated the reports of enemy fire that won him two  medals.


Thunder, lightning and incessant rain delayed the start of the Davis Cup World Group play-off tie between Austria and Great Britain.


ALMOST half of all Aids sufferers are now women and the number infected is increasing in every region of the world, according to a UN report published yesterday.


Tigers Blow Big Lead, Settle for Wild Card

Needing a win to claim the AL Central title, the Tigers must settle for the wild card after blowing a six-run lead in a 10-8, 12-inning loss to the Royals.


Whole Foods CEO's message posts trouble experts

Corporate governance experts said Whole Foods Market Inc. should launch an internal investigation into chat room postings made by Chief Executive John Mackey under an alias that boosted his company and were critical of rivals.


Conflitto interessi, Ue puo' decidere superamento vincolo


Air conditioning system causes legionnaire's outbreak in Barcelona

The authorities in the northeastern Spanish region of Catalonia said that an outbreak of legionnaire's disease in Barcelona earlier this month had been traced back to the air conditioning system of a private clinic.


Here is the full text of hostage Kenneth Bigley's video statement, posted on the Internet late Wednesday and appealing to Prime Minister Tony Blair to deal with his captors in Iraq:


Broad economic views in Nobel short list

Theories of how countries maintain global trade, why natural rates of unemployment are driven by economic necessity and even "Ricardian equivalence," which dictates that governments can't increase demand by deficit spending are the complex topics that may be honored with the Nobel economic prize.


Troubled actress Lindsay Lohan has agreed to meet her estranged father Michael in   the rehabilitation centre where she is seeking counselling.


Abbas Win, New Sharon Team Boost Peace Hopes

RAMALLAH, West Bank  - Middle East peace hopes  were boosted on Monday when Mahmoud Abbas was elected  Palestinian president and Israel's parliament backed Ariel  Sharon's new coalition to implement his planned Gaza pullout.


Italy reacts with horror at hostage killing in Iraq

ROME - Italy reacted with horror Friday at the killing of an Italian hostage in Iraq, while the Italian government insisted it would stay the course in the Middle Eastern country.


Berlusconi: "Meno tasse senza aumento del deficit"

BARI - Meno tasse, tetti alla spesa, risparmi grazie alla devolution. Tutto senza aumentare il deficit. Silvio Berlusconi sceglie l'apertura della Fiera del Levante di Bari per difendere la Finanziaria e la


Many Touched By Christopher Reeve's Death

Patrice Walsh, Christine Webb (Rochester, NY) 10/11/04 -- Actor/director Christopher Reeve died Sunday from heart failure triggered by an infected pressure wound.


A British toddler was released by gunmen in southern Nigeria on Sunday and reunited with her parents, who said she was fine but hungry and covered in mosquito bites.


Love poised to end victory drought in Greensboro

Former champion Davis Love III moved ominously into contention for his first PGA Tour title in three years at the Greensboro Classic in North Carolina on Saturday.


SAP expands offshore to cater to growth markets

BANGALORE, INDIA - SAPÂ plans to more than double the number of staff at its software development centers in Bangalore, India, and Shanghai by 2006, and is also considering setting up a new development center in Eastern Europe, according to a company executive.


FCC fines CBS $550,000 over "nipplegate"

As expected, America's communications regulator - the FCC - has hit Viacom's CBS network with a $550,000 fine over Janet Jackson's infamous "wardrobe malfunction" during the Super Bowl half-time show.


Utility Fined $11.4 Million for Acid Rain

A Kentucky utility has agreed to pay the largest-ever fine for alleged violations of the Clean Air Act's acid rain program, the Environmental Protection Agency said yesterday.


Kuznetsova Reaches First Grand Slam Semi

Svetlana Kuznetsova squeezed past  fellow Russian Nadia Petrova 7-6, 6-3 at the U.S. Open on  Wednesday to reach her first grand slam semi-final.


Eli Lilly & Company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $854.4 million, or 78 cents a share, compared with $132.3 million, or 12 cents a share, a year ago.


Despite their fearsome reputation, piranhas are wimps that gather in large shoals to protect themselves from predators, scientists said on Monday.


London Muslim puts film of Black Watch deaths on net

A BRITISH-BASED Saudi dissident has provoked anger by posting a video on his website that apparently shows the killing of three Black Watch soldiers by a suicide bomber.


Description: Though George Carlin is best known as a performer, he's collected his observations on life, the media, politics and the English language into a series of books.


Dell SP2008WFP: 20-inch wide-screen LCD monitor with Webcam


Polls: Bush momentum falters following debate

National snap polls showed Democrat presidential candidate John Kerry to be the hands-down winner in his televised debate with incumbent US President George W Bush and now a pair of post-debate polls show a shift in momentum among registered voters, as


Warsaw set to get first woman mayor, Kaczynski twins dealt blow

Poland's capital is set to get its first woman mayor, liberal Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, after voters in weekend municipal elections dealt a symbolic blow to the conservative government of identical twins Lech and Jaroslaw Kaczynski, final results showed.


A child dies of hunger every five seconds, eight years on from a pledge to halve the world's hungry, a UN agency says.


Given such song titles as "Baby Hold on to Me," "Can You Handle It," "The G Spot" and "U Got That Love," the general theme of Gerald Levert's music is easy to divine. His brand of sensuous R&B has provided romantic sustenance to a devoted fan base ever since his 1991 solo debut, "Private Line."


NASAâs Messenger spacecraft has captured a new view of the planet Mercury.


European Automakers Plan New U.S. Models

Following a year that saw their U.S. sales drop 4 percent overall, many European automakers are introducing a slew of new models in 2005 as part of an effort to reverse the slide and revive their brands.


"National Treasure" continued to strike box-office gold, taking in $33.1 million from Friday to Sunday to retain the No. 1 slot over the busy Thanksgiving weekend.


Colorado's Senate race between Democratic state Attorney General Ken Salazar and Republican beer executive Peter Coors is shaping up to be the most expensive political race in state history, preliminary contribution information shows.


Canoeists Hunt for Trash in San Joaquin River: Volunteers Fish Out Half a Ton, but 'Big One' Eludes Them.

By Christina Vance, The Fresno Bee, Calif.  Sep. 10--Tom and Helen Templeton heaved the "big one" out of the San Joaquin River on Saturday afternoon -- a metal shopping cart basket encrusted with river slime.


Berezovsky urges Litvinenko suspect to come to Britain: report

Russian businessman Boris Berezovsky urged the man British authorities want to charge over the death of former spy Alexander Litvinenko to talk to police here, a report said Thursday.


By JOSEPH B. FRAZIER  CASCADE LOCKS, Ore. - Above the spillways of Bonneville Dam, Darrell Schmidt patroled with his shotgun, drawing a bead on furry brown California sea lion heads popping up from the Columbia River and blasting off a beanbag round.


Microsoft's setback in Europe may not be boon to consumers

BERLIN While competitors hailed a European judge's decision to force Microsoft to sell a stripped-down version of its Windows computer operating software without a media player, analysts said European consumers may be less than pleased.


Sharp starts blue laser diode production

Japanese consumer electronics maker Sharp  Corp.  said on Tuesday it has started the commercial  production of blue laser diodes, taking aim at a market with  strong growth potential.


Angry Crowds Rally Against President in Brazil

SAO PAULO, Brazil, March 8 -- Thousands of students, workers and environmentalists protesting President Bush's arrival here Thursday shut down a road in a central business district, and some clashed with helmet-wearing riot police who fired tear gas and beat demonstrators.


ADV: Health Insurance for the Self-Employed!

Affordable health, dental, and life insurance for you and your family. Ideal for self-employed, small business owners. Fill out our form for a competitive quote.


Stocks Rise Amid Sharp Drop in Oil Prices

A sharp decline in oil prices and a surprise drop in wholesale prices pushed stocks higher in late trading Friday, easing investors' concerns about third quarter earnings after profit warnings from Dow component Alcoa Inc.


China wants North Korea talks next week: media

China wants to resume talks on ending North Korea's nuclear arms program next week, media said on Tuesday, with a session likely to coincide with Pyongyang starting to shut its reactor and weapons-grade plutonium source.


TORONTO -- Ontario Health Minister George Smitherman yesterday became the latest member of the Liberal cabinet to face accusations of selling access to party donors.


Brescia, 20:03 - Calcio, serie A: Brescia-Fiorentina 1-1 nell'anticipo

Pareggio per 1-1 tra Brescia e Fiorentina nel primo anticipo dell'ultima giornata di andata del camp...


Israelis vote overwhelmingly for a song about nuclear annihilation as their entry in the Eurovision song contest.


FCC Proposes $1.2M Indecency Fine for Fox

Federal regulators proposed a record indecency fine of nearly $1.2 million Tuesday against Fox Broadcasting Co. for an episode of its reality series "Married by America" that included graphic scenes from bachelor and bachelorette parties.


Debate Heats Up Over Seoul's Nuclear Admissions

North Korea is accusing the United States of applying "double standards" in its role as one of the mediators in six-party nuclear nonproliferation talks on the Korean peninsula.


Aare, 12:07 - SCI, MONDIALI: ANNULLATO SUPERG UOMINI

Niente da fare, i mondiali di sci di Aare, in Svezia, non riescono a partire. A causa del maltempo (...


Philippine bishops condemn Arroyo over child rapist's sentence

Influential Roman Catholic bishops in the Philippines on Sunday hit out at President Gloria Arroyo for shortening the jail time of a convicted child rapist, allegedly for political considerations.


US vetoes resolution calling for Israeli halt to Gaza operations

The United States vetoed an Arab-backed UN Security Council resolution calling for a halt to Israeli military operations in Gaza. Last night's vote in the 15-member Security Council was


Siena, 19:27 - CALCIO, SIENA: PROBLEMA PER FRICK

Problemi per Frick, che durante la partitella di fine allenamento del Siena, ha preso un colpo al qu...


Off The Charts: Measuring National Economies by the Arm’s Length

The I.M.F. announced that it created a new Âfinancial indexÂ for countries, measuring the degree to which they are more Âarms lengthÂ or Ârelationship basedÂ when it comes to transactions.


Japan Economy Up 0.1 Pct. in New Quarter

Japan's economy expanded a weaker-than-expected 0.1 percent in the July-September quarter, as exports that had driven growth in past quarters barely rose, the government said Friday.


Peter Mohan traces the path from the Iraqi battlefield to this lifeless conference room, where he sits in a kilt and a Camp Kill Yourself T-shirt and calmly describes how he became a sad cliche: a homeless veteran.


Roberto Di Gati in prigione da lunedi', sarebbe suicidio


The Cooper Companies posts a Q2 loss upon restructuring, but revenues continue to grow.


Citigroup sacks top executives over Japan debacle

NEW YORK, October 21  - Global banking giant Citigroup's (C.NYS) recent move to terminate three top executives, in the wake of the recent debacle in the companyâs Japanese operations, has been widely welcomed by Wall Street analysts.


DeRosa's fifth hit keeps Cubs ahead in NL Central

Mark DeRosa capped a ninth-inning rally with his fifth hit of the game to help the Chicago Cubs retain first place in the National League Central Division with a 7-6 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday.


Logitech turns wireless stereo 'phones up to 11

Bluetooth 2.0 based and iPod-friendly Logitech will this month ship its second-generation Bluetooth-based wireless stereo headphones in the UK, the mouse maker announced this week and pitching the redesigned set not only at owners of iPods or other MP3 players, but also at computer users.â¦


Research work could mean data gets in and out of computer chips at speed of light.


Trento, 22:51 - VOLLEY, A1 MASCHILE: ITAS TRENTINO VINCE POSTICIPO

Itas Diatec Trentino-Sparkling Milano 3-1 (25-17, 25-21, 22-25, 25-16) nel posticipo della sesta gio...


Manchester United and Arsenal are again at the centre of controversy in the wake of their match at Old Trafford. Last season Arsenal's players vented their fury towards Ruud van Nistelrooy after he missed a last-minute penalty.


Leyland: Young criticism was out of line

Detroit manager Jim Leyland fired back at former Tiger Dmitri Young on Tuesday, saying Young was "totally out of line" for accusing the team of unfairly cutting ties with him last season.


Medicare Premiums Rising 17 Percent in 2005

The US government has announced a record increase in Medicare premiums for 2005, and all depending which side you're on in the Presidential race, it's either an enhanced package for senior citizens, or the elderly population is being socked with the


Circuit City, the second-biggest  US electronics retailer, receives a $3.25bn takeover offer from private investment firm Highfields.


New Meningitis Vaccine Supported By FDA Panel

A US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel voted unanimously on Wednesday that Sanofi-Aventis Menactra vaccine is safe and effective for use in patients aged 11 to 55 years for the prevention of bacterial meningitis.


Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton suggested Sunday that Barack Obama's campaign had injected racial tension into the presidential contest, saying he had distorted for political gain her comments about Martin Luther King's role in the civil rights movement.


Make or break for Bush? Employment numbers look shaky for re ...

The Bush campaign is blowing on the dice and praying for good jobs data Friday. Recruitment firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas tracks hiring and layoff announcements around the country.


Many popular shopping sites offer mobile versions of their search tools, which can be especially useful for those always on the go.


Citrus Department to Challenge Labeling of Low-carb Juices

Florida's Department of Citrus wants to put the squeeze on producers of low-carb orange juice, claiming their labels confuse consumers into believing they're purchasing 100 percent juice when buying a product that's 42 percent juice.


N.Korea seeks more plutonium for nuclear arms: scholar

A senior North Korean official says his   country plans to unload fuel rods from its nuclear reactor to   obtain more weapons-grade plutonium and put pressure on   Washington, a visiting U.S. scholar said on Saturday.


Controversial Greek sprinters and doping suspects Kostadinos Kenteris and Ekaterini Thanou quit the Olympic Games on Wednesday moments after exiting an IOC inquiry which could have expelled them for missing a mandatory drugs test.


NATO begins Afghan spring offensive in Helmand

NATO began its spring offensive against the Taliban on Tuesday, launching its biggest attacks since the 2001 war on Taliban rebels and Afghan drug lords.


Carnet economico per sei spettacoli in 15 teatri


French leader touts cooperation French Leader Emphasizes ...

French President Jacques Chirac toned down his criticism of Britain's role in the Iraq war as he arrived yesterday on a two-day visit celebrating the Entente


SCUOLA: MORATTI, 10 CITTA' APERTE AGLI AUTORI

(AGI) - Roma, 14 set. - Un poeta, uno scrittore sullo sfondo di una citta'. Questa, in estrema sintesi l'idea all'origine di "Pensare l'Italia attraverso i classici", il progetto presentato dal ministro dell


MMA Renewable Ventures finances energy efficiency

Blog: Project financing for energy project is helping fuel renewable energy adoption. MMA Renewable Ventures expands financing to energy efficiency for mid-size companies.


(CBS/AP) Cloudy weather obscured the top of Mount St. Helens on Wednesday morning, making it difficult for visitors to see the volcano's crater after several days of steam and ash eruptions.


Yen Surrenders Gains After China Raises Benchmark Interest Rate

The yen surrendered earlier gains against the dollar after China, Japan's second-largest export market, raised interest rates for the first time in nine years.


A host of celebrities are expected to grace the red carpet at this year's Bafta awards in London.


Thousands of wildlife sleuths are being recruited for an inquiry into the affects of climate change on wildlife.


Udine, 20:25 - CALCIO, UDINESE: POSSIBILE ASTA PER ASAMOAH

Si potrebbe aprire un asta per l'attaccante dell'Udinese Asamoah Gyan. La trattativa è slitta...


Baghdad Journal: Why the U.S. Can't Stop the Killing

As the armed militias do their bloody work, neither U.S. nor Iraqi forces show any ability to curb them


Girardi Urges Pettitte to Focus on the Future

Joe Girardi has reinforced to Andy Pettitte that the fallout from his admission of using human growth hormone and his deposition to Congress about Roger Clemens should not ruin him.


L'Oreal pictures sales of cosmetics to emerging consumers

Cosmetics giant L'Oreal has reported a 4.5-percent rise in net profit to 2.061 billion euros, continuing 22 years of rising profits, and said it saw great scope for growth in emerging economies.


Brazil's Lula says Fidel Castro lucid and healthy

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva met with ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Tuesday and said he was "incredibly lucid" and healthy enough to resume his political role in Cuba.


SourceForge.net Update: 2007-08-24 Edition

0. Introduction 1. SysAdmin of the Year Contest 2. Statistics  This SF.net update brought to you by HP --------------------------------------------------------- Open source and Linux from HP From eight consecutive years of Linux market leadership to countless community outreach programs, HP has proven solutions you can value, on a next generation, highly-efficient BladeSystem platform ideal for Linux, with the approach, experience, and customer commitment you can trust. http://www.linux.com/sponsor_solutions/hpos ---------------------------------------------------------  Hello, and welcome to this month's edition.  Last month, we announced the winners of the 2007 Community Choice Awards during our party at OSCON.  There were some surprises, lots of great winners, and a good time was certainly had by all.  For information about the winning projects, visit our Community Hub at http://sourceforge.net/community and click on the CCA logo.  The beta of our Marketplace continues to go well.  Our beta participants have been creating quality listings to provide our users with access to the experts they need...and, in the process, our design decisions are being validated one-by-one.  Keep a close watch on this new tool, it promises to be a hotspot of engineering activity for us over the next few months.  We will need some help, though!  We're looking for engineering talent to make all the complex things simple around here.  If you're in the bay area and want to join us, email jobs@corp.sourceforge.com  Thanks for reading!  The SourceForge.net Crew    SysAdmin of the Year Contest ----------------------------  Do have know a SysAdmin who goes beyond the call of duty? If so, nominate them as SysAdmin of the Year 2007.  They can win great prizes (Macbook Pro, iPhone, Splunk License), including the knowledge that you care.   The first 2500 SysAdmins nominated get a free t-shirt.  http://www.sysadminoftheyear.com    Statistics and Top Projects ---------------------------  Number of Projects: 155,959 Number of Registered Users: 1,662,751   Daily Stats for 20 August, 2007:  SF.net: 4,026,722 pages served Open Source Files downloaded in 24 hour period: 2,014,157  ---------------------------------------------------------  Top 25 Projects:   1. Azureus https://sourceforge.net/projects/azureus Azureus is a powerful, full-featured, cross-platform bittorrent client.  2. phpMyAdmin https://sourceforge.net/projects/phpmyadmin phpMyAdmin is a tool written in PHP intended to handle the administration of MySQL over the Web. Currently it can create and drop databases, create/drop/alter tables, delete/edit/add fields, execute any SQL statement, manage keys on fields.  3. Notepad++ https://sourceforge.net/projects/notepad-plus Notepad++ is a generic source code editor (it tries to be anyway) and Notepad replacement written in C++ with the win32 API. The aim of Notepad++ is to offer a slim and efficient binary with a totally customizable GUI.  4. OpenProj - Project Management https://sourceforge.net/projects/openproj OpenProj by Projity is a desktop replacement of Microsoft Project. OpenProj has equivalent functionality, a familiar user interface and even opens existing MSProject files. OpenProj is interoperable with Project, with a Gantt Chart and PERT chart etc.  5. ZK - Simply Ajax and Mobile https://sourceforge.net/projects/zk1 ZK is Ajax framework enriching Web apps with little programming. With event-driven and markup languages, development is as simple as programming desktops and authoring HTML/XUL pages. ZK supports scripting lang including Java, JavaScript, Ruby, Groovy...  6. dimdim meeting server https://sourceforge.net/projects/dimdim Dimdim is an open source web meeting product with features like Application, Desktop and Presentation sharing with A/V streaming and chat. No attendee installation - all features are available through a web browser. Dimdim can be integrated with Moodle.  7. ADempiere Bazaar https://sourceforge.net/projects/adempiere Adempiere is an ERP Bazaar for Open Source Developers that contribute improvements of Compiere, CRM, Shopfloor, POS, Helpdesk, Financials Accounting, Supply Chain, Knowledge and Business apps in an open and unabated fashion. Focus is on the Community.  8. Zenoss Core - Enterprise IT Monitoring https://sourceforge.net/projects/zenoss Zenoss Core is an enterprise network and systems management application written in Python/Zope. Zenoss provides an integrated product for monitoring availability, performance, events and configuration across layers and across platforms.  9. Openbravo ERP https://sourceforge.net/projects/openbravo Web based ERP for SMEs, built on proven MVC & MDD framework that facilitate customization & maintenance of code. Already in production, it encompasses a broad range of functionalities such as finance, supply chain, project mgmt, manufacturing & much more  10. FreeCol https://sourceforge.net/projects/freecol FreeCol is an open version of Colonization. It is a Civilization-like game in which the player has to conquer the new world.  11. FileZilla https://sourceforge.net/projects/filezilla FileZilla is a fast FTP and SFTP client for Windows with a lot of features. FileZilla Server is a reliable FTP server.  12. WebCalendar https://sourceforge.net/projects/webcalendar WebCalendar is a PHP application used to maintain a calendar for a single user or an intranet group of users. It can also be configured as an event calendar.  13. PhpGedView https://sourceforge.net/projects/phpgedview PhpGedView parses GEDCOM 5.5 genealogy files and displays them on the internet in formats and charts that you are familiar with.It also allows relatives to edit their genealogy online and collaborate together on their research.  14. MediaInfo https://sourceforge.net/projects/mediainfo Get technical information and tags of a lot of multimedia files. Supported formats : - Video : AVI/OGM/MKV/MPG/VOB/MP4/3GP/... - Audio : MP3/OGG/MKA/MP4/AAC/...  15. 7-Zip https://sourceforge.net/projects/sevenzip 7-Zip is a file archiver with the high compression ratio. The program supports 7z, ZIP, CAB, RAR, ARJ, LZH, CHM, GZIP, BZIP2, Z, TAR, CPIO, RPM and DEB formats. Compression ratio in the new 7z format is 30-50% better than ratio in ZIP format.  16. KeePass Password Safe https://sourceforge.net/projects/keepass KeePass Password Safe is a free, open source, light-weight and easy-to-use password manager for Windows. You can store your passwords in a highly-encrypted database, which is locked with one master password or key file.  17. MinGW - Minimalist GNU for Windows https://sourceforge.net/projects/mingw MinGW: A native Win32 port of the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC), with freely distributable import libraries and header files for building native Windows applications; includes extensions to the MSVC runtime to support C99 functionality.  18. XOOPS Dynamic Web CMS https://sourceforge.net/projects/xoops XOOPS is a dynamic web content management system written in PHP for the MySQL database. Its object orientation makes it an ideal tool for developing small or large community websites, intra company and corporate portals, weblogs and much more.  19. FreeMind https://sourceforge.net/projects/freemind A mind mapper, and at the same time an easy-to-operate hierarchical editor with strong emphasis on folding. These two are not really two different things, just two different descriptions of a single application. Often used for knowledge and content mgmt.  20. Arianne RPG https://sourceforge.net/projects/arianne Arianne is a multiplayer online engine to develop turn based and real time games providing a simple way of creating the game server rules and clients like Stendhal. Marauroa, our server, uses Java and MySQL for hosting hundreds of players on a solo host.  21. OrangeHRM - Human Resource Management https://sourceforge.net/projects/orangehrm OrangeHRM developed by OrangeHRM Inc is an Open Source HR Information Systems(HRIS) that assists you in managing company's human resources. Through scalable modular architecture it covers main areas of Personnel Management/HRM such as PIM, ESS & Leave.  22. Gallery https://sourceforge.net/projects/gallery A slick, intuitive web based photo gallery. Gallery is easy to install, configure and use. Gallery photo management includes automatic thumbnails, resizing, rotation, and more. Authenticated users and privileged albums make this great for communities.  23. Pidgin https://sourceforge.net/projects/pidgin Pidgin is a GTK+ instant messaging application for Windows and Unix. It supports AIM, ICQ, Jabber/XMPP, MSN, Yahoo!, Bonjour, Gadu-Gadu, IRC, QQ, SILC, SIMPLE and more. See http://pidgin.im/about.php for more information.  24. XBMC (Xbox Media Center) https://sourceforge.net/projects/xbmc XBMC (Xbox Media Center) is a free multimedia player jukebox for Microsoft Xbox game console, it is capable of playing back almost all known video, audio and picture formats from the Xbox harddrive, DVD-ROM drive, a local-network, and even the internet.  25. JasperReports - Java Reporting https://sourceforge.net/projects/jasperreports JasperReports, the market leading open source business intelligence and reporting engine. This project is being moved to http://www.jasperforge.org/. This project is the home for all things Jasper, Reports, Analysis, Server, and Intelligence.


Official: Ag secretary to run for Senate

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns will resign his Cabinet post to run for the U.S. Senate in Nebraska, a state Republican official said Wednesday.


Home Improvement Spending Rises -- Study

Rising homeownership and higher-income  households have helped U.S. remodeling spending reach new  highs, a study by Harvard University found.


Parigi, 22:34 - CALCIO, FRANCIA: CINQUINA ESTERNA DEL LIONE

Risultati delle gare dell'ottava giornata del campionato francese: Marsiglia-Tolosa 1-2 (11' Emana/T...


Milano, 14:50 - CALCIO, INTER; MANCINI: MOTIVAZIONI PER CHI GIOCA IN COPPA

Roberto Mancini, allenatore dell'Inter, alla vigilia del match di ritorno di Tim Cup contro il Messi...


UPS Pilots Will Support Teamsters Strike

The union representing United Parcel  Service Inc.'s UPS.N pilots said on Tuesday it would not  handle cargo out of Canada to honor a strike by the world's  largest package delivery company's Canadian employees.


A government advisory panel on religious freedom denounced on Friday new regulations issued by China that appear aimed at undermining the Dalai Lama, exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists.


Israel Feuds With Agency Set Up to Aid Palestinians

For years, Israel has feuded with the United Nations refugee agency for Palestinians over a wide range of issues, and recently Israel thought it had found a smoking gun to press its case.


Milano, nelle intercettazioni si vantava delle sue avventureE' la prima sentenza in Italia per reati commessi all'estero                                            Condannato per turismo sessuale 14 anni di carcere a un veronese


U.S. Awaits Judgment on Venezuela Voting

There was no evident pattern of fraud in Venezuela's balloting that left President Hugo Chavez in office but a final judgment depends on what observers report, the State Department said Monday.


Kenya's opposition claimed victory on Saturday in the presidential election but fears of rigging after counting delays ignited ethnic violence across the east African nation.


Apple on Tuesday released what is likely to be its final update to Mac OS 10.4 "Tiger" before it releases Leopard this spring. Included in the patch are fixes for .Mac, Bluetooth, Mac OS X's standard productivity applications, networking, and printing, among other issues.


Foxy Brown was sentenced Friday to one year in jail for violating probation that stemmed from a fight with two manicurists in a New York City nail salon three years ago.


East Timor's capital was returning to normal after Australian troops took to the streets to restore order and stop bloody clashes between the Timorese military and rebel soldiers.


A Legacy Borne in Tragedy Outlasts a Ring Never Won

Jerome Brown, the gentle all-pro defensive lineman for the Eagles, was born, died and lives on in Brooksville, Fla.


Hollywood Producers, Screenwriters Clinch Deal

Union leaders for Hollywood  screenwriters have reached a tentative deal with film studios  and TV networks on a three-year contract worth $58 million in  raises and health benefits, both sides said on Wednesday.


WASHINGTON - John Kerry yesterday lashed back at charges that he exaggerated his Vietnam war record, accusing President George W. Bush of using an anti-Kerry group to level the claims because "he wants them to do his dirty work." ...


Promises better web apps The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has announced two standards aimed at bringing order to the web.â¦


Oil prices fall despite concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions, as a storm looks set to leave US oil installations untouched.


AOL packs its bags for Manhattan, emphasizes focus on advertising

The online service-turned media company will be Silicon Alley's latest emigre, taking up space new New York University.


Sudan crisis talks adjourn without resolution

Talks to resolve a standoff in Sudan's national coalition government adjourned on Thursday without agreement, prolonging the crisis threatening a fragile peace agreement that ended two decades of war.


Angie Benzschawel and Ryan Shaw held their surgically separated twin boys in their laps and prepared to return home to Wisconsin as more than 30 doctors, nurses and other medical staff bid them farewell Thursday.


Rehnquist Won't Vote in Every Case Heard This Term

Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, ill with thyroid cancer, will not vote in every case that has been argued this term, and will instead participate in certain cases only when necessary to


Dato in controtendenza rispetto alle attese degli analisti


BRAZIL'S Olympic Committee will protest to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over the assault on Vanderlei de Lima who was pushed off the road when he was leading the Olympic marathon this morning.


Iran Fails to Assure Suspending Nuclear Program

Despite intense pressure from other nations, Iran failed to provide written assurances today that it was fully suspending its nuclear program, though Tehran's negotiators promised a commitment


Graeme McDowell had a birdie on the last hole to thank for leaving just one shot off the pace at the Madrid Open. However, other events on the 18th hole overshadowed McDowell's finish.


Serving Canapés, Then Recalling the 107th Floor

The subject of 9/11 is often raised by the Republicans, but for the city they have chosen for their political coronation, it is intensely personal.


MELBOURNE - The difference in 12 months was easy to see. Serena Williams, wearing fuchsia bicycle shorts and headband, a short white dress, and dangling, chandelier-inspired earrings, found her form quickly and beat Jarmila Gajdosova, 6-3, 6-3, today in the first match in the Australian Open.


'Basta Roma, basta tasse. Ci tocca andare fino in fondo'


US sending extra troops to Afghanistan to been up security for elections

About 1,100 troops from the elite 82nd Airborne Division are being deployed to Afghanistan to beef up security for the October 13 presidential elections, a US defense official said.


Flexible displays creep closer to market

Consumers hoping to enjoy their favorite  comics or Harry Potter book in digital form could soon have a  flexible alternative to clunky laptop computers.


Anu Menon, of Channel V's Lola Kutty fame, is all set to step into Bollywood.


FA Cup: Third round draw - joy for Yeading and Exeter

The great big fat bullies from across the playground enter the FA Cup arena at the third round stage, for which the draw was made yesterday (December 5).


Groundbreaking Pediatric Heart Surgeon Commits Suicide

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Dr. Jonathan Drummond-Webb, chief of pediatric and congenital heart surgery at Arkansas Children's Hospital, has died in an apparent suicide.


YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia  - At least 49 people died but dozens also escaped after an Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on landing in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta on Wednesday.


Firenze, 18:01 - CALCIO, AZZURRI: DONADONI PROVA CASSANO CON GILARDINO

Roberto Donadoni sta pensando ad alcuni cambi in vista della sfida di mercoledÃ¬ con la Francia. Nell...


The United States has procured another 1.2 million foreign doses of influenza vaccine under an investigational new drug (IND) application.


Mac vs. PC cost analysis: How does it all add up?

(InfoWorld) - People have been arguing online about how much more expensive Macs are than PCs -- or not -- for more than a decade (and in print for years before that). These discussions usually involve some hard facts but also some persistent myths. As a longtime Windows guy who has recently migrated to the Mac, I think I'm in a pretty good position to try and sort out reality from fiction. Let's take a look at what you can really get for your money these days. But first, let me say to all those people who have ever bought a Packard Bell or eMachines PC and believe that great value in a computer means any model that sells for $600 or less: I agree -- Apple doesn't have an answer for you. In fact, I suggest that you skip this article entirely. You're not going to find anything of interest in it. It's the hardware For those of you who are left, what I have found in my research is that neither side has a lock on good value. If you start with Apple's relatively short list of SKUs (three or four model variations for each of its lines, such as MacBook Pro, MacBook, and iMac) and then look for comparable Windows machines, you'll find that Apple bests the competition in some ways and not in others, but the pricing, overall, is surprisingly on par. Only a few years ago, it seemed like a no-brainer that Windows hardware was much cheaper. But if you're talking name-brand hardware, that's just no longer the case. On the other hand, if you search the Windows side first, you'll quickly discover machines that -- in features and price -- fit in between the Mac SKUs. And in those niches, they represent very good values. So there's one answer to the question of whether Macs or Windows represent a better value: If one of those "in between" PCs suits your needs best, you'd be paying an unnecessary premium to get a Mac instead. Let's look at some hard numbers. I started my research with top-of-the-line notebooks -- I spent an hour on Dell's site trying to find the cheapest notebook that offered everything Apple's $2,799 MacBook Pro 17 provides. That includes: * Glossy 17-in. screen with 1,680-by-1,050-pixel resolution (optional 1,920-by-1,200 resolution for $100 more) * 2.4-GHz Core 2 Duo processor * 2GB of RAM (upgradeable to 4GB) * 256MB Nvidia GeForce 8600M GT video * 160GB 5,400-rpm SATA hard drive * 8x SuperDrive (DVD+R DL/DVDÂ±RW/CD-RW) * Gigabit Ethernet port * 54Mbps a/b/g/Draft n Wi-Fi * Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, ExpressCard/34 card slot * Three USB ports * One FireWire 800 port * One FireWire 400 port * DVI port * Built-in iSight video camera * One-year warranty (upgradeable to three years) (See Apple's site for the complete MacBook Pro technical specifications.) I was a little surprised to find that Dell's Inspiron line doesn't currently offer processing power equaling that of the MacBook Pro. To get a 2.33GHz Core 2 Duo processor (a 2.4GHz version isn't available yet), you have to move up to Dell's more expensive XPS M1710 with Vista Home Premium. Once I did that, though, and tricked out the M1710 with only those extras it had to have to compete with the MacBook Pro, I was surprised to see the Dell come in at a whopping $3,459, some $650 more than the Apple product. Now, it's true that the Dell has some additional ports features (higher-end video and six USB ports instead of three, for example), but it also weighs nearly two pounds more and is much chunkier (1.69 in. thick, compared with 1 in.). I continued my comparisons with a visit to Circuit City last weekend to take a look at high-end 17-in. notebook PCs. Like Dell, Sony has one with every conceivable bell and whistle selling for more than $3,000 -- the Vaio VGN-AR390E, which goes for $3,150. Like all the other Windows models available at Circuit City, the processor is a 2GHz Core 2 Duo, slower than the one in the MacBook Pro. On the other hand, the Vaio comes through with 1,920-by-1,200-pixel screen resolution, a 5,400 rpm 240GB hard drive, and a whopping 527MB of video memory. Like the Dell, though, at 8.4 lb., the Vaio makes the 6.8 lb. MacBook Pro look like a lightweight. Moving downscale a little, both Hewlett-Packard and Toshiba have models in the $2,000 range that approximate the MacBook Pro's equipment. The HP Pavilion DV9260US comes with the Intel Core 2 Duo 2-GHz processor, a 240GB 5,400 rpm drive, Windows Vista Ultimate, and a 17-in. screen whose maximum resolution is only 1,440 by 900 pixels (a major drawback). Circuit City's price is $2,000. Bottom line: Assuming that you want a high-end notebook PC designed to work, play, and be your everyday machine with style, the MacBook Pro is a surprisingly good value. The models that I compared it with, the Sony and the Dell, had some extras here and there, but they were also more expensive. The key to the perception that Macs are more expensive is that Apple offers very few in-between models. Moving to the midrange In the midrange, where lower-cost 13-in. LCD MacBook models occupy price ranges from about $1,100 to $1,500, you may be equally surprised. Apple's recently updated MacBooks more than hold their own on price/performance comparisons with other 12- and 13-in. LCD computers from Sony, Toshiba, and HP. The desktop landscape may also be an eye-opener. Even though the likes of Dell, HP, Sony, and so on have machines priced from about $500 and up, those prices don't include LCDs (in most cases), and they don't start to get hardware-competitive with the processors in Apple's iMac line until they hit about $1,000. Because of the iMac's built-in LCD, it's actually less expensive, though some of the details (such as hard-drive size and RAM amount) may be tilted in favor of the Windows desktops. If you know your way around PCs and want some extras, the Apple could in some instances be the clear value leader in this category. For comparison's sake, let's look at Sony's attempt to out-Apple Apple, the Vaio All-in-One Desktop PC VGC-LS25E. It comes with a 19-in. LCD, 2GB of RAM, a 7,200 rpm 250GB hard drive, and Vista Home Premium, but it has only a 1.83-GHz Core 2 Duo processor. The Circuit City price tag is $1,800. So, how does that compare to Apple's 20-in. LCD iMac, which sells for $1,500? The iMac comes with a 2.16-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, a 7,200-rpm 250GB drive, and 1GB of RAM. You would need to upgrade the video memory and system RAM (bumping the price to about $1,750) to make the iMac comparable with the Sony in those areas. But the iMac has a bigger LCD and a better processor no matter what, and even with the RAM and video upgrade, it still costs less than the Sony. Plus, Apple's $175 RAM upgrade is costly. You can save money by buying the memory elsewhere and installing it yourself. Kingston memory is less expensive, offers excellent quality, and is fully compatible with Macs. I've also had great luck on my Macs with the bargain-basement-priced memory from Data Memory Systems in Salem, N.H. (I just wish DMS would take PayPal.) Bottom line: When you configure low-end and midrange notebooks and desktops, you'll find that except at the very bottom of the heap, Windows machines are roughly comparable in price to Macs. There are fewer Mac models, so if your needs vary from what Apple has decided on, you may find a Windows model that costs less for you. But Apple's choices make a lot of sense for most people, and when you do the point-by-point comparison, Apple is actually a better value for some needs. Reality check The comparisons I've drawn above are by no means exhaustive. For example, I didn't address computers at the level of the Mac Pro, Apple's stand-alone desktop workstation. Nor did I cover the Mac mini, a computer that I don't think is much of a bargain from a price/performance standpoint. I also didn't address the 15-in. MacBook Pro, and -- full disclosure -- I feel it's of dubious value. It's only $300 less than the 17-in. MacBook Pro but has lower resolution, a smaller hard drive (without an upgrade), a slightly lesser SuperDrive, fewer ports and so on. It's nowhere near as good a value as the 17-in. model. The only time I wish I was using one is when I'm flying coach. Anyone who performs a similar comparison will have to make his own subjective assessments about what's important and what's not. I happen to believe that many of the small details about Macs have a value that's hard to put a price tag on. How much is the very best trackpad in the business worth to you? To me it's worth a lot, but I know that some people couldn't care less. So I chose to focus on objective speeds and feeds, such as CPUs, RAM, video memory, and so forth as best I could. And then there's the software question, which comes up over and over again in any discussion of the cost of Macs. Long-term, entrenched Windows users (like me until last September) who are comparing prices tend to think in terms of the investment they have in software and peripherals. I can't factor in your particular context. If you need Microsoft Office for the Mac, you need it, and that will set you back a few hundred bucks. But you can amortize that cost over the lifetime of your computer use, and you're going to have to pay for your next Windows Office upgrade anyway, right? What's the difference? The more interesting question -- the question Mac people get really tired of -- is what to do about all the software you've been using forever to solve problems. Will the Mac world have those solutions? You like to do things your way; can you still do that on the Mac? The feedback I've gotten from Mac people on this point is that I should just do things the Mac way. I reject that piece of advice, even though I have come to understand it. I don't agree that there's just One True Mac Way of doing things. There's the way that people using a computer are comfortable with doing things -- and that's a subjective determination made by each individual. As Windows users consider what their costs might be in getting up to speed on the Mac, though, I would recommend this: Don't sweat the small stuff. As with Windows, there are solutions to esoteric Mac problems. Chances are, even if your favorite program doesn't exist for the Mac, something similar does. There are resources out there that will help you. There's a ton of free software. There's a ton of very low-cost software. In fact, there's plenty of Mac software out there -- much of it of surprisingly good quality. The release of OS X transformed the Mac marketplace. It's a vibrant, growing community. There's an excitement around Mac products, software, and hardware that you just don't feel in the Windows world any longer. I'd forgotten what that felt like. Get involved with the cost analysis I'm interested in what both Windows and Mac people have to say about comparing the value of these two types of computers. There are a lot of ways to look at this. I just want to ask the people who heavily disagree with me to do these two things: 1) Read what I've written carefully, and 2) do your own homework. Don't make assumptions about pricing without doing a tech spec comparison of directly comparable Apple and PC equipment.


DES MOINES, Iowa  - Democrat Barack Obama surged to a four-point lead over John Edwards in Iowa, with Hillary Clinton fading to third just hours before the first presidential nominating contest, according to a Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll released on Thursday.


A middle school teacher trying to buy pot was arrested after she sent text messages to state trooper instead of a dealer, police said.


Blog: The gigantic new Airbus A380 could carry up to 1,000 souls.


Mexican President-Elect To Press U.S. Reforms

MEXICO CITY, Sept. 7 -- Mexican President-elect Felipe CalderÃÂ³n said Thursday that he is committed to winning broad immigration reform in the U.S. Congress before President Bush leaves office in January 2009.


Older People Turn to Internet to Find Love

Sensuous, intellectual woman, 5'3, adventurous, pretty and open, seeks a life partner who is sexy, highly intelligent and cheerful. How old is this woman? In her early 60s. That's the profile Mary Bellis Waller, now 64, posted on two Internet dating sites during her search for a companion. Waller was a pioneer of online dating among people her age, and thousands of others age 60 and older are also turning to the Internet to find romance.


NBA indefinitely suspends four players following brawl

(New York-AP) Nov. 20, 2004 - The NBA has indefinitely suspended four players for taking part in one of the ugliest brawls in the sport's history.


Jay Bakker says one TV show enough for now

The latest member of the Bakker clan to  have a television show says it's a one-off miniseries and that  he has no interest in following in the footsteps of his  televangelist parents, Jim and Tammy Faye.


Palma di Maiorca, 20:25 - BASKET, EUROPEI: LITUANIA-REP. CECA 95-75

Nell'incontro valido per il gruppo C degli Europei di basket la Lituania ha battuto la Repubblica Ce...


First lady takes center stage in Argentina race

Argentina's first lady is the overwhelming favorite to win October's presidential election, but a series of corruption scandals and an energy crisis dogging President Nestor Kirchner could affect her campaign.


Hopes for Eid Solution to Afghan Hostage Crisis

Three U.N. workers held by militants in  Afghanistan were in their third week of captivity on Friday  after calls from both sides for the crisis to be resolved ahead  of this weekend's Muslim festival of Eid al-Fitr.


The US election race shifts focus to two southern states, after important wins for Hillary Clinton and John McCain.


Top generals from North and South Korea have held the first day of talks focusing on a disputed sea border.


"The Da Vinci Code" will be released in movie theaters across India on Friday &#151; one week late &#151; after the censor board and its distributor reached an agreement to display statements saying the film is fiction.


OPEC ministers say may hold off on more oil cuts

OPEC appeared willing on Wednesday to pull back from more oil output cuts, responding to consumer nation calls to hold off until winter has passed to guard against price spikes that would hurt the world economy.


Roddick Storms Into Paris Masters Third Round

Top seed Andy Roddick demolished Armenia's Sargis Sargsian 6-2, 6-2 to ease into the Paris Masters third round Wednesday. The American world number two, heading the


Old Hollywood, New Stars Mix at Festival

Today's movie superstars met up with the old guard on one soggy red carpet Saturday night for the gala awards presentation at the 16th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival.


U.S. Beats Australia to Claim Softball Gold

The United States won the gold medal in  softball Monday, beating Australia 5-1 on two home runs from  Crystl Bustos and masterful pitching from Lisa Fernandez.


The mysterious shooting deaths of two sentries at a Serbian army barracks has led to accusations that Gen.


Genova, 19:58 - CALCIO, SAMPDORIA: AUMENTATA A DUE ANNI SQUALIFICA FLACHI

Francesco Flachi ha visto la sua squalifica per doping aumentata a due anni. La Commissione d'appell...


A Marriage of Convenience for Ford and GM?

Slow sales and slashed workforces have reportedly prompted executives from the two ailing auto giants to talk about an alliance - or even a merger


Starvation and cannibalism were part of life for a population of Neanderthals living 43,000 years ago.


President George W Bush delivered an unapologetic defence of his decision to invade Iraq, telling the United Nations yesterday that it "helped to deliver the Iraqi people from an outlaw dictator".


Venezuela's opposition-aligned RCTV has started cable broadcasts  after losing its terrestrial licence.


Sanofi tops forecasts but Acomplia delay weighs

Sanofi-Aventis  posted higher than expected fourth-quarter profits on Tuesday and predicted more growth for 2007, but a further delay in its key new anti-obesity drug Acomplia hit the shares.


Hicks Muse pays $194 million for ConAgra unit

DALLAS ConAgra Foods will get 194 (M) million dollars for selling its minority interest in Swift Foods to Dallas-based Hicks, Muse, Tate and Furst.


Cagliari, 18:01 - CALCIO, CAGLIARI; GIAMPAOLO: UNA VITTORIA MERITATA

"Abbiamo giocato una partita di grande intensità, subendo il fallo da rigore in una delle poc...


Core blimey Apple has announced that its iMac range now exclusively uses the Intel Core 2 Duo processor and itâs celebrating the happy occasion by adding a 24in widescreen iMac to the existing 17 and 20in models.â¦


HSN to pay $875,000 penalty related to recall

Cable network HSN agreed to pay $875,000 to settle charges that it failed to report in a timely fashion serious injuries from pressure cookers sold on its shopping channel, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said on Thursday.


Chaka Khan's son released on bail following murder investigation. Plus other entertainment news in brief.


The Internet is changing the way consumers complain about companies, products, and services. Instead of grumbling to a neighbor or filing a complaint with the company, a regulator, or the Better Business Bureau, more and more consumers are taking their beefs online, either contributing to gripe sites or setting up their own. There's even a website called Webgripesites.com that catalogs ...


@helcbk: Study: Fish may really be brain food

A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fish such as salmon and sardines and in fish-oil capsules, can help keep Alzheimer's disease at bay, a new Canadian study suggests.


Pricetag put to supermodel Klum's legs: 1.62 mln euros

German-born supermodel Heidi Klum's legs have been valued at 1.1 million pounds (1.62 million euros, 1.96 million dollars) by a London auction house that specialises in putting estimates to jewelry.


The HP-iest job on Earth HP has appointed a long-time Disney executive, Michael Mendenhall, as its new marketing boss.â¦


Mosque ultimatum: Get out or be wiped out

Iraq's Defense Minister Tuesday issued an ultimatum to followers of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr holding the Imam Ali Mosque -- get out or be wiped out.


Pentagon Says Munitions Destroyed at Iraqi Complex

A US Army major said on Friday his unit destroyed up to 250 tons of munitions at the Iraqi site where high explosives formerly monitored by UN inspectors went missing, but


In an abrupt completion to a merger that was delayed for months, Anthem Inc. completed its $20.8 billion purchase of WellPoint Health Networks on Tuesday and said the combined company is "off and running.