There will be a new range of Apple laptops released on the 14th of October says sources from cnet and apple insider. It will of course be very interesting to see what they will look like or how much they will alter in design.

Apple is renowned for it’s amazing, sleek and eye catching designs, which is what really separates Apple computers from other dell or Microsoft products. Being very interested in design I want to see a total overhaul of the Macbook, its current design is really cheap and old by Apple’s standards these days and the keypad clearly represents the buttons you would find on a calculator. Its like buying a white calculator for an over expensive price, there was a reason they never made calculators in white because they knew they were going to get dirty.


I’m going to take a minute or two to reach my inner Zen and become the Apple designer/lead designer who probably landed this task in his hands. *Minute silence* POW I’m now in the mind of an Apple designer. Here follows my overhaul for the new laptop range.

Diary entry sometime

I woke this morning to ritzy jazz playing off my iPhone alarm. It was a beautiful morning, because it was a Monday. I rolled out of bed and sat on the edge just to gather my thoughts, I slowly rubbed my apple logo tattoo that I drunkly thought was a good idea after a bottle of vodka at the staff party. But that was fine; I had a quick shower and gracefully got a coffee as I headed into work for the day ahead.

I work at Apple, everyone knows by the Apple shirt and cap I wear to work everyday. But something interesting happened today! A new project on my desk.

I was to head a brilliant team to recreate the Apple laptop range. I headed for the storeroom and picked both a Macbook, Macbook Pro 15inch and Macbook pro 17inch from the shelves. To the Lab!!

Batman Music + Spinning transition

The MacBook. 

I pulled out the Macbook, looking at its compact and small design I carefully pick it off the desk and slammed it in the trash. There was nothing I could do, it was a goner.

I then reached for the Macbook Pro 15". I was quick to admire its sleek design and great looks. I went straight for the chisel and in one fatal swoop removed the PRO for the Macbook Pro under the screen. Hmm there stood the new Macbook beautiful in everyway. But something was not right! I was missing something! Without second thought I went for the power saw slicing off 2 inches from the new Macbook design. I have succeeded!

Design notes

The new Macbook still a great compact notebook with a remising Apple design. As fast as the old Macbook Pro and you can choose from a titanium colour of silver or black.

Macbook Pro

I reached for the Macbook Pro 17" it was great beautiful but we had too move on. Be bold I thought. I went straight to the store room again. Rushing back with yet another Macbook Pro 15inch and whilst in-route I used my teeth and "guns" to rip off the screen from its base (much like the action of removing a piece of paper from a book). As I returned I promptly removed the 17" screen and replaced it with the 15". 


In all its glory there stood the new 15inch Macbook Pro. Hmm I asked myself WWSD (What Would Steve Do). I continued work! I grabbed the automatic sander; it was time to remove some of those old styled edges. After a cloud of smoke and metal sparks I stood back and looked at the design.

Design notes

The new Macbook Pro15" as fast as the old 17" with the amount same amount of ports and a smoother design.

Macbook Pro17"

I still needed to finish my project and had only one task left. The mother of the MacBook Pro, a whole 17". I walked over to the electronics-engineering department. As a geeky face looked up from his pile of cables,

"Norburt I’m reassigning you"

"But I’m working on the new iPhone, it now connects to the Apple telecom network and look at this new logo that apple, yahoo, google agreed on.." he replied. I stopped him mid sentence as I slapped the device out of his hands. I slammed the Macbook Pro 17" on his desk. 

"Make it lighter and cheaper Norburt" I said as I went for the door. Just before leaving I turned back to Norburt, who behind his desk already started working on the 17".

"And Norburt. Do you reckon you can make a tablet out of that?"

He looked up, paused for a minute and replied, "I’ll look into it"

As I left work that day, I relished in the fact that it was only 1:30 and I will able to have lunch at home again today. After strutting home I had some amazing tofu and a light beer. I went for my computer and a huge smirk of satisfaction came across my face as I checked my bank account and the recent 1 million dollar bonus that had been deposited.

POW! That was one hell of a Zen trip. The NEW Laptop range from Apple will be out soon and we just can’t wait.

The characters in this story are fictitious and any resemblance to persons or companies living or dead is purely coincidental. This is entirely my opinions and doesn’t represent any person, body or company other than myself. I own a Macbook Pro 15"

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The Nano was carved out to be Bengal's vehicle back to economic proficiency and industialisation...after 30 years of being treated as a pariah (self brought about,mind you) the Sigur factory was to be the shining beacon which would have called out to the world on Bengal's behalf. A project of international magnitude, it had the calibre of transforming landscape of Bengal along with it's perception in the mind of the world. The project had caught the world's imagination and all eyes were for once fixed on Bengal...and it's doom has just gone on to prove beyond doubt what is wrong Bengal.

To any logical person with an objective view, Mamata;s demand of returning 400 acres of land was illogical and unwarranted. It reeked of disruptive politics and pointed to her one-point agenda of dismantling the project. And to everyone's dismay she went on like a broken record in the face of all logical considerations...for to her creating an electoral vote base in rural Bengal is of far more importance than economic growth, industrialization and prosperity...of course this mentality is the same which the Communists breeded once (some of them are still breeding it). Mamata has just taken a tried and tested albeit destructive and illegal mantra and implemented it. So along with supporters who would not have even known the reason for their squatting, she went ahead and breaking all norms of civil liberty and rule of law gheraod the Tata Motors factory, beat up the workers of the plant and cut off a national highway thereby destroying public property...The government remained inactive because it did not want to force the squatters away...use of force would have given Mamata a new plank to beat about and of course it would have allowed the so called "intelligentsia" of Kolkata to voice their ohh-so-sympathetic concerns. The so-called bloodbath in Nandigram shocked and pained the civil society so much that about 50,000 people converged on College Square to express outrage and convey their solidarity towards the victims...yet today on the death of all hopes for Bengal no one is even pained enough to utter a single syllable of concern or outrage...and the great irony is that if someone goes and asks one of these self proclaimed intellectual minds of the city about their glaring commentless exercises on the topic they would retort back in the blink of an eyelid that they had been muted and aghast by Mamata's actions...yes, that is how the people here are. They have an excuse for everything and they have a conspiracy theory breeding out of every nook and corner...as Mamata has put forth one recently about how Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and Ratan Tata are cohorts and that Tata is joining Left...living in a fool's paradise, I say.

However, one needs to understand that inspite of all blame being put on Mamata for this tragedy, one also needs to know very clearly that had the political spectrum been diametrically opposite (with the Left being the opposition), the fate of the project would not have been any different...u c, they are all birds of the same feather flocking together albeit facing each other.

In the wake of the Tata's withdrawal there have been a lot of comments in the print and electronic media from various personalities that history will not forgive Mamata (some have called it the "biggest blunder-2" with the 1st one being when the Left did not allow Jyoti Basu to become PM)...others have said that she has sounded the death knell for Bengal's aspirations and it will come back to haunt her and blah blah blah...but to very frank, the history of this part of the world will axtually hail her as a true champion of labour rights,a new conspiracy theory will be concocted and all the blame will be shifted to it thereby absolving the guilty of their sins...sad you say,maybe...but that's the truth of Bengal and its "intellectual" people.

Today Buddhadeb Bhattacharya may put up a brave front by saying that he has lost a battle, not the war but rest assured Mr. CM, you will lose the war too because you are fighting not with a set of people nor with a certain ideology.....you are fighting with a deep rooted mindset where self brought deprivation is glorified, where being inefficient,lazy and corrupt are human rights and where "the mind is free (of all logic) and the head is held high (in shame)". Mr. Nirupam Sen does not want to live in Bengal...welcome to the reality Mr. Sen, actually you cannot live in Bengal (if you want to live i.e.)...yes you can exist here as many a teeming millions are doing but if you want to live a life, dream of a better and successful career, then Bengal has sadly no place for you.

I may come across as a pessimist personified but I'm not...this is a bare truth of my part of the world and I have no more qualms in accepting it,a bitter pill to swallow it is yet I know that this pill is far more sweeter than that taste of broken dreams and unfulfilled hopes which I would get if I kept on banking on a better Bengal someday.

Rest in peace dear Bengal!!!

It was a perfect setup for her- cheap publicity, an emotional issue and a stick to beat the Government. All means were justified. The Tata employees could be assaulted, highways could be blocked for days, she could scream on TV all day long, even go for dramatic fast (even though she always comes out fatter after every fast, but that’s another story).

She was to milk the issue till election. She and her honchos were backslapping themselves in glee in the fond hope of garnering at least 20 Lok Sabha seats. The whole game was political. Never mind the jobs being created, businesses being generated. Never mind the fact that 80% of the farmers had willingly given up their land.

But she made one error. She underestimated Ratan Tata. Even when he announced that he will leave Singur for good, she said it is a bluff, that he had invested too much to withdraw.

And when he did leave, she, figuratively speaking, did not have a fig leaf to cover herself. She comically announced that it is a conspiracy (can you believe it?) of the Government and Tata to malign her. I wish she had the guts to go to Singur and tell all those farmers about her conspiracy theory. They would have burnt her instead of her effigy.

But the comedy of seeing her squirming is a tragedy of untold proportion for Bengal and its people. The magnitude of her stupid action has undoubtedly dawned on her. She is now afraid to show her face in public, her acid tongue is silent, her omnipresent TV acts have stopped and her chamchas are trying to salvage the situation.

And it gets better. Now Tata is gone, employment is gone, business is gone….and land is gone too. For, those poor farmers are not going to get back their lands as per the prevailing law. Even if by some miracle they get back their land, it is no longer cultivable as tonnes of concrete have been poured into it.

Mamta has some explaining to do. She must explain to the farmers exactly what benefit she has accrued for them. She must then explain to the people of Bengal how she plans to generate jobs and businesses. She must explain to the investors why they should invest in Bengal.

“Aami krishi aar shilpo chai….” Good. Explain to us how you will do it.

If you plan to celebrate December 28^th as Ratan Tata' s birthday, then there stands one more reason to do so – the first birthday of Nano. Yes! Call it coincidence or history repeating itself, the world's least expensive car 'Nano' is likely to be rolled out around the time Ratan Tata celebrates his 71st birthday on December 28, just as the 'Indica' was launched a decade ago when he turned 61.

According to informed sources, Tata Motors is working on a plan to launch the 'People's Car', as Tata fondly refers to, to coincide with his birthday with about 10,000 units being readied to be rolled out from the company's facilities in Pune and Pantnagar.

Nano – The way ain't smooth

The passion and fervor with which Ratan Tata followed his 'Nano' dream do showed he is man of steel. Various controversory came in the way right from international suspicion on the fidelity of model and inland Singur Controversory. A brief account of the Singur Disaster goes here:

Singur Controversory

Singur gained international media attention since Tata Motors started constructing a factory to manufacture their $2,500 car, the Tata Nano at Singur. The small car was scheduled to roll out of the factory by 2008. The choice of Singur was made by the company among six sites offered by the state government. The project

faced massive opposition from 2,000 of the 12,000 displaced farmers. The unwilling farmers were given political support by West Bengal's firebrand opposition leader Miss Mamata Bannerjee with an eye to the upcoming Lok Sabha (Parliamentary) elections. Miss Bannerjee's "Save Farmland" movement was supported by celebrity anti development activists like Medha Patkar, Anuradha Talwar and Arundhuti Roy. Miss Bannerjee's movement against industrialization of Singur was also supported by several Kolkata based intellectuals like Aparna Sen, Kaushik Sen, Shaonli Mitra and Suvaprasanna. Ultra left activists also shared the platform with Miss Bannerjee's Trinamool Party. The Tatas finally decided to move out of Singur on 3rd October, 2008. Mr Ratan Tata blamed violence by Miss Mamata Bannerjee and her supporters for the pullout decision. The pullout decision meant, loss of huge investment for the state of West Bengal. On 7th October 2008, the Tatas announced that they would be setting up the Tata Nano plant in Sanand, Gujarat.

History Repeating itself:

It may be recalled that the 'Indica' was also launched on December 30, 1998, two days after Tata celebrated his 61st birthday.

At that time Tata had to overcome doubters, who suspected the company's ability to make cars, considering it was only into commercial vehicle manufacturing

Appendix:

Launch of Nano at Geneva

Nano – A brief Introduction

The Nano will be launched in India later in 2008. The car will be available in both standard and deluxe versions. Both versions will offer a wide range of body colours, and other accessories so that the car can be customised to an individual's preferences.

Stylish, comfortable

- Designed with a family in mind, the Nano has a roomy passenger compartment with generous leg space and head room.

- Can comfortably seat four persons. Four doors with high seating position make ingress and egress easy.

- With a length of 3.1 metres, width of 1.5 metres and height of 1.6 metres, with adequate ground clearance, it can effortlessly manoeuvre on busy roads in cities as well as in rural areas.

- Its mono-volume design, with wheels at the corners and the powertrain at the rear, enables it to uniquely combine both space and manoeuvrability, which will set a new benchmark among small cars.

Fuel-efficient engine

- The Nano has a rear-wheel drive, all-aluminium, two-cylinder, 623 cc, 33 PS, multi point fuel injection petrol engine. This is the first time that a two-cylinder gasoline engine is being used in a car with single balancer shaft.

- The lean design strategy has helped minimise weight, which helps maximise performance per unit of energy consumed and delivers high fuel efficiency.

- Performance is controlled by a specially designed electronic engine management system.

Meets all safety requirements

- The Nano's safety performance exceeds current regulatory requirements. With an all sheet-metal body, it has a strong passenger compartment, with safety features such as crumple zones, intrusion-resistant doors, seat belts, strong seats and anchorages, and the rear tailgate glass bonded to the body.

- Tubeless tyres further enhance safety.

Environment-friendly

- The Nano's tailpipe emission performance exceeds regulatory requirements. In terms of overall pollutants, it has a lower pollution level than two-wheelers being manufactured in India today.

- The high fuel efficiency also ensures that the car has low carbon dioxide emissions, thereby providing the twin benefits of an affordable transportation solution with a low carbon footprint

These nanos are availible in a variety of colors! 9 to be exact. They also have an accelarometer inside them that can rotate the screen depending on how you hold your iPod Nano. Plus all of the iPods except the Shuffles support CJK fonts. The only thing I wish they would change about the iPod is the ability to use them with whatever media hub I want. Whether it be Danpod, Windows Media Player, Napster, or iTunes. I like the ability to stretch out and gain some leg room! Well now that the price is extremely reasonable I hope this article might convince some of you all to buy one! If you've played with one or own one drop a post! I am interested in the overall design and how the screen looks.

It all began as an animation obsession a couple of years back, but I just didn't have the time to finish it. There is an opening sequence that I was always very pleased with. See it: Milkman. Anyway, it should be a fun, easy going thing to write and een if I don't win it will just be an exprience to remember! It might be set in London, with a very clichéd, evil/cackling dude.

Milkman must stop the menacing Postman and his boss, Businessman from taking over the city; Policeman, Fireman and Pizzaman are under threat.

Should be interesting. :)

PS: In the cover art, Blink is just my YWS name! A lot of people have cover art fever at the moment.

Not a great writing day yesterday. I had a bad headache, and I was trying to hustle work to make up for the lost gigs. Never fun, especially when you’re not in the mood for it.

Thanks, Avid Writer, for your kind words of encouragement. Sometimes people who don’t do what we do and don’t get it just work my last nerve.

PJ, you can prep as much for Nano as you want, as long as you don’t start writing the actual book until November 1. Outlines, character studies, scene work, snippets of dialogue, whatever you want. I usually have a pretty good idea of my characters and then do a scene-by-scene outline before I start. Last year, during the Muse Online Conference, I developed two novels in two different world-building workshops, and one pulled more strongly than the other, so that’s the one I went with for Nano, and boy, it just flew. I had to stop myself from writing every day because I could have easily spent 12-14 hours just on the book. It was a great feeling, but there were other things that had to be dealt with throughout the month, so I had to make myself stop at specific points each day, and sometimes it was from sheer physical exhaustion.

I enjoyed the photo shoot. I took one set of pictures at the local nature center and some additional photos at the beach and town park. Of course, the photo I took on the spur of the moment will most likely be the cover for “The Possession of Nattie Filmore” – provided I can figure out how to layer text over the photo, since I don’t have Photoshop. Does anyone know if I can make the photo the “background” of the page and then add the text over it? Techno-phobes like me want to know!

I worked on the ebook, which I really need to finish and get up this weekend, before the conference starts.

I pitched for a job, but they went with someone else. At least they had the courtesy to let me know!

I put together the email for my N3s, which goes out as soon as I post this.

I’m getting together with Costume Imp this afternoon, for a quick few hours of fun before he heads back out on tour. That will be fun. Always good to scatter in some playtime with the serious worktime.

I had a good morning’s session on The Big Project. I was afraid I’d lose my rhythm with it, but I haven’t.

Thought a lot about ANGEL HUNT, and am doing my research for the western.

You won’t believe this: Elsa figured out how to work the pedal trashcan. I got one with a foot pedal because she likes to hunt through the garbage for things like pork bones and bring them into the bed. So, for the past few years, she’s been stymied. Last night, I heard rummaging in the kitchen. She had both of her back feet on the pedal, the top was up, and she leaned over the can . . .rummaging for pork bones, since we had pork chops last night. I had to weigh down the lid with a heavy cooking pot!

Back to the page for a couple more hours before I leave for the city.

Devon

The Big Project – 12,880 words out of est. 75,000

12 / 75 (16.0%)

dengan mikroskop pemindai saluran,para ilmuwan memerangkap sebuah molekul klorofil-a dan menyuntikan elektro tunggal untuk mengubah bentuk klorofil.Hasilnya memiliki implikasi langsung untuk penelitian ilmiah dasar karena mengubah bentuk molekuler seringkali juga mengubah fungsi biologis.

What is Nanowrimo you ask? The word Nanowrimo stands for National Novel Writing Month, which begins November 1^st and ends November 30^th. The idea is to write a 50,000 word novel in thirty days. Every year the number of participants expands, people from all over the world, from kids to crones gather together to create. This is their tenth year in fact. With the growing numbers of writers, the community feel is one of my favorite parts of the event. Every week the founder, Chris Baty, sends us encouraging words, there are regular nano related comics and interviews that really add to the feeling of being connected. This year proves to be even more fun with the added participant videos and many more surprises.  

50,000 words in one month? Impossible some of you say? Not, not at all.  

Here is why I say success is not impossible. You have thirty days to pen 50k right? So, if you write right around 1700 words a day, just a few pages, you can have you 50k. You miss a day, than just spread your words out through the remaining days. And remember don’t stop at 1700 just because your word count is met. Once the words flow let them come uninhibited. The trick is to write every day, no editing, no revising of any kind, just write. You think what you wrote is crap? Don’t change it, it’s okay. Editing comes next month. 

I started Nanowrimo in 2005, and I admit I didn’t do well my first year. I learned about it on Oct 5^th and before that had only been dabbling with super hero fanfic, hadn’t really see writing as something I could do on a serious basis. Self doubt is quite the speed bump. In the end I gave myself little time to prepare, so by mid November lost track of my story plot and my interest. Outside of that I did learn an important lesson:

Do your research and outline before November. This will give you a solid foundation as well as an edge of confidence. You don’t want to break your flow figuring out what you want to do next. It’s okay if you veer away from the outline as your muse and character takes you, an outline should never feel like chains, more like a stepladder. Since I started doing my pre November preparations, especially my flexible outlines, my projects for the next two years went far more smoothly, as well as the rest of my writing projects the rest of the year. 

Another useful thing to remember while doing Nanowrimo is, before you begin, lock up that internal editor of yours. I didn’t say turn it off or stick it in a drawer, I meant lock it up tight and do not take it out until December 1^st, or until the last of the 50k is written. Nothing will slow you down more then editing while you work. This may be the hardest lesson for some of you, but you will be amazed how much better your words will flow when you simply open up the dam and let them through. 

1700 words a day. That’s all it takes. If you want to write, if you are passionate about it, even if it’s still wish in the back of your mind, this is the year to take the plunge. Ask yourself this: Is taking the time for yourself every day to write those 1700 words to much to ask from you family and friends? Don’t you deserve a few hours each day to feed the creative you? You life partner can cook the meals for a couple weeks. The kids can help out more around the house. Let those who love you support your craft. You may be surprised how glad they are to do this for you, to see you blossom as a writer. 

If you are struggling to start each day, maybe end your writing session by finishing one chapter and beginning a new chapter so you have some words to work off of the next day, that is if you are struggling with the blank page each day. Some days you may write more, others less, but if you give yourself that writing time each day. Not only will it get the work done, but it may teach you a great habit to get into even after Nanowrimo is over. Many successful authors have been heard to say that you must write everyday, and doing Nanowrimo helps teach you the way to do that. 

So, you ask, what do you win? Okay, if you reach the 50k you don’t win a prize, at least not something you can hang on your wall or spend on dinner, but you do gain a great deal from this experience. Every year I gain more and more Nanowrimo friends, many whom I remain friends with after the event as we support each others writing thoughout the next year. Each time I do Nanowrimo, I learn a new trick or a few on what works to get my creativity going and what doesn’t.  

And you may find yourself with a story that with a bit more writing and revisions might just win you that illusive book contract one day. Next year, hopefully in fall, my 2006 Nanowrimo project, Worlds Collide, will be available to the public through PD Publishing. 2006. That means just a year after my dismal Nanowrimo failure, I created something that a publisher liked enough to contract. All it took was the preparation and to love myself enough to give myself time to focus on my own creativity. So even if you don’t win your first year, the experience of being part of Nanowrimo is worth the time. 

I believe anyone can be a Nanowrimo winner, you just have to dedicate yourself to let go this chains of doubt and jump in. Do it. The story waits there in your mind, wishing only to be brought to life. A few hours a day. Prepare your research before hand, do that outline remembering that it will likely change as you allow your story to flow naturally, and lock up that internal editor. If you remember these things, and in the end trust your own process, you can do it. See you at Nanowrimo!

Handheld gaming console
Now Apple's an established mobile phone brand, why not go the whole hog by taking the games-and-mobile functionality of the iPhone into the world of gaming proper with a dedicated Apple branded console, à la DS Lite or PSP with an N-Gage type device that people might actually buy?

While the iPhone SDK has opened up the possibility for developers to bring games to the Apple mobile, the offerings released for the iPhone to date haven't been the stuff of gamers' dreams. A dedicated device could persuade the gaming big boys to get on board and bring their users with them.

What better way to woo the big-spending gamer market than with a dedicated handheld gaming device?

Tablet
Rumors of the Apple tablet have been doing the rounds for some years, fanned by the occasional patent filing from Cupertino which seems to suggest such a device is on the way.

Surely it wouldn't be too much of a leap for Apple to consider bringing this rumor to reality. When Apple got into the touch screen game with the iPhone, it introduced a whole host of nice touch screen touches - the ability to zoom in on an image by moving your fingers to either corner of the screen, for example - making a full screen tablet is an appealing prospect for Mac users.

Apple's also proved that thin is in with the Mac Book Air - and dieting skills could rather cleverly be brought in to turn tablets into the lightweight devices users always hoped they'd be.

iPhone nano
The iPhone earned its cachet with geeks and the average Joe alike by following the Apple 'reassuringly expensive' model - it speaks volumes about the device that a developer created an application intended purely to show off the wealth of the iPhone user that downloaded it.

While the strategy has worked a treat so far - sales of the iPhone are reckoned to be in the five million ballpark - it's only a tiny fraction of the potential mobile market out there for Apple's picking.

Good sense would dictate that the iPhone's future development will follow the historical path of the iPod's. After the first geek-love inducing, big-storage packing model, Apple debuted the nano, a smaller, less flashy item for those not weighed down by a massive wallet.

An iPhone nano might even go down better as consumers trim back their electronics spending.

The device called for here is a smaller, less feature-heavy device, with less storage and a daintier screen size. Admittedly, that would almost necessitate a removal of the touchscreen element that makes the iPhone so appealing to its users, but by the time such a device would be brought to market, the iPhone brand should be strong enough to sweep up would-be buyers into the type of frenzy that could make them forget that nagging feeling of touchscreen jealousy.

Netbook
Who doesn't love a good netbook at the moment? HP, Lenovo, LG, Samsung - the list of vendors scrambling onto the bandwagon goes on.

Apple, however, has resisted so far - but for how much longer? With many of the netbooks on the market at the moment bearing a distinct resemblance to the white plastic of Apple's traditional design, it would seem an obvious step for Apple to take on its rivals at their own game.

Apple, after all, has indicated it's not scared of the portable PC - its Mac Minis have been part of its hardware line-up for years and the One Laptop Per Child project could have had its XO machines running on Mac OS X if it had opted to take the closed source route.

With the company reporting its best ever quarter for Mac sales, it's time for the company to take on the low-cost, ultra portable market or remain a hardware also-ran.

Mac OS X for any machine
The last time Apple thought about opening up its software, it came up with Boot Camp - a method of running Windows on a Mac, a move that prompted wags to praise a combination that brought together the affordability of Mac hardware with the reliability of Windows software.

Surely what Joe Public is craving is the opposite combo: Mac software without the associated ties of a Cupertino branded machine. Yet, Apple hardware and software remain as inseparable as Doctor Who and the Tardis.

A platform that's locked down is a strategy that's worked for Apple so far in brand building, but it's one that's confined the company to a niche. A fat and profitable niche but a niche nonetheless - by opening up the Mac OS X platform to other manufacturers, there's a huge growth bump to be had.

SINGER:ANITA SHARNA(GUJJU SHAKIRA) AND CHIRAG THAKKAR

LYRICS:SHAILESH-UTPAL

===================================================================1)JAB SE TERE NAINA:

TATA TERI NANO,MPDIJEE LAYE GUJARAT ME..
RAJKOT DEEWANA HUVA,SINGUR BEGANA HUVA
SANAND SUHANA LAGERE,NANO HI DIL KO BHAYE RE.HO..

2)PIYA RE-PIYA RE:

NANO NE THARI KAISA JADU KIYA RE,
TATA NE,MODI NE
GUJARAT KA SIR UNCHA KIYA RE

3)NAYAN NE BANDH RAKHI NE(GUJARATI):

NANO NE BANDH KARAVI NE "MAMTA" E BAWAL ROPYA CHHE
LAVI GUJARAT MA NANO,MODI E SAHU NE PONKHYA CHHE

4)LAILA ME LAILA(QURBANI):

NANO HI NANO,SUB KOI LELO
SAB KI DULARI,HAMARI HAI NANO
MODIJEE LAYE,TATA BANAYE
BHARAT ME CHHAYE,SAB KO LUBHAYE

5)SUPDU SAVA LAKH NU(GUJARATI):
NANO SAVA LAKH NI VAPRO RE VAPRO
MODIJEE CHEE MANDAVIYA NE TATA KERA JANAIYA NANO RE VAPRO.

BOLO RATANJEE TAMARA "MAMTABEN" CHEE KEVA
HAFE-OKE-NE-AFRE -SAVARE AVA NE AVA

6)HIMMATWALA:
NANO KA SAPNA-NANO ME SAJANA
SAJNA PE DIL AA GAYA KE NANO LE KE AA SAJANA

7)MEHNDI TE WAVI(GUJARATI)

Nano Te Vavi Singur MA Ne Eno Rang Gayo Gujarat Re,
Nano Rang Lagyo!

8)KAKA BAPA NA PORIYA(GUJARATI-KONDALIO):

AME TATA BAPA(JAMSHEDJEE) NA PORIYA NANO DEVA RE JAIYE
AME MODI KERA SADE NANO DEVA RE JAIYE
AME SANAND JAIYE,AME RAJKOT JAIYE
SINGUR CHHODI DAIYE,GUJARAT JODI RE DAIYE

9)YE LADKA HAYE ALLAH:
YE TATA HAYE ALLA NANO KA DEEWANA
MAMTA KO CHHOD KE,SINGUR KARDIYA BEGANA

KE DHIRE DHIRE DIL GUJARAT PE AATA HAI
MODI KE HATHO HI SARTAJ HOTA HAI

10)SANEDO:
SANEDO SANEDO MODIJEE NO SANEDO
SANEDO SANEDO RATAN TATA NO SANEDO
NANO NU NATH CHEE GUJARAT NO AA SANEDO
SAMJEE SHAKAY TO MAMTA SAMBHLO AA SANEDO

HEY RATNJEE A SINGUR NE KIDHU BYE BYE
NE MODIJEE E KIDHU WELCOME BHAI BHAI
MAMTA NI MAYA MONGHI PADI
NE MODIJEE E JALYO HATH LAL SANEDO... SANEDO SANEDO

HEY NANO NA 30% PARTS MA
RAJKOT NO CHHE MOTO HATH
SANAND MA SHANGAR SAJEE
INDIA NI RANI BANI JAY LAL SANEDO

11)MUMBAI THI GADI AAV RE(GUJARATI)

SINGUR THI NANO LAVE RE HO RATAN TATA
GUJARAT MA PRAGATI LAVE RE HO MODI RAJA

E NANO TO SANAND SAHER MA SHOBHTI RE HO MODI RAJA
E NANO TO RAJKOT NI RANI CHHE HO MODI RAJA
MAMTA NE DHAKKO MARYO RE HO RATAN TATA
                                           LYRICS BY:
                                     SHAILESH-UTPAL(GUJARATI SHAKIRA MAKER)

On an unrelated note, here is a tip for anyone who can't figure out why your iPod is possessed and playing music all by itself when you're not around and when the headphones aren't plugged in, etc.  This had been happening to mine for a couple of months, draining the battery overnight, and generally proving to be a real pain.  I finally got around to Googling the problem last week and I wanted to post the answer I found in case anyone else has the same issue.

Somehow the alarm function got turned on, so every night the iPod just started playing music at midnight.

This is easy to fix:

1) Go To EXTRAS
2) Go To CLOCK
3) Select Your Time Zone, which should be highlighted by default
4) Go to ALARM CLOCK
5) Turn the alarm OFF if you're not using it

That should do the trick for you if you're having the same problem I was.  Good luck!

Alla fine il nano mi ha dato una sberla.

Che incubo: Brunetta, 3U e il nano. Ma quale dei tre è l'incubo peggiore?

Per cena ho mangiato pleskavica.

Thats the car Mamata Banerjee uses when she wants megalomaniac industrialists outta her turf!

I look at this differently also. It is no doubt great failure for West Bengal; it is loss for Maharashtra also. Tatas have their automobile business in Pune, Maharashtra and prevailing conditions like

1. power shortage

2. mafia approach of MNS towards businesses in Maharashtra

3. political unwillingness to rise above personal gains etc.

must have forced them not look at Maharashtra as viable option for any new venture. On the other hand Gujarat is offering all that is needed for industry and people to thrive and live.

Like any electronic devices, sometimes something inside might go wrong and you find that your iPod is not responding to any key press. Fret not, this is what you can try to do before you call your Apple hotline or your favorite retailer.

Reseting your Apple iPod do not remove any of your songs. It MIGHT remove some of your customized settings. Restoring however will set your Apple iPod to factory default.

Apple iPod Nano/ Video / Classic

 Apple iPod Nano (1st Generation)

Apple iPod Nano (2nd Generation)

Apple iPod Nano (3rd Generation)

Apple iPod Nano (4th Generation)

 Apple iPod Video (5th Generation)

 Apple iPod Classic

STEPS:

• Toggle the Hold switch on and off. (Slide it to Hold, then turn it off again.)
• Press and hold the Menu and Select (Centre) buttons until the Apple logo appears, about 6 to 10 seconds. You may need to repeat this step.

Tip: If you are having difficulty resetting your iPod, set it on a flat surface. Make sure the finger pressing the Select button is not touching any part of the click wheel. Also make sure that you are pressing the Menu button toward the outside of the click wheel, and not near the center.

If the above steps did not work, try connecting iPod to a power adapter and plug the power adapter into an electrical outlet, or connect iPod to your computer. Make sure the computer is turned on and isn't set to go to sleep.

Apple iPod Shuffle

Apple iPod Shuffle (1st Generation)

 Apple iPod Shuffle (2nd Generation)

To reset iPod shuffle:

• Disconnect iPod shuffle from the computer (if connected).
• Move the switch on the back of iPod shuffle to the off position. 

Tip: When iPod shuffle is off, the green stripe by the switch is not visible. (See below illustration)

• Wait 5 seconds
• Move the switch on the back to the play in order or the shuffle position. The green stripe will be visible in either position
• iPod shuffle is now reset. If after resetting iPod shuffle you are going to attach it to your computer, be sure to place the switch in the off position. If you were resetting as part of some troubleshooting steps, continue with those steps now. For general troubleshooting steps see the iPod shuffle troubleshooting and service FAQ.

Apple iPod Touch / iPhone / iPhone 3G

 Apple iPod Touch (1st Generation)

 Apple iPod Touch (2nd Generation)

 Apple iPhone / Apple iPhone 3G

To turn completely off

Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button for a few seconds until the red slider appears, then slide the slider. When iPhone is off, incoming calls go straight to voicemail.

To reset

Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button and the Home button at the same time for at least ten seconds, until the Apple logo appears.

If iPhone won't turn on, or the display freezes or doesn't respond

1. Press and hold the Home button for at least six seconds, until the application you were using quits.
2. If that doesn't work, turn iPhone off and turn it on again. Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button on top of iPhone for a few seconds until a red slider appears, and then slide the slider. Then press and hold the Sleep/Wake button until the Apple logo appears.
3. If that doesn't work, reset iPhone. Press and hold the Sleep/Wake button and the Home button at the same time for at least ten seconds, until the Apple logo appears.

If iPhone continues to freeze or not respond after you reset it

1. Reset iPhone settings. From the Home screen choose Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings. All your preferences are reset, but no data or media is deleted.
2. If that doesn't work, restore the iPhone software. See document 305744 "Updating and Restoring iPhone Software."

The company had received overwhelming support from several states for relocating the plant. After examining various sites in these states and carefully evaluating offers from the respective governments, the company has concluded that the site at Sanand and the offer from the Gujarat Government is in the best interest of the project.

The integrated project, comprising the mother plant and the vendor park, will come up on an area of about 1100 acres. The plant, to begin with, will produce 250,000 cars per annum. The capacity is expandable up to 500,000 cars per annum. The project, including Tata Motors’ plant, vendor facilities and service providers, will together generate over 10,000 direct and indirect jobs.

Speaking at the announcement, Mr. Ratan N. Tata, Chairman of Tata Sons and Tata Motors, said, "The site in Gujarat, already under the possession of the state government, will help Tata Motors establish a new dedicated mother plant with the shortest possible time lag and least possible incremental project cost. This is Tata Motors’ maiden venture in Gujarat, and will broad-base the company’s manufacturing footprint. We are happy to contribute to Gujarat’s strong industrial progress by creating an auto cluster, which will have a cascading impact on the state’s economy.”

While awaiting the Sanand plant’s completion, Tata Motors will explore the possibility of manufacturing the Nano at its existing facilities at Pune and Pantnagar, and launch the car in the last quarter of this financial year.

Despite 71st being a very respectable and high figure, Apple.com's popularity can spike depending on the time of year. This is usually when Apple announce new products at one of their keynote conferences, such as MacWorld.

As you can see from this graph, Apple.com has penetrated both the top 60 and even top 50 most trafficked sites in the last six months alone:

This surge in popularity of the website is not surprising when you look at Apple's strategy for releasing their products. Unlike many other manufacturers, Apple tend to keep their products a secret and then announce them at a conference. The nature of this combined with the company's existing popularity, usually results in a frenzy of activity on the website in the days leading up to and of course on, the day of one of these conferences.

Rumour sites dedicated to Apple and its products often swarm the site in an attempt to find some hidden information or leaked documentation on the website, which has happened rarely in Apple.com's history.

Obviously when new products are finally announced and launched at these conferences, the website and its store specifically come under heavy demands from people both ordering and surveying the new product/s.

To show an example of this, let us look at Apple.com's traffic history rank for the last year:

The spike in January 2008 is down to the fact that Apple held a MacWorld conference in this month and announced the MacBook Air, one of the thinnest and lightest laptop computers on the market.

Similarly, the spike in September 2008 is also easily related to the 'Let's Rock' Apple event which took place on September 9th, where iPod products were updated and a new version of iTunes (Apple's music software) was released.

In regards to its competitors, Apple.com would most likely compare with Dell.com, as it is mainly an OEM Computer manufacturer. The graph below shows a comparison between Apple.com and Dell.com:

Despite selling Windows-based computers and remaining extremely popular and affordable for both the home, business and academic customer, Dell.com lags significantly behind Apple.com surprisingly.

Even though Dell have dominated OEM sales for computers in recent years, the company is seeing a decline in its stature. Many believe this decline has been partly to blame on Microsoft's Vista software, which many Dell customers were unhappy with at the time of launch (1).

Like most companies, the credit crunch has also had an effect on business as a lot of these manufacturers rely on bulk-orders, particularly to business and academic customers.

In terms of Apple.com and the technology used on its site, it sports a very clean interface and easy to understand menu system. Unlike many websites of its size, Apple.com tend to stay away from attention-grabbing banners and popups.

Their focus is much more on giving the visitor to their site a rich experience and high quality images are often used to convey this and also best demonstrate, their products and its features. This comes at a price however, as a whopping 75% of websites tracked on Alexa.com are faster-loading than Apple.com.

The site continues to be geared towards encouraging purchases and use of the store, especially with this high quality images and desirable tag lines.

Of the five advertising sections that make up this page, only one refers to a technical fix, that being the iPhone 2.1 Software Update. The others are used to advertise the new iPod Touch, iPhone 3G, iPod Nanos and updated iTunes 8, where Apple generates a lot of business through selling movies, music, audiobooks and TV shows.

The menu along the top continues to strongly suggest purchasing, as the Apple Store button (Store) is actually before the product details (Mac, iPod iTunes, iPhone), opposite to how someone structurally would purchase an item:

The Support button which is likely to detail people having problems with their 'amazing products' is tucked away to the right, so whilst easily accessible for those who do have problems, potential buyers and interested parties are most likely to have had their interest taken up by one of the previous options (Store, Mac, iPod + iTunes, iPhone or Downloads).

This is a screen capture of what the UK Apple store looks like currently:

This page is structured very well. In the small space above, Apple have already detailed their entire product line up and can even include special offers and accessories. Whilst many other online websites that sell items may use their store front page to detail their newest product, Apple subtly puts a small 'new' logo beside the product image - tending to focus the attention on the range rather than the new product which may not interest everyone.

The store works pretty much like any other, you add things to your basket and complete the order via credit card. However, Apple like a few others, offer free courier postage on items over £78, which can signifcantly improve a buyer's tendency to complete a purchase.

As for a new business channel for Apple, they have been readying themselves for the mobile platforms with the launch of their iPod Touch and iPhone products. The two devices come with a built in web browser which allows significantly improved access to the Internet, compared to other phones. Suitably, the home page of these devices is set to Apple.com, so the first time the user gets a chance to play with the browser, they're already looking at Apple marketing and advertising.

The Apple store can be fully accessed with these portable devices, meaning that orders for products can be made 'on the go' - no need to wait to get home to make a purchase.

A better demonstration of this, is how the iTunes Wi-Fi store has been implemented into these devices. The user can now make a purchase on a song, movie, game, application, tv show or audiobook whilst out and about - with just a click.

This has been a huge success for Apple, despite only being several months old. It captures many audiences of different types but is particularly useful for those people who hear a song they like in a public (i.e. a cafe) and don't want to forget it, so they buy it. Or those who are perhaps waiting on a delayed flight and want some new content to watch or listen to when waiting.

Apple have demonstrated their importance of this channel by announcing a relationship with Starbucks, where iPhone users get free Wi-Fi access and can also tap into information on what songs are being played in the respective store. Apple have also filed for a patent on ordering and even paying for coffee with your wireless device.

(A mockup of what this may look like, by designer Phil Lu (2))

Furthermore, their iPhone platform is only 'legally' available on the o2 carrier, a company which has strong ties to BT's OpenZone service, which operate free Wi-Fi in the very popular branch of McDonalds restuarants.

This channel is a very new one but one that Apple will be looking to push and develop further. Who knows, maybe one day you'll be able to purchase a £1749.00 Mac Pro or £699 MacBook with just one tap of a finger?

References:
(1) - http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/04/20/dell_offers_xp_again/
(2) - http://gizmodo.com/343686/iphone-starbucks-ordering-screens-look-like-the-real-thing-precede-apple-patent

Don’t forget: Live chat tonight, 9 PM EST on the FireDrakes Weyr site. Enter the site and click on “Conference room.”

I had no idea that my post “Life Experience Enhances Writing” was up at Mystic-Lit, but it is. So hop on over and check it out.

Hey, Colby, the wordcounter I use is Zokutu Word meter. It crashes pretty often, but I can’t get anything from Writertopia to work for me, I’m too technologically impaired.

I worked on ANGEL HUNT. I did a lovely, fast-paced chunk of it and then realized I had it in the wrong chapter. I had to move it to a different chapter and put something else into the chapter in which I worked. Argh. Oh, well, better to figure it out now than when it’s at the galley stage, right? But boy, did it flow, and I hated to leave it when I wrote myself out. The final chapters are spinning in my head, both simpler and more complex than I originally envisioned. It’s a much more layered novel than it was as a serial. I’m passionate and excited about it.

I didn’t get any work done on the western, although one of the research books I’d requested via BookMooch arrived: THE FRONTIER WORLD OF DOC HOLLIDAY, which I can’t wait to read.

I did, however, write two short stories. I wanted to write more – I need to write six – but I ran out of steam after two.

I had a good morning’s work on The Big Project today. I have to remember that it’s a big project, and I can unspool some elements a little bit more slowly than, say, in the western.

I’ve definitely got one N3 for the Nano process, and someone else has approached me. This second person sounds like a good match, too, but I have some concerns, so we’re going to talk more in depth. So even if I don’t do a traditional Nano, I’ll do some mentoring. I have to say, I’ve met some really cool people this year in the area to which I plan to relocate, just by happenstance, which to me, means the Universe is taking a hand in it all. Now I just have to figure out what those opportunities are that are being offered, and take action. Because the Universe doesn’t like it when you slap away an opportunity offered, especially if it was what you asked for, or if you just sit there and dither instead of grabbing it and seeing where it leads.

Back to the page. I love these unstructured days. The writing truly is like working and strengthening muscles – the more I write, the easier it becomes to write more. Think about that when you claim you want to write but “don’t have time” or are “too tired” and then wonder why it’s so hard to get back in the groove. If you keep writing in spurts, or just when you “feel like it”, you can’t sustain a career and you’ll always be someone who write on the side rather than a full time writer. So you have to make a conscious choice if you want this to be your passionate vocation or your hobby. And, trust me, there’s nothing wrong with loving your job, especially if you’re a writer.

Devon

Angel Hunt – 107,787 words out of est. 125,000

108 / 125 (86.2%)

The Big Project – 8,964 words out of est. 75,000

8 / 75 (10.7%)

Devon’s Bookstore:

Hex Breaker by Devon Ellington. A Jain Lazarus Adventure. Hex Breaker Jain Lazarus joins the crew of a cursed film, hoping to put to rest what was stirred up before more people die and the film is lost. Tough, practical Detective Wyatt East becomes her unlikely ally and lover on an adventure fighting zombies, ceremonial magicians, the town wife-beater, the messenger of the gods, and their own pasts.
$4.00 ebook/ $6.00 on CD from Firedrakes Weyr Publishing.
Visit the site for the Jain Lazarus adventures.

5 in 10: Create 5 Short Stories in Ten Weeks by Devon Ellington. This ebooklet takes you from inspiration to writing to revision to marketing. By the end of ten weeks, you will have either 5 short stories or a good chunk of a novella complete. And it’s only 50 cents, USD. Here.

Writing Rituals: Ideas to Support Creativity by Cerridwen Iris Shea. This ebooklet contains several rituals to help you start writing, get you through writer’s block, and help send your work on its way. It’s only 39 cents USD. (Note: Cerridwen Iris Shea is one of the six names under which I publish). Here.

Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. This is a collection of short stories, poems, and other pieces by a writers’ group of which I am a member. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois. You can download it free here: