CNET editors' review
Excellent
8.5
out of 10
The good: Its snarling supercharged V8 engine makes the 2007 Ford Shelby GT500 a whirlwind on wheels.
The bad: Very little of the $40K price tag is invested in the Shelby's scruffy, plastic-trimmed cabin.
The bottom line: The 2007 Ford Shelby GT is a retro-styled rocket ship that will appeal to driving purists. If cabin comfort is more important than 500 horsepower, look elsewhere. If not, join the back of the wait list.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Con Ed: Thousands Without Power on Staten Island
Con-Ed says 3,100 customers primarily in the Livingston area of Staten Island are without power Wednesday night.
The utility said they don't know the cause of the outages which occurred around 6:30 p.m.
The utility said they don't know the cause of the outages which occurred around 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Snow Lessons Learned: JetBlue Cancels Flights, City Suspends Parking Rules
The city’s second snow storm of the season quickly turned to slush, but area airports and airlines, including Jet Blue, were left facing delays.
LaGuardia is still experiencing 90-minute delays on arriving flights.
JetBlue handed out $100 vouchers to about 100 passengers who were stuck on a runway at JFK last night.
The vouchers are part of the company's new customer "bill of rights" that was put in place after the Valentine's Day storm when hundreds of JetBlue passengers were stuck on planes for as long as ten hours.
Last night, JetBlue cancelled nearly 70 flights into and out of Kennedy Airport for today.
Passengers can rebook through Thursday or request refunds or credit for future travel.
Meanwhile, the city deployed 2,000 plows, 365 salt spreaders and thousands of employees to make sure this storm did not cripple the city.
Alternate side of the street parking rules were also suspended for the day.
LaGuardia is still experiencing 90-minute delays on arriving flights.
JetBlue handed out $100 vouchers to about 100 passengers who were stuck on a runway at JFK last night.
The vouchers are part of the company's new customer "bill of rights" that was put in place after the Valentine's Day storm when hundreds of JetBlue passengers were stuck on planes for as long as ten hours.
Last night, JetBlue cancelled nearly 70 flights into and out of Kennedy Airport for today.
Passengers can rebook through Thursday or request refunds or credit for future travel.
Meanwhile, the city deployed 2,000 plows, 365 salt spreaders and thousands of employees to make sure this storm did not cripple the city.
Alternate side of the street parking rules were also suspended for the day.
The Importance Of The Wireless Doorbell
There's a short blurb over at Infoworld about a new wireless doorbell that actually hooks up your doorbell to a cellular phone system. This way, when the doorbell rings, it can alert your mobile phone -- and you can talk to whoever is at your door and even let them in remotely if you're not home. While at first, that might not sound all that special, it does demonstrate how wireless technology is going well beyond its original uses. Most people think of how mobile phones enabled them to do what they did before (talk on the phone), but do it while mobile. But what can often be more interesting is how such mobility allows for entirely new applications and services that simply couldn't exist before. That's not to say that the wireless doorbell is all that useful. In fact, I'm not sure there's really all that much demand for it. But, it's still encouraging to see people experimenting with allowing new types of products and services built on top of what the last generation of technology allows. For all the talk of how the mobile phone market was becoming saturated due to so many people owning phones, for those who view it as a starting platform for much more interesting offerings, it seems like there's plenty of potential.
Sunday, February 25, 2007
New Hot Properties: YouTube Celebrities
No one would mistake the Ask a Jew guy for Lonelygirl15, but these days YouTube contributor Shmuel Tennenhaus is feeling like a hot commodity.
Mr. Tennenhaus, an aspiring comedy writer who gained a modest following on YouTube for his droll question-and-answer clips and other spots featuring his grandmother “Bubby,” is being wooed by the site’s competitors, including Metacafe, ManiaTV and others, with promises of guaranteed exposure, a share of advertising money, or both.
“It’s all very odd,” said Mr. Tennenhaus, speaking from Hallandale, Fla. His YouTube channel, Oneparkave, has logged roughly 32,000 visits and a few hundred subscribers since last fall. “My parents say I’m special, but I can’t imagine I’m the only guy they’re contacting.”
He has that right. The most popular YouTubers, who have generated millions of visits and tens of thousands of subscribers, say they have received overtures from multiple sites. And YouTube, meanwhile, appears ready to respond to the challenge.
“I think everybody that has a site has contacted me,” said Paul Robinett, whose YouTube persona Renetto has attracted 1.19 million views and more than 23,000 subscribers. Mr. Robinett, who is based in Columbus, Ohio, and frequently posts commentaries on YouTube-related issues, said: “They’re not throwing a ton of money around. It’s kind of chump change. And I haven’t responded because I know revenue-sharing is coming to YouTube.”
Few performers will divulge what kind of money is being thrown around. But Metacafe pays $5 for every 1,000 views, with their most popular acts netting tens of thousands of dollars, figures that the site will mention when trying to persuade YouTube stars to defect.
In January, YouTube’s co-founder, Chad Hurley, said the company would in the coming months begin sharing advertising revenue with contributors. The company last week said it would not elaborate on that plan, or on the efforts of competitors to lure its contributors away.
Mr. Tennenhaus, an aspiring comedy writer who gained a modest following on YouTube for his droll question-and-answer clips and other spots featuring his grandmother “Bubby,” is being wooed by the site’s competitors, including Metacafe, ManiaTV and others, with promises of guaranteed exposure, a share of advertising money, or both.
“It’s all very odd,” said Mr. Tennenhaus, speaking from Hallandale, Fla. His YouTube channel, Oneparkave, has logged roughly 32,000 visits and a few hundred subscribers since last fall. “My parents say I’m special, but I can’t imagine I’m the only guy they’re contacting.”
He has that right. The most popular YouTubers, who have generated millions of visits and tens of thousands of subscribers, say they have received overtures from multiple sites. And YouTube, meanwhile, appears ready to respond to the challenge.
“I think everybody that has a site has contacted me,” said Paul Robinett, whose YouTube persona Renetto has attracted 1.19 million views and more than 23,000 subscribers. Mr. Robinett, who is based in Columbus, Ohio, and frequently posts commentaries on YouTube-related issues, said: “They’re not throwing a ton of money around. It’s kind of chump change. And I haven’t responded because I know revenue-sharing is coming to YouTube.”
Few performers will divulge what kind of money is being thrown around. But Metacafe pays $5 for every 1,000 views, with their most popular acts netting tens of thousands of dollars, figures that the site will mention when trying to persuade YouTube stars to defect.
In January, YouTube’s co-founder, Chad Hurley, said the company would in the coming months begin sharing advertising revenue with contributors. The company last week said it would not elaborate on that plan, or on the efforts of competitors to lure its contributors away.
Jennifer Hudson wins Oscar
Jennifer Hudson has won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for ``Dreamgirls.'' Stay tuned for updates throughout the evening.
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Some rats with that?..taco ?
Nauseated New Yorkers recoil
at Taco Bell/KFC rodent partyIt was enough to make you choke on your chalupa.
To the disgust of millions who watched on TV or in person, a gang of brazen rats took over a Taco Bell/KFC restaurant in Greenwich Village yesterday - scampering across tables like they owned the joint.
The vermin slid down the backs of chairs, left trails of droppings on the floor and glared at passersby through the window until health inspectors shut down the eatery on Sixth Ave. near W. Fourth St.
"I just ate there last night - I think I'm going to be sick," said Earl Heffintrayer, 29. "I'll never come back here again."
The invasion began a little after midnight, while the restaurant was closed, creating a public relations nightmare for Taco Bell just two months after an E.Coli outbreak at the chain.
Photographers and TV crews descended on the scene - and it almost seemed like the 20-odd rodents were playing to the crowd.
At one point, as a Daily News reporter pressed close to the window, a rat hopped over, stood on its hind legs, put its paws against the glass and stared back.
at Taco Bell/KFC rodent partyIt was enough to make you choke on your chalupa.
To the disgust of millions who watched on TV or in person, a gang of brazen rats took over a Taco Bell/KFC restaurant in Greenwich Village yesterday - scampering across tables like they owned the joint.
The vermin slid down the backs of chairs, left trails of droppings on the floor and glared at passersby through the window until health inspectors shut down the eatery on Sixth Ave. near W. Fourth St.
"I just ate there last night - I think I'm going to be sick," said Earl Heffintrayer, 29. "I'll never come back here again."
The invasion began a little after midnight, while the restaurant was closed, creating a public relations nightmare for Taco Bell just two months after an E.Coli outbreak at the chain.
Photographers and TV crews descended on the scene - and it almost seemed like the 20-odd rodents were playing to the crowd.
At one point, as a Daily News reporter pressed close to the window, a rat hopped over, stood on its hind legs, put its paws against the glass and stared back.
X-RAY SEES ALL...for NYC AIRPORTS
Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix became the country's first to begin testing a controversial new federal screening system that takes X-rays of passenger's bodies in an effort to find concealed explosives and other weapons. It can see through people's clothes and show the body's contours with blush-inducing clarity. The technology could be in place at Kennedy Airport by the end of the year.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
Microsoft Tells Some Users No on Vista
After years of delays and billions in development and marketing efforts, it would seem that Microsoft Corp. would want anyone who possibly can to buy its new Windows Vista operating system. Yet Microsoft is making it hard for Mac owners and other potentially influential customers to adopt the software.
Microsoft says the blockade is necessary for security reasons. But that is disputed. The circumstances might simply reflect a business decision Microsoft doesn't want to explain.
The situation involves a technology known as virtualization. Essentially, it lets one computer mimic multiple machines, even ones with different operating systems. It does this by running multiple applications at the same time, but in separate realms of the computer.
Virtualization has long been used in corporate data centers as a way to increase server efficiency or to test programs in a walled-off portion of a machine. The technology also has been available for home users, but often at the expense of the computer's performance.
But now that Macintosh computers from Apple Inc. use Intel Corp. chips, just like Windows-based PCs, virtualization programs let Mac users easily switch back and forth between Apple's Mac OS X operating system and Windows. That could appeal to Mac enthusiasts who want access to programs that only work on Windows, including some games.
Consequently, the launch of Vista seemed to be a good opportunity for Parallels Inc., a subsidiary of SWsoft Inc. that sells virtualization products.
Microsoft says the blockade is necessary for security reasons. But that is disputed. The circumstances might simply reflect a business decision Microsoft doesn't want to explain.
The situation involves a technology known as virtualization. Essentially, it lets one computer mimic multiple machines, even ones with different operating systems. It does this by running multiple applications at the same time, but in separate realms of the computer.
Virtualization has long been used in corporate data centers as a way to increase server efficiency or to test programs in a walled-off portion of a machine. The technology also has been available for home users, but often at the expense of the computer's performance.
But now that Macintosh computers from Apple Inc. use Intel Corp. chips, just like Windows-based PCs, virtualization programs let Mac users easily switch back and forth between Apple's Mac OS X operating system and Windows. That could appeal to Mac enthusiasts who want access to programs that only work on Windows, including some games.
Consequently, the launch of Vista seemed to be a good opportunity for Parallels Inc., a subsidiary of SWsoft Inc. that sells virtualization products.
Missing Laptop Found in ET Hunt
The Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, has signed up more than 1 million volunteers worldwide in a search for extraterrestrial intelligence. They've found no aliens yet, but they have at least turned up one missing laptop.
The Berkeley effort, better known as SETI(at)home, uses volunteers' computers when they go into screen-saver mode to crunch data from the Arecibo radio observatory in Puerto Rico. The computers are trying to spot signals in the radio noise from space.
One volunteer, James Melin, a software programmer for a county government agency in Minnesota, runs SETI(at)home on his seven home computers, which periodically check in with University of California servers. Whenever that happens, the servers record the remote computer's Internet Protocol address and file it in a database that people running the SETI software can view.
One of the computers on which Melin installed SETI(at)home is his wife's laptop, which was stolen from the couple's Minneapolis home Jan. 1.
Annoyed - and alarmed that someone could delete the screenplays and novels that his wife, Melinda Kimberly, was writing - Melin monitored the SETI(at)home database to see if the stolen laptop would "talk" to the Berkeley servers. Indeed, the laptop checked in three times within a week, and Melin sent the IP addresses to the Minneapolis Police Department.
After a subpoena to a local Internet provider, police determined the real-world address where the stolen laptop was logging on. Within days, officers seized the computer and returned it. No one had been arrested as of Wednesday and the case remains under investigation, said Lt. Amelia Huffman of the Minneapolis Police Department.
Kimberly's writings were safe, and the thieves didn't appear to have broken into her e-mail or other personal folders. But the returned computer contained 20 tracks of rap music with unintelligible lyrics, possibly from the person who stole the computer or bought it on the underground.
"It's really, really horrid rap," Melin said. "It makes Ludacris look like Pavarotti."
Kimberly was more enamored with Melin's detective work.
"I always knew that a geek would make a great husband," she said. "He always backed up all my data, but this topped it all. It became like `Mission: Impossible' for him, looking for hard evidence for the cops to use. ... He's a genius - my hero."
The Berkeley effort, better known as SETI(at)home, uses volunteers' computers when they go into screen-saver mode to crunch data from the Arecibo radio observatory in Puerto Rico. The computers are trying to spot signals in the radio noise from space.
One volunteer, James Melin, a software programmer for a county government agency in Minnesota, runs SETI(at)home on his seven home computers, which periodically check in with University of California servers. Whenever that happens, the servers record the remote computer's Internet Protocol address and file it in a database that people running the SETI software can view.
One of the computers on which Melin installed SETI(at)home is his wife's laptop, which was stolen from the couple's Minneapolis home Jan. 1.
Annoyed - and alarmed that someone could delete the screenplays and novels that his wife, Melinda Kimberly, was writing - Melin monitored the SETI(at)home database to see if the stolen laptop would "talk" to the Berkeley servers. Indeed, the laptop checked in three times within a week, and Melin sent the IP addresses to the Minneapolis Police Department.
After a subpoena to a local Internet provider, police determined the real-world address where the stolen laptop was logging on. Within days, officers seized the computer and returned it. No one had been arrested as of Wednesday and the case remains under investigation, said Lt. Amelia Huffman of the Minneapolis Police Department.
Kimberly's writings were safe, and the thieves didn't appear to have broken into her e-mail or other personal folders. But the returned computer contained 20 tracks of rap music with unintelligible lyrics, possibly from the person who stole the computer or bought it on the underground.
"It's really, really horrid rap," Melin said. "It makes Ludacris look like Pavarotti."
Kimberly was more enamored with Melin's detective work.
"I always knew that a geek would make a great husband," she said. "He always backed up all my data, but this topped it all. It became like `Mission: Impossible' for him, looking for hard evidence for the cops to use. ... He's a genius - my hero."
Anna's Wish to Be Granted
The attorney deciding where Anna Nicole Smith will be buried said Thursday the model will be laid to rest in the Bahamas, but her estranged mother planned an appeal. Richard Milstein, the court-appointed guardian of Smith's baby daughter, announced the plans not long after a judge gave him control of Smith's final resting place. He said "our intention is that the burial will take place next to her son Daniel'' in the Bahamas. He gave no timeframe.
VIDEO: Tearful Judge Rules on Body
Smith judge rules in favor of baby’s guardian
Anna Nicole Smith will be buried in the Bahamas, alongside her dead son, it was announced Thursday after a tearful judge left the decision up to the guardian for the model’s baby daughter.
Richard Milstein, the court-appointed guardian of Smith’s baby daughter, announced the plans not long after a judge gave him control of Smith’s final resting place. He gave no timeframe.
“I want her to be buried with her son in the Bahamas. I want them to be together,” said Circuit Judge Larry Seidlin, steering a surprise middle course in a dispute that became more urgent by the day when the medical examiner warned that Smith’s body was rapidly decomposing.
Richard Milstein, the court-appointed guardian of Smith’s baby daughter, announced the plans not long after a judge gave him control of Smith’s final resting place. He gave no timeframe.
“I want her to be buried with her son in the Bahamas. I want them to be together,” said Circuit Judge Larry Seidlin, steering a surprise middle course in a dispute that became more urgent by the day when the medical examiner warned that Smith’s body was rapidly decomposing.
Monday, February 19, 2007
XM, Sirius say they have merger deal
XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. have agreed to merge, the two companies said Monday.
The deal would consolidate the only two companies in the emerging business of subscription-only satellite radio, and is sure to face tough scrutiny from federal regulators. Investors and analysts have been speculating about a deal for months.
The two companies said in a statement that Mel Karmazin, the CEO of Sirius, would become chief executive of the new company while Gary Parsons, the chairman of XM, would remain in that role.
The deal would consolidate the only two companies in the emerging business of subscription-only satellite radio, and is sure to face tough scrutiny from federal regulators. Investors and analysts have been speculating about a deal for months.
The two companies said in a statement that Mel Karmazin, the CEO of Sirius, would become chief executive of the new company while Gary Parsons, the chairman of XM, would remain in that role.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Mayor Does About-Face On Alternate Side Parking Tickets
Mayor Michael Bloomberg has made an about-face on parking tickets issued to drivers whose cars were stuck in the snow after Wednesday’s storm.
The city has now decided to forgive all alternate side parking tickets for yesterday, and today.
The mayor’s decision to keep alternate side parking rules in effect following the snow storm drew serious criticism. Many drivers argued the ice and snow made it nearly impossible to dig their cars out.
The mayor said yesterday moving cars was important for the plows to do their job.
"In retrospect, in some parts of the city, there was not that much snow and in other parts there probably was an imposition,” the mayor said on his morning radio show today. “We did get a lot of calls and listened very carefully to what the Sanitation Department heard, what our community assistance unit heard, we took a look at the call that came in to 311 and … this morning I instructed the Department of Finance to waive any Alternate Side of the Street parking tickets for yesterday and today."
Tickets issued on Wednesday during the storm still have to be paid.
Tickets from today and yesterday will be automatically taken out of the city's computer.
Britney Checks Into Rehab - Out a Day Later
Britney Spears checked-in to rehab, she refused to stay and checked out -- less than twenty-four hours later!
As "EXTRA" first reported, the pop star entered a rehab facility two days ago. Now TMZ has learned that the center was located outside of the country, and she refused to stay.
TMZ is told that Britney checked in at the urging of friends and family, after being seen intoxicated in public places and was so "exhausted" on New Year's Eve she collapsed.
According to TMZ sources, Britney is on her way back to Los Angeles.
A rep for Britney could not immediately be reached for comment.
Rumor rehash: Apple MacBook ultraportable coming soon
As much as we'd like to see Apple try its hand at the subnotebook game once more (and don't y'all haters deny that at the time the 12-inch PowerBook was a subby), we are getting a little bored that the rumor, much like the iPhone before it, refuses to give way. AppleInsider is re-reporting by way of supposed insiders that Stevie's engineers are hard at work on a new MacBook with the fresh set of specs we've heard many a time to date: no integrated optical drive, solid state disk (resulting in increased battery life and system performance), sleek, slender body, widescreen display, and now a mid-year launch, presumably aligned with WWDC. We've heard this song and dance before (and we'll surely hear it again), so keep your wallet-carrying trousers on
Peanut Butter Is Recalled as 300 Fall Ill
ConAgra Foods told consumers on Wednesday to discard certain jars of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter after a salmonella outbreak sickened almost 300 people.
Lids of jars with product codes beginning 2111 can be returned to ConAgra for a refund, the company said. The salmonella outbreak, which federal health officials said had sickened 288 people in 39 states since August, was linked to tainted peanut butter from a factory in Sylvester, Ga.
Lids of jars with product codes beginning 2111 can be returned to ConAgra for a refund, the company said. The salmonella outbreak, which federal health officials said had sickened 288 people in 39 states since August, was linked to tainted peanut butter from a factory in Sylvester, Ga.
ICAHN DEPOSITS $880M TW BOUNTY
Carl Icahn has learned yet again that a little saber rattling can offer very rich rewards.
Though the billionaire activist investor was unsuccessful in his efforts to break up media giant Time Warner, he got himself a sweet consolation prize in the form of nearly $880 million, a regulatory filing shows.
Icahn earned that sum by the end of last year when he pared down his holdings in TW by selling roughly 35 million shares, or 65 percent of his total stake, in the world's largest media company.
The financier still holds 20 million Time Warner shares valued at $433 million based on yesterday's $21.65 close.
When Icahn launched his campaign against TW on Aug. 15, 2005, the company's shares had gone three years without touching $20, closing that day at $18.50.
Icahn's antagonism, which included claiming that Time Warner CEO Dick Parsons wasn't a media guy, provided just the jump start that the company needed.
BAD BEHAVIOR for Tony Danza
TONY Danza was onstage in "The Producers" Wednesday night when two women in the audience started filming his performance. "Tony warned them, shaking his finger and mouthing 'please stop' - but they waved the camera in his face," a tipster reports. When the curtain came down, Danza told them to "get the hell out." Danza's rep said, "As any theater patron should know, it is prohibited to film in the theater, not to mention it is very distracting to the actors. Tony did his best to politely ask these women to stop filming, unfortunately to no avail."
Thursday, February 15, 2007
New DNA Test in Anna Nicole Smith Case
Florida Judge Orders New DNA Test on Anna Nicole Smith's Body in Fight Over Her RemainsA judge ordered another DNA sample be taken from Anna Nicole Smith's body Thursday as he heard often fiery arguments in the fight over the former Playboy Playmate's remains and custody of her infant daughter.
The swab of Smith's cheek was to be taken in the afternoon, despite the objections of attorneys for her longtime companion, Howard K. Stern, and her estranged mother, Vergie Arthur, and testimony from the medical examiner and DNA experts that such an additional sample was likely not necessary.
Circuit Judge Larry Seidlin said he wanted to make sure all samples were taken before Smith was buried, so her body wouldn't have to be exhumed.
"When we bury her, I want it to be forever," he said in the second day of an emergency hearing.
Smith, 39, died Feb. 8 after collapsing at a Florida hotel.
As the proceedings dragged on, investigators in the Bahamas went into a mansion that Stern and Smith shared, though the officers declined to say why they were there. Stern filed a burglary report claiming a computer, home videos and other items were taken from the house after Smith's death.
Stern claims he is executor of Smith's will and wants to have her buried next to her son in the Bahamas. Arthur wants her daughter buried in her home state of Texas.
"She sits here today to take her to Texas and put her in the ground all alone … and it's sad and it's sick," Stern's lawyer, Krista Barth, told the judge in attacking Smith's mother.
Arthur's attorney, Stephen Tunstall, said his client "wants to take her home to Texas to bury her with the rest of her family." Arthur wiped tears away outside an elevator during a break in the proceedings.
Photographer Larry Birkhead hopes DNA taken from Smith will help prove he fathered the former centerfold's 5-month-old daughter, Dannielynn, who could inherit millions.
The swab of Smith's cheek was to be taken in the afternoon, despite the objections of attorneys for her longtime companion, Howard K. Stern, and her estranged mother, Vergie Arthur, and testimony from the medical examiner and DNA experts that such an additional sample was likely not necessary.
Circuit Judge Larry Seidlin said he wanted to make sure all samples were taken before Smith was buried, so her body wouldn't have to be exhumed.
"When we bury her, I want it to be forever," he said in the second day of an emergency hearing.
Smith, 39, died Feb. 8 after collapsing at a Florida hotel.
As the proceedings dragged on, investigators in the Bahamas went into a mansion that Stern and Smith shared, though the officers declined to say why they were there. Stern filed a burglary report claiming a computer, home videos and other items were taken from the house after Smith's death.
Stern claims he is executor of Smith's will and wants to have her buried next to her son in the Bahamas. Arthur wants her daughter buried in her home state of Texas.
"She sits here today to take her to Texas and put her in the ground all alone … and it's sad and it's sick," Stern's lawyer, Krista Barth, told the judge in attacking Smith's mother.
Arthur's attorney, Stephen Tunstall, said his client "wants to take her home to Texas to bury her with the rest of her family." Arthur wiped tears away outside an elevator during a break in the proceedings.
Photographer Larry Birkhead hopes DNA taken from Smith will help prove he fathered the former centerfold's 5-month-old daughter, Dannielynn, who could inherit millions.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)