MySpace Syncs With Facebook, Twitter

In a nod, perhaps, to Facebook's dominance in the social media space, MySpace has synced its service with its archrival, a step that now allows MySpace users to share content with their Facebook friends.

Using Sync with Facebook, unveiled Aug. 30, MySpace accountholders can share music, links, photos, and videos. After syncing their accounts, MySpace updates appear on the pages of Facebook friends. MySpace also now allows users to sync their accounts with Twitter in the same manner.
 
At Web 2.0 Expo, InformationWeek editor-at-large David Berlind reviecams BantamLive.com with Bantam Networks co-founder and director of product management Alex Turnbull.

"This new sync functionality is part of an ongoing effort to make it simple for people to share their updates beyond MySpace and allow fans and friends to interact with that content across the web," said Jennifer Ruffner, director of product stream at MySpace, in a company blog.

To set up the feature, MySpace users simply click on the settings box in the update module of their home page, check the Facebook and/or Twitter boxes, then follow the steps to sync accounts, she said.
However, users cannot sync Facebook pages with MySpace. Users already were able to place a Twitter widget on their MySpace page in order to show their Twitter updates.
MySpace, which is owned by News Corp., had 61 million unique visitors in July 2010, compared with 146 million unique visitors toFacebook, according to ComScore. MySpace said it has more than 122 million monthly active users around the world and gets 100,000 signups per day.

The second-ranked social networking site recently redesigned its MySpace profile and theme gallery in an effort to give accountholders easier navigation tools and simplified organization of content, said Ali Tahmasbi, director of product profiles, in a MySpace blog. In May, it simplified its privacy controls.

"Both the gallery and theme machine will serve as part of a profile design ecosystem that will support submission, rating, and conversations around themes. We're dedicated to equipping users with easy-to-use tools to create, customize, and manage their digital persona and look forward to sharing more in the coming weeks that will further improve the discovery experience," he said.

Continuing its music-oriented history, MySpace also debuted ArtistHQ, a new blog for musicians. The page includes musician profiles, product promotions, music news, and how-to articles. MySpace music adds 500 new artists weekly and premieres more than 25 albums per week, according to the company.

Apple iPhone with Dual Sim Card - Now a reality!

We now have a delicately intricate function from an iPhone case. It transforms your regular micro-SIM compatible iPhone into a dual-SIM iPhone. 

A Dual Sim iPhone may be a practically non-existent in the near future, we all know that! But, how about converting any regular iPhone to use two SIM cards?

This Dual SIM iPhone Case for your iPhone is a a transparent-like crystal iPhone case with an ‘innovative design’ that allows you to use two regular-sized SIM cards on your iPhone 4G.

This does not mean that you’ll have a dual-SIM standby on your device. Rather, the iPhone dual SIM case allows you to switch between the two available SIMs as you desire with  a few clicks.

Imagine the hassle of pulling out the backcase, removing the SIM card slot and replacing it with another SIM card. It is simple though, but can get quite tedious if you are frequently exercising this routine. But, the iPhone 4 dual SIM case allows you to switch between the two included SIM cards.

In simple terms, suppose if your using SIM 1 and you want to switch over to SIM 2, all you need to do is go to your Phone’s Settings–>Phone–>SIM Applications and just select the SIM Card from the list. Simple!

With this Dual SIM, you are no longer to hassle with your network problems when you are travelling from one country to another country.

This iPhone dual SIM case is currently compatible with iPhone 4G only and is available for $28.99 form USBFever. 

Brabus iBusiness : The Mercedes S Class With iPods, Mac Mini And iPads!

We love the Mercedes Benz. Many of us count it in our list of most desirable cars. But, that’s just the case with any Mercedes lover, isn’t it? What if we tell they have a Mercedes for the geek (and a business man) in you.


Now here’s a combination of technology, style and substance that’s not just visually appealing but potentially fulfilling too. Combined with the classy perfection of Mercedes Benz and the astoundingly powerful Brabus engines, the intellect minds of Brabus have designed a Mercedes Benz S-Class which is fully-laden with iDevices – including the latest Apple product, the iPad.

The highly-glossy hood houses beneath it a powerful 6.3 liter V12 engine that pumps the pistons for a 720 horsepower output and producing 995 pound-feet of torque. Just in about 4 seconds, you can hit 62 miles per hour and can practically reach a high speed of 211mph, if your love for velocity insists you to.

The beautiful interiors of this Brabus iBusiness, house an iPad equipped with keyboard at each of the rear seats with a corresponding Apple Touchmouse sagely fitted in the arm rest on the sides. There’s an iPod Touch too to play your favorite music track as you rest backseat and sink into the Benz’s luxury.

A 15.2 inches headliner-mounted Mac display and a 64GB iPod Touch also meet your entertainment needs as you drive along. The iPads also serve as the sedan’s Command System which include controlling the radio, navigation and telephone system.

All this is powered by an ultra-small Mac Mini that sits in the electronically deployed drawer in your car. It’s luxury blended with the best of Apple technology to make your business prosper even as you drive along, flaunting pride and basking in luxury.

Will Steve Jobs be the first to buy this masterpiece? Probably not :p

Beijing experiences a 9+ Day Traffic Jam!

Thousands of vehicles were bogged down Monday in a more than 100-kilometre (62-mile) traffic jam leading to Beijing that has lasted nine days and highlights China's growing road congestion woes.

The Beijing-Tibet expressway slowed to a crawl on August 14 due to a spike in traffic by cargo-bearing heavy trucks heading to the capital, and compounded by road maintenance work that began five days later, the Global Times said.

The state-run newspaper said the jam between Beijing and Jining city had given birth to a mini-economy with local merchants capitalising on the stranded drivers' predicament by selling them water and food at inflated prices.

That stretch of highway linking Beijing with the northern province of Hebei and the Inner Mongolia region has become increasingly prone to massive jams as the capital of more than 20 million people sucks in huge shipments of goods.

Traffic slowed to a snail's pace in June and July for nearly a month, according to earlier press reports.

The latest clog has been worsened by the road improvement project, made necessary by highway damage caused by a steady increase in cargo traffic, the Global Times said.

China has embarked in recent years on a huge expansion of its national road system but soaring traffic periodically overwhelms the grid. The congestion was expected to last into mid-September as the road project will not be finished until then, the newspaper said. The roadway is a major artery for the supply of produce, coal and other goods to Beijing


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Limited Period Offer : AT&T Blackberry Torch for $99 At Amazon!

RIM’s Blackberry Torch smartphone that released only a few days ago is now available at an incredible price on what can be said as a 50% discount on its original contract price at Amazon.com.

Tthe Blackberry Torch 9800 is RIM’s first Blackberry smartphone that features both a physical QWERTY keypad and a capacitive touch screen.

The hybrid touchscreen Blackberry 9800 boasts a 3.2 inches capacitive touchscreen, a slide-down QWERTY keyboard, a 3.5mm audio jack, a microUSB port for data transfer and of course, RIM’s latest and greatest Blackberry 6 OS.

The device also features a 5 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi connectivity, onboard GPS with turn-by-turn navigation support, 4GB onboard memory, support for expandable memory via microSD card slot and even more.

Traditional Blackberry features like the Blackberry messenger, BES, email, web browsing, support for downloadable apps from the Blackberry store and other features have also been included.

By the terms of the Amazon deal, the Blackberry Torch can be yours for $99 on a new ATT connection, which means a two-year customer contract with ATT with free activation if purchased between August 15 and August 31, both dates inclusive.

Amazon claims that a $36 activation fee for each qualifying line will be credited to your account on a new customer contract which is being offered in collaboration with ATT and is valid only in the US of America and Puerto Rico. 

Will 'Makkah Time' replace 'Greenwich Mean Time'?

If Big Ben was the only big clock tower you’ve come across, it is time to rethink that.

The world’s largest clock is being constructed in the Islamic city of Makkah in Saudia Arabia and marks the inception of a new time meridian called as Makkah Time.

This giant clock is built on a 1,983-foot clock tower which has four faces. Each of the four faces of this clock will have a face-diameter of 46m and will be illuminated by two million LEDs in total. While, the clock tower has a slight resemblance to London’s Big Ben, the Big Ben is only 316 feet tall with 23m diameter for the clock faces.

This architectural wonder is actually a cluster of seven towers that will house a shopping mall, about 2,000 hotel rooms, prayer room for about 30,000 people and even two helipads. With the commencement of the first day of fasting in the holy month of Ramadan, the clock started its 3-month trial-routine by ticking minutes and was instantly noticed earning gazes and glances by overwhelmed on lookers.

Among other marvelous things, the giant clock will also be viewable for general public from just underneath the clock faces from the four-storey astronomical observatory and Islamic museum on what is believed to be possibly the world’s second tallest building at 1983 feet next to Burj Khalifa (2717feet).

Just beneath the face of the clock, the Arabic script reading “In The Name of Allah” runs across each side of the clock tower while the white and green lights which will flash during prayer times - signaling that it’s time for Namaz, the Islamic prayers that’s offered five times a day.

Because Makkah is the center of the world, muslims claimed that Makkah Time should be the primary time meridian and not the Greenwich Mean Time which was imposed by the west in 1884.

Residents of Makkah were quoted as saying that “the construction of the biggest clock in the world in the purest spot on the earth is a dream-come-true for Muslims,” said Atif Felmban, who lives in the city while Mr. Haleem admits that “I might leave Mecca before the opening ceremony for the clock. But I will be keen to follow it and set my watch to it as soon as it is working.”

Is the world ready to accept a new time median? Will the Makkah Time replace the Greenwich Mean Time? Only 'Time' can tell!

Paypal on Android soon!

EBay Inc.’s PayPal business is in talks to add its payment service to Google Inc.’s Android smartphone software, making it easier for users to pay for applications.


Users of Android phones, such as Motorola Inc.’s Droid X and HTC Corp.’s Droid Incredible, may be able to pay for apps with PayPal as soon as this year, said the source, who declined to be named because the discussions aren’t public. Customers currently pay via credit card and Google’s Checkout service.

By adding PayPal, Google would give app developers another way to get paid, potentially making them more likely to create software for Android. While Android phones are beginning to outsell the iPhone, Apple Inc. still dominates in apps. There are more than 225,000 apps available for Apple devices, compared with about 70,000 for Android.


Apple iTunes users can buy apps with one touch because their payment information is already stored. Google offers similar features through its Checkout service, though it isn’t as popular as iTunes or PayPal, creating hassles for new users. By adopting PayPal, which has 87 million active accounts, Google may attract more paying customers.

PayPal added 1 million new accounts each month last quarter and made up 37 percent of EBay’s sales. Net revenue at PayPal rose 22 percent to $817 million in the period.

EBay, based in San Jose, California, fell 9 cents to $21.50 at 4 p.m. New York time on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Shares of Google, located in Mountain View, California, dropped $5.66 to $486.35.

Android has become the most popular smartphone software in the U.S., overtaking the iPhone and BlackBerry, research firm Gartner Inc. said yesterday. Worldwide, Android ranks third, behind Nokia Oyj’s Symbian and the BlackBerry, according to Gartner. Apple is in fourth place.

Tax dollars are being used to train foreign IT workers

The way you respond to this article depends on which side of the fence you are. While most Americans will be angry, others will feel what goes around comes around.

Believe it or not, the U.S. government is spending $22 million of tax money to train workers in foreign countries to learn tech skills and English so they can outsource American IT jobs.


According to InformationWeek, the U.S. agency known as USAID (United States Agency for International Development) is partnering with outsourcing service companies in countries like Sri Lanka to teach more than 3,000 workers technology skills in tools like Enterprise Java.


To make it easier for those workers to work with American companies who have outsourced work, American taxpayers are also paying to train the workers in English.


Many folks have written earlier on how damaging outsourcing is to American jobs. We’ve had recent reports showing that people without jobs in America will likely remain without jobs for a long time. I guess the people in the USA are finally feelings the effects of 'globalization'.

But for most Americans, the idea that their own government is funding the training of low-wage foreign workers, who will then compete with American IT workers is simply unacceptable. 


Well, the idea was not exactly popular in other parts of the world when the Americans & Chinese companies began rooting out local competitors. But then like they say: what goes around comes around.

UFOs, Northern Lights, and an Underwater Census

Blogged by PrimeRose.

Some really strange things have been going this week. Luckily for us, Demasia is not involved in any of them (I hope!)

Churchill's UFO coverup:

What if Winston Churchill ordered a cover-up of a close encounter between a Royal Air Force bomber and an Unidentified Flying Object? That's what a newly released report from the UK's National Archives contends. According to an article from the Daily Telegraph, Churchill feared that if word of the UFO hit the news, the public would panic and lose faith in religion. All this took place during World War II, and Churchill had to make sure his countrymen and women were focused on the task at hand, so he put a lid on the story. But now it's out in the open for conspiracy theorists to breathlessly obsess over.


The Northern Lights head south:

This past Sunday, the sun had an eruption on the it's surface that blasted plasma toward the Earth. The plasma helped to give millions of people a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see the Northern Lights. People in southern Canada, parts of the upper United States, and other countries around the world caught sight of nature's spectacular light show and uploaded their images to the web. Searches on "northern lights" and its fancier-sounding alternative name "aurora borealis" both soared more than 2,000% during the week.
An underwater census? 
A group of scientists and researchers released the results of their "underwater census" this week. The census, an attempt to offer us non-gilled creatures a greater understanding of the different species underwater, was a 

huge hit on the Web. Searches for "underwater census" swam their way to a 103% gain over the course of the week. An excellent article from CNN explains more about the processes behind the monumental task (no, they didn't count every fish in the world), and offers some stellar photos of some odd-looking residents of deep waters.


To view more aliens from the deep, click here.

Saudi Arabia to test fix to avert BlackBerry ban

Article Update:

Saudi Arabia and the makers of the BlackBerry have reached a preliminary deal on granting access to users' data that will avert a ban on the phone's messenger service in the kingdom, Saudi officials said Saturday.

The agreement would likely involve placing a BlackBerry server inside Saudi Arabia to allow the government to monitor messages and allay official fears the service could be used for criminal purposes, the telecom regulatory officials said.

Earlier Post:

Saudi Arabia told the kingdom's telecom operators on Saturday to test a proposed fix to the perceived national security threat posed by Research In Motion's BlackBerry smartphones, and said it would not ban service if the test was successful.

The government had threatened to cut off BlackBerry's Messenger function to Saudi users on Friday, but so far has allowed the service to continue.

RIM has come under increasing scrutiny from countries including India, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon and Algeria that want access to the Canadian company's encrypted network so they can monitor messages they say might signal a potential security threat. RIM had said earlier in the week that third-party access to its network was impossible.

On Saturday, the Saudi Communications and Information Technology Commission said it gave the three telecom operators -- state-controlled Saudi Telecom 7010.SE, Mobily 7020.SE and Zain Saudi Arabia 7030.SE -- 48 hours to try out "the proposed solutions and fulfill the requested regulatory requirements."

CITC said it would decide whether to allow the service to continue or not "depending on the results achieved by the service providers."

Using local servers would give the Saudi authorities better access to messages that have been handled exclusively through servers in Canada and the United Kingdom. With about 700,000 BlackBerry users, Saudi Arabia is RIM's biggest Middle East market.

Neighboring UAE, with 500,000 users, has proposed a ban starting Oct. 11 targeting email and Web browsing, as well as the Messenger service, on the device. The U.S. and Canadian governments have recently  expressed concern about the implications of banning such services.

Simply Tap Two Phones to Transfer Money - Android Bump

A new version of PayPal for Android smartphones is bringing its spin on mobile money transfers to Android.

PayPal 2.0 for Android adds Bump technology, which debits money from one user's account and credits another when two phones are tapped together. Of course, both smartphones need a Bump-enabled PayPal app to work. PayPal with Bump is currently available on the iPhone, so buddies wishing to settle accounts can digitally do so despite using different mobile platforms. Digital payment of this sort is a much more elegant solution thanSquare, as cool as that credit card-reading peripheral may be.

In addition to adding a Bump component, the update allows you to withdraw money from your account and request a payment; two key features that had previously been absent. It also inserts a tip calculator to split the bill (and request your companions to fork over their share.) PayPal 2.0 also adds a scheduling component so you can set payment reminders for rent and bills.

You'll find the free PayPal 2.0 for Android app in the App Market.

Blackberry Services To Be Banned In UAE

Comes as no surprise that the UAE government has showcased its concern for security over mobile connections by announcing to cease Blackberry services if Research in Motion failed to comply with the rules of the state.

RIM’s Blackberry smartphones use a unique encryption technology which transfer the data sent from the mobile directly to the international Blackberry services without letting even the national security servers monitor it.

UAE, just like a few other nations, has foreseen this as a threat to national security and will ban Blackberry services in UAE including email, internet and IM over Blackberry handsets. Not only UAE, other nations around the globe, including Saudi Arabia and India among others have express their dislike for the kind of encryption blackberry servers use to encrypt the data.

Following UAE, the government of Saudi Arabia has also announced that it will prevent the use of Blackberry to Blackberry IM i.e., the use of Blackberry messenger and email if RIM failed to meet the demands at hand.

“UAE took a bolder step than Saudi Arabia whereas Saudi Arabia is only banning one, the Messenger,” said Abdulrahman Mazi. “I hope this is only a kind of pressure on RIM to take steps to provide information when needed.”

Wall Street Journal quoted a person familiar with the matter as saying “If the U.A.E. government need this information, for criminal cases, they are unable to access it because the culprits used BlackBerry messenger service… There’stons of information going in and out of the country which is now unmonitored.”

According to the sources, the ban, due to be effective starting 11th September is a consequence of “failure of ongoing attempts, dating back to 2007”, where RIM is operating “beyond the enforcement” of current telecommunications regulations in the country.

iPhone 4 JailBreak... easiest jailbreak yet!

Jailbreak supports 4.0.1 firmware and suggests users to rely on Cydia for further firmware updates through “make your life easier”.

One of the other thing that stands out on the JailbreakMe.com’s information page is the statement which tells users that it’s legal to Jailbreak your iPhones. 

iPhone-Dev team announced a new method of Jailbreaking which Jailbreaks versions of iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. The latest release eliminates the need to Install a software by taking advantage of a newly found exploit in Safari browser to Jailbreak your device.

This has to be the easiest way to Jailbreak every.. It’s a 2 step process!

1) Visit JailbreakMe.com from your Safari Browser on iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch!

2) Slide to Jailbreak! DONE!

Omo Detergent uses GPS to track customers

Do you ever feel like you're being followed? Do you ever wonder whether someone (other than Google ofcourse) knows your every move because they see it?

Well, a marketing promotion in Brazil from Unilever's Omo detergent tries to bring some joy to that troubling sensation.

According to AdAge, some free-thinking commercial minds decided to slip a GPS tracking device into 50 boxes of this extremely popular detergent. This is not an attempt to pursue shoplifters--though what an excellent idea that might be. No, this is actually a promotion. This is a step into the ideal future, one in which you don't have to find the prize in your box of cereal or, I don't know, a car. The prize will find you.

The GPS device within the lucky boxes is activated the minute some shopper removes the box from the shelf. From that moment on, that shopper is a marked man or woman. Surveillance teams representing Omo will track the shopper's every step. To the checkout. To the car. To the restroom. To, who knows? Their secret dungeon in Rio?

Fernando Figueiredo, president of the marketing agency responsible for this entertainment, told AdAge that his GPS-supported teams "may get to your house as soon as you do." And, in case you were worried that, being an apartment-dweller, the stalking horses might not find you,they have portable technology that allows them to locate you to within a few feet of your breath.

Now, I know many an American have been happily surprised and had their life changed by the sudden arrival of a man with a large check from the Publishers Clearing House. I trust that no one has ever been so startled at a knock on their door from one of the PCH's operatives that they've reached for a baseball bat, a rifle, or their cell phone to call 911.

In any case, the Brazilian promotion offers a far wittier prize than money. Yes, it's a pocket video camera as well as a day of outdoor fun. I know I will not be the first to wonder whether this is a covert encouragement for the winner to continue the spirit of surveillance. But what's so bad about that? 

The world has begun to look like a grimy place--with a video camera and a box of detergent, perhaps we can return it to its former glory.