Google decouples Gmail from Android

SOFTWARE COBBLER Google is showing the first signs of frustration with its Android operating system, having removed Gmail from the list of Android's core applications.

In issuing an update for Gmail, Google has made it possible to update the email client without having to wait for a new version of Android to be released.

In the past major updates of Gmail were tied to Android releases. However with the number of Android versions growing and handset manufacturers and mobile operators taking their time releasing updates, Google has started offering the Gmail application as a free download on the Android Market.

The new policy, however, only applies to those who are already running Android 2.2 and this has angered those customers who have been left stranded on old version of the OS. In fact, even some users already on Android 2.2 are complaining that they cannot see the Gmail 2.3 application in the Android Market.

We had no problems finding, downloading and installing Gmail 2.3 on a Nexus One, however, but then that is Google's favoured device.

The update is relatively minor with the most visible change being better navigation through email 'threads'. Though the update itself is minor, Google's decision to treat what is undoubtedly one of the core applications in Android as if it is a third party downloadable application says a lot about the state of fragmentation in Android devices.

Although more handsets are shipping with the latest version of Android, many who purchased handsets even just a year ago are still stuck on Android 1.6 with no updates in sight. As we reported back in March, the fragmentation of Android devices is resulting in users being frustrated with varying user experiences between devices.

The situation has not been helped by manufacturers such as Samsung, Sony Ericsson and even HTC being slow to release updates to their devices. When coupled with mobile operators' efforts that largely have been to bungle update roll-outs, apparently Google decided it had to take action.

Google's decoupling of applications is a good thing for Android users, who will no longer be reliant on handset manufacturers and mobile operators, the firms that want to flog handsets, to get updates. The only remaining problem for users will be getting Android 2.2 in the first place.

Oracle Growth Plans Worry Rivals and Customers

SAN FRANCISCO — Each year, Oracle’s presence looms over this city for a week, during the company’s Open World customer conference. About 41,000 people arrived this week to discuss business software in fine detail and talk over beers. Stretches of downtown streets closed and gave way to makeshift tents housing coffee stands, bars, Lego play areas and candy buffets.

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Tony Avelar/Bloomberg News

Lawrence Ellison, Oracle’s chief, says bundling software and hardware improves performance and saves customers money.

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Jim Wilson/The New York Times

Oracle’s Open World conference drew 41,000 people to San Francisco this week to discuss business software and have some fun.

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

In hiring Mark Hurd, former chief at H.P., Oracle added an executive who had run a major computer server business.

But Oracle’s annual takeover of San Francisco pales against its larger ambitions — to supply just about all the technology, software and hardware, that businesses might need. This sweeping agenda has rattled the nerves of customers, who fear that Oracle has its own best interests, not theirs, at heart. The worry is that instead of saving money, customers will end up paying more over the long term, and that Oracle, already known for its aggressive tactics, will use its strong position in software to gain even more leverage over a larger array of products.

Companies have long used Oracle’s software to keep track of their most prized information. For Oracle, this resulted in sales of $26.8 billion last year and hints of an annual revenue goal of $100 billion. Over the last five years, Oracle has acquired a staggering 66 companies, most of which were software makers that provided expertise in niche areas.

This year, it bought Sun Microsystems, a hardware maker, signaling its intention to dominate the data centers of businesses by controlling more of their technology purchases. It is a prospect that its traditional partners and, more important, its customers, find unnerving.

“It’s freaking terrifying for some people,” said Jason Carey, a database software developer for a credit services company.

Maureen Miller, who oversees technology infrastructure work for the National Science Foundation, put it this way: “We are becoming an all-Oracle shop, but not by choice. They bought every company we deal with. And we don’t tend to want to put all of our eggs in one basket.”

Lawrence J. Ellison, Oracle’s chief executive, argued that the company’s new strategy would benefit customers. “If you want to go faster and you want a system that is more reliable, you have to be willing to spend less,” he said in his opening pitch at this week’s event, while extolling the virtues of linking hardware and software. But customers are skeptical, and pushing back.

Oracle built its business by dominating the database market, providing the central repositories of crucial information that businesses must maintain and use to complete transactions. This has given it an unrivaled position of power when dealing with customers. Capitalizing on such an edge, Oracle’s sales representatives have earned a fearsome reputation as hard-line negotiators determined to squeeze customers.

But through its acquisition spree, Oracle moved well beyond the database and into business software, buying up the important products that companies use to keep track of their technology infrastructure, employees, sales, inventory and customers.

With Sun, Oracle has found a way to sell customers hardware bundled with all that software in a fashion similar to that of its main database rival, I.B.M. Oracle executives say they can build better, faster, cheaper products this way by engineering complete systems rather than requiring customers to cobble together the parts.

It is akin to the Apple model of limiting choice and controlling the crucial pieces in a computer, as opposed to the PC model, where the Windows software from Microsoft can run on hundreds of different machines.

Later this year, Oracle also plans to give select customers access to a product suite called Fusion. This arrives after five years of work and will unite many of the products Oracle has acquired into a single software platform — one that will combine functions found in rival products from companies like SAP, I.B.M., Microsoft and Salesforce.com.

But customers are objecting to Oracle’s moves. For example, some of Sun’s largest former customers consist of the large Wall Street players, and they pushed back this year when Oracle moved to limit their choices around the Sun technology. Oracle ultimately gave in to their pleas, reaffirming deals that would let Hewlett-Packard and Dell offer prized Sun software on their hardware.

“Customers will always gripe about giving too much control to any one company,” said Israel Hernandez, director of software research at Barclays Capital.

Like it or not, many of the largest technology companies — H.P., I.B.M., Cisco Systems and Oracle — have made their data center conquest plans clear. Oracle now competes directly with its partners H.P. and Dell, as does Cisco, the networking specialist, through its move into computer servers. Meanwhile, H.P., once one of Cisco’s closest allies, has begun a major assault in the networking arena.

“We will see more concentration because that’s where the marketing is going,” Mr. Hernandez said.

At least Oracle has the courtesy to assuage customer’s nerves for one week through its Open World largess.

The downtown tents covering parts of Howard and Mason Streets house alcohol-soaked evenings sponsored by Fujitsu, fully stocked candy bars and Lego playpens where people win prizes from Google for interesting constructions. People also dine inside the tents on 59,000 lunches said to have an eco-friendly touch with 60 percent of the food coming from within 100 miles of the city.

Just outside the tents, show attendees can pick up a Services Serum smoothie at the Dell-sponsored juice bar and then relax on white leather lounges. Or people can look past the white-gloved guards to sneak a peek at the America’s Cup trophy that Mr. Ellison won this year.

But the main party will take place on Wednesday night, when Oracle will bus people to a series of concerts held on Treasure Island, which sits between San Francisco and Oakland. The headlining acts include the Black Eyed Peas, Don Henley and the Steve Miller Band.

Six acts will perform on two stages surrounded by amusement rides, four laser systems, 150,000 cocktail napkins, mounds of food and 12 searchlights beaming into the sky. Typically, a few brave female souls will dance near the music stages, while hundreds of male database gurus sip free drinks and ogle.

“I don’t know if any of the customers or the nerds that show up care that much about the fancy production,” said Christine Stamper, who paid $1,800 to attend the conference and runs her own software consulting business in Portland, Ore. “It’s a little goofy.”

Ms. Stamper said she hoped to learn the latest and greatest about Oracle’s products.

“That they have stayed healthy and grown has meant that I could make an entire career out of this,” she said.

This month, Oracle hired Mark V. Hurd, the former chief executive of H.P., as a co-president. Analysts viewed the hiring as a positive for Oracle as it looks to expand. At H.P., Mr. Hurd oversaw the largest computer server business around and ran the world’s largest technology company.

“As Oracle continues to grow, we need people experienced in operating a $100 billion business,” noted Safra A. Catz, Oracle’s other co-president, at the time of Mr. Hurd’s hiring.

The $100 billion total would put Oracle in the same class as H.P. and I.B.M.

“I read that statement as a signal that Oracle intends to get aggressive and pursue growth,” Mr. Hernandez said. “It implies a step up in mergers and acquisitions.”

Such talk only makes already weary Oracle customers more anxious. And San Francisco officials must wonder if the city could survive the demands of an Oracle four times its current size.

Orphan baby dies on day of parents' funeral

An 18-day-old premature baby has died on the same day her parents were buried after dying in a car crash.

Justin Schollbach and Leah James died last Tuesday after crashing their ute on Captain Cook Drive at Kurnell, an area near the southern head of Botany Bay in New South Wales.

The couple were driving home from visiting their baby Lucy, who was born 12 weeks premature.

The couple's ute crashed into a pole and split in two, killing them instantly.

Weighing only 1.3kg, Lucy was living in a humidicrib in the neonatal ward at the Royal Hospital for Women in the eastern Sydney suburb of Randwick, where her parents had been visiting her twice a day.

A statement from the hospital says Lucy died from complications associated with her premature birth.

The hospital's clinical director, Dr George Bearham, says she died shortly before 4am (AEST).

"Despite the efforts of doctors and nurses, Lucy passed away from complications associated with her premature birth," he said in a statement.

"This is a very sad time for Lucy's family and all of those who cared for her here."

Family friend India Bent, who grew up with Mr Schollbach, says it has been a tough day for the family, who are doing their best to deal with the grief.

"She passed away this morning, wanted to be with her mum and dad I think," Ms Bent said.

"It's been a very hard day ... the funeral was today for both the parents.

"[Lucy] was Justin's first child, a long-awaited first child."

Ms James had five other children, aged between six and 15, who are struggling to cope with losing their mum.

Doctors had expected Lucy to stay in hospital until November.

Ms Bent says a funeral for Lucy will be arranged at some point.

"We're just trying to deal with this today and trying to deal with the next five minutes," she said.

Microsoft Boosts Dividend to 16 Cents, Gets Debt-Sale Approval

Sept. 22 (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp. raised its quarterly dividend by 3 cents, or 23 percent, to 16 cents a share and got approval from its board to sell as much as $6 billion in additional debt.

“This higher dividend, combined with our ongoing share repurchase program, reflects our commitment to returning capital to our shareholders and our confidence in the long-term growth of the company,” Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein said yesterday in a statement.

Microsoft is planning to sell debt this year to pay for dividends and share repurchases because much of its cash is held overseas, a person familiar with the matter said last week. The company will try to raise as much as possible without jeopardizing its debt rating of AAA, the highest available, said the person, who declined to be named because the plans are confidential and not completed.

The dividend increase was a sign Microsoft is confident in its ability to generate cash, said Brent Thill, an analyst at UBS AG in San Francisco.

“While not as high as some Street expectations, it was a larger incremental increase than the 2-cent dividend hike Microsoft’s board approved in fiscal year 2009,” he said in a note to clients.

‘Meaningful’ Acquisition?

Thill, who recommends buying Microsoft shares, estimates the company will generate $25 billion in free cash flow in the current fiscal year. Based on that, Microsoft could potentially increase its share repurchases beyond his $12 billion estimate for the year or pay for a “meaningful” acquisition, he said.

Bloomberg data had indicated the company would increase its quarterly dividend by 2 cents a share, while Heather Bellini, an analyst at ISI Group, predicted an increase of 4 cents. A quarterly dividend of 16 cents would yield 2.5 percent.

Microsoft fell 28 cents to $25.15 yesterday in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have dropped 17 percent this year.

A debt offering may come before the end of the company’s fiscal year, which closes next June, and could come as soon as this calendar year, the person familiar with the matter said.

Issuing $6 billion probably wouldn’t put the rating at risk, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The company, based in Redmond, Washington, is under pressure to return more cash to shareholders amid declines in its stock price this year.

Cash Hoard

Microsoft reported $36.8 billion in cash and short-term investments at the end of last quarter. Much of that is held overseas, forcing the company to pay taxes on the money if it uses it for dividends or stock repurchases. Bellini estimates that about 74 percent of Microsoft’s cash is overseas.

Microsoft said yesterday that in the 10 years through June, it had returned almost $170 billion to investors through dividends and share repurchases. The company began its dividend in 2003 and offered a $3-a-share special dividend in 2004.

Microsoft sold its first debt in May 2009, a $3.75 billion offering, in a bid to diversify its capital structure and add to its cash pile for acquisitions, capital expenses and share buybacks. The sale was comprised of $2 billion of 2.95 percent, 5-year notes; $1 billion of 4.2 percent, 10-year debt; and $750 million of 5.2 percent, 30-year bonds.

In June, Microsoft said it would sell $1.15 billion of convertible senior notes due in 2013 and use the proceeds to retire some of its commercial paper.

Jobless rate rises in Maryland, Virginia, steady in D.C.

Unemployment rates in Maryland and Virginia rose in August, according to federal government data released Tuesday, signaling a setback for the Washington area's economic recovery and highlighting the fragile state of the U.S. labor market.

In Maryland, the jobless rate jumped to 7.3 percent after holding for two straight months at 7.1 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The state lost a net of 5,700 jobs in August, officials said, even though the number of positions that were added was three times the national average.

Virginia's unemployment rate rose to 7.0 percent, from 6.9 percent in July, reflecting a net loss of 2,700 jobs. The District's jobless rate remained at 9.9 percent even as the city lost thousands of positions from such steady job creators as professional and business services employers.

The jurisdictions' job losses pale in comparison with the tens of thousands of cuts during the peak months of the recession, and the jobless rates in Maryland and Virginia are well below the 9.6 percent national average. Still, the apparent shift in momentum was a discouraging sign for some economists and experts who earlier this year had pointed to falling unemployment rates as evidence that recovery was taking hold.

"That is not the direction we want to be going," said Sara Kline, associate economist at Moody's Analytics. "Overall, I'd say it's not a good report. The contraction is concerning, something to keep an eye on."

The local jobs picture parallels trends in the national unemployment rate, which rose a tenth of a percentage point in August. Similarly, the nation is experiencing a sluggish recovery: Private-sector jobs are being created, but not quickly enough to put a significant number of unemployed people back to work.

Even though the District's unemployment rate didn't rise, the city's data still reflect a troubling trend. The number of employed residents dropped by 2,900, while the number of the unemployed fell by only 200. Labor experts said this suggests that many long-term unemployed people became discouraged, stopped looking for work and were no longer counted in the data - a reversal of a scenario that played out earlier in the year.

In Maryland and Virginia, the rising unemployment levels were not caused by long-term "discouraged" job seekers who were again counted when they resumed their job search, as has been the case at times in the past year. In both states, employment declined while unemployment increased.

The data in all three area jurisdictions reflect the dismissal of temporary workers involved in the federal census and, in the case of the District, the end of the city's summer youth jobs program. But experts say the numbers also reflect decreases in private sector jobs and a possible retrenchment among some employers about increasing their payrolls.

Maryland lost 3,000 jobs in retail, 2,200 in professional and business services, 1,700 in education and health services and 1,700 in government. It gained 2,000 jobs in construction and 1,000 in financial activities.

Virginia lost 6,000 jobs in government, 1,300 in professional and business services and 1,300 in leisure and hospitality. It gained 1,400 in education and health services, and 1,100 in construction.

The District lost 2,000 jobs in professional and business services in August, 1,500 in education and health services and 800 in leisure and hospitality. It gained 400 jobs in construction and 100 in financial activities.

"There's concern about the recovery - it is moving forward but at a much slower pace," said Ann D. Lang, senior economist at the Virginia Employment Commission. "The housing market and labor market are so slow in returning - that worries employers and consumers."

Nationwide, the state with the highest unemployment rate was Nevada, at 14.4 percent, while North Dakota had the lowest rate, at 3.7 percent. North Carolina gained the most jobs in August, adding 18,600. Michigan lost the most, shedding 50,300.

Parents of student get custody of ‘abandoned’ baby

JITRA: The parents of a 20-year-old student who lied to police about finding a baby behind her house will have custody of the newborn girl.

The Kubang Pasu welfare department said the parents of the student – from a higher education institution in Selangor – have agreed to take care and look after the infant.

The student initially claimed she found the infant, with the umbilical cord still attached, behind her house in Taman Rasa Sayang here on Saturday evening.

She claimed she was bathing when she heard the baby crying and later “rescued” the child.

She and her mother later lodged a police report about finding an abandoned baby.

Police investigators later found that the 2.8kg baby was actually the newborn child of the student.

Police saw through the ruse when she began to make inconsistent statements about finding the baby.

The Jitra Hospital later examined her and confirmed she had just given birth.

Prominent Pakistani politician murdered outside his London home

Imran Farooq claimed asylum in Britain after spending seven years on the run as one of Pakistan's most wanted fugitives. Photo: GETTY

Green Lane, Edgware Photo: Google Street View

Dr Farooq, 50, was repeatedly stabbed in the head and neck during the assault in Edgware, north London.

He was a leading member of the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) party, which is one of the largest in Pakistan.

There were suggestions from Pakistan that he may have known his killer. When police arrived at the scene, they found Dr Farooq’s body outside his house.

A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said officers attended an address in Green Lane, Edgware, shortly before 5.30pm after reports of a serious assault. “On arrival, officers found a single Asian man aged 50 with multiple stab wounds and head injuries,” the spokesman said.

“Paramedics attended the man but he was pronounced dead at the scene.”

Next of kin have been informed and no arrests have been made.

Dr Farooq was expected to attend a birthday celebration at the MQM headquarters on London’s Edgware Road on Thursday night but the event was cancelled at the last minute. Police said it was too early to know if the murder was politically motivated.

The politician claimed asylum in Britain after spending seven years on the run as one of Pakistan’s most wanted fugitives. He was accused of a range of charges, including murder and torture.

He has not returned to Pakistan since his arrival in England in 1992.

He claimed that year that he was wanted “dead or alive”.

“[This gave] licence and impunity to every individual in Pakistan to assassinate me,” he said.

Dr Farooq said he spent more than seven years in hiding in Karachi, southern Pakistan. He continued: “It was impossible for me to remain in Pakistan due to the continued threat on my life and liberty.”

He insisted the claims against him in Pakistan were politically motivated and continued his involvement with the party from Britain.

Last month Raza Haider, another MQM member, was gunned down with his guard as he attended a funeral near the centre of Karachi. The killing triggered violence in which dozens of people were killed and at least 100 wounded.

Azeem Tariq, the former chairman, was murdered in Karachi 13 years ago. Intruders entered his home and shot him as he slept.

MQM, based in Karachi, is the fourth largest party in Pakistan and is part of the ruling coalition government. It has a strong anti-Taliban stance, although rivals accuse it of exaggerating the threat of the Taliban.

The party represents mainly descendants of Urdu-speaking migrants from India who settled in Pakistan when it was created in 1947.

A statement on the MQM website said the party had declared a ten-day period of mourning in Pakistan and around the world.

London has played host to many of Pakistan’s exiled politicians. Gen Pervez Musharraf, the former president, lives in self-imposed exile in London.

Column: Breaking down the Nadal era

What makes Rafa, Rafa?

What makes a tennis player a tennis champion to the degree that Rafael Nadal has already obtained at the age of 24, and barring injury, should continue to do for many years to come?

Born to an athletic family on the island of Mallorca on June 3 of 1986 to Sebastian and Ana Maria Nadal, Rafael Nadal grew up playing as much soccer as he did tennis.

He father a business partner with two brothers of a restaurant as well as owner of a glass and window company hired one of his brothers, Toni, who was a Spanish tennis professional, to help train his son.

So from the age of four, Uncle Toni has been Rafael's coach, mentor, support system, strategist and emotional anchor - continuing in that vein even today.

At the age of 12 Rafa's father said he had to make the choice of playing tennis or playing soccer because both were taking too much of his time from his studies.

So with his uncle's advice of feeling he could achieve much more playing tennis, that's the direction he went.

At the age of 14 the Spanish Tennis Federation wanted Nadal to train with it in Barcelona, but his father decided otherwise, and took on the full financial obligation to help Rafa reach his potential.

In an exhibition match with Pat Cash that same year, he showed how much promise he had defeating the former Wimbledon champion.

Before his 16th birthday, Rafa won his first ATP match. By 2004 he gained his first win against the No. 1 one player in the world, Roger Federer in straight sets, the beginning of a great rivalry.

By 2005 Rafa was ranked within the top five players in the world. In his first appearance at the French Open he won his first major title, reached the No. 2 position on the ATP tour and captured 11 titles for the year.

Not bad for a teenager.

Fast-forward to 2010, Rafael Nadal has won nine major singles titles at the age of 24, while Federer owns 16 and he's 29.

The latest came this past Monday with his first U.S. Open win, which added the one major he hadn't won. That gave him wins at all four majors an unbelievable accomplishment that few have achieved.

Only seven players have won what's known as a career slam, and only Agassi and Nadal have done that and won Olympic gold medals too.

So back to the original thought: why has Rafael Nadal excelled so well?

Uncle Toni and his family has played a major part in Rafa's development, there can be no mistake in that. Toni has helped teach his student and nephew modesty, how to stay down-to-earth while instilling values and qualities that show with hard work you can achieve your goals, realizing there's always room for improvement.

It's about attitude, discipline and perspective, that help define results and improve motivation.

There is also the question of staying healthy, physically and mentally.

You can put this whole package together and have a bout of severe tendonitis in your knees, a stress fracture affect your ankle, or the divorce of your parents hit your core, all of these things have happened to Nadal, yet he's returned to what could become known as the Nadal Era.

If you've noticed, even though not together as husband and wife, his parents were both in the stands together cheering their son on with his team of coaches, sister, girlfriend and uncle at the Open finals.

In 2007 in a finals defeat at the Australian Open Toni said he cried like an animal in the locker room, yet we've all seen him console Federer with sympathy, respect and sensitivity- playing down the lime light he rightly deserved in major wins against the master.

His game continues to improve.

He has a better serve, with more speed, spin and location.

His number of aces have more than doubled this year from 3.2 per match to 7.5

Federer hits topspin balls that average 2,700 revolutions per minute, while Rafa's are 3,200. The speedy footwork and great court coverage is above reproach, but continually trained on.

Nadal's goal for the rest of the year is simple, to keep improving.

Uncle Toni was asked if he thought Rafa might become the greatest player of all time, his response, "Ask me in five or six years."

Yahoo Again Cuts Into Google's Share Of Search Market

Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) continued to boost its slice of the Web-search market, taking market share from sector giant Google Inc. (GOOG) again in August, according to data released by an industry researcher.

According to monthly data from comScore Inc. (SCOR), Google still sat comfortably atop Web-search rankings, garnering 65.4% of U.S. core searches, down 0.4 percentage points from July. Meanwhile, Yahoo added 0.3 percentage points to its share of the market, bringing it to 17.1%. Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) Bing engine added 0.1 percentage point to its cut of the market, bringing its share to 17.1%.

Overall, users made nearly 15.7 billion searches in August.

ComScore has shifted how it reports its data after Yahoo's "contextual searches" skewed results in June. While comScore's definition of a search included the traditional search-box query type of searches, it also included some automatic search results that pop up without a user entering a specific query. Now, the group is measuring U.S. explicit core searches, which exclude contextual searches that don't reflect any intent by users

Review: 'The Town' worth visiting

The decent-hearted criminal trying to go straight. The beautiful woman who doesn't know whether to love him or turn him in to the authorities. The live-wire partner whose erratic behavior threatens to get them all locked away for life. The dogged FBI agent who won't rest until justice is served.

I know what you're thinking: Isn't that the plot of every third episode of "Cold Case"?

But in the confident, assured hands of director Ben Affleck -- taking a leap beyond his ambitious but muddled debut "Gone Baby Gone" -- these familiar ingredients are transformed into something new. "The Town" is a tough, muscular crime drama with a biting wit. It's like a cup of scalding, acid black coffee after the long slumber of the summer movie season.

Affleck announces his intentions in the opening scenes, with a nervously edited, ruthlessly efficient bank robbery, featuring four men in spooky Skeletor masks. They force their way inside and then force the assistant manager (Rebecca Hall, "Vicky Cristina Barcelona") to open the safe. When the cops show up, the robbers -- led by longtime Boston-born friends Doug MacRay (Affleck) and Jim Coughlin (Jeremy Renner) -- take the bank manager hostage.

But even after they release her, their paranoia becomes hard to shake: Might she be able to identify one of them to the feds? Doug starts trailing her, strikes up a conversation at a laundromat and -- before even realizing the dangers involved -- he's falling in love.

As wildly melodramatic as it might sound, "The Town" -- based on the novel "Prince of Thieves" by Chuck Hogan, and ably adapted by Peter Craig, Aaron Stockard and Affleck -- feels entirely plausible and naturalistic. That's partly because Affleck and cinematographer Robert Elswit ("There Will Be Blood") invest so much in bringing alive the Boston setting.

"The town" refers to the Charlestown neighborhood, a dingy section of south Boston, lorded over by a crime boss who doubles as a florist (Pete Postlethwaite, who could do these roles in his sleep, but still does them better than anyone). Affleck has a terrific eye for the way yuppified condos bump up against crumbling old houses, but more than that, he has a great feel for the sometimes perverse loyalties that develop in any tight-knit, family-centered community.

The bulk of "The Town" concerns Doug's desperate efforts to break free from Charlestown, even as his circumstances become hopelessly complicated: Jim continues to insist they take on new assignments; a wily FBI agent (an effective Jon Hamm) tries to bring them down; and Doug's longtime girlfriend, Jim's sister Krista (Blake Lively), refuses to let him break up with her.

Echoing those other recent Boston-based crime epics, "Mystic River" and "The Departed," "The Town" feels a tad overplotted, and it strains for an operatic anguish it doesn't always earn. The weakest link, in fact, is Affleck's own performance, which never fully captures Doug's fundamental decency, or, for that matter, his strain of sociopathy. (Oddly enough, the Boston-raised Affleck's accent is also the least convincing in the movie.)

But that's a forgivable flaw in a movie that otherwise strikes a deft balance between the cynical and the humane. Much like "The Departed," "The Town" looks upon this dog-eat-dog world of petty criminality with a jaundiced, comic eye. But Affleck never lets the characters devolve into cartoons the way Martin Scorsese did, coaxing tense, nuanced performances from Renner, Hall, Lively and Chris Cooper, who turns up briefly as Doug's incarcerated dad.

He also turns out to be a shockingly good director of action. In addition to that superb opening bank robbery, "The Town" serves up two successively more elaborate heists. The climax, especially, is a beauty, a hailstorm of gunfire and smoke and crunching metal, set at Fenway Park. The result is a purely pleasurable, old-school entertainment that never once insults your intelligence.

Who'da thunk? Ben Affleck has been reborn as one of the most promising young film directors working today.

'The Town'

H*H 1/2

Rating: R (for language, violence
and sexual content)
Cast: Ben Affleck, Jeremy Renner,
Jon Hamm and Rebecca Hall
Director: Ben Affleck
Running time:
2 hours,
5 minu

Oracle Rises After Corporate Spending Fuels Software, Sun Sales

Oracle hired Mark Hurd, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard Co., on Sept. 6 as co-president responsible for sales, marketing and customer support. Kimberly White/Bloomberg

Play Video

Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Brent Thill, analyst at UBS AG, talks about first-quarter earnings at Oracle Corp. Oracle reported profit and revenue that beat analysts’ estimates as sales of database software and Sun Microsystems server computers helped it capitalize on a recovery in information-technology spending. Thill talks with Carol Massar and Matt Miller on Bloomberg Television's "Street Smart." (Source: Bloomberg)

Play Video

Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Renny Ponvert, chief executive officer of Management CV, talks about Oracle Corp.'s decision to hire Mark Hurd, who formerly ran Hewlett-Packard Co., as co-president. Ponvert speaks with Pimm Fox on Bloomberg Television's "Taking Stock." (Source: Bloomberg)

Oracle Corp., the second-largest software maker, rose in late trading yesterday after its first- quarter results and sales forecast topped analysts’ estimates, helped by an expansion into computer hardware.

Excluding acquisition costs and other expenses, earnings climbed to 42 cents a share last quarter, beating the 37-cent average of projections compiled by Bloomberg. Oracle indicated that sales will be at least $8.4 billion in the current period. Analysts had estimated $8.21 billion.

The company is counting on hardware to spur a new wave of growth, underpinned by its acquisition of Sun Microsystems Inc. this year. Oracle is assembling more prepackaged systems, which combine its software with Sun’s servers. By adding salespeople and engineers and moving away from low-end machines, Oracle aims to squeeze more sales and profit from hardware, which generated $1.7 billion last quarter.

“We can dramatically improve margins and double the top line,” Chief Executive Officer Larry Ellison said on a conference call, without giving a timeframe for the growth.

Oracle rose 4.7 percent to $26.55 in extended trading. The shares, up 3.4 percent this year, had closed at $25.36 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

The company, based in Redwood City, California, reports sales that include deferred revenue from acquired businesses and don’t conform to generally accepted accounting principles. On that basis, sales in the period ended Aug. 31 jumped 50 percent to $7.59 billion. Analysts on average predicted $7.32 billion.

Bigger Deals

“Deals seem to be getting a little bigger,” President Safra Catz said on the conference call.

Oracle is capitalizing on a recovery in corporate information-technology spending by offering a range of software products assembled through acquisitions. The hiring this month of Mark Hurd, who formerly ran Hewlett-Packard Co., may help the company manage Sun and expand into new areas of hardware. Oracle bought Sun for $7.3 billion in January.

Oracle’s earnings add evidence that corporate spending has supplanted consumers as the main driver of demand for computers and software.

Intel Corp., the largest supplier of computer chips, said on Aug. 27 that its third-quarter revenue will be below its previous forecast, partly because of weaker-than-expected demand for consumer personal computers. Dell Inc. also cited weakness in U.S. consumer demand for PCs when its second-quarter gross margin fell short of projections.

Profit Forecast

Excluding some costs, profit will be 45 cents to 47 cents a share this quarter, Catz said. Analysts had estimated 45 cents. Sales will grow 43 percent to 47 percent from a year earlier, excluding the effect of currency fluctuations, she said.

“They surprised across the board, line by line,” said Sasa Zorovic, an analyst at Janney Montgomery Scott LLC in Boston. He recommends buying the shares and doesn’t own them. “IT spending is recovering, and in the past couple of quarters Oracle has done better than the overall IT environment.”

Oracle is the largest seller of database software, second to SAP AG in business applications, and the No. 2 provider of application-connecting middleware -- after International Business Machines Corp. Its goal for Sun, a money loser at the time of the acquisition, is to contribute $1.5 billion in operating income during its first year in the fold.

Combined Products

The company will unveil “two high-end systems that combine Sun hardware with Oracle software” at next’s weeks Oracle OpenWorld show in San Francisco, Hurd said in a statement.

Investors are looking for clues from Oracle about whether Hurd’s hiring signals more hardware acquisitions, Zorovic said.

“To what extent will Sun be the first of many in hardware?” Zorovic said.

Net income in the fiscal first quarter rose 20 percent to $1.35 billion, or 27 cents a share, from $1.12 billion, or 22 cents, a year earlier. Sales in the year-earlier period were $5.06 billion.

New software license sales, an indicator of future revenue, rose 25 percent to $1.29 billion. David Hilal, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets in Arlington, Virginia, predicted $1.12 billion.

Sales of new database and middleware licenses rose 32 percent to $937 million. Business applications license revenue increased 10 percent to $349 million.

Corporate technology spending will increase 2.9 percent this year to more than $2.4 trillion, after a 5.9 percent decline last year, according to market-research firm Gartner Inc. in Stamford, Connecticut.

Support Contracts

Ellison has bought more than 65 companies since early 2005. That’s increased the types of programs Oracle can sell and added customers who eventually buy support contracts, providing a stream of profitable revenue.

Oracle hired Hurd on Sept. 6 as a co-president responsible for sales, marketing and customer support. HP filed a lawsuit on Sept. 7 seeking to block Hurd from working at Oracle. Serving as an Oracle president would make it “impossible” for him to avoid using or disclosing HP’s trade secrets and confidential information, according to the state court complaint.

The suit hasn’t prevented Hurd from starting work at Oracle.

“Hurd fits well into Oracle’s next challenge -- competing in the market for integrated hardware and software systems,” FBR’s Hilal said in a note to clients. He rates Oracle “outperform.”

AIDS virus in monkeys much older than thought: study

WASHINGTON — An HIV-like virus that infects monkeys is thousands of years older than previously thought and its slow evolution could have disturbing implications for humans, according to a new study.

Scientists said the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) -- the ancestor to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS -- is probably between 32,000 and 75,000 years old and may even date back a million years.

"If it took thousands of years for SIV to evolve into a primarily non-lethal state, it would likely take a very long time for HIV to naturally follow the same trajectory," a statement from Tulane University said.

The work led by researchers from Tulane and the University of Arizona included a genetic analysis of SIV strains found in monkeys on Bioko, an island off the coast of what is now Cameroon which split off the continent of Africa after the ice age more than 10,000 years ago.

The study, published in the September 17 issue of the journal Science, calls into question previous DNA sequencing data that estimated the virus's age at only a few hundred years.

"The biology and geography of SIV is such that it goes from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean all the way to the tip of Africa," said virologist Preston Marx of the Tulane National Primate Research Center and a co-leader of the research.

"It would take many, many thousands of years to spread that far and couldn't have happened in a couple of hundred years."

Marx tested his theory that SIV had ancient origins by seeking out DNA samples from monkey populations that had been isolated for thousands of years.

The researchers found four different strains of SIV that were genetically divergent from those found on the mainland. They compared DNA sequences of the viruses with the assumption that they were tracking how both evolved over 10,000 years.

The computer modeling showed the rate of mutation to be much slower than previously thought, indicating that virus is between 32,000 and 75,000 years old to have evolved to its current state. These dates set a new minimum age for SIV, although it is likely to be even older, Marx says.

Researcher Michael Worobey of the University of Arizona said this slow evolution from a deadly virus to a relatively harmless suggests AIDS may continue to be a killer.

"If HIV is going to evolve to lower virulence, it is unlikely to happen anytime soon," he said.

But the scientists said the study also raises new questions about how HIV became an epidemic. It remains unclear why, if humans had been exposed to SIV-infected monkeys for thousands of years, the HIV epidemic only began in the 20th century.

"Something happened in the 20th century to change this relatively benign monkey virus into something that was much more potent and could start the epidemic. We don't know what that flashpoint was, but there had to be one," Marx said.

Smoke-Free Laws May Help Kids Breathe Easier

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 15 (HealthDay News) -- Laws that ban smoking in workplaces and public settings seem to show a fringe benefit: Scottish researchers report that such legislation is linked with a decline in hospital admissions for childhood asthma.

Researchers have long known that exposure to tobacco smoke increases the incidence and severity of asthma, and that children are especially vulnerable.

While other studies have looked at the effects of smoking bans on all ages, and have taken into account on-the-job exposure, "ours is the first study to have looked at a subgroup of the population [children], who do not have occupational exposure," said lead researcher Dr. Jill Pell, the Henry Mechan Professor of Public Health at the University of Glasgow.

In March of 2006, the Smoking, Health and Social Care Act was passed in Scotland. It banned smoking in all enclosed public places and in workplaces.

For the study, Pell and her colleagues identified all the hospital admissions for asthma among children under the age of 15 from January 2000 through October 2009.

The investigators found a total of 21,415 admissions for asthma. Before the smoking law passed, admissions were increasing, on average, by 5.2 percent per year.

After the law passed, there was a reduction, on average, of 18.2 percent each year, relative to the rate on the day the law went into effect.

"The evidence from Scotland is that legislation has an effect that extends beyond the locations that are covered by the restrictions," Pell said. "In Scotland there has been an increase in voluntary bans in the home and a resultant reduction in exposure to secondhand smoke among children. It is clear that legislation has a more general effect on smoking attitudes and behaviors."

She is confident the same effects are already occurring in the United States as well, as smoking bans have been passed.

In the Scottish study, the decline in admissions for asthma was seen in both preschool and school-age children.

When the legislation was first discussed, some feared that the bans in public and workplaces might cause home smoking to increase. But there's no evidence of that, she said. Instead the laws seem to have been followed by an increase in voluntary restriction of smoking at home.

The study was supported by a grant from NHS Health Scotland.

"The findings are a confirmation of the beneficial effect of reducing the exposure of children to environmental tobacco smoke," said Dr. E. Rand Sutherland, chief of the division of pulmonary and critical care medicine at National Jewish Health, in Denver.

"The study also suggests, importantly, that children [and not just adults] can be the beneficiaries of smoke-free policies which target the workplace and public spaces," he added.

In the United States, more than 200,000 episodes of childhood asthma each year have been blamed on parental smoking, some research has found.

Test hope in prostate cancer battle

A single blood test for men aged 60 could identify those most likely to develop and die from prostate cancer, new research has suggested.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, with 35,000 in the UK diagnosed every year, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Screening is used in certain countries, but remains open to debate with medical experts weighing up the benefits of screening against the potential harms and costs of over-diagnosis and over-treatment of healthy men.

Prostate cancer can develop when cells in the prostate gland start to grow in an uncontrolled way.

The findings in the British Medical Journal suggested the single test could pinpoint which men needed to be monitored closely and others who needed no further checks.

Professor Philipp Dahm and colleagues at the University of Florida reviewed six previous screening trials involving 387,286 participants. They found routine screening aided the diagnosis of prostate cancer at an earlier stage, but did not have a significant impact on death rates and raised the risk of over-treatment.

A second study by headed by Professor Hans Lilja, showed a single "prostate-specific antigen" (PSA) level test at age 60 strongly predicted a man's risk of diagnosis and death from prostate cancer.

The team found 90% of prostate cancer deaths occurred in men with the highest PSA levels at age 60, while men with average or low PSA levels had negligible rates of prostate cancer or death by age 85.

The findings suggested at least half of men aged 60 and above might be exempted from further prostate cancer screening.

Gerald Andriole, chief of urologic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine, suggested PSA testing should be geared to individual risk. He recommended young men at high risk of prostate cancer, for example those with a strong family history, should be monitored closely, while elderly men and those with a low risk of disease could be tested less often.

Japanese Bonds Pare Advance After Government Intervenes in Currency Market

Japan’s 10-year bonds pared earlier gains as stocks rallied after the nation intervened in the currency market for the first time since 2004.

Ten-year yields climbed from a two-week low as the Nikkei 225 Stock Average surged the most in seven weeks, damping demand for the relative safety of government debt. Bonds rose earlier after Moody’s Investors Service said Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s policy strategy supports the stable outlook on Japan’s debt ratings. Kan defeated Ichiro Ozawa in the ruling party’s leadership election yesterday.

“The currency intervention prompted investors to take profit, weighing on the bond market,” said Kazuya Ito, a fund manager at Daiwa SB Investments Ltd. in Tokyo. “The size of the intervention hasn’t become clear, and there may be a sell-off of the dollar again to test the authorities’ resolve. So, people can’t continue to sell bonds.”

The yield of the benchmark 10-year bond fell 4.5 basis points to 1.06 percent as of 1:38 p.m. in Tokyo at Japan Bond Trading Co., the nation’s largest interdealer debt broker. The 1 percent security due September 2020 rose 0.403 yen to 99.457 yen. The yield earlier dropped as much as 6.5 basis points.

Ten-year bond futures for December delivery gained 0.55 to 141.85 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The Nikkei 225 gained 2.5 percent, the most since July 28.

The yen weakened to as low as 85.09 per dollar today after earlier appreciating to 82.88, the strongest since May 1995. A stronger yen reduces the value of overseas sales at Japanese companies when repatriated.

Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda confirmed the intervention and told reporters in Tokyo the move was unilateral. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said the ministry considers 82 per dollar to be the line of defense.

Kan’s Victory

Bonds still gained for the day on speculation Kan’s victory over Ozawa yesterday will allow him to implement measures to trim the nation’s debt levels.

Kan, a former finance minister, has said he will consider doubling the sales tax to tackle the world’s largest public debt. He vows to end Japan’s prolonged struggle with deflation.

Thomas Byrne, senior vice president at Moody’s, said in an e-mail that Kan’s strategy supports the stable outlook on Japan’s Aa2 rating and the focus will be on whether he can follow through on and flesh out his fiscal plans.

Ten-year yields had gained more than 20 basis points since Ozawa expressed his intention on Aug. 26 to challenge Kan. Ozawa, who heads the DPJ’s largest faction, has said the government may have to issue more bonds for spending measures to boost the economy.

Breakeven Rate

The so-called breakeven rate shows investors’ projections for inflation were little changed even after Kan’s victory.

“Intervention alone can’t put the yen in a sustainable depreciation trend,” said Junichi Makino, a senior economist at Daiwa Institute of Research Ltd. in Tokyo. “It worked today, but it doesn’t guarantee it will be effective tomorrow. We can’t really expect effective measures from the government to turn around Japan’s economic stagnation and beat deflation.”

Traders see prices falling an average 0.98 percent over the next five years, as measured by the difference in yields between inflation-linked bonds and conventional debt. The so-called breakeven rate has been negative for at least a year.

The United Nations said in its annual Trade and Development report yesterday a continuation of the global expansionary fiscal stance is necessary to prevent a deflationary spiral. Deflation, a general drop in prices, enhances the purchasing power of the fixed payments from debt.

“It’s very difficult to maintain an economic recovery while restructuring a nation’s finances,” said Koichi Kurose, chief strategist in Tokyo at Resona Bank Ltd., which manages about $57 billion. “It’s desirable to take account of the risk” of a global deflationary spiral.

Major League Soccer expands to a 34-game schedule in 2011

Major League Soccer will now feature a 34-game season in 2011.

Photo: Photo: Getty Images/Mike Stobe

Major League Soccer has announced that they will expand the regular season from 30 games to 34 games in 2011. MLS is expanding the size of the league from 16 teams to 18 teams with the addition of the Portland Timbers, coached by John Spencer, and the Vancouver Whitecaps.

The season will run for 32 straight weeks with no stoppage in play for any tournaments like they did in 2010 for the World Cup. The season will begin on March 19th and run until October 22nd. An MLS committee will meet in October to decide upon the scheduling details.

Hopefully, the home-and-away balanced schedule will continue in 2011. More or less, it makes the league into a single table. This year with a balanced schedule will be the first year where undoubtedly the most deserving eight teams make the MLS Cup playoffs. If the season ended today, six teams from the Western Conference would make the playoffs joining just New York and Columbus from the East. With the addition of two more Western teams in 2011, it may be time that Major League Soccer finally switches to a single table format

Jennifer Lopez: $12 million for `Idol'

People.Com and The New York Post report Jennifer Lopez has signed on for that sum to plug holes that keep springing on that judge's panel. Simon Cowell -- for many the voice of reason -- bailed in May during the lackluster Season 9 finale that saw Lee DeWyze crowned the ninth (and least) Idol. Cowell plans an American version of his British hit show X Factor for the 2011 fall season.

Shortly after Cowell left, Ellen DeGeneres, who never worked out well as a judge because she'd parrot Randy Jackson's opinion, announced she was leaving the show. This month, Kara DioGuardi, who could give astute advice but often with the personality of a pickle, also announced she was leaving.

A $12 million paycheck means Lopez now approaches host Ryan Seacrest's $15 million pay (why, Fox, why?) and tops Jackson and his $8 million contract.

Bing Beats Yahoo in Search, a Symbolic Win

Bing's vault over Yahoo in U.S. search volume should come as no surprise to anyone who's been following the horse race, but it's a symbolic milestone for a baby search engine whose prime directive is to take some of Google's advertising pie.

With Yahoo out of the way, according to the latest search share statistics from Nielsen, Bing's goal of becoming a genuine competitor to Google becomes a little more realistic. Bing, along with MSN and Windows Live, now has 13.9 percent of all search share. Yahoo fell to 13.1 percent, and Google still dominates with 65.1 percent. As Search Engine Land points out, Bing is still in third place by other metrics from comScore and Hitwise.

Ultimately, though, the horse race is only interesting in the way it inspires new features and services among the competitors. Look for the battle between Google and Bing to play out in three venues:

Core Search

Google's recent launch of Google Instant, which displays and modifies search results as you type, is the perfect example of how search engines will try to one-up each other and differentiate themselves. Actual search results are somewhat indistinguishable when detached from their interfaces, but there's no mistaking Google from the pack now. A year ago, an independent programmer used Bing APIs to create a similar version of instant search results. Will Bing implement instant search on its own, or decide that it's not an idea worth imitating?

Surrounding Features

Using different search engines for different services is a pain, so it falls upon Google and Bing to create the most attractive overall services, including maps, images and other areas besides traditional search. Lately, Google has beefed up its real-time search engine to provide better results from Twitter and Facebook. Bing has added streaming music (following Google's lead), plus games and movie information to its search results. Bing also updated Maps last month to include a cab fare calculator and support for OpenStreetMap.

Mobile

Google has a strong grip on mobile searches, as the default search engine for iPhone and, of course, Android. But Windows Phone 7 has the chance to give Bing a boost, as do Bing's iPhone and Android apps. Also, the mandatory use of Bing in Verizon's new Fascinate phone may not sit well with Google fans, but it will give Microsoft's search engine another helping hand, albeit by force.

Twitter announces its first redesign

Twitter cofounders Biz Stone, right, and Evan Williams discuss changes to the social networking site at company headquarters in San Francisco. (Marcio Jose Sanchez, Associated Press / September 15, 2010)

Twitter Inc. has redesigned its website for the first time in its four-year history to draw more users and get them to stay longer as it competes for advertising dollars with Internet rivals Google Inc. and Facebook Inc.

The redesign, which will roll out to the website's 160 million users over the next several weeks, is intended to make the site easier and faster to use and to serve up more relevant content to users, executives said at a news conference at Twitter's San Francisco headquarters.

Company Chief Executive Evan Williams said that the changes would allow users to get "more out of Twitter in a lot less time."

As Twitter's popularity has spread since its 2006 introduction, the website has gotten a reputation for being difficult to use and for crashing too frequently. Twitter has been a victim of its own popularity — 370,000 new users sign up each day.

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Twitter has lagged in finding ways to boost revenue. It recently launched new advertising formats and ramped up its sales force. Executives hope the redesign, which will make ads easier to view, will help Twitter better compete with Google and Facebook for advertisers.

Users of the redesigned site will be able to see more information about the authors of Tweets — the Twitter messages that can be no more than 140 characters in length. Also, conversations between users will be able to be viewed, as will photos and videos referenced in updates.

One of the biggest changes to the Twitter site is that users will be able to see two panes instead of a single timeline of updates. They will be able to scroll through the timeline in the left pane without clicking back and forth to see more information about updates or their authors.

Twitter executives said deals had been crafted with 16 photo and video sites, including YouTube and Flickr, to have their visual content embedded on Twitter.com.

Flush with venture capital funding that valued the 250-employee company at $1 billion, top executives have been focusing their efforts on making the Twitter experience simpler and better.

Williams said he had spent much of his time over the last five months on the redesign. "This is a complete revamp," he said.

Twitter's audience growth in the United States has tapered off in the last year, but internationally has continued to grow at a rapid clip, ComScore Inc. analyst Andrew Lipsman said. Twitter also continues to show strong user engagement, Lipsman said.

Forrester Research social media analyst Augie Ray called the announcement a "significant evolution."

"The long-term effects could be substantial as Twitter focuses on powering growth by improving Twitter consumption," Ray said.

Mayer to tweet no more

(CNN) -- Grammy Award-winning musician John Mayer has gone cold turkey, giving up his Twitter account and its millions of followers.

"With the Battle Studies Tour now at a close and a return to the studio planned, John has discontinued his Twitter account," a representative said Tuesday. "However, he continues to communicate with his fans via his blog as he always has."

The move to de-tweet breaks a pledge Mayer made in an interview with CNN's Denise Quan in the fall of 2009.

"You neuter your own Twitter account, you show fear," Mayer said. "I think you show fear when you delete it."

Mayer had been an avid user of the microblogging site -- posting accounts of everyday life, making apologies for his use of the N-word during a Playboy interview and announcing impromptu concerts at small clubs.

Mayer had an estimated 3.7 million followers when he pulled the plug.

Intel Reveals Sandy Bridge Processor Details

Intel says laptops and desktops powered by the company's next-generation microarchitecture, which merges graphics and x86 cores on a single die, will be available early next year.

Codenamed Sandy Bridge, the 32-nanometer processor, which goes into production later this year, will also be the first to support new vector graphics. Details of Sandy Bridge were released Monday at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco.

of virtualization, and why it's good for a CIO to fail.

The Sandy Bridge architecture marks the second generation of Intel's Core processor family, which include the Core i3, i5 and i7 chips. Computer makers are expected to ship laptops and desktops running Sandy Bridge chips early next year, Dadi Perlmutter, executive VP and general manager of the Intel Architecture Group, said during his keynote.

"Our upcoming second generation Intel Core processor family represents the biggest advance in computing performance and capabilities over any previous generation," Perlmutter said in a statement. "In addition to offering these features inside Intel-based laptops, we plan to scale these advances across our server data center and embedded computing product portfolio."

Sandy Bridge is the first Intel microarchitecture to combine the graphics processor and x86 cores in a single die. Previous architectures had the graphics chip embedded in the motherboard.

The new design boosts performance by allowing the CPU and graphics to share the same resources, such as cache and memory reservoir, according to Intel. While upping performance, the new architecture also is more energy efficient than previous generations.

Other firsts in Sandy Bridge include Intel's new Advanced Vector Extension to the x86 instruction set. AVX is expected to improve processors' performance in handling floating-point intensive calculations in general applications that process images, video and audio, and in engineering applications that provide 3-D modeling and analysis, scientific simulation, and financial analytics.

Sandy Bridge, which will replace Intel's current 45-nanometer microarchitecture, codenamed Nehalem, will go head-to-head with rival Advanced Micro Devices's new core designs scheduled for release next year. Codenamed Bulldozer and Bobcat, the new architectures also combine the CPU and graphics cores on a single die. Bulldozer is aimed at high-performance desktops, workstations and servers, while Bobcat is targeted at low-power laptops and small-form factor desktops.

Perlmutter on Monday also demonstrated at IDF a dual-core, next-generation Xeon processor running a two-socket server. Chips based on the 32-nanometer architecture are scheduled for production in the second half of next year. Processors built for two-socket servers and workstations will run 8 cores and 16 threads per processo

Nadal's US Open win gives Spain yet another triumph in amazing sporting year

MADRID — Spain's golden year of sporting success just keeps getting sweeter and sweeter.

Rafael Nadal's victory at the U.S. Open is the latest coup for Spain in a season-long fiesta on the international stage.

Spain won soccer's World Cup in South Africa, Alberto Contador captured his third Tour de France and now Nadal has completed a career Grand Slam.

Nadal followed up his victories at the French Open and Wimbledon this summer by beating Novak Djokovic 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2 in the U.S. Open final on Monday for his ninth Grand Slam title. At age 24, the Mallorca native is already being talked about as one of the greatest players of all time.

"He's already a legend," sports daily Marca said of Nadal, describing him as "the best in history" by this stage of his career.

Many newspapers are asking if Nadal could be the greatest Spanish athlete of all-time. Nadal also won Olympic gold in Beijing two years ago and has helped Spain to three of its four Davis Cup titles since 2004.

"History is at his feet," Marca said.

El Pais wrote: "The Spaniard leaves the city that never sleeps with the most pleasant dream possible: champion, myth and, now, a legend."

A quick, unscientific poll done Monday on the website of radio station Cadena Ser said that of roughly 1,700 people who took part, 80 per cent said Nadal could become the best tennis player in history.

Davis Cup teammate Fernando Verdasco, who lost to Nadal beat in the U.S. Open quarter-finals, was also full of praise.

"Congratulations from here to Rafa Nadal for winning the us.open, for the way he played and unbelievable (fourth) set with only 2 errors!" Verdasco wrote on his official Twitter page. "So BIG!"

There was no immediate public reaction from Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero or King Juan Carlos but Spanish opposition leader Mariano Rajoy paid tribute to Nadal.

"He really is something. We have to thank him because he makes us happy without asking for anything in exchange. No one gives as much as he does," Rajoy said.

Nadal's victory also raised the nation's spirits following the only real disappointment this year: Spain's national team failed to defend its world basketball championship title in Turkey, losing to Serbia in the quarter-finals.

But there could be more celebrations to come.

Spanish racing driver Fernando Alonso won the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday and remains in the hunt for his third Formula One title, which could cap a truly unforgettable year.

India Minister: Hope to Resolve BlackBerry Issue in Two Months

NEW DELHI -- India hopes to resolve the issue of access to Research In Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry services within the two-month time frame provided by the government, the federal communications minister said Tuesday.

"Home Ministry has extended the time frame for RIM. We are periodically reviewing," A. Raja told reporters on the sidelines of an industry conference.

The government had threatened to ban BlackBerry if the Canadian company failed to come up with tools to monitor the services by the end of August.

However, it extended the deadline for another two months from Sept. 1 after RIM provided solutions for local security agencies to monitor the company's BlackBerry corporate email service. RIM had already provided access to other services such as messenger and chat.

On Aug. 30 India said it would start using the solutions from Sept. 1, assess their feasibility and effectiveness, and review the situation in 60 days.

Separately, Mr. Raja said the Telecom Commission--a part of the Department of Telecommunications--will consider moves to offer relief to companies that received licenses to offer second-generation mobile services in early 2008, but haven't been able to roll out services within the mandatory time frame.

"In the last operator's meeting, it was highlighted bailout provisions may be done. It will be discussed in the telecom commission," Mr. Raja said.

Hunt uncovers lost paintings of a wild west art pioneer

Charles Deas, Sioux Playing Ball, 1843. Lent by the Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa, Oklahoma. Photograph: courtesy of Denver Art Museum

The forgotten works of one of the greatest painters of the wild west are once again capturing the imagination of the American art world at a major exhibition in Denver with their raw, colourful depictions of Native American warriors, fur trappers, rugged settlers and breathtaking scenery.

Charles Deas, a gifted 19th-century artist who captured the essence of the frontier spirit on canvas, died young, locked away in a mental hospital. His works, which had been the toast of New York, were mostly lost and forgotten. Now the Denver Art Museum exhibition, Charles Deas and 1840s America, which opened last weekend, has launched a treasure hunt to track down dozens of lost Deas paintings that could be worth millions.

Art experts, who have scoured America to bring together 39 Deas paintings for the exhibition, have recovered less than half of his known body of work. Records indicate many others could be hidden away in dusty attics, hanging on living-room walls or being sold for a few dollars at garage sales.

"Probably 50 are missing. I am hopeful more of them will show up. A really important work would be worth about a couple of million dollars," said Carol Clark, an art historian who assembled the exhibition.

Clark has spent decades travelling across the US to track down Deas works and co-ordinating the search with others. Paintings have turned up in a remote Nova Scotia fishing village, under a bed in Minneapolis and even hanging on the wall of a St Louis library – attributed to a different artist.

Clark admits that the hunt has been frustrating at times "and really hard work", but she believes it was worth it to rescue the reputation and work of a man who enjoyed a brief but bright flash of popularity in the 1840s before personal tragedy overtook him.

Deas was born in Philadelphia in 1818 into a prominent East Coast family. In 1840 he headed west, painting nature studies as well as intense portraits of Native Americans and white settlers. His most famous work, Long Jakes, features a rugged fur trapper.

Another, Death Struggle, features a Native American and a trapper locked in mortal combat as they tumble together off a cliff. His style was grand and lush and captured the public imagination at a time when the myth of "the west" was being born.

Fame was short-lived. In 1848 he began to suffer from mental illness. He became convinced that God was speaking to him on the streets of New York City and was taken to a mental asylum, where he died 19 years later aged 48. Having examined his records, Clark says that Deas was suffering from schizoaffective disorder. "He had religious delusions and that also ties in with the age of onset of his condition," she said.

Many of his paintings take on the issue of race and the struggle to make a living in tough times. These themes chime with modern-day concerns. "You can look at these paintings and see in them not just musty old messages from the past, but things that are really relevant today," Clark said. Many of the lost works are known from catalogue references.

In chasing up these cold leads, Clark has employed genealogists to trace the descendants of those who bought a Deas. One in particular, painted after Deas had been confined, featured a naked man suspended over water from which a monster was emerging. It proved so shocking when shown in New York that it caused another artist to faint. "I would love to find that one," Clark said.

Clark half-joked that she and the staff at Denver Art Museum had thought about keeping a space clear in the exhibition in case a missing Deas was rediscovered. "I am hopeful that this publicity will flush out a Deas. We would make a space for any Deas that magically turns up next month," she said.

Autopsy: Penn star had brain disease

A study of the brain tissue of Owen Thomas, a University of Pennsylvania football captain who committed suicide in April, reportedly revealed the beginning stages of a degenerative disease that is believed to be caused by repeated head trauma.

A brain autopsy of Thomas showed chronic traumatic encephalopathy, the same disease found in more than 20 deceased NFL players, including former Eagles safety Andre Waters, who committed suicide in 2006 and was found to have suffered from late stages of the disease.

Thomas' mother, Kathy Brearley, said she believes that her son never experienced a concussion in all his years playing football. The junior defensive end apparently hanged himself in his off-campus apartment.

"Up to this point, this concern about head concussions was not on my radar," said Brearley, a minister in Allentown. "That Owen had the onset of this disease at the age of 21 should be a concern to everyone."

Brearley said there is not enough evidence to conclude that a brain injury contributed to her son's death. But she believes the issue should be studied further since she had thought the issue was a concern only for NFL players.

"The evidence coming in from Owen - and it will have to be confirmed from much further study - is that this [injury] is not just a question of a person getting big hits and then ignoring them," Brearley said. "This is a person getting many little hits, starting from a young age. Football linebackers might get 1,000 little hits. Now we're thinking these are like teaspoons. A thousand teaspoons of water could be the same as a big jug. It's possible."

Thomas' disease may have developed from subconcussive collisions, or repetitive blows, doctors told the New York Times, which first reported the results of the research at Boston University.

Dr. Daniel Perl, a professor of pathology at the U.S. Defense Department's Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, said he was amazed that the disease had manifested itself in a person as young as Thomas.

"It may just be an isolated case, but if it is not, it could be very important," said Perl, who was speaking personally and not on behalf of the government. "I think this broadens the range in which we look for this disease."

Perl said the disease is basically the same that has been reported for years in boxers and is now being reported in hockey players.

However, much more research is needed, said Perl, who is studying traumatic brain injuries sustained in combat.

Perl recently reviewed the slides of the tissue at the request of the doctors at Boston University and confirmed the diagnosis was correct.

"It's clearly this disease," he said.

Brearley made it clear that she is not on an anti-football crusade.

"My father-in-law played for Millersville. My husband played for the University of Virginia. My son Matthew also played for Penn. My son Morgan played for East Stroudsburg," she said. "It's a household that just lives, sleeps, and breathes football. We have the interests of the game at heart. We like a robust game. People can say, 'You don't want these head injuries, just don't play it.' We don't say that. We're very passionate about the sport."

Penn football coach Al Bagnoli said Monday that the school had no record of Thomas, a two-year starter, ever suffering a concussion.

"We've been very proactive for the last four years," Bagnoli said. "Every single kid coming in has to take a baseline neurological test. If he has shown any signs of a concussion, he cannot practice until he gets back to that baseline. It takes the guesswork out of it."

Brearley said she and her husband, Tom Thomas, also a minister, got a call two weeks ago from a researcher at the Boston University School of Medicine informing them of the autopsy result. "When she announced he had this CTE, I was astounded," Brearley said. "It was very bittersweet, to tell you the truth. It adds one missing piece. Maybe there are others.

"Suicide is a very complex issue. It's very painful for everyone involved. There are very subjective factors. It's a huge field of research."

Brearley said she wanted to be careful not to try to presume she had a complete picture of her son's thoughts in his final weeks.

"We had regular contact with Owen," she said. "We did notice that he was a lot more subdued [in the] first part of 2010. He did seem to find his classes overwhelming. Owen set very high standards for himself. I tried to counsel him. . . . He was a normal, energetic outgoing person. That last week, I think he really changed. It's sad. My husband and I feel very sad that we never even thought about this sort of thing."

Brearley said she was surprised when Chris Nowinski, a former professional wrestler who has become an activist on the issue of brain trauma, requested her son's brain for an autopsy. The family expected little to come of it. The BU research team was the same one that recently found pathological evidence that repetitive head trauma experienced in collision sports is associated with motor neuron disease, which affects voluntary muscle movements.

"One of the things with Owen, it's so bittersweet - he did not have a history of depression in his life," Brearley said. "He was such a vibrant person. The police have never come around to us about Owen. Maybe he's gone off and done stuff. But it never came to our attention. He was never in a car accident. He never fell out of a tree. There's no other head injury. I think you have a clear a clinical subject as you could ever want to have, to ask: Why does this disease start its path? I think it's a gift in some ways."

Thomas was the second Penn player to commit suicide in five years. Running back Kyle Ambrogi killed himself in 2005.

Brearley said these findings do not mean the family holds anybody responsible; it is not considering any legal action. She knows many studies are tracking head trauma at several age levels.

"I think it's a good opportunity for the Ivy League schools to take the initiative," Brearley said. "They care deeply about our brains. I think this is an opportunity to take a leadership role. I'm sure they will."