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'New Moon' poised for No. 1 boxoffice bow

11/19/2009 01:22:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

Fans have been mooning over all things "Twilight" since the vampire-romance film bowed so bloody well exactly one year ago.

So it's no surprise that the sequel, "The Twilight Saga: New Moon," is projected to sink its teeth into more than $85 million during its first weekend. "New Moon" rises in 4,024 locations, beginning with 3,500 performances at 12:01 a.m. Friday.

Online ticketers said the Summit Entertainment sequel has run up the biggest advance sales of any film in history, with sellouts ensured for many showtimes throughout the weekend. Higher production values and the cast's growing celebrity should help "New Moon" broaden the fanged franchise's base of support from teens and tweens to daughter-and-mom combos and even single older females.

"We know who our audience is, and it's basically females of all ages," Summit distribution topper Richie Fay said. "But some of the TV spots are playing to young males, and we're getting some response to that."

Like "Twilight," "New Moon" is based on one of a series of books by Stephenie Meyer and is rated PG-13, with Chris Weitz ("About a Boy") taking over helming chores and Taylor Lautner's werewolf-in-waiting character muscling aside Robert Pattinson's blood-sucking sulk for predominant screen time. A second book-based sequel, "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," is scheduled for release June 30.

Produced for an estimated $37 million, "Twilight" unspooled with $69.6 million and fetched $191.5 million domestically. That cume will rise a bit with Summit rereleasing the first pic for one day only to help fuel interest in the sequel.

Some believe "New Moon" could flirt with the record set in July by Warner Bros.' "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" with $22 million in opening midnight coin. If that proves true, look for "New Moon" to threaten the magical $100 million mark through Sunday.

Toting a roughly $50 million negative cost, "New Moon" also bows this week in 25 foreign territories. Summit holds worldwide rights but is using a combination of foreign presales and local output deals for its staged international rollout of the pic.

Meanwhile, with the Summit sequel potentially sucking the life out of a diverse range of demos, Warner Bros. might find it difficult to capture the attention of some who normally might be expected to support its sports-themed Sandra Bullock starrer "The Blind Side."

A coming-of-age tale that should resonate with younger moviegoers, "Blind Side" also targets older women based on the appeal of its topliner. Will young and older females alike prove too preoccupied with the weekend buzz film to get behind Warners' lower-profile pic?

Warners executives say no.

"We're going to have a really healthy opening," Warners distribution boss Dan Fellman said.

Early reviews largely have been positive for "Blind Side," which is drawing a wide range of forecasts from midteen millions from industry pessimists to $20 million-plus from others.

Whatever its debut, Warners brass hopes that "Blind Side" has a leggy run typical of Bullock pics.

Situated a bit more propitiously this weekend, Sony-distributed animated feature "Planet 51" has the tots-and-parents crowd pretty much to itself.

Although Disney's 3D animated feature "A Christmas Carol" is likely to post a strong third session, the PG-rated "Planet" should play a big younger than its holiday-themed rival. Prerelease tracking surveys suggest that the "Planet" marketing has taken hold, with pic awareness decently high and an opening in the high-teen millions looking doable.

Sony is distributing for producer Ilion Animation.

Elsewhere, it will bear watching whether the vampire pic drains support from Sony's sci-fi actioner "2012," a $65 million opener last weekend. But even a 60% drop would put "2012" north of $25 million in its sophomore session, so expect the Roland Emmerich-helmed pic to finish in this frame's silver-medal position.

Also this weekend, Lionsgate drama "Precious" expands to a barely wide 600 or so theaters after two super frames in more limited release. An early kudos-season buzz title, "Precious" totes cumulative boxoffice of $9 million and counting.

On an industrywide basis, the weekend will be compared with a $165 million 2008 session topped by "Twilight." Last weekend's boxoffice marked a year-over-year industry downtick, but 2009 is outpacing last year by 4.4%, at $8.69 billion, according to Nielsen EDI.

Google Chrome OS: Rounding Up The Rumors

11/19/2009 01:21:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

Google Chome OS, which Google is expected to preview on Thursday, has been the subject of much speculation and rumors since its announcement last summer, when Google made public its plans to develop a lightweight, open-source Linux-based OS aimed primarily at netbooks. Ever since, a series of fake screenshots and speculation as to what Chrome will offer has bombarded the Web.

The Facts

Unfortunately, so far we know very little in terms of solid facts about Google's Chrome OS project, with the company providing only scant details. The Linux-based OS, which is built upon the company's browser of the same name, is expected to arrive in the second half of 2010, and although it will be geared toward netbooks, it'll run on higher-end PCs as well. Google has revealed a number of the manufacturers involved in the project, such as Acer, Asus, Hewlett Packard, and Lenovo. Intel is also in on the act.

Google's focus has been on providing a speedy, simple, and secure OS. The operating system will be heavily oriented around the Web, and will likely make heavy use of cloud computing. Chrome OS is by no means the first cloud-centric OS, but it will undoubtedly make an impact on the industry, effectively changing the more commonplace 'windowing' system people are more familiar with.

Beyond these limited details we know that the Google Chrome OS will run on x86 and ARM processors, and all of Chrome's Web applications will work not only on the new OS but also on any standards-based browser. Although this effectively means that Chrome OS will see no exclusive software, it's all good news for developers as they can create one single application and see it work on the largest number of platforms, be it Chrome OS, Mac, Windows, or other flavors Linux.

Keep on reading to see all the fake screenshots and rumors.

Screenshots & Speculation



The first batch of fake screenshots surfaced within days of Google's announcement; one blogger clamed to have seen a "private developer beta" at an Acer preview event. Within hours the clearly fake screenshots made the rounds on a number of blogs and news sites, and links to the images were all over Twitter. Within less than 24 hours over 120,000 people had viewed the original images, and it wasn't long before the hoaxer came clean, openly admitting the screenshots were a "really bad attempt".

The second round of fake shots arrived shortly after that, this time premiering on Endgadget thanks to an anonymous tipster. These alleged shots claimed to be part of the 'Chrome OS Alpha 1.01' build, and like the earlier "screenshots," lacked the authenticity to be taken to seriously. Not only was the timing suspicious, but the images features some odd user interface (UI) elemenrts, such as a horrifically chunky blue scroll bar.

However, this second batch of images did exhibit some interesting ideas as to how the new windowing system could be implemented, borrowing the Chrome browser's tab interface to display information. For example, Picasa, Google's photo management software, is seen running in its own independent browser-like tab. These screens also showed a status bar providing information on battery life, speaker volume, Web connection, and so on.

We had to wait until the end of July for our next round of possible forgeries, when new images (20 in total) landed in DownloadSquad's inbox. These alleged screenshots were supposedly from a "Developers Edition Alpha 0.2.5" build, and although highly detailed, the snaps looked nothing like a typical Google UI. Whoever produced these screenshots made the elementary error of using Photoshop's built-in default shapes, making for an obvious fake from the get-go.

At the height of summer Mashable's Pete Cashmore shared the next collection of purported screenshots. These were the first screenshots to look plausible, integrating several of Google's key web services into a single experience. These screens featured a Mac OS X-like dock for easy access to Gmail, Google Reader, Calendar, and other Google services.

Also in August, Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, left Apple's board of directors. The move came as no surprise and was due to growing "conflicts of interest" between the two companies.

The screenshots just kept coming, as TechCrunch revealed a couple more supposed images. This batch packed in massive oversized icons and a docked search bar. Interestingly, these images also featured a border-less browser window, just like the Mashable shots before them.

Things really heated up in October when Google S, a version of the Chrome browser intended for Chrome OS, was accidently released. The leak spilled the beans on some of the upcoming operating system's UI elements.

Google quickly removed the browser build from its servers, but that didn't stop others from sharing what they had found, like an integrated toolbar and a possible logo for the OS.

A few days later on Oct. 14, it was discovered that Google was ready to show its operating system off at a special "open house" that took place at their Mountain View headquarters. Word of the event leaked out, and Google closed the event to members of the press.

Toward the end of October, as rumors increased, a download was made available claiming to be an early build of the Chrome OS. This turned out to be a hacked Linux distribution, offered to users as a VMWare appliance.

Thankfully, now that Google is ready to show off Chrome OS, we should soon know the truth, including what it really looks like, what it can do, and why we will want it.

Bon Jovi Comes Full "Circle" at No. 1 on U.S. Chart

11/19/2009 01:20:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Bon Jovi claimed its fourth No. 1 album on the U.S. pop chart Wednesday, despite a sharp drop in sales.

"The Circle" sold 163,000 copies during the week ended November 16, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It marks the veteran band's second chart-topper in a row following "Lost Highway," which kicked off with 292,000 copies in 2007. Bon Jovi previously reached the top with "Slippery When Wet" in 1986 and "New Jersey" in 1988.

All told, the group has racked up 10 top-10 albums and every one of its studio releases since 1986 has reached the top 10 of the Billboard 200. The new album also debuted at No. 1 in Japan, Canada and Germany, and at No. 2 in the U.K.

Last week's U.S. chart-topper, Carrie Underwood's "Play On," slipped to No. 3 with 128,000, while Andrea Bocelli's "My Christmas" rose one to No. 2 with 136,000; both are in their second week.

The chart's second-highest debut came from alternative rock band Flyleaf, whose second album "Memento Mori" arrived at No. 8 with a career-high 56,000. The band's self-titled debut spent 133 weeks on the Billboard 200 from 2006 through 2008.

Michael Jackson's "This Is It" slipped two to No. 4 with 117,000, while Taylor Swift's "Fearless" rose one to No. 5 with 91,000 following her multiple wins last week on the Country Music Association Awards show.

The "Now 32" album fell one to No. 6 with 68,000, Michael Buble's "Crazy Love" rose one to No. 7 with 58,000, and the "Glee" soundtrack fell five to No. 9 with 56,000. The "New Moon" soundtrack was steady at No. 10 with 53,000.

Overall album sales totaled 7.04 million units, up 3% compared to the sum during the previous week, but down 21% compared to the same sales week of 2008. Year-to-date album sales stand at 301.5 million, down 13% compared to the same total at this point last year.

Next week, a bevy of big names will bow on the Billboard 200, including new efforts from "American Idol" winner Kris Allen, John Mayer, Norah Jones, Leona Lewis, Justin Bieber and 50 Cent's oft-delayed "Before I Self Destruct."

Hyun Joong releases “Because I’m Stupid” acoustic version

11/19/2009 01:20:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

They just won't quit milking money off this right?


Having previously released two Boys Over Flowers OSTs, brace yourself for the luxury edition which was unleashed on the 19th. So what's new?

The newcomer is the acoustic version of Because I'm Stupid by Kim Hyun Joong, which was previously heard only in the drama. Other than that, everything from part 1 and 2 of the OST will also be in this edition.

3 music videos, 5 official badges, F4 student ID (1 of 4 randomly selected designs) and a 40-page Booklet are also included to make you part with your money.



So for those who have copies of the previously released soundtracks, tough luck, since you are probably going to buy this just to complete the collection. For those who didn't, this is your ideal chance since everything is included in the luxury edition.

Word of The Year: Should It Be Unfriend Or Defriend?

11/19/2009 01:20:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Facebook must have real traction when even the New Oxford American dictionary decides to take note of a term that has emerged into the vernacular due to the prevalence of the social network, but some people are scratching their head and wondering if the dictionary made the wrong choice.

Editors of the New Oxford American Dictionary Tuesday selected "unfriend" as its word of the year. A senior lexicographer said that the Facebook term has real "lex appeal." But the decision by the dictionary sparked some debate on Facebook as well as other social networks, such as Twitter, as to whether or not the word of 2009 should be "defriend."

Reactions on Twitter were mixed, ranging from the benign to the more impassioned.

One user tweeted, "I tend to go with 'defriend', but I'll accept the OED's verdict." Other users also took umbrage with the New Oxford American Dictionary's choice, arguing for "defriend" in a number of different ways.

One such user questioned just how with it the dictionary is, despite its attempt to capture the current cultural zeitgeist by tapping into Facebook's popularity.

"Oxford Press is really out of the loop. 'Unfriend?' That's their new word? It's DE-friend. Defriend...,"one tweeted.

According to the dictionary's editors, the choices for the 2009 word of the year had been whittled down to a short list of terms, ranging from technological to social. "Sexting," "hashtag," "intexticated," "netbook" and "paywall" were all up for consideration as well, alongside economic terms like "funemployed" and environmental buzzwords like "green state."

Facebook is the most popular social networking site in the world, which could contribute to the New Oxford Dictionary's choice to look there for its word of the year. The social network surpassed MySpace as the world's most popular in June 2008.

The Sexiest Man Alive: Johnny Depp

11/19/2009 01:19:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Break out the Bordeaux, the whoopee cushions and the bangin' Keith Richards guitar solos, because the 2009 Sexiest Man Alive party is officially under way. Bringing the fun with him wherever he goes – whether it's onscreen in fizzy roles like Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise or at home with his family on their private Bahamian island – is just one reason why Johnny Depp, who also scored the honor in 2003, has joined an elite club of two-time SMA title holders (only Brad Pitt and George Clooney have matched the feat). At 46, the father of two still reigns as Hollywood's most irresistible iconoclast; as one-of-a-kind as his beloved 15-year-old boots and as smoldering as his favorite Cuban cigars.

"Johnny Depp has magical powers. He's unlike anyone else,” says actress Isla Fisher, who's married to Sacha Baron Cohen. "He’s funny, generous and clever. It’s just a shame he’s so hard on the eyes."

Five Best Features in the Office 2010 Beta

11/19/2009 01:19:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Microsoft has released the beta version of Office 2010 to the public. Here are five reasons you should check out the beta and make the switch to Office 2010.

Microsoft has unleashed the public beta of Microsoft Office 2010. The Office 2010 beta includes updated versions of Word, excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Access, Publisher, InfoPath, SharePoint Workspace, and Communicator. You can download it right now from the Microsoft Office 2010 beta site.

Like Windows XP versus Windows Vista, a fair percentage of users never made the jump from Office 2003 to Office 2007. The Windows Vista backlash had a residual effect which led customers to adopt a 'my-current-version-works-fine-why-change-it' mentality.

1. Ribbons. OK. I admit that the ribbon interface takes some getting used to. If you are still using Office 2003 and you are used to the standard menu options across the top of your Office application screens, prepare yourself for a little learning curve when you start using Office 2010.

That said, once you familiarize yourself with ribbons you will find it hard to go back. The ribbon interface is more intuitive and helps you operate more efficiently (after that requisite learning curve we were talking about). Ribbons existed in Office 2007, but only in certain applications. With Office 2010 Microsoft has built the ribbon interface into the entire suite.

2. Backstage View. This feature is more relevant for users of Office 2007. In Office 2007 a round Office button replaced many of the functions commonly accessed from the menu bar such as saving and printing. That button never really seemed to catch on.

In Office 2010, the button has been replaced with something that looks like one of the ribbon tabs at the top. Clicking on the tab at the far left brings up a separate screen called Backstage View. The Backstage interface displays a list of tasks in a panel on the left, but most of the screen is dedicated to displaying the options available for the selected task.

3. Paste Preview. Microsoft collected user feedback and found that very frequently users end up undoing a paste action once it is completed. Basically, the text or image pasted ends up not looking the way the user intended so they remove it and start over.

Paste Preview allows you to see what the paste will look like if you complete the action, enabling you to save some time and energy and get it right the first time. It also gives you the choice of maintaining the formatting from the source, merging the formatting, or pasting just the text with no formatting.

4. Excel Sparklines. Excel has always had a variety of charts and graphs available to visually depict data and trends. With Excel 2010, though, Microsoft has added a new feature called Sparklines, which allows you to place a mini-graph or trend line in a single cell.

The Sparklines are a cool way to quickly and simply add a visual element without having to go through the effort of inserting a graph or chart that overwhelms the worksheet.

5. Social Networking Integration. Microsoft recognizes the social networking trend by adding Outlook Social Connector to the Outlook 2010 application. Outlook Social Connector will let you see emails, status updates, shared files and photos, and more all in a single view. You will also be able to see who your mutual friends are and other information to help you maintain and extend your social network.

As of the release of the beta there are no social network add-ins, but Microsoft promises to release them over the coming months. With the position Facebook has in social networking, and the relationship Microsoft has with Facebook, it seems safe to assume a Facebook social network add-in might be one of the first available.

There you have it--five reasons to download the Office 2010 beta and check it out. There are a number of other reasons as well, but there is only so much you can fit in one article. The integration with Microsoft Office Web Apps, as well as with other recent and upcoming release like Exchange 2010 and Office Communications Server 2010.

This is not a good year to be anti-Microsoft--Microsoft is on a roll. Bing, Internet Explorer 8, Windows 7, and now Office 2010 have all received a fair amount of praise as they have been unleashed. While other platforms like Windows Vista and Windows Mobile 6.5 have not succeeded in generating much excitement, these other software titles demonstrate that Microsoft still has the ability to develop innovative software that works.

How Britney Spears' 'Stronger' Video Made Her A Diva

11/19/2009 01:18:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Video found singer moving from teen pop star to femme fatale.

Up until the release of "Stronger," Britney Spears had not yet truly made the leap from teen pop star to femme fatale. Most — if not all — of her videos were glossy, pastel-colored romps about falling in and out of love. It wasn't until she worked with Joseph Kahn on "Stronger," from her 2000 Oops! ... I Did It Again LP, that Spears began to emerge as a darker, more dangerous version of sexy.

"For 'Stronger,' she said, 'I would like to dance in a chair and drive in a car and break up with [my] boyfriend,' " Kahn told MTV News. " 'Those are your three elements.' And then, as a director, you go, 'OK, well, how do I make that cool?'

"I think this video is interesting because it's got a very sophisticated, adult look to it," Kahn (who has helmed dozens of music videos, including Brit's "Womanizer" and Chris Brown's "Crawl") continued. "It's definitely a departure from the sort of candy-colored videos she was doing before, so I always thought this was the transition between Britney the teenage pop star and Britney the sort of diva she became."


Kahn ended up taking those elements and creating a semi-futuristic world in which Spears walks into a club, breaks up with her cheating boyfriend and triumphantly walks in the rain, knowing her life is better off without him. But it was the pivotal dance sequences with the metal chair that defined the aesthetic for the video.

"She pitched it to me as an original concept by herself, but the first thing that came to my mind when I thought of the chair sequence, in terms of how it applies to music videos, was Janet Jackson's 'Pleasure Principle' — the iconic chair sequence in that." Kahn recalled.

Like Jackson, Spears wasn't afraid to get sexy in the clip, even if her handlers were a bit nervous that she was going too far. "There's a shot here where I'm tracking with her, and her legs are spread, and Larry [Rudolph], the manager, was like, 'Don't do that.' " Kahn said. "And she was like, 'Yes, definitely do that.' "

Oddly enough, one aspect of the video that Kahn was insistent upon was Spears' eye shadow. "One of the big things I wanted to do here, that I was just obsessed with ... I know it sounds really strange, but I wanted her to have gray eye shadow," he said. "And I think it looks really good. I remember when I was looking at the close-ups, Britney goes, 'You're really obsessed with this gray eye shadow!' and I go, 'Yes, absolutely.' But if you look at it, it just makes her eyes pop like crazy."

Will Google Chrome OS Be Another Google Game-Changer?

11/19/2009 01:18:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 1 Comment

Google's Chrome OS is widely expected to be previewed Thursday. That will mean not only a big step for Google into yet another market, but will also finally confirm or deny rumors that have dogged Google Chrome, a Linux-based, lightweight, Web-deployed operating system, since Google first announced it last summer.

Rumors of an early Chrome launch actually began to circulate last week, centered on the idea that Google would preview a version of Chrome and gear up for the launch of the full Chrome OS in the second half of 2010.

Google plans to host an event Thursday morning, which, given the Chrome rumors, lead many to speculate Wednesday that an official Chrome OS unveiling is indeed in the works.

What we know about Chrome OS already, however limited, is that Chrome is based on Google's Chrome browser; is intended for netbooks; has signed on a number of PC manufacturers like Acer, HP and Lenovo; and that it will run on X86 and ARM processors.

Google has also made clear that all of its Web applications will work both with Chrome OS and other standards-based browsers -- definitely a deal-sweetener for developers who crave being able to develop applications for as many platforms as possible.

If that's indeed all there is to Chrome OS, it would still be a signifcant milestone. Google has plowed its way into many a market in the past few years -- mobile OSes, for one, with a Google-branded smartphone supposedly in the works -- and there's no question a new PC operating system puts it back in Microsoft's face. It's also no secret that in Microsoft's face is exactly where Google CEO Eric Schmidt likes to be.

Google likes to change the conversation. It became a giant in online search and continues to flatten all newcomers and old search engines. It's stormed into business applications and is a dominant SaaS and cloud player. It has the hottest mobile OS of the fall, with more than a few hot smartphones running on its Android platform. What about Chrome OS convinces you that it won't be yet another Google game changer?

TVXQ trio will go to MAMA

11/19/2009 01:18:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , , 0 Comments

Wow! The Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA), just may not be a complete failure anymore.


On the 19th, the three TVXQ members Xiah Junsu, Micky Yoochun and Youngwoong JaeJoong have decided to attend the MAMA's which will be held on November 21st.

An Mnet representative stated to Starnews:

"Youngwoong JaeJoong, Xiah Junsu and Micky Yoochun will attend the MAMA's and will be able to greet their fans after being away for a long time."

In addition they stated:

"However, we are not sure yet whether the 3 members will perform or just greet the fans on stage as of now."

Well, it's better than nothing right? Finally some good news for TVXQ fans and for the MAMA's.

Did Adam Lambert's Record Label Try to Hide His Sexuality?

11/19/2009 01:17:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Adam Lambert has never made much of a secret of his sexuality. Even before officially coming out, the 'American Idol' runner-up refused to shy away from public speculation that he might be gay. Finally, in a "who didn't see this coming" interview with Rolling Stone, Lambert stated: "I don't think it should be a surprise for anyone to hear that I'm gay."

But MSNBC reports that Lambert's own record label tried to underplay his homosexuality in advance of the upcoming release 'For Your Entertainment.' In Out magazine's latest issue, Editor-in-Chief Aaron Hicklin tells Lambert that, while he took second place in the latest season of 'American Idol,' he is "the real winner for those of us who saw your success as a test of America's growing tolerance.

"It's unfortunate, therefore, that your record label and management don't share the same view," he adds. But with Lambert's popularity stable in the aftermath of his big reveal... why not?

Lambert's sexuality was all but certain before his Rolling Stone interview. After pictures of him kissing another man had surfaced and most assumed he was gay, the singer told PEOPLE, "It's a really, really cool thing to be able to show people that you can be yourself, and you should be proud of yourself ... and never make apologies for it."

"Embracing who you are and what makes you different is actually what's really cool," he said in May.

Lambert's label, 19 Entertainment, might have missed the memo. According to Hicklin, the label turned down numerous requests to feature Lambert on the Out cover because they feared it would impact record sales. This issue shows Lambert sharing the cover with Wanda Sykes, Cyndi Lauper, Lt. Dan Choi and Rob Marshall as part of the Out 100 Class of 2009. Hicklin says the label signed off "because this cover is a group shot that includes a straight woman."

Hicklin adds, "Albeit with the caveat that we must avoid making you look 'too gay.' "

"The irony is that right now it would be easier to get Kris Allen to do a solo cover shoot for us," Hicklin writes. "But only because he's straight."

The allegations are puzzling in light of Lambert's album cover, which one must assume is label-sanctioned. The singer appears in heavy makeup and blue hair, playing up his glam, flamboyant reputation. It appears to take a calculated risk of offending gay-wary consumers - unlikely to be Lambert's target demo.

Fans' support of Lambert also makes attempts to suppress his sexuality something of a moot point. After the revealing Rolling Stone interview, PopEater asked readers if Lambert's news was shocking. In a June poll, nearly 186,000 readers expressed no surprise that Lambert had come out. Only 3% of the PopEater audience didn't expect to hear that Lambert is gay.

Likewise, 142,000 or 90% of readers confirmed they would have voted the same way in the 'American Idol' competition if they'd already known for sure. And Lambert himself sees no reason to hide, as he told Rolling Stone. "I'm proud of my sexuality. I embrace it. It's just another part of me," he says.

Super Junior ‘Sorry Sorry’ up #1 on Taiwan chart for record of 30 weeks

11/19/2009 01:17:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Super Junior sets a record for dominating and staying up #1 on Taiwan’s Korean-Japanese music chart for 30 weeks through with their recent hit ‘Sorry Sorry’.


The song is up #1 on Taiwan online music site KKBOX for the ‘Korean Japanese TOP 100 chart for 30 weeks all the way from 3rd week of April (19th~25th) till the 1st week of November. It has gone up to the #1 spot on the chart 1 week after it was released in Taiwan on 17th April.

This definitely points to Super Junior’s popularity in Taiwan.

Meanwhile, SS501 takes over the #1 spot on the chart with the song ‘Love Like This’ for the 2nd week of November (8th~14th November).


With IE 9, Microsoft fights back in browser wars

11/19/2009 01:17:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , , 0 Comments

With Internet Explorer 9, Microsoft showed Wednesday it's trying to retake the browser initiative.

IE remains the Net's dominant browser. But perversely, it became something of a technology underdog after Microsoft vanquished Netscape in the browser wars of the 1990s and scaled back its browser effort.

That left an opportunity for rivals to blossom--most notably Firefox, which now is used by a quarter of Web surfers, but also Apple's Safari, which now runs on Windows as well as Mac OS X, and Google's Chrome, which aims to make the Web faster and a better foundation for applications.

Microsoft has been pouring resources back into the IE effort, though, and at its Professional Developers Conference in Los Angeles, some fruits of that labor were on display. In particular, Windows unit president Steven Sinofsky showed off IE 9's new hardware-accelerated text and graphics.



The acceleration feature takes advantage of hitherto untapped computing power in a way that's more useful than other browser-boosting technology such as Google's Native Client to tap into a PC's processor and Mozilla's WebGL for accelerated 3D graphics, said Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of Internet Explorer.

"This is a direct improvement to everybody's usage of the Web on a daily basis," Hachamovitch said in an interview after Sinofsky's speech. "Web developers are doing what they did before, only now they can tap directly into a PC's graphics hardware to make their text work better and graphics work better."

Why go to all this trouble? In short, to help keep the Windows business alive and kicking.

"Our goal in building a great browser for consumers and for everyone is that they are Windows customers. That's at the core of it," Hachamovitch said.

He didn't bring it up, but it should be noted that an increasing fraction of Microsoft's business is moving online, too, through its Bing, Live, and now online Office 2010 sites. "We want to build a better IE so all the Web sites have a better experience," Hachamovitch said.

Turning up the heat
Microsoft began work on IE 9 just three weeks ago, Sinofsky said. But signs have been clear that the company has taken interest in its browser again.

When it arrived earlier this year IE 8 brought significant new security and privacy features, and in a significant departure Web developers appreciate, it attempts to follow various Web standards such as HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) and Cascading Style Sheets.

More recently, Microsoft joined the HTML standards effort in August. And earlier this month, Microsoft sent a dozen IE team members to a World Wide Web Consortium meeting.

"High-quality specifications that improve interoperability between browsers are important. Our goal is to help ensure these new standards work well for Web developers and will work well in future versions of IE," said Adrian Bateman, a Microsoft program manager who's involved in the standardization effort, describing the motivation. That point of view is music to the ears of programmers who struggle to make sure their Web sites work with the ever-wider variety of browsers on the Web today.

Hardware acceleration
Under the covers, the IE 9 acceleration works by employing Microsoft's Direct2D interface rather than its GDI (Graphical Device Interface). Direct2D provides a general way for software to take advantage of hardware acceleration for graphics, and IE 9 will employ it.

"It's a remarkably different level of performance," said Hachmovitch, who's using the technology. "It's like the difference between watching Pixar or an Xbox vs. watching an old PC chug along."

Direct2D also facilitates a technology called sub-pixel positioning that can smooth the appearance of text on the screen. That cuts eyestrain, he said.

In a video touting the Direct2D browsing technology, Microsoft showed off the acceleration effect on a map-based Web site. While panning the view one way or the other, "The map literally keeps up with your mouse," said Microsoft graphics developer Christian Fortini in the video


Earlier in November, Firefox surpassed 25 percent usage share of Web browsers, according to Net Applications.

With the old technology, that chore can update the screen at a rate of about 5 to 10 frames per second while using 50 to 60 percent of the processor's horsepower, but using the Direct2D method, the frame rate jumps to a range of 40 to 60 per second while the CPU usage plunges, Hachamovitch said.

Compatibility sales pitch
Hachamovitch touted Microsoft's approach as broadly relevant and compatible with the Web as it stands today. Unlike Native Client and WebGL, it doesn't require new programming skills for Web developers.

"Web sites didn't have to change behavior and code in a different way" to take advantage of the Direct2D technology, Hachamovitch said. "With a lot of other technologies, it takes a lot of work and a lot of time to figure out how to do something different. It isn't necessarily an interoperable, standards kind of thing--it's something from one particular vendor. We're taking interoperable implementations of things like CSS, things that developers are using and expect to work everywhere, and making them demonstrably better."

He didn't comment on whether Microsoft supports some Web standards for better graphics, including Canvas and Scalable Vector Graphics, but he did say the new display technology will broadly help whatever graphics technologies IE does support. "Once we're on top of this super-rich graphics infrastructure, all the graphics we do will have this," he said.

And although Microsoft certainly hasn't committed to it, Eliot Graff, an IE lead technical editor, is helping edit the Canvas interface at the W3C group.

Full standards support remains a sore point when dealing with IE. On one test, Acid3, IE 8 scores just 20 out of 100. IE 9 currently scores 32, and "the score will continue to go up," Hachamovitch wrote in the blog posting.

Faster JavaScript
The acceleration is one aspect of performance Microsoft is focusing on. Another is the execution of JavaScript, a programming language used widely on the Web for everything from mundane tasks to full-on applications such as Gmail and Google Docs.

In another Microsoft video, John Montgomery, a leader of IE's browser compatibility and tools team, shows off the browser tackling all the components of the SunSpider JavaScript speed test.

"We're whipping through these faster than (IE) 8 was," Montgomery said. "We're pretty early in the development process. There's still some stuff we can still squeeze out of the engine, but we're doing a lot better than we were."

Hachamovitch, though, takes pains to point out JavaScript isn't the only bottleneck for browsers. Even though JavaScript engines are important enough to warrant brand names these days--Chrome's V8, Firefox's TraceMonkey, Safari's Nitro, Opera's Futhark and Caracan--Microsoft's prefers to shine a light on nine other aspects of browser performance.

In a blog post about IE9, Hachamovitch shows how a variety of chores--two different news sites and two separate tasks in Microsoft's online version of Excel--exercise different parts of the browser.

"The work we do in performance involves many systems in the browser," he said. "As these script engines converge and effectively have the same performance, you realize all the other subsystems get more important. You need the other nine parts of the browser to work, too."

Abuse Us Some More, Rob Pattinson!

11/19/2009 01:16:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

This is too friggin' funny. While Robert Pattinson taped a segment for the The Ellen DeGeneres Show (airing Friday), he asked a fan to strip off her clothes. And she did!

"I was doing a preinterview for this [show], and I immediately regretted saying that," the awkwardly adorable R.Pattz says. "I sound like I'm actually just abusing my position.

"It was after a period of signing 500 signatures, and one of [the fans] just came up. You kind of get 10 seconds with each person and you never really say anything, and I kind of got bored of saying, 'Hey, how are you doing?' And [the fan] said in her 10 seconds, 'What can I do to get your attention?' I was like, 'Um, just take your clothes off.' And she stood there and frantically started taking her clothes off and got dragged out of the room by security. I never felt more terrible."

This makes us love Rob 10 times more! Perverted, huh? We would start messing with fans, too, after a while. Actually, we're shocked R.Pattz hasn't done it more. He has so much power over these helpless ones! Might as well make it entertaining.

Joey Yung exposes being touched on the chest by Eason Chan at concert

11/19/2009 01:16:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

"JOEY YUNG x EASON CHAN 903 IDCLUB STRETCH OUT CONCERT" was held last night. This is the first time Hilary Tsui brought her daughter out to a public event to support her husband after the rumors with Eason and Kay started. Eason's father came back from Beijing to watch the show, but Hilary was not seated with him, she was in the VIP spots. She did bring her daughter during the concert to sit with her grandfather though. Although Joey's good friend Denise Ho was not able to attend due to being in a musical, but she "sent out" her parents and older brother to support Joey. Denise's brother was one of the musicians for the concert, Joey also introduced him on stage. Looks like Denise and Joey's friendship is quite strong.


Joey help Eason wipe off sweat and pinned his hair back up

Joey and Eason were dancing on stage, having much chemistry. Joey saw that Eason's face was full of sweat, so she helped him wipe it off. Then she saw that his hair was messed up, so she used a hair clip to help Eason pin it up. Eason could not help but say: "You are moving here and there, I forget what I'm suppose to say!" He laughed and said that the last part of the concert is very intense, if the audience did not stand up, then the bottom half of their bodies must have a problem! Eason laughed and said: "Actually, it is my bottom half that has a problem, it's too big, so I had to go buy these pants in Europe."

Both sang the wrong lyrics


It was seen that Eason was too excited about their collaboration, when Eason performed <In Search of the Deities> (???), he forgot the lyrics, then he hit his own head and asked if he could start over. Joey laughed at him: "If you sing it wrong again, then you have to be a dead dog!" When it was Joey's turn to perform the songs <Under Fuji Mountain> (????) and <Solemn On Stage> (????), she also sang the wrong lyrics. Eason was afraid he'll mess up again, so he constantly looked at the lyrics displayed on the screen below the stage. When introducing the Western trumpet player, Eason jokingly said in English: "Thanking for blowing for us." (Meaning: thanks for playing for us.)

Touching each other's body; Eason touched Joey's chest?


At the very last part of the concert, the two of them performed hot dancing and singing, Joey was dressed in a white transparent top, making her bra visible. Both Eason and Joey were touching each other all over. Joey clamped onto Eason's thighs, while Eason carried her entire body up. Eason described the performance as OK: "Because rehearsal tired us out, so we kind of didn't want to look at the lyrics but at the same time we wanted to, there was a bit of nervousness too, which caused us to forget the lyrics. " Asked about the intimate dance he did with Joey, did he end up touching her chest area? Eason said: "I just touched the bone under her chest area!" Joey then 'complained': "You did touch it! Maybe I'm too flat, so you didn't feel it!" Eason insisted that he only touched 4 bones under her chest.

Regarding Denise's family coming to support her concert. Joey said: "I am good friends with her whole family." It was reported that Hilary Tsui's fashion business is not doing well and needs to close. Eason did not answer. Joey helped him and said: "I am already the biggest customer, I often buy pretty clothes from them." Eason expressed that their fashion business is doing pretty ok, he praised his wife: "She is very capable, taking care of our daughter and also working on her business. Her business partner is also doing well."

Office 2010 beta goes public

11/19/2009 01:15:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Microsoft announced on Wednesday that the beta of Office 2010 is now publicly available from the company's Web site and from CNET Download.com.

Among the features new to the beta is a social networking connector that allows users to bring in Windows Live and other social networking feeds into Outlook. LinkedIn is the first that will take advantage of it--early next year--but there is a software development kit for others to do so.

"I hope that you will all download it," Microsoft senior vice president Kurt DelBene said at Microsoft's Professional Developers Conference here.

Microsoft has posted an article noting that Office Mobile 2010 is also in beta and available for Windows Mobile 6.5 phones via the Windows Mobile Marketplace.

The public beta also includes the ability for businesses to start testing the browser-based Office Web Apps within their enterprises. The beta versions, unlike the technology preview of the Web Apps includes editing in Word as well as the OneNote Web app.

The consumer version of the Web apps, however, remains in technology preview in Windows Live. There's no specific timeframe for when the Office Web Apps will hit Windows Live.

Office 2010 is due out in final form in the first half of next year.

New Video: Chris Brown, 'Crawl'

11/19/2009 01:15:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

If we decide to file Chris Brown's new video, "Crawl" (directed by Joseph Khan and taken from his forthcoming Graffiti album) as another chapter in his never-ending apology to the world and Rihanna (which, let's face it, is exactly what we're going to do), then one thing is pretty clear: Chris Brown sure has a funny way of apologizing.

"Crawl," is a rather pretty ballad concerned with overcoming adversity, something Brown is entirely familiar with. In the video, Brown's mechanical heart skips a beat every time he's haunted by the ghost of a lost love.



Strangely enough, the lost love in question is R&B temptress, Cassie. That may or may not sit well with another R&B temptress we all know and love.

Elsewhere in the clip, Brown perches on a skyscraper (City Of Angels/Wings Of Desire nod, maybe?) and dances in the snow covered streets of L.A..

Nothing says, 'I'm sorry,' like dancing in the snow

New Firefox 3.6 beta aims to cut crashes

11/19/2009 01:15:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Mozilla released a third beta of Firefox 3.6 on Wednesday, adding stability and performance features, and said it hopes to lock down the code soon for its first release candidate.

The new beta, for Windows, Mac, and Linux, includes a component directory lockdown that makes it harder for other software to meddle with the open-source browser's state by preventing that software from sidling into the same folder as the browser's own components. The result should be fewer crashes, said Mozilla's Johnathan Nightingale in a blog post, and Firefox still is open to third-party extensions via its official add-on mechanism.

The change should improve security, too, added another Mozilla programmer, Vladimir Vukecevic, who wrote in his own blog post that Mozilla is considering bringing the change to Firefox 3.5, too.


Earlier in November, Firefox surpassed 25 percent usage share of Web browsers, according to Net Applications.

"Creating binary components to interface with the operating system or with other applications is fairly straightforward, though ultimately dangerous. Binary components have full access to the application and OS, and so can impact stability, security, and performance," Vukecevic said.

Also in the latest beta of 3.6 is a feature that lets the browser run some Web-based JavaScript programs asynchronously, which is to say without being so picky about the order the scripts run. This can improve the speed that Web pages load, Mozilla said.

The biggest Firefox 3.6 feature most folks will notice is Personas, the reskinning add-on that's now being built in. More than 10 million Personas have been downloaded so far, Suneel Gupta and Myk Melez of the Personas team said Wednesday.

Mozilla is working to release a final version of Firefox 3.6 before the end of the year, and one sign the project is wrapping up is that the developers are locking down the features and changes that can be added into the release candidate 1. Code freeze for RC1 is scheduled for Wednesday but might be at risk, a Mozilla planning site said this week.

Firefox is steadily gaining in use. Last week, Web traffic monitoring firm Net Applications announced Firefox cleared 25 percent share of those using browsers worldwide--not dethroning Internet Explorer by any means but still winning over new users. Mozilla estimates there are more than 300 million Firefox users total, and this week said there are more than 300,000 testers using the Firefox 3.6 beta

Google's Chrome, meanwhile, is appealing to some of the same browser enthusiasts who were Firefox's first users. One of its big selling points is speed, and Google is working on other ways to make the Web faster, too. Chrome gives it a vehicle to test such ideas out in the real world, a strategy that Apple, Opera, and Firefox have employed to advance the Web state of the art.

One Mozilla programmer, Alexander Limi, revealed a speedup technology called Resource Package for Mozilla, too, on Tuesday. His proposal calls for bundling many Web page elements up into a single compressed file that can be retrieved in a single Web-page request action. Browsers are limited in the number of such actions they can take in parallel, so consolidating the interactions can make pages load faster. The approach is backwards compatible with existing browsers that don't support the feature, he added.

"If the feedback is good we're likely to try and get this implemented for Firefox 3.7," said Mozilla evangelist Christopher Blizzard in a blog post Tuesday.

Lee Min-ho considers new drama role

11/19/2009 01:15:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Finally, we have news of Lee Min-ho’s potential next project!

He’s not confirmed for casting, but a rep from his management company said in an interview on the 17th that he is looking favorably at Bad Guy [나쁜 남자], a working title for the new drama from Lee Hyung-min, the PD behind 2004’s melodrama I’m Sorry, I Love You. His rep said, “He plans to make the selection for his next project as quickly as possible, and is looking to decide by the end of this month at the latest.”

Contrasting with his ridiculously rich and pampered Gu Jun-pyo character in the drama that made him famous, Boys Before Flowers, this drama’s hero grew up poor and becomes an action school stuntman. Bad Guy is aiming to hit broadcast airwaves next spring.

Since bursting onto the scene, Lee Min-ho has taken on a number of CFs and endorsement contracts, from mobile phones to beer to clothing and food, but has not taken any acting roles since Boys Before Flowers wrapped in March. If he takes this role, I will be very excited to see him working with a talented director who will show off his actors to their best advantage, unlike what we saw in the insanity (albeit an addictive kind) of Boys. Whether you love or hate Boys, Lee Min-ho was undoubtedly the breakout star, and proved that he has the raw acting talent to go very far — if he makes some smart choices about how to steer his career.

Lee has a Tokyo fanmeeting scheduled for the 26th, and will be leaving for Japan on the 21st.

Is Zac Efron Hollywood's Next Leading Man?

11/19/2009 01:14:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

"We tried to do the musical version, but we couldn't get the rights."

Zac Efron joking back when we asked about his choice to go for a role in Me and Orson Welles rather than another High School Musical or Footloose-type flick.


It's a major departure for dimpled and goody singer Efron. The 22-year-old wholesome type plays Orson's high-school kid Richard, who lands his dream role in illustrious film and theater legend Welles' production of Julius Caesar, only to be met with unexpected theatrical egos and chick problems. HSM15, this ain't.

But after checking out Efron in this pretty serious, yet oddly screwball period piece, we realized Z has the potential to take Hollywood—and not just teens—by storm.

And when we met with well-spoken Zac at the Welles junket at the Four Seasons Hotel in Bev Hills, he told us about his big hankering to "do something different."

But will it pay off?

"It was a very unique opportunity for me at the time, and still is," Zac told us about accepting the role. "I think it was something that didn't seem so cut and dry. It wasn't an obvious decision. Even I was a bit surprised, and that's very cool."

It's quite clear Zac's very aware how everyone was ready to peg him as a pretty boy who would be Disney's slave for the next several years.

"That's why we work and do this?to grow and try new things. That's exactly what this movie represented for me. I think it came at a perfect time," Z.E. explained to us.

The film's director, Richard Linklater, didn't have any doubts about Z's ability, either.

"I sat down with [Zac], and 15 or 20 seconds in I was like, 'Oh this guy's great.' To have a guy who can go toe-to-toe with the biggest personality of the 20th century, you know, you needed a leading man who had that charisma. And that's Zac. He really has that."

As for whether Zac will be a lasting fixture in this cutthroat Biz, Rick told us, yes. (Like, what's he's gonna say, but whatever.)

"The camera loves him; he has a strong presence. He's smart and wily?if you ever underestimate him, you realize he's two steps ahead of you. Don't play poker with him!"

Bottom line: Zac's serious acting chops will be tested when Me and Orson Welles hits theaters Nov. 25. You gonna check it out, or see New Moon for the 10th time, instead?

Microsoft leaks a screenshot of Windows Mobile... something

11/19/2009 01:14:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments



Microsoft's been pretty cagey with the future of Windows Mobile so far, but apparently the Office Mobile 2010 team just doesn't care -- in addition to leaking a new interface in that confidential slide deck last month, they've now included this screen shot on the Office Mobile 2010 beta website. Here's what's wild: this design language completely matches the first set of Windows Mobile 7 leaks we saw nearly two years ago, so either Microsoft hasn't made any changes in that time, or what we're seeing here is something else entirely. Combine that with rumors that WinMo 7 isn't due to hit until the end of next year, and we're starting to think there's something bigger afoot here -- the only other alternative is that Microsoft has waited nearly three years to launch what's little more than a refresh of its current interface, and even Redmond can't be that slow to execute... can it?

50 Cent Says Eminem's Success Is 'Something To Work To'

11/19/2009 01:13:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

'This is what keeps me down to Earth and working,' Fif says of his 'Psycho' collaborator.

50 Cent says "Psycho," from his new Before I Self Destruct album, is totally different from "Patiently Waiting," even though the tracks feature the same collaborator, more or less.

"Well, 'Patiently Waiting' I perform with Eminem. On ['Psycho'], off of Before I Self Destruct, is 50 Cent and Slim Shady," he explained. "He has an alter ego, and he has a comfort with doing things [that] are the craziest things possible. That's when the chainsaw comes out. He starts going nuts on you. I wanted him to be able to go to that space, so I worked the chorus and he heard the chorus and he's like, 'Yo, I like that.' I actually recorded ['Psycho'] in Las Vegas. Dre produced the track, we had a bunch of producers out there, and I went and laid the first verse. [Em] came and he heard it and he was like, 'Yo, I'm ready.' Wrote his verse, laid it. And then he started the next verse without me, I was like, 'Whoa, I really only wanted one verse. I was going to rap again on the third.' And then he just came in on that, so we went back and forth on the last piece. That song is crazy. That collaboration, we just got such a good energy around each other that we can be creative around each other."

Fif said that the three-headed monster of himself, Em and Dr. Dre get along so well because they have "a chain of command."

"I listen to Em, Em absolutely listens to Dre, and that keeps us together," he said. "The opportunity that Dre offered Em is what Em did for me. There's no confusion with where we stand or how we function. They're both not easy to just do things. I'm the easiest one to work with because ... I'm more active. It's just their achievements and where they're at in their career. I'm the baby, I'm the smallest one. How 'bout that? Isn't that scary?"

50 already knows the answer to that question.

"Yeah!" he continued. "Because when they go away, I'm the biggest one in hip-hop, and I'm the smallest one in my circle, in my camp. This is what keeps me down to Earth and working, because I feel like there's room for growth. You got artists around you that do 23 million records on [The] Marshall Mathers LP before you come out. Yeah, I had the largest debuting hip-hop album, but it ain't the largest album. And [for Eminem] to generate twice the interest? Says that there's something to work to."

Nokia: Symbian death in 2012 on Nseries speculation is “completely premature”

11/19/2009 01:13:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , , 0 Comments

Oh dear, it looks like someone in the Maemo marketing team had a few too many drinks last night and said something they shouldn’t have. Having heard earlier on today that Nokia were planning to ditch Symbian on their Nseries devices by 2012, the Finnish company has now issued a statement calling any such speculation “completely premature”. Symbian, they say, is about “bringing smartphones to the masses”, while Maemo is targeted at “devices based on technology that you’d typically find inside a desktop computer”.

“While it is our policy not to disclose details of our product roadmap, we’d like to explicitly communicate that we remain firmly committed to Symbian as our smartphone platform of choice. Any speculation on what our 2012 roadmap, including operating systems and product branding, are completely premature.

As we have stated earlier, Nokia has multiple platforms to serve different purposes and address different markets. Symbian is more successful than ever in bringing smartphones to the masses. Maemo is our software of choice for devices based on technology that you’d typically find inside a desktop computer. It delivers a different user experience and enables us to widen the market we can address.” Nokia statement

While at first glance the statement appears to disagree with the earlier speculation, there are still a few wriggle holes in place. Nokia have already gone public regarding their intention to filter S60 down through the ranks of devices, just as S40 did before it, catering for different and evolving user models in an ever-maturing user ecosystem. In its place will come Maemo, though they’ve also been open about the fact that, in its current form at least, the OS is targeted more at enthusiasts than the mainstream.

So, calling the death of S60 as a smartphone platform might be “completely premature”, but that doesn’t mean it’s not accurate; it just means Nokia don’t want to talk about it today. Will Maemo be consumer-friendly by 2012 and ready to take up position in Nseries handsets? We’d certainly expect so.

SNSD unveils their Asia concert tour poster

11/19/2009 01:13:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Having announced that SNSD was going to have their first-ever Asia concert tour this December a week ago, their concert poster was unveiled to the public by SM Entertainment today.


The girls look bright and cheery in their cheerleading outfits, complete with pom-pons in their hands.

Their concert tour is titled "Girls' Generation In to the new world" and will see the girls tour countries around Asia like Shanghai (China), Bangkok (Thailand) besides Korea. While dates for their overseas gigs are yet to be confirmed, the girls will be partying with their fans on 19 and 20th December at the Seoul Olympic Stadium.

It sure looks to be a blast for those who are attending!

XPERIA X10 hands-on: lukewarm edition (now with video!)

11/19/2009 01:12:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



We've seen the new Android-based XPERIA X10 from Sony Ericsson at a fast pace and a snail's pace, but have we ever seen it so stunningly middle of the road? We just got a chance to play with the phone in person for the second time, and from our random sampling of three or four different handsets, it seems that performance is very contingent upon how much content is loaded into the device and what particular thing it's trying to perform. Sometimes we'd fly through the stacks of faces, while other times we'd sit there waiting for the simplest thumbnails to load up. The good news is that we have until next year to see this thing really come together, and the word is that the software is improving and at a rapid pace. The big change about this phone is the "Nexus" UX platform, which actually all takes place in two "apps" at the moment, Timescape and Mediascape. Timescape is an integrated view for social networking and messaging, with an "infinite view" to see all types of communications for a particular person, while Mediascape is a more tame media app with a modicum of internet and social integration. It all seems very logically placed, and we like the fact that SE hasn't really sacrificed the Android experience -- you can still do Gmail and the Android Market and so forth, with very familiar UIs -- but it's going to have to be a lot more bulletproof before it hits the market if Sony Ericsson really expects us to use this day to day. Oh, also: the soft keyboard is terrible. We hear they're working on it, but boy does it need work.

Vanness Wu's half-naked body boosts ratings; no regrets in showing off muscular figure

11/19/2009 01:12:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Vanness Wu showed off his muscular upper body in idol drama 'Autumn's Concerto', boosting up the ratings to a very good result of 4.25%. However, he said that he no longer receives any add oil text messages from his friends. On the other hand, Tiffany Hsu revealed that on Sunday, a friend kept sending her text messages during the Sunday broadcast, to talk about her acting skills. Apparantly, that 'friend' was her boyfriend Ethan Ruan.


Last Sunday, 'Autumn's Concerto' broadcasted the scene of Vanness crying while lying in Tiffany's arms. To adjust her mood for this scene, Tiffany first pictured a situation in her mind, so to let herself completely immerse into the scene. She said: "When filming crying scenes, I think of my sick family members, so I am able to fully relax and cry!" She also said that when she was watching the Sunday broadcast, her boyfriend kept sending her text messages. She laughed saying: "He was scared that if he phoned, it would interfere with my watching, but then he kept sending text messages, so I still got disturbed anyways!"

Palm Pixi one step closer to free, now $25 on Amazon

11/19/2009 01:12:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



Start placing your bets folks,'cause it now looks like its almost certainly no longer a question "if" the Palm Pixi will drop to a free-on-contract price, but "when?" The latest stop on the saga is none other than Amazon, which is now offering the webOS-based phone for a mere $24.99 with a service plan, beating Walmart's already bargain price by a full five dollars -- which should be just enough to let you buy a second Pixi next month at the rate things are going.

5 Expectations for Google's Chrome OS Event

11/19/2009 01:11:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

Google will finally take the wrapper off its highly-anticipated Chrome operating system during a presentation at Google HQ on Thursday. The event will include a complete overview of the product featuring a Chrome OS demonstration and Q&A session. Sundar Pichai, Google's vice president of product management and Matthew Papakipos, Google engineering director for Google Chrome OS, will speak at the event, according to TechCrunch.

Thursday's presentation will provide at least some answers to the many questions gone unanswered since Google announced the project in July. I have no doubt Google's event will inspire more questions than it answers, but at least it's a start. Here's what we're likely to find out:

How Long Until Liftoff?

Part of Google's presentation on Thursday should include more information about when the OS will be available to consumers. It's possible Google will remain silent, and stick to its "second half of 2010" statement that we got earlier this year. But I'm hoping the company will be able to narrow it down to a particular month or at least a season.

What the Heck is Google Chrome OS?

Despite hyperbolic statements that Google dropped a nuclear bomb on Microsoft with its Chrome OS announcement, the fact is no one really knows what this system can do. Questions about Google Chrome OS's capabilities should disappear on Thursday. We should also find out whether Chrome OS is just another Linux distribution or something entirely new.

Where Do Developers Fit in?

Part of Google's promise when it announced Chrome OS is that it would make the operating system's code open source by the end of the year. If Google makes good on its promise tomorrow, where will developers fit into Google's ecosystem?

Google is making strides to involve developers in creating Google Chrome extensions and Google Wave applications. But an operating system that will supposedly change everything should present new opportunities for developers. What will those be? Is Google hoping its developer community will simply help the company improve the OS, or does Google have a more interesting plan in the works?

What's Up With the Hardware?

When Google starts the Chrome OS demo on Thursday, everyone will want to know what kind of computer is running the OS, and when we can expect to see consumer products on store shelves.

We already know that some of Google's Chrome OS partners include Acer, ASUS, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, and Toshiba, but when will we see some merchandise and what will it be? Google said Chrome OS will be available on netbooks to start, but what about the specs? For instance, does Google believe a Web-centric netbook should come with a lot of storage space? Does it even need a hard drive? What about RAM or optical disc drives?

Wave and Microsoft

I'm also interested to see if Google highlights Chrome OS's integration with Google Wave. As anybody who's on Wave can tell you, Google Wave is the coolest spot on the Web, but there's not much to do right now. How important is this revamped e-mail project to Google, and how will Chrome OS complement it?

We should also get a sense of how Chrome OS might fare against Windows. Who knows -- Microsoft may even issue a statement about it. Let's be honest; it's laughable to think the most dominant operating system since the human brain is going to be upended by a fancy Web browser. But hey, you never know.

Chrome OS Doubts

Although a lot of excitement surrounds Chrome OS, I can't help thinking the importance of this product is already overblown. I mean, if you wanted a lightweight operating system that just gets to the Web faster, why not pick up a copy of Linux, and just run Firefox on it? If you want one-click shortcuts to get to specific Web apps you can use Mozilla's Prism for that. You'll also have access to a huge library of Firefox add-ons to enhance your browsing experience.

Will Chrome OS be any different than what I've described above? Maybe a little, but I'm not getting my hopes up for Thursday's announcement. What about you?

Modern Warfare 2 tops entertainment industry, not just games

11/19/2009 01:11:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

If you think Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 has had a major impact on just the video game industry, you may need to adjust your expectations.


According to Activision Blizzard, the game's publisher, Modern Warfare 2 has set records across the entire entertainment industry.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the "biggest entertainment launch in history," Activision said in a statement. In its first five days of availability, the game set a worldwide record with about $550 million in sales, according to internal Activision figures. It's impressive. But more impressive is the list of launches that it beat out.

In the first five days of availability, Modern Warfare 2 has eclipsed the largest worldwide box-office opening, held by "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," which tallied $394 million over its first five days. It also beat "The Dark Knight," which holds the U.S. box-office record with $203.8 million in first five-day sales.

The game also narrowly trumped Grand Theft Auto IV, which captured $500 million in sales in its first five days of availability.

In other words, Modern Warfare 2 has had a major release.

The game's success also translated to major numbers on Xbox Live. Activision reported that "more than 5.2 million multiplayer hours were logged playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on the first day alone." On November 10, 2.2 million unique gamers played on Xbox Live, setting a new one-day record for the online-gaming platform.

Of course, it should be noted that all these figures come from Activision's internal estimates, which might differ from the NPD Group's official totals when it announces November video-game sales.

But until then, Activision can (rightfully so) celebrate Modern Warfare 2's success. And maybe the video-game industry, which has always received second billing to film in the entertainment space, can finally stake its claim to the top spot. Video games are, based on Modern Warfare 2's success, just as viable an entertainment platform as movies.

HK star Andy Lau keeps new wife indoors to stay out of media glare

11/19/2009 01:11:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

HONG Kong superstar Andy Lau has barred his Malaysian wife Carol Chu from going out, Sin Chew Daily reported.

The newspaper reported that an agreement was reached between the couple in the hope that media attention on their marriage would be played down.

Andy also recently made up to Carol by booking a whole cinema to watch the Michael Jackson film, This Is It, in Hong Kong.

The cinema's staff members were stationed outside the building to ensure that the couple enjoyed the show without being disturbed.

Andy's parents and 10 of his assistants also watched the film with the couple.

It cost about HK$5,000 ($900) to book the cinema, which has seats with massage functions, the report said.

After learning that reporters had gathered outside the cinema, the couple left by the backdoor, which led to the car park.

Andy's love life has been in the news this year.

In February, he denied being married in an interview with Hong Kong's Cable TV.

Then in October, Hong Kong journalists discovered marriage records from the Clark County Recorder's Office in the US state of Nevada that showed the 47-year-old star had wed Carol in June last year.

Andy had used his stage name Andy Lau Tak Wah, instead of his birth name Lau Fook Wing, for the occasion, having changed his name formally many years ago, Hong Kong's Apple Daily reported then.

Relationship made public

Carol is a 43-year-old former Malaysian beauty queen.

The report also speculated that as the acknowledgement date and marriage date in the records fell on the same day, the couple probably decided to get married on the spur of the moment.

They are said to have started dating 24 years ago, and had kept the relationship under wraps, though there had been widespread speculation in the media and among Andy's fans that they were together and were even married.

In September Andy apologised for lying about his marriage, saying he behaved inappropriately for a public figure.

He confirmed the marriage in a brief message on his website, saying he did not announce the marriage because he wanted to shield Carol from the press, reported AP.

Andy said then: 'My recent behaviour amounts to a lie. It disappointed many people. Because I'm a public figure, I think I should publicly apologise to everyone who believed me. I hope everyone will forgive me.

Critics contend that Andy lied about his marriage to protect his image as an idol.

One of Asia's biggest celebrities, the star of Infernal Affairs and House of Flying Daggers has appeared in more than 100 movies since his debut in 1982.

Dubbed one of Chinese pop's Four Heavenly Kings in the 1990s, he also enjoys a successful recording career.

He said on his website that he and Carol had married so they could try to have children through artificial insemination, which is only authorised for married couples in Hong Kong.

'I don't have any children. I don't have any sons or daughters. The children you have photographed are the children of my relatives or friends,' he said.

Nokia's Maemo 5-equipped N900 on sale in America for $649

11/19/2009 01:09:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



We've already given you a glimpse at the N900, but as of today, you Yanks in the crowd can wrap your own limber paws around Nokia's hero device. Admittedly tailored for enthusiasts and developers to use while the company maneuvers Maemo into its product line, the N900 is now available through Nokia Flagship stores in New York and Chicago, the firm's website and "various independent retailers and e-tailers." A tidy sum of $649 (or $510 if you're smart enough to check Amazon) nabs you an unlocked version with a 5 megapixel camera, 32GB of internal storage and a bombastic, Flash-lovin' web browser. Ain't no shame in lusting after one, but tell us earnestly -- are you forking out nearly seven bills to bring one home?

Official Google Phone confirmed for early 2010?

11/19/2009 01:09:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Ever since Android was first vaunted, people have been asking for an official Google Phone; however the search giant has always said it was only taking the lead in software, not hardware. Now, according to TechCrunch’s sources, that’s all going to change: they claim that an official, Google branded handset will drop in early 2010, with the company dictating every element of hardware and software to put together their own interpretation of today’s smartphone.

Who’s actually responsible for for hardware construction is still unconfirmed, though despite rumors of HTC involvement TechCrunch are saying it’ll be a Korean firm that produces the Google Phone. They’re leaning toward LG, since rival Samsung produces several of the components in the iPhone, a deal could lead Apple to pressure them not to get involved with the Google handset.

According to the sources, Google had hoped to have their phone on the market by the 2009 holiday period, but that timescale has slipped. However we should expect a “big push” in promotion and advertising in January 2010 in the run-up to launch. No hardware or form-factor specifications are known as yet.

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