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Orange deny Apple iSlate blunder: VP “taken out of context”

1/12/2010 01:51:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

It comes as little surprise that Orange – or at least the carrier’s UK arm – are leaping all over today’s speculation that Orange France exec Stéphane Richard accidentally confirmed the Apple iSlate tablet on French radio. According to a statement given to paidContent – and as SlashGear predicted – Richard’s comments were “taken out of context”, and in actual fact the VP was merely stating that yes, indeed, he was aware of the ongoing rumors.



“These responses in no way reflect Orange’s confirmation of the existence of the rumoured device. The spokesperson was merely confirming that he is aware of the speculation surrounding a launch and that Orange would be delighted to have such a product were it ever to be available” Orange statement

Once again, too much reading between the lines and – dare we say it – wishful thinking caused many to jump to conclusions. The Europe1 interview didn’t help matters, with unclear questions that made (in one interpretation, anyway) it seem like Richard was confirming the iSlate.

However we’re still expecting Apple to announce an event on January 27th, at which the near-legendary iSlate will get its official launch. Right now there’s no word from Apple on the event, but we’re used to the company waiting until only a week prior to invite press along; if that holds true, we shouldn’t expect to hear anything until sometime next week.

Adam Lambert Is A 'Bigger Personality' Than Kris Allen, Randy Jackson Admits

1/12/2010 01:43:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , , 0 Comments

'But I think they're both equally talented,' judge says of season-eight 'American Idol' finalists.

While "American Idol" has been the launching pad for a lot of singers, it's what contestants do after the season ends that separates the Kelly Clarksons from the Kevin Covaises.

With the ninth season starting Tuesday at 8 p.m., last year's contestants are officially out of the "Idol" nest and exploring their new careers. What does judge Randy Jackson think of their progress so far? He's optimistic — but he's worried runner-up Adam Lambert might have tried to tackle too much, too soon.

"Adam is a giant personality," Jackson said Friday. "He's unbelievably talented. The AMA thing, I guess, was something he wanted to do and try. An artist is really left up to their own ideas of how they want to do things."

Kris Allen, meanwhile, hasn't really been able to capitalize on the "Idol" crown with his debut album so far, but Jackson isn't giving up hope.

"[Adam is] a far bigger personality, probably, than Kris, but I think they're both equally talented," Jackson said. "Kris obviously won for a reason."

Jackson also hasn't ruled out success for a few other finalists: "You got Allison [Iraheta], she's got her record out too. I wish them all well and the best. They're all immensely talented. Danny Gokey — we had a lot of talented kids [last] season."

With those big shoes to fill, Jackson was expecting some season-eight clones at the auditions, but he was pleasantly surprised.

"You would have thought there would have been a lot more theatrical Adam Lambert or Kris Allen types that would have showed up for the auditions, but that's not what happened at all this time," he said. "Usually, whoever wins or comes in one and two, the next season of auditions, you have a lot of those kinds of people. It's almost like it was a signal to all the people at home who were like them: 'Now it's time to try out for "American Idol"!' [Laughs.] But it didn't happen like that this time, so I think we got a very interesting, unique cast that's really only unique to this season nine."

Rihanna Not Dating Matt Kemp

1/12/2010 01:42:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

RIHANNA isn’t dating Matt Kemp — despite recent reports to the contrary.

The pair sparked romance rumors when Matt followed the Umbrella singer to Abu Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, where she had a gig performing at the Emirates Palace on New Years Eve.

Rihanna was then snapped smooching the 25-year-old LA Dodgers star during a romantic vacation in the Mexican resort of Cabo San Lucas.

The rumor mill then went into overdrive when Kemp’s representative said the pair had been “having fun” together.

But the same rep now insists that the word “dating” was pushing the envelope.

“I think dating might be a stretch at this point,” said the spokesman. “They are in Cabo, but past that they are just good friends, and I don’t think we can label it as anything other than friendship right now. Who knows what will develop past the friendship.”

Orange France VP confirms Apple Tablet on-air?

1/12/2010 01:42:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Securing a deal with Apple is the kind of thing any carrier executive would want to crow about, but we’re still somewhat dubious about Orange France VP Stéphane Richard’s apparent on-air confirmation of the Apple iSlate tablet. Interviewed by French radio station Europe1, Richard is asked about the persistent rumors that Apple will announce a webcam-enabled Tablet in a few days time, something to which he answers yes; he then – in one interpretation – goes on to confirm that Orange customers would benefit from such a device.



Jean Pierre Elkabbach: “According to the weekly Le Point, a few days your partner Apple will launch a Tablet with a webcam”

Stéphane Richard: “Yes”

Jean Pierre Elkabbach: “Is that Orange users will also benefit”

Stéphane Richard, “Sure!”

Now, SlashGear’s French is of the rudimentary variety, and the above exchange comes courtesy of Google Translate. We’re cautious about accepting this at face value for a number of reasons, not least that we’d expect a carrier exec to be more media-savvy when it comes to prematurely scooping Apple’s always-secret wares.

There’s also some room for interpretation in his answers. The way interviewer Elkabbach phrases his initial question, Richard’s “Yes” could be an agreement that yes, an Apple tablet is on the way, or merely that yes, newspaper Le Point did suggest that fact. What little French we do know – yes, we can recognize “le webcam”! – confirms that when asked about Orange customers benefitting, Richard talks about how they can use webcams for video calls, rather than how they could benefit from a tablet.

Confirmation of an Apple iSlate headed to Orange France? We’re not sure about that; we’ll have to wait and see whether Apple’s rumored January 27th launch event pans out. We’ve snipped out the relevant section of the interview in the video below:

Is Vicky Zhao Wei Pregnant?

1/12/2010 01:41:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Is Vicky Zhao Wei pregnant? Southern Metropolis Entertainment Weekly Monday published a snapshot of the actress seemingly beginning to show signs of pregnancy.


Zhao Wei,who has not been seen in public for months, looks much plumpier in the photo, donning an oversized loose outfit.

Tabloids report Vicky Zhao was expecting a child with property tycoon Huang Youlong and is staying in Singapore during the pregnancy to hide from paparazzi.

Earlier in July, there were rumors that Vicky, 33, secretly registered her marriage with Chinese businessman boyfriend Huang Youlong in Singapore.

West China City Daily said according to close sources in showbiz circles, Vicky Zhao is already five months pregnant.

Zhao was absent for the latest promotional event for new film '14 Blades' co-starring alongside Hong Kong Kung Fu star Donnie Yen on January 6, neither did she show up for some other important occasions she was supposed to attend recently.

Despite the rumored pregnancy that has hit the headlines of many Chinese online media outlets, Vicky Zhao seems to be unaffected and doesn't discuss the issue in her latest blog entry, according to Sohu.com.

Jason Trawick: Cheating on Britney Spears?

1/12/2010 01:41:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

For months now, the only Britney Spears rumors we've seen involve her getting engaged to Jason Trawick. Not true, but all has been well in Britneyville.

Today's Britney gossip marks quite a departure from that trend.

According to the Mirror (UK), she is furious after discovering that her agent and boyfriend has been out frolicking with other girls behind her back.

The couple are now thought to be on a "trial split," and a heartbroken Brit has supposedly dyed her hair black. That'd be better than going bald ...

Ella Davis, who was in the bar, said: “Jason Trawick left the bar with two bottles of water – and a stunning girl who looked like Britney did five years ago."

That's rough.

Word spread to Britney who called her man and tore him a new one. She then allegedly turned her phone off and checked into a five-star hotel suite. Solo.

“This isn’t the first time Britney has been let down by a man in her life," said a source, stating the obvious. "She was absolutely gutted and feels betrayed."

“She called her mom who flew in from Louisiana to be with her. They checked into the Mondrian and Brit had black hair dye, saying she needed a change."

Rumors of an impending engagement have run wild for months, but recently we reported a story of Britney smothering him. Could he be looking to escape?

Google named Word of the Decade

1/12/2010 01:41:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Tweet makes Word of the Year, while Google beats blog for top word of the '00s

If you had any lingering doubts that social networking is pervading our lives, doubt no longer.

The American Dialect Society, an association that studies the English language late last week announced that "tweet" is the top word of 2009, and "Google" -- the verb, not the noun - is the top word of the past decade.

"Both words are, in the end, products of the Information Age, where every person has the ability to satisfy curiosity and to broadcast to a select following, both via the Internet," said Grant Barrett, chair of the society's New Words Committee, in a statement. "I really thought 'blog' would take the honors in the word of the decade category, but more people google than blog, don't they? Plus, many people think "blog" just sounds ugly. Maybe Google's trademark lawyers would have preferred it, anyway."

The Twitter microblogging site definitely is getting a lot of attention among wordsmiths.

Last November, the Global Language Monitor announced that it had selected "Twitter" as the top word of 2009 based on its annual global survey of English words and phrases that appear in the media and online. And the New Oxford American Dictionary in November announced that "unfriend" -- a word meaning to remove someone from a list of friends on a social network like Facebook -- was its 2009 Word of the Year.

The American Dialect Society compares its word of the year to Time magazine's Person of the Year. The society noted that it tries to show that language change is a naturally ongoing process.

Runners up in the 2009 Word of the Year category included Dracula sneeze, which means to sneeze into the crook of your elbow, much as Dracula did when he was hiding part of his face with his cape. Other potential winners were H1N1, fail, and -er... as in birther, truther and deather.

The society also noted that other words or phrases up for Word of the Decade were: 9/11, blog, green, wi-fi, text and war on terror.

The American Dialect Society began choosing Words of the Year in 1990.

The 2008 Word of the Year was "bailout". The 2007 word of the year was "subprime", which describes a less than ideal loan or mortgage. The 2006 word or phrase of the year was "to be plutoed", as in to be demoted or devalued. And the 2005 word of the year was "truthiness", which is from Stephen Colbert's the Colbert Report, meaning what one wants to be true regardless of the facts.

Microsoft Word and Office 'sales ban' begins

1/12/2010 01:40:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

A ban on Microsoft selling certain versions of its flagship products Word and Office has begun.

The software firm was made to change elements of the software by US courts after a patent dispute with Canadian firm i4i.

Microsoft said that it had complied with the court's ruling and would now offer "revised software" in the US.

The court ruling means that Microsoft must also pay i4i damages of $290m (£182m).

However, the firm said on 8 January that it had filed another appeal against the injunction.

The firm wants a panel of 11 judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to review the case in the hope of overturning the original judgment.

Microsoft has already challenged the ruling once. But in December last year, a panel of three judges rejected its arguments and upheld the original decision of a Texas court that ruled that Microsoft had infringed a patent belonging to i4i.

The disputed patent relates to the use of XML, a language that allows formatting of text and makes files readable across different programs.

XML is used in recent versions of Microsoft's word-processor Word.

Microsoft has now removed the disputed feature from all available versions of Microsoft Word and Microsoft Office on sale in the US from today.

"This process will be imperceptible to the vast majority of customers," the firm said in a statement.

Despite the firms compliance, Microsoft has said it will still challenge the case.

Kevin Kutz, director of public affairs at Microsoft, said the latest appeal had been filed because the firm believed the decision in December conflicted with "established precedents governing trial procedure and the determination of damages".

"We are concerned that the decision weakens judges' authority to apply appropriate safeguards in future patent trials," he added.

Wonder Girls gets a bloody letter! and YoonA is next

1/12/2010 01:39:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

The words “원더걸스 돌아와” on the letter means, “Wonder Girls come back”


Recently, a strong fan of girl group ‘Wonder Girls’ left a picture of a bloody letter. Late last year 2pm’s Taekyeon and Mblaq’s Lee Joon, this is now the third time a bloody letter was shown. For what reasons do these fans show such passionate behavior?

A bloody letter is a more passionate and fanatical way of showing one’s feelings. Most of the fans for idol groups usually start with Junior High students who have not matured yet and are going through puberty.

Idol stars usually receive gifts such as: letters, drawings, perfume, and other items to show their love. In order for the stars to recognize them, they tend to find large and expensive gifts.

The fans that left the bloody letters probably wanted the stars to recognize their love for them more strongly. Instead of just blood, these fans choose to cut their wrists to demonstrate their love more.

The internet culture has strongly influenced this type of behavior by comments such as “I was able to do this much, but you can only do that much?”. These kind of comments have created competition amongst the fans online. This could be seen as a factor.

After seeing this kind of behavior, netizens have been responding with “They are out of their mind. I don’t understand.”

Just recently a member of a popular idol group said “Although receiving gifts are great, please refrain from giving gifts. Instead give me letters written with sincere thoughts only.” To some fans, leaving bloody letters seem to show their sincerity and their love, thus choosing to leave the letters are better.

After TaecYeon and WonderGirls, YoonA is next to receive a bloody fan letter


Another photo of a bloody letter has been uploaded on DCInside comedy Gallery, and this time the message written was “YoonA, don’t film for Family Outing”.

It has been announced recently that So Nyeo Shi Dae YoonA has been confirmed on the team for Family Outing 2.

Some netizens commented after seeing the photo, “This is fandom going overboard” while some said, “looks like fake to me”, “looks like it is made using paint”.



Meanwhile, YoonA is not the first celebrities to receive a bloody letter, earlier it has happened to TaecYeon, the WonderGirls and Lee Joon.

Lindsay Lohan Hit & Run Lawsuit

1/12/2010 01:39:00 AM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Trouble-prone starlet Lindsay Lohan is at the center of a brewing hit and run case in Los Angeles. A member of the paparazzi member is threatening legal action against the actress after claiming her driver “almost killed” him in a pedestrian acccident over the weekend.



The Georgia Rule star’s car allegedly struck the photographer at approximately 12:30 AM Sunday morning in front of The Hotel Cafe in Hollywood, according to L.A.’s NBC affiliate KTLA. After plowing through a throng of determined snappers, the BMW sped away from the scene, witnesses say. Lohan, 23, wasn’t driving, but was inside the car at the time.

The driver is now the target of a criminal assault with a deadly weapon investigation.

The photographer suffered injuries to his arm and wrist, but was not taken to hospital. “Of course I’m going to sue them … but I don’t care about the money,” the photographer told TMZ.com Sunday. He claims he is “lucky to be alive,” especially since the driver was wearing sunglasses while driving in a dark alley.

“I want to press charges so badly … she’s going to jail,” the shutterbug shouted.

Lindsay is no stranger to bad manners behind the wheel. She got her first DUI in 2006, two weeks before her 21st birthday, when she slammed her Mercedes into a tree in Beverly Hills. Her second collar for drunk driving came in July 2007, just days after she left a Malibu rehab facility.

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