The Moment I Knew

At 5 a.m., I knew I wouldn't be going in to work that day. This was the first time I woke up still drunk from the night before. Usually my hands shook, but my mind remained clear. Now back on anti-depressants however, I spent my days and nights in a hazy stupor spotted with terrifying blackouts never before experienced in my drinking. Plopping in front of the TV and putting on a movie, I grabbed my jug of cheap vodka for company. When my mother stopped by my apartment and found me at ten in the morning babbling about how I might be schizophrenic when clearly I was just drunk, I knew I had reached my breaking point. The jig was up.

I was two years into a three-year Master's program. I smattered together a livable income with two low-wage jobs, and had been laid off twice since moving out of my parent's house at 23. During the times spent with only half an income, I racked up enough RFID tag debt to make interest payments suck up any money I could have saved, creating a cycle of fruitless frustration. After the last layoff, I spent four months underemployed until I settled for a job as a barista at half the wage I had previously earned. A month after accepting the job, I remember putting out the papers the day the stock market crashed and the world fell apart. Prospects of better work seemed hopeless. As the recession wore on, it became evident that the career for which I had been killing myself would all but disappear in the next few years, and my hopes of finding a job in my field shrunk to nil.

In the meantime, I started having a nightly drink to quell the anxiety. The nightly drink became two, then four. Once I started working the four AM shift at the coffee shop, my internal clock went haywire, my body no longer knowing an acceptable hour to start drinking. Why would it? I began my day at 3:30 a.m., rolled out of bed and powered through work on fumes and caffeine until 9:30. I would have a few hours off to nap or do homework until my next job started around one. Then, I would work some more until dashing off to my evening classes, getting home anywhere between 8 and 9 p.m., only to study or write papers until I fell asleep with books on my chest and my laptop on the floor by the bed.

After several months, I started my drinking before work, simply to stop the shaking. I didn't recognize this as a symptom of withdrawal, slating me into the category of alcoholic, because I still functioned at a remarkably high level. I continued to get all A's and show up to work and school without exception.

However, I was miserable beyond description. I didn't have insurance to go to the doctor or receive any psychiatric help, but I finally managed to scrape together enough for one doctor visit and a prescription for generic anti-depressants. Little did I know, this signified the beginning of the end. For those unfamiliar with anti-depressants, drinking alcohol while on them causes severe drug interaction. This did not stop me, and I soon discovered why the two don't mix.

When my roommate told me she was moving out, I knew I had to find another, and fast. I couldn't swing the rent alone because the amount exceeded my entire paycheck. The days zoomed by, the new roommate never materialized, and I was frantic. Another drink would ease my anxiety, but then I would black out, calling people and not remembering or calling in sick to work. Within a few weeks, I called myself defeated, asking my parents if I could move back in with them.

On that first morning of missing work, when someone saw me as the mess on the couch with my plastic gallon bottle of liquor, I couldn't hide my alcoholism anymore, even from the hardest person to convince: myself. Though I didn't understand what I needed to do next, I did know that I could not figure it out while keeping up the same mad pace. Quitting one of my jobs and taking a leave of absence from the other, I hoped that by eliminating some of the stress, I wouldn't need to drink as much.

It was too late for that, though. I had become a full-blown alcoholic without realizing it. I didn't know how to quit. Not long after moving back home, I poisoned myself, desperate for a drink and half-crazy.

After hospitalization and the darkest, loneliest night of my life, my parents asked me to leave. They told me I needed treatment, and that they would help me get it, but I couldn't stay with them. For the first time, I started to agree. Though the idea of dropping everything seemed insurmountable and irresponsible, I did it. I had to. I had nowhere to live, no way to support myself, and no way to stop drinking on my own. I quit my other job, took a sabbatical from school, and started the business of starting over.

After a rocky beginning with nights spent crashing at friends and my boyfriend's house, I landed in a nine-month long inpatient program. I went from a 150 miles an hour to zero. I had nothing but time: time to reflect, time to heal, time to learn my limitations and time to understand that imperfection is not a character flaw. Honestly, rehab was the best thing that could have happened to me. It was where I learned to be human, where I learned just how toxically stressful my life had become. I could have a fulfilling life without alcohol, and rehab taught me how to recognize overload warning signs.

When I exited the program three years ago, I eased back into life, trying to be kind to myself. Living off of other people's generosity until I could get full-time work was a blow to my pride, but I accepted it as graciously as I could until I found work. I went back to school and finished my final year and a thesis. I learned to put my health -- physical, mental and spiritual -- first.

Today, I don't try to tackle superhuman feats of endurance. I make time for exercise, for downtime, for activities with friends and family. When I feel the stress creep back in, instead of reaching for something to numb me, I step back, remove an unnecessary obligation, and take time for what I need, whether that is journaling, painting, reading, jogging or even crying. It takes strength to release control and find another way to live, strength to let yourself be weak, be vulnerable, be helped. I learned the hard way that stress can destroy your life if you let it, but I also learned you can rebuild, and what I am building now is far more satisfying.

Now, you may be wondering exactly why a black-and-green laptop made by a gaming company is being compared to a silver-and-black laptop made by a company that is specifically avoided by gaming enthusiasts. Once you get your hands on the new Blade though, it becomes instantly clear — it looks like Razer made its own version of a MacBook Pro with Retina display. From the slim form-factor and curved edges, to the backlit chiclet keyboard and smooth touchpad, the Blade looks like the MacBook Pro’s Windows sibling that started listening to death metal and wearing black nail polish.

Click on their website http://www.smartcardfactory.com/.

Inside Chicago library’s new “pop-up maker lab”

If you've ever had a hankering to try out a 3D printer, a laser cutter, or a milling machine without dropping thousands of your own hard-earned dollars, the Harold Washington Library in Chicago is the place to be. Starting today, July 8, Harold Washington has become the first major urban library to open a pop-up "maker lab," allowing members of the general public the opportunity to experiment with the cutting-edge technologies. And while there are still a few wrinkles to iron out before the public can use all the machines, the Chicago Public Library (CPL) system is already looking forward to where this project will go next.

"There's more buzz about this on social media than anything we've ever done," CPL's First Deputy Commissioner Andrea Sáenz told Ars.

What exactly is the pop-up maker lab? CPL partnered up with Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry—which is offering its own maker lab to museum visitors—in order to put together the program. Unlike the museum's lab, however, the maker space at Harold Washington is completely free and open to the plastic card. Chicago residents will be prompted to use a library card to gain access, but Sáenz told Ars that out-of-town visitors won't be turned away if they don't have a card of their own.

Visitors will eventually be able to make use of three MakerBot 2 3D printers, two laser cutters from Inventables, and one milling machine, in addition to open source software on a fleet of computers so that people can design their own projects. In the weeks leading up to the public opening, members of the CPL and American Library Association staff have been using the machines to make wooden iPhone docks with the milling machine, craft their own custom keychains with the laser cutters, and even print an entire chess set with the 3D printers, though they're eager to see what the public will come up with following the launch.

"We have our own pre-set ideas of what people are going to make and what will draw people in, but we also just want them to be exposed to new tools and technology," Sáenz said. "If the lab is super popular, there is a possibility for a larger space in this building, or we could take it to another branch where folks in that neighborhood would be able to use that kind of thing."

Harold Washington's maker lab is in just one room on one floor of the massive downtown library, and it's not permanent. The current grant that allows the library to run the space goes through the end of the year, meaning the staff will then need to evaluate the success of the project.

"We can decide if the maker space makes sense for the library, period. We'll ask ourselves: does it fit nicely into this whole informal learning environment that we're trying to create?" Sáenz said.

Some of those lessons have already come from smaller communities that have installed similar maker spaces into their libraries. "They tend to be a little smaller scale, as most of those libraries just jumped right in," Sáenz said, "but we really took our time so we could figure out what it is about this whole maker thing that fits into a library setting."

One such lesson is that the machines are loud when being used—not exactly ideal for a library. Additionally, since some of these machines are relatively new technology (3D printers, we're looking at you), they tend to break down easily. In fact, that's why the Harold Washington library decided not to make its three MakerBot printers available for public use just yet, despite the buzz around today's launch. "That will be coming very soon, but on launch day, we'll probably just have the MakerBots printing our own projects to give people a feel for how they work," the library's head of business, science, and technology, Mark Andersen, told Ars.

"Our goal was to make our staff comfortable enough with them to fix them," Sáenz said as she described some of the hacks the staff came up with in order to keep the machines running smoothly. "I'm pretty sure they've become experts at re-threading the machines." (Indeed, as someone who has had access to a MakerBot 2 in recent months, I can attest to their occasional flakiness.)

Despite these setbacks, Sáenz and Andersen believe it was a good decision to use consumer-grade machines for the lab—and not just because the grant limited their ability to spend too much money on individual technologies. "We couldn't buy super expensive equipment, but it turned out well because we have equipment that's a little more likely to be in someone's home one day," Andersen said. "These are things that a family could buy today if they wanted to spend the money on it, and we want to teach them how to use it."

So far, it seems the public is dying to jump into the lab—teachers, instructors, and even business owners have reportedly been e-mailing nonstop to find out how they can get involved. "When school gets back in, we have a few high school teachers and principals who want to use that space as a hands-on lab for a class," Sáenz said. She then told a story about an instructor who asked about the output capacity of the maker lab's machines. "If you're asking me about capacity, you're already thinking too big!"

Perhaps the pop-up maker lab isn't quite ready to start churning out custom chess sets with all your friends' faces on the pawns. But the interest in doing so is there, and the library wants to tap into it. Said Sáenz, "We really designed it as an introduction to maker tools, culture, and economies with the hope that people will continue on their own."

An economist at IHS Global Insight, Leslie Levesque, observed that households had increased credit card balances in May by the most in 12 months. The improved outlook on the economy and finances appeared to have made consumers more comfortable with purchasing on plastic. In addition, auto and student loan balances continued to grow.

Better job numbers, higher property values and rising equity prices, Levesque said, continue to support this. Retailers reported a decent 0.6 percent increase in sales in May and are expected to have had another strong month in June. Overall sales for the month, he added, will once again be propped up by autos, as light-vehicle sales were the highest since November 2007.

The category that includes IC card use rose $6.6 billion, also the largest gain in a year. Credit card debt reached $847.1 billion, the most since September 2010. Credit card debt remains about 16 percent below its high of $1.02 trillion in July 2008 -- just before the financial crisis erupted.

Borrowing for autos and student loans rose $13 billion in May. That was the sharpest increase since February. This category of borrowing has been rising especially fast, driven by loans to pay for college.

The Federal Reserve's consumer credit report does not separate student loans from auto loans. But data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York show that student loan debt has been the biggest driver of borrowing since the Great Recession officially ended. In part, that's because some unemployed Americans have returned to school for training in hopes of landing a job.

More credit card borrowing could help boost consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of economic activity. But some consumers have been hesitant to run up high-interest debt since the recession ended. Some economists say many Americans remain cautious because higher Social Security taxes this year have reduced paychecks for most.

Despite the jump in credit card debt in May, consumers aren't likely to increase their card use to pre-recession levels, said Cooper Howes, an economist at Barclays Research. Credit card debt is known as revolving credit."We expect the trends of student loan-driven expansion ... and only small changes in revolving credit to continue in coming months," Howes said.

The measure of card debt in the Fed's report has risen $15.8 billion this year. That compares with annual increases of $25 billion to $50 billion in credit card debt before the Great Recession, which officially began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009.Rising home prices and steady job growth have helped offset any damage to the U.S. economy from the higher Social Security tax.

Employers added 195,000 jobs in June and many more in April and May than previously thought, the government said Friday. Pay was also up sharply. Over the past 12 months, pay has risen 2.2 percent while consumer prices have increased 1.4 percent.Consumers boosted their spending from January through March but reduced the pace of their savings to finance it. After-tax income dropped in the first quarter.

That decline reflected, in part, the increased Social Security tax that took effect Jan. 1. A person earning $50,000 a year has about $1,000 less to spend this year. A household with two highly paid workers has up to $4,500 less.

The economy grew at an annual rate of only 1.8 percent in the January-March quarter. Many economists have forecast that growth in the April-June quarter will weaken further to around 1.5 percent. But they think the economy will rebound somewhat in the second half of this year as stronger employment growth fuels more consumer spending.

Dubai eGovernment ready for smart government

Dubai eGovernment Department (DeG), has announced its readiness for transformation into a smart government in line with the initiative of His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Ahmad bin Humaidan, Director-General of Dubai eGovernment, announced the department's commitment to the instructions of Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council.

He said: “Shaikh Mohammed’s initiative is based on the leadership’s keenness on customer satisfaction through round-the-clock government services using the latest technologies based on a clear understanding of their needs, while leveraging the mobile phone; which has become one of the most widespread devices in the RFID tag.”

According to the latest Google study, he said the UAE is in the lead worldwide with 62 per cent smartphone penetration rate and 18 per cent growth rate annually.

Bin Humaidan added: “We hereby confirm our full readiness to respond to the requirements of the new stage, which is an extension to the eTransformation of eGovernment that we began 13 years ago. Together, with our government partners, we have already developed many applications that represent a starting point for the provision of more creative applications, thanks to our unique experience of leading the first eGovernment in the region.

We will support our partners with a modern infrastructure, a secure unified government information network, sophisticated platforms and government resources planning systems that are currently being used by 42 Dubai government entities for managing their internal resources in a highly efficient manner. In addition, we have shared services that are optimised by these entities for providing their services to the public. These services are enablers that will inevitably integrate with the requirements of achieving the smart government’s objectives.”

The coming stage will witness a creative competition for providing smartphone applications, Bin Humaidan continued, noting that the most successful of these applications would be those which provide integrated and easy to use eServices to customers, enabling them to implement these services via their mobile phones without the need to visit the concerned government entities, thereby easing their daily transactions with the government.

Customers will be satisfied only if these apps provide integrated services so this will require further coordination between government entities and the private sector.

Bin Humaidan urged the government entities to provide applications that have easy to use features and to focus on meeting customers’ needs by arranging homogenous services in one application instead of focusing on increasing the number of applications and repeating the information contained in them.

As for implementing the transformation into smart government, he said: “We have recently launched My ID initiative, which will allow customers a unified access to all the eServices provided by Dubai government entities via smartphones or the Internet by means of only one identification that eliminates the need for customers to register with each government entity separately. The initiative, which makes use of the ID card issued by the Emirates Identity Authority, will actually be put into operation in October this year.”

Dubai eGovernment has begun to implement Sheikh Mohammed’s initiative using three major tracks; namely: activating all eServices via smartphone apps; creating new mGovernment services and finally inviting government entities to devise unified mobile strategies for transformation into smart government.

Dubai eGovernment currently has a package of smartphone apps and mobile services including mPay for mobile payment of government services and fees; mDubai for most used government services, eComplain tracking, government news and information; and SMS Dubai for SMS based services between customers and Dubai government.

From web-connected TVs, child-monitoring systems and medical gear to smart cars, clothes and store sensors that track customers, billions of gizmos -- collectively dubbed "the Internet of things" -- already routinely gather and share information on people, often without their knowledge.

Some experts fear we are fast approaching a technological tipping point, where it's becoming impossible to hide from snooping devices. Essentially we are being watched all the smart card, by everyone from the corner coffee shop to retailers to insurers to Internet companies. And they can use that data to stitch together a detailed portrait of you.

"Consumers already are able to use their mobile phones to open their car doors, turn off their home lights, adjust their thermostats, and have their vital signs, such as blood pressure, EKG, and blood sugar levels, remotely monitored by their physicians," the agency noted in a news release.

The transmission of that data, or for example, electronic banking and credit card statements, could easily be intercepted or monitored, many experts say. Hackers, who can rifle through the data on other people's computers and turn on their computer cameras to spy inside their homes, are another concern.

The Washington Post and Guardian newspapers disclosed last week that the National Security Agency has been collecting Internet data under a top-secret program dubbed PRISM. While federal officials insist it wasn't aimed at anyone in the U.S., others fear that information from people in this country could have been scooped up in the surveillance effort.

One of the biggest worries is what happens to the massive amount of data retailers clandestinely gather on customers, through devices that monitor everything from their buying habits to their movements in stores. Some of that information can be highly personal. The New York Times reported last year that Target assigns women shoppers "a pregnancy prediction" score based on their purchases, which is used to guess if they're expecting and how far along their pregnancy is, so that appropriate products can be marketed to them.

Readers enhance Operational Efficiency of Public and Private Sectors

In a scientific research under the title "Triggering the Smart Card Readers Supply Chain", EIDA stressed that governments that will adopt advanced biometric systems to verify the identity of their residents will excel in their customer service capabilities over the few coming years.

The research asserted that the e-readers will naturally demonstrate stronger authentication capabilities, a matter that would support higher levels of trust and plastic card. This may also have a significant impact on the progress and development of e-government and e-commerce business models and support the development of digital economy.

EIDA called on governments, public and private entities around the globe to collaborate to put in place clear strategies as to how they intend to support the identification and authentication requirements both in the public and private sectors, and thus enhance their customer services.

The research highlighted UAE's prudent leadership vision in this regard and its support to the e-government initiatives. It observed EIDA's efforts to facilitate government services through developing a sophisticated delivery system, and its initiative to distribute more than one million ID e-reader in space of the next two years across the different local and federal government authorities and private sector.

The research has noted that distributing the e-readers would enable public and private organizations to provide innovative services using the features of the ID card.

It emphasized that the readers along with the high tech features and applications of the ID card would result in a secure environment which would contribute to containing fraud on account of identity theft and electronic transaction fraud, and thus instill the "Secure Digital Economy" concept.

EIDA explained that many governments around the world have launched, during the past two decades, modern identity management systems to provide identification and authentication capabilities. The major output of such systems was smart identity cards or electronic passports. The field of government practice has been focusing on the enrolment capabilities and infrastructure rollout, with little focus on smart card applications in the public service domain.

The research envisioned that the rapid technological pace in the smart identity card industry will not only revolutionize the future of identification and authentication, but will also open up new business opportunities and create new economy niches.

The research, which was also published on EIDA's website, envisaged that governments across the world will show increasing interest in different systems and technologies to support the adoption of "smart identity cards" through smart phones and online portals; noting that smart cards have the potential to reshape service delivery and the way in which services are provided, and hence widen the availability of services to customers anywhere and anytime.

WHEN I was in Silicon Valley in May 2013, I met some incredible entrepreneurs and made excellent business connections with people from some of the leading tech companies in the world such as Facebook, Linkedin, Cisco, Eventbrite and more.

Naturally, I was keen to obtain the details of the people that I met, and would request their business card when appropriate with the intention of remaining in contact to explore both immediate and potential business synergies.

I was amazed however at the number of people who seemed genuinely happy to connect, but who did not have any business cards on them and confessed to not really carry them any longer.

It appears you see, that business cards are a thing of the past in the US, most certainly in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, which was where I spent the majority of my time.

The reaction to a request for a business card was often met with, "just look me up on LinkedIn".

This made it extra important to take a good mental note of their name, and where possible the spelling of it, and even their roles at the companies so I could go ahead and look them up on LinkedIn, particularly, if their name was a common one.

This phenomena really made me sit up and take notice of how powerful LinkedIn has become to have even taken over the world of chip card.

In my LinkedIn presentations that I regularly take, for the visual people in the room, I often use the image of a rolodex and explain how LinkedIn is effectively a global rolodex.  Now it is even more so.

Even though my company offers graphic design services, and has access to excellent trade printers, I must admit that I find my cards date quickly too, and moving in this direction actually makes a lot of sense. Whether it would be another social network I wish to include, or a new award we've won, or even job title changes as staff progress in the company, it doesn't always seem worthwhile to chop down a few more trees in the quest of getting another business card run.

Another technology I must point you towards on this topic, if you do ever get handed a business card (though unlikely in Silicon Valley!) is a fantastic app you can download from any smart phone called Card Munch.

When you get handed a business card, open up the Card Munch app on your phone and using the scan feature, allow your phone to scan the details of the business card. The app will conveniently give you the option to save their details direct to your phone, and will also connect to the internet and retrieve information on whether the person is on LinkedIn or not. If they are, a little blue "in" icon will display indicating they are on LinkedIn, and it will give you the option to connect with them on the network.

Using Card Munch you can therefore request a connection on LinkedIn and then throw away their business card. You have them on LinkedIn now - so why do you still need their business card which will simply date and take up valuable office or drawer space?

Friendly Living this Sunday at the Wilton Go Green Festival

If bicycling is more your sport, join Sound Cyclists on guided rides of varying lengths and ability levels. Advanced registration is not required, but participants should dress appropriately and bring their bikes and helmets. (See the box, below, for more information.) Later in the day, riders should venture over to the silent auction for a chance to take home a new bike courtesy of Outdoor Sports. While you're there, why not bid on a summer membership at the Wilton Y, tickets to the Westport County Playhouse, a Gift Card to Bon Appetit or Cactus Rose, or a variety of specialty gift baskets?

The festival officially opens at 11:00am with live music, a wide array of creative children's crafts using recycled materials, fabulous "green" shopping, and more than 80 exhibitors eager to share best practices on energy conservation, building, transportation, recycling and waste management, and responsible stewardship of our air, land, water, wildlife and other natural resources.

At noon in the library courtyard, the Wilton Tree Committee will recognize the 2013 Steward of the Year at its annual ceremony. First Selectman Bill Brennen will open the ceremony, which will honor Young's Nursery for its long history of service, volunteerism and generous donations of plant material to many Wilton High School graduations, the Wilton Library and the town as a whole. Mr. Brennan will also attend the Neighbor to Neighbor Ribbon Cutting during which Wilton will be awarded a new plastic card charging station as a result of the many Home Energy Solutions Audits and other upgrades undertaken by residents.

The festival will sprawl between Town Green and the Wilton Library presenting everything from the latest electric and hybrid cars to a huge, interactive Earth Balloon sponsored by Deloitte and 17-foot tall Farmer created by student artists at Wilton High School. Live music will fill the air while organic and locally grown foods promise to satisfy hungry eco-enthusiasts. Back by popular demand, Skinny Pines Pizza will bring their mobile wood-fired brick oven and create deliciously original pies reflecting our local landscape using seasonally sourced ingredients. This year, the pizza gourmet is unveiling a special Wilton Go Green pesto pie created especially for the festival.

Wilton's own Green Leaf Organic Cafe will be on hand to quench your yearning for something sweet with a delicious sampling of their decadent and savory desserts and pastries. In addition to their traditional French bakery goods, this European-style cafe --known for their freshly baked breads and organic soups -- will offer turkey, veggie and ham sandwiches as well as salmon, chicken Caesar, and fruit and nut salads.

Want to take whip up delicious, healthy food at home? Grow your own vegetables, herbs and berries with a backyard garden. Wilton High School teacher Jim Hunter and students will offer a wide variety of young vegetable plants from their impressive organic garden to help you get started. (The WHS Recycling Club can show you what to do with those plastic pots once your new plants are happily in the garden.) And don't miss cooking demonstrations with Jonathan Mathias of A Dash of Salt Catering and fellow chefs at 11:30am, noon, 12:30pm and 1:00pm.

Renovating your kitchen, adding on, or building on new home? Get the answers you need to ensure your project takes full advantage of green building and remodeling practices at the building and energy exhibitors' area where you'll find pros from Next Step Living, Rings End and BPC Builders talking about clean energy options you'll want to include.

The light-weight tablet measuring 197.4 and 128.5 millimeters and weighing only 320g, is made up of plastic sporting a big black bezel on its front though which the screen is visible, giving the impression of a digital photo-frame. The top sports the Acer branding in the middle and right side has 0.3-megapixel front-facing camera.

The camera, though usable for making video calls, does not produce effective results when it comes to clicking the pictures or taking IC card. The back of the tablet is done up with black coloured plastic. The back, apart from the Acer branding, is equipped with a small speaker grill and certification labels.

A Micro-USB port is located at the bottom with a slot for a micro-SD card that is covered with an insert, while the 3.5 mm headset jack sits at the top of the device. The volume rocker and the power/sleep button, also done in black plastic material, have been placed at the right side of the tablet.

As far as the display is concerned, the tablet sports a 7-inch (diagonal) WSVGA capacitive multi-touch screen having a resolution of 1024×600 pixels have a density of about 170 ppi. Though the screen is quite bright but is reflective at the same time there hampering the visibility under sunlight. Even as the text do not appear to be very sharp, the screen is good enough to read the e-books and magazines. The tablet provides a excellent touch sensitivity to its users.

The current offering from Acer runs on Google’s Android 4.1.2 or Jelly Bean. As compared to the Ice Cream Sandwich version that is usually available for the lower priced devices, Jelly Bean is a much more polished thereby enabling a smooth work. The menu responds quickly and reliably and jerks while scrolling through long lists are rare. Apps also open agreeably fast although more sophisticated apps like games need a bit longer to load. Though internet browsing migh be bit slow as opening websites take slightly longer.

Shopping smart

The number of complaints against rogue vendors in Sim Lim Square speak for themselves, but if you still want to soak in the noisy, market-like atmosphere of the IT mall and spend hours hunting for some seriously good bargains, here are some common scams to watch out for to make your shopping experience a chip card.

If the shop's salesmen are hanging around outside their shop approaching tourists or potential customers, calling out "best price for you", holding calculators and blocking your way, stay away.

Their full-time job is just luring you into the shop with ridiculously low prices before ripping you off. For some tourists, the physical impact of seeing the so-called "cheap price" on the calculator is often too tempting to resist. Remember - if its too good to be true, it probably is.

Another common tactic used by rogue salesmen is pressure. When the customer senses something is wrong and starts to resist, other salesmen walk over and start to convince him - not very gently - that he needs to buy the product. Before long, you find yourself being harassed by everyone in the shop - lone shoppers are the prime target for this tactic.

Don't fall for the "freebies" trick - most cameras, for example, already come in a set from the supplier with freebies like memory cards, screen protectors, and extra batteries included in the deal. Some Sim Lim vendors will claim they are throwing in these "extras" at their own cost, or even replace the original extras with cheap, parallel imported equivalents.

"I bought an Olympus Camera from a Sim Lim vendor and he said he would be throwing in a "free" 8GB memory card. I only found out later that Olympus was already having a promotion including the card and that instead of giving me the good quality Sandisk original, I received a cheap no-brand one that spoiled within a week," said undergraduate Tan Pei Ling, 22.

For hand phones and items like PSPs or handheld games, unethical salesmen claim that their item is cheaper because it is "parallel-imported" from China and Japan and thus require an "unlocking fee" to make it compatible for use in Singapore. This so-called unlocking fee can range from $20 to $100, and will never be charged by authorised retailers.

So you've checked the brand, you've haggled on the price, and you think you finally got a good deal. But don't be too sure - some vendors in Sim Lim buy back second hand cameras, phones, and even smaller items like memory cards and printer cartridges, then polish them up and sell them as new.

Common horror stories include printer cartridges which only work for a week before going empty, memory cards which already have some one else's photos on them, and hand phones which already have a strangers' personal contacts.

"I bought a "new" DSLR, and brought it home only to find that it was not working properly and the photos were all blurry. When a photographer friend of mine inspected the camera, he told me that some of the parts were old, some were new, as if someone had taken parts from different cameras and put it all together. I was totally shocked," said swimming instructor Daniel Lee, 35.

A tip from vendors: The product you look, check, and use at the counter may be swapped between counter to cashier. Make sure that you can personally see the same item being packed into your shopping bag as the one you have examined. Do not be distracted - some rogue salesmen try to get your attention as they swap it by taking out freebies or other items.

With kids zipping back and forth and bemused parents and teachers looking on, the program is among the more elaborate attempts to teach children to become financially literate.

April is holy month for the financial literacy movement that has swept the nation in the past decade, as state and federal government, nonprofits and financial firms launch town hall meetings, task forces, fairs, forums, quiz bowls, and high school visits.

There is, however, a problem with this well-intentioned effort to teach youngsters personal finance: Educators haven't found an approach that clearly works.

Repeated research has shown that classroom personal finance instruction does not translate into financial literacy or wiser financial decisions. Students don't remember what they learn, and the lessons become outdated too quickly.

Willis said programs that get students to interact with the material can work better. That's the idea with BizTown, as well as a program Junior Achievement runs that lets ninth-graders compete in a computer business simulation.

"That experiential model is really what sets Junior Achievement apart," said Gina Blayney, president of Junior Achievement of the Upper Midwest. "We put them into a competitive environment."

Other models that have been successful include cooperation from parents, and giving students the skills to find and analyze information on their RFID tag.

But while few would dispute that too many American high school graduates lack the skills to navigate their finances, many experts argue that financial literacy education has more work to do to remedy the problem.

The Jump$tart Coalition, a group that's been widely credited with popularizing financial literacy training and pushing April as a month to emphasize it, was formed in late 1996 by a coalition that included banking and credit card industry groups, the Federal Reserve Board, the National Council on Economic Education and Junior Achievement, among others.

GEO executive investigated in son's domestic-violence case

Thomas Wierdsma was asked by a Boulder attorney during a court deposition in 2011 if it was wrong to give false testimony to a federal IC card.

The senior vice president for The GEO Group Inc., the largest provider of contract prison and immigration detention services for the U.S. government, lowered his head and thought for a few seconds before answering.

The GEO Group and his company's close connections with federal immigration authorities to have his former daughter-in-law deported after she reported his son, Charles Wierdsma, to police for domestic violence.

A jury in that civil case last year found Wierdsma guilty of outrageous conduct for the actions he took after his son was arrested and convicted of regularly beating his Hungarian-born wife, Beatrix Szeremi, for more than a year. Boulder District Attorney Stan Garrett's office is investigating Thomas Wierdsma for possible criminal culpability in the matter related to his interference with the victim.

GEO Group contracts with the U.S. government to run 111 for-profit, so-called "turnkey" facilities. They include the Aurora Detention Center that GEO Group operates for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The company also operates the Southern Peaks Regional Treatment Center in Ca?on City and five reporting centers for supervised detainees around the state.

Group's website as senior vice president of project development for a company that does more than half its business with the federal government and last year reported revenues of $1.48 billion.

Neither Thomas nor Charles Wierdsma's attorneys returned calls asking for comment.

Thomas Wierdsma's jump from behind-the-scenes corporate executive to defendant happened in the spring of 2011 after his then-daughter-in-law fled a beating in her home one morning and called Boulder police, according to a police report.

Szeremi, a Hungarian immigrant with a green card making her a legal resident, had married Charles Wierdsma a year earlier after the two met through the eHarmony Internet dating site.

According to police reports, Charles Wierdsma had repeatedly beaten and threatened to suffocate and drown Szeremi over the course of their marriage before she finally reported the abuse. She told family and friends about the beatings, and they had photographed some of her injuries, but she also told them and investigators that she had been afraid to go to police.

Charles Wierdsma was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, third-degree assault and false imprisonment. A restraining order banned him from having any contact with Szeremi.

Thomas Wierdsma became involved when he tried to evict her from the Boulder home where she and Charles Wierdsma had been living. The elder Wierdsma owned the home. He also pressured her in texts and phone calls to delete photos of her bruised face from her Facebook page, according to court documents.

After she refused, he sent her an e-mail complaining about that and stating: "I will be copying the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement with this and other information. As you know, I funded the legal work and processing fees for you to become a citizen but am now disappointed in your actions which now require legal proceedings."

A week later, the elder Wierdsma, from an Alaskan cruise ship, sent a letter to an attorney representing Szeremi. He wrote that he would be involving ICE, "with all relevant information, including her social media postings, legal actions required for her eviction and other information we possess regarding her application for citizenship."

In court-documented e-mail exchanges between Thomas and Charles Wierdsma during that time, the two discuss how deportation could be used to their advantage.

Charles Wierdsma wrote to his father that Szeremi's attorneys "have threats from our side to use the heavy hand of GEO to get Beatrix out of the country. This should be our bargaining chip going forward, not theirs."

Several weeks later, Thomas Wierdsma wrote: "Let's drop the immigration issue and particularly any involvement of Geo. If I elect to get in touch with immigration after she is evicted, that is my business and in no way related to what is currently going on."

After Thomas Wierdsma began his eviction proceedings against Szeremi, she filed a counterclaim alleging a laundry list of wrongs, including victim intimidation, abuse of process, outrageous conduct and civil conspiracy against Thomas Wierdsma, and assault, battery, false imprisonment, outrageous conduct and negligence against Charles Wierdsma.

That is when the details of the physical abuse as well as the abuse of power got a public airing, including a video of Thomas Wierdsma's threats and deposition admissions that Szeremi's attorney, John Pineau, posted on YouTube.

After a week-long trial, a jury in that civil case found that both Wierdsmas had exhibited outrageous behavior and awarded Szeremi $1.2 million. The judge later lowered the damages to $12,000, based on a state law that limits punitive damages.

Szeremi has appealed that ruling, a matter that is expected to take several more years to move through the court system.

Catherine Olguin of the Boulder District Attorney's Office said an investigator is working the case on the criminal end and that it would likely take several more months before a decision is made about criminal charges against Thomas Wierdsma. If he is charged, it could be tied to witness tampering, witness retaliation or witness intimidation.

NAB CEO Gordon Smith Addresses Smartphone Receivers

National Association of Broadcasters CEO Gordon Smith issued a deceptively simple challenge to his organization's members: Continue to innovate and find new ways to provide content to listeners on different platforms. Smith presented his annual State of the Industry address Monday morning at the 2013 NAB Show in Las Vegas.

Smith says he is optimistic about the future and broadcasters should be as well, because of how the industry has consistently been able to adapt to consumers' changing IC card. “The time has come for us to unite in our embrace of new technology, and to realize the consequences if we don't. Our future lies in innovating and spurring technology that will deliver our highly valued content to any platform for generations to come.”

Talking about radio specifically, Smith discussed the potential for including radio receivers in smartphones, “Future radios in smartphones will combine over-the-air and online content for a rich, ‘hybrid radio’ experience that provides interactive enhancements, along with potential new revenue opportunities.”

He is referring to the chip included in the majority of all smartphones sold in the United States that could function as an AM/FM receiver and would allow consumers to listen to over-the-air broadcasts without going through their cellular network like a stream does, “and that is great news for radio listeners.” While used widely in Europe, in most American phones the chips are not active.

The NAB along with broadcasters like Emmis Communications Chairman, President and CEO Jeff Smulyan, have been lobbying the wireless industry to activate the chips in the US and recently scored a big victory when Sprint agreed to turn on the chips in several of their handsets.

Smith also talked about how the changing nature of in-car entertainment systems, “I have no doubt we will we continue to retain our rightful place in the automobile, and that we'll be offering not just AM, not just FM, not just HD, but an interactive, hybrid experience that gives our listeners more options than ever before.”

 Ronaldo leads Europe's top-tier competition with nine goals in nine outings. And with Galatasaray needing to score early and often, the prolific Portugal forward will likely enjoy ample chances to add to his tally.

Ronaldo opened last week's first leg with a delicate chip shot, and he needed just 45 minutes on Saturday to net his 46th goal this season in all competitions and set up another in Madrid's 5-1 rout of Levante in the Spanish league.

The last time Madrid lost by three goals or more in the Champions League was in 2008-09 when it fell 4-0 at Liverpool. Barring a similar upset by the hosts, nine-time champion Madrid is on course to reach its 24th semifinal.

Madrid will be without midfielder Xabi Alonso and center back Sergio Ramos, who will be serving a one-match suspension for accumulation of yellow cards. Backup playmaker Kaka was left off the squad for health reasons.

Young France defender Raphael Varane will likely replace Ramos alongside Pepe, while Alonso's absence could be filled by Luka Modric.

Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has designated Diego Lopez as his starting goalkeeper, meaning Spain captain Iker Casillas will watch from the dugout for the second straight match since recovering from a broken hand.

"We have a good result, but the series is not over and we need to stay alert,'' Lopez said. "They are good on the counterattack and have players who like to go one-on-one in open spaces. I expect it will be a tough game because of the crowd.

"The key is keeping calm at the back, and then looking to score a goal that would practically seal our pass to the next round.''

Galatasaray is hoping UEFA will remove the yellow card given to striker Burak Yilmaz in the first leg that rules him out of Tuesday's game. Yilmaz, who leads his team with eight goals in the tournament, was booked for supposedly diving in the area, when televised replays show he was fouled by Ramos.

If Yilmaz is not cleared to play, the Turkish leaders' hopes will largely rest on former Mourinho charges Didier Drogba and Wesley Sneijder.

Coach Fatih Terim's attack-minded game plan backfired for Galatasaray in the first game, as Madrid's scoring trio of Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and Gonzalo Higuain all took full advantage of its exposed defense.

Midfielder Felipe Melo gave Galatasaray a 10 percent chance of going through after its stinging defeat in the Spanish capital.

"Being three goals behind means we must go all out and that will mean leaving spaces in which they can play,'' Melo said. "Nothing is impossible in football, though. As long as there is a chance, I will always believe.

Back in 2011, Creative unveiled the Recon 3D series of soundcards based off their (at the time) new Sound Core 3D chipset, which were decent soundcards for gaming and general audio, but didn’t include any real audio processing hardware (DACs, ADCs, etc.) other than the Sound Core 3D chipset itself. While the Sound Core 3D chipset is definitely impressive especially with its audio processing ability and lower power consumption, the problem with this is that with proper headphones and speakers, the sound quality on the Recon 3D series soundcards couldn’t match older Sound Blaster X-Fi soundcards such as the Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium, X-Fi Titanium HD, and even the older Audigy 2 cards, which sported superior audio hardware when compared to the Recon 3D series. This unfortunately led many audio enthusiasts and audiophiles to dismiss the Recon 3D series, which allowed other vendors such as ASUS for example to capture a large portion of the dedicated soundcard market previously dominated by chip card.

Late last year, only a year after the introduction of the Recon 3D series of soundcards, Creative unveiled the new Sound Blaster Z series of soundcards. Unlike the Sound Blaster Recon 3D series of soundcards, the Sound Blaster Z series soundcards carried real audio hardware such as dedicated Op-Amps, ADCs, and DACs, which greatly improved sound quality in addition to the Sound Core 3D audio processing chip – something that that Sound Blaster Recon 3D failed to do.

Broadpeak, AirTies tie in

Broadpeak, a provider of content delivery network (CDN) technologies and VoD servers for cable, IPTV, OTT, and hybrid TV operators worldwide, has announced a new collaboration with AirTies Wireless Networks, a supplier of wireless home networking and STB solutions.

Broadpeak’s award-winning nanoCDN technology has been pre-integrated on AirTies’ Air5650 wireless routers and Air4742 media streamers to improve live OTT video delivery. Utilising a combined Broadpeak and AirTies’ solution, cable and telecom operators can cost-effectively deliver live OTT content to millions of subscribers using only a few megabits per second on the operator’s network.

“We are excited to partner with AirTies on this very important initiative,” said Jacques Le Mancq, CEO and president of Broadpeak. “The recent explosion in OTT video consumption is significantly impacting the traditional video delivery landscape. As operators deliver a growing amount of OTT content to more and more devices with limited infrastructure resources, it becomes challenging to guarantee a high video quality, especially for live content. A unified Broadpeak nanoCDN and AirTies’ solution enables operators to extend CDN technology into the subscriber home, reducing their capital and operational expenses. Because AirTies’ media streamers can simultaneously connect to up to four home devices, operators can now deliver a superior OTT experience anywhere, on any device.”

Leveraging home networks, RFID tag dramatically lowers infrastructure investments for operators while allowing them to deliver high-quality video services more efficiently to end-users. nanoCDN improves the scalability of live OTT TV content by effectively managing video consumption peaks that are not supported by the network infrastructure.

AirTies’ Air4742 dual-band concurrent media streamer provides reliable, predictable bandwidth and unprecedented high-speed performance for real-time video distribution and data transmission to the home. Featuring four Wi-Fi antennas, the streamer can easily be connected to any device with an Ethernet port, such as connected TVs, STBs, smartphones, tablets, and game consoles, to stream high-quality SD and HD video simultaneously over a 5GHz connection. Utilizing the company’s Air5650 WAN VDSL router, service providers can offer sufficient bandwidth for Internet services.

“We’re thrilled to implement Broadpeak’s nanoCDN on our industry-leading media streamer and router solutions,” said Bulent Celebi, executive chairman and founder of AirTies Wireless Networks. “Together, Broadpeak and AirTies are making high-quality, live OTT content a reality for consumers on any device.”

Markey has long advocated for campaign finance reform. During a 1992 debate, the Boston Herald reported that Markey called for campaign spending caps, a ban on PAC donations and public financing of campaigns. In 1993, he voted for a bill that would have capped fundraising and spending for congressional candidates. He introduced a 1996 campaign spending reform bill that would have limited the amount of PAC contributions and large individual donations a congressional candidate could accept. Markey supported the House version of a bill that would become the McCain-Feingold Act, which increased campaign contribution limits but banned the use of “soft” money - money not subject to campaign finance laws - by political parties in federal elections, and eliminated the ability of corporations and unions to air “issue ads.”

Recently, Markey has supported passing a constitutional amendment overturning the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision, which allowed corporations to make unlimited political expenditures. He supported the DISCLOSE Act, which would require independent groups that spend in political campaigns to disclose their major donors.

However, Markey has a complex history relating to special interest money funding his own campaigns. In 1984, embarking on his first U.S. Senate campaign, for the seat vacated by Democrat Paul Tsongas, Markey decided he would no longer accept money from PACs. Though Markey, who has served in Congress since 1976, took PAC money during his prior U.S. House campaigns, the Boston Globe reported that Markey returned all PAC donations he received in 1984 and announced a new policy of refusing PAC money. He told the Globe he wanted to establish "PAC-free" campaigns in Massachusetts. Several other candidates in that race, which Markey dropped out of and which was won by Democrat John Kerry, also swore off PAC money.

Today, PACs continue to contribute to Markey. The non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics reports that since 1989, Markey has raised $7.98 million from individuals and $2.77 million from PACs. In each election cycle since 2006, Markey has received at least 40 percent of his donations from PACs.

Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, said Markey’s shift reflects changing times in campaign finance. In the 1980s, PACs were vilified.” They were thought to having a corrupting influence on Congress and politics,” she said.

With the growth of political non-profits, “super PACs” and outside independent expenditure groups, PACs lost their stigma, and became more important. “In this world of increased independent expenditures, members of Congress are arguably more dependent on money from wherever they can get it,” Krumholz said. “For those members who are lucky enough to be attractive to PACs, it’s not surprising they might have a change of heart about their willingness to accept those funds.”

Dave Levinthal, senior politics reporter at the non-partisan Center for Public Integrity, said particularly after the Citizens United decision, campaigns are more expensive than ever and outside groups are taking a larger role. “Many candidates feel that as a practical matter they have to raise as much money as they possibly can,” Levinthal said. “There’s an extreme amount of pressure to get money wherever you can get it to fuel your campaigns…That’s even the case with some of the most vocal critics of money in politics or the Citizens United decision.”