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Continue reading …Another CEDIA is in the books, and if you weren’t there, just know the story was — as it has been in many corners of the country — the economy. Oh sure, projectors that cost only $10k still seemed value priced, but everywhere you looked companies were extending their products a little closer to the mass market. Whether it’s a heavy duty wall mounts, wireless hi fi systems or, most surprisingly, $300 powered shades from companies like Lutron, custom theater equipment is getting cheaper and ready to work in more homes. Interested in remaking a home theater while spending less than $10k and without building an entirely new house around it? 2011 may be your year. As far as the hardware on display, we also got a look at TiVo’s new Premiere Elite DVR (hint: it looks and runs like a TiVo) and Dish Network’s new Tailgater portable satellite dish. Another treat was an MHL -to-HDMI adapter from DVDO that could make hooking your celly up to pretty much any TV on the go and charging it at the same time easy. At the THX booth, it had its stamp slapped on LG’s newest Nano LED lit 3D LCD , as well as a new program for soundbar / subwoofer combinations it says will result in more accurate sound for implementations where surround speakers don’t make sense. We also got a demo of its new Media Director protocol that can automatically configure compatible home theater equipment based on the content being watched. The Star Wars Blu-ray discs will be the first ones to ship with the embedded metadata , while partnerships with chipmakers mean software updates could start rolling out shortly for manufacturers that choose to deliver them — the demo ran on an HDI Dune player — and next year’s new devices should ship with the feature included. The usual slew of projectors included new models from Mitsubishi and Digital Projection, with automatic settings for ultrawidescreen viewing as one of the hot features (other than 4K) this year. For a better look at some of the things we spotted on the show floor check the gallery below, and details in their press releases after the break. Gallery: CEDIA 2011 wrap-up Continue reading CEDIA 2011 odds & ends wrap up: THX, TiVo and plenty of projectors CEDIA 2011 odds & ends wrap up: THX, TiVo and plenty of projectors originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Sep 2011 23:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Traditional measures of success in high school—GPAs, standardized-test scores—aren’t always good predictors of a successful future. That’s why the heads of two very different schools in New York City are searching for a way to mix character into the education equation. In a lengthy New York Times Magazine…
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Continue reading …Sarah Palin: Drugs, Affairs & Fling with NBA Star? First Dude defends wife Sarah Palin Todd Palin visits Moorhead TheBourgyD says: Todd Palin should STFU until both Sarah & Glen publicly deny it. He needs to accept the idea of 15 inches of Kong meat in his wife.
Continue reading …Duane Buck’s execution was halted after his lawyers contended his sentence was unfair because of a question asked about race during his trial Duane Buck, an inmate on Texas’s death row for the past 16 years, has been spared the lethal injection after the US supreme court stepped in and stayed his execution on the grounds that the jury at his sentencing hearing was told he was a danger to the public because he is black. The fact that it took the highest court in the nation to prevent the judicial killing of a prisoner in such controversial circumstances will put the governor of Texas, Rick Perry, further under the spotlight. He was earlier approached by lawyers of Buck and exhorted to use his power to put a 30-day reprieve on the execution to give time for all parties to look at his case, but Perry did not act. Perry, a frontrunner for the Republican nomination for next year’s presidential election, has presided over 235 executions since he became governor in 2000, the most recent just on Tuesday. Last week he defended his record at a presidential nomination debate at which the Republican TV audience cheered when the number of those who had died under him was mentioned. Buck, 48, killed his former girlfriend and a man in 1995. His guilt is not in dispute, but the fashion in which he was handed out the death penalty is. The jury that gave him the ultimate punishment was told by a psychologist, under prosecution cross-examination, that black people pose a greater risk to violent reoffending if released from jail. Buck is an African-American. The evidence of the psychologist, Dr Walter Quijano, was recognised as a huge legal problem by Texas’s then attorney general John Cornyn in 2000. Six other cases in which Quijano had given racially-tinged testimony were identified and all of them were awarded a resentencing hearing. On legal technicalities, Buck has been awarded no such safeguard. The intervention of the US supreme court gives the prisoner one last chance to plead for commutation of his sentence to life imprisonment. The issue of the death penalty is by no means at an end in Texas, however. The state executes more people each year than any other state in the nation, and has two executions scheduled for next week. Texas United States Capital punishment Human rights Rick Perry Ed Pilkington guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are, unambiguously, one stunning power-couple. And with their gaggle of kids — six and counting — staging paint fights and creating their own unique style, they’re most definitely the most famous celebrity parents, too (seriously, Kate Gosselin). Having hit it off — while trying to kill each other on screen — in “Mr. and. Mrs. Smith,” Pitt tells Entertainment Weekly that they shouldn’t just be co-parents, they should once again be co-stars. “We should be doing [movies] together,” he tells the magazine. “That’s what we should be doing. We should be doing everything together, and then we could work less. We could have more time off.” Of course, they’d have to establish some more creative trust; Jolie told Vanity Fair that, as she was working on her directorial debut, “In the Land of Blood and Honey,” she wasn’t quite confident in her life partner’s input. Since they love each other and all, of course. “He’d come in and say what he liked or what he didn’t understand,” she remembered. “Like any woman, I would listen to most of it and fight a few things. He’s been so supportive. But it’s hard to separate the person that loves you from the critic, so I don’t think he’s a fair judge.” For more from Pitt, click over to EW. PHOTO:
Continue reading …Two out of three CBS local affiliate political reporters featured on Thursday's Early Show bluntly stated that President Obama faces ” major uphill battle ” in recapturing key states for the 2012 election. Anchor Chris Wragge noted the ” all-time low ” approval rating for the President, while an Ohio journalist highlighted how a Democratic strategist thought Obama was ” feeling more Carter than Clinton .” Wragge turned to David Crabtree of WRAL-TV in Raleigh, North Carolina; Jim Heath of CBS affiliate WBNS in Columbus, Ohio; and Sam Brock from WTVR in Richmond, Virginia for their takes on the President's recent stops in their states following his jobs bill speech to Congress earlier in September. Crabtree reported on the positive reaction from those who attended Mr. Obama's speech in North Carolina, but then outlined that the Democrat faces several challenges in the months ahead: DAVID CRABTREE, POLITICAL REPORTER, WRAL-TV: …[T]he President has a major uphill battle in this state , trying to convince voters to convince their Republican members of Congress to vote for this jobs bill. Right now, the lines appear to be drawn, with the Republicans saying they are not going to do that. So, while it was received well in this campaign here stop in North Carolina, there's still a lot more work to be done for the President to recapture this state. He did win four years ago by 14,000 votes. But his disapproval rating in North Carolina today is at least at 53%. He's got a lot more work to be done . The CBS anchor then turned to Heath and asked, “What are the independent voters telling you about the President's visit there?” Heath detailed a more stark picture of the situation on the ground for the chief executive in the Buckeye State, even making a slight reference to the “hope and change” slogan from the 2008 campaign: HEATH: Chris, the first thing I noticed: the last time the President was in Ohio- he was at the Ohio State University- 30,000 people were there- this week, 3,000 . So, the mood, everything seems to be a little bit different, as we head into 2012. I spoke to some unemployed folks right after his speech, and one young lady , in particular… said that she had strongly supported the President in 2008, still liked him as a person, but she made the comment, after three years, you can't promise people jobs and not deliver. So, she's about to give up hope. The economy, as always in the swing state of Ohio, is going to be key, Chris. And I had one Democratic strategist tell me a few weeks ago that the third year of the Obama administration is feeling more Carter than Clinton . If that holds throughout 2012, it'd be very difficult for any incumbent, regardless of party, to win swing state Ohio. Brock gave a slightly positive take on Obama's overall prospects in Virginia, stating that ” for Mr. Obama, this has been his third trip to central Virginia in just the last year, the second time he's been to Richmond ….he went to the University of Richmond- and this is interesting- because the University of Richmond is…an elite private institution. Mr. Obama could have gone the route of the main big city school in downtown Richmond. He bypassed that, and he still had a very positive reception at the University of Richmond .” The full transcript of the segment from Thursday's Early Show, which began four minutes into the 7 am Eastern hour: CHRIS WRAGGE: In the past week, President Obama has given five speeches in three states, pushing Congress to pass his jobs bill. At a dinner last night in Washington, the President once again sang the praises of his $447 billion package. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA (from speech to the National Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute): A jobs bill that puts Americans back to work, a balanced approach to pay for it that will lower our deficit in the long run- these are the steps Congress needs to take right now, to put our country on a stronger footing. WRAGGE: But getting it through Congress looks to be uphill battle. And meanwhile, according to a new Bloomberg News national poll, the President's job approval rating is at 45%, an all-time low. So, this morning, we're asking political reporters from the three states he's visited, what do the voters think of the President's jobs plan. We'll begin with veteran political reporter David Crabtree from our Raleigh, North Carolina affiliate, WRAL-TV. David, good morning. What's the reaction to yesterday's speech there? DAVID CRABTREE, POLITICAL REPORTER, WRAL-TV: Chris, good morning to you. The reaction to the speech was positive by those who were there. These are people who had waited in line for two and a half hours, just to get tickets to the event; waited in line another two hours to get inside; and then, two more hours to hear the President's speech. It was his crowd. However, beyond that, the President has a major uphill battle in this state, trying to convince voters to convince their Republican members of Congress to vote for this jobs bill. Right now, the lines appear to be drawn, with the Republicans saying they are not going to do that. So, while it was received well in this campaign here stop in North Carolina, there's still a lot more work to be done for the President to recapture this state. He did win four years ago by 14,000 votes. But his disapproval rating in North Carolina today is at least at 53%. He's got a lot more work to be done. Chris? WRAGGE: All right. David Crabtree in Raleigh for us- David, thank you very much. Now, let's go to Jim Heath of our Columbus, Ohio affiliate, WBNS and ONN-TV. Jim, what are the independent voters telling you about the President's visit there? JIM HEATH, POLITICAL REPORTER, WBNS-TV/ONN-TV: Chris, the first thing I noticed: the last time the President was in Ohio- he was at the Ohio State University- 30,000 people were there- this week, 3,000. So, the mood, everything seems to be a little bit different, as we head into 2012. I spoke to some unemployed folks right after his speech, and one young lady, in particular- very interesting. She said that she had strongly supported the President in 2008, still liked him as a person, but she made the comment, after three years, you can't promise people jobs and not deliver. So, she's about to give up hope. The economy, as always in the swing state of Ohio, is going to be key, Chris. And I had one Democratic strategist tell me a few weeks ago that the third year of the Obama administration is feeling more Carter than Clinton. If that holds throughout 2012, it'd be very difficult for any incumbent, regardless of party, to win swing state Ohio. WRAGGE: All right. Jim Heath in Columbus, Ohio- Jim, thank you. Two down, one more to go- let's go to Sam Brock at CBS affiliate WTVR in Richmond, Virginia, where President Obama made his first trip after his jobs speech to Congress a week ago. Sam, good morning. Now, why is Virginia so important to the President right now? SAM BROCK, POLITICAL REPORTER, WTVR: Chris, good morning. This is a state that has voted for the Republican candidate for 40 years- that is, until 2008. So if there is any question, any shred of doubt, as to how important Virginia is, look no further than the last few days. President Obama came to the University of Richmond, spoke about his jobs speech on Friday. And, not to be outdone, Texas Governor Rick Perry, the GOP front-runner, came out yesterday and he campaigned with his buddy, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell. Now, for Mr. Obama, this has been his third trip to central Virginia in just the last year, the second time he's been to Richmond. This past visit, he targeted the district of Congressman Eric Cantor, the majority leader. So possibly, a counter-punch there for Mr. Obama. Now, as far as where he spoke, he went to the University of Richmond- and this is interesting- because the University of Richmond is located in an affluent community. It is an elite private institution. Mr. Obama could have gone the route of the main big city school in downtown Richmond. He bypassed that, and he still had a very positive reception at the University of Richmond. WRAGGE: All right. Sam Brock in Richmond for us this morning- Sam, thank you very much.
Continue reading …Netflix is taking its lumps today over its price hike and plan changes. After the company announced that it expects to have 1 million fewer US subscribers than projected at the end of the third quarter—24 million, instead of 25 million—its shares slid about 15%, reports MarketWatch . The…
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