Appearing on Wednesday's “Morning Joe,” Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward dismissed the significance of the accession of Rep. John Boehner to the post of Speaker of the House of Representatives, saying that Presodent Obama's inauguration dwarfed Boehner's. Politico's Mike Allen had reported that Capitol Hill had “the air of a Presidential Inauguration” Wednesday with a new Speaker of the House and 87 new Republican congressmen coming in. A few minutes later, Woodward tempered Allen's enthusiasm. “I think Mike Allen's one of the best in the business, but to compare the Boehner coming to the Speakership with the Presidential Inaugural – four busloads, Mike? I mean, for Obama, for any president – c'mon, they had hundreds of busloads.” read more
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The 112th Congress has been called to order, launching a new era of divided government as Republicans take over the House and share power with Democrats and President Barack Obama. (Jan. 5)
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It was no secret that Amazon was working an Android app store , including some early work with developers , but Amazon’s “Appstore” (see what they did with the space there?) Developer Portal just went live. So, no doubt that this is happening, if there was any left in your mind, and we’ve got a nice stack of details on the store to tide us over until Amazon launches this thing. Amazon is looking to strike a balance between Apple’s ultra strict store rules and Google’s unvetted mayhem, and will be examining and testing each app before it goes onto the store. Amazon is also going to control pricing, with developers allowed to set a “list price” that Amazon will riff on, adjusting the price based on magical algorithms. There’s the standard 70 / 30 split, and Amazon promises that the developer will get no less than 20 percent of the list price. Apps will be promoted to folks browsing Amazon.com just like how Kindle books pop up among physical goods, and can be “pushed” to your device similarly. It’s all very intriguing if it catches on, which seems particularly likely on non-blessed devices that don’t have access to Google’s Market (like the bevy of WiFi-only tablets, the market Amazon claims to be targeting), and developers who want to get in on the action can fork over $99 today to get started. Amazon opens Appstore Developer program, is obviously doing an app store originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …The Vyne lets you wear your iPhone or iPod touch, whether you want to is still up for debate
January 5, 2011 No Comment
It seems like wearing your gadgets is all the rage these days, and the Vyne is no exception. A belt-like flexible strip of plastic with a clip on the end for your iPod touch or iPhone (though we suppose it should work with any gadget that has the right dimensions), this product isn’t wholly unlike the Gorillapod. There’s no word on price or release date just yet, but just think of all the attention you’ll get while using this in public. Then again, your hands will be free to do tons of other things — like checking the time on your iPod nano wristwatch . The Vyne lets you wear your iPhone or iPod touch, whether you want to is still up for debate originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 13:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Image: YouTube Big Bird, Elmo, Cookie Monster, and the rest of the Sesame Street crew have a direct line to your kid’s growing mind. For more than 40 years, this show has been teaching generations everything from numbers and letters to science and social responsibility — and respect for the environment has shown up more than once, too. From basic, kid-friendly concepts like saving energy and not littering to more philosophical sketches about sharing the Earth with other species, these seven videos teach kids (and adults) that it’s easy being green. And don’t miss our previous… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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A young deer finds itself trapped on floating ice off Poland. Soon, firefighters came to the rescue. (Jan. 5)
Continue reading …‘Built for BlackBerry’ program is ready to add another label to your BB and PlayBook accessories
January 5, 2011 No Comment
Look for the logo, says RIM. Don’t look for the distinctively BlackBerry -shaped case, car mount, screen protector, or holster … look for the logo. Apparently, BlackBerry users have been struggling with picking out accessories for their smartphones, so RIM has decided to roll out a licensing program for specially certified “Built for BlackBerry” peripherals. Case-mate, Incipio, Speck and other manufacturers have already signed up for this authentic accessory program and you’ll see a video loaded with marketing speak after the break explaining the synergistic benefits flowing from this industrial collaboration. Continue reading ‘Built for BlackBerry’ program is ready to add another label to your BB and PlayBook accessories ‘Built for BlackBerry’ program is ready to add another label to your BB and PlayBook accessories originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 13:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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A Pittsburgh man says he returned to his home after the holidays to find a backhoe sitting where he house should have been. City officials say a contractor accidentally demolished the man’s house, instead of the one next door. (Jan. 5)
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Looks like AT&T will be pushing out more than just a dozen Android phones here at CES. During the outfit’s Developer Summit, Peter Hill, VP of ecosystem and innovation, demonstrated how U-verse Mobile Application Development Technology can effectively enable a mobile device to interactively share media, content and apps with the TV. In theory, this could lead to the creation of apps that will enable AT&T customers to control more of the U-verse TV experience with their handsets, and possibly vice-versa. In his words, the tech “can easily connect mobile devices to set-top boxes via WiFi,” and it’ll complement DLNA with authentication. At the Summit, a brief demo saw an iPad app schedule a show and control the U-verse DVR, and a brand new option — dubbed ComplemenTV — took center stage. Essentially, the iPad was able to look at what channel was being viewed and then delivered relevant extra content on the iPad . Sounds more like an advertiser’s dream than anything else, but we’re holding out hope for more enticing uses in the near future. Unfortunately, no dates were given as to when this stuff would be rolled out, but the future’s looking bright, anyway. AT&T demos U-verse / smartphone integration, ComplemenTV iPad app at CES originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 13:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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NBC's Meredith Vieira wasted no time in jumping down Paul Ryan's throat, on Wednesday's Today show, as she said it appeared the Republican Party did not care as much about creating jobs, since they seemed to be more focused on repealing Obamacare, which the Today co-anchor characterized as “an act of revenge.” For his part the Wisconsin Republican Congressman responded that repealing Obamacare law had everything to do with creating jobs since, as he educated Vieira, “The health care bill has massive tax increases on individuals and employers that will cost us jobs,” as seen in the following exchange: MEREDITH VIEIRA: As of today Republicans control the House, and as Matt just brought up, one of the key points on your agenda will be attempting to repeal the health care plan. But given the fact you do not have the votes in the Senate, as Senator McCain just pointed out, and the President has veto power. And also given the fact that the American voters, in the midterm elections, made it clear that what they care about most right now are jobs and the economy, why go down this path at all? It almost feels like an act of revenge on the part of the Republican Party? REP. PAUL RYAN: Well, first of all, this is related to jobs and the economy. The health care bill has massive tax increases on individuals and employers that will cost us jobs. So this, don't think that this isn't related to jobs. Vieira went on to belittle House Republicans' move to cut their own budgets but then cited the New York Times to claim they were “backtracking” on their promises to cut spending, which was yet another error Ryan was forced to correct as seen in this back and forth: read more
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