08-27-08
08-26-08A first glimpse at the technology inside the next version of Windows will be given in October.
Microsoft has said that engineering information about Windows 7 will be shared with attendees at two technical conferences it runs.
Windows 7 developers will show off their work at both the Professional Developers Conference and the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference.
Based on Vista, Windows 7 is expected to be released in January 2010.
The announcement about the unveiling was made on a new Windows 7 blog written by engineers putting the software together.
Before now details about Windows 7 have been scant. Writing on the blog the two senior engineers on the project, Jon DeVaan and Steven Sinofsky, said this was because Microsoft did not want to talk up features that never make it to the final product.
It was also wary, it said, of talking about features and technologies in a way that would cause confusion among its partners.
Microsoft has also been reluctant to talk about Windows 7 as it continues to promote Windows Vista as its flagship operating system.
What is known about Windows 7 is that it will use components from Vista at its core and that it will have a touch interface that, with the appropriate screen, can recognize gestures to complete tasks. For instance pinching the screen could be used to close documents or manipulate images. Industry experts have speculated that Windows 7 will also have more virtualization technologies on board as well as tools that make it easier for people to get at their data and programs as they use different machines.
08-26-08A Kentucky food packaging plant has issued its second recall this summer.
Approximately 215,660 pounds of Hot Pockets made in Nestlé Prepared Foods Co.’s Mount Sterling plant have been recalled, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
The recall is for 54-ounce, 12-pack cartons of Hot Pockets Pepperoni Pizza with the following printed on the sides of each carton: “8157544614D,” “EST 7721A” and “BEST BEFORE JAN2010.”
Pieces of red, hard plastic and clear, flexible rubber-like material have been discovered in some of the Hot Pockets, Nestlé spokeswoman Roz O’Hearn said.
The company thinks the pieces might have come from a small, plastic testing device that is used to test the sensitivity of metal-detection equipment in the Mount Sterling plant.
Nestlé has received four complaints over the past week, O’Hearn said. There have been no reports of injury.
Nestle said consumers who might have the recalled package should call the Nestlé Consumer Services Center at 1-800-350-5016.
In July, Nestlé issued a recall on a variety of Lean Pockets packaged in Mount Sterling, also because some contained pieces of plastic.
About 350,000 packages of the products, a spinach artichoke chicken package with two sandwiches, were affected.
Nestlé makes Hot Pockets and Lean Pockets at the Mount Sterling plant, which employs about 1,100 people.
08-26-08The judges' table at "American Idol" is going to get a little bigger this season with the arrival of a fourth judge, singer-songwriter Kara DioGuardi.
The proven hitmaker will join the current judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul in the coming season of the hit Fox series, which returns in January.
"We are turning the heat up on 'Idol' this year and are thrilled to welcome Kara to the judges' table," creator and executive producer Simon Fuller said in a statement. "She is a smart, sassy lady, and one of America's most successful songwriters. We know she will bring a new level of energy and excitement to the show."
Adding DioGuardi is the latest twist in the popular singing franchise. It also comes after a season in which the show suffered some audience erosion and critical barbs that the format had grown stale.
After the season was over, the producers and Fox executives vowed to shake up the series.
Recently, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe said he would step away from day-to-day involvement in the show.
DioGuardi is no stranger to being around budding pop stars. Some of her catalog of several hundred songs have been recorded by such folks as Gwen Stefani, Celine Dion, Taylor Hicks, Carrie Underwood, Pink, The Jonas Brothers, Britney Spears, Jewel and Hilary Duff.
This isn't the first time the producers have tried to add a fourth judge to what has been a very successful panel. In the second season, New York radio deejay Angie Martinez was added to the mix, but she left the program soon after saying she couldn't be critical of upcoming singers who had a dream to hit big.
"We had originally intended for 'American Idol' to have four judges," executive producer Cecile Frot-Coutaz said in a statement. "We've seen from our international series that having a fourth judge creates a dynamic that benefits both the contestants and the viewers."
Mike Darnell, Fox's head of alternative programming, said the addition of DioGuardi would add another female voice to the mix and provide a buddy for Abdul.
"With Kara by her side," Darnell said in a statement, "Paula finally has some back-up and now there is going to be a lot more 'girl power' on the show."
DioGuardi gets her start on the show Tuesday in New York when the contestants who have been passed through the early addition phases so far face the big judges for the first time.
08-26-08
08-26-08Now that Batman has taught Warner Brothers how to make a modern superhero movie, it's time for the the man of steel to step up and deliver the goods. Warners announced that it's pooling all its Bat-money into one big Superman tent-pole production. And yes, the movie will be a reboot, not a continuation of Bryan Singer's Super-meh film.
Passing on the idea of a multiple hero storyline like Superman/Batman or Justice League for now, the WB is focusing its efforts on just making a successful Superman movie.
Warner Bros. Pictures Group President Jeff Robinov told the Wall Street Journal that the Superman movie the WB is envisioning will be cut from the same dark and gritty cape as Dark Knight. He wants to explore the darker recesses of Superman's soul explaining that "We're going to try to go dark to the extent that the characters allow it."
Warners is finally realizing that the lackluster Superman Returns was a huge disappointment. And recognizing the problem is just the first step: Studio execs told Variety they may start the script over from scratch with Superman: Man of Steel. But as of right now there are no writers attached to the script. Also director Bryan Singer (X-Men and X2) is still "attached" to the project but the execs are more than happy to let him loose if he doesn't follow the direction the studio wants the movie to go. If I was him I'd leave artistic differences behind (if there are any) and go with the gobs of money they want to invest in this project, especially if they're OK with a darker Superman.
Deepak Chopra agrees, and encourages everyone to update their superheroes. It's not enough that their gadgetry awe inspiring, they need to deal with issues that the people care about, in order to make the people care about them. Plus a lot of their powers need an upgrade, flying around and super strength just ain't cuttin' it anymore.But just as we evolve, so must our superheroes, he said. “We need to create a new mythology for our superheroes,” Chopra tells MTV Splash, “because they’re not parochial anymore. They’re cross-cultural. We’re in dire need of mythologies that go to the next level of consciousness.”
What does Chopra mean exactly? "He [Batman] needs to go to Darfur, or Somalia. Superman needs to have more paranormal abilities – like precognition, telepathy, the ability to see past lifetimes.”
With more DC Comics films on the way, it looks like a boom in superhero movie madness over at WB, and it looks like they're attempting to deliver goods that actually appease fans and make money.
The studio is set to announce its plans for future DC movies in the next month. For now, though, it is focused on releasing four comic-book films in the next three years, including a third Batman film, a new film reintroducing Superman, and two movies focusing on other DC Comics characters. Movies featuring Green Lantern, Flash, Green Arrow, and Wonder Woman are all in active development.
Now if only Joss Whedon's Wonder Woman script can be rescued from development oblivion...
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