| Taking Stock of the MacBook Updates
Im hoping this little article clears out any of the lingering confusion you might have. To start with, Apple to equip them with faster processors and a 3MB shared L2 cache, more RAM and a larger hard drive. The best configured black MacBook now ships with a 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of RAM, a 250GB hard drive and an 8x SuperDrive. The second configuration is exactly the same except that it comes in white and has a 160GB hard drive. The base configuration of the MacBook (also in white) now comes with a 2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 1GB of RAM, a 120GB hard drive and a combo drive. Yes, it is 2008, dear friends, and the base model of Apples bestselling notebook (which retails at $1,099) still ships with a combo drive. Can we have a round of applause, please? Apple is trying hard to keep thinking different here - the least they deserve is some appreciation.
At a Cinema Near You
From Dark Castle, the Joel Silver-Robert Zemeckis joint venture that brought us genre films like Gothika (2003) and House of Wax (2005), comes this horror flick with religious overtones. Hilary Swank plays Katherine, a former Christian missionary who, after the tragic death of her family, travels to a small Louisiana town that is suffering from what appear to be Biblical plagues: Swarms of locusts fill the skies and the rivers turn to blood. Katherine is called in as an expert in disproving spiritual phenomena, but seems to have no scientific ground to stand on when it comes to this middle-of-nowhere town. And before she can save the town she must regain her faith to combat the dark forces that science cannot explain. SUNSHINEStarring Michelle Yeoh, Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Troy Garity and Rose Byrne Directed by Danny Boyle (Release: April 11) In this 2001: A Space Odyssey meets Armageddon sci-fi mix, a crew of eight astronauts from across the globe travel with a device that can breathe life into the dying sun.
Wild Card -- Tuesday PM
President Bush answers a question during a news conference at the White House today. Bush is keeping his second-term pledge to hold at least one major news conference each month. He was squeezing one in on Tuesday, the last day of May. W. Mark Felt, who retired from the FBI after rising to its second most senior position, has identified himself as the "Deep Throat" source quoted by The Washington Post to break the Watergate scandal that led to President Nixon's resignation, Vanity Fair magazine said Tuesday/MSNBC here. 1. Political 'Toon Fix: Paul Nowak (Amnesty International's claim), Gary Varvel (Embryonic stem cell research), and Mike Lester ("Star Wars" fans). 2. Humor Fix: PERRspectives (via politicalhumor.com) provides a "separated at birth" featuring George Bush and Darth Vader here.
A new leader, but who will take the lead?
Many Russians wondered whether, when Mr Putin, 55, took a step down and Mr Medvedev, 42, was elevated, the elder statesman would put up a portrait of the new young tsar in his office. Mr Putin answered that question at his last press conference as president, when he said: "I don't need to hang up a portrait to build relations with Dmitry Medvedev if he is elected president." Writing in The Moscow Times, the political analyst Nikolai Petrov predicted that the partnership would be like a car with two steering wheels. "Nobody can know with certainty how this vehicle will perform but there can be no doubt that its numerous mechanical defects will have to be fixed along the way." In the United States, the Republican presidential candidate John McCain has likened Mr Putin to a puppet master.
best of GDC
Junk Science' Still Dogging Games Industry, Says Lawyer [02.21.08] At the 2008 Game Developers Conference, attorney Lawrence G. Walters, who represents developers and publishers on issues of censorship, evaluated the legal landscape around game content, highlighting the threats to games as free speech and laying out what benchmarks detractors would need to achieve to get their way. .
Financial Q&A: Options few when U.S. Savings Bonds mature
Until September 2004, we could exchange Series E/EE US Savings Bonds for HH bonds, continue to defer paying tax on the accrued interest, and be paid interest biannually thereafter. However, the Treasury Department is no longer issuing HH bonds. Are there still any options to the redemption of maturing bonds that would allow continued tax deferring? W.P., Logan, Utah A: There are no options that would allow you to continue deferring the taxes. According to Tom Adams, author of the book "Savings Bond Advisor," when a bond stops paying interest, it's time to cash it in, hold back what you need for taxes, and reinvest the rest in a new bond or another investment. Many people in this situation hold onto a bond rather than cashing it, hoping to continue deferring the taxes.
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