Od Se Po NeStO: September 2013

Friday, September 27, 2013

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Monday, September 23, 2013

Surface Remix Project shows a different way to Click In

Panos Panay, the Microsoft VP in charge of Surface, today displayed a different way to use the company's tablet at the unveiling of the Surface 2 and Surface Pro 2. Called the Surface Remix Project, it's clearly based on the same touch-sensitive technology of the Touch Cover 2 but with a different template on top that changes the functionality -- and the tone of the product -- completely.

The Surface Remix Project is basically a simplified set of DJ controls built into a Touch Cover. Instead of QWERTY, you have 16 large square touch pads that let you to enable or disable portions of a given music track to remix it in real time. You also have three volume sliders on the left and a series of controls for playing, pausing, and muting songs and tracks. And, since all are pressure-sensitive, there's the potential for a bit of finger-drumming here, too.The basic concept isn't so much to turn the Surface into a master DJ machine, but instead to show the potential for the Surface to be more than what you'd consider a traditional productivity machine. At its Surface 2 event, the company showed a video of design students dreaming up new applications for the tablet, including things like full piano keyboards. Could those sorts of things be next? We'll wait and see, but Microsoft is saying that the Remix Project will be available when the new slates ship on October 22. Price as of now is unknown.

Cautious optimism over Iran as Rouhani comes to UN

As Iran's President Hassan Rouhani prepares to address the United Nations General Assembly, there are signs that he is ready for substantive negotiations with the US on his country's nuclear programme, says BBC Persian's Bahman Kalbasi.

In a month since taking office, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has signalled a sharp departure from the foreign policy and the tone of his predecessor.

The eagerness of his administration to break away from eight years of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's bombastic pronouncements was apparent three weeks ago when the new foreign minister wished Jews a "Happy Rosh Hashanah" before asserting that Iran had never denied the Holocaust, adding: "The man who was perceived to be denying it is now gone."

Mr Rouhani has also exchanged "positive" letters with US President Barack Obama, and told the US broadcaster NBC that Iran wants to engage with the world and not develop nuclear weapons.

He has even become the first Iranian president to pen an op-ed in a US newspaper. Writing in the Washington Post last week, he called for "constructive" interaction with other countries and declared Iran's readiness to help end the conflict in Syria.

Positive mood

The message President Rouhani is trying to convey is clear - that he has "complete authority" and "sufficient political latitude" to engage with the US and its allies on the substance of their concerns.

Gary Sick, a former White House National Security Adviser, told the BBC: "What we have seen already has been such a dramatic shift. Rouhani and his team are the 'anti-Ahmadinejad'.

"The sound of the rhetoric makes it so much easier for an American president to react positively."The positive tone was evident in Obama's interview with TeleMundo TV. President Rouhani's overtures are of the kind we have not seen before and we should test it."

The talk of an "accidental" meeting between the two presidents in the halls of the UN's headquarters this week has gone from wishful thinking to a real possibility.

The mood in New York is also very different from the previous years.

Gone are the protests and annual adverts on TV and billboards on Times Square with big pictures of Mr Ahmadinejad, denouncing his anti-Israel rhetoric and warning about Iran's nuclear programme.

Instead, diplomats are waiting with anticipation to see how the new president gets Iran out of the international relations mess he has inherited from Mr Ahmadinejad.

'Real opportunity'

There is little doubt that Mr Rouhani's talk of co-operation with the world has put sceptics in the US on the defensive.

Opponents of US-Iran dialogue cannot keep up with the flurry of interviews, tweets and positive signals thrown out by Mr Rouhani and his media team.

But the Iranian charm offensive brings to light two critical questions - can Mr Rouhani turn his words into deeds, and is Washington ready to make a deal with Tehran?Robert Einhorn, a former state department special adviser for non-proliferation and arms control who was part of the US negotiating team at talks between world powers and Iran, says: "I believe Obama administration is prepared to address Iran's concerns very seriously and flexibly provided that the administration sees real movement on the Iranian side."

"Under Ahmadinejad, the perception in Washington was that Iran wasn't really interested in a deal. That has changed. I think the administration believes there is a real opportunity here."

Five years into Mr Obama's presidency, have the stars finally aligned for constructive US-Iran talks? Many believe so.

The opportunity at hand is largely the result of the Iranian election, in which Mr Rouhani's surprise victory ushered in the same moderate politicians who prior to the Ahmadinejad era had agreed to suspend Iran's uranium enrichment programme and helped the US defeat the Taliban in Afghanistan.

The White House, however, tends to view Iran's new openness as a sign that sanctions have worked.

However, that assessment may miss the important changes taking place in Iran and tempt Washington to push for even more sanctions to elicit even greater Iranian flexibility.

"There is a temptation in Washington to believe that no positive step is taken unless the US issues a threat, takes military action or imposes sanctions," a European diplomat at the UN said.

Sanctions relief

In conversations with the Iranian side, it is clear they have doubts about whether the US is ready to take nuclear diplomacy to a new level.Iranian nuclear concessions will likely only be offered - even by Mr Rouhani - if Mr Obama puts significant sanctions relief on the table.

If that is not forthcoming, Iranian hardliners will be able to attack the president for offering too much for no tangible reward.

They denounced him as a traitor in 2003 when, as Iran's top nuclear negotiator, he agreed to the suspension of Iran's uranium enrichment activities without gaining any US concessions.

But Mr Rouhani is unlikely to once again offer the West anything on credit.

The problem is that some of the most hard-hitting sanctions can only be lifted by the US Congress.

It remains to be seen whether Mr Obama has what it takes to neutralise Congress in the same way in which Mr Rouhani appears to have temporarily pacified Iran's parliament. The week ahead at the UN will provide some clues.

What is for certain is that millions of Iranians will be watching proceedings in New York for reactions to the president they elected into office, despite all odds, to see if both he and their country's opponents seize the moment and find a peaceful resolution to their dispute.

Tamil political party wins landslide victory in Sri Lankan election

Sri Lanka's largest Tamil political party has won a landslide victory in the first provincial election to be held in the north of the country since the 2009 defeat of the Tamil Tigers in the country's long civil war.The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) won 30 of the Northern Provincial Council's 38 seats, in an election seen as a key test of reconciliation on the island.

The election is also an important test of President Mahinda Rajapaksa's 'One Nation' campaign to marginalise Tamil nationalism.

Analysts said the scale of the victory sent a powerful signal that the Tamil-dominated north retained its strong support for an autonomous, devolved government.

Mr Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Freedom Party-led alliance won just eight seats.

Opposition leaders hailed the TNA win as significant a victory for democracy in Sri Lanka but said it had been achieved in the face of widespread intimidation and military and central government attempts to stop Tamils voting. The turn out in the election was 60 per cent, but opposition leader Mangala Samaraweera told The Telegraph it would have been much higher but for a government-led campaign to obstruct voters."It was not a free election at all. In the last days [of the campaign] the military more or less took over the election machinery in the north and tried everything possible to stop the people from voting. But people in the north, despite all odds, came out magnificently on the side of democracy.

"The good news is that whatever the government may do, the people are ready to come out for democracy," he said.

Britain and other Commonwealth countries had been watching the campaign closely in the run up to November's Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo, amid concerns over whether they would be able attend if the provincial election had not been free and fair.

Throughout the campaign respected election monitors reported violent attacks on TNA supporters. The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) reported daily abuses including arrests of TNA campaigners, attacks on them with iron poles, and the cancellation of an election rally by military intelligence officers.

One senior TNA figures had his home stoned by opponents while supporters of Mr Rajapaksa's coalition had military protection for their campaign.

CMEV said the turnout had been low in remote areas because the government had failed to honour promises to provide transport to polling stations.

There were several incidents of intimidation on polling day.

Sri Lanka's president has faced strong criticism from domestic opponents and the international community over human rights abuses since his forces defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam (LTTE) following a 26 year civil war in 2009, including claims that his government has failed to investigate allegations of war crimes. His forces are accused of killing 40,000 Tamil civilians in the final days of the war.

Since his victory, Mr Rajapaksa has been accused of failing to seek reconciliation with the defeated Tamils. TNA leaders have complained about government-sponsored Sinhalese immigration into traditional Tamil areas as workers on infrastructure projects and that Tamil firms have been excluded from reconstruction work in the north.

The government has yet to comment on his defeat in the north.

Before the election, the TNA northern province leader, former Supreme Court Justice C.V Wigneswaran said he would use a strong victory to press for greater powers for the council despite government opposition. Its 78 per cent victory means it can call a no-confidence vote against Mr Rajapaksa's powerful regional governor, a retired senior army figure.

His new government will have control over policing and land use, but its financial powers are heavily restricted.

Kenya Authorities 'Closing In' On Militants In Nairobi Mall, Official Says

NAIROBI, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Thick smoke poured from the besieged Nairobi mall where Kenyan officials said their forces were closing in on Islamists holding hostages on Monday, three days after a raid by Somalia's al Shabaab killed at least 62 people.

It remained unclear how many gunmen and hostages were still cornered in the Westgate shopping centre, two hours after a series of loud explosions and gunfire were followed by a plume of black smoke, that grew in volume from one part of the complex.

Kenya's interior minister told a news conference that the militants - all men, though some wore women's clothing during the assault - had set a fire with mattresses in a supermarket on the mall's lower floors. Two "terrorists" had been killed on Monday, he added. Another assailant had died on Saturday.

The gunmen came from "all over the world", Kenya's military chief said, adding: "We are fighting global terrorism here."

Security officials near the scene had said the blasts heard at lunchtime were caused by Kenyan forces blasting a way in after President Uhuru Kenyatta had on Sunday dismissed a demand that he pull Kenyan forces out of neighbouring Somalia.

But Interior Minister Joseph Ole Lenku said he had no information on any explosions and a military spokesman, asked whether the militants had set off charges, declined comment.Al Shabaab warned it would kill hostages if police moved in.

Echoing other officials, who have been at pains to highlight successes in rescuing hundreds of people trapped and terrified after Saturday's massacre, Lenku said most of the complex was under the authorities' control and escape was impossible.

A senior police officer said the authorities, who have been receiving advice from Western and Israeli experts, were "closing in". Lenku said: "We are doing anything reasonably possible, cautiously though, to bring this process to an end.

"The terrorists could be running and hiding in some stores, but all floors now are under our control."

AFRICAN QAEDA CONCERN

He acknowledged "support" from foreign governments but said Kenyan forces were managing without it so far. Western powers have been alarmed by a spread of al Qaeda-linked violence across Africa, from Nigeria and Mali in the west, though Algeria and Libya in the north to Somalia and now Kenya in the east.

Nairobi saw one of the first major attacks by al Qaeda, when it killed more than 200 people with a bomb at the U.S. embassy. And while some analysts said the latest raid may show al Shabaab lashing out in its weakness after the successes of Kenyan troops in Somalia, the risk of further international violence remains.

Julius Karangi, chief of the Kenyan general staff, called the gunmen "a multinational collection". He said they had set the fire as a distraction but could now have no hope of evading capture: "If they wish, they can now surrender," he said.

"We have no intention whatsoever of going backwards."

On Sunday, President Kenyatta said 10 to 15 assailants were holding an unknown number of hostages in one location, apparently the supermarket. On Monday, it was not clear whether they may be more dispersed, including on the upper floors.

A spokesman for al Shabaab warned they would kill hostages if Kenyan security forces, who are being assisted by Western and Israeli experts, tried to storm their positions:

"Israelis and Kenyan forces have tried to enter Westgate by force but they could not," Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage said in an audio statement posted online. "The mujahideen will kill the hostages if the enemies use force."

On Twitter, the group posted: "They've obtained large amounts of ammunition and are, by the blessings of Allah alone, still firm and still dominating the show."

The Red Cross and Lenku put the death toll so far at 62. The Red Cross also said it had also recorded 63 people as missing.

Survivors' tales of the military-style assault by squads of attackers hurling grenades and spraying automatic fire have left little doubt the hostage-takers are willing to kill. Previous raids around the world, including at a desert gas plant in Algeria nine months ago, suggest they are also ready to die.

CINEMA

Kenyatta, who lost one of his own nephews in Saturday's lunchtime bloodbath, said he would not relent in a "war on terror" in Somalia, where Kenyan troops have pushed al Shabaab onto the defensive over the past two years as part of an African Union-backed peacekeeping mission across the northern border.

It remains unclear who the assailants are. Al Shabaab - the name means "The Lads" in Arabic - has thousands of Somali fighters but has also attracted foreigners to fight Western and African Union efforts to establish a stable government.

A London man, Jermaine Grant, faces trial in Kenya for possession of explosives. Police suspect an al Shabaab plot to attack restaurants and hotels used by Westerners and have been hunting for another Briton, Samantha Lewthwaite, the widow of a suicide bomber who took part in the London 7/7 attacks of 2005.

Some British newspapers speculated on the role the "White Widow" might have played at Westgate. The term "black widow" has been used by Chechen militants in Russia for women taking part in bombings and assaults after the deaths of their husbands.

Four Britons were killed and Prime Minister David Cameron said: "We should prepare ourselves for further bad news."

As well as Kenyans, foreigners including a French mother and daughter and two diplomats, from Canada and Ghana, were killed. Ghanaian Kofi Awoonor was a renowned poet. Other victims came from China and the Netherlands. Five Americans were wounded.

Kenya's president, son of post-colonial leader Jomo Kenyatta, is facing his first major security challenge since being elected in March. The crisis might have an impact on his troubles with the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

Judges there let his vice president, William Ruto, fly home for a week, suspending a trial on Monday in which Ruto is charged with crimes against humanity for allegedly coordinating violence after an election in 2007. Kenyatta is due to face trial on similar charges later this year.

WARFARE

Al Shabaab's siege underlined its ability to cause major disruptions with relatively limited resources, even after Kenyan and other African troops drove it from Somali cities.

"While the group has grown considerably weaker in terms of being able to wage a conventional war, it is now ever more capable of carrying out asymmetric warfare," said Abdi Aynte, director of Mogadishu's Heritage Institute of Policy Studies.

Others said divisions within the loose al Shabaab movement may have driven one faction to carry out the kind of high-profile attack that may help win new support.

Al Shabaab's last big attack abroad was a double bombing in Uganda that killed 77 people watching soccer on TV in 2010.

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Trophy tour kicks off in Berlin

The UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour, presented by UniCredit, kicked off in style in Dorothea-Schlegel-Platz, Berlin on Friday as fans braved the elements in their numbers to have photos taken with the biggest prize in club football and attend an autograph session with Fabio Capello and Karl-Heinz Riedle.With the 2013/14 UEFA Champions League group stage no more than a few days old, the famous trophy began its European journey in the country of holders FC Bayern München, albeit with a three-day event in the German capital rather than Munich. Sizeable crowds seized the opportunity to get close to 'Old Big Ears' before meeting UniCredit ambassador Capello and UEFA ambassador for the city of Berlin, Riedle, at an autograph session.

Former Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool FC forward Riedle also took fans' questions in a Google+ hangout streamed live on the new UEFA Champions League Google+ page and the official UEFA.com YouTube channel. "It's been great," said Riedle, who won the 1990 FIFA World Cup with Germany and the UEFA Champions League in 1997 during his time at Dortmund. "The fans have had a chance to see the trophy and it is a very exciting time. It's one of the most important trophies in my life. I won the World Cup in 1990 but I didn't play in the final so the UEFA Champions League is definitely the most valuable trophy to me."

Capello added: "UniCredit has created an amazing event around the spirit of the UEFA Champions League and it is a pleasure for me to be part of this year's Trophy Tour. Lifting the trophy up into the air was stirring. Sharing this feeling of excitement and joy with fans from all over Europe during this tour is a wonderful experience and a great possibility to thank the fans for their support and dedication."

The UEFA Champions League Trophy Tour stops in Hungarian capital Budapest next for three days from Friday, where it will be greeted by former Real Madrid CF midfielders Steve McManaman and Christian Karembeu. Following Budapest the trophy will move on to Bucharest and Sarajevo before concluding in Sofia, Bulgaria.