Wednesday 7 March 2012

Bihar News, Latest News from Bihar, News of Bihar, Biharprabha News

Bihar News, Latest News from Bihar, News of Bihar, Biharprabha News

Bill Gates’s own company ventures into Online Music Industry

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 02:25 PM PST

Bill GatesGentlemen, it is not Microsoft Inc, but   another private company Corbis , founded by Bill Gates  which is set to launch its own online music service similar to what Apple Inc has been doing.

The GreenLight Music service went live on Wednesday, with more than 1 million tracks from catalogs controlled by Warner Music, EMI Music Publishing, Universal Music and Sony ATV.

Corbis , which the Microsoft chairman started in 1989 by securing the digital rights to such art masterpieces as the “Mona Lisa” and “Whistler’s Mother”, created GreenLight in 2008 and used it to jumpstart efforts to transform itself .

Its new music service will let customers license a range of songs for online websites, advertising and other professional uses. Users bid on the tracks, with the labels negotiating the final price.

Under Corbis CEO Gary Shenk, the company has been steadily buying and starting entertainment services. In January, it acquired Norm Marshall & Associates, which brokers deals to place clients’ products in movies and on TV shows.

In February, it launched On Demand Entertainment, a subscription service which allows users to license celebrity photos and other entertainment images.

“Our customers want to connect to entertainment to break through the clutter so we decided to give them access to iconic entertainment,” said Shenk. In one case, he said, Corbis provided video clips for Hasbro Incto include in its online version of Trivial Pursuit.

The use of the Monkees ‘ song “Daydream Believer” was recently licensed for $1,875 for a corporate meeting, the company said.

“It’s our responsibility to find new and innovative ways to help EMI’s artists achieve the success they always dreamed of,” Brian Monaco, EMI’s executive vice-president of sales and strategic management, said in a statement. “And we’re committed to finding ways to simply the sync licensing process.”

Green L ight marks Corbis’ tentative foray into the market for online music sales. But Shenk said the company has no plans at the moment to create a service for consumers similar to Apple Inc ‘siTunes or Google Inc’smusic service.

Corbis Corporation is an American company, based in Seattle, Washington, that licenses the rights to photographs, footage and other visual media. It has a collection of more than 100 million images and 500,000 video clips.

What is New in the new iPad ?

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 01:39 PM PST

iPad 4G was launched today by Apple CEO Tim Cook. Amidst speculations about the name of the new device, it was simply termed as new iPad, which vaguely describes few improvements over the iPad2. It will hit stores Friday, March 16, in the U.S., as well as in Japan, the UK, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, France, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia. It will be available in both black and white

According to the technology magazine Mashable, the new iPad — which starts at $499 — has retina display,with 2048 x 1536 pixels and 264 pixels in each inch. It will have a whopping 1 million more pixels than HDTV.
It would also have a 5-megapixel camera (with the same optics sensor from the iPhone 4S) and 1080p video recording with backside illumination. In addition, the camera includes a 5-element lens and a hybrid IR filter. It also includes autofocus and white balance and an edge-to-edge, auto-focus lock. In essence, Apple has taken the optics of the iPhone 4S and put them in the iPad, albeit at a slightly lower megapixel rating.

Tim cook Unveiling new iPad
Weighing in at 1.4 lbs and 9.4mm thick, the LTE device will work with AT&T and Verizon in the U.S., and Bell, Telus and Rogers in Canada. It will have 10 hours of battery life and 9 hours on 4G.
Wi-Fi only iPads will cost $499 for 16 GB, $599 for 32 GB and $699 for 64 GB.

4G models will cost $629 for 16 GB, $729 for 32 GB and $829 for 64 GB.

IATA suspends Kingfisher from Inter- Airline Transaction

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 11:39 AM PST

Kingfisher Airlines suffered a big blow when International Air Transport Association  suspended it from its inter-airline transaction body for failure in settling dues since February. This is the second time Kingfisher has been suspended

The move — which is akin to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) removing a commercial bank from its currency clearing system — came barely hours after the Income Tax Department froze more bank accounts of the Vijay Mallya-led carrier for non-payment of dues.

According to industry experts, the move to suspend Kingfisher from the clearance system on account of non-payment of dues to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) is expected to affect nearly 30-35 percent of its business.

This puts a question mark over whether tickets for the carrier can now be booked using globally interconnected systems like Galileo, Sabre and Amadeus.

The airline in response said it was unable to pay its dues because its bank accounts were seized by the Income Tax Department with whom the passenger carrier is negotiating.

‘Due to the accounts getting attached by the tax authorities, we were not able to make a payment to (IATA) which resulted in a temporary suspension,’ an airline official said.

‘We are working with the tax authorities and expect the accounts to be un-attached shortly. As soon as this is done, we will pay our dues to IATA and get reinstated.’

The airline has also reassured its passengers that suspension will not impact them and that they can book their tickets directly with the carrier.

The IATA had previously barred Kingfisher from its international ticket clearing house (ICH) system on Feb 2, but reinstated it eight days later after some payments were made.

‘IATA has suspended Kingfisher Airlines’ participation in the ICH. This is because the airline did not settle their ICH account within the stipulated deadline,’ a statement issued by IATA from Geneva said.

‘Kingfisher’s participation in the ICH will be reinstated after the airline fulfils the ICH requirements,’ said the association that has all passenger and cargo carriers as its primary members.

IATA further said that the passenger carrier will not be able to settle its transactions from other ICH member airlines.

‘Suspension from the ICH means that airline will not be able to settle their transactions with other ICH members via the clearing house.’

However, despite the suspension, airlines can continue to function by settling bilaterally with other airlines.

Kingfisher’s woes were exacerbated Feb 18 when its employees in Kolkata went on a flash strike as they had not received their salaries for several months.

The airline, which later on curtailed its flight plans, blamed the seizure of its bank accounts in February by the Income Tax Department as the main hurdles in clearing of dues.

Kingfisher has a debt of Rs.7,057.08 crore. Its net loss widened to Rs.444.27 crore for the quarter ended Dec 31, 2011, from Rs.253.69 crore in the October-December quarter in the last fiscal.

The airline’s share, which was ruling at Rs.49.25 about a year ago, closed Wednesday at Rs.21, with a loss of 6.25 percent over the previous close.

Apple unveils the most amazing 4G version of iPad

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 11:24 AM PST

ipad 4GApple has fianlly unveiled the most amazingversion of its iPad   which is capable of operating on a high-speed 4G “LTE” or Long-Term Evolution network. At speeds roughly 10 times faster than current 3G technology, that may help banish the sometimes shaky video quality of older devices.

Apple Inc took the wraps off a faster 4G-equipped iPad on Wednesday, hoping the latest version of its tablet can safeguard its dominance as rivals from Amazon to Samsung pile into the market.

Apple is betting a 4G-equipped iPad will tempt more U.S. consumers to pay extra for higher-quality video on the go. That, in turn, should give Verizon Wireless and AT&T Inca revenue boost, analysts say.

Until now, buyers have been reluctant to shell out extra cash even for iPads with slower 3G connections. The cheaper Wi-Fi-only model – with much more limited Web access – is by far Apple’s top-selling one today.

The company is counting on a warm reception to its latest tablet to fend off an increasingly aggressive challenge from Google Inc Android-powered tablets, with Microsoft Corp software-driven devices slated to come soon.

“Everyone’s been wondering who will come out with a product that’s more amazing that the iPad 2,” Cook said.

“Stop wondering: we are.”

The global tablet user base reached 67 million in 2011, according to researcher Strategy Analytics.

Earlier in the session, Cook again held forth on what he called a “post-PC world”, in which users move increasingly away from traditional desktop and laptop computing and toward an array of portable devices.

And he announced that the company’s new $99 Apple TV set-top box, a concept that late CEO Steve Jobs had called a “hobby,” now supports high-definition 1080p screen technology.

“Last year alone we sold 172 million post-PC devices,” Cook told the audience at the Yerba Buena Center in downtown San Francisco, Apple’s preferred venue for product unveilings.

“And this made up 76 percent of our revenues. This is incredible.”

Kerala firm develops application for detecting Dam Fissures automatically

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 05:26 AM PST

A Kerala based firm has developed a augmented reality siren (ARS) which can be used for Detecting Cracks in Rail Lines, dam fissures  and also at sea. Schogini Systems Pvt Ltd, a Technopark-based IT firm, has successfully developed and tested this application.

Schogini Systems CEO Gayatri S. Ajith told IANS: “We have developed this product for a client in the US. It is a combination of software and hardware, working on the principle of image processing.”

“The device will be demonstrated at the ongoing Surakshayanam International Workshop and Exhibition 2012 being held here. It consists of a camera that is used in mobile phones, a web-based remote sensor and a siren that goes off if a distortion takes place at the end where the camera is mounted,” said Gayatri.

Schogini Systems managing director Sreeprakash Neelakantan said that this product can be put to use at unmanned level crossings and even on the high seas to track ships that cause problems for small fishing boats.

“When a train approaches a level crossing, the ARS detects this and sends a signal so that the gates can be closed by remote. If a camera is mounted on a small boat, the siren, which is placed on shore will get activated if there is a hit-and-run incident,” he said referring to the episode earlier this month in which three fishermen were killed when their boat was hit by a cargo vessel.

The IT firm has recently made giant strides in mobile applications.
It has more than 450 mobile applications and accounts for a daily download of more than 3,000.

Currently one of Schogini’s 3D applications called 3D Globe is ranked 12th in the Indian iTunes market.

Green Activists getting nightmare in Holika Dahan

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 04:46 AM PST

Hundreds of trees have been pruned or cut down across Bihar in the last four-five days for Holi bonfires, green activists said Wednesday.

The Holika bonfire, symbolising the destruction of evil, is part of the festival.

Environmentalists questioned the mindless damage to trees.

“People have no right to cut or prune trees. Bonfires have never been a part of our age-old traditions,” Patna-based Ashook Ghosh said.

Ghosh said Holika is a symbol of burning something, particularly waste materials, not green trees.

“It is high time people change their mindset to save the environment. Activists should create awareness among people.”

Another green activist, Robert Athickal, who runs Tarumitra, a Patna-based body promoting healthy environment, said there was need to educate people not to target trees.

“We have been appealing to people not to cut or prune trees,” he said.

Athickal said it was unfortunate that green trees had been badly damaged. Most of the destruction has taken place in Patna, Gaya and Muzaffarpur districts, he said.

“The trees can neither raise their voice nor seek justice. Our volunteers have been urging people to burn garbage instead of trees.”

In a mockery of forest laws, activists say that people have been chopping off branches and felling trees, without being stopped by forest department and other officials.

“This happens every year ahead of Holi,” complained Guddu Baba, who has been battling pollution in the Ganga river.

Added Vaidhnath Jha, an expert on Hindu scriptures: “There is virtually a race among people to collect wood for bonfires. People have no concern for trees and the impact their destruction causes.

“They want to fulfil rituals at the cost of harming the environment. There is no religious sanction for this.”

In Patna alone, bonfires will be lit in over 1,000 places to mark the festival Thursday.

Arun Singh, a nature lover, said he and his friends watched helplessly people in Patna and its outskirts felling trees indiscriminately.

Till the 1970s, pointed out senior citizen Vijendra Madhav, garbage was collected for the bonfires.

“We never cut trees. Now the situation is different. People seem to enjoy cutting tress,” Madhav lamented.

Activists say that it is sad that people cut trees although Patna has little green cover. The attack on nature will only lead to more pollution.

Forest officials say Bihar lost most of its green cover when Jharkhand was carved out of it three years ago. Undivided Bihar had a forest cover of 17 percent.

Your Facebook photo tells much about you

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 04:30 AM PST

Your photo on social networking sites tells viewers what they need to know to form an impression about you – no words are necessary, new research suggests.

College students who viewed a Facebook photo of a fellow student having fun with friends rated that person as extraverted (being concerned with the social and physical environment) — even if his profile said he was “not a big people-person”.

“Photos seem to be the primary way we make impressions of people on social networking sites,” said Brandon Van Der Heide, assistant professor of communication at Ohio State University, who led the study, the Journal of Communication reports.

The exception is when a photo is out of the ordinary or shows someone in a negative light. In that case, people do use profile text to help interpret what kind of person is shown in the profile, according to an Ohio statement.

“People will accept a positive photo of you as showing how you really are. But if the photo is odd or negative in any way, people want to find out more before forming an impression,” he said.

Van Der Heide conducted the study with Jonathan D’Angelo and Erin Schumaker, graduate students in communication at Ohio State University. The researchers conducted two studies.

In the study, 195 college students viewed a mock Facebook profile of a person who was supposedly a fellow student. The profile included a photo and a written “about me” statement.

The participants were asked to rate how extraverted they thought the student in the profile was, on a scale of 1 (least extraverted) to 7 (most extraverted) based on the photo and text.

The participants viewed one of four profiles: in one, both the photo (a person shown socializing with friends) and the text (“I’m happiest hanging out with a big group of friends”) suggested an extrovert.

A second profile had both a photo (a person alone on a park bench) and text (“I’m happiest curled up in my room with a good book”) that suggested an introvert.

The other two profiles were mixed, with the photo suggesting an extravert and the text an introvert, and vice versa.

The question the researchers wanted to answer was which mattered more – the photo or the text – in deciding whether the person was an extrovert or an introvert. Results showed the photo was generally most important, Van Der Heide said.

When the University starts making Movies

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 04:22 AM PST

A popular university in  Punjab, has entered into  filmmaking and is  co-producing  a Bengali film titled “Darling”. The Film would be released on March 23.

Punjab Technical University (PTU) will be co-producing the movie under its new production house Manya Films to promote filmmaking, mass communication-journalism, animation and multimedia courses, and also to provide practical exposure to students.

“We believe entertainment is one of the biggest industries which provides huge employment opportunities. We are hopeful this new venture will give opportunities to young students who lack practical exposure after they complete their courses,” PTU director (Operations) Ajesh Gugnani told reporters at the music launch of “Darling”.

Directed by Raaj Mukherjee, the film, which promises to be a family entertainer with elements of romance, drama, action and humour, has been shot in Goa, the Rann of Kutch and north Bengal.

Established in January 1997, the university has over 300 affiliated colleges offering more than 50 professional courses in the technical, management, and pharmaceutical education streams.

Here Holi lasts for 50 days

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 03:18 AM PST

In the Braj region of Uttar Pradesh, Holi lasts for 50 days starting from Basant Panchmi. In the five districts of the Agra division that make up Braj, it is a no-holds-barred celebration inspired by the legend of Krishna-Radha and replete with examples of Mughal emperors like Akbar and Jahangir who enthusiastically participated in the festival.
The festivities begin with Holi celebrations at the Dwarkadheesh temple in Mathura. Braj, the birthplace of Lord Krishna, is located within a 100-km radius of the Hindu pilgrim town.

“We mostly use natural colours made by mixing tesu flowers with lukewarm water, so that the little Krishna doesn’t catch cold,” a temple official said.

Jagannath Poddar, director of the NGO Friends of Vrindavan, said: “This festival is more socio-cultural than religious as all communities join the festivities, sing, dance and throw colours.”

Referring to “Lat Maar” holi of Barsana town where woman revellers beat up men with sticks, he said, “Occasionally, people let out steam through violence!”

In the narrow lanes of Barsana town, thousands of pilgrims, showering colours and rose petals, line up along the 252 steps to the Radha temple on the hill to witness its Lat Maar Holi.

Families in Barsana that send out “huriyarins”, or women participants in Lat Maar Holi, usually start preparations a month in advance.

“The mothers-in-law feed their daughters-in-law rich food to be able to participate and show their prowess on the battlefield on Holi! It is a show of love, fun and equality, one that make even the gods to descend and witness the game,” say the locals.

Traditionally, it is believed that Lord Krishna along with his friends, the ‘gops’ (men) from Nandgaon town in Mathura district, went to his beloved Radha’s village in Barsana and played Holi.

Barsana resident pandit Ram Sharan explained that the gops from Nandgaon had visited Barsana to invite Radha and gopis to play Holi. Laddoos were offered to welcome the gops and a session of Holi bhajans and dances followed in the evening. The temple priests threw laddoos on the devotees marking the Laddoo ki holi.

This year, due to an extended winter and the heat generated by elections to the Uttar Pradesh assembly, people took a little longer to get into the mood for celebrations. A steady rise in the temperature has also helped outdoor activities attract people in the past few days.

By Holi, people expect the air to be warmer, which should make up for the delayed excitement and all the frolic associated with this festival of colours which is special to Braj.

Natural Colors demand boosts up this Holi

Posted: 07 Mar 2012 02:11 AM PST

natural colors holiPeople in India are more health conscious and in being so many are opting for the eco-friendly and chemical-free colours this Holi. Colours which are natural and do not have any harmful impact on the human body are preferred, an analysis by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) revealed.

According to the analysis, the demand for herbal and perfumed Holi colours is likely to reach Rs.4,500 crore this year.

“Considering the constant aggressive campaigns and rise in public consciousness against the use of low quality, adulterated, synthetic and harmful chemical laden colours, has driven the growth in demand for herbal and environment-friendly colours during Holi festivities,” Assocham secretary general D.S.Rawat said.

Holi, the festival of colours will be celebrated Thursday. The streets of the national capital are already drenched in colour, with roadside stalls selling multi-coloured pichkaris (water guns), gulal (colour powder) and other Holi accessories.

The herbal colours available in the market, which are made from extracts of flowers, barks of tree, leaves which are natural and do not have any harmful impact on the human body and are in high demand.

“Even last year, people were not particular on the fact that the colours they smear on their near and dear ones contain harmful chemicals. But this year their is a increased awareness, herbal and organic colours are selling like hot cakes,” Abhinav Shukla, a retailer from Lajpat Nagar market in south Delhi, told IANS.

Shukla added that the black colour is made from lead oxide, green from copper sulphate, silver from aluminium bromide and red from mercury sulphite.

“The colours made of chemicals can cause allergies, eye infection and skin cancer,” Prasanna Bhat, a dermatologist at Max Hospital, told IANS.

Not just in capital, but according to majority of the manufacturers at Hathras, Kanpur, Mathura and Patna, the demand for herbal colours has been growing steadily at a rate of about 30 to 35 percent every year.

Most traders informed that the demand for herbal colours was increasing, as clients complained that the synthetic colours cause skin allergies, asthma, eye infections and other significant health problems — which triggered them to shift their focus on making herbal colours.

“Though costly, herbal colours are a hit amid people as they are made from natural ingredients and ayurvedic preparations, and go through stringent quality control checks. Besides herbal colours are eco-friendly, non-toxic, soft, emit natural aroma and fragrance,” Rawat added.

The chemical-based colours are priced at Rs.20 for a 100 gm packet. Natural organic colours cost double – Rs.40 to Rs.50 for the same quantity.

The demand for synthetic and dye-based colours is greaters from retailers in north and east Delhi areas like Bhajanpura, Nand Nagri, Karawal Nagar.

The Holi colours and accessories industry is growing at a compounded rate of 20 percent every year, the industry is likely to reach Rs.12,000 crore this year, Assocham said.
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