Winckel

Here’s the thing. When you use Google Maps, if you zoom in or out, Google downloads new maps to show you the tiles. These are called raster graphics, which are bitmaps because they correspond bit-for-bit with an image displayed on a screen. If you’ve ever seen a file with a .BMP extension, that’s an example of raster graphics. But Apple uses vector graphics. Unlike raster graphics, vector graphics don’t come in files that correspond bit-by-bit with the same image seen on a screen. Rather, vector graphics are made up of mathematical expressions that tell iOS 6 Maps how to draw the map. And since vector maps allow you to scale by any amount without degrading quality - Winckel

"David Cameron has failed to end the Tories' image as the party of the rich and is paying the price as Conservatives struggle to extend their appeal to urban areas in the north of England, according to the head of Downing Street's favourite thinktank. In a searing critique of the prime minister's faltering modernisation project, the director of Policy Exchange, Neil O'Brien, calls for an urgent round of renewal in the light of Cameron's failure to heal the "party's worst wounds". Writing for the Guardian on the eve of the Conservative conference in Birmingham, O'Brien says: "Today the Tories urgently need a new round of renewal. Tory modernisation has not yet healed the party's worst wounds. It is still seen as the party of the rich. It does badly in urban areas, particularly outside the south-east." The intervention by O'Brien, whose thinktank has been an intellectual powerhouse for the so called "Cameroons", reflects the concerns among many modernisers that the project has stalled. The modernisation project was designed to detoxify the image of the Tories, who were famously described by Theresa May as the "nasty party", to show that they reflected modern, diverse Britain. Cameron famously broke with the past, and highlighted his green credentials, by posing with huskies on a visit to Svalbard in the Norwegian Arctic in 2006. On Friday, in another blow for the government, Europe's environment chief highlighted concerns in the EU that the coalition is failing to live up to its pledge to become Britain's greenest ever government by accusing critics of environmental regulations of making "untrue" claims. Janez Potocnik, the European environment commissioner, told the Guardian that for politicians to suggest that environmental legislation was a burden was "very unhelpful, because it is untrue". The commissioner did not name any Tory ministers. But George Osborne has criticised green regulations. Separately, in a Guardian interview before the Conservative conference, the new culture secretary, Maria Miller, claimed the government was acting in a progressive way as it lifts 2 million of the lowest earners out of tax. Miller, who is also minister for women and equalities, said: "When you look at what we have been doing for the last two and a half years, so much of it does resonate with women. If you look at what we have done in terms of focusing on cutting the deficit, welfare reform and tax reforms – lifting 2 million of the lowest paid people out of tax altogether disproportionately supports women who can often have part-time jobs." Miller declined to join the campaign to end the Sun's Page 3 girl, saying: "It is for newspapers to decide what they print and it is for consumers to decide what they buy. That is the way it should be, and I don't think it is right for ministers to dictate what goes on any page of a newspaper, whether it is page 3 or not." In his Guardian article, O'Brien calls for "blue collar modernisation" focused on the north and the Midlands which would see the end of middle-class benefits. "What about middle-class benefits?" he asks. "Do we really need to give child benefit to households that are better off than average? Post-election we should stop giving free TV licences, winter fuel payments and bus passes to millionaires." O'Brien says the prime minister must resist calls from the Tory right, notably the new Conservative Voice group, to champion a more traditional agenda. "Obviously Cameron should ignore calls from the usual suspects to lurch rightward. But the solution isn't as simple as tacking to the centre. After all, most voters have tough views on crime, welfare and immigration. What's needed is a blue-collar modernisation, focused on the north and Midlands." Amid continuing concerns about the failure of the Tory party to appeal to British minority ethnic communities, O'Brien calls on the prime minister to renounce the so called "cricket test" set by Lord Tebbit. The former Tory chairman famously said in 1990 that members of minority communities could not be considered fully British if they supported the cricket team of their country of ancestry rather than England. "Supporting Pakistan or the Windies at cricket is no more evidence that someone has failed to integrate than wearing a kilt to a wedding is proof of Jacobite sympathies. You can be intensely British, but want to hold on to your family history."" - Winckel

I don't know if that was ever medically proven.... - Winckel

Сегодня утром активистки FEMEN оккупировали статую Венеры Милосской в парижском Лувре. Активистки требовали прекратить судебные преследования, изнасилованной полицейскими, а позже обвиненной тунисскими властями в аморальном поведении гражданки Туниса Мариам. Активистки FEMEN закрепили на статуе плакат, гласящий "Изнасилуй меня - я аморальна" и озвучили слоган акции "У нас есть руки, чтобы прекратить это!". FEMEN трактует факт изнасилования Мариам тунисскими полицейскими как геноцид против женщин, а судебный процесс над жертвой считает актом изнасилования базовых принципов прав человека. FEMEN видит в действиях тунисских властей черты исламистской деградации, грозящей Тунису введением законов шариата с их женоненавистническими идеями. FEMEN требует от тунисских властей прекратить судебное преследование Мариам и публичного суда над насильниками в полицейской форме. Во имя Венеры мы обращаемся к женщинам мира с призывом создать фронт сопротивления и не допустить расправы над безневинной жертвой тунисских дикарей. У нас есть руки, чтобы остановить это! - Winckel

"The center of the Milky Way is a messy place, full of stars and star remnants. There's so much going on that it's hard to observe in visible light, so precision measurements rely on radio, X-ray, or infrared (IR) wavelengths. Astronomers using the Keck telescope on Mauna Kea in Hawaii have been watching stars near the galactic center in IR for 17 years, providing a detailed view of their dynamics. The fruits of these observations include the measurement of the mass of the Milky Way's central black hole: approximately 4 million times the mass of the Sun. The Keck team, led by UCLA astronomer Andrea Ghez, has now identified a star that orbits the black hole in 11.5 years, the shortest orbital period for a star yet discovered. Thanks to this relatively quick motion, the astronomers have completely mapped the orbit of this star, known as S0-102, making it the second such star observed. Knowledge of complete orbits helps with modeling the black hole itself, which is invisible in IR light. While the data so far doesn't deviate from Newtonian gravity, observations over multiple orbits should allow for tests of general relativity in the region close to a black hole—something that hasn't been done yet using stellar orbits. THE DARKNESS AT THE GALAXY'S CENTER The central object in the Milky Way is known as Sagittarius A* (pronounced "ay star" and usually abbreviated Sgr A*). It lies approximately 25,000 light-years away from the Solar System in the region of the sky corresponding to the constellation of Sagittarius. While it is a relatively bright radio source, it's surprisingly faint in X-ray light compared to black holes of comparable sizes in other galaxies. Thanks to observations from the Keck/UCLA team and researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Germany, the mass of Sgr A* is known to be about 4 million times that of the Sun, while it occupies a smaller space than the Solar System. Only a black hole can be simultaneously so massive and so compact. Since 1995, researchers have mapped the motions of stars around the central black hole, using high-resolution IR images. At Keck, such imaging was facilitated by adaptive optics, wherein the shape of the 10-meter-diameter mirror was adjusted dynamically to correct for atmospheric distortion. With such techniques, astronomers were able to pinpoint the location and paths of a significant number of stars near the black hole, known as the S-stars. One of the earliest identified S-stars was S0-2, with an orbital period of about 16 years. Until the discovery of S0-102, it was the only star with a sufficiently short orbital period to enable a complete three-dimensional reconstruction of its trajectory, which provided the best data on the shape of the black hole's gravitational influence. The reason S0-102 evaded discovery is that it is faint—S0-2 is 16 times brighter. Because of its faintness, observations have suffered from "source confusion," where light from multiple objects mingles, affecting the appearance of the star. As a result, the astronomers used the black hole data from prior observations to determine S0-102's orbital properties, rather than using the star as a way to study the black hole itself." - Winckel

"Apple Maps has been getting its share of negative attention since being released, but some new research shines a bright spot on the comparison between Apple’s and Google’s mapping apps. According to Onavo, a company that specializes in helping customers get the most out of their smartphone data plans, there are some big differences between the apps. The company ran tests on the two apps to see which was the most efficient in its data usage. After running a number of scenarios, the tests showed that Apple Maps was up to five times more data efficient than Google Maps. For instance, when you search for a new location the mapping app has to download the street data you see on the screen — panning and zooming means even more data downloaded. “On Google Maps, the average data loaded from the cellular network for each step was 1.3MB, the company wrote on its Web site. “Apple Maps came in at 271KB – that’s approximately 80% less data! On some actions, such as zooming in to see a particular intersection, Apple Maps’ efficiency advantage edged close to 7X.” Results for the satellite view in Maps showed Apple’s app used about half of Google’s mapping application." - Winckel

I use Maps a lot around London these days. I miss Streetview but otherwise I prefer Apple's UI. They're snappy too, the vector graphics work well. #ios6 - Winckel

"“We are evaluating different options for non-core parts, such as real estate holdings, and that includes the headquarters,” spokeswoman Maija Taimi told Reuters. Nokia makes fun of the iPhone 5 and it can’t even sell enough phones to keep its headquarters." - Winckel

here's to the crazy ones indeed. today of all days. cheers steve. - Winckel

"Camillo Miller of Italian website TheAppleLounge noticed an interesting tidbit about the brief tribute to Steve Jobs Apple published on its website today. The song that plays in the video, the prelude from Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1, is tuned down to F# major. Typically, the prelude is played in G major. So why tuning down the prelude? It comes down to an important detail related to Steve’s tastes in classical music. The version that Apple is using on the website is played by American cellist Yo-Yo Ma. As Walter Isaacson writes in Steve’s biography, Yo-Yo Ma and Steve were close friends: There was one classic musician Jobs revered both as a person and a performer: Yo-Yo Ma, the versatile virtuoso who is as sweet and profound as the tones he creates on his cello. They had met in 1981, when Jobs was at the Aspen Design Conference and Ma was at the Aspen Music Festival. Jobs tended to be deeply moved by artists who displayed purity, and he became a fan. He invited Ma to play at his wedding, but he was out of the country on tour. He came by the Jobs house a few years later, sat in the living room, pulled out his 1733 Stradivarius cello, and played Bach. “This is what I would have played for your wedding,” he told them. Jobs teared up and told him, “You playing is the best argument I’ve ever heard for the existence of God, because I don’t really believe a human alone can do this.” On a subsequent visit Ma allowed Jobs’s daughter Erin to hold the cello while they sat around the kitchen. By that time Jobs had been struck by cancer, and he made Ma promise to play at his funeral. As it turns out, Ma plays the first four Bach suites tuning down his cello a full semitone, and there is a specific reason for doing so. In baroque times, instruments like cellos sounded a little different: the musical note A (A440) didn’t have a frequency of 440 Hz, but was more around 415 Hz — something known as the baroque pitch. Among several modern ensembles, there is a consensus to play baroque music a semitone lower than A440. By tuning down the A to the baroque pitch,  the prelude from Bach essentially goes to F# major; this helps achieve a more vibrant, “full” sound that resonates beautifully. The Cello Suites by Yo-Yo Ma are available on iTunes. In many ways, Apple is still sweating the details." - Winckel

"baroque pitch" was news to me. - Winckel

Just bought cello suite 1 on iTunes - Winckel

"The author, actor and presenter also accused the Church of England of caving in to “screeching” extremists who he claims have spread lies about gay marriage. Fry, who is gay, spoke out in a new video, for the Out4Marriage campaign, which has persuaded a string of celebrities and politicians to back its calls for reform. During a three minute monologue, he says gay people “used to be regarded as villains because we were so bohemian and outrageous and we eschewed family values, but we’re not. "We’re human beings like everybody else and we believe first and foremost in love. “At least 260 species of animal have been noted exhibiting homosexual behaviour but only one species of animal ever, so far as we know, has exhibited homophobic behaviour — and that’s the human being." - Winckel

It's the Law. - Son of Groucho

"A message from Tim Cook, Apple's CEO. Steve's passing one year ago today was a sad and difficult time for all of us. I hope that today everyone will reflect on his extraordinary life and the many ways he made the world a better place. One of the greatest gifts Steve gave to the world is Apple. No company has ever inspired such creativity or set such high standards for itself. Our values originated from Steve and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple. We share the great privilege and responsibility of carrying his legacy into the future. I'm incredibly proud of the work we are doing, delivering products that our customers love and dreaming up new ones that will delight them down the road. It's a wonderful tribute to Steve's memory and everything he stood for." - Winckel

Have you seen this: http://friendfeed.com/iphone... - Stephan Planken

Saw it; not sure I've ever found Scoble particularly insightful - Winckel

:-) - Winckel

I am missing this info Bird Box Studio is a fun, new London animation house. Wildebeest https://www.youtube.com/watch... May be I am a bit conservative. - Slavomira

Love this! - Son of Groucho

:) - AJ Batac

Adele has confirmed she has recorded the theme for the forthcoming James Bond film, Skyfall. She posted a picture of the song credits on her official Twitter page. It comes after months of rumours and other people, aside from Adele, discussing it. Traditionally, Sony Pictures, which distributes the Bond movies, and Eon Productions, the company in charge of Bond, issue a joint press release about who will be singing the theme song. Sony has repeatedly declined to comment on speculation about the theme. Adele's photo appears to show the cover page of the sheet music for the Skyfall theme. It lists the composers as A. Adkins, the singer's full name, and P. Epworth - the producer and co-writer of her hit single Rolling In The Deep. The music has been arranged by Epworth and film composer JAC Redford, whose credits include The Help, The Iron Lady and Wall-E. Adele first hinted she would be working on the theme song during an interview on Jonathan Ross's chat show on ITV1 in September 2011. "I'm going back in the studio in November, fingers crossed," Adele told Ross. "Well this is actually a theme, what I've got to do for, um… Wow. That's really giving something away isn't it?" Shortly after Adele's appearance on The Jonathan Ross show last September, her friend Tinie Tempah, said he'd spoken to Adele about her Bond recording. Speaking at the Mercury Prize on 6 September, 2011, the rapper mentioned: "I was with her (Adele) yesterday, she was telling me about it and that's amazing." He continued: "I've always wanted to do a Bond theme. I'm a bit jealous actually. No, let's leave it to her, it's always a really big diva that does it right?" Recent Bond themes have met with a poor reception. Chris Cornell's gritty You Know My Name, from Casino Royale, was described as "unexpectedly dull" and "forgettable"; while Jack White and Alicia Keys' duet Another Way To Die, from Quantum Of Solace, was branded "a missed opportunity". Adele's theme is the first to carry the same name as the film since Madonna's Die Another Day in 2002. The 23rd Bond film, Skyfall, is due for release on 26 October, 2012. - Winckel

:-) - Winckel

lol - TaS

"Europe's golfers celebrated in style after producing one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history to retain the Ryder Cup. The team, captained by Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal, overturned a 10-6 deficit to defeat the United States by 14½ points to 13½ points on a thrilling final day in Chicago. They won the match while wearing the colours of Olazabal's compatriot and close friend, the late Seve Ballesteros, who helped Europe to five Ryder Cup wins during a glittering career as a player and captain." - Winckel

I wonder which of these two made the greater contribution to humanity? - Winckel

You can't have 1 without the other... - Halil

vondelpark, a beautiful park in amsterdam. paul ehrenfest killed his son and himself here in the 1930's, disillusioned and confused about his progress in helping explore quantum reality. - Winckel

This park was.. errh, is my all time favourite place in Amsterdam and one of the finest locations in the city. - Mistaken Identity

Taken by Paul Ehrenfest who committed suicide in Vondelpark. I would have loved to have been around at Solvay, so many incredible people and such amazing progress in understanding reality. It takes my breath away. - Winckel

Amsterdam is nice. - the king of the interweb

:-) - Winckel

one of yours? - Halil

I had hoped to avoid the gangnam meme.... - Winckel