| Airwaves auction could usher in more choices, lower costs
Rural consumers will have choices of broadband wireless Internet service for the first time. "In rural areas, fewer than a third of people have access to broadband other than satellite, which provides half the speed at twice the price of what city people get," said Jeff Kohler, founder of JAB Wireless Inc., a Denver-based wireless broadband operator. "Competition will bring lower prices for everyone." The auction starts Thursday with spectrum divided into five blocks, with some blocks divided into as many as 734 individual regions across the nation. To maximize the auction's results, the FCC has forbidden bidders to say anything publicly about their bids, strategy or anything else regarding the auction. The FCC will post winning bids in each category but won't name the bidder.
Last of the last
When he first transferred over to P-38s, he had no experience dive bombing with them and asked the other pilots how it differed from the bombers he'd been piloting. But he got completely wrong advice and on his first P-38 mission, he dove much too sharply for the smaller, quicker airplane and nearly went into the ocean, pulling out just 10 feet above the water as his plane kicked up a vapor trail. Another time, a large bomb banged against his gondola cockpit, warping it and sticking the gears. Ward was forced to land with his nose scraping the runway, and the impact when he hit the ground was so forceful that one of his shoulder straps snapped and the other shoulder was twisted savagely. Despite incredible pain, Ward flew missions for several more days until his captain sent him up to Manila to see a doctor.
Big Day Out DJs talk about their Big Day Out
His wife, meant to accompany him on the tour Down Under, is instead stuck at home in New York looking after their sick dog. ‘‘I need to play the gigs, then just get to my hotel and turn the computer on and put the camera on and try to co-ordinate -- I'm the one on the phone with the dog hospital -- just to take some of the pressure off my wife, 'cos we're a team,'' Murphy says. But the show must go on -- ‘‘It was like a personal thing for me'' Murphy says, explaining that for the past few years the timing was just not right to get the LCD band on the BDO. It was now or never. And Murphy -- who went from sleeping on the floor of his DFA label office to fronting one of the most adored outfits in dance music (‘‘pop'', he'll argue) -- for one is glad that LCD's time is now, when he's 37.
How Stuff Works@ Discovery
If the world is changing around you, you have to change. I think we all understand that," said Goodwyn, who is currently Discovery's president of domestic distribution and enterprises. "Ultimately, these [cuts] weren't due to him not liking people or we have to change 15 [executives] because we're cutting costs. He got rid of redundancy, he got rid of layers. He empowered people, he gave more decision-making to groups." Now under Zaslav's regime, Discovery's top executives — such as Goodwyn and Ford — have more control. They have final responsibility for the revenue and profit (or loss) of their respective divisions. That's a contrast to the approach of the previous regime under Judith McHale, who took a top-down approach to executive decisions. "The people that are still here and now, they have more decision-making authority and they are accountable for their actions, where as in the past you may have had three or four people involved in a decision, but no one was really accountable," said Goodwyn.
GM's next generation Chevrolet Impala will remain FWD-based
Instead, Chrysler is developing new "Phoenix" high-output V6 engine to take the place of the Hemi. The engines will feature dual overhead cams, variable valve timing and cylinder deactivation. Ranging-topping variants are likely to surpass 300 HP, like its competitors, and provide better fuel economy than its Hemi counterpart. When it comes to actual vehicle platforms, General Motors is already taking steps to comply with the update CAFE. The company originally planned to resurrect the Pontiac GTO -- again -- using the same underpinnings as the upcoming Chevrolet Camaro and Pontiac G8. Those plans are now shelved. "I think (the Monaro/Pontiac GTO) is gone for now," said GM's Bob Lutz. "We've got nothing in the product plan right now like that. We'd like to have, but you can't do everything." GM was to also build the next generation Chevy Impala using the same RWD platform.
Sketchy evidence raises doubt
The police requested that he come to the police station the next day, Feb. 12, for further questioning. Sure, he told them. But he didn't know Hettrick, and he didn't see or hear anything before her death, he said. Just procedure, they said. Without consulting an attorney, he and his dad did exactly what police asked. They allowed detectives to search their home and Tim's school locker, where they scooped up his horror writings and sketches, his survival-knife collection and Army flashlight with a red-tinted lens. His dad would stay outside the interrogation room, not understanding that juveniles are psychologically vulnerable to suggestive cues and coercion. After reading him his rights, officers prodded Masters to talk about killing, to think like a killer, to talk about what weapons he might use and where he might put a body.
EA to Release Free "Battlefield Heroes" Multiplayer FPS
Micro-transactions and advertising will fund titles in EA's "Play 4 Free" family Most gamers are used to the idea of downloadable content, as shown by the massively popular Guitar Hero and Rock Band titles. However, full-version downloadable games usually come with a "caveat emptor" byline -- be it monthly subscription fees for MMORPGs, in-game items that can only be purchased with real money, or the widely-disliked ad-supported flavor. EA is now trying out the latter business model with their variant dubbed "Play 4 Free" and is hoping that the Battlefield franchise will help them gain a foothold in the form of Battlefield Heroes. Battlefield Heroes is a cartoon-styled game from DICE, best known for being the team behind Battlefield 1942 and Battlefield 2.
State agencies feel chill from Jindal’s hiring freeze
State agencies from health care to higher education are seeking relief from Gov. Bobby Jindal’s employee hiring freeze. "It’s a serious issue for us," said Fred Cerise, who as vice president for the LSU System’s health care and medical education is over the state’s charity hospitals. LSU hospitals today have 456 vacancies, Cerise said Wednesday. Commissioner of Higher Education Joseph Savoie, who oversees the state’s vo-tech schools, colleges and universities, complained to Jindal’s money manager about the hiring freeze the governor issued last week. "It is somewhat ironic that now that funding is available, we may still be restricted in our ability to use those resources in securing the personnel so vital to our mission," Savoie wrote.
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