Apple may discontinue iPad mini series

Apple may discontinue iPad mini series

Technology sabahdaily   7:55 AM

Not even a month has passed since the launch of the latest iPads and the tech world is surrounded by speculation over the next line of Apple products.

According to a report by Taiwan's Economic Times Daily, Apple will no longer produce 7.9-inch iPad mini series starting next year. Instead, it will concentrate on the long-rumoured iPad Pro model.

This means that iPad mini 3 will be the last of Apple's small-screen tablets. This could be a major reason for the lack of major improvements in iPad Mini 3 compared to its predecessor. iPad mini not only faces competition from the big-screen iPad Air, but also from iPhone 6 Plus.

According to a recent report, iPad Pro has a 12.2-inch screen, while earlier reports had claimed that it will have a 12.9-inch display. The big-screen iPad is also rumoured to be as thin as iPhone 6 and have two additional speakers and a microphone located at the top of the device.

-timesofindia



The power behind the throne

The power behind the throne

News sabahdaily   7:49 AM

KUALA LUMPUR: Malay political leaders on both sides of the political divide are afraid of the religious authorities and this can be seen in the manner they express themselves at different forums in different languages.

“The real power in our lives emanates from the religious authorities,” writes Zaid Ibrahim in The real power in Malaysia, in his blog Zaidgeist. “Our leaders are like the Imperial Chinese eunuchs who would always obey the Emperor for the privilege of living in the Palace and having control over state finances.”

The Malay political leaders are a bundle of contradictions, he adds, in implying that they seek relevance from both ends of the municipal drainpipe.

“The so-called ‘Malay moderate’ leaders normally expound their sugar-coated liberal ideas in international forums and always in English,” notes Zaid. They know that the Malay-Muslim audience at home will miss it completely.”
So, it seems that their “secret” is safe.

Both Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak and Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim take the same approach but “their actions are, however, diametrically opposite to what they profess to believe”.

Examples abound.

Anwar, pointed out Zaid, was at his usual charismatic best when delivering a talk at a posh hotel to some “Muslim democrats”. “He said there was nothing wrong with pluralism and liberal ideas but also that he would not change the decision of the religious authority in Selangor where his party is in Government.”

Najib, on the other hand according to Zaid, has been acting as he has always been, expressing an “elegant silence” on everything important happening in the country.

Zaid warns that the political leaders have done nothing when they should be calling up the religious authorities to explain to them the dangers of their rulings and how they violate our constitutional freedoms. “Muslims too will be adversely affected by such rulings,” said Zaid.

A recent example is the religious authorities taking the view that liberalism and pluralism are great sins.

“Pluralism is not merely ‘permitted’ in our country; it is a fundamental characteristic of our nation enshrined in the Federal Constitution,” argues Zaid. “It’s an idea that we must co-exist peacefully. That’s the essence of Article 11 of our Constitution and the religious authorities really should not be afraid of the word.”

A liberal is merely someone who has forward-looking and progressive ideas, continues Zaid. “Being liberal means just being “open minded” about things.”
On the other hand, what is certainly not permitted is religious hegemony, he cautions.

But what are the political leaders doing about liberalism and pluralism being cast as great sins?

Nothing!

This has allowed the religious authorities to virtually run amok.

The Sisters in Islam, for example, have been labelled “deviants” i.e. those who have strayed from the true path of Islam by professing liberalism and pluralism.
“Here, there are religious authorities who have usurped the power of God and pass judgment on Muslims long before they die and long before The Day of Judgment,” said Zaid. “Islam is supposed to be a simple religion with no clergy i.e. no intermediaries between man and God but not so in Malaysia.”

The bottomline is that anyone who defies the religious authorities would be labelled as not Muslim.

In the context of UMNO, Najib, Hishammuddin Hussein and Khairy Jamaluddin are liberals and progressives.

Utusan Malaysia, Ridhuan Tee Abdullah, Ibrahim Ali and ISMA are conservatives.

-fmt

Awie could face jail if convicted of injuring wife

Awie could face jail if convicted of injuring wife

News sabahdaily   7:45 AM

KUALA LUMPUR: The Ampang Magistrate’s Court today set January 13 and 14 to hear the case of rock group Wings’ singer Awie, who is charged with hurting his wife in June last year.

Magistrate Ayuni Izzaty Sulaiman set the dates after Deputy Public Prosecutor Goh Ai Rene informed the court that the forensic report had been submitted to the defence through counsel Hazman Aaron, who is representing Awie.

On July 4, Awie, 46, whose real name is Ahmad Azhar Othman, pleaded not guilty to intentionally causing serious injury to Rozana Misbun, 36, at a house in Taman Ukay Bistari, Ukay Perdana, Hulu Kelang at 1.30pm on June 2 last year.

Awie, who played the lead role in the movies ‘Zombie Kampung Pisang’ and ‘Hantu Kak Limah’, was charged under Section 325 of the Penal Code which provides for a maximum prison sentence of seven years and a fine, if convicted.
- BERNAMA

NGO wants probe on Taib book

NGO wants probe on Taib book

Sarawak sabahdaily   7:42 AM

MIRI: The Sarawak People’s Movement or Gerakan Anak Sarawak (GASAK) wants the authorities concerned to probe the contents of a recently released book, Money Logging: On the Trail of the Asian Timber Mafia, by Swiss author and human rights campaigner Lukas Straumann.

The author, who also heads the Swiss-based Bruno Manser Fund as Director, claims in his 300-page book that Sarawak Governor Abdul Taib Mahmud, his four children and his siblings have stakes in 333 companies in Malaysia and in another 418 spread around the globe.

The NGO believes the contents of the book smacks of “alleged corruption and abuse of power on the part of Taib during his tenure as Sarawak Chief Minister and Minister for Resource Planning and Management”.

“Until today, Taib has not issued a formal denial or instituted legal proceedings against the book’s author Dr. Lukas Straumann or its publishers which lends credence to our belief that Taib was trying to hide something from the public,” said GASAK spokesperson Romould Siew who stopped short of calling on Taib to step down as Governor and clear his name.

He was making a statement after leading 12 other members of his NGO to lodge reports on Tues at the Miri branch office of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the Miri Central Police Station.

The reports call upon the police and the MACC to act immediately on the allegations in, Money Logging, as it involves not only the reputation of the present Governor but also the governments of Sarawak and Malaysia.

“It has always been an open secret that Taib and his family members enriched themselves through Sarawak’s lucrative logging industry when he was in power,” said Siew.

“However, it was very difficult to find concrete evidence to link him and his family members on corruption and abuse of power allegations.”

Following the release of the detailed and meticulously researched book, Money Logging, Siew stressed that “the authorities have no excuses that there was no evidence to persecute Taib”.

-f

Tian Chua warns of mammoth rally if Anwar’s conviction upheld

Tian Chua warns of mammoth rally if Anwar’s conviction upheld

News sabahdaily   1:13 PM

Supporters of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim will gather in full force at Dataran Merdeka if the opposition leader's sodomy conviction is upheld, says PKR vice-president Tian Chua.

"Although the presence of Anwar's supporters at the Palace of Justice over the past few days has decreased, the real numbers will be revealed this weekend.
"The battlefield of our struggle is not in the courts, it is the whole of Malaysia.
"If Anwar's conviction is upheld this evening, do not think the support only amounts to the 2,000 present here.

"Do not take us lightly as this is only the front-liners."

Tian Chua told a crowd of 500 that authorities should not assume Anwar's supporters were only in the hundreds.

"If they dare find Anwar guilty, we will gather in large numbers on Saturday and Sunday at Dataran Merdeka."

The Batu MP said support for Anwar was unwavering even though there was a possibility that the decision by the Federal Court would be unfavourable.
"The mammoth rally this weekend if Anwar is convicted will be the second wave of the 'reformasi' movement.

"There is a huge possibility that today is D-Day. Therefore, we will state our stand today, our struggle does not end here.

"We will ensure that Dataran Merdeka will be flooded by a wave of supporters this weekend. This is our place.

"We will show our strength this weekend. We will gather if Anwar is found guilty. This is our pledge, our promise," he said.

After an extended hearing, the prosecution will wrap up its submissions today against Anwar's sodomy appeal before the defence gives a closing reply.
It was still unclear, however, if the bench of five judges will deliver judgment today. –Tmi

Will Kurup resign over Ibrahim Ali controversy if Cabinet doesn’t back him

Will Kurup resign over Ibrahim Ali controversy if Cabinet doesn’t back him

Feature sabahdaily   1:10 PM

Will Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Tan Sri Joseph Kurup quit the Cabinet if it does not support his call for action to be taken against Perkasa president Datuk Ibrahim Ali for his Bible-burning threat, a PAS lawmaker asked today.

Sepang MP Hanipa Maidin said that Kurup had called for the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) to reopen the case under the Sedition Act and this differs from the stand taken by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri who had said that no charges would be brought against the Perkasa chief.

He said that Kurup had made the statement yesterday as a minister in Parliament, which was contrary to the principle of the Cabinet, which was supposed to speak with one voice.


"So is he willing to resign if his views are not supported by the other Cabinet members, given that another minister had stated in Parliament that Ibrahim Ali will not be charged ?" Hanipa asked.

Hanipa said he agreed with Kurup’s stand on the matter even though Pakatan Rakyat wanted the Sedition Act to be abolished.

"But since the Act is still in force and implementation has been selective and discriminatory, why have they failed to charge Ibrahim Ali," Hanipa asked at the Parliament lobby today.

Kurup, in winding up the debate on Budget 2015, had urged the AGC to reopen the case involving Ibrahim's threat to organise a Bible-burning protest.

Kurup said the Attorney-General (A-G) has to reconsider its decision not to charge Ibrahim in the interest of maintaining unity.

"Whether he will be convicted in court or not is another matter but my proposal is for the case to be reopened to satisfy all the vocal views on the matter," he had said in reply to points raised by MPs during the Budget 2015 debate at the Dewan Rakyat.

Kurup, who is the minister in charge of national unity, said that a review of the case was necessary to appease those who were upset with the AGC's decision not to charge Ibrahim.

Tan Sri Gani Patail had been criticised for practising double-standards with his decision not to prosecute Ibrahim who had last year called for Bibles with the word "Allah" to be burned, while at the same time pursuing opposition politicians, activists and academicians with the Sedition Act.

In defending its decision, the AGC had said that Ibrahim's call for Bibles to be burned must be viewed in its entire context, adding that the statement was aimed at a specific case where Bibles were allegedly given to Muslim students of SMK Jelutong in Penang.

"As decided by the court, before a statement is said to have seditious tendencies, the statement must be viewed in the context it was made.

"When studied in its entire context, Datuk Ibrahim's statement is not categorised as having seditious tendencies.

"It was clear Datuk Ibrahim Ali had no intention to create religious tension, but was only defending the purity of Islam‎," the AGC had said in a statement last week.

Critics, however, have pointed out that the Sedition Act does not require intent or tendency to be proven in order for a statement or action to be deemed seditious.

The AGC had added Ibrahim could not be charged under Section 504 of the Penal Code either, as he had no intention of insulting or provoking to the point that it could threaten public peace.

De facto law minister Nancy Shukri also came under fire when she said in her written parliamentary reply on October 7 that Ibrahim had not been charged as he was defending Islam.

She told critics that she was replying on behalf of the Attorney-General and that as a member of the Cabinet, she could not meddle in the issue. –TMI

How do I transfer data from a laptop to a tablet?

How do I transfer data from a laptop to a tablet?

Technology sabahdaily   6:38 AM

It should be as simple as copying and pasting files to a USB flash drive, and most of the time it is, but a fair number of users fall at the first hurdle and find that their Samsung tablet is not recognised by their PC.

Sometimes it is just the cable, so the first thing to do is try another one, but if that does not work then it is probably a driver problem. There plenty of complicated and exotic solutions on the web but the quick fix is to install Samsung’s Kies sync utility (free from http://goo.gl/U0geqe), which includes the essential drivers.

It is a bit clunky and gets mixed reviews but you do not have to use it, in fact you can uninstall it straight away as the drivers you need, will remain on the computer. After a restart connect the tablet to the PC; Windows should now acknowledge its existence and it appears as an external drive in Windows Explorer, displaying the contents of both the tablet’s internal memory and a Micro SD card, if one is inserted.

You can now copy and paste your files, and usually the best place to put them is in one of the Download folders (Internal memory or SD card), which most apps can access. Otherwise copy your files to a relevantly named folder: DCIM or Pictures for images, Movies, Music, Documents and so on.

Apple Has Forced a Huge Change at Samsung

Apple Has Forced a Huge Change at Samsung

Technology sabahdaily   6:29 AM

The end of the war was dramatic, although it was months coming: Samsung reported a staggering 20 percent drop in sales and an even worse 49 percent collapse in its profits because its flagship Galaxy S5 phone saw big declines in the latest quarter.

The reason: Consumers held off buying them ahead of the launch of Apple's iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus phones in September in big-screen sizes that competed directly with the Galaxy S5 and the Galaxy Note 3 and 4, Samsung's other giant-size high-end models, the Financial Times says.

Now, Samsung has made a major shift.

It unveiled two phones Thursday night, the Galaxy A3 and A5, that are both "mid-range" devices with metal bodies. They look a bit like iPhones, but they will probably be priced cheaper.

And the price is key: Samsung is basically saying it suddenly got a lot harder to compete against the iPhone on high-end prices with top-flight models, so it must compete instead against cheaper low-end Android manufacturers like China's Xiaomi by offering quality devices at reasonable prices.

It might be good business, but it must be painful for Samsung.

Employees are probably delighted over at Apple, too.

For years, Apple stayed away from the big-screen phone category, apparently in the belief—as founder Steve Jobs once said—that Apple's small 3.5-inch and 4-inch iPhones were just the right size for consumers because they could use them with one hand.

That was Apple's big mistake: Consumers did want big phones, and Apple basically ceded two years or more of big-screen sales to Samsung.

In 2013, Apple finally realized that big screens were driving growth in phone sales. And in September this year it launched two phones to address that. That move appears to have killed off much of the demand for Samsung's big phones.

Samsung execs acknowledged it on their earnings call, per the Financial Times:

'Our high-end smartphone sales result was somewhat weak,' Kim Hyun-joon, a senior executive at the IT & mobile division, told analysts on a conference call.

Samsung's problem now is that it is being squeezed in the middle.

The company has a huge range of cheap, low-end Android phones that yield big sales (as free wireless contract upgrade phones, for instance) but small profit margins. Chinese Android manufacturers have been gutting that business by making super-cheap Androids that are actually nicely designed and quite good. Xiaomi is probably the most fascinating phone company on the planet right now, with its unbelievably cheap Androids that have superior design.

Western consumers will be shocked to know that Xiaomi is now the third-largest phone manufacturer by shipment volume worldwide—and it hasn't even started selling phones in the West!

Xiaomi stole Samsung's low-end business, in other words, while Samsung was trying to solidify its lead as the high-end big screen leader.

Now it looks as if the market is moving away from Samsung in the high-end war with Apple. It will probably continue to supply its flagship Galaxy S5 and Note 4 phones. (They're great phones by the way; I've tried them both and prefer them to iPhone.)

But Samsung's new fight must now be based on price and quality in the Android market, not the iPhone market.

-slate.com

Widow left devastated after Virgin Galactic crash

Widow left devastated after Virgin Galactic crash

World sabahdaily   6:26 AM

Michelle Saling, Alsbury's widow, told MailOnline, 'I have lost the love of my life. I am living in hell right now.'

The identity of the other pilot, who was critically injured when he ejected from the plane at 45,000 feet, is still unknown.

Alsbury, 39, had piloted SpaceShipTwo as recently as August 28.

Addressing the media at the crash site on Saturday morning, Virgin CEO Richard Branson said, 'This is a very tough time for all of us at Virgin Galactic, The Spaceship Company and Scaled Composites, and our thoughts remain with the families of the brave Scaled pilots, and all those affected by this tragedy.'

He added, 'In testing the boundaries of human capabilities and technologies, we are standing on the shoulders of giants. Yesterday, we fell short. We will now comprehensively assess the results of the crash and are determined to learn from this and move forward together as a company.'


Branson then closed out his statement by saying, 'I truly believe that humanity's greatest achievements come out of our greatest pain. This team is a group of the bravest, brightest, most determined and most resilient people I have ever had the privilege of knowing. We are determined to honour the bravery of the pilots and teams here by learning from this tragedy. Only then can we move forward, united behind a collective desire to push the boundaries of human endeavor.'

Branson also said he had never met Alsbury before, though photo and video evidence of the two celebrating a successful run in April 2013 seems to suggest otherwise.

The two are seen clearly talking and posing for photos in video released by Virgin Galactic, making the blunder that much more embarrassing for Branson and his team.

Branson flew to the site of the crash immediately after the tragedy occurred on Friday, and has been working closely with authorities to try and determine what went wrong during Friday's flight.

In a blog-post en route, Branson wrote: 'I am writing this as we refuel on one of the most difficult trips I have ever had to make. I will be in Mojave soon to join the Virgin Galactic and Scaled Composite teams involved in the SpaceShipTwo flight test program.

'Mojave is also where I want to be - with the dedicated and hard-working people who are now in shock at this devastating loss... We've always known that the road to space is extremely difficult - and that every new transportation system has to deal with bad days early in their history.'

He concluded: 'Space is hard - but worth it. We will persevere and move forward together.'

In a press conference Friday afternoon, George Whitesides, chief executive of Virgin Galactic, said; 'Our primary thoughts at the moment are with the crew and families and we are doing everything we can for them now.'

'Space is hard, and today was a tough day. The future rest on hard days like this.'

Stuart Witt, who is in charge of the Mojave Air and Space Port, where SpaceShipTwo was launched Friday, also remained optimistic about the future of space travel.

He said: 'Stay the course. This is not easy. If it was easy it would not be interesting to me and my colleagues standing next to me.'

'We are doing this for you and your generation. It is a cause far greater than any one of us singularly. I compare it to the Magellan expedition [the first circumnavigation of the Earth].'

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), has also launched an investigation into the crash.

In May, Virgin Galactic announced it was switching the fuel used in the vehicle's hybrid rocket motor, hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene, a form of rubber, to a polyamide-based plastic.

During a media tour of Virgin Galactic's Mojave facilities on October 4 that marked the tenth anniversary of the final flight of SpaceShipOne, the suborbital vehicle that won the $10-million Ansari X Prize, company officials said they expected to resume powered test flights 'imminently' once qualification tests of the new motor were done.

At the International Symposium for Personal and Commercial Spaceflight in Las Cruces, New Mexico, on October 15, Virgin Galactic chief executive George Whitesides said the company had completed those qualification tests.

'We expect to get back into powered test flight quite soon,' he said.

Branson's big project has also attracted a slew of big name passengers happy to pay for this once in a lifetime experience, including newlyweds Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie; Justin Bieber and his manager Scooter Braun; Lady Gaga, who plans to try and sing in space; former pop star Lance Bass, who has long been vocal about his desire to head to space; Ashton Kutcher, who was the 500th customer to purchase a ticket; Tom Hanks; Bryan Singer; and Princess Beatrice, who would be the first royal in space and who dates Dave Clark, an executive at Virgin Galactic.

Russell Brand also got a ticket for his birthday from ex-wife Katy Perry when the two were married. Perry bought a ticket as well so Brand would not have to go alone.

Stephen Hawking and Kate Winslet are also set to fly, but got their seats for free. Winslet because she is married to Branson's nephew, Ned RocknRoll, and Hawking because Branson wanted to offer the legendary astrophysicist a chance to go into space.

- Daily Mail

Malaysia Cup: Gallant Elephants crush Tigers

Malaysia Cup: Gallant Elephants crush Tigers

Sports sabahdaily   6:22 AM

Despite one man down from the 69th minute, Pahang showed the stuff champions are made of when they defeated Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) 5-3 in a penalty shootout to retain their Malaysia Cup title in
the final at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil here tonight.

Playing before a capacity crowd of 90,000 fans and an electrifying “final” atmosphere, both teams were tied 2-2 at the end of regulation play and after 30 minutes of extra time.

Tonight’s victory is the fourth time The Elephants lifted the Cup after 1983, 1992 and 2013 and not only that, they earned a “double” this season, having won the FA Cup earlier.

Both teams went into “full throttle” as soon as referee Nagor Amir Noor Mohamed blew the starting whistle but it was Pahang who drew first blew when their Nigerian import Dickson Nwakaeme scored as early as the 15th minute.
Dickson’ header off a spot kick taken by Azidan Sarudin sailed past JDT keeper Muhd Al-Hafiz Hamzah into goal. Stunned by the deficit, star-studded JDT reorganised their attacks and it paid dividends when Argentinian import Jorge Pereyra Diaz found the equaliser in the 31st minute.

JDT doubled the score three minutes later through a penalty kick which was converted another import player, Luciano Figueroa.

Nagor Amir awarded the penalty to the Southern Tigers after Pahang captain Mohd Razman Roslan was said to have handled the ball in preventing Luciano from shooting at the Pahang goal in the penalty box.

In the second half, Pahang were seen to be having the upper-hand but their attacks were deflected by JDT’s defenders marshalled by their Brazilian import,Marcos Antonio Santos.

Pahang were forced to play with 10 men from the 69th minute after their defender Mohd Saiful Nizam Miswan was given the marching orders for punching Mohd Amri Yahyah in the abdomen.

However, that did not affect the “hunger” of the Pahang players in chasing for the equaliser because just two minutes later, the Pahang strikers beat an offside trap set by JDT which allowed Dickson to earn his brace.

Thereafter, JDT tried to go for the jugular while the Elephants made their own forays in search of victory but the 2-2 score stood right up to end of regulation play and 30 minutes of extra time, forcing the lottery.

In the penalty shoot-out, the five penalties by Pahang were converted by Mohd Razman, Damion Delano Stewart, Mohd Shahrizan Mohd Salleh, Zeshan Rehman and Mohd Hafiz Kamal.

Luciano, Diaz and Hariss Harun were on the mark for JDT but Pahang keeper Mohd Khairul Azhan Mohd Khalid saved the shot taken by Norshahrul Idlan Talaha.

However, it was not all gloom for JDT as their captain Safiq Rahim was named Man-of-the-Match.

Deputy Prime Minster Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin handed the Malaysia Cup trophy to Mohd Razman.

Also present to witness the “clasico’ were FA of Pahang president Tengku Abdul Rahman Sultan Ahmad Shah, FA of Johor president Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim,

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein and Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.

Pahang coach Zainal Abidin Hassan was all praise for the fighting spirit shown by his boys.

“Tonight’s victory is not due to luck, but because of their burning desire to win against all odds,” he said.

He also took to task Nagor Amir alleging that the referee was biased against Pahang including in deciding to send off Mohd Saiful Nizam which resulted in Pahang having to go on “defensive mode” for long periods of time.

Meanwhile, JDT Head Coach, Bojan Hodak said luck was not on his side to win the match despite being in control for most parts, especially in the second half.
“Statistically, we dominated the game but it was unlucky for us as our players hit Pahang’s goal post twice…Overall, I’m quite happy with my players and we need to focus on the preparations for next season,” said the 43-year Croatian.

-therakyatpost