WORLD'S FASTEST MERCEDES SLR MCLAREN

 

Given that Mercedes and McLaren went their own separate ways a few years ago, finally winding Mercedes SLR McLaren production down in 2009, we thought for sure we'd see less terrible SLR tunes. Yet they keep coming.

This rough-looking, gaping-mouthed SLR took not one, nor two, but four different doctors to Frankenstein together.

Platinum Motorsport, RENNtech, MACarbon, and Exotics Boutique all put their tuning expertise together and popped out what they're calling the world's fastest SLR. They're also calling it the L4P SLR777.

These four partners conspired to increase the SLR's quickness, speed and look by adding the Mansory Renovatio bodykit (the first car to receive the kit outside of Mansory walls), upgrading a variety of hardware and customizing the interior.

Renntech left few corners untouched, boosting output to 770 horsepower and upgrading the five-speed transmission to handle it, upgrading the exhaust system, adding racing coilovers and shocks, increasing road clearance with a push-button hydraulic system, and upping stopping power with a performance brake system.

Platinum Motorsport was responsible for the bodykit install and "liquid white" paint job; MACarbon outfitted the interior with carbon fiber components; and Platinum finished the tune off with suede elements inside and 20-inch Agetro M140 Monoblock wheels outside.

As to the "world's fastest" claim, the L4P SLR777 runs the quarter mile in 10.29 seconds at 134 mph. That's well over a second faster than the 11.6 @ 125 mph that the stock version is capable of--and here's the proof:

Chelsea v Arsenal

Barclays Premier League CHELSEA v ARSENAL

Venue: Stamford Bridge
Date: Saturday, 29 October
Kick-off: 1245 BST              





TEAM NEWS

Chelsea will be without Didier Drogba, who is suspended following his dismissal against QPR.
Fernando Torres could return to the starting XI after completing a three-game domestic ban, while Ramires is fit after a knee injury.
Arsenal's Thomas Vermaelen could make his first Premier League appearance since August.
Fellow defender Carl Jenkinson faces a fitness test but Kieran Gibbs is still unavailable.


MATCH REVIEW

For Chelsea this game comes a month later than they may have liked.
The Arsenal side they will face at Stamford Bridge is much improved from the ragged, confidence-shorn outfit that had plunged the Gunners into crisis by mid-September.
Beaten by Liverpool, humiliated by Manchester United, and then outmanoeuvred by Blackburn, Arsene Wenger's team found themselves charting unfamiliar territory in the bottom half of the Premier League.
But since that defeat at Ewood Park they have made steady progress towards respectability. Robin van Persie's goals - six in his last four league games - have been no small part of that improvement.
However, they are on a poor run away from home and, as restorative as victories against Bolton, Sunderland and Stoke have been, beating Chelsea on their own patch is a completely different prospect.
Andre Villas Boas's side have gone about their business quietly but effectively so far this season. Defeat against QPR was an unexpected setback, but even with nine men they could still have salvaged a point.
Chelsea still start as favourites but they will have to curb the indiscipline that saw them pick up two red cards and another seven bookings at Loftus Road.

MATCH FACTS

Head-to-head

• Arsenal's 3-1 win the last time the two sides met, at the Emirates in December 2010, was their first in six games against Chelsea.
• Chelsea have lost just three of their last 19 games in all competitions against the Gunners.
• Arsenal have lost their last two Premier League visits to Stamford Bridge - both by a 2-0 scoreline.

Chelsea

• Chelsea have gone eight Premier League games without a clean sheet for the first time since September 2003, when the run was nine.
• They are unbeaten in their last 10 Premier League home London derby matches, winning each of the last nine. Their last loss was a 2-1 defeat to Arsenal in November 2008.
• Andre Villas Boas's side have won all four Premier League home matches this season.
• Since making his debut in February, David Luiz has conceded more penalties (3) than any other Premier League player.
• Chelsea's next goal will be their 6,000th in league football.
• Ashley Cole, who has played every minute of Chelsea's Premier League games this season, is set to make his 450th club career start.

Arsenal

• Arsenal are on a run of eight away league games without a win - their longest in the Premier League.
• Robin Van Persie has 25 goals in 26 Premier League games in 2011 - more prolific than any other player.
• If Arsenal lose it will equal their worst run of away defeats (4) in the Premier League.
• The Gunners' win against Stoke was the first time they have collected back-to-back victories in the Premier League since February.
• This will be Wenger's 30th Premier League match against Chelsea, having won 13 and lost seven of the previous 29.
• The Gunners have conceded more goals from free-kicks (5) than any other Premier League side this season.

Premier League managers deny racism problems

Two top Premier League managers have denied racism is a problem in English football following two alleged incidents this month.
In the wake of accusations made against Liverpool's Luis Suarez and Chelsea and England captain John Terry, both Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish and Arsenal's Arsene Wenger on Friday said racism was not widespread.
Dalglish told reporters: "I don't think it is prevalent in the game here and it certainly isn't at this football club."
Wenger said: "I do not think that, in sport, racism is basically a problem because you are rewarded on merit. However, in society I still think there is some job to do and we are not at the end of it.
"But in sport, overall, I don't think it is a problem."
Dalglish added that he hoped the case against Uruguayan striker Suarez, following allegations that he racially abused Manchester United's French defender Patrice Evra, will be concluded swiftly.
He said: "For me, I don't see racism as far as this football club is concerned, apparent in any way, shape or form. We have got a case going on ourselves which seems to be dragging its feet.
"We would rather have it done and dusted, out in the open, and whoever is the guilty party, whether it's the person who said it or the accuser, get their due punishment.
"We look forward to the case coming to a conclusion."
Chelsea host Arsenal Saturday with Terry likely to return after missing their midweek League Cup win at Everton.
Terry, with full support from his club, has denied racially abusing Anton Ferdinand during Chelsea's defeat at Queens Park Rangers last Sunday. Suarez has similarly denied Evra's accusations.
Anton Ferdinand is the brother of Terry's predecessor as England captain Rio Ferdinand.
The Football Association are investigating both alleged incidents.

Manchester United signs partnership deal with Zong

Zong has entered into a three-year partnership agreement with Manchester United, said a statement issued by Zong on Tuesday.

With this agreement, Zong is planning to launch dedicated value added services and products specifically for Man U fans that will enable the club’s estimated 10 million fans in Pakistan a chance to see all the goals scored, as well as exclusive interviews, news and behind-the-scenes access – bringing them closer to Old Trafford than ever before.

Announcing the deal, Commercial Director Richard Arnold said:

Zong is a great partner for United in Pakistan. It is a relatively young company, but has ambitions to be one of the major players in the country and partnering with United will give them high visibility, as well as helping the Club to communicate directly with millions of our supporters there.

Using our digital assets to engage our global fanbase is an increasingly-important part of our commercial strategy and we are very excited about the possibilities presented by this partnership.

Sir Alex Ferguson also commented on the development and said:

The way the club uses modern technology to reach our millions of fans around the world is outstanding. Zong will be a key player in allowing us to bring the passion and excitement of Manchester United to our fans in Pakistan.

Rizwan Akhter, The Director Advertising and Promotions of Zong said:

This partnership is one of a kind coming from Pakistan and the initiative that Zong has taken to team up with a giant like Manchester United will only lead to prosperity, growth and triumph! For all the glory that is to come, we stand united, to take on all opportunities and victories together as one.

Today, we play for the same team!

 Commercial Ads published in Pakistani Newspapers.

Woman pulled out alive 3 days after Turkey quake

Emergency workers rescued a 27-year old woman alive from a collapsed building on Wednesday, nearly three days after a powerful earthquake killed more than 400 people and left tens of thousands homeless in southeastern Turkey.


The woman, Gozde Bahar, went into cardiac arrest as she was being transported to hospital in the town of Ercis, one of the hardest hit by Sunday's 7.2 magnitude quake.

Doctors later managed to revive her. She was in critical condition at a hospital in the provincial capital of Van, Reuters reporters at the scene said. Rescuers battled against time to find more missing people from the quake.

Early Review: Harry Potter Page to Screen: The Complete Filmmaking Journey

Harry Potter Page to Screen: The Complete Filmmaking Journey, which arrives in bookstores this Tuesday, is one of the most comprehensive Harry Potter film guides imaginable.  Its 532 pages, three times as many as Harry Potter Film Wizardry, are filled with countless never-before-seen photos from the production of each of the eight films, along with detailed notes and interviews with the cast and crew about their experiences working on the film. Leaky was able to get an early copy of the book for review, which can be read below.  Enjoy!

~~~*~~*~~~

The first impression one gets about Harry Potter Page to Screen: The Complete Filmmaking Journey is how massive the entire tome is in hand.  It feels as if it's an ancient book checked out from the Hogwarts Library, and has about as much information on its pages, too.  It took me a moment after first taking off the shrink wrap to just feel and examine the book before I even opened it.  It's a classic dark blue and gold and looks as if it's a book you'd want to keep out handy on a table and not stocked away on a bookshelf.  Opening it cover and going through the pages reveals countless production photos and production art that are set along side interviews with the cast and crew.   Small tidbits of information about the sets, their props and dressings, and even drawings and notes from author J. K. Rowling to the production team also litter the pages, giving the book the most comprehensive feelings I've ever come across.

The book itself it divided up into three parts: The Making of Harry Potter, The Art of Harry Potter, and, most appropriately, the Epilogue, which contains a special note on the Golden Boards feature.  The first section of the book gives way to nearly 200 pages on making all seven films in the series and shows the countless details and choices that helped make the films look as real-- and magical-- as possible.  The production of and major elements for each film are laid out as if you were walking through the story once again and works very well for this book.  Intermixed with behind the scenes photos and narrative are production designs and concept art which give a great juxtaposition between what the designers envisioned and what ultimately appeared in the films. This includes building designs and sets, but also original character and creature sketches.  This section does and excellent job at showing the long and detailed process how each film evolved from Jo's story to the filmmakers concepts to, finally, what we see on screen.

In the second section, the art of the Harry Potter films is profiled.  Production Designer Stuart Craig and Creature Designer Nick Dudman and their teams take us through each characters, creatures and sets seen throughout the films.  I could not think of a being or place that was not featured in this section-- it's that comprehensive.  The pages devoted to the evolution of Hogwarts Castle from its first sketches during pre-production of "Sorcerer's Stone" to the destruction of the castle in "Deathly Hallows," are jaw-dropping and filled with more details than have been given before about the iconic building.  It is difficult to pick out favorites because there is just so much that's included in this book.  The same can be said of many of the characters in the film, particularly, the Trio and Lord Voldemort.

However, there is one part of the films noticeably absent from the book is the Epilogue scene at the end of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2."  Images from this final part of the film, along with the usual behind the scenes detail and information is not included in the book.  Whether this is due to the secret nature of the filming of that scene or the fact that it's final cut was the product of re-shoots following the initial wrap of the film we do not know.  However, it is slightly disappointing, given the amount of information this book features for every other major moment in the film, that we don't get to see the kind of details there must have been to create the Harry Potter cast nineteen years on.

Those concerned about this book being more of a scrapbook-styled look at the Harry Potter films, such as last year's Harry Potter Film Wizardry, need not worry; Harry Potter Page to Screen is its own unique volume and hardly overlaps with Film Wizardry.  Flipping through the pages of this book and reading of the process by which the Harry Potter films came to be is a tremendously rewarding experience.  It is rewarding not only for the thousands of images of cast and crew on set and behind the scenes details included in the book, but also for the shedding light on how and why the filmmakers made the films the way they did.  No other book, at least in my memory, has comes close to showing just how much went into the production of these films and how each detail was malicious planned and perfected by the filmmakers.  Harry Potter Page to Screen is a enlightening and engaging read for any Harry Potter fan wishing to know more about the series, as well as any film student curious on what it takes to bring a seven part fantasy series to life on the big screen.

Harry Potter Page to Screen: The Complete Filmmaking Journey retails for $75 in the US, and is available for sale Tuesday, October 25, 2011.

'Paranormal Activity 3' scares up huge $54M debut

 

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "Paranormal Activity 3" didn't just go bump in the night. It made a ton of noise at the box office with a record-setting, $54 million opening.
The third film in Paramount Pictures' low-budget fright franchise, which was No. 1 at the box office, had the biggest debut ever for a horror movie, according to Sunday studio estimates. It broke the previous record part two set a year ago with $40.7 million. It's also the biggest opening ever for an October release, topping the $50.35 million Paramount's "Jackass 3D" made last year.
"Paranormal Activity 3" is actually a prequel, with the discovery of disturbing home-movie footage from 1988. Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman, who made the creepy documentary "Catfish," took over directing duties this time.
Don Harris, Paramount's president of distribution, said the studio hoped part three would simply perform better than part two. The first "Paranormal Activity," with its reported $15,000 budget, became a phenomenon in 2009 through midnight screenings and word of mouth.
Harris believes this installment did so well because it's actually the best movie of the three. He noted that it appealed to an older crowd, with 47 percent over the age of 25 compared to 40 percent for "Paranormal Activity 2." Strong reviews also helped, he said, including a rave from Time magazine. And fundamentally, horror movies simply play better in a packed theater.
"Ultimately, it gets back to why there's still a theatrical business, why people still go to the movies," Harris said. "We want to laugh in a group, we want to be scared in a group, people like to cry in a group in the dark where nobody can see them crying. It's all the reason movie theaters exist and this genre has always been front and center."
Paul Dergarabedian, box-office analyst for Hollywood.com, said he was expecting "Paranormal Activity 3" to come in around $35 million for the weekend, simply because most newcomers have been underperforming this fall.
"This brand is as solid as the 'Twilight' brand or the 'Jackass' brand. There are certain brands that just transcend any kind of box-office rhyme or reason. They just resonate," Dergarabedian said. "These are shot in someone's house, they look like they're shot with a home video recorder, and people just relate to it."
Last week's No. 1 release, the futuristic boxing robot adventure "Real Steel," fell to second place. It made $11.3 million for a domestic total of $67.2 million. Worldwide, the Disney movie has grossed $153.3 million.
Among the other new releases this week, Summit Entertainment's 3-D version of "The Three Musketeers" came in fourth place with $8.8 million. And Universal's "Johnny English Reborn," a sequel to the 2003 spy parody starring Rowan Atkinson, opened at No. 8 with $3.8 million. But it's already a huge hit internationally, having made $104.5 million so far.
In limited release, the critically acclaimed psychological thriller "Martha Marcy May Marlene" made $137,541 on four screens in New York and Los Angeles. That's a hefty $34,385 per screen average, according to Fox Searchlight.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Paranormal Activity 3," $54 million. ($26 million international.)
2. "Real Steel," $11.3 million. ($18.5 million international.)
3. "Footloose," $10.85 million.
4. "The Three Musketeers," $8.8 million. ($17.1 million international.)
5. "The Ides of March," $4.9 million.
6. "Dolphin Tale," $4.2 million.
7. "Moneyball," $4.05 million.
8. "Johnny English Reborn," $3.8 million. ($13.5 million international.)
9. "The Thing," $3.1 million.
10. "50/50," $2.8 million.
___
Estimated weekend ticket sales at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada) for films distributed overseas by Hollywood studios, according to Rentrak:
1. "Paranormal Activity 3," $26 million.
2. "Real Steel," $18.5 million.
3. "Johnny English Reborn," $13.5 million.
4. "The Three Musketeers," $17.1 million.
5. "Contagion," $9.6 million.
6. "The Smurfs," $3.4 million.
7. "The Lion King," $3.3 million.
8. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," $2.9 million.
9. "Friends With Benefits," $2.8 million.
10 "The Change-Up," $2.4 million.
___
Online:
http://www.hollywood.com
http://www.rentrak.com
___
Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by Rainbow Media Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 Plus Preorders Start TODAY with Remote a-Peel

The new Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus featuring the Peel Smart Remote TV appn will be available at retailers starting November 13th for $399.99. Preorders will begin today at Best Buy and other stores.

The Peel app help users to find TV shows and discovere news ones. The built-in infrared capabilities of the Galaxy Tab 7.0 Plus can control any home theater/TV setup.  Features of the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 Plus include a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 3MP camera, front-facing camera,  Android 3.2 Honeycomb and 4000mAh battery.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 Plus is 9.96mm thin.  The preloaded Samsung Media Hub gives you instant access to thousands of movies and TV shows. You also get the Samsung Social Hub, which gives you live updates from all your favorite social sites.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 Plus joins another expected 7" tablet with fewer features the Amazon Kindle that is price much lower at $199.   Amazon sold 95,000 Kindle Fire tablets during the device’s first day of presales according to DataSource.

Peter King at Strategy Analytics noted in a recent WMNs interview, that The Kindle Fire is does not compete directly with iPad on the power side, but does has some of the good features of the iPad such as a content delivery system of books, apps, movies and its own ecosystem.

According to iHS iSuppli the Kindle Fire potentially could become the No. 2 selling tablet after the iPad, even though it cost more to make than what its $199 price tag.

The Amazon Kindle Fire is on presale from Amazon now  for $199 and will be released on November 15.

 

Continental becomes UEFA EURO 2012 Official Sponsor

Tyre giant Continental is announced as an official sponsor of UEFA EURO 2012 in Poland-Ukraine and UEFA EURO 2016 in France after a "thoroughly gratifying experience" in 2008. 

 

Continental has been announced as an official sponsor for UEFA EURO 2012 in Poland and Ukraine and also for UEFA EURO 2016 in France.

Nikolai Setzer, executive board member for Continental's tyre division, said: "After the thoroughly gratifying experience with UEFA EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland, we intend to bolster our top market position in Europe by means of these two exclusive sponsoring agreements. The image attributes – passion, precision and the kind of team spirit expressed so well during the world's best football tournaments – match up perfectly with our premium brand and to the Continental company as a whole."

He added: "The world's second biggest football tournament grabs a lot of attention in the countries immediately adjacent, in the strategically important growth markets in eastern Europe, as well as in Asia and South America."

UEFA Events SA marketing director Guy-Laurent Epstein said: "It is great to be able to welcome Continental back to the UEFA EURO sponsor family. Continental has been an active supporter of the game for many years. Having a global, broadly based and trusted company like Continental as a UEFA EURO 2012 and 2016 sponsor is a great asset for UEFA and we are honoured to welcome them on board. We look forward to working closely with Continental on our shared mission of making both EURO 2012 and EURO 2016 exciting and memorable events."

With sales of €26bn in 2010, Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide and has around 160,000 employees in 45 countries. Founded in Hanover, Germany, the company is the European market leader for passenger and light truck tires, and more than 30% of all new European cars leave the factory fitted with Continental tyres. The company's tyre division is also an official sponsor for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the German Cup, with more details of their footballing work to be seen at ContiSoccerWorld.com.

In signing as a global sponsor, Continental joins up with adidas, Canon, Carlsberg, Castrol, Coca-Cola, Hyundai-Kia, McDonald's, Orange and Sharp.

Saudi Arabian crown prince dies at New York hospital

 

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud died at a New York hospital, kingdom officials said Saturday.

No other details about his death were immediately available, but arrangements are under way to transport his body back to Saudi Arabia, officials said.

Crown Prince Sultan, thought to be in his 80s, was Saudi Arabia's minister of defense, and was one of the top figures in the Saudi kingdom. He's had various medical issues in recent years.

In 2009, he was in New York for surgery for an undisclosed illness and had also flown to Morocco for medical treatment over the years.

The country's royal court released a statement about the death Saturday.

"King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud mourns the death of his brother and his Crown Prince ... Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud," the statement said.

The statement also said he died "outside the kingdom following an illness," but did not release details on the ailment.

Reports in recent years have indicated that Crown Prince Sultan was battling cancer.

King Abdullah's half-brother was the desert kingdom's defense minister for decades, meeting regularly with visiting dignitaries.

He took a leading role in Saudi Arabia's involvement in the 1991 Gulf War against Iraq, heading a coalition of about half a million troops from more than 30 countries.

Of his many children, perhaps the best known internationally is Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia's former ambassador to the United States.

Prince Bandar served as ambassador from 1983 to 2005 and was friends with the family of President George W. Bush.

Battlefield 3 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Will Generate Over $1.4 Billion in Q4

CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

With the epic showdown between Electronic Arts’ Battlefield 3 and Activision’s Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3 about to unfold, analysts predict that these two games will sell over $1.4 billion in revenue this fourth quarter. These two titles, alone, will generate 15% of total packaged videogame software sales for the quarter, according to Michael Pachter, videogame analyst, Wedbush Morgan Securities.

Pachter forecasts that Modern Warfare 3 will come out on top with 16 million copies sold worldwide this year. That’s double the sales total he predicts for Battlefield 3, which should sell 8 million copies globally. And that’s just this year. Modern Warfare 3 could sell an additional 8 million copies in 2012 and Battlefield 3 could tally another 2 million units sold next year.

Both EA and Activision have been pushing these huge games with astronomical marketing budgets. Each publisher has spent over $100 million to sell these two titles, including a lavish Call of Duty XP fan event and a towering billboard in Times Square for Battlefield 3. And that doesn’t include the cost of developing Battlefield 3 at DICE and Modern Warfare 3 at Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games.


CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

But at the end of the day, Pachter believes many gamers will end up buying both titles.

“I’d guess that around half of the console copies of Battlefield 3 will be bought by people who also buy Modern Warfare 3, so around 2 to 3 million will buy both,” said Pachter. “I don’t see much cannibalization of the titles.”

Check out the videos below to see what all the hype is about with these two games. Battlefield 3 hits shelves October 25 and Modern Warfare 3 ships on November 8.

Ice Cream Sandwich Provides Android With Native Stylus Support

Google’s latest build Ice Cream Sandwich, Android 4.0 now has native stylus support enabling developers to easily take advantage of pressure recognition, hover tracking and nib-tilt, together with differentiation between stylus and finger use, as well as providing support for styluses with up to three buttons.

The discovery was made by Reddit who discovered the native Stylus support within the Android 4.0 highlights, and has been added by Google to enhance the sketching and drawing capabilities of Android 4.0 devices.




Android 4.0 now has a specific API for stylus support: Stylus input, button support, hover events :

“Android 4.0 includes full support for stylus input events, including tilt and distance axes, pressure, and related motion event properties. To help applications distinguish motion events from different sources, the platform adds distinct tool types for stylus, finger, mouse, and eraser. For improved input from multi-button pointing devices, the platform now provides distinct primary, secondary, and tertiary buttons, as well as back and forward buttons.

Hover-enter and hover-exit events are also added, for improved navigation and accessibility. Developers can build on these new input features to add powerful interactions to their apps, such as precise drawing and gesturing, handwriting and shape recognition, improved mouse input, and others.”

For first time since '03, Roger Federer is out of Top 3 ‎

 

Andy Murray won titles in Bangkok, Tokyo and 

the Masters 1000 event recently to move ahead of 

Roger Federer in world rankings.

 

 Professional tennis went a little wacky this week.

In the new ATP Tour rankings released Monday, Roger Federer is out of the top three for the first time since June 2003 - back when he was young, Slam-less and sporting a geeky ponytail.

And for the first time since May 14, 2007, there was no Serena Williams, no Venus Williams, and no Kim Clijsters on the WTA Tour's top-10 list.

For the women, it's a case of sameold, same-old because 4½ years later, the players may have changed, but the picture is altogether similar.

Back in 2007, Serena Williams was coming back from having fallen down to No. 140 after a long injury absence, much like this year.

Venus Williams had dropped to No. 48 for the same reason, and only returned to the top 10 after the 2007 U.S. Open. She's currently outside the top 100, struggling with Sjogren's disease.

Clijsters, who had been ranked No. 4, had just announced her (first) retirement back then. She has not retired again; but with all the injuries the Belgian has had this season and her resulting lack of impact at the top of the game, she might as well have.

Here was the top-10 list back in May 2007: Justine Henin, Maria Sharapova, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Amélie Mauresmo, Jelena Jankovic, Martina Hingis, Nicole Vaidisova, Ana Ivanovic, Dinara Safina and Anna Chakvetadze.

So much has changed in such a relatively short time. Four (Henin, Mauresmo, Hingis and Vaidisova) have retired. Two (Safina and Chakvetadze) seem inexorably headed in that direction.

Other than Sharapova, the rest have since exited the top 10 and have shown few signs of returning.
Of the six still active today, four eventually took advantage of the vacuum at the top of the game and made it to No. 1. Of those No. 1s, only Ivanovic and Sharapova won a Grand Slam title - but not since 2008.

If possible, this week's rankings are even more bent out of shape.

The top three - Caroline Wozniacki, Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka - have not won a major this season.
Two of them have never won one. Between the three, they reached only one major final in 2011 (Sharapova at Wimbledon).

Three others - Petra Kvitova, Samantha Stosur and Li Na - did win Slams this year, but they never even got a sniff at the top spot.

There's a fairly good chance that 4½ years from now, current toptenners Li, Stosur, Vera Zvonareva and Marion Bartoli might not even be around. All will be on the dark side of 30 by then; Sharapova will be 29.
So the field is wide open for Kvitova, 21, and Azarenka, 22.

We'll look back again then and see if they, unlike those in 2007, took the opportunity of a lifetime and ran with it.

Meanwhile, the men's rankings far more accurately reflect the current state of their game.

And you have to attribute that to the fact that for the most part, the best players have actually played.

But Federer being shoved off the podium, so to speak, by Andy Murray's perfect Asian swing is still somewhat of a jolt.

In the absence of both Federer and No. 1 Novak Djokovic, the 24-year-old Scot won titles in Bangkok, Tokyo and at the big Masters 1000 event in Shanghai last week.

Murray has been No. 3 before. He's been No. 2 before.

But this is the first time he has ever been ranked ahead of Federer.

What does it all mean? Currently training in Dubai in preparation for that final European indoor swing that includes his hometown event in Basel, the Masters 1000 in Paris and the World Tour finals in London, Federer would probably say "not much."

Murray himself knows it's a good step, but not much more than that. "Right now, I just need to concentrate on winning. I want to try and get to No 1 in the world and to do that you have to win almost every week," he told Neil Harman of the Times of London. "That's what the guys in front of me are doing. I don't know how many people realize how difficult a thing that is to do."

Along with the strange autumn of Rafael Nadal, who lost a 6-0 third set to Murray in the Tokyo final and inexplicably went down in straight sets to the unorthodox German Florian Mayer in the third round of Shanghai last week, it sets up a blockbuster end to the season.

Djokovic and Federer are due to return in Basel, quite a bit fresher, it would seem, than either of their rivals.
So the men will end their season with a bang.

For the women, with the Williams sisters and Clijsters all missing from the WTA Tour finals in Istanbul, Turkey, next week, it will be more like a whimper.

Google+: Users Want More Features

Google+ has great potential, but users of the social network are frustrated with Google's method of rolling out features that they want.



Google+ is far from dead, say many in the trenches who are finding the Google social network a platform with a lot of potential. However, as much as they like what is in Google+ so far, they are frustrated by what is not--and, in their opinion, should be--in the platform.

Several readers wrote to me after the publication of my last piece on Google+ in which I asked how people really are--or are not--using the network, especially compared with more established platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Mark Davis said Google+ is becoming his platform for professional networking while Facebook remains the place where he networks socially.

"Since I started using Google+ some weeks ago, I've developed a healthy network of people I trust, respect and enjoy," said Mark Davis. "Most of them are related to me professionally in some way. They are technologically literate, they are educated and articulate, and I genuinely want to know what they're up to, what they have to say. Adults, young and old; professionals; technologists; artists; teachers; most of them good friends of mine ... The pattern I see here is a grown-up, educated, closer, smaller community that isn't a subset of my Facebook friends."

IT consultant David G. Osayidan said Google+ is on the right track but he has been frustrated by a lack of integration with other Google services.

"They're taking what was wrong with others, including their own failed attempts such as Buzz, and doing it right," he said. "I really enjoy the concept of Circles and the level of control we have over who sees what. This aspect alone is forcing others like Facebook to rethink their own systems, and that's good for everyone. With that, Google+ has left a positive mark, regardless of how it fares in the future."

Osayidan noted that he has been using Google+ with a "dummy" account because his primary Google account is with Google Apps. He said he has been "frustrated and a bit shocked" that he pays for Google services and cannot use them with Google+. Currently, there is no way to integrate a professional Google Apps account with the Google+ service, although Google senior VP of engineering Vic Gundotra announced Wednesday at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco that support for Google App account users will be added within days. He also said that support for brand pages is also forthcoming, but will take longer to roll out.

iPhone 4S vs Samsung Galaxy Nexus vs Motorola Razr

 

 

 

Good grief, there's a tonne of new phones flying about all of a sudden! Fear not, dear reader, for CNET UK is the flood barrier that stands between you and a baffling smart phone tsunami. We're stood on the banks, pipe in hand, ushering the latest mobiles through our calming breakwater and settling them safely into harbour, so you can see which ones are seaworthy, and which are shipwrecks waiting to happen.

Today we're bringing the iPhone 4S, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus and the Motorola Razr into port to see which is HMS Victory and which is RMS Titanic.

The iPhone 4S needs no introduction. The first iPhone was the device that kick-started the smart phone revolution, and this latest iteration adds voice control witchcraft in the form of Siri, a stonking 8-megapixel camera and a ruthlessly rapid A5 processor. But it's only a minor upgrade to the iPhone 4 -- is it still the coolest phone in town?

Shaking things up a deal more is the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. This is the latest Google flagship phone and it's running the very latest version of Android -- Ice Cream Sandwich. Add to that a massive 4.65-inch screen with a blisteringly high resolution, and this is shaping up to be one incredible blower.

And then we have the outsider, the underdog, the Motorola Razr. Channeling the spirit of the original super-thin must-have handset, this phone wants to amaze you with its processing power and incredibly slim frame. But it takes a lot to impress us -- is the Razr sharp enough to steal our hearts?

Design

The iPhone 4S knows a thing or two about looking good. But that's not surprising -- it steals all its style from its older brother, the iPhone 4. We can forgive its hand-me-down looks though, because this phone still cuts a fine figure.

Glass in the front and out the back with a chic metal loop surrounding it, the 4S looks like a dream, and no other manufacturer has quite managed to best its minimalist, industrial chic. Our only gripe? It's fairly fragile, and dropping this blower on the pavement could end in tears.

The Galaxy Nexus sadly doesn't deliver the same design thrills. It's by no means ugly, and at 7mm at its thinnest point it's certainly slender, but the moulded, patterned back and grey-ish plastic finish is hardly inspiring. The camera module juts out like there's a tiny robot face straining to break out from the inside of the phone too. Creepy.

The Motorola Razr has some pleasing angular edges, and the majority of its back plate is just 7.1mm thick, making it thin enough to squeeze into just about any pocket. We're not sure about the big bulging camera section at the top of the casing though -- the Razr looks like the Hunchback of Moto Dame.

Design winner: iPhone 4S

Hardware

The Razr packs some tasty tech into its thin frame. There's an 8-megapixel camera that can record 1080p video, and a 4.3-inch screen. The Razr has a higher display resolution than most other mobiles, squeezing 540x960 pixels into its Super AMOLED Advanced panel.

It's really fast too, thanks to a 1.2GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. Sliding across homescreens and opening apps all occurs with no lag or stutter, and we suspect this phone will be a decent choice if you're into watching hi-def movies on your mobile.

The iPhone 4S also packs a blisteringly quick processor -- the A5 chip housed inside this phone blasted through our benchmark tests. It's also got an 8-megapixel camera that's performed exceptionally well in our tests, and can also snatch 1080p video. Clever girl.

The 4S has an absolutely staggering display too, somehow cramming 640x960 pixels into its 3.5-inch panel. Everything rendered on this screen looks crystal clear, and trying to discern individual pixels is liable to make your eyes melt. It's the same screen you'd find on the iPhone 4, but the many months since its predecessor came out have not diminished our love for the so-called retina display.

That is, until the Galaxy Nexus hove into view. It has an unbelievably promising screen, thanks to a 720x1,080 (yep, that's proper HD) resolution display, and a 100,000:1 contrast ratio. Massive, and with a staggering resolution, we can't wait to see how movies and games look on this monster.

The processor is not to be sniffed at, another 1.2GHz dual-core number, and there's NFC tech on board, meaning that if Google brings its mobile payment tech to the UK, you'll be ready. A lack of microSD card slot would be a minor nuisance (the iPhone doesn't have one either) but there's a nasty rumour that the Nexus will only be available in the UK with 16GB of storage. We'll let you know what transpires there.

The Nexus Prime has a 5-megapixel camera, which is a curiously low resolution for a cutting-edge mobile. Our brows are furrowed, though we're hoping features such as face detection, rapid-fire capture and some quirky camera effects can make up for the drop in pixels.

The camera may be behind the curve, and the storage is a concern, but the 720p display puts the Nexus Prime ahead of its rivals. We're throwing this one Samsung's way.

Hardware winner: Samsung Galaxy Nexus

Software

The Motorola Razr comes with some cool Motorola apps, including one called Smart Actions that lets you program new instructions for your phone using a tiled interface. It's impressively flexible -- for example, you could set your Razr to open the music app when you plugged in your headphones, or turn off Bluetooth and GPS when your phone isn't plugged into its charger.

Motocast, meanwhile, lets you get at the files stored on your home PC or Mac remotely, and download them to your phone if you feel like it. It also comes with the same Webtop OS you'll find on the Motorola Atrix -- plug the Razr into a supported laptop dock and it'll open this secondary interface on the big screen, letting you browse Firefox.

But Webtop OS wasn't too impressive on the Atrix, and crucially when it launches in November, the Razr will be running Android Gingerbread, which any Android addict will tell you is not the latest version. That honour belongs to Android Ice Cream Sandwich, which can be found running on the Galaxy Nexus.

Motorola has promised to put Ice Cream Sandwich on the Razr in 2012, but we're not that patient, and using an old OS when we know people are enjoying a more advanced version brings us out in a rash.

The Nexus Prime suffers no such slights, running the very freshest edition of Android right out the box. Ice Cream Sandwich is supposedly the update to unify the mobile phone and tablet versions of Android, mushing them together into one squishy, creamy mess.

It offers an interface overhaul, a new multi-tasking system and a host of other treats, such as the ability to unlock your phone using your face (by letting it identify you using its camera, not by hitting your head against the screen).

Because the Nexus Prime is running Android with no manufacturer tinkering, it's likely to get updates as soon as they come out, making it even more tempting for Android adorers. If you like tinkering with your gadgets, this phone will likely satisfy.

The iPhone 4S, meanwhile, runs iOS 5, which is the new version of Apple's own operating system. We love iOS for its simplicity -- it's easier to use than Android, and a bit less geeky.

iOS 5 is fantastic, but you can also get it on the iPhone 4, so right now it's not as exclusive as the Samsung Nexus Prime. The iPhone 4S has a software treat in the form of Siri, however, a voice control assistant that can make appointments, send texts and set reminders among other things.

Siri's usefulness in the UK is hampered though -- Apple doesn't have a deal with a provider of local information over here, so you can't ask Siri questions like "Where's the nearest pub?" or "What's the quickest route home from the pub?" Its ability to accurately hear what you're saying isn't phenomenal either, so you might end up never using it.

But iOS is still on top in one regard -- apps. The App Store is packed with great downloadable goodies, and it's easier to discover new apps thanks to a simple layout in the App Store itself. Games are a strong point on iOS too, from Infinity Blade to Tiny Wings, Apple's platform has some cracking timewasters at its disposal.

We can't wait to take Ice Cream Sandwich for a spin, but for now the 4S' library of apps makes it the more appealing platform.

Software winner: iPhone 4S

Conclusion

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus wins the hardware battle, thanks to its massive hi-res screen, which almost makes us forget about the less powerful camera. The fact that it's rocking an operating system you can't get anywhere else (for now) is also very cool.

The iPhone 4S might be more of the same, but with so many apps at its disposal and an operating system simple enough you could teach a chimp to use it, it's still amazing.

We're calling this one a joint win between the battleships iPhone 4S and Galaxy Nexus. The Razr looks cool enough, but apart from a few Motorola-specific apps, it doesn't offer much to make it more appealing than its competitors. It's definitely the dinghy in this dock.

Winner: Samsung Galaxy Nexus/iPhone 4S

 

 

Guys are Going Nuts for This Fragrance

Of course guys love pretty, sexy scents, but every once in a while a fragrance comes along that makes them behave like lustful, wild animals. These rare perfumes are like gifts from the dating gods—and we're excited to let you know that we found a new one!
Last night, a Cosmo editor went out on the town wearing a few spritzes of the very appropriately-named Sexy Little Things Noir by Victoria's Secret. The reaction she received was uncanny: Men couldn't stop asking what she was wearing—they were basically drooling all over her. Fortunately, she had the bottle in her bag so she was able to pass it around for "research." Her friend Zach said, “I love the way it smells. It’s subtle and really sexy.” And he immediately wrote down the name so he could buy it for his girlfriend. Another guy, Kris, said, "It makes me want to eat something—that's a good thing." And a third friend, Ian, said that it smelled naughty in the best way. The fragrance remained a hot topic of conversation for the rest of the night, and the aforementioned Zach even went so far as to try to take it home. If you're looking for a new man-getter fragrance, this is a winner—just make sure you can handle the wild-animal reaction.

Read more: Victoria's Secret Sexy Little Things Fragrance - Perfumes Guys Love - Cosmopolitan

Google doodles for Art Clokey

 













With its latest creation, Google is celebrating the birth anniversary of the pioneer of stop motion clay animation.


 Google's home page today shows a set of five coloured balls that pop up to assume the form of animated clay characters.

With this latest doodle, the search engine celebrates the 90th birth anniversary of stop motion clay animator Arthus (Art) Clokey.

Born in Detriot, USA on October 12, 1921, Clokey was a pioneer of stop motion clay animation, a technique he first used to experiment with in a series of short clay animation movies including a three-minute short called Gumbasia back in 1953.

Out of Gumbasia would be born Gumby, the famous character that would be associated with Clokey through his life.

The short films eventually led to The Gumby Show, which was a hit among audiences in the 50s and 60s.

Gumby's name is said to be inspired by Clokey's childhood experiences of visiting his grandfather's farm, where he first enjoyed playing with clay and mud mixture, which was also called 'gumbo'.

Art Clokey died due to a bladder infection at the age of 88 on January 8, 2010 at his home in California.

Google doodles have become immensely popular over the years with the search engine celebrating major festivals and anniversaries every other day. Some of these doodles like the recent one featured on Freddie Mercury's birthday are animated videos, others like the one for Les Paul's birthday are interactive while most others like the one for Jorge Luis Borges are plain images.

Kayden Kross to Appear on 'The League' Season Premiere

 
HOLLYWOOD—Digital Playground contract star Kayden Kross shares the screen with Seth Rogen in the season three premiere of FX sitcom The League, airing Thursday at 10:30 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time.

Kross got a chance to flex her improv muscles in the part, which she told AVN she landed based purely on the strength of an audition, without the show's producers having any knowledge of her adult work.

"They had no clue I was a porn star," Kross said. "They were pleasantly surprised. I have a good amount of screen time; it's pretty cool."

This spot in the Hollywood limelight is just one of a series of crossover gigs the blue-movie beauty has scored recently. Aside from a brief cameo in 2009 on the CBS comedy Rules of Engagement, and her weekly
Triggla.tv show Kayden's Review (where she's been honing those aforementioned improv abilities), Kross wrapped a movie in June called The Obsession opposite Donnie Darko star James Duval and Lolita's

Dominique Swain. Currently in post-production, The Obsession heads soon to the festival circuit, with an expected 2012 release.

On top of that, Kross leaves in two weeks for Bulgaria, where she will essay the female lead in As Wonderland Goes By..., co-starring Dolph Lundgren as her love interest. 

"I have a thing for older guys," Kross joked. "It's sort of an action movie, but that was another one I got off of an audition."

Character actor Peter Stormare has also been cast in As Wonderland Goes By..., and Kross said she is scheduled to remain on that shoot through Jan. 9.

See Kayden Kross in the teaser for The League's season premiere, available here. Also catch her in her latest Digital Playground blockbuster, Fighters, released last week.