Xinhua

First Direct Flight Between China and Taiwan

Taiwan and China have launched historic charter flights with commercial jets flying non-stop between the foes for the first time in more than 55 years, raising hopes for permanent air links and better ties. Starting with China Southern Airlines, six planes from the mainland touched down one after another at Taipei's international airport on Saturday, becoming the first Chinese planes to land on Taiwan soil since 1949, excluding hijacked aircraft. Taipei had banned direct flights on security grounds and still insists the special charters fly through Hong Kong or Macau air space. China claims sovereignty over Taiwan and threatens to invade if the democratic island declares formal independence. Taiwan has forbidden direct transport links with China since the Nationalists fled to the island in 1949 after losing the mainland to the communists in a civil war. An estimated one million of Taiwan's people, or five percent of its population, work or live in China and must normally transit through places such as Hong Kong when travelling between the two sides, adding at least four hours to their journeys. The temporary charter services operated by Taiwan and Chinese airlines will ferry Taiwan business people and their families home for the Lunar New Year on February 9, the biggest holiday for the Chinese. Officials from Taipei and Beijing held out hope the temporary charters could lead to a resumption of stalled talks and reduce political tension in the Taiwan Strait, which many security analysts see as one of Asia's most dangerous flashpoints. The flights were launched with traditional lion and dragon dances on both sides, and many arrived ahead of schedule. In a diplomatic gesture, China's flag carrier, Air China, did not carry the communist flag on its fuselage. Taiwan's largest carrier, China Airlines, became the first to fly to Beijing and its 231 passengers were greeted by applause from guests assembled on the tarmac and a dragon dance in sub-zero weather in the Chinese capital.
China, Direct China-Taiwan flights start Keralanext
China-Taiwan flights raise hopes Australian
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  ¶ 11:31 AM 0 comments

 
Google offers AdWords API (definition) in a roll out to an AdWords API and eberybody can request access. According to Google Software Engineer, Nelson Minar, the Google API will "enable advertisers and third-party providers to utilize their own software interface". While the release of an AdWords API "does not bring any new functionality", Minar says on his blog that everything that you could do with the AdWords control center, you can do with the API. While some had predicted that an API would allow better targeting of ads, the API will essentially allow the control of three aspects:

1. Campaign Management
2. Reporting
3. Traffic Estimation

Each API user will be issued a "token" which Minar says will be tagged with a predetermined quota, limiting how often you can access your AdWords data stream. Requesting the status of a single Ad Group would be considered one operation. Updating the individual bids on 1,000 keywords would equate to 1,000 operations. Each quota is individually set and is calculated based upon the size of your AdWords account. Agencies and search engine marketing companies should see their quota being more than enough for their needs. Minar explains the quota is needed "to prevent spam" and "over-use" of the API. The quota system will allow Google to roll out an API without any fees. This is a crucial step, if Google is to see larger advertisers embrace the API and utilize their own PPC management systems. Minar ultimately expects access to an AdWords API will give greater control to advertisers. With the API, advertisers will be able to pause campaigns, when products go out of stock, or make changes to account for seasonal fluctuations. Examples of the types of programs that can be built with the AdWords API include:

• Generating automatic keyword, ad text, URL, and custom reports.
• Integrating AdWords data with other databases, like inventory and financial management systems to automatically trigger ads to reduce excess inventory in case of product overstock.
• Developing additional tools and applications to help better manage AdWords accounts, such as building internal interfaces to view and manage account data.
  

The release of an AdWords API is very much welcomed among the SEM industry. With more than 1300 clients, I can tell you that it is something that can make our lives a whole lot easier, while at the same time, improving the benefits to our customers.
Google Releases AdWords API Beta BetaNews
New AdWords API Outer Court
Google AdWords API beta Onlamp
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  ¶ 1:49 AM 0 comments

 

Reuters India

Chinese Airlines order 60 Boeing 7E7s

Six Chinese airlines have signed a deal to buy 60 new 7E7 jetliners from Boeing for a total amount of $7.3 billion, one of the carriers announced Friday. It is the largest order to date for Boeing's new fuel-efficient jet and gives Boeing a boost in its competition with European rival Airbus SAS for business in China. The first of the jetliners will be delivered in 2008, Xiamen Airlines said in a statement. The other carriers are Air China, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, Shanghai Airlines and Hainan Airlines, the statement said. Xiamen Airlines said it plans to introduce a 7E7 aircraft to its service each year during 2008 and 2010. On Thursday, Boeing spokeswoman Amanda Landers said Boeing had "reached a substantial agreement" on the sale but declined to provide more detail. The 7E7 Dreamliner, which is expected to go into service in 2008, competes with the A350 being developed by Europe's Airbus SAS. The Toulouse, France-based company expects to put its plane into service by 2010. At the end of last year, Boeing had firm orders for 56 of the planes and tentative agreements for an additional 70 planes. Boeing's twin-aisle Dreamliner comes in three models, able to seat between 223 and 296 passengers with a range of up to 9,800 miles. Boeing says it will be 20% more fuel-efficient than comparable airplanes on the market today. Boeing has said the 7E7 will be priced at about $120 million, though airlines usually negotiate discounts for large orders. The plane will be assembled in Everett, about 30 miles north of Seattle. The largest order by a single airline for the 7E7 was placed last spring, when All Nippon Airways of Japan ordered 50.
Boeing Reaches Agreement With Chinese Airlines Washington Post (Subscription)
Chinese airlines announce purchase of 60 Boeing jetliners Malaysia Star
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  ¶ 9:02 AM 0 comments

 

Emediawire (press release)

Blogging blues: It is likely to cost you your career

"Be careful what you blog. It could get you fired. Peter Whitney said Wells Fargo dismissed him after co-workers discovered his online journal. Delta Airlines flight attendant Ellen Simonetti said she got the boot for hers. Even a staffer at Friendster, the social networking site in Mountain View, Calif., that encourages users to post detailed personal information about themselves online, said she was fired for her blog" wrote Todd Wallack in an article published by the Indian Express. But how will this bottom up mouvement be stopped if Millions, (A Blog About Books) start to write blog from everywhere in the world? There are already bloggers in almost every country, like Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antarctica, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegowina, Botswana, Bouvet Island, Brazil, British Indian Ocean Territory, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Canada, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Chile, China, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Colombia, Congo, The Democratic Republic of The, Costa Rica, Croatia (local name: Hrvatska), Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Ethiopia, European Union, Finland, France, French Guiana, French Polynesia, French Southern Territories, Germany, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greece, Greenland, Guam, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See (Vatican City State), Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, International, Iran (Islamic Rep. of), Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea, Democratic People's Republic of, Korea, Republic of, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Macedonia, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Martinique, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Federated States of, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Palestinian Territory, Occupied, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Slovakia (Slovak Republic), Slovenia, South Africa, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Spain, Sri Lanka, St. Helena, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Syrian Arab Republic, Taiwan, Tanzania, United Republic of, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Virgin Islands (U.S.), Yugoslavia, Zambia and Zimbabwe! With blogging going mainstream and millions of Americans and people from other countries logging details of their everyday lives, including work, a growing number of people are getting into hot water for being too candid about their jobs. Some workers have been fired for revealing confidential information. Others have been let go for openly griping about their co-workers or bosses, potentially poisoning their relationships with colleagues. It's a new world with new codes of conduct, new rules and new habits and all bloggers and non-bloggers have to adapt to this new trends of the communication and information technologies.
Blogging blues: It is likely to cost you your career Indian Express
NSU professors among growing number of bloggers Aberdeen American News
Senators trying new communications tool: Blogs Grand Forks Herald
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  ¶ 5:37 AM 0 comments

 

MSNBC

Global warming cited for mass extinction

An ancient version of global warming may have been to blame for the greatest mass extinction in Earth's history. During the "Great Dying," about 250 million years ago, 90% of all marine life and nearly three-quarters of land-based plants and animals went extinct. Scientists have long debated the cause of this calamity, which occurred before the era of dinosaurs, with possibilities including such disasters as meteor impacts. Scientific researchers led by Peter Ward of the University of Washington now think the answer is global warming caused by volcanic activity. Their findings are reported in Thursday's online edition of the journal Science. They studied the Karoo Basin of South Africa, using chemical, biological and other evidence to relate layers of sediment there to similar layers in China that previous research has tied to the marine extinction during the same period. After having studied a 1,000-foot-thick section of an exposed sediment, Ward's team found evidence of a gradual extinction over about 10 million years followed by a sharp increase in extinction rate that lasted an additional 5 million years. They believe the extinctions were caused by global warming and oxygen deprivation over long periods of time. Massive volcanic flows in what is now Siberia brought on the warming while, at the same time, geologic action caused global sea levels to drop.
Study blames warming for 'Great Dying' Fort Worth Star Telegram (subscription)
Volcanic eruptions, not asteroid caused mass extinction on Earth:- Webindia123
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  ¶ 4:23 AM 0 comments

 

Daily News Central

Pressure is the heart of the problem

A third of the world's adult population, more than one billion people, will suffer from high blood pressure by 2025, scientists predicted on Friday. About a billion people around the globe were afflicted with high blood pressure or hypertension, the most important preventable risk factor for heart disease and stroke, in 2000. But in the next 20 years the number is expected to soar by about 60% and three-quarters of cases will be in developing countries. "By 2025 we project that the number of adults with hypertension will be 1.56 billion," Dr Jiang He, of Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans. Cardiovascular disease is already one of the top killers in most countries and accounts for 30% of all deaths worldwide. In the first study to estimate the total burden of hypertension in the world, the Tulane scientists compiled published research on regional and national figures from 1980 to 2002 to estimate the current worldwide and future prevalence. In 2000, 333 million adults in developed countries and 639 million in poor nations had hypertension. The report estimates prevalence in developing states, where it is set to rise by 80%, will account for most of the predicted increase. "More than half of hypertension patients are living in developing countries now. By 2025 an even higher proportion will be in economically developing countries," He, an epidemiologist, explained. "Cardiovascular disease will become the most serious public health challenge in developing countries." Latin America and the Caribbean had particularly high prevalence of hypertension, according to the research published in The Lancet medical journal. During recent decades, cases of high blood pressure have remained stable or decreased in wealthy nations, but have risen in poor nation because of lifestyle changes and the fact that people are living longer. He and his team said developing countries consider infectious diseases as their most important health problem and do not focus prevention efforts on chronic illnesses. Research has shown that reducing weight, salt and alcohol consumption, eating more fruits and vegetables and increasing exercise can reduce hypertension. The researchers believe developing countries should follow the example of wealthy nations which have established national programs to prevent and treat high blood pressure "Our study gives a serious warning to health policy makers in developing countries and world organizations. They have to pay serious attention to hypertension and hypertension-related chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease," said He. "They have to pay attention now."
Global high blood-pressure rates set to soar Newsweek
Blood Pressure Rises Across Globe Boost Marketing
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  ¶ 8:30 AM 0 comments

 

E-Commerce Times

US trade deficit hits new record high

NEW YORK, January 13 - The U.S. trade deficit increased strongly in November to a new record of $60.3 billion, fueled by the highest-ever oil import bill and smaller export figures. The dollar tumbled against all major currencies. There might be slower U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2004 than expected, as increasing imports of goods and services cut into domestic output. The widening of the trade deficit defied Wall Street forecasts for it to narrow to $54 billion. The October deficit was revised to a $56.0 billion. Traders who anticipated that the decline in oil prices from their peak in October might help narrow the trade deficit were disappointed. Nevertheless, the average price of crude oil remains high over that period and imports didn't weaken either. The deficit has continued to balloon despite a 50% drop in the value of the dollar against the euro over the past three years. The Bush administration interpreted the shortfall as the reflection of a stronger growth in the United States than in other major comparable countries and urged Europe and Japan to do more. U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow told reporters at the New York Stock Exchange that American growth will increase faster than that of our trading partners and America will be creating more disposable income than they do. America needs Europe and Japan to be more of an engine of growth. U.S. exports slipped 2.3% in November to $95.6 billion, as shipments of U.S. industrial supplies and materials, including things like as plastic and chemicals, fell in the face of weaker foreign demand. U.S. exports of autos and auto parts, civilian aircraft and telecom equipment were also down from October. The trade shortfall for the first 11 months of 2004 was $561.3 billion already 13.05% above the full-year record of $496.5 billion set in 2003. Although average oil import prices in November retreated slightly from October's record level, they remained high enough to push the crude oil imports to a record $13.4 billion. Imports from China fell only fractionally to $19.6 billion from October's record $19.7 billion. The imbalance with China accounts for about 25% of the overall U.S. trade deficit. Even after the dollar has slid against the euro and the yen, China still keeps its currency pegged at about 8.28 to the dollar since 1994. U.S. manufacturers complain the peg gives their Chinese competitors an unfair advantage. In Beijing on Wednesday, outgoing U.S. Commerce Secretary Don Evans repeated calls for China to move to a "market-determined" exchange rate and said the United States would "actively assist" in that effort. Rising U.S. consumer demand for household goods and other products helped boost overall imports by 1.3% to a record $155.8 billion. Strong demand for advanced technology products widened the deficit in that category to a record $5.8 billion. The bilateral gap with Japan was the highest since October 2000 and deficits with Canada, Russia and South Korea set records in November. In a separate report, an industry group said applications for U.S. home mortgages dropped last week as a decrease in purchasing activity offset an increase in refinancing. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity declined 3.0% to 587.8 in the week ended Jan. 7, after falling 10.6% in the MBA's prior week survey.
Plea by Snow as US deficit hits monthly record The Times
Many analysts surprised by US trade numbers The Desert Sun
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  ¶ 6:18 AM 2 comments

 

DetNews.com

Apple's new mini Adventure

Apple launched a new low-cost computer it hopes will lure people away from traditional PCs. At least the price is about right, which is rare for an Apple product. Mac Mini's price starts from $629. Chief executive Steve Jobs said the Mac mini was the most important the company had ever made, and put the company into a head-on battle with makers of IBM-compatible computers such as Dell and Sony. Then there's also the advantage that iPod shuffle can also play songs you buy on the iTunes Music Store, which only other iPods--and soon a wireless phone from Motorola can do. Plus, it will also work with your existing MP3 collection. Think of the iPod shuffle as a satellite of your regular iPod if you have one. If you think a regular iPod is too heavy to go running with, if the iPod shuffle isn't light enough for you at about three-quarters of an ounce, then nothing is. Cram a hundred songs or so on it, and then let them play in an order you determine, or let the device mix them up for you. Experts say the new machine is likely to attract people who have Apple's successful iPod music player - including those who already own a PC. Ian Harris, deputy editor of magazine MacFormat, said: 'They want a further taste of Mac because they like what they have seen with iPod.
Mac mini is most affordable Mac ever BIOS
iPod shuffle. Apple's Flash Music Player Digital-Lifestyles.Info
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  ¶ 9:12 AM 3 comments

 

News24

Post-tsunami, small islands get rare attention

The tsunami disaster has pushed the issue of developing an early warning system to the top of the agenda. Officials from 37 island countries and Kofi Annan will meet Monday in the Mauritian capital to discuss challenges bred by geographical isolation, limited resources and exposure to the violent whims of nature. The tsunami wave triggered by a December 26 undersea earthquake near Indonesia highlighted the vulnerability of island nations to natural disaster. The absence of an early warning system left thousands of people unprepared when the wave struck killing over 150,000 people. In the Maldives the destruction from the wave may have thrown progress back by 20 years on an island already threatened by shortages of fresh water and rising sea levels. The tsunami destroyed infrastructure, fresh water stocks and disrupted fisheries. The first small islands conference, in Barbados in 1994, focused on the unique problems facing islands -- such as rising oceans caused by global warming, natural disasters, management of fresh water, waste and land and turning tourism into a sustainable industry in the face of environmental degradation. The small islands are increasingly pushing to make trade part of the priorities. Islands argue they should be given special trade considerations, given that they are burdened by high transport costs and have limited choices of industries, but donors have been so far unreceptive. "Trade is most definitely going to be one of the most thorny issues to tackle at this conference. Every time small islands bring the issue of gaining special treatment on trade, it is pushed out of the agenda by the western nations," said Pierre Encontre, an economic affairs officer with the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development. "Perhaps the tsunami disaster may make the international community more sympathetic to island economies, but I think this is very unlikely." In 1998, proclaiming 2005 as the International Year of Microcredit, the General Assembly requested that the Year's observance be a special occasion for giving impetus to microcredit programmes throughout the world!
Annan Visits Aceh: Where are the People, What Happened to Them? Zaman Online
Tsunami destruction shocks UN leader ITV.com
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  ¶ 6:12 AM 0 comments

 

Xinhua

Gates' message to the world: Let me entertain you

Microsoft may have been badly beaten by Apple Computer and the iPod music player, but when it comes to video, Chairman Bill Gates is out to prove his company won't be beat again. In his address at the International Consumer Electronics Show Gates described Microsoft's view of a digital media landscape in which Microsoft has a hand in nearly all forms of consumer digital media consumption. Sharing the stage with late-night TV talk-show host Conan O'Brien, Gates spelled out an ambitious vision for the coming years. "We predicted at the beginning of the decade that this would be the decade that the digital approach would be taken for granted, whether it's photos or music or communicating. And there was a lot work to do," Gates said. Gates and O'Brien demonstrated several aspects of the PC-centric digital entertainment universe, in a way that focuses more on mobility and entertainment than ever before. "The PC has a central role to play, because that's where it all comes together, but it won't be the only device," Gates said. "No scenario can be delivered unless all the devices are coming together." Microsoft might beat Apple with a video download service. Gates disclosed that Microsoft's MSN Internet service will be add a video download service that will offer content playable on several mobile devices running Microsoft software, including portable media centers from companies like Creative Labs - and Samsung and Pocket PC-branded PDAs from the likes of Dell and Hewlett-Packard. The service will include video content from several major media companies, including General Electric's NBC and CNBC, News Corp.'s Fox Sports, and cable networks like E.W. Scripps Fine Living TV, the Do It Yourself network, and Home and Garden TV. Another content deal is coming from Viacom, which will bring programming from MTV, VH1 and the country-music network CMT. Gates also introduced a deal with TiVo, maker of the popular digital TV recorder, that will allow TiVo customers using the TiVo2 service to take the shows they record with them on portable devices, including PocketPCs and portable media centers. He announced that BellSouth is Microsoft's latest partner in its Internet Protocol TV initiative to deliver TV programming to set-top boxes using the Internet. Microsoft has previously signed IPTV-related deals with SBC Communications. Lee Ann Champion, an SBC vice president, demonstrated how using IPTV may give telecom companies a shot at offering TV services in competition with the cable providers. She said customers of SBC's forthcoming service will be able to watch multiple streams of high-definition TV. Champion demonstrated how programming may change under IPTV, showing how viewers watching baseball will be able to select several different viewing angles of live game. She also showed how customers of the service will be able to program their digital video recorders (DVRs) from a cell phone.
Microsoft Bets Big On Media Forbes
CES : Gates pitches Microsoft for 'digital lifestyle' Macworld UK
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  ¶ 3:43 AM 0 comments

 

Blog readership is strongly increasing

Online journal readers of Weblogs grew significantly in 2004, driven by increased awareness during the presidential campaign and other major news events. 27% of online adults in the United States said in November they read Weblogs, or blogs, compared with 17% in a February showed a Pew Internet and American Life Project survey. Awareness of blogs will continue to grow. There is a lot of attention to the coverage on blogs and Web sites and first-person video as primary news sources. The web of links that are fundamental to blogs made it possible to quickly disseminate information that otherwise would have remained obscure.
A magnet for political coverage
Earlier in the year, Democrat Howard Dean embraced blogs, allowing supporters from around the country to organize and talk about the campaign, without needing to clear remarks with campaign headquarters. Many supporting bloggers provided links for readers to contribute over the Internet. After Dean’s campaign fizzled, bloggers continued to play pundit, and a handful were credentialed and invited to cover the Democratic and Republican national conventions for the first time. Time magazine even named its first Blog of the Year, crediting the Power Line blog created by three lawyers for challenging mainstream media and questioning the validity of documents behind a “60 Minutes” report on President Bush’s National Guard service. CBS News anchor Dan Rather later apologized for airing the report.
More people read blogs
Blog readership jumped, the percentage of online Americans who write blogs grew only slightly — to 7% in November, up from 5% early in the year. Blog creators tend to be male, affluent, well-educated and young; 70% of them have high-speed connections at home, and 82% have been online at least six years. Despite the attention to blogging, a large number of Americans remain clueless — only 38% of Internet users know what a blog is: online agglomerations of ideas, information and links, usually presented with the most recent postings on top, and often offering a mechanism for visitors to post comments.
Software become better
Software tools developed in recent years have made blogs easier to create and maintain. Newer technology, known as Really Simple Syndication, or RSS, make it easier to read blogs. RSS software regularly pulls headlines from news sites and Web journals and presents them within e-mail software, Web browsers or standalone programs known as readers. The Pew study found that 5% of online Americans use them. MSNBC.com currently offers RSS feeds from 17 of its top sections. The survey, based on random telephone calls with 1,861 Internet users conducted Nov 4-30, has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3% points. The RSS question was based on a smaller sample of 537 Internet users and has an error margin of 4% points.
Bustling blogosphere gets hype, not readers NorthJersey.com
Awareness of blogs grows among Net users San Jose Mercury News (subscription)
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  ¶ 5:57 AM 1 comments

 

What will be my New Year's Resolutions 2005?

Ourresolutions are quite rather visionary and philosophical guide lines!

1. I'll invest more time into the blogging megatrend, as there's is no escaping the blog!
2. I might try to get a promotion with the ultimate focus to become myself a Chief Blogging Officer!
   
3. At the same time, I would like to implement Ricardo Semler's idea of a seven-day weekend: changing the way work works!
4. I probably shall become a member of the newly created search engine HighBeam!
5. I may promote new technologies like RSS feed!
6. I will try to understand predictable surprises like the disasters you should have seen coming, and how to prevent them!
7. Thanks to more and more blogs, I certainly will assist to the naked corporation or how the age of transparency will revolutionize business!
8. I also would like to see more growth in acceptance of a citizen company!
9. One of the major issues will be to confronting reality and doing what matters to get things right!
10. Last but not least, I will try to live a more balanced life!
    

Hoping some of these resolutions 2005 might become true!

  ¶ 1:56 PM 1 comments

  We wish you all the Best For the New Year
We welcome the opportunity to express our warmest greetings to Chinese and Americans, Europeans and Africans, Australians and Asians from the world over as we will celebrate this New Year 4693, the year of the wooden Rooster. The Chinese zodiac is one of the oldest known horoscope systems in the world, with origins tracing back to 2637 before our Era. The New Year is a time for optimism and reconciliation, a time when we should put behind us the quarrels of the past and work to achieve greater understanding of ourselves and those around us, both friend and foe alike. It is a time when we look to the future with a sense of pride in all the human race has accomplished and in all which we have before us. The Rooster is the strutting peacock of the Chinese Zodiac! These quick thinkers are practical and resourceful, preferring to stick to what is tried and true rather than taking messy, unnecessary risks. Roosters are keenly observant. It's hard to slip anything past a Rooster, since they seem to have eyes in the backs of their heads! Roosters are straightforward and rewards others' honesty in kind. Roosters aren't shifty or cagey and have no interest in hiding behind a facade. They are the proverbial open book, telling the truth and keeping their word. If you show your hand, the Rooster will respect you for it. This kind of trusting behavior can tempt tricksters to pull a fast one on the Rooster, but that would be a bad move! Remember, this Sign doesn't indulge in flights of fancy and keeps those eyes wide open at all times. Roosters tend to be perfectionists and expect to be in control, especially over their appearance. Primping and posing for the Rooster can go on forever! Being noticed and admired is an aphrodisiac for Roosters, and they can go a long time on a few kind words. Roosters also adore being out on the town, especially if they're in the company of adoring friends. The Rooster will often be the best-dressed one of the bunch -- style counts with this Sign, regardless of the cost. Roosters expect to be in control of their surroundings, including whoever happens to be in those surroundings. They keep an impeccably neat house and expect their lovers, housemates and family members to maintain the same high standards of dress and conduct as they do. Roosters need to learn to value their heart and soul as much as their good looks. Their excellent people skills and sharp minds are qualities that others will appreciate as much as a pretty face. This Sign would also do well to learn to adopt the philosophy of "live and let live"; perhaps an appeal to the Rooster's logic -- that it's inefficient to waste time nagging others -- will help this Sign learn to let others be whomever and however they are.

  ¶ 3:05 PM 0 comments