Singapore arrests Indian boy over Facebook bomb threat

Singapore arrests Indian boy over Facebook bomb threat

Singapore arrests Indian boy over Facebook bomb threat

Singapore police on Tuesday arrested a 13-year-old Indian boy for posting a Facebook message in which he allegedly threatened to bomb a luxury casino resort in the city-state.The unnamed boy vowed to take "a big big revenge", "spit everywhere" and "plant bombs on Marina Bay Sands", a major tourist attraction, on the day he leaves Singapore, according to The Straits Times.

Police said the boy, a student of the Global Indian International School, was arrested under the Breach of Prohibition Against False Threats of Terrorist Acts, with reports saying that the Facebook posting had been taken down.The offence is punishable by a maximum of five years in jail or a fine of up to Sg$100,000 ($82,000), or both.In 2009, a Singaporean man suffering from depression was jailed for five years for sending hoax email messages warning of terror plots against airlines, the Pentagon and the White House.
In 2012, a Chinese university student was fined for calling Singaporeans "dogs" on a blogsite and an Australian woman was fired by a Singaporean employer for remarks disparaging the local Malay Muslim minority on her Facebook page.

Kim Kardashian Street Style 2013

Kim Kardashian Street Style 2013

Kim Kardashian

These days, Kim and her beau Kanye both are wearing matching ensembles on the street. Recently, this famous socialite was spotted in Hawaii on August 16, 2012 in a pair of black leather boots by Givenchy, styled with black top and short black leather skirt.

Kim Kardashian

How to Make an iPhone App From Scratch (For Non-Technical People)

How to Make an iPhone App From Scratch (For Non-Technical People)

How to Make an iPhone App From Scratch (For Non-Technical People)

 

You have a great concept for a new iPhone application. Your idea is unique, fun and useful, and you are almost certain nothing like it already exists. In fact, your application might be the next Pandora or Instagram.

There is just one tiny problem – you don’t know how to program, let alone make an iPhone app.

**Learn the basics of iPhone Programming with this FREE online course from Udemy**

You may be ready to dive right into building your app. Don’t. Design and development are just one-step in the path to a successful mobile application.

Whether it’s an iPhone app or an app for Android, Windows or Blackberry, it’s important to take the time to define:

1. Why you’re building the app
2. Who will use it
3. What it will include and how you will build it
4. When you plan on completing it

This may seem like a waste of time and effort, but attempting to build an app without understanding exactly what, why and how you are creating it, is like driving a car blindfolded. You probably won’t get very far, and you’ll likely look silly doing it.

This article will walk you through how to actually create the app as well as explain the why, who, what, how, and when of app creation.

1. Why and Who

If the only answer you have to the questions, why are you building an app and who will use it is, “Everyone, because it will be awesome!” You have some thinking to do.Your application should appeal to some audience for some specific reason.In simpler terms, why would anyone want to use or buy your application? As successful entrepreneur and venture capital mentor Jason Cohen wrote, “If you can’t find ten people who’ll say they’ll buy it, your company is bullsh*t.”Although this may be a little harsh, it is more than a little true.Hundreds of thousands of iPhone applications already exist. Unless yours has some special value proposition, no one will download it, and they certainly won’t buy it. The same is true for every mobile environment.

2. What and How

Once you really understand why you are creating your application and for who, the next step is to detail what you will be building and how. You probably have a general idea of what you would like to build. However, to construct an application, you need to know exactly what features your application will support. Understanding who will use your app and what’s important to these users (which you’ve already completed) makes this task much easier. Detailing “the what and how” requires that you:

• Define the features your application will support. You should know what every screen will contain and what every button will do and why.
• Decide which mobile devices you will support. Sure, you began by wanting to build an iPhone application, but what about iPad, the many flavors of Android and Blackberry, or even Windows mobile devices?
• Determine if you will build a web or a native application. Users must download and install native apps, which allows the software to access the mobile devices’ data and features (e.g., the camera). In contrast, mobile web applications require no install and have very limited access to the actual mobile device.
• Decide how you will market your application. Mobile development is not a field of dreams; just because you build it, they may not come. There are many choices for publicizing your application’s existence: advertising, hiring a public relations team, content marketing, social campaigns and many more. Determine what’s practical for you.
• Determine if and how you will monetize your application. If this application is part of a business, this is a very important step. Selling your app in the Apple store is great, but remember they take 30% of revenue from each sale. If your app costs $1.00, you only see $0.70 from each sale. You can also choose to embed advertising or charge a reoccurring subscription fee. If you want to make money, take the time to define exactly how you will do it.
• Decide how you will test the application once it is complete. Testing is critical. Nothing can kill your application’s chance for success quite as fast as pages of bad reviews about buggy software. First impressions are everything, especially when it comes to mobile software. There are several ways to find willing beta testers, pick one (or more).

**Learn how to prototype mobile applications with this free online course from Udemy**

3. When

Once you have defined what you are going to build, create a development plan. A development plan documents all the decisions you’ve made about what you’re building, your schedule, what tools you’ll use, who else you need (e.g., maybe you need a designer to help you with the screens) and the expected cost. Although they may sound complex, it doesn’t have to be a long stylized document; it can be as simple as bullet points on a white board that you capture with a camera.

A development plan will help you hold yourself accountable and keep you moving toward your goals, while staying on budget.

4. Building the Application

Now that you have created a road map and plan to create the app, it is time to build it. Since you took the time to plan it out, this part will make more sense to either yourself or the developer (if you are outsourcing the actual build). Now’s the time to roll up your sleeves and start building.

Zero-Code Mobile Application Builders

Armed with a clearly defined purpose and roadmap, you are ready to create your mobile application. Although you are non-technical, you have several options.An entire market of tools exists to create and publish mobile applications without touching a single line of code. This seems promising but, many of these tools are very similar and are limited to implementing simple content driven mobile applications based on a small set of customizable pre-defined templates.Content driven applications primarily help users find, view and interact with content like a recipe, quiz, picture gallery or news application. Technical journalist Sarah Perez used crowd sourcing to collect a list of over 30 tools in this category after her readers requested options for creating their own mobile apps without programming.

There are also visual tools for building more complex mobile apps, like Cabana. Cabana allows users to build web-based and native mobile applications for iPhone and Android. Cabana is in beta, but you can request an invitation to preview the tool. It may take several weeks to get approval to access the beta version of Cabana, or for US $25.00, you can access the beta immediately.Cabana allows you to design a user interface (UI) using drag-and-drop components. You can then integrate external services like Instagram or simple functions like a refresh button. Cabana also allows you to connect your application to any third party web service (e.g. an online services that provides weather) using the same visual drag-and-drop approach. Cabana’s ability to connect to third party services provides tremendous flexibility; it makes it possible to incorporate almost any information you desire into your application.

 

If want to create a mobile game, it is also possible without programming knowledge. GameSalad allows you to create mobile games for iPhone, Android or a mobile browser using its visual tool, Creator. GameSalad offers a free and pro version of its platform. The pro version, which costs $499.00 per year, adds the ability to publish to multiple Android marketplaces, include hosted leadboards and incorporate monetization features into your game.

Hiring a Development Team

If you prefer to take a more hands-off approach to implementation or you’ve determined that visual application builders don’t to meet your needs, consider hiring a development team to create your application. Hiring a team requires the detailed plans discussed earlier.
Clearly communicating your concept, requirements and desired delivery schedule, make it possible to get a more accurate estimate.

You may be wondering, “Why hire a team instead of a single developer?” Successful applications are usually composed of several parts, and each part requires unique set of skills. At a minimum, you will likely need a programmer to develop the application logic and a designer to create the look, feel and flow.
If you don’t have time to dedicate to testing, you will need to hire a tester or locate willing beta testers. In some cases, one resource can fulfill multiple roles. However, keep in mind that it’s rare for a jack-of-all-trades to be an expert in every area.You don’t have to be a large company to hire a skilled and reliable mobile development team. Online freelancing services like Elance, oDesk, vWorker and Guru provide structured systems that make it possible for anyone to post a project and receive bids from potential resources. These sites allow you to:

• Capture project details
• Review quotes, qualifications and work history (on the site)
• Agree to terms (payments and schedule)
• Collaborate and share files
• Pay resources

In addition to the tools provided by your selected freelancing site, you should strongly consider:

• Carefully reviewing contractors’ portfolio of work. Ideally, contractors should have more than one mobile application being used and reviewed by the public.
• Reviewing contractors’ reputation and references on LinkedIn and similar sites in addition to the rankings on the freelance site.
• Requiring contractors to sign a non-disclosure agreement to protect your idea before sharing too many details.
• Paying in installments based on successful completion of the milestones. This approach will help ensure the project is progressing and motivate contractors to remain focused. Development projects are more likely to be successful when both you and your team agree to clear time, budget and goals up front and have frequent touch points about the progress and goals. Many of the above sites support managing using this approach.
• Learning at a least a few details about what you are hiring a contractor to do. If you have no knowledge about the details of what’s being delivered, you will be at the mercy of your team. You will have no way to judge if resources are just “talking a good game” or intentionally misleading you. It will also help you make more reasonable decisions and avoid antagonizing your team.

Being a good client is just as important as having a team skilled at delivering mobile applications. If you have a great idea, but expect fast, dirt cheap development you are unlikely to be successful. If you inconsistently respond to inquiries and are constantly making “small changes,” with no expectation of cost increases – you are a bad client and your application will reflect it. Business Insider also provides an excellent set of tips for hiring a great iPhone developer.

Become Technical

There is one additional option for creating your mobile application – learn to program. This may sound overwhelming, but learning to program is not as daunting as it seems. There is nothing quite like the sense of accomplishment you will feel after completing your application with your own hands. Apple provides details about its iOS developer program on its site, but it is not designed to teach you to develop.
Luckily, there are many online tutorials, books and classes specifically designed to teach non-technical people to program. Most training will begin by teaching you the tools you need then guide you through creating a simple application.
Here are a few tutorials designed to get you coding:

• Beginners Guide iOS App Creation
• An Absolute Beginner’s Guide to iPhone Development
• C Programming: iOS Development Starts Here!
• 8 Great Resources on How to Make Your First iPhone App

Keep in mind that learning to program is not a “quick fix” solution. You will have to dedicate yourself to the process to be successful.

A Few More Tips

Here are a few additional resources to help you get started building your mobile application:
Beginner:
Create iPhone Apps That Rock
What is the best route to building an app for a non-technical person?
Mobile Web Apps for Cross Platform using HTML
Intermediate:
Learn to Develop an iPhone App in 4 Weeks
Tips for Hiring a Designer or Developer:
How to Hire a Designer or Developer
A lack of programming knowledge can make creating mobile applications seem complex and even a bit overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be.
Have you used any of the tools we discussed or found another tool that helps make mobile application dreams become a reality? We would love to hear your thoughts.

Analysis: Economy would dodge bullet for now under fiscal deal

Analysis: Economy would dodge bullet for now under fiscal deal

Analysis: Economy would dodge bullet for now under fiscal deal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A deal worked out by U.S. Senate leaders to avoid the "fiscal cliff," was far from any "grand bargain" of deficit reduction measures.But if approved by the U.S. House of Representatives, it could help the country steer clear of recession, although enough austerity would remain in place to likely keep the economy growing at a lackluster pace.The Senate approved a last-minute deal early Tuesday morning to scale back $600 billion in scheduled tax hikes and government spending cuts that economists widely agree would tip the economy into recession.The deal would hike taxes permanently for household incomes over $450,000 a year, but keep existing lower rates in force for everyone else.

It would make permanent the alternative minimum tax "patch" that was set to expire, protecting middle-income Americans from being taxed as if they were rich.

Scheduled cuts in defense and non-defense spending were simply postponed for two months.

Economists said that if the emerging package were to become law, it would represent at least a temporary reprieve for the economy. "This keeps us out of recession for now," said Menzie Chinn, an economist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.The contours of the deal suggest that roughly one-third of the scheduled fiscal tightening could still take place, said Brett Ryan, an economist at Deutsche Bank in New York.

That is in line with what many financial firms on Wall Street and around the world have been expecting, suggesting forecasts for economic growth of around 1.9 percent for 2013 would likely hold.

At midnight Monday, low tax rates enacted under then-President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003 expired. If the House agrees with the Senate - and there remained considerable doubt on that score - the new rates would be extended retroactively.

Otherwise, together with other planned tax hikes, the average household would pay an estimated $3,500 more in taxes, according to the Tax Policy Center, a Washington think tank. Budget experts expect the economy would take a hit as families cut back on spending.Provisions in the Senate bill would avoid scheduled cuts to jobless benefits and to payments to doctors under a federal health insurance program.

AUSTERITY'S BITE

Like the consensus of economists from Wall Street and beyond, Deutsche Bank has been forecasting enough fiscal drag to hold back growth to roughly 1.9 percent in 2013. Ryan said the details of the deal appeared to support that forecast.That would be much better than the 0.5 percent contraction predicted by the Congressional Budget Office if the entirety of the fiscal cliff took hold, but it would fall short of what is needed to quickly heal the labor market, which is still smarting from the 2007-09 recession."We continue to anticipate a significant economic slowdown at the start of the year in response to fiscal drag and a contentious fiscal debate," economists at Nomura said in a research note.

In particular, analysts say financial markets are likely to remain on tenterhooks until Congress raises the nation's $16.4 trillion debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury confirmed had been reached on Monday.

While the Bush tax cuts would be made permanent for many Americans under the budget deal, a two-year-long payroll tax holiday enacted to give the economy an extra boost would expire. The Tax Policy Center estimates this could push the average household tax bill up by about $700 next year.The suspension of spending cuts sets up a smaller fiscal cliff later in the year which still could be enough to send the economy into recession, said Chinn.He warned that ongoing worries about the possibility of recession could keep businesses from investing, which would hinder economic growth."You retain the uncertainty," Chinn said.

The Winners and Losers of the Kim Kardashian-Kanye West Pregnancy

The Winners and Losers of the Kim Kardashian-Kanye West Pregnancy

The Winners and Losers of the Kim Kardashian-Kanye West Pregnancy

Not to be outdone by the Brits, American royalty Kanye West and Kim Kardashian will be having a baby, the rapper announced at a concert Sunday. His girlfriend's publicist later confirmed the news. This is certainly joyous news for both their families--the Kardashian clan took to the Twitters to express its excitement. But not everyone will be celebrating the news of the Kimye Kid.

Losers

Midori Liquor- For years Kim Kardashian didn't drink, but she began treating herself to a cocktail or two after her 30th birthday. Coincidentally, around this time, she also signed a deal to be the face of Midori, a green liqueur, appearing in ads and hosting Midori-sponsored bashes. Kim will have to put the Midori sour down while she's preggers. Perhaps she can find some baby formula to peddle instead.
Khloe Kardashian- Khloe has already tweeted her joy about her sister's pregnancy, and there is no reason to doubt her support. But Khloe and basketball player husband Lamar Odom have had their own, well-televised issues with getting pregnant. Kim's news, in addition to sister Kourtney's growing brood, will increase the pressure Khloe is feeling with her fertility struggles.

Kris Humphries- Since his 72-day marriage to Kim fell apart last year—all in front of E!'s television cameras—their divorce has dragged on. That Kanye impregnated Kim without even putting an engagement ring on her finger is a slap to Humphries' oversized face, and the announcement comes days after Humphries was sidelined a couple of games for the Brooklyn Nets due to an abdominal injury.

Winners

E!-The station that brought you Kourtney Kardashian pulling her baby out of her own womb will most likely present the Kimye pregnancy and birth in a similarly outrageous fashion. And unlike the reported $15 million deal to broadcast Kim's wedding to Kris Humphries, babies cannot be undone.Kris Jenner- The ultimate stage mom has much to gain if she can line up various marketing deals and endorsements for her pregnant daughter. Our guesses? A Dash maternity line, a Quick Trim lose-the-baby-weight program, Skechers baby shoes, and Kim Kardashian Perfume baby wipes. Kanye can jump on the money train by releasing his own rap nursery rhyme.
  
Blue Ivy- Playdates are in order for the Kimye kid and Blue Ivy, the nearly one-year-old daughter of Beyonce Knowles and Jay Z, Kanye's recording buddy. Blue Ivy has two ways she can play this: she can embrace the Kanye and Kim's child with open arms, and the two can be the next Paris Hilton and Nicole Ritchie. Or Blue can give them the Beyonce cold shoulder, and the two could become the ultimate rap royalty progeny rivals, a la Paris and Nicole post-friendship break up. Either way will sell a lot of tabloids.

Same-sex couples marry in Md. as law goes into effect

Same-sex couples marry in Md. as law goes into effect

Same-sex couples marry in Md. as law goes into effect

BALTIMORE (AP) — Same-sex couples in Maryland were greeted with cheers and noisemakers held over from New Year's Eve parties, as gay marriage became legal in the first southern state on New Year's Day.
James Scales, 68, who has worked for the Baltimore mayor's office for 25 years, was married to William Tasker, 60, on Tuesday shortly after midnight by Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake inside City Hall.
 
"It's just so hard to believe it's happening," Scales said shortly before marrying his partner of 35 years.
Six other same-sex couples also were being married at City Hall. Ceremonies were taking place in other parts of the state as well.The ceremonies follow a legislative fight that pitted Gov. Martin O'Malley against leaders of his Catholic faith. Voters in the state, founded by Catholics in the 17th century, sealed the change by approving a November ballot question."There is no human institution more sacred than that of the one that you are about to form," Rawlings-Blake said during the brief ceremony. "True marriage, true marriage, is the dearest of all earthly relationships."

Same-sex couples in Maryland have been able to get marriage licenses since Dec. 6, but they did not take effect until Tuesday.In 2011, same-sex marriage legislation passed in the state Senate but stalled in the House of Delegates. O'Malley hadn't made the issue a key part of his 2011 legislative agenda, but indicated that summer that he was considering backing a measure similar to New York's law, which includes exemptions for religious organizations.Shortly after, Archbishop Edwin O'Brien of Baltimore wrote to O'Malley that same-sex marriage went against the governor's faith."As advocates for the truths we are compelled to uphold, we speak with equal intensity and urgency in opposition to your promoting a goal that so deeply conflicts with your faith, not to mention the best interests of our society," wrote O'Brien, who served as archbishop of the nation's first diocese from October 2007 to August 2011.

The governor was not persuaded. He held a news conference in July 2011 to announce that he would make same-sex marriage a priority in the 2012 legislative session. He wrote back to the archbishop that "when shortcomings in our laws bring about a result that is unjust, I have a public obligation to try to change that injustice."The measure, with exemptions for religious organizations that choose not to marry gay couples, passed the House of Delegates in February in a close vote. O'Malley signed it in March. Opponents then gathered enough signatures to put the bill to a statewide vote, and it passed with 52 percent in favor.
Voters in Maine and Washington state also approved same-sex marriage at the ballot box in November. In total, nine states and the District of Columbia have approved same-sex marriage. The other states are Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont.

Senate approves deal to avoid worst of ‘fiscal cliff’

Senate approves deal to avoid worst of ‘fiscal cliff’

Senate approves deal to avoid worst of ‘fiscal cliff’

The Senate approved a bipartisan agreement early Tuesday morning to let income taxes rise sharply for the first time in two decades, fulfilling President Obama’s promise to raise taxes on the rich and avoiding the worst effects of the “fiscal cliff.” The agreement, brokered by Vice President Biden and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), passed 89 to 8 in a highly unusual New Year’s morning vote. It now heads to the House, where leaders have not guaranteed passage but top officials believe it could win passage in the next few days.
 
The agreement primarily targets taxpayers who earn more than $450,000 per year, raising their rates for wages and investment profits. At the same time, the deal would protect more than 100 million households earning less than $250,000 a year from income tax increases scheduled to take effect Jan. 1. The deal came together barely three hours before the midnight deadline, after negotiators cleared two final hurdles involving the estate tax and automatic spending cuts set to affect the Pentagon and other federal agencies this week.

Republicans gave in on the spending cuts, known as sequestration, by agreeing to a two-month delay in budget reductions that would be paid for in part with new tax revenue, a condition they had resisted. And the White House made a major concession on the estate tax, agreeing to terms that would permit estates worth as much as $15 million to escape taxation by the end of the decade, Democrats said.

As Biden rushed to the Capitol to brief Senate Democrats on the deal, Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) laid plans for a vote shortly after midnight, when taxes were set to rise for virtually every American.
“I think we’ll get a very good vote tonight,” a beaming Biden said as he emerged from the meeting with Democrats after nearly two hours. “But happy new year and I’ll see you all maybe tomorrow.”
Upon Senate ­passage, the measure would go to the House, where Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) pledged to bring it to a vote in the coming days. “Decisions about whether the House will seek to accept or promptly amend the measure will not be made until House members — and the American people — have been able to review the legislation,” Boehner and other GOP leaders said in a written statement.
Senior aides predicted the measure would pass the House with bipartisan support. But Boehner’s decision to delay the vote meant the nation would tumble over the cliff at least briefly.

In addition to dealing with the fiscal crisis, the measure would extend federal farm policies through September, averting an estimated doubling of milk prices. The deal also nixed a set pay raise for members of Congress.During a midday event at the White House, Obama praised the emerging agreement even though it would raise only about $600 billion over the next decade by White House estimates — far less than the $1.6 trillion the president had initially sought to extract from the nation’s richest households.The agreement “would further reduce the deficit by asking the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans to pay higher taxes for the first time in two decades. . . . So that’s progress,” Obama said.