This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/9469237.stm
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Chelsea 2-1 Tottenham
Frank Lampard's controversial goal just before the break and Salomon Kalou's last-minute strike keep alive Chelsea's hopes of catching leaders Manchester United.
VIDEO: British-style street party in Manhattan
The royal wedding inspired celebrations across the globe. Many Americans partied long into the night including at a British style street party in Manhattan's Greenwich Village. 
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-13247432
HBO Go mobile app hands-on (video)
HBO Go has been live on the iTunes App Store and Android Market for just a few short hours, but we've already put it through the paces, poking and prodding on our iPad and iPhone, to see what all the hubbub's about. We're pleased with the hefty amount of video that HBO's offering up here, and the interface is pretty intuitive as well. Still, browsing through the myriad content on the iPad's larger screen is definitely a bit more leisurely than on the iPhone's 3.5-inch counterpart. Both apps sport the same feature set, so searching for content, saving things to watch later, and blasting updates to Facebook and Twitter will work well on whichever device you choose. To make the deal even sweeter, it's free for current subscribers, so there's really no reason to not check it out for yourself -- unless you don't have HBO, in which case we have a video walkthrough embedded after the break.
Update: Sorry Android users, but it looks like the only supported versions for the Android app are 2.1 - 2.3.3. However, we're getting reports that it does function in the browser -- so long as you've got Flash installed, of course. We're also told that the HBO Go site works just fine on the PlayBook as well.
Update: Sorry Android users, but it looks like the only supported versions for the Android app are 2.1 - 2.3.3. However, we're getting reports that it does function in the browser -- so long as you've got Flash installed, of course. We're also told that the HBO Go site works just fine on the PlayBook as well.
Continue reading HBO Go mobile app hands-on (video)
HBO Go mobile app hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Apr 2011 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |
Android Market, iTunes App Store | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/29/hbo-go-for-ios-hands-on/
Digital revolution
Tech-savvy protesters outflank Syrian regime to own message 
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/9470481.stm
HBO Go mobile app hands-on (video)
HBO Go has been live on the iTunes App Store and Android Market for just a few short hours, but we've already put it through the paces, poking and prodding on our iPad and iPhone, to see what all the hubbub's about. We're pleased with the hefty amount of video that HBO's offering up here, and the interface is pretty intuitive as well. Still, browsing through the myriad content on the iPad's larger screen is definitely a bit more leisurely than on the iPhone's 3.5-inch counterpart. Both apps sport the same feature set, so searching for content, saving things to watch later, and blasting updates to Facebook and Twitter will work well on whichever device you choose. To make the deal even sweeter, it's free for current subscribers, so there's really no reason to not check it out for yourself -- unless you don't have HBO, in which case we have a video walkthrough embedded after the break.
Update: Sorry Android users, but it looks like the only supported versions for the Android app are 2.1 - 2.3.3. However, we're getting reports that it does function in the browser -- so long as you've got Flash installed, of course. We're also told that the HBO Go site works just fine on the PlayBook as well.
Update: Sorry Android users, but it looks like the only supported versions for the Android app are 2.1 - 2.3.3. However, we're getting reports that it does function in the browser -- so long as you've got Flash installed, of course. We're also told that the HBO Go site works just fine on the PlayBook as well.
Continue reading HBO Go mobile app hands-on (video)
HBO Go mobile app hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Apr 2011 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |Android Market, iTunes App Store | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/29/hbo-go-for-ios-hands-on/
VIDEO: One-minute World News
Watch the latest news summary from BBC World News. International news updated 24 hours a day. 
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/10462520
The politics of bank holidays
Dancing round the May Pole is a May Day tradition The government is considering scrapping the May Day Bank Holiday and creating a new public holiday in April or October. But what is the origin of our bank holidays and what do they tell us about the UK?
It seems almost too good to be true. Waking up to another four-day weekend, the second in a row for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Feels just a little bit indulgent.
But after an Easter weekend steeped in sunshine, most of us are only too happy to gobble up a double helping of bank holiday pudding, in the shape of the Royal Wedding and May Day.
But not everyone is feeling hungry for seconds. Not at Westminster anyway, where MPs have tabled a bill to scrap the May Day Bank Holiday in England and Wales and replace it with a new national day.
Under the proposals, the festivities would be moved to St George's Day in April in England and St David's Day in March in Wales, or a Trafalgar Day in October.
Ministers said the move would lengthen the tourist season, while business leaders are keen to spread out holidays to avoid a repeat of this year's 11-day bonanza, which some analysts estimate will cost the UK economy £30bn.
Spring and fertility
But the threat to May Day has riled both trade unions and rural traditionalists, for whom the first Monday is an agricultural festival whose roots stretch far beyond its modern association with Labour Day.
The curious history of our official bank holidays begins in 1871, when they were first recognised in an Act of Parliament authored by Sir John Lubbock. He was a banker who, it is said, was so keen on cricket he chose dates when village matches were played in his home county.
Mods and rocker would clash on Bank Holidays in the 60s In truth, "St Lubbock's Days", as they were briefly known, were all associated with important religious festivals and agricultural holidays, says Prof John K Walton, a historian of British and Spanish tourism and national identities at the University of the Basque Country.
"Our bank holidays were made by the Victorians, but they are rooted in traditions which run far deeper than the holidays themselves. They underlined existing days of celebration. Mid-August, for example, was a traditional time for seaside bathing holidays, even before the advent of the railways."
December holidays are often thought of as Christian inventions, but the dates coincide with holidays which predate Jesus' birth, says Prof Bernard Capp, a historian at Warwick University.
"When the puritans abolished Christmas in 1647, they banned it twice over because it was both pagan and Popish. They looked back in history and saw that Christmas was predated by the Roman Saturnalia."
The public responded violently to the ban, particularly in Canterbury where rioting and looting broke out.
Notorious day
"The repercussions led eventually to a rebellion and a second Civil War," says Capp.
But while Christmas survived the reformation, many other traditional holidays were lost, he adds.
"Before the protestant reformation every village had its saint. But the reformers got rid of that and smashed the places of worship. Saints' days were wiped out, but somehow St George survived. He became a national figure and his identity was enough to outweigh the Pope."
UK public holidays 2011 
UK-wide
New Year's Day; Good Friday; Royal wedding; May Day; Spring Bank Holiday; Christmas Day; Boxing Day
England and WalesEaster Monday; Last Monday in August
Scotland2 January; First Monday in August; St Andrew's Day
Northern IrelandSt Patrick's Day; Easter Monday; The Twelfth; Last Monday in August
May Day only became an official bank holiday in 1971, associated strongly with International Workers' Rights day, which some think has marked it out as a political target.
But its roots as a holiday stretch back to pre-Christian pagan festivals, and the Gaelic Beltane. The familiar rituals of dancing around the Maypole and the crowning of the May Queen made it a popular seasonal celebration in medieval England.
"May Day is associated with spring and fertility, the sowing of the seeds. It is a rural tradition," says Julie-Marie Strange, senior lecturer in Victorian Studies at the University of Manchester.
"It's things like May Day that remind us we were once an agricultural community. We've clung on to these traditions and I'm not sure why we'd want to get rid of them now."
When the industrial revolution came, working hours were no longer ruled by the agricultural seasons - they were ruled by the clock.
"For the factory bosses, the harvest had no relevance," says Strange. "It was all about getting as much work done in the daylight as possible. But the factories drew their workforce from the rural areas and that's where you get the clashes over time off."
Mondays were the biggest bone of contention, with working-class people deciding to take their own Monday holidays - known as Saint Mondays.
"It was a rural custom of taking Mondays off, or easy, that persisted in an industrial context", says Strange. "Although most employers tried to stamp it out."
Nostalgia
Bank holidays quickly got a bad reputation and were associated with working people drinking too much. The August bank holiday was especially notorious.
"With the hot weather and beer combo, fights would break out," says Strange. "And if you look right up to the 1960s, you see that mods and rockers tended to clash more on Bank Holiday Mondays too, down at the seaside in Margate."
People have protested over the threat to May Day But the holiday Mondays were not just about drinking, they were family days, rich in childhood memories and nostalgia.
"If you read Victorian autobiographies, bank holidays were always special," says Strange. "They were red letter days when you got a free day out of the everyday routine."
In working-class areas especially they were important for family and community cohesion. But as working culture changes, it has become harder and harder for everyone to get time off on the same day, says Walton.
"In the 1960s we had local town holidays, the days when the local factories closed. But once the factories went we lost all those, and with it that predictable holiday pattern.
"With the loss of Sunday, it's getting more and more difficult for families to arrange a holiday. The bank holiday is our last remnant of that culture where we could all go on holiday together."
Strange agrees: "The fashion today is for choice, but there are good things about our bank holidays. They remind us where we came from."
But will politicians agree with the historians? And more to the point, does the nation? It could be too close to call.
In a web-poll of over 4,000 Britons, less than half (43%) would like the May Day bank holiday left as it is. A third (36%) supported replacing it with a Trafalgar Day in October, while a fifth (18%) supported replacing it with a St George's Day public holiday in April.
Enjoy yourself this May Day. It may be one of your last.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/magazine-13217242
Ask Engadget: best network backup solution for multiple computers?
Any software junkies (or frat admins) out there care to chime in? Seems like a common problem, actually, and we're more than confident that someone sticking to that 4.0 GPA has an answer. Toss yours in comments below."I'm a college student and we are updating our intranet / network capabilities at my fraternity. One idea is to create a network drive for backups for each member living in the house. We already have a network drive accessible by everyone wired in (about 40 people via Ethernet cable), so the raw storage and infrastructure is there. What is a good backup software that is cross-platform (Mac and Windows) and free or relatively cheap? Moreover, once the backup software is in place, what steps should be taken to ensure security of each members data? Thanks!"
Ask Engadget: best network backup solution for multiple computers? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Apr 2011 22:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Friday, April 29, 2011
Balcony kisses seal royal wedding
Thousands of people have spent all night waiting along the procession route Crowds are gathering in central London for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton at Westminster Abbey.
The first of the 1,900 guests will arrive from 0815 BST, with the ceremony itself getting under way at 1100.
Thousands of people have spent a night camped out on the procession route the couple will take to Buckingham Palace.
William will wear the red tunic of an Irish Guards colonel - his most senior honorary appointment - but the bride's dress design is being kept secret.
On Thursday night, Prince William went on an impromptu walkabout to meet royal watchers who had thronged to The Mall, near the palace.
He spent several minutes shaking hands, chatting and posing for pictures telling well-wishers: "All I've got to do is get the lines right."
William spent Thursday evening with the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Harry, while Miss Middleton and her family gathered at the Goring Hotel, in Belgravia, a short distance from Westminster Abbey.
BBC reporters at the scene estimated between 3,00-5,000 people had been camping overnight in The Mall and around Wewstminster Abbey, with more than 600,000 expected to line the streets by the time of the service. About two square miles of central London have been closed to traffic.
Scotland Yard says 5,000 officers will be on duty, with more than 900 along the wedding route. Most will be in uniform, but some will be in plain clothes, mixing with the crowd.
Guide to the occasion 
Schedule for the day How to watch the day's events Explore Westminster Abbey Who's who at the wedding Seating plan Route map Video tour of the route London travel tips Weather forecast
Elsewhere in the UK more than 5,500 street parties are taking place - including one hosted by Prime Minister David Cameron at Downing Street and another by the anti-monarchy campaign group Republic.
After the service, five carriages drawn by mounted troops of the Household Calvary will carry the newlyweds, the Royal Family and the Middleton family on the 15-minute journey from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace.
The route will take them past the Houses of Parliament and Downing Street and, under rows of Union Jacks, along The Mall, to Buckingham Palace, where the couple will appear on the balcony at about 1325 BST.
Royal officials said William and Kate have been involved in planning their wedding day, from the music at the ceremony to the flowers and the cake.
Inside Westminster Abbey itself, six field maples and two hornbeams will line the aisle leading up to the altar.
William spent several minutes talking to fans on a walkabout ahead of the wedding...
Some 650 guests have been invited to the palace for a buffet lunch and about 300 close friends and relatives will stay on for formal black tie dinner and disco in evening.
But the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will leave for a weekend away after hosting the lunchtime reception and will miss Prince Harry's best man speech and Michael Middleton's father of the bride address.
The Archbishop of Canterbury will conduct the wedding ceremony, which will see Miss Middleton vow to "love, comfort, honour and keep" Prince William but not to obey him.
The couple have chosen royal warrant holders Wartski to make the wedding ring for Miss Middleton. Following a long tradition of royal weddings, it has been fashioned by the Bangor-founded firm from Welsh gold given to Prince William by the Queen.
In their official wedding programme released on Thursday, the royal couple said: "We are both so delighted that you are able to join us in celebrating what we hope will be one of the happiest days of our lives.
...as Miss Middleton and her family gathered at a Goring hotel
"The affection shown to us by so many people during our engagement has been incredibly moving, and has touched us both deeply."
Prince William's choice of a military uniform for his wedding is something of a surprise, royal watchers say. As a search and rescue helicopter pilot in the Royal Air Force, many had predicted he would wear his blue flight lieutenant's uniform.
However, as an honorary colonel of the Irish Guards infantry regiment, he has opted to wear the red tunic and forage cap, fitted by military and civilian tailors Kashket and Partners.
Prince Harry is a captain in the Household Cavalry's Blues and Royals regiment and will wear his uniform, while Prince Charles will be in his Royal Navy admiral's outfit.
The bride will walk up the aisle to coronation anthem I Was Glad, by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, from Psalm 122.
Timetable (BST) on 29 April1015 - The groom and Prince Harry arrive at Westminster Abbey1051 - The bride, and her father, leave the Goring Hotel for the abbey1100 - The marriage service begins1230 - The bride's carriage procession arrives at Buckingham Palace1325 - The Queen and the bride and groom appear on the balcony1330 - Fly past by the Royal Air Force and Battle of Britain Memorial FlightRoyal Wedding timings
It was composed for the crowning of Prince William's great-great-great grandfather, Edward VII, at Westminster Abbey in 1902.
The couple have chosen to use the Series One (1966) Book of Common Prayer ceremony.
Classical compositions by Elgar, Britten and Vaughan Williams will feature during the ceremony, alongside the hymn Jerusalem and the English melody Greensleeves.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Harry, Miss Middleton's parents - Carole and Michael Middleton - her sister Pippa and her brother James will all act as witnesses and sign the marriage registers.
James Middleton will also give The Lesson, reading Romans 12: 1-2, 9-18.
Follow the latest from Peter HuntWorld awaits royal wedding“It's a royal last supper for Prince William as a single man”
Some 50 foreign heads of state are among the wedding guests and on Thursday night, the Queen hosted a drinks and dinner reception for many of them - including Queen Sofia of Spain and Queen Margarethe of Denmark - at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel, near Hyde Park.
But as the final preparations were being completed, the guest list for the event came under scrutiny, with the Foreign Office announcing the last-minute withdrawal of the Syrian ambassador's invitation amid criticism of the violent crackdown on pro-democracy protests in the country.
Further questions were raised about why former Labour prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown were not invited.
The Met Office says the day will start off dry but cloudy in London. It will become brighter through the morning, with some sunny spells, but there is a 30% risk of showers about noon when Prince William and his bride will emerge from Westminster Abbey after the ceremony.
Forecasters also say there is a risk of heavy showers developing later on. Temperatures in the capital are expected to reach a high of 19C (66F) in the afternoon.
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Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/uk-13229961
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