Filed under: Etc., Earnings/Financials
Would you believe that there’s a connection between owning a car and having to foreclose on your home? A study by the Natural Resources Defense Council found that yes, indeed, there is. At least, a relationship was found in the three areas that the study looked at: San Francisco, CA, Chicago, IL and Jacksonville, FL. While the correlation wasn’t giant, it does seem that there’s something to the idea of “location-efficient neighborhood design” being good for housing stability (read the PDF).
Location-efficiency is “a measure of the transportation costs in a given area,” and it includes not just car ownership, but also if the area has reasonable public transportation. Basically, if an area is a “compact” neighborhood with good bus or rail service – and so having a car is not required – then the corresponding foreclosure rate was probably lower. One possibility is that the money saved by not owning your own car (more details here) can mean more money to spend on housing. As Autopia points out, there could be a lot of other reasons for this connection as well, but for the car-sharing crowd, this is another reason to think about staying away from owning a vehicle when other transportation options are available.
[Source: Autopia | Image: taberandrew - C.C. License 2.0]
Study: Access to good public transportation can make foreclosures less likely originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 05 Feb 2010 18:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
There are various ideas and tricks to find people free online. Just take a few minutes to learn about this one popular one used today.
some of the topics disccused below are as follows: free people finder worldwide, how do i find a person at no cost to me, looking for people with websites to name just a few.
I will answer the question on how to find someone for free with an easy yet effective method that I have been implementing for years to search for friends at no cost or without paying for further information. I am aware that there are variousother ways to do it. As an example you can even use people search locators online. However, start by reading this method before looking anywhere else online.
This is a simple way based on the concept of viral marketing. I know that you might have a circle or network of friends that you get in touch with regularly online. In fact in your inbox are many contacts i.e. email addresses and probably even phone numbers, residential addresses and more – according to which email service you use.
Now what I once did was to make one of those slides that get forwarded over the net like crazy. It was a very nice slide with a beautiful message about love, family and happiness. I then threw in my message at the end. It was about my search for my long lost friend. I included his name and a nickname and then my email and phone number.
I forwarded this message to about a hundred of my friends and email addresses I had in my inbox. Few weeks down the line I got the same email I had written out and it had since been sent to hundreds if not thousands of other emails.
Did I find my friend? Yes and no. The idea provided me with a few leads that I followed later on and was able to find some rather useful information concerning the location of my friend. Allow me to say this is not the best option on how to find someone for free but it is worth a try – if you have the time to create an interesting message that can get forwarded by friends and colleagues.
 |
IBM gets 24M hours of supercomputing time to work on lithium air batteries Yikes. |
 |
DC 2010: Would a federal diesel tax rebate be in order? Diesel coalition thinks so Says it’d be a level playing field this way. |
 |
California Scooter Company puts classic Mustang back on two wheels, reports 60 mpg Also available in pink. |
Other news: | |
AutoblogGreen for 01.29.10 originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 29 Jan 2010 05:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Truck, Government/Legal, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, GMC
Never underestimate the power of a celebrity endorsement. Or, for that matter, a political one. Massachusetts senator-elect Scott Brown (R) won an unprecedented victory Tuesday in the state’s special election to replace Ted Kennedy, and he reportedly earned extra brownie points from voters for promising to keep his staid 2005 GMC Canyon pickup truck with over 200,000 miles on the clock as his daily driver in office.
“I’m Scott Brown, I’m from Wrentham, and I drive a truck,” the candidate had been known to say. This was especially true after President Obama quipped that voters should “look under the hood” in reference to Brown’s candidacy. Apparently, that nice, average guy persona sat well with the state’s population – so much so that area dealerships are reportedly noting an increased level of interest in the oft-overlooked pickup truck from The General.
Al Cerrone, owner of a local GMC dealership, claims, “We’ve gotten eight to 12 phone calls from people asking, ‘Do you sell trucks like that?”’ To which we can only imagine he responded with, “Yes we can!” Click past the break to watch a video from Scott Brown’s campaign featuring his GMC Canyon pickup truck. Thanks for the tip, Phil!
[Source: Boston.com]
Continue reading Report: GMC Canyon sales rise in MA thanks to senator’s win (w/video)
Report: GMC Canyon sales rise in MA thanks to senator’s win (w/video) originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 22 Jan 2010 19:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
In light of the current tablet frenzy, TUAW is not alone shouting “Tablet, Tablet!” from the rooftops. The tablet has been a widespread and consistent story from several directions which we have been compiling and discussing. Over the last few weeks, TUAW has depended on multiple background sources who have information about the device, as do scores of other sites and news outlets.
In that light, we’ve assembled this round up of analysis and opinions posts, based on the most-likely credible rumors and sources we’ve been able to dig up from the last few years. Here are some of our longer discussion pieces that you might have missed the first time ’round.
 |
Publishing different: What the tablet brings to the table Like newspapers before them, traditional book publishers are facing the reality of the new digital world. With Apple’s much anticipated tablet expected to debut within the next few months, they’re… |
 |
App Store approvals and the tablet: why it matters When iTunes Connect returned after its Christmas break, developers noticed that things had changed quite a bit on the App Store approval front. Applications that had formerly taken ten to fourteen… |
|
Tablet speculation: How could a tablet connect to the world? Do you know what word Dave Caolo is hearing in his sleep? Tablet. What phrase is trending mightily on Google Search? Tablet. What is every Apple fanboy and fangirl dreaming of for…um…some new… |
Also of interest:
|
|
TUAWTablet analysis and opinion: What TUAW has put on the table originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Retail, Odds and ends
A teen in New York has been arrested for leaving a threatening note on the screen of a computer at an Apple Store. The 17-year-old boy was joking around with friends when he typed a note on screen promising “a bloody death” to anyone working in the store via a “bomb loaded with C4, strapped to my chest.” The note was then signed with the name of one of his friend’s fathers. He claims he typed it just to be funny, and then forgot to delete it when he left, but the District Attorney in Staten Island says it’s no joke — the kid faces up to seven years in prison.
I can’t help but think they’ll let him off the hook eventually. Sure, it was a stupid (really stupid) thing to do, and they should come up with a punishment that teaches the kid a lesson, but time in prison labeled as a terrorist seems a little much for showing off to friends in an Apple Store. Maybe they can have him do some in-store lip synching performances as a community service.
[via Cult of Mac]
TUAWNY teen arrested after leaving threatening note on screen in Apple Store originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: iTunes, Surveys and Polls, Apple
According to AppleInsider, Apple has scored higher than other PC companies on Forrester’s new customer experience survey, but their main software app didn’t fare quite as well. Apple came in at number 35 on the list, which places them way above PC competitors like HP, Compaq and Dell, though iTunes only scored place number 46, putting them way behind online media competitors Barnes and Noble (which sat at number one) and Amazon.com (#4).
The survey was driven by asking customers how well their needs were met by the companies on the list, how easy it was to conduct business with them, and how enjoyable the different interactions were. Note that this survey only rates customer interaction — in terms of actual sales, iTunes is still through the roof. And Apple is still leading the way in customer satisfaction as well. But in terms of actual customer experience, iTunes especially, for something that is quickly becoming Apple’s core method of interacting with customers, could probably use a little work.
Apple scores high on customer experience index, iTunes not so much originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Apple scores high on customer experience index, iTunes not so much originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Convertible, Europe, Mercedes-Benz, Luxury
For some, driving a Mercedes-Benz roadster is special enough. But when the local high-end mall is surrounded by row upon row of the Three-Pointed Star, some look for a little something extra special. For such European customers, Mercedes has launched a pair of special editions.
The SL Night Edition comes in black with 19-inch AMG five-spoke alloy wheels, silver brake calipers and darkened light housings front and rear. The interior gets black nappa leather with arrow-shaped, silver-tone stitching, as well as a special steering wheel, shift lever and roof lining and special touches to the Airscarf ventilation system.
The SLK Grand Edition, meanwhile, arrives in graphite gray paint with 18-inch alloys and silver trim for the vents and lights, and an interior done up in basalt grey pearl nappa leather and complimenting trim.
The SL Night Edition commands a 3,700-5,200 euro premium over the standard version (that’s a healthy $5,300 to $7,500 USD), with the SLK Grand Edition going for an additional 2,300-3,500 euros ($3,300 to $5,000), depending on additional specifications. Follow the jump for the press release, and click the thumbnails below for the high-res image gallery.
[Source: Mercedes-Benz]
Continue reading Mercedes-Benz SL Night Edition and SLK Grand Edition launched for European market
Mercedes-Benz SL Night Edition and SLK Grand Edition launched for European market originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Europe, Videos, Mercedes-Benz
Years ago, when reading about the Saleen S7 supercar, our mental jaws were dropped by one particular info-tidbit. Seems as if the ground effects and aerodynamics on the S7 created so much downforce at speed that you could drive it upside down! Likely? Let’s just say no. But a fantastic mental image nonetheless.
But surely no one would be crazy enough to actually, you know, drive a car upside down, right? Mr. skeptic, meet Mercedes-Benz. Or more specifically, meet the SLS AMG gullwing supercar, which does its best Lionel Richie impersonation in the video after the jump.
The obvious question is whether this is real? Internal Autoblog opinion is sharply divided. Some of us feel that sure, given the right conditions plus luck and one hell of a driver you very well could drive this car upside down. Others are screaming, “fake!” Still others are on the phone with in-the-dark Daimler PR folks trying to get a straight yes or no answer. All we know for sure is that, “marbles don’t need no downforce.” And yes, Top Gear did it first, we know. Videos can be found after the jump.
Photos by Chris Paukert / Copyright (C)2010 Weblogs, Inc.
[Source: Mercedes-Benz via YouTube]
Continue reading Video: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG spits in the face of physics
Video: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG spits in the face of physics originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 08 Jan 2010 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
Filed under: iLife, Multimedia, Video, Tips and tricks, MobileMe
For all the things Apple does right, there are some strange decisions in the integration of iPhoto and MobileMe. iPhoto has a wonderful way to create animated slideshows with music and professional looking transitions and you can look at them all day on your Mac, or send them to your iPhone or AppleTV. But things get ugly when you want to post them on the web for family and friends using MobileMe. It’s baffling, but there is no direct way to upload an animation you’ve created to MobileMe, even though you can easily send stills or even iMovie videos to the web.
Well, it can be done, but it’s a non-intuitive work around.
First, create your slide show in an iPhoto folder the usual way. Then hit the “Export” button on the lower right of the iPhoto screen. From there, you can determine the size of the QuickTime movie you want to make. If it’s for the web, I’d suggest the large size.
The movie will render, and then be placed in your iPhoto Slideshows folder inside the Pictures folder. From there, you have a couple of options, none of which are well documented: One way is to open your newly created movie in the latest version of QuickTime. Then from the Share menu, select “MobileMe gallery” from the options presented (you’ll get the screen you can see in the thumbnail above). Another way to go is to is to import the movie into iMovie first, and then export it out to MobileMe from there. You can also drag the movie back into iPhoto (and yes, I know this is nutty) and then click the MobileMe icon to upload it there.
Why can’t you do this directly from iPhoto? Search me. It should be there — maybe we’ll see it in the app’s next version. If you have another method to do this let us know.
TUAWTUAW Tip: Get your animated slideshows to MobileMe originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Fri, 08 Jan 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments