brander yoke: April 2013

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Another Win For Flat Design As Facebook Gives Its F Logo & Other Icons A Flatter, Cleaner Look

Facebook has given its main "f" logo icon a makeover, flattening the design by removing the pale blue bar along the bottom, which gave the icon a reflective sheen/slight 3D effect, as well as moving the position of the f so it now bleeds right off the bottom. The overall effect is a simplified, unfussy and clean looking design with the f more clearly leaping out.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/nH0zW7BgMD0/

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Microsoft reiterates that Windows 8 could see small(er) devices soon

What's an outgoing Microsoft executive to do on his last earnings call as CFO? Utter something that'd probably get the incoming CFO fired. Kidding aside, the outfit's own Peter Klein saw fit to reiterate something we'd heard back in March -- that Windows 8 is destined for smaller devices. To date, there isn't a Windows 8-based slate on the market south of 10-inches, but as Apple, ASUS, Google and Samsung have found, people tend to like tablets that can be held with a single hand. Of course, the "coming soon" angle definitely adds a time stamp (albeit a vague one) that we didn't have before, but we're still no closer to figuring out what kinds of devices we're to expect. A diminutive tablet? A smartwatch? A phone?

Earlier this week, Terry Myerson -- corporate vice president of Microsoft's Windows Phone division -- admitted that the wearables space was undoubtedly an exciting one, though he wouldn't go so far as to affirm that any of the code he oversaw was being tested on the arm. Of course, rumors have been running wild since Windows Phone's introduction that Microsoft would eventually push WP aside in favor of just using Windows on everything, so we suppose that's another (far out) possibility. Wild imaginations are advised to contribute their best guesses in comments below. (But seriously, keep it sane. Thanks.)

Filed under: Handhelds, Tablets, Wearables, Microsoft

Comments

Source: TechCrunch

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/04/18/microsoft-windows-8-smaller-devices-tablets-watch/

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Friday, April 19, 2013

Reports: Boeing Dreamliner could fly next month

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Published reports say Boeing's grounded 787 jetliners could soon be flying again.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the Federal Aviation Administration is set to approve Boeing's fix for the ion-lithium batteries. The 787 Dreamliner has been grounded since mid-January because of smoldering batteries that in one case caused a serious fire.

The Journal says the FAA is expected to announce Friday that Boeing's redesigned batteries are safe. The fix includes more heat insulation and a battery box designed to vent any hot gases from the batteries outside the planes.

There was no immediate comment from the FAA and a Boeing spokesman declined to comment on the report.

The New York Times, which also reported the development, says the aircraft could be back in service next month.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-04-19-US-Boeing-787/id-9b0f27494d874c8c97c1eb0371b713f8

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New Zealand becomes first country in Asia-Pacific to legalize same-sex marriage

The change in New Zealand's law could pressure neighbors such as Australia to consider revising their laws.

By Jenna Fisher,?Staff writer / April 17, 2013

New Zealand lawmaker Louisa Wall, who sponsored the gay marriage bill, stands on the steps of Parliament in Wellington before voting for the same-sex marriage Tuesday. New Zealand has become the 13th country in the world and the first in the Asia-Pacific region to legalize same-sex marriage. Hundreds of jubilant gay-rights advocates celebrated at New Zealand's Parliament today after lawmakers vote 77 to 44 in favor of the gay-marriage bill.

Nick Perry/AP

Enlarge

New Zealand has become?the 13th^? country and the first in the Asia-Pacific region to legalize same-sex marriage. Its Parliament voted 77 to 44 Wednesday in favor of allowing same-sex marriage, prompting cheers, applause, and singing among those watching the process from the gallery.

Skip to next paragraph Jenna Fisher

Asia editor

Jenna Fisher is the Monitor's Asia editor, overseeing regional coverage for CSMonitor.com and the weekly magazine.

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Obama throws his weight behind Senate immigration bill

Apr 15 (Reuters) - Leading money winners on the 2013 PGATour on Monday (U.S. unless stated): 1. Tiger Woods $4,139,600 2. Brandt Snedeker $3,137,920 3. Matt Kuchar $2,442,389 4. Adam Scott (Australia) $2,100,469 5. Steve Stricker $1,935,340 6. Phil Mickelson $1,764,680 7. Dustin Johnson $1,748,907 8. Jason Day $1,659,565 9. Hunter Mahan $1,553,965 10. Keegan Bradley $1,430,347 11. Charles Howell III $1,393,806 12. John Merrick $1,375,757 13. Russell Henley $1,331,434 14. Michael Thompson $1,310,709 15. Kevin Streelman $1,310,343 16. Bill Haas $1,271,553 17. Billy Horschel $1,254,224 18. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-throws-weight-behind-senate-immigration-bill-213913715.html

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Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Gun background-check supporters struggle for votes

Former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords listens as her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly speaks on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Tuesday, April 16, 2013, during a ceremony to honor Gabriel "Gabe" Zimmerman. Zimmerman was Giffords' outreach director until he was killed in the January 2011 shooting rampage in Tucson where Giffords was wounded. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Tea Party protestor Greg Hetherington holds a sign during a second amendment protest rally held outside Senator Pat Toomey's Johnstown, Pa. office on Tuesday, April 16, 2013. (AP Photo/The Tribune-Democrat, Todd Berkey) THE MORNING CALL OUT; DAILY AMERICAN OUT; WJAC-TV OUT

FILE - In this April 10, 2013 file photo, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., left, and Sen. Patrick Toomey, R-Pa. arrive for a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington to announce that they have reached a bipartisan deal on expanding background checks to more gun buyers. Supporters try to salvage an expansion of background checks, the heart of Congress? struggling post-Newtown effort to restrict guns. Forty-one senators are potentially ready to oppose the measure _ enough to sink it unless gun control forces figure out a way to attract more votes. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Senate gun control supporters struggled Tuesday to salvage their drive to expand background checks to more buyers, buoyed by a visit from wounded former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords but facing enough potential opponents to derail their endeavor unless they can figure out how to win more votes.

No. 2 Democratic leader Richard Durbin of Illinois, his party's chief vote counter, left a lunch of Democratic senators saying they would need support from nine or 10 Republicans ? a tall order. Subjecting more firearms transactions to the background checks now is the main thrust of the gun control effort launched after December's killings of school children and adults in Newtown, Conn.

Attending Tuesday's Senate lunch was Giffords, the Arizona Democrat severely hurt in a 2011 mass shooting in Tucson, and her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly. The two, gun owners both, have started a political committee that backs candidates who favor gun restrictions.

"His message was, 'We've been through this,'" Durbin said, describing Kelly's remarks to the lawmakers. "'We're ready to fight back to stand up for those who have the courage to vote for gun safety.'"

Giffords did not address the lawmakers.

Before the lunch, Giffords and Kelly met privately with Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Patrick Toomey, R-Pa. The two senators have written compromise legislation that would expand background checks to cover gun shows and the Internet, a plan gun control supporters think gives them the best chance of pushing a broader system of checks than the current one through the Senate.

"They're helping immensely just by being here and talking to our colleagues. We're close, but we sure need their help," Manchin said after that meeting.

The two senators' effort is aimed at weeding out criminals and the seriously mentally ill from getting firearms. The current background check system applies only to transactions with licensed gun dealers.

Though the Senate has been debating a broader gun bill for days, it remained unclear when votes on the Manchin-Toomey plan or other amendments would begin. Democrats were hoping roll calls could start as early as Wednesday, with the two senators' proposal generally seen as the first vote.

President Barack Obama, in an interview with NBC's "Today" show, urged lawmakers to pay attention to public support for expanding background checks and remember the slayings of 26 schoolchildren and staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

"The notion that Congress would defy the overwhelming instinct of the American people after what we saw happen in Newtown, I think is unimaginable," Obama said in the interview, aired Tuesday.

Besides the Manchin-Toomey proposal, Democrats were ready to offer other amendments ? likely to lose ? banning military-style assault weapons and ammunition magazines capable of carrying more than 10 rounds. Authorities have said both were used in the Newtown massacre.

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, the No. 2 Senate GOP leader, said he was working on an amendment requiring states to recognize each other's permits for carrying concealed weapons.

While all states but Illinois, plus the District of Columbia, issue permits or have other arrangements for permitting concealed weapons, nine states don't recognize permits from other states. Gun rights defenders say making it easier to move firearms between states is protected by the Constitution, while opponents complain it would hurt states that have stricter standards for permits than others.

"Hopefully we'll start voting on this. I don't know of any reason why we wouldn't," Cornyn told reporters.

Using procedural moves, opponents would need just 41 of the Senate's 100 votes to derail the Manchin-Toomey background check plan.

Thirty-one senators voted last week to completely block debate on overall gun legislation. Just two were Democrats ? Mark Pryor of Arkansas and Mark Begich of Alaska.

If all 31 vote against the Manchin-Toomey measure ? which is not certain ? opponents will need just 10 more votes to prevail.

So far, nine of 16 Republicans who voted last week to let debate on the gun bill begin have said they will oppose Manchin-Toomey, and one other has said he is leaning toward doing so. That would give foes of expanded background checks enough votes to win.

Still uncertain is support from some Democrats from GOP-heavy states, including Max Baucus of Montana, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota. Baucus and Landrieu face re-election next year.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Manchin, Toomey and their allies were still hunting supporters.

"We're working to get 60, and it's fluid," Vice President Joe Biden told reporters, citing the number of votes his side would need to prevail.

Aides and lobbyists have said the two lawmakers are considering allowing changes in their bill to exempt people who live far from gun dealers, making it difficult to go to the dealers' shops to have background checks performed. The hope was to attract votes from Alaska and North Dakota.

In addition, Democrats were considering allowing other votes to come before the vote on Manchin-Toomey. That might make it easier to win support for the background check expansion by letting some senators vote first against other proposals, such as the assault weapons ban, to show voters they support gun rights.

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., the third-ranking Senate Democratic leader, was among several in his party who cited emotional speeches by other senators in their lunch Tuesday as giving hope to supporters of expanded checks.

He also emphasized the help gun control advocates have received from families of victims of Newtown and other mass shootings, who have spent many recent days visiting senators.

"The more the families who were here again have a chance to talk to people, the better we do. So if it's possible I'd like to get a little more time," Schumer said.

___

Associated Press writers Stephen Ohlemacher, Henry Jackson and Jim Abrams contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-04-16-Gun%20Control-Congress/id-30215609430c4cf1ac84530e6f22e030

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Two explosions at Boston Marathon finish line

Shortly before 3 p.m. two explosions occurred near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Boylston Street.

By Jimmy Golden and Staff,?Associated Press / April 15, 2013

Two explosions shattered the euphoria of the Boston Marathon finish line on Monday, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers in the 26.2-mile trek from Hopkinton were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts.

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Competitors and race organizers were crying as they fled the chaos. Bloody spectators were being carried to the medical tent that had been set up to care for fatigued runners.

"There are a lot of people down," said one man, whose bib No. 17528 identified him as Frank Deruyter of North Carolina. He was not injured, but marathon workers were carrying one woman, who did not appear to be a runner, to the medical area. A Boston police officer was wheeled from the course with a leg injury that was bleeding.

At least half dozen people were injured, based on photos of the scene appearing on Twitter.

Shortly before 3 p.m., about three hours after the winners crossed the line, there was a loud explosion on the north side of Boylston Street, just before the photo bridge that marks the finish line. Another thunderous explosion could be heard a few seconds later.

Runner Laura McLean of Toronto said she heard two explosions outside the medical tent.

"There are people who are really, really bloody," McLean said. "They were pulling them into the medical tent."

Cherie Falgoust was waiting for her husband, who was running the race.

"I was expecting my husband any minute," she said. "I don't know what this building is ... it just blew. Just a big bomb, a loud boom, and then glass everywhere. Something hit my head. I don't know what it was. I just ducked."

Based on photos, the second explosion may have been on the sidewalk near the finish line.

Andrew Katz, a Time magazine reporter, tweeted that a Boston EMS scanner is reporting another unexploded device in front of the Mandarin Hotel on Boylston Street.

For the top runners, the Boston Marathon had ended about two hours prior to the explosion. But there were an estimated 25,000 participates, and many had not yet crossed the finish line.

The race has been halted and the Boston Marathon media center has been locked.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/7Fej-CgBdwo/Two-explosions-at-Boston-Marathon-finish-line

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Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Google clears another step in EU antitrust case

BRUSSELS (AP) ? Google has taken another step toward settling a European antitrust investigation focusing on whether the Internet giant is abusing its dominant position of online search and advertising markets.

Google Inc. has submitted a list of remedies in legally binding form to address the concerns voiced by the European Commission, which acts as the 27-nation bloc's antitrust authority, the body's spokesman Antoine Colombani said Monday.

He added that they will shortly be put to a market test to see whether they will be sufficient, but declined to elaborate on how long it might still take to reach a settlement in the three-year-old investigation.

The Commission is probing whether Google unfairly favors its own services in its Internet search results. Google's search engine ? the world's most influential gateway to online information and commerce ? enjoys a near-monopoly in Europe.

The major concession offered by Google is widely expected to center on more clearly labeling search results stemming from its own services such as YouTube, Google Maps or its shopping search function.

In addition, Google is supposed to offer remedies on the three other main areas the Commission has criticized. Those centered on how Google displays content from other websites, how it manages the ads appearing next to its search results, and how its actions affect marketers' ability to buy ads on rival networks.

Both, Google and the Commission, have declined to spell out what remedies the Mountain View, California, company is proposing pending the official announcement of the market test.

Without reaching a settlement ? to which both sides are committed ? the Commission would likely formally file a case against Google, setting the stage for a lengthy process that could result in the company being fined up to 10 percent of its annual revenue.

The EU Commission has often taken a harder line with U.S. tech companies than its American counterparts, the Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department. Google settled a similar antitrust complaint on its search business with the FTC in January without making any major concessions on how it runs its search engine.

Separately, major tech companies led by Microsoft last week filed another EU antitrust complaint against Google, alleging the company uses the dominant position of its Android smartphone operating system to illegitimately promote its own array of internet services.

Microsoft Corp., which has been a leading player in the complaints against Google, has had its own protracted run-ins with the EU Commission. The Redmond, Washington, company has paid 2.2 billion euros in various fines since investigations began in 1998.

___

Follow Juergen Baetz on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jbaetz

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-04-15-Europe-Google/id-60ed41998f024fb9b34f11e73a9fd13c

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Space Mountain closed as Disney reviews safety

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) ? Three rides at Disneyland, including the famous Space Mountain roller coaster, were temporarily closed over the weekend as the company reviewed its employee safety protocols after citations from state regulators.

The citations were received Friday from the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, according to Disneyland Resorts spokeswoman Suzi Brown.

The closures Saturday of Space Mountain, the Matterhorn Bobsleds and Soarin' Over California were voluntary and were made out of an abundance of caution, Brown said Sunday.

"We constantly strive to maintain a safe work environment for our cast members and contractors ? and we are reviewing certain protocols," she said.

The citations were related to an incident in November when a contracted worker was injured while performing maintenance on the exterior of the Space Mountain attraction.

Disneyland failed to adequately correct "known fall hazards" that existed on the exterior of Space Mountain, according to a description of the citation on the Cal/OSHA website.

"Furthermore, Disneyland Resort failed to have approved anchorages or approved tie-backs for contract employees to attach to when performing scheduled exterior building maintenance," the description reads.

The Matterhorn reopened Sunday. Brown said Sunday it is unclear how long the other two rides will remain closed.

Space Mountain and the Matterhorn Bobsleds are at Disneyland. Soarin' Over California, a simulated hang-glider flight, is at Disney California Adventure.

Officials with Cal/OSHA did not immediately reply Sunday to a request for comment.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-04-14-Disneyland-Rides%20Closed/id-d26e30ebe9d041b59776d9fca613decc

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Monday, April 15, 2013

Wrigley Field Renovations to Include Electronic Scoreboard, Monumental Facelift

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/04/wrigley-field-renovations-to-include-electronic-scoreboard-monum/

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Saturday, April 13, 2013

Financial workers sail through "fit and proper" tests

By Laura Noonan and Sinead Cruise

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's financial regulator has blocked just 30 out of a possible 227,000 applications to the sector's most risk-sensitive jobs in the six years since the banking crisis erupted.

New figures seen by Reuters show the renamed Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rejected an average of one appointment for every 7,566 proposed by banking, insurance and other finance firms under the terms of its 'approved persons' regime between April 2007 and the end of 2012.

Regulators overseeing London's financial industry have been at the forefront of a Europe-wide drive to increase professional standards by scrutinising candidates slated for key roles, in a bid to ensure they have the requisite skills to do their jobs.

Members of the financial community said the rules, tightened in late 2008, would impede company hiring plans and 1,850 of the 40,997 candidates put forward in the year to April 2009 voluntarily withdrew applications for approved status.

But the new figures show the numbers of people withdrawing from assessment have fallen sharply, while rejections from the FCA have remained negligible.

Will Pomroy, corporate governance policy adviser at the National Association of Pension Funds, said he hoped the small number of failed applications reflected more robust assessments of staff competence, capability, honesty and integrity at company level.

"Investors expect the board to take responsibility - and be accountable - for setting the culture from the top and ensuring it filters down throughout the workforce," Pomroy said.

"They would not want to be relying solely on the assessments of the regulator for each individual employed in a controlled function - of which there a large number."

OBSERVER EFFECT

But others said they drew less comfort from the figures, suggesting that rejections might have fallen because staff were being coached to pass the tests or giving up promotion prospects because they did not want to risk humiliation, or other consequences, if they failed.

"Think of it in terms of Heizenberg's Uncertainty Principle or The Observer Effect: 'Directors are like sub-atomic particles, they behave differently under observation'," one industry sceptic said, on condition of anonymity.

The FCA does not break out rejections by year, but annual figures do show the number of applications and withdrawals.

The latest full-year figures show withdrawals came in at just 597 in the year to April 2012, against a peak of 1,850 in the year to April 2009.

"In addition to 30 applications for approval being formally refused since 2007, during the same period, over 7,000 applications were withdrawn after submission - many of which were after close scrutiny by the FSA," a spokeswoman for the regulator said.

The UK's 'fitness and probity' process is one of the broadest in Europe, encompassing senior management and directors, and staff working in compliance, risk and internal audit across all firms authorised by the regulator.

Most assessments are done in writing but the regulator routinely interviews candidates for the most senior roles in "high impact firms", and carries out other interviews on a "risk-based approach if there are concerns about a candidate or firm", the spokeswoman added.

(Editing by Helen Massy-Beresford)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/financial-workers-sail-fit-proper-tests-060246212--sector.html

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At 2 big banks, record earnings, but lower revenue

NEW YORK (AP) ? JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, bellwethers for the banking industry, reported record earnings Friday, but those numbers masked troubling declines in revenue.

Revenue fell slightly at both banks, and the earnings gains came largely from slashing expenses and related measures. JPMorgan socked away less to cover potential lawsuits and released some of the money set aside for bad loans. Wells cut back on office space.

The results show that in an era of sluggish loan demand and increased government regulations, banks must stay lean if they want to boost earnings. The industry has come a long way since the panic of the financial crisis, but the pattern it's settled into is one of cutting expenses and maintaining revenue rather than turbocharged growth.

For both banks, analysts homed in on a slowdown in the mortgage business. For the past several quarters, the banks have enjoyed a boom in mortgage refinancings as homeowners lined up to take advantage of low interest rates. That pace now appears to be stalling, if not slowing.

At JPMorgan, mortgage applications fell about 8 percent over the quarter to $60.5 million. They were also down about 8 percent at Wells ? to $140 million. Compared with a year earlier, applications at JPMorgan were up just 1 percent. For Wells, however, applications were down 25 percent.

Standards for getting a mortgage are still tight. Some homeowners might not qualify for a refinancing, because of changes to their personal finances, and others might not be able to afford one.

When homeowners refinance their mortgage, they get a lower interest rate that helps them save money over time. But getting a refinanced loan also can cost money upfront, in fees to the bank.

Analysts questioned whether the homeowners most motivated or most qualified to refinance already have ? "the low-hanging fruit," as FBR Capital Markets analyst Paul Miller put it.

Tim Sloan, chief financial officer at Wells, estimated that 25 to 30 percent of Wells' mortgage borrowers were still eligible for a refinancing.

"It's a function of what their finances look like," Sloan said. "Maybe they've switched jobs and haven't had the opportunity."

Other people might not be aware of what's available.

The government is trying to raise that awareness. The Federal Housing Finance Agency on Thursday announced it would extend the four-year-old Home Affordable Refinance Program, and launch a national campaign to promote it. The program aims to encourage struggling borrowers to refinance loans at a lower rate. About 2.2 million people have refinanced their mortgages through the program since April 2009. Officials had hoped that at least 4 million borrowers would participate.

It's not clear what effect HARP might have: The big banks are already reaching out to their customers who would qualify for a refinance.

"Who knows how much it will really help," said Guy Cecala, the publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance.

The mortgage business is also less profitable than it has been in recent quarters. More lenders are competing for mortgage business, meaning some banks have to offer lower interest rates to home buyers. The banks also make money by packaging their mortgages into securities and selling them to investors, and those investors are demanding higher returns.

Wells and JPMorgan are the country's two biggest mortgage lenders. Wells controls nearly 28 percent of the U.S. market and JPMorgan controls more than 10 percent, according to Inside Mortgage Finance.

At each bank:

JPMorgan Chase

Profit jumped 34 percent from a year earlier, while revenue slipped 3 percent.

The investment bank underwrote more bond offerings. The private bank, which caters to wealthy individuals, brought in more revenue. Profit and revenue slipped in retail banking, which includes the mortgage unit.

JPMorgan slashed expenses by 16 percent and cut nearly 5,300 jobs, or about 2 percent of its work force. It has said that it is trimming jobs in the unit that deals with troubled mortgages, as fewer homeowners are behind on their loans. It is also installing new technology in branches that can replace workers.

In the retail bank, JPMorgan released some of the funds it had set aside to deal with potential bad loans. It added less to its reserve for legal expenses, which also boosted results, though bank officials declined to predict a trend. There are "a lot of things coming our way," said JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, whose bank is still dealing with the fallout of a surprise $6 billion trading loss last year, "and we'll have to reserve appropriately as they come in."

The bank made $6.1 billion in the first quarter, after stripping out payments to preferred shareholders, up from $4.6 billion a year ago. On a per-share basis, that amounted to $1.59, blowing away the $1.39 expected by analysts polled by FactSet.

Revenue totaled $25.8 billion. That edged out analysts' estimates, but was down from $26.8 billion a year ago.

Wells Fargo

At Wells, profit jumped 23 percent from a year earlier, while revenue slipped 2 percent.

The wealth management unit increased both revenue and profit. In the retail bank, which includes mortgages, profit was up but revenue fell.

Wells trimmed expenses 5 percent, cutting down on office space and using new technology to be more efficient. It's also enjoying lower expenses because in January, it and other banks settled government accusations that they had wrongfully foreclosed on some homeowners. Wells had been spending about $125 million a quarter for staffing and consultants to review individual foreclosures.

Over the year, the bank added about 9,400 jobs, an increase of 4 percent. Last year, it was the only megabank to add jobs instead of cut them.

Wells earned $4.9 billion in the first quarter, after stripping out payments to preferred shareholders, up from $4 billion a year ago. On a per-share basis, earnings were 92 cents, beating the 89 cents forecast by Wall Street.

Revenue slipped to $21.3 billion from $21.6 billion.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/2-big-banks-record-earnings-lower-revenue-203717215--finance.html

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Iraq mosque bombing kills seven worshippers

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A bomb explosion killed at least seven people and wounded 25 in front of a Sunni Muslim mosque in Iraq's Diyala province as worshippers were leaving after Friday prayers, police and medics said.

A surge of attacks by Sunni Islamists have targeted Shi'ite Muslims this year in growing sectarian confrontation, although officials say insurgents also hit Sunni religious sites as part of their campaign.

The bomb went off near the gate of the mosque, targeting worshippers and enveloping the mosque in white smoke. Witnesses said shoes and pieces of clothes were scattered outside.

"We were about 250 worshippers, we were just leaving when the explosion went off. Police were not protecting the mosque and people had to be taken to hospital in cars," Ahmed al-Karkhi, one of the wounded, told Reuters by telephone.

Iraq still struggles with tensions among its Shi'ite majority and Sunni and ethnic Kurds who make up a fragile government. Sunni insurgents and Shi'ite militias killed thousands in 2006-2007 when the bombing of an important Shi'ite shrine triggered sectarian mayhem.

"The main reason to hit mosques is to incite the sectarian strife between Sunnis and Shi'ites," said Sheikh Asaad al-Mahsayki, a local council member. "Sunni armed groups began to target the mosques to create tension."

Sunni Islamist insurgents tied to al Qaeda have stepped up their campaign of attacks this year with a string of suicide bombing attacks on Shi'ites and on security forces. Car bombs hit five Shi'ite mosques in Baghdad last month.

Al Qaeda's local wing, Islamic State of Iraq, has said it will keep up attacks and security officials say the group is gaining ground and recruits in the western desert bordering Syria, thanks in part to a boost from the neighboring war.

Al Qaeda in Iraq this week announced it had merged with the al Nusra Front fighting against President Bashar al-Assad in Syria where an increasingly sectarian war is stirring up Iraq's own delicate mix of Shi'ite, Sunni and ethnic Kurdish.

(Reporting By Raheem Salman; editing by Patrick Markey)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iraq-mosque-bombing-kills-seven-worshippers-131716724.html

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Friday, April 12, 2013

Woody Allen collaborator Mickey Rose dies at 77

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? A childhood friend of Woody Allen who co-wrote his movies "Bananas" and "Take the Money and Run" has died. Mickey Rose was 77.

His daughter, Jennifer, tells the Los Angeles Times (http://lat.ms/1551DRw ) that he died Sunday from cancer at his home in Beverly Hills.

Rose and Allen met in high school in Brooklyn and became friends. They shared a love of playing jazz and baseball.

Rose met his late wife, Judy, through a blind date arranged by Allen.

Rose became a TV comedy writer. He wrote for Johnny Carson and Sid Caesar and for shows including "The Smothers Brothers," ''All in the Family" and "The Odd Couple."

In a statement, Allen says Rose was one of the funniest humans he's known ? and a "wonderful first baseman."

___

Information from: Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/woody-allen-collaborator-mickey-rose-dies-77-141229358.html

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Putin on Finland's criminal blacklist by 'mistake'

HELSINKI (AP) ? Vladimir Putin, banned in Finland?

Finnish police say the Russian president's name was mistakenly placed on a secret criminal register that could theoretically have gotten him arrested at the border.

TV station MTV3 reported Wednesday that Putin was placed there for his contact with Russian motorcycle gang Night Wolves, though he wasn't suspected of a crime in Finland. But National Police Board spokesman Robin Lardot told the AP the listing was a mistake and that Putin's name was removed from the list.

"The National Police Board has investigated the case and indeed found that such a mistaken entry was in the register," Lardot told The Associated Press. "We have ordered it to be removed and are investigating the case very thoroughly. We don't know how it got there." He declined further comment.

Putin's inclusion would be a major source of embarrassment in bilateral relations.

Finnish Interior Minister Paivi Rasanen, whose ministry oversees the police, conveyed her "sincerest apologies" to Putin over the mistaken entry.

"The Interior Ministry considers it of grave concern if a member of the police has made such groundless entries into the database of suspects."

MTV3 said the content of the register is known only to a few top officials. But in a statement later Wednesday, police called it a "computerized personal data file intended for nationwide used by the police."

They said it includes information on people who are suspected of offenses punishable by prison "or having contributed to an offence subject to imprisonment of more than six months, or to an unlawful use of narcotics."

The Night Wolves says on its Web site that the club's prototype was born in the 1980s from the desire to protect musicians who were holding illegal concerts during the Soviet era.

The muscle-flexing Russian leader has not been averse to being associated with tough bikers and has described motorcycles as "the most dramatic form of transport."

Three years ago, he leaped onto a Harley Davidson to join about 5,000 bikers at an international convention in southern Ukraine sporting black sunglasses, black jeans and black fingerless gloves.

The head of Finland's national police force, Mikko Paatero, apologized for the "mistaken" inclusion of Putin's name in the database.

"This kind of incident is extremely exceptional and is not acceptable under any circumstances," Paatero said in a statement.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/putin-finlands-criminal-blacklist-mistake-135714285.html

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Google Play Books for iOS catches up to Android version with mapping info, user guide

Apple devices will finally get a Google Play Books update received by Android users back in September that packs a couple of useful new flourishes. The headliner is a geographical look-up feature that lets you see a description and Google Maps view of a location from a book just by tapping and holding on it in flowing text mode -- letting you supplement A Moveable Feast with details about Paris, for instance. Mountain View also added a user guide, support for fixed layout EPUB books plus Japanese vertical flowing text and the ever-popular "substantial improvements in performance and stability." Now that Maps is back in the Apple fold, hopefully similar location features will hit more of Google's iOS apps -- meanwhile, hit the source to grab today's update.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Google

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Source: Google Play