The European Commission and Microsoft have finalised the proposal for a 'browser ballot' in Windows, following the Commission's concern that Microsoft was unfairly using its operating system monopoly to gain control of the browser market.
The browser ballot will give Windows users an option of switching to one of twelve competing browsers when it is made available in an update to the new Windows 7, as well as Vista and XP.
Microsoft said in a statement that "today's resolution follows years of intensive examination by the European Commission of competition in computer software. The measures approved today reflect multiple rounds of input from industry participants relating to competition in Web browser software and interoperability between various Microsoft products and competing products."
The agreement on browser ballot, named the 'choice screen,' is to last five years, and its effectiveness is to be regularly monitored during this time. If successful, it could reduce Internet Explorer's market share.
The complaint regarding the alleged browser monopoly was first brought by Opera Software in January 2009, and the idea of a browser ballot, and Microsoft first agreed to the idea back in July. Since then, the nature of the ballot has been discussed in detail, and now, finally, a conclusion has been reached.
EU, Microsoft agree on browser ballot
Volcano eruption in Philippines prompts evacuations
Tens of thousands of people were evacuated from areas near Mount Mayon in the Philippines on Tuesday, after the lava started flowing out of the volcano. Local scientists caution that Mayon might be on the verge of a powerful eruption.
"After the series of ash puffs and ash explosions of 1,000 metres, we cannot rule out a major explosion," said Cedric Daep, the head of local disaster relief operations, commenting that officials are intending to eventually evacuate up to 50,000 people.
"We are in the process of evacuating nearly 10,000 families around the 6-8 kilometre danger zone around the volcano. We have enough food for all these people for only a month," Daep added.
An alert for the area surrounding Mayon has been raised, and about 20,000 people were evacuated from the foothills of the volcano. Thousands more people are expected to be moved out of the area later. They are currently living in evacuation centres set up by the Philippine government. Authorities noted that it might be until Christmas before most will be able to return to their homes.
"It's 10 days before Christmas. Most likely people will be in evacuation centres, and if Mayon's activity won't ease down we will not allow them to return to their homes. It's difficult and sad, especially for children." said an emergency management official, Jukes Nunez.
The governor of the province where the Mayon volcano is located, Joey Salceda, commented that, in case of an eruption, the government was trying to have "zero casualties".
Mayon erupted last in 2006; its most deadly eruption was in 1841, when 1,200 people were killed after the village of Cagsawa was buried. The volcano stands over 8,000 feet above sea level and has erupted 49 times since records were started, in 1616. The Philippines are also located along the "Ring of Fire", an area in southeast Asia prone to earthquakes, volcanos, and other seismic activity.
Suicide bomber kills at least twenty in Pakistan town
Local officials in the town of Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan said on Tuesday that at least twenty people were killed after a suicide car bomber attacked the house of a provincial governor. The Al Jazeera news agency reports that seventy people were injured from the blast.
According to Siddiq-ul-Farooq, a spokesman for the Pakistan Muslim League, the bomber drove his car into the wall of Dost Muhammad Khosa's home, damaging it. Khosa and his relatives, however, were not at home, Farooq added. The house was reportedly close to a market, which also suffered from the explosion.
A reporter for Al Jazeera, however, noted that it wasn't immediately clear if Khosa was intended as a target in Tuesday's attack.
"There are many people trapped in the rubble after the powerful blast demolished some 10 shops [...] The rescue work is under way and we fear the toll may go up. It was a terrorist activity, similar to those being carried out in other parts of the country," said town commisioner Hasan Iqbal.
A local resident, Raza Khan, was witness to the chaos that resulted after the detonation. "The whole market has collapsed. There is smoke and people running here and there," he said to the Associated Press. A local health official told Agence France-Presse news agency that "the hospital in the town has been crowded by people looking for their relatives. Rescue efforts are still going on."
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Boeing 787 "Dreamliner" makes maiden flight
Boeing's newest commercial aircraft, the 787 "Dreamliner", made its first test flight Tuesday in Everett, Washington at 18:00 UTC. Boeing claims that the new 290+ seat wide-body, twin engine jetliner is more fuel efficient than previous Boeing models.
The release of the "Dreamliner" is almost two and a half years behind schedule. The project has been plagued by various issues, including strike action, parts shortages and design problems. The aircraft is thought to have attracted 840 orders to date, though some have been cancelled due to the delays, making the 787 worth in the region of US$140bn (€96bn, £86bn) for Boeing.
An aerospace analyst, Richard Aboulafia, said that "[The test flight] will provide a badly needed perception that the program is on some kind of schedule again, but it's still a long way from the ultimate result." Boeing's European rival, Airbus, is preparing to release a similar aircraft, the A350, in 2013.
Alleged tax-haven scheme linked to Canada's largest brokerage firm
In a continuing crackdown on tax evasion, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has alleged that brokers with a branch of RBC Dominion Securities, Canada's largest brokerage company, helped clients set up accounts in the small European principality of Liechtenstein in order to avoid taxation on their wealth.
In affadavits submitted by the CRA, brokers with an RBC Dominion Securities office in Victoria, British Columbia, allegedly helped clients set up 16 offshore entities with a division of the LGT Group in Liechtenstein. While that is not a crime under Canadian law, auditors allege that the entities were used to help Canadians hide worldwide income. Thirteen individuals are either being audited or have made voluntary disclosures, admitting to tax evasion. The agency is presently investigating to see if there are any other individuals participating in this scheme. Regarding the inquiry, dubbed "Project Jade", the CRA will only say that it was launched on information from a "confidential informant".
RBC issued a written statement, saying "As a firm, we have never encouraged Canadians — not 25 years ago and not today — to set up entities in Liechtenstein, and we have never instructed our investment advisers to recommend that practice," and "we comply with all CRA requirements. This means that we provide all our clients with the forms they need to meet their personal tax obligations, and also file reports with CRA that form the basis for reviews such as this."
Three RBC employees are presently being investigated, with one remaining unidentified.
Guantanamo inmates to be transferred to Illinois
The White House is expected to announce today that several inmates from the United States' controversial detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba are to be relocated to a prison facility, to be acquired by the Federal Government, on the US mainland.
The Thomson Correctional Center in north-western Illinois is expected to accommodate around 100 prisoners from the Cuba base. The closure of the camp is a key policy for US President Barack Obama and an unnamed White House official is quoted as saying "Closing the detention centre at Guantanamo is essential to protecting our national security and helping our troops by removing a deadly recruiting tool from the hands of al-Qaeda". Thomson prison, in Thomson, Illinois, approximately 150 miles from Chicago, is expected to be sold to the Federal Bureau of Prisons and, in turn, part leased to the Department of Defense will hold both federal prisoners and detainees from Guantanamo in the same facility.
Illinois State Governor Patrick J. Quinn and Richard J. Durbin, the state’s senior senator, are expected to be briefed about the plan at the White House this (Tuesday) afternoon. Both Democrats, the senators have previously campaigned for the prisoners to be located in Thomson in the hope that it would bring jobs to the local economy as well as making use of a near empty prison complex. However, Republican congressmen for Illinois, Representatives Mark Steven Kirk and Donald Manzullo have expressed skepticism, claiming the move could make Illinois a target for terrorism.
Cyclone Mick wreaks havoc on Fiji
Cyclone Mick, the first storm of the 2009–10 South Pacific cyclone season, has left at least four people dead after battering Fiji on Monday.
The storm inflicted widespread damage throughout the nation, although the island of Viti Levu bore the brunt of the impact. At the height of the storm, wind gusts of 110 km/h (70 mph) blew across the island.
Mick forced thousands into shelters and cut power to a large portion of the country. It triggered severe flooding and uprooted countless trees, and some residents are still without power.
"There's a lot of damage," said Tim Sutton, a spokesman for UNICEF. "Lots of trees down, power lines down everywhere, all the roads around Viti Levu are still closed with flooding and landslides." He described the cyclone as "very vicious".
Although the storm itself has been downgraded and has started to dissipate, officials say that the death toll could increase as contact is established with some of the smaller islands. However, advanced warnings likely reduced the number of fatalities.
On a lighter note, an emergency group of surgeons delivered seven babies during the cyclone's onslaught