TiPb Picks of the Week for December 17, 2011

Every week a few of us from team TiPb will bring you our current favorite, most fun and useful App Store apps, WebApps, jailbreak apps, even the occasional accessory, web site, or desktop app if the mood strikes us. As long as they?re iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch related,...

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/YYhZlCd_3Do/story01.htm

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'Sanford & Son' actor Graham Brown dies at 87 (omg!)

ENGLEWOOD, New Jersey (AP) ? Graham Brown, who appeared on stage at London's Globe Theatre and on television in "Sanford & Son" has died in New Jersey. He was 87.

Barbara Montgomery often appeared with Brown on the stage and had power of attorney on his behalf. She says he died Tuesday of pulmonary failure at the Lillian Booth Actors' Fund Nursing Home in Englewood.

Montgomery says Brown was meticulous and was a gentleman.

Brown often appeared in stage productions of the New York-based Negro Ensemble Company and was a founding member of the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis.

He played a school principal on the 1970s sitcom "Sanford & Son" and a judge on "Law & Order." He also had roles in movies including "Malcolm X," ''Clockers" and "The Muppets Take Manhattan."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/omg_rss/rss_omg_en/news_sanford_son_actor_graham_brown_dies87_231642655/43932147/*http%3A//omg.yahoo.com/news/sanford-son-actor-graham-brown-dies-87-231642655.html

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Correction: Military Sexual Abuse story (AP)

McLEAN, Va. ? In a story Dec. 14 about military sexual abuse, The Associated Press reported erroneously that an attorney representing military members and veterans said she was surprised by the dismissal of a lawsuit. Susan Burke said she was "not surprised."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/usmilitary/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111215/ap_on_re_us/us_military_sexual_abuse

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'Farmville' maker's stock lukewarm in public debut (AP)

NEW YORK ? Zynga's stock got a lukewarm reception in its public debut Friday.

The online game developer's stock fell 36 cents, or nearly 4 percent, to $9.64 in midday trading, though earlier it traded slightly higher. It was by no means the eye-popping jump that's been the norm for freshly public Internet darlings such as Groupon Inc. and LinkedIn Corp.

But CEO Mark Pincus said Zynga's focus is on "delivering great products" that expand audience for social games over the next few years ? and not on the next trading day.

"We didn't have any expectations coming into this whole process," he said in an interview. "We decided to go public a long time ago."

Zynga Inc., which specializes in Facebook games, raised $1 billion in its initial public offering of stock. That makes it the largest Internet-related IPO since Google Inc. went public in 2004 and raised $1.4 billion. Pincus rang the Nasdaq's opening bell in San Francisco, a first in the city for a freshly public company.

The company's roughly 1,700 San Francisco employees woke up at the crack of down to celebrate with cinnamon buns and hot cocoa. Zynga also delivered video of the opening ceremony over the Internet to its offices around the world.

Zynga's $10-per-share IPO price was at the top of its expected range, a sign that investors were eager to dig into the latest in a series of high-profile technology IPOs this year. It values the company at about $7 billion.

Online deals site Groupon, which began trading in early November, has a market capitalization twice that of Zynga's, $14 billion. But Zynga is selling a much bigger chunk of its available shares, 14.3 percent compared with Groupon's 5.5 percent. It's an issue of supply and demand ? selling more shares means investors don't have to scramble to get their hands on them.

Zynga rounds out a year of high-profile Internet IPOs. The biggest of them all, though ? Facebook ? is not expected until after April.

Zynga charges small amounts of money ? a few cents, sometimes a couple of dollars ? for virtual items in online games. The games are free to play. Players can acquire items that range from crops in "Farmville" to buildings in "CityVille," its most popular Facebook game.

With its huge player base and a few loyal spenders, Zynga earned a net income of $90.6 million in 2010, an unusual pre-IPO money-maker in the sector.

Cowen & Co. analyst Doug Creutz, however, initiated coverage Friday with a "Neutral" rating on the stock. Although Zynga is the leader in Facebook gaming, he's concerned that it won't be able to grow fast enough to justify its stock price. Growth in Facebook gaming has slowed, and Zynga's market share has declined from 50 percent to 38 percent of daily active users, he wrote.

He's also concerned that Zynga's famously aggressive and hard-charging culture may not be the best field to grow good games in. Others have raised concerns that the focus on deadlines and profits might be squeezing out creativity and talent.

In November, Groupon raised $700 million in its IPO. The granddaddy of all Internet IPOs might happen next year, as Facebook Inc. is expected to raise as much as $10 billion.

Zynga is trading under the ticker "ZNGA" on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

___

AP Technology Writer Peter Svensson contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111216/ap_on_hi_te/us_zynga_ipo

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Where are Mr. and Mrs. Right? Matrimony suffers slump

A record-low 51 percent of adults aged 18 and older in the United States were married in 2010, compared with 72 percent in 1960, according to a Pew Research Center analysis of census data. NBC's Chris Jansing reports.

By Kari Huus, msnbc.com senior reporter

Is it a hiccup or a long-term bear market for marriage?

A new report shows that the share of American adults who are married dropped to a record low in 2009-2010 ? to just a smidgen over half of population 18 and older. And the age at which Americans first tie the knot has never been higher, according to analysis of U.S. Census data by Pew Research Center published Wednesday.


It?s no secret that the ?market share? of marriage has been in decline for decades ? from 72 percent in 1960 to 51 percent today, a trend that has been accompanied by a rising tolerance for single parents, cohabitation without marriage and other alternatives. At the current pace, the share of U.S. adults who are married will dip to less than half within a few years, the Pew study says.

?

"There?s been a retreat from marriage going on for awhile now," says Bradford Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia. "The economic fallout from the Great Recession has made the retreat from marriage accelerate. That?s just because even today, Americans see marriage at least in part as an economic undertaking. So particularly when partners, especially men, don?t have decent stable work they are more likely to postpone or forego marriage."

More dramatic news from the report was a 5 percent decrease in the number of new marriages between 2009 and 2010, an unusually sharp one-year drop that ?may or may not be related to the sour economy,? according to the Pew study.

Over the long haul, the marriage rate for the 18-29 age group has fallen from 59 percent in 1960 to 20 percent today. Divorce rates soared in the 1960s and '70s, becoming a major factor in the growing contingent of singles in the United States but then leveled off in the last two decades.

Wilcox says that divorce rates remain high, and declines in marriage are particularly concentrated in lower income brackets. He calls the trend the "de-institutionalization of the working class."

"Strong marriages and strong families flourish in a healthy economic and community context. Those contexts have weakened particularly in working class and poor communities in the last 30-40 years," Wilcox said. "People are less likely to be engaged in stable fulltime work, their church community, the Jaycees."

The age of first marriages has climbed to a record high of 26.5 for brides and 28.7 for grooms, Pew reports.

Isaac Brekken / Getty Images

Patrice Washington and Army Quartermaster Victor Mitchell after their wedding ceremony at Chapel of the Flowers in Las Vegas, Nevada on Nov. 11.

?It is not yet known whether today?s young adults are abandoning marriage or merely delaying it,? the study said.

"I think that unlike Europeans, Americans have for the last 40 years still held onto their belief in marriage, but their expectations of what marriage can deliver have increased," says Wilcox of the University of Virginia. "They are desperate to get married but picky about who they will marry and under what conditions, and more tolerant of (behaviors) outside the marriage norms. Mr. Right or Mrs. Right never comes along, so they're willing to have a baby even if Mr. Right isn?t there."

Expectations take a hit after divorce, apparently. The Pew study says that a majority of adults who have never been married hope to get married (61 percent), compared with just 26 percent of adults who have been married but were single again.

Do you think the popularity of marriage will continue to decline in the United States?

?

More from msnbc.com

Click here to follow Kari Huus on Facebook

Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/13/9425241-matrimony-suffers-a-slump

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Bombs halve Iraq's Rumaila oilfield output: officials (Reuters)

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) ? Output at Iraq's Rumaila oilfield has been halved from about 1.4 million barrels per day after a bombing hit southern pipelines, but crude exports were normal, Iraqi officials said on Wednesday.

Iraq is looking to its vast oil resources for future stability as it emerges from years of war. But renewed attacks on its oil infrastructure are a challenge to Iraqi security forces as U.S. troops withdraw by December 31.

Salah Mohammad, general manager of the Rumaila Operating Organization, told Reuters production from Rumaila oilfield was cut by around 700,000 bpd since Tuesday due to the bombing on the pipelines network.

Total production from Rumaila was at around 1.4 million before the bombing, he said.

"We halted production in Rumaila South because of the explosion. It has been halted until now since yesterday," he said. "The pipeline network was a main one."

Rumaila, the workhorse of Iraq's oil industry, has estimated reserves of around 17 billion barrels and produces the bulk of Iraq's total output of 2.95 million bpd now.

The field is being developed by British oil major BP and Chinese partner CNPC.

Three bombs hit an oil pipeline network that transports crude from southern Iraqi oilfields to storage tanks around the oil hub of Basra, causing a fire that raged all night.

Iraqi officials said the blaze had been put out on Wednesday morning, but an oil police source later said strong winds had reignited the fire.

Iraq's oil exports from Basra will not be affected, an oil ministry spokesman said.

"We have enough storage until we repair these pipelines. We will bypass the oil pumping operations through another pipeline network until repairs are done," spokesman Asim Jihad said.

It will take no more than a week to repair the damage done to the pipelines, he said.

On Wednesday, export flow was at normal rates of 1.68 million bpd from Basra, a shipping source told Reuters. An oil official said Iraq had enough crude stored to keep exports at same levels for two-three days.

The pipeline that was hit was carrying crude to the Zubair 1 storage facility near Basra.

In early June, militants blew up a storage tank at Zubair 1, despite tight security.

OIL SECURITY WORRIES

Basra, which handles most of Iraq's oil exports, has generally seen fewer attacks this year than other cities in the country following an overall decline in levels of violence since the peak of sectarian conflict in Iraq in 2006-07.

In October, two bombs hit pipeline networks transporting crude from Iraq's Rumaila oilfield, the country's biggest, cutting output from the field to 530,000 barrels per day from about 1.24 million bpd.

Iraq's oil police have stepped up patrols to protect installations against a possible surge in al Qaeda attacks as U.S. troops withdraw before December 31, the head of the force said on Tuesday.

An industry source said international oil companies working in the southern oilfields had been asked to reduce production after the attack, but it was not clear if this was a precautionary measure or because of damage to the pipelines.

The companies will look at ways of bypassing the damaged sections of pipeline if necessary, the source said.

(Additional reporting by Rania El Gamal and Ahmed Rasheed in Baghdad; writing by Rania El Gamal; Editing by Alison Birrane)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111214/wl_nm/us_iraq_oil_security

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[OOC] Avalia: Lore

Lore - this is still being worked on!

The Kingdom of Avalia

Avalia is a kingdom, located in an area of the world with a moderate climate. The kingdom centres around the three great cities, known as the Triad. In the centre, there is a great lake, which provides water for the inhabitants of the cities, and the outlying villages. The lake hosts the King's palace, now empty, along with the Temple of Ages.
Five years ago, the King disappeared without explanation, other than he was snatched by unnatural forces from his chamber. A message was found, carved into the wall above his bed - "The Crown rests with the sum of the infinite."

The Great War

Any kingdom faces its own hardships. For the kingdom of Avalia, the great war with the Feroul Kingdom was its greatest so far. The fighting tore through the outlying villages to the West, eventually resulting in a siege situation focused on the City of Drexton, that lasted for nearly six months. Eventually, time took its toll on the attackers, and slowly, they began to retreat to their own land leaving desolate wastelands west of the city as a long-lasting reminder of what had happened.

The Feroul Kingdom

The Feroul Kingdom, to the West, is fueled by tyranny and fear. The poor are kept poor, and the rich made richer, and promises of wealth made to give the inhabitants hope to obey by. The kingdom plays host to many different creatures, from the common humans, elfs, and earthly creatures, to corrupt creatures of darkness, and even dragons.
It is strongly believed that the ruler of the Feroul Kingdom became aware that Avalia was under no kingship at all, and saw an opportunity to expand his kingdom.... well, he was wrong about that.

The Infinity Vault

Taken from translated scriptures from the Altar of Ages:

"....that he cast his breath on the walls of stone, and bid that they stand strong. With the shard in hand, he muttered unto the air, that it would thicken before him, that he might cut into the fabric of what was there before us all." "The Lord fell silent as the air followed his command, and with the shard raised high, he carved lines through the thickening clouds - a square falling away to reveal nothing but a void. Darkness - nothing more. The Lord pushed it to the far side of the room, and stretched it from corner to corner, then pulled it back towards the doorway, oblivion approaching in his wake. Satisfied, he closed the door, and turned to our gathering of five,"
"This is our space for all time, and time will always be ours. This is the Vault of Infinity, a safe haven for items coveted, from those who seek only to steal them."
"And you who bear witness to this, go forth. Tell the people of the wonders you have seen today. Tell them that the vault will only open on the longest day, when the sun casts no shadows on the land. Tell them that those who will give may take, and those who take will give their lives."
-From the account of Arromedes

The Broken Heart

Another account of the legend suggests that Arromedes received the 'shard' from the Lord, but he had no-one left to pass it on to - rather than give it to one of the other 'witnesses' to the creation of the vault, it is thought that he hid the 'shard', and gave each of the four witnesses a part of a map, believed to be known as the Broken Heart.

"I set forth today for fresher waters, so to speak. My life has been a part of many magnificent things, that I can't even begin to share in this lifetime, however, I am left with the matter of the gift bestowed upon me by his grace, and what will become of it. My brethren do not see eye to eye as they once did, and it hurts me... so I will give them each a quarter of my heart, that they may some day reunite the pieces and their brotherhood, and when that day comes, they will know where to go..."
-From the last entry of Arromedes in the scriptures of the Altar of Ages.

It is unclear what these pieces of the Broken Heart look like, or how they will lead those who bring them together to the 'shard'.

The Guardians

The witnesses of the vault's creation numbered five:

Arromedes - The keeper of the 'Shard'. He was a selfless man, who sought only to aid the people. The Vault, designed to reduce the number of wealth-induced crimes and fighting was supported by him. No-one knows for certain, but it is believed that he was a gardener in the Lord's home, with a certain liking for Roses. It is unknown how he died, or when exactly. Some believe the Broken Heart will lead to his tomb, where the Shard is buried with him.

Occliodes - The watchman. Occliodes served his life as a night watchman, never complaining or wishing for more than he had in his life. The Lord rewarded him with an understanding of magic. It is said that his tomb lies far to the North of the Triad of Cities, somewhere near the border with the Baolklands, though no-one who has found it has ever returned.

Cassaus - The Librarian. Cassaus was the head librarian of the Eternal Library, a gathering of all records for all of documented time in Avalia. Those who knew him would know that he regarded knowledge as the one true measure of wealth. His tomb lies towards the South of Avalia, containing a vast array of books. It is believed that the tomb is guarded by spirits of the dead, but like so many things, it is unconfirmed.

Pentrei - The Inventor. Pentrei was known as one of the foremost experts in the revolutionary field of steam-powered machinery. It is believed that he designed the initial Skyport system in the cities - powered by magic and water, resources they would not likely run short of. His tomb is known to be near the Hell's Gate - the main passage West to the Feroul Kingdom - but it is booby trapped, with mechanisms likely designed by Pentrei himself, and who knows what else lies deeper....

Brutus - The Warrior. Brutus fought many battles in the name of the kingdom. His service was truly worthy of a knighthood, but he declined, rather his service was remembered, than acknowledged by a title. After the creation of the vault, and the Lord's disappearance, Brutus began to wonder about the ever-mounting contents, and what harm there would be in taking from it. The others cast the idea aside, along with Brutus himself. Brutus left, determined that one day the treasure would be his, but to no fruition. It is said that Arromedes presented him with a piece of the Broken Heart whilst Brutus was on his deathbed. Brutus' tomb is known to be found in the Drexton City Centre - a momument next to a beautiful fountain. The monument itself is enchanted - above the sealed stone doorway, there is an engraved message.
"Those that seek the truth, seek shelter from the storm.
Those that seek their own truth, seek a watery grave."
No-one knows what this implies, or what exactly lies in the tomb itself, but the stone walls are unbreakable by the tools of man. Some say the Lord returned, and crafted it in the dead of night, that it would be a resting place fit for a faithful servant to the kingdom.

The Lord

There is very little known about the Lord, or if he even exists. All we have to go on are the accounts of the five witnesses who saw his acts on that day, and they don't describe him in any detail. If the vault does exist, and was indeed created by him, we can safely assume that the Lord is a powerful magician, capable of acts almost godlike.

The salvation of man lies not in his ability to forgive,
but in his ability to forget what is forgiven.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/LAJv4pn09ZQ/viewtopic.php

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