Jobs was just 21 when he helped found the fledgling computer company. Apple is now one of the largest companies in the world. Its resurgent success was largely due to Jobs’s uncompromising vision as CEO, where he introduced not only many Mac products but also the iPod, iPhone, and iPad.

Jobs suffered from a rare form of pancreatic cancer. He stepped down as CEO earlier this year. He had left Apple previously in 1985 but returned in 1996 and created one of the largest tech company turnarounds in US history.

“We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today,” read a statement attributed to Apple’s board of directors. ”Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve. His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts.”

The long, sad fight with cancer was brutal to watch. He will be missed.

Steve Jobs, co-founder and longtime CEO of Apple, has died | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

“Knakks” will change the way users experience and engage with mobile technology

NORTHFIELD, Ill. – September 19, 2011 – Talk3, the Chicago-area venture funded technology company that is changing the way consumers and marketers communicate, announced today that it is seeking Beta testers as it rolls out the soft launch of knakks.

The new social mobile app, available for download at Apple’s app store, promises to transform personalization within the digital world. Knakks puts consumers incontrol over how information is gathered, harnessed and shared with marketers,while the app helps themsolve real world problems that are top of mind.

“The premise behind knakks is that everyone has a “knack” for something – dining out, sports, movies, travel – it could be anything really,” said Eric Hillerbrand, CEO of Talk3. “And everyday people also have problems to solve, like where to take grandma for a quiet late afternoon meal at a location that’s easily accessible. We bring these two worlds together to let people share solutions, andwe’ve built the technology to make the smartphone an intelligent device that adapts to your desires and priorities, increasingly anticipating your needs with each use.”

Because people tend to be passionate – and knowledgeable – about food and dining out, the first iteration of knakks focuses on that category. Within the app, users set alerts for their favorite restaurants or types of cuisines for notifications of special offers or events that match their criteria. Knakks also allows the user to create his or her own filters that can be used to sort and organize resources, functionality and social connections.

Knakks’ intelligence begins with the involvement of passionate and knowledgeable curators who build solution models. These models, filtered by an individual user’s profile,can provide real-time, on-demand solutions for any number of users. The community calls this process “knakking.”

“The power of ‘knakking’ – creating an on-the-fly intelligent personal assistant based on your immediate needs – changes the way we think of mobile applications,” said Hillerbrand. “Unlike simple restaurant review apps, knakks users are posing real-world questions relevant to their unique situations. In return, they receive solutions that specifically fit their needs. It is our belief that this ‘social advertising’ willput consumers on an equal playing field with marketers,” he added.

Beta testing is currently open and will continue for a period of four to six weeks before the formal launch of knakks later this fall. Beta testers will have the opportunity to provide input for what will be market-leading innovation and get a sneak preview of the roll-out as part of the first community of users. Talk3 particularly encourages expert tech reviewers and software testers to be a part of this process, as well as “foodies,” dining enthusiasts and consumers-at-large. To sign up, visit www.knakks.com and enter your email address on the home page to receive a Beta invitation.

###

Editor’s Note: Interview requests for Mr. Hillerbrand are available by contacting Lisa Gunggoll at 708.829.8669 or via email at lisa@lg-pr.com.

About talk3:  Talk3 is a venture funded technology company based in Northfield, Ill., which utilizes patent-pending Web 3.0 technologies. Our mission is to radically change how consumers and marketers communicate and what they communicate about. For more information visit www.talkthree.com.

About knakks: Knakks is a technology-leading social mobile app that is changing personalization in the digital world. Our technology brings together people who have a desire to express their passions – and want to share it – with individuals who are seeking answers to their own unique questions or problems. For more information visit http://www.knakks.com.

Contact:

Lisa Gunggoll, LG-PR
708.829.8669
lisa@lg-pr.com

Chicago-Based Tech Firm Talk3 Announces Soft Launch, Call for Beta Testers for Game-Changing Social Mobile App | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

CHICAGO, Sept. 19, 2011 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — AT&T* today announced that customers in Chicago will have access to the latest generation of wireless network technology from AT&T.

4G LTE is more efficient than other mobile broadband technologies, providing responsive performance for customers when they need it most.

“We continue to see demand for mobile broadband skyrocket, and now our customers in Chicago have access to the latest in mobile broadband with 4G LTE,” said Dave Fine, vice president and general manager of Illinois.  ”Customers can now get everything from e-mail to apps to streaming video even faster.”

AT&T currently offers four 4G LTE-compatible devices: the HTC Jetstream tablet, the AT&T USBConnect Momentum 4G, the AT&T Mobile Hotspot Elevate 4G, and the AT&T USBConnect Adrenaline.

AT&T will continue to expand its 4G LTE footprint in Chicago over the coming months. AT&T has also launched 4G LTE in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Atlanta, and plans to offer 4G LTE in at least 15 markets and to 70 million Americans by the end of the year.

AT&T is positioned to deliver a great mobile broadband experience to its customers, now and in the future. Not only is AT&T deploying 4G LTE, it has also deployed fast HSPA+ technology throughout its mobile broadband network. HSPA+, when combined with enhanced backhaul, provides customers with 4G speeds. The two complementary technologies mean that customers will have more consistent mobile broadband speeds as they move in and out of 4G LTE areas. Customers of competitors who have transitioned to 4G LTE without further speed upgrades to their existing networks are likely to see a steep drop-off in speeds when they move out of 4G LTE areas.

For information about 4G LTE coverage, devices, and features, please visit the AT&T wireless network page.

For updates on the AT&T wireless network, please visit the AT&T network news page.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

Limited 4G LTE availability in select markets. Deployment ongoing. 4G LTE device and data plan required. Up to 10x claim compares 4G LTE download speeds to industry average 3G download speeds. LTE is a trademark of ETSI. Learn more about 4G LTE at att.com/network.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company and one of the most honored companies in the world. Its subsidiaries and affiliates — AT&T operating companies — are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation’s fastest mobile broadband network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile broadband and emerging 4G capabilities, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide of any U.S. carrier, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries.  It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse® and AT&T | DIRECTV brands. The company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T Advertising Solutions and AT&T Interactive are known for their leadership in local search and advertising.

Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com.  This AT&T news release and other announcements are available at http://www.att.com/newsroom and as part of an RSS feed at www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter at @ATT.

© 2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Mobile broadband not available in all areas. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies.

Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this press release contains financial estimates and other forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results might differ materially. A discussion of factors that may affect future results is contained in AT&T’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. AT&T disclaims any obligation to update and revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise.

SOURCE AT&T Inc.

http://www.att.com

4G LTE From AT&T Available In Chicago | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

CHICAGO, Sept. 15, 2011 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — Social Media Week Chicago city partners, Zocalo Group and the Chicago Tribune, announced today that Adam Bain, Tucker Max and Julia Allison will join the ranks of Social Media Week Chicago headliners. For a full agenda of next week’s activities, please visit www.socialmediaweek.org/chicago.

Adam Bain, President of Global Revenue at Twitter, will lead a compelling session about Twitter’s future and its impact thus far. Additional speakers include Vince Casanova, President and COO at Chicago Tribune Media Group and Paul Rand, President/CEO of Zocalo Group. The event will take place Wednesday, September 21 from 1-2pm at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.

In addition, Tucker Max, author of the best-selling book, I Hope they Serve Beer in Hell and nominee to Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential List in 2009, will join Julia Allison, a nationally syndicated columnist, TV personality, and self-proclaimed social media junkie as they discuss how this growing space has transformed their lives. The event will take place Tuesday, September 20 from 7-8pm at the Hyatt Regency Chicago.

Social Media Week Chicago events are free and open to the public, but registration is required and filling up quickly. Visit www.socialmediaweek.org/chicago and choose the “LOGIN/REGISTER” tab for registration details. Events include a wide range of topics from “Always On, Always Connected, and Always Local” to ” The Google+ Project: Pivoting Around People” to “Chicago Sports Teams Talk Social Media.”

“The participation of the Chicago community and our sponsors and partners has created an impressive agenda for Social Media Week Chicago that provides something for any taste,” adds Sarah Beardsley, Chicago Tribune Editorial Events Director.

City partners Zocalo Group and the Chicago Tribune want to recognize and thank Social Media Week Chicago’s sponsors and partners for their continued support and contributions. Sponsors include Nielsen, Frito-Lay, Experian, MWW Group, Actiance, SocialVibe and Nokia. Event partners include the Word of Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA), CDW, Tribeca Flashpoint Media Arts Academy, UIUC’s Illini Center, Rockit Ranch Productions, Hyatt Regency Chicago, Columbia College and Chicago magazine.

“The momentum of Social Media Week Chicago has been a truly amazing thing to watch,” commented Paul Rand, President/CEO of Zocalo Group. “Everyone should feel very proud of the thought leadership and energy surrounding next week’s event.”

Along with Social Media Week activities in Chicago, simultaneous events will take place in Beirut, Berlin, Buenos Aires, Bogota, Glasgow, Los Angeles, Milan, Moscow, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo and Vancouver.

Join the Social Media Week Chicago conversation by following @SMWChicago on Twitter and connect with us on Facebook or LinkedIn for real-time updates and to help promote the event across your own social networks. A number of events will also be livestreamed and can be followed by visiting www.livestream.com/socialmediaweek.

About Zocalo Group

Zocalo Group is a full-service word-of-mouth and social media marketing agency, helping leading consumer and business to business brands become the most talked about and recommended in their category. Based in Chicago, Zocalo Group has received numerous industry awards for brand programs and measurement initiatives. Zocalo Group is a unit of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC) and Ketchum. For more information, please visit www.zocalogroup.com.

About the Chicago Tribune

For 164 years, the Chicago Tribune has been a market-leading publication of the Tribune Company.  Reaching five million readers each week in print, online and through radio, television and live events, the Tribune is known for its public service journalism and watchdog reporting.   In 2010, the Tribune launched Trib Nation, a community outreach and audience engagement program that includes a broad menu of live events such as Chicago Forward: Conversations About the Future, a series of public policy discussions; programs by columnists and other journalists; literary events including Author Talks, Lit Fest, and Literary Awards; and classes and seminars under the banner TribU: Lessons for Life.

About Social Media Week

Social Media Week is owned and operated by Crowdcentric Media LLC and is a global platform connecting people, content, and conversation around emerging trends in social and mobile media. Delivered primarily through a network of internationally hosted conferences and online through social media, Social Media Week literally connects hundreds of thousands of people every year through learning experiences that aim to advance our understanding of social media’s role in society. To learn more, visit http://socialmediaweek.org.

SOURCE Zocalo Group

http://www.zocalogroup.com

Social Media Week Chicago Announces Adam Bain of Twitter, Tucker Max and Julia Allison to Join Event Schedule | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

CHICAGO, Sept. 1, 2011 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — Power Technology, Inc. (Pinksheets: PWTC), which recently acquired Flipside USA & Snakebaorder.com, announces today that the Company has entered into discussions to partner with the maker of a portable solar powered battery charger system for iPhones & iPods.

Key benefits to the solar charger system include maximizing the performance and stabilization of the battery with cell tuning engineering as well as promoting green energy and energy recycling.

This system will allow iPhone & iPod (including iPhone 3G & iPodTouch) users the ability to charge their devices instantly from the sun. This rechargeable power pack system will provide on-the-fly power to these devices with a service voltage of 5V. When fully charged, the power pack can supply the backup energy by taking in the light of the sun or any electrical bulb and converting it into power for the device.

Apple has sold over 30 million iPodTouch/iPhone units to date. If every iPhone/iPodTouch sold was fully charged every day (averaging the battery capacity) via solar power instead of fossil fuel power, approximately 50.644gWh of energy could be saved. That is roughly equivalent to 75,965,625 lbs. of CO2 in the atmosphere per year.

CEO Kara Guire stated: “We are impressed with their technology as well as the professionalism they have displayed thus far. One of the key interests at the moment is bringing their technology to the US markets which will enable us to tap into a big portion of the iPhone & iPad market”.

About the Battery Industry

Batteries represent about $36 billion in revenues today and are expected to grow to more than $50 billion over the next five or so years, with rechargeable batteries leading the way. The growth will take place worldwide.

The hybrid vehicle battery, which accounts for 1.7% of the world’s rechargeable market, is expected to grow to 4.2% of the market by 2013. This surge is based on conservative assumptions about hybrid car growth.

The ultracapacitor and fuel cell battery growth forecast may also be low, given potential technology/performance breakthroughs in the next few years. Dependent on the performance of their materials, they store and release more energy faster than conventional batteries, and they have an almost limitless cycle life.

Growth in renewable energy, like solar and wind power, will drive additional demand for storage capacity, especially with increased smart grid electricity deployment all over the world.

Very few storage technologies have actually reached the scalable commercial deployment phase. Several companies produce lithium-ion batteries, but utilities have only begun to experiment with them for balancing loads or storing power. General Electric recently jumped into the market for sodium batteries, computer-sized batteries that can store large amounts of power at wind farms.

About Snakeboarding

Snakeboarding, a sport started in 1989 with the invention of the Snakeboard by college students James Fisher, Oliver Macleod-Smith, and Simon King, who were looking to simulate and combine the sensations of surfing, snowboarding, skiing and skateboarding, has a colorful history and has attracted riders from all across the world. The key advantage of the Snakeboard is that riders can generate a forward motion, even uphill, from a standstill position without their feet ever touching the ground. The Snakeboard’s steerability makes it easy to maneuver and fun to ride.

Within 5 years from being invented, the sport gained a considerable amount of popularity and the First Annual World Championship was held in Guernsey, an island off the coast of England. The sport continued to spread globally under the name “Snakeboard International” from 1994 through 1998 when the founders sold their patent.

After 1998, the sport continued to increase ridership and build their fan base worldwide while gaining events coverage on top networks including Fox Sports Net, ESPN, and MTV Sports.

In 2001, in an effort to capitalize on the growth of the sport, Kara formed Flipside USA and began buying boards in bulk and whatever other boards she could get her hands on to keep up with the growing demand, many times selling out of inventory on pre-orders. Since 1998 the sport has retained its hard core rider base and hosted Annual World Championships in various cities all around the world. However it has yet to have a company step in with a coordinated marketing effort and a thorough enough understanding of the logistics necessary to significantly ramp up production and grow their audience. There are only currently three manufacturers of boards, and the industry is ripe for an aggressive campaign.

For more information visit www.flipsideusa.com and www.snakeboarder.com

Safe Harbor: This release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements contained in this release that are not historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain. Actual performance and results may differ materially from that projected or suggested herein due to certain risks and uncertainties including, without limitation, ability to obtain financing and regulatory and shareholder approvals for anticipated actions.

CONTACT:  Power Technology, Inc. Kara Guire, (847) 796-0534 kara@flipsideinternationalinc.com

SOURCE Power Technology, Inc.

http://www.snakeboarder.com
http://www.flipsideusa.com

Power Technology Enters Discussions to Energize Apple iPhones & iPods | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Originally posted here:
Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Procurement Manager Receives Diversity Business Award

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Procurement Manager Receives Diversity Business Award | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

CHICAGO, March 10, 2011 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — There is a bill being signed by Governor Quinn today (HB 3659) which will devastate the Illinois tech community and cost us jobs in the State of Illinois.

In response to Governor Quinn’s approval of HB 3659, Brian Littleton, Founder and CEO of ShareASale issued the following statement:

“Governor Quinn has spoken unequivocally that the growing, innovative, job-creating industry known as Affiliate Marketing is entirely unwelcome in Illinois.  This is directly contrary to actions he took just a few weeks ago during his budget address when he announced the creation of the Illinois Innovation Council to address job growth in the tech community.

Let us remember, the reason the bill was written was to collect revenue for the State of Illinois.  This bill does the opposite.

Due to the fact that out-of-state online retailers (any and all retailers and not just the one target that everyone is mentioning) can simply terminate their affiliate programs in Illinois, thus removing themselves from this bill’s grasp, no revenue will be collected.   That means no revenue, lost contracts for Illinois businesses, and loss of jobs in Illinois.

It is entirely unfortunate that the Federal government has not acted despite everyone on all sides of this issue knowing that it is truly a problem that only the Federal government can solve.  Governor Quinn jumped the gun on this.  Despite the fact that the federal government has indicated that this exact issue would be considered during this session – the Governor’s early action will make that all moot as the damage will already have been done in Illinois.

Currently, Illinois affiliate marketers are being forced to pack up their businesses and move to another state because of a bill which started with a lack of understanding, and finished with poor judgment.  Governor Quinn has spoken unequivocally that the growing, innovative, job-creating industry known as Affiliate Marketing is entirely unwelcome in Illinois.  Where we were once poised to become the “Silicon Valley” of the Midwest, we are now forced to look to other states to operate our businesses.   We have confirmed that neighboring state Governors and Lt. Governors have been in direct contact in an attempt to bring Affiliate Marketers to their borders.

Governor Quinn has instead decided to side with big-box retailers – those who destroyed main street in the first place – in an issue of “fairness”.  This bill does not help Main Street businesses who were simply used by the big-box retailers to put a better face on the issue.   When this bill becomes a law in July of 2011, there will be no increased revenue for Main Street.  It also won’t lead to more people shopping on Main Street as opposed to online; and it certainly will not create more of a level playing field for Main Street than there was prior to this bill.   Unfortunately, the big-box retailers have fooled Ma and Pa into thinking that they are on the same side, when in fact, they never will be.

The irony is that during his last budget address, the ink still not dry, Governor Quinn set up an Illinois Innovation Council designed to foster growth in the growing tech community of Illinois.  Unfortunately, the very first thing he did was pass a bill that a) isn’t fair b) doesn’t create any revenue for Illinois and c) kills job growth in an industry that he wished to grow.

Here are two critical things that have to happen now:

1. The State of Illinois Department of Revenue MUST set up a mechanism to track new revenue coming in from this bill on July 1st.   If the Department of Revenue fails to do this, it will be an irresponsible lack of action – piling on to the already devastating loss of jobs in Illinois.
2. The Federal government, specifically in Illinois the office of Senator Dick Durbin, must take great care into looking at this issue – as there is still time before July 1st during which he can save the State of Illinois from the unfortunate actions of the Governor.

Essentially, once the bill becomes law, out-of-state retailers terminate affiliate marketers in Illinois, resulting in Affiliate-powered businesses large and small being decimated.  This is quite a different outcome than is being touted by this bill as “fairness” for all parties involved. ”

About ShareASale:

Chicago-based ShareASale is a provider of e-commerce tracking and affiliate management solutions for retailers.  By facilitating relationships between affiliate marketers and the over 3,300 merchants, ShareASale helps its clients tap into new sources of revenue.  Since 2001, ShareASale has been committed to driving all-around profitability based on fair, honest and proactive practices.  ShareASale’s efforts have been rewarded with multiple industry awards including “Best Affiliate Network” in 2006 and 2007 from industry forum ABestWeb, the “Fair Practice Award” from AffiliateFairPlay.com, and the “Affiliate Marketing Advocate” Pinnacle Award from industry conference Affiliate Summit.

SOURCE ShareASale

http://www.shareasale.com

HB 3659; What’s ‘Fair’ About Harming Online Illinois Businesses? | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

fridaynitebYtes.com

fridaynitebYtes is .comedy for screenagers, the home of the Internet’s first (and only) streaming comedy show created with, for and by our audience: tweens and teens.

Episode Three is the latest interactive installment and the next step in bringing comedy to our screenage audience.

Because the comedy is clean and funny, fridaynitebYtes is safe for kids and their parents (although we promise only that the kids will laugh).

After the laughs, new viewers can join the site to comment, interact and contribute to the next show (while learning about humor, internet production and the media arts).

Joe Keefe, Executive Producer of fridaynitebYtes, is one of the Ancient Mariners of Chicago comedy. Starting his career on Romper Room and detouring through National Lampoon and Second City, Joe went on to found and execproduce Second City Communications, the production arm of Second City Theaters. In addition to delivering the funny for fridaynitebYtes, Joe teaches broadcasting at Columbia College.

fridaynitebYtes’ ensemble of talented young writers, actors and producers are all uber-trained in the Chicago tradition but you do not need to be a professional to get involved. Already, over 50 Chicago area Screenagers have appeared in our episodes. And one of the site’s members got on-screen recognition as a co-creator when his submission to the site inspired the rap video “Hot Jam.”

At fridaynitebYtes, our audience works with our ensemble to create each show.

Check out the site and enjoy the show on 3/5/11 at 7:30 PM @ fridaynitebYtes.com!

ScreenAgers Create More Comedy at fridaynitebytes.com | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Web-based Content Management Systems (“CMS”) like Drupal, DotNetNuke, Joomla, Umbraco and WordPress will be featured at CMS Expo May 2nd through 4th, in Evanston, at the Hilton Orrington Hotel & Conference Center.

This will the CMS Association’s 5th annual conference, and the third time at the historic Orrington hotel. “Evanston is the perfect place for our conference, and the Orrington is simply unequaled in quality and service throughout Chicago,” said conference Co-Host John Coonen.

Hosted by the CMS Association, CMS Expo is the place for CMS pros to learn the best web skills and business practices, while making valuable business connections, all under one roof.

2011 CMS Expo
May 2, 3, 4, 2011
Hilton Orrington Hotel
Evanston, Illinois

Over 400 web pros are expected to participate in over eighty learning sessions, plus keynotes, interactive panel discussions and roundtable discussions.

Who Should Attend:

• Web-Based Business Owners & Marketers
• Technology Directors & Managers
• Web Creatives & Producers
• Consultants & Developers

Business Sectors Represented:

• Small Business & Entrepreneurial Mid-Tier Companies
• Education: Colleges & Universities
• Government: Municipal, State & Federal
• Enterprise-Level Non-Profit Organizations

Learning Tracks:

The 2011 CMS Expo will feature nine Learning Tracks, covering what’s new and relevant in the fast-changing web content industry, including:

Business Track – 3 full days of learning from the world’s top business minds, including sessions on business models, mobile commerce, SEO, web marketing and more
Tech Foundations – Come learn HTML5, CSS3, JQuery, Mootools, etc
Creative Foundations – Design, writing, blogging, audio, video & more
Comparison Track – Compare many of the world’s top CMSes, apps & add-ons
Evaluation Track – Learn and demo new products and services for the web world
DotNetNuke CMS – The #1 .net CMS, with over 10,000 apps and add-ons!
Drupal CMS – Powering Whitehouse.gov and many major sites worldwide!
Joomla! CMS – The most popular pure community-powered CMS on the planet!
Umbraco CMS – The fastest-growing .net-powered CMS today!

Registration Includes:

• Access to All CMS Learning Sessions and Exhibitors
• Delicious Meals – Breakfast, Lunch & Snacks
• CMS Head-to-Head Comparison & Evaluation Sessions
• CMS KickStart Basic Training For New CMS Users
• CMS Future Roadmap Sessions For Advanced CMS Users
• Socials & Business Networking Events
• CMSA Awards Celebration

Price: $279 / day or $779 for the full conference

Check the site this week for their “Snowbird Special,” offering a $200 discount for a 3-day pass.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

For information or to register go to http://CMSExpo.net or call (815) 455-2900

CMS Expo Conference Returns To Evanston | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

QR, short for “Quick Response,” is a square-shaped bar code that can be read with the camera on a smart phone, and can be used to direct consumers to a variety of web based content on their smart phones.

Palmer Printing, a leader in commercial sheet fed variable data printing (a technology used for mass QR code printing) joined forces with Clique Studios, a Chicago based interactive web design and development firm, to bring local advertising to the next level through the use of QR in a new business venture, ScanForDeals.com.

Neighborhood locals and passersby will be able to scan the 600 square foot QR Code each day to instantly receive a deal on their smartphone within walking distance of the code to a local establishment.

Simply presenting the coupon on their phone to the merchant allows them to receive the deal. Newer establishments in the area such as Jimmy Green’s, as well as classic neighborhood favorites like Blackie’s are some of the first to adopt this new technology.

While Palmer and Clique are interested in promoting the use of their technology, ultimately, they are looking to drive sales to the local businesses in their neighborhood for the benefit of their community.

About ScanForDeals.com

ScanForDeals.com works with local merchants to provide affordable billboard advertising through the use of QR and mobile technology. Until now, billboard advertising has been costly or cost prohibitive with little to no data on its effectiveness for small businesses. Merchants participating in ScanForDeals.com programs receive analytic information from viewers scanning the billboard, and only incur minimal costs on the days their advertisement is run.

For more information on ScanForDeals.com, email: info@scanfordeals.com

About Palmer Printing:

Palmer Printing, established in 1937 in historic Printers Row, takes old world experience and craftsmanship and blends them with today’s technology. As a leader in variable data printing specialized for QR marketing campaigns, and over 60,000 square feet of factory space, Palmer Printing manufactures everything under one roof.

For more information on Palmer Printing, email: jmarhsall@palmer-printing.com

About Clique Studios:

Clique Studios, is a group of interactive professionals who think big and design bigger, specializing in Chicago web development and mobile marketing technologies. The team at Clique have been early adopters of using QR creatively for clients, and in 2010 launched Gorillascan.com, a free QR marketing tool to promote the creative use of dynamic QR codes.

For more information on Clique Studios, email: buildsomething@cliquestudios.com

Giant QR Code Delivers Giant Deals to Chicago | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

The comedian has declared this Wednesday, Nov. 17 “National Unfriend Day” — a pretend holiday on which he hopes all Americans will stop and go through their Facebook accounts to weed out random acquaintances and old classmates with whom they’re not truly friends.

“You want to know who your friends are?” he explains. “Post a status update that says ‘I’m moving this weekend and I need help.’ The people that respond? Those are your friends! Everyone else isn’t.”

In preparation for NUD, Kimmel has drafted his own official Declaration of Indefriendence. ‘Late Night with Jimmy Kimmel’ regular, Uncle Frank, read the formal document on the air last week.

And the host has brought a string of guests into the studio to endorse the idea. Lisa Kudrow stopped by for a deadpan monologue about what real friendship is (she’d know, since she was a Friend — get it!?) in honor of NUD. Check out her clip after the jump.

By all means, this Wednesday, if you’re thinking of cutting some ties, feel free to participate in NUD and tell us whose unfulfilling “friendship” you plan to drop. First, behold Kimmel’s announcement (with Shatner’s endorsement) here:

Originally reported by PopEater.com. Read the original article here.

Jimmy Kimmel, William Shatner and Lisa Kudrow Announce ‘National Unfriend Day’ | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

In Chicago, members of the Pumping Station: One hacker space have turned a bicycle and trailer into a glow-in-the-dark ice cream maker.

Outside San Francisco, members of the Noisebridge hacker space sent an amateur weather balloon 70,000 feet into the sky.

And at the All Hands Active hacker space in Ann Arbor, Mich., a woman with a neuroscience degree turned an empty propane tank into a musical instrument.

In more than 70 hacker spaces in the U.S. and Canada, do-it-yourselfers are drilling, gluing, soldering and welding just about anything you can imagine.

Some spaces consist of little more than a large room where they share tools and expertise, while others are equipped with expensive, computer-controlled power tools.

While the focus at some hacker spaces is primarily on electronics, at others, sawdust flies and sewing machines whir as members build hybrid objects of a less technological variety.

The spaces also offer learning opportunities through classes on anything from brewing beer to picking locks, and demonstrations of new contraptions.

On a recent weeknight at the Brooklyn hacker space NYC Resistor, a visitor from Brazil gave a talk about how to build a pinball machine.

The hackers at NYC Resistor have some experience with recreational machinery; they once turned an old slot machine into a robot that mixes alcoholic drinks, from Bloody Marys to Dirty Chihuahuas.

“Imagine kittens with jet packs flying around in a room,” says NYC Resistor co-founder Bre Pettis. “NYC Resistor is a force of chaos in the world.”

All that energy and creativity is made possible by a well-equipped and stable place to work, which is essentially what these hacker spaces are. They wouldn’t survive without some financial support, so most have monthly dues between $50 and $100. A handful of the spaces are commercial enterprises, but most are democratically run nonprofits.

“It’s a combination of community, as well as opportunities for people to express themselves through making things and learning more and more about what they’re enthusiastic about and really love,” says Mitch Altman, co-founder of the San Francisco hacker space Noisebridge. “Each space is unique and over time all of the spaces … get more diverse.”

The diversity of the hacker space is particularly visible at Philadelphia’s Hive 76 where, on a recent weekend, one member made business cards by etching beef jerky with a laser cutter while another played his iPod through a small suitcase that had been transformed into a boombox. Jack Zylkin, a 26-year-old electrical engineer, mashed new technology with old by making a computer keyboard out of an old manual typewriter.

Before he started wiring up old typewriters, Zylkin was making wooden puzzles at home. He used his bedroom as a silk screen studio and his kitchen as a wood shop.

“Before I came here to Hive 76, I had a drill press right next to my sink,” Zylkin says. “I’d be drilling a hole in something with the drill press, and all the wood shavings I’d just brushed into the sink trap.”

Hacker spaces are making it possible — and in some cases profitable — for tinkerers like Zylkin to pursue their creative impulses and to make things that, until now, have gone unimagined.

“[Hive 76] gave me a place to put all my tools and meet other crazy people who were also at risk of burning their houses down,” his says. “This place rescued me.”

Originally reported by National Public Radio. Read the original story here.

DIY ‘Hackers’ Tinker Everyday Things Into Treasure | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

NAPERVILLE, Ill., Nov. 2, 2010 /CHICAGOPRESSRELEASE.COM/ — TechAmerica Midwest today applauded the winners of the Chicago Innovation Awards, an annual awards banquet to recognize the city’s most innovative new products and services. The awards were held for the 9th consecutive year at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, and were presented on Monday, November 1st.

The winners include Abbott; Chicago Transit Authority; crowdSPRING; Lextech Labs; Master Lock; Molex; MJSI, Inc.; Smart Medical Technology; SoCore; and USG Corp. Congratulations also to the People’s Choice Honoree: Touch Taste Technologies, and the Up-and-Comer Award Honoree: InContext Solutions.

“We congratulate the winners of these prestigious awards, and welcome many of these companies to TechAmerica membership,” said Ed Longanecker, Executive Director and Regional Vice President, TechAmerica. “TechAmerica is excited to highlight these companies as they continue to influence technology development in Illinois and throughout the rest of the world.”

TechAmerica welcomes many of the Chicago Innovation Award winners as new members of the association, including Abbott, crowdSPRING, Lextech Labs, Smart Medical Technology, SoCore, Touch Taste Technologies, and InContext Solutions. The majority of the winners will also be joining TechAmerica for their Annual Illinois NASDAQ market open in New York on November 15, 2010.

About TechAmerica

TechAmerica is the leading voice for the U.S. technology industry – the driving force behind productivity growth and jobs creation in the United States and the foundation of the global innovation economy.

Representing approximately 1,200 member companies of all sizes from the public and commercial sectors of the economy, it is the industry’s largest advocacy organization and is dedicated to helping members’ top and bottom lines.

TechAmerica is also the technology industry’s only grassroots-to-global advocacy network, with offices in state capitals around the United States, Washington, D.C., Europe (Brussels) and Asia (Beijing).

It was formed by the merger of AeA (formerly the American Electronics Association), the Cyber Security Industry Alliance (CSIA), the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) and the Government Electronics & Information Technology Association (GEIA).Learn more about TechAmerica at www.techamerica.org.

SOURCE TechAmerica

http://www.techamerica.org

TechAmerica Congratulates the Winners of the Chicago Innovation Awards | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

WordPress wants to make it easier for smartphone users to blog remotely. The popular blogging platform has been putting time and energy into making mobile applications to do just that.

WordPress recently launched mobile apps for both Android and Blackberry users and have just announced that an open source WordPress app for Nokia phones is here.

As mentioned in their blog post announcing the public beta, “We are very excited to share with all of you that in the coming weeks we’ll be opening up a beta test for the official Open Source WordPress for Nokia app.

For developers who are interested in getting involved, we just opened-up a dev blog with details, links to the source code and trac tickets, and an early alpha build. We’ll be leveraging the Qt framework which means will be able to support both the S60 and Maemo platforms.”

While it is surprising to see WordPress continue to support S60, considering that even Nokia dropped Symbian, the support for Maemo is reassuring. Maemo could be the next big competitor to other smartphone platforms such as Android, iPhone and Blackberry.

Since the project is open source anyone can feel free to go in and hack on the code to make modifications. The application currently supports WordPress version 2.7, but we can expect to see it updated with the newest version and more bells and whistles in the near future.

Similar to the WordPress mobile applications for iPhone, Blackbery and Android, the Nokia app is offered free of charge. Unfortunately, it is not yet compatible with Symbian3 devices like the N8, C6, C7, but can be used on the N97 Mini and X6.

Nokia gets its own WordPress app | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Although the iPhone’s alarm clock is functional, it has limited features. If you use your phone to wake up in the morning instead of a standalone device, then you’ll want to get the most out of it.

There are a large number of alarm clock apps available in the App Store, but, almost unbelievably, not all of them work, and some of them are downright duds.

We’ve tried and tested five great alarm clocks apps for the iPhone and iPod touch that can’t make getting out of bed any easier, but at least you’ll be woken in a way of your own choosing.

Radio Alarm may be at the higher end of the pricing scale, but it’s a good looking creation that packs in a lot of functionality — you really do get what you pay for (and then some!) with this app.

As far as looks go, you’ve got a great retro design with a flip calendar, analogue clock and two “dials,” one for volume, which can be controlled in-app and — essential for a bedside alarm clock — a brightness control. There are three knobs that represent the three main functions: the alarm clock, the radio and the sleep options.

The “radio” can be listened to as a standalone Internet radio option and offers more than 30,000 stations from SHOUTcast Radio that be be browsed via genre, country or search, although you can manually add your personal fave Internet radio stations via their URL.

Alarm functionality is superb — you can choose to wake to a variety of what we’d call standard alarm sounds, your own music stored on your iDevice, one of the many Internet radio stations, one of the sleep sounds (more on that later), and there’s even the fab option to record your own sound or message to wake up to.

Alarm options include some nice touches such as vibration, the ability to “fix” the volume so you can’t turn it down accidentally, different snooze durations, and the option to have the sound “fade in” so you don’t wake with a start.

Finally, there’s an excellent selection of soothing sleep sounds, including waves, rain on a window, a campfire or the sound of seagulls. You can set the timer to turn the audio off after whatever amount of time suits you, and you can make it fade out quietly. This also works with the radio and your own music too.

There’s some design thought gone into this app — when you hit the radio knob a little analogue tuner comes on screen accompanied by tuning noise, and you can opt to shake your iPhone a certain number of times to stop the alarm. It’s little touches like this that make you smile.

Developer: EnSight Media
Cost: $1.99

There’s more retro to be had here with a classic, realistic flip clock design that can be jazzed up with a choice of 65 backgrounds, three colors for the numerals, portrait or landscape display and two different time display formats.

That’s it as far as the app goes for looks; simplicity is the key word here, and that theme continues with the settings which are bound to only one screen.

We can imagine the one-screen design will be too fiddly for anyone with big fingers, but it works for us — you can just zip around the screen touching various areas to change the settings. With the ability to set two alarms, you can leave the default alarm noise to wake you or select a song from your device.

Features include a snooze button, the ability to dim the screen for use on a bedside table and sound effects for when the time flips over. With simple, but perfectly decent alarm functionality, it’s a good-looking app for design lovers.

Developer: Exedria
Cost: $0.99

Another good-looking app, Nightstand Central’s design is somewhat reminiscent of HTC phones. With a big, easy-to-read flip clock, the date and the weather for your current location are also displayed. You can choose backgrounds from a selection of beautiful pre-loaded images or ones from your device, either as a static display or slideshow of multiple images.

The customization is great — you can move the clock and change its size by tapping on the screen with two fingers, have it display portrait or landscape, have alarms displayed, and to keep up with the weather, show the temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit or not at all.

On the alarm front, you can set as many alarms as you’ll ever need with an interface that’s very similar to the iPhone’s. There’s also “background alarms” that can be set up for those who want to be super-sure to get out of bed. You can give alarms names and wake to a range of sounds or music from your library. Snooze times can be changed and you can make the sound fade in so as not to be too abrupt.

The sleep timer will see you dropping off to a relaxing soundtrack (though without nearly as wide a selection as Radio Alarm, we must say), or your choice of music, while brightness control is very swanky — slide your finger on the screen to dim it.

Lastly, Nightstand Central’s bonus feature is the “flashlight” (a white screen basically, but adequate illumination in the dead of night), which you can turn on and off by shaking your handset.

And if you’re not picky about using your own music as an alarm, or want to try before you buy, there’s a limited but decent free version of this app available too, although we think $0.99 for the full app is very reasonable.

Developer: Thomas Huntington
Cost: $0.99

There’s more great design here with the Alarm Clock Pro, which shares a similar feature set to Nightstand Central, but has a very different, yet equally stylish look.

Alarm Clock Pro looks like a classic bedside alarm clock with a digital display. You can change the color of the numerals and what info is actually displayed, but as far as looks go, this app keeps it clock-like and simple.

Behind the scenes you’re looking at a very familiar iPhone interface that makes setting alarms easy. The options are similar to those we’ve seen in other apps — some pre-loaded alarm sounds, the ability to use your own music, snooze settings, fade-in options, background alarms and the great option to dim the screen with the slide of your finger.

Alarm Clock Pro also produces a white screen as a flashlight if you shake it and a sleep timer is promised in a future update, which will be a nice addition to a very competent, no-nonsense alarm clock app.

Developer: iHandySoft Inc
Cost: $0.99

This alarm clock option doesn’t give you any meaningful way to customize the display, so it’s just as well the three-dimensional white letters on a blue background look as good as they do.

Alarm options are simple to set up and what you’d expect. You can name alarms, set them up to go off regularly on certain days, choose from pre-loaded sounds or use your own (we had a few crashes with this part, but did get there), set snooze times, auto-snooze, and there’s a sleep timer too.

However, where this app really shines is its ability to tell you the time at a touch of the screen. Hidden away in the app’s “Advanced Options” menu are some nifty perks that will let the app speak the time, say how long until the next alarm or speak the next alarm time.

You can set these up to work with one, two or three taps of the screen, and the robo-voice will speak up — a really nice feature for when you’re half-asleep fumbling with your iPhone to try and work out how much longer you’ve got in bed.

Developer: Kirk Andrews
Cost: $0.99

This app gets an honorable mention as it offers some nice functionality. In addition to being a fully featured alarm clock with radio, there’s weather data and a “news and Internet” section that you can set up to display all your favorite sites from one page, so you can quickly get your dose of morning news from within your alarm clock.

Developer: hubapps.com
Cost: $1.99

More iPhone Resources from Mashable:

5 Stylish iPhone Alarm Clock Apps to Wake You Up On Time | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

LOS ANGELES – A recent spate of TV blackouts and the lack of government intervention suggests that for now, broadcasters have the upper hand over TV signal providers when it comes to negotiating fees. That might mean fewer headaches for consumers caught in the middle if cable and satellite TV companies know they won’t get government help, at least until Congress decides to act.

New York-area cable TV operator Cablevision Systems Corp. tested the limits of government intervention in October, calling early and often for the Federal Communications Commission to step in and force News Corp.’s Fox to keep providing its broadcast signal while it pressed for arbitration in a fee dispute.

Fox declined and the FCC did little more than suggest mediation if both parties were willing to participate. When the two sides couldn’t reach a deal, Fox blacked out its signals to 3 million Cablevision subscribers for 15 days, through two games of baseball’s World Series. On Saturday, Cablevision finally accepted terms it said were “unfair” for the sake of its customers.

Ultimately, the FCC said that its hands were tied.

“Under the present system, the FCC has very few tools with which to protect consumers’ interests,” FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said in a letter to Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in a letter Kerry’s office released Friday. “Current law does not give the agency the tools necessary to prevent service disruptions.”

That law is the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992. It allows broadcasters like Fox, ABC, CBS and NBC to choose between forcing a TV signal distributor like Cablevision to carry its local TV station, thus boosting its audience, or bargaining for the best rate it can for so-called “retransmission consent.” Because broadcasters bought the rights to such high-demand programming like football, baseball and the Oscars, they have chosen to bargain and have recently been pressing for higher fees.

The law heavily favors broadcasters in such negotiations because they have the ability to black out signals and subscribers are hard to win back if they switch TV signal providers. David Bank, an analyst with RBC Capital Markets, said it was in the best interests of the FCC to keep the balance tipped in broadcasters’ favor. The FCC regulates the airwaves and it has authority over what broadcasters can send out over them. There are rules over obscenity and local content that don’t apply to pay cable channels, which escape the FCC’s grasp.

“That’s what the FCC really cares about: minority voices on air, localism, childhood early education initiatives, obscenity,” Bank said. If the balance of power were shifted to distributors, media giants could pull back from the broadcast model and move to an all-cable channel lineup. TV stations might disappear and the FCC would “lose the ability to regulate all that,” Bank said.

Still, both Genachowski and Sen. Kerry called for reforms of the current system. Genachowski, an appointee of President Barack Obama, said in his letter that “the current system relegates television viewers to pawns between companies battling over retransmission fees.” Sen. Kerry called the existing regime “broken.”

“Media interests have every right to play hardball,” Sen. Kerry said in a statement Sunday. “But I believe it’s incumbent upon those of us in public policy to see if there’s a way to help protect consumers and avoid the now regularly scheduled, frequent games of high-stakes chicken that leave consumers in the crossfire.”

Some analysts said Cablevision’s move was mainly intended to draw the government out and its fight amounted to taking one for the team. Its battle had the support of other cable and satellite TV operators through such groups as the American Television Alliance, which counts Dish Network Corp. and DirecTV Inc. among its members.

Fox said in a statement Sunday that “this entire dispute was solely about Cablevision’s misguided efforts to effect regulatory change to their benefit.” Cablevision did not respond to a request for comment.

However, the united front among distributors did not hold. Dish Network announced Friday that it had settled its dispute with Fox, two days before Fox broadcast signals could have been blacked out to some of its 14.3 million subscribers, and ending a blackout of other non-broadcast channels including Fox’s regional sports networks.

That greatly undermined Cablevision’s position, Bank said. Likely Republican gains in the upcoming election could also cloud prospects for FCC-led reform, Bank said.

The American Cable Association, a grouping of smaller cable operators representing 7.6 million subscribers, argued Sunday that the fight to change an 18-year-old law wasn’t over and it said it remains within the FCC’s powers to adopt regulations to prevent signal blackouts now. “Despite these deals being done, retransmission consent needs to change,” its president Matthew Polka, said Sunday.

Broadcasters keep upper hand in TV disputes (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

ABIDJAN (AFP) – Ivorians flocked to the polls in the country’s first presidential election in a decade on Sunday, aiming to close a chapter on years of political turmoil in the divided former West African powerhouse.

Long lines of voters snaked around polling stations even before they opened in the main city Abidjan and in Bouake, the northern stronghold of former rebel forces, as people openly relished the opportunity to vote.

In some areas in Abidjan, the country’s biggest city and home to a third of the nearly six million electorate, polling stations were late in opening and voters complained about a lack of transport but the mood remained buoyant.

Sunday’s is the first election in a decade in the world’s top cocoa-producing country, where incumbent Laurent Gbagbo, 65, leads a field of 14 candidates.

“There has not been an election since 2000 and we really have to have a change because Ivorians are suffering, especially the young,” said student Mylene Kouassi, 22.

Ivorians flock to polls in landmark election | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

LONG BEACH, Calif. – Before picking up any Wii games or downloading apps on her iPhone for her two daughters, Lillian Quintero does her homework. She’ll first read reviews online and in magazines, then try them out for herself. If she thinks the games are engaging and educational enough, 4-year-old Isabella and 2-year-old Sophia are free to play.

“I know there’s going to be a point where they get these things on their own,” said the 35-year-old mother from Long Beach, Calif. “We’re not going to be there to monitor everything. That’s why the most important thing is communication, instilling morals and values in them and helping them to understand certain boundaries. There’s only so much you can do.”

Quintero and her husband, Jorge, are some of the parents who support a California law that seeks to ban the sale and rental of violent games to children. The law, which has bounced around the legal system like a game of “Pong” since Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger first signed it in 2005, was declared unconstitutional last year by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Tuesday about the federal court’s decision to throw out California’s ban on violent games, marking the first time a case involving the interactive medium itself has gone before the Supreme Court. It’s another sign that the $20 billion-a-year industry, long considered to be just child’s play, is now all grown up.

California’s measure would have regulated games more like pornography than movies, prohibiting the sale or rental of games that give players the option of “killing, maiming, dismembering, or sexually assaulting an image of a human being” to anyone under the age of 18. Only retailers would be punished with fines of up to $1,000 for each infraction.

The federal court said the law violated minors’ constitutional rights under the First and Fourteenth amendments and the state lacked enough evidence to prove violent games cause physical and psychological harm to minors. Courts in six other states, including Michigan and Illinois, have reached similar conclusions, striking down parallel violent game bans.

Under California’s law, only adults would be able to purchase games like “Postal 2,” the first-person shooter by developer Running With Scissors that features the ability to light unarmed bystanders on fire, and “Grand Theft Auto IV,” the popular third-person shoot-’em-up from Rockstar Games that allows gamers to portray carjacking, gun-toting gangsters.

The Quinteros, like most supporters, believe the law will protect children from buying such violent titles, while gamers and free speech advocates think California’s ban could lead to strict federal regulation on the content of games and other media. All agree, however, that the graphically rich medium has come a long way from 8-bit tennis matches.

The average age of gamers is 34, according to the Entertainment Software Association, and many are paying close attention to the Supreme Court case. The Entertainment Consumers Association, which lobbies on behalf of gamers, is organizing a rally outside the Supreme Court building Tuesday as “a way of sending a strong message and uniting gamers.”

“It’s not so much a video game case as a First Amendment case,” said George Rose, chief public policy officer at Activision Blizzard Inc., the Santa Monica, Calif.-based publisher of the popular “Call of Duty” and “Guitar Hero” gaming franchises. The gamemaker filed a friend-of-the-court brief opposing California’s ban, which was never enforced.

Other allies in the fight include Xbox manufacturer Microsoft Corp., “Star Wars” publisher LucasArts, The Recording Academy, Motion Picture Association of America, as well as the Entertainment Merchants Association and Entertainment Software Association, which sued to block California’s ban, calling it “unnecessary, unwarranted and unconstitutional.”

Opponents of the ban have called the measure unnecessary because virtually all major game publishers and retailers employ a universal voluntary rating system, much like movie studios and theaters, that assigns one of eight age-specific ratings to games, then blocks the sale of games that are rated M for “mature” and AO for “adults only” to children.

The gaming industry has actually done a better job of preventing minors from buying entertainment not intended for their age group than the music and film industries, according to the Federal Trade Commission. In a report released last year, the FTC found that 20 percent of minors were able to buy M-rated games, down from 42 percent three years earlier.

In contrast, 72 percent of minors were able buy music CDs with explicit content warnings, 50 percent were sold R-rated and unrated DVDs and 28 percent purchased tickets to R-rated movies. The FTC noted there were gaps in enforcement of age-based sales restrictions, specifically with the use of gift cards in online purchases and unrestricted mobile games.

The Parents Television Council, which supports California’s ban on violent games, conducted its own secret shopper campaign this year with children between the ages of 12 and 16 attempting to buy M-rated games at 109 stores in 14 states. The group found 21 instances of retailers, including Target, Kmart, Sears and Best Buy, selling M-rated games to minors.

Leland Yee, the Democratic state senator and child psychologist who originally authored the law, contends the gaming industry’s rating system is not effective because of the sweeping scope of games, which are longer and more intricate than movies. Yee said he believes violent games are more harmful to children because of the medium’s interactive nature.

“This isn’t an attack on the First Amendment,” said Yee. “I’m a supporter of the First Amendment. This is about not making ultra violent video games available to children. Within the bill, the definition of a violent video game is so narrowly tailored because of my respect for the First Amendment. This isn’t to stop the creation of violent video games.”

Yee’s position hasn’t stopped the Entertainment Software Association’s Video Game Voters Network from targeting him. The group has asked gamers to write “I believe in the First Amendment” on old or broken controllers and send them to Yee. When asked about the joystick campaign, the senator scoffed and said that any gifts he received would be returned.

The Quinteros, who practice yoga poses in their living room during rounds of “Wii Fit,” won’t be sending their Wii Balance Board to Yee. While they believe it’s ultimately up to parents to police what games their children play, Lillian and Jorge agree that they would feel more comfortable if violent games were legally off limits from being sold to kids.

“It’s one less way for children to have access to it,” said Jorge, a 35-year-old middle school teacher who recently bought an iPad. “It’s common sense. You don’t pick a weenie off the grill with your hands because you know your hand will get burned. We shouldn’t let children buy something violent that they don’t think will affect them.”

___

AP Technology Writer Barbara Ortutay in New York contributed to this report.

___

Online:

http://www.supremecourt.gov/

Supreme Court to hear violent video game case (AP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

Apple filed two lawsuits against Motorola and Motorola Mobility late Friday in a US federal court, claiming violations of its patents in multiple Motorola cell phones, including the Droid line.

According to the October 29 filings in the US District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin — first reported by the blog PatentlyApple — Apple is accusing Motorola of infringing on six patents, three of them focused on touchscreens. The products that it claims include the infringing technology are Motorola’s Droid, Droid 2, Droid X, Cliq, Cliq XT, BackFlip, Devour A555, Devour i1, and Charm.

Earlier this month, Motorola Mobility filed suit against Apple asking the US District Court in Delaware for a declaratory judgment that Apple had no rights to sue it for infringing 12 patents that it said Apple has asserted in targeting Android-phone maker HTC. None of those 12 patents are being invoked by Apple in its suit filed Friday. Motorola also filed two patent infringement lawsuits against Apple charging violations in the iPad, iTouch and iPhone products.

Apple is seeking a jury trial and compensatory damages.

Apple Sues Motorola Over Patents in Mobile Phones (PC World) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.

WASHINGTON (AFP) – Republicans will have to wait until Tuesday to find out if they make the big gains many expect in the US Congress but they have already beaten the Democrats in another arena — Facebook.

Republican candidates are outpolling Democrats on Facebook in the races for the Senate, House of Representatives and state governor, according to the blog AllFacebook.com, which has compiled figures from across the country.

Overall, the Facebook pages of Republican candidates have attracted 3.38 million fans while Democratic candidates have drawn 1.39 million, according to AllFacebook.com, which is independent of the social network.

In the Senate races, 26 Republican candidates have more fans than their Democratic opponents. Just 10 Democratic Senate hopefuls have more fans than their Republican rivals.

In 190 competitive House races, 127 Republican candidates have more Facebook fans than their Democratic opponents. Only 63 Democratic candidates are up on their Republican rivals ahead of Tuesday’s election.

In the gubernatorial races, 23 Republican candidates for governor are ahead of their Democratic foes on Facebook while only 13 Democrats have been “liked” more than their Republican rivals.

The candidate with the largest number of Facebook fans is Senator John McCain, the Republican from Arizona who lost the presidential race to Barack Obama two years ago. McCain has around 714,650 Facebook friends.

Republican candidates for the Senate, House or governor occupy eight of the top 10 slots when it comes to Facebook fans.

Bill White, a Democrat running for governor of Texas, has the most fans of any Democrat with 151,014. California gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown with 95,350 fans is the only other Democrat to crack the top 10.

Another Democrat, of course, tops all of the candidates combined in Facebook popularity — Barack Obama himself, whose Facebook page has 15.28 million fans.

Republicans top Democrats with Facebook fans (AFP) | Chicago Press Release Services - Chicago's leading press release newswire service; professional press release services, press release distribution and newswire services.