Barnes & Noble's unveils $249 Nook Tablet (AP)

NEW YORK ? Barnes & Noble unveiled a $249 Nook Tablet Monday just ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season in a bid for more of the growing markets for e-books and tablet computers.

Both Barnes & Noble Inc. and Amazon are challenging Apple Inc. and its dominant ? and much more expensive ? iPad for a piece of the holiday pie. The Nook Tablet arrives just weeks after Amazon.com released its Kindle Fire tablet, which sells for $199. Barnes & Noble said its device offers more memory and longer battery life.

The book seller cut the prices on its existing e-readers. The Nook Color is now $199, down from $239, and the Nook Simple Touch black-and-white reader, which has no browser, is now $99, down from $139. The Nook Tablet will be in stores and shipped to customers on Nov. 17. Like the Nook Color, it has a 7-inch color touchscreen.

Unlike Amazon, Barnes & Noble doesn't offer streaming services, but the Nook includes preloaded apps from Hulu and Netflix Inc. that allow users to subscribe to stream movies and TV shows.

Morningstar Analyst Peter Wahlstrom said the tablet appears to be a solid device.

"At $249, it gives Barnes & Noble customers or potential customers enough to think hard about which device they want," he said.

Since introducing its first Nook in 2009, Barnes & Noble has spent heavily on its e-book readers and e-bookstore. As people change the way they read, the New York-based company also faces tough competition from discounters and online retailers in the market for traditional books. Barnes & Noble has struggled to turn a profit, and its much smaller rival, Borders Group Inc., sought bankruptcy protection and then liquidated its assets this year.

In its most recent quarter, Barnes & Noble did report a narrower loss than a year earlier as its revenue edged up 2 percent to $1.42 billion.

The Nook Tablet weighs less than a pound, has a battery that enables nine hours of video watching and comes with 16 gigabytes of memory and an SD slot to add more.

Another selling point: free customer service at the more than 700 Barnes & Noble stores, CEO William Lynch said.

If you bought a Kindle and had a question about it, Lynch asked, "Where would you go, Amazon's headquarters in Seattle?"

Apple's iPad, now the king of tablets, starts at $499 for a bare-bones version and runs as much as $829.

Analysts at Gartner Inc. predict that three of every four tablets sold this year will be an iPad. Apple has sold nearly 29 million since they first came out in April 2010. Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com Inc. generally do not release sales figures.

The Nook Tablet will be sold online, in Barnes & Noble stores and by a variety of other retailers, including Target, Best Buy, Staples and Fry's.

Shares of Barnes & Noble Inc. shares ended the day down 22 cents at $11.39 and were unchanged after hours.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111107/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_barnes___noble_nook_tablet

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Cain defends ties to conservative political group (The Arizona Republic)

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Govt gets respite as Anna Hazare's team fumbles (Reuters)

NEW DELHI (Reuters) ? Back in the summer, mass anti-corruption protests modelled on Mahatma Gandhi's methods had India's government running scared. Now, the political class has a new spring in its step as splits and scandals tarnish activist Anna Hazare's team.

These have been tough days for Hazare, the 74-year-old whose two-week hunger strike in August captivated the nation and forced a humiliated government to bow to his demands for a powerful new graft watchdog.

Accusations of financial misdeeds against Hazare's top advisers have smudged an aura of blamelessness around his movement - to the glee of the ruling Congress party as it gears up for parliament's winter session and bellwether state elections next year.

"It's put us in a defensive situation," said Kiran Bedi, a former police officer and senior member of Hazare's movement who this week said she would return some cash after accusations she inflated travel expenses. "It taps lots of extra energy, but you have to draw on your reserves."

Bedi, who shot to fame in the 1980s after she towed away ex-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's car for a traffic violation, denies any personal gain.

Another top adviser of Hazare, Arvind Kejriwal, this week paid $18,000 in overdue taxes, saying he had done no wrong and the government was running a smear campaign.

It is too soon to write off a movement that made political activists of millions of previously apathetic middle class voters fed up with a venal elite, but there is a sense the scales have for now shifted to the main political parties.

The government is deeply unpopular because of high prices and multi-billion-dollar corruption scandals, but it would rather fight the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party on these issues than a multifarious street movement.

"Congress has been dented by Team Anna's assaults, and on a parallel track the opposition has gained, but it's really back to normal," said Swapan Dasgupta, a former editor of news magazine India Today.

"The party system is more resilient than was made out, there were certain tremors for three weeks or so, but that has not really undermined institutional politics," Dasgupta said.

VOW OF SILENCE

Hazare himself retreated to his village complaining of ill health and observed a vow of silence for 19 days. He travelled to Delhi on Friday to lead talks on the Jan Lokpal Bill, breaking his silence with the nationalist slogan and army battle cry "Bharat Mata ki Jai" or "Victory for Mother India".

"The fight against corruption and for the Jan Lokpal bill is going on and will continue until corruption is completely uprooted," said the retired soldier, who once called for corrupt politicians to be hanged.

Hazare repeated a threat to use his vast popularity to campaign against the Congress party in five election-bound states - including the largest of them all, Uttar Pradesh - a controversial partisan policy that has divided supporters.

A test of this tactic by Hazare's team in a by-election in October was nominally a success: the Congress candidate had so few votes he lost his deposit. But by taking sides in the political fray, Hazare split his own movement and two core activists left.

It now looks increasingly possible that the leadership of the movement will dissolve if parliament passes the bill to create the corruption ombudsman in its month-long winter session starting Nov 22.

"What we are hoping is that, irrespective of what happens, whether the same team or the same leadership carries on the movement, we hope and we expect that the momentum and the energy will be carried on," said Prashant Bhushan, a lawyer who helped draft the bill.

Ultra-nationalists burst into Bhushan's office and beat him up while he was being interviewed by a TV channel in October after he said citizens of the contested region of Kashmir should be allowed to vote on autonomy from India.

Hazare, who says he was scarred by a bullet during a 1965 war with Pakistan over the Kashmir issue, reacted angrily to Bhushan's comments and said he was ready to fight another war with India's arch-rival.

If Hazare's principal aim of creating a powerful new tool to fight the rampant culture of graft in high politics and business is met, many of his allies, including Bedi, say they would be ready for a rest.

"You cannot expect the same group of people who have come together on the particular issue of corruption, to carry on many other issues in which there could be some difference of opinion," said Bhushan.

(Additional reporting by Annie Banerji; Editing by John Chalmers and Raju Gopalakrishnan)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/india/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111104/india_nm/india603209

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Dell Inspiron 14z review

It's called rebranding, and by golly, Dell needs to do it. Once the world's top PC maker, it's ceded market share to the likes of HP and Acer and earned a reputation for bland designs and subpar customer service. So, we can see where the outfit would want to give its laptops a makeover as a way of distancing itself from its tarnished rap.

That's precisely what seems to be going on with the Inspiron 14z, a 14-incher with a slimmed-down aluminum body, available in a surprisingly staid color palette (sorry, guys, bubblegum pink isn't an option this time around). With a low starting price of $600, it's ideal for college kids and pretty much anyone looking for a good-enough laptop for the home. Then again, so are lots of reasonably priced 14- and 15-inch laptops. Is this one extraordinary enough to make your short list? Let's see.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/05/dell-inspiron-14z-review/

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Michael Jackson's Inner Circle: Where Are They Now?

Jackson's dermatologist, director and children have moved on as Dr. Conrad Murray is tried for involuntary manslaughter.
By Gil Kaufman

Michael Jackson with his kids and friends
Photo: Handout/ Getty Images

For months after Michael Jackson's death, his inner circle became headline news. From his dermatologist and his assistant to the heads of the concert promotions firm that was mounting the This Is It Tour, his estate executors and Jackson's mother, even casual Jackson fans knew more about those in his orbit than ever before.

Many of those names were front and center during the six-week involuntary manslaughter trial of Jackson's doctor, Conrad Murray. With closing arguments completed Thursday and the verdict looming, we take a look at where those players are now:

Arnold Klein
MJ's longtime dermatologist was the subject of endless rumors in the wake of his most famous patient's death, including allegations that he might have been the sperm donor for one or more of the singer's children. His name was back in headlines during the second week of the prosecution's case, when it emerged that in a June 27, 2009, interview with police, Murray told investigators Klein was one of the doctors who regularly prescribed drugs to the pop icon behind the cardiologist's back. TMZ reported that MJ's production team often complained about the star's visits to Klein's office, saying his worst days on set were often after those trips. Klein, whose client list has included Elizabeth Taylor and Dolly Parton, continues to practice, but the dermatologist said the constant negative online chatter has hurt his feelings and reputation. "I don't like to be called a bad doctor," he said in early October.

Kenny Ortega
The longtime Jackson friend and choreographer has moved on from his role as director and choreographer for This Is It (and the blockbuster posthumous documentary) and is now working on a big-screen adaptation of the Broadway hit musical "In the Heights" and a remake of "Dirty Dancing," both of which he will direct.

AEG Live
The mega-promoter has barely been a story in the Murray trial after making lots of headlines in the wake of Jackson's death. It has marched forward with some of the biggest tours of the past two years by the likes of Taylor Swift, Bon Jovi, Justin Bieber, Paul McCartney and Carrie Underwood.

Katherine Jackson
MJ's 81-year-old mother was living her quiet life when she was suddenly thrust into the spotlight in the wake of the custody battle over Jackson's three young children. She reached a custody agreement with the mother of the two eldest children (Prince Michael and Paris Michael) and has been raising them ever since. And, unlike their sheltered (literally shrouded) lives under their father's care, Katherine Jackson has allowed the children to be a bit more public, helping them celebrate their father's legacy with fans.

John Branca and John McClain
Jackson's two confidants, attorney Branca and music exec McClain, were named executors of the icon's estate in the months after his death. In their role, the two men have deftly turned around the Jackson estate's foundering fortunes, helping to wipe out much of the hundreds of millions in debts that Jackson owed at the time of his death and raking in more than $300 million to date.

Prince Michael, Paris and "Blanket"
During his lifetime, Jackson's three children were fiercely kept from the spotlight by their doting dad, who would often put masks or scarves on their faces to avoid having them in tabloid reports. Paris famously eulogized her father at his funeral, and since his death, all three have been pictured in the press attending public events, conducted interviews and appeared at the recent tribute concert to their pop in Wales.

Stick with MTV News for full coverage of the Michael Jackson involuntary manslaughter trial, through the verdict and beyond.

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• Michael Jackson

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1673744/michael-jackson-conrad-murray-inner-circle.jhtml

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Suicide bombers, insurgents attack NATO contractor

An Afghan police officer, center, takes position as others searching for militants at the compound of a private security company, which was attacked by militants in Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. A suicide car bomber struck the entrance of the private construction company near NATO's regional headquarters in western Afghanistan early Thursday, while other insurgents stormed the compound, sparking a gunbattle with Afghan forces who rushed to the scene, officials said. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)

An Afghan police officer, center, takes position as others searching for militants at the compound of a private security company, which was attacked by militants in Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. A suicide car bomber struck the entrance of the private construction company near NATO's regional headquarters in western Afghanistan early Thursday, while other insurgents stormed the compound, sparking a gunbattle with Afghan forces who rushed to the scene, officials said. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)

Afghans carry body of a security man, belonging to a private security company, who was killed in a gun battle with insurgents in Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. A suicide car bomber struck the entrance of a private construction company near NATO's regional headquarters in western Afghanistan early Thursday, while other insurgents stormed the compound, sparking a gunbattle with Afghan forces who rushed to the scene, officials said. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)

An Afghan police officer walks at the scene of a suicide attack in Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. A suicide car bomber struck the entrance of a private construction company near NATO's regional headquarters in western Afghanistan early Thursday, while other insurgents stormed the compound, sparking a gunbattle with Afghan forces who rushed to the scene, officials said. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)

Dust billows as the body of an unidentified man lays on the ground during a gun battle with militants at the compound of a private security company, which was attacked by militants in Herat, west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. A suicide car bomber struck the entrance of a private construction company near NATO's regional headquarters in western Afghanistan early Thursday, while other insurgents stormed the compound, sparking a gunbattle with Afghan forces who rushed to the scene, officials said. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? Two suicide bombers blew up a car packed with explosives at the entrance to a compound housing NATO contractors in western Afghanistan, then three gunmen rushed in and held employees hostage during a gunbattle, officials said. Two guards and all the attackers were killed.

Thursday's assault came just days after the Taliban launched a brazen, two-pronged assault on a compound housing U.N. and international aid groups offices in southern Afghanistan. Five people were killed in that attack, including three working with the U.N.'s refugee organization.

In Thursday's incident, two private security guards working at the compound and all five attackers were killed during the assault at ES-KO, a contractor for Italian troops deployed in Herat province.

One NATO service member, an Afghan policeman and a private security guard were wounded, according to officials with the ministry and U.S.-led coalition. Thirty-one people were safely evacuated from the site, the coalition said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which occurred around 9:30 a.m. in Guzara district, south of the provincial capital of Herat.

The coalition dispatched a quick-reaction force that included ground troops and aircraft to the scene, about a half mile (one kilometer) from Camp Arena, headquarters for NATO's Regional Command West.

The attack began with the suicide car bombing near the entrance of the company, which is located along the main road to the airport, said Noorkhan Nekzad, a spokesman for the provincial police chief. The road is a route often used by NATO and Afghan forces.

In a separate incident, Britain's defense ministry said a soldier from the 2nd Battalion the Mercian Regiment was shot dead Thursday while on patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Afghanistan's Helmand Province. It did not name the soldier but said his family has been informed.

Also Thursday, a NATO service member died following an insurgent attack in southern Afghanistan, the coalition said without providing additional details. So far this year, 492 NATO service members have been killed in Afghanistan.

The violence comes as the U.S.-led coalition pushes to speed up the transition of security responsibilities to its Afghan counterparts before the end of 2014, when U.S. and NATO forces are to end their combat mission and go home or move into training or support roles.

The transferring of security responsibilities in Herat city began in July, and the incident could raise new questions about Afghan security forces ability to take on the Taliban alone.

While NATO's 10-year war against the Taliban has hit the insurgents hard, they continue to be able to pull off headline-grabbing attacks.

___

Associated Press writer Rahim Faiez contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-11-04-AS-Afghanistan/id-8185a41e7e284cb7869d6bdb89daefaf

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Jobless claims fall, labor market slowly improves (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits fell below 400,000 last week for the first time in five weeks, suggesting a modest improvement in the still-moribund labor market.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped by 9,000 in the week ending October 29 to a seasonally adjusted 397,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

"The labor market continues to stabilize in terms of the amount of people losing their jobs but ... the pace of adding new ones still remains underwhelming," said Peter Boockvar, an equity strategist at Miller Tabak and Co. in New York.

Futures for U.S. stocks edged higher following the data, and increased gains after the European Central Bank cut interest rates. U.S. Treasury debt prices fell.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims edging down to 400,000.

The level of weekly claims remains well above pre-recession levels and has dipped below 400,000 only on brief occasions this year, suggesting no fast turnaround is imminent for the jobs market.

The claims data will not impact Friday's report on payroll levels during October, which are expected to show employers added 95,000 new jobs during the month. That is not considered a fast enough pace over time to bring down the unemployment rate much, if at all.

The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends, fell 2,000 to 404,500.

In a separate report, the Labor Department said U.S. nonfarm productivity increased during the third quarter while growth in wages and benefits slowed sharply, showing that some inflation pressures were easing even as the economy picked up pace.

Productivity rose at a 3.1 percent annual rate, the biggest increase since the first quarter of 2010. Unit labor costs fell 2.4 percent, a much bigger decline than the 0.8 percent rate forecast by analysts.

"This means less inflation," said Robbert Van Batenburg, head of global research at Louis Capital Markets in New York.

He said that could help the U.S. Federal Reserve build a case to do more to help the economy.

Compensation per hour rose 0.6 percent during the period, down from growth of 2.7 percent during the previous quarter and 5.6 percent in the first three months of the year.

Productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, had fallen during the first two quarters of this year.

Economists had expected the government's report would show productivity increased at a 2.8 percent rate. The rebound in productivity was in a line with the return to stronger economic growth during the third quarter following a sharp slowdown early in the year.

(Reporting by Jason Lange; Additional reporting by Richard Leong in New York; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111103/bs_nm/us_usa_economy

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