TiVo Premiere Elite

The TiVo Premiere Elite ($499.99 list) is the souped-up version of the TiVo Premiere DVR ($299.99, 3.5 stars), with a 300-hour HD video capacity and two more TV tuners for the ability to record four simultaneous programs. Like the TiVo Premiere XL, the Premiere Elite is THX certified and comes with an upgraded remote (but not the slide-out QWERTY model). It?s a definite upgrade for current TiVo users, but is it compelling enough to bring more TiVo users into the fold? The outlook isn't so good, compared to DVRs from cable companies, which continue to improve over time.

Design and Features
The TiVo Premiere Elite looks almost identical to the previous TiVo Premiere, built into the same style chassis as the previous model. There are a few differences from the previous version, though. There are four lights, which glow red to show that each of the four tuners are recording a program. You can record up to four programs simultaneously, which are decoded by the mutli-stream CableCARD the TiVo Premiere Elite now requires. Previous models allowed you to record over the air HDTV broadcasts in addition to digital cable, but the Premiere Elite is a strictly digital cable-only model; TiVo has removed the RF tuner and its connector to make room for the added digital tuners. Over-the-air HDTV viewers will want the regular Premiere or Premiere XL.

If you?ve set up a TiVo HD or previous TiVo Premiere before, you know the drill: Call your cable company to get a multi-stream CableCARD, either wait for the tech to show up or install the CableCARD yourself, and hope it pairs up successfully. Once activated in your TiVo Premiere Elite and once the DVR is hooked up to your home Internet connection, the DVR will download the program guide and take you through the rest of the setup. The TiVo Premiere Elite has an Ethernet port, but you?ll need to buy a TiVo WiFi adapter ($60-$90) if you don?t have a wired connection in your TV room. All the same features are here: TiVo Search; links to Netflix, Blockbuster, Hulu Plus, Pandora, You Tube, and Amazon Instant Video; and the trademark beeps and boops from the TiVo interface. Think of the current group of TiVo DVRs as a mash-up of a cable DVR and the sort of streaming media set top box like the Apple TV ?($99, 4 stars) or the Roku LT ($49, 4 stars).

The TiVo Premiere Elite comes with a 2TB hard drive, which is good for up to 300 hours of HD video, which is an increase from 45 hours for the TiVo Premiere, and 150 hours for the TiVo Premiere XL. Like the TiVo Premiere XL, the Premiere Elite comes with the TiVo Glo remote, not the keyboard-equipped TiVo Slide ($60). The TiVo Slide is a better fit for the DVR junkie who needs to search for programming with the on-screen interface. Truly hardcore TiVo users can download the free TiVo app for their handheld device like an iPad, iPhone, or Android phone: The app replicates the search and remote functions on your handheld, including managing the recorded programs list on your TiVo Premiere Elite. The touch-screen keyboard on your iPhone or Samsung Galaxy S II will be handier than using the on-screen keyboard and TiVo Glo remote on your HDTV. However, you can?t view live TV or the recordings from your TiVo on your iPad/iPhone/Android device. You?ll still need to use a separate place-shifting device for remote viewing over WiFi or 3G.

Competitors From the Cable Company and Elsewhere
The cable companies have caught up to and some cases surpassed TiVo. TiVo?s interface now mostly takes advantage of the extra real estate and resolution of a HDTV screen, though there are still elements in standard definition. The user interface screens on digital cable DVRs like those from Verizon FIOS are fully HD optimized.

More pressing are features like FIOS? DVR apps and Cablevision/Time Warner?s viewing apps on devices like the iPad and Android smartphones. On the FIOS side, the DVR Manager app gives you listings of what?s scheduled and already recorded on your home DVRs, regardless if you?re home or on a 3G network. Need more room to record the next American Idol on your home DVR, but you?re in Des Moines? No problem with FIOS or the other cable companies, just delete those old episodes of Pan Am. In the TiVo app, you have to be physically in range of your home Wi-Fi network to see the recorded list and manage recordings, which means you can only schedule future recordings remotely, not delete existing programs. On the Time Warner and Cablevision side, things are even better when you consider that the TWC app and Optimum app allow you to view live TV as well as on-demand videos on your iPad on your home network. TiVo users need a place-shifting device like a Slingbox to do the same thing, even in your own home. Multi-room viewing was once unique to TiVo, but Cable DVRs now support multi-room viewing, letting you view programs recorded in the living room while you?re in the bedroom.? And with TiVo, there are issues with multi-room viewing and copy-protected content, which could apply to many of the programs you're recording.

Last I checked, most cable companies even let you exchange a broken DVR for free even if the DVR itself is 5 years old. Unfortunately, the TiVo DVR warranty only lasts one year for parts, 90 days for labor, with an option for 2-years parts/labor for $30 and 3 years for $40.? Last, but not least, you?ll still need to subscribe to TiVo, which added to the monthly rental for the CableCARD, equals or surpasses the monthly rental fee for a cable company DVR. TiVo curently charges $19.95 a month, so if you add the $2-5 monthly rate for the CabelCARD, you may pay less in fees on a cable company DVR. Sure, you can purchase a lifetime subscription for $499.99, but that's per TiVo DVR, and is subject to the continued good health of TiVo Inc. If you want Netflix or You Tube on your HDTV as well and your HDTV doesn't already support it, check if there?s a free HDMI port on your TV, then get an Apple TV or Roku; it?s less than $100, and you won?t need to pay a monthly fee to Apple.

The TiVo Premiere Elite is an improved device for an ultimately shrinking market: the hardcore TiVo user. It will give the TiVo fan a lot to crow about while recording 300 hours of HD on four channels simultaneously, but the DVR is unlikely to add brand new customers to the TiVo fold. It's so tied to digital cable that it is unlikely to sway the non-TiVo user from renting a much more convenient and similar HD DVR for much less money. Why buy a TiVo DVR when the cable company DVR is the same amount of money or less, and lets you better manage it with your smartphone or tablet? Five years ago, TiVo had a perceptibly insurmountable lead on the competition. Now that gap is bridgeable by a toddler in brand new shoes.

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Afghan family guilty in 'honor' killings

KINGSTON, Ontario?? A jury on Sunday found an Afghan father, his wife and their son guilty of killing three teenage sisters and a co-wife in what the judge described as "cold-blooded, shameful murders" resulting from a "twisted concept of honor."

The jury took 15 hours to find Mohammad Shafia, 58; his wife Tooba Yahya, 42; and their son Hamed, 21, each guilty of four counts of first-degree murder in a case that shocked and riveted Canadians from coast to coast. First-degree murder carries an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.

After the verdict was read, the three defendants again declared their innocence in the killings of sisters Zainab, 19, Sahar 17, and Geeti, 13, as well as Rona Amir Mohammad, 52, Shafia's childless first wife in a polygamous marriage.

Their bodies were found June 30, 2009, in a car submerged in a canal in Kingston, Ontario, where the family had stopped for the night on their way home to Montreal from Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Prosecutors said the defendants allegedly killed the three teenage sisters because they dishonored the family by defying its disciplinarian rules on dress, dating, socializing and going online. Shafia's first wife was living with him and his second wife. The polygamous relationship, if revealed, could have resulted in their deportation.

The prosecution alleged it was a case of premeditated murder, staged to look like an accident after it was carried out. Prosecutors said the defendants drowned their victims elsewhere on the site, placed their bodies in the car and pushed it into the canal.

Defense lawyers said the deaths were accidental. They said the Nissan car accidentally plunged into the canal after the eldest daughter, Zainab, took it for a joy ride with her sisters and her father's first wife. Hamed said he watched the accident, although he didn't call police from the scene.

After the jury returned the verdicts, Mohammad Shafia, speaking through a translator, said, "We are not criminal, we are not murderer, we didn't commit the murder and this is unjust."

His weeping wife, Tooba, also declared the verdict unjust, saying, "I am not a murderer, and I am a mother, a mother."

Their son, Hamed, speaking in English said, "I did not drown my sisters anywhere."

But Judge Robert Maranger was unmoved, saying the evidence clearly supported their conviction for "the planned and deliberate murder of four members of your family."

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"It is difficult to conceive of a more despicable, more heinous crime ... the apparent reason behind these cold-blooded, shameful murders was that the four completely innocent victims offended your completely twisted concept of honor ... that has absolutely no place in any civilized society."

Outside court, prosecutor Gerard Laarhuis said the verdict is a reflection of Canadian values that he hopes will resonate.

"This verdict sends a very clear message about our Canadian values and the core principles in a free and democratic society that all Canadians enjoy and even visitors to Canada enjoy," Laarhuis said to cheers of approval from onlookers.

The family had left Afghanistan in 1992 and lived in Pakistan, Australia and Dubai before settling in Canada in 2007. Shafia, a wealthy businessman, married Yahya because his first wife could not have children.

The prosecution painted a picture of a household controlled by a domineering Shafia, with Hamed keeping his sisters in line and doling out discipline when his father was away on frequent business trips to Dubai.

The months leading up to the deaths were not happy ones in the Shafia household, according to evidence presented at trial. Zainab, the oldest daughter, was forbidden to attend school for a year because she had a young Pakistani-Canadian boyfriend, and she fled to a shelter, terrified of her father, the court was told.

The prosecution said her parents found condoms in Sahar's room as well as photos of her wearing short skirts and hugging her Christian boyfriend, a relationship she had kept secret. Geeti was becoming almost impossible to control: skipping school, failing classes, being sent home for wearing revealing clothes and stealing, while declaring to authority figures that she wanted to be placed in foster care, according to the prosecution.

Shafia's first wife wrote in a diary that her husband beat her and "made life a torture," while his second wife called her a servant.

The prosecution presented wire taps and cell phone records from the Shafia family in court to support their honor killing theory. The wiretaps, which capture Shafia spewing vitriol about his dead daughters, calling them treacherous and whores and invoking the devil to defecate on their graves, were a focal point of the trial.

"There can be no betrayal, no treachery, no violation more than this," Shafia said on one recording. "Even if they hoist me up onto the gallows ... nothing is more dear to me than my honor."

Defense lawyers argued that at no point in the intercepts do the accused say they drowned the victims.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46183299/ns/world_news-americas/

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Going for the Knockout (talking-points-memo)

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Boxer Puppy And Cows Make Friends During Walk In Newcastle (VIDEO)

Puppies just born by a sniffer dog sleep at a police dog training base September 16, 2005 in Beijing, China. The dogs are trained by a police squad to learn identifying, catching, tracking and other skills. According to the Ministry of Public Security, there is an estimate of over 10,000 working police dogs in China. These dogs are divided into 30 kinds according to international conventions and are widely used in police work, rescue and military missions. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Puppies just born by a sniffer dog sleep at a police dog training base September 16, 2005 in Beijing, China. The dogs are trained by a police squad to learn identifying, catching, tracking and other skills. According to the Ministry of Public Security, there is an estimate of over 10,000 working police dogs in China. These dogs are divided into 30 kinds according to international conventions and are widely used in police work, rescue and military missions. (Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/28/boxer-puppy-cows-make-friends_n_1210271.html

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Ex-Boston Mayor White, led in turbulent '70s, dies (AP)

BOSTON ? Former Mayor Kevin H. White, who led the city for 16 years including racially turbulent times in the 1970s and was credited with putting it on a path to prosperity, died Friday, a family spokesman said. He was 82.

White, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2003, died peacefully at his Boston home surrounded by his family, spokesman and friend George Regan said.

"He was a man who built Boston into the world-class city it is today," said Regan, who called his loss "devastating."

White, a white Irish Catholic from a family of politicians, is credited with revitalizing Boston's downtown and seeing the city through court-ordered busing, but he ended his four-term tenure in 1983 under a cloud of ethics suspicions.

White, a Democrat, was elected Massachusetts secretary of state three times before running for mayor for the first time in 1967 against antibusing activist Louise Day Hicks. He defeated her with support from the black community and liberals.

After losing a 1970 bid for governor, White was re-elected mayor in 1971, again defeating Hicks. He won again narrowly in 1975 and 1979.

White was considered as a vice presidential running mate to U.S. Sen. George McGovern of South Dakota in 1972 but was passed over for U.S. Sen. Thomas Eagleton of Missouri, who was later shunted aside for R. Sargent Shriver Jr.

After U.S. District Court Judge W. Arthur Garrity ordered busing to desegregate public schools in 1974, White protected schoolchildren from violence with federal and state assistance during the period of crisis and in 1976 led a march of 30,000 to protest racial violence.

White was never totally comfortable with busing, however, and called Garrity's plan "too severe."

"I wish I knew a way to have taught Garrity or convinced Garrity to be more generous ... or softer in his implementation of that order," White said after his time as mayor.

U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, a fellow Democrat, said White "knew how to wisely wield the power of the mayor's office for the public good."

"For 16 years," Kerry said in a statement, "the mayor shepherded the city through the turbulence of the late '60s and mid-'70s and in the process ushered in the remarkable city we know today."

Current Mayor Thomas Menino, also a Democrat, praised White for his contributions to the city.

"Mayor Kevin White was a great friend and a great leader who left a lasting mark of hope and inspiration on the City of Boston," he said in a statement. "He will be sorely missed."

White's first two terms were known for his Little City Halls in the city's far-flung neighborhoods that gave power to ethnic and racial minorities, but he consolidated his power in his final two terms.

White closed the Little City Halls and instead used a network of ward lieutenants who rewarded the mayor's supporters with city jobs and contracts.

Seven mayoral aides were eventually indicted on fraud and extortion charges. His one-time budget director and an official of the Boston Redevelopment Authority were convicted of fraudulently obtaining city pensions. A deputy commissioner was convicted of tax evasion for failing to report money that prosecutors said he gained from bribes.

White was never implicated. The State Ethics Commission, however, conducted a 10-month investigation that found "reasonable cause" that White had violated conflict-of-interest laws.

The city also wallowed in a financial crisis in the later years of his tenure that led to layoffs of police officers and firefighters and the shutdown of some stations.

The crises were exploited by his critics, who called him King Kevin, and he dropped out of the 1983 mayoral race, eventually won by Raymond Flynn.

"It's no secret that Kevin and I were rivals for many years," Flynn said. "But underneath that sometimes heated rivalry, rooted in different priorities, was a mutual respect. Kevin and I shared a deep love for this complex, fascinating city of Boston."

A liberal reformer, White appealed to a cross-section of society, including the young.

Once, when the Rolling Stones were arrested on the way to Boston, the mayor released them into his own custody.

"The Stones have been busted, but I have sprung them!" he told an audience at Boston Garden.

While the busing crisis brought a stain to the city, White was also credited with revitalizing the city's downtown, especially the shops and restaurants of Quincy Market, which remains one of the city's top tourist attractions. He thought the downtown renaissance would make Boston a "world-class city."

A statue of White was unveiled near Quincy Market in 2006.

Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, said White's stewardship created "a path to prosperity for the city."

White's father and maternal grandfather had been Boston City Council presidents. In 1956, he married Kathryn Galvin, the daughter of another City Council president. He was educated at Tabor Academy, Williams College, Boston College Law School and the Harvard Graduate School of Public Administration.

After handing over the office to Flynn in 1984, White accepted a position at Boston University as a professor of communications and public management.

While mayor in 1970, White had major surgery to remove two-thirds of his stomach. He suffered a heart attack in 2001 while at a Florida restaurant and spent several days in a hospital when he had a pacemaker implanted.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Kathyrn Galvin White, five children and several grandchildren.

___

Associated Press Writer Sylvia Wingfield contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_re_us/us_obit_kevin_white

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Paterno's long goodbye ends with public memorial (Reuters)

STATE COLLEGE, Pa (Reuters) ? The son of late Penn State football coach Joe Paterno told 10,000 mourners on Thursday his father died "with a clear conscience," and former players shared why they worshipped the man in a final goodbye to the legendary "JoePa."

The memorial at the campus basketball arena concluded five days of public mourning for Paterno, 85, who died on Sunday of lung cancer two months after his towering reputation was shaken by a child sexual abuse scandal involving an assistant coach.

The hero's sendoff after Paterno's death contrasted sharply with the sudden and unceremonious end of his career in November, when the university's board of trustees fired him following revelations about defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, accused of molesting at least 10 boys over 15 years.

Paterno won a major college record 409 games and two national championships in his 46 years as head coach, creating a football powerhouse that generated $53 million in profit in 2010, according to Forbes magazine.

Son Jay Paterno shared deathbed moments the crowd, saying, "Joe Paterno left this world with a clear conscience."

Shortly before his father died, Jay Paterno said he bent over and whispered into his father's ear, "Dad you won. You did all you could do. We all love you. You can go home."

Interest in "A Memorial to Joe" built for days. The 10,000 free tickets were snapped up within seven minutes earlier this week. At least one ticket holder tried to profit by selling a ticket for $66,000 on Ebay, but the online site immediately banned the sale.

The week of mourning has drawn back to campus stars from past football teams, members of the 2011 squad, Penn State alumni who have no memory of any other football coach, undergraduates and townspeople to remember the winningest coach in major college football history.

"No one individual did more for a university than what Joe Paterno did for this school," said Todd Blackledge, a quarterback in the 1980s who played for seven years in the NFL.

"He was as fierce a competitor as anyone I have ever seen," Blackledge said. "Coach Paterno was at his best under pressure. He taught us how to compete."

Charlie Pittman, a runningback from the 1960s, praised Paterno for building a long-lasting institution that prided itself on the motto "Success with Honor."

"Though his body eventually failed, his spirit never did. Rest in peace, coach. We'll take it from here," he said to a standing ovation.

Paterno came under fire in November when it was revealed he was told by a purported witness that Sandusky molested a 10-year-old boy in the Penn State football showers in 2002. Paterno informed university officials but not police.

Sandusky, 67, faces 52 criminal counts accusing him of molesting 10 boys over 15 years, using his position as head of The Second Mile, a charity dedicated to helping troubled children, to find his victims. The court has placed Sandusky, who maintains his innocence, under house arrest.

(Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Daniel Trotta)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120127/us_nm/us_usa_paterno

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Unemployment rates decreasing in most Ky. counties (AP)

FRANKFORT, Ky. ? Most Kentucky counties are reporting a decrease in unemployment.

The Kentucky Office of Employment and Training says 114 counties reported that jobless rates fell from December 2010 to December 2011. Six counties reported an increase in unemployment during the same time period.

Woodford County had the lowest unemployment rate at 6.1 percent, followed by Fayette County at 6.5 percent and Boone County at 6.9 percent.

Jackson County had the highest jobless rate at 15.2 percent, followed by Fulton County at 14.9 percent at Magoffin County at 14.4 percent.

The statistics are based on estimates and don't include people who haven't looked for a job in the last four weeks.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_bi_ge/us_jobless_rates_kentucky

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