IMF Chief Strauss-Kahn Formally Resigns

(WASHINGTON) — Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the embattled managing director of International Monetary Fund, has resigned, saying he wanted to devote “all his energy” to battle the sexual assault charges he faces in New York.

The IMF’s executive board released a letter from the French executive Wednesday in which he denied the allegations lodged against him but said that with “sadness” he felt he must resign. He said he was thinking of his family and- he wanted to protect the IMF. “It is with infinite sadness that I feel compelled today to present to the executive board my resignation from my post of managing director of the IMF,” the five-paragraph letter said. “I think at this time first of my wife — whom I love more than anything — of my children, of my family, of my friends. I think also of my colleagues at the Fund. Together we have accomplished such great things over the last three years and- more. “To all, I want to say that I deny with the greatest possible firmness all of the allegations that have been made against me. I want to protect this institution which I have served with honor and- devotion, and especially — especially — I want to devote all my strength, all my time and all my energy to proving my innocence.”(See “The Career of Dominique Strauss-Kahn”)

Strauss-Kahn, who faced increasing international pressure to quit, announced his decision on the eve of a bail hearing Thursday that could have spelled the end of his leadership of the IMF anyway. He faces charges of assaulting a maid in a New York hotel room.

The maid, a 32-year-old immigrant from the West African nation of Guinea, told police that the 62-year-old Strauss-Kahn came out of the bathroom naked, chased her down..

Strauss-Kahn is jailed in New York City.

The IMF’s statement late Wednesday said the process of choosing a new- leader would begin, but in the meantime John Lipsky would remain acting managing director.

The dividing lines are sharpening in a dispute over whether someone from a rich or an emerging economy should lead the IMF.

Europe is aggressively staking its traditional claim to the top position. But fast-growing nations such as China, Brazil and South Africa are trying to break Europe’s grip on an organization empowered to direct billions of dollars to stabilize the global economy.

McHugh reported from Frankfurt. Associated Press writers Christopher S. Rugaber in Washington, Geir Moulson in Berlin, Charles Hutzler in Beijing, Bradley Brooks in Sao Paulo and Anita Powell in Johannesburg contributed to this report.

Queen expresses “Deep Sympathy” in Irish speech

DUBLIN (AP) – Queen Elizabeth II made a powerful statement Wednesday night expressing ‘deep sympathy’ to all who had suffered as a result of the troubled relations between England and- Ireland.

She did not apologize for any British actions during the bitter conflicts between the two neighbors but said it is clear mistakes were made.

‘To all those who have suffered as a consequence of our troubled past I extend my sincere thoughts and- deep sympathy,’ she said at a state dinner hosted by Irish President Mary McAleese. ‘With the benefit of historical hindsight, we can all see things which we would wish had been done differently or not at all.’

The queen, whose visit has been highlighted by memorable scenes of friendship and forgiveness, emphasized the positive in the rest of her brief speech, saying no one in past centuries could have imagined the bonds of friendship that now unite England and- Ireland.

Guests were surprised, and- delighted, when she opened her remarks by speaking in Gaelic, Ireland’s official national language. The queen then proposed a toast to the people of Ireland, and- said, ‘I love these clinking glasses,’ after the champagne flutes were raised and- clinked.

Her speech may disappoint those who wanted a formal apology from the British monarch, but others will feel she came quite close to acknowledging British misdeeds in the fight against the Irish independence movement.

The speech marks her only scheduled comments during a planned four-day visit to Ireland – the first ever to the republic by a reigning British monarch.

Her journey of reconciliation also took her on Wednesday to the site of a notorious massacre where British troops killed 14 Irish civilians in 1920. The large sports stadium is a revered spot for Irish nationalists who mourn those who died there during the conflict with Britain.

This was the site of the original ‘Bloody Sunday,’ a day when British forces opened fire on civilians at a major sporting match between Dublin and Tipperary. It has never been forgotten, but the queen’s visit was seen by some as a step toward healing.

‘I suppose I never thought this would happen, but I hoped,’ said Tadhg Meehan, a secretary of the Gaelic Athletic Association that hosted the queen’s visit.

In a brief talk at the Hogan Room inside the stadium, Gaelic Athletic Association President Christy Cooney welcomed the queen and her husband, Prince Philip.

He mentioned the people who died at the stadium on Bloody Sunday, but he also emphasized the warm relations that now exist between the two countries.

Nickey Brennan, a past president of the association, said the queen’s presence at the massacre site would resonate throughout Ireland.

‘To have Her Majesty here today is a very important milestone,’ he said. ‘It shows how much we’ve all moved on.’

Queen Elizabeth II’s decision to make an appearance in Croke Park was part of her larger plan to use this trip to show understanding of the issues that have often separated these two neighboring countries.

Not every stop was so fraught.

The queen and- Philip began the day with a visit to the Guinness Storehouse, one of Ireland’s most popular sites, and- its famous Gravity Bar, which offers a panoramic view of Dublin.

Master brewer Fergal Murray expertly prepared a pint of Guinness for the queen in the Gravity Bar, but she declined after smiling broadly. Philip gazed at the brew with obvious longing but also walked away without a taste.

Earlier, he had joked with Murray, ‘Is it made with Liffey water?’ referring to the nearby river.

The Guinness tour struck a light note on an otherwise serious visit.

The queen, in an ivory outfit with oversize blue buttons that matched her hat, went directly from the Guinness building for a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny.

British Prime Minister David Cameron also traveled to Dublin on Wednesday for a meeting with Kenny and- to attend the state dinner.

Before the dinner, Cameron said the queen’s visit has already been a huge success.

‘I think everyone back in the UK has been very struck by the pictures and the scenes and the warm welcome that she’s had, and- I think this visit will set the seal on what is already a very strong relationship between our two countries, but a relationship I believe that can get even stronger still,’ he said.

The dinner guests at the historic Dublin Castle feasted on delicacies including cured salmon, rib of Slaney Valley beef with smoked champ potato and fried spring cabbage, and strawberries and- cream, a dessert often associated with the Wimbledon tennis championships. Several French wines were served.

The queen was dressed in a white ensemble set off by a spectacular diamond tiara, necklace and earring combination. The Irish president wore a striking blue dress; both of their husbands wore tuxedos.

The guests included Nobel Prize-winning poet Seamus Heaney and- a host of prominent politicians, including British Foreign Minister William Hague and Cabinet Secretary Gus O’Donnell, Northern Ireland First Secretary Peter Robinson, former Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern as well as Cardinal Sean Brady.

The queen and McAleese also laid wreaths at the Irish National War Memorial Garden on Wednesday, much as they did the day before at the Garden of Remembrance honoring Irish rebels who fought against British rule.

The queen is receiving high marks from the Irish press for her dignified conduct during her long-anticipated visit.

The Irish Daily Mail noted the widespread respect for the queen’s decision to honor Ireland’s rebels on her first day in Dublin by laying a wreath at the Garden of Remembrance.

Broadband Plus’ package is second only to Indonesian offering

New- report from ABI research shows operator’s ‘Mobile Broadband Plus’ package is second only to Indonesian offering

T-Mobile has come second of a cross country comparison of mobile data pricing, compiled by ABI research.

The findings put the operator in second place thanks to its unlimited data ‘Mobile Broadband Plus’ package which costs £10 a month.

It was only behind Indonesian operator Indosat’s unlimited StarOne BIS service which costs £8.35 per month.

The report found that in general Asian operators offered the cheapest broadband services thanks in part to their links to their countries governments, however ABI said this was likely to change.

“The partial deregulation of the telecommunications sector in Asia has allowed for a market-based model of competition,” said ABI Research associate Lim Shiyang.

“Industry dynamics have changed as prices now depend on competition within countries, rather than pricing caps.”

The company has also warned about increasing confusion amongst consumers as traditional ‘unlimited plans’ are being replaced by tiered pricing offerings.

“Demand for mobile data has been soaring over the past few years,” ABI Research mobile services practice director Neil Strother said.

“As such, unlimited data plans were seldom removed from the product offerings of many mobile operators, while at the same time tiered-pricing plans entered the market. This has created some uncertainty among subscribers.”

Motorola XOOM: with a Honeycomb centre

We get our hands on the XOOM table – launchpad for Google’s Android Honeycomb operating system.

The XOOM itself looks like any other tablet from the front – Apple excepted – with only the word ‘Motorola’ setting it apart. On the rear, you’ll find a simple Motorola logo, stereo speakers (which are loud) and a five-megapixel camera (with dual-LED lamp) above. It’s quite an increase on the 0.7-megapixel sensor on the iPad 2.

At the top is a 3.5mm headphone jack, while at the base are a few different connection sockets. Sadly, you can only use the USB socket for transferring data. For charging, you’ll need to use a separate, higher-power, mini-DC cable that fits in further along.

There’s also a connector to allow you to hook the XOOM up to your HD TV. Motorola doesn’t use the new MHL connector standard, which combines the ability to carry HD video and- audio, using a cable that fits a micro-USB socket. Nor does it come with the separate HD cable in the box.

Good and- bad apps
The XOOM runs on the Android Honeycomb OS, designed specifically for tablets. It may look substantially different, but it can still run almost every app designed for existing Android smartphones.

However, with a screen measuring just over 10 inches, displaying 1280 x 800 pixels, some apps don’t look quite right. Some also work in only landscape or portrait modes, which causes even more frustration. At the time of review, there were a only handful of apps designed for tablets. Honeycomb needs apps that look as slick as only an Apple-developed app usually can.

Besides more pixels than standard Android smartphones, Honeycomb has smaller text and- icons, which makes the XOOM look a lot less like a toy than the iPad. It means that on a single home screen there’s plenty of room to fit loads of app shortcuts and- widgets. A single panel can display eight columns and- seven rows.

The web browser is perhaps the biggest beneficiary of the large screen. With a higher resolution than some computer monitors and- netbooks, you really can’t beat the XOOM for web surfing. Adobe Flash support is included as standard on the UK-released models, and- the dual-core processor makes everything fly along.

In fact, you won’t see the XOOM slow down for virtually anything, although the screen rotation seems to have an annoying delay that must be intentional rather than a sign of any slow-down.
The model reviewed was the Wi-Fi-only version, which, unlike Apple’s iPad, still gets the GPS receiver fitted inside.

Tower CPU cooler named “Assassin”

Deepcool Industries, a Beijing based manufacturer of cooling components, unveiled today their new dual-tower CPU cooler named “Assassin”.

While Deepcool has yet to announce a price or release date they did confirm that this beast of a cooler contains eight 6mm copper heatpipes, a 120mm push fan, a140mm pull fan, and- the option for a third fan if the case can support it.

Deepcool says that the “Assassin” will be compatible with the LGA 775/1155/1156/1366 family of processors as well as the  AMD AM2/AM2+/AM3 line

Cannes Review: Midnight in Paris

A real treat, a buttery and flaky croissant.

Woody Allen’s latest film, Midnight in Paris, opens with a visual love letter to the city. Images of the Eiffel Tower, strolls along the Champs-Élysées, close-ups on the Arc de Triomphe which gracefully segue into the glass pyramids of the Louvre — Allen has thrown in all the iconic imagery that makes Paris as much an ideal as it is a city. It’s also clear from the opening that we’re headed for one of Allen’s lighter works, tonally, though that’s no ding on the overall effectiveness. Midnight in Paris is a real treat, a buttery and- flaky croissant with a carafe of red wine thrown in to satisfy adult sensibilities.

Owen Wilson, as Gil Pender, embodies the concept that is Paris. He’s whimsical, prone to long walks, and desperately seeking to capture the magic and romance of the city. He’s a Hollywood screenwriter who dreams of finishing a great novel, to do something of substance, much in the same way that great novelists want to break into screenwriting, to do something of commercial significance. Owen is engaged to Rachel McAdams, and- they are visiting Paris while he puts the finishing touches on his novel. She’s not exactly supportive, as she thinks struggling to write a novel is silly when screenwriting is so lucrative, though she is looking forward to both their nuptials and starting a life back in Malibu, California. One evening Wilson goes on a solo walk, the clock strikes midnight, an old-timey car approaches him, and- he’s magically transported back to the roaring ’20s in Paris, the “golden age” he’s been seeking all along.

The luminaries he runs across are part of what make Midnight in Paris special: F. Scott and- Zelda Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali, and- many more; he has small moments with each, in-jokes for the literati abound. Hemingway (played by Corey Stoll) in particular is delightful: he’s pointed and- brusque, but full of courage and- honor, much like his masterful prose and the man himself. Wilson takes the whole time travel element in stride, overjoyed at the fact that he’s getting to meet his inspirations. It plays out like a fantasy camp for Wilson, with Gertrude Stein offering to read his novel, Dali stopping him for a chat in a bar, Cole Porter tickling the ivory for his listening pleasure. A cornucopia of intellectual enchantment is at his disposal, and- he savors every moment. Marion Cotillard plays Adriana, muse to Picasso and Hemingway, the latter of whom asks her, “Do you know what it’s like to shoot a charging lion?” Whimsy city, but in a pleasant.

Meanwhile, back in present day, McAdams becomes increasingly frustrated with his random midnight walkabouts. She begins spending time with  a friend she knows in Paris, Paul (Michael Sheen), who is an expert on everything from wine to art. The Sheen-McAdams-Wilson dynamic is fantastic; laughs are plentiful as Sheen keeps upping the intellectual ante on Wilson, a romantic man- who just wants to be swept away in the moment. Sheen plays Paul as “that guy,” the guy who knows everything, the guy who might be hitting on your girl, the guy who finds the ’59 version of the wine a bit too tannin-filled. You know, a jerk, though in this case the pedantic blowhard adds plenty of wry wit to an already clever story.

The dialogue throughout Midnight in Paris is also crisp and- packed with levity. At one point Wilson attempts an aside, he hems and- haws, before McAdams mercilessly cuts him off with a “That’s it? That’s the ending to your story?” to which Wilson parries, “That wasn’t a story, it was a detail.” But the main thrust and- cohesion of the film can be found in all the ’20s action, an era Wilson visits regularly. The age-old debate of “When is Paris at its most lovely?” is finally settled, and the types of personalities that would and wouldn’t walk in the rain are fully parsed. There’s also a smallish role for Carla Bruni, she of Sarkozy wifedom, and- she acquits herself well.

Sweet, sentimental, and- vibrant, Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris rightfully points out that yesterday’s frolicking bar might be today’s laundry mat … but we can always visit the good times in our memories. The same could be said of Woody Allen’s work in general — when it’s good, it’s very good indeed, which is precisely why our cultural memory holds him in such esteem … and- why we choose to visit our favorite moments often and with affection.

5 Little Known Hacks For The Google Chrome Browser

Google Chrome stepped in and- regenerated the scene. The brand brand brand brand new browser desirous brand brand brand brand new developments all around as good as continues to set new- standards. While Firefox not long ago surpassed Internet Explorer and- took the lead in conditions of user shares in Europe, the dump of IE use is essentially suspicion to be due to IE users switching to Chrome rsther than than Firefox [Wikipedia].

Chrome is throwing up and- there have been reasons. It’s the neat minimalist browser, which has already outsourced most of the facilities in to the cloud, giving users different leisure as good as flexibility. Now is the time to get to know Google Chrome the small improved with the following small good well known underline hacks.

Auto-Start Chrome In Incognito Mode

To auto-start Google Chrome in incognito mode, we need to regulate the properties of the couple or idol we have been regulating to launch Chrome. This can be any by-pass upon your desktop, in your Quick Launch club or in your begin menu.

• Right-click the Chrome  idol or by-pass and- name > Properties. In the > Shortcut add-on there is the margin called > Target. The couple we see there will demeanour something similar to this: C:UsersTinaAppDataLocalGoogleChromeApplicationchrome.exe

• Change it to this: “C:UsersTinaAppDataLocalGoogleChromeApplicationchrome.exe” -incognito
• Click > OK to save as good as try the couple we edited. It should launch the brand brand brand brand new Google Chrome window seeking similar to the the single in the screenshot below. Shortcuts we didn’t revise will not be affected!

Browse PDF Documents With Adobe Reader

If you’re not happy with the in-built Google Chrome PDF Reader, there is an easy approach to perspective PDFs with your default PDF reader, e.g. Adobe Reader. You can simply invalidate the Chrome PDF Viewer plugin as good as voilà, your default reader will hoop PDFs again.

Type > about:plugins in to the Google Chrome URL / poke bar, additionally good well known as omnibox. Locate the > Chrome PDF Viewer plugin as good as click the > Disable link. Be certain which an additional PDF plugin, e.g. Adobe Reader or Foxit Reader is commissioned and- enabled.

Access Experimental Features

Like they have finished with Labs in Gmail, Google ships Chrome with the little initial facilities which we can simply capacitate if we know where they have been hidden.

To open the list of ‘experiments’ sort > about:flags in to the omnibox. Right during the tip there is the notice which initial facilities might change, break, or vanish during any time. This, however, doesn’t meant which they aren’t useful.

I rarely suggest enabling the Side Tabs if we have the vast widescreen monitor, the Print Preview feature, as good as Web Page Pre-rendering if we wish to crop faster.

Quickly Disable & Enable Extensions

In Google Chrome, the browser prolongation add-on is accessed around > spanner icon (customize) > Tools > Extensions. From the add-on we can invalidate or capacitate extensions or open the Chrome Web Store to find brand brand brand brand new extensions. Sadly there is no by-pass alternative than regularly withdrawal the extensions add-on open.

If we mostly find yourself disabling and- enabling extensions since they means conflicts with websites you’re upon vacation for for alternative reasons, we will adore this set of extensions. Quick Disable as good as Quick Enable supplement the invalidate / capacitate functionality to Chrome’s already multifunctional URL as good as poke bar.

All we have to do is sort enable or disable, followed by the name of the particular extension. As shortly as we strike the spacebar after typing the keyword, the Quick Disable or Quick Enable trademark appears in the omnibox. And- when we sort the initial minute of the extension, the list of matches comes up, so we don’t have to spell out the total name.

Access Your Printer From Anywhere With Google Cloud Print

Previously usually found in the Beta, Google Cloud Print is right away an central underline of Google Chrome. It allows we to entrance and- share your printers online and- as the result imitation from anywhere whilst you’re upon the road.

Click the > spanner icon, name > Options, and- switch to > Under the Hood. At the really bottom click > Sign in to Google Cloud Print. You will need to record in to your Google account. In the subsequent impulse Google will inform success and- we can imitation the exam page or click OK as good as > Manage Print Settings.

For the minute support of Google Cloud Print, check out this article: How To Print From Your Phone With Gmail For Mobile & Google Cloud Print

Who will act similarly to mercenaries in Diablo II

With a proposed beta coming soon, Diablo fans are waiting with bated breath for the third installment in the game that popularized action-RPGs. In the meantime, Blizzard Entertainment continues to leak out details for Diablo III, with the most recent being the confirmation of followers in the game, who will act similarly to mercenaries in Diablo II.

According to Blizzard, these AI-controlled companions are Kormac the Templar, Eirena the Enchantress, and Lyndon the Scoundrel. Kormac is a melee-focused unit who can be specced into either a support healer or damage absorber. Eirena can either be customized to cast long-range spells or cast buffs for your character. Lyndon is also another ranged unit like Eirena, but has more damage options than her and also has a few crowd control moves to keep mobs away from players.

Each follower is a part of Diablo III’s main story arc and have their own different story and backgrounds. They will have their own introductory quests where the players learn about these companions. While they are not core story characters, Blizzard said that they enhance the story element of the game.