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Editor’s review of LimeWire
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4.0 stars
- “Down to the wire”
From its start as a post-Napster clone to its leading role as the quintessential Gnutella client, LimeWire is the highest-profile P2P application. Version 5 re-envisions LimeWire for a Web 2.0 world, with an emphasis on sharing with friends, square buttons with rounded corners, and overall a cleaner interface.
Two search bars and two sidebars cap off the redesign. The uppermost search bar is the global search that scans what everybody is sharing over the P2P network, while the secondary one on the right searches your library. The sidebars are set up in a similar way. Both are on the left, with the outer one offering three options: your library, the global P2P network, and your friends. Click on My Library and your inner sidebar shows your collection of music, movies, and documents. The P2P Network option shows what you’re uploading and downloading, while the Friends option lets you share your library specifically with your Google/Jabber contacts, which you can import. Search results can be presented in both the new Web 2.0-style that surfaces just the most relevant information, with an Information button to dive deeper or the “classic” spreadsheet view.
The Advanced Tools feature is also new, which lets power users drill down and get highly specific information about who they’re connected to, similar to what’s available from torrent clients. This data includes IP addresses, bandwidth, the program being used and its version. The new features and overall functionality make this by far the most mature version of LimeWire to date. Despite the typical performance flaws found in all file-sharing clients, this latest version continues to offer solid performance and good looks across the board.
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EGYPT: The Deputy Leader of Hamas said Thursday night that the Islamic militant group agreed to a long-term truce with Israel for the Gaza Strip, the official Egyptian news agency reported.
Moussa Abu Marzouk told MENA that Egypt’s government, which has been mediating between Hamas and Israel, would announce the truce, which will last for 18 months, in two days after consulting with other Palestinian factions.
In Jerusalem, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s office said the Israeli government had no comment on the report.
Earlier in the day, Egyptian and Hamas officials reported progress in truce talks, which included Hamas’ strongman from Gaza, Mahmoud Zahar, and Egypt’s top mediator, intelligence chief Omar Suleiman.
Egyptian diplomats have been working as go-betweens to try to arrange a truce deal between Hamas and Israel to solidify a cease-fire that ended Israel’s devastating 22-day offensive in Gaza last month. Hamas and Israel refuse to negotiate directly.
Marzouk told MENA that the Egyptian-brokered deal it agreed to calls for Israel to reopen six border crossings into the Gaza Strip.
Hamas leaders centered its truce demands on a reopening of the tiny coastal territory’s borders, which have been largely sealed by Egypt and Israel since Hamas gunmen seized control in Gaza in 2007.
Israel, in turn, insisted that any cease-fire must include an end to militants firing rockets from Gaza into southern Israel and a halt to Hamas arms smuggling.
It was not clear what effect recent elections in Israel would have on any prospective deal over Gaza.
In talking to MENA, Marzouk did not discuss details. But earlier Thursday he told Al-Jazeera television that Egypt had previously agreed to work with Israel to forge new arrangements for reopening Gaza’s crossing into Egypt.
Marzouk said a deal for the release of a captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit held in Gaza would be negotiated later, according to MENA.
Egypt has been trying to broker a prisoner exchange between Israel and Hamas. Hamas is holding Shalit, who was abducted more than two years ago in a cross-border raid from Gaza into southern Israel.
Besides mediating a truce for Gaza, Egypt also is trying to bring Hamas and its Palestinian rival, President Mahmoud Abbas, into talks on reconciling and forming a unity government that can move ahead with peace negotiations with Israel. Egypt hopes to host a reconciliation conference Feb. 22.
Meanwhile, an Egyptian security official said Egypt had arrested a Palestinian who sneaked into Egypt through a tunnel from Gaza and was trying to purchase weapons in Egypt. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said the man and two Egyptians who were sheltering him were arrested in the coastal city of El-Arish Wednesday.
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US: The spreading global economic crisis is trapping up to 53 million people in poverty in the developing world and poses a serious threat to achieving internationally agreed targets of poverty reduction, the World Bank Group said on Thursday.
New estimates for 2009 suggest that the economic downturn will cause 46 million more people to live under 1.25 dollars a day, according to the bank.
An extra 53 million will stay trapped on less than 2 dollars a day on top of the 130-155 million people pushed into poverty in 2008 because of soaring food and fuel prices. These new forecasts highlight the serious threat to the realization of the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which set specific targets to reduce poverty by 2015.
The new research shows that markedly lowered economic growth rates will significantly retard progress in reducing infant mortality.
If the crisis persists, 1.4 to 2.8 million more children may die during 2009 to 2015. “The global economic crisis threatens to become a human crisis in many developing countries unless they can take targeted measures to protect vulnerable people in their communities,” World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick said.
“This is a global crisis requiring a global solution. The needs of poor people in developing countries must be on the table,” he said.
In a policy note issued in the run up to the Group of Seven finance ministers meeting on Saturday, the World Bank said almost 40 percent of 107 developing countries were highly exposed to the poverty effects of the crisis and the remainder was moderately exposed, with less than 10 percent facing little risk.
Zoellick recently called for the establishment of a “Vulnerability Fund” in which each developed country devoted 0.7 percent of its stimulus package to the fund.
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The year 2009 is our country’s Year of English and IT. With the liberation of our people from the clutches of terrorism which destroyed our country for more than 25 years, 2009 will also be our country’s Year of Peace, our country’s Year of Reconciliation, and our Year of true Independence, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said.
He was speaking at the ceremonial launch of “2009 - Year of English and Information Technology” at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday.
“It promises to be the year in which all our people, - irrespective of caste, race, locality, language or religion, - begin to march together, as the sons and daughters of Mother Lanka towards a common goal of development and prosperity,” the President said.
The ‘Year of English and IT’ is launched as a major initiative of the Government to help Sri Lanka meet the demands of the 21st Century in skills and capacities, making the availability as a Life Skill for the rural sector.
President Rajapaksa said his Government lays emphasis on the unmistakable need to urgently equip the people, especially the youth, with proficiency in the English language on the one side and to provide them with access to computers and internet facilities, through the rapid development of use of information technology, on the other.
English and IT shall therefore be used by our Government as instruments of rural empowerment; as powerful tools that could make the villages of our country a meaningful part of the global village.
The President said while he recognized English to be an important tool of rural empowerment, its penetration across the country and especially, into the rural hinterland has been held back by constraints of a very different nature.
“English was and still continues to be perceived and delivered as a gateway to elite status and an emblem of class and privilege.
“The curriculum and teaching methods followed in our country, which place importance not on the use of it for communication, but on its rules of grammar, and on perfect pronunciation, have only served to maintain it as the exclusive preserve of a selfish, privileged class and a tool of social repression,” he said.
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Conveying the Cabinet’s decision on Wednesday to reject the appointment of former Defence Secretary Des Brown as a special envoy to Sri Lanka, the Government yesterday informed Britain their unilateral decision was in breach of the accepted principles governing international relations.
Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said the Cabinet in unison endorsed his application to reject the appointment of Des Brown MP as a special envoy to Sri Lanka, on the grounds that the Lankan side has not been properly consulted beforehand, given the sensitivity of the issue.
He said: ”I believe this is an unhelpful initiative in the counter terrorism activities and also amounts to the intrusion into Sri Lanka’s internal affairs.”
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown informed a Parliamentary Committee of naming a Special envoy to Sri Lanka on Thursday.
Minister Bogollagama said though the role of this special envoy is to support future development of the country including with regard to humanitarian aspects, it is learnt that his role is not properly defined, which was of concern for the Government.
Minister Bogollagama said Japan sought the Sri Lankan Government’s concurrence when Special Envoy Yasushi Akashi was appointed, though under different circumstances. And they expected similar courtesy from Britain which had been a country Sri Lanka had maintained close bi-lateral ties for a long period.
He said the Government was pursuing a ‘home grown agenda’ in its counter terrorism move with much success while taking extra measures to address humanitarian, IDPs and rehabilitation issues. International community support was critical in making this effort a complete success and in finding a sustainable solution to its ‘national issue’.
He said the Government appreciated the initiative by the US to ban another LTTE front organisation, the Tamil Foundation based in Maryland and freeze its assets adding that this was the kind of support it expected from the international community in its fight against terrorism.
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Polling will take place from 7.00 am to 4.00 pm today, at 2,579 centres, covering all 40 polling divisions in the five districts, comprising the Central and North-Western Provincial Councils.
A total of 2,247 candidates are in the fray from 16 political parties and 43 independent groups.
In the Central Province 1,310 candidates are in the contest, from 14 political parties and 26 independent groups. In Northwestern province 937 candidates are in the fray from 12 political parties and 17 independent groups.
According to the 2007 voters’ register a total of 3,408,182 (24.4 per cent of country’s total voters) are eligible to vote at today’s election. This consists of 1,746,449 voters from Central and 1,661,733 voters from North Western Province.
Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayaka told a media briefing on Thursday that he would take tough action in case of reported violence, intimidation or malpractices and would take steps to nullify results in the affected polling booths, if any.
Announcing a series of measures to protect voter franchise, the Commissioner said National ID card numbers had been printed on the polling card to prevent impersonation.
“Even if the ID number is not printed, the particular voter could vote after obtaining special permission from the head of the polling booth, subjected to proving their identity, he added.
In addition to the National ID, the following documents have been termed as valid by the authorities: a valid passport, Driving Licence, Postal ID, Railway Season ticket, Pensioner’s ID, Bhikku ID or Elder’s ID and the temporary ID specially issued for this election.
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Sri Lanka is on the road to achieve its development target and it is time to acquire space technology for the country, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said at a special discussion he had with a group of England’s Surrey University Space Technology experts.
Vice-Chancellors and departmental heads of local universities were present at the discussion.
Prof. Sir Martin Switig delivered a special lecture on the possibility of accessing outer space and the benefits that could be reaped.President Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka’s friendship with UK could be effectively utilised to exchange expertise on space technology.
It was decided that a special committee consisting of Vice-Chancellor and departmental heads would study the prospects of procuring space technology. The outerspace division of the Surrey University set up in 1979, has a team of 60 engineers conducting research.
A satellite academy too has been set up in this university in 1985.
British High Commissioner Dr. Peter Hays, Science and Technology Minister Prof. Tissa Vitharana and Prof. G. L. Peiris and TRC Director General Priyantha Kariyawasam were also present.
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The Government has cancelled with immediate effect the radio transmission licence issued to the LTTE peace secretariat during the tenure of the ceasefire agreement.
“Accordingly, in terms of powers vested in me, I have cancelled the licence effective from January 17, 2009,” Mass Media and Information Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa told the weekly Cabinet press briefing at the Government Information Department yesterday.
“The then Secretary to the Information and Mass Media Ministry had issued the licence in response to a request by LTTE Peace Secretariat chief Pulidewan,” the Minister said.
The licence was issued on November 11, 2002. The UNP took immediate action to issue the licence, he said.
Permission had also been given to the LTTE for overseas transmissions as well, the Minister said.
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