Top Independent Albums for the 7/31/2010 issue

July 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Now Last Weeks Peak

1 1 1 A Star-Crossed Wasteland – In This Moment ()

2 1 2 1 Custom Built – Bret Michaels (/Poor Boy)

3 7 22 3 Sigh No More – Mumford & Sons (/Glassnote)

4 2 6 2 Vans Warped Tour 2010 Compilation – Various Artists ()

5 9 33 5 War Is The Answer – Five Finger Death Punch ()

6 11 11 1 Fever – Bullet For My Valentine ()

7 1 7 The Panic Broadcast – Soilwork ()

8 12 62 2 Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix – Phoenix (/Glassnote)

9 10 67 1 Wide Open – Jason Aldean ()

10 1 10 The War Report 2 – Capone -N- Noreaga ()

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

PeopleNet`s PerfectPrint Makes Time and Attendance More Efficient Than Ever

June 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Receipt-based system gives employees and managers the control over time and
attendance, avoid “missing punch syndrome”
ATLANTA–(Business Wire)–
Both employees and employers have learned to accept the limitations of the time
clock for time and attendance. And the bane of the time clock world is the
missed punch-when employees accidentally do not punch out or in.

Today, PeopleNet, the Atlanta-based national time and attendance firm, announces
PeopleNet PerfectPrint, a new time and attendance resource for payroll managers
and HR professionals to manage their workforce. By printing a paper reminder for
missing punches every time the employee interacts with the clock, the
PerfectPrint system automatically provides employees with the chance to correct
mistakes before payroll is run. This time and attendance solution leads to an
immediate 2% net reduction of missed punches. For a site with 100 employees,
punching 4 times a day, that 2% equates to 56 “missing” punches that a
supervisor does not have to follow up on or correct, allowing management to stay
focused on core business needs, rather than chasing employees, or worse,
guessing on time reports.

Many companies now rely on badge swipe technology for all their time and
attendance needs, which can be unreliable. How many times has a hotel door badge
malfunctioned? The same is true with employee swipe cards. In most systems,
payroll or IT runs a missed punch report at the end of the pay period, which is
supplied to the supervisor. Only then does the supervisor follow up with
employees to make corrections, turning workforce management onerous and shifting
time away from other core business functions. In most companies, it only takes a
few weeks before line managers grow weary of time keeping, and begin assuming
all employees are on time. This allows for a small percentage of the workforce,
sometimes as much as 6-7%, to realize that by not swiping, they can get full pay
for the day. Literally, it “pays not to punch.”

With PerfectPrint, the PeopleNet printer will kick out a paper time and
attendance reminder EACH time, until that punch is corrected in the system.
Staff are also given the option of printing their timesheet in real time during
each pay period to verify overtime and current pay. The result: Employees are
sure to punch because now the ownership of correction lies with them.

“The policy becomes: On the last punch of the week, print your card, review, and
make sure you agree. This is extremely valuable because most systems don`t allow
people to know what their final approved time is. This way data is clean before
it`s processed for payroll. The average cost for writing a manual check is close
to $60, which can add up to real savings for companies,” says Phil Sadler, CEO
at PeopleNet. “With today`s time and attendance tools, workforce management can
be easier and streamlined.”

Founded in 1990 and based in Atlanta, Georgia, PeopleNet is the national leader
in time and attendance for temporary staffing and employment agencies. With
millions of users and hundreds of agencies like EmployBridge, Randstad, and
Staffmark turning to PeopleNet, the company is known for fair, friendly and
forward-thinking business practices that help agencies streamline operations and
build a better bottom line. For more information, start a conversation with us
at PeopleNetor at 800-434-9517.

For PeopleNet
Jason Crain, 404-419-6677 x109
Jason@write2market.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

PeopleNet`s PerfectPrint Makes Time and Attendance More Efficient Than Ever

June 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Receipt-based system gives employees and managers the control over time and
attendance, avoid “missing punch syndrome”
ATLANTA–(Business Wire)–
Both employees and employers have learned to accept the limitations of the time
clock for time and attendance. And the bane of the time clock world is the
missed punch-when employees accidentally do not punch out or in.

Today, PeopleNet, the Atlanta-based national time and attendance firm, announces
PeopleNet PerfectPrint, a new time and attendance resource for payroll managers
and HR professionals to manage their workforce. By printing a paper reminder for
missing punches every time the employee interacts with the clock, the
PerfectPrint system automatically provides employees with the chance to correct
mistakes before payroll is run. This time and attendance solution leads to an
immediate 2% net reduction of missed punches. For a site with 100 employees,
punching 4 times a day, that 2% equates to 56 “missing” punches that a
supervisor does not have to follow up on or correct, allowing management to stay
focused on core business needs, rather than chasing employees, or worse,
guessing on time reports.

Many companies now rely on badge swipe technology for all their time and
attendance needs, which can be unreliable. How many times has a hotel door badge
malfunctioned? The same is true with employee swipe cards. In most systems,
payroll or IT runs a missed punch report at the end of the pay period, which is
supplied to the supervisor. Only then does the supervisor follow up with
employees to make corrections, turning workforce management onerous and shifting
time away from other core business functions. In most companies, it only takes a
few weeks before line managers grow weary of time keeping, and begin assuming
all employees are on time. This allows for a small percentage of the workforce,
sometimes as much as 6-7%, to realize that by not swiping, they can get full pay
for the day. Literally, it “pays not to punch.”

With PerfectPrint, the PeopleNet printer will kick out a paper time and
attendance reminder EACH time, until that punch is corrected in the system.
Staff are also given the option of printing their timesheet in real time during
each pay period to verify overtime and current pay. The result: Employees are
sure to punch because now the ownership of correction lies with them.

“The policy becomes: On the last punch of the week, print your card, review, and
make sure you agree. This is extremely valuable because most systems don`t allow
people to know what their final approved time is. This way data is clean before
it`s processed for payroll. The average cost for writing a manual check is close
to $60, which can add up to real savings for companies,” says Phil Sadler, CEO
at PeopleNet. “With today`s time and attendance tools, workforce management can
be easier and streamlined.”

Founded in 1990 and based in Atlanta, Georgia, PeopleNet is the national leader
in time and attendance for temporary staffing and employment agencies. With
millions of users and hundreds of agencies like EmployBridge, Randstad, and
Staffmark turning to PeopleNet, the company is known for fair, friendly and
forward-thinking business practices that help agencies streamline operations and
build a better bottom line. For more information, start a conversation with us
at PeopleNetor at 800-434-9517.

For PeopleNet
Jason Crain, 404-419-6677 x109
Jason@write2market.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Users Must Stay Vigilant on Social Networking Sites, Says Punch

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

LEICESTERSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, Jun 09 (MARKET WIRE)
–
Users of social networks must become more vigilant when it comes to their
personal privacy according to Search, Social Media and PR Agency Punch
Communications.

Social media has grown a vast amount over the past few years and has
gradually increased in complexity, which has had implications on users’
privacy.

Facebook recently announced that it has simplified its privacy settings
following increased concern that they were too complicated to understand.
The changes have been made in order to make it more straightforward for
users to pick and choose what information they want to be made public.

These changes have been a reminder that users need to be extremely
cautious when it comes to what content they display on their personal
social networking pages.

Pete Goold, Managing Director of Punch Communications, remarked;
“Users can follow a few basic steps to ensure that they are happy
with the amount of privacy they have on social networking sites. Firstly,
users must make sure that they have a comfortable understanding of the
privacy settings on their social network pages; this is the only way to
ensure complete control over what the public can view. They must make
sure that they can change and amend any settings with ease should they
wish to.

“Secondly, users must be sensible over what content is shared. It is
prudent to keep personal photos off social media such as images of
children, any content that could risk the safety of the user or those
around them. This leads on to step three, users should not post content
that might have a detrimental affect should a potential employer see
them. There is little doubt that employers are increasingly using social
media as a key tool in recruitment therefore it is important to filter
the amount of content shared in the public domain.”

Founded in 2003 by Pete and Emma Goold, Digital PR agency Punch
Communications offer traditional PR services as well as is being a
leading social media and SEO agency. Punch successfully uses social media
to enhance a brands online presence, and enable them to improve their
consumer engagement.

Punch is currently recruiting for a number of roles, from Account Manager
to Account Director. For more information regarding PR jobs at Punch,
please call +44 (0) 1858 411600 or visit punchcomms.com.

Contacts:
Punch Communications
Pete Goold
+44 (0) 1858 411 600
pete@punchcomms.com
www.punchcomms.com

Copyright 2010, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

-0-

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Users Must Stay Vigilant on Social Networking Sites, Says Punch

June 10, 2010 By Leave a Comment

LEICESTERSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM, Jun 09 (MARKET WIRE)
–
Users of social networks must become more vigilant when it comes to their
personal privacy according to Search, Social Media and PR Agency Punch
Communications.

Social media has grown a vast amount over the past few years and has
gradually increased in complexity, which has had implications on users’
privacy.

Facebook recently announced that it has simplified its privacy settings
following increased concern that they were too complicated to understand.
The changes have been made in order to make it more straightforward for
users to pick and choose what information they want to be made public.

These changes have been a reminder that users need to be extremely
cautious when it comes to what content they display on their personal
social networking pages.

Pete Goold, Managing Director of Punch Communications, remarked;
“Users can follow a few basic steps to ensure that they are happy
with the amount of privacy they have on social networking sites. Firstly,
users must make sure that they have a comfortable understanding of the
privacy settings on their social network pages; this is the only way to
ensure complete control over what the public can view. They must make
sure that they can change and amend any settings with ease should they
wish to.

“Secondly, users must be sensible over what content is shared. It is
prudent to keep personal photos off social media such as images of
children, any content that could risk the safety of the user or those
around them. This leads on to step three, users should not post content
that might have a detrimental affect should a potential employer see
them. There is little doubt that employers are increasingly using social
media as a key tool in recruitment therefore it is important to filter
the amount of content shared in the public domain.”

Founded in 2003 by Pete and Emma Goold, Digital PR agency Punch
Communications offer traditional PR services as well as is being a
leading social media and SEO agency. Punch successfully uses social media
to enhance a brands online presence, and enable them to improve their
consumer engagement.

Punch is currently recruiting for a number of roles, from Account Manager
to Account Director. For more information regarding PR jobs at Punch,
please call +44 (0) 1858 411600 or visit punchcomms.com.

Contacts:
Punch Communications
Pete Goold
+44 (0) 1858 411 600
pete@punchcomms.com
www.punchcomms.com

Copyright 2010, Market Wire, All rights reserved.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

PowerReviews Works with Retailers to Integrate a Core Feature of Facebook Platform

June 3, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Leading Retailers Including REI and Evo are Benefitting from the Like Button
CHICAGO & SAN FRANCISCO–(Business Wire)–
PowerReviews is excited to announce the turnkey integration of the Facebook Like
button with its leading social commerce suite. This integration allows partners
to quickly start reaping the benefits of richer, deeper customer engagement
through increased customer interactivity with their products, services and
brands. PowerReviews retail partners have been quick to adopt this innovative
social tool, with participants including REI and Evo.

The Like button is a social plug-in that enables users to show interest in
content across the Web and share back to their friends on Facebook with one
click.

“The addition of the `Like` button allows greater interactions with our brand
across the Facebook platform where many of our members and customers actively
participate,” said Brad Brown, REI vice president of E-Commerce and Direct
Sales. “We believe these social connections will help enhance our relevance,
trust and loyalty among consumers as they utilize their personal networks,
including opinions that guide their purchase decisions.”

“Social plug-ins put customers and relationships at the center of the web, while
providing a look into aggregate trends on consumer preferences, so retailers can
in turn offer improved products,” said Pehr Luedtke, CEO of PowerReviews. “The
Like button – which enables people to share feedback with their Facebook friends
- now complements the `People Like Me` functionality that comes from
PowerReviews` affinity tags. This powerful one-two punch creates more relevant
and helpful customer experiences.”

The 2010 Social Shopping survey, conducted by the e-tailing Group and
PowerReviews, found that friends on social websites including Facebook and
“People Like Me” (people that users may not know but may share similar
personalities/interests with) were the top two online voices having the greatest
influence on purchasing decisions.

About PowerReviews

PowerReviews is the leading provider of customer reviews and social commerce
solutions to retailers and brands. The company’s innovative tag-based approach
to collecting, organizing, structuring and analyzing user-generated content
significantly boosts product sales and customer engagement. Recognized as the
customer reviews Solution Leader in the Internet Retailer Top 500 survey,
PowerReviews works with over 850 retailers and brands on over 2700 websites,
including Staples, Drugstore.com, Gardener`s Supply, Diapers.com, Callaway and
Jockey. In addition to its Enterprise solution, PowerReviews offers an on-demand
solution for small- and medium-sized businesses called PowerReviews Express
(www.powerreviewsexpress.com). PowerReviews also operates the leading reviews
and recommendation site for consumers, Buzzillions.com (www.buzzillions.com).
PowerReviews blog is at www.blogs.powerreviews.com.

Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.

TidalWave PR
Lisa Tarter, 415-203-2462
lisa@tidalwavepr.com

Copyright Business Wire 2010

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Soderling makes hay while sun shines in Paris

May 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Robin Soderling sauntered into round two of the French Open on Sunday with the minimum of effort after a 6-0 6-2 6-3 victory over French wildcard Laurent Recouderc.

Soderling, the man who stunned the tennis world 12 months ago by inflicting Rafa Nadal’s only defeat at Roland Garros, stormed through the first nine games and a rare whitewash looked on the cards.

But Recouderc, encouraged by a sun-baked crowd on Court Philippe Chatrier, finally broke his duck in game 10 and mockingly egged on the crowd with a punch in the air.

But Soderling, the fifth seed, unleashed his brutal forehand time and again to ease through in just an hour and 34 minutes to book a place in round two against either American Taylor Dent or Ecuador’s Nicolas Lapentti.

(Editing by Miles Evans; To query or comment on this story emailsportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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For Heidi Montag ”bigger is better” when it comes to her boobs

May 6, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, May 6 (ANI): ‘The Hills’ star Heidi Montag’s husband Spencer Pratt has revealed that his wife is not satisfied with the size of her breasts and wants bigger implants.

Pratt, 26, revealed to Life & Style Magazine that Montag, 23, who has already had an astonishing 13 procedures, was angry when she woke up from her last surgery, as she had wanted bigger boobs.

“When Heidi woke up from the anaesthesia [last time], she was angry [her breasts] weren’t bigger. She said she wanted to punch the doctor in the face,” Fox News quoted him as telling the tabloid.

“I try to stop her. She’ll do what she wants with her body,” he stated.

Even Dr. Frank Ryan, who performed most of her previous surgeries, has told her that she has had enough surgery.

“I told Heidi, ‘What are you going to do? You’re done!’” he revealed.

Montag revealed to People magazine that she is now eager to get even bigger implants.

“It sounds crazy, but once you get a certain size boob, you always want bigger,” she said.

“Bigger is better,” she added. (ANI)

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Indian women boxers get set for Asian Games and World Cup bouts

April 24, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Bhopal, Apr 24 (ANI): The Indian women boxers are preparing for the ensuing Asian Games and the World Cup at the national training camp held at Bhopal.

This camp, which commenced on April 15, will continue till May 21.

The Indian Women Boxing Team chief coach, Anup Kumar, said every woman is trained individually in this camp and that the team is going to perform well in both the Asian Games and World Cup.

“We also emphasise on the defence part…defence…punch…which is going on nowadays…the defence which is done as a reaction to an attack…a counter attack which is done, is the best defence, more attention is laid on that. We do first attack as well,” Kumar said.

“Nowadays, there is computer scoring, which has changed a lot in scoring. Earlier…in manual scoring, it was easier, but today, if the chin does not go up, the punch is not considered strong enough, which means if the body weight is entirely on the punch, then it will earn a point,” he added.

Kumar further said that the Indian Boxing Federation (IBF) has chosen a capable team of senior as well as junior players for the camp.

The government of India has suggested an additional foreign coach to add to their experience.

M C Marykom, the four times world champion, said that all boxers at the camp are working hard and that they are much impressed by Kumar”s training, and another coach would supplement their skills.

“I think our Indian boxers have performed well. Anup Sir has given us good training and all the national coaches are doing good training with us. So…I mean…it is fine…if Russian coaches come, we will learn some techniques used there. I think we will benefit,” said Marykom.

She added that one or two from every country can give a good competition at the championship but China is the toughest competitor as of now.

After the camps in Patiala, Bangalore and Kolkata, the fourth one in Bhopal has witnessed more number of women, since it is centrally located.

Kumar is assisted by eight other coaches in the Bhopal camp. (ANI)

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Bus stop bashing accused tries for bail

March 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A Darwin court has heard that witnesses to the bashing of a teenager at the Palmerston Bus Exchange may have had threats made against them.

Darwin’s Youth Justice Court heard a teenage boy was waiting for a bus when he was allegedly set upon by four other young people on Thursday afternoon.

The attack left him with a broken jaw, damaged teeth and a possible fractured eye socket.

Today a 15-year-old boy, charged with aggravated assault and causing serious harm over the incident, applied for bail.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Richard Howie told the court the accused had thrown the first punch before the others became involved in a sustained and violent attack.

Sgt Howie said police had security camera footage of the alleged incident, but he said there were concerns that threats of retaliation had been made against some witnesses.

The boy was remanded in detention until Thursday for the bail hearing to continue.

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Man jailed after trying to punch police

March 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A Horsham man has been given a jail sentence for being drunk and attempting to assault police.

Police say Shane Smith, 41, was arrested for being drunk in a public place in November last year.

They say he threw two punches at a police officer that did not connect.

Magistrate Richard Pithouse said Smith has had five suspended sentences for similar offences in the past 12 years.

He said Smith was going inside to contemplate with a bible and a blanket about what he should be doing.

Smith was sentenced to six months in prison, of which four months will be suspended for two years.

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Hugh Grant indulges in food fight over Jemima Khan

March 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

London, Mar 19 (ANI): Hugh Grant found himself at one end of a food fight with Matthew Freud, the PR executive, over ex-girlfriend Jemima Khan.

The ‘Notting hill’ star had chocolate cake smeared over him by Matthew Freud, the PR executive, at a party at Annabel”s nightclub in Mayfair after he allegedly used a four-letter word to describe Freud.

And later, Grant is said to have thrown a punch at Freud, reports The Telegraph.

It is believed that a glass of wine was also hurled at some point during the food war.

It has been revealed that the source of the actor’s fury was Jemima Khan.

The actor has remained close to his former girlfriend and was upset when stories appeared linking her to Guy Ritchie, whom she had met at a party at Freud”s house in Notting Hill. (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Rogue kangaroo knocks out ex-footie jogger Down Under!

March 19, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Melbourne, March 19 (ANI): A kangaroo attacked a jogger on Mt Ainslie in Canberra, Australia.

David Striegl, a former footballer, was running in the bushland reserve in the nation”s capital, when the animal launched on him.

“I turned around and before I knew it, it took a swipe at my face,” News.com.au quoted him as saying.

Striegl laid unconscious and bleeding, until a motorist found him and took him to hospital.

He was discharged the same day, after X-rays and a tetanus shot.

Meanwhile, colleagues at his corporate real estate office have nicknamed him “Skippy”.

Striegl said: “I didn”t want to wait til Monday to face the music. The main thing they”ve been asking is whether I got one (punch) back on the roo.

“I can”t even say that, because one punch and it put me to the floor.

“All my years of playing football and never a fight, and then I have a fight with a kangaroo.”

However, Striegl is not going to stop jogging in the area.

He said: “Yeah, a few guys from work said they might come with me though.” (ANI)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

NRI convicted of assaulting police officer-wife in UK

March 8, 2010 By Leave a Comment

LONDON: A Manchester-based Indian-origin delivery van driver has been convicted of assaulting his police officer-wife, who later died of cancer, and is likely to face a jail sentence.

Vijay Singh, 37, and mother of four children, was in bed at her house when her estranged husband Wlati Singh, 39, entered and punched in her head and chest on November 3, 2009.

Singh was convicted of assault after a statement made by Vijay was read to the Manchester Magistrates Court. The court was told that the couple were married for 20 years but split in 2007.

In her statement, Vijay said how Singh burst into her house threatened not to accept the 18,000 pounds divorce settlement she was offering.

“He swung at me and punched at the back of my neck on the left side. Then he punched my forehead and chest. I was in a lot of pain after he hit me,” she said.

According to reports from Manchester, Singh was also found guilty of assaulting Vijay’s mother, Kailash Kaur, 57.

Two neighbours saw Singh punch Kaur before he ran into Vijay’s house and locked the door. Kaur was left with a cut lip and her bottom teeth were loose afterwards.

“He was yanking her by the hair with one hand and with the other fist he was repeatedly punching her in the mouth,” neighbour Terence Moss said.

Singh told the police he remembered Vijay crying and trying to hug him, but nothing else.

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Navy inducts stealth destroyer INS Kochi

September 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Kochi, Sep 18 (ANI): The Indian Navy today inducted a stealth destroyer of Kolkata class, INS Kochi, to boost its maritime capabilities and safeguard India’s interests.

Madhulika Verma wife of Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Nirmal Verma, named the second of the three Project 15-A stealth destroyers on September 18.

Mazagon Docks Ltd in Mumbai built the 6500-ton ship, named INS Kochi.

The ship has advanced stealth features, which make it less vulnerable to detection by enemy radar and will be fitted with state-of-the-art weapon systems which include the supersonic BrahMos surface-to-surface missile, the LRSAM Long Range Surface-to-Air Missiles and the MFStar multi-function radar system providing accurate data on surface and air targets.

In addition, four AK-630 rapid-fire guns and a medium range gun will boost the ship’s close-range defence capability.

The ships will also be fitted with indigenously developed twin-tube torpedo launchers and anti-submarine rocket launchers.

The NPOL developed Humsa-NG hull-mounted sonar, and two multi-role helicopters adding punch to the ship’s anti-submarine capability. The maximum speed of the ship is above 30 Knots.

The destroyer will be launched using the pontoon-assisted launch technique, to be employed for the first time in the history of indigenous warship building.

This technique helps in overcoming slipway/ draft constraints and permits launching of heavier vessels. (ANI)

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Navy to induct stealth destroyer INS Kochi on Sep.18

September 17, 2009 By Leave a Comment

New Delhi, Sep 16 (ANI): The Indian Navy will induct a stealth destroyer of Delhi class on September 18 to boost its maritime capabilities and safeguard India’s interests.

Madhulika Verma wife of Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Nirmal Verma, will launch the second of the three Project 15-A stealth destroyers on September 18.

The 6500-ton ship, to be named INS Kochi, is being built by Mazagon Docks Ltd in Mumbai. The Directorate of Naval Design has designed the destroyer indigenously. The existing Delhi Class destroyers are INS Delhi, INS Mysore and INS Mumbai.

The ship has advanced stealth features, which make it less vulnerable to detection by enemy radar and will be fitted with state-of-the-art weapon systems which include the supersonic BrahMos surface-to-surface missile, the LRSAM Long Range Surface-to-Air Missiles and the MFStar multi-function radar system providing accurate data on surface and air targets.

In addition, four AK-630 rapid-fire guns and a medium range gun will boost the ship’s close-range defence capability.

The ships will also be fitted with indigenously developed twin-tube torpedo launchers and anti-submarine rocket launchers.

The NPOL developed Humsa-NG hull-mounted sonar, and two multi-role helicopters adding punch to the ship’s anti-submarine capability. The maximum speed of the ship is above 30 Knots.

The destroyer will be launched using the pontoon-assisted launch technique, to be employed for the first time in the history of indigenous warship building.

This technique helps in overcoming slipway/ draft constraints and permits launching of heavier vessels. (ANI)

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Parents exposing kids to porn should face criminal charges: Oz politician

September 14, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Melbourne, September 14 (ANI): A senior member of the Liberal Party of Australia is drawing plans to protect kids from pornography, saying parents who expose their children to explicit material should face criminal charges.

Scott Morrison is pushing for changes to the law Down Under after a child protection case surfaced in his Sydney electorate, where a father views blue movies and web videos in front of his kid aged under five.

The mother, who lodged a complaint to police and the Department of Childrens Services, was told there is nothing in the law to prevent such conduct.

“We looked to see what remedies were available to help this mum protect her child, we found there were none – and the police confirmed as much to her,” the Daily Telegraph quoted Morrison as saying in his column on The Punch.

“The problem was the father in this case was not seeking to expose the child to this material, or anything else he was doing, as a step towards physically or sexually abusing the child.

“He just didn’t seem to care that bringing this stuff into the home and putting it in full view of his own child was a problem.

“While his actions may not constitute a sexual offence against a child under the strict definitions of the law, most of us would agree he is a complete idiot,” he added.

Morrison further said: “I am all for parental responsibility and allowing parents to bring up their child according to the values they hold dear as a family. But this is not one of those ‘not that there’s anything wrong with that’ scenarios . There is something wrong with this and our laws should say so.” (ANI)

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Winehouse found in bed with ex-hubby by dad

September 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, September 8 (ANI): Amy Winehouse’s father Mitch is reportedly fuming after learning his singer daughter got back in bed with her druggie ex-husband.

Mitch, who suffers from heart problems and high blood pressure, was said to be raging after Amy’s security guard told him that she was with former jailbird Blake Fielder-Civil.

The former cabbie, who holds Blake responsible for his daughter’s previous drug addiction, apparently threw his former son-in-law out of her London house but not without an alleged threat to “punch his lights out.”

“Mitch hates the fact he’s reappeared – it’s making him ill. It’ll force him into an early grave,” the Sun quoted a source as saying.

“Blake begged Mitch not to hit him when he chucked him out. Mitch was absolutely furious, he still is. He can’t believe Blake has wormed his way back into his daughter’s life,” the source added.

The source further said: “He thinks it’s the worst scenario for Amy. Just when she’s starting to sort herself out, the man responsible for dragging her into the gutter is crawling back into her life.

“Mitch is praying history doesn’t repeat itself. He is dreading the day he finds his daughter is back on hard drugs because of him. He’s worried sick.” (ANI)

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‘Hughes is twice as tough as I was,’ says Steve Waugh

July 16, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Sydney, July 16 (ANI): Former Australian cricket captain Steve Waugh has declared that opener Phillip Hughes is twice as tough as he was at the same age, as the young Australian continues his gruelling Ashes examination on cricket’s most prestigious stage.

Waugh overcame a weakness against short-pitched bowling early in his career and Hughes faces a similar challenge, especially if England include Steve Harmison in their attack for the second Test, starting at Lord’s today.

Hughes sought advice from the great batsman about the secrets to success in England at a cricket function following his stunning debut series in South Africa earlier this year.

Like Hughes, Waugh was thrown into international cricket at the age of 20 and came of age on the 1989 Ashes tour, plundering 393 runs before England managed to dismiss him.

“The great thing about him is he is so mentally tough for a 20-year-old. I certainly wasn’t half as tough at that age. He is a very together kid, he loves cricket [and] he wants to make a name for himself at this level,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Waugh, as saying.

Hughes’s trademark is the powerful punch through point but Harmison made him look very uncomfortable with bouncers in the tour game against England Lions and Andrew Flintoff employed the same tactics in the first Test.

However, Waugh said: “He doesn’t care how he looks, it’s just how many runs he’s going to get and he’s going to get a lot of runs. If people think he’s got some sort of weakness mentally or technically and they take their foot off the pedal, they will pay the same price South Africa did.

“I know he is really still when he hits the ball, he’s got a great eye and he has played that way for 10 or 12 years. He knows his game better than anyone.”

Waugh also predicted that Ricky Ponting would break Allan Border’s longstanding Australian runs record during the second Test. Ponting needs 65 runs to eclipse Border’s mark of 11,174 career runs following his commanding 150 in the first Test in Cardiff.

Waugh, who is the only Australian other than Border and Ponting to have cracked the 10,000-run barrier, said he could tell by Ponting’s ruthless performance in Cardiff that the skipper would not rest until the Ashes were retained. (ANI)

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Bursting bubble captured on camera

July 14, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, July 13 (ANI): An awe-inspiring photograph of the exact moment when a bubble is burst has been captured with a slow-motion camera.

The picture clicked by Richard Heeks, of Exeter, shows a soap bubble bursting into the distinctive pattern of streaks, while its other half remains perfectly formed.

“There’s something so satisfying about picturing something in your head and then finally seeing it on the camera,” the Telegraph quoted him as saying.It would be great to record the sound of a bubble popping, slow it down and play it over slow-motion footage of a bubble bursting.

“The ripping action reminds me of a storm front passing across land. It must be like a wave,” he added.eeks’ wife Sarah provided the finger to burst the bubbles as he used a 1/500th of a second shutter speed on a day with “absolutely perfect” weather conditions.

“There was absolutely no wind, the bubbles just hung in the air,” he said.

He took a series of pictures showing the bubble bursting into tiny droplets.

However, Heeks insists that the photographs are genuine, and not created with the help of computer technology.

“This is a real photo of a soap bubble bursting. I’ve made slight edits to raise colour and light, but this is just to add some punch. This is not a Photoshop creation,” he added. (ANI)

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