UK statisticians unexpectedly reject inflation change

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's top statistician unexpectedly decided against major changes to the country's longest-running inflation index on Thursday, rejecting a move that could have significantly cut government borrowing costs.

The decision to keep the Retail Price Index in its current form is a major boost for older Britons who have company pensions linked to RPI, as well as to holders of Britain's inflation-linked government bonds.

Changes to RPI had been expected to bring it closer to the lower Consumer Price Index measure of inflation (CPI) used by the Bank of England, and prices for 10-year index-linked gilts soared on Thursday's news, taking yields to a record low.

RPI was developed after World War Two, but in recent years it has increasingly diverged from CPI and for months Britain's Office for National Statistics had been consulting economists, fund managers and other users of the data on its proposals.

Most economists had believed that the ONS was set on change, but in a statement Jil Matheson, who supervises the ONS and is the government's chief statistical adviser, said she had decided to keep RPI and create an alternative parallel index.

"There is significant value to users in maintaining the continuity of the existing RPI's long time series without major change, so that it may continue to be used for long-term indexation and for index-linked gilts and bonds," Matheson said.

There is a big question mark over whether the new index, known as RPIJ, will find favour. The government said new index-linked bonds would continue to be linked to RPI, not RPIJ. CPI, which is based on the standard European Union measure of inflation, is Britain's most widely used alternative.

"The RPIJ may find no takers and exist in obscurity. At the moment, we do not plan to forecast it," said Nomura economist Philip Rush.

The ONS plans to have the RPIJ measure in operation for March data onwards.

FUND MANAGERS RELIEVED

David Dyer, a portfolio manager at AXA Investment Managers, said he welcomed the decision, and that it was unexpected.

"It is a surprise ... though of course we were arguing for this on the basis that RPI is a very long-standing index used by many parties in striking long-term financial contracts. It was not just fund managers who were arguing against the change, but also other investors," he told Reuters.

"At a time when savers have been hit, this would have hurt them even more. But on the other hand, when the government is cutting the deficit, this would have been a handy saving for the chancellor to have," he added.

Some economists had estimated cash-strapped Chancellor George Osborne would have saved up to 3 billion pounds a year in interest payments if RPI had been changed, out of annual debt servicing costs of 47 billion.

Moreover, many experts - including The Bank Governor Mervyn King, who commented on the issue in November - believe the techniques used to calculate RPI are outdated, and see little statistical justification for keeping them.

"I think it's remarkable that they have said that the current formula does not meet international standards, and then continue to use it for a number of key functions," said Sam Hill, a bond strategist at Royal Bank of Canada.

The 'Carli' averaging method used in RPI - which will be dropped in RPIJ - is not used in CPI nor by most other countries, and has been criticised by the International Monetary Fund for giving an upward bias to RPI inflation.

Its continued use will contribute to RPI inflation averaging more than a percentage point above CPI in future, with the bulk of that due to the statistical methods used rather than differences between the baskets of goods used for CPI and RPI.

However, an overwhelming majority of respondents to the ONS consultation opposed a change to RPI, citing the need for long-term consistency in the series.

The ONS said this was a legitimate objection, even if it implied the continued use of outdated statistical techniques. The consultation did not require respondents to say if they would financially benefit from opposing change to the index.

Annual RPI inflation was 3.0 percent in November, compared to 2.7 percent for CPI, reflecting a recent narrowing in the gap between the two measures due to differences in how changes in insurance and mortgage interest payments are accounted for.

($1 = 0.6247 British pounds)

(Additional reporting by Patrick Graham; Editing by Stephen Nisbet)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/uk-statisticians-unexpectedly-reject-inflation-change-081316967--sector.html

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Lynx Laboratories prepping Kickstarter for all-in-one Kinect-like camera system

Lynx Laboratories prepping Kickstarter for allinone Kinectlike camera system

Texas-based start-up Lynx Laboratories has been teasing its creation, a 3D camera system for the better part of a month now. Now it's finally prepping to make a serious stab at a market that's still very much in its infancy. The device itself is essentially a giant display (14-inch to be specific) with a Kinect mounted on top. The cameras can be used to capture 3D models of environments such as rooms, but also people or individual objects. Those creations can be manipulated virtually or even printed out on a 3D printer, in case you prefer a more tactile interaction. The giant shooter slab is even capable of capturing motion and then turning it into an animation that can be used with a 3D model. So if you've ever wanted to animate an army of your clones doing the Thriller dance, now is your chance. We've embedded a few teaser clips after the break, but there should be plenty more detail coming on January 15th, which is when the company says it will launch its Kickstarter page.

Continue reading Lynx Laboratories prepping Kickstarter for all-in-one Kinect-like camera system

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/01/10/lynx-laboratories-prepping-kickstarter-for-all-in-one-kinect-lik/

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Google brings pan and scan functionality to high-res photos

Image

Even point-and-shoot and cellphone shooters have double-digital megapixels nowadays, and Google+ is now letting you take advantage of all that resolution. It's brought photo pan and zooming capabilities, meaning that if you've uploaded a decently large photo, all that users in your circle or community will need to do is click it to bring up the lightbox, where they can proceed to explore all of an image's nooks and crannys. Since Google+ now supports full-sized Android photo backups, that'll give vacationers or artists a new way to let others discover their handiwork -- or other surprises. Hit the source to see how it works.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/GuipUvfJFY4/

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Alabama dominates Notre Dame to win third BCS title in four years

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. ? Nick Saban was telling stories the other day in a way he rarely does publicly, the kind of stories that might offer a glimpse into just how he's come to dominate college football in a way that no other person is dominating a sport in America.

Saban's Alabama Crimson Tide won a third BCS title in four years here Monday, absolutely demolishing Notre Dame 42-14 in a game that ? if you can believe it ? wasn't as close as that lopsided score.

It was the latest example of Saban's ability to meld group after group into seemingly indomitable units, another 60-minute showcase of blunt-force trauma.

This time it was AJ McCarron (20 of 28 for 264 yards and four TDs) throwing it around, but it could've been Greg McElroy. This time it was Eddie Lacy (140 yards, one TD) spinning and slamming over the Irish, but it could've been Trent Richardson or Mark Ingram before him. This time it was Amari Cooper (six catches for 105 yards and two TDs) getting loose in the secondary, but it could've been Julio Jones. This time it was HaHa Clinton-Dix and C.J. Mosley anchoring the defense but it could've been Dont'a Hightower or Marcell Dareus.

The faces change, the seasons spin, but Nick Saban keeps lifting crystal footballs. This, counting a 2003 title at LSU, was his fourth.

You could say it began back in little Monongah, W.Va., at Saban's father's Gulf service station.

[Y! Sports Fan Shop: Buy Alabama national champions merchandise]

"Big Nick" is what his dad was known as, and Big Nick believed there was a way of doing things and a way of treating people that was both proper and precise. Anything less than full effort, anything less than total perfect, anything less than complete respect simply wasn't tolerated. Saban started working there at age 11.

"There was a standard of excellence, a perfection," Saban said.

That included the day, Saban said, that a homeless man was hanging around the station. He came often because Big Nick would give him coffee and a donut. A discussion of one of Saban's games broke out.

"The guy was giving me a hard time and I sort of sassed him," Saban recalled. "I was 17 years old."

And Big Nick wouldn't tolerate it.

Crimson Tide running back Eddie Lacy ran for 140 yards and one TD against Notre Dame. (USA Today Sports)Crimson Tide running back Eddie Lacy ran for 140 yards and one TD against Notre Dame. (USA Today Sports)"I got the strap right on the spot," Saban said. "It was the right thing. I needed to learn a lesson. I was disrespectful to an older person, regardless of the situation."

This is the black-and-white world in which Saban operates the Crimson Tide. He can't whip a belt across people anymore, but he can do the equivalent verbally.

There is one way to do things, the right way. As long as everyone does it, then the results will work out in the end. So Saban demands and demands and demands, nothing less from everyone associated with his team, from assistant coaches to support staff to, of course, his players.

This isn't a new management concept. It's just that few people in America do it any better than Nick Saban.

As his success keeps churning, he continues to attract the top recruits, assistant coaches and staff members who not only believe in such leadership, but also crave the challenge of meeting Saban's exacting standards.

[More: AJ McCarron, girlfriend enjoy limelight after fixation sparks Internet fervor]

And they enjoy winning and winning, of course.

This here is a machine, a true Crimson Tide that can sweep up everything, bigger and bigger each year.

Crimson Tide wide receiver Amari Cooper celebrates his touchdown catch. (USA Today Sports)Crimson Tide wide receiver Amari Cooper celebrates his touchdown catch. (USA Today Sports)Monday was perhaps Saban's most perfect show of force, a complete and utter domination of the previously top-ranked, undefeated Fighting Irish. Alabama mauled the Irish at the line, outraced them in open field, out-thought them in the coaching box and essentially did whatever it wanted.

It's not just that Alabama again stood on top of the college football world. It's that their opponent didn't even pose a threat.

Dating back to a 2010 BCS triumph over Texas and extending through last year's 21-0 win over LSU, there was a time in this contest that 'Bama had run off 69 unanswered points and held opponents scoreless for nearly 107 minutes across three title games.

Oh, and based on graduations, two-deeps and another likely No. 1 recruiting class there is no reason to think the Tide can't be back for more next season. Or who knows how many seasons after that.

There is a sentiment that Saban might again look to the NFL and attempt another shot at winning at the sport's highest level. He spent years as an NFL assistant, but went just 15-17 in two seasons as head coach of the Miami Dolphins.

Perhaps there's unfinished business. But perhaps that's misunderstanding Saban.

[Related: Eddie Lacy's spin move is a must-see moment at BCS championship]

To say he seeks a new challenge is to ignore the fact that he finds every single day ? every task of every day, in fact ? as a challenge because each moment offers an opportunity for something to go wrong, for that standard of excellence to not be met.

Big Nick didn't take pride in the perfect service of a few cars ? tank full, oil checked, windshield spotless ? but in doing it again and again, year after year. It never got old.

It is within that seeming misery that the joy lies, not in the end result when Saban forces a smile as he hoists another crystal football.

And that's the frightening part for college football. Big Nick's son isn't slowing up anytime soon. The Tide just keeps rising.

Related BCS video from Yahoo! Sports:

More NCAA football coverage on Yahoo! Sports:
? Forde: Notre Dame's crushing loss offers more proof Alabama, SEC rule
? Photos: Alabama, Notre Dame fans don't hold back at BCS championship
? You make the call at BCS title game: Kick-catch interference or a fumble?
? Alabama fans: Check out TideSports.com for more team coverage

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ncaaf--alabama-routs-notre-dame-under-nick-saban-s-iron-fisted-leadership-for-another-bcs-title-044513062.html

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12 benefits of using remote access for your personal and business ...

workplace dark corporate 238039 m 12 benefits of using remote access for your personal and business needs

Remote access is a connection of an automatic system of data processing to a remote system, through some virtual private network. This technology is widely used in various software industrial applications. In fact, there are many benefits of using this technology.

  1. Stay connected to any computer from anywhere

It helps monitor and control several systems in different parts of the world, with the central control unit. The technology is controlled by a set of protocols and software. A well-organized networking system is required for this technology to work.

  1. Easy to use technology

It is a revolution in the world of computer hardware, software and networking technologies. It is used by many big and small companies. This technology does not need much of the technical knowledge. A person who has little bit of computer knowledge can use this technology.

  1. Latest software to keep the session alive

Remote desktop software is applied in this system. It is an operating system (OS) software which allows various applications to run on a remote server and displays the graphs locally. This operating system software is installed in the central controlling system. This system controls and monitors the activities of remote servers and remote computed, located far away from the central work station.

  1. Best master slave technology ever available

The controlling computer imposes its keyboard functioning on the controlled system and displays the output on the monitor. Graphical as well as textual data and information is displayed on the monitor of the controlling computer. A large number of such systems can be controlled simultaneously by this procedure.

  1. Highly secured connection

A very strong firewall system is applied in order to prevent virus attacks on the system. Also, the computers that are communicating are under strong security shields to prevent leakage of information.

  1. Remote Access for troubleshooting of any computers

The system uses the features of Linux operation system, which supports multitasking and multiprogramming. The software uses the tools of Telnet and SSH. Telnet is software, which is widely used to remote control a computer system. SSH is shell software that is secure and used in remote controlling software applications.

  1. One technology for unlimited applications

This technology is extensively used by big software companies, who have their branches in various parts of the world. Remote access helps in remotely controlling virtually any computers. This saves a lot of transport cost, time and energy.

  1. End to end solution for business

Sitting in your place you can get connected to any other computers provided you are given the authorization. This help in meeting most of the software demands of the industry.

  1. Remotely access the files or any other programs

This facility also lets the users who use one particular computer to view and also interact with the user of another computer.

  1. Getting access to computers from remote distance

This facility is very important when it comes to offices where there are a number of computers and the employees might need to interact with one another who are using different systems.

  1. Server client configuration

A single computer work station can be connected to a number of remote computer work stations by this technique.

  1. Read and write from remote systems

When it comes to accessing files, remote network lets files to be written to target and also read from it.


Source: http://www.richescorner.com/12-benefits-of-using-remote-access-for-your-personal-and-business-needs/

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what are buyer approximate closing costs on cash sale ... - Zillow ...

Depending on the purchase price of course, this drives the closing cost.? You have title fees and attorney fees, this can all be requested from your attorney.? You want to ask for a HUD , this will be an explanation of closing fees.

Hope this helps!

Source: http://www.zillow.com/advice-thread/what-are-buyer-approximate-closing-costs-on-cash-sale-of-home-in-Rotondo-West-FL/472975/

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Apple 'Do Not Disturb' bug fix due Jan. 7

3 hrs.

Apple's "Do Not Disturb" setting apparently thinks we're all still on holiday. If you used the iOS 6 feature to block incoming calls and text messages on Jan. 1,?and set it to end at a specified time, your wishes will be ignored,?at least until Jan. 7 ??unless you make the fix yourself manually by turning "Do Not Disturb" off, that is.

Jan. 7 is when Apple says a fix will be issued for the setting that works with the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

"Do Not Disturb scheduling feature will resume normal functionality after January 7, 2013. Before this date, you should manually turn the Do Not Disturb feature on or off," the company said in a posting on its Knowledge Base support?site:

To turn off the scheduling feature, tap Settings > Notifications > Do Not Disturb?and switch Scheduled to Off.

Users around the world shared concerns about the glitch?in several forums, including Apple's own?support?forum, as well as in?others.

If you are due back at work this week, it would be the lamest of excuses, a modern-day version of "the dog ate my homework," to blame it on the bug. But?you won't do that???will you?

Check out Technology, GadgetBox, Digital?Life and InGame on?Facebook,?and on?Twitter, follow Suzanne Choney.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/apple-do-not-disturb-bug-wont-be-fixed-until-jan-1C7805699

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Private Health Insurance Is Rationing For Profit & Middle Class ...

Ron is a friend of mine that I met at QLS Health Complex in Kingwood, TX (now Life Time Fitness). A couple of years or so back we use to play racquetball several mornings a week. We also played a few tournaments. He is in great shape and plays racquetball like a 30 year old. In fact, he used to beat up on many of the 30 year olds he played.

I had not seen him in a while. Last week I went to the gym later than normal, (I now go at 4:15 in the mornings) and we started talking about what he has been doing and about his racquetball prowess. He then told me about an incident with our medical system. I asked him to write it up so I could blog it.

There are likely millions of incidents like Ron?s that occur every year and simply go unreported. Many probably believe it only happens to them. This lack of transparency or distribution of one?s real experiences in our current disaster of a medical system is partly responsible for the fallacies that are told when attempting to improve the system. The absence of people telling their disastrous experiences also leads one to be persuaded that a private insurance based healthcare system is actually efficient and humane. The reality is that it is neither

by Ron Brian Smith ? Kingwood Resident

Ron Smith Photo 10-24-12I have played racquetball for about 30 years. About six months ago I felt a minor pain in the inside part of my left knee. I realized it was from playing racquetball too long and too often and it was caused from the constant stopping and pushing off from my left leg. I decided right then to play only one or two times a week and spend most of my workout time swimming which I love to do. I thought I was being smart at the time but looking back, I should of quit playing racquetball. As time went on, my knee got worse and at the end of the day, my left knee was very sore from walking.

I went to my primary care physician and they took an X-Ray of the inside part of my left knee and referred me to Dr. Allen R. Criswell, an orthopedic doctor. My health plan ? HealthSpring ? requires a reference to see a specialist. My appointment to see Dr. Criswell was set for November 20 at 2:30 PM and the purpose was to get an MRI and to see if anything could be fixed.

On the morning of the 20th, I went to Dr. Criswell?s office with my X-Rays. I filled out about a dozen forms (more than I filled out when I entered the military) and paid the $30 administrative costs. I returned back to his office at 2:15 PM and waited two hours before I was called into his office. Dr. Criswell felt around my left knee cap and told me I was too old (we are both in our late 60?s) to have it fixed and there was no sense in having a MRI.? I was stunned! He gave me a needle shot in my left knee. I asked him what it was and he did not answer. For all I know it could have been a shot of water. Next he told me I needed a hinged knee brace but he couldn?t give me one because it was not covered in my HMO plan and then left the office.

Across the hall, I saw a room filled with hinged knee braces and asked the attendant how much they cost and he said $140. As soon as I got home, I had a phone message from HealthSpring that I needed to come into one of their offices to "evaluate" if I really needed this brace because it cost more than $150. I immediately went over to Academy sports store and bought the same brace for $45. Talk about markups!

I was extremely upset with Dr. Criswell?s diagnosis and called my primary doctor and complained about the situation. He made an appointment for me to come again and did an MRI on my left knee and got me a second reference to see another orthopedic doctor on January 2, 2013. Also my primary doctor (he is at least 60 years old) told me he had his knee "scoped" and within six weeks he was back playing golf. Also, he told me he has a 80 year old female patient who just got a new knee cap. Bottom line ? I was very disappointed in Dr. Criswell and he definitely owes me my $30 administrative costs back because he did nothing for me and misled me. He should be ashamed of himself for being so unprofessional.????

I do not know for a fact the real reason why the orthopedic doctor did not give Ron an MRI. What is fact is that many of these doctors get incentives to minimize billable health care. A 15 second interview with Ron would have told the doctor he was very athletic and in great shape.

The fact that Ron had to leave the office without an MRI because the doctor thought he was two old irrespective of reality, that he had to leave without a brace because the overpriced $150 brace may not be covered is by definition rationing by the private health insurance companies to maximize profits and with that high executive salaries.

Sadly, when it comes to understanding our private health insurance system, Americans have been duped into defying the rules of arithmetic. In other words the mis-informers would like you to believe that somehow ?cost of health care? + ?healthcare administration cost? is greater than ?cost of health care? + ?healthcare administration cost? + ?advertising? + ?profit?. The fact is that government healthcare delivery is more efficient than the private sector.

If we really want to reduce the cost of entitlements, if we really want to give doctors the freedom to treat patients instead of being micromanaged by private insurance companies, and if we really want to create a more efficient health care delivery system, then private for profit health insurance companies must be eliminated from our healthcare system. Only then will the American health care dollar be used for health care as opposed to a wealth transfer transport from the middle class to a few wealthy executives and shareholders of private insurance companies.


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Source: http://egbertowillies.com/2013/01/02/private-health-insurance-is-rationing-for-profit-middle-class-wealth-transfer-transport-to-wealthy/

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Cute quotient overload: eyes-on with the Street Fighter x Sanrio Fightstick for Xbox 360

Cute quotient overload eyeson with the Street Fighter x Sanrio Fightstick for Xbox 360

Thought the holidays were over? So did we. Imagine our surprise, then, when we returned to the office to find one last, special package lying in wait: Mad Catz Street Fighter x Sanrio Arcade Fightstick Pro. As ridiculous explosions of cute go, this one takes the sugoku kawaii cake -- even the box is a Hello Kitty collector's wet dream. Obvious overall otaku appeal aside, Xbox 360 gamers interested in the Fightstick Pro will find an eight button "authentic Japanese-style Sanwa Denshi" layout, switches for button lock / unlock and three joystick configuration settings (d-pad, left or right analog stick), turbo functionality, as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack upfront and a storage compartment housing the 13-foot long USB cable around back. Really though, no amount of English words will do this kitsch item justice. So check out the gallery below for a photo tour of this adorable collision of anime worlds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/01/02/eyes-on-street-fighter-x-sanrio-fightstick-pro-xbox360/

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