Archive for December, 2011

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Rams Ready for Another Quick Turnaround

Saturday, December 31st, 2011

NEW CANAAN, Conn. – New Canaan’s football team has been down this path before. Three games in 10 days is a difficult stretch in any sport, but especially so in a physically demanding sport such as football.

The fifth-seeded Rams play No. 1 Windsor in the semifinals of the Class L playoffs Saturday at 2 pm in East Haven. After its Thanksgiving win over Darien, the Rams had four days to prepare for No. 4 New London, where they squeaked out a 27-26 win.

Now comes Windsor (11-0), which beat Notre Dame of West Haven, 14-7, in the semifinals. One huge difference is Windsor had 11 days off before its first playoff game. Many teams in the northern section of the state do not play on Thanksgiving.

“We’ve been through this before, and you just have to be very careful,” New Canaan coach Lou Marinelli said. “It’s not soccer. You have to be able to manage the kids. We had two tough, physical games and now we have an equally physical team. We’re just glad to be here and hopefully we have the chance to compete for a state championship.”

The Rams faced a similar road last year, and they won all three games. That propelled them to the state championship game, where they fell to Masuk, 50-20. The Rams could get a rematch if they win on Saturday and No. 3 Masuk gets past No. 2 Daniel Hand.

The Rams’ explosive offensewill clash with Windsors tough defense, which surrendered just 86 points all season. Bristol Central lost this season to Windsor, 47-20, and no other team has scored more than 14 points.

The Rams counter with an offense led by quarterback Matt Milano, who has thrown 31 touchdowns. His top targets include Patrick Newton (49 receptions, nine touchdowns), Peter Kraus (39 receptions, 10 touchdowns) and Connor Kilbane (51 catches, seven touchdowns). Kevin McDonough (428 yards, 6.9 yards per carry) leads the rushing attack.

The Rams’ defense is led by Dylan Leeming, who stopped a two-point conversion attempt by New London to preserve Tuesday’s victory. McDonough (94 tackles) is also one of the Rams’ defensive stalwarts. Newton, Casey Oullette and Jared Meichner each have three interceptions.

Windsor’s attack is led by quarterback Robert Fleeting (29 touchdowns) and running back Kymm Gordon, who has rushed for 733 yards and four touchdowns.

New Canaan is seeking its 19th state championship. The Rams have won six titles since 2001, including four straight from 2006-2009.

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A fun night for British talent

Friday, December 30th, 2011

From Andrew Haigh’s gem of a love story Weekend winning two awards, to Lynne Ramsay picking up the best director prize for We Need To Talk About Kevin – it was a night to be genuinely proud of British film.

And the event itself was rather fun too. The champagne was flowing and the number of A-Listers in the room was obscene – from Daniel Craig to Vanessa Redgrave to Ralph Fiennes to Gemma Arterton. Not to mention the little matter of Bradley Cooper, who made a last minute surprise appearance, and Downton Abbey’s Mr Matthew Crawley (aka Dan Stevens), who was sitting at the next table.

The evening’s hilarious host Chris O’Dowd was a particular revelation, not least because he appeared to be getting tipsier as the evening progressed, despite sticking to water throughout the ceremony.

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Limits may be placed on electric purchasing plan

Thursday, December 29th, 2011

Voters who approved government programs to purchase discounted electricity likely thought the lower rates would be available to all eligible residents and small businesses.

And thats how city officials viewed the program.

But if a proposed rate plan between AEP Ohio and the staff of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio is approved, the number of residents who could switch to another electric supplier at the lowest rate would be limited.

Canton Law Director Joseph Martuccio said the development was a rude awakening to city officials.

AEP wants to limit the deepest discount to 21 percent of the power capacity it provides to suppliers statewide who service residential customers, said Terri Flora, AEP Ohios communications director.

But come early January, if that 21 percent cap has not been reached and the proposed rate plan is approved, the significantly discounted rate would be made available to commercial and industrial customers. As a result, fewer residential customers could get the same level of cost savings.

In that case, Flora says, residential customers still could switch to another supplier, but not at the steepest discount.

Critics of the proposal say it would prevent rival suppliers from offering discounts to more households.

In response, city officials are urging residents to sign up early for the discounted electric plan, which the citys energy consultant estimates could save an average residential customer about $72 a year.

Those who enroll now will receive a 9 percent discount compared to AEPs rate, according to city officials. The discount jumps to 10 percent in the spring.

Residents can return a form mailed to them or call FirstEnergy Solutions at 1-877-635-0485.

If residents wait until spring, when the citys electric program is expected to be established and formalized, they automatically would be enrolled in the bulk buying program unless they opt out.

However, Martuccio said, residents who wait run the risk of getting locked out of the best rate.

OTHER COMMUNITIES

In the Nov. 8 election, voters in Canton, East Canton and Plain and Paris townships authorized their local governments to establish bulk buying electricity programs by contracting with a supplier, technically referred to as electric aggregation.

All of the communities with newly approved electric programs could be impacted by AEPs proposal.

As its written, AEPs plan would create barriers for rate shopping, said Doug Colafella, spokesman for FirstEnergy Corp., AEPs competitor.

Essentially, if they dont get in under the caps their vote is essentially being nullified because they cant realize the savings benefits of this program (and) it puts the communities really at the back of the line for this finite amount of capacity, Colafella said.

Flora, of AEP, said there is no place in the agreement where there is the terminology, cap on shopping.

Its a balanced plan because we do want … to be able to promote economic development and job growth, Flora said. And still support low income needs, and allow us to change our business structure over the next three years in (the) new environment the state is heading.

Matthew Butler, spokesman for PUCO, said there is no specific cap on shopping proposed in the AEP stipulation.

There are, however, proposed caps on the amount of capacity available to suppliers at the (lower) market capacity rate, he wrote in an email.

Once these caps are met, suppliers will pay AEP the cost-based rate for capacity. The cost-based rate is less competitive than the market-capacity rate, and therefore could contribute to less competitive offers from suppliers.

Of course, the most important thing to note in this discussion is that nothing is final, Butler said. The five commissioners must still decide the case. They are not required to implement the stipulation as it is written.

LOAD CAPACITIES

Colafella, of FirstEnergy Corp., acknowledged the 21 percent threshold is not a hard cap. But the rate proposal effectively prohibits (some) people from switching (and makes it) cost prohibitive for us to serve them, he said.

In 2013 and 2014, the 21 percent threshold would rise to 31 and 41 percent, respectively, according to the proposal.

Under AEPs proposed rate plan, the purpose of the thresholds is to allow AEP Ohio to transition to a fully market-based pricing system.

Colafella has a contrasting view.

We just feel that communities need to put pressure on (PUCO) to stand up for the citizens … including Stark County communities, and reject or at least modify the (proposed AEP rate plan) to basically allow these communities to benefit from aggregation.

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Tigers’ season made football fun

Wednesday, December 28th, 2011

It had to end sometime. It’s just a shame that it ended the way it did. The Tigers took us on a magical ride this year, turning the program around and going from 1-11 to 9-3.

There were the thrilling victories over Richmond and Old Dominion. There were the dominating efforts against Morgan State and Colgate. And there were the three, three-game, winning streaks that garnered national attention to a program that has been synonymous with losing for the better part of the last decade.

As someone that’s been through all of the ups and downs in the last four years, I can accurately say that I’ve seen it all when it comes to Towson football.

I witnessed a high-powered offense run by Sean Schaffer when I was a freshman. I saw two years of mixed results as a sophomore and junior. And of course, I’ve been a part of this amazing season as a senior. This year’s team found the identity that their head coach had been seeking: a run-first team that can pound you for four quarters while making countless numbers of plays on defense and special teams. Rob Ambrose got everything figured out in year three of coaching at his alma mater.

At the beginning of the season, during their first three-game winning streak, it looked like there was nobody in the country that could beat them. After the loss to Maryland, the Tigers showed incredible amounts of resiliency, surviving a late rally from Richmond and going on the road and knocking off Old Dominion and William amp; Mary. And after dropping a heartbreaker to rival Delaware, Ambrose’s squad pulled together and strung together three impressive victories to clinch the CAA Championship.

I couldn’t be prouder of the way this team played this year, regardless of postseason outcome. Sure, we would have loved to see this team continue their run, but all good things must come to an end. In all honesty, it didn’t appear as if the Tigers should have won the game against Lehigh on Saturday. The defense couldn’t get off the field three times on the final drive of the game, twice with the season on the line. The running game never got going, in large part because of a stout Mountain Hawk defense, and stupid penalties hindered drives. It looked like a shell of the team we had watched all season.

Give Lehigh all the credit. They played a heck of a game on the road in front of a sold-out crowd in chilly conditions. They deserved to win and played a better game. But not one person on this campus should hang their head this week. The Tigers gave us reasons to believe again, reasons to care about the football team every Saturday. They made football fun again, especially for the common fan that simply enjoys the game and doesn’t know all of the players or rules.

They injected new life onto this campus and the surrounding community. They have built a foundation for the future, and Towson is now a place where players should want to play. Everything about this year has been positive, regardless of the outcome against Lehigh. I commend Ambrose, his staff and everyone involved with this team this year.

I’ll be proud to say I’m a Towson alumnus for the rest of time, as I sit on my couch and watch the Towson Tigers continue their ascent to the top of FCS football.

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Florida State poses tough test for Michigan State basketball

Wednesday, December 28th, 2011

East Lansing It might not have the cache a game against Duke or North Carolina would, but Michigan States matchup against Florida State tonight could be just as difficult.

Its the third time this season the Spartans have played a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference, and it hardly represents a break from the heavyweights.

Before losing two straight last weekend to Harvard and Connecticut, Florida State was unbeaten and ranked No. 22.

Now 5-2, Florida State is looking to get back on track, and is bringing some big bodies to do it.

It will probably be one of the more physical games, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. This team is one of the best defensive teams in the nation the last two years, and in the last four or five years is the third winningest program in the ACC.

I thought Carolina was big when we played them until I started watching film and looked at the stats on this team. They will be the biggest team we will play all year.

The Seminoles are ninth in the country in 3-point defense (22.8 percent), and 10th in blocks (6.9) and shooting defense (33.7 percent).

Up front, Florida States starters stand 6-foot-11, 6-10 and 6-8, holding a decided height advantage over Michigan State. Senior forward Bernard James has 99 blocks in 40 games.

The result is Izzo might decide to play Derrick Nix and Adreian Payne together more often in an effort to offset Florida States strength.

Whatever the combination is, the Spartans must shoot better.

They are shooting 42.3 percent overall and 23.8 percent from 3-point range. And, Izzo believes the numbers look better because of a large amount of layups against Eastern Michigan.

To win tonight, it will take a much better performance.

Were making small strides in offensive production, Izzo said. The big key is we need to get more out of Keith (Appling) and Draymond (Green). Theyve just got to score more and we need to get some shooters to shoot better. If that happens, with the way the defense playing the way it has been and the rebounding the way it has been, (the offense) will start taking big jumps instead of little jumps.

For Green, who is shooting 36.1 percent overall and 17.6 on 3-pointers, there is no secret to getting shots to fall.

The only way I know how to shoot better is to keep on shooting and stay in the gym every day, he said. Eventually it will fall. But the only way to come out is to keep shooting.

He also thinks that will come as the team gets used to playing with each other, a difficult task since only two players in the rotation played extended minutes last season.

I think its more just getting used to each other, Green said. If I throw a messed-up pass to this side of the court, somebody is going to be there. I dont know or didnt see him there, I just know hell be there because Im used to playing with them. That was the kind of feel me and Delvon (Roe) had. I knew I could cheat somewhere and if I got beat, Delvon would be there to help me because he knows what Im about to do.

We just need to get that kind of feel for each other.

Florida State at Michigan State

Tip-off: 7:30 tonight, Breslin Center, East Lansing

TV/radio: ESPN/WJR

Records: Florida State 5-2, Michigan State 4-2

Series: Florida State leads 1-0 (Florida State 68-63, March 17, 1997)

mcharboneau@detnews.com

twitter.com/mattcharboneau

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Xbox update’s fun, but it’s not hands-free yet

Tuesday, December 27th, 2011

Microsoft likes to talk about how its creating the future of entertainment with the Xbox.

It certainly entertained my family last week, when I tested the new software interface and video services coming to the Xbox 360 and Xbox Live service Tuesday.

More than a routine upgrade, the new software represents Microsofts latest push to insert itself between your television and the growing array of online entertainment services. The overhaul will eventually brings dozens of video providers to the Xbox, although many wont arrive in time for the holidays as Microsoft promised earlier this year.

In the upgrade, Microsoft is expanding the Kinect voice and gesture controls throughout the new on-screen Xbox dashboard, reflecting how Microsoft and other companies are rushing to expand the use of new interface technologies.

Of the nearly 58 million Xbox 360 consoles sold so far, about 11 million have Kinect sensors. The new dashboard will make the Xbox easier to understand for new users, and encourage more Xbox owners to add the $149 Kinect sensor and $60 per year Xbox Live subscriptions needed to use the new services.

A highlight of the new software is the ability to search for content with voice controls if you have a Kinect sensor. In addition to the basic voice controls Kinect brought to the console last year letting you say play or rewind instead of use a remote control, for instance you can now say the name of movies, actors and directors to search for content available on your Xbox.

When it works, its a big improvement over typing with a game controller or TV remote. But its still a work in progress.

After seeing a smooth demonstration of the feature in the Xbox offices in Redmond, I couldnt wait to try it at home. I downloaded the new software which took about four minutes then asked the Xbox to find a Gerard Depardieu movie.

Repeatedly, with no success.

Although my search for the famous French actor failed, my family was hugely entertained by my shouting at the TV, over and over: Xbox, Bing, Gerard Depardieu.

Now they giggle in anticipation whenever I turn on the console, hoping Ill try one more time to search for Depardieu.

The system worked better searching for Harry Potter. At first it thought I was looking for Bert Palmer, but the second try called up a long list of movies, games and soundtracks available through the console.

Despite these gaffes, the new software is overall a very nice update to the Xbox that gives the dashboard a fresh, modern feel and is easier to navigate with a standard controller or the Kinect sensor. The old dashboard was getting messy, with separate sections for Kinect and a jumble of menus that scrolled vertically and horizontally.

Microsoft also is releasing a nice companion app for Windows phones that lets you search for shows and control the Xbox from the phone.

Now the company needs to continue refining the Kinect controls. Theyre still too slow and tedious to put down the remote control.

For instance, you expect to be able to turn on the Xbox and say ESPN to launch the ESPN3 video app. But in the version I tested, I had to first say Xbox, video. Then I had to say, Xbox, My Video Apps, after which I could say ESPN to choose it from the list of video apps. This was a novelty, but it took far longer than using the remote.

The new interface also previews the look and feel of the next generation of Windows computers. Windows 8, the new operating system coming next year, uses the same style template with big, square tiles and bright typography first used on the Zune music player and the Windows Phone platform. The effect is to make your big display either your TV or PC screen feel more like a smartphone or a Web tablet, dominated by colorful, dynamic tile icons.

New video services

Along with the new interface, Microsoft on Tuesday will begin adding new video services to the Xbox, including TV shows from providers such as Verizon FiOS and Comcast. About 40 providers are developing Xbox apps that you can install on the console, in addition to the Netflix, Hulu and Zune video-marketplace apps already available. Ill bet these apps will also come to Windows 8 PCs next year.

When Microsoft announced the video services last June, it said live TV is coming to the Xbox. But that feels like an overstatement, based on the limited content thats going to be available to start.

The company also is barely making its deadline. Chief Executive Steve Ballmer told financial analysts in September that the live TV services would be on the Xbox this holiday season but perhaps he was referring to Martin Luther King Day.

The biggest, actual cable service coming to the Xbox in the US is Verizon FiOS. Subscribers will initially be able to view 26 cable channels through their Xbox, but not local broadcast channels. The guide and content will not be searchable with the Kinect voice controls, and Frontier Communications which provides FiOS TV in the Greater Seattle area is not participating.

FiOS also wont be available until the second batch of Xbox video services is released later this month, probably Dec. 13. Also coming later in December are apps from Vudu, TMZ, Syfy, UFC, Vevo, Crackle, MSNBC and Canadas Rogers On Demand.

Archived content

The Comcast app available to Comcast subscribers will stream archived content from Comcasts on-demand library. It wont be available until early in 2012, perhaps the first week of January. Apps from HBO, CinemaNow and MLB also arent coming until early next year.

Two marquee apps will be available with the first batch on Tuesday ESPN3 and Netflix but they were already available on the Xbox. Both have redesigned apps for the new interface, though. ESPN3 replaced its cartoonish interface with Xbox avatars looking up at on-screen display windows with a display that looks like a cable-TV channel.

Mike Suraci, director of Xbox Live product management, acknowledged theres more work to be done. This is definitely the beginning of the journey, he said.

Thats fine, but Microsoft needs to be careful about overpromising what its going to deliver. The new software and video services are nice and fun additions to whats already a great entertainment system. But its too soon to sell the Xbox as a hands-free gateway to live TV.

Brier Dudleys column appears Mondays. Reach him at 206-515-5687 or .

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Hawaiian Telcom Updates Offer For Union Vote

Monday, December 26th, 2011

HONOLULU — Hawaiian Telcom announced Tuesday that, through the efforts of a federal mediator working with bargaining representatives of both the company and the union, the company made an updated collective bargaining agreement offer to the union.

The updated offer represents a good faith effort by both parties to address each other?s needs and concerns toward achieving a mutually agreeable collective bargaining agreement, while standing by the financial framework of the company?s final offer made in October.

Hawaiian Telcom will defer the previously announced December 1 implementation of its final offer to allow the union to conduct an immediate vote on the updated offer.

The union?s negotiation team and leadership have taken a neutral position on the Hawaiian Telcoms updated offer. This allows union members to make personal decisions and vote based on their individual situations.

The union is proceeding with an expedited voting process, with plans to send out ballots and additional information today and to count the ballots on December 13.

The company and the union have agreed that during the voting period, there will be no work stoppages or slowdowns and no lockouts.

Th updated offer adjusts the last offer by Hawaiian Telcom by graduating union employees? healthcare premium contributions at 5% for 2012 and at 10% effective January 1, 2013; providing up to 10 weeks of fully paid benefits annually for sick leave (instead of up to 26 weeks currently and 8 weeks in the prior offer); decreasing the target annual incentive payment; and withdrawing proposed changes to overtime computations and to certain work procedures.

The company?s updated offer also proposes a three-and-a-half year collective bargaining agreement duration instead of the historical three years, with a proposed expiration date of June 30, 2015.

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Amazon Cyber Monday Week Game Deals: Dead Island, Rage, BioShock 2 and More

Sunday, December 25th, 2011

Some of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday Lightning Deals in video games are back as part of Amazons 19 Days of Deals leading into Christmas.

Today is Day 2 of 19 at Amazon, and the deals focus is on action video games. A total of 24 physical games and a pair of accessories are included in the promotion that will end when today ends.

One of this years biggest hits Dead Island is on sale for $29.99 on Xbox 360 or Playstation 3. Its list price is $59.99 so that makes for a substantial discount.

Other deals include Rage on Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 ($39.99), LA Noire on Xbox 360 ($19.99), BioShock 2 on Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 ($9.99), Deus Ex: Human Revolution on Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 ($29.99), Duke Nukem Forever for Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 ($9.99), Enslaved: Odyssey To The West on Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 ($12.99), Red Dead Redemption Game of the Year on Xbox 360 ($29.99) and Dead Rising 2 on Xbox 360 ($18.99).

Click here to check out and shop all of Amazons action video game deals .

Tomorrow is Day 3 of Amazons 19 Days of video game deals and will focus on PC games.

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Africa: Some Serious Fun At COP17 March

Friday, December 23rd, 2011

Giant beach volley balls bounced off the heads of one group of colorful protesters to the next. Apartheid-era struggle songs echoed in the air. Row upon row of activists held up banners ranging from angry to bemused. And all the while clowns juggled and unicycled, yielding a smile or two from policemen in charge of maintaining order.

It was an African march against climate change, but with an undeniable international flair.

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Santa Fun Run hopes to raise £3000 for St Andrew’s Hospice

Thursday, December 22nd, 2011

CHRISTMAS is still three weeks away, but dozens of Santa Clauses have already come to town.

After putting up their festive trimmings, fundraisers braved the biting December cold to take part in the annual Santa Fun Run.

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