http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/09/apple-confirms-september-10th-event-prepare-for-new-iphones-ios-7-and-more/

Flightradar24.com is a real time flight tracking service that provides you with information about aircraft flying around the world and their location on a map. Clicking on a plane will bring up details about the flight, including the type of aircraft, altitude, speed and other information. You can even switch to a rendered “cockpit view” (using a Google Earth plugin) . Flightradar24.com also has apps for iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

See Flightradar24.com view of the Caribbean.

Clicking on an airport would bring up the list of arrivals and departures. Below is a screenshot showing the listing for Piarco Airport, Trinidad and Tobago.

(H/T : The Loop)

(Update :  Steve Ballmer’s email to Microsoft employees on Nokia Devices & Services acquisition includes a link to a presentation about Microsoft’s strategic rationale for the deal announced with Nokia.

From the Microsoft press release:

Microsoft Corporation and Nokia Corporation today announced that the Boards of Directors for both companies have decided to enter into a transaction whereby Microsoft will purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, license Nokia’s patents, and license and use Nokia’s mapping services.

Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will pay EUR 3.79 billion to purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, and EUR 1.65 billion to license Nokia’s patents, for a total transaction price of EUR 5.44 billion in cash. Microsoft will draw upon its overseas cash resources to fund the transaction. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014, subject to approval by Nokia’s shareholders, regulatory approvals and other closing conditions.

There is more on Microsoft’s blog titled “The Next Chapter: An open letter from Steve Ballmer and Stephen Elop“

The price cuts for the Microsoft Surface Pro, Surface RT and TouchCover introduced in early August 2013 were set to end this month. However, Microsoft has announced these price cuts are permanent.

The price cuts :

• $100 USD off Surface Pro (including the 256GB model) – Surface Pro will now start at $799 USD
• $40 USD off Touch Covers – Touch Covers will now start at $79 USD, Limited Edition Touch Covers will now start at $89 USD
• $50 USD off Surface RT bundles – Surface RT bundles will now start at $399 USD

Source : ZDnet

Facebook has posted proposed updates to their “Data Use Policy” and their “Statement of Rights and Responsibilities” on their Facebook’s Site Governance Page.  As Facebook notes : “These two documents tell you about how we collect and use data, and the rules that apply when you choose to use Facebook.”

The proposed changes are scheduled to take effect on September 5 2013.

Read the specific note on Facebook’s Site Governance Page on the proposed changes to Facebook’s Governing Documents scheduled to take effect September 5 2013.

According to an article on GigaOm, Facebook’s proposed changes to its Data Use and Privacy policies give the platform more control and knowledge of a user’s image and likeness.

From NY Times “Steven A. Ballmer, who took over as chief executive of Microsoft in 2000 from its co-founder, Bill Gates, announced Friday he would retire from the company within the next 12 months.”

Read NY Times article at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/24/technology/ballmer-announces-retirement-from-microsoft.html and Microsoft’s statement at http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/Press/2013/Aug13/08-23AnnouncementPR.aspx

http://youtu.be/cKG5HDyTW8o

The Trinidad and Tobago Computer Society (TTCS) will be having a tech meeting on Saturday August 24 2013 from 1 to 3pm at Engineering Consultants (ENCO) at 112A Edward Street, Port of Spain (corner of Oxford and Edward Streets).

An paper titled “Internet Governance is Our Shared Responsibility” written by Vint Cerf, Patrick Ryan and Max Senges for forthcoming publication in the I/S Journal is available online.

View/Download the “Internet Governance is Our Shared Responsibility” paper at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2309772 (PDF ; 448K)

From the abstract :

This essay looks at the the different roles that multistakeholder institutions play in the Internet governance ecosystem. We propose a model for thinking of Internet governance within the context of the Internet’s layered model. We use the example of the negotiations in Dubai in 2102 at the World Conference on International Telecommunications as an illustration for why it is important for different institutions within the governance system to focus on their respective areas of expertise (e.g., the ITU, ICANN, and IGF). Several areas of conflict (a “tussle”) are reviewed, such as the desire to promote more broadband infrastructure, a topic that is in the remit of the International Telecommunications Union, but also the recurring desire of countries like Russia and China to use the ITU to regulate content and restrict free expression on the Internet through onerous cybersecurity and spam provisions. We conclude that it is folly to try and regulate all these areas through an international treaty, and encourage further development of mechanisms for global debate like the Internet Governance Forum (IGF).

About the authors (from the article)

Author Vint Cerf, PhD, is Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist at Google and is one of the original architects of the Internet’s TCP/IP protocol suite.

Author Patrick Ryan, PhD, is Senior Policy Counsel with Google and a Senior Affiliated Researcher at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.

Author Max Senges, PhD is Policy Manager with Google in Berlin. Although all three authors are employed by Google, this paper is written entirely in their personal and academic capacities and does not reflect the opinion of their employer.