Govt to enhance, extend Wireless@SG programme till March 2013

SINGAPORE: Singaporeans who have become used to surfing the internet on the go will be able to do so for another four years.

The government says it will be enhancing and extending the Wireless@SG programme till March 2013.

Acting Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts, Lui Tuck Yew, made the announcement at the opening of the Infocomm Media Business Exchange Tuesday morning.

Mr Lui said since the launch of the Wireless@SG programme in 2006, the programme now boasts 7,500 hot spots across the country and 1.3 million subscribers.

Wireless@SG can be accessed at major public locations such as the main shopping belt at Orchard Road, the Central Business District and major HDB town centres.

The new enhanced programme will include improvements to access speeds of up to one megabit per second, double the current bandwidth, and using a new seamless login process.

Mr Lui says the government will also be rolling out more services over Wireless@SG, such as cashless payments as well as location-based and facility-monitoring services.

- CNA/yt

Italy's Deputy Minister for Economic Development calls on SM Goh

SINGAPORE: Italy's Deputy Minister for Economic Development Adolfo Urso has called on Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong at the Istana.

Mr Goh and Mr Urso had wide-ranging discussions on the state of bilateral economic ties and the potential for closer collaboration.

Mr Urso expressed confidence in Asia's potential and said that Italy hopes to partner Singapore to explore opportunities in the region.

Mr Goh briefed Mr Urso on recent economic developments in Asia and said that Singapore can be a platform for Italian companies to venture into the region.

Mr Urso is leading a delegation of 80 Italian companies to Singapore from June 14 to 16.

Last year, Italy was Singapore's fifth largest trading partner in Europe, with total bilateral trade valued at S$5.8 billion.

- CNA/yt

S'pore among top 10 most expensive locations in Asia

SINGAPORE: Cost of living in Singapore continues to be high, propelling it into the top ten most expensive locations within the region.

A report by human resources consultancy, ECA International, found that Singapore is the 10th most expensive city in Asia and 72nd worldwide.

The firm said price rises have not slowed down as much in Singapore as in other parts of Asia in spite of its weakened currency.

In addition, currencies of locations which were previously more expensive than Singapore - like London and Stockholm - have depreciated at a faster rate than the Singapore dollar.

This has led to Singapore becoming more expensive for visitors than many other locations in the survey.

Topping the list for the most expensive city in Asia is Japan's Tokyo, while Angola's Luanda is the most expensive city in the world.

In all, four Japanese cities, Tokyo, Nagoya, Yokohama and Kobe, made it to the top five most expensive places globally.

Joining the region's top ten are Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong in fifth to seventh positions respectively. Kuala Lumpur is ranked 38th and Johor Bahru the 40th most expensive city in Asia.

ECA International said the cost of living in Asia has become more expensive as Europe and the US are bearing the brunt of the recession.

ECA carries out the cost of living survey twice a year, comparing a basket of commonly purchased consumer goods and services in over 370 locations worldwide. - 938LIVE/CNA/vm/al

Gmail notifier for Windows 7 taskbar

Windows 7 only: Gmail Notifier Plus displays your unread email count right in the Windows 7 taskbar, including popup message previews and Jump Lists integration.

Once you've launched the application, you will be prompted for your Gmail account information—after which you will see the unread count as an icon right on the taskbar button and hovering your mouse will show a preview of your unread email. Right-clicking on the button uses Windows 7's excellent Jump Lists feature—with quick and easy access to frequent tasks like opening your inbox or composing a new email message.

Gmail Notifier Plus is a free download for Windows 7 only—hit the link for more screenshots and the free-registration-required download, or use the mirror to just download it quickly. For more ways to add email notifications, check out Growl for Windows or Gmail Notifier for Ubuntu.

Gmail Notifier Plus [mirror] [Neowin Forums]

Singapore is 11th most liveable city in Asia

Singapore is the 54th most liveable city in the world, below San Francisco (US), and a notch above Budapest (Hungrary). Its placing also puts it above cities like Seoul (58th) and Taipei (62nd), but below Hong Kong (39th), Osaka (13th) and Tokyo (19th).

Singapore's placing also makes it the 11th most liveable city in Asia, including cities in Australia and New Zealand.

Vancouver remains top of the league table, benefiting from strong Canadian infrastructure and Harare sits at the bottom thanks to the unfolding crisis in Zimbabwe.

The results are according to the latest Economist Intelligence Unit global liveability survey, which has put cities in Australia, New Zealand and Japan close to the top of the ranking of 140 cities.

At the other end of the ranking, most of the poorest-performing locations are in Africa or Asia. Dhaka in Bangladesh is the lowest-scoring city in the region in joint 138th, just one place above last-place Harare.

Asia accounts for eight cities out of the top 20 (although these are found in just three countries: Australia, New Zealand and Japan) and ten cities out of the bottom 20.

Jon Copestake, editor of the report, said: "The performance of Asian cities reflects the diverse levels of development throughout the region. Australian cities represent many of the best aspects of liveability while instability in countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh means that cities in South Asia fare much worse."

Glasvegas - Geraldine (Acoustic)

Hady is handy for the return of Idol-mania

SINGAPORE: The success of "Singapore Idol" can only be spelt in two words - Hady Mirza. So it's no surprise that the 2009 season will see the winner of the Singapore talent search and also Asian Idol, joining the stellar line-up.

Playing the role of 'big brother', Hady will share his first-hand experience that should prove to be valuable to the next generation of "Singapore Idol" hopefuls.

The multi-talented Gurmit Singh will lead season three of "Singapore Idol" which is slated to be the toughest yet.

Taking the judges chairs once again will be Singapore's answer to American Idol's Simon Cowell - local music producer Ken Lim, as well as musical genius Dick Lee and Florence Lian, who will be the 'rose among the thorns' but don't forget roses can be prickly!

Leaving the show are two familiar faces from season two - judge and jazz singer Jacintha Abisheganaden and Gurmit's co-host Daniel Ong.

And don't expect it to be business as usual.

In a new twist this season, "Idol" fans can start voting for their favourites from the start of the show, so expect to see who’s in and who’s out 'Live' on the same night.

As for the contestants who stand to win a recording contract with Universal Music, they don't just get to compete on how well they can belt out a tune.

The hit series will empower contestants who get to showcase talent that makes them stand out from the pack by being allowed to play musical instruments from the theatre rounds onwards.

Other new elements to "Singapore Idol" include the Judges’ Save – a one-time privilege used by the judges to prevent one contestant from going home during the “Spectacular” episodes, and the Salvation Song – which is a common song that all contestants will prepare and can be performed by the two bottom-ranking contestants to stay in the competition.

"Singapore Idol" hits the TV screens on 9 August with a peek into the auditions that start Saturday 6 June, and climaxes on 20 December with the finale.

Get ready for Idol-mania!

- CNA/sf

The future of Internet / Google Wave