Apple marries iPad with laptops in new MacBook Air

Apple is cashing in on the popularity of its iPhone and iPad to boost demand for its oldest product, the Macintosh. The company announced that its popular app store for the iPhone and the iPad would soon be coming to its laptops. It also launched a revamped MacBook Air at an event at its headquarters.
The computer is seen as a marriage of what Apple has learned from desktop computing and mobile devices. Like the iPad, the Air will have no hard drive and rely on flash memory.

"It's like nothing we've ever created before," said Apple boss Steve Jobs.

"We see these as the next generation of MacBooks. We think all notebooks are going to be like this one day. We've been inspired by some of the work we have done on iOS and want to bring them back to the Mac," said Mr Jobs.
Analysts said the laptop sends out a clear signal to the industry.
"This is a strong reminder to everyone out there that Apple is still in the PC business," said Michael Gartenberg, research director with Gartner.
"They are still making a lot of money in the PC business and if anyone thinks they are getting out of that business given the money they are making they are very mistaken."
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UK net is "not ready" for future

The UK is slowly climbing up the broadband world rankings, but is still not "ready for tomorrow," according to a global study of net services.
The annual report, commissioned by network giant Cisco, looks at how well countries are doing in terms of both quality and penetration of net services.
The UK is now ranked 18th out of 72 countries, up from 25th place last year.
South Korea is once again ranked first.
The annual study, conducted by the University of Oxford's Said Business School and the University of Oviedo in Spain looks at a range of factors, including both the number of homes to have broadband and the quality of the services.

Foursquare, Gowalla, and Facebook Places: Practical Uses for Location-Based Services

Foursquare (for Android or iPhone) and Gowalla (for Android or iPhone) were built around location, using GPS, Wi-Fi, and IP address to place us on a map.
These apps then let users “check inâ€
But the novelty of checking in and winning prizes has worn off. Location-aware services must evolve to offer truly useful and valuable services to users, and they will--or they'll perish. Still, even as they exist today, location-aware apps can be used in practical ways to help you communicate better, make better choices, save money, and improve productivity.
Here are some examples.