Features

You’d think there’s a solution on the Internet for most every digital need, at least when it comes to audiovisuals and telecommunications. It’s not always true. 

You’re crazy about sports on TV, big events in particular. With the currently ongoing tennis French Open at Roland Garros and perhaps even more dramatically the upcoming football World Cup in Brazil, what are your good options for watching the games in Jordan?

The obvious choice is to acquire a dedicated set-top-box, a special satellite receiver with a subscription to the countless Middle Eastern sport channels that offer high definition live watching. The only thing is that these come at a price and often cover much more than what you are looking for in terms of events and coverage. Unless you are an absolute, die-hard fan or want to spend the money anyway, you start thinking “Internet”.

Live streaming is the buzz word on the web. It has radically changed the way we listen to music and watch video. It provides, and by far, the most convenient way today to play audiovisual material without having to store it locally or to buy physical media like CDs and DVDs.

Purists and demanding audiophiles still maintain a local collection of music and video, so as to listen to and to watch the highest quality of audiovisual contents and never to have to do with frustrating but unavoidable stream interruptions, or “hiccups” as they are sometimes called. Still, the vast majority of the population is living happily with web streaming. Not to mention that audio-video streaming often is a good substitute for traditional satellite TV.

Therefore, logically, you start searching the web for online channels that would let you watch Roland Garros or the World Cup live. Regardless of whether you want exclusively free viewing or are willing to pay a premium your search will hardly lead to a solution, at least one with full-screen high-quality image.

The hurdles you are likely to face are subscriptions that are not allowed in the Middle East (the otherwise excellent Eurosport online, for example), subscriptions that are nothing but plain deception and that will not let you watch what you came here for in the first place, or sites that ask you to pay a substantial amount for a year-long commitment to countless events that you are not interested in. Besides, if you are to pay anything more than say $300 you may as well buy a dedicated, physical set-top-box hardware — the original solution.

The ideal online answer that would be charging some $20 to $40 for just one event with full-screen viewing and in high-definition, simply does not exist. Well, all searches I have done so far didn’t lead to any such practical solution, anyway.

In the same line of thoughts, the recent increase of advertising on YouTube, whatever you are trying to watch, is another indication that in the end it’s all about money –– nothing new, of course!

In conclusion TV as we’ve known it till now remains the most viable solution, the one that gives us the greatest viewing pleasure, at the most reasonable cost.

This also comes to confirm the article by The Jordan Times reporter Mohammad Ghazal published yesterday in this very newspaper and that was aptly titled “Television — here to stay…”. It quoted Sam Barnett, CEO of the MBC Group: “TV is the foundation for entertainment. Viewership of TV is robust and growing every day... TV is not dying.”

Until further major change, let’s use the Internet for what it is and keep watching the big games on TV.

Battling illness these days is tough, especially the common flu. That is because the viruses are so strong and varied that influenza has now become most uncommon to overcome. In the usual, seven days or one-week period, that is. 

There was a time this infection was not even taken seriously. The nuns in my convent school frowned in disapproval, when presented with a medical letter of excuse, explaining the sickness. Sore throat and sniveling nose was not reason enough to avoid classes. A couple of sneezes here or there and a slight fever meant you could skip the PE lesson, but that was all. 

However, in a household bustling with siblings, it was a wonderful experience when the thermometer showed a rise in bodily temperature. All parental attention suddenly centred on the unhealthy kid. It signalled the end of grappling with the hateful homework. It meant putting your feet up and having your mother pamper you endlessly. It also indicated that you now had a priority over your brothers and sisters. All their comics and board games were handed over to you, and you were also allowed to win in most of them.  

I was a thin and delicate child I am told. Fussy with food, I was partial to soups and juices where not much chewing had to be done. In the normal course, my no-nonsense mommy would not have any of it. I had to eat with the family and I had to swallow whatever was dished out on my plate. To the utter irritation of my older brother, I would carry on sitting on my dining chair, conscientiously munching, long after everybody had finished eating. I used to then go and show him my polished platter, which he had to dutifully report to our mother. 

Some days I would just about finish this entire laborious process when I would be called back for the next meal. There was no respite from it unless some gluttonous cousins were visiting. I could then surreptitiously pass my food onto their bowl, when our hawkeyed mum was distracted. Now that I look back I don’t think I managed to fool her entirely, because rather than argue over my suspiciously empty dish, she would make me drink up an extra tall glass of milk. Both of us did not have a problem with that. 

But ah! How my mother changed whenever I was down with fever. Her voice became gentle, her hand on my brow was cooling and whenever she propped me up to put spoonsful of broth into my mouth, her smile never left her tired face. My father would also move his tea table to my room for the duration of my sickness. From behind a newspaper, he would continue to issue instructions for my well-being. But it was always my mum I reached for in my delirium and it was only her touch that could calm me down. 

Last week I suffered from a debilitating attack of the flu. Burning with fever, I was longing for my Ma. Having lost her more than a decade ago I tried to bottle up my longing. 

“Have the chicken soup please,” a soft voice encouraged me. 

“I don’t feel like,” I said.

“What do you want Mom?” asked our daughter.

“I want my mother,” I muttered blinking back tears.

“I will be your mother,” my spouse smiled.

“I will be your mother,” our daughter chorused.

Spoiled for choice?

NEW YORK — After a night of no sleep, even a healthy brain has higher than normal levels of the protein that forms the signature tangles in Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study from the Netherlands.

“We think normal healthy sleep helps reduce the amount of (amyloid) beta in the brain and if your sleep is disturbed this decrease is prevented,” said the study’s senior author Dr Jurgen Claassen, from Radboud University Medical Centre in Nijmegen.

In people who repeatedly fail to get a good night’s sleep, the amyloid-beta concentration may build up and could be one factor in the development of Alzheimer’s disease, he said.

Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia and the sixth leading cause of death for older Americans, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Up to 5 million Americans have the condition.

Distinct from other forms of dementia, Alzheimer’s is partly defined by accumulations in the brain of the amyloid-beta protein. The cause of Alzheimer’s disease is not known, but the amyloid-beta plaques have long been thought to play an important role.

Claassen and his colleagues point out in JAMA Neurology that studies on mice have found decreases in the amount of amyloid-beta in healthy animals’ brains after a good night’s sleep. That suggests sleep plays a role in cleaning out the protein overnight.

To see if the same is true in people, the researchers recruited 26 middle-aged men with normal sleep habits to have their protein levels measured before and after sleep, or a lack of it.

The men were brought into the clinic, where a catheter was put into their spine to take fluid samples before they went to bed and after they woke up. Half of the men were randomly assigned to get a good night’s sleep while the other half were kept awake.

The researchers found that the men who got a good night’s sleep had amyloid-beta levels in their spinal fluid about 6 per cent lower in the morning than when they had gone to bed. The men who were kept awake all night had no change in their amyloid-beta levels.

The quality of sleep men got was also linked to how much of a decrease in amyloid-beta was measured, which suggests more of the amino acid is cleared out with better sleep, the team writes.

“We think the beta is cleared from the brain or less produced during sleep,” Claassen told Reuters Health, adding that it could be both.

While most people may not stay up all night for weeks at a time, Claassen also said that even partly-sleepless nights can add up.

“We did a complete night of sleep deprivation which is kind of extreme, but it’s similar to a week of partial sleep deprivation,” he said.

“Based on this and other studies, it would be good to have people look at their sleep behaviours, but not be frightened themselves if they miss a good night’s sleep,” he added.

Dr Michael Shelanski, co-director of Columbia University Medical Centre’s Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer’s Disease and the Ageing Brain in New York City, cautioned that the new study can’t prove the amyloid-beta proteins have anything to do with Alzheimer’s risk.

“We really don’t have any evidence from this paper that that’s the case,” said Shelanski, who was not involved in the new study.

“This is an interesting study,” he said. “It’s a good study, but it doesn’t really say anything about Alzheimer’s disease other than you should look further and see if the sleep patterns are related to these things.”

Claassen acknowledges that his team’s results do not prove that getting ample sleep will prevent Alzheimer’s disease, or that an amyloid-beta build-up causes the condition. Sleep may be just one of many risk factors for the illness, he said. Others include genetics, high blood pressure and obesity.

“We think it’s a disease that has several causes not just one, but we don’t know which ones,” he added.

SAN FRANCISCO – Samsung on Tuesday unwrapped its new smartphone using the Tizen platform, a move aimed at breaking away from Google’s Android and staking a claim to the “Internet of Things” (IoT).

The South Korean consumer electronics colossus showed off the Samsung Z, its first Tizen-powered smartphone, in a major shift away from the ubiquitous Android operating system used in the majority of its devices.

Samsung touted Tizen as a platform not just for phones, but for a range of connected devices from home appliances to door locks and watches which may communicate with one another in the future.

The unveiling came a day after Apple — a few blocks away in San Francisco — unveiled a coming new version of its iOS mobile operating system with capabilities that could have iPhones, iPads, and iPod touch devices vying for that same spot in the middle of a what is billed as the booming Internet-of-Things.

The world’s biggest smartphone maker made its pitch at the Tizen Developer Conference, a forum that aims to help the platform become a rival to Android and Apple’s iOS.

Samsung showed off a line of Tizen-powered devices ranging from Tizen-Android cameras to its freshly announced smartphone powered entirely by the South Korean technology firm’s open-source operating system.

Samsung even teased a prototype smart television that connects to rich online content using Tizen.

 Cash prizes for apps

Along with being enticed with contests offering cash prizes for winning applications, the approximately 1,000 developers at the keynote presentation were urged to check out an Open Smart Home project for “monitoring and controlling devices in the home or on the body all together” whether from one’s living room or from half a world away.

“The goal of this project is to have it evolve into services for the entire Internet-of-Things,” Samsung executive vice president and Tizen technical steering committee co-chair Jong-Deok Choi said during an on-stage presentation.

“We plan to have this project implemented through Tizen.”

Samsung announced Monday the launch of a new smartphone based on its own operating system, in a step towards independence from the Google Android platform that dominates its popular handsets.

The Samsung Z, which has been specially developed to run on the Tizen platform, will go on sale in Russia in the third quarter of this year before reaching other markets.

The vast majority of Samsung’s devices, including its flagship Galaxy S smartphones, use the Android operating system.

Exploding ‘IoT’

International Data Corporation (IDC) on Tuesday forecast that the global Internet-of-Things market will grow from $1.9 trillion last year to $7.1 trillion in the year 2020.

People are embracing the “IoT” in their homes, vehicles and elsewhere, while businesses are being lured by promises of efficiency and revenue, according to IDC.

“The worldwide IoT market is exploding,” said IDC mobile services vice president Carrie MacGillivray.

California-based Google has long pitched the potential for its free Android operating to be used to power broad arrays of devices in homes in a vision that goes far beyond smartphones and tablet computers.

Developer Henry Yu of Silicon Valley-based RGB, which specialises in streamlining video formats, was among those at the Tizen conference and suspected that no single platform would rule the IoT.

“At the end of the day, they will have to work together,” Yu said of rivals such as Samsung, Apple and Google vying to be at the center of the IoT.

“The Internet-of-Things has been around, but it is hodgepodge. People will want to get along because they want each other’s market.”

PARIS – Cars that drive themselves could be on the roads four years from now, provided red tape does not get in the way, Carlos Ghosn, head of the Renault-Nissan alliance, said on Tuesday.

Silicon Valley companies have long pioneered “autonomous vehicles”, and Google tested one in Nevada in 2012. German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz developed an S-class limousine that drove in August without any driver input.

Renault has created the Next 2 prototype version of its Zoe model which enables drivers to let go of the controls at speeds below 30 kilometres per hour thanks to GPS positioning, cameras and sensors, though a human must stay behind the wheel.

“The problem isn’t technology, it’s legislation, and the whole question of responsibility that goes with these cars moving around... and especially who is responsible once there is no longer anyone inside,” Ghosn said at a French Automobile Club event.

The first cars could hit the roads in 2018 in the “pioneer countries” of France, Japan and the United States, with commercialisation starting across Europe in 2020, the CEO said.

An amendment to United Nations rules agreed earlier this year would let drivers take their hands off the wheel of self-driving cars. The change was pushed by Germany, Italy and France, whose high-end carmakers believe they are ready to zoom past US tech pioneers to bring the first vehicles to market.

Provided the amendment clears all bureaucratic hurdles, it would allow a car to drive itself, as long as the system “can be overridden or switched off by the driver”. A driver must be present and able to take the wheel at any time.

CHICAGO — Young adults with cancer are far more likely to recover or live longer if they have health insurance, a new study on the potential impact of the Affordable Care Act shows.

The study published on Monday reports benefits for young people who were uninsured before the act, also called Obamacare, went into effect this year.

“Patients who were insured did better in pretty much every regard,” said Dr Ayal Aizer of Dana Farber Cancer Institute In Boston, whose study was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

The study used government data on thousands of patients aged 20 to 40 between 2007 and 2009.

He said insured patients were 16 per cent more likely to seek treatment for cancers earlier in the process, when the disease was still curable, versus waiting until the cancer had spread to other parts of the body.

Insured patients also were twice as likely as uninsured patients to receive treatments such as radiation or surgery that could potentially cure their cancers.

Most importantly, insured cancer patients were about 20 per cent more likely to survive than uninsured individuals.

Several cancer doctors at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting this week said they have yet to see a major impact of healthcare reform on routine patient care, largely because cancer is an age-related disease and many patients aged 65 and older are already insured through the government’s Medicare insurance programme.

Dr Clifford Hudis, president of ASCO, said the group of people most likely to benefit from the Affordable Care Act are not those at highest risk for cancer, meaning the elderly.

But Aizer said the impact of insurance is significant for younger people. “There is a huge and heavy price to pay for being uninsured,” Aizer said.

Dr Ronald DePinho, chief executive of University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Centre, has been a critic of the insurance programmes offered on the healthcare marketplace, many of which exclude cancer specialty hospitals like his and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre in New York.

“With cancer, which is the most complex of diseases, it takes institutions with a lot of experience to be able to diagnose the disease correctly and carry out multidisciplinary care of the patients. So it’s important that the patient be afforded with the opportunity for access to care as well,” he said.

Even so, DePinho sees a lot of benefits for cancer patients, especially with the focus on prevention in the health law, which covers major screening tests like mammograms with no co-pay.

“This tries to encourage individuals to be more proactive in taking charge of their health through prevention and detection strategies, which is critically important in cancer, because 50 per cent of cancers can be preventable, and we already know that early detection of cancer has a very significant impact on survival,” he said.

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple is expanding into home and health management as the company tries to turn its iPhones, iPads and Mac computers into an interchangeable network of devices that serve as a hub of people’s increasingly digital lives.

The new tools for tracking health and controlling household appliances are part of updated operating systems that Apple unveiled Monday in San Francisco at its 25th annual conference for application developers.

The revised software for Apple Inc.’s devices won’t be released to the general public until this fall when the company is also expected to start selling the next generation of iPhones and iPads. A spruced-up line of Macs also could be coming before the holiday shopping season.

The lack of a flashy new gadget may disappoint some Apple fans who are still looking for proof that the company hasn’t lost its ingenuity since Steve Jobs died in October 2011. Since then, Apple has mostly been making incremental improvements to the devices and software hatched under Jobs’ leadership.

While those updates have been enough to maintain Apple’s status as the world’s most valuable company, they haven’t quieted persisting questions about the company’s future prospects amid intensifying competition from other device makers.

Apple CEO Tim Cook, Job’s hand-picked successor, turned Monday’s spotlight over to one of his chief lieutenants — Craig Federighi — to discuss the company’s upcoming software changes. The new versions, which will be free, are called iOS 8 for mobile devices and “Yosemite” for Macs.

The iOS 8 operating system includes “HealthKit” and “HomeKit” options that may test how just how much Apple customers trust the Cupertino, California, company to maintain their privacy.

HealthKit works with a new built-in app on the iOS 8 that will store a variety of information about people’s medical histories, vital signs, fitness levels and diet. Other third-party apps will be able to access the data with a user’s permission.

HomeKit is aiming to set up a system that lets an iPhone or iPad serve as the remote control of an entire household outfitted with an assortment of digital appliances.

Apple hasn’t given any indication that it plans to make these “smart” household appliances, although there is recurring speculation that the company eventually will release a TV set that gives its services access to the biggest screen in most people’s homes.

For now, Apple appears content serving as a sort of digital butler in homes. In a hypothetical example sketched out Monday, Federighi said a homeowner with an iOS 8 device might be able to announce “it’s time to go to bed,” at which point doors would automatically lock, lights would dim and the thermostat temperature would be adjusted by Apple’s digital assistant, Siri.

The move into health and home coincides with Apple’s bid to make its services more accessible in cars. That system, called CarPlay, will be available later this year.

Some analysts suspect Apple might get into finances later this year with a digital payment service.

Another new feature included in iOS 8 is designed to make it easier to type on the smaller screens of mobile devices. Called “QuickType,” the tool will learn a user’s language patterns and suggest ways to finish sentences. For example, if you start typing, “Do you want to go to,” the phone will suggest “dinner” or “movie” as the next word. Currently, the suggestions are limited to spelling corrections.

Devices running on Google’s Android software, a more widely used system than the iOS, already attempts to fill in the blanks as people type.

Apple’s messaging app also is adding an option that will let users record and send audio and video to recipients instead of typing out a note. This feature copies other messaging services such as WhatsApp and Snapchat.

Although HomeKit and HealthKit are tailored for iPhones and iPads, they eventually may work on Macs too.

That’s because Apple is reprogramming its operating systems so it’s easier for users to hopscotch from an iPhone to an iPad to a Mac and keep working on a document or Web page opened on another Apple device. Some of this interplay is accomplished through Apple’s online storage service, iCloud, and a new “handoff” tool that ties the devices together. An iPhone located near a Mac will even automatically set up a wireless connection for the computer when it doesn’t have one.

Apple also is trying to improve the quality of graphics on its mobile devices with a new iOS 8 feature called “Metal” that creates a more efficient way for game makers to tap into the 3-D capabilities of the processor on iPhones and iPads. The company also is introducing a new programming language called “Swift” in an attempt to help developers create applications more quickly.

The new programming language drew the loudest applause from the roughly 6,000 attending Monday’s event, reflecting the geeky nature of the crowd.

Wall Street was less enthused. Macquarie Securities analyst Ben Schachter described the software improvements as “underwhelming”.

Apple’s stock dipped $4.35 to close Monday at $628.65. The shares are still up 12 per cent so far this year. The stock is still bouncing back from a downturn that saw it plunge below $400 last year after peaking at $705.07 in September 2012.

Depending on one’s location, persuasion and occupation, the large American pickup truck is loved and loathed in equal measure. A polarising vehicle segment, such trucks are loved for their spaciousness, comfort, ability, power and value by fans. Detractors see them as inefficient, heavy, excessive and crude road hogs that are potentially more dangerous to other road users when in the wrong hands. Hugely popular in the US and segments of the Middle East, the Chevrolet Silverado, its GMC Sierra sister, Ford F-Series and Ram rivals are utilitarian and indulgent, and are often put to use as dual purpose work and personal vehicles.

Representing about the best value for money in terms of comfort, equipment and size for buyers, large American pickups have also benefited from low development costs, less restrictive fuel efficiency, emissions and safety regulations — and lower levies in Jordan — and have provided manufacturers with healthy profit margins. In a changing world where customers are looking for more luxury, safety and efficiency, the latest crop of American pickups have had to learn new tricks. Of the latest two such trucks the Ford F150 has opted for a more radical approach, while General Motors have instead chosen to significantly and convincingly refine the Chevrolet Silverado.

Boxy brute

While its Ford F150 rival — launched earlier this year – has adopted a stylised and somewhat futuristically bullish design and the use of extensive lightweight aluminium construction, the Chevrolet Silverado doesn’t mince its intentions, and instead plays to its predecessors’ bluntly angular and upright design language. The Silverado also employs a rugged and rigid boxed hydroformed steel frame and steel body, but utilises lightweight aluminium engine construction, suspension components and hood panel. Its 1,761mm long pick-up bed is built from roll-formed — rather than stamped — steel for reduced weight and added strength, and can carry a payload of up to 887kg and accommodate a 1,512-litre capacity.

An unreconstructed brute in appearance — just like its fans would prefer — the Silverado’s macho, broad, squared-off and level fascia has a Duplo-brick sense of uncomplicated accessibility and cinder-block solidity. With a broad, oversized and chromed split-level rectangular grille that is flanked by smaller stacked and chrome-ringed rectangular headlights, Chevrolet would have done well had they carried over the Silverado’s well-resolved fascia to its Tahoe SUV sister. With almost nary a curve or angle apart from its A-pillars and windscreen, the Silverado’s decidedly boxy style features slight flat-topped twin bonnet bulges, chromed running boards, squared-off bulging wheel-arches and functional straight-cut pickup bed lines.

Brawny efficiency

Under its substantial bonnet, the mid-range Silverado is powered by a rugged and reliable large displacement V8-engine with 16 valves and overhead valves, as opposed to the Ford F150 median model, which features a 365HP and 420lb/ft modern 3.5 litre twin-turbo V6-cylinder EcoBoost engine. Though old-school in valve-train configuration, the Silverado’s 5.3 litre EcoTec engine is contemporary interpretation of a long tried and tested formula, and is built from aluminium and uses variable valve timing and direct fuel injection for enhanced efficiency and power. The Silverado also features on-the-fly automatic cylinder de-activation for enhanced cruising efficiency, with the dormant four-cylinders seamlessly firing up on meaningful throttle input.

If not exactly frugal in absolute terms, the Silverado’s 14.7l/100km city and 10.7l/100km highway fuel consumption ratings are however surprisingly modest for such a massive, upright and heavy 2,367kg truck. Developing 355HP at 5,600rpm and 383lb/ft at 4,100rpm the Silverado can also be hustled along at brisk pace when a firm right foot is applied, with unofficial 0-97km/h acceleration estimated at below seven seconds. With decent low-end torque and generous mid-range output, the Silverado 5.3 is muscularly flexible, with its considerable twisting force underwriting a progressive climb to maximum power. Smooth at cruising speeds, the Silverado’ roar is relatively subdued even when pushed hard. 

Remarkably refined

With a six-speed automatic gearbox the Silverado up-shifts smoothly, and best driven with downshifts summoned by kick-down, rather than sequentially through the steering column shifter’s small up/down shift button. With rear- or four-wheel-drive modes, the Silverado can however send power to the front wheels when extra traction or grip is required in 4x4 auto mode, or alternatively drive the rear wheels for better performance and efficiency. Low-gear ratios aid off-road driving and low-traction towing, up to 4,,354kg. For off-road driving, the Silverado Z71 usefully features a locking rear-differential, 226mm clearance, 17.9° approach, 19° break-over and 23.3° departure angles for traversing obstacles and ruts.

With front independent and rugged rear live-axle and leaf-spring suspension the Silverado isn’t designed to be an agile, nimble corner carving hero, but is predictable, steers easily and grips well. Comfortably sprung, heavy and tall, the Silverado wallows a bit over big bumps and through sharper corners, but should feel more settled when carrying a load. The Silverado is however remarkably smooth, refined, comfortable, stable and quiet on highways and ideal partner for long-distance cruising and commutes. With numerous noise vibration and harshness isolation improvements including acoustic-laminated windows triple door seals and other measures, the Silverado’s highway cabin refinement is comparable to a Lexus LS460.  

Spacious and well-equipped

Going straight from driving a small, light and perky Peugeot 208 to the Silverado, one quickly has to change driving styles. Wary of other drivers’ bad driving in the compact hatchback, one becomes vigilant of one’s own maneuvers lest they inconvenience other motorists, owing to much greater size and mass and lesser maneuverability and visibility. While one can’t just zip through traffic and nip into tight parking spots, the top-spec Silverado LTZ is however equipped with seat-vibrating lane departure and front collision warning systems, and parking aids include sensors and reversing camera. Safety features include numerous dual-stage airbags, electronic traction/stability controls and other equipment.   

A tough workhorse and indulgently refined and extensively well-equipped subpremium luxury chariot, the Silverado’s cabin space is the envy of even luxury saloons, while cabin access and storage compartments are generous. Comfortable, high-set and 10-way electrically adjustable leatherette seats and adjustable pedals and steering reach and height accommodate almost any size. Front and side visibility are good, rearview mirrors are large. Snazzier than before, the Silverado feels better built and features softer textures and user-friendly layouts. Generous and practical equipment includes dual-zone climate control, six-speaker Bose stereo, electric power sockets, keyless entry and a Bluetooth, streaming and USB-enabled touchscreen infotainment system, and numerous other creature comforts. 

Specifications

Chevrolet Silverado LTZ ZL1 5.3 Crew Cab

Engine: 5.3 litre, in-line V8-cylinders

Bore x Stroke: 96mm x 92mm

Compression ratio: 11:1

Valve-train: 16 valve, variable timing, OHV, direct injection

Gearbox: six-speed automatic, four-wheel drive

Drive line: Low ratio transfer case, locking rear differential

Gear ratios: 1st 4.03:1; 2nd 2.36:1; 3rd 1.53:1; 4th 1.15:1; 5th 0.85:1; 6th 0.67:1

Reverse / final drive: 3.06:1 / 3.42:1

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 355 (360) [265] @ 5,600rpm

Torque lb/ft (Nm): 383 (519) @ 4,100rpm

Redline: 5,800rpm

Fuel consumption, city / highway: 14.7 / 10.7l/100km

Fuel capacity: 98 litres

Length: 5,843mm

Width: 2,032mm 

Height: 1,879mm

Wheelbase: 3,645mm

Track, F/R: 1,745 / 1,716mm

Minimum ground clearance: 226mm

Load floor height: 872mm

Step-in height: 564mm

Kerb weight: 2,367kg

Weight distribution, F/R: 58%/42%

Payload: 887kg

Gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR): 3,266kg

Trailoring: 4,354kg

Approach / break-over / departure angles: 17.9° / 19° / 23.3°

Headroom, F/R: 1,087 / 1,029mm

Legroom, F/R: 1,150 / 1,040mm

Shoulder room, F/R: 1,647 / 1,670mm

Cargo volume: 1,512 litres

Cargo floor length: 1,761mm

Cargo floor width, min/max: 1,296/1,642mm

Steering: Electric-assisted rack & pinion

Turning circle: 14.4 metres

Lock-to-lock: 3.03-turns

Suspension, F: Independent coil-over, mono-tube dampers

Suspension, R: Solid axle, leaf springs, monotube dampers

Brakes, F/R: Ventilated discs 330 x 30mm/345 x 20mm

Tyres, standard (optional): 265/65R18 (275/55R20)

SAN FRANCISCO — Apple’s Mac operating system is getting a new design and better ways to exchange files, while new features in the software for iPhones and iPads include one for keeping tabs on your health.

Apple executive Craig Federighi pointed out that data from various fitness-related devices now live in silos, so you can’t get a comprehensive picture of your health. That will change, he says, with HealthKit coming to the new mobile software, iOS 8. Apple is also working with the Mayo Clinic to make sure your weight, calorie intake and other health metrics are within healthy ranges.

Apple is also making it easier for various devices to work together. You can share songs, movies and books you purchase with your entire family. Macs and mobile gadgets will share more features, and you can share and sync files between the two more easily.

The company is previewing the new features at its 25th annual conference for software developers in San Francisco. The free updates will come this fall, though developers get a test version Monday.

Here are the highlights on what’s been announced and what’s coming:

Changes to Mac computers:

— The next Mac system will be named Yosemite, after the national park, now that Apple is naming it after California locales rather than cats.

— You’ll be able to search for content on the computer and on the Internet at once, similar to a feature available with Microsoft’s Windows 8.

— Apple is expanding its iCloud storage service so that you can store and sync files of any type, not just the ones designed specifically for iCloud. It’s similar to how services such as Dropbox let you work with the same files on multiple devices more easily.

— A Mail Drop feature will make it easier to send large files. Instead of pushing the entire file by e-mail and overloading mail servers, the Mac will create a link that the recipient can click for the full file.

— The Mac’s Safari web browser will have more privacy controls and ways to share links more easily.

Changes to IPhones and IPads:

— Like the new Mac OS, the iOS 8 system will have a universal search tool, to cover both your device and the Internet. It will also get the iCloud Drive service.

— The new software will sport interactive notifications, so you can respond to a message without having to leave another app. It will have new gestures, such as double tapping to see a list of frequent contacts.

— A “quick type” feature promises predictive typing suggestions. For example, if you start typing, “Do you want to go to”, the phone will suggest “dinner” or “movie” as the next word. Currently, the suggestions are limited to spelling corrections.

— iOS 8 will have a built-in health-management tool to help people track their vital signs, diet and sleeping habits. Apple’s chief rival, Samsung Electronics Co., incorporated fitness-related features in its latest flagship phone, the Galaxy S5.

— Apple announced new technology for controlling garage doors, thermostats and other home systems, although the company didn’t say how all the pieces will be linked together through what it calls HomeKit.

— For developers, Apple announced the ability to sell app bundles at discounted prices. The fingerprint security system on the iPhone 5s also will be accessible to apps written by outside parties, not just Apple functions such as unlocking the phone.

Working together:

— Although the Mac and iOS systems are separate, Apple CEO Time Cook says the two have been engineered to work seamlessly together.

— Apple’s AirDrop feature, which has let you share files with other devices of the same type, will now let iPhones and Macs share directly with each other.

— A new “handoff” feature will let you switch devices more easily, so you can start writing an e-mail on a phone and finish on a Mac. And when a call comes in on your iPhone, you can get caller ID information on your Mac.

— The iMessage chat service will now let you communicate with devices that aren’t running iOS, such as those running the rival Android system from Google.

Announced earlier:

— Last week, Apple announced a deal to pay $3 billion for Beats Electronics, a headphone and music streaming specialist. The deal brings rapper Dr. Dre and recording impresario Jimmy Iovine to undetermined roles at Apple. During a demo Monday, Federighi placed a call to Dr. Dre to welcome him to Apple.

Coming soon:

— Apple typically announces new iPhones in September and new iPads soon after that. Many analysts also believe the company will release an Internet-connected watch as part of Apple’s expansion into wearable technology.

Silent:

— Despite speculation, Apple didn’t say anything about a long-awaited digital wallet that enables Apple to process payments on iPhones and iPads.

— Apple didn’t provide an update on CarPlay, its project for embedding automobiles with some of the iPhone’s main applications. But Apple did say it’ll be possible to tap the Siri virtual assistant without pressing a button. Cars with built-in CarPlay services and radios that are compatible with CarPlay are both expected this year.

SAN FRANCISCO – The wildly popular “Gangnam Style” music video cemented its place Saturday as one of the defining soundtracks of the digital age, smashing through the two billion barrier on YouTube.

The infectious and satirical mega-hit by South Korean pop star Psy became a worldwide sensation, fueling a South Korean “K-Pop” trend after it was first uploaded to the popular video sharing platform in July 2012.

It continues to garner thousands of looks daily and already was hundreds of thousands above the two billion mark early Saturday.

Psy’s horse-riding-style dance moves in “Gangnam Style” have been mimicked in a myriad of videos uploaded to YouTube in various languages.

South Korea’s most successful recent export has also gained currency beyond YouTube, becoming often copied, much parodied and endlessly analysed.

“’Gangnam Style’ actually pokes fun at how the common man fantasizes about life in the fast lane, as symbolised by the ritzy area in Seoul known as Gangnam,” wrote an analyst in the renowned Harvard Business Review a few months after the release of the song, which by then was already a massive viral hit. 

“The anti-materialism theme in the time of a global recession has helped broaden the appeal of the song,” the analysis said. 

The song’s breach of the two billion views mark was a first at YouTube, where in February “Baby” by Canadian pop singer Justin Bieber became the only other video in the billion-view club.

“Two billion views; they are very honorable and very burdensome numbers,” Psy said in a statement YouTube shared with AFP on Friday.

“With the appreciation, I will come back soon with more joyful contents!”

His follow-up song “Gentleman” set the record for the most YouTube views in a single day — 38 million — on April 14, 2013.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday that Psy’s new song “Hangover”, a collaboration with rapper Snoop Dogg, was set for worldwide release on June 8 during a live broadcast of America’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” late-night talk show.

The new creation reportedly will be “completely different” and display Psy’s hip-hop side, his handlers told the newspaper.

The “Gangnam” in the hit song’s title refers to Seoul’s most upscale residential and shopping district lined with luxury boutiques, top-end bars and restaurants frequented by celebrities.

Psy sings about being the “guy who downs boiling coffee in one shot” and who “goes completely crazy when the right time comes”.

The video, which satirizes the area’s self-importance and ostentatious wealth, has Psy breezing through a world of speed boats, yoga classes and exclusive clubs while performing an eccentric horse-riding dance.

Only three per cent of “Gangnam Style” views at YouTube have been from inside South Korea, underscoring Psy’s global appeal.