Best Books: 2 Books By Singapore's MM Lee Kuan Yew

Here I listed 2 books authored by Singapore's Minister Mentor, Mr Lee Kuan Yew a.k.a. LKY.

From Third World to First : The Singapore Story: 1965-2000 (Hardcover)

Quoted from Author:

"There are books to teach you how to build a house, how to repair engines, how to write a book..."

There are two parts to this memoir. First part is about development of Singapore - social, economic and political. The second part deals with foreign relations.

The man most responsible for Singapore's astonishing transformation from colonial backwater to economic powerhouse describes how he did it over the last four decades. It's a dramatic story, and Lee Kuan Yew has much to brag about. To take a single example: Singapore had a per-capita GDP of just $400 when he became prime minister in 1959. When he left office in 1990, it was $12,200 and rising. (At the time of this book's writing, it was $22,000.) Much of this was accomplished through a unique mix of economic freedom and social control. Lee encouraged entrepreneurship, but also cracked down on liberties that most people in the West take for granted--chewing gum, for instance. It's banned in Singapore because of "the problems caused by spent chewing gum inserted into keyholes and mailboxes and on elevator buttons." If American politicians were to propose such a thing, they'd undoubtedly be run out of office. Lee, however, defends this and similar moves, such as strong antismoking laws and antispitting campaigns: "We would have been a grosser, ruder, cruder society had we not made these efforts to persuade people to change their ways.... It has made Singapore a more pleasant place to live in. If this is a 'nanny state,' I am proud to have fostered one."


The Singapore Story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew (Hardcover)

Lee takes a profoundly personal look back at the events that led to Singapore's independence and shaped its struggle for success. And, as always, he lets the chips fall where they may.In intimate detail, Lee recounts Singapore's unforgettable history. You'll be with Lee as he leads striking unionists against the colonial government; shares tea and rounds of golf with key players in Britain and Malaya; and drinks warm Anchor beer with leaders of the communist underground at secret midnight meetings. From British colonial rule through Japanese occupation in World War II, Communist insurrection, riots, independence -- and the struggles that followed -- few political memoirs anywhere have been this blunt, or this fascinating.Anyone interested in the political history of Singapore, Asia, and the modern world.

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40 Things You May Not Know About Cash Machines

1. Comedy actor Reg Varney, star of TV sitcom On the Buses, became the first person in the country to use a cash machine at Barclays Enfield on June 27th 1967

2. After the low key opening in the UK the opening of the first Japanese machine in Tokyo drew a crowd of 10,000

3. The idea of a cash machine was first thought up by Turkish born inventor Luther George Simjian in 1939, but it never got off the ground.

4. The idea of a personal identification number was thought up by John Shepherd Barron and refined by his wife Caroline, who changed John’s six digit number to four as it was easier to remember.

5. At the end of the 1960s there were 781 cash machines worldwide, 595 were in the UK

6. In 1971cash machines went online, to become Automated Teller Machines (ATM)

7. A Teller is an Americanism for a cashier.

8. There are now 1.6 million cash machines around the world and around 60,000 cash machines in the UK.

9. The USA has the most cash machines with 405,000 in use at the end of 2006.

10. The hole in the wall industry is worth £14 billion and the 1.6 million machines worldwide are expected to grow to two million by 2010.

11. The total of all withdrawals from UK machines reached £172 billion in 2005 – an average £5455 per second.

12. The world’s most northerly ATM is at Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway.

13. The most southerly at the McMurdo station at the South Pole

14. 96 per cent of all cash withdrawn is from machines owned by banks or building societies.

15. The average number of cash withdrawals per day at each UK bank or building society owned machine is 213.

16. In the UK there were 164 million plastic cards in issue by the end of 2005 that could be used at a cash point machine.

17. 70 per cent of UK adults said they had used a cash machine during 2005.

18. The highest frequency users in the UK are the 16-24 age group

19. A total of over 260 million freshly printed fivers are currently languishing at the Bank of England as they take up too much room in the cash machines which are largely populated with £10 and £20 notes (although Barclays is one bank that does still stock them).

20. There are two types of cash machine users – Feasters and Nibblers. Feasters withdraw over £100 at a time while nibblers prefer to withdraw £20 to £30 two or three times a week.

21. Surveys show that women are much better than men at heeding the on screen warnings of any charges being imposed for withdrawals.

22. Cash machine users are helping local convenience stores to survive, visiting them more often and spending more.

23. Over half of the UK’s cash machines are now at non bank sites.

24. All cards issued in the UK bearing the Visa or Mastercard logos can be used in any machine worldwide that display such logos.

25. Research shows that soccer mad Britons stage a half time dash for cash during big games, with withdrawals at stadium cash machines surging more than 40 percent before the start of the second half.

26. Cash machine robbers are increasing being foiled by security devices which trigger a dye that stains banknotes when a machine is stolen.

27. The most common banknote used in a cash machine is the £20. It was re-launched in March 2007 for the first time since1999.

28. Cash machines that talk have been installed in Norway to help blind customers obtain cash.

29. Experts believe we’ll soon be using cash machines for everything from printing digital photos, playing interactive games and ordering goods or services.

30. One in eight men admit to using a cash machine but being too drunk to remember it.

31. A face recognition system may replace the need for a password or PIN for identification and verification to access cash machines.

32. A German monastery is replacing its collection boxes with machines that accept payments from debit and credit cards. The Benedictine monks at Schaeftlarn say they want to make donations easier for visitors.

33. Cash machines no longer just give out sterling. Euro cash machines can be found in the City of London.

34. A mouse munched its way through a small fortune after climbing inside a cash machine in Estonia. The animal was found in the machine after a customer withdrew partly eaten banknotes.

35. Dogs are being trained to use cash machines for disabled users.

36. In 1998 the first independent cash machine opened at a branch of Spar in Stonecross, Birmingham.

37. The first drive thru cash machine was opened at Barclays Hatton Cross in 1998 by Cheryl Baker of Bucks Fizz fame.

38. The ATM was immortalised by Hard-Fi in 2005 with the single cash machine.

39. Bank users are constantly being warned to look out for skimming devices. The gadgets are used by thieves to copy a customer’s card.

40. Cash machines are taking over completely in some regions of America. Customers have been told that their local branch is to be replaced by an unmanned centre filled with cash machines.

Sources: APACS, Banking Automation Bulletin, Barclays, Metro Newspaper, WikiNews, Swindon Evening Advertiser

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Have You Change Your Skin Today?

Article written by Jorrine See for Republic Pink

Have you change your skin today?

If this question sets you pondering which skin we are referring to, it is the skin for Windows Media Player.

Skins and themes are custom graphical appearances (GUIs: Graphical User Interfaces) that can be applied to certain software and websites in order to suit the different tastes of different users. With skins, you can easily customize the look of Windows Media Player to match your mood.

On the left is the screen capture of my Sunflower Windows Media Player Skin that match my forest wallpaper so well. Each time the player is launched, it brings out the serenity and tranquility of my music.

Skins are simple and direct to install. The small sized installation file is quick to download, and they automatically install directly in your Player. You just need to click View Now after your installation is completed.

Switch back and forth between skins is easy. For Windows Media Player 10, click on Skin Chooser in the View menu. For Windows Media Player 9 Series or earlier, click on the Skin Chooser tab.

It's time to change your skin today.

Click here to view Skins for Windows Media Player

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Microsoft To Alter Vista

Microsoft has agreed to make changes to its Windows Vista operating system in response to a complaint by Google that a feature of Vista is anticompetitive, lawyers involved in the case said today.

Google maintained that its desktop search program, available as a free download, was slowed by an equivalent feature that is built into Vista. When the Google and Microsoft search programs run simultaneously, their indexing programs slow the operating system considerably, Google contends. As a result, Google has said that Vista violated Microsoft’s 2002 antitrust settlement, which prohibits Microsoft from designing operating systems that limit the choices of consumers.

Microsoft in turn, has replied that Vista was in compliance with the consent decree and that the company had already made many modifications to the operating system, including some that had been sought by Google.

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Fashion: Cherry Coulture 2007 Summer Pixel Art Collection is out now

Cherry Coulture - Couture Silver Love is an established fashion + online retail blog providing trendy, elegant, classic, and glamorous jewelry to both International & local consumers.

The latest hype is on their press release of 2007 Summer Pixel Art Collection. "Imagine water dripping, clear blue sky, white beach wear. You are right; the hot summer is here. Cool your summer with our latest Summer Pixel Art Collection now! Never know that you can customize Cherry Coulture Pixel Art Link with season change too."

Wow. This is indeed something new to Blogosphere.

Click here to view the Cherry Coulture 2007 Summer Art Pixel Art Collection.

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Terry Semel steps down from Yahoo post

The chief executive of internet search firm Yahoo, Terry Semel, has stepped down from his position. In the post since 2001, Semel has been replaced by co-founder Jerry Yang. The move comes as a surprise to many, as most will expect Semel to announce retirement plans and name his successor.

Yahoo, one of the early pioneers of the Internet, is steadily losing ground for Internet search and its lucrative advertising dollars to its Silicon Valley neighbor and rival, Google. In fact, Yahoo has been struggling and losing market share in recent years. It currently accounts for about 26% of all online searches in the US, well behind Google which has a market share above 49%.

Semel's departure news has also sparkled Yahoo's shares to rise nearly 3% upon revelation as the market expects Yang to help breathe new life into the company that has been losing momentum.

Yang, who as a Stanford University graduate student helped created one of the first indexes of Internet sites and then took the company public in 1996. He is seen as a new leader to save Yahoo from it's "no-focus business development" as Semel only focus on content development yet forgetting the company's key focus is on search engines.

Yahoo's unsteady stand in the Internet search market is not something new. Just last year, there has been wide-spread news about an internal memo code-named "peanut butter" discussing about Yahoo's problems.

The memo said Yahoo lacked "a focused, cohesive vision" and was using a strategy "described as spreading peanut butter across the myriad opportunities that continue to evolve in the online world. The result: a thin layer of investment spread across everything we do and thus we focus on nothing in particular."

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Best Books: Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

A friend informs me that the 1984 Apple commercial is related to a famous classic book "Nineteen Eighty-Four" by George Orwell.

Thought Police. Big Brother. Orwellian. Newspeak. Doublethink. Thoughtcrime. -- in 1984, George Orwell created a whole vocabulary of words concerning totalitarian control that have since passed into our common vocabulary. George Orwell's classic dystopia novel, "Nineteen Eighty-Four" details the story of one man's nightmare odyssey as he pursues a forbidden love affair through a world ruled by warring states and a power structure that controls not only information but also individual thought and memory, 1984 is a prophetic, haunting tale.

Find out about Ministry of Truth, Ministry of Love and its infamous Room 101. Ministry of Truth involves the constant "correction" of such records."'Who controls the past,' ran the Party slogan, 'controls the future: who controls the present controls the past.'

The purpose of the Ministry of Love is to enforce loyalty and love of Big Brother through fear, torture, and brainwashing. It contains Room 101, which is "the worst thing in the world". Room 101 is a torture chamber in the Ministry of Love in which a prisoner is subjected to his or her own worst nightmare.

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