“Weekend Events Guide: Nov. 5 - 7 - msnbc.com” plus 2 more

Weekend Events Guide: Nov. 5 - 7 - msnbc.com
A Fall Guide: How to Pick Your Next Computer - Wall Street Journal
Ball is rolling on premier piece of MAPS 3 plan - Daily Oklahoman

Weekend Events Guide: Nov. 5 - 7 - msnbc.com

Posted: 06 Nov 2010 10:13 AM PDT

Nov. 5-7 Weekend Events Guide

The one event that will impact everyone this weekend in Oregon is the switch back to Standard Time. Remember to fall back and change your clocks before you go to bed Sunday.

All Weekend Long:

Ski and snowboard fans may want to visit the SkiFever event at the Portland Expo Center Friday through Sunday. The show will feature major deals on equipment as well as entertainment including a snowboarding dog. Admission is $12 for adults; $3 for kids under 12 and children under the age of five get in for free. SkiFever and Snowboard Show

Warren Miller Entertainment's film, "Wintervention" will be shown on screens throughout the Portland Metro area Friday through Sunday. The annual ski and snowboard film always has a cult following and this year will be no exception. "Wintervention" will be shown at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall on Friday at 6:30 and 9:30 p.m.; Saturday, at the Elsinore Theatre in Salem at 7:30 p.m.; and Sunday, in the Bagdad Theater at 6 p.m. Warren Miller's "Wintervention"

More: Warren Miller film & SkiFever mean it's winter

SATURDAY, Nov. 6:

Active members of the military and veterans will join others for one of the largest sanctioned Veterans Day parades on the West Coast this Saturday, starting at 11 a.m. Around 2,500 people were expected to take part in the annual parade at Fort Vancouver, which celebrates more than 150 years of Northwest history. Celebrate Freedom Veterans Parade & route map

The Portland Timbers will be giving a 30-minute tour to fans who want to get an inside peek at the renovation project in PGE Park as the team prepares for its inaugural season in Major League Soccer in 2011. The tour will begin at noon on Saturday and people must be pre-registered to attend. Papa Murphy's Pizza will offer complimentary food during the tour. Portland Timbers PGE Park Tour

Want to be part of a possible a new world record? The public is invited to watch or participate in DanceBreak, a celebration of the sensory-based movement called Nia, in Portland's Director Park in Southwest Portland, starting at 1 p.m., Saturday. Nia teacher and students will perform three songs in the park, rain or shine. All ages and ability levels are welcome and the event is free. Nia DanceBreak at Director Park

National Nacho Day is Saturday and 4th Street Brewing, at 77 NE 4th Street in Gresham, will be holding a nacho-eating contest to celebrate the big day. The contest will begin at 6 p.m. and all ages are welcome. Nacho eating contest

SUNDAY, Nov. 7:

Everyone will need to remember to turn their clocks back one hour on Sunday, at 2 a.m. to revert back to Standard Time. This is designed to give everyone an extra hour of natural daylight, in turn using less energy to light our homes. The only states that don't fall back are Hawaii and Arizona. Daylight Saving Time was instituted in the United States during World War I. Fall back to Standard Time

A nationwide music fundraiser will take place simultaneously in 15 cities across the U.S. on Sunday, including in Portland. Oregon Big Beat will begin at 11 a.m and run through 6 p.m., at the T.A. Event Center on NE Multnomah Street in Portland. Money raised at the event will go toward music education at local schools. In addition, organizers are asking spectators to bring at least 2 cans of food, which will be donated to the Oregon Food Bank. Oregon Big Beat

Weekend Weather: Rainy and cool

The weekend will likely bring a better chance of showers, especially Saturday night, when the rain was expected to turn heavy, according to KGW Meteorologist Nick Allard. Then, on Sunday, the snow level was expected to drop to around 3,000 feet, he said.

7-Day Forecast

Live Cams

Current Conditions

Weekend events in Portland area

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A Fall Guide: How to Pick Your Next Computer - Wall Street Journal

Posted: 03 Nov 2010 05:55 PM PDT

If you're shopping for a new computer this fall, you won't find big surprises. But you'll still have to juggle a lot of technobabble terminology and watch your budget. Perhaps the biggest question for some buyers will be whether to get a tablet or a laptop, now that Apple's iPad is a proven hit and a flood of competitors is on the way.

Walt Mossberg guides buyers through how to stay within budget and not get lost in terminology when looking for a new computer. But the bigger obstacle may be deciding between a laptop or a tablet.

So, here is my annual fall computer buyers' guide, a simplified road map to the key decisions shoppers must make. I've focused on laptops—the most common purchase—but much of this advice also applies to desktops. As always, these tips are for average users doing the most common tasks. This advice doesn't apply to businesses, to hard-core gamers, or to serious media producers.

• Tablets vs. Laptops: If you're looking for a light-duty, highly portable computer, it's worth considering the iPad, which starts at $499, instead of a small laptop. This is especially true if you're in the market for a secondary computer, or one mainly for use on the go. Many owners of iPads, including me, are finding it handily replaces a laptop for numerous tasks, such as Web browsing, email, social-networking, photos, video and music. It has superior battery life, lighter weight, and it starts instantly. I don't recommend it for people who are creating long documents, especially spreadsheets and presentations, even though it is capable of those tasks. And I don't recommend it for users who require, or prefer, a physical keyboard.

If you don't like the iPad, there will soon be alternatives. For instance, Samsung's Galaxy Tab, which has a 7-inch screen versus the iPad's 10-inch display, and runs Google's Android operating system, will be available this month from major wireless carriers. Sprint, for example, will offer it at $400 with a two-year contract. But some tablet buyers may want to wait till the first half of next year, when many more models will be available, and Apple will likely roll out the second-generation iPad.

• Netbooks: These low-cost, low-powered little Windows computers are losing popularity, but are still available, typically for about $350 to $500. They are being hurt by the rise of tablets and by light but larger laptops. Some buyers also find the screens and keyboards are too cramped. But these are evolving. Some now have bigger screens and roomier keyboards. And Dell will soon introduce a sort of hybrid netbook-tablet. Called the Inspiron Duo, this model, starting at $499, has both a regular keyboard and a touch screen that flips around when the lid is closed to act like a tablet.

• Windows vs. Mac: Windows laptops can be much less costly—and come in many more styles and varieties—than Mac laptops. The Macs start at $999, versus as little as $500 for a decently equipped Windows portable. Windows laptops are still dominant. But Apple laptops are stylish and reliable, and usually boot much faster than Windows machines, in my tests. Also, Apple scores high on surveys of customer support. Its latest models, like the new, light MacBook Airs, have extraordinarily good battery life. Macs also aren't affected by the vast majority of malicious software, have much better built-in multimedia software and, at extra cost, can run Windows programs in cases where Mac equivalents aren't available.

Toshiba

The light but speedy 13-inch Toshiba R705 offers good battery life.

• Cost: Most of the popular consumer Windows laptops cost $500 to $800. You can get full-size laptops for as little as $280, but their processors and graphics are weak and some lack webcams. If you can afford it, a light but speedy 13-inch machine like the Toshiba R705 offers very good battery life for just under $800. All-in-one desktops typically cost around $1,000 and some, like the HP TouchSmart, offer touch screens with special touch software. Apple's popular all-in-one iMac starts at $1,199.

• Processors: The most promoted chips are Intel's i3, i5, and i7 Core models, the latter two of which can turn on and off some of their functions to boost power or save energy. But there is nothing wrong with buying a PC that uses chips from rival AMD, which usually cost less. For average users, Intel's older Core 2 Duo still works just fine, even with the latest software. Intel's weaker Atom processor line powers most netbooks.

• Graphics: Integrated graphics, which share the computer's main memory, are fine for most common tasks, but costlier discrete graphics, which have dedicated memory, can speed things up by taking some of the load off the main processor. They also are better for games. Some computers have both and can switch among them.

• Wireless: More and more laptops are coming with optional cellular modem chips in addition to Wi-Fi. These can be handy while traveling, but be warned that they require a cellular data contract, which can be costly.

• Connections: If you plan to connect your laptop to a TV, look for a connector called an HDMI port, which is used on most high-definition TVs. Some laptops also come with a feature called Wireless Display, or Wi-Di, which, with an extra-cost adapter, can beam your laptop screen to a TV without a cable. There is a new, much faster USB port, called USB 3.0, but, so far, it's on very few machines.

• Memory: Aim for 4 gigabytes of memory, or RAM, on a new computer, and never settle for less than 2 gigabytes.

• Hard disks: A 320 gigabyte hard disk should be the minimum on most PCs, though 250 gigabytes is OK if price is key, or if it's your secondary machine. Solid-state disks, which lack moving parts and use flash memory like smartphones do, are faster and use less battery power. They cost much more, but are coming down in price fast. However, they typically offer much less capacity.

• 64-bit: Many models now use a 64-bit architecture, which allows properly written software to use more memory and run faster. If possible, buy 64-bit, which will become more and more important.

• Touch: Some Windows 7 computers have touch capability built into the screen, though Windows wasn't designed with touch as a core element and the combination isn't ideal. Computer makers try to resolve this with special touch software, which you should try in a store. Apple laptops use huge touch pads as the multitouch surface, instead of the screen.

As always, don't buy more machine than you need.

Find Walt Mossberg's columns and videos online at the All Things Digital website, walt.allthingsd.com. Email him at mossberg@wsj.com.

Ball is rolling on premier piece of MAPS 3 plan - Daily Oklahoman

Posted: 02 Nov 2010 10:07 PM PDT

The Oklahoman Editorial Oklahoman Comment on this article

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Oklahoma City Council members voted last week to tweak the design of the pedestrian bridge that will span the Interstate 40 Crosstown Expressway when that highway is completed in a few years. The bridge will connect the north and south sides of a 70-acre park, which was part of the MAPS 3 projects voters approved 11 months ago.

Original plans for the Skydance Bridge had cables extending from an 18-story sculpture to the bridge below. The plan approved last week changes the design to make it a free-standing structure.

The price tag for a new downtown convention center — the biggest MAPS 3 project — is $280 million. It will be several years before it's completed, but it may not be long before the facility begins to take shape.

That's because eight firms from around the United States are competing to be the consultant for planning the convention center. The fact this job has attracted a national response from competing firms can only be good for Oklahoma City, in ensuring it gets the best deal available.

The importance of a new convention center can't be overstated. The other pieces of the $770 million MAPS 3 lineup are important in their own right and will make our city a better place to live. But any city that aspires to climb into the top 25 nationwide has to have a facility that attracts large conventions on a regular basis.

A steady diet of conventions generates revenue and buzz — and if done right, plenty of both. The old Myriad was retrofitted into the Cox Convention Center about a decade ago. But it's too small to attract the kind of conventions a major league city needs. Hence the need for a new and much bigger one.

Selection of the consultant is part of the initial process of getting the project off the drawing board. The most crucial step is deciding where the building will be located. Some want it to be handy to Bricktown; others believe it would be better to place the convention center closer to what used to be called the Ford Center, nearer to where the new green space will emerge.

That's a decision for another day. Now it's time to focus on the consultant, who can help guide a process that eventually will turn another of Oklahoma City's big dreams into reality.

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Maps Guides

Sunday, November 7, 2010