Nokia, Samsung, HTC to bring out eight Windows 8 powered smartphones

Intending to position Windows powered gadgets as strong contender to Apple and Android devices, Microsoft has recently launched the latest version of its Windows Phone software. 
It is reportedly said that the new software will run on more powerful phones by different device makers. According to latest chunk of information, device makers including Nokia, Samsung and HTC are likely to launch 8 new Windows 8 powered smartphobes, starting this weekend overseas and later in November in other parts of the world.  
With broad support from cellphone carriers, device makers as well as app developers, the Software giant has claimed that the new Windows 8 operating system would be equally suitable for PCs, tablets and laptops. With windows 8, Microsoft has also assured device makers to address one of the chief shortcomings with earlier Windows Phones software i.e. the absence of innovative third-party applications. The new Windows 8 OS supports 120,000 applications for Windows Phone.
In addition, the software company has also released an app for using Skype with Windows 8. The Skype app available with earlier Windows Phone 7 version was in "beta''. 
As a matter of concern, it is found; Windows Phone 7 which is the predecessor to Windows Phone 8, was launched two years ago. But unfortunately has had little traction in the market.

Microsoft launches Windows 8 in India

In India, over 250 Windows 8 enabled devices, including 23 completely new SKUs of Windows 8 PCs will be available across 100 cities and more than 2500 retail stores

RSA pursues intelligent security models to fox password thieves

Distributed Credential Protection technology can potentially reduce the likelihood of successful “smash-and-grab” attacks on password servers

Over 2.5m Muslims perform hajj

Vast crowds of Muslim pilgrims flocked to Mount Arafat yesterday to perform the main hajj rites.
Men, women, and children from 189 countries streamed from dawn to the site in western Saudi Arabia, some setting up small colourful tents in which they slept and prayed.
Beggars and street vendors also dotted the roads searching for generous souls among the 2.5 million believers expected to converge on the plain for the most important rituals of the five-day hajj.
According to Mecca Governor Prince Khaled al-Faisal, around 1.7 million people had travelled from abroad for the pilgrimage.
Pilgrims descended on the plain from early morning focused on the religious significance of the day.
"We came from Mecca. We walked from the Grand Mosque to Mina and then we took the buses to Arafat. All for the love of the prophet," said one Egyptian man sitting on a straw mat with members of his family.
"The more tired we get, the more God will reward us," he said.
Focus of the rituals is the "Mount of Mercy" where the Prophet Mohammed is believed to have delivered his final hajj sermon before his death.
Many pilgrims made themselves comfortable between the huge rocks, tears streaming down their faces as they prayed.
A preacher urged pilgrims not to climb the slippery stone staircase leading up the hill, bellowing over loudspeakers "Neither the prophet, nor his followers have ever climbed the hill. Please do not climb it."
Pilgrims have in previous years slipped and fallen while attempting the ascent, and others have been killed in stampedes.
After sunset, the pilgrims headed to Muzdalifah, between Mina and Arafat, where they collected stones to throw at the devil, one of the last rituals which takes place today and marks the first day of Eid-ul-Azha, the feast of sacrifice.
The symbolic "stoning of the devil" is followed by the ritual sacrifice of an animal, usually a lamb.
During the remaining three days of the hajj, the pilgrims continue the stoning ritual before performing the circumambulation of the Kaaba shrine in Mecca and heading home.
The hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam that every capable Muslim must perform at least once.
More than 1,00,000 members of the security and civil defence forces have been deployed to ensure the safety of the pilgrims, while some 3,000 CCTV cameras have been installed across hajj sites.

Syria army 'to observe ceasefire'

BBC Online
Syria's military says it will adhere to a four-day ceasefire to begin on Friday for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.
The truce will begin at 0600 (0400GMT), reported Syrian TV, adding the army would retaliate against rebel attacks.
The truce was proposed by UN and Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, who hopes it will lead to a peace process.
The news came as rebels said they had advanced into several central areas in Aleppo, Syria's largest city and a key battleground in recent months.
Scepticism
Brahimi has travelled across the Middle East over the past two weeks to promote his plan, and on Wednesday won the support of the UN Security Council.
SYRIA CEASEFIRE ATTEMPTS
Arab League: Observers deployed in late December to oversee compliance with a peace plan that included an end to violence, the withdrawal of troops from the streets and the release of political prisoners. But the monitoring mission was suspended after little more than a month as fighting continued.
Kofi Annan: Six-point plan for Syria included the withdrawal of troops and heavy weapons from urban areas, and an open-ended ceasefire that was meant to take effect on April 12 and lead to peace talks. But neither side fully adhered to the plan and violence continued to escalate.
Lakhdar Brahimi: New UN-Arab League envoy toured the Middle East in October, seeking support for a ceasefire over the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, which starts on October 26. The ceasefire, backed by the UN Security Council, is designed to kick-start political reconciliation.
He also said most opposition groups would back the truce, though some rebels have expressed scepticism about the chances of a ceasefire working.
On Thursday, a statement from the Syrian armed forces carried by state media said: "Military operations will cease across the entire Syrian territory as of 06:00 (03:00GMT) on October 26 until October 29.
"Syrian armed forces will, however, reserve the right to reply to terrorists attacks, attempts of armed groups to reinforce or resupply, or attempts to infiltrate from neighbouring countries."
Qassem Saadeddine, a spokesman for the joint command of the Free Syrian Army, the main armed rebel group, said his fighters would back the truce.
"But we will not allow the regime to reinforce its posts," he told Reuters news agency.
Civil wars have a trajectory: anger and energy at the beginning, mounting bloodshed and exhaustion at the end as the losses mount ”
Previous attempts at ceasefires in Syria have collapsed, and the violence has continued to escalate.
The US welcomed the ceasefire, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he hoped it would lead to political negotiations.
The uprising against President Bashar al-Assad's government started in March 2011.
Activists say more than 35,000 people have been killed since then, while the UN estimates that at least 20,000 have died.
The apparent withdrawal of Syrian forces from key Christian and Kurdish neighbourhoods in Aleppo may be a sign that the government is coming to accept that it cannot hold the centre of the city. It is not, however, a fatal blow to its hold on Aleppo. It may even be a tactical retreat, potentially drawing rebel fighters into a trap. But it may be a concession that supply lines to its forces in the centre of Aleppo have increasingly been cut off by the rebels.
That would leave Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with a dilemma. His government's tactic in recent months has been to bomb and shell areas held by the rebels - with military helicopters and fighter jets being used. This firepower far exceeds what the rebels possess, for now.
But if the government now uses such force against the areas of Ashrafiyeh and al-Seryan, it would be a risky strategy as they contain mainly Christians and Kurds - who have not yet thrown in their lot with the rebels. The alternative, though, might mean giving up on Aleppo altogether - a defeat the government would have deemed unthinkable six months ago.
In Aleppo on Thursday, eyewitnesses and activists said government forces had moved away from military posts in the Christian district of al-Seryan and the neighbouring Kurdish area of Ashrafiyeh.
Rebel fighters had reportedly moved in, although there were also reports of continuing fighting.
"The centre of the city is right now in the hands of the Free Syrian Army," an activist going by the name of Marwan told the BBC World Service.
He said the rebels had placed snipers on rooftops to try to prevent government troops retaking the area.
A rebel spokesman was quoted as saying opposition fighters had also taken the south-western neighbourhoods of Salah al-Din and Suleiman a-Halabi.
Meanwhile in Geneva, an expanded team of UN human rights investigators said it had sought a meeting with Assad.
Carla del Ponte, a former UN prosecutor who led the case against former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic and recently joined the Syria commission, said she saw parallels with her earlier work.
"The similarity of both is that we are handling the same crimes: crimes against humanity and war crimes, for sure," she said.
"My main task will be to continue the inquiry in the direction of determining the high-ranking political and military authorities responsible for these crimes."

Barack Obama casts vote early in Chicago

President Barack Obama has cast his vote in his hometown of Chicago as his campaign seeks to boost early ballots in a neck-and-neck election race.
Obama, who is on a two-day campaign marathon across eight states, is the first president to vote early.
His Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, is in Ohio, a swing state which could hold the key to the White House.
Thirteen days from the election, a new national poll says Romney has 50%-47% support among likely voters.
The survey, produced for ABC News by Langer Research Associates, finds that when asked about which candidate they would trust more to handle the economy, 52% backed Romney versus 43% for Obama - the first time a candidate has held a clear lead on the issue.
The president's ballot casting on Thursday was part of his campaign's wider effort to encourage early voting, with many states holding open in-person polls this week.
First Lady Michelle Obama voted by absentee ballot on October 15.
It is estimated that 7.2 million people have already cast early ballots, and that about 35% of the electorate will have already voted by polling day.
The Obama campaign also announced on Thursday that it backs gay marriage laws in three states that are holding referendums on the issue in November.
In Maryland and Washington, ballot measures are seeking to overturn gay marriage bills that were signed into law earlier this year. Meanwhile, Maine is voting on whether to reinstate a gay marriage law that was overturned in a popular vote in 2009.
Obama first voiced support for the right of same-sex couples to marry in May.
Key states
Because the US election is a state-by-state contest, a presidential candidate must win key battlegrounds like Ohio, Virginia and Florida, which do not reliably vote for either party. No Republican has ever won the White House without taking Ohio.
The Obama campaign recently won a court ruling to keep Ohio's early voting open through the weekend before the election.
Former Massachusetts Governor Romney made three stops across the Mid-Western state on Thursday, while his running mate Paul Ryan spent the day in Virginia.
But they have been distracted by the fall-out from a fellow Republican candidate's remarks on Tuesday night that pregnancy from rape was part of God's plan.
The Romney campaign has said it disagreed with the comments by anti-abortion Indiana Senate hopeful Richard Mourdock, although it did not withdraw support from him.
"We disagree on the policy regarding exceptions for rape and incest, but still support him," a campaign spokeswoman said.
Republicans running in tight contests elsewhere have repudiated Mourdock's remarks.
Obama criticised Mourdock on a US late-night talk show on Wednesday.
"I don't know how these guys come up with these ideas... rape is rape. It is a crime," Obama told host Jay Leno, adding that politicians had no business making decisions for women about their bodies and health choices.
On Thursday, the president makes campaign stops in Florida, Virginia and Ohio. On Monday, he will appear for the first time at a campaign event this election cycle with former President Bill Clinton.
In an interview with the Des Moines Register, Obama indicated what issues would be his priority in a second term, including a budget deal to reduce the US debt, as well as immigration.
Obama received a boost from Colin Powell, formerly Secretary of State for Republican President George W Bush, who endorsed the president on Thursday.
Powell, who also backed Obama in 2008, cited recent improvements in the economy and Obama's guidance of the US military as reasons for his renewed support.
"I also saw the president get us out of one war, start to get us out of a second war and did not get us into any new wars." Powell said, adding that under Obama the US economy was "out of the dive and starting to gain altitude".
He also expressed doubts over Romney's approach to foreign policy, saying the candidate's policies were a "moving target".

56 dead in new ethnic violence in Myanmar

At least 56 people were killed and nearly 2,000 homes destroyed in the latest outbreak of ethnic violence in western Myanmar, a government official said Thursday.
The 25 men and 31 women were reported dead in four Rakhine state townships in violence between the Buddhist Rakhine and Muslim Rohingya communities that re-erupted Sunday, local government spokesman Win Myaing said.
He said some 1,900 homes had been burned down in fresh conflict, while 60 men and four women were injured. It was unclear how many of the victims were Rohingya people and how many were Rakhine.
In June, ethnic violence in the state left at least 90 people dead and destroyed more than 3,000 homes. Tens of thousands of people remain in refugee camps.
The United States called for Myanmar authorities to take immediate action to halt the violence. The United Nations appealed for calm.
An Associated Press photographer who traveled to Kyauktaw, one of the affected townships 45 kilometers (75 miles) north of the Rakhine capital of Sittwe, said he saw 11 wounded people brought by ambulance to the local 25-bed hospital, most with gunshot wounds.
One was declared dead after arrival. All the victims being treated were Rakhine, but that could reflect an inability or unwillingness of Rohingya victims to be treated there.
A male volunteer at the hospital, Min Oo, said by telephone that five bodies, including one of a woman, had also been brought there. He said the injured persons were brought by boat from Kyauktaw town 16 kilometers (10 miles) away, and taken from the jetty by the ambulances.
An account by a Rakhine villager in the area suggested great confusion and tension. The villager said that when groups of Rakhine and the Rohingya had a confrontation, government soldiers shot into a crowd of Rakhine, even though, according to his claim, it had been dispersing. The villager would not give his name for fear of violent reprisals.
There have been concerns in the past that soldiers were failing to protect the Rohingya community, but the Rakhine villager's account hints that the military may have been defending the Rohingya in this case.
Curfews have been in place in some areas since June, and been extended to others due to the recent violence.
Tensions still simmer in part because the government has failed to find any long-term solution to the crisis other than segregating the two communities in some areas.
The United Nations called for calm Thursday in response to the new violence.
"The UN is gravely concerned about reports of a resurgence of inter-communal conflict in several areas in Rakhine State — which has resulted in deaths and has forced thousands of people, including women and children, to flee their homes," UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar Ashok Nigam said in a statement.
Nigam said the United Nations was appealing for "immediate and unconditional access to all communities in accordance with humanitarian principles."
The statement said large numbers of people fleeing the new violence were headed for already overcrowded refugee camps currently housing about 75,000 people previously made homeless.
"Short term humanitarian support and action towards long term solutions are urgently required to address the root causes of the conflict," said the statement.
In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the US was deeply concerned about the reports of increasing ethnic and sectarian violence in Rakhine state and urged restraint.
The unrest broke out days after the US held what it described as an encouraging human rights dialogue with Myanmar — the latest sign of diplomatic re-engagement with the former pariah state, which has also seen the easing of sanctions to reward it for democratic reforms.
The unrest is some of the worst reported in the region since June, after clashes were set off by the alleged rape and murder of a Buddhist woman by three Muslim men in late May.
The crisis in Myanmar's west goes back decades and is rooted in a dispute over where the region's Muslim inhabitants are from. Although many Rohingya have lived in Myanmar for generations, they are widely denigrated as foreigners — intruders who came from neighbouring Bangladesh to steal scarce land.
The UN estimates their number at 800,000. But the government does not count them as one of the country's 135 ethnic groups, and so — like neighbouring Bangladesh — denies them citizenship. Human rights groups say racism also plays a role: Many Rohingya, who speak a distinct Bengali dialect and resemble Muslim Bangladeshis, have darker skin and are heavily discriminated against.
The conflict has proven to be a major challenge for the government of President Thein Sein, which has embarked on democratic reforms since a half century of military rule ended in 2011.
It also poses a dilemma for the opposition New Light of Myanmar party of Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, which has been reluctant to go against the tide of popular anti-Rohingya sentiment. Suu Kyi has been criticized by some Western human rights advocates for failing to speak out strongly against what they see as repression of the Rohingya.
Buddhist monks have been spearheading anti-Rohingya protests, and on Thursday staged their latest one in Yangon, the country's biggest and most important city. More than 100 staged a peaceful protest at the historic Sule Pagoda.

US calls for Lebanon stability

The US has said it is backing Lebanese efforts to form a new coalition amid rising tension sparked by the killing of security chief Wissam al-Hassan.
US state department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland warned a power vacuum would pose a great risk to stability.
"The export of instability from Syria threatens the security of Lebanon now more than ever," she said.
Deadly clashes erupted in Beirut and Tripoli after opposition figures blamed Syria for the attack on Gen Hassan.
"We support the efforts of President Michel Suleiman and other responsible leaders in Lebanon to build an effective government and to take the necessary next steps in the wake of the terrorist attack," Nuland told reporters.
"It's up to the Lebanese people to choose a government that is going to counter this threat. In the interim, we don't want to see a vacuum."
She added that US Ambassador Maura Connelly was due to meet Lebanese politicians to discuss the possible shape of the new coalition.
'Designed to provoke'
Meanwhile, European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton held talks in Beirut with President Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Tuesday.
She also warned against the dangers of a political vacuum and welcomed efforts to "maintain stability through national dialogue".
"Such acts of terrorism are designed to provoke reaction and to create tensions," Ashton said.
"The importance of robust state institutions that continue to ensure security and provide services cannot be understated."
Gen Hassan, who headed the intelligence branch of the Internal Security Forces, was killed in a car bomb blast on Friday, along with one of his bodyguards and a woman nearby.
The senior official was a Sunni and an outspoken critic of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
He also maintained close links to the Western-backed 14 March opposition bloc and the family of its leader, former Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
Gen Hassan's murder has led to deadly clashes between pro- and anti-Syrian factions. As a result, the Lebanese army has been deployed on the streets of Beirut and Tripoli to try to stem the violence.
Nation at stake
Over the weekend, President Suleiman rejected an offer of resignation from Mikati - a Sunni Muslim at the head of a cabinet dominated by the pro-Syrian Shia Islamist movement Hezbollah and its allies.
The decision prompted ex-Prime Minister Fouad Siniora to warn: "The Lebanese people won't accept, after today, the continuation of the government of assassination."
Thousands attended Gen Hassan's funeral on Sunday, which became a political rally against both Mikati and Syria.
Police scuffled with a group of protesters who attempted to storm the prime minister's office, and overnight into Monday protesters set up road blocks in Beirut, prompting exchanges of gunfire.
On Monday, dozens of people set up camp outside Mikati's office, calling for his resignation.
Opposition MPs boycotted Tuesday's parliamentary sessions.
The army has urged "all political leaders to be cautious when expressing their stances and opinions" and in attempting to mobilise public action "because the fate of the nation is at stake".
The military is a widely respected institution in Lebanon that has often been required to stand between the country's diverse political and religious factions.

3 held with Tk 15 lakh fake notes

Detective Branch of police arrested three people along with fake notes worth Tk 15 lakh at Gulistan in the capital Tuesday night.
A team of DB captured the trio from in front of the GPO around 10:30pm, Masudur Rahman, deputy commissioner of DB told The Daily Star on Wednesday.
The arrestees whose identities could not be known immediately have been taken to DB office at Minto Road for interrogation.
DB will organise a press conference later in the day to inform details about the arrests.

Pybus quits as Bangladesh coach Jurgensen made head coach for WI series

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Wednesday confirmed that Bangladesh cricket team coach Richard Pybus has resigned.
The BCB also appointed former Australian cricketer Shane John Jurgensen as Bangladesh team's head coach for the upcoming series against the West Indies.
The West Indies are scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on November 5 to play two Tests, five ODIs and one T20.
The second Test and the first two ODIs are expected to take place in Khulna, while the rest of the matches will take place in Dhaka.
Pybus, in an interview with ESPNcricinfo on Tuesday, said that he will not continue as Bangladesh coach because he feels 'differences' in the terms of his contract and the interference from administration made his position untenable.
During the interview he stated that contractual differences and the board's frequent interference were the main reasons that enforced him to take the decision.
Pybus said the BCB wanted him to spend 320 days a year with the Bangladesh team, a commitment he was not ready to make because of family reasons.
The BCB's board members are currently adjourned in a meeting, which began at 12:00pm on Wednesday and will be available to comment on the issue after they step out.
"The board approached me earlier this year on three occasions to become head coach. I turned them down twice, as I couldn't commit to the amount of time they wanted me to be with the team and in Bangladesh, which was 320 days a year," Pybus told ESPNcricinfo.
"I said I could prepare the team in camps, tour with them and be there for all series, but I needed to get home between tours for my family. If they were happy with that, then I could do the job for them. That was when they agreed that I would be able to go home between tours. Their agreement was never made explicit in the contract they presented to me in Dhaka so I refused to sign it. That is the heart of the matter," he added.
The coach was also upset by how details of his contract with the BCB were revealed to the Bangladesh media. Despite numerous emails sent between Pybus and the board, a consensus could not be reached.
During Pybus' tenure, Bangladesh played a series of unofficial matches in Zimbabwe and Trinidad, and won a three-match Twenty20 series against Ireland.
They also lost to Scotland, won and lost against Netherlands, and crashed out of the World Twenty20 by losing to New Zealand and Pakistan in the first round.On May 30, the BCB appointed Richard Pybus as the coach of the Bangladesh cricket team a two-year term.
During Pybus' tenure, Bangladesh played a series of unofficial matches in Zimbabwe and Trinidad, and won a three-match Twenty20 series against Ireland.
They also lost to Scotland, won and lost against Netherlands, and crashed out of the World Twenty20 by losing to New Zealand and Pakistan in the first round.