Hasta La Gadget!

Yesterday during its I/O 2014 keynote Google showed off Android L. It is the next major update for the Android platform. While it won’t be publicly released until later this year, Google showed off some of the new features and improvements yesterday and also promised to release a preview system image for select devices. One day later it follows through on that promise. The Android L preview system image for Nexus 5 and Nexus 7 (2013 Wi-Fi) has been released and is now available for download.

Design is probably the biggest change in Android L. Google employs something it calls Material Design which makes it much more intuitive and responsive with animations at 60 frames per second. The notification system has been greatly revamped and there’s also a new Recents menu for easy access to most used apps and services.

While these Android L preview system images can be installed on any compatible device, there’s no pre-registration needed as Apple requires with iOS betas, they’re meant only for developers. The software itself isn’t in the final stages yet and won’t really function well as a daily driver. Moreover since a full factory image install is required to get it up and running on the Nexus 5 (hammerhead) or the Nexus 7 (2013 Wi-Fi), all data will be lost during the installation process. So don’t forget to backup if you’re willing to give this a go.

Those who do try it out and later want to revert back to Android 4.4 KitKat can get the restore images for the aforementioned Nexus devices from here. The Android L preview system images can be downloaded from here.

Android L Preview System Image For Nexus 5 And Nexus 7 Released , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Verizon has expanded its latest technology which it calls XLTE to additional Louisiana locations, in an effort to increase 4G LTE network capacity as well as bring about better high-speed services for its customers who happen to reside or work in Lafayette, Alexandria, Houma-Thibodaux, Hammond and New Iberia. With over 300 of Verizon’s 4G LTE 500-plus markets getting this XLTE enhancement, those who have missed out on this particular round need not fret thanks to additional XLTE expansions being scheduled to be completed before 2014 clocks out.

XLTE technology will make use of Verizon’s AWS (Advanced Wireless Services) spectrum, where it enables Verizon to deliver significantly increased capacity. In fact, it is touted that capacity is doubled at the very minimum compared to the existing high-speed 4G LTE network, which is good news for those who happen to remain within high-traffic locations most of the time. This ought not to cramp your style during times of peak usage as you ought to be able to upload videos, send photos, download large files, and chat simultaneously without seeing a degradation in performance.

XLTE technology works best in enhancing wireless network performance in settings whenever there happens to be a concentrated group of high-data demand customers, and this would include areas such as densely-populated zones, rush hour commutes, concert venues, sports arenas/stadiums and other large event locations.

Verizon Wireless XLTE Expansion In Louisiana , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

While we brought you word that Verizon has recently introduce an expansion to XLTE in Louisiana, which happens to be positive news, this particular bit will not resonate too well with the suits over at Verizon. Apparently, the German government has decided to cancel their contract with Verizon because of concerns that US authorities might have received data from the mobile carrier without any knowledge on the subscriber’s part.

This would mark a premature end to Verizon’s internet services to select government departments in Germany, as the existing contract is said to come to an end some time in 2015. Verizon has not commented on the situation as at press time, so we do not have any idea on what the folks over at Verizon feel at the moment.

Sparks did fly in Germany when it was revealed that a US agency actually bugged Chancellor Angela Merkel’s phone, which is an obvious lack of respect for Germany’s leader, not to mention raising serious issues about privacy concerns. German Interior Ministry spokesman Tobias Plate mentioned, “There are indications that Verizon is legally required to provide certain things to the NSA, and that’s one of the reasons the cooperation with Verizon won’t continue. Furthermore, the ties revealed between foreign intelligence agencies and firms in the wake of the US National Security Agency affair, show that the German government needs a very high level of security for its critical networks,” he said.

Germany Cancels Verizon Contract Due To Data Security Concerns , original content from Ubergizmo. Read our Copyrights and terms of use.

Work-life balance is a flawed concept. I don’t know a single successful person who feels like they have mastered the equation. Yet the myth of the perfectly balanced life haunts us. We know what it looks like: reasonable work hours, time for exercise and family, no late night project deadline scrambles, no checking email at 3 a.m., no propping yourself up with caffeine, no ruminating about work when you’re supposed to be “relaxing.”

We know exactly what perfect work-life balance is supposed to look like; we just don’t know anyone who actually does it.

The reality is: If you want a meaningful career and a meaningful personal life, they’re going to bleed into each other. Constantly.

The concept of work-life balance sets you up for failure because it suggests that your work is on one side of the equation and your life is on the other. They’re like two opposing forces that must be carefully weighed against each other at all times. In this scenario, balance is always precarious, because you’re trying to parcel yourself out in the right proportions.

And we wonder why we’re going nuts.

You don’t have a work life and a personal life, you just have one life, yours. There is no magic math formula for creating a perfect life.

The key to making your one and only life richer isn’t about maintaining proper balance; it’s about creating congruence. It’s about living a life doing work that connects with the essence of who you really are. Each of us have a contribution to make. When your work is in alignment with your skills and talents, it doesn’t take away from your life… it adds to it.

I’ve had times in my life when I was working an 80-hour week and loving it. My work was my life, and it was great. My team was like a family, and it was fun, because we were doing work that fueled my soul.

Looking at your life through the lens of balance puts you at the wrong starting point because it prompts you to prioritize based on the wants and needs of others. You balance the needs of your family against the needs of your boss against the needs of your aging parents, etc.

While these needs may be very real, trying to “balance” all of your to-dos is a recipe for burnout and ultimately resentment.

Congruence is a better lens. Thinking in terms of congruence provides a more holistic reframe because to create true congruence, you have to start with self-examination. Instead of trying to balance the needs of others, you have to think about who you really are and what you really want.

In my case, being a mother is part of who I am. When I make my family a priority, I’m not doing it to meet their needs, per se. I’m doing it because proactive parenting is my own internally driven priority.

The same goes for work. If professional success is part of who you are, it’s going to take effort to live that value.

It might seem like semantics, but this mental reframe — congruence versus balance — provides a more strategic lens that will help you make better decisions from one moment to the next.

You don’t get a work life and a home life. You get one life. Don’t waste it trying to achieve balance.

Lisa Earle McLeod is a sales leadership consultant. Companies like Apple, Kimberly-Clark and Pfizer hire her to help them create passionate, purpose-driven sales forces.

She is the author of several books including Selling with Noble Purpose: How to Drive Revenue and Do Work That Makes You Proud, a John Wiley & Sons publication. She has appeared on The Today Show, and has been featured in Forbes, Fortune and The Wall Street Journal. She provides executive coaching sessions, strategy workshops, and keynote speeches.

More info: www.LisaEarleMcLeod.com
Lisa’s Blog – How Smart People Can Get Better At Everything

Copyright 2014 Lisa Earle McLeod. All rights reserved.

When Cristina Kirchner first ran for president of Argentina in 2007, she had a campaign commercial with adorable young children answering the question, “What is the IMF (International Monetary Fund)?” They offered cute little ridiculous answers like “The IMF is a place where there are many animals,” and the punch line from the narrator was: “We have succeeded in making it so that your children and grandchildren won’t know what the IMF is.”

To this day, there is no love lost between the IMF and Argentina, since the fund presided over Argentina’s terrible economic collapse of 1998-2002, as well as numerous failed policies in the years prior. But when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of vulture funds trying to collect the full value of Argentine debt that they had bought for 20 cents on the dollar, even the IMF was against the decision.

So it surprised many observers last Monday when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to even review the appellate court’s ruling. The court only needs four justices to grant a petition for “certiorari,” or review, and this was an extremely important case. Most experts agree that it has serious implications for the international financial system. Perhaps most importantly, the appellate court ruled that Argentina must pay the vulture funds if it is going to pay the more than 90 percent of bondholders who accepted a restructuring agreement in 2005 and 2010.

What does this mean? In the midst of a deep recession and unable to finance huge debt payments, Argentina defaulted on its debt at the end of 2001. The default was the right move; the Argentine economy began a robust recovery just three months later. But it was not until 2005 that 76 percent of the bondholders agreed to accept a restructuring that included a “haircut” of about two-thirds of the value of their bonds. By 2010, more than 90 percent of the bondholders had joined, accepting new bonds in place of the defaulted ones.

The court’s decision means that a vulture fund, or any “holdout” creditor, can prevent or destroy an existing agreement negotiated with the rest of the bondholders. Since there is no such thing as bankruptcy law for government borrowers, this would severely limit the ability of creditors and debtors to work out an orderly agreement in the event of sovereign debt crises. This is a very big deal for the functioning of international financial markets.

So why didn’t the Supreme Court hear the case? It could be that the court was influenced by a change of position on the part of the U.S. government, which may have convinced it that the case was not that important. Unlike France, Brazil, Mexico and Nobel Prize winning-economist Joseph Stiglitz, the U.S. government did not file an amicus brief [PDF] with the Supreme Court, despite its filing in the appellate case. And – here is the big mystery – neither did the IMF, even though it has publically expressed concerns about the impact of that ruling.

On July 17, 2013, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde submitted notice that the fund would file an amicus brief with the Supreme Court. But then the IMF board met and, somewhat embarrassingly, because of objections from the U.S., decided against it. This could be why the Supreme Court did not invite a brief from the U.S. solicitor general, and ultimately did not hear the case. But who is responsible for Washington’s reversal?

As in an Agatha Christie novel, there are numerous suspects who could have done the deed. The vulture fund lobby – a well-connected group led by former Clinton administration officials– known as the American Task Force Argentina, spent over $1 million in 2013 on the case. Then there are the usual suspects in Congress, mostly neo-conservatives and the Florida delegation, who want a different political party in power in Argentina after this fall’s elections.

This was published by US News & World Report on June 24, 2014.