Steam for Linux Launches Its Beta; 60,000 Sign Up in First Week

The creators of Portal, Team Fortress 2, and a ton of other AAA titles announced a few months ago that they were planning to bring their Steam digital distribution service to Linux. It’s basically an app store just for games, and it’s one of the most popular places to buy games for PC or Mac. Now the first wave of outside beta testers has been accepted,...

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“Hunger Games” star Jennifer Lawrence will not diet for role

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – “The Hunger Games” star Jennifer Lawrence will not be dieting for a role any time soon.Lawrence, 22, who plays the famished Katniss Everdeen in the life-or-death thriller series, told Elle magazine in an interview to be published on November 13 that dropping a few pounds will not be part of her script. “I’m...

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Vatican vows to fight gay marriage after gains in U.S., Europe

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – The Vatican, reacting to strong gains for gay marriage in the United States and Europe, on Saturday pledged never to stop fighting attempts to “erase” the privileged role of heterosexual marriage, which it called it “an achievement of civilization”.For the second consecutive day, Vatican media weighed in with forceful editorials...

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Goldman in settlement talks with U.S. over trading loss

(Reuters) – Goldman Sachs Group Inc is in settlement talks with the U.S. government over an $ 8.3 billion position that one of the investment bank’s traders had concealed five years ago, according to a published report.The Financial Times said a settlement with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which regulates U.S. futures and options markets,...

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Twin explosions strike southern Syrian city

BEIRUT (AP) — Syria‘s state-run news agency says two large explosions have struck the southern city of Daraa, causing multiple casualties and heavy material damage.SANA did not immediately give further information or say what the target of Saturday’s explosions was. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights...

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Korea Linux Forum 2012: Maximizing Utility

Hosted by the Linux Foundation Korea Linux Forum 2012, the first Linux Forum in Korea, was held at the JW Marriott (Central City, Seoul) on October 11th and 12th. Samsung, a key sponsor of the event, has long been partnered with Linux. Currently a platinum member of the Linux Foundation, which is the highest level, it is cooperating actively as a director...

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So You Think Obamacare is Radical? Take a Look at China

While the United States was wringing its hands over passage of the Affordable Care Act during President Barack Obama’s first term, the Chinese government was plowing ahead with health reform measures of its own. Now the world’s largest society is on the cusp of delivering on its promise to ensure that all of its citizens have some level of health insurance...

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Consumer sentiment at five-year high; inventories jump

NEW YORK (Reuters) – An increasingly upbeat view of the economy and jobs market drove U.S. consumer sentiment to a more than five-year high in early November, while a jump in wholesale inventories suggested the economy grew more than initially estimated last quarter.It was the fourth month that Americans adopted a rosier economic outlook, even as financial...

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Syria opposition bloc elects Christian as leader

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Syria‘s main opposition group in exile has elected a Christian Paris-based former geography teacher as its new president.George Sabra said Friday that his election as head of the Syrian National Council is a sign that the opposition is not plagued by sectarian divisions. Sabra says the SNC‘s main demand...

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Pope to join celebs, presidents with Twitter feed

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Celebrities do it. Presidents do it. Now even the pope will do it.The Vatican spokesman said Thursday that Pope Benedict XVI will start tweeting from a personal Twitter account, perhaps before the end of the year. The 85-year-old Benedict sent his first tweet from a Vatican account last year when...

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James Bond returns: 007 things to know before seeing “Skyfall’

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – Fifty years after Sean Connery traveled to Jamaica in “Dr. No,” James Bond is back for the 23rd time in “Skyfall,” an instant classic in the Bond canon and a breath of fresh air for the franchise.Bond has been on hiatus for close to four years, leaving some with the sour taste of “Quantum of Solace” – a bloated, action-heavy film...

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Pfizer expects generic competition in Canada after Viagra ruling

OTTAWA (Reuters) – Drug firm Pfizer Inc said on Thursday it expects generic drug companies to start producing their own versions of the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra after Canada‘s Supreme Court ruled the patent was invalid.The top court upheld an argument by Israel’s Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd, which said Pfizer’s patent application had not...

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Trade deficit narrows, economy resists global chill

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in September as exports rose sharply, suggesting global demand for U.S. goods was holding up despite a debt crisis in Europe.Other data on Thursday showed a drop in new claims for jobless benefits last week, although a severe storm that battered the East Coast distorted the figures. The...

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Myanmar says Obama to visit later this month

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — President Barack Obama will make a groundbreaking visit later this month to Myanmar, an official said Thursday, following through with his policy of rapprochement to encourage democracy in the Southeast Asian nation.The Myanmar official speaking from the capital, Naypyitaw, said Thursday that security for a visit on Nov. 18 or 19...

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Sony PlayStation certificate sparks talk China may lift console ban

TOKYO/SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Sony Corp‘s PlayStation 3 has received a certification of quality from a Chinese safety standards body, sparking speculation that China will end a decade-old ban on home game consoles.China has banned video game consoles since 2000, citing a need to protect the well-being of its young people. Some analysts cautioned against reading...

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War Widow’s Lawsuit Says Nat Geo, Fox Depicted Dead Husband’s Body, Aired Family Photo

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – An Army staff sergeant‘s widow says in a lawsuit against National Geographic and Fox that a documentary from the companies depicted her husband’s dead body and showed a private family photo she believes was taken from his laptop after he died.The suit seeks unspecified damages and to ban Nat Geo and Fox from using military family...

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LA County voters mandate condom use on porn sets

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles County voters have approved a measure requiring porn performers to wear condoms while filming sex scenes, prompting a pledge by the adult entertainment industry to sue to overturn the measure.With 100 percent of the county’s precincts reporting, Measure B passed 56 percent to 44 percent in Tuesday’s election. The...

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Oil falls to lowest level since July

The price of oil tumbled nearly 5 percent Wednesday, its biggest decline of the year, as traders shifted their focus back to the struggles of the global economy.Benchmark oil fell $ 4.27 to finish at $ 84.44 per barrel in New York. It was the lowest price since July 10. Hours after President Barack Obama won re-election,...

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Merkel says Germany, Britain must work together on EU

LONDON (Reuters) – Germany and Britain must cooperate to work round their differences on the European Union‘s long-term spending plans, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday.“Despite differences that we have it is very important for me that the UK and Germany work together,” Merkel said through a translator before a meeting in London with Prime...

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VCast Closing Reveals Hidden Danger of “App Stores”

If you bought a smartphone from Verizon Wireless in the last couple of years, you may have noticed that it came with not one, but two app markets: the Google Play store (formerly known as the Android Market), and VCast, or Verizon Apps. VCast debuted in 2010 as an alternative app market which supported Verizon carrier billing, back when Google Play did...

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Broadway takes a big hit from Superstorm Sandy

NEW YORK (AP) — Superstorm Sandy, which darkened Broadway for four days, predictably ravaged the box offices around Times Square, with shows losing more than $ 8.5 million from the previous week.The Broadway League, the national trade association for the Broadway industry, released data Tuesday that showed, as expected, all shows took a hit. One of the...

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Looking Old May Signal Heart Trouble

Have you seen the Internet ads for the 53-year-old mom who looks 27? Not only does she look better than people who actually show their age, a new Danish study has found there’s a good chance she’ll live longer, too.The older you look, the worse shape your heart is in, the authors of the ongoing Copenhagen Heart Study concluded. The...

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Accounts merged after name mix-up

6 November 2012 Last updated at 08:06 ETTens of thousands of pounds ended up in the wrong savings account following a mix-up over two customers with the same name and date of birth. Insurance company Prudential mistakenly merged the records of the two customers in March 2007.The mix-up, which continued for more than...

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Officials: New mass graves found in Ivory Coast

ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Up to 10 new mass graves have been discovered near the site of a July attack on a camp for displaced people, officials said Tuesday, amid allegations that initial casualty totals were downplayed to mask killings carried out by the national army.Rights groups claim summary executions were carried out by the Republican Forces...

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Google says Apple patent lawsuit dismissed

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit by Apple Inc alleging that Google Inc-owned Motorola‘s patent licensing practices were unfair, Google said on Monday.Apple had been set to square off against Motorola on Monday in a trial in U.S. District Court in Madison, Wisconsin, involving Google’s use of the library of patents it acquired...

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