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<title>Haaze.com / 09ZSirish / All</title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com</link>
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<pubDate>Mon, 23 May 2011 07:10:41 +0000</pubDate>
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<title><![CDATA[Low-income apartments to have high efficiency]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=low-income-apartments-to-have-high-efficiency</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=low-income-apartments-to-have-high-efficiency</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 23 May 2011 07:10:41 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>09ZSirish</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=low-income-apartments-to-have-high-efficiency</guid>
<description><![CDATA[BOSTON--Green building professionals can point to dozens of houses that are so efficient they consume less than half the energy of an average American home. A low-income housing development here is bringing those same efficiency techniques to a block-long apartment building.The Castle Square Apartments in Boston's South End neighborhood is in the midst of a project organizers say will be one of the largest deep-energy retrofits done in the U.S., with a projected 72 percent cut in energy use. Last Thursday, the state- and federally-funded development held a groundbreaking attended by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Shaun Donovan, and other officials.Boston housing project gets deep green retrofit (photos) The development itself is not unlike many low-income urban projects built in the 1960s, with a plain brick faade and a total of 500 apartments. The experience of tenants is typical of many city apartments, too: residents say that it's often either too hot or too cold and complain of health problems from the bad air quality.Almost three years ago, the building became eligible for a renovation and the Castle Square Tenant Organization, which is part-owner of the complex, decided it wanted to &quot;go green.&quot; The problem was that &quot;going green&quot; wasn't well defined and renovation discussions focused on air quality, controlling pests, a leaking roof, and temperature, said Deborah Backus, the executive director of the Tenant Organization. &quot;The basic necessities were always on the top priorities,&quot; she said.One of the main practices of a deep-energy retrofit is to create a tight envelope around the living space to prevent air leakage and to add a thick layer of insulation, sometimes on the exterior of building. Good air quality is ensured by circulating in outside air. By lowering the heating and cooling needs, architects can choose smaller and less costly heating and cooling equipment. During the renovation talks, some of the project developers proposed using those practices at Castle Square. Pushing the envelope on efficiency would allow the development to score significant efficiency improvements and address tenants' concerns over air quality and indoor temperature.&quot;In doing a lot of renovations on existing buildings, we found that there's this glass ceiling of improving efficiency by about 20 percent. It's almost like you're stuck,&quot; said Heather Clark, one of the project developers and technical consultant. &quot;And with energy prices rising, we found people said they weren't doing that much better money-wise.&quot;Taking a more aggressive approach led to the idea of a deep-energy retrofit at a large scale, which has been done in Europe but not in the U.S., Clark said. Because it addressed residents' heath and comfort concerns and the desire to go green, residents were quickly on board, said Backus.Fitting in with the neighborhoodBecause Castle Square is a low-income housing development, the renovation would be funded from usual government agencies. But the stimulus program in 2009 and a $4.4 million state grant from the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources opened up the possibility of being more ambitious, said Backus. The total cost of the project is in the range of $50 million for all 500 units, with 192 units in a seven-story building getting the insulation on the exterior of the building and a solar hot water heating system, according to Clark. Some of the items, such as triple-pane fiberglass frame windows, will add to the cost of a typical project. But since it's a renovation, many new items, such as energy-efficient appliances and lighting, needed to be acquired anyway, she said.The Castle Square Apartments are typical 1960s era low-income housing project units. A renovation now underway is designed to slash energy use, improve air quality, and give the development a new insulating facade.(Credit:Martin LaMonica/CNET)Many of the techniques used during construction are similar to what weatherization contractors use in residential buildings, such as sealing cracks with foam and caulk. In the current construction, there are big gaps around pipes or gas lines between apartments. That means as air flows from the bottom of the building toward the top in what's called the stack effect, the source of indoor air is other apartments or hallways, rather than fresh outdoor air.The ventilation is being addressed in a somewhat unique way. In a very tight construction, buildings have a mechanical ventilation system, such as a heat recovery ventilator that heats incoming air and ensures air exchange with the outside. In this case, each apartment will have a pressurized vent, called a constant air regulator, which will pull in outdoor air and provide even ventilation throughout the building. Also, contractors sealed up the ducts that feed into apartments by adding a thin film sprayed in from the roof that will adhere to the interior of the ducts, explained Clark. The outer shell that's being put on one of the Castle Square buildings will make the exterior airtight and add insulation with an R-40 thermal resistance value to the brick walls and roof. The white-colored reflective roof will lower the amount of heat the building absorbs, which will lower its cooling needs. Related links&amp;149' Super-efficient Passive House standard draws fans&amp;149' 'Deep-energy retrofits' take root in homes &amp;149' To 'green' the world's buildings, think retrofitsThe group of companies behind the project, which includes an architect, building manager, and energy efficiency services company, decided to use solar thermal, rather than solar electric panels because of the location. The shading on the roof would significantly affect the performance of solar photovoltaics, whereas the solar thermal system would not be affected as much and would still lower hot water heating needs by about 35 percent. Lowering the heating and cooling load means that three wall-hung, high-efficiency boilers will be able to serve all the residents in 48 apartments, rather than inefficient boilers that take up an entire room. &quot;We've done all the right things,&quot; said Clark. &quot;It's a dream project for all of us involved.&quot; The project, which is expected to be finished next year, will apply for LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.The multi-layer insulating shell will have the advantage of changing the faade from the current brick to a metal surface once the project is completed. &quot;This won't have the look of a project,&quot; said Backus. &quot;Our living environment will fit in with the rest of the South End.&quot;<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Current AT&T and T-Mobile plans compared]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=current-att-and-t-mobile-plans-compared</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=current-att-and-t-mobile-plans-compared</comments>
<pubDate>Sun, 20 Mar 2011 07:10:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>09ZSirish</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=current-att-and-t-mobile-plans-compared</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In a year from now, the chart that you see below you might be out-of-date. After the news broke that AT&amp;T would be acquiring T-Mobile USA, one of the first concerns was if T-Mobile customers would be able to keep their plans. Thankfully,T-Mobile has released an FAQ that answered just that--T-Mobile will keep things as they are for about 12 months, and any agreement you enter into in the meantime will be honored once the changeover goes through.But we wanted to see just exactly what T-Mobile customers might be giving up in terms of monthly cost. We've always admired T-Mobile's competitive pricing when compared with AT&amp;T, and it doesn't help that AT&amp;T removed its unlimited data option last year. We're hoping that AT&amp;T might adopt some of T-Mobile's pricing strategies to compete against Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel if the takeover is indeed approved.For regulatory and spectrum issues, check out Maggie Reardon's insightful post, and for other potential effects, read Kent German's thorough analysis.Here's a quick and simple comparison chart of the cheapest and most expensive bundles of the two carriers that we took from an earlier price chart, plus additional information for non-smartphones. It doesn't represent family plans, and we couldn't dig up enough information about T-Mobile's Even More Plus plans to include those here--the Even More Plus plans are for T-Mobile customers who paid full price for the phone so they can pay less over time. We did, however, find out that Even More Plus customers paid $79.99 a month for unlimited everything, which is a good $20 less than regular Even More customers.UPDATE: A helpful reader pointed out the Even More Plus plans to us. We've included them below.NetworkT-MobileT-Mobile Even More PlusAT&amp;TCheapest bundle without data (only for non-smartphones)$39.99 with voice only. It's $49.99 when you add unlimited text.$29.99 with voice only. It's $39.99 when you add unlimited text.$39.99 with voice only. When you add 1000 messages, it's $49.99' with unlimited messages it's $59.99.Cheapest bundle with minimum text and data$59.99 for 500 minutes, unlimited text, and 200MB data$59.99 for 500 minutes, and unlimited text and data$64.99 for 450 minutes, 1,000 messages, and 200MB data for smartphones. For non-smartphones, it's $64.99 for 450 minutes, 1,000 messages, and unlimited data.Cheapest bundle with unlimited text and minimum dataSee aboveSee above$74.99 for 450 minutes, unlimited text, and 200MB data. For non-smartphones, it's $69.99 for 450 minutes, and unlimited messages and data.Cheapest bundle with minimum text and unlimited data (or the highest data cap)$79.99 for 500 minutes, and unlimited text and data$59.99 for 500 minutes, and unlimited text and data$74.99 for 450 minutes, 1,000 messages, and 2GB data. For non-smartphones, it's $64.99 for 450 minutes, 1,000 messages, and unlimited data.Cheapest bundle with unlimited text and dataSee aboveSee above$84.99 for 450 minutes, unlimited text, and 2GB data. For non-smartphones, it's $69.99 for 450 minutes, and unlimited messages and data.Most expensive bundle$99.99 for unlimited everything$79.99 for unlimited everything$114.99 for unlimited voice, text, and 2GB dataOverage fees for nonunlimited data plans200MB plan: 10 cents per MB with a maximum of $50 for dataN/A200MB plan: $15 for each additional 200MB' 2GB plan: $10 for each additional 1GBData plan only (unlimited, no voice plan)$49.99N/AN/AMobile hot spot/tethering$14.99$14.99$20Do note that AT&amp;T does allow for rollover minutes, and it has recently implemented an Any Mobile Number plan that allows you to make unlimited calls to any cell phone regardless of carrier.Spot any mistakes Have any additional thoughts on the T-Mobile-AT&amp;T deal Let us know in the comments.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[DST glitch: Apple iOS would rather spring back]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dst-glitch-apple-ios-would-rather-spring-back</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dst-glitch-apple-ios-would-rather-spring-back</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Mar 2011 07:10:17 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>09ZSirish</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dst-glitch-apple-ios-would-rather-spring-back</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Were you affected by the DST glitch(Credit:Josh Catone/Mashable)Apple'siPhone,iPod Touch, andiPad yet again had difficulty adjusting to daylight saving time. Frustrated U.S. iDevice users on Facebook, Twitter, and Apple forums griefed over the weekend that their gadgets fell back an hour instead of springing forward.  This means many alarms went off went off at incorrect times yesterday and today, making people late for appointments, church, and whatever else people do on Sunday mornings (as for me, just don't wake me up).&quot;Thanks iPod Touch and iPhone for making me late to work! DST is not working properly,&quot; Twitter user iSiC_XXIII wrote. Wrote Twitter user meemnoonwowrah: &quot;Wife's iPhone needed a reboot to fix DST time switch. My Android phone was automatic. Even MS has that fixed. Come on Apple. Step ya game up.&quot;  The fix is easy, according to PCMag.com. &quot;Either power the phone off and turn it on again, or go into the device's settings and switch Airplane Mode on briefly, then flip it off.&quot;  The problem mirrors the bug that hit European and Australian and New Zealand iPhone owners last year when they switched from daylight saving time back to GMT. The problem could, conceivably, hit Europe again in several weeks. Apple has not yet responded to a request for comment.  Additional timekeeping problems came up on January 2, when non-reoccurring alarms failed to go off, then randomly fixed themselves the following day. Maybe Apple needs to hire a CCO (chief clockmaking officer) who can tune up these devices back up  <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[New iPhone TV ad touts AT&T and Verizon]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-iphone-tv-ad-touts-att-and-verizon</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-iphone-tv-ad-touts-att-and-verizon</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Jan 2011 08:10:36 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>09ZSirish</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-iphone-tv-ad-touts-att-and-verizon</guid>
<description><![CDATA[After spending the past couple of years mocking each other in the press, Apple and Verizon are now partners. In keeping with their newfound collaboration, Apple's newest TV ad touts both AT&amp;T and Verizon.In the new ad, &quot;Two is better than one,&quot; Apple shows two iPhones side by side doing exactly the same tasks. Of course, the two phones are completely in sync, opening apps at exactly the same, perhaps giving the impression that the two carriers are equal.The speed of the iPhones has nothing to do with the carrier speed and Apple's commercial doesn't touch on downloading over a 3G network or anything else that would set the two carriers apart from one another.But that's not the way it's always been between Apple and Verizon. One of Apple's commercials focused on the fact that AT&amp;T's network allows you to make a call and still have access to the Internet.The commercial ends, &quot;Can your phone and your network do that&quot; Clearly a shot at Verizon's inability to do the same thing.Apple's not alone in taking swipes at the competition. Verizon took out a full-page ad in The New York Times making fun of Apple's iPhone 4 antenna woes that read:&quot;And most importantly, it comes with a double antenna design. The kind that allows you to hold the phone any way you like and use it just about anywhere to make calls.&quot;The taunting is water under the bridge now. By having theiPhone available on multiple carriers, Apple will sell more iPhones and consumers will have their choice of carrier. Seems like a good situation for everyone, except maybe AT&amp;T.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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