Attractions In Santa Clarita - America's Jobs Are Moving To The Suburbs

Source - http://money.cnn.com/
By - Steve Hargreaves
Category - Attractions In Santa Clarita
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

Attractions In Santa Clarita

Jobs within 3 miles of a city center fell from 24.5% of overall positions in 2000 to 22.9% in 2010, according to a report released Thursday from the Brookings Institution. During the same time, jobs in the outer suburbs -- between 10 and 35 miles of a city's center -- grew from 40.9% in 2000 to 43.1% in 2010.

The recession halted the flight of jobs to the suburbs for a few years as industries like manufacturing, construction and retail -- businesses that thrive in a city's outer regions -- bore the largest brunt of layoffs. But by 2010, the suburbs accounted for nearly twice the share of jobs as city centers, continuing a trend that has been underway for decades.

"Where the jobs are matters to the overall development of a region," said Elizabeth Kneebone, a fellow at Brookings' Metropolitan Policy Program. "It can impact long-term productivity."

Related: Firms are firing less, but not hiring enough

Low-density development away from city centers can be a drag on growth for several reasons, Kneebone said.

For poorer people without access to a car, it can make it harder to physically get to a job. For those with a car, it can lead to longer commute times and more money spent on gas.

It's also more expensive for taxpayers. Infrastructure costs can be 40% higher in low-density areas than higher ones, she said.

Innovation can also be crimped, as fewer people from similar industries get to interact with one another. Brookings pointed out in a separate report that patenting rates are higher in more densely populated locales.

Kneebone noted that not all suburban job growth is done poorly. Some metro regions, like San Francisco, have done a good job concentrating suburban job growth in specific areas, eliminating many of the potential negatives. Other regions are physically constrained from growing any more near their downtown, due to obstacles like mountains or water.

The metro regions with the highest rate of job density are San Jose, Calif.; Las Vegas; Virginia Beach; Salt Lake City and New York.

The regions with the most "job sprawl" are Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia and St. Louis.

Despite the much-hyped revitalization taking place in many city centers across the country, Kneebone said the jobs are not necessarily following the shift of residents toward downtown districts. In many places, these new urban dwellers end up reverse commuting to the suburbs for work.

She thinks better planning and zoning laws are required to encourage denser development, and urged more cooperation at both the regional level and among government agencies, such as economic development and transportation departments.

The Brookings report looked at the nation's 100 largest metro areas, which account for about two-thirds of both the country's population and its jobs. To top of page

Hotel In California - Microsoft Bringing Back the Start Button With Windows Blue

Source - http://www.pcmag.com/
By - Damon Poeter
Category - Hotel In California
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

Hotel In California

Microsoft is rumored to be building a new version of Windows 8 that will have an option to boot to the traditional Windows interface instead of the "Metro"-style Start Screen used in the current edition of the PC and tablet operating system.

The change, which users will have to switch on, is coming in Windows 8.1, also known as Windows Blue, according The Verge.

Blue is the follow-up to Windows 8, which was released last October, and will reportedly be released this year. Microsoft has publicly stated that it is tightening the release cycles for new versions of its flagship operating system and acknowledged in March that the company's employees are "working together on plans to advance our devices and services, a set of plans referred to internally as 'Blue.'"

However, the chances of the final product being called "Windows Blue" were "slim to none," Frank X. Shaw, Microsoft's corporate vice president of corporate communications, said at the time.

The Verge cited unnamed sources as saying Redmond was currently testing Windows Blue builds "that include an option to boot directly to the traditional desktop" with the "hot corner functionality, for access to the Charms and Start Screen [remaining] intact if the boot to desktop option is enabled."

As further evidence that Microsoft plans to revive its traditional Start Menu and Start button, The Verge pointed to "references to a 'CanSuppressStartScreen' option in early builds of the Windows 8.1 registry," as spotted on MyDigitalLife's forums.

The site's sources indicated that the current Windows 8 interface would remain the default one for an updated version of the OS, however, and that it's "highly unlikely" that Redmond would push out a traditional Windows look as anything but an extra option for users.

Microsoft's Metro-style interface built for Windows 8 has met with sharp criticism from some corners. The UI, optimized for PCs and mobile devices with touch screens, hasn't been well received by many Windows users who still depend on keyboard-and-mouse configurations.

Business and organizational Windows customers have been particular hostile to the UI change, perhaps Microsoft's most radical since introducing a graphical interface for the first time with 1985's release of the first Windows system shell on top of its MS-DOS operating system.

As to whether Microsoft is really planning to revive its traditional UI as an option for Windows 8 holdouts, there's some recent history that suggests the software giant is capable of backtracking at times to placate vocal Windows users. The Windows Aero visuals incorporated in 2007's Windows Vista release were derided by many Windows users as nothing but resource-hogging eye candy—and were subsequently downplayed in Windows 7, released in 2009.

For more, check out What Is Windows Blue?, Beware of Windows Blue, and Microsoft Readying RT Version of Windows Blue.

Accommodation In Santa Clarita - SKorea Plans $15 bln Extra Budget To Boost Economy

Source - http://www.boston.com/
By - YOUKYUNG LEE
Category - Accommodation In Santa Clarita
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

Accommodation In Santa Clarita

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The South Korean government proposed a $15.3 billion stimulus Tuesday to boost slowing growth in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.

The stimulus would be South Korea’s third-largest supplemental budget ever, exceeded only by those approved after the 1998 Asian financial crisis and the 2008 global financial turmoil.

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said the budget will be used to cover a tax revenue shortfall, aid small and medium firms, create jobs and boost the stagnant real estate market. The statement said the ministry will submit the 17.3 trillion won ($15.3 billion) plan to parliament on Thursday.

It estimated a tax revenue shortfall of 6 trillion won due to the slower-than-expected economic recovery and another 6 trillion won shortfall from the delay in selling stakes in state-owned banks. The remaining 5.3 trillion won will be a net increase in the government’s budget.

In addition to the extra budget requiring a parliamentary approval, the ministry will also use 2 trillion won in state funds that do not need to go through the assembly to stimulate the economy.

The stimulus plan comes after the ministry sharply revised down its growth forecast of South Korea’s economy last month.

It said South Korea’s economy will expand 2.3 percent this year, instead of 3 percent it had predicted three months earlier, citing the yen’s slide that is hurting South Korean exporters, weak consumer sentiment and sluggish capital investment.

The stimulus move underlines how the government is seeking a quick fix to the slowdown. South Korea’s economy expanded 2 percent in 2012, the slowest rate in three years, as weak global recovery and trade.

The extra budget will stimulate growth by 0.3 percentage point this year and add 40,000 new jobs, it said.

Despite the government’s calls for all-out efforts to boost the economy, South Korea’s central bank resisted calls to lower borrowing costs.

Last week, Bank of Korea kept its key interest rate unchanged at 2.75 percent for a sixth month. Gov. Kim Choong-soo said the economy is on track to a slow recovery and the monetary policy is ‘‘accommodative’’ to encourage borrowing and spending.end of story marker

Hotel Reservations In Santa Clarita - Japan Gets Calls From U.S. to Europe Not to Drive Down Yen

Source - http://www.bloomberg.com/
By - Kasia Klimasinska & Ian Katz
Category - Hotel Reservations In Santa Clarita
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

Hotel Reservations In Santa Clarita

Japan will be reminded of its pledge not to drive down the yen when Group of 20 finance chiefs meet this week for the first time since the world’s third- largest economy intensified its campaign to defeat deflation.

As G-20 finance ministers and central bankers prepare to convene this week in Washington, the U.S. Treasury is saying it will press Japan to refrain from competitive devaluation and European governments are urging it not to become too reliant on fiscal and monetary stimulus.

The yen has fallen against all 16 of its most-traded peers since April 4 when the Bank of Japan (8301) surprised investors by doubling monthly bond purchases and setting a two-year horizon for achieving its goal of 2 percent inflation. The salvo leaves foreign policy makers coupling praise for the effort to boost stagnant economic growth with concern it may come at the expense of their exporters if the yen keeps sliding.

“Yen moves have been too rapid for the U.S. to applaud Japan’s battle to end deflation,” said Yasuhide Yajima, chief economist at NLI Research Institute Ltd. in Tokyo, an affiliate of Nippon Life Insurance Co., Japan’s biggest life insurer. “Japan will have to show fiscal plans and means to strengthen growth to make it clear it’s not depending only on weakening the yen to revive the economy.”
Currency Report

The yen rose against all but one of 16 major counterparts today after a report showed Chinese growth unexpectedly slowed in the first quarter, fueling demand for haven assets. The Japanese currency added 0.2 percent to 98.22 per dollar as of 12 p.m. in Tokyo after earlier touching 97.63, the strongest since April 8.

The U.S. Treasury used its semi-annual currency report to Congress to say April 12 that Japan must “remain oriented towards meeting respective domestic objectives using domestic instruments and to refrain from competitive devaluation and targeting its exchange rate for competitive purposes.”

In a planning document prepared for the G-20 talks, the European Union will note the “lack of credible medium-term fiscal consolidation plans in the U.S. and Japan.” It will push Tokyo to make structural reforms to an economy roiled by repeat recessions over the past two decades, according to the document.

The U.S. stance echoes that adopted by the Group of Seven and G-20 in February when members pledged not to target exchange rates for competitive reasons. That was interpreted as an endorsement of Japan’s recovery push so long as officials didn’t directly target a weaker yen.
Japanese Defense

Japanese policy makers have already launched their defense against criticism that they are driving down the yen. Mitsuhiro Furusawa, the vice-finance minister for international affairs, said in an April 12 interview that Japanese monetary policy is “clearly aimed at getting Japan out of deflation” and that officials will “properly explain” their position in Washington.

In another sign officials want to head off attacks, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda last week indicated limits to easing by saying April 10 that the central bank has taken all “necessary” and “possible” measures.

Such arguments may be enough to offset criticism especially given economies from the U.S. to U.K. have carried out similar quantitative easing programs. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said in London on March 25 that low interest rates in advanced nations benefit the world economy without creating a disruptive diversion of trade through weaker currencies.
‘Red Light’

Australian Treasurer Wayne Swan said at the Bloomberg Australia Economic Summit in Sydney on April 10 that while monetary expansion can push a currency down “that doesn’t mean it’s manipulation.”

While a weaker yen helps Japanese exporters such as Sony Corp., which gets 70 percent of its revenue outside the country, and boosts repatriated earnings, an excessive decline could swell import costs and fuel trade tensions at a time of weak global growth.

South Korea Finance Minister Hyun Oh Seok last month urged the G-20 to revisit the currency issue and said the yen is “flashing a red light” for his country’s exports.

While the yen rose after the release of the Treasury’s report, Steven Englander, a currency strategist at Citigroup Inc. in New York, said it’s unlikely to trigger extended yen buying. The report is not a major policy document and its comments are “not particularly critical” of Japan, he said in an e-mail to clients.

In its report, the Treasury also declined to name China a manipulator while saying that the yuan “remains significantly undervalued.” The U.S. said it will press China for policy changes and greater exchange-rate flexibility.

The G-20 officials meet on April 18 and April 19 in Washington ahead of weekend talks of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank. Weakness in the world economy, Europe’s ongoing debt crisis and the U.S. budget deficit are other likely topics for debate.

California Vacation Packages - Twitter Will Reportedly Launch Music App This Weekend

Source - http://news.cnet.com/
By - Steven Musil
Category - California Vacation Packages
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

California Vacation Packages

Twitter is rumored to preparing for the launch this weekend of its much rumored Twitter Music app.

The microblogging service plans to launch its standalone music app tomorrow, sources familiar with the matter tell AllThingsD. Still other sources say the app will launch during this weekend's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California, but not necessarily on Friday.

CNET has contacted Twitter for comment and will update this report when we learn more.

 The report comes on the heels of Twitter confirming that it has purchased music discovery service We Are Hunted. CNET reported in March that Twitter had acquired the music discovery service last year and was using its technology to build a standalone music app.

A person familiar with the matter told CNET at the time that the app, to be called Twitter Music, could be released on iOS by the end of March.

Twitter Music is said to suggest artists and songs to listen to based on a variety of signals, and be personalized based on which accounts a user follows on Twitter. Songs are streamed to the app via SoundCloud.

American Idol host Ryan Seacrest confirmed the app's existence in a series of tweets yesterday that indicated he was "lovin" using it.

Hotels In Northern California - Korea Crisis High On Agenda At London G8 Talks

Source - http://www.bbc.co.uk/
By - Press Release
Category - Hotels In Northern California
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

Hotels In Northern California

The Korean crisis will be high on the agenda when foreign ministers from the G8 group of nations hold talks in London on Thursday.

Correspondents say Japan, present at the talks, is looking for a strong statement of solidarity over the issue.

North Korea has been making bellicose threats against South Korea, Japan and US bases in the region.

Ministers will also debate the Syrian crisis, Iran's nuclear programme and sexual violence in conflicts.

The BBC's diplomatic correspondent James Robbins says ministers agree that the combination of warlike threats from Pyongyang and preparations for new missile tests amount to dangerous provocation.

"There is no disagreement with the United States over North Korea," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said at a meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry in London on Wednesday.

South Korea has raised its alert level amid indications that the North is preparing for a missile test.

Pyongyang has increased its fiery rhetoric following fresh UN sanctions imposed after its third nuclear test and joint military manoeuvres by the US and South Korea.
Syria division

Meanwhile, G8 ministers met Syrian opposition figures on Wednesday on the sidelines of the two-day meeting.

Our correspondent says that, unlike North Korea, Syria divides the G8 and no-one expects Damascus's ally Russia to join others backing punitive action against President Bashar al-Assad.

Fresh evidence of links between some opposition fighters and al-Qaeda makes it even harder for governments to decide a course of action, he adds.

In a meeting with ministers on Wednesday, leaders of the opposition Syrian National Coalition (SNC) reportedly pressed for more humanitarian assistance.

Mr Kerry, however, stressed the importance of the opposition becoming better organised, a senior US official told reporters.

In a statement issued after the talks, UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said Britain was committed to finding a political solution to the crisis.

"We discussed what further assistance the UK could provide to save lives in Syria, and how we could work together to ensure this support was channelled most effectively," he said.

The London talks are also the first chance for G8 ministers to discuss face-to-face the failure of last week's meeting in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on curbing Iran's nuclear programme.

Tehran says it only wants to produce energy but the US and its allies suspect it is trying to develop a nuclear weapon.

Mr Hague, meanwhile, has said his "personal priority" for the G8 meeting is a new agreement to prevent sexual violence in conflicts.

Burma, Somalia and cyber-security are also topics on the agenda.

The Group of Eight nations comprises the US, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada and Russia.

Britain currently holds the rotating chairmanship of the G8 and the talks are a prelude to the annual G8 summit later this year in Northern Ireland.

Vacations In Santa Clarita - T-Mobile Announces iPhone Trade-In Special, Gives You iPhone 5 For $0 Upfront

Source - http://www.slashgear.com/
By - Brittany Hillen
Category - Vacations In Santa Clarita
Posted By - Hampton Inn Santa Clarita

Vacations In Santa Clarita

T-Mobile has been making big changes lately, moving to rebrand itself as the “Uncarrier” and to do things in a way that is different from its competitors. It has made good on all that talk, revealing a trade-in deal for current iPhone owners: trade-in an iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S and receive the iPhone 5 for $0. The special is in effect until June 16.

The trade-in special will begin at T-Mobile stores April 12, which is this upcoming Friday. Only so-called well-qualified customers will be able to take advantage of the special, and will need to trade in either an iPhone 4 or a 4S. In return, the iPhone 5 will be priced at $0 upfront plus the monthly service fee.

The special is in conjunction with a Simple Choice Plan. If your iPhone 4 or 4S is in good condition, you could receive credit on top of the iPhone 5 up to $120, which T-Mobile says can be used towards monthly payments, towards an existing bill with the carrier, or to buy accessories from the company. The plan starts at $50 per month, and offers unlimited talk/text and 500MB of data. Another $10 will get you 2GB of additional data, while an extra $20 will get you unlimited data.

T-Mobile’s Chief Marketing Officer Mike Sievert said: “Our message to iPhone 4S and iPhone 4 customers is simple: bring in your device and trade up to iPhone 5 on T-Mobile. We’re making it incredibly attractive to buy an iPhone 5 by pairing an un-beatable upfront price and trade-in offer with Simple Choice, the most hassle-free and affordable rate plan in wireless.”