NASA hoping for May 15 shuttle launch

Managers of the space shuttle Discovery said Tuesday they are leaving the door open for a slide in the scheduled May 15 "return to flight" launch, though NASA continues to work toward that date in the wake of the 2003 Columbia disaster.
Minor issues with shuttle processing have postponed the rollout of the orbiter to the launch site, leaving little room in the schedule for any further delays, they said.
"We have scheduled the fifteenth of May as our targeted launch date," said Michael Kostelnik, the deputy associate administrator for international space station and space shuttle programs.
"But it should be clearly understood that this is a 'not earlier than' date, which gives us the earliest opportunity we can bring all of the processing elements together and have a credible window to get to the international space station."
Kostelnik spoke on a conference call with reporters to answer questions about NASA's "return to flight" progress.
Space shuttle program manager Bill Parsons agreed.
"Right now is not a time to make a decision about whether we can make the fifteenth or not. We need to continue processing, and somewhere, the middle of next month, we can decide whether we are on track to make the fifteenth or not."
The shuttle fleet has been grounded since the space shuttle Columbia broke apart over Texas while on landing approach to Florida's Kennedy Space Center on February 1, 2003.
The following August, the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB) officially concluded that insulating foam flew off the shuttle's external fuel tank during lift off, striking and cracking a panel on the orbiter's wing. When the shuttle re-entered the atmosphere, searing hot gases seeped into the wing and incinerated the spacecraft.
Since then, NASA has been implementing a series of recommendations laid out in the Columbia report in order to return the shuttle fleet to service, and get on with the process of assembling the international space station.
For at least the next two shuttle missions, NASA has committed to daytime launches so that high-resolution images can be taken of any foam or other debris shedding from the external tank during liftoff.
Because the shuttle must also launch on a very specific trajectory to rendezvous with the space station, the daytime requirement strictly limits possible launch dates and times.
NASA has targeted a launch window that runs from May 15 to June 3. If the shuttle does not launch in that time interval, the next open window is July 12-31.
The most vexing problem facing NASA as it works thorough the CAIB recommendations has been developing effective techniques to repair precisely the type of structural damage that doomed Columbia.
The underside of a space shuttle is covered with insulating tiles, and the edges of the wings are clad with reinforced carbon-carbon (RCC) panels.
They make up the "thermal protection system" (TPS) designed to protect the shuttle during the heat of re-entry. Prior to the Columbia accident, astronauts had no way to inspect for and repair damage to the TPS in space.
In order to stop the external tank from shedding debris during launch, engineers have modified its design, and changed how they apply the insulating foam to it.
NASA also has developed processes for inspecting the exterior of the shuttle for damage in orbit. But, while they've tested some RCC plug and crack-repair procedures, and tile-repair techniques, NASA managers say they still don't have a way to fix a hole if they find one.
As a fall back plan, in the event of an in-orbit emergency astronauts will use the international space station as a "safe haven," where they can await a rescue mission.
NASA Safety and Mission Assurance Chief Bryan O'Connor also announced in Tuesday's teleconference that NASA will now factor public safety into its landing procedures.
In the event NASA decides to attempt a landing of a shuttle that is known to have been damaged or that is malfunctioning, the designated landing site will be the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
That location is more remote than the Kennedy Space Center in Florida or Edwards Air Force Base in California, and would presumably involve flying over more sparsely populated areas.

How BlackBerry conquered the world

On street corners, in train stations and in restaurants, the telltale signs of BlackBerry addiction are everywhere: pursed lips, a distracted look, thumbs working furiously.
People don't just use BlackBerry; once they've discovered it, they can't live without it.
Though it can be used as a phone, the BlackBerry's power lies in its ability to push e-mail automatically from the company server to the end user.
That simple concept has revolutionized corporate life. Two million BlackBerry subscribers have already signed up and their numbers are growing rapidly.
You might perhaps expect that the must-have executive gadget was unleashed on the world from somewhere inside one of the high-tech hothouses of Silicon Valley.
In fact the BlackBerry was born in the less glamorous and more laidback surroundings of Canadian technology company Research in Motion's headquarters at Waterloo, Ontario.
"I don't think people buy technology products because of the personalities of the people behind them," said RIM chairman Jim Balsillie.
But while RIM's executives have chosen to keep a low profile, they made a key decision early on to make sure their technology got maximum exposure by targeting top Wall Street executives.
"Wall Street professionals are heavily communications focused, heavily customer focused, what we found was many of those people could instantly justify the investment into this, even though it was of an unproven technology," said RIM vice president of corporate marketing Mark Guibert.
"So our approach was to go out there and really evangelize the product to people who we felt were key influencers who could make use of the product and also be seen to be using it.
"It was a viral effect. People talked so emphatically about the product and so enthusiastically they became our best marketing tool."
The early buzz around the BlackBerry got it noticed, but RIM knew that for the product to be successful they needed to convince IT professionals that BlackBerry was both easy to install and safe to use.
"We made sure the CIO was happy," said Balsillie. "The CIO has a veto and they don't hesitate to use it because they lose their jobs if the security and reliability of company data is compromised."
The BlackBerry has seen RIM's stock rocket by more than 1,000 percent since 2002, helping it become one of the most influential names in the technology sector. Yet the company has been around for 20 years, producing more modestly acclaimed wireless technology.
And Balsillie says he would rather his staff forgot about the share price and stayed focused on the research and development that have made the company successful.
Though they may have pioneered pushing e-mail onto mobile devices, the field is getting more crowded and industry analysts say RIM has its work cut out to stay ahead of the competition.
"Down the track I think you'll see some interesting shifts with respect to RIM," predicted Nicholas McQuire of technology consultants Yankee Group.
"It's going to need to make itself more flexible, in the sense it will have to be conscious of price pressure in the marketplace. Push e-mail, which is RIM's bread and butter faces quite a bit of competition."
But RIM's management believes its new wireless Web services, third party software agreements and plans to expand to new markets will keep the company on top.
"The market for BlackBerry is our core customer base and that's what we've targeted," said RIM president Mike Lazaridis.
"Recently we've expanded to the "prosumer" market -- the professionals, doctors, contractors, delivery people -- there is a whole segment of processionals out there who are self-employed."
As BlackBerry use spreads so, inevitably, will the complaints about over-worked, addicted professionals who just can't put the gadgets down. For those already suffering, Lazaridis has some advice.
"The person that means a lot to me that complains the most loudly about my BlackBerry use is my wife," he said.
"I realized a lot of executives were having the same problem so I came up with the perfect solution. I gave her one too, and I suggested they do the same."

PSP sets new standard for hand-held gaming

NEW YORK (CNN) -- It's the biggest thing to happen to electronic gadgets since the AA battery.
After an extremely successful product launch in Japan, Sony is about to hit the United States with a miniature marvel of engineering that promises to revolutionize the way people amuse themselves while on airplanes, in waiting rooms, or simply walking down the street. Gadget geeks are giddy with anticipation; they know that this $200 tiny trinket from Japan is, without a doubt, the must-have item of -- 1979.
Wait, that should be "2005." Sorry for the temporal typo.
But with Thursday's release of the PlayStation Portable (PSP), Sony's new handheld video game and media player, it's hard not to be reminded of the hoopla that greeted the original Sony Walkman back during the Carter administration.
That hoopla turned out to be justified; the Walkman indeed changed the way people listen to music. And it's clear that the Walkman's corporate grand-nephew, the PSP, aims to similarly change the way people play video games, watch movies, share pictures as well as listen to music. We'll have to wait to see if it succeeds. But one thing is certain: the PSP is a cool toy and a gorgeous one at that.
A gamer's delight
At the center of the smartly-designed PSP is an ample 4.3-inch flat-panel LCD display that's so flawlessly sleek, the first thumbprint it gets will be as aesthetically traumatic to a smitten owner as that first scratch on a shiny new car.
PSP versions of some well-known PlayStation games are now available -- including the addictive drivin'-and-shootin' game "Twisted Metal: Head On" and a new, more strategy-based entry in the "Metal Gear" action series, "Metal Gear Acid."
In those games, as well as in the other new PSP titles, the detailed 3-D graphics represent the closest any portable gaming system has come to matching the clarity of home consoles like the PS2 and Xbox (but "cut scenes" -- those movie-like animated interludes you see on many console games -- don't fare quite as well on the PSP). PlayStation 2 owners will be happy to see that the layout of PSP's buttons is almost identical to that of the PS2 controller.
Also like the PS2 and Xbox, the PSP lets you play online. If you have a wireless access point in your home, you can configure a PSP for multiplayer gaming over the Internet. You and up to 15 other PSP owners within a radius of a few dozen feet can square off via a so-called "ad-hoc" wireless network.

PSP versions of some well-known PlayStation games are now available -- including "Twisted Metal: Head On."
As Sony is fond of pointing out, the PSP is not just for gaming. The gadget plays movies and games on a Universal Media Disc (UMD), a format Sony created for the PSP.
The first million PSPs sold in the United States come with a free UMD version of the movie, "Spider-Man 2." So far only a handful of movies, including "Kill Bill, Vol. 1" and "Pirates of the Caribbean," will be available on the PSP in the near future. But if enough people buy the PSP and if Sony has learned its lesson about encouraging others to make compatible products for its gadgets, you can expect movie studios to release many more films in the UMD format.
Limited music and movie capability
The PSP can also play music and movie clips as well as store JPEG pictures. But as is the case with many other small, multi-functional gadgets, those capabilities on the PSP are limited -- partly because it has no hard drive and the 32 MB Memory Stick Duo card that comes with it isn't nearly enough to hold any significant amount of media.
While the Apple iPod famously boasts a capacity of 10,000 songs, you'll be lucky to cram half a CD onto the PSP as currently sold.
So if you plan to do any serious music or picture storing on a PSP, you should spring for a bigger memory card. And if you don't have one, you'll also need a USB cable to connect a PSP to your computer. Curiously, a USB cable is not included in Sony's $249 "Value Pack," which includes the PSP and several accessories -- including the memory card, a soft carrying case, remote-controlled headphones, battery pack, AC adapter and soft cleaning cloth.
Because it holds far less music than the iPod and is more expensive than Nintendo's more kid-friendly DS and Game Boy hand-helds, the PSP probably won't be replacing those gadgets just yet.
But the PSP still earns its rep as the year's "it" device -- somewhere in gadget heaven, the old `79 Sony Walkman is beaming with pride.

For some kids, cell phones the right call

CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- There were two things 11-year-old Patty Wiegner really, really, really wanted for Christmas. One was a furry, playful dog that's now filling her parents' home with the sound of barking. The other gift makes a different kind of noise -- it has a ring tone that mimics rapper 50 Cent's hit song "Candy Shop."
While some might question why someone so young might need one, and some scientists have expressed health concerns, Patty is one of many kids her age who are asking their parents for cell phones. And increasingly, they're getting them.
"It's cool and popular," Patty, a sixth-grader in Valrico, Florida, says of her reason for wanting the mobile phone. "And I can talk to my friends and talk to my dad and mom."
Her mom, Lisa Wiegner, wasn't entirely thrilled with the idea but gave in because she likes knowing her daughter can contact her if she needs to. "And," mom says, "I wanted to be able to be in touch with her in an emergency."
Some parents have been prompted to add their kids because their wireless companies offer "family plans," giving them a specified number of minutes to chat with one another each month.
Now, a few other companies are pushing the trend further by creating specific products for "tweens," a population of preteens as young as age 8 that some consider the next big, untapped market of cell phone users.
Firefly Mobile, one company that's developed a cell phone product for younger users, found that about 10 percent of tweens in its focus groups had phones, but that many more wanted them. The company also identified parent interest in a product that would allow them to keep tabs on their kids.
"What the market was telling us is that there's a need for kids to stay in touch with the people who are important to them," says Robin Abrams, Firefly Mobile's CEO.
The Firefly phone, created by a father in Illinois and being launched nationwide in months to come, is smaller than other cell phones, allowing it to fit more easily in a kid's hand. It has simpler buttons, including ones that speed dial "Mom" or "Dad" _ and gives parents more control by giving them password-protected access for programming the numbers the phone can dial and calls it can receive.
The Firefly phone also has no games or capabilities for text messaging, a popular function with teens that some parents dislike because it can get expensive -- and distracting.
Meanwhile, Tiger Electronics, a subsidiary of Hasbro Inc., is taking another tack with its CHATNOW two-way radios, which allow communication -- including sending text messages and photos -- within a two-mile range. And toymaker Mattel is coming out with its own Barbie-themed prepaid cell phone.
It remains to be seen whether options like these will be a hit with their target age group.
Some kids say any phone is better than no phone. But others say they think they're old enough to handle a standard cell phone -- and abide by the limits their parents place on calling during expensive weekday hours.
"It shows if you're mature; it's a privilege to get a phone," says Stephanie Beaird, a 12-year-old in Northridge, California, who recently got a cell phone after begging her parents for more than a year.
Getting a phone was partly a reward for a very good report card -- but also a matter of convenience for Stephanie's parents, who've used it to find her when picking her up from school and after sporting events.
Seventh-grader Alex Chmielewski's parents have even called his phone to track him down while shopping in the same store. The 13-year-old from Irvine, California, got his phone when he was 12, and also carries it with him when he rides his bike to school, something he does often because there is no bus service.
If you have a phone, "some people view it as you're lucky," Alex says. "But I don't just use it for calling friends and stuff like that," he adds. "It gives me a sense of security or safety."
It's already common for kids in parts of Europe and Asia to have cell phones, though British officials have been more cautious, recommending against giving them to children until more research can be done on potential health risks to growing young bodies from the electromagnetic radiation that phones emit.
I am very resourceful with my minutes.
-- 11-year-old Patty Wiegner
In this country, Rosemarie Young, president of the National Association of Elementary School Principals, says cell phones are more often an issue in schools in higher-income neighborhoods where students and their parents can afford them.
But increasingly, she says, schools that once had all-out bans on cell phones are allowing them, as long as students keep them turned off during class.
"I don't have a problem with it if parents are clear about the use of it," says Young, who's also an elementary school principal in Louisville, Kentucky, and has had teachers who've had to confiscate the occasional cell phone from kids who don't follow the rules.
Jennifer Hartstein, a child and adolescent psychologist at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, agrees that parents need to stick with limits they place on using the phones.
"The problem is, I'm not sure parents are doing that," says Hartstein, who has a few younger clients with cell phones.
She still thinks cell phones can be a good idea, depending on the kid. "But I also kind of laugh that my parents knew where I was when I didn't have a cell phone," says Hartstein, who's in her 30s. "When I was 8 or 9, we barely had answering machines."
That thought is not lost on Lisa Wiegner, the mother in Florida whose daughter got the dog and cell phone last Christmas. But she says that, so far, Patty has handled having a phone very well.
Her daughter thinks so, too: "I, as a person," Patty says in a grown-up tone, "am very resourceful with my minutes."CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- There were two things 11-year-old Patty Wiegner really, really, really wanted for Christmas. One was a furry, playful dog that's now filling her parents' home with the sound of barking. The other gift makes a different kind of noise -- it has a ring tone that mimics rapper 50 Cent's hit song "Candy Shop."
While some might question why someone so young might need one, and some scientists have expressed health concerns, Patty is one of many kids her age who are asking their parents for cell phones. And increasingly, they're getting them.
"It's cool and popular," Patty, a sixth-grader in Valrico, Florida, says of her reason for wanting the mobile phone. "And I can talk to my friends and talk to my dad and mom."
Her mom, Lisa Wiegner, wasn't entirely thrilled with the idea but gave in because she likes knowing her daughter can contact her if she needs to. "And," mom says, "I wanted to be able to be in touch with her in an emergency."
Some parents have been prompted to add their kids because their wireless companies offer "family plans," giving them a specified number of minutes to chat with one another each month.
Now, a few other companies are pushing the trend further by creating specific products for "tweens," a population of preteens as young as age 8 that some consider the next big, untapped market of cell phone users.
Firefly Mobile, one company that's developed a cell phone product for younger users, found that about 10 percent of tweens in its focus groups had phones, but that many more wanted them. The company also identified parent interest in a product that would allow them to keep tabs on their kids.
"What the market was telling us is that there's a need for kids to stay in touch with the people who are important to them," says Robin Abrams, Firefly Mobile's CEO.
The Firefly phone, created by a father in Illinois and being launched nationwide in months to come, is smaller than other cell phones, allowing it to fit more easily in a kid's hand. It has simpler buttons, including ones that speed dial "Mom" or "Dad" _ and gives parents more control by giving them password-protected access for programming the numbers the phone can dial and calls it can receive.
The Firefly phone also has no games or capabilities for text messaging, a popular function with teens that some parents dislike because it can get expensive -- and distracting.
Meanwhile, Tiger Electronics, a subsidiary of Hasbro Inc., is taking another tack with its CHATNOW two-way radios, which allow communication -- including sending text messages and photos -- within a two-mile range. And toymaker Mattel is coming out with its own Barbie-themed prepaid cell phone.
It remains to be seen whether options like these will be a hit with their target age group.
Some kids say any phone is better than no phone. But others say they think they're old enough to handle a standard cell phone -- and abide by the limits their parents place on calling during expensive weekday hours.
"It shows if you're mature; it's a privilege to get a phone," says Stephanie Beaird, a 12-year-old in Northridge, California, who recently got a cell phone after begging her parents for more than a year.
Getting a phone was partly a reward for a very good report card -- but also a matter of convenience for Stephanie's parents, who've used it to find her when picking her up from school and after sporting events.
Seventh-grader Alex Chmielewski's parents have even called his phone to track him down while shopping in the same store. The 13-year-old from Irvine, California, got his phone when he was 12, and also carries it with him when he rides his bike to school, something he does often because there is no bus service.
If you have a phone, "some people view it as you're lucky," Alex says. "But I don't just use it for calling friends and stuff like that," he adds. "It gives me a sense of security or safety."
It's already common for kids in parts of Europe and Asia to have cell phones, though British officials have been more cautious, recommending against giving them to children until more research can be done on potential health risks to growing young bodies from the electromagnetic radiation that phones emit.
I am very resourceful with my minutes.
-- 11-year-old Patty Wiegner
In this country, Rosemarie Young, president of the National Association of Elementary School Principals, says cell phones are more often an issue in schools in higher-income neighborhoods where students and their parents can afford them.
But increasingly, she says, schools that once had all-out bans on cell phones are allowing them, as long as students keep them turned off during class.
"I don't have a problem with it if parents are clear about the use of it," says Young, who's also an elementary school principal in Louisville, Kentucky, and has had teachers who've had to confiscate the occasional cell phone from kids who don't follow the rules.
Jennifer Hartstein, a child and adolescent psychologist at Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, agrees that parents need to stick with limits they place on using the phones.
"The problem is, I'm not sure parents are doing that," says Hartstein, who has a few younger clients with cell phones.
She still thinks cell phones can be a good idea, depending on the kid. "But I also kind of laugh that my parents knew where I was when I didn't have a cell phone," says Hartstein, who's in her 30s. "When I was 8 or 9, we barely had answering machines."
That thought is not lost on Lisa Wiegner, the mother in Florida whose daughter got the dog and cell phone last Christmas. But she says that, so far, Patty has handled having a phone very well.
Her daughter thinks so, too: "I, as a person," Patty says in a grown-up tone, "am very resourceful with my minutes."