June 25 (Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. responded to complaints about reception on its new iPhone by telling customers they should hold the device differently.

“Gripping any mobile phone will result in some attenuation of its antenna performance, with certain places being worse than others depending on the placement of the antennas,” Apple said today in an e-mailed statement. “If you ever experience this on your iPhone 4, avoid gripping it in the lower left corner in a way that covers both sides of the black strip in the metal band, or simply use one of many available cases.”

Yesterday’s introduction of the iPhone 4 was marred by criticism that signal strength diminishes when users cover the bottom left corner of the phone with their palm. The iPhone, introduced in 2007, has become Apple’s top-selling product even after users reported glitches and dropped calls with previous versions of the device.

Customers posted videos on the Internet demonstrating trouble with the iPhone 4’s new antenna. The phone signal drops out when users cover the bottom left-corner of the device with their palm to make a call, according to the videos.

“That is exactly what is happening to me,” said Jennifer Sue, 21, a senior at the University of Southern California who waited overnight to buy the phone in Burlingame, California. “Everything else is running smoothly.”

Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs added a high-definition video camera, multitasking and video calling to the iPhone 4 to fend off competition from phones running Google Inc. software.

Debut day sales may reach 1 million units, predicted Andy Hargreaves, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities. The company had received more than 600,000 preorders for the device, setting a single-day record and exceeding the company’s expectations.

Software Fix?

David Carey, vice president of technical intelligence at UBM TechInsights, an Austin, Texas-based company that studies the engineering of electronic devices, said the antenna problem might be fixed with a software update from Apple. The phone’s operating system may be incorrectly interpreting signal strength when people touch the phone a certain way, he said.

“There is a point where software can’t dig you out of a hole,” he said. Given the phone’s rigorous testing process, “it would strike me as surprising that they would have a permanent problem on their hands,” Carey said.

Apple rose 41 cents to $269.41 at 9:34 a.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares had gained 28 percent this year before today.

Google Rivalry

The company said this week it’s delaying the release of white iPhone 4 models until the second half of July because of unexpected manufacturing challenges. Jobs unveiled the phone on June 7.

Reviews of the new model have been positive. Walt Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal deemed it a “major leap” and the “best device in its class.” In the New York Times, David Pogue rated it “the first phone to make good video calls.”

Apple, based in Cupertino, California, is facing increased competition from Android phone makers, such as HTC Corp., which rely on Google Inc.’s software. There are some 60 Android-based mobile phones.

In the U.S., a 16-gigabyte model of the iPhone 4 costs $199, and a 32-gigabyte model is priced at $299. AT&T Inc., the exclusive U.S. carrier for the iPhone, said this month it will end unlimited data plans, an effort to manage the surge in demand caused by devices like the iPhone. The carrier has been criticized for dropped calls.

Apple may sell more than 10 million iPhones in the quarter ending in September, said Colin Gillis, an analyst at BGC Partners in New York.

--With assistance from Arik Hesseldahl in New York. Editors: Ville Heiskanen, Tom Giles

To contact the reporter on this story: Adam Satariano in San Francisco at asatariano1@bloomberg.net; Crayton Harrison in New York at tharrison5@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tom Giles at tgiles5@bloomberg.net; Peter Elstrom at pelstrom@bloomberg.net

Now that we’ve all seen Iron Man 2 here at NikHatter.com (except for Ronnie….idiot).  We now know that it is possible for anybody who hits the bottle, sleeps where he drops, steals the hearts of women near and far, and ends up behind bars far too often to create a battle suite that is arguably the most dangerous weapon on the face of the planet.

But in this case, we trust the widdle iddy biddy cutie pie.

Roll Tape!

NikHatter.com cannot really comment on the validity of this song or if Karma will truly prevail, but rest assured when Ratatat or MGMT is a part of it, we’re all in!!

This was originally posted in the Forums but the load crashed our servers lol.

Thanks to empire for the following.

This is making the rounds, not sure how true it is...but a worthwhile read if so

Good stuff on here! I can finally throw in my two cents! I've had to bite my tongue for far too long. Also, hopefully I can answer some of John's questions about Dharma and the "pointless breadcrumbs" that really, weren't so pointless ...

First ...
The Island:

It was real. Everything that happened on the island that we saw throughout the 6 seasons was real. Forget the final image of the plane crash, it was put in purposely to f*&k with people's heads and show how far the show had come. They really crashed. They really survived. They really discovered Dharma and the Others. The Island keeps the balance of good and evil in the world. It always has and always will perform that role. And the Island will always need a "Protector". Jacob wasn't the first, Hurley won't be the last. However, Jacob had to deal with a malevolent force (MIB) that his mother, nor Hurley had to deal with. He created the devil and had to find a way to kill him -- even though the rules prevented him from actually doing so.

Thus began Jacob's plan to bring candidates to the Island to do the one thing he couldn't do. Kill the MIB. He had a huge list of candidates that spanned generations. Yet everytime he brought people there, the MIB corrupted them and caused them to kill one another. That was until Richard came along and helped Jacob understand that if he didn't take a more active role, then his plan would never work.

Enter Dharma -- which I'm not sure why John is having such a hard time grasping. Dharma, like the countless scores of people that were brought to the island before, were brought there by Jacob as part of his plan to kill the MIB. However, the MIB was aware of this plan and interferred by "corrupting" Ben. Making Ben believe he was doing the work of Jacob when in reality he was doing the work of the MIB. This carried over into all of Ben's "off-island" activities. He was the leader. He spoke for Jacob as far as they were concerned. So the "Others" killed Dharma and later were actively trying to kill Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Hurley and all the candidates because that's what the MIB wanted. And what he couldn't do for himself.

Dharma was originally brought in to be good. But was turned bad by MIB's corruption and eventually destroyed by his pawn Ben. Now, was Dharma only brought there to help Jack and the other Canditates on their overall quest to kill Smokey? Or did Jacob have another list of Canidates from the Dharma group that we were never aware of? That's a question that is purposley not answered because whatever answer the writers came up with would be worse than the one you come up with for yourself. Still ... Dharma's purpose is not "pointless" or even vague. Hell, it's pretty blantent.

Still, despite his grand plan, Jacob wanted to give his "candidates" (our Lostaways) the one thing he, nor his brother, were ever afforded: free will. Hence him bringing a host of "candidates" through the decades and letting them "choose" which one would actually do the job in the end. Maybe he knew Jack would be the one to kill Flocke and that Hurley would be the protector in the end. Maybe he didn't. But that was always the key question of the show: Fate vs Free-will. Science vs Faith. Personally I think Jacob knew from the beginning what was going to happen and that everyone played a part over 6 seasons in helping Jack get to the point where he needed to be to kill Smokey and make Hurley the protector -- I know that's how a lot of the writers viewed it. But again, they won't answer that (nor should they) because that ruins the fun.

In the end, Jack got to do what he always wanted to do from the very first episode of the show: Save his fellow Lostaways. He got Kate and Sawyer off the island and he gave Hurley the purpose in life he'd always been missing. And, in Sideways world (which we'll get to next) he in fact saved everyone by helping them all move on ...

Now...

Sideways World:

Sideways world is where it gets really cool in terms of theology and metaphysical discussion (for me at least -- because I love history/religion theories and loved all the talks in the writer's room about it). Basically what the show is proposing is that we're all linked to certain people during our lives. Call them soulmates (though it's not exactly the best word). But these people we're linked to are with us duing "the most important moments of our lives" as Christian said. These are the people we move through the universe with from lifetime to lifetime. It's loosely based in Hinduisim with large doses of western religion thrown into the mix.

The conceit that the writers created, basing it off these religious philosophies, was that as a group, the Lostaways subconsciously created this "sideways" world where they exist in purgatory until they are "awakened" and find one another. Once they all find one another, they can then move on and move forward. In essence, this is the show's concept of the afterlife. According to the show, everyone creates their own "Sideways" purgatory with their "soulmates" throughout their lives and exist there until they all move on together. That's a beautiful notion. Even if you aren't religious or even spirtual, the idea that we live AND die together is deeply profound and moving.

It's a really cool and spirtual concept that fits the whole tone and subtext the show has had from the beginning. These people were SUPPOSED to be together on that plane. They were supposed to live through these events -- not JUST because of Jacob. But because that's what the universe or God (depending on how religious you wish to get) wanted to happen. The show was always about science vs faith -- and it ultimately came down on the side of faith. It answered THE core question of the series. The one question that has been at the root of every island mystery, every character backstory, every plot twist. That, by itself, is quite an accomplishment.

How much you want to extrapolate from that is up to you as the viewer. Think about season 1 when we first found the Hatch. Everyone thought that's THE answer! Whatever is down there is the answer! Then, as we discovered it was just one station of many. One link in a very long chain that kept revealing more, and more of a larger mosiac.

But the writer's took it even further this season by contrasting this Sideways "purgatory" with the Island itself. Remember when Michael appeared to Hurley, he said he was not allowed to leave the Island. Just like the MIB. He wasn't allowed into this sideways world and thus, was not afforded the opportunity to move on. Why? Because he had proven himself to be unworthy with his actions on the Island. He failed the test. The others, passed. They made it into Sideways world when they died -- some before Jack, some years later. In Hurley's case, maybe centuries later. They exist in this sideways world until they are "awakened" and they can only move on TOGETHER because they are linked. They are destined to be together for eternity. That was their destiny.

They were NOT linked to Anna Lucia, Daniel, Roussou, Alex, Miles, Lupidis, (and all the rest who weren't in the chuch -- basically everyone who wasn't in season 1). Yet those people exist in Sideways world. Why? Well again, here's where they leave it up to you to decide. The way I like to think about it, is that those people who were left behind in Sideways world have to find their own soulmates before they can wake up. It's possible that those links aren't people from the island but from their other life (Anna's parnter, the guy she shot --- Roussou's husband, etc etc).

A lot of people have been talking about Ben and why he didn't go into the Church. And if you think of Sideways world in this way, then it gives you the answer to that very question. Ben can't move on yet because he hasn't connected with the people he needs to. It's going to be his job to awaken Roussou, Alex, Anna Lucia (maybe), Ethan, Goodspeed, his father and the rest. He has to attone for his sins more than he did by being Hurley's number two. He has to do what Hurley and Desmond did for our Lostaways with his own people. He has to help them connect. And he can only move on when all the links in his chain are ready to. Same can be said for Faraday, Charlotte, Whidmore, Hawkins etc. It's really a neat, and cool concept. At least to me.

But, from a more "behind the scenes" note: the reason Ben's not in the church, and the reason no one is in the church but for Season 1 people is because they wrote the ending to the show after writing the pilot. And never changed it. The writers always said (and many didn't believe them) that they knew their ending from the very first episode. I applaud them for that. It's pretty fantastic. Originally Ben was supposed to have a 3 episode arc and be done. But he became a big part of the show. They could have easily changed their ending and put him in the church -- but instead they problem solved it. Gave him a BRILLIANT moment with Locke outside the church ... and then that was it. I loved that. For those that wonder -- the original ending started the moment Jack walked into the church and touches the casket to Jack closing his eyes as the other plane flies away. That was always JJ's ending. And they kept it.

For me the ending of this show means a lot. Not only because I worked on it, but because as a writer it inspired me in a way the medium had never done before. I've been inspired to write by great films. Maybe too many to count. And there have been amazing TV shows that I've loved (X-Files, 24, Sopranos, countless 1/2 hour shows). But none did what LOST did for me. None showed me that you could take huge risks (writing a show about faith for network TV) and stick to your creative guns and STILL please the audience. I learned a lot from the show as a writer. I learned even more from being around the incredible writers, producers, PAs, interns and everyone else who slaved on the show for 6 years.

In the end, for me, LOST was a touchstone show that dealt with faith, the afterlife, and all these big, spirtual questions that most shows don't touch. And to me, they never once waivered from their core story -- even with all the sci-fi elements they mixed in. To walk that long and daunting of a creative tightrope and survive is simply astounding.

No.  Of course you haven’t.  Because you have purposed in your heart that Back to the Future is not only as good as it will ever be but it is the pinnacle and epitome of all time travelling stories—sorry, but even including LOST.  Yet, we here at NikHatter.com, have come up with a way to make it even better.

Well, not really us, no.  We weren’t, whatchacall…sharp enough to see this.  But let’s give credit where credit is due here:  Congratulations, The Internet.  Now we feel better…and honest….and yet, still dirty.

Either way look, watch, rewatch, and enjoy.

http://comedians.jokes.com/myq-kaplan/videos/myq-kaplan---exclusive---fighting-ignorance

I do however think he has a incalculably good grasp on prejudicisms and stereotyping.  In other words, the guy is a smart person or a significantly diverse heritage.

Enjoy as we here at NikHatter.com have done over the past 10 minutes…and as we will do over the next 10!

In the event of this sort of outbreak, be sure to be single.

Really, I mean honestly, when this sort of thing occurs, which we in America seem to be obsessed with, make sure you are unattached and unmarried.  It’s called “Stress Induced Love.”  Go ahead, look it up.

My point here is that this very funny xkcd cartoon is not too far off from reality.  How often do we see the hero guy/gal having some sort of fearful sexual tension with the untrustworthy CIA shill.

(oh, he new about the serum ….reca’nize!)

In summary…be forewarned.  Do not go up against zombies if you are in a relationship.

Alright, raise your hand if you’re just plum loco crazy about the US of A?

Anyone?...Anyone at all?...Anyone who’s breathing will do.

Well here at NikHatter.com, we thought not.  But hey that may just be a fluke in our readership, and if that’s true—you oughta be ashamed of yourselves.

It’s obvious that we should just move right to the charts:

As you can see by the flying lines hovering above absolute zero, Iran is only 25 people (average, of course) below America.  Wow.  Stunning.

Our response to that is, “Good for you Iran…who knew you were that well liked?”  I mean Mahmoud Ahmadinejad truly may be considered a cutie by some (Andy Samberg) but not by 15%.

And now, the chart to the right.  Hmmm…I wonder why Mexico thinks badly of us?

Now really what do I want with the same tears in the same shirt that Jack has worn on the island for all 108 days?

TOO MUCH DETAIL!!

For all of you that are with me on this minimalist media journey, I have enclosed a <i>fabulous</i> collection of what televised and comicized media should look like.

I know many of you out there will argue until Dr. Manhattan is blue in the face, but I’ve made up my mind.

Why does Spider-Man need webbing?

Why does Daredevil need a belt?

Why Hit Girl a mouth?

And don’t even get me started on Dr. Fate….that guy *rolls eyes*

http://screenrant.com/30-awesome-minimalist-superhero-posters-aco-56133/

It’s no secret that the staff of NikHatter.com loves the sea life, but did you know that our favorite animal is the Octobot?

Hold up, that’s not right.  What’s it ca…?

Right—the octopus, that’s it.

We just love us some octopus.

But did you know the reason WHY we love this majestic creature for all of time until the seas dry up by the first Chinese Brother?  Because of its ability to mimic other creatures.  Check it out:

Why is this important?  Because camo is cool, didn’t you get the memo?

This is one small step for the lazy, one giant leap for America!

That’s right!  The Office of Inspector General had to examine a formal request from NASA’s Constellation Program to throw out the decision to make SI or the Metric System the “lingua franca” as it were. 

“We want to get rid of this cockamamie system of 10s and 100s and common sense and back to the nationalistic pride that is the Standard System!  What is a meter, anyway?  Can you touch it?  Of course not, you British and French snobs!  Now a foot; that’s a real unit of measure right there.  We already have two feet built in…how many meters do you have on your hands?”

Okay, so I paraphrased.  The short of it is that NASA said, “No!  Deal with it.”

Full story: http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=33782