SOFTWARE DEVELOPER Adobe's CEO Shantanu Narayen came out yesterday to defend its Flash software and the developers who build it against a spittle filled rant from Steve Jobs.

Steve "lets sic the cops on the press" Jobs repeated all that he had said before, namely that Flash is not open, it's buggy, and it causes his toys to break and smells of wee.

Narayen gave a video interview to the Wall Street Journal, saying that Jobs had a completely different view of the world from Adobe.

He said that the world is multi-platform and that simply did not suit Steve Jobs' vision. Narayen said that Jobs should let consumers decide.

He pointed out that if the technology doesn't work, consumers won't choose it. The fact that people have built applications using Adobe's technology, the fact that they've deployed it, means that it benefits both publishers and consumers, he said.

"It doesn't benefit Apple and that's why you see this reaction," Narayen said. In the real world developers prefer to build one web application and deploy it across multiple devices. They don't develop software for just one platform like the Iphone.
Meanwhile Adobe CTO Kevin Lynch has also waded into the fray, saying that the primary issue was whether or not Apple should block Adobe's widely used runtimes as well as a variety of technologies from other providers.

However, he said that given the legal terms Apple imposes on developers, "we have already decided to shift our focus away from Apple devices for both Flash Player and AIR."

Greece is preparing severe austerity measures to secure the bailout of up to 120 billion euros, which investors hope will stop the debt crisis from sinking other fragile EU countries, but faces a battle with unions angered by the scale of cutbacks.

Union officials said the International Monetary Fund asked Athens to cut the deficit by 10 percent -- roughly 24 billion euros -- by raising sales taxes, scrapping bonuses amounting to two extra months pay in the public sector, and accepting a three-year pay freeze.

They have called a series of strikes in the days ahead.

But Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said the measures were vital to securing aid.

"Many talk about red lines. The only red line is the country's interest. Today the top priority is the survival of the nation. This is the red line," Papandreou told parliament.

"The measures we must take, which are economic measures, are necessary for our country's protection, for our future, for us to be able to stand on our feet."

German politicians have said the aid package could be worth 100-120 billion euros ($133-160 billion) over three years, against an original plan for 45 billion euros of aid in 2010.

France's Economy Minister Christine Lagarde told Reuters she hoped solutions for the Greek crisis would be found before a euro zone summit announced for May 10.

"The work is in progress and it looks good," Lagarde said. "We are really working on the essentials to arrive at a solution as quickly as possible."

EURO GAINS

Hopes of a quick Greek aid deal helped push up global equities on Friday and the euro was 0.5 percent higher on the day at $1.3301. The spread between Greek and German 10-year government bond yields narrowed.

"The background does seem to be definitely improving for the euro zone's public debt crisis," said Mike Lenhoff, chief strategist at Brewin Dolphin.

But the euro was still on track to fall some 1.5 percent for the month and concerns remained over euro zone debts.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Friday the Greek aid package would be hammered out within days and will prevent the crisis from spilling over to other countries.

"It is about safeguarding the overall financial stability of the euro zone," he said, adding it would "prevent further possible effects of contagion."

Fears have grown of the contagion spreading to other indebted eurozone countries.

Economists said euro zone states could end up footing a bill of half a trillion euros ($650 billion) to save several nations if they failed to engineer a Greek bailout that calmed markets.

Markets have been concerned that other heavily indebted nations like Portugal and Spain -- whose debts were downgraded by ratings agencies this week -- could be threatened unless they tackle their deficits swiftly.

Portugal's main opposition leader, Pedro Passos Coelho, said his Social Democratic Party (PSD) supports the government's austerity plan and hopes to agree a pact that may allow a cut of this year's budget gap by an additional 1 percentage point.

His comments were likely to reassure investors concerned about Lisbon's ability to tackle its deficit.

In Spain, unemployment rose to a record high above 20 percent in the first quarter, stifling attempts to recover from recession, but Economy Minister Elena Salgado said Spanish debt was under control and Madrid would not have to seek aid.

"Our debt is clean, and we will not have to ask for help," she said.

"ARMAGEDDON IS COMING"

Germany has expressed deep reservations about bankrolling a profligate Greece, which misled partners over its catastrophic finances, and demands fierce budget rigor in return.

But business daily Handelsblatt said Germany will ask German banks to increase their investments in Greek bonds once Greece's austerity plan is submitted.

Citing unnamed government sources, the newspaper said Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble will speak individually with banks' top management to convince them to increase their Greek bond holdings.

The Greek talks are being closely watched for details on whether the aid will start in time for Greece to refinance an 8.5 billion euro bond coming due on May 19 and if the deal will be big enough to handle Athens' 300 billion euro debt pile.

The planned austerity measures include cuts aimed at Greece's system of public wage allowances, which often include generous extra pay for activities such as using computers or getting to work on time.

These are primarily meant to keep base salaries and pensions low, and a 5-15 percent cut could save the state about 300 million euros a year.

More measures are bound to meet resistance. Opinion polls show a majority of Greeks oppose outside aid and expect the rescue package to hit living standards
"Armageddon is coming. The situation caused by speculative mechanisms will be tackled only because the Germans have realized the domino effect that would have followed," Greece's conservative daily newspaper Eleftheros Typos said.

"But the lenders are setting the terms, and they are incredibly tough. At least for three years they will drink our blood. And this is not an exaggeration."

SHANGHAI (AP) — Shanghai was counting down Friday to the opening of the 2010 World Expo, a six-month event that kicks off with a lavish riverside display of fireworks and lights expected to rival the Beijing Olympics' launch in its extravagance.

For Shanghai, the Expo marks a stunning comeback as a major world city after decades of spartan industrialism following the 1949 communist revolution. Like the Olympics, the event is showcasing China's growing economic and geopolitical sway, both for the world and for its own public.

The Expo will open Saturday and is expected to draw 70 million people to pavilions from almost 200 nations designed to reflect the urban sustainability theme of "Better City, Better Life."

China is splashing out 28.6 billion yuan ($4.2 billion) on the Expo itself, and many billions more on other improvements for this city of 20 million. Freshly painted buildings, new highways, subway lines and airport terminals — all proclaim the country's newfound status as a modern, increasingly affluent industrial giant.

"The government will spend whatever money it takes. For the leadership, it's worthwhile," said Zheng Yongnian, director of the East Asian Institute of the National University of Singapore.

The Expo caps a trio of landmark events that began with the Olympics and was followed by the lavish 2009 celebration of the 60th anniversary of Communist Party rule.

All have involved massive security crackdowns and intensified harassment of political dissidents, though commercial-minded Shanghai has kept measures low-key compared with the restrictions imposed for the Beijing Olympics, when tourist visas were canceled and the capital was cleared of migrants.

Still, local authorities, determined to prevent crimes or disturbances that could mar the Expo, have tightened their enforcement of a ban on protests or public criticism of the ruling Communist Party.

A prominent dissident, Feng Zhenghu, said police confiscated computers from his home after he announced a new manifesto on human rights, a critique of Shanghai's legal system, to coincide with the Expo.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong-based Chinese Human Rights Defenders said at least six people who protested having their homes demolished to make way for the Expo were sent to labor camps.

The already tight security in the city was ratcheted up Friday as authorities closed the sprawling riverside Expo site to all but a few workers, journalists, and VIPs while a helicopter patrolled overhead. Police were stationed on street corners in the area, while hotels and subway stations required all bags and packages to go through X-ray screening.

Still, Shanghai residents began crowding into areas near the river by early afternoon, hoping to get a glimpse of the evening celebrations, which will be attended by Chinese President Hu Jintao and other world leaders including French President Nicolas Sarkozy, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

Expo organizers have insisted on keeping details of their plans for the evening performances hush-hush, saying they did not want to spoil the surprise. But apart from the inevitable fireworks and laser lights — seen during earlier rehearsals — celebrities expected to perform at the Expo opening or otherwise attend events included actor Jackie Chan, concert pianist Lang Lang, opera star Andrea Bocelli and actress Halle Berry.

The Shanghai Expo is the first held in a developing country and though city residents are bracing for six whole months of huge crowds, traffic jams and other disruptions, the event is broadly popular in Shanghai.
Still some residents of apartments near the 2 square mile (5.28 square kilometer) site, which spans land formerly occupied by steel mills and shipyards along the Huangpu river, said measures were growing oppressive.

"It's just not convenient to get in and out anymore," said one man, who gave only his surname, Dong. He complained that local wet markets that sold fresh meat and vegetables had been demolished and paved over for Expo parking lots.