Steve Jobs Pitches Cupertino on Stunning New Apple Campus That Will House 12,000 Employees

Apple founder and CEO Steve Jobs presented his idea for a new Apple campus at the Cupertino City Council this week.

Jobs wants to build one building that holds 12,000 Apple employees on a former Hewlett-Packard property in Cupertino. ”It’s a little like a spaceship landed,” Jobs says.

Jobs begins the presentation referring to the fact that Apple is growing like a weed, and that its current campus at D’Anza and the 280 isn’t enough currently — fitting only about 2,800 people. Apple currently rents buildings to house its other 9,200 employees in the area.

Apple purchased about 150 acres from Hewlett Packard, which is now apricot orchards and has come up with a design that puts 12,000 people in one four story high building.

Apple is using its experience building retail stores and will create a large scale piece of glass if the proposal goes through. “There’s not a single straight piece of glass in this building,” Jobs says. The parking will be underground. The project is expected to be completed in 2015.

KULT Studio – Animation Art Mecca

Los Angeles based KULT Studio is producing gallery quality prints from icons of pop culture like Disney, Lucasfilm, Marvel and DC Comics. View and shop for artwork online as KULT’s unique and limited edition collections expand to include rare, vintage rock-n-roll, classic movie and fine art offerings.

The online gallery offers hand-selected studio artwork to their members at the best possible price and rewards their customers with 10% back in Kult Kash on every purchase. The site offers original, authenticated work from artists including Alex Ross, Jack Kirby, Jim Lee, Alex Toth, Seth Macfarlane, John Romita Jr., John Romita Sr., Matt Groening and others.

Check it out HERE.

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: Diamond Edition 3D Will Be Available On October 4th

The Walt Disney Studios today announced plans to release one of its most critically acclaimed animated films of all time, Beauty and the Beast, for the first time ever in mesmerizing Disney Blu-ray 3D for in-home viewing. Beauty and the Beast: Diamond Edition 3D will be available in market beginning on October 4th as a 5-Disc Combo Pack (providing families with value, versatility and flexibility to enjoy this film on several formats of choice including Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray™, DVD and/or Digital Copy) and/or 3D Movie Download. For more information, please visit www.disney.com/BeautyAndTheBeast3D.

The same Disney classic that taught us beauty is found within, now comes to life in spectacular Disney 3D bringing the characters, sound, and storyline to a whole new immersive dimension. Fans can once again meet and enjoy their favorite characters – Belle, Beast, Lumiere, Mrs. Potts and more – in an entirely new fashion as if they were watching the film for the very first time.

Beauty and the Beast: Diamond Edition 3D will be available for purchase as a 5-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack (1 Blu-ray 3D Disc of the Film + 1 standard Blu-ray Disc of the Film + 1 Blu-ray Disc of Bonus Features + 1 DVD Disc of the Film + Digital Copy Disc of the film) all for the suggested retail price of $49.99U.S. /$56.99 Canada; and/or a 3D Movie Download for the suggested retail price of $49.99 U.S./$56.99 Canada.

J.J. Abrams & Steven Spielberg Discuss Super 8 In This Week’s Entertainment Weekly Cover Story

What happens when two of Hollywood’s most creative minds team up to make a movie? The answer is Super 8, written and directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Steven Spielberg opening in theaters today. In the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, the two filmmakers come together at Abrams’ office in Santa Monica for a wide-ranging discussion about their recent collaboration and their surprisingly long history of working with each other. Read more HERE.

DC Comics Launches Green Lantern App

DC Entertainment announced today that a Green Lantern App is now available for download on Apple products, based on the best-selling DC Comics super hero and timed to the release of the eagerly anticipated Warner Bros. movie of the same name.

The Green Lantern App will give new and long time fans the access they want to all things Green Lantern, including:

- Over 200 Green Lantern comic books, including Green Lantern: Secret Origin by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis.

- More Green Lantern comics added every week.

- The latest trailers for the Green Lantern movie

- Previews of other exciting Green Lantern releases, like the animated Green Lantern: Emerald Knights and the video game Green Lantern: Rise of The Manhunters.

- Featured Sections include, New To Green Lantern? Start Here!, We Are The Corps! and His Darkest Days, all of which include essential reading for fans new to Green Lantern comic books.

- Key first appearances of Green Lantern Corps members such as Kilowog, Tomar Re, and Sinestro.

- Comic Store Locator, to find your favorite Green Lantern comics in print.

With full functionality as found in the DC Comics App, the Green Lantern App will have guided view for panel-to-panel enjoyment of Green Lantern digital comic books on the iPhone or iPad.

Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts: Secrets and Recipes for the Home Baker

The best donuts that I have ever eaten bar-none were from Seattle’s Top Pot Doughnuts. Now, doughnut aficionados everywhere can enjoy these tasty treats at home. Committed bakers, casual home cooks, and sweet-toothed fans will eat up these 50 tried-and-true recipes—from classic Old-Fashioneds to the signature Pink Feather Boa—and become experts themselves after learning the secrets of doughnut-making tools, terms, and techniques (no, you don’t need a deep fryer). And the selections of toppings and glazes, from chocolate to lavender? That’s just icing on the doughnut.

The 144 page book entitled Top Pot Hand-Forged Doughnuts: Secrets and Recipes for the Home Baker is written by the owners, Mark and Michael Klebeck. The photographs are by Scott Pitts, a Seattle-based blogger and freelance writer. Look for this donut bible on shelves in October 2011.

Google Honors Guitar Legend Les Paul With A Playable & Recordable Google Doodle

If you search on Google today you’ll notice a recordable electric guitar designed to resemble the shape of the Google logo. The popular search engine is paying homage to guitar great Les Paul, who would have been 96 years old today.

Strum the guitar by simply hovering your mouse over the strings. You can also play notes on your keyboard. When you click on the rectangular record button your masterpiece will be saved.

Additionally, the guitar app creates a URL that you can send to others, so they can admire your virtuosity.

The Illustrious Omnibus of Super Powers T-Shirt

Pop Chart Lab has made a t-shirt version of their The Illustrious Omnibus of Super Powers, ($22) which was previously released as a poster.

A taxonomic tree of over 100 wondrous powers and abilities. Now with over 200 superheroes and supervillains as examples thereof, and for the first time available as a handy superhero costume. Face front, True Believer!

The Best Blogs of 2011

TIME picks 25 of the best blogs in 2011 ranging from politics and pop culture to travel, tech and beyond.

The Super 8 Standee Contains A Secret

The widely anticipated J.J. Abram’s summer film Super 8 has been veiled in secrecy and the advertising campaign has been using that to its advantage. Even the movie standees contain a secret. Some actually play the trailer when you look inside the “8″ on the side of the cardboard promotional tool.

At the end of the trailer shown inside the theater standee is a link to one of the clips on the S8 Editing Room site.

Zach Galifianakis, Reluctant Superstar: The Rolling Stone Cover Story

The new issue of Rolling Stone, on stands and in the digital archive on June 17th, features an in-depth interview with comedian and actor Zach Galifianakis. In the cover story, the star of The Hangover Part II – who doesn’t have a publicist or an assistant and still drives his 1998 Subaru – tells Rolling Stone contributing editor Josh Eells that he’s having difficulty getting used to life as a celebrity. “I’m terrible about people wanting to take pictures with me,” Galifianakis says. “I’m a giant baby about it. They treat you like a cartoon. There’s nothing you can do except make light of it. That’s if I’m in the mood. Sometimes I get superbummed.” That doesn’t mean he’s going to stop making movies. “They want to do a Hangover III,” he says. “I’m getting fricking phone calls already.” According to what he’s heard, the plot ditches the format of the first two and focuses on his character escaping from a mental institution with help from the wolf pack.

Read more HERE.

Store Buyout: Five Artists Buy Out Entire Inventory of a Corner Store in New York City

Store Buyout is an art project where five artists arrived at Hercules Fancy Grocery in New York City and bought everything. Every item has been repurposed as art and will be sold online and for a limited time at the Store Buyout Gallery. Money from the sales is going towards saving Hercules store.

The Store Buyout project was partly a work of charity, as the 40 year old business was in danger of closing, as well as a conceptual art project. The 3000 or so items purchased are now on display at the Fusion Arts Museum in the Lower East Side, to be resold as art pieces at a substantial markup.

The Paper Sculptures of Calvin Nicholls

Using nothing but a scalpel, time, patience, and well-lit sheets of paper, Calvin Nicholls makes these paper sculptures for use in advertising campaigns, private collectors, institutions and galleries. Nicholls has been making these magnificent paper creations since the ’80s, and a significant portion of his work (over 75 pieces) can be found at Follett Library Resources in McHenry, IL where the library supply company has been using his creations in their international branding since the mid ’90s.

Apple Releases iTunes 10.3.1

Apple has released iTunes 10.3.1, the latest version of its digital media management software. The purpose of the update, which arrived without version-specific release notes, is unknown; the prior version, 10.3, was announced during the company’s keynote address on Monday but was not made available for download until early yesterday morning. iTunes 10.3.1 is available now via Apple’s Software Update utility.

DC Comics Embraces Its Dark Side With New #1 Issues This Fall

DC Comics embraces its dark side. On the 40th anniversary of the character’s creation, the New York Times bestselling writer of American Vampire, Scott Snyder, teams up with Yannick Paquette (Batman Incorporated) to bring horror back to the DC Universe in Swamp Thing #1. For years, one man served against his will as the avatar of nature. And while he may have been freed of the monster, he’s about to learn the monster will never truly let go of him.

John Constantine, Deadman, Shade the Changing Man and Madame Xanadu are Justice League Dark, a band of supernatural heroes united to stop the dark things the rest of the DCU does not see in Justice League Dark #1, by Peter Milligan and artist Mikel Janin.

Buddy Baker has gone from “super” man to family man – but is he strong enough to hold his family together when Maxine, his young daughter, starts to manifest her own dangerous powers? Find out in Animal Man #1, the start of a dramatic new series by acclaimed writer Jeff Lemire and artists Travel Foreman and Dan Green.

Set in the Middle Ages, the Demon leads an unlikely team to defend civilization and preserve the last vestiges of Camelot against the tide of history. Critically-acclaimed writer Paul Cornell and artists Diogenes Neves and Oclair Albert combine sorcery, swords and superheroes in Demon Knights #1.

Frankenstein and his network of strange beings work for an even stranger government organization: The Super Human Advanced Defense Executive. It’s the breakout hero of Seven Soldiers as you’ve never seen him before in Frankenstein, Agent of Shade #1, the first issue of a dark new series from acclaimed writer Jeff Lemire (Sweet Tooth, The Nobody) and artist Alberto Ponticelli.

A cult favorite character returns in a new series written by his classic creative team of Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. Joining them is Justice League: Generation Lost artist Fernando Dagnino. Resurrection Man #1 is the story of a hero who wakes up with new powers each time he’s killed.

Vampires threaten to bring ruin to the DC Universe in I, Vampire #1 by rising star Josh Fialkov and artist Andrea Sorrentino. Tortured by his centuries-old love for the Queen of the Damnned, Andrew Bennett must save humanity from the violent uprising of his fellow vampires, even if it means exterminating his own kind.

Priscilla Kitaen has just found out she’s a monster. A half-alien hybrid, the woman known as Voodoo must confront the secrets of her past to make sense of the nightmare her life has suddenly become. Voodoo #1 will be written by Ron Marz with art by Sami Basri.

Paramount & Twitter Team Up For First-Ever Tweet Movie Sneak Preview of Super 8 On June 9th

Paramount Pictures and Twitter jointly announced today sneak preview showings of the movie Super 8 8 for 1-day only on Thursday, June 9th, in advance of the film’s scheduled nationwide release on Friday, June 10th. To promote the sneak previews, the companies have designated the hashtag #Super8Secret, which Paramount has also sponsored as a Promoted Trend, allowing Twitter’s global user base a direct link to buy tickets to the advanced previews. At select, participating theatres in the United States, Super 8 Sneak Preview moviegoers will be treated to a free popcorn (with a concession purchase) at each sneak preview show. Hosting movie sneak previews marks a first for Twitter. This promotion continues a key partnership between Paramount and Twitter on Super 8. The duo joined forces in March for the movie’s exclusive trailer premiere via Twitter, another exciting first for the site.

SUPER 8, from writer/director J.J. Abrams and producer Steven Spielberg, will open exclusively tomorrow, June 9th, on over 300 screens nationwide, featuring all 239 IMAX playdates in the U.S. and Canada.  Fans can go to www.Twitter.com/Super8Movie and use #Super8Secret to share information about the movie with friends. To be among the first to see SUPER 8, visit www.Super8-Movie.com/Sneak for tickets and show times.

Disney Prepping A TRON: Legacy Sequel

Although there have been rumblings that Disney was prepping a follow-up to TRON: Legacy, it wasn’t a sure-fire bet that we’d see a third chapter. Any speculation can be lifted, however. Disney has hired David DiGilio to pen the next entry. DiGilio’s roots began with Disney; he wrote the 2006 film Eight Below.

With a visual blueprint of the world of TRON already created, the studio will be able to keep the production costs down. DiGilio recently sold a sci-fi pitch to Showtime entitled Last H.O.P.E. (the latter part of that moniker standing for “Hospital on Planet Earth”). He also created the 2007 series Traveler.

No word yet as to when DiGilio needs to have the next TRON completed. It’s also too soon to tell if Joseph Kosinski will be back to direct.

Now That Apple Has Announced iCloud, What About MobileMe Members?

In an e-mail just sent to MobileMe members, Apple confirmed what many users have expected since rumors of a follow-up service began to spread: MobileMe as it’s currently known will cease to exist after June 30, 2012. As a goodwill gesture to current users, the company will automatically extend MobileMe subscriptions through June 30, 2012 “at no additional charge,” after which “MobileMe will no longer be available.” Attempts to purchase additional MobileMe service are being rejected and refunded by the company as of today.

Apple urges users to sign up for the just-announced iCloud in order to keep their MobileMe e-mail addresses, mail, contacts, calendars, and bookmarks, and re-confirms that iCloud will be free for iOS 5 and OS X Lion users. While the company does not specifically address what will happen to MobileMe’s iDisk, Gallery, and iWeb services, it states that “more details and instructions on how to make the move” will be shared when iCloud opens for business this fall.

Red Pop For The iPhone

If you hand someone your iPhone and ask them to take a picture of you (unless they’re an iPhone owner too) they may have some difficulty with the device. Red Pop ($75) solves this dilemma and your iPhone will get a nice retro makeover. Download the free Red Pop app, hook the unit right into your dock connector and start firing away. The add-on device is currently aimed for an early September launch.

Paul DVD & Blu-ray Due On August 9th

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced DVD and Blu-ray/DVD Combo releases of Paul for August 9th. Extras on the DVD will include a commentary with Greg Mottola, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Bill Hader and Nira Park, featurettes (“The Evolution of Paul”, “Who the Hell is Adam Shadowchild?”), a Simon’s Silly Faces feature, Photo Galleries, Storyboards and Posters, and a blooper reel. The Blu-ray/DVD Combo release will include all that, plus the following additional featurettes (“Between the Lightning Strikes: The Making of Paul”, “RV Doorway: The Cast of Paul On-Location”, “Runway Santa Fe: An Interview with Nancy Steiner”, “Smithereens”, “5th Date Level Direction: The Cast on Greg Mottola”, “Mexico Zero: The Locations of Paul”, “The Many Pauls”, “Paul: The Musical”, “The Traveler Beagle”), and a digital copy of the film.

Wii U – Nintendo’s Next Home Console Just Announced Today

Nintendo introduced a new paradigm for video games and home entertainment: Wii U ($TBA), a new console that includes a controller with a 6.2-inch screen. Adding a second screen to the living room creates a multitude of new video game experiences while offering families a variety of options to customize their entertainment.

Previously, video games played on a home console have been confined to the TV and offered identical viewpoints to each player in a multiplayer environment. Furthermore, watching TV and playing console games have been completely separate experiences. The new controller removes these boundaries, creating a more dynamic and fluid gaming and entertainment experience. Visitors to the E3 Expo will see firsthand the type of gaming experiences made possible by Wii U and the new controller such as:

- In single-player games: The new controller can display information on its screen that does not appear on the TV and the information and viewpoint can also change in the new controller based on the orientation of its gyroscope.

- In multiplayer games: The player using the new controller can have a different experience than those looking at the TV. This will offer a wide variety of competitive and cooperative opportunities.

In addition to the 6.2-inch screen, the new controller also features an accelerometer and a gyroscope, a rumble feature, an inward-facing camera, a microphone and speakers. Adding these features to the Classic Controller™ button scheme – two analog Circle Pads, +Control Pad, A/B/X/Y buttons, L/R buttons and ZL/ZR buttons – will enable a breadth of game-play experiences while appealing to both casual and dedicated video game players.

Wii U combines motion-sensing game play with the ability to support full HD graphics. Each Wii U console will be partnered with a new controller and can also use up to four additional Wii Remote or Wii Remote Plus controllers. The system is also backward compatible and can play all Wii games and use all Wii accessories. The Wii console has sold more than 86 million units globally and greatly expanded the overall audience for video games. Wii U aims to expand that audience even further. Developers worldwide are already working on new games and experiences for the console.

Apple Releases iBooks 1.3 With Read-Aloud Feature

Apple has released iBooks 1.3, the latest version of its e-Reader software for iOS. According to Apple’s release notes, iBooks 1.3 adds support for a new read-aloud feature for younger children that’s included in select children’s books from the iBookstore. The feature uses a real narrator to read the book to you and/or your child, and in some books, will highlight the words as its reading them aloud. Other features include automatic audio or video playback in enhanced books, improved responsiveness when opening very long books, and a fix for an issue where some books may display the same page twice. iBooks 1.3 is available now as a free download from the App Store.

Upcoming DC Comics Batman # 1 Titles

Here are some upcoming DC Comics Batman # 1 titles that will appear in the Fall:

In Batman and Robin #1, the acclaimed creative team of Peter Tomasi and Pat Gleason will explore the family dynamic of the Caped Crusader as Bruce Wayne battles the Gotham underworld with the help of his son, Damian, in the role of Robin.

In Batman: The Dark Knight, superstar artist David Finch writes and draws a twisted adventure that pulls Bruce Wayne deep into the halls of the famed Arkham Asylum, a jail for Gotham City’s most dangerous and criminally deranged. Finch will team up with collaborator Jay Fabok on pencils.

In the first Batman #1 since 1930, New York Times bestselling writer Scott Snyder teams up with superstar artist Greg Capullo in his DC Comics debut! In the series, Bruce Wayne once again becomes the only character taking on the Batman name.

DC Comics’ flagship title is relaunched for the first time ever in Detective Comics #1 by acclaimed writer/artist Tony Daniel. Marking the first time Batman will appear in a debut issue of Detective Comics, the series will find Bruce Wayne on the trail of a dangerous serial killer known only as the Gotham Ripper.

Mac OS X Lion With 250 New Features Available in July From Mac App Store

Apple today announced that Mac OS X Lion, the eighth major release of the world’s most advanced operating system with more than 250 new features and 3,000 new developer APIs, will be available to customers in July as a download from the Mac App Store for $29.99. Some of the amazing features in Lion include: new Multi-Touch gestures; system-wide support for full screen apps; Mission Control, an innovative view of everything running on your Mac; the Mac App Store, the best place to find and explore great software, built right into the OS; Launchpad, a new home for all your apps; and a completely redesigned Mail app.

New Multi-Touch gestures and fluid animations built into Lion let you interact directly with content on the screen for a more intuitive way to use your Mac. New gestures include momentum scrolling, tapping or pinching your fingers to zoom in on a web page or image, and swiping left or right to turn a page or switch between full screen apps. All Mac notebooks ship with Multi-Touch trackpads and desktop Macs can use Apple’s Magic Trackpad.

Full screen apps take advantage of the entire display and are perfect for reading email, surfing the web or browsing photos, especially on a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro. With a single click your app fills the display and you can swipe from one window to another, between full screen apps, or back to your Desktop, Dashboard or Spaces without ever leaving full screen. iWork and iLife apps, as well as Safari, iTunes, Mail, FaceTime and others, all take advantage of Lion’s system-wide support for full screen apps.

Mission Control combines Exposé, full screen apps, Dashboard and Spaces into one unified experience for a bird’s eye view of every app and window running on your Mac. With a simple swipe, your desktop zooms out to display your open windows grouped by app, thumbnails of your full screen apps and your Dashboard, and allows you to instantly navigate anywhere with a tap.

The Mac App Store is built into Lion and is the best place to discover great new Mac apps, buy them with your iTunes account, download and install them. Apps automatically install directly to Launchpad, and with Lion’s release, the Mac App Store will be able to deliver smaller “delta” app updates and new apps that can take advantage of features like In-App Purchase and Push Notifications.

Launchpad makes it easier than ever to find and launch any app. With a single Multi-Touch gesture, all your Mac apps are displayed in a stunning full screen layout. You can organize apps in any order or into folders and swipe through unlimited pages of apps to find the one you want.

Lion includes a completely redesigned Mail app with an elegant widescreen layout. The new Conversations feature groups related messages into an easily scrollable timeline, intelligently hiding repeated text so the conversation is easy to follow, and retaining graphics and attachments as they were originally sent. An incredibly powerful new search feature allows you to refine your search and suggests matches by person, subject and label as you type. Mail includes built-in support for Microsoft Exchange 2010.

Additional new features in Lion include:

- Resume, which conveniently brings your apps back exactly how you left them when you restart your Mac or quit and relaunch an app;

- Auto Save, which automatically and continuously saves your documents as you work;

- Versions, which automatically records the history of your document as you create it, and gives you an easy way to browse, revert and even copy and paste from previous versions; and

- AirDrop, which finds nearby Macs and automatically sets up a peer-to-peer wireless connection to make transferring files quick and easy.

Pricing & Availability Mac OS X Lion will be available in July as an upgrade to Mac OS X version 10.6 Snow Leopard from the Mac App Store for $29.99 (US). Lion will be the easiest OS X upgrade and at about 4GB, it is the size of an HD movie from the iTunes Store. Mac OS X Lion Server requires Lion and will be available in July from the Mac App Store for $49.99 (US).

Lion requires an Intel-based Mac with a Core 2 Duo, i3, i5, i7 or Xeon processor and 2GB of RAM. The Lion upgrade can be installed on all your authorized personal Macs.

The Mac OS X Lion Up-To-Date upgrade is available at no additional charge via the Mac App Store to all customers who purchased a qualifying new Mac system from Apple or an Apple Authorized Reseller on or after June 6, 2011. Users must request their Up-To-Date upgrade within 30 days of purchase of their Mac computer. Customers who purchase a qualifying Mac between June 6, 2011 and the date when Lion is available in the Mac App Store will have 30 days from Lion’s official release date to make a request.

New Version of iOS Includes Notification Center, iMessage, Newsstand, Twitter Integration Among 200 New Features

Apple today previewed iOS 5, the latest version of the world’s most advanced mobile operating system, and released a beta version to iOS Developer Program members. The iOS 5 beta release includes over 200 new features that will be available to iPhone, iPad and iPod touch users this fall. New iOS 5 features include: Notification Center, an innovative way to easily view and manage notifications in one place without interruption; iMessage, a new messaging service that lets you easily send text messages, photos and videos between all iOS devices; and Newsstand, a new way to purchase and organize your newspaper and magazine subscriptions. With the new PC Free feature, iOS 5 users can activate and set up their iOS device right out of the box and get software updates over the air with no computer required.

With iOS 5 and iCloud, you just enter your Apple ID and password and iCloud will seamlessly integrate with your apps to automatically and wirelessly keep all of your mail, contacts, calendars, photos, apps, books, music and more, up-to-date across all your devices without ever having to connect to a computer.

Notification Center provides iOS 5 users with an innovative way to easily access all notifications―text messages, missed calls, calendar alerts, app alerts and more, all in one place, from anywhere in iOS 5. When they arrive, notifications appear briefly at the top of the screen without interrupting what you’re doing. With one swipe you can see all your notifications, and a simple tap will take you right to its app for more detail. Notifications also appear on the lock screen, with the ability to be taken to the notifying app with just one swipe.

Newsstand is a beautiful, easy-to-organize bookshelf displaying the covers of all your newspaper and magazine subscriptions in one place. A new section of the App Store features just subscription titles, and allows users to quickly find the most popular newspapers and magazines in the world. If subscribed to, new issues appear in the Newsstand and are updated automatically in the background so you always have the latest issue and the most recent cover art.

Safari is the world’s most popular mobile browser, and with iOS 5 it’s now even better. New features include Safari Reader, which gets all the clutter out of the way and sets the right font size on a web page, so you can easily scroll and read through a story; Reading List, so you can save articles to read later and they automatically show up on all your iOS devices; and Tabbed Browsing, which makes it easy to flip between multiple web pages on iPad.

iOS 5 includes built-in Twitter integration, so you can sign in once and then tweet directly from all your Twitter-enabled apps, including Photos, Camera, Safari, YouTube and Maps with a single tap. New APIs give third party developers the ability to take advantage of the single sign-on capability for their own iOS 5 apps.

iMessage in iOS 5 brings the functionality of iPhone messaging to all of your iOS devices―iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. Built right into the Messages app, iMessage allows you to easily send text messages, photos, videos or contact information to a person or a group on other iOS 5 devices over Wi-Fi or 3G. iMessages are automatically pushed to all your iOS 5 devices, making it easy to maintain one conversation across your iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. iMessage also features delivery and read receipts, typing indication and secure end-to-end encryption.

The new Reminders app helps you manage your tasks; create and group related tasks together; and set time or location-based reminder alerts, priorities and due dates, so you can be reminded of a task as its deadline approaches, or when you arrive or depart a given location. Reminders can also be viewed in iCal and Outlook and are updated automatically.

New features in the Camera and Photos apps give you instant access to the camera right from the lock screen, and you can use the volume-up button to quickly snap a photo. Optional grid lines help line up your shot and a simple tap locks focus and exposure on one subject. The new Photos app lets you crop, rotate, enhance and remove red-eye, and organize your photos into albums right on your device to share them on the go.

With the new PC Free feature, iOS 5 users can activate and set up their iOS device right out of the box with no computer required, and iOS software updates are delivered over the air and installed with just a tap. Wi-Fi Sync in iOS 5 transfers and backs up your content securely over SSL and wirelessly syncs purchased content from your device to your iTunes library.

Additional new features in iOS 5 include:

- Game Center, now with the ability to add photos to your profile, purchase new games from within the Game Center app and easier ways to find friends and new games;

- Mail enhancements which include the ability to compose messages using draggable addresses, and a new formatting bar with bold, italics, underline and indention controls;

- AirPlay Mirroring to wirelessly display everything you do on your iPad 2 right on your HDTV through Apple TV; and

- a system-wide split keyboard to make it even easier to type on your iPad.