The large 8.3 earthquake and tsunami in American Samoa has resulted in a number of deaths, and The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre in Hawaii has updated its warning to New Zealanders.

The tsunami generated in the Pacific is predicted to hit New Zealand’s East Cape at 9.44am and will be approximately one metre high. Emergency management and services in East Cape have issued an evacuation warning.

The Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management said there was a tsunami risk to New Zealand from the earthquake, and have also issued a tsunami warning for New Zealand coasts.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre’s updated timings for the arrival of a tsunami in New Zealand are:

East Cape at 9.44am

Gisborne 10am

North Cape 10.12 am

Napier 10.40 am

Wellington 10.50 am

Auckland (east coast) 11.12 am

Auckland (west) 11.39 am

Lyttelton 11.55am

New Plymouth 12.17pm

Nelson 12.23 pm

Dunedin 12.31 pm

A growing awareness of our environment, climate change, and options for a more sustainable existence is permeating all aspects of modern living.

Young and old alike are becoming more concerned with environmental issues, and keeping in step with environment news has become an increasingly important part of feeling informed for many New Zealanders.

From large scale awareness events like World Environment Day to smaller, more frequent community initiatives and a focus on ‘going green’ each and every day, enviro-conscious Kiwis are making the move toward a more sustainable future.

For more information about environmental issues and initiatives visit the environment category in the NZS.com directory.

The New Zealand newspaper industry has come a long way since the first primitive printers introduced to the country cut their teeth on our flagship publications.

While the style, tone, content and context of newspaper in New Zealand continues to change to keep up with the evolution of society and technological advancements, daily newspapers in NZ still retain a loyal readership, both regionally and nationally.

While the advent of online newspaper has brought news into the digital age, most New Zealand news sources have kept up, offering readers both print and online options for their preferred news consumption.

Get ready to crack out your fatigues and black face paint, because Search Engine Boot-Camp is right around the corner.

Okay, it probably won’t be completely necessary to get army-styled up for the workshop, hitting Auckland October 2. But those attending will be given all the tactical knowledge they’ll need to survive and thrive in the virtual jungle that is search engine marketing.

This will be the third year Search Engine Boot-Camp has been held in Auckland, programmed with marketing executives in mind and aimed to help you understand why you need to be directing your marketing budget towards the all powerful world of search and web promotion.

The one-day Boot-Camp held at the Auckland Hilton will give you all the tactical know how to put a paid search campaign into action, optimising you company website for organic search traffic.

Search Engine Boot-Camp will be divided into 12 sessions throughout the day, covering all the important search engine optimisation and pay per click search marketing techniques.

Highlights will include keyword research, search engine optimisation content creation, link building fundamentals, paid search optimisation, link building fundamentals, paid search optimisation, landing page optimisation, and more.

Also being held in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne in 2009, the Auckland even will be the only Search Engine Boot-Camp run in New Zealand.

Enlist now for a full day or a half day at the Search Engine Boot-Camp.

It’s the must-have home theatre appliance for any home entertainment guru, but choosing the right flat screen can be a whopper of a decision with so many options available in LCD and Plasma screens.

Ask any expert and they can wax lyrical about the advantages of Plasma vs LCD for hours, but in finding the right big screen for your entertainment and living situation you’ll need to do a little research.

Plasma TV has been declared one of the most important developments in consumer electronics technologies of the past decade, thanks to the edge it has traditionally had in display quality of contrast.

LCD TV displays however have been fast catching up with this technology, and are said to offer a lighter and les power-hungry alternative for space and eco-conscious consumers.

The death of 80s heartthrob Patrick Swayze has inspired an outpouring of Internet messages and tributes from fans and fellow actors, while a darker side of the web tries to cash in.

Hackers are renowned for jumping on the search bandwagon and targeting popular search terms to sell fake anti-virus software and to infect people with malware.

Just as scamsters have exploited public interest in the deaths of Michael Jackson, Farah Fawcett and Natasha Richardson to lead people to virus-laced websites, Swayze’s death has led to a flood of similar sham web pages

These cyber criminals use search engine optimisation techniques to get these websites to rank high in search engines such as Google.

While the websites appear legitimate, upon visiting them targets are advised their computers need anti-virus scans. When these scans are complete targets are advised their computers have been infected with Trojans, offering to sell them fake anti-virus software to remove them.

Many of the sites also infect users with viruses designed to steal personal details such as passwords and credit-card numbers.

If you’ve always dreamed of escaping the city and setting up camp on your own exotic island, Tim Manning has the deal for you.

The New Zealand property developer currently has Eori Island up for sale, introducing an exciting opportunity to the real estate market for buyers interested in owning a piece of private paradise or developing their own island resort.

Situated in the Mamanuca group of islands, Eori Island is one of the many Fijian islands visited by travellers worldwide, and has been part of the inspiration behind the philanthropic work Tim Manning has achieved for the Fijian community.

Along with friend and former All Black Eric Rush, Tim Manning has been involved in a number of charitable ventures to help children in Fiji, including the Performers4Poverty charitable trust projects and donating uniforms to local children’s rugby teams.

Tim Manning and Eric Rush are also investors in a number of community projects through Pacific Islands Partnership, which has worked toward the installation of a diesel generator and water tanks for the community.

Of The Performers4Poverty charitable trust Tim Manning has said, “I have offered them my guidance and support for the foreseeable future to help those truly needy kids. Fiji and its people are very close to my heart”.

Chrome fans rejoice: Google has released several new features for its open source free web browser.

Chrome marked its one year anniversary earlier this month, and users can now personalise their browser with themes and wallpapers, and order and change the selection of website favourites that appear when they open a new tab.

Google has also tweaked its ‘omnibox’ feature, which combines the website address and search bar and adds icons to help users differentiate between suggested sites, searches, bookmarks and sites from their browsing history.

Product manager director Brian Rakowski says more than 30 million people worldwide use Chrome regularly. Chrome holds just under 3 percent of the global browser market, in comparison with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer which holds around 66 percent.

For developments coming up, the company plans to release beta versions of Chrome for Mac and Linux operating systems.

Plans to allow software developers to create applications for the browser are also scheduled to be in place by the end of the year.

The annual Undie 500 will kick off tomorrow, with a heavy police presence expected to ensure a repeat of previous years’ riots does not mar the event.

Organised by the University of Canterbury student club ENSOC, the Undie 500 is a long established student-run car rally between Christchurch and Dunedin. The name comes from the original requirement that vehicles purchased for the event do not exceed $500. Participants decorate vehicles and themselves before driving south to the city of Dunedin.

Controversy has surrounded the event for the last couple of years after Police were forced to arrest 69 people during the 2007 event, 24 of whom were University of Canterbury students.

Though the Undie 500 was officially banned last year, an unofficial version of the event was organised, which resulted in 30 arrests.

This year entry is limited to just 150 cars, and in an effort to clean up the event’s image, the Undie 500 is now being labelled a ‘charity drive’, with participants being encouraged to donate non perishable food items to Dunedin’s food banks.

There will be a 24 hour alcohol ban in place in North Dunedin from 6pm Saturday night, and Dunedin police have issued a warning that anyone arrested in relation to the event will not be offered police diversion.

Are you a Dunedin resident? Going on the Undie 500 Charity Drive this weekend? Send your comments and photos to news@nzs.com.

Enviro-friendly Kiwis can safely dispose of their old PCs, computer bits and bobs, mobile phones and digital cameras at eDay this weekend.

eDay is a free computer recycling event being held in over 40 centres throughout New Zealand on Saturday, September 12. The event is expected to divert more than 1,000 tonnes of electronic waste (e-waste) from New Zealand landfills.

The event was launched in Wellington in 2006, when 54 tonnes of unused computer hardware was collected. The event has grown exponentially over the past three years, with communities jumping on board to dispose of their e-waste sustainably.

Recycling e-waste enables the recovery and reuse of valuable materials and ensures toxic materials are not buried in landfills.

E-waste items that can be disposed of include computer hardware, monitors, networking equipment such as modems and routers, scanners, keyboards, mice, speakers, laptops, printers, game consoles, toner and ink jet cartridges, mobile phones, fax machines, and digital cameras.

For more information on eDay and to find your nearest eDay drop off point visit the eDay website.