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Making excellence a habit
Granting certification
For initial certification, renewing certification or expanding certification, a certification review will be conducted prior to making a decision to grant certification if:
For maintaining certification, the client shall continue to satisfy the requirements of the management system standard and fulfil BSI's Terms of Service for Certification
Refusing certificationBSI may refuse application for certification or issue any certificate or other document verifying compliance with any law, standard, rule or scheme, if in its reasonable opinion the client does not comply with the requirements of the relevant law, standard, rule or scheme, or fails to comply with any of its obligations under the Contract, or uses BSI's services in such a manner that may be misleading or that may bring BSI into disrepute.
Suspending certification
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Upon suspension, the client management system certification is temporarily invalid. The suspended certification shall be restored if the issue that has resulted in the suspension has been resolved. Failure to resolve the issues that have resulted in the suspension in a defined timeline shall result in withdrawal or reduction of the scope of certification.
Withdrawing certification
Certification may be withdrawn in cases when, for example:
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7 Ways to Save More Money
Stick to Cash
"If you're trying to limit spending, cash is the way to go," says Farnoosh Torabi, author of the personal-finance guide You're So Money: Live Rich, Even When You're Not (Three Rivers Press). Because whipping out a credit card is lot less painful than shelling out those crisp green bills, it's all too easy to rack up bigger charges. Paying cash also means you won't get socked by the higher rates — such as punishing late-payment charges and inactivity fees — that banks and credit card companies are now tacking on to your monthly statements. Of course there are times when plastic is the hassle-free way to go, such as for fixed monthly expenses like phone, cable, utilities, or when you're traveling. And by charging big-ticket items like a new laptop or TV, you're often covered in case the item is damaged or stolen. "But whenever you're headed to the mall," says Torabi, "bring cash and cash only."
Video: Save Money On Going to the Movies
Switch to a Roth IRA
The traditional individual retirement account (IRA) is a popular savings vehicle for many Americans, and no wonder. You're building a nest egg and your contributions are tax deductible. But it's got one big drawback. "When you reach retirement and start withdrawing, you're going to be paying taxes every year," says Jean Chatzky, author of Money 911: Your Most Pressing Money Questions Answered, Your Money Emergencies Solved (Harper Collins) and financial editor for NBC's Today show. "With a Roth IRA, your money grows tax free, forever." Why? You're not getting a deduction on the front end, which means the IRS can't claim a penny down the line — no matter how much your account grows in stocks, bonds or money-market funds — when you start taking the funds out.
This year there's a special window to convert your traditional IRA to a Roth. Anyone, regardless of income, qualifies. You'll have to pay taxes (for a $20,000 IRA, someone in the 15% tax bracket would fork over $3,000). But those who convert this year can spread out that payment over the next two years. The short-term hit, says Chatzky, is worth the benefits over the long haul.
Video: Save Money On Auto Insurance
Wheel and Deal
It's not just families who are in the hole right now. Banks and businesses are too — which is why they'll bend over backward to keep your business, says David Bach, author of Start Over, Finish Rich: 10 Steps to Get You Back on Track in 2010 (Broadway). "Everybody is demanding better prices, and most places are giving in," he says. "But if you don't ask, you don't receive." So now's the time to go over every bill sitting on your desk and start haggling. For cable, Internet, and phone, companies will slash fees when you combine all three services. Sites like BillShrink.com can analyze your cell phone usage and direct you to the cheapest plan available. Shop around for bargains on auto coverage at NetQuote.com, or bundle it with your existing home or life insurer to save up to 15 percent. Ask credit card issuers to lower your interest rates, and request service providers to extend new-customer promotions to you. If they balk, threaten to switch to someone else, a tactic that often works.
By making a few calls, you can save at least 10 percent this year. Need proof? Bach has done it himself many times, bargaining over everything from his insurance (down by 20 percent) to bookkeeping charges (saving $200 a month). "There's never been a better time to renegotiate," he says. "You're in the driver's seat."
Video: Save Money On Gas
Refinance Your Mortgage
For many Americans the biggest expense is paying off the mortgage, and that's where you can save big time if you're not planning to move anytime soon. "Interest rates are still at historic lows," says Gary Schatsky, a Manhattan-based, fee-only financial planner and founder of ObjectiveAdvice.com, who notes that 30-year fixed mortgages are now hovering at around 5.13 percent, and 15-year loans at roughly 4.5 percent. "If you can save 1 percent or more by refinancing, then it's a slam dunk." On a $200,000 mortgage, for instance, reducing your rate from 6.5 to 5 percent would save you $250 every month. You'll take a one-time hit on the closing costs, but the long-term savings will likely far outweigh that. Time is of the essence, though. Some money experts, including those at Morgan Stanley and Freddie Mac, are predicting rate rises of up to 8 percent within a year.
Follow the Money
A lot of people get into trouble because they don't keep track of spending. One solution: new sites like Wesabe.com and Geezeo.com that allow you to securely upload bills and credit card and savings accounts; slot them into categories; and view everything in colorful, easy-to-read graphics. "Seeing it all at a glance helps you focus on the big picture and motivates you to move your money around to where it should be," says Carmen Wong Ulrich, CNBC's personal finance expert and author of Generation Debt: Take Control of Your Money — A How-To Guide (Business Plus). In addition to cutting out nonessentials, Ulrich also recommends spending no more than 35 percent of your budget on housing expenses and 18 percent on automobile payments, gas, and insurance.
As for nonessentials, it's going to be work keeping tabs every time you spend your hard-earned cash. Make a game of it by seeing how long that $20 in your pocket will last. Take advantage of financial networking sites, where you'll instantly acquire a support team of like-minded people. "Everyone will offer tips and encouragement," says Ulrich. "You'll get inspiration from hundreds of fellow savers for free."
Find the Cash in Your Crib
There's good reason houses are called money pits. Property taxes, energy bills, and repairs can really suck you dry. It doesn't have to be that way. "Root around your home. There's a lot of cash to be saved — but you have to know where to look," says Ilyce Glink, author of 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask (Three Rivers Press). Start by unplugging energy vampires like the TV, chargers, and computers at night, and by switching to compact fluorescent bulbs. Chop back your home insurance by raising your deductible; boosting it to $1,000, for instance, could save you 25 percent on your premiums. Appeal your property taxes with your township or county, since they were probably set during the high-value boom years. The odds of a successful appeal are as high as 40 percent, potentially saving you hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year, according to the National Taxpayers Union. (Go to homeownertaxcut.com for a starter kit.) And don't be afraid to take on DIY home projects. "By tackling basic fixer-upper jobs like repairing leaky pipes or installing a new faucet, my husband and I save about $5,000 a year," says Glink, who also does her own yard work. "You don't have to be Bob Vila to do it."
Video: Save Money On Cable
Tame Those Student Loans
For people still saddled with federal student loans (the average debt these days is a hefty $23,200, a 24 percent increase since 2004), there's a new program that could save you a huge chunk of money. The Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan, which became available last July, offers payment caps based on income and family size. For most borrowers, that amounts to less than 10 percent of their income. "It's a sliding scale based not on how much you owe but on what you can afford," says Beth Kobliner, author of Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties (Fireside).
Right now IBR is best for couples who file their taxes individually: A husband and wife each making $30,000 a year and owing $30,000 in student loans would have to shell out only $170 a month per person. That's about half of what they'd be paying under a standard repayment plan, freeing up more than $4,000 a year for the family. But the plan gets even sweeter come July, when the same provisions will be extended to married couples who file jointly. To learn more, check out ibrinfo.org or finaid.org. They also offer a program where you could qualify to not have to pay off any remaining debt after 25 years — or just 10 years for teachers, government employees, and nonprofit workers.
Video: Save Money On College
More on Family Finances
Originally published in the April 17, 201,0 issue of Family Circle magazine.

subset: commoncrawl


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Bessey Clamps
Bessey Tools traces its origins back to 1889 in Bietighiem, Germany where Max Bessey founded a bright drawn steel mill. While more than a century has passed, the name Bessey continues to be synonymous with quality in the steel industry. To this day, rigid demanding production standards ensure the uncompromising quality of Bessey bright drawn steel. That steel forms the cornerstone of the legendary line of Bessey clamps.
Bessey Clamps
Spring Clamps
Bessey Spring Clamps are convenient, inexpensive "extra hands". Spring operated jaws hold any material quickly and efficiently.
Designed especially for light general purpose and DIY projects.
K-Body Revo Clamps
Use the Bessey K Body Revo Clamp anywhere where high pressure clamping, 90 degree clamping or powerful spreading is required. With clamping forces up to 1500 lbs, 30% larger clamping surfaces and sensible accessories the Revo clamp can do the job.
K Body Maxis VarioPivot
A clamping system that turns the K Body clamp into a flexible, vario-pivot bench fixture.
S-10 Vise Clamp
Highly versatile, this unique tool is ideal for holding rounds, rectangles and odd-shaped objects.
EZS One Hand Clamp and Spreader
Easy conversion from clamping to spreading - no tools required. 445 lbs of clamping force.
Bar Clamps w/Clutch
Well balanced, ergonomic design for easy clamping of work pieces with up to 600 lbs of force.
Tradesmen Bar Clamps
Tradesmen TG bar clamps for woodworking, construction, maintenance and general purpose applications. The original malleable, cast-iron bar clamps from Bessey.
MightyMini Clamp
The 2" clamp that does the work of 1", 2" or 3" C-clamp.
VAS-23 Variable Angle Strap Clamp
A gear and strap clamp for distortion-free multi-angled clamping.
EKT-55 One Hand Edge Clamp
The EKT-55 Professional One Hand Edge Clamp is light and easy to handle. It is ideal for applying multi-layered edge strips with just one hand! Specially developed to make your day-to-day work even easier.
Spindle Edge Clamps
Converts most standard bar clamps to a three way edge clamp.
Bessey Cutting Tools
D48A-BE Erdi Snip
Multi-Purpose Offset Snip.


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SmokinTex Smoker
You don't have to visit a Texas ranch to enjoy the flavor of authentic pit barbecue. Using this efficient electric smoker, you can slow-cook beef, pork and poultry to perfection in your own backyard.
- Simplifies smoking foods: Just add wood chips, place foods on the racks and switch on the smoker.
- Heating element has an adjustable thermostat for precise temperature control from 100°F to 250°F.
- Double wall insulated stainless steel construction maintains the consistent low heat that gives barbecued meats their succulent texture and rich, smoky flavor.
- Four racks let you cook a variety of foods at the same time.
- Ideal for everything from tri-tip and ribs to chicken, seafood and vegetables.
- Locking castors for easy mobility.
Dimensions & More Info
- Stainless steel construction.
- 700W heating element.
- Exterior: 17 1/2" x 21" x 29" high.
- Interior: 14 1/2" x 14 1/2" x 21" high.
- Weight: 93 lb.
- This product is intended for use in the United States and Canada and is built to United States electrical standards.
- Made in China.
Use & Care
- Choose a dry, sheltered, well-ventilated location when ready to use.
- Smoker must be seasoned at least 4 hours prior to smoking your first load.
- Never place more than 8 ounces of wood in the smoker. Too much wood will cause the food to have a bitter taste.
- Use any hardwood in your smoker. See manufacturer's manual for information about the qualities of specific hardwoods.
- Do not soak the wood; use only dry wood.
- Do not leave hot oven unattended with door open.
- Use extreme caution when moving your smoker while in use.
- When not in use, store smoker indoors unplugged and safely out of children's reach.
- For household use only.
- To avoid electrical shock: Do not immerse cord, plugs, or any part of unit in water or other liquid; keep extension cord connection dry and off the ground; connect to properly grounded outlets only.
- Unplug smoker before cleaning.
- Use a damp sponge to wipe the inside of smoker.
- Do not remove the creosote that lines the inside of the smoker. This locks in the smoke flavor and acts as a moisture barrier.
Price Match Guarantee
Williams Sonoma Price Match Guarantee
At Williams Sonoma, we're committed to bringing you the best quality at the best prices.
If you find a lower price on any of our products, we'll match it—guaranteed. Click here for details.
Shipping Information
UPS can deliver most in-stock items within 3–5 business days. UPS is unable to deliver to P.O. boxes.
Shipping Rates
The shipping rate varies depending on your order total and shipping destination. View Shipping Options and Charges.
Next Day Delivery
For an additional charge of $26 per address, we can expedite delivery to most destinations. This service is not available for some oversize items, items shipped directly from the supplier (including perishable and custom-manufactured items), out-of-stock items and items to be shipped outside the contiguous 48 states.
Orders received by 9:00 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday will arrive the next business day; orders placed Friday through Sunday will arrive on the following Tuesday.
Return Policy
At Williams Sonoma, we take great pride in the quality and craftsmanship of our products. Attention to design, materials, safety and construction are our priority. Upon receipt, please inspect your purchase and notify us of any damage; we will arrange for a prompt replacement.
If within 30 days, you are dissatisfied for any reason, you may return your purchase for a refund of the merchandise value. An original receipt or gift receipt is required for all returns and exchanges. Returns with a gift receipt will be refunded in the form of a Merchandise Credit for the amount indicated on the gift receipt. Returns with original receipt will be refunded in the original form of payment, cash and check refunds over $100 will be issued as a company check (may take 14 business days from time of request).
For all cutlery returns (knife sets, single knives, cutting boards, knife sharpeners and knife storage), please contact us at 888.922.4108 to initiate the return.
We cannot accept returns on monogrammed, personalized, special-order items, custom upholstery, food, items shipped direct from the vendor or on items damaged through normal wear and tear. Final sale items ending in .97 or .99 cannot be returned.
Made to Order and Final Sale Furniture items are non-returnable and cannot be cancelled once the order is placed.
For returns of items purchased from your Williams Sonoma Gift Registry, we will gladly provide a refund or exchange for the merchandise within 90 days of your event or within 90 days of purchase, whichever date is later. View Full Returns Policy.
SmokinTex Smoker
|Delivery Surcharge
|SmokinTex Smoker


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G-20 Inflation Eased Again in January
Rise in Consumer Prices in World's Largest Economies Slowed for Second Straight Month
The rise in consumer prices slowed across the world's largest economies for a second straight month in January, driven by falling inflation rates in several large developing economies.
The low level of inflation will worry central bankers in those developed economies that are witnessing a prolonged period of sluggish price rises. In the euro zone, the annual rate of inflation stands at 0.8%, well below the European Central Bank's target of just below 2.0%....


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Registration can be made
by email – firstname.lastname@example.com
by post, 611 Military Road, Mosman 2088,
by phone 02 9969 4911
by fax 02 9969 7929
or in person.
If you book more than any four classes, pay 50% deposit now and final payment will be due one week prior to each class.
If you book more than six classes, you may bring a friend to one of the classes as my guest. This class must be selected when you book.
Subscribe to our newsletter and you will be advised of last minute class vacancies.
Click here to subscribe
What would you like us to do? Which chefs would you like to hear from? Email us your suggestions at firstname.lastname@example.com
Miguel Maestre has been fortunate to work in some of Sydney's premier kitchens including Bather's Pavilion, Bel Mondo and Cru, before taking up the position at Minus 5 at Circular Quay. At 27 years of age, it was a big test, but the reviews and customer feedback proved it was worth the leap of faith. Miguel became, Head Chef of Tony Bilson's Number One Wine Bar in Sydney's Circular Quay. Working under his friend and mentor Manu Feildel, he impressed the Sydney food scene and then opened his first restaurant in Manly in January 2010, El Toro Loco (The Crazy Bull) where Miguel served wonderful Tapas food and amazing Paella in his own inimitable style.
In January this year, Miguel and Manu opened Aperitif in Sydney's Potts Point where Miguel holds the reins as head chef and serves the wonderful tapas for which he is renowned with a little bit of French thrown in the mix.
Miguel has developed a talent for incorporating Spanish ingredients and cooking styles into his modern Australian menus. In 2010, he was appointed consultant and creative chef of the Argyle's Bazar by Miguel Maestre in the Rocks, Sydney.
Photography: Karen Watson Stylist: Kathy McKinnon
Spanish Cooking published by New Holland RRP $50.00
Check HARBOURView MAGAZINE for more recipes from Accoutrement every month.
Sopa de Cebolla
Serves 6
600g brown onions, finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced
20g butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon plain flour
2 litres good-quality beef stock
(homemade if possible)
salt and pepper
6 small slices sourdough bread rubbed with garlic
200g grated manchego cheese
Traditional Spanish Onion Soup.
Prep time: 10 minutes. Cooking time: 1 hour 25 minutes.
Heat a large pan on medium-low heat. Cook onion, garlic, butter, olive oil and a pinch of salt,
covered, for 40 minutes, until onion softens but does not colour.
Add flour and cook, uncovered, for 3 minutes. Stir in stock and simmer, uncovered, for 35
minutes, until soup reduces slightly. Season.
Pour soup into individual terracotta pots or soup terrines and cover with bread and grated cheese.
Place under a hot grill for 1–2 minutes, until cheese melts and bubbles.
Serve with a little glass of brandy.
Caballitos con Salsa Romesco
Serves 4
¼ cup chopped flatleaf parsley
¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil
1 long red chilli, seeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
12 green king prawns, peeled, heads and tails intact
12 slices jamón iberico
Romesco coulis
10 blanched almonds, toasted
3 piquillo peppers
½ cup coriander leaves
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 long red chilli, chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
King prawn in jamon with romesco coulis
Prep time: 20 minutes. Cooking time: 5 minutes. Marinate: 2hrs
Soak skewers in water for at least two hours before using. Combine parsley, oil, chilli and garlic in a shallow bowl. Wrap body of each prawn with a slice of jamón iberico. Place prawns in parsley mixture and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours to marinate.
To make romesco coulis, blend or process all ingredients until smooth.
Preheat a barbecue or chargrill on medium. Thread each prawn onto a small skewer. Cook for 2–3
minutes each side, until cooked through and orange around the heads and tails. Serve immediately with romesco coulis.
Note: Piquillo peppers are available in jars from supermarkets.
The romesco coulis needs to be out of the fridge for at least an hour before eating to allow it to come to room temperature and be of liquid consistency. If you try to use it straight from the fridge the oil will be set on top.
Crema Quemada con Hojaldre
Serves 8
3 cups milk
½ cup plain flour
190g caster sugar,
plus extra for caramelising
4 egg yolks
1 cinnamon quill
2 sheets ready-rolled puff pastry
Burnt custard with puff pastry.
Prep time: 10 minutes, plus cooling. Cooking time: 20 minutes
Preheat oven to 200°C.
Place ½ cup milk in a small bowl. Add flour, sugar and egg yolks and whisk until smooth.
Place remaining milk and cinnamon in a medium saucepan on medium heat and bring to a simmer. Gradually add egg mixture, whisking constantly, until mixture is smooth. Continue cooking, stirring, for 4–5 minutes, until mixture bubbles and thickens. Discard cinnamon. Transfer custard to a bowl, cover surface with plastic wrap and cool completely.
Meanwhile, place pastry sheets on 2 separate trays lined with baking paper. Bake for 10–15 minutes, until puffed and golden. Cool.
Spread 1½ cups custard on a serving platter to the same size as the pastry sheet. Top with pastry sheet, another 1½ cups custard and remaining pastry sheet. Sprinkle with extra sugar and, using a blowtorch, caramelise the top.


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It wasn't quite clear what was going up on the corner of Michigan Avenue and Ontario until the LED-illuminated black chrome and glass exterior facade went up — an amazing representation of Burberry's iconic tartan pattern and what is considered one of the world's most widely copied trademarks. After months of construction, the Chicago flagship (the second largest store in America after New York's 57th street) finally opened this morning. And, after taking a peek in this gorgeous retail paradise, we think you'll agree that some things really can't be imitated.
As if five floors of incredible men and women's clothing and accessories weren't enough to get us excited, the Chicago store is a location of firsts. For starters, it plays host to a physical representation of Burberry Bespoke — the amazing online tool that allows you to create your own iconic Burberry trench coat with the possibility of more than 12 million designs! The flagship also boasts the first in-store Burberry Beauty consultation counter in North America (hello, holiday party makeover!) and carries an exclusive, limited-edition collection of outerwear and non-apparel for both men and women, created exclusively for Burberry in the Windy City! How's that for an incredible holiday gift idea?
While we suggest you get over to the store to check out all of its glorious goodies yourself, check out these snaps in the meantime. We have a feeling you'll be running over in no time.


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Annual Marine air fest at Miramar finally snuffed by government shutdown
The Miramar Air Show was canceled Thursday — one day before its scheduled start — because of the government shutdown. The last-minute action turned a potential money-maker for community programs at the Marine base into another loss.
A truncated, two-day version of the popular annual show had been planned months ago after the
Staffing and other overhead costs would be paid from money generated by the revamped event.
On Thursday, Col. John Farnam, commanding officer of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, got the Defense Department notice that all outreach events were to cease during the shutdown.
By then, spectator chalet tents had been pitched on the flight line, civilian performers had arrived or were en route, fans had purchased premium seats and 5K race registration, and vendors had bought perishable food items for an estimated crowd of 100,000.
"The timing probably couldn't be worse, but it is what it is," Farnam said.
He apologized to San Diego for the cancellation and thanked the community for rallying around an air show despite the budget uncertainty and restrictions.
"Right now everybody is hard at work, as Marines always are, to move forward and make sure we shut this down in an orderly fashion and do it in a way to reduce any loss, any more funding loss than what we sustained already," Farnam said.
The air show, which normally pumps an average of $1.5 million in net profits into base programs annually, will lose money this year after corporate sponsors and others who paid up front are reimbursed.
How much of a loss, Farnam said he doesn't know yet.
View the Video Miramar Air Show cancelled
The air show grossed almost $2.2 million last year during the usual three-day event featuring the Navy Blue Angels jet performance team.
After subtracting $542,987 in overhead and nearly $250,000 for military aircraft fuel paid out of training funds, the event was still a big money-maker, according to documents obtained by U-T San Diego through a
That money provided about 15 percent of Miramar's annual budget for Marine and family programs, including employment assistance for service members leaving the Corps and child-care for working parents.
He received a reply this week from Rene Bardorf, deputy assistant secretary of defense for community and public outreach. Having been a family member of an active duty Marine, she said she understood "the unique and cherished relationship we share with our friends in San Diego.
"Unquestionably, this event is important to the county and the military community," Bardorf wrote, but steep budget cuts had forced the department to withdraw support from more than 2,770 outreach events worldwide.
According to the Defense Department, it costs about $2.5 million to put on the standard three-day show featuring the Blue Angels. Net profits go to base programs, not to the department to reimburse it for the cost of military flights and about $350,000 appropriated for overhead.
This year's modified air show was estimated to cost about $893,000 funded entirely from non-appropriated money generated by the base itself, Bardorf said.
Other costs of the air show usually include $542,000 in flight training hours for military aircraft performing in the show, $455,000 for running the air station, $772,000 for the Blue Angels and $187,000 for aerial demonstrations and displays from other services, Bardorf noted.
Many of those items were cut this year.
"Their numbers seem to include things like electricity to keep the lights on at the base, which they would have to pay for anyway," said Joe Kasper, a Hunter spokesman.
"Air shows in general surely fall in the nonessential category during a shutdown but an air show that actually makes money for the Marine Corps, and a lot of it, could be considered essential on the grounds that it puts dollars in the bank," Kasper added.
Hunter also questioned why the Defense Secretary green-lighted another money-making event, the Navy-Air Force football game, the day before canceling the Miramar Air Show.
"This is probably more about causing disruptions than it is logics," Kasper said.
The goal for this year's smaller event was merely to break even while continuing the San Diego tradition of opening the air station gates to San Diego, Farnam said: "That community engagement is the most important thing."
Asked whether it was wise to proceed with the air show after sequestration, Farnam said: "I feel it was. ... The money that was spent in preparation for the air show occurred months and weeks ago. And this latest development with the government shutdown changed the game a little bit for us."
The air show normally pumps about $17 million into the local economy, according to an estimate by the International Council of Air Shows.
John Cudahy, president of the trade group, said he had never heard of a major air show canceled the day before for anything besides extreme weather.
"It's just the latest in a series of negative impacts that the dysfunction of our federal government is causing to the air show industry," Cudahy said.
About 20 percent of air shows nationwide were canceled this year because of federal budget problems and the lack of military flights, he said. Those that pressed on often saw decreases in attendance of 70 to 80 percent.
"It says a lot about the Marines and civilians at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar that they were on the verge of putting on a show despite sequestration and the government shutdown," about their determination to accomplish their mission and "their understanding of how much the air show means to the people of San Diego," he said.
The news was a blow for Miramar Air Show organizers and fans, but many were sympathetic to the Marines.
The Patriots jet team of civilian fliers headlining the show had three jets at Miramar Thursday morning when they heard the show was canceled.
"Everybody is bummed because we had put a lot of effort into getting ready for this show. A lot of fuel was spent, time spent," said lead pilot Dean "Wilbur" Wright, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who flew with the service's Thunderbirds demonstration team.
Miramar gave them gas to fly home and will reimburse them for the cancellation according to their contract.
"We'll hash it out," Wright said. "They are doing the best they can. We totally understand the situation. They take care of us and we do our best to take care of them when we come there for the show."
Alan McCornack, a 57-year-old Air Force veteran from El Cajon, said he wants the federal budget fixed, but he doubts snuffing the air show will help.
"Our debt is the runaway train that has to be stopped without more band-aid measures like raising the debt ceiling. We can't just print more money," he said.
"But cutting the air show indicates not merely an indifference to good economic sense, but an indifference to the collective will of the public."
John Novak, 66, of Cherry Valley, attended the Miramar Air Show for the first time last year, bringing his children and grandchildren, ages 1 and 5. They still talk about last year's F-22 demonstration and high-speed pass down the runway, seeing the Blue Angels and the little ones' delight at climbing inside aircraft.
"We are very disappointed about this year at Miramar — twice. First was the withdrawal of the Blue Angels and military aircraft. And second hearing that the whole show is canceled. I blame both political parties for the country's current misery," Novak said. Miramar refunded his $300 for premium seats for this year's show Thursday.
A San Diego company, Festivities Catering & Special Events, won the main food and drink concession contract this year. Now the company and its subcontractors face an estimated loss of $100,000 or more in revenues and perhaps $25,000 in unrecoverable food costs.
They were loading up the trucks when they got word. "It took the wind out of our sails. The entire company felt like we were punched in the gut," said Frank Christian, vice president of festivities.
"Had the decision been made to cancel this on Monday when there was the shutdown or Tuesday, it would have given everybody more time to react," he said.
AirShow San Diego, organizers of the event formerly known as "Wings Over Gillespie," planned to staff a booth at Miramar and offer rides and portraits in their World War II-era aircraft.
The cancellation was very disappointing to members of the non-profit air show group, but they commended Miramar, fellow exhibitors and vendors for the tremendous work put in, "especially with such severe financial cutbacks," said retired Marine Col. John Telles. "The amount of effort is hard to realize unless one has done it."
Miramar officials aren't sure yet how they will cover the loss in funds for base programs. Commissaries also closed indefinitely this week.
"These are extraordinary times. We haven't seen things like this in decades," Farnam said. "Like everything we do in the Marine Corps, and the DOD, we will push through and make this work."
Planning for the 2014 air show has already begun.


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A dynamic student life at ENSG sets the tempo for its academic life. The many clubs and associations offer activities that not only give you the chance to catch up with fellow students, get away from it all and have fun, but are also an opportunity to experience solidarity and team-spirit to develop a spirit of initiative, and to truly open yourself up to the world.
Leisure activities
Bureau des élèves / Student Office
The Bureau des élèves is an organization that takes charge of students' free-time. Through the assorted activities of clubs and associations, the Bureau des élèves promotes exchanges among the students and different School associations.
Bureau des sports / Sports Office
The Bureau des sports is responsible for obtaining the FNSU (National Federation of University Sports) licence for the students. While ENSG has its own sports teams, for fans of sports that are a little less mainstream, the SIUAP (university sports association) offers a host of activities, from rock-climbing to canoeing and tennis to subaqua hockey, ensuring that you'll find something to ignite your sporting passions.
Bureau des Arts / Arts Office
The Arts Office supports the cultural activities and the development of ENSG's groups and societies (Cinema, Theatre, Choir, Improvisation) while informing students of the artistic and cultural events of Nancy and its surroundings. The Arts Office also organizes every year the great Arts Week and, thanks to its many partnerships (National Opera of Lorraine, the concert hall L'Autre Canal, the Manufacture Theatre, the Nancy Jazz Pulsations Festival...), everyone finds his happiness beside the studies!
Géol au ski
Géol au ski organises an annual one-week ski trip, open to students in all years of study!
Géol'Explo Mines (GEM)
The GEM association organizes a study-trip for students taking the option in Engineering and Mineral Resource Management (génie et gestion des ressources minerals).
Le Foyer
Le Foyer organizes a number of student social events and parties which guarantee a lively atmosphere. The Foyer is also the name for the student common room, which, with its drinks and snack machines, table-football and card games, is THE place to go to relax and unwind.
Vocational activities
The ADN - Agroalimentaire Développement Nancy
The ADN is a joint ENSG-ENSAIA Junior-Enterprise association through which students can undertake projects in companies all over the world in the fields of geology or food and agriculture.
In parallel, the association organises company-visits for students from the two schools.
ISF - Ingénieurs sans frontières / Engineers without borders
Everywhere from Togo to The Comores, the ISF organizes humanitarian missions in countries all over the world.
The 4L Trophy
The 4L Trophy is a rally-raid with a humanitarian goal, in which the competing teams drive from France to Morocco in Renault 4L cars. Two students from the School take part each year with the aim of defending access to education for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The EDHEC Boat Cup (Course-Croisère EDHEC)
An annual sailing race involving 3,000 students from around the world, competing in three trophy events:
- Sea Trophy: 170 boats race each other along coastal and tactical courses
- Land Trophy: 150 teams battle it out in a one-week multi-sports challenge
- Sand Trophy: Around 50 teams compete against each other in a beach-sports tournament (beach soccer or sandball)
24H de Stan
Once every two years, students from all of Nancy's schools and universities take part in the '24H de Stan', a human-powered 'chariot' marathon in which the student teams spend 24 hours racing their chariots around laps of the famous Stanislas Square.
The INPL raid
A night-time sporting scavenger hunt in the forest near Lake Pierre Percée.


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In this hands-on activity, students conduct bottle experiments to learn about the conditions that best facilitate the decomposition of organic material in soil. In the lab, they observe changes in the decomposition of vegetable scraps by varying the temperature, moisture and light conditions.
This article explains the polar vortex: an area of low pressure (a wide expanse of swirling cold air) that is parked in polar regions. An explanation is also provided for high and low pressure systems.
This online game allows participants to maneuver solar panels and a wind turbine in order to provide electricity to light five homes. Background information on sources of electricity- fossil fuels, solar energy and wind energy- is also presented.
This is an activity about the size and scale of the Sun, Earth and Moon. Learners will collectively paint and label a model of the Sun and determine the comparative sizes of these three bodies.
This website presents ongoing research and recent discoveries in astrophysics, Earth science, and biodiversity. Each bulletin has three types of stories: documentaries (short videos from the field), data visualizations (based on NASA and NOAA data), and news snapshots.
Learners will experiment to create impact craters and examine the associated features. Then they observe images of lunar craters and explore how the mass, shape, velocity, and angle of impactors affects the size and shape of the crater. This activity is part of Explore! To the Moon and Beyond!
This is an activity about identifying patterns of change in shadows as an effect of the Sun's changing position. This activity also discusses how shadows can be used to determine the time of day. Learners will build sundials and collect data based on their observations.


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@RealKyper Breaking #NHL news confirmed #Leafs Brian Burke done with the Leafs. Details to follow.
Hmmm, fired or quit?
McKenzie reporting it as well...saying he's been fired.
Moderators: Three Stars, dagny, pfim, netwolf
@RealKyper Breaking #NHL news confirmed #Leafs Brian Burke done with the Leafs. Details to follow.
Paul Roper @Paul_Roper
Only the Leafs would fire their GM after nine months of not playing and nine days until the first game since said nine months. #NHL
Timing of Burke dismissal very odd. He and all brass were at Marlies game last night in Hamilton. Truth will surface. Something fishy.
Pitts wrote:The NHL should ditch Bettman for Burke right now.
pcm wrote:Burke is a great character to have in this league, but I wouldn't want him as GM of my team. After 5 years of sucking, the Leafs future is still pretty questionable. Not much of a plan in place...
There's no good time to do this, but once you get to a decision on something like this, it's only fair to act upon it, fair for the fans and everyone involved. You can't fake it, and the relationship between the ownership and the GM is a complex one, it has to work long term and if it will not, you deal with it expeditiously. With a week to go before the season, it made sense to deal with it now."
Anselmi said Burke would stay in the organization as a senior adviser
Damien Cox @DamoSpin
EXCLUSIVE: Brian Burke tells http://thestar.com he was "stunned" by firing. http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs/art ... -by-firing …
llipgh2 wrote:That is a seriously awkward handshake.
canaan wrote:if you're not watching Burke's presser, you are missing pure gold.
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Dec. 5, 2007
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara University and San Jose State University have teamed up with Second Harvest Food Bank to create the first ever Rivalry Series Food Drive. The holiday food drive runs from Dec. 8-Jan. 7 in conjunction with the home-and-home series between the universities' men's basketball teams.
"We are thrilled to work with San Jose State and Second Harvest Food Bank to help those in need during the holiday season," said Director of Athletics and Recreation Dan Coonan. "We encourage the Santa Clara community to support this worthy cause and then go cheer on the Broncos at the Leavey Center."
Food collection bins and coin jars will be available at all Santa Clara men's and women's home basketball games from Wednesday, Dec. 8-Monday, Jan. 7 to collect donations. The Broncos play at San Jose State on Dec. 8 and then host the Spartans at the Leavey Center on Jan. 7. Fans donating at least six dollars or two (full serving) canned good items will be given a 2-for-1 coupon to purchase general admission tickets for the Jan. 7 game.
Fans can donate to the cause in a number of other ways. Donations can be made online at the Second Harvest Food Bank website at https://fooddrive.shfoodbank.com/. Fans can assign the donation to Santa Clara University on the drop down menus by designating the organization type as "School" and the organization name as "Santa Clara University." Food and cash donations can also be dropped off at the Santa Clara Athletic Department Marketing and Promotions office and mail-in donations can be sent to SCU Athletic Department, Attn. Food Drive, Athletic Marketing and Promotions, 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, CA 95053.
Food Drive Games:
Wednesday, Dec. 12 - Men's Basketball vs. Pacific - 7 p.m.
Monday, Dec. 17 - Men's Basketball vs. Montana - 7 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 21 - Women's Basketball vs. San Jose State - 7 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 28 - Cable Car Classic - 6 & 8 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 29 - Women's Basketball vs. Northern Arizona - 2 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 29 - Cable Car Classic - 6 & 8 p.m.
Monday, Dec. 31 - Women's Basketball vs. Cal State Fullerton - 5 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 4 - Women's Basketball vs. Cal State Bakersfield - 7 p.m.
Monday, Jan. 7 - Men's Basketball vs. San Jose State - 7 p.m.
For information about Second Harvest Food Bank and for information on donation guidelines, visit www.2ndharvest.net. Second Harvest needs nutritious, non-perishable foods: meals-in-a-can (stew, chili, soup, etc.), tuna/canned meat, peanut butter, canned foods with pop-top lids, low-sugar cereals, 100% fruit juices in single serving boxes - "Juice Boxes," canned fruit packaged in juice and canned vegetables. Please avoid donated items packaged in glass/breakable containers. The food bank cannot store/handle bulk quantities of rice, flour, sugar, coffee or unprocessed grains/beans.


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Dad And Doctor Embrace In Emotional Moment
Photo credit: Blend Images/Mike Kemp/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
Parents who have suffered a pregnancy, infant or child loss often term their next child a "rainbow baby," as rainbows often appear after a storm. For Andrew and Amanda Hanson, the birth of their rainbow baby was a time of great joy, and their birth photographer caught a surprising, heartfelt moment.
A father and doctor, embracing
The Hansons suffered through a tragedy just a little under a year ago, when their first child, a baby boy they named Klayton, passed away shortly after his birth. They were devastated, and they shared that everyone involved was in tears, including the delivering obstetrician.
Just a few months later, they discovered that she was expecting again, and they hired the same birth photographer to document their new little one's birth.
Birth photos are some of the most emotionally-wrought pictures you will ever see — a mother working hard, the relief on her face when her baby arrives, the tears in the eyes of those with her and those first glimpses of the newest person in the family are all precious memories to record. But when the birth photographer began looking at the photos she'd captured on that day, one really stuck out to her. After little Karson was born, the new father turned to the doctor, who had also delivered Klayton, and with a profound sense of relief, they embraced and cried.
Viral for a good reason
While Karson's birth took place last February, the photo of the two men has recently gone viral, bringing attention not only to ShutterHappy Photography but to the concept of rainbow babies and talking about pregnancy and infant and child loss. Often bereaved parents suffer even more because those around them hesitate to talk about their lost child or don't seem willing to listen to them.
"Both Andrew and I are touched by all the amazing love and support that is pouring in," Amanda writes on the photographer's Facebook page. "We are also amazed by all the parents willing to share their stories of loss with us. It is giving them hope for their own rainbow baby and to know it is all right to talk about the loss."
More birth stories
Idaho mom gives birth while driving
Baby born in children's library
Stomach flu, or labor and delivery?


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Invented by Autohelm in 1973, tiller pilots have consistently been the world's most popular pilot ever since, setting thestandard for performance, reliability and ease of use.
AutoTack lets you handle the sheets while the pilot tacks the boat and AutoSeastate intelligently keeps the boat on course while conserving power.
Whether used as a stand-alone pilot or with SeaTalk/ NMEA GPS, the clear backlit LCD and 6 button keypad make these pilots safe and easy to use.
Raymarine ST1000: 3,000kg (6,600lbs)
Raymarine ST2000: 4,500kg (10,000lbs)
Remember to always take the fully laden displacement weight of your vessel into account (often 20% above the designed displacement).
View the specifications
2019 © FLIR Systems All rights reserved. Privacy Policy|Copyright Policy|Terms of Use


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High court to review Kansas sheriff's killing
Breaking Legal News - POSTED: 2013/02/25 16:45
Breaking Legal News - POSTED: 2013/02/25 16:45
The Supreme Court has agreed to consider reinstating the conviction and death sentence of a man who said he was high on meth when he killed a Kansas sheriff.
The justices on Monday said they will review a state Supreme Court ruling that granted a new trial to Scott Cheever, who admitted to shooting Greenwood County Sheriff Matt Samuels.
The Kansas court said Cheever's rights were violated during his trial because a psychiatrist was allowed to testify about Cheever's psychological records without his consent.
Samuels' death prompted changes in the Kansas criminal code to make it more difficult to purchase the ingredients used in making meth.
The case will be argued in the fall.


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At least four people have reported being shot at while driving on a North Texas highway, according to police in Anna.
Investigators believe the shooter is using a high-powered pellet gun, but they are not ruling out the possibility a low-caliber rifle was used.
The shootings occurred along Texas Highway 5 between Anna and Melissa.
The first report came in Monday morning, and three more victims have since come forward, Anna police said.
None of the victims were injured.
"Someone is playing with people's lives," Anna Police Lt. Jeff Caponera said. "I've seen pellets kill people, so it's not beyond the realm of possibility it could've done some serious damage. We're not ruling out that it could've been a small-caliber .22."
Doug Page was driving to lunch on Monday when his SUV was shot.
"It sounded like somebody hit it with a hammer," Page said. "Any number of things could've happened. It could've been way worse than a ding on the side of the vehicle."
Although the shootings occurred in a rural area, police don't believe the shootings were accidental.
"This isn't shooting at birds and accidentally hitting a car. This was four vehicles and they were hit intentionally," Caponera said.
Anna is about an hour's drive northeast of Dallas.


text: 24 Sep DOLCETT VORE PORN GALLERY #37 Posted at 13:40h in Galleries by the reaper 1 Comment 0 Likes This content is for sponsors only Please, consider helping Snuffme by becoming a sponsor. Please understand that this website is run by hobbyists, and we can't afford to pay for everything with our pocket money 🙁 You can upgrade your account by clicking the 'Membership' link in the left navigation menu. Log In Register Become a sponsor Tags: Vore


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So the ice cream maker debate continued on, should I get it? Should I wait for Christmas or a birthday present? Should I just dig out the one from the garage and struggle to make it more often with the machine we have? Oh the decisions! Many days I just ignore it sitting in my amazon cart. That was until the one day I stopped by a garage sale this summer. And guess what was staring at me, yes my ice cream machine. And it was BRAND NEW in the box for $8! Shocked to say the least I snatched that box and wouldn't let go. I'm pretty sure there would have been a fight if anyone even came near me to ask what was in the box! For $8 this thing was coming home with me and I have to say I love it. I'm glad I waited to get a good deal on it but if I knew how easy it would be to make homemade ice cream I would have splurged sooner and bought one!
So if you are like me and have been wondering if you should get one or not, don't hold back! You won't be disappointed at all.
Since it was new it still have all the paper work with it and the kids and I thumbed though all the recipes too. We decided our first try at it was going to be just basic vanilla with some extras to add in.
Vanilla ice cream
1 cup cold whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1-2 teaspoons vanilla to taste
that's it! How awesome is 4 ingredient ice cream? You can substitute lower fat's in this recipe. This first time we made it we used half and half instead of heavy cream and skim milk instead of whole. I also have decreased my sugar to 1/2 cup instead and the kids (or Mr. Bacon for that matter) have noticed a difference.
Mix the milk and sugar in a large bowl until the sugar is dissolved, then add in the cream and vanilla. Stir until everything is mixed well. Pour the liquid into your ice cream bowl, add what every parts your machine says and turn the thing on! Can you see the kids had a blast watching it go around!
Even Bacon Bit needed to take a look!
This time while it was mixing up we decided to chop up some Reese's peanut butter cups.
Again about 3/4 of a cup full. And add them during the last 5 minutes of mixing the ice cream.
Mixing, mixing, mixing... done!Delicious homemade ice cream. Yes this tasted just like a DQ blizzard only better! We really do enjoy our ice cream maker, my only regret was not getting it sooner!


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Last September, Spokane Public Schools created an adoption committee that was to choose a new high school mathematics curriculum. For the first time perhaps ever, parents, students and community members (including yours truly) were allowed to participate. The committee met six times in 2009. At our Dec. 9 meeting, we chose two strong finalists from eight possibilities, and we did it despite the district's complete mishandling of the adoption process. Administrators and "facilitators" wasted our time and tax dollars on useless activities; minimized or excluded feedback from parents, teachers, students, and committee members; and continually showered us with extreme reform propaganda.
On Dec. 9, the district's interference went to a whole new level. On that day, members of the adoption committee were barred from determining whether the eight possible curricula met the most crucial requirement on our list: "Alignment to State Standards." Instead, we were told to use a previous assessment from the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. We were assured that if OSPI ranked a curriculum as being closely aligned to the state standards, the program was assumed to be "accurate, rigorous, and high quality."
This assurance necessarily presumed that OSPI's assessment was done thoroughly, correctly and without bias. But that presumption is on shaky ground.
In 2008, under former State Superintendent Terry Bergeson, a team put together by OSPI assessed 13 high school math curricula (3 texts each), mapping each to the new state standards. There wasn't time for careful assessments of "mathematical soundness." The top four were:
1. Holt
2. Discovering Algebra/Geometry
3. Glencoe
4. Prentice Hall
Core-Plus Mathematics Project, Spokane's current high school math curriculum, placed sixth overall. Core-Plus is a reform program, and its text is arranged in an "integrated" fashion. Of the textbooks with a "traditional arrangement of content," (algebra/geometry/algebra), Holt placed second in algebra and first in geometry. Meanwhile, Discovering Algebra/Geometry placed first in algebra, but sixth in geometry.
(Although Discovering Algebra/Geometry contains a "traditional arrangement of content," it isn't a "traditional" textbook. The texts are heavily constructivist, with constant group work and student "discovery.")
OSPI also asked Drs. James King and George Bright to assess the top four curricula for mathematical soundness. Both men had potential conflicts of interest.
- Dr. Bright has a Ph.D. in mathematics education (not in mathematics) and has advocated for reform math. At the time, he worked for OSPI. He also was part of the assessment team for reform curriculum Connected Mathematics.
- Dr. King has a Ph.D. in mathematics and is an author for Key Curriculum Press (Key Curriculum Press is the publisher for Discovering/Algebra/Geometry).
OSPI released a preliminary recommendation to the State Board of Education (SBE). Legislation required the SBE to review the recommendation before OSPI issued a final recommendation to the school districts and to the general public. The top 3:
1. Holt
2. Discovering Algebra/Geometry
3. Core-Plus Mathematics
I'll bet you're wondering how Core-Plus snuck in there. I wondered the same thing. In January 2009 I asked OSPI why Core-Plus was recommended over other, better curricula. Greta Bornemann, OSPI's math director, told me that Randy Dorn, the new superintendent, wanted to have at least one integrated curriculum in the top three.
And so OSPI initially chose to recommend Core-Plus (despite the entire series being widely panned) and Discovering Algebra/Geometry (despite the geometry portion of that series being widely panned). The SBE meanwhile had contracted with Strategic Teaching, Inc. to have the top four curricula assessed by other independent mathematicians. For this assessment, the fourth-ranked curriculum – Prentice Hall – was passed over so that sixth-place Core-Plus Mathematics could be assessed in depth.
Two mathematicians – Dr. Stephen Wilson, Johns Hopkins University, and Dr. Guershon Harel, University of California, San Diego – determined that Core-Plus and Discovering Algebra/Geometry are indeed mathematically unsound. Holt – while not thought to be fabulous – was the only one of the four found to be mathematically sound in all categories assessed. Following this process, OSPI issued its final recommendation to the public. Just one high school curriculum was recommended: Holt Mathematics.
This fall, Dr. Bridget Lewis, Spokane's executive director of instructional programs, told parents in two community forums that the mathematicians conducting the state reviews did not agree on the results. This is a partial truth. All four of the in-depth reviewers (Drs. Wilson, Harel, Bright and King) chose Holt Mathematics in their final summary. Drs. Wilson and Harel also agreed on the unsound nature of Discovering Algebra/Geometry and Core-Plus Mathematics. Dr. Lewis and Rick Biggerstaff, Spokane's secondary math coordinator, knew about the additional in-depth assessments, and also about OSPI's sole recommendation of Holt, yet they still forced the curriculum adoption committee to use OSPI's original, cursory scoring.
On Dec. 9, I asked Rick Biggerstaff why they did that. I mentioned the in-depth assessments from Drs. Wilson and Harel, plus another done by mathematician Dr. John Lee, University of Washington (who also found Discovering Algebra/Geometry to be inadequate). Rick Biggerstaff brushed off my concerns, saying the assessments from Drs. Wilson and Harel were only about "mathematical soundness," not "alignment." Pointing to OSPI's original scoring, he repeatedly stated, "We've decided we're going to use this."
But why? Why would Spokane administrators insist on using OSPI's original scoring when its results conflict with later in-depth assessments? The most notable aspect of OSPI's original scoring is that the OSPI team ranked Discovering Algebra/Geometry – a highly constructivist (discovery) program – as second overall despite its dismal scoring in geometry. Perhaps Dr. Lewis and Rick Biggerstaff didn't bother to become informed about the in-depth assessments. Or, perhaps their unstated agenda was to keep a constructivist program in the running despite its known inadequacy. Perhaps both. Are there other possibilities?
Despite all of this, a majority of the members of Spokane's adoption committee stood tall on Dec. 9 and chose Holt Mathematics and Prentice Hall as the two finalists. We did it based on our familiarity with mathematics, our experience in mathematics instruction and tutoring, and the desires of the community we serve. I'm proud of the committee. Now, if we can successfully navigate Spokane's brief pilot of Holt and Prentice Hall, the district's final recommendation to the school board, the school board vote, and the funding of the new math curriculum, we'll really be getting somewhere.
Please note: The information in this post is copyrighted. The proper citation is: Rogers, L. (December, 2009). "School district excludes feedback from mathematicians." Retrieved (date) from the Betrayed Web site: http://betrayed-whyeducationisfailing.blogspot.com/


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The process is more involved for complex business rules, where we need to check combinations of field-values.
Some Links:
Enforcing Complex Business Data Rules with WPF
Explicitly Updating And Validating Databindings In WPF
Data Validation in 3.5
WPF: Validation of business objects, a simpler approach
(The first link is very useful, the others vary.)
I also adapted the code from the answer in this StackOverflow question.
Topic List
- General Considerations
- What About Our Application?
- Exception Validation
- IDataErrorInfo
- Prevent Navigation
- Prevent Saving
General Considerations
The primary level of data-validation should be at the data-source (the database) level, using unique indexes, primary keys and constraints, etc.. Thereafter, it is a little tricky to determine at what level, and with how much detail, data-validation should occur.
You, as the developer, have the responsibility to ensure that the integrity of the data is maintained. As the designer, you also should ensure that data-validation occurs in a natural manner, providing the user with useful and clear feedback. You also need to ensure that the validation isn't too obstructive; that is, avoid error messages that are too detailed, or too many of them, and interrupt the user's workflow as little as necessary.
Obtaining feedback from your client and their users is very important, in order to agree an appropriate level and amount of validation.
What About Our Application?
Our application already has a WPF quirk in that, even though the Title should be validated on lost-focus, clicking in and out of the TextBox doesn't trigger this validation. There also isn't a simple, obvious way to prevent navigating away from an item if it contains invalid data. We will tackle these issues.
When the user clicks New, a new ToDo item is created immediately. We also don't have a Cancel or a Confirm/Save button, which would be a natural place to run the data-validation. Instead, if the user wishes to abandon a new item, they have to specifically Delete it. Given this, our approach will be to immediately indicate that the Title is required. That is, we won't have a separate (Explicit) validation-step.
Immediately showing an error message when starting a new item isn't very user-friendly, but it is reasonable for our simple application (and for the purpose of this tutorial).
The Business Rules:
- The Title cannot be empty or whitespace.
- No date-value before 1st Jan 2000 is allowed. (This is an arbitrary, but sensible, earliest date.)
- If there is both a StartDate and a DueDate then the StartDate must be on or before the DueDate.
- If there is both a StartDate and a CompletedDate then the StartDate must be on or before the CompletedDate.
- If Completed is ticked then there must be a CompletedDate.
- If there is a CompletedDate then Completed must be ticked.
(When a CompletedDate is keyed we will automatically tick Completed. However, this is only a convenience to the user, and we still require the validation-rule because the user could then untick Completed.)
You can see how combining validation-rules across several fields can quickly become complicated, and require much more thought (and testing) than rules against individual fields.
Exception Validation
This is the simplest to implement at a single-field level. When attempting to set the value of a bound-property we simply throw an Exception for an invalid value. All we need to do in the XAML is to set ValidatesOnExceptions="True" and the Exception error-message will be fed back and used with the Validation.ErrorTemplate that we built earlier.
If we were, for example, using a TextBox rather than a DatePicker for one of the dates then an Exception would already be raised if the user keyed a non-date. However, without setting ValidatesOnExceptions this Exception would be silently ignored by the presentation-layer (with the value typically reverting to the last-submitted valid date-value).
We will demonstrate this using the Title. Modify ToDo.xaml:
<TextBox Grid.Row="0" Grid.Column="1" Grid.ColumnSpan="3" x:Name="txtTitle" Validation.ErrorTemplate="{StaticResource validationTemplate}" Style="{StaticResource styTextMissing}"> <TextBox.Text> <Binding Path="/Title" Mode="TwoWay" UpdateSourceTrigger="LostFocus" ValidatesOnExceptions="True"> <Binding.ValidationRules> <models:TitleValidator></models:TitleValidator> </Binding.ValidationRules> </Binding> </TextBox.Text> </TextBox>
The only change here is the addition of ValidatesOnExceptions. Modify ToDo.cs to raise the Exception:
public string Title { get { return _title; } set { if (_title == value) return; _title = value; if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(value)) throw new FieldAccessException("Title cannot be empty (or whitespace)."); RaisePropertyChanged("Title"); } }
I chose FieldAccessException but you could use, and find, a more appropriate Exception. This is not essential (you could just raise the (general) Exception) but it is more professional to find one that fits-in with the .NET Exception hierarchy.
You could run and test this. I have kept the previous ValidationRule which uses IsNullOrEmpty. If you delete the Title then this rule's error message will display; if you use a space for the Title then the Exception error-message will appear instead. This demonstrates that there can be several data-validation rules applied to the same bound-control*. The order that they are applied in the XAML is significant, with the first one set, and met, being the one that is used/displayed.
*Side-note: WPF prefers the term 'elements' rather than 'controls' as used by WinForms. I trust that you will forgive my occasional use of the term 'control'.
For the Title we don't need both of these rules, and we should either allow whitespace or not, but keeping both rules is useful for demonstration purposes.
We will do a similar thing for the date-fields, not allowing dates before 1st January 2000. Modify each of the three DatePicker controls in ToDo.xaml following this pattern:
<DatePicker Grid.Row="1" Grid.Column="1" Grid.ColumnSpan="2" x:Name="dpStartDate" Validation.ErrorTemplate="{StaticResource validationTemplate}"> <DatePicker.SelectedDate> <Binding Path="/StartDate" Mode="TwoWay" ValidatesOnExceptions="True" /> </DatePicker.SelectedDate> </DatePicker>
(We can continue to use the validationTemplate we created previously.)
In ToDo.cs:
public DateTime? StartDate { get { return _startDate; } set { if (_startDate == value) return; if (value < new DateTime(2000, 1, 1)) throw new IndexOutOfRangeException("Must be 1st Jan 2000 or later."); _startDate = value; RaisePropertyChanged("StartDate"); } }
You could copy and paste this for the DueDate and CompletedDate.
You could test these rules now. Notice that this alone is still not sufficient to prevent the user from moving away from an invalid ToDo item.
We will implement this interface in our model ToDo.cs. This will allow us to validate across multiple fields (complex business rules). Essentially, we set a string-value if some field/column isn't valid. When testing one field we can examine the values that are held in other fields. The XAML will look for these string-values, recognising that there is invalid data, provided we set ValidatesOnDataErrors=True.
The validation, and display of error messages, will occur instantly. This is suitable for our application (as we don't have a Save button). The alternative is to use Explicit Validation by setting UpdateSourceTrigger=Explicit. This is discussed in the second link (at the top of this tutorial).
I don't use or discuss Explicit Data Validation any further in this part. It uses code-behind to obtain the BindingExpression behind a Control, and then uses the method UpdateSource() on this expression.
An alternative approach using a BindingGroup is discussed in the first link above. Essentially, this requires a set of controls to share a common ancestor element.
Many don't consider data-validation fully-implemented in WPF: perhaps it will be in future versions. I noticed also that some developers ignore, or side-step the validation features, building their own validation process. Even if you should decide to do this you still need a good understanding of the built-in validation features.
Here is the full code for ToDo.xaml which adds ValidatesOnDataErrors="True" and Validation.ErrorTemplate to each of the bound-elements.
The IDataErrorInfo interface requires one property and one indexer:
public interface IDataErrorInfo { string Error { get; } string this[string propertyName] { get; } }
The indexer returns a string for each column; if the string is null then there is no error for the column.
The Error property is intended to represent an error on the object as a whole (row-level), rather than on individual properties (cell-level). It is intended for use with, for example, a DataGrid or BindingGroup. Nevertheless, I do make use of Error based on the code in the StackOverflow link at the top. This will allow us to prevent navigating away from an invalid ToDo item, or saving the ToDoList while there is an invalid item.
Add the interface to ToDo.cs:
public class ToDo : INotifyPropertyChanged, IDataErrorInfo {
Then the two required members:
public string Error { get { return this[null]; } } public string this[string columnName] { get { return IsValid(columnName); } }
The Error property calls the indexer with null in place of a column-name.
The indexer calls a separate helper-method (IsValid) passing the columnName, or null if called by Error.
Here is the essential structure of the IsValid method:
public string IsValid(string columnName) { StringBuilder result = new StringBuilder(); if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(columnName) || columnName == "Title") { if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(Title)) result.Append("Title cannot be empty.\n"); } if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(columnName) || columnName == "StartDate") { if (StartDate != null) { if (DueDate != null && DueDate < StartDate) result.Append("StartDate must be on or before DueDate.\n"); if (CompletedDate != null && CompletedDate < StartDate) result.Append("StartDate must on or before CompletedDate.\n"); } } return (result.Length == 0) ? null : result.Remove(result.Length - 1, 1).ToString();
This uses a StringBuilder but if a columnName (other than null) is supplied then this will return either null or (typically) a single error-message for the particular column.
If Error has called this method with null then all of the validation tests will occur (for all of the columns) and the returned StringBuilder will either be null, if there are no errors in any column, or it will consist of one or more error messages, separated by newlines.
If the StartDate column is being explored, and there is a StartDate, it is compared to the DueDate and CompletedDate (if there are either).
Validation of the other columns follows a similar pattern and I will provide the full code shortly. First, here is a new method:
public bool IsItemValid { get { return string.IsNullOrEmpty(this.Error); } }
We will use this method later to prevent moving away from an invalid ToDo item, and to prevent saving with an invalid item.
If you were to add the validation for the other columns you would find that there are inconsistencies. For example, if an error message occurs on keying a DueDate, because its StartDate occurs after this date, if you correct the StartDate it won't automatically remove the error message on the DueDate. To correct this behaviour we use code like this:
public DateTime? StartDate { get { return _startDate; } set { if (_startDate == value) return; if (value < new DateTime(2000, 1, 1)) throw new IndexOutOfRangeException("Must be 1st Jan 2000 or later."); _startDate = value; RaisePropertyChanged("StartDate"); // check properties in parallel RaisePropertyChanged("DueDate"); RaisePropertyChanged("CompletedDate"); } }
When the StartDate is changed we signal that both the DueDate and CompletedDate have also changed, triggering their validation.
We need to be careful with this process, as it could be possible to create a non-ending change-sequence.
Full code for ToDo.cs:
You could run and test the application now.
Prevent Navigation
Add the following to ToDoList.cs:
using cview = System.Windows.Data.CollectionViewSource;
Now modify to the following code, which uses IsItemValid to prevent (Cancel) navigating away from an invalid ToDo item:
CommandExit = new MajorCommand(this, Major.Exit); cview.GetDefaultView(this).CurrentChanging += ToDoList_CurrentChanging; } void ToDoList_CurrentChanging(object sender, System.ComponentModel.CurrentChangingEventArgs e) { try { if (!((ToDo)cview.GetDefaultView(this).CurrentItem).IsItemValid) { if (e.IsCancelable) e.Cancel = true; } } catch (NullReferenceException ex) { // no current item, ignore } }
We do not need to modify our NavigationCommand(s). A NavigationCommand could attempt to move away from the currrent ToDo item, which triggers CurrentChanging, which in-turn will be cancelled (e.Cancel = true;) if the current item is invalid.
It is also sensible that this occurs at the Model (or ViewModel) level because any attempt to move away from an invalid item will be prevented.
For reference, here is the full code of ToDoList.cs:
Prevent Saving
The remaining situation in which we need to check for an invalid ToDo item is when the user attempts to save the current list. Items other than the current one will already be valid (based on the previous code) so we only need to check the current item. If it is invalid we won't allow the user to save the list.
Add this to MajorCommand.cs:
using cview = System.Windows.Data.CollectionViewSource;
Now modify the Save case:
case Major.Save: try { if (!((ToDo)cview.GetDefaultView(_list).CurrentItem).IsItemValid) { MessageBox.Show("Current item has errors.", "ToDo Application"); MessageBox.Show(((ToDo)cview.GetDefaultView(_list).CurrentItem).Error, "ToDo Application"); return; } } catch (NullReferenceException ex) { // no current item, ignore } SaveFileDialog dsave = new SaveFileDialog();
We don't really need two MessageBoxes here, but the second one demonstrates that we have access to the full list of errors for the item (from the StringBuilder).
I don't claim to have covered data-validation in full, but hopefully have provided a good overview of this (sometimes challenging) subject.
Here is a zipped version of the complete project to-date:
ToDoApplication.zip (19K)
Number of downloads: 356
Please note though, that if you have problems with installing the zip then I probably won't do much about it .. sorry, as my intention is that you follow and enter the code provided in the tutorial.
This post has been edited by andrewsw: 22 June 2014 - 10:54 AM


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Wrath of the Titans picks up about a decade after Clash of the Titans, where we find Kraken-slaying demigod Perseus (Sam Worthington) having traded his sword for the mundane life of a fisherman and father to his son, Helius. (Sadly his wife Io passed away – likely because the actress playing her didn't return for this sequel).
One night, Perseus' father Zeus (Liam Neeson) appears to tell him of an ominous prophecy: Mankind has moved away from the gods, causing the gods to lose their powers. This loss has consequently weakened the walls of Tartarus, the underworld prison where the Olympians banished the monstrous Titans – including Kronos, the father of Zeus, Hades and Poseidon. Zeus needs help to hold Tartarus together, but Perseus is reluctant to return to battle – that is, until Hades (Ralph Fiennes) and Zeus' other son Ares (Édgar Ramírez) capture the god of lightning and begin to transfer his life force into the dormant Kronos.
With the fate of the world in the balance, Perseus recruits allies in the form of his old friend Queen Andromeda (Rosamund Pike) and Poseidon's demigod son Agenor (Toby Kebbell). The trio sets out on a dangerous quest into the underworld to free Zeus, and stop the Titans from breaking free and wreaking havoc upon the world.
Clash of the Titans was a somewhat underwhelming affair (read our review), with its wooden acting, formulaic, video game-style progression, poor 3D conversion and action sequences that were more lackluster than thrilling. Wrath of the Titans is indeed an improvement upon its predecessor – but not by much.
Battle Los Angeles director Jonathan Liebesman steps into the director's chair in place of Clash helmer, Louis Leterrier. The two ultimately prove to be on the same skill level (average), but are slightly different in terms of their shortcomings.
Where Leterrier's signature was stiff and contrived action choreography shot at medium range using wires harnesses and such, Liebesman opts for the same kind of shooting style he used in Battle LA - namely a claustrophobic, over-the-shoulder shaky cam perspective – which will immediately turn off a certain contingent of moviegoers. The action sequences in the first film felt like overly-contrived dance routines, but in Wraththe action (especially in the first half) is a mix of blurry up-close movement and wider tracking shots that put the human actor in the foreground, running toward or away from some CGI creature in a green screen background. Stylistically speaking it's not very sophisticated, or believable.
Thankfully Liebesman's guerrilla shooting style relaxes as the film moves into some of the bigger set pieces in the second and third acts, and Wrath of the Titans ultimately manages to end on a much stronger note than it begins, with some epic blockbuster sequences that make smart use of the film's much-improved 3D format. Sure, seeing Perseus riding Pegasus towards a giant molten lava Titan is almost a carbon-copy of the first film, but Liebesman makes it look good. War simulation is definitely his strong suit.
The acting in the film is slightly better this time – though the script is still pretty formulaic, with dialogue that is wooden at best, cringe-worthy at worst. Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes are thankfully given more to work with, as one of the subplots has to do with Zeus and Hades confronting their sibling issues as the time of the gods nears its end. Édgar Ramírez also gets a more Shakespearean (and I use that term veryloosely) story arc, playing the god of war as a wounded, rage-fueled man-child with deep-seated daddy issues. Rosamund Pike and Toby Kebbell are good sidekicks, and character actor Bill Nighy (Underworld, Pirates of the Caribbean) shows up for a scenery-chewing cameo alongside a very special guest, which fans of the 1981 originalClash will delight in seeing.
Sam Worthington, on the other hand, is still as wooden and uninteresting as ever. There must've been a lot of CGI required to create the actor's facial expressions in his Avatar alien body, because in every live-action role since then (see: The Debt, Man on a Ledge) Worthington has pretty much proven that his range extends between blank face and feral growl. Wrath of the Titans tries to give Perseus some deeper emotional motivations (family, duty), but the scenes requiring emoting just look flat and even comical set against Worthington's blank stare. Even Pegasus manages to display more personality – and he's a flying horse.
The Titans (and all the mystical beasts that come with them) are all well-designed and appropriately menacing – except for the Minotaur in the labyrinth sequence. Thanks to excess shaky-cam, we barely get to see what ol' horn head looks like. But Kronos, the Chimera, the double-torso demon soldiers – all well done.
If you were a fan of the first installment then Wrath of the Titans is going to be a welcome improvement; if you didn't like the first film, this sequel is not going to reverse your negative opinion. If you're wondering whether to shill out for the 3D ticket: the last half-hour is worth it, and overall the format is better-utilized, but for most of the runtime it isn't a necessity.
Kofi Outlaw blogs at Screen Rant.


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The 2013 America East champion UMBC men's soccer team will host 2013 national finalist Maryland in the Second Annual "Kicks For Chase" contest at Retriever Soccer Park on Friday, April 11. The kick-off is set for 7:00 p.m.
The teams are raising funds to benefit children born with Down Syndrome in the memory of Chase Bugarin.
Last spring, the UMBC and Georgetown men's soccer teams helped raise nearly $3,000 for The Arc Foundation of Harford County (Northern Chesapeake Region) as part the inaugural "Kicks for Chase" spring contest. Over 1,000 fans attended the event that saw the Retrievers defeat the Hoyas, 2-0.
In September of 2012, Chase Ryan Bugarin was welcomed into the world by parents Bryan (UMBC Soccer 1992-95) and Amy. Chase was born with Down Syndrome along with other serious complications. After an 11-week fight, Chase passed away and though he is no longer with us, his memory lives on. He is survived by parents Bryan and Amy along with siblings Jordyn (10) and Brayden (3).
Admission to "Kicks for Chase" game is free, but donations are being accepted for The Arc Foundation of Harford County.
For over 60 years, The Arc Northern Chesapeake Region (Arc NCR) has helped individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities live independently. Through advocacy, resources, and community building they promote self-sufficiency and improve the quality of life for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
For more information on the Arc NCR please check out their website: http://www.arcncr.org/index.html
Patrons may donate the day of by cash or check. Checks can be made payable to The ARC Northern Chesapeake Region and donators can mark "Kicks for Chase" in the subject line. If you cannot attend the game, but would still like to donate, please mail checks to: UMBC Athletics, c/o Kelly Fahey, Assistant AD for Student-Athlete Affairs, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, Md. 21250
In addition, 100 percent of all t-shirt, food and beverage sales will also be donated to the ARC.


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Although light-emitting diode (LED) technology has been around for several decades, it's only recently started to become a player in mainstream commercial lighting applications. As the number of manufacturers offering LED-based luminaires continues to grow, it appears this technology has reached its potential for almost any lighting application.
LEDs claim many advantages over traditional lamps (i.e., incandescent, HID, and fluorescent), namely durability and longevity. Despite these benefits, the most obvious challenge with LED lighting is its high initial purchase price tag — a reality that undoubtedly stems from its newness to the market. Like all new technologies, however, the cost is expected to eventually decrease to a more competitive level.
Aside from price, there are several other pros and cons to consider when it comes to working with LEDs. As an electrical contractor looking to install LED-based luminaires, you must be aware of the more important problems/concerns. Following is a discussion of some of the challenges Colonial Electric Supply has run into on some recent projects.
Outdoor LED luminaires today are rated for a number of different temperature ranges, with the maximum typically running around 120°F for standard products. However, on some outdoor installations in the southern United States, especially in alcoves and unprotected areas located in direct sunlight, temperatures can easily soar past this level.
In fact, on one recent large government project, specifications called for 120°F-rated luminaires, which our firm supplied. However, following the installation, field tests revealed on-site temperatures exceeding 160°F, leading us to work with the contractor to remove, retrofit with mil-grade capacitors, and reinstall quite a few of the LED-based luminaires. What's the lesson to be learned here? Be aware that high heat and humidity levels can lower product life spans, and make sure you meet all manufacturer specifications as to where products should be installed. If in doubt, contact the manufacturers you're considering using, and request a site visit prior to purchase or installation.
Although moisture can be the enemy of any luminaire, it presents a unique problem for outdoor LED-based luminaires. Similar to the way moisture affects a cell phone or laptop, as moisture enters the housing of an LED luminaire, it can quickly short it out. In fact, it's not uncommon for service or repair work on LED luminaires to involve the recaulking of housing openings. In especially high-humidity applications, moisture creep has been found to be a considerable problem.
This occurs when the outside conditions cause condensation on the inside of the enclosure. While the enclosures may be sealed very tightly by lighting fixture standards, they are not vacuum sealed or produced like ones made for explosionproof applications, for example. The electronics do need some ventilation. Newer generation LED enclosures may have better venting and climate-controlling features that seek to prevent moisture from developing; some are even considering the use of small fans for ventilation similar to the microprocessor in a computer.
Color matching
Our firm first noticed this problem on a large casino application several years ago. Why do color matching problems still exist today? Because LED chips are produced in batches and are actually kept organized in separate bins by manufacturing production runs. The bin is a manufacturer term for the storage location of a certain batch of LED chips that were all produced in the same manufacturing run on the same day. If the LEDs are supplied from the same bin, then they will have the same color characteristic.
The challenge has been to exactly reproduce the color from one batch of product to the next. On large outdoor accent lighting projects, the color differences can be very noticeable to the casual onlooker. Typically, the differences in color shading are minor. However, depending on the proximity of the application to street level and the quantity of LEDs coming from different batches, this may or may not be a big problem. Some jobs require a trial and error process in order to find the best match when applying new LEDs to an existing application. The manufacturers' answer to this is to, whenever possible, equip all luminaires with LEDs from the same manufacturing batch and bin. Unfortunately, when it's time to replace a luminaire, you're now faced with installing a non-matching unit.
To combat this problem, some manufacturers recommend using products such as a light sanding agent to dull out the newer/brighter LEDs so they match the existing units that are well into their useful life. Another solution is to ensure that extra LEDs from the original batch are dedicated to attic stock for the project. However, our firm has had success using the sanding technique as described above. Perhaps the best solution — but also the most expensive — is to use color-correcting LEDs. This type of product measures the Kelvin temperature output and corrects the whiteness or yellowness of the light to a preprogrammed level. This way, you control the color of the light, not the LED bin.
Installation challenges
At the top of the installation challenges list is the issue of varying voltage levels. Most LEDs do not run on line voltage, so a stepped-down voltage is needed to power the device. This reduced voltage is typically supplied by remote ballasts. Contractors have been dealing with low-voltage lighting for years, so this is not the problem. What is new is that LEDs operate in a variety of low-voltage ranges, depending on the brand and application.
Unlike typical low-voltage lighting products, getting the voltage slightly wrong in an LED-based system is a bigger problem for the LED. Because LEDs are extremely sensitive to under- or over-voltage, you must calculate voltage drop carefully and correct for it. Capable transformers may have multiple taps within small differentials, and picking the wrong tap is a common problem. Because most of the traditional low-voltage products work properly when using any of a number of similar voltages, installers have sometimes improperly assumed that LED lighting will react the same way. To add to the confusion, many different wiring connector solutions exist, even within the same brand of product.
Don't take dimming an LED-based luminaire for granted either. Sometimes it works as if the source is an incandescent lamp; other times, if the voltage is too low, for example, standard dimmers do not work. Therefore, it's important to review the compatibility of the product prior to installation. There is no rule of thumb, but reputable dimming companies are well aware of this dynamically changing issue. Contractors who do not have direct experience with a particular dimming application should contact the dimming manufacturer to ensure compatibility.
Finally, installing LEDs on larger outdoor projects typically requires you to use a computer interface. Many contractors are fairly competent on the standard DMX interface that has been used for interfacing theatrical lighting with computers for years, but what was once a niche application used mainly in theatrical lighting has now become mainstream. For our firm, teaming up with theatrical specialists or system integrators has proven well worth the investment. But even then, the complexity of the project sometimes cannot be overcome. For example, our company supplied LEDs for a large airport project a few years ago. Upon a recent visit, the large color-changing LED luminaires were still not operational. Although we can't say for sure what the problem is, we are confident that the products work as designed — leaving us to suspect that the configuration has just not been completed yet.
Adhesive issues
On smaller applications, such as those that typically involve retrofitting LED product into incandescent fixtures and are often found in downlights, one of the common problems with LED indoor luminaires has been that adhesives used in fixture construction fail or are compromised, which causes them to interact with the LED source and results in light distortion or a complete failure of the product.
Contractors should be on the lookout for LED products that appear cheaply constructed or those coming from an unknown source. Because LED technology is so new, there are many low-level (typically offshore) mass producers of these types of products that sell mainly on price. As the saying goes, "You get what you pay for." In these cases, it's a short product life cycle. Many of the more well-known brands also outsource some production to these companies and have learned the hard way the need for closely monitoring quality control. As time goes on, the more reputable companies in the lighting industry have upgraded their sourcing or taken the process in-house.
Application concerns
The biggest problem our firm has encountered with LED luminaires is — as a realtor would say — location, location, location. The early hype was that LEDs could be put into inaccessible locations because, it was claimed, the light source would last forever — the luminaire wouldn't even need servicing. Lately, however, the manufacturing community is backing off this claim — and for good reason. In many cases, these luminaires have not proven to be any more robust than the familiar lamp-based luminaires they're replacing.
Several large projects in the Gulf Coast region have not gone well, requiring replacing and upgrading of parts such as capacitors and housings mid project. Based on our research, no single brand is immune from trouble; several are reacting similarly to the conditions of extreme heat and humidity. Although they do perform well under shock conditions and offer lengthy life spans of more than 50,000/hr, they are electronic-based products. Therefore, when installed outdoors, they can act quite finicky, producing far less light output than expected, turning on and off intermittently, turning on at low levels when they are set to the off position, or just plain failing.
Another issue to make note of is that well-known lumen calculations are lacking when applied to LED light sources. Beam spectrum most definitely needs to be considered during the design phase of the project. In fact, it's best to double-check these calculations with a lighting designer who has real-world experience with LEDs.
Lack of standards
Because this technology is so new and rapidly evolving, there are no solid standards to reference at this time. Manufacturers and suppliers are not bound by a coordinated code of standards or even terminology. For example, broad spectrum, broad-angle spectrum, full spectrum, and wide spectrum are all used in the LED world and may or may not mean something similar. Unfortunately, users need to go directly to each manufacturer's literature to understand the specific features and abilities of the product being supplied.
The future
The LED lighting revolution has and will continue to drastically change the lighting world. While contractors should not believe all of the hype and claims from LED manufacturers, these products provide many advantages over almost all of the more established and well-known lamp-based luminaires. Although the problems cited above relating to the newness of the technology are certainly cause for concern, the biggest disadvantage right now is still the product's high price. Based on its soaring popularity so far, it looks like the market has decided the pros outweigh the cons.
As a company with firsthand experience in working with these new products, having supplied millions of dollars of LED lighting since the technology's inception and well over $200 million in commercial lighting projects over the past decade, Colonial Major Projects would like to remind you of a common phrase — "buyer beware." Do not make assumptions. Research existing installations, and talk to the owners and other contractors about their experiences with these products. It's probably worth paying a little extra to go with a respectable brand and supplier you're confident will be around to support the product after the sale.
Bellwoar is president of Colonial Electric Supply, headquartered in King of Prussia, Pa. He can be reached at [email protected]. Hammelef, executive vice president of Colonial Major Projects, can be reached at [email protected].