text:
Most important qu...
Do the T&Cs ban you from uploading the same app to different app stores?
Amazon is inviting Android developers to upload their applications for listing in a better class of app store, at a price set by Amazon and only available within the USA. The application store will launch later this year, but developers who sign up now get a free year before they have to start stumping up the $99 annual fee. …
How long before Simon Cowell starts an app store and starts auditioning apps?
How about Alan Sugar? "You're fired".
As much as people think every app should be approved, there's a good reason for attempting to review quality. A shop evaluates everything they sell, they don't stock things that they feel won't sell.
Of course free software is another thing altogether.
I think that'll be a lot more valuable than you think. Google's crappy search (from Google!!) combined with a ton of just plain garbage apps pretty much makes the app store useless for me.
I haven't trawled through looking for interesting apps in months, now I just look for a specific app when someone else says it's good, or when I get referred via the barcode from some website.
It's no longer an app store, it's more like a large FTP site where you happen to be able to purchase some of the files, and there's no overall file listing available.
How about an app store that restricts apps to only the permissions they need and, gasp!, takes it one step farther and restricts the apps' ability to invade my privacy?
Finding a quality app isn't any harder than finding a quality restaurant or pub. Finding one that won't figuratively spit in my curry or piss in my pint is.
needed on the part of developers. Amazon could pretty much gut the market for your app by giving it away for free (or very low cost) and only paying you 20%. I suppose the argument is that volume would more than make up for the missing 50% of revenue, but it seems the risk is all on the developer, and more importantly, you become nothing more than a cog in Amazon's overall marketing strategy regardless of whether that has any benefit to you.
Plenty of stores offer "loss leaders" to get people in the door, but I don't know too many vendors who would willingly take a 50% haircut to be a part of it, no matter what the volume. Guess Amazon views the cost to produce as zero, so 20% is still a profit to the developer.
If I were producing apps for the Android market I'd sure want to think real hard about Amazon's ability to have so much control over my margins, their ability to instantly marginalize my product to promote their goals, and the "new low" this is setting for revenue sharing.
App incompatibility is an issue. Amazon, Google, or AppBrain could solve this by giving users an "incompatible with my device" button on the app store's app detail page. The app store app would already know what device it's running on, so no need to enter that. Apps that're heavily downvoted from a particular phone or OS version could have a "YMMV" flag next to the install button for potential users with similar devices.
Each new version released by the dev gets a clean slate, but prior versions' release notes, stars, and compatibility ratings are accessible via an accordion control. Overall star rating could be skewed to give more weight to the newer releases. Developers could get a report of which devices are causing problems.
And maybe HTC and Motorola get the same list, so they can see where their bloated customizations are causing problems. FWIW, the iTunes app store is littered with apps that don't work on older iPhones as well, also with no indication.
> giving users an "incompatible with my device" button on the
> app store's app detail page.
In my experience developers can be fully aware of device compatibility issues, but with only 325 characters to describe the app, they don't want to waste many of them with a list of phones. Saying "check website for compatibility before purchase" doesn't seem to help - no-one bothers.
This may improve though, as it's now possible to filter sales based on supported 3d texture formats, and those are quite specific to individual hardware implementations. It's a hack, but it can be used to stop selling to hardware on which it's unlikely to work.
> the iTunes app store is littered with apps that don't work on older iPhones
> as well, also with no indication.
iPhone apps have a set of flags that say what hardware features they need (e.g. OpenGL ES 2.0, which is probably the cause for most of the ones you've encountered). So apps can tell iTunes that they don't work on older phones. HOWEVER, Apple don't allow developers to release updates that reduce the number of devices the app is advertised to run on. So if a developer gets a report that "this doesn't work on my 2007 iPod touch", or if they decide to make an improvement that is not backward compatible, they cannot set the flag to prevent selling to the old device.
google should be doing this themselves, the amount of shit on the market hides the good stuff.
the almost complete lack of filtering makes it impossible to filter out all the shite.
I'm not a fan of Amazon as a company but if this will allow me to peruse an app store without broken apps, soundbite apps and otherwise pure shite then ok.
So this is interesting, and more complicated than it looks. At the 10,000 foot level the idea is great. The Android Marketplaces is a open sewer. The promise of quality screened apps in conjunction with backing by a titan of the marketplace could drive lots of traffic to developers.
But they are asking for a huge slice for a middle man. And the terms for unilateral price changes would make the deal a non-starter for me. In addition to bait and switch price changing operations that could collapse a startup or small buisness owners whole revenue stream, Amazon puts itself into the position of being able to undercut the developers other listings for the app. To ensure traffic always flows through them, they can lower their price to be lower then on competing market places. It allows them to use the developers app against not only its creator, but anyone in the same product space. If a second developer tries to sell a competing product they can undercut them with yours, or play both of you against each other even if you are both listed through them. This is a blueprint for anti-competitive behavior. Amazon has total discretion to fix prices on what should be competing products.
Interesting to see if there are restictions on if/how/when you can pull your work off the market, or exclusivity.
For me this is a non-starter without the following modifications. 1. I set an absolute minimum for my sell price and and for the amount I am paid. 2. The term and scope must be included when a change is made. If they want to sell 500 copies of my mobile app at 50% of during a four hour time window for example, I would be more receptive than them cutting my possible yearly revenue to 20% of my asking price, permanently. 3. Informed consent and approval of changes to the terms before they take effect effect. It's on online service for mobile developers, they should be able to send me a request and let me approve it, or temporarily sideline my listing if I don't respond in a timely fashion.
If they are having trouble with the last part I will be glad to write them an app for that...
Amazon wrote us a couple months with an invitation to sign up to this. The terms aren't great and frankly there's enough fragmentation in the market already, and not all Android devices can access "any old" marketplace.
So Amazon have an Android marketplace. Whoopedoo. I buy books and other things from Amazon that are at a great price: I most definitely don't buy anything with a license from them.
Anyway, we said "Not today, thank you".
You opposition finishes their article with a throwaway sentence of
'For anyone who joins its Appstore Developer Portal now, Amazon will waive the first year's $99 membership fee'.
Why the fee. It rather suggests a new Itunes with lockout to other stores
Canny people (myself included) will likely go one of two ways. They'll either see the potential reduction in price (and revenue) as a great way to drive extra people to your apps, and thus be happy to sign up (although not necessarily happy about the $99 annual fee) or they'll just work out that if their app that sells for $x on the normal marketplace makes them $0.7x per sale and they want to keep that rate of return, they have to list on amazon for $3.5x.


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Going Through a Rough Patch
It's the quintessential symbol of Halloween: the Jack-O-Lantern. Fortunately, it's also one of the easiest designs for a baker to make. Just take one round cake, ice it in orange, add a cartoony face, and...voilá!
A Pumpkin Poo-nicorn. Well. That's a first.
[through gritted teeth] Voi-la.
Hm. Maybe the problem lies in trying to make the whole cake look like a pumpkin. Maybe if the baker just drew a pumpkin ON the cake...
Dorota, Carra M., Melody N., Shanna T., Andrew M., Ted, Donny & Amanda, Kaitlin K., & T.A., don't ask me; I'm going with "abstract jack-o-lantern."

subset: commoncrawl


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C/C++ Appsec in 2014
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Brought to you by:
C/C++ Appsec in 2014 by Chris Rohlf
App Security Use Case: PCI Compliance by Jaime D'Anna
When most people hear the term 'Application Security' they often think of web and mobile applications - but the term can apply to an application written in any language or framework on any operating system. A large majority of applications we rely on every day are written in older languages such as C and C++. These languages put developers in control of raw memory and as a result security bugs often have disastrous consequences. While the concept of memory safety is not new, the trends in C/C++ vulnerability research change with time. We will explore some of the newer and more complex bug classes prevalent in applications today and what tools and techniques can be used to find and fix them.
Chris Rohlf is the founder of Leaf Security Research where he specializes in vulnerability discovery and reverse engineering. Chris has over ten years of experience in various security roles including developer, researcher and consultant. Prior to founding Leaf SR he was a Principal Security Consultant at Matasano Security in NYC and has previously worked as a Security Researcher for the US Department of Defense. Chris has discovered and published many security vulnerabilities affecting web browsers, operating systems and more. He has spoken at industry conferences including BlackHat and is the author of numerous open source security tools.
Sponsor Speaker:
Jaime D'Anna is a Senior Director of Product Marketing at TIBCO Software Inc, charged with the success of the Loglogic product line. With over 15 years of professional experience, Jaime has held roles in Product Marketing, Product Strategy and Pre-Sales Engineering for various ERP, CRM and Internet Applications in companies such as IBM, Oracle, OpenText and Documentum. He holds a BS from Santa Clara University as well as a number of industry and regulatory certifications.
TIBCO Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TIBX) is a provider of infrastructure software for companies to use on-premise or as part of cloud computing environments. TIBCO LogLogic provides organizations with security, compliance and IT optimization through enterprise-class log management and predictive intelligence for big data which enables companies to achieve the two-second advantage® – the ability to capture the right information at the right time and act on it preemptively for a competitive advantage. Learn more at www.tibco.com/loglogic.


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A slender white rocket with a Dragon on top is poised to make spaceflight history.
If all goes well, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket and its Dragon cargo capsule will lift off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 4:55 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on Saturday en route to the International Space Station.
For Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX), Saturday's launch begins a crucial set of technical tests for a rocket and spacecraft designed for regular cargo service to International Space Station. That task is itself is a stepping stone to using the Falcon 9 and Dragon capsule to send humans to and from the station, as well as future destinations in low-Earth orbit.
For NASA, the mission represents the first test of its new stance as a customer for launch services to low-Earth orbit. No longer is it the organization sitting in the driver's seat from rocket design through launch to landing. Once the Falcon 9 leaves the pad, control of the mission shifts to SpaceX's command center at its Hawthorne, Calif., headquarters. Only when Dragon closes in on the space station will NASA have thumbs-up or thumbs-down say in the test flight's next steps.
Beyond the launch's import for SpaceX and NASA, however, lies its signal regarding the future of the United States as a truly spacefaring nation, some analysts suggest. It's a future in which access to space for research, commerce, or even relaxation opens to more than relative handful astronauts sporting space-agency logos on their jumpers.
"This is an important step, bordering on a great leap," said Michael Lopez-Alegria, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation in Washington, referring to Saturday's launch attempt during a prelaunch briefing this week. As a NASA astronaut, Mr. Lopez-Alegria flew on three space-shuttle missions and served as an expedition commander aboard the space station.
The mission is technically demanding – cramming into one orbital outing an agenda that the Gemini program in the 1960s took several missions to accomplish. Indeed, NASA and SpaceX agreed to combine the objectives of two demonstration flights into this one mission, based on the Falcon 9's past performance and an analysis of the company's readiness to attempt a twofer.
The challenge begins with the split-second timing required of the launch time. Launches to the space station are notorious for the small span of time – perhaps 10 minutes – a rocket has to lift off in order to rendezvous with the space station while burning as little fuel as possible during maneuvers required to catch up with the outpost.
On this mission, SpaceX has mere seconds to launch. Otherwise it must wait another three days for a second try.
The reason: NASA is requiring that Dragon perform several kinds of maneuvers, including a rendezvous abort, in the station's general vicinity. The agency and its international partners have to be satisfied that the craft can maneuver itself precisely enough to avoid colliding with the station as it approaches, while also showing that it can reach and hold a position within a few tens of yards of the outpost while station crew members snag it with the station's robotic arm for final docking.
The few-seconds-long launch window puts the Dragon on the most fuel-miserly trajectory to the station, leaving enough thruster propellant available for on-orbit do-overs if needed.
SpaceX's package is designed with a capability NASA says it needs and which the current automated resupply ships from Russian, Europe, and Japan do not have. These other cargo carriers burn up on reentry, serving as a high-tech incinerator for space trash. Dragon is designed to bring cargo back from the station.
Although this mission is a test flight, SpaceX has loaded some 1,000 pounds of cargo into Dragon in anticipation of a successful docking. It's cargo NASA and the station crew can use, although the world won't end if it doesn't arrive – some laptops, empty cargo bags for future return flights, food, clothing, a lab rack, blocks of ice for cooling experiment samples, and small items such as batteries.
"We didn't put anything on the vehicle we didn't think we could stand not to get home," says Michael Suffredini, manager of NASA's International Space Station program.
And the craft is slated to bring nearly 1,500 pounds of cargo back with it.
While SpaceX's initial tests of its Falcon 9, and later its Falcon 9-Dragon combination in 2010 were successful, this mission "is pretty tricky," said the SpaceX's founder and chief designer Elon Musk, during a preflight briefing last month.
The space station is traveling at speeds about 12 times faster than a bullet from an assault rifle. Dragon controllers have to track the station and their own craft to within inches. Moreover, Dragon includes an extra section it didn't have during its successful orbital flight in December 2010. Several systems are flying for the first time – from the craft's solar panels and the pressurized module's cooling and air circulation systems to the instrument package that will allow the craft to approach the station on its own.
With no space station on the ground and under space-like conditions, simulations approximating the conditions Dragon will encounter are the only tools for telling engineers whether they are on the right track, Mr. Musk says. "A lot can go wrong on a mission like this."
The first of the two demonstration flights blended into this one mission involved the near-station maneuvers. NASA and SpaceX officials say that if the mission successfully passes most or all of these tests, but ultimately fails to dock, the company has two other opportunities this year to demonstrate Dragon's docking ability – the second of the two demo flights consolidated into this mission.
"Achieving any one of those incremental steps" that make up the objectives for this mission "would be considered a success," says Alan Lyndenmoyer, manager of NASA's commercial crew and cargo program.


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text:
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When I use the command
\usepackage{xcolor} I get an error saying
xcolor.sty was not found. Even though other commands like
\usepackage{amsmath} have worked. I am very new to LaTeX and am not sure why this is happening, and help would be greatly appreciated.


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Rediscovering My Christmas Spirit
As a kid, Christmas was my favorite holiday. Once it was time to turn to the December page of my Puppy of the Month wall calendar, I would carefully mark each day that passed with a big, red "X" until the 25th finally arrived.
It wasn't just the presents that got me so excited — although tearing into my packages on Christmas morning was a definite highlight. But some of my best holiday memories had nothing to do with my Santa loot: decorating the tree, driving around to look at Christmas lights, frosting cookies at the kitchen table.
The older I got, the more all of these things just seemed like a huge hassle. If I put up lights, all I could think about was how much work it would be to take them down. When I thought about decorating a tree, it didn't seem worth the trouble of removing all of the ornaments and boxing them up a month later. And cookies? Why bother with baking when you can buy perfectly good Christmas cookies at the grocery store?
As I ran around town this week, fighting crowds of last-minute shoppers like myself, my holiday spirit was pretty much on life support. Although I take partial responsibility for my Grinch-like demeanor, I have to place some of the blame on my equally grumpy peers. Everyone was rushing, frowning, sighing — there wasn't a smile to be seen.
By the time I left the mall and headed to the drugstore — my last stop — to purchase gift-wrapping supplies, I was ready to throw in the proverbial towel. I'd had enough.
I groaned as I shuffled to the end of a long line, tissue paper and ribbon in hand. Just as I was about to get a serious case of line rage, a little girl standing in front of me turned around and said, with a huge smile on her face, "Hi! My name's Bethany. Merry Christmas!"
The sparkle in her eyes seemed vaguely familiar. Suddenly, I remembered what it felt like to be a kid at Christmas time. I couldn't help but smile as I replied, "Merry Christmas, Bethany."
And just like that, my Grinch spell was broken. But I'll probably still get my Christmas cookies at the grocery store.
Brooke is a 2010 graduate of The University of Montana, where she ran track and cross country for the Grizzlies. She is currently working as a writer and editor in Missoula.


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text:
Michelin North America, Inc.
Michelin North America operates in the United States, Canada and Mexico with headquarter operations and plants in each country. This demonstrates Michelin's long-term strategy of being close to its customers.
U.S. Operations
Michelin North America is a $10.76 billion dollar a year company operating 19 plants in 16 locations and employs 22,000 people. It manufactures and sells tires for airplanes, automobiles, farm equipment, heavy duty trucks, motorcycles, and bicycles. Michelin manufactures tires in six states: Alabama, Indiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, North Carolina and South Carolina. In addition, there are three plants in Nova Scotia, Canada and one plant in Queretaro, Mexico. Two plants specialize in the manufacturing of semi-finished goods taking raw materials and turning them into components for the plants that produce tires and one plant strictly produces synthetic rubber. Finished goods are produced in sixteen plants, two sites produce retreads for the trucking and one site produces retreads for the aircraft industry. Michelin Maps and Guides also produce road atlases, road maps and travel guides for all the major cities in North America.
Product Range
Globally Michelin produces tires for virtually every category of the tire market. Michelin North America offers:
Passenger and light truck tires
Heavy duty truck tires
Recreational vehicle tires
Earthmover tires
Agriculture tires
Aircraft tires
Motorcycle tires
Bicycle tires
Employment by country
United States 17,805
Canada 3,735
Mexico 715
Employment by State
South Carolina 8,520
Alabama 2,030
Oklahoma 1,900
Indiana 1,620
North Carolina 770
Michelin Plants by Product Type
Greenville, SC car tires
Spartanburg, SC truck and bus tires
Lexington, SC car tires
Lexington, SC earthmover tires
Sandy Springs, SC semi-finished products
Starr, SC semi-finished products, earthmover tires
Duncan, SC truck tire retreading
Covington, GA truck tire retreading
Norwood, NC aircraft tires
Dothan, AL light truck tire
Tuscaloosa, AL car tires
Louisville, KY synthetic rubber
Fort Wayne, IN car tires
Kansas City, MO aircraft retreading
Ardmore, OK car tires
Pictou County, Nova Scotia car tires
Bridgewater, Nova Scotia car
Waterville, Nova Scotia truck and bus tires
Research, Development and Testing
Producing the highest quality tires that deliver miles and miles of driving pleasure does not happen out of luck. It starts at the Michelin Americas Research and Development Corporation where innovation and technology collide with the real world needs of demanding consumers in a highly fragmented industry. Employing 960 people, many of which are engineers, Michelin's R&D center in North America has been responsible for developing some of the finest products in the world to market, including the first 80,000 mile passenger tire for American-made vehicles. When a Michelin tire is on the road, it delivers a collection of benefits rather than just being good at one particular attribute. You get great handling, superior wet traction and long mileage without sacrificing comfort because the engineers at MARC are not content or satisfied with any sort of compromise or trade-offs.
Laurens Proving Ground
A vital extension of the research and development community is the Michelin on-vehicle test facility located in Laurens, South Carolina. This 3,300 acre site maintains over twelve special tracks of varying lengths and surfaces for testing tires, suspension system, driver training and event management. Tires are tested for noise, adherence on wet surfaces, gravel endurance, off road inclines, mud traction, vehicle dynamics like high speed lane change and drift. Used primarily by Michelin, the facility also offers testing for groups outside Michelin. Customers can conduct controllability studies, vibration analysis and chassis loading tests in a secure environment. The facility is also used to train law enforcement officers from South Carolina and North Carolina to enhance their skills in handling emergency situations.
Training, Sales and Marketing
A large degree of Michelin's success in North America can be attributed to its sales force and its marketing group. Michelin recognized the need for an extensive training program in North America and began its efforts in the early Sixties. Michelin has long been recognized in the industry for having the best and the most complete training for its sales force. The current training center in Greenville, SC not only conducts sales force training but also plays host to Michelin dealer sales personnel from all over the country for training to help them become more professional sales people and better business managers. In every category of tires, the Michelin marketing teams are staffed with professional marketers, communication teams and research experts striving everyday to bring increased value to the consumers who purchase our tires.
Environmental Protection
As a core value, protecting the environment is pervasive throughout all facets of Michelin operations. It is a value that says growing market share or delivering revenue will not be accomplished at the expense of the environment. Whether participating and leading studies on the effect tires have on the environment, Michelin is concerned about every aspect of the impact its operations has on the environment.
Where We Have Been
In well over 100 years of innovation, Michelin continues to help define the tire industry.
North America
Michelin has been a part of the tire industry in the United States since 1907 when it purchased the International Rubber Company in Milltown, New Jersey. Tires and tubes were manufactured there up until 1930 when the Great Depression took its toll on what had become the fourth largest tire manufacturer in the country with 2,000 employees. The Michelin North America as we know it today took form In March of 1950. With three sizes and two different tread designs of truck tires made with metallic plies, five people started Michelin Tire Corporation in New York City. There was an executive vice president, a vice president of sales, a secretary, a warehouse supervisor and one newly hired sales representative. The tires cost anywhere from 40-50% more than the competition but their construction with metal plies bonded to rubber allowed Michelin salesmen to offer a tire solution to fleets operating under the most severe conditions. This included fleets dealing with extremely heavy loads and in the sanitation business. This strategy established a reputation of durability and quality still prevalent today in the modern trucking industry.
Growth in sales led to the need for a larger facility in 1954. Developed in 1953, Michelin began to import the all-steel one ply radial truck tire in 1956. This is the tire that revolutionized the world tire market. There was interest in the radial truck, but the bulk of Michelin's sales were the older, metallic bias ply tires. Even with steady annual growth, the annual sales volume in 1959 were less than a week's production in a modern truck tire plant.
While the radial passenger tire had been gaining acceptance in Europe with car manufacturers in the late 1950's, it would be the mid1960's before it was factor in the United States. Michelin's world-wide growth in the 1960's was phenomenal with the opening of twelve new plants and the announcement that a plant would be built in Nova Scotia, Canada by 1971.
Two major events happened in 1966 that drew Michelin into the largest passenger tire market in the world. Up until 1966, Michelin had only been importing small quantities of radial passenger tires to service consumers with European cars originally fitted with Michelin radial tires. That year Ford decided the 1968 Lincoln Continental Mark III would have radial tires as original equipment. Although domestic tire manufacturers had purchased the license to develop radial tires, none were successful in developing a satisfactory radial tire. Ford then selected Michelin to be the supplier. This was a major boost for both the acceptance of the radial tire and establishing Michelin in North America. The second major event that made Michelin a part of the U.S. tire market happened when SEARS went shopping for a radial tire. In an effort to get ahead of its competition and realizing the impending radialization of the tire industry, SEARS sought out a supplier and ultimately selected Michelin for their reputation of high quality and technical expertise in building radial tires. By the end of 1969 expansion necessitated another move to a larger headquarters and the work force had expanded to 250 people. The sales force was now up to 103 people in the field.
Michelin had led a revolution in the transportation industry with the introduction of the radial tire. As the global demand for radial tires accelerated, Michelin responded with an expansion plan that opened twenty-three new plants, all producing radial tires. Michelin made the decision in the early 70's to produce only radial tires and eliminate production of the old-style bias ply tires. Two plants had been opened in Nova Scotia in 1971 and it was announced that construction would soon begin for two plants in western part of South Carolina. One plant, US2 in Anderson, SC, would build semi-finished products to supply the other plant that would produce tires. The plants were scheduled to open in 1975 and the very first radial passenger tire came off the line at US1, Greenville, South Carolina on March 10, 1975. A third plant, US3, in Spartanburg, SC came on line in 1978, producing radial truck tires for the rapidly growing radial market in the trucking industry. Expansion in the 1970's in the U.S. was completed with the opening of US4 in Dothan, Alabama. Along with the plants, a research and development was opened center in South Carolina because the corporation has always believed in developing products exclusively for a North American market where huge geographical distances demanded different tires than established European markets. In 1979, Michelin opened a new headquarters building in Lake Success, New York to accommodate a continuously growing work force. Michelin opened the decade with 250 employees and by 1979 the number was 7,000. Michelin had also expanded its tire lines dramatically from two types of tires that still required tubes to a full line of tubeless radial passenger tires to serve the growing demand for tires with greater fuel efficiency, longer life and better handling. In 1970 there were three types of truck tires offered and the 70's ended with an expanded line of tires to meet multiple and various needs of fleet owners, from over the road long haul operations to fleets hauling rocks or coal. There were now radial tires for bread fleets and small package delivery fleets.
The 1980's brought the challenges of consolidation and recession to the tire industry. Fully recovered from the effects of World War II, Japanese and European countries were competing toe to toe with American companies in a global economy. Many smaller tire companies were absorbed by larger ones because it was obvious that you had to get bigger in order to survive. Michelin had to invest heavily in the expansion of North America and it was not immune to the effects of the recession that hit the tire industry in 1980 and 1981. Serious losses were off-set by becoming more cost conscious and better planning. There was major competition to deal with now who were successfully manufacturing radial tires. Michelin has always been a resilient company and it came out of that period stronger and smarter. Two more plants, one in Lexington, SC and one Nova Scotia, were opened in the early 80's. To consolidate headquarters operations and manufacturing, Michelin made the decision to relocate its North American headquarters from New York where it had been since 1950 to Greenville, South Carolina. The doors opened at its present location in September of 1988.
After a careful study of market trends and monitoring the actions of its two major global competitors, Michelin made the decision in 1989 to purchase the Uniroyal-Goodrich Tire Company. This acquisition would not only make Michelin the largest tire company in the world, but would provide the corporation with a portfolio of strong brands with a rich heritage in the American tire market. Uniroyal and BFGoodrich Tire formed a joint venture in 1986 to leverage each others' strengths in the original equipment and replacement market. Michelin went into the 90's in a position to offer the best products at the best price point in all virtually every consumer category.
Where We are Going
We're accelerating mobility and meeting energy, environmental, and human challenges at the same time.
Research, Development and Testing
Producing the highest quality tires that deliver miles and miles of driving pleasure isn't luck. It starts at the Michelin Americas Research and Development Corporation, where innovation and technology converge with the real-world needs of demanding consumers in a highly fragmented industry. Employing 1,060 people, mostly engineers, Michelin's R&D center in North America has developed some of the finest products in the world, including the first 80,000-mile passenger tire for American-made vehicles. Rather than focusing on one strong attribute, Michelin tires deliver just the right combination of benefits. For example, great handling combines with exceptional wet traction and high mileage together with comfort. That's because Michelin engineers are not content with any sort of compromise or trade-offs.
Laurens Proving Ground
A vital extension of Michelin's research and development community is the Michelin test facility in Laurens, S.C. This 3,500-acre site maintains 12 special tracks of varying lengths and surfaces for testing tires and suspension systems and for driver training. Engineers test tires for noise, adherence to wet surfaces, gravel endurance, off-road inclines, traction in mud, and vehicle dynamics, such as high-speed lane change and drift. Used primarily by Michelin, the facility also offers other groups test opportunities, such as vibration analysis and chassis loading tests in a confidential environment. The facility is also used to train law enforcement officers from North and South Carolina to enhance their skills in handling emergency situations.
Training, Sales, and Marketing
A large degree of Michelin's success in North America can be attributed to its sales and marketing groups. Michelin has long been recognized by the industry for having the best and most complete training for its sales force. The current training center in Greenville, S.C., not only conducts sales training but also hosts Michelin dealer sales personnel from all over the country to help them become more professional salespeople and better business managers. Michelin marketing teams strive each day and in every category of tires to bring increased value to consumers.
Learn more about Michelin innovation
A Better Way Forward®
There's a place where the road of tomorrow is being created today. From tires that make your car more fuel efficient and safer to production and recycling methods that reduce our impact on the environment. Michelin is striving to help you find a better way forward®.
Learn more about Michelin's a better way forward®
Environmental Protection
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This 12-week course follows the carefully-devised structure of Level 1 of the Yoga in Daily Life system, over 12 consecutive Mondays (excluding public holidays).
The yoga exercises from Level 1 are called Saraw Hitta Asanas, which means "good for all". These classes improve flexibility while toning the body, help keep the joints and spine supple, as well as providing relaxation and breathing techniques.
Everything you need is provided, just bring clothing in which you can move comfortably.
Pre-enrol to secure a place.


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Archive for the 'Countable' tag
New Year. New You. New Apps.
The beginning of the year starts with the best intentions. Maybe it's your New Year's resolutions to get in shape, start eating right or to run every day. Or it's just a resolution to be better than you were last year. Whatever your resolution may be, as responsibilities pick up at work and at home, i.e. life happens, they become increasingly more difficult to keep.
The good news? There's an app for everything! Even your New Year's Resolution and especially self-care. And we have some tried-and-true recommendations to help with any goal you may have to make 2017 your BEST year yet.
Get In Shape
The Nike+ Training App has workouts from beginner to advanced levels. You can set reminders to workout, start your own workout program, and even download workouts so you can complete them without using your data. The Nike+ Training App rarely requires equipment (though it offers modifications if you'd like to use equipment), which makes it a great tool for anyone who spends a lot of time on the road. Just download the app, pack your training shoes and get a sweat in no matter where you are.
Run Every Day
The Nike+ Run Club App is the all-in-one tool for beginners to advanced runners alike. The app tracks your miles, your splits and your progress over time. You can also set up a Nike+ Coach plan to help keep you on track to your goals. Plus, there will always be an elite athlete congratulating you for getting out there…and they can be quite motivating!
Get Involved/Take Action
Countable is your one-stop-shop for everything US politics. It notifies you of bills under consideration, explains them in a lay-person's terms, and gives you the opportunity to vote yea or nay (which is then sent directly to your rep). Countable makes it easy to get involved, no matter your party affiliation.
Change Habits
Fabulous is an app made in partnership with the Duke School of Behavioral Economics to help you build healthy habits. It starts small, like "drink water as soon as you wake up for three days in a row." And progresses to include tips on eating healthy breakfast and to exercise and even offers tips on mental habits and meditation. It can be a bit overwhelming at first, but at the end of the day, having a lot of small habits adds up to feeling happier, healthier, and more energized.
BreakFree is the app we all know we need and only sort-of want. The app works to analyze how addicted you truly are to your smartphone and assist you in cutting down phone-usage. You can set new guard rails for yourself, and the app will notify you in real-time if you aren't meeting those expectations (i.e. if you've been on the phone too long without a break). Users say it's a hugely humbling experience, and helps get you to think twice before picking up that small block. Maybe the Instagram feed can wait a bit.
Try Meditating
Meditation can be an intimidating practice, especially if you're always on the move, both physically and mentally. Headspace is an app to help reduce stress and anxiety through a series of guided meditation, for beginners to gurus. The free version comes with one level of meditation and you can download the app with a free 10-day trial before committing to a subscription for a large collection of guided meditations. OHMMMMMMMMM……


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Quickies: Boson, Slicker, KDE on Cygwin, pim.kde.org, KDE-Forum.org
In other news, some until now unpublished submissions: The team of the strategy game Boson has released two movie files showing their development progress. The Kicker alternative
go slicker
Some of the ideas presented on that slicker site look really innovative. The card based clipboard really sticks out in my mind. That is such a natural representation for having a multi item clipboard I am surprised that I have not seen it done before. It would especially excel for having items such as images on the clipboard.
I am glad to see the work done to make sure slicker has a well thought out api. I would love to see slicker merged into kde for 4.0.
By theorz at Thu, 2003/10/16 - 5:00am
Re: go slicker
I would also love to see cards to be used on other thigs as well, like at the point k3b might get integrated to the system it would show the status of the burn on a card, also audio players could use a card to show off and generally any program that has a updating (live) status screen that does not need user input (frequently) should have an user-selectable (via radiobutton on config) option for showing status on a card and/or using the same cards-system used in the konqueror side-bar.
By Nobody at Fri, 2003/10/17 - 5:00am
Re: go slicker
But thanks for all the nice comments and keep a look out for slicker in future, we're back!
By cmf at Fri, 2003/10/17 - 5:00am
kde on cygwin : what a shame !
.. and still no kde on directfb yet.
By ita at Thu, 2003/10/16 - 5:00am
Re: kde on cygwin : what a shame !
you are invited to join to the native QT3 port project, which is over 90% complete. Currently the main task is to migrate from qt3.1 to qt 3.2.1.
See http://cygwin.kde.org/qt3-win32/ for more informations.
By Ralf Habacker at Thu, 2003/10/16 - 5:00am
Re: kde on cygwin : what a shame !
Nice work. I'm looking forward it to when I start programming with C++ (should be until the end of the year).
By Iuri Fiedoruk at Thu, 2003/10/16 - 5:00am
win32 != directfb
win32 does not equal directfb, unless I'm missing something here.
By Ian Monroe at Fri, 2003/10/17 - 5:00am
Re: win32 != directfb
I think the original author implies that removing the X11 dependency, directfb
By luciano at Fri, 2003/10/17 - 5:00am
Re: kde on cygwin : what a shame !
shame on you - this is just undermining the fundamentals we are all relying on.
By hoernerfranz at Fri, 2003/10/17 - 5:00am
Re: kde on cygwin : what a shame !
By ac at Sat, 2003/10/18 - 5:00am
Re: kde on cygwin : what a shame !
It looks like they stopped developing it. Last change in CVS is from 7 weeks ago...
By Andy Goossens at Sun, 2003/10/19 - 5:00am
Found 800 articles, 38575 comments.
It's a bit off, but meanwhile KDE Dot News is at 800 articles and almost 40000 comments. Whee! :-)
By Navindra Umanee at Thu, 2003/10/16 - 5:00am
Just one or two questions
Is anyone really using KDE on Cygwin? Shame on me, but I had much trouble installing it (and it is kind of slow, of course). Unfortunately it is not as easy as installing any other cygwin package.
By Jay Pee at Fri, 2003/10/17 - 5:00am
Re: Just one or two questions
True, Cygwin is difficult too install. Why? Maybe because RedHat leads the development :-)
On the other hand, Holger Schroeder ported the Gentoo Portage system to Cygwin. It is very experimental but it does the job...
By Andy Goossens at Sun, 2003/10/19 - 5:00am
Re: Just one or two questions
Because the cygwin installer lacks of batch processing featuer which would make is easier to integrate it into the KDE-cygwin installer.
Currently there are some discussions on the cygwin-apps list (http://www.cygwin.com/ml/cygwin-apps) how to do this.
By Ralf Habacker at Sat, 2003/10/25 - 5:00am
The e-mail address firstname.lastname@example.com now exists and is open for your Slicker logo competition submissions. The e-mail address did not exist, and I had just changed the rules for recieving e-mail. But that has been fixed, so send away people!
By Dan Leinir Turt... at Sun, 2003/10/19 - 5:00am


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SECURE's Class II landfills are approved to accept non-hazardous industrial waste that meets acceptance criteria.
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With Newt Gingrich as their common target, the Republican presidential hopefuls piled on the new party front-runner in a lively debate Saturday night, jabbing him over his political consistency, the sturdiness of his character and the plausibility of his policy proposals.
One after another, rivals portrayed the former House speaker — who looked on stern-faced — as an opportunist who changes his beliefs to suit the political times and his personal ambitions.
"He's been on different positions, you know, on so many issues," said Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, voicing a theme picked up by others on the Drake University stage who each insisted he or she alone was the true conservative who could best take the fight to President Obama.
Gingrich's history of marital infidelity arose when the co-moderator, George Stephanopoulos of ABC News, asked whether voters ought to consider whether a candidate has been faithful to their spouse when deciding whom to support for president.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who is avidly courting Iowa's social conservatives, responded firmly, saying that a politician who will cheat on his wife cannot be trusted.
"If you will cheat on your wife, if you will cheat on your spouse, then why wouldn't you cheat on your business partner, or why wouldn't you cheat on anyone for that matter?" Perry asked.
Gingrich, who is married to his third wife, Callista — with whom he conducted an extramarital affair — seemed ready for the question and agreed that voters ought to consider the matter. "I think people have to look at a person to who they are going to loan the presidency and they have a right to ask every single question," he said.
Gingrich reiterated his prior statements that he had made mistakes and sought forgiveness and that people ought to consider who he is now: "I'm also a 68-year-old grandfather, and I think people have to measure who I am now and whether I am a person they can trust."
The candidates initially seemed reluctant to engage. But once prodded by Stephanopolous, they quickly jumped in
Mitt Romney, who has been running at or near the front of polls until Gingrich's recent surge, challenged Gingrich's call to colonize the moon and to change child labor laws so inner-city students can go to work cleaning their classrooms. Romney contrasted his background in the business world with Gingrich's long career in Washington.
"Let's be candid," Gingrich shot back. "The only reason you didn't become a career politician is you lost to Teddy Kennedy in 1994."
The rejoinder — a reference to Romney's unsuccessful U.S. Senate bid before winning the Massachusetts governorship eight years later — was the closest Gingrich came to showing pique.
Acting like the college lecturer he once was, he rebutted his opponents point by point, saying, for instance, that colonizing the moon would inspire students to study math and science and that putting poor students to work was a way to instill a healthy work ethic.
He also glossed over some facts, ignoring his past support for cap-and-trade legislation to fight global warming, and sidestepped others, defending his acceptance of more than $1.6 million from Freddie Mac — the federal insurer he has attacked for causing the housing crisis — by saying it was the sort of private sector work that Romney was extolling.
"K Street's not the private sector," a laughing Romney responded, referring to the corridor housing the Beltway's major lobbying firms.
Romney, who has struggled to shuck his patrician image, probably did not help his cause with an impromptu proposition made Saturday night.
Perry said that Romney had written in his campaign book that his healthcare mandate "should be a model for the country," a claim Romney has made in the past but not in the pages of his text.
In response, Romney stuck out his hand and offered to bet Perry $10,000 that he was wrong -- a gesture that is unlikely to play well amongst Iowans, who tend to recoil from ostentatious displays of wealth.
The nearly two-hour session was the 12th of the nominating season and the first since Gingrich rose from political near-death to become the latest candidate to lead the pack, a status confirmed by his front-and-center positioning on stage and the proverbial bull's-eye on his back.
Rep. Michele Bachmann, who enjoyed a brief stint at the top of Iowa polls before falling back, cited Gingrich's past support for a mandate requiring individuals to purchase health insurance, a provision of Obama's healthcare plan that conservatives revile. She noted Romney's Massachusetts legislation had a similar provision and, lumping two together, suggested to voters, "If you want a difference, Michele Bachmann is the proven conservative, not Newt Romney.Ö"
Gingrich defended his support for the mandate, which he now opposes, by saying it was the best way at the time to fight the healthcare overhaul plan put forth in the 1990s under President Clinton. But former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum echoed those questioning Gingrich's consistency, saying he came out against the mandate even then.
The debate came at an important juncture in the turbulent race, with the exit of erstwhile poll leader Herman Cain, the surge of Gingrich and, not least, the impending arrival of Christmas and New Year's, which are competing for voters' attention. (The wall-to-wall TV advertising is unlikely to offer much in the way of good cheer.) Iowa's precinct caucuses, the first step in the presidential selection process, will be held Jan. 3.
The candidates will meet again Thursday night at a second Iowa debate, scheduled for Sioux City.


text: Tuesday, December 03, 2013 Vision Differences Between Eyes Prevalent in Older Adults, Can Increase Falls Risk Older adults are at significant risk of developing vision differences between their eyes that, if undetected, could increase the likelihood of falls. A new longitudinal study (abstract) in Optometry and Vision Science found that nearly 1 in 3 adults develop significant vision differences in each eye (called anisometropia) by their late 70s, an incidence rate that "needs to be clearly emphasized to clinicians" to ensure appropriate correction, according to the study's authors. If left uncorrected, the condition can interfere with depth perception and other visual skills necessary to prevent falls. APTA identifies visual impairments as a significant contributor to falls and recommends interventions that address multiple risk factors. Need more information on falls prevention? Get evidence-based practice information through PTNow and Open Door, and download APTA's education on exercise prescriptions for balance and falls prevention and pocket guide on falls risk reduction (.pdf). Share falls prevention information and experiences with APTA's online community dedicated to the issue. Comments Indeed. All mentioned are beneficial to older adults. Here is a quick tip: calcium-rich vegetables such as broccoli, soybeans, collards and turnip greens, tofu and almonds are good for our elders. Posted by caregiver on 12/11/2013 3:49 AM


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Patti Engineering, Inc. recently introduced the blog Engineer Chatter. The blog is part of Patti Engineering's effort to communicate in the industry, providing insight and advice on control systems integration, automation projects, and industry news. The blog will serve as a platform to engage Patti Engineering's community of partners, clients, and colleagues with informative discussions sharing technical expertise and knowledge.
The launch of Engineer Chatter features several posts from the company on the importance of lot trace systems in manufacturing execution systems, a video interview with ICONICS president and CEO, and tips on PLC simulators. The Engineer Chatter blog will also feature events, Patti Engineering news, and knowledge and expertise from its key partnerships.
The blog is open for anyone to post; the engineering team will respond to all posts within one business day. To engage with the Patti Engineering team, subscribe to Engineer Chatter here.


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For more than four years, Phoenix-based Watt Masters, formerly Buehler Brothers Electric, a third-generation, family-owned electrical service business specializing in residential electrical installs, repairs, and troubleshooting services, has maintained a Web site. In keeping with the family focus of the business, the company owner's nephew created the site, complete with keyword optimization that positions a link to the business' Web site at the top of the natural positioning list on several Internet search engines. However, in the firm's continued search for marketing ideas, it was decided that investing in paid placement, or sponsored links, also would be a positive move. According to Tom Buehler, company president and owner, there was an immediate increase in the volume of calls after becoming a sponsored link. Currently, Buehler estimates that 20% to 30% of calls to the firm result from these paid search engine ads. "We definitely noticed the difference in the volume of calls since we became a sponsored link," Buehler says.
The Watt Masters' online marketing strategy reflects a change in the advertising habits of businesses that cater to their local markets. In its fifth annual survey, "What Local Media Web Sites Earn," Williamsburg, Va.-based Borrell Associates, a research and consulting firm that tracks local advertising and helps online companies develop executive strategies, reported that U.S. local online advertising grew to $7.5 billion, up 31.6% from $5.7 billion in 2006. According to Borrell's findings, newspapers account for the dominant share of all locally spent online advertising at 35.9%, but Internet companies, such as Google and Yahoo!, are fast approaching, with 33.2% of the share. Yellow pages operators control only 11.7%.
This data falls in line with several recent consumer surveys. In 2006, Irvine, Calif.-based local search engine marketing (SEM) firm WebVisible and New York-based Nielsen Research surveyed U.S. consumers about their local search behavior. Out of approximately 2,000 U.S. consumers randomly selected from the Nielsen/NetRatings MegaPanel, 74% rated search engines as the No. 1 resource for finding local business information, whereas only 65% rated print Yellow Pages — the former workhorse of local advertising — as the go-to directory. This was followed by 50% of respondents reporting searching on Internet Yellow Pages, and 44% of respondents looking to traditional newspapers. (Percentages are greater than 100 because respondents were permitted to select more than one answer.)
Although usage for the print version of The Yellow Pages remained unchanged from 2006 to 2007 with 13.4 billion references, as reported by The Yellow Pages Association's (YPA) "Industry Usage Report," conducted by Knowledge Networks, Cranford, N.J., the long-term outlook for print directories as cited in Princeton, N.J.-based The Kelsey Group's "The Kelsey Report (TKR): Global Print & Internet Yellow Pages" has softened considerably since last year's forecast. TKR is predicting print revenues to decline globally at a compound annual growth rate of 1.4% from 2007 to 2012, declining from $33 billion in 2007 to $25.6 billion in 2012.
Currently, adults who use The Yellow Pages average 1.29 lookups a week, down from 1.4 lookups in 2003 and more than 2.0 lookups in the 1990s. The decline in lookups was especially severe in major cities such as New York and Los Angeles, where residents average 0.6 lookups per week. This decrease in The Yellow Pages usage is widely attributed to young adult populations that haven't formed a habit of using The Yellow Pages.
Called "Millennials" or the Digital Generation (born between 1980 and 2000), they're one reason that, despite the billions still spent on print advertising, industry analysts are stressing the importance of Internet marketing to penetrate local markets.
"The Yellow Pages doesn't compare to online anymore," Buehler says. "I know a lot of people just throw them out. Why keep them around if you can just go on your computer real quick and look up everything you need?"
Dollar for dollar
In the past, small- and medium-sized businesses (SMB) have protected their print Yellow Pages investment at the expense of other media, according to The Kelsey Group, the provider of strategic research and analysis, data, and competitive metrics on The Yellow Pages, electronic directories, local search, SMB advertising, and local media. Given the structural changes in the local ad market, the organization believes the next downturn will favor media choices that are more flexible and provide a lower cost per lead than print directories, which would signal a profound shift. "The problem with the regular Yellow Pages is that it's very expensive," Buehler says. "Dollar for dollar, the online advertising is worth more for the money."
In a comparison between Seattle-based Erwin Electric's Yellow Pages bill and what it spends on online marketing, its Internet campaign comes out way ahead. For The Yellow Pages, it spends approximately $34,000 a month to generate around 250 calls per month, whereas for the $7,000 it pays for online marketing, it receives approximately 100 to 150 calls a month.
"We're stepping away from print advertising," says John Thrower, managing member, Erwin Electric. "It's an unmanageable product." Erwin Electric outsources its online marketing to Woodland Hills, Calif.-based ReachLocal, a firm that helps small- and medium-sized businesses attract local customers via search engine advertising and online Yellow Pages marketing. "With online marketing, I can change my spending level," Thrower continues. "Some months I might only spend $5,000 even though I've authorized ReachLocal for $10,000. With The Yellow Pages, you're going to pay whatever you agreed upon — regardless of whether it's working or not."
Name and rank
These days, when most people talk about online advertising, they're referring to SEM. There are three main types of SEM: search engine optimization (SEO), paid placement, and paid inclusion (see What Is Search Engine Marketing? on page C18). According to its recent report, "State of Search Engine Marketing," Wakefield, Mass.-based. Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO), a global non-profit organization serving the search engine marketing industry, SEO, also called "natural" or "organic" optimization, is still the most popular form of SEM, with almost three-quarters of advertisers using this method.
The second most popular method advertisers use — at 71% — is paid placement, where advertisers bid on keywords they predict their target market will use as search terms when looking for a product or service. When a user types a keyword query matching the advertiser's keyword list, or views a page with relevant content, the advertiser's ad is shown. Advertisers only pay when a user actually clicks on an ad to visit the advertiser's Web site. These ads are called "sponsored links" or "sponsored ads" and appear next to or above the "natural" search results on search engine results pages (see Know Your Options on page C20).
Also considered paid placement, pay-per-click ads may appear on content network Web sites. In this case, ad networks such as Google AdSense and Yahoo! Publisher Network attempt to provide ads that are relevant to the content of the page where they appear, and no search function is involved. According to SEMPO, paid placement is expected to grow in North America to $18.6 billion by 2011.
The third type of SEM, paid inclusion, is less popular than the first two. With paid inclusion, the search engine company charges fees related to inclusion of Web sites in their search index. Paid inclusion products are provided by most search engine companies, the most notable exception being Google. Some detractors of paid inclusion allege that it causes searches to return results based more on the economic standing of the interests of a Web site than on the relevancy of that site to end-users.
On top
Generally, the higher a site appears, or ranks, on the search engine page, the more visits or hits the site will receive. For vendors, sometimes the difference between a top spot listing and second place can mean thousands of dollars. "If you're showing up on the fifth page of Google, you're too deep," says Nathan Hanks, chief distribution officer, ReachLocal. "No one's going to get to the fifth page in the organic results. You need to get higher."
To do so, firms can add more relevant text to their Web pages, making concessions to how search engine algorithms work. However, a guaranteed spot at the top comes automatically with paid placement. "Our front page of the Web site had some of the keywords embedded into it, but we hadn't done anything before now to get our name at the top of the list," says Chris Teets, manager, Alexandria, Va.-based Galaxy Electric, a residential and commercial electrical contracting firm. Galaxy Electric has also outsourced its online marketing to ReachLocal.
Fortunately, some firms have access to the expertise within their own ranks, such as with Buehler's nephew at Watt Masters. "He did all the keywords so that the Watt Masters Web site is on top a lot of the time," Buehler says. "I've had people call and tell me it would cost $5,000 to $10,000 to do what he did — and he was only 20 years old when he did it."
For Watt Masters, both the natural search results and paid placement has been a fruitful learning experience, as well as a way to increase leads. "We learned what to do through our own research and by going online and learning how to use it," Buehler says. "We could be up there 100% of the time if we want."
Companies, such as Savvy Sites, San Diego, and New Target, Alexandria, Va., can help companies design sites for maximum exposure on search engines. Such optimization services focus on tweaking and adjusting a site's content so it has the best possible chance of landing near the top of keyword searches. There are also many online resources and blogs that can help firms with their online marketing campaigns.
Some firms, however, may want to consider hiring professional services to handle SEM strategies. This can actually save time and money, and depending on the provider, may provide extra perks. "What happens if their campaign isn't running right?" asks Hanks. "Then they have to go back in and figure out if it's the keywords or the budget. That's time consuming for somebody who's been out in the field for 12 to 14 hours."
Track and field
Although research on public awareness shows that typical Web searchers generally do not recognize the distinction between organic and paid search listings and that more than half of Web users say they're more attracted to left-side, or "organic" search results, most marketing analysts say this isn't enough. "Actually, it never was," says Hanks. "But people just caught on to that. Unless they have the ability to remember to ask people where they found them, electrical contractors don't have any concrete way of determining what marketing methods their clients are using and what's giving them the best results."
One way to avoid the confusion of lead origination is to hire a service to take care of your paid listings. These service providers can also save you the time it takes to create and track your listings. Thrower says he doesn't have the time or the desire to manage that type of project, and even if he did he wouldn't be able to do it as effectively as the company he's hired.
"Electricians can never pinpoint their return on investment with their marketing," says Hanks.
Using proxy servers, the company provides unique phone numbers for all search engine results. Those numbers act as a tracking number, and also allow for the recording of those phone calls for monitoring and quality control. The company's program also provides a list of calls generated by the marketing campaign so the electrician can measure the results from its paid listings campaign.
"I can see the number of calls we get, I can see what those calls are, where they're coming from, how many were answered, and how long the calls were," Thrower says. "I can listen to each call within a short period of time after the call has taken place. It allows us to track every call and know how many calls exactly we are getting from the advertising. It's been pretty exciting."
In addition, the company acts as a liaison between electrician and search engine. ReachLocal bids on keywords and then matches those words to each client. "Most clients would rather do 10 jobs a month at $50,000 than do 200 that don't generate as much revenue," Hanks says. "We can turn off certain key words and put more emphasis on commercial or industrial installs. The call volume could go down, but the quality of leads could be better with higher-paying jobs. We can control how that lead gets to a particular person."
According to Galaxy Electric, the service provides all the keywords a company needs. "All of the keywords I would have picked were already in that list," says Teets. "In fact, the program even purposely misspells words to cover all the bases of how a user would search for services."
ReachLocal provides its clients with online reports so they can see what searches are being used to find their services. "I can see what's my No. 1 keyword search through No. 10," Teets says. "We can see how they're finding us."
Teets notes that most of his customers find his company through a name search. "They'll go to Google or Yahoo! and they'll type in our name," he says. "They'll find us pretty much immediately, where before even doing a name search we were on the second page."
Galaxy Electric performs a survey with each phone call it receives. The company has found that the number of leads from its paid search engine marketing campaign has now surpassed those from The Yellow Pages. Although Galaxy would like to shed The Yellow Pages altogether, it still advertises there. "The phone book in Washington, D.C., is used to prop up one end of your couch, but it's still a necessary evil," Teets says. "We're staying there as part of our branding, along with the signs on our trucks. We're out in the neighborhoods and need to be in the book for those people who still want to look us up by name in print."
Erwin Electric is also sticking with The Yellow Pages — for now. "My experience with The Yellow Pages advertising is it's a humongous risk, and you can definitely get burned," Thrower says.
At the end of the day, electrical contractors who have just a simple Web site don't care about people clicking on their Web site, adds Hanks. "They care about the phone ringing," he says. "By the time their phone rings, they have a stronger lead and somebody who's closer to really needing the service."
Sidebar: What Is Search Engine Marketing?
Search engine marketing (SEM) is the up-and-coming way vendors are trying to get their message in front of potential customers by seeking to promote Web sites through increased visibility in search engine result pages (SERPs), such as Google or Yahoo! There are three different types of SEM: search engine optimization (SEO), paid placement, and paid inclusion. However, some sources, such as The New York Times, classify SEM strictly as paid placement.
All search engines have some editorial-style listings that are not bought and sold. These are often referred to as the "organic," "natural," or "algorithmic" search results. Placement is determined by individual Web sites' SEO, which is the process of increasing traffic to a Web site using targeted keywords. SEO can also target image searches, local searches, and industry-specific searches. In order to control the placement, advertisers' SEO efforts must include considerations for how search engine algorithms work and what people search for in the site's coding, presentation, and structure. Advertisers may also add unique content that is easily indexed by search engine robots.
Since 2001, most major search engines carry paid placement listings, also called "sponsored listings," "paid search ads," and "pay for placement." Paid listings generate revenue for search engines, which, in turn, helps them provide unpaid editorial listings to searchers for free. Paid listings are usually segregated from editorial results and labeled as ads. The exact position of the paid placement listings can vary. Usually, they appear above or to the right of the editorial links. Today, paid search ads are more readily identifiable in search engine results.
With paid listings, advertisers are guaranteed a high ranking, or guaranteed placement. Paid listings allow site owners to bid on the terms they wish to appear for. Advertisers agree to pay a certain amount each time someone clicks on their listing. These listings are also referred to as "pay-per-click" (PPC) or "cost-per-click" (CPC) advertising. The higher an advertiser bids, the higher the advertisement will be displayed in the list. The advertiser pays only when a searcher clicks on its listing and connects to its site. However, advertisers should be wary of PPC search engines that offer clickers money or incentives to click through their results.
Paid inclusion — when the search engine company charges fees related to inclusion of Web sites in their search index — is definitely on its way out. Paid inclusion products are provided by most search engine companies, the most notable exception being Google. Some detractors of paid inclusion allege that it causes searches to return results based more on the economic standing of the interests of a Web site than on the relevancy of that site to end-users.
Sidebar: Know Your Options
Google's AdWords is the most popular search advertising program, used by 96% of respondents to a survey taken by Wakefield, Mass-based Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO). Yahoo! Search Marketing was a close second, with 86%. Microsoft's adCenter program is growing rapidly as 68% of respondents reported they are now using the program, up from just 29% in the previous year.
Google AdWords
Google sells sponsored listings that appear above and to the right-hand side of its regular search results. Google AdWords ranks sponsored listings based on a number of variables, including the CPC (bid price), click-through-rate (CTR), and landing page quality. If your goal is to build visibility on search engines quickly, then Google AdWords is an essential option to explore. It can put you in the top results of many major search engines within a short period of time. Google distributes its paid ads to other partners. This provides you with exposure to more potential traffic. When setting up an AdWords campaign, you may choose to have your ads appear in the Search Network and/or Google's Content Network (AdSense), or you may opt-out of either.
According to SEMPO, it is worthwhile for anyone interested in paid listings to open a Google AdWords account and experiment with the program. Google's self-service AdWords program charges a per-click fee, in addition to an activation fee, but there is no minimum monthly spend.
Yahoo! Search Marketing
Yahoo! Search Marketing (YSM), formerly Overture, also allows advertisers to bid on specific terms. Up until the recent "Panama" improvement, YSM ranked sponsored listings based on cost-per-click. For instance, if you wanted to appear in the top listings for "residential service," you might agree to pay $0.25 per click. If no one agrees to pay more than this, then you would be in the No. 1 spot. If someone else later decides to pay $0.26, then you slip into the No. 2 position. You could then bid $0.27 and move back on top. Yahoo! Panama brings YSM's ranking algorithm for paid ads more in line with Google by considering additional variables, such as click-through-rate and landing page quality.
If your goal is to build instant visibility on search engines, Yahoo! Search Marketing is an excellent option to explore, putting you in the top results of many major search engines within a short period of time. A YSM account requires a minimum deposit, and advertisers set their own daily budget.
Microsoft adCenter
Launched in May 2006, Microsoft adCenter allows advertisers to bid on the keywords they wish to have their ads show up for. The system uses what is called the "black box" bid and ranking method; similar to the way Google and now Yahoo! determine cost per click (CPC). The CPC is a combination of how much you are willing to bid (max bid) and your click-through-rate in comparison to the others bidding for that particular keyword. Upon launch, adCenter distinguishes itself from competitors by being the first to offer geographic, demographic, and daypart targeting. It requires a service fee for account setup. After that, you pay the cost of the clicks. Bidding starts at $0.10 minimum, although sometimes the program allows $0.05 bids.
Targeted bidding allows advertisers to specify: (1) users in a specific geographic location; (2) users searching on specific days of the week or during specific hours of the day or night; and (3) users of a specific gender or age.
Source: Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO)


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Destroying documents that contain sensitive information is a necessity. Whether you are dealing with personal information or private business information, document shredding will help ensure you don't let confidential material fall into the wrong hands.
As cases of identity theft and data breaches continue to rise, several laws, including FACTA, have been created dictating how companies handle the private information of customers and employees.
Shredding services offer a comprehensive solution for organizations all over Little Rock that produce large volumes of paperwork that contain sensitive information. For an affordable rate, hundreds of pounds of paper can be picked up and securely shredded.
However, if your Little Rock office doesn't produce large volumes of sensitive paperwork, shredding services may not be your answer. Because it's still important to thoroughly destroy confidential paperwork, purchasing your own personal or office shredder may be your best option.
Choosing a Paper ShredderThe first thing you'll need to do when selecting a paper shredder is evaluate your needs.
Here are a few popular shredders you may consider, each within a separate price range and offering different features:
If you are considering purchasing your own paper shredder, it is vital to do research. Select a shredder that can handle your needs and won't break down or jam easily. Destroying confidential documents is crucial to avoid identity theft—make sure you choose a shredder that can get the job done.
If you are unsure which paper shredder is right for you, call our shredding experts at (501) 859-0110 and we can direct you to the nearest drop off shredding location in Little Rock where you can drop off small volumes of paperwork to be shredded at a low cost.


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|written By : Team India Se
The Indian Cabinet today cleared the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2014 that gives powers to the Juvenile Justice Board to decide if a juvenile above 16 years, involved in heinous crimes like rape, would be tried in an adult court.
Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi had told Parliament that the new Bill aimed to act as a deterrent for juvenile offenders committing heinous crimes and protect the victims' rights.
The new Bill comes in the backdrop of outrage after a minor convicted in the Nirbhaya gang-rape case was handed a three-year term in a reform home. Activists, however, have criticised the move saying that India moved from penal law to reformative law by repealing the 1989 JJ Act and enacting the JJ Act 2000. Lowering the age or having any provision to deviate children from the juvenile justice system to criminal justice system is not acceptable, said activists.
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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- For decades, one tiny county in the rolling hills of Ohio's rural reaches was a depressed farm community saddled with double-digit unemployment. Now, Carroll County boasts more active oil and gas wells than any other in the state, and the tax dollars are flowing right along with the crude and natural gas.
And in the same county, where unemployment reached 13.4 percent in 2009 amid declines in agriculture, there's now bustling activity at Carroll restaurants, car dealerships and the area's one hotel.
While the economic surge has been a welcome relief, Carroll County and others enjoying the newfound prosperity aren't all that interested in sharing the wealth. But that decision might not be theirs to make.
Ohio lawmakers and policymakers in other states are weighing how to use taxes and fees on oil and gas production to bolster state budgets and economies without alienating local communities or scaring away energy development.
In Ohio, many Carroll residents are up in arms over a proposal by Republican Gov. John Kasich to raise severance _ or taxes on high-volume drillers _ and then share the wealth from the state's oil and gas boom through an income tax cut.
"I'm not for supporting everybody else with what we're doing, when this has been an area that's been depressed for a long time and nobody's done anything to help us along the way," said Amy Rutledge, who directs the visitors' bureau and local chamber. "Why should Appalachia Ohio support the rest of the state?"
A dozen states since 2011 have seen proposals to impose a new tax on oil and gas production, or to raise, lower or amend an existing tax, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Most of the proposals have died or never got off the ground, though Florida passed a measure reducing severance taxes to offset the higher cost of new technology needed to extract the hard-to-get oil remaining in those fields.
At least 36 states impose some sort of severance tax on oil, gas, coal, timber and minerals, generating more than $11 billion in revenue in 2010. Of those, 31 states levy severance taxes specifically on production of oil and gas, according to the legislative conference.
Pennsylvania is the only state that's part of the recent Marcellus and Utica boom that imposes no production tax. For now, state lawmakers have opted for an impact fee based mostly on the number of wells. Proceeds are targeted toward boosting regulation and repairing or upgrading roads and bridges around burgeoning well sites.
Of the first $202 million that Pennsylvania collected since approving the impact fees in February, the state gets $23 million off the top and $107 million is being split among 37 counties and some 1,500 municipalities hosting gas well. The remainder is ticketed for state regulatory agencies.
West Virginia also opted to increase permit fees rather than raise its severance tax.
Proponents of the production tax approach, including Kasich, argue that taxes on the extracted oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids can bring long-term benefits to state economies that impact fees can't. Once the resources are tapped and well construction is completed, wells could continue producing for half a century, according to some experts.
The Pennsylvania Budget and Policy Center, a liberal think tank, estimated the state lost $300 million between October 2009 and January by not passing a proposed tax on oil and gas production.
Kasich's tax plan is similarly stalled, as fellow Republicans who lead the Legislature grapple with the political fallout.
Though the national Americans for Tax Reform has sanctioned Kasich's plan as compatible with its anti-tax hike pledge, that doesn't mean the well-funded energy industry couldn't run ads against lawmakers who support the increase when they come up for re-election in two years.
As it stands, Ohio's production tax rates _ 20 cents a barrel on oil and 3 cents per 1,000 cubic feet of natural gas _ are among the lowest in the country. Annual collections on oil production have remained roughly flat from 2007 to 2011.
According to the Ohio Department of Taxation, tax revenue on natural gas production rose by less than 2 percent last year _ up $40,000 to $2.1 million _ despite an explosion of drilling activity that has included 391 new shale wells permitted the last 20 months. And Ohio never thought to tax natural gas liquids, a newly developing revenue area for the industry.
By contrast, total taxable sales in Carroll County rose 33 percent from 2011 to 2012, from $94.9 million from January to June of last year to $125.7 million during the same period this year. That meant more than $300,000 in additional sales tax revenue for the county _ one of about two dozen across eastern and southern Ohio benefiting from the boom in exploration mostly of the Utica Shale formation.
That uptick comes in a county that had been struggling against rising unemployment.
Dairies that once thrived in Carroll, the state's smallest county in total area, dwindled over the past 20 years as family farms struggled and shrank as it became harder to make money in the milk business. Tree and nursery farming _ a business dependent on people having extra spending money _ is now the county's largest industry.
Oil and gas taxes collected in Carroll and Ohio's 87 other counties are sent to state oil and gas regulatory programs, not to the general revenue fund, as in many other states. Texas, for example, saw $3.6 billion added to state coffers from its oil and gas severance taxes in the fiscal year that ended last month, according to the state comptroller's office.
Some states _ including Alaska, Wyoming and New Mexico _ reserve a portion of the oil and gas production taxes they collect for permanent funds. Interest from the funds can be used to help balance state budgets, providing support to government services like education, health care and environmental protection.
Oil and gas producers in Ohio oppose Kasich's plan. They argue that growth will result in the industry paying $1 billion in new taxes by 2015, even without any regulatory changes. They also point to local communities like Carroll County that are benefiting greatly from the boom.
Governments that raise taxes and increase impact fees risk driving away a lucrative new industry that could help with budget woes, said Kathryn Klaber, president of the Marcellus Shale Coalition, which represents producers.
"Businesses are looking at the return on the significant investment to explore and extract a resource and their overall costs, including what they're being asked to pay in taxes and fees," Klaber said. "Governments are looking at it from kind of the other side of that coin, which is how much can we extract revenue for government needs and position this revenue in a politically salient way. Those two perspectives often result in a real mismatch of interests."
The Kasich administration argues that if energy companies want the resources badly enough, they will have to come to Ohio to get them. The governor points to the nearly 400 new wells permitted, and 140 drilled in the Marcellus and Utica formations since December 2009.
Carroll County's Rutledge said she just wants to guarantee her county is standing strong when the boom subsides.
"It's not that we don't want to share, but we should be given more of a consideration because it's happening here," she said. "We're the ones that have to deal with all the things that come with progress: more traffic, more people, more crime. At this point, the companies have been taking great care of the roads, but who's to say what's going to happen for the next 15 years?"