text:
The following abbreviations and acronyms used in this disclosure statement are defined below:
Company - MDU Resources Group, Inc.
Risk Factors
The Company's business and financial results are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those set forth below and in other documents that it files with the SEC. The factors and the other matters discussed herein are important factors that could cause actual results or outcomes for the Company to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements included elsewhere in this document. If any of the risks described below actually occur, the Company's business, prospects, financial condition or financial results could be materially harmed.
Economic Risks
The Company is subject to government regulations that may delay and/or have a negative impact on its business and its results of operations and cash flows. Statutory and regulatory requirements also may limit another party's ability to acquire the Company or impose conditions on an acquisition of or by the Company.
The Company's electric and natural gas transmission and distribution businesses are subject to comprehensive regulation by federal, state and local regulatory agencies with respect to, among other things, allowed rates of return and recovery of investment and cost, financing, rate structures, health care coverage and cost, income taxes, property and other taxes, franchises; recovery of purchased power and purchased natural gas costs; and siting of generation and transmission facilities. These governmental regulations significantly influence the Company's operating environment and may affect its ability to recover costs from its customers. The Company is unable to predict the impact on operating results from the future regulatory activities of any of these agencies. Changes in regulations or the imposition of additional regulations could have an adverse impact on the Company's results of operations and cash flows.
There can be no assurance that applicable regulatory commissions will determine all the costs of the Company's electric and natural gas transmission and distribution businesses to have been prudent, which could result in disallowance of costs. Also, the regulatory process for approval of rates for these businesses may not result in full recovery of the costs of providing services. Changes in regulatory requirements or operating conditions may require early retirement of certain assets. While regulation typically provides relief for these types of retirements, there is no assurance the regulators will allow full recovery of all remaining costs leaving stranded asset costs. Rising fuel costs could increase the risk that the utility businesses will not be able to fully recover those fuel costs from their customers.
Approval from a number of federal and state regulatory agencies would need to be obtained by any potential acquirer of the Company as well as for acquisitions by the Company. The approval process could be lengthy and the outcome uncertain, which may defer potential acquirers from approaching the Company or impact the Company's ability to pursue otherwise attractive acquisitions.
Economic volatility affects the Company's operations, as well as the demand for its products and services.
Unfavorable economic conditions can negatively affect the level of public and private expenditures on projects and the timing of these projects which, in turn, can negatively affect the demand for the Company's products and services, primarily at the Company's construction businesses. The level of demand for construction products and services could be adversely impacted by the economic conditions in the industries the Company serves, as well as in the economy in general. State and federal budget issues affect the funding available for infrastructure spending.
The ability of the Company's electric and natural gas distribution businesses to grow in service territory, customer base and usage demand is affected by the economic environments and population growth of the markets served. This economic volatility could have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations, cash flows and asset values. Further, any material decreases in energy demand by customers, for economic or other reasons, could have a material adverse impact on the Company's earnings and results of operations.
The Company's operations involve risks that may result from catastrophic events.
The Company's operations include a variety of inherent hazards and operating risks, such as product leaks, explosions, mechanical failures, vandalism, acts of terrorism and acts of war, which could result in loss of human life; personal injury; property damage; environmental pollution; impairment of operations; and substantial financial losses. The Company maintains insurance against some, but not all, of these risks and losses. The occurrence of these losses not fully covered by insurance could have a material effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations and cash flows.
The Company relies on financing sources and capital markets. Access to these markets may be adversely affected by factors beyond the Company's control. If the Company is unable to obtain cost effective financing in the future, the Company's ability to execute its business plans, make capital expenditures or pursue acquisitions that the Company may otherwise rely on for future growth could be impaired. As a result, the market value of the Company's common stock may be adversely affected. If the Company issues a substantial amount of common stock it could have a dilutive effect on its existing shareholders.
The Company's operations, particularly its electric and natural gas transmission and distribution businesses, require significant capital investment. The Company relies on the issuance of long-term debt and equity securities as sources of liquidity for capital requirements not satisfied by its cash flow from operations. If the Company is not able to access capital at competitive rates, the ability to implement its business plans may be adversely affected. Market disruptions may increase the cost of borrowing or adversely affect its ability to access one or more financial markets. Such disruptions could include:
The issuance of a substantial amount of the Company's common stock, whether issued in connection with an acquisition or otherwise, could have a dilutive effect on existing shareholders, or the perception that such an issuance could occur, may adversely affect the market price of the Company's common stock.
The regulatory approval, permitting, construction, startup and/or operation of pipelines and power generation and transmission facilities may involve unanticipated events, delays and unrecoverable costs.
The construction, startup and operation of pipelines and power generation and transmission facilities involve many risks, which may include: delays; breakdown or failure of equipment; inability to obtain required governmental permits and approvals; inability to obtain or renew easements; public opposition; inability to complete financing; inability to negotiate acceptable equipment acquisition, construction, fuel supply, off-take, transmission, transportation or other material agreements; changes in markets and market prices for power; cost increases and overruns; the risk of performance below expected levels of output or efficiency; and the inability to obtain full cost recovery in regulated rates. Such unanticipated events could negatively impact the Company's business, its results of operations and cash flows.
Additionally, operating or other costs required to comply with current pipeline safety regulations and potential new regulations under various agencies could be significant. The regulations require verification of pipeline infrastructure records by pipeline owners and operators to confirm the maximum allowable operating pressure of certain lines. Increased emphasis on pipeline safety issues and increased regulatory scrutiny may result in penalties and higher costs of operations. If these costs are not fully recoverable from customers, they could have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations and cash flows.
Financial market changes could impact the Company's pension and post-retirement benefit plans and obligations.
The global demand and price volatility for natural resources, interest rate changes, governmental budget constraints and threat of terrorism can create volatility in the financial markets. Changing financial market conditions could negatively affect the value of assets held in the Company's pension and other postretirement benefit plans and may increase the amount and accelerate the timing of required funding contributions for those plans as well liabilities and funding requirements for multiemployer plans to which the Company is a participating employer.
The backlogs at the Company's construction materials and contracting and construction services businesses may not accurately represent future revenue.
Backlog consists of the uncompleted portion of services to be performed under job-specific contracts. Contracts are subject to delay, default or cancellation and the contracts in the Company's backlog are subject to changes in the scope of services to be provided as well as adjustments to the costs relating to the applicable contracts. Backlog may also be affected by project delays or cancellations resulting from weather conditions, external market factors and economic factors beyond the Company's control. Accordingly, there is no assurance that backlog will be realized. The timing of contract awards, duration of large new contracts and the mix of services can significantly affect backlog. Backlog at any given point in time may not accurately represent the revenue or net income that is realized in any period and the backlog as of the end of the year may not be indicative of the revenue and net income expected to be earned in the following year and should not be relied upon as a stand-alone indicator of future revenues or net income.
The Company's pipeline and midstream business is dependent on factors, including commodity prices and commodity price basis differentials, that are subject to external influences.
Fluctuations in oil, NGL and natural gas production and prices; fluctuations in commodity price basis differentials; domestic and foreign supplies of oil, NGL and natural gas; political and economic conditions in oil producing countries; actions of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries; and other external factors impact the development of natural gas supplies and the expansion and operation of natural gas pipeline systems. Prolonged depressed prices for oil, NGL and natural gas could negatively affect the growth, results of operations, cash flows and asset values of the Company's pipeline and midstream business.
Reductions in the Company's credit ratings could increase financing costs.
There is no assurance that the Company's current credit ratings, or those of its subsidiaries, will remain in effect or that a rating will not be lowered or withdrawn by a rating agency. The Company's credit ratings may also change as a result of the differing methodologies or changes in the methodologies used by the rating agencies. A downgrade in credit ratings could lead to higher borrowing costs. A credit rating is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities and is applicable only to the specific security to which it applies. Investors should make their own evaluation as to whether an investment in the security is appropriate.
Increasing costs associated with health care plans may adversely affect the Company's results of operations.
The Company's self-insured costs of health care benefits for eligible employees continues to increase. Increasing levels of large individual health care claims and overall health care claims could have an adverse impact on operating results, financial position and liquidity. Legislation related to health care could also change the Company's benefit program and costs.
The Company is exposed to risk of loss resulting from the nonpayment and/or nonperformance by the Company's customers and counterparties.
If the Company's customers or counterparties experience financial difficulties, the Company could experience difficulty in collecting receivables. The nonpayment and/or nonperformance by the Company's customers and counterparties, particularly customers and counterparties of the Company's construction materials and contracting and construction services businesses for large construction projects, could have a negative impact on the Company's results of operations and cash flows. The Company may also have indirect credit risk due to participation in energy markets such as MISO in which credit losses are socialized to all participants.
Changes in tax law may negatively affect the Company's business.
On December 22, 2017, President Trump signed into law the TCJA that significantly reforms the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The TCJA, among other things, includes reductions to United States federal tax rates, repeals the domestic production deduction, disallows regulated utility property for immediate expensing, and modifies or repeals many other business deductions and credits. The changes to the Internal Revenue Code could materially impact the Company. Future guidance, regulations and interpretations clarifying items within the TCJA may be contrary to the Company's current interpretation or regulatory actions and could have an adverse impact to the Company. The Company continues to examine the impact the TCJA may have on the Company in future periods. The TCJA's impact on the economy, including overall demand and competition for the products and services the Company provides and associated labor availability and costs, is unknown and there could be negative impacts to the Company. The Company's utility businesses' cash flows may be negatively impacted by the disallowance of immediate expensing of utility property. Other changes to federal and state tax laws have the ability to benefit or adversely affect the Company's earnings and customer costs. Significant changes to corporate tax rates could result in the impairment of deferred tax assets that are established based on existing law at the time of deferral. Changes to the value of various tax credits could change the economics of resources and the resource selection for the electric generation business. Regulation incorporates changes in tax law into the rate setting process for the regulated energy delivery businesses and therefore could create timing delays before the impact of changes are realized.
Environmental and Regulatory Risks
The Company's operations could be adversely impacted by climate change.
Climate change may create physical and financial risks to the Company. Such risks could have an adverse effect on the Company's financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Utility customers' energy needs vary with weather conditions, primarily temperature and humidity. For residential customers, heating and cooling represent the largest energy use. To the extent weather conditions are affected by climate change, customers' energy use could increase or decrease. Increased energy use by its utility customers due to weather changes may require the Company to invest in additional generating assets, transmission and other infrastructure to serve increased load. Decreased energy use due to weather changes may result in decreased revenues. Extreme weather conditions in general require more system backup, adding to costs, and can contribute to increased system stress, including service interruptions. Weather conditions outside of the Company's service territory could also have an impact on revenues. The Company buys and sells electricity that might be generated outside its service territory depending upon system needs and market opportunities. Extreme weather conditions creating high energy demand may raise electricity prices, which would increase the cost of energy provided to customers.
Severe weather impacts the Company's utility service territories, primarily when thunderstorms, tornadoes and snow or ice storms occur. Severe weather events may damage or disrupt the Company's electric and natural gas transmission and distribution facilities, which could increase costs to repair damaged facilities and restore service to customers. The cost of providing service could increase to the extent the frequency of extreme weather events increases because of climate change or otherwise. The Company may not recover all costs related to mitigating these physical risks.
Severe weather may result in disruptions to the pipeline and midstream business's natural gas supply and transportation systems. These changes could result in increased maintenance and capital costs, disruption of service, regulatory actions and lower customer satisfaction.
Extreme weather conditions caused by climate change or otherwise may cause infrastructure construction projects to be delayed or canceled and limit resources available for such projects increasing the project costs at the construction materials and contracting and construction services businesses.
Climate change may impact a region's economic health, which could impact revenues at all of the Company's businesses. The Company's financial performance is tied to the health of the regional economies served. The Company provides natural gas and electric utility service, as well as construction materials and services, for states and communities that are economically affected by the agriculture industry. Increases in severe weather events or significant changes in temperature and precipitation patterns could adversely affect the agriculture industry and correspondingly the economies of the states and communities affected by that industry.
The price of energy also has an impact on the economic health of communities. The cost of additional regulatory requirements to combat climate change, such as regulation of carbon dioxide emissions under the Clean Air Act, or other environmental regulation could impact the availability of goods and prices charged by suppliers which would normally be borne by consumers through higher prices for energy and purchased goods. To the extent financial markets view climate change and emissions of GHGs as a financial risk, this could negatively affect the Company's ability to access capital markets or cause less than ideal terms and conditions.
The Company's operations are subject to environmental laws and regulations that may increase costs of operations, impact or limit business plans, or expose the Company to environmental liabilities.
The Company is subject to environmental laws and regulations affecting many aspects of its operations, regarding air and water quality, waste management and other environmental considerations. These laws and regulations can increase capital, operating and other costs, cause delays as a result of litigation and administrative proceedings, and create compliance, remediation, containment, monitoring and reporting obligations, particularly relating to electric generation and natural gas gathering, transmission and storage operations. These laws and regulations generally require the Company to obtain and comply with a variety of environmental licenses, permits, inspections and other approvals. Although the Company strives to comply with all applicable environmental laws and regulations, public and private entities and private individuals may interpret the Company's legal or regulatory requirements differently and seek injunctive relief or other remedies against the Company. The Company cannot predict the outcome, financial or operational, of any such litigation or administrative proceedings.
Existing environmental laws and regulations may be revised and new laws and regulations seeking to protect the environment may be adopted or become applicable to the Company. These laws and regulations could require the Company to limit the use or output of certain facilities, restrict the use of certain fuels, retire and replace certain facilities, install pollution controls, remediate environmental impacts, remove or reduce environmental hazards, or forego or limit the development of resources. Revised or new laws and regulations that increase compliance costs or restrict operations, particularly if costs are not fully recoverable from customers, could have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations and cash flows.
On April 17, 2015, the EPA published a rule, under the RCRA, for coal combustion residuals that regulates coal ash as a solid waste and not a hazardous waste. Site and groundwater analyses as required by the rule may identify the need to upgrade or close impoundments or the Company may need to install replacement ash management systems. The cost of replacement ash impoundments or landfills may be material. If these costs are not fully recoverable from customers, they could have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations and cash flows.
On August 15, 2014, the EPA published a rule under Section 316(b) of the Clean Water Act, establishing requirements for water intake structures at existing steam electric generating facilities. The purpose of the rule is to reduce impingement and entrainment of fish and other aquatic organisms at cooling water intake structures. The majority of the Company's electric generating facilities are either not subject to the rule or have completed studies that project compliance expenditures are not material. The Lewis & Clark Station will complete a study that will be submitted to the Montana DEQ by July 31, 2019, to be used in determining any required controls. It is unknown at this time what controls may be required at this facility or if compliance costs will be material. The installation schedule for any required controls would be established with the permitting agency after the study is completed.
Initiatives to reduce GHG emissions could adversely impact the Company's operations.
Concern that GHG emissions are contributing to global climate change has led to international, federal and state legislative and regulatory proposals to reduce or mitigate the effects of GHG emissions. The Company's primary GHG emission is carbon dioxide from fossil fuels combustion at Montana-Dakota's electric generating facilities, particularly its coal-fired facilities. Approximately 50 percent of Montana-Dakota's owned generating capacity and approximately 76 percent of the electricity it generated in 2017 was from coal-fired facilities.
On October 23, 2015, the EPA published the Clean Power Plan rule that requires existing fossil fuel-fired electric generating facilities to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. On February 9, 2016, however, the United States Supreme Court granted an application for a stay of the Clean Power Plan pending disposition of the applicants' petition for review in the D.C. Circuit Court and disposition of the applicants' petition for a writ of certiorari if such a writ is sought. The EPA filed a motion with the D.C. Circuit Court on March 28, 2017, requesting the Clean Power Plan's case be held in abeyance. The D.C. Circuit Court granted the EPA's motion to hold the case in abeyance for 60 days. On August 8, 2017, the D.C. Circuit Court issued an order holding the case in abeyance for an additional 60-day period and directed the EPA to file status reports at 30-day intervals. In parallel, the EPA published a proposal on October 16, 2017, to repeal the Clean Power Plan in its entirety and followed with an advance notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Federal Register on December 28, 2017, requesting comment on replacing the Clean Power Plan through new rulemaking. Compliance costs will become clearer as the EPA completes new rulemaking.
On January 14, 2015, the federal government of the United States announced a goal to reduce methane emissions from the oil and natural gas industry by 40 percent to 45 percent below 2012 levels by 2025. On June 3, 2016, the EPA published a rule updating new source performance standards for the oil and natural gas industry. The rule builds on 2012 requirements to reduce volatile organic compound emissions from oil and natural gas sources by establishing requirements to reduce methane emissions from previously regulated sources, as well as adding volatile organic compound and methane requirements for sources previously not covered by the rule. The rule impacts new and modified natural gas gathering and boosting stations and transmission and storage compressor stations. WBI Energy is currently complying with the rules impacting new and modified sources. In addition, on March 10, 2016, the EPA announced plans to reduce emissions from the oil and natural gas industry by moving to regulate emissions from existing sources. On November 10, 2016, the EPA issued an Information Collection Request to oil and gas facility operators, including WBI Energy, to begin the process of existing source rule development. On March 7, 2017, the EPA published notice of withdrawal of the Information Collection Request.
On September 15, 2016, the Washington DOE issued a Clean Air rule that requires carbon dioxide emission reductions from various industries in the state, including emissions from the combustion of natural gas supplied to end-use customers by natural gas distribution companies, such as Cascade. In 2017, the rule requires Cascade to hold carbon dioxide emissions to a baseline, equal to the average emissions in 2012 to 2016. Beginning in 2018, annual carbon dioxide emissions are reduced by an additional 1.7 percent of the baseline from the previous year's emissions. Compliance for natural gas suppliers is to be achieved through purchasing emissions credits from projects located within the state of Washington and, to a limited and declining extent, out-of-state allowances. Purchasing emissions credits and allowances will increase operating costs for Cascade. If Cascade is not able to receive timely and full recovery of compliance costs from its customers, such costs could adversely impact the results of its operations. On September 27, 2016 and September 30, 2016, Cascade and three other natural gas distribution utility companies jointly filed complaints in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington and the Thurston County Superior Court, respectively, asking the courts to deem the rule invalid. The companies asserted that the Washington DOE undertook this rulemaking without the requisite statutory authority. On December 15, 2017, the Thurston County Superior Court vacated the Clean Air rule holding that it is invalid due to a lack of legislative approval to adopt the rule. The ruling may still be appealed by the Washington DOE or interveners. Litigation in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington remains in abeyance pending evaluation of the recent ruling in the Thurston County Superior Court.
Additional treaties, legislation or regulations to reduce GHG emissions may be adopted that affect the Company's utility operations by requiring additional energy conservation efforts or renewable energy sources, as well as other mandates that could significantly increase capital expenditures and operating costs or reduce demand for the Company's utility services. If the Company's utility operations do not receive timely and full recovery of GHG emission compliance costs from customers, then such costs could adversely impact the results of its operations and cash flows.
The Company monitors, analyzes and reports GHG emissions from its other operations as required by applicable laws and regulations. The Company will continue to monitor GHG regulations and their potential impact on operations.
Due to the uncertain availability of technologies to control GHG emissions and the unknown obligations that potential GHG emission legislation or regulations may create, the Company cannot determine the potential financial impact on its operations.
Other Risks
The Company's various businesses are seasonal and subject to weather conditions that can adversely affect the Company's operations, revenues and cash flows.
The Company's results of operations can be affected by changes in the weather. Weather conditions influence the demand for electricity and natural gas and affect the price of energy commodities. Utility operations have historically generated lower revenues when weather conditions are cooler than normal in the summer and warmer than normal in the winter particularly in jurisdictions that do not have decoupling mechanisms in place. Where decoupling mechanism are in place, there is no assurance the Company will continue to receive such regulatory protection from adverse weather in future rates.
Adverse weather conditions, such as heavy or sustained rainfall or snowfall, storms, wind, and colder weather may affect the demand for products and the ability to perform services at the construction businesses and affect ongoing operation and maintenance and construction activities for the electric and natural gas transmission and distribution businesses. In addition, severe weather can be destructive, causing outages, and/or property damage, which could require additional costs to be incurred.
As a result, adverse weather conditions could negatively affect the Company's results of operations, financial position and cash flows.
Competition exists in all of the Company's businesses.
The Company's businesses are subject to competition. Construction services' competition is based primarily on price and reputation for quality, safety and reliability. Construction materials products are marketed under highly competitive conditions and are subject to such competitive forces as price, service, delivery time and proximity to the customer. The electric utility and natural gas industries also experience competitive pressures as a result of consumer demands, technological advances and other factors. The pipeline and midstream business competes with several pipelines for access to natural gas supplies and for gathering, transportation and storage business. Competition could negatively affect the Company's results of operations, financial position and cash flows.
The Company's inability to obtain, develop and retain key personnel and skilled labor forces may have a negative effect on the Company's operations.
The Company must attract, develop and retain executive officers and other professional, technical and skilled labor forces with the skills and experience necessary to successfully manage, operate and grow the Company's businesses. Competition for these employees is high, and in some cases competition for these employees is on a regional or national basis. A shortage in the supply of these skilled personnel creates competitive hiring markets and increased labor expenses, decreased productivity and potentially lost business opportunities. Additionally, if the Company is unable to hire employees with the requisite skills, the Company may also be forced to incur significant training expenses. As a result, the Company's ability to maintain productivity, relationships with customers, competitive costs, and quality services is limited by the ability to employ the necessary skilled personnel and could negatively affect the Company's results of operations, financial position and cash flows.
The Company's construction materials and contracting and construction services businesses may be exposed to warranty claims.
The Company, particularly its construction businesses, may provide warranties guaranteeing the work performed against defects in workmanship and material. If warranty claims occur, they may require the Company to re-perform the services or to repair or replace the warranted item, at a cost to the Company, and could also result in other damages if the Company is not able to adequately satisfy warranty obligations. In addition, the Company may be required under contractual arrangements with customers to warrant any defects or failures in materials the Company purchased from third parties. While the Company generally requires suppliers to provide warranties that are consistent with those the Company provides to customers, if any of the suppliers default on their warranty obligations to the Company, the Company may nonetheless incur costs to repair or replace the defective materials. Costs incurred as a result of warranty claims could adversely affect the Company's results of operations, financial condition and cash flows.
The Company could be subject to limitations on its ability to pay dividends.
The Company depends on earnings from its divisions and dividends from its subsidiaries to pay dividends on its common stock. Regulatory, contractual and legal limitations, as well as capital requirements and the Company's financial performance or cash flows, could restrict or influence the Company's ability or decision to pay dividends on its common stock and adversely affect the Company's stock price.
Costs related to obligations under MEPPs could have a material negative effect on the Company's results of operations and cash flows.
Various operating subsidiaries of the Company participate in approximately 75 MEPPs for employees represented by certain unions. The Company is required to make contributions to these plans in amounts established under numerous collective bargaining agreements between the operating subsidiaries and those unions.
The Company may be obligated to increase its contributions to underfunded plans that are classified as being in endangered, seriously endangered or critical status as defined by the Pension Protection Act of 2006. Plans classified as being in one of these statuses are required to adopt RPs or FIPs to improve their funded status through increased contributions, reduced benefits or a combination of the two. Based on available information, the Company believes that approximately 35 percent of the MEPPs to which it contributes are currently in endangered, seriously endangered or critical status.
The Company may also be required to increase its contributions to MEPPs if the other participating employers in such plans withdraw from the plans and are not able to contribute amounts sufficient to fund the unfunded liabilities associated with their participation in the plans. The amount and timing of any increase in the Company's required contributions to MEPPs may also depend upon one or more factors including the outcome of collective bargaining, actions taken by trustees who manage the plans, actions taken by the plans' other participating employers, the industry for which contributions are made, future determinations that additional plans reach endangered, seriously endangered or critical status, government regulations and the actual return on assets held in the plans, among others. The Company may experience increased operating expenses as a result of the required contributions to MEPPs, which may have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations, financial position or cash flows.
In addition, pursuant to ERISA, as amended by MPPAA, the Company could incur a partial or complete withdrawal liability upon withdrawing from a plan, exiting a market in which it does business with a union workforce or upon termination of a plan to the extent these plans are underfunded. The Company could also incur additional withdrawal liability if its withdrawal from a plan is determined by that plan to be part of a mass withdrawal.
Information technology disruptions or cyberattacks could adversely impact the Company's operations.
The Company's operations require uninterrupted operation of information technology systems and network infrastructure. While the Company has policies, procedures and processes in place designed to strengthen and protect these systems, they may be vulnerable to failures or unauthorized access due to hacking, theft, sabotage, malicious software, acts of terrorism, acts of war, acts of nature or other causes. If these systems fail or become comprised, and they are not recovered in a timely manner, the Company may be unable to fulfill critical business functions. This may include interruption of electric generation, transmission and distribution facilities, natural gas storage and pipeline facilities, and facilities for delivery of construction materials or other products and services. The Company's accounting systems and its ability to collect information and invoice customers for products and services could also be disrupted. If the Company's operations were disrupted, it could result in decreased revenues or significant remediation costs that have a material adverse effect on the Company's results of operations and cash flows. Additionally, because electric generation and transmission systems and natural gas pipelines are part of interconnected systems with other operators' facilities, a cyber-related disruption in another operator's system could negatively impact the Company's business.
The Company, through the ordinary course of business, requires access to sensitive customer, employee and Company data. While the Company has implemented extensive security measures, a breach of its systems could compromise sensitive data. Such an event could result in negative publicity and reputational harm, remediation costs, legal claims and fines that could have an adverse effect on the Company's financial results. Third-party service providers that perform critical business functions for the Company or have access to sensitive information within the Company also may be vulnerable to security breaches and information technology risks that could have an adverse effect on the Company.
The Company may be subject to potential material liabilities relating to the past sale of assets or businesses, primarily arising from events prior to sale.
The Company previously sold its oil and natural gas assets and its membership interests in Dakota Prairie Refining. The Company may be subject to potential liabilities, either directly or through indemnification of the buyers or others, relating to these transactions or other sales, primarily arising from events prior to the sale, or from breaches of any representations, warranties or covenants in the purchase and sale agreements.
Other factors that could impact the Company's businesses.
The following are other factors that should be considered for a better understanding of the risks to the Company. These other factors may materially negatively impact the Company's financial results in future periods.


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Likely planning an announcement during the Intel press conference at the Consumer Electronic Show (CES) on January 7, the company is reported to be working on a new set-top box for the home theater that combines premium cable TV service with streaming video services like Netflix. According to Techcrunch, Intel plans to roll out the device on a regional basis rather than setting a date for a nationwide launch. By launching the set-top box on a city-by-city basis, Intel will be in a strategically better position to negotiate licensing deals for local video content.
Conceptually, the hardware is designed as a bridge device. Rather than completely cutting off cable and going with a streaming-only solution like a Roku 2 set-top box, Intel wants to attract consumers that want the streaming options along with local programming from a small cable package. The design sounds somewhat similar to a TiVo DVR set-top box, but with a larger amount of streaming video options.
One interesting feature detailed within the report is the ability to bring up any content that's aired on subscribed channels within the past month. Likely housed within cloud storage in a central location, Intel could store video broadcasts over the past thirty days for all channels and simply load up that content to any subscribers in the area. Rather than forcing the consumer to constantly continue scheduling DVR recordings, the consumer can simply catch up on their favorite shows as long as the episodes aired within the past month.
The design of this feature is somewhat similar to Dish Network's PrimeTime Anytime option that automatically records all primetime programming on ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC for the last eight days. However, Intel's approach to the concept is more ambitious and significantly more useful to the consumer.
Earlier this year, Reuters reported that Intel was working on a way to determine what type of person was watching the television at any given time. This would allow advertisers to specifically customize advertisements to that viewer.
While the technology doesn't specifically identify a person by name, it modifies advertisements based off gender as well as age of the viewer. Assuming Intel's technology is successful, it would be able to provide more accurate data than the Nielsen ratings data currently used by major networks to make advertising decisions.
According to the report, Intel hasn't been able to launch the new set-top box during 2012 due to the reluctance of content providers regarding licensing programming. Intel wants to offer the consumer the ability to subscribe to smaller content packages than a basic cable package. However, content providers don't want to undercut existing cable and satellite partners. In addition, content providers want to be paid a premium for the smaller packages.
At this time, there's no information available on the cost of the Intel set-top box, the cities that will have access to the hardware first or any subscription fees that come with using the hardware. Potential streaming video partners for the Intel set-top box could include Netflix, Hulu Plus, Vudu, Amazon Instant Video, CinemaNow, EPIX, Crackle and Redbox Instant by Verizon.
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- AT&T's new three-tiered streaming service will include movies, possibly HBO
- Verizon video game streaming service leaked, currently testing on Nvidia Shield

subset: commoncrawl


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I searched a lot around the Internet but I can't figure out how to change the color of a texture.
I'm drawing a sun using the texture file (.sgi) my professor gave me, if I set the emission color of the sphere to white this is the color I obtain:
So far the only thing I managed to do is to set the emission color to red so the sun now is dark red, but is there something else I can do to make the Sun more yellow? The green component keeps coming out!
Here is the sun code:
Code :{ static GLfloat sunRed[]= {1.0, 0.0, 0.0, 1.0}; static GLfloat white[] = {1.0,1.0,1.0,1.0}; GLUquadric* a = gluNewQuadric(); /* save attributes */ glPushAttrib(GL_ALL_ATTRIB_BITS); glEnable(GL_TEXTURE_2D); /* enable 2D texture mapping */ glPushMatrix(); glTranslatef(500, 50, 0); glMaterialfv(GL_FRONT, GL_EMISSION, sunRed); glBindTexture(GL_TEXTURE_2D, g_textureArray[0]); gluQuadricTexture(a, GL_TRUE); gluSphere(a, 100, 24, 24); glPopMatrix(); glDisable(GL_TEXTURE_2D); /* disable 2D texture mapping */ glPopAttrib(); }


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AMD FX-8150 Processor Review - Can Bulldozer Unearth an AMD Victory?
Power Consumption and Performance per Watt
What about power consumption? Maybe the AMD FX lineup can do it all while maintaining a lower idle or peak power consumption?
Idle power consumption is about 15 watts higher on the FX-8150 than on the Sandy Bridge based processors while peak power consumption on the new AMD CPU exceeds even the Intel Gulftown i7-990X. The 8 cores of Bulldozer get HOT and there is no denying that. In our overclocking results I actually discuss some interesting heat issues that cropped up using standard air cooling.
Using these wattage numbers we can now also look at performance per watt but I am guessing you can peer into the future and guess how this turns out for AMD's new FX processor.
The AMD FX doesn't even come close to touching the efficiency of the Intel Core i7-2600k, i5-2500k or even the i5-2400.
Video News
Another great article Mr Shrout. I really appreciate the honesty you provide in your assessment of this processor. Hearing different things on the web I was very interested in this processor. Great new design for the future but it just doesnt seem to compete as well as I would like. I currently have a AMD Phenom II X4 965 and this review has me not really wanting to upgrade to it. I plan to get a new mobo and ddr3 ram so looks like that and a new vid card will be my only purchase in the near future. Although given this review would u recommend the FX-8150 or Phenom X6 1090T/1100T?
It is hard to deny the value of the X6 processors now based on their price. If money is kind of tight, I have no qualms recommend the 1100T.
Ryan and his crew please stop doing bogus article on fx 8150.unless amd or someone at ms or linux has some benchmark that test with fx feature in mind all test will be irelevent.fma4 alone isnt supported and you try to compare actual fma proc .intel. vs fx.comparing a cpugpu vs a cpu?core parking activated?threading issue in window?mobo bios issue that wont be fixed in w8.come on just stop benchmarking this cpu give a call to mobo.ms.amd then when they have fixes you can revisit[about6 month worth]some silly test seams to forget one fact very important here in 2 year intel will have fma4.2 year.amd isso far ahead they cant even speak to any one for fear of copying.it isnt they dont want to.the techno is just plain further ahead then all expected.people wonder why fx is selling like hotcake.when was the last time you had a 2 year in the futurtechno avail today?it rarelly happen .this is huge new for corp in the software business be it gaming or anything else.i bet a lot are hard at work opimising .or trying.for fma4 and all other lessb highlighted feature.but like i mention this proc was released 6 month too early
I wonder what Trinity will be like. hmmm
Nice article only the tables are hard to readout :(
I understand the dilemma of sorting by name or rank.
But personally i really prefer ordering by rank, but that's me.
A great solution would be to have mouse-over change the ordering so everyone can pick whats best for them.
Next to that some color coding would be nice of competing products
Light Blue for i5 2400 blue for 2500K and dark blue for 2600K
next to that dark green for the FX green for the X6 light green for the X4.
To just suggest something.
Like a said, good read, so so tables
Yeah, that's fair. We'll see what we can do to improve that in the future!
It's interesting to note that you guys came to a rather different conclusion than Anandtech did with regards to gaming performance with Bulldozer.
I'd definitely like to see some more testing done on this.
Notice they ran their games at resolutions like 1024x768 and at the highest, 1680x1050 while I ran my tests at 1080p. In truth, the higher the resolution the less important the CPU performance tends to be.
To some people, they just want to know the raw gaming power of the CPU so running at low resolutions, sometimes even lower than is likely to be run by the gamer (who plays games at 1024x768 anymore??) will show the biggest differences.
In my case I thought it more pertinent to show the most "real world" cases and 1080p seemed to be the way to go.
You can't argue the Civ V findings, but [H]ard|OCP used similar resolutions and found similar results to Ryan's.
I would to see more gaming benchmarks. Having only 2 games on there seems lazy to me. Where is Starcraft 2, Bad Company 2, Rage, The Witcher 2, and heck put World of Warcraft on there, you know games that people actually play. I don't anyone who plays Lost Planet 2.
Oh and of course Crysis, Crysis Warhead, Crysis 2. Come on!
Did I miss in the article where you explained why you used a 1090t instead of the top of the line 1100t for most of your benchmarks?
Ah, good point. We used the 1090T results from a previous article (Llano I think) and didn't have time to get in the 1100T to run the full allotment of tests before publication. Instead, with our time we had, I was able to run the 1100T through some our architectural analysis tests (core scaling, etc) and gaming.
So... how well does this CPU FOLD????
WOndering if it can handle bigadv folding...
You ain't the only one! I suggested it to Ryan but he hasn't done it since the PS3. Mind you I'm a BOINCer myself.
Based on this review, it's hard to justify upgrading from my Phenom II 955 especially when my PC is used mostly for gaming. I was hoping for better power consumption numbers when compared to what Sandybridge has.
The architecture is intriguing and has potential. It will be interesting to see what AMD comes out with the next iteration.
I just finished reading all 3 reviews( Anand, Toms and PCPER) and just like Yangorang said, WTF?!
The test show some consistencies but there is still a rather big difference in attitude and benches towards the 8150FX.
I think there is a bit of Fanboy-ism being implemeneted by ANAND and TOMS ( you can see by the comments as well) review. Granted it may not be a 2600k but its gets pretty close between a i5 and the i7 so I feel that those 2 reviews excerted much more biased in their writing towards the intel chip, even when the BD came close.
There are some crazy things like the power usage, but really? Most of the people posting dont really care about their lightbill( multi gpu, plethora of fans and 1100watt PSUs) so why are people complaining that much?
I already bought me ASUS CH-V 990fx mobo yesterday, and my AMDHD5970 (2gb) so I think I will just push on through with the BD. My last build was a core 2 duo so I thing I will be good non the less.
I don't think it is a BAD processor necessarily, but I find it hard to recommend the FX-8150 over the Core i5-2500k or even the i7-2600k if you are building a new system from scratch.
You have a 990FX Bulldozer-ready motherboard and want to get rid of that older CPU? Sure, the AMD FX will improve your system somewhat.
As I mentioned in my conclusion page, the primary issue is AMD thinks its processors are worth more money they probably are for MOST work loads.
Thanks for the review Ryan. I bought a Core i5-2500K and z68 mobo 2 weeks ago, and I'm not regretting my purchase one bit. We'll have to see if that sentiment persists thru to when Ivy Bridge comes out. :P
No wonder AMD is attempting to get pile-driver out as soon as possible, they probably knew bulldozer wasn't going to light the world on fire. Now the question is do you wait for Trinity/pile-driver and FM2. Somehow I think most people will wait, unless they already bought the AM3+ board. Isn't Pile-driver and FM2 by Q2 2012?
OH Dear,
Doesn't even look as if its worth updating from an X6.
Hope the 7000 cards are good cause AMD could be in trouble.
Thanks for including an older intel proc (the Q9650) I have a QX9650 and I've been looking to upgrade and was hoping to head back to AMD with this Bulldozer release. Sadly I see a i7-2600 in my future.
Thank you as always for the great review!
Thanks for reading!
Thorough, comprehensive, objective, and very informative review. Well done.
Well this make me wish I hadn't already bought it, since I have an 1100t... So much anticipation, and I suppose I'm about to be let down.
I couldn't care less where AMD goes from here in their lineup. I'm done waiting for their next "fast" cpu, which is only going to be a pathetic 10-15% improvement anyway. I'll have a 2500k under my hood now, and AMD will unfortunately be in my rear view, broken down on the side of the road overheating.
What is the deal with the performance?
Doesn't it look strange that a 2 billion transistor chip (fx-1850) is a tad slower than a 0.9 billion chip (i7 2600k) of witch 1/4 is a gpu.
There are a few major improvements, but still.
Is that just an unpopular code or a task sheduler comunication mishap? Some people speak of imprvements in windows 8.
Could that be it? That Bulldozer is a year early, and not late at all?
Indeed. It seems ridiculous that 2 billion transistors nets them a slightly slower chip than even their last generation.
It doesn't make sense. I think AMD needs hyper threading bolted on to extract more performance or something. All those transistors are going wasted, or it's just insanely inefficient.
The module design was to be AMD's take on HyperThreading but better.
Yes, Windows 8 will help some, but even in AMD's best case scenarios we are talking 4-10% improvement there.
In reality, we are just as confused how 2 billion transistors loses to 1.16 billion transistors this regularly.
The only other redeaming ansver could be that production techniques for bulldozer wafers must be dirt cheap and fast paced. Some Interlagos 16-core processors where mentioned to be around 85w on 1.6 ghz, so in some "lucky wafer" cases it could be considered an efficient chip. Hard to fathom if that is worth anything.
But really, if software wasn't ready for a propper Bulldozer computing scenarios, they could just have made an advanced 8-core thuban, that was based on Llano cores just with the additional L3 cache and already enlarged 1MB L1 cache per core. That shouldn't have taken more than 1.5 billion transistors. There's just the questione of production cost...
Of course at some point. But as I wrote in Sierra magazine at the time.
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could it be because most of applications are compiled using intel compiler and therefore are optimized on that architecture?
i've read this before. removing something from intel's compiler boosted via cpu to almost 50% performance gain.
kindly explain ryan. tnx.
I was wondering the same, for a long time Intel was purposefully limiting SSE optimization to CPUs which returned Intel's manufacturer string. (Instead of using CPU flags as intended)
I believe Intel agreed to end this practice last year but depending on when they actually implemented released it and when affected benchmarks were released....
Unfortunately as end users may also be using software compiled with the bogus compilers the results shown may be representative (until people stop using old software)
No guys, that is not the issue here. And anyone that says the compiler is getting 50% perf advantage is probably lying.
I would imagine a large chunk of the transistor difference is from the difference in L2 cache sizes.
I have a system with a GTX580 and an older Intel i5-750 processor. I can run all of the games that I've seen tested with almost exactly (within 4FPS(on games running 60FPS or less)) the same frame rate as systems with better processors. (Al-though, if you want SLi/Crossfire older processors like mine may not keep up)
If you are running a system just for gaming it seems to be more useful to have a beefy GPU. I think that the way the games where tested in this review are perfectly acceptable, because they show REAL WORLD gaming performance.
(I run all my games at 1080P. My i5-750 is clocked at 3.8Ghz with turbo on (air cooling)). I use an EVGA P55FTW motherboard. My GTX580 is running at stock clocks.)
Nice review, keep it up guys!
Not everyone is running 1080p monitors yet. I run at 1680x1050 and will do so for quite a while yet. So to me at least, the cpu performance in a game definitely matters. When I saw just how pathetic the 8150 did in these benchmarks I couldn't believe it.
Ok, so for my next computer, I have all the parts except the CPU and motherboard. I was planning to go Bulldozer instead of Sandy Bridge, but now I'm wondering if that's the best decision. All things being equal, and price not an issue, would one want to go top of the line FX or top of the line i7? All around machine; some games; some digital processing.
Then there's the SSD issue. About a year ago I put an SSD into an HP Core i7 desktop and reinstalled windows on 64gb with everything else on a 1tb drive. I was thinking of going the same way with the new computer (larger 3rd generation SSD), but now with the new Intel chipset and motherboards capable of caching with a small SSD, that enters into the equation of deciding between Intel and AMD. Again, which would be the 'better' machine? For gaming? For video processing?
Perhaps a good discussion topic for This week in Computer Hardware?
Mike Ungerman
Orlando, Fl
I'm more interested in the performance with a virtual environment. How does it perform with VM, VirtualBox, Hyper-Visor, etc? From a cost point view will it handle my needs or should I spend the extra $$$$ for intel? Thanks
1st, thanks for testing and showing a Core2Quad in your review... many people still have the Core2Duo/Quads as they pretty much put Intel on the map again a few years ago and are still to this day very good CPU's.
I have a Q9550 @ 4Ghz on hair and its perfect.
2nd, but disappointed with the gaming benchmarks and reviewing.
Because you used very few games and you also used only 1x video card.
What the results show is a GPU limitation and are not really testing the CPU.
This kind of testing only shows 1 thing which is pretty damn obvious, that at high resolutions and settings in games even a single GTX580 is limited, the CPU is idling.
These tests do not show the strengths and weaknesses of a CPU as the CPU is not working hard at all (gpu limit).
You either need to lower resolution to show how well the various games use the cores and respond to different CPU's or use SLI/Crossfire cards/setups which DO often put A LOT more stress on the CPU and separate the sheep from the lions :)
Please do SLI or Crossfire testing and lets see how this CPU holds up!
Have you used the supplied ASUS motherboard that was supplied as part of a kit from AMD? If so there might be some issues related to the MB. Post below.
There is some information that the Asus crosshair is not performing as well. Two sites used other motherboards, AsRock as well as Gigabyte Motherboards, and showed much different picture of performance.
I would really like to see a verification from my trusted site.
I guess I'll ask around, but I am about 99.99% sure that the motherboard isn't making a big difference here. If the large majority of sites saw the same results and none of us thought anything fishy was going on, chance are it wasn't.
But like I said, I can test another board from MSI or Gigabyte after the weekend when I return home.
I belive that AMD might be holding out a little here.
Think about it long term, AMD (unless I am misinformed) Have stopped production on everything that doesnt use the new bulldozer design. I think they did it a while ago.
Now they have these Bulldozers comming in equal to the Phenom 2 x6's. Piledriver is due out Q1 next year, I'm thinking that either-
Bulldozer is ment to replace all current AMD chips, This brings all AMD users upto the same platform (AM3+) And all there factories can focus on streamlining the manufacturing of these new FX models. And then Piledriver will come in, replacing the FX8150 as the flagship and be so far up intels smoke pipe, that they sit there and think WTF just happend here.
AMD scrapped all previouse AM3/AM2+/AM2 munufacturing stated making these, then relized sommin was up and they were not performing, so to buy themselfs some time, they release these (witch arnt bad, there not great but not bad either)And are now working there asses off perfecting it with piledriver, letting intel snigger for the moment, As AMD Have another Athlon 64 up there sleave they just need to fix the kinks.
Or option 3
AMD cpu devision is now run by trained chimps and AMD cpu devision is about to sink.
Option 4
AMD realise the real sustainable money is in servers. Everything about the Bulldozer points to AMD migrating slowly from client to server. You really think AMD's plan to bring out a great CPU for gamers was to go for an 8 core model when games just aren't that well threaded and that's likely to be the case for years to come?
The marketing spin from AMD is transparent to anyone that knows tech. They're trying to sell you A CPU that's transitioning over to being a full on server design. Massively threaded, just what the server world wants.
I think they have a good few years yet of trying to squeeze every last bit of profit out of the value market, the gamers and the enthusiasts but their plan appears to be simple. Slowly increase the clock speed of Bulldozer over the next x years and make a real play for the high end server market.
Think about it this way, AMD is a small company compared to Intel. It doesn't have the resources to develop CPU's that will win big in all the different markets CPU's play in. So why not try and sell server CPU's to the clueless, use the bad parts to sell to the value market and with all real resources focused on making the best server CPU's. They can beat Intel on price and Intel can do nothing but lower prices to compete, something they've never wanted to do in the server space.
It's interesting watching this play out. All this nonsense about compilers and Windows 8 unleashing the true power of Bulldozer. The real story for me here is how AMD has managed to convince at least two markets that its making CPU's for them with just a little spin when in reality its passing off its R&D to gamers and enthusiasts (AMD knew it would take several years to build up to really fast server class CPU's that are massively parallel, why not sell that research along the way as Bulldozer FX-8150, the 8 core super CPU for a new generation!) Finally using its failures at the factory to supply the value market with a few cores, they don't need more and its pretty much free money to keep the server machine fueled.
It's pure genius really if you stop and look at the big picture. Pretty crappy for the AMD fans that have supported then all these years but maybe the moral there is, don't think of huge corporations as your best friend, heh.
these guy gained some!
asus board are am3 and fx are am3+
also cpugpu against cpu(i72600k vs fx-8150)
come on if there are not cpu then all website shouldnt do benchmark gees not compared a cpugpu vs a cpu.it doesnt make sense.
i cant enumerate all the stuff but sufice it say that most of the banchmark on the web are bogus,hardwareheaven didnt use the amd kit but they still compared it to the i7 2600k lol so in the end even if they got better number it is still useless data .
i sure hope website compare happle with apple gees like the i7 960 to 990 serie they are cpu no cpugpu!
I suspect its a mere problem of the software having to catch up with the hardware. It took quite some time before the AMD64 even had 64-bit software to run, and initial tests had 32-bit equivalents spanking the 64-bit systems.
Bad hardware, no just bad programming.
AMD went out on a limb with a completely new architecture. intel is just squeezing what's left out of core2.
The way I look at it is this. Soon your pc will be gone and you will be running your monitors off of thin clients. So if amd can beef up their cpu's to run several thin clients even in a gaming way, then they will be way ahead and everyone will be looking back at them thinking, wow amd was right on the money with switching to 8+ core CPUs especially since most games get their speed from gpus anyway these days. Dunno just a thought.
I can just imagine everyone having a main server in their house. I am already in the process of setting that up as we speak. Still in the planning stage, but I think it only makes sense, outside of my gaming rig that is. Just need to figure out a few details. But I am thinking I may use the bulldozer as the CPU in the server unless something else comes out that's better by then. My house is already hardwired with cat5 in everyroom so it makes sense to me unless anyone else has a better suggestion.
Its just a matter of time when AMD will regain the king of the hill where Intel has already been since C2D. But will the water turns its tide if Intel has already washed every shore of opportunity with their vast amount of resources. Let's face it, even though this chip seems to be a failure, it had opened up a whole new thing on the computer world. Multi-threading is the thing of the past, "Multi-Core" functionality is soon to rise. Let us be thankful that a company such as AMD has the guts to restructure the processor, that we can see new insight coming out of it. Bulldozer may not compete with the SB i5 and i7 but it will give software developers specially Microsoft the idea to utilize those monstrous 8 core chip for a better performing computer. Remember "two is better than one", time will come when computers will recognize that 1 is not 2, more sensible.
But some thing we need to keep in mind 8 core will be only fully support by windows 8 right now amd and microsoft working hand in hand to place a patch for at least bost the 8 core in windows 7
There's a patch for all Windows out already its called Linux!
Well I can say one thing after looking at how many programs are compiled, most are optimized with Intel's instrution set and not amd's AMD has it's own set of CPU instruction for the FX chip and as of yet no... programs or benchmarks writen with them compiled. with the ne MSVC 2011 the AMD instrutions will be avalible for DEV's but will take some time to get on the market.
Need to correct myself windows 8 preview does have some of the AMD instrution precompiled.
people bash on AMD to much, it really isn't that bad, its mainly for multi-purpose for doing many things all at once on one computer. AMD is so much better then intel in that section,
understand that intel has a set standard so its easy to work with. You can overclock but its not really meant for that,
Amd is meant for overclocking, i don't know a single AMD product that's not overclocked, and what I've notice when I've done test with an AMD product is that the more i have on my screen the fast it gets. AMD is a product that needs to be worked, while intel has that set standard, and my test with intel is that the more i have and do on my screen the slower it gets, but i do considered intel to have the advantage cause people want that set standard because if intel is working at 80% it'll stay there while AMD will be at 70% and needs to be worked to get there so if u want AMD to work faster open up a lot of pages and start working it
if your looking for just gaming intel is the way to go, but if your cool and do a bunch of other stuff AMD is for you
and i would recommend gtx graphics cards there best in my opinion but i haven't worked with AMD graphics cards so i cant give a comment on that its just what i us
I want new PC for animation, graphics designing purpose. I am not that technically sound. Someone suggested me FX 8150. Can u help me?
Just to throw in a comment that is a bit special-case, but certainly matters to me. I've been writing a 3D game/simulation engine for a while now, and all of a sudden I notice my linux computer (with FX8150) was much faster than my windoze computer (with slightly older 4-core phenom2 CPU at same clock speed).
When I tracked down the reason, it was because the older phenom2 cannot execute the 256-bit AVX/FMA instructions. I have 32-bit and 64-bit versions of key SIMD assembly-language routines, and the 256-bit AVC/FMA versions are almost twice as fast! Since they are fairly key routines, this one advantage of the FX8150 (AVX/FMA), makes a huge difference to me!
I just bought a new motherboard and another FX8150 for my windoze computer, so it is on a level playing field with my linux system.
PS: From my perspective, 64-bit SIMD with 16 ymm registers and AVX/FMA instructions is a BIG deal. True, many people couldn't care less, and many application that could benefit - haven't been rewritten to take advantage of these new instructions.
Oh, and BTW, the speed comparison on these routines between my assembly-language routines and compiled C code with optimization turned up to maximum is hilarious --- as in 6 to 12 times faster!
Comparisons are invalid unless you use 1866 memory with the 8150. The 1090 does not support 1866. Why would you dumb down for a comparison when you could show the 8150 with 1866 vs a 1090 with 1333... why not show the best they both can do?
A major advantage of the 8150 is the ability to run faster memory.


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Did you know that the average person usually gains about eight to twelve pounds during the holiday season? I know that this is definitely one present we do not want to be receiving this year. The holiday season can be a hectic and stressful time, which can cause us to become less motivated and more stationary, and then you put an enticing spread of food out in front of us. I mean, what else is there for us to do except eat ourselves through the season? Well, for starters, we need to remember our fitness and weight loss goals and hang in there. I know it can be tough, but we really want to accomplish our goals, right? The more active we become, the more we can relieve our holiday season stress and find more energy to complete everything we need to do for the holidays. So, how can we stay motivated throughout the holidays? Here are just a few tricks you can try.
Stick with your schedule. You have your fitness routine pretty much nailed down, and you should try not to deter from it too much during the holiday season. I know that there is so much more you are responsible for and so many parties you have to go to, but you can not allow that to interfere with your fitness routine. The more you stick to your regular schedule, the easier it will be to hit the gym.
Write down everything you eat and drink. During the holidays, it is easy to forget what you ate. You may find yourself overindulging at parties and not knowing exactly how many calories or how much fat you have just consumed. You may also tend to eat out more, so you have to be extra careful of what you are putting into your body. Most women tend to load up on most of their calories when they go out through drinking. You have to watch out for alcoholic beverages, sodas and specialty coffee drinks. They can really do a number on your caloric and fat intake for the day.
Find an exercise buddy or online community. Many people need the help of others to keep them going, and that is where an exercise buddy comes in handy. They can push you and challenge you to stay with your routine. However, if you feel the need to be alone when you workout, there are many online communities that can be of use. These communities can help you track your goals and keep you in touch with others who are trying to power through their regular fitness routine. It can be a boost to have someone on your side either in real life or online.
Spend some quality time with family. Holidays are the time for families to come together and celebrate. So, why not spend some quality time together being active? You could play a nice game of touch football or head to the park or nature trails for a nice run or hike. There are so many things that your family can do together that can get them moving, and I am sure the kids will be super excited to burn off some excess energy.
Ask for a gym membership for Christmas. This is one of the best ways to ensure that you stick with your fitness routine. You can choose your favorite gym or activity and have one of your family or friends give you the best gift of all, fitness and health. You should feel more than obliged to go, especially since your friend spent money on you to help you maintain your fitness routine. They do not want to see you fail and are offering the best support, so go out there and get fit.
Never give up. I know that there will be times when the holidays get you down or seem too hectic, but you can not let that get to you. If you really want to achieve your goals, you will find a way to stick with it. However, if you have been searching for an excuse to quit your fitness routine, you will surely find it during the holidays. If you do find yourself slipping, do not be too hard on yourself. You need to get right back in there and find your groove before it is too late.
The holidays can be a hard time for many of us, and even though, some people just love the holidays, there are some of us who can not wait for them to be over. If you happen to be one of the ones who are so stressed and feeling as if you are at your ropes end, do not give up on your fitness routine. Stay motivated, and you may just find that your fitness routine is the best way to release some of that pent up stress.
– See more at: http://www.9round.com/blog/how-to-stay-motivated-during-the-holidays/


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Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta has given his backing to either Lionel Messi or Xavi Hernandez to win the prestigious Ballon d'Or award for 2011.
The pair have been named on a three-man shortlist alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, with Iniesta missing out after making it to the final stage last year.
Argentine international Messi was the player who claimed the award in 2010, and his Barca teammate has no intention of hiding the fact that he wants the award to stay at the Nou Camp.
"The three that are there are the best three. But I have two colleagues and I will be happy if the winner is one of them," said the Spanish international ahead of the awards ceremony, which takes place in Zurich on January 9th.
27-year-old Iniesta also admitted he's excited for the year ahead with both club and country, highlighting Euro 2012 as one of the major challenges that lay ahead.
"2012 will be an exciting year. Spain have a big challenge at Euro 2012, and Barcelona have a season that will also be exciting," he added.
Concluding his speech at the Albacete Sports Gala, Iniesta was also keen to stress that the hamstring injury picked up in the Copa del Rey clash with L'Hospitalet is not serious.
The 27-year-old is enjoying the winter break in La Liga, and hopes to be back for Pep Guardiola's side for the Catalan derby against Espanyol on January 8th.
"I'm fine. I'm trying to enjoy the holidays with the family, turning off a bit. I am also thinking a bit about my leg, although it is not important and I hope to be fit again very soon."


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Lung Cancer: Is Air Pollution a Major Cause?
A new study by the World Health Organization offers stunning statistics that health authorities globally will have to consider. Who is most at risk for getting lung cancer as a result of exposure to air pollution? How many people do authorities believe die each year as a result of pollution-related lung cancer? WSJ's Jason Bellini has #TheShortAnswer. (Image: NASA)
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
I ... more people worldwide die from lung cancer than ... any other type of cancer ... most of these deaths are ... caused by smoking ... other known carcinogens can also increase one's risk of getting disease ... what ... does ... the air pollution caused long cancer ... the cancer agency within the World Health Organization now says yes ... foreshore ... according to the International Agency for Research on cancer in two thousand to more than two hundred to three thousand lung cancer deaths around the globe ... which are going to air pollution ... from one point four million people worldwide dying from lung cancer each year ... Onyx air pollution responsible for about sixteen percent of lung cancer deaths ... the head of the IRC ... put into perspective saying we consider this your pollution to be the most important environmental percentage and ... more so than passive smoking ... wise reports significant ... sites is Mr. Lee's publication titled ... air pollution and cancer ... I was more than a thousand studies ... and concluded that ... are pushing contains ... a mixture of cancer causing substances and therefore belongs in the same category as fast as tobacco ... also buy radiation ... substances deemed carcinogenic to humans ... it also specifically notes that particular ... a major component of air pollution is a carcinogen ... particular matter ... the trend for tiny particles in the air like dogs so in small ... procedure mattered comes from things like car exhaust one would ... ever does Korea by driving on paved and unpaved roads ... a satellite Dr now from NASA shows ... average particulate matter levels from two thousand won in two thousandsix ... number was before the Chinese economic boom ... oh and Asian countries are white red on them ... the IRC report offers this fact would ... within half of the long cancer deaths attributable to ambient particulate matter ... were estimated to have been in China and other East Asian countries ... such as cars factories and power plants that are causing this pollution ... consider those red spots in Africa ... pollution there is art because what people burning coal wood and other biomass fuels ... biomass is still used as the primary cooking fuel ... approximately two point four billion people ... or countries or people most worried about local air quality ... Ukraine tops the list fall by Russia Albania Levanon ... he and Iraq cities in the U S have the worst year round particle pollution ... all seven of the worst cities ranked by the American lung Association ... are in Southern California ... with Bakersfield coming in at number one other as well as to be complacent however ... this report highlights how the Proms presented by particulate matter can be super full ... green Street canyons and prodded users to search for example can be to ten times worse ... than outside these areas ... and exposure levels to air pollution in some parts of the world ... is increasing significantly ... as the short answer ...


text:
So, I already posted about the playlists issues. Now I'm noting that I can't take songs in my queue and add those to the playlist. I also am not getting the random albums on my front page anymore. AutoDJ isn't finding any songs to mix even though my library is scanned and in there. This is in the webplayer. I also tried genre radio and it won't work as well.
I'm running 6.3.9500 on a QNAP TS-451 running QTS 4.2.2.


text:
(c) Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield MA. All rights reserved.
Contact us for information about using this image.
The harvesting of logs reached a peak in the first decade of the 20th century. George Van Dyke, whose recent death is eulogized here, owned the Connecticut Valley Lumber Company. It was one of the large timbering firms created in the late 1800s that began systematically harvesting timber from upper New England. The resulting deforestation, not only in New England but all over the country, gave a huge spur to the conservation movement. This movement was begun by President Theodore Roosevelt during his two terms as president (1901-09). Roosevelt, along with Division of Forestry head Gifford Pinchot, sought to regulate timber harvesting. The first steps to prevent widescale deforestation were taken. It was not until the 1960s that any serious effort was made to stop poorly conceived timber harvests and regulate the taking of lumber in the United States.
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See Also...
"Log Drive Nearly Past Turners"
"Burly Log Drivers Up River Start Biggest Drive Ever Seen"
Logging at the Oxbow on the Connecticut River near Holyoke, Mass.
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now that the NFL season is over:
Ben will be a Keynote Speaker at the Ignite Men's Impact Weekend at Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA next month!
Other Keynote Speakers include NASCAR's Tony Stewart, Si Robertson (Duck Dynasty), J.D. Greear (Pastor at The Summit Church of Raleigh-Durham, NC), and Christian comedian & author Dennis Swanberg.
The Men's Weekend is a full two-day event – March 17-18th.
Jerome Bettis and Tony Dungy were last year's Keynote Speakers to an audience of 10,000.
Click here for more info.
*But don't wait to purchase tickets – the last of 'em are selling out fast!
Put me in Coach Tomlin!
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Place an order using the group code of 77-7777 on Sarris Candies' website and Sarris will donate 25% of the purchase price to Ben's foundation.
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Happy Birthday Wishes To
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Would you like BigBen7 to post a birthday wish for you or someone else? Just email me with the name, and the birth month and day!
NOTE: Birthday greeting requests must be sent before the birthday month starts and prior to the posting of the new list. Otherwise, they will be put on the calendar for the next year.
King Street Sports BarIf you are visiting or vacationing in South Carolina....
Stop by King Street Grille with locations in Charleston, Kiawah Island, James Island, Mt. Pleasant and Myrtle Beach!
"Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is part owner of the Charleston-based chain that is decked out in full Steelers theme. However, King Street Grille doesn't play favorites, it's a sports bar where all sports fans and fanatics are welcomed.
"If you're looking to catch up on sports highlights or catch a game, then this is the spot." -- Sun News Restaurant Review, July 29, 2010.
Don't QuitThe words from Coach Hep's favorite poem, "Don't Quit" were not recited just to motivate his players before a game - they were a way of life for him. Ben keeps a copy of that poem taped to his locker.
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out:
Don't give up though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but do not quit.
Often the goal is nearer than,
It seems to a faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.
Ben on the Cover


text:
Recent battlefield successes in Pakistan have done little to bolster the flagging popularity of President Asif Ali Zardari, who, one year into office, faces a trust deficit that may compromise his ability to lead the country's war on militancy.
A Pew research poll conducted in May found that just 32 percent of the country had a favorable opinion of Mr. Zardari, down from 64 percent shortly after he came to office.
A similar poll by the International Republican Institute the same month found that 72 percent of people disliked him. Nawaz Sharif, leader of the main opposition Pakistani Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), had a 79 percent favorability rating in the Pew poll.
The Pakistani military wrested the vast majority of the Swat Valley from militant control in late June and provided intelligence used by US forces to kill former Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud in a drone attack in August.
But these success stories have not been translated into political capital by the government, according to Rasul Baksh Raees, a political scientist at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS).
"In many other countries, political parties and leaders would have claimed credit for such a turnaround," he says, noting that the past year has also seen a marked change in public attitudes towards the Taliban and Al Qaeda.
The May Pew poll found that 70 percent of Pakistanis view the Taliban unfavorably and 61 percent view Al Qaeda unfavorably, up from just 33 percent and 34 percent, respectively, last year.
Instead, Zardari's failure to "come out of his cocoon" and visit Swat, or to even hold public speeches or press conferences on the issue, have proved politically damaging and allowed Pakistan's all-powerful military, an institution whose reputation took a battering under former military ruler Gen. Pervez Musharraf, to take full-credit for the operation, says Mr. Raees.
Political blunders, economic crises
The widower of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who was assassinated in December 2007 as she campaigned to return to power, Zardari was elected to a five-year term by parliament in September 2008, following his Pakistan People's Party's (PPP) victory in the general election in February 2008.
Initially welcomed into office in a wave of sympathy, his popularity began to fall away following a series of political blunders, high inflation, a weak economy, and an ongoing energy crisis.
Part of his image problem stems from corruption allegations dating back to the 1990s, when, as a minister in his wife's government, he earned the moniker "Mr. 10 percent" for alleged kickbacks in awarding government contracts.
He spent 11 years in jail on murder, drug-smuggling, and corruption charges, but was never convicted; in 2008, a Swiss court terminated an investigation into alleged money-laundering of $60 million. Shortly before his accession to the presidency, British court documents came to light containing reports that Zardari had been diagnosed with mental illnesses and suicidal tendencies. The reports were submitted as part of Zardari's efforts to plead ill-health in ongoing corruption cases.
Misstep in dealing with judges
A source close to the president privately acknowledged to the Monitor that two decisions in particular over the past year had proved disastrous to his image: the government's delay in restoring some of the judges – sacked by General Musharraf – to office in March, including popular Chief Justice Ithikar Chaudhry; and the imposition of a month-long emergency rule in the country's powerful Punjab Province, designed to undermine the opposition.
In July, an Interior Ministry announcement that anyone mocking the president in text messages, e-mail, or blogs risks being arrested and given a 14-year prison sentence under a new Cyber Crimes Act was met with more ridicule, as even Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and other senior members of the PPP moved to distance themselves from it.
The lively Pakistani media has generally been very vocal in its opposition to Zardari, leading some in the president's inner circle to suggest it is the work of an opposition-backed smear campaign to remove him from office.
Raising the prospect of a fresh political crisis, the PML-N last week threatened to take to the streets if its demands of placing Musharraf on trial and undoing changes he made to the Constitution were not met. The threats were averted, for the time being, following a conciliatory speech by Sharif.
Presidential spokeswoman Farahnaz Ispahani denies that the president's authority has been weakened, and points to Pakistan's securing nonmilitary aid and an International Monetary Fund loan as signs of success.
"Domestically and internationally, key decisionmakers who understand Zardari's vital role in making the war acceptable to the people of Pakistan," she says.
Taliban are not winning hearts and minds, either
Cyril Almeida, a columnist with the leading English daily Dawn, notes that the opposition do not have the requisite majority in parliament to impeach Zardari, nor, for the moment, is the military inclined to step back into the fray – a move that would require the tacit understanding of the United States.
Instead, he says, "perhaps the greatest danger to Zardari is Zardari.
"He's never been in serious politics before – there was Benazir, who was front and center," he continues. "In terms of how to run a political party in this country – he's good at maneuvering people and keeping allies happy. But when it comes to connecting to voters, does he understand that process? Does he have some kind of vision?"
Mr. Almeida says that Zardari's weaknesses as a leader and administrator are partly to blame for the country's ongoing economic and power crises. When it comes to winning hearts and minds against militancy, however, the Taliban are creating their own problems.
"I don't think the battle [for hearts and minds] can be won by the personal charisma of leaders," he says. "It's more a question of the militants contributing to their own downfall, by flogging women, by suicide bomb attacks, and so on. That's what really coalesces people against them."