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Hey all,
Spanish AFOL Aitoruco designed this incredible rendition of the León Cathedral in LDD. At over 38,000 pieces, he doesn't have the resources to build it in the brick, but members of the Asociación cultural de aficionados a construcciones LEGO de España, or ALE! might build it as a collaborative project for a future event. Here's hoping they do.

subset: commoncrawl


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Polycom Business Media IP VVX300 Guides
**Disclaimer** The IP End Point documentation referenced by Olafe was created and published solely by the product manufacturer. Olafe provides this information for reference purposes only and does not warrant any of its contents. All settings represented in this document are the Manufacturer's defaults and may not represent the Olafe recommended settings. Furthermore, Olafe does NOT guarantee that all functionality presented in these documents is supported by Olafe. If you have questions regarding the configuration of your BroadCloud products or services, please contact your Olafe Account Representative.


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This map displays the geotag of the sound 9 annoying pulses 1 sec.wav by ProdMultimediasHQI.
For the full map of all geotags see our global geotag map
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Click here for Nigel Hearne letter regarding Congressman George Miller's letter.
Materials planned for Richmond Chevron refinery fix meet industry standards, experts say
By Robert Rogers Contra Costa Times
Posted: 12/20/2012 09:22:15 AM PST
Updated: 12/20/2012 02:59:03 PM PST
RICHMOND -- Two metallurgy experts have concluded that metals proposed by Chevron to repair a crude unit burned in an Aug. 6 fire meet industry and local standards.
The conclusion was shared at a public meeting in the City Council chamber Wednesday night aimed to make more transparent the permitting process for rebuilding the refinery unit, which burst into flames when a carbon steel pipe more than 30 years old sprung a leak.
"It is (our) opinion that Chevron's logic and procedures used in their materials selection process is consistent with industry practices," said Jim McLaughlin, the city's metallurgical consultant, reading a statement provided by David Hendrix, a metallurgical engineering consultant also retained by the city.
The finding affirms Chevron's plans to replace the carbon steel piping in the burned unit with 9-Chrome Alloy, which will carry high-temperature, sulfur-containing fuels.
But residents, political leaders and environmental watchdog groups criticized the findings as ambiguous and not in compliance with a city resolution approved last month calling on the refinery to use only the "best available technology" in rebuilding the burned unit.
Experts from Communities for a Better Environment, a local watchdog group, continue to push for 300-series stainless steel to be used, which they say is a more durable material and more likely to ensure against another accident. CBE members cite a letter to the city from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, an investigatory agency probing the cause of the fire, that suggested stainless steel may be the superior technology.
"The council called for the highest standards, not the minimum standards," said CBE's Andres Soto.
Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, of Richmond, joined those questioning the findings, saying that county air quality and hazardous materials officials could not endorse Chevron's plans because they did not have "sufficient information." Gioia also noted the independent experts' findings did not say conclusively that 9-Chrome provided the "lowest risk ... of a catastrophic event."
"I have read these reports carefully," Gioia said. "And the consultants did not (conclude) this."
In his report, McLaughlin said 300 stainless steel may be susceptible to "stress corrosion cracking" that is difficult to detect.
9-Chrome is "immune to that," McLaughlin said.
Barbara Smith, a senior manager for Chevron, delivered her own presentation Wednesday, saying 9-Chrome "in this type of service has been validated by internationally recognized and universally adopted engineering and fire-safety standards" used industrywide.
Nine-Chrome "is more expensive on an installed basis than stainless steel pipe, but we made the determination that it was more appropriate for service based on a number of factors," Smith said.
Many in the crowd of more than 200 scoffed during Smith's remarks. During a public comment period, several residents urged the city to fast-track the permits so that work could resume, which they said would support local jobs.
The findings by the city's consultants could pave the way for the remaining city building and fire permits to be issued early next month, which would allow Chevron to complete repairs and resume full production of gasoline and other products. The Chemical Safety Board's findings on the fire's cause, maintenance practices and other procedures is also expected to be completed in January.
The Aug. 6 fire occurred when a 5-foot-long section of 8-inch carbon steel pipe carrying high-temperature gas oil sprung a leak, releasing hydrocarbons that soon ignited. The fire resulted in injuries to several workers and sent thousands of residents to hospitals to seek treatment. Chevron has reported that the leak resulted from accelerated sulfidation corrosion, exacerbated by low silicon content in the carbon steel.
City Manager Bill Lindsay said Thursday that he did not have a timetable for when the permits would be issued.


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The University of Texas at Austin, McCombs School of Business
One of the largest and most distinguished business schools in the country, the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin is dedicated to educating the business leaders of tomorrow while creating knowledge for industry and society. Rankings tell only part of the story of what makes McCombs so great, but it's a good beginning. We're one of the few schools in the country to receive top marks in nearly all the business specialty areas ranked annually by U.S. News & World Report—at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
McCombs educates more than 6,000 undergraduate, MBA, MPA and Ph.D. students each year, creating one of the largest cumulative impacts of any business school in the world. About 2,000 professionals also participate each year in custom programs designed for working executives and their firms. These programs are held in our first-class AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center.
The McCombs School of Business is aligned with the university's initiative to pursue a new vision for higher education, while educating leaders who will create value for society. Our vision is to become one of the most prominent business schools in the world; in the coming years, our strategic plan will focus on seven initiatives to reach our goal.
McCombs School of Business Main Campus
- (512) 471-5893
- email@example.com
- http://www.mccombs.utexas.edu


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Atypical Bronchial Carcinoid: Different Therapeutical Approachs Abstract #1203
To read results and conclusion, please login ...
Further abstracts you may be interested in
#11 Plasma chromogranin - A response to octreotide test: Prognostic value for clinical outcome in endocrine digestive tumors
#12 Chromogranin A as a predictor of progression, regression or stable disease in ileo-cecal (midgut) carcinoid tumors
#18 Long-acting release octreotide induce complete response in type 1 gastric carcinoid tumors
Traditionally, gastric carcinoid type 1 (GCA1s) are endoscopically or surgically removed, depending on the number, appearance and size of the tumors. Antrectomy, with surgical excision of the majority of the G cells, is thought to facilitate regression of these tumors by removing the source of excessive gastrin secretion; however, the long-term benefits of antrectomy still remain uncertain. Although proton pump inhibitors are effective in reducing hypergastrinemia-induced gastric acid hypersecretion in GCA2, they do not affect ECL-cell hyperplasia, and therefore their role in GCA1 is limited. Moreover, in selected cases, significant reduction of hypergastrinemia does not prevent development of ECL carcinoid, suggesting that, in addition to hypergastrinemia, other pathogenic or genetic factors may be involved. Treatment with somatostatin analogues (SSA) might impede ECL-cell hyperplasia by suppressing gastrin secretion and/or by a direct anti-proliferative effect on ECL cells. Treatment with SSAs in GCA1 leads to a substantial tumor load reduction, with a concomitant decrease of serum gastrin levels. Published data indicate an important anti-proliferative effect of SSA on ECL cells, providing clinical benefit and obviating, at least temporarily, the need for invasive therapies for GCA1. Morphometric studies demonstrated that, while antrectomy specifically decreased the volume of ECL cells versus the total volume of endocrine cells, octreotide reduces the overall endocrine cell volume. Although the number of treated patients is small, it has been suggested that SSA may exert important anti-proliferative effects either directly, by inhibiting ECL-cells proliferation, or indirectly through suppression of gastrin hypersecretion.


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Technology, History, and Commentary on Amateur Radio
Discovery consists of seeing what everybody has seen, and thinking what nobody has thought.
– Albert Szent-Gyorgi
The most eclectic Amateur Radio site on the Internet
…One of the essays, by Susan J. Douglas, looks at the excitement set off by Marconi's introduction of radio – the "wireless telegraph" – to the American public in 1899.
"Wireless held a special place in the American imagination precisely because it married idealism and adventure with science," she writes.
Popular Science Monthly observed: "The nerves of the whole world are, so to speak, being bound together, so that a touch in one country is transmitted instantly to a far-distant one." Implicit in this organic metaphor was the belief that a world so physically connected would become a spiritual whole with common interests and goals….
The rise of wireless also set off a popular movement to democratize media, as hundreds of thousands of "amateur operators" took to the airwaves. It was the original blogosphere. "On every night after dinner," wrote Francis Collins in the 1912 book Wireless Man, "the entire country becomes a vast whispering gallery."
Listen to Amateur Radio in real-time, now, this very moment, on-line here
Burn a feed to this site (RSS) – https://frrl.wordpress.com/feed/
(What the heck is RSS? Watch this and find out in 3 min. 45 sec.)
What's Worth Doing?
I abandoned this site 3 years ago.
Recently, I checked the e-mail associated with this blog and found hundreds of comments needing approval. So, people are still reading this site. About 1 million hits since I started this blog.
I re-read some of the articles I wrote. It's hard to recognize them. I wonder what it means if you read things you wrote in the past and hardly recognize your own writing.
YouTube Celebs and Forrest Gump
When I look at the channels of YouTube celebrities that I used to follow, I wonder how long they can do the same thing – over and over again. At what point do you say to yourself, "I need to do something else". And, what is that something else?
I am reminded of a scene from the movie Forrest Gump. Forrest just decides to run and run; and run some more. His running makes him into a celebrity. He runs for three years across the United States and many people follow him on his runs. Then, just as mysteriously as Forrest started running, he stops running.
What is the magic thing that happens when Forrest says, "I'm pretty tired. I think I'm going home now".
Knowing when to move on…
Many people do things far beyond when they make sense. These folks get caught in a cycle of endless repetition, perhaps in a state of mindlessness. It's a comfortable repetition and maybe this is the trap – comfort, being safe and comfortable in what you do.
Other than comfort, maybe it's momentum. Some YouTube celebs might get caught up in this, and far worse, be dragged across the media topic landscape by what their followers find interesting. "Subscribers" are the pied pipers; content providers are the hapless rats and children.
Worse than that, some people do things that aren't worth doing. Sheldon Cooper from the sitcom Big Bang Theory knows that.
So, what's worth doing? How do you know?
When do you stop? What's next?
How do you measure your progress for time invested?
What are this? What are all of this?
There are lots of interesting things in the world. For some people they represent an amazing number of possibilities. For other people, they remain disengaged and never see the potential and possibility of things.
Some people in their 50's don't have a computer or don't have a smart phone. I know better than to ask them why. And I know better than to encourage them to get either or both.
People now in their 50's were in their 20's or 30's when computers became readily available in the consumer market in the 1980's. If they didn't see the potential of it then, and henceforth for the following 30 or so years, then they will not see the potential of it now. It would be a disservice to try to convince them otherwise.
The world divides itself in this way. Those who see, and those who do not see; those who see the potential of things and those who don't. Those who have curiosity and those where curiosity is seriously muted. Intervention should not be allowed to try to change those who do not have sight into those that do. That is the way of the World.
So, I thought about all this when I came across this YouTube video from Jenna Marbles… "What are this?"
So watch this video and wonder how people divide themselves similar to Jenna's two dogs – Kermit and Marbles
- Those who see all the things, objects, and ideas in the world yet comprehend little or none of it.
- Those who, as Jenna describes the behavior of her other dog, "Just bark or want food".
- And those who do see the potential of things, make video's and wonder why people (or dogs) must differentiate themselves into these groups in the first place
After you watch, read a related article – Vintage Steve Jobs: Good Artists Copy; Great Artists Steal
and Releasing Innovation by Breaking Paradigms: seeing what no one else can see
Chromecast – Barbarians at the gate
If you haven't been living under a rock for the last five minutes (in Internet time), you probably know about Google's Chromecast.
Chromecast is a $35 HDMI dongle that hangs off the back of your TV set. It allows you to stream YouTube, Netflix, and just about anything you can view in your Chrome browser to your TV. This is nothing new. A modern TV with wireless can do the same thing.
I am not going to review the Chromecast – there are already hundreds or thousands of those.
But I am going to tell you what I thought about when I hooked mine up.
A television is an end device. By this I mean that a traditional television set has been a specialized device that only certain content can appear on. In the old days, about five or so years ago, you had to be someone special to get content to a television. You had to be a "Network" (CBS, NBC, ABC, etc) or a cable provider delivering content such as AMC, CNN, CNBC, and so on. To have content on a television, you had to have millions of dollars. Development of television programs was done by professionals and it cost millions of dollars to produce and distribute.
The same was true with books. In the old days, before self-publishing and easy global distribution on Amazon.com if you picked up a book you kinda knew that someone (the author(s)) probably spent a year of so researching and writing the content. There was a tacit assumption of professionalism. We had corporate entities called "publishers" that filtered the good from the bad.
What about radio? The physical end device called a "radio" was like a television end device. To be heard on a traditional radio station meant that you had hundreds of thousands of dollars and the value of the content was somehow commensurate with the cost of the broadcast capability.
Assembly of the Hordes
Anyone can offer an e-book on Amazon and get global distribution. And anyone can put a video on YouTube and get global distribution. If you listen to "radio" as Internet streams you know that anyone can be a broadcast radio station with global distribution. The cost of the global distribution of content is approaching $0.
What has changed, is that there is no longer a vetting process for what we have traditionally understood as books, radio, and television – and lets add journalism to this as well. The Wall Street Journal web site can appear in a tab in your browser next to any blogger on the Internet.
So when I hooked up the Chromecast to my television I knew that the Barbarians were at the gate. My television end device is no longer a gatekeeper on the quality of content (with all respect to Newton Minow) and now a video of "a cat flushing a toilet" can appear on the same device as AMC's Mad Men.
The Take
It may be an odd thing to say, but I think it's true. The traditional role of radio, television, and books was to serve as a coherent guideposts for the culture. In a certain sense, before all this new media, we (the society and the culture) were "all on the same page". We all watched, listened to, and read the same limited variety of content on the television end device, the radio end device, and books and newspapers guarded by publishers distributed on paper.
But now, these "filters of coherency" have been breached by modern technology. Content from everyone and everywhere washes over us like a tsunami on all devices.
With no gatekeepers there will be a chaos. And in chaos, people wander aimlessly.
At $35, Chromecast has breached the walls of my television set. The last bastion of protection is your own mind and decision-making. There will be no "cats flushing a toilet' on my television anytime soon. Hope I can say the same about you when you hookup Chromecast to your TV.
Read More…
FCC Chairman Newton Minow 50 years later: a vaster wasteland
Draw my Life
At this place, at this moment of time, all mankind is us, whether we like it or not.
We wait. We are bored. No, don't protest, we are bored to death, there's no denying it. Good. A diversion comes along and what do we do? We let it go to waste. Come, let's get to work! In an instant all will vanish and we'll be alone once more, in the midst of nothingness!
– Samuel Beckett, Waiting for Godot
We have gone from the industrial age to the information age and now we're in the connection age. Clearly, some people find their identity, passion and their salvation as YouTube celebrities.
I wonder what could be said of the 10 million connected subscribers to Jenna's YouTube channel. No doubt, they themselves are Waiting for Godot.
Is the ARRL ready for the Second Century? Part I
Next year, the ARRL will mark the 100th anniversary of its founding with a year long celebration including a Centennial National Convention in Hartford, where it all began. We are proud of what has been accomplished in the first century of the ARRL's existence. What's in store for the second?
— QST June 2013; ARRL CEO David Summer (K1ZZ)
QST magazine is the official publication of the ARRL. The ARRL's mission is: "To promote and advance the art, science and enjoyment of Amateur Radio."
QST has a column, written by CEO David Summer (K1ZZ), called "It seems to Us"
The subject of the June 2013 QST "It Seems to Us" was titled: Building For Our Second Century.
In 2014 the ARRL will be 100 years old.
In the article, CEO Summer recounts some of the history of the ARRL from its beginning including ARRL's evolving role as the principle advocate for Amateur Radio to government.
Summer goes on to say that there are tens of thousands of people "…whose lives and careers have been enriched beyond measure" and that we need to recognize "a great debt to those who came before us, who did the difficult and sometimes thankless work of building and sustaining a national association to promote and advance the art, science, and enjoyment of Amateur Radio"
The ARRL Second Century Campaign
The rest of the article is about the ARRL Second Century Campaign. The vision statement of the ARRL SCC includes "securing significant financial resources to fund the ARRL's commitment to its future objectives".
The article ends by stating the fundraising goal of $10 million by December 31, 2014 and with this statement
None of us can know the specific challenges our association will face in the future or the opportunities that may arise for the ARRL to make Amateur Radio even more valuable as a community and national resource. But we know this: Our predecessors made great sacrifices so we can enjoy te benefits of Amateur Radio. We owe the same opportunities to the generations of radio amateurs that will follow us". http://www.arrl.org/arrl-second-century-campaign
Everyone who reads the QST article will pick out certain aspects based on their background, experience, and interests.
There are very few books written on the history of Amateur Radio and the ARRL. In a sense, the history of Amateur Radio is the history of the ARRL. An older book on the history of Amateur Radio and the ARRL ( I should just assume these are coextensive) is: Fifty Years of ARRL published by the ARRL. This book covers the beginnings of the ARRL to about 1950.
A more recent book is: The World of Ham Radio: 1901-1950 by Richard A Bartlett
Both these books cover the first fifty years of the ARRL. But it is interesting to note that Bartlett's book was published in 2007.
The missing 50 years of the ARRL (1950 – present)
The casual reader may ask the question, if Bartlett's book was written in 2007 why did he stop writing about Amateur Radio and the ARRL as if some sort of catastrophe had occurred and both the ARRL and Amateur Radio are of little interest beyond1950? Did Amateur Radio and the ARRL disappear in the 1950's?
Bartlett has an answer
Why end this book as of the year 1950? It is because the story of ham radio's development essentially takes place in the first fifty years of the twentieth century. Having been created, accepted, regulated, and achieved permanent status by 1950, the story after that becomes one primarily of repetition. The one great exception is in the area of technology, and save for minimal descriptions necessary to the story, that has not been our concern.
The last page of the last chapter of Richard Bartlett's book ends with this:
Time passes on, and the old guard gives way to the newcomers. In November 1948 death came to Kenneth Bryant Warner, who for nearly thirty years was secretary and general manager of the ARRL. "It was Maxim who conceived our League, it as Warner who breathed into it life and energy and vitality, whose balanced judgement and clear vision ensured its growth and success," reads his obituary. "With his passing we suffer the loss of a great leader, an untiring servant in the cause of amateur radio." p. 230 The World of Ham Radio 1901-1950
That's the end of the story for Bartlett. In 1950's and beyond, the ARRL and Amateur Radio entered a state of repetition with no forward progress of the ARRL or Amateur Radio worthy of mention in any following chapters.
Poised for the Second Century?
Posted on the ARRL website regarding CEO David Summers K1ZZ findings (emphasis mine)
Mr. Sumner reported on his research into "state of the art" strategic planning by large membership associations. Perhaps because of the negative impact of the financial upheavals of 2008 and the revolution in electronic publishing, at this time there appears to be no consensus among associations as to the value of strategic planning or the best way for associations to go about it. The ARRL Board last updated the organization's strategic plan in 2009 and normally would conduct an in-depth review three to five years later. The committee discussed the perceived shortcomings of past strategic planning efforts along with possible improvements. Without taking a formal decision the committee concluded that while strategic planning remains important to the ARRL, planning for a successful Centennial celebration in 2014 is the current priority. A fresh approach to strategic planning should be taken immediately afterward.
The Take (non-Profits)
… We are proud of what has been accomplished in the first century of the ARRL's existence. What's in store for the second? — ARRL CEO David Summer
Many of us get calls all the time asking for a monetary donation to a worthy cause. Generally, I ask them what they are going to do with the money. In most cases, the person doing the solicitation does not know much of anything about how the money will be invested or used by the organization. These folks are generally just doing the solicitation and are not ready to answer this question. Understood and accepted.
So the next step, if you want to find out how your money will be invested or used by the organization, is to go to the organization's web site and check out their strategic plan, programs and initiatives, and the track record of results they have achieved to date. Some organizations do this better than others. Many organizations use the Balanced Scorecard along with all the details to show how all the parts of the organization fits together (strategy, operating model, alignment, metrics, measures, etc.) to deliver its goals in service of the mission.
No matter what model of strategic planning you use, or how you show the tangible benefits, the existence of these assets gives potential donors (monetary, or time as a volunteer) some confidence that the money (or their time commitment) will in fact be used effectively to further the mission of the organization to the stakeholders.
Creating a sense of confidence for donors
The (historical) absence of these assets is not helping the ARRL Second Century Campaign. The history of ARRL's strategic planning effort has been troubled for years. Further adding questions about the Second Century Campaign is the statement made by CEO David Summer K1ZZ on the ARRL web site quoted above. And most recently in the June 2013 QST article (emphasis mine)
None of us can know the specific challenges our association will face in the future or the opportunities that may arise for the ARRL to make Amateur Radio even more valuable as a community and national resource.
This statement strikes me as profound
Is this to say that we "throw up our hands", not have a plan, and live day-by-day just because we can not know, with (technical) certainty, what the future will hold? It is exactly this situation of imperfect information and an uncertain future where CEO's and executive leadership can shine. It is exactly this situation where CEO's can differentiate themselves by being able to navigate these uncharted waters to identify opportunities which the organization can exploit to move it forward.
Some CEO's see the same event either as threat or opportunity. In the 1990's, Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com saw the potential of the internet for selling books that no traditional bookseller could see – it was the beginning of the demise of the traditional bookseller. In 1979 Steve Jobs saw at Xerox PARC the potential of a graphical user interface for personal computers that no Xerox executive could see. David Sarnoff saw the potential for wireless "one-to-many broadcasting" and built the RCA corporation. In this same vein, what in the current environment does the ARRL see as its opportunity?
Restoring confidence in the ARRL and Amateur Radio's future
The ARRL could help its cause in its Second Century Campaign by having "in hand" a plan when asking for monetary donation. Or better, to have a story to tell to potential donors about what the ARRL has accomplished since "The First Fifty years" up to the present. What is the compelling vision of the future for the ARRL and Amateur Radio – who the ARRL is and why they matter in the current context where always-on wireless global connectivity is available to nearly everyone on the planet. What is the strength of ARRL executive management team and what is the record of their accomplishments? What executive "bench strength" has the ARRL accumulated over the years? Treat the ARRL Century Campaign as a VC (Venture Capital) due diligence test and you will probably know all the questions a major donor would ask.
Messaging – Perception is Reality
The combination of Richard A Bartlett's sentiments quoted above about "50 years of ARRL repetition with no forward progress worthy of mention", CEO David Summer's statement that "there appears to be no consensus among associations as to the value of strategic planning or the best way for associations to go about it" and his most recent statement "None of us can know the specific challenges… or the opportunities that may arise" does not give one confidence that the ARRL knows its destiny or that our donation will be used effectively."
In essence, the messaging and perception might be: we don't see the value of having a forward-looking plan; don't know how to create one – we are waiting on a consensus from others to tell us how to do that; and we are not sure of the challenges or opportunities that face our organization today or in the future. Will this motivate any potential donor to open their wallet and give a large donation? "Repetition of yesterday" is the easy way out of this conundrum – but it won't inspire anyone.
The role of the CEO and executive leadership
There are opportunities and challenge every day! The role of the CEO and executive leadership is to diagnose the situation and trends – to "see around corners". It's an exercise in CEO and executive leadership analysis, choices, and direction setting followed by execution – allocating resources, aligning people to measurable goals and outcomes, and holding them accountable. The formula is pretty simple. The devil is in the details and discipline of execution. The ability to navigate and accomplish all of this, and to be transparent to stakeholders all along the way, is a differentiator among CEO's in any industry. Even if an organization has a strategic plan, the majority fail in execution.
There is an old saying, "If you want to know the future, create it". We can learn this from anyone who taken advantage of disruption and changed an industry. In a sense, uncertainty, disruption, imperfect knowledge is just what some CEO's need to redefine and reposition their organization to lead in the future. One only needs to look to Steve Jobs who, in 1996, snatched Apple out of near bankruptcy to make it the most valuable company in America in 2012. In the process Apple redefined the personal computer industry, the music industry, and what we understand as a telephone.
Why can't this apply to the ARRL? Is it time for the ARRL to stop the "50 years of tiresome repetition" that inspire only a rare few of the up and coming generations? Isn't it time for the ARRL to re/position itself for the Second Century?
ARRL CEO David Summer titled his article "Building the Second Century". He thinks of this in terms of the primacy of a donor action of a financial contribution. Where is the concomitant organizational action – long overdue? Building denotes concept, design, architecture, and construction. Show us the blueprint for the ARRL Cathedral of the Second Century. And only then, will major donors fund your enterprise.
Read more
The work of one such organizational architect
American Radio Relay League – The Future Mission
December 12, 2003 by Richard Kiefer, K0DK
Amateur Radio: Projecting an image of ham radio to 7 million people in 22 minutes
The Opportunity
Episode 17 of Last Man Standing (wikipedia) depicted the use of Amateur Radio. The ARRL gave the Amateur Radio community early notice that Amateur Radio would be depicted in a major prime time sitcom. Many amateur radio folks were looking forward to watching this episode.
The episode aired in March, 2013. For many hams, it was not what they expected. One could ask, what sort of image did the script writers project of Amateur Radio and what do seven million people now think of Amateur Radio? One could also ask, what is the power of the ARRL in influencing the public messaging and image of Amateur Radio? The ARRL spends some portion of its budget on PR. Did episode 17 of Last Man Standing enhance or detract from that messaging, "brand building", and PR by the ARRL?
Impressions from the Amateur Radio community
You can look to the ARRL forums for some discussions. Three months after airing, there are only 4 comments on the official ARRL forum. Only three of those comments contained any real content and analysis.
Here they are: ( http://www.arrl.org/forum/topics/view/780)
"ABC Comedy Last Man Standing Episode 17" It was disappointing in how Ham Radio was depicted. This looked more like "CB Radio" and advertising for the equipment and the illegal Linear Amplifier shown. The average TV fan would assume that anyone could use these expensive radios to chat without having to type to their friends! According to the show, some of the writers/producers are Ham Operators and they know the requirements to become licensed. Being a 40+ year ARRL Life member, 20 WPM Extra Class licensed Ham, makes me wonder about the shows story line and how far they are going with it. Lastly, while Ham Operators enjoy the hobby, they also volunteer their services in disasters and various community events. KB3SM: a proud Old Ham…
Dear OM,
Our main page had a news story back on March 4th that announced the airing of this show. The spokesman of this show, who is an active Radio Amateur, warned us about the way Amateur radio was presented. From our news story, Mr. Amodeo says,:
"As a ham, I am very excited to be able to have an episode that presents our hobby in an upbeat and positive way," Amodeo told the ARRL. "As a television producer, I am pleased to present a very funny episode for our more than 7 million viewers. This episode will feature more ham gear than seen in mainstream movies such as Frequency, Contact and Super 8 — all great films that had Amateur Radio in them. It's worth noting that although hams will enjoy the episode, it was written with our 7 million non-ham viewers in mind. Please be prepared for some inconsistencies related to Amateur Radio, but enjoy the show nevertheless."
I don't watch this show, since I'm too busy to watch television, so I can't comment on it. Wish we could come up with a show of our own, but we don't have the resources.
Bob Allison
As a retired geezer, I did watch the show. It was a 30-minute sitcom, what do you expect? Answer: not much when it comes to "important content" regarding amateur radio — or anything else.
I noticed the "illegal" use of the radio by an unlicensed and unsupervised person, of course. It was irresponsible to say the least for a ham to leave his rig "live" in a house full of teenagers.
But I marveled at how the writers could weave radio and international QSOs into the plot in a very quick and (to the uninformed) believable way. I bet there are a lot of young people who now have a different impression of ham radio as an alternative to mindless texting, Facebooking, etc. It was artfully done, I'd say.
Not that I'm likely to watch again. I'm the wrong demographic!
If we had a "show of our own", I'm sure it would not get 7 million viewers.
73 Martin AA6E
ARRL Technical Advisor
ARRL Test Engineer
Storyline and writers depiction of Amateur Radio
We can look a little deeper into what was depicted in this episode.
Amateur Radio was a sub-plot in the episode titled "The Fight". The daughter, Mandy was getting poor grades in high school. So, the parents decided that the reason for this was that she was spending too much time using her computer and smart phone. To remedy the situation the parents decide to take away Mandy's computer and phone until she pulls up her grades.
Of course, Mandy recites the mantra of her generation when her parents take away her devices, "This is how people of my generation communicate and exchange ideas". Without her devices, Mandy is having withdrawal symptoms.
Mandy wanders into the basement trying to find out where her parents hid her devices. On the shelf she comes across an old typewriter. She mistakes the typewriter for a laptop with a missing monitor.
Across the room is her fathers Amateur Radio station. It's fired up and running. So, she walks over to it, sits down, picks up the microphone and stats talking.
All the comments above made by Hams is dead on. What she did was illegal – you need a license to use a ham radio or be "third party traffic" with a licensed amateur radio operation present at the radio. Leaving a ham radio on and unattended like that was irresponsible. And finally, no one just walks up to a radio with a linear amplifier and just starts talking without doing some technical fiddling.
"Who Are You People?"
When Mandy starts talking on the Amateur Radio, other Hams come back to her. She asks, "Who are you people?" One ham responds that they are amateur radio operators and that people all over the world can hear what you say. In response, Mandy says, "Oh, it's like twitter but more advanced since you don't have to type"
Mandy tries to use what she knows about Twitter on Ham Radio. So, after talking, she "hash tags" her last sentence and gives permission to "Re-Ham" (Re-Tweet) what she just said. The ham folks reply with "LOL Mandy. Did I get that right?
The writers have set up the dialog to get a laugh out of the generation gap between Mandy (a millennial) and the amateur radio operators (Baby Boomer generation and older). Both generations try to talk to each other across the generation gap by trying to use idioms and phrases they think the other generation would understand. Mandy tries to adapt her generations terms and concepts (hash tags, re/tweet) to the language of hams ("Re/Ham that').
The personal stories of World War II
Mandy is trying to do a paper for school on World War II. A couple of Ham's respond.
Mandy tells the hams she is working on a paper for school on World War II. She gets two responses. The first ham (Walter) says he was on Omaha beach (D-day invasion). Mandy misunderstands this as Walter trying to tell her about his vacation. The second ham, a woman says, "I remember the war like it was yesterday. Better than yesterday since I'm in early stages of dementia."
Again, the script writers play on the generation gap between Mandy and the amateur radio operators go get a laugh. Anyone of age who was present in World War II to have personal stories to tell is now in their late 70's or 80's. The writers throw in the comment by the Ham that she is suffering from "early dementia" for good measure – it got a laugh.
Mandy does her paper and her parents compliment her on the all the personal stories of World War II she has cited. She got those stories from the ham radio operators who she talked to. They were there in World War II.
The Take
This episode of Last Man Standing was seen by an estimated 7 million people. What impression did the mainstream masses come away with of Amateur Radio? That Amateur Radio is a legacy technology with a bunch of old people? Perhaps.
The 2009 ARRL has set this strategic goal
The ARRL will have a membership in 2020 with 60% of the members being under the age of 40.
I have not seen them report on this progress. But engaging young people is essential to their continued existence given that the average age for hams is late 50's and into the early 60's and 70's. Young people are heavily under represented in the Amateur Radio community.
Is this a crazy idea?
While watching episode 17 of Last Man Standing on the internet I got treated to a whole bunch of commercials.
I saw ads for Google, Verizon, Internet Explorer, Land Rover, Nokia, and Bank of America.
I was treated to an interactive ad for Nokia smart phone video stabilization.
There were two ads for cat food and one ad for a carpet company (Luna).
What I did not see was an ad for the ARRL, or for any amateur radio equipment. Was there no company or organization associated with Amateur Radio for which it would make sense to squeeze a 15 second spot for Amateur Radio between the two cat food commercials or the carpet commercial for this episode where Amateur Radio played a role?
Of course, any ham will tell you, that it's crazy to advertise amateur radio to the mainstream. The key is to ask them why. Further, given the episodes depiction of Amateur Radio an ad would be embarrassing to whatever company or organization placed it.
The lasting impression to 7 million people
Those 7 million people who watched the episode of Last Man Standing now know the term "Amateur Radio". They saw some nice (expensive) equipment. They got a few laughs at Amateur Radio's expense built on the generation gap between Mandy and the Hams. Now they will go on with their life and forget about amateur radio or know it as some sort of quirky legacy technology ( in the same scene where they saw a typewriter) before the advent of always-on global communications available to nearly everyone on the planet.
For Amateur Radio to survive it's about influence and impact. But I think that the portrayal of Amateur Radio on Last Man Standing to the mainstream masses has now relegated Amateur Radio only to a technical curiosity easily forgotten.
As a ham, I am very excited to be able to have an episode that presents our hobby in an upbeat and positive way," Amodeo told the ARRL… It's worth noting that although hams will enjoy the episode, it was written with our 7 million non-ham viewers in mind. Please be prepared for some inconsistencies related to Amateur Radio, but enjoy the show nevertheless.
How many chances does the ARRL get to reach 7 million non-hams in the Last Man Standing demographic with a 22 minute story at no cost to them? This high stakes portrayal of Amateur Radio to the mainstream also gives us some insight into the ARRL's influence (influence to a team of creative sitcom script writers?) and ability to mange the public image of Amateur Radio.
"Ding Jinhao was here" What does it all mean?
The vandal carved 'Ding Jinhao was here' in Chinese in the 3,500 year old Luxor Temple.Hong Kong (CNN) —
Parents of a 15-year-old Chinese tourist have apologized after the teenager defaced a stone sculpture in an ancient Egyptian temple with graffiti.The act drew ire in both Egypt and China — generating a massive online backlash amongst China's unforgiving netizens.The vandal carved 'Ding Jinhao was here' in Chinese in the 3,500 year old Luxor Temple.
This morning, I heard a few people talking about this story. Not so much about the facts of the incident, but what it means.
This event has a connection to a recent vblog on YouTube. I posted a link to the vblog "The Aspirational Snobbery of Youth" and made a few comments here.
Celebrity and notoriety without love of the work or career
I listened to the vblog a few times, this is what I get out of it.
It's not that vblog author Delboy is complaining about the aspiration of youth (or anyone else , for that matter) as much as he is making the point that some people want to get it (money, status) without really working for it. Delboy cites money as what drives people to take the short cut to fame – not love of the work or career. For other people, it's not so much money as it is status and notoriety. They want it… and they want to get it doing as little work as possible.
On the backs of others accomplishments
So, 15-year-old Ding Jinhao decided to write his name on the wall of the 3,500 year old Luxor Temple in Egypt. The Luxor Temple in Egypt is a major tourist attraction in Egypt. I had the good fortune of visiting that temple in the past.
So, the intent seems to be, that by placing his name on the Luxor temple those visiting the temple will see the name "Ding Jinhao". No one would come to see Ding Jinhao. But they would come to see the Luxor Temple. And, the logic must be, by placing his name on the wall, Ding Jinhao will somehow get recognition / status / notoriety that would otherwise not be available to him. It's status or recognition by proxy.
Someone else (a whole cadre of other people) did the work of conceptualizing, designing, architecting, funding, and building the Luxor Temple. Ding Jinhao did none of this. He took the easy route. Put your name on (or over, deface) the work of others.
So, back to Delboy's vblog. As he says, some people want celebrity without paying their dues and doing the hard work. Some cooks want to be called "Chef" – without training and without apprenticeship. Some people want to have the celebrity of a singer – but they can't sing. Some people imagine themselves as a train engineer driving a train – but really, all they are cut our for is to be a stoker.
People just are not satisfied with who they are. In itself, being not satisfied with the status quo of who you are (now) is called "ambition". And that's good – if you do the work to gain the competency and skills to deserve the notoriety of title or position. It's not good if you get your notoriety by taking short cuts – like taking the title without the competency or track record of success. Or, simply by defacing the work of others – layering your name on the achievements of others or by hiding or destroying the work of your predecessors (see story of Amenhotep II below)
How it works in small organizations
You can see this same thing going on in small organizations. If there is a diminished focus on results then anyone can take on any job title. Notoriety and celebrity without the results. In some, "once great organizations", if the stakeholders are not vigilant in who they allow to become "celebrities" in the organization without results then it's equivalent to allowing the organization to be defaced.
The Take
So, if Ding Jinhao wanted celebrity and notoriety – he got it. In the organizational context, those that "run them into the ground" because they have the title and not the talent to deliver results, then they will get the same sort of notoriety and celebrity that Ding Jinhao has now. And history will certainly remember them.
Read More
The Aspirational Snobbery of Youth
Of Telegraphs, Telephones, Radios, and Organizational Momentum
Read about defacing the Temple of Isis in Philae here.
If your accomplishments are not that strong, destroy the work of those that came before you… (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatshepsut)
Amenhotep II, the son of Thutmose III, who became a co-regent toward the end of his father's reign, is suspected by some as being the defacer during the end of the reign of a very old pharaoh. He would have had a motive because his position in the royal lineage was not so strong as to assure his elevation to pharaoh. He is documented, further, as having usurped many of Hatshepsut's accomplishments during his own reign. His reign is marked with attempts to break the royal lineage as well, not recording the names of his queens and eliminating the powerful titles and official roles of royal women such as, God's Wife of Amun.


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Even ardent opponents of the bill now question the need to repeal it
By Erica Werner
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans are united as ever in their election-year opposition to "Obamacare," but they're increasingly divided over their promise to vote this year on an alternative to it.
The disagreement comes amid a shifting political calculus around President Barack Obama's health care law. Millions are enrolled for medical insurance through the law's exchanges, and an all-out repeal has become less practical and popular. Some Democrats have begun promoting the measure in campaign commercials, and some Republicans are treading more carefully in belittling the program.
At a recent closed-door House Republican caucus meeting, several conservatives pressed GOP leaders over the pledge Majority Leader Eric Cantor made in January that House Republicans would rally around an alternative to "Obamacare" and pass it this year.
"We said at the retreat in January we were going to do this. Well it's June and we still haven't done it," Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn., said he told Cantor during the meeting last week. "It's moving at a snail's pace. ... We want to be for something."
Roe said he got little reply beyond polite attention. Cantor's spokesman, Doug Heye, said, "Majority Leader Cantor continues to work towards bold legislative solutions to replace 'Obamacare.'"
Behind the scenes, lawmakers and aides say, powerful committee chairmen with jurisdiction over the issue have been unable to agree over how to proceed. Some have even begun to suggest publicly that this year is not the time to vote on an alternative that likely would die in the Democratic-controlled Senate or face a veto threat from Obama.
That argument looks especially compelling in light of Republican hopes of taking over the Senate in November.
"We know that we have a Senate that's not going to do much," Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich., said. He also pointed to the dwindling number of legislative days this year.
"There's not a lot of time but we're exploring a lot of different options," Upton said. "We haven't come to a conclusion yet."
Lawmakers are home in their districts this week listening to what voters are saying about the health care law, which as a political issue is getting increased competition from the post-mortem on the attack in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans, the Taliban prisoner exchange and treatment delays and reports of falsified records at VA medical facilities.
The House already has voted more than 50 times to repeal or excise all or part of the health care law. But it has been two months since the last vote attacking a fundamental provision of the law, and no further votes on the law have been scheduled.
Even ardent opponents now question the need to repeal the law in full. Repeal remains the official GOP position but is widely acknowledged to be impractical now that the initial problems with the enrollment website have subsided, people have signed up and popular provisions such as a ban on denying coverage because of pre-existing conditions have taken hold.
"I don't think anybody's talking about repealing the entire bill," said Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md., who is a physician. "There are clearly sections of the bill ... that people are saying, 'OK, these are actually good things.'"
GOP pollster David Winston, who advises House Republicans, said "Obamacare" has remained unpopular, and he doesn't expect that to change before the November midterm elections. He said the challenge, and opportunity, for Republicans is to come up with solutions to new issues voters are experiencing, such as unexpectedly high deductibles.
"This plan has created a whole new raft of problems, and what they want to see is those problems resolved," Winston said. "And so the idea of shifting back to the previous set of problems versus the existing set of problems is not necessarily where they're focused."
The changing dynamic is evident on the campaign trail, where some Democrats have run ads publicizing their support for the law or attacking their opponents for resisting it. Some Republicans, meanwhile, are beginning to focus on fixes they would make to the law, rather than repeal. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has come under criticism from Democrats in his re-election campaign after vowing to repeal "Obamacare" while suggesting that Kentucky's state health insurance marketplace, which was created under the law, could remain.
On Capitol Hill scant consensus has emerged. Roe and other conservatives have rallied around a bill to repeal "Obamacare" and replace it with a series of traditionally Republican initiatives, including expanding access to health savings accounts and allowing insurance to be sold across state lines. Other lawmakers favor their own approaches. Some want a single bill, others a series of them.
Even if GOP leaders did put a bill on the floor, there's no guarantee their fractious caucus would hold together to pass it.
"There's a number of aspects we've been meeting on in the health care team, talking about those elements that will be in there," Rep. Tim Murphy, R-Pa., said. "Do I think we have enough to have a vote on it before October? I don't know if it will be on the schedule."


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jsadowsky brauchte ein neues Button oder Icon Design und hat einen Wettbewerb auf 99designs gestartet.
Aus 37 Designs von 16 Designern wurde eine Gewinner gewählt.
Small button needed for use in the top header of our website (http://www.partyinnovations.com), similar to that of "The Green Line" and "In a Hurry Line" buttons. This button is for our "Custom Napkins" category. Button should include the words "Custom Napkins" and a small napkin icon to the right.
Please browse our website to get an idea of the kinds of products we sell. We'd like a button similar to "The Green Line" and "In a Hurry Line" buttons located in the header of our website.
You'll see that "The Green Line" button includes a recycle symbol to
represent our environmentally friendly products and the "In a Hurry
Line" button includes a lightning bolt to represent our fast production
products. Specifically, we'd like to create a new button to represent our category of Custom Napkin products. The new button should include the words "Custom Napkins" and a small napkin icon to the right. The entire button size should be about 120 x 19 px (l x w). The napkin icon should probably be white and look 3-dimensional. Maybe the napkin can be folded or triangular - just some suggestions. We'd also like part of our company logo to appear on the napkin (feel free to use our entire Party Innovations logo but it would probably be best if you only design the napkin icon with only the Party Innovations balloon).
- Button that reads "Custom Napkins" w/ a small napkin icon to the right (similar to "The Green Line" button in the header of our site).
- Probably best is napkin is white but feel free to try other colors you think will work nicely with the background color.
- Part of OR the entire Party Innovations logo on the napkin icon (probably best to just design the napkin w/ the balloon).
- Button should use same font and background colors as "The Green Line" button from our site header.
- Button should probably be no larger than 120 x 19 px (l x w). There isn't much space to work with in that area of our site anyway.
- Winner should provide an illustrator and pdf version of their winning design.


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Plundr is the world's first location-based PC game. Using state-of-the-art Wi-Fi Positioning System technologies (WPS), the game locates the user's computer in physical space and uses their location as part of the game.
The game itself is a pirate adventure, in which players move from island to island to buy, sell and fight for goods. Depending on where you are in the physical world, you'll find different islands, different market prices and different ships to fight.
You may have also heard that we're working on a version of Plundr for the Nintendo DS. We're working on it, though it's not quite ready for prime time yet. In case you were wondering, we're using the R4DS for homebrew development and the Skyhook Wireless Wi-Fi positioning system.


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How to reduce sports anxiety felt by kids
Teaching your kid how to manage sports anxiety is an important job; it can prevent them from avoiding sports and physical activity - not just now, but longer term. We want to encourage our kids to be as active and healthy as possible. This article includes top strategies for helping your kid to overcome sports anxiety.Read more
Australian Kids Need Active Parents
Australian kids need active parents according to this study which reveals what encourages children to be more sporty. This article includes some tips for parents and carers who want to encourage their kids to be more sporty.Read more
How to keep your kids fit during school holidays
There are many ways to keep your kids fit and healthy these school holidays, including creating a fitness plan for your kids or enrolling them in a sports camp. Read this article to access a fun fitness plan template for your kids!Read more
School holiday soccer camps
Play The Beautiful Game during the Holidays! Soccer (or European Football) is the world's most popular sport. Many sports clubs in Australia offer school holiday soccer camps for kids for a small fee where they can learn basic skills like dribbling, passing and shooting. Let your kids learn to score like Cristiano Ronaldo!Read more
Sports Camps For Kids
Give your kids something fun to do in the holidays by sending them to sports camp!

A great way to keep kids entertained during the school holidays!Read more
Soccer for Kids
A great team and tactic sports! Soccer, or European Football, is a great way for your kids to get fun with friends or family in a park, or can be played professionally in a club. Competition or just fun, whatever the case, your kids will love it.Read more


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A forum about Atari 16/32 computers and their clones. This forum is in no way affiliated with Atari Interactive.
Moderators: Mug UK, Moderator Team
blinddarm wrote:Hi all,
i only want to show you an new pre-release Vesion of Omniflop,
now containing a Format/Write Option for 11 Sector Disks and Disk Images,
(83/2/11-913kb) especially used for the game PowerUP plus.
Martinus wrote:Are there any solutions when the drive is connected thru USB?
Return to "Other emulators & tools"
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text:
3 August 2011
Time For Some Cycle-Chic at the LOOK Magazine Show AW11...
Although still in its early days, it's been an amazing 17 months on Vélo-City-Girl. Since launching my blog back in March 2010, it has passed 18,000 views & has an increasing readership and loyal followers (also via my Twitter account) who I treasure. I've interviewed Victoria Pendleton, written reviews for CycleChic, contributed to This Big City on why London is one of the most fashionable cities for cycle chic and have been featured by London based art-jewellers Tatty Devine. So, to be given the opportunity to report from the front row at the LOOK Magazine AW11 Show at Westfield Stratford City would be an amazing chance for this blogging fashionista on a Pashley...
I believe there is no reason why Fashion & Cycling can't go hand-in-hand and also feel that riding on a regular basis doesn't mean having to sacrifice the latest trends & styles. London is one of the most fashionable cities in the world, and with around half a million journeys made by bicycle here each day, there is a huge captive audience of female cyclists out there seeking inspiration & advice on how to keep it chic on two wheels. With statistics like this, it should come as no surprise that keeping it stylish while cycling is fast becoming a fashion movement in its own right.
To wave the cycling-fashion flag for this slightly underrepresented audience at London Fashion Week would be a huge coupe not only for Vélo-City-Girl, but for LOOK by introducing a whole new audience of style seekers to the Magazine.
As a dedicated and passionate fashion blogger, I believe I should be on the front row of the LOOK AW11 Show in September! I am always on the hunt for the latest trends, as well as doing my own "Bike Wardrobe Remixing" of different styles in order to bring inspiration and advice to other female cyclists out there. It's all about keeping it fresh, individual & eye-catching, something I believe I do well... and something which was recognised when I recently completed a Photo-Shoot with renowned photographer Horst Friedrichs for his latest book which will showcase the best of London's Cycle Fashion!
Being given the chance to showcase London as a growing cycle-fashion hotspot would be an absolute dream. It would also be especially poignant for me as a local girl from Newham: reporting live from the front row for LOOK Magazine from the brand new Westfield at Stratford City... as a budding fashion blogger from the area, this would be a huge achievement.
So, you've read my entry & know what me and my blog are all about... fancy giving me the chance to show you what I can do?
12 comments
- tog_girl said...
You go girl! East London girl should really be reviewing the East London show :)
- 3 August 2011 at 12:21
Hope they do the right thing and chose you hun! Your blog is always fun to read :) x @diggle30
- 3 August 2011 at 13:03
- Tony Eccles said...
I always enjoy your blog. I love the fashion side of things here.
- 3 August 2011 at 13:13
- Renee said...
You always look great and give us lady cyclists confidence to ride in whatever we like. Thumbs up. You should totally get the gig xxx
- 3 August 2011 at 13:51
- Denise said...
I love to read your blog! I enjoy your perspective and you inspire me to get my girl on!
- 3 August 2011 at 15:35
- Jemma said...
Good work! I too am a preacher of cycling with style and not giving into ugly lycra apparell! Keep up the work :)
- 3 August 2011 at 21:29
Good luck! I'd love to read your take on fashion week! Hel xxx
- 3 August 2011 at 23:12
- belmontbaby said...
Good luck.
- 4 August 2011 at 02:40
- Evie May said...
If there is any justice in the world, you will win this hands down! Your blog is the best one I read.
Come on Look, lets get cycle chic to a wider audience with the help of the fabulous Jools! ;)
- 4 August 2011 at 12:39
Hey Jools! Love your entry for the blogging comp, I hadn't seen your blog before but have added it to my favourites now, SUCH a wicked concept. I've entered too so fingers crossed we may meet at the show. Good luck xx
- 8 August 2011 at 11:14
- Unknown said...
I am partial to your looks and positive attitude so I hope you get it.
Happy Monday!
- 8 August 2011 at 12:19
- Kooky Toon said...
You are awesome, and Look mag is amazing. You make me want to get out and explore London city on my bike.
- 29 August 2011 at 20:31


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There is a fairly widespread consensus that macros are a bad idea in most programming languages. (For example, cf. http://scienceblogs.com/goodmath/2007/12/17/macros-why-theyre-evil/ .)
That said, I have the impression that macros are not just in LaTeX for historical reasons --- there seems to be some property of the typesetting domain that makes macros the right tool. (This seems to be related to the fact that working with LaTeX is very unlike programming in any mainstream language.) Can anyone articulate why this might be the case? Or, indeed, argue that macros are indeed a historical artefact?
Edit: this doesn't answer the question, but is closely related: https://tex.stackexchange.com/a/42749/17049


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RFID Journal is the leading source of news and in-depth information about radio frequency identification (RFID) and its many business applications. Business executives and implementers depend on RFID Journal for up-to-the-minute RFID news, in-depth case studies, best practices, strategic insights and information about vendor solutions. This has made RFID Journal the most relied-upon and respected RFID information resource, serving the largest audience of RFID decision-makers worldwide—online and at face-to-face events.
All conference sessions are subject to change, and RFID Journal reserves the right to alter dates, programs and speakers at any time, as circumstances dictate. Sessions without assigned speakers indicate a target topic; every effort will be made to ensure that a program of equivalent standard and value is available.
RFID in High Tech is produced by RFID Journal, the World's RFID Authority.
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'Third Age - Total War' is a total conversion modification for 'Medieval II: Total War - Kingdoms Expansion' that brings you into the world of Middle-earth.
~ Play epic and strategically demanding battles with the armies of Middle-earth and their respective heroes
~ An extensive playable campaign map featuring locations taken straight from Middle-earth lore
~ 14 unique factions, including Gondor, Rohan, High and Silvan elves, Dwarves, Eriador, Dale, Arnor, Isengard, Mordor, Rhun, Harad, the Orcs of Gundabad and the Orcs of the Misty Mountains
~ A great variety of units, including many famous creatures like Ents, Mumakil, Trolls, Wargs, Spiders or Sauron himself
~ More than 25 custom settlements and famous locations
There is a lot of more to discover including Improved AI, new sounds, music, movies, custom artwork amoung many other new features...
Third Age - Total War is a must have for all strategy and Lord of the Rings fans alike.
Latest Development:
Patch 3.2 Released
A total conversion for the Medieval II Total War - Kingdoms expansion
Main Features
1. The Middle-earth Map
Play on an extensive historically accurate map of Middle-earth as it was in the Third Age, including 115 settlements taken straight from Middle-earth lore and completed with several fictional locations.
Visit the wonders of Middle-earth, like the Three Towers, the Argonath or Durin's tower and see all the unique locations of Middle-earth like Minas Tirith, the Black Gate or Isengard. Battle in the hills of Rohan, the huge forests of the Mirkwood or the dark ash of Mordor.
2. The Factions
Play with all important factions of the Third Age, including Gondor, Rohan, High and Silvan Elves, Dwarves, Eriador, Dale, Isengard, Mordor, Rhun, Harad and the Orcs of the Misty Mountains. Every faction has its own strengths and weaknesses, benefits and disadvantages on the battle as well as the campaign map. Decide if you want to face your enemy with a small, but trained and heavily armored army or if you count on masses of units to overrun your foes. The unit design is based on visual references of the Lord of the rings movie trilogy, completed with fictional units and artwork, all based on the lore of Middle-earth.
3. The Gameplay
The end of the Third Age is a time where good and evil wage a decisive war for the final domination of Middle-earth. Both ways, freeing the good people of Middle earth as well as bringing the world under the shadow will not be an easy task for the player. A new campaign and battle AI will make the player's life much harder and a unit recruitment based on a cultural level and a regional recruitment requires strategically decisions and will slow down your expansion if not properly planned. The AI will also receive certain bonuses like extra money or additional armies if they get in serious trouble to compensate the lack of human intelligence and the lack of income through missions.
4. The Design
In order to reflect the world of Middle-earth as good as possible, there is an almost complete rework of the 2D and 3D design, including settlements, locations, the interface, the symbols and pictures and much more. To create an even deeper atmosphere, all cultures have a unique set of music and unit sounds and voices were completely changed for many factions. Lastly there is a huge amount of new videos, including the intro, the faction intros and many in-game events.
Download Links
### TATW 3.0 (Consists of 2 Parts)
Part1: Moddb.com
Part2: Moddb.com
### TATW 3.1 Patch
You do not need the 3.1 patch, it contained a virus, just download the 3.2 patch and it will work.
### TATW 3.2 Patch
- TATW 3.2 is a stand-alone version and does not require any existing installations of TATW!
- If you have installed a previous version of TATW (2.1 or older), it is recommended to delete the old version before installing TATW 3.2.
(Note that TATW doesn't change any registry settings of your system, so you can also delete the old TATW folder "Third_Age" manually.)
- TATW 3.2 requires the 'Medieval 2 - Kingdoms Expansion' and is compatible with the official patch 1.04 and 1.05. (One installed campaign of the 'Kingdoms Expansion' is enough)
- Install
TATW_3.0_Part1of2.exe &
TATW_3.0_Part2of2.exe &
You do not need the 3.1 patch, it contained a virus, just download the 3.2 patch and it will work.
into the default "Medievall II Total War" directory.
(Normally this is: "Programs/SEGA/Medieval II Total War")
If you have installed Medieval II into another folder, please select the folder manually.
- Start the mod with the 'Third Age - Total War' shortcut on your desktop
Additional installation instructions only for Steam users:
1. Install all parts of the mod as instructed above.
2. Open "Steam/Steamapps/Common/Medieval II Total War/mods". There you will find all your installed Kingdoms campaigns as well as the "Third_Age_3" modfolder.
3. Edit the name of one of the Kingdoms folders (americas, britannia, crusades, teutonic), preferably your least favorite campaign. The new name doesn't have to be anything specific.
4. Change the name of the "Third_Age_3" folder to the former name of the Kingdoms folder you just edited. For example, if you edited the "americas" folder, the "Third_Age_3" folder should be named "americas".
5. Select the appropriate campaign from the steam menu. If you renamed the "Third_Age_3" folder to "americas", select the americas campaign. If you named it "crusades", select the crusades campaign and so on.
6. Steam will now launch the mod.
If you have installed 3.0 or 3.1 and renamed your folders before you have installed the 3.2 Patch:
- If you have already renamed the "Third_Age_3" folder to one of your 'Kingdoms' campaigns (for example to "americas") install the patch normally.
- After the installation, move the files of the newly created "Third_Age_3" folder to the renamed folder manually.
(For example cut the content of the "text" folder from the newly created "Third_Age_3" folder and paste it into the "text" folder of your "americas" folder.)
Note : The "models_missile" folder has to be copied to the normal ".../Medieval II Total War/data" folder!
- The "Third_Age" folder can now be deleted.
Known Issues for version 3.2:
- The Custom Settlements are mainly designed for the campaign map, therefore custom battles with most custom settlements should only be played 1vs1.
For further technical help or problem reports, please see the official bug and technical help forum.
Many Gondorian units were completely reworked and improved.
We have released our fifth faction preview, the latest one released is Mordor.
We have released our fourth faction preview, the latest one released is Dwarves. You can see all our previews in our forums here at Mod DB or at our home...
We have released our third faction preview, the latest one released is Harad. You can see all our previews in our forums here at Moddb or at our home...
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Patch 3.2 Download. Click on read more to see the full changelog and notes.
3.0 (Part1) Download. Click on read more to see the full changelog and notes.
3.0 (Part2) Download. Click on read more to see the full changelog and notes.
Changes and Bug-fixes: - problem with white UI fixed (thanks to gigantus) - (occasionally) missing diplomats and woodcamps fixed - wrong music and sounds...
Features * New Factions - Reworked Eriador - The Kingdom of Arnor - The Orcs of Gundabad * New Heroes & Units * Many new gameplay features & Improvements...
Features: * New Factions - Reworked Eriador - The Kingdom of Arnor - The Orcs of Gundabad * New Heroes & Units * Many new gameplay features &...
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Seams to be that every Lord of the Rings/ Middle Earth mod that I download to want to play for my Total War games, (cracked or disc based) will not seam to work. I follow all the instructions to the letter. Most recent one I tried was for the LOTRTW mod for Rome:Alexander and not even that would work, let alone run on my windows 10 laptop - even after following the instructions for Windows 10!
would anyone be so kind as to offer some tips or advice on how to get the mods working?
" -show_err"
" -nm"
" -W 1920 -H 1200" (your computer screen resolution mine is 1920 and 1200)
" -ne"
" -enable_editor"
Add all of these, it doesn ot matter what order to my knowledge. just make sure it is in TARGET when you add them, go to shortcut and properties to find it
Copy and paste everything within "...."
Do the same for Medieval total war game mod shortcut, otherwise, try run the mod with teh bat files in it mod folder and the game should run.
Here is an example:
"A:\Games\Strategy games\Rome - Total War\RomeTW-BI.exe" -mod:AmazonsTW-Refulgent -show_err -nm -ne
Here is another example of how it can look like:
"A:\Games\Strategy games\Rome - Total War\RomeTW-ALX.exe" -show_err -nm -mod:DTW -enable_editor -W 1920 -H 1200 -n
A medieval game mod (here I did not need to add alot since it works and run fine but yeah.
"A:\Games\Strategy games\Medieval II Total War\kingdoms.exe" --features.mod=mods/The_Elder_Scrolls_1.6
the mod always doesnt want to download, ive downloaded other mods for other games on moddb and they all work wtf is wrong with the files to not even let me download them.
Hey guys, i followed the installation order and it didn't worked for me.
But i solved it and its running now :)
1. Follow the Install instruction, but DON'T RENAME the 'Third_Age_3' folder!!
2. Go into the 'Third_Age_3' folder and edit the 'Third_Age.bat' into
Open it and replace/change
'start kingdoms.exe (at)mods\Third_Age_3\TATW.cfg' into
'start medieval2.exe (at)mods\Third_Age_3\TATW.cfg'
3. Save it and Rename 'Third_Age.txt' back into 'Third_Age.bat'
Enjoy ;)
Really thanks, that should be add in mod instructions, Really, really thanks man!
Only registered members can share their thoughts. So come on! Join the community today (totally free - or sign in with your social account on the right) and join in the conversation.
Highest Rated (120 agree) 10/10
It's hard not to give this one a 10.
It has almost everything you'd want from a LOTR mod in M2TW, and much more.
The only criticisms that i could give: As for right now, it lacks some really important plot parts from the earlier Third Age.
But Sub-Campaigns for each faction (or some) could definitely help on this subject.
Dec 3 2010 by X4VI3R


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This is a guest post by Mark Webster. Yes, I'm allowing periodical guest posts so I can do things like shower and eat – no whining. Because he's a math educator, Mark nerds out about why we should delegate tasks – something I suck hard at.
For those of us who did not attend the SSA convention, we heard Lyz Liddel and many others talk about the importance of delegation—specifically talking to those student leaders out there who had difficulty with the task.
Lyz's suggestion, and rightly so, was for leaders to delegate tasks to their members and other officers…even if it meant that they wouldn't do *as good* of a job.
Of course, the reasoning is fairly simple. One person simply cannot do the job alone.
If the job is only getting done by one person, there are two highly likely situations:
1. The person will get burnt out by the job and the club will dissolve because they were the only person doing anything.
2. The person will graduate and the rest of the club will be lost without them because nobody showed them what to do and will dissolve.
Of course, perhaps I'm being melodramatic, but in a situation where we are still working on getting well-established student organizations all around the country, it's difficult to see groups struggling when they should be thriving.
"This is an appeal to emotion!" you might grumble at this. Which is absolutely right. But, I can see how, as skeptics, we might want to see some proof that this is actually the case. Good on you all.
The Proof
For the proof in our pudding, we must turn to Economics, that one class we slept through in high school. Now, I am by no means an Economist, but I did take an introductory Micro-economics class in high school AND one in college, so I feel perfectly qualified to talk about it.
Imagine the club were run by two people. In some situations, this is actually the case. When starting out a group, we aren't going to be able to have six or seven officers. I know in the case of Purdue, in order to be a legal group on campus, a group must have one office designated "President," and one designated "Treasurer." Let's assume this for our "theoretical group."
Let's also think about what it takes to actually keep a group like this running:
People to come to meetings and populate events and Money to fund said meetings and events.
Now let us assume that the person designated "President" is an experienced and qualified individual. Perhaps he has been on the executive board of a few clubs in high school so he has excellent leadership. Maybe he was a student council member in charge of the fund-raising for his class, so he knows how to milk money out of pretty much everybody. Perfectly capable of running a fledgling student group.
Let's talk about Mr. "Treasurer" now. He is a young able-bodied individual, but he has had absolutely no experience in any of these affairs. He wasn't particularly active in any groups back in high school, and he doesn't know a bake-sale from a raffle, but he met up with President on facebook, and they decided to start a group together.
I'm sure every one of you in the shoes of President would at least take a minute before handing him anything important for the group. He has no experience at all. He doesn't know what he's doing and any of his first couple attempts are going to be slipshod at best. Let's throw some example numbers out there.
Let's say, in one day, President could recruit 10 members compared to Treasurer's 2 and President could raise 300 dollars compared to Treasurer's 30. If you had to pick someone to do each task individually, who would you pick? C'mon, be cold and analytical! I'll even add a chart for you:
Fund-raising (in dollars)
Recruitment (in people)
Of course, President is anywhere from 5 to 10 times as efficient as Treasurer for ANY of these tasks, so we would pick him for both tasks.
We call this "Absolute advantage." As in, President has the Absolute Advantage over Treasurer for both of these tasks.
However, now we must think about "Opportunity Cost." How much does it cost for President to spend time raising that 300 dollars? Some of you are thinking "What does he mean…cost? Isn't he MAKING money?"
Well, yes. President is, indeed, making money, but for every dollar he is earning by fund-raising, he could be using that time to recruit people, and vice-versa. He can recruit 10 people in the same amount of time it would take him
to raise 300 dollars. That is to say, for every person that he recruited, he could have made 30 dollars…and for every dollar he raised, he would have ended up with 1/30th of a person instead. Same for the Treasurer.
Time for another chart:
Opportunity Cost for fund-raising (in people)
Opportunity Cost for recruitment (in dollars)
So while it is true that President had an absolute advantage in both fund-raising and recruitment, his opportunity cost for recruitment is twice that for Treasurer.
It stands to reason, then that recruitment is a job best delegated to Treasurer. Perhaps, he won't do as good a job as President would, but if they each do the job that they have the lower opportunity cost for, they will be more productive together than if Treasurer just sat around and did absolutely nothing while President did all the work.
Now, of course, all of this has been based on the idea the the President will be best at everything, which is certainly (and thankfully) not usually the case, so it behooves you, oh leader of your student group to seek out and foster those members and officers in their strengths (and relative weaknesses). Find the ones who can get the job done…whether or not they can do it as efficiently or as well as you can.
This is post 9 of 49 of Blogathon. Pledge a donation to the Secular Student Alliance here.


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17-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Tuesday, May 14, 1912: Wish it would get warmer and quit raining. I just got a long scratch on my thumb awhile ago and it's rather sore.
Her middle-aged granddaughter's comments 100 years later:
How did people treat scratches and cuts a hundred years ago?
The Compendium of Everyday Wants, published in 1907, recommended:
CUTS AND WOUNDS.—There are two kinds of cuts or wounds—incised, which means cut into, or lacerated, which means torn.
The first kind are usually not so dangerous and are treated in proportion to their size and depth. These generally heal of themselves. Clots formed on a cut should not be washed away. If there is not much bleeding, wipe away any impurities and bandage. A small piece of adhesive plaster is all that is necessary for household cuts.
Lacerated wounds have ragged edges, and the soft parts about them often will be found bruised and torn. These are most frequently caused by railway accidents, machinery, and falling timbers.
Treatment.—Cleanse the wound with warm water, wet a cloth over it and bandage lightly.


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Filed Under (Harley Davidson) by admin on 27-04-2012
1. 1994-99 models: Remove upper shock absorber nut, washer, shock cover and backing washer. Save nut and washer and discard shock cover and backing washer. 2000-03 models: Remove upper shock bolt, washer and shock cover and save washer. NOTE: Do not remove stock inboard washer that is positioned behind shock cover and against shock absorber. 2. All models: Remove OEM buttonhead screw and flanged nut directly to the rear of the upper shock mount on fender support. Note T-spacer in fender support. Save nut and discard bolt. 3. 1994-99 models: Position saddlebag support (item 1) with front bracket over shock stud and rear mount over hole in fender support. Install ½ * bushing (Item 2) over shock stud and into hole of support front mount. Install saved OEM nut and washer (items 3,4) and tighten securely. 2000-03 models: Apply Locktite to the OEM shock screw (Item 5) and install through the saved washer (Item 6), front bracket of the saddlebag support (Item 1), shock and into the frame. Tighten to 21-35 ft. -lbs torque. NOTE: If installing supports with sissy bar side plates, omit 5/16 * lock washer (Item 8). H-D sissy bar side plate mounts between fender support and fender. Khrome Werks® sissy bar plate mounts outboard of fender support. CAUTION: Be careful to not dislodge T-spacer from its position in fender while inserting screw through fender support and fender. 4. Insert supplied socket head cap screw (Item 7) and lock washer (Item 8) (if applicable) through the rear saddlebag support mount, sissy bar side plate (if applicable) , fender with T-spacer and frame. Apply Loctite to the saved flanged nut and secure. Tighten to 8-13 ft-lbs torque.


text:
Friday, February 21, 2020
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In a time of universal deceit — telling the truth is a revolutionary act. --GEORGE ORWELL
"Ideas power men. Men power cultures. Cultures power civilizations. Civilizations power history. Ideas are the fuel of man's mind. (Ayn Rand)
It is not a question of whether man chooses to be guided by [philosophy]: he is not equipped to live without it." (Ayn Rand)
"History is philosophy teaching by example "(Lord Bolingbroke)
"The trouble with nations is that there is an unequal distribution of capitalism. "(Rush Limbaugh)
"Shake off all the fears of servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call on her tribunal for every fact, every opinion. Question with boldness even the existence of God; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear. "(Thomas Jefferson)
"It is better to be infamous than never be famous at all."
(Roger Stone)


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1 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup pepitas (unroasted, shelled pumpkin seeds)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350. Grease or spray one 8x8 baking pan or an 8 inch pie tin. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder and soda, sugar and salt. Beat in the pumpkin until well combined. Fold in pepitas Pour into pan and bake 25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.


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Naked & Famous Denim Trousers
Montreal-based denim line Naked and Famous emerged in 2008 with the goal of offering superior quality in an overcrowded market. Rejecting overdone washes and embellishments, Naked and Famous instead presents a limited number of fits in unwashed denims sourced from traditional Japanese mills. Connoisseurs will appreciate the line's specialized fabrics, including a range of selvedge and twill weaves as well as cashmere, silk, wool, and Kevlar denim blends.


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On Monday, Joe Girardi got killed for his decision to remove a pitcher from the game. Apparently he took that criticism to heart because he decided to stick with A.J. Burnett entering the seventh inning of Game 5 in Anaheim. Unfortunately for Girardi, that decision worked out just as poorly, and the Angels scored three runs in the frame to earn a 7-6 win and a chance to keep playing baseball this year.
The problem with keeping Burnett in the game is less cut and dry than the mistake Girardi made when he removed David Robertson for Alfredo Aceves in Game 3. The Yankee starter was awful out of the gate, he gave up four runs in the first inning, but had settled down and shut out the Angels over the next five. That kept the Yankees close enough to erupt against John Lackey and the Angels bullpen in the top of the seventh. The Yankees scored six times after Mike Scioscia lifted Lackey with two outs, a move that looked for a brief moment like it would dominate the headlines.
But then came the bottom of the inning. Keeping Burnett in the game, as he'd thrown 80 pitches and been pretty good after the first, may not have been an awful decision on its face, but it's hard to understand why you'd stay with a tiring pitcher prone to wildness over Phil Hughes and Mariano Rivera when you're nine outs away from the World Series. Especially when you pulled Andy Pettitte in the midst of a better performance in Game 3 of the ALDS because you were going for the kill, i.e. the same exact situation as Girardi found himself in on Thursday. And even if you do decide to stay with Burnett, he should absolutely have been out of the game when Jeff Mathis, who has looked like Reggie Jackson in this series, singled to lead the inning off.
U.S. & World
Because of how badly Hughes pitched when he finally got in the game in the seventh inning, it's easy to write off Girardi's decision. Hughes walked Torii Hunter and then made an epically bad pitch to Vladimir Guerrero when he was ahead in the count to give up the tying and winning runs. Maybe he does the same thing if he starts the seventh, but it was hard to watch the late innings play out and feel that Girardi forced the Angels to beat his team with his best available pitchers on the mound.
The aggravating thing about Girardi is that you can understand the rationale for many of his decisions, even pinch running for Alex Rodriguez and Hideki Matsui in the bottom of the ninth even though it meant that Freddy Guzman and Brett Gardner would be hitting in the middle of your lineup in a tie game during the extra innings, and hate them at the same time. The only common thread seems to be that they serve to insert Girardi into the middle of situations where it would probably suffice to just put his best players on the field and let it go from there. He's not as important as the players doing the playing, especially when Hughes and Burnett screw up the way they did on Thursday, but often seems to want everyone to think that he is.
It's a disturbing trend, and one that will be under its most intense microscope when these two teams renew acquaintances Saturday night.
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City and is a contributor to FanHouse.com and ProFootballTalk.com in addition to his duties for NBCNewYork.com.


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On that note, we would like to take a minute to thank all of our 2011 designers and guest designers. Their cards were beautiful each week, and we were always so inspired by them. They've done an excellent job, and we appreciate having had them on our team. We wish them all the best in all of their crafty endeavors.
Now, onto our last challenge, vellum. Please keep in mind that all challenges are optional. Any Christmas/Winter/Holiday card will do. The idea is to help get your Christmas cards done, so that you're not rushing at the end of the year. Also, it is not necessary to use a SCRS stamp on your project, but we love it when you do.
There are a few desingers on vacation this week, but we do have a couple cards to share.
Lovely as always! We do hope you'll be able to join us for this last challenge of 2011. Please remember to link directly to the blog post or gallery page where we can view/comment on your creation, and not just the generic link to your blog. Generic blog links will be disabled or deleted. You must create a new project. No backlinking please.
Don't forget to post a comment so we know you added a card! If you upload to an online gallery, please use the tag SCCC52, so that we can all enjoy your cards.
Stay crafty my friends!


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Rock Band Country Track Pack is a standalone software product that allows owners of Rock Band andRock Band 2 to keep the party going with 21 songs from an outstanding mix of country artists, including Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, Shania Twain, Rascal Flatts and the legendary Kenny Rogers. Many of the tracks will be exclusive to the Rock Band Country Track Pack disc for a limited time before joining the Rock Band Music Store as downloadable content.
In addition, Rock Band Country Track Pack, like all Rock Band software, is compatible with all Rock Band instrument controllers, as well as most Guitar Hero and other current third party video game instrument controllers. Fans who buy the Rock Band Country Track Pack for PlayStation 3 can play directly from the disc or download the songs onto their consoles' hard drives through a free offer with PlayStation Network. Once downloaded, the songs will automatically appear in the player's custom Rock Band library and can be integrated into setlists and played in all game modes.
Because you're a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll.
Also known as: Rock Band: Country Track Pack, Rock Band: Country
Release Region: United States
Release Date: July 21, 2009
Publisher: MTV Games
Also available on: PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, Wii
Rock Band Track Pack: ... at IGN
Rock Band Track Pack: ... at GameSpy
Rock Band Track Pack: ... at GameStats


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Originally collected in Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs and now available both as a stand-alone essay and in the ebook collection Chuck Klosterman on Media and Culture, this essay is about cereal.
Chuck Klosterman is the bestselling author of many books of nonfiction (including Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs, I Wear the Black Hat, Fargo Rock City and Chuck Klosterman X) and two novels (Downtown Owl and The Visible Man). He has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, GQ, Esquire, Spin, The Guardian, The Believer, Billboard, The A.V. Club, and ESPN. Klosterman served as the Ethicist for The New York Times Magazine for three years, and was an original founder of the website Grantland with Bill Simmons.
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Pierre-Luc Grenier necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 68 diseños de 8 diseñadores freelance.
Coach Your World
Coach your world is a new web startup with the goal of helping representatives/vendors in their everyday work.
Our web-based solution is aiming to help them doing better follow-ups of their calls, appointments, contacts, teams and other custom requirements they may have.
Our software can be used by any type of representatives who sell services or products.
Looking for a logo and a pre-launch page (really basic) to show our solution and its possibilities.
For the logo, we want our brand : « Coach YOUR World » be written like that. Be imaginative with the style used for the words. We just want a nice Web 2.0 design. Furthermore, we want
- Coach: to be orange
- YOUR: to be bright red. This word should be a little more prominent.
- World: to be blue
Note: If you think of a better approach for the colors, be free to let us know, we are very open.
For the logo, we asked to make something around stickmen. Now, we want to let you free to experiment anything, but respect the three colors patern. Also, be sure to make an iconic logo, so we could use that icon in other places in the website and/or our web-application.
For the tagline, write "A tool to help your business growth" below the logo. Make it clean and simple. I don't know about the color, maybe silver could be nice?
Now for the pre-launch page. We really like the pre-launch page of SolidShops: http://www.solidshops.com/ and would like to get something really closer to that page. Be free about your colors choice.
We want (refer to SolidShops):
- Header: A place to put the logo, some nice text of different sizes, Sign Up button (write for free beta access below "Sign Up") and a place to put a video demo.
- Main content: We need a two-column block with the six icons provided and a block saying we are currently in private beta testing, with an input text to submit an email. This block could be to the right of the two-column icons section. (We don't need the twitter entries, se please don't make it).
- Footer: similar to their footer.
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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Q:I have seasonal affective disorder, and before I get socked by winter depression, tell me: What's the best way to deal with it? Help! -- Malcolm H., Minneapolis
A:There are several ways for you to deal with SAD (seasonal affective disorder). We strongly recommend the triumvirate of: exercising outside (a brisk walk at least 20 minutes a day), light therapy (go to RealAge.com for different light therapy options -- light boxes, dawn simulators, light visors) and supplemental vitamin D-3.
Exercising outside provides exposure to sunlight (lack of sunlight can cause an imbalance of two key mood-regulating neurotransmitters -- serotonin and melatonin). It also improves your outlook by stimulating release of mood-boosting endorphins, helps you sleep better and makes it easier to eat more healthfully -- all powerful ways to combat SAD.
Blue-light therapy for one hour a day can improve your mood significantly during the winter months, and coupling it with exercise amps up its benefits.
Vitamin D-3 helps boost mood, the immune system and heart health! Most folks rely on sun exposure to get their daily dose of vitamin D. But with winter darkness and all those clothes covering up your skin, chances are you're seriously "D"-prived. We recommend you take a D-3 supplement of 1,000 IU a day if you're under age 60, and 1,200 if you're older.
So don't get SAD, get glad! Try our three-part SAD therapy, and you'll be surprised how much you can enjoy those beautiful and invigorating Minnesota winters!
Q:My doc says I'm headed for type 2 diabetes if I don't do something to get in shape. I don't mind the gym, so what's the best plan? -- Fred G., Buffalo, N.Y.
A:We're glad you asked, Fred. Turns out that what you do at the gym can revolutionize your future, preventing everything from heart attack to kidney failure and blindness -- just a few of the complications associated with diabetes. (And that's especially true if you combine it with upgrades to your overall lifestyle; our suggestions are below.) Here's the latest solid data:
Weight training
Fifty-nine minutes a week slashes diabetes risk by 12 percent; ramp it up to 149 minutes, and it's down by 25 percent. Opt for 150 minutes or more each week, and your risk is cut by 34 percent.
Prefer aerobics?
Swimming, treadmill (jogging, walking), stationary bike or taking a 59-minute spin class cuts your risk by 7 percent; more than an hour, 31 percent; and 90 minutes, 52 percent.
Now put the two together
Go for 150 minutes of weights and 150 minutes of aerobics a week, and you can see a 59 percent drop in your risk for type 2 diabetes. And you haven't even tackled the other lifestyle life-changers -- better nutrition, improved sleep habits and de-stressing.
Nutritional upgrades have powerful positive effects on blood pressure, overall body inflammation, depression, weight and glucose levels, all associated with diabetes. So, avoid the five food felons: added sugars, added syrups, most saturated fat, ALL trans fats, and grains that are NOT 100 percent whole. Then choose friendly fats such as olive oil with omega-9 fatty acids and canola oil with omega-3s; lean proteins, especially fish with loads of omega-3s, such as salmon and trout; lots of cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage, collard greens, daikon radish, kohlrabi and bok choy); fruits and other veggies (put a wide variety of colors on your plate every day); plus avocados and walnuts.
Next, get at least seven hours of shut-eye every night, and, in addition to physical activity, adopt new ways to shake off stress -- unchecked, it raises blood sugar levels and increases inflammation. We recommend daily meditation. There are instructions on everything from progressive relaxation to mindfulness at RealAge.com.
You can start in the gym, Fred. Then aim to add 10,000 steps a day with our walking plan. And don't forget those food upgrades, the right amount of sleep and meditation!
Dr. Mehmet Oz is host of "The Dr. Oz Show," and Dr. Mike Roizen is chief medical officer at the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute. Submit your health questions at www.doctoroz.com.
Light, real and artificial, will help you deal with SAD
Q:I have seasonal affective disorder, and before I get socked by winter depression, tell me: What's the best way to deal with it? Help! -- Malcolm H., Minneapolis