text:
jan Lope o. toki.
Your lessons and resources are surprisingly easy to find. I think I worked through your lessons before I got a copy of Sonjas book.
It wasn't until really studying the official book I came to realise the language had amazing depth. If resources about this kind of thing exist online I think they are very hard to find. I know others are working through the book as I am, since I see plently evidence of that. My post, I suppose, was maybe aimed at possible lurkers, or something, in the hope the not so subtle clues in the OP spoke to them as to similar endeavours. Maybe helping them to make contact, and so get people to work together for efficiently learning the richness of official version of the language.


text:
Hanz felt the concussion of the the two Pak 40's firing almost simultaneously but as a veteran of nearly constant action over several years he was used to it and so kept his binoculars trained on the advancing British Churchill's to check the effect of their fire . A slow smile turned his normally stern lips into a upward turn as he saw two Churchill's explode in a fountain of burning lead and smoke. This caused the remaining tank to go in reverse and leave the field which Franz noticed seemed to be what the British were doing across the entire visible sector. He knew they would be back, but for today they held their position and that was good enough for him.
He could remember the glory days of when he actually was a Jäger jumping out of planes and doing the job of a Fallschirmjäger, but those days were long gone which found him replacing his chute for a spade. Now his only concern was keeping himself and his men alive and for today at least it was by and large a success.
"Ok good work gentlemen now clean the barrels, set a watch and get some food inside you and what rest you can as the English will come knocking again tomorrow."
With that he lit a cigarette and wearily set his back to a tree and began writing his AAR.
I invited a couple friends over to my house for a FOW game to have a game and show off my new room.
We played 4000pts using the Fortress Europe lists with Mixer playing A British Rifle company vs Scnugg(Panzergrenadiers) and myself Fallschirmjäger.
I won't give a blow by blow account, but rather a brief report of the battle.
Things started well for the British when virtually 2 platoons of Schnugg's stugs and 2 platoon's of infantry were shredded in a aggressive attempt to pressure the British. After this the Germans pulled back and started an air and artillery duel where they began inflicting some casualties.
The British decided to take the initiative and go on the offensive and this is were things started to really go wrong for them as the Germans were weakened , but far from out of it. A combination of artillery, MG fire, anti-tank, a small Tiger offensive combined with infantry stopped the Brits cold and eventually broke their army.
In fairness to Mixer he could have sat back with his Brits and probably stood a far better chance to win, but since this was a friendly game he kept the game fun and went on the counter offence. It didn't help him much that he rolled pretty darn abysmal while doing it and we as a whole rolled quite good for the second half which all coupled altogether spelled doom for the Brits.
I had a great time playing and really enjoyed the company and hope to have them back soon.
Here are few quick pics of the game. The pics didn't turn out all that well as I need to polish my in game photography skills, but hopefully it gives you somewhat of an impression of our game.
I used a cloth blanket that is spray painted to get ground color texture. I still need to work it up some more, but I'm happy in the direction it's going. I vastly prefer cloth to any other playing surface as you can place hills underneath to give more subtle changes to the elevation and it's kind to models plus easy to manipulate. I also use sand for roads as it looks more natural in both in color and how it lays out on the board compared to modelled ones in my opinion. The hedges and fields are still raw and need some color foliage added to give better depth which is on my to do list along with some buildings and such. I also plan to base some of my trees in groups and leave others as singles. No doubt plenty of work yet to do on my terrain, but it's progressing as I see more what needs improving.
Here a couple pics I added to my walls of which Troini's 1st Minnesota at Gettysburg takes pride of place as I like the pic a great deal and it's my home state.
Thanks for viewing!

subset: commoncrawl


text:
These releases bring with them more stability, a lots of bugfixes, and some interesting new features which include Vala bindings, an updated UI for Awn Manager, new applets, more documentation and support for non-gnome desktop environments.
Desktop Agnostic
Mark Lees (malept) long-standing desktop-agnostic branch was finally merged into trunk. What it does is separate three 'desktop-specific' parts of Awn and provides multiple implementations of them, suiting your current desktop set-up:
- Configuration: Either a GConf (default) or GKeyFile settings backend.
- VFS: Three VFS backends, GnomeVFS (currently-default), ThunarVFS and GIO.
- Desktop File Reading: Either libgnome-desktop (default) or EggDesktop.
This abstraction also spreads to the applets in Awn-extras, and most of them have been ported to the new style, with the goal of porting all of them by the next release.
Speaking of the next release, there have been some changes to the Awn versioning system & the roadmap. The new roadmap looks like this:
- 0.4 - Non-composited WM support; Better handling of multi-monitor setups; GtkTheme support; Awn-curves;
- 0.6 - Rewrite the launcher/task-manager, adding support for window grouping, window sorting, window-thumbnails-as-icons, easier plugin writing, and a more extensive DBus backend.
- 0.8 - Allow Awn to reside on any edge of the screen; TBD
- 1.0 - Multiple Awn panels; TBD
As you can see, the 'major-rewrite' of Awn has been split-up into sizeable chucks, which allows for more releases and allows us to introduce the new code a bit at a time.
If you need help installing Awn, are having problems, or just want to chat about development & features, please check out the forums, wiki or stop by #awn on irc.freenode.net, where there's always someone willing to help!
I'd also like to welcome Julien Lavergne, Mark Lee and Rodney Cryderman to the core team. They have done a lot (most) of the work for this release, and have kept the Awn boat floating.
Finally, once you've installed the Awn and feel like trying out something new, set /apps/avant-window-navigator/bar/bar_angle t0 -1, and see what happens (this is courtesy of ;-).


text:
Gabourey Sidibe may be a Golden Globe nominee and hotly tipped for an Oscar nomination, but it appears award shows aren't the only fans of the 26-year old. Hollywood stars love her, too.
The star of "Precious," stepped out in New York City for a party recently where she was fawned over.
"We've all been to a place where we've felt ignored and unsupported, so it just affirms the meaning of the film's story to me," Gabourey told Harper's Bazaar about the celebrity attention. "Ashley Olsen hugged me for a long time — like rubbing my back and everything — and said, 'I am so proud of you.' How cute is that?"
While Gabourey has a boyfriend, who she won't name publicly, it hasn't stopped the rising star from crushing on a few celebrities.
"Man! Justin Timberlake is always good," she told the mag. "God, there are so many hot dudes in Hollywood right now. I'm such a fanny, fanny girl. Bradley Cooper. How hot is he?"
And while she's likely to rubbing shoulders with Justin, Bradley and others on the award show circuit, Gabourey also has a fairly busy schedule with photo shoots.
"I feel like a model," she said of all the pictorials that have come her way. "It justifies everyone in my life who told me I wouldn't be anything until I lost weight. It justifies that little girl who cried because she didn't think she could be in front of the camera. And it's for other girls who feel like they can't do this or that and feel like they're not pretty and not worthy of having their photo taken."
The star said she doesn't have any plans to change.
"I'm just happy to show up. So, I don't have any plans of changing because I really, really like myself," she said. "It took a lot of work to get here. It's reaffirming for people to meet me and ask me not to change."
Related Content from AccessHollywood.com:
VIEW THE PHOTOS: Oscars 2009: Red Carpet
PLAY IT NOW: Did Gabourey Sidibe Ignore Jack Nicholson? (November 14, 2009)
PLAY IT NOW: 'Precious,' LA Premiere (November 1, 2009)
MORE ACCESS ON THESE TOPICS: Gabourey Sidibe - Golden Globes - Oscars - Movies - TV One


text:
San Diego: Buona Forchetta Brings Neapolitan Pies to South Park
Buona Forchetta
3001 Beech St, San Diego, CA 92102 (map); buonaforchettasd.com Pizza Style: Neapolitan The Skinny: Neighborhood pizzeria slinging Neapolitan-style pies baked in a legit wood-fired oven Price: Pizzas range from $7 to $15. Regina Margherita, $13; Alexa, $12, Tiramisu, $6
When it comes to pizza, San Diego is still in its awkward teenage years. Truly excellent purveyors are on the rise and the potential is evident, but compared to what's going on in pizza capitals like New York or Chicago, it's clear that we've got a lot of growing up to do. Still, the positive response to new pizzerias that are dedicated to honing their craft is always encouraging. Such is the case with Buona Forchetta, the latest addition to SD's decidedly uncrowded Neapolitan pizza scene.
The husband-and-wife-owned spot in South Park is committed to making pizzas in the traditional Neapolitan style, using top-notch olive oil—co-owner Matteo Cattaneo has a line on Farchioni oil because, well, his family produces it—San Marzano tomato sauce, and a gold-tiled Stefano Ferrara wood-fired pizza oven.
Comparisons to North Park's neighboring Neapolitan-style joint, Pizzeria Bruno, are inevitable. But Buona Forchetta sets itself apart with a larger, more comprehensive menu that boasts 21 varieties of pizza alongside a range of calzones, fresh pastas, antipasti, salads, and desserts (including a killer tiramisu). In addition to their red and white pies, the South Park restaurant has an exciting selection of pizze fritte, which are lightly fried before they're finished in the oven.
The Regina Margherita ($13) features milky bufala mozzarella, generously portioned over a thin layer of bright, sweet San Marzano tomato sauce. The crust is soft and a bit chewy, with some minor leopard spotting; as Neapolitan-style pies go, it isn't jarringly different from a standard thin-crust pie. The char is minimal, and the crust is crisp enough on the bottom that you can easily pick up a slice, fold it, and eat it like any other pizza (unlike Bruno, which is strictly a fork-and-knife affair). What really makes you take notice of the pies at Buona Forchetta is the salt, particularly on the margherita pie. The salty spike in each bite was admittedly tasty, but by my third slice, I was scraping off the excess.
I far prefer the Alexa ($12). It's topped with crumbled housemade fennel sausage and rapini, and it's not nearly as salty as the Margherita. The bitter veg plays off the sweet, mild sausage for a nice, well-balanced pie. Say yes to chili flakes on this one: the injection of heat into this equation works wonders.
Unfortunately, the execution wasn't totally consistent, and on two separate visits, I was served pizzas with significantly uneven charring.
The six pies I sampled were all a bit different: some wet on the bottom, others with plenty of char. I'm chalking it up to a bit of a learning curve on the oven. Even so, $13 for a mostly-perfect buffalo mozzarella Margherita pie is still pretty awesome.
Let me also make a motion for the house-made tiramisu ($6), which is perfect in its simplicity and the ideal final act to a slightly-too-salty-to-savory meal. Trust me on this one.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


text:
Alastair Jamieson / msnbc.com
Jim L., left, and other members of the Occupy Mile End protest group at their camp in east London on Thursday.
LONDON -- An eviction notice has been served on dozens of Occupy protesters who have set up camp in a park next to Team USA's Olympic track and field training base.
About 50 demonstrators are occupying Mile End Park – two miles from the main London 2012 site and next door to a sports stadium where American athletes will prepare for events in July.
The park is also visible from the priority traffic lanes that will be used to whisk VIPs and other participants from central London to the Olympic Village, which is located to the east of the U.K. capital.
The protesters say they are part of the anti-capitalist Occupy movement, which has seen sit-ins and clashes with police in cities including New York, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Oakland.
An Occupy London camp was forcibly removed from the grounds of St Paul's Cathedral by police at the end of February, resulting in 20 arrests.
Local authorities have now secured a court order to close down Occupy Mile End, which began five weeks ago and includes about a dozen tents, a campfire and makeshift toilet facilities.
Police evict Occupy London protesters from camp
Tower Hamlets Borough Council applied for the order following complaints from local residents. The manager of a nearby nature reserve also accused camp members of damaging important trees by taking branches for firewood, according to a report in the East London Advertiser newspaper.
One of the protesters, who gave his name as Jim L., told msnbc.com the group had agreed to leave the site voluntarily on Sunday.
"This is one of Britain's poorest boroughs and we don't want to take council resources away from things like schools and hospitals so we have agreed to vacate the site without costing the council a penny," he said.
Mark Taylor, spokesman for the Mile End Residents' Association, said locals were "looking forward" to a "constructive and companionable relationship with Team USA."
He said: "We are very pleased that the council has secured a possession order to reclaim the park for its intended purpose. It's very sad that trees had to be pulled down for firewood and children's activities disrupted before the council acted."
A diverse community in East London will welcome the world to Britain for the 2012 Olympic Games. Meet residents and hear how they feel about having a huge, world stage in their backyard.
Council officials insisted that nobody from the United States Olympic Committee, Team USA or the London 2012 organizers had expressed concern about the Occupy protest on their doorstep.
A spokesman for the council told msnbc.com: "The USA track and field team will be training at Mile End Stadium during the Olympic Games. They have funded extensive improvements to the stadium, and will be providing a variety of community benefits including free coaching sessions and opportunities to watch the team training.
Olympic housing crunch: London landlords evict tenants to gouge tourists
"We are working with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) on security issues, understandably these issues are sensitive and therefore we are not able to comment in detail, but we do not anticipate that these will impact on the local community."
The council said it would go to the High Court to have the protesters moved if they did not leave the site, which is owned by a private trust on behalf of the council for use as a public park.
Brits revel in gloom ahead of London Olympics, but don't believe the gripe
Jim L. said the Occupy camp would move to a new, unidentified, site on Sunday. He added that there was little chance of protests targeting the Olympic Games.
"It would be impossible because of the security, in my own view," he said. "We're not against the Olympics as everybody likes a bit of sport, but I believe it is just one big advertising event for the benefit of corporate sponsors."
At London Olympics, dogs have sniffed out a key anti-terror role
He said the camp location had been chosen to highlight the issue of poverty in Tower Hamlets and not because of the proximity to Team USA's stadium.
Oda / Getty Images
From Wimbledon to Wembley Stadium to The Dome, a look at the venues for the 2012 London Olympic Games.
"There are huge problems here -- lack of affordable housing, unemployment and poverty," he said. "This is not so much a protest as a process, which is why we've come here – to listen to people and gather support. There isn't much point in trying to occupy private land in order to disrupt the institutions of capitalism."
American competitors at the Games will have several bases across London for different sports. Other sites include the University of East London campuses in Docklands and Stratford.
Langdon School, in the nearby Poplar area, will be home to the Canadian Olympic team.
More world news from msnbc.com and NBC News:
- Bad neighbors for Team USA? Occupy camp axed
- WWII fighter plane found preserved in Sahara Desert
- Egypt's first TV presidential debate thrills viewers
- 88,000-mile voyage? Plastic card found after 33 years
- Hell-raising holy men: Boozy monks caught gambling
- Sources: Spy who uncovered underwear bomb plot is a Brit
- Video: Murder and corruption scandal rocks China
- Move over, Al Roker! Prince Charles becomes weatherman
Follow us on Twitter: @msnbc_world


text:
Meyvelik Fruit Bowl
Kitchenware Design Focus: Meyvelik Fruit Bowl
A Good Kitchenware design example, the Meyvelik Fruit is a creative Bowl design. Meyvelik Fruit was designed in 2009, and here is a how it is described by its designer: Meyvelik is a very sleek fruit case, the design is hollow and light, there is silver or red veneer as decoration, this is a highly organic design.
Meyvelik Fruit Bowl Images:
End of the article, click here to go back to previous page, or alternatively go back to Design For You homepage.


text:
The Tampa, Florida Mission!
This was truly inspired!!!
Chris' really good friend . . . practically a brother,
is serving in the exact same mission and
Chris' Mission President is from Farmington!
I was expecting him to read the entire letter but he
just blurted out, "Tampa, Florida!"
I thought he was kidding and so did his friends mom
who just happened to be recording the whole event
to send to her son. (The almost like-a-brother serving in Tampa.)
We both looked at each other in total disbelief.
I kept asking if he was teasing,
but it was the real deal!
He leaves for the MTC April 20th,
with another friend that lives just down the
street . . . on the same day!
The spirit was so strong in our home and we
knew he was going where the Lord wanted him
to serve.
It was truly an AMAZING night!
And, now for the moment
YOU'VE all been waiting for . . .
Time to announce the Winner!
Kimber my friend
you totally guessed it!
Way to go!!!
Tina and Sawyer 13


text:
"Sampai" in Penang
Discussions on the Hokkien (Minnan) language.
Re: "Sampai" in Penang
aokh1979 wrote:I also hear sim-tsi all the time, including Korean. Taiwanese programmes may not always say the right thing, as things may change in Taiwan. Like 牽掛 - I dunno why it's pronounced tshian-kua...... Hm......
see below
Last edited by xng on Sat Feb 13, 2016 3:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: "Sampai" in Penang
Taiwanese actors/actresses don't speak pure Hokkien just like Malaysian Chinese don't speak pure Hokkien.niuc wrote: However, none of them, including Taiwanese dict, have 牽掛 as tshian1-kua3. This came as a "shock" for me, as I always assume that is the "standard" pronunciation. May be that is Taiwanese influence upon my variant, my mom also says that tshian1-kua3 sounds more "correct" than khan1-kua3. Personally I feel that the latter sounds like doing divination.
The correct pronunciation spoken in Taiwanese songs by Hokkien experts are 'Khien Kua'.
Chien Kua is Mandarin pronunciation.
牽 has several pronunciation depending on usage.
牽手 is Khan Chiu (colloquial pronunciation)
牽牛 is Khan Gu
牽掛 is Khien Kua (literary pronunciation)


text:
All but worthless in itself, used motor oil became valuable enough 20 years ago that a network developed to link auto repair shops with re-refiners who turned waste oil into fuel or an ingredient in asphalt.
Dec. 7All but worthless in itself, used motor oil became valuable enough 20 years ago that a network developed to link auto repair shops with re-refiners who turned waste oil into fuel or an ingredient in asphalt.
The shops' next most plentiful waste fluid antifreeze was still only that. What's more, the millions of gallons of antifreeze drained from car radiators and industrial cooling systems are considered hazardous waste and can't legally be poured into sewers or the environment.
Tim Wilkinson has taken on that dilemma as a personal challenge. A longtime Durham car repair shop owner and auto mechanics teacher at Northern High School, he also is a lifelong tinkerer.
The result is Wilkinson's growing business of collecting used antifreeze and purifying it with a maze of tanks and tubing he invented and built in a warehouse in eastern Durham.
In one end goes greenish, scummy gunk. Out the other comes a crystal-clear liquid.
Wilkinson's Clean Green Inc. processes between 5,000 and 7,000 gallons of antifreeze a week at its plant at 211 S. Hoover Road in eastern Durham.
"It's really equal to new," he said of the product, which the company mixes with dye and additives to make any of the several types of automotive antifreeze on the market. Clean Green completes the recycling loop, selling back to garages the purified antifreeze.
Wilkinson taught himself the chemical processes necessary to purify antifreeze, then designed, patented and built his recycling system. His business employs 10 people, including his wife, two sons and two daughters.
Although Wilkinson has a business degree, "the only thing I wanted to do was invent stuff," he said. As a mechanic, he opened a small garage off Carver Street, then a larger one on North Roxboro Road, while also teaching high school auto shop.
Until recently, oil recyclers frequently accepted shops' used antifreeze just to get it off the mechanics' hands. It usually was mixed with the oil and later drained off and dumped or boiled off during the oil's reprocessing.
"There's been very few options," Wilkinson said.
About 10 years ago, a company sold truck-mounted machines to recycle antifreeze at garages on-site as a mobile service. But these machines only filtered the antifreeze, and they weren't able to handle the different types that were emerging. Wilkinson said. Besides traditional green fluid, manufacturers now produce red, purple, yellow and clear antifreeze, all with slightly different formulations.
Wilkinson learned that more complete recycling could be done by reverse osmosis, using a membrane that under a given pressure would allow molecules the size of ethylene glycol, the main ingredient of most automotive antifreeze, and water to pass through.
He researched osmosis membranes until he found one that would work.
"There was no benchmark for this," he said. "Even the membrane guys were guessing."
He incorporated Clean Green in 1997. Four years ago, the company moved into the former Public Service Gas Co. offices and warehouse on South Hoover Road.
Wilkinson's wife, Kathie, helps run the business, as does their son Andrew, who manages sales and scheduling. Their daughters, Melissa Long and Jennifer Rogers, split a position, handling billing and other accounting. And their younger son, Aaron, who attends Northern High, helps out after school.
The company now has 1,500 accounts. Clean Green's collection clients include municipal landfills and collection centers in North Carolina. And besides automotive antifreeze, Clean Green processes industrial coolant from such sources as Progress Energy's natural gas and coal-fired electric generators.
The company has grown about 20 percent each year, and this year, it will gross close to $800,000. Wilkinson hopes to gross more than $1 million next year, expanding into waste oil collection. He also plans to expand into the still-newer industry of recycling used oil filters and hopes to begin selling recycled antifreeze by the gallon to the public.
Because the antifreeze recycling industry is still young and fragmented into family-owned businesses like Wilkinson's, it's hard to know its extent nationally, said Jim Scott, regional branch manager for US Filter Recovery Services, which operates a fractional distillation plant for recycled antifreeze near Richmond, Va. Clean Green sells its residual waste antifreeze to US Filter and buys some supplies from it.
Scott said he knows of only three other facilities using Clean Green's technique between South Carolina and New Jersey and only a handful of distillers nationally.
"We are only limited by our capacity," Wilkinson said.
The company operates five trucks, each with separate tanks for collecting waste and delivering recycled antifreeze, which is available in all the major colors and formulations.
The company's clients can save money over the cost of virgin antifreeze. Mixed half and half with water the recommended concentration for cars and trucks virgin antifreeze sells for about $7 a gallon. Clean Green recycled antifreeze sells for less than half that price, Wilkinson said.
Since virgin ethylene glycol is made from natural gas, its price tracks closely with crude oil, Scott said "I've watched it, especially in the last six months, really skyrocket," he said.
Wilkinson agreed, saying he's noticed the price of off-the-shelf antifreeze double in the past year.
But recycled antifreeze still faces hurdles to consumer acceptance, Scott said, even though it is subject to the same standards as virgin product. Even virgin antifreeze, moreover, can contain as much as 15 percent recycled ethylene glycol.
Higher oil prices also are raising the profitability of oil filter recycling, he said.
So far, most governments haven't banned used oil filters from landfills, even though each filter typically contains three or four ounces of oil, Wilkinson said. A 55-gallon drum full of filters yields between five and eight gallons of waste oil, which is worth about $1 a gallon. The filter's canister then can be sold as scrap metal.
Clean Green collects oil filters, draining most of the oil and selling it, then selling the filters to a company in Pennsylvania that extracts the remaining oil and shreds the metal for scrap.
But within six months, Clean Green hopes to be operating its own shredder, Wilkinson said.
"This has been a lot of fun for me," he said. "I've been blessed to have this opportunity to use some of my God-given talent to try to make the world a little better."
To see more of The Herald-Sun, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.herald-sun.com.© 2004, The Herald-Sun, Durham, N.C. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.


text:
IE December Out-of-Band release
Internet Explorer is releasing an out-of-band update available via Windows Update. Alternatively, you can receive this and all other Microsoft updates via the new Microsoft Update. I encourage you to upgrade to Microsoft Update if you haven't already to ensure that you receive the latest updates for all Microsoft products.
This update addresses one remote code execution vulnerability. The security update addresses the vulnerability by modifying the way Internet Explorer validates data binding parameters and handles the error resulting in the exploitable condition. For detailed information on the contents of this update, please see the following documentation:
This security update is rated Critical for all released versions of Internet Explorer.
I encourage everybody to download this security update and other non-IE security updates via Windows Update or Microsoft Update. Windows users are also strongly encouraged to configure their systems for automatic updates to keep their systems current with the latest updates from Microsoft.
Terry McCoy
Program Manager
Internet Explorer Security


text:
Rule #1 - Be Patient - Rule #2 - Don't ask when, if you don't contribute - Rule #3 - You have coding skills - LinuxMCE's small brother is available: http://www.agocontrol.com
That post was long before I ever started digging into the codebase.The issue is that people who use LIRC are able to recieve, but not transmit. We currently store IR codes in PRONTO format in the database, and we need the pluto patches to lirc re-applied to the upstream LIRC so that we can re-enable transmit. Somebody needs to take charge of this and do it, the relevant code and patches are in our svn in the external/ and ubuntu/ directories as lirc-pluto.-Thom


text:
Call for Discounted Bulk Pricing - Orders over 1,000 units per product code.
Armbrust Paper Tubes, Inc.
6255 S. Harlem Ave
Chicago, IL 60638
Click for Custom Packaging
Quick & Easy, Get a Quote.
If you don't see it, we can make it for you. Please click here and fill in the estimate information so we may work up a custom quotation.
Custom Orders
If you don't see what you are looking for, we can make it! Click for information about custom items.
6255 S Harlem Ave, Chicago, IL 60638


text:
- Description
DetailsKAIV presents different types of Designer Combs in various sizes. It comes with fine teeth that lets you comb your hair without any pain or struggle. It is ideal for any length of hair and massage your scalp. These combs are simple yet effective way to comb your hair everyday.
- Specification
SKU : GRC1004 Color :
Size :
- Reviews


text:
Green Your Business, Lifecycle of a Green Product, Energy-Efficient Dwellings, + James Lovelock (WIR)
- 50 Ways to Green Your Business
- 7 Steps in the Lifecycle of a Green Product
- Kansas Coal-fired Power Plant rejected over carbon dioxide.
- Cement is crucial for growth in booming economies but an enemy of green.
- UA architecture students set out to prove that energy-efficient dwellings need not be expensive.
- Scientist James Lovelock says that global warming is irreversible.


text:
Tim 'Rosso' Ross is one of the Australian entertainment industry's true multi-talented performers. He's had unprecedented success in stand-up comedy, radio, acting, writing, presenting, music and more recently as a social commentator. Tim has also carved a niche as a TV reporter/presenter including The Today Show (Nine Network), Wide Open Road and Agony Uncles (ABC), Uncharted and Facing the Hangover (MTV), Weekend Sunrise, (Seven Network) and many more. An accomplished writer Tim contributes to Men's Style Australia, Rolling Stone and The (Sydney) Magazine and in 2010, released his bestselling book Mum Had a Kingswood. A design enthusiast, Tim is one half of the comedy-variety show Man About The House, and most recently hosted the architecture series Streets Of Your Town on ABC TV. He wrote and directed RØDE's Call-To-Action and Entry films for My RØDE Reel.
Matilda Brown is an actress, writer and director who made her television debut at age nine. Her latest project, TV series Let's Talk About, has recently launched its second season exclusive to Foxtel and co-stars her father Bryan Brown. On Let's Talk About, Matilda writes, directs and stars in this critically acclaimed series. Matilda's television credits include Underbelly: The Golden Mile, Rake, Offspring and Lessons from The Grave, which she also directed. She has both acted in and directed an impressive collection of short films including How God Works, Cocks, and Am I OK. In 2016 she directed and starred in the Network Ten online series The Caravan and was seen in the feature film The Life and Death of Otto Bloom. Matilda co-stars in My RØDE Reels' in-house productions with Tim Ross.
Philip pioneered DSLR filmmaking and has been instrumental in the democratisation of cinematography and film over the past decade. His 25 year career has seen him work as both director and cinematographer for a wide range of clients and networks, including Lucasfilm and, most recently, CNN on its new series "The Wonder List". His blog and online platforms are an invaluable resource for filmmakers of all levels.
Ric Viers is a sound designer and author based in Detroit, Michigan. Ric is the world's largest producer of professional sound effects libraries with more than 666 products produced to date. He is the owner of SoundEffects.Com, author of "The Sound Effects Bible" and "The Location Sound Bible", and the founder of Blastwave FX – one of the world's leading sound effects publishers. His location sound credits include hundreds of productions for nearly every major television network, Universal Studios, Dateline, Good Morning America, Disney, and many others. Known as the "Rock and Roll Professor of Sound", Viers was inducted into the Full Sail University Hall Of Fame in 2014 and has hosted several video series like "RØDE University".
Genevieve has produced, directed, shot and edited over 40 short films and music videos. Her passion now is feature length documentaries and she is as active in the distribution of her work as she is in creating it. Genevieve's films have screened internationally in over 40 countries and have picked up over 25 awards to date. Genevieve was named as one of Australia's 'Top Film and TV of directors of 2012′ in the Encore and Mumbrella Annual. Melbourne Magazine also named her one of "Melbourne's most influential, inspirational, provocative and creative people for 2011." I AM ELEVEN, her first feature documentary, has won awards in Australia, USA, Spain, Brazil and France. The film became the highest grossing Australian documentary to be released in the US – playing extended seasons and reaching over 100 cities.


text:
AV Home Theater >
Intercom > Channel Vision ST-2100 CAT5 Intercom Station Expander
Channel Vision's ST-2100 is attached to the Channel Vision ST-2000 Home Intercom Station to add call buttons for 6 home intercom stations. The Home Intercom Station enables homeowners to communicate directly between rooms, the front door or the entire house through the Home Intercom Stations located in each room.
ST-2100 Instruction Manual
Founded in 1993 and ranked among the top companies in the custom electronics industry, Channel Vision Technology is a leading manufacturer of innovative technology products in Home Automation, Structured Wiring Systems, Wireless Audio, Whole House Intercom Systems, Security Cameras and DVR's in both residential and commercial applications.
Its broad-range of electronic solutions are designed to provide lifestyle enhancements for residents, while equipping homes and business for greater safety, convenience and entertainment.
Bulk CCTV Store
41W195 Railroad Street, Unit A
Pingree Grove, IL 60140


text:
Topic: What Would Be Boba Fett's Favorite Music?
If Boba Fett Were Here What Would Be His Favorite Music? What Band?
Message Boards - Boba Fett Fan Club → General → What Would Be Boba Fett's Favorite Music?
If Boba Fett Were Here What Would Be His Favorite Music? What Band?
Me And My Friends Think He Is One Of Those Punk People. Some Of My Friedns Think He Would Like Rob Zombie!
Try to use the edit button. Also, this should be moved to the General section.
With his tortured life, he would probably like shock rock, or death metal. I think that he might listen to the man who literally created shock rock, Alice Cooper.
BobaFett+GhostRider=ME!, did you know that Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie created a song together, titled "Hands of Death (Burn, Baby, Burn)?" Zombie has stated that he is a fan of Cooper.
Boba Fett would probably listen to Rammstien cuz he's foriegn to earth and he seems like the kind of guy who would listen to heavy metal
Fett would definitely be a metal person. I'm thinking Staind along with the others mentioned.
I dont know Fett seems like a Classical kind of guy
Boba Fett would probably listen to Rammstien cuz he's foriegn to earth and he seems like the kind of guy who would listen to heavy metal
Yeh good idea i thought maybe Iron Maiden.
I think one song from Drowning Pool fits quite well "Bodies" others would be Mein Teil from Rammstein, Everything Ends, My Plague, and Duality From Slipknot, and H-K (Hunter-Killer) from Fear Factory
I'm your judge\ and your jury\ you don't get\ An attorney\ With my verdict\ Of guilty\ An Execution in fury.
As to specific songs, probably Brutal Planet, Pick up the Bones, Wicked Young Man, Cold Machines, the Triggerman, and Desperado, all by Alice Cooper. The last two fit Fett perfectly:
From Triggerman: "I am the Triggerman/ I am the underhand/ I'll keep you on your knees/ I am the brain police/ I am the Triggerman/ I am the underhand/ I'm twice as smart/ And certainly twice as sick"
From Desperado: "You're a target just by living/ Twenty dollars will make you die/.../ My shots are clean/ My final/ my shots are deadly/ And when it's done/ You're as stiff as my smoking barre/ You're as dead as a desert night/ You're a notch, and I'm a legend/ You're at peace, and I must hide"
The Triggerman:
Yeah, definate metal & maybe some classic rock.
Err, I dunno. I can't even bare to imagine Boba Fett head banging to heavy metal. I'm sorry, but if you said rock or metal, I don't think you understand Boba very well... no offense. I really don't think it's his taste. In fact, I really don't think he would listen to a lot of music... Although, is Tales of the Bounty Hunters, didn't he listen to some music that the Devoronian (sp?) "Butcher of Montellian Something-or-other?" (sorry, can't find my copy of the book now ) was hiding because the Empire wanted all media destroyed? And he found one song that he liked, because it was very -mellow- and exotic... maybe he'd be fond of some jazz??
Yeah, definate metal & maybe some classic rock.
That's what I was thinking. Definitly classic rock.
More like Led Zeppelin or Aerosmith, or the one from Paul McCartney Live and Let Die?
If memory serves me, he listened to the tapes, but he did not say that he liked them. In the heat of battle, I do think that Boba would like heavy metal. I do not think that he would "head bang," but he saw his dad decapitated. That sounds like a reason to like darker music to me.
Korn is a pretty dark band and so is Slipknot. How could I forget the ones who started the dark music revolution Black Sabbath, they scared the hell out of the tree hugging hippies.
Fine, ignore my post... but I'm telling ya, he's not into rock. Boba has a hectic life, and if he was going to listen to something, I think he would enjoy something calming after a day of hard core, adrenaline-pumping, bounty hunting.
You all forget that Boba is a very complex individual. You all assume that he likes Rock music because he's a "badass, non-conformist, and an anti-socialist." I think you guys are kind of stereo-typing... because he can be ruthless, on the edge, etc., you all associate screaming vocals and electric guitar to his music tastes... I'm sorry, but I think you're looking at his character the wrong way. I don't think Boba could stand 10 seconds of any heavy metal band.
Now I can't get this horrible imagine of Boba head banging out of my head. >_<
Just my humble opinion though
Edit: Also, I don't think he'd enjoy lyrics too much. I think he would like something simple, mesmerizing, and just altogether relaxing
http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/jazzdow … hp?id=1234
listen to this jazz musician, I think this what Boba would like. It would help him reminisce...
I aayed that Boba might enjoy (though he woulnd have no way to listen to it) metal during the heat of battle. Also, I doubt that Boba would want to reminice. Having your only familly member's and role model's head chopped off...hmm? Great memory .
More like Led Zeppelin or Aerosmith, or the one from Paul McCartney Live and Let Die?
Led Zeppelin and Aerosmith.
I aayed that Boba might enjoy (though he woulnd have no way to listen to it) metal during the heat of battle. Also, I doubt that Boba would want to reminice. Having your only familly member's and role model's head chopped off...hmm? Great memory .
Ugh, I never said about Jango's decapitation. He has loads more memories with his father besides his death, I'm sure! And it could be along the lines of past hunts too.
Sorry, I'm just very opposed to the fact of him listening to rock bands, I just don't see it happening. Nothing against any of you, but none of you have really stated as to WHY he would like rock music, you have all just listed bands that YOU enjoy, NOT Boba...
In the heat of battle, Boba would become filled with adrenilen. He may be able to control himself, but I am sure that during that time he would become violent and darker, though he would not show it. During that time, he would most likely enjoy metal.
I sid Rammstein cuz he's foreign to Earth and German is one of those cool languages that rolls off the tongue and heavy metal cuz he has a pretty hectic life style and besides why would want to cool down he's already cool and collected
Thank you, glad you attempted that, but are you saying all people who listen to rock are generally angry and violent? I think that's stereotyping.
I think what we need is another female opinion on the topic... *waits*
I said Alice Cooper because he is the original not copying someone (not to say that Rammstein, and Rob Zombie, etc. are), he is a moral Christian, and his concerts and some of his albums are morality plays (though his violent theatrics and songs are impossible to top), he is about as old as Fett (fifty-eight and still rocking!), and no longer drinks at all, like Fett.
I'm not angry and violent, I just like rock. If he really wanted to bear his soul, in my humble opinion, he might listen to country. Please don't throw anything at me...
I'm not saying that is the only reason one would listen to rock.
Message Boards - Boba Fett Fan Club → General → What Would Be Boba Fett's Favorite Music?
Generated in 0.087 seconds (92% PHP - 8% DB) with 8 queries
11,568 card-carrying members
94,288 forum posts
3,954 forum topics
825 customized avatars
417,364 profile views *
381 profile follows ** Newer community features circa 2019–Present


text:
Splash Car Wash reports security breach
Splash Car Wash officials said Wednesday they learned in mid-May of a possible data security breach that resulted in the compromise of a portion of patrons' credit card information.
"Once we learned of the compromise, our team immediately communicated with banking institutions and federal investigators, in addition to conducting our own comprehensive investigation," Mark Curtis, founder and CEO of the Greenwich-based company said in a statement on Wednesday. "Ultimately, we discovered there was a confirmed external breach, and we quickly eliminated the malware causing the compromise. The protection and privacy of confidential patron information is a matter we take with extreme seriousness."
The breach occurred from Feb. 28 to May 16 and has affected about 1,400 of Splash Car Wash's nearly 400,000 patrons thus far, at six Splash Car Wash locations in Fairfield, Cos Cob, Shelton, Greenwich, Bridgeport and West Haven.
"We strongly urge all Splash patrons to check your credit card accounts to ensure there has been no additional fraudulent activity," Curtis said. "If fraudulent activity is discovered, please contact your credit card company immediately."
Splash Car Wash, founded 33 years ago, said immediately following notice of the breach it engaged a third-party forensic investigator and sought guidance from banking institutions to quickly remediate the source of the breach. Credit card systems at all 16 Splash Car Wash locations have been replaced by credit card readers verified as safe and provided by banking institutions.
"Splash Car Wash, in addition to others within our industry, is working in cooperation with the U.S. Secret Service and local law enforcement as part of a larger ongoing federal investigation," Curtis said. "Due to the sensitivity of the investigation, we do not know and are unable to provide any further information regarding the criminal act, but will maintain open communication as information becomes available."
For customers who have unlimited plans with Splash, their data was not affected by the breach, as all unlimited data is encrypted, according to the company.
"After thorough investigation and remediation of the source of the breach, we are confident in the current and ongoing safety and security of your confidential information," Curtis said. "We will continue to monitor and protect our systems, while cooperating with federal investigators to determine the criminal(s) who installed malware to gain unauthorized outside access to credit card information."
Curtis encourages concerned customers to call 1-800-927-4489.


text:
Export 2 results:Author Title Type [ Year]
Filters: Author is Srirupa Ganguly [Clear All Filters]
The CO2 Abatement Potential of California's Mid-Sized Commercial Buildings. Berkeley: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 2010. LBNL-3024E..
"The CO2 Reduction Potential of Combined Heat and Power in California's Commercial Buildings." Clean Tech Law & Business Journal (2010) 16. LBNL-2850E..


text:
'Sister Wives' -- Backlash in Polygamy Community
Kody Brown, his three wives, fiancée and 13 kids have created a house divided in his fundamentalist Mormon church.
We're told before Brown decided to do "Sister Wives," he went to his Utah church for its blessing, but the main man -- called the "community leader" -- would not give Kody the thumbs up, because the law squarely outlaws bigamy and the church didn't want the heat. The community leader told Kody to make the decision himself ... and Kody chose to be a TV star.
As for members of the church, we're told they're all down with polygamy but split on one of its families flaunting their lifestyle on TV. Some church members feel it's too risky -- the old waving-the-red-flag-in front-of-the-bull thing.
But despite the split, Kody and crew are still welcome at their house of worship.
Waiting for your permission to load the comments.


text:
Official Rules for Twitter Giveaways
Sorry to hit you with the legalese, but you're too big a crowd and we're under orders.
Official Rules for Twitter Giveaways:
Employees, officers,
directors, representatives and agents of any MLB entity and each of
their respective parents, subsidiaries & affiliated companies and
their immediate families and those living in their same household,
whether or not related, are not eligible for any @MLB giveaway. @MLB
will determine giveaway recipients in its sole and absolute discretion.
If you have received an @MLB giveaway in the last 30 days, you're not
eligible. If you live more than 100 miles from the ballpark where a
game for which tickets are being given away will be played, you are not
eligible for that ticket giveaway. If a giveaway recipient is
determined to be ineligible, @MLB may, in its sole and absolute
discretion, not give away the goods or ticket(s) or may give the goods
or ticket(s) to the next eligible follower. You will be required to
privately (through Twitter direct message or email) provide your name
and address if you are selected as a giveaway recipient. @MLB will not
keep or store your information or use it for any purpose other than
sending your giveaway item(s) or providing you information on receiving
the item(s). Giveaways are subject to all applicable federal, state and
local laws, rules or regulations.
Visit us @MLB
2 Comments
Isn't King Hernandez the 4th youngest pitcher to reach 1,000 strikeouts…trick question perhaps? I believe Bob Feller, Dwight Gooden, and Bert Blyleven were all younger. Let me know, thanks!
Tried leaving a comment, but it's not showing up. Sorry if this appears twice. I think King Hernandez is the 4th pitcher to reach 1,000 K. I believe Bob Feller, Dwight Gooden, and Bert Blyleven were younger. Was this a trick question?


text:
Win Two VIP Tickets to Cochon 555 on February 10th
Cochon 555, the traveling celebration of heritage pork, hits New York on February 10th, and with a lineup of chefs Missy Robbins, Shana Pacifico, Alex Guarnashelli, Leah Cohen, and Elizabeth Falkner, tickets are moving fast. But we're giving away two VIP spots to the event right here.
Come the 10th, those five chefs will compete to cook up a nose to tail heritage pig meal for 400 guests and 20 judges, and should you go, you get to help decide the winner. Right before the award ceremony, an additional pit-smoked heritage pig will be served up for all guests. For VIP ticket holders, the event also includes a brand new cocktail competition, fresh oysters and tartar, and plenty more ways for you to get your food and drink on.
The Cochon tour—which also hits San Franciso, Boston, Chicago, and six other cities—began five years ago as a way to educate eaters about the value of heritage breed pigs. Some tickets are still available: $125 for general admission, $200 for VIP, all-inclusive pricing.
To enter our giveaway, tell us about your favorite pork dish in New York in the comments below. We'll select a winner at random on Wednesday, February 6th, at 5 p.m. The standard Serious Eats contest rules apply.
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


text:
Storm Lake, Ia. – The man whose work is credited as the inspiration behind "Reagonomics' today officially endorsed Newt Gingrich for president.
Art Laffer is an economist who is credited with the so-called "Laffer curve," which highlights the relationship between government revenue and possible rates of taxation. He is now the chairman of Laffer Associates and the Laffer Center for Supply-Side Economics.
"My view of the candidates today: Newt Gingrich is far and away the best person to bring this country back into prosperity. Period," Laffer told a crowd of about 100 people at King's Pointe Waterpark Resort in Storm Lake.
Gingrich has proposed a tax plan that includes a 15 percent optional flat tax and a reduction to corporate income tax.
NOTE: The Des Moines Register last month reviewed the differences in President Obama's tax policy with those proposed by Republicans, including Gingrich's flat tax plan.
GOP tax plans differ, but philosophy same
Each Republican presidential candidate wants to restructure the federal tax system, but reviews of their plans, including one by a conservative-leaning group, generally agree on one point: Read the fine print.
A few of the plans are incomplete, and groups like the Tax Institute at H&R Block have skipped reviewing some of them until the candidates make more details public.
Other plans, most notably Herman Cain's 9-9-9 plan, are quick and easy for voters to grasp, but Cain's plan would cost most American families an additional $2,375 to $5,038 a year in taxes, while saving the wealthiest households up to $185,000, according to the Tax Institute's review.
"That surprises me," said farmer and retired factory maintenance worker John Martin, 65, of Imogene, whose cursory review of the plan led him to believe he would pay less.
Nonetheless, even if that statistic of a probable tax increase applies to Martin, he said he continues to support the former Godfather's Pizza CEO.
"I like Herman Cain," Martin said. "He's a pretty straight shooter, and he's not a politician. He's a businessman."
The proposals from GOP candidates range from eliminating corporate income taxes, estate taxes and taxes on inheritances to completely scrapping the current system and going with Cain's plan for a flat 9 percent tax on individuals and businesses in addition to a new 9 percent national sales tax.
Read the reviews:
• The Tax Institute at H&R Block
• Americans for Tax Reform
• Tax Policy Center
Generally speaking, lower-income families would pay more in taxes under plans proposed by the Republican candidates, the Tax Institute found, and the highest-income Americans would pay less. Another review, from the Tax Policy Center, a group based in Washington, D.C., that bills itself as a nonpartisan economic research institute, made a similar conclusion about Cain's plan.
"Whether people understand this or not … the Republican candidates have, through their rhetoric, been able to convince generally lower-income people that these plans that do by and large benefit the wealthy are good for them," said John Solow, an economics professor at the University of Iowa.
Tax plans reflect party differences
The tax plans put forth by the GOP presidential candidates and incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama reflect the two parties' differing philosophies toward taxation.
The Republican candidates uniformly call for lower taxes and flatter, if not flat, rates. The GOP candidates equate lower taxation with greater individual liberty and with more incentive for businesses to create jobs. To balance the budget, they favor dramatic cuts in spending.
Obama has proposed narrower, more targeted tax cuts in an effort to stimulate job creation, such as eliminating payroll taxes for firms that add new workers or increase the wages of their current workers.
Democrats, like Republicans, generally say they want taxes to be as low as possible. To address the nation's long-term deficits, Obama wants to apply brakes to spending increases. But he also thinks the wealthiest Americans should be asked to pay more in taxes.
Obama in September called for observance of the so-called Buffett Rule, named after billionaire investor Warren Buffett of Omaha, who has said it's not right that he pays a lower effective tax rate than his secretary does.
The rule, as described by the Office of Management and Budget: "People making more than $1 million a year should not pay a smaller share of their income in taxes than middle-class families pay."
Obama pitched the Buffett Rule as part of overall reforms to increase the progressivity of the tax code: As incomes rise, so would tax rates.
Conservative group favors flat tax
In contrast, conservative-leaning groups such as Americans for Tax Reform, which as a principle oppose all tax increases, say a flat tax is the right track to fiscal reform.
Flat taxes make it more difficult for politicians to pick and choose tax winners, the organization says.
The group, based in Washington, D.C., sponsors the annual "Cost of Government Day" and has developed an online guide that compares the tax plans of each presidential candidate.
Ryan Ellis, the group's tax policy director, said he personally ranks Newt Gingrich's and Rick Perry's tax plans near the top, and Cain's 9-9-9 plan near the bottom.
Ellis associates Cain's proposal to introduce a new 9 percent national sales tax with the European value-added tax, which he said has spun out of control in recent years as politicians have exempted some items and raised the overall rate on others. That has created massive inequities, he said.
Both Gingrich and Perry have proposed an optional flat tax, which would let people choose between paying a flat rate or using the current system, which allows for deductions on taxes of expenses such as mortgage interest. Gingrich's flat tax would be 15 percent, and Perry's 20 percent.
Offering a choice might appear attractive at first blush, but Kathy Pickering, executive director of the Tax Institute, warned that such proposals would create additional headaches for taxpayers because they would essentially have to calculate their taxes two ways to see which would be most advantageous.
That runs counter to the political rhetoric of both parties that advocates for a more straightforward approach.
Views differ over impact on revenue
Each plan also would affect the money available for government spending.
The Tax Policy Center's review of Perry's proposal, allowing the option of a 20 percent flat rate, found the change would cost $995 billion a year in lost federal tax revenue.
Perry would address that shortfall in part by proposing to eliminate the federal energy, education and commerce departments, but their elimination would save less than $120 billion.
Those departments perform such duties as inspecting nuclear weapons and monitoring storage of nuclear waste, ensuring students have equal access to education and working to help the U.S. remain innovative and competitive in the global marketplace.
Solow, the U of I economics professor, cautioned that it's difficult to calculate how tax changes could affect economic behaviors.
Lower rates would decrease tax revenue available for government spending. However, several candidates, including Michele Bachmann, Jon Huntsman and Cain, claim their plans would be revenue neutral in the long run because the tax cuts would spur economic activity, which would in turn increase tax collections.
Recent history calls those claims into question, however. FactCheck.org, a nonpartisan project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, notes that federal revenues declined for three straight years after then-President George W. Bush signed his first tax cut in 2001.
Ellis, of Americans for Tax Reform, believes that in the end the GOP candidates' plans, except for Cain's, would end up collecting about the same amount of revenue.
The real difference is proposed redistribution of who pays what, he said.
"People can try to play with the numbers any way they want, but what you'll find is that any of these systems with the exception of 9-9-9, which is a fundamentally different structure, will yield about the same amount of tax revenue," Ellis said. "That's Obama. That's Romney. That's everybody."
Advice to voters: Look at your return
Even tax experts who have reviewed the plans urged caution regarding the accuracy of predicting individual or national impacts at this point. Pickering, head of the Tax Institute, said several of the candidates have not yet specified how they would handle some tax deductions and credits.
"Everything needs to be taken with an eye toward this is still pretty early on each candidate's articulation of their tax platform," Pickering said. "It might sound good in a media clip, but it's very hard to take that to your specific situation and really understand how it's going to impact."
Ellis' final advice: Don't take campaign rhetoric as gospel.
"Get your hands dirty and read the plans," Ellis advised voters. "Then take out your tax return and see what system you would like to live under."
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.


text:
Investigation Officer Vacancy | CID Job in Nepal National Investigation Bureau, Nepal has published a vacancy announcement for 22 number of Investigation Officer, and 33 number of Assistant Investigation Officer. Only Nepalese citizens can apply for the post. Interested can find application form and curriculum from: http://www.moha.gov.np/news/fullnews/2/672. See the full …Read More »
Home / Tag Archives: Vacancy for Assistant Investigation Officer in National Investigation Bureau


text:
Club and Bar Operators Flex their Economic Muscle and Collaborate with the Community
When was the last time you heard a positive media mention about a city's nightlife district? Most function well but are ignored until something bad happens, and then the media takes an "if it bleeds, it leads" approach that sensationalizes violence and crime. This paints everyone who runs a business in the nightlife district as part of the problem, though nearly every venue is safe and well run.
Nightlife has a public relations problem. As Jim Peters of the Responsible Hospitality Institute (RHI) in Santa Cruz, Calif., explains, "A lot of people look at nightlife in a negative way because they construe it as a bunch of young people going out to create havoc."
But nightlife is a significant contributor to a city's economy and culture. In metros such as San Francisco, Seattle and New York, club operators are leveraging their collective economic power to forge new collaborations involving regulators, nightclubs and neighbors. The result? They're addressing public concerns while emphasizing the value of the nightlife economy.
The Other Nine to Five
Here's a curious paradox: a hip urban neighborhood draws new residents for its walkability, fun restaurants and bustling nightlife, but then those same residents sour on nighttime noise and occasional violence. They grow irate and complain to the authorities. Club owners find themselves visited by the police and Alcoholic Beverage Control.
Ariel Palitz, the owner of Sutra in New York City, casts a sympathetic eye toward those neighbors. "Some people say, 'You knew what you were signing up for.' But you can't always use that justification. People have the right to silence and a quality of life."
Peters and RHI are leading the effort to change the image of nightlife as nothing but trouble. For three decades, Peters has worked with entertainment districts to help manage what he calls their "nighttime" economies. RHI supports 30 cities in the U.S. and Canada.
Peters begins with a demographic lesson: It's important to understand neighbors and what they value most. He lays out four key demographic groups that cities should consider when creating hospitality zones:
Singles. Young unattached adults, often in their 20s, who go out to meet people. They want venues in which they can dance and people watch, and they mask their insecurities through alcohol. Definitely an after-10-p.m. crowd.
Mingles. People in their 30s or 40s who like music that is good but not too loud; they are there to socialize. Lounges often appeal to members of this group, who tend to have more disposable income.
Families. Their lives are oriented around raising children. If they go out it will be in the early evening, and they probably won't stay long; babysitters are expensive.
Jingles (from the jingle of money in their pockets). Also known as empty nesters, these are older adults who've downsized by moving into the city. They have zero tolerance for late-night street or club noise: they're home before 10 p.m.
The problem is that the economic contribution of nightlife hasn't been well stated, other than in the New York Nightlife Association's report "The $9 Billion Economic Impact of the Nightlife Industry on New York City," (see "The City That Never Sleeps"). Thus, its positive economic effect is easy to overlook — especially by people who don't participate in nightlife. Peters stresses that cities should rebrand entertainment districts, which the public often considers solely nightclubs and bars, into hospitality zones that emphasize social activity. "The more you can shift the activity away from drinking establishments to social establishments, you can neutralize some of the resistance to more dining and entertainment venues," he says.
When working with a city, RHI leads a late-night tour for policymakers to see what happens at closing time, and then evaluates how well they're doing. "The role of the community is to make these districts safe for people of different generations," Peters explains. "These can be vibrant areas where they can enjoy themselves."
Here's a look at how nightlife, government and community groups are coming to the table in three cities.
San Francisco Listens
San Francisco is the only U.S. city that has an Entertainment Commission, created in 2003. Its charter is to regulate nightlife without impinging on neighbors, thus creating a healthy balance between the two. The city is unique: It is geographically small (only 49 square miles) but densely populated. There is no entertainment district in which to concentrate nightclubs. In fact, every part of the city has a large residential component.
"Our nightlife economy is really important to San Francisco," says Jocelyn Kane, the commission's deputy director. The city is a destination — people drive in from around the Bay Area to party, which is good for the city's economy, she explains.
But with so many people in such a small area, there is frequent intergenerational conflict in neighborhoods with buzzing nightlife, like the Mission District, Kane says. "Our biggest issues are noise and noise," she quips. With innovations in technology, many clubs employ extensive soundproofing to keep music contained within four walls, but noise is still a problem when patrons go outside to smoke or when partiers sometimes challenge the authorities.
People complain to the commission every day, Kane says, and so she must call each reported venue. "I say, 'Can we figure out what's changed and how we can fix it?'" The commission brings neighbors and nightclub operators together directly to mediate, leaving out the police and ABC. "It's not about punishing people — it's about fixing the problem. We run on the principle of being a good neighbor.
"Good mediation pisses everyone off because they don't completely get their way," Kane concludes. And maybe that's good, because in a real community, everyone has to compromise in order to live together.
The City That Never Sleeps
Long known as the city that defines American nightlife, New York has experienced an increase in residential development that may undermine that claim to fame. "We're a few steps behind in the preservation of our own nighttime culture. We have to act really fast to turn the tide and make some common sense out of it," says Rob Bookman, the counsel to the New York Nightlife Association, of rising tensions between city residents and nightlife operators. "It's getting too personal between people."
Six years ago, NYNA conducted an economic impact study that measured New York nightlife's economic impact at more than $9 billion with 65 million admissions per year — more than Broadway, museums and sporting events combined. "We dwarf that, but as usual, nightlife is ignored," Bookman complains. "The best thing we can show is that we're good business operators, not fly by night."
The organization has worked to improve relations with local government. NYNA is a savvy lobbyist, reminding politicians of the jobs and economic opportunities nightlife creates. It ensures city hall doesn't just rubberstamp community boards, and it collaboratively produces a Best Practices guide with the city's police department.
NYNA also is activating the owners and employees of nightlife venues through the New York Nightlife Preservation Community, which formed last summer. The group communicates to "Preservationists" about pro- and anti-nightlife politicians, candidates and legislation, prompting those involved in the industry to get involved in the process.
Sutra's Palitz is a member of the East Village community board. She sits on the front line between nightlife and neighborhood as a mediator. "Half of the audience members are bar owners, and the other half hate them," Palitz jokes. "I have to mediate with them all."
Preserving nightlife is something dear to Palitz, but striking a balance between the two opposing groups is difficult.
"It's a delicate situation to preserve nightlife and a nighttime economy. People are so aggressive and naïve in their positions. 'No more nightclubs! Too many nightclubs! Shut them down!' Or, 'This is New York — if you can't take it, get out!'"
Palitz listens to specific community concerns, and after all is said and done, they reach a solution nine times out of 10, she says. "People still have to live with each other. We want to reach to some mediated conclusion," Palitz says. "The tensions are very, very high; it's mixed use, it's residential, it's commercial."
Like Bookman, Palitz would like New York to develop a single, neutral office to deal with nighttime economy issues. "A lot more respect and appreciation needs to be afforded to us so we can preserve the good name of our bad city," she says. "A little bad is good."
Nighttime in Seattle
Several years ago, Seattle introduced new club regulations without community input. "It created a horrible tension between businesses and the city," says James Keblas, director of Seattle's Office of Film and Music, which supports entertainment development in the city, including nightlife venues. "Three years ago, if you asked me about this, I'd say we don't have a solution. But since this mess, we've decided new regulatory systems aren't for Seattle. We work with clubs with the assumption that they want to do good and they are positive contributors to the city."
Seattle's first option was to crack down on nightclubs, but now the city has developed a policy of assistance first and enforcement second. The city has taken steps in helping club owners navigate the regulatory process, creating a Nightlife Handbook posted to the city's web site (www.seattle.gov/filmandmusic, click on Nightlife Technical Assistance). This includes every regulatory requirement to open a club or hold an event. Keblas' office also hired a nightclub liaison to assist with events.
Additionally, the city of Seattle addresses issues before they become problems. Its enforcement team meets monthly to tackle complaints and takes what Keblas calls a surgical approach. "Everything isn't a nail that needs a hammer," he explains. "The result of that is we've built a really good relationship between the clubs and the city, and we're a cultural destination for young people."
To help maintain its cultural status and popularity, Seattle has taken a creative approach to promote responsible club behavior: The city will grant exemption from its 5 percent admissions tax for clubs that operate under certain conditions, such as hiring more live musicians. "This is a business incentive to create the kind of atmosphere we want in our neighborhoods," Keblas says.
Nightlife has even become an election issue in Seattle, with nightclubs rallying against the incumbent city attorney because of a propensity toward heavy-handed enforcement. The nightclub issue was at the forefront of this race; Pete Holmes, the challenger candidate backed by bar and nightclub owners in the community, won by a landslide. Other mayoral candidates stepped up to reinforce how the nighttime economy contributes to Seattle's success.
It's dependent on nightlife to demonstrate the value that it brings to a city, both to the economy and to the culture. "The more we can get people to think outside of just drinking, the better off we'll all be because it's more likely you can appeal to a broader range of potential customers," RHI's Peters concludes.
Community cooperation can be a positive experience that allows for a healthy nightlife economy. And these days, clubs, bars and restaurants and the municipalities where they operate need to collaborate for the common good. NCB
Points to Ponder
RHI lays out six core trends and elements to consider when developing a hospitality district.
The San Francisco Entertainment Commission has several public documents posted to its web site, including a Good Neighbor Policy and Principles of Mediation. Read them at
www.sfgov.org/entertainment, under Documents.
Check out the New York Nightlife Association's report, "The $9 Billion Economic Impact of the Nightlife Industry on New York City," at www.nysra.org/associations/2487/files/EconomicStudy.pdf, and "Best Practices for Nightlife Establishments," at www.ci.nyc.ny.us/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/crime_prevention/Best_Practices_For_Nightlife_Establishments.pdf.
Editor's Note on The Sociable City: Nightclub & Bar Magazine readers wanting to join a growing network of stakeholders from industry, government and community organizations dedicated to a safe and vibrant nighttime economy can join the Sociable City Network and access online resources, free webinars and peer to peer forums. You will also receive a free registration for a statewide nightlife forum in June 2010 being held in Pennsylvania, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina or California (and more in the fall) (http://rhievents.org/forum) with your membership. Go to www.SociableCity.org and join using discount code - nightclub&bar - on the payment form to save $25.


text:
Biden in Korea after no bend from China on air zone
- Biden told American business leaders he had been %27%27very direct%27%27
- China%27s state-run media Thursday repeated arguments that blame Japan
- Obama administration has asked U.S. airliners to abide by China%27s demand
BEIJING — Vice President Biden flew to Seoul on Thursday to talk about Asian security with South Korean leaders worried by Beijing's aggressive claim that it now controls all airspace over the vast East China Sea.
Biden received no concessions a day earlier from China on its new air defense zone that has the region on edge.
In Beijing on Thursday morning, Biden told American business leaders he had been ''very direct'' with President Xi Jinping about the U.S. government's objections to a zone that has also angered Japan.
"China's recent and sudden announcement of a new air defense identification zone has, to state the obvious, caused significant apprehension in the region,'' Biden said.
But as China's economy grows, its stake in regional security also rises, he said.
''That's why China will bear increasing responsibility to contribute positively to peace and security,'' Biden said.
China's state-run media Thursday repeated arguments that blame Japan, not China.
"The current tension in the East China Sea is stirred up by Japan to win pity," said an editorial in the Global Times, a Communist Party-controlled newspaper.
Chinese analysts have said the new air zone is primarily aimed at forcing Japan to begin negotiations over a group of uninhabited islands annexed by Japan in the 19th century.
Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are located along the East China Sea as is the eastern coast of China. The sea contains vast fishing resources and is estimated to have untapped oil and natural gas deposits, as well. China says it all belongs to it.
On Thursday, Biden touched down on a U.S. military base south of Seoul to meet with South Korean President Park Geun Hye. He is to give a speech Friday at Yonsei University about America's Asia policy and the U.S.-Korea relationship.
Biden will also lay a wreath at a ceremony honoring fallen U.S. troops and visit the Demilitarized Zone between South Korea and North Korea.
Biden's Asia trip was supposed to be largely about improving trade ties. But the first leg in Japan was dominated by the news that China said it was creating an air defense zone over the entire sea and all foreign military and commercial aircraft must notify its government if they wish to pass through.
The air defense zone covers some areas of ocean that are far closer to Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, and it includes waters considered international by the United States. The zone also covers the Senkaku Islands, annexed by Japan and purchased from a private landowner.
Many nations, including the United States, have set up air defense zones that extend from their shorelines to protect against enemy aircraft. China's zone is extraordinary in its massive outward extension. And other zones do not require notification if aircraft are merely passing through and not landing in the country.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had hoped the United States would not kowtow to China on the matter, according to the news media in Japan. Abe demanded that China reverse itself on the air zone. Biden did not say whether he asked China to do so.
Biden did not say exactly what he discussed with Xi.
In his public remarks after the Biden meeting, Xi extolled the benefits of closer U.S.-China ties as he laid out "profound and complex changes" underway in Asia and across the globe.
"The world, as a whole, is not tranquil," Xi said.
Chinese and Japanese ships and planes have come into increasingly perilous proximity near the islands over the past year. China wants the United States to join it in pressuring Japan.
Sun Zhe, director of the Center for Sino-U.S. Relations at Qinghua University in Beijing, said the U.S. should reduce "provocative" actions such as flying B-52s through the zone, or risk turning China's dispute with Japan into a conflict between China and the U.S., he said.
The zone "is part of a continuous effort to push the USA and Japan back, as both conduct over 500 cases of reconnaissance close to China's borders," said Sun. "China is nervous and uncomfortable about this."
Contributing: The Associated Press


text:
Unreleased Footage Of The Week: Cam'ron, T.I., Juelz Santana, Jim Jones, Freekey Zekey On The Last Days Of The Roc Pt. 2
Courtesy of Choke No Joke
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


text:
What to Read Next
Innovators aren't just the geniuses who come up with completely original ideas. More often than not, they're the people who tweak the ideas already around them, making new things that are more useable or beautiful.
In a working paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research last spring, economists Ralf Meisenzahl of the Federal Reserve and Joel Mokyr of Northwestern University highlighted the historic value of "tweakers." They argued that the Industrial Revolution took hold in Britain because of "the supply of highly skilled, mechanically able craftsmen who were able to adapt, implement, improve, and tweak new technologies and who provided the micro inventions necessary to make macro inventions highly productive and remunerative."
Take, for instance, the spinning mule. Invented by Samuel Crompton in 1779, it was tinkered with by others who added metal rollers, better ways to smooth its acceleration and deceleration, water power and automation – resulting in a machine that efficiently mechanized the manufacturing of cotton.
In "The Tweaker," a New Yorker story from November 2011, author Malcolm Gladwell argues that Apple founder Steve Jobs, as described in Walter Isaacson's biography Steve Jobs (Simon & Schuster, 2011), was "the greatest tweaker of his generation."
From the Macintosh's mouse and screen icons to the iPod and iPhone and iPad, "Jobs was someone who took other people's ideas and changed them," writes Gladwell. Brashness and grand visions were key: "The great accomplishment of Jobs's life is how effectively he put his idiosyncrasies — his petulance, his narcissism, and his rudeness — in the service of perfection."
Companies looking for the creativity of tweakers should be open to finding those brains beyond their borders. Lots of tweakers can be found outside of company walls, eager to send their ideas in. "Users who need a new product often take pieces of things they have around and put the pieces together to do what they want," said MIT Sloan's Eric von Hippel in a recent interview with MIT Sloan Management Review.
What Consumers Create
from "The Age of the Consumer-Innovator"
"A study of British consumers that I recently conducted with Steven Flowers, Jeroen de Jong, and Tanja Sinozic found that 6.1% of consumers in the U.K. over the age of 18 had created or modified a product for their own use within the last three years," said von Hippel. Details of that research are included in "The Age of the Consumer-Innovator," by von Hippel, Susumu Ogawa and Jeroen P.J. de Jong.
The chart "What Consumers Create" shows the variety of products that these tweakers came up with.


text:
On TikiTikiBlog.com, Carrie talks about the "Latino 1.5" – which by definition is: "not proficient in English or Spanish and born to first-generation American immigrants from Mexico and Central America."
This reminded me of an issue Carlos faces, which I know is familiar to many others out there.
According to the definition, Carlos isn't truly a "Latino 1.5" – he wasn't born in the United States and wasn't brought here as a child. He was born and raised in El Salvador and immigrated here at about 18 years old. While learning to speak English, he has maintained his Spanish – making him bilingual – but there's a problem.
Do you remember how you spoke at the age of 18? Has your vocabulary grown since then? Most of us would say, "Yes." In fact, scientifically speaking, your vocabulary should have grown by thousands of words between the ages of 18 and 30 – perhaps more if you like to read.
Although this is a chart of vocabulary size by age for English-speakers, (and the English language has double the words the Spanish language has), common sense tells as that a chart for speakers of any language would look similar – with one's vocabulary increasing with age.
But what happens when one is removed from their native-speaker environment? Less interaction in the language means vocabulary growth slows, stagnates, or worse, begins to decrease as new words are not learned and unused words are forgotten.
So back to Carlos. What does this mean for him, and others like him? It means that while he is bilingual, he is not fluent in either language – at least not at the level he should be for his age. The longer he's in the U.S. the more Spanish he forgets. He has Spanish-speaking co-workers but they're Mexican, not Salvadoran. While he hasn't seemed to pick up any Mexican-isms, (as is really common for Salvadorans in the U.S.) – he does seem to use less Salvadoran-isms.
His mother no longer lives with us and he has a lukewarm relationship with most of his family. He calls his best friend back in El Salvador a couple times a week with phone cards that last around 15 minutes and that is pretty much the only Salvadoran Spanish he gets to speak. He doesn't like to read either, so his vocabulary doesn't grow even in standard Spanish – He is, for the most part, stunted in his native language.
In English, Carlos seems to learn a new word every day, but having begun to learn it so late in life, it's highly unlikely that he'll ever reach the fluency enjoyed by native speakers – particularly when it comes to reading and writing.
As for me – as a language lover, book lover, a writer, and someone who just generally finds pleasure in expressing myself through words, I think the situation is kind of heartbreaking. I can't imagine the frustration that one would feel not having sufficient words to describe thoughts and emotions with precision. An example of this happened just yesterday.
Carlos went to great lengths to explain to me that he was feeling "weird" – he told me he had been thinking of memories from his teenage years and listening to music from that time in his life. He said that the memories and music made him sad in a weird way even though the memories and music are both happy. The word Carlos was looking for was "nostalgic" (or, "nostálgico" in Spanish) – but neither of these words were part of his regular vocabulary so I had to supply them for him. Once I gave him the word he was able to give his feelings a name, which is reassuring as human beings have an innate need to understand things and categorize them.
Are you not completely fluent in any language or do you know someone who is?
Update: I see that the Tiki Tiki is blogging on a similar topic today. Check out, "Oye, Are you Really Bilingual?"
Update #2: A friend, (Diane) mentioned to me that she blogged about her experience on this topic and I asked for her link. Here is another story about losing fluency in one's first language. Also, I learned from Diana the name of this phenomenon in case anyone wants to research further: Language Attrition.


text:
Remove ads with our VIP Service
Theater Managers:
AMC Classic Apple Valley 14
22311 Bear Valley Road
Apple Valley Plaza
Apple Valley, CA 92308
Message: 760-247-3333 more »
Formerly UltraStar Apple Valley, operated by UltraStar Cinemas until December 2012, when it was sold to Digital Cinema Destinations Corp. and named Digiplex Apple Valley. Purchased by Carmike Cinemas in 2014, but the name remained the same. It became the AMC Classic Apple Valley 14 in March 2017 after AMC acquired Carmike Cinemas.
The Marquee > Search > Owner/Operator > AMC Entertainment Inc. (AMC Theatres)
The Marquee > By Region > California > San Bernardino > Apple Valley
This movie theater is near Jess Ranch, Apple Valley, Hesperia, Victorville.
Home - About Us - Ad Info - Feedback
Journal/Blog - The Marquee - Movie Links - News and Events - Now Showing - Reader Reviews
Customize - VIP Service
Journal/Blog - The Marquee - Movie Links - News and Events - Now Showing - Reader Reviews
Customize - VIP Service
|The BigScreen Cinema Guide is a service of SVJ Designs LLC. All graphics, layout, and structure of this service (unless otherwise specified) are Copyright © 1995-2020, SVJ Designs. The BigScreen Cinema Guide is a trademark of SVJ Designs. All rights reserved.
'ACADEMY AWARDS®' and 'OSCAR®' are the registered trademarks and service marks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.


text:
Features and Benefits:
The thin wall design of chrome hand sockets are combined with the strength and durability of Grey Pneumatic impact sockets to create the Duo-Socket™. This 29 piece set is built specifically to address the needs of the professional technician using hand tools, cordless impact tools and air tools. The Duo-Socket™ provides one socket for all applications. This set includes the following: 24 tooth quick release ratchet, 3" and 6" wobble extension and the socket sizes include: Standard Metric: 10mm, 11mm, 12mm, 13mm, 14mm, 15mm, 16mm, 17mm, 18mm, 19mm, 20mm, 21mm, 22mm, 23mm, 24mm, 25mm, 26mm, 27mm, 28mm, 29mm, 30mm, 31mm, 32mm, 33mm, 34mm, 35mm, 36mm.


text:
An ancient Jewish folk tale about a man who mistakenly marries a corpse has been turned into a theatrical production that will be performed as part of this year's Ashkenaz Festival.
"It's sort of an urban legend. No one knows if it's true," said The Corpse Bride's co-producer Niki Landau. "It seemed to be absurd, but there was something interesting about it, so we started to develop it."
She originally came across the story while teaching a course at York University in 2002, and together with her husband, co-producer Paul Lampert, they developed it into a workshop production in 2007 and now into a theatrical production by their company, Theatre Panik.
The story is told as a movement piece set to live music, with an ode to traditional Yiddish theatre and German cabaret. "I learned a type of movement theatre which is quite common in Europe," Lampert said.
"In Canada, there is a much more oral tradition, so this particular style is unique. It's a cross between rhetorical gestures, as was seen in silent films, and partly mime as well, so you need really good actors for it."
The tale comes from a collection of stories about the 16th-century mystic, Rabbi Isaac Luria of Safed.
According to the tale, a man on the way to his wedding puts a ring on a branch protruding out of a forest and says the Jewish wedding vows, and is surprised when the branch turns out to be a corpse who claims they are married. The corpse fights with the man's fiancée, both determined to become his wife. The case is brought before Rabbi Luria who rules that the marriage is not valid.
"The story became more popular during the pogroms of eastern Europe in the 19th century," said Landau. "I found it interesting that it focused on women's experiences, which is hard to find."
The play features 14 actors, including Evelyn Hart, a former prima ballerina with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and four live musicians. "The play asks you to think about what you do when your life doesn't work out the way you want it to or the way you thought it would be," said Landau. "It's a life question – what do you do next?"
Both producers share ties to the history of the tale. Born in Poland, Lampert was interested in the "shtetl" feel of the story. "It's a time of great innocence, and you see that exemplified by musicals like Fiddler on the Roof," said Lampert. "I wanted to explore these aspects of Jewish Yiddish theatre."
Landau's great-grandparents were from Poland and Russia, "so in a way, it's an ode to that time," she said. "I wanted to look back at that time, to see how we got to where we are today."
The story is also the basis for Tim Burton's 2005 movie Corpse Bride featuring Johnny Depp and Emma Watson, but there is no Jewish aspect incorporated in his version. "I felt like the Jewish history of the folk tale was really important," said Landau. "We wanted to preserve that."
Overall, they hope the production appeals to a diverse audience. "Everyone loves to see the problems that arise when a wedding goes wrong and that's what this is," said Landau.
The Corpse Bride plays Aug. 30, Sept. 1 and 2 at Enwave Theatre at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto. This is a ticketed event. For more information about this and other Ashkenaz events, visit www.ashkenazfestival.com.


text:
Next month marks the fifth anniversary of one of the most successful products of the digital era, Apple Computer's iPod music player. Since 2001, potential iPod-killers have come and gone like autumn foliage. Apple claims an astonishing 76% market share in the U.S. for the iPod and an equally amazing 88% share of the U.S. legal music download market for its companion iTunes online store. Over 60 million iPods and 1.5 billion songs have been sold.
The Cover Flow feature in the new iTunes
Still, this autumn, the iPod could face its greatest challenge. Microsoft, after failing for years to combat the iconic gadget, will launch a new assault Nov. 14 with a player called Zune. Unlike past Microsoft music efforts, the Zune will be sold by Microsoft itself, and, like the iPod, it will be tightly integrated with companion software and an online music store.
Not only that, but this week, RealNetworks' Rhapsody music service, the best of the iTunes competitors, will announce its own player, jointly developed with SanDisk, which is the second-place player maker, albeit a distant second.
So, this holiday season Apple has made some of the biggest changes to the iPod and iTunes in years. It has redesigned the iPod Nano and Shuffle, cut prices and/or raised capacities on all models, introduced a new iPod search feature, added color games and movie playback to the full-sized iPod, and more. Plus, it has given the iTunes software its biggest overhaul ever, making the software both simpler and more fun to use.
Oh, and it has started selling downloadable feature films, which can be played on computers, iPods, and, soon, via a forthcoming new device, on TV sets.
We've been testing the new iPods and iTunes for several weeks, as well as the new movie download service. Our review of the hardware and software follows here. See the accompanying article for our take on the movie downloads.
Our verdict: the new iPods are more versatile and less costly than ever, but the new iTunes software is an even bigger improvement, although it has one big downside — its coolest new feature is so graphically demanding that it doesn't work right on some older computers.
For the main iPod, the biggest changes are in capacity, price, battery life and software. The base version, which holds 30 gigabytes, is now $249, a $50 price cut presumably intended to put pressure on Microsoft. The higher-end model, at $349, is also $50 less than last year's version, even though it holds 80 gigabytes, up from 60 gigabytes last year. Battery life for video playback has been greatly improved, to 3.5 hours on the base model, up from just two hours on last year's model. The bigger model has 6.5 hours of video playback time, up from 4 hours. (Battery life for music is unchanged.)
The iPod's screen is also now 60% brighter. But what's now on the screen is even more interesting: There's now a search feature that lets you find items alphabetically, by using the scroll wheel to select letters. In our tests, it worked well. And, in addition to viewing full-length movies on the full-sized iPod, you can now play classic color games, such as Tetris, Pac-Man, Bejeweled, Poker and Mahjong. Apple sells these games via iTunes for $4.99 each.
In our tests, playing even very familiar games with a scroll wheel instead of a mouse or joystick took some adjustment. But, eventually, we got the hang of it, and the color and detail of the games on the iPod's screen was impressive.
The iPod Nano also has the new search feature, but it can't play the movies or games. It has been given a new aluminum skin, like the old iPod Mini had. This has two advantages: It resists the scratches that affected the first Nano models last year, and it allows for a range of bright colors. It's even a teeny bit thinner and lighter than the amazingly small original Nano. We liked the new Nano and found it worked well.
Clockwise from the left: the 4GB iPod nano, iPod, and iPod shuffle.
The Nano still comes in three versions, but the capacities for each have been doubled while the prices remain the same. The base $149 Nano now holds 2 gigabytes and comes in silver only. The middle $199 Nano now holds 4 gigabytes and comes in four colors, including a hot pink. And the $249 top-of-the-line Nano now holds 8 gigabytes and is black only.
Even greater changes have been made in Apple's iTunes software, the biggest overhaul since it came out in 2001. ITunes is one of the world's most popular software programs, much more popular than the iPod itself. That's because many people use iTunes, which is free, to manage and download music on their Windows and Macintosh computers, even if they don't own iPods.
But iTunes had been growing long in the tooth. It didn't do as good a job with video as with music, and was visually boring. So the new iTunes 7, which is still nearly identical on Windows and Macintosh, has lots of new stuff.
The coolest new feature is called Cover Flow, an optional way of viewing your music library. In Cover Flow, the top half of your screen is filled with an array of all your album covers, and as you scroll through your songs with the mouse or keyboard — or, as songs play — the album cover for each appears in the center of the array. Sometimes, if you're skipping around in a large library, the covers flip by at high speed, finally settling on the one you're playing.
In a way, it's just a parlor trick, and it sounds like it's no big deal. But we loved it, because it reminded us of flipping through a box of old vinyl albums or watching an old jukebox in a diner. It actually helped remind us of albums we'd forgotten about.
If you don't have the album covers for all your songs, iTunes 7 will fetch them online free, so Cover Flow can work. Cover Flow also works with video clips, displaying either the official art supplied by iTunes, for purchased videos, or just a still from the video for other clips.
Unfortunately, Cover Flow puts such heavy demand on computer graphics systems that it doesn't work properly or at all on some machines, especially older or more limited Windows computers. While it worked fine on our Macs and on our Dell and Hewlett-Packard Windows desktops, it failed on Katie's Toshiba laptop and in a virtual Windows machine running under the Parallels software on a MacBook Pro laptop.
Apple has released a revision of iTunes 7 to address Cover Flow issues and some other problems, but the revision didn't do the trick on our problem machines.
Beyond Cover Flow, iTunes 7 sports numerous other new features. It can now detect when albums were meant to be played without gaps between songs, as on many classical albums and a few rock albums, such as the Beatles' Abbey Road. In fact, it will go through your library, find all such albums, and eliminate the gaps. This "gapless playback" feature also extends to the new iPods.
This latest iTunes also sports separate libraries for music, movies, TV shows, podcasts, audiobooks and games. And, when you attach an iPod, it offers a much cleaner and more comprehensive tabbed interface for managing the synchronization of music, videos, photos, and other content.
And, finally, you can use your iPod to move content from one computer to another, although this feature only works with content you purchased from Apple.
It's impossible to know if Apple can sustain its remarkably high market shares in the face of new competition, but it is going into the battle with better products at better prices.
- Email: firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Explore South Africa's tumultuous history from the early interactions between white European settlers and native African tribes to the implementation of apartheid and the long struggle for democracy.
Explore South Africa's tumultuous history from the early interactions between white European settlers and native African tribes to the implementation of apartheid and the long struggle for democracy.
Students explore the potential negative impact of images through the social media protest #IfTheyGunnedMeDown and develop a decision-making process for choosing imagery to represent controversial events.
Students create a plan for enacting change on an issue that they are most passionate about using the 10 Questions Framework.
Students explore the strategies, risks, and historical significance of the the 1963 Chicago school boycott, while also considering bigger-picture questions about social progress.
Students identify strategies and tools that Parkland students have used to influence Americans to take action to reduce gun violence.
Students view a short film about a third-generation descendant of Holocaust survivors and explore the questions it raises about obligation, memory, and family.
Students consider the power of historical symbols as they investigate the 2015 controversy over the Confederate flag in South Carolina and then draw connections to the violence in Charlottesville.
Students read fictional biographies of German citizens and make hypotheses about the citizens' voting choices in the Weimar elections.
Students use the "levers of power" framework to identify ways they can bring about positive change in their communities.
Students explore citizenship, power, and responsibility using the work of civic entrepreneur Eric Liu.
Students identify the responsibilities of citizen watchdogs, summarize strategies for combatting confirmation bias and responsibly consuming and sharing news and information, and complete a culminating essay.
Students define explicit, implicit, and confirmation bias, and examine why people sometimes maintain their beliefs in the face of contradictory information.