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Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Who Will Win The Alfa Giulietta?
No, not a competetion we're running! Read this, 'like it', and help our man Brendan O'Dowd win a car!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Mad Granny Fights Off Jewellery Robbers
Shot in Northamption. Let's hear it for the old dear!
Labels: Funnies
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Who's Afraid of the Goddamn Batman!?
Originally Appears in Issue 5
With Frank Miller finally returning to complete the story he began five years ago in All Start Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder, Dean Van Nguyen believes this is a perfect time to revisit the unfairly derided title.
This February Frank Miller returns to the Batman franchise to finally complete a story arc he began way back in 2005. Running for six issues, Dark Knight: Boy Wonder will pick up the tale that began as All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder, which ran for 10 issues over the course of three very uneasy years for Miller.
The series was a part of DC's All Star imprint, where some of the company's most iconic characters get re-imagined by acclaimed writers and artists outside the continuities of their regular series. By working on a new Batman title, Miller was re-entering a world that helped make his name, with his previously written story arcs, particularly The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One, among the most highly regarded the series ever produced.
However, the project became deeply troubled. Issues were often months late, dropping at seemingly random times, ignoring all scheduled release dates. "Frank and I sat down just recently to have a long talk about how best to finish this very 'deadline challenged' project and give the loyal fans the second part of this epic storyline they have been patiently waiting for," said Jim Lee, the artist on the series. "I feel terrible about how late [All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder] fell behind. 100 percent of the blame falls upon my shoulders, so one of the reasons we chose the February, 2011, start date was to ensure that Dark Knight: Boy Wonder would ship regularly and on-time."
He might be taking the blame for the delays, but many readers felt that Lee's artwork that was the series' only redeeming quality, with Miller's vision of Batman being met with widespread disdain as he recreated the character as a vengeful, cruel and often sadistic anti-hero. The story revolves around Dick Grayson's evolution into Robin. When his parents are violently murdered in front of his eyes, Grayson is kidnapped by Batman, who sees the boy as a potential protégée. Miller's Batman, scripted as 24 years-old, is callous and cruel in his treatment of Grayson, even slapping him in the face to stop his tears.
Fans frustration with the series seemed to be summed up by one line. Appearing in issue two, it has become the most infamous scripted pieces of dialogue in recent comic history. Introducing himself to Grayson as "the Goddamn Batman", the line (repeated throughout the series) has become the definitive example of Miller's heavy-handed dialogue, and perceived mismanagement of the Batman legacy. But perhaps those who deride the series have missed the point.
While "I'm the Goddamn Batman" is not the most outstanding piece of writing ever penned, by and large Miller recreates complex characters, offering clear windows into their broken personalities. His insights into why this Batman is so ruthless are fascinating. Soaked in his victim's blood, the Dark Knight often muses on the pain he's inflicted. He takes pleasure in this brutality, going as far as breaking a rapists arm in such a fashion that it will never heal correctly. "You'll remember me every time the air goes wet and cold. Arthritis punk. It'll hurt like hell." This is not a Batman that rubs shoulders with the authorities in hope of fashioning a less corrupt Gotham. He's a hardened vigilante, convinced the system is irreparably broken.
Seeing as the point of the Allstar series was to give proven writers the space to take a fresh approach on well established characters, it seems strange Miller and Lee's series was met with such negativity. This is a well-executed, fascinatingly dark rendition of a character never known for being cutesy.
Labels: From The Pages
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Liz Stanley blogs daily at the popluar blog Say Yes to Hoboken, a collection of beautiful things and creations, when she's not camping under the Golden Gate bridge, digging for treasures at local thrift stores or working on a new craft. Born and raised a New Yorker, Liz is now happy to call the fairytale city of San Francisco home with her husband and son. Liz also shares her DIY crafts and projects writing for AOL's Holidash and Momtastic sites.
San Francisco, CA

subset: commoncrawl


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OAKLAND — A husband and wife who were hit by a car Monday night while crossing a street near Lake Merritt remained hospitalized Tuesday with the woman in grave condition, police said.
The 27-year-old woman and her 26-year-old husband, who live in the area, were crossing Grand Avenue at Bellevue Avenue in a crosswalk about 6:40 p.m. when they were hit by a car going westbound on Grand, police said.
The driver of the car remained at the scene and cooperated with police, investigators said. Police said the driver, a woman, told officers she did not see the couple. She was released pending further investigation.
Police did not release any names and said they don't know yet where the couple was headed during their walk.
The wife was in grave condition at a hospital and her husband in serious condition.
Grand Avenue was shut down for awhile as police conducted their investigation.
Police would like anyone who witnessed the incident to call traffic investigators at 510-777-8720.


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I'll first explain what this is.
Common dialog control is a component that allows us to access inbuilt libraries.
If you don't know what these are let me explain it to you with an example.
Open the notepad go to File and click Save As... A window will pop up with a couple
of components (command buttons, combo boxes, etc). You will face other programmes having
the same kind of window with these components. If you have TextPad, an editor that comes
in handy for programmers, you will see the same.
The reason why to use common dialog controls is that you won't need to spend time making
your custom libraries, just use the inbuilt ones, but it's up to you.
Lets get started!
We will now built a small application that changes the colour of a picture box
Open a new project, select Standart.exe. Right click on the tools list, go to components,
find and select Microsoft Common Dialog Control (6.0 in my case). Add a picture box name
it to "picbox" and also change the AutoRedraw to true. Then add a command button, name it
"cmdsetcol". In the end add a common dialog control and name it "cmdlg".
Now we'll go to the coding.
Use the following code for the command button:
cmdlg.ShowColor picbox.BackColor = cmdlg.Color
Now by pressing the button an inbuilt library of colour selection will pop up. You might
have come across it in several painting applications and several times colour changing
is involved. After selecting a colour and proceeding to our form the pictures box colour
will automatically change to the colour we selected due to the second line of code.
Its very easy!
Let us add a text box and another two command buttons and add the following code the them:
Private Sub Command1_Click() cmdlg.ShowColor Text1.ForeColor = cmdlg.Color End Sub Private Sub Command2_Click() cmdlg.ShowColor Text1.BackColor = cmdlg.Color End Sub
Now we can change the back and character colour of the text box.
Hope you understood it all briefly and i wish you learning and coding!


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The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series (Xbox 360) review
"This is how you write characters. This is how you match tragedy with humor, dread with hope, terror with lightheartedness. This is how you make audiences emotionally exhausted."
Freelance review by Mike Suskie (January 03, 2013)
Mike Suskie is a freelance writer who has contributed to GamesRadar and has a blog. He can usually be found on Twitter at @MikeSuskie.
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If you enjoyed this The Walking Dead: A Telltale Games Series review, you're encouraged to discuss it with the author and with other members of the site's community. If you don't already have an HonestGamers account, you can sign up for one in a snap. Thank you for reading!
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One Direction has not exactly been impervious to the inevitable gay rumors that every boy band has faced. In fact, even in the past week they have managed to stir up more material for gay news stories than even Lance Bass did when he came out.
There has been the fan fiction featuring a romance between Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson, Styles's pro-gay response to the Westboro Baptist Church's homophobic protest of the band's concert, and let's not forget their fondess for twerking, Styles's planting a kiss on Zayn Malick's cheek in their perfume commercial, and Andy Cohen referring to them as "twinks." Even Lance Bass has said that, statistically speaking, one of the members is most likely gay (He would know).
Whether or not there's any of the rumors, the band continues their group bromance and doesn't seem to care all that much what people say, so much so that in their newest video one of them Malick dons drag and Liam Payne takes a turn as a Richard Simmons-esque (Read: stereotypically gay) choreographer. They're not exactly complex or deep portrayals (Ok, not at all.), but there's something to be said for them not shying away from behavior that will definitely still draw rumors.
And just so you won't miss one gay moment, here are the top five in the 6-minute video.
1. Drag
This is the big one, heels and all. Other boy bands have donned pretty camp getups before, but going full drag is a whole lot gayer than that, especially when it's done this well. Malick looks damn good and he's not an object of mockery or laughter (Well, not any more than anything else in the video). He's just a guy in drag, dancing with another guy. The Westboro Baptist Church won't like it, which makes us like it that much more.
2. Sexual tension between Styles and drag Malick
Bravo to them for not portraying the interaction between a cis-guy and one in drag as weird or in any way but a playful one. The members have always been publicly affectionate and just because one of them is in a skirt and a wig doesn't make it any less acceptable than bromance behavior.
3. Leroy, the choreographer
Ok, so this guy is super stereotypical and that's not exactly ideal, but it is a short pop music video. It would be kind of difficult to go into any Queer As Folk- or Weekend- style depth of character when there's so much running around and riding in shopping carts to be done. That said, they're willing to play gay and coupled with their public defense of homosexuality, there's no pressing need to criticize them for actually including a gay character.
4. Potential looks taken from other gay-ish musical groups
The "producers" of their movie (Niall Horan and Tomlinson in costume) want a new public image for the band, and all the suggestions are clearly just photos of The Backstreet Boys, 'N Sync, New Kids On the Block, and the best—The Village People, and what looks like a male version of the "Single Ladies" dancers. At first when the members reject these ideas it may seem a little homophobic, but it's more likely the fact that the looks are outdated and stale. Except for The Village People. Those outfits are timeless. And they're all obviously attached, both physically and emotionally, to their skinny jeans.
5. The dancing. All of it.
At this point, no one is really expecting any of them to be on Justin Timberlake's level (We all remember the anti-gravity box in "Bye Bye Bye" --that was advanced stuff), but they're making an effort. Most of their "dancing" up until now has been running on beaches. They're still kind of running around, but there's now some butt shaking, shimmying, hip thrusting, jumping, and canoeing. They would actually probably benefit from a choreographer like the one Payne portrays, or maybe a more serious one.
Judge for yourself:


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All voters will discover disaster they created
Those of us devoted to limited government, personal liberty and economic freedom have just realized we are now the minority in our own land.
After that initial blow to the gut after the election, we must now watch in horror as this administration methodically takes us down the road to a nanny state, with cradle-to-grave assistance.
I have tried to figure out why so many people would actually vote for four more disastrous years. I guess we are all going to find out together.
Connie Clark Benson
How could anyone have so much evil?
The events in Newtown, Conn., are not just incredible — they are unbelievable. How can someone have so much evil in his heart to take not only innocent lives but the future of little children? What could possibly warp a psyche so terribly?
The events of Aurora and Ft. Hood and Littleton and other places, while terrible, pale in comparison to this. Why would anyone look at a child and then deliberately murder him? I do not understand it. Is this now the American equivalent of a suicide bomber?
My heart, prayers and love stream out to the families and loved ones who have been so unfairly victimized by this act that I can only characterize as demonic.
May God welcome his new angels, and comfort those left behind.
John Brown
How is huge salary possibly justified?
I read the article on Washington Township Health Care District's CEO's salary with absolute horror. Who at Washington Hospital authorized the board of directors to pay CEO Nancy Farber a salary plus benefits of $900,000 (base play plus incentives)?
I find this absolutely horrible. And I am sure that the directors at the hospital couldn't care less what I think.
We have high unemployment and higher underemployment. I am sure that a lot of those folks who are out of work are nurses and aides for hospitals.
Could someone please explain to me, a member of the community, what Farber does to warrant that kind of salary? We have school principals who make one-tenth of that amount. How about city managers, superintendents, and even our commander in chief? They do not make even close to that amount.
Can someone please explain to me and the reading public what she does to earn that salary — which is more than double that of the president of the United States?
Bill Leake
How about a smile once in a while?
I had business at the Department of Motor Vehicles in the morning, followed by shopping at a grocery — both serving the public.
One, a monopoly; the other in retail, competing for business. At the DMV, there seemed to be a "no-smile" policy, while the grocery engaged in a "win-'em-over" practice.
Some workers are competent while others are competent and pleasant. I realize that the public can sometimes be a trial, but most of us, most of the time, are pretty decent.
Come on, DMV. I observed your friendliness to one another. When you turn to the counter, give us a smile.
Marv Tripp
Meals on Wheels a godsend for seniors
I am writing to thank Meals on Wheels, to inform everyone how much the service is needed and what a great group of caring individuals make up the MOW program and to appeal for donations in this season of giving.
My mother was the recipient of the MOW program for many years. She not only received a warm meal daily but a caring visit from those who delivered the meal.
My mother recently passed. Her wish was to remain in her home of 60 years, and she did. The MOW program was an integral factor in allowing her wish to be realized.
I know there must be many stories like my mom's, and that is why the MOW program is essential for local seniors.
Our seniors are a gift of experience and knowledge. Please donate to the program. It doesn't have to be much, but let's allow this great program to thrive, not just exist.
Daniel Romero


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We're a tight—knit bunch of event professionals who love what we do, with hundreds of happy clients across New Zealand and around the world.
Experts in meeting management, we understand the complexities involved in successful event delivery; from travel and accommodation logistics, to sponsorship, risk management and onsite coordination – and everything in between.
We're all about making sure that for you, meeting organisation and delivery is slick, strategically planned, financially astute, clearly understandable and — most importantly — enjoyable!


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Looks like you are using an old version of Internet Explorer - Please update your browser
The fact is, however, that it has been proved in many cases that homologous structures are not produced by homologous genes!
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Answers in Genesis is an apologetics ministry, dedicated to helping Christians defend their faith and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.


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Thanks for dropping by my site :) Would love to hear from you!
"Tracy Spuehler's tunes charmed their way into the public's ear on KCRW-FM and beyond, with bursts of wit and sweetness tempered by dollops of sobering reality."
- Kevin Bronson, LOS ANGELES TIMES
"...Elements of Juliana Hatfield's little-girl lilt, Aimee Mann's confessional pop and Liz Phair's indie-rock feistiness. But this native Angeleno puts so much of herself into her songs that her music winds up charmingly fresh and all her own."
- Michael Berick, NEW TIMES


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If you are an individual looking to join a team or have registered as a team but are looking for someone to fill other disciplines of the triathlon view our team matching system. To view the list of individuals and teams wanting to join/find teams view the Team Matching Attendee List.
If you are wanting to put your name on the list, please register now.
Please note, your email address will be displayed on the team matching attendee list as the contact point for people wanting to ask you to join their team/wanting to join your team.


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Just as in the kitchen, I have absolutely no formal training behind the camera. Everything I do is through trial and error. From time to time, I have bookmarked informative sites full of tips and tricks for food photography, but let's face it, my attention span isn't long enough to read them, let alone actually implement any of the advice.
My camera is also very inexpensive (Canon Powershot A550) and has been dropped a time or two. The lens was even jammed half in and half out after one unfortunate kiss of the concrete. It has seen better days, but for my limited skills and budget, it does the job...except for those pesky rejections. (Thank goodness for TasteStopping.)
It seems that it has come to the point where I have to decide if I really want to work to improve my photos, or if I am OK with being labeled as Dull/Not Sharp. While I want my photo quality to be good enough for you to want to try the recipe, I am not sure I want to invest more time/money/energy in them. It is important to me that all parts of this blog remain fun. I don't want to feel like I am tied to a ball and chain of yet more work. There is enough going on in my life that I don't enjoy; this blog and producing photos for it should never fall into that category. I think that I would rather play with the food On My Plate than with the camera.
So for now, you will have to suffer through my Dull/Not Sharp photos to accompany my tried and true recipes. I think that I have a doozy for you today. Green Beans with Garlic, Basil and Cherry Tomatoes has been in mind to share almost since the beginning of On My Plate. Its bright and crisp (not dull/not sharp) flavors have been paired as a side with many meals, but I have never managed an acceptable photo. Today was not an exception. The afternoon light glared on the beans making them appear greasy. Appetizing, huh? Sorry. Please forgive the photo and grab the recipe. You will be sorry if you decline to sample Green Beans with Garlic, Basil and Cherry Tomatoes On YOUR Plate.
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon sugar
2-3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
kosher salt
fresh ground black pepper
1/2 pint cherry or grape tomatoes (halved if large)
Bring large pot of salted water to boil and add beans; simmer until tender.
In large skillet or saute pan, melt butter.
Add garlic, sugar, basil, salt and pepper.
Add tomatoes; cook until heated, but not mushy.
Add the drained beans and toss to coat with the garlic/basil butter. (Serves 4)


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Biarritz 19-21 Toulouse, Heineken Cup Final
Fourth time's a charm
Graham Jenkins at the Stade de France
May 22, 2010
Toulouse celebrate victory over Biarritz © Getty Images
Toulouse, the undeniable kings of the Heineken Cup, cemented their place at the top of European rugby with a classy and clinical display to notch an incredible fourth win in the world's greatest club competition.
The result may have been in doubt until the final whistle but the fact this contest went down to the wire was as much to do with Toulouse's failure to kill the game off as it was a battling Biarritz side that appeared to lack belief that they could topple their Top 14 rivals.
The boot of Toulouse fly-half David Skrela tormented Biarritz for most of the afternoon and it is the kicking exploits of the assured No.10 that their legions of fans must thank for their latest European triumph. Veteran hooker Williams Servat may have claimed the Man of the Match honour for an admirable performance at the coal face but it was Skrela pulling the strings in a vintage display of control and precision.
The 31-year-old has rediscovered a rich vein of form just in time for next year's Rugby World Cup and his efforts in steering Toulouse to the Stade de France saw him rewarded with a recent recall to Marc Lievremont's France squad - and with this kind of display he is making a big play for Francois Trinh-Duc's No.10 shirt. But that debate is for another day for this day should be about Les Rouge et Noir.
If the place was not hot enough to start, with temperatures in the French capital pushing 80 degrees, the pyrotechnics ensured we had reached boiling point by kick off. In contrast, Biarritz, despite starting brightly, were off the boil having sat out the last three weeks - an enforced rest they will surely rue as a battle-hardened Toulouse, with enviable strength in depth to power their post-season push, strangled them into submission.
This was always going to be a close contest due to the side's familiarity with each other but they managed to serve up an entertaining finale if not the most thrilling in the tournament's 15-year history.
Biarritz stole an early advantage thanks to Yachvili whose two penalties delighted their support and stunned a Toulouse side that you suspected may be still feeling the effects of their Top 14 semi-final defeat to Perpignan just a week ago. But there was no panic from Guy Noves' side, stacked as they are with experience throughout with several Heineken Cup Final veterans amongst them. But the same could not be said for their long-time coach, 17 years at the helm, who berated his star-studded line-up whilst kneeling at the touchline in his familiar pose.
The target of much of his frustration would have been Biarritz No.8 Imanol Harinordoquy who was once again at the centre of proceedings at the lineout and in the loose. But shorn of the Iron Man-like protective headgear he wore in their semi-final victory over Munster, the Basque talisman appeared stripped of some of his super powers. Instead, sporting a Phantom-esque mask he had to make do with a supporting role and his warrior-like spirit was unable to lift his side to great heights.
Bravery was also not lacking from captain Jerome Thion with the lock at the heart of his side's efforts throughout. But sadly he is left to reflect on another painful final defeat following those in the colours of Perpignan in 2003 and with his Biarritz in 2006. In contrast it was third time lucky for his Toulouse counterpart Thierry Dusautoir.
Toulouse muscled their way back into the contest with Fritz slotting a monster penalty from inside his half to not only put his side on the board but stop the rot that threatened to derail his side's latest bid for European glory.
Fritz went from hero to villain to allow Yachvili to restore his side's advantage but Toulouse's power game laid the platform for a comeback with Skrela pulling his side level before Fritz put them ahead for the first time in the contest just before the break. That blow seemed harsh on a Biarritz side that had more than held their own on the opening period and they were left squabbling with each other as they headed to tunnel - puzzled as to why they were left chasing the game.
As they left the field you were left thinking whether that was all that Biarritz could muster - they appeared to have thrown their best at Toulouse but had come up some way short. The Toulouse fans were baying for blood following the re-start, roaring each phase that carried their side closer to the line, demanding the killer blow as if this was a public hanging. But they were unable to lock the Biarritz defence and a crucial dropped pass from winger Maxime Medard ended a promising move.
Grateful for the reprieve, Biarritz launched a stunning counter, with hooker Benoit August of all people leading the way with a kick and chase, but he was cruelly hauled down off the ball by Toulouse lock Patricio Albacete who was sent to the sin-bin as a result. A penalty try would have been harsh with the offence having taken place on the 22 and with covering defenders in attendance but Yachvili was able to pull his side level from the kicking tee.
Suddenly the Biarritz faithful were alive and in full voice again but Toulouse's class shone through once more with no sign of panic and Skrela's boot to restore his side's lead and extend it before they were back to full strength. That would have been Biarritz's time to strike but they never looked like conjuring the score that would have seen the game swing back in their favour and instead their efforts were blighted by wild passes.
Another Skrela penalty and suddenly the game was all too one-sided. But this is the Heineken Cup - and we don't do processions. A Skrela miss offered Biarritz a lifeline but when Yachvili made way as the game entered the last ten minutes you sensed even they had conceded the game. But that wise man Noves was having none of it and could again be seen berating his side, painfully aware how games can turn when you least expect it.
And so it did - almost. Biarritz conjured a fine running line from almost nowhere with the pace of winger Takudzwa Ngwenya, shackled for much of the game, creating the space for centre Karmichael Hunt to cross for a try. Courrent's conversion flew over and suddenly it was a two-point game - how exactly I am not quite sure.
The impressive Iain Balshaw and Ngwenya were then repeatedly deployed in the hope they could find another hole in a tiring Toulouse defence but they were denied time and time again. It was left to Kiwi scrum-half Byron Kelleher to get the party started by booting the ball into touch.
Toulouse remain a class act and a class apart.
© Scrum.com
Graham Jenkins is the Senior Editor of ESPNscrum.
Communication error please reload the page.


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Political Moves: How Dianne Feinstein Cut Off One Of The Few Attempts At Actual Oversight By Senate Intelligence Committee
from the no-time! deptWe've already covered how Dianne Feinstein used the Senate Intelligence Committee hearing to play games with the English language, while Senator Dan Coats used it to rant against all you stupid Americans for not trusting the NSA, but there have been some actual attempts to have the Senate Intelligence Committee perform its actual duty of oversight. Both Senators Ron Wyden and Mark Udall -- who have been trying to raise these questions for years -- actually had specific questions for the assembled panel, but the panel (mainly Keith Alexander) did its best to completely avoid answering the questions, then used political gamesmanship to block Wyden from asking followups.
Wyden used his question to highlight what he's been hinting at for years, that it's almost certain that the NSA has collected bulk data on the locations of Americans (something not yet officially revealed, and which they've sort of tried to deny for a while). Wyden has been asking versions of this question for a few years (and trying to pass legislation blocking this kind of thing for nearly as long). But watch how Keith Alexander never actually answers the question:
Wyden: Now with respect to questions, let me start with you Director Alexander, and, as you all know, I will notify you in advance so that there won't be any surprise about the types of issues we are going to get into. And Director Alexander, Senators Udall, Heinrich and I and about two dozen other senators have asked in the past whether the NSA has ever collected or made any plans to collect Americans' cell-site information in bulk. What would be your response to that?Note the word games: "under Section 215." He does not say whether they've used some other authority to do so. And then he's just repeating talking points so Wyden flat out cuts him off:
Gen. Keith Alexander (Alexander): Senator, on July 25, Director Clapper provided a non-classified written response to this question amongst others, as well as a classified supplement with additional detail. Allow me to reaffirm what was stated in that unclassified response. Under section 215, NSA is not receiving cell-site location data and has no current plans to do so. As you know, I indicated to this committee on October 20, 2011, that I would notify Congress of NSA's intent to obtain cell-site location data prior to any such plans being put in place. As you may also be aware....
Wyden: General, if I might. I think we're all familiar with it. That's not the question I'm asking. Respectfully, I'm asking, has the NSA ever collected or ever made any plans to collect Americans' cell-site information. That was the question and we, respectfully General, have still not gotten an answer to it. Could you give me an answer to that?First off, Alexander's answer shows that, contrary to the assertions of some staunch NSA defenders, it is entirely possible to answer a question by saying "there is more information in classified documents that shouldn't be shared in an open setting." Some have tried to excuse James Clapper's lies to Congress by suggesting he couldn't have said more or less what Alexander said here.
Alexander: We did. We sent that — as you're also aware I expressly reaffirmed this commitment to the committee on June 25, 2013. Finally, in the most recent and now declassified opinion renewing this program, the FISA court made clear in footnote number five that notice to the court in a briefing would be required if the government were to seek production of cell-site location information as part of the bulk production of call detail records. Additional details were also provided in the classified supplement to Director Clapper's July 25th response to this question. So what I don't want to do, Senator, is put out in an unclassified forum anything that's classified there so I'm reading to you exactly. So we sent both of these to you. I saw what Director Clapper sent and I agree with it.
Wyden: General, if you're responding to my question by not answering it because you think that's a classified matter that is certainly your right. We will continue to explore that because I believe this is something the American people have a right to know whether the NSA has ever collected or made plans to collect cell-site information. I understand your answer. I'll have additional questions on the next round. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Second, note the doublespeak that Alexander is engaged in here. Even asked, again, to answer the basic question, Alexander pulls an "under this program" type of answer, suggesting (again) that American location data either has been, or is planned, to be collected in bulk. That is worrisome, and should not be classified information. Rather it should be open to public debate as to whether or not it's appropriate.
But here's where the political gamesmanship came in. Committee chair Dianne Feinstein gave Senators only five minutes each for their questions. It seemed like a majority of this "oversight" committee didn't actually ask any questions, but rather, like Coats, simply filibustered angrily at the American public or press for not trusting the NSA. But when actual questions were asked, not enough time was given to get a straight answer. At the very end of the hearing, after most of the other Senators had left, Senator Wyden made a perfectly normal request: could he ask his followup questions. He noted that he just had two questions and both could be asked within an additional five-minute window. Senator Susan Collins, who had similarly filibustered during her own five minutes (focusing mainly on knocking down a complete strawman: falsely insisting that people were upset that the NSA was using Section 215 of the Patriot Act to record all phone calls, when everyone knows that it's just about call records, not call contents), objected to Wyden's request because she thought everything would go in order. It was pure political gamesmanship.
So instead of getting to conduct more actual oversight by having the committee ask important questions of the surveillance bosses, the panel, instead, moved on to the "second part" of the hearing, which involved two staunch non-governmental NSA defenders who basically sat down to talk about the awesomeness of being able to spy on everyone. Ben Wittes opened with a "joke" about how the NSA's director of compliance John DeLong, mocked the level of scrutiny the NSA was under by pointing out that if he had typos in a document he'd have to reveal that to some oversight authority. Har har. This was useless. There was no reason to have them testify, and they were given a hell of a lot more time than the Senators actually asking questions.
That time could have been used to actually conduct oversight. Instead, we got nothing. Throughout the panel Senators pointed out that the American public doesn't trust the NSA right now (though, they often blamed the public and the press for this, rather than the direct actions and statements of the NSA). If they wanted a lesson in how not to build up that trust, holding a completely toothless "oversight" hearing was a pretty good start.
After Wyden, Udall also asked some specific questions, in which the deputy Attorney General basically just repeated the FISA Court ruling saying that "relevant" has been redefined by the intelligence community to mean basically anything that the intelligence community feels is "necessary" to its investigations, and seems to think that it's a good thing that this is a "low bar." He completely ignores the basics of the 4th Amendment, as well as recent Supreme Court decisions on the topic.
I've included the video of both Wyden and Udall's questions below, so you can see the less than 20 minutes of the two-hour session where actual serious questions were asked.
Filed Under: dianne feinstein, james clapper, james cole, keith alexander, mark udall, ron wyden, susan collins


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text:
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Updated 4/20/11 by Raug


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March 28, 2009
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – In the Pilgrim Lacrosse League opener for both teams, Lasell College came away with a 10-9 overtime win against host MIT on Saturday. Brandon Keith tallied four goals and two assists for the Lasers (3-5, 1-0 Pilgrim), including the game-winning strike with 1:49 remaining in the extra session. Ryan Ballentine paced the Engineers (2-5, 0-1 Pilgrim) with three goals and three assists.
Dave Bulhoes opened the scoring for the visitors with back-to-back strikes as Jon Elia and Keith earned the assists. Neil Zimmerman connected on a Ballentine pass at the 8:03 mark to put MIT on the board. Keith notched a pair of unassisted goals that sandwiched a solo strike by Ballentine to give Lasell a 4-2 lead at the end of the first period.
The Engineers evened the contest midway through the second stanza courtesy of goals from Dylan Roden and Patrick Shannon. Adam Foss put the Lasers ahead, 5-4, but Ballentine found Michael Fowler for the equalizer with five minutes remaining in the half.
Keith gave Lasell a slight edge after 2:24 expired in the third quarter; however a pair of man-up goals gave MIT its first lead (7-6) with 3:57 on the clock. Ballentine converted a feed from Fowler before John Kucharczyk registered the go-ahead marker that was set up by Corey Garvey.
The Cardinal and Gray doubled its advantage when Zimmerman found Ballentine with 11:28 on the clock. The game was a defensive battle until the Lasers rattled off three straight goals in a span of 4:33. Mike Maggio assisted Ryan Koerner on the first goal at the 5:36 mark. Maggio then found the back of the net twice, the second time with 1:03 left to play. The Engineers responded with Ballentine setting up Garvey for the tying goal with 35 seconds remaining in regulation. Following the ensuing faceoff, MIT netminder Garth Grove fought off a pair of point-blank shots to preserve the deadlock and force overtime.
Midway through the extra session, Matt Stambler scooped up a groundball in Lasell's defensive zone and sent it to Alex Engels who sprinted downfield, quickly finding Keith for the game-winning tally.
Garvey, Fowler, and Zimmerman each posted a goal and an assist as Garvey added four groundballs. Ebbe Strathairn paced the Engineers with six groundballs while Alex Andrzejewski contributed four of his own. Grove finished the day with 10 saves.
Maggio registered two goals and an assist as Bulhoes scored twice. Foss notched a game-high 14 groundballs while Stambler contributed five groundballs. In net, Mike Kelliher collected 14 saves.
Both squads continue conference play on Saturday, April 4. MIT will travel to Massachusetts Maritime Academy while Lasell will host Wheaton College.


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The system I will go over in this guide is an amalgamation of my favorite features and functionality from various animation tutorials and game programming books that I have read over the years. The system will support any style of sprite sheets that you can think of!
NOTE : This tutorial assumes you know how to create projects in Visual Studio and also add files and XNA content in the solution explorer (including SpriteFonts).
Lets set up our projects. Create a new Windows Game Project in Visual Studio and name it whatever you like (I will name mine AnimationProject). Add a Windows Game Library to the your Game Project called AnimationLibrary. Dont forget to add a reference to the AnimationLibrary in your Game Project!
Once you have the project set up we will need to add a couple of class files to the AnimationLibrary project called KeyFrame and Animation. These two classes will define exactly what an animation is and how it functions. I will post the classes and go over what each variable and method will be used for.
Starting with the KeyFrame class :
/// <summary> /// Represents a single frame in an animation /// </summary> public sealed class KeyFrame { #region Fields // Holds a region of the sprite sheet private Rectangle source; #endregion #region Properties public Rectangle Source { get { return source; } } //Utility Property for easy access to source.Width public int Width { get { return source.Width; } } //Utility Property for easy access to source.Height public int Height { get { return source.Height; } } #endregion #region Constructor public KeyFrame(int x, int y, int width, int height) { source = new Rectangle(x, y, width, height); } #endregion }
The purpose of this class is to define what a frame is in our animations. Our Animation class will manage a list of these objects. The reason we create a class to hold the source rectangle instead of just adding a List<Rectangle> field to the animation class is that we can easily add some cool functionality to a KeyFrame. For example, you have an animation of your character drawing back his sword and swinging. If you want to play a slashing sound effect right when the sword is swung you could add a field (int, string, enum) to the KeyFrame class that holds data for a sound effect. When the Animation class encounters a key frame it will check if that variable is initialized and if so tell your game to play the specified sound. This is a great and easy way to make smooth timings for things in your game. You could also give the KeyFrame class a Vector2 value to define its origin. This can be useful if you have frames of different sizes in the same animation.
Now onto the Animation class!
/// <summary> /// Contains the data needed to animate a series of frames defined in a texture /// </summary> public sealed class Animation { #region Fields //Used to identify specific animations private string name; //Will this animation play in a constant loop? private bool shouldLoop; //Lets us know if the animation has reached the last frame private bool isComplete; //How many frames a second we want to display private float framesPerSecond; //The amount of seconds that have to pass before we switch frames private float timePerFrame; //We add the elapsed time to this variable each frame private float totalElapsedTime; //Holds a value that points to an element in a list of frames private int currentFrame; //The frames of this animation private List<KeyFrame> keyFrames; // Used for animations that do not loop to switch to other // animations when complete private string transitionKey; #endregion #region Properties public string Name { get { return name; } set { name = value; } } public bool ShouldLoop { get { return shouldLoop; } set { shouldLoop = value; } } public float FramesPerSecond { get { return framesPerSecond; } set { framesPerSecond = value; } } public List<KeyFrame> KeyFrames { get { return keyFrames; } set { keyFrames = value; } } public KeyFrame CurntKeyFrame { get { return keyFrames[currentFrame]; } } public bool IsComplete { get { return isComplete; } set { isComplete = value; } } public string TransitionKey { get { return transitionKey; } } #endregion #region Constructor public Animation() { name = string.Empty; shouldLoop = false; isComplete = false; framesPerSecond = 0; timePerFrame = 0; totalElapsedTime = 0; currentFrame = -1; keyFrames = new List<KeyFrame>(); } public Animation(string name, bool shouldLoop, float framesPerSecond, string transitionKey) { this.name = name; this.shouldLoop = shouldLoop; this.framesPerSecond = framesPerSecond; this.transitionKey = transitionKey; timePerFrame = 1.0f / framesPerSecond; keyFrames = new List<KeyFrame>(60); isComplete = false; currentFrame = -1; totalElapsedTime = 0; } #endregion #region Methods /// <summary> /// This method will make sure this animation starts fresh /// </summary> public void Reset() { currentFrame = 0; totalElapsedTime = 0; isComplete = false; } /// <summary> /// Adds a KeyFrame object to our list of KeyFrames /// </summary> /// <param name="x">The x coord in texture space</param> /// <param name="y">The y coord in texture space</param> /// <param name="width">The width in pixels of out source</param> /// <param name="height">The height in pixels of out source</param> public void AddKeyFrame(int x, int y, int width, int height) { KeyFrame keyFrame = new KeyFrame(x, y, width, height); keyFrames.Add(keyFrame); } #endregion #region Update /// <summary> /// Updates the logic to advance through our list of frames /// </summary> /// <param name="gameTime">provides a snapshot of timing values</param> public void Update(GameTime gameTime) { totalElapsedTime += (float)gameTime.ElapsedGameTime.TotalSeconds; KeyFrame keyFrame = keyFrames[currentFrame]; if (totalElapsedTime >= timePerFrame) { if (currentFrame >= keyFrames.Count - 1) { if (shouldLoop) { currentFrame = 0; isComplete = false; } else { isComplete = true; } } else { currentFrame++; } totalElapsedTime -= totalElapsedTime; } } #endregion }
There is a lot going on in here that we need to go over. We will start with the fields.
[string name] This is used to identify the specific animation for various functions in this system
[bool shouldLoop] Lets us know if the animation is supposed to play in a loop.
[bool isComplete] Tells us if the animation has reached the last KeyFrame.
[float framesPerSecond] the number of KeyFrames we want to display to the screen in a second.
[float timePerFrame] This is the amount of time that needs to pass before we can switch to the next KeyFrame.
[float totalElapsedTime] acts as a timer that we compare to timePerFrame to see if we need to switch to the next KeyFrame.
[int currentFrame] stores the current frame to render and update.
[List<KeyFrame> frames] holds all the KeyFrames in this animation
[string transitionKey] used to switch to another animation when completed (only for non-looping animations)
The properties will reveal most of the private fields. We have one property, CurntKeyFrame, that acts as a utility property for easy access to the current frame. Time to go over the methods.
The Reset() method is used when changing to a new Animation. It makes sure the animation starts fresh by resetting some variables.
The AddKeyFrame() method helps us easily add KeyFrame objects to our list.
Update() is the brain of the class. This contains the logic to cycle through our KeyFrame list. We will step through it piece by piece.
totalElapsedTime += (float)gameTime.ElapsedGameTime.TotalSeconds; KeyFrame keyFrame = keyFrames[currentFrame];
We start by updating our timer (totalElapsedTime) and setting the current KeyFrame.
if (totalElapsedTime >= timePerFrame)
Now we check if totalElapsedTime is greater than the timePerFrame value that we get from framesPerSecond. If totalElapsedTime is greater than timePerFrame we know enough time has passed to switch to the next frame but first we need to check a few things.
if (currentFrame >= keyFrames.Count - 1) { if (shouldLoop) { currentFrame = 0; isComplete = false; } else { isComplete = true; } } else { currentFrame++; } totalElapsedTime -= totalElapsedTime;
Check if this KeyFrame is the last frame in our animation, and if so we will see if this animation should loop back to the beginning. If this animation does not loop we will set the isComplete flag to true. If all else fails we know that we still have some frames left to cycle through so we update the currentFrame and reset out timer so we can go through the process all over again in the next frame of our game.
We can now add a class to the Game Project we created called AnimatedEntity. Here is the class in its entirety. I will step through all of the fields and methods.
public class AnimatedEntity { #region Fields // Holds all animations this entity can play private Dictionary<string, Animation> animations; // The animation we are currently playing private Animation currentAnimation; // The texture that contains all of our frames private Texture2D spriteSheet; // Positon of the sprite in our world private Vector2 position; // Tells SpriteBatch where to center our texture private Vector2 origin; // The rotation of our sprite private float rotation; // The scale of our sprite private float scale; // Tells SpriteBatch how to flip our texture private SpriteEffects flipEffect; // Tells SpriteBatch what color to tint our texture with private Color tintColor; #endregion #region Properties public Vector2 Position { get { return position; } set { position = value; } } public float Scale { get { return scale; } set { scale = value; } } public float Rotation { get { return rotation; } set { rotation = value; } } public SpriteEffects FlipEffect { get { return flipEffect; } set { flipEffect = value; } } public string CurntAnimationName { get { return currentAnimation.Name; } } #endregion #region Constructor public AnimatedEntity() { animations = new Dictionary<string, Animation>(24); spriteSheet = null; position = Vector2.Zero; origin = Vector2.Zero; rotation = 0; scale = 1; flipEffect = SpriteEffects.None; tintColor = Color.White; } public AnimatedEntity(Vector2 position, float scale, Color tintColor) { //Initialize the Dictionary animations = new Dictionary<string, Animation>(24); spriteSheet = null; origin = Vector2.Zero; rotation = 0; flipEffect = SpriteEffects.None; this.position = position; this.scale = scale; this.tintColor = tintColor; //Make sure the color is set to something otherwise we wont see //the texture drawn if (tintColor == null) tintColor = Color.White; //If the scale is less than 0 we wont see the texture drawn if (scale <= 0) scale = 0.1f; } #endregion #region Initialization /// <summary> /// Loads the sprite sheet texture /// </summary> /// <param name="content">ContentManager to load from</param> /// <param name="textureAssetName">The asset name of our texture</param> public void LoadContent(ContentManager content, string textureAssetName) { //Load our sprite sheet texture spriteSheet = content.Load<Texture2D>(textureAssetName); } public void LoadContent(Texture2D spriteSheet) { //Set our sprite sheet texture this.spriteSheet = spriteSheet; } #endregion #region Methods /// <summary> /// Helper method to add Animations to this entity /// </summary> /// <param name="animation">The Animation we want to add</param> public void AddAnimation(Animation animation) { // Is this Animation already in the Dictionary? if (!animations.ContainsKey(animation.Name)) { // If not we can safely add it animations.Add(animation.Name, animation); } else { // Otherwise we tell are computer to yell at us throw new ApplicationException("Animation Key is already contained in the Dictionary"); } } /// <summary> /// Tells this entity to play an specific animation /// </summary> /// <param name="key">The name of the animation you want to play</param> public void PlayAnimation(string key) { if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(key) || !animations.ContainsKey(key)) return; if (currentAnimation != null) { if (currentAnimation.Name == key) { return; } } currentAnimation = animations[key]; currentAnimation.Reset(); } #endregion #region Update /// <summary> /// We call this method to Update our animation each frame /// </summary> /// <param name="gameTime">Provides a snapshot of timing values</param> public void Update(GameTime gameTime) { if (currentAnimation != null) { origin.X = currentAnimation.CurntKeyFrame.Width / 2; origin.Y = currentAnimation.CurntKeyFrame.Height / 2; currentAnimation.Update(gameTime); if (currentAnimation.IsComplete) { if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(currentAnimation.TransitionKey)) { PlayAnimation(currentAnimation.TransitionKey); } } } } #endregion #region Draw /// <summary> /// Draws the AnimatedEntity /// </summary> /// <param name="gameTime">Provides a snapshot of timing values</param> /// <param name="spriteBatch">The SpriteBatch object we will us to draw</param> public void Draw(GameTime gameTime, SpriteBatch spriteBatch) { if (currentAnimation != null) { spriteBatch.Draw(spriteSheet, position, currentAnimation.CurntKeyFrame.Source, tintColor, rotation, origin, scale, flipEffect, 0); } } #endregion }
The first field is a Dictionary<string, Animation> that will hold all the Animation objects this entity will use. The string value we pass in as the Key will be the name field we gave our animation class. The next is an Animation field to hold a reference to the currently playing animation. The rest of the fields will be passed to the SpriteBatch object we use to draw the entity.
The AnimatedEntity LoadContent methods are used to load or set our sprite sheet texture. AddAnimation is a helper method to add animations to the entity. We check to see if the Dictionary contains the key (name) of the animation we want to add and if not we are safe to add it. The PlayAnimation class is how we tell the entity what animation to update. We pass in the name of the animation we want to play and do a few checks to make sure its safe to switch animations. If we pass the tests we will set the new animation and call the Reset method to be sure it plays fresh. Next in line is the Update method. In this method we handle the logic for updating our currently playing animation and transitions. We first check if the currentAnimation field is null and if not we can start updating it. We set our origin to the center of our source rectangle contained in currentAnimation.CurntKeyFrame. Now we call the Animations Update method to begin cycling through all of the KeyFrames. If the animations IsComplete flag is true we know that it doesnt loop so we can check if the transitionKey has a value and switch to that animation. This lets us have an animation that is only meant to transition into others. For example (this is a mouthful) if we want our player to go from an idle animation to a start running animation and finally into a running loop animation we would only have to pass the name given to the running loop animation into the start running animations constructor. When we set the entity to start running from idle it will automatically switch to the running loop on the last frame of the start running animation. Last but not least we have the Draw method. This does what you would expect. We give it a SpriteBatch object and call spriteBatch.Draw passing the sprite sheet texture, position, the source of the current KeyFrame and the rest of the drawing related fields.
That is it! You should now have a functioning system that updates and draws spriteSheet based animation with some nifty features. To preview the system in action add this texture http://flic.kr/p/dZW96E (Which I take no credit in creating) to your XNA Game Content and a SpriteFont of your choice.
Add these fields to your Game1 class :
private SpriteFont font; private AnimatedEntity entity; private KeyboardState prevKeyState; private KeyboardState curntKeyState; private const string idleTrans = "idleTrans"; private const string idle = "idleLoop"; private const string run = "runLoop"; private const string stopRun = "stopRun";
In the LoadContent method of Game1 add this code :
// Create a new SpriteBatch, which can be used to draw textures. spriteBatch = new SpriteBatch(GraphicsDevice); font = Content.Load<SpriteFont>("font"); //<--- make sure its the name of your font entity = new AnimatedEntity(new Vector2(GraphicsDevice.Viewport.Width / 2, GraphicsDevice.Viewport.Height / 2), 1, Color.White); entity.LoadContent(Content, "spriteSheet"); // Each frame in the sprite sheet is 55x70 Animation idleLoop = new Animation(idle, true, 1, string.Empty); idleLoop.AddKeyFrame(770, 0, 55, 70); Animation idleTransition = new Animation(idleTrans, false, 12, idle); for (int i = 0; i < 14; i++) { idleTransition.AddKeyFrame(i * 55, 0, 55, 70); } Animation runLoop = new Animation(run, true, 12, string.Empty); for (int i = 0; i < 15; i++) { runLoop.AddKeyFrame(i * 55, 70, 55, 70); } Animation stopRunTrans = new Animation(stopRun, false, 20, idleTrans); for (int i = 0; i < 13; i++) { stopRunTrans.AddKeyFrame(i * 55, 140, 55, 70); } entity.AddAnimation(idleLoop); entity.AddAnimation(idleTransition); entity.AddAnimation(runLoop); entity.AddAnimation(stopRunTrans); entity.PlayAnimation(idleTrans);
In the Game1 Update method add This above base.Update(gameTime) :
prevKeyState = curntKeyState; curntKeyState = Keyboard.GetState(); if (prevKeyState.IsKeyDown(Keys.D) && curntKeyState.IsKeyDown(Keys.D)) { entity.PlayAnimation(run); entity.FlipEffect = SpriteEffects.None; } if (prevKeyState.IsKeyDown(Keys.A) && curntKeyState.IsKeyDown(Keys.A)) { entity.PlayAnimation(run); entity.FlipEffect = SpriteEffects.FlipHorizontally; } if (entity.CurntAnimationName == run) { if ((prevKeyState.IsKeyUp(Keys.A) && curntKeyState.IsKeyUp(Keys.A)) && (prevKeyState.IsKeyUp(Keys.D) && curntKeyState.IsKeyUp(Keys.D))) { if (entity.CurntAnimationName != idleTrans || entity.CurntAnimationName != idle) { entity.PlayAnimation(stopRun); } } } entity.Update(gameTime);
And finally in the Game1 Draw method paste this :
spriteBatch.Begin(SpriteSortMode.Deferred, BlendState.AlphaBlend); entity.Draw(gameTime, spriteBatch); spriteBatch.DrawString( font, entity.CurntAnimationName, new Vector2((GraphicsDevice.Viewport.Width / 2), 20), Color.Black, 0, font.MeasureString(entity.CurntAnimationName) / 2, 1, SpriteEffects.None, 0); spriteBatch.End();
Press F5 and use the A & D buttons to make the characters animations change. Thanks for reading and Enjoy!
If you have any constructive criticism directed at this Guide please let me know in the comments!


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Amateur Radio Info.
Communication subsystem
Inverting SSB/CW transponder 300 mW
- 435.150 - 435.130 MHz Uplink
- 145.950 - 145.970 MHz Downlink
Operational when in eclipse
Telemetry subsystem
145.935 MHz BPSK Telemetry 300 mW
Operational when in sunlight
The operational settings can be changed by the command stations. E.g. during public holidays or weekends when schools will be closed.


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read books..it's good for you
9 responses
Lisa Toleno (Deleted) gave props (19 Mar 2011):
cool capture
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An original and creative concept
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Beautiful image
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nice and dramatic
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Great shot..............
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Lipton Cabinets
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I do love our sport. We have got to the stage where a white & red shoe is described as 'staid' and considered to be bereft of bling. These shoes look great, but they (we) do little to make cycling a sport that someone catching a bit of the TdF on tv would think they could just go out and have a crack at.
These dhb R2.0C Carbon Road Cycling shoes are like many other dhb products; not too fancy, but they do their job really well, and they come at a fair price. They're light and stiff, making them ideal for racing, sportives, training or just the sportier side of leisure cycling.
The dhb range of cycle clothing is an in-house brand at Wiggle, the on-line cycle superstore. The R2.0C shoes are the new version of dhb's RC shoes, which are now discontinued, and similar to dhb's R1.0s. As well as the carbon soles being a major difference, there's a couple of other variations as well, which I'll come to later.
But first - the carbon soles. These do their job very well. They are very stiff, meaning no bendy feet, which means all the power from your legs is transferred to the pedals. They're also light, and a weight reduction - especially in rotating weight - in theory means less effort is required to keep the pedals turning.
The shoes accept only three-hole cleats (eg, Look and SPD-SL) and I bolted in my Look Keo cleats with no bother. As befitting a racing-style cycling shoe, the soles do not have a recess for the cleats, meaning you walk on the cleats when you're off the bike. On each shoe, there's a small horseshoe-shaped heel stud and a few similar studs under the toe area to aid walking and keep you from scuffing the carbon sole, but these studs are made from hard plastic, with no grip, which makes a walk on smooth floor-tiles rather precarious.
The only other features of the soles are a couple of ventilation slots fore and aft, covered in mesh - presumably to stop grit getting inside, or maybe particularly tenacious insects.
The upper part of the shoes consist of leather-look synthetic fabric around the base, ankle, tongue and toe box, with some mesh panels along each side for ventilation. The toe box also has some slighly retro-looking breather holes to help air in, or moisture out, depending on conditions. Compared to some other shoes, there's not a huge amount of ventilation - which might be a problem if you ride a lot in hot conditions (but won't be a problem if you're riding in the UK this year).
The R2.0C shoes are available in black or white. On the black version, the overall appearance of the shoe is rather staid and low-key, but for cyclists who prefer less bling this style will be an advantage. The white version looks a bit more modern, but is still relatively low-key compared to some other brands out there. On both colour options, there's also a few bits of red and reflective silver trim.
The inner lining is also bright red and extends a long way above the 'rim' of the shoe. Style-conscious riders who like all their kit to match will be forced to dress only in complementary shades of red.
The shoes are fastened with three straps, the top one closed with a ratchet and the other two with Velcro. The ratchet feels positive, and the release button make it easy to fine-tune the fit of the shoe on the go.
The lining is made from something called 'quad-core mesh' which provides a good degree of padding without your feet feeling sloppy inside. The insoles are also slightly spongy, thanks to ribbing on the underside, but they didn't seem to stop all the vibrations coming up through the soles, so I swapped these out for my own personal insoles (which also provide a bit more arch support to spread the load) and these proved more comfortable.
The insoles supplied with these shoes have a few ventilation holes that line up with the ventilation slots in the soles. If you swap them for other insoles, the holes may not line up with the slots, but this isn't a major issue unless you're in hot conditions, when it's the work of a moment with a hole-punch to get a breeze round your metatarsals once again.
On sizing, I take 43 in Shimano and Specialized shoes, and find them fine of length and width (I have wide feet). These dhb R2.0C shoes are also 43 and perfect on length. However, I found them very slightly on the narrow side. Not enough to mean going up a size, but definitely noticeable. This contrasts with the dhb R1.0 shoes tested previously, which fitted perfectly all round. I assume the carbon version must be made on a slightly narrower last. I now wear very thin socks in these R2.0C shoes, and that seems to solve the problem. if you've got average width feet a doubt this will be an issue.
Retailing at a penny less than £90, these shoes compared well to carbon-soled shoes from other brands, and are very good value for the weight and performance provided.
No-bling carbon-soled road shoes, offering light weight and good performance in a good value package.
If you're thinking of buying this product using a cashback deal why not use the road.cc Top Cashback page and get some top cashback while helping to support your favourite independent cycling website
road.cc test report
Make and model: dhb R2.0C Carbon Road Cycling shoes
Size tested: White/Red, 43
Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
The Wiggle website says: "The R2.0C is the big brother to the R1.0. The key difference between these shoes is the 100 percent Carbon Fibre composite sole. Carbon Fibre composite has a phenomenal inherent stiffness to weight ratio, which means a relatively small amount of material can be used to create the ultimate power transfer platform. The 3K carbon fibre (3K refers to the number of fibres per bundle) is laid up in a 1x1 Plain weave to achieve the tightest 3 dimensional mapping across the design of the sole. A top layer of high gloss lacquer protects the bold aesthetic of the carbon fibre weave. TPU Protector nodules at the heel and toe end of the shoe (where the shoe will receive most contact) help to reduce aesthetic wear on the sole when walking."
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
The Wiggle website emphasises these key features:
100 percent Carbon Fibre composite sole
Synthetic Upper
Quad core air mesh inserts
All-round ventilation holes
Injection molded polymer heel counter
360 degree reflective detailing
3-hole cleat ready
Cleats - 3 Bolt Look Type
Use: Road
Construction seems very good. I've already scuffed the carbon soles, but that's inevitable on any shoe.
The weight-to-stiffness ratio of the soles provides excellent performance.
I've done a few hundred test miles in these shoes, but so far durability seems very good.
These shoes weigh 868g the pair. Not super-light compared to other brands, so marked on weight alone they get 7.
As mentioned in the review, I found these shoes pinched a bit on width, compared to other brands I use (and including another dhb shoe), but I've got wide feet, so cyclists with average feet will have no problem.
There are lighter shoes out there, but not at this price.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
Stiff sole. Light weight. Good value.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
Personally, I don't like the loud red lining that shows above the shoe.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes.
Would you consider buying the product? Probably not, as thse shoes felt just a tad tight on my wide feet.
Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes, especially if they dressed a lot in red and liked their shoes to match.
Anything further to say about the product in conclusion?
Overall, for most cyclists, these shoes represent a great choice: light, stiff and at a very fair price. The relatively low-key look may not appeal to everyone, but for those who prefer less bling it'll be another plus point.
About the tester
Age: 51 Height: 5ft 10 / 178cm Weight: 11 stone / 70kg
I usually ride: an old Marin Alp, or an old steel classic My best bike is: an old Giant Cadex (can you see a theme here?)
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: A few times a week I would class myself as: Experienced
I regularly do the following types of riding: touring, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding,


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Posted by Olivia on Thursday, December 16th, 2010
Earlier in the month, we gave you a heavenly recipe for Sweet Cherry & Rosemary Biscuits. These holiday scones were so good that our dinner guests requested we use them in another dessert recipe!
Here's what we came up with: a holiday bread pudding that uses those same delicious sweet biscuits as the bread base. Yum! If you don't happen to have any of the scones on hand, or you want a store-bought quick fix, you can substitute any other sweet bread instead. Cinnamon raisin bread, Hawaiian rolls, or day-old muffins would all be great in this recipe. (Thought we highly recommend making it with the Sweet Cherry & Rosemary Biscuits!)
Holiday Bread Pudding would be great as part of a seasonal brunch menu, served alongside smoked salmon and a veggie frittata. Or serve it with a dollop of whipped cream or creme fraiche for an irresistable dessert. Store it in the fridge and eat within a few days--we don't think that willbe a problem at all.


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Proposition 34, a ballot measure that would abolish the death penalty in California, faces long odds at the polls. But it has a major advantage over the opposing campaign — wealthy donors, from Silicon Valley executives to Hollywood actors, willing to write fat checks.
With less than two months to go before the election, Proposition 34's campaign has amassed more than $5.4 million to persuade California voters to get rid of capital punishment, dwarfing the paltry $208,000 gathered by a pro-death-penalty coalition of law enforcement and victims' rights groups.
From Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and new Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer to actor Ed Asner and rocker Jackson Browne, the Proposition 34 campaign has a glittering roster of the rich and famous putting money behind the first vote on whether to retain the death penalty in California since it was reinstated in 1978.
If approved, Proposition 34 would replace the death penalty with life in prison without the possibility of parole and clear the state's death row, which now exceeds 720 condemned killers. The measure's supporters say the death penalty system is too flawed, slow and expensive to retain, while opponents insist the cost concerns are exaggerated and that California should keep the ultimate punishment for heinous murderers.
Natasha Minsker, Proposition 34's campaign manager, said the successful fundraising effort is particularly important in this election, when the ballot is crowded with the presidential race, numerous local races and tax measures, as well as 11 statewide ballot measures.
But anti-Proposition 34 forces say there is enough entrenched sentiment for the death penalty that they don't need as much to get the message out, as long as voters hear from police, prosecutors and victims' families.
"We know we are going to be out-raised because we don't have Hollywood celebrities and liberal do-gooders on our side," said McGregor Scott, a former Sacramento U.S. attorney heading the campaign against the measure. "Ours will be an old-fashioned, word-of-mouth, grass-roots" campaign.
Historically, Californians have strongly favored the death penalty, but that support has diminished somewhat in recent years. And voters have indicated in past polls that they might be willing to replace the death penalty as long as the worst of the worst get life without parole.
Pundits say that with an issue such as the death penalty, it's hard to evaluate whether the "money talks" advantage in most political campaigns applies.
"Normally you see something like that and say it's a slam dunk," said Larry Gerston, a San Jose State political-science professor. "But in this case, it's such an emotional issue for people that I don't think they need a campaign against it. And it's always harder to get a 'yes' vote on something than a 'no' vote."
Others agree, but say that the substantial money difference could tip the scales if the polls show a tight race as the Nov. 6 election approaches. Indeed, the Proposition 34 campaign has plans to run statewide television ads in the final weeks before the election.
"If law enforcement opposes this and nobody knows, that would be a disadvantage," said Thad Kousser, a UC San Diego political-science professor. "If you look at the general literature on propositions, especially in California, money matters on both sides."
Experts caution that it's still early and money could flow into the opposition campaign, citing the 2004 battle over a measure that sought to revise California's Three Strikes Law. Proposition 66 was leading handily until then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger enlisted the backing of billionaire Henry Nicholas, who poured $3 million into a late push that defeated the measure.
Proposition 36, another measure to reform the Three Strikes Law on this fall's ballot, is again leading in the polls, as well as enjoying a substantial edge in fundraising.
Michael Rushford, executive director of the pro-death-penalty Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, concedes that his side will not overcome the Proposition 34 campaign's money advantage. "The anti-death penalty effort has always been far more organized and funded than its opposition," he said.
That is certainly the case in the current election.
The two biggest donors to Proposition 34 so far are Nicholas Pritzker, CEO of the Hyatt hotels chain, and the Atlantic Advocacy Fund, a New York-based philanthropy established by billionaire Charles Feeney. Both have chipped in $1 million.
Silicon Valley's wealthy are also well-represented. They include Hastings, the Netflix CEO, who donated $250,000, and the Emerson Collective, a nonprofit headed by Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple's Steve Jobs. Emerson contributed $150,000.
For his part, Hastings believes the main argument in favor of Proposition 34 — that the death penalty is a waste of money — is a good reason to back it.
"In California, we will save tens of millions of dollars every year if we change from the death penalty to life in prison without chance of parole," Hastings told this newspaper in an email exchange. "That money would be better spent on educating kids instead."
Howard Mintz covers legal affairs. Contact him at 408-286-0236 or follow him at Twitter.com/hmintz. Bay Area News Group researcher Leigh Poitinger contributed to this report.
Nicholas Pritzker, CEO of Hyatt hotels chain: $1 million
The Atlantic Advocacy Fund, New York-based philanthropy headed by billionaire Charles Feeney: $1 million
Reed Hastings, Netflix CEO: $250,000
M. Quinn Delaney, major Democratic Party fundraiser and former ACLU director: $250,000
Farfalla Trust trustee Denise Foderaro, wife of Silicon Valley investment banker Frank Quattrone: $250,000
ACLU of Northern California: $232,882
Nick McKeown, Stanford University computer science and electrical engineering professor: $187,500
Emerson Collective, Silicon Valley philanthropy headed by Laurene Powell Jobs: $150,000
ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties: $135,997
Robert Alan Eustace, Google executive: $125,000
Source: Bay Area News Group research


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How to Draw Boys' Formal Clothes
You should have no problems getting your fashion-drawing boys to dress up just the way you want them to (unlike the real versions). Sooner or later, a boy has to get dressed up for a holiday, a family party, or a school concert. Much to his displeasure, he has to put on a decent pair of pants and a blazer.
Brush up on blazer basics
A boy's blazer is simply the mini version of a man's blazer with simple lapels, two lower pockets, and one breast pocket. By using basic shapes, you can create the jacket that boys hate to wear!
Here's how to draw a boy in a blazer:
Draw the top half of a boy fashion figure and add in slightly curved lines for the armhole seams.
A boy's chest is not packed full of muscles, so draw it slim.
Map out two curved rectangles for the front of the jacket, showing them a few inches apart for the jacket to be open. Draw in the sleeves.
Draw slightly looser sleeves than you would for a man's jacket and end the sleeves at the wrist bones.
Add two triangles inside the inner edge of each curved rectangle for the lapels.
Use a straight line to show pockets. Don't forget the buttons and the breast pocket!
Most blazers are of a dark hue, so shade in the jacket with the side of a soft pencil.
Try drawing a tie
Getting a little guy or tween boy to put on (and keep on) a tie in real life is a challenge, but fashion drawings don't put up a fight, so deck out your young dude in a tie! Like a bow tie, a tie lies under the collar.
Here's how to draw a tie on a boy:
Draw a boy's head, neck, and shoulders.
Sketch out two triangles for a shirt collar where the neck meets the torso.
Draw a small square between the collars, just below where the triangles meet.
This square represents the tie's knot.
To draw the sides of the tie, draw short angled lines out from the bottom of the square. Extend the lines down and then angle them toward each other to form a point.
The tip of a tie hits slightly below the waist.


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We were in the cold process soaping kind of mood, and we were inspired by the scent Blueberry Cheesecake Fragrance Oil. We wanted to do something different and add a little extra element to the recipe really challenging our soap making capabilities. Obviously, since the scent was a cheesecake type fragrance oil, the go to ingredient in our minds was Cream Cheese; a vital piece to any cheesecake recipe.
The first step we took was to set the cream cheese out for a few hours so that it would be room temperature when we added it to the soaping oils (before the addition of lye water). We figured this was a logical step since you do the same thing when you make real cheesecake. In the first recipe that we tried, the cream cheese portion was 25% of our water amount; we figured we would go for the gusto.
We had already made our concentrated lye solution; it was cooling down. Our soaping butters and oils were also in a melted state. So, while we played the waiting game; we placed the cream cheese into the melted oils to allow the heat to soften up the cream cheese even further. And, it did just that. Using a spatula we were further able to break up the cream cheese. This was the first real visible hitch that we had. Once the cream cheese was broken up in our soaping oils the appearance was a little different than what we had anticipated. The cream cheese basically looked like it was ricing in our bowl.
We still proceeded as normal, and once the temperatures were correct to add the lye solution into the soaping oils, we did just that. Once the stick blender was introduced into the equation, the riced look was no longer a problem. The cream cheese was completely emulsified as was the rest of the soaping batter. We were golden.
As for any other special elements for this recipe; due to the fact that Blueberry Cheesecake Fragrance Oil discolors, we also added vanilla white color stabilizer to help reduce discoloration in our finished soap. This was added at a 1 to 1 ratio. We also desired to make this soap look identical to real blueberry cheesecake. So, besides the colorants used to make the deep bluish hue, we also used titanium dioxide to whiten the "cheesecake" portion of the soap.
There were no other hiccups as we proceeded with the rest of the soaping recipe. Once the batter was pot swirled and poured into the molds, we allowed it to sit undisturbed; playing the waiting game once again.
Flash Forward: After the soap sat in the mold for 24 hours, we unmolded it. The soap showed promise with beautiful outside coloration. We were very excited to cut the loaf and see how the pot swirl had turned out. After slicing a few of the bars, we were in awe of the delightful thick swirls running throughout each bar we sliced. That was when we noticed the foul smell coming from the freshly sliced soap. The blueberry cheesecake scent was very evident, but the soap also had a strange aroma to it. Our first thought was the cream cheese. Was it possible that the cream cheese had some kind of reaction during the soaping process? We were not sure. So, we reviewed the recipe, ran it through soap calc again, and came to the realization that 25% was too high of a percentage of cream cheese. So, we were going to try the recipe again.
The next day we reworked our numbers. This time we only added 20% cream cheese, and we corrected our water portion amount. Everything else was exactly the same. After the soaping process and mold time, once again we were in the same boat. The new cut soap also had that strange foul odor to it. Another great learning experience for us; but it was still a failure when it came to mastering the cream cheese recipe.
Not wanting to throw the proverbial towel in yet; we tried the cream cheese soap recipe one last time. For this we held the cream cheese at 20% but this time we soaped at the lowest temperature possible. Knowing the the third time is a charm, and hyped that we may have just salvaged the soap recipe, we anxiously sliced the first piece… and with the bar came that smell.
Finally, we decided that soaping with cream cheese is a lot like soaping with butter; finicky butyric acid!
Taking a step back, we still really liked the quality of the bars, even with the smell. We noticed that the bars from our first recipe still had the odor, but it was not as strong. It seemed to dissipate as the bars cured; saving us from complete disaster. However, not wanting to settle, the Blueberry Cheesecake Fragrance deserved a much better recipe to truly highlight its mouth-watering aroma.
We ended up making the Blueberry Cheesecake Cold Process Soap Recipe again. However, this time we used 2% milk instead of cream cheese. Since we had soaped with dairy before with the Cleopatra Cold Process Soap Recipe (heavy whipping cream) and the Caramel Custard Cold Process Soap Recipe (evaporated milk), we went with a 50% water and 50% frozen milk portion.
In true soaping with dairy fashion, we froze the weighed out milk portion and added it straight to the melted butters and oils. We then proceeded with adding the lye water and so on. There were no issues with this recipe. We were very happy with the in pot swirl and final colors in our soap bars. With all of the coloring practice we had with this recipe; it was spot on! The performance of the finished bars themselves were great; full of lather, lightly exfoliated, and moisturized the skin. Overall, even with the few hiccups we had with the cream cheese, it was all worth it in the end.
To view the full Blueberry Cheesecake Cold Process Soap Recipe, you can simply click on the link. This recipe or any of the recipes mentioned in this blog post are also listed under the Free Recipes and Classes Section of Natures Garden'swebsite categorized under Cold Process Soap Recipes.


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