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Well now, I took it a step further! I depotted all of the pans and put magnets on the back and arranged them in a Mac quad as it's much smaller. I updated some of the colours and now I have the perfect compact lip palette which is great for travelling!
Thursday, 16 September 2010
Lip Palette Idea
Well now, I took it a step further! I depotted all of the pans and put magnets on the back and arranged them in a Mac quad as it's much smaller. I updated some of the colours and now I have the perfect compact lip palette which is great for travelling!
27 comments:
- dani@callitbeauty said...
wow, this is a fantastic idea! i can't even imagine the amount of time this would take me.
i'm not sure if i would do it though, because i can be quite messy and i'd probably end up smearing some shades together :p. but i think i'm still intrigued enough to try it out with a few shades.
thanks for sharing!
- 16 September 2010 at 18:32
- Ella Pretty said...
Amazing idea - and really compact too!
Are the lipsticks in eyeshadow pans from the Claire's case in the other post? They slot together so neatly!
I'm thinking of doing this for my mom - was looking through her lipsticks the other day - and she has so many tubes with so little product - yet she doesn't want to throw them away.
- 16 September 2010 at 18:43
- Muhsine said...
@Dani Thanks :) You should try it, it just needs some patience.
@Ella Pretty - Yes they were eyeshadow pans :) It's a good idea to do that for your mum, she will love it.
- 16 September 2010 at 18:59
- sikenthreads said...
Aw this is so cute! Some of those lip colours look amazing.
- 16 September 2010 at 19:00
- sikenthreads said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- 16 September 2010 at 19:00
- Shameera@MyFrostedWorld said...
This is such a good idea...Must have taken you ages, but so worth it! Next step - Make a palette with a whole look in it...concealor, shadow and lips...!!
- 16 September 2010 at 19:13
- Houda said...
oooh I like this idea very productive so this is what you have been doing all this time eh? good to see your creativeness never stops xxxxx
- 16 September 2010 at 19:23
- beeroyal said...
omg i love it!!! what a sick idea! :)
- 16 September 2010 at 19:32
- Muhsine said...
@Shameera Don't :) because I will attempt it lol x
@Houda it never stops :)
- 16 September 2010 at 19:53
- Sugarpuff said...
that is an amazing idea, I think I will try this myself! would be good for taking make up to a job!
- 16 September 2010 at 20:26
- fantastic said...
this further proves my point! hehe.. although, i like this idea--i've got a couple quads that i haven't put to use, and this would be a very good use of them :) i love your creativity! x
- 16 September 2010 at 21:37
- Shameera@MyFrostedWorld said...
Lol I want you to try it just so that I can see it...!! Then probably copy you! x
- 16 September 2010 at 21:45
thats such a great idea! i definitely need a more travel friendly way to store my lipsticks :) thank you!
- 16 September 2010 at 21:47
- Rubinha said...
congrats! this palette is great! ^^
- 16 September 2010 at 21:51
- Perfectly Unordinary said...
Great idea!! This is taking depotting to the next level :)
- 16 September 2010 at 22:14
- Tali said...
Such a good idea but i know myself.. between the smooshing, melting, depotting, magnet sticking... I would burn my house down. Its cheaper to just keep them as they are and suffer the space issue when I travel! hehe xxx
- 17 September 2010 at 01:17
- Oreleona said...
omg that is sooo amazing!!!! omg!! (i read ur other post and woow!!) so thats how lipstick palettes are made!!! i might try that in the near future!!
- 17 September 2010 at 06:58
- Glitterish Allsorts said...
Did you find that you managed to melt a whole lipstick for each little section? or did you have to leave some in the tube? Thanks1 x
- 17 September 2010 at 13:43
- Jay said...
Very good idea. But you have to be brave and travel with a lip brush.
I don´t know if i could do this to my mac lipsticks but maybe with the rimmel ones.
- 17 September 2010 at 14:16
- Stavroula said...
Cool idea, I might try it! :)
- 17 September 2010 at 22:11
- shoe devotee said...
WOW! If only I was talented like you. :) Great idea, great post. Unfortunately I just don't have the material for DIY. Even if I try, it will probably end in a catasthrophe. Like Tali said, I will probably burn my house down. :)
- 17 September 2010 at 22:52
- Muhsine said...
@Tali lol :)
@Glitterish Allsorts - I only melted 1/4 of a lipstick.
- 18 September 2010 at 00:29
- Mary Ann said...
This, and your other diy lip palette, is GENIOUS!!
- 19 September 2010 at 05:49
- Voguerrilla said...
this is such a creative idea! Love it!
- 19 September 2010 at 16:34
- Julie said...
Wow wow wow! Just genius! Any idea how long the original palette took to make?
- 21 September 2010 at 03:51
- Muhsine said...
Ji Julie - it took quite a while, melting the lipsticks depotting them, I'd say it's a nice thing to do on a Sunday :)
- 21 September 2010 at 11:53
- Julie said...
Thanks for the estimate!
- 23 September 2010 at 02:48


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Roll your mouse over the information in the calendar, details will pop-up (when viewing monthly). Once they do, click on the title link to get the event details.
Starting at 1pm, women (and their male supporters) rally and march , from 7th Street Park in Hudson.
Last day to send out military ballots.
Elections will be held for open positions in the villages of Athens, Coxsackie, Catskill, Hunter (and Tannersville).
Last day to mail (postmark) registration form to the Board of Elections.
Last day for Board of Elections to receive mail registration form.
Last day to register in person at the Board of Elections.
Last day to mail (postmark) application for absentee ballot for Special Election.
Last day to apply in person at Board of Elections for absentee ballot for NYS Special Election and last day to mail (postmark) absentee ballot.
Last day to deliver absentee ballot in person at the Board of Elections by close of polls at 9 pm.

subset: commoncrawl


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Foolin: How To Work The Altar At Church! (Laying People Out) "The Vulcan Death Grip"
"Tutorial on how to lay people out that come up to the altar" - @KevOnStage @JsonFredericks @MrAntDavis
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
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Happy Friday! I have a very special post for you today. While I'm on my own personal mission to write guest posts this year, I think it's only fair I open my own blog up for guest posting. Akirah has just launched her own website that has a very personal and wonderful mission. I'm so excited to bring you her post – and as a special note, you should definitely hop on over to her blog as she's running a very awesome giveaway – check it out here.
Hello everyone! My name is Akirah Robinson. I recently launched akirahrobinson.com, my own special space on the Internet where I remind women of how brave their hearts are and teach them how to pursue healthy relationships.
Today I am really happy Stephany let me take over her special space on the internet because I love her blog, especially the letters she writes to her future husband. Her letters are always honest and show how committed she is to being with not just any man, but the right man. I've always admired that about her and thought today I would write a letter too. This letter is for twenty-four year old me, right after I finally decided to break up with my abusive boyfriend and learn how to live life on my own.
Dear Akirah,
You did it. I am really proud of you. There will be some tough nights ahead, but trust me, you won't regret this decision. In fact, in a few years you'll consider it the best decision of your life. And you will be very happy.
You've known for a while that this relationship was wrong for you. Even on your first date, you knew something about him was off. I understand why you held on for so long though. Don't feel silly for trying to make it work. You simply wanted what most of your friends already had: a boyfriend.
Boyfriends can be great, but not when they're abusive. Over the next few months it will sink in just how unhealthy this relationship was. You'll attend a support group for other survivors of abuse which will help you a lot. You'll regain your confidence, run a 10K, start rockin' an afro, and begin grad school.
You'll date a lot of different guys and get your heart broken a few times, but after becoming stronger and wiser, you won't take too long to bounce back. You'll go dancing with your girlfriends, live in an apartment by yourself, and even accept a promotion at work. So many awesome things are ahead of you, Akirah. Your mid-twenties are going to ROCK!
That doesn't mean life will be easy. There will be some nights when you cry yourself to sleep. You'll read some article claiming that 70% of black women never get married and it will freak you out to your core. Some days you'll feel fat and inadequate and ugly. You'll grow impatient with singleness and wonder if you should take your ex back. And when all of your friends start to get engaged, you'll freak out some more. It will feel like you're being left behind, but try hard to trust your journey. Marriage and babies do not make your friends' journeys any better than yours. Your journey is unique and beautiful.
Remember that.
This relationship may have failed, but you are not a failure. Everyone and their mother could see how much you gave this man. He just wasn't able or willing to give you what you deserve in return. Hard work is crucial to a relationship and it must be reciprocated in order for the relationship to survive. One day you will meet a wonderful man and fall head over heels in love with him. After you get married, you'll both work equally hard at your partnership. Words cannot express just how right he is for you. For now, be patient. Your life with him will be worth the wait.
Akirah, you must believe that even when you don't have a man in your life, you are still valuable. Your worth is not determined by whether or not you are the apple of some man's eye. This is a dangerous lie and the sooner you realize that, the better off you'll be. You'll struggle with this a lot over the next few years, so do a little bit each day to change your perspective. You deserve to know the freedom that comes with self-love. Self-love will sustain you. Seeking validation from men will not.
These next few months are going to be hard. I won't sugarcoat it for you; breakups suck. But your heart is brave. Let it guide you as you begin healing. Journal. Cry. Eat cookies in bed. Go dancing every weekend. Travel. Get a fish. Go shopping. Enjoy your girlfriends. Read good books. Run.
Focus on you.
After four years, it's about time you see how awesome that can be.


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Easton Corbin Takes a Thrill Ride With a Vixen in 'All Over the Road' Video
Easton Corbin got super creative and had quite a bit of fun with his video for 'All Over the Road.' It's more like an extended theatrical trailer than it is an actual music video and it's hot, thanks to the long-legged, lollipop-licking vixen who courts trouble like it was her job. She brings Corbin along for the ride, somewhat against his will. Lucky him!
The fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants action, shot in St. Augustine, Fla. in the fall, takes place in a convenience store before moving to the wide open road, courtesy of a muscle car. That's a given, since the song is called 'All Over the Road.' It would be criminal not to involve a sweet set of wheels.
Speaking of criminal, the ensuing action features the hostage, the chase, the horror and the thrills. No, really! Those are the subtitles.
Corbin and the sexy lady put the pedal to the metal, and he even gets to make out with this trouble-seeking hottie while driving.
Don't try that at home, folks. But you sure can have a good time watching the action unfold on screen in front of you. It's certainly a thrill ride, courtesy of Easton Corbin.


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This post is the first in a new series, "Things I Want" for my new house.
Though the seller's listing for my new house touted "updated appliances," the sentence must have been cut off before "…in 1995" could have been added to make it accurate.
At 15 years old, my noisy top-mount refrigerator nears the end of its life expectancy and runs double the energy a new Energy Star model would — and it's only 18 cubic feet of capacity.
And, let's face it: this dusty relic is uuugly. C'mon, I stare at pictures of designer kitchens everyday. That's like making the Elephant Man judge beauty pageants. Just saying.
Desirable: Liebherr CS-1660
Liebherr, a German refrigeration manufacturer, makes 30-inch wide, counter depth bottom freezer refrigerator that would be a great investment for my kitchen.
This summer, I'll be receiving a box of fresh produce weekly from a farm share, which makes Liebherr's dual-compression system an ideal choice.
Standard refrigerators first cool the freezer — meaning the moisture is pulled out of the air as its cooled (think about your skin in the winter) — and then send that air into the refrigerator compartment. So, instead of produce getting the moisture ideal for preservation (think about the sprinklers in the grocery store produce displays), dry air actually draws moisture out of your food.
In Liebherr refrigerators, separate compressors keep colder, dry air in the the freezer away from the moist air in the refrigerator. Produce "keeps" much longer, meaning you throw out much less expensive fresh foods.
Not keen on veggies? You can keep fresh meat and fish in the refrigerator days longer before it needs to be used or frozen.
Plus, Liebherr hands down makes the greenest, most-sustainable refrigerators company out there.
The downside? It's more than $4,000.
Great investment? Yes.
But unfortunately, I'm not staying in my house long enough to realize the full return on that.
Acquirable: GE GFSS2HCYSS
On sale through August, this GE French-door refrigerator costs only $1,299 in stainless (MSRP is $1,649!).
But the price can't be the only reason to select a product. So I like this particular fridge because:
- it offers a 22.2 cubic feet capacity
- it's Energy Star, which means it is 20 percent more energy-efficient than a new, standard refrigerator
- crisper drawers with adjustable humidity help preserve my farm share produce
- adjustable fridge shelves and slide-out freezer shelves help me maximize space
But, let's face it. I like it because it's one of the prettiest.
- The hinges are hidden.
- The stainless-steel crown doors distinguish it from many others on the market.
- And the gray cabinet gives a more finished look than the black cabinets many stainless-steel models employ.
From a longevity standpoint, I'd probably choose white (except I hate those textured finishes…) because stainless steel will probably trend out in a decade.
But for a house I plan to live in for five to seven years, a stainless-steel French door refrigerator seems like the most attractive choice from a resale value standpoint.
Those are the features that are important to me. What do you have now, and are you looking to replace it? If you recently purchased a new fridge, what stood out to you about the one you chose?


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Visa's Chief Enterprise Risk Officer, Ellen Richey, recently presented at the Visa Security Summit on March 19th. One of the valuable points made in her presentation was defending the value of implementing PCI DSS to protect against data theft. In addition, Ellen Richey spoke about the challenge organizations face, not only becoming compliant, but proactively maintaining compliance, defending against attacks and protecting sensitive information.
Recent compromises of payment processors and merchants that were stated to be PCI compliant have brought criticism to the PCI program. Our views are strongly aligned with the views presented by Ellen Richey. While the current PCI program requires an annual audit, this audit is simply an annual health-check. If you were to view the PCI audit like a state vehicle inspection. Even though at the time of the inspection everything on your car checks out, this does not prevent the situation of days later your brake lights go out. You would still have a valid inspection sticker, but are no longer in compliance with safety requirements. It is the owner's responsibility to ensure the car is maintained appropriately. Similarly in PCI, it is the company's responsibility to ensure the effectiveness and maintenance of controls to protect their data in an ongoing manner.
Ellen Richey also mentioned increased collaboration with the payment card industry, merchants and consumers. Collaboration is a key step to implementing the technology and processes necessary to continue reducing fraud and data theft. From a merchant, service provider and payment processor perspective, new technologies and programs will continue to reduce transaction risk, but, today, there are areas where these organizations need to proactively improve. The PCI DSS standard provides guidance around the implementation of controls to protect data. Though in addition to protecting data, merchants, service providers and processors need to proactively address their ability to detect attack and be prepared to respond effectively in the event of a compromise. These are two areas that are not currently adequately addressed by the PCI DSS and are areas where we continue to see organizations lacking.
See the following link to the Remarks by Ellen Richey, Chief Enterprise Risk Officer, Visa Inc. at the Visa Security Summit, March 19, 2009:


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WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT: TMZ has obtained the heartbreaking 911 call made by Corey Haim's mother the morning he collapsed at her apartment on March 10.
Judy has a difficult time understanding the 911 dispatcher. It's hard to understand what he's saying.
Judy makes it clear Corey is not breathing. He was pronounced dead an hour and 15 minutes after the 911 call.
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LSU Gymnastics Signs Two in Fall Period
Associate SID
BATON ROUGE - LSU gymnastics head coach D-D Breaux has received the National Letters of Intent from two standout gymnasts, she announced on Friday.
Ashleigh Gnat, a level 10 gymnast from Lake Mary, Fla., and Shonacee Oliva, a level 10 competitor from Clermont, Fla., inked with the Tigers and will be eligible to compete as freshmen in the 2014 season.
"I am excited because both kids are from this region, and they are both receiving extremely good coaching," Breaux said. "Ashleigh and Shonacee will make great additions to the LSU Tiger family, and we can't wait to have them join the team next year."
Gnat is the daughter of former gymnasts Ray and Joan Gnat. Ray, who also serves as Ashleigh's head coach at ACE Gymnastics, was an All-American gymnast for the LSU men's team, and Joan was a member of the 1972 United States Olympic team.
Gnat is a five-time JO Nationals qualifier, and she placed third in both vault and floor and fifth in the all-around at the 2012 national meet. She captured the vault, beam, floor and all-around titles at the 2012 Florida state championships, and she won the vault, beam and floor titles at the 2012 regional championships, placing second in the all-around.
"When we started the recruiting process with her awhile back Ashleigh was an elite vaulter," Breaux said. "With the great coaching she has received through the years she is now solid in four events. Ashleigh is a strong tumbler, and she does a lot of difficulty on beam. We are really excited about the contributions she is going to be able to make as an all-arounder."
The daughter of Sean and Lucy Oliva, Shonacee trains at Brandy Johnson's Global Gymnastics Academy under coaches Kelly Pitzen, Brian Amato and Brandy Johnson-Scharpf.
Oliva is a two-time JO Nationals qualifier, and she finished 15th in the all-around at nationals in 2012. She placed second on vault, beam and in the all-around at the 2012 Florida state championships, and she followed that up with top-five finishes on vault, bars, floor and the all-around at the regional championships.
"Shonacee is a very clean gymnast with a good degree of difficulty," Breaux said. "We feel like she will come in and contribute on all four events. She is still learning and developing, and we know she is only going to get better. We are really excited to have her as part of this class."


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I've finally got a good set up to play games in training classes and am looking for new ones to add to my repertoire. I'm looking for games to work on basic obedience at various levels, but I'll take other suggestions as well.
Anyone have any good games you've played in class, heard about, thought up on your own?


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Update on Oculus Technology, Shipping Details
When we launched our Kickstarter campaign in August, we hoped to sell a few hundred kits to game developers and virtual reality enthusiasts around the world. Instead, we were blown away by the overwhelming response from a community of almost 10,000 backers, who raised nearly $2.5 million dollars to help us develop the Oculus Rift.
Designing, sourcing, and manufacturing thousands of developer kits is no small feat. Since our Kickstarter, we've been up against the wall, working around the clock to produce and distribute over 7,500 units in just 4 short, crazy months. We've had to modify our original design for mass-manufacturing and, at the same time, balance additional features with our tight schedule.
We wanted to have the developer kits to all our backers before the holidays; but more than that, we want to ship the best Oculus Rift developer kit possible. In order to accommodate the required changes, new features, and manufacturing duration, we had to shift our ship date.
We're happy to be able to finally announce that the Oculus Rift developer kits will begin shipping in March 2013.
We want to thank everyone for their patience and support. Know that we're pouring our hearts into this project.
We'd like to share a few details about why we've pushed the estimated delivery and what we've done behind the scenes to improve the Rift since our Kickstarter's launch.
Manufacturing 7,500 Developer Kits
The majority of the remaining work is now in the hands of our manufacturer, who's currently making the injection mold tooling used to create the Rift's plastic shell (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Injection_molding if you're interested in learning more). We waited to make an official announcement until we had a firm schedule from our manufacturer.
Here's the latest timeline, as of Nov. 27:
Larger version of chart available here.
All together, preparing the factory for mass production of a product like the Rift takes approximately 90 days and the factory can't begin until design and feature set has been locked down. Our manufacturer is already underway with the first tooling (T1), which takes roughly 50-70 days. Once the primary tooling is complete, we'll do a series of pilot runs for minor tweaks and adjustments before mass production. Simultaneously, we'll be testing and certifying the device for public use.
If you're interested in learning more about why tooling a plastic product like the Rift can take up to 70 days, check out this 5 minute video from the Discovery Channel on how plastic injection molds are made: "How It's Made: Injection Molds".
Once the tooling has been finalized and the factory is full throttle with production, we'll be able to produce over 500 developer kits each day. We're looking forward to having that sort of volume rolling out to the developers everywhere.
We'll be shipping out the developer kits in the same order as the Kickstarter pledges were received (first come, first served). Based on this current schedule, the goal is to ship the majority of the rewards by mid-March. We may not have all 7,500 kits in the first shipment, but we'll continue shipping out kits as soon as they arrive. We're estimating that we can have all the rewards sent out by mid-April. Any pre-orders taken post-Kickstarter (through www.oculusvr.com/preorder/) are expected to ship in late April 2013, after we've delivered all the Kickstarter rewards.
Once we've put your rewards in the mail, US residents should expect to receive them within 5-7 business days and international backers should receive theirs in 2-3 weeks, depending on the destination.
Finding the Right Display
One of the toughest challenges was finding the right display for mass production. Many of you already know that the Oculus Rift prototypes we've been showing use a 5.6'' LCD. While not perfect, it's been sufficient for early research and development, including the work John Carmack did with DOOM 3: BFG Edition. Unfortunately, production of that display was recently discontinued, a fact we learned after trying to source (buy in bulk) enough to meet the incredible response from the developer community.
When we set out to find a new display, there were a number of key factors to consider for the best experience. The ideal screen would have a refresh rate of least 60hz, a resolution of 720p or better, a low response time, and a viewing area between 5.5'' and 7'' diagonally.
We tested every available (non-proprietary) display we could get our hands on. Surprisingly, there aren't many available screens in a 5.5'' – 7'' form factor that meet our requirements.
Ultimately, we selected a modern, 1280x800 7'' display for the developer kit. The bright side is that the new display beats the old display in almost every key area including response time, switching time, contrast, and color quality. The improved switching time of the panel actually alleviates most of the motion blur people saw in earlier prototype demos. The downside to our new 7'' is the weight differential: approximately 30g more than the 5.6''.
A New Sensor Designed for VR
The original Oculus Rift prototypes used an off-the-shelf sensor from one of the leading sensor vendors in the country. While the original sensor was high quality, we made the decision to develop our own 9DOF motion sensor that excels in VR-critical areas. These new sensors should be part of the developer kits shipping in March.
The new Oculus sensor supports a refresh rate of up to 1000hz, which is several times faster than the previous sensor. In addition to the accelerometer and gyroscope, it also includes a magnetometer, which opens new doors in terms of sensor data and head-tracking. The data coming from the new sensor will be accessible using the Oculus SDK in easy to manipulate formats (quaternion, matrix, Euler angles). The raw sensor data is also available for those that want to do the math themselves.
Building a new motion sensor is a major undertaking. There are plenty of challenges we're working on, particularly sensor calibration and multi-platform driver development, but we're confident the new sensor will be worth the engineering effort in the long run and we're happy with the results thus far.
Latest Working Prototypes from Factory
This is a fully functional prototype of the Rift developer kit. The cable shown here is similar in width and weight to the actual 6ft custom cable used for the developer kits, which was designed specifically for the Rift.
Here's a snapshot of the latest control box model for the headset. This little guy combines the video, USB, and power lines into the single, custom cable running to the headset. This helps reduce weight and extra cabling from the Rift.
Please understand that the designs above are subject to change; though you can expect these to be very close to the final versions.
3D Engine Integrations
The Unreal Engine 3 and Unity integrations are coming together well. The Unreal integration is in a completely playable/usable state, including the Unreal Tournament 3 sample game which is now a great Oculus-ready example for developers.
The Unity integration is getting underway with the latest Oculus SDK codebase. We'll post another update in the near future with footage of Oculus VR inside Unity.
We're working closely with Epic and Unity on integrating support for the Oculus Rift in the free versions of their engines and will keep the community posted on the progress.
Oculus Developer Center Coming
We're in the process of bringing the Oculus Developer Center online. The Developer Center will have the latest Oculus SDK, engine integrations, official forums, support system, and ways to send hardware/software feedback directly to the Oculus engineering team.
All developers will be invited to join the Developer Center and start discussing Rift development before the kits begin shipping.
Developer Kits, Consumer Rifts, and Virtual Reality
We're planning a handful of Kickstarter updates dedicated to more detailed information regarding the sensor, the screen, the display controller, and the headset itself. These should be posted over the next few weeks.
Plans for the consumer version of the Oculus Rift are already underway. Due to time constraints for the developer kit, we had to push several exciting features to the consumer version. We'll continue to keep everyone posted on our progress as we move from research and development into confirmed features.
We're also counting on you, the community, to help us shape the future of VR and the Oculus Rift. We hope you're as excited as we are!
Thanks again,
Palmer and the Oculus team
Benjamin Barany on
I did look back at the original kickstarter page and it did indeed say "estimated delivery". So I take what I said back, a 3 month delay is not the end of the world, and Im still enthusiastic about the dev kit.
This user's account has been deleted.
Benjamin Barany on
I dont think I ever expected this to ship in december, but I'm glad you guys issued an apology in the comments section. That said, not everyone reads the comment section, but all backers get updates. You guys really should issue an apology on the next update as well (maybe even a update specifically for that). Pretty much everyone on this board is rooting for your team, and is quite understanding of the delay.
Bo3b Johnson on
For my part, I signed up for the dev kit with full expectation that the schedule would slip. Once it went from a few hundred to thousands of kits, you are in a different ballpark. Maybe you could get there with 3D printing, but going for a full production run is not a bad choice. It slows it down, but also improves the quality.
Thanks for the tidbit about the over the top strap. This is easily my biggest concern. You cannot play 4 hours of games with this much weight attached with a compression strap. The actual weight of the device doesn't matter, even something as light as NVidia 3D Vision glasses become noticeable after a few hours.
From my limited research, the key is to distribute the weight on the top of your head. As long as we can get some pressure off the bridge of the nose, it will be viable. The ideal setup would be to have it just be snug, not trying to hold the weight, where the neck and spine are holding the gravitational pressure.
I'll be keenly interested in how well the over-the-head strap alleviates the pressure.
Also, thanks for the feedback. Please keep giving us updates, keep us in the loop. The only bad part is missing the schedule at the last minute, and fessing up then. It's always better to set expectations as you go along. It's very corporate and the lawyers love the idea of never saying anything- but the way to engender good will is to be open and honest.
Best of luck, and I'm really looking forward to doing some development. If the SDK is ready in any form before the hardware, I'd be very interested in getting earlier seeds of that so that I can set up for development, read any documentation, and start understanding the nuances.
Campbell Ellis on
A three month delay, one week before proposed delivery. What impact, do you think, this asymmetrical communication will have on the validity of the Kickstarter concept? Is it possible to offer developers the SDK with an emulator?
Johannes Eickhold on
Kerras: I would gues it is a LED used as a power/signal indicator.
Lassi Kinnunen on
I had assumed that the tooling had been done 90 days ago, so next time a bit more current reporting on the status, please(also a bit disappointed that sensor, display choice & shell all were under development during the time it would have had to been in production to meet the date..).
Ben Welch-Bolen on
Awesome, very excited to see this develop! Great job and keep up the updates!
@Nate - Thanks for the update and replies! A little bit disappointed that it sounds like some of the awesome features are being saved for the consumer version, but let's do our best to make it as amazing as possible. As for the vision issue, I buy small glasses so I can shove them in my motorcycle helmet/shooting goggles/chemical safety equipment. If that's no good, I'll just roleplay a poor bloke who's lost his glasses, 'cause, you know, stuff happens. We're expecting great things from the Oculus team in 2013!
Nelson Sobrino on
I'm a bit confused. In the side bar, it still says that the Doom 3 BFG & Early Rift Dev Kit are scheduled to ship in December. Should I expect anything in December, or is it all being pushed to March?
GalactaVision on
=[ Christmas is canceled. :::: in low moaning nightmare before christmas voice :::: Seriously though, thank you for going the extra mile to make this quality! We here at Galactavision(TM) are already developing a game that we feel will take advantage of the Oculus's awesomeness. What is the best way to contact Palmer as to talk about our plans for the future?
Oculus Creator on
@Gavin Greenwalt & Sangster- You're both right. The way it's set up for this demo, looking, aiming and turning are all linked, so the right analog stick also alters the view. Even though they're both affecting the same control, subjectively it feels like the headtracking turns your head (limited range), while the right analog stick turns your body (unlimited range).
If I want to glance left, I turn my head. If I want to spin around, I use the right analog stick, and turn my head in the same direction just out of habit. It's all surprisingly natural in practice.
Ultimately, the headtracking is just another input variable, and we're not trying to force any specific behavior in the gameplay. It's up to developers to explore whichever control setup works best for their games.
@SaltyBrains - The majority of my field of view is being crammed into half the width of that computer monitor, so what you're seeing isn't exactly representative of the amount of motion (1:1) I'm getting from behind the Rift. The scaling is configurable, and it will be up to developers to determine how much (or little) gain they want in their control setup. We'd recommend sticking close to 1:1, otherwise things can get a little disorienting.
Nava Whiteford on
Shame about the delay but inevitable I guess, everything's looking awesome! Must be really crazy/exciting right now!
Sauli Kiviranta on
Thanks for the answers Palmer. Do you think it is feasible to arrange some cable support for the belt equipped control box scenario so that cables are durable to attach without fear of breaking the connectors / loose cables during use? Either DIY to open it and mount something on the cover where to fix the cables, or some kind of mounting sockets on the cover for cable tie or such.
*ThumbsUp* to the Oculus team, the device looks awesome.
Sangster on
Regarding head tracking concerns; it seems in the video he's using the right stick for aiming, since head movements only slightly alter the direction of his weapon but right thumb movements are evident when the weapon moves more noticeably.
I suspect what we see on his monitor is not what he sees through the Oculus.
And Palmer, thanks for your great work in delivering something most of us have waited decades for. We can wait a little longer and we appreciate you take the time to deliver the best product possible within what is actually a very short time-frame.
Oculus Creator on
"Will the March dev kits have any support for vision correction or is that still only for the consumer release?"
@Jeffery – Vision correction will be supported for the consumer version, though it's unlikely for the developer kits. Sorry!
"Will there be any way to start developing for Unity before the dev kit release? A stubbed out "simulation" driver perhaps?"
@Jeffery – You can start developing your VR project in Unity now and add Oculus Rift support once the SDK is released. This is how the Unreal Sample Game integration was done and it will be similar for Unity projects (relatively out-of-the-box integration to turn on Oculus integration).
"Unity has just released Unity4, you mention 3 in your post. Can we assume that the Unity integration will work with whatever the current version of Unity is at the time of release?"
@Jeffery – Yep-- We're planning on integrating with Unity 4. I believe you were referring to the mention of Unreal Engine 3 in the update.
"Hey guys, I'm gonna have to change my shipping address based on this update - is that possible?"
@Max – Just shoot an email to email@example.com and we'll be more than happy to help update your shipping address.
"Deeply appreciate the update guys, thank you so much. Keep them coming! :)"
@Martin – Thanks! We're working on more information for everyone soon; just had to finalize our manufacturing first.
"1) can the oculus display "standard SBS" video stream ? (I see in the unreal integration teaser that the pictures are slightly cropped near the corners)
(2) what kind of video input does the oculus is planned to have ? (hdmi ? composite ? kinda-usb-ish ? )"
@Cyril – Take a look at the FAQ on our website (http://www.oculusvr.com/faq/) for detailed answers to these questions.
"Question: Wasn't it possible to go directly for the 5.6" 1080P displays that LG has?"
@Thomas – There are a handful of companies with 5.5''-7'' 1080p displays but they're either proprietary (exclusive and unavailable to Oculus) or they haven't yet entered mass production.
"Is the FoV improved, considering that you now have a bigger panel? I'm particularly interested in the new horizontal view, considering a FoV exceeding 100 degrees would add to the immersion considerably."
@Jannever – Yes, the field of view is slightly improved, but it's the difference is only a few degrees, which isn't particularly noticeable to the average user.
"I am a student and I really need the Oculus for my current project for my BA-Thesis. This is my final term and now it is delayed not just for a few weeks... "
@Patrick – We sincerely apologize! We're doing everything we can to expedite the manufacturing process without compromising the quality of the device.
"Looking at that video it looks like the gun tracks with the head. Wouldn't it make more sense for the crosshair/gun to be centered to body space and let the head drive a look-around from a centered and mouse/controller oriented middle?"
@Gavin – It really depends on the game and the other input's the player is using. For the Unreal Sample Game, keeping the gun tracked to the head and using the right stick to rotate the player horizontally makes for relatively intuitive navigation. For a racing/flight simulator, the head-tracking is relative to a fixed reference point and the other inputs (mouse/keyboard) would probably change the direction of the vehicle.
"What about the DIY-KIT?
@Benjamin – (From my other comment on the Project Comments page) We're still working out the details around the Unassembled Kits and we'll keep those backers posted on progress. We're working hard to get those kits out as quickly as possible. We can't guarantee anything today except that we'll make sure unassembled kit backers are happy with the way it all shakes out.
"Keep up the good work."
@Thomas – Appreciate it!
"Appreciate you showing the production timeline, good transparency for backers "
@Martin – Our pleasure. Thanks for reading!
"How did you ever think that the original dates were possible?"
@David – Even if we sourced a few thousand units with the original design, we were confident it was possible, albeit slightly rushed, to ship before December. As soon as it became clear we would be building 5,000+, we had to re-evaluate various aspects of the design (detailed in the update) and work with the factory to define a new timeline. All of that took us longer than expected, but we didn't know with certainty whether we would be early, on-time, or late until recently.
"Are you saying that the decision has been made to put it into the free versions and now it's just a matter of effort to get it in? Or is the free Vs Pro versions integration still iffy because it might not be technically possible, and it needs to be investigated first?"
@Modeus – If we aren't collaborating with Epic and Unity, the Unreal and Unity integrations would require the professional versions due to the limitations of the free versions. Regardless, we are talking with Epic and Unity about integrating support directly into the engine so the pro version isn't required. There aren't any technical roadblocks (as you can see from our Unreal Integration Teaser) and know that supporting the free versions of these engines is a priority.
"Why don't just send to for example european people directly from china? or use space in a small warehouse and then send from europe?"
@Victor – We may send a handful of units directly from the warehouse, but we have so many different reward combinations (including posters/t-shirts being made in the US, signed rewards, etc…), having all our logistics run out of a single warehouse makes managing our distribution easier.
"What happened to the concept picture you had ??"
@Sami – The focus is on delivering a great developer kit. The original concept from the Kickstarter video would have engineering flaws we decided to avoid in favor of raw functionality. Whether you love/hate the current design, we'll have a different design for the consumer version.
"Now you say you're "happy to be able to finally announce that it will begin shipping in March 2013". Shouldn't you rather apologize for the delay?"
@Romain – I completely understand that sentiment. We do apologize, sincerely, and we appreciate everyone's patience. Obviously, we want the kits out to everyone as fast as possible. We're "happy" to finally have a firm date that we can share, rather than having no date at all.
"From the functional prototype, looks like pupillary distance isn't adjustable? Was this an issue in testing?"
@Jason - The pupillary distance can be adjusted in software.
"…how much space is there in the device for glasses? The head-on picture is a bit difficult to gauge depth."
@Jin – There isn't much space at all—The developer kit isn't designed for glasses. For the best experience, your eyes need to be as close to the lenses as possible or the FOV is drastically reduced. We're working on a solution that allows users with poor eyesight to use the Rift without contacts/glasses.
"Also, can you ship it as a gift."
@Stefan – We can't ship the developer kits as a gift. Most countries impose very strict regulations on gifts (eg. must be an item in which no money was passed between gifter/giftee, item value less than $50). If we did declare it as a gift, it most customs offices will force the recipient to provide more information, pay duties and VAT, and delay its delivery.
"Hope you guys at Oculus pay heed to the needs of those of your users that have bad eyesight and need glasses - those of us with nearsightedness are probably in the clear, but those with farsightedness might require room for their glasses"
@Zael – We're working on a solution for this. Also, it's actually the other way around: far sighted people will be fine since the optics are collimated at infinity which makes your brain believe you're focusing on an object at a distance. Short-sighted people will need glasses. More information is available the FAQ on our website (http://www.oculusvr.com/faq/).
"…but it is for you giving only a very few updates on the status first and then, almost before first deadline, you say "oh sorry, just another 4 (!) months"
@Krom – We're sincerely sorry about shifting the delivery date . We needed all the details before we could provide an accurate update, that way everyone would know when to expect their kit. We'll continue doing our best to get everyone's developer kits out as fast as possible!
-- Nate
Benjamin Johnson on
I was a bit disappointed in the delay at first, until I read about the updates and saw the pictures of the prototype. The fact that the display has been upgraded, alone, makes the delay worth it.
oh and the delay is all okay :) i understand the pressure but like everyone else im just super excited to get started! ... dont take the comments negatively people are just excited.
im confused about the tracking, he turns his head a lot but the game only responds it seems in a small angle. is this the expected functionality? i was hoping more of a 1-to-1 relationship regarding head movements.
im really hoping this is just a coding issue and not an inherent limitation of the device, as i have a really specific functionality in mind.
connie strnat on
The lack of updates and the delayed delivery dates are pretty disappointing. Not being able to deliver what you promised right from the start causes me some concern. I hope things go smoothly from here on. And personally, I don't care that others "have been waiting decades..." I made the investment, I expected it to be honored when promised. Hopefully it will be worth the wait.
James Drury on
A good update. Perhaps a little tardy, but otherwise thoroughly explains what's going on and provides some nice screen shots.
As this is meant to be a developer shipment of a prototype piece of hardware, the delay is not unexpected... Unless you were assuming you were buying a made for retail product.
Nik on
Honestly, I think the delay is fine. With all the changes that need to be taken into account. I am just happy the project is still on track. Hell, if I get my hands on a convincing VR experience I have no problem waiting for another year. (Though I'd rather not, as I am way too excited.)
Also @Palmer, with the screen being bigger, does that mean you need more distortion or less ? Am I correct to assume the FOV may even benefit from this ?
Oculus Creator on
@MichaelH: 70 days is not at all unusual for making a mold, especially one as large and complex as the Rift needs. New Year celebrations last up to three weeks, and it takes time both to wind down the factory and to spin it back up. We are estimating on the conservative side to make sure there is enough time for everything to go down smoothly. We address the kits in another post, I will paste it here for you:
"The unassembled kit rewards will ship before everyone else (along with the handful of pre-Kickstarter orders from MTBS3D). More details later as they're nailed down. For everyone else, we'll ship kits out as quickly as we receive them from the factory. This depends on how many we receive in the first shipment (though we *expect* more than 3,000)."
Oculus Creator on
@Sauli: We have played a lot with weight distribution. You will notice that it has an optional strap that goes over the head, it gets rid of a lot of pressure.
The cable between the box and the HMD is not extendable, the signal degrades as the cable gets longer. What you could do, though, is wear the control box on your belt and run a long HDMI and power tether to that. Another solution would be to use something like the Asus WiCast and a battery pack for wireless operation.
MichaelH on
It is a bit concerning that you have 70 days for machining steel injection molds (!!) and 4 weeks for a holiday that is 7 days. These are unusual numbers to attach.
A question about the video: the change in angle seems very small, but he is moving his head around quite a bit. This seems at odds with the sort of things we saw in the Doom 3 demos. Is this what we should expect to be how the tracking is implemented?
Last, what of the un-assembled prototypes? You really need to address this.
Oculus Creator on
Addressing some common questions:
-The display is 1280x800, so 640x800 per eye. Using 1080p panels would give us 960x1080 per eye. Some people imagine it would be easy to just upgrade the Rift to use the 5" 1080p panels on the market, but this is simply not the case. They are smaller than we need, would result in a lower field of view, they are exclusive to a handful of very large companies. We can't even buy them right now! They are also very expensive (Too expensive to put in a $300 device with free shipping, those new 1080p phones cost twice as much!), and would require a new control board, new optics, and a new case; In short, an entirely new device.
-Yes, we anticipated some kind of schedule change in about late October. We could have had manufacturing running by now, but we had to delay so we could make sure that everything worked perfectly.
Yes, we anticipated there might be a schedule change once we were deep in the process with the factory, but we had no details on whether we'd be ahead or behind schedule until very recently. It's impossible to have an accurate manufacturing timeline until the factory knows every last detail.
We did not want to announce a delay without being able to give accurate dates. It would have been bad to announce a delay based on our best guess, then find out that Chinese New Year would push us back even further!
Tyler Griesinger on
Most every company I know that uses China to manufacture their products has counterfeits being made within a few months. I knew it is a general statement and not all Chinese companies will make counterfeits but...
Then again maybe that's what we want is prototypes all over Chinese wholesale websites like aliexpress and alibaba...
Ryan McClelland on
70 days for injection molded parts? This company can do it in 15 days or less. I use them regularly.
They are fantastically fast and cheap because the molds are developed by algorithms rather than manually. Plus you don't have to travel to China.
Maybe they are more expensive than Chinese manufactures, but for this small batch they should be very competitive.
Zael on
Hope you guys at Oculus pay heed to the needs of those of your users that have bad eyesight and need glasses - those of us with near-sightedness are probably in the clear, but those with farsightedness might require room for their glasses inside the visor if you don't come up with a more clever solution (contact lenses are of course an alternate option, but not everyone can wear them).
Aww, bummed, but I guess that's to be expected. The prototype's a little bit on the chunky side too, but I'm excited for the better screen - although is that the same resolution on a larger panel? That makes me a little bit worried about pixel pitch. Also, how much space is there in the device for glasses? The head-on picture is a bit difficult to gauge depth.
On the SDK and software side of things, any idea when an announcement might come out about that? I'd still like to start messing with the software over the holidays and maybe even play some Doom 3? Also, for all the games that claim to be launching Oculus-ready, will there be a provision to tape tablets to our faces to get a sneak peek at VR?
Paul on
Yes, I was a bit taken back by them saying "We are happy to...". I don't mind the delay (ish), and a very professionally made update to help illustrate why. But a lot of people have contributed to this on the expectations of a December delivery so there should at the very least been an apology and the timing is very last minute on this update, how about keeping people a bit more in the loop on these things as I'm sure it wasn't today or yesterday most of this was being realised!
Looking forward to this project being a success for all and so hope all goes well, just please communicate a little better with the community who backed you!
Ryan James Shaw on
Since us international backers have to wait so much longer that means you're going to allocate manufactured devkits to us preferentially, right? :)
libelula on
I agree that the wording "We are happy to.." is not the best. It should be "I am sorry to..". Regardless of what they teach in Marketing schools, when you make a promise and don't deliver, you should apologize, instead of pretending that there was not an announced date.
Other than that, I think the delay was to be expected and it is perfectly fine.
Keep up the good work!
Maxim Lysak on
I totally not agree, design is super cool and cyberpunkish! Way to go!
Sami Hamouri on
Palmer ! With all due respect to your hard work and attachments , Do not consider this shell for your Oculus Rift ! It looks really really bad ! What happened to the concept picture you had ??
Jeffrey Kesselman on
AIUI the optics in the Rift are basically a fish-eye lens. If you can get the exact specs from Oculus it might indeed be possible to outfit a camera with a reverse lens!
Good luck!
Nik on
I must say, while I am really excited about the oculus rift, this update concerns me a little. It seems that it must have been clear a while ago that the dev kits wouldn't be ready by december. Clearly, there were some miscalculations about how fast, those kits can be developed. Though I am quite surprised to learn that the screen wasn't actually available. Anyhow, I actually did not expect to receive the dev kit in december, as I thought the timeline was unrealistic. To be fair, it is a very young crew putting these things together and we can't expect a flawless release here. But, it would have been nice to learn about it earlier. Luckily this changes nothing for my own timelines, as I hadn't planed starting to develop for this thing until mid-next year. I am cautiously optimistic that I may receive a dev kit by june, but will look for an alternative now just in case. I wish oculus all the luck in the world, but please let your backers know about changes ahead of time, not about a week before people start wondering about tracking numbers for their shipments. We are not consumers, but mostly developers. I am sure most of us prefer the cold hard truth instead of wishful thinking :)


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By Andria Cheng
President Obama, in rewarding Gap Inc. /quotes/zigman/227242/delayed /quotes/nls/gps GPS for its decision to raise minimum wage for its store workers, paid an unexpected visit to one of its namesake stores in New York on Tuesday, reportedly spending about $150 for the First Lady and their daughters.
However, the shopping trip to drum up support for his minimum wage hike call to $10.10 from $7.25 may not do much to change most retailers' thinking on the issue. Despite Gap's move to raise minimum wage for its 65,000 workers, most retailers have chosen to stay on the sidelines to watch how the national debate plays out.
According to the latest Duke University/CFO Magazine Global Business Outlook Survey of 379 finance chiefs in the U.S., which concluded March 6, increasing the minimum wage nationwide to $10 per hour would lead to job losses among retail, service, and manufacturing firms. Within the retail sector, the survey, released on Wednesday, found 56.7% of 49 retail CFOs surveyed said their hiring plans will be reduced if the minimum wage is hiked. However, within the pool who said their hiring would be affected, the percentage went up to 82% if the minimum wage is hiked to $10.
"While $10 (or $10.10) would be a nice improvement for those still employed, the negative effects on jobs would be large," John Graham, a finance professor at Duke's Fuqua School of Business and director of the survey, told MarketWatch. "A more modest hike to $8.50 seems palatable to the industry."
Some states like California and Oregon are already above $8.50 – but no state is yet at $10, Graham said.
The U.S., as of 2012, had 3.55 million workers, or about 4.7% of the 75.28 million hourly workers, making the minimum wage or less, according to Labor Department data. The retail sector had 561,000 workers making at or below minimum wage, one of the industries with the biggest pool of minimum-wage workers, the Labor Department study showed.
The survey also found that a majority of U.S. CFOs worry about the impact of economic uncertainty on the companies' future plans. More than two-thirds of them said uncertainty due to government economic policies is causing them to hold back on hiring or capital spending or to increase their cash reserves.
In response to a less aggressive Federal Reserve monetary policy, finance chiefs in the U.S. said the borrowing costs faced by their firms will increase by about 1 percentage point by the end of this year. Among companies that need to borrow to fund their investment, most said that a modest increase in interest rates wouldn't stop them from borrowing. The survey respondents said their plans would be significantly crimped only if rates are to rise by 3 percentage points.
— Follow Andria on Twitter @AndriaCheng
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Emerging Markets PE Association CEO Headed to Abraaj
The founding CEO of the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association is leaving the Washington, D.C. trade group to join Abraaj Group, a firm that invests in emerging markets.
Sarah Alexander founded the Emerging Markets Private Equity Association eight years ago. The non-profit has since grown to include more than 300 member firms, which have more than $1 trillion under management.
At Abraaj she will become a managing director, working with the firm's North American stakeholders, including investors, portfolio companies and nonprofits. She is scheduled to begin that role next month.
Alexander "has become a globally recognized voice in the private equity for nearly a decade and has nurtured the development of the industry in growth markets," said Abraaj CEO and founder Arif Naqvi.
Abraaj was created in 2002 and originally focused on investing in the Middle East. The firm manages $7.5 billion and makes deals in emerging markets across the globe. It has 33 offices around the world, including in Bogota, London, Nairobi, Mumbai and Singapore. It generally invests between $10 million and $100 million in companies and real estate, taking minority and control positions.


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Johnson Won At Indy But Did He Win Indianapolis?
By Jim Pedley | Managing Editor
A look final look back at a weekend of bricks and brooms:
Jimmie Johnson got his fourth Brickyard 400 victory on Sunday and quite a bit has made about him joining A.J. Foyt, Rick Mears, Al Unser Sr., Michael Schumacher and Jeff Gordon as quadruple Indianapolis winners.
Of course, all the "elite group" and "exclusive fraternity" descriptions were carted out and all of the "How does it feel?" questions were dutifully asked.
And, yes, it is a cool accomplishment for Johnson and the No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports to win four Brickyard 400s and also, debatably, set himself up as the bunch to beat for the championship this year.
However, the view here is that the only "elite group" Johnson joined was the really exclusive one which includes just Gordon.
This, again, is not a knock on what Johnson – or Gordon – accomplished in NASCAR racing in Indy. (I myself am part of what has become a rather "exclusive fraternity" in that I insist the Brickyard should/needs to.must stay on the Sprint Cup schedule.)
But for some – mainly those who love motorsports in general and not just NASCAR or IndyCar or sports cars or the NHRA or Formula 1 – there are only three people who have captured the quad at Indianapolis and those are Foyt, Unser and Mears. Because when you say that somebody won Indianapolis, it is the 500 that you're talking about.
The strong belief here is that winning the Indianapolis 500 puts teams and drivers in a different, much higher category than winning the Brickyard 400, the United State Grand Prix or the MotoGP event at Indy.
Winning the 500 is winning Indianapolis.
The 500 is so much more than just a big race. It's a true event. It's an international event of world significance. It's 100 years of tradition and history and legends and tragedy. It's one of the three American sporting events – the The Masters and U.S. Open tennis being the others – which every year causes the rest of the world to briefly stop what it's doing and at least check out to see who won.
When you win the 500, you rule the racing world. When you win the Brickyard, you've won one of NASCAR's top three races.
And this is nothing against F1 or stock cars or even the bikes. When the world is reminded that Ayrton Senna won Monaco six times, you can be pretty sure they are not referring to the rally. Not many people would make a point to say there are only two drivers who have won five or more Daytonas – Richard Petty and Hurley Haywood.
Johnson and his Hendrick bunch have, denotatively, now won Indianapolis four times. Connotatively, they have not won Indianapolis.
I'm just sayin'…
Speaking of summer races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway…the thought here is that the Rolex GRAND-AM Series should live on at the place, but that the Nationwide Series race should not.
Seeing the sports cars on the infield road course at IMS was a hoot. Rain storms and all.
The GRAND-AM people have put together a pretty interesting formula. No, the machinery is not all that exotic, or even pretty, when it comes to the DP cars. They don't sound very melodic – the Porsches, Ferraris and Audis of the GT class sound much cooler – and the number of cars is shrinking.
But they sure do race well. They need a touch more power to get them past the GT cars better, but GRAND-AM always seems to feature close racing and exciting finishes in DP. The GT portions of the races are better still. My gosh, real cars with top drivers racing each other.
The Nationwide race at Indy lacked, well, everything. The racing was as non-compelling as in the Cup event but without the sense of major specialness.
Probably the biggest argument against racing NNS at Indy is the fact that the series was so good across town at Lucas Oil Raceway Park. The racing was good, the vibe was great. It had become ingrained into the Brickyard weekend; watch the Cup cars work out during the day Saturday at the speedway and then take a sunset ride over to wonderful LORP for some classic Midwestern weekend-evening short track racing.
Move NNS back to the cornfields and oil tanks.
Just throwin' that out there…
The guess here is that a lot of my purist-sap peers watched in dismay as yet another racing tradition took a beating from buck-chasing after Sunday's Brickyard. Kissing the bricks, apparently, has passed from spontaneous act of joy and emotion to kneeling down before gods from whom all wealth flows.
It was briefly baffling when a line of purple pillows was laid down across the track near the yard of bricks after the race. Then the purpose soon became apparent; the winners now spend as much time kneeling and kissing the bricks as they do passing over them in their cars. The reason, of course, is so that every sponsor's hat and gear can be recorded separately during what used to be a charming moment.
ESPN analyst Dale Jarrett, who, with his then-crew chief Todd Parrott gave birth to the act after they won the 1996 race, put the scene in perfect perspective Sunday. As some guy was out in front of Jimmie Johnson and his Hendrick team, directing every little detail of the impending tradition-come-photo op, Jarrett softy yet sarcastically remarked how the moment has become a much bigger "production" since the Jarrett-Parrott smooch.
Can the day be far off when the kissing of the bricks has a corporate sponsor?: And now folks, it's time for the Blistex Kiss of the Bricks, brought to you by Revlon and your local Ace Hardware dealer – bringing you the best in paving blocks fine masonry products since 1927.
Just rasin' a point…
The Western Swing portion of the NHRA season heads to the last of its three events this weekend and it does so with two drivers still with chances for a sweep.
Top Fueler Antron Brown and Pro Stocker Allen Johnson stayed in contention for the sweep when they won at Sonoma on Sunday.
Brown is a flasy high-profiler who drives for a Don Schumacher Racing team which expects to churn out victories they way it has this year. Johnson is a journeyman lone-wolf kind of guy, using Mopar engines built by his father.
Both are good storylines.
Yep, am caught up in the Swing, something that has just spontaneously blossomed over the years. It provides nice, competition-based sidebar action to a 10-month long season.
The thought here is that it's legit; that, yes, the drama of going from prepping cars and racing them at 8,000 feet, to the hot dryness of Sonoma, and then to the unpredictable sub-arctic environment of Kent, Washington is real.
It also sets up the Countdown (the need for which is still debatable) nicely.
Just thinkin'…
The NHRA also provided the top feud of the week last Sunday. And a confusing feud it was.
It involved Pro Stock drivers Greg Anderson and Erica Enders. After Anderson beat Enders in the quarterfinals, the five-time champ said it felt especially good after the disrespect Enders had displayed when she won her first natoinal event by beating Anderson in the final at Route 66 a couple weeks ago.
Anderson said emotionally on camera, "She kicked my butt in Chicago. I really didn't appreciate some of the things she did after that race … it was, in my mind, a little unprofessional."
Pressed by wonderful ESPN analyst Gary Gerould, Anderson would not elaborate.
Enders seemed baffled as well. She tracked down Anderson and confronted him. Tough to say what was said.
On to Seattle.
Just wonderin'…
– Jim Pedley can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com Comment


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Master your digital camera and learn the secrets behind outstanding photos! Whether you have a digital SLR, a point-and-shoot camera, or something in between, you'll learn how to use it the way you want to in this hands-on course! You also have the opportunity to have your lesson assignments critiqued by our knowledgeable teaching team of professional photographers.
You'll see how to choose the best photographic equipment for you and how to compose images with style. Exposure topics like aperture, shutter speed, metering, and ISO settings will all make sense as we break them down into simple concepts. If you want to work with manual exposure on your digital SLR, we cover that, too! We'll also explore natural and artificial lighting, freezing or blurring motion, portraiture, children's photography, pet photography, photojournalism, and digital editing options.
With each lesson, you'll have an assignment to apply the lesson topic using your own camera and, if you wish, your teaching team and your classmates will comment on your assignment images in a safe, constructive and positive environment.
After six short weeks, you'll see the difference in your photographer's eye and your photos! Secrets of Better Photography is also an excellent class to prepare you for the more advanced class, Travel Photography for the Digital Photographer.
Beverly Richards Schulz is a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography and an award-winning photographer. She has been teaching photography for more than 15 years. Since her first class with ed2go in 2000, she has written more than 30 online classes in digital photography and digital editing, and she's had the privilege of working with more than 70,000 students. She has a BA in Legal Studies from UC Berkeley, and a master's degree in Adult and Continuing Education. She and Eric Johnson are authors of the book Photoshop Elements 14—What's New?
An avid digital film photographer, she was an early adopter of digital technology and now teaches digital editing and photography skills to students from around the world. For the last 10 years, she has enjoyed being an adjunct faculty member with the University of San Francisco, teaching history and visual arts, as well as displaying and selling her work through galleries, and she has continued to expand her experience in travel photography and cross-cultural studies. In addition to teaching and photographic work, Beverly and her staff provide consulting services for digital photographers and clients.
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When Toni Coleman walked into Career Connections in Baltimore's Park Heights a month ago, she saw the rows of computers and training classrooms she'd expected of a new employment center.
But Coleman, who's struggled for about a year to find work, said she hadn't expected the personal attention that helped her not only polish an outdated resume and ferret out job possibilities but regain some confidence. A volunteer at the center, run by St. Vincent de Paul of Baltimore, sat down with her over several days to rewrite her resume and point her to some promising leads.
"Here, you have hands-on help," said Coleman, 68, a Woodlawn resident and former teacher, tutor and contract specialist for an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "Someone is always available to help you."
Offering hope might not be as concrete as sharpening interview skills, but can be just as important, the center's directors say.
Career Connections is part of St. Vincent de Paul's revamped workforce development initiative aimed at helping the jobless and under-employed find stable careers. It addresses a pressing need in Baltimore, where the unemployment rate was nearly 11 percent in July.
In areas such as Park Heights, where boarded-up houses outnumber occupied ones in many blocks, some people have resigned themselves to always having to work two or three low-wage jobs that offer short-term survival but no real future, said Tona Cravioto, the center's senior director of workforce development.
St. Vincent de Paul opened Career Connections in the St. Ambrose Center on Park Heights Avenue in March and a similar center in the nonprofit's Beans & Bread soup kitchen in Fells Point in May. The nonprofit serves 50,000 people a year through 13 programs offering emergency shelter, transitional housing, child services and job skills training.
"The new approach is [for the client] to see getting a job not as the ultimate goal but just the beginning," Cravioto said. "We work with clients on short-term goals on a weekly basis, to get ready, to get a job, to build a career and to reclaim their lives."
Along the way, career specialists remind their clients that "we do not have a magic stick where we can get you a job tomorrow," Cravioto said. "It's a lot of work."
In its first six months, the Park Heights center has served about 90 job seekers a month. Directors hope to place 300 clients in jobs they keep for at least six months in the first year.
The St. Ambrose Center in Park Heights also offers GED classes as well as job training programs in early childhood education, nursing assistant certification and food service, which about 220 people attended in the last year. One classroom is set up like a preschool, while another replicates a hospital room with beds and equipment where nursing students can get practical experience.
In the past, the center had been used as a food pantry and community center and for after-school programs, which have expanded and moved to other locations.
Using a one-on-one approach, the center's five staff members and about 10 volunteers work to determine clients' needs, which range from basic skills to more complex job searches, and build from there.
"The idea is not to just get people into jobs but to get them into careers where they can grow," said Jennifer A. Summers, development and marketing vice president for St. Vincent de Paul. "The idea is to move families out of poverty."
Mark Daniels, a 38-year-old Park Heights resident, has been in and out of jobs, including temporary office jobs and telemarketing work, but now has a goal of getting into the human resources, community outreach or workforce development field. About a month ago, he began coming to Career Connections, where he makes phone calls and does computer searches for jobs, and where he also found he could volunteer and build skills in workforce development.
The center's job skills programs have helped him understand "the thinking in the work world and being able to maneuver and avoid certain pitfalls," Daniels said.
In the job skills and readiness classes she teaches, career development specialist Regina R. Brown finds that many of her students have become accustomed to working more than one low-wage job with no benefits.
And many see no way out.
"They could use a huge dose of hope, just getting people to see this [job success] can happen for you too, that it's time to believe something good can happen for you," Brown said.


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Bedford Blues v Bristol
For Bedford not to have come away with anything form this game was the biggest disappointment of the afternoon as the Blues went down 19-32 to high flying Bristol.
That said, after the opening half an hour, the Blues were lucky to still be in the game after the visitors had coming firing out the blocks to score three tries which thankfully all went unconverted by Nicky Robinson.
Bedford found their rhythm though with Eoin Sheriff scoring his first Blues try on the 31st minute before impressive youngster Aaron Morris crossed twice to see the Blues leading 19-15 thanks to two Jake Sharp conversions.
Sadly, the Blues couldn't hold on and three more Bristol tries from Traynor, a second for Watkins and one for centre Ben Mosses secured the win for Bris with replacement fly half Adrian Jarvis converting once.
George Watkins got the scoreboard rolling following a huge scrum from the visitors. Ben Glynn broke following a ruck with the impressive Nick Koster in support and he offloaded to Cardiff Blues bound Watkins for the try.
Three minutes later and it was 0-10 to the visitors and again the try came through the graft of Koster who made a fine line break before popping the ball to Luke Eves to slide over the line.
Bedford had failed to get out of first gear and as Bristol attacked again, Brendan Burke was carded for deliberately slapping the ball out of old teammate Luke Baldwin's hand. Scott Spurling went off injured with Charlie Clare replacing him and then the powerful Bris scrum took its opportunity from five metres out. Amazingly, and despite three more penalties going their way, they weren't able to capitalise and Bedford were able to clear. Unfortunately though, the next wave of attack from Bristol did see Koster dotting down in the left corner.
Credit has to go to the Blues though as they didn't let their heads drop and as they put phases together a breakthrough finally came for Sheriff. Morris had spotted a gap and forced Bristol back into their own 22 before the Blues forward strung together several phases of pick-and-go which resulted in the dual-registered Sarries man reaching over the line for the try with Sharp converting on 31 minutes.
The half finished with Bedford in the ascendancy and Morris benefitted from a wayward Robinson pass that had no chance of finding its intended target. As the ball bounced away from Eves, Morris darted in, should excellent footballing skills to send the ball towards the try line and then gathered his kick to score. Sharp converted and Bedford were back in it 14-15 as the half time whistle blew.
Going down the slope, Bedford came out in determined fashion and took just seven minutes to get their reward. Burke was putting in some huge defensive tackles to keep the visitors at bay and then Bedford got an early penalty. Sharp had a crack from just inside the Bristol half but his effort was short. It mattered no though as the next Blues attack saw a third try.
Captain for the day Mark Atkinson showed an excellent turn of pace to outsmart the oncoming Bristol defence before the ball found its way out towards the left wing. Some quick handling saw Morris in the clear and the winger showed an experienced head as he dived to the try line and stretched over to score an unconverted effort.
There was drama to follow though as Bristol retook the lead just seven minutes later. Having worked the ball into Bedford's 22 they were awarded a penalty in front of the uprights but Robinson decided that a fourth try should be gotten. He sent the ball to touch and from the resulting lineout the pack trundled over with prop Kyle Traynor coming up with the ball but Jarvis fired the conversion wide.
When Andy Short was carded for a dangerous tackle on Patrick Tapley, it looked as if Bedford may have an opportunity to get back into the game. Sharp played a delightful chip over the top to where Short should have been but as we know, it is an odd shaped ball which bounces in different directions and on this occasion it went straight over the oncoming Tapley's head and into touch.
That was as good as it got for Bedford though and as the clock ticked down Bristol seized the opportunity to wrap things up with two more tries. Bristol guarded the ball well and went through numerous phases before Watkins spotted the gap and went over to score with Jarvis getting the conversion that put the game two scores away from Bedford.
As the Blues attempted to get what would have been deserved double bonus points (four tries and a defeat less than seven points), they were caught out. Bedford were in their own 22 and went on the charge but as Gillanders went into contact, the ball was ripped from his grasp and possession went to Bristol and finally to Mosses who crossed over to wrap things up 19-32.
A tough one to take on the chin but a hugely improved performance following the disappointment at Headingley a week ago.
Come on you Blues!!!
For more matchday pictures visit http://frontrow.photium.com/


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I was wandering through the Super Mega Ginormous Big Box Mart on Sunday evening, looking for some sweets to temper my wife's sadness at the impending loss of her friends, the "Desperate Housewives." ( As an aside, who is the most unlikable character on concluding TV series: Hugh Laurie's drug addicted narcissistic Gregory House or Teri Hatcher's babbling perpetual victim Susan Mayer Delfino?) Before I settled on a below average Turtle Chocolate Cake for two, I passed by a huge display of grilling stuff and grabbed a large bottle of mustard."50% MORE" and in small print the label added "than our 12 oz". Nowhere did the label say "our relish offers tips on long division."
The label on the mustard is in fact 100% right. Since there was no mention of "50% more for the same price as our 12 oz.", I can only conclude that the differential in font size and font style was intended to mislead the consumer. I further postulate that if the mustard maker feels a need to confuse me about size, there may be other facts the manufacturer is trying to hide.
A friend of mine that also happens to be a Rabbi is fond of saying "Being right and being righteous are not the same." I heartily agree.
How do you feel when people hide behind being right instead of striving to be righteous? Any examples?


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The U.S. Department of State
Index of articles from The U.S. Department of State
Diplomacy is an instrument of power, essential for maintaining effective international relationships. It is a principal means through which the United States defends its interests, responds to crises, and achieves its international goals. The Department of State is the lead institution for the conduct of American diplomacy, a mission based on the role of the Secretary of State as the President's principal foreign policy adviser.
To carry out U.S. foreign policy at home and abroad, the Department of State:
The above mission statement guides Department employees in conducting foreign affairs programs and activities. Department employees are also guided by a set of values, as individuals and as an institution. The work of these individuals has an impact on U.S. citizens, both domestic and abroad. Expertise in languages, understanding of foreign cultures, and management of complex issues and programs gained through international experience are essential elements of this work.
The Department exercises discipline in implementing policy, regardless of personal preferences, and its personnel are willing and able to serve worldwide as needed. Divergent views are expressed when necessary to strengthen the formulation and execution of foreign policy. The conduct of foreign relations is viewed as a long-term career commitment, rather than just a job. The Department workforce, a blend of Civil and Foreign Service employees and Foreign Service Nationals overseas, reflects the diversity of the United States.
Organization and Structure
The Department was established in 1789 to advise the President on the formulation and execution of foreign affairs. The Secretary heads the Department and is the President's principal foreign relations adviser. The Secretary is aided by a Deputy Secretary and five Under Secretaries who serve as the Department's corporate board on foreign policy in the following areas: political affairs; economic, business, and agricultural affairs; arms control and international security; global affairs; and management.
State Department Web Sites
How to Reach the U.S. Department of State
Important Telephone Numbers:


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Pictured: Jamie Clark, The Virginia B. and James O. Welch
'52 Head Coach for Harvard Men's Soccer
Photo courtesy: David Silverman Photography
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- After leading the Crimson to a 14-4-1 record and an appearance in the third round of the NCAA tournament, Jamie Clark, The Virginia B. and James O. Welch '52 Head Coach for Harvard Men's Soccer, was honored as the NSCAA/Mondo Northeast Region Coach of the Year.
In just his second season on the Harvard sideline, Clark guided Harvard to the Ivy League title, as the Crimson went 5-1-1 in Ancient Eight play. Harvard posted an 8-2 record at home during the fall and reached as high as No. 6 in the national polls, tying the highest the program has ever been ranked.
In addition to reaching the NCAA tournament for the fourth straight season, including the second consecutive year under Clark, the Crimson defeated Monmouth, 3-0, in a second-round matchup in the tournament. Harvard advanced to the third round for the first time since 1987, facing defending national champion Maryland.
Under Clark's tutelage, forward Andre Akpan was named the finalist for the Missouri Athletic Club's Hermann Trophy, presented to the nation's top collegiate player. Akpan and defender Kwaku Nyamekye were both selected in the 2010 MLS SuperDraft, as Akpan was chosen in the second round with the 22nd overall pick by the Colorado Rapids. Nyamekye was taken in the fourth round with the 60th pick by the Colorado Rapids. In addition, Akpan was honored as the Ivy League Player of the Year, while freshman forward Brian Rogers was tabbed the Ivy League Rookie of the Year.


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How to Use the Images Readings
(Courtesy of the Lackawanna Historical Society)
This drawing is part of a series commissioned by Ezra Ripple for his book about his time as a prisoner of war at Florence from 1864 to 1865. Reproduced from Dancing Along the Deadline (1996), edited by Mark A. Snell.
Questions for Drawing 3:
1) How many people are there in this picture? Where are these men and what do you think they are trying to do? (Refer to Reading 2, if necessary.)
2) What are the walls and roof of this structure made of and how was it constructed? (Refer to Reading 2, if necessary.) If you had been a prisoner in the Florence Stockade, do you think you would have wanted to help build and share a structure like this or would you have created another kind of shelter? Explain your answer, keeping in mind the work required to build a structure and the tools available.
3) What do you think the two men in the foreground are doing? Why would they be doing that? (Refer to Reading 2, if necessary.) Why do you think Ripple included this in his book about his time at Florence?


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CashelTech necesitaba un nuevo diseño de logotipo y lanzó un concurso de diseño en 99designs.
Un ganador ha sido elegido entre 123 diseños de 45 diseñadores freelance.
A data management company that will provide an interface between problems and a solution. We are looking to leverage our experience in web, telephony and mobile technologies to improve business and data management processes for our customers. No specific product yet, we are more of a software consulting business at this point.
We are a technology company just starting out looking to convey a sense of stability and security but also highlight the fact that we are new, very agile and responsive to customer needs.
Hospitals, manufactures. Not direct to consumers or the public, business to business solutions.
We are looking for a unique modern corporate logo with broad branding potential. We don't have a specific product but need a logo that can represent the company as a whole. The name of the company is inspired by the Rock of Cashel in Ireland, so themes along the lines of castles, Ireland, rocks are ok but not required, feel free to be creative.
Some things we require:
1. Up to 4 colors
2. Simple clean design/lines
3. Not circular in overall shape
Descubre cómo funciona un concurso de diseño u obtén más información sobre nuestros servicios de diseño de logo.


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Barnum board, teachers agree on contract
Following a 12-hour mediation session, the Barnum School Board and representatives of Education Minnesota – Barnum came to an agreement that was satisfactory to both parties, it was announced at the meeting of the Barnum School Board on Tuesday, February 19.
The teachers' union had approved the contracts, and the board approved the contracts for 2011-2013 and 2014-2015. The vote on the first contract passed unanimously, and the vote on the second contract passed, with Board Member Michael Line voting nay.
The professional staff will receive a 3.6 percent increase on the first contract, and 6.8 percent on the second contract, totaling $118,000 and $234,000 respectively.
Board Treasurer Paul Coughlin stated that this is the second year in a row that the Barnum School District has had over $200,000 in deficit spending.
The board approved the revised Fiscal Year 2013 budget as recommended by the Finance Committee.
Superintendent Dave Bottem announced that 30 more laptop computers will be purchased for the high school, and a larger receiver may be installed in the Media Center for WiFi.
He had recommended that the snow day on January 11, when the school had to be closed, could be made up on a non-student day at the end of the school year.
High School Principal Steve Brandt reported that the teachers are holding back on spending. They are not asking to go to trainings.
"When things turn around, we need to reinstate that and have them go to trainings," he said.
Brandt also explained that an advisory program is being considered, based on the University of Minnesota "Ramp Up for Readiness" and other programs, after instructors attend a workshop on March 13. An advisory time would be made for the teachers, if the program is implemented.
The program would consist of a one-on-one tutoring program to work with struggling students. A student helper and parents would be involved.
"We hope to have the program led by the teachers, and the teachers would implement the program in the fall," he said.
The next meeting of the Barnum School Board was set for Tuesday, March 19. A board working meeting was set immediately following the regular school board meeting to discuss the Fiscal Year 2014 budget and facility planning.